Kale Salad

It's that time of year when kale is in abundance.  I tend to use this amazingly healthy vegetable in soups and wilted in a small amount of broth.  However, unlike a lot of people that I know, I tend to struggle with the bitter taste of kale when consumed raw.  

Kale is a member of the cruciferous vegetable family, along with cabbage, broccoli, bok choy, brussel sprouts  and mustard greens to name a few.  It's their sulfur -containing compounds that lend them that bitter taste, but are a great indication of high micronutrient and phytochemical levels.  According to Dr. Fuhrman and scientific research, when these veggies are broken by blending, chopping or chewing, a chemical reaction takes place that converts the sulfur-containing compounds into ITCs (isothiocyanates), which are a combination of compounds with proven and powerful immune-boosting effects and anticancer activity.

So given how important this vegetable is in improving and maintaining my health, I am constantly on the look out for a recipe where I can tolerate enjoy this green, raw. Well, I have finally found the recipe and have to share it with you all.

I found this on the blog site The Fresh Exchange.  Initially it seemed quite labor intensive.  However, now that I have made it once and am familiar with all the steps, this will be one of those easy go -to dishes in my repertoire. 

Kale Salad with Tahini Dressing

Main Salad Ingredients:

1 Bunch of Tuscano Kale
1 Large Sweet Potato
2-3 Apples of your choice
1/2 cup Pumpkin Seeds (you can replace this with nearly any nut you have on hand honestly)
1/2 tsp Paprika
1-2 pinches of Sea Salt or Himalayan Pink Salt if you have it. 
1/2 tsp curry powder
1/2 tsp turmeric
1/2 tsp cinnamon
2 tbsp Coconut Oil

Dressing Ingredients:
1 cup Raw Apple Cider Vinegar with the mother. 
1/2 Cup Olive Oil 
1/2 Cup Tahini
1 knuckle of Ginger
2 cloves fresh garlic
1/4 tsp Turmeric
a pinch of Cayenne
1 tsp honey
1/2 tsp cinnamon
Juice of 1 Lemon
1/4 tsp Paprika

To make the salad, wash and chop the kale leaves and the apples and place in a large bowl. Then, once you have chopped the kale and apples, wash the large sweet potato and skin it. Once the potato is skinned, chop it into chunks and set in a separate bowl. Melt 1 tbsp of coconut oil (20 seconds in the microwave should do) then drizzle it onto the chopped potatoes. Place the other tbsp of coconut oil in a saute pan and begin to let it melt down. Toss the remaining spices in with the coconut oil, thoroughly coating the sweet potatoes. Once the oil has warmed up in the pan, saute the potatoes on medium to low heat until they are soft and no longer crunchy. Then take the sweet potatoes off the heat and let them cool, while you allow the potatoes to cool, place all dressing ingredients in your high speed blender and blend until a smooth consistency is created. If for any reason the dressing is too thick, add a little water to it or if it seems too thin add a little more tahini.

With the potatoes cooled and the dressing done, place the pumpkin seeds in the bowl with the kale and apples as well as the sweet potatoes. Toss it all together evenly. Once it is tossed begin to slowly drizzle the dressing on the salad. Toss and add dressing as needed. The salad is then ready to serve. If you have left over dressing, keep in a ball jar for left overs. It should last for about a week.

I cannot thoroughly express how delicious this dish was.  In fact I thought it was even tastier the next day as leftovers. Try this recipe and let me know how you like it.  

p.s.

If you think this recipe is healthy just for the kale you are mistaken!  The combination of the tumeric, ginger and garlic are all great anti-cancer, anti-inflammatory and knock out superfoods.  So have another bite of salad and savor all that goodness!

Helping you embrace Your Sensational Self, 

Shelley Allen  Health Coach  MS, OTR/L

www.yoursensationalself.com

www.facebook.com/yoursensationalself

yoursensationalself@gmail.com

or follow me on Instagram @shelley_allen24

or Twitter @shelleyhealth1

Delicious and Healthy Pancakes

One of the things that I do in my home to try to save money, save time, and eat with health in mind, is to make large batches of food to freeze.  Sunday morning was pancake morning.  Now I know that you are thinking that pancakes aren't all that healthy for you, and they definitely can fall into the nothing but processed crap category.  However, they don't have to be the worse thing on your breakfast plate. I am here to share how I have found ways to increase their health benefits and still have them taste delicious.

I can not recall where I first found my pancake recipe.  At this point in time I have modified it so much that the original is a mere shadow of what I currently use.  All these modifications have created a much healthier pancake recipe.  There are a couple of easy ways to make your own pancake recipe healthier.

First, in place of a small portion of the flour add ground flax, chia seeds, wheat germ or bran.  For 4 cups of flour make 1/2 a cup one or more of these additions.

Secondly, add a fruit or vegetable such as blueberries, pureed pumpkin, apples, applesauce, smashed banana or pureed sweet potato.  You can add between 1 and 2 cups of these into a 4 cup batch of cakes.

Finally, switch from a traditional white flour to a whole wheat.  I use a stoneground wheat.  You can also substitute buckwheat or oat flour for a gluten free choice.

My family's favorite flavors of pancakes are pumpkin and blueberry.  There are times that I have combined the two (also very delicious).  I have also made banana and apple pancakes as well.  This morning was our traditional batch of pumpkin and a batch of blueberry.

New England Long Pie Pumpkins
ready to cook down for the pancakes. 

These are made from scratch (no boxed mixes here, though the modifications would definitely benefit the store bought mixes).

Here is the general recipe for a triple batch:

3 3/4 c. stoneground, whole wheat flour
1/4 c. + 1/8 c. ground flax seed
1/4 c. + 1/8 c. wheat germ or wheat bran
1/2 c. sugar
5 1/4 tsp. baking powder
6 eggs, beaten
3 c. milk
1 stick butter
2 tsp. pure vanilla extract

For Pumpkin Pancakes, add 1 1/2 c. pureed pumpkin to the milk and butter mixture.  Add 1 tbsp. ground cinnamon and 1/2 tbsp. nutmeg to the dry ingredients.

For Blueberry Pancakes, add 2 c. fresh or frozen blueberries to the milk and butter mixture.  Add 1 tbsp. ground cinnamon to the dry ingredients.

When making apple cakes, dice the apples and utilize 2 cups as an addition to the milk and butter mixture.  Add 1 tbsp. cinnamon and 1/2 tbsp. nutmeg to the dry ingredients.

For Banana Pancakes, add 1 1/2 c. smashed banana to the milk and butter mixture.  Add 1 tbsp. ground cinnamon to the dry ingredients.

For Sweet Potato Pancakes, add 1 c. pureed sweet potato to the milk and butter mixture.  Add 1/2 tbsp. allspice to the dry ingredients.

Procedure:
In a medium saucepan, melt the butter.  Then add milk until just warm.  Add vanilla.  In a separate medium/large bowl, beat the eggs.  Add milk and butter mixture to eggs and combine (add fruit at this time).  In a large bowl, mix flour, flax, wheat germ or bran, sugar and baking powder (add spices at this time).  Heat up griddle at medium to medium/low heat.  Pour the wets into the dry mix and combine.  Stir until all dry ingredients are moist.  Use 1/3 c. measuring cup to ladle out batter onto the griddle.  If your batter is really thick, use a bit more milk to thin it.  When pancakes start to have air bubbles showing through the top, then flip.  Cook until done in the middle - roughly 3 minutes.

One triple batch will make roughly 30 pancakes.  From start to finish today (minus washing a few of the dishes), I worked at this for an hour and a half.  A good investment for over 60 homemade pancakes!  Enjoy some fresh and then, when cooled, place the rest in gallon freezer bags. Stick them in the freezer, and then reheat them during the week for a great breakfast.  Make sure to use only pure maple syrup on these delicious cakes.  To make this meal more complete add a healthy protein such as a hard boiled egg or scrambled eggs, or a serving of plain yogurt.

Yours in health,
Shelley Allen  Health Coach  MS, OTR/L

www.yoursensationalself.com

www.facebook.com/yoursensationalself

yoursensationalself@gmail.com

or follow me on Instagram @shelley_allen24

or Twitter @shelleyhealth1

Beet Chips

Well, I have taken a couple of weeks off, but have not been sitting idle.  I have been experimenting in the kitchen, prepping text for my new website, helping kids with homework, working and been sick.   So, in those two weeks, here is one thing I have discovered.

I am addicted to beet chips.

I have seen multiple pinterest posts about making beet, sweet potato, and zucchini chips.  As someone who has a weakness for the occasional BBQ potato chip, I figure these have to be better for me for multiple reasons.  First, I can bake or fry them myself and therefore know what it's taken to make them.  Secondly, I know the seasoning is simply salt.

So over the last couple of weeks I have been experimenting with making beet chips. And here are a couple of other things I have learned about beet chips.

1.  Mine rarely come out looking like the ones in the online pictures.

First I baked them.  I placed them on a wire rack, over a cookie sheet, and baked them (I hate frying stuff).  So here's what happened.  First, they burnt around the edges.  No matter how closely I watched them, they burnt.  However, the middle of the chips were typically still mushy. These chips didn't even warrant a picture.

So, next I cooked them in coconut oil.  I know that a vegetable or canola oil is more typical for frying foods, but these oils are inflammatory to our bodies, and therefore I try to keep my use of them to an absolute minimum.  These chips improved as I got the hang of it.  I found the ones sliced at 1/8th of an inch vs. slightly larger, came out much crispier.  Consistently, however, I found that even as I got the edges crisp, the middles were still mushy.  I did try to dry my beets on paper towels when taking them out of the oil, and then place them on drying racks to try to increase air circulation, but they were still mushy in the middle.

2. I can eat an entire beet (even one the size of a small football) by myself - is that a good thing?

So even though these two attempts did not come out looking like the pinterest posts said they should, they were still absolutely delicious. In fact, even the burnt ones were good.  I did share a few pieces of beet with my family, but found that I simply couldn't stop grazing on them.  Seasoned with a bit of Himalayan Salt these were better than any potato chip I have ever had.

I will keep experimenting with these recipes to see if I can get them perfected.  One of my friends suggested dehydrating them, which I will attempt next.  In the meantime, I will continue to eat even the ones that are less than picture perfect.  These are a delicious, sweet and salty treat and I am addicted.  This is one addiction I am willing to keep.

Yours in health,
Shelley Allen  Health Coach  MS, OTR/L

www.yoursensationalself.com

www.facebook.com/yoursensationalself

yoursensationalself@gmail.com

or follow me on Instagram @shelley_allen24

or Twitter @shelleyhealth1

3. I will keep making these chips and indulging in their deliciousness all winter.