Magenta Dream Salad

A delicious kale salad, plus an orange segmenting tutorial!

This is one of my all-time favourite salads (although I love all salads with fruit, avocado and nuts). It's sweet, slightly creamy, fresh, crunchy, contains jicama, and is an absolutely gorgeous shade of pink!

This also contains kale, which we should all know by know is a powerhouse of vegetable nutrition, and also tastes great in salads after a good massage.

This is my first dinner in my month-long raw food experiment, and it was delicious! I did have to eat about half of it before I was full, but I didn't mind one bit! I know tahini isn't raw (unless you specifically buy raw tahini), but I'm going to allow myself a few small cheats, as long as they're only condiments and I don't have them too often, or too much of them at once.

First of all, if you don't know how to segment an orange, here's how:

first, slice off the top an bottom

then cut off the rind with a knife, cutting in a bit of a curve to
get all the pith

your orange should know look like this

cut the orange out from between the membrane

 I usually like to cut the orange segments in half so more bites have orange in them, but this is optional.

Magenta Dream Salad

Ingredients

2 bunches kale, thinly sliced
1 fennel bulb, halved lengthwise and thinly sliced
2 medium-smallish beets, grated
1/2 small jicama, cut however you want (I can never figure out the best way to cut jicama for salad, so just do whatever you think is best. I cut it into flat squares)

use about this much ginger, or more

3 oranges, 1 zested
1 tsp grated ginger
1 avocado, thinly sliced, slices cut into quarters, the riper it is the creamier the salad will be
2 Tbsp raw apple cider vinegar
2 Tbsp olive oil
pinch of salt
pepper, to taste
1 tsp honey, optional
2 Tbsp tahini
1/2 cup walnuts, chopped (toast them if you're not eating raw)

Directions

1. Whisk together the vinegar, olive oil, tahnini, salt, pepper, honey (if using), ginger, and orange zest.

2. Put the kale in a bowl or on a large cutting board. Pour the dressing over it.

3. Cut the segments out of the oranges over the kale, so the juice falls on it. Once all the segments are cut, squeeze the remaining pulpy stuff so the juice falls on the kale, then discard.

4. Using your hands, squeeze the kale and mix it up with dressing; "massage" it.

5. Toss the kale with the fennel, beets, jicama, orange segments, and walnuts.

6. Eat it right away, or allow to marinate for stronger flavours and softer kale. Kale salads keep well without turning limp and soggy like lettuce salads.

7. Enjoy!

before tossing

after tossing

This post has been shared with Healthy Vegan Fridays.

Chinese Beansprout Salad

There are often times, usually a few days before the next grocery shopping trip is planned, were I start running out of fresh vegetables. At these times, beansprouts can be a lifesaver. I sprout my own, so the bag of dried beans is always sitting ready for me in my cupboard. It takes a bit of pre-planning, but beansprouts really help to stretch the last bits of fresh produce in my fridge until more can be bought. Did I mention that beansprouts are really healthy? Yeah, they contain protein, they're low in calories, and they've got tons of enzymes. Raw foodists love them because they're the most "live" food you can eat. (Unless you eat a live bug, but I don't think anyone really wants to do that on a regular basis.)

This is one way I enjoy beansprouts. They're also really good with some leftover roasted winter squash and peas.

Chinese Beansprout Salad

1 cup mung beansprouts

1/2 red bell pepper, chopped

1 carrot, grated

1/2 cup sugar snap peas, chopped

1 tsp rice wine vinegar

1 tsp organic tamari, nama shoyu, or coconut aminos

1 tsp sesame oil

1/2 tsp grated fresh ginger (or less, to taste)

pinch of red pepper flakes

optional: a few grinds of pepper (I like to put pepper in everything)

1. Whisk together the tamari, vinegar, oil, ginger, red pepper flakes, and optional pepper.

2. Combine the beansprouts, carrot, bell pepper, and sugar snap peas.

3. Pour the dressing over the salad and toss to combine.

Thai Peanut Slaw

I find most coleslaw pretty disgusting. It's just gloopy, way too sugary, and is made basically with equal parts cabbage and mayonnaise. And sugar. If you're lucky, there might be some carrots thrown in. This can be described in one word: ick. I also don't really care for the coleslaws made with an oil and vinegar dressing. I like my raw cabbage creamy. But not with mayo made from genetically modified rancid yellow seed oils. So there's a bit of a dilemma. Luckily, like all problems consisting of a yearning for creaminess and a refusal to achieve said creaminess with GMOs, this can be solved with coconut milk. I love coconut milk.

Best brand, thick and creamy
and only contains coconut milk

Like bacon, caramelized onions, and peanut butter, coconut milk makes everything better. :D And this recipe includes coconut milk, peanut butter, and onions! (well, the onions are fried, not caramelized, but close enough.) Sadly, no bacon. :( It probably wouldn't work with the other flavours. The other flavours, by the way, are Thai. Yes, I love Thai flavoured things. I wonder if it has something to do with my love of coconut milk and peanut butter? Especially since Thai food is one of the few ways of incorporating both those foods into vegetables, so it's healthier and it keeps you from eating an entire jar of peanut butter in one sitting. Anyway, this was delicious if I do say so myself. But really, how can you go wrong  with coconut milk and peanut butter? (By not adding enough, that's how!) :D So enjoy your coleslaw, because it can be much more interesting and delicious and healthy than cabbage and mayo.

One final note: while writing this, I suddenly thought, sprinkling of shredded coconut. And tamarind in the sauce. Why do I never get these ideas while I'm cooking? It was terrific without these additions, but it would be nice to add them. A fancy drizzle of tamarind puree would be really pretty.

Thai Peanut Slaw

Ingredients

1/2 head cabbage
2 carrots, grated
1 red bell pepper, very thinly sliced
1 onion, very thinly sliced
3 cloves of garlic, halved lengthwise and very thinly sliced
2-inch knob of ginger, half of it grated, half of it cut into very thin matchsticks
1-2 Tbsp coconut oil (enough to fry the onions, garlic and ginger)
salt
1 cup coconut milk
3/4 cup peanut butter
juice of 1 lime
2 tsp tamari or nama shoyu
red pepper flakes, to taste
1/2 english cucumber, very thinly sliced
cilantro sprig, tamarind puree, and/or shredded coconut to garnish

Directions

1. Lay the cucumbers in a ring around the edge of your serving dish (this is optional, it adds to the presentation. You could also just cut the cucumber into very thin noodle-type threads and add them in with the other vegetables).

2. Combine the cabbage, carrots, and peppers.

3. Heat the coconut oil over high heat.

4. Add the onions, garlic, and ginger matchsticks. Fry until crispy, stirring frequently. Remove to paper towels to drain and sprinkle with salt.

5. Whisk together the coconut milk, peanut butter, lime, tamari, red pepper flakes, and the grated ginger. Taste and adjust seasonings if necessary. 

6. Toss together the sauce, the vegetables, and the fried onion mixture.

7. Place in the serving bowl with the cucumbers, sprinkle with shredded coconut, drizzle with tamari puree, and garnish with cilantro, if using.

St. Patrick's Day Very Green Veggie Saute

It's not St. Patrick's Day anymore, but I'll share the recipe anyway! It's not even much of a recipe really; the great thing about sautes is that you can throw just about anything in them and it'll taste great! Vegetable sautes are quick, healthy, yummy, versatile and very flexible. Any kind of green vegetable will work, but these are the ones I used:

Green Veggie Saute

Ingredients

1/2 onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 small zucchini, halved lengthwise and sliced
1 stalk of celery, sliced
1 small head of broccoli, chopped
1 bunch kale, sliced
herbs, fresh and dried, to taste (I used green onions, parsley, and dried sage, thyme and marjoram)
salt and pepper, to taste
fat to saute in

Directions

1. Heat the fat in a saute pan to medium heat.

2. Add the onions. Saute until just light brown.

3. Add the garlic and celery, cook for a few minutes.

4. Add the zucchini and broccoli. Cover and cook until almost tender. Add some water or broth if the vegetables are in danger of burning.

5. Add the kale, herbs, salt and pepper. Stir everything until the kale is wilted and the rest of the vegetables are tender.

6. Serve, either as a light main course (probably for lunch), a side dish, or as a more filling main course topped with meat of fish.

Who needs neon green cupcakes when you can have something so delicious and healthy for St. Patrick's Day? Load up on the greens, any day of the year!

Butternut Squash Puree

This is so simple and easy, and it's super delicious! I'm definitely going to make this again; it was so good! Maybe I'll try some variations, roasted red pepper and thyme instead of the ginger? It's a pretty basic recipe, so if inspiration hits, feel free to add any additions that sound good to you. Save the seeds from the butternut squash, they're great toasted and used as a garnish.

Coconut Ginger Butternut Squash Puree 

Ingredients

1/2 butternut squash, cut into small squares (the bottom half)
1 onion, chopped
3 cloves of garlic, chopped
2-inch knob of ginger, chopped; or 1/2 Tbls dried ginger
1 cup coconut milk
salt pepper, to taste
coconut oil, melted

Directions

Not all of my squash fit into my mini
food processor, so I just mashed
it up and added it in at the end.

1. Set you oven to 450*F.

2. Toss the butternut squash cubes with salt, pepper, and coconut oil to coat. Roast in the oven for about an hour, or until tender. (Mine were all piled on top of each other in a small dish, so they might not take so long if spread out on a cookie sheet)

3. Meanwhile, saute the onion over medium heat in some more coconut oil.

4. When the onion is lightly browned, add the garlic and ginger and cook for another minute or two. (If using dried, just add the ginger to the food processor with the rest of the ingredients)

5. Put the onion mixture into a food processor along with the coconut milk. Puree for a few seconds. 

6. Add the roasted squash and puree until smooth. Taste, and add more salt, pepper, garlic, or powdered ginger if needed.  

Done! I also added some lacto-fermented carrots, as I'm always
trying to fit more into my diet, but I don't really like the taste.

Delicious and filling when served over broccoli and garnished
with the toasted squash seeds.

  I served this over broccoli, but I bet it would be good on top of any cooked vegetable, fish or chicken, cooled and served as a dip, as a dressing for kale salad (okay, that sounds delicious. I'm going to have to try it!), with some curry powder as a curry sauce, or even thinned with some broth and served as soup. Or a sauce for casserole. Hmm, that would be interesting. Strange, but could be good. Anyway, it's versatile, so innovate! Enjoy!