living naturally fair 2012 :: recipes

I had an incredible time doing smoothie demos at the Whole Foods Market Living Naturally Fair 2012 this past Sunday.  I was thrilled to be a part of such a great event, and more specifically, to take Juice Caboose to the next level - education!  This was my first time on stage, so I was a little nervous, but it turned out better than I expected and I'm looking forward to more opportunities like this to share my passion for raw vegan smoothies and foods.

As promised to all those that made it to the demo, I'm posting my smoothie recipes from the demo here for replication and assimilation into your own blenders!  I did two smoothies, one Green Smoothie and one Gourmet Smoothie.

Sunshine :: Green Smoothie Recipe
~ Makes 2 Servings

2 C Fresh OJ
1 Large Kale Leaf or 5-6 Small Kale Leafs (remove from stem)
1/2 Lemon, juiced
2 t Ginger
1/4 C Unpasteurized Honey
1 C Ice

Load all ingredients into blender and blend until smooth.  Enjoy!

A Few Pointers for Green Smoothies:

1.  Green Smoothies are composed of liquids, fruits, and green leafy vegetables.
2.  Drink Green Smoothies first thing in the morning.  Wait 1/2 an hour before eating anything else if you are still hungry.
3.  Keep them RAW!  You don't have to be a raw foodist to reap the benefits of pure raw food nutrition.  No canned coconut, pasteurized juices, protein powders or pasteurized nuts masking as raw nuts that will compromise the integrity of the raw minerals and nutrients.  Let the smoothie do what it is known to do.  Heal from the inside out.  This smoothie will take less than 30 minutes to go through your digestive tract.  Anything else in it, will compromise that and slow digestion and lead to improper food combining and take away from the healing benefits.
4.  Keep out starches like broccoli, carrots and cabbage and make sure to take your green leaves off their stems which can also cause gas.
5.  If you have a regular blender as opposed to a Vitamix, put the liquid and greens in first and blend until smooth before adding the rest of your ingredients.

Black Forest ::  Gourmet Smoothie Recipe
~  Makes 2 Servings

1 Thai Coconut, Water and Meat scooped out
1 C Cherries, pitted
1/2 C Blueberries
1 Nectarine
2 t Vanilla Bean Powder
2 T Raw Cacao Nibs
2 T Sesame Seeds
1/4 C Agave Nectar
Pinch Sea Salt
1 C Ice

Load all ingredients into blender and blend until smooth.  Enjoy!

A Few Pointers for Gourmet Smoothies:

1.  When Vanilla Bean Powder isn't available to me I use Pure Vanilla Bean Extract that doesn't have alcohol in it.  You can use the same amount.  Although not raw, it is a great substitute and easier on the budget.
2.  All agave nectars are not created equally.  Some are known to be processed at extremely high temperatures rendering them the same as corn syrup in nutritional value.  If you are unsure about agave, substitute with unpasteurized honey or if you are a vegan, use soaked and pitted dates.  If you prefer something low glycemic like agave is supposed to be, substitute with apple or pear juice.  Double up the amount that you put in.
3.  Sesame seeds, hemp seeds and chia seeds are my preferred protein ingredients in a smoothie.  They are easy to digest and don't require soaking.  If you would like to use nuts, try to find real raw almonds or cashews and soak them before.
4.  Thai Coconut is high in electrolytes making it a great food to consume after a workout.
5.  Raw cacao nibs or cacao powder is pure chocolate straight from the cacao bean.  It does contain caffeine and therefore is energizing.  I keep raw cacao out of my sons smoothies if it is past a certain time of day to ensure it doesn't keep him energized all night! It also contains antioxidants.

I hope you all enjoyed the fair as much as I did.  There was just so much goodness to sample not to mention all the money raised for Kidsafe.  Congrats to all the chefs, musicians, vendors and team members of Whole Foods that contributed to such a successful event!  Thanks to all that attended and supported this fantastic event!

Juicy Suzy

living naturally 2012 at whole foods robson

I'm thrilled to announce that on Sunday September 16th at 12:30 to 1:30 pm, I will be doing a Green Smoothie and a Gourmet Smoothie demo on stage at the Living Naturally Fair, hosted by Whole Foods Robson.  Enjoy all-natural and organic samples from over 50 vendors plus living music, the chef stage and activities for children.

Here's a list of all the other chefs that will be doing demo's:

Saturday September 15th
11 am to noon - Derek Sarno
12:30 pm to 1:30 pm - Lucritia Schanfarber
2:00 pm to 3:00 pm - Eden Macdonald
3:30 pm to 4:30 pm - Tricia Sedgwick

Sunday September 16th
11 am to noon - Andrea Potter
12:30 pm to 1:30 pm - Suzanne Serwatuk, ME!
2:00 pm to 3:00 pm - Lindsay Christianson
3:30 pm to 4:30 pm - Julia Spitale

Hope to see you there!

Juicy Suzy

rose water & mango

One thing I'm really loving lately is rose water.  My son and I discovered rose water in our smoothies a while back at Buddha-Full in North Vancouver, and C especially liked it.  We had some rose water in the house but he quickly drank it up.  I was inspired to get some again recently with all the talk of flowers, spring and mothers day and I've been mixing it into various concoctions.  My favourites are whipped topping with rose water and berries and the smoothie above, a Vegan Rose Water Lassi.  This one is sooo delicious!  I just had to share, maybe some special moms might get one on their special day this Sunday!

Vegan Rose Water Lassi

::  1 mango

::  1 T hemp seeds

::  1 cup water

::  3-4 large ice cubes

::  2 T of agave

::  2 t of Rose Water

::  1/4 t of ground cardamom - MOM!

::  pinch of cinnomon

::  rose petals for garnish (felt rose found here)

Pour all ingredients into a blender pitcher and blend until smooth.  Serves 2.  ENJOY!

Interested in the healing benefits of roses?  Roses and variations of roses be it, in tea, rose water, on skin etc. are pretty incredibly nutritional and healing.  I was surprised to see how much roses can heal and wondered why we don't use them more often.  Check it out here.

Juicy Suzy

cinco de mayo :: raw vegan horchata

Happy Cinco de Mayo!  Interested in celebrating today with a delicious, tasty and dare I say healthy option!  Check out Annemarie and Kevin from The Renegade Health Show's take on a raw vegan version of the creamy sweet Horchata drink.  Click here to check it out!  It's so yum.  Of course, prepping it is a little time consuming like a lot of raw vegan recipes but then how often does Cinco de Mayo happen.  That's a rhetorical question!

Today we'll be celebrating with a few virgin cocktails and some Fresh Tomatillo Salsa.  I first tried tomatillo's last summer, fresh from the farmer at the Kitsilano Farmer's Market.  What a delight!  Just on it's own, so beautiful, wrapped in it's little paper husk.  Tomatillo's are a real treat.

::  photo source  ::

Another great and original salsa recipe that I discovered recently was by Emma at the Food Coma Blog.  She dabbles here and there into vegan and gluten free recipes but mostly her passion for food and experimenting with recipes is inspiring to me.  I love to frequent that space.  Here is her delicious Strawberry Salsa recipe that she posted recently if you are looking for a little something different!  Strawberry and cilantro together = YUM!  Gives me an idea for a new smoothie recipe....  

Hope you have a festive day.

Juicy Suzy

cold remedy #2 (raw, vegan)

I tried out the "Cantaloupe Cold Cure" by David Wolfe found in his book The Sunfood Diet Success System.  I was hugely impressed with the effectiveness of this particular remedy.  For one, I didn't follow David's instructions to a T and it still seems to have worked.  Here is a general overview of the Cantaloupe Cold Cure:

-  Go to bed early

-  Do not eat anything until noon after waking

-  Eat an entire cantaloupe.  

-  Do not eat anything for the next 4 hours.

-  If symptoms persist drink 1/2 a quart daily of the 'Medicine' drink.

Here's where the true effectiveness came in for me.

David Wolfe's Medicine Drink

-  1 ripe red Jalopeno or orange Habanero

-  5 ribs of Bok Choy

-  10 Kale leaves  

Juiced.  

I added an apple to mine.  I was pretty sure that I wouldn't be able to handle the intensity of the pepper as I'm not a big pepper fan.  The drink wasn't overly delicious but it was better than Buckley's.  The first sip I didn't think I would be able to handle the rest of the drink but I slowed myself down, relaxed and drank the rest.  It wasn't as spicy as I had predicted.  A little while later... I felt great!  Really great! Revived great!  Conquer the world great!  I was so impressed.  For the rest of the day, I noticed that all my cold symptoms seemed to slowly be dissipating.  The sniffles left.  My sinuses cleared.  This truly was a cure which wasn't what I expected.  I had thought it would really just be a remedy and support healing but my symptoms just seemed to clear up. 

It reminded me of this quote from Friends (minus the sarcasm):

"Isn't that just kick-you-in-the-crotch, spit-on-your-neck, fantastic".

I will definitely be keeping this recipe for my old wives recipe book and pulling it out for all future flus and colds that come along. 

Juicy Suzy

cold remedy #1 (non vegan)

My son and I have had an ongoing battle for the past couple of weeks with a cough and cold.  First he had it, then I had it, then he had it and so on.  Naturally, I prefer natural remedies and try to use them whenever I can.  It's nice if a helpful cure can be found in the produce section as opposed to the pharmacy.  I decided to give a couple of recipes a go this time round.  The first was an excuse to try out Manuka Honey which I've been hearing great things about.  Manuka Honey is a particular type of honey found in Australia/New Zealand and contains antibacterial properties which are good for healing.  I even heard someone with diabetes rave about it, as he was able to eat the 16+ variety every morning on his toast.

The first recipe I tried out was from the book 500 Smoothies & Juices by Christine Watson.  This is a hot drink with fresh pressed grapefruit and ginger.  The original recipe called for 2 peeled lemons but can be substituted with an orange or grapefruit.  Although I didn't try it I was especially curious about the extra strength cold remedy drink that included the lemons and a tablespoon of French brandy!

Cold Remedy

1 peeled grapefruit
3/4 inch piece of fresh ginger, peeled
1 T Manuka Honey
3/4 C boiling water
Sprig of fresh rosemary

Put the grapefruit and ginger through a juicer.  Put into a large mug and mix with the honey, water and rosemary.  Let it steep for 5 minutes and drink.

This was a lovely drink and it definitely relaxed me and took care of the dry cough and tickly throat experience that I was having.  Although not a cure for the common cold, it's a nice drink to soothe and support healing.  I especially loved the taste combination of grapefruit and rosemary.  Very yum.  As for the Manuka Honey, it was delicious and also supported the healing the process.  I enjoyed a few more tablespoons in the Traditional Medicinal's Cold Formula Tea.  Very yum as well.  

Stop by tomorrow for the vegan cold remedy that I tried from David Wolfe's The Sunfood Diet Success System.

Juicy Suzy

avocado pear vanilla

This is a great smoothie for starting the day.  It fills me up and keeps me full longer. I've also brought this one with me when I'm out and it gets me going again if I'm on the go.  

Some good things about avocados:

• About 75% of an avocado's calories come from fat, most of which is monounsaturated fat.  Yes good fat!
• On a 100 g basis, avocados have 35% more potassium than bananas (even more if you blend up the pit!).  They are rich in B Vitamins as well as Vitamin E and K.
• Avocados have a high fiber content.  

Avocado Pear Vanilla Smoothie

-  1 Ripe Avocado

-  1 Pear 

-  1/2 t Vanilla 

-  1 C Ice

Blend and pour. 

Some variations include chopping up the pear and freezing it and replacing the ice cubes with frozen pear chunks.  Also, to sweeten up this smoothie you can add a little honey, agave or apple juice.  I've tried it with pear juice and it is a REAL treat!

If you are wondering about the kind of vanilla that we use in the Juice Caboose, I would like to introduce you to one delicacy that the Juice Caboose will not live without!  We purchase pure ground vanilla that is made from top quality Ugandan vanilla beans.  It is 100% pure ground vanilla that is both unheated and Certified Organic.  We use a minimal amount in our smoothies but it makes all the difference in flavor.  We purchase from Real Raw Foods in Naramata BC, a great BC company that we are proud to support.  They buy the best products for the best prices and all of their products are well researched and approved to meet high raw food standards.

::  photo source  ::

When I'm at home and don't always have some vanilla bean powder to dip into to, it is decadent and not cheap, I use Frontier Vanilla Flavour.  It is an alcohol-free vanilla extract and although it is not raw it suits me fine in my smoothies when I want to add some vanilla.  I would never use my vanilla powder in my baking.  That's just me being cost efficient.  It is way too precious for me to put into anything cooked and lose it's raw goodness and vitality.  

In old medical literature, vanilla is described as an aphrodisiac and a remedy for fevers.  A little something to keep in mind for Valentines Day coming up!  

Juicy Suzy

carrot mango banana

My then 4 year old is the one that would request this combination last summer.  I guess you could say that this is his recipe!  I made one up for us this morning and it was my idea to add a little nutmeg which is warming in the midst of the ice cubes and the winter weather.  This one filled us up good before we hit Ambleside Beach with our dog.  This smoothie is also tasty without the banana but we enjoy the sweetness and creaminess that the banana provide.  You can also eliminate the ice cubes and just use frozen bananas or mangos or both.  Enjoy!

Carrot Mango Banana Smoothie

-  1 C Fresh Carrot Juice

-  1 Banana

-  1 Atulfo Mango

-  1/2 C Ice Cubes

BLEND!  ENJOY!

XO, 

Juicy Suzy