Catching Up on Summer Foodie Goodness

I’ve realized I’ve been hoarding a lot of food photos from the summer…Lots of fruit and veggie goodness… many salads and stir fries and simple things. It’s been too hot to cook anything elaborate so I’ve kept things pretty simple. The summer has also made me pretty social, so there have been meals out at lovely places like Fresh, Live and various sushi restaurants.

This weekend I also made a couple of raw soups as a part of Meghan’s green smoothie weekend. I had a lot of fun with an abundance of green smoothie goodness, but wanted to change things up a little bit. Both recipes were from Natalie Rose’s Raw Food Life Force Energy. The first was pumpkin pie in a bowl I opted for steamed sweet potato since I don’t have a high powered blender and it turned out beautifully. It truly was like pumpkin pie in a bowl and it made me really happy.

The second was the pineapple’s just peachy soup with pineapple, berries, spinach, mint and some sweet Ontario peaches. I fed some of this to one of my roommate’s and he inquired what made it a soup and not a smoothie? I said it was because I opted to eat it out of a bowl with a spoon rather than from a glass. I guess it could be a smoothie too, although I might add some additional liquid. I loved the fresh flavour and really enjoyed the pineapple and peach combo.

I’m hoping to get back to the farmer’s market today to pick up some more delicious summer-y goodies while they’re still fresh and delicious!

What are your summer staple foods? Are you looking forward to any particular fall foods?

Re-Fuelling With A Mini Vacation, Sunshine and Ashley x2 Adventures

I’m still in blissed-out vacation mode, so I’ll let the pictures do the talking Fuelling up for the bus ride with some scrambled tofu with kale On the streetcar to the bus station with my bags and food ready to go! I brought veggie burgers, some fruits & veggies, cooked quinoa, soy milk, cereal and some snacks with me. Ashley’s family was so sweet about accommodating me, but I just wanted to be sure I would be okay!  The family cottage was in a super cute little resort called Sherkston Shores, located near Fort Erie. Their cottage was adorable and everything we needed was within walking distance (although most of the people there have golf carts which they adorn and soup up like cars… it’s a very strange phenomenon) I ate so much yummy fruit and salad while I was thereThe hardest decision I honestly made on my mini-vacation was the ratio of time spent at the beach vs. time spent at the pool vs. time napping.  We spent our days at the beach and/or pool spending time in the water, chatting, reading, planning our cabaret or just relaxing. We usually followed this up with a nap for good measure and then frolicked around the resort in the evening. There were some pina coladas and daiquiris involved, lots of laughing, trouble and many people knowing us as “the Ashley’s”.

It was Ashley’s mom’s birthday on Tuesday, so we took a trip to nearby Niagara Falls to check out the Maid of the Mist. It was a lot of fun. They weren’t kidding about it being misty and I was certainly happy to be sporting my super-flattering blue rain poncho. Being back in Niagara Falls reminded me of my vacation last year, but I was so happy to be there with such a good friend and managed to really enjoy myself. We went to Sandstone for dinner, and as I learned last year, Niagara Falls doesn’t really cater to the gluten free vegans in the world. I opted for a margarita and a Greek salad without feta and a side order of rice.

Where is the rice you ask? Well, when they brought me the rice, the waiter mentioned something about it being 7-grain. I asked him what else was in it, and soon discovered that it contained barley, which is not gluten free. Argh!! I asked for something to replace it and was served up a plate of French fries. Rice debacle aside, it was a really fun night and Ashley’s mum had a great birthday.

I was sad to say goodbye to the beach on Wednesday, but was able to get in another full day of sunshine, SPF 50 sunscreen and quality time with Ash. A vacation was exactly what I needed. Thank you to Ashley and her family for making me feel so welcome!! I came back to the city on Wednesday night feeling rejuvenated and refreshed after lots of rest, sunshine, and beautiful weather without my laptop or cell phone. I am in such a great mood, feeling inspired, motivated and ready to make the most of the last month of summer!!

How was your long weekend? Have you taken any vacation time this summer? How do you feel following a great vacation?

If You Need Me I’ll Be…

Cottaging with this beautiful gal!

Definitely looking forward to a little (well-deserved) R&R and quality time with Ashley and her familia. Will be back with a recap of the whole thing (and what I ate) on Thursday or Friday. Also coming up this month:

• Meghan’s Green Smoothie Cleanse this weekend – check out the newly revised tutorial
• A post about living the full width of your life
• An amazing giveaway from one of my favourite companies!!

Have an amazing week!

Colour & Kale, Two Things I could Never Live Without

Seriously though, how awesome is kale?

Kale and its offspring, the kale salad, pop up in the blog world all the time and it brings me so much joy. I knew that my kale from the farmer’s market on Thursday was just crying out to made into a salad, so, inspired by my favourite salad at Live Organic Food Bar, I created this baby.

Salad
1 bunch kale, washed and torn/chopped into small pieces
salt
1 beet, scrubbed
1 carrot, scrubbed
2 tbsp walnuts
sundried tomatoes, soaked in warm water

Dressing
1/4 avocado
1 tbsp apple cider vinegar
2 tsp flax oil
2 tsp wheat-free tamari
salt, to taste
agave, to taste

Place washed kale in a bowl. Add a few dashes of salt and let it sit until kale wilts and softens. Read this trick this morning and it definitely worked!

Combine all dressing ingredients in a bowl and mash together to get a creamy consistency. Measurements can be adjusted to suit your tastes. I added the agave at the end for a hint of sweetness and it was perfect.

Massage the dressing into the kale. Give it some love! Resist urge to lick dressing off your fingers once kale massage is over.

Shred beets and carrot in food processor using the grater/shredder attachment. Chop softened sundried tomatoes.

Place shredded beets and carrot on top of greens. Add walnuts & sundried tomatoes and enjoy!

It was the best lunch I’ve had in a long time. So satisfying and full of flavour!

What is your favourite salad?

I Love Rainbows, Especially Vegetable Ones

This month at Weight Watchers, we’ve been talking about working towards at least 5 servings of fruits and veggies a day. We did a similar challenge last year with much success and last week we (once again) discussed incorporating a rainbow of colour into our meals.

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I love colour and making meals pretty by using a variety of colour is a lot of fun and tends to make food much more interesting. Summer is an amazing time for colour in the produce section with tonnes of amazing fruits and veggies that are just bursting with colour!! With this in mind, I headed to the East Lynn Farmer’s Market on Thursday to pick up some goodies. I was super impressed with the organization and the number of booths. I also learned later that members of the community take turns feeding the farmers and ensuring that they are well taken care of. Love that! I picked up some carrots, cauliflower, swiss chard, kale, peaches, eggplant and one of the farmers threw in some complimentary lemon basil – amazing!!

I had Lindsay over for dinner last night and made the cauliflower lentil curry from Veganomicon over some quinoa I left out the jalapeño and the parsnip and added in some Swiss chard in the last 5 minutes of cooking. It was such a yummy meal and a great use for the cauliflower and the chard! Later in the week I’ll be putting the kale to use in a salad (inspired by the one at Live) and the eggplants will be used in a dish inspired by Noelle at an Opera in the Kitchen.

How do you incorporate a rainbow of colour into your meals? What are your tips for getting in at least five servings of fruits & veggies each day?