Chia-Berry Pudding

I made this for a class tonight and it came out really good! I realized that I say this phrase "really good" a thousand times a day and that my ! button is hanging on by a nano thread. But it's all really good and of course, it's all really healthy! The inspiration for this dessert/breakfast food came from the Whole Foods Market's website: Chia Pudding. Chia seeds contain a significant amount of dietary fiber, calcium, and omega-3's. In addition they produce a great tapioca effect when left in a liquid overnight. Enjoy!

2 cups unsweetened hemp milk
2/3 cups chia seeds
1 cup freeze dried blueberries
2 Tbsp raw honey

Whisk honey into hemp milk.
Add chia seeds and blueberries and whisk for 2-3 minutes.
Refrigerate overnight. Enjoy with an herbal tea.

taste rating: 3 stars
effort(scale 1-5): 2 easy

Veggie Stir-Steam(No-Oil/No Salt)

Veggie Stir-Steam(No-Oil/No Salt)-Large Batch Cooking....serves like 10

Ingredients were not measured but here are my estimates:

1 cup flax seeds
1 cup pumpkin seeds
1/2 cup walnuts
toast seeds in a hot pan until the flax seeds start jumping. put aside in a bowl

5 carrots-sliced
5 parsnips-sliced
Steam-saute in 2oz coconut water for 5-8 minutes. Cover but toss every minute, adding another oz of coconut water if dry before cooked.
place in a large serving bowl

1/2 large head red cabbage-chopped
1/2 pinky fresh ginger-minced
1/2 pinky fresh turmeric root-minced
2 cloves fresh garlic- minced
1/2 a large jalapeno-minced
1 large clove shallot-minced
1/2 bunch green onions-chopped
Steam-saute spices in 2 oz coconut water for 1 min then add cabbage and cover for 3 min
uncover and toss. Cook for another 3 minutes or so until done. Add to serving bowl.

2 heads of bok choy- one head at a time

1 head sliced bok choy-separating the green tops and the white bottoms

1/4 pinky fresh ginger-minced

1/4 pinky fresh turmeric root-minced

1 clove fresh garlic- minced

1/4 a large jalapeno-minced 

1 large clove shallot-minced

1/4 bunch green onions-chopped

steam saute spices in 2 oz coconut water for 1 min then add bok choy whites and cover for 3 min

uncover and toss. Add the greens and cook for another 3 minutes . Add to serving bowl.

Repeat for 2nd head of bok choy.

1 lb fresh crimini/baby bella mushrooms-sliced

1 Tbsp fresh garlic-minced

1/2 Tbsp fresh ginger-minced

1 large clove shallot-minced

Steam-saute spices in 2 oz coconut water and add mushrooms. Cook for a minute and toss. Repeat for 3-5 minutes adding coco water if dry before cooked. Add to serving bowl.

Toss all ingredients in the serving bowl with the juice of one freshly squeezed lemon for added flavor and preservation. I'm not sure if it's the polysaccharides in the shrooms or the flax seeds, but something in this dish coats the veggies with an oil-like texture. This is super tasty! Super healthy! And super fun to make! Enjoy with quinoa or brown rice!
Taste rating: 3.5 stars
Time spent: 1 star...takes a while, so have fun with it!

Setting the Mood

I have fun when I cook. It is my time to relax and have a spiritual connection with my food. I am 100% convinced that energy is transferable to water and food. Watch THIS and THIS. I want to emit positive vibrations while I cut my water filled veggies, or make my fresh carrot juice, or blend a green smoothie.

My thoughts and energy will positively or negatively charge my food. Energy is neither created nor destroyed...right Einstein? It makes sense that the energy I put into my thoughts or beliefs doesn't fall to the curb. It is transferred somewhere...maybe into my mango?

So to create a space of peace and love I have created a little cooking ritual. This is how I set the mood:

1. Totally clean my entire kitchen. This will allow me to relax and enjoy my space.
2. Light a candle or two. The light from the candle always brings peace.
3. Play relaxing music. As the ultimate mood setter, I highly recommend Pandora: Thievery Corporation.
4. Pop a bottle. For me it's: Organic Martenelli's Sparkling Apple Cider. For you, maybe a Belgian Ale
    or a bottle of Moscato. The point is to Celebrate our Food and Life. I drink a whole $5 bottle of
    sparkling cider in the hour or so that I cook :) even using a splash here and there to cook with.
5. Send thanks and love to the creator for providing the water and sunlight to grow these magical plants.   Shower the food with good vibrations.
6.Cut all my veggies, slap chop my onions, mince my garlic, etc before I cook. I cut everything and  
   place it in bowls to make the experience as smooth as possible. I'm going to start doing this for my
   classes now too.
6.Chef it up!

Life is Beautiful!

Of course I don't do this every time I'm in the kitchen. I do large batch cooking twice a week and this is when I create my happy space.

The Creation = Nutritionally Balanced & Superbly DELICIOUS
Oil-Free/Sodium-Free(except whats in the veggies)
Organic and Light
Full of Love
Food

Unleaded Please

I was just thinking about the simplicity of my diet at times. For instance, right now I have a HUGE bowl of No-oil stir fry in my fridge. I made it two nights ago and this will most likely last me four-five more days. I mix it with brown rice and I have my work lunchbox and late night snack too. Most people will say, no way! this is too boring! To this I think...we are animals, specifically mammals. Any other mammal on earth would be very content with the same meal everyday for a week. In fact, if we eat local with the seasons we will eat the same fruits & veggies everyday for three months. It seems we have totally lost sight of what food is. Food is our fuel. I have been putting regular unleaded in my tank for 15 years. Not once have I said, nope...feels like a diesel kinda day. Don't get me wrong, I LOVE food! But at the end of the day I hope to have only put the best fuel in my tank. So, this week it is: juice in the a.m., No-oil stir-fry, and a quickly dwindling stash of HONEYBELLS!!!
Plant <3