Camote Tops Smoothie

I made a couple of camote tops smoothie the previous month but didn't write down the recipe. I would normally record unique smoothies that I make but not this one and I don't know why. A friend asked for this recipe and luckily I made one this afternoon (I got hungry ;)  ).

If I am new to smoothies I would make this recipe like this:

1 cup coconut drinking water
1 cup camote tops
1 stick celery
2 medium size medium banana
1/2 inch ginger
1 teaspoon chia seeds

You may want to do that if you are new to this but if you want to follow what I did today here it is:

Recipe:

1 cup almond milk
1 1/2 cups camote tops
1 stalk celery
1/2 cup mango or 1 pear
1/2 inch ginger
1 medium frozen banana
1 tablespoon raw aloe vera

Optional:
1 teaspoon chia seeds
1 teaspoon spirulina powder
1 tablespoon tahini

*Blend milk, camote tops, celery, mango, ginger, banana and aloe vera in a high powered blender for 2 minutes. Add chia seeds, powder and tahini for 15 seconds to make sure everything are blended nicely. Enjoy!

Donut Muffins

The great thing about social network like Facebook is that recipes are shared around. I got this recipe over there and I thought I'd try. I changed some ingredients and it is still fluffy and delicious. Now I repeat, this is NOT my recipe and whoever owns this, well done!

Recipe:

1 cup wholemeal flour
3/4 cup plain flour
1/2 tsp himalayan salt
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp cinnamon
3/4 cup palm sugar
1 egg
1/3 olive oil
3/4 cup milk

Combine dry ingredients. Mix liquids in separate bowl. Add liquids to dry and combine together well, without over beating. Bake at 180 degrees for 20 to 25 mins.

While muffins are still hot, dip into melted butter and roll into sugar (1/4 cup) and cinnamon (1/4 cup) mixture.

Serve while hot and enjoy!

Delicious Dragon Fruit Smoothie

From the cactus family, specifically the genus Hylocereus or sweet pitayas,dragonfruit is football-shaped and has a leathery, leafy skin that is deep red or pink in color. It comes in three varieties, red flesh, white flesh and yellow flesh, all of which are embedded with hundreds of black seeds and have a mild, sweet taste. The best-tasting variety is the one with red flesh, which is succulent when eaten.

Dragonfruits are rich in vitamin C, containing 9mg per serving that is equivalent to 10 percent of the daily value. Thus, eating dragonfruits helps strengthen your immune system and promotes faster healing of bruises and wounds. In fact, regular eating of dragonfruits will help ward off chronic respiratory disorders such as asthma and cough. Dragonfruits also contain B vitamins such as B1 for better carbohydrate metabolism, B2 for recovery and improvement of appetite, and B3 for reducing bad cholesterol while improving the skin condition.

Dragonfruits are also packed with minerals such as calcium for stronger bones and teeth, phosphorus for tissue formation and iron for healthy blood. One dragonfruit contains approximately 8.8g of calcium, 36.1mg of phosphorus and 0.65mg of iron.

More informations about dragonfruit is here http://www.fitday.com/fitness-articles/nutrition/healthy-eating/the-nutritional-value-of-dragonfruit.html#b

So here is my delicious recipe for my dragon fruit smoothie. This recipe makes two servings.

1 whole Dragonfruit (peeled and cut into 4 pieces)

1 cup coconut drinking water

1 cup lettuce

1 frozen banana

1 inch ginger

Blend all ingredients in a high powered blender. Enjoy!

Green Mango Smoothie

The first thing that came to my mind when sissy Jing (a beautiful friend of mine with a good heart) and her wonderful husband handed me a bag of green mangoes was smoothie. Her family just came back from their holiday in Queensland (Australia) and they got these sweet mangoes with the help of our friend Maricel and her relatives. Such great people!

So here is the recipe.

1 mango (meat only)

1 cup of kale

1 big aloe vera (meat only)

1 frozen banana

1 inch ginger

1 cup coconut drinking water

1 tablespoon of chia seeds

1 teaspoon of spirulina powder

1/2 teaspoon bee pollen

Blend mango, kale, aloe vera, banana, ginger and coconut water in a high powered blender. 

After 2 minutes add chia seeds and spirulina powder, blend for 30 seconds.

Pour it in a glass and sprinkle bee pollen on top of the smoothie.

Enjoy!

Sushi Making for the Kids

My daughter Trinity was guided by the owner-teacher of the workshop for her first sushi.

 Trying it on her own this time.

 Yeheeyyy! Her first Tuna Sushi!

Chicken Teriyaki with Avocado

 A tasting and she seems to like it. 

Salmon and Avocado Roll

 She had done it! 

 Yummy lunch for Mummy and her friends!

 Thank you Penny of Sushi Coast for the educational 'Sushi Making Workshop'! I learned a lot too! I will give this workshop 10 out of 10! We enjoyed it so much.

Nuts and Goji Berries Balls

We do like to have some sweets every now and then. So I am happy to have found this recipe and added some other ingredients as well. It's raw and totally delicious!

Nuts and Goji Berries Balls

1 1/2 cup raw walnut
2 Tablespoons of Goji Berries
1 or 2 Tablespoons of Cacao Powder
1 Pitted Date
2 to 3 Tablespoon of Honey

Grind walnut, goji berries, carob powder and date in food processor. Add honey to bind all the ingredients together. Make them into a small size balls and coat them in a coconut. Serve and enjoy!

Healthier version of Champorado

Champorado is one of my favourite comfort food growing up. My late grandmother's version of it was just so delicious. Champorado or tsampurado is a sweet chocolate rice pudding in the Philippine cuisine according to Wikipedia. As I was browsing the net the other night I saw this dish and thought of cooking it. I want my kids to try it, though my first born did tried it once three years ago (sssshhh she didn't like it). Well… my son haven't tasted it so perhaps he will appreciate my healthier version of champorado. To my surprise my daughter didn't mind the taste ;) .

Here is my version of the recipe.

1 cup white glutinuos rice
6 cups distilled water
3 tablespoons cacao powder (not cocoa powder)
3/4 to 1 cup palm sugar (add more or less depending on your taste)

Cook rice in water. 
Add cacao powder and palm sugar. 
Serve warm and garnish it. I garnished mine with goji berries and organic sweet cacao nibs, or you can just eat it as is.

Enjoy!

Nutri Cookies

This is so delicious hot and cold!

Peanut butter is included in the recipe and if you like to make your own peanut butter the link is below. If however your child in allergic to peanut you can use almond butter, hazel butter and other nut butter. But if you don't want to do all these you can just buy a ready made peanut butter or Nutella instead.

Ingredients:

100 grams butter (softened)
1/2 cup smooth peanut butter or Nutella
2 free range large eggs
3/4 cup honey
1 tsp vanilla extract
3 cups rolled oats
1 1/2 cups wholemeal flour
1 tsp bicarb soda
3/4 cup dried Cranberries or Sultanas
3/4 cup unsweetened medium coconut
3/4 natural wheat bran
1/2 cup chopped walnuts
1/2 cups Pepitas
1 tsp Himalayan salt

Directions:

1. Cream butter and peanut buter in large bowl. Add egg one at a time. Add honey and vanilla extract. Beat until smooth.
2. Combine remaining 9 ingredients in a medium bowl. Add to butter mixture . Mixing well after each addition until no dry flour remains.
3. Roll into balls ( a size of 1 tablespoon) for each. Arrange about 2 inches apart on cookie trays (cookie sheets).
4. Bake in 190 degrees oven for abour 12 minutes until golden.


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Recipe for "Raw Peanut Butter"

Ingredients:

1 cup raw, shelled peanuts
1 tablespoon cold pressed peanut oil
pinch sea salt, if desired

Preparation:

Place the peanuts and salt in a food processor and process until the nuts are finely ground. Add the oil and continue processing until the peanut butter reaches your desired degree of smoothness, adding more oil if necessary. For chunky peanut butter, stir in 1/4 cup chopped peanuts. Store, tightly covered, in the refrigerator.

(If you want to use a blender, I suggest doing only about 1/4 cup peanuts at a time so you don’t burn the motor out! :-o )

Thanks Gone Raw for your "Raw Peanut Butter" recipe! http://goneraw.com/recipe/raw-peanut-butter

Wholemeal Spelt Flour Pizza Dough

Ingredients of the Pizza dough:

1 1/2 cups warm water
1 sachet of dried yeast (7g)
pinch of Stevia powder
2 cups wholemeal spelt flour
2 cups plain flour
1 tsp Himalayan salt
1/4 cup or less Olive oil

Procedures:

1. Combine water and yeast. Set aside for 15 minutes.
2. Combine flour, salt and stevia in a large bowl and make a well in the centre.
3. Add yeast and oil.
4. Use a round-bladed knife in a cutting motion to mix until mixture is combined.
5. Use your hands to bring the dough together in a bowl and let it rest until double in size.
6. Once dough is ready, knead the dough on a flour-dusted surface and keep adding flour until it is easy to roll.
7. Divide into 4 balls and start rolling 1 ball at a time.
8.  Once you get the desired thickness of your pizza base, roll it onto your rolling pin and transfer it to your oiled pizza pan.
9. Add whatever toppings you like. The one on the photos are organic spinach, organic tomato, turkey, tasty cheese and mozzarella cheese.

Enjoy!

June's Refreshing Aloe Vera With A Lot

1 cup homemade almond milk
2 Tablespoons raw aloe vera (gel only)
1 cup spinach
1/2 cup coriander leaves (cilantro)
big banana (unfrozen)
1/2 cup pineapple (frozen)
1/2 rib celery
1 inch ginger
1 teaspoon spirulina powder
1 Tablespoon hemp seeds

Aloe vera has the ability to penetrate into the deepest body tissues some 70 layers deep. It also has antiseptic agents which kill bacteria, viruses and fungus. The aloe vera gel is powerful and it is got from the leaves. This aloe vera has as many as 75 nutrients, which portend good health. It stimulates the growth of new health tissue. It has the claiming effect on the body’s nervous system and cleanses, detoxifies and normalizes the body’s metabolism effectively. It has been discovered that the Aloe Vera (Barbadensis Miller) plant has been very successful result oriented for the past 30 centuries and there are beautiful testimonies from the users of Forever Living’s Aloe Vera Gel.

Other health benefits:

■Boosts immune system of our body and destroys cancer tumors
■Stops the progress of inflammation in our body.
■Enhances skin health
■Stabilizes blood sugar in diabetics
■Lowers cholesterol and triglycerides
■Relieves joint and muscle pain
■Amplifies the antioxidant effects of vitamins
■Cures ulcers, IBS, Crohn’s disease and Celiac disease
■Contains acemannan, a natural immune booster.

http://foreverlivingbangladesh.wordpress.com/2012/04/25/health-benefits-of-forever-livings-aloe-vera-gel/

Immune System Booster Smoothie

Recipe:

1 handful Kale
1 stalk Celery
1 frozen Banana
1 or 1/2 inch Ginger
1/2 cup freshly squeezed Beetroot Juice
1/2 cup water
1 tsp Maca Powder
1 tbsp Hemp Seeds
1 tbsp Chia Seeds
1 tsp Spirulina Powder
1 tbsp Coconut Oil

Directions:

1. Put all the ingredients in the blender and blend for 1 minute.
2. Pureed or liquify for another minute or two.

Enjoy!

Sugar Free Almond Brownies

Sugar free and flourless too!

You will need:

130 g butter
1/2 cup honey
2 free range eggs
1 cup almond meal
1/2 cup cocoa
walnuts (you can either mix it or simply add them on top of the mixture before baking)

-Cream butter and honey
-Add eggs one at a time
-Mix through almond meal and cocoa
-Bake at 160 degrees for 25 minutes.

Serve it hot or cold. Enjoy!

Yema with Multigrain Cracker

My daughter is known to have allergy for peanuts and I was looking at replacing nuts for this recipe. I had Vita-Weat 100% Natural wholegrain goodness - Cracker Multigrain in the pantry and used it instead of peanut. The grains from the cracker made such a big difference to the recipe and it tasted like it had some kind of nuts as well. By the way, 'yema' is one of the popular sweets when I was growing up. I even sell them at school!

You need:

2 -3 Tablespoons of Olive Oil

397 g Sweetened Condensed Milk

1  cup Crackers (crushed finely)

1 teaspoon of Vanilla

Caster sugar

- Heat oil in the pan, make sure it's not smoking hot

- Add milk and vanilla; keep stirring for 3 to 5 minutes or until the colour changes

- When milk has slightly thicken add the crackers

- Keep stirring

- Turn off the heat once it's really thick and leave it in the pan until it has cool down

- Shape into tiny balls and roll in the caster sugar 

- Put the shaped yema in a small size cupcake papers 

- Enjoy!

Organic Salad Combination

I have a raw and organic combination here:

Avocado
Spinach
Cucumber
Carrots
Beetroot
Caesar Salad dressing ( I use Paul Newman's Own)

Mashed Potato with Raw Carrots and Parsley

I am introducing a bit of raw food to my kids. I tried this very simple and nutritious meal.

- Mashed organic Potato
- Organic raw Carrots (grated)
- Organic raw Parsley (chopped in small pieces)

You may want to add a grated green apple or a salt to taste. I was quite happy with my ingredients above. I have two kinds of mashed on the photo. The one on the left side is a combination of the 3 ingredients. The one on the right side is mashed potato topped with carrots and parsley. I like the one on the right ;) .

Spinach Quiche with Minced Lean Beef

You need the following:

Short crust pastry
3 large eggs
1 cup cream ( I use light cream)
1/2 cup rice milk (or any milk you like)
1 cup tasty cheese (grated)
1/2 teaspoon salt ( I use Himalayan crystal salt)
Pepper
Pinch of nutmeg
1 cup of Spinach (cooked and chopped)
1/2 cup cooked minced Beef
Parmesan cheese

- Combine eggs, cream, milk, cheese, salt, pepper, nutmeg in a bowl.
- Add the cooked spinach and beef in the bowl. Make sure you squeezed the excess water from the spinach.
- Pour all the mixture in the pan with the pastry on it. Pastry needs to be baked in the oven for 3 to 5 minutes before you pour the mixture in.
- Bake until it's almost cooked. Take the pan out and sprinkle some parmesan cheese on top and continue cooking until it's done.
- You can serve this hot or cold

Super Drink

All you need are:

1 stalk of Celery
3 Green Apples
1 small size of Pineapple
2 Carrots

You also need a juicer to be able to make this. Enjoy!

Himalayan Crystal Salt

This is the salt I have been using for more than a year now. It has 84 natural minerals and elements in the human body. It is one of the healthiest salt that you can use for cooking.

Do you want to know more about it? Please read here; http://www.perfecthealthnow.com.au/products/himalayan-salt-products/crystal-salt-sole-so-lay/

Chicken Risotto with Veggies

You need:

Risotto rice

Chicken

Spinach

Carrots

Broccoli

Onion

Olive oil

Salt ( I used Himalayan crystal salt)

Soy sauce ( I used Tamari soy sauce)

Parmesan cheese

-Boil some water in a sauce pan and add a tablespoon of soy sauce 

-Add carrots when it starts boiling

- Saute onion in olive oil and add chicken once onion is translucent.

-Add risotto rice and once it absorbed the oil you can now start adding the soy sauce from the pan

- When the rice is almost cooked add the broccoli. 

-Don't forget to keep adding more sauce to cook the rice

-Take the carrots from the boiling sauce and add it in the rice. You may also want to add the spinach this time.

-Add salt and taste.

-Turn off the stove once the rice is cooked and it is well seasoned. Make sure not to add too much salt because you still have to add the parmesan cheese.

-Add parmesan cheese and serve while it's hot.

Porridge with a Twist

Cook porridge in the microwave for 2 minutes or according to the instruction at the back of the box. You can add anything in your porridge but on this picture I had the following;

Porridge
Flaxseed oil
Chia seeds
Banana
Manuka honey