Ringing in the New Year with Whole Foods: Part 2....

Well, I haven’t been very good at keeping y’all updated on what I’ve been eating this January, and I haven’t even been very good at making sure to take pictures of everything. I’ve had a lot of projects lately keeping me busy and in less then a month my husband and I will be in Europe so blogging hasn’t exactly been my top priority of late.

I have however eaten some really awesome stuff lately, and I’ve even taken pictures of some of it to share with you. So I’ll keep the words to a minimum and let the pictures do the talking!

Onion and Herb Socca 

Roasted Sweet Potato Salsa 

A couple of times for lunch I made this delicious Onion and Herb Socca from Tess Masters book “The Blender Girl” I haven’t made much out of this book so far, but what I have has been delicious and this socca is no exception. I love Socca, and it paired absolutely beautifully with the Roasted Sweet Potato Salsa from Martha Stewart’s book “Meatless” this is really delicious, and hearty yet light salsa made with roasted sweet potatoes, avocado, tomato, lime, onion, olive oil, cilantro and salt. So good!

Salsa and Socca 

Other delicious lunches have included the Maple Dijon Brussels Sprouts from Judith Wignall’s book “Raw and Simple” this is a really simple dish of shredded sprouts, cranberries, pecans and a tasty maple Dijon dressing. My husband and I also really enjoyed Judith’s Cauliflower Couscous also from “Raw and Simple” This is Cauliflower diced up to look like grains of couscous, then chopped tomatoes, olives, parsley, mint, olive oil, red onion, lemon juice, garlic, salt, cumin and paprika are folded into it. This tasted amazingly like a cooked tabbouleh. So fantastic!

Maple Dijon Brussels Sprouts 

Cauliflower Couscous 

A few nights for dinner we had the delicious Creole White Beans from Kathy Hester’s book “The Great Vegan Bean Book” This is really simple dish of white beans, simmered with onion, bell pepper and creole spices. This dish was so creamy, and so flavorful despite the short ingredient list. I just loved it served over a bed of brown rice.  Yum!

Creole White Beans 

Other dinners have included the Dinosaur Kale and White Bean Caesar Salad from Gena Hamshaw’s book “Going Raw” though I neglected to take a picture of this fantastic, flavorful salad. We also really enjoyed her Raw Carrot Falafel which was mind-blowingly awesome! Seriously! I had my eye on this recipe for a while but always felt intimidated by it. I thought it was going to be complicated, but really it’s not, it just takes a bit of advanced planning. You have to be take the dehydration time into consideration and you need carrot pulp left over from juicing. So the day before I made this I made carrot juice and saved the pulp and then this came together super easy in the early afternoon and was ready in time for dinner. There’s a Tangy Tahini sauce that goes with it and Gena suggests serving it on a salad though we decided to roll the falafel’s into lettuce leaves and eat them burrito style. I can not stress enough just how incredible this dish was! If you own “Going Raw” you need to make it!

Raw Carrot Falafel

Also to accompany the falafel I made Gena’s Curried Sweet Potato Hummus which was just as mind-blowing! Such a great subtle curry flavor, and a smooth creamy finish from the blended sweet potato.

Curried Sweet Potato Hummus 

We also had Gena’s Raw Pad Thai which was also amazing. I’m a big fan of Pad Thai and I was really craving noodles. However since I was doing mostly raw during January I didn’t want to cave and eat wheat noodles - kelp noodles to the rescue! This recipe is really simple and comes together quick, it’s just kelp noodles, carrot, red cabbage, zucchini, cilantro and I added some green onion. The sauce is almond butter, tamarind, sesame oil, tamari, maple syrup, ginger, and water. So easy, and you feel so clean afterwards!

Raw Pad Thai 

Lastly from Gena’s book we had the Heat-Free Lentil Walnut tacos. This was another really easy dish. I cooked the lentils a day ahead of time and then it came together so fast. All you do is throw lentils, walnuts, salt, sun-dried tomatoes, and spices into your food processor and make a ‘meat’ then you fill up some lettuce leaves and serve with corn, avocado, and your favorite salsa. Now, I’ll be honest, these are not my favorite raw ‘nut-meat’ taco, but they were damn good and they seriously won over my husband who I’m sure you know by now is an avid nut hater. So that’s saying something.

Heat-Free Lentil Walnut Tacos 

Now, breakfast. I didn’t take too many breakfast pictures for one simple reason. I’ve mostly been eating the same kind of raw cereal I mentioned last time. Or smoothies. Sometimes I make that avocado scramble I talked about last time, or I just eat an avocado on it’s own, or with some fruit.

But I did try a few new things, such as this Strawberry Mylkshake from Emily Von Euw’s book “100 Best Juices, Smoothies, and Healthy Snacks.” this was really creamy and flavorful and the perfect sweet, decadent but healthy wake-up.

Strawberry Mylkshake

My favorite breakfast smoothie though is the flavor-packed Happy Monkey smoothie from “Raw and Simple” it’s got Cacao powder, Cacao Nibs, Coconut, Coconut Milk, Banana and Almond Butter. OMG heaven in a glass!

Happy Monkey

One morning I was especially famished and so I decided to try something really ‘out-there.’ I made the Buckwheat Oat Biscuits from Amber Shea Crawley’s book “Practically Raw” unfortunately I forgot to plan this ahead of time and so I didn’t have the time to make it in the dehydrator. Instead I used the bake option in the directions and baked these little biscuits in the oven. I did however top them with the mind-blowing delicious Maple Miso Butter that she suggests. Man, that maple miso butter is worth the price of the book alone, trust me! I also served these with a bit of Tarragon Plum Jam and an extra drizzle of maple syrup.

Buckwheat Oat Biscuits &
Maple Miso Butter 

Oh, and I nearly forgot, we also had some tasty desserts, mostly from “Going Raw” the only one I had the foresight to photograph though was this tasty Raw Blueberry Ginger Ice Cream. I served it up with an extra drizzle of maple syrup and a few cacao nips and sesame seeds. Damn, raw ice cream I so good!

Raw Blueberry Ginger Ice Cream 

So that’s about it. Now that we’re in February I’m still going with the whole foods thing. Limiting - but not completely excluding gluten and sugar - I’ve added a bit of coffee back in, maybe a couple of cups per week, but I’ve been using coconut milk and coconut sugar to sweeten it, and when I have coffee out I try to take it as plain as possible. I feel pretty good, and I’ve really been enjoying trying all these new dishes. It’s a lot of fun to utilize cook books I don’t always get around to!

Ringing In The New Year With Whole Foods....

Republic Of Tea
Double Green Matcha Tea

Wow, I can’t believe I’ve been MIA for so long! I didn’t mean to be, but I guess the holiday’s really wiped me out. I’m so glad they’re over and that a new year has begun. We gorged and gorged over the holidays and by the time January 1st came around I was feeling sick and gross and craving nothing but whole foods. The past couple of years I’ve used January as a sort of cleanse month, and I’m doing the same thing again this year. I had planned to post each day about what I was eating, and how I was feeling, or at least every other day like the past couple years but I haven’t done a very good job of that obviously. Sometimes I just forget to take photos, and often I just can’t be bothered to write about what I’m eating but hopefully now after my little break I’ll get back into the swing of things.

So what have I been eating/doing exactly? Well, I’m not following a particular diet or cleanse - even though there are plenty of them out there - I’m just doing my own thing. I’ve gotten back into juicing and I’m following a mostly raw diet, that incorporates some cooked food. Usually the ‘cooked’ food is store-bought coconut milk, or a legume, or some steamed vegetables at dinner. Stuff like that. Over the past month I’ve been avoiding alcohol, coffee - though I’m allowing caffeinated tea - refined sugar - I use a little bit of maple syrup or agave but keep it limited - gluten - except for last night - processed foods, and limited grains. I’ve been sticking with whole foods, mostly fruits and vegetables, lots of vegetables, lots of salads, and I have to say I feel pretty darn good. Light, and clean, my insides feel very clean indeed, and I feel very positive about it.

Like I said I haven’t been a very dutiful blogger, I haven’t taken photos of everything I’ve eaten over the past couple of weeks but I’ve taken a few. So here is an example of the kind of stuff I’ve been consuming.

Most days I start with a fresh juice, usually grapefruit/orange which as many of you probably know from last year is my favorite combination. Other days it’s a green juice, or a mixed veggie/fruit juice. The other day it was Apple, Lime, Cucumber and that was pretty good though a bit tart.

For a solid meal at breakfast time I’ve really only been eating 1 of 2 things. I either have this delicious raw Morning Scramble from Judita Wignall’s awesome book “Raw & Simple” Or I have a bowl of Cherry Hemp Muesli also from “Raw & Simple.” both are amazing, and like my new favorite breakfast options!

Morning Scramble 

The Scramble is so flavorful and actually tastes like eggs which amazes me because the ingredients are so simple. It’s just a mashed avocado with turmeric, and black salt, topped with diced tomato, and marinated veggies. The marinated veg is spinach, onion, and shiitake mushrooms and they’re simply marinated for 10 minutes in Tamari and Olive Oil. SO GOOD! And surprisingly filling.

The Muesli is also very simple, containing dried cherries, dates, almonds, vanilla, oats, and hemp seeds. Sometimes I also throw in some sesame seeds, flaxseed, and then top it off with blueberries and coconut milk. Today I also threw in a bit of cacao nibs. This stuff is delicious and really hits the spot.

Cherry Hemp Muesli 

Before I got hooked on this muesli I was eating the Power Muesli from the book “Chia” by Lauri Boone. This is also a seriously delicious muesli containing oats, cranberries, goldenberries, hemp seeds, chia seeds, and sunflower seeds. I topped this one with coconut milk and blueberries as well though always neglected to take a picture of it.

Of course, there have been a few days where I wasn’t in the mood for a solid breakfast and on those days I mostly relied on smoothies. Particularly smoothies from “Raw & Simple” My favorites were the Happy Monkey - which is homemade cashew milk, frozen banana, coconut, cacao nibs, cacao powder, and almond butter. I’d sweeten it up with a bit of vanilla stevia. I also loved the Cherry Cacao Smoothie - which was frozen cherries, coconut mana, cashew milk, cacao nibs, vanilla and sea salt, I also sweetened this with a bit of vanilla stevia.

A few days called for something lighter still and so I made the Indian Spiced Orange drink from “Raw and Simple” which is an easy mix of fresh squeezed OJ, Homemade Cashew Milk, and Garam Masala. Strange, but tasty! Or I’d make the Milk and Honey Refresher - which is a whole grapefruit, homemade almond milk, and honey, or in my case I used Vegan Bee-Free Honey. YUM!

Milk and Honey Refresher 

Unfortunately I neglected to take pictures of most of this stuff.

Often I’m not hungry enough for a real lunch and so I just have juice, some raw veggies, a simple garden salad with vinaigrette, seasoned chickpeas, or leftovers from the night previous. A few days I was hungrier then others and so I enjoyed the Pizza Style Chickpea Flatbread from Heather Crosby’s awesome book “Yum Universe” it’s your typical Chickpea Socca, topped with tomato sauce - I had some leftover from when I made Pizza on New Years, and then I added steamed kale and sauteed onions, along with a little leftover cheese cause also from New Years. So tasty. A couple of times I enjoyed another delicious lunch from “Yum Universe’ the wonderful Chickpea, Tarragon and Cranberry Salad Sandwich. Although instead of having it on bread I either ate a coop on it’s own, or I ate it on lettuce leaves, with a side of Radish and Fennel Chips also from “Yum Universe” Unfortunately I didn’t take pictures of any of that either. Yesterday’s lunch was lettuce leaves filled with Cumin Spiked Pinto Bean Dip from the “Thug Kitchen” cookbook and topped with diced raw tomato, corn and Sriracha - so good!

Rainbow Ribbon Veggie Alfredo 

Dinners have also been relatively simple, I’ve really been enjoying the “Yum Universe” cook book and so most of our dinners have come from there. For example we enjoyed the Traditional Coleslaw One evening which might just rank as one of my favorite coleslaws ever. One night we had the Shredded Brussels Sprouts with Kale and Miso Dijon Dressing, along with Simple Sauteed Snap Peas both of which were out of this world in terms of flavor!  One night it was the Snap Pea and Radish Salad with Ginger Miso Dressing which I absolutely loved. Another night ti was Baby Kale Salad with Blueberries and Chinese Spiced Pecans which was also incredible!  Several nights we had the Rainbow Ribbon Veggie Alfredo which is a vegetable noodle dish that can be made either raw or cooked. I did half and half on it, leaving the zucchini and carrots raw, but steaming the bell pepper, kale and broccoli. This was so freaking good!!!

Carrot-Ginger-Coconut Soup

A couple of nights we had the Carrot-Ginger-Coconut Soup from “Raw & Simple” which was very tasty. I normally don’t like raw soups because I hate the texture and I don’t like cold soup but I let this run a little long in the Vitamix so it was warm then added diced avocado and cilantro for texture and it was fantastic. Last night we had the Yellow Split Pea Lettuce Wraps from “Thug Kitchen” which were fantastic. Kind of an Asian style dish of cooked yellow split peas, mixed with shredded carrot and green onion, seasoned with rice vinegar and tamari. The dipping sauce is more tamari, rice vinegar, a little agave and garlic. So good!

Yellow Split Pea Lettuce Wraps 

I’ve mostly been avoiding dessert but sometimes I need a little something before I head off to work at Midnight and so I’ve been enjoying various types of Chia Pudding. I’ve made vanilla chia pudding, acai berry chia pudding, banana chia pudding, chocolate chia pudding, cardamom raisin chia pudding the list goes on. All of them are sweetened with either dates, or stevia, occasionally a little maple syrup or Bee-Free Honey.

I’ll try to be more diligent about capturing my food from now on. But I think this gives a nice overview.

Spotlight Food - Sea Vegetables...

What do you know about sea vegetables? Have you ever had them? Do you like them? This amazing nutrient dense food has been consumed in various parts of the world for centuries, but has only become popular in North America over the past decade or so. I’m still amazed by how many people haven’t tried the various different kind of sea vegetables out there, and even more amazed by those who claim not to like them. Granted they’re an acquired taste, I’ll give you that. They taste like the ocean, some people think they taste ‘fishy,’ and the flavor can be a bit strong for some, but once you get used to it, sea vegetables are such a wonderfully health supporting food that you’ll start craving them, I swear!

I remember the first time I ever ate seaweed. I was a kid, maybe 10, and I hated it. My dad was really into seaweed at the time, he’d buy bags of it from the health food store to eat as it was or to make sushi rolls. He’d give me pieces to try and I always thought they were nasty. Fast-forward to highschool when I started eating sushi, I wouldn’t say that I loved seaweed then, but I grew comfortable with it. Fast-forward to me becoming vegan and it took a while, but eventually I warmed up to it. Now I love some nori sprinkled over a salad, some dulse on a sandwich, some wakame in my miso soup. I love seaweed chips, I love toasted nori sheets, I love all those fun little seaweed snacks you can pick up at the Asian markets. I love that pungent, aromatic, sometimes salty ocean flavor, and the best part is that sea vegetables are so incredibly good for you, so you can feel good about eating them.

History/Cultivation 

A lot of us commonly think of sea vegetables os seaweeds as being an integral ingredient in Asian dishes, but the truth is that many cultures around the world have been enjoying this rich, nutrient dense food for centuries. Asia may have the longest recorded tradition of consuming sea vegetables - more then 10,000 years - but many other countries located near water also have a history with seaweed, such as Scotland, Ireland, Norway, Iceland, New Zealand, the South Pacific Islands, and even parts of costal South America.

What a lot of people don’t realize about sea vegetables is the overwhelming variety of them.  More then a thousand types of seaweed exist, and they’re broken down into three distinct categories based on color, brown, green, or red. Each type is unique, having a different shape, texture, and taste. They grow in two places, marine salt waters and freshwater lakes and seas. They may grow on coral reefs or rocky landscapes and can grow at virtually any depth provided sunlight can penetrate through the water to where they reside, as like plants, seaweed needs light for survival. Interestingly sea vegetables are not considered to be either plant nor animal, but are classified as algae.

Health Benefits 

It might surprise you to learn that sea vegetables offer one of the broadest ranges of minerals of any food, containing virtually all the minerals found in the ocean. In addition to offering a unique variety of phytonutrients and antioxidants. They’re also an excellent source of iodine, manganese, B Vitamins, potassium, iron, zinc, and phosphorus.

Sea vegetables also provide anti-inflammatory, anti-cancer, anticoagulant, antithrombotic, and antiviral benefits due to their unique sulfated polysaccharides. Sea vegetables anti-inflammatory benefits seem to take place by blocking selectins - sugar protein molecules - and from inhibiting an enzyme called phospholipase A2.  During an inflammatory response selectins allow inflammatory signals to be transmitted into the cells, so by blocking selectins response, inflammatory signaling can be lessened.  Over activity of the enzyme phospholipase A2 is widely present in unwanted inflammatory problems, and is important for creating the omega-6 fatty acid arachidonic acid (AA.) AA itself provides the basis for a wide variety of pro-inflammatory massaging molecules and in fact many corticosteroid medications lower inflammation by blocking PLA2.

Sulfated polysaccharides are also responsible for sea vegetables cardiovascular benefits, as they can decrease the tendency of blood platelet cells to coagulate and form clots.  Sea vegetables have also been shown to help reduce total and LDL cholesterol.

Sea vegetables sulfated polysaccharides have also shown anti-viral activity, most notably in lab research conducted on Herpes Simplex Virus 1 and 2. It was shown that by blocking the binding sites used by HSV-1 and HSV-2 for cell attachment that sulfated polysaccharides help prevent replication of these viruses. Though we do not yet known whether or not dietary intake of sea vegetables can help prevent HSV replication in individuals with HSV.

Sea vegetables may be of particular benefit in the prevention of estrogen related cancer, particularly breast cancer. As intake of sea vegetables appears to modify various aspects of a woman’s menstrual cycle in such a way that over time - tens of years - the total cumulative estrogen secretion that occurs during the follicular phase of the cycle gets reduced.  Since the overproduction of estrogen can play a role in the risk of breast cancer for women who are estrogen sensitive sea vegetables can offer some unique benefits here. It’s also important to remember that cholesterol is required as a building block for the production of estrogen and intake of sea vegetables has repeatedly shown to lower cholesterol.

Sea Vegetables may also be particularly helpful when it comes to colon cancer, and research has focused heavily in this area with a special emphasis on the loss of calcium-sensing receptors (CaSRs) in colon cancer cells, and the ability of sea vegetable extracts to alter CaSR-related events. Of course since chronic, unwanted inflammation and chronic oxidative stress are both risk factors for development of cancer it’s possible that sea vegetables could be helpful in prevention of numerous cancers.

Sea vegetables may be able to help us increase our cells' sensitivity to insulin, help us prevent overproduction of glucose by our cells, and help us take existing blood sugars and convert them into storable starches. All of these factors would help us increase our blood sugar control, and lower our risk of type 2 diabetes.

Brown algae like kombu/kelp, wakame, and arame can be particularly concentrated sources of iodine, and for some health conditions - like hypothyroidism, in which the cells of the thyroid make too little thyroid hormone - increased iodine intake can provide important health benefits.

The antioxidant content of sea vegetables is also rather impressive, because sea vegetables not only contain measurable amounts of polyphenols like carotenoids and flavonoids, they also contain other phytonutrient antioxidants, including several types of alkaloids that have been shown to possess antioxidant properties. Coupled with measurable amounts of antioxidant vitamins (like vitamins C and E) and antioxidant minerals (like manganese and zinc), sea vegetables can be expected to help us reduce our risk of unwanted oxidative stress and many types of cardiovascular problems that are associated with poor antioxidant intake.

So you see, sea vegetables are really amazing!

Sea Vegetable Types - 

Arame - Brown Algae, limited to the temperate Pacific Ocean waters around Japan, though it is often cultivated in South Korea. It has a mild, semi-sweet flavor and firm texture.

Bladderwrack - A Brown Algae, the most common algae on the shores of the British Isles. It is typically found on the coasts of the North Sea, the Western Baltic Sea and both the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. It’s been recorded from the Atlantic shores of Europe, to Northern Russia, to Greenland, the Canary Islands, Morocco, Madeira, to the Atlantic Coast of North America, Hudson’s Bay, to North Carolina.  In North America it isn’t used as a food so much as it is an herbal medicine or remedy.

Chlorella - a single cell green algae high in protein and containing a significant amount of minerals. Usually sold as powder, or tablets and is commonly taken as a health supplement, rather then as an ingredient in cooking.

Dulce - A Red Algae, growing on the Northern coasts of the Atlantic and Pacific, as well as Iceland where it’s a popular snack food and has been consumed for centuries as a traditional food.  Usually sold in large dried strips, and is quite tasty on salads or lightly crisped in a pan to place on a sandwich.

Hijiki - Brown Algae, grows along the rocky coastlines of Japan, Korea and China. Somewhat similar to Arame but with a stronger flavor.

Irish Moss - A Red Algae growing abundantly along the rocky coasts of Atlantic Europe and North America.. A common ingredient in some traditional Irish and Scottish cooking. Also commonly used in Asian gelatin like desserts. In North America it’s commonly used as a thickener in many commercial products and has recently found a new use in the vegan community for making vegan cheese, and raw food desserts.

Kombu - Brown Algae, and an edible kelp commonly cultivated on the shores of Japan and Korea. Used extensively in Japanese cooking especially to make soups. It’s also a great addition to making a pot of beans from scratch!

Laver - Red Algae, a common ingredients in Welsh cooking and traditional Welsh dishes such as Laver bread. It’s also commonly found in the cuisines of Ireland, Scotland, Whales, China, Japan, and Korea, and may be one of the first kinds of algae to be cultivated.

Sea Lettuce - Green Algae, widely distributed along the coasts of the worlds oceans. It is particularly common in Scandinavia, Great Britain, Ireland, China and Japan.

Wakame - Brown Algae, grown in Japan and Korea, but also commonly cultivated in sea farms in France off the coast of Brittany, and Tasmania in Australia. It has a subtly sweet flavor and slippery texture. Usually used in soups.

This is by no means a comprehensive list of sea vegetables but it contains the most common ones.

Preparation

So, now that you’ve gone to the health food store and bought some bags of seaweed, what the heck do you do with it? Easy, make Sushi Maki rolls! Or if that’s too much time and trouble for you make a sushi salad! All your sushi ingredients diced up in a bowl, no rolling required, just sprinkle the nori over top. You could put it in miso soup, or any other Asian inspired soup, or any soup in which a little ocean flavor is needed. Such as a vegan ‘clam’ chowder. Try it as a salad topping or make a seaweed salad by soaking some arame and then mixing it with some diced vegetables and a nice Asian style dressing. Toss it into a raw kelp noodle dish, or top a stir-fry with it. Heck, just buy some roasted seaweed sheets from the Asian grocery and eat it as is! Super yummy! Get creative with it, and don’t be afraid to try new things.

Juice Fast 2.0, Day 3 & 4...

Day 3 of my Juice fast was Tuesday, and it went off pretty smooth. I got home from work at around 8am, and was pretty hungry by then so I tucked into a large jar of the Sea Buckthorn Juice from “Superfood Juices” that I’d made the day before. This juice really was scrumptious, but then I’m of the opinion that you really can’t go wrong with Orange + Beet + Ginger. Know what I’m saying?

For Lunch I enjoyed the Grapefruit Mint Juice that I’d made the day before, and it was quite tasty. I love grapefruit juice anyway, and it worked pretty well with the mint, much to my surprise. I also enjoyed another Electrolyte Chia Lemonade.

In late afternoon I enjoyed a Kombucha, as well as another raw-probiotic drink called Kvass. Kvass was a bit hard to swallow, but maybe it’s because I got the ‘roots’ blend, which is beet, sarsparilla, ginger and some other stuff. It was a bit sour for my taste.

For Dinner I enjoyed a bottle of Carrot Goji juice which was a surprising blend. Throughout the day I drank water of course, and lots of it.

I woke up on Wednesday - Day 4 - feeling pretty darn good about the world and about myself. I was feeling so light, and so good. Almost from the start of Day 1 I’d begun to feel better. My skin itched less, and it looked more clear by day two. My stomach felt flat, not bloated, I had no gas, and even though I sweated profusely at work It didn’t have any odor other then the clean, musky scent of sweat. My insides felt clean, and I felt strong and invigorated. I began my day with a bottle of Carrot Dill Juice, followed by a bottle of Green Apple Kale Juice. I drank a lot of water and enjoyed a long walk. I made another batch of juice to last me for the next couple of days.

Lunch was a sampling of the following - Watermelon Goji Juice, Carrot Lucuma Juice, and Lemon Chard Juice. I was running low on produce - specifically greens - and so I had to rely on non-green juices for this batch. Still I was enjoying the excitement of experiencing new juice combinations. Unfortunately, and very suddenly out of the blue I began to feel a bit ill. I’m not sure why but around noon my stomach began to feel ‘funny’ I wasn’t nauseous, or bloated, I didn’t have to go to the bathroom but I felt some kind of gastronomical distress nonetheless, followed by a sudden sensation of light-headed-ness.

Even though I had a double helping of juice for breakfast I thought maybe this was due to not having enough to eat. So I downed a bottle of ginger kombucha - hoping the ginger and the probiotics would help settle my tummy. Which indeed it did, but it did not make me feel any less-light-headed.

As the day wore on I felt more and more light-headed, and then dizzy. My head felt like it was full of cotton balls and bees. Very fussy, very buzzy, very heavy. I felt weak. Everything seemed to take great effort. - Talking, walking, even breathing seemed laborious. I had not experienced these feelings to such an extreme on my previous juice fast and so I didn’t know what to make of them. I needed to take my dog for a walk, and so I went - for just a short 15 minute jaunt around the block and it was hard. My legs felt like lead, picking my feet up off the ground and moving my legs forward was a challenge. They felt so heavy, and yet at the same time I felt as though I had no legs at all, I couldn’t feel them properly, as though they’d fallen asleep. My motor skills were not good. I came home, I drank more water, I laid on the couch silently reading. I spent most of the afternoon on the livingroom couch. It was grey and overcast outside and suddenly I felt chilled to the bone. I was so cold, shivering even though I was dressed in a hoodie and was wrapped in a blanket. I cranked the heat and it did not relieve me. I moved from the couch to my bed and burred myself under masses of blankets. Finally I was warm, but so very tired and weak.

I stayed like that all day, and only got up for lunch which was a glass of the Fennel Mint Juice which I’ll be honest, I did not like. Fennel is a vegetable that’s hit or miss with me, but I wanted to try it anyway. For me it was too strong a taste in this juice. I followed it with some water, and some tea. Lots of hot tea to warm me up inside and out. Mostly peppermint tea, but also some herbal hibiscus tea.

Dinner was Apple Broccoli Ginger Juice which was much tastier then I was expecting. I enjoyed it, with water, but did not feel much better. I went to bed early. I woke up at Eleven, and did not feel much better, but I had to get ready for work. I took two steps towards my alarm clock to turn it off, and nearly passed out. I probably would have lost consciousness completely except when I dropped, I fell against my bookcase and I think it was that hard thwack that woke me out of it. For a few minutes I couldn’t see anything or say anything, my ears were buzzing. I sat silently until my eyes refocused and I could move again.

My first two hours of work were hard, I felt bad, not as bad as I had in the afternoon but still not so great. Light-headed, weak, my body felt heavy. At 2am I took a break and enjoyed some water and a bottle of Lemon Chard Juice. It was very green, but somehow tasty anyway. After that I gradually began to feel better. My next 6 hours of work went pretty smooth. I didn’t feel as weak or as dizzy, I thought I was getting better.

My shift ended at 8am, and maybe 10 minutes before I punched out for the day I began to feel strange again. My husband had slept in, and so I had to wait for him at work, I hung around and talked with a couple of the guys I’ve made friends with. As we talked I felt worse and worse, dizzy, light-headed and everything felt heavy and numb again. I had to sit down. My husband finally arrived to collect me and we went to buy groceries. I couldn’t quite manage this simple task, and so I sat down in the café and waited for him to finish up.

As far as hunger goes, I was not hungry at all. The juice kept my hunger pains at bay, and kept my needs in that regard completely satisfied. Nothing I did however seemed to make me feel any less dizzy or any less weak. I didn’t want to quit the juice fast, I was enjoying the experience up until day 4, but since my job is a very physical one I realized that it did not make sense to continue on like this, feeling so ill. Not only did it not make sense but it was potentially dangerous, I could hurt myself, or do irreversible damage. My husband insisted that I break the fast and eat. At first I was very reluctant to do this, but he insisted, he said “At least eat some fruit, something, anything.” the more he talked the more I saw reason. So Mid-morning on Day 5 I broke the fast. I was sad to do so, but by afternoon I was feeling much, much better. I’ll talk about my breaking of the fast tomorrow.

Before I go however I just wanted to say that I don’t want my experience on day 4 to dissuade you or scare you away from fasting. I’m not scared at all, in fact I plan to do another short 3 day fast at the end of the month since I didn’t make the full 6 days I’d initially planned on. Everyone’s body, needs and experiences are different, and I never felt this way on my first juice fast. I think this time around it maybe had something to do with low blood pressure, my blood pressure is quite low to begin with and it might have dropped much too low due to fasting. It might be better for me in the future to do shorter more frequent fasts vs longer infrequent ones. You have to find what works for you, and I still maintain that under normal circumstances fasting is a transcendent experience.

You can Read about Day's 1 and 2 Here

Juice Fast 2.0, Day 1 & 2...

After giving it a bit of thought I’ve decided once again to embark on a Juice Fast. If you remember I did one in January of 2013, and blogged all about it Here, Here, Here, Here, Here, Here, and Here  Overall I enjoyed the experience, but for some reason once it was over the things the thoughts that lingered with me the most were the negative thoughts. The hard moments, the cranky moments, the things I didn’t like, and I wasn’t interested in doing another juice fast anytime soon.

Well, it seemed like this year had one hell of a beginning for me. The decadent party food never seemed to stop, I’d get on a health kick that would last a few days or a week and then something would come up. Some reason for decadence and I’d fall right off that wagon all over again. Then we went on vacation, but it wasn’t the same as when we went to Montreal. The vegan restaurant were few and far between. We lived mostly on rice and beans and fruit which is what I enjoy, but then we came back and it was a tidal wave of decadence. Then I had some personal stuff going on - some hectic job related stuff, and the pressure of finishing my school project and I’ll be honest my eating became irregular and chaotic at best. I went from extremes of not eating anything at all, to eating everything! Up and down up and down, and add on top of it that I’ve been testing tons of recipes for 3 vegan cook books - well, I was just never able to get a handle on my eating long enough to get myself back on track.

It occurred to me in the middle of last week that this crazy cycle needed to end, and it needed to end now. I’ve been feeling ‘gross’ off and on for a while now. I’ve been feeling bloated, and gassy, and my stomach has been in all kinds of distress. These are not great feelings, and I haven’t felt very good about myself because of all of this. A juice fast seemed the most logical place to start, and so without spending too much time agonizing over the decision I jumped right into it.

I started Sunday, and I’ll be going for Six Days. Meaning I’ll officially be able to eat solid food again Saturday.

I was anticipating a lot of discomfort, a lot of crankiness, a lot of hunger and so far that hasn’t been the case for me. In fact, I’ve found this juice fast to be going very smoothly, and it seems much easier then the one I did last year. I’ve hardly felt hungry at all, except for when it comes time to my needing a juice, and yesterday it seemed ad though I didn’t even need that much. I haven’t so far experienced any negative effects. I was really tired yesterday, but I don’t know if that had anything to do with juicing or if it’s just because I’m still getting used to this new schedule. Or maybe it was because of the physical activity I engaged in yesterday. Who knows.

The weird thing, is that even though I’m not particularly hungry I keep thinking about the foods I want to eat. It’s strange not eating, and when you’re not eating it’s amazing how aware you are of the fact that you’re not eating. It’s amazing how many food related thoughts we have in a day. Interestingly enough right now the things I’m craving most are just raw vegetables, salads, raw cauliflower, carrots, olives, kale salad, almond butter. Nothing crazy, nothing decadent, I think this is a good sign, a sign that I’m getting on track already. I plan to follow my 6 day juice fast with a 5 day raw food cleanse, and hopefully that’ll set everything right again. But now you probably want to know about the juice right?

Well Sunday started off with a 20oz glass of water. Followed by a 8oz glass of Citrus Apple Juice from Julie Morris’s book “Superfood Juices.” this juice contains apples, oranges, and sea buckthorn juice. This was super delicious and a great way to start the day.

Mid morning I followed that with a 20oz glass of water and then an 8oz glass of Green Apple Kale Juice from the same book. This juice contains apples, kale, cucumber, celery and spirulina. Also quite tasty - though a bit ‘green’ for me, I added a couple of drops of liquid stevia.

In Mid afternoon I enjoyed 8oz of Carrot Dill Juice - from the same book - which consisted of carrots, dill, cucumber, celery, Swiss Chard, and hemp seeds. It’s not a pretty juice but it’s actually very tasty. I thought the dill would be too much, but this juice has a sweetness from the carrots, and a creaminess from the hemp seeds that can’t be matched.

Between six and seven-thirty for dinner I had 24oz of Cooling Kale Juice - from the same book - it contained honeydew, cucumber, kale, apple, mint and lemon and was so good! I really loved this one, not overly green, and very refreshing. I followed this up with a 16oz bottle of unflavored kombucha and that was that. At other points throughout the day I drank water, and it went really well. I felt great all day, and almost immediately I felt less bloated, and less gassy. Amazing how that works, in fact it might be a good idea to just do a 1 day juice fast each month.

As for today - Monday - I started the day the same way with 20oz glass of water. Then followed it with 12oz of citrus apple juice, and a 12oz glass of Celery Greens which is from the same book. This juice contains celery, romaine lettuce, kale, parsley, and lemon. I thought it was going to be really bitter but it was actually quite good.

Then I knocked back some more water and went downstairs to make another batch of juice for the coming days. Since I made Six bottles of juice, and each batch of juice made a little extra that didn't fit in each bottle, all that extra ended up being my lunch. So I had some Maca Yam juice, Some Fennel Mint Juice, Some Grapefruit Mint Juice, some Apple Broccoli Ginger Juice, some Ginger Greens Juice, and some Sea Bucthorne Beet Juice. - All from "Superfood Juices" and I'll discuss each in more detail on Day 3-4.

Even after sampling all those tasty juices I was still a bit hungry and so I made the Chia Lemonade also from "Superfood Juices" This is a mixture of 1 cup coconut water, 1 cup water, fresh squeezed lemon juice and Chia Seeds. Now I know Chia seeds are not juice, and probably don't belong on a typical juice fast, however I decided a small amount of fiber would be okay this time around, because i think the zero-fiber juice fast I did last year was part of why I found it so uncomfortable. When you drink only juice there comes a point where there's nothing left - or not much left - in your insides to get pushed out anymore, know what i'm saying? and that's a strange feeling, and can be somewhat uncomfortable. I like the addition of this small amount of fiber to keep things regular.

Anyway, that Lemonade kept me pretty full until dinner time, and at dinner I drank the Maca Yam Juice which was good, but a little starchy for my tastes. I actually juiced some carrots with the yam as well, since i didn't have 2lb of yams but only 1 1/2lb. Still you could really taste the starch - more as an aftertaste. However the maca, cinnamon and coconut really made it taste like a holiday drink. Like eggnog, or chai or something delicious like that. I also drank a quarter bottle of the Sea Bucthorne Beet Juice which I added a smidge of ginger too and it was delicious.

I'd say that day 2 went by pretty smooth, as smooth as day 1, and far smoother then expected.

I’ll keep you updated all week on my progress so stay tuned!

The 30 Day Vegan Challenge Fundraiser Campaign...

I just wanted to take a moment to share with you a fundraising campaign that’s currently going on. Colleen Patrick-Goudreau - AKA - the patron saint of Veganism - has launched a campaign to bring back an updated and revised version of her inspirational book “The 30 Day Vegan Challenge” If you don’t know about The 30 Day Vegan Challenge you should! It’s a wonderful book, full of practical information about veganism, menu plans, recipes, tips for making the transition, guidance and you name it, it’s here. The original book sold 20,000 copies before it went out of print and was a major inspiration to so, so many people. If you ever listen to Colleen’s wonderful Vegetarian Food for Thought podcast then you’ve probably heard her read countless letters from fans, and listeners who attribute their making the shift to veganism directly to her, and this particular book. It really is wonderful, and when it came out it was one of the first vegan books of it’s kind. - Now vegan guides are popping up all the time, but Colleen’s is one of the few that I come back to again and again. Of course I was already vegan when I purchased the original book, I didn’t buy it to challenge myself to go vegan, I bought it to support Colleen’s work, as well as to have a comprehensive resource to share with friends and family whenever I got asked the inevitable ‘ insert common question about veganism here - questions. I bought it so I could fact check things on a moments notice, and so that I always had it handy, and because I find her words to be such an inspiration, such a breath of fresh air, and I love her kindness, compassion, and easy style.

So when I heart that The 30 Day Vegan Challenge was out of print I was sad that new people wouldn’t be able to experience this gem for themselves. Then I heard she was updating it, and trying to bring it back into print - to stay this time - and I got super excited. In fact, this is actually one of the books I’ve been testing recipes for, and trust me the recipes I’ve tried thus far are out of this world, and certainly worth the cost of the book. (Just a disclaimer here I’m not getting paid to test the recipes, it’s totally volunteer, I’m also not getting paid to promote the book, I do so because I believe in it.)

I do not have many heroes, and there are not many people in this world that I look up to, but Colleen is a constant source of inspiration for me. Her podcast was one of the driving forces in my shift from omnivore to vegetarian and finally to vegan. I could not have done it without her constant support, or without her recipes, and this book is like every podcast episode rolled up into one convenient, and tidy parcel. It would have been a nice thing to have when I initially went vegan, and so it deserves to be brought back for all those not yet transitioned or as Colleen would say for all those not yet ‘awake.’

So if you’re interested in making a donation you can visit her campaign page Here. You can donate any amount you want from as little as $1 - believe me even that makes a difference - to as much as $10,000. Each donation comes with a gift, from a exclusive recipe, to a copy of the book, to an e-book, to a private party with Colleen, and more. You can also read more about the book, the campaign and Colleen Here, as well as watch videos, and listen to her amazing podcast. Currently she’s only $3000 short of her goal, so at this point every dollar truly counts!

Do it for yourselves, for the ‘not-yet-vegans’ and for the animals!

Restaurant Review: Loving Heart in Chicago...

Yesterday my husband and I went to a ‘newish’ vegan restaurant in the city, to celebrate my graduation from school. Yes, did you catch that? After the years of hard and grueling work, the tests, the papers, the projects I’m done!  I just found out a few days ago that I received an -A on my final project, and I’ll officially have my degree in six weeks time. Once I have that, I need to get certified by the state and then I’ll officially be a Holistic Health Practitioner, how exciting! And definitely worth celebrating if you ask me.

Originally I wanted to go somewhere fancy, somewhere that you can dress up, somewhere that has little plates of food and a variety of cocktails. Somewhere like Kayrn’s on Green, but my husband has already expressed a desire to take me there on my birthday and so I thought I’d best pick somewhere else. As it happens I was a bit tired yesterday from work, and so a relaxed and casual atmosphere suited my mood quite well.

I stumbled upon Loving Heart - not to be confused with Loving Hut - while I was scrolling through Happy Cow. I’d never heard of it before, - they’ve only been open since November of 2013 - but the description sounded fantastic. I immediately went to their website and fell in love! Anyone who knows me - or my husband for that matter - knows that we absolutely adore Asian food, and Asian fusion - it’s one of our all time favorites and there are literally days where I can not get enough rice noodles!  It’s very hard for us to pass up a good Asian inspired meal and so looking through the menu I knew - just knew - that this would be the place for us, and my husband completely agreed.

We arrived at about 5pm for an early dinner - we’d been starving ourselves all day so we could literally eat a ton of food! - and found easy street parking right out front. Though if you go to Loving Heart you really need to keep your eyes open. The restaurant is small, and could easily be missed - we drove right by it on the first go-round. Inside the atmosphere is casual, relaxed and friendly. The staff is super nice, and helpful, very eager to please, the whole place exudes love. I’m serious, walking into Loving Heart is like walking into a big hug, or maybe a fluffy cloud. You feel at home, you feel welcome, and what more can you ask for in a restaurant? The space is medium, with quite a few tables, they also have a whole section of leaflets, books, and other resource materials to help the veg-curious transition which is really cool. The service is mostly self-service. You grab a to-go menu, pick out what you want, order at the counter and then sit down and wait. They call your name, you go pick it up and bring it back to your table. Most of the materials used from the forks to the containers to the paper sheaths the forks come in are biodegradable or made from recycled materials which is so, so cool! I mean, what’s not to love about that?

But now you want to know about the food right? Well, like I said we were hungry, and so we ordered a feast!

First we got drinks. I ordered the hot Cinnamon and Ginger Tea Latte which was excellent. Great flavor, subtlety sweet, and not overpowering. Perfect for a slightly chilly Chicago evening.

Hot Cinnamon Ginger Tea Latte

My husband ordered the banana, mango smoothie which was banana, mango, organic soymilk, ans stevia. I took a couple of sips off of this and it was really tasty. He loved it! - Sorry, no photo.

For food we started with the pot stickers which were full of steamed cabbage, carrot, tofu, sweet potato noodles, onion and mushrooms. It came with a soy dipping sauce and they were excellent!

Pot Stickers on the left, Rice Roll on the right

Of course one appetizer wasn’t good enough for us and so we also ordered the Rice Roll which was stuffed with cilantro, red bell pepper, avocado, spinach, house special soy beef slices - non-gmo - onion, roasted peanuts, seaweed and came with the house special green ginger pesto - almond butter, agave, dates, garlic, ginger, parsley, and cilantro) Everything about these was phenomenal, seriously! The beef slices were incredible, maybe even some of the best vegan beef I’ve ever eaten! And I loved the pesto, so much flavor!

Close up of the Rice Roll 

For my main meal I ordered the Ever Young Noodle which basically contained everything that was in the Rice Roll, plus wheat noodles - though there is a gluten-free option too. Of course this was fantastic, I literally couldn’t get enough of it. I liked the combination of textures. The soft noodles with the beef slices, and the raw veggies plus raw sauce. I loved how most of the food at this restaurant was raw, with only light accents of cooked food, and those beef slices! Seriously, they tasted like what I remember beef jerky tasting like, that sweet, salty, savory taste. Amazing!

Ever Young Noodles 

For his meal my husband got the BiBim Noodles which included avocado, carrot, zucchini, lettuce, wheat noodles, beef slices, and house special BiBim Sauce which was a sweet, tangy, spicy red sauce.  My husband was kind enough to give me a bit of his dish and I’m telling you, this was off the hook guys! I don’t know if I liked it better then my own dish but it was easily as good. So much flavor and great texture!

BiBim Noodles 

Because two appetizers and two main dishes just weren’t enough for our hungry bellies we also ordered a Heaven Wrap to split. Man oh man was this good. It was raw red pepper hummus, red bell pepper, beef slices, spinach, tomato, onion, cilantro and parsley all rolled up in an organic tortilla. Again this wrap had so much flavor and was so delicious!

Heaven Wrap 

As you can see most of what we ordered contained the house special beef slices, but have no fear, if you are indeed soy-free there are options here for you that don’t include a soy meat. Some dishes are just veggies, and some use nuts or beans or lentils as their protein. Most dishes can also be made gluten-free upon request, and some can be nut-free as well. Though the menu is relatively small, there is a little something here for everyone I think, and you really can’t beat the prices. Nothing on the menu costs more then $7.85, and most of the sandwiches and salads are under $7. For everything we got our bill was only $40, which is super reasonable not only for a vegan restaurant but also for one that includes a lot of raw food.

Inside the Heaven Wrap 

They also have dessert, and I was really looking forward to trying either the raw strawberry cake or the raw orange cake but both were sold out! They had some chocolate desserts as well, but I was all chocolated out, so hopefully next time I’ll score me a raw strawberry cake. Most of their desserts by the way - as well as their smoothies and drinks - are sugar-free, which is awesome. This food is simply good, healthy food that you can feel good about eating.

So please do yourself a favor, if you find yourself in the area drop by Loving Heart for a bite. You won’t be disappointed! The food’s amazing, the people are great, you’ll love it! You can even do take-away if you want.

Loving Heart
838 W. Montrose Ave. Chicago, IL
Phone # 773.561.5399
Mon-Fri : 11 am - 2 pm & 4 pm - 9pm

Sat : 11 am - 9 pm.
Closed Sunday

Parsley Is The Spice of Life...

Parsley is an herb that I use almost as frequently as Cilantro. I buy several bunches of it per week, and like with cilantro I throw it into everything. It’s got a beautiful color, a heavenly smell, and a wonderful taste - but really is it any wonder that I love it so much when Parsley and Cilantro are related? You might not think so but parsley and coriander (cilantro) actually belong to the same family. The Apiaceae family, other members of which include fennel, dill, cumin, celery, carrot, anise, hemlock and lovage. Though there are several varieties of parlay there are really only two types commonly used as herbs.  Curly parsley, and leaf - or Italian - parsley, which is my favorite. Curly parsley is more decorative in appearance, as it’s name suggests it’s rather curly, where as Leaf parsley, also called flat-leaf parsley is flat, and looks a lot like cilantro. The flat variety is said to have a stronger flavor then the curly type but different opinions on this subject abound. The reason I like flat-leaf parsley best is because it’s a lot easier to mince. There is a third type of parsley commonly grown throughout central and eastern Europe called root parsley which produces a much thicker root then the types of parsley cultivated for their leaves. These roots are often used in casseroles, or soups, or simply eaten raw, but they are not to be confused with the parsnip. Though the parsnip is actually the closest relative of parsley in the Apiaceae family, the two taste quite different. Now, I don’t know about you but I find that kind of stuff fascinating.

Unfortunately, as wonderful as parsley is, it is so often neglected in our cooking. Parsley is considered somewhat of a ‘bland’ herb - don’t ask me why, - and is more often then not relegated to the world of artistic plating where it is perpetually stuck playing the part of a mere garnish. A real travesty if I ever heard one. If you just so happen to be one of those people that doesn’t give parsley the time of day, then I hope that by the time you’ve reached the end of this post you’ve changed your mind.

History/cultivation -

Parsley is native to the Mediterranean (Southern Italy, Algeria, Tunisia.)  Though it’s been cultivated for more then 2000 years parsley was first used medicinally before it was consumed as a food. The ancient Greeks held parsley to be sacred and used it to adorn victors of athletic contests as well as for decorating the tombs of the dead. Interestingly enough using parsley as a garnish has a long history that can be traced back to the civilization of ancient Rome.

When  parsley made the shift from medicinal and sacrificial use to culinary use is unknown. However that change is thought to have occurred at sometime during the Middle Ages in Europe. Some historians even credit Charlemagne with it’s popularization since he had it grown on his estates.

Health Benefits -

Parsley contains two components that provide unique health benefits, volatile oil, and flavonoids. Parsley’s volatile oils - particularly myristicin - have been shown to inhibit tumor formation - particularly tumor formation in the lungs -  in animal studies. Myristicin has also shown an ability to activates the enzyme glutathione-S-transferase which helps attach the molecule glutathione to oxidized molecules that would otherwise do damage in the body. The activity of parsley’s volatile oils make it a ‘chemoprotective’ food, and a food that can help naturalize particular carcinogens - such as those found in cigarette smoke or charcoal grill smoke.

The Flavonoids in parsley - especially luteolin - have been shown to function as antioxidants that can help prevent oxygen based damage to cells. In addition parsley extracts have been used in animal-based studies to help increase the antioxidant capacity of the blood.

Parsley is also an excellent source of Vitamin C which is important since vitamin C is the body’s primary water-soluble antioxidant, capable of defeating otherwise dangerous free radicles in all water soluble parts of the body. Since high levels of free radicals contribute to both the development and progression of diseases like atherosclerosis, cancer, diabetes and asthma, people who eat healthy amounts of Vitamin C rich foods may be at lower risk. Vitamin C is also a powerful anti-inflammatory and so it can be useful in conditions such as osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis. Not to mention the importance of vitamin C to the immune system.

Parsley is also a great source of beta-carotene, another important antioxidant working in the fat soluble areas of the body. Diets rich in beta-carotene are also associated with a reduced risk of developing atherosclerosis, diabetes, and cancer. Beta-carotene may also help reduce the severity of asthma, osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis. Beta-carotene is also converted by the body into Vitamin A which is an essential nutrient for a strong immune system.

Parsley is also an excellent source of folic acid which plays a critical role in relation to cardiovascular health.  Folic acid plays a major role in the body’s process of converting homocysteine into benign molecules.  At high levels homocysteine can directly damage blood vessels and significantly increase one’s risk of heart attack or stroke especially in people who may already suffer from atherosclerosis or diabetic heart disease. Folic acid is also a critical nutrient for proper cell division and is vitally important for cancer prevention in two areas of the body that contain rapidly dividing cells - the colon, and the cervix.

Preparation - 

I really do use parsley in just about everything. Typically I add it towards the end of cooking or sprinkle it on just before serving a dish, because it’s really best eaten raw. I love it in soups, or stews - anything with an Italian, North American or European feel. I like it sprinkled on salads, or used in certain Middle Eastern dishes like Tabbouleh. It’s great in tomato sauce, it’s great in alfredo sauce. It’s perfect in horseradish cream sauce to ladle over tofu. It makes a great pesto, it’s fantastic blended into salad dressings. It works fantastically with grilled or broiled cauliflower, and I love it paired with chickpeas. Really it’s hard to go wrong with parsley so the next time you’re at hte market pick up a bunch or two and don’t be afraid to use it. Experiment and enjoy, that’s what cooking’s all about!

Coriander Is The Spice of Life...

I probably say this about every spice but I really, really love Coriander. Did you know that coriander is both an herb and a spice? This is because both the fresh leaves and the seeds are used. In North America we commonly refer to the seeds (ground or whole) as coriander, while we refer to the fresh leaves as cilantro.  While I tend to use both in my cooking I typically reserve coriander seeds and powder for dishes of a Mediterranean, Mexican, Indian, or Middle Eastern flair, where as Cilantro I’ll toss into just about anything. I use a ridiculous amount of Cilantro, and probably buy anywhere from 3-4 large bunches of it per week. I love everything about it from it’s unique flavor to it’s smell, and it works well in almost any dish.

Interestingly enough did you know that many people can’t stand the leaves because they experience un unpleasant soapy taste or rank flavor when eating them? This is due to an aromatic chemical compound within the leaves that is somewhat related to a chemical group found in the Stink Bug. Apparently the different perceptions of coriander leaves is genetic - like that whole Asparagus/stinky pee thing - with some people having absolutely no reaction to the chemicals whatsoever, while others can’t stand it. Glad I’m one of the people who can stand Coriander/Cilantro, because I don’t know what I’d do without it! But enough about all that, lets get to some history.

History/Cultivation

Coriander is native to a wide range of areas spanning Southern Europe all the way to South Asia, and since it grows wild in so many areas it’s hard for us to pinpoint exactly where it was first cultivated. There is however plenty of evidence to suggest that Coriander has been in use for a very, very long time. For example fifteen desiccated coriander mericarps were found in the Pre-Pottery Neolithic B Level of the Nahal Hemel Cave in Israel which is potentially the oldest archeological find of coriander. Roughly half a liter of coriander mericarps were recovered from the tomb of Tutankhamun, and since the plant does not grow wild in Egypt archeologists interpret this as proof that coriander was cultivated by the ancient Egyptians.

Coriander also seems to have been cultivated in Greece since roughly the second millennium BC. A Linear B Tablet recovered from Pylos refers to the species being cultivated for use in perfume as well as for it’s culinary/medicinal properties Large quantities of the species being recovered at an Early Bronze Age layer at Sitagori in Macedonia could indicate cultivation of the species at that time..

If you want to get a little less Scientific coriander is also mentioned in the Old Testament of The Bible. It’s also said to have been used by the Romans to preserve meat and flavor bread, and it’s associated with Hippocrates who apparently used it as an aromatic stimulant.

Lastly coriander was brought to the British Colonies in North America around 1670, and became one of the first spices cultivated by early settlers.

Health Benefits 

Recent animal-based research has confirmed that coriander can control blood sugar, cholesterol, and free radical production. When it was added to the diet of diabetic mice, it helped stimulate their secretion of insulin and lowered their blood sugar.  When it was given to rats fed a high fat, high cholesterol diet, coriander lowered levels of total LDL cholesterol and triglycerides while increasing the levels of HDL cholesterol. This effect appears to be caused by increasing synthesis of bile by the liver and increasing the breakdown of cholesterol into other compounds. Finally in rats coriander was also shown to reduce the amount of damaged fats in their cell membranes.

Interestingly in parts of Europe coriander has been traditionally referred to as an ‘anti-diabetic’ herb, and has been documented as a traditional treatment for Type 2 Diabetes.

A study published in the June 2004 issue of the Journal of Agriculture and Food Chemistry suggests that coriander could be a natural way to fight Salmonella - which is a frequently and sometimes deadly cause of foodborne illness. Together US and Mexican researchers isolated the compound dodecenal, which laboratory tests showed is twice as effective as the commonly used antibiotic drug gentamicin at killing Salmonella.

Coriander - like many spices - also contains antioxidants, which can delay or prevent the spoilage of food seasoned with it. Though antioxidants were found in both the seeds as well as the leaves the antioxidant effect of the leaves proved to be greater.

Coriander has also been used as a folk remedy in Iran to treat anxiety and insomnia. While it’s long been used in Indian Medicine as a diuretic, as well as a carminative and digestive aid.

Lastly the essential oil produced from coriander has shown to have antimicrobial effects.

So it’s antioxidant, antibacterial, anti-diabetic, and antimicrobial - what more could you ask for?

Preparation -

I like cilantro in just about anything but some of my favorite ways to use it are in fresh salsa, guacamole, black bean soup, in grain salads like tabbouleh, in dal’s, in curries - especially spicy curries or coconut based curries - in chili, in cornbread, sprinkled over top of roasted potatoes or carrots, in lentil soup - or any soup - sprinkled over top of salad, in chutney, dressing’s, dip’s, and even on pasta. It’s great with lightly sauteed white beans, and goes pretty well with just about any Mexican, Latin American, Indian, Asian, North African, Mediterranean, or Tex-Mex style cuisine.

You can even make a holistic tea out of it by boiling the seeds - though I’ll be honest and say I have no idea what that might taste like.

There’s really so much you can do with cilantro that as long as you don’t have an aversion to it you should just start liberally using it in everything.