Not the most appetizing photograph, I know. But, I try — with my wee little toddler-smudged digital…. This dish was, totally, much better than it looks in the photo. And, hey? Vegans out there? Or, ye peeps who want to eat vegan meals or healthier whole-food meals that will nourish not just your body but your SOUL, more often? Check it.

I would say that the wheatberry is my favourite grain. It’s a “meaty” grain with lots of chew and lots of crunch. And, it’s got a rich and nutty flavour. It’s perfect mixed with a lemon, olive oil, and dill dressing, as in the following recipe. CHECK IT!

WHEATBERRIES WITH LEMON-DILL DRESSING

Ingredients
(Serves 1-2)

1/2 cup wheatberries
1 1/2 cup water
1 garlic clove (minced)
1/4 onion (chopped)
2 tsp olive oil (add 1 tsp flax oil for omega 3s)
Lemon juice (to taste)
Dried dill (to taste)
Handful pine nuts
1/2 cup cooked/canned chick peas (for protein) (optional)
Any combo of veggies (I recommend portobello mushrooms and spinach because they’re great for vegans and because they taste great with pine nuts; I used broccoli because I had some leftover steamed broccoli in the fridge.)

Instructions

1. Cook wheatberries: Place wheatberries and water in a pot. Bring to a boil and let sit, at low heat, for an hour or so (until they look puffed up — maybe taste one just to be sure). Once ready, gently pour out the excess water.

2. Meanwhile, spray a pan with light (organic, if possible) cooking spray. Stir fry the garlic and onions until onions are soft. Then add mushrooms, spinach, etc..

3. When the wheatberries and veggies are done, mix them together.

4. Mix in the chickpeas.

5. Drizzle with the olive oil and lemon juice.

6. Divide into bowls. Sprinkle with dill and pine nuts. Enjoy!

If this really doesn’t float your boat, just add 1/2 cup of your favourite tomato sauce. You’ll LOVE it!

So, I’ve been buying kale whenever I go grocery shopping lately. Because I’ve been feeling like I buy the same old vegetables all the time: the lettuce, the peppers, the tomatoes, the carrots, the frozen broccoli, the spinach, and, if I’m feeling adventurous, the cucumber….ahem.

Also, I’ve heard that DARK leafy green vegetables are WHERE IT’S AT — and not just your usual spinach and lettuce. It’s all about the COLLARDS and the KALES. Packed with vitamins, minerals, fiber, they are! So, I’m starting with kale.

I’ve been buying it weekly for several weeks now, and it always just rots in my fridge because I’m too lazy to take on the KALE ADVENTURE. But, this week, I was determined to use my beautiful bunch of organic kale….

KALE CHIPS!!!!!!!!!

Kale chips, Gorgeouses. They are FABULOUS. They’re crispy and tasty and, WHO CARES WHAT I HAVE TO SAY when I have THIS EVIDENCE:

Monkey, aka PICKIEST-EATER-ON-THE-PLANET, LOVED her “chips”! Need I say more….

INGREDIENTS:

1 bunch kale
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

INSTRUCTIONS:

Preheat the oven to 375°F.

1. Remove the stems from the kale.

2. Cut or tear the leaves into bite-sized pieces.

3. Toss leaves with oil, salt, and pepper — making sure all are covered.

4. Place the leaves in a single layer on a lined/lightly greased baking sheet.

5. Place in the oven for anywhere from 4 to 15 minutes (every recipe I’ve seen says something different, but I baked mine for about 12 minutes). Time really varies here — depending on how wet your leaves are, how big you make them, etc.. Just make sure the kale becomes crispy but not burned. Serve immediately and ENJOY!

As I get closer and closer to vegan status, I’m finding myself buying all sorts of great vegetarian/vegan cookbooks (COUGHsupportmybookbuyinghabit HERE!COUGH…). My latest find is Edith Rothschild’s Nutrilicious.

This book is ADORABLE. It’s written by Jewish GREAT-GRANDMOTHER. And, even though it calls itself “Kosher,” it’s great for everyone. I mean, I’m not even Kosher, and I LOVE it. It’s seriously PACKED with great information and health tips — and some THUPER sweet poems! And, for you non-vegans out there who would like to incorporate more vegetarian meals into their week (please do!), the book does include a few (free-range!) egg and fish recipes.

The recipes I’ve tried so far have been delish — not only for me, but for my non-veg hubby and kids. Here are two of them that we’ve totally enjoyed.

SUMMER SALAD SUPREME (p. 78)

INGREDIENTS (Serves 2):

2 cups shredded packed romaine lettuce
1 large orange or 2 tangerines, peeled and chopped (1/2-inch pieces)
1 small grapefruit, peeled and chopped (1/2-inch pieces)
1 tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice
2 tbsp NUTTY-EDITH CRUNCH (this is another great recipe on p. 181 of the book, but I just ground raw almonds and walnuts together in a coffee grinder, and it was WICKED ‘LICIOUS! A kind of paste formed that mixed GORGEOUSLY with the oil and lemon juice….. If you don’t want to do it my way, the author suggests that you use sunflower seeds if you don’t feel like making the NUTTY-EDITH CRUNCH)
1 – 2 tsp flaxseed oil
A small handful of organic golden raisins or dried organic cranberries.

INSTRUCTIONS:

Combine all the ingredients in medium bowl, toss well, and ENJOY!

BENEFITS (qtd. directly from book):

What’s supreme about this salad? It’s as refreshing as a cool breeze on a hot summer day. I eat it all year ’round, whenever I need a light lunch and some vitamin C. Whenever we combine fruit with salad greens, we slow down the absorption of sugars from the fruit into our bodies. This enables us to keep our energy level up longer and prevents us from getting hungry again too soon.

JOKE (qtd. directly from book): “If life hands you a lemon, squeeze it into your salads.”

QUICK APPLE TREAT (p. 224)

INGREDIENTS (Serves 1):

1 medium sweet apple (I might even add some cheaty little blueberries or raisins to this!)
2 tbsp sugar-free jam or organic apple butter

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. Peel the apple, cut it into 8 or more wedges, and discard core.
2. Place the jam or apple butter in a medium-sized skillet and heat at Medium-High, until bubbly.
3. Stir in the apple slices, turn heat down to LOW, cover and simmer for 10 minutes, turning the apples over once.
4. ENJOY!

BENEFITS (qtd. directly from book):

This takes much less time than making applesauce, baked apples or apple pie and quickly fills a sweet tooth.

Avoid Six White Foods!!!!!
White sugar, White Flour, White Rice, White Chocolate, Salt and Milk.

Cheaty HIGHLY recommends this cookbook if not only because it’s singlehandedly brought me back to WHOLE FOOD — in the real sense of the term. It’s made my kitchen a warm and exciting place to cook in again.

It’s a love-hate relationship. I LOVE that friggin’ Starbucks-Soy-No-Water Chai-Tea Latte perhaps more than I love myself — well, at least, more than I love my own body because, MAN, my body HATES that thing. HAAAATES! Oh, but my soul…or, erm, my sugar-addicted tastebuds, blood cells, LOVE.

Anyway. I went for my third appointment with Lori, my holistic nutritionist, this afternoon, and I finally told her about my little addiction….

She googled it right in front of me to see exactly what the nutritional breakdown of this EVIL drink is. And, when she found it? Her face. HER FACE was enough to turn me right off chais FOREVER (here’s hoping)…. It was a look of… of… of… HORROR!!! and… and… and… DISGUST!

And, it didn’t end. She kept talking about the chai, and checking and rechecking the breakdown IN UTTER DISBELIEF (no, I know I tend to exaggerate and get over-dramatic about stuff, but I’m being totally FACTUAL right now), with that same look of HORROR and DISGUST on her face!

Then, she said the one thing that — aside from that unforgettable look of HORROR and DISGUST – should turn me off of the chai FOREVER. She said…she said…, “It’s like a……..COKE!”!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

You don’t understand. I am the ANTI-COKE. I hate it. It’s like GUM to me. I will NEVER TOUCH it. It’s like a CIGARETTE. The DEFINITION OF UNHEALTHY. It’s everything I don’t want to be! Heh. Now, I’m as good as DRINKING IT? EVERY DAY?

WOAAAAHHH!

Needless to say, I will not be drinking this…this…Coke anymore.

I AM NOT A COKE ADDICT!

The LOVELY Karen (who co-designed our FAB site!) has also been trying to help me shake this HORRID chai-tea latte habit. She sent me this recipe she found in the Women’s Health Training Guide, which I hope to try SOON, and I thought I’d share it with you. CHECK IT!

Chai Latte Hot Cereal

1 1/2 cup vanilla soy milk
1/2 water
1/4 tsp pumpkin pie spice
1/8 tsp ground cardamom
3/4 cup rolled mulitgrain cereal (like Mother’s 100% Natural)
4 tsp honey
1/2 cup fresh raspberries

1. In a medium saucepan, bring 1 cup soy milk, water & spices to boil over medium-high heat.

2. Stir in cereal. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer, stirring frequently, until cereal is tender but still chewy and liquid is absorbed, about 5 minutes.

3. Stir in remaining soy milk and honey. Divide cereal between 2 bowls and top with raspberries.

Makes 2 servings.

Nutritional Info:
235 calories
1 g fat (0g saturated)
74 mg sodium
45 g carbohydrates
6 g fiber
8 g protein

Mmmm…. YUM! THANK YOU, KAREN! MWAH!

Guess who’s coming to right for us REALLY REALLY SOON! Like, NEXT WEEK, like — if she can get her PREGGERS SELF up to the task! LORI THE NUTRITIONIST!

To start, she’ll be answering SARAH’s question about ENERGY BARS, has a HOT TIP about making the best QUINOA, and MORE to motivate, inspire and inform us! So, look forward to that!

If you have questions for the nutritionist, please send them to me here!

I got an email the other day from the LOVELY and FABULOUSLY PREGGERS Multi-Tasking Mommy! She wanted to know how on EARTH one makes a good batch of Quinoa.

WELL, I can TELL YOU. Because I make the BEST QUINOA. And, it’s SO easy. It’s as easy as couscous and BETTER FOR YOU. I make it all the time. It’s SO good for you — one of the HEALTHIEST “grains” (apparently, it’s not even a grain) you can eat because it’s packed with PROTEIN and loads of nutrients. So, check it, Gorgeouses….

HOW TO COOK THE PERFECT QUINOA

1. Place 250 mL (1 cup) of quinoa and 500 mL (2 cups) of water in a pot (I use Corningware).

2. Bring to a boil.

3. Reduce heat to simmer (low).

4. Cover, and cook until all the water is absorbed (10-15 mins).

5. When it’s done, you’ll be able to see the germ ring, and the grain part in the centre will be translucent. You’ll know!

CHEATY’S QUINOA RECIPE

This really is the easiest recipe. And, it’s delicious. Even Josh-O loved it — to both our surprise — when I served it the other night with a garden salad.

Ingredients:

1 cup Quinoa
1/2 cup Chopped Hazelnuts (or pine nuts, or slivered almonds)
1/2 cup Raisins
1/4-1/2 cup Feta or Goat cheese (crumbled)
Pinch Turmeric (only because it’s SUPER healthy for you)
Pepper, to taste
Black Beans (optional)

Serves 5.

I don’t know why I indicated amounts for the ingredients because this dish really is anything goes. You could use more or less of ANY of these ingredients, depending on how you like it.

I suggested black beans as an option for those of us who want more protein and fibre in the meal. It’s not necessary, though, because quinoa has plenty of that, and the cheese adds good protein.

All you do is cook the quinoa (as above), then add in all the ingredients, mix it up, ET VOILA!

So easy!

ENJOY!

Thank you for the great question, Multi-Tasking Mommy!