Blog Archives

Keep it Simple with Kale

3/23/2016

Kale. The darling of the vegetable world these past few years. And for good reason. As a dark green leafy cruciferous vegetable, kale supports your body's natural detoxification process. And, as a great source of magnesium, potassium, calcium and chlorophyll - all of which help signal our parasympathetic nervous system - kale also helps create a calmer, more relaxed you.

My favorite kale is lacinato or "dinosaur" kale (pictured above). I love the flavor and texture and it is delicious cooked or raw. It's always easy to add a handful of kale into your protein shake or salad, or to sautee quickly with some olive oil and garlic, but I thought you may enjoy a few more recipes. Hope you love adding kale to your day as much as I do!

Simple Raw Kale Salad

My tastebuds often yearn for crunchy, salty, and maybe just a bit of sour. So, instead of reaching for chips, I'm going here instead:

1 bunch of lacinato (dinosaur) kale
1-2 tsp of high quality olive oil
juice of 1/2-1 lime
sea salt to taste

Trim the ends off the lacinato kale. Roll the leaves together and then cut into thin slices (about 1/4 to 1/2 inch). Place in large bowl and drizzle with olive oil (careful not to overdo). Knead with your hands to "break up" the toughness of the kale. Then add fresh lime juice and sea salt to your liking and knead a little more.

You're left with a crunchy, slightly salty delight with a hint of lime. It's better than chips! (Especially since you know it's not only delicious but good for you!)

Kale Krisps

This is a crowd pleaser and another good substitute for chips.

1 bunch of kale (any variety)
1-2 tsp olive oil
Sea salt
Nutritional yeast

Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees. Cut or tear kale into bite sized hunks and place in large bowl. Drizzle with olive oil and mix with your hands to "soften" kale. Don't overdo the oil or you may be left with soggy krisps.

Place kale on baking sheet in single layer. Sprinkle with sea salt and nutritional yeast. If you've never tried nutritional yeast before, you're in for a treat. It adds a punch of nutrients and a slightly nutty, cheesy taste.

Bake at 350 for about 10-15 minutes until edges are brown, not burned.

Next time - if you're feeling daring - experiment with other flavors and seasonings. It's hard to go wrong.

Add Kale to Soup

Kale is also a wonderful addition to soups, as I've blogged about here and here.

Adding a little kale into your life doesn't have to be boring or tasteless - it can be delicious, satisfying AND help re-direct you from other choices which challenge you. Enjoy!

Lorie

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Detox Soup

3/10/2016

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Kicking off your longer term weight or health goals with a 14 Day Detox is a great place to start. Two weeks of eliminating highly allergenic and sometimes toxic foods (along with nutrient support for detoxification processes), can reduce cravings, decrease brain fog, increase energy, and imbue you with enough optimism to keep at it for longer term goals. One of my favorite strategies while detoxing (or anytime really), is to have vegetable soup always at the ready. For me, it's a great afternoon lift - it tastes great, is bursting with nutrients, and it doesn't rev up my afternoon cravings for sugar or salty snacks.

Here's the recipe I made yesterday - you can adjust to suit your tastes, including any non-starchy vegetables you choose.

Detox Vegetable Soup

1-2 T of extra virgin olive oil
1 red onion, diced
2 green garlic, chopped
4-5 celery stalks, chopped
3 carrots, chopped
1 zucchini, chopped
1/2 small green cabbage, chopped
1-2 large leaves of red chard or kale, chopped
2-3 fresh jalapenos, chopped (omit if you don't like spicy!)
2 cans of diced tomatoes
1 container of organic chicken or vegetable stock (or one large bouillon cube)
water
sea salt

Add oil to large soup pot over medium heat. As you dice and chop onion, garlic, celery, carrots, jalapeno, zucchini, chard and kale, add to heat and saute for several minutes (the smell will be delicious!). Add the 2 cans of diced tomatoes, the stock, and enough water to cover all the vegetables. Add sea salt to taste (or other seasonings). I cook on medium low heat for another 1/2 hour to 45 minutes. I prefer my vegetable soup to be slightly crunchy, so I remove from heat before vegetables are overdone.