Green Juice: Pear

I just got a Vitamix and I am so excited to finally be able to make my own juices. I can't stand spending 10 dollars on a juice from Organic Avenue or Juice Press when I can make the same thing at home for 1/3 of the price. And Organic Avenue opens at 8am, which is waaaayyy too late in the morning for someone who gets up before 6am.

I made this juice with pear because I have them, but you can really prepare a green juice any way you like. I'm into a mix of both fruit and veggies combined with a little lemon to make it tangy, but if you don't like lemon, just skip it! This is the beginning of many smoothie ideas, so stay tuned!

Ingredients: 1/4 cup water 1 pear, cut into about 8 pieces 1 clementine 1 carrot, chopped into 1/2 pieces 1 lemon, skin cut off, deseeded 1 piece of ginger, about a 1/2 inch piece, peeled and chopped 2 pieces of celery, chopped in 3rds 1/2 cucumber, sliced into about 8 pieces lengthwise

Instructions: Throw all into a Vitamix and set to the smoothie setting and it will turn off when it's finished. In a normal blender, you may want to chop everything a little smaller and I'm not sure if you can put carrots and such in there, so read the instructions.

Salmon & Arugula Salad w/ Walnuts, Onion & Heart of Palm

I was unsure what I wanted for lunch today, so I went with an easy option...and pretty much the only thing I could make with what I had in my fridge. This salad is really easy and while the salmon cooks, you can prep your veggies and clean up, so when all's said and done, only 15 minutes will have passed. And, it was so good!

Prep Time: 5 minutes Cooking Time: 15 minutes Serves: 1, but just double the ingredients for 2, and so on

Ingredients: 5oz piece of non-farmed salmon 1 T olive oil (salmon) 1/2 t sea salt 1/2 t ground black pepper 1/2 lemon wedge, cut into three sections 1/3 box of arugula 4 stalks heart of palm, sliced 1 1/2 T sliced or chopped red onion 1 T olive oil (dressing) Himalayan sea salt, to taste Ground black pepper, to taste

Prepping & Cooking: Preheat oven to 420 degrees. Prep a cookie sheet with foil and spray some olive oil on top. Rinse the salmon and pat dry. Place the salmon on the foil and top with juice of one section of the lemon, olive oil, salt and pepper. When the oven is ready, place the fish inside and set the timer for 15 minutes (oven temps vary).

While the salmon is cooking, put the arugula on the plate and drizzle with olive oil and second slice of fresh lemon. Gently toss the greens to absorb the dressing. Chop the onion and heart of palm. Add to the plate. After the salmon has spent about 15 minutes in the oven, place it on top of the salad and squeeze final section of lemon on top and add salt and pepper to taste. All done!

Homemade Almond Milk

I have come to love making almond milk; it's quick (under 15 minutes with cleaning), healthy and delicious. ...And now that I have a Nespresso coffee maker, I've been making fancy coffee drinks with my fancy homemade almond milk—so fancy. ;-) In addition to coffee, you can use your almond milk for smoothies, oatmeal or even just to drink—it's nice to know that I made it myself and it's all natural ingredients! Drink up! Also, get yourself a nut milk bag (OneLuckyDuck for $8.95) which will make straining the almond meal a breeze.

Ingredients:

1 cup organic, raw almonds soaked in filtered water, overnight (8 hours) 4 cups filtered water 1 T agave, maple syrup or another organic sweetener (optional)

Directions: Drain liquid from the nuts and rinse a few times with filtered water. Drain again. Then I peel the almond skin off the almonds (takes about 5 minutes and a task to be done while watching the news or something) Place in blender with 4 cups of water and blend for about 2 minutes.

Pour the contents of the blender into your nut milk bag over a medium-sized mixing bowl and squeeze the liquid out. I discard the almond meal, but you can save it for baking if you're creative like that (I'm clearly not). Poor the almond milk into a container and you’re all set! I usually do about half this amount of nuts because I don’t drink it every day, so make it for yourself or share with friends; they will be impressed with your skills!

Vegan & Gluten Free Chocolate Peanut Butter Cups

I never was a huge fan of Reese's peanut butter cups, but I do like dark chocolate and peanut butter so I consulted my friend, Google, and found this delicious recipe from the Goodness Green blog. I changed the cocoa to cacao, but really it's probably all the same. I made these three times and I definitely feel they came out differently each time, so remember that if you try to make these treats. Surprisingly enough, these are actually somewhat healthy, if you eat only one or two in a serving, so this would make a nice and easy dessert for a party, minus the calories you might find in a regular sugary treat.

Ingredients: 1/4 cup organic coconut oil 1 teaspoon organic vanilla extract 4 tablespoons raw agave 1/3 cup raw and organic cacao powder 1/4 cup organic peanut butter 1/2 teaspoon salt (I didn't use any, so you can make the call) 1 teaspoon nutritional yeast

Cooking Instructions: 1. Melt the coconut oil in a small pan over a low heat. Once melted stir through the remaining ingredients until a smooth in consistency. 2. Spoon a tablespoon of the chocolate into 8-10 tiny cupcake holders and freeze for 20 minutes. 3. Meanwhile combine the peanut butter filling ingredients and set aside. 4. Remove the chocolate cups from the freezer. With a teaspoon of the peanut butter mix form a small flat disc and place on top of the set chocolate. Spoon over remaining dark chocolate and freeze until set. 5. Store in the fridge for up to 5 days. Keep in the freezer for a much longer shelf life.

Cauliflower & Lentil Porridge

'Tis the season to eat lentils! I mean, they are so much tastier than a cookie or egg nog, right? Exactly. ;-) With the onions and carrots in this dish, you will be eating sweet vegetables, which actually helps with sweet cravings and regulating blood sugar - I like to call this a win. Embrace our cruciferous friend the cauliflower to help add nutrients and flavor to a hearty lentil dish, add some other veggies, like carrots, and get excited for a nourishing winter meal. I usually make my lentils with an Indian/Moroccan flavor, but you can add any spices you like - lentils are so diverse, you really can't go wrong.

Ingredients: 1 T olive or coconut oil (coconut gives it a sweeter taste) 3 cloves of garlic, chopped 1/2 red or yellow onion, chopped 1 bag of baby carrots or about 2 large carrots, chopped lengthwise into pieces to your liking 1 head of cauliflower, chopped into 1-inch pieces (doesn't need to be precise) 15oz organic kidney beans (buy the bagged, rather than canned if possible) 2 cups lentils 4 cups organic vegetable broth (organic chicken broth is also fine) 2 cups water 1 T curry seasoning 1/2 T ginger 1/2 T paprika 1 T cumin 1 t salt 1 t pepper

Cooking Heat the oil in a large pot and add the garlic and onion. Cook for about 2 minutes, then add carrots and cauliflower. Saute, stirring somewhat frequently for about 10 minutes. Add the beans, lentils and broth, and bring to a boil. Add all seasonings. Cook for about 40 minutest to an hour, until the broth has evaporated for the most part and the lentils are soft (varies based on type of lentil you buy). I sometimes cook my lentils for 4 hours, but today I only did 40 minutes, so it's up to you!

Arugula, Scallop & Brussels Sprout Salad

Scallops are great on their own, but if you want to change it up or if you've never made them at all, they make a lovely salad topper. I normally make my salads with chicken or some kind of fish, but I ordered a ton of scallops and needed to use them up. In addition, the arugula, Brussels sprouts, heart of palm and onions tie it all together nicely. Not only is this salad delicious and packed with clean protein, it's easy to make.

Prep Time: 10 minutes Cooking Time: 10 minutes Serves: 1, but just double the ingredients for 2, and so on

Ingredients: 5 large scallops sliced in half 1 T olive oil 1/2 t sea salt 5 Brussels sprouts 1/3 box of arugula 2 stalks heart of palm, sliced 1 1/2 T chopped red onion 1 T olive oil 1 T balsamic vinegar Himalayan sea salt, to taste Ground black pepper, to taste

Prepping & Cooking: Rinse the scallops with water and dry with a paper towel. Slice in half. Heat a pan on medium and add olive oil. After the oil is heated, sauté the scallops (sprinkle the sea salt) for about 10 minutes, stirring frequently. Steam the Brussels sprouts until they are slightly undercooked.

While the sprouts are cooking, put the arugula on the plate, and top with the heart of palm, and onion. Drizzle with olive oil. After 10 minutes, put the scallops on the plate with the salad. When the sprouts are done, chop each sprout in fours and add to the plate. Top with balsamic vinegar, salt and pepper and enjoy!