I'm obsessed with dipping foods! Anything I eat has to have a sauce to dip into. Since there are SO many unhealthy options to choose from that are so yummy and easy to reach for, I've started making my own. So long as I make a few tasty batches in the beginning of each week I find that I reach for the unhealthy options less frequently.
Last night I tried out a couple new dipping sauces, one sweet and one for salads, that were deliciously healthy. The sweet sauce was so good I ate a cup of it all by itself, but you can also pour it over fruit for a phenomenal fruit salad, or combine with alternative cream cheese(like Tofutti's Better Than Cream Cheese) for the perfect fruit dip! Here are the recipes for you to try out, feel free to tweak them to your own liking by substituting different fruits and veggies. Please keep in mind that I rarely measure while cooking, so these measurements are approximations only. Also, since I make these as dipping sauces their consistency is slightly thick, you can turn either into a dressing by adding more water or oil to thin out the sauce. Experiment...Enjoy!
Cucumber Avocado Sauce
Combine ingredients in a high-speed blender and blend until smooth:
1 c water
1 cucumber, peeled and chopped
1 c spinach
3 avocados
1 c cilantro (I've tried this with a parsley and mint combo before...delicious!)
½ c scallions
3 cloves garlic
2 T lemon j...uice
2 T Truffle oil (sub any other oil for a slightly different hint of flavor)
1 T nutritional yeast (optional; I use Bragg's nutritional yeast flakes or savory yeast)
Salt to taste
Fruit Sauce
Combine ingredients in a high-speed blender and blend until smooth:
½ c vanilla almond milk (or sub your favorite nut milk)
3 bananas
1 large mango
½ carton of strawberries
½ c toasted sesame seeds
½ c shredded coconut
1 T Cayenne pepper (optional)
Pour over your favorite combination of fruit salad, or mix in with alternative cream cheese to create a fruit dip that friggin ROCKS at parties!
Tuesday, May 4, 2010
Tuesday, April 27, 2010
The Transitioning Phase
About 6 months ago when I decided to clear out all the processed, meaty, milky, or eggy foods from my fridge and pantry I was totally gun-ho! Roughly 2 weeks into my new way of life I suddenly found myself in DESPARATE NEED of a cheeseburger, a craving I've come to know as "The Meat Sweats". One tiny moment of weakness un-did 2 weeks of healthy work!!! After a few more run-ins with "The Meat Sweats" I asked myself "What can I do to keep myself on track during times when I have Processed Food/Meat/Dairy cravings?".
I realized that while I didn’t want to rely on food to feed my emotions, I also needed to be kind to myself and my process so that I didn’t create restrictions that were so challenging to maintain that I'd end up falling off the vegan wagon anyway. To resolve my craving issues I began a hunt for alternative meats and was pleasantly surprised to find a vast array of yummy vegan goodies that are high in fiber and protein and successfully combat those viscious meat sweats.
Over the next 2 months I experimented with all sorts of different brands and was able to find a few tasty, and healthy alternatives (Vegan Gourmet cheese, Tofurky Italian Sausage and Deli style lunch meats, Toffuti's Better Than Cream Cheese and Sour Cream, Earth Balance Soy butter, Boca brand Ground Crumbles, and Gardein brand Scallopinis to name just a few) that I could incorporate into my everyday cooking should I so choose. I also found that reaching for foods or snacks rich in fiber, water, and nutrients left me satisfied and helped to alleviate cravings.
I've become a HUGE fan of THE GREEN SMOOTHIE:
2 c water
½ small tray wheatgrass
1 bunch beet greens
½ bunch curly kale
1 c kumquats (whole, with skin)
½ lemon (peeled)
1 mango
1 red pear
Combine in a high-speed blender and blend until smooth.
Makes about 8 cups.
I'd like to wholeheartedly encourage ANYONE interested in going meat free to do a bit of research and find replacement vegan foods to better ease into your meat free lifestyle!
I realized that while I didn’t want to rely on food to feed my emotions, I also needed to be kind to myself and my process so that I didn’t create restrictions that were so challenging to maintain that I'd end up falling off the vegan wagon anyway. To resolve my craving issues I began a hunt for alternative meats and was pleasantly surprised to find a vast array of yummy vegan goodies that are high in fiber and protein and successfully combat those viscious meat sweats.
Over the next 2 months I experimented with all sorts of different brands and was able to find a few tasty, and healthy alternatives (Vegan Gourmet cheese, Tofurky Italian Sausage and Deli style lunch meats, Toffuti's Better Than Cream Cheese and Sour Cream, Earth Balance Soy butter, Boca brand Ground Crumbles, and Gardein brand Scallopinis to name just a few) that I could incorporate into my everyday cooking should I so choose. I also found that reaching for foods or snacks rich in fiber, water, and nutrients left me satisfied and helped to alleviate cravings.
I've become a HUGE fan of THE GREEN SMOOTHIE:
2 c water
½ small tray wheatgrass
1 bunch beet greens
½ bunch curly kale
1 c kumquats (whole, with skin)
½ lemon (peeled)
1 mango
1 red pear
Combine in a high-speed blender and blend until smooth.
Makes about 8 cups.
I'd like to wholeheartedly encourage ANYONE interested in going meat free to do a bit of research and find replacement vegan foods to better ease into your meat free lifestyle!
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