Ah, New Year’s resolutions, to be healthier, happier, slimmer, etc.. oy! Frankly, I don’t really feel like making any big, firm, ceremonious resolutions this year. Instead, I’ve come up with general areas in which I’d like to improve, new paths I’d like to pursue and a few scary, uncomfortable things I am going to force myself to dig into.
There are many things I took away from my stay at The Ranch that I will use to help me to achieve some of my steps towards improvement this year, in particular, ways to eat a healthier diet, in hopes of, amongst other things, maintaining the leaner figure I cam home with {I lost about 8 pounds overall}.
Our diet was vegetarian, and all of the food was so wonderful, I really didn’t miss having meat for a week. But out here on my own, I do eat meat, and I find that the pure protein it provides keeps me feeling full and fueled for much longer that other protein options. But, what I’ve discovered is that I can eat less meat, coupled with more vegetables and still get that fortified affect. One tip that I learned that’s helped me in this effort is to always make sure that the meal on your plate is more than 1/2 vegetables.
Of all of the vegetables we discussed, KALE was touted as the superfood of all superfoods, loaded with an abundance of vitamins, minerals and anti-cancer agents, yet very low in in calories. I’ve always loved kale as a side dish, sauteed in olive oil, with a little garlic and a squeeze of fresh lemon. But, I learned a tasty new way add more kale into my diet….kale smoothies for breakfast. Now they may look weird, but I promise you, they are positively delicious. Also, as I’m sure you know, the beauty of a smoothie is that it is very easy to alter the recipe to suit your personal tastes.
Below is a smoothie recipe made with kale from The Ranch. The cuisine there was also dairy free, so they often offered almond milk, which is used in this recipe. You can buy almond milk in stores, but honestly, I tried a few and found them to have a strong bitter quality. So, in addition to the smoothie recipe, you’ll find a recipe for making almond milk {SO easy}. Finally, I’m including my current favorite version of the Splendid Kale Smoothie, including my little lazy lady way of making almond milk, on an as needed basis.
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| The Splendid Kale Smoothie |
Avocado Smoothie,
from The Ranch,
Malibu
from The Ranch,
Malibu
Serving size: 1
3 oz. Avocado
4 oz. Asian pear
2 oz. Kale
Minced fresh ginger to taste
8 oz. almond milk
4 oz. pineapple juice
1 cup ice
sea salt to taste
Here is my current favorite concoction. This smoothie tastes great, is extremely satisfying and keeps me feeling full and energized all morning long. I LOVE the addition of ginger, it makes me feel so warm and cozy.
A Splendid Smoothie
Serving size: 1
10 almonds
1 cup water
2 satsuma oranges, washed and whole
a pinch of salt
10 sprigs of parsley
1/2 an apple
6~8 small leaves of kale, chopped
1/2 an apple
6~8 small leaves of kale, chopped
3 slices of fresh pineapple
about 2 inches of fresh ginger root
Drop almonds, water and satsuma into a vitamix or blender {this is the almond milk}
Blend until liquefied.
Add the rest of the ingredients and blend until smooth.
For a crunchy topping sprinkle on some Splendid Granola.
As I’ve been reorganizing my kitchen {part of working towards my never~ending goal of having a more efficiently organized home}, I was able to move my Vitamix from outer kitchen Siberia, to a drawer in my center island, just below the counter where I like to use it. As a result, I’ve found I’m much more inclined to use this fabulous food machine. The cookbook that came with the machine has a plethora of healthy recipes, here is their recipe for making Almond or Cashew milk.
Almond Milk, recipe from the Vitamix
recipe book
recipe book
Almond or Cashew Milk recipe from the
Vitamix cookbook
Vitamix cookbook
3 cups water
1 cup raw almonds or cashews
sugar or sweetener to taste {optional}
1. Place all ingredients into the
Vita-mix container in the order listed and secure lid.
Vita-mix container in the order listed and secure lid.
2. Select Variable 1.
3. Turn machine on and quickly increase
speed to Variable 10, then to High,
speed to Variable 10, then to High,
4. Blend for 2 minutes or until desired
consistency is reached.
consistency is reached.
Preparation: 5 minutes, processing: 2
minutes, yield 3.5 cups
minutes, yield 3.5 cups
What about you? Any resolutions?
I have a smoothie each morning made with an apple, a banana and yogurt. I can't wait to try this version.
Thanks for sharing, Emily.
Teresa
xoxo
yes, to try some of these recipes!
Emily,
I have Kale every morning in a smoothie and I have never felt better. I did a cleanse in August and lost 10 pounds and had tons of energy. I don't use as much kale as you do, but I add 1/4 cup of Kale, 1/4 cup of frozen organic blueberries, chocolate & vanilla protein mix (from Arbonne), almond milk and ice. Love it. Having one now! Added a little coconut this morning for a change! M.
I have a green smoothie a couple times a week – so healthy. This looks like a womderful recipe. I posted my favorite kale recipes on my blog.
I love kale – have some in the fridge right now – maybe it needs to become a smoothy. My new years resolution is always to improve – and health is always a big part of that. Also, this year I decided to resolve to go to Paris! Thought making it a resolution was a good way to make sure it happened this year and didn't get postponed because of all of the other commitments and things that keep us busy in life!
Hope you are enjoying the snow! Have to admit, I'm getting a little stir crazy… Time for a new project. Maybe I should tackle organizing my kitchen.
Have a lovely weekend!
kindred spirits…got to try that kale smoothie…have you seen the tiny tender baby kale (Gelsons here)…works so well for salads…love it tossed with roasted butternut squash and French feta…fav restaurant in Brooklyn serving a black kale salad with anchovies and toasted hazelnuts and something secret with lots of kick…i just swore off red meat…hard thing to do for a Type O carnivore… trying to do something to trick my body into being lean again…and swore off dairy so am also doing the almond milk thing using my daughter's recipe…she soaks her almonds first for 8 hours, adds a couple of dates for sweetness and strains mixture thru a cloth…so we seem to be synced up on everything about now…hope you are feeling great with the changes
Jermaine