Fresh Spring Rolls with Raw Vegan Coconut Mango Sauce

Ever since the first day of making homemade fresh spring rolls, I have been hooked! I could probably eat them every single day (I actually had them for lunch 2 weeks in a row) but I try to limit them because of the high fat peanut dip. Peanuts also don’t really agree with my stomach so I have been on the look out for a substitute that holds up to my original dipping sauce.

I have tried numerous different dips such as, sweet chili, hoisen, sweet potato, but none can compare to my peanut sauce, it is just that good.

Well on the way home from lunch one day I literally had a light bulb go off in my head! Cashews and mango! Why not pair them together in a dipping sauce for my spring rolls? The cashews will give them that nutty, salty flavor and the mangos will give it that sweet, fresh taste. My mind was set on making this when I got home for lunch, I just had to try it out and see how it held up to what I had imagined. 

So I got home threw some things in a blender and viola- a beautiful sauce has been born! 
To make it even better, I found this awesome spice at The Bulk Barn here in Moose Jaw called Coconut Thai and added it to the sauce. It complimented the flavors so well by adding a little heat and another element of sweetness. If you dont have that spice I offered some substitutions at the bottom. It might not taste the exact same as the original but it still tastes great! 
For my original post on how I make my spring rolls plus the ingredients for my amazing peanut sauce, check it out here!

Ingredients 

½ cup soaked, raw cashews

1 tbsp coconut Thai spice

1 fresh mango

1 lime, juiced

1 green onion

½ clove garlic

Or

½ cup soaked, raw cashews
1 cup frozen mango

3/4 cup raw coconut water

1 tbsp fresh cilantro 
1 tsp fresh grated ginger
1 tsp red pepper flakes
1 green onion

½ clove garlic

1 lime, juiced
½ lemon rind 

Thanks for reading!
xoxo -N

Raw Vegan 'Pasta' Salad

I had the awesome pleasure of going to the lake last weekend for my husbands family reunion. The weather couldn’t have been better and it was really great to see everyone again, seeing as these only happen every 5 years.

All of the food was included with the registration fee but because it was mostly meat I brought all of my own food which mainly consisted of fresh fruit and veggies. I found that because I only brought out fruit and veggies that’s all I ate, well I wont lie, I did have some chips and alcoholic beverages! But definitely ate a lot healthier by bringing my own food.

Some of the things I brought out were ingredients for a mango date salad, some bananas, and this awesome raw ‘pasta’ salad. I originally was going to bring an actual pasta salad but I didn’t want to feel all bloated, plus I didn’t want to boil water in the 30 degree heat! So why not have a raw one and use zucchini noodles instead! They are fresh, easy to make and a lot healthier for you than the grain version.

I used my mandolin to make my zucchini noodles, but you can use a sprilralizer, a vegetable peeler or a knife!

Raw ‘Pasta’ Salad

1 medium zucchini, noodled

2 tomatoes, chopped
5-8 majool dates, chopped

½ yellow pepper, chopped

½ orange pepper, chopped
½ cucumber, chopped
1 lemon, juiced
*optional kalamata olives

Then I got home and thought about making one with a creamy sauce, still have it vegan but I kind of wanted to experiment with flavors. So on Wednesday I broke out the avocados and my Vitamix and came up with this amazing creamy raw vegan dressing!


Raw Vegan Pasta Dressing
1 avocado 
½ cucumber
2 cloves garlic
5 leafs basil
1 lemon, juiced

*optional 1 tbsp nutritional yeast

Put all sauce ingredients into a blender or a food processor and puree until smooth.Toss with the chopped veggies and 'noodles' and serve!


Thanks for reading!!
xoxo -N

Easy Vegan Black Bean Dip

Are you looking for a simple appetizer to take to your next party? Try this easy vegan black bean dip!

My sister in law Brittany brought this to a Mexican TGIF party this past week and I was so thankful that she did. I hadn’t eaten much before we went thinking that there was going to be a lot of guacamole and salsa but sadly I was wrong. There was some quac and veggies but that was it (well for food that I could eat) so when Brit showed up with this amazing dish, I almost took it all for myself, hording it in the corner with the blue corn chips. But I thought I would be nice and share with everyone so they could taste how amazing the dip was.

What I really love about it is that it is super simple to make, just toss into a blender and puree! I know the color isn't the greatest but really what can you expect from a bean dip other than the awesomely brown color! 

Quick and easy Vegan Bean Dip

1 can organic black beans

1 jar of organic salsa

2 tbsp nutritional yeast

1 handful cilantro 

1 tbsp cumin

1 tbsp chili powder

1 lemon juiced

Blend in a high speed blender or food processor until smooth. It can be served hot or cold and paired with tortilla chips or fresh veggies! 

This is for sure going to be one of my go-to recipes when I am in a bind and need to bring something to a party. Thanks Brittany!

Side note** Brittany didn't put in the nutritional yeast or the chili powder in to her dip, so if you don't have those things on hand I can guarantee that it still tastes amazing!

Thanks for reading

xoxo -N

Vegan Pizza Pops and Vegan Pesto Pizza

I wonder if you are getting tired of my pizza posts? I am certainly not tired of making the pizza and eating it, hence all of the recipes I have posted!

This time I made a homemade pizza pocket, or a calzone, depending on how you want to see it. AND I made a mini pesto pizza. Two for one today folks!

When you really think about it, you can do a lot with pizza dough, and by simply changing up the toppings, shape or size of what you are making, it changes the whole meal. Especially when it come to kids. What kid wouldn’t love decorating his own pizza with the toppings they love, maybe even making it have a face. Its simple changes to the meals you and your family love that make the difference between the same old, same old into something new and delicious.

For those of you who read my Homemade Pizza post, this is the same dough recipe.

Pizza Dough – 2 Pizza Pockets and 2 mini Pizzas
1 ½ cup whole wheat flour
2 tbsp ground flax
2 ¼ tsp quick-rising yeast
½ tsp salt
2/3 cup very warm water
2 tsp olive oil
2 tsp. date honey *recipe below

In a medium bowl, combine flour, flax, yeast and salt. Mix well.
Measure warm water in measuring cup, then stir in olive oil and honey. 
Pour mix over dry ingredients and mix using wooden spoon to form a ball. 
Turn dough onto a lightly floured surface. Knead for 2 mins. 
Grease inside of another bowl with olive oil and place dough inside. 
Cover with plastic wrap. Let rise in warm place until double in size (about 20mins).
Divide the dough between the number of pizza pockets or mini pizzas you would like (max 4)
Roll out dough over lightly floured surface into a circle. 
Put on toppings and bake at 425 for 15-20 mins.
**While the dough is rising I cut up the vegetables to have ready.

For the toppings I used:
1/3 sm can tomato sauce
½ red pepper, diced
3 mushrooms, sliced
½  zucchini, sliced
½ cup shredded Daiya mozzarella 

Date Honey - makes ½ cup
5 dates
¼ cup water
Blend in high speed blender until smooth, store the rest in the fridge.

 

Mini Pesto Pizza

Pesto Sauce

½ cup of cashews or sunflower seeds, soaked for at least 4 hours

1 lemon, juiced

1 clove garlic

1 large handful of spinach

5 sprigs of basil, de stemmed

Lightly chop up the spinach and basil, and throw all of the ingredients into a high speed blender. Set on medium high and blend until smooth.

Toppings

3 mushrooms, sliced

½ zucchini, sliced

Top with fresh spinach

Thanks for reading,
Xoxo -N

Organize Your Juice Cleanse in 4 Easy Steps

Juice cleanse! Yup I am going there again! I had plans on doing another one after Mexico but that kind of fell by the wayside. Technically though, this IS after Mexico so I wasn’t totally lying to myself, I am just a procrastinator, no surprise there.

I had tried starting one about a month ago but I just wasn’t motivated enough and ended up just eating all of the produce I had bought for it instead of juicing it. At least it didn’t go rotten in my fridge! There is nothing I hate more than the forgotten brussle sprouts in the back corner that go rotten, I can literally see money being tossed away and a good meal being wasted.

I found the last time I did a juice cleanse it was kind of hard to get my proportions right and figure out if I had enough food in my fridge to last the rest of the cleanse. I found myself running to the grocery store more times than needed, which can be a bit of a hassle. So this time I thought I would plan out what juices I wanted to drink and make out a list of what I will need. Sounds good right? That should alleviate things a bit and make it easier to get back on the juicing train. BUT! What if I take it to the next organizational level?!
Below I have outlined four simple steps to help guide you in starting your juice cleanse, which is always the hardest part. So here are my tips and tricks to start a successful juice cleanse:

1)    Make a list Do some research and figure out which juices you would love to drink and make out a grocery list of everything you will need.  If you are doing a longer cleanse like 10 days, you can break it up into 2 grocery trips to avoid not having enough room in your fridge. I have listed below some of the juices I am drinking, which are great basic ones that are sweet and delicious.

2)    Wash your produce

This may seem like a no brainer, but it really helps you out in the long run. Fill your sink up with cold water and a cup of vinegar and throw in all of your fruit, veggies and leafy greens. Let them sit for 10 mins giving them a scrub to get off all of the dirt. Aslo you should de stem any fruit or veggies that need to be broken down (not the fruit!). Now when you go and juice its all ready to just throw in.

3)    Pre Package your meals

I don’t know about you but I buy all of my leafy greens from Super Store and they always come in these plastic containers that are a bitch to deal with. So why not use them to pre portion out all of my juices in the fridge so all I have to do is grab a container and bam! Its already washed, chopped and portioned for me to just throw in and juice away!? AND I know that I have enough produce to do my whole cleanse (or half of it) without having to go to the grocery store. Don’t forget to label which one is which, or you can leave them unlabeled and live dangerously! Ooo the possibilities!

4)    Cut down on cleaning

Take a bag – I use the thin vegetable bags you get at the grocery store - and line the container that the pulp goes into. You can then dump out the pulp and reuse the bag for the next meal and save you time cleaning it out. And always, always clean out your juicer right after you are done, if not she will be hard to clean out and you will get frustrated!

 

These are some of the juices that I am going to be drinking throughout the 10 days:

2 apples

4 stalks celery

2 big handfuls spinach

1 cucumber

1 lemon

2 pears

3 stalks kale, de stemmed

3 stalks celery

1 cucumber

1 lemon

10 oranges

2 grapefruit

12 oranges

I am already on day four and I feel great. Other than feeling a little tired during the day and having food cravings (not hunger pains) I feel pretty normal. I am trying to do 10 days but I am not putting any pressure on myself if I don't feel like finishing. I hope my tips and tricks help you out on your journey because I know they helped me!

Lemon Dill Tomato Sauce with Zucchini Noodles

After that life changing curry dish (well, for me it was) I was thinking that the curry sauce is something that could be made to taste like anything. You could omit the curry and add something totally different, and BAM you got yourself a whole new sauce. So what did I want? Sweet, savory, spicy? I wasn’t sure. That was until I was walking through Safeway and for some reason the flavor of dill popped into my head. Mmm dill… that sounds delicious, I haven’t had anything with dill for a very long time and it is one of my favourite spices. Now what? Dill and… dill and… dill and…lemon! So simple yet so perfect. Lemon dill tomato sauce, with zucchini noodles sounds like an awesome supper.

When I got home from Safeway (after scoring 5 bunches of bananas for $4.50, woo hoo!) I started on my dish and boy did it smell good. I don’t know what it is about dill that just screams awesomeness but it does. Like the curry sauce it has a rich, creamy flavor that some people might be surprised to learn that there is no milk or cream involved. That is one of the benefits of blending your sauces, they come out smooth and creamy without the added fat! I also decided to serve this with some steamed broccoli to add some color, body and extra nutrients to the dish. I could have totally eaten the sauce by itself, its that good, but its nice to have texture and color in my meals, and what a better steamed veggie than broccoli! I hope you enjoy this meal as much as I did!



This is what the sauce looks like before you blend it!

Ingredients 2-4 Servings

1 tbsp coconut oil

1 large yellow onion, diced

1 clove garlic, sliced

1 large can of whole tomatoes, chopped in half

½ cup cashews, soaked overnight

1 lemon, juiced

5-7 sprigs of dill, de-stemmed and chopped

Pepper to taste

1 head of broccoli, chopped

In a large frying pan on medium/high heat sauté onions in oil for 10 mins until brown. Add the rest of ingredients and simmer for 15-20 mins. Pour into high speed blender and puree until smooth. While this is cooking, steam broccoli until fork tender.

Zucchini Noodles

1 zucchini per person

Using the julienne blade of a mandolin, slice zucchini lengthwise into long, thin strands. Slice the zucchini just until you reach the seeds in the middle and then stop (the seeds will cause the noodles to fall apart).

NOTE: If you don't have a mandolin you can use a vegetable peeler or a knife.  

If you want the noodles to be hot, put the noodles into the frying pan with desired amount of sauce and cook for 5 mins and serve with broccoli! Enjoy!

Thanks for reading!

Xoxo -N

Juice Cleanse Day 3.... What? Day 3?

...what it’s already day three? Holy that went by really fast! I actually catch myself thinking about the next couple days and what I will be juicing and I have to stop myself because tomorrow I am introducing solids back into my diet. I would really love to continue on this juice cleanse but because I am traveling I wont be able to juice, so I need to introduce solids back in to make it easier on my digestive system.

Day three is like day one and two, I have energy, I feel good, yet a little tired. I woke up this morning and felt the better than normal, still hitting my snooze button 5 times, but still really well. I was super thirsty this morning and ended up drinking over a liter of water, plus my hot lemon water. I walked on the treadmill for half an hour and danced around the gym by myself for a couple songs. So a really great start to my day! 

For breakfast I made my apple juice but instead of kale I used spinach and for lunch I made my pear-ific. I decided not to go with orange juice again because of what happened yesterday, but I think I will try it for breakfast on Saturday morning!

I slept really well last night, going to bed at 9:00 and falling asleep by 9:45, which felt great. I think the sauna helped with that, it relaxed me and helped me wind down from my day. So I planned on going for a sauna again tonight, but it was so snowy out today that indoors seemed like a better idea!

For supper I did a mango, cucumber and coconut water juice, I was not worried about this one because anything with coconut water in it will be delicious. I also drank another liter of water before I went to bed because I was feeling a little dehydrated and tired, which means its time for bed soon. By the looks of the last three days I am thinking day four should go well, but I am excited to introduce some solids back in. Ashley suggested making a juice and blending an apple into it, so maybe I will make my Green Apple juice for breakfast again and just not juice the apple. I only have two more sleeps until Mexico so the next couple days will be a whirl win of getting things together, luckily this juice diet hasn't slowed me down. 

Thanks for reading!

xoxo - N

Juice Cleanse Day One!

I think it might have been me telling my sister I was feeling sick that prompted her to ask me to do a juice cleanse, not that it matters because I said yes. Why, you might ask? Because I am crazy. Just kidding, I am trying to reset my digestive system before I head to Cancun on Saturday, and Ashley thought that this would be a great way to do it. I was so nervous going into this that I really didn't think I would make it past day one, even though Ashley insisted that I could. Well here I am drinking my supper juice thinking, holy shit she was right, I can do this. 

THEN I think about my fruit fast and how day one was SO EASY! I was shocked that it wasn't as hard as I thought it was going to be. Then day two hit and I was all like, ohhhh this is how it's supposed to feel. Like I am detoxing, so basically tired, sluggish, with bits of energy through the day. 

Today I felt normal with no real differences in my day to day routine. I had lots of energy, felt great and at 6:30pm I just started to feel tired. I plan on finishing my juice and this post then winding down to go to bed early. Devon isn't juice cleansing but he is fast asleep beside me, maybe he is secretly doing it too....?!?!

So, this is how my day one went:

I started out my day with a liter of water and 1/2 liter of hot lemon water. I also did 50 mins of walking on the treadmill followed by stretching.

All of my juices were made by my Magic Bullet Juicer.

Breakfast juice - 9am

4 stalks of kale

3 stalks of celery

2 apples

1 lemon

½ cucumber

1 cup of water

Lunch Juice - 12:00 pm

12 oranges 

Snack - 3:00 pm

1/2 liter of coconut water

Supper Juice - 6:00 pm

2 tomatoes

2 carrots

2 stalks of celery

1 red pepper

1 lemon

1/2 cucumber

Handful of cilantro

1 cup of water

I am, again, a little nervous for what tomorrow has in store for me but I just have to keep reminding myself that its only two more days. Also, without Ashley here to help me I know I wouldn't have done this on my own, so thanks Ash for pushing me to do this! To be honest, day one went by quite fast and I like the fact that I only had one appliance to clean! 
I will keep you posted on how day two goes so stay tuned!

Thanks for Reading!
Xoxo, Nikki

Lasagna Inspired Layered Salad with Avocado 'Cheese' Sauce

I thought of this salad while lying in bed Sunday morning. I was surfing Pinterest and saw a couple of recipes for avocado mac and cheese. I have been seeing a lot of this recipe lately so I clicked on the link to check out the ingredient list. The one I looked at was not vegan but it had the great idea to use avocado in the cheese sauce. PING! An idea light bulb popped in my head. An avocado cheese sauce would be great on lasagna! But.... I didn’t want to cook it, so the next best thing came to mind. A salad! Which is perfect because I can use all of the ingredients that my cooked lasagna calls for, I just won’t cook any of it!

This past month or so, I have been addicted to the homey flavours that lasagna provides: I have made it 3 times!! YUMMMMM. So I am not surprised that this idea sprouted from my brain. Now I can satisfy my homey lasagna craving with this and feel a little better about eating something that is traditionally seen as ‘unhealthy’. 

This salad is pretty easy to whip up, its just all about timing! First you have to put the cauliflower on the stove to get it steamed. While this is steaming I cut up all of my veggies for the salad and layer them in the bowl. Then I pop my sauce ingredients in the blender, blend for a couple minutes and pour that into a jar and rinse my blender out. By then the cauliflower is usually done, so I take it off the stove and run it under cold water to cool it off (we don't want hot cauliflower mixed with avocado, yick). When making the avocado sauce in my Magic Bullet Blender I had to stir it quite a bit to get it all mixed together. I just didn’t want to add any more liquid to the mixture because I wanted it to be a thicker sauce. I already had the tomato sauce, which was already watery, so two watery sauces wouldn’t have jived well in the bowl. Totally worth the extra effort!

Tomato Sauce Dressing – For 2- 4 servings

2 tomatoes

1 sun dried tomato

½ clove garlic

1 lemon, juiced

¼ cup of oregano

¼ cup basil

3 dates, soaked in water for ½ hour

Put all ingredients into a blender and blend until smooth!

Avocado Sauce – For 2 - 4 servings

1 whole avocado

1 cup of cooked cauliflower

½ clove garlic

1 lime, juiced

¼ cup parsley

¼ cup cilantro

2 tbsp nutritional yeast

Put all ingredients into a blender and blend until smooth!!

Layer spinach, tomatoes, orange bell peppers, mushrooms and zucchini, top with the avocado sauce and tomato dressing!!

I was so excited about this dish I just had to call my sister Ashley over to try it. Luckily she wasn't busy and was able to stop by to sample my latest creation. Her verdict?..... She loved it! and because of that she decided to make this lovely post on Facebook! Thanks Ash for the pretty picture collage! 

Thanks for reading!

xoxo- N