Whole Wheat Ginger Snaps

1 cup coconut oil*
1 cup raw sugar
2 Tbsp ground flax seed**
6 Tbsp water**
1 cup molasses
4 cups whole wheat flour
1 Tbsp baking soda
2 tsp baking powder
1 Tbsp ground ginger
1.5 tsp ground nutmeg
1.5 tsp ground cinnamon
1.5 tsp ground cloves
1.5 tsp allspice

Combine oil and sugar until smooth. Stir in ground flax, water, and molasses.  Combine remaining ingredients separately.  Stir dry ingredients in until just incorporated.  Roll into small balls and place on parchment lined cookie sheets.  Bake at 350 degrees for 10-15 minutes.

Substitutions (not recommended!):
*You can use butter in place of coconut oil
**You can use 2 eggs in place of the water and ground flax seed

Green Tomato Bread

3 cups whole wheat flour
2 cups grated green tomatoes
1-2 cups sugar*
1 cup coconut oil*
3 Tbsp ground flax*
9 Tbsp water*
3 tsp vanilla
2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp ground clove
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp baking powder

Combine tomatoes, flax, water, sugar, oil, vanilla, cinnamon and clove.  Mix well.  Combine the rest of the dry ingredients.  Fold dry ingredients into the tomato mixture.   

*You can substitute vegetable oil for the coconut oil if you haven't any.  Although, I highly recommend phasing out vegetable oil for coconut oil for all cooking. 
I use the flax and water in place of eggs.  You can use three eggs as a substitute.
The original recipe called for 2 cups of sugar.  I used 1 cup and it was delicious.

Honey syrup

This is a great cough syrup.  Although, I use it as a daily health boost.

Mix together 1/4-1/2 cup honey, fresh juice from half a lemon, 1/4 cup warm water and 2-3 chopped garlic cloves. More or less water can be added to make it more or less thick. Store in the refrigerator. Take a spoonful as often as desired.

Ginger Lemon Tea

Amongst other things, ginger is a great natural anti-inflammatory.  And with the spices, plenty of antioxidants are present.  I drink this every day. 

Peel and chop in small pieces a 1/2 inch chunk of ginger.  Place the following into a small pot:

Ginger pieces
Juice from half a lemon
3-5 whole cloves
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/2-1 tsp cinnamon
2-2.5 cups water

Bring to a boil, then turn down to lowest setting.  Simmer for at least 10 minutes.  Strain into tea cup and add raw honey to taste.  Save the rest for the next day.

Slaw

Chop up half a cabbage head.  Toss with 1-2 Tbsp mayo (I use either homemade or organic mayo from Trader Joe's), juice from half a lemon, salt, pepper, and a handful of chopped cilantro.

Juice Fast

I've totally neglected my blog lately.  My apologies!!  I will try to be more diligent about posting regularly. 

I hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving.  I spent time with my husband's family, and ate way too much (most of which was NOT healthy!).  I followed it up with a liquid fast.  I wanted to go two days, but I made it 24 hours instead.  For a first time, it went remarkably well.  I think I will do this once a month. 

I started, as I do every day, with a large glass of water and apple cider vinegar.  Breakfast, lunch, and dinner were a 16 ounce glass of freshly juiced fruits and vegetables.  I believe a liquid fast requires a good juicer.  I have the Omega, and I love it.  Between "meals" I had raw coconut water and teas.  My favorite teas are ginger/lemon, rooibos, and rosemary/basil.  Surprisingly, I did not feel hungry throughout the day. 

I'm ending the fast with a whole food smoothie (recipe is in this blog somewhere!), raw fruits and veggies, and still keeping with the teas and juiced vegetables (I've been juicing everyday for the last two years).

If you have any health issues, check with your doctor before starting a juice fast.  If you don't have any health issues, but don't eat very healthy, I would wait on juice fasting until you start and maintain a healthy diet for a couple of months, at least.  Cheers!

Rice Milk

Rice Milk

Boil 8 cups of water with 1/2 cup of brown rice, and 1/4 teaspoon of kelp*.  Once it comes to a boil, turn down to low and leave for about three hours.  Rice should be super soft.  Pour half of the rice and water into the blender along with powdered cinnamon, vanilla extract, and agave nectar, all to taste.  Blend until liquefied.  Complete the rest just the same.  You can strain the milk, or leave as is.  You can also use less water if you like it thick.  It's nice as a thick warm drink as well as thinned and cooled in the fridge.  Enjoy :)

*The kelp is optional.  I added it because I have some.  It did not affect the taste at all. 

Buckwheat Pancakes

I generally don't eat solid, cooked food breakfast, but on the weekends I like to break the habit with these nutritious pancakes. Straight out of the Thrive Diet!

1 cup buckwheat flour
1/4 cup ground flaxseed
1/4 cup protein
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1 banana
2 cups water
1/2 cup barley flakes

Mix first six ingredients.  Process banana and water while slowly adding dry ingredients. Stir in barley flakes with a spoon.  Cook in pan lightly coated with coconut oil on medium heat.

Sig's mix: I didn't have barley flakes, so I just didn't use them. I put a little less water.  I also did not process the banana.  I like banana chunks in my pancakes. To finish, I topped it with agave nectar and some cinnamon.

Tomato Basil Dressing

Brendan has a few dressing recipes and this one appealed to me because I have so much basil growing right now. I tried it tonight and really liked it. I think I will experiment next time with a little less vinegar and add a little lemon.

2 tomatoes
2 Tbsp apple cider vinegar
2 Tbsp hemp oil
1 Tbsp dried basil (or 3 Tbsp fresh)
1 Tbsp agave nectar
Sea salt and black pepper to taste

Blend and store in the fridge for up to a month.

Vegetable stock from juiced vegetable pulp

Just another use for my vegetable pulp. I juice veggies everyday, and my juicer yields a lot of pulp. I usually put it in my compost, or feed my trees and herbs with it. This weekend, I made 12 cups of veggie stock! I threw the pulp in a large pot of water, along with an onion, salt, thyme, and sage from my yard. Boil and let simmer for 30 minutes or more. Strain, bag, and freeze until ready to use.

Post-workout Pudding

Straight out of the Thrive Diet.  This is great after a long workout.  Chock-full of antioxidants...a MUST for outstanding recovery!

2 bananas (I put one)
1 cup blueberries
1/2 cup soaked almonds
1/4 cup flax
1/4 cup hemp protein
1/4 cup cacao nibs
2 tsp rooibos tea
1 tsp lemon juice
1/4 tsp sea salt

Throw it all in a processor and that's it.

Pre-Workout Pudding

This is right out of Brazier's Thrive Diet.  It's great before a workout.  Easily digested and a great simple carb source.

2 bananas (I only use one)
1/2 cup dates
1/4 cup flax seed
1/4 cup cacao nibs
1 Tbsp coconut oil
1 tsp fresh lemon juice
1/4 tsp sea salt

Throw everything into food processor.  I make this the night before a long workout and store in the fridge. 

Apple Cinnamon "Bars"

These are straight out of the Thrive Diet.  There are different recipes for fruit energy bars, but this is the best one I've tried.  That's my granola in the top of the pic.  The "bars" are at the bottom.

1 apple
1 cup fresh dates
1/4 cup almonds
1/4 cup ground flax seed
1/4 cup hemp protein (you can substitute this with wheat germ)
2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp sea salt

Put all ingredients into food processor.  Blend until desired consistency.  I like my to have chucks of almonds, so I don't process it too much.  Wrap individually and store in the freezer.  They defrost really fast, so you don't have to take them out in advance.  A perfect snack!

Homemade Almond Milk

Who knew it was so easy to make almond milk!?  Soak one cup of almonds overnight.  Rinse well in the morning.  Throw them in the blender with 2-3 cups of water, pinch sea salt, two tablespoons of agave nectar, and a teaspoon of vanilla.  Blend well and drain the pulp through a sifter.  Voila!  Store in the refrigerator and drink in 3-5 days.

Sprouting legumes

This is so easy to do, and so much better than their cooked counterparts! Set lentils in a bowl and cover with plenty water. Cover the bowl with a paper towel.  Make sure to place them in a large enough bowl, as they will double in size. Also, you don't want to keep them for longer than a week or so, therefore only soak as many as you think you will eat in a weeks time. In the morning, use a collander to drain the water well. Place them back in the bowl and cover with a paper towel.  Every 12 hours, rinse the lentils in fresh water and drain well.  They only need to remain moist, not covered in water.

These are my lentils after 2 days.  I let them go for 3 or 4 days.  Once you've sprouted them to the desired length, cover and refrigerate.  You can add them to salads, sandwiches, wraps, whatever!

Here are a couple of links regarding the nutritional value:
http://nutritiondata.self.com/facts/vegetables-and-vegetable-products/2472/2

http://www.livestrong.com/article/528531-nutritional-content-of-sprouted-lentils/

Corn and Bean Salsa

This is my own and it's super easy! Combine one can corn, one cup black beans, diced tomatoes, diced onions, chopped cilantro, 2 tbsp olive oil, 1-2 tsp chili powder, fresh lemon juice from half a lemon, half teaspoon ground oregano, salt and pepper.  Voila!  You can have it as a salsa side, or add chopped red leaf lettuce for a salad.

Granola

This is my own recipe, not found in the Thrive Diet.  It's easy and really good.

1/4 cup coconut oil
1/4 cup agave nectar
1/4 cup honey
2 Tbsp brown sugar
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp vanilla extract
3 cups rolled oats
1/2 cup raw pumpkin seeds
1/2 cup raw sunflower seeds
1/2 cup slivered almonds
2 Tbsp ground flax seed
2 Tbsp wheat germ
2 Tbsp raw cacao nibs
1/4 tsp sea salt
Desired amount of shredded coconut
Dried fruit, if desired (raisins, dried cherries, dried peaches, etc)

Combine first five ingredients.  Combine the rest of the ingredients in a separate bowl.  Mix both together until all ingredients are evenly coated.  Bake at 325 for 20-25 minutes.

Protein Bars

I actually got the idea for these from Matt Frazier, the No Meat Athlete.  I changed it up slightly and loved the outcome.

1.5-2 cups homemade beans (pinto or black)
1/3 cup peanut butter
1/4 cup agave nectar
1/2 banana
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon sea salt
1.5 cups oats
1/4 cup wheat germ
1/4 cup rice protein
1/2 cup ground flax seed
1/4 cup raw cacao nibs

Process all ingredients together.  You may need to add some water if too dry (I added 1/4 cup).  Spread into greased 8"x8" pan and bake 350 for 18 minutes.

For other variations of this, go to: http://www.nomeatathlete.com/homemade-energy-bar-recipe/

Pre-Workout Energy Pudding

This is straight out of the Thrive Diet.  I make it before any workout that will last longer than 45 minutes. 

2 bananas
1/2 cup dates
1/4 cup ground flax seed
1/4 cup raw cacao nibs
1 tbsp coconut oil
1 tsp lemon
1/4 tsp salt
Optional: 1 tbsp ground yerba mate (for caffeine!)

Blend together and consume prior to workout.  I usually eat half of this and save the rest for another day (not more than three days out).  Easy to digest and provides simple carbs and energy!

Mid Workout Fuel Bites

These mid workout fuel bites are so easy to make and much better than GU or any other gels or bites I've tried!  Simple carbs and MCTs available for instant energy, and easy digestion.  One of my favorites from Brendan's Thrive Diet!

5 dates
2 TBSP coconut oil
2 tsp lemon zest
1 tsp lemon juice
Pinch sea salt

Process everything until blended thoroughly.  Roll into desired sized bites.  Wrap individually in saran wrap.  Freeze. 

Blueberry Chocolate Bars

These bars are out of Brendan Brazier's Thrive Diet.  They are perfect for mid morning or mid afternoon snacks. 

1 cup soaked dates
1/4 cup almonds
1/4 cup blueberries
1/4 cup cacao nibs
1/4 ground flaxseed
1 tsp hemp oil
1 tsp fresh lemon juice
Pinch sea salt

Process all ingredients.  If too wet, add more dry ingredients.  If too dry, add more wet ingredients.  Press into bars, cut, wrap in saran wrap and freeze.  They don't have to be thawed to consume. 

Apricot Salad

A perfect mid afternoon snack!  Red leaf lettuce and diced apricots topped with freshly grated coconut.

Brown rice cereal

I really can't stand brown rice.  I don't know why, but it just tastes icky to me.  But as a hot cereal, I love it!  Just throw some cooked brown rice and desired amount of milk (I use either soy or almond milk).  Warm in the microwave or on the stove top.  Add sweetener and dried fruit.  I added a spoonful of agave nectar, raisins, and raw cacao nibs.  Yum.

Whole Wheat Blueberry Pancakes

This is not as healthy as the pancakes from Brendan Brazier's diet, but they are better than the stuff you buy in boxes at the grocery store.  They are good!

2 eggs
1/4 cup coconut oil
2 cups buttermilk
2 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 cup wheat germ
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cup whole wheat flour
Blueberries

Mix first three ingredients.  Whisk together the rest of the ingredients excluding the blueberries.  Mix wet and dry ingredients until blended.  Fold in blueberries.  Cook as you would any pancake - on a lightly oiled pan over medium-high heat until brown on both sides. 

Herbal tea with raw honey

This is another easy one.  Herbs are full of vitamins and minerals!  Organic herbal tea from your garden is easy and cheap, but you can buy your teas as well.  I have thyme, basil, rosemary, and lavender growing in my yard, so I have a good supply of dried herbs.  Boil the water first, then add the water to the herbs in a teapot.  Cover and steep about 3 minutes. Strain the herbs and add raw honey.  I drink this every night before bed.  It's very relaxing.  

For more information on the benefits of raw honey, visit:

http://www.livestrong.com/article/259549-benefits-of-raw-honey/ 

For more information on the nutritional information on rosemary tea, visit:

http://www.livestrong.com/article/22621-benefits-rosemary-tea/

Quinoa salad with roasted pumpkin seeds

1/2 cup quinoa
1 cup water
Toasted pumpkin seeds
Freshly diced tomato
Freshly chopped cilantro
Freshly chopped green onion
Cayenne pepper to taste
Sea salt to taste

I threw this together tonight and it was good.  I may want to find something else to add for taste.  I think some Bragg Nutritional Yeast might go well with it.  Any thoughts?  It was really good with some of my homemade whole wheat bread.

Pumpkin seeds are a great source of iron.  Iron is absorbed much better when consumed with vitamin C.  Tomatoes are a very good source of vitamin C, which is why I threw that in.  For more on that, go to http://www.livestrong.com/article/195055-does-vitamin-c-increase-iron-absorption/

Pineapple

There obviously is no recipe here.  Just freshly chopped pineapple.  So easy and sweet, a perfect dessert!

Carrot Ginger Soup

This is right out of Brendan's Thrive Diet.  It took me less than 10 minutes to make.

3 large grated carrots
2 cups water
1 avocado
1 1/2 tsp grated ginger
Sea salt to taste
Chopped fresh cilantro

Blend avocado and water until smooth.  Add grated carrots, grated ginger, and salt.  Blend until smooth.  Garnish with cilantro. 

Sig's awesome mix:  I added a tablespoon of pumpkin seeds and 1/4 teaspoon of cayenne pepper.  And on the side, I have beet chips, which turned out to be really good.

Sigs chocolate chip cookies

These are part of my own "thrive diet", not approved by the actual Thrive Diet by Brendan Brazier.  I love baking and chocolate chip cookies are a must for me.  So I make them as healthy as I can.  Everything in moderation right?  Okay, SOME things in moderation....

3/4 cup rolled oats
1 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup white sugar
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 unsalted butter
1/4 cup coconut oil
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup chocolate chips

Grind oats to a powder.  Whisk them in a bowl with the flour, baking soda, and salt.  In a different bowl, beat butter, oil, sugars, egg and vanilla.  Incorporate the dry ingredients until just combined.  Stir in chocolate chips. 
Teaspoon onto parchment paper lined baking sheets.  Bake at 350 for about 12 minutes.  Move cookies to a wire rack to cool. 

Tip:  Don't layer the baking sheets in the oven.  They don't cook properly if you do.  If you can fit two baking sheets on one oven rack, fine.  Otherwise, cook one sheet at a time. 

Granola Bars

Who knew granola bars were so easy to make?  I actually got this recipe from the Food Network Magazine, Sept 2010 issue.  If everything is raw and organic, it should be okay with the Thrive Diet reqs, though I'm not sure about the wheat germ.     

2 cups rolled oats
1 cup chopped nuts
1 cups dried fruit
1/3 cup honey
1/3 cup brown sugar
2 Tbsp coconut oil
2 Tbsp wheat germ
Pinch sea salt

Melt honey, brown sugar, and coconut oil over low heat in a saucepan on the stove.  Once melted, stir in the rest of the ingredients until coated.  Press into a parchment lined square pan.  Throw in the oven at 300 degrees for 30 minutes.  Wait until it cools, cut into bars.

Ginger Ale

This is great as an electrolyte replacer if you use coconut water in place of water.  Taken from the Thrive Diet:

2 cups water
Juice of one small lemon
1 Tbsp agave nectar
1/2 Tbsp grated ginger
Sea salt to taste

Blend and drink up!

Smoothie

This is a smoothie recipe that I make everyday for breakfast. It is not a Thrive Diet recipe. It contains ingredients that are not part of the Thrive Diet. But this is something I have incorporated into my diet on a daily basis and it works for me. As with any smoothie, the recipe does not have to be followed exactly. Add, omit, or exchange as you see fit!

1 cup almond milk
1/2 cup orange juice
1/2 cup strawberries
1/2 cup blueberries
1/4 cup nonfat greek yogurt

1 Tbsp chia seeds
1 Tbsp maca
1 Tbsp cacao nibs
1 Tbsp ground flaxseed
1 Tbsp wheat germ
1 Tbsp protein powder (hemp or rice protein)
1 Tbsp hemp oil
1 Tbsp raw honey or agave nectar
1 Tbsp bee pollen
1 Tbsp spirulina powder
4 ice cubes

Blend and enjoy this powerhouse of nutrients and antioxidants!

Homemade Cereal

This recipe I obtained from Brendan Brazier's Thrive Diet. I purchased the Kindle book from Amazon and finished it in two days. I actually have many of the prescribed diet components as part of my daily diet already. Not sure if I will go 100% plant based, but will get close to it. I tried this recipe today and loved it!

Diced apple
1/2 cup diced almonds
1 cup oats
1/2 cup ground flaxseed
1/2 cup hemp protein
1/2 cup sesame seeds
1/2 cup sunflower seeds
1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp ground stevia leaf
1/4 tsp sea salt
1/4 cup hemp oil
1/4 cup molasses
2 Tbsp apple juice

Toss all ingredients. Spread on tray oiled with coconut oil (you can also use parchment paper instead of oiling the tray). Bake at 250 degrees for one hour. Keep refrigerated for up to 2 weeks. Enjoy!