It's a rainy Saturday afternoon and I have my bright yellow sunshiny apron on in the kitchen as I dream up creations. Today's lunch was YUMMY! Paras took the camera to Sri Lanka with him, so this is the best I got from my phone camera.
The drink: carrot, celery, beet, kale, apple, orange, raspberry, kiwi, lemon juice.
I juiced the carrots and celery, and put everything else in the vitamix blender. Pour me a glass of goodness.
Juicing is a great way to get in a lot more fruits and vegetables than you might get in one sitting. My only warning for those that use juicers is that you get rid of a lot of the fiber that helps you digest those sugars better. If you take out all the pulp, you get a bigger glycemic load (sugar spike) than if you let the fibers of the fruits and vegetables help you digest them. When all else fails, just remember that it's probably better to eat the fruit or veggie than to drink it. But I do love the way green, red, purple, and orange turn into a beautiful magenta in my cup! And throwing things into the blender is a great way to sneak some greens into your drink - kale, spinach, cilantro...especially when the bright green starts to fade and you don't want it to go to waste.
The crackers are topped with a mock tuna. I took the carrot pulp from the juicer, added some vegan mayonaise, chopped onion, a little of the celery pulp (or cut celery if you have some) and a bit of salt and cumin. You could also add any other crunchy flavors...scallions, cilantro, parsley, pickles, cucumbers. Just store in a glass container for a week.
I love the idea of using all parts of the ingredients with which you are cooking. Other uses for carrot pulp that I have not tried yet - carrot cake/bread/muffins, muesli bars, maybe carrot halwa?? If all else fails, juicing pulp is great compost.
The salad: romaine lettuce, celery, mushrooms and corn with a bit of olive oil and lemon juice as dressing.
On the side are sprouted black channa (whole chick peas with the skin) that have been boiled in lightly salted water to cook them.
My sprouter is so much easier than how my mom used to sprout legumes...in fact, my mom was the one who bought this in the first place. Just change the water twice a day and in a couple days you have beautiful sprouts! I have done moong beans, channa (chick peas), green lentils, and whole wheat berries so far. Anyone try anything else sprouted?
Well time to go get ready...I am off to Cirque du Soleil Totem tonight!! Not really a local food thing, but good nourishment for the artistic side of your spirit.
Local Flavor: Cirque du Soleil Totem
March 3-27th - catch it while it's here! At the Charlotte Motor Speedway
Check out Charlotte on the Cheap (blog) for discount tickets
Check out Charlotte on the Cheap (blog) for discount tickets
my sprout farm is similar to yours- whole muth , black eyed peas sprout well too. ( havent tried to eat them raw though- i steam them after sprouting.
ReplyDeleteI also sprout methi and sprinkle ( raw sprouted ) it over dal or shaak - good for diabetics ..love your carrot /tuna and the juice !