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Sweet Potato Taco Salad

  

Happy Cinco de Mayo! 

Cinco de Mayo is a great excuse to indulge in one of my favorite foods! Avocado! This morning someone told me that 87.3 million pounds of guacamole will be consumed in celebration of this Mexican Holiday. 

One of my favorite taco fillings is roasted sweet potato. The flavor combination of avocado, beans, and sweet potato is a winner in my house. During my dinner planning for the day I decided to toss the ingredients into a salad for my lunch, then serve the remainder filling over sprouted corn tortillas for dinner. Let the fiesta begin!
Ingredients:

4 cups of chopped romaine lettuce 

1 cup of roasted diced sweet potato 

1 diced avocado 

1/2 cup of halved cherry tomatoes 

1/4 cup small diced red onion 

1/4 cup of cilantro 

1/4 cup diced black olives

Lime dressing:

1/4 cup of coconut milk mixed with juice of 1 lime  and salt/pepper to taste.

Add jalapeño to crank up the heat!

Toss all the ingredients together and drizzle lime dressing over the salad. Serve leftovers over tortillas and enjoy!

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Fajitas…Veggie style!

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School has started and so have the after school activities! I had a full week taking the kids to and from school, working, catering to house guests, keeping the house clean, and putting food on the table. I had been looking forward to the beginning of the school year thinking I was going to have all this time for myself, but in reality it is almost the last day of the week and I ask myself “where has the week gone?”

Tonight is one of those nights when the kids and I got home at 7:30 from their activities, a bit late for our family’s schedule. After rushing back home, I had not even thought about what to make for dinner. I rushed the kids to shower and had the full intent to have them in bed by 830, just 30 minutes over their usual bed time. Earlier in the week I had already exhausted ‘ol reliable,…spaghetti! We needed a fresh diverse, EASY, quick meal.  Looking in my pantry I had the inspiration to make fajitas!

Meat used to be a staple in our home, but it has been almost a year since I have bought any variety. Thus, my inspiration was for a vegetable version! With only about 15 minutes, I had no time to cook rice or beans, so tofu seemed to be the protein of choice. Tofu is a product that I highly recommend to have in hand. You can season it and have it cooked in minutes. I like to substitute eggs with tofu and make a breakfast taco that is somewhat similar to this recipe. We’ll save that for another day!

Onions and peppers were the source of phytonutrients, plant chemical health enhancing substances that are very important for the well being and proper functions of our body. The specific nutrients in bell peppers have been linked to the prevention of cell damage. One of the reasons fajitas are popular is because you can create your own combination of rich flavors to each individual fajita.  Cheese, grilled onions, pico de gallo, salsa are just a few of the traditional options.  Living in Texas for over 10 years, no fajita is complete without a dollop of Guacamole!  Using fresh avocados, the guacamole provides a dose of the best tasting healthy fats on earth. Overall a very balanced, healthy, and nutrient rich dinner that was on the table in 15 minutes!

Let’s check it out!

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Ingredients:

1 Tbs of coconut oil (1 colher de sopa de óleo de coco)

1 large onion cut in long strips (1 cebola grande cortada em fatias longas)

2 cloves of garlic diced (2 cabeças de alho picadas)

1 green bell pepper cut in long strips (1 pimentão verde cortado em fatias longas)

2 red bell pepper cut in long strips (2 pimentões vermelhos cortado em fatias longas)

1 16oz container of firm tofu cut in strips (1 bloco de tofu)

1 Tbs of cumin ( 1 colher de sopa de cominho)

Salt and black pepper to taste (sal e pimenta do reino a gosto)

1 small jalapeno diced and seeds removed  (optional) (1 pimenta jalapeno se sementes picada – opcional)

2 Tbs of cilantro (2 colheres de coentro picado)

Tortillas – warmed ( I like the flax seed kind) 

Guacamole

2 avocados (2 abacates)

1/4 of onion small diced (1/4 de cebola picada)

1 small tomato diced (1 tomate cortado em cubos pequenos)

1 lime – juice (1 limão – suco)

Salt and black pepper to taste (sal e pimenta do reino a gosto)

Preparation

Melt the coconut oil in a large skillet, then add the vegetables in the order of Ingredients. Toss all the ingredients with the spices until you can see charred marks on the bell peppers. When you are about to remove from the heat toss in the jalapeno and cilantro. To make the guacamole scoop the avocado into a bowl, toss in the onion, lime juice, tomato, salt, and pepper. Slowly mix the ingredients together with a spoon breaking up the avocado as you mix (this will give you a chunky guacamole). Top the tortillas with the tofu mixture, avocado, and salsa of your choice. Serve with your choice of tortilla chips ( I love Late July’ tortilla chips).

Em uma frigideira grande esquente o óleo. Adicione as verduras uma de cada vez na ordem de ingredientes. Deixe cozinhar ate os pimentões terem marcas (tipo churrasco). Adicione o coentro e jalapeno no ultimo minuto antes de retirar do fogo. Para fazer a guacamole, coloque o abacate em um recipiente e junte o resto dos ingredientes. Com uma colher amasse todos os ingredientes juntos deixando pedaços de abacate (não e um purê). Sirva com tortillas e salsa de sua escolha.

Contact me today to start your healthier Lyfestyle

http://www.blissbalancehealth.com

Meditation – Ayurverda – Yoga

armenia@blissbalancehealth.com

864 551 5731

http://www.facebook.com/blissbalancehealth

 

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Health and Nutrition, Uncategorized

Curry! Curry! Curry!

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Curry is something that I am always craving lately! I order it every time I see it on any restaurant’s menu and I also have been experimenting with many versions at home. I have finally changed it up enough times to have created my favorite combination. I do like it with a little bit of heat, so feel free to go easier on the spices if you prefer it less spicy!

This is a vegetarian version, but if you would like, you can add tofu or chicken to yours to make it heartier. I have added chickpeas to my curry for the protein intake, so there is plenty of protein as is! I like to serve it with naan bread and brown rice, but feel free to serve it with your favorite type of rice.

With this recipe, I would like to talk about the Phytochemicals that are found in a plant based diet. Let’s take a look at some that you will find in this recipe.

Flavonoids and Sulfides – are both antioxidants, promote cardiovascular health, and are anti carcinogenic. They are found in the onions, garlic, and broccoli.

Isoflavones– block hormone stimulated cancers and lower cholesterol levels – are found in the chickpeas.

Isothiocyanates – inhibit cancer growth – are found in the broccoli.

Phthalides – lower blood pressure, lowers cholesterol, and also anti cancer. You will find these guys in the carrots.

Terpenoids– antibacterial –  found in the spices.

Now you know some of the good stuff that will be going into your awesome body when you decide to make this delicious meal!

Ingredients:

1 Tbs of coconut oil (1 colher de oleo de coco)

1 onion, diced (1 cebola)

2 garlic cloves, thinly sliced (2 cabecas de alho)

1 Tbs of fresh ginger, thinly sliced (1 colher de gengibre)

2 Tbs of curry powder ( I love Trader Joes it is extra spicy) ( 2 colheres de caril em po)

1 tsp of turmeric (1 colher de cha de curcuma)

1 tsp coriander (1 colher de cha de coriandro)

1 tsp of paprika (1 colher de cha de pimenta)

1 cup of carrots, sliced (1 copo de cenoura)

1 zucchini, big chunks (1 abobrinha)

1 yellow squash, big chuncks (abobora amarela)

1 c o broccolli, cut into small pieces (1 copo de brocolis)

1 c of green beans (1 cope de vagens)

1 can of chickpeas (1 copo de grao de bico cozido)

1 tsp of raw sugar or brown sugar ( 1 colher de cha de acucar mascavo)

1 can of coconut milk ( 1 lata de leite de coco)

Juice of a lemon (suco de 1 limao)

1 tsp of salt and 1/2 tsp of back pepper (sal e pimenta do reino a gosto)

Red pepper flakes (pimentinha a gosto)

Directions:

In a large wok, melt the coconut oil. Add the onion, garlic, ginger. When the onion is translucent, add the spices. Add the vegetables one at the time , in order. When the vegetables are tender, add the rest of the ingredients. Let it simmer for about 5 minutes and serve!

Refoque todas as verduras com os temperos. Quando estiverem todas cozidas, adicione o leite de coco e o restante dos ingredientes. Deixe no fogo baixo por 5 minutos e sirva com arroz. Aproveite!

 

 Check out blissbalancehealth.com to learn more about Meditation – Yoga – Ayurveda

 I would love to hear what you think of my recipes, feel free to email me at armenia@blissbalancehealth.com

 

 

 

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