Betty and Mac do veggie things!

Amazing Chocolate Mint Mousse Cake

February 17, 2012

I was planning the menu for a fundraiser for a local farm sanctuary and I decided to make a chocolate mint cake. The problem – or challenge? – was that I had no recipes for a chocolate mint cake. As the fundraiser approached, I had several requests for a gluten-free recipe. So, the day before the event, I was down to the wire and had to come up with something. I had sweet potatoes in the oven, sunflower seeds soaking on the counter, and a bin full of fresh, delicious carrots in the fridge. Here’s what I came up with:
3 large carrots, chopped
1 cup shredded, unsweetened coconut
1 cup sunflower (or pumpkin) seeds, soaked and sprouted
1 cup purified water
1 large sweet potato
1 cup cocoa powder, unsweetened
1/2 cup carob powder
7 drops peppermint oil, edible grade
7 drops liquid stevia
2 drops spearmint oil, edible grade

Scrub and pierce the sweet potato, bake in a pre-heated oven at 350 for 40 minutes or until soft. Let the sweet potato cool, then chop it and add it to a food processor with the rest of the ingredients except the cocoa and carob powders and the oils. Pulse chop until all the ingredients are thoroughly processed and mixed. Add the powders, mix again, add the oils and mix one last time. The mixture won’t be silky smooth, it will have some small bits of nuts and seeds, and it will be thick enough to stand on it’s own.

Play with the ingredients – I made a few different versions, one had 3/4 cup each of cocoa and carob, one used sweetened cocoa and no stevia. They were all delicious.

I wanted to make a crust for the mousse, so it could be served as a pie. I made the following recipe and poured it about 1 inch deep into a springform pan and baked it at 325 for about 20 minutes, then added the mousse up to the top of the pan, chilled the whole thing and had a beautiful, yummy chocolate dessert.
Cakey-crust:
2 cups purified water
1 1/2 cups rice flour (or oat flour)
1 cup gluten-free all-purpose flour (I use Bob’s Red Mill)
1 1/2 cups carob powder
1 cup sweetened cocoa powder
1/2 cup of mashed sweet potato
1 banana, mashed
1/4 cup flax meal
1/4 cup arrowroot powder
1 1/2 teaspoons of xanthan gum
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon sea salt
2 Tablespoons melted coconut oil
2 Tablespoons almond extract

I served it all with a berry compote and coconut cream.

Buen provecho!

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Awesome New Face Oil Recipe

February 6, 2012

I’ve been using coconut oil on my face for a while now, and when I was in India I noticed that the women there also used oil on their hair instead of conditioner.  Here’s an oil recipe that will have your face and hair feeling (and smelling) divine!  Keep in mind that I live in a very dry climate and have had dry skin since I got here a few months ago, so this formula is meant for skin that needs moisturizing, revitalizing and general care.  I do not have sensitive skin, so if you make this for sensitive skin, be mindful that some of the oils may be too much, do some research on which oils will work for your skin and start with smaller doses or more carrier oil.  I also used high quality, organic essential oils – anything you put on your skin can be absorbed into the body, so quality does matter.

4 T coconut oil (rosehip oil is probably ideal, but I don’t have any now)
25 drops vitamin E oil for repairing damage
20 drops sweet orange oil for hydrating dry skin
20 drops lavender oil for general upkeep
12 drops lemongrass oil to vitalize
7 drops eucalyptus oil to vitalize
12 drops geranium oil for general upkeep
16 drops cypress oil for general upkeep
7 drops peppermint oil to prevent blackheads
20 drops rosewood oil for general upkeep and hydration
5 drops tea tree oil to prevent acne and break-outs
10 drops jasmine oil to hydrate
15 drops rosemary oil to vitalize

I mixed it all together in a clean, dark brown glass container and then massaged it into my clean face before bed.  It absorbed pretty quickly.  Alternatively, you can use it more as a masque, letting it soak in for a while (especially in the shower or bath) and then rinse off with warm water.

Pair this oil with lots of water, a diet high in organic, fresh fruits and vegetables and a good stress-management program for supple, beautiful, healthy skin.  :)

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Coconut Cherry Lavender Dream

January 19, 2012

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I know, I know…  So much ice cream!  But I got a new ice cream maker toy…  Gotta play with it!

This one is maybe my favorite so far.

Ingredients:

1 can bpa-free full-fat coconut mylk

12 ounces of delicious, juicy cherries, frozen

1cup dried coconut

4-5 drops stevia

2 Tablespoons unprocessed, vegan sugar

1 Tablespoon lecithin (optional)

1 teaspoon lavender flowers

1/2 teaspoon licorice root powder

Blend everything well in a high speed blender (or a regular blender) and throw it in the ice cream maker.  It took about 10 minutes to get it to soft-serve consistency.  YUM!!

 

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$2.50 gets you a pair of legwarmers, a skirt and an amazing doggie outfit!

January 15, 2012

My little friend wanted some new legwarmers. She’s amazingly fashionable for a four-year-old. We found a few sweaters that had been handed down to her, and one was pink and sparkly with “fur” cuffs. I measured, cut, and sewed, and soon she had the coolest little legwarmers she’d ever imagined! I just cut off an arm, made an elastic band and sewed it into the top of the arm, creating the first legwarmer, with a pink “fur”-cuffed ankle. We tried it on, and it fit, so we did the same on the other side. Reduce, re-use, recycle!!


I had been meaning to get some knitting needles to make some legwarmers for myself, but after so much luck with the pink ones, I decided to go buy a sweater and save some money and lots of time. I went to the closest thrift store and all green tags were on sale! So I found a green-tag sweater and two dollars and fifty cents later I was headed out to start my project.
The sweater was not particularly attractive – I’m not really into turtlenecks, but the color was nice (Kelly green) and the knit was pretty (cable). I cut off the arms and followed the same plan that I had for the first legwarmers, except this time I made them longer – thigh-highs. Since they were going to have to stay up on my thighs, I added a tie and sewed it into the top with the elastic, as a back-up. I didn’t have any ribbon, so I braided some matching yarn into a nice tie.


But then I had the rest of the sweater left over, and I’d only spent about fifteen minutes on the project. The bottom of the sweater seemed like it might make a nice skirt, so I cut straight across just below the arms and hemmed it up. Ten minutes later I had a cute, fitted skirt. But, still, there was quite a bit of sweater left…


So I looked around and saw… MY DOG! We live in Denver now, and it can get pretty cold. He’s really little and doesn’t have fur – he has hair like you and me. So he needs some help staying warm sometimes. I’m not a big fan of dressing animals up for my own amusement, but he really does get cold. I put the turtleneck around his body, upside down so that the top of the turtleneck was at his belly and the bottom was at his neck. He was really patient for at least thirty second while I made some arks with a sharpie where I thought I could cut and put on a button. Then I set him free, cut on the lines, sewed up the edges, attached a button, and WOW, in fifteen minutes I had the cutest Stitchy sweater in the world. I made it so that there was a big, rounded piece of fabric (the shoulder) over his head, like a hood, with the button over his chest to hold everything in place. The hood can be tucked under or slouched down for three different looks. (It wasn’t planned that way. I didn’t really plan it at all.) He’s been wearing it all night, and he seems pretty happy in it. :)


So, the moral of this story is that if you have some pocket change (or old clothes), a sewing machine (I bought mine off Craigslist for $25) and forty-five minutes, you can do a lot.

What kind of awesome projects are you doing with the random stuff you find around the house?

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Worm Bins and Composting

January 13, 2012

I get a question from an old friend about her worm bin today, so I thought I’d share the answer with you all in case you are having similar trouble.
First off, worm bins are a great option for anyone who wants to compost but has no yard. This is a large bin that you can keep in your house or apartment and fill with worms (red wrigglers are best in my experience) and organic food waste (no animal products or oils, not too much onion or citrus) and create beautiful, healthy soil. The worms eat the food bits and poop out castings, which make up healthy soil. So, after there’s a bunch of healthy soil in the composter, how do you get it separate from the worms so you can use it and keep the worms in the bin?
Well, there are different types of bins. Some have just one compartment, some have multiple levels (or layers) that are side by side or stacked vertically with holes in the walls so that once the first section is ready to harvest, you can stop putting food bits into it and start putting them into the second section or layer and the worms will migrate to the food, leaving the first section worm-free and ready to go back to the earth. My friend has a multi-level, and here’s her question:
“I have a worm bin, but am having a hard time teasing the worms out of the compost that is “done”. I want to get rid of some of the dirt they created, to make the worm bin less heavy. I’ve done what others have suggested — I started a new layer of fresh food/brown matter and from what I’ve read, they say the worms will leave the dirt and go to the fresh layer. But every time I check it (this is over the last few months), the worms are throughout all three levels. They won’t leave the dirt!!!

Just wondering if you had any experience/tips for this type of thing.

Thanks!!”

Here’s my response:
Basically, as long as there is still food to be eaten in the first layer, they will stay there. I know that it can be frustrating, when it seems like all the food has been eaten up, but they (I call mine the Franks) just keep eating. There are a few things you can do:
1. Just keep waiting and make sure that you are only putting new compost material into the second layer, never in the first.
2. Put some really yummy bits right on the second layer side of the first/second divide and try to lure them…
3. Go through the first layer and remove any large bits of food (they will often have worms clumped around them) and move those bits to the second layer.
4. You can use a light tactic to get the worms out. They don’t like light, so you can shine a light on the top of the first layer, encouraging the worms to move down to the bottom of the first layer, even using a tool to comb the dirt a bit and let the light get down a bit. Remove the top of the first layer and do it again until the worms are in a shallow bit of dirt at the bottom of the first layer, then transfer them to the second layer.
I don’t know why you are having such trouble with this, as I didn’t know why I was having so much trouble with it when I first tried to harvest… But I hope these tips help!

Worm composting is a great, smell-free way to get so much of that food waste out of the trash bin (and out of the landfill) and to make your own amazing compost. You can buy a bin, or just make one out of a large container with air holes. Worms can be ordered online or sometimes bought locally, too. Good luck!!

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Coconut-Berry Ice Cream with Dark Chocolate Chunks, Orange Zest, Cinnamon and Coriander

January 7, 2012

I’m not much of a Christmas person, as I was raised without it, but this year I got to celebrate with Mac and his family.  We made the trek out to Chicago and came home with lots of lovely mementos, including a new ice cream maker!  This is the first batch of frozen goodness.  I will keep you updated as I explore ways of making ice cream that stay soft when you pull them out of the fridge in the morning.  :)  This one does not stay soft-serve-soft, but it is really tasty and sorbet-like, with the creaminess of the coconut mylk.  Yum, pretty good for the first attempt.

28 oz. coconut mylk

1 1/4 cups raspberries

1 1/4 cups mixed blueberries, blackberries and strawberries

2 1/2 Tablespoons arrowroot powder

3 Tablespoons maple syrup

2 teaspoons cinnamon

2 teaspoons coriander powder

1/2 teaspoon guar gum

1/4 teaspoon sea salt

8 drops stevia

1/2 cup allergen-free dark chocolate chunks

2 Tablespoons orange zest

Mix all the ingredients except the chocolate chunks and orange zest in a blender until smooth.

Follow manufacturer’s instructions for freezing ice cream, adding the chocolate and zest toward the end of the process.

Enjoy!!

 

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Vanilla-Bean Molasses Coconut Ice Cream with Walnuts and Chocolate Chips

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Let me start by saying that I really don’t love molasses, but I do really like this recipe. Molasses is made from sugar cane; it is dark and thick with a very distinct flavor, and lots of vitamins and minerals.
This is not a low fat recipe, but nearly all the fat is good fat, stop go ahead and indulge (moderately). :) It is a light, fluffy ice cream with lots of flavor. Enjoy!

Ingredients:
2 cans coconut milk, full fat!
1/4 cup molasses
1 vanilla bean
5 drops stevia
1/4 teaspoon sea salt

1/2 cup tiny chocolate chips
1/2 cup walnuts, chopped

Directions:
Blend the first five ingredients.
Add to ice cream maker according to manufacturer’s instructions.
Add the walnuts and chocolate chips as the ice cream gets thick, let it all mix well until it is fully frozen.

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Amazing Juice Recipe/Hurom Juicer Review

December 12, 2011

I am working with a really wonderful family.  They are really, REALLY knowledgeable about cleansing and natural and alternative medicine.  They all love fresh juices and last week asked me to make them some.  Here’s the yummiest juice I made, using all organic ingredients:

1 8″ piece of burdock root

6 small zucchini

4 large collard leaves

3 stalks of celery

2 D’Anjou pears

1 Bartlett pear

It came out BRIGHT, gorgeous green and really delicious.

Yield:  About 40 ounces, depending on size and juiciness of fruits and veggies.

Burdock root is a powerhouse, containing calcium, iron, copper, potassium, lactone, chromium, inulin, flavonoids, mucilage, resin, chlorogenic acid, essential oils, numerous vitamins and more.  It is great medicine to facilitate cleansing, detoxing, digestion and elimination and can even increase appetite.  Burdock root is anti-fungal and antibacterial, and has traditionally been used to cure viruses such as measles and tonsillitis   It is now being studied by oncologists for its anti-cancer properties.  In Chinese medicine it is used as an aphrodisiac and to improve fertility and cure impotence.  Burdock root also eases arthritis pain and improves immune function.  The list of benefits goes on and on…  Also, it is really tasty.

Each of the other ingredients are chock full of all kinds of goodness, too, but I wanted to talk about burdock as it is the superstar of this recipe and probably the ingredient least likely to be juiced by most people.  So, on to the review…

The Hurom Juicer is pretty cool.  It’s one of the slow juicers, using one huge auger to chew the food and spit our juice on one side and pulp on the other.  I have a Green Life, so much of this review will be a comparison between the two, and have used lots of other juicers.  The way the Hurom chews the fruits and veggies is fun, it takes huge bites out and then gravity pulls the food down for the next bite.  It doesn’t need any pushing, unlike the Green Life/Power/Star juicers, but it does take its time.  The pulp that comes out is much wetter than what comes out of my Green Life, but the juice itself has about the same amount of pulp still in it.  The Hurom might be marginally easier to clean because of that huge auger, but they are pretty close.  The Hurom is a big winner on price, though, at about $150 less than the Green Life line, which are about $500.  If cost is an issue for you, it seems to me that the Hurom juicer is a really good product and will serve you well.  When I only had a Champion, and the pulp came out similarly wet, I fed it back through the machine and that seemed to help a lot, though it took more time.  I’m sure the same could be done with the Hurom.

Do you have a favorite juice recipe or juicer??  I’d love to hear your thoughts…  :)

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DIY Furniture – All Natural and Recycled!

December 11, 2011

So. I (we) just moved in to a new apartment. There are some spaces that need to be filled, and after scouring Craigslist and the local thrift stores (because new stuff is always so full of toxic chemicals OR really expensive), I decided that I would have to just make it myself. So I went back to Craigslist and found some wood pallets (free) and threw them in the back of my tiny little car.  I should preface the building process with the information that when I moved I left almost all of my tools behind…

I spent a few hours ripping apart the pallets, which would have been much easier with a wonderbar (crowbar, prybar) but they were left behind.  I used a flat-head screwdriver and a hammer to pull apart the bent nails and mangled wood.  I found out that my sander was no longer working and sanded the whole thing by hand, and my screwgun battery was also dead so I bought some nails…  I sanded with three different grits, starting with #50.  I put all the pieces together into a basic bookshelf, with a tall lower shelf to accommodate my worm bin.  Then it was time for some color…

I used the peeled skins and stalks from four medium beets to make one stain.  I boiled the plant matter in four cups of water, and continued to add water as the levels were boiled away.  After a few hours I had a deep, dark pot of beet stain!  I also made a dark reddish-brown stain from rusting nails in water with some hydrogen peroxide over a few days.  The rust didn’t make much of a stain on the light pine, but I mixed it in with the beet stain and it took away some of the brightness, which was good, because the beet stain was BRIGHT on that light pine!!

I decided not to oil or varnish for a few reasons:  I didn’t want to use chemicals, I didn’t want to wait for several coats of natural oil to dry into a soft finish, and I didn’t envision using the piece to hold anything wet or cold, like drinks that could damage the finish.  If I had more time and really wanted a finish, I probably would have opted for a linseed oil.

If I was to do it all again, I would have tried to get better wood, found a space other than the living room for sawing and sanding and used a power sander.  But, live and learn.  It was a fun project and I’m happy with the result.  :)  Looking forward to making a piece for the kitchen with green stain from grass clippings and blue, from blueberries.

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Mac’N'Cheese – GF, V, Sprouted!

November 25, 2011

I have been working on this recipe for a few years now, and I have made it for LOTS of people.  It seems to be a consistent winner, but it used to include a fair amount of tofu, which I wasn’t totally comfortable with for many reasons, including phytoestrogens and Monsanto.  So I changed it once again, and I’m ready to share it with you!

Ingredients:

1 c. dried organic garbanzo beans, soaked for 24 hours, sprouted for 24 hours

2 pounds brown rice pasta (macaroni)

2 cups purified water

3 cups purified water

2 cups Daiya cheese, cheddar

2 cups nutritional yeast

1/2 c. gluten-free bread crumbs

1/2 cup tamari

1/4 cup coconut oil*

3 cloves garlic, chopped

9 drops stevia

1 Tablespoon turmeric powder

1/2-1 teaspoon of chipotle or cayenne powder (optional)

1/2 teaspoon yellow mustard seed

Instructions:

Simmer the chickpeas until they are soft.  This should take about an hour.

Drain and rinse the soft chickpeas and transfer into a high speed blender or food processor with all the rest of the ingredients EXCEPT the macaroni, bread crumbs and Daiya cheese.  Blend/mix well until you have a smooth, rich sauce.

Cook the pasta according to box instructions.  Be sure not to overcook!

In a casserole dish, combine the cooked pasta, 1 cup of Daiya cheese and the sauce, mixing well.

Top with the other cup of Daiya cheese and the breadcrumbs.

Broil for 20 – 30 minutes or until the cheese is melty and the breadcrumbs are toasty and crunchy.

 

 

 

*The oil can be omitted, but I include it because turmeric is so good for us, but only if it has been emulsified in oil first so we can get all it’s awesome goodness.

 

 

 

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