Raw Cacao PowderFast easy and deeeeelicous way to get your coconut oil and your cacao!! Chocolate lovers rejoice! This stuff is full of goooodies. And if you don't make it really sweet you're alll gooood!
Mix equal parts coconut oil and sifted cacao powder (3/4 C of each in the photos). Sweeten with 1 teaspoon - 1 Tablespoon yacon syrup or honey. Add a couple pinches of finely ground sea salt. Mix with a whisk or spoon then pour into silicone molds or ice cube trays and chill till solid. ENJOY!!!
These will keep in the refrigerator or freezer longer than they'll be around!
Okay, here's about the easiest seasoned way to make a healthy salad dressing. Once you get comfortable with this you can get more creative by adding other seasonings to the mix!
As I have said in my Italian Dressing post all salad dressing is just: seasoning, fat and acid. The best fat choice for salads is organic extra virgin cold-pressed olive oil, but it doesn't refrigerate well, so....
Just make the vinegar part and keep it in the fridge! When ready to eat, drizzle your olive oil over salad followed by your vinegar mixture. (Always add oil first.) Pau! This is so easy to make you really don't have an excuse not to do it!
Here's the finished product! Click "Read More" below for more step-by-step details.
I've said it before and I'll say it again, my BF and I love our food! Lucky for you we take some pretty decent photos to share our meals and our inspirations with you folks : ).
Here's a look at our Sunday supper. Nothing really special just a stir-fry that we could have whipped up on any weeknight. That's the nice thing about stir-fry can make dinner really fast if you need to. Okay so let's talk ingredients! (Click "Read more" below for the whole recipe.)
Whether you're trying to drop a few pounds, keep your figure or make healthy meal choices you've probably tried eating more salad. But, did you know that salad can be bad for you? It all depends on what kind of dressing you use!
Commercial salad dressings (the kine you buy in the store - even the "healthy" kine) are full of unhealthy and fake oils, sweeteners, artificial colors, artificial flavors, flavor enhancers, preservatives and water! In addition to that, the dressings are made with dehydrated ingredients and then pasteurized leaving the end product nothing more than flavor residue with little or no trace of real food.
The solution and the way to eat healthy salads is to make your own dressing (it's easy and I'll show you how!) and only eat salads from restaurants (ask) that make their own dressings from quality ingredients (never canola or vegetable oil!)
Salad dressing is easy once you know the ratio! My general rule of thumb is:
-1 parts acid for example
vinegar
citrus juice
-3 parts fat for example:
cold pressed extra virgin olive oil
other cold pressedunrefined sesame or flax oil (good used together, but keep the flax chilled and never heat it!)
tahini
avocado
buttermilk
cream
yogurt
even raw egg if you have a clean and reliable local source - never use dirty or cracked eggs!).
-1-2 parts seasoning The amount of seasoning depends on what you want and how thick you want your texture (more seasoning = thicker/chunkier). For example:
sea salt
garlic
herbs
shoyu
ginger
etc.
Ingredients for Italian Dressing (for fill one 16oz. bottle):
1 Handful of Italian herbs (any of the following, the ones I use in the video are italacized):
Sage
Basil
Mint
Rosemary
Oregano
Parsley
Thyme
Fennel
Chives
1tsp Coarse Sea Salt 1 Medium Clove Garlic 1/4 C Onion (diced) 2 Parts Apple Cider Vinegar (Balsamic Vinegar or Fresh Lemon Juice are fine too) 5 Parts Cold-pressed Extra-virgin Olive Oil 1tsp Raw Honey (Buy Local)
Note: if you are going to make enough for several days do not mix in the olive oil or it will harden in the fridge. Just store the vinegar/herb mix in the fridge and add olive oil to the salad first followed by the vinegar mix. When mixing separately you want to add the oil first so it can coat the salad (give it a toss, if you've got the skills - I make a mess unless I just use my hands) then add the vinegar, if you try and add the vinegar before the oil it'll be a lil' gross and make a mess. Unless you add egg to a recipe you should be fine to leave out your dressing for a day or so - just store in a cool dark place.
You can mix your ingredients in a food processor, mortar and pestle or even a blender! The trick is to get the seasoning into a paste or mush before adding any liquids (unless you're using a blender then you'll need liquid to blend).
The avocado give the chocolate pudding an oh-so-ono fattyness that you gotta taste. You can make a simple basic chocolate puddingfor a couple bucksand some change or less!
Not all fat is gonna make you fat. Actually, the right kinds of fat will actually help you lose weight or maintain a healthy weight and help you prevent all kine of diseases. (I'll be covering more on this issue on other posts on this blog).
In the video I show you what and how to make a basic version and a next-level version with some ono additions that are great for you! This pudding is totally guilt free! (Unless you eat the whole thing by yourself and don't share! - I always feel a lil guilty when I do that.. hahaahah:-D)
Avocado is a superstar nutritious good for everyone - is loaded with good fats that your body needs. Great for anyone with any kine heart problems like high blood pressure or high cholesterol. The fat also will help your body absorb other nutrients too. Cost about $1-3 at farm market depending on time of year and size. Always a chance you can gather or receive these for free if you are lucky!
Banana stay good for the heart too an supposed to soothe ulcers.
Coconut water is similar to our bodies chemistry and is easliy absorbed which makes it good for stay hydrated, removing toxins, and even for pass kidney stones. Hoy!
Cacao (whole chocolate) is pretty much a miracle food with more reasons to eat it than I can even list! Besides from being full of the feel-good-love chemical PEA and being an aphrodisiac is good for the heart, bones, and full of antioxidants (which protect your cells/body against "rust"/damage). Just be aware it is a mild stimulant, for those of you who don't consume caffeine try not to eat too much at night (unless you are planning on stayin' up ;-). (BTW the kine chocolate you find at the checkout in the supermarket or gas station stay choke with sugar which cancels out any good chocolate effects. So go for the primo kine).
Coconut get good fats which actually can help you lose weight or maintain a healthy weight and provide long lasting energy. Good for soo much check out the link. Plus, if you live HI get plenty coconuts around for free! Au'rai
Chia Seeds are full of good fats and don't go bad like some other seeds. Also, they hold moisture and help keep you hydrated as well as slowing down the release of sugar into your bloodstream (which is good for diabetics - don't mean you should use that as an excuse to eat more sweets!). They gel when wet and help keep things gently moving through your digestive system.
Hemp Seeds are mild tasting lil buggahs that get plenty more good fats that your body needs and are not gonna make you fat and a complex protein mix = good!
The coconut water, banana and avocado get plenty potassium which is good for the heart and for help with muscle cramping. The hemp and chia seeds provide some protien and the avocado, coconut, hemp and chia seeds provide a good dose of fats making this pudding one good snack for eat after one work out! Yesss!
