Showing posts with label zucchini. Show all posts
Showing posts with label zucchini. Show all posts
Thursday, March 12, 2015
Chicken Pesto Zucchini Noodle Salad Low Carb Gluten Free Can Be Paleo
A delicious zucchini noodle salad with pesto-marinated chicken and a pesto vinaigrette.
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I've been making zucchini noodles with the Spiralizer all summer long, and I need to get busy sharing the new recipes I've come up while some of you have a surplus of zucchini. I created this Chicken Pesto Zucchini Noodle Salad with help from my niece Kara, and we both agreed it was easy to make and really tasty. What bumped up the flavor here was marinating the chunks of chicken in the pesto vinaigrette for a few hours before we tossed the salad together, along with additional pesto vinaigrette that's tossed with the noodles. I've been making Basil Pesto with Lemon with the basil I'm growing in big pots along my front sidewalk, but if you don't have homemade pesto this salad will still be delish with pesto from the store. You could also make a dairy-free or Paleo version of this by switching the dressing to Basil Vinaigrette made with homemade vinaigrette.
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Sunday, March 8, 2015
ONE WEEK RAW AND GLUTEN FREE Day 7 Learn To Make Raw Meatballs On Zucchini Ribbon Pasta!
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| Raw walnut meatballs on ribbons of zucchini with tomato sauce Follow Foods For Long Life on FACEBOOK ! DAY 7 OF "ONE WEEK RAW AND GLUTEN FREE" |
Today is the 7th and last day of our "One Week Raw and Gluten Free" mini cleanse. But it doesnt have to be the end. If you want to extend it a few more weeks, just repeat the recipes you enjoyed during the week. In case you missed any of them, check out DAY 1, DAY 2, DAY 3, DAY 4, DAY 5 and DAY 6.
Todays menu includes:
Breakfast: Strawberry, pear and spinach smoothie
Snack: Leftover pear and apple crisp from last nights dessert
Lunch: Monster salad
Dinner: Raw meatballs on zucchini ribbon pasta
Dessert: Mango and mixed berries
Breakfast:
Strawberry, pear and spinach "green smoothie"
(New Recipe)
Raw Vegan, Gluten Free
[makes 2 servings - enjoy both throughout the morning]
1 1/2 cup frozen strawberries or strawberry tops *
1 large or 2 medium organic pears, cored
2 cups organic, baby spinach
1 tablespoon unrefined flaxseed oil
1 1/2 cups filtered water
Place all ingredients in a VitaMix blender and process until smooth.
Per serving: 190.8 calories, 7.0 g fat, 0.5 g saturated fat, 3.7 g omega 3 and 1.0 g omega 6 fatty acid, 0 mg cholesterol, 2.3 g protein, 35 g carbohydrates and 8.3 g dietary fiber.
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| This green smoothie is high in fiber and omega 3 fatty acid. Spinach contains lutein and zeaxanthin which may decrease the risk of age related macular degeneration. |
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| * When I clean organic strawberries, I cut off the tops (which include a 1/2 inch of strawberry), freeze them and use them for smoothies. |
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| Todays snack is leftover pear and apple crisp. That is, if you didnt eat it all last night! Its sooo good!! |
Lunch
One of the best things you can do for your health is to eat some sort of salad every day of your life. Im not talking iceberg lettuce and thousand islands dressing. Im talking about a HUGE MONSTER salad with as many veggies you can stuff in a bowl topped with more healthful goodies like nuts, seeds and fruit. Todays salad contains many of the leftover ingredients from the recipes we made this week:
red leaf lettuce,torn
baby spinach
daikon, thinly sliced
carrots, thinly sliced
cucumber, thinly sliced
orange bell pepper, thinly sliced
red onion, sliced
broccoli florets
avocado, sliced
raisins
hemp seeds
sunflower seeds
sesame seeds
For the dressing, I had leftover ginger tahini dipping sauce from DAY 6 which I thinned with some freshly squeezed lime juice and a little water. If you ran out, make a little more!
So fill your refrigerator with veggies and experiment with combinations for lunch or dinner each day!
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| Todays lunch is a MONSTER salad with many of the leftover veggies from this weeks menus. |
Dinner
Today were going to make little raw meatballs. My poor Italian grandparents, were they alive, would think I was absolutely nuts! But these little guys, made from walnuts and other goodies, really taste meaty!
Were also going to make a raw tomato sauce for our zucchini pasta. When not on a raw cleanse, you can serve this delicious and healthy raw sauce mixed with hot pasta and the raw meatballs (at room temp) on top. They are too delicate to mix in or cook.
Ive posted this on the blog before (in fact it is one of the most "googled" recipes) but its improved and changed a bit to make it gluten free.
Raw Zucchini Ribbons with Walnut Meatballs and Tomato sauce
Old Blog Favorite - modified
Raw Vegan, Gluten Free
[makes 4 servings]
For the zucchini pasta
4 medium zucchini
Freshly ground black pepper
For the raw tomato sauce
1 clove garlic, peeled
1/3 cup sun dried tomatoes, soaked in filtered water for 1 hour, or until soft, and drained
1 Medjool date, pitted and soaked in filtered water for 1 hour and drained
1 cup ripe tomatoes, diced
4 kalamata olives
2 packed tablespoons fresh basil or 1 teaspoon dried
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1/8 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes (optional)
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
For the meatballs [makes 12 small meatballs, 3 per serving]
1 clove garlic
1 1/3 cup raw English walnuts soaked for several hours and rinsed
1 tablespoon nutritional yeast
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
2 teaspoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
2 teaspoons Bragg liquid aminos
1 teaspoon thinly sliced green onion, white part only
1 1/2 tablespoons fresh parsley, minced, plus extra for garnish
Make the zucchini ribbons by peeling the zucchini with a potato peeler, gradually rotating with each peel.
To make a thinner spaghetti, use a vegetable slicer. My favorite is Benriner. Wrap the ribbons or spaghetti in a paper towel until ready to use otherwise they will get watery when combined with the sauce.
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| Making the zucchini ribbons with a vegetable peeler. |
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| You can make zucchini spaghetti by using a Benriner spiral vegetable slicer. Peel the zucchini first so it really looks like spaghetti! |
To make the sauce, drop a clove of garlic in the chute of a food processor with an S blade while its running. After it is minced, add the drained sun dried tomatoes and date along with the fresh tomatoes, olives, and the rest of the tomato sauce ingredients. Process until smooth, place in a small bowl and set aside.
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| Top with extra parsley and freshly ground black pepper and serve! |
Wash and dry the food processor.
To make the meatballs, drop a clove of garlic in the chute of the food processor while its running.
After it is minced, add the walnuts, nutritional yeast, olive oil, lemon juice and Bragg liquid aminos and process until smooth, scraping down the sides when necessary.
Place in a bowl and mix in green onion and parsley.
Form 12 small balls from the mixture, dip each one in tomato sauce to coat and set aside.
Mix the zucchini pasta in the desired amount of sauce. Serve onto 4 plates and top each with 3 sauce covered meatballs.
Garnish with parsley and freshly ground black pepper and serve immediately.
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| Tonights dessert is diced mango and an assortment of fresh berries |
Saturday, March 7, 2015
Crispy Raw Vegan And Gluten Free Zucchini Onion Crackers High In Omega 3 Fatty Acid
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| Zucchini and onion crackers packed with omega-3. Follow Foods For Long Life on FACEBOOK . |
Its Zucchini Season
About this time each year I search for ways to use up my zucchini. This crispy cracker does the trick! Besides using 2 1/2 pounds of zucchini per batch, these delicious gluten-free crackers deliver 626 mg of omega-3 fatty acid per cracker! Heres how to make them.
Zucchini Onion Crackers
Raw Vegan, Gluten Free
[makes 40 crackers]
Requires a Dehydrator & a tool to grind walnuts
2 1/2 pounds zucchini
1 small onion (6 ounce)
3/4 cups ground flaxseeds
1/2 cup ground English walnuts
2 tablespoons gluten free tamari soy sauce
2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
Grate the zucchini on a large grate. You should have about 7 1/2 cups of shredded zucchini.
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| Grate the zucchini using the medium grates. |
Cut the onion in half or quarters and thinly slice.
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| Slice the onion as thinly as possible. |
Place the zucchini and onions in a large bowl.
If you are grinding your own flaxseeds, start with 1/2 cup of whole flaxseeds to yield the needed 3/4 cups of ground flaxseeds.
Grind the walnuts in a Vitamix, food processor or coffee grinder (reserved for nuts and seeds). You will need 1/2 cup of walnut pieces to yield the needed 1/2 cup of ground walnuts.
Add the ground flaxseeds and walnuts to the bowl of zucchini and onion.
Add the soy sauce and lemon juice to the zucchini onion mixture.
Mix thoroughly until well blended.
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| Mix all ingredients thoroughly. |
Divide the mixture between two 14" x 14" inch non-stick dehydrator sheets.
Spread it out into 11" x 11" squares. The mixture will look thick but it will thin out significantly after dehydrating.
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| Spread mixture on to 2 dehydrator sheets. |
Dehydrate for 24 hours at 115 degrees F.
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| After dehydrating, the mixture will thin significantly. |
After 24 hours, flip over onto mesh dehydrator sheets. Slowly peel off the non-stick dehydrator sheets.
Place back in the dehydrator for another 6 to 10 hours.
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| Peel off the non-stick dehydrator sheets slowly. |
Place on a cutting board and cut into crackers with a pizza cutter or sharp knife.
Cut one side into 4 equal pieces and the other side into 5 equal pieces. Each sheet will yield 20 crackers.
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| Cut into desired cracker sizes. |
If the crackers are not crisp enough, place individual crackers on the mesh sheet and dehydrate until they reach the desired crispness. (If they still bend, they are not crisp enough).
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| Dehydrate until crisp. |
Store in an air tight container and refrigerate.
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| Serve with soup, along with dips, or just enjoy as is! |
Per cracker: 26.1 calories, 2 g fat, 0.2 g saturated fat, 625 mg omega-3 and 690 mg omega-6 fatty acids, 0 mg cholesterol, 1 g protein, 2 g carbohydrates, 1 g dietary fiber and 52.5 mg sodium.
Thursday, March 5, 2015
Low Calorie Vegan And Gluten Free Zucchini And Turnip Soup With Fresh Ginger Perfect For Weight Loss!
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| Zucchini turnip soup has less than 50 calories per cup! Follow Foods For Long Life on FACEBOOK . |
Turnips
Have you ever eaten a turnip? Theyre a delicious root vegetable which when peeled looks a lot like a potato but with fewer calories and carbohydrates. Turnips have a slightly bitter taste and add a wonderful and interesting flavor to soups. You can also mash them up like potatoes or roast them with a little olive oil and salt.
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| Turnips are a great source of fiber, vitamin C and manganese and are also a good source of vitamin B6, folate, calcium, potassium and copper. |
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| Peeled turnips look like potatoes. Potatoes have 116 calories per cup and 28 g of carbohydrates. Turnips have only 36 calories and 8 g of carbohydrates! |
Great Soup for Weight Loss!
This soup uses up lots of that garden zucchini. Its quick and easy to make with a few simple ingredients and blends up into a delicious, low calorie, low fat soup. Eating a 45 calorie cup of this soup before a meal will definitely curb your appetite. Or make a whole meal of it with a 2-cup serving and a mixed green salad.
Zucchini and Turnip Soup
Vegan, Gluten Free
[makes 8 cups]
8 cups diced zucchini
4 cups peeled and diced turnips
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1 tablespoon peeled and minced fresh ginger
2 cups water
1 large Rapunzel vegan vegetable bouillon cube
1 bay leaf
Salt to taste if needed
Freshly ground black pepper to taste
Place the zucchini, turnips, garlic, ginger, water, bouillon cube and bay leaf in a large pot. Bring to a boil on high heat. Reduce heat to medium and cook, partially covered, until the vegetables are soft.
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| After vegetables soften, remove bay leaf and blend. |
Remove the bay leaf and place the soup in a blender and blend until smooth. If you dont have a high-speed blender, make sure you mince the ginger very small.
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| Place in a blender. |
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| Blend until smooth. |
Adjust for salt (remember many bouillon cubes already contain a lot of salt) and add freshly ground black pepper to taste.
Serve with additional freshly ground black pepper if desired.
Per cup: 45 calories, 0.5 g fat, 0.4 g saturated fat, 0 mg cholesterol, 2.6 g protein, 8.6 g carbohydrates, 2.1 g dietary fiber and 309 mg sodium.
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