After a week of sweets at work....

This past week has been crazy at work. Everyone gave Christmas presents to my department which consisted of chocolates, cookies, cakes, pizzas, candies, etc... I tried my best to not eat too badly but I'm human and I did indulge a bit. Now, back to normal! And a new year!

Carrot Energizer and Kale green juice

Tonight I made two juices for tomorrow. The first-
Carrot Energizer
4 large carrots
handful of parlsey
knuckle of ginger
Gala apple
Navel orange
Kale green juice
1 cucumber
6 celery stalks
Granny Smith apple
knuckle of ginger
handful of parsley
Black Kale
(ALL ingredients are 100% organic:))

Find the time, make yourself something delicious out of whole foods! I guarantee you will feel amazing.

Happy Juicing!

-Kat

Crustless Quiche

I've been seeing so many different recipes on Instagram for baked eggs so I decided to try making a Crustless Quiche and it came out fantastic! Tweak ingredients as much as you like. The actual process is super easy. All my vegetable ingredients are organic of course...

Ingredients

1 yukon gold potato, sliced thin and cut in half

2 cups spinach

chopped tomatoes

chopped green onions

chopped yellow onion

chopped crimini mushrooms

salt

pepper

tablespoon organic unfiltered coconut oil

4 eggs, 4 egg whites

shredded cheddar cheese

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

2. In a large skillet heat the tablespoon of coconut oil. Once it's turned completely liquid add all the vegetables. Saute veggies for a couple minutes adding salt and pepper.

3. In a large bowl whip the eggs and egg whites. 

4. Once veggies are cooked, add to bowl of eggs, mix.

5. Pour egg mixture into a measuring cup so it's easy to pour. 

6. Spray cupcake baking pan with cooking spray. Add egg mixture to pan.

7. Bake for about 20-25 minutes. Check with a knife to make sure it's solid. Sprinkle cheddar cheese on top and let bake another 1-2 minutes.

8. Serve and enjoy!

Happy cooking!

-Kat

Uncharted territory... Spaghetti squash!

I love to try whatever vegetables are seasonal, so on a recent trip to Whole foods, I picked up a beautiful, bright yellow, organic, spaghetti squash. It has sat in my kitchen for about a week and today I finally decided to get to it. I found a website, Steamy Kitchen, that had a great garlic and butter recipe. It also explained how to cook spaghetti squash. Raw, it is extremely hard to peel or cut. So here is how I tackled this obstacle-

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F and place squash on a baking sheet. Poke some holes in it with a sharp knife.
2. Bake for about 45-60 minutes, depending on how big the squash is. You want to be able to cut into it easily by the time it's done.
3. Slice the squash in half. Scoop out the seeds. Then with a fork, start scraping out the strands from the squash. (Hence, spaghetti squash!)
Here is were my recipe differs from Steamy Kitchen's-
4. In a pan drizzle some EVOO. Throw in some diced shallots. Sauté the shallots then add the spaghetti squash.
5. Continue to sauté the shallots and squash and add the following spices- sea salt, ground pepper, garlic salt, parsley.
6. When the squash starts to brown slightly, sprinkle Parmesan cheese onto it.

That's it!

I prepared my lunch for work tomorrow with some of my 'Parmesan Spaghetti Squash', Gardein vegan meatballs, and some organic peas and carrots. Looks so good, I can't wait to eat it, haha.

Happy Cooking!

-Kat

Corn Salsa

I made an organic corn salsa today for the first time. Honestly, I got a little inspired by Chipotle! Here is my recipe (all veggies were organic)-

Ingredients
1 can organic kernel corn
1 whole tomato, diced
1/2 cup red onions, diced
1 jalapeno, seeded and diced
bunch of cilantro, chopped
dash of apple cider vinegar
lime juice (I used 1 1/2 lime)
garlic salt
sea salt
ground pepper
cayenne pepper

Mix all ingredients together in a large bowl. Add as much or as little of the spices that you want. If you want a spicier salsa, add more cayenne pepper. Spices, lime juice and apple cider vinegar are all added at the end. Refrigerate and your done!

I made A LOT because my boyfriend is obsessed with chips n salsa. I decided to make myself a 'Mexican' salad with the Corn Salsa.

This salad tasted soo good! I used Organic spring mix, cucumber, artichoke hearts, heart of palm, corn salsa, shredded mozzarella cheese, and crunched organic blue corn chips. I drizzled some balsamic vinegar on top and voilà, quick Mexican salad!

Happy cooking!

-Kat

Green Coconut Smoothie

Today, instead of using my juicer, I decided to use my blender. I have found that when you use leafy greens in a juicer you don't get a lot of juice out of it. You have to use almost an entire bunch of kale to get a good amount of juice from a juicer. In a blender, you need only about 2 cups of kale. Here is the recipe for my Green Coconut Smoothie-

Ingredients
1 celery stalk, cut up
1 bartlett pear
1/2 cup red grapes
a couple slices of frozen peaches
2 1/2 cups black kale
handful of spinach
1 Amazing Grass wheat grass packet
1 11.2 oz Coconut water

Blend all ingredients together, adding the wheat grass packet at the end. Blend for another 20-30 seconds. Done!

Happy juicing!

-Kat

Oatmeal Chocolate chip cookies

For dinner tonight I cooked a meatless picadillo (I recommend Yves meatless ground round) and a ground chicken picadillo for my boyfriend. I made a white, basmati brown, wild rice, quinoa medley as a side with onion rings (the onion rings weren't homemade). Dinner was delicious and I ended it with some Oatmeal chocolate chip cookies and a glass of almond milk.

First batch in the oven!

Ingredients

1 1/2 cup whole wheat flour

2 cups organic rolled oats

1/4 cup turbinado sugar

1/2 cup canola oil

1 tspn raw honey

1 tspn vanilla extract

4 eggs

2 tspn baking powder

2 tbsp coconut peanut butter

1 cup organic chocolate chips

1/2 cup crushed pecans

1/4 cup dried cherries

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

2. In a large bowl mix all ingredients except for the chocolate chips, pecans and dried cherries.

3. After evenly mixed, add the chocolate chips, pecans and dried cherries.

4. Roll dough into 1 1/2 inch balls and evenly place on baking sheet.

5. Bake for 12-14 minutes.

6. Let cool for about 2-3 minutes and enjoy!!

Happy cooking!

-Kat

Orange and Green Power juices

The ingredients pictured made about 32 ounces of juice so it's great for prepping ahead of time. Ingredients in yellow are organic.
Ingredients
-1  whole gold beet, with stems
-2 cups cantelope
-1 whole sweet potato
-mint
-1 valencia orange
-1/2 small pumpkin
-2 handful spinach
-5 carrots
-a TINY piece of ginger root, peeled
-1/2 banana

After juiced, I stored in mason jars. I also added 1 tablespoon of chia seeds.

This Green juice is a recipe I found in an issue of Vegetarian Times. I used all the ingredients in the recipe and added mint and coconut water, 8 oz.
All ingredients I used are organic except for the lime and coconut water.
-Mint
-Persian lime
-Kiwi
-Granny smith apple
-Italian parlsey
-3 celery stalks
-TINY piece of ginger root, peeled
-coconut water

This filled one 16 oz Mason jar.


Happy Juicing!!

-Kat

Cranberry sauce and Sweet Potato Mash

Obviously you can tell by now I'm in the "Autumn" mood. I've been eating pumpkin any chance I can! I had leftover cranberries from the Cranberry Banana Oat muffins I made the other day so I decided to make Cranberry sauce for the first time! Here is a simple recipe-

Ingredients
2 cups fresh cranberries
1 cup water
2 tablespoons turbinado sugar
1 tablespoon raw honey
cinnamon, as desired

Directions
1. In saucepan, bring water, sugar, and honey to a boil. Stir to dissolve.
2. Add cranberries, return to a boil. Reduce heat, simmer for 10 minutes or until cranberries burst.
3. At this point, add desired amount of cinnamon. You could also add blueberries, orange zest, raisins, nutmeg, allspice, etc.
4. Remove from heat. Cool completely at room temperature and then chill in refrigerator. Cranberry sauce will thicken as it cools.





Now for the Sweet Potato Mash-

Ingredients

2 large organic sweet potatoes, peeled and cubed

1/4 cup almond milk

1 tablespoon organic maple syrup

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1 teaspoon garlic salt

dash of sea salt, dash of freshly ground pepper

organic green onions, chopped, for topping

Directions

1. Boil cubed sweet potato for 20-25 minutes. Drain.

2. In the same saucepan mash the boiled sweet potato. Add all ingredients except for green onions.

3. Mix all ingredients until completely even.

4. Top with green onions and serve!

The entire meal consisted of 2 Gardein breaded chik'n with marinara, sweet potato mash, cranberry sauce, and roasted garlic green beans. The green beans were simple. Cut the ends off. In a large bowl mix fresh sliced garlic cloves, green beans, sea salt, ground pepper, smoked paprika, evoo, and toss. Then put it all in a baking pan and roast at 400 degrees F for about 15-20 minutes.

Happy cooking!

-Kat

Pumpkin Green smoothie

I got inspired by @simplegreensmoothies on Instagram! She posted a recipe for "The Great Pumpkin green smoothie". I drank it with one of my muffins this morning. The following ingredients will provide enough for two 16 oz jars. Next time I'm going to use the pumpkin I bought! Just didn't have time to cut it up.

PUMPKIN GREEN SMOOTHIE

Ingredients
2 cups pumpkin (I used canned-short on time- 1 whole can)
2 cups organic spinach
1 organic banana
2 cups almond milk
1 tsp cinnamon
1 chai tea packet
1 tablespoon raw honey
1/4 cup organic rolled oats

Blend all ingredients together. Enjoy!!

-Kat

Cranberry Banana Oat muffins

Cranberry Banana Oat Muffins

This is a recipe that one of my co-workers gave me from Food.com. She brought me one that she made and I loved it!! I tweaked the recipe somewhat-


Ingredients
1 1/2 cup organic whole wheat flour
1 1/4 cup organic oats
1/4 cup turbinado sugar
1 1/2 tspn baking powder
1 tspn baking soda
sprinkle some sea salt
1 organic egg
6 organic banana's mashed, ripe
1/4 cup vegan buttery spread, melted
1 cup cranberries
(I added pumpkin seeds which was not in the recipe and also a dash of cinnamon)


Directions
1. Combine first six ingredients in a bowl.
2. Mix well.
3. Beat together egg, bananas and melted butter until smooth.
4. Add to dry ingredients.
5. Stir to blend.
6. Stir in cranberries just until combined.
7. Spoon batter into prepared muffin pan
8. Bake at 375 degrees F for 20-25 minutes or until top springs back when lightly touched.

Step 5

Step 6

Step 7

Happy cooking!

-Kat

some advice for that job interview

First, I will begin by saying that I had 6 interviews this week with potential candidates for my department. It reminded me of how LOST people are when it comes to resumes, applying, the actual interview, follow-up, etc. Here are a couple pointers, based on some of the mistakes I witnessed this week.

-PREPARE AN IMPECCABLE RESUME! It will be the hiring manager's first impression of you. I tossed about 15 resumes because they were ridiculous. Don't include an objective, it's cheesy and predictable. Do not put education before job history if you do not have a college degree. Don't leave out job's from your job history on the resume that you want to talk about in the interview. It feels questionable. Why didn't you include it? Lastly, do not put "References available upon request" at the end of the resume. The hiring manager will ask for references so have them available.

-DO NOT SHOW UP LATE! Being too dressed up is better than not dressy enough. Show up clean, sharp, dressed to impress this person. Look your best. Don't chew gum. Do not leave your sunglasses on your head.

-Be honest and interesting. Understand that you are not the only one applying for the position. Act like you want it! Stand out but don't talk too much. Answer questions genuinely. For the most part, if it's a good interviewer they can see right through your bullshit. Be clear and honest. Sell yourself but be slightly modest. No one likes a person that says they have no flaws.

-Do not talk about money, how times are tough for you, that you have a mortgage to pay, that you are a single parent trying to earn a living. Don't tell the interviewer your sob story. Be confident and sell yourself not your problems. Don't divulge too much personal information. Remember this is the very first time you are meeting this person.

-Be ready for any type of question. Don't let the interviewer catch you off guard. PRACTICE BEFOREHAND IF YOU HAVE TO!

-Lastly, do not pester the hiring manager. One follow-up call is enough. An e-mail is OK too. If they want you, you will get a call back. You don't want to look needy!

Don't forgot there are millions of people just like you looking for a job.

-Kat

thought about it....

I am going to cut back on the amount of fish I eat, to no more than 2-3 times a week. Dairy (mainly cheese, I don't like milk) and Eggs will remain in my diet. 

AND I'M OK WITH THAT. 

This morning I worked early and did not prepare any meals because I worked late last night. I stopped at this Bagel deli I discovered last week.. It's on Collins and 65th street.I picked up a caramel latte with an extra shot (my staple) and a power bagel(flax/pumpkin/sunflower seeds on whote wheat) with a fresh artichoke cream cheese. I asked the server to cut the middle out of the bagel (bagel thin!). I highly recommend this place if you are in the area of Miami Beach. They have fresh veggie and fruit juices/smoothies, homemade cream cheeses, wheat grass shots, vegetarian friendly sandwiches.

 

 

 

 

 

http://www.newyorkbageldeli.com/menu.html

I try my best to prepare my meals but if I can't I'm always on the prowl for healthy spots that serve whole foods, fresh. Any recommendations?

 

 

Vegan?

Could I give up fish, eggs, dairy as well? Go 100% vegan? Time to really ponder this.

Sunday Juice Prep

I have a busy schedule at work and if I don't prepare my meals I PROBABLY will end up eating something that is NOT healthy. So I prepared my juices for tomorrow/Tuesday. All ingredients are organic.

Gala Apple, Italian parsley and 5 carrots

Only made about 8 ounces but this should give you enough energy to skip a morning coffee. It could also be your afternoon pick-me-up.

1/2 grapefruit, 1 Valencia orange, handful of strawberries, 1 peach, 1 celery stalk, 3 carrots, 1 Gala apple.

Breakfast juice.

Pineapple, 2 celery stalks, a bunch of black kale, 1 cup of green grapes, handful of cilantro.

I cut up a pineapple a week ago and froze half of it. I used some of the frozen chunks for this. I follow "Juicing Vegetables" on Facebook and they posted a recipe for a "Kale cleanser". The Kale cleanser included Kale, Pineapple, Celery, Cucumber, and lemon. I've tried it an would definitely recommend. This last juice is kind of similar and is basically what I had in my fridge. 

I have not done a juice fast yet but I do replace some meals with juices. Whenever I start my day out with a juice I feel 100% better than I would if I hadn't. 

Now onto prepare some meals. Happy juicing!

-Kat

On November 28, 2008

I became vegetarian the day after Thanksgiving in 2008. I told my family at that dinner that it would be my last "meat" meal. They all thought I was crazy and they didn't get it. No one understood why in the hell I would want to give up meat
So that was the last time I enjoyed my mother's turkey, a recipe passed on by three generations.
This November will mark four years of this journey, which has had it's ups and downs to say the least. This post if for people who are transitioning into vegetarianism and want some understanding.

Now, I cannot say I never ate meat after my decision. About 8 months after I started my meat-free diet (to be clear, I am a pesco-lacto-ovo vegetarian) I decided to try eating meat again. Honestly I don't remember why I wanted to go back but I did. I started out with a Publix ham and turkey sub. Gross. One of my once favorite things tasted so different to me. I figured OK, maybe I just need to get used to it. I made picadillo, a latin dish made of ground beef. The meal came out great but when I tasted it, it just didn't feel right. The last thing I ate before I ran back to my vegetarian lifestyle was a chicken salad- I couldn't even finish it. I took the chicken out and just ate the salad.

Throughout that time period I had a couple more slip ups, like taking a bite out of my brothers "sausage" dog at a Santana concert, or accidentally eating a meat taco that my friend ordered instead of my bean one. I ate the entire taco, was definitely too drunk to notice the difference. EVERYONE slips up once or twice. But the consistency in my life got better. I started eating fast food MUCH less, stopped replacing meat with MORE carbs, and recognized that I needed to learn more about food.

I became vegetarian because I love fruits and vegetables! So I needed to get myself acquainted with the food group. I began juicing at the beginning of this year and HOLY SHIT what an amazing addition to my diet. I have a profound belief in finding a diet for life. Something you can stick to day in and day out. And I have found mine.
I want to share with you my love of cooking, stories from my life, and some advice (which will hopefully help!).

People ask me all the the time, WHY? Why don't you eat meat? I can never answer because there truly are too many answers! It started out as a challenge to myself. I really just wanted to see if I had the will power to do it. And it morphed from there. I do eat fish sometimes, I eat cheese, some dairy products and eggs. ALL other animal foods I do not eat. I do it for my health, to help the Earth by not adding to pollution caused by animal farming, because of the cruelty to animals in the farming industry in America. When I buy fish I buy responsibly farmed or wild caught. I try to buy organic produce and food as much as possible. I am not perfect and I am not rich so this can become difficult but I try my best to buy the cleanest, most responsibly farmed food I can find.

After all, you are what you eat.

Are you vegetarian? Have you thought about becoming one? Give me your thoughts. Let's discuss.

-Kat