Grandma's cooking: Stuffed Green Pepper with Orzo Noodle Rice and Yogurt

We got tons and tons of green peppers in our CSA this month and really didn't know what to do with them. Then came the bestest idea: try to make stuffed green peppers, just like my grandma makes. My mom and grandma were so lovely, skyped with me for a couple of hours and shared a few of her signature recipes. On Sunday we gave it our best and tried it for the first time:

HOLY MOLY! It turned out soooo good! We all know that normally, even if we use our grandmas' recipes, they never turn out quite as good as grandma's. This one turned out really well though! We were quite proud of ourselves :)

Thank you grandma! <3

Back on track

After a month of traveling and jet lag (6 hours plus, then 3 hours minus) I am working on getting back on track. My boyfriend and I have a few fun things planned, but none of them are multiple-days kind of plans. We're going to a Tigers game on Sunday, yay! We're hosting a Bavarian breakfast soon, (not healthy, but still) yay! We have a month-long CSA membership, so farm-fresh food to look forward to, yay!

Meanwhile, this is what is helping me feel good and healthy and not-jetlagged in my skin:

• eating raw! I'm not at 100%, but I am getting so much closer by including more and more 100% raw meals (for example Green Smoothies). Blog post to follow...
• getting back to yoga! The hot room is feeling goooood these days! It's challenging to get back to a regular practice in the humid summer months, but I am concentrating on breathing calmly and concentrating on my body only and it's working well :)
• cleaning, unpacking, making our home even more comfy!

I have noticed so many benefits from eating mostly raw already, even after just a few raw days in a row! It really is amazing. Combined with my Bikram yoga practice, the possibilities are endless! I feel like it is the fast-track to great health.

CSA for August

Yesterday we picked up the first of our weekly shares from a local farm. We are so excited! We have planned meals around most of the fresh veggies already.

So CSA stands for Community Supported Agriculture and we are trying it for the first time this August. I'm already liking it! After getting back from the farm (yes, the same farm where this stuff was grown) we made a little impromptu stir fry.

All ingredients were from our share (except for spices and olive oil). It tasted SO PHENOMENAL! Fresh and fruity and flavorful... so THIS is what real food tastes like ;) Yumm yumm!

I ♥ Pomegranate!

When I asked if the grocery store had any pomegranates in stock, I was told they are out of season. Sad face. I didn't know there was a specific season for pomegranates. I just figured that in the summer, they come from California/Florida/whatever, and in the winter they come from the southern hemisphere... wrong!

After the tree flowers in spring, it takes about 6 months for fruits to be ready for picking! Harvesting time for California pomegranates is October to January, so just a few short months per year. (The season in the southern hemisphere is March through May.) The good news: pomegranates don't ripen after picked, so they store well for months.

Pomegranates are soo good for you! They make me feel fresh and new when I feel low. I tend to crave them after yoga or after I am naughty and have pizza or something. They pick me right up and to me that is the best evidence that they are good for me :)

So long, my tangy, sparkly, shiny friends! Hope to see you again soon!


PS: Now of course I am daydreaming about having a pomegranate tree in my backyard. Sometime, in the future...

May I introduce: Vitamix!

We have a new friend in the kitchen... the incredible Vitamix!

I have been making Green Smoothies for a while now with a regular blender and while it worked fine, it was a little too time consuming and brought the machine to its limits blending tough greens like kale (just didn't get smooth). After borrowing a Vitamix from a friend a few weeks ago, there was no going back, so when a small windfall came my way, you guessed what I went out to buy...

Now, I haven't tried yet, but I'm pretty sure the Vitamix can blend rocks to a smooth finish. You can make ice cream/sorbet with it. It is also so powerful that I can throw in all ingredients at the same time, blend for 30 secs and the smoothie is done, where with my old blender it was: add ingredients-blend-add ingredients-blend... and so on. Another plus: it holds twice as much (64 oz = 1.9 l) as my old blender. So all in all, it saves me a ton of time AND the smoothies come out much smoother.

I've already made soup and pasta sauce with the Vitamix and it's pretty awesome since it gets even raw carrots super smooth and you can run it for a few minutes and it will even heat up your soup! (Just from the friction of the blades, mind you!)

OK, I'm officially a fan-girl now haha!


PS: Yes, this really is the view from our kitchen window... So beautiful this time of the year!

German Goodies

After seeing this picture, you will surely understand why my (previously half-empty) suitcases were packed full and over the weight limit on my way back to the US...

Hmmmmmmm....

Currywurst Pommes :)

A friend of mine finally took me to one of my favorite places to eat Currywurst. Thank you!

Yummm, Lil' Turtle is also enjoying this German delicacy :)

OK, OK, I admit it's not the most healthy dish, but it tastes awesome. I'm sure the Americans would appreciate it as well, if somebody brought it over the Atlantic for them to enjoy! Hmmm, maybe it's my destiny to open Detroit's first Currywurst place... ;)

Resolutions

When everybody around me seemed to be talking about New Year's Resolutions, I've started thinking back and I can honestly say that I've never made any before. When I though about it some more, I've come to realize that I probably never will make any, either. Not because I'm so perfect already (ha!), but because I'm a very self-reflective person. I think about and re-think my life/relationships/goals/yoga/nutrition/everything all. the. time. If a change is needed, it is implemented as soon as possible. I don't see a reason to wait for a new month/moon/year.

Recent plans/changes/resolutions or whatever-you-wanna-call-its:

• Green smoothies: drink as often as possible, at least one per day. (The challenge: having fresh ingredients at home, preparation time.)
• "3 days on, 1 day off" Bikram yoga schedule (The challenge: lack of time/funky work schedule, balancing quality time with myself and/or my partner.)
• read more (The challenge: same as with Bikram class.)
• cook more (The challenge: same as with green smoothies.)

Sooo, the common challenge seems to be time-related. All of these things are quite time consuming (what isn't, right?) and I have recently added 1.5 hrs driving time to my work days, sooo... Yes, I often have to prioritize and no, I have not been able to achieve all of those goals satisfactorily in the same week. But that's life or at least: that's my life. I'm not going to beat myself up about it, because ultimately, all those goals are supposed to make my life better and not more stressful than it already tends to be.

Maybe I should have added another major goal: balance.

Namaste :)

Green smoothies

Hi Everybody!

My boyfriend and I have a new thing... green smoothies! We all know that in our modern lives, many of us eat too much processed food. There are many people who try to turn this around by eating vegetarian, vegan, raw, or who knows what else. The idea behind the green smoothies is that not only are they raw, they also contain a lot of leafy greens of which we usually eat too little of.

Anyway, after a couple of months playing with the smoothies, here is an update!


Literature: My BF and I loooove this book Green Smoothie Revolution by Victoria Boutenko. It contains a lot of information, some scientific insight, years and years of personal experiences from her and her family, and a ton of recipes. Great mix for when you're starting out with smoothies! My BF and I now refer to the author as "our friend Victoria", as in "No, don't put broccoli in it. Remember, our dear friend Victoria says is not good in smoothies because of the starch!" Love this book. It's an easy read and it really made us enjoy more and drink more smoothies!

Recipes: We pretty much stick to Victorias principles - keep it easy, limit the number of ingredients to 3-4. Use 2 different fruits (ex: bananas, frozen berries, avocado, pineapple, mango, etc), 1 green (ex: spinach, kale, chard, wheatgrass, etc), and water. Try to use more green and less fruit as you get more experienced.
 ☆ My favorite: raspberries/strawberries, avocado, spinach, water.
 ☆ His favorite (he likes it sweeter): mango/pineapple, banana, wheatgrass, water.

Frequency: Our goal has been to drink at least 1-2 smoothies per day. Some weeks we do well, some we fail miserably haha. It all depends on how busy we are and how much time we spend at home vs. out and about (eating out, traveling). My BF has tried an "all-smoothie diet" for 3 days or so and really loved it (see Benefits below.)
We drink the smoothies as snacks, not as meal replacements. Although sometimes we will replace a meal with a smoothie. We don't have strict rules. A smoothie will keep you full for a while, so it is definitely possible to replace a meal with a smoothie.

Equipment: At first, we didn't want to spend money on a blender in case we end up not liking smoothies. We tried using a food processor. It was kind of messy and the smoothies didn't get very "smooth". It was OK, but not ideal. We liked the smoothies though, so we started researching blenders. The best of the best cost 400 US$ and up (Vitamix, Blendtec). We decided on a much cheaper one (40 US$) that got very good ratings by consumer reports. We are very happy with it. The smoothies get super smooth and the motor shows no signs of burning out. (We try not to run it for longer than 30-60 seconds at a time. Also, always use enough liquid to prevent motor burnout.)

Benefits: Now, for the most interesting aspect. What benefits did we experience? I definitely feel a difference, even when I just drink one large glass of smoothie per day. I feel lighter, happier, just plain better! It also meshes really well with my yoga practice and his workout routine, fueling us with all the nutrients we need.
When my BF did the "all-smoothie diet" for a few days, he felt so amazing! He said it just made him so energetic and he realized that "regular" food makes him fatigued. It made such a difference for him that his colleagues (who didn't know he was doing any special diet) asked him what was going on with him, because he came across as so energetic and happy! Amazing, isn't it?
We definitely feel it, when we skip our smoothies. For example, last week we moved, and between our three households, there hasn't been any time to make smoothies. My BF and I have both noticed that we feel grumpy, our bodies are not happy with the food we put in them, and we just feel tired and blah. We both can't wait to get back to a more regular smoothie routine! :)

Thank you, Victoria! Cheers!