Recipe: Hot Weather Salad

It is 93º here. We keep breaking records every day and it's not supposed let up anytime soon. I don't even cook anymore. Lean Cusines are so much easier when moving makes you melt. But I was in desperate need of some fresh fruit and veg, so I whipped up this super easy, heat-free summer salad.

I discovered the mix in Palm Springs and have developed my own version. It's pretty free-style and takes advantage of summer's most delicious produce.

Ingredients:

1-2 peaches

2 ears of corn

2 ripe tomatoes

2 Tablespoons chopped fresh Basil

1/2 cup fat-free Feta Cheese

Tablespoon grated Parmesan

Olive Oil & Balsamic

Salt & Pepper

Directions:

In no particular order, slice the peaches, chop the tomatoes, and cut the corn of the cob. Toss in a bowl with basil, a teaspoon or two of olive oil, two tablespoons vinegar, and the cheeses. Add salt and pepper to taste. Eat all of it.

♠

Dinner Tonight: Power Salad

Grapefruit, kale, and avocados are all very affordable in April, since they're in season, so why not load up on all three! I've created this warm salad, which is loosely based on a delicious salad my BFF Katherine made for Thanksgiving. It features nutrient- and fiber-rich foods, is low-fat, vegan, and incredibly delicious!

Ingredients (2 salads):

1 bunch of kale

1 grapefruit

1 medium to large avocado

1 Tbsp olive oil

Juice of 1 lime, plus any leftover grapefruit juice

Red pepper flakes

1/4+ cup pistachios

salt & pepper to taste

1. Cut the avocado into slices or chunks; set aside. Cut the grapefruit in half and use a small knife to go around the edges. This will make it easier to scoop the sections out. Use a spoon to scoop the sections out and set aside with the avocado. Squeeze leftover juice from the grapefruit rinds over the avocado.

2. Heat a saute pan over low-medium heat. Chop kale and add to pan. Add lime juice, olive oil and pepper flakes and toss. If the kale starts to sizzle, the pan is too hot, so turn it down. Heat for 5 minutes, or just until the kale starts to turn bright green.

2. Divide the kale between two plates, making sure to top each with any leftover liquid from the saute pan. Now put half the avocado-grapefruit mix on each salad and sprinkle with pistachios. Season with salt and pepper as desired.

Serve with Grapefruit Whiskey Sour :)

Recipe: Sweet Potato Pancakes

I came up with these when I was in a comfort-food-mood, but didn't just want to end up eating cake and Pringles. I had some leftover mashed sweet potatos that were looking for a home and thought I would experiment (sweet potatoes make everything better, automatically). I substituted them for the oil called for in regular pancake recipes and added extra almond milk to make the batter a bit thinner.

Health Notes: These pancakes are low-fat and dairy-free! Another plus, since sweet potatoes are naturally sweet, this recipe doesn't call for as much sugar.

Ingredients:

1 cup flour

1 Tbsp sugar

2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

1 1/2 cups almond milk 

1 egg

1/2 cup mashed sweet potato

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

Coconut butter or cooking spray

Blueberries & banana, optional

1. Heat a frying pan on medium heat. In a large bowl, combine flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt.

2. In a separate bowl, whisk together egg and almond milk. Stir in sweet potato and vanilla extract.

3. Add sweet potato mixture to dry ingredients. Stir just until combined.

4. Fold in blueberries.

5. Grease the frying pan. Drop batter using a ladle or big spoon. You can make the pancakes as big or as little as you want.

6. Serve with fruit and/or syrup. Bacon doesn't hurt, either :)