my green smoothie

i try to make a green smoothie for breakfast most days of the week. this way, no matter what i eat the rest of the day, (hopefully it's still pretty healthy) i've already had a good amount of fruit and veggies. green smoothies sound (and look) a bit strange at first, but try a google search for 'green smoothies' and you'll see a lot of people are making them. bottoms up!

makes about 1 quart

1 cup orange juice
4+ cups greens (i like spinach, collard greens, or kale)
2 tablespoons raw cashews or almonds (soaked in water for a few hours or over night)
3 pitted dates
1 banana
2 cups frozen mixed fruit (i get the spectrum blend from costco)

blend the first 4 ingredients in a blender for a few minutes until smooth. while that's going, i put the frozen fruit in the microwave on defrost for 2 minutes - so i won't destroy my blender. add the banana and frozen-ish fruit. blend for a few minutes more until smooth.

carrot cake smoothie

a while back, i bought a big bag of raw cashews i was planning on using to make cashew milk. though i love cashews, i discovered i don't like cashew milk. ew. i found this recipe at choosingraw.com and i had to buy a big bag of carrots to go with that big bag of nuts. i could seriously drink this smoothie every day.
adapted from choosingraw.com

serves 2-3

1 1/2 cups fresh carrot juice (from about 6-8 large carrots)
1 cup ice
1/2 cup cashews, raw
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp allspice (i just use cloves since i don't have allspice)
2 tablespoons honey (or to taste)

soak the cashews in a cup of water in the refrigerator for a few hours. drain. process the carrot juice and cashews in a blender for a few minutes until smooth. add the remaining ingredients and blend until smooth. (if you have a really cool blender like this one or that one, then you could just throw all the ingredients in at once, but this is how i have to do it in my blender.)

crispy kale

This is salty and crunchy, almost like potato chips. Kale is loaded with vitamins A and C, and has calcium, iron, and fiber. Make this for your kids, mine surprisingly likes it.

6-8 cups chopped fresh kale, washed, dried, and hard stems removed
2 Tbsp. olive oil
1 tsp. apple cider vinegar (I use lots more vinegar, a couple capfuls)
1/2 tsp. kosher salt or sea salt

1. Place a rack on the lowest shelf of your oven. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
2. Spread kale out on a sturdy baking sheet. Drizzle with olive oil and apple cider vinegar. Toss to coat completely. Sprinkle with salt.
3. Place on the lowest rack of the oven and bake for 10 minutes.
4. Remove from oven and stir so that kale can get crispy all over.
5. Bake another 8 to 12 minutes or until kale is crispy to the touch. Don’t let it brown.
If kale still bends, rather than crackles, when you touch it, it isn't done yet. Return to the oven. Turn down the heat if it is getting too brown. Continue cooking until crispy.
6. Remove from oven and enjoy.

roasted broccoli pick up sticks

I’ve made this so many times, I don’t even measure anymore. This is a great way to get kids to eat broccoli.

Makes four side-dish servings or 12-15 cocktail party servings.

Ingredients

1 pound broccoli florets, separated

1 inch-piece fresh ginger root, peeled and diced (I use a microplaner)

1 clove garlic, minced

1⁄2 teaspoon salt

1⁄8 teaspoon cayenne (use just a pinch)

1-2 tablespoons olive oil

black pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Place all ingredients in a mixing bowl. With your hands, mix to combine until broccoli is well coated. Place broccoli on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and into the oven. Roast until fork tender (about 12 minutes). Serve warm or at room temperature.

Tip: Buy fresh ginger, peel it, and put it in a Ziploc bag in the freezer. Use a microplaner to grate it in your recipes. You’ll always have fresh ginger since it keeps for months frozen.