Peppermint Kiss Sweet Green Juice

Peppermint is one of my all time favorite flavors, and right now, my little herb garden is producing a bumper crop. One of the most delicious medicinal herbs, peppermint is a wonderful digestive soother and breath freshener, a superb respiratory decongestant and a mild stress reliever. Even the scent of peppermint alone is reported to boost mental performance and memory.

Iced peppermint tea with honey and lemon is a staple in my fridge during the hot months of summer. This morning, I was inspired to add a few fresh stalks of the cooling herb to my daily green juice, and am pleased to report outstanding results! The refreshing essence of peppermint pairs perfectly with the bright tastes of cucumber, apple and lime in this simple, sweet green juice.

Peppermint Kiss Sweet Green Juice

3 medium cucumbers
1 smallish head romaine lettuce
1 lime
3 stalks fresh peppermint
1 granny smith apple

Run all ingredients through your juicer, drink and enjoy as soon as possible, or within 24 hours. Makes about 20 ounces fresh green juice.

Kale Around the Clock—Raw Fusion Style

Freshly harvested, tender spring kale has arrived in Western Massachusetts and I couldn’t be more thrilled! Kale is truly a superstar vegetable. It’s packed with nutrition, tastes great, comes in several colorful varieties and is incredibly versatile in the kitchen.

Kale is a member of the illustrious, cancer-fighting Brassica family and, like its cousins broccoli and daikon radish, has been researched extensively in recent years. Studies suggest that kale may help suppress tumor growth, promote detoxification at the genetic DNA level and support healthy cholesterol levels. Kale is packed with antioxidant flavonoids that fight inflammation and is notably high in lutein, a yellow carotenoid pigment required for healthy vision. It is an excellent source of vitamin A, vitamin C and vitamin K, a good source of manganese, calcium and other bone-building minerals and, best of all... it’s GREEN!

Green foods are beneficial for many reasons, including their exalted status of being the premier alkalizing foods on the planet. Alkaline nutrition is important because the pH of human blood must remain within a very tight, alkaline pH range (between 7.35 and 7.45) and the world we live in has become increasingly acidic, making it tough for the body to maintain. Processed foods, meats, sugars, white flour and most grains (i.e. the modern diet) along with chronic stress (i.e. the modern lifestyle) all promote acidity and threaten our alkaline balance. Ongoing low grade acidic conditions in the body are implicated in a Pandora’s box of health problems from bone loss and premature aging to arthritis, heart disease, cancer...you name it.

Promoting alkalinity is becoming increasingly recognized as critical to healthy physical and metabolic function, so the more alkalizing green vegetables you can eat, the better. Of course, salads and steamed greens are a great place to start. But why stop there? Some leafy greens like KALE are so versatile, they allow you to enjoy greens at every meal—even dessert!

To show you how, I’ll share three delicious and innovative recipes that I’ve adapted from Raw Fusion Recipes by LindaJoy Rose, PhD. LindaJoy is a leader in the field of hypnotherapy and an enthusiastic raw food educator. Her wonderful little recipe book, now in its second printing, is the companion volume to Raw Fusion, an introductory guide to incorporating raw/living foods into a healthy diet. (Visit rawfusionliving.com to order the books or learn more.)

And now…let’s have some fun with Kale Around the Clock!

morning...

Pineapple-Grapefruit Green Smoothie

To bathe your cells in alkalinity on a regular basis, I suggest starting each day with a tall glass of delicious green juice. (My revitalizing Ginger Green Juice is a favorite.) If you don’t have a juicer or simply find yourself in the mood for a more substantial meal, a blended green smoothie—which, unlike juice, retains the fiber of the fruits and veggies it contains—is a fine alternative. Experiment with different fresh leafy greens or green herbs—spinach, kale, parsley, dill—they’re all good. Cilantro really makes the flavors pop in this Pineapple-Grapefruit Green Smoothie. Enjoy for breakfast or lunch.

½ red grapefruit, peeled and pitted
1 cup chopped pineapple
½ lemon, peeled and pitted
4 leaves of kale, chopped
1 cup cilantro, leaves and stems
4 slices fresh ginger root
½ cup water or cooled lemon balm tea

Rough chop all ingredients, add to blender and blend on high until well combined. Add additional liquid or ice to reach desired temperature and consistency. Makes one pint.

Recipe inspired by Green Fairy’s Lemonade in Raw Fusion Recipes by LindaJoy Rose.


afternoon...

Lunar Kale Chips

When I was a kid, people used to say the moon was made of green cheese. These days, everyone knows the moon is made of rocks and dust, but we can still make our own green cheese using sprouted pumpkin seeds and seasonings. The classic approach to making pumpkin seed paté is tweaked here to create a savory Lunar Sauce for these out-of-this-world kale chips.

1 bunch Red Russian kale, or other flat leaf variety
½ cup raw pumpkin seeds, soaked 4 hours, drained and rinsed
1 lemon’s juice
½ cup water
1 clove garlic
½ tsp turmeric
½ tsp chipotle chili powder
¾ tsp Himalayan pink salt
2 Tbs. nutritional yeast

Rinse kale leaves well and remove stems. Save stems for juice and set leaves aside. To make sauce, put pumpkin seeds, lemon juice, water, and all seasonings except nutritional yeast into blender and blend on medium to high speed until well combined. Pour sauce into a large bowl, add a little more water to the blender and blend quickly to loosen the remaining sauce, then add this to what’s already in the bowl. Stir in the nutritional yeast by hand. Taste and adjust salt or seasonings if desired. Coat each kale leaf on both sides with the Lunar Sauce. Arrange leaves on dehydrator trays lined with Teflex sheets. Avoid overlapping leaves to permit air circulation. (My bunch of kale contained twelve leaves and I needed four trays to lay them all out.) Use up all the sauce—you should have just enough.

Dehydrate kale chips for one hour at 145 degrees, then reduce temperature to just under 110 degrees and continue dehydrating for about four hours. At this point, gently flip chips off of the Teflex and onto the mesh trays, dry sides down. Dehydrate another two to four hours or until desired crispiness is reached. Keeping them slightly moist and flexible is a fun option and keeps the kale a bit more lively, since a plant’s vitality is primarily contained in its water-containing portions.

If you don’t have a dehydrator, you could try making Lunar Kale Chips in a very low-temperature oven, perhaps with the door left slightly open. If using this method, use a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and keep an eye on the chips as they dry – they might be crisp within 20 to 30 minutes.

Recipe inspired by Cheezy Chili Chips in Raw Fusion Recipes by LindaJoy Rose.


evening...

Kale Fudge Torte

I was planning on making Kale Brownies with this adapted recipe, but I overdid it on the food processing and things got pretty sticky fast! Luckily, my mistake yielded outstanding results, and a Torte was born. There are two whole cups of chopped kale in this recipe but you really can’t taste them at all, as confirmed by my Sunday Yoga test group. (Maybe once you know it’s there you THINK you can taste the kale, but nobody guessed the secret ingredient.) In fact, this torte may be the most decadent way ever to “sneak” greens into the diet. Consider it a stealth health strategy for people like the mom I met last week at the Greenfield farmer’s market, whose son refuses to eat green veggies. Mom, your secret is safe with me!

1½ cup walnuts or pecans
½ teaspoon sea salt
10 Medjool dates, pitted and chopped
2 cups chopped kale leaves, loosely packed (stems removed!)
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/3 cup raw cacao powder, plus 1 teaspoon
1 Tbs coconut butter (not coconut oil)
1 or 2 Tbs maple syrup

In a food processor, pulse nuts and sea salt until finely ground. Add remaining ingredients and process until dough comes together. You may add a tablespoon or two of water to facilitate things if necessary—the dough will be extremely thick.

Place dough on a piece of parchment paper laid flat on the counter and press into a square or round shape, one inch tall. The dough is VERY sticky so moisten your hands with water or use a second piece of parchment paper on top of the dough to help you press and shape the torte. When shaped, wrap in parchment paper and chill until firm, about one hour or longer. Before serving, sprinkle top with additional teaspoon of raw cacao powder by sifting through a fine mesh strainer, such as a tea strainer. (To sift, hold strainer over the torte and “stir” the cacao powder with a spoon or chopstick to sift the cacao onto the surface of the torte, covering the entire surface with fine powder.)

Store Kale Fudge Torte in the fridge and consume within three days—the raw, living kale in the recipe leads to a short shelf life. If you can’t or don’t want to finish the torte in only three days, I suggest freezing individual sized pieces, each tightly wrapped in parchment paper and sealed within a freezer bag. Then, when you feel like a treat, just take out a packet and let it warm up on the counter. Yum!

Recipe inspired by Family Favorite Flourless Chocolate Cake in Raw Fusion Recipes by LindaJoy Rose. Many thanks to LJ for sending me the books and for being so patient while I prepared this post! ♥

Raw Magic Greens

There’s a magical way of preparing deep green leafy vegetables so that they look and taste “cooked” but are actually, secretly raw!

The nutritional advantages of this magical preparation method are great, as it is well known that cooking greens (and other veggies) causes a massive loss of vitamins and minerals.

On the other hand, cooked leafy veggies are comforting and, for many folks, easier to chew and digest due to the the softening of hard or tough cellulose fibers. Cooking also shrinks chlorophyll-rich greens, allowing you to eat more of them in one sitting. Now there's a way to get the best of both worlds.


Raw Magic Greens rely on the power of salt (natural sea salt, Himalayan pink salt, etc.) and acid (from lemon or lime juice) to break down cellulose walls (think softening) and release water (think shrinkage) from raw greens. The third required ingredient, a little high quality cold pressed oil – extra virgin olive oil, flaxseed oil, sesame oil, etc. – allows the salt and lemon juice to coat every surface of the greens. As a result, you will find yourself able to polish off an ENTIRE bunch of, say, raw kale in one sitting with ease and relish! (No, I don’t mean the condiment relish, silly. I’m talking GUSTO, here.)

Depending on which deep green leafy vegetable you are using, one of two techniques may be used to make Raw Magic Greens. The first of these, gentle massaging, is recommended for kinky and broad-leafed greens like curly kale or Swiss chard. It was taught to me by my dear friend Marilyn, whose Massaged Kale recipe, as you will see below, is created by feel in more ways than one!

Yes, hands and fingers are involved with the massaging technique, so be sure to scrub your paws and claws scrupulously before you begin. (Some may wish to wear food-service grade “rubber” gloves for massaging. When cooking for others, as in a potluck dish, gloves are strongly advised – if only to engender trust in your fellow diners. But if it’s just you that’s eating, I’d say clean-palm essence trumps rubber any day.)


After making (and inhaling) a batch of Marilyn’s delicious Massaged Kale (pictured above), I decided to try a similar recipe with baby bok choi. Because this crisp Asian green is hard, long and smooth rather than supple, wide and crannied, massaging is not required and Technique Number Two–plenty of tossing and an hour or more of marinating time–can be employed. But the three magic ingredients: salt, acid and oil, are still basic to the process.

With either technique you’ll end up with a “side dish” that can fool even a 16-year old boy into believing he is eating especially tasty cooked greens. (I have proof of this.) Soft but still crunchy, sweet and salty, packed with natural vitamins, minerals and enzymes AND super quick and easy to prepare–Raw Magic Greens have it all! You MUST try.

Consider the following recipes as jumping off points that may be modified as your tastes, produce supply and seasoning ingredients inspire. Flaxseed oil may be substituted for olive oil to vary flavor and boost your omega-3 fatty acid intake. (Omega-3s fight depression, are good for your heart and help decrease all kinds of inflammation in the body.)

Massaged Kale

1 bunch kale
organic lemon juice – fresh or bottled
extra virgin olive oil
sea salt

Wash kale and remove overhanging stem from leaf. (Stem can be saved for juicing.) Slice kale crosswise into one-inch wide, horizontal strips and place in large bowl. Drizzle sliced kale with olive oil (up to three tablespoons, depending upon your desire for fat and the amount of kale). Sprinkle evenly with sea salt (a decent pinch-worth or two or three) and add lemon juice (about the same amount as you used olive oil). Then, with a very clean hand, begin massaging the oil-salt-lemon juice into the leaves. Use your fingers to get into the curly places, and use your entire hand to create a gentle squeezing action. This squeezing in particular will help the kale shrink down. Like magic, your bowlful of greens will become an extraordinarily much smaller pile of greens, perfect for one or two. Give a little taste and adjust salt or lemon if desired before serving.

Variations
After massaging kale, add any or all of the following and mix well:

fresh garlic, pressed or grated (1-2 cloves)
nutritional yeast (a generous sprinkle)
raw cashew butter (about 1 teaspoon. Smush into liquid that escaped from kale during massage, which you will find at bottom of bowl, and stir the resulting paste into greens. Creamy!)


Ginger-Sesame Bok Choi

4 baby bok choi
2 Tablespoons lime juice
1 Tablespoon each extra virgin olive oil, untoasted sesame oil
2 pinches Himalayan pink salt
1 teaspoon grated ginger
1 teaspoon crushed red pepper
2 drops liquid stevia extract (I like SteviaClear brand)

Separate bok choi leaves from base; wash well and dry. (Often, bits of dirt cling to the lower stalks so be sure to rub these off under running water.) Chop bok choi horizontally into one-inch chunks and place in large bowl. Combine the oils, lime juice and stevia. Pour this mixture over the bok choi and toss with a wooden spoon. Sprinkle evenly with salt and toss thoroughly again for about a minute. Add ginger and crushed red pepper and toss some more. Taste and adjust seasonings if desired. Allow to marinate at room temperature, one hour or longer, while magic happens and flavors marry. Toss again if possible, once or twice, during this time. Refrigerate after a few hours if you haven’t eaten it yet. Keeps well for up to four days. ☺

Garlic Mustard Greens and Marinated Cauliflower Salad

As I write this, autumn is in full swing. We’re entering the far side of peak fall foliage, following a somewhat subdued but still beautiful color show. Nights are cold now (most days, too) and a hard frost or two has already had its way with my basil, among other tender things.

In other words, winter is coming. In my neck of the woods, this means spending more time indoors with the windows locked up tight, breathing heated, recirculated air that may be seeded with – uh-oh – other people’s germs.

It’s been proposed that sickness increases in colder months not due to an actual increase in the amount of environmental pathogens but simply because we can’t get away from them. Indoor activities are preferred, public transportation is more crowded, fresh air is reduced, less time is spent in the sun producing Vitamin D and, of course, sugar intake skyrockets during the Holidays. All of these factors lead to increased susceptibility to disease.

It’s almost impossible not to be alarmed as news reports about "swine flu deaths" abound. What those reports fail to mention is that the sad instances of reported deaths related to H1N1 – or any flu in this country – typically occur in children and people who are already quite ill to begin with. But in a culture where "sensationalism sells" strategies support a dollar-driven healthcare system, even those of us in the natural health field may need to work harder to listen to our own sound voice of good reason.

Shameless (and in my opinion, irresponsible) advertisements for free flu shots and free antibiotics are popping up at pharmacies all over town – on billboards, LED displays, flyers – you name it. Last month, Walgreen’s was even advertising seasonal flu shots on the very same red-lit flashing outdoor sign as discounted double 12-packs of Coke and Big Grab bags of Doritos on sale. Talk about guerilla marketing.

There is nothing free about pharmaceutical drugs. On one side, just follow the money trail; on the other, the toll these poisons take on individual health and stamina. Whether today or in the future, the pipers will be paid if you buy into that system without asking questions.

I’m not saying that no one should ever take an antibiotic, or even a flu shot. Drugs like these absolutely have their place in the medicinal arsenal. But I do believe that most of the time, most of us really, honestly don’t need them.

There are many safe, natural steps we can take to boost our immune resistance to disease. A few of them are listed here, in an article I wrote for a local paper on fighting the flu with natural immune support. If there had been room, I would have definitely included a few more preventive measures, including one of my all-time favorite anti-viral aids: GARLIC!

If you think about it, garlic’s reputation for repelling vampires may not be so far-fetched. Flu viruses are merely lifeless protein packets, programmed to inject their DNA into the cellular nuclei of another, living being in order to replicate themselves. There’s definitely something vampire-like about that mechanism. (Alien and creepy, too, if not evil.)

The good news is that legends aside, garlic is a potent, scientifically proven protector against viral infection.

I have been taking advantage of garlic’s miraculous abilities since the chilly fall and winter of my nineteenth year. Due to unexpected life circumstances, I lived those frigid months just this side of homeless, spending most nights in an abandoned chicken shack and, when that flooded out, an unheated farmhouse attic. Every morning I would wake up, clamber out of my trusty down sleeping bag, get dressed with a quickness and then ride my bike down to Atkins’ Farms, the local orchard, to select a large, fresh-picked Empire apple for breakfast. This I would eat with one good-sized clove of raw garlic – a tasty combo for those who haven’t tried it. It is to the garlic that I have always attributed the fact that despite the challenges of my living situation, I did not once get sick that year, not even a sniffle.

Fortunately today I live in a cozy house, complete with wood stove and all the fixings, and from here, continue to love raw garlic. Although I generally skip the apple routine, I do consume as much as possible, especially at this time of year. Fresh chopped garlic goes well in or on just about everything - from fresh salads, raw soups and green smoothies to roasted potatoes, lentil stews, steamed veggies and more.

This winter salad is packed with immune boosting raw garlic and alkalizing mustard greens. Mustard greens, with their peppery, pungent flavor, happen to be an excellent source of vitamins A, C, E and K. The first three of these are premium cell-protective antioxidants, and eating the greens raw (though softened in a marinade) keeps levels high. A few jewel-like goji berries tossed in provide a festive air, plus sweetness and added antioxidant benefits.
Garlic Mustard Greens and Marinated Cauliflower Salad

INGREDIENTS
1 bunch mustard greens, washed and spun dry
1 head organic cauliflower, chopped into small florets
1 handful each dulse (chopped), goji berries, raisins
½ cup pine nuts

½ cup extra virgin cold-pressed olive oil
2 lemons’ juice
1 Tablespoon maple syrup or raw honey
4 cloves garlic, minced
2 Tablespoons Dill
1 teaspoon Himalayan pink salt or favorite sea salt, more to taste
½ teaspoon black pepper or crushed red pepper flakes, more to taste

DIRECTIONS
Combine fresh lemon juice, maple syrup or raw honey, garlic, dill, salt, and pepper and set aside. Finely chop the mustard greens and place in a large bowl. Pour olive oil over the greens and massage with your hands until every nook and cranny is coated. Add chopped cauliflower, chopped dulse, goji berries and raisins and stir to combine, either with your hands again, or a spoon. Add lemon juice mixture and mix well until greens, cauliflower and dried fruits are evenly coated with marinade.

Let the salad stand at room temperature for about three to four hours, stirring occasionally. I like to mix in pine nuts just before serving so they remain crispy, but you could add them earlier if you prefer. Store salad in fridge; keeps a few days…so tasty!