Thursday, November 29, 2012

red and green smoothie

Do you need an afternoon "pick me up"?
 
With young children and a few more hours until dinner time, I sure do!
 
Here I have a red and green smoothie: 
kale, cabbage, beet and fruit...delish!
 
Remember: layer the fresh ingredients (lighter) at the bottom near the blades and the frozen ingredients (heavier) at the top.  The weight at the top of the container will assist the blending process by naturally pushing the light ingredients into the blades.  You also have a tamper to help push the ingredients down when the machine is in operation.  I also recommend the smoothie contain some liquid and frozen ingredients. 
 
use the tamper to gently push the ingredients towards the blades
 

nice and smooth after using the 60 second button

the omnibled blender buttons are easy to use

 
 
ENJOY your HEALTHY afternoon snack!
Amber
 
 
 

Friday, August 17, 2012

PINK SMOOTHIE



Today we made a PINK SMOOTHIE for snack to keep us cool in this wonderful summer heat!  It turned out such a pretty colour.
There was no official measurements, I used "handfuls" of frozen and fresh fruit, 1/4 avocado, and a free pour of almond milk.  Half of the ingredients were frozen.  The frozen banana and avocado make the smoothie extra smooth and creamy.

ingredient list:
  • strawberries
  • raspberries
  • blueberries
  • peach slices
  • 1/2 peeled orange
  • 1/2 banana
  • 1/4 avocado
  • 4 ice cubes and 1 C water (aprox.)
  • 1/2 C almond milk (aprox.)



Enjoy!
Amber

Thursday, May 31, 2012

Avocado Flax Dip

Our family has some exciting news....we are expecting our third child....and its going to happen this summer!  Wow, time has been flying.  With the new arrival coming soon I have been prepping fruit portions and putting them in the freezer, so we can make a quick smoothie snack when needed. 

I have also been testing easy dip recipes that I can whip up in the blender for summer picnics in the yard.  I love making red pepper hummus or a 5 bean version but, today's post is about a new dip I have been wanting to make for quite some time...I ripped the recipe out of an organic food magazine called, "Organic Lifestyles"....and with a few revisions (I never have all the required ingredients, so I make do)....ta-da!...creamy, fresh Avocado Flax Dip...tasty with crackers or veggie sticks.  I bet it would even work really well with a chicken or tuna salad sandwich (instead of mayo) or even tossed in a romaine salad....


Avocado Flax Dip...yumm!
 I was missing plain yogurt so I substituted light sour cream and because of our kids, I reduced the garlic to 1 clove...I would love it with 2 or even 3 as the recipe calls for, but our kids might not eat it with that kind of heat!  I also halved the recipe, and think it made enough for our family to enjoy all week!  Here is what I did....

Avocado Flax Dip Recipe:
  • 1/2 avocado
  • 1 clove garlic
  • 1/2 long English cucumber (leave peel on)
  • juice of 1/2 small lemon
  • 1/4 tsp Celtic sea salt
  • 1/4 C ground flax seeds
  • 1 C light sour cream
Place in OmniBlend V blender in order listed.  use 35 second programed button.  you may need to use the tamper if the veggies aren't moving down to the blades.  I didn't need to this time as the moisture and weight of the cucumber seemed enough to pull everything together nicely.
the recipe inspiration!
We are eating this tonight...I will let you know how our kids like it!

Enjoy!
Amber

Monday, April 23, 2012

quick and favorite green smoothie


One of my quick and favorite green smoothie recipes always contain kale or spinach, navel orange, frozen strawberries and either lemon or lime.  I also enjoy the refreshing taste of fresh herbs with these basic 4 ingredients.  Mint, Cilantro or Basil being my favorites.

This is what went into my mid-morning snack today:

  • kale
  • mint
  • navel orange (peeled)
  • 1/2 lime (peeled)
  • 3 frozen strawberries
  • ice and water to desired consistency
Layer the ingredients in your OmniBlend container with the fresh in first (and closest to the blades) and the frozen placed in last.  Blend using the 60 sec. pre-programed button. 

Enjoy!

Amber

Wednesday, January 25, 2012

curried squash soup

I love to experiment with my cooking, and because I haven't any official culinary training I often skim through recipes and figure out what I can make with what I have on hand.  Today I had an huge acorn squash that has hung out long enough on my kitchen counter....it had been there for weeks, showing no signs of age.  It was time for me to do something with this beautiful vegetable...why not soup?!

Now before I get too far into this recipe, I should mention that I did not measure my spices or ingredients...I just eyeballed them (the experiment) so I recommend you season to your taste.  This soup turned out mild but flavourful...perfect for our young family (with sensitive taste buds).

First I roasted the acorn squash and 1 onion @ 350 degrees F for 45 min.  stirring once.
drizzle veggies with 2 tbsp olive oil and sprinkle with seasonings*
 
*seasonings :
- 1 tsp curry powder
- 1/2 tsp cumin
- 1/4 tsp coriander
- 1/8 tsp cinnamon
- 1 tbsp sugar
- pinch of salt and pepper


roasted acorn squash and onion
 Once the roasted veggies are cool, I put them in my OmniBlend V blender, covered to the top with water (put the lid on) and pureed using the 35 second button.
fill water to the top of the roasted veggies

blend until smooth (I used 35 sec. button)
 I then filled the blender container with aprox. 2-3 cups water and once again put the lid on, and used the low button for a few seconds to loosen all the remaining puree...I USE THIS IN THE SOUP AS WELL...don't want to have any of that goodness go to waste, and it saves me time from scraping the sides of the container with my rubber spatula.

Next, I added the remaining ingredients** (again, I forgot to measure) and  brought to a boil for aprox. 5 min. then reduced to low and let slowly cook (aprox. 30 min.).  Stir every so often to prevent grains sticking to the bottom of the pan.

...you may need to add more water, salt and pepper, hot sauce, etc...all to your own taste and texture.

**remaining ingredients:

- 3 - 4 C water
- 1 can light coconut milk (or 1/2 can c reg. coconut milk + 1/2 can water)
- 2/3 C quinoa
- 2/3 C brown rice
- 1 carrot sliced
- 1 med. potato cubed
- 1 C precooked chickpeas
- 1 tbsp curry powder (mild)
- 1 tsp ginger powder (use fresh if you have it)
- 1/4 - 1/2 tsp Panang Curry Paste (A Taste Of Thai)...my kids find this seasoning very spicy, so I used very little...Nick and I like it with more zip, but we want our kids to eat dinner too, so we settled for less, but the flavour is still really nice.
- S & P to taste



combine remaining ingredients and puree in soup pot and cook until tender

ENJOY!