ALL ORGANIC INGREDIENTS
1 yellow onion
4 cloves garlic
1 tsp fresh grated ginger
1 Cup sweet potatoes or quinoa (or half cup of each)
1 Cup green bell pepper
1 Cup Red bell pepper
1 tsp garam masala
1 TBSp +1/2 cup vegetable or bone broth
2 cups black beans drained and rinsed
Sea Salt and black pepper to taste
Romaine lettuce
Chop onions and garlic. Let sit for 5-10 minutes
Prepare other vegetables.
Salute onion, garlic, ginger, and peppers in broth over medium heat for about 5 minutes, stirring frequently.
Add garam masala and sweet potatoes and mix well.
Add 1/2 cup broth and cook covered on low heat for about 10 minutes, or until potatoes are tender.
Add beans, Season with salt and pepper to taste.
Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. (Cover all edges)
Combine quinoa, pecans, coconut sugar, salt, and cinnamon/spices in a bowl and set aside.
Over low to medium heat, add the coconut oil and black strap molasses (and optional Stevia). Stir until there is no visible separation. Pour over the dry ingredients, combine and coat evenly, spread on a parchment lined baking sheet with a metal spoon.
Try to get it as even as possible or the edges will burn in the center won’t crisp up.
Bake for 15 minutes and turn the pan around to ensure even baking and Browning. Back 5 to 10 minutes more and watch carefully so it does not burn. The edges will get crisp and caramelized, and the color will be uniformly deep golden brown in color.
Let it cool completely before breaking it into serving pieces. You can store leftovers in a sealed container at room temperature for a week, or in the freezer for up to one month.
This week Jodi featured vegetables of all shapes sizes and colors. Spaghetti Squash, Cabbage, Green and Red Bell Peppers, Tarragon, Garlic, Black Beans, and more. These classes are a great way to learn new ways to cook healthy and still make very tasty dishes. In class today, Jodi made:
2 medium Sweet Potatoes
14 Medjool Dates
1 1/2 Cups Quinoa or Almond Flour
4 TBSP Raw CACAO Powder
3 TBSP maple Syrup (Grade B) or Coconut netar or coconut palm syrup
Pinch of sea salt
Peel Sweet Potatoes. Slice/cut and steam for about 20 mins until soft.
The smaller the pieces, the faster it will cook.
Add Sweet Potatoes and Dates to food processor, blend until a creamy smooth texture.
Mix all other ingredients in a bowl, then add cream mixture. Stir well.
Place on Parchment paper lined baking dish and bake for 20-30 mins on 350 until the toothpick comes out dry.
Allow to cool 10 mins for the brownies to gel together, very important step!!
Tip: If you don’t use raw cacao powder, you cause conventional cocoa powder but you will need to double the quantity.
1. You’ll become more mindful.
Which one takes longer and really makes you slow down? Eating clean also means eating with purpose and savoring food. That means a better relationship with everything from radishes and radicchio to red velvet cupcakes (which you’ll no longer crave).
2. You’ll save money.
Kiss sick days and medical bills goodbye when you get nutrients from eating clean, real food. Plus, shopping locally and in season makes sense– and cents. Planning clean meals for the week is cost-effective if you make a list and stick to it, as there’s no chance of overspending at the store.
3. You’ll live longer.
Study after study has shown that consuming these foods can lengthen your life-span. And in a study published in the American Journal of Epidemiology, European researchers have found that increasing your produce intake to more than 569 grams per day reduces your risk of mortality by 10 %.
4. You’ll have better relationships.
Preparing clean meals takes time, just the kind of time that allows for easy, relaxed conversations with your kids, spouse and other family members and friends. If they’re too busy with screen time to share stove-top time, point them to the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health 2014 study, published in Public Health Nutrition, showing good health comes from home cooking.
5. You’ll be smarter.
Eating a healthy diet rich in fruits, vegetables, fish and nuts keep our minds sharper and our memories stronger by a whopping 24 %, proved a study published in spring 2015 in Neurology. Our brains also function better with nutrients such as omega-3 fatty acids, as shown in Nature Reviews Neuroscience, while they slow and sputter down when we fill them with sugar (including alcohol), fast food and the wrong kinds of fats. If that’s all too much too think about, remember one point from the Nature Reviews Neuroscience report: A balanced diet means better brain health.
See also 9 Amazing Brain Boosters to Add to Your Diet.
6. You’ll have more energy.
Adam and Eve were onto something when they bit into that apple: Fruit is just one of many clean foods that provide an instant dose of energy. High-fiber fruits like apples take longer to digest and can instantly stave off that afternoon slump while providing critical vitamins for the evening ahead. Other pick-me-ups include quinoa, almonds, eggs, kale, citrus fruit and a good-old-fashioned glass of water.
7. You’ll be better in bed.
Mamma mia! Women with metabolic function in Italy and other regions of the Mediterranean enjoy a healthier sex life than those in the US, thanks to the components of their diet– yep, vegetables, fruits, nuts, whole grains and olive oil. That’s what researchers found in a comprehensive study published in the International Journal of Impotence Research.
8. You’ll help the planet survive.
There’s an oft-quoted statistic that food travels approximately 1,500 miles from farmer to consumer in the United States. By eating seasonal and local foods, as recommended by Clean Eating, you can help reduce your carbon footprint. As the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition reported in 2003, “The major threat to future survival and to US natural resources is rapid population growth”and “the lacto-ovo vegetarian diet is more sustainable than the average American meat-based diet.
9. You’ll be stronger.
The lean protein that comprises part of the clean-eating philosophy builds lean muscle mass and boosts metabolism, found a study presented at The Obesity Society’s annual meeting in 2014. Some mighty choices for your muscles (in addition to animal-based products like chicken, fish and lean beef) include quinoa, chickpeas, nuts, spinach and seeds.
10. You’ll be happier.
Food and mood go hand in hand. And the better the food, the better your mood. If you need to brighten your day, go for berries, bananas, coffee, lean proteins, chocolate, omega-3 and turmeric fatty acids, all proven to boost your mental state.
