HookedOnPlants

When getting hooked is a good thing

Appetizers

Unicorn Hummus

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This colour though.

I mean, common.

It doesn’t even look natural. But yet, it’s straight outta the garden … as natural and organic as it gets.

Because it looks sooo majestic, it must be some type of rare unicorn hummus.

Plus, the secret ingredient in here is the first ever beet I’ve grown myself, and it’s got to be the brightest beet I’ve ever seen.

It must be a unicorn beet.

This recipe is incredibly easy to whip up.

It’s a super bright, fun party dish too. Perfect for a hot summer shindig.

If you can find yourself a local, bright, organic beet (AKA unicorn beet), get your hands on it for this recipe.

Also, if you’re green thumb enough to grow your own basil, do that too. I’ve used my own garden basil in this recipe, but it’s a rare occasion that I actually have enough leaves for a full batch of hummus. Not the easiest thing to grow, right? !

But, this recipe on the other hand, is easy as blend, pour, dip, done.

Benefits:

  • Beets are known for the benefits they give your blood. Just like a walnut looks like a brain and is great for your brain, beets are blood red, and are great for your blood. How amazing is nature?  They are super rich in nitrates, which is then converted by the body into nitric oxide. This is a compound that dilates and relaxes your blood vessels, and turns them into superhighways for your nutrient-rich and oxygen-rich blood. This leads to better circulation, lower blood pressure, better athletic performance, and more oxygen to the brain. Plus, eating them raw keeps the mega amount of nutrients, vitamins and minerals in tact. The antioxidant betalain in the beet is immune boosting and anti-inflammatory to ward off disease.
  • Chickpeas are an incredible source of plant protein for proper healing and repair throughout your body. They’re also packed with fibre to help with inflammation, digestive issues, heart health and bloating. Plus, they have concentrated minerals to help your bone health and prevent osteoporosis.
  • Miso, as a fermented food, benefits your gut flora. When you have healthy gut flora, you are a healthy human. Simple as that.

Unicorn Beet Hummus

Time: 5 minutes

Serves: 4-6 snackers

Ingredients:

  • 2-3 beets, grated (use food processor attachment if you have one!)
  • 1 can chickpeas (425g), drained
  • 1 tbsp tahini
  • 1 tbsp miso
  • 1 tbsp apple cider vinegar
  • 1 garlic clove
  • 1 tsp onion powder
  • 1/4 cup nutritional yeast
  • handful fresh basil leaves

Directions:

  1. Add all ingredients to food processor and blend!
  2. Scrape down sides when needed, and blend until smooth
  3. Serve with your favourite crackers, sweet potato chips, or veggies.

The Perfect Smoothie Bowl

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The secret to the perfect smoothie bowl?

 

Creativity, nutrient-dense ingredients, experimentation and love.

Simple right?

I make smoothie bowls for breakfast, lunch, even dinner sometimes on those lazy but clean-feelin’ days. What could be easier?

Why eat your smoothie with a spoon???

Smoothies are amazing, but usually they slide down the hatch too fast.

The digestion process for carbohydrates (which include fruits and vegetables) starts in your mouth. The process of chewing creates saliva with the necessary digestive enzyme, amylase to begin the breakdown process of carbohydrates. So, the more you chew your food, the more surface area it creates, and the more easily digested and assimilated your nutrients are. This is why it is extremely important to slow down, chew as much as possible, and breathe between your bites. Good digestion leads to weight loss, efficient nutrient absorption, more energy, less bloating, and the prevention of disease. YAY for all of that.

So, it’s great to create smoothie bowls, rather than downing a smoothie, because this forces you to slow down your consumption, and actually chew your smoothie one spoonful at a time! Plus, it’s even more satisfying to have that spoon to mouth action.

If you just don’t have the time to create and devour a bowl of smoothie goodness, then just take it in a to-go cup and remember to chew it before you gulp it.

Go for it and switch up the ingredients for a variety of nutrients, vitamins, and minerals.

Just stick to these proportions and you’ll have the best bang for your nutrient buck, plus a delish smoothie bowl every time!

Why are smoothies SO AMAZING?

  1. They’re the easiest way to hide a salad-worth of greens on yourself.
  2. They are pretty much a delicious tasting, massive multivitamin.
  3. They still contain the fibre and water from the whole-food ingredients they’re made of.

TIPS:

  1. Pack your blender with as many greens as possible (for the easiest blending, put these in first, so they are pressed down with the other ingredients).
  2. Use the fruit as a way to mask any bitterness of the greens.
  3. If you’re on the run and need to make it into a smoothie – just fill the blender up 3/4 of the way with water, pour it into your to-go cup, and add in something like cacao nibs, seeds, buckwheat groats, to chew on. This is a great way to get in the habit of chewing your smoothies.

 

Proportions for a nutrient-dense, tasty smoothie bowl:

  • Packed greens = 3/4 of the blender  (spinach, kale, romaine, celery, cucumber)
  • 2 ripe frozen bananas (add a couple more if you want a soft ice cream consistency, or need more sweetness and calories)
  • 1-2 cups of berries
  • Water or plant-based milk = 1/8 of the blender
  • 1 tbsp of your favourite greens powder (optional)

Use your blender’s tamper while you blend it up to help move things along and become smooth.

Optional 1 tbsp add-ins to blend:

~ Ginger: immune-booster and antibacterial (about 1 cm thumb fresh, or 1 tsp powder)

~ Turmeric: nature’s best anti-inflammatory (about 1 cm thumb fresh or 1 tsp powder)

~ Molasses: for hair, nails, bones and iron levels (about 1 tbsp)

~ Adaptogenic herbs like maca, astragalus, ashwaganda, shisandra, rhodiola: all of these restore your body by bringing it back to homeostasis/balance after stress (about 1 tbsp)

~ Medicinal mushroom powders: high in antioxidants and healing properties (about 1 – 2 tsp)

~ Spirulina and/or Chlorella: micro algae packed with protein, anti-inflammatory and detoxifying properties (about 1 tsp)

~ Lucuma powder: maple-tasting and packed with minerals and vitamin A (about 1-2 tbsp)

TOP IT OFF

aka

‘make it pretty’:

-Hemp seeds

-Shredded coconut

-Chia seeds

-Pumpkin seeds

-Chopped fruit (banana, pear, persimmon, kiwi, fresh figs….)

-Chopped nuts (brazil nut for selenium is my fave)

-Cacao nibs (for a serotonin and antioxidant-boost)

-Buckwheat groats (for a protein punch and some crunch)

-Rolled oats

–Jules Fuel (my pre-made superfood quinoa breakfast oatmeal)

 

Happy smoothie chewing!

Green Machine Curried Zucchini Hummus

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Hummus.

What does hummus mean to you?

… dipping deliciousness. Not just a tiny bowl of deliciousness, but a massive one. There’s something about dipping your food into yumminess that never gets old.

Sometimes your usual chickpea hummus feels too heavy to dip endlessly. That’s why I love this version of hummus.

It’s lighter, greener, and even more dip-able.

It even goes beyond dipping. Use this for pasta or glory bowl sauce, or bring that sandwich to the next level.

This recipe is inspired by the raw food certification I recently finished, taught by Joanne from The Healing Cuisine at Stay Wild Natural Health. 

What an awesome course! We learned about all the raw food goodness.

Fermentation, nut cheeses, raw crackers, dips, sauces, desserts… OH MY.

Eating your food raw means you’re keeping all of the raw enzymes and vital nutrients live and more easily available. Cooking over 118 degrees degrades the nutrient density of most foods. So, the more raw food you can get into your body, the happier your digestion, your immunity, your hormones, & your whole body will be.

Here’s to high vibrating foods.

Benefits:

~ Zucchini, it’s got potassium for your heart, fibre & water & minimal calories for weight loss, vitamin C for your immune system, and vitamin A for your eyes.

~ Sesame seeds are packed with antioxidant, zinc, and calcium which are great for bone health. The calcium also helps combat migraines and PMS symptoms.

~ Curry powder  is great for the prevention of cancer,  heart disease, and Alzheimer’s disease. Plus it eases pain and inflammation, enhances your immunity, and boosts bone health.

Serves: 4-6

Time: 10 minutes

Ingredients:

  • 2 large zucchinis (about 2.5 cups), chopped
  • 3/4 cup sesame seeds
  • juice of 1/2 lemon
  • 2 garlic cloves, minced (or pressed with garlic press)
  • 1 tbsp curry powder
  • 1/2 cup nutritional yeast
  • 1 tbsp maple syrup

Directions:

  1. Blend sesame seeds, nutritional yeast and curry powder into a flour texture
  2. Add the rest of the ingredients, and blend until smooth (scraping down the sides and using a tamper when needed)
  3. Serve with your favourite raw veggies and crackers.

Vegan Turmeric Cheese Log

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This was a hit as an appy at the last dinner party!

Especially with Eve’s Crackers on the side.

The vegans were all over it, and the surprised words ‘it tastes like cheese’ were heard over and over again from the non-vegans.

Success!

The beauty Holly (who has done some amazing work with Peta over the years) loved it, plus, I was finally able to put the neglected cheese knife to great use.

This version of nut cheese making is the quickest and easiest you will find.

There are longer versions of how to make nut cheeses, some as long as one week of fermenting!

Fermenting the nuts for the cheese will give it more of a tangy, aged cheese taste, but when you’ve got a day to figure out what to bring to impress your pals, this is a great go-to recipe to curb those cheese cravings.

I’d still start it the day before you will be serving it up, just so you get all the soaking time possible.

Just soak and strain the cashews, blend the ingredients, strain in a cheese cloth, let it chill in the fridge & roll shape it up.

The turmeric in this mixture tricks you into believing you’re eating the orange cheddar you used to indulge in.

Get creative with the herbs that make the outer layer. What fresh herbs are hiding in that fridge of yours? Use them!


This is one of the many recipes up on Instagram for the 2nd #VancityVirtualPotluck organized by Piquant Marketing!

Check out my Instagram (@hookedonplants) to see the dishes before and after this yummy cheese (over 80 total)!

Benefits:

–Cashews are packed with minerals and antioxidants. Because of the magnesium and calcium, your nerves and bones will thank you. The copper in these babies will ward of colon cancer and help keep your hair vibrant!

–Turmeric is nature’s anti-inflammatory. All disease starts with inflammation within the body, so warding off inflammation is the key to longevity and health! Eating turmeric with a tiny bit of pepper makes curcumin (the active ingredient in turmeric) WAY more easily absorbable for your body,

–Nutritional yeast (NOOCH) is a vegan’s best friend when it comes to anything cheezy. Plus it’s packed with B12, all vegans and non-vegans need more of this! B12 is found in microbes in the soil (which is eaten by animals, then humans eat the animals), but the soil is becoming depleted of nutrients and vitamins, so the best way to ensure you’re receiving all the B12 you need is to eat fortified B12 foods (like some plant-based milks), eat nutritional yeast every day, or be safe and take a B12 supplement. But, ‘Nooch’ is the most delicious way to get your B12.

Vegan Turmeric Cheese Log

Serves: 6-8

Time: Actually ‘doing stuff’ time: 10 minutes. Soak and chill time: 7-24 hrs

Ingredients:

Cheeze:

  • 1 cup raw cashews, soaked overnight, then strained and rinsed (OR if you’re in a hurry, pour boiling water over your raw cashews and let soak for 1.5 hours)
  • 1/4 cup nutritional yeast
  • 3 cloves garlic
  • 1/8 tsp salt
  • 1/8 tsp pepper
  • 1/2 tsp turmeric powder
  • zest of half lemon (zest before cutting and sweezing the lemon)
  • juice of 1 lemon

Outer herbs:

  • 2 tbsp fresh thyme, minced
  • 2 tbsp fresh chives, minced

Directions:

  1. Blend all ‘cheeze’ ingredients together until smooth and creamy in your food processor (scrape down sides)
  2. Place mixture into two layers of cheesecloth or a nut milk bag and squeeze into desired shape (you can re-shape after too). Tighten by twisting the mesh cloth.
  3. Leave your ‘cheeze’ in the fridge over a colander (some liquid may drip out) for at least 6 hours (the longer the better!)
  4. Take it out of the cheese cloth and roll it into a log, then coat it with thyme and chives (a bit messy but helps the log keep it’s shape!)
  5. Serve with your favourite crackers, chips, or veggies! I’ve used my friend Eve’s Crackers here!

Roasted Sweet Potato Red Pepper Baba Ganoush & Eve’s Crackers

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Warm and smooth with a kick of flava flave!

I wanted to share a recipe with my friend’s crackers, because honestly, anything goes well with Eve’s Crackers. 

Her crackers are vegan, gluten-free, with no added oil, sugar-free and delish!

She’s just starting out as a foodie-preneur, which I can relate to with my breakfast cereal, Jules Fuel. So happy for her!

She makes them by hand in Whistler, with love. You must try them 🙂

I mean, come on, look at these beauties.

And…this dip.

All the veggies with some spice.

Don’t get me wrong, I love hummus, but sometimes I want an all-veggie dip that has the same texture and satisfaction as your typical hummus. It gets you even more fab nutrients.

We’re sticking with the oil-free, sugar free theme with this dip.

All you have to do is:

Chop

Roast

Blend

Benefits:

  • Eve’s Crackers – a way to indulge in your cracker addiction without any hidden trans-fats, refined sugars, gluten, or oils. They’re held together with flax and chia, so they pack a nutrient-dense punch! Fibre, plant-protein, and omega 3s… hello.
  • Eggplant – are good for your heart because they’re packed with fiber, potassium, vitamin C, vitamin B6, and phytonutrients). Plus, they help lower bad (LDL) cholesterol by having chlorogenic acid, one of the most powerful free radical scavengers found in plants. It also works as an antimicrobial, antiviral, and anti-carcinogenic agent!
  • Red Pepper – these guys are packed with vitamin C, vitamin E, antioxidants, fibre. Yet, they’re low in calories. Perfect for shedding the pounds, warding off disease (cell protection from free radicals), and your immune system!
  • Sweet potatoes – I’ve talked about these magic spuds so much already because I use them all the time! Head over to this recipe to see the benefits, or this one.

Roasted Sweet Potato Red Pepper Baba Ganoush

& Eve’s Crackers

Serves: 4-8

Time: 45 minutes

Ingredients:

  • 1 package of Eve’s Crackers or crackers of choice
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1/3 cup red onion, quartered
  • 1 red pepper, cored and quartered
  • 1 eggplant, chopped into 1 inch cubes (stem discarded)
  • 2 sweet potatoes, chopped into 1 inch cubes
  • 1 tbsp sambal olek
  • 1 tbsp tamari
  • 1/4 cup nutritional yeast

Directions:

  1. Pre-heat oven to 400 F
  2. Roast veggies: spread sweet potato, eggplant, pepper and onion on parchment covered baking sheet, roast for 30-40 minutes (until potatoes are soft)
  3. Let veggies cool for 5 minutes
  4. Blend roasted veggies, garlic, sambal oelek, tamari and nutritional yeast in your food processor or blender
  5. Scoop it into a bowl and serve along side the deliciousness of Eve’s Cracker’s and raw veggies of your choice!