• I love piling on the toppings!
• I love good CRUNCH!
• It takes a really long time to eat salad, and I hate when my meal disappears quickly…like with buckwheat bakes!
• Full of nutrients!
• When proper protein + fats are added, they are extremely satiating.
• EASY to make when one has no kitchen.

I’m about to show you a salad that I’ve made, 3 days in a row.  Each varies slightly with the cooking method.  Here we go!

We can all agree that roasting veggies, is one of the most delicious way to get in our daily dose.  Grilling veggies, might just be better.  Since I have no oven, I turned the grill on med-high [400*] and started to prep a bowl of toppings.

• org. chickpeas [previously cooked, frozen + thawed]
• shrooms
• frozen org. peppers
• org. cherry tomatoes
• local org. large carrot
• 3 garlic cloves
• generous amount of salt + peppa’
• 1 heaping Tbl of parsley + oregano
• 2T olive oil [or coconut oil]

I threw these on a foil lined baking sheet and put right on the grill.  If your pan can go in the oven, it can go on the grill!  I covered it in foil so there was less mess to clean.

While that baked/grilled away, I got busy cooking buckwheat.

• In a TALL bowl, heat 1/3c raw buckwheat groats with 2/3c water, at 20% power for about 8-10min.  Stop and stir every 2 minutes.  If you don’t use a tall bowl, the water will boil over. Trust me! The buckwheat should cook and be left in a very chewy, crunchy state that is quite delicious!!

After about 30min the veggies will be done on the grill.  Make sure to toss them around once or twice.  The grill-baked chickpeas were fantastic!

Assemble the hot veggies on a bed of lettuce.

Top with:

• cooked buckwheat
• balsamic vinegar
• apple cider vinegar
• more s+p if desired and/or nutritional yeast
• avocado/nuts/seeds/etc would be great too!

The 2nd way [actually my first trial] I made this salad, was by throwing all of the same veggies in a foil pack.  No baking sheet necessary!

• Preheat your grill to med-high, 400*.  You want to double up foil and make sure it’s long enough to make a secure foil pack.  Mix the veggies, spices + oil in a bowl and then add to the foil.  Wrap tightly and throw on the grill for about 30min.  Flip over once, half-way through.

This version, results in a more steamed veggie taste + texture.  It was also delicious, but I preferred the grill-baked method.

I topped this salad with cooked buckwheat, feta cheese, + balsamic.

The third, and easiest way to enjoy this salad, is RAW.

I used the same veggies as the above salads, and kept the chickpeas cold from the fridge.  I added cucumber + sunflower seeds to this salad as well.

As if the veggies weren’t piled high enough…

I added more carrot, cucumber, and 1/2 of a large avocado.

This salad bowl is HUGE.  9” wide!  It’s my favorite and just happens to be on clearance at Crate + Barrel outlet.

To top this salad off, I added…

• 1-2T nutritional yeast
• 1T hemp oil [my FAV for salads]
• balsamic vin [Grand Reserve 4% acidity – best everrrr]
• apple cider vin
• s+p

So what was my favorite way to consume this delicious bowl?  I’m torn between option 1 + option 2.  I guess it depends on the day!  The grilled version was perfect yesterday, but the raw version was just what I was looking for today!  Which version looks most up your alley?

I’m currently spending my life savings at the laundromat.  Seriously, how do 2 people go through SO much laundry in 1.5 weeks.  The black bag is STUFFED.  I wear a lot of my clothes more than once and we use our bath towels multiple times as well.  This is insane!

Good thing we finished building our dresser!!

The look of a happy dog.  This is about as happy-looking as she gets!

Even though the kitchen is still in the works, and our 3rd bedroom is out of commission, things are feeling homey.  Boxes are being emptied, clothes are put away, and somehow I’m still cooking!

This was the scene of last night’s dinner.  I can’t fit my light box on this table, while it’s being used as a counter, but I am using my light box lights to help brighten things up!  I have both of them pointed away from the food, for indirect light. 

I even broke out my Vita-mix tonight.  Dinner plans were for taco salads, and I just had to make my nacho cheeze sauce.  I eat this stuff by the spoonful, and you would too.  Trust me!

[Indirectly lit, with daylight light bulbs.]

We both enjoyed salad beasts for dinner.  We typically eat kale chips or a salad with every dinner, but typically it’s not the whole meal.  This was filled with protein, healthy fats, had a great bold flavor, and a creamy + crunchy texture.  Everything I am always looking for!

Chris couldn’t even finish his, so I stepped in to help him out.

What all is in this beast of a bowl?

Taco Salad Night [serves 1]

• 1 serving organic blue corn tortilla chips
• 1/2 avocado
• ~5c loosely packed spinach
• 2/3c black beans [cooked, frozen, + thawed]
• 1/4c organic chipotle salsa
• ~1/4c nacho cheeze sauce [packed with nutrition!]

1. Make cheeze sauce.  [heat if desired]
2. Heat any or all components of the salad.  I hated the black beans and cheese sauce but kept everything else cold. 
3. Add toppings + scarf!

*Feel free to add other things like fresh chopped peppers, onions, jalapeno, tomatoes, tempeh, tofu, quinoa, millet, etc.

The sauce took about 5min to throw together and the rest of the salad about 3-5min.  Dinner in under 10min?  How can you beat that?

Vegan, gluten-free, dairy free goodness.  Husband approved!

Ashley

During my detox, one thing I found out, was that dairy doesn’t seem to bother my digestion at all.  I occasionally buy local cow’s dairy, but haven’t in quite some time.  However, I’m thinking this might be one option to try for adding more protein to my morning routine.  The milk comes from Morning Fresh Dairy, and is free of hormones, antibiotics, etc.  The milk is organic as well, but doesn’t have the official label yet.  It takes a full 7 years to become certified organic, for this type of product, and they are 3 years into the process.  The only negative point I can find about the milk is that the cow’s are fed a partial corn diet.  Ideally, I would love if the cows were fully grass-fed.  This is the same dairy that supplies the yogurt I have raved about, Noosa.  Yumm.

So my new plan is to try using 2% milk in my breakfasts and see if that helps curb my hunger.  My next test will be using almond milk with a scoop of protein powder. 

Chocolate Cherry Overnight Oats

• 2T rolled oats
• 2T raw buckwheat flour [ground in a blender from raw buckwheat groats]
• 2T raw buckwheat groats
• 3/4c 2% milk
• 2T chia seeds
• 1t cinnamon
• 1.5T unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1/2T raw honey
• 3/4c frozen cherries

1. In a plastic container combine all ingredients and whisk until combined.
2. Cover and refrigerate overnight.
3. Stir in the morning and add more liquid if necessary.
4. Eat cold or heat in the microwave.  I enjoy mine cold!

*You can sub ground flax meal for chia seeds.

*You can sub any nut/seed-milk instead of 2% cow’s milk.

So how did this bowl compare to Monday’s breakfast?  I felt hunger creeping up about 2-3hrs later again, but instead of grabbing a snack, I chugged some h2o instead.  I always try to do this when I feel hungry, because a lot of times the feeling of hunger can mean you need more water! 

Well, the water worked, and this held me over for a good 5hrs, as it should have.  This bowl is over 600 calories of creamy deliciousness!  I love the addition of buckwheat groats, as they add a nice crunch. 

I also go back and forth between eating 3 larger meals with 2 small snacks, as opposed to 6 medium sized meals in a 24hr period.  Right now, I’m on the 3 larger meal track.  I sometimes find with the 6 medium meal plan, that I’m just slightly hungry all of the time.  Such a process figuring out what works the best.  I definitely haven’t mastered it yet!

Despite what I just said, I made a medium sized meal for lunch.

It started with dinosaur kale [aka - lacinato] and was inspired by Mama Pea!

I have been dying to try this recipe since she posted it a few weeks ago.  I just replenished my kale + nutritional yeast stock, so it was time to check it out.  I don’t know why, but I never make raw kale salads.  That is definitely going to change, as I couldn’t get enough of this salad.

This was also the perfect salad to make while having no oven.  No cooking involved!

All of the spices + oils were whisked together.

And then mixed into the kale.  I loved that every piece had a nice thick coating of the dressing.

If you want, you can also mix in other veggies.  I used cucumbers, carrots + mushrooms. 

DEE-vine!  I seriously love salads.  I have no problem whatsoever getting in enough greens.  I don’t eat them because I think I should.  I eat them because they are freaking delicious when properly made. 

Topped with sunflower seeds for healthy fats + protein!

Creamy Smoked Kale Salad [serves 1 full salad or 2 side salads] adapted from Mama Pea

• 1/2 head dinosaur/lacinato kale ~4c chopped
• 1/2T hemp oil [flax oil/almond oil/olive oil]
• 1t creamy peanut butter
• 1T water
• 1T apple cider vinegar
• 1T + 1t nutritional yeast
• 1/2 rounded teaspoon smoked paprika
• 1 large garlic clove, minced ~2-3t
• 1/8t fine grain sea salt
• ground black pepper
• sprinkle cayenne pepper
• 2T sunflower seeds

1. Wash kale thoroughly and pat dry.
2. Tear from stems and chop or rip into small pieces and put in a large bowl.
3. In a small bowl add hemp oil, peanut butter, water, apple cider vinegar, nutritional yeast, smoked paprika, garlic, salt, and pepper.
4. Whisk until well combined and pour onto kale.
5. Mix with a fork or your hands until very well coated. 

*Sub lemon juice for apple cider vinegar if needed.

*Sub flax/almond/olive/etc. oil for hemp oil if desired.

*If you can’t find smoked paprika but still want a smokey flavor, try a mild chipotle seasoning. 

*If you aren’t digging the raw kale taste, you can always bake these at 325* on a pan for about 25-30min, turning a few times until toasty, to end up with delicious smoky kale chips.

Check out these nutrition facts!!!  I entered the ingredients in using caloriecount.com.  I wanted to see how much protein this salad had and was blown away by the final count.  Check out the iron, calcium + Vit A and C as well!!  And, holy fiber!  Seriously impressive!

[nutrition facts include 2T sunflower seeds, 4c kale + dressing but does not include extra veggies mixed in]

I can’t even describe how delicious this salad was.  The dressing was creamy and extremely flavorful.  The kale was crunchy and fresh, and much easier to chew than curly kale.  This salad was also gigantic!  If you want to make this a full meal, try adding cooked + cubed sweet potato or red potatoes, tempeh, or chickpeas to the mix.

I ate this salad solo and held off on the rest of lunch.  I wanted to eat part of lunch [cottage cheese + pineapple] a little later because I was planning an early evening gym session and didn’t want to feel famished while working out.  It worked!

New obsession right here!!!

And in true Pea fashion, my lunch ended with a pickle.

I have a new breakfast idea for the morning that I can’t wait to try!!  Tonight’s dinner was pretty stellar as well.  More on that tomorrow!  So far Monday-Wednesday we’ve eaten every breakfast-lunch-dinner in house.  Chris’s breakfast + lunches have even been packed for work.  Pretty good for no real kitchen!

Man was this a chatty post!

Catch you tomorrow

Ashley

I thought to mix in some blueberries, so it wouldn’t be quite so plain tasting.  It worked!  This bowl was awesome.

With some vanilla cinnamon tea brewed on the side.

In the mix:

• 1/3c steel cut oats
• 1T ground flax
• 3/4c water
• 3/4c unsweetened almond milk
• 1/2 banana
• 1t cinnamon
• splash vanilla
• topped with: raw almond butter + coconut butter 

Not much happened between breakfast and lunch.  It was a nice relaxing morning on the couch doing some computer work. 

I felt like winging it for lunch, which worked out really well!

In the bowl:

• 3c raw spinach
• 2 farm fresh eggs
• 1/3c avocado
• pepitas
• 3/4c millet
• cashew nacho cheeze sauce
• sprinkle of salt
• black pepper

The 2nd egg is hiding under the millet.    I loved every bite of this!!  A perfect mix of flavors + textures.  This was an awesome 1 bowl meal.

Didn’t get the best photos of dinner with the light box, but I had to talk about this meal.  I came up with a vegan lemony cream sauce that turned out way better than expected!!  It was bursting with flavor and great mixed with brown rice pasta + tons of veggies.

Herbed Lemon Cream Sauce [makes about 2c]

• 2c unsweetened almond milk
• 1/3c chopped shallot
• 1 chopped garlic clove
• zest + juice of 2 lemons
• 2T nutritional yeast
• 1/2c raw cashew pieces
• 1T arrowroot starch
• 1T olive oil
• 1/4-1/2t salt
• black pepper
• 2t oregano
• 2t basil

1. In a small pan, over med-low heat, heat 1T olive oil.
2. Add chopped shallot to the pan and stir frequently for 2-3min. 
3. Add garlic, oregano + basil, stir 1 more minute.  Set aside.
4. In a medium size pot, whisk arrowroot starch into almond milk, until no lumps are left.
5. Bring to a boil, stirring frequently, then reduce heat to simmer.
6. Simmer, stirring frequently, for 5-7min until slightly thickened.
7. While simmering, in a blender or food processor, blend cashews + nutritional yeast until powdery.
8. Add in shallot/herb mixture and milk mixture after it’s finished cooking.
9. Blend, starting on low and moving higher, until smooth.
10. Add the mixture back to the pot and heat over low to med-low until thickened. [~10min, but can keep on low for longer while pasta and/or veggies are cooking]
11. Stir frequently to avoid lumps.

*While the sauce is thickening you can boil water for pasta and steamed veggies.  Steam veggies until just tender and follow pasta package directions for cook time.  Drain pasta, add back to the pot.  Mix in veggies and desired amount of sauce to coat.

I added 1c frozen organic lima beans [full of fiber + protein!], 3/4c organic frozen broccoli florets + 3c organic fresh spinach.  The frozen brocc + lima beans steamed perfectly.  I saved a lot of money buying frozen organic broccoli then fresh and for this meal, you couldn’t tell the difference.  I also toasted pepitas for a little crunch!

We both really enjoyed the lemony cream sauce.  The only thing that was just “okay” was the brown rice pasta.  It tasted great, but became quite gummy.  We used Lundberg Organic Spaghetti, which was the same brand that we used the other night.  However, we both liked the penne pasta much more.  It didn’t stick together nearly as much. 

Detox Day 7 – overview

• 1 week? Really!? 
• Today I felt great.  Nothing interesting to report really.  No crazy cravings or mood swings.  
• I walked the dogs for a little over an hour and then did 20min of yogadownload. 

Pretty boring, no?

Originally, my plan was to take out gluten/dairy/soy/caffeine/alcohol + greatly reduce sugar/sodium for 1 full week.  I ended up taking those foods out, reducing my sodium to under 1/4t total per day, and not eating any sugar [except fruit].  My stomach has been much better, but I still have a ways to go.  As I’ve read and heard from others, to really figure out which foods are bothering you, it’s best to take them out for at least 3 weeks, before reintroducing them back into your diet.  I want to try at least another full week with no gluten, dairy, and soy. 

I’m excited to keep up with this, to hopefully find a real answer in a few weeks.  I’m in no way planning on keeping these things out of my diet for the long term, unless I find one that is causing me problems.  I’m going to keep the salt to the under 1/4t a day for the time being.  I think that’s helped me feel better as well, because I’m not retaining as much water.  I’m keeping sugar out of my diet a bit longer too, until my cravings aren’t as intense.  Once that happens, I’ll bring honey, brown rice syrup, and maple syrup back in, in very small amounts.  As far as coffee + alcohol go, I’m holding off for 1 more week.

Will keep you posted of course!

Early wake up call…off to pack for mountain day breakfast + lunch and then get to bed! 

Ashley

—

pre-toxing

detox day 1 – part 1, part 2

detox day 2 – part 1, part 2

detox day 3 – part 1, part 2 [dry brushing + swimming]

detox day 4 – getting creative

detox day 5 – juiced!

detox day 6 – balls save the day