Enjoy Your Holidays without Feeling Tired and Sick

It’s always best to cook your own Organic,  Plant-based, Gluten-free meals, especially during the holidays. That isn’t always possible with all the numerous luncheons, dinners and other social events that you are attending.

It’s really hard to know what’s actually in all the food that restaurants provide so do the best you can with these tips in mind. Eating out often leads to too much of the food that you don’t eat every day, but as more and more awareness grows and the demand for gluten-free and plant-based health-conscious foods continues, menus are changing and healthy options are becoming more of a thing of the present.

Don’t make healthy food a source of anxiety. Make a conscious effort, logical choices, then relax and enjoy your time with family and friends.

Tips

Here are a few tips to keep in your pocket that will help you survive the holidays and a few holiday suggestions for plant-based food to cook at home when you have the time to relax and enjoy with family and friends during the festive season.

1. Drink water before you eat. This will cut down your appetite when you are going out to eat.
2. If you have Gluten or other intolerances be sure to let the restaurant or your friends know before you go.
3. Eat a bit before you go.
4. Milk thistle protects the liver cells from alcohol by preventing toxins from entering them and helps to remove existing toxins.  Take two capsules before you drink and then 2 capsules for the next 5 days.
5. In Chinese medicine, kudzu is credited with reducing high blood pressure, lowering cholesterol, preventing blood clots, and relieving chronic migraines. Recent research from China and the US indicates that kudzu can reduce the craving for and effects of alcohol.
6. Before Breakfast or Brunch have a glass of hot water with lemon to get your metabolism going and clean out your liver.

Recipes for Plant-based Holiday Meals – All ingredients should be Organic whenever possible

Brunch – Olive, Walnut and Basil

Ingredients

• 2 Tablepoons Tamari soy sauce
• 1 1/2 Tablepoons Mirin rice wine
• 1 teaspoon toasted whole black peppercorns
• 1 teaspoon kudzu or arrowroot
• 2 teaspoons water
• 1 tablespoon roasted sesame oil
• 1 cup chopped carrots
• 1 cup bok choy or kale
• ½ cup pitted black olives
• 1 cup chopped zucchini
• 1/4 cup water
• sea salt to taste
• 1-2 Tablespoons fresh chopped basil
• 1/2 cup chopped walnuts
• Toast, Quinoa or Pasta

Method

1. In a small bowl, combine the water, Tamari, and Mirin. Toast and crush black peppercorns and add to mixture.
2. In a separate small bowl, stir the Kudzu or arrowroot into the water. Keep both bowls near the stove.
3. Heat wok or skillet, add the oil and quickly stir-fry the vegetables 4-5 minutes. Once the vegetables are stir-fried, push the vegetables to the sides of the wok.
4. Give the sauce a quick re-stir and pour it into the middle of the skillet or wok. Bring to a boil.
5. Mix together the kudzu and water and pour into the skillet, stirring quickly to thicken.
6. Stir to combine the vegetables with the kudzu sauce.
7. Remove the wok from the heat and stir in the sesame oil. Serve sprinkled with walnuts and basil on top of toast, quinoa or pasta or just on its own.

Optional  Serve sprinkled with shallots and sprinkle with Dulse sea vegetables for extra minerals and protein.

Brunch – Italian Tofu Frittata

Recipe

• 1 cup chopped spring onions or shallots
• 4 cloves minced garlic
• 1 cup diced zucchini
• 1 cup finely chopped capsicum
• 2 cups finely chopped bok choy
• 1 cup finely chopped tomato
• 1/4 cup stock or water
• 2 TBS red wine vinegar or mirin
• 125 gr. light tofu, drained
• 4 eggs
• 1 TBS dried Basil or 2-3 T. fresh chopped
• 1/4 tsp turmeric
• salt and white pepper to taste
• 2 T. fresh coriander

Directions

1. Prepare all the vegetables.
2. Purée tofu with eggs, basil, and turmeric until creamy and smooth (add more liquid if needed)
3. In 10-inch stainless steel pan, heat 2 TBS. water or stock
4. When broth begins to steam add onion, garlic, zucchini, bell pepper, bok-choy, and tomato and sauté for about 1 minute over medium-low heat, stirring often
5. Add 1/4 cup stock and red wine vinegar or mirin
6. Pour tofu mixture over vegetables, cover and cook over low heat until mixture is completely firm and cooked about 8-10 minutes
7. Serve with fresh chopped coriander. 

Lunch – Moroccan Tofu and Vegetable Kebabs with Sesame Summer Stir Fry

 

Skewers

• 350 Grams tofu cut into cubes
• 1 cup chopped capsicum
• 4 bamboo skewers soaked in cold water for 30 minutes

Marinade

• 180 gr. Organic Pasta sauce
• 1 teaspoon ground coriander
• 2 teaspoons ground paprika
• 2 finely chopped garlic cloves
• 1 Tablespoon lime juice
• few tablespoons water
• sea salt to taste or tamari to taste

Sauce

• ½ cup Goji berries
• 1-2 teaspoons paprika
• 1-2 T. kudzu  or arrowroot+ 1 cup water or stock

Stir Fry

• 1-2 Tablespoons toasted sesame oil
• 1 cup chopped zucchini or yellow squash
• 1 cup chopped carrot
• 1 cup chopped bok-choy
• ½ cup pitted black olives
• 1 T. flax seeds
• 2 T. black toasted* sesame seeds

Garnish

• 1-2 T. lightly toasted* sesame seeds

Method

1. Cut  tofu into cubes and thread onto soaked skewers alternating with the capsicum. Combine the marinade ingredients and soak the tofu skewers in it. Add more water or pasta sauce as needed
2.  Set aside for a few hours or overnight
3. Heat skillet, add the oil and sauté the vegetables with the olives till tender. Toss in the flax seeds and sesame seeds. Remove from heat and cover to keep warm.
4. Place the tofu and vegetable skewers into a medium-hot skillet or grill 4-5 minutes on each side.
5. For the sauce combine the ingredients together. Place in a saucepan and keep stirring until the mixture thickens adjusting liquid until the desired texture is reached. Season with Tamari soy sauce or salt.
6. Spoon over the kebabs and sprinkle with the white sesame seeds.

*To Toast sesame seeds place in a dry skillet and move around the pan with a wooden spoon until they begin to pop.

 Raspberry and Strawberry Chia Delight

 

• 1- 1/2  tbsp. agar flakes*
• 2  cups Organic Raspberry and Apple juice
• 2 cup organic blueberries, raspberries, strawberries or cherries; sliced or slightly mashed
• 1/2  cup organic coconut sugar
• 1/2 cup Organic Goji Berries (optional)
• 2 teaspoons  Organic Chia seeds
• 1/4 cup Organic desiccated coconut
• 1 tsp. vanilla

Blueberry Sauce

• 2 cups fresh or frozen Organic Blueberries
• 1/4 cup water or Organic juice
• 2 teaspoons arrowroot or kudzu powder
• 1 Tablespoons water or juice
• 2 Tablespoons Organic coconut sugar or syrup

Method

1. Place the berries and 1/4 cup water or juice in a small saucepan cook 4-5 minutes and slightly smash some of the blueberries.
2. In a small bowl stir together the arrowroot or kudzu and water and sweetener.  Stir into a saucepan with blueberries and cook till thickened.
3. Pour the agar flakes into a medium saucepan and pour the juice over the flakes.
4. Cover the pot and bring to a boil over medium-high heat without stirring.
5. Stir the mixture and reduce the heat to low. Simmer, covered for 5 minutes or until the flakes dissolve.
6. Add the fruit, sugar, chia seeds to the mixture and bring to a boil
7. Lower heat, cover and simmer the mixture 5 minutes
8. Remove from heat, add the coconut and the vanilla
9. Pour the mixture into a mold and set aside to set.
10. Spoon blueberry sauce over the set jelly

* Agar comes from seaweed that grows on the rocky areas of tidal waters of Japan, China and Sri Lanka. It is used as a thickener for soups, jelly and ice cream, a binder in puddings and custards and as an appetite suppressant that promotes weight loss.