Yummy Chocolately Smoothie Evolution

Get me right on this one:  I STILL MADE THE COFFEE this morning...Just in case...but I have yet to drink it!

This delicious, chocolately (it's my new word) creation was my savior this morning....fomal. It has evolved a bit from the one I made yesterday into something far more luscious, playful and delightful!

Yummy Chocolately Luscious Smoothie

2 C vanilla almond milk (unsweetened...if you use the sweetened stuff, then omit below sweetener)
1 banana
2 T cacao powder
2 T chosen sweetener (agave, coconut crystals, etc..if you use stevia, sweeten to taste)
5 black mission figs
1 t vitamineral greens (optional)
1 GIANT handful of spinach (you won't taste it)

Add all ingredients to your blender and blend until smooth!  Wish for happy thoughts.  ENJOY.

All is WELL. You are LOVED.

Andrea

I DID NOT WANT TO GIVE UP MY COFFEE THIS MORNING!!!!

I admit it.   I love the smell of coffee. I love the taste of coffee. I love the jacked feeling I get from coffee.  I love that I can stay up for 5 hours after my darling baby goes to bed and get all of the work - or play - done that my giant heart desires.

There is an opinion within me, however, that wants for something more.  There is a part of me that wants to stay right where I am at.  There is something so comforting about having something 'I NEED TO HAVE'.  It is such a relief to have SOMETHING that gives me relief.  For where I'm at in life, to have no 'needs' for something that can alter my mindset - in a way that I have been used to (smoking, drinking, etc) is uncomfortable.  What am I to do when I'm irritated?  There is nothing for me to focus on, no 'geez, if I just had some coffee/a cigarette/a beer/etc, as a sense of impending 'relief'.  There is a sinking feeling inside of knowing that it is all up to me to change my thoughts, I have no crutch to do it for me.

I have happily started drinking coffee again.

This morning, my body didn't want it, but my mind did!  I needed that smell, that refreshment, that burning feeling in the pit of my empty stomach that only coffee can give.  This morning, I didn't take the bait.  I made a smoothie instead.

Now, there are delicious coffee alternatives out there, and I happened to have one in my cabinet.  My body wanted something cool and green - and chocolately (yes, I made that word up and it's a keeper).  I really didn't want to listen!  However, three days ago, I had bought some bananas and almond milk - and I just happened to find a half-full bag of cacao powder in my cabinet!  Of course, I have a variety of different sweeteners and there was about a 1/2 pound of spinach in my fridge.  AMAZING coincidence.  Do you think my body set me up without my mind knowing it?  I concur.  It was one or the other.  Regardless, upon taking my first sip, it felt like a giant hug - and I get the SAME KICK from the cacao that I do from the coffee - without the burning feeling in my belly.

Does this mean I won't be having Bailey's and Coffee with my girls tonight?  Does this mean I'm not making coconut milk white russians when they get here?  NO!  It means that, this morning, I didn't have coffee.  It is wonderful to have the awareness, and right now, I will do nothing with it but be aware. I am not sure what tomorrow morning will bring, and I will allow that decision to come tomorrow.

Here's my smoothie recipe:

1 C unsweetened vanilla almond milk
1 C water
1 ripe banana (look for brown spots on a YELLOW - not green - banana)
2 T cacao powder
2 T sweetener of your choice (if you use stevia, you will want to sweeten to taste)
1 GIANT handful of spinach (no, you won't taste it)
Place all of this in a blender and blend.  ENJOY.

All my love,
Andrea

By Request....Recipe for THA MOTHA (a pretty rawkin Asian-Style salad)

I have had a few requests for the recipe for my fave dish, "The Motha"...

I'll put up a youtube demo for it eventually, but here's a pretty good description of it:

"Tha Motha"...

It's a combination of salt n peppered cabbage underneath a mixture of greens, topped with a dollop of almond butter, a splash of apple cider vinegar and then sundried tomato infused olive oil (sundried tomatoes too). I add crunchy bean sprouts, and broccoli slaw (shredded broccoli stalks and matchstick/julienned carrots; you can usually find a bagged organic version at the store which will save you A LOT of prep time) then I'll mix all of it together by hand, making sure to get the almond butter evenly distributed. Then, I'll cut up broccoli florets and mix it again, then add a chopped avocado and lightly mix one more time.

I'll make a huge one and just take parts of it out at a time and add more cabbage and greens to it so that it lasts for a few days, sometimes longer.

It's a great salad, as it dresses itself, most of my salads do. Dressings, to me, are a friggin pain in the butt.

Haha, I like my salads like my men.

BANGIN. and self-dressed. STYLIN. and tasting as good as they smell.

TTFN cutie pies....

Andrea

Spicy Sunflower Seed and Bell Pepper Pate - Recipe

Spicy Sunflower Seed and Bell Pepper Pate
Yield: 2 cups

Ingredients
1 red bell pepper, seeded and chopped
2-3 cloves garlic
1/4 C lemon juice
1/4 C tamari, nama shoyu or bragg’s
2 C sunflower seeds (soaking optional)

Directions
First, place the red bell pepper, garlic, lemon juice and tamari in the food processor and process to as close as a liquid as possible. Then, add sunflower seeds and process until smoother than chunky peanut butter, but not as smooth as creamy peanut butter. 

This recipe is delightful in a wrap with veggies, dehydrated as croquettes, or - my favorite - plated up alongside celery for a fast and tasty treat!

Sunflower seeds are high in Vitamin E, which is well known for it's anti-inflammatory properties and also provide a significant amount of magnesium and selenium!