Cucumber Hummus

Talk about an easy peezy dish! I love hummus so much, i could eat a whole batch myself! However, I don’t always want to eat so many chickpeas. Luckily, you can easily lighten up hummus by adding cucumber in place of some of the chickpeas. Here’s my take:

1 can chickpeas

1/2-1 large cucumber peeled

2 tablespoons tahini

2 cloves crushed garlic

juice from 1 lemon

salt, pepper, and oregano

Put it all in a blender and blend. The end. That’s it!

I find that hummus made with cucumber doesn’t need the olive oil that is traditionally added. The cucumber provides enough juice to blend everything smoothly. Play with this recipe to make it your own. Some modifications could be adding sun-dried tomatoes, artichokes, or parsley. A sprinkle of cayenne could be nice as well!

I eat my hummus as the main course to a light meal. Chop up a few cups of fresh veggies and dunk away!

Bon apetit!

Namaste

Cassandra

Why I don’t wear deodorant

Mandatory Credit: Photo by Geoffrey Robinson/REX (997880z)

I can’t believe I’m publicly discussing this! Some of my friends have asked me about chemical free beauty and I think deodorant (or my lack thereof) is a great place to start. Here’s what you need to know:

1. First and most importantly let me tell you, I do not stink. My poor husband has had to do the sniff test MANY times to confirm this. I do not smell. When I first started transitioning to deodorant free there was something of a transition period, but very soon it faded away.
2. Sweating is one of the ways your body gets rid of toxins. If you are blocking up your pits with antiperspirants and deodorant how is your body suppose to do its job?
3. Most deodorants are packed with chemicals that your skin sips up through its pores. My largest concern personally is aluminum.
4. Sweating is not the cause of body odor, the bacteria on the skin is the issue. If you stink, take a shower, easy ’nuff
5. The foods you eat can effect your smell! (an article from the University of CA Berkeley told me this!). In my opinion, a clean healthy diet will result in less odor
6. Lastly, genetically, not everyone has a stench. Marketing has convinced us that it is a necessity, but it isn’t! Not wearing deodorant has been so nice. I don’t have to worry about getting it on my clothes and it is an extra couple of bucks that stays in my pocket! I made the switch five years ago and haven’t looked back!

Hopefully I haven’t scared anyone off!

Namaste

Cassandra

Commandments of Sound Sleep

Sleep is crucial for great health. While sleeping your body repairs and recharges. Even more, sleeping well makes it easier to make healthier choices the next day!

Namaste

Cassandra

Ratatouille <3

Think the movie is great? (me too!) Well, the meal is even better! I absolutely love this dish, it has got to be one of my absolute favorites. And it’s easy! Ratatouille is a French dish made up of lots of fresh veggies and herbs. The herbs really make the dish. And i’ve learned a few tricks to make it even yummier.

In my opinion, there is no exact recipe for ratatouille, but the staples of the recipe include:

eggplant

yellow squash

zucchini

tomatoes

bell peppers

onion

garlic

herbs-either herbs de provence or a blend of rosemary, basil, thyme

I took 1 medium onion and sautéed it in a blend of EVOO and butter for about a minute and then roughly 4 cloves diced garlic for another minute. I added 1 sliced green pepper next and sautéed for another minute or so until those 3 ingredients were starting to brown.

Next I added 1 HUGE zucchini that was chopped into 1/4 inch half moons, 1 medium yellow squash chopped similarly, and a large eggplant chopped into 1/2 inch cubes. I  added the seasonings-rosemary, basil, thyme, salt, pepper (save some basil for later!)- covered the pot, turned the temperature down to medium low heat and let it cook for about 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.

When all the veggies are soft (not mushy!), add about 4 diced tomatoes and let cook about 3 more minutes. My secret trick is to add some very fresh basil leaves about 1 minute before you are finished cooking. The flavor is just amazing this way!

For this particular meal I had planned on serving the ratatouille with quinoa, but because I only had a very small portion of quinoa left, I just tossed it in with the dish and mixed it all up! I garnished with parsley and VOILÀ! Fin!

My top tips for conquering this dish is to 1)use the freshest herbs available 2) use a combo of butter and oil to do the sautéing and 3) add basil at the end to keep the flavor

Namaste

Cassandra

Strawberry and Parsley Salad

This masterpiece was created when I was craving something fresh, flavorful, and a little sweet. I started with a bed of romaine and parsley-about 50/50. I topped it with about 2 tablespoons of coarsely chopped Walla Walla onions and 2 tablespoons of celery. Lastly I spread 6 yummy strawberries on top.

The dressing ingredients are shown below. I used 2 parts oil to 1 part vinegar and added italian seasonings to make it a bit more savory. Add salt to taste.

This would be perfect with some fresh bread and a glass of wine on summer night!

Enjoy!

Namaste

Cassandra

Spicy cucumber and white bean salad!

Yummmmm! My garden has produced so many cucumbers I had to start getting creative. This meal is amazing, tons of flavor, totally vegan, fat free, and very cheap to make as well! What more can a gal ask for?

2 cucumbers

1/4 c red onion

1/4 cup parsley (cilantro might be even better!)

1 can white beans

teaspoon cumin

1/2 teaspoon paprika

1/2 teaspoon cayenne

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder (fresh is better!)

juice from 1 whole lime

salt and pepper to taste

I quartered the cucumbers, diced the onions and parsley and then added all the seasonings. Toss well and let sit for a few minutes so all the flavors can soak together! You can eat this dish just like it is or spoon it over a bed of lettuce. I topped some kale with this, no dressing necessary!

The importance of breath

Ok friends, it’s time to talk about breath.
Your breath has much more control over your life than you know and it is integral part to your overall health.

Here are some breathing techniques I use in my everyday life…

3 part breathing– Ancient Yogi wisdom tells us that we are all born with a finite amount of breaths. Slow your breathing and you prolong your life. Fortunately, there’s science to back this up. Deep breathing helps manage stress- a known killer.

For this technique pretend you are a balloon filling up with three different parts. First, your belly inflates, next your ribs, and lastly your chest. Now exhale and go the opposite way. Chest deflates, ribs deflate, and lastly belly deflates. This pattern will slow your breath and make sure you fill up every nook and cranny, encouraging the release of toxins.

Alternate nostril breathing– Feeling all sinus-y and blocked up? Get things moving again with alternate nostril breathing. This one is a bit more complicated so I am going to link a video i found to do the explaining.

Alternate nostril breathing simultaneously energizes and soothes. People naturally alternate between nostrils every few hours, breathing through them both at the same time helps harmonize the left and right brain.

Holding your breathe– I do not know if this breath has an official name or not, but it’s super easy and effective. Breathe in for 6, hold the air in for as long as you can (I usually do about 6-8 seconds) and then exhale for 6. Holding the air in at the top helps the exchange of oxygen, which increases alertness. I use this one when I start to feel tired when studying. The effects do not last super long, but luckily it only takes a few seconds, so you can repeat it frequently!

I encourage everyone to try these out and watch the immediate effects they can have on the body. The process of exhaling actually slows the heartbeat, temporarily reducing the stress response.

Namaste

Cassandra

Black bean and mango salsa

Who says salsa is a side? In this meal salsa is the main event!

As usually I didn’t measure anything, but here are my best guesses!

black bean and mango salsa wraps

1/2 can black beans

2 peaches

1 tomato

1/4 cup parsley

1/4 c red onion

1 mini orange bell pepper

2 splashes apple cider vinegar

half a lime juice

salt and pepper

AND the secret weapon- hot chili powder- however much you can handle!

I put this salsa on some big kale leaves from my garden and garnished with a slice of avocado…YUM! I love making wraps with kale and other dark leafy greens. One trick is to let the leaves wilt a bit, they don’t break as easily that way and make for a cleaner meal!

Namaste

Cassandra

Skeleton Toast

I love skeleton toast! Super basic and super yummy. I make mine with elephant garlic which isn’t quite as strong as regular garlic but much larger.

toast

spread on avocado

sprinkle with oregano and salt

top with elephant garlic strips

DONE! Enjoy ❤

Namaste

Cassandra

Vegan blueberry cucumber coleslaw

Blueberries and cucumbers are in season! I was feeling creative and threw together this masterpiece!

3 cups cabbage

1 cup parsley

1/2 cucumber quartered

1/2 c blueberries

2 tablespoons pumpkin seeds

dressing- sorry i didn’t even come close to measuring this, so its a really rough estimate!

1/2 c soy free veganaise

dash of almond milk (just to thin it out)

1 tsp mustard

squeeze of lemon

splash of apple cider vinegar

salt

pepper

There really is no right way to make coleslaw. I often make coleslaw when I am trying to figure out what to do with the leftover groceries, Do why works for you with whatever ingredients you have on hand!

Namaste

Cassandra