THE Glowing Green Smoothie by Kimberly Snyder

Hey Guys!

Many of you know about my daily morning breakfast ritual... Well, for those who do know me, I kinda MADE you aware, because I couldn't stop talking about Kimberly Snyder & her life-changing Glowing Green Smoohtie (GGS)!

The GGS has become part of my life & I absolutely LOVE the philosophy behind the Beauty Detox Solution!

Kimberly is a Raw/Vegan Clinical Nutritionist to the stars (Channing Tatum & Jenna Dewan-Tatum, Drew Barrymore, Hilary Duff, Fergie & Josh Duhamel just to name a few!) She is also a Yoga Guru who has extensively travelled the world over 3 years, starting in Sydney and going from Nepal to Peru & everywhere in between! After observing many different beauty habits in cultures from all over the world & many interesting diets, Kimberly got a thirst for natural health & beauty infomation and decided to study nutrition once she got back to America.

She shares insight into many accepted ways of eating in the Western world & how bad it actually can be for the body, our energy & skin. The Beauty Detox Solution is based on making the body more alkaline, proper food combining & eating as much fresh, raw fruit & veg as you want! It allows for ongoing cleansing which leads to "More Energy" which ultimately leads to "More Beauty". She doesn't believe in the "fad" quick detoxes but thinks cleansing should be happening on an ongoing basis.

 Her signature drink has honestly changed my life - it did everything it said it would! I have more energy, clearer, glowing skin, lost the last 4 kgs I wanted to shed (and kept them off) while feeling cleansed on a daily basis! If I miss my serve of GGS for some unforseeable reason, I just don't feel the same - sluggish, tired & toxic :(

 I have tweaked it a little to my liking, so here is my version of the GGS...

Ingredients

1 1/2 C Filtered Water

Juice of 1 Lemon

1 whole Cos Lettuce

1 Bunch English Spinach

1 Bunch Kale or other dark leafy green

4 Celery Sticks

1 Pear (cored)

1 Apple (cored)

1 Peach (if in season)

2 Bananas

3 Sprigs of Parsley

Directions

* This is done in the Vitamix (please see info below)

1. Place water & lemon juice in first, add lettuce, blend 10-20 secs (push down with tamper)

2. Add spinach & kale, blend 10-20 secs (push down with tamper)

3. Add the rest of the ingrediants, blend for 30-40 secs

That is it! This makes 4 servings. I pour them evenly into 4 Tupperware cups. You can freeze a few serves so that you are never without!!

By having a nutrient & mineral rich pre-digested breakfast, it allows our bodies to use energy in other ways (instead of trying to digest a heavy or sugary breakfast) while getting maximum absorption of all the goodies that raw fruits & vegies can provide us!

I try to use as much organic produce possible - if I can't get the organic ingrediants, I make sure I thoroughly wash with a good natural fruit & veg wash.

Unfortunatly, the GGS wont be as nice in a normal blender... I invested in a Vitamix and it was well worth the $$$$. The Vitamix allows you to add unpeeled fruit. It blends to a smooth consistency & you don't even have to blend for a minute. The powerful motor allows maximum flavour with maximum nutrients. Greens are better blended for pre-digestion to allow better absorption of nutrients.

You can make so many delicious smoothies in the Vitamix, even soups, ice-cream & dips! I couldn't live without it!!

Please check out Kim's amazing website

http://www.kimberlysnyder.net/

She is truly an inspiration!!

Easter Sunday Brunch - Creamy Baked Eggs w/ Truffle Oil

Hey Guys,

What a beautiful start to Easter Sunday - mine & my best friend's boy, got up early this morning to go fishing & try their luck with the crab nets! I got up later to get everything ready for our Easter Sunday Brunch. Perth has put on the most beautiful weather! It is sunny with a slight coastal breeze... I LOVE April weather!

So while Chris is cleaning the little boat out, I thought I'd share my delicious

Creamy Egg & Truffle Oil recipe....

Left the eggs in for a few minutes too long, so didn't come out as runny as I wanted :(

Creamy Egg's & Truffle Oil

Ingrediants

 Fresh Organic/Free-range Eggs (2 per person)

Full Fat Cream

Good Quality Sea Salt

Truffle Infused Olive Oil

Toasted Turkish Bread (drizzle with EVOO & bake w/eggs)

Asparagus Spears (blanched)

Directions

1. Pre-heat oven on 200 Deg. Celcius

2. Crack 2 eggs into a ramekin (souffle dish) & sprinkle Salt

4. Pour desired amount of cream on top

5. Drizzle desired amount of truffle oil through cream

6. Place ramekin's into a baking dish (lasagne tray is suitable)

7. Pour boiling water into dish so that it comes 1/2 way up the ramekin edge

8. Place dish in oven and bake 3-4 mins per serve (4 serves = 12 mins)

9. Dip crisp Turkish Bread or Asparagus Spears into creamy egg & ENJOY!

This is such an indulgent but super easy Brunch idea...

Serve along side some warm croissants & fresh seasonal fruit & of course, orange juice & champagne!

The boys caught a couple of crabs & some fish, so they cooked them up too!

I also wanted to say Thank-You to my beautiful friend Hannah for my birthday pressie - she knows me too well (beige, white & blue - you can't go wrong!) xx

About to enjoy a selection of cheeses w/ Hubby now in the glorious sun.

HAPPY EASTER xxx



Raw Chocolate Truffles

Hey Guys,

With Easter just around the corner, the shops have slashed the prices on all the Chocolate eggs & bunnies. I indulged in a Gold Lindt Bunny the other day... It was 25% off!!! So at the time, I felt less guilty ; )

 Easter is a time of pure indulgence - we are made to feel good about stuffing our faces with sugar & fat only to be left in chocolate remorse after the long weekend!

I am a self-confessed "Chocoholic" & will have some nearly every day! However, I have always been aware of ethical Fair-Trade chocolate but never really looked too much into it until now. It is not just about a "gimmiky" name, but about 4 Global issues that I want to be conscious of when selecting my chocolate:

1. Communities

2. Economies

3. Environmental Impact

4. Slavery & Child Trafficking

So, in the spirit of Easter, here is a decadent 

Dairy-Free, Raw Chocolate Truffle

recipe that uses ingrediants that are fair-trade & Australian Certified Organic!

Ingrediants:

1/2 C CACAO Gold

1/2 C eco Coconut Oil

1/2 C Loving Earth Agave Syrup

1 C eco Shredded Coconut

1 1/2 C Almond Meal (Processed in food processor w/ organic almonds of your choice)

Directions:

1. Mix ingrediants together until combined thoroughly

2. Pop in to freezer for 2-5 mins to make mixture more moldable

3. Line a tupperware container with baking paper (cut an extra sheet same size)

3. Take mixture out of freezer and start rolling into chocolate balls

4. Place truffles onto baking paper & put back into freezer to store until ready to eat

* Coconut oil liquifies at room temperature, so must keep in freezer/fridge

These truffles are AMAZING and have so many health benefits from the Cacao to the Coconut Oil - YES!! Coconut oil is good for you! It has no cholesterol & actually stimulates thyroid function which increases your metabolic rate. Use it for hair, skin & cooking aswell. Cacao is very high in antioxidant flavonoids & will give you a feeling of well-being!



1-2 of these little guys are rich enough for you to get your chocolate fix, without over indulging!



Alternative to giving chocolate this year OR spoil yourself!

Instead of giving lots of chocolate, how about 1 fair-trade Easter Egg (Cadbury Dairy-Milk is good) or some Choc Truffles with a pair of slippers or a scarf!

 It's starting to turn cold & it's a family tradition on my Mum's side! How nice to receive a cozy pair of slippers or a colourful Autumn Scarf that you can keep & actually use??

Hope this has saved you from over-indulging this year & good-luck in making your own raw chocolate too!!

For more infomation on Fair-Trade Chocolate, please click on the link below : )

Fair-Trade Chocolate for Easter

Eat, Pray, Love & Pesto

Hi Guys,

Hope you have had a good start to the week!

Well today is my "weekend". I worked over the weekend so Monday is the day I try & get food stocked, food prepared & house cleaned! Stocked my fridge with lots of organic fruit & veg - bags of orgainc bananas are so cheap at the moment (got 8 for $2.99). I use to not care about buying organic bananas because I thought that the skin would protect the actual fruit - however, my good friend Linda, for years, was never able to eat bananas because they made her sick, until her Uncle suggested she try organic ones and low & behold, she doesn't get sick off them! So, it makes you wonder, just because you might not feel sick right after eating  non-organic food, what are we really putting in to our bodies long term, by not choosing as much organic foods as possible??

Got a little inspired by Eat, Pray, Love soundtrack to cook Italian this arvo... love this soundtrack! I play it while I clean & cook and when we have people over for dinner. Such easy listeneing and gets you into a kind of cultural, festive mood : )

After whipping up a risotto for tonights dinner, I made a pesto to keep in the fridge for those nights I can't be bothered cooking. Make this pesto at the start of the week and mid or end of week, when the last thing you want to do is cook, all you need to do is boil some water, throw in some pasta & toss some home-made pesto through!

This Pesto is super easy & without parmesan. Instead, I use Nutritional Yeast for that cheesy flavour, so great as an alternative to fatty cheese that is hard to digest, or for those who are lactose intolerant.

Nutritional Yeast provides one of the richest sources of the B-group vitamins & trace elements.
It is purely a natural food that can be used as an alternative to cheese on
pizza, pasta, soups & dressings.

Pesto Recipe (dairy free)

Ingrediants for 2

Bunch of Basil
Bunch of Parsley
1/4 C toasted Pinenuts
2 T EVOO
2-3 Cloves of Garlic
2-3 T Nutritional Yeast

Directions

Place in a food processor & process until combined
Store in airtight container - add a drizzle of EVOO over the top to keep fresh
Toss through pasta of choice

Optional Extras

Put on some feel good music while preparing
Make double, put in small recycled jar & label, to give to a neighbour, friend or family!

Well, hope you enjoy this recipe as much as I do and enjoy the rest of your week! Back to work tomorow for me, but at least I have a few meals prepared : )

 Carly xx