Some have said, “An Unrefined Vegan? Yeah, girlfriend can’t do gluten-free!” Well, I’m here to tell you not only that I can, but that I AM doing GF over at Richa’s blog today. That’s right – old Ms. Whole Wheat Pastry Flour is hangin’ at Vegan Richa today with a rice flour-xanthan-gum kinda recipe for chocolatey and blueberrily whoopie pies.
Be sure and spend some time exploring her site when you visit. You WILL leave hungry. Thank you, Richa, for inviting me to share!
I’ve now about worked my way through the entire list of cracker and flatbread recipes in Matthew Kenney’s book, Everyday Raw. (Raw ice cream – you are next! As soon as I can source young coconut which, no surprise, is not stocked at my local Walmart.) I’m obsessed with the technique and love the idea of making my own healthy, raw “chips” at home rather than buying tortilla chips and (my favorite guilty snack) Stacy’s Pita Chips. If you haven’t tried these: DO NOT buy a bag. You will be forever hooked. Fear not, I am going to tackle recreating those babies in my dehydrator, but for today, I’m sharing an on-the-sweet-side cracker that I created using the principles I picked up from Kenney’s book. These very crispy crackers include some standard granola bar ingredients. By the way, I’ve shared this recipe over at Gluten-Free Cat as part of Raw Foods Thursdays!
Eat them straight up or make a sandwich using homemade coconut milk ice cream. Thanks to Amanda (via Somer) for that very easy and tasty recipe – you’ll have to ask them for it yourselves…
One year ago today: White Bean, Asparagus & Artichoke Heart Salad
One year and one day ago today: Bluebirds to Be
Raw “Granola Bar” Crackers
Makes one dehydrator sheet
1 cup raw walnuts, soaked overnight, rinsed and drained
1 large apple, cored and chopped into small chunks
1″ nubbin fresh ginger, peeled and chopped
1/4 cup unsweetened coconut flakes, soaked in warm water for an hour or so and drained
1 cup flaxseed meal
1/4 cup unsweetened cacao nibs
generous pinch salt
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
dash cardamom
1/2 tsp. orange zest
1/4 cup virgin coconut oil
1 cup water
1/4 cup agave nectar (taste dough and add more if preferred)
Put the flaxseed meal, cinnamon, cardamom, salt, cacao nibs and orange zest in a large bowl. Set aside.
In a food processor, process the walnuts, ginger and apple until you get a nice mash. Add this mixture to the flaxseed meal mixture and add the remaining (wet) ingredients. Using a big spoon or your hands, mix until thoroughly combined. This is a fairly wet mess.
Line a dehydrator tray with a non-stick sheet and plop the dough into the center, top with another non-stick sheet and slowly roll out the dough. I had to move dough from time to time from one spot to another to get something that resembled a square. The dough should be about 1/4″ thick. Remove that top non-stick sheet, gently score the dough into whatever size and shape strike your fancy and slide the tray with the dough into the dehydrator. Dehydrate at 145F for 30 minutes, then turn down the temperature to 115F. After a few hours of drying, I carefully transfer the dough to a screen for more efficient drying. Dehydrate for about 24 hours or until crispy and crunchy. Break into pieces and store in an air-tight container.
Pear & Parsley sounds like a big American retailer’s idea of a quaint British shop (or should that be shoppe?) opening soon in a mall near you that sells soaps, pretty tea towels and cocktail napkins printed with every conceivable form of “Keep Calm and (fill in the blank).” But in fact, it’s just another kind of green smoothie. When one has committed to consuming a green smoothie (or two) each day, one also has to commit to trying different ingredients so as not to get bored of the usual smoothie ingredient suspects (not that there is anything wrong with my good friends, kale and oranges). I especially like this combination because it isn’t too sweet and it’s very refreshing.
One year ago today: No-Knead Anadama Bread
One year and one day ago today: Save-the-Piggies-in-a-Blanket
Sharing this recipe on Healthy Vegan Friday at Veggie Nook!
Pear & Parsley Smoothie
Makes 2
1 1/4 cups water
2 pears, cored and chopped
1 banana, cut into chunks
1 large stalk celery, cut into chunks
big handful of parsley
2 dates, chopped
1 kiwi, peeled
2 large leaves romaine lettuce
Place the ingredients in a blender and process until smoothie, thick and creamy. Serve immediately.
Tropical Colada Smoothie
Not only survived – thrived. From January 7 through January 13, Kel and I joined Somer and lots of other folks in the first Green Smoothie Challenge of 2013. This was a positive, healthy and delicious way to kick off the new year. The hardest part of the Challenge? Banning my much-loved carbohydrates: whole grain bread (slathered with almond butter), brown rice, potatoes, hot rolled grains in the morning and my evening snack of Cheerios or Weetabix. (Actually, it wasn’t that hard.) The easiest part was not having to think about what I was preparing and eating and that’s because Somer did all of the work by providing recipes and detailed instructions. And since she’s an incredible cook, I knew the recipes would be really delicious. Throughout the Challenge I snapped photos with my phone and shared them via Instagram. As you can see, we did not go hungry.
Kel and I went strong throughout (even bringing my Vitamix, soups and loads of greens, veggies and fruit on a road trip we took) but fell off the wagon in a spectacular way on the last day of the Challenge during a day trip to Las Vegas. I’d heard that Vegas is a very vegan-friendly town and indeed, it offers a lot of plant-based dining options. I call it Las Vegan now, as a matter of fact. While I have ample will power to bypass the slots and gaming tables, I just didn’t have the strength to say no to lunch at 100% vegan bakery and bistro, Pura Vida. Photos below.
Binge eating in Vegas aside – - there’s no need to wait for the next challenge - – start one today! Click here to get the information and all the recipes you’ll need.
Veggie-loaded, big salad for dinner.
Moroccan Lentil Soup, Hummus, Salsa, Raw Veggies (a.k.a. Lunch!)
Blueberry Vanilla Smoothie in the Works.
Lunch at Pura Vida:
Whole Grain & Flaxseed Pancakes with Berry Compote & Bananas.
Tofu Scramble and Soyrizo Burrito.
Green Salad & Chili. Thanks, Kaylie, for letting me photograph your lunch! It was great meeting you!
All spring and summer long, I dutifully made and consumed a daily green smoothie – loaded with fruit and either spinach or kale. I felt strong, healthy and virtuous. Then the cold weather came along and with it, distractions, long To Do lists and prior commitments that turned my days into relay races in which I was always behind. Enter Becky Striepe and her new e-book, 40 Days of Green Smoothies and an email request to write a review. At about the same time, I picked up Super Immunity and Eat to Live by Joel Fuhrman, MD who advocates consuming bucket loads of raw greens each day. Becky’s smoothie recipes plus Dr. Fuhrman’s advice…I think the universe was trying to tell me something.
Becky came up with the idea of 40 straight days of green-smoothie-sipping during Lent. If she was going to give up something, she decided to add something – something good for her body. Luckily for us, she also decided to share her recipes.
Week One
Committing to a daily smoothie can feel daunting, which is why it’s very handy to have a guide that takes you through a full 40 days of beverages. You don’t have to think too much, you just have to get the ingredients listed at the beginning of each week. Becky helps you get your kitchen in order so that you are stocked with the smoothie basics like chia seeds, flaxseed meal, bags of frozen fruit, nut milk, cocoa powder and some fresh greens, avocados and bananas. Gotta have bananas. She kicks things off with a basic and simple green smoothie and builds from there.
Week Two
Week two’s shopping list (including parsley!) is much shorter because you will probably have leftover fruit and greens from Week One. Although Becky lists almond milk as the smoothie liquid, you could choose any other non-dairy milk. There are so many different varieties out there, it’s fun to experiment and see what works best for your taste buds.
Week Three
If you like the combination of chocolate and a little bit of heat, the first smoothie of Week Three includes cocoa powder, cinnamon and cayenne. Yee-haw! This week also includes one of my favorite ingredients: ginger. I put a little bit of ginger in nearly every smoothie I make.
Week Four
Whoa! Collard greens make an appearance – love how Becky includes a huge variety of greens in her smoothies – not just the usual suspects, kale, spinach and romaine.
Week Five
Out with the collards and in with the beet greens – something I’ve never tried in a smoothie before. You’ll also find pineapple, peaches and blackberries.
Week Six
It’s a short one and so is the shopping list. The 40th smoothie is full of amazing flavors: chocolate, ginger, pineapple, peaches, blackberries and holding it all together – the green of avocado and spinach. A powerhouse beverage to wrap things up.
By the time you’ve made it through all forty days, you’ll be a smoothie expert and will be creating delicious, healthy greenies all by your lonesome. And you’ll have Becky’s e-book for suggestions and guidance down the road.
My Impressions
Green smoothies are Dr. Fuhrman’s recommendations encapsulated in beverage form – or blended salads, as he calls them. Fruit, especially berries, have powerful anti-aging and anti-cancer attributes, not to mention they satisfy one’s cravings for sweets. Nut milks, avocados, chia and flax seeds provide necessary fats and help our bodies absorb the good stuff from the plants we’ve processed in our high-speed blenders. Greens are loaded with phytonutrients that repair damaged cells, lower cholesterol, help us fight off disease and infection and give us energy – all while providing the protein our muscles need and fiber that fills and satiates our bellies.
Becky’s e-book fits in perfectly with the nutritional goals I have for 2013. But beyond the recipes – I really love how this book is laid out (I have mine on my iPad). The fonts are large, clean and easy to read. Weeks are clearly broken down and are even color-coded. The cover (image below) is bold and colorful and the “inside” of the book is bright and cheerful. It’s just plain well-designed. Becky keeps the instructions short and sweet – perfect for those of us with limited attention spans. Here and there she sprinkles in tips about add-ins or how to get things moving if your blender bogs down. I also appreciate how simple these smoothies are. I sometimes go a little crazy when improvising my smoothies and I end up with everything in there but the kitchen sink (plus a gigantic, over-sized drink) – making it difficult to pin down specific flavors. Sometimes you want that big hit of raspberry or mango flavor. If you are already smoothie convert or are looking to dip your toe into the thick, green waters – this would be an excellent resource for you.
You can purchase your electronic copy of 40 Days of Green Smoothies here or here - but before you do, be sure to enter the giveaway at Virtual Vegan Potluck for a chance to win a freebie copy! I’m also sharing one of Becky’s smoothie recipes – -
The Scoop:
Title: 40 Days of Green Smoothies
Author: Becky Striepe
Publisher: Self-published, Cattingon, Inc.
Website: Glue and Glitter
Available on iTunes: iBooks ($4.99)
Available elsewhere: Sellfy.com ($4.99)
P.S. I want to send a big ol’ thank you to Jenn Jennings for publishing an article about An Unrefined Vegan on Natural Health Examiner and for sharing my recipe for Pop’s Chocolate Chip Cookies with Grapefruit and Anise. Please follow Jenn on Facebook and/or sign up on the Examiner site to receive alerts each time she publishes an article.
These flatbreads are based on a recipe for Spiced Pumpkin Flatbreads that I shared earlier this month. It occurred to me that a cinnamony-sweet version would be just the thing for a brunch, lunch or snack sandwich. Caramelized bananas came to mind. And toasted pecans for crunch. But what would keep the sandwiches together?? A creamy, spreadable, tangy chocolate cheez, of course.
The chocolate cheez recipe is one that I submitted to One Green Planet not too ago. They graciously published it. You can read the post and snag the recipe here. (And thanks to Megan Rascal at SFWeekly for posting about it on the SFoodie Blog!)
Cinnamon Raisin Swirl Flatbread Sandwiches w/ Chocolate Cheez & Caramelized Bananas
Serves 2
Cinnamon Raisin Swirl Flatbreads
Makes 12 flatbreads
2 1/2 cups whole wheat white flour
1 tsp. salt
4 oz. unsweetened applesauce
1 cup almond milk or water
1/4 cup raisins, soaked in warm water, drained and finely chopped
1 tsp. cinnamon
dash cardamom powder
dash allspice
1 tbsp. maple sugar
3 tbsp. coconut oil, melted
Semi-soft Chocolate Dessert Cheez
several thick slabs
Caramelized Bananas
1 large banana, cut into thick slices
~1/4 cup prune puree (baby food works well)
dash cinnamon
splash orange juice
~2 tbsp. toasted pecans, chopped
Make the flatbreads:
In a small bowl, whisk together the applesauce and almond milk/water. In a large bowl, combine the flour and salt and then add the applesauce mixture, stirring until a soft dough forms. Add more milk/water if dough seems dry; more flour if it is too wet and sticky. Turn dough out onto floured surface and knead for about 15 minutes. Place dough in a lightly-oiled bowl, cover with plastic wrap and let sit for 1 hour.
In a small bowl or measuring cup, combine the coconut oil, spices, maple sugar and raisins. Set aside.
Form flatbreads:
Divide dough into 12 equal pieces. Flatten a piece of dough and roll it out into a very thin disk – about 9″ round. Keep remaining dough balls covered. Spread about 1 tsp. of the coconut oil mixture onto the flattened dough and then roll it tightly into a long cylinder. Coil the cylinder into a tight spiral, gently press and then transfer to a large piece of parchment paper. Cover loosely with plastic wrap and proceed with the remaining dough.
Cook the flatbreads:
Heat a large cast-iron skillet on medium-heat. Tape a large piece of parchment paper onto a work surface and roll out one of the spirals to a 6″ or so round. The dough will want to curl up and the raisins will want to escape, but persevere. It helps to roll them out a bit then to let the dough rest before rolling some more. Plop the round into the skillet and cook until puffy and brown, then flip and cook the other side. This takes only a few minutes. Transfer to a plate and cover with a towel to keep warm. Continue with the remaining spirals.
Make the cheez:
You can find the recipe for my Semi-soft Chocolate Dessert Cheez by clicking this link to One Green Planet.
Make the caramelized bananas:
Heat a skillet over medium heat and add the bananas, prune puree, cinnamon and orange juice. Let the mixture bubble and the bananas get nice and soft. Add more orange juice if the bananas start to stick. Remove from the heat and set aside until ready to assemble the sandwiches.
Assemble the sandwiches:
Heat a large skillet over medium heat. Smear copious quantities of chocolate cheez onto one side of two flatbreads. Divide the bananas between two flatbreads and layer on top of the cheez. Sprinkle with chopped pecans. Top the flatbreads with the remaining two flatbreads. Lightly spray the skillet with cooking oil and gently warm the sandwiches, flipping after a few minutes to toast the other side. Remove from pan, slice and serve immediately.
Twenty dollars later, Kel and I became the proud owners of a giant box of locally grown peaches, each one picture perfect. Peaches grow everywhere in Bountiful, weighing down the gnarled trees in nearly every backyard, tempting us – begging us to relieve the poor branches of their juicy payload. Yes! we reply, but quickly remember that we would be trespassing. Peaches are summer – the beginning of the end of summer – and baking a peach pie is a sacred rite of the season.
I’ve done nothing special or innovative here. I just baked a standard peach pie; cutting way back on the amount of sweetener simply because these peaches were as sweet as candy just as they were. Why mess with a classic? So, I’m not including a recipe here. Buy yourself a mess of peaches (8-10 will do), dig up your mom’s tried-and-true crust recipe (I used the one on the back of a bag of Bob’s Red Mill Whole Wheat Pastry Flour) and get to work.
This is an ode to peaches and freshly-baked pie; warm nights, Queen Anne’s lace, the chainsawing of crickets, gardens gone wild and the whiff of melancholy that accompanies the precious, honeyed days of late summer.
Your crust might not fully cooperate (as mine did not) and it may become a homely mess once placed onto a plate (as mine did), but it will taste sweet and delicious (as mine did). It will taste like summer and make you want to hang on to every last second of August even as the days get shorter. The memory of your peach pie just might carry you through the dark days of January and February. Remember, those peach trees will be out there, covered in snow, racking up the necessary cold hours, dreaming of the spring to come and the chance to overload their branches yet again with golden-red fruit.
Important Serving Note: a homemade peach pie is best served alongside a generous scoop of dairy-free vanilla ice cream. It’s simply a matter of respect.
I was an early fan of Martha Stewart and her various projects; I flatter myself to think I got in on the ground floor, back when her haircut was more housewife than inside trader. Many years ago, however, we parted ways. There was just too much Martha everywhere. More importantly, I found her recipes to have a poor effort-to-taste ratio and then there was the heavy emphasis on animal products (how could she not when she names her paint colors after the hues of her chickens’ eggs?). Having said all that, I retain a residual fondness for Martha. Her energy, ambition, success, creativity and houses are awe-inspiring. Recently I ran across a pancake recipe in an issue of MSL magazine – I believe the originals debuted at her birthday bash held at her Skylands estate – and made a mental note to make them. It was the inclusion of nectarines that got me. They are the taste of summer and my absolute favorite fruit.
The batter is my standard whole wheat one with the addition of a little spice. A super simple syrup goes very well with these nutty, fruity, fluffy cakes.
Whole Wheat Nectarine Pancakes with Easy Coconut Maple Syrup
Makes 15
1 3/4 cups whole wheat pastry flour
dash powdered stevia, optional
2 tbsp. wheat germ
1 tsp. baking powder
2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. cardamom powder
dash kosher salt
1 1/2 cups “buttermilk”
2 tbsp. flaxseed meal + 6 tbsp. water (whisk together until frothy, then set aside to thicken)
1/4 tsp. vanilla extract
1-2 thinly sliced nectarines (use fruit that is slightly firm, not too ripe)
1/4 cup real maple syrup
1/2-1 tsp. coconut oil
toasted, chopped pecans, for sprinkling on top of the ‘cakes
In a small saucepan, gently warm the maple syrup and coconut oil. Keep warm until ready to serve.
In a large bowl, whisk together the whole wheat pastry flour, stevia, wheat germ, cardamom, baking powder, baking soda and salt. In a small bowl, combine the “buttermilk,” flaxseed meal mixture and vanilla extract. Stir into the dry mixture and whisk just until everything is moistened and there are no large lumps. Let sit for about 15 minutes while you heat up the griddle and pop your plates in a 200F oven to warm.
Meanwhile, thinly slice the nectarines. Set aside.
Drop batter by big spoonfuls onto a hot, lightly oiled griddle or pan. Gently press slices of nectarine onto the tops of the ‘cakes. Wait for the batter to start to bubble before turning. When flipping the pancakes, lightly spritz the griddle with oil again otherwise the fruit will stick as it caramelizes. Keep cooked pancakes warm in the oven until ready to serve.
(A little orange juice or orange zest would be a wonderful addition to the batter. These are also delicious using fresh figs, as shown below.)
With great enthusiasm I set out one morning to make Build-Your-Own-Energy-Bars, courtesy of Amber Shea Crawley and her cookbook, Practically Raw. I knew I could bang out a batch of bars, pop them in the freezer and have them ready for our daily 3 pm snack. Easy. I gathered the ingredients and pulled out the food processor and away I went. But something went wrong. The mixture was not really a mixture. There was no way it was going to stick together to create bars. I stared into the processor as if the answer were in the pile of pretty crumbs. I looked around the kitchen. What could I do to rescue this recipe? I didn’t want to add maple syrup – no way it needed any sweetening. Peanut butter? As much as I love it, it would not work here. Sesame seeds…sesame seeds…tahini! I plopped a big ol’ spoonful into the processor and whirled again.
Same deal. When I poured the mixture into a pan prior to freezing it, prod and shove as I could, the mixture was not coming together as beautifully as in Amber’s photo. I referred to the directions and immediately saw what I’d done wrong. I hadn’t actually read the directions. I’d just taken it upon myself to toss all of the ingredients into the processor without noticing that, yes, there were a few steps to follow. Simple, but important, steps. Deciding to continue anyway, I put the mixture in the freezer and a few hours later pulled it out to see if anything magical had happened behind closed doors. Naw. Still crumbly. But it passed the taste-test with flying colors. Inspiration hit the next morning: topping for our daily grain cereal! It’s absolutely delicious. We ate the first batch up so quickly, I’ve already repeated my mistake. (Scroll down for other ways to use this “crumble.”)
Please visit Amber at her blog, AlmostVeganChef.com. She’s a graduate of the Matthew Kenney Academy – a raw/living foods culinary school right here in Oklahoma. I know – Oklahoma! – where there are BBQ joints on every corner of every city, in all of the gas stations and in every sleepy, single-intersection town in the state. The Matthew Kenney restaurant in Oklahoma City is fantastic (and I hope to be eating there later this week!) and a real refuge to us plant-based types. Anyway, Amber’s book, Practically Raw, has really helped me incorporate more raw foods into my diet. The recipes are delicious, creative and flexible – especially helpful if you’re just starting out with this type of cuisine.
Big Bowl of Overnight ‘Frige Grains with Soy Milk, Bananas, Chia Seeds and Date, Cherry, Walnut & Ginger Crumble.
Date, Cherry, Walnut & Ginger Crumble
Makes enough
3/4 cups walnuts
1 cup pitted dates
1/2 cup dried cherries
2 tbsp. sesame seeds
2 tbsp. crystallized ginger
zest of 1/2 an orange
1 heaping tbsp. tahini
pinch kosher salt
Combine all ingredients in a food processor and whirl until the mixture is a bit chunky, but uniform.
Jar of Date, Cherry, Walnut & Ginger Crumble.
Strawberry and Cherry Pie topped with Date, Cherry, Walnut & Ginger Crumble and Bob’s Natural Granola (no oil).
Slice of Cherry-Strawberry Pie with Date, Cherry, Walnut & Ginger Crumble.
Tahini-Orange-Date Crumble Cookies. Recipe here.
Today I was going to post another shortbread recipe, but since I already sort of posted this one…sigh…it seemed like a better idea to make this one official. One of these days I will stop accidentally publishing my drafts. Shortbread recipe tomorrow – unless I click the Publish button today my mistake.
Do you remember the scene in The Gladiator where Russell Crowe is walking through a field of tall, golden wheat, his fingers almost lovingly brushing against the heavy seeds? Kel calls it The Crowe Walk. It’s a mesmerizing and beautiful scene (I won’t mention the other scenes into which it cuts). The soft, surreal serenity of the walk through the wheat – so peaceful. Kel and I jokingly replay it in our fields when the grass is especially high. What does that have to do with this post? Not much, except that I’m growing wheat – wheatgrass, specifically – but mine will never get high enough to go to seed, let alone for me to stroll through.
I recently acquired a Vitamix, something that has been on my Wish List for a long, long time. My old, cheap-o blender has been crying in the corner ever since. I’ve used that Vitamix every day since it arrived, determined that Kel and I will have at least one green smoothie each day.
Along with my Vitamix, I ordered up a 5 lb. bag of wheatgrass seeds from from Todd’s Seeds via Amazon. I planted my first batch not too long ago and watching them sprout and soar upwards – I can almost see them grow – has been a lot of fun. At the time I decided we would be consuming at least one smoothie per day I also decided we needed to be drinking wheatgrass each day. Wheatgrass, when harvested in its peak nutritional state (at about 7-11″ high) is loaded with chlorophyll. Chlorophyll provides energy, helps normalize blood pressure and also helps alkalize the body. According to some research, if the body is high in acidity (i.e., from eating meat for example), it is more susceptible to cancer. Here’s a quick rundown on how I got started and what the process looks like.
Soak the wheatgrass seeds.
Rinse a handful of seeds and put them in a bowl or container and cover with water to about 2″ above seeds. Soak them for 8-10 hours and then change the water and soak again. I did a total of three overnight soaks. At that point, tiny little roots began to appear on the ends of the seeds.
Day One.
Prepare your container.
I used a window box because that’s what I had – but a larger, flat tray would be ideal. You want something with drainage holes on the bottom. (Todd’s Seeds provides instructions on their website.) I filled my tray with a mixture of compost soil, peat and hummus. Avoid soils with added chemicals. I “mudded it in” real good (watered it) and sprinkled the wheatgrass over the top of the soil and then covered the seeds very lightly with additional peat and hummus. Then I gently watered again. It’s important to keep the soil moist, but not soggy.
Day Three.
Day Five.
Watch them grow – and water.
These suckers germinate and grow fast! Be sure and keep the soil moist, but again, not soaked. I kept my container out of direct sunlight; these guys are delicate. Water 2-3 times per day using a spray bottle rather than a watering can.
Day Seven.
Ready to cut and juice.
By the seventh day, my wheatgrass was ready to harvest. Using sharp scissors, I cut a thick handful of the grass and put it in my Vitamix along with about 3/4 cups of filtered water. There are wheatgrass juicers out there, but after shelling out for a Vitamix there was no way I was going to spend another $50 on a wheatgrass juicer. YouTube is loaded with videos demonstrating how to juice wheatgrass.
Keep in mind this stuff is very fibrous – and you don’t want to drink/eat the fibers. Good for cows, not so good for humans. Once I processed the wheatgrass I poured the mess through a fine-meshed strainer. Compost the fiber and either drink the juice straight-up, or combine it with fruit and make a delicious, tangy, super-healthy smoothie as in the recipe below.
I plan on getting 2-3 “harvests” from my wheatgrass before planting a new batch.
Green Fruit Smoothie with Wheatgrass Juice
Serves 2
1/2 cup wheatgrass juice
1/2 cup filtered water
1 bunch romaine lettuce, chopped
2 bananas, thickly sliced and frozen
1 cup strawberries, cut in half (frozen or fresh)
1-2 pitted dates, chopped, if desired
Place ingredients in Vitamix in the order shown. Start on Variable speed 1 and slowly dial to 10, then flip to High. Process for about 30 seconds. Pour into glasses and serve. (This can also be done in a regular blender. Just make sure to stop the blender to move the fruit around if necessary.)
