Hi-Rawkus

I’ve immediately gone from making raw soup after raw soup to throwing together various fresh salads. Literally. Spring has finally sprung and I’ve started wanting larger amounts of sprouts and light green leafies. I say “light” green as opposed to heavier greens such as collard and kale. Hearty green leafy vegetables like those are always welcomed additions to my menu, however recently romaine lettuce and fresh herbs such as cilantro and parsley have taken center stage. And my body is immensely enjoying their performances. [giggle]

Behold my latest creation… I call it my “Apricot-Dressed Anything Salad”. “Apricot-Dressed” because I made a quick and easy salad dressing of dried apricots, fresh lemon juice, first cold-pressed olive oil, Celtic sea salt and water. Yummy! “Anything Salad” because I just grabbed whatever I had available inside and outside of the fridge. Simple! So all together I guess you could say that what I ate was “Simply Yummy!” Hee! [squint]

I didn’t measure the ingredients for either the dressing or the salad. Sometimes I prefer to create by feel and taste rather than by a set of ratios. Times like that I’ve termed “Recipe FreeStyle”. Of course, whenever I want a dish to turn out as I expect it to, I’ll most definitely follow instructions. But not tonight! Tonight I went with the flow and the salad was perfect, dare I say nom-nom-licious!

You want to know what was in the salad, right? Sure you do! [wink] The ingredients gathered from inside of the fridge were romaine lettuce, sweet pea sprouts, red bell pepper, red onion, cilantro, a shiitake mushroom cap (Yes, “a” shiitake mushroom cap. It was leftover from making a recipe the other day. Save those bits!), some broccoli, raw shelled hemp seeds, and raw walnuts. (The walnuts had been previously soaked and dehydrated, ready-to-go!) The ingredients gathered from outside of the fridge were raw black sesame seeds and raw dulse flakes (an excellent source of minerals). Like I previously mentioned, nothing was measured. I simply grabbed, chopped, sprinkled, tossed and then peered into the bowl to see if I wanted to add more of anything. Since I was mostly craving light greens and sprouts, I added a lot of romaine lettuce and sweet pea sprouts. It looked like two cups of roughly chopped romaine and about 1/3 cup of sweet pea sprouts. There was only a small piece of red bell pepper left, but I didn’t want much of that so the amount was perfect. It was maybe two tablespoons of red bell pepper chopped large. Maybe? There was already a small piece of onion cut away from the red onion bulb, so I just used most of that. I think it ended up being close to what looked like a tablespoon of medium-chopped red onion. The cilantro was also left over from a previous recipe, probably four stems. I plucked the leaves from the stems, tore them by hand into smaller pieces and added them to the bowl. (No mincing for me tonight!) I adore cilantro, though before eating raw I used to absolutely hate it (one example of how my taste preference changed). So chomping down on a chunk of cilantro every few bites is actually now, for me, a treat. I only used two stems of broccoli, each about medium thickness. I cut away the toughest part of the each broccoli stem and chopped them into pieces about a 1/4 inch thick. Then I chopped the two flower tops into small pieces and added all of the broccoli bits to the bowl. I think I ended up with about 1/4 cup of chopped broccoli bits. The one shiitake mushroom cap added a nice earthy element. I sliced it in half and cubed it medium. I have no idea how many walnut halves I included. Maybe 5 or 6? I actually just broke the nuts into small pieces by hand and dropped them into the bowl. At first I thought I added too many walnut pieces, but after giving the ingredients a quick mix everything seemed balanced (for how I felt). Last I sprinkled the top with what appeared to be a tablespoon or so each of hemp seeds and black sesame seeds, and what appeared to be a half of a teaspoon of dulse flakes. Then I gave the mixture another toss. Remember when I mentioned here that sometimes I’ll be lazy about making salad dressings and will just drizzle a few things over the top of my mix and then toss and tweak where necessary? I almost decided to do that, but then I noticed the apricots.

So for the salad dressing, I first blended together a few dried apricots* with a small amount of water until I reached the texture I wanted. Even though the initial mixture only included apricots and water, I tasted it to gain a better sense of what all to add next. It was sweet enough, thick enough and not too watered down. After I sampled it, I knew that I definitely wanted to add some lemon juice for tartness and zing. I squeezed the juice from half of a lemon directly into the blender. Then I thought to add a splash of olive oil as I knew it would give the overall flavor more depth and also help create an emulsion. After another quick blend, I tasted the mixture again. The only thing I felt it needed was salt, but only a tiny pinch. One last whiz and the flavor was just right. The lemon juice gave the dressing a nice tang and complemented the sweetness of the apricots. The splash of olive oil and tiny bit of sea salt enhanced it further. Don’t let my explanation of the process fool you. It was a quick and simple dressing to make. Really!

The last step was to marry the salad with the dressing. The size of the salad and the amount of dressing matched perfectly, and the medley of flavors blended together wonderfully. I even made a last-second decision to sprinkle some fresh-cracked black pepper on top. And it was “mmmmm….” Oh, but I said that already! [smile]

A few tips…

*If your apricots are not soft and pliable, you can soak them in a small amount fresh water, just enough to cover the apricots, for fifteen minutes or longer until they plump up enough for ease in chopping and blending. If you store your apricots in the refrigerator, they will become stiff from the cold but will usually soften up somewhat after being left out at room temperature for a while. If they still seem hard, then definitely utilize the soak method.

Recipe FreeStyle: “Apricot-Dressed Anything Salad”

Anything Salad Ingredients (freely measured)
- romaine lettuce
- sweet pea sprouts
- red bell pepper
- red onion
- cilantro
- shiitake mushroom
- broccoli
- raw shelled hemp seeds
- raw black sesame seeds
- raw dulse flakes
- raw walnuts

Apricot Dressing Ingredients (freely measured)
- dried apricots
- pure water
- fresh-squeezed lemon juice
- first cold-pressed, extra virgin olive oil
- Celtic sea salt

Garnish (optional)
- fresh-cracked black pepper

Ginger-Citrus and Spinach

Red Kale and Bok Choy Salad

A Bowlful of Yum

And also these posts from the “What I Ate” category:

What I Ate: In The Midday

What I Ate: Leaning Tower of Kimchee

What I Ate: Early Morning Salad

Once I finished prepping the juicy little beasts, my countertop was covered in dark violet-red droplets (beautiful as they were). I actually looked vampire-like while sucking on them, gory juices dripping from my chin. Pictured above are Moro blood oranges. They are very fragrant, flavorful and virtually seedless. They have a deep sweetness with a barely noticeable tartness and a hint of raspberry in their aftertaste. Pretty far out, eh?! Generally, blood oranges are available between November and May, depending on where they are grown. They have loads of vitamin C, possibly more than regular oranges. That lovely burgundy pigment you see there is due to high levels of a powerful antioxidant called anthocyanin. You know that antioxidants help obliterate free radicals. Right?? [wink]

Related Post:

Best of Both Worlds

This savory soup is another one of our favorite recipes that has been in our meal rotation since early January 2009. While it is best enjoyed gently heated rather than steaming hot, the flavorful and surprisingly filling herby blend is wonderful to sip on a chilly day or night.

Using a high-speed blender, first blend together the sunflower seeds, chopped date and water until the sunflower seeds and date have been completely broken down and everything becomes milky. Then add the remaining ingredients and blend until liquefied. That could take several minutes, depending upon your machine—more power, faster process. When the color of the mixture turns very deep caramel, the ingredients will most likely have been properly combined.

After the mixture has been completely blended and turned very deep caramel, the next step is to gently warm it up. Transfer the mixture to a medium pot and gently warm it up on a stove. Divide the warmed mixture between two large bowls and garnish with a few thinly sliced cremini mushrooms. Serve immediately.

The listed ingredients amount to roughly five cups of soup, good for two large servings as a main course or four small servings as a starter dish.

Creamy Cremini is meant to be served warm enough to enjoy immediately, but not so hot that it has to cool before it can pass your lips. Applying gentle heat will allow it to thicken and become creamier. I love to eat this soup after it has been gently heated to a maximum of 115 degrees Fahrenheit (46 degrees Celsius).

The sunflower seeds were measured before sprouting.

Seeds that are soaked and sprouted are filled with life, allow for greater availability of nutrients and have less impact on digestion. Sprouting sunflower seeds is easy. First soak the sunflower seeds in pure water for a maximum of two hours, then thoroughly rinse and drain them. Let the sunflower seeds sprout for one day, rinsing and draining no more than two times. It really is okay to let the seeds become somewhat dry during the sprouting process. I’ve found that it produces better results. I like to use a mesh strainer for sprouting since it allows for easy rinsing, draining and proper air circulation. You can use whatever method works best for you. After one day of sprouting, there should be a small to medium tail on the end of each sunflower seed (as shown in picture on the left).

In the list of ingredients, I noted 1/2 level teaspoon fresh marjoram leaves, minced and tightly packed. If you are unable to find fresh marjoram, you can substitute with a 1/4 level teaspoon of dried marjoram. Definitely adhere to the “level” measurement, whether the marjoram you use is fresh or dried. Marjoram is a pretty potent herb, and adding too much of it will ruin the batch. Seriously!

In the list of ingredients, I noted 1 tablespoon date, pitted and chopped, tightly packed. My ultimate favorite type of date to use for this recipe is Hilawi, however Medjool also complements well.

Cremini mushrooms are actually immature portabella mushrooms (aka portobella or portobello) and can also be referred to as baby portabella, baby bella, crimini or brown button mushrooms. Cremini mushrooms are similar to white button mushrooms but have a firmer texture and a richer flavor. They are also a great source of selenium, phosphorus, zinc and potassium as well as some B vitamins.

Another soup to check out:

Curry Up

To help limit your exposure to harmful pesticide residues and waxed coatings often associated with conventional produce, try to purchase organically grown fruits and vegetables as often as possible.

The listed ingredients should amount to roughly 14 ounces of juice, depending on how much liquid your celery, kale, apple, lemon and garlic yield. It is best to serve fresh juices soon after they are made due to oxidation and degrading of nutrients. However, they can be tightly sealed and placed inside the refrigerator for short-term storage (a day or two).

In the list of ingredients, I noted 1 very large ripe Cameo apple, peel left on and quartered. A very large apple is roughly three inches tall and three and a half inches thick. If you are unable to find a very large apple, you can substitute with one and a half regular large apples.

The sweet-tart Cameo apple balances the sourness of the lemon and sharpness of the kale, and also complements well with the saltiness of the celery and the low note of garlic. Overall, it lends a mild sweetness to the juice. If you are unable to find Cameo apples, a second choice would be either Breaburn or Gala. Both are slightly sweet may be easier to locate.

For more juicy ideas, check out:

Green Juice Kawktail

Rawkolada

When Juicing

Green and Spicy

Cukes and Oranges

Carrots, Carrots, Fa La Laaa!

Liquid Brunch & Leftovers