Smoothies

I have been on a smoothie kick recently.  My fresh fruit purchased at Dekalb Farmers Market yesterday.  I laid the fruit out on a cookie sheet to freeze overnight.  Today, I can put them in my freezer containers and they won't stick together!  On to freeze my pineapples and raspberries!

Pumpkin Seeds

Always on the quest for easy summer dinners filled with fresh veggies, but looking for a little added flavor, I have stumbled upon toasted pumpkin seeds.  Yes, my favorite lunch place, Lotta Frutta and a root canal helped me with the discovery.

I love nuts, but after an almond recently split my tooth resulting in a less than fun and incredibly expensive root canal and a crown I decided to give up nuts for awhile.  I was dining at Lotta Frutta and Myrna suggested adding toasted pumpkin seeds to my salad.  Delicious!  So, last night I whipped up a salad with lots of veggies, grilled some asparagus with seasame oil and GF soy sauce and baked polenta topped with veggies.  I threw some pumpkin seeds in a pan with a little spray olive oil and just mixed them around a bit.  They turned out perfectly.  The seeds added a smoky, crunchy lift to my salad.  And, I sprinkled them over the asparagus too.  All vegan, all GF.  Yum.  But this dinner did fail the family test.  Not one taker.

Speaking of Lotta Frutta, the girls finally got their picture posted in the restaurant.  This was a HUGE deal to the girls.  I think it might have been the best day of their short but adventure packed life.

Beyond pumpkin seeds - and on to smoothies.  I used to be intimidated by smoothies, did I need to get a recipe?  Follow it precisely?  No and No.  I am no longer afraid.  I threw in one frozen banana, one big handful of frozen strawberries, a scoop of vegan protein and about a cup of water.  Perfect afternoon snack!  Another tip I learned recently - if you are freezing fresh fruit (I am trying, trying to be that organized and proactive), cut the fruit lay it out flat on a baking sheet, and freeze them not touching one another.  After they are frozen, then throw them into your freezer container, glass or zip lock bag, and they wont stick together!

My Frozen Coffee Drink!

After much tinkering, I finally have a breakfast / pick me up / frozen coffee drink that I like.
I first fix a cup of coffee - I use Aurora Coffee Seattle Espresso beans.  I put that in the freezer to chill while I add the rest to the blender:

• 1 frozen banana
• 1/4 cup unsweetened coconut milk
• 1/2 tsp agave syrup (I dont like mine very sweet, add more if needed)
• 1 scoop of vanilla vegan powder (see picture below)
• 1 cup of crushed ice
• Add my chilled cup of coffee and blend away

This is the perfect way to start my day: with protein, fruit, caffeine, cold, creamy and delicious!
Tip - I always keep a bag of frozen bananas in the freezer for snacks and smoothies

I get this at WholeFoods - I only use one scoop per smoothie / drink