Green Smoothie with Spinach, Mango, Lime and Mint

11 June 2013

The atmosphere in our house is really intense – the teenagers are preparing for exams and they are studying ~~like crazy~~, really hard!

Green smoothies are the perfect energy kick to feed and nourish mind and body.

At this time of year, the stores are booming with fresh, soft, sweet and delicious mangos. They are the perfect snack and fantastic in green smoothies.

Here is a smoothie for the hard-working teens (or others) – a real kick of greens!

Lovely mangos

Green and delicious

This smoothie is delicious. It’s sweet, intense, powerful and refreshing! A perfect way to boost your concentration and refresh your mind – as well as refreshing and anti-oxidizing your body.

Green Smoothie with Spinach, Mango, Lime and Mint

1 good handful of fresh spinach

2 ripe mangos

3-4 twigs of fresh mint

2 lime fruits

Ice

Water

Fresh spinach

Lime

Juicy, sweet and delicious

Fresh mint

Put the peeled and roughly chopped fruit and herbs in the blender along with some ice and water. Blend until smooth, cool and fabulous.

Enjoy

And forget not that the earth delights to feel your bare feet and the winds long to play with your hair – Kahlil Gibran

Awaiting Summer Smoothie

28 March 2013

24 Comments

We are enjoying beautiful spring weather here on the West Coast of British Columbia.

This morning I decided I would make a true “Awaiting Summer Smoothie” – because to be honest with you, I crave summer like crazy!

Awaiting Summer Smoothie

I had some deliciously ripe mangos (juicy and sweet)

some fresh pineapple,

and a cute pear with red cheeks.

Pear with red cheeks

Some fresh mint, freshly squeezed juice of lime and some cool coconut water.

Mint & Lime

Sweet mango

For 4 people:

1/2 pineapple

1 pear

1 big mango

1-2 lime

2 sprigs of fresh mint

2 cups of coconut water

Put it all in the blender along with some ice to cool it down. Blend into a fabulous nutritious and delicious drink.

Enjoy!

In the depth of winter I finally learned that there was in me an invincible summer – Albert Camus

Lime and Herb Infused Green Papaya Salad

25 February 2013

33 Comments

A total craving for Green Papaya Salad lured me out into the cold and windy day, on the hunt for green papaya. I love my local China town – it’s always full of life, hectic, intense, full of colors, smells and hints of adventure. Then, the sun came out, and what more can you really ask for?

Market Market

I found the freshest and most beautiful green papaya fruit, a deliciously sweet pineapple, fresh herbs, big juicy oranges, tangy lime fruit and dried cranberries. That’s when I knew I was fully ready to go home and create a delicious Green Papaya Salad.

Green Papaya

Papaya in Julienne

Filets of Orange

Juicy Orange

Mint, Cilantro and Basil

Green Papaya Salad

1/2 green papaya

1/4 fresh sweet pineapple

1 big orange

1 bunch fresh cilantro

1 bunch fresh basil

1 bunch fresh mint

A handful of cranberries

Cut the papaya and the pineapple into julienne strips and cut the orange into fillets. Wash and finely chop the herbs, mix everything in a bowl. Add a handful of dried cranberries

Marinade

2 lime

3-4 sps of maple syrup or agave

1 -2 cloves of garlic

some freshly grated ginger

Squeeze the lime, add maple syrup, squeeze garlic and grate some fresh ginger – mix well.

Pour the marinade over the salad and enjoy!

Green Papaya Salad

Healthy Energy Truffles

21 January 2013

28 Comments

This recipe is from a very dear and special friend of mine. She suffers from gluten allergy and therefore she is always looking for new and creative ways for eating healthy and gluten-free.

She gave me her recipe here for these “Healthy Energy Truffles” and I just love it. They are easy to make and can be put in the freezer and taken out to enjoy whenever and whereever you need a good healthy snack.

Perfect snack

They are full of goodness – seeds, raisins, cranberries, honey and chocolate chips.

Healthy Energy Truffles

1/2 cup toasted sunflower seeds

1/2 cup toasted pumpkin seeds

1 cup toasted sesame seeds

1 cup quinoa flakes

1 cup chocolate chips

1 cup raisins

1/2 cup of cocoa powder – or 100g dark good quality chocolate

1 cup dried cranberries

2 cups of peanut butter (1 jar @ 500g)

1/2 cup of honey

1 cup of toasted sesame or coconut seeds to roll the truffles in. I used toasted sesame seeds and a bit of pumpkin seeds.

Everything is mixed well together and made into balls the size of a golf ball and finished of by rolling them in toasted sesame/ pumpkin or coconut. Keep what you need in the fridge and freeze the rest.

Served with a nice cup of tea

Freshly Squeezed Pomegranate Orange Juice

29 November 2012

24 Comments

This time of year we need to nourish our bodies and boost the immune system. This is a hectic time of year with lots of stress and when the body is stressed it is much more prone to catch any little bug going.

What better way to boost the immune system, than juicing some fresh pomegranate and some fresh oranges and make a truly delicious and potent drink served on ice?

I could feel every cell in my entire body wriggle with joy, while drinking it 🙂

This is a real health bomb, as pomegranate is so full of goodness and is known to lower cholesterol, high blood pressure, excellent for the skin, as well as being packed with vitamin C – so along with the oranges, this is really a health booster!

The pomegranate can be a little tricky to seed but once you get the hang of it it is quite easy. Don’t do the job wearing your best clothes as it’s really juicy and the juices will escape everywhere even if you are careful. For this serving, I used one big pomegranate and 10 oranges for 4 good sized glasses of juice.

Prepare the pomegranate by taking out the seeds, put them into the juicer and then juice the oranges – serve the drink on ice – Enjoy!

Read more about the health benefits of pomegranate here

Green smoothie with apple and fresh thyme

15 October 2012

16 Comments

There is something about mixing fruits and herbs – Apple & Thyme – Strawberry & Basil – Peaches & Rosemary – it creates such wonderful flavor combinations. Here, while the autumn rain is pouring down outside my window, I still recall the Strawberry/ Lime/ Basil popsicles we made this summer.

Today’s delicious green smoothie is made with apples and thyme and it is scrumptious!

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Healthy and delicious lettuce wraps

30 May 2012

9 Comments

I love anything spicy and fusion and Asian is a favorite of mine. I think it is mostly because I love the explosion of flavours in my mouth – sweet, sour, salty, spicy, bitter – it is party in the mouth, simply and I love that!

We have always been big fans of lettuce wraps the traditional way – but this healthy version is now the preferred version – it tastes incredible and it makes you feel nourished and energized after eating it. It is really easy to make and even the kids love it – also works as a healthy snack.

I use organic Romaine lettuce for wraps and I fill them with what ever vegetable takes my fancy. Today it was snap peas, cucumber, red pepper, yellow pepper, zucchini sliced into Julienne strips and arranged on the lettuce. I added some fresh cilantro on top.

For the dressing/dipping

I used

2 tablespoons of Hoisin sauce,

2 tablespoons of soya sauce

2 tablespoons of white wine,

A fresh squeeze of lime

1 table-spoon of sweet chili sauce

2 small teaspoons of cane sugar

1 table-spoon of finely chopped fresh ginger

1 tablespoon of finely chopped fresh garlic

1 table-spoon of chopped green onions

Mix it all together and use it as a dipping sauce.

Wrap the lettuce around the filling and dip into the sauce for a mouth-watering experience.

Anne Sture Tucker

Balanced Living

Tag Archives: snack

Green Smoothie with Spinach, Mango, Lime and Mint

Awaiting Summer Smoothie

Lime and Herb Infused Green Papaya Salad

Healthy Energy Truffles

Healthy Energy Truffles

Freshly Squeezed Pomegranate Orange Juice

Green smoothie with apple and fresh thyme

Healthy and delicious lettuce wraps