purple crunch

When I got up yesterday, I knew I needed to take some initiative and get out of the tasty-but-not-so-healthy track of food I enjoyed the last two days, so I headed for the farmer's market. Everything was so green at the market- I guess that's what's in season. It was greens galore with snap peas, herbs, and cucumbers also making frequent appearances.As far as the color green I bought two heads of lettuce, kale, cucumbers, and scallions. To add color I bought tomatoes, summer squash, and red cabbage. Everything was organic (some certified, some not- always ask because often farms are organic but can't afford the certification process). Got all the goodies pictured for just about $15. Not bad at all PLUS it supported local farms. 

I needed a few items that were not at the farmer's market, so TJ's it was. Tofu, yogurts, Island Soyaki marinade, bananas, frozen mango chunks, and organic carrots- all came to about $15 as well. On a roll in the budget department for this shorter week before vacation!

I used the red cabbage and baby carrots to make a Citrus Purple Slaw. I am getting sick of the baby spinach and a crunchy slaw sounded appetizing as summer hits. Here's the recipe (as always, the dressing measurements are estimates). Its a tangy slaw made with Greek yogurt to cut the amount of mayo used. Use more sweetness or spice to balance the tang if it's too much for you.

Citrus Purple Slaw

Dressing

4 scallions (white +green parts, chopped)

generous handful of cilantro (chopped)

2/3 cup Greek yogurt (I used 2% because the fat free can be very sour)

1/3 cup good, real mayonnaise

drizzle of agave or honey

1 lime (juiced) 

1 lemon (juiced)

salt, pepper (to taste) 

cayenne or paprika (to taste)

Slaw

4 carrots (shredded) 

1 head purple cabbage (shredded)

Cabbage is easy to shred using a sharp knife to slice thinly. To shred carrots, a shredding blade on the food processor is easiest. You could also use a bag of pre-shredded carrots. For dressing, simply whisk together all ingredients. Taste before adding to cabbage and carrot mixture. Adjust salt, pepper, hot spices, and sweetness to desired taste. Go slow when you adjust- you can always add more but you can't take away! Toss cabbage and carrots with dressing and allow to sit for a few hours at minimum or overnight if possible.

I plan to make some sandwiches for dinner before work this week, and the slaw will be a good side. As for lunch at work, I figured I'd enjoy the lettuce from the farmer's market to make a salad. For toppings, I packed up half a cup of leftover rice salad from the party (brown rice, peppers, onions, citrus sauce... recipe to follow another day!) and grilled some tofu and summer squash. I marinated the squash and tofu in TJ's Island Soyaki- a teriyaki marinade with sesame seeds and citrus flavors. I used sprouted tofu this go around which has a bit more of an earthy taste than traditional tofu- not sure I'll stick with it. Luckily, the marinade is so good I don't mind too much.

I had basil form my garden that I had to use...

...so I cooked some dried chickpeas and made some lemon-basil hummus. Still working on that creamy consistency I love in hummus. Mine is too dry. I think I have a fear of adding too much oil. Recipe to come when I feel my hummus is worth sharing!

For lunch all week it'll be salad, hummus, carrots, cukes, Food Should Taste Good Jalapeno chips, mango, and yogurt.

After all my cooking yesterday, I didn't really feel like running but hit the road anyway. Made it four and a half miles and felt like I could keep going! For the first time in a long time I didn't feel tight or stiff in my muscles. Wish I could say its from doing a lot of stretching but I'd be lying. Not sure if my body is having some sort of rebound effect after stopping hot yoga for awhile or if I'm just more aware of my body and my muscles were always this stiff/fatigued feeling when I ran.

Figured I'd take a running break and headed to kickboxing this morning, fueled by yet another smoothie of frozen banana, strawberries, and mango with yogurt and almond milk and topped with coconut, granola, and sunflower butter. Is it just me or does it look like I had an ice cream sundae for breakfast?

Now I'm off to an early nap before the GOTR final celebration. Thinking I'll have to break into my last bit of gazpacho first though...