The Best Kale Salad You’ll Ever Have!

I love Kale!

But…not all of my clients get as exited about kale as I do, mainly because they are unsure how to prepare it and use it in recipes.

A lot of people can get turned off by the bitterness of kale. And yes…kale is definitely a bitter leafy green. But the bitterness actually helps to cleanse the liver! How great is that?

Kale is loaded with a ton of essential minerals, vitamins and antioxidants. Plus, it contains vitamin K. A vitamin essential for building your bones and keeping them strong!

In this recipe, I created a deliciously sweet dressing using raw honey. The honey helps to balance out the bitterness. Organic raisins are added for some extra sweetness and texture and heart healthy creamy pine nuts add delicious flavour and balance.

This recipe is SO easy to prepare and requires minimal ingredients. Its become a weekly staple in my house. In fact, I crave this salad frequently.

Hope you enjoy it as much as I do!

Watch my quick video as I show you how to prepare it.

Ingredients:
Salad:
1 large bunch black kale, washed and de-stemmed and broken up into pieces
1/4 cup pine nuts
1/3 cup thompson raisins
1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese

Dressing:
3-4 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp raw honey
Juice of 1 lemon

Directions:
Mix dressing ingredients in a bowl using a whisk. The honey is quite sticky, so it may require a few minutes of stirring and whisking.
Add all salad ingredients to a large bowl and add in dressing. Allow salad to sit for 5-10 minutes to allow the kale to slightly wilt and absorb the dressing.

 

Hail to the Kale 🙂

Enjoy!

Samantha xoxo

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Delicious Flourless Almond Butter Chocolate Chip Brownies!

I LOVE baking!

I’m always tweaking recipes and up for the challenge to health-ify desserts!

I make these delicious flour less almond butter cookies (recipe here!) and they are a huge hit! So I thought I would take that same recipe and make brownies!

I made a few slight changes and it was a success! Yippee! PLUS, they are gluten free! How great is that?!

You can whip up these bad boys in no time, with very little mess in the kitchen! 😉

Image

Flourless Almond Butter Chocolate Chip Brownies

 

Ingredients:

1 cup almond butter (I used chunky for the extra crunch)
1 organic egg
½ tsp sea salt
½ tsp baking soda (aluminium free is BEST!)
1/3 cup of coconut sugar (organic cane sugar or sucanat would work well too)
½ tsp vanilla extract or vanilla bean
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/3 – 1/2 cup organic chocolate chips (you can get dairy free chips and make this recipe vegan!)

 

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a brownie pan with parchment paper. Mix all ingredients except chocolate chips until smooth. Fold in chocolate chips and pour batter into pan. NOTE – the batter did not completely fill the brownie pan. I used my fingers to press the batter down into the pan, making it quite flat. It ‘almost’ fit the pan, but not quite. This is ok! They still came out amazing! If you have a smaller pan (6×6), use that! Bake brownies for approx. 22-25 minutes. Cool brownies for at least 10 minutes before cutting.

Simple, easy and super tasty!!
Enjoy!
Health & Abundance,
Samantha 🙂
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HAPPY NEW YEAR!!! Eat Some Dessert! My Chocolate Raspberry Ice Cream Cake- Dairy Free and Delicious!

Happy New Year! I wish for 2013 to be a year full of JOY, HAPPINESS, LOVE & ABUNDANCE for everyone! With each new year we have an opportunity for new beginnings; an opportunity to create positive changes in our lives. I typically don’t believe in resolutions, because I personally strive to be a better me on a daily basis- physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually. January 1st doesn’t have to be ‘the’ day to start fresh. We have an opportunity to do this daily. Everyday is an opportunity to start fresh, create change and move forward in the direction of our dreams. However….with that being said, 2012 is now behind us so let’s ride into 2013 on our shiny magic carpet and embrace the unexpected, miraculous journey that lies ahead!

With everyone starting on a ‘detox’ kick and hitting up the gym, I’ve decided to share a dessert recipe I just couldn’t resist! We can all indulge in dessert as long as we learn to create balance around food. Dessert is definitely not on my daily ‘diet’ regime, but I’ll often indulge in an organic piece of chocolate (giddyoyo is my fav), or a few organic chocolate covered almonds (from Organic Traditions) if I want a sweet treat. I allow myself these treats because 90% of the time I eat clean organic food, go to yoga, go to the gym and take care of my body!

I wish all of you success on your new journey to creating a life long change in achieving the body you want, healing a disease, losing weight, getting more sleep, dealing with stress, watching less TV, creating more quiet time or whatever goal you have set out for yourself!

And now….onto dessert! The perfect cheat day treat! 🙂
This recipe came together in no time! I was heading out to a Christmas party and knew the host of the party loved chocolate raspberry anything! So I grabbed a few ingredients from WholeFoods and whipped this up in record time! Nothing in this recipe is made from scratch per se, but since I was gifted an ice cream maker for Christmas I’ll be making me some homemade dairy free ice cream very soon!

Chocolate Raspberry Ice Cream Cake

Ingredients

1 tub dark Chocolate CoconutBliss Ice Cream
3 cups fresh raspberries + 1/2 cup for decorating top of cake
2 packages chocolate wafer cookies (preferably organic with good quality ingredients. You can find most of your local grocery store)
2 tbsp coconut oil, melted
2 tbsp cacao nibs, for decorating top of cake (optional)

Directions

In a food processor fitted with an S blade, pulse wafer cookies with coconut oil until crumbly. Pour into a pie dish and press crumbs firmly into dish. Put dish into freezer and let sit for 1 hr, or until crust is firm.
In a food processor or blender, blend together coconut bliss and raspberries until smooth. **Leave ice cream out for 20 mins to soften so it is easier to blend. Pour ice cream mixture over crust, top with fresh raspberries and cacao nibs. Place back into the freezer for 1-2hours to set. To serve- leave cake at room temperature for at least 20-30mins before cutting. ENJOY!!!

From my heart to yours, here’s wishing you the Happiest New Year!

Health & Abundance,
Samantha 🙂

 

 

 

 

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