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KarmaFree Cooking Class – Salads and Dressings

26 Mar

Hi you all…

I want to start by first apologizing for being so reclusive for the last months…  actually, almost year.  I had a very serious technical meltdown at the end of 2015, and that translated into some health issues that took a lot of steam out of me, to the point that I was not inspired to cook or write.

You know how it can be when you lose momentum in everything in life…  it takes a lot of effort and will to start all over again.  I have been thinking a lot about you and the blog.  But mostly about YOU…  the energy that keeps me inspired and going. I felt I was letting you guys down and I had to do something about it.

So to start easing into sharing recipes and content with you all, I decided to organize a cooking class at the Yoga Center this coming Saturday, April 1.  The class is all about Salads and Dressings – a different kind of salad bar, using some familiar and some unexpected ingredients that span all the colors of the rainbow, a potato salad, a pasta salad and possibly even a cool new way to make coleslaw.  But we need quorum for that…

Clase Cocina Ensaladas 3A

The class will start at 9:30AM… It’ll be very interactive and we’ll have for lunch everything we prepare.  So bring your apron, notebook and pencil to write down all the tips we share besides the actual recipes.  The donation for the class is $45, and all goes towards the ingredients and the Yoga Center who allows us to use their awesome kitchen.

If you’re interested…  please write us a comment here or send us a comment on the Facebook Event.  The class will mostly be held in Spanish, but I can make it bilingual if any of you out there do not do Spanish too well.  No judgement… you’re all welcome.  Please send us a message as soon as possible, because I need to purchase the ingredients for everything and I want to have enough!!!  If you need directions on how to get to Centro Cultural Yoga Devanand in San Juan, here are some instructions.

Hope to see some of you there… and please forward this message to all your friends who might be interested in learning some new recipes and techniques to jazz up their salad repertoire.

 

Fruit Smoothie with Fresh Baby Spinach

14 May

This was the smoothie recipe we shared at the 3rd KarmaFree Cooking Class recently.  I just wanted to share with the class how easy it is to add nutrition to a fruit smoothie by adding fresh spinach.  The green flecks might be a bit strange, but the vegetable flavor is masked with the sweetness of the banana and berries.

If you prefer not to see any green flecks at all, you can try my Stealth Shake which has darker berries and the spinach is completely masked.

Also, you can boost the power of your smoothie by adding chia seeds, flaxseeds, maca all together or any of them individually.

 

Breakfast Smoothie for Mom

FRUIT SMOOTHIE WITH FRESH BABY SPINACH

1 banana
4 strawberries
A handful of fresh baby spinach leaves
½ cup plain yogurt or kefir
1 cup passion fruit juice
A squirt of honey or agave nectar
1 tbs ground flaxseeds
1 tbs chia seeds
1 tbs maca powder
3 ice cubes

 

  1. Blend all the ingredients in a blender.
  2. Serve ice cold.

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Double Mustard Roasted Potatoes

12 May

These are an updated version of my Mustard Roasted Potatoes… double the magic, double the fun with two times the mustard.  Dijon and Grain Mustard are my absolute favorite mustards and they make a zesty potato, worthy of celebrating the Moms in your life.

Great with a Tofu Scramble filled with tomatoes, peppers, onions and grape tomatoes.  Super colorful, super tasty and great vegetable-based protein too.

 

Double Mustard Roasted Potatoes

DOUBLE MUSTARD ROASTED POTATOES

2lbs red-skinned potatoes, cut in fourths
3 tbs Dijon mustard
3 tbs whole grain mustard
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 tbs Italian Seasonings
Salt and Freshly Cracked Black Pepper to taste
2 tbs Olive Oil and a little more to grease the baking sheet

 

  1. Pre-heat oven to 425F.
  2. In a large bowl, mix together the mustards, garlic, Italian Seasonings, olive oil, salt and pepper.

Double Mustard Potatoes - INgredients

3.  Add the cut-up potatoes to the bowl and toss to coat the potatoes well with the mustard mixture.

Double Mustard Roasted Potatoes

4.  Transfer the potatoes to an oiled baking dish, making sure the potatoes are in one single layer.

5.  Roast for 40-45 minutes until the potatoes are cooked thru, tender on the inside and crispy and golden on the outside.

Double Mustard Roasted Potatoes

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Tofu Scramble

7 May

This was one of the main dishes we created for our 3rd KarmaFree Cooking class recently.  We were super excited because we got picked up by the local newspaper El Nuevo Día and we received tons of calls from people interested. We hosted 7 students who are not vegetarian, but are very interested in following a more natural and meat-free diet.  I was thrilled!!

Angie is the expert among us making tofu scramble…  but I made sure the ingredients were colorful, vibrant and easy to find in any supermarket.

 

Tofu Scramble and Potatoes 1

 

TOFU SCRAMBLE

1 package of extra-firm tofu
1 vegetable bouillon cube with seas salt and herbs
½ red onion, chopped
1 orange bell pepper, chopped
1 package of fresh baby spinach
2 cups of cherry or grape tomatoes, halved
Olive oil
Butter or Dairy-free alternative like Earth Balance
Freshly Cracked Black Pepper
½ tsp turmeric

 

  1. In a large skillet over medium high heat, add the olive oil, a pat of butter and add the onions and peppers to soften.  Add the bouillon cube too and dissolve it in the mixture.
  2. Drain the tofu as much as you can.  In a bowl, pat it with a few paper towels.  Mash the tofu and add to the onions and peppers in the skillet.  Miox it well so the tofu starts infusing itself with the flavors in the skillet.
  3. Season with black pepper and turmeric.  Mix well.
  4. Add the tomatoes and spinach to the mixture.  Mix it all well and cover for a few minutes so the spinach wilts .
  5. Uncover and raise the heat a bit so the liquid that most probably accumulated at the bottom can evaporate a bit.

 

Tofu Scramble with tomatoes, onions, peppers and fresh baby spinach.

 

 

Serve alongside these Double Mustard Roasted Potatoes and your favorite toast.

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Recap of our 3rd KarmaFree Cooking Class

6 May

Last month we celebrated our 3rd KarmaFree Cooking Class.  The theme was Breakfast in Bed for Mom…

KarmaFree Cooking's Vegetarian Class

We were honored to be featured in El Nuevo Día, Puerto Rico’s largest newspaper.  The turnout was great – many people who do not consider themselves vegetarian yet wanting to learn about a more natural and meat-free lifestyle.  To me that reads SUCCESS because that’s exactly the goal of KarmaFree Cooking…  teaching people that a vegetarian lifestyle is doable and delicious.

Slide2

I want to share a recap of the recipes shared at the class.  Some are new, some are KarmaFree classics and some are updates on favorites of all of us.

Clase de Cocina KFC #3

 Tofu Scramble with Tomatoes, Peppers and Baby Spinach

Double Mustard Roasted Potatoes

Tofu Scramble and Potatoes 1

Papaya Mango Fruit Salad

Papaya Mango Fruit Cup KFC

Carrot Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Yogurt Frosting

carrot-cupcakes

Fruit Smoothie featuring Fresh Baby Spinach

We also talked about how to best combine fruits for your fruit salads and juices

If you live in Puerto Rico, hope you can join us for our next KarmaFree Cooking class.  If you are not so lucky to live in Puerto Rico, rest assured we’ll be sharing the recipes here on the blog.  But doing it in person, as part of our group and then tasting the results of your labor is a whole different experience.

KarmaFree Cooking 3rd Class

Thanks a lot to Angie and my mom who always help and thanks a bunch to the class attendants who always make giving these courses a whole lotta fun.

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