KarmaFree Cooking

The Shape of Foods Help our Organs?? – Olives

This is part of a series on how our food can help certain organs that resemble their same shape. I already shared with you how the following foods benefit these organs:

Celery, Rhubarn, Bok Choy – Bones

Beans – Kidneys

Sweet Potatoes – Pancreas

Eggplant, Pear and Avocados – women organs and issues

Figs – Male sperm production

And we go back to the females… and taking about how olives resemble the shape of our ovaries.

The healthy fats, vitamins and minerals found in these tasty fruits of the olive tree have been shown to reduce your risk for ovarian cancer, according to research conducted in Milan, Italy in 2002. In this study, women who ate more olive oil had better protection against ovarian cancer, reducing their risk 30% from the average.
Try to add more olive oil to your diet or just eat green and black olives straight from the market!

Enjoy olives and its delicious oil in any of these easy recipes:

Marinated Olives

Green Olive Olivata

Comme Ci Comme Ca Salade Niçoise

Stewed Potatoes

Tags: food, olives, vegetarian

Comments 1 Comment
Categories MY EDITORIAL

Canada Welcomes Vegetarians – L’Usine du Spaghetti

11 Jun

Last winter I visited Canada… I know that it seems odd to be writing and posting about this when the weather is hot outside, but I just been so busy working and traveling that I have not had the time to share this part of my crazy vegetarian life with all of you.

This was my 3rd trip to Canada… I had visited both Quebec City and Montreal back in 1984 and Vancouver in 1986. So it had been a while (yep, 25+ years) since I had stepped onto such wonderful country. We always said you must have good karma to be born Canadian… it’s a peaceful, organized and very civilized country. Everyone is very polite, friendly and welcoming to visitors, even those who speak just a little bit of French, like me. My first 2 times in Canada was in the summertime, when we always had our family vacations. Then, I was not into food or a vegetarian, but I always had very good memories of Canada.

When I travel with my non-vegetarian friends I can’t expect to scout the vegetarian places, no matter how good they might be. It’s very different than when I travel with my yoga friends. So this time, I have to influence at least into visiting places that have alternatives for them and for me.

When we arrived into Montreal, we went to the old part of the city, Vieux Montreal, to have a late lunch and to walk around the streets a bit. To me, the best way to get to know a city is walking it. We were told that on Rue St, Paul we would find lots of restaurant options and it was certainly true. We decided for L’Usine du Spaghetti that translates to The Spaghetti Factory. It seemed cute enough and with options, even for the picky kids.

Something that got my attention is that every entrée comes with access to the all-you-can eat salad bar. It’s not super huge, but they have a nice selection of greens and fresh salad ingredients as well as some prepared salads like potato salad, pasta salad, couscous, etc. I never have those prepared salads because of the traditional mayo used. But they looked pretty…

The breads and garlic butter they serve at the table are just mouth-watering. They don’t have whole grain versions but you need to make exception sometimes when you travel. And you should not; I repeat… you should not miss this garlic butter!!!!

We also ordered some grilled mushrooms as a starter for the whole table. I was pleasantly surprised they came in a bed of lettuce salad. The mushrooms were exquisite… warm on top of the cool crisp lettuce. Nice contrast and hearty flavors. So I got to eat two salads that day!!!!!

We all ordered pastas… and I was super happy that most people ordered vegetarian pastas, so I could have a little taste of their plates too. Natalia ordered the cheese tortellini –OMG, these were DIVINE!!! It had a cheese gratin on top, but the pink sauce underneath was incredible. Because this was a kid’s dish they served it to her first. And we were all picking at her plate… it was that good… or maybe it was we were that hungry??? No, it was really delicious.

I ordered the penne with porcini mushrooms. I was in the mood for something lighter than the creamy heavy sauces that I usually go for.

Ana and Angie, both, they ordered the sun-dried tomato ravioli.

Alejandro had the cheese cannelloni, which were my second option.

Rafa’s and Mariana’s plates were off limits to us… 😦

To give you an idea of how good these pasta dishes were, just take a look at these empty plates.

See why I couldn’t wait any longer to tell you about this awesome place??? Oh, and the desserts are sooooo worth it. But they are not karma-free (hint – we ordered something with chocolate). That’s the only reason why I will not share pictures of them. But if you don’t avoid chocolate, like I should… by all means go for it.

So please… if you live in Montreal or are planning to visit this wonderful Canadian city this summer, stop by L’Usine du Spaghetti. I hope you’ll enjoy it as much as we did.

L’Usine Du Spaghetti du Vieux Montréal

273 Rue Saint Paul Est, Montréal, QC H2Y 1H2, Canada

(514) 866-0963

Have you eaten in L’Usine du Spaghetti??? What’s your favorite dish there?? Any other recomemndations for my next visit??

Tags: Canada, food, Montreal, pasta, restaurant review, travel, vegetarian

Comments 5 Comments
Categories MY EDITORIAL, Travel

How to eat vegetarian at an Argentinean Parrillada

8 Jun

Many people doubted that we would be able to eat delicious food in Buenos Aires being a vegetarian. I couldn’t understand their concern because, yes, I agree that Argentina is known, unfortunately, by their meats. But Argentinean food has a lot of influences from Italian foods so there are many other very typical choices available that are perfectly vegetarian for us to enjoy.

We were super lucky to have found Adriana, our BA Free Tour guide, who’s also a vegetarian of many years and she directed us to many vegetarian restaurant options in the city. I have mentioned you two of them – Naturaleza Sabia and Spring. But I asked Adriana, how did she manage living a social life of eating out with friends who are not vegetarian?? (seems familiar???) What were those typical Argentinean dishes that a vegetarian could also enjoy??

Adriana immediately answered… A PROVOLETA!!! Provoleta is a very typical Argentinean parrillada dish of provolone cheese melted in a cazuela and seasoned with oregano and other spices. It’s usually served as an appetizer but a vegetarian could very well enjoy it alongside a salad and some other side dish as a main meal.

So that’s what we did… when we were hanging around the streets of San Telmo one Sunday morning, we got hungry but were not sure if Naturaleza Sabia was open. We also wanted to get a taste of a typical parrillada restaurant before we left so we went into Nonno Bachicha, a restaurant right in the heart of the San Telmo street fair.

And just as Adriana had suggested us, we ordered a provoleta, with a side of green salad with 4 ingredients and some French fries. It was a very typical Buenos Aires lunch alternative and perfect for our lifestyle.

And to those skeptics who thought we would not find something delicious and vegetarian to eat at a regular restaurant in Buenos Aires I have only one word for you – PROVOLETA!!!!

It’s always nice to get to taste the flavors of a city when you travel, no??

Tags: argentina, buenos aires, food, parrilla, provoleta, provolone cheese, travel, vegetarian

Comments 3 Comments
Categories MY EDITORIAL, Travel

Quinoa Pilaf

6 Jun

I have never heard of quinoa until I met Diane Carlson a few years back. Diane is the wonderful chef behind the Conscious Gourmet culinary retreats and one of the founders of the Natural Gourmet Institute in NYC.

I took one of these culinary retreats once when they were still offered in Florida and it was one of the most wonderful experiences of my life. I still carry with me recipes and friendships from that retreat. And at that retreat was where I learned I could use a blog to share my recipes with all of you. So many good things came about from that retreat. I am thankful…

But this is not my recipe… This quinoa recipe is Diane’s recipe that has become my way of making quinoa ever since. I have made some tweaks to it by all the times I have made it, but I can’t take full credit for it. Diane taught me how to make quinoa and she should get the credit.

Now quinoa is all the rage. I hear its super popular way west in California. And us at the yoga center make it a lot too. The first time I bought quinoa was at Whole Foods right after finishing the retreat because I thought I would not be able to find it here in Puerto Rico. Now, I can buy it at Costco in 3 lbs bags. How things change, no??

QUINOA PILAF

1 cup quinoa, rinsed under cold water and drained well

1 ¾ cup vegetable broth

½ tsp salt

2 tbs olive oil

1 small onion, chopped finely

1 carrot, peeled and cut into very small pieces

1 rib of celery, chopped finely

½ red bell pepper, chopped finely

½ green bell pepper, chopped finely

½ cup peas, frozen works fine

Salt and Pepper to taste

¼ cup of chopped Italian flat-leaf parsley

In a large pot, toast quinoa over medium-hi heat. Stir it occasionally until the grain is nearly dry. Then, stir constantly about 5 minutes more until it browns evenly and gets a nutty fragrance.
Add the vegetable broth to the pot of quinoa. Add ½ tsp of salt and bring the pot to a boil. Once it starts boiling, lower the heat to simmer, cover and cook until quinoa is tender. That will take about 15-20 minutes.
In the meantime, in a large skillet over medium-hi heat add the olive oil and the onions. When the onions have softened a bit, add the carrots and cook for a few more minutes. Add the celery, peppers and peas. Sauté for a few minutes until veggies are cooked tender but still somewhat crisp.
By now the quinoa will be cooked. Add the vegetables to the pot of quinoa and mix well. Stir in parsley. Serve immediately.

I love making quinoa because it’s a grain full of protein and nutrients and it’s very easy to make. This is the basic pilaf recipe I learned to make, but I have made this with many other combinations of veggies. Just like rice, it’s a great vehicle to use those little odds and ends you have in your fridge… go crazy and tell me what’s your favorite combination.