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If I had a Valentine… what would I cook for him?

I love going out to dinner to a nice, fancy restaurant as much as the next girl… especially, if someone special is inviting. But experience has taught me that on Valentine’s Day or around that date, it’s the WORST TIME to go out to dinner. There may be some exceptions, of course… but usually during this time, restaurants are extremely crowded, putting extra pressure on all the staff.

To me, it’s more romantic to plan something special at home. Make something you know you’re extremely good at and that you know your partner will love – for the awesome flavors, but also for the effort and care you put into it. Besides, when you have dinner at home… dress code is optional. 😉

Unfortunately, this year, I am spending Valentine’s weekend with a nice construction crew who’s remodeling my tiny, little kitchen into a very chic and modern tiny, little kitchen. And to top it all… no romantic Valentine for me this year.

But… let’s play pretend. If I had a romantic Valentine to invite over for dinner, what would I cook for him to let him know how much I care?

This is my menu…

Start with a Spinach, Arugula, Figs and Blue Cheese salad with a Balsamic Vinaigrette

Main course would be the exquisite Baked Pasta with 4 Cheeses, that usually floors anyone who has it for the first time.

On the side, and because we’re in Puerto Rico, I need to have sweet plantains with vanilla and cinnamon.

And for dessert, I would make a batch of Carob Syrup to dip some strawberries in… I would even add a pinch of cayenne to keep things interesting.

Do you like my menu?? What are your go-to dishes if you want to show someone you care?

Tags: arugula, carob, cheese, easy, food, pasta, spinach, strawberry, sweet plantain, Valentine, Valentine's, vegetarian

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Categories desserts, main courses, MY EDITORIAL, Salad, side dishes

Fruit Smoothie with Fresh Baby Spinach

14 May

This was the smoothie recipe we shared at the 3^rd 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.

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

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

Tags: #karmaclass, #karmafree, baby spinach, banana, chia, flaxseeds, food, Maca, passion fruit juice, probiotics, strawberry, vegetarian, yogurt

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Categories beverages, breakfast, KarmaFree Cooking Classes

Macerated Strawberries

30 Apr

I used these strawberries inside my vegan gluten-free crepes for the latest International Vegetarian Festival we held at the Yoga Center recently.

These are super easy to make… I like to use frozen strawberries or berries of any kind because they tend to be consistently sweet whereas sometimes fresh strawberries can sometimes be very tart.

You can use this as a method to sweeten any frozen or fresh fruits to use in any dessert form. It can also be used as a way to preserve very ripe fruit for future use.

MACERATED STRAWBERRIES

4 cups frozen strawberries, chopped
1 cup turbinado sugar

Place chopped strawberries in a large bowl and add sugar. Mix together so the sugar covers most of the strawberry pieces.
Mix them once in a while to ensure sugar is well dissolved in the juices created by the thawing, fruit juices and sugar. Let the fruits macerate for about 2 hours at room temperature to allow the fruit to thaw completely and for the sugar to infuse into the fruit.

Use immediately after the fruit is macerated or store in an airtight container in the fridge. Use inside crepes, to top ice cream, to top a slice of pound cake or to flavor your favorite morning smoothie.

Tags: carob, crepe, easy, food, fruit, gluten-free, natural, strawberry, sweet, syrup, turbinado sugar, Vegan, vegetarian

Comments 6 Comments
Categories basics, desserts

Vegan Gluten-Free Crepes

28 Apr

A few weeks ago, the Yoga Center celebrated an International Festival of Vegetarian Dishes. I wanted to contribute by making something that is traditionally considered a “forbidden” food for vegetarians out there, but at the same time that it would be easy for me to make.

I have made crepes time and time again, but out of spelt flour, which is a cousin of wheat. Most people with wheat-intolerance deal well with spelt, but many people at the Center are avoiding wheat and gluten altogether so if I wanted to make a dish everyone would enjoy, including our Master, I needed to make something gluten-free.

This was my contribution to the Festival… vegan gluten-free crepes filled with macerated strawberries and decorated with a drizzle of carob syrup. This was my homage to Didier and the delicious sweet and very popular crepes he would make for me at the Alliance Française a few years ago.

VEGAN GLUTEN-FREE CREPES

1 ½ cups gluten-free flour

4 tbs coconut oil

2 cups almond milk + 6 tbs

½ tsp salt

4 ½ tsp egg-replacer

More coconut oil to cook the crepes to oil the pans

First, prepare the egg-replacer mixture in a small bowl mixing the egg-replacer and 6tbs of almond milk. Whisk well together and set aside.
In a blender, add the flour, 2 cups almond milk, salt and egg-replacer mix you prepared earlier. Blend well until all ingredients form a smooth batter mixture.
Refrigerate the crepe batter for at least 2 hours. DO NOT SKIP THIS STEP. I cannot stress this enough… if the batter is not rested for at least 2 hours your crepes will be full of bubbles and they will cook uneven.
When you’re ready to use the batter… move it around and see if it has the consistency of a light pancake batter. If it’s too thick, add ¼ cup of water or more almond milk to make it thinner.
Heat a small non-stick skillet over medium heat. Add 1 tbs coconut oil and spread out using a paper towel.
Pour one ladleful of batter into skillet into skillet, turning and tilting skillet as you’re pouring the batter. The idea is to coat the bottom of the skillet with a thin layer of batter. Don’t be discouraged if the first few ones are not as you expect. It took me a few tried to get the right rhythm of ladle and skillet.
Loose the edges of the crepe using an off-set spatula. You’ll see the crepe bubble a little, very similar to pancakes. Loosen the crepe delicately from the pan using a silicone spatula. When you can move the crepe loosely by just shaking the skillet, after about 1 minute of cooking, flip the crepe using the silicone spatula.
Cook on the other side for about 30 more seconds. Just slide the crepe out of the skillet onto a plate lined with wax paper.
Repeat the process all over until you finish the crepe batter. Pass the oiled paper towel once in awhile in between crepes, as needed.

In my belief, these crepes were a COMPLETE SUCCESS!!!! But I will let the people who actually tasted them give their comments and tell you all about them in their own words. People… I am counting on you!!!!

Tags: Alliance Francaise, almond milk, carob, Centro Yoga Devanand, coconut oil, egg replacer, Egg-free, egg-less, food, french, gluten-free, gluten-free flour, paris, strawberry, Vegan, vegetarian

Comments 9 Comments
Categories desserts

Recap of our 2nd KarmaFree Cooking Class – Love Yourself First

7 Feb

Last week we had our 2nd KarmaFree Cooking class and our theme was Loving ourselves first thru our Food. Sometimes, we only cook nice things when we’re cooking for others. But why not cook something nice even if it’s just us in the house??

The recipes we shared are old and new KarmaFree Cooking recipes that work well made just for one person, for two or for a crowd. These are simple, quick and delicious recipes that work well to make just for you on a solo movie night at home and just the same are not much more effort making for a large dinner party.

Here was our class menu:

Pasta with Marinated Tomatoes over Brown Rice Pasta

Qu inoa Pasta with Fresh Baby Spinach and Lemon Vinaigrette

Spinach Salad with Macerated Strawberries

Baked Sweet Plantains with Cinnamon and Vanilla

Poached Pears with Blue Cheese and Almond Praline

Even though these were all recipes we had shared in the blog before, it’s never the same reading and making them on your own as seeing how I make them, after I have made them over and over and over again. Your words… not mine.

The class is not only about sharing recipes and techniques. We also talked about alternative pastas… we talked about my favorite olive oils and vinegars. We also talked about microplanes and rasps to grate lemon zest and how I do not like to rinse pasta after I drain it. We also shared how the same ingredients for the Marinated Tomates can be used in a bruschetta as an appetizer or skewered to make for a fancier passed hors d’oeuvre.

I am so grateful for all of those who attended… we had a larger class this time around. Some repeats and some new students. I want to give a great shout out to Adriana from Great Food 360 who attended once again and contributed with the wonderful pictures. She rocks!!!