Recipe: Heart Healing Love Smoothie

“Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it.”

— Proverbs 4:23 NIV

On Valentine's day, we celebrate love. We buy gifts, plan dates and dress up. We write love notes to our significant others. We express appreciation for our loved ones. But, how often (on Valentine's day or any other day) do we express appreciation for ourselves, treat ourselves to something "nice" or acknowledge all the work our hearts do for us from one Valentine's Day to the next?

While today is about expressing love and appreciation for things outside of you, I encourage you to invite some of that love inside. 

In this post, I'm sharing a nourishing, heart-healthy smoothie recipe that I am hoping will remind you to take care of yourself and treat yourself well. To me, there's no better way to show yourself appreciation and love than to feed your body what it needs to thrive. This smoothie recipe feeds you in two ways: physically and emotionally. The ingredients were chosen because they each encourage your heart (and love zones) in different ways (health, heart and love benefits listed below). 

The ingredients make a pink smoothie, meant to mimic the color of Rose Quartz, a crystal known to promote love and healing. The recipe also includes several aphrodisiac and mood-boosting foods. Enjoy alone or, since it is Valentine's Day, after all, share with someone you love.

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Recipe: Heart Healing Love Smoothie

Health, Heart & Love Benefits

oatmeal: soluble fiber, lowers cholesterol, stabilizes blood glucose levels

strawberries: antioxidants, can decrease blood pressure and help dilate blood vessels, packed with vitamin c, aphrodisiac

cacao: antioxidants and magnesium that boost heart health, mood balancing, mood boosting aphrosdisiac

almond milk: almonds are a known aphrodisiac, packed with heart-healthy vitamin e & oleic acid (from almond oil)

Ingredients

• 1 cup strawberries

• 1 cup raspberries

• 1 tsp honey

• 1/2 cup ice

• 2 cups almond milk (or non-dairy milk of your choice)

• 1/2 cup organic rolled oats

• 1 tsp cacao powder

• 1 tsp granola

• 2 thinly sliced strawberries

• 3 raspberries

Instructions 

1. Place strawberries, raspberries, oats, milk, ice and honey into blender. I like to add the honey last so that it doesn't sink to the bottom of the blender.

2. Blend everything on medium-high or "puree" option for about 60 seconds.

3. Pour smoothie into serving glass. Be sure to choose a glass with a large opening so that you can easily add toppings.

4. Dust the top of the smoothie with your cacao powder then, carefully, add other toppings (thinly sliced strawberries, 3 raspberries and granola). View image below for serving suggestion.

5. Enjoy!

Makes 1-2 servings.

Recipe [VIDEO]: Coconut Matcha Chia Pudding

If you know me (and my tastebuds...or just my social media accounts in general) you know that I am a chia-seed-lover.

Sprinkling just a teaspoon of these babies on your food boosts your meal's nutritional value by adding fiber, potassium, good fats (in the form of OMEGA-3s!), protein, calcium, magnesium and phosphorus.

Another food-love of mine is matcha. Not only do I appreciate its ability to turn all of my smoothies and lattes a pretty hue of green, I also appreciate its various health benefits: green-tea energy, antioxidants and adaptogenic properties (more health benefits can be found here).

I felt it was only right to marry two of my health-food-faves in a simple recipe: Coconut Matcha Chia Pudding. I am super excited to share this recipe because...

1. So many of you (via social media) have been asking how to make chia pudding. I'm happy to say that it's a super-easy process and you'll probably be making it all of the time after you realize it takes, literally, very little time.

2. You can enjoy this recipe for breakfast, a snack or dessert. It travels well and you can top it however you like. My fave? Coconut shreds + sliced strawberries, YUM!

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Coconut Matcha Chia Pudding

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Recipe: Eggplant Bolognese

I know it's spring but (correct me if I'm wrong here), the craving for warm comfort foods is something that doesn't simply disappear at the sight of a tulip or weather forecast above 60 degrees.

There's something about slow-cooked, hearty foods that warms the belly (and heart) no matter what time of year it is. The recipe I'm sharing in this post is what I'd like to call a happy medium for those of us who want something hearty (but not heavy) for those rainy spring days and cool summer nights.

My eggplant bolognese recipe is a vegan-friendly, veggie-packed version of a traditional bolognese sauce.

In traditional bolognese we get rich, smoky flavors and creamy texture from ingredients like pancetta, beef and cow's milk. To create similar flavor and texture profiles (without using animal products or creating possible digestive issues), I use eggplant as the base to create a velvety, creamy texture and rely on spices like paprika, cumin and cinnamon for that richly-spiced punch we expect from a bolognese. 

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Eggplant Bolognese

(vegan, vegetarian, dairy-free)

What You'll Need...

• 1 whole eggplant, cubed

• 1/2 large onion, diced

• 1 tsp minced garlic

• 1 tbsp chopped basil

• 3 large tomatoes, quartered

• 1 zucchini squash, cubed

• 1 cup dry white wine

• 1.5-2 cups water or veggie stock

• 1 tbsp tomato paste

• olive oil

• 1/2 tsp onion powder

• 1/2 tsp garlic powder

• 1/4 tsp cumin

• 1/2 tsp thyme

• 1/2 tsp paprika

• 1 tiny pinch of cinnamon

Putting it all Together...

1. Stage your cooking area. Make sure you have all of your go-to's (like salt, pepper, oils, towels) on-hand. Prep all of your veggies. Chop, dice and set aside. Also, portion out your other ingredients and have them ready to go. I promise, it makes the whole operation much easier.

2. In a medium to large sized stock pot, heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil to medium high.

3. Add diced onion to pot. Allow onion to cook until it becomes translucent (and you begin to smell that "Mmm...what are you cooking?" smell).

4. Add minced garlic and a dash of salt to your onions and stir. Once you've incorporated garlic and onions, add your white wine. Two things here: 1. You don't want your fresh garlic to cook too long, it can burn easily. Add wine as soon as the garlic is evenly stirred into the onions. 2. Keep your face and body away from the pot when adding the wine, sometimes it can bubble or pop as the liquid meets the oil (speaking from experience lol).

5. Add eggplant, zucchini and tomatoes to your pot. Stir and move the veggies around until they have mixed completely with the onions/garlic/wine mixture. At this point, its also a good time to season with salt and pepper (to your liking).

6. Add 2 tablespoons of olive oil + 1.5-2 cups of water or veggie stock to your pot (this will help the veggies stew). Stir.

7. Add the rest of your seasonings and herbs to the pot: basil, onion powder, garlic powder, cumin, thyme, paprika, cinnamon.

8. Cover. Reduce heat to low. Allow to stew, on low for about 40 minutes, stirring occasionally.

9. After the ingredients have cooked-down (your eggplant should be creamy and completely broken down) stir in your tomato paste and allow to cook, covered, for another 5-10 minutes or so.

10. Taste your bolognese and add any salt or pepper it may need. (I season a few times throughout the cooking process and taste at each step, especially with stews or foods that cook for a long time. The flavor can change many times during the process.)

11. Allow bolognese to sit for about 10 minutes, to thicken and cool.

12. Serve over your favorite pasta or garlic bread. Nom!

Enjoy!