It’s definitely that time of year when we want silky smooth skin (I mean, don’t we always). Plus if you’ve ever had dandruff, or brittle hair and nails, this recipe is a must for you! Its got great sources of trace minerals like zinc and selenium as well as vitamin E and healthy fats that are so essential for a glow up. Also, the nutritional yeast is a b-complex powerhouse to help you feel super energized and buzzin like you’re made for. Not to mention is goes PERFECTLY on top of all the seasonal pesto, tomato, basil pasta perfections you’ve been enjoying lately 😛 Give this one a go!
3 Seed Parmesan Cheese
Makes ~10-15 servings
1 cup Brazil nuts
1 cup raw pumpkin seeds
1 cup sunflower seeds
3/4 cup nutritional yeast
0.5-3 tsp salt
1 tsp garlic powder
Blend in a food processor S blade until perfect parm consistency
Make it cherry ;P Haha have fun with this one! You seriously can’t mess it up. I invite you to truly savor the beautiful people in our lives right now and have this memorial day be one of utmost gratitude. If you are having a celebration and feel anxious around food at parties, this is your time to seriously practice self trust, self love, and release the ideas of shame around certain foods. We are here to be happy and free, and we can choose a perception that serves us. No more beating ourselves up. Just fully enjoy!
If you feel called to help those who have been wounded in war, whether that be physically, mentally, or even a loved one of a wounded warrior, I invite you to donate to the Wounded Warrior Project. This is a very progressive organization active in helping those who need it most. I am confident the funds will help. Or, if you live in the SoCal area, it would be awesome to see you at their 5k in late August.
Crust:
20 medjool dates, pitted
6 oz raw almonds
1 tsp vanilla extract
Steps:
Line a 9×6 baking dish with parchment paper (feel free to try round spring cake pan, pie plate, or square pan!)
Using food processor S blade, blend the crust ingredients until well combined and pressable texture for crust, nice and chunky, not paste or butter
Press crust evenly into parchment lined dish
Cheesecake:
2 cups raw cashews, soaked in the fridge overnight and drained
So if you really knew me, you would know that I have considered myself vegan for 8+ years and I LOVE SEAFOOD. I grew up north of Boston where lobster rolls, clam chowdah, tuna melts, cod, haddock, salmon, scallops, muscles.. all of it. Were what I grew up on and 😛 I’m obsessed with. AND I chose not to purchase those foods anymore because of many reasons, a few I mentioned in the video. My mom’s birthday was Sunday May 19th and I know one of her favorite meals is a simply divine tuna melt. So I made, in honor of her, the best damn vegan tuna melt everr.
!! TuNa MeLt !!
Chickpea “Tuna”Adapted from the amazing forks over knives website
1 can chickpeas, drained and mashed
3 Tbsp tahini
1-2 tsp mustard
¼ cup onion
¼ cup celery
¼ cup pickle
kelp
Turmeric
Salt
Pepper
Mix well!
Ooey Gooey Melty Cheez:
2 C. potatoes, diced large
1 C. carrots, diced large
1/2 C. water
1/4 C. olive oil (or just use 1/4 an avocado)
2 tsp. salt
1 Tbsp. lemon juice (fresh is best!)
1/2 C. nutritional yeast flakes
1/4 tsp. onion powder
1/4 garlic clove (or 1/4 tsp powder)
Dash of cayenne
Boil the potatoes and carrots until soft.
Blend potatoes and carrots with the rest of the ingredients on high in blender until the cheese is extremely smooth. I use my high-powered VitaMix blender.
I’ve decided if you don’t like Mexican food, you simply haven’t tried enough of it yet. There is such variety! The colors, flavors, textures YUM! Like. They had avocado toast on lock way before it became a $15 hot ticket item at legit every cafe in Beverly Hills. The recipes I provided below are off the chaaaiinnss people. Like. SERIOUSLY. I made them with my friend Sky and she actually, after trying one chip with nacho cheese and taco meat, fell to the ground and yelled, “How have I lived so many days without this!?” lol Seriously so good. Can’t wait for you to try!
United We Dream
In this video, I put more on the table than just a few healthy recipes. As a Zumba instructor, Mexican food connoisseur, and a friend to many who identify as Hispanic, Mexican, and Latino, I gave a shout out to the organization United We Dream for taking a stand. I hope you check them out and support! With how grateful I am for all of the diversity of cultures in my life, it can be overwhelming feeling like there is nothing I can do to help. United We Dream makes it easy and I am so grateful. If you just want the recipes skip forward to 7:27 in the video.
Taco ‘Meat’:
•2 cups zucchini, finely diced
•1 cup brazil nut, ground (I used walnut)
•½ cup crimini mushrooms, finely diced
•½ cup onion, minced
•5 tablespoons Mexican chili powder
•¼ cup celery, finely minced
•2 Tbs nutritional yeast
•2 Tbs lemon juice
•1 teaspoon Himalayan salt
•1 teaspoon garlic, minced
•½ tsp cayenne
1. grind nuts into flour
2. add in chopped veggies
3. add in Mexican fiesta seasoning, nutritional yeast, garlic, lemon juice
4. mix!
Nacho ‘Cheese’
2 C. potatoes, diced large
1 C. carrots, diced large
1/2 C. water
1/4 C. olive oil (or just use 1/4 an avocado)
2 tsp. salt
1 Tbsp. lemon juice (fresh is best!)
1/2 C. nutritional yeast flakes
1/4 tsp. onion powder
1/4 garlic clove (or 1/4 tsp powder)
Dash of cayenne
1. Boil the potatoes and carrots until soft.
2. Blend potatoes and carrots with the rest of the ingredients on high in blender until the cheese is extremely smooth. I use my high-powered VitaMix blender.
3. Store in refrigerator for up to a week
Baked Tortilla Chips
Small organic corn tortillas, no toxic additives in the ingredients 👀
1. Preheat oven to 400-420*F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper
2. Slice tortillas into 6 ships and spread evenly on parchment so none are stacking
3. Bake for about 15 minutes or until chips are golden and crispy 🤪🤪🤪✨ enjoy
EPA reports “Every bit of plastic ever made still exists.”
Instead of trippin about the not-so-great realities of today, I’ve decided to take action. There is a lot that we can do to help. Just by upcycling old T-shirts, we are significantlyreducing plastic waste.
Fish in the North Pacific ingest 12,000 to 24,000 tons of plastic each year, which can cause intestinal injury and death and transfers plastic up the food chain to bigger fish, marine mammals and human seafood eaters.
I love being the health fairy. Everyone appreciates that one dish that is actually delish AND in alignment with everyones health goals. Hope you get inspired by this to have fun in the kitchen with what you’ve got and make something colorful, healthy, and delish
Ingredients:
1 cup quinoa, rinsed
1 cup lentils, soaked + rinsed
Combine + Boil in 4 cups water + let cool
1-2 bags or bunches of kale
1-2 pomegranates
1-2 cups chopped pecans
4-6 persimmons, the smaller kind, chopped
Dressing:
5-8 dates, pitted
3 Tbsp hemp seed
1-2 chunks fresh ginger
3 Tbsp cashews or tahini
3 Tbsp raw almond butter
3/4-1 cup water
Blend smooth and creamy
1. Massage dressing into kale
2. Add the quinoa, lentils, and rest of ingredients and mix well
3. SHARE WITH EVERYONE!
To everyone out there who once said, “I LOVE CHEESECAKE” Look no further. Seriously.
These babes are so delish, and are actually full of ingredients for sustained calm energy, mood, and even improve digestion and immunity! How!? Well, using healthy foods like dates, pecans, and cashews of course. But also! I am a huge fan of the Lavva Yogurt company.
Their yogurt is pili nut based with 0 (zero!) added refined sugars, and 50 billion! Yes 50 billion probiotics. Probiotics are amazing for of course digestion and beautiful perfect snake poops, (yay!), but did you know that most of our serotonin (the feel good neurotransmitter) is produced in the gut? Plus, our GI is an open vessel to the outside world, and is lined with inflammatory and immune cells ready to fire to protect us from invaders. It makes sense if the biota is thrown off, our immunity and inflammation would be all over the place.
I love how this yogurt tastes and makes me feel so much that I got it for a yogurt parfait bar at one of The Shift retreats that I chef at. The ladies 1. loved it and 2. Were floored with how amazing their digestion was after just one weekend! Granted, my whole foods plant based cuisine helps peoples digestion, but honestly often people will complain of discomfort and gas due to so much fiber they are eating all of a sudden. With the addition of this effective delish yogurt, it really helped!
Fall is! Well, here in Venice, CA it actually still feels like Summer… BUT the PSL (pumpkin spice latte) is back at Starbucks sooo therefore it’s time to throw pumpkin spice, pecans, and chai gingery goodness in absolutely everything.
I am a huge fan of drink mud. The founders are basically neighbors of mine, local here in Venice. They have a great mission to help get people feeling energized and thriving without overstimulating the adrenals from coffee. Their product drink mud has medicinal mushrooms, cacao, turmeric, and Indian Chai spicee. It does have a tad of caffeine, making these superfood balls the best pick me up that ever happened!
Ingredients:
1 can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1/4 cup tahini
1/4 cup almond butter
8-10 medjool dates, pitted
1-2 Tbsp Drink Mud Powder: https://www.mudwtr.com/ . (option to use your favorite mix of spices and superfoods like pumpkin pie spice, spirulina, maca, hemp, cinnamon, cacao, etc.)
1-2 thumbs fresh ginger, grated (optional)
2-3 tsp vanilla extract
sprinkle of pink salt
1 Tbsp pumpkin spice powder
1 cup pecans, chopped
1/2 cup cacao nibs
1 cup unsweetened dried coconut
Steps:
Food processor S blade: blend chickpeas, dates, tahini, nut butter, vanilla, mud powder, ginger, and salt until smooth
In a separate bowl, combine pumpkin spice powder, cinnamon, coconut, and pecans
Using a tablespoon, create balls of dough and roll them into the separate bowl to coat with pecans, coconut, and more spice
Keep in the fridge for about a week or freeze for about a month
Warning: you will feel like LIFE IS AMAZING after eating these and you may want to run 15 miles or something. Do your best not to eat them before bed 🙂
Fact: The way we prepare our food changes its nutrient content. So, if you’re going to cook your food, in a soup is the best way! Cooking in water means the food can’t go over 212*F. This is a plus because the higher the heat, the more nutrients are denatured and destroyed and the more carcinogenic properties begin to form. With moist heat, there is now browning or charring occurring. Also, in a soup all of the nutrients are cooked into the broth instead of drained out. So you’re eating all of those incredible vitamins and minerals instead of pouring them down the drain with the water.
Medicinal Ingredients
Is it possible to make a whole foods plant based soup that isn’t medicinal magic? Flavor it up with ginger, garlic, and onion, Throw in that turmeric and black pepper and make a curry. Use all those veggies you never heard of like romanesco, leek, and lion’s mane mushroom. The ingredients in hearty wholesome soups and stews are powerful disease prevention and reversal medicine for a calm mind and a happy healthy and long beautiful life!
Variety on Variety
Vegetable soups, bean stews, creamy squash, chili, bisque, even chilled raw soups! The possibilities are endless. Thickening up by blending with cashews, chopping some veggies chunky, blending others, using vegetable juices for a base, maybe even coconut milk, garnishing with pumpkin seeds, or even avocado. There are so many kinds of soups. I eat them almost daily and don’t think I’ll ever get sick of them.
Easy Peasy
Feeling lazy? Me too. I’m down to heat up some water and throw in all my favorite veggies and spices any day. ( me everyday ) Yay soup!
Underrated AF
Soup is a great option. Sure, if you get it in a can it can have some extra sodium look for less than 300mg of sodium per serving or find “no salt added” or “low sodium” options and maybe if you get them at a restaurant they’ll have some oil, but overall, whole foods plant based soups and soups are an incredible option not to be overlooked. Please try making at LEAST one of these recipes this winter!
3 cups carrot juice (3 pounds of carrots, juiced, or put 2-4 carrots chopped in a blender with enough water to reach 3 cups and blend until smooth) (they sell carrot juice at whole foods and trader joe’s)
2 14.5oz cans of diced tomatoes (Muir Glen Fire Roasted – No Salt Added)
3 cups canned black beans (drained and rinsed)
1 15oz can tomato sauce
1 cup low sodium vegetable broth/stock
diced avocado and chopped green onion, garnish
In a large pot, heat the oil over medium-high heat. Add the onions, bell peppers, and garlic, stirring until soft, about 3 minutes.
Add zucchini, corn, and mushrooms, and cook, stirring, until soft and the vegetables give off their liquid and start to brown around the edges, about 6 minutes.
Add the chili powder, cumin, salt, and cayenne, and cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 30 seconds.
Add the tomatoes and stir well. Add the beans, tomato sauce, and vegetable stock, stir well, and bring to a boil.
Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer, stirring occasionally, for about 20 minutes.
Remove from heat and adjust seasoning to taste.
3. THE HERO POT
A large pot
1 red onion
2 garlic cloves
1 small chunk of ginger
1 tbsp ground or fresh turmeric
1 sweet potato
1 cup red lentils
~6 cups filtered water
~1/2 cup broccoli
~1/2 cup celery
~1/2 cup mushrooms
~1/2 cup peas
Lime and avocado to garnish
Prep ingredients: chop vegetables, mince garlic + ginger
Sautee onions and garlic in pot in 1/3 cup of water (keep a jug of water nearby to add as needed)
Add turmeric, lentils, sweet potato, and 5 cups of water and bring to boil for about 10 minutes
Turn down heat to simmer and add in rest of ingredients to simmer for about 15 minutes
VITAMIN KATIE 