Well hello again! It sure has been a long time since I posted last but I swear it’s for a good reason! This past Friday I handed in my 14 case studies and wrote my final exam to officially become a holistic nutritionist! As much as I would have loved to keep posting regularly I spent virtually every spare second I had in the weeks leading up to Friday working on course work or studying.
But I did it! And now I just have to sit on pins and needles for the next couple of months to get the results. It feels pretty surreal to actually have completed all my classes and all my case work towards having a nutrition designation. I really loved everything I was learning but being a full-time student as well as working multiple jobs certainly had its tough moments. I am so excited to have time again to share some healthy recipes and wellness tips with you all. And hopefully, in a couple of months I’ll be able to report that I am officially a Registered Holistic Nutritionist! *Fingers crossed!*
Until then, I’ll have a lot more time to share yummy things with you like these recipes I enjoyed in July! Hint: You’ll want to stick around ’til the end of the post because I saved the best for last 😉
1. Green smoothie
A green smoothie in the beautiful outdoors? Yes please! I enjoyed many treats with my family while we were all at the cottage for a week in July but I also made room for plenty of veggies. Blended up some spinach, avocado, banana, peanut butter, almond milk and ice cubes for a nutritious start to the day!
2. Roasted Veggie Salad with Avocado Dressing
The inspiration for this recipe actually came from one of those videos that have been all over Facebook lately. You know the ones — where it’s pretty much the world’s quickest cooking show displaying all the ingredients and how to throw the whole thing together all crammed into a 2 minute video of inspirational deliciousness? Unfortunately I can’t find the video again but I can tell you it made me a convert to roasted veggies on salad. This summer I’ve been craving salad but also want it to feel satiating and roasted veggies will do just that! I roasted up some acorn squash, bell peppers and Brussels sprouts in coconut oil, rosemary, thyme and pink Himalayan salt, then threw them over some spring greens, added in some edamame and topped the whole thing with an avocado dressing — but you could also just do a balsamic and olive oil dressing and it would be equally delicious. So if you feel like a salad but don’t know if it will be filling enough, I highly recommend this!
3. Frozen Berries and Coconut Milk
Easiest dessert or snack ever! Just frozen berries, left out to thaw a little, and topped with coconut milk or coconut cream. I got lucky on this one and happened to buy a can of coconut milk that was pretty thick but otherwise you can put a full can of coconut milk in the fridge so the cream and water separate, then open it, scoop out the coconut cream and whisk it to fluff it up, adding some of the water back in if needed to get it to your preferred consistency. You can also add a little maple syrup or other sweetener of your choice if you would like. Then top your berries with a few spoonfuls and enjoy!
4. Crispy Tofu and Roasted Veggies
If you don’t like tofu, this might make you a convert. It sure did for my sister! Simply squeeze some of the excess moisture out of your block of tofu, then cut it into cubes. Toss the cubes in coconut flour mixed with some turmeric and cumin and then pan-fry them in coconut oil and sprinkle with sea salt. Pair it with roasted vegges of your choosing and you’ve got yourself a hearty vegan dinner!
5. Spicy Coleslaw
Cabbage is a fabulous veggie option as it’s loaded with vitamins and minerals and doesn’t spoil quickly. That’s why you’ll pretty much always find this underrated vegetable in my fridge. When I’m short on vegetables I can turn to this spicy coleslaw with tahini dressing recipe which is made almost entirely of items I can keep in my fridge constantly (I leave out the green onions if I have to) and can be whipped up in a flash. Paired it with some rotisserie chicken for my kind of KFC 😉
6. Chocolate Fudge Squares
Okay, I really loved all the recipes featured here, but this is the one I am most excited to share with you because it is divine! These chocolate snack bars taste just like the oat fudge bars from Starbucks that I used to love before I developed my food allergies. But they’re even better because they’re delicious AND made of whole ingredients like pecans, rolled oats, cocoa powder and coconut oil. You seriously have to try these! They’re soooooo good!
Thanks for being patient with me getting this one out! I’m really looking forward to getting back to a regular blogging schedule. I hope you give some of these recipes a whirl and let me know what you think!