Cauliflower Tortilla

Cauliflower Tortilla

Protein Power

Cauliflower is one of the best vegetables around.  It has so many benefits from being anti-inflammatory to aiding in digestion.  If you want to address your gut health then cauliflower simply must go into your diet. These tortillas are so easy and super quick to make.  That's an important factor right there.  

Green spiral cauliflower

Because I just love the way this looks and feels....

Cauliflower Tortilla

1 Small head of cauliflower.  I used the green one but you can use the white one also.

2 Eggs

Himalayan salt to taste

Coconut oil for baking

2 Medium tomatoes or a handful of cherry tomatoes

1 Thinly sliced red onion, diced

1 Avo

A handful of coriander

Oilve oil

Lemon Juice

Labneh (or any cream cheese)

Place the raw cauli in your blender or food processor and blend to make cauli 'rice'.  Steam until soft.  Allow to cool and then place in a dish towel and squeeze the liquid out of it, the 'rice' needs to be dry.  Beat your eggs and mix together with the 'rice.  Add your salt.  Line a baking try with baking paper and a little coconut oil.  You can use ghee also.  Spoon the mixture onto the try, should make 4.  Then bake in the oven for about 10 minutes.  Flip the tortillas over and bake for a further 6 minutes. Once baked, remove from the over and place in a frying pan to brown for a few minutes.  You can skip this step if you're in a hurry.  :-)

Don't eat it just yet

Although it is simply scrumptious

In the meantime while the tortillas are baking, you may chop your veggies mix them in a bowl and season with salt adding the olive oil and lemon juice.  Once the tortillas are ready spread the labneh onto your tortillas and then add your salad.  That's it.  Simple and easy and really delicious.  A great way to feed your kid stye healthy stuff.  They can even make it for you.  Of course you can fill them with anything at all.  A little pink hummus would look amazing or try my almond pulp hummus leftover from making almond milk.  

Add the labneh

Labney is a cheese made from yoghurt

Now gobble it up

Happy healthy gut

Next: Ricotta Aubergine Cannelloni

Vegan Green Soup

This is absolutely one of my favourite soups.  Not only is it super delicious but it is considered a superfood also because of the chlorophyll in green veggies.  The benefits are numerous and since we've been talking about liver cleansing, chlorophyll improves liver detoxification.  It helps fight cancer, it helps to speed up the healing of wounds, helps to control weight and protects the health of our skin.  

Vegan Green Soup

3 leeks (you can also use onions)

1 x punnet of courgettes

1/2 punnet of cauliflower

1/2 punnet of broccoli

1 tsp coriander powder

1 tsp cumin powder

1 tsp turmeric

1 tsp black mustard seeds

Tamari

Ghee or coconut oil

Tahini

Black pepper

Boiling water - adjust amount according to how thick you like your soup.  About 3 cups.  

Heat the coconut oil or ghee or mixture of the two.  Fry leeks until cooked.  Add chopped courgettes, cauliflower and broccoli and fry them to bring out the flavours.  Add tamari and spices.  Once the veggies are soft, you can add boiling water and allow to cook.  

Fry veggies

until they are cooked

Blend using a handheld blender

Add tahini. About a tablespoon.

Put your soup in a bowl and grind the black pepper.  I've served it here with essene bread.  Yum.  

Next: Cauliflower Tortilla

Liver Detox

Most of us are not aware of the importance of the liver and its role in our digestive process and in fact the connection to all of our organs proper function.  Our liver is responsible for processing, converting, distributing and maintaining the nutrients coming from the foods we eat.  When we don’t give our bodies optimal nutrition we overload the liver and the functions become impeded and the health of every cell in our body is affected.  We make many mistakes that we are simply unaware of such as eating processed foods with chemical additives, artificial sweetners, stress, unbalanced lifestyles, pharmaceuticals and environmental toxins and as time passes our livers begin to reveal signs of it's struggle to process all these foreign substances.  The liver bile ducts become clogged with deposits of hardened bile which ultimately cause digestive function impairment.  Over time this becomes a major cause of illness. 

If you have persisting difficulties in your physical and emotional health, your liver may be congested with these deposits of hardened bile.  Emotionally this may present as fear, anger, sadness, impatience, depression and discontent.  When we are healthy in our body, our mind and emotional life is also healthy.  Cleansing the liver of these hardened bile deposits can help restore balance, harmony and happiness in every facet of our lives. 

Some of the symptoms you may experience if your liver is overtaxed are: 

Digestive problems

Weak eyesight

Recurring headaches

Skin disorders

Irregular menstrual cycle

Painful menstruation

Weight gain

Lethargy

Premature ageing

Bloated intestines

Indigestion

Bowl problems

Lack of concentration

Allergies

Joint pain

Loss of memory

Back pain

Food cravings

Diarrhea

Constipation

Nausea

Puffy eyes

Liver spots

Coated tongue

Teeth problems

Of course cleansing the body of all of these toxins is of utmost importance to our continuing health.  A juice cleanse is definitely a good start to cleaning out our systems and including a liver detox in our cleansing process to help sweep the liver of potentially thousands of ‘stones’ that block the bile ducts will go a very long way to resetting your body and ultimately your life.   

For information on how to perform a cleanse on your own at home, please follow the link: Hulda Clark's liver cleanse

We are now offering an optional liver cleanse on our juicing retreats because we have found that while juicing is an excellent and profound cleansing technique, that cleansing the liver provides an even deeper and often essential reset and start to changing your lifestyle.  See our upcoming retreats.

Pretty in Pink Hummus

This is the prettiest hummus that I have ever seen.  I wanted to make hummus.  Straight forward hummus and so I diligently soaked the chickpeas over night and in the morning brought them to the boil, turned them off and popped them in the hot bag.  I never use tinned chickpeas, it is super easy to cook them as and when they are needed.  Later that day, I rinsed the chickpeas, placed them in the blender and added the ingredients.  Just then I noticed the beetroot sitting in the crisper in the fridge and so I peeled it and dropped it in.  The result was this beautiful and out of this world pink hummus.  Give it a try.  

Pretty in Pink Hummus

2 cups cooked chickpeas

1 small peeled raw beetroot

1/4 cup tahini

2 cloves garlic

Salt to taste

Pinch of paprika 

1/4 cup olive oil

1 large lemon

Everything in the blender

Add olive oil and lemon juice alternating a little at a time while blending....

Everything goes in the blender with a little water if needed and blend.  Pulse until the chickpeas begin making a paste and then while you alternately add the lemon juice and olive oil allow to run on low speed until your hummus resembles mine.  Serve with zatar and olive oil.  I ate these on seed crackers with cherry tomatoes and a little coriander.  Can't get enough really.  

Next: Vegan Green Soup

Vegan Thai Green Curry

I love Thai curry.  Well any curry really but Thai curry is one of my absolute favourites.  Ever since I spent time in Thailand more than 20 years ago.  It wasn't until recently however when I visted Bangkok that I realised that most Thai food is made with fish sauce.  Now obviously I won't eat fish sauce but I did want to create a Thai curry that would have an authentic flavour as well as be super nutritious.  So first I had to make a paste to use in the curry.  

Thai green curry paste

1/4 cup of cashew nuts soaked over night

Stick lemon grass

Thumb of fresh ginger or galangal

3 cloves of garlic

Green chillies (how hot do you like it?)

Shallot or small onion

10 x Kafir lime leaves

2 x limes

1/4 tsp coriander spice

1/4 tsp cumin spice

Bunch of fresh coriander

Bunch of fresh basil leaves

Salt to taste

1/4 cup water

Vegan Thai Green Curry Paste

Blend all ingredients in the blender

Vegan Thai Green Curry

1/2 cup short grain brown rice

Coconut oil or sesame oil

1/2 small red onion or shallot chopped

1 clove garlic chopped

Thumb ginger chopped

1 green chilli

1 red chilli

1/2 punnet of baby corn

1/2 punnet of sugar snap peas

1/2 head of cauliflower

Bunch of coriander leaves

Bunch of fresh basil

Green leafy veggies like pokchoi, tatsoi or spinach leaves

1 can of coconut milk (I used Good Life - nothing but coconut and water)

1 - 2 limes

1 tbsp peanut butter

Tamari or soya sauce

First cook the rice - the curry goes quickly from here and you are wanting your veggies to be just cooked not too soft.  In a saucepan heat your coconut or sesame oil.  Stir fry the onions or shallots with the ginger, garlic and chilli for about 5 minutes until cooked.  Now add your your corn, cauliflower and sugar snaps.  Stir fry adding the coriander and cumin powders.  Veggies must be firm but not quite cooked. 

Veggies must be firm

....but cooked.

Now add your paste and allow the veggies to absorb the flavours.  Add the coconut milk and simmer for about 5 more minutes.  Add your tamari or soya sauce, fresh lime juice and the peanut butter.  Simmer for 2 more minutes and add your leafy greens and right at the end just as you turn off the stove the basil.  Garnish with your fresh coriander and red chilli.  

Next: Pretty in pink hummus

Almond milk and other fun stuff

Almonds

Almonds are amazing little power detoxifying nuts. They contain healthy fats, fiber, protein, magnesium and vitamin E. The benefits of almonds include lowering blood sugar levels, and reducing blood pressure and lowering cholesterol. Have a handful of almonds and reduce hunger while promoting weight loss.

It really doesn't get easier than making fresh almond milk.  There are two ways that you can do it and both involve soaking the almonds over night.  When you have a lot of almond milk to make the way I do on our detox retreats then the first method is the quickest and easiest.  But if you have just a little to make then it's a very good idea to use the second method.  The ratio almonds is one to 4.  So one cup of almonds (before soaking) to 4 cups of water.  

Soak almonds overnight

Almond Milk 1

Ladle the nuts and water into the juicer at the same time until all the water and nuts become milk.  

Almond Milk 2

Blend the nuts with a little water in the blender until you make a paste.  Add your water and mix.  Then, pass your almonds through a nut bag.  That's it.  

Almond Pulp

Lots and lots of uses. I'm gonna make hummus with it.

Almond Pulp Hummus

Pulp from one batch of almond milk. I make a litre at a time.

1 clove of garlic

3 tbs tahini

Juice of 2 lemons

Olive oil

Salt to taste

Paprika to taste

Blend the almond pulp in the blender. Add the garlic, tahini, salt and paprika. You may need a little water. Add a little olive oil and a little lemon juice alternately until the hummus is made. That's it.

Dry Almonds in the oven or dehydrator

These seed breads are so delicious and nutritious and are intact full of protein.  You could be forgiven for thinking they taste just like little breads.  You can store them in the fridge for a about a week or if you are not going to use them up immediately you can freeze them for about a month.  Remember they have no preservatives in them so gobble them up right away.  

Almond Seed Breads

Two cups almond pulp

Quarter cup almond flour 

Tbsp psyllium husks

Handful of mixed seeds

Salt and pepper to taste

Mix all the ingredients together and by hand and place on a sheet of wax baking paper. Shape with your hands flattening the mixture. Score with a butter knife or a rubber spatula. Bake in the oven for 40 minutes.  Allow to cool and serve with toppings of your choice.  

Make Almond Flour

In your blender....

Dry or even roast your almonds.  If using a dehydrator, then leave it to dry for about 3 hours.  You can also dry them in the oven on a low temperature.  Roasting them is also a really great idea.  I like to roast them, mix them with date jam made from soaking dates in hot water, rolling into little balls and pouring raw chocolate over them.  Enjoy.

Next: Vegan Thai green curry

Juices for beautiful skin

While taking processed foods out of your diet and keeping it clean and wholesome, your skin will automatically take on a healthy glow, even skin tone and rosy cheeks.  There is no substitute for a healthy diet when it comes to skin. The skin is the largest organ in the body and its the last organ that shows when health returns.  Here are a few juices that are known for their skin boosting properties.  

Vitamin A rich Organic Carrots

Carrot Juice

Carrots are packed with beta carotene which is a vitamin A that helps prevent the degeneration of cells.  It slows ageing and brings on a beautiful glowing skin.  Vitamin A found in carrot juice also helps keep the tissues of the body, the eyes, bones and teeth healthy.  Carrots also have vitamin C which promotes collagen growth.  A regular intake of carrot juice helps reduce dark spots and, acne and scars due to the maintenance of electrolyte balance .

Parsley Juice

Add a little parsley to your juice to help clear up blemishes for an even skin tone.  The vitamin K makes parsley a great juice for glowing skin.  Parsely also helps to prevent bladder infections by keeping the urinary tract, liver and kidneys clean.

Pomegranites from the farm

Pomegranate Juice

A regular or daily glass of pomegranate juice will help repair even the worst looking skin.  The anti-aging properties in pomegranates will bring the natural glow back to the skin even when the skin seems beyond repair, a daily glass of pomegranate juice will help clear and heal the skin. 

Beetroot Juice

Beautiful beet juice is the first choice If you want a boost of iron, potassium, niacin, copper and vitamin C.  Beets have anti-inflammatory benefits, plus calcium, manganese, magnesium, zinc and folic acid.  Beet juice will help flush your liver and cure skin conditions for healthy, glowing skin.  The amazing colour also matches the blood so anything to do with blood is benefitted from drinking this superhero of a juice.  Beetroot juice also helps lower blood pressure.  In fact a glass of beetroot juice will lower blood pressure immediately and it will stay low for 24 hours after drinking.  

Ginger, lemon and ceyenne pepper

Ginger, Turmeric and Cayenne Pepper

Ginger juice boosts the immune system.  It contains magnesium, potassium, manganese and vitamin B6 for anti-inflammatory benefits.  Add a little turmeric for anti inflammatory properties and increasing the body's antioxidant properties, cayenne pepper to activate the turmeric and povide detox support, stimulate the circulatory system and regulate blood sugar. it also helps the digestive system. Adding ginger to other juices also adds natural anti-aging antioxidants.  All this bringing health to the skin.  

More recipes for a beautiful skin:

Well and Good

Mind Body Green

Next: Almond milk and other fun stuff

Cleansing Beetroot Juice

Beets are a fantastic source of folate, manganese, thiamin, riboflavin, vitamin B-6, pantothenic acid, choline, betaine, magnesium, phosphorus, potassium, zinc, copper and selenium.

The amazing benefits of beetroots are super effective when they are juiced.

Beetroots actually help lower blood pressure

Your blood pressure can lower immediately after drinking beetroot juice and can stay lowered for up to twenty-four hours. Researchers believe that this impact on blood pressure is due to naturally occurring nitrates found in beets. All vegetables contain nitrates, but an average-sized beet contains 20 times more dietary nitrates than any others.

In one study, researchers found that drinking just one glass of beet juice lowered systolic pressure by 4 to 5 points. In another study, participants who consumed beet juice for a month had a reduction in blood pressure, improvements in endothelial function, and reduced arterial stiffness.

Detoxify with beets

Beet juice is a super effective detox drink that can help your liver dump damaging toxins and stimulate liver cells. This is due to methionine and glycine betaine that help to keep fatty acids from building up.

Protects from premature ageing

Beetroot juice protects your skin with antioxidants by neutralizing free radicals. The lycopene in the juice helps to keep the skin elastic while protecting it from the sun.

Recipe

Beetroot

Carrot

Orange

Ginger 

Turmeric

Pass all ingredients through a juicer.  Drink and enjoy.  

Next: Juices for a beautiful skin

Amazing Green Juice

Green juice has amazing benefits.  It has an alkalizing effect on the body, it neutralises toxins and at the same time immediately supplies a transfusion of absorbable chlorophyll-rich phytonutrients to the cells and bloodstream.  Essentially the super concentrated nutrients, nourish to the body and is packed with enzymes, vitamins, minerals and amino acids.  

Green juice has far reaching effects on our retreats and greatly assists the detoxification process but should really be included in our day to day lives.  

Juicing the liquid out of raw fruits and vegetables delivers more nutrients than you can possibly consume by eating the produce.  It doesn't mean you shouldn't eat the plant, you should always add more greens to your diet, but the juice will detoxify you and give your digestive system a rest while giving your body dense nutrients.  

Ingredients

Spinach

Kale

Apple

Celery 

Cucumber

Lemon

How to prepare the juice

Chop everything and pass through your juicer.  I like to leave some of the zest on the lemon to give it a zing and for it not to be too sweet.  Use about a quarter of an apple for each person.  Drink as often as you can and you will physically see the benefits through your eyes, your skin and your hair. 

Annie Wyatt makes a green juice as an example of one of the juices given on both our Cape Town Retreats and Namaste Retreats India retreats. Full of nutrition, green juices are perfect for detoxing the body. . Follow this recipe: Spinach, kale, cucumber, green apple, mint and lemon. Yummy delicious.

Next: Cleansing Beetroot Juice

Pineapple Power

Pineapple is a powerhouse of valuable enzymes.  In particular bromelain, which helps break down protein, and ease coughs and loosen mucus.  Pineapple juice is a good alternative to cough syrup for a sore throat and indeed can be more effective. Bromelain is marvellous  for reducing inflammation from arthritis, injuries, laryngitis, and sinusitis, in addition to treating and preventing cardiovascular diseases, including angina and atherosclerosis. Pineapple also provides potassium, chlorine, sodium, phosphorus, magnesium, sulfur, calcium, iron and iodine along with vitamins A, B complex and C.

Ingredients
1 whole pineapple
2 green apples and
handful of mint leaves.

How to prepare the juice
Cut the spiny leaves and skin and chop into pieces.  Peel your green apples and wash your mint.  Pass through the juice extractor and drink as a refreshing drink after exercise or as a cold and flu remedy.  

This cooling fruit has amazing anti-inflammatory properties and is powerful as a digestive and cleansing aid. A sweet tropical treat, pineapple is high in natural sugar, and we recommend combining it with low-sugar fruits and vegetables to balance the glycemic index and avoid sugar spikes. The flavor and texture of pineapple combine especially well with citrus, cinnamon, ginger and mint, and its tang and aroma are brilliant for masking the pungent qualities of leafy greens and the earthiness of beets. 

Next: Detoxifying the kidneys

Detoxifying the kidneys

Our kidneys are one of the our most vital organs in our bodies.  About 200 liters of blood pass through our kidneys every day.   Our kidneys are our bodys' defense mechanism and remove about 2 liters of waste and excess water from our body through urine daily.  The amount of toxins that enter the kidneys cause major diseases.   Food that cause the most harm to our kidneys are processed foods, animal protein, artificial sweeteners, carbonated drinks, caffeine and cigarettes not to mention environmental toxins.  

Our diets and lifestyles have significantly changed over the past few hundred years and even the air we breathe, the quality of the food we eat has changed.  Is it any wonder we are becoming sick

Natural Kidney Cleansing Juice

This juice can help you clean your kidneys fast enabling them to function normally helping you to flush your body of toxins and keep your body healthy.  This juice is so simple you won't believe it.  And it's delicious. 

Ingredients
8 large carrots
2 green apples and
1 large cucumber.

How to prepare the juice
Wash the ingredients. Peel the carrots, apples and cucumbers. Cut the carrots in smaller pieces. Slice the apples and cucumbers. Pass through a juice extractor and drink on a daily basis.

How it works:

Carrots contain a high level of beta carotene, a form of vitamin A that can help the kidneys to properly clear the toxins from the blood and that way prevent urinary infections. Beta carotene can also reduce inflammation and repair some damaged structures of the kidneys. Pectin that is also present in the carrots is very useful diuretic even more powerful than synthetic ones.

Apples are kidney friendly food that contains antioxidants and vitamin C that help against harmful substances.

Cucumbers are famous for being the best kidney cleaners. They can wash off sand and stones from your kidneys and bladder. With their regular use the level of uric acid in the body normalizes and that way prevents formation of stones and similar structures.

Next: Amazing Green Juice

Everyday Dal

1 x cup of masoor dal (red lentils)

1 x onion chopped

1 x clove of garlic chopped

1 x thumb of ginger chopped

1 x small red chilli chopped (optional)

8 x curry leaves

250g mushrooms

3 x medium tomatoes

1.5 tsp cumin seeds

1.5 tsp mustard seeds

1.5 tsp turmeric

1.5 tsp cumin powder

1.5 tsp coriander powder

1.5 tsp garam masala

Fresh lemon juice

Coconut oil

Tamari

Salt

Fresh coriander

In a pan, heat about two tablespoons of coconut oil.  When the oil is hot, add your cumin seeds making sure that they sizzle. This is key to creating a delicious authentic Indian meal.  Add your mustard seeds and allow them to pop much like popcorn. Add curry leaves and allow the aroma to release.  Add the chopped garlic, ginger and chilli.  Be careful not to burn. Add your onions and cook slowly until the they are golden brown.  then add the chopped mushrooms and allow to brown adding a dash of tamari.  Allow to cook.  Add tomatoes and cook until soft.   Add your cumin, coriander and turmeric powders. Mix and add a little water if it becomes too dry.  This is called your masala (your spice mix).  Now rinse the dal and add to the pan frying for about 2 - 3 minutes coating the lentils in your masala paste. You want the lentils to fry a little and turn yellow from the turmeric. Add boiling water depending on the consistency you like.  Less water for a thicker dal and more for a runnier dal.  Serve with short grain brown rice (wonderful on the digestive system).  Allow to cook for 20 minutes adding lemon juice.  Leave to stand for 15 minutes before serving.  Add salt to taste.  Garnish with fresh coriander.  Enjoy. 

Next: Pineapple Power