Smart Life Health Coaching

with Ronit Kalman

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Orange and Cucumber Salad with Spring Greens

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Early spring greens are crossing paths with winter citrus in this easy and healthy salad.

Ingredients:

  • ½ English cucumber, thinly sliced
  • 3 to 4 small oranges (clementines), peeled and sectioned
  • 2 big handfuls baby arugula leaves
  • 2 baby bok choy, thinly sliced
  • ½ bunch watercress leaves
  • 1 cup green sprouts (pea, broccoli)
  • Pumpkin seeds or sunflower seeds, as desired
  • Juice of ½ orange
  • Juice of ½ lemon
  • 1 teaspoon orange zest
  • 1 teaspoon lemon zest
  • 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
  • sea salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
  1. Combine all the veggies in a serving bowl.
  2. Mix together the orange and lemon juice, orange and lemon zest, olive oil, salt and pepper.
  3. Pour the dressing on the salad and toss together. Scatter the seeds over the top of the salad and serve.

Vanilla Matcha Chia Pudding

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Makes 2 Servings

Ingredients

  • 2 cups vanilla almond milk (or other non-dairy milk)
  • 5 Tbs organic chia seeds
  • 2 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1 tsp matcha powder
  • 2 tsp maple syrup or raw honey
  • A couple dashes of cinnamon (optional)

Directions

  1. In bowl add all the ingredients and stir until mixed well.
  2. Pour into glass jars, shake and cover. Let sit in the refrigerator for at least one hour.

(Note: Best to have it sit overnight, but it should become pudding like after a few hours.)

  1. Enjoy with your favorite toppings: crushed almonds, pecans, goji berries, cacao nibs.

Lemon Elixir

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This natural detoxifier stimulates digestion, releases toxins from your liver and jumpstarts your digestive enzymes.

  • 2 cups warm or room-temperature water
  • Juice from 1 lemon
  • 1 tablespoon Bragg’s raw apple cider vinegar
  • Pinch of cinnamon
  • 1 teaspoon raw honey or a couple drops of stevia

Combine the ingredients, stir and enjoy as your first drink of the day.

Miso Soup With Shitake Mushrooms And Scallions

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You’ll love this rich, flavorful version of miso soup, hearty enough for a meal. Mushrooms are rich in selenium, copper, zinc and iron, all nutrients that make your thyroid run more efficiently while sulfur-rich scallions are a natural detoxifier. Iodine-rich sea vegetables, like kombu and seaweed, are commonly found at your local Whole Foods in the Asian food section.

Fermented soybean products — miso, tempeh, shoyu, natto, tofu and tamari —are a healthy staple in many Asian cultures and are eaten in SMALL quantities.

Unfortunately in the U.S., we have mass produced soybeans without traditional sprouting or fermenting methods in products like soy protein, soy milks soy nuts, soy meats, which have been linked to thyroid disease, digestive problems, reproductive disorders, cancer and other illnesses.

  • 6 cups water
  • 1 6-inch piece of kombu (kelp)
  • 2 packets bonito flakes (katsuobushi)
  • 12 ounces firm tofu, cut into half-inch cubes
  • 1 strip wakame seaweed
  • 6 shiitake mushrooms, stems discarded and sliced thinly
  • 6 tablespoons white miso
  • 4 scallions, minced
  1. In a large pot, boil water. Add kombu and bonito flakes and boil for 8 minutes.
  2. Remove kombu and strain the bonito flakes, so you’re left with clear broth.
  3. In the same pot with the clear broth, add cubed tofu, wakame, shiitake mushrooms and cook on medium-high heat for a few minutes.
  4. In a small bowl, dissolve the miso paste in a small amount of hot water until creamy, then add the mixture to the soup and cook on low for 3 minutes. Garnish with scallions.

 

Spring Green Salad

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Simple doesn’t have to be boring. With organic greens plus a one-minute dressing topped with healthy sprouted seeds, salad doesn’t get much easier than this. Ingredients are healthy and intense, giving gourmet taste sans sugar and cheese.

  • 1 head butter or green leaf lettuce
  • 1 or 2 scallions, diced
  • 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
  • 1/2 lemon, juiced
  • Sea salt and freshly ground pepper
  • 2 to 3 tablespoons cold pressed extra virgin olive oil
  • 2 tablespoons sprouted pumpkin or sunflower seeds (optional)
  1. Wash and dry lettuce thoroughly using a salad spinner. Prepare your dressing as lettuce sits.
  2. For the dressing, in a small bowl, combine mustard, lemon juice, salt and pepper and whisk well. Slowly add olive oil and whisk until smooth and well incorporated. That’s it!
  3. Place salad in a large bowl and top with dressing immediately before serving. Sprinkle with sprouted pumpkin or sunflower seeds.

Spicy Soba Noodles

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Soba noodles, hearty and flavorful Japanese noodles made from buckwheat pair perfectly with watercress or arugula and a spicy dressing. If you are following a gluten-free diet, look for 100% buckwheat soba noodles. Eden and Mitoku are two good brands.

  • 1 package of dried soba noodles
  • 2 1⁄2 tablespoons gluten-free tamari soy sauce
  • 1 teaspoon chili-garlic sauce
  • 1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil
  • 6 cups stemmed watercress or arugula
  • 1 tablespoon grape seed or sufflower oil
  • sesame seeds to garnish (optional)
  • chopped scallions or cilantro to garnish (optional)
  1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil over high heat. Add the noodles and cook for about 8 minutes, or according to package directions, until done. Meanwhile, to make the sauce, in a small bowl, stir together the tamari sauce, chili-garlic sauce, and sesame oil.
  2. Drain the noodles in a colander. If you are using 100% buckwheat soba, give the noodles a quick rinse with hot tap water.
  3. Put the watercress or arugula in the hot pan. Return the noodles to the pan along with the grape seed oil. Using tongs, toss to combine. The watercress should wilt from the residual heat of the pan and the noodles. Add the sauce and toss until well incorporated. Garnish with sesame seeds and chopped fresh herbs and serve warm or at room temperature.

This healthy and sumptuous dish could not be easier, and makes a perfect option for Meatless Monday. Look for the soba noodles, chili-garlic sauce (a mixture of chili, garlic, and vinegar), and toasted sesame oil, and Tamari sauce in the Asian foods section of your grocery store.

Adapted from Brassicas by Laura B. Russell (Ten Speed Press, © 2014).

 

 

Lemon Broccoli with Avocado

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Try this spring spin on broccoli, brightened with lemon juice and topped with heart-healthy avocado. It’s hearty enough for a lunch, but also a flavorful accompaniment to Ronit’s Asian Salmon.

  • 2 bunches broccoli
  • 1 lemon, juiced
  • 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
  • ¼ teaspoon sea salt
  • 1 avocado, cut into chunks
  1. Chop broccoli into bite-size pieces and separate stems from the crowns.
  2. Fill a pot with 1 inch of water, place a steamer basket inside, cover and heat to boiling. Add stem pieces, and steam for 2 minutes. Add crown pieces, cover and steam for 5 minutes.
  3. In a mixing bowl, combine the lemon juice, olive oil and salt.
  4. Chop the avocado into chunks and add to the mixing bowl.
  5. Add the warm broccoli to the bowl, mix gently and serve.

Ronit’s Berry Energy Smoothie

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I love to drink a cup of this smoothie in the morning before my workout. I save another 1/2 cup for refueling afterward. Store the extra in your refrigerator for a snack later that day.

    • 2 cups unsweetened almond milk or water
    • 2 tablespoons chia seeds
    • ½ packet of frozen Sambazon Acai Berry + Guarana Smoothie Pack
    • ¼ cup Vegan Protein Factors powder in Vanilla Bean flavor
    • Fresh strawberries
    • Fresh blueberries

Blend all ingredients and enjoy a boost of energy!

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