A Day of Indulgence

Yay for food trucks in Santa Barbara! Thank you O Street Truck for gracing Santa Barbara with your delicious food. This truck offers French, French-Vietnamese, and French-Mex inspired dishes using locally sourced ingredients. I had read about them in the Independent a few months back and couldn't wait to try them. Yesterday I finally did. My mom and I had to go down to Santa Barbara in the morning so for lunch we found them parked in Goleta and enjoyed their delicious fare. With the prices being so reasonable and everything sounding so amazing we ordered almost half the menu. It was definitely a day of indulgence but was well worth it.

 

Everything tasted so yummy and fresh I can't wait to go back. The quality of ingredients they use is quite impressive.

Pesto French Pastry Pizza

Pommes Frites served in a cute newspaper cone. The rosemary-garlic sauce was absolutely amazing. My mom had the wasabi-mayo and that was really good as well.

Chicken Banh-Mi Taco - This was my favorite out of everything. My mom ordered the sandwich version of this. It was served on a fresh baguette.

Summer Salads... Plus Some

Salads make a great summertime dinner option... especially if you want to have a little ice cream for dessert.  The possibilities are endless when it comes to creating salads depending on what veggies, nuts, fruits, or cheeses you want to add. It was a bit warm here today so the idea of eating raw crunchy fresh veggies sounded so yummy. I started my salad off with two handfuls of mixed greens. I added some cooked ground turkey I had leftover in my fridge and topped the rest of the salad with sliced onion, green bell pepper, carrots, feta cheese and salsa. I drizzled a little olive oil and fresh lime juice on top. This salad reminds me of a taco salad without the chips. Although that probably would have been a tasty addition.

 

I recently started reading A Life of Balance by Maya Tiwari. It's a complete guide on Ayurveda. Ever since I had hypnotherapy sessions with an ayurvedic practioner I've been interested in the practice. There is a lot to understand and I feel like I'm underlining almost everything I read. There are lots of recipes towards the back of the book which I will definitely be making and sharing soon.

I had to post this picture because I love this girl so much. Her name is Liona and I get to feed and hangout with her when her masters are away. Tonight we went for a nice walk in the beautiful neighborhood she lives in. My favorite part of our walk was when we passed a house with honeysuckle bushes along the fence. The smell is simply intoxicating and makes me smile.  I feel like this post got a little on the rambling side. I have been up since 4:30 am and worked in the kitchen as well as the shop today but this blog is called happy and healthy. Along with healthy food I want to share what makes me happy.

Chocolate Pancakes with Berries and Cherries

How I love and hate PMS. I love it because I crave the yummiest treats but hate it for the way I feel after indulging too much. It's about that time of the month now when all I crave is sweets and carbs.  Since I have been very watchful over my sugar intake lately, I had to come up with something sweet that wouldn't contain too much sugar. After smelling chocolate cupcakes all morning at work I had the biggest craving for brownies, but I thought that my sweet treat, rather my lunch, should be a bit more substantial. I decided to make chocolate pancakes. Last week at the health food store I got a sample of Pamela's chocolate brownie mix. Molasses and honey are used as the sweetener. I mixed 1/4 cup of that with 1/4 cup of Pamela's pancake and baking mix. I added 1 Tablespoon of ground flax seed. The Spectrum brand is my favorite for ground flax seeds. A few drops of stevia and some water will give the mix a runny consistency. I also added some chopped unsweetened baking chocolate.

Chocolate with fruit is such a lovely combination.

To top my Pancakes I added a scoop of plain greek yogurt with blueberries, cherries, and walnuts. I did end up adding a little bit of yacon syrup as well, in place of maple syrup.

Gluten Free and Sugar Free Pancakes

 

I ♥ pancakes. They are great because you can prepare them so many different ways depending on what fruits or nuts you like. My favorite is banana chocolate chip but since I must watch my sugar intake again I need to find an alternative. I usually use Pamela's gluten free pancake flour but I've been trying to create my own mix using buckwheat flour as the base. I just love the taste, it has a very hardy flavor. I'm also using almond flour, and ground flax seeds in the mix. In my batch this morning I added chia seeds and Healthforce's Warrrior Food. It's their protein powder which consists of organic brown rice and hemp protein along with herbs and enzymes. I topped these pancakes with strawberries and a "no sugar added" fig spread by St. Dalfour. This spread is absolutely divine...so yummy. 

Because maple syrup is high in sugar, I made my own syrup by combining cinnamon flax oil (this was all I had at home but regular flax oil would work just as well), yacon syrup and a few drops of stevia. Once I get all the tweaks worked out in my flour blend I will post the recipe.

Veggie Tacos

 

Wow it's been awhile since I've shared any of my culinary creations. I think it's funny how my last post was on tacos and now I'm sharing another taco recipe in honor of Cinco de Mayo. These veggie tacos are inspired by the Sun Tacos from New Frontiers, the health food store where I work.  If you've ever had them you know how yummy they are. They start out with two corn tortillas and spread miso on each one. They add cheese and sunflower seeds and toast until the cheese is melted. Then they top them with lettuce, onions, tomatoes, sprouts, and avocado. Using what I had in my kitchen, I spread miso on two corn tortillas and sprinkled pumpkin seeds and jack cheese. After letting it toast I topped them with a mico green mix purchased at the farmers market along with onions, artichoke hearts, and tomato. I ended up adding a little salsa too. It was almost as good as having the real thing.

Breakfast Tacos

I made these breakfast tacos with SXSW in mind. A year ago I went to Austin, TX for SXSW. I was traveling with my friend who is an Austin native. She knew all the good places to eat. Here in California we are big on breakfast burritos but in Austin it's all about the breakfast tacos. I even had a breakfast tostada one morning. It was so yummy.

For my tacos I sautéed some chopped zucchini and red bell pepper and seasoned it with dried chipotle peppers and a little bit of salsa. I added black beans as well. In a separate pan I scrambled two egg whites and one yolk. I heated up two corn tortillas and filled them with this yummy goodness. I topped the tacos with hemp seeds and raw cheddar cheese.

Ginger Hot Chocolate

It's been so cold here lately, I needed something to warm me up in the mornings. What's better than warming herbs and spices mixed with hot chocolate? I created this at the same time I was trying to watch my sugar intake. Sweetening this drink with stevia was a simple solution. I could still have something sweet without giving in to any bad temptations. I prefer using liquid stevia but the packets would work just as well. In a small saucepan heat almond milk and grate about an inch of fresh ginger. Leave on a low heat for about 10 minutes so the ginger can flavor the almond milk and release it's health promoting properties. Ginger is a warming herb that increases circulation in the body. It's a good digestive tonic and can ease nausea. It has anti-inflammatory and anti-viral compounds which is great during cold and flu season. 

In a mug add 1-2 teaspoons of unsweetened cocoa powder with a splash of almond milk. You want to create a paste so when you add the ginger infused milk it's easy to mix. I also add cinnamon and cayenne. These are both warming spices and they create such a good flavor... similar to Mexican hot chocolate which is my favorite. Once your ginger infused milk is ready, strain and add to your mug. Mix well and add stevia to sweeten.