Lauren’s Favourite Avocado Salad

Avocado Salad

Avocados are one of my favourite foods. They’re so rich in fibre and mono-unsaturated fatty acids that keep the heart healthy and you can do so much with them… I have them on their own, cut in half with a little bit of balsamic vinegar and scoop it out with a spoon, or spread on Biona gluten free bread with some lime juice and salt or in a salad like this…

Ingredients

2 ripe organic avocados
1 hard-boiled egg
2 spring onions
Juice of one lemon
Drizzle of olive oil
Himalayan salt & black pepper to taste

Method

Make sure you pre boil your egg so it’s ready. Get a medium sized bowl as it’s quite messy so you don’t want to prepare this in the same bowl that you will be serving it from and mash your egg into really small pieces with a fork.

Then add the avocado and mash that too, followed by the rest of the ingredients until it’s all mashed in together. Serve with other salads or with a bread or cracker of your choice.

Enjoy!

Love,
Lauren

Tahini / Tchina (depending on where you’re from!)

Tehini

Sorry for the strange title… in the west, this is called Tahini (the paste itself is called that) but in the Middle East, where this originated, it’s called Tchina. Whatever it’s called, it’s yummy, easy to make and is one of the best sources of calcium out there. So if you read our article about why to stay away from milk and you are wondering where to get your calcium, tahini is one of the best places to find it.

Ingredients

3 tbsp tahini paste
Quarter cup purified water
5 tbsp lemon juice
Half tsp Himalayan salt
Half tsp garlic salt
Quarter tsb paprika
Drizzle extra virgin olive oil

Method

Spoon the tahini paste into a medium size bowl (it gets quite messy so you want to make it in a separate bowl to the one you’ll be serving it in), then add the water and mix really well. You will see it go from a weird texture to smooth quite quickly and it will become much more pale. If it still seems quite thick (it should be relatively runny) then add some more water; gauge it for yourself. Then add the rest of the ingredients and mix well.

Taste to see if it needs more of anything and add to your taste. Transfer to a smaller bowl.

Great with other dips and salads (have a look on both those pages on our website for more ideas) and with bread or crackers.

Enjoy!

Love,
Lauren

Raw Kale Chips

Kale Chips

This might not sound so appealing but trust me, they’re delicious! Even my 3 year old son loves them 🙂 Things like this always excite me – you get to eat something salty and delicious, and yet you’re getting in all the wonderful nutrients of kale.

Kale is among the most nutrient dense foods of the world. It is loaded with powerful anti-oxidants, is a good source of vitamins A, C and K and beta-carotene, lowers cholesterol and fights cancer. All this for very few calories, so it can help you to lose weight too!

I make my kale chips in a dehydrator, but you can still make them if you don’t have one. Simply lay them out on a baking tray lined with baking paper and put your oven on 100 C. Prop the door of the oven open with a wooden spoon. This allows moisture to escape, so that you’re drying the chips rather than just baking them. They won’t be raw, but it’s still a far cry from high-saturated fat, high-salt, processed potato chips.

Stay tuned for my Chocolate Kale Chips!

Ingredients

150 – 200g kale, weighed once you have removed the tough centre stem
70g raw nut butter (almond, cashew or macadamia – whatever your preference)
45ml freshly squeezed lemon juice
45ml water
1/2 tsp himalayan salt
1 tbsp nutritional yeast
1/4 – 1/2 tsp cayenne (optional)

Method

After removing the tough stem, tear the leaves into pieces about 5cm square and place in a large mixing bowl. In this photo I have used dinosaur kale (cavalo nero) but you can use any variety.

Use a whisk to combine the rest of the ingredients and pour over the kale. I find it easiest to use my hands and “massage” the dressing into the leaves, making sure that each leaf is well coated.

kale chips 2

Spread the leaves out on your dehydrator sheets, making sure that none of them are clumped together, as these will dry into chewy lumps, not individual crispy pieces. Dehydrate on 45 C overnight. Store in an airtight container and consume within 2 weeks. If you have high humidity you may need to eat them faster before they become limp!

kale chips 3

Health & happiness!

Love,
Raine