product review: zukay raw veggie drinks

The generous folks over at Zukay Live Foods were kind enough to send me some delicious fermented vegetable drinks - traditionally called Kvass - to taste test. They pride themselves on creating and providing naturally probiotic drinks and salad dressings that help to combat the effects of the Standard American Diet. They describe their products as being made from "raw, organic, farm fresh veggies that are fermented in the ancient traditions, using only wild cultures [they] hand-batch [them]selves". You can learn more on their website linked here.

So what did I think of their raw Kvass? Well they were thoughtful enough to send me 3 different flavours: Beet, Super Green and Veggie Medley. My favourite is the Green which shouldn't come as a surprise for those who know my obsession and love for kale. To be honest, when I first took a sip my immediate thought was "This tastes like pickle juice..." but then I quickly got used to the flavour of the fermented cucumber and it actually started tasting sweet. I think it's because I was expecting something like Kombucha (my other favourite raw fermented drink) which is quite sweet.

Anyways - you soon get used to the taste and then start to like it. It helps knowing that these beverages are nutrient-packed and completely raw. There really is nothing like this on the market, speaking of - I hope to see Zukay in my own Canadian grocery stores soon! I give this product my stamp of approval (do they sell physical Approval Stamps?) and recommend it to anyone willing to try a refreshing drink that's healthy and different!

glorious juice

i've been at my boyfriend's place this weekend so i took these photos before i left to share them with you now, since otherwise i'd have nothing to show ya today. sadly his little kitchen does not have the room nor does he have the budget for all the wonderful equipment my family has in OUR well-endowed kitchen; like an omega juicer, vitamix blender, dehydrator, food processor, mandoline, and so on.

i mean, technically you don't NEED any of those semi-expensive appliances to enjoy a raw vegan diet, but it sure makes it more fun and interesting. case and point: raw pasta. they're all worth buying if you can afford them, but if not - simple fruit bowls and salads rocks too! personally, i gotta have my juice... and so does my cat, sugar, apparently.

enjoy this recipe and the good health and happiness it brings!

colourful concoction juice: serves one or two

3 carrots

1 cucumber

chunk of ginger

1 tomato

1 lime

1 bell pepper

4 beets

1 green apple

1 orange

wash, cut, slice and peel as needed. juice it and drink! mmm... live 4 juice; juice 4 life!

 one last thing - don't you love everything about compost? (except maybe the fruit flies...)

energy elixir

as i said on my facebook, i was feeling a bit drained yesterday after my weekend. but today i got TONS of sleep (maybe too much - i just kept sleeping because my dreams were so enthralling...) then had a great workout and drank a gorgeous pink jar of juice.

yum yum. i'll give you the recipe in a minute (or - due to the magical nature of the internet and time-space continuum - you may just scroll down.) last night i felt like just having juice today to get my energy back and guess what. it's already returned! all it took was some deep sleep, weight-lifting, and the elixir of living fruits and vegetables. i made a glass for mom too, since she was in desperate need of some nourishment after a busy day of random errands like getting a bunch of knives sharpened.

oh! just remembered something. heard of global girl? well if not - check her out. she just did a raw vegan dessert round-up for her fave recipes; one of them is mine. yes, i am indeed tooting my own horn. if you've got a problem with that - well you can DRINK MY JUICE!

oh wait, you should do that anyway. 

everything awesome life juice: serves two

2 carrots

3 tomatoes

2 apples

1 cucumber

3 slices of pineapple

4 beets

chunk of ginger

lemon

2 bell peppers

i think that's all i put in there... 

wash, slice, peel, chop and cut as needed. throw it all in the juicer! not literally, that would be messy. drink!

oh one more thing. PLEASE take a listen to this amazing woman. she is a visionary in my opinion. her albums are "projects" and she makes a video for each song. you can watch them all in a particular order and it becomes an emotional journey. she keeps you guessing. it's beautiful. 

juice fast: day 2

today was farmer's market day! it was (tragically) the last one of the season for our neighborhood. BUT - and what an important "but" - there are three winter farm markets in our city area so i don't have to go without local, organic, love-filled produce all through the chilly season. PHEW.

today i'm feeling great. last night i had sore muscles which is a sign of mild detox. yahoo! i had a tasty carrot-apple-orange juice with my parents for breakfast, fed a butterfly that has been finding comfort and safety in my room (until my cat attacked it today!) during the rainy weather, then went to the market.

we loaded up on EVERYTHING. when you're on a juice fast you are actually getting more nutrients then you normally would because you can without feeling full. the fiber is mainly what produces that full feeling and when you juice - you take that out! so although i wouldn't normally eat 4 apples and 2 cucumbers in one sitting, i can with juice. thus i bought a ton of veggies and greens today for the next few weeks of juice fasting; i know i will be able to consume it all.

when we got back i made THE MOST DELICIOUS REFRESHING AMAZING AWESOME JUICE EVER! seriously. this is in my top three fave juice recipes now. i bought some peppermint with the idea that it might make interesting juice, especially if i mixed it with citrus.

i was right. 

pineapple peppermint love: serves one or two

4 small carrots
1 apple
1 orange
4-5 pineapple slices
handful fresh mint leaves
1/2 cucumber 

cut, slice and peel as needed. then juice it. hurry up and JUICE IT.
be prepared to have your mind blown (as well as your taste buds).

the plans for the rest of my saturday are pretty great. my juice fast partner-in-health (get it? instead of "in crime"... okay fine i'm not funny) is heading over soon and we're going to make some savoury juice for dinner. the boyfriend is coming over later too and it's also my friend's 19th so we might go out to dinner to celebrate.

i DO need to get some school work done at some point... hm.

terryaki tofu roll with avocado, potato, cucumber & black rice

holy moly WOAH. make these! everybody (friends and mom) was really impressed with the combination of flavours and textures. i'm making this recipe again ASAP for my boyfriend. who can refuse cruelty-free sushi!? it's just that much better than raw-decomposing-fish sushi. better for you, the planet, and our fellow earthly creatures. YEAH!

 

if you want this recipe to be 100% raw, don't worry about the terryaki tofu and potato, you can use your fave raw vegan cheese or nut pate if you want. also, use sprouts instead of rice. buuuuuuut... i suggest making the tofu and potato with rice. so worth it.

the black rice really raised the meal to another level of sophistication (and good health, of course). it's an intriguing sight and fun to cook because the water turns dark purple. spooky. you could instead use brown rice or quinoa or whatever whole grain you have.

as usual - try to get organic ingredients, and better yet, get the veggies from your garden!

 

terryaki tofu rolls with avocado, potato, cucumber & black rice: serves 3-4

1 package tofu
2 potatoes 
3 garlic cloves, chopped
3 tablespoons tamari
2 tablespoons maple syrup
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 teaspoons liquid smoke (i used mesquite)
1/2 cucumber
1 avocado
1 cup black rice recommended
nori sheets

cook the rice as directed. cut the tofu, potato, cucumber and avocado into long strips. sautee the tofu, potato and garlic in the tamari, liquid smoke and olive oil. spread the rice onto the nori sheets and lay down all the ingredients (including the tofu and stuff). roll in up and slice with a sharp knife into rolls. serve with tamari for dipping.

yam noodles with miso sauce

holy yams! you might be skeptical about using raw sweet potatoes (yams) for food, but as soon as you try this, all your doubts will be vaporized. it's so satisfying. i don't know WHY you'd want or need white pasta with meatballs when you can eat THIS living, raw, cruelty-free meal. i took lots of photos, i hope you don't mind. 

nah... you don't.

hopefully you have a spiral slicer, but if not - a mandoline will do. and if you're REALLY ambitious, you could try to make the noodles manually. good luck.

i've been wanting to make these noodles with some kind of sauce and veggies for awhile, and the plan for this sweet potato (organic!) was to make this recipe then give it to a curious friend who had wondered whether you could raw potatoes. but um... i'm greedy. i ate it all at my house. don't judge me. i promise i will make this again and actually share it. it will be difficult, but i can do it.

 yam noodles with miso mustard sauce, avocado, cucumber & raisins: serves 1-2

noodles:
1 yam (sweet potato)

sauce:
1 tablespoon miso
1 tablespoon mustard
1 tablespoon agave
1 date
vegan milk/water, as needed (about 1/6 cup)
3 chopped garlic cloves

to make the noodles - slice the yam on a spiral slicer or mandoline. mix with a bit of tamari in large bowl and set aside.
to make the sauce - blend all ingredients together. if it's too thick, add more vegan milk/water. if it's too thin, add more miso, dates or mustard. pour the desired amount of sauce onto the noodles and mix in. you don't need that much.
i added chopped avocado, cucumber, beets from our garden, raisins, and parma... of course. i bet this with sesame or pumpkin seeds would be great too.

friends & salad

i've been eating a lot of salad lately. our greens are growing like crazy so i can run out to the garden and pick some lettuce and spinach whenever my heart desires. my friend christine came over yesterday and we made a lovely mix of greens, cucumber, tomato, olives and mushrooms. it was nice to catch up with her, since we hadn't seen each other in awhile.

she's all cool and awesome so she made this photo:

i also added some oregano, basil and cilantro. i think sweet basil may be my favourite conventional herb. my mom's is cilantro. i tear the herb leaves up really small, so it's lovely when you get a bite of salad and every now and then there's a hit of basil or what ever.

mmm...

oh goodness. i just ate a salad (a lot like the one above) but these photos are making me want to make another. i think i actually might. because after i finished eating the first one (just now) i went into the kitchen and realized my friend amber had left two avocados as a gift.

because she's the best.

she's also all hip, so she took these trendy hipster pictures last night: 

as far as salad goes, it's pretty much the greatest thing ever. except maybe for avocados. so when you combine them both - it's almost too much to handle. almost.

i'm definitely going to go make another giant salad now. 

i hope you have an amazing weekend! here's an easy and delicious recipe for you:

green love salad: serves 1-2

1/4 cup cherry tomatoes

1/4 cucumber

1/2 cup mushrooms

4 tb olives

1/4 red onion

5 figs

1 handful of fresh herbs like basil, oregano, cilantro, lemon balm, rosemary, etc. 

5 cups or more of fresh, organic greens like lettuce and spinach

chop up the tomatoes, cucumber, mushrooms, olives, onion, figs and herbs to your liking. set aside. 

in a big bowl, pour a little balsamic vinegar and olive oil on the greens and mix them up with your hands, coating them all with the dressing. throw on the chopped goodies and enjoy! 

this is best enjoyed outside on a sunny day, right beside your garden.

i usually add hemp seeds and sometimes salt and pepper. 

oh! and avocado. duh.