Mexi Pizza

4 whole grain tortilla wraps (or one large prepared pizza crust)
1 can black beans (drained and rinsed)
1/4 cup water
1 tsp chilli powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 diced medium orange bell pepper
1/2 diced medium cooking onion
3/4 cup finely sliced romain lettuce leaves
1/2 cup frozen corn
1 jar store bought salsa
1 small avocado, cut into chunks
cashew cream* (substitute sour cream for non-vegan)

1. Begin preparing cashew cream by bringing water to a boil (omit, if using sour cream)
2. Pre-heat oven to 350oC
3. In a large bowl, mash black beans, water, chilli powder, and salt together
4. Dice bell pepper and onions, and thinly slice lettuce leaves, and set aside.
5. Assemble 4 pizzas on cookie sheets by layering black beans, then lettuce, bell peppers, onions and frozen corn, and then spooning salsa onto tortillas. 
6. Cook for 10 minutes.
7. While cooking, prepare the rest of the cashew cream, and chop the avocado.
8. When pizzas are done, top with avocado, cashew cream and more salsa if desired. Allow to cool shortly before eating. 

Note: for younger kids, the tortillas can be difficult to cut. Replacing tortillas with one large prepared pizza crust from the grocery store may be helpful. 


*Cashew cream

1 cup unsalted, un-roasted cashews 
5 tbsp fresh lemon juice (1 large lemon)
1/2 cup unsweetened soy or almond milk
1/2 tsp salt

1. Bring a small pot of water to a boil and add cashews. 
2. Allow to boil momentarily, then remove from heat. Set aside and let cashews soak for 20 minutes. 
3. Drain cashews and add to a blender, along with lemon, milk and salt. Blend until smooth with no chunks. 

These no-back squares are a super healthy version of the tradition peanut butter balls with butter and icing sugar. With only 3 tbsp of maple syrup, and the rest of all natural whole food ingredients, these will satisfy your cravings for a decedent snack or dessert, as well as your goal of eating high nutrient foods.

No Bake Peanut Butter Coconut Squares 
(makes 20-24 squares)

1 cup all natural peanut butter, at room temperature
3 tbsp pure maple syrup
2 tbsp melted virgin coconut oil
1/4 tsp salt 
1 1/2 cup quick oats
1 cup unsweetened dried shredded coconut
1/2 cup raisins, chopped

1. In a large bowl, stir together peanut butter, maple syrup, coconut oil and salt
   
2. Fold in coconut, oats and raisins
   
3. Loosely lay parchment paper overlapping the edges in a square baking pan
   
4. Firmly press mixture into one half of a square baking pan, pushing down and into the sides,
   to form a brick about 3/4 inch thick. Use parchment paper to press mixture down, or
   fingertips
   
5. Allow to cool for 20 min in the fridge
   
6. Cut into squares and store in the fridge

*Note, the square become less oily after one day as the oats absorb the oil. It's best to cut them early, then serve them the next day straight from the fridge or at room temperature. 

I recently posted this photo on my Instagram feed and was amazed by how many people liked it! Some meals are just the perfect combination of nutritious and delicious, not to mention appealing to the eye. This deconstructed fajita in a taco salad style was one of those meals. When it's not in a salad, I do this meal with Food for Life's sprouted grain wrap- the only wrap I have yet to find without hydrogenated oils and tons of unnatural ingredients. The basis of this meal is comprised of four parts- 1) refried black or kidney beans, 2) sautéed bell peppers and onions, 3) fresh tomato salsa, and 4) fresh guacamole. 





Fajita Taco Salad
(Serves 4)

Beans
2 cups (approximately) black beans or kidney beans
1.5 tbsp chili powder
1 tbsp cumin 
Hot sauce (optional)
Salt and pepper
Water

Put the beans in a sauce pan on the stove on med-high heat and cover with water. Add seasoning and bring to a boil. Turn heat down to low and allow to simmer for a short time, then mash the beans until you reach a desired consistency. 

Peppers
3 medium mixed colour bell peppers, cut into strips 
1 lg cooking onion, cut in half and sliced
Olive oil
Salt and pepper

Add olive oil to a frying pan at high heat. When hot, add peppers and onions, and salt and pepper. Continuously stir the peppers and onions until they have brightened in colour and have just turned soft, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside. 

Salsa
4 medium tomatoes, deseeded if possible and finely chopped
3 cloves of garlic, finely minced 
1 tbsp white vinegar
2 tbsp olive oil
Salt and pepper

Remove as many seeds from the tomatoes as possible in order to keep your salsa from becoming too watery. Place all ingredients into a bowl and mix together. 

Guacamole 
2 large ripe avocados 
1/2- 1 lemon, depending on size
Salt and pepper

Juice lemon into a bowl and remove any pits. Add avocado and salt and pepper and mash all ingredients with a fork. Season more to taste. 

To serve
2 small heads of romaine lettuce, washed, dried and chopped
A large handful of organic corn chips, crushed 

Divide lettuce into 4 large bowls. Top with cooked peppers, then corn chips, beans, guacamole and salsa. Add some whole corn chips for dipping. And don't forget a nice hot sauce on the table! Enjoy! 

There are a few foods in my kitchen that make an appearance in many of my snacks and meals. Include in these are kale, miso, lemon juice and nutritional yeast, just to name a few. I love the flavours, colours and contrast of these foods, and this pasta was a beautiful canvas on which to merry some of these flavours. This meal can be made in a hurry- basically in as long as it takes to boil the pasta. Black olives and walnuts would have also been great toppings for this one. 

For an easy nutrition boost, create this dish with a whole grain pasta. There are so many kinds to choose from out there!




Kale and Miso Pasta
(Approximately 2 servings) 

3 tbsp olive oil to sauté
1 onion, diced
3 cloves of garlic, minced
2 medium tomatoes, diced
about 4 cups of kale (de-stemmed, cleaned, sliced)
fresh juice of 1/4 of a lemon
3 tbsp miso
pepper to taste
nutritional yeast topping
cooked penne (or other) pasta

In a frying pan, heat the oil on med/ med-high heat. Add the onion and cook until soft (about 5 minutes). Next add the garlic and cook for one minute. Then add tomatoes, cooking for a couple of minutes, and then kale and cook until soft- about 6 minutes. It helps to add a little water to the pan and cover it to cook the kale. When tomatoes and kale have softened, remove pan from heat and add lemon, miso and pepper. Stir until miso is mixed in, adding some more water if needed. When pasta is cooked, at it to the sauce and mix everything together. Portion in bowls and add nutritional yeast to serve.  

For many non vegans, pesto isn't pesto without Parmesan cheese. Indeed most store bought versions also contain some sort of cheese so if you're a strict vegan, homemade pesto is the way to go. 

In my opinion, the best parts about pesto is the strong garlic flavour, the saltiness, and richness of nuts and olive oil. Pesto goes a long way in creating delicious pastas, as a pizza sauce, as a veggie and cracker dip, on oven roasted potatoes, in dressings and more. 

Here's what you need: a 'green' base, garlic, olive oil, salt, nuts, and nutritional yeast. Be creative- instead of the traditional basil, why not try cilantro, spinach, or kale? Instead of pine nuts, how about sunflower seeds or walnuts? 

Spinach Pesto
(Makes enough for one box of penne or bow-tie pasta)

3 cloves of garlic
1/2 cup whole walnuts (less if walnuts are chopped)
1 tsp salt
3 cups loosely packed spinach (I used two cups spinach, one cup kale)
1/3 cup olive oil or more to get a smooth consistency 
1/4 cup nutritional yeast
pepper, to taste

In a food processor, blend the garlic cloves and walnuts until uniform. Add in the rest of the ingredients and blend until smooth. Taste, and add more salt, pepper or oil if desired. 


* For a delicious meal, I roasted a head of chopped broccoli florets and a red pepper, cut and tossed in a little olive oil and S&P at 375F for about 30 min, or until cooked and broccoli quite golden brown. I used bow tie pasta, tossed in the pesto, roasted veggies and some fresh chopped black olive and mixed everything together. Two thumbs up! 

For the past few days I've been giving nutrition a lot of thought. 9 weeks into motherhood, with around the clock bouncing, swinging, standing, squatting, bending, cooing, carrying, dancing, feeding and smiling, all for the little guy, takes a LOT out of you. My body is getting sore all over. I'm getting tired. I'm beginning to reach for the classics... caffeine, and sugar.

I know as well as anyone that once you start on the sugar/coffee train, it's hard to get off. It's not a sustainable solution. I need real nutrition to maintain this sore skeleton, to build these worn out muscles, to create milk for my growing guy, and to fuel this sleepy brain. Enter more planned snacks, some hearty meals, and more salads. Let's start with this one.



Black Bean and Corn, Chopped Salad
(Serves 4)

Prepare the dressing below in a small bowl and set aside. Then, in a large bowl, combine the following: 

1 can rinsed and drained black beans (about 1.5cups)
1 cup of corn kernels
1 orange or red bell pepper, diced slightly bigger than the corn/bean size
a handful of snow peas, chopped in similar sized pieces to the bell pepper
3 leaves of medium sized kale, stems removed, chopped in small pieces
1/2 medium cooking onion, minced small, as you would with garlic
2 med-large cloves of garlic well minced 

Dressing:
1/4 cup olive oil 
1/8th c white vinegar
1 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp salt
pepper

With some sprouted grain toast, I could eat half of this salad for dinner or lunch. It also works as the perfect kind of snack to give lasting energy to those of us in need. Enjoy!  

There's nothing like a good old fashioned vegan smorgasbord of homemade goodies. Though this snack tray pictured may be missing something sweet, it was loaded with lots of savory snacks and dips including hummus, guacamole, olive tapenade, and a cheezy cashew spread. 

I love this flavourful and naturally coloured cheezy spread. It's delicious on rice crackers, homemade baguette crisps, Mary's Original crackers, carrots or with some nacho chips. It could also be the base for a nice sandwich or wrap.  Enjoy! 





Cheezy Cashew Spread 

2 cups soaked cashews (in a bowl, add enough water to cover cashews and let sit for at least an hour; rinse and drain when they're finished soaking)
1 cup orange or red bell pepper, roughly chopped (about one medium pepper)
2 tbsp lemon juice
2.5 tbsp light miso
1 tsp onion powder
1.5 tsp garlic powder
1/2 cup nutritional yeast flakes
1/2 tsp salt if needed (but miso tends to be salty enough)

In a food processor, combine all ingredients and blend until smooth- the smoother the better. Put in a covered container and let sit in the fridge for a couple of hours or longer. The spread will become harder and nicely spreadable. 

'Energy balls' are always delicious and nutritious. They're so simple to make and play around with by adding different superfoods such as dried fruit, nuts, seeds, goji berries, chia, and so on. Though they're a nice treat at any time, there is one time in particular where energy balls are a must for me: while hiking. I love having a high-nutrient/energy fuel on hand that leaves no mess and is super easy to pack, grab and eat.

Unfortunately, being 9 months pregnant is limiting my hiking adventures. But that's not to say it's limiting others'. My boyfriend and his best friend, visiting all the way from Germany, are soon embarking on a week-long camping/hiking/road trip through Nova Scotia and Cape Breton. (Yes, I'm jealous.) To help them on their journey, I'm providing a few treats- Coconut Energy Balls, to start. 

Coconut Energy Balls
(makes  16 large balls)

1 cup (packed) chopped and pitted dates (I used Honey Dates which are easiest to find at my grocery store)
1 cup whole, unroasted almonds
1/2 cup cashews (mine were roasted and salted but unroasted/salted are great too)
1 cup unsweetened, dried coconut
1/2 tsp each vanilla and almond extract (or 1 tsp vanilla extract if you don't use almond)
1/4 tsp or 1/2 tsp salt

In a food processor blend up nuts until they are in fine pieces.
Add dates, coconut, extracts and salt and continue blending until the mixture falls away from the walls of the food processor. Check to see if it's ready by trying to form a ball with the mixture. If it's too dry it will crumble, but as the nuts release more oil, it will stick together. 

Transfer mixture to a large bowl and begin forming balls by squeezing mixture in the palm of your hand and rolling, or shaping balls. 

It's been months since I've posted a recipe! Not that I haven't been making tons of new food, I just haven't had the mental space to keep up with the Full Of Life site. Between being pregnant, and working a full time teaching job, though food was being made, eaten and enjoyed, there was a severe lack of photographing and blogging! 

However, I'm now officially on maternity leave (!!) and have plenty of mental space to jump back into my webpage. I've been super inspired today and to finish the day off, I'm posting tonight's dinner recipe.

Here's a nice treat of a creamy, flavourful pasta using a unique combination of green beans and mushrooms. 


Creamy Green Bean and Mushroom Pasta
(Serves 4)

1 box of penne pasta cooked according to box directions (pictured is spaghetti but I also made penne which was much better)

olive oil
2 small cooking onions cut in half lengthwise and sliced thinly
2-3 cups fresh green beans- washed, ends trimmed, and sliced roughly lengthwise in half to make thinner 
1 8oz package of any style mushrooms- cleansed and sliced thinly, stems removed  
5-6 cloves of garlic finely minced

1 tbsp arrowroot flour or white flour (for thickening)
1 cup regular organic soy milk
1 veggie stock cube
1 tsp dried thyme
pepper, to taste

1 tbsp miso
1/3 c nutritional yeast 

1) In a large sauce pan, sautee onions in a good amount of olive oil over med-high heat until browned and soft. 
2) Add in mushrooms, green beans and garlic. Allow mixture to cook while stirring occasionally but not too much. 3) Meanwhile, prepare a small bowl with the veggie cube, thyme, flour, and pepper. Add in enough boiling water to blend everything together so there are no lumps and clumps. 
4) When most of the water is cooked out of the beans and mushrooms, add in flour and seasoning mixture in.
5) Turn down heat to medium low and add in soy milk. Allow mixture to simmer and thicken. Add more soy milk if desired, and more flour if you want it thicker. 
6) Turn off heat and add in miso and nutritional yeast. Make sure miso is mixed in without lumps. If you don't have miso you can use salt or tamari/soy sauce. 
7) Add cooked penne to sauce, mix together and serve! 

Toasted sliced almonds would be delicious on top. I topped it with toasted sesame seeds but I'd leave them off next time. 

This is a really delicious, filling, and best of all, quick salad for an easy meal. Serve it with some fresh bread for a bit of balance and you've got an amazing, well rounded meal full of taste and packed with nutrients. 

On a plate, layer:
baby spinach
thinly sliced purple cabbage
thinly sliced purple or Spanish onion
thinly sliced tomatoes
sliced (or canned) green olives
toasted chopped almonds (dry toasted in a pan on medium heat until fragrant and roasted)


Drizzle this with olive oil and balsamic vinegar and some pepper and eat up! It's way more filling than it looks!