Greek Salad with Creamy Dressing

My daughter says that a Greek Salad should have at least as much "stuff" as lettuce. I agree. I made this one for a little Mother's Day dinner, and it was a huge hit.

Creamy Greek Dressing

1 cup raw cashews, soaked 20 minutes or longer, up to overnight
1-2 T fresh oregano
2 T nutritional yeast
1/2 tsp salt, or to taste
about 1/2 cup juice from a jar of pepperoncini

Place all ingredients except the pepperoncini juice in a blender or food processor.
Add the juice gradually as you blend, until the dressing is smooth and creamy, and has a nice thick consistency.

Greek Salad

chopped lettuce and/or other greens of your choice
chopped tomatoes
chopped cucumbers
chopped red onions (I leave these big enough to pick out, because I don't like them)
artichoke hearts packed in water, cut into large bite-size pieces
pitted kalamata olives, cut in half
sliced pepperoncini
Tofu Feta

Toss everything together in a large bowl, with enough Creamy Greek Dressing to coat the salad well, but not to smother it.

I served this up with pita bread and Oil-Free Hummus. Perfect!

PS - I made it again for a potluck, only this time substituted brown rice pasta for the greens. They cleaned out the bowl! Fortunately, I left some at home, and it's great layered on top of some greens for a full meal salad.

Power Bites

This is not a post about the evils of too much power... It's about food, of course!

With only a few short weeks until the See Jane Run 1/2 Marathon in Alameda, CA, I'm starting to think about what sort of fuel I'll want to carry with me on race day. I don't want anything to do with packaged bars, gels, or drinks. Yuck. I want something real. This recipe is a cross between the more complicated Power Balls and the super simple almond-stuffed-dates I sometimes take with me on longer runs. Of course you don't have to go running to eat them. They make a great snack any time!

Power Bites
makes about 20

1 (packed) cup pitted dates, coarsely chopped into halves or thirds
1/2 cup almonds, soaked in water overnight and drained
1/4 cup chia seeds
1/2 tsp salt, or to taste

Place all ingredients in a food processor and blend until well chopped.
Form small 1-2 bite sized "pellets".
Cut small squares of waxed paper, and roll the Bites up, twisting the ends of the paper in the same direction (like candy) for easy un-spinning on the move.
These don't really need to be refrigerated, but I keep them cold anyway, stored in a glass bowl with a lid.

Sweet Potato Stew

This easy dish was inspired by a big, lonely sweet potato, a busy day with no time to cook, and a neglected slow-cooker. It's perfect for a busy Meatless Monday! To cook it on the stove, I think I'd steam the sweet potato chunks first, and then throw it all together.

Sweet Potato Stew
serves 4

1/2 onion, chopped
1 large sweet potato, cut into bite-size pieces
2-4 cups chopped kale
1 can lite coconut milk
1 can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1 can diced tomatoes, with juice
4 cups vegetable broth
2 T tamari
1/2 tsp garam masala
1 T curry powder
1/2 tsp salt, or to taste

Stir everything together in the slow-cooker. Cook on high heat for about 4 hours, or until the sweet potatoes are soft. This was extra good the second night, served over brown rice.

Easy, Healthy Banana Oatmeal Cookies

I'm so excited this morning! I just launched the new Positive Motion page on my website! It's designed to help you get up off the couch, get moving, and keep moving. We all need a little extra motivation sometimes, and I'm here to be your very own Personal Motivator. Come check out Positive Motion! We're going to have a lot of fun!

Now, to get you going on a new healthy habit right this minute, here's a terrific little recipe for super healthy cookies that will satisfy your sweet tooth without sabotaging your fitness goals. It's adapted from one I saw on Facebook, but can't seem to locate now that I want to give credit for it. I will gladly post a link if somebody knows where it is. 

These cookies are vegan (of course!), sugar free, oil free, wheat free, and can be gluten free if you use certified GF oats. Miraculously, they're still really good! And because they're mostly made of bananas and oats, they're super healthy. I think they bake up more like little flat cakes or muffins. I would classify them more as a "real food treat" than a "real cookie." If you're not expecting a Mrs. Fields sort of experience, you'll love them! In our house, big man Rick and little man Jacob both gobble them up. As for me, I'm just a few short weeks away from the See Jane Run 1/2 Marathon in California, and these make a great pre-run snack!

I changed a few things to make these work better at high altitude, so if you're in the lowlands, you might need to make adjustments the other way. These are so simple though, I think they'll work pretty much anywhere. Try them at sea level and let us know how it goes!

Banana Oatmeal Cookies
makes about 1 dozen cookies

3 very ripe bananas
2 cups quick oats
1/2 cup unsweetened shredded coconut
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp salt
2 tsp vanilla
1/2 cup apple sauce
1/4 cup almond milk

1/2 cup raisins
1/2 cup chopped nuts
1/2 cup toasted, slated sunflower seeds - optional


Preheat the oven to 350º.
Line 2 cookie sheets with parchment, silicone liners, or a light coating of oil.
Mash the bananas, and stir in all the other ingredients.
Place large tablespoon sized cookies on the prepared cookie sheets, and flatten them slightly. They will not spread or rise as they bake.
Press about a teaspoon of sunflower seeds into the top of each cookie before baking (optional).
Bake 30-35 minutes, until lightly browned.

Need Some Motivation?

I come across so many people who want to improve their diets and health by adding more vegetables and exercise. I'm all for that! And I want to help! Our strongest, fiercest motivations come from deep with ourselves, but sometimes they're buried so deep under other people's needs that we can't even find them, let alone dig them up and make use of them. 

I've been so happy to be able to help people close to me find what they need to get moving and stay moving, and now I want to do that on a bigger scale. Tomorrow I'll be launching a new part of Positively Vegan. It's called Positive Motion, and it's for everyone who could use a little outside reinforcement when the inner motivations are in hiding. Come back tomorrow and see what I have for you! It's going to be so much fun!

¡Calabacitas!

Calabacitas are a particular type of squash, similar to zucchini. A favorite restaurant here serves up a mix of zucchini, yellow squash, onions, and other goo things, and calls it "calabacitas." I usually order it because I like saying the name. And because they're delicious! These tacos are easy to throw together on a week night, and fun for a weekend gathering. Use sprouted organic cord tortillas if you can find them. They're amazing.

Tacos with Calabacitas
serves 4-6
1 yellow onion, thinly sliced
1/2 a block extra firm tofu, crumbled
2 medium zucchini - halved lengthwise, and sliced into little half moons
1 yellow crooked neck squash, sliced like the zucchini (or yellow bell pepper or corn)
1/2 a large red bell pepper, cut in thin strips
1 or 2 fresh jalapeño peppers, seeded and diced
2-3 tsp chili powder
2-3 tsp cumin
salt to taste
1 can refried beans, warmed and spiced with cumin and chili powder
chopped lettuce
Daiya shreds, any flavor
hot sauce
corn tortillas

Throw the onion and tofu into a hot skillet (no oil), and cook for about 3 minutes, until the onion begins to soften. Stir in the other chopped veggies, chili powder, and cumin, and continue to cook for another 5 minutes or so.
While the vegetables are cooking, heat the refried beans in a small saucepan and season to taste.
When the calabacitas (veggies) are done, either keep them warm in the pan, or transfer them into a bowl so you can use the same pan to warm the tortillas.
Dampen the tortillas with water one at a time, and heat for 10-15 seconds per side in a dry pan, over medium heat. Keep them warm in a towel until you have enough for at least the first round of tacos.
To serve, spread a layer of beans on a tortilla, followed by a little Daiya, calabacitas, lettuce, and hot sauce. We like to eat one or two, and then heat more tortillas if we need seconds, which we usually do.

Double Ambassadorship

I have wonderful-fun news! I've just found out that I've been selected as a See Jane Run Ambassador! What the heck is that, you ask? In a nutshell, from the SJR website, "An ambassador is someone who is all "Jane". A Jane can be someone who embraces fitness as a lifestyle and brings it into all aspects of their life. Ambassadors include bloggers, trainers, teachers, fitness club owners, health professionals and athletes (professional and other)."

So now I'm a Vegan Ambassador, and a See Jane Run Ambassador. Double ambassadorship makes me smile. If I could get a gig as a Swimming Pool Ambassador in some exotic, tropical paradise, I think I'd pretty much have it made. I do love drinks with those little umbrellas in them.

See Jane Run is all about running, but as you might already know, I haven't always been a runner. Mostly I've been non-exerciser, which I was never happy about, but couldn't quite figure out what to do about it. I'd go through spurts of wanting to get in shape, and come up with terrific plans for doing it. Most of the time, about three days in, I'd find some excuse to take a day off, which of course turned into more excuses and eventual abandonment of yet another get-fit-fast scheme. I think I can hear a lot of sighing... So many of us have been there, right?

Then something that seems kind of magical happened. A year ago February, my gorgeous, athletic, 26 year old daughter challenged me to join her in a Disneyland 1/2 Marathon. For some insane reason, I said yes, and registered for the race before I had a chance to change my mind. I bought some running shoes, and started training a couple of days later. I kept my expectations low. All I wanted to do was finish on my own two feet, and not get "swept" by the van that picks up the slowpokes. 

I would be 55 by race day - the same age my mother was when she died. I guess I had something to prove. I needed to know that it's not required to surrender to bad health and unhappy aging. I needed to do whatever I could to live to see 56. I know it sounds sort of irrational, but that's how I felt. I knew I needed to turn things around for myself while I still could, and setting a big goal, like a 1/2 marathon, was what finally made it possible for me to get myself moving, and to keep at it. It was not an option for me to let myself down, or my daughter, or Mom, or Mickey Mouse for that matter. 

I started really, really slow, and worked my way up to a respectable pace. I did a ton of research online, and learned how to "run right." Chi Running caught my attention, and it worked for me. I adjusted my already healthy vegan diet to give myself the most possible energy. I found the perfect running shoes. I started a running journal. I gathered up a few key bits of gear. And more and more I found that I looked forward to getting out there to run. 

Rather than beat myself up, I decided to let it be okay to run/walk. Living at this crazy 7,000 foot elevation makes it hard to get enough oxygen. Since my goal was to finish the race, I felt all I really needed to do was keep moving and put the miles in. By the time September came around, I was as ready as I was ever going to be. I was in much better shape than I'd been in February, and I'd lost about 20 pounds. Unexpectedly, my high altitude training really paid off, and I found that running at sea level was easier than I'd ever imagined it could be. Gulping oxygen and pumping adrenaline, I ran most of the first 7 miles before deciding I'd better calm down a little bit and pace myself. I finished the race about 20 minutes behind my daughter, and right about in the middle of the 17,000 or so runner pack. I was so happy I cried like a baby at the finish line.

I had no immediate plans to run another race of any kind after that, but I kept running anyway. I found it harder though, to stay motivated without an event to work towards. So when one of my longest-time (certainly not old) friends told me that she was inspired by what I'd accomplished, and wanted to run with me the next time, I was excited to sign on for my second 1/2 marathon. She lives in Oakland, so we decided on the See Jane Run 1/2 Marathon coming up on June 8th.

This was what I needed. Another goal, and another reason not to get lazy. My sister and at least one other friend are joining us. And now the whole thing feels like a party! I'm hoping to see a few more friends out there, so if you're interested in joining us, go sign up right now! Run or walk the 1/2 marathon, or do the 5K. I'll even be happy just to see your smiling face somewhere along the route, cheering us on. 

So now, as your very happy, over-50 SJR Ambassador, I encourage you to get off the couch, and go outside and move your bones. I'm on my way to do the same, and I know for sure that it's never too late to do more than we think we can.