So humbled and honored to be featured in the media over the years. And, really excited to start 2021 with two beautiful, very appreciated highlights in our Arizona publications. And, thrilled to shoot a farm-to-table cooking tv segment with the nationally syndicated tv show The List and with the City of Peoria in 2020.
Natural Awakenings, January 2021: “Create Food Art with Sprouted Spelt Arizona Winter Veggie Flatbread.”
I’ve been writing plant-based farm-to-table recipe articles for the Natural Awakenings Magazine for a few years, and am happy to share with you the January 2021 article: “Create Food Art with Sprouted Spelt Arizona Winter Veggie Flatbread.”
This article highlights the philosophy of the new Plant-Based Farm-to-Table Food Art Movement and features one of my favorite, fun-to-prepare, delicious meals: Farm-to-Table Veggie Flatbread. Thanks so much to editor Tracy Patterson for the opportunities to showcase beautiful food ideas on your publication.
Totally honored to be featured in the January 2021 issue of FrontDoors “Kitchen Doors” with Local First Arizona, who I’m humbled to work along side in sharing healthy plant-based farm-to-table meals and education with our community.
Humbled to be featured along side incredible foodie leaders in Arizona: Sasha Raj or 24 Carrots, New Restaurant Cielo at Adero, and Chef Charleen Badman of FnB and the Blue Watermelon Project.
Thanks so much to writer Shoshana Leon for reaching out to me to be included in this special article.
FrontDoors, January 2021; Local First: Experience Nutrition.Thanks FrontDoors! What an honor to see my beautiful “Food Art” photo in the Table of Contents.
Please fill out the form if you’d like to discuss interviewing Melanie Albert, the Founder & CEO of Experience Nutrition for your media.
The List TV Show: 3 Ways to Cook with Banana Peels. Yes, Really! January, 21, 2020
So honored to prepare fun “healthy dishes” on the nationally syndicated tv show, The List, with incredible co-host Segun Oduolowu. So much fun to cook together and create fun, beautiful, tasty dishes.
Thanks so much to producer Jacqui Denker for the opportunities to work together. Also, so much fun and I love your creative ideas for the segments.
Enjoy this segment with Banana Peel Beet Burgers and Banana Bread.
Farm-toTable Cooking TV Segment: SustainableU City of Peoria, October 7, 2020.
For several years I’ve been hosting farm-to-table cooking demos and experiences with the Sustainable U Program with the City of Peoria.
With the Covid-19 Pandemic, rather than in-person cooking experiences, I’m honor to share plant-based cooking with our community via the tv cooking segment.
Oh my…I think it was around 112 degrees when I arrived at the Peoria Channel 11 studio.All set for the TV Shoot. Beautiful food, thanks to our local Arizona farmers.The sign of the times…Coronavirus Pandemic 2020.Eat local!
Please fill out the form if you’d like to collaborate on plant-based farm-to-table media opportunities.
By Melanie Albert, Founder & CEO Experience Nutrition, Intuitive Cooking Expert, and Award-Winning Cookbook Author
I am so honored to create recipes for the November 2018 issue of Natural Awakening’s Arizona magazine. It has been a dream of mine to cook “my” recipes in a magazine in a cooking class. I’m excited that we will be creating the Fall Thanksgiving recipes in a fun, interactive hands-on cooking class on November 18, 2018, 11am-1pm, at The Farm at South Mountain in Phoenix.
Four Plant-Based Thanksgiving Recipes
The recipes in the article and cooking class are inspired by our local Arizona farmers Fall produce, especially, the Squash Soup, and one of my very favorite desserts, the Sweet Potato Brownie.
Appetizer: Kalamata Olive Tapenade
Side Dish: Winter Squash Ginger Soup
Side Dish: Sweet Potato Brussels Sprouts Fall Veggie Saute
In today’s blog, I’m sharing the step-by-step process to prepare the Tapenade, which has been a favorite at several cooking classes this month. Plus, you’ll see the process to create the soup and a fun plating video. Enjoy!
Kalamata Olive Tapenade
Enjoy refreshing tapenade with local Arizona veggies. This rich appetizer is an update to the olive trays that our family enjoyed with holiday meals when I was a kid. When you make your tapenade, have fun experimenting with a variety of olives and mindfully plate with favorite veggies from your farmers’ market.
SIMPLE INGREDIENTS
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 cup sun-dried tomatoes, rough chopped
1 cup Kalamata olives, pitted and rough chopped
¼ cup fresh parsley
1/4 cup capers
¼ cup fresh parsley
¼ – 1/3 cup organic extra virgin olive oil
Extras for Plating
1 cucumber, sliced
9-10 dehydrated tomato slices
2-3 red or purple radishes, thinly sliced
2 green onions, sliced on the bias
2 Tbsp goji berries, re-hydrated in water for 10 minutes
SIMPLE STEPS
Gather your mise en place
Mince garlic
Rough chop the sun-dried tomatoes, soak in water to re-hydrate 5-10 minutes
In a food processor, pulse garlic and olives until fine, not paste-like
Remove the olive and garlic mixture from the food processor.
Place sun-dried tomatoes in food processor and process until fine.
Add capers and parsley and pulse a few times.
Place olive/garlic mixture and sun-dried tomatoes/capers/parsley mixture into a bowl and mix with a fork.
Add olive oil until you reach desired consistency.
Enjoy the tapenade on cucumbers with a few extra veggies from your local farmers.
Winter Squash Ginger Soup
Yields: 4 servings
Create your Thanksgiving soup with local Winter Squash such as red kabocha or butternut, delicata, or even pumpkins. I especially love the sweetness of red kabocha, which contrasts to the green kabocha with has a more savory flavor. While cooking your soup enjoy the mindfulness and aromatherapy of grating warming ginger, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Have fun plating the soup with a few sliced fresh veggies to add color and a crisp texture to the soup. Enjoy the soup warm or cold.
The components of the soup include: Veggie Stock, Roasted Squash, The Squash Ginger Soup, and the Plating Toppings.
Winter Squash Ginger Soup
Simple Ingredients
1 Tbsp organic extra virgin olive oil
¼ cup shallots, minced
1 TBSP ginger, grated
½ TBSP coriander seeds
Pinch sea salt
3 cups roasted Winter squash (see recipe below)
4 cups veggie stock (see recipe below)
Plating Toppings (per serving)
2 small tomatoes, sliced
1 radish, sliced
5 raw cashews, soaked in water
5 slices dehydrated tomatoes
1 tsp green onions, cut on diagonal
1 tsp micro-greens
Pinch ground cinnamon
Pinch ground nutmeg
Optional: Cashew cream
Cook the Soup
Pour olive oil into the soup pot and warm for 1 minute.
Add shallot and ginger and gently cook for about 5 minutes to release flavors.
Add roasted squash and veggie stock to the pot.
Bring to a boil.
Lower to simmer and cook for 30 minutes.
Pour soup into food processor and pulse a few times for desired smoothness.
Plate the Soup
Pour soup into a serving bowl.
Top with local, seasonal veggies, such as tomatoes, radishes, green onions, and micro-greens.
CLICK LINK TO SEE THE BEAUTIFUL SOUP PLATING VIDEO:
To enhance the flavor of your soup, make this quick and easy veggie stock, with mirepoix base of carrots, onions, and celery. An option is a box of store-bought organic veggie stock.
SIMPLE INGREDIENTS
Stock Base
1 medium white onion, rough chopped
4 carrots, rough chopped
2 celery stalks, rough chopped
6 cups water
Aromatics
10 parsley stems
3 bay leaves
2 garlic cloves
1 tsp black peppercorns
SIMPLE STEPS
Rough chop the carrots, onions, and celery into 2” pieces.
Place carrots, onions, celery, garlic, black peppercorns, and water into the soup pot.
Bring to a boil.
Reduce to simmer and cook with lid covered for 30 minutes.
Strain the veggies from the liquid.
Use the stock in the Winter squash soup.
Roasted Winter Squash
SIMPLE INGREDIENTS
3 cups Winter squash, cubed
3 Tbsp organic extra virgin olive oil
3 tsp ground cinnamon
3 tsp ground nutmeg
SIMPLE STEPS
Toss squash in olive oil, nutmeg and cinnamon.
Place squash on a parchment-lined sheet tray, making sure the squash does not touch.
So honored to create plant-based recipe articles during the last several years for the Natural Awakenings Magazine, Phoenix and Northern Arizona. This month, May 2020, I am especially humbled to contribute to the magazine while we are all together during the Coronavirus stay-at-home. And, while so many people are experimenting more in the kitchen with families and kids.
For this article, I decided to bring a touch of positivity to our world with “The Joy of Beautiful Food.” Experiment with the tips to add beauty to meals and have fun creating dishes with beautiful food and edible flowers. – Melanie Albert
Natural Awakenings, May 2020.
Top 4 Ways to Add Beauty to Your Meals:
Buy Beautiful Veggies from Our Local Farmers.
Add Color and Texture to your Dishes.
Add Natural Aromatherapy to Your Culinary Creations.
Plate Mindfully.
I hope you are inspired to add a little beauty and joy to life by creating some beautiful, mindful plant-based dishes. Share your creations with us on www.facebook.com/ExperienceNutritionAZ and Instagram @experiencenutritionaz and tag us #experiencenutrition.
Happy to share a few of my very favorite recipes in the Natural Awakenings article. Importantly, you can easily modify the recipes with local farmers’ seasonal produce, along with the fruit and veggies in your refrigerator. Enjoy!
Three Beautiful, Simple Plant-Based Recipes
Enjoy mindfully and intuitively creating these simple dishes. Take time to appreciate the beauty of the food, the mindfulness of the cooking process, and the final food art of your culinary creations.
Hummus.Three Ways. Classic. Turmeric. Beet.
Avocado Salsa. Intuitively create with the veggies, aromatics, and herbs in your kitchen.
Raw Carrot Cake. Simple, beautiful, tasty, aromatic dessert.
Hummus Video. In the cooking video, come into my kitchen and see the steps to create the Three Hummus Recipes.
RECIPE: Hummus. Three Ways. Classic, Turmeric, Beet.
Use these recipes as a guide to create your own hummus. Once you’ve learned how to prepare the basic classic hummus, have fun experimenting and intuitively creating your own versions of it.
Serves 4
Classic Hummus. Turmeric. Beet.
I’m excited to share with you the same recipe we made for the Super Bowl XLIV VIP Tailgate Party for the Super Bowl in Miami. Now you can make it, too. In addition to the Classic Hummus, traditionally made with tahini (ground sesame seeds), we can create different versions of hummus with turmeric or beet powder. Enjoy!
Simple Ingredients
2 cups cooked chickpeas (garbanzo beans)
⅓ cup chickpea water
3 tbsp tahini (sesame seed paste)
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 tbsp fresh lemon juice
⅛ tsp cumin seeds, hand -round
⅛ tsp coriander seeds, hand-ground (seeds from cilantro)
Pinch sea salt
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
Turmeric Hummus: 1/2 tsp turmeric powder, pinch black pepper
Beet Hummus: 2 tsp beet powder
Simple Steps
Place all ingredients, except olive oil, into a food processor.
Blend a few minutes, until smooth.
Stream in the olive oil and blend until creamy.
After the hummus has been blended, taste and add more of any of the ingredients to suit your taste.
Turmeric or Beet Hummus: After creating the Classic Hummus, add either the turmeric or beet powder to the food processor. Process until well combined.
Simple Plating
Mindfully plate the three versions of hummus with fresh edible flowers, fresh herbs, or chopped veggies.
Stay in touch with us on www.facebook.com/ExperienceNutritionAZ and Instagram @experiencenturitionaz and tag us #experiencenutrition on your plant-based culinary creations.
Will also be sharing the Avocado Salsa and Raw Carrot Cake in videos and blog posts. Stay tuned.
By Melanie Albert, Plant-Based Culinary Leader, Founder & CEO, Experience Nutrition in Phoenix, Arizona. Award-winning cookbook author, speaker, corporate wellness, team building, retreat leader, and caterer.
So honored to create “recipe articles” for the Natural Awakenings Arizona magazine, with our local farmers produce. For the March 2020 issue, the recipes include:
Arizona Spring Steamed Veggies. Arugula Hempseed Pesto
Roasted Spring Veggies Bowl. Cashew Cream
Recipe: Arizona Spring Steamed Veggies. Arugula Hempseed Pesto
Enjoy a simple lunch or side dish by gently steaming local Arizona Spring veggies in a bamboo steamer and enjoy with simple Arugula Hempseed Pesto.
Lightly steaming veggies brings out the beautiful colors and natural flavor of vegetables, while maintaining their nutrients. Steam a mix of a few Spring veggies with different colors, shapes, and textures, such as golden and Cylindra beets, Daikon radishes, Tropical Black carrots, purple snow peas, sugar snap peas, and corn grown at The Soil & Seed Garden at the Farm at South Mountain. Plus, steam beautiful, unique roots, such as those grown by farmer Billy Anthony of Tropizona – China Rose Radishes and Hinona Kabu and Hida Beni Red Turnips – to add brilliant red and purple to the dish. Enjoy the Spring steamed veggies with a drizzle of olive oil and sea salt, refreshing Arugula Hempseed Pesto, and Calendula flowers.
The Farm at South Mountain Spring ProduceTropizona Radishes and Turnips
Always be mindfully organized when cooking…
Arizona Spring Veggies Grown at The Farm at South Mountain & Tropizona
Steamed Spring Veggies
A bamboo steamer is key to simple plant-based cooking. Learn to steam spring veggies with the mindful process of steaming.
Simple Ingredients
5-7 different Spring veggies, such as beets, carrots, purple snow peas, sugar snap peas, corn, radishes, turnips, sliced
3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
Pinch of sea salt
Garnish: Edible flowers
Simple Steps
To set up the bamboo steamer, fill a large (6- to 8-quart) soup pot with 3-4 inches of water, place over high heat, and bring to a boil.
Place sliced veggies into the bamboo steamer. Spread out the veggies so that they do not touch each other to allow the steam to rise and cook them. Sprinkle veggies with a pinch of sea salt.
Place bamboo steamer on top of the pot with steaming water. Cover with lid and let steam for about 5-7 minutes or until just cooked.
Test the veggies for doneness. When veggies easily come off a fork, they’re ready.
Once the veggies have finished cooking, pour them into a large bowl.
Drizzle with olive oil and a pinch of sea salt.
Veggies into the Bamboo SteamerThe fresh steamed veggies
ARUGULA HEMPSEED LEMON PESTO
Make simple Arugula, Hempseed Lemon Pesto to enjoy with steamed Arizona Spring veggies. With plant-based cooking, add extra flavor to vegetables with simple herb and seed pestos.
Simple Ingredients
2 cups arugula
1/2 cup hempseeds
5-7 stems chives
¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
2 tbsp fresh lemon juice
1 lemon zested
Pinch sea salt
Simple Steps
Place all ingredients (except olive oil) into mini-processor or food processor and blend.
After processing, stream in ¼ cup of olive oil.
Adjust with oil, lemon, or salt to suit your taste.
Enjoy with steamed veggies.
Arugula Hempseed Pesto Mise en Place
Mindful Plating
Mindfully plate the veggies and pesto, showcasing the color and shapes of the veggies.
Garnish with edible flowers.
Arizona Steamed Veggies: Ready to Plate
Simple plating…to start…
And, next, a full bowl of steamed veggies and pesto…
Arizona Spring Steamed Veggies. Arugula Hempseed Pesto.
2020 Sedona Plant-Based Cooking & Self Care Retreats
Interested in a weekend of Plant-based Cooking, Self Care, Hiking and Special Sedona Ceremonies?
2020 Retreat Dates: June 12-15, 2020; September 18-21, 2010
Getting started with our mindful chopping for our fresh Tomato Gazpacho and Avocado Tartare.Beautiful Plant-Based Lunch Creation: Avocado TartareYoga at one of my very favorite spots in the world: Cathedral Rock in Sedona, Arizona.
2020 Authentic Farm-to-Table Plant-Based Cooking Experiences at The Farm with Lead Grower Billy Anthony and award-winning cookbook author, Melanie Albert.
Classes held at The Farm at South Mountain, 6101 S. 32nd Street, Phoenix, Arizona
It is my honor and pleasure to write “recipe articles” for the Natural Awakenings Arizona magazine. For each recipe over the last few years, I first meet with our local Arizona farmer, primarily, Billy Anthony, Lead Grocer at The Soil & Seed Garden at The Farm at South Mountain in Phoenix, to determine what is growing during the season. Then, I intuitively create a few recipes to be featured in the Natural Awakenings Magazine.
I was so exited to learn that the March 2020 issue of Natural Awakenings focus was Plant-Based and loved offering a few tips to enjoy plant-based eating in Arizona and in creating the veggie-focused recipes.
Enjoy creating these recipes with your local farmers produce and share your creations with us on Instagram: @nutritionauthor @plantbasedexperiences
Natural Awakenings Arizona. Top 5 Tips for Successful Local Plant-Based Cooking, by Melanie Albert
Top 5 Tips for Successful Local Plant-Based Cooking
Spring in Arizona is an exciting season to enjoy cooking plant-based meals since our local farmers grow a wide range of produce this time of year. We see lots of greens, all kinds of vegetables, herbs, and edible flowers. If you are new to plant-based cooking and eating, visit a farmers’ market to get inspired by what our local farmers are growing and create simple, tasty, beautiful salads and veggies with different culinary techniques, including raw, steamed, and roasted.
Eat local. Buy produce, herbs, and edible flowers from our local Arizona farmers or grow your own for the freshest, most nutrient-rich food. Plant-based dishes start with beautiful fresh produce to create tasty, eye-catching meals. Shop at our local farms, farmers’ markets, commit to a CSA (Community Supported Agriculture), grow at a community garden, or grow your own.
Keep it Simple. With the plant-based way of eating, we focus on fresh veggies and fruit, nuts, and seeds, whole grains, and beans. With plant-based cooking, we use a few simple culinary techniques for flavor and color. The essential simple plant-based culinary techniques include raw, steaming, sauteing, and roasting. We cook the same vegetables with different culinary techniques to create different flavors, textures, and looks that add variety to our meals.
Cook Intuitively. Think about it: What grows together goes together. With plant-based cooking, mix and match the produce, herbs, nuts and seeds to create beautiful dishes. All veggies are different depending on the seeds, soil, weather, and geography. As a result, each dish we prepare is unique in a positive way with plant-based intuitive cooking. Be sure to taste while you are cooking and adjust your ingredients to suit your favorite personal taste preferences.
Mindfully Plate. We eat with our eyes first. Since plants are naturally beautiful, it makes sense to take time to mindfully plate your meals for visual beauty. Have fun experimenting with various plating styles with your version of “food art” using extras such as fresh herbs or edible flowers. Use your favorite bowls and dishes to add to the beauty of your meal.
Slow down and enjoy.Take a breath. Take time to enjoy the beauty of your local Arizona plant-based meal. Give gratitude to our local farmers for so passionately growing the incredible food and appreciation to yourself for taking the time to shop for and prepare your lovely plant-based meal. Enjoy mindful plant-based eating and the colors, textures, and flavors of your locally grown plant-based meal with your family and friends.
Three Arizona Plant-Based Farm-to-Table Recipes
These simple, beautiful plant-based recipes were intuitively inspired by and created with produce grown by our local Arizona farmers, The Soil & Seed Garden at The Farm at South Mountain in Phoenix, and Blue Sky Organic Farms in Litchfield Park.
Roasted Arizona Spring Veggies Bowl. Cashew Cream (Will Blog)
The Farm at South Mountain Spring Produce, Herbs, and Edible Flowers
RECIPE: Farm-to-Table Spring Arizona Greens Salad
Create a simple, beautiful salad with greens from our local farmers or your garden. Pair a few different light leafy greens and a simple-to-prepare light salad dressing with fresh herbs. This fresh salad, inspired by the local greens grown at the Soil & Seed Garden, also features cherry tomatoes grown at Blue Sky Organic Farms. We start with a simple salad 3-ingredient salad dressing to toss with the fresh salad greens. And, add extra plant-based extras to create a beautiful salad.
Farm-to-Table Spring Arizona Greens Salad
Basic Salad Dressing: 3 Ingredients. That’s It
Create your own salad dressing. The key components of a 3-ingredient salad dressing include an acid, fat, and salt. Once these elements are balanced, we can add in extras, such as garlic, fresh herbs, mustard, and honey. Acids are citrus, such as lemons, limes, grapefruit, along with vinegar. Fats are oils, such as olive oil. And, salts could be Celtic sea salt or Himalayan salt. Once you’ve learned how to prepare a dressing with this technique, you can use this method to create your own unique salad dressings for your fresh salads.
Simple Ingredients
1 fresh lemon, orange, or ½ grapefruit, squeezed, approximately ¼ cup
Organic extra virgin olive oil, twice as much as the citrus juice, approximately ½ cup
Taste and notice if your dressing seems too oily or acid-tasting. Add more citrus or olive oil to suit your taste.
Sprinkle in sea salt.
Shake the jar. Taste.
OPTIONAL: Add in minced fresh herbs and garlic.
Shake the jar. Taste.
OPTIONAL: Add honey and/or mustard. Shake and taste.
Taste testing salad dressing is a great way to mindfully use your cooking intuition. Add ingredients until the dressing tastes great.
Farm-to-Table Spring Arizona Greens Salad
For the base of the salad, choose a variety of Spring greens grown by our local Arizona farmers or growing in your garden. In addition to the salad greens and dressing, extra ingredients add texture, beauty, and taste to the salad. Some sweet. Some salty. Some crunchy. Choose a few of your favorite extras such as tomatoes, berries, nuts and seeds, raisins, capers, and olives. When plating, add beauty to your salad with dehydrated Arizona citrus and edible flowers.
Simple Ingredients
4 cups Mixed Greens, such as lettuce, baby kale, arugula, spinach, mizuna, shungiku (chrysanthemum greens)
Farm-to-Table Spring Arizona Greens Salad Mise en Place
Simple Steps
Chop or tear Spring greens into bite-size pieces.
Pour dressing over the greens.
Lightly toss the greens to coat with the dressing.
Add half of the extras (tomatoes, berries, nuts or seeds, raisins, olives, capers) and gently toss.
Mindfully plate with the remainder of the extras, dehydrated citrus, herbs, and edible flowers.
Enjoy!
Create Your Spring Salad with your Favorite Greens and Tasty ExtrasFarm-to-Table Spring Arizona Greens Salad
Enjoy our local Arizona Spring veggies by cooking with a few simple plant-based culinary techniques – raw salad, steaming, and roasting . Mindfully enjoy your plant-based creations with your family and friends.
2020 Sedona Plant-Based Cooking & Self Care Retreats
Interested in a weekend of Plant-based Cooking, Self Care, Hiking and Special Sedona Ceremonies?
2020 Retreat Dates: June 12-15, 2020; September 18-21, 2010
Getting started with our mindful chopping for our fresh Tomato Gazpacho and Avocado Tartare.Beautiful Plant-Based Lunch Creation: Avocado TartareYoga at one of my very favorite spots in the world: Cathedral Rock in Sedona, Arizona.
2020 Authentic Farm-to-Table Plant-Based Cooking Experiences at The Farm with Lead Grower Billy Anthony and award-winning cookbook author, Melanie Albert.
Classes held at The Farm at South Mountain, 6101 S. 32nd Street, Phoenix, Arizona
By Melanie Albert, Founder & CEO Experience Nutrition, Intuitive Cooking Expert, and Award-Winning Cookbook Author
Each week I have the incredible opportunity to intuitively create recipes with the beautiful food so passionately grown by urban farmer Billy Anthony in the Soil & Seed Garden at The Farm at South Mountain in Phoenix, Arizona.
Spring Farm-to-Table Flatbread
The beauty of the Soil & Seed Garden greens and “purple greens” were the inspiration for my weekly flatbread.
Let’s take a look at the Spring CSA
The Farm at South Mountain: CSA March 2019
SPRING FLATBREAD RECIPE STEPS
To prepare your Spring Farm-to-Table Flatbread, follow the following recipes to create a flatbread with your local seasonal ingredients. Please share your flatbread creations with us on www.facebook.com/NewViewHealthyEating or tag @nutritionauthor on Instagram.
Roasted Veggies: Choose a few seasonal veggies, such as cauliflower, radishes, and tomatoes.
Sauteed Greens & Purples: Choose a few of your favorites, such as arugula, spinach, or shungiku (chrysanthemum).
Cashew Cream: Quick Plant-based sauce created with raw cashews.
Quick Yeast-Free Flatbread: Quick flatbread that takes less time that yeast flatbread.
Creation Video: Layering of veggies onto the flatbread.
Final Flatbread: A look at the cooked flatbread with sauteed greens.
ROASTED VEGGIES RECIPE
Simple Ingredients from the Soil & Seed Garden
10-12 radishes, sliced
1 small head, cauliflower, sliced
Other Simple Ingredients
2-3 small tomatoes, sliced
3-4 mini sweet peppers
2-3 garlic cloves, minced
2-3 tbsp organic extra virgin olive oil
1 tsp sea salt
Ingredients Set for the Spring Flatbread and Sauteed Greens & Purples
Simple Steps
Pre-heat oven to 425 degrees F.
Slice veggies into bite-sized pieces.
Mise en Place: Roasted Veggies
In a bowl, gently coat veggies with olive oil and a pinch of sea salt.
Add olive oil and a pinch of salt to veggies prior to roasting.
Place veggies on parchment-lined flat sheet pan, flat side down with veggies not touching.
Place veggies on parchment-lined flat sheet, with veggies not touching.
Roast for 12 minutes.
Flip veggies.
Roast for another 12 minutes.
Use veggies as flatbread toppings.
Roasted veggies are ready for the Spring flatbread.
SAUTEED GREENS AND PURPLES
Simple Ingredients from Soil & Seed Garden
2 cups of 3-4 greens from Soil & Seed Garden, such as Shungiku, Minutina, Purple Orach, Red Spinach
3-4 leaves, lemon verbena
1 tsp organic extra virgin olive oil
2-3 tbsp fresh grapefruit juice
Pinch sea salt
Mise en place for sauteed greens: Red Spinach, Purple Orach, Shungiku (Chrysanthemum), Minutina.
Simple Steps
Pre-heat medium sauté pan on medium.
Add olive oil to pan.
Add to pan, green colored greens, lemon verbena, pinch sea salt, and 1 tbsp grapefruit juice.
Lightly toss the greens to cook for 2 minutes.
Remove greens from pan.
Follow same cooking steps for the purple greens.
Saute greens lightly and quickly with squeeze of fresh grapefruit juice and a pinch of sea salt.
Greens & Purples Sauteed for the Flatbread
The beauty of the greens and purples.
CASHEW CREAM
Simple Ingredients
1 cup raw cashews, soaked in water 2-4 hours
3 tbsp nutritional yeast
1 tbsp fresh lemon juice
Pinch sea salt
¼ cup water, adjust for desired creaminess.
Simple Steps
Pour all ingredients into a blender.
Blend to desired smoothness.
EXPERIENCE NUTRITIONTM Yeast-Free Quick Flatbread
Simple Ingredients
1 ¼ cups sprouted spelt flour
1 ½ tsp baking powder
¼ tsp sea salt
1 ½ tbsp organic extra virgin olive oil (dough)
½ cup water
1 tbsp organic extra virgin olive oil (spread on dough prior to baking)
Mise en place set for the Yeast-free Quick Flatbread.
Simple Steps
Place pizza stone into oven. Pre-heat oven to 390 degrees F. Pre-bake the stone for about 5 minutes.
In large glass bowl, with a fork mix dry ingredients: flour, baking powder, salt.
Mix the sprouted spelt flour, baking power, and salt. Then add olive oil and water.
Add 3/8 cup water and oil until dough forms a ball. Add additional water, as needed.
Knead on a lightly floured surface for 3-4 minutes.
Kneed the dough for 3-4 minutes.
Flatten out the dough on floured parchment-paper.
With parchment paper on top of the dough, roll thinly with a rolling pin.
Roll out the flatbread with a rolling pin.
Carefully move flatbread to pre-heated pizza stone.
Spread 1 tbsp of olive oil onto the flatbread.
Bake flatbread for 5 minutes.
Remove stone from oven.
Spread cashew cream on the top of the flatbread.
Add veggies to the top of the flatbread.
Cook for about 8 minutes.
Garnish with edible flowers.
Enjoy!
Mise en Place Spring Farm-to-Table Flatbread
Mise en place to prepare the Spring Flatbread.
Enjoy the Step-by-Step Video of Layering the ingredients on the flatbread.
Let’s take a look a the beautiful, tasty, local Arizona flatbread.
Thanks to Natural Awakenings AZ magazine for featuring my Plant-Based Chocolate Pie on the cover and Plant-Based Dessert recipes in the January 2019 issue.
By Melanie Albert, Founder & CEO Experience Nutrition, Intuitive Cooking Expert, and Award-Winning Cookbook Author
As an entrepreneur, I am totally living my passion. Connecting with our local Arizona farmers and chef friends, and having so much fun every day enjoying real whole foods.
I am so humbled to be invited to appear on tv segments with The List TV Show, produced by Scripps, right here in Phoenix, Arizona, and aired in 41 markets across the USA.
In the recent February 2019 segment our focus was the HMR Diet, rated as the #1 weight loss diet by US News & World Report. Our angle was to create 3 different meals taking into account the 3 2 5 philosophy of HMR. That is, eat 3 Shakes a Day, 2 Entrees a Day, and 5 Servings of Veggies and Fruit a Day.
Pre-Production with the Producer
The producer, Olivia Schneider and I wanted all of the meals to be simple to prepare and in keeping with my plant-based focus. For the shake, we decided to make home-made cashew milk as the base for a raspberry smoothie. For the Entree we chose a Farm-to-Table Veggie Bowl with Brown Rice, and for the Veggies, it’s a colorful Farm-to-Table Roots and Greens Salad with a vibrant rainbow of veggies.
Farm-to-Table Just Harvested Produce for the Shoot
A few days prior the tv shoot — as soon as the recipes were approved –I reached out to my passionate urban farmer friend, Billy Anthony at The Farm at South Mountain. Billy supplied us with literally “just-harvested” produce for the shoot including all kinds of beautiful roots, greens, veggies, edible flowers, and even a floral arrangement.
A Quick Look at The Farm at South Mountain Soil & Seed Garden
Billy was kind enough to organize and label the produce, so the different types of unique veggies and greens would be perfectly clear. Even the edible flowers were labeled.
Thanks to Billy for the beautiful farm-to-table floral arrangement for our kitchen set.
Day Before the Shoot: Finalize the Recipes
A little more than 24 hours before the shoot, I started to intuitively decide which veggies would make sense with the two different veggie dishes: Roasted Farm-to-Table Veggie Bowl and Rainbow Salad. And, we finalized the recipes that we’d be filming.
Food for the Shoot
Incredibly beautiful just-harvested produce from the Soil & Seed Garden at The Farm at South Mountain.
Day of Shoot Food Pre-Production
The morning of the shoot started quite early, around 6am as I began to cook and prep food for the shoot, so we’d be ready with the final components of each of the dishes for on-camera. Just for fun, my pre-shoot cooking check-list.
Behind the scene out-takes from Pre-Prep
A video look at the pre-production prep for The List TV Shoot…all set for the Crew.
The Kitchen Set
Right at 1pm, when I had just finished cooking and organizing the pre-prep food, the crew arrived and set up my kitchen for the shoot.
We all loved the edible flowers. Thanks so much to urban farmer, Billy Anthony at The Farm at South Mountain.
On Set: The Make your Own Shake: Raspberry Goji Berry Cashew Milk Smoothie
On Set: The Farm-to-Table Roasted Veggie Bowl
On Set: The Beautiful Farm-to-Table Roots & Greens Salad
The beautiful dishes we created, with plating by The List TV Show Co-Host Segun Oduolowu.
Now, lets’ take a look at the beautiful dishes we creating during the shoot. During the segment, I guided The List co-host Segun Oduolowu to plate the dishes. Thanks again to urban farmer, Billy Anthony for the beautiful food grown at the Soil & Seed Garden at The Farm at South Mountain. Thanks so much to The List for the opportunity to work together to bring these “create your own dishes” to your viewers.
Please join the Experience Nutrition Blog and come back for the step-by-step photos of the creating of the recipes created in for this tv segment with The List.
Thanks to Natural Awakenings AZ magazine for featuring my Plant-Based Chocolate Pie on the cover and Plant-Based Dessert recipes in the January 2019 issue.
By Melanie Albert, Founder & CEO Experience Nutrition, Intuitive Cooking Expert, and Award-Winning Cookbook Author
Each week I have the incredible opportunity to intuitively create recipes with the beautiful food so passionately grown by urban farmer Billy Anthony in the Soil & Seed Garden at The Farm at South Mountain in Phoenix, Arizona.
During the last few weeks, Billy has been growing and we’ve been enjoying so many different greens. What I love about the greens is that they are so beautiful with so many various shapes, sizes, textures, and colors. And, they offer different flavors. Some more mild. Some very spicy. Plus, we can enjoy greens raw in salads and beverages, lightly sautéed in a side dish, and even as dehydrated chips. Think kale chips.
Oh my…the wide variety of greens grown at The Farm’s Soil & Seed Garden this 2019 Fall / Winter Season.
Borage greens
Broccoli greens
Cauliflower greens
Collard greens
Hon tsai tai
Kale
Minutina
Mizuna
Mustard Greens
Rainbow Chard
Red Pac Choy
Roquette Arugula
Shungiku (chrysanthemum)
Spigarello
Tatsoi
Let’s take a look at Soil & Seed Garden. Always beautiful. And, one of my favorite places to pause and enjoy nature…right in my neighborhood.
And, the beauty of edible flowers…
Broccoli Kale Orange Green Drink Recipe
This week I decided to try something different with the greens. A Green Drink, featuring the kale, sprouting broccoli, and fresh mint grown at the Soil & Seed Garden by urban gardener Billy Anthony.
SIMPLE INGREDIENTS
From the Soil & Seed Garden
1 cup kale leaves
1 cup sprouting broccoli
2 small oranges, peeled
3 sprigs fresh mint
Other Ingredients
2 cups coconut water
1 banana, cut and frozen
SIMPLE STEPS
Place kale, broccoli, and coconut water into high speed blender and blend for about a minute.
Add oranges and mint. Blend for a minute.
Add bananas and blend another minute.
Enjoy as a refreshing breakfast or snack.
Garnish with a few sprigs of broccoli, mint, and edible flowers…Enjoy!
Purchase Melanie Albert’s award-winning cookbook,“A New View of Healthy Eating: Simple Intuitive Cooking with Real Whole Foods”
COOKING CLASSES AT THE FARM AT SOUTH MOUNTAIN IN PHOENIX, ARIZONA
Thanks to Natural Awakenings AZ magazine for featuring my Plant-Based Chocolate Pie on the cover and Plant-Based Dessert recipes in the January 2019 issue.
By Melanie Albert, Founder & CEO Experience Nutrition, Intuitive Cooking Expert, and Award-Winning Cookbook Author
Each week I have the incredible opportunity to enjoy the beautiful food grown by urban farmer Billy Anthony at The Farm at South Mountain in Phoenix, Arizona, and to create delicious dishes with Soil & Seed Garden CSA (Community Supported Agriculture).
Twelve years ago when I was studying at the Institute for Integrative Nutrition in New York, I can honestly say that I did not cook, or even eat greens, like kale, arugula, or collards. Today, I eat them a few times a week and prepare them different ways. Sometimes raw and sometimes cooked. Hope you enjoy this new greens creation, inspired by the Shungiku (chrysanthemum greens) and fresh cilantro.
Let’s take a look at the beauty of The Farm at South Mountain this Winter week in Phoenix, Arizona.
Poppies at The Farm at South Mountain…breathe in the beauty.
Now, let’s take a look at The Farm’s Winter CSA (Community Supported Agriculture).
Winter CSA Soil & Seed Garden at The Farm at South Mountain, Phoenix, Arizona. So many amazing greens.
Fragrant Winter Greens Gremolata Recipe
In awe of the beauty and aromatherapy of the greens and cilantro grown by urban farmer Billy Anthony at the Soil & Seed Garden. With a fresh ruby grapefruit dressing, unique gremolata is a perfect accent to roasted veggies.
Greens all set for the Fragrant Gremolata: Chrysanthemum, Minutina, Spigarella, Arugula, Cilantro.
SIMPLE INGREDIENTS
From the Soil & Seed Garden
3-4 stems Shungiku (chrysanthemum greens)
3-4 stems Minutina
3-4 stems Spigarello Greens
3-4 stems Roquette Arugula
Small bunch fresh cilantro
½ Ruby Grapefruit, juiced (about 1/8 cup) and zested
Other Ingredients
½ Lemon, juiced (about 1/8 cup) and zested
½ cup organic extra virgin olive oil
¼ cup pecans
2-3 garlic cloves
Pinch sea salt
SIMPLE STEPS
Rough chop all of the greens into bite-sized pieces.
Ruby Grapefruit Dressing
Zest ruby grapefruit & lemon.
Squeeze grapefruit and lemon juice into 8 oz Mason jar. Approximately ¼ cup of juice.
Add twice as much olive oil as the citrus juice. Approximately ½ cup.
Shake jar.
Taste and adjust. Add more olive oil, grapefruit or lemon juice for your taste preference.
Add pinch of sea salt. Shake.
Gremolata
Place all ingredients into a medium bowl.
Add dressing.
Gently toss.
Gremolata Mise en Place.Gremolata ready to toss.
Serve with roasted local veggies, such as broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, carrots, beets, and sweet potatoes.
Local Arizona roasted veggies to enjoy with the Fragrant Gremolata.
Thanks to Natural Awakenings AZ magazine for featuring my Plant-Based Chocolate Pie on the cover and Plant-Based Dessert recipes in the January 2019 issue.
Natural Awakenings Arizona, January 2019
Natural Awakenings Arizona, January 2019. Start the New Year Off Right
By Melanie Albert, Founder & CEO Experience Nutrition, Intuitive Cooking Expert, and Award-Winning Cookbook Author
For the last 13 weeks I’ve had the honor and opportunity to create recipes with the beautiful food grown by urban farmer Billy Anthony at the Soil & Seed Garden at The Farm at South Mountain, located about a half mile from my home in Phoenix, Arizona. I’ve been visiting The Farm since 2005 and always love the beauty of the seasonal produce, flowers, and herbs growing.
This Winter I’m loving the variety of greens growing at The Farm; some mild, some grassy, and some spicy. It’s fun to mix and match with the greens to create a simple side dish.
Let’s take a look at the beauty of The Farm this Winter.
The Farm at South Mountain. Soil & Seed Garden. January 2019 Morning.The Farm at South Mountain. Soil & Seed Garden. Beautiful edible flowers.
Now, let’s take a look at The Farm’s Winter CSA (Community Supported Agriculture)
The Farm at South Mountain Winter CSA
Specialty Greens Di Cicco Broccoli Orange Sauté RECIPE
In awe of the beauty of the greens and di cicco broccoli grown by urban farmer Billy Anthony at the Soil & Seed Garden. With fresh sage and navel orange, this dish is simple, warming, sweet, savory, and delicious.
Mise en Place…
SIMPLE INGREDIENTS
1 bunch di cicco broccoli
3-4 stems Hon Tsai Tai
3-4 stems Purple Orach
5-7 fresh sage leaves
1 navel orange, juiced and zested
1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
Pinch sea salt
Mise en Place: Greens & Di Cicco Broccoli Navel Saute
SIMPLE STEPS
Pre-heat sauté pan on medium.
Add oil to coat bottom of the pan.
Add sage leaves to the pan and cook for about 1 minute.
Fresh Sage in the Saute Pan
Add broccoli leaves, florets, and stalk to pan and sauté for a minute.
Add Hon Tsai Tai to pan and sauté for a minute.
Add greens one by one, and gently saute for about a minute.
Add Purple Orach to pan and sauté for another minute.
Squeeze orange juice and a pinch of sea salt onto the greens.
Sauté all greens for another minute.
Plate with orange zest and raw greens.
Enjoy!
Greens & Di Cicco Broccoli Orange Saute
GET TO KNOW: Di Cicco Broccoli, Hon Tsai Tai, and Purple Orach
Di Cicco Broccoli. Beautiful Italian heirloom small (3-4”) bluish-green broccoli. Great raw or lightly sauted.
Di Cicco Broccoli, Soil & Seed Garden, The Farm at South Mountain
Hon Tsai Tai.Chinese specialty with purple stems and budded yellow flowers. Mild mustard taste which works well raw in salads or gently cooked in sautés or soups.
Hon Tsai Tai, Soil & Seed Garden, The Farm at South Mountain
Purple Orach.Beautiful deep purple mountain spinach, with large, spade-shaped leaves. Adds color and beauty to salads and sautés.
Purple Orach, Soil & Seed Garden, The Farm at South Mountain
TOP 5 TIPS TO SAUTE GREENS PERFECTLY EVERY TIME
Choose a variety of greens. Different shapes and colors. Some mild, some bitter.
Pre-heat the saute pan prior to adding the oil.
Add a pinch of salt when sauteing to bring out the flavor in the greens.
Add citrus – orange, lemon, or grapefruit – to add contrasting acid to the dish.
Only cook greens for a few minutes. Enjoy them with a little crunch.
Purchase Melanie Albert’s award-winning cookbook,“A New View of Healthy Eating: Simple Intuitive Cooking with Real Whole Foods”
COOKING CLASSES AT THE FARM AT SOUTH MOUNTAIN IN PHOENIX, ARIZONA
Thanks to Natural Awakenings AZ magazine for featuring my Plant-Based Chocolate Pie on the cover and Plant-Based Dessert recipes in the January 2019 issue.
Natural Awakenings Arizona, January 2019
Natural Awakenings Arizona, January 2019. Start the New Year Off Right
By Melanie Albert, Founder & CEO Experience Nutrition, Intuitive Cooking Expert, and Award-Winning Cookbook Author
With a plant-based way of eating we do eat a lot of vegetables. With this in mind, it’s important to know several different simple culinary skills to prepare vegetables, such as roasting, steaming, sautéing, and raw.
In the cooler Fall and Winter seasons one of my favorite ways to cook veggies is roasting. With roasting we cook the veggies in the oven to brown the outside of the veggies, while keeping the center of the veggies a little soft. We can roast all kinds of veggies which gives us a nice variety of tastes, textures, and colors.
Today’s roasted veggies were created by intuitively choosing veggies that I was visually attracted to and feature local Arizona farmers organic veggies purchased at one of our Phoenix area farmers’ markets, Uptown Market.
At the market I was very excited to buy the first Jerusalem Artichokes (also known as Sunchokes) of the season as they are one of my favorite roots. Sunchokes, a relative of sunflowers, have a sweet rich earthy taste.
Sunchokes
Let’s take a look at the local Arizona Farmers’ Winter Veggies from the Uptown Farmers Market.
2-3 TBSP organic extra virgin olive oil (Pane Bianco, Chef Chris Bianco, Phoenix)
Pinch sea salt
SIMPLE STEPS
Pre-heat oven to 400-425 degrees Fahrenheit.
Chop all veggies into equal-sized pieces.
Winter Arizona Veggies all Chopped for Roasting
Coat veggies with olive oil and seasonings.
Place flat side down on parchment-paper lined flat sheet pan.
Veggies carefully place on parchment-paper lined sheet pan.More veggies mindfully placed on pan, including the sunchokes.
Cook for 15 minutes.
Flip.
Cook another 15 minutes.
Enjoy as a side dish with a whole grain or as toppings for flatbread.
Winter Veggie Sprouted Spelt FlatbreadEnjoy Winter Roasted Veggies on Flatbread
TOP 5 TIPS TO ROAST VEGGIES PERFECTLY EVERY TIME
Coat the chopped veggies thoroughly with oil.
When placing on unbleached parchment paper, be sure the veggies do not touch each other.
When placing veggies on parchment paper, place flat side down, so that side of the veggie can brown.
Flip veggies about half-way through the cooking process.
Pay attention to veggies while they are cooking, as they cook at different speeds. More dense veggies (like carrots, beets, and sweet potatoes) take longer to cook than water-rich veggies, like onions and zucchini.
Purchase Melanie Albert’s award-winning cookbook,“A New View of Healthy Eating: Simple Intuitive Cooking with Real Whole Foods”
COOKING CLASSES AT THE FARM AT SOUTH MOUNTAIN IN PHOENIX, ARIZONA
Thanks to Natural Awakenings AZ magazine for featuring my Plant-Based Chocolate Pie on the cover and Plant-Based Dessert recipes in the January 2019 issue.
Natural Awakenings Arizona, January 2019
Natural Awakenings Arizona, January 2019. Start the New Year Off Right
By Melanie Albert, Founder & CEO Experience Nutrition, Intuitive Cooking Expert, and Award-Winning Cookbook Author
For three years I’ve had the honor and opportunity to lead hands-on intuitive cooking classes at The Farm at South Mountain, just a few minutes walk from my home.
All classes are experiential “hands-on” and feature produce just harvested from The Farm and other local Arizona farmers.
I’m sharing this Blog for easy access to the upcoming classes at The Farm from January through April 2019. This season’s classes range from: Vision Board & Appetizers, Foods for Addiction Recovery, Spring Farm-to-Table, Raw Farm-to-Table, and Kids Food Art.
Hope you can join us in the beauty of The Farm.
Purchase Melanie Albert’s award-winning cookbook,“A New View of Healthy Eating: Simple Intuitive Cooking with Real Whole Foods”
COOKING CLASSES AT THE FARM AT SOUTH MOUNTAIN IN PHOENIX, ARIZONA
Enjoy a few fun photos from prior classes. And, if you’re in the Phoenix area I look forward to seeing you a a class this season.
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Thanks to Natural Awakenings AZ magazine for featuring my Plant-Based Chocolate Pie on the cover and Plant-Based Dessert recipes in the January 2019 issue.
Natural Awakenings Arizona, January 2019
Natural Awakenings Arizona, January 2019. Start the New Year Off Right
PUBLIC COOKING CLASSES AT THE MARICOPA COUNTY LIBRARIES
I’m honored have been leading hands-on cooking and yoga classes with the Maricopa County Library District since 2016. For the Winter Reading Program, the class focuses on Mediterranean Plant-Based Culinary. We’ll be preparing Hempseed Tabouli, Olive Tapenade, and Herbal Hummus. Classes are Free to the Public. Call the libraries directly to make your reservation.
Thursday, January 24, 2019, 12:30-2:00pm: North Valley Regional Library, Anthem, AZ
Thursday, February 7, 2019, 10:00-11:30am: El Mirage Branch Library
Tuesday, March 19, 2019, 5:00-6:30pm: Litchfield Park Brand Library
By Melanie Albert, Founder & CEO Experience Nutrition, Intuitive Cooking Expert, and Award-Winning Cookbook Author
Excited to share with you the Aromatic Apple Berry Pie to enjoy creating with your family and friends. This dessert is an incredible aromatherapy culinary experience with hand-grinding spices, including cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, and cardamom.
We created this dessert with 4 different varieties of apples at our hands-on Holiday Dessert cooking class at The Farm at South Mountain, and it was “perfect”. Such a beautiful, warming fall / winter dessert.
Links to the other plant-based dessert recipe prepared at the class:
Aromatic Apple Berry Crisp with Freshly Ground Spices
This apple berry crisp is one of my all-time favorites. From mindfully hand-grinding and enjoying the aromatherapy of freshly ground warming spices, along with the aromatherapy of the apples sautéing in the spices, to memories of eating pies when I was a child, this dessert is outstanding. Enjoy the process of setting up your mise en place, cooking, and enjoying this dish with your family and friends.
Topping
Simple Ingredients
1 cup rolled oats
½ cup almonds, walnuts, or pecans, sliced
¼ cup maple sugar
1 tsp cinnamon, fresh ground
1 tsp nutmeg, fresh ground
1 tsp cardamom seeds, fresh ground
1/4 cup grapeseed oil
Simple Steps
Hand-grind cinnamon, nutmeg, and cardamom.
Mix all dry ingredients for topping until well combined.
Pour in grapeseed oil and mix.
Filling
Simple Ingredients
5 apples, sliced
2 pears, sliced
1 cup raspberries
1 cup blackberries
3 tbsp grapeseed oil
¼ cup maple sugar
1 tsp cinnamon, fresh ground
1 tsp nutmeg, fresh ground
1 tsp cardamom seeds, fresh ground
½ tsp cloves, fresh ground
1 orange, juiced and zested
1 lemon, juiced and zested
Simple Steps
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
Place sliced apples and pears in a large sauté pan.
Turn heat to medium and add remaining filling ingredients.
Cook apples and pears for 15-20 minutes until slightly soft; stir occasionally.
Pour cooked apples with sauce into 8-inch by 8-inch baking dish.
Top with oats topping, raspberries, and blackberries.
Bake on middle oven rack for 30-35 minutes.
Plate and enjoy!
So glad Nathalia from Brazil was in town to capture some fun photos from our Dessert Cooking Class at The Farm. Thanks!
The beauty of the apples…and, all the mindful chopping…
The zesting and juicing of the lemons and oranges.
The aromatherapy of the cinnamon, nutmeg, and cardamom…And, beautiful teamwork!
A few additional fun photos from the class…
Apple cutting knife skills with Melanie Albert.More cinnamon aromatherapy.The beautiful apple crisp, and a batch of hummus…ready to be enjoyed.
Thanks to Natural Awakenings AZ magazine for featuring my Plant-Based Chocolate Pie on the cover and Plant-Based Dessert recipes in the January 2019 issue.
Natural Awakenings Arizona, January 2019Natural Awakenings Arizona, January 2019. Start the New Year Off Right
Purchase Melanie Albert’s award-winning cookbook,“A New View of Healthy Eating: Simple Intuitive Cooking with Real Whole Foods”
PUBLIC COOKING CLASSES IN PHOENIX, ARIZONA
Phoenix friends…hope you or your kids can join us at one of our hands-on intuitive cooking classes this season… Vision Board & Appetizers, Foods for Addiction Recovery, Spring Farm-to-Table, Raw Farm-to-Table, and Kids Food Art.
By Melanie Albert, Founder & CEO Experience Nutrition, Intuitive Cooking Expert, and Award-Winning Cookbook Author
Continuing to share with you delicious, beautiful, and “healthy” plant-based desserts: Berry Cashew Cream Pie, Chocolate Goji Berry Cream Pie, Aromatic Apple Berry, and Raw Carrot Cake. The desserts feature berries, chocolate, goji berries, and amazing aromatic culinary experiences with hand-grinding spices, including cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, and cardamom.
We created these desserts at our hands-on Holiday cooking class at The Farm at South Mountain and I have to say they were all so created with so much mindfulness and heart. Plus, they were delicious.
Today’s dessert, featured on the cover the the January 2019 issue of Natural Awakenings Arizona, is the Chocolate Goji Berry Cream Pie. Links to the other plant-based dessert recipes:
Try this simple chocolate dessert recipe for your family and friends. This gourmet-quality pie is so much fun to make and is beautiful and delicious. Learn to quickly and easily melt chocolate chips right in your oven. Enjoy the pie with superfood goji berries. If you have extra chocolate pie, cut it into small pieces and freeze for snacks.
Chocolate Goji Berry Pie
Pecan Crust
Simple Ingredients
2 cups raw pecans
¼ cup maple sugar
1½ tbsp coconut oil
½ tsp sea salt
Simple Steps
Pulse pecans and maple sugar in food processor.
Add coconut oil and sea salt.
Pulse to combine well.
Press and shape mixture into the bottom of a 10-inch springform pan.
Thanks to my friend Nathalia, from Brazil for capturing the focus of making the crust for the chocolate pie.
Pour the chocolate chips in a single layer onto a flat baking sheet.
Place in the oven to melt for no more than 3-4 minutes or until melted. Be careful that you don’t burn them.
Melt Chocolate Chips in the oven.
Blend the Filling
Place tofu, vanilla, sea salt, and melted chocolate chips into a food processor.
Blend until smooth.
Pour mixture into pie crust and chill for at least 30 minutes.
Top with nuts, and fresh fruit or goji berries.
Chocolate Pie Plating Mise en Place
Chocolate Goji Berry Pie Plating Mise en PlaceSimplicity of the Chocolate Goji Berry Pie
In awe of the beautiful chocolate pie created at the Dessert Cooking Class at The Farm at South Mountain.
The beauty of the Chocolate Goji Berry Pie prepared during the Dessert Cooking Class at The Farm at South Mountain.
While making this pie for the Arizona edition of the January 2019 issue of Natural Awakenings magazine, I had the fun opportunity to create a “birthday pop-up celebration” for urban farmer, Billy Anthony, of the Soil & Seed Garden at The Farm at South Mountain.
My honor to celebrate Billy Anthony’s Birthday with the Pie Pop-up.Thanks so much to Billy and Bailey for the Soil & Seed CSA (Community Supported Agriculture).
What fun celebrating Billy’s Birthday…thanks so much for “playing”!
Billy Anthony’s Chocolate Goji Berry Pie is ready to enjoy.
The beauty of food…Chocolate Cream Pie with Persimmons & Berries
Enjoying the Chocolate Goji Pie creations.
Yummm…And, the perfect setting, at The Farm at South Mountain to enjoy…
Thanks Billy Anthony for growing the beautiful produce at the Soil & Seed Garden at The Farm. And, Happy Birthday.
Happy Birthday to you, Billy Anthony…wishing you another wonderful year. Thanks so much for so passionately growing all of the incredible beautiful, tasty food at the Soil & Seed Garden at The Farm at South Mountain, Phoenix.
Thanks to Natural Awakenings AZ magazine for featuring my Plant-Based Chocolate Pie on the cover and Plant-Based Dessert recipes in the January 2019 issue.
Natural Awakenings Arizona, January 2019Natural Awakenings Arizona, January 2019. Start the New Year Off Right
Purchase Melanie Albert’s award-winning cookbook,“A New View of Healthy Eating: Simple Intuitive Cooking with Real Whole Foods”
PUBLIC COOKING CLASSES IN PHOENIX, ARIZONA
Phoenix friends…hope you or your kids can join us at one of our hands-on intuitive cooking classes this season… Vision Board & Appetizers, Foods for Addiction Recovery, Spring Farm-to-Table, Raw Farm-to-Table, and Kids Food Art.
By Melanie Albert, Founder & CEO Experience Nutrition, Intuitive Cooking Expert, and Award-Winning Cookbook Author
Excited to share with you four amazing, delicious, beautiful, and “healthy” plant-based desserts for you to enjoy creating with your family and friends: Super Berry Cashew Cream Pie, Chocolate Goji Berry Cream Pie, Aromatic Apple Berry, and Raw Carrot Cake. The desserts feature berries, chocolate, goji berries, and amazing aromatic culinary experiences with hand-grinding spices, including cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, and cardamom.
We created these desserts at our hands-on Holiday cooking class at The Farm at South Mountain and I have to say they were all so created with so much mindfulness and heart. Plus, they were delicious.
The first dessert is the Super Berry Cashew Cream Pie. Links to the other plant-based dessert recipes:
Choose a recipe that you are excited about and then come back and make another one.
Berry Cashew Cream Pie
Create a stunning cream pie that’s simple to prepare and full of flavor. Enjoy the process of adding superfood berries, acai and maqui, to add a beautiful purple layer of color to the pie, and have fun plating with your favorite fresh berries.
Berry Cashew Cream Pie
Walnut Crust
Simple Ingredients
1 cup walnuts
¼ tsp ground cinnamon
½ tsp coconut oil
¼ tsp vanilla
Pinch salt
Simple Steps
Process walnuts into a flour in a food processor.
Add cinnamon and salt and pulse to combine.
Add vanilla and coconut oil, and process until dough is crumbly, but sticks together.
Press crust into the bottom of an 8×8 parchment-lined pan.
Chill in refrigerator or freezer to set.
Filling
Simple Ingredients
1 cup raw cashews, pre-soaked in water 2-4 hours.
2 tbsp lemon juice
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 tbsp light agave
2 tbsp coconut oil
Pinch sea salt
2-3 tbsp cashew milk or water, as needed to blend
Simple Steps
Blend cashews, lemon juice, vanilla extract, agave, and sea salt in a high speed blender.
Add coconut oil, and blend.
Add cashew milk, as needed for smoothness.
Pour filling on top of crust in chilled pan. (Save ¼ cup of the filling to make superfood filling.)
Chill in refrigerator or freezer to set.
Superfood Filling
Simple Ingredients
¼ cup of cashew filling
½ tsp acai powder
½ tsp maqui powder
Simple Steps
Put cashew filling, acai powder, and maqui powder into a small bowl.
Stir with a spoon until thoroughly mixed.
Pour the filling onto the top of chilled pie in the pan.
Chill in refrigerator or freezer.
Berry Cashew Cream Pie: Maqui and Acai Filling
Plating
Simple Ingredients
½ cup fresh blackberries or blueberries
Simple Steps
Cut pie into squares or rectangles.
Plate with fresh blackberries or blueberries.
Plating Mise en Place…
Berry Cream Pie Mise en Place for Plating
The Superfood Berry Pie…
The Superfood Berry Cream Pie Beauty
A few photos from the Holiday Dessert Cooking Class at The Farm. Thanks to my photographer friend, Nathalia from Brazil for capturing the event.
Melanie Albert, Holiday Desserts Cooking Class at The Farm at South MountainBlackberries onto the Berry Cream Pie
A few more fun photos from the Holiday Dessert Cooking Class at The Farm
Thanks to Natural Awakenings AZ magazine for featuring my Plant-Based Chocolate Pie on the cover and Plant-Based Dessert recipes in the January 2019 issue.
Natural Awakenings Arizona, January 2019Natural Awakenings Arizona, January 2019. Start the New Year Off Right
Purchase Melanie Albert’s award-winning cookbook,“A New View of Healthy Eating: Simple Intuitive Cooking with Real Whole Foods”
PUBLIC COOKING CLASSES IN PHOENIX, ARIZONA
Phoenix friends…hope you or your kids can join us at one of our hands-on intuitive cooking classes this season… Vision Board & Appetizers, Foods for Addiction Recovery, Spring Farm-to-Table, Raw Farm-to-Table, and Kids Food Art.
By Melanie Albert, Founder & CEO Experience Nutrition, Intuitive Cooking Expert, and Award-Winning Cookbook Author
This week’s intuitive salad from the Soil & Seed Garden CSA at The Farm at South Mountain in Phoenix, Arizona, is inspired by the beautiful, fresh greens (arugula and red pac choy) and chives — grown by urban farmer Billy Anthony.
I intuitively created a warm salad reminding me of the wilted spinach salad my Grandmom made when I was a kid. Today’s salad is a little different, all plant-based. While arugula is naturally a little spicy, when we gently saute and add cashew cream it becomes milder and very tasty.
The simple beauty of fresh farm arugula and red pac choy.
CHIVE CASHEW CREAM RECIPE
Make this simple raw cream, with fresh chives (or green onions) as a simple dressing for the wilted arugula. Nutritional yeast add a cheesy flavor to this plant-based cream.
Simple Ingredients
1 cup raw cashews, soaked 2-4 hours
3 tbsp nutritional yeast
1 tbsp fresh lemon juice
Pinch sea salt
Handful chives, sliced
¼ cup water, adjust for desired creaminess
Simple Steps
Blend cashews, nutritional yeast, lemon juice, salt, and water in a small blender, such as a Nutribullet.
Fold in chives.
Save for salad.
WILTED ARUGULA SALAD
Simple Ingredients
2 cups fresh arugula
2-3 tbsp olive oil
Pinch sea salt
2-3 heads, bok choy
1 cup Chive Cashew Cheese
3 tbsp toasted sesame seeds (dry toast in sauté pan on low heat)
3 tbsp clives, sliced
¼ cup dehydrated tomatoes
Simple Steps
Pre-heat sauté pan on medium low heat.
Pour olive oil into pan and heat for a minute.
Add fresh arugula and pinch of sea salt to pan.
Toss arugula and cook for 30 seconds.
Place arugula and cashew cream into a bowl.
Toss arugula with cashew cream.
Plate with bok choy, fresh chives, toasted sesame seeds, and dehydrated tomatoes.
Enjoy!
The Farm-to-Table Wilted Arugula Salad
Pause and enjoy the beauty of the bok choy…
Red Pac Choy. Grown at the Soil & Seed Garden at The Farm at South Mountain
Red pac choy as a wrap…with left-over veggies, tapenade, and cashew cream.
Red Pac Choy with Roasted Veggies, Tapenade, and Cashew Cream.
Thanks to Natural Awakenings AZ magazine for featuring my Plant-Based Thanksgiving recipes in the November 2018 issue.
By Melanie Albert, Founder & CEO Experience Nutrition, Intuitive Cooking Expert, and Award-Winning Cookbook Author
This week I had the incredible opportunity to host a farm-to-table plant-based Thanksgiving cooking class at The Farm at South Mountain, a few minutes walk from my home. The recipes for the class, featured in the November 2018 issue of the Natural Awakenings Arizona magazine, are simple and delicious, and perfect for a plant-based holiday meal.
One of the recipes intuitively created during the cooking class is an amazing tapenade, loved by everyone at the class for it’s flavor, beauty, and simplicity. Many who attended the class will be shopping at our local farmers’ markets this week and will prepare this appetizer to serve at their Thanksgiving meals.
Hope you enjoy the recipe and have fun creatively “plating” the tapenade using your local farmers’ organic veggies. For inspiration, take a look at some plating ideas from the cooking class at The Farm. Have fun intuitively plating your tapenade for Thanksgiving and other get-to-gethers this season.
Thanks to Cassie Hepler, of ExploreWithCassie for the photos.
Inspiration from the Thanksgiving Farm-to-Table Cooking Class at The Farm
Love the creativity and colorful tapenades created at the cooking class…
Farm-to-Table Cooking Classes and Events at The Farm at South Mountain, Phoenix, Arizona
Tapenade…
Tapenade…
Kalamata Olive Tapenade Recipe
Enjoy refreshing tapenade with local Arizona veggies. This rich appetizer is an update to the olive trays that our family enjoyed with holiday meals when I was a kid. When you make your tapenade, have fun experimenting with a variety of olives and mindfully plate with favorite veggies from your farmers’ market.
SIMPLE INGREDIENTS
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 cup sun-dried tomatoes, rough chopped
1 cup Kalamata olives, pitted and rough chopped
¼ cup fresh parsley
1/4 cup capers
¼ cup fresh parsley
¼ – 1/3 cup organic extra virgin olive oil
Extras for Plating
1 cucumber, sliced
9-10 dehydrated tomato slices
2-3 red or purple radishes, thinly sliced
2 green onions, sliced on the bias
2 Tbsp goji berries, re-hydrated in water for 10 minutes
SIMPLE STEPS
Gather your mise en place
Mince garlic
Rough chop the sun-dried tomatoes, soak in water to re-hydrate 5-10 minutes
In a food processor, pulse garlic and olives until fine, not paste-like
Remove the olive and garlic mixture from the food processor.
Place sun-dried tomatoes in food processor and process until fine.
Add capers and parsley and pulse a few times.
Place olive/garlic mixture and sun-dried tomatoes/capers/parsley mixture into a bowl and mix with a fork.
Add olive oil until you reach desired consistency.
Enjoy the tapenade on cucumbers with a few extra veggies from your local farmers.
Thanks to Natural Awakenings AZ magazine for featuring my Plant-Based Thanksgiving recipes in the November 2018 issue.
