Experience Nutrition

Category: Way 3: Snacks

  • A New View of Healthy Eating: Enjoy Dehydrated Organic Tomatoes

    by Melanie Albert, Nutrition and food expert, author and speaker, Founder & CEO Experience Nutrition Group, LLC

    Motivational message from “A New View of Healthy Eating, A-55 Card Deck”

    Enjoy Dehydrated Tomatoes

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    A New View of Healthy Eating: Enjoy Dehydrating Tomatoes, Bananas & Apples

    Dehydrating is a simple, quick way to prepare veggies for different types of people and for different culinary uses:

    • Raw Diet. Raw foodists (who eat food that is not cooked above 118 degrees) dehydrate lots of fruit, vegetables, crackers with nuts and seeds for everyday eating.
    • Simple Fruit. Kids and adults of all ages enjoy dehydrated fruit (bananas, apples, persimmons) for everyday snacks.
    • Culinary Delight. Chefs and culinary enthusiasts dehydrate to concentrate and intensify the flvor of food, such as tomatoes, sweet peppers and beets.

    20 Pound Flat of Organic Tomatoes. A few months ago I purchased a 20 pound flat of organic tomatoes at an Arizona Farmers’ Market. I sautéed some of the tomatoes into a simple sauce with garlic and onions; roasted some tomatoes with garlic, onions, and carrots for a thick tomato sauce; and dehydrated a batch into a beautiful culinary treat with a deep, rich, sweet garnish for salads, veggies, avocado salsas, and pizza.

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    A New View of Healthy Eating: Dehydrated Organic Tomatoes

    Home-grown Dehydrated Bananas. This week while in Cocoa Beach, Florida, we harvested dozens of bananas from my 80+ year old parents’ yard. My Dad was actually thinking about buying a dehydrator since they grow bananas year-round and literally have 100s of fresh bananas. We dehydrated our first batch of bananas for about 12 hours which are so crunchy, sweet and full of flavor. We also dehydrated a few organic apples that are so crispy and melt in your mouth.

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    A New View of Healthy Eating: Dehydrated Home-grown Bananas

    Dehydrate! I invite you to dehydrate some fruit and share your photos on our Facebook page: www.Facebook.com/NewViewHealthyEating

    For motivational messages for healthy eating, intuitive cooking, culinary skills, mindful eating, and self care, purchase “A New Way of Healthy Eating”, A-55 Card Deck

  • A New View of Healthy Eating: Eat What You Love

    by Melanie Albert, Food and nutrition expert, author, speaker, Founder & CEO Experience Nutrition Group, LLC.

    Our card today from my new “A New View of Healthy Eating, A 55-Card Deck”:

    Eat What You Love

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    A New View of Healthy Eating, A 55-Card Deck: Eat What You Love

    I was very excited about his message today, as I have one of my favorite foods in my home right now, organic dark chocolate, which I will definitely enjoy.

    To me, the message around this card is to give ourselves permission to eat and enjoy foods that we may have deprived ourselves from eating in our past or even today.

    I invite you, right now, to grab a piece of paper and pencil and do the following exercise:

    • Step 1: Write down all of the foods that you absolutely love. Be creative. Write down all of the foods, even from spices, to olive oil, to fruits, to veggies, to snacks, to beverages.
    • Step 2: Now, draw a circle around 5 of those foods that you generally deprive yourself of. That is, you love the food, but you do not eat that food.
    • Step 3: Draw another circle around one of those 5 foods that you commit to eat this week. Choose your food that you will, right now, give yourself unconditional permission to eat. Unconditional permission to eat with joy!
    • Step 4: Say out loud with passion: “I love my life and I give myself unconditional permission to eat_________________” (fill in your food)
    • Step 5: Go out and purchase your food or go out to a restaurant and enjoy your food with a friend.
    • Step 6: Share your experiences with us on Facebook. Would love to see your photos of you enjoying your “eat what you love food” and how this experience was for you.

    Often when we do this “eat what you love” exercise in classes and workshops, people give themselves permission to eat chocolate cake. Pizza is always on the top of the list. Many love ice cream. Do you relate?

    Have fun and really enjoy your food this week!

     

  • 9 Ways 90 Days Recipe: Raw Dehydrated Flax Seed & Almond Crackers

    by Melanie Albert, Nutrition & Food Expert, Author, Speaker, Integrative Nutrition Health Coach

    I’ve been enrolled in a Professional Plant-based Culinary Certification Course with Rouxbe. This week, one of my creations was Raw Crackers which are so incredibly tasty and beautiful that I’m sharing the recipe, and step-by-step raw food process with you. Once you make these crackers, I have a feeling that you’ll never want to eat processed crackers again. Enjoy!

    Raw Dehydrated Organic Flax Seed & Almond Crackers
    Raw Dehydrated Organic Flax Seed & Almond Crackers

    SIMPLE INGREDIENTS

    Simple Ingredients MIse en Place
    Simple Ingredients MIse en Place
    • ¾ cup golden flax seeds, ground, then soaked in 1.5 cups of water
    • ¾ cup raw almonds, soaked for 2 to 3 hours, until soft, drained
    • 1 ¼ cup yellow bell pepper
    • 2-3 green onions, chopped
    • ¼ cup sun-dried tomatoes, soaked and drained (use my own dehydrated Roma tomatoes)
    • 1 ½ TBSP onion granules
    • 1 tsp sea salt
    • SIMPLE STEPS: Make the Batter
    • Blend flax seeds and almonds in food processor until smooth
    • Blend all remaining ingredients (separate from flax seeds and almonds) in food processor until smooth
    • Add the vegetable ingredients to the flax seed/almond mixture, and fold to thoroughly combine

    Fold Batter Spread onto Parchment Paper

    SIMPLE STEPS: Dehydrate the Crackers

    • Set dehydrator at 115 degrees (I use an Excalibur, which I love!)
    • Evenly spread mixture, less than ¼ inch thick, on a non-stick dehydrator sheet (or parchment paper)
    • Dry in dehydrator for 2 to 3 hours, then score into crackers
    • Dry for another 2 to 3 hours, then flip crackers onto dehydrator trays (without the parchment paper or non-stick dehydrator sheet)
    • Dry for an additional 6 hours or until crisp
    • Remove from trays and store in sealed container
    • Enjoy your home-made raw crackers
    Into the Dehydrator Score & Dehydrate
    Into the Dehydrator Score & Dehydrate

    Action
    Make your own Raw Crackers and share your creations with us on Facebook: www.facebook.com/9Ways90Days