Tag: Farmers’ market

  • Experience Nutrition Recipe: Arizona Cucumber Summer Salad

    Experience Nutrition Recipe: Arizona Cucumber Summer Salad

    This fresh summer salad was inspired by the pickling cucumbers purchased at the Downtown Phoenix Farmers Market. When I purchased the cucumbers I was planning on making some quick pickles. Instead, I ended up enjoying them as a raw snack and this fresh salad.

    Enjoy the video of the salad…from farmers market to table…

    Chopped Cucumber Salad

    Inspired by the beauty of the cucumber…

    Simple Ingredients

    • 1 small cucumber (Crooked Sky Farm)
    • 1 tomato (Crooked Sky Farm)
    • 1green pepper (Crooked Sky Farm)
    • 1 green onion
    • 1 cup yellow beans (Steadfast Farm)

    Simple Steps

    • Slice all veggies in unique shapes and sizes.

    Basil Garlic Lime Dressing

    Simple Ingredients

    • ½ lime, juiced
    • 2 tbsp organic extra olive oil
    • 3-4 basil stems (Melanie’s garden)
    • 1 garlic clove, minced (Blue Sky Organic Farm)
    • Pinch sea salt

    Simple Steps

    • Place all ingredients into small blender.
    • Blend until desired level of smoothness.

    Dress the Salad

    • Place all chopped ingredients into a medium bowl.
    • Pour dressing over the veggies.
    • Gently toss to coat all veggies with the dressing.

    Salad Food Art

    • Plating Mise en Place: Mindfully gather the salad, garnish, and bowl for plating

    • Mindfully plate the chopped cucumber salad with extra slices of cucumber, tomatoes, and fresh basil.
    • Enjoy!

    Another view…the beauty of the Cucumber Salad

    As you may be aware I am getting ready to announce “The 5-Day Beautiful Food Art Challenge”.

    If you’d like to be included in our e-mail to learn more about the Challenge, please fill in your Name and E-Mail below. Thanks!

  • Experience Nutrition: Farm-to-Table Lemon Cucumber Tomato Tower Salad

    Experience Nutrition: Farm-to-Table Lemon Cucumber Tomato Tower Salad

    Eat What Grows!

    A simple way to think about eating locally and eating with the season, is to eat what your local farmers are growing, or what’s growing in your garden.

    What Grows Together Goes Together

    A simple way to think about how to create a dish with your local farmers produce, is to create with the vegetables, fruit, and herbs that are growing together. Intuitively, have fun mixing and matching different colors, textures, shapes, and sizes.

    Right now in Arizona, in late August, it’s still hot, with temperatures above 105 degrees. With the heat, hydrating foods, such as cucumbers, tomatoes, peppers, cantaloupe, and watermelons are still growing.

    Thank  You Farmers & Farmers Markets!

    As always, thanks to our Arizona farmers markets and farmers for continuing to serve our community with incredible food throughout the Coronavirus Pandemic and our extra hot summer.

    Special thanks to the Downtown Phoenix Farmers Market and the following farmers for the produce in the Lemon Cucumber Tomato Tower. Crooked Sky Farms (cucumbers, tomatoes), Blue Sky Organic Farm (parsley).

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    Arizona Summer Veggies

    Lemon Cucumber Tower Salad Recipe

    This quick salad, inspired by the beautiful, unique crisp lemon cucumber, is paired with an heirloom tomato, along with a fresh parsley gremolata.

    Use this recipe as a guide to create your own fresh summer salad with your favorite cucumbers and tomatoes. Add flavor with a simple parsley gremolata as a dressing.

    Have fun plating your own version of Food Art with this dish. Post it on Instagram and Tag #ExperienceNutrition

     Serves 1

     Simple Ingredients

     Cucumber Tower

    • 1 lemon cucumber, sliced in rounds
    • 1 heirloom tomato, sliced in rounds

    Gremolata

    • ¼ cup fresh parsley
    • ¼ cup fresh basil
    • ¼ cup raw almonds, rough chopped
    • ¼ lemon, juiced
    • ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
    • Pinch sea salt

    Garnish

    • Few basil leaves
    • Few parsley leaves
    • Few olives
    • Optional: Dehydrated tomato (previously dehydrated)
    • Optional: Dolmas: Stuffed Grape Leaves (Not use in plating)
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    Lemon Cucumber Tomato Tower Mise En Place

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    Simple Steps

    Gremolata

    • Rough chop the basil, parsley, and almonds.
    • Place all ingredients (basil, parsley, almonds, lemon juice, olive oil) into a small bowl.
    • Toss gently.
    • Add more lemon, olive oil, or sea salt to suit your taste.
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    Gremolata Ingredients: Basil, Almonds, Parsley

     Plating

    Enjoy mindfully plating your salad to create your own Food Art.

    • Place a cucumber round on the bottom of plate.
    • Add a tablespoon of the gremolata and a few capers.
    • Place a tomato slice onto the gremolata.
    • Add a tablespoon of the gremolata and a few capers.
    • Continue with a few more layers of cucumbers and tomatoes.
    • Garnish with fresh basil, parsley, olives, capers, and dehydrated tomato.
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    Plating Mise en Place: Lemon Cucumber Tomato Tower

    Watch the plating video and then have fun plating your own Cucumber Tomato Tower.


    Enjoy your Cucumber Tomato Tower

    My tower tipped over….but…still delicious, so wanted to share it with you.

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    Lemon Cucumber Heirloom Tomato

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    Stay in touch with us on www.facebook.com/ExperienceNutritionAZ and Instagram @experiencenutritionaz and tag us #experiencenutrition on your plant-based culinary creations.


    We have now, with careful consideration of the Coronavirus Pandemic, postponed our Sedona Plant-Based Culinary and Self-Care Retreat to November 13-16, 2020.

    Click hear to learn more about the retreat and see the wonderful time during our September 2019 Retreat.

    If you’re interested in a once-in-a-lifetime memorable weekend, please reach out to me. Would love to chat and get to know you and answer any questions.  Also, please let me know if you’d like to create a custom retreat for a group of friends or your business.

    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.

    A few memories from our September 2019 Sedona Plant-Based Culinary & Self-Care Retreat.

  • Experience Nutrition: Downtown Phoenix Farmers Market Summer Salads

    Experience Nutrition: Downtown Phoenix Farmers Market Summer Salads

    Thanks so much to the Downtown Phoenix Farmers Market for the opportunity to share a few beautiful summer salads with our local Arizona farmers early summer produce.  Having shopped the market for 15 years and leading cooking demos at the market for 4 years, I am honored to be part of our local farmers community.

    Thanks to the farmers market and our local farmers for your continued commitment and hard work to provide beautiful, fresh produce and local products to our community during the Coronavirus Pandemic. We all appreciate you and all the farmers and vendors.

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    Downtown Phoenix Farmers Market: Summer Veggies

    Looking forward to the Fall when we can continue our “Shop the Farmers Market” Cooking Demos.

    Meanwhile, I’m honored to share two simple, refreshing salads – Tomato Gazpacho and Chopped Salads. Hope you enjoy the recipes and have fun preparing and enjoying them with your family and kids.  – Melanie Albert

    Enjoy the Summer Salad Cooking Video featuring our local Arizona farmers produce and then create your own Tomato Gazpacho and Chopped Veggie Salad with your family and kids.


    Summertime Tomato Gazpacho Recipe

    A fresh, cold tomato gazpacho is refreshing, especially on warm days. Make this quick cold tomato salad with our local farmers tomatoes and cucumbers for a tasty summer side dish. Be sure to experiment with all kinds of tomatoes, cucumbers, and peppers.

     Simple Ingredients

    • 4-5 medium tomatoes, rough chopped
    • 2 green bell peppers, seeded and rough chopped
    • 1 medium Armenian cucumber, rough chopped
    • ½ cup fresh cilantro, chopped
    • 1/4 cup fresh lime juice and lime zest
    • 3-4 garlic cloves, minced
    • Sea salt, to taste
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    Tomato Gazpacho: Farmers fresh ingredients

    Simple Steps

    • Place tomatoes in a large bowl.
    • Massage with hands to break down tomatoes.
    • Add sea salt, lime juice and zest, and garlic.
    • Mix well.
    • Add all other soup ingredients to the bowl.
    • Mix well.
    • Taste and season with sea salt.
    • Top with diced cucumbers, tomatoes, and cilantro.
    • Enjoy!
    • Refrigerate leftover gazpacho soup and enjoy the next day for an even more flavorful salad.
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    Tomato Gazpacho: Mise En Place
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    Arizona Summer Tomato Gazpacho

    Summer Chopped Salad Recipe

    Simple Ingredients

    Chopped Salad

    • 1 carrot, cubed
    • 2 cups, green beans, sliced
    • 1 green onion, sliced
    • 1 green pepper, sliced
    • 1 corn on cob
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    Summer Chopped Salad: Mise En Place

    Dill Honey Mustard Salad Dressing

    • ½ fresh lemon juice, approximate ¼ cup
    • ½ cup olive oil, twice as much as the lemon juice
    • 2-3 stems fresh herbs, such as dill
    • Pinch sea salt
    • 1 tsp honey
    • 1 tsp stone ground mustard
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    Dill Honey Mustard Salad Dressing: Mise En Place

     Salad Dressing Simple Steps

    • Pour lemon juice in a small jar.
    • Add olive oil.
    • Shake. Taste.
    • Adjust with more oil, of too much acid; adjust with more lemon, if too much oil.
    • Add sea salt.
    • Add honey and mustard.
    • Shake.
    • Taste and adjust with any ingredients to suit your taste.

     

    Summer Chopped Salad

    • Place all veggies into a bowl.
    • Pour dressing over the veggies.
    • Gently toss.
    • Enjoy your fresh salad.
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    Arizona Summer Chopped Salad

    Have fun plating your Summer Salads…A few ideas to get you started. And, take a look at the video to “see” the plating.

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    Summer Salad: Mise En Place
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    Tomato Gazpacho. Armenian Cucumber
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    Arizona Summer Chopped Salad
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    Chopped Salad: Another View
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    Chopped Salad. Classic Hummus.

    NEW: Corporate Wellness Healthy Eating Programs

    In light of the Coronvirus and safety, rather than in-person cooking experiences, we are now creating custom plant-based cooking videos with “cooking kits.” To learn more contact, Melanie Albert at 602.615.2486 or Mel@MelanieAlbert.com


    UPDATE: Sedona September Self-Care Plant-Based Cooking Retreat

    At this point, we are planning on holding our Fall 2020 culinary and self-care retreat, keeping in mind safety and limiting the number of participants. If you are interested in the September 18-21, 2020 or a custom retreat for your group of friends, let me know, Mel@MelanieAlbert.com  Click for a glimpse of our beautiful Fall 2019 Retreat


    Stay in touch with us on www.facebook.com/ExperienceNutritionAZ and Instagram @experiencenutritionaz and tag us #experiencenutrition on your plant-based culinary creations.

    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.

  • Experience Nutrition: Farm-to-Table Beet Burger

    Experience Nutrition: Farm-to-Table Beet Burger

    Thanks so much to the Downtown Phoenix Farmers Market for requesting a recipe for a “Beet Burger.” I honestly love your market all these years and our beautiful entrepreneurial community at the market. Thank you so much for all the hard work, dedication, and commitment to our community to stay open as an “essential grocery story” during the Coronavirus Pandemic. We all appreciate you and all the farmers and vendors.

    Looking forward to the Fall when we can continue our “Shop the Farmers Market” Cooking Demos. Meanwhile, I’m honored to share the Beet Burger recipe and hope you enjoy the recipe and have fun preparing and eating it. – Melanie Albert


    Enjoy the Beet Burger Video

    • A glimpse of the Downtown Phoenix Farmers Market during the Coronavirus Pandemic.
    • Beautiful veggies grown by Blue Sky Organic Farms.
    • The mindfulness and beauty of mise en place.
    • Steps to saute the veggies, aromatics, and spices for the beet burgers.
    • Mindful plating.


    Recipe: Arizona Farm-to-Table Beet Burger

    The beautiful, nutritious plant-based beet burger features veggies and beans grown by long-time Arizona farmers who support our community at the Downtown Phoenix Farmers Market. Thanks so much to my friends at Blue Sky Organic Farms in Litchfield Park, Arizona, for the red beets, carrots, parsley, green onions, and Spring garlic. And, thanks to Crooked Sky for the black beans.

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    Beet Burger Veggies. Thanks Blue Sky Organic Farms.

    8 Servings

    Simple Ingredients

    • 2 tbsp organic extra virgin olive oil
    • ½ medium red onion (1 cup), diced
    • 2 garlic cloves, minced
    • 1 large red beet (1 cup), diced
    • 1 yellow or orange carrot (1 cup), shredded
    • 1 ½ cups black beans, cooked
    • ¾ cup quinoa, cooked
    • ¾ cup walnut pieces
    • 1 cup fresh parsley, chopped
    • 1 tsp smoked paprika
    • 2 tsp freshly ground cumin seeds
    • ½ tsp black pepper
    • 1 tsp sea salt
    • Garnish Ideas: Avocado, tomato, walnuts, hemp seed cream, capers
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    Beet Burger: Ingredients.

    Simple Steps

    • Prior to making the burgers, cook black beans and quinoa.
    • Cook the Burgers
      • Preheat oven at 350 degrees F.
      • Pre-heat medium sauté pan on medium heat.
      • Add olive oil to the pan.
      • Add red onion to the pan and gently cook for 3 minutes, until translucent.
      • Add garlic to pan and cook for 30 seconds.
      • Add carrots and beets to pan. Stir. Cook covered for 5-10 minutes, stirring occasionally.
      • Add black beans and quinoa to the pan, and stir well.
      • Add walnuts and parsley. Stir.
      • Add paprika, cumin, black pepper, and salt. Stir.
      • Remove pan from stovetop.
    • Make the Patties
      • Transfer 1/3 of the cooked mixture into a food processor and process until thick.
      • Place the mixtures from the sauté pan and food processor into a large bowl.
      • Hand mix (with gloves, if possible).
      • With your hands, form tightly packed burgers.
      • Place burgers onto parchment-lined flat sheet.
    • Cook the Patties
      • Cook for 25-30 minutes, flipping at 12 minutes.
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    Beet Burger: Plating Mise En Place
    • Mindful Plating
      • Garnish with avocado slices, tomatoes, walnuts, hempseed cream, capers.
      • Enjoy!
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    YUM. The Farm-to-Table Beet Burger.

    A photo for the Coronavirus Pandemic…My weekly trip to the Downtown Phoenix Farmers Market.

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    Melanie Albert, Experience Nutrition, Downtown Phoenix Farmers Market, Coronavirus Pandemic. May 2020.

    Stay in touch with us on www.facebook.com/ExperienceNutritionAZ and Instagram @experiencenutritionaz and tag us #experiencenutrition on your plant-based culinary creations.


    Sedona Plant-Based Cooking & Self-Care Retreat Update

    Excited to share with you that our next Sedona Retreat is September 18-21, 2020.  And, wanted to let you know that we decided to cancel the June 2020 retreat, in light of the Coronavirus. If you’re interested in the retreat, or a custom retreat for a group of your friends or business associates, please let me know, 602.615.2486 Mel@MelanieAlbert.com

    Click to learn more about the Sedona Plant-Based Cooking & Self-Care Retreat and enjoy some photos of our 2019 retreat.

    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.

  • Experience Nutrition: Phoenix Summer Farm-to-Table Arugula. Corn. Tomato Salad

    Experience Nutrition: Phoenix Summer Farm-to-Table Arugula. Corn. Tomato Salad

    By Melanie Albert, Founder & CEO Experience Nutrition, Intuitive Cooking Expert, and Award-Winning Cookbook Author

    After two full weeks of traveling to Boston for my niece Mallory’s beautiful, loving wedding; to my parents’ home of 30 years in Cocoa Beach; to a stop in  Barbados (while on the East Coast, of course, it makes sense to visit Barbados to explore the island and scout villas for plant-based culinary retreats.

    For my close friends, an Albert family photo at Mallory’s wedding. xoxo

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    The Albert Family. Mallory and Phil’s Wedding. June 2, 2019.

    Self-care in Cocoa Beach…breathing in the beauty of the Atlantic Ocean.

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    Self-Care in Cocoa Beach.

    Barbados. So beautiful, I have to share right away, one of my favorite spots in the paradise of Barbados. The iconic Sandy Lane Beach.

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    Enjoying the serenity of Sandy Lane Beach in Barbados with my Tree Pose.

    Back Home in Arizona

    As soon as I was back in Phoenix, I shopped at our downtown Phoenix Public Market to purchase kale for a cooking event with the Maricopa County Summer Reading Program and bought a few seasonal goodies from our local farmers.

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    Saturday Stop: Phoenix Public Market

    Honestly, I was not planning on cooking that morning before the Kale Salad event, but I could not resist, so I’m happy to share with you my first Arizona Summer Farm-to-Table Salad after returning to our desert.

    Arizona Corn. Tomato. Arugula Summer Salad.

    This salad was inspired by three of my summer favorites. Fresh corn-on-the-cob grown by long-time Farmer Frank of Crooked Sky Farms in Phoenix; Matt’s tomatoes from the Community Exchange;  and baby arugula grown by Blue Sky Organic Farms in Litchfield Park. Plus, I picked up flavorful Hatun Oregano Cold Pressed Extra Virgin Olive Oil.


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    Fun shopping for Hatun Olive Oil at the Phoenix Public Market

    Simple Ingredients

    • ½ ear corn-on-the cob, kernels cut off the cob
    • 1 cup tomatoes
    • 1 cup arugula
    • 1 lemon cucumber, sliced
    • 1 lime, juiced
    • 2 tbsp olive oil
    • Pinch sea salt
    • ¼ cup walnuts
    • ¼ cup Kalamata olives, sliced
    • 1 tbsp capers
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    Arizona Summer Goodies. Thanks farmers!

    Simple Steps

    • Pre-heat oven to broil.
    • Slice corn off the cob.
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    Slice the corn off the cob.
    • Place corn and tomatoes on a flat sheet pan.
    • Drizzle with olive oil and sea salt.
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    Drizzle olive oil onto corn and tomatoes.
    • Broil for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.
    • Gather Mise en Place (all ingredients in place) to prepare the salad.
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    Be mindful. Mise en place to create the Arizona Summer Salad.
    • Place all ingredients into a small bowl.
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    Place all ingredients into bowl. Then gently toss.
    • Gently toss with hands.
    • Plate mindfully.
    • Enjoy.

    Pause and enjoy your mindful plating.

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    Pause. Enjoy your mindful plating.

    We eat with our eyes first. Enjoy your Summer Salad.

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    We eat with our eyes first. Enjoy your summer salad.

    Plant-Based Culinary & Self-Care in the Magic of Sedona, September 13-16, 2019.

    Click to learn more about the retreat on the Experience Nutrition website.

    I’m excited to participate in the Local First Arizona Independents Week, June 29 – July 7, 2019. During that time, save 20% (up to $500) on the retreat. Contact Melanie Albert if you are interested: Mel@MelanieAlbert.com or 602.615.2486.

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    To stay in touch, visit us on Facebook and Instagram: @nutritionauthor

  • Experience Nutrition Farm-to-Table Recipes: Roasted Purple Cauliflower, Romanesco, and Carrots. Hemp Seed Tabouli

    Experience Nutrition Farm-to-Table Recipes: Roasted Purple Cauliflower, Romanesco, and Carrots. Hemp Seed Tabouli

    By Melanie Albert, Founder & CEO Experience Nutrition, Intuitive Cooking Expert, and Award-Winning Cookbook Author

    It’s been such a beautiful Spring in Arizona, that this weekend I took time to enjoy self care, soaking in the beauty of our Arizona sky and visiting the Gilbert Farmers’ Market in Gilbert, Arizona, about 15 miles from my home.

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    In the Phoenix area we have many different farmers markets throughout the Valley of the Sun and it’s fun to explore the different markets. At the Gilbert market I saw a few friends and “walked my talk” by shopping for my produce with intuition. With this way of shopping, we purchase veggies that we get excited about or are attracted to…the colors, the textures, or the beauty.

    Enjoy the Community at Farmers Markets.

    It was so much fun to chat with some of my friends at the market…

    Crooked Sky Farms. Fun to catch up with Farmer Frank, who I first met when I auditioned for Master Chef about 6 years ago. Farmer Frank, long-time farmer with Crooked Sky Farms, has been farming since 1999. Frank has farms in Phoenix and Duncan, Arizona, with different climates and different growing seasons.

    Blue Sky Organic Farms. So happy to have the opportunity to meet in person for the first time, one of my plant-based culinary teachers, Don Maloney who is now having fun working with Blue Sky Organic Farms, in Litchfield Park, Arizona. Blue Sky has been farming in Arizona since 1995, and is well-known for their salad mix. Don is now “growing  his own.”

    Steadfast Organic Farm. I absolutely love the carrots grown by farmer, Erich Schultz of Blue Sky Organic Farms, a two acre bio-intensive farm in Mesa, Arizona. I love Erich’s dedication to always continuing to learn and to share his farming knowledge with other urban farmers.

    Genuine Fresche. So happy to see my long-time entrepreneur friend, Marcy Olsen and her Genuine Fresche Food Truck. Fresche offers delicious, healthy Acai Bowls (which I enjoyed for breakfast at the market) and freshly blended smoothies. I love Marcy’s passion for healthy eating!

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    Farm-to-Table Recipe:  Roasted Cauliflower, Romanesco, and Carrots

    Simple roasted veggies culinary method to prepare and enjoy fresh local cauliflower and carrots. Roast the veggies with onions, sweet peppers, and garlic for a flavorful side dish.

    Simple Ingredients

    • 6-8 Romanesco florets (Blue Sky Organic Farms)
    • 6-8 Purple Cauliflower florets (Blue Sky Organic Farms)
    • 2 Green Onions (Blue Sky Organic Farms)
    • 8-10 Carrots, sliced (Steadfast Farms)
    • 1 Purple sweet potato, sliced
    • 3 Lunchbox yellow, orange, or red sweet peppers
    • 2 tbsp organic extra virgin olive oil
    • Pinch sea salt

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    Simple Steps

    • Pre-heat oven to 425 degrees F.
    • Slice veggies.

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    • Place veggies in baking pan (enamel or stainless steel).

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    • Drizzle with olive oil and sea salt.
    • Toss veggies to coat with the oil and salt.
    • Roast for 10 minutes.
    • Toss veggies.
    • Roast for 10 minutes.

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    • Enjoy with Hemp Seed Tabouli and Edible Flowers.

    Recipe: Hemp Seed Tabouli

    Inspired by the fresh parsley, this easy-to-prepare gluten-free tabouli pairs nicely with the richness of roasted veggies.

    Simple Ingredients

    • ½ cup fresh parsley, rough chopped (Blue Sky Organic Farm)
    • 1 tomato, rough chopped
    • ¼ cup hemp seeds
    • 1 lime, juiced
    • 1 clove garlic, minced
    • 2-3 tbsp organic extra virgin olive oil
    • Pinch sea salt

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    Simple Steps

    • Chop parsley, tomato, onion, and garlic.

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    • With a fork, mix veggies, hemp seeds, lime juice, olive oil, and sea salt.

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    • Add lime juice, olive oil, or sea salt to suit your taste.

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    Plate and Enjoy

    • Plate the Roasted Veggies with the Parsley Tabouli and Edible Flowers and enjoy.

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    A few fun plates, starting with dramatic.

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    Enjoy roasted veggies in the pansy garden.

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    Fun Roasted Veggie Bowl…

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    Interested in learning simple, easy plant-based cooking techniques and enjoy self-care in Fall 2019 in the beauty of Sedona? Click to learn more.

    To learn more, feel free to call 602.615.2486 or e-mail Mel@MelanieAlbert.com 

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  • A New View of Healthy Eating by Melanie Albert: Celebrating National Farmers’ Market Week!

    A New View of Healthy Eating by Melanie Albert: Celebrating National Farmers’ Market Week!

    by Melanie Albert, Intuitive Cooking Expert, Award-winning Author of  cookbook, “A New View of Healthy Eating:  Simple Intuitive Eating with Real Whole Foods”, Founder & CEO Experience Nutrition Group, LLC, in Phoenix, Arizona

    Get inspired at your local farmers market.

    It’s National Farmers Market Week in the USA, and today, as almost always on Saturday, I visited one of my favorite farmers’ markets, the Downtown Phoenix Farmers Market. This market opened in 2005, just after I moved back to Phoenix and I have to say I’m so glad it did.

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    A few reasons why I love this farmers’ market:

    • Organic Farmers. Three local organic certified small farmers sell their produce at this market. For me, this is key, as I focus on eating organic (no pesticides and no herbicides) and I personally know the farmers and have visited their farms around our Valley of the Sun.
    • Community. There’s such a sense of friendly community with the vendors and people who visit the market. People who attend the market are true friends with the farmers and are happy to catchup on life and food. Plus, it’s fun to see how much people who attend the market have so much fun meeting other like-minded people at the market. Personal note, today, I met 3 people who work with American Airlines, a pilot and two flight attendants, which was interesting as my Mom was an Airline Stewardess in the 1950’s with American. Small world.

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    • Fun. Going to the farmers’ market is fun. A great place to be on Saturday morning. Once a month, I teach the Taste of the Market Cooking Demo, where I shop the market and then show our Phoenix community how to intuitively prepare fresh, healthy dishes. Plus, the market offers demos including gardening, composting, and today they hosted a Watermelon Eating Contest.

    For my Arizona friends, I’ll be leading the Taste of the Market on August 25, 2018, 10am. Hope to see you!

     

    Interested in learning simple culinary skills and intuitive cooking, purchase my cookbook, “A New View of Healthy Eating:  Simple Intuitive Cooking with Real Whole Foods.” I’ll gift wrap and mail a copy to you.

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    Join my Simple Daily Plant-Based Eating Tips FB Group and get daily food and cooking tips.

    Interested in a cooking workshop, team building or corporate wellness event, would love to chat…

     

     

     

     

  • A New View of Healthy Eating: Healthy Recipes by Melanie Albert: More Roasted Roots:  Roast Roots & Roots Greens Tops

    A New View of Healthy Eating: Healthy Recipes by Melanie Albert: More Roasted Roots: Roast Roots & Roots Greens Tops

    by Melanie A. Albert, intuitive cooking expert, author, speaker, retreat host, Founder & CEO Experience Nutrition Group, LLC

    Within my home-cooking, cooking classes, cookbook, and recipe blogs, one of my key philosophies is learning some simple culinary techniques and then using the techniques to cook all kinds of veggies. For those of you who know me from classes, Facebook, and my blog, you are aware that I love roasting veggies.

    Roasting is simple and the cooking process caramelizes the veggies keeping them crisp on the outside and moist on the inside. The flavor is always delicious and roasting can be used in any season with basically any veggies our farmers grow.

    Today I roasted veggies that I purchased on Saturday at this week’s Gilbert Farmers Market from a few of our amazing local organic farmers: Steadfast Farms, Blue Sky Farms, Abby Lee Farms, and Crooked Sky Farms. Plus, I still had a few turnips from The Farm at South Mountain. I was especially happy to also cook beans from Crooked Sky Farms for the first time.

    And, I had fun experimenting with roasting a few roots – carrots and radishes – with the whole veggie. I roasted the roots and the greens and they were so beautiful. Definitely food art!

    Simple Ingredients

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    • Sweet potatoes (Crooked Sky Farm)
    • Carrots (Blue Sky Organic Farm)
    • Radishes (Steadfast Farm)
    • Tomatoes (Abby Lee Farms)
    • Broccoli (Blue Sky Farm)
    • Turnips & Breakfast Radish (The Farm at South Mountain)
    • Black Beans (Crooked Sky Farm)
    • Quinoa
    • Organic extra virgin olive oil
    • Dry seasoning (Today Penzeys Fox Point (salt, shallots, chives, garlic, onion, green peppercorns)

     

    Simple Steps

    • Pre-heat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit.
    • Slice veggies into equal-sized pieces.

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    • Coat veggies with olive oil and seasonings.

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    • Place veggies flat side down on parchment-lined flat sheet pan.

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    • Cook for 15 minutes.
    • Flip.
    • Cook another 12-15 minutes.

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    • Plate with quinoa and black beans.
    • Enjoy!

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    I have just started a new Facebook Group: Simple Plant-Based Daily Eating Tips with Melanie Albert. Please come over and join in the conversation.

    Interested in learning more plant-based culinary skills, Melanie’s book includes 84 simple culinary techniques.

     

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  • A New View of Healthy Eating: Healthy Recipes by Melanie Albert: Top 4 Favorite Plant-based Culinary Techniques & Rustic Veggie Saute

    by Melanie A. Albert, intuitive cooking expert, author, speaker, retreat host, Founder & CEO Experience Nutrition Group, LLC

    This week while cooking my local Arizona farmers’ produce I realized I was cooking the same foods different ways every day. One of my philosophies of healthy eating is to learn simple culinary skills and then when we shop at our farmers’ markets we can cook intuitively with what’s available seasonally.

    Four of my favorite ways (or culinary methods) to cook veggies intuitively are roasting, sautéing, bamboo steamer, and raw. This week, I roasted twice, sauteed once, ate raw a few times, and, so far I have not used my bamboo steamer.

    Take a look a this week’s roasted Farmers’ Market Veggies. Simple steps to Roast Winter Veggies

    Rustic Winter Arizona Farmers’ Market Veggie Saute

    My veggie saute featured many of the same veggies that I roasted earlier in the week. With the saute, I very intuitively added 2 Arizona navel oranges for sweet flavor and moisture.

    • Romanesco
    • Yellow cauliflower
    • Purple carrots
    • Sweet potatoes
    • White beets
    • Turnip
    • Yellow tomato
    • Greens

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    Mindfully Chop Veggies and Organize your Mise en Place

    Chop veggies in about equal-sized pieces and mindfully organize them for cooking. Also, gather other ingredients for your dish. I added extra virgin olive oil, navel orange, and sea salt.

    Saute Veggies One-by-One

    Start with saute pan on medium heat. Warm the olive oil then add the tomato, root veggies, then cauliflower, and finally the greens.

    Mindfully Plate Veggies with Quinoa

    Again, be very mindful with your plating, placing veggies on the plate one-by-one. Add a few extras for extra flavor and interest, such as olives, capers, and dehydrated tomatoes.

    Enjoy your meal.

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    This week I set up a new Facebook Group, Simple Daily Plant-based Eating Tips with Melanie Albert. The group is dedicated to daily actionable eating and cooking tips for people who wish to eat more plant-based food. Hope you join us and share in the conversation.

    Melanie’s cookbook, “A New View of Healthy Eating: Simple Intuitive Eating with Real Whole Foods” includes 84 simple culinary technique with simple steps and photos of the process.

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  • A New View of Healthy Eating: Healthy Recipes by Melanie Albert: Arizona Farmers’ Roasted Organic Veggies

    by Melanie A. Albert, intuitive cooking expert, author, speaker, retreat host, Founder & CEO Experience Nutrition Group, LLC

    As I’ve been blogging recently, I really love the beautiful food our Arizona farmers are growing this season.  A few of my key philosophies are to shop locally and seasonally with your local farmers, learn a few simple culinary techniques, and then when you shop, use your intuition to choose the veggies you are attracted to. Then, when you cook, cook intuitively with your culinary skills and the local veggies.

    This week at the downtown Phoenix Farmers’ Market I purchased a variety of root veggies, a few staples, and fresh dill. Tonight, I cooked with the simple culinary technique of roasting veggies.

    Local Arizona Winter Veggies

    • White beets
    • Orange carrots
    • Yellow cauliflower, called “cheddar”
    • Yellow tomatoes
    • Sweet potatoes
    • Fresh dill

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    Other Ingredients

    • Extra virgin olive oil
    • Dried Penzeys Fox Point seasoning (salt, shallots, chives, garlic, onion, and green peppercorns).

    Simple Veggie Roasting Steps

    • Preheat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit.
    • Wash and cut veggies into about equal size pieces.

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    • In a large bowl, coat veggies with organic extra virgin olive oil and dried seasoning (Fox Point today)
    • Place veggies, flat-side down onto parchment-lined sheet pan.

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    • Roast for about 15 minutes.
    • Flip veggies, and roast another 12-15 minutes.

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    • Mindfully plate the veggies, one-by-one, with a whole grain, like today’s brown rice with fresh dill.
    • Enjoy…

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    If you’re interested in Melanie’s cookbook,A New View of Healthy Eating” you can buy it and Melanie will gift-wrap and mail it to you.

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  • A New View of Healthy Eating: Healthy Recipes by Melanie Albert: Get Clear on Plant Protein and Simple Steps to Sprout Beans

    by Melanie A. Albert, intuitive cooking expert, author, speaker, retreat host, Founder & CEO Experience Nutrition Group, LLC

    This year I have the wonderful opportunity to lead the monthly Healthy Cooking Demo at the Humana Community Center in Mesa, Arizona. Each month Humana gives me a new topic to focus on. This week, the February topic was plant sources of protein. We cooked one of my favorite simple soups: Lentil Quinoa, along with Lemon Hummus, and I showed my jar of sprouted mung beans.

    Plus, we had a positive conversation around sources of plant proteins. Take a look at this chart that I originally created a few years ago when I was guiding former NFL players and their families about nutrition and cooking.  One of the first questions the guys always asked me: “Mel, will you make my stop eating meat?” I told them that I would not force them to stop eating meat, but I would teach them good sources of plant protein, and hopefully, they would reduce their consumption of meat.

    Protein in Plants and Animals

    • When we clearly examine protein sources, we see that we can indeed get enough protein in our diets from plant-based foods rather than from the typical SAD – Standard American Diet – of red meat, pork, poultry, and dairy.
    • It’s important to note how the levels of protein in many plant foods are comparable to the protein levels in meat, poultry, cheese, and fish. For instance, in a 3.5-ounce serving, pork and tuna have 30 grams, and chicken and Swiss cheese both contain 27 grams of protein. These levels of protein in animal food are comparable to pumpkin seeds with 30 grams, lentils with 26 grams, and hemp seeds with 23 grams.

    Simple Protein Chart

    Protein Grams per 100 Grams (3.53-ounce) servings

    30.2 Pumpkin seeds

    30.0 Pork

    30.0 Tuna

    29.1 Beef tenderloin steak, lean only

    29.3 Turkey

    28.4 Nori (sea vegetable)

    27.3 Salmon, sockeye

    27.1 Chicken

    26.9 Swiss cheese

    26.7 Halibut

    26.7 Beef chuck eye roast

    25.8 Lentils, raw

    23.6 Kidney beans, raw

    22.5 Hemp seeds

    21.6 Black beans, raw

    21.5 Dulse (sea vegetable)

    21.4 Pinto beans, raw

    21.2 Almonds

    20.3 Pistachio nuts

    19.4 Beef, grass-fed, ground

    19.3 Garbanzo beans, raw

    19.3 Sunflower seeds

    18.3 Flax seeds

    18.2 Cashews

    18.1 Beef tenderloin

    16.6 Soybeans

    16.6 Inca berries*

    16.5 Chia seeds

    15.4 Cacao*

    15.2 Walnuts

    14.3 Goji berries

    14.1 Quinoa, uncooked

    12.4 Cottage cheese, 1% fat

    3.4 Milk, non-fat

    3.3 Soymilk

    Source: USDA National Nutrient Database

    * Not in USDA Database


    Today, I enjoyed the sprouted mung beans in a fresh farmers’ market salad intuitively created with the veggies and spring mix from the Farm Tour with Blue Sky Organic Farm, and purple cauliflower from Maya’s Farm, about ¼ mile from my home. Blue Sky Organic Farm, 30 miles west of my home, grows about 150 varieties of produce on 35 acres. Their beautiful spring mix comes from 18-21 different varieties of baby greens. Blue Sky Organic Farm triple washes and spin dries the mixture at high velocity, so we can easily enjoy it in our salads.

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    SIMPLE INGREDIENTS

    • Bamboo Steamer Veggies
      • Romanesco
      • Purple Cauliflower
      • Fennel
      • Yellow wax beans
      • Spring mix
      • Mung bean sprouts
    • Salad Dressing
      • Fresh lemon
      • Basil olive oil
      • Sea salt
      • Fresh home-grown basil

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    Excerpt from “A New View of Healthy Eating”: Simply Sprout Beans: Try Mung Beans

    In the winter of 2014 I started to sprout beans while learning in the Plant-Based Professional Certification with Rouxbe Cooking School. When I visited my parents in Florida, we decided to experiment with sprouting different kinds of organic legumes (mung, adzuki, and green lentils) and a few seeds (sunflower and broccoli). Within a week, we had 12 quart jars full of sprouted beans and seeds. Luckily for my parents’ Cocoa Beach neighbors, they also enjoyed sprouts in their meals.

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    Soaking and Sprouting

    The soaking and sprouting process releases dormant enzymes that make beans more easily digestible and, in some cases, even more nutritious.

    Mung beans are the most widely eaten sprout on our planet and have been cooked in Chinese dishes for centuries. Mung beans, a great plant protein, are fun and easy to sprout, and can be eaten raw or cooked. Add raw mung beans to the top of a salad, avocado salsa or hummus for a nice crunch. Cook sprouted mung beans for added protein in veggie stir-fries or soup.

     7 Simple Steps to Sprout Mung Beans

    1. Soak ¼ cup dry mung beans in a few cups of water for 8 to 12 hours out of direct sunlight.
    2. Rinse beans and place them in a wide-mouth quart Mason jar with a wire lid.
    3. Rinse beans with cold water 2 to 4 times a day.
    4. After each rinsing, rest the jar on a slant so that any extra water can drain out of the jar.
    5. Harvest beans in 2 to 5 days.
    6. After sprouts have completely dried, store in the refrigerator.
    7. Enjoy raw in a salad or wrap or cooked in a stir-fry.

    Today’s Mung Beans

    You can purchase Melanie’s cookbook, “A New View of Healthy Eating” and also let us know if you’re interested in a Cooking Workshop, Event, or Retreat. Would love to explore your ideas and create a fun program for your organization.

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  • A New View of Healthy Eating: Healthy Recipes by Melanie Albert: Quick & Simple Flatbread Local Tomato Sauce

    by Melanie A. Albert, intuitive cooking expert, author, speaker, retreat host, Founder & CEO Experience Nutrition Group, LLC, Phoenix, Arizona.

    This morning I was craving my sprouted spelt flatbread, so I started with activating the yeast and letting the dough rise. Honestly, my vision was to roast veggies, make a cashew nut cheese and white sauce. However, I was away from my home most of the day — shopping for superfoods and attending the Slow Food Phoenix Event: Slow Foods. Fast Friends Event. Such an energizing event around local food and sustainability, I’m so excited to get more involved in our local food movement in Phoenix.

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    Remembering the melt in your mouth simple Margarita Pizza that I enjoyed in Milan, Italy, so many decades ago, when I returned home in the evening I decided to make a really quick tomato sauce with garlic and sea salt for the flatbread. And, I loved it!

    Three Tips to Activate Yeast “Perfectly”

    Several weeks ago, when I blogged the steps to activate yeast and rise flatbread dough a few of my friends asked me how the yeast is so fluffy. My tips:

    • Water Temperature. Get the water temperature in the right range, 112 -115 degrees Fahrenheit. To do this, bring water to almost a boil. Then mix that water with cooler water until the temperature is In the 112-115 degree range.
    • Do not use a metal utensil to stir the yeast water. Use a wooden spoon.
    • Add-in ingredients with the yeast and water. I use local Arizona honey, extra virgin olive oil, and a dash of sea salt.

     

     

    Step-by-step: Dough rising.

     

    Roll-out the dough with a rolling pin between parchment paper.

     

    The Simple Tomato Sauce & Toppings

    Ingredients

    • Organic olive oil
    • Tomatoes: Abby Lee Farms
    • Fresh garlic
    • Sea Salt
    • Arugula: Blue Sky Organic Farm
    • Goat cheese
    • Olives

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    Simple Steps

    • Heat saute pan on medium heat.
    • Saute tomatoes and garlic for 3-5 minutes, adding sea salt after the tomatoes begin to soften.

     

    Bake the Flatbread

    • Place pizza stone into oven. Heat oven at 375 degrees Fahrenheit.
    • Place rolled-out dough onto pizza stone.
    • Increase oven temperature to 400 degrees.
    • Coat top with olive oil.
    • Bake for 5-7 minutes.
    • Add toppings.
    • Bake for 5 minutes.
    • Enjoy.

     

    Interested in Melanie Albert’s cookbook, “A New View of Healthy Eating,” order today and I’ll gift-wrap and mail a copy to you. 

     

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  • A New View of Healthy Eating: Daily Healthy Recipes by Melanie Albert: Arizona Winter Harvest Farm-to-Table Intuitive Cooking Class

    by Melanie A. Albert, intuitive cooking expert, author, speaker, retreat host, Founder & CEO Experience Nutrition Group, LLC

    I am so honored to do the work I love with such beautiful food grown by our local Arizona Farmers in natural, beautiful places in the Phoenix area.  Last weekend I had the honor to lead a Winter Harvest Farm-to-Table Intuitive Cooking class at The Farm at South Mountain, in Phoenix, less than a mile from my home.

    For this class, our culinary focus was an Asian Salad, Veggie Stir-fry, and Hummus. I shopped at the Downtown Phoenix Public Market the day before event (while also leading a Taste of the Market Cooking Demo) and the Soil & Seed Garden at The Farm also provided a CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) share for the class.

    I was so incredibly excited getting set up for the class on our sunny Arizona winter day, immersed in the variety and colors and textures of the food for the class.

    A look at the Farmers’ Market food…

    A look at The Farm at South Mountain CSA, which included all kinds of greens, black radishes, edible flowers, oranges, and pecans.

    I’m also sharing the beautiful “salad in a bowl” from The Farm, fresh and crisp and ready to enjoy with a simple flower.

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    Asian Salad

    We used the Asian Salad Dressing from my book, “A New View of Healthy Eating” as a guide for the dressings. (Scroll down for the recipe guide.) While I often teach how to make a basic salad dressing with an acid (lemon), fat (organic extra virgin olive oil), and sea salt, I have only taught the use of fresh ginger root in a salad a few times. The natural aromatherapy of the ginger really made this dressing fresh and unique.

    A look at two different Asian Salads intuitively created during the class.

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    Winter Harvest Saute

    Our stir-fry (really veggie saute) featured, in order of cooking:

    • Extra virgin olive oil
    • Spring green garlic
    • Green onions
    • Red and orange tomatoes
    • Sea salt
    • Sweet potatoes
    • Orange and purple carrots
    • Broccoli
    • Romanesco
    • Sweet lime and orange juices

    Click to get the recipe blog with simple steps for your veggie saute.

    Our final dishes…Asian Salads…Winter Harvest Saute…Garlic Hummus…

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    Excerpt from “A New View of Healthy Eating”

    Asian Salad with Vibrant Purple Cabbage and Tangy Citrus Ginger Root Dressing

    Make your own gourmet Asian salad with a rainbow of raw organic veggies, your favorite toasted nuts, and intuitively created ginger root dressing.

    Asian Salad: Ginger Salad Dressing: 3 Key Ingredients

    The essential ingredients for a perfect Asian dressing every time are ginger root, a soy flavoring (wheat-free tamari soy sauce or Bragg’s amino acids), and fresh citrus.

    Simple Ingredients

    • 1” fresh ginger root
    • 1 garlic clove, minced
    • ½ cup soy tamari or Bragg’s amino acids
    • ½ orange, juiced
    • ½ fresh-squeezed lemon or lime juice
    • 1 tbsp rice wine vinegar
    • 1 tsp local honey
    • ⅓ cup organic extra virgin olive oil

    Simple Steps

    • Finely mince ginger root and garlic.
    • Place in pint-size Mason jar.
    • Add all other ingredients (except olive oil) to jar and shake.
    • Taste and intuitively add ingredients to create your desired flavor.
      • Too much acid: add olive oil
      • Not sweet enough: add honey
      • Too oily: add lemon or lime juice

    The Power of Ginger

    Ginger is a tropical plant whose roots have been used medicinally in Asia for centuries. Ginger root is a natural anti-inflammatory; it reduces nausea, helps digestion, and is good for colds and flu. A simple way to add fresh ginger to your food is to use it in a salad dressing.

    “The key to a delicious ginger root salad dressing, taste the dressing while you are making it for just the right balance of ginger, citrus, and soy flavor.”


     Asian Rainbow Salad

    Along with a tangy ginger root dressing, a colorful rainbow of raw organic veggies creates a beautiful Asian salad.

    Simple Ingredients

    • 1 purple cabbage, shredded
    • 2 cups Napa cabbage, shredded
    • 1 cup carrots, shredded
    • 1 cucumber, julienned (long, thin slices)
    • 1 cup snap peas or snow peas, cut on bias
    • 6 green onions, cut on bias
    • 1 cup red or purple radishes, shredded
    • 1 cup almonds, sliced and dry toasted

    Simple Steps

    • Dry toast (no oil) sliced almonds in small sauté pan on low heat for 5 minutes.
    • Toss all vegetables in a large bowl and mix thoroughly.
    • Drizzle the Asian salad dressing on the vegetables and gently toss.
    • Top with dry toasted almonds.
    • Enjoy!

    Finally, we created a very simple basic Hummus, just like the Hummus served at the VIP Tailgate Party at the Superbowl XLIV in Miami. Today’s hummus intuitively featured lots of fresh garlic. Click for Hummus recipe.

    Hope you enjoy your local farmers’ produce with simple culinary skills and intuitive cooking. For additional ideas, Melanie Albert’s cookbook, “A New View of Healthy Eating” is available.’’

  • A New View of Healthy Eating: Daily Healthy Recipes by Melanie Albert: Intuitive Veggie Bowl

    by Melanie A. Albert, intuitive cooking expert, author, speaker, retreat host, Founder & CEO Experience Nutrition Group, LLC

    This weekend I had the wonderful opportunity to lead two farm-to-table cooking events. The first a beautiful intuitive Arizona Winter Harvest Veggie Saute at the Downtown Phoenix Market “Taste of the Market” and then a beautiful intuitive cooking class with another beautiful veggie saute, Asian Salads, and a Garlic Hummus at The Farm at South Mountain in Phoenix.


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    Downtown Phoenix Market: Taste of the Market: Winter Harvest Saute

     

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    Arizona Winter Harvest Intuitive Cooking at The Farm at South Mountain

     


    Today, with some of the left-over veggies, I created a quick very, very intuitive veggie bowl. The goal was to create a dish with lots of color, different textures, and a variety of flavors.

    The Veggies and More

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    • Purple and orange carrots
    • Yellow string beans
    • Snow peas
    • Parsley
    • Arugula
    • Sweet lemon
    • More
      • Left-over quinoa
      • Left-over garbanzo beans
    • Extras
      • Basil olive oil
      • Cumin seeds
      • Bragg’s amino acids
      • Olives
      • Edible flowers
      • Sea salt

    The Culinary Techniques

    • Bamboo Steamer: Carrots, Yellow String Beans, and Snow Peas finished with Basil olive oil, sweet lemon, dry toasted cumin seeds, and sea salt

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    • Simple Pesto: Rough chopped parsley and raw almonds, sweet lemon, and basil olive oil.
    • Quick Saute: Arugula with Bragg’s amino acids

     

    Plating Mise en Place

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    Rustic Plating

    Bowl Plating

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    Hope you are enjoying my intuitive cooking creations and are having fun intuitively creating beautiful dishes with your local farmers’ produce. Share your creations with us on Facebook: www.facebook.com/NewViewHealthyEating

    My cookbook, “A New View of Healthy Eating: Simple Intuitive Cooking with Real Whole Foods” features 84 simple culinary techniques. Order a copy and I’m happy to gift-wrap and ship to you.

     

     

     

  • A New View of Healthy Eating: Daily Healthy Recipes by Melanie Albert: Arizona Winter Harvest Bowl The Beauty of Local Farmers’ Food

    by Melanie A. Albert, intuitive cooking expert, author, speaker, retreat host, Founder & CEO Experience Nutrition Group, LLCs

    I am so in awe of our beautiful Arizona farmers’ Winter bounty. Today’s intuitive recipe was inspired by many of the incredible veggies I purchased at the Downtown Phoenix Farmers Market this weekend. Thanks so much to so many of my local farmer friends for all the passion, dedication, and hard work to grow the beautiful produce for all of us to enjoy.

    Thanks, Farmers!

    • Blue Sky Organic Farm: beautiful Romanesco
    • Maya’s Farm: unique purple and white cauliflower, edible flowers
    • Steadfast Farm: fresh sunflower sprouts, Iitois onions and amazing rainbow of purple, yellow, and white carrots
    • Rhiba Farms: wild arugula
    • Golo Family Farms: sweet lime

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    In addition to showcasing the beautiful Arizona Winter veggies, I also wanted to share a simple way to cook the veggies in a bamboo steamer to keep them vibrant and colorful. Once we’ve gently steamed the veggies, we can finish them with a simple dressing.

    I invite you to Intuitively create your dish using these recipe steps as a guide. When you choose your vegetables consider their different colors, different textures, and different flavors. Also, use your intuition to determine how much of the veggies you’d like to cook. For me, I like to cook a small batch so I can enjoy a meal one day and then eat the left-overs for lunch the next day.

    SIMPLE INGREDIENTS

    Bamboo Steamer

    • Romanesco
    • Purple cauliflower
    • Yellow and purple carrots
    • Wild arugula
    • Iitoi onions, cut on bias
    • Sunflower sprouts

    Dressing

    • Sweet lime
    • Extra virgin olive oil
    • Coriander seeds
    • Sea salt

    Extras

    • Rose brown rice
    • Edible flowers

    SIMPLE STEPS: Arugula Saute

    • Pre-heat saute pan on low-medium heat.
    • Add olive oil to pan.
    • Sweat onions for a few minutes.
    • Add arugula and cook for a few minutes.
    • Add Sunflower sprout and cook for about a minute.

     

    SIMPLE STEPS: Dry Toast Coriander

    • Pre-heat small sauce pan or pot on low heat.
    • Add coriander to pan and toast for a few minutes.
    • Remove from heat and save for the dressing.

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    SIMPLE STEPS: Bamboo Steamer

    • Bring a few inches of water to a boil in a large stock pot.
    • Cut all vegetables into bite-sizes pieces.
    • Place vegetables on steamer, with space between each, to allow steam to rise and cook the veggies.
    • Sprinkle a few pinches of sea salt on the veggies.
    • Cover the steamer.
    • Steam for 5-7 minutes until the veggies easily fall off the fork.

     

    • Drizzle lemon, olive oil, and sea salt, and coriander seeds on the veggies to create a dressing.
    • Gently hand toss the veggies in the dressing.
    • Adjust flavors. Add more olive oil, lemon, or salt to suit your personal taste.

     

    • Gather your plating mise en place.

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    • Plate the veggies with brown rice.
    • Garnish with edible flowers.

     

    Two Cooking Events this Weekend in Phoenix, February 17 and 18, 2018

    Taste of the Market, Downtown Phoenix Market, Saturday, February 17, 2018, 10am. If you’re in the Phoenix area, I’ll be hosting the Taste of the Market Cooking demo at the Downtown Phoenix Market on Saturday, February 17, 2018 at 10am. I’ll be shopping the market and then will create a bamboo steamer and sautéed greens dish. Stop by to learn these culinary techniques and taste the amazing food from our local farmers.  Downtown Phoenix Farmers Market, Central & McKinley, 14 E Pierce Street, Phoenix, AZ (Central Ave & McKinley)

    Intuitive Cooking Experience: Winter Farm-to-Table Cooking Class at the Farm at South Mountain, Sunday, February 18, 2018, 11am-1pm. Full hands-on intuitive cooking class at The Farm at South Mountain. Cost $45 per person + tax.

    I’ll intuitively shop the Saturday farmers’ markets for local, Phoenix fresh, justharvested produce the day before the class. During the hands-on cooking experience you’ll learn culinary skills and dishes from my book, “A New View of Healthy Eating.” You will create:

    • A beautiful, unique Asian-inspired salad with ginger dressing
    • Seasonal chickpea hummus with fresh herbs
    • Colorful veggie stir-fry with lots of greens

    You’ll learn a few simple key culinary skills:

    • 3-Ingredient salad dressing, as the foundation for the perfect dressing
    • A basic hummus that you can adapt with all kinds of herbs and spices
    • The proper steps and process to make a veggie stir-fry

    PURCHASE TICKETS HERE

  • A New View of Healthy Eating: Daily Healthy Recipes by Melanie Albert: The Beauty of Local Farmers’ Food

    by Melanie A. Albert, intuitive cooking expert, author, speaker, retreat host, Founder & CEO Experience Nutrition Group, LLCs

    Today I spent the day living my passions and having fun with my like-minded food friends. Next weekend (Saturday, February 17, 2018, 10am) I’ll be leading a Taste of the Market Cooking Demo at the Downtown Phoenix Public Market, so I visited the market today to see what our local farmers are growing and to get inspired for ideas for the class.

    Our Winter Arizona farmers’ bounty is so incredible, I just wanted to “be” with the food and my farmer friends. I ended up staying at the market for three hours, enjoying the food, taking food, talking cooking, and having my kind of fun. Later in the day, I stopped at The Farm at South Mountain, an urban farm about a half mile from my home.

    Sharing some of the beautiful food and a video of some incredible cauliflower…hope you enjoy..

    In awe of the cauliflower grown by Blue Sky Organic Farm…

    Powerful Purple…

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    Gorgeous Green…

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    Fresh Yellow & Orange…

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    Radish Red…

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    Taste of the Market Cooking Demo…

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    Thanks, Downtown Phoenix Farmers’ Market…

    And all my farmer friends…Maya’s Farm…Steadfast Farm…Abby Lee Farms…Golo Family Farms…McClendon Select…Community Exchange…Blue Sky Organic Farm…

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    Interested in my book, you can buy it and I’ll gift wrap and mail to you.

  • A New View of Healthy Eating: Daily Healthy Recipes by Melanie Albert: Another Clean my Refrigerator: Arizona Purple Cabbage

    by Melanie A. Albert, intuitive cooking expert, author, speaker, retreat host, Founder & CEO Experience Nutrition Group, LLCs

    Since I’ll be farmers’ market shopping in the morning, today I decided to do another “Clean my Refrigerator Meal.” I was fortunate to see a beautiful organic purple cabbage from one of my local Arizona farmers. Rather than eat it raw in a salad or as a wrap, I quickly sautéed the purple cabbage and enjoyed it with a few of my other left-overs: Black Beluga Lentils, Rose Brown Rice, and an avocado.

    Let’s look at the natural beauty of the Purple Cabbage.

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    Mindfully pause and enjoy the art in food.

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    SIMPLE INGREDIENTS

    • ½ purple cabbage
    • 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
    • Pinch sea salt
    • 1 avocado
    • ½ cup black Beluga lentils
    • ¼ cup rose brown rice (all that was left)
    • 1 avocado
    • 1 tsp basil extra virgin olive oil
    • 1/4 tsp black sesame seeds
    • Few basil leaves
    • Few edible flowers

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    SIMPLE STEPS

    • Slice cabbage into strips.
    • Heat olive oil in saute pan on medium.
    • Add cabbage and sea salt.
    • Stir occasionally.
    • Plate with brown rice, lentils, and avocados.
    • Drizzle with basil extra virgin olive oil.
    • Garnish with black sesame seeds, fresh basil leaves and edible flowers.

    The final dish…

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    ACTION: Have fun creating a quick meal with “what’s in your refrigerator” and share with us on Facebook: www.facebook.com/NewViewHealthyEating

    Interested in learning plant-based culinary skills, Melanie’s cookbook, “A New View of Healthy Eating” is available.

    A final look…Purple Cabbage Saute…

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  • A New View of Healthy Eating: Daily Healthy Recipes by Melanie Albert: Clean my Refrigerator Roasted Veggies & Beluga Lentils

    by Melanie A. Albert, intuitive cooking expert, author, speaker, retreat host, Founder & CEO Experience Nutrition Group, LLCs

    Today’s intuitive recipe is inspired by all the left-over veggies in my refrigerator. Fortunately, we are in the amazing Winter growing season and our local Arizona farmers are growing a wide variety of beautiful food.

    We can easily roast all kinds of veggies with the simple veggie roasting method in the Romanesco & Sweet Potato Blog. Today I roasted sunchokes, leeks, green garlic, golden beets, red and white radishes, purple cauliflower, broccoli, red pepper, a tomato and one Brussels sprout.

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    How to Cook Black Beluga Lentils

    While the veggies were roasting I started to think about how the colorful veggies would beautifully contrast nicely with rich Black Beluga Lentils, with their deep color and delicate flavor.

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    How to Cook Black Beluga Lentils

    SIMPLE INGREDIENTS

    • 1 cup black Beluga Lentils
    • 2 cups veggie stock
    • 3 inches kombu
    • 2 garlic cloves

    SIMPLE STEPS

    • Place all ingredients into pot.
    • Bring to a boil.
    • Simmer for 20-25 minutes with lid.
    • Enjoy with roasted veggies.

    Arizona Winter Farmers Roasted Veggies

    Let’s take a look at the beautiful roasted veggies…from refrigerator, to oven, to plate.

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    SIMPLE VEGGIE ROASTING STEPS

    • Place cut veggies in a bowl.
    • Drizzle extra virgin olive oil and a little sea salt to fully coat the veggies with the oil.
    • Place on parchment-lined sheet pan.
    • Roast at 375 degrees for 15 minutes.
    • Flip veggies.
    • Roast for another 15 minutes.

    Mindfully plate the roasted veggies and Black Beluga Lentils one-by-one…

    Another view of the beautiful, colorful roasted veggies and black beluga lentils…

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    The final plate…

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    ACTION: Have fun roasted veggies and cook some black Beluga lentils. Share your creations with us on Facebook: www.facebook.com/NewViewHealthyEating

     

     

  • A New View of Healthy Eating: Daily Healthy Recipes by Melanie Albert: 20 Pounds of Tomatoes Part 3: Tomatoes Arizona Lemon Sauce

    by Melanie A. Albert, intuitive cooking expert, author, speaker, retreat host, Founder & CEO Experience Nutrition Group, LLCs

    As some of you may be aware, a few times a year I have the opportunity to purchase 20 pounds of organic Campari tomatoes from McClendon’s Select for $20 US dollars at one of our local Phoenix farmers markets. This time, I was fortunate to purchase the tomatoes at our Wednesday morning Uptown Market in Phoenix, Arizona.

    When purchasing the flat of tomatoes, they are quite ripe, so I really have to cook them within a day or so, or share with family and friends. With the flat of tomatoes I purchased a few weeks ago, I prepared the tomatoes 4 different ways:

    1. Roasted in oven.
    2. Dehydrated in dehydrator.
    3. Stove-top saute with Arizona lemons.
    4. Stove-top saute with veggies.

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    Tomatoes. Arizona Lemon Saute Sauce

    Today, let’s take a look at the sautéed tomatoes with Arizona lemons.

    This simple tomato sauce was inspired by our local Arizona citrus season, with so many aromatic lemons growing everywhere around the Phoenix area. Love the sharp contrast of the lemon in the sauce. After the sauce cooked and cooked, I froze it in 2-cup servings.  I look forward to enjoying the Tomato Lemon Sauce with whole grains and veggies…Maybe tonight??!!!

    SIMPLE INGREDIENTS

    • Tomatoes
    • Lemons
    • Extra virgin olive oil
    • Sea salt

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    SIMPLE STEPS

    • Place tomatoes and lemons in large saute pan.
    • Bring to a simmer.
    • Drizzle in olive oil and a few pinches of salt.
    • Saute for about 45 minutes.

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    Quick video…Getting started…tomatoes and lemons into the saute pan…

    And, the tomatoes and lemons cooking…

    Another simple idea for Tomato Saute in my cookbook, “A New View of Healthy Eating.”

     

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    You can purchase “A New View of Healthy Eating” right here and I’ll gift wrap and mail a copy to you.

    Also, I invite you to Follow me on Instagram where I post my favorite “food art” photos. @nutritionauthor

     

  • A New View of Healthy Eating: Daily Healthy Recipes by Melanie Albert: Quick Farm-to-Table Veggie Saute

    A New View of Healthy Eating: Daily Healthy Recipes by Melanie Albert: Quick Farm-to-Table Veggie Saute

    by Melanie A. Albert, intuitive cooking expert, author, speaker, Founder & CEO Experience Nutrition Group, LLC

    Today I very intuitively created a very simple farm-to-table veggie saute with beautiful veggies in my refrigerator from local Phoenix farmers and gardeners. When I first pulled out the veggies from my refrigerator my intention was to create a cold avocado tartar with the tomatoes and carrots.  While chopping the veggies I was imagining the beautiful aromatic veggie saute from last night’s  “Living an Edible Landscape Life” and decided to prepare a saute.

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    When cooking a quick stove-top saute, first gather your veggies. Today’s veggies are from many of our local Arizona farmers.

    • Green onions
    • Green Spring garlic, McClendon Select
    • Mini red tomatoes, Phoenix Community Exchange
    • Orange carrots, Steadfast Farms
    • Arizona lemon, Phoenix Community Exchange
    • Kale, The Farm at South Mountain, Seed & Soil Garden
    • Chrysanthemum greens, The Farm at South Mountain, Soil & Seed Garden
    • Fresh dill, Joan Baron Food in the Alley, Scottsdale
    • Avocado
    • Sea salt
    • Extra virgin olive oil

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    As always, mindfully pre-chop your veggies and get your mise en place set for cooking.

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    Once our mise en place is set, we mindfully cook the veggies, one-by-one. With this process, we can really taste the flavor layers. Start with a little olive oil, sweat the onions, add the garlic. Then add the veggies one-by-one. Intuitively, I usually add a little sea salt right after the tomatoes go into the pan, to bring out their sweetness. And, this time of year in Arizona, I love to squeeze in a little citrus to add a bright taste to the saute.

     

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    While this dish was cooking, the natural aromatherapy of the lemons and fresh dill really made the dish a more beautiful mindful experience.

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    Once you’ve sauteed the veggies, mindfully plate and enjoy your farm-to-table veggies. You’ll see that I added a few dehydrated tomatoes for extra beauty and flavor.

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    ACTION: Have fun shopping at your local farmers’ market this weekend, and please share your veggie sautes with us on Facebook: www.facebook.com/NewViewHealthyEating

    For some additional veggie saute ideas, a spread from Melanie’s book, “A New View of Healthy Eating.”

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    If you’re in the Phoenix area, my next hands-on intuitive cooking class, Winter Farm-to-Table Harvest is at The Farm at South Mountain, Sunday, February 18, 2018, 11am-1pm.  Learn more and register here.

    You can order “A New View of Healthy Eating” book and I’m happy to gift wrap for you.