Smoothies While Traveling: Easier Than you May Think

November 23, 2016 by Sarah

So this chica is back in Ecuador for a month!! I studied abroad here 4 years ago and during that time, I found an orphanage that I completely fell in love with. I came again to care for the little babies that left a bigger impact on my heart than words can describe. I plan to volunteer at the orphanage as much as I can and do catch-up work for my photography business, which I’m so blessed to be able to do remotely. This year has been a whirlwind, and I felt like I needed a little time to get away to take care of myself, do something I love more than anything in me, and refocus to determine my goals for the upcoming year.

Well, part of taking care of myself involves food, of course! I pre-contemplated this before leaving and brought some ingredients I could use to make sure I was still consuming a nutrient-rich diet while here. Because I’ve lived here before, I was a bit familiar with what I could get my hands on and what produce I’d have access to. All in all, I’m banking on smoothies as being my daily go-to, and here is how I prepared for this:

From home, I brought:

chia seeds
hemp seeds
e3live Renew Me powder (this stuff is the absolute best and definitely worth the money!)
goji berries
stick blender and a mason jar *more detail below

(Ideas of other powders include protein, maca, ashwaghanda, any herbal powders like He Shou Wu, Reishi, Chaga)

Buying local foods:

If you know the region a bit, you may know what to expect, but even if you don’t after doing some research, you can still improvise! Being that I’m in the Andean mountains, I was hoping I’d find some local maca and cacao. Yesterday I wandered around and found some at one of the Artisan markets! I was stoked! The cacao powder also has ginger 🙂

I also found these exotic chocoalate bars, which was some extra icing on the cake!

But back to smoothies.

I knew there’d be bananas and other exotic fruits, like passionfruit, granadilla, tomate de árbol, that I could add to the smoothies so I picked up some produce today as well. If you bring some of the more expensive ingredients from home (seeds, powders, superfoods), you won’t need to spend as much while traveling. And as far as space goes, I just put them in smaller bags, and the food I brought really didn’t take up that much room. Now Ecuador is very cheap, but produce is in many other places as well. Keep this in mind when you’re trying to eat healthy. I bought everything below for LESS THAN $7.

*Equipment

As far as equipment, it definitely depends on what kind of trip you are taking. You may have a blender where you are going, and if you can, inquire at the place(s) you’re staying. When I was in Cabo San Lucas earlier this year, there was a kitchenette in the room with a blender. I took full advantage of that by making smoothies with chia and hemp seeds I brought with me. I am here in Ecuador for a month and did have a checked bag so I was able to bring this kind of thing along. Initially, I knew I wanted to bring a blender to make banana milk (because the only non-dairy milk they have here is soy milk), and I was going to bring a Shake N Take my mom gave me years back. Last minute, I decided to go with a Cuisinart stick blender and a wide mouth Mason jar instead because it’s much more powerful and better at blending and is not much bigger. It’s very, very portable and easy to clean. I’m staying in an Airbnb and have access to a kitchen, but it’s the family’s and is in a separate unit so I most likely will not be using it often.

I’ll conclude with the smoothie I made this morning!

It had water, two bananas, passion fruit, mango, tamarind, chia and hemp seeds, maca, cacao, and e3live powder! Since I don’t readily have access to a kitchen, I just rinsed the attachment from the stick blender with some water over the smoothie and then rinsed the jar with water and drank it when I was done. Then I was able to clean out the little bit of smoothie remnants that were left in the bathroom sink! It was super easy and worked really well. Unless you have a good place to do dishes, my advice is to rinse it right away so it doesn’t dry and get caked on 🙂

So there you have it! Do you have any thoughts or ideas for smoothies while traveling?! If so, leave a comment below!

Tahini Miso Salad Dressing + Sushi Salad

June 4, 2015 by Sarah

So now that you know how to make your own tahini, it’s time to get some ideas about dressings to make with it! No better way to start than combining it with some good ‘ol miso. I recently bought some new miso, and it’s chickpea this time! For those of you who don’t know, miso is a fermented (typically) soybean paste that is used heavily in Japanese and Asian cuisine. You can also find other types of miso like azuki bean, brown rice, barley, golden millet, and chickpea like I mentioned. Two brands that carry these different varieties and that I really love are South River Miso and Miso Master Organic. By the way, don’t get tripped up about the price tag.. you don’t use very much at all so they last quite a long time!

What is so awesome about miso?

Miso is rich in antioxidants and probiotics and because it’s fermented, it contains beneficial bacteria that is good for your gut flora, which in turn may help support both your digestive and immune system. I used to work at an Asian fusion restaurant where we served miso soup. My mom would always tell me, ‘If you’re ever not feeling well at work, make sure you have some miso soup!’ It truly is a nice little addition to your diet.

Although it’s most notable for being used in soup, it can also be an incredible addition to dressings and sauces because of it’s bold saltiness. Check out this Massaged Kale Miso salad and my rockin’ how-to video while you’re at it 😉

The first day I made this Tahini Miso Dressing I just had it on some greens just like the ones shown in the picture above. However, the next day, I went ahead and made a SUSHI SALAD and doused it with this dressing.

And guess what? The sushi salad blew my mind! I loved pretty much every bite of it.. I just made if for dinner and didn’t know it would taste this yummy so I only have some phone pics to share. There was something about all of the veggies together – the textures AND flavors – that made this a salad I will FOR SURE make again!

Start with a bed of kale and other greens (mixed greens, romaine, leaf lettuce, etc.) and top with steamed asparagus, quartered and sliced cucumber, diced red pepper, one or two diced green onions, and some brown rice. Each vegetable I used really added to the WOW factor of the salad so if you try making this, I highly recommend not skipping out on one or two of them!

Next top with avocado, nori strips or cut up nori sheets (I used A LOT more than were in this picture) and the tahini miso dressing below!

This dressing can not only be used as a dressing but also as a sauce for really anything lunch/dinner-related! You can change the thickness of this dressing by adding more or less water. I used 1/4 cup, and it was pretty thin so if you want a thicker paste, I would start with 1 tbsp. and work your way up depending on the consistency you’re going for.

P.S. Black sesame seeds rock! Not only are they really affordable (we got a 1/2 lb. bag for only $1.80), but they’re also high in antioxidants, vitamin E and may offer anti-aging benefits — yeeeeeah!

Tahini Miso Salad Dressing

Prep time

5 mins

Total time

5 mins

This simple vegan dressing adorns salads with a creamy, savory and zesty kick!

Author: Sarah

Recipe type: Dressing

Serves: ¾ cup

Ingredients

¼ cup tahini
2 tbsp. miso
juice half lemon (about 1 tbsp.)
1 small clove garlic, minced
1 tbsp. coconut aminos (or tamari, nama shoyu, etc.)
¼ cup filtered water
dash of maple syrup, to taste
dash of cayenne pepper, optional

Instructions

Combine all ingredients in a bowl or jar and mix well. Store in an airtight container (like a Mason jar) in the fridge for 3-5 days.

If you love it, try making a double batch the next time so you can use it for multiple meals throughout the week!

With love,

What to do When you Feel ‘Hungry-Not-Hungry’

May 19, 2015 by Sarah

Have you ever felt like you weren’t hungry yet you find yourself looking in the pantry for something to eat? Maybe you kind of ate junky during the day and know you need some sort of nutritional boost or some ‘real food’ even though you aren’t necessarily all that hungry? Or you feel your metabolism is being kind of sluggish yet you feel the need to eat because you think you should be eating?

This is what I like to call ‘hungry-not-hungry’. And I felt it today. Maybe I’m the only one who gets this feeling every once in awhile, but I have a feeling I’m not. I can’t be certain, but I can take a stab and suggest that maybe your body (at least I feel my body anyway) is basking for some nutrients.. you know, some vitamins and minerals from real, whole, nutrient-dense food. And can you guess where’s a great place to start? Yup, you got it – raw vegetables.

Next time you find yourself in that ‘hungry-not-hungry’ state, don’t reach for more snack food. I know those chipotle black bean chips look oh so crunchy and appealing, but give your body something it will feel satisfied with without shoveling down more calories, which your body probably doesn’t want anyway since you don’t feel hungry. Raw vegetables will not carry the caloric load, but will give you nutrients your body is most likely yearning for.

Next time you get this feeling, try one of these two things:

1. Snack on some raw veggies or make a small salad with a variety of vegetables.

There are plenty of times I used to get home from work late and even though I wasn’t all that hungry, I would make a nice little salad with greens and veggies we had on hand. I felt like my body really wanted it, and it was something I didn’t mind eating even before bed. Start with a variety of greens on the bottom, cut up some veggies and put a small amount of dressing, preferably homemade, on top to jazz it up a little. A little lemon or lime juice with avocado is always nice!

2. Juice, juice, juice away!

That was the answer for today. What was even more perfect is that there were some veggies in the fridge that I needed to eat up – I’ll admit, I just didn’t feel like having a nappa cabbage-broccoli-asparagus salad. Wasn’t in the mood for it. But the minute I thought about juicing I started getting thirsty 🙂 It was perfect; I ended up juicing nappa cabbage, a big broccoli stalk, asparagus ends (I keep the tops to steam), a thumb of ginger, a whole organic lemon and some cantaloupe! Juicing vegetables when feeling ‘hungry-not-hungry’ is such a fantastic way to satisfy your confusing craving – you hydrate yourself while giving your body readily available nutrients to utilize for carrying out its many intricate processes.

Now over to you!! What is your favorite way to satisfy that ‘hungry-not-hungry’ feeling?

With lots ‘o love,