Quick and easy Veg Curry

It's COLD outside (Arctic Blast)! 

Warm up with this quick and easy Vegan Curry. 

Yummy, healthy and as always, Owen approved!

ingredients:

1.5 cups dry green lentils

1 sweet potato, peeled and diced

1 large can diced tomatoes

1 medium yellow onion, diced

2-3 cloves garlic, minced
1 T minced ginger root

1 T olive oil

1.5 T curry powder*

4.5 cups water

two big handfuls fresh spinach, chopped a little

heat oil in large pot over medium heat, add onion and cook until soft and translucent (3 min or so) add garlic and ginger and cook another minute. add curry powder and stir around for a minute until onions look curry-coated. add lentils, sweet potato, tomato and water. add a little pinch of salt and pepper. bring to a boil then simmer for about 45 minutes until lentils are soft. add spinach and stir for about a minute. then enjoy!

*Any curry powder will be great. I tend to get sucked into the spice area at Whole Foods and usually come out with at least three baggies of curries to try. Let your nose lead you!

Nutritional info: this is one big pot full of crazy-good nutrients to warm your body and soul. I could make a very long list of all the goodness...but I'll break it down to this: you're getting your protein from the lentils, your iron from the sweet potato and lentils, and the vitamin C in the sweet potato and tomato help you absorb that iron, so you know it's getting into your body!

Sweet Treats

Battling the Sweet Tooth

It's no secret that kids are partial to sweet food. 

It's also no secret that food is one of life's great pleasures, so we can't possibly deny our kids the sweet pleasures they are craving, right? right. 

The trick is choosing the right sweet foods. 

Processed sugar (white sugar) provides no benefits for your body. Zero. No nutrients. Also, it's addictive so the more processed sugar you consume, the more you'll crave. There's no good reason to have it in your pantry. There are so many alternatives and I promise, you and your kids will like these foods so much more than the candy, cookies, doughnuts, etc that leave you feeling jittery, cranky and gross. Once processed sugar is out of your house and replaced with delicious whole-food sweeteners, you won't even miss it!

Sweeteners we use in the Rapp house: 

100% pure maple syrup

Organic Blackstrap Molasses

Banana (favorite)

Apples/Homemade Applesauce

Pineapple

We use banana the most. Mash it up in your oatmeal, make cookies with mashed banana and oats, or make "icecream" with frozen bananas (recipe below). Frozen pineapple is a great sweet treat and can be used in banana ice cream for a more tropical flavor.

We use crushed up pineapple, applesauce, maple syrup and blackstrap molasses in baking. The following recipe link is a staple in our house. These carrot/molasses muffins are nutrient rich and delicious!

http://fortheloveofleaves.blogspot.com/2013/08/nutty-molasses-carrot-muffins-vegan.html

just made some of her carrot/molasses muffins this morning!

Nutrition info: 

Maple Syrup: 1/4 cup serving has 4% of your daily calcium need and 6% of your iron need

Molasses: Just 1 Tablespoon has 10% calcium, 15% iron, 10% B6. plus Magnesium and Potassium. 

**If you are veggie or vegan, you know the importance of eating good sources of iron and calcium. These are yummy, sweet ways to fill that need! (sometimes Owen and I sit down for a spoonful of Organic, unsulphured blackstrap molasses....it's a special treat and we love it!)

sampling the molasses

Banana "Ice Cream"

banana "icecream" with almonds and blueberries on top

Cut up three bananas into 1 inch slices and freeze on a tray for a few hours. (If you're going to leave them in the fridge to freeze for more than 5 hours, put them in an airtight container to prevent freezer burn). When you're ready for it, put all frozen slices into your blender and blend until creamy like ice cream. serve and enjoy! It's just banana so you can enjoy this treat any/everyday! (I ate this for breakfast a lot this summer!!)

the blender: frozen bananas turned into icecream!

note** If you do not have a high powered blender like a Vitamix you may have to add just a splash of milk (almond, soy, coconut) to get it to the right consistency.