Put This In Your Vitamix And Blend It: Cool Pea Soup

Change and growth take place when a we are willing to risk ourselves -- to delve into a new realm of being, such as authenticity, vulnerability, compassion, or boldness.  To dare to experiment with our own lives is what brings true growth and transformation!  If you or someone you love is taking a stand for health and well-being, please enjoy this recipe!

Put This In Your Vitamix And Blend It: Cool Pea Soup

Ingredients

• 1 stalk of celery - chopped into smaller pieces - about 1/2 an inch 
• 2 cups of fresh, raw English peas (I buy them in a bag in the fresh produce section at Trader Joe's)
• 1 ripe Hass avocado - cut into cubes
• 3-4 inches of a cucumber - chopped into smaller pieces
• 1 TB miso (vegan and gluten-free, if desired)
• 1 tsp Sriracha sauce (or something else spicy, e.g. cayenne)
• 2 TB hemp seeds
• 1 1/2 cups of water or almond milk

NOTES:

I have a Vita-Mix 5200 with the variable control dial.  And I used it to create this recipe.

If fresh peas are unavailable, you can experiment with frozen or canned, but the results are unknown.

STEP 1:

Put these things into the Vitamix and blend on HIGH until smooth:

• 1/2 of the avocado
• about 3/4 of the celery stalk
• 1/2 of the cucumber
• 1 cup of the peas
• miso
• Sriacha
• hemp seeds
• water/almond milk

STEP 2:

Add these things to the pure in the Vitamix and blend on variable setting 1-2, essentially pulse chopping them into the soup:

• the remaining half of the avocado
• the remaining celery (about 1/4 of the stalk)
• the remaining half of the cucumber
• 1 cup of peas
• any additional liquid to thin, if desired

(If you do not have a Vitamix with a variable control dial, you can complete STEP 2 with handy knife work or by using the pulse setting in a food processor.)

STEP 3:

Refrigerate for a couple of hours and serve chilled.

Put This In Your Vitamix And Blend It: Green Goddess Dressing

I love my Vita-Mix.
Nobody pays me to say that.
The Vita-Mix blender has really revolutionized how I spend time in my kitchen.  I use it daily, sometimes more than once a day.  So, I'm starting a series of posts called: 

PUT THIS IN YOUR VITAMIX AND BLEND IT.  

I'm calling this recipe "Green Goddess Dressing".

"Put this in your Vitamix and blend it" Ingredients:

• 1 carrot
• 1 handful fresh parsley
• 1/2 lemon - juiced
• 1/3 cup of raw sesame seeds
• 1/4 tsp. sea salt
• 1 TB miso paste (which you can get at an Asian market or Whole Foods/Earth Fare)
• 1 clove garlic - peeled
• 1 TB extra virgin olive oil
• 1/2 cup filtered water

Enjoy with your favorite salad or as a dipping sauce for veggies.



Here's the salad recipe I used:

• 1 head red bibb lettuce
• several handfuls of arugula 
• chopped cucumber
• sliced mushrooms
• sliced tomatoes

In general, I limit my salads to 5 ingredients so that they can really shine.

Why is it healthier to make your own salad dressing?
Not only does it taste better, because it's fresh, it does not contain all the "unhealthy" oils and additives that come in the stuff from a store.  Most brands, even the "good" ones, contain canola oil or soybean oil.

This salad dressing can  be made "gluten-free" if you check the label on your miso paste to be sure it is free of gluten.

Whenever possible, eat organic and eat local!!!