Superfood Switch

Sweet Potato & Butternut Squash Soup

Jan 11

by Shannon

The cold weather lately has been an inspiration to make yummy, hearty soups. At our house we get fresh, local, organic fruit and veggies delivered to our house every other week from Greenling (they are seriously awesome and you should check them out if you live in central Texas). I try my best to make sure I do a good job not letting any food go to waste and I thought making a soup in my slow cooker would be perfect! And it was (and not to mention super easy)! So here is my personal recipe for this superfoods/veggie delivery inspired soup. Hope you love it as much as we did!

Ingredients:
1 whole onion, chopped
2 Tbsp butter
6 frozen raw chicken tenders (you can use defrosted chicken breasts if you have it already on hand)
2 sweet potatoes, peeled and cut up
1 large butternut squash, peeled and cut up
4-5 cups chicken broth or water
½ cup cooking sherry or white wine
2 sprigs of fresh rosemary or parsley
2 cloves garlic, minced
½ tsp cumin
½ tsp dill
½ tsp cinnamon
½ tsp chili powder
salt and pepper to taste
2 cups fresh kale, chopped
1/4 cup greek yogurt

Directions:
1. In a large slow cooker place the chopped onion and butter on the bottom with the chicken tenders on top. Next add the chopped sweet potatoes and butternut squash.
2. Add the sherry or white wine. Then pour the chicken broth or water over the veggies and chicken until barely covered. Add the rosemary, garlic, cumin, dill, cinnamon, chili powder, salt, and pepper.
3. Set the slow cooker on low for 8 hours (if you have less time you can cook it on high for 4-5 hours). Remember to stir the soup every once in a while.
4. About 2 hours prior to serving add the chopped kale. Then about 30 minutes prior to serving stir in the greek yogurt.
5. Serve with fresh baked whole wheat bread or crackers.

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Revival

Jan 02

by Shannon

Now that 2012 has rolled around I am thinking it is time to revive the Superfood Switch. I guess it will be my New Year’s resolution—get back on the superfood bandwagon. (And yes I know I am 2 days late on this.) I think I might be on my own this year, but I am going to do my best to get my mom back on the bandwagon too.

So 2012 I will eat more superfoods, eat less other foods, and hopefully see some happy results. I will do my best to let you know how it is going and share some of my recipe creations that you can try at home. So you will definitely want to keep checking back and help keep me accountable!

To kickstart the Switch I made my Superfood Switch Granola. I think you should make it too, our house sure smells delicious.

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The Rules Clarified

May 03

by Shannon

So I thought it might be good to clarify our “rules” a little. By this point I think you understand what including superfoods in all meals means. So no need to go into detail on #1. It’s #2 and #3 I wanted to focus on.

What are processed foods and why are we going to great lengths to avoid them? Well besides the fact that the FDA did a major recall of many processed foods the other month, processed foods just aren’t necessary in our every day diet.

Processed foods are foods that have been altered in some way from their natural state for convenience and “safety”. Mainly just to increase shelf life. The reason this is not good is that many of the nutrients the food possesses in its natural state diminishes when it is processed. Now not all processed foods are created equal. Frozen vegetables, for example, can sometimes maintain more nutrients then the stuff you buy in the produce aisle. I am talking about the type of processed foods that include some sort of additives to prolong the time something can sit on the shelf at a grocery store and still be deemed edible. Extra salt, extra sugar, extra fat. Not to mention the long words you can’t pronounce. The key to cutting out processed foods is to read labels. It’s amazing what you’ll learn. And try to cook with as fresh ingredients as possible. If you are going to eat superfoods, make them count!

Our other rule is to cut out refined sugar, enriched flour, and white rice. Now all three of these can also fall under the processed foods category, but they are so special they get a rule all to themselves.

Let’s start with refined sugar. Refined sugar is made by taking raw sugar, putting it through a process called affination then adding chalk to remove any impurities. The brown color of raw sugar is either burnt off by carbon or an ionic resin then the liquid is boiled so the white sugar crystals can grow. Let’s face it, sugar really isn’t that good for you, raw or refined. But raw sugar doesn’t have the added process and chemicals refined sugar does. Besides by specifically cutting out refined sugar, you will be cutting out a lot of sugar in general. If sugar is a must in your morning coffee try using raw sugar instead of refined sugar. My mom does this and it tastes just fine, maybe even better.

At this point in your life you have heard about “whole grains.” Enriched flour and white rice are both grains that are not “whole” anymore. Like refined sugar, they have gone through extra steps to reach the state in which American’s recognize as common everyday flour and rice. By adding these extra steps we lose much of the fiber nature intended us to get from these grains. It does take some grace to bake successfully with 100% whole wheat flour, but it is getting easier to find whole grain options at the grocery store. I personally prefer brown rice and whole wheat pasta but I do have to admit it takes some getting used to. In the end, I am sure your intestines will thank you for all that added fiber.

The best part about following these rules is that your health truly benefits. There have been numerous studies that link processed foods to cardiovascular disease, some kinds of cancer, and type 2 diabetes. Not to mention obesity. Reason enough for us to make the switch.

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Superfood Switch Granola

Apr 25

by Shannon

So I have been making this granola since we started the Superfood Switch. You can seriously stuff so many superfoods into this one recipe. It’s perfect for breakfast, a snack, or even yummy over ice cream. And almost all the ingredients are a superfood! I have made it a little different every time but here is the recipe that turned out to be my favorite (so far anyway). You can always switch up the extra ingredients however you would like.

Ingredients:
½ cup walnut oil
½ cup honey
¼ cup pure maple syrup
1 tsp vanilla extract
¼ tsp almond extract
4 cups oats
1½ tsp salt
½ cup coconut
½ cup chopped walnuts
½ cup pumpkin seeds
½ cup dried fruit (blueberries, cranberries, apples, etc.)
cinnamon to taste

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350°F
2. In a small bowl mix oil, honey, maple syrup, vanilla and almond extract. Set aside.
3. In a large bowl mix the oats, salt, coconut, walnuts, and pumpkin seeds.
4. Pour and mix the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients. It is helpful if you put a little in at a time and mix before pouring in a little more.
5. Spread the mixture into a 9×13 glass baking dish.
6. After you spread the mixture into the glass baking dish, sprinkle cinnamon on the top of the mixture.
7. Bake for 10 minutes, take out and stir, then bake for another 10 minutes. The granola should have a slight golden color.
8. When done baking stir in the dried fruit. The granola will be soft when you get it out of the oven. Leave it out to cool completely before putting it into a sealed container, this will help the granola get a little crisper.

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An Introduction

Apr 06

by Shannon

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Whole-Wheat/Sweet Potato Gnocchi with Walnut Sauce

Apr 05

by Shannon

This recipe is like creamy alfredo sauce without breaking all the rules. In fact, one of the main ingredients in this sauce is a superfood. Bonus points for that. I found this online at epicurious.com. It’s a great site for unique recipes, if anyone was wondering. Here is my version of the recipe, and as usual, a little modified.

Ingredients:
1 lb of whole-wheat/sweet potato gnocchi
2 cups of shelled walnuts
1/2 cup of parmesan
2 cloves of garlic
A few leaves of fresh basil, chopped
3 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil
1/2 cup milk (may need a little more)
A splash of sherry or dry white wine
Salt and pepper to taste

Directions:
1. In a small pot, bring less than a quart of water to a boil and drop the walnuts in.
2. Turn off the flame after a minute or so and let them sit for an hour in the water. This will release their bitterness.
3. After an hour, drain the walnuts and peel the skin as much as you can. (I ended up leaving most of the skin on, but I could tell that the sauce might have a better texture if you took the time to do this.)
4. Put them in a blender or food processor and add the rest of the ingredients except the basil and gnocchi. *If the sauce is more chunky than creamy, add some more milk and blend some more. The sauce should have a nice creamy consistency.
5. After blending, add the basil leaves and adjust with salt and pepper and stir.
6. Boil water and cook the gnocchi according to the directions on the package.
7. With a slotted spoon, scoop out the gnocchi to drain from the cooking water and place them in a warm bowl. Reserve some of the cooking water.
8. Mix the gnocchi with the walnut sauce, adding some of the reserved hot water if needed, and serve immediately.

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