Mind Body Green Posts

I have written some articles for wonderful website Mind Body Green - the go to guide for yoga and wellness! Please have a read and share on Facebook by clicking 'like' if you like it!! :)

http://www.mindbodygreen.com/wc/lauren-burke

Love and light,
Lauren xxx

Protein Tahini-Grain Balls

My fridge is filled with containers of cooked beans, lentils, quinoa, brown rice, nuts, seeds and vegetables ready to be thrown together for a wonderful, healthy lunchtime salad!

So as noon rolled around and my stomach began to grumble, I walked over to the fridge began to feel drawn to the grains and lentils I had cooked up yesterday. Over the weekend, I saw some incredible rice balls in a vegan cookbook and have been craving them ever since - but my excitement at the high protein grain container I had brimming with a mix of yellow, red and black quinoa and amaranth was too much to pass up -- so I grabbed a range of ingredients, experimented and what followed was pure protein bliss!!

A Bowl of Mixed Yum!

Ingredients:
1 cup grain of choice (cooked)
1/2 cup lentils (cooked)
1/3 cup tahini
1 carrot, grated
1/4 cup pumpkin, sesame and/or sunflower seeds
1/4 cup dulse flakes
1 tablespoon miso paste


Mix all these ingredients together in a bowl and form into little ping pong sized balls. Heat a fry pan over  medium heat and cook the balls for a few minutes until toasted and heated through.

Serve on a bed of spinach with veggie salad or steamed greens and top with tahini-miso sauce and a sprinkling of toasted seeds

Tahini-Miso Sauce:
1/4 cup tahini

Although the 'balls' didn't last long
when they met with Mr Fork...

1/4 cup lemon juice
1 tablespoon miso
1 tablespoon ume vinegar

Delicious, healthy and packed with more protein than Vin Diesel!!

And PLUS! I made some extra balls and put them in the fridge and they doubled as a yummy snack straight out of the fridge when I got home from work -- yum :)

Please let me know what you think, it's a new recipe and any suggestions/comments are very welcome! :)

Love and light,
Lauren xxx

Gran-oh yeah!-la

The crunch. The nuttiness. The health benefits. The deliciousness. The completely innocent guilty pleasure. Yes my friends, I am talking about granola - or as I like to call it, gran - oh yes please I would love some more of this tasty delight - la. But that's a bit of a mouthful...  What else is a bit of a mouthful is granola! And try and not have to many mouthfuls of this little beauty! Impossible!

Lauren's Nutty Crunch Granola

Dry Ingredients

1 Cup raw Buckwheat Groats (or what I like to refer to as my little Buckwheat Gloats because, let's face it, if I were a buckwheat I would gloat too...)
1 Cup Raw Oats
1 Cup each of your choice of raw nuts -- I used cashews, pecans, Brazil nuts and walnuts
1 Cup of your choice of raw seeds -- sunflowers, pepitas, sesames are all yummy additions!
1 Cup of dried fruits -- gojis, raisins, cranberries -- whatever takes your fancy! My only suggestion is to try and buy ones without added sugar or preservatives!
A touch of real salt

I blitzed these together in my food processor on a low pulse so that they blended together and chopped up but were still in big enough pieces that they could be separated - so depending on how chunky you like your granola chop your ingredients to your desired size!

Then top with...
1/2 Cup Maple Syrup (the real stuff only!)
1/2 Cup almond butter
1/2 Cup oil of your choice -- I used Macadamia oil to echo the nuts and seeds that are in the granola, however any healthy relatively flavourless oil will work fine!

Mix and add more wet ingredients if desired

Spread onto your baking dish, and bake at 180 degrees (Celsius) for 40-60 minutes, depending on your oven.

Remove and enjoy with your favourite milk and fresh fruits... If you can wait that long... Mine never seems to make it to the bowl before I begin gobbling it up...

These crunchy granola pieces also make great snacks! Pop in a bag or container and take them with you as a great, healthy, satisfying snack to keep you powering along in between meals!



Love and light,
Lauren xxx

Super-asana

One a month, my yoga teacher hosts an advanced Vinyasa class on a Friday night -- my favourite night of the month! I got home from uni quite late befor class last night and needed something nutritious to power me through without being heavy on my stomach -- and thus my Superfood smoothie was born!!

Add to your blender:
A good handful of greens (I used spinach and kale)
A cup of your favourite soy, nut, rice or coconut milk
A scoop of Spirulina and wheatgrass powder
A spoonful of Acai berries
A banana (preferably organic)
A cup of berries -- I used some yummy blueberries
A handful of goji berries
A spoonful of almond butter
Two scoops of your choice of protein powder (I used a mix of Sunwarrior Rice Protein and Pea Protein!)

Blitz and serve :)

Jam packed with protein, fibre and more antioxidants than dollars in Donald Trumps bank account -- it's no wonder I was able to master some of the more advanced asanas that I would usually only watch others perform in awe and admiration! And let me assure you it will be the most amazing coloured smoothie you will ever drink in your life! And it tastes even better!!

Please let me know what you think, and any additions you make! :)

Love and light,
Lauren xxx

Live Baby Live!

For dinner tonight I felt like something light but satisfying! I have recently been looking into Dr D'Adamo's "Eating For Your Blood Type" theory and have been very intrigued by what he has to say. While I don't believe in specifically cutting out any particular food groups, I have begun to see the similarities between the Blood Type A dietary guidelines and how I select my own food -- a focus on vegetables, fruits, whole grains, legumes, soy products, nuts and seeds. I decided to play around with some of the suggestions of Dr D'Adamo and some of the recipes that I found in the Candle Cafe Cookbook (a wonderful resource for vegans and meat eaters alike) and created a "live stir-fry" for dinner which proved to be very, very delicious!

For noodles, slice zucchini, squash and carrots with a mandolin or very sharp knife into thin strips that resemble noodles and set aside. Next, cut up any veggies that you like into nice chunks (I used broccoli, Brussels sprouts, onion, cauliflower and kale)  and scatter over the top of the 'noodles'. Then top with fresh edamame beans, pumpkin seeds, arame (or your choice of rehydrated seaweed) and a sauce made out of miso paste and tamari -- simple, quick, healthful and -- most importantly - delicious!!

Enjoy!

Love and light,
Lauren xxx

p.s. go to http://www.dadamo.com/ to learn more about Dr D'Adamo and his philosophy and definitley visit http://www.candlecafe.com for wonderful recipes, cooking ideas and to ogle at the deliciousness that they create!!

My Green Monster

I love Angela Liddon.

She is inspiring. She is risk-taking. She is hilarious. She is clever. She is a vegan goddess.
I have been following Angela through her website http://ohsheglows.com/ for a long time now, and have tried and tested many of her delicious recipes time and time again!

Angela is famous for her "Green Monster" -- her version of a green smoothie -- and encourages her followers to experiment with their own combinations and create their own unique "monster" [go to http://greenmonstermovement.com/ to learn more!]

This is my Green Monster, a combination of my favourite smoothie ingredients blitzed to perfection which creates a yummy, healing, nourishing breakfast smoothie!

My Green Monster:
1 cup milk (soy, almond, rice)
2 cups spinach or kale
1 frozen banana (creamy perfection)
1/2 cup frozen blueberries (although sometimes I change this for strawberries or raspberries)
1 tablespoon chia seeds
1 tablespoon linseed meal
A handful of raw almonds
1 tablespoon raw honey
1 tablespoon goji berries
A little pinch of cinnamon

Blitz in a blender, and serve!


I hope this does Angela proud!!

Experiment with your own "Green Monsters" and have a look at Angela's recipes, they are a wonderful way to introduce yourself to vegan food without sacrificing any flavour!! And while you are at it, have a look through Angela's website. Her honesty is so refreshing, and her approach to creating a balance in your lifestyle of healthy eating and exercise is so real! She is a wonderful woman, and reading her blog is one of the best things I have ever done! I go back at least 5 times a day!! Read her story, try some of her recipes and create your own green monster -- your body with thank you, and you will positively glo!

Love and light,
Lauren xxx

Layered Mi-So-Yummy Dinner!

After what has been a very long, cold, wet week in Sydney I was in the mood for something soothing and satisfying for dinner tonight to warm me up!! I made up my plate combination as I went along, but looking back it really does make perfect sense!

I constructed it in layers and will be describing it in the same way (and hence the name layered mi-so-yummy dinner) but the layering is really in reference to the preparation. The beauty of this recipe is that it is  so versatile and can adapt to any grains, proteins and vegetables you have in your cupboard!

1. Vegetable Layer
Stem whatever vegetable you like -- I chose some kale, Brussel Sprouts and zucchini

2. Tofu Layer
Sautee a sliced brown onion until tender, then add tofu cubed and grill until golden brown

3. Grain-Seaweed-Miso Layer
Cook up whatever grain you like -- brown rice, wild rice, barley, quinoa, millet - until tender. Notice the water level -- when there is around five minutes to go in the cooking add some seaweed of your choice (is used arame and wakame) to rehydrate in the water. Finally, take the grain and seaweed mix off the heat and stir in a few tablespoons of miso paste

Layer the steamed vegetables in a bowl, topped with the tofu, onions and grain-seaweed-miso mix, coriander, some tamari roasted seeds and a drizzle of both tamari and sesame oil

Easy, healthy, warming, nourishing and delicious!!

Love and light,
Lauren xxx