Homemade Spinach and Ricotta Gnocchi

I can still remember the 4 hours (very well worth) that I spent on making my very first gnocchi from scratch – yes, it took me full 4 hours to make the dough, cook it and also make my sauce from scratch (because using ready-to-use sauce is just never the same).

The reason it took me the full 4 hours is because I kind of was just winging how much potatoes and flour I used to make the dough. I also remember having dough up my arms and finding little pieces all the way up my elbows a few hours later.

 After I was done, sitting down and enjoying the wonderful taste of 'homemade' made those 4 hours very much worth it! It was an amazing meal! But naturally, this only happens on special occasions and the last time I made it was to celebrate graduating from nutrition school. What better way to celebrate than with friends and good food, right?

When I came across this recipe (in pinterest of course, haha), I was extremely excited because I love gnocchi and creative cooks that take traditional recipes to the next level with their own special touches!

This recipe replaces the potatoes for spinach and ricotta. And don’t worry, it did not take 4 hours ;) it probably didn’t even take an hour to get everything done including the sauce. Now, I decided to go with tomato sauce because I confess I’m not the best at making white sauces (if you have a good recipe, do share!).

Enough intros about this yummy dish and let’s get cookin’!

Here’s what you need for your homemade spinach gnocchi:

• 200 grams (7oz.) of spinach
• 1/3 cup ricotta
• 1 cup flour
• 1 egg
• ½ cup grated parmesan cheese
• 1 teaspoon of salt, lemon zest, dried thyme (each)
• ½ teaspoon of white pepper

If you are using fresh spinach, add it to a pan with a little bit of water and cook with lid for a couple of minutes just until they turn that beautiful bright green. Remove from the stove and drain well.

If your spinach is frozen, just defrost and then drain well.

In a medium bowl mix ricotta, flour, egg, parmesan cheese, and the spices with a fork. Cut up the spinach and add in bowl with the rest of the ingredients.

Mix with your hands the spinach with the rest of ingredients. If you notice that the dough is still sticking too much to your fingers, add a little more of flour.

Shape the mix into small balls (make sure they are not too big since it will take longer to cook and won’t come out as soft).

Put the gnocchi in the fridge for about 30 minutes.

Cook the gnocchi in boiling water. Like other gnocchi recipes, the dough will rise to the top of the water when they are cooked.

Scoop out the dumplings as they rise.

Serve with your choice of sauce (I chose homemade tomato sauce for mine)

And there you have it - enjoy my dear nutrinutters!

Until next time J

Bon Appetit!

XOXO

-The Nutrinut-

The Challenge Continues!! Days 2-6

How was your first day? Writing down how much sugar is in foods forces us to actually get into the habit of checking labels. You'll see that even though the 5 days are up, you'll still find yourself looking at how much sugar foods have as well as reading the ingredients list. It's quite an eye-opening experience, don't you think?

For those of you that are just joining the challenge, this is created in the PureFormulas blog to help bring down your sugar intake...

For day 2, there's a fun quiz to test your sugar I.Q. Find out how sugar savvy you are!

How Much Do You Know About Sugar?

Also, get the 411 on sugar and know the truth behind added sugars as well as how you can spot them in your foods...

The Truth Behind Sugar

Did you know that sugar can be found in over 50 different ways when looking at the list of ingredients? Be familiar with them and in control of what goes into your body ;)

Sugar and Its Names

Sugar can be so sneaky and find its way into foods that are not even meant to be seen as desserts. Check out some foods that you might be having on your day-to-day without realizing how sweet they really are.

The Surprising Sources of Sugar

How can you benefit from cutting down? It can range from giving you an energy boost to sleeping better! Sounds like a sweet deal to me ;)

Why We Should Cut Down On Sugar

Stay tuned because there's still a lot of great things coming your way... 

Until next time!

XOXO

-The Nutrinut-

Quick Tips on Getting Started (Sugar Crush Challenge - Day 1)

Ciao Nutrinutters,

It's finally here! October 1st and the first day of our Sugar Crush Challenge. For those of you who missed the last post where I explained a little about this challenge, I worked on a 30 day challenge for my company's blog
with tips, recipes, and tools to help you cut down on sugar.
Ready?

To start the challenge, here are 5 quick tips to help you start off on the right foot ;)

Quick Tips on Getting Started

XOXO

-The Nutrinut-

Quinoa: Mighty Grain or Super Seed?

Ciao Nutrinutters!

I've had quite a busy couple of weeks. Moved out from my apartment, got to go on my first business trip to Expo East in Baltimore (this is a trade show where you get to see all the trends in natural products) and also have been cooking and photographing some goodies for you guys! So stay tuned for that ;)

Also, I am very excited to announce that I've been working for the past couple of months on a sugar challenge in my company: SUGAR CRUSH CHALLENGE. Get ready for 30 days of tips, recipes, and tools to help you cut down on sugar and crush those cravings! I'll be sharing with you all of the days through here too, starting on Wednesday October 1st. Are you ready to be part of the Sugar Crush team?

And now, let's talk about this mighty grain...I mean super seed ;)

Although quinoa is usually seen as a grain, it's actually a pseudocereal, which acts like a grain but is actually a seed...

Read  more here:
Quinoa: Mighty Grain or Super Seed?

XOXO

-The Nutrinut-

Gluten-free Cauliflower Muffin

Ciao nutrinutters!!

Boy, do I have a treat for you! And I know a few of you are probably not that into cauliflower, but I promise that the taste of these muffins came out divine! ;)

The recipe is quite easy to make and the hardest part was probably waiting for it to bake for 30 minutes while salivating. Just kidding, girls don't salivate! (or maybe we do haha). It was literally a mix and bake, and for those that are avoiding gluten this one is perfect for you!

So let's not waste anymore time and get to the good stuff!

Gluten-free Cauliflower Muffin (Serves 12 muffins)

Ingredients:

Produce                                Dairy and Eggs

3 cups grated cauliflower                            2/3 cup goat cheese
                                                                    3 eggs

Oil and Spices                      Baking                

2 tbsp olive oil                     1/4 cup of gluten-free flour (I used 1/2 tapioca, 1/2 almond)
2 small garlic cloves            1/2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp rosemary                      
1 tsp salt                                
White pepper to taste

Directions:

• Grate about 1/2 a cauliflower to yield 3 cups of grated cauliflower.
• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
• On a mixing bowl, beat the eggs lightly with a fork.
• Mix in the oil and spices and the baking ingredients.
• Lastly, add the cauliflower and goat cheese and mix until even.
• Pour mix in muffin tray and bake for 30 minutes.

Bon Appetit!

XOXO

-The Nutrinut-

Following A Plant-Based Diet

We are starting today's post with a fun fact!

Did you know?

The first vegetarian club was created in 1809 in Manchester, England and the term "vegetarian" was coined in 1847!

Have you thought about going vegetarian?

People many times want to give this lifestyle a go but are concerned with missing out on nutrients found mainly in meats.

No worries, your nutrinut has got you covered!

Click on the link below to learn a little more about the plant-based diet, which category you fall under and some great sources of vitamins and minerals that are commonly associated with meats but can actually be found in other sources too!

Following A Plant-Based Diet

Until next time!

XOXO

-The Nutrinut-

Just a gal in Miami

I went the other day exploring downtown Miami... It was extremely hot but totally worth it! Perfect for putting my photography into practice ;)

Wanna see the outcome? Allow me to give you a tour of downtown Miami...

It's 9AM on a beautiful Saturday morning and although I didn't partake this time, I decided to be the sneaky observer. And let me tell you, what a way to start one's weekend! You get to do yoga out in the open. Just you and nature, listening to the birds chirping and the sound of water running from the fountain.

Near the fountain you can spot tourists trying to find their way while sneaking in pictures and still trying to take in the beautiful view.

Following along the bay side, there's a charming little garden where one can sit in the shade and feel the breeze while watching a crazy cute little squirrel jump from tree to tree trying to steal food from the birds. 

I was actually able to get the little rascal up close ;) and may I add he's a photogenic little one, don't you think? 

And continuing our little tour...this is what you leave behind, along with our photogenic friend...

to arrive to one of the most famous points in Downtown Miami - a shopping mall called Bayside, located right next to the American Airlines Arena. This is the back part of it and you can see why I love it so much...look at this view!

Even though I rarely come here to shop, there's always time for a little browsing and a refreshing smoothie to complete the morning!

And the beauty of all this is that I'm just a trolley ride away!...

I hope you enjoyed our little tour of Downtown Miami through the eyes of the nutrinut.

Until next time my Nutrinutters!

XOXO

-The Nutrinut-

Mirror, Mirror, Here I Stand…Love Your Body!

Everyone has something they don’t like about their bodies…

Before I got into the vitamin journey section in the blog, you might have noticed that I am huge fan of “love your body” and believe that this is truly the first step to leading a healthy life. Many times this is the hardest part: learning to accept yourself, just the way you are!

This is a post I wrote for the website of the company I work for that discusses this further.

I hope you enjoy it! Let me know what you think, I’d love to hear from you!

Mirror, Mirror, Here I Stand...Love Your Body!

XOXO

-The Nutrinut-

The Challenges of DIY Shampoo

As you have probably already noticed, about two months ago I've entered the “do it yourself” world, starting with a face cleanser (which I loved and still use,DIY: Coco-Lavender Face Cleanser) and eventually going to making shampoos.

I read a lot on the topic and it seemed like most recipes had one ingredient in common: castile soap. 

I chose a recipe that seemed easy and good to go (DIY: Coco Shampoo) and used it for over a week. I must confess that I almost did not make it since I’m somebody that likes the feel of squeaky clean hair. I'm even one of those gals that does the opposite of what you're supposed to do and would wash my hair every day. I eventually gave up on that shampoo recipe since it didn't seem like it was cleaning much and used the rest as a shower gel, which worked quite well!

My next shampoo was actually a fun experiment! I read that aloe vera gel is good to neutralize the skin’s pH, so there goes the nutrinut to Publix to buy an aloe vera leaf to get fresh gel (not bottled). I mixed the gel from one big leaf (getting it open and scooping the contents out is quite fun! Highly recommend to try with the kids…it’s super gooey!) and mixed it with one can of coconut milk. This one was a little better! It didn't seem as oily but my hair seemed to just be accumulating the mix and it just felt like my hair was on hairspray 24/7! Time for the next one...

Shampoo number 3, one tablespoon of baking soda per cup of water. 

In terms of removing the natural oils that your hair produces, this one was the most effective. However, it also dried out your hair big time! Which only means that I moved on to shampoo number 4, 1 tablespoon of honey, 1 tablespoon of baking soda and 4 tablespoons of water (I got all of these numbers from people who like me, experimented with making their own shampoo). This one was the best one so far but in all honesty, I have been washing my hair once a week with regular shampoo. But on the bright side, it feels a lot healthier!

These haven't worked out exactly how I've been hoping for, but I am persistent and will continue to look for the perfect shampoo recipe ;)

If you already have this figured out, share your secrets with the nutrinut :) I'd love to give it your recipe a try!

XOXO

-The Nutrinut-

Some Goji Berry Love - It's Smoothie time

Usually I don't post smoothie recipes but I made the most delicious one the other day and wanted to share with the nutrinutters!

For starters, what goes into my smoothies depends on what I have at home and whatever seems to inspire me at the moment. The process is actually quite fun, especially if you really just let your instincts take over. I just happened to have goji berries and hemp seeds at home, perfect!

Goji berries are pretty popular nowadays especially since it's packed with antioxidants, but did you know that they also go by another name... wolberry! 

Whether all the health claims can be backed up, they do have a good amount of antioxidants and in Asia they were eaten for generations in hope of living longer - plus they taste quite good! Needless to say a small handful went into my smoothie.

Next in the superfoods list, hemp seeds! These little seeds have a nutty flavor which is quite good and are rich in good fats, protein and vitamin E.

So this is what went into my tropical goji smoothie:

Ingredients:

• 1 banana
• 1 slice of pineapple
• 1 cup of mixed berries
• small handful of goji berries
• 1 teaspoon of hemp seeds
• 1 teaspoon cacao (did I mention I love chocolate?)
• sprinkle cinnamon 
• Optional - 1 medjool date (for a little sweetness) 
• Milk (about 1 1/2 cups)

Directions:

Blend all the ingredients

Top it off with extra goji berries for a different look ;)

Enjoy all the supernutrients!

-XOXO-

The Nutrinut

Avocado Chocolate Mousse

Guten tag my dear Nutrinutters,

I admit I am a little late to this trend, but I still wanted to give this a try!

When I found the most amazing avocado in the supermarket yesterday the initial idea was to make a lime and avocado tart, but being that I was exhausted from work, I decided to try the avocado chocolate mouse recipe that has been trending for a few months. I do love regular chocolate mousse, but I am a true lover of avocados and cacao, so why not give it a go and try to make a healthier recipe, right?

The perks of avocados

Not only are avocados delicious and can be used in just about any recipe from dips to a butter substitute in baking (I recently learned that it even goes well in soup!), but they are rich in vitamins and minerals, contains the good fats, and has an amazing amount of fiber (1 cup has about 10 grams!). Because this fruit is so nutrient dense, consuming it will give you anti-inflammatory benefits and support cardiovascular health!

The perks of cacao

EVERYTHING! haha, pardon my enthusiasm but I am a true dark chocolate lover :)
Cacao is mainly known for being rich in antioxidants but what you might not have been aware of is that our gut bacteria seems to be fond of it too! And after all the studies that have been coming out on probiotics and gut bacteria, we want to keep the little fellas happy.

So now to the Avocado Chocolate Mousse...

Trying to find the recipe that I had fallen in love with a while back because of its simplicity, was like trying to find a needle in a haystack! But luckily I remembered the ingredients: avocado, cacao and honey. I was in luck! I  had all of the ingredients.

Although I didn't have the right measurements, I decided to wing it and make it my own. I started with 1 cup of avocado, 1 teaspoon of cacao and 1 teaspoon of honey. The taste was good but no chocolate mousse flavor. After blending, tasting, adding a little more, blending and tasting again, this was my chocolate avocado mousse recipe:

Avocado Chocolate Mousse (yields 1-2 servings)

Ingredients:

1 cup of avocado
3 teaspoons of cacao
1-2 teaspoons of honey
Optional: 1 date

Directions:

Blend in food processor.
Decorate with berries or sprinkle cacao on top.

This recipe did not disappoint! It's not only healthy but the best part is that the taste was amazing! I hope you guys enjoy it as much as I did. Let me know if you give this one a try, I'd love to hear from you ;)

XOXO

-The Nutrinut- 

Quinoa and Spinach Bake

I think a lot of people will be able to relate to this...

Lately, the more I think about it the more I want to switch over to veggie world and not have meat anymore. What brought this on? A few years back, we adopted the cutest half cocker spaniel half yorkie named Carrie (after Carrie Bradshaw from Sex and the City). The name suits her very well since she likes men and shoes ;)

What does Carrie have to do with me wanting to enter veggie world?

Everything! I noticed that slowly I stopped enjoying meat as much because all I can think about is how these animals are raised and immediately make the connection with our little mutt, "what if that were Carrie?". And although this might sound like nonsense to some, she is a very special part of the family (plus she has perfected the "puss in boots" look, haha).

This is why for date nights I find myself always looking at the vegetarian side of the menu and when I'm going on my Pinterest sessions I'm always attracted to the meatless recipes. This is how I found Quinoa and Spinach Bake.

The perks of Quinoa 

Last year (2013) was "The International Year of the Quinoa" for a reason. One of the main perks of quinoa is that it's considered a complete protein source, meaning that it contains good amounts of the essential amino acids. It is also a good source of healthy fats and fiber. Pretty good right?

The perks of Spinach

This recipe also has a good amount of spinach. I love spinach! I add it to everything I can think of, including my morning smoothies. Spinach is a good source of so many nutrients that I don't even know where to begin! But just to name a few: Vitamin K, Vitamin A, manganese, magnesium and folate!

So ladies and gents, I present Quinoa and Spinach Bake, it's Vegetarian and Gluten-free!

Ingredients (serves 6-8)

Grains and Seeds:                       Eggs and Dairy:

1/4 cup sesame seeds                                        2 large eggs, lightly beaten
1 cup uncooked quinoa                                      1 cup greek plain yogurt

Produce:                                      Spices, Seasonings, Oil:

1 pound baby spinach                                         2 tsp. extra-virgin olive oil (plus extra)
1 shallot diced                                                    1 tbsp dried thyme
2 cloves garlic                                                    1/4 tsp chili powder
                                                                         1/2 tsp ground white pepper
                                                                         3/4 tsp salt

Instructions

• Cook your quinoa like rice (2 cups of water for per cup of quinoa)
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
• Coat a baking dish with a little olive oil or coking spray if you have any, then coat with sesame seeds.
• Cook for a few seconds spinach in a pan with a little water, just until spinach gets bright green. Drain water and set spinach aside.
• Heat olive oil in pan. Add: shallot, garlic, thyme and chili powder and saute. Remove from heat and transfer to medium bowl.
• Add: spinach, cooked quinoa, yogurt, eggs, salt and pepper to the shallot mix, making sure ingredients are combined.
• Transfer quinoa mixture to baking dish and place in oven. Bake until it reaches a golden brown color. Mine took 45-50 minutes.
• Remove from oven and enjoy! :)

This dish goes very well with your favorite salad and olive oil on top.

XOXO

-The Nutrinut-

DYI: Coco Shampoo

I have some exciting news! I just invested on a good camera. I confess I'm still in the exploring phase and trying to figure out how to get the most out of my pictures. I even watched yesterday a 1 hour tutorial on the camera basics until eventually I got overwhelmed and decided to continue the video another day, haha. Has this happened to you?  I'd love to hear some of your camera stories :)

Since the weekend is when I have more time to get things done, I decided to test out a new shampoo recipe and see how the pictures would turn out.

Just like with the coco-lavender cleanser, which by the way I've been using for 3 weeks now and my face has never been this great, I chose to go the DIY route because I have very sensitive skin and always had to overpay for more "natural" products. 

My criteria for going with this recipe was that it was simple, had good reviews from other people that tested it out and I had all the ingredients at home. So here it is!

Coco Shampoo Recipe:

- 1/4 cup Coconut Milk (I used from the can)

- 1/3 cup Castile Soap

- 1 Teaspoon Olive oil (I recommend using 1/2 a teaspoon instead since coconut is moisturizing enough)

- 20 drops of essential oil (I used 10 drops of lavender and 10 of tea tree)

Directions:

Mix in all the ingredients in a container of choice. 

Since I didn't have a bottle with pump, I just used an empty shower gel container.

TIP: Make sure to always shake, shake, shake before each use ;)

I've used this shampoo twice already and have liked it so far. I think if I told you that it feels the same as when one uses regular shampoo, it would not be the most honest comment. I think that any change goes through an adaptation period.

But as to how my hair looks and feels: very clean, soft and not frizzy...which is a huuuge must for curly hair gals, like me ;) Aaand a little bonus: you don't even need to use conditioner after.

Give this one a go and let me know how it worked out for you!

ONE WEEK UPDATE:

After using this recipe for a week I decided that I did not adapt very well and felt like it was just building up in my roots, so I'm still in the look for the shampoo for me...But good new is that this recipe makes an excellent shower gel ;)

I'm thinking that the next shampoo recipe will have aloe and coconut milk! Let's see how it will turn out :)

XOXO

-The Nutrinut-

Berry Jelly

I woke up on 4th of July with full determination and wanted to do something special but still quick for breakfast, so I decided to go with a berry jelly to add to yogurt and show my red, white and blue ;)

After checking out some neat jelly recipes during the week, I decided to adapt my original strawberry recipe and see how it would turn out. Also, I didn't only want to stick to strawberries so blueberries seemed like a great idea to give extra flavor...

I confess that the original idea was to add only a little bit of blueberries but as I was scooping them out of the bag, they rolled all over the counter and so I decided to add everything in the jelly...kind of like "the more the merrier" crossed my mind that moment :)

If you are new to the kitchen, this is actually a very good place to start! I would not say that jelly is the healthiest thing to make since it can go very wrong if too much sugar is added, but in comparison to what you buy, it is a lot better for you since it has no preservatives and you control how much sugar to add...and did I mention it is tastier too!

So here is how you can show your top chef skills and impress your friends and loved ones!


Berry Jelly:

Ingredients:

• 4 cups of mixed berries (I used strawberries and blueberries)
• Juice of 1/2 lemon
• 4-5 Tablespoons of sugar (Ideally I would have liked less sugar but this was the first time I experimented with lemon)
• 1 cinnamon stick (I like this better than powder)

Directions:
Add all ingredients in pan and cook on medium-high heat (frequently stirring) until it reaches the "jelly" consistency.

So there it is! Quick, easy, and delicious!

Bon Appetit!

XOXO

-The Nutrinut-