Recipes

Hey loves! I teamed up with Thrive Market to share with you some of my favorite gluten free recipes and these chocolate chip cookies certainly top the list! I loving call these healthy nutella cookies because I made them with both chocolate chips and slivers of hazelnut – two of the main flavors in the beloved nutella spread. However, these delicious cookies are actually vegan (dairy free), sugar free AND gluten free, which make them pretty darn magical on the spectrum of sweet treats! Whip them up for yourself at home and let me know what you think! Tag us on your posts @cassandrabodzak, @thrivemkt and #eatwithintention!

Gluten-Free Chocolate Chip Hazelnut Heaven Cookies
Yield: 18 to 24 cookies
Active Time: 15 minutes
Total Time: 25 minutes

Ingredients
1 ½ cups gluten-free oat bran
½ cup hazelnuts, chopped
½ cup vegan chocolate chips
2 tablespoon of cashew butter
2 tablespoon of flax oil or coconut oil
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 teaspoon of cinnamon
2 flax “eggs”
1 large ripe banana

For one “flax egg”
1 tablespoon flaxseed meal
3 tablespoons water

Instructions
Preheat oven to 375 degrees and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

Combine all ingredients together into a large bowl, mixing thoroughly until batter thickens and is completely moistened. Place 1 1/2-inch balls of batter 1 inch apart on baking sheet and lightly press down on each with your palm.

Bake 7 to 10 minutes, until golden on the outside edges. Allow to cool, then enjoy with a glass of almond milk.

I had a blast sharing some of my favorite gluten free and vegan recipes with Thrive Market recently. These gluten free strawberry banana oatmeal cakes are a great easy vegan recipe to make on Sunday night and have for breakfast all week long. They also make a delicious addition to your weekend brunch, just place them in a bowl with some steamed nut milk and chopped strawberries for a complete upgrade from your average oatmeal!

Strawberry Gluten-Free Baked Oatmeal Cakes
Yield: 6 to 8 servings
Active Time: 15 minutes
Total Time: 25 minutes

Ingredients

3 cups gluten-free oats
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
2 teaspoon cinnamon
2 “flax eggs” (see below)
¼ cup maple syrup
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
½ cup unsweetened applesauce
2 bananas, ripe
½ cup chopped strawberries

For one “flax egg”
1 tablespoon flaxseed meal
3 tablespoons water

Instructions

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Make the flax eggs
In small bowl, mix together flaxseed meal and water until combined. Let sit for 5 minutes to come together.

Make the muffins
In medium bowl, stir together dry ingredients. Add wet ingredients and stir until just combined. Distribute batter evenly into muffin tin cups and bake for 10 minutes, or until set.

Serve with almond milk, nuts, fresh fruit, and/or nut butter.

I love love love tacos, so I’m always trying to dream up new, delicious flavor combinations for vegan tacos and I have to tell you, I think I hit gold the other night with these vegan BBQ tempeh and brussel sprout tacos! Not only are they quick and easy to throw together after a long day but they are incredibly delicious, healthy and the perfect feel good fuel to cap off the night. I’ve included the recipe below for these savory, vegan tacos below but I would love to hear from you about your favorite plant-based taco combos! Comment below and let me know what other ingredients you’d like to see in a vegan taco recipe in the future!

VEGAN BBQ TEMPEH + BRUSSEL SPROUT TACOS

2 whole wheat tortillas ( I prefer ezeikel brand sprouted grain)

1 cup of brussel sprouts chopped

1 tbsp of coconut oil

1/2 cup of shredded carrots

1/2 cup of broccoli slaw

1 avocado

tempeh

a few tablespoons of your favorite healthy BBQ sauce (check for added sugar or high fructose corn syrup)

1/4 red onion chopped

1 peach chopped

2 tbsps of basil chopped

1 tbsp of balsamic vinegar

(add 1 tbsp of chopped jalapeno to make the salsa spicier instead of sweet)

 

Preheat your oven to 425 degrees. Lightly grease a baking sheet with coconut oil and spread out your chopped brussel sprouts. Gently sprinkle salt, pepper and any of your favorite spices on to the brussel sprouts before you place them into your heated oven. While those are roasting take out your two tortillas and lightly toast them in frying pan on your stove top using medium heat and a non stick pan or cooking spray to keep the tortillas from clinging. Flip them until each side is getting slightly golden brown and then place them on your plate. Add 1/4 cup of broccoli slaw and your shredded carrots to each tortilla. In a small bowl, combine your chopped peaches, balsamic, oil, basil, onions and jalapeno (if you’ve decided to spice it up) and mash together till it forms a compote like texture. Place this to the side for when the tacos are completed and slice your tempeh in to 1/4 inch thick strips (or however you like your tempeh). In a small sauce pan on low heat, add a dash of coconut oil and tempeh and let it lightly brown on each side. Once the tempeh has started to brown, add your BBQ sauce to the pan and keep moving around the tempeh pieces with your spatula to prevent them from burning. Remove from the pan once the tempeh is fully saturated with the BBQ sauce and fully cooked.

By this time, your brussel sprouts should be nicely roasted and ready to remove from the oven (be the judge for yourself because all ovens roast at different speeds – I like to remove the brussel sprouts when they are crisping at the edges.) Place the brussel sprouts over your broccoli slaw and shredded carrots, then add your BBQ tempeh. Lastly, slice your avocado over each taco and it off with a hearty drizzle of the peach basil salsa.

 

These are by far my favorite vegan tacos so far, I hope you enjoy them as much as I did!

I admit it, I’m a total granola junkie. I love the easy, peasy-ness of throwing together some coconut yogurt, berries and granola for breakfast in the morning, I love granola on my smoothie bowls, I even like putting some on top of my apple slices with almond butter for an afternoon snack. The only real “problem” with my granola love is that not all granolas are created equally. In fact, MANY granolas you buy at your grocery store, even if it’s a super organic healthy store, contain evaporated cane sugar, brown sugar and sometimes agave. All stuff that no longer flies with this lady! So naturally, I decided to take to the kitchen to solve my dilemma and have come up with numerous granola renditions to satisfy my urge without having to get tons of added and unnecessary sugar. This particular mix is nut-free for anyone who has an allergy but can be easily made with nuts if you fancy. I add brown rice syrup for a low-glycemic slightly sweet sticky joiner but you could play with raw honey or grade b maple syrup as well or go totally without it and just have a less clumpy granola!

 

Green + Clean Granola

1 cup old fashioned oats (GF optional)
1/4 cup pumpkin seeds (unsalted)
1/4 cup sunflower seeds (unsalted, no shells)
3 tbsp of flax seed or flax seed meal
3 tbsp of chia seeds
1/4 cup of unsweetened coconut flakes
1/4 cup hemp hearts
2 tbsp of cinnamon
1 tbsp of vita mineral greens powder
1 tbsp of tumeric ground
1/4 cup brown rice syrup

Toss it all together, adding the brown rice syrup last. Grease a baking sheet with coconut oil and spread out the granola mixture generously. Put your oven on “broil” and let granola brown for 3-5 mins and remove. Cool before storing.

Check out my avocado recipe round up on SHAPE magazine’s website today. Everything from avocado quinoa boats, creamy avocado pasta, avocado pizza to my famous avocado fries! Perfect for cinco-de-mayo or for any night this summer to get the party started in your kitchen. Click below to check out all of the recipes and definitely comment below and let me know what your favorite avocado recipes are! I’m all about looking for new, innovative ways to incorporate my favorite food into nourishing and delicious dishes!

http://www.shape.com/healthy-eating/meal-ideas/how-host-unforgettable-summer-party

avopasta1

Totally over the oatmeal but love that feeling of something hearty and warm in your stomach in the morning? Well I have the perfect breakfast for you! Quinoa porridge is packed with protein, has none of the gluten and will give you the fuel to shine bright all day long. Plus, it only takes a few minutes to make which is always a mega bonus in the AM!
Banana Berry Quinoa Porridge

1 cup of cooked quinoa

1 cup of coconut milk (unsweetened vanilla)

Handful of fresh or frozen raspberries

1/2 of a banana

3 tbsp of chia seeds

Handful of sliced almonds (or nut/seed of your choice)

Handful of hemp hearts

In small soup pan on the stove, place your quinoa, coconut milk and about half of your raspberries and banana. Next, add three tablespoons of chia seeds while continuously stirring the pot. Keep the the burner on medium to low and stir till the mixture gets thicker and almost a reaches a boil. Remove from heat and let it sit a moment. Go get your bowl, hemp hearts, almonds and leftover fruit while its cooling. Put your quinoa porridge in the bowl and proceed to enjoy garnishing with your remaining ingredients! Enjoy! #letfoodLIGHTyouup #eatwithintention

In this video I’ll show you my EASY, healthy hash brown recipe! I’m a huge fan of brunch and just because you’re eating healthy doesn’t mean you have to miss out on what in my opinion is the best meal of the day! Stay tuned for my healthy tofu scramble recipe that’s a great compliment to these.

Don’t forget to SUBSCRIBE for more videos each week to help you create a life that LIGHTS you up!

Super Bowl Sunday is upon us and if you’re anything like me, you love bringing food whenever you go to a gathering or whipping up a ton of delicious goodies when people you love are coming over for the day. I love, love, love making yummy finger food for the Super Bowl. I don’t even watch football (to be completely honest with you) but I love playing hostess or offering my kitchen skills to a friend who’s having people over, everybody wins, I don’t mind missing the game to be in the kitchen and everyone gets to eat freshly made snacks all evening!

What’s even better about making your own stuff is that you can be sure there’s a good for you and great tasting option for you to nosh on during the game. Bringing my own food has been a total life saver for years now, it allows me to have it all. I get to share my food with people I love and also feel great about what I’m putting in my body so that I can be fully present and energized for the people I’m with!

Here are some super easy, last minute snacks you can whip up in no time tomorrow. These 5 Healthy “Guy-Friendly” Superbowl snacks are sure to please even the most buffalo chicken loving boys in your life. 😉

AVOCADO FRIES WITH SRIRACHA-LIME DIPPING SAUCE

ZUCCHINI FRIES WITH HEALTHY BUFFALO-RANCH DIP

CRISPY CAULIFLOWER

MY FAVORITE GUACAMOLE

ZUCCHINI CHIPS

And if something is making you anxious or stressed about going to that Super Bowl party or hosting that check out my holiday zen video, it’s perfect for easing your anxiety and getting you back into a place of love and strength so that you can really show up as your highest self for all those around you

Have an amazing weekend!

Nothing compares to freshly made, at home, GREEN JUICE! I have been relying on the amazing juice spots around NYC and San Fran these past few weeks while traveling and then being on the run at home and could not wait to get my hands back on the juicer and chop up some of my favorite greens! This green juice is nice and light – it’s great for the morning or for that mid-afternoon energy slump when you need a little boost but don’t want to reach for the coffee.

Green Juice Light

8 leaves of romaine
4 celery sticks
1 green apple, chopped
1 lemon, skinned

Feel free to add a little ginger to give it a kick or make it a little strong by adding darker greens like kale or spinach but I love this green juice light when I’m looking for something refreshing but not heavy.

Tis the season to make healthy snacks to have on hand before and after decadent holiday meals and social events! These vegan snickerdoodle protein muffins are the perfect little nosh to make a batch of, freeze some, put some in plastic baggies and stuff in your suitcase so that you always have a healthy snack or light breakfast on hand. These vegan snickerdoodle muffins are easy to make, so good you’ll hardly believe they’re healthy and perfect to keep you full with loads of clean, organic, gmo-free protein and healthy fats! I was so ecstatic to find Aloha’s clean, plant based protein powder, it made a great addition to the recipe and it’s a breathe of free air to find a protein powder that’s organic, gmo-free and clean enough to use in my smoothies too! 🙂

Watch me make them in this week’s video and be sure to subscribe to my youtube channel for new videos every wednesday to help you go big and shine bright!

 

baibowl8   I’m totally obsessed with pitaya bowls these days, I mean come on, look at that gorgeous, bright, hot pink color! It really makes me feel like a little girl eating something Barbie would of. So although I try to stick with eating a lot of seasonal produce, I do make exceptions for my smoothies from time to time because they’re just so darn good with some tropical fruit! And with the dreary NYC weather lately, I have been craaaaaving something that would make me feel like I was on a tropical island for a bit. Add to that, finding the Molokai Coconut flavor of Bai 5 (a super fruit infused, antioxidant drink) which pretty much tastes like a non alcoholic pina colada but is actually good for you and not loaded with sugar, and it became crystal clear that I needed to make a smoothie that felt like “vacation in a bowl”. I had entirely too much fun recipe testing for this one and I’m super excited with how delicious the finished product was. I added cashew butter for some creamy, decadent, good for you fat and protein and maca superfood powder for sustained and balanced energy. Plus the Bai5 is a great low glycemic way to get those even more antioxidants in! So this tropical smoothie bowl is a lot more than it’s pretty exterior, it’s packed with nourishing ingredients you’re body’s going to love. Give it whirl at home and let me know if you come up with any fun additions or substitutions.

PS. What island are you going to pretend to be on while eating this magical bowl? I think I’m going with St. Barts. 😉

 

TROPICAL PITAYA SMOOTHIE AKA VACATION IN A BOWL

1 pitaya plus packet (frozen organic, raw dragon fruit!)

1 mango chopped (save a little to garnish!)

1 cup of Bai5 molokai coconut

1/3 cup of unsweetened coconut flakes (plus some for garnishing)

3 tsp of chia seeds (plus extra to garnish)

2 tbsp of cashew butter

1 tbsp of maca superfood power

1 unripe banana ( I used an unripe one because it’s not so sweet ie. loaded with sugar, but still adds the creaminess)

Toss it all in your blender and then pour into your favorite bowl. Sprinkle remaining coconut flakes, chia seeds and mango on top to make it even more festive! Enjoy slowly while visualizing your favorite island get a way.

baibowl3

Ah! I don’t even know what I’m going to do when fall ends because I’m so in love with all the season flavors!! As you guys know, I went cranberry picking a couple weekends ago and loaded up on the little tart treats so I’ve been having a lot of fun in the kitchen using them as accents to some of my favorite dishes. This particular dish is a sweeter quinoa salad, perfect fall crisp fall nights and great to take to work the next day for lunch! This cranberry quinoa salad is also the perfect healthy side dish to bring to your relatives’ on thanksgiving or christmas that’s delicious but also probably healthier than anything else on the table. 😉

Cranberry Quinoa Salad

1 cup of quinoa / a little less than 2 cups of water to boil it in

1 head of romanesco

1/2 apple sliced

1/2 cup of cranberries

1/4 cup slivered almonds

2 cups of baby kale

1/4 cup chopped white onion

1/4 cup chopped garlic

4 tbsp of coconut oil / macadamia nut oil or olive oil

1 cup of organic apple cider

2 tsp of pumpkin pie spice

spiced cider balsamic glaze: 2 tbsp balsamic vinegar / 2 tbsp olive oil / 1/4 cup reduced cider / 1 tbsp of dijon mustard / salt + pepper to taste

Preheat your oven to 425 degrees and lightly grease a baking sheet with some of your oil. Next, take a medium saucepan and fill it with your quinoa, water and  little salt. Keep the pan on medium heat and start stirring the quinoa when water starts boiling. Slice up your romanesco and place it on your baking sheet, drizzle with a little more oil and season however you like. Place that in the oven to roast for around 10-15 minutes while moving the pieces around so that they evenly roast.  In a separate small sauce pan, place your sliced apples, cranberries, apple cider and pumpkin pie spice. Keep it on a low heat and let it simmer as the fruit absorbs the cider and spices and the liquid reduces. Keep checking on the fruit and moving it around the pan for 10 minute or so until the liquid has reduced and saturated the fruits. In a frying pan on another burner, Place the remainder 2 tsp of your oil, your baby kale, onions and garlic and sauté till kale is wilted and onions are clear. When all liquid has evaporated from quinoa, it is done, take it off the burner and place into a medium bowl. Add in kale, roasted romanesco and fruit (with remaining cider drained and put to side for the glaze). In a separate small bowl whisk together the ingredients for the spiced cider balsamic glaze.  When combined, drizzle it over your quinoa salad and place into a serving dish. Sprinkle your almonds over the top to garnish and your done! I promise it’s a lot easier and faster than it seems from writing it all out in this recipe! It’s a great fall dish and I hope you share it with your family this season.