Kale Salad with Mango, Dried Cherries and Toasted Pecans
(aka- kale salad for people who hate kale salad)

Confession time: I'm extremely late jumping aboard the kale bandwagon. In fact, just as this food trend is taking its last gasping breaths, I'm finally realizing that kale is in fact, pretty fantastic. There's good reason for this. Is it because I didn't recognize the food trend had staying power when it first reared its ugly head about 2 long years ago? People, I'm in the biz. Of course I recognized the trend. The simple fact was, I really, really hated kale. To me it seemed I might as well be chewing on a mouthful of shredded Watergate documents. Good for you or no, I just couldn't stomach it.

Not long ago a friend of mine at work recommended a kale salad recipe and I told her of my aversion. Which, because I work for Whole Foods, is it's own kind of blasphemy. In fact, part of me is terrified to write this post because I'm certain there's a clause in the team member handbook that could get me fired for kale hatred. *I'm not actually terrified of this- see hyperbole.  Anyhow, once her shock and disbelief passed, she asked me if I knew about massaging the kale. "Massaging the kale?" I asked, skeptically. "Yes, she repied. I know it sounds crazy, but I promise it will change the way you feel about kale."

Turns out, she was right. It's a super simple technique where you squeeze a lemon and sprinkle some salt on your stemmed and chopped kale and then massage the whole lot. The process breaks down the fibrous nature of the kale, making it not only palatable, but enjoyable. Toss in some perfectly ripe mango, sour and chewy dried cherries and toasted pecans, and you've got a real winner on your hands. 

               Kale pre-massage               Kale post-massage

This is a variation on this recipe from Arti Sequeria of the Food Network. Feel free to play around with the add-ins as much as it suits you. I've used all kinds of different nuts and I especially enjoy dried cranberries as a substitute for the cherries. 

Please give it a shot, and kale haters- let me know what you think!

Kale Salad with Mango, Dried Cherries and Toasted Pecans
Serves 5-6

Ingredients:
2 Bunches of Kale (I like Dino Kale)
1 or 2 handfuls of dried sour cherries
1 or 2 handfuls of toasted pecans
1 lemon
Generous pinch of salt

Dressing:
Juice of 2 lemons
1/3 Cup Olive Oil
2 Teaspoons Honey
Fresh cracked pepper and salt to taste

Method:
Stem, chop and wash your kale well. Kale is one of those vegetables that likes to hold on to dirt, so make sure you give it a good once-over. No one likes to bite down on a grain of dirt. Yuck. 

Peel and slice your mango into whatever size bites you like. If you're one of those people (like me) who hates to cut mangos, check out this tutorial for a little guidance.

Toast your pecans. I put mine in a 350 degree oven for about 6 minutes and I set a timer. YOU WILL FORGET ABOUT THE NUTS. So, do yourself a favor and just set the dang timer. 

To make the dressing, put all ingredients into a lid with a nice, tight cap and shake like the dickens. 

Massage the stemmed and chopped kale with the juice of one lemon and the generous pinch of salt as described above. One note- try not to go too overboard on this part. You're breaking it down, yes, but you don't want it to turn into mush either. 

Throw in the cherries, mango and perfectly toasted pecans and drizzle with the dressing. Careful not to go too heavy on the dressing- just a light coating is all you're looking for. 

Toss and enjoy!

Secret ingredient protein waffles

I've wanted to share this recipe for a long time now. In fact, I've made these waffles three times in the last week in an attempt to perfect them. I first heard of these waffles from my friend and coworker who happens to be a nutritionist and an incredible resource for all things delicious and nutritious. 

I didn't put the secret ingredient in the title because I didn't want people who hate it to take one look at the name of post and never give it a second thought. The secret ingredient is cottage cheese. Some people have a serious aversion to it, I understand. However, I swear, if you can taste the cottage cheese in these bad boys, I'll be a monkey's uncle. 

A few things about this recipe:

• No waffle maker? No problem. Pancakes work just as well and taste just as great.
• Every time I make these, I whip up the whole batch, eat a few for breakfast and freeze the rest. When you're ready for another, pull one out of the freezer, pop it in the toaster... perfection. 
• These waffles are baby and husband approved. In fact, I've never fed them to anyone who didn't love them. 
• If you'd rather skip the first step, just purchase oat flour from the grocery store and combine it with the other dry ingredients. 
• The first recipe I found for these waffles instructed to put all of the dry ingredients into a food processor and blend, dump them into a separate bowl, then blend all of the wet ingredients, dump them into a separate bowl, then combine the two in batches. You can certainly do that if you're so inclined. I blend the dry ingredients in my Vitamix, then just add all of the wet ingredients on top and buzz them all together. Once upon a time I may have followed the detailed instructions, but now my attitude is, "ain't nobody got time for that." 

Secret Ingredient Protein Waffles

Makes 9 waffles

Ingredients:

2 and 2/3 Cup Rolled Oats

2 Teaspoons Baking Powder

1 Teaspoon Cinnamon

1 Cup Cottage Cheese

4 Eggs

1 Cup Water- or your favorite alternative milk- I like coconut milk

4 Teaspoons Coconut Oil- or light olive oil

2 Teaspoons Vanilla Extract

1 Ripe Banana

1 Tablespoon Maple Syrup- more or less depending on your sweetness preference

Method:

Blend the oats, baking powder and cinnamon in a blender or food processor until it looks like flour. 

Add the cottage cheese, eggs, water or milk, coconut oil, vanilla, banana and maple syrup and blend all ingredients together until a smooth batter is formed.

Pour 1/3 cup of batter into the waffle iron in batches and follow instructions for doneness. I like to top them with butter, fresh strawberries, and maple syrup.

Eat what you like and freeze the rest. Super easy and super delicious. 

I'm baaaack!

Well, that was quite the hiatus. If you don't know me, you'd wonder where the heck I've been. If you do, you know that I've been navigating my way through the first year of motherhood. It has been the most incredible year of my life. Our little gal brings so much light and joy to our lives and the lives of her family. It is such an honor to be her mommy. 

Last weekend we hosted her first birthday party, which also happened to be her Golden Birthday party. This because she turned one on the 1st. Did your family do Golden Birthdays? It was always such a big deal in my family, I'm shocked when people say they've never heard of it. My Golden Birthday was my 9th birthday, and I'm pretty sure it was the very best day of my childhood life. My mom (crazily) let me invite EVERY single girl in the 3rd grade to my SLEEPOVER. What the hell was she thinking?! 

Anyway, in the same spirit of going over the top in honor of the Golden Birthday... I did. The theme was gold. I hate to admit it, but I've actually had a Pinterest board for 1st birthday inspiration since August of last year- she was 3 months old. Seeing photo after photo of beautiful dessert tables on Pinterest made me want to make that the focal point of her party, so that's what I decided on. We had lots and lots of dessert, raspberry lemonade (with vodka for the non-children), balloons, crepe paper, a happy birthday banner, a ton of presents and most of all, enormous love for the birthday girl. 

I decided to make Sloan's smash cake myself, as I didn't want her to have too much sugar and end up getting sick or super crabby on her special day. I searched and searched for recipes on the internet and turns out, there are lots of other mommy bloggers out there who also felt passionately about sugar-free first birthday cakes. The recipe I decided on is from the blog Fit Mama Real Food.  The only change I made was I used half whole wheat flour and half all purpose. 

The cake turned out very well. I was sure that it would have that "there's no sugar in that cake" taste, but it really didn't. As you can see, the recipe calls for a ton of bananas, so it's got lots of natural sweetness without added sugar. Sloan did not hesitate to dig right in. My favorite part of watching her smash the cake was when she pushed the two layers apart and picked up the entire top layer of cake to take a bite. That's my girl! It was a great day and one I will remember forever. 

PS- all of the amazing photos were taken by my very lovely and talented sister, Emily. Thank you, Auntie Em!

No sugar smash cake: 

*I used a 6" cake pan for a two layer cake and it worked out perfectly.

Ingredients:

• 4 or 5 ripe bananas
• 1/2 cup natural no sugar added applesauce
• 3 tbsp coconut oil (melted)
• 3 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 3/4 cups whole wheat flour
• 3/4 cup all purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon

Method:

Mash the bananas in a medium bowl.

In a separate large bowl, mix the flours, baking soda, and cinnamon together.

Add the mashed bananas, applesauce, coconut oil, and vanilla to the flour mixture. Mix just until incorporated.

Coat your pan(s) with oil.

Spread the batter into the bottom of the pans.

Bake at 375° for 15-20 minutes.  Check with a toothpick for doneness.

Cool the cakes before frosting.  

No sugar cream cheese frosting

Ingredients:

• 1 cup (8 ounces) cream cheese
• 1/2 cup (4 ounces) no sugar added apple juice concentrate
• 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

Method:

Soften the cream cheese.

Whisk the cream cheese with the apple juice concentrate and vanilla extract until creamy.

http://www.fitmamarealfood.com/babys-first-smash-cake-healthy-no-sugar-banana-cake/