February 26th, 2012
This post is also available in: French
One of my favourite things to do when shopping at the market is to ask the vendors how they like to prepare and eat their own product. The stories and recipes that I get out of this are unfailingly fascinating and delicious.
One of my favourite stands at our greenmarket is one that specializes in microgreens. When buying, the sprouts are clipped from the soil right in front of you, as fresh as possible. This past Saturday the nice microgreens grower had a box of beautiful local grapefruits with him and was kind enough to share his seasonal breakfast recipe. He said that this refreshing smoothie keeps him full until lunch.
We’ve been enjoying mild Florida winter and haven’t missed one market day so far. Our local farms have been doing an amazing job in supplying us with an incredible variety of greens and other produce. I am so grateful and don’t want it to ever end.
Paloma started going to a Russian Saturday school. She proudly drinks her green smoothies and snacks on olives and goji berries during the breaks, generating curious looks and questions from other parents. But last week the teacher gave lollipops to the kids in the classroom as part of their learning activities. She said that they were “all natural,” but when it comes to lollipops, what does that really mean? Paloma never tasted candy like that before, and I wasn’t planning to introduce it to her any time soon. So far, she is the only one among friends her age who is cavity free.
We are also very excited to announce that some of the posts on Golubka will now be available in French. Geraldine Olivo of My Sweet Faery is our amazing translator. She has been working very hard on providing links to online stores and tutorials next to the ingredients that may not be familiar or readily available in Europe. We are thrilled to be bilingual and endlessly thankful to Geraldine for all her work. So far, we have all the 3D tango posts translated.
Grapefruit Smoothie
juice of 2 large grapefruits
1-2 ripe bananas
1 avocado (optional, this was my own addition to the vendor’s recipe)
fresh ginger – to taste
sunflower microgreens/sprouts – 2 handfuls or more to taste
In a blender, combine all the ingredients until smooth and enjoy.
Tweet
October 31st, 2011
We haven’t posted a drink recipe here for a while now. That’s a bit strange, since we enjoy some kind of shake or juice every day. Let’s correct that situation.
Making a smoothie is a clever way of packing many nourishing ingredients into one glass. They’re especially great for kids, who will love their pretty colouring and fruity taste. Paloma drinks almost any kind of smoothie, and it is a great opportunity for me to bring variety to her diet.
I like to get creative with these drinks, as in the case of this layered one, featuring two superberries from opposite sides of the world.
I was delighted to find frozen sea-buckthorn berries at the Eastern European market the other day. I’ve forgotten all about them, since I’ve been away from that part of the world for a while now. Seeing the beautiful little berries brought back all kinds of memories.
In Russia, sea-buckthorn is seen as a highly medicinal, healing plant. Foraging the berries is challenging, because the branches have sharp thorns. That never stops people from gathering them enthusiastically during the season, however. Folk tales insist that even a bad scratch from the thorns will never be infected due to the special medicinal juices oozing from the plant. The berries are often made into preserves, jams, and even oil is extracted from the plant. Our grandmothers believed that sea-buckthorn can cure any ailment, from a common cold to ulcers and diabetes.
And now to the superberry of the New World – açaí. This one is probably old news to most, as it has been popping up everywhere in the recent years – in juices, supplements, and cosmetics. Açaí is native to Central and South America and is not only very good for you, but also delicious. The best way to enjoy it is in the form of frozen puree (we use Sambazon brand), which has no additives.
We have to thank Green Kitchen Stories for introducing us to this product and for their great recipe of the açaí bowl. As they predicted, the bowl became our obsession and one of Paloma’s most beloved breakfasts.
Layering the two smoothies does not only make for a pretty result, but also leaves you with a glass of great flavours, amazing colour, and the combined unique benefits of these two berries. The fact that you are most likely to find both of these berries frozen, means that you can enjoy them during any season. We did it while staring at the beautiful turning leaves. Cheers to autumn!
Sea-buckthorn Smoothie
2 cups pineapple chunks
1 ripe banana
1 cup diced ripe mango
1 cup sea-buckthorn
3 tablespoons raw honey or agave
1 1/2 cups nut milk or coconut water
Combine all the ingredients in a high-speed blender. You can eliminate the sea-buckthorn and you will get a tropical smoothie that is very good on its own.
Açaí Smoothie
(adapted from GKS)
2 packages of frozen acai Sambazon puree
2 ripe bananas
2 tablespoons hemp protein
1/2 cup frozen blueberries or strawberries
1/2 cup nut milk
Run the frozen acai packages under hot water. Cut one end of the package – the puree should slide out easily. Cut it in chunks and combine in a high-speed blender with the rest of the ingredients.
To assemble, gently pour the smoothies into glasses, alternating the layers. Tilt the glass if you want to create slopes.
Tweet
October 23rd, 2011
3D: Dinner, Decor, Delight, our new venture. We want to say thank you for your input and support, you are all invited. The interest, that our first gathering generated, brought us to planning several future 3D events. We decided to direct the profit to Jamie Oliver’s Foundation, whose philosophy corresponds with our goal to show just how enjoyable cooking and eating good food can be. We are especially inspired by Mr. Oliver’s commitment to improving school lunches.
Natalie and I are no strangers to the dilemma of keeping kids’ food healthy while still providing the appropriate social environment for them to learn and develop. Starting out, we were fortunate to find a day care run by a very special woman, who was understanding of our dietary requirements for Paloma. She made the transition from eating at home to dining with other children smooth and enjoyable. Since then, Paloma never thought anything much of her food being a little different from the rest. (Thank you Susan, we love and miss you!) Even now, in a big school environment, Paloma is able to drink her green smoothies, while still being part of the crowd. Sasha, being a year younger, caught up to Paloma as soon as his age permitted. Since then, they’ve shared many smoothies together, all shades of green.
The idea to make this video came to Natalie when we were talking about how much enthusiasm and impatience those two show while the blender is going. They both see the smoothie as a treat, something to look forward to. Ziggy Meilus, our videographer, executed it without a plan or scenario, and we are so thankful for his great work. Once the smoothies were made, Sasha and Paloma went into a sort of trance, gobbling up their drinks. Natalie and I were standing at the side, laughing.
There have been so many inspiring food videos popping up in the community, and we are very excited to finally share one of our own. We cannot wait to do more in the future. Thank you for watching!
Tags: 3D, children, drink, food for tots, life, natalie, raw food, video
Tweet
March 20th, 2011
We don’t usually write much about the health benefits and vitamin contents of the food on this blog. By now, everyone is tired of hearing about whole, fresh food in comparison to anything processed. These things have been said countless times before, and I have to admit that I was hesitant to write this post, which involves tales of health, interwoven with those of food. Golubka is, after all, a place for sharing tasty recipes and pretty photographs. It is about inspiration in the kitchen and an optimistic approach to food. It is most definitely not for preaching about health, as everyone has a different tactic, their own ways that work personally for them. However, I decided that the outcome of this story is promising, full of hope, and something I would love to share.
Up until recently, we have been confident that one’s lifestyle is an absolute indicator of their health. A couple of months ago, though, we discovered that there are situations, in which a diet of vibrant food and a healthy dose of weekly exercise may not be enough to sustain health. I’m talking about a genetic deficiency, which recently turned up in my husband’s family and affected its every member.
Alpha 1 Antitrypsin deficiency. Never heard of it? Neither did we, it is extremely rare and not much is known about it. Basically, this deficiency means that one’s body cannot produce a certain protein, which leaves some organs unprotected. Especially the lungs.
After getting tested, my husband found out that his lung capacity had gone down significantly. We were faced with the choice between putting him on serious medication or taking a chance and trying to further optimize his health without the “help” of inhalers and injections.
Because the inherited disorder is largely unexplored, the treatment is limited and was never proven to be effective or safe. There are many people who, based on their condition, don’t have a choice and have to follow doctor’s orders. In our case though, I believed that we still had an option, as my husband never had any symptoms.
As it often happens when it comes to medical issues, we went in opposite directions. He started the prescribed treatment, while I read up on the disorder, and researched ways to improve his lung capacity and overall immunity.
But it wasn’t my persuasive ability that made my husband stop the treatment after a couple of weeks. In the period of time between learning about his deficiency and finally quitting the medication, he went from being a young, healthy, sport-oriented, and happy man to a groggy insomniac with constant headaches, a foggy mind, and permanent bags under his eyes. Turns out that his doctor forgot to mention one of the most common side effects of the medication – sleep disruption. Instead, he prescribed more medication – sleeping pills – which never worked, but completed the poor guy’s misery. After hitting rock bottom, my exhausted husband stopped taking all medication and went with a different program.
How true it is that negative events can provide a proper push towards something positive and new. Through my research, I learned about Alexandra Strelnikova’s amazing breathing exercises, which we now practice on a daily basis. They do great things for our energy level, and keep my husband’s lungs in shape. We renewed our daily yoga routine, which we usually do after putting Paloma to sleep. We found an amazing, open minded doctor, who utilizes many traditional and modern wellness techniques along with more conventional medicine.
As for our diet, the most important thing we’ve done is put our juicer back to work. I’m not sure why I’ve neglected it for so long, as having a glass of fresh juice every morning is the best possible way to start a day. We’ve definitely felt an improvement in the way we feel and look after starting to juice daily. Not to mention all the fun I’ve had with creating new veggie to fruit formulas. My favourite is an emerald-coloured juice with all kinds of leafy greens, cucumbers, apples, citrus and ginger. It’s got a nice bite and wakes us right up. We also love the combination of beat and pineapple or tangerine juice, and, of course, the classic carrot, apple, and ginger. We continue drinking green smoothies, Paloma’s favourite, along with more indulgent ones like Bunny Spice and Nick’s #7.
I’ve been working on keeping our diet delicious and exciting, even though we’ve been trying to eat less and healthier than ever. Lately, we can’t get enough of green mix salads with local fruit, hemp seeds, and a drizzle of truffle oil.
I’ve started buying whole cases of young Thai coconuts. After a long work day, opening a bunch of them takes away some stress and frustration. The coconut water often replaces lunch, while the meat goes into all kinds of tasty dishes.
Two months of the Life Force machine (one of the wonders in our new doctor’s office), extensive breathing exercises, yoga, meditation, homeopathic remedies, juices, fasting, and a serene ski vacation in Utah – and I have my husband back. Finally, we beat it. He is sleeping again and coming back to his true self.
Every day, we work very hard on increasing his lung capacity without the dreaded steroids. The true test will take place in April. That is when his appointment with his pulmonologist is scheduled. We are full of hope.
For now, here is our favourite green juice. I don’t measure the ingredients precisely, and it will still be very good with small deviations in proportion. Please share any of your favourite juice or smoothie combinations, we look forward to hearing from you.
Emerald Juice
1 very large bunch of celery
1 large bunch of cilantro or parsley or both
4-5 small to medium apples
2-3 grapefruits
1-2 handfuls of any green leafy vegetables
1-2 cucumbers
a piece of fresh ginger root – to taste
Juice, pour into an airtight jar or bottle, and keep refrigerated. Enjoy throughout the day.
Tweet
EMAIL
