A tasty salad with Soup of Celeriac, Sweet Onion, and Fresh Mint & My book!!

You’ve probably heard the expression “fake it til you make it”.  Well here I am doing just that for a little bit longer until my book is actually made!  But it’s all for the sake of excitement in getting to show you the cover, whoop whoop!

And….drum roll……. to let you know that you can officially place your pre-order on Amazon, Indigo and thru my publisher Penguin Random House of Canada as of right now! Of course patience in a necessary virtue if you are a real keener as the book won’t actually hit the shelves until March 1st, 2016 but I would love for you to be the first to receive your copy in the mail!  If you are anything like me, life gets busy and you forget you made the request and it becomes such a nice surprise to have the postman bring a book to your door.  And to tell you the honest truth I totally faked this book just for this photo with a printed jacket so I still don’t own a copy– I too have to wait some time until the printers send me a first run copy.  But this definitely made it feel a little more real.

Another good reason for ‘faking it’ was to share a more tangible copy of the book with my dear friend Karen Elgersma of Shaw TV for this TV segment we did together for the recipes that I have for you today.  The Celeriac soup is a sneak preview recipe from my book that I know you will love.  If you take a peek at the segment you’ll even get a tour of my new studio!

This new studio is my happy place.  I feel most inspired when surrounded with all my favourite things and lots of white space. It is the home for my brand new Creative Nutrition Inspiration Workshops that will begin in January 2016.  If you live on Vancouver Island this is your chance to dive into the Alkaline Lifestyle in the most inspiring and creative way possible!  Check out the details so you can grab your seat or gift one to some one special this holiday season.

Okay so here’s a couple tasty numbers for you to try.  I’d love to hear how you enjoyed them or any creative adjustments you may have made to them.

Soup of Celeriac, Sweet Onion, and Fresh Mint
***purely alkaline
Celeriac, also known as celery root, doesn’t look like celery—it’s a brown, rather unattractive knob—but it is related. It’s the root of a particular variety of celery and it tastes like a cross between celery and parsley. As you dice the root, be sure to trim 1/4–1/2 inch of the skin’s thick outer layer or it may taste bitter. Since this soup is cooked, add a fresh raw green salad to add some raw nutrients to this meal.  If you wish to give your digestion a rest and cleanse your system then a green juice is a great addition to this meal in place of the salad.  Just remember it takes time to heal your body and flush your system so go slow to minimize the detox symptoms and allow your body to adjust to new foods. Have patience with yourself and slowly add alkaline foods to your diet and the less nutritious ones will fall by the way side.

Serves 4
3 1/2 cups diced celery root (1/2 large root)
3/4 tsp Himalayan salt
2 Tbsp coconut oil
1 1/2 cups diced sweet onions
1 stalk celery, diced
1 cup spinach, packed
24 mint leaves + 4 for garnish
freshly ground black pepper
drizzle of extra-virgin olive oil

Place the celery root in a medium pot and cover with filtered, alkalized water by about 1 inch. Add 1/2 tsp of the salt and bring to a boil. Turn down the heat to medium and cook until tender, 10–15 minutes. Drain the celery root, saving the cooking water, and set aside 1/4 cup of the diced root in a small bowl. Transfer the remaining celery root (without the cooking water) to a blender. Set aside.
Heat the coconut oil in a small pan over medium-low heat. Add the onion and celery and sauté until translucent. Cook for another 5 minutes to allow the onion to sweeten. If it begins to brown, add 1 Tbsp filtered, alkalized water. Spoon 1/4 cup of the onion celery mixture into the reserved 1/4 cup celery root, then add the remainder to the blender with the spinach and mint. Process until completely smooth, slowly adding the reserved cooking water as needed, until you have a nice thick, creamy consistency. Season to taste with a little salt and black pepper. For a warmer soup, pour the soup into a medium pot and heat it gently over low heat.
To serve, ladle the soup into individual bowls or mugs. Mix together the reserved celery root and onion, add a drizzle of olive oil, and season with a pinch of salt and a grind of pepper. Gently float a spoonful of this mixture on top of each bowl of soup, and finish with a little more olive oil, a bit more pepper, and a sprig of mint. Voilà!

Salad of Celery, Fennel & Apple
**moderately alkaline
This yummy crisp and tasty salad will leave you wanting more!  If you have the time after slicing the celery and fennel chill them in the fridge in cold water until ready to put the salad together for some extra crispness.  If you are preparing the apple ahead be sure to place it in a water bath with fresh squeezed lemon to avoid browning.  And don’t just save this dressing for this salad— I use it on so many different salads, it’s definitely a keeper!
Serves 4
1/3 c extra virgin olive oil
juice of one lemon
1 clove garlic, finely grated or minced
1 tsp coconut nectar
1 drop of stevia
pinch Himalayan salt
freshly ground black pepper
1 head of leaf lettuce, washed, dried and chopped or torn
2 stalks celery very thinly sliced (use a mandolin if you have)
1 bulb of fennel very thinly sliced
1 crisp apple julienned or thinly sliced
1/3 cup raw walnut halves

Wisk together olive oil, lemon juice, garlic, nectar, stevia and salt & pepper and set aside. Prepare vegetables and divide among plates beginning with the greens and then top with celery, fennel and apple. Add walnuts and drizzle with the lemon garlic dressing. Serve immediately and Enjoy!

Thanks for dropping by. I hope you enjoyed the fresh new look to the blog, I’m still tweaking and adding so stay tuned for more as I fiddle away.

A green smoothie cheer to you,

Julie

xo