This gets easier and easier every time I hop on GOOP. It’s already Day 4 and I have no idea where the time went. It’s such an easy, fulfilling regimen (at least for me). I hope everyone gives it a go at some point.
Here’s how Day 2 went!
My morning water w/ lime.
For tea time, I had Parsley Tea. Actually, I’ve been guzzling this stuff all I can stand because parsley is a natural diuretic and fantastic for eliminating water retention. So, if you find yourself frumpy with bloating issues, fix up some parsley tea to help get it all out. Hound down lots of watermelon, too!
Parsley is also high in antioxidants. However, word around the campfire is pregnant women should steer clear as it can contribute to premature labor.
I like this page from Your Cup of Tea.
Breakfast = Avocado, Strawberry & Mint Smoothie. Made w/ 1 Avocado, 4 Strawberries, 4 roughly chopped mint leaves & 1 cup Almond Milk, topped w/ Flax Seeds. All Organic.
My local Sun Harvest ran out of raspberries but I bought some blackberries and strawberries. 🙂 *As of 6:12 A.M. CST, their website is acting fussy but here’s a link to the weekly ad: http://www.mygroceryads.com/ads/tx/sun_harvest_san_antonio/
I used my own salad recipe for lunch. It features a decorative Chayote Carpaccio, baby spinach salad w/ julienned carrots & a focal sauerkraut stuffed strawberry. To do that, I fanned the strawberry and stuffed some sauerkraut in the center. It may sound odd but the combination of tart/sour and tart/sweet make for a miraculous treat! Everything is organic and sprinkled with red wine vinegar, (my favorite of all vinegars).
Dinner ROCKED! I had the salad Gwynnie suggests on the GOOP menu here (scroll down some). (Salad w/ Carrot & Ginger Dressing). Salad assembly is simple. Torn lettuce, sliced red onion rounds, cubed avocado (that’s a how-to vid), and Ginger/Carrot dressing. However! Instead of using the blender, I fell back on my Mexican roots and whipped out the Molcajete!
Chef Charlie’s GOOP’d Up Ginger Carrot & Cilantro Dressing
1 large carrot, peeled & diced
1 shallot, peeled & diced
1 clove garlic, chopped (no need to mince, it’s gonna get smooshed to all Hell soon!)
1 tbsp. grated ginger
1 tsp Herbes de Provence
1 tbsp. chopped cilantro
1 tbsp. organic cold pressed extra virgin olive oil
1/4 tsp. Red Wine Vinegar (or whatever your favorite vinegar is)
1/4th cup organic vegetable stock
Sea Salt & Grains of Paradise (or black pepper or mixed peppercorns if unavailable) to taste.
*I keep fresh ginger root in the freezer. It makes it super easy to pop out and grate with a small hand or box grater. Also, if you leave the frozen ginger to thaw in the refrigerator or on the counter for a bit, you are able to squeeze all the juice out once it’s soft. So, you can adapt that into this recipe. Instead of adding grated ginger, u can squeeze 1-2 tsp of juice into it.*
Heat olive oil in pan and saute carrots over med-low heat till carrots are soft, 6-8 mins or so. Cover to help the process, stirring occasionally.
Uncover. Add garlic, shallot, ginger, Herbes de Provence and saute till fragrant, 2-3 mins.
Add vegetable stock and simmer 2-3 mins.
Dispense mixture into molcajete. Add sea salt, Grans of Paradise or (freshly ground pepper), chopped cilantro, vinegar and get to mashing! It’s a bit of a process but it’s fun! Do it gently so you don’t make a mess! Once it’s reduced to a balance between clumpy and runny (see pictures above), it’s ready for storing or application.
You may adjust the recipe for the size of batch you’ll be making. You may allow to cool (as I did before distributing over the salad) or use warm to wilt the greens. Refrigerate unused portion for up to a week.
So, GOOP is going fantastic! I’ll try to post Day 3 pictures later today. I need to do some writing!