Sweet Potato and Chard Enchiladas

Sweet potato and Kale Enchiladas

Sometimes life feels more like a race to the finish line than anything else.  Like a cross country ski marathon on slushy snow or a face-first ride on a skeleton sled at 80 mph.  On the craziest days, we might as well be careening over a ski cross jump—one minute we’re in gold medal form, the next, a jumbled mass in the ditch.  It’s exhausting.  Terrifying.  Unpredictable.  And more.  Our to-do list spans multiple pages, but all we really hope for is a clean pair of pants—without too many wrinkles—and a jug of milk in the fridge—that’s not too far past the freshness date—to start the day.  These are times when texting family members in the next room seems perfectly normal.  When dishes pile in the sink and dirty clothes in the corner, and no one notices.  Clearly, we’re just trying to hang on, and at the end of the day, what we need is food on the table without a crash.  Food that’s soul-soothing—because really, that’s what’s getting us through this patch in one piece.

These are enchilada days.  With a bit of homework done ahead (Olympic gold isn’t won without the training runs), the classic tortilla bundles are a cinch to pull together, and receive raves around a hungry table.  How perfect is that?

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Christine’s Crossing — Green Smoothies 101

Starter Green Smoothie

It’s time once again to hear from Health Coach, Christine de la Cruz—this month on the subject of green smoothies…

Do you ever wonder what in the world you are going to do with all of the gorgeous greens you receive on Wednesdays? Some weeks I can barely fit them in my refrigerator—which is actually a great problem to have.  My solution to not wasting one fabulous bit is to make green smoothies!

Include a green smoothie in your diet every day for 30 days, and you will see some of these awesome benefits:  improved digestion, increased energy, weight loss, glowing skin, luxurious hair, improved sleep and better moods. Who’s not on board now?  And the best part is that you don’t have to change anything else you are consuming.

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Scrambled Eggs with Greens and Mushrooms

Scrambled eggs with greens and mushrooms

When it comes to eggs, it’s tough to know what story the labels really tell.  Cage-free, free-roaming, natural, free-range:  In our minds we picture open, grass-flecked barnyards with  black dirt below and blue sky above, and plenty of room to run, extend feathered wings and peck at grubs.  In the simplest sense, a chicken’s life as it should naturally be.  It turns out that labels don’t always mean what they imply and in the case of free-range and free-roaming (the only ones regulated by the USDA), far less.  In order to apply the free-range and free-roaming label the USDA expects that producers allow hens access to the outside.  The labels don’t speak to whether birds have room to move, or actually make it out the door.  Or whether they are treated humanely and allowed to engage in natural behaviors, like pecking in the dirt.  In a free-range barnyard all of these may be true—or may not.

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Springy Summer Rolls

Spring Rolls

Whether you call them spring rolls, summer rolls or even plain old salad wraps doesn’t really matter—unless you feel the need to be culturally precise.  Whatever name you choose, Vietnamese-style rice paper wraps are an irresistibly fun and tasty, hands-on approach to pushing fruit and vegetables.  Call it sneaky if you want, but what kid (or adult) doesn’t embrace the idea of choosing the food on their plate—and having the chance to play with it, too?  Pull out all the veggies, Mom.  This is the day you’ve waited for.

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