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We want to be like Elli because she was the Norse Goddess of Aging who beat Thor in a wrestling match. We want to be like Elli, fit and strong as we age
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Fit Strong Women Over 50 Podcast

Northeast Ohio

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Becoming Elli / Recipes (Page 5)
Beans and Vegetable Reunion Salad

Bean and Vegetable Reunion Salad – Veggie Challenge

Bean and Vegetable Reunion Salad This salad was made for the family reunion I attended on Saturday. Of course I made something for the veggie challenge. Although there are not any new vegetables in this salad, all the fresh vegetables are balanced with lots of protein with many types of beans. It makes the salad more colorful, too! Delicious, pretty and healthy! I made a whole lot of this salad and only about half of it was eaten. There were about 75 people there, so I expected to see more of it gone. My son said that people are "afraid" of vegetables. I'm not quite sure what he means by that. I think maybe they were more afraid of the beans and the potential for gas. I do...

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Snap Peas – Veggie Challenge

Snap Peas are crunchy and delicious. Although the peas are inside, you can eat the pea pod as well. I think their name comes from the way you prepare them. It doesn't take much. You snap the stem off and pull the thread like fiber that runs down the side of the pea pod to prepare them. I also cut them into four pieces or so to make their size more like a bite size and match the rest of the salad. I put them in my potluck salad and they added a perfect crunchy texture. Here's what is in the salad: Celery Carrots Broccoli Cauliflower Blueberries Yellow peppers Cucumbers Olives Snap peas Dressing: Olive oil, cider vinegar, and lemon juice. I don't usually measure carefully, but put enough...

sauerkraut

Veggie Challenge with Sauerkraut

Yes, my entry this week in the veggie challenge involves sauerkraut. I think fermented vegetables can count for the challenge. I've certainly eaten sauerkraut before but I came up with a new way to eat it. I know this is not a pretty dish. In fact, the photo is pretty bad but it ended up tasting better than it looks. I thought of this and then I googled it. I discovered that I'm not the first person to think of it but I did think of it without prompting. We've talked about fermented vegetables before and I'm trying to add at least one serving of fermented food into my day. Sauerkraut with Sardines This is a simple recipe. Mash up some sardines and mix them with some sauerkraut. That's it. When I...

dirty dozen and clean 15 or clean fifteen

Dirty Dozen and Clean Fifteen

Since I'm trying to do a new veggie each week, I'd be remiss not to talk about the Dirty Dozen and Clean Fifteen. Although this has been a thing for a while, I'm still trying to get on board. The "dirty dozen" and the "clean fifteen" are ways to deal with the about pesticides that are so difficult to wash off of the fruits and vegetables. These guidelines (which basically is just a list of foods) are a great place to know when to buy organic and when it is safe to buy regular. Today's post was prompted by a recent food report that  found some multiple samples of kale with 18 types of pesticide residue. Yikes! And kale is listed as number 3, meaning strawberries and...

watercress salad

Watercress Salad for Veggie Challenge

Watercress is a green that can be used in salads, sandwiches, soup, and anywhere else where you might use arugula, spinach, and other greens. I just recently heard what a nutritional powerhouse watercress is so thought I'd give it a try. I found it at a local grocery store in a plastic tub similar to what the other greens I buy come in. The watercress that I bought was grown locally. Given that I bought it in March, it must be grown hydroponically or in a green house. There are no greens growing in fields in northeast Ohio this March.The cost was comparable to buying baby kale, spinach, and spring mix. I liked the flavor of watercress. It's has a bit of a bite to it, though...

Spicy Cabbage in the Crockpot – Veggie Challenge

Today's Veggie Challenge recipe is an easy one! Add a little water to the bottom of the crock pot with two teaspoons of olive oil. Chop up two cabbages and place inside the crock pot. Sprinkle liberally with ground cayenne pepper. Put the lid on and cook on low for about 4 hours. Stir after a couple of hours if you are home. This makes a great side dish. The spicy ground cayenne pepper gives a kick to the smooth texture and flavor of the spicy cabbage. ...

potato and kale soup

Sherry’s Favorite Potato and Kale Soup

Sherry Chlysta was kind enough to share a recipe for her favorite vegetable soup when she was talking to us on episode 30 of the Fit Strong Women Over 50 podcast. Her recipe was adapted from a recipe she found on  cookingcannuck.com Sherry's Favorite Potato and Kale Soup Ingredients 2 tsp olive oil 3/4 cup of frozen chopped onion 2 large stalk celery, diced 2 medium carrot, diced 6 garlic cloves, minced 1 T crushed dried rosemary 1 1/2 tsp crushed dried thyme 1 tsp crushed red pepper flakes 1/2 tsp ground black pepper 6 oz can tomato paste 1 1/2 pounds of little potatoes, cut in 1/2 inch pieces 8 cups low sodium vegetable broth 3 T vegetable boullion 6 cups water 1 (14 oz) can of garbanzo beans, drained & rinsed 4 Cups kale, chopped 6 oz frozen spinach Salt to taste Directions Heat olive...

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Collard Greens Rainbow Wrap – New Veggie Challenge

Last week I took a grocery store tour with Revitalize, a functional group that focuses on women's health. Today's recipe is from Beth Kaczmar who told me it was okay to "cheat" and use her photo of her Collard Greens Rainbow Wrap. It looks delicious, doesn't it? This is a photo of the photo on her phone! I think it's a great way to swap out the 200 calorie spinach herb wrap that has 34 grams of carbohydrates for something REAL that has more like 11 calories, only 2 carbs and less than 10% of the sugar! Here's what Beth says about rainbow collard greens wrap veggie sandwich: "My Collard Green Rainbow Wrap is something different from your ordinary wrap. It’s low in carbs, packed with vitamins A,C,K,...

cousa squash

Vegetable Challenge: Cousa Squash

I wandered into a local neighborhood produce store, hoping to find something unique for our vegetable challenge. The selection was fine if I just wanted to buy some produce but trying to find something unique proved to be a challenge in itself. After wandering through the produce aisles two or three times, I spied some cousa squash on the shelf above the zucchini and yellow summer squash. I was way too excited to find a squash, let's just say that. I knew nothing about cousa squash so I searched on Google for it. Apparently, the cousa squash is from the Middle East and is similar to zucchini and other summer squash. I think it's a bit sweeter and its shape is shorter and a bit fatter...

Shredded Zucchini – Veggie Recipe of the Week

I love zucchini and usually slice it into rounds. Today I used a grater and shredded it into bits. I added it into my salad to bulk it up with more vegetables. Besides adding it to a salad, zucchini is also good to add to a stew or a soup. Other people like make it into a side dish. It is easy, just saute the shredded zucchini in olive oil, scramble an egg into it and stir in some freshly ground Parmesan cheese. I may try shredding some apples and combining the shredded zucchini with a tart dressing for an apple-zucchini slaw. This week's veggie challenge brings ways to use the zucchini with several ideas for shredded zucchinis including salads, stews, soups and with eggs....