Tag Archives: Real Food Daily

HEALTHY TASTE OF LA 2 – Recap

I attended the 2nd annual Healthy Taste of LA for the first time last month and was very impressed!  The keynote speaker at this year’s event was T. Colin Campbell.  Being the nutrition geek that I am, I will forever be indebted to T. Colin Campbell for the work he has done in the field of nutrition and the discoveries he has made throughout his career pertaining to nutrition and its role in cancer and other diseases of affluence.  It was great to have a few minutes to chat with him about nutrition in general and the plans he has with regards to evolving the Plant-Based Nutrition Certification courses at Cornell.

It was a packed day of amazing healthy cooking demonstrations (NO OIL, SUGAR, OR SALT) by Chef Ramses Bravo of True North, Chef Eric Tucker of Millenium, a live taping of The Chef and The Dietitian, a motivation speech by fitness guru John Pierre (Ellen’s Personal Trainer), more cooking demonstrations by Ann Gentry (pictured with me above) who is the founder of Real Food Daily, Chef Eric LeChasseur of Seed Bistro, and Lindsay Nixon the author of the Happy Herbivore.

Fortunately for us we also had three breaks throughout the day where we were given the opportunity to sample all of the wonderful food that the Chefs demonstrated making.  Another exciting aspect of the day was the fact that the event organizers were short one staff photographer and asked me to fill in which basically gave me an all-access pass to move around and take pictures to my heart’s content!

The first recipe that was demonstrated at the event was Chef Ramses Bravo’s Coconut Vanilla Granola, which is the Granola that they serve at the True North Health Center.   After the event I went home and made the granola and was really impressed with the result.  I had never made granola without oil before and love that I now know how.  Click HERE for the recipe.

At the end of the event Chef AJ announced that the keynote speaker at next year’s Healthy Taste of LA 3 will be Dr. Caldwell B. Esselstyn, the man who has figured out the formula to be heart attack proof (Did you all see Dr. Sanjay Gupta’s CNN special by the same name highlighting Dr. Esselstyn?)!!!

I definitely plan on being there at the event next year (November 4, 2012).  I HIGHLY recommend purchasing your tickets in advance.  This year they had to turn people away from the event because the interest was so high.  Do yourself a favor and purchase your tickets ahead of time.

For more information about 2012’s Healthy Taste of LA3 and to purchase tickets click here.

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Filed under Cancer, Cooking Demonstration, Education, Events, General Vegan, Recipes, Vegan, Vegetarian

MEXICALI CHOP – With Crunchy Tortilla Strips

I came upon this recipe for Mexicali Chop Salad recently on Vegetarian Times website and thought I would share it with you.  This recipe is courtesy of Real Food Daily…a restaurant I have yet to try, but hope to soon!  I think this salad would make a wonderful meal paired with my Baja Corn Chowder and topped off with my Mexican Wedding Cake Bites.

Ann Gentry who is the chef-owner of Real Food Daily in the Los Angeles Area wrote this about her recipe, “When Real Food Daily first opened, I used to sneak away to a nearby Mexican-inspired restaurant for a black bean–and-corn salad with guacamole, chips, and a beer.  One day, I realized I could make my own version.”

Extra Dressing will keep for one week in the fridge.

INGREDIENTSServes 8

TORTILLA STRIPS

1 1/2 tsp. canola oil

3 6-inch corn tortillas

1/2 tsp. chili powder

1/4 tsp. maple crystals or sugar

1/8 tsp. salt

 

DRESSING

1/2 cup olive oil

2 cloves garlic, minced (2 tsp.)

2 tsp. ground cumin

2 tsp. ground coriander

1 tsp. sugar

1 tsp. salt

1/3 cup lime juice

1/4 cup chopped green onion

1/4 cup cilantro leaves

Pinch cayenne pepper

 

SALAD

1 head romaine lettuce, sliced (8 cups)

2 medium tomatoes, chopped (2 cups)

1 avocado, diced (1 cup)

3 celery stalks, sliced (1 cup)

1 cucumber, seeded and diced (1 cup)

1 cup fresh or frozen, thawed corn kernels

3/4 cup cooked pinto beans

1/2 cup jarred roasted red bell peppers, rinsed, drained, and sliced

1/3 cup finely chopped red onion

1. To make Tortilla Strips: Preheat oven to 350°F. Brush oil on tortillas. Cut in half, then cut into 1/8-inch-wide strips. Spread on baking sheet. Combine chili powder, maple crystals, and salt in bowl. Sprinkle chili powder mixture over strips. Bake 15 minutes, or until crisp. Cool.

2. To make Dressing: heat oil, garlic, cumin, coriander, sugar, and salt in saucepan 2 to 3 minutes over low heat, or until garlic begins to sizzle.

3. Blend remaining Dressing ingredients with garlic oil in blender until smooth.

4. Toss together all Salad ingredients with Tortilla Strips and 1/4 cup Dressing.

For a printable version of this recipe click here.

Top image of Mexicali Chop courtesy of kathrynlovett.com

Image of Ann Gentry courtesy of VegNews.com

Bottom image of Mexicali Chop courtesy of VegetarianTimes.com

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Filed under Beans/Legumes, Gluten Free, Main Dish, Recipes, Salad, Salad Dressing, Vegan, Vegetables, Vegetarian