'In The Pink' Vegetable Juice

I’ve recently been watching a 9-part educational series called ‘The Truth About Cancer’, which has been my inspiration for today’s super juice recipe. Ty Bollinger’s self-learning programme offers hope for anyone diagnosed with cancer and for the people who love and care for them. It’s currently estimated that half the world’s population will be diagnosed with cancer at some time in their life and the truth is, there are many powerful, natural cancer preventions that we’re not being told about.

It’s by no means the full story, but it comes as no surprise to me that one of the most powerful and simplest ways to avoid cancer, or beat it if you have it, is through super nutrition and diet.

Hippocrates said “Let food be thy medicine and medicine be thy food.” The trouble is, the food industry pays no attention to health, and the health industry pays no attention to food.

The convenience foods most people are sold on and the allopathic medicines we’re routinely prescribed are chock-a-block with unnatural, man-made chemicals that are alien to the body. Namely; herbicides, pesticides, antibiotics, growth hormones, preservatives, refined sugar, glutamates, artificial colours, flavour enhancers as well as chemically-engineered crops and genetically modified, hydrogenated seed and vegetable oils. No wonder we get sick.

If you want to stay healthy and protect yourself against disease and premature ageing, your best strategy is to take control of what goes into your body. Let the recipes on this site be your inspiration. Eat real, organically-grown food and stop eating sugar and sugar-forming foods (high carbohydrate food and too much meat). We all have cancer cells in our body all of the time, which are normally kept under control by our immune system. However, when you’re getting too much sugar, insulin levels in the body rise and over time, your body cells’ insulin receptors burn-out and you end up with high blood sugar. High blood sugar is the precursor to Type 2 diabetes, cancer and other scary diseases. Eating too much sugar not only feeds cancer, it causes cancer cells to replicate and curbs the immune system that would otherwise attack and destroy abnormal cells.

Switching your body’s energy supply from sugar to fat makes sense because cancer cells cannot use fat for fuel.

Healthy fats, e.g. organic grass-fed butter and ghee, cold-pressed coconut oil, extra virgin olive oil, wild salmon fish oil, avocado, walnut and macadamia oils are in fact vital to health and well-being.

Once you’ve eliminated the crap from your diet, it’s time to overdose on nature’s disease-fighting foods to build, or re-build, a healthy immune system. Eating a rainbow of raw, fresh, organic fruit and vegetables will kick-start the process. The way to get the maximum possible amount of vitamins, minerals, enzymes and amazing phytochemicals into your body is by juicing (I use the Angel cold-press juicer) and for soups and smoothies, a high power blender (I use a Vitamix machine). These machines are expensive but for good-value nutrition, they’re worth every penny.

Earthy yet sweet-tasting, this vibrant looking ‘In The Pink’ Vegetable Juice packs a powerful punch of cancer-fighting nutrients like vitamins C, A and E, beta-carotene, folic acid and potassium that will boost energy levels and help safeguard you from cancer and other diseases. It’s truly a way to drink yourself better and to stay young.

‘In The Pink’ Vegetable Juice - makes 2 servings

Ingredients

4 organic carrots - unpeeled

1 organic beetroot (with leaves if possible) - unpeeled

2 sticks organic celery (with leaves if possible) 

1 organic yellow pepper - including stem and seeds

1 organic red pepper - including stem and seeds 

I thick wedge of organic green cabbage

1 organic cooking apple - unpeeled and uncored 

Instructions

Roughly slice all the vegetables into largish pieces that will fit the feeder tube of your juicer, then juice away as per your machine manufacturer’s instructions. N.B. We find alternating between soft and hard veggies and fruits makes the juicing process easier. 

Pour into 2 tall glasses and drink immediately to retain all the life-enhancing vitamins, minerals and phytochemical goodness (the washing-up can wait!)

Notes

In most cases, when you’re preparing organic fruits and vegetables there’s no need to peel, trim or core before juicing. Just a quick wash or wipe over and you’re ready to go. 

For several years I stopped using my Angel juicer and making multiple-fruit smoothies in my Vitamix. The reason? I suffered an acute inflammatory response to the massive hit of fruit sugar in my daily smoothie, which developed into a painful, itchy, debilitating skin-rash. This only went away when I started eating a low-carb, Primal diet, which is how I came to start writing Primal Plate’s blog. In retrospect, there was no need for me to throw the baby out with the bath water! Learning from my mistake, I now make predominantly vegetable-based juices because too much fruit = too much fructose (fruit sugar) = insulin resistance = disease! 

Carbohydrate 24g Protein 4g - per serving

Courgette Linguine With Cashew Pesto and Marinated Mushroom and Broccoli

Although at Primal Plate we’re more than happy to occasionally have our grain-free, refined sugar-free cake and to eat it too, there comes a time (usually after a second slice of said cake) that I begin to pull back from borderline over-indulgence to something altogether more healthy and savoury. 

Sugar is sugar, and although raw honey, coconut palm sugar and pure maple syrup are much healthier options than refined sugar, they are still sugar. Even fructose, the natural sugar found in fruit, is unhealthy when eaten to excess. I know that because I used to make myself what I thought was a healthy multiple-fruit smoothie, which oftentimes boasted more than my ‘five-a-day’ in just one potent glass full. During this time I developed an inflammatory skin condition, which my doctor initially diagnosed as shingles. In fact it was a severe case of atopic eczema, which became infected. Within two weeks of switching to a low-carb Primal diet, which meant I stopped drinking excessive amounts of fructose in my breakfast smoothie, the rash disappeared for good.

The occasional sweet treat probably doesn't do much harm, but eating too much sugar (this applies to virtually everyone who eats a processed, high-carb Western diet and doesn’t do significant amounts of exercise) can have harmful effects on metabolism and is pro-inflammatory. Inflammation can lead directly to the development of all sorts of diseases throughout the body including diabetes, cardiovascular disease and cancer and undoubtedly it was sugar-linked inflammation that caused my erstwhile eczema. 

So, after developing and testing last week’s recipe for Tiger Nut Victoria Sandwich, which involved baking and eating two cakes within three days, I came across a recipe in Paul Gayler’s book Pure Vegetarian that is the perfect antidote to sugar overdose. 

My adaptation of Courgette Linguine With Cashew Pesto and Marinated Mushroom and Broccoli is a refreshing, vegan plateful of gorgeous colour and outstanding texture. Classic, Asian-style flavours come together in perfect harmony for one of the healthiest, zingiest, freshest-tasting meals ever! With virtually no cooking involved, it is also surprisingly simple to make. 

Try this almost raw ‘detox’ recipe if you don’t cook / won’t cook, if you need an instant energy boost or if you simply want to make amends for some recent foodie indiscretion. Good to look at, good to eat and oh so good for you, it really is health food at its best. 

Courgette Linguine With Cashew Pesto and Marinated Mushroom and Broccoli (V) (Serves 4)

Ingredients - for the cashew pesto

50g raw organic cashews

1 red chilli, deseeded and finely chopped

2cm piece of root ginger, peeled and grated

100ml extra-virgin olive oil

25g fresh coriander

15g fresh mint leaves

15g fresh basil leaves

Juice of 1 lime

Sea salt

Instructions

Place the cashews in a blender and blitz until broken down. 

Add the ginger, chilli, oil and herbs and blend until pureed.

Add lime juice, then season with sea salt to taste (I used ½ teaspoon) and briefly whizz again to incorporate.

Cover and set aside.

Ingredients - for the marinated vegetables

200g organic chestnut mushrooms, cleaned (I just wipe them over with a damp paper towel)

100ml organic extra-virgin olive oil

1 tablespoon tamari (wheat-free soy sauce)

1 organic spring onion, very finely chopped

2cm piece of root ginger, peeled and grated

100g organic broccoli, cut into small florets (without stalk)

50ml fresh lime juice (approx. 1 large or 2 small limes)

4 crispy and firm organic courgettes

Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Instructions

Slice the mushrooms very thinly, place in a large bowl and add the oil, soy sauce, onion and ginger. Allow to marinate for 30 minutes (no longer than this or they create too much juice)

Meanwhile, steam the broccoli for about 2 to 3 minutes until it turns bright green but is still crunchy in texture. Quickly remove and add to the mushrooms along with the lime juice and season to taste.

Cut the ends off the courgettes, then using a kitchen mandolin, spiralizer, vegetable peeler or sharp knife, slice as thinly as possible lengthways into long strips or ‘linguine’. 

Toss with the mushrooms and broccoli, adjust the seasoning and serve with a dollop of cashew pesto on top. 

Carbohydrate 13g Protein 8g - per serving

A Spirilizer makes perfectly thin and even courgette 'linguine'

Tiger Nut Horchata

In the heat of summer our thoughts are often wont to turn to ice cream. However, with my new found friend the tiger nut, otherwise known as chufa (pronounced Choo-fah), I’ve discovered a serious contender when making my first batch of ice-cold Tiger Nut Horchata. There can simply be nothing more refreshing, or good for you, than downing a glass of this Spanish-style refreshment on a hot day.

Tiger Nut Horchata a.k.a. tiger nut milk is a delicious creamy, milk-like drink that can be best described as ‘liquid gold’ for the health conscious. Tasting so good and loaded with resistant starch, raw tiger nut milk (and whole organic tiger nuts eaten as a snack) are a veritable powerhouse of nutrients (see my last two blog posts for more information). Suffice to say, tiger nuts are an original Paleo superfood with a ratio of carbohydrates, fats and protein so similar to human breast milk it almost beggars belief. Tiger nuts are, after all, just a brown, wrinkly vegetable tuber!

In spite of its name, tiger nut milk is both nut and dairy free, which is an absolute boon for people who are lactose intolerant or who suffer from a nut allergy. It’s also gluten-free so coeliacs needn’t go without either. You can use Tiger Nut Horchata as a milk replacement in tea, coffee, poured over our Nut & Seed Granola for breakfast, and pretty much for everything that calls for normal milk. Naturally sweet, tiger nut milk is non-allergic, safe for diabetics and, since tiger nuts do not contain inflammatory omega-6 fats, Tiger Nut Horchata makes for a much healthier alternative to dairy milk or other nut milks.

Most recipes I’ve found for Tiger Nut Horchata (Horchata de Chufa) are full of refined sugar (up to 200g of sugar per 250g of tiger nuts) but because tiger nuts are intrinsically sweet-tasting, I think it’s debatable whether tiger nut milk actually needs any added sugar at all. In the end I decided to stay true to Spanish tradition (I confess my tiger nut milk did taste a little ‘thin’ without) but I have so moderated the amount and type of sweetener in my Tiger Nut Horchata, it still faithfully follows Primal and Paleo dietary guidelines. My sweeteners of choice in this unique recipe are small amounts of raw organic honey and liquid stevia, which both make the grade (to see why, please read The Definitive Guide To Sugar on Mark’s Daily Apple). The end result is a slightly thickened, rich, creamy, sweet (but not too sweet), seriously satisfying vegetable milk that’s fit for the gods.

Using heathy sweeteners rather than refined sugar, I can well imagine Tiger Nut Horchata justifiably becoming the world’s next healthy-drink ‘craze’. And, with that thought, I drink to your good health. Salud!

Tiger Nut Horchata (makes 1000ml / 1 litre)

Ingredients

250g organic tiger nuts, covered with cold water by 5cm (2”) and left to soak overnight at room temperature

1000ml (1 litre) fresh, filtered water

40ml raw organic liquid honey (I used mild-tasting Raw Health organic acacia flower honey)

2 drops liquid stevia (*see note below for Vegan Tiger Nut Horchata) 

Organic ground cinnamon

Fresh ice cubes

Whole cinnamon stick(s), if liked

Instructions

Take your Nut Milk Bag and set it over a deep bowl. 

Drain the tiger nuts, rinse them well under cold water then drain again and tip into the blender container. Add the filtered water, the honey and 2 drops of liquid stevia, then secure the lid and blend on high speed until completely homogenised and smooth - this will take about 3-4 minutes (depending on your blender). After blending, if the mixture seems a little too hot to handle, allow it to cool down before proceeding to the next step.

Carefully pour the blended tiger nut mixture into the nut milk bag, tighten the tie at the top of the bag to hold everything inside, then using your hands firmly squeeze out all the liquid until you’re left with only dry tiger nut pulp.

Cover the bowl containing the tiger nut milk and cool completely, then transfer to a glass bottle or lidded container and store in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. 

To serve, third-fill a glass with ice (small ice cubes are best), shake or stir your chilled horchata well then pour over the ice and sprinkle a large pinch of organic ground cinnamon on top (**see note below) 

For a final flourish, add a whole cinnamon stick to each glass and use as a swizzle stick to distribute the cinnamon flavour throughout your drink.  

Notes

You’ll need a powerful blender and a strong Nut Milk Bag to ensure this simple Tiger Nut Horchata recipe is a breeze for you to make on a regular basis. You can use 2 or 3 layers of wet cheesecloth or cotton muslin to strain your tiger nut milk through but the Nut Milk Bag sold by Love Tree Products is strong, re-usable and easy to clean. it also produces a silky-smooth milk with no bits in it. I personally wouldn't want the mess, the faff or the unpredictability of making a DIY version!

*To make Tiger Nut Horchata vegan, simply leave out the raw honey and double the drops of liquid stevia (to 4) for the same level of sweetness.

It’s recommended you don’t discard the tiger nut pulp, instead dry it out in an oven and use as a substitute for desiccated coconut. Alternatively, convert into nutritious Tiger Nut Energy Balls

** I actually prefer to put my refrigerated horchata into a blender with half dozen ice cubes and whizz together for about 10 seconds to break up the ice for a super-cold drink that doesn’t smack you around the mouth with ice cubes every time you take a sip (it was Sarah that insisted I put a single ice cube in the glass for the photographs!) You can also put the horchata into the freezer for about an hour to turn it into a ‘slushy’. Which suggests to me that I should be creating a tiger-nut-milk-based recipe for ice cream, sooner rather than later!

To calculate the carbohydrate content of this recipe I’ve referenced whole tiger nuts, not tiger nut milk. Although carb grams per serving looks relatively high, there is a significant amount of tiger nut sediment that’s discarded after squeezing out the milk. Also, some of the carbohydrate content in raw tiger nuts is in the form of a unique fibre known as resistant starch, which cannot be absorbed by the body in the process of digestion. This means it passes through your system without deleterious effects on blood sugar or insulin levels. Similarly, you don’t obtain significant calories from resistant starch either.

However, resistant starch is a highly beneficial pre-biotic that feeds the friendly bacteria in your gut, which in turn provides numerous health benefits that can ultimately assist in weight loss. Your healthy gut flora actually need this ‘food’ to survive and thrive, Thus, Tiger Nut Horchata is recommended for even the most carb sensitive individual. Even if you are trying to lose weight, it’s more important to focus on eating real, nutritious food than to worry unduly about counting grams of carbohydrate or calories. The message is: ditch all grains, legumes, refined sugar and unhealthy processed seed oils and fats, and your carbohydrate and calorie intake will happily take care of itself!

Caution: Tiger nuts and tiger nut flour have very high amounts of resistant starch which, if you’re not used to, can cause discomfort and bloating when eaten in large amounts. It is therefore advised that you slowly introduce resistant starch into your diet (less than a teaspoon per day) and gradually increase your tolerance to your particular comfort level, which will hopefully be about 15-30 grams a day. 

Carbohydrate 55g Protein 5g - per 250ml serving of Tiger Nut Horchata (without ice)

Pea & Pistachio Soufflés, Asparagus and Hollandaise Sauce

If you watched the BBC2 documentary Eat To Live Forever on 18th March 2015, with food critic Giles Coren setting out to test three allegedly extreme anti-ageing diet regimes, including the Paleo diet and the less restrictive Primal diet (as endorsed by Primal Plate), you might have been persuaded that devotees of the Primal Blueprint are basically people that are peculiarly afflicted - in the sense that, if they’re not monkeying around and wielding the equivalent of a club in Stone Age style in order to keep themselves fit, they’re gorging themselves silly on heart-attack-inducing animal fat and meat.

Nah! Not true! It seems to me that this is history repeating itself and misinformation, promulgated by vested interests, is damaging to public health! Hence we’re still in the grip of a high-carb, low-fat, calorie counting, portion-controlling, obesity and diabetes crisis! They’ll always find a way to discredit, undermine or silence pioneering thinkers. In 1972, in a book entitled Pure, White and Deadly, Professor John Yudkin tried to warn us about the dangers of sugar and it cost him his career. Distorted information (actually, downright lies!) wilfully fed to the public, causes confusion and so brought the Atkins Diet into disrepute. As for the high carb, low fat, cholesterol scare-mongering advice that’s ravaged the nation’s health for the past fifty years and…well basically, I’d advise you not to blindly believe anything you’re told.

Since it only takes 28 days to seriously test out the low-carbohydrate, higher-fat lifestyle for yourself and discover what’s true, it could be the most worthwhile investment in your health, and the health of your family, that you’ll ever make. You’re not alone, in 2013, Sweden was the first Western nation to reject low-fat dietary dogma in favour of low carb, high fat nutrition.

Most people have been conditioned into thinking dietary fat, especially saturated fat (did you know that olive oil has 9 times the saturated fat of pork?), is unhealthy. Not so. Natural, health-giving fats and oils (I do so love butter), should not be feared or avoided because they are nutritionally essential. And, when you diss the grains and refined sugar you do not even have to think about calories, much less count them! Remind yourself, it is sugar in all its forms that gets stored as fat in your fat cells, not actually the fats that you eat!

However, there is a killer fat on the loose in today’s society called trans fat, also known as hydrogenated or partially hydrogenated vegetable oil. The raison d’être of an allegedly desirable “heart healthy” low-fat spread promoted by the British Heart Foundation (in collusion with Unilever!), you might think from what you’ve been told that it’s good for you because it helps to lower your cholesterol (it does, but not in a good way). Trans fats are a cheap, crap, man-made substitute for natural cold-pressed oils and hand-churned butter and are really injurious to health. They’re everywhere… in commercially baked foods (biscuits, cakes, breads) convenience foods (ready-meals, breaded fish, french fries) food from many fast food restaurants (that use hydrogenated vegetable oils for frying) and ironically, those supposedly ‘good for your heart’ spreads and margarine. 

Trans fats accumulate in the body, can’t be metabolised and are implicated in many serious health problems including heart disease, cancer, diabetes and asthma. I urge you to read and digest this article then check all the labels of the foods you’ve already purchased for the ingredient ‘partially hydrogenated vegetable oil’. If it’s listed, you know what to do!

So beautiful butter it is then, which brings us to today’s Easter celebration lunch for vegetarians and Primal people not in the mood for meat, because there’s no better or more natural time of year to enjoy a savoury dish based around eggs. Pea & Pistachio Soufflés, Asparagus and Hollandaise Sauce has both the green colour and zingy freshness of lemon that I associate with springtime, so rather than eating any feather, fur or scale related friends (which always makes me feel a bit cheerless) this elegant, low-carb main course will be the one to grace our table next weekend. A compassionate extension, if you will, to Meat-Free Week, which seems to me to be far more appealing and relevant for a festival celebrating fertility, birth and new life. 

Pea & Pistachio Soufflés with Hollandaise Sauce is ideal when English asparagus is in season (only for two months in May and June) but since the flavour of asparagus is so harmoniously aligned with these delicate soufflés and lemony hollandaise sauce, I make no apologies for using good-looking foreign-grown asparagus, when English isn’t available. Just make sure the spears are crisp, not discoloured and decent sized - you don’t want the fine variety of asparagus called sprue for this dish. Other spring-like vegetables that work well with Pea & Pistachio Soufflés and Hollandaise Sauce are tender stem broccoli, baby or Chantenay carrots and cauliflower. Try as I might to persuade Sarah that it might just be okay to eat them as a one-off treat, she simply won’t let me wander into Jersey potato territory!

I hope you will enjoy Easter and the transition to spring as much as we do. I think this is a very pretty and fresh-looking meal that wakes up the tastebuds and is a delicious introduction to the flavours of the new season approaching. Happy days!   

Pea & Pistachio Soufflés, Asparagus and Hollandaise Sauce (V) (Serves 4) 

Ingredients - for pea & pistachio soufflés 

Butter, for greasing

2 tbsp olive oil

450g (1lb) leeks, trimmed, washed and finely chopped

225g (8oz) frozen peas 

60ml (2fl oz) water

120g (4 oz) unsalted, shelled pistachio nuts

Large handful of fresh dill, stalks removed, finely chopped

4 organic eggs

4 tbsp crème fraîche

Fresh dill and lemon slices, to serve

Ingredients - for the asparagus and hollandaise sauce

450g (1lb) asparagus

150g (5oz) butter

1 tsp Dijon mustard

2 tbsp lemon juice

2 organic egg yolks

Celtic sea salt

Instructions - for pea and pistachio soufflés

Pre-set the oven to 190 ℃ / 375 ℉ / Gas mark 5. Grease 4 x 250ml (8oz) ramekin dishes and line the bottom of each with a circle of non-stick baking parchment. Boil a kettle of water.

Heat the olive oil in a large pan on a medium heat. Add the finely chopped leeks, cover with a circle of greaseproof paper (cut to the diameter of your land) and cook with the lid on for 5 minutes.

Remove the lid and paper and stir in the frozen peas. Add the water and cook with the pan lid on for a further 5 minutes. Remove from the heat.

Finely chop the pistachio nuts in a food processor, add the cooked leek and pea mixture and blend until smooth. Add the chopped dill, eggs, crème fraîche and seasoning. Blend together thoroughly, taste and add more seasoning if necessary.

Pour the mixture into the ramekin dishes, filling to the top. Place in a roasting tin and pour boiling water (from the kettle) around the ramekins until it reaches half way up the sides, then carefully place in the oven and cook for 35 minutes until slightly risen and set.

Take out of the ‘bain marie’ (water bath) and leave to stand for 2 to 3 minutes. With a small sharp knife, loosen the edges of each soufflé and turn straight onto a warm plate. Garnish with dill and lemon and serve immediately with the Asparagus and Hollandaise Sauce together with a further selection of lightly cooked vegetables.  

Instructions - for asparagus and hollandaise sauce

Boil a kettle of water.

To make the hollandaise sauce: heat the lemon juice in a small saucepan to just below boiling point.  

Put the egg yolks, mustard, sea salt, cayenne pepper and hot lemon juice into a food processor or blender and whizz together until it’s pale and smooth.

Meanwhile, gently melt the butter in a small saucepan over a moderate heat and when it is very hot and foaming transfer to a heat-proof jug.

Switch the blender / food processor back on and with the machine continually running, slowly pour the melted butter in a steady trickle through the feed tube of the food processor - do this very gradually until all the butter has been added and the sauce is thickened, glossy and pale yellow in colour. Check the seasoning and adjust if necessary. Allow the mixture to stand for a minute or two before serving with the asparagus. (see note below) 

To cook the asparagus: snap the tough ends off the stalks of asparagus, then using a potato peeler trim the bottom of the stalks further if necessary. Wash well.

Pour the boiling water from the kettle into the bottom half of a steamer, then steam the asparagus with the pan lid on for about 5-6 minutes, or until it is just tender.

Serve immediately

Notes: 

It can be difficult to keep Hollandaise Sauce hot without it splitting or becoming overly thickened. Ideally, it should be made quickly at the last minute, which isn’t an easy task if you’re entertaining. The simplest solution is to pre-heat a wide-necked Thermos flask with boiling water, then seal it and set aside whilst you make your sauce. When the hollandaise is ready, quickly pour the water away and transfer the sauce directly from the food processor to the flask. Seal and serve within 20 minutes.

Unfortunately, I didn’t use the Thermos flask trick on this occasion and, as a result, the Hollandaise Sauce shown in the photograph above is a little too thin. This is because it wasn’t allowed to stand for a couple of minutes before serving. It seems to go with the territory of food blogging -  there’s always an anxious 10 minutes for Sarah and I whilst we rush to get the food on the plate, photograph it and get it back to the table before someone’s dinner has gone cold!

Carbohydrate 16g Protein 19g - per soufflé

Carbohydrate 1g Protein 2g - per serving of hollandaise sauce

Carbohydrate 4g Protein 2g - per 100g serving of steamed asparagus