Let's Roll {Sushi} & Raw Diet Talk

Sushi is one of my most favorite Asian food. In prior to becoming pregnant, I devoured sushi and sashimi at least twice a week but had to sadly say bye bye to raw fish when I was officially a pregnant lady. I thought I went through a drug withdrawal period. Funnily after 9 months of eating raw fish I didn't crave too much after all. Until recently it is kicking in. 
However I want to make my own and make it healthy. The very first time I had a hands on experience on making homemade sushi was almost 10 years ago. I still have the very same bamboo mat as a matter of fact. Lately I have been inspired by vegan, raw food diet on Instagram. 
All the colorful fruit and vegetables are such eye candy and it blows my mind how so many young girls these days can manage to lead such lifestyles (strictly consume fruit, veggies, nuts (completely meatless, dairy free, strict vegans). Being a vegan is not the direction I am going at the moment but I want to incorporate the concept of adding more uncooked vegetables to my diet at least a few meals per week. I was concerned that I might be hungry after 20 mins just eating veggies but surprisingly very fulfilling and clean tasting. I started last week and these homemade vegetarian sushi made with brown/red rice was fulfilling. 
 I started by cooking my rice. Once cooked and while still hot. Mix with some Rice Vinegar (go light on this and add more if needed, it has strong taste and flavor. Mix well and let it sit until rice cools off. 
Prep veggies of your choice. I opted not to cook mine, just eat them raw. I used red/purple cabbage, cucumber, avocado, zucchini and yellow squash (next time I will add omelet, nit vegetarian but it is nom..nom). 
Prepare a Nori seaweed. Spread some rice (thin) and leave space on the 4 edges. 
 Add vegetables. Be careful not to add too much or you won't be able to roll. Start rolling from one side, tightly (this take practice). If you are not a master sushi roller like me (yeah..whatever). 
 Roll all the way til the end and use some water to seal. Let it sit a few mins and use a sharp knife to cut. 
 Grab your chopsticks, prepare soy sauce and Wasabi. 
 EAT!!! Oishi desu ne!!!
 

Spelt and Oat (Flour) Pankcakes with Fruit

I am a huge breakfast kind of girl, without breakfast I am unable to function. My typical weekday breakfast items consists of mixed fruit and plain Greek yogurt. However, weekends are a little bit special since I have more time in the kitchen to whip something up. Pancakes are not really on top of my list but after seeing tons of healthy pancakes pictures on Instagram, I couldn't resist. The recipe I used is not vegan version but definitely is lighter and healthier. I adept from Bon Apetit recipe {here}.
Here is my take on this recipe: 1 cup Spelt Flour 1 cup Oat Flour (I didn't have oat flour but made one from regular oat, simply blend in a blender) 1 tablespoon Brown Sugar 1/2 teaspoon Baking Powder 1 cup Milk 2 Eggs (large) 2 tablespoons Olive Oil Some butter for frying
I actually like Spelt flour as the flavor is milder than whole wheat flour. I served mine with Natural Raw Texas Honey. Yummy!!

Floral Friday: Flower in Focus

Zinnia is one of my most favorite flowers in my backyard. It comes in a wide range of bright and stunning colors which can give any area a good pop of color. They are blooming beautifully right now under the hot summer sun, I only hope they will continue to thrive as the heat becomes more intense in July and August here in the state of Texas. I find Zinnia to be such unique and adorable. As you can see in the middle, it has this cute star shape pollen (I guess those are pollens).

Floral Friday is a monthly photography project with different themes each month initiated by Trishie at Under Lock and Key blog. This series is about fun and taking time out to smell the flowers.

Quick Dinner: Pizza is Good for You!

When I refer to "Homemade" Pizza, it doesn't mean the kind that you buy from frozen section at your local grocery store and pop it in an over at home and claim it to be homemade. We are talking about a real deal here (minus making a pie crust from scratch of course, I haven't gone that far yet.).

I made a post about my homemade pizza in the past but never got around to show you how easy it is to whip this thing up. It is great on the day of the week when you feel tired and want something quick but is still healthy. If it is not simple, I am not going to do it. Talking about working an 8-5 job yet still have to spend another hour or two in a kitchen in the evening, hell NO I say!

Pizza gets a bad rep for high sodium, high carb, high fat and zero fiber but you can make it way healthier than that. Ever since making my own at home, I have never had an urge to order from any pizza place ever again and it has been two years at least. We make it on an average of twice a month. Of course the hub resists he sticks with the pepperoni and cheese while I rotate my toppings with various veggies and meats.
We love this pizza crust. It is super thin and almost like flatbread/pita chip when baked. Plus very low in sodium. Too much sodium makes your body bloated which is not always a pleasant thing.

Don't restrict yourself to using "Pizza sauce" only. Any pasta sauce or tomatoes based sauce will do. I have been using this pasta sauce for as long as I could remember as my pizza sauce because it is low in sodium and it tastes great. Only 40mg for 1/4 cup versus most brands that has whooping 500+mg of sodium per 1/4 cup.

Add your green, red, yellow, purple. Add the rainbow colors of veggies as toppings. Some mushroom and meats if you like. I love baby kale / baby spinach and avocado combo.
Scoop some sauce and spread a thin (or thick if you want) layer on your pizza crust. I simply put my pizza crust on a cooking sheet.  No fancy pizza stone needed. Works like a charm!

Top with your veggies and meat

Don't forget your cheese. Remember we try to make this healthy so don't dump an entire bag although you may be tempted to.
I like to sprinkle mine with some herb. Use fresh or dried then lightly sprinkle with olive oil.
Ready? Set....Bake.... I set my oven temperature at 395F and bake between 12 - 15 mins depending how crisp I want the crust to be.

Dig in!!!