Simple Mango Smoothie

All week I've had this craving for mango. Luckily we were able to buy some frozen in bulk. Naturally the first thing I do is throw it in a smoothie. A delicious smoothie.

I honestly just would have thawed it and eaten it as is, but I thought blending it with another simple ingredient would be just as good. That ingredient is..... coconut milk! If you want a tropical feel to your smoothies I suggest adding coconut milk. And who doesn't want that in the middle of a cold, snowy winter?

Yes I had this whole thing to myself (boy was it good) but it was a whole meal for me :)

Simple Mango Smoothie (serves ~ 1 - 3)

4 cups of frozen mango chunks
1 cup light coconut milk
2 cups cold water (add more if it isn't blending smoothly)

Blend with a high speed blender, making sure everything is fully combined and serve immediately!

Winter Roasted Vegetables

I was going to a friend's Christmas dinner and was asked to bring a vegetable or starch. To this I answered BOTH! I really wanted to make a roasted potato wedge recipe, as well as something else. I realized I had never roasted broccoli before and decided today was the day to change that.

Garlic Roasted Potato Wedges (serves ~ 6 - 8)

4 - 6 white potatoes
3 - 4 tbsp olive oil
4 cloves garlic
1/2 tsp dried rosemary
1/2 tsp thyme
1 tsp paprika
1 tsp dried basil
1 tsp dried oregano
Salt and pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 425F. Cut the potatoes into wedges and place in a mixing bowl.

Add all listed ingredients and mix well until all slices are coated evenly.

Lay the wedges evenly on a foil lined cookie sheet.

Roast for 35 - 45 minutes or until just browned. Serve immediately!


The next recipe was surprisingly delicious and the flavours complimented each other quite well. This will not be the last time I roast broccoli!

Lemon Garlic Roasted Broccoli (serves ~ 8)

2 large heads of broccoli, chopped into bite sized pieces
5 tbsp olive oil
5 cloves garlic
3 tsp dried basil
2 tbsp lemon juice
2 tsp lemon zest
1/3 cup grated parmesan cheese
Salt and pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 425F. Combine broccoli, oil, basil and garlic in a bowl and toss. Lay on a cookie sheet (lined with parchment paper or foil). Roast for 20 - 25 minutes. After removing from oven sprinkle or toss in the lemon juice, zest and parmesan cheese. Serve immediately!

DIY Almond Butter

I've always wondered how easy it was to make your own almond butter. As I suspected, it was as easy as food processing a bunch of almonds! With a bit of smooshing of course...

We normally roast our almonds, so this wasn't technically raw, but you could definitely use raw almonds.

I used about 3 cups of almonds which yielded almost one full mason jar of butter.

I used the only blade we own which is an S-shaped blade. When you first begin processing it will be quite loud, however as the nuts are ground smaller it will reduce significantly. At first it will form almond meal, or almond flour. As the oils are released it will start to clump and form larger chunks.

Continue to use a spatula every few minutes along the sides to make sure everything is well combined.

Eventually (5 or 10 minutes later) it will become a smooth butter consistency. HOORAY! At this point you could add in spices like cinnamon, vanilla or cocoa powder and continue to blend for a few more minutes.

Pour into a glass jar and store in the fridge. Use in desserts, on toast or just with a simple banana for a great snack :) Almonds are less acidic than peanuts, which make them an interesting nut and more alkalizing for your body!