Tag Archives: yams

Yamvocado Guac

by Kirstie

Hola Amigos! I guess we can call today Mexican Monday because I’m bringing you some tasty, healthy guac! This recipe was adapted from the beautiful twins, Lori and Michelle, over at pure2raw. I can’t take all the credit for this one ;) You can see their version here. This is super easy and not to mention fast to make and great if you’re having people over! … Or if you  just want to snack on it by yourself, like me.. I like to eat mine with the Lundberg brown rice cakes that I talked about in my Woopsy Wednesday post.

What I really love about this guac recipe is all the nutrients you get from the avocado and yams! Avocados are jam packed with carotenoids such as lutein, which works as an antioxidant and helps to protect against eye disease. Because avocados are high in fibre they also make you feel full – half an avocado contains about 3.4g of fibre! Oleic acid, a fat that activates the part of the brain that makes you feel full is also found in avocados, producing a greater feeling of satiety. Along with helping you to keep full, oleic acid also helps to lower cholesterol in the body. Eating avocados are going to help keep your heart healthy as well because they contain folate which is associated with a lower risk of heart attacks and heart disease. Along with all these benefits avocados are also beautifying! They help to keep your skin and hair healthy and who doesn’t want that? :) Last week I talked about the benefits of yams in my Black Rice Yam Bowl post. If you want to take a peek and read about yams, simply click here. Now let’s get our guac on!

Ingredients (minus garlic & cilantro - oops!)

What You Need In The Kitch:

  • 1 small yam
  • 1 medium avocado
  • 1/4 red onion or less depending on your liking
  • 2 shallots
  • 2 cloves garlic
  • handful chopped cilantro
  • sea salt

Remember to peel off the sticker!

I first took the yam and cut it up into cubes – almost forgot to peel off the sticker! I let them steam in a pot for about 10 minutes or until they were soft. While I waited for the yams to steam I cut up the rest of my ingredients – avocado, red onion, shallots and garlic. This is what I call using my time wisely, which I need to start practicing more of! So once the yams were all softened up I threw them into a bowl and mashed em up with my strong arm! Once those were mashed I added the cut up avocado and continued mashing until the two were all mashed up together in a nice yamvocado mix. Add your remaining ingredients – red onion, garlic and shallots and mix until everything is well combined. Season with salt to your taste and we are all done! Don’t forget to top with cilantro! (I forgot to buy some at the store)

Yamvocado Guac

It looks like mushy baby food but trust me it is overflowing with amazing flavour and kick! That’s it for today friends, look out tomorrow for some treats I’ll be posting :)

Oh ya, and today is Music Monday! Check out this video by Nutiva – “Hemp Can Save The World” I am LOVING it!!

Love From The Kitch,

Kirstie


Black Rice Yam Bowl & Music Monday

by Kirstie

Hey guys, happy Monday! Hope everyone has kicked their week into a positive direction despite this wind fit Mother Nature is throwing here in Vancouver. I want to start off by thanking everyone who has supported the opening of The Kitch on Twitter & Facebook. I’m doing this for all of you in hopes that you will be able to take away from my posts and spread the love! So again, thank you all so much. This blog would be nada without all of you.

Today I am bringing you a flavourful black rice yam bowl that is perfect for lunch or even dinner! Okay, I won’t lie.. Sometimes I even eat this for breaky if I have some left over in the fridge and don’t feel like making anything in the morning. It’s so quick and easy to warm up!

Ingredients You Will Need In The Kitch:

  • 1 medium sized yam
  • Organic Forbidden Black Rice – found in the bulk section at Whole Foods and Planet Organic
  • Kale
  • Spinach
  • 2-4 garlic cloves
  • Half a yellow onion or red onion

Cubed Garnet Yam

I chopped up a garnet yam for this one. Did you know there are over 200 kinds of yams!? I definitely didn’t. The other day I tried Japanese Yams (recommended by my best friend on our Whole Foods shopping trip together) for the first time and they were delicious, look for a separate post on that as well! For all the vegetarians out there who are concerned about their protein intake, look to the yummy yam! Yams are a wonderful source of protein. Not only are they your pal when it comes to protein they are also high in vitamins A & C! And if that isn’t enough for you, yams are also a great source of thiamine. Thiamine (Vitamin B1) helps to maintain a normal metabolism and burn carbs! Who doesn’t wanna burn those carbs, right? I could go on and on about the positives of yams and if you are interested in learning more about the benefits of this tasty root veggie check out WHFoods.

Hope you enjoyed that quick little info sesh! Let’s get back to the recipe though. SO! I chopped up the yam and threw them in a pot with a little bit of water to steam on medium-low heat for about 5 mins or until soft. NOTE: I did not peel the yam because I wanted to treat my body to all the wonderful nutrients possible! I also steamed some spinach and kale. Kale is a HUGE favourite here in The Kitch and yes it will have its very own “Friday Feature” post in the future. On another element I had a pan of garlic and yellow onions sautéing in coconut oil – yum! I also sprinkled sea salt, pepper, and some dried herbs on the garlic and onions for extra flavour and kick!  I premade the rice which takes about 15 minutes or so to cook. Just boil 2 cups of water and then add in 1 cup of rice, lower heat to simmer. Wait until all water is absorbed and voila!

"Forbidden" Black Rice

Top the rice with your steamed veggies and sautéed garlic and onions and you are ready to go my friend! Sometimes I even top this delicious bowl with cilantro but I unfortunately didn’t have any on hand. Is anyone else in love with the smell of cilantro by the way? Or is it just me?

The yummy bowl goodness!

I hope this bowl left you smiling and inspired to make your own! There’s a lot to look forward to in The Kitch this week. Make sure you “like” my page on Facebook for quick updates!

We must not forget today’s Quote In The Kitch! From our good friend Gandhi,
“It is health that is real wealth and not pieces of gold and silver.”

It’s also Music Monday here in The Kitch, I love to bump tunes while I cook so here’s a special track for you that just got dropped earlier today by some of my fave Vancity artists. @SpotAndEss & @TheRealEmmalyn.

Love From The Kitch,

Kirstie


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