This post comes to us from Kiara of TobruckAve and nutritionistMikaela Reuben:
Kiara of TobruckAveand Mikaela Rubeun, back at it sharing a healthy nutritious way to pack your picnic basket! Keeping it healthy is part of the summer game and it starts with snacking right even while chilling on a beach or lakeside. So we worked through our daily cravings — salty, crunchy and sweet — to create the perfect mix to satisfy your body with hydration and crucial vitamins that the sun can actually depletewhile outside all day. It is officially time to replenish with a healthy selection of colorful food that is easy to make, pack and consume. Enjoy!
Green Juice
Ingredients:
Makes: 1.5 liters
3 ½ english cucumbers
3 lemons – peeled
12 celery stalks
3 handfuls baby spinach
1 ½ inches ginger
Directions:
Rinse all the produce.
Cut the lemon peel off the lemon, and roughly cut all the produce into smaller pieces for the juicer.
Feed the juicer all the ingredients and voila!
Store in sealed jar or container and consume within three days, at the longest. For optimal nutrition benefits consume within three hours.
Our preferred fresh green juice has no sweet fruits in it. We did this intentionally so that we will get the enzymes from the juice without drinking any of the extra sugars. Because it is a summer picnic and we plan on spending the day in the great outdoors, hydration is key. Our green juice is specifically formulated to hydrate your body while also taking in our daily nutrients all in one. Cucumber juice is known to be extra hydrating and the lemons add necessary vitamin C. Sometimes the sun can deplete our levels of vitamin C, so it is extra important to make sure that we are getting lots while we are lounging around outside.
Edamame Hummus
Ingredients:
Makes 1 cup hummus
1 ½ cups frozen shelled edamame
1 tsp pressed fresh garlic
1 ½ tbsp chopped cilantro
2 tbsp fresh lemon juice
2 tbsp water
1 tsp apple cider vinegar
1 tbsp nutritional yeast
2 tbsp tahini
1 tbsp olive oil
½ tsp sea salt
1 tbsp tamari
Directions:
Bring 4 cups of water to a boiland add in the frozen edamame. Boilfor 5 minutes, check if cooked and if so, strain and run under cold water for 30 seconds.
Add edamame to a food processor or high-speed blenderand add garlic, cilantro, lemon juice, water, apple cider vinegar, and yeast. Mix for 30 seconds or until paste begins to form.
Add tahini, oil, sea salt and tamari and mix until desired consistency.
Use a small spatula to gather all the hummus from the processorand store in an airtight container or glass jar in the fridge.
Why did we switch to edamame from chickpeas for this hummus? Well, the answer is in the protein. Edamame is packed with it and we chose this recipe to keep our snacks full of protein and fiber so that we are able to keep our blood sugar stable while eating and snacking throughout the day. We’re serving the delicious dip with an array of chopped fresh vegetables to satisfy that need for something crunchy and forthe phytonutrients and added fiber, which keeps blood sugar stableandhelps with hunger and weight control.
Roasted Tamari Almonds
Ingredients:
Makes 1 cup almonds
1 cup raw almonds
1/8 cup gluten free tamari
1 ½ tbsp grade B maple syrup
¼ tsp chili powder
Directions:
Preheat oven to 300°F and position the rack in the middle.
Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and spread the nuts evenly over the parchment.Bake for 15 minutes then remove from oven.
Mix tamari, maple syrup, and chili powder together in a heat proof bowl.
Toss hot almonds with tamari mixture and allow them to sit for 5 minutes.
Spread the coated almondsonto the parchment paper and bake for another 15 minutes, stirring every5 minutes.
Allow to cool completely, then store in a jar. They will be a bit sticky but delicious!
We created this snack because, naturally, we crave something crunchy throughout the day. Especially while lounging under the sun and breathing that fresh air, its in our DNA to crunch on something tasty! Our picnic goal is to not fall back on chips covered in chemical flavoring. So to solve this crunchy issue, we toasted our own organic almonds in gluten free tamari, maple syrup, and chili powder! This turned out to be the perfectly satisfying treat, high in fiber, monosaturated fat, and vitamin E.These almonds are the perfect substitute for the usual chips in a picnic basket. Crunchy, salty and also providing all the benefits of digging into some tasty almonds.
Soba Noodle Salad
Ingredients:
Makes 4 small servings or 2 large
8 oz box organic soba noodles
4 tbsp dried wakame
8 + 1 cups water
3 tbsp toasted sesame oil
¼ cup miso paste
1 tbsp honey
1 tbsp gluten free tamari
2 tbsp mirin
2 tbsp apple cider vinegar
1 tbsp finely grated ginger – 2 inches peeled
1/3 cup finely chopped red onion
1 cup finely chopped red pepper
2 cups finely chopped purple cabbage
2 tbsp chopped cilantro
½ tsp pepper
Cilantro to garnish
½ lime or lemon
1 ripe avocado
Directions:
Bring 8 cups water to a boil, add soba noodles and boil for 8 minutes. Check if cooked through and when done strain and run under cold water.
Soak dried wakame in 1 cup water in a separate container for at least 5 minutes (but can leave up to 30), then squeeze all water from the seaweed.
In a large bowl, mix toasted sesame oil, miso paste, honey, tamari, mirin, apple cider vinegar, and ginger.Whisk with a fork until dressing is created.
Add wakame, red onion, red pepper, purple cabbage, chopped cilantro, and pepper then mix well.
Toss noodles into this mixture and gently combine with noodles until they are coated in the sauce and vegetables are evenly distributed.
To serve, top with more cilantro, a wedge of lemon or lime and serve with a ¼ chopped avocado if creating 4 servings, or a ½ chopped avocado per dish if creating 2 servings.
For this dish, we chose a gluten free noodle that tastes amazing cold. We created a miso sesame dressing that is tossed with the noodles after they are cooked. By not heating the oil we were able to maintain the integrity of the sesame oil, which has lots of benefits for skin and hair. Veggies include purple cabbage for extra nutrients and crunch and topped with a healthy favorite, the avocado for extra healthy fats and energy.
Watermelon Skewers
Ingredients:
Makes as many as you like!
Watermelon
Strawberries
Directions:
Wash the strawberries and remove their stems with a knife.
Slice watermelon and chop watermelon into small bite sized cubes.
Cut strawberries into bite sized pieces or leave whole — whichever is preferred.
Feed onto skewers, alternating strawberry then watermelon, and store in a cool place until ready to serve.
These are great for adventuresome days outside. Quick digesting fruits are good as a pretreat before the main meal for that moment when you need a little boost of energy throughout the day, so you can play around the river’s edge or go for a little wander before picnic time.These are easy, colorful and also amazingly hydrating. Watermelon is always a go to for summer so using its tasty juices to rehydrate your body seems to be an all around win/win situation.
Get the look: Lucky Loosey Shapeless Dress
Get the look: South Pacific Romper
+ What are your favorite things to pack for a summer picnic?
More beautiful recipe posts from the BLDG 25 blog!
FollowKiara@tobruckave and Mikaela @mikaelareuben on Instagram!
Photography byRebecca Amber, and flowers by The Flower Collective!
