It wouldn’t be Food Focus week without a post of a couple of my favourite recipes would it!

I am one of those people who do enjoy a good salad but it always seems to taste better if someone else has made it. This salad though I am more than happy to make & eat myself. It has been adapted from the Gaia Retreat ‘Grace’ cookbook. I visited Gaia a few years back & was impressed with their healthful food I bought the book. The second recipe is also from the same book with a few modifications from myself. Who can’t beat a bliss ball or two? Enjoy!

Roast Sweet Potato & Rocket Salad with honey mustard vinaigrette

Prep time: 10 minutes
Cooking time: 25 minutes

Ingredients:

• 1 medium sized orange sweet potato
• Large bunch of rocket &/or mixed leaf salad
• 1 tblspn sesame seeds
• 1 tspn cinnamon powder
• 1 tspn paprika
• ½ tspn pink sea salt
• ¼ tspn fresh ground black pepper
• 2 d/spn organic coconut oil melted

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 180 degrees
2. Wash sweet potato & cut into bite sized wedges
3. Place sweet potato wedges in a baking tray & add cinnamon, paprika, salt, pepper, sprinkle over the sesame seeds & cover in melted coconut oil
4. Using you hands toss the wedges a few times to coat them in oil & spices, then place in the oven for about 25 minutes
5. Remove from oven, place wedges in a salad bowl. Let them cool for ten minutes then add the salad leaves. Toss through evenly.
6. Dress with the honey mustard vinaigrette or serve dressing on the side

I’ve added cubes of Organic Tofu lightly fried in coconut oil, cherry tomatoes & avocado for some extra flavour.

Honey Mustard Vinaigrette

Ingredients:

• 2 d/spn seeded mustard (Woolworths Organic is ideal)
• 1 d/spn honey
• 2 d/spn apple cider vinegar (Woolworths Organic is ideal)
• Pinch pink sea salt
• 2 d/spn macadamia nut oil or other cold pressed oil

Method:

Put all ingredients together in a jar & give it a good shake.

Bliss Balls

Ingredients:

• ¾ cup soaked dried dates (8 hours soaking)
• ½ cup soaked dried figs
• ½ cup desiccated coconut
• ½ almond meal (use the pulp left over from your almond milk)
• 1 cup coarsely chopped nuts – almonds, cashews, pecans of your choice
• 2 d/spn of cocoa

Optional: ¼ tspn ground cinnamon or dried ginger as its Christmas!

Method:

1. Place dried fruit in a bowl or Mason jar, cover with warm water & leave in the fridge overnight.
2. Blend all ingredients together in a food processor
3. Roll bite sized balls in desiccated coconut
4. Keep refrigerated

Click on image to enlarge
©Seren Holistic Lifestyles Blog 2013
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