MERRY CHRISTMAS! OUR DELICIOUS CHRISTMAS EVE DINNER

First of all, Merry Christmas to all! from the depths of my heart I pray to God that you enjoy a thousand blessings this new year that is about to start, and I wish that you decide to take charge of your health and start introducing small changes that will ultimately improve and lengthen your life. Remember that every decision you make will have a big impact in the future. Set small goals that you can accomplish so you don’t get discouraged by trying to do too much at once. Add a green juice every morning, make green smoothies with fresh fruit, avoid products that come in cans/containers (processed) and prepare your dishes with real wholefoods in which you control the ingredients, stop artificial sweeteners and sugar, using Stevia instead, "move" every day either by doing yoga, dancing, jogging, pilates, jumping rope, climbing stairs, lifting weights…whatever inspires you, try not to eat animal protein in all your meals and substitute for veggies, beans, nuts, seeds and algae (chlorella, spirulina), drink more water, meditate, do what you really love and learn to say no.

We were alone this Christmas (most of our family lives in Venezuela), and my husband is a DJ (works every night of his life), so we decided to make an early, fully vegan dinner filled with super delicious recipes. All I can say is the meal exceeded our expectations (especially the beet ravioli!). I hope you also prepare it and enjoy at home.

Kale salad with Cranberries (Serves 2-3 people)

Ingredients

- Dinosaur Kale (as much as you want)
- 1 tbsp of dried cranberries (it's good not abuse them because they come mostly sweetened)
- 1 tbsp of dairy free yogurt alternative (I got almond plain yogurt)
- 1 tbsp pecans
- 1 tbsp cashew cream (recipe in beet ravioli)
- 1 tsp of the mixture where you marinated your beets
-1 tsp yellow mustard
- Salt to taste
- Pepper to taste

Preparation

1. Wash and cut the dinosaur kale.

2. Mix yogurt, cashew cream, mustard, oily mix from beet marinade, salt and pepper to create the dressing.

3. Mix the kale with the dressing to distribute well, add the cranberries and pecans (should be cut into small pieces).

Beet Ravioli (Serves 2-3 people)

Taken from the book Crazy Sexy Kitchen by Kris Carr

Cashew Cream Ingredients (tastes like heaven)

(The ravioli only uses one cup of this cream, but I'm going to put the ingredients for two cups because you're going to want leftovers believe me)

2 cups raw cashews soaked in water overnight

½ cup water

2 tablespoons plain lemon juice

1 tablespoon onion powder

½ teaspoon sea salt

Pepper to taste

1 ½ tablespoons chives cut into small pieces

1 ½ tablespoons minced red onion into small pieces

¼ cup fresh parsley cut small

Preparation

1. Strain the soaking cashews you left the night before

2. In a good blender mix the nuts, half cup of water, salt, pepper, onion powder and lemon juice.

3. When creamy, serve on a bowl and add the onion, chives and parsley. Mix well.

Ravioli Ingredients

- 1 or 2 large golden or red beets

- ¼ cup olive oil

- 1 lemon

- Sea salt (I use Celtic Salt)

- Pepper to taste

Preparation

1. Slice the beets as thin as you can.

2. Prepare a mixture of oil, lemon, salt and pepper, and marinate the sliced beets in the fridge for a couple of hours in this mix. We left it for 5 hours.

3. When they're ready to serve, remove from the marinade and serve a slice of beet, adding a tablespoon of cashew cream and then placing another layer of beet (like a sandwich).

Sweet Potato Gnocchi with Marinara Sauce (Serves 4)

Gnocchi recipe from feedyourmindbodyspirit.com

Ingredients

3 large orange sweet potatoes cubed

1 teaspoon sea salt

2 cups all-purpose flour (I used gluten-free flour, but that is your choice)

Preparation

1. Boil cubed sweet potatoes until soft. Then remove from the water and place in a large bowl. Mash with a fork until pureed.

2. Add salt and flour, mix and knead dough. If it's sticky, add more flour gradually until the wetness is gone.

3. Press the dough into a ball and divide in half.

4. Place flour on a clean surface and divide each half into 6 parts.

5. Roll each part into a rope about ½ inch thick and cut rope in about ¾ inch pieces.

6. Place the gnocchi on a cooking tray with parchment paper on the bottom, and sprinkle some flour on top.

When you're ready to cook, follow these steps:

1. Boil water in a large pot and add 1 teaspoon of salt.

2. When the water is boiling, add the gnocchi.

3. After 3-5 minutes the gnocchi should be floating (meaning they are cooked).

4. Remove and add to the sauce immediately.

5. Serve.

Marinara Sauce

1 can of organic tomatoes

Olive oil

Salt

Pepper

Coconut sugar (or other sugar)

Preparation

1. In a saucepan add a splash of olive oil. Then add the can of organic tomatoes, the pinch of salt, and a tablespoon of coconut sugar or any other sugar (hopefully not white sugar), in this case I don't recommend stevia because it will give it a strange flavor. In my house we enjoy our sauce a bit on the sweet side, if this is not the case for you, just use half a tablespoon.

2. Mix all the ingredients on high until it boils.

3. When it reaches the boiling point, slow cook and put a lid on the pan. Add the basil leaves at this time.

4. Cook for a minimum 20 minutes, the more it slow cooks the best it tastes.

I hope you enjoyed these dishes as much as we did, and if you decide to prepare them, I will love to see them so just tag me on Instagram with #fitforthejourney or @rominagentilini.

Merry Christmas!

With Love,
Romina