Hey! It’s been 3 months since my last post but here I am!

I only feel like I’m exaggerating a tiny bit when I say this salad has been my life for the last 3 weeks. Ok, slight exaggeration. BUT, it is really super yummy and it’s such a nice change from regular green salads and the kelp noodles are a great way to incorporate some sea vegetables into your life without having to eat nori (which I think tastes like aquarium). Plus, noodles in a salad are FUN, am I right?!

Health update: I developed chondromalacia, aka “Runners Knee” just about 3 months ago now and it stopped me dead in my tracks from doing just about all activities. I’ve been able to do yoga and lift weights just in the last few weeks. But there were a couple weeks where anything that required knee bending was extremely painful.

The good news is that it’s super common and not serious at all. It’s just painful and takes a while to heal up. I think I’m just about all better though.

Rocco update: I never posted this on the blog because I was too nervous to put it out there, but over the summer Rocco had some health challenges. He started having a hard time walking and balancing and the veterinarian thought he was having a flare up of myelitis or  meningitis which is inflammation of the spinal cord. Not good! But after a round of steroids the vet thought maybe it was a back injury so Rocco started receiving chiropractic adjustments AND…it’s totally working!! I’d say he’s about 95% good as new and has all his energy back and he can balance and run around again. LIFE IS GOOD!! Most likely he threw his back out by jumping on or off something really high. We’ll never know but he is a very active dog so I can imagine him doing something crazy like that.

House/yard update: In the last 2 months we got a fence put up, sprinklers installed and landscaping complete! Here are all my baby plants and trees!

Alright, let’s get to the good stuff then! This salad recipe!

I’ve been taking this salad to work for lunch because it’s so simple to throw together. I just shred/chop a bunch of veggies and store them in containers in the fridge and then every morning I toss everything into a glass bowl. It takes less than 2 minutes.

Kelp Noodle Salad (Makes 1 serving)

• 1/4-1/2 cup sauerkraut (I’ve been making my own!)
• 1/2 cup Sea Tanlge Kelp Noodles (can buy at http://www.vitacost.com)
• 1/4-1/2 cup shredded beet
• 1/4-1/2 cup shredded carrot
• Chopped red onion to taste (optional)
• 1 cup chopped spinach (optional-it’s nice to have a break from green salads sometimes)
• handful of micro greeens
• cilantro to taste

Layer salad in the order above with wet items going in the bottom of the bowl and greens going at the top so they don’t get soggy before lunch time.

Tahini Dressing (makes 4-7 servings)

• 1/3 cup tahini
• 2 tablespoons almond butter
• 1/4-1/2 cup water (adjust to desired consistency)
• 6 Tablespoons apple cider vinegar
• 2 Tablespoons nutritional yeast
• 1 Tablespoon tamari
• 2 cloves garlic
• 1/2 teaspoon salt

Place all ingredients in a magic bullet or blender and blend until smooth. Store in the refrigerator. It will thicken up over time.

These are the micro greens I’ve been using and I love them so much! It’s so nice to mix up the green veggies and these are so small you don’t have to chop them up but they have a much better texture than traditional sprouts which I sometimes feel have the texture of wet hair, haha!

Alright, that’s it for today. I have another recipe coming soon, I promise!

Bye for now!

Laura