Spirulina Guacamole

I love Mexican food. However, I haven't made any Mexican food here lately except for guacamole. Since avocados are in season, I've been buying them in bulk and occasionally I will make some guacamole.

I've shared a guacamole recipe with you already, but today's recipe is a little different than the one I've already shared. I made this one from scratch, using garlic, tomatoes, avocados, and lime juice with seasoning from sea salt, black pepper, onion powder, and garlic powder.

I don't know if you've seen the new craze of adding peas to guacamole? The New York Times food columnist Melissa Clark published a recipe with English peas in guacamole. Social media went on a frenzy over adding peas to traditional guacamole. I mean after all, peas aren't even considered a traditional Mexican food and you want to add English peas to guacamole? Sacrilege!

Well since that article published, adding peas to guacamole is the new craze. Some people like it and some just hate it. So I had to try it.

To tell you the truth, when I first heard about it I thought "yuck". Then I tried it and thought " not so bad after all". I actually like it! The peas DO add texture to the guacamole without changing the flavor.

Now I kept my peas whole, not mashed up, which gave my guacamole texture. And since this is a controversial dish, I went ahead and added some spirulina to it too, which gives it more vitamins and minerals with a beautiful dark green color without affecting the taste.

Just like chia seeds, spirulina was used by the Aztecs. Pretty smart people those Aztecs!

In case you don't know what spirulina is, it's a blue-green algae. Here's a smart chart to give you the skinny on spirulina.

But If you want to learn more about the health benefits of spirulina, where to buy it, and more recipes using spirulina, visit Nuts.com.

Don't let the algae part stop you from trying this super food, as it is a complete protein that contains all essential amino acids. Plus it helps protect cells from damage, which is why so many people are using it these days.

All of this in just one little bite! Who could ask for anything more?

By the way, the drink in the upper left hand corner of these photos will be on my blog next week!

Spirulina Guacamole

Recipe by Julie Murphy

A healthier version of your traditional guacamole with spirulina and peas.

Prep time: 7
Cook time: 0
Total time: 7
Yield: 2 cups
Ingredients

• 2 avocados, seeded and removed from skins
• 2 tomatoes, rinsed and diced
• 1/2 to 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1 to 2 jalapenos, seeded and diced
• 1 cup sweet peas, cooked and cooled
• 1 teaspoon Spirulina powder
• 1/4 teaspoon onion powder
• 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
• 2 to 3 lime wedges for juice
• Dash sea salt and black pepper to taste

Directions

1. In a medium bowl, add avocados. Mash with a fork until no more large clumps are visible. Some clumps will remain.
2. Mix in spirulina, onion powder, garlic powder, salt & pepper, and juice from 2 to 3 lime wedges.
3. Combine remaining ingredients (tomatoes, garlic, jalapeno, and peas), mixing well.
4. Best served with tortilla chips or added to any Mexican dish.

Disclaimer ~ I was not paid any monies or compensated for this post by Nuts.com. Recipe and opinions are my own. I believe in the health benefits of spirulina.

All content and images are property of Sweet and Spicy Monkey. Please do not reprint this content without my permission. If you wish to include this recipe on your site, please re-write in your own words and use your own photographs and link back to this post for original recipe.

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Shared with: Savoring Saturdays

Strawberry Salsa

Remember, my Pineapple salsa I made a few weeks ago? Where I combined tropical pineapple with spicy salsa? Well, if you love spicy mixed with a little sweetness, then you are going to L-O-V-E the taste of strawberries in this salsa!

Fresh strawberries combined with cool cucumbers and spicy jalapeños. It wakes up your taste buds that have been sleepwalking through all of your meals over the last few days, months, or even years.

And the best part about this salsa, you can eat it with plain tortilla chips or you can pair it with cinnamon sugar tortilla chips for an entirely different snack.

Whatever you thought about salsa before, my Strawberry Salsa is sure to change the way you think about salsa from now on.

Strawberry Salsa

Recipe by Julie Murphy

A sweet & fruity twist on traditional salsa.

Prep time: 7 minutes
Cook time: 0
Total time: 7 minutes
Yield: 1 and 1/2 cups salsa
Ingredients

• 4 strawberries, pureed
• 1 cup whole strawberries, diced
• 1 teaspoon lime juice
• 1 teaspoon fresh cilantro, diced
• 9 slices (about 1/2 of a whole) English cucumber, diced

Directions

1. Puree 4 strawberries. Place into a medium bowl.
2. Add diced strawberries, lime juice, cilantro, and cucumber to pureed strawberries. Mix together.
3. Serve with tortilla chips, cinnamon sugar tortilla chips, or over vanilla ice cream.
4. Store refrigerated in an airtight container for up to 1 week.

All content and images are property of Sweet and Spicy Monkey. Please do not reprint this content without my permission. If you wish to include this recipe on your site, please re-write in your own words and use your own photographs and link back to this post for original recipe.

Follow Julie's board Sweet and Spicy Monkey on Pinterest.

Shared with ~ Freedom Fridays with All My Bloggy Friends #89

Dreamy Dark Chocolate Peanut Butter Dip

It's all about the food....'bout the food...'bout the food this month as December is the season for parties. You have Christmas parties for work, Christmas parties with family and friends, another Christmas party with your other friends, and the Christmas party with your neighbors. And that's just the Christmas parties. Then there's the New Years Eve parties and New Years parties.

You'll not only need food for main courses, but you'll need appetizers, chips and dips, and drink ideas. Plus you'll need food for the kids while you're out doing "grown up stuff".

This dip is perfect for any of the above. Plus it's quick and easy to make and you probably have all the ingredients in your cupboards right now.

It's also quite versatile. You can serve it with anything from graham crackers, pretzels, chocolate or vanilla wafers to banana chips and plantain chips. Trust me, I tried them all, for the sake of saving you from having to do all the hard work, of course.

I'll just dance a little more this season to help burn off the calories. Ha, if you saw me dance you wouldn't have let me taste test my dip with all the different dippers {chuckle}. Remember that Seinfeld episode where Elaine dances....

 Feel free to try it with your own likings and let me know what combinations you serve it up with.

Dreamy Dark Chocolate Peanut Butter Dip

Ingredients

8 ounces cream cheese, room temperature

1 cup Dark Chocolate Dreams peanut butter

1 teaspoon cinnamon

6 Tablespoons honey

Directions

In a medium sized mixing bowl, add cream cheese and peanut butter, blending together until creamy.

Mix in cinnamon and honey throughout mixture. Mixture will be thick like a cookie dough.

Refrigerate in an air tight container until ready to serve. Can be stored refrigerated up to one week.

Serve in a bowl with side of pretzels, wafers, banana chips, plantains, or Annie's cocoa and vanilla gluten free bunny crackers, as pictured in the photos.

*Helpful Hints*

- Can also use whipped cream cheese, low-fat or fat-free cream cheese, or Neufchatel cheese, room temperature.


Disclaimer ~ I do not represent Peanut Butter & Co., nor did I receive any monies for this post. I just love their Dark Chocolate Dreams peanut butter and found it delicious in this recipe.

All content and images are property of Sweet and Spicy Monkey. Please do not reprint this content without my permission. If you wish to include this recipe on your site, please re-write in your own words and use your own photographs and link back to this post for original recipe.

Follow Julie's board Sweet and Spicy Monkey on Pinterest.

Shared with: Freedom Fridays with All My Bloggy Friends #61, Munching Mondays #73

Salted Caramel Coconut Sauce

This recipe really ought to be called ‘Awesome sauce’ as it really is the most awesome tasting caramel sauce I’ve ever had! Ever. And it’s made with coconut milk!

Y’all know how much I love my coconut and when I came upon this recipe by Faith at An Edible Mosaic for salted caramel sauce made with, of all things, coconut milk, I totally flipped! I knew had to try it right away to see if it really did taste like caramel sauce.

Guess what? This caramel sauce has all the buttery velvetiness and deep, rich caramel flavoring that (I thought) only caramel could have. You can only imagine my surprise when I took that first bite…and a second bite, just to verify my findings, of course….and maybe a third….and fourth! Ok, there were a few lot of bites involved as I could not believe my taste buds! And you’ll be surprised too with the delicious caramel flavoring of this sauce.

No heavy cream or refined sugars were used in the making of this caramel sauce. Really, there wasn’t! It’s made with the goodness of coconut milk, organic coconut sugar, honey, vanilla extract, sea salt, and only one tablespoon of butter. Simple ingredients for a wickedly delicious caramel sauce.

The best part about it (other than the taste), is that it’s homemade so you control what goes into it. So no preservatives, artificial coloring, excess sodium, or refined sugars are in this caramel sauce, No M’aam! Plus, it’s Paleo friendly.

I’m so glad I found this recipe to share with y’all just in time for fall, football parties, and apple season! It’s the perfect dip for apples or pears, not to mention the other uses you can find for this sauce. Like drizzling over ice cream, cakes, grandma’s apple pie, and popcorn. Plus, my personal favorite, just dipping your spoon into the jar {smile}. 

The subtle saltiness combined with the sweet, rich, caramel flavoring makes possibilities for this caramel sauce endless.

And you wonder why I love coconut so much??!!

Salted Caramel Coconut Sauce (Awesome Sauce)

Ingredients

1 can unsweetened coconut milk

¼ cup honey

¼ cup organic coconut sugar (will be tan in color)

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

½ teaspoon sea salt

1 Tablespoon unsalted butter

Directions

In a medium sauce pan, add coconut milk, honey, and coconut sugar. Bring to boil over medium heat, stirring constantly with a whisk.

Bring to a rolling boil while you continue to whisk mixture. Let mixture continue to boil but decrease heat a little bit so it will not boil over. Continue to whisk mixture so it will not burn.

Mixture will become darker and thicker as you continue to cook it. When it becomes dark amber in color and amount of mixture looks like about 1 and ½ cups (this takes about 20-45 minutes) remove from heat and whisk in remaining ingredients of vanilla, sea salt, and butter until mixture is smooth.

Let cool before serving.

Makes for a delicious dip for apples and pears. Can be served over ice cream, cakes, pies, popcorn, cookies, pancakes, waffles, and French toast.

Can be stored in an air tight container for up to 3 weeks in the refrigerator.

*Helpful Hints*

- All measurements are US

- Why don't you stop on by Faith's site, An Edible Mosaic, and show her a little love. She has many more delicious recipes with beautiful photography.

All content and images are property of Sweet and Spicy Monkey. Please do not reprint this content without my permission. If you wish to include this recipe on your site, please re-write in your own words and use your own photographs and link back to this post for original recipe.

Follow Julie's board Sweet and Spicy Monkey on Pinterest.