I am now on Day 4 of the cleanse and this afternoon, I was hit by a huge surge of energy. The kind where I just had to start singing songs from my anthem movie, Pocahontas, because the mood struck hard.

I am finally starting to feel uh-maa-ziing. However, both yesterday and this morning, I woke up with a headache. Yesterday, I also had a stuffy nose (that has since gone away). My headache also left after a few glasses of water.
Last night, while I was in yoga, I was hit by an insatiable craving for a dish with peanut ingredients. I know I am supposed to be clearing my head in yoga and focusing on my breath, but most of my best made-up recipes have come from good yoga sessions.
I knew I also wanted brussel sprouts, so I thought of a sauce I could concoct to bring the 2 together.
A word on brussel sprouts. I thought I hated these things for years. Turns out I just never had them cooked right. I think the few times I did eat them, they were steamed. I am not a huge fan of most steamed veggies, so that was likely the problem. I found that I LOVE brussel sprouts, when they are sauteed in a little bit of olive oil and topped with sea salt, fresh black pepper and red pepper flakes. I can not take the credit for this one, my Love introduced me to the correct way to make the sprouts.
I made the sauce for the sprouts out of tahini, almond butter, peanut butter, rice vinegar, sesame oil, lemon juice, ginger, garlic powder and sea salt. I really did not measure anything, I just slowly added ingredients to my taste and whisked my heart out.
I served the sauce on the side and we dipped the brussel sprouts. We ate this along with leftover miso soup. It was a delicious, quick meal.

Desert was sliced oranges, dates & mint tea + agave + coconut milk.

Today for lunch, I had my new favorite salad; massaged kale. I got this idea from watching Kris Carr & Chad Sarno’s cooking videos.
Massaging the kale works well if you do not like it’s course texture. I kept my ingredients simple today, but sometimes I also add in diced red onion or shredded carrots.

I tear up pieces of kales, the throw in 1/2 diced avocado. I drizzle on hemp oil (olive oil works too) and the juice of 1/2 lemon. Then I mix all the ingredients by hand, smashing the avocado into the kale, thereby softening it.
When it’s all mixed together, I top with a sprinkle of sea salt and hemp seeds. I ate this alongside a piece of Ezekiel bread toast, topped with the other 1/2 of the smashed avocado and sea salt.

I hope you will give kale and brussel sprouts try if you have been hesitant before. Enjoy your Tuesday evening! Health, gratitude & greens!