Mexican: Pinto beans & rice

Breakfast: smoothie w/fresh oj, pineapple, & frozen strawberries- Simply delightful :)

Lunch: Chocolate chai smoothie-YUM! naners (fresh & frozen)+honey dates+raw cacao powder+vanilla+hemp seed+chai spices (cinnamon, cardamom, ginger, & clove pwdrs)

Dinner: Usual big salad and...

Pinto beans, brown rice, & guacamole salad

I also had some corn tortillas & red salsa with my plate. It was a Mexican meal with our personal touches. Diego - my partner in crime ;) - made the beans in a crock pot overnight. We have a Japanese rice cooker that makes the perfect brown rice. He added a little chili powder, cumin, and Spike to the water with the uncooked rice.

Crock Pot Pinto Beans

2 cups of dried Pinto beans (rinsed & sorted removing any debris)

6 cups water

1 onion chopped

2 t. chili powder

2 t. cumin

1/4 t. black pepper

3 t. Spike seasoning

a pinch of salt to taste (or more if not using Spike)

Add all the ingredients to the crock pot. Set to low and cook for 12-14 hours until beans are fully cooked. Add more spices if needed.

Mochachino Ice Cream Pie

Summer is ON, and it's heating up. I wanted to make a cold dessert so I decided to try my hand at an ice cream pie. I'd never made one before but figured it couldn't be too hard. Luckily, I was right :)

First, the crust. I gathered the following items:

Chocolate Pie Crust

1 pack Pamela's Extreme Chocolate Mini Cookies

3 T. coconut oil

1 springform pan (or pie dish)

• Pre-heat the oven to 350°F
• Add the cookies & coconut oil to a food processor. Grind them into fine crumbs.
• Press the cookie crumbs onto the springform pan, distributing evenly
• Bake in the oven for 5 min, take out, and let cool before proceeding

Cookie crumble topping

Crumble 2-3 Pamela's Espresso Chocolate Chunk cookies by hand into small chunks. Fill a small bowl and set aside.

Ice Cream Filling

Use a quart of your favorite mocha flavored ice cream. For a dairy free alternative, try Turtle Mountain's Mocha Fudge ice cream. Tasty, low-fat, and relatively healthy. Sadly here in Mexico, this ice cream is not available. So I just used Nestle's Mochachino ice cream. Mexico has quite a few Nestle production facilities. Their ice cream was surprisingly yummy and they don't use high fructose corn syrup to sweeten.

Spread the ice cream onto the crust quickly so you don't get too much of a melty mess. Then sprinkle the cookie crumbles over the top.

Place in the freezer overnight before serving to ensure it is well frozen and firm. The next day- VOILA!

Chocolate Almond Truffles

I have always enjoyed cooking. I remember being about 10 yrs. old and trying to make a veggie casserole with a recipe from a cookbook. I don't think it came out well but I had fun trying :P

One of my favorite ways to pass time with friends is to throw a dinner party. I truly enjoy making food and sharing it more than actually eating it, really! -although I do love me some tasty grub ;)

I have always found time to make goodies in the kitchen. In my mid-20's, I learned about healthful eating with a diet high in raw fruits & veggies. I integrated this knowledge into the dishes I began preparing and started having more fun!

I moved to Mexico a couple of years ago and life here has presented me with the opportunity to pursue my passion for the culinary arts. I am able to spend more time in the kitchen and with the aide of hired help, we cook up some magic in the kitchen. I have even been making fab dark chocolate treats!

I am starting my very own foodie blog to journal what my culinary passion is creating these days. To kick off, here is a taste of the chocolate almond truffles my kitchen girl and I made yesterday. Enjoy!

Chocolate Almond Truffles

1 cup pitted and chopped medjool dates

2 1/2 cups of semi-sweet chocolate chips

1/2 t. vanilla extract

1/2 t. almond extract

1/4 c. chopped toasted almonds

1/4 c. almonds ground into powder in a blender or coffee grinder (for coating)

• Melt the chocolate chips in a double boiler. Stir in the vanilla & almond extracts.
• Add the dates into a food processor. Pour the chocolate in and process until a ball of dough forms.
• Place the ball of dough in a bowl and knead in the chopped almonds.
• Spread the almond powder on a plate.
• Take about 1 tablespoon of the dough, form a ball, and roll in the plate of almond powder evenly coating.
• Arrange the truffle balls on a cookie sheet covered with wax paper. Place the cookie sheet with the finished truffles in the fridge for an hour to firm them up. You can then store them in an airtight container.