BLOG | martinazand

Apr 9

Spring Greens Salad With Tarragon And Chives Dressing

Spring means all the greens are coming out and with that new energy and new life. And that is exactly how you feel when you eat greens - alive and ready to take on the world. When we look at chakras (our body's energy centers), green is the color of the heart chakra which is responsible for love and empathy. And while yes, it can mean love and empathy for other people, the most important love is your self-love. Every time you eat something green you are taking care of your bo

Jan 6

Wilted Kale Salad With Beets, Raisins, And Nuts

Are you following along with #selflovejanuary over on my Instagram? We are talking about the menstrual cycle all month long and this week is all about menstruation, what your body is going through, and how to support your body through food, movement, and lifestyle choices. Today I shared this quick little video on what foods to avoid. Now let's talk about what foods to focus on to help your body build blood back up. All of these foods are super nutrient-dense and great to fee

Aug 21, 2020

Oyster Mushroom Ceviche

If there is one thing I have been very grateful for these last few months of lockdown, it is that I have a filled art box that we used to pull out about once a week for Baby Zand to do a fun project with. Now it's pretty much a daily occurrence. What else are we going to do while stuck at home for months and months? Well, this week we used up the last paint and we took a trip to Michael's to stock up for the next months of homeschooling. And guess what, Christmas decorations

Aug 6, 2019

Stuffed cherry bomb peppers

This little appetizer is great for when you are hosting a dinner or when you want to bring something along to a BBQ. It's a total crowd pleaser, tastes delicious, and is super easy and quick to whip up. You can use any round chili peppers you can find. I like these cherry bomb peppers, because they are on the milder side, but you can also use much spicier ones such as Fresno or jalapeños. Go with what you can find. In order to offset the heat from the chili, you want a lot of

Jul 30, 2019

Grilled corn and kale salad

Summer is BBQ season for us, and it is like a ritual to Arman. He uses charcoal, which means it is a process to get the thing to light up and get it hot enough. Every weekend he stands in the garden, and makes fire. And now Baby Zand is getting so excited about being the BBQ helper, she runs back and forth between dad at the BBQ and mom in the kitchen, asking for tools and food, and relaying messages between the two of us. To me BBQ is kind of bitter sweet. I don't eat meat,

Apr 23, 2019

Thai quinoa coconut salad

Ok, Thai and quinoa in one recipe doesn't seem very traditional. It's not. But it is the coolest creation by one of my favorite restaurants in the Bay Area: Daughter Thai in Mont Clair. I have to say, having lived in Thailand for 3 years, I have become somewhat of a Thai food snob. The majority of Thai restaurants are just satays and pre-made curry sauces thrown together with whatever meat or vegetable you want with some bland rice on the side. Most of it is uninspired and do

Apr 9, 2019

Raw Thai green curry noodles

If you follow me on Instagram, you know that I came back from our holiday with hives all over my body. I am not sure if it was stress, jetlag, sleep deprivation, pollution, exposure to other chemicals or pesticides or whatever else. Either way, I have been scratching myself bloody every night - not the most pleasant thing in the world! As soon as we landed, I knew what I had to do. I had to cut back on a lot of foods to just give my body some time to heal itself. And that mea

Mar 5, 2019

Potato leek soup spiced with jalapeño and cilantro and topped with crunchy tamari sunflower seeds

I have been down for almost a week with a pinched nerve in my back, barely able to move, let alone stand in the kitchen to cook food. So it's been smoothies and blended soups here to keep us going. And in the meantime, I am rolling on foam rollers, balls, and massaging myself to better mobility again :-). Preparation time: 40 minutes Makes 2 main or 4 side servings: For the soup: 1 leek, sliced thinly all the way with the greens 1 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil 2 medium sized po

Feb 19, 2019

Red lentils with Thai peanut sauce

All I want at the moment is creamy comfort food that brings a little heat. Thai food can be quite cooling because it is hot in Thailand, and you want freshness from your meals. But when you combine the heat of chili and ginger with the freshness of lime and the density of peanuts, you've got a winter Thai inspired dish! You can also use this delicious, creamy sauce on any other meal such as with a grain like quinoa, a marinade for veggies and meat for BBQs, as well as a base

Oct 30, 2018

Mexican quinoa bowl

After all the treats from various Halloween parties, let's nourish our body with a comforting, grounding bowl filled with goodness. And the best part: it only takes 15 minutes to throw together! Perfect for a busy evening when dinner needs to be on the table ASAP. In case you are new to the blog, welcome! As you will notice in many recipes, I never just cook a grain or a bean for one recipe. I prepare these in bigger batches for the week, so that then throwing together wholes

Sep 4, 2018

The perfect breakfast salad: arugula berry salad with chili lime dressing

Summer isn't officially over yet - there are still a couple of weeks left - but honestly with the start of Baby Zand's school today I feel like we have entered fall. Our swimming days are over, and I have just unpacked fall clothes and boots from the storage. Before we know it, Halloween, Thanksgiving, and Christmas will be here! This salad is making the best of the last fresh berries of the season, and it actually makes the perfect breakfast salad. With all my nutrition coac

Jun 19, 2018

Summer tomato and plum salad

Are you as excited as I am about the beginning for summer? At the market this weekend I was so happy to see big berries, fresh leafy greens, and juicy tomatoes. Summer brings so much delicious produce, I want to buy and eat everything! This salad is a nice little summer side salad to brighten up any meal. The tomatoes are accompanied by plums and basil to make this your favorite summer salad yet. Enjoy! Preparation time: 10 minutes Makes 1 serving: 20 cherry tomatoes or 1 big

Jan 18, 2018

Crispy beets with tahini lime dip

Roasted root veggies in the winter are just the bomb! They make me feel so grounded, coming from the earth with their gorgeous colors and sweet taste. Beetroot are definitely at the top of my shopping list every single week. I make them into the nourishing beetroot rice bowl, red sauerkraut, and into a cleansing juice. And with Valentine's Day coming up, don't forget about the beet chocolate cupcakes with vanilla caramel frosting - you are going to love them, even if you woul

Dec 7, 2017

Light little watercress salad with blood orange and avocado

This number is the perfect little side salad for the holidays: refreshing, super quick to whip up, and it will surely make an impression with its gorgeous bright colors. Watercress is a very underrated leaf. It's such a nutrient bomb with more Vitamin C than oranges for a strong immune system, more iron than spinach for lots of energy, and more potassium than bananas for healthy muscles. Yet often watercress is only used as decoration on a plate in a fancy restaurant, when it

Nov 7, 2017

Bejeweled broccoli

With the holidays coming quicker than we think, let's get down to business. Of course we all look forward to special holiday foods we enjoy once a year, but I always think we can still aim for a balanced plate. No reason to flush all our effort and hard work throughout the last 10 month down the drain in these last 2 months of the year. Filling up on delicious tasting veggies is so much easier than you would think. You can still focus all your attention in the kitchen on the

Oct 20, 2017

Turning the last tomatoes of the season into delicious salsa

I didn't want to make anymore dishes this year where tomatoes have to shine, but there are still so many amazing tomatoes at the market right now. And to make the most of these last ones of the season, I have turned them into this super easy roasted tomato salsa. It is so good, you will just want to just stand in the kitchen and spoon it. It's loosely based on the Mexican restaurant Chevys here in the Bay Area, where my husband used to work as a teenager. He loves their salsa

Sep 15, 2017

Dandelion greens salad

This sour bitter salad as been my go to all summer long, and I can not believe I haven't shared it yet!!! Dandelion greens have been my absolute favorite cleanse helper these last few months. I stopped nursing Baby Zand earlier this year. So after two years of either being pregnant or nursing, I just really felt like I needed to cleanse my body. While I do eat very mindfully on a daily basis, I just felt like there was a lot of stuff accumulated in my body. It was never about

Aug 31, 2017

Spicy Thai basil shot

Let me start right away with saying, this juice shot is not for the faint hearted! If you like your juice on the sweet side with a few green leaves thrown in for antioxidants, then this will be a huge jump for you. If you are keen on throwing anything in your juicer, then give this is a try! It's super spicy, slightly bitter, but also fruity, and kind of like a wake up call perfect first thing in the morning. Thai basil leaves are pointier than your regular Italian basil, oft

Aug 29, 2017

Cilantro lime quinoa

We got a new dog a week ago! This was a huge decision, since it means having another baby in the house. And it also means saying goodbye to our cat TwoShoes. He went missing 2 months ago, and we miss him every day. We were hoping with a new puppy in the house, we would fill that empty space. So... meet Haigo, our 13 week old puppy. We are currently potty training him, and making sure Baby Zand doesn't forget she already IS potty trained. Needless to say, our house smells of p

Aug 11, 2017

Roasted corn salsa

This is not a recipe you decide to whip up from scratch. This is very much a recipe made with leftovers! Specifically, leftover grilled corn on the cob. BBQ season is in full swing, and I actually like to have plenty of leftovers to throw on salads throughout the week. Hello, yummy grilled asparagus or romaine lettuce! But what about all that leftover corn?!? I love corn, and try to get my hands on as many organic cobs as possible all summer long. But eating cold corn on the

Aug 6, 2017

Raw key lime tarts

A couple of months ago, my husband planned a lovely getaway weekend in Santa Cruz for my birthday, where we went to my favorite place: Cafe Gratitude (although full disclaimer, the one in Santa Cruz has now split from the LA ones!). Either way, it was the perfect birthday treat with raw, living food to make me feel satisfied, and make my belly very happy. I had a delicious raw key lime pie, and it made me realize that I have never published my favorite version here on the blo