The end of fall is always a hard time for me and this year has been no exception. Life sometimes has a way of letting you down, bringing you down, or creeping up on you. As you can tell, that is a lot of different directions to be pulled in! Often in these times when I am not feeling well emotionally I start to indulge in food and drink that does not do my body good so instantly I also do not feel well physically.

This happened in the past few weeks. I was indulging in too much whiskey, sweets, and other unsavory items. My body was feeling sluggish and I needed a reset. No one is perfect nor will they always eat perfectly but as someone who is conscious of what I am eating, I can easily recognize that it was effecting my mood and my self-esteem. Winter hadn't even started and I felt like I had packed on my winter weight.

So what do you do? You do a juice cleanse combined with raw foods, well at least that is what I do! On Sunday after gorging on pizza and cake, I came home and took our my juicer and got to work. I have a slow juicer so the juice lasts for a number of days, I made a big batch of apple and turnip green juice as well as a beet, carrot and ginger juice so that I had some variety.

Let me tell you, after the first day you feel so much lighter and remarkably better physically. This in turn provides a mental boost as well. Now, I don't want you to picture me drinking juice all day long. In the morning I have a smoothie so that I can blend in my Green Vibrance and for lunch I drink juice. Throughout the day I snack on fruit if I am still hungry and for dinner I eat a raw meal. This means that I eat vegetables uncooked and no this does not have to be boring!

The recipe here is for my Raw Collard Green Burritos that are stuffed with zucchini, peppers, onions, garlic, and spices - essentially its like eating a chunky veggie filled salsa inside of your collard wrap and it is insanely delicious. The best part is that if I wanted to eat 3, I totally could! After 4 days of juicing and eating this way, I feel more like myself. I hope that you enjoy!

Raw Sprouted Lentil and Vegetable Collard Green Burritos

1 Zucchini, chopped

1/2 Onion, Chopped

1 Garlic clove, Chopped

1 Green Pepper, Chopped

1 Poblano Pepper, minced

1 Jalapeno Pepper, minced

2 Tomatoes, chopped

1/2 cup Corn

1/2 cup Sprouted Lentils

1 tbs Cumin

1 tbs Chili Powder

2 tbs Olive Oil

1 tsp Honey

1 tsp Apple Cider Vinegar

Pink Himalayan Sea Salt to taste

Large Collard Green leaves

In a large bowl, add the chopped vegetables, lentils and spices, stirring to combine. Taking 2 collard green leaves, remove the tough inner stem. Place them dark green side down with the stem sides overlapping in the center.

Add a heaping portion of the veggies and lentils to the center of the leaves. Tuck the short ends in and roll up burrito style. Cut in half and enjoy!

I love the process of preparing food; the selection, the chopping, the mixing, the spices and I especially enjoy that moment when you taste your creation and it satisfies your taste buds and leaves you satiated. I love to experiment and try different vegetable combinations and above all I hope to inspire healthy eating through innovative usage of those vegetables.

Hours of preparation and designing a dish can be tedious and truthfully not all of us have the time necessary to spend preparing complex dishes and sometimes we just want to eat, RIGHT NOW!

I try to put a number of different types of dishes on the blog ranging from simplicity at its finest to complex yet I am always conscious of time constraints. I love to spend a weekend in the kitchen creating an intricate dish but also know the struggles of coming home after a long day at work and wanting to eat something that is easy to prepare and delicious.

This recipe is a simple one, involving a small number of ingredients but holds a ton of flavors borrowed from Italian cuisine. Roasted butternut lends a sweet contrast to the bitterness of the broccoli rabe and garlic while cannellini beans provide a creaminess. This dish can be prepared in a half hour and is great for leftovers the next day as well.

I also love the greens and white bean combo and eat it on its own, using whatever I have in the house and spicing it up a bit with some hot sauce! Sometimes you need a little spice in your life, I hope that you enjoy and healthy eating!

Simple Roasted Butternut Squash with Broccoli Rabe and Cannellini Beans

1 Butternut Squash, Halved, seeds removed

2 tbs Olive Oil

1 small Onion, Chopped

2 cloves Garlic, minced

1 Bunch of Broccoli Rabe, about 2 cups

1 can Cannellini Beans, drained and rinsed

Pink Himalayan Sea Salt

Optional: Parmesan and Hot Sauce

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Lightly coat the cut side of the butternut squash with olive oil and sprinkle with salt. Roast, cut side down for 30 minutes or until a knife easily is inserted.

Meanwhile, in a saute pan, heat 2 tbs of olive oil over medium high heat. Add the onions and garlic, cooking until softened. reduce to medium low and add the greens covering with a lid until wilted about 2 minutes. Stir in the beans, cooking until warm. Sprinkle with salt to taste and remove from heat. Keep covered until the squash is cooked.

Fill the inside of the squash with the greens mixture, sprinkle with Parmesan or add hot sauce and enjoy!