I just happened to be perusing my website last week and was taking note of areas that needed improvement when I learned that a friend would be in town for the weekend, creating the perfect opportunity to add a new breakfast item to the blog.

My breakfast options are slightly lacking for I find that breakfast is one of those meals that I hardly pay any mind to. My usual breakfast consists of a smoothie of some sort and I honestly don't feel that throwing a couple of things into a blender warrants a written recipe especially since I usually just go by what I have in the house, really no rhyme or reason - a little of this, a little of that, some ice and a whirl then boom drink it up. If you are curious about my breakfast choices than please follow me on Instagram at alkalinelivingkitchen, where I do post images of smoothies, breakfast bowls, and oats every so often.

Recently, I have seen a lot of recipes online boasting pancakes, spelt waffles, and porridge bowls which are all delicious and for the life of me I cannot figure out how we have regulated these foods to morning meals only. I feel the same about greens, why are they only allowed in the evening? I personally love to eat greens for breakfast because I find that they pair excellently with the rich decadence of egg yolks and can easily be used to add extra vitamins and minerals to this super important meal.

When I do have a guest, I love to create something a bit more complex and this weekend was no exception, the smokey sweet potato hash, cider braised greens and baked eggs provided the perfect opportunity to linger over breakfast in the sun room, soaking in the pleasant atmosphere, enjoying engaging conversation and witty banter all while partaking in a deliciously healthy meal. I hope that you also enjoy it!

Smokey Sweet Potato Hash with Cider Braised Greens and Baked Eggs

Serves 2

4 tbs Olive Oil

1 Onion, chopped

4 cloves Garlic, chopped

3 Sweet Potatoes, diced

1 tsp Smoked Paprika

1 tsp Cumin

4 Eggs

3 cups Greens, stems removed (I used mustard greens but any will do)

1/4 cup Apple Cider

Pink Himalayan Sea Salt to taste

Heat a medium sized saute pan over medium high heat, add the sweet potato and a 1/8 cup of water, cover and allow the potatoes to steam until almost cooked through. Uncover and let the water burn off before adding 2 tbs of olive oil, half of the onion, 1 garlic clove and the poblano pepper to the pan. Cook until softened and then add the smoked paprika, cumin and salt to taste. Make 4 small holes in the potato, cracking the eggs into them and covering with a lid to cook until the whites are set.

Meanwhile, in another saute pan, add the remaining 2 tbs of olive oil and heat over medium high heat. Once hot add the rest of the onion and garlic, stirring until softened. Add the apple cider vinegar and bring to a boil, adding the greens and covering to wilt.

Divide the greens between 2 plates and top with the potatoes and eggs. Serve with hot sauce if desired. Enjoy and healthy eating!

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!