Avocado Tofu Salad

I have been craving sweets lately and although I only use maple syrup, coconut palm sugar, and stevia as extra sweeteners. I decided I need to eliminate not only these sweeteners but also brown rice, potato, most fruits from my meals for a month. After all it’s spring so I’m doing a modified kind of spring cleanse. I will be sharing the recipes I make for the next month. These recipes are also perfect for someone on an anti-candida cleanse. Please keep checking back daily for the recipes I create and if you would like, you are more than welcome to join me. The things I hope to gain from this cleanse are, are elimination of my cravings for sweets, clearer mind, more energy and an overall feeling of heightened well being. To kick off this diet I made an avocado tofu diet, that was very filling and delicious. I baked the tofu and put the salad together in about 30 minutes. I ate the whole batch and then made a second batch for the rest of the family. They really enjoyed it.

So what is candida?

Candida is a form of yeast (candida albicans) that overgrows in the body. This overgrowth is usually caused by taking antibiotics. Antibiotics destroy the friendly bacteria in the gut. Friendly bacteria in the gut are helpful in preventing problems by securing the gut balance and keeping yeast under control. As a result of the destruction of friendly bacteria, yeasts gets out of control and overgrows in the body. Basically, if you have taken antibiotics in the past, you are at a great risk in developing candida albicans. Consuming too much sugars and starches in the diet, basically increase the overgrowth of yeasts by feeding the yeasts. This overgrowth can cause problems in different areas of the body such as weight gain, fatigue, inability to focus, acne, athlete’s foot, sinusitis, eczema, sugar cravings, irritable bowel syndrome, constipation, depression, cancer and many more maladies. This manifestation of yeast overgrowth can take a few years to many years later to cause problems depending on the individual diet. The idea of a candida diet is to starve the yeast and no longer provide the foods like sugars and starches that feed the yeasts.

Foods To Include:

Some of the foods that I will be including are all fresh vegetables.

Vegetables such as asparagus, artichoke, cabbage, celery, garlic (raw), broccoli, kale, zucchini, summer squash, Brussel sprouts, Bok choy, okra, spinach, onion, herbs and spices.

Grains such as quinoa, teff, amaranth, buckwheat, millet.

Lemons, limes, avocados, tomatoes.

Raw unprocessed nuts and seeds including almond, sunflower seeds, flax seeds, chia seeds, walnut, pecans and excluding peanuts and cashews.

Unprocessed oils such as olive, coconut, sesame and flax oil.

Foods To Eliminate:

Vegetables I’ll be eliminating are mushrooms and starchy vegetables including, parsnip, sweet potato, yams, yucca, corn, winter squash, beets, carrots, peas.

Most fruits and in severe cases all fruits. Fruit juices, dried fruits.

Eliminate processed foods and packaged foods including white flour, white sugar. Most processed foods include added sugars and wheat.

Eliminate all sweeteners including sugar, honey, maple syrup, maple sugar, molasses, corn syrup, rice syrup, agave, dextrose, glucose, sucrose, fructose.

Eliminate all foods that contain wheat, barley, rye, oats and those risen with yeast. Bread, biscuits, muffins, cakes, cookies and all other baked goods.

Eliminate nuts that are roasted, salted and chopped. No peanuts.

Eliminate all vinegar, pickled products, condiments, fermented sauces, soy sauce, mayonnaise, ketchup, mustard, pickles, relishes, barbecue sauces, Worchestershire sauce.

Eliminate all cheeses, processed or smoked meats

Eliminate caffeinated drinks including green, black, white tea, coffee, chocolate, sodas, fruit juices, all alcohols including wine, rum, vodka, gin, whiskey, beer. Drink plenty of water and herbal tea such as ginger, and Pau D’arco

Ingredients:

• 8 oz extra-firm tofu (non-gmo)
• 2 teaspoons olive oil
• ¼ teaspoon cumin
• ¼ teaspoon sea salt
• 1 cucumber, chopped
• 1 spring onion, thinly sliced
• 1 avocado, chopped
• ¼ cup cilantro, chopped
• Dressing
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • 2 tablespoons lemon juice½ teaspoon ground cumin
  • ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
  • ¼ teaspoon sea salt

Directions:

Preheat oven 400°F. Line baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside. Drain and press tofu for 30 minutes. Cut tofu into ½ inch cubes. Place cubes in a bowl and toss with olive oil, cumin and sea salt. Place on a single layer on baking sheet. Bake for about 25 minutes or until golden brown, turning halfway. Meanwhile prepare the vegetables and place in a bowl. Add tofu to vegetables. Combine dressing in a small bowl. Toss salad with dressing and serve immediately.