TOMATO VEG COCKTAIL

Late afternoon is a dangerous time. It’s been hours since lunch and stomachs start getting a little rumbly.

It’s tempting to just grab a cookie or donut (my personal favorite!) to tide us over until dinner. We even rationalize that the sugar boost will cure the lagging energy. If only!

Then I saw the commercial where the guy gets slapped in the head and says, “Wow, I coulda had a V8!”

Extra veggies (and, yes, I’m aware tomatoes are a fruit). Low cal. Delicious pick-me-up with a kick. WOW! I’m gonna have a V8…homemade, of course.

I came up with a recipe that I love, but tweak it to suit yourself. I suggest you peel the tomatoes, then shake out the seeds. These don’t purée well and you’ll get bits on your tongue. However, they are extra fibre, so if you don’t mind them, save yourself a little work.

Note: This makes a good Bloody Mary mix. Just sayin’.

TOMATO-VEG COCKTAIL – makes about 3¾ cups

• 1½ lbs tomatoes (2 large), skinned, seeded, and chopped in large chunks
• 1 carrot, sliced
• 2 T red beet, skinned
• 1/2 cup spinach, sliced
• 2 T parsley, chopped
• 1/2 cup red pepper, peeled & chopped
• 3 stalks chopped celery, center strings removed
• 1/2 cup onion, chopped
• 1½ cups water
• juice from 1 lime
• 1 tsp Tabasco sauce
• 1½ T vegetarian Worcestershire Sauce
• 1/2 tsp sea salt

Put the tomato, carrot, beet, spinach, parsley, red pepper, celery, onion, and water into a large saucepan. Bring to boil, cover, reduce heat to simmer, and let cook for 20 minutes. Stir now and then. Turn off burner and let mixture cool with cover on.

Pour into a blender or food processor and purée. Add in lime juice, Tabasco, Worcestershire, and sea salt. Blend on low speed. Adjust seasonings, if needed.

Refrigerate until it’s super cold.