LYFE Kitchen Debuts Scrumptious Spring Menu

With the changing of the seasons comes a new crop of food, and is fortifying their menu with some savory additions.

Tal Ronen, one of the two main chefs behind the Palo Alto-based restaurant brand, debuted a number of new and improved menu items during a public unveiling Friday.

The new dishes include a roasted asparagus with root vegetables and capers; roasted gold beets and black rice salad; and a kale-banana smoothie (recipe below!).

“As LYFE Kitchen’s vegan consulting chef, I’m extremely focused on working with the team to create dishes that are plant-based and centered in seasonality,” says Chef  Ronnen, author of the New York Times bestselling cookbook, The Conscious Cook. “Our spring/summer menu features vegan dishes that are so delicious they deliver on the promise that ‘you won’t miss the meat.’”

LYFE Kitchen has made a commitment to sourcing all its ingredients locally, and to using organics and sustainable ingredients whenever possible. That’s one reason why the menu has to rotate with the seasons—you can’t cook with Peruvian vegetables and call it “fresh” or “local”.

“We are very excited to ‘prepare the soil’ with our spring/summer menu launch. At LYFE Kitchen, we believe that both great taste and good nutrition are important and by staying seasonal and fresh, we are able to enhance the taste and quality of our foods,” says CEO Mike Roberts. “The benefits of sourcing seasonally and locally are tremendous – higher quality, better tasting ingredients and a lower carbon footprint, while also providing support for local farmers in the community – something we can all agree is important.”

The executive chef who brings these fresh ingredients to LYFE everyday is Jeremy Bringardner, who was on hand Friday to whip up the kale-banana smoothie.

For people who typically associate kale with salad bar lining, don’t fear. The drink is light, sweet, crispy and absolutely jam-packed with nutrients. Want to try it at home? Here’s the recipe:

KALE-BANANA SMOOTHIE

1 cup apple juice

2 tbsp lemon juice, squeezed, seeds strained

1 cup kale, raw, washed

2/3 cup banana, peeled, chopped, frozen

1/3 cup cucumber, chopped, frozen

1 tsp ginger, rinsed, whole/unpeeled, chopped

1) Chop the cucumber and peel/chop the banana and spread both onto a casserole dish and place in freezer overnight. Store in freezer until ready to use.

2) Measure and place all ingredients in high power blender (such as a vita-mix/vita-prep) and blend on high for 25 seconds

3) Pour and serve!

* if using a standard household blender, blend on high for 1 minute