Another Green Smoothie...

Hi every one, how are we all doing? 

I am doing well, for the most part. 

I said 'yes' to some dairy and sugar
and it is not sitting too well with me,
and is causing serious addictions!
(blog post about addictions coming some day...)

 but other than that, we are enjoying no flu's and no colds, etc. 

The winter is very cold this year here in the Fingerlakes, 

and I confess I am looking forward to this:

and this:

and this:

but for now, 

I am enjoying the cozy warmth of the fire on the hearth

Here is a smoothie I recently made,

and the whole family loves it.

Hope you enjoy it, too:

Coconut Strawberry Smoothie

This recipe makes a Vitamix

2 quart jar full, so if you 

only have a regular blender, try

cutting the recipe in half

Into a Vitamix, place

1 can full fat, unsweetened, organic coconut milk
(I like Thai Kitchen the best)

1 tsp. vanilla

1/3 c. sugar

(I have not tried dates yet, but I 

mean to do that for a whole food sweetener)

Blend well.

Fill blender jar with baby spinach leaves.

Blend smooth.

Add 3 or 4 cups frozen strawberries.

Blend smooth.

Enjoy!

I also added 1 T ground flax and chia seeds to mine 

when i ground.milk, vanilla and sugar.

I grind my own in flax and chia in the vitamix

and put the mix into a ziploc and into the freezer

to keep them fresh and handy for baking (egg replacer)

and smoothies.

Read the health benefits of flax here.

Read the health benefits of chia here.

On the weight loss front, I was pleased to discover that I 

am down 17 lb. since last January.

Slow and steady is winning the race for me!

I am enjoying salads,

smoothies,

many cooked plant foods,

and look forward to making this recipe

for part of my supper tonite.

I am enjoying shredded sweet potatoes

'unfried' in my lovely

Princess House pan these days, too.

No fat needed to 'fry' them.

The key things that work for me are:

1. Eat for health. Do not make weightloss your

ultimate goal.

2. Eat only when hungry .

 3. Exercise doesn't have to be crazy.

15 minutes a day of something that 

strengthens muscles or gives the heart a good workout

is better than nothing, and for me, 

better often than an hour.

Here's hoping you all have a lovely day.

Cauliflower Bites Two Ways...

Oh my, why have I not known about these things before?! They are yummy!



 

BBQ Cauliflower Bites

 

inspired by a recipe I had seen a few weeks ago,

I decided to give this a whirl:

 

1 head cauliflower,

broken into bite sized pieces

 

BBQ sauce

(click on the link for the recipe I used)

 

Put cauliflower bites into a large bowl.

Toss them with the bbq sauce.

 

Lightly spray a jellyroll pan or a pyrex pan

and spread the bites evenly onto it.

 

Bake at 350 til done, about 45 min.

Shake every 15 min or so to prevent burning.

 

Enjoy!

 

A funny side note:

While I was spreading these on the pan,

my hardworking Farmer came through

the kitchen and saw them.

He wanted to know if I was going to

try to pass these off as

boneless bbq chicken wings

from Wal-Mart!

 

I assured him that no,

I am calling them by their

rightful name!

 

I think they deserve that!

 

Another way we like to eat cauliflower bites,

is the following recipe, thanks to my

little sister Kristina.

 

Ranchy Cauliflower Bites

 

Steam bite sized pieces of cauliflower til tender but not mush.

Toss with Ranch Dressing

(plant strong recipe below)

and layer on pan.

Sprinkle with whole grain panko or regular

seasoned bread crumbs.

 

(or season them yourself)

 

Bake at 400* til a bit browned.

 

 

Plant Strong Ranch Dressing

 

1 inch sprouted tofu

1 T dried onion

1 t salt

1/2 black pepper

1 T dried dill weed

1 T dried parsley

1/4 c vinegar

milk to desired thinness

 



Of New Beginnings and Green Juice...

From my cozy spot by the fire on the hearth, I sit and ponder...while snow swirls down in great abundance outdoors today.

Food...all of us were created to need it. None of us can live very long without it. We all have bodies that are made up of cells and systems that are created to work well with nutrients from foods.

The best way to get this nutrition is to eat lots of raw plant nutrition. This can be and should be very varied. It works out in my life by eating lots of salads, or simple veggie plates, veggie wraps filled with hummus and raw veggies, green smoothies and on occasion, juice from veggies and fruits.



My family and I choose to get consistent fruit and vegetable nutrition from Juice Plus as well. I am so glad to have found this product in 2013. Just to know that my family is getting that consistent nutrition from plants is such a huge help to me as the keeper of their health.

However, that is not a crutch to use or an excuse for me to consistently let them form addictive eating habits by thinking, "Oh well, they can have (oreos, lots of chocolate candy, fried foods, fast food, highly processed junk) because they have had their fruit and veggie intake for today". No, way. I won't do it.

I am well aware of how addictive certain foods are. I have struggled out of them since becoming aware of the sabotaging effects that over indulgence of meat, dairy, oil, salt, and sugar has on the body. I know how hard the struggle and so I am doing my best to bless my family with wholesome food so that hopefully they will not have to struggle like I have.

I am also well aware of how easily we can slip into the 'convenience food' mode. It's all around us. Boxes of this, bags of that, cans of the other thing. Before we know it, we are encouraging the addictive, disease-producing eating habits that we really didn't want to happen. So that is why in 2014, I have made a renewed pact with myself as the keeper of my family's health, to:

photo credit: I don't remember...sorry :/

 plan ahead

just say no more often (kindly of course!)

be the change I want to see in the world

educate my family and myself more

grow my own greens even tho the snow is flying outside

(yes, I invested in a trio of Tower Gardens and I am EXCITED)

And in the spirit of kicking things off to a good start, 

I have gone on a green juice fast

 for 2 weeks,

starting today.

I really forgot just how good 

green juice tastes!

Extreme?

Absolutely.

Radical?

Most definitely.

Beneficial?

Oh my yes!

I am giving my body a rest. I have not had a bad year of eating,

but I have had some little things here and there that I allowed in

that I just think I want to give my body a cleanse/rest.

For anyone out there wanting to try this, I highly recommend it.

Here is my favorite green juice recipe.

I have a Green Star Juicer and this recipe makes

about 5 or 6 pints.

4 apples

4 pears (don't have to be ripe)

2 lemons

2 inches fresh ginger

8 stalks kale or 8 c chopped kale*

2 cucumbers

4 stalks celery

Wash all veggies and juice.

Store in pint jars in fridge.

Instead of eating for 2 weeks, I'm drinking green juice

and appreciating the rest.

Will I have cravings?

YES.

Will I want to eat a piece of chocolate this afternoon?

YES YES YES

Will I eat a piece of chocolate this afternoon?

NO, 

unless I want to publicly inform all of you on here :-)

(which I don't)

Will I experience any detoxing symptoms?

Yes, most likely that is why I have a smallish headache right now

But previous experiences with this have me on good authority

that after about day 3, I will wonder why I ever eat...

my body will feel great and I will want to go on for always 

just drinking green juice!

But I will return to normal, necessary fiber-rich plant foods

and enjoy salads in a new way...

By the time I am finished with my cleanse,

a salad with a baked potato with some fresh pico de gallo

and cashew cheese sauce will be what I'm craving.

So here's hoping all of you enjoy good health

in 2014.

I am hoping to keep this blog more updated in the new year.

More what I'm learning/reading/watching in the food world.

More recipes I'm trying and liking.

To health and for good health,

Marcia