Of Berries And Chia...

When I was a school girl and would have to be home for a sick day,

my mom would often make McNess Coconut Pudding.

It was such a delicious treat, but one of those things I have totally

abandoned in whole food eating, trying to clean up our diet.

But sometimes I miss coconut pudding.

Well, not anymore!

Hello Chia Coconut Vanilla Pudding!

I don't eat it warm like we ate coconut pudding at home,

but this pudding fills the bill...

I had it this morning for mid morning meal...

with fresh strawberries and raspberries.

What deliciousness.

And so good for me, too.

I don't like the large amount of fat

in coconut milk, so I combine it with

almond milk and water and keep

a jar of it in my fridge for things such

as this.

Here is what I made this morning:

Cia's Vanilla Coconut Pudding

Into a bowl place

2 1/2 cups coconut almond milk

1/2 c unsweetened shredded coconut

scant 1/2 c chia seeds

(I used white chia)
1 t. vanilla extract

2 T maple syrup

Stir well. Cover and refrigerate overnite

or just a few hours.

Combine with fruit of choice.

Deliciousness in every bite!

PS.

I didn't forget that I was going to write 

a post about my journey through food addictions.

I still hope to get that done some time.

A happy, healthy summer to all.

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.

Of Emily Boller and Other Things...

I have struggled with weight issues ever since I was 10 years old. I am a classic example of what is happening in America in the form of premature puberty in adolescent girls (among other things). I went from the cabbage soup diet, to different pills that promised weight loss, to the Atkins diet, etc with no lasting results. It was so discouraging to watch my weight just mushroom and the scales go up every year instead of down, as I had hoped.

Then I discovered plant-strong eating and its long-term help in losing weight and maintaining a healthy weight. For the first time in my life, it made sense. And the many thousands of people that Dr Joel Fuhrman and many other doctors like him have helped to reach and maintain a healthy weight has encouraged me greatly.

I have lost slowly the past six years, as my body healed from other issues. But in the past year, as I've employed more of Dr. Fuhrman's recommendations for weight loss, I have enjoyed increased success in losing the pounds I have carried unnecessarily for 17 years. And I am excited!

God used Emily Boller to be the final boost I needed a few years ago to do something positive for my weight problem. Read her story here. If you struggle with excess weight, be encouraged that a few changes now will yield positive results for a life time.

 

Interview With Emily Boller



Being overweight is not a good thing. It puts stress on your organs, your skeletal system and your immune system, which leads to diseases that are totally preventable and greatly reduces your quality of life.

Feeding the body good foods, exercising regularly and avoiding excessive amounts of oil, salt, sugar, and animal products = healthy weight and healthy body.

If you want to lose weight without starving yourself or counting calories, while feeding your body nutritiously, here is Dr. Fuhrman's recommended plan which has worked for many:



The Food Pyramid...

If you are from my generation and older, you very likely have been taught nutritional 'balance' from the food pyramid that looks like this:

 

 

 

But that is a bit 'off'. I understand that this pyramid was produced

to give business to the meat and dairy industry,

but it has not stood the test well as we look around us

at the diseases that have increased along with the teaching of this

eating style.

 

As I said yesterday, I am not a vegan.

I am not against eating meat and dairy in moderation,

moderation NOT meaning once a day, but more like

two or three times a week in moderate portions

like for flavoring a bean stew, or something similar.

 

When I began studying nutrition, I was given this food pyramid

which makes much more sense, given that our bodies actually

fuel themselves the best from whole, raw plant sources.

 

Check out this pyramid from my favorite doctor,

Dr. Joel Fuhrman:




I love my veggies!
And I love what they have done in healing me,
and thousands of people who were worse off than I was!

Random thought:

Check out the first food plan,
given in Genesis 1:29.


So the idea with Dr Fuhrman's pyramid is that
you eat a large salad (or its equivalent) at every meal
and then fill in with whole grains (sparingly),
potatoes (russet, red and sweet, preferably),
and cooked vegetables.
About a cup of beans in some form every day is a
 good source of protein.
For dessert, or a snack later, eat whole fruit.

Fruit juices as a whole are not good for you
to consume in large amounts.
I only consume fruit juice as an addition to vegetable juice
in the form of Juice Plus once or twice a day.

Whole plant foods are easy on the body,
and give it the fuel it needs to produce healthy cells.

Did you know that 50,000 of the cells in your body
will die and be replaced with new cells,
all while you have been reading this sentence?!
That's a lot of cells to maintain and fuel with clean fuel!

I encourage everyone to read up and learn how to protect
this wonderful gift of health that our Maker has given us!

 

Now Thank We All Our God...

The view inside my back entry these days...



Autumn. Need I say more? One of my favorite seasons of the year with all it's jewel tones and fields overflowing with stores of ripened grain.

Today there is a nip in the air in our beautiful Fingerlakes of NY and I do believe it stayed below 60* all day...the perfect kind of day to pull on some leggings and a sweater and head on over to the Windmill, a kind of flea market that appeals to many kinds of shoppers, including a plant strong 'locavore of sorts' such as me...

 



We came home with evidence of plant strong shopping, too!



Broccoli, cauliflower, pumpkins, butternut squash, spaghetti squash, famous New York grapes in three different varieties, plums, garlic, onions, potatoes, peppers, and even some teeny little munchkin pumpkins and gourds for decorating. Ah, what a fun trip that was! We shall be enjoying the fruit of harvest for days to come!

On another note, after canning 200 qu of tomato products the past 2 weeks, I am officially finished harvesting my garden for winter. There are a few tomatoes for fresh eating, red beets for a meal or two, a row of sweet corn to enjoy a few last times before winter snows arrive, and a few rows of broom corn for my feathered friends.



The past 6 weeks, we put away harvest for two families: 200ish quarts green beans, 280 quarts corn (for more than 2 families), 100 quarts peaches, about 10 pints pickled pepper strips, 150 qu tomato juice, and 50 qu ketchup. I am officially tired, but very happy to have all that food put aside for winter's use. I thankful that I am well and could even bless my family in this way, something that I could not do for many years.

 

 

 



And I am especially grateful to my Father God, the Creator of all, who daily loads us with benefits, and Who brings us rain in fruitful seasons.



Step out the Back Door...

...and snip a few HUGE leaves of kale for a green smoothie!

 

 

Yep, I give it a huge thumbs up!

 

Banana Split, the Healthy Way

 

 

I was totally thrilled

to find this

recipe today.

 

 

First of all,

it is so pretty,

and it

has none of the

junk that 'real'

banana splits have.

 

I think this looks like

one of those

fun summer things

to bless

the children

with.

 

Maybe at the family

gathering

we are hosting

in August.

 

I found the recipe 

here.

Kickstart Your Health 4



Breakfast

Green Smoothie

Ezekiel Sprouted Grain Muffin with Peanut or Almond Butter and Honey

 

Lunch

"Panera" Black Bean Soup

with Brown Rice

Veggies and Dip

of your choice

(ranch, hummus, etc; just keep it free of excess oil and dairy free)

Apple with almond butter

Dinner

Roasted Broccoli with Asian Sauce of Choice

Asian Cole Slaw

Strawberry "Shortcake"

 

 

This is what I use for shortcake. It has no added sugar except from the chocolate:

 

Banana Chocolate Chip Muffins

 

In a Vitamix or powerful blender place:

 

1 c pitted dates, roughly chopped

1 c plant-milk

1 c water

3 T Chia seed meal

(I grind ahead of time in my Vmix or Magic Bullet and freeze)

1 c mashed banana

1/2 c chocolate chips

 

Mix the following together in a mixing bowl:

 

2 c whole grain flour

(for GF use 1 c buckwheat flour, 1/2 c millet flour, 1/2 c tapioca starch)

1 t baking powder

1/2 t baking soda

1/2 t salt

1/2 t ground nutmeg

1/2 ground cinnamon

 

 

Pour wet mixture over dry ingredients and mix.

 

Bake in muffin tins for 25-30 min at 350*.

I  usually make a double recipe and bake in a 9x13 pan

for 40 minutes or until done.



Tip:
Make enough soup to freeze for convenience food.
You can also serve the soup with a dollop of Almond Cream and garnish with cilantro.

Kickstart Your Health 3

Breakfast

Protein Shake

 

(1 c milk, 1 scoop Garden of Life Raw Protein, 1 T cocoa powder, 1 T peanut or almond butter, 1 t vanilla. Blend. Add 2 or 3 frozen bananas)

 

 

Lunch

 

Baked French Fries

Veggies and Hummus

Watermelon

Supper

 

Mixed Green Salad

(chopped cabbage, chopped romaine, chopped tomatoes, shredded carrots, red onion, chopped peppers, diced cucumbers)

 

with dressing of your choice

 

Stir Fried Vegetables

(stir fry whatever vegetables you like with whatever seasoning you choose. we like cabbage, green beans, carrots, zucchini, peppers, mushrooms, onion, garlic with soy sauce and sweet chili sauce or sweet and sour sauce...MSG free of course!)

 

Baked Sweet Potatoes

Tips:

Keep frozen vegetables on hand to make quick stir fries.
Eat leftover watermelon tomorrow for breakfast or lunch.
Bake sweet potatoes ahead of time and freeze in meal-sized portions for convenience food.

Kickstart Your Health 2

Here is another sample menu for a plant based meal:

Breakfast
Granola and/or green smoothie

Lunch
Black Bean Burger
Veggie Platter and Hummus or Home made Ranch
Small piece of fruit, if desired

Dinner
Broccoli/Cauliflower Salad (there are several ideas for this,, such as here, as well as just making the traditional mayo/sugar/mustard/vinegar/salt dressing and tossing with chopped cauliflower, broccoli, red onion and adding cranberries or raisins and sunflower seeds if you like)
Roasted Veggies
Chocolate 'Ice Cream'

 

Roasted Veggies

 

Into a baking dish place

4 medium sized potatoes

(peeled, if not organic)

4 cups green beans

4 large carrots, peeled and cut into 2" pieces

1 red onion, peeled and roughly chopped

 

Toss with 1 or 2 c veggie broth or water

1 T dried onion flakes

1 T Mrs. Dash seasoning

1/2 t lemon pepper

1/2 t poultry seasoning

(I use Penzey's; no MSG)

 

Cover and bake at 350* for 1 1/2 hr or in a slow cooker for 4 hours on high.

 

 

 

 

Chocolate Ice Cream

 

Into a Vitamix or powerful blender place:

1 c milk

1 scoop Garden of Life Raw Protein Powder (optional)

1 scoop cocoa powder

1 t vanilla

1 rounded T peanut or almond butter

1 T chocolate chips (optional; we like the extra crunch)

Blend together.

Add 5 or  6 frozen banana pieces

(or more if you need them to make a soft serve consistency)

Blend til soft serve consistency.

 

Delicious over fresh sliced strawberries or bananas (or both)!

 

 



Kickstart Your Health...

Dr. Neal Barnard has a wonderful way of teaching for simple folks like me who want to know about plant-based eating. So does Dr. Fuhrman. And Dr. John McDougall. And others. I appreciate all the things they have taught me over the years, and what is great is that most of their things line up with each others', Dr. Fuhrman's topping them all (in my humble opinion) for his push to get the micronutrients into our bodies. Micronutrients are best found in greens and other veggies high in nutrients (not potatoes; they make good 'stick to the ribs' foods).

But back to Dr. Barnard. You might find his kickstart program to be a nice idea to cleanse your body of junk and to help get you started on a road of better eating habits. His idea is the 'little picture' in the hopes that you get a good start and just continue after 3 weeks of eating plant-based. I think he's on to something.

Here is what he proposes:
3 weeks of plant-based foods
as many whole foods as possible, meaning not much sugar or oil and no animal products

So what is there to eat if you take out meat, sugar and dairy? Oh, my! the possibilities are endless! Shall I give you some examples? I'd love to. I think I'll try to post a sample menu each day for the coming week. See if you won't get excited about trying a 3 week plant-based meal plan. You might decide it is doable!

So for today, here is the first menu. Recipes are below the menu.

Breakfast
1 large green smoothie
or fruit and 'yogurt' parfait (layer fresh fruit, good-for-you granola and soy or coconut yogurt)

Snack
a handful of almonds
apple

Lunch
whole grain wrap spread with hummus or avocado
layered with lettuce, onion, sprouts, shredded carrots, peppers, tomatoes and olives
drizzled with ranch dressing and 'wrapped'
eat the second wrap if you are still hungry
a piece of fruit, if desired

Dinner
Large Garden Salad with Ranch Dressing
Spaghetti and "Sausage"
My Favorite Way to Eat Green Beans

photo credit: Sunny Raw Kitchen
recipe for homemade ranch spices also can be found there

 

 

 

Ranch Dressing

 

1 cup low fat mayo

(or 1/2 c cashews blended with 1/2 c water)

1 c plant-based milk mixed with

1 T lemon juice or vinegar

2 T Penzey's buttermilk ranch seasoning mix

 

Mix together and refrigerate.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Spaghetti and Sausage

 

for the sausage:

(I usually have this made ahead and in the freezer)

 

1 quart lentils, drained

1/2 c whole grain flour

Toss the lentils and flour together and mash slightly.

Add

1 T Italian Sausage seasoning

1 t salt

 

Spread onto a greased cookie sheet and bake at 300*

for several hours or until dry.

Cool and freeze.

 

 

Spaghetti

 

Cook 1 box whole grain spaghetti according to directions on box.

(I like Eden brand ancient grains)

Drain and toss with pasta sauce and sauteed onions, mushrooms, pepper and garlic.

 

Warm the sausage and serve alongside the spaghetti.

 

Enjoy your meal.

If you want dessert, eat some cold pineapples mixed with strawberries.

Or grapes and kiwi and melon.

Or any fruit of your choice.

Of Summer and Ice Cream...



Humidity...it happens even here in the Fingerlakes in the summer, even though most days are pleasantly cool and breezy. Summer just seems to spell 'ice cream' and although we have not bought the traditional dairy, sugar filled ice cream for several years now, we certainly know pleasant replacements for it. I thought I would share some recipes with you that we enjoy in the summer time instead of ice cream as we used to know it.

Strawberry Coconut 'Frosty'

 

Into a 4 cup measure place

1 can coconut milk (like Thai Kitchen unsweetened)

2 c. almond or other plant based milk

1 t vanilla

Whisk together.

Into a Vitamix or powerful blender place

 

4 or 5 c frozen strawberries.

Pour the milk mixture over the berries.

Add 1/4 c sugar or maple syrup, if desired.

Blend til smooth.

 

Mango Peach Frosty

 

4 c coconut milk/almond milk/vanilla mixture poured over

2 cups frozen mango chunks

(I found awesome small chunks in 2 lb bags at Aldi in the seasonal freezer)

2-3 c frozen peaches

Blend until smooth.

 

 

 

 

We enjoy these so much we don't even miss ice cream

(not that ice cream is a must-have food by any means).

I certainly do not miss the sugar headaches and hangovers I used

to have when eating ice cream.

 

What about you.

 Do you

have a

favorite ice cream replacement

 to share?

 

 

Leave a comment and tell me about it.

Homemade Laraballs

A number of months ago, I was introduced to Lara Bars. They are a convenient, healthy snack food for a purse or when one is out and about buying groceries, and hungry enough to buy foods that will not build good health...

There are many flavors and they are all with  no added sugars or other non-whole foods.

Usually date and nut based, they are delicious!

 

My one pick with them is the price.

It is kind of an expensive pick me up when for 20 minutes of

little work, my daughter can whip up a batch of these babies

for a fraction of the cost

(considering that I buy many of my foods in bulk).

 

So here are three of our favorite flavors.

We call them Laraballs because we roll them into balls

instead of having them be flat bars as sold in stores.

 

Enjoy them!

 

Cherry Pie

(my all time favorite)

1 c almonds

1 c pitted medjool dates

1 c dried cherries

1 t vanilla

 

 

Chocolate Chip Brownie

 

1 cup mixed almonds and walnuts

1 c pitted medjool dates

1 cup dark chocolate chips

(I used dairy free chips from nuts.com)

1/4 c cacao powder

 

Chocolate Coconut

 

1 c mixed almonds and walnuts

1 c pitted medjool dates

1 c unsweetened shredded coconut

4 T cacao powder

 

 

For all recipes:

 

1. Grind the nuts in a food processor until they medium-coarse size.

2. Add other ingredients and pulse grind until combined. Sometimes we need to add a bit of water if it is too dry but only a T at a time.

 

3. Shape into small balls.

 

PS...

The cherry ones are totally delectable on their own, but made even more delectable

when dipped in dark, lightly sweetened chocolate. Sprinkle with shredded coconut and freeze.

Apricot Jam

This sauce is an easy alternative to premade jams or frostings. It is thickened with agar, a sea vegetable thickener that has a slightly sweet flavor and contains no sugar or fat.

Ingredients

 

1 cup apple juice concentrate
1 1/2 teaspoons agar powder
1 cup water
1 cup chopped apricots, fresh, frozen, or canned
1 8-ounce can juice-packed crushed pineapple
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger

Directions

Combine apple juice concentrate, agar, and water in a saucepan. Let stand 5 minutes. Bring to a simmer, stirring occasionally, and cook 3 minutes.

Add apricots, pineapple with its juice, and ginger. Stir to mix. Remove from heat and chill thoroughly, 3 to 4 hours.

 

Per serving (1 tablespoon): 14 calories; 0 g fat; 0 g saturated fat; 2.5% calories from fat; 0 mg cholesterol; 0.1 g protein; 3.5 g carbohydrates; 3 g sugar; 0.1 g fiber; 2 mg sodium; 2 mg calcium; 0.1 mg iron; 0.9 mg vitamin C; 41 mcg beta carotene; 0 mg vitamin E
Source: Healthy Eating for Life and to Prevent and Treat Cancer by Vesanto Melina, M.S., R.D.; recipe by Jennifer Raymond, M.S., R.D.

Top O' the Morning to You...



Eating for health means we choose foods that are high on the nutrition scale as many places as we can each day. One way I like to increase my intake of greens, which are about the highest on the list of nutrient dense foods, is by having a green smoothie. There are myriads of recipes out there for these green wonders, and you can experiment with what fruits you like best in smoothies. Here is my present favorite green smoothie recipe, inspired by some friends our family visited in Oklahoma this winter (they had kale growing in their greenhouse in January!):

 

Heather and Holly's Green Smoothie

 

Into a VitaMix or powerful blender place:

1 rounded T orange/pineapple juice concentrate

3 c filtered water

2 frozen banana halves

Then lightly pack roughly chopped kale leaves into the blender jar

Blend til smooth.

Add:

1 c frozen strawberries

1 c frozen mango

 

Blend til smooth. Enjoy a pint now and refrigerate the rest in pint jars til later

(up to 3 days, if it lasts that long!)

 

I usually have this first thing in the morning, then I go do my exercise, then I have a

protein smoothie after my exercise and shower

 (usually while giving spelling words to the boy! and blogging)