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Healthy Eating

Healthy Eating/ HOME/ Homemaking/ How-Tos/ RECIPES

My New Favorite Kitchen Toy

Guess how much time it took me to cut all those veggies?  Looks time consuming, huh?  Well, it wasn’t. It literally took me 3 minutes with my new, handy dandy mandolin!

I have been wanting one of these forever, and found this one for a buck at a garage sale.  It is not fancy, but it is sharp and gets the job done!  It makes eating raw fruits and vegetables fast and fun.  I find that we have greatly increased our veggie and fruit consumption in this house due to this handy gadget.
My girls beg me for apples now that we can slice them so thin.  They liked apples before, but now they eat them like they are candy!  

I like this model for basic slicing, but one of these days I am going to get a mandolin that allows you to adjust the thickness of your slices, like the fancy one below.  That would be great!

{I’m asking for these for Christmas!:)}

**Caution..do not let children use these.  It is very sharp and way too easy to slice a finger.  I’m currently growing back half my fingernail–yea, ick.
Healthy Eating/ RECIPES/ Sides

22 Simple Ways To Eat Fruits And Vegetables

 

 

22 Simple Ways to Eat Fruits And Vegetables

  1. Frozen berries in cold cereal
  2. Frozen berries in oatmeal
  3. A bowl of frozen berries thawed to perfection during dinner in time for dessert
  4. Apple slices almond butter
  5. Bananas sliced on bran flakes for breakfast
  6. Banana slices on whole wheat peanut butter bagel
  7. Celery and peanut butter or cream cheese
  8. Pepper strips and hummus
  9. Cucumber slices and dip
  10. Frozen grapes– so refreshing!
  11. A 6-cup muffin tin full of different colors for snack
  12. Clementine slices on our salads
  13. Frozen mango chunks in a bowl
  14. Edamame with sea salt-my kids favorite
  15. Fruit smoothies made green by blending in spinach
  16. Eggplant in place of beef in our spaghetti sauce
  17. Fruit kabobs-so pretty and fun
  18. Fresh berries in pancakes
  19. Homemade, no-cook berry jam
  20. Sliced berries on ice cream
  21. Spinach salad with mason jars full of vegetable toppings to add themselves
  22. Make our own fresh vegetable and fruit juices using our juicer.
Drinks/ HEALTH/ Healthy Eating

5 Reasons To Drink Lemon Water In The Morning

Number 1

It balances pH–Lemon is an acidic food, but once metabolized, it becomes alkaline.  I work very hard at keeping my body alkaline.  Why?

To put it most simply, alkalies help keep the oxygen in our blood at a safe pH level, and this helps our body heal itself, assimilate nutrients and fight off unwanted sickness.

-Nicole Bennet

 

I have read of many people who have fought their cancer nutritionally by focusing on the body’s pH levels. Kris Carr, of Crazy Sexy Cancer has halted tumors growing in her liver for over 7 years by focusing on nutrition, including alkalizing foods.  I think that is crazy cool.  Even a little crazy sexy cool!

 

I regularly check the pH of my body using these little pH strips.  I now know what foods –GREENS!–will keep my levels where they need to be.  I also believe lemon water helps this process.

Number 2

It keeps skin clear and glowing!   I have noticed this.  Hydration from drinking lemon water is great for moisturizing our skin from the inside out.  Lemon also contains lots of Vitamin C, which helps with wrinkles and blemishes.

Number 3

It kick starts the digestive system–a big glass of lemon water is a great way to start the day.  It encourages the liver to produce bile which in turn aids in digestion.  It increases urination which helps purify it.  It also helps with heartburn and constipation.

Number 4

It helps with weight loss–I have read that keeping the body in an alkaline state helps people lose weight faster.  Lemons are high in fiber pectin, which helps keep one full, longer.  They also have a diuretic effect, which helps with water weight gain.

Number 5

It helps control the coffee habit–I will drink coffee sometimes, but only if I have had my entire glass of lemon water.  Many days I feel like the lemon water wakes me up more than coffee does…

…which brings me to bonus Number 6:

It helps kick the pop habit--I have found that adding lemon to sparkling water and adding a whole lot of ice satisfies any soda craving I might have.  I gave up soda pop the minute I was diagnosed a year ago, and I really don’t miss it.  I don’t think I could stand the sweetness of it now, but I DO miss the fizz, so my “Lemon Spritzer”–lemon +sparkling water+ice–is the perfect solution!

My mom gave me this lemon press.  I just love it.  I think it is cute so it stays out on my counter top, on display, which is perfect since it is used every morning.

I use 1/2 lemon, add ice to a 24 ounce mason jar, and add water to the top.

So easy fun and easy to use!

I save the second half for a refreshing “Lemon Spritzer” (see #6) later in the day.

 When I pour freshly squeezed lemon juice over ice, I get the same feeling one might get when popping the top of their pop can and fizz leaks out, Ahhh…. or maybe the same feeling of the champagne cork popping?  Ok..maybe not THAT good…

My lemon press is super easy to clean.  I just the remove the metal and rinse.

*Tip..use a straw to keep the acidic lemon off your teeth. Remember, it is acidic until digested, then it turns alkaline.

I am not sure where you can get a press exactly like mine.  Like I said, my mom bought it for me, it might have even been from a thrift store.

 

Thanks to your comments below, I am now saving my pennies for these beauties!

Endurance Stainless Steel Drink Staws (Set of 4)

These glass straws are strong, durable, and GORGEOUS.

They offer several sizes, I love that the 12mm will make my daily green smoothie sipping much easier!

The also offer bead free, if you prefer plain glass.

Glass Dharma Set of 4 Simple Elegance 12mm x 8″ drinking straws with cleaning brush

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Healthy Eating/ Meals/ RECIPES

My New Favorite Lunch

I am having a ball exploring different plant-based foods.  My diet has never been more interesting and full of textures and colors.  No more boring sandwiches! 
The plate above consists of:
~French Lentil Soup (I make this recipe about every week!  Yum.)
~Creole Roasted Sweet Potatoes (recipe coming soon, another one I make and snack on all week)
~Spinach Topped with Raw Cashews
~Gluten-Free Lentil Crackers (I eat gluten, but bought them because they were on sale)
~Organic Green Grapes

I’ve also been making TONS of iced green tea every week and love drinking it with my lunch. I make an iced tea concentrate a couple times a week by doubling the tea bags.  I then store it in a mason jar in the refrigerator.  When I want a glass of iced tea,  I just add water and ice to some concentrate in another mason jar.  I sometimes use this Super Easy Iced Tea Concentrate overnight method.  When doing this, it reminds me to quick make my Perfect Iced Coffee recipe, as it too, is an overnight method. One cannot have too many great tasting beverages on hand!:)
Most days, I skip the overnight method and use one of my favorite kitchen appliances, an electric tea kettle.  It is great for heating water to the perfect temperature with just a flick of the button.  I really love it in the cold months, as it keeps the water hot for me all throughout the day.
My favorite brand if green tea Good Earth Lemongrass.  It is one of the only green teas that I don’t have the urge to add sugar to!  It is not bitter and the faint lemon flavor is delish.
What do you eat for lunch?
Do you have a favorite green tea?

Healthy Eating/ RECIPES/ Sides

My Favorite Healthy Snack

My favorite healthy snack lately?  An Apple and Justin’s Maple Almond Butter!
MMMMM!

I have found myself on the go a lot recently, so lately I have been throwing an apple and a packet of Justin’s Maple Almond Butter in my bag, just in case I get the munchies.

It is so convenient, I just take a bite of my apple, then squeeze the almond butter right on.  It tastes like dessert to me, and reminds me of a caramel apple, just not so sticky and sweet.

I love this on Pink Lady apples, and I also love it on green Granny Smith apples.
The sweet almond butter goes perfectly with the tart apple.
Delish!

Books/ Healthy Eating/ How-Tos/ RECIPES

My Favorite Food Rules

Food Rules: An Eater's Manual
by Micheal Pollan
I am a big fan of Micheal Pollan.
He was the first one that I have read who was able to take the incredibly complicated question of
 “What Should I Eat?”
 and answer it in just seven words:
“Eat Food. Not too much. Mostly plants.”
 I read his first book, In Defense Of Food, a year ago and just really jived with it.   I was so happy to see that he came out with a short, easy to read, manual that expands on the answer.
Each page gives a simple tip on what to eat.  I read the book in 30 minutes and loved it.
Here are some of my most favorite tips from the book:
#2 Don’t eat anything your great-grandmother wouldn’t recognize as food.
 
(for example–neon colored tubes of flavored gel called Go-GURT!)
 
 
 
#3 Avoid food products containing ingredients that no ordinary human would keep in the pantry
 
(ethoxylated diglycerides??)
 
 
 
#4 Avoid food products that contain high-fructose corn syrup
 
(it is a reliable marker for a food product that has been highly processed)
 
 
 
#5 Avoid foods that have some form of sugar (or sweetener) listed among the top three ingredients.
 
(exception to this rule, are “special occasion” foods–see Rule 60)
 
 
#6 Avoid food products that contain more than five ingredients.
 
(another sign that it is a highly processed food)
 
 
 
#7 Avoid food products with the word “lite” or the terms “low-fat” or “non-fat” in their names.
 
( Refined carbs can make you fat.  Sugar makes you fat.  Many low-fat or no-fat products boost the sugar and salt to make up for the flavor lost when removing fat)
 
 
 
#10 Avoid foods that are pretending to be something they are not.
 
(imitation butter-aka-margarine-is the classic example.  Artificial sweeteners..)
 
 
 
#11 Eat only foods that will eventually rot.
 
(real food is alive food…therefore it should eventually die)
 
 
 
#12 Eat foods made from ingredients that you can picture in their raw state or growing in nature.
 
(read ingredients on a package of Twinkies or Pringles and imagine what those look like raw or where they grow…ya can’t!)
 
 
 
#19 If it came from a plant, eat it; if it was made in a plant, don’t.
 
 
 
#22 Eat mostly plants, especially leaves
 
(antioxidants, fiber, omega- 3 fatty acids, energy dense!)
 
 
 
#23 Treat meat as flavoring or special occasion food.
 
(become a “flexitarian”–someone who eats meat only a couple times a week)
 
 
 
#25 Eat your colors!
 
(colors from nature are full of polyphenols, flavonioids, carotenoid, which all fight disease!)
 
 
 
#34 Sweeten and salt your food yourself.
 
(you will find you are consuming a fraction as much sugar and salt as you otherwise would–example oatmeal–buy plain not flavored, sweetened or colored!)
 
 
 
#36 Don’t eat breakfast cereals that change the color of the milk.
 
(ha..like that one.  It’s kind of a “duh”)
 
 
 
#37 “The whiter the bread, the sooner you will be dead”
 
(I expand on that here)
 
 
 
#39 Eat all the junk food you want, as long as you cook it yourself.
 
(if you made all the french fries you ate, you would eat them much less often!  Too much work!)
 
 
 
#57 Don’t get your fuel from the same place your car does
 
(Gas stations have become processed corn station.  Ethanol outside and high-fructose corn syrup inside!)
 
 
 
#60 Treat treats as treats.
 
(special occasion food is great as long as every day is not a special occasion.  Save them for weekends or for true special occasions!)
 
 
 
Food Rules: An Eater's Manual
 
In Defense of Food: An Eater's Manifesto
by Micheal Pollan
Healthy Eating/ RECIPES/ Sides

Balsamic Vinegar + Pomegranate Mist For Salads! Yum!

I have been eating soup and salad almost daily since my diagnosis.  It is a great way to get most of my vegetable servings in.  I have loved experimenting with my salads, the goal always to have lots of different colors going on for maximum health benefits.

I have been on the lookout for the perfect salad dressing, and have not been too happy.  There are so many in the grocery store that have high fructose corn syrup in them, or bad oils that I do not want cloggin’ up my body.  The non-fat versions crank up the sugar, in an effort to add the taste back in that is missing, once fat is removed.  The few that I did find that were healthy enough, lacked in the taste department.

Because of all this…I AM SUPER EXCITED ABOUT MY NEW FIND!!

Hello

I was at my local health food store and a cool- looking mist bottle among their salad dressings caught me eye.  It said “Balsamic Vinegar + Pomegranate.  I love both flavors.  I looked at the ingredient list and guess what is in it??

~100% Barrel Aged Balsamic Vinegar from Medena, Italy
~Pomegranate Juice

Just 2 ingredients! Isn’t that a beautiful thing??  Another beautiful thing is that each bottle contains 384 servings!  They are super fun to use–pump 5 times and then spray.

The mist bottle is very cool. So very convenient.  I looked it up on Amazon.com to see if I could get it any cheaper, and if it comes in any other flavors.  It does.  They have just plain Balsamic, Balsamic and Raspberry, Olive Oil Mists, ect.  I noticed they also come in a half size, which would be perfect to throw in your purse to use on the go.

I cut some pepper strips and broccoli florets for a snack, and had a whole bunch of fun spraying them.  It is really, really tasty– so much flavor!  I plan on drizzling my salads with some olive oil, then giving them a mist.  Simple and healthy.

It is a bit pricey- I paid 7.99 for it- but the amount of servings in a bottle helps justify that, plus I plan on re-using the bottle by filling it up with olive oil or my own balsamic vinegar.  I’ll make up for the pomegranate part by sprinkling my salads with pomegranate seeds.

If you wanted to save money, you could skip the Gourme’ Mist all together and just purchase  a spray mist bottle like this one, then fill it with your own Balsamic Vinegar.

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