The first time I ever had a dumpling was in the fall of 1999. My dear friend Rhonda and I decided to take a road trip from Philadelphia to Amish country. After a long day of sightseeing, we stopped off at
an Amish restaurant for dinner. As this was during my vegetarian phase, I was quite
disappointed that the only options open to me at the buffet were pickled corn and apple dumplings. Thankfully, the dumplings were very pleasing.
Since then I’ve had the desire to make dumplings. So much about the wonder of food is the texture. Texture is the reason why I am enamored with chickpeas, cassava, and grits…and dumplings! Can you believe it has taken me over nine years to make dumplings of my own? I was inspired by thistasty root veggie soup recipefrom Eating Well. Root vegetables are very grounding and warming in the winter time. Such an awesome recipe. Aren’t root veggies so pretty?
So, how many of you tried to cleanse this autumn? It can be tricky, but I can not tell you how great it feels to slash processed foods our of your diet. You begin to feel more vibrant, truly. While I rarely eat processed foods, I certainly crave cake from time to time. Not super sweet cake - because I rarely eat sugar, I am annoyingly sensitive to it. It's not the sweetness that I crave, but it's the texture and I'm sorry, but whole grains can not mock cake very well. And there is nothing quite as divine as a piece of cake and tea. So, after some experimenting and blending various recipes together, I came up with a delicious apple cake - perfect for the season! Try it and let me know what you think. Be adventurous and change it up a bit to suit your taste buds!
Apple Cake: Ingredients: 2 1/2 cups diced apples 1/4 cup sugar 1/4 cup pure maple syrup 1 cup whole wheat flour 3/4 teaspoon of baking soda 1/4 teaspoon sea salt 1 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon 1 egg 2/3 cup chunky “sugar-free” apple sauce 1 1/2 Tablespoon vanilla extract
Directions: Preheat oven to 375. Grease 9” or 10” round pan with olive oil cooking spray. Sprinkle diced apples with sugar. Set aside. In a small bowl, mix the flour, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon. In a larger bowl, beat the egg. Mix in the applesauce, vanilla, and maple syrup. Slowly stir the flour mixture into the egg mixture until well-combined.If it's not completely moist, add a little more applesauce. Add the apples. Stir well. Pour into round pan. Bake for 35 minutes.
Cleansing is a wonderful way to adapt to healthier eating patterns. The winter is on the way! After a fun (and hopefully active) summer, how do you prep your body for winter? First of all, you want to adjust your taste buds to warming foods. Your brain will help you with this. When the cold fronts begin welcoming themselves, your brain will tell you that your body needs warm foods.
Do you notice how, with the coming of fall, you begin craving soups and cooked foods more frequently and aren’t as excited about the idea of a fruit salad or a milkshake? This transition indicates your body’s natural inclination to balance itself with your mind, spirit, and nature.
Seasonal eating is imperative in order to sustain optimal health. So, beginning to incorporate more soups and fall vegetables (cabbage, broccoli, kale, cauliflower, squash, root vegetables) into your diet is an amazingly healthy action this time of year. If you want a more profound transformation, fall is an ideal time to implement a detoxification regimen or simply put, fall is a great time to cleanse! A fall cleanse will also help you lean toward healthier options throughout the winter (which will help you greatly during the holidays!)
Cleansing is a fantastic source of vitality; it removes toxins from your system and helps you to feel vibrant and youthful. Not only does it give your digestive system a rest from having to process chemicals, it also empowers your immune system by pumping an abundant of nutrients into your system from wholesome fruits and veggies.
The wide array of diets that have sneaked themselves into books available to consumers everywhere amazes me at times. And one diet recommends the exact opposite of the next. It’s no wonder clients come to me confused all of the time.
Regardless of the merit of these diets, I try to keep myself abreast on the popular diets so that I know where my clients are coming from when they make the decision to work with me.
One diet book that I have had on my shelf for over a year is The Maker’s Diet. The author Jordan Rubin promotes this diet as one that is holistic and assures that this diet will help people to boost their immune system, attain and maintain an ideal weight, have abundant energy, improve their physical appearance, reduce stress and improve digestion. Upon reading these promises on the book jacket, I thought to myself “Interesting, these sound like results that my clients achieve through my approach to health and nutrition.”
As a Christian myself, the title of course captivated me. I was so curious as to how Rubin was able to delineate a way that God designed us to eat and to perhaps mimic the way Christ ate. I often times thought about the food that is mentioned in the bible; it is so wholesome: millet, fish, wine, apples, figs, olives, spelt, barley. I also marveled at the fasts that took place in the bible. It has always occurred to me that people prioritized health in biblical times.
I spent the past month reading The Maker’s Diet. I don’t feel as though I learned a whole lot from this book. However, I am impressed with the memoir-type element of this book. Years ago, Rubin had a SEVERE case of IBS and was able to heal himself by following what he now calls the Maker’s Diet. The guy was deathly ill, weighing in at 110 pounds at one point in time. Rubin’s transformative diet consisted of natural meats and grains (not manufactured in big factory farms), fermented dairy forms (not ultra-pasteurized and pumped with antibiotics and hormones), a lot of vegetables, and fruits and a soil supplement called HSOs. Rubin also mentions the way in which prayer, aromatherapy, and therapeutic music helped in the recovery process.
I do believe that Rubin’s approach to dieting s quite holistic and holds merit. He talks about the importance of “clean” food, which I agree with. I think we are certainly meant to eat foods as naturally as possible. How much healthier we would all be if we ate wholesome foods derived from the earth as opposed to foods that have been sitting on a shelf in the grocery store for longer than my book has been sitting on my bookshelf or foods that have come from animals but have been processed to the maximum degree.Rubin also talks about avoiding toxic health, beauty, and household products, which I also agree with.
I applause Rubin for dissecting several popular diets and declaring what factors are good about each diet and what factors make the diets ineffective. He shares helpful resources in the book and also has quite appealing recipes! I’ll let you know when I try some out.
Now, on to what I do not like about the book. The book did not delve deeply into the connection between God and the diet. I think the book could have just as well been called The Natural Diet. Also, Rubin’s suggestions on how to avoid getting sick are somewhat implausible suggestions: never flying on an airplane, don’t swim in chlorinated pools (Hello! I’m a triathlete…if I were to swim in lakes, etc., all of the time then I’d have bacteria to worry about!!! And without indoor pools I’d never be able to swim from October-May! And might I add, swimming is amazing for relaxation. ), don’t get tattoosor pierce the skin ( I haven’t seen much research that shows serious consequences of those – I say moderation!), don’t wear contacts, no aerobic exercise (instead something he calls functional fitness).
I’ll be fair and say that I already do follow some of his suggestions like not using fluoride in my toothpaste, and I do breathe with long, deep breaths. Basically, I take his advice with a grain of salt. My approach to nutrition and health is that it has to be NATURAL and also SCIENTIFALLY BASED. I have not seen any literature on contact lenses and the destruction of your immune system.
I do believe God wants us to eat naturally and healthfully…these foods give us the vitality to work for peace, and to follow our callings to make the world a better and more just place! He wants us to respect our bodies as our temples. I also believe though that God would never want us to become extremely compulsive and restrictive about how we live our lives.We have to enjoy life!
If your diet consists of many processed foods, then I think following Rubin’s 40 day diet may benefit you – it’s almost like a cleanse (I’ll be writing about cleansing in my next blog entry, so stay tuned). He also recommends supplemental exercises, cleansing drinks, and vitamins, and aromatherapy throughout the day. Though I think these are great ideas (especially the aromatherapy), I think it would be unrealistic for the average person to be able to follow his plan to a T.
If you have read this book, I’d love to see your comments in the comment section!
Paul Newman may no longer be here with us, but he has left his activist mark on earth and I am ever so grateful for that. His presence is very apparent in my home. Brent and I use Fig Newmans, yes Newmans not Newtons for our cycling fuel! Sadie induldges in her Paul Newman peanut butter dog treats daily. I can thank Paul Newman for Sadie's latest skill - learning how to shake, with BOTH paws!
The recent passing of Paul Newman inspired me to grab a book off my shelf that I have skimmed through yet hadn't read fully. It's a book written by Paul Newman's daughter, Nell Newman. I ended up staying up that night to read the book in its entirety. The book is The Newman's Own Organics: Guide to a Good Life: Simple Measures that benefit you and the Place you Live. In the book, Nell shares with us how she convinced Paul of the importance of eating organically by surreptitiously preparing him an organic Thanksgiving meal. She brought an organic turkey and the "works" on a plane packed in ice from her California home to New England! Paul marveled the meal and Nell revealed to him that it was ORGANIC! And so began the Newman's product chain, an amazing company that donates all of its royalties to charities. And those Fig Newmans that I love so much were the first fig bars to ever use organic figs!
Okay on to the book review: This book is an essential guide, especially for the newbie environmentalist or the newbie holistic health enthusiast. Newman shares with you easy ways that you can lead a healthy lifestyle and simultaneously reduce your carbon and water footprints (buzzwords not of hers, but of the media these days). The chapters are organized by such topics as: food, transportation, shopping, pet care, and cleaning.
While I have wholeheartedly practiced many of her suggestions for years, I still found the book useful in reminding me of the importance of some practices that I have neglected to some degree. For instance, no longer am I a vegetarian and I am fine with that (my body and mind function way more optimally with some animal protein), but I was reminded of WHY a a primarily vegetarian based diet is better for the environment. Here's what Nell has to say "Producing meat and other animal products taxes our planet unduly. Seven calories of vegetarian food must be consumed to create a single calorie of animal protein. It takes the equivalent of seventy-eight calories of fuel to create a single calorie of feedlot beef. When you consciously choose to eat less meat and more grains, vegetables, fruit, and legumes, you are helping to reduce the burden of food production on the earth." Plus, you FEEL better when you eat more vegetables!
I have committed to some more environmentally-friendly practices since reading this book. For instance, when I put leftovers in the fridge, I now REFUSE to use plastic wrap. Instead, I put them in a container with a lid. If I am out of containers, I put the leftovers in a bowl with a plate over it.
Oh, and I was ever so pleased to find out that zucchini is a great snack for dogs. I've been giving it to Sadie for a while - and she loves it. I also give her the carrot pulp leftover from carrot juice making. Nell says that carrot juice itself is an excellent supplement for our doggie pals.
So if you are new to the environmental movement or a total know-it-all, I guarantee you will enjoy this book! Pick it up today! Try to find it in a USED bookstore or check it out of your library!
Many times my clients claim that they are unable to prepare meals quickly. We live in a high-tech society. The beauty of this is not to turn to microwave meals, but to instead use technology to prepare fresh food more quickly. So, I've decided to dedicate a blog or two a month to great kitchen appliances. My most favorite kitchen appliance is probably my Cuisinart Food Processor.
And these days I'm obsessed with it! I had to survive nearly a year without it! You see, in December when my husband and I moved into our new home, somewhere along the way, we lost the main blade to the food processor. I mean really, how many people can LOSE a blade to a FOOD PROCESSOR? After months of not finding it, I finally decided to order it from smallappliance.com. And have I ever been food processing away since then.
Food processors are great for making dips and spreads, an easy way to flavor and season any meal. My latest favorite is pesto. I made pesto - encrusted chicken. We then use leftover pesto for spreads on our sandwiches or a spread on a homemade pizza.
If you and your significant other need more intimacy, there's no better place than in the kitchen! Oops, sorry - that's not really where this blog post is going. This blog post is a response to my post last week, where I informed you that I'm dedicating myself to more cooking these days!
I thought it would be nice for me to share with you all the sort of dinners I usually create for my husband and I. Here's a look at last week. He actually made the dinners on Thursday and Friday, so he gets credit too! This way you can see how two BALANCED health freaks eat!
MONDAY: VEGETARIAN MEAL # 1: Indian dahl with prepackaged naan and steamed kale with sauteed garlic, 3 juicy fresh tomatoes chopped and olive oil. Dahl is so easy to make, saute a chopped onion in a generous amount of olive oil. Add 1 part lentils and two and a half parts water. Bring to a boil. Simmer and mix many times. Then season. I add cumin, Herbamare salt, ground pepper, a bit of cayenne pepper, and a sah of balsalmic vinegar (gives it a nice little bite).
TUESDAY: Thank you Eating Well. CHICKEN THIGHS WITH SCALLIONS, COLLARD GREENS, AND PEARS OVER BROWN RICE. If you've already clicked on the link to the recipe, you can see that I changed it up a bit. I like to do that. I didn't have currant jam, so I used lemon and it made quite a wonderful combination. I added the collard greens because this recipe defintely needed some more green. I used two pears instead of one and I used kuzu instead of cornstarch as it's a healthier alternative. And I simply enjoy scallions more than leeks! Might I add that this was my first time ever cooking chicken thighs, it took me about 40 minutes just to cut the fat off. I wasn't too grossed out though and the flavor of this dish was amazing. I couldn't imagine it with chicken breast instead of thighs.
WEDNESDAY: VEGETARIAN MEAL # 2 Thank you again Eating Well for the idea anyway. In their latest issue, there was a recipe for Sweet Potatoe and Red Pepper Pasta. It sounded tasty minus the pasta, so I put a healthy Moroccan spin on it and served it with millet instead (kind of like couscous), and I also added raisins, which added a VERY nice sweetness. Also, I used WAY WAY more parsely than they suggested in order to get in some more greens!!!
THURSDAY: This was an "easy night" for Brent and I. Both of us had crazy schedules, so we just threw together a "healthy" taco kit. We used ground turkey and added shredded lettuce from the farmer's market, chopped cherry tomatoes from the farmer's market, and sliced avocado. And we only used half of the spice packet - it still tastes fantastic and then we don't have all the added salt. We had a nice hearty mixed green salad on the side too. YUM!
FRIDAY: VEGETARIAN MEAL # 3" Brent's absolutely delicious homemade pizza. I can't say enough about his talent in pizza making. This time he used sauteed spinach, lots of garlic, basil, sauce (obviously), ricotta cheese, pecans and peaches!!! It was so tasty!
So, as you can see, we aren't PERFECT eaters, but we try very hard to get in healthy nutrients daily. Lately, we've been trying to do vegetarian meals every other night and it's working out quite well.
As an epicurean, when finances allow so, I enjoy dining at fine European-style restaurants. The top-notch quality of the food is SO evident in the taste. Lately, tons of research has been published on the benefits of a Mediterranean diet. In fact, a recent study conducted by Harvard researchers found that a Mediterranean diet is MORE effective for weight loss and cholesterol and triyglyceride reduction than a standard low-fat diet. WOW!
I recently read a poem about a Mediterranean meal, written by the USA's 15th Poet Laureate, Charles Simic and I was moved. Years ago, I wrote a poem about the American diet. I dug it up today and reworked it a little bit. See for yourselves the difference between the two diets. Which would you rather feed your body, mind, and soul?
The Mediterranen Diet as told in The Invitation By Charles Simic
We are going to serve a late lunch
For a few close friends in the garden.
We'll start with a cold squid salad,
A pot of black and green olives,
And a loaf of homemade bread to wipe
The garlic and the oil off our plates.
Between the sips of the yellow wine.
And if some bird graciously assents
To sing for us after the grilled lamb,
The cheeses and the wild blueberries,
We'll raise our glasses and toast
The golden light between the leaves,
The shadows on the lawn lengthening.
And keep them raised till the song is over.
The American diet as told in Gas Station Goodies By Shannon Martin Morehouse
Snacks, Soda, Beer, Candy, Coffee!
Premium American Happiness!
Chew on a Slim Jim
Slurp-Up a 32-ounce Pepsi
Indulge in a Hostess Cherry Pie
Don’t forget those Skittles
or Smarties.
Yum-
Solidified Corn Syrup!
Grab some Dorritos
or Ruffles Cheddar Cheese
potato chips.
Don’t forget the
sour cream and chives
canned dip.
What good are chips
without dip?
And mmmm all these things
contain monosodium-glutamate
the headache-creating tasty additive.
Can’t live without that!
How ‘bout a Snapple,
the best stuff on earth!
Peach-flavored tea,
again, gotta love
that main ingredient,
High Fructose Corn Syrup!
Yum!
Make room for Cheetos,
3 Musketeers,
Hawaiian Fruit Punch
and remember a chili
dog for your lunch.
Oh!
Grab some Michelob
for only $3.99!
What a deal!
Can’t go wrong!
You’re getting tired
are you?
Oh, then you gotta get
the French Vanilla Cappuccino,
gas station style,
so sweet,
but hey, why not add
four sugars
and some flavored creamers
with the partially hydrogenated oils and all,
it’s free!
You’re good to go!
But don’t forget to pay for your
oh-so-cheap
gas
along with you
snackssodabeercandycoffee.
Now, don't get me wrong The Invitation meal would not be healthy if consumed daily, but it sure the heck beats the processed junk we thrive on here in the USA. What I admire about Simic is how he marries the concepts of nature and fine, natural homemade cooking together. We're meant to collaborate with nature in our lives, not destroy it or defeat it, or out-do it, which is exactly what processed food attempts to do. So, please, find time this week to make a homemade meal and nourish yourself!!!
As for me, it's my goal to do this DAILY!
All for now folks! And I'm sure you'll see more of Charles SImic in my blog. I will get to hear him speak at the Geraldine Dodge Poetry Festival, which I've been attending now for six years!
Tonight I began reflecting on my journey into holistic health and how it really has optimized my quality of life. I feel vibrant most of the time, positive most of the time, and well, balanced. I'm in control of serious illnesses that used to control me and put simply "I feel good."
As I was reflecting, I began praying that more people would give themselves this gift of a holistic lifestyle centered around a healthy diet. And then it occurred to me - I could probably positively influence people by telling people what holistic nutrition isn't as opposed to what it is!
So here is my dissection of Misconception # 1:
If I'm going to take on a holistic health lifestyle, I have to adapt a bland, boring, macrobiotic or vegetarian induced insane diet.
This is absolutely incorrect. Yes, I advice my clients to introduce some macrobiotic and vegetarian type foods into their diet like more fish, whole grains, and vegetables, but BELIEVE me, I'm realistic and an epicurean at that, so I know how crucial it is for food to be enjoyable. And serioulsy, I know so many junk food vegetarians - this goes to show that vegetarianism does not equal healthy!
Understand that your body is like a car and needs the best fuel in order to run properly. A holistic diet is about making small changes to improve your nutritional intake. And these changes can be flavorful and tasty! Incorporate more greens into your diet, and season them with spices, be adventurous and try spices you haven't used before. More and more studies are showing how spices have key nutrients that can keep us healthy and prevent serious illnesses like cancer and cardiovascular disease. Honor your body. Meat is okay, just make sure it's lean and top quality. I do promote organic meats as they are not treated with chemicals that can harm our body. And guess what? They taste better too!
When you start viewing your body as a temple and when you start feeling healthy from consuming healthy foods, your worldview will change. It really will. You'll see that a holistic diet is about balance. And part of this balance is between taste and healthfulness.
And you know what else is involved in this balance - knowing that chocolate mouse is FINE! A pint of Guinness is fantastic. And for me, a good ol' platter of fish-n-chips is A-OK. Once you've adopted a healthy diet, you can eat these "unhealthy" foods once and a while and savor them knowing that they can't harm you because you have the armor of a healthy diet and lifestyle protecting you!
Are you curious about my blog title? What I'm referring to is not an actual ashram, but my home environment. I was away visiting my family in central New York for the past few days and now I'm back home and back to the grind (I hate that phrase, but it's true in a sense, I have A LOT of clients to catch up with, calls to return from organizations who would like to book me to speak at various functions, and many writing/editing deadlines to complete).
But the most important factor is that I feel RELAXED and FOCUSED. Some may say that it was my time away that rejuvenated me, but no, that's not it. My home soothes me. I'm burning Nag Champa incense. Brent made me a tasty omlette with fresh farmer's market tomatoes, asparagus, potatoes, basil, and olives. I'm eating the omlette over greens that I picked up when I was visiting my family. Finger Lakes lettuces are incomparable--I swear they're tastier than lettuces I've had in France, Italy, and Switzerland!
I'm drinking a big glass of water with sliced lemon. I'm playing ultra cheesy lifestyle music (thanks to satellite radio, which I'll thank even more when I change the channel---ahhh, even nicer, Celtic harp music). My shutters are open and a nice breeze is soothing me yet not blowing my papers all over the place. The flourishing house plants make me smile, and I'll feel even happier when we welcome a new doggie into our home.
How is your home environment? My clients sometimes look at me funny when I ask them such questions. "Aren't you supposed to be my nutritionist?" they may think. But I address nutrition holistically, which goes way beyond the food you eat. Healthy food is critical and is a BIG PART of achieving balance. Trust me, I wouldn't feel so relaxed and simultaneously focused right now if I were slurping down a diet coke and chomping on a cheeseburger!!! But beyond food, you want to feed yourself things that uplift you! A healthy home environment is KEY! How do you feel in your home? People are a part of your home too - make sure you nurture those relationships. If you are in a shaky roommate situation - get out! If you are living with a "former" significant other b/c you can't afford rent on your own, trust me, you'll feel a million times better if you get out and prioritze your health and sanity. Make your home your ashram; it feels amazing!
When I have company over these days, I am delighted to offer them a drink because I get to share with them my latest experiment: Iced Pomegranate Green tea with sliced lime. It's so refreshing and so excellent for you. Green tea is filled with disease fighting antioxidants as are pomegranates. And the limes add such a refreshing tang (think of the way that limes make your Corona actually taste good).
Here's how to make it. Bring a large teapot almost to a boil (green tea tastes better when the water isn't too hot. With piping-hot water, you will actually "overcook" the green tea, making it taste bitter). Pour water in a 2-quart pitcher. Add 4 tea bags. Let brew for an hour. Slice two limes. Toss limes and a tray of ice cubes in pitcher. Refrigerate for an hour and voila, it's ready to enjoy!
This past weekend I had the GREAT pleasure of competing in the Mini-Musselman Triathlon. This is a pretty big deal for me. I casually competed in tris years ago, and got the itch to do them again a couple of years ago. And obstacles kept creeping in the way of my ability to compete. An illness here, an injury there. You know how it goes. This year I was determined to recover from yet another injury (a herniated disc and torn hamstring) and I was GOING TO COMPETE in a triathlon.
I registered for the Mini Mussel in April; at that point I was still unable to run after my injury, which happened in December! In June, I began running again (on trails), and July 4, I ran a 4-mile race just to see if running was possible - and I didn't do all that bad - 32:40. My legs were killing for four days though b/c it was my first time running on pavement since the winter. I rolled them out on a foam roller and felt good to go when we left for Geneva, NY on July 10.
I had a wonderful fueling meal the night before the race (I BROUGHT MY RICE COOKER WITH ME). I had steamed asparagus on brown rice with rotisserie chicken (sans the skin). I also had a big salad with mixed baby greens, cucumbers, olives, and avocado.
In the morning, bright and early, I had some hearty granola with rice milk. And at 9:04 AM, I was OFF in Seneca Lake. I took the swim slow (500 yards in the water and about 100 yards into the transition area in just over 11 minutes). The bike was hard, but I passed quite a few people on the climbs, which made me feel strong. I did the 15.7 miles in 56 minutes. And the run was difficult - I haven't even done a brick workout this year so I totally forgot that jello-leg feeling. My 5K was 28:00. But I did it and placed pretty decently in my age group! Next year, I'm aiming for a total time of 1 hour 35 minutes, now that I know what to expect. There will be one or more tris this year. I'm just so psyched to be healthy and competing again!
I think everyone should TRY A TRI (even if it's just once). It's so much fun!
As you are probably learning about me, I read A LOT. Isn't this a requirement for writers? And I don't particularly favor one genre over another, or one print form over another. I read magazines, the New York Times, academic journals, biographies, novels, and yes some chick lit. A woman needs to read some fluffy stuff every now and then!
You probably also realize that I'm not one to run out and get the latest NYT bestseller. I have far too many books on my "To Read" list to afford that luxury!
My latest read is Elizabeth Gilbert's Eat Pray Love. Gilbert documents her incredible journey from depression and despair to self love and communion with God. Now, some of you may automatically think "chick-lit" but I assure you that it is not. The fact that this is a true story alone gives the book so much merit.
Gilbert's prose is witty, intelligent, and honest. Her journey starts on a bathroom floor crying in despair over her crumbling marriage, and moves through a divorce, an intense love affair, and onto the discovery that she needs a year to herself. And this is where the book comes in. She travels to Italy to delve into the joy of food, to an ashram in India to learn how to pray, and to Indonesia to learn from a medicine man, only to find the love of her life.
It's Gilbert's honesty that makes the book such a worthwhile read. Regardless of your religious beliefs or lack thereof, Gilbert's desire to connect to her God, and to live the life her God wants her to live is so powerfully revealed in her writing. My two favorite quotes in this book are:
"When you sense a faint potentiality for happiness after such dark times, you must grab onto the ankles of that happiness and not let it go until it drags you face first out of the dirt--this is not selfishness, but obligation. You were given life; it is your duty (and your entitlement as a human being) to find something beautiful within life no matter how slight."
"I want God to play in my bloodstream the way sunlight amuses itself on water."
This summer, I encourage you to read Eat, Pray, Love. I especially recommend this book for anyone who has recently experienced a painful divorce, or any form of despair. In addition to several nutrition articles from peer-reviewed journals, as well as Eating Well articles and my weekly New York magazine, I'm now reading Michael Cunningham's The Hours. Even though this book is fiction and has nothing to do with healthy living or nutrition, I may just have to write a review because the writing is brilliant.
The last time I was in New York City, I had to pick up some asparagus at the Union Square Green Market and I'm so glad that I did. All I did was simply steam it and it made the tastiest compliment to my grilled cajun catfish dinner.
I found some great asparagus recipes here. I intend to try them VERY soon. I encourage you to do the same!
Okay, I'll stop spewing off recipes now. I'm starting to remind myself of Forrest Gump:
"There's, um, shrimp kebabs, shrimp creole, shrimp gumbo, pan fried, deep fried, stir fried. There's pineapple shrimp and lemon shrimp, coconut shrimp . . . "
Seriously, asparagus is a great great compliment to your spring and summer meals! I recently wrote an article about it. If you want to know more, keep reading:
Asparagus - Your Luxury Veggie
Asparagus is such a versatile vegetable—it’s tasty raw and steamed, it’s delicious in risottos and quiches, and it’s even a popular side at the most esteemed steakhouses in the world! In fact, asparagus has always been considered a luxury vegetable. It was highly prized in ancient Rome, Egypt, and Greece. In Europe, its status thrived under the reign of Louis XIV, who encouraged its production.Here are just some of the reasons why you should welcome this luxury vegetable into your diet:
-Asparagus is rich in iron, boasting about 15 percent of the daily-recommended value.
-Do you know that vegetarian forms of iron are much more absorbable when combined with foods rich in vitamin C? With asparagus, you have no need to worry about finding a food rich in vitamin C in order to absorb the iron because one cup of asparagus has more then 30 percent of the daily-recommended value of vitamin C.
-A rich source of folate (almost 70 percent of your daily recommended value), asparagus is EXCELLENT for women who are pregnant or breastfeeding as folate is essential for the production of new cells.
-Asparagus contains more than 100 percent of the daily recommended value of Vitamin K. Vitamin K is great for the blood and your bones!
-Asparagus has a natural diuretic effect. This means that it can be effective in treating problems involving inflammation like arthritis, bursitis, tendonitis, and PMS-related water retention. Inflammation is also involved in heart disease and cancer – so asparagus can help in prevention!
-Containing health-promoting “friendly” bacteria, asparagus is great for your intestines!
Though asparagus is grown throughout the spring here in Pennsylvania (and throughout most of the USA), it’s peaking these next couple of weeks! Stop by the Easton Farmer’s Market and pick up a bunch. There’s no better time than now to invite asparagus into your home. Buying it local is the way to go—it will stay fresher longer. To make it last close to a week, store it in your fridge, wrapped in a damp paper towel.If you’re feeling especially brave, try white asparagus (milder flavor than green asparagus) or purple asparagus (which has a fruity taste).
(Note: The photo of asparagus was taken by Maria Quiroga)
As many of you know, not only am I a holistic nutritionist, but also, I’m a holistic sports nutritionist. Now, let me tell you, this can be one challenging profession!
Why? Well, first of all, I primarily work with endurance athletes: runners, cyclists, triathletes. I’ve been a competitive runner for 20 years myself. Endurance athletes need a lot of calories! They also need a way to get protein and nutrients into their body quickly after working out (within 45 minutes ideally)! As a proponent of wholesome nourishing foods, it’s difficult for me to endorse many sports nutrition products as they are extremely processed, which in the long run, I hate to say, will result in setbacks for these athletes.
However, I’m also a realist. I understand that it isn’t always possible to prepare a healthy meal after an intense endurance workout. There are only so many hours in a day.I do not promote soy protein (that’s another blog in and off itself – a lot of research has been conducted on the harmful effects of soy. In smalll quantities and especially if it is fermented (miso, tempeh, etc.), it can be a healthy add-on to any diet, but not in bulk quantities). Whey protein is an easy way to get in some healthy protein after a workout and will help your muscles to recover. Because of the naturally occurring branched chain amino acids in whey, you will also find that it will prevent you from becoming burnt out from your workouts.
A lot of whey protein mixes can be incredibly processed. Some harmful ingredients include malodextrin, yeast, high fructose corn syrup, artificial flavors, or sweeteners like Acesulfame Potassium. You want to make sure that the whey is organic or at least from cows that have not been given the rBGH (recombinant bovine growth hormone). Also avoid “texturized” whey protein (as it likely has MSG in it).
I believe that athletes shouldn’t have to spend a fortune to pursue their passion and goals (We already know how expensive equipment can be). So, when I research the ideal products for clients, I also bear in mind the cost. Happily, the Wegman’s generic whey protein meets my high standards.However, the ultimate winner of the best whey protein for me is the California Academy of Health’s Whey protein. They have research to back up their all-natural ingredient list. And the way that they process their whey provides for an extensive amount of amino acids that will support a healthy immune system and ultimate muscle recovery. Additionally, their whey actually has fiber (unlike Wegmans). I presume this is because the CAOH’s whey protein has more L-Glutamine, which is probably the most needed ingredient for great intestinal health. To order this product, or to read more about it, click here.
While everyone is running out to grab Michael Pollan’s latest book In Defense of Food, I have just finished reading his copyrighted 2006 New York Times bestseller, The Omnivore’s Dilemma. What an incredibly thought-provoking account of the United States’ sad disconnect from the food that we eat.
As a holistic health counselor for the past six years, one of my goals has been to encourage people to ingest the most nourishing food as possible. I understand the reality of their situations and Pollan certainly confirms this reality in his book: we live in a culture of convenience. It’s hard to even find fresh food. Other concerns that people have is that organic or local food is expensive. Yes, it is, but you get what you pay for!
If you thought the truths exposed in Fast Food Nation or Supersize Me repulsed you wait until you read this book. Before reading the The Omnivore’s Dilemma, I already took ages to shop for groceries (I’m a manic label reader), but after reading this book, I don’t think anyone will ever want to step foot in a grocery store with me. For instance, did you know that the cyrystalline fuctose, ascorbic acid, dextrose, lactic acid, lysine, HFCS, xanthan gum, and modified or unmodified starch, are all derived from corn? I’ve strayed away from products with corn for years because I know that corn in this country is genetically modified and inauthentic. I feel as though we’re not meant to eat things that are artificial—it messes up the food chain! And up until reading this book, the only corn-derived “chemical” I knew of was high-fructose corn syrup. So, yes, you will learn a lot when you read this book.
I liked the structure of The Omnivore’s Dilemma. It is broken into three parts: The first section discusses industrial farming; the second, organic food, both on the industrial level as well as the local level; and in the third section, Pollan experiments with hunting and gathering. Each section concludes with a meal representing the particular production of food-- a cheeseburger and fries from McDonald's; roast chicken, vegetables and a salad from Whole Foods; and grilled chicken, corn and a chocolate soufflé (made with fresh eggs) from a sustainable farm; and, finally, mushrooms and wild pig, from a forest near his home in California.
Pollan does an incredible job of submerging himself into the particular environments of each section. He visits industrial farms and even tries to follow the life of a particular cow from its birth two weeks prior to being shipped to an industrial farm to its death—steer 534, the poor fella. Pollan works on a small sustainable organic farm in Virginia and even participates in slaughtering the chickens (I certainly winced quite a bit here). Honestly though, Pollan reveals so many interesting facts about how unhealthy meat and processed food is in this country. For instance, when you read a label on chicken or beef that says “vegetarian-fed,” don’t let the marketing fool you. The vegetarian grains that these animals eat are highly processed granules of corn and soy. So unnatural!!!
Pollan has a sense of humor too. This book is satisfying on so many levels. After reading it, you will feel like an educated consumer and you will have had a few good laughs as well. Take for example Pollan’s first attempt at hunting—absolutely hysterical! All in all, this book only reaffirms my desire to bring health and wellness back to basics!!!
