Fourth Cup Vegetable Soup

This recipe takes vegetables from the list of the ones that take more calories to digest than they contain. Be sure to use a frying pan with straight sides because the whole soup will be cooked in it.

1/4 C. chopped Onions
1/4 C. chopped Celery
1/4 C. sliced Carrots
1/4 C. cut Green Beans
1/4 C. Broccoli Florets
1/4 C. chopped Green Cabbage
1/4 C. chopped Bell Pepper
A handful Baby Spinach Leaves
3 C. Vegetable Broth

Spray a frying pan with non-stick spray and saute fresh vegetables except Spinach and Broth. When just fork tender, add Broth and bring to a boil. Simmer for just a few minutes and remove from heat. Add the handful of Spinach and stir in while soup is hot, just before serving. Serves 2

Dr. Joel Fuhrman's Nutritarian Food Pyramid

Let's compare food pyramids for just a few minutes.
The University of Michigan was on the right track with their Healing Foods Pyramid, and I do like that they include water, but I think this new one by Dr. Fuhrman is better.
What do you think?
For more information on The Nutritarian Food Pyramid,
click here.

Cream of Potato Soup

When I come off a fast of more than 3-4 days I like to ease my body into it. (I've tried eating heavier foods and meat right after a fast and it's not worth the belly ache!) So, for breakfast I have a smoothie to reintroduce fiber. For lunch I like to have a nice cream soup, bringing back cooked foods and some soy protein. Then for dinner I'll have a big green salad. I use a little apple cider vinegar as a dressing usually, because avocado or olives serve as the oil.
This is today's cream soup.
1 sm. Red Onion
1 Stalk Celery
1 Carrot
1 chunk Sweet Potato
2 sm. White Potatoes
Opt. A couple of Mushrooms
Bouillon Cubes enough to flavor 2C. liquid
Water
2 C. Soymilk

Spray a frying pan with Olive Oil nonstick spray. Add Veggies (about 2 C. total) and about 1/2 C. Water. Cook til veggies are barely soft, adding enough water to the pan to keep the juices liquid. This will save both flavor and nutrients for the soup instead of leaving them stuck on the bottom of the pan.

Pour 2 C. Unsweetened Soymilk into a blender. Add the veggies and juices. Blend til smooth and serve in a nice big mug. Makes about 4 C., enough for 2, 2 C. servings. Garnish with Parsley and Black Pepper.

5 + 8 = -18.5

Well, after 5 days at the beginning of October and now 8 days more of juicing only, I have lost 18 and a half pounds. David and I are enjoying trips to local farmer's markets for fresh organic produce. This last Saturday after shopping for fruits and veggies we found ourselves in a department store buying David some smaller clothes! This combined with what he was doing before has added up to some great changes for him, too! Good things are happening here at our house. Hope they are at yours, too.
Have a happy, healthy day!!
Food photo

I Coulda Had A V-8 ...wait a minute, I DID Have A V-8!

Here is my recipe for fresh V-8 Juice:

3 Tomatoes
2 Celery Stalks
1-2 Carrots
1-2 Kale Leaves
1 sm. Green Onion
1 handfull of Spinach
1/2 sm. Beet
1/3-1/2 lg. Cucumber
1/4 Red or Yellow Bell Pepper

Actually, I guess it's V-9 Juice. I added a green onion.
Sooo good!! Ya gotta try it!

(This great photo came from... www.v8vegetablejuice.blogspot.com )

Juicing

Fourteen pounds ago I started juicing. Five days at the beginning of October, and now again, only this time I'm going for 2 weeks. This is day 4 and I'm really happy about how good I feel! I have increased energy and my thinking is better. I've been able to feel the happy ache of cleansing lungs and liver and head, so I know I'm getting good results already.
I've done cleanses in the past with water only, but it's more difficult both to do and to work into your regular daily life style. The plan is to become primarily plant-based in order to make the changes permanent in the most healthy way possible!
I guess you might say I've made a new lifetime friend, my juicer.
The one I have now is a Jack LaLanne, but I see a more powerful Breville on the horizon!

The Purple Sweet Potato

This being my favorite time of year, I look forward to Winter Squash, Pumpkin Pie and Sweet Potatoes.
When we were in Hawaii we went to a buffet restaurant at the Polynesian Cultural Center where a potato salad was offered that was made from the purple yam, or sweet potato and it was delicious. Only recently did I learn that purple yams come from Okinawa!It was on Okinawa that I first tried "ube" (or purple sweet potato) ice cream. Yummy!Here is a recipe that is very satisfying and fun to serve to friends and family if you have an Asian market nearby that carries them. I got mine in Fresno. They are only available until the weather gets cold and they can't be stored in the refrigerator, so now is the time to buy and use them, before they're gone.

Okinawan Sweet Potato Salad:

1 1/2-2 lbs. Purple Yams, peeled and cubed
1 C. Celery, chopped
1/2 C. Sweet Onion, chopped
1/3 C. Mayo, good quality
2 T. Olive Oil
2 T. Coconut Oil
2 T. Apple Cider Vinegar, good quality
1 T. Lemon Juice
1 T. Chives
1 T. Parsley
Salt, to taste

Boil yams 5-7 minutes or till cooked but not mushy. Drain and add remaining ingredients while yams are still warm. Combine thoroughly and chill overnight.

"Let Food Be Your Medicine", Hippocrates

Netflix is running several documentaries regarding eating and health, which I have watched with great interest. So much so that I am on a juice fast after seeing the results that Joe Cross had in his quest for improved health that he journals in "Fat, Sick and Nearly Dead". In two days I have lost 5 1/2 pounds and I feel great.

But I just finished watching Frontline's "The Medicated Child" (also on Netflix) and I could hardly believe what I saw! Well, actually, I can believe it, but it breaks my heart and makes me angry at this "system" that most of us have been taught to trustingly and innocently follow trying to take good care of ourselves and our families.
I don't profess to be any kind of an expert but as a thinking individual who has been reading alternative health care books for decades I am so very saddened by the fact that America's children are paying such a huge price.
It is my hope that anyone who reads this little piece will consider the insight of Hippocrates who said "Let food be your medicine", and may I add that in doing this we should also consider removing the non-foods, like chemicals, the over-processed and artificial substances from our diet at the same time... or sooner! In "The Medicated Child" not one word is ever mentioned about diet or eating more fruits and veggies. Instead children are filmed eating ice cream and corn dogs and they don't know why they're sick!!
Many thanks again to you Netflix and film producers and yes, some doctors too, :) who put forth time, money and effort to educate individuals and parents on this vital issue, through programs like "Food Matters", "Fat, Sick and Nearly Dead" and " Forks Over Knives". At some point we may hopefully come to realize that our medical profession is wonderful when we need help after we've been injured but most know very little about how to get and keep people truly healthy.
In my humble, albeit emphatic opinion, why not try cleaning up our diets and doing a bit of reading in order to know for ourselves how to cure what ails us. Better yet, how about preventing those ailments altogether.

Mastering The Art Of Coco's Curry - the journey begins...

We're home from Okinawa, Japan and what a wonderful time we had!! Our daughter's family now includes a beautiful addition and we welcome little Miss Olivia.
They took us to Coco Ichibanya Curry House twice and I fell in love! Here are pictures I found online of Coco's:This is a scoop of Potato Salad on top of shredded cabbage which is on top of a bed of lettuce. I chose to have mine served with Sesame Dressing which was yummy!You could also choose to have your curry with or without vegetables.
And now that I'm home I'm going to try to follow our daughter's tradition of Japanese Curry once a week, that is, IF I can figure out how to make it myself. The mix contains both sugar and MSG. It does make a great curry sauce, but I'd like to ditch those two ingredients. Many of the recipes call for an apple that has been liquified in the blender which should sweeten it enough I think. So here I go, on an adventure of creative discovery! I hope I can make mine look and taste as good as Coco's. Wish me luck!!
Pictures: 1. Coco's
2. Salad
3. Curry w/out Veggies
4. Ingredients
5. Curry With Veggies

How-To Make A Tomato Napoleon

Enjoy this at your next BBQ or get-together with friends!

This beautiful salad is nothing more than a thickly sliced tomato, not sliced all the way through, with salad greens like spinach and small bits of other colorful veggies: yellow bell pepper diced small, grated carrot, chopped black olives, and green onion. Some like to add feta cheese however I prefer to go dairy free. Serve on a lettuce bed and drizzle with Italian dressing made with olive oil and apple cider vinegar or serve a creamy dressing on the side.

And Now, How To Protect Your Garden

I've found a safe and effective way to spray my garden veggies for bugs! While I'm no expert I'm giving tomatoes, bell peppers, zucchini, yellow crooked neck squash, pumpkins and strawberries a go for this year. After googling and reading recipe after recipe, here's one that I made up myself that uses ordinary household items and repels multiple pests. It's safe for the garden and non-toxic to those of us who'll be eating those vegetables as well:

GARDEN BUG CONTROL SPRAY-
1C. Water
1T. Apple Cider Vinegar
1 Garlic Clove
1-2 Dashes of Hot Pepper Sauce
like Tapatia
1T. Biodegradable Liquid Soap (preferably)
or Dish Soap

Liquefy all ing. in blender except liquid soap. Strain through a cloth, if necessary. Pour into spray bottle, add dish soap, cap and shake just to mix in. Allow bubbles to dissipate, and fill the rest of the way with water, to make 32 oz.

Try spraying a little on each variety of plant and wait for 2-3 days to make sure it will not damage the plant. (My plants are fine.) Spray in the early morning or late in the evening, when temperatures are at their coolest to keep leaves from burning. Spray onto both sides of the leaves. Repeat every week or as often as needed. If you get the leaves wet when watering you'll need to respray.
I know it's early in the gardening season but we've had ours for 3 or 4 weeks out there and so far it's working on those pesky little critters!

Here are the resources I used:
ehow home, GardenMandy, and Recycle your day

PS. The Garlic will also prevent that destructive mold from appearing on the squash.
PS. Again. I found out that sprinkling corn starch around the garden repels hornworms.

Here's to growing a great garden!

How-To Get The Kids To Eat Their Vegetables?!

Everyone already knows about putting peanut butter in celery, topping it with a few raisins and calling it "Bugs On A Log". Then I thought maybe an apple could be cored at the top and center only, leaving the bottom closed and filling it with peanut butter and raisins, but that's a fruit and not a veggie! A while back our family brainstormed this very problem of how to encourage the kids to at least be willing to give those vegetables a try and here's what we came up with:
~ Veggies-On-A-Stick. Use a little toothpick and line up cherry tomatoes, olives, squares of bell pepper, or whatever you think you can get away with!
~ Disguise them by blending them into sauces, like carrots into spaghetti or tomato sauce (compatible colors). They can be chopped tiny and hidden in meat loaf, meat balls and casseroles. We have been known to blend spinach into our citrus smoothie! (And yes, that's my poor blender pitcher that got melted when I took it somewhere and was left to drain on the stovetop!) Here's what I put in my Citrus Smoothie:
1 Can Pineapple with juice
2 Oranges
a handful of Fresh Baby Spinach (The older it gets the stronger the flavor)
and 2 C. Ice
You can start out with less spinach and gradually increase the amount to give the kids a chance to get used to the flavor. But it's a nice sweet way to eat your greens! This makes at least 2, 2C. servings.
~ Veggies get a very nice flavor when sauteed in coconut oil, plus you get benefits like, 1. It's a fat that doesn't harden with higher temperatures, and 2. It actually helps with weight loss!

~ Let the kids become involved with food. Allow them to grow a vegetable or two in their own corner of the garden. They can help prepare their own salad. Let them create! Some parents become concerned when their kids want to "play" with their food, but if that play will encourage them to eat it (and isn't too messy), why not?!

~ Here is also a place to go for a chart to help them want to eat a rainbow of veggies!

I can't promise what will work for your youngsters, but maybe these little tips will help get your juices flowing and you'll come up with something innovative and new. Then you can share those with me! ...PLEASE?

You can click here for Google Image's, "kids veggie creations", or click below for photo sources and lots more info:

Rainbow Chart.............carrot butterfly................. pirate.................girl with garden cabbages