Fermented Food

I have to admit, that I have been a little freaked out about the thought of this.  I have tried some different kombucha and they were on a scale of disgusting to maybe I can finish this.

I do like all the benefits that I hear about eating/drinking fermented food.  And I have a friend who makes her own kombucha as well as other things.  I will say, her grapes are AMAZING and have a little fizzle in them, like champagne.  Even my kids like them.

My two biggest reasons for wanting to add some fermented food to my daily diet are increasing my gut flora and boosting and healing my immune system.  Bad bacteria overwhelming the good bacteria can spread over the body and lead to all kinds of problems, inflammation being one of them.  That can lead to many different auto-immune disorders.

Have you tried fermented food?  Do you eat it regularly?  What do you recommend?  How do you incorporate it into your everyday diet?

Fasting Friday

I didn't wake up this morning with a plan to do a detox, it just sort of happened.  
It started early this morning, when I woke with a rumbling gut.  I was in the bathroom for awhile and then again a couple of hours later.  It just seems like this has been happening to me a lot.


I know that now I am over 40, my hormonal changes have some to do with my skin changes, but I woke up with tons of pimples this morning.   I used a sugar scrub and didn't think much else about it.

I overindulge in junk.  I admit it.  I will go through weeks of eating really good things for my body, skipping soda and sweets only to ruin it all on a batch of mashed potatoes and dinner rolls.  I have a weakness for bread, potatoes, pasta.... and tend to over-eat when these things are being served.  


I have a good friend who always tells me that sometimes a 1 day detox can do wonders, even a half-day or 2/3rds of the day - just not putting in anything but water into your body for 12 or more hours.

Friday is allowance day at my house, so on the way to school, I stopped at 7-Eleven to use the ATM and the big liter bottles of water were on sale, so I grabbed one.  Maybe I haven't been hydrating enough?  Maybe I need to flush my system?  Maybe I could drink 2 of these today?  (Big maybe - I have always had a hard time drinking water.)  

Today, I didn't have a plan, so I am just sticking with water and if I get really hungry, I will have a cup of my favorite Good Earth tea - Sweet & Spicy.  

You can boil a large pot of water if you want to make enough to last all day - or you can make yourself a cuppa to start with in the morning.  If you want to drink it all day, you can put a large pot of water on the stove to boil.  After it comes to boil, squeeze in the juice of a whole lemon (lime, orange, half grapefruit, whatever you like).  You can slice it after and put those in to steep in the water (make sure the peel is washed).  I put in a couple Teaspoons of grated ginger, a Tablespoon of AVC per cup of water and teaspoon of cayenne pepper.

Citrus fruit flushes toxins from the body and also has antioxidants.  The ginger is also great at flushing toxins as well as stimulating the digestive tract, speeding up digestion.  AVC (apple cider vinegar) is naturally detoxifying and contains malic acid, which gives it anti-viral, anti-bactirial and anti-fungal properties.  Cayenne pepper is a great digestive aide.  It stimulates the digestive tract and can even relieve intestinal gas.
The first meal that I eat after doing this (which, I will admit has sometimes been lunch at 1 pm) I like to have some leafy greens, garlic and some protein.  One of my favorite things is to sautee some swiss chard or kale with garlic in some olive oil and have some eggs whites with that.
Whole food eating is a good way to follow up after a detox.  More fruits, vegetables, whole grains and legumes.  Less meat, dairy and eggs.  Cut the bleached flour, refined sugar and oil. 

Clean Your Indoor Air

Did you know that inside your office and home, you have the off-gassing of products that you have brought into the space?  Yep.  Indoor air pollution.  Chemicals we breathe into our bodies. According to NASA, just one 10-inch houseplant per 100 sq feet can remove 90% of indoor air pollution in 24 hours.

The three main household toxins of concern are:

• benzene
• formaldahyde
• trichloroethylene

Great plants to get to diffuse this situation are:

• aloe vera
• baby rubber plant
• bamboo palm/reed palm
• boston fern
• chinese evergreen
• dwarf date palm
• english ivy
• ficus
• gerber daisy
• moth orchid
• mums
• peace lily

Bee keeping

I have been really interested in learning more about bee keeping.  My wife is allergic to bees, so she is not so keen on the idea.  I had hoped that when I get my veggie garden going, I could also get a little bee house.

My friend has a wonderful, huge garden and is planning to grow heirloom veggies this coming year. I got her a bee house for her garden.  I cannot wait to see how it goes for her.  She is also planning to plant flowers in between her veggie and fruits, too, for cross pollination.

It looks similar to this:

The agricultural benefits of bees has been well documented; their pollination services to our agricultural crops are responsible for one out of every three bites of food we eat.

In fact, they are responsible for pollinating more than 90 of our traditionally favorite flowering crops such as apples, asparagus, avocados, blueberries, broccoli, celery, cherries, citrus crops, cranberries, cucumber, kiwis and melons, just to name a few.

The bees need help, and for so long we have relied on them for their incredible food-producing superpowers and the byproducts of their laborious work – it’s time to now help them. 

Fast (Vegetarian) Food?!

I just hear about Amy's Drive Thru and I am blown away!  From the same company that brought you Amy's organic, natural food that you find in the freezer section.

No GMOs.  Organic vegetables, beans, grains and dairy.  Burgers, fries, burritos, mac 'n cheese, pizza, salads and even chili cheese fries! Sodas, milkshakes and yes, vegan milkshakes.  Don't forget fresh, squeezed lemonade.

Their mission:  Amy's Drive Thru is returning to the roots of American fast food, serving lovingly handcrafted food to nourish hard-working citizens, busy families and road-weary travellers.  And everything has gluten-free and vegan options, as well!

I am seriously in Hippie Heaven!  If only I could go eat there!  It is in Rohnert Park, CA.  That's 1685 miles from my house.  So.... I hope it does well and starts franchising all across CA and out into the rest of the states.  I think it is needed.

Not Your Dorm Room Ramen

So I thought (for a change) I would try to make something for dinner.  I am not the one who typically cooks, unless we are having breakfast food or grilling.  I have pretty much forgotten how to cook over the past 9 years that my wife has been a SAHM and has taken over that domain.

But a ramen recipe? I figured I couldn't mess that one up!

First you put your (organic, free-range) eggs on to boil.  You peel and slice your (organic, locally-grown) carrot into thin slices.  Warm 2 tsp of oil in a large pot of med-high heat, add carrot and saute for about a minute, add vegetable broth, water, and simmer for 5 minutes.

Warm a tbs of oil in a saute pan, over medium-high heat. Slice bok choy down the center into 2 long pieces.  Salt and pepper the cut side. Lay cut-side down into the hot oil.  Cook about 3 minutes until golden brown and then flip.  Cook about 3 more minutes.

Slice radish in half and then cut very thin, half moon slices.  Cut scallion into rounds.  Put aside for garnish.  Put the ramen noodles into the simmering stock.  Cook 4 minutes.  Peel and cut eggs in half.

Ladle the soup onto bowls.  Place seared bok choy leaf side up and out of the bowl.  Garnish with radish and scallions.  Rest the soft boiled eggs on the noodles.  Add sriracha to taste.

Farmers Market

My wife had a booth down at the local farmers market today, selling her awesome natural product line, Perfectly Posh.  She was doing REALLY well and one of our favorite vendors - Lovera's - had a booth, too.  So I went down there to check it all out.  Also, my youngest son insisted we needed blueberries.  LOL  So I headed down there, got some blueberries and other things.  Came home and made some blueberry pancakes, sliced peaches and used some jam on one of my pancakes.  Is all really good stuff.  My wife came home with some raspberry jalapeno jelly, so we will spoon some of that over cream cheese and eat it with fritos!  Yum!

Blueberries

Jelly - Oklahoma Sunrise (peach, strawberry and pineapple)

Lovera's - homemade vodka sauce, sausage and cheese

Stratford peaches!