FRIDAY, April 29th ~ Please Join Us . . .

Cara & kidos ~ photo credit: Health, Home & Happiness

Cara, blogger of Health, Home, & Happiness will join us in a juice fast day on Friday, April 29th.    

Cara and I have differing views on food and diet but we are aligned on one issue, our current 'standard American diet' is unhealthy. Although we are on different health quests, I respect Cara for her passion and thoroughness and her commitment to her family.

I'm compiling some juicing recipes from several sources and will post a few throughout the week.   With a high-quality juicer (we have a Green Star) and fresh, organic produce you can juice along with us on Friday.  

Whole Foods Market, Sebastopol, CA ~ photo credit: Whole Foods

If you don't own a juicer but want to do a juice day check your local high-end markets for fresh juices. I spoke with 'Darcy' at the juice bar in Whole Foods Market located at 6910 McKinley Street in Sebastopol. Darcy reports that they use all organic produce in the Sebastopol store. Their wheat grass is locally grown and organic as well. Not all Whole Foods Markets use organic produce and not all of their markets have juice bars so check their website and call ahead to confirm. 

Jamba Juice veg smoothies ~ photo credit: Jamba Juice

My son loves our local Jamba Juice at 617 East Washington Street, Petaluma, their phone number is: 707.871.0846. Jamba Juice is open at 7:00 am so you can grab a juice on your way to work and they're open until 8:00 most days so you can pick up a juice on the way home too. My son likes the fruit smoothies whereas I typically will get a shot of wheat grass juice. I recently tried their 'Berry Upbeat' smoothie with a mix of berries, mango, and vegetable juices. I was surprised at how delicious this smoothie tasted. Even my teenage son approved!  

Jamba Juice wheat grass is not organic and they do not use organic produce for their juices. If you want fresh juice you must make a request. In addition to fresh juiced wheat grass, the are two fresh juices available are carrot and orange (upon request).

Juice Shack in Petaluma, CA ~ photo credit: Juice Shack

Another local Sonoma County juice favorite is Juice Shack with several locations in Sonoma County, CA.  Juice Shack does use  organic wheat grass but uses conventional vegetables for their juices. Locations and phone numbers for Juice Shack are:

Santa Rosa Marketplace (by Costco): 522-6289
Montgomery Village (by Lucky's): 522-6822
Campus Center (across from SRJC): 528-6131
Stony Point Plaza (off Hwy 12): 545-6432
Pacific Plaza (by Pacific Theaters): 588-9577
Wolf Den Plaza (across from SSU): 664-1787
Redwood Gateway Center (by Kohls in Petaluma): 762-1052

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**  RECIPES

Adapted from the book,  The pH Miracle by Robert O. Young, PhD, and Shelley Redford Young

Basic Green Vegetable Juice

Serves 1

 

Juice together:

3 celery stalks

1 cucumber

2 to 3 large kale leaves

5 large lettuce leaves

2 cups spinach

1/4 cup parsley

Juice of 1 Myer lemon (optional)

Spring Green Drink
Serves 2


Juice together:
4 cups sprouts
4 cups greens
1/2 cup dandelion greens
1/4 cup scallion
1 cup carrots

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Note: Depending on the amount of toxins in your tissues you could experience minor or major detox symptoms when juicing. Symptoms could include fever, chills, nausea and vomiting. You should always consult with your physician before embarking on any dietary regimen especially if you are immune compromised or have other health challenges.

Boosting Your Immune System . . .

Raw almond milk smoothie with cacao nibs

There are a myriad of ways you could strengthen your immune system. Through research and experimentation I've found that my body responds best with alkaline foods. Alkaline foods are mostly green vegetables, low in sugar. Foods that readily convert to sugar in the body are not alkaline. Some fruits are alkaline, for example, unripe bananas, lemons, limes, avocados, tomatoes, sour grapefruits and coconuts. Rice, pasta, bread (all grains), potatoes, ripe bananas, are all examples of acid foods that put stress on the body's immune system. All animal foods including fish and especially dairy, are highly acidic in addition to harboring bacteria, hormones and pathogens.

quinoa topped with raw veggies tossed in olive oil & lemon juice

According to Dr. Robert O. Young, PhD, in his book, 'The PH Miracle', "The pH level of our internal fluids affects every cell in our bodies. The entire metabolic process depends on an alkaline environment. Chronic over-acidity corrodes body tissue, and if left unchecked will interrupt all cellular activities and functions, form the beating of your heart to the neural firing of your brain. In other words, over-acidity interferes with life itself. It is at the root of all sickness, dis-ease, and disease."

Read future posts for more information about the benefits of an alkaline diet.

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Recipe

Although my smoothies are health building overall, they are not alkaline. They are a good transition from eating an acidic diet to a more alkaline diet. A true alkaline diet is by it's very nature, raw, vegan and mostly green.

Chocolate Almond Milk Smoothie
1 serving

1 1/2 cups raw almond milk

6 fresh dates

1 Tbls. cacao nibs

1 Tbls. ground flaxseed

1 Tbls. salba seeds

1 Tbls. 'Amazing Grass' Chocolate Drink Powder

2 frozen, unripe, (slightly green) bananas

In a Vita Mix blender add first six ingredients and blend for 2 minutes or until dates are well blended.  Add in bananas and blend until smooth.  

Drink in good health!

A Life Connected . . .

 

'Cleansing' the body through juicing, I believe is the most healthful way to clear the body of toxins and regain lost health.

My husband and I are ramping up to do a juice cleanse in the next few weeks. I'm scheduled for intensive dental surgery and want to give my body the best opportunity to fight infection and heal without the use of antibiotics. My husband, the sweetheart that he is, will join me in juicing to be supportive and also to reap the benefits of cleansing. 

I feel juicing mostly alkaline foods will be the most optimum. I haven't decided how long I plan to juice, I'm thinking a week. The longest I've juiced prior to this is five days. 

In 2005 I was diagnosed with melanoma. The diagnosis spurred me on to do more research about my vegetarian diet. After reading T. Colin Campbell's book, 'The China Study', I understood that a dairy free, vegan diet was the path to peak health. I've never looked back.

I'm half Italian and was raised eating Parmesan, mozzarella, and local brie and Camembert cheeses. I have always loved cheese, I was a 'cheese head'. Lunch would included three apples and a slice of sharp cheddar. Or veggie lasagna dripping with mozzarella and Parmesan. Meat was not a part of my diet for nearly twenty years but I never considered ousting dairy.

Since becoming dairy-free, I no longer suffer from chronic sinusitis or post nasal drip. I've not had a sore throat nor have I been down with a cold. My skin cleared up and my lifelong battle with acne is finally over.

There are times that I've eaten dairy and not known it until I became 'symptomatic' and then later found out that what I ate included some dairy. The downside of becoming vegan is that my body is heightened to animal products. I can feel the negative effects usually within minutes.

This juice recipe from Elaina Love sounds refreshing to me. Although kale is a 'super food' it's not high on my list of foods I covet. This juice seems like a great way to get kale in my diet. Cucumbers, celery and lemon are all alkaline foods that are superior blood cleansers. 

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Green Cleansing Juice     

Elaina Love

Makes 1 quart (4 cups) of juice

1 head of organic celery


2 organic cucumbers


5 leaves of organic dinosaur kale

juice of 1/2  organic lemon

1. Cut both ends off the celery and wash all the stalks.

2. Wash and cut the cucumbers in 1/2 then cut each 1/2 into 4 wedges (8 wedges per cucumber)

3. Wash the kale leaves

4. Using a Green Star or Omega Juicer (or any juicer) send the vegetables through the juicer.

5. I like to start with the kale as it goes through quickly.

6. Strain your juice through an Amazing nut Milk Bag to get out any extra fiber.

Enjoy for breakfast lunch or dinner!

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In the book, 'The PH Miracle' by O. Robert Young, PhD, he states that the percentage of calories from protein in kale is 60% and that kale contains 249 mg of calcium in 4 ounces of the leaves.

Another way to get kale into my diet will be salads. I already add kale to my salads but I like this recipe I've adapted from 'The PH Miracle'.

Raw Kale Salad

Serves 4-6

2 bunches green organic kale

1 red onion, diced

1/3 cup olive oil

juice from 1 Meyer lemon

1 clove raw garlic, crushed

Real Salt or Himalayan salt to taste

Sun dried tomatoes, chopped (optional)

Pine nuts or nuts of choice (optional)

dried herbs to taste

Wash kale and spin dry. Cut leaves from stems. Combine all ingredients and make sure kale is well coated. Marinade overnight.

Let me know if you try either of these recipes, I'd love your feedback!

Strange Brew

Morning brew

I won't list all of my imperfections here but I will share some . . . I don't eat breakfast. Actually, I think I've already shared that about me but it bears repeating because people often see this as a very negative 'habit'. It's true I don't eat breakfast, I drink it. Typically my day begins with a green drink which includes aloe vera juice mixed with alkaline water. While I'm putting this together I am heating water for my Yerba Mate brew. 

greens for cats

Greens are important for cats as well as humans. Cats derive essential enzymes from munching on grasses that help them to digest their high protein diet. I purchase organic seeds at Whole Foods Market and grow the grass at home.

making raw almond milk

Raw almond milk is a mainstay in my diet. Almond milk is the base for my famous smoothies.  My husband would like to wean himself from my smoothies because they include fruit that is not alkaline but they are difficult to resist and although not high on the alkaline scale, they are full of healthful ingredients.

frozen bananas for smoothies

A key addition to my smoothies are partially ripe bananas. Ripe bananas add too much sugar. When bananas are ripe they are actually rotting.

mama's famous smoothie . . .

In the works is my recipe page that will include almond milk smoothies. In the meantime I highly recommend Chef Chloe's website . . .

Chef Chloe is not only adorable but the girl can cook too! Chloe's website is professional and fun to peruse. Chloe creates beautiful, tasty vegan food and keeps it simple. She is delightful to watch and one busy chef! Obviously I am a huge fan . . .    

Bon Appétit! xxoo

Day 14 ~ It's a New Day

his breakfast

My husband stayed home and fixed his own breakfast this morning. On our beach walk this afternoon he shared that he was feeling 'off'. Doesn't surprise me that he's feeling funky. . . after two weeks off meat, dairy and sugar, he decides to eat a plate of cheese and heavy meat protein yesterday. His body was in a stupor. 

my brunch ~ avocados with capers

Food for the rest of the day was simple. I added Salba grain  to our dinner salad along with shredded raw beets and carrots.

Salba is grown in Peru and are similar to chia seeds. They are high in Omega-3, 6, and 9 essential fatty acids, antioxidants, fiber, protein, calcium and iron. Salba is expensive, $16.00 for a 12.7 oz. bag at Whole Foods Market. Before I buy another bag I will research online for a better price.

I roasted two kinds of squash, both from Laguna Farm; Butternut, my favorite, and Delicata, another favorite. I scooped out the Delicata and stirred it into a sort-of puree that we ate alongside quinoa. My favorite way to prepare Butternut squash is slicing it into 3/4" thick rounds and brushing both sides with melted Earth Balance and a bit of pure maple syrup. Squash prepared this way has always been a big hit with my son.

 My husband brought this post on CNN to my attention: CNN's eatocracy ~ Vegan on the Silver Screen.  Of course I couldn't pass up the opportunity to 'comment' on the post . . . I was so excited about speaking on a subject I feel so passionate about I accidentally double posted. That will fuel the fire. There's nothing that gets people more fired up than talking about the food they eat and this post has generated quite a lively discussion. It's disheartening to see so much misunderstanding about the vegan diet. Agriculture lobbyists from the meat and dairy industries are powerful and persistent and they have a lot of purchasing clout to get their message out into the hungry public and we've eaten it up unquestioned . . . until the last few years. With growing awareness through the Internet and documentaries like the upcoming , Forks Over Knives, people are educating themselves and making healthier choices. 

Eat well 

xxoo

Day 13 ~ Recommit Every Day

Today was an early day  . . . we were up, showered, fed the cats and out the door. Not a great recipe for a healthy start on the day. After my morning dentist appointment I grabbed a salad at Whole Foods. That baby cost me $12.00! It was a big heavy thing and it filled me up for the entire day. 

My husband caved. Pepe's Mexican Restaurant combo plate; chicken taco and cheese enchilada with chips and a glass of water. He says he's not focused on vegan right now, more about staying away from sugar. He agrees that vegan will have him more successful in lessening the cravings he has for sugar. Snacks for my hubby throughout the day were cashews, pistachios, dates and several of oranges from my mom's tree.  

Recommitting every day to your vision, whatever that may be, will have you tend to be more successful. An old friend of mine was a big believer in written affirmations. She had pictures plastered all over her fridge and bathroom mirror . . . visions of herself attaining all sorts of things . . . svelte body, fancy car, dreamboat guy, nice house. She even had post-it notes stuck all over her truck interior with messages like, "You are beautiful", "You have everything you want in life", etc. 

We don't have stickers posted all over, well, that's not exactly accurate . . . my husband does save my little love notes and has them stuck to his bathroom mirror . . . but those aside, we use a white board. In our old house we had a big whiteboard hung on the laundry room wall so that we saw it every time we went out the door to the garage. We used the board for messages, reminders, chores for my son, and loving messages to one another. The white board in our beach house is in the office tucked off to the side so it's not all that visible. 

Tomorrow's a new day. Maybe I ought to rethink the placement of our white board or maybe write different love notes to my husband reaffirming how much I support him on his path.

Day 10

This morning my husband left without eating breakfast. Just a green drink and that was it. I get concerned when he leaves without eating breakfast (truth be told, when he leaves the house at all). I worry that he'll go out into the mean, cruel, snack-filled world and eat  junk. This fear strikes me as a bit unhealthy, I believe the term to be "co-dependent". I make no apologies for my co-dependent fears. If you knew me you'd know I'm really not a worrier. I have a big stake in my husband not eating toxic food, I want him here for a very long time, like at least fifty more years . . . more if I could eek it out of him.

My husband tells me that he ate OK and I believe him because we have this brutally honest relationship. Sometimes he tells me things I really don’t want to know or I want to know but I just have a difficult time processing. So he did good out there.

Since I like to shoot photos and he didn’t really give me any subject matter I shot my food. Wait! I do have one photograph from his breakfast yesterday (Day 9). He’d already dug in before I made him stop so I could take this photo. He’s very patient with me.
 

Day 9 breakfast

Breakfast isn’t my thing, never has been. I know, everyone always says, “breakfast is the most important meal of the day . . .” and actually I agree, just not for me. I have breakfast my way. First thing in the morning I usually have a hot mug of  Yerba Mate and if we have fresh citrus I’ll have a glass of fresh-squeezed juice. About mid-morning I think about something more. Something more is typically a raw almond milk smoothie. I don’t have time to post the recipe on this post but I will add a page with recipes soon. You are gonna LOVE my smoothies! My husband is abstaining from my smoothies right now because he doesn’t want the fruit sugar. I’m a little sad about this because I feel like my almond milk smoothies are really antioxidant powerhouses but I respect his wish to eat a more alkaline diet. I’ll have to get blueberries and flax seeds in him some other way . . .

Oranges from my mom's tree

Raw almond milk smoothie

Misinformation and confusion about the vegan diet

Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine (PCRM) shared this link on their Facebook page, 9 Pros and Cons to Going Vegan - will this strict diet work for you -- AARP. My guess is that the person who posted this link on PCRM's page failed to read the entire article. In response, I posted this comment on PCRM's Facebook page:

 

"Unfortunately AARP contributors to this article are woefully uninformed about the vegan diet. If one eats a plant-based diet rich in dark leafy greens, legumes; garbanzo, lentils, etc. and that includes nuts and seeds; sesame (in Tahini) almonds, Brazil nuts, you have better access to calcium than with an omnivorous diet. Dairy is acidic and one way your body neutralizes acid is to draw calcium from bones. There are numerous sources for well researched information about a vegan diet; Campbell, McDougall, Fuhrman, Ornish, Esselstyn, Barnard, why use comments from uneducated sources? Am I missing the point on something here?"

It's no wonder there are people that still consider eating a vegan diet 'fringe' when there is this type of misinformation floating about on the Internet. Any 'diet' or way of eating can be hazardous to your health if the foods you eat are not varied enough, ample enough, and are not good quality food. Transitioning to a vegan diet can seem daunting but there are so many great cookbooks and recipes online that it's easier than ever to make the change. 

Last summer a friend told me she went vegan because her doctor recommended the change. Her doctor felt it would be a key factor in clearing up a lot of her health issues. My friend finds her new way of eating freeing and totally enjoyable. She says she feels great and cannot imagine ever going back to her previous diet.

The subtitle to the AARP article is; "It's trendy and healthy, but will the strict diet work for you?". Sadly, the author of the AARP article, Monica Bhide, has written with a negative bent that will likely limit the very people this way of eating could help the most, seniors. 


According to Wikipedia, the word 'vegan' was coined in 1944 by Vegan Society founder, Donald Watson and his wife Dorothy. 67 years is a long time to be "trendy". . . . .

Day 9

“Both men and women are fallible. The difference is, women know it.”

                                                     ~ Eleanor Bron, British actress

“Honey, how ya feeling?” I asked my husband last night. “Good . . . . are we done for now?” He replies. He tells me that if I want to understand more I’ll need to ask him pointed questions. It’s late, I can't think of any interesting questions right now, so I let the conversation fade.

I want to write about my cats. More specifically, what I feed my cats. Actually, I have a  confession . . . my cats are not vegan. The two cats I still have are vicious hunters. But that’s not what I’m talking about. I’m talking about my contribution, the food that I provide. 
 
Several years ago I began feeding three of my cats raw food in an effort to buoy the health of one of my guys, ‘Grey Guy’. ‘Grey Guy’ dropped from a robust 11 pounds down to 6 pounds in less than a month. He remained spunky and had the appetite of a moose but he couldn’t get enough food to satisfy his hunger. I started buying ready-made raw food from ‘Feed This!’.  For over a decade I’d fed all fourteen of my rescued feral cats dry food from Costco.  Putting all of the cats on a raw food diet was beyond my budget constraints so it was ‘Grey Guy’, his buddy, ‘Grimmie’, and my son’s cat, ‘Sunny’ that got an entirely raw diet. Through the research of my friend and neighbor, we chose ‘Feed This!’ to prepare and deliver the raw, frozen food every other week. It was simple but the transition for the cats wasn’t flawless. I continued with ‘Feed This!’ for several months and then began making my own raw cat food.

My original recipe was about 50% vegetables and 50% ground turkey and chicken livers. Food preparation took me nearly three hours twice a month. It was always a struggle to get the cats to eat consistently but ‘Grey Guy’ thrived on this new raw diet. His eyes brightened, his dull coat became thick and lustrous and he started putting on weight. Fast forward a couple of years and a majorly stressful move from our very rural, quiet home of twenty two years. Two months after we moved ‘Grey Guy’ disappeared. We never saw him again.

Now I understand that ‘Grey Guy’ was most likely afflicted with hyperthyroid. Hyperthyroidism is fairly easy to diagnose with a simple blood test. My son’s cat, ‘Sunny’ was recently diagnosed with hyperthyroid and she gets half of a crushed pill in her food twice a day. During my research of this disease I learned more about what to feed cats on a raw food diet. Cats are not able to digest carbohydrates like human animals. They also don’t do well with any of the night shade family of vegetables like garlic, potatoes-including sweet potatoes, or onions. To a large degree I was adding all of these veggies except onions. 

Cats, unlike humans, are true carnivores. They do best on dense protein - meat. Amongst vegans there is great controversy on this subject but I’ve not made my decision lightly. Through extensive research and the urging of my vet, my cats are now eating a meat heavy diet consisting of raw ground turkey, raw chicken livers, and eggs. None of which I eat or want in my kitchen. The mixture is supplemented with Taurine and vitamins but no veggies or rice. I grind the chicken livers, crack and separate the eggs, and dawn the surgical gloves to hand mix and package up eleven pounds of food twice a month. Contributing to the suffering of animals for whatever reason is unthinkable to me yet twice a month I participate. Twice a day I open a container of pain and suffering and I apologize.

The world is not a perfect place. Human beings are fallible.  I am committed to being a better person; to be more supportive, to be more compassionate and loving, and most of all, to be more empathetic and non-judgmental. Some days I do better than others.

Vegetarian, animal activist, environmentalist girl falls in love with meat-eating hunter . . .

My friends and family were a bit taken back when I started dating my husband several years ago. One close friend did not understand how our relationship could withstand the dichotomy between my boyfriend's hunting animals and my commitment to saving them.

I never judged my husband's choice to hunt. It was his passion until he met me. Now, he says, he 'hunts' me . . . I am his passion. He hasn't hunted since our first date. I never asked him to stop, he's never agreed to stop. 

When we began dating, I told my future husband that I was vegetarian, he said, "great! I've always wanted to eat that way." He had a stint with the veg lifestyle as a young man but for lack of 'partnership' in his quest, he went back to eating a sugar laden, carnivorous diet.

When we met he weighed in at about 210 lbs. with a 6' 2" large boned, muscular physic. His face was 'puffy' and his skin and hair dull but he was gorgeous and I adored him. Because he was motivated by love, my future husband stopped eating candy bars and drinking soda and in less than 2 months he dropped 40 lbs. His face was sculpted, his hair was thick and glossy, and he had abundant energy . . . he looked like an Adonis and he felt fabulous.

In the Spring of 2004 I was diagnosed with Melanoma. My husband encouraged me (pleaded with me might be a better verb) to follow an alkaline diet based on the guidelines of Dr. O. Robert Young from his book, 'The PH Miracle'. My husband stayed on a mostly alkaline diet for several months and dropped down to his high school weight of 165 lbs.  I began at a weight of about 114 and went down to 108 (at 5' 5"). We both felt healthier and more energetic.  It didn't last for long. I stayed vegetarian and about 75% raw, my husband came home one day with a bag of candy bars and soda. Throughout his life my husband has struggled with his sugar and caffeine 'addiction'. His weight jumps up rapidly when he makes a choice to add sugar and caffeine back into his diet. I've been through this roller coaster ride with him a few times. In 2005, after reading 'The China Study' I decided to go one step further to eating vegan. My sister-in-law and I began with a one week challenge; no dairy, no eggs. I've never looked back.

On Sunday, my husband tossed out the bags of licorice and boxes of See's candy. He dumped out the plastic bottles of Mountain Dew and threw away the half empty bags of kettle corn. He's off sugar and caffeine and I am thrilled.

We are on this journey together. I love him, I want to live a long, vibrantly healthy, active life with him. Supporting my husband in his quest gives him the 'partnership' he desires and gives our marriage a 'zest' that I crave. Doing this together has me feel a connection with my husband that is diminished when he is on (what I see as) a self-destructive path.

We agree that journaling about and sharing our experiences will help us both stay focused on our progress. We hope that publicizing our journal might also help others who are struggling with food addictions or health issues to feel some sense of 'partnership'.  So we begin . . .