Even Little Ones Love Live Foods

It never ceases to amaze me that our little one year old ATTACKS most dishes that I prepare which are raw/living food. She LOVES the salsa I have shared earlier and will eat it by the spoon fulls with avocado cubes mixed in. She also begs for my homemade hummus with bell peppers. Sometimes she can't even wait until the recipes are finished! I was making honey cinnamon flax crackers the other day and she demanded that I give her some of the "batter" to eat immediately. The next day when they were done dehydrating, she was excited to partake in the finished product. It is so much fun to allow the children to eat the raw foods I am putting together at any stage of preparation because the nutrients do not change and there is no dangerous bacteria to worry about :o).

To health,

C.

Beef & Veggie Soup

One more recipe for 2007 :o). Since the weather has been so cold here, I made this beef and veggie soup before Christmas Eve service. It was warm and ready to go when we got home. This is a very fast recipe...only about 25 minute from start to table.


1 lb ground beef
2 Tbsp coconut or olive oil
1 C. diced carrots
1 C. diced potatoes
4 C. water
4 tsp. Better Than Bouillon Beef base (or more to taste)
1-14 oz can diced tomatoes
1 C. green beans sliced
1 C. corn
4 C. cooked barley or pasta (about 2 C. uncooked of either)


Choose barley or pasta.

If barley, start boiling the water and rinse the pearled barley thoroughly. When the water boils add the barley and test often as pearled barley cooks fast. You want the barley to have a "pop" when you bite into it so it does not get soggy in the soup. Rinse the barley in cold water and set aside.

If pasta, boil water, add pasta and cook until it still has a bit of a crunch to it. Rinse in cold water and set aside.

As the barley or pasta is cooking, brown the ground beef and season with pepper if desired (no salt as the bouillon is salty enough). Drain and set aside.

As the beef is browning, dice the carrots, potatoes and green beans. I love keeping the skins on the potatoes for a wonderful looking soup :o), but you may prefer to peel the carrots and potatoes.

In a large pot heat the oil and saute the carrots and potatoes until they start to get soft. If you cook them fully they will be mush in your soup.

Add the water, beef base and diced tomatoes (with the juice). Stir until well mixed.

Add the ground beef.

Add the green beans and corn.

Stir thoroughly and taste. Add more beef base if needed.

Add the barley or pasta.

Cover, reduce the heat to simmer and serve when ready.

Just a note...taste again right before serving as the barley and pasta will reduce the flavor of the beef base as they soak in the broth, so you may have to add a bit more beef base for just the right flavor.

I threw this recipe together one night as I was desperate to get dinner on the table. The best recipes come out of necessity :o). We love eating this with wheat rolls and a green salad. YUM!

Enjoy and stay warm out there.

C.

The Acid/Alkaline Balance in the Body

After having poured over many online sites and documents, I have come to the realization that our bodies really do need a tremendous amount of living foods in order to remain healthy, strong and youthful. Take a look at this clip...





I loved the information on the clip, but I have not looked into the AlkalizeMe's products. I am sure you caught the foods that were acidic (basically everything cooked or processed), but I wanted to remind you that many foods are alkalizing BEFORE you heat them above 115 degrees Fahrenheit. How wonderful to have the power that will enable your body to heal itself just by eating raw fruits, vegetables, nuts, grains and seeds.

I am amazed that our western culture feels safer taking toxic drugs and going under the knife to "fix" a health issue rather than eating healthy foods. As I said before, I have been researching living foods in depth and have come across people several times that describe eating 100% living foods as "extreme." I beg to differ...pumping our bodies with toxins (aka prescription medication) and undergoing surgery to make our discomfort go away after filling our cells with nutrient deficient and toxic foods in my book is extreme. The more you know about nutrition and the role it plays in your overall health, the longer you will live an energetic, healthy, youthful life. Who doesn't want that? :o)

If you would like to know what foods are acid or alkaline forming please visit Bluegrass' website. Again, I have not looking into their products, but these charts are very helpful in understanding what foods to eat and which ones to avoid. By no means should you eat only alkaline foods; eat about 80% alkaline and 20% acid forming foods for the best balance. If you heat any of the alkaline foods above 115 degrees Fahrenheit you will kill the enzymes and flip it to acid forming. In other words, if you can place your finger in the food as it is cooking and not feel discomfort/pain the food probably is still retaining its enzymes.

To a wonderful new year full of possibilities.

Cheers!

C.

Wonderful Raw Website!

I just stumbled across an awesome website devoted to eating raw/living foods. Wonderful recipes and forum to answer lots of questions. Tons of fun. Enjoy!

GONE RAW


I will also put this link on the left side of this blog for easier access later :o).

Raw Tomato Salsa

This has to be the top hit in our family especially during the summer months when the tomatoes are the tastiest. If you want to stay away from tortilla chips, use sliced veggies such as cucumber, white radish, zucchini, yellow squash, or raw corn crackers. The last time I made this, our one year old daughter ate almost 1/2 cup with her fingers because she did not have the patience to use her spoon or dipping veggies :o). Enjoy!


5 medium tomatoes
1 small red onion
2-4 cloves garlic (to taste)
hand full of fresh cilantro
raw unfiltered apple cider vinegar
juice of 1 lime
celtic sea salt
black pepper (optional)
jalapenos (optional)


The way this salsa tastes best is if you chop everything by hand. You can use a food processor and pulse chop, but the tomatoes get mushy and the salsa loses a great deal of it's flair.

Dice the tomatoes as big or small as you fancy them and place them in a medium sized bowl. Then dice the onions as fine as you like and add them to the tomatoes. Press only two cloves of fresh garlic into the tomatoes (you can add more later if needed). De-stem and chop the cilantro and add to bowl. Pour enough apple cider vinegar so that the liquid is level with the amount of tomatoes. Juice one lime and add to salsa. Mix thoroughly. Taste and add salt, pepper and more garlic or jalapenos if desired.

The apple cider vinegar amplifies the kick of the onions and garlic. The finer you dice the onions and the more garlic you add, the hotter the salsa becomes without jalapenos. I fixed this salsa with my mom once, and she was convinced that we needed jalapenos; I told her to try a little first. After trying a few bites, we both started to tear and sweat because she had diced the onions so fine. I've never tried this with the jalapenos, but beware it could get pretty spicy!

MSG Hidden Truth

We have all heard about MSG, but do we really understand the negative effects that this toxin has on our bodies? It is in almost all processed food on the market, hidden behind alternate names, but with the same startling effects on the body.












To your health,

C.

The Truth About Fluoride and Tap Water

After a shocking moment two years ago, our family began using fluoride free toothpaste and filtering the water with which we drink and cook. Once again we were all taught that fluoride is beneficial, but in all actuality it is a poison that is hurting us all.









I encourage you to research the different water filters on the market; our family has chosen to use the Wellness Filter. Since our bodies are 60%-70% water, a contaminated source of water has the potential to bring serious health concerns from ADHD and lowered IQ to cancer and hip fractures.

More to think about.

C.