we made these sweet potato fries the other day and they were delicious! I simply cut up sweet potatos, added fresh garlic and coriander, drizzled with olive oil and done! forgot to take a picture of them when they were baked....they went so fast!
Monday, March 29, 2010
Sweet Potato Fries with Coriander
I LOVE coriander. It is also known as chinese parsley, acts as a digestive aid and detoxifies mercury from the intracellular cell space (that means it cleanses from within the cell!). Amazing!
we made these sweet potato fries the other day and they were delicious! I simply cut up sweet potatos, added fresh garlic and coriander, drizzled with olive oil and done! forgot to take a picture of them when they were baked....they went so fast!
we made these sweet potato fries the other day and they were delicious! I simply cut up sweet potatos, added fresh garlic and coriander, drizzled with olive oil and done! forgot to take a picture of them when they were baked....they went so fast!
Sunday, March 28, 2010
Banana Bread
Well, just after Bella got better, Aidan got sick.....here we go again. This is a recipe I come to when I want to make something in 5 minutes, requires one mixing bowl and the kids love. The recipe is from How it All Vegan--a highly recommended book! This recipe is yummy and vegan!!
Yummy Banana Bread
3 ripe banana, mashed
1 tbsp lemon juice
1/2 cup oil (i used grapeseed)
1/2 cup of sweetener (i use either brown sugar or agave)
1 1/2 cups spelt flour
1/2 cup ground flax seeds
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baing salt
I then add some vegan chocolate chips
preheat oven to 375F. Mix bananas, lemon juice, sweetener. Then add in flour, ground flax, salt, baking power and soda and chocolate chips. I mix everything together in one bowl. Simple.
A loaf takes 40-50 minutes but I put them into mini muffin trays for the kids, so it is about 20 minutes. Just keep an eye on them and when the tops are golden they are done!!
always wanting to help out in the kitchen
aidan came in when the cholcolate chips came out! More went into Bella's mouth than the bowl!
Done!
Yummy Banana Bread
3 ripe banana, mashed
1 tbsp lemon juice
1/2 cup oil (i used grapeseed)
1/2 cup of sweetener (i use either brown sugar or agave)
1 1/2 cups spelt flour
1/2 cup ground flax seeds
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baing salt
I then add some vegan chocolate chips
preheat oven to 375F. Mix bananas, lemon juice, sweetener. Then add in flour, ground flax, salt, baking power and soda and chocolate chips. I mix everything together in one bowl. Simple.
A loaf takes 40-50 minutes but I put them into mini muffin trays for the kids, so it is about 20 minutes. Just keep an eye on them and when the tops are golden they are done!!
always wanting to help out in the kitchen
aidan came in when the cholcolate chips came out! More went into Bella's mouth than the bowl!
Done!
Thursday, March 25, 2010
B.A.R.F.
Years ago Dexter used to get ear infections. Being a keen Naturopathic student at the time who was not keen on giving antibiotics I chose to find a holistic Vet. She gave him a homeopathic remedy (pulsatilla!) and introduced us to the Bones And Raw Food diet also known as B.A.R.F.
http://www.barfworld.com
This diet is super easy and so cost effective. We get a case of chicken necks and backs for 15$--that lasts a month--what a steal!! We (by we, I mean Ewan) simply throws a carcass in the backyard and done he eats it up!! He also gets grated fruits and vegetables, some flax oil and acidophilus.
He did very well on the diet and never seemed to have any ear problems and was quite healthy in general. Recently things are busy (with 2 kids and working!) that we put him on some dry food. Since this introduction in the fall his paw has been infected twice and his ears kind of guncky. His energy level is lower and his coat not as shiny. We quickly switched him back to the raw chicken necks and backs and he seems to be quite happy!!
mmmm.....
http://www.barfworld.com
This diet is super easy and so cost effective. We get a case of chicken necks and backs for 15$--that lasts a month--what a steal!! We (by we, I mean Ewan) simply throws a carcass in the backyard and done he eats it up!! He also gets grated fruits and vegetables, some flax oil and acidophilus.
He did very well on the diet and never seemed to have any ear problems and was quite healthy in general. Recently things are busy (with 2 kids and working!) that we put him on some dry food. Since this introduction in the fall his paw has been infected twice and his ears kind of guncky. His energy level is lower and his coat not as shiny. We quickly switched him back to the raw chicken necks and backs and he seems to be quite happy!!
mmmm.....
Wednesday, March 24, 2010
Moving Smoothly
Things have been crazy around here since we got back from holidays. First work and errands ruled our lives and we were constantly on the go. Then things rapidly came to a halt when Bella had a terrible stomach bug. First vomiting and then diarrhea. This was a very long week. The laundry was endless and her appetite non-existent.
Now I am pumping her full of nutrients and although my kids love their fruits and vegetables, smoothies are another great way to get nurtient rich foods into our children. Plus, anything with a straw always goes over well in this household.
Fruit Smoothie
few handful of frozen fruit
couple heaping tablespoons of organic yogurt
handful of pitted dates (natural sweetener chalked full of minerals)
unsweetened soy milk to cover the fruit
2 acidophilus capsules (opened and dumped in)
Simply blend and pour and enjoy!
my little helper
happily waiting
seriously drinking
Now I am pumping her full of nutrients and although my kids love their fruits and vegetables, smoothies are another great way to get nurtient rich foods into our children. Plus, anything with a straw always goes over well in this household.
Fruit Smoothie
few handful of frozen fruit
couple heaping tablespoons of organic yogurt
handful of pitted dates (natural sweetener chalked full of minerals)
unsweetened soy milk to cover the fruit
2 acidophilus capsules (opened and dumped in)
Simply blend and pour and enjoy!
my little helper
happily waiting
seriously drinking
Thursday, March 11, 2010
Should I or Shouldn't I......
There are so many decisions that people need to make on a daily basis and it is often hard for people to know if they are making the right one. Being a mother, I now have decisions to make for my children as well. I have a tendency to be indecisive and with being responsible for a whole new world of decisions for the wee ones, I find it can be quite challenging. I am introduced to one option and then quite quickly another seems more enticing. I started to think internally. What is going on inside my body? In Chinese medicine, the Liver and Gallbladder meridian ensure that smooth transition of the decision making process. It is the gallbladder that makes the decisions and the liver ensures the smooth flow of our plans. When a disharmony occurs within the liver/gallbladder meridian there is an inability to plan effectively.
Spring is a time to re-juvenate the Liver. It is in the springtime that the liver's energy is most powerful and thus a great time to do a cleanse. I am not up for anything too challenging so I was thinking of the following things.....
1. Lemon water in the morning. Easy. Squeeze a 1/4 of a fresh lemon into some warm water and drink.
2. Eat greens daily. I am going to steam some kale and brocolli every evening.
3. Beets daily. This can be boiled or often I actually eat the beets raw. I simply grate them on top of salad or rice and done.
4. Lastly, this is the big one.....I am dusting off that Champion juicer that has been sitting in the cupboard for WAY to long and I am going to juice some carrots, apples, beets and ginger, topped with a pinch of tumeric.....yummy!
After all that I think my head will be clear and things will once again flow smoothly......
Spring is a time to re-juvenate the Liver. It is in the springtime that the liver's energy is most powerful and thus a great time to do a cleanse. I am not up for anything too challenging so I was thinking of the following things.....
1. Lemon water in the morning. Easy. Squeeze a 1/4 of a fresh lemon into some warm water and drink.
2. Eat greens daily. I am going to steam some kale and brocolli every evening.
3. Beets daily. This can be boiled or often I actually eat the beets raw. I simply grate them on top of salad or rice and done.
4. Lastly, this is the big one.....I am dusting off that Champion juicer that has been sitting in the cupboard for WAY to long and I am going to juice some carrots, apples, beets and ginger, topped with a pinch of tumeric.....yummy!
After all that I think my head will be clear and things will once again flow smoothly......
Wednesday, March 3, 2010
Quackery?
I am mystified with those is society that have a hard time accepting naturopathic medicine. They often use the term 'quackery'. There was an article reported yesterday by the CBC saying PCB's were found in fish oil capsules (http://www.cbc.ca/consumer/story/2010/03/02/consumer-fish-oil-pcb.html) and somehow this spawns into naturopathic medicine being unscientific. If you want to ensure a good quality fish oil call the company and ask them to send you their third party testing on that particular product. If they do not know what you are talking about, avoid the request or never actually send out the information, I would be skeptical about this product.
I only use high quality products (and yes, this is often reflected in the price) and I want to ensure that I, first, do no harm and by giving my patients contaminated products I could be doing just that.
There is plenty of research behind many natural products and I encourage you to refer even to PubMed where you can find many well researched articles.
Bases on my clinical practice I feel very confident in the healing powers of our medicines. I recently had a 75 yr. old male patient who was diagnosed 4 years ago with prostate cancer have an MRI and he is now cancer-free. He never did a single round of chemotherapy or radiation. This summer, a 70 year old patient of mine was in a terrible accident where she had 'severe' brain damage and was never going to be herself again. I went to visit her in the hospital and was completly shocked and upset by her mental state. I brought her the remedies she needed and after 3 days she was a different woman! Thankfully today she is in every way as she was before the accident and is considered a 'walking miracle' to the medical community (if they only believed in the right remedies!). I have helped several women unable to conceive, coming to me in desperation after several failed IVF's and now several of them have healthy babies with more to be born this summer!
For me, naturopathic medicine is our future and I see the benefits in clinical practice and at home everyday.
I only use high quality products (and yes, this is often reflected in the price) and I want to ensure that I, first, do no harm and by giving my patients contaminated products I could be doing just that.
There is plenty of research behind many natural products and I encourage you to refer even to PubMed where you can find many well researched articles.
Bases on my clinical practice I feel very confident in the healing powers of our medicines. I recently had a 75 yr. old male patient who was diagnosed 4 years ago with prostate cancer have an MRI and he is now cancer-free. He never did a single round of chemotherapy or radiation. This summer, a 70 year old patient of mine was in a terrible accident where she had 'severe' brain damage and was never going to be herself again. I went to visit her in the hospital and was completly shocked and upset by her mental state. I brought her the remedies she needed and after 3 days she was a different woman! Thankfully today she is in every way as she was before the accident and is considered a 'walking miracle' to the medical community (if they only believed in the right remedies!). I have helped several women unable to conceive, coming to me in desperation after several failed IVF's and now several of them have healthy babies with more to be born this summer!
For me, naturopathic medicine is our future and I see the benefits in clinical practice and at home everyday.
Tuesday, March 2, 2010
Emergen-C
Whenever we go away I always bring my homeopathics (and they have come in handy once again this trip!!) and I leave the vitamins at home. The only thing I do bring with us is Emergen-C packets. As soon as I get on the plane I put them in our water to keep our Immune system strong and we continue to drink them while away. They are individual vitamin C packets that contain 1000 mg of C and come in a wide range of delicious flavours. There is a very low dose (almost negligable really) of B-vitamins, Calcium, Magnesium, Zinc, Phosporus, Potassium and Chromium. For those concerned that there is too much vitamin C in a packet, this vitamin is water soluble and you will basically pee out the excess.
As an aside, these tend to be much more costly in Canada (more than triple the price) so I usually buy a box when in the US.
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