Super Soy Pudding

It is the morning of Thanksgiving #1. I celebrate two, one today and one on Friday.  Knowing this weekend could be full of over-indulgences, I wanted to eat something that would be both healthy and filling for breakfast.  I found this Super Soy Pudding on the  phmiracleliving.com web site and thought it was worth a try. The is a recipe from Shelley Redford Young, wife of Dr. Robert Young of The pH Diet. It is said to be high in good fats, Vitamin E, Calcium, Potassium with the almond milk and avocado, and high in proteins from the Soy Sprouts.

I actually cut this recipe in half:

1 C. Fresh Almond Milk
2 Avocado’s
1 lime
2 scoops Soy Sprouts Powder
1 pkg. Stevia
6-8 Ice cubes

It did come out very creamy and pudding like. Then again, anything with avocado and ice cubes should do that.  It was a little more tart than expected, however, on some level my taste buds were thinking vanilla or chocolate pudding – which this wasn’t.   It was OK. While it was ‘healthy’, I am not sure I am satiated – even after waiting  20 minutes for it to register with my brain.

Conclusion:  If I want to stay alkaline, I will make this again. If I want something that is still raw but, resembles my version of ‘real’ pudding , the recipe will look like this:

1 C. Fresh Almond Milk
1 Avocado
1 Banana
1-2 TSP Cacao Powder
1 tsp Macuna Powder
1 pkg. Stevia
3-4 ice cubes

Now, that is healthy, satisfying and delicious!

Monday morning cleanse

I woke up on Monday morning with that bloated, sluggish feeling of over-indulgence.   Without going into the ‘unhealthy’ specifics (I think tequila, guacamole and fried plantain chips were involved), let’s say that I felt my body needed a little extra assistance to get the excess water and toxins moving. It was the perfect time to try Dr. David Jubb’s Electrolyte Lemonade from the  LifeFood Recipe Book.

The recipe:

• 2 organic lemons, yellow skin removed, keeping the white pith
• 2 tablespoons of flax oil
• 1 organic apple (he recommends a pear but, I didn’t have one on hand)
• 1/2 tsp.  Celtic sea salt
• 4 cups water
• 4 tablespoons maple syrup (raw honey or stevia is also listed as options)

The lemon and the oil are said to detoxify while boosting the immune system. Flax is also great for providing Omega 3 fatty acids. Citrus pectin restores absorption of ‘good’ fats into the cells.

After 15-20 seconds in the Vitamix, I gave it a try. The drink came out surprisingly refreshing and tasty – after I removed the chucks of pith.  Usually the Vitamix will smooth everything out, however, not so with lemon pith. I had to pour the concoction through a strainer to make it palatable. It was creamy and delicious, much more substantial than the lemonade used in the Master Cleanse.

I had several glasses of it throughout the morning and revered back to a healthier fare throughout the rest of the day. It is now Tuesday morning and I feel much clearer and the over-indulgence bloat is gone!

BTW, the Electrolyte Lemonade could be used as part of a more extensive 7 or 14 day cleanse. However, a week or so before Thanksgiving doesn’t feel like the appropriate time to cleanse. Definitely, after the holiday!

I was eating an avocado

My husband gets into my car last night and finds a spoon on the seat – not a plastic spoon that you would get with take-out but, a real metal spoon. He was holding it up – thinking god knows what. I responded to his non-verbal perplexity with, “I was eating an avocado.”

Here is the back story. I had a morning meeting lasting until 10:30 and I knew by the time it was over the smoothie concoction from 7:00 am would be a distant memory to my body. The stomach would have started growling and a feeling of panic or anxiety would be creeping in as my blood sugar had fallen long ago. (Apparently, not enough soy sprouts. See post below))

The ‘natural’ or, should I say habitual pattern would have me stopping at the bakery or grocery store for a muffin or Russian tea biscuit to revive up my fallen blood sugar. However, today I was experimenting with a healthier option to break the pattern.

That morning I grabbed a ripe avocado, a plastic knife and a metal spoon (since a plastic one was nowhere to be found).  Directly after my meeting, I sat in the parking lot, cut the avocado and experienced the yummy creaminess (with my metal spoon).  Within minutes, my stomach felt better, the anxiety was lessening and I knew a stop at Davis Bakery would be unnecessary.

BTW…Normally,  if I was eating an avocado ‘straight,’ I would sprinkle it with sea salt or dulse (seaweed) flakes with cayenne. However, my intention was not a gourmet avocado experience – merely something to fill void in my stomach.

The positive effects of the experiment lasted later into the day. I was surprisingly energetic and satiated that afternoon. Usually, a few hours after the bakery experience, my body is struggling with low energy and a desire for some other carbohydrate product. Interesting coincidence.

Where do you get your protein on a raw vegan diet?

Anyone who follows a raw an living food diet inevitably gets the question, ‘Where do you get your protein?’ I just came across this great blog post 20 Raw Vegan Foods to Build Muscle and Lose Fat which outlines some of the best protein sources for people trying to follow a living food diet.

Some of my favorite protein sources include:

• Protein powder – Hemp Protein or Sun Warrior Protein
• Green superfoods – spirulina, blue-green algae (E3Live) and chlorella
• Bee pollen
• Hemp seeds
• Green leafy vegetables
• Avocados
• Green superfood powder (all in one concentrate) such as Vitamineral Green
• Chia seeds
• Almonds, almond butter, almond milk
• Soy sprouts

I learned about the benefits of these foods over time and gradually have incorporated them into my diet. Now it is automatic for me to throw some green vegetables and avocado into a blender, make a smoothie with bee pollen, hemp seed and protein powder or mix chlorella or green powder into a juice.

Soy Sprouts

I have been following Dr. Robert Young’s pH diet, an approach to eating that alkalizes the body. An essential component of the diet seems to be powdered baby Soy Sprouts. Soy sprouts are living baby plant foods in their prime and are biogenic. This means they can transfer their life force energy to you. At the satge of deveopment where they are captured into the powdered form we can consume, they have high concentrations of proteins, vitamins, minerals, phytochemincals, DNA and RNA. Their nutrients are in colloidal form and are easily ingested and digested.

Apparently, 3 teaspoons a day will give a 150 pound person a significant amount of their daily requirements of protein, vitamins, minerals and phtochemicals, in addition to helping alkalize your internal ecosystem.

In my never- ending quest for magic health elixirs, I am experimenting with this supplement. I have taken it with water (not very good) and mixed it in vegetable juices or smoothies. There is a distinct ’sprout-like’ taste that accompanies this product. While it doesn’t taste awful, a little stevia takes away the funkiness.

So far, I notice that if I use this product 2-3 times per day, I experience an increased sense of satiation and my cravings for sugar are almost eliminated. The challenge seems to be working 2-3 smoothies/juices into my day (and of course, the sprout-like taste).

Almond Milk – A Healthier Alternative

My evolution with alternatives to milk started with soy milk. Over the last 10 years soy milk has become very popular – even to the point of having its own shelf in many grocery store dairy cases. Apparently, soy milk is not as healthy as we would like to think. It is highly processed and contains substances that mimic estrogen (called phytoestrogens) in our body. While I cannot provide the exact biochemical reaction of these estrogen-like substances in the body, I do know that as humans extra estrogen is not a good thing, (i.e. all of challenges with hormone replacement therapy in post-menopausal women.)

In addition to the phytoestrogen issue, many soy milks and products are made with Genetically Modified soybeans. GMO have been show to harm the human organism. NaturalNews.com has several articles that discuss the dangers of soy, including http://tinyurl.com/yamelck.

Over the last several years the information on soy milk has been infiltrating my brain, however, as an addict of Starbuck’s Soy Lattes, how could I ever stop with soy milk?

Almond and Rice milk made their way into the health food marketplace several years ago and even onto the shelves of many ‘regular’ grocery stores. I have used both of those products primarily with cereal and smoothies. They are excellent good alternatives to cow’s milk and soy milk although, on my quest to eat as much raw and unprocessed food as possible, not 100% ideal.

Now, instead of pulling out the carton some various milk product, I now make my own homemade almond milk using raw almonds. Not only is it extremely creamy and yummy, I it is the healthiest ‘milk’ option for my body.


Raw Vanilla Almond Milk

1 cup soaked almonds
(Soak in a bowl for 8 hours and rinse before using)
3 cups water
1 Tablespoon raw honey (or sweetener of your choice)

To make raw almond milk: add the almonds, milk and sweetener into a blender or Vitamix and blend until smooth. Then strain the mixture through a sprout bag, cheesecloth, or strainer into a big bowl. Save the almond pulp in a container and put in the refrigerator for later use.

The milk will keep for 3-4 days in the refrigerator. Shake before use.

How to Get Rid of a Headache

My husband suffers from chronic sinus headaches. He complains that he can’t breathe at night because his nose is too big.  (He has been talking about a nose job for years.) Although, he has suffered chronic sinus headache problems since we met, I am not convinced the size of his nose has anything to do with it.

Yesterday, he was once again suffering from a ‘massive headache behind his eyes’  and it felt like a good time to try an experiment. David Wolfe provides a simple juice recipe in his book The Sunfood Diet Success System to help with a headache. Why not see if it works?

I pulled out my Omega juicer and processed:

• 4 ribs of celery
• 4 oz. of fennel (It looks similar to celery with feathers on the end rather than leaves and smells like licorice. )
• 1 apple
• 1 orange without the skin

According to David, fennel is a wonderful, cooling, licorice tasting herb. It thins the blood and allows obstructions which, place pressure on the blood vessels (headaches) to flow and be removed by the kidneys. Celery and apple provide sodium/potassium balance and the orange is for calcium and alkalinity.

Well, an hour or so later, my husband reported that his nose started running (a good sign) and his headache had disappeared! Success! Coincidence or, is there something to this simple juice recipe?

While this may have been an isolated incident,  I am a believer in the power of fresh vegetable and fruit juices to change the biochemistry of the body. Juices, especially green ones provide minerals and alkalinity – combatting acidic conditions. (More discussion on that another day.) They do the body good.

Next headache – I am reaching for the fennel.

Beat Sugar Cravings with Green Juice

Craving sugar? Feeling stressed or anxious?  Try a green vegetable juice. The minerals and chlorophyll in green leafy vegetables are great balancing agents for the body. Many of us habitually tax our bodies with caffeine, sugar and stress which, create an unbalanced feeling in our bodies as well as fuel additional cravings for caffeine and sugar. An endless cycle.

While I too am still a big fan of caffeine and sugar (addiction LOL), I do try to include one 16-24 oz. juice made with green vegetables everyday. I find they help curb my appetite, feel more grounded and give me energy.

Here are my favorite green juice combinations:

• Celery, cucumber
• Celery, cucumber, kale
• Celery, cucumber, spinach
• Celery, cucumber, romaine lettuce
• Celery, cucumber, broccoli
• Cabbage, kale, lettuce

You can add lemon juice to any of the above if you want to ‘cut’ the bitterness of green leafy vegetables.

Red Pepper Sauce

Noticing there was a giant head of cabbage in my refrigerator, I decided  coleslaw was going to be on the menu for dinner.  Usually, I make olive oil and Bragg’s Amino dressing. However, tonight I was feeling the need to approach the coleslaw dressing in a new way.

I started with a salad base of green cabbage, green onions, diced red pepper and raw silvered almonds.

Now it was time for a new and innovative dressing. Red pepper sauce looked interesting. It consisted of:

• 1 medium red bell pepper
• 1/8 cup flax oil
• 1/8 cup olive oil
• 3 TBS lemon juice
• 1 TBS curry powder
• 1/2 teaspoon Celtic salt

I blended it until smooth and mixed it in with the cabbage.  After an hour it the flavors had melded. Served it with a plain baked potato. Yummy!

Morning Smoothie

This morning I was thinking green. Here is the recipe of my morning concoction:

• banana
• apple
• kale
• slice of pineapple
• 1 TBS green powder (Vitamineral Green)
• 1 tsp soy sprouts
• 1 cup of water

Blend on high in Vitamix and have a delicious shake!

Hoping the soy sprouts keep my blood sugar balanced a little longer than just th fruit and kale. So far my energy is high and I feel completely satiated.