RASPBERRY-ORANGE CHOCOLATE PUDDING

Today I thought I would balance my last post with something delicious in a much less virtuous, "my brain hasn't disintegrated into kale and weird green stuff" way.

I've been writing a lot about balance and finding the happy medium between many extremes: in health, time, family, parenting, mind talk, body talk, soul talk and the multitude of other areas in each of our lives where it can seem we walk a tight rope. There is so much noise about diets, parenting styles, yoga and meditation styles, exercise, supplements, vaccines, religious beliefs, political stances and a number of controversial issues we are faced with today. In fact, it's almost impossible to scroll through Facebook or click on a news website without seeing something that ignites anxiety, fear, a sense of shame or failure, and anger.

Years ago I decided to stop watching the news on a regular basis. Sure, I was being educated on the happenings of the world but at the same time I was being influenced by a station's take on a certain situation and it was almost always pumped up with verbiage and adrenaline in an effort to increase my attention span and emotional reaction. Unfortunately, it's an effective technique. I was confused by conflicting stories and increasingly frustrated with the amount of fear I was being traumatized by. So I turned it off. And I really never looked back.

About a year ago, I realized the health world was quickly having the same effect on my mental and physical health. I had turned down the noise of one voice only to allow another to take over. Instead of worrying about national safety, global warming, and the local crime, I had taken to wringing my hands over supplementation, vaccines, and signs of disease.

Now, a little older and a teensy bit wiser, I'm learning to turn this off too. But this time I'm filling the quiet with things that my soul and open my heart. I listen to music that speaks of joy and beauty and healing. I read books that do the same. I meditate. I play outside. I giggle with my girls. I worry much less about being a good parent and have faith that I am. I trust the people in my life to hold me accountable to the things they know I value and am trying to do less of that myself. I'm working at walking away from judgement of myself and others and walking towards compassion.

And I eat this pudding. Not all the time but as a delicious and special reminder that life, a good and beautiful and balanced life, holds a little of everything: discipline and spontaneity, a bit of fear and a lot of joy, blessing in many forms, laughter and grief, health and indulgence, questions and faith, confusion and understanding, humanness and holy. Without one we truly can't enjoy or learn from the other.

The amazing thing is, and the blessing in it all, all of these can be teachers, guiding us towards wisdom and grace.

[BREATHING BEFORE EATING]

A quick note about breathing before I get to the recipe.

One of the practices I've come to fully embrace is breathing before a meal. I used to rush through a prayer, usually as a quick "check it off the list, let's eat!" routine. Then I sat around our friends' table, friends whom I respect and trust, and had an honest conversation about praying before meals and why we do it. They were in the process of working through a faith established for them as children, questioning what they had been spoon-fed for years. So far they've landed on holding faith and questions in an open palm and tapping forks or spoons in gratitude for the meal. I loved it. And I began to ask questions too.

Then recently, a friend I've been seeing for energy and bodywork mentioned they breathe as a family before their meals in an effort to center their minds and prepare their bodies for the food they're about to eat. I loved this as well.

Here's the thing about being vulnerable about the questions we ask - it gives others the freedom to do so as well and put a name to the doubts we hold.

And so we've moved our mealtime routine in a direction that finds us where we are. We're working at remembering to take three deep, intentional breaths before our meals as a way of acknowledging our food and breath and everything around us as a holy gift. We're teaching our girls to honor our bodies with the food we eat by eating as if we mean to eat. As if it's worth paying attention to. As if each meal is special. And sometimes with words, mostly with our breath, we say thank you - thank you to the one who created us, thank you for each person around the table, thank you for our food, thank you for this breath.

[THE RECIPE]

5 oz. dark chocolate chips
5 oz. semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 c. frozen raspberries [or berry / fruit of choice]
1 13.5-ounce can regular coconut milk
1/2 c. coconut butter
1/2 - 3/4 c. honey
1/2 - 1 tsp. orange flavor [or flavor of choice]
1/2 tsp. sea salt
appx. 7 - 8 small, 4-ounce glass jars with tight fitting lids

Optional additions: chopped walnuts, sliced almonds, toasted coconut, splash of Amaretto or almond extract.

Place raspberries in a medium size saucepan and warm over medium-low heat until very soft [appx. 10 minutes], stirring occasionally. Pour the soft rasberries through a fine mesh strainer set over a bowl. Using a wooden or metal spoon, gently press the raspberries into the strainer to extract as much as the juice as possible from the seeds. Compost or discard the seeds.

If seeds remain in the pan, rinse out the pan used to heat the raspberries. Return the strained raspberries to the pot and add remaining ingredients.

Warm over medium-low heat until all of the ingredients are melted and the consistency is very smooth. Remove from heat and pour into small glass jars. Secure lids tightly onto the jars and place in the refrigerator for 2 - 4 hours or freezer for 1 - 2 hours or until the consistency is just firm.

Store in the refrigerator for up to one week.

GREEN MILK WITH MORINGA

A really close friend of mine has recently entered into my [not so normal] health world. The other day I was sitting with her and another close friend of ours talking about increasing potassium - you know, like you do. We practically pummeled her with ideas ranging from molasses to coconut sugar to chlorophyll. Now the weak of heart would bail upon hearing chlorophyll but my friend gave it a go after we assured her it really wasn't so bad.

The next time I saw her she looked me straight in the eye and asked what the hell I had just told her to drink.

Ummmmm.

Lucky for me she's both forgiving and has a fantastic sense of humor. Our friendship remains in tact.

However, it did cause me to pause for a second and consider the words that so easily fly out of my mouth.

Chlorophyll - it tastes great!

Molasses in hot water - sure, you'll begin to crave it!

Beet sauerkraut - I eat it all the time!

Apple cider vinegar in water - first thing in the morning, baby!

I now see sentences like these are just not normal. It's taken me years to detox my body of the many artificial flavors and ingredients so beautifully disguised as food and rewrite what I consider delicious. And let me tell you, I didn't start with chorophyll or molasses or a good number of things now kept as staples in my pantry and fridge.

My point? It's a journey. A long one and it's so easy to forget how long when these things finally click from crazy and weird and flat out disgusting to normal, even tasty.

The most important thing is to just stick with it. Maybe it's adding more local, organic veggies to your diet. Maybe it's a piece of fruit in place of candy. Maybe it's taking a shot of chlorophyll and cursing my name for the next couple days. Whatever it is, stick with it and keep going because it will get better. Maybe not tomorrow or next week or even next year but at some point something will click deep within you and crazy might just seem, well, normal.

[A MOMENT FOR MORINGA]

I thought, while we're on the topic of not-so-normal, I'd give a shout out to the Moringa Tree. I was introduced to moringa a while ago by some friends of mine who support ECHO, a truly amazing non-profit farm based in Florida. More recently, I came across moringa while researching another non-profit and just a bit ago stumbled across the powder in my local health foods store. So, here we are.

Moringa has long been dubbed "the miracle tree". My tendency is to take claims like this as slick advertising and immediately revert to skeptic mode, sure I'm being duped.

But.

But then I read that this particular tree, and all it's parts, is being used to resolve a host of issues in undeveloped countries crippled by disease, malnutrition, economic instability, and environmental degradation. And it's also packed with a loaded punch of nutrition [potassium, protein, vitamins A and C, calcium, magnesium, manganese, iron, zinc] while boasting all the essential amino acids necessary to call it a complete protein. And it's safe for general use. Seriously?! 

I've run out of reasons not to add it to my repertoire of weird, amazingly good for me, will take some getting used to, foods.

You can read more about moringa here and here, and I really, really hope you do.

So, a drink. Moringa has a sort of earthy, grassy taste. I've chosen to make this a simple, no-fuss green milk I can easily whip up at any point in the day. However, if this health-stuff is new to you [and your taste buds], add a bit of cacao or cocoa, an avocado or frozen banana for thickness, some fruit, or a little ice to make this "medicine" go down a little smoother.

[THE RECIPE]

2 c. nut or seed or milk of choice
2 tsp. morning leaf powder [you can find here or here or check out your local health foods store]
2 - 3 tsp. pure maple syrup
pinch of sea salt
small pinch of raw stevia leaf powder [optional]

Place all ingredients in blender and blend on high for thirty seconds or until combined. Serve immediately as is or over ice. A note about ice: I tend to not use ice as it can reduce digestion and cool the body too much however, sometimes it can make drinks more palatable.
 

ONE WEEK OF MEALS CROCK POT STYLE

This past year I've found so much beauty and healing in slowing down, demanding less, giving up pushing and pulling and worrying and controlling, and instead quieting my mind in an effort to really feel my body and hear my soul.

When you're in the "health world" or routinely pick up a health-based magazine or see a fear-based health post or wonder which diet is actually the best, it's so easy to quickly become immersed in food-based fear and anxiety. Most of us want to feel good and live healthfully and we educate ourselves and change our diets and start working out. All good things. And yet there comes a point where the line between making some healthy lifestyle choices shifts to wanting to control it all and simply caring turns to obsessing. And fear of whatever the opposite of health is, or could be, becomes the driving force.

Here's what I've learned: no matter how healthy we eat, how much knowledge we gain, how many supplements we take, how much we care and do and give up, if "being healthy" causes anxiety and stress and fear, health will continually allude us.

Here's what I've also learned: it's okay.

It's okay to release all of the fear. It's okay to release all of the stress. It's okay to say no to the worry. It's okay to get to a point where we say enough is enough. It's okay to think we've failed. It's okay to not feel our best every minute of every day. It's okay to sit in the discomfort of life and experience the emotions that come with. It's okay to get sick from time to time. And it's okay to ask for help when being okay seems unbelievable.

So close the diet books. Discontinue the health magazines. Turn off the sound and chatter of the voices out there and begin to listen to the voice within. I know from experience that the voice of our true, honest, ego-less, projection-less self is infinitely wise and grace-filled and honest and compassionate and vastly inclusive and forgiving. Find someone who can help uncover this voice.

Give up the chatter and noise and meditate. Practice mindfulness. Breathe. Listen to really awesome music. Completely loose all sense of time doing something you love. Go outside. Seriously, even in the winter go outside. Connect with people you care deeply about. Be open and honest and vulnerable. Laugh. Laugh a lot. Let yourself stay up too late and sleep in too long from time to time and don't for a second regret it. And be present. Take all of the energy wasted on worry and fear and being anxious and focus on just being present. Right now. This second.

And forget about food. And health. And whatever you think you should be doing.

Because food matters. But it only matters as one small piece of the great big, beautiful, unique puzzle that makes up you.  


So Crock Pots.

And dinner.

Let's be honest, Crock Pots are one of mankind's most amazing inventions. Well Crock Pots and electricity. And air travel. And indoor plumbing. And pacifiers. You get the point. I affectionately think of ours as Ms. Chef, getting dinner done when I don't have the energy, motivation and/or time to do so. For me, there is something about having dinner prepared before 9am that brings a sort of ease to my day. Feeding my family well demands a decent amount of my time and using a Crock Pot allows me to spend elsewhere the time I would be standing at a stove - hopefully on things that fill me up and give me life and allow me to be present.

Here is a week long meal plan using just the Crock Pot. Some meals are meat-less, some use meat, and all are based on whole, un-processed foods. You can choose to serve with the sides listed, create your own sides, or stick to whatever is in the pot. These recipes are great for cooler temperatures and the winter season.

May you find a little extra space in your life to slow down, take in beauty in whatever way you find it, and forget about food. 

SUNDAY
Unstuffed Cabbage Rolls
*prepare lentils for Monday by placing dried, uncooked lentils in a large glass bowl and covering with double the amount of water and a tablespoon of raw apple cider vinegar.

MONDAY
Lentil Soup
Serve with oat baguette, seed bread, seed crackers, or bread / crackers of choice.

TUESDAY
Whole Chicken
Serve with steamed or roasted vegetables.

WEDNESDAY
Butternut Squash Risotto
Serve with steamed or roasted vegetables.
*prepare black beans for Thursday by dried, uncooked beans in a large glass bowl and covering with double the amount of wate and a tablespoon of raw apple cider vinegar.

THURSDAY
Black Bean Soup
Serve with fresh cilantro and roasted sweet potato or parsnip chips.
Modifications: Rather than cooking over stove, simply put all of the ingredients [including uncooked, pre-soaked black beans] in Crock Pot on high for 6 - 8 hours.

FRIDAY
Creamy Chicken Soup using leftover chicken from Tuesday [click on link and scroll to "Meal 6"]
Serve with roasted cauliflower [click link and scroll down for recipe].

SATURDAY
Fish Tacos
Serve on a bed of quinoa or rice and top with fresh cilantro, avocado, and freshly squeezed lime juice.
Recipe modifications: I used Cod in place of Tilapia and seasoned with freshly ground cumin and coriander seeds.

A NEW YEAR: ON DETOXING AND RESOLUTIONS AND HABITS

Last year about this time I wrote about detoxification. In fact, you may find most health-minded blogs, magazines, and news articles will bring up the big "D" word come January 1 and the week leading up to it.

I have to admit, I too have been consumed with it all, over the last week mapping out a herb and food-based detox of my own.

As I put together the plan, I got to wondering why we many have the insatiable desire to detox in January when much of the fresh foods needed for such cleanses come around in August. Any good locavore would say, pass on [wheat]grass unless it's in summer. Of course there are local greenhouses and ways to grow sprouts, wheatgrass, even greens while a frozen tundra encases the outdoors, but for the most part the stuff in our detox juices, smoothies, salads, and stir-fries are all but extinct on January 1st. Unless, of course, you traverse the ice to the local grocery. California, Mexico, and Brazil have us well supplied.

And thus the uncomfortable rub for me - if I'm going to do a fast, wouldn't I want to have the best, most nutrient dense, freshest [I mean with dirt still on it] produce? Why am I so drawn to detoxing when there is nothing like said fruit and veggies around?

I've come to a couple conclusions:

First, the over abundance of heavy foods and sweets during holidays automatically causes our bodies to crave simple, fresh, whole foods easy to digest and packed with the vitamins and minerals we've missed out on in the weeks preceding the new year.

Second, there is something undeniably powerful about each new year. It's a fresh start, a clean slate, a time to build habits we've wanted but just haven't had the motivation or time set aside to put in place. It's an annual new beginning - a beautiful picture of grace.

And so we diet. We detox. We work out. We list our goals. We forgive. We restore. We dream.

For about a day.

And then we realize just how hard all of it is. How it takes intention and patience and diligence and discipline.

And we give up.

We succumb to guilt and self-depreciation and poor habits and a life we know is not the best life we could be living all the while knowing we are made for more.

And we live in this until next January when determination consumes us for another brief moment.

But maybe this year can be different. Maybe we start small and enjoy fully each step we take. Instead of grandiose plans doomed to fail, perhaps we take one thing we can realistically achieve and actually do it. We follow through to completion and relish the success.

So, and this new year unfolds, choose one thing and do it with intention. Take on this new beginning in a less ambitious way knowing more will be achieved. Set time aside to rest and reflect and take in the past year, grieving what needs to be grieved and celebrating what needs to be celebrated. Then bask in the freedom to live in the present.

Happy 2014 - may you be so blessed this year.

A SIMPLE GUIDE TO FOOD & THE CHOICES WE MAKE

I frequently get asked the question, "What should I eat?"

Of course this inquiry has many answers depending on who you are, your specific needs, and a host of other factors. But what I'm finding is this question is generally a plea in disguise. Most of the people I run into are so confused by the mass-information found thoroughout the media they are desperate for someone, someone they trust, to give them the answer.

Eat grain! No, don't eat grain! Eat meat! No, don't eat meat! Eat local rather than organic! Eat organic rather than local! Juice! Don't juice! Only eat certain foods in combination with other certain foods! Take vitamins! Don't take vitamins! Drink a lot of water! Don't drink too much water! Eat raw! Cook your foods! Drink green smoothies! No, don't drink green smoothies! Vaccinate! No, don't vaccinate! Go out! Eat in! Eat whatever the heck you want! Don't eat ANYTHING!

My head is spinning. You?

This onslaught of contradicting information can be crippling. It's such an unfortunate by-product of the info-mania we live in today and I'm thinking it has robbed [well that and the golden arches] many of us of the ability to think critically. The media and over-zealous dieticians / doctors / nutritionists [yes, they are out there] have convinced us that we need their help, their direction, their books and websites and blogs and trainings. Their clothes and blenders and cars and hair styles and personalities. Okay, a bit of an exaggeration [maybe] but I think you know what I mean.

The food system has so sweetly stepped in to rescue us from this barage. "Don't worry, I'll take care of dinner [and breakfast, and lunch, and snacks, and coffee break, and midnight snacks...]. I have the answer and it comes in a box with instructions for microwaving and scooping and crunching."

Somehow, we've bought into this and taken the plunge, shedding the intuition and mindfulness necessary to tune into our own bodies, needs, and the needs of our families on the way.

But deep down, underneath all this noise, is a small voice that urges us to do the right thing for our bodies, for our children, and for the world. It is cheering us on saying "You already have the answer! Your body is designed to know what you need!"

This is all great Tina, real inspiring. But I'm still confused. What is the "right" thing? Where do I start? Is there a diet that works? How do I know what to eat? What to feed my kids?

I get it. I'm a tactile, visual, "give me a plan" person too.

First a little secret the food industry and all those diet-crazed people don't want me to tell you.

One diet doesn't fit all. 

Really, at some level we all know this. How can one-size-fit-all when our bodies are designed so uniquely? We want to believe there is one solution, one pill, one diet, one life style. We try to convince ourselves "This will be the one that works!", so we hop from one diet to the next until, once again, we are completely let down and out some more money.

But we keep searching because, come on, there must be some diet out there that will actually make us thinner, better looking, more employable, date-able, marry-able, happier, and content. Essentially make our lives easier.

And let's be serious, most of us enjoy a little easy.

But where's the fun in that? Where's the growth and journey and excitement and challenge and accomplishment and health in easy and same-ness and boring?

I enjoy the choices I have, the way my body changes from day to day, week to week, month to month, season to season. I love that my body screamed for meat when I was pregnant and begged for beans and greens following the birth of my child. I look forward to the craving for fresh-picked food when spring comes to call and the warmth of soups when winter closes in. It begins to feel a bit sacred - like food is bigger than the next bite or meal or diet. Almost like my food choices really, really matter. And if they matter, then they have meaning. And if they have meaning, then food is special and holy and good.

And that's exciting.

So. A plan.

Well, to begin, disregard any book or advertisement or person telling you they have the answer for everyone. Smile, clear your shelves or wish them well, and run the other way.

After you've made some space for your own voice and thoughts and preferences, set the intention to learn.

Learn to cook, learn about new foods, learn new recipes, new flavors, new restaurants [yes, new restaurants], new drinks, new ways to eat and gather and decorate the table, new routines, even new people.

Clear your mind of all your preconceived ideas of the "right" thing to do and start with a blank slate. You know the answers you just haven't been given the space to think about them. Remove the shoulds and have-tos and give yourself a moment to enjoy the freedom of choice and adventure.

[SOME TIPS ON FOOD]

1) Start with what you already like and go from there. If you like Mac N' Cheese, try making it from scratch. Once you've done that, add some veggies or different flavors or try a different recipe. If you like burgers, try a turkey burger or a veggie burger or find some pasture-raised, organic beef. It doesn't matter what you start with but start somewhere.

2) Eat mostly plants. Yes plants. If you can pick it or dig it up, most likely it will fall in the fruit or vegetable category. This doesn't mean canned fruits or veggies or cakes with fruit topping or pies or take-out Chinese food. This means fresh fruits and vegetables. From a farm not a factory.

3) Make friends with a farmer or two. Farmer's Markets are in full swing and are not only the most happenin' place to be on a Saturday morning [obviously] but are also a place to find great produce, in season, at awesome prices.

4) Purchase organic if you can but don't sweat it if you can't. The important thing is to get fresh fruits and vegetables in your diet. A non-organic vegetable is always better than a Big Mac. Buy local, in season produce whenever you can - it'll taste better and save you some cash.

5) Don't buy or eat products you see on TV. You don't see a lot of real farmers sporting their wares across the media. Generally it's packaged, chem-filled, franken-food annoyingly popping up every ten minutes interrupting your show.

6) Make a plan. If you plan out your meals for the week, in general you will feel less stressed about food because, hey!, you've thought ahead and have a plan!

7) Double the recipe and make friends with the freezer. I almost always make more than I need, jar the leftovers, throw on a label, and stash in the freezer. This allows me the freedom to not cook, and not rely on take-out, on those days.

8) Look at the ingredients list on any packaged foods. If there are words that take more than a second to comprehend put it back. If you have no idea what any of the words are, run.

9) Do your best to pay attention to how foods affect you. A food diary is a great way to do this but if that seems overwhelming at first, begin by noticing each time you have a headache or stomache or inflamed muscles. Ask yourself, "Is there something I ate that could have given me this headache or feeling of being bloated? Have I drank enough water today? Did I eat something out of the ordinary? Am I eating something too much or not enough of something?" The more you ask these questions, the more you will become aware of the food-health relationship in your own body.

Now the most important tip of all,

10) Enjoy your food! Don't eat food just because it's "healthy" or you think you should. This is not sustainable and one of the primary reasons most diets fail. Hunger does not equate to success and blah does not mean it must be working. The more you enjoy your food the greater respect you will have for it. The more you look forward to your meals the greater the chances you will slow down and enjoy each bite. The more fun you have making your food the more likely you are to return to the kitchen to do it again, and again, and again.

So may you find ways to take food seriously but not too seriously. May you find choices that meet your needs and the needs of your family and care for them well through those choices. May you find yourself taking a step towards healthy habits and celebrate that step without thinking about the next one.

Above all, may you find that food is fun and a gift and exciting and something to be enjoyed. Every day. Over and over again.