Tempeh Sloppy Joes

Normally, I'm not a fan of meat-imitation dishes.  I think... if you're going to eat Vegetarian, just eat Vegetarian foods;  Forget about dressing it up like a turkey!  (Sorry, Tofurkey- you do make a nice, nostalgic Thanksgiving meal :)  However, this recipe is DIFFERENT.  It stands out on its own as not just an 'imitation' dish, but a great meal with a unique flavor of its own.  In fact, I would venture to say that this is eons upon eons better than the 'original' sloppy joes.

This recipe is from a gorgeous Vegan recipe book I picked up at our local bookshop recently:

Ingredients:
1 package (8 oz.) Tempeh, cubed
1 T. olive oil or water (or Palm or Coconut)
1 onion, finely chopped
1 bell pepper (red, yellow, or orange), finely chopped
1 can (15 ounces) tomato sauce
1 T. chili powder (or to taste)
1/2 tsp. sea or Himalayan salt
1/4 tsp. ground pepper
2 T. vegetarian Worcestershire sauce- I left this out and they still turned out great
1 tsp. hot sauce (optional)
4 buns, toasted- I used gluten free millet-flax buns from www.Samisbakery.com

Directions: Steam tempeh for 10 minutes in a steamer basket placed in a pot filled with 2 to 3 inches water.  Once your kitchen fills with tempeh's nutty aroma, the tempeh is done.  (It really takes only 10 minutes.)  Transfer to a bown, and crumble with your hands (if it's not too hot) or mash with a fork or potato masher.

In a large-size saucepan over medium heat, heat oil and saute onion until translucent.  Add bell pepper and tempeh, and saute for a few minutes more, stirring constantly to prevent sticking.  Add tomato sauce, chili powder, salt, pepper, Worcestershire sauce, and hot sauce (if using).  Cover, reduce heat, and simmer for 10 minutes or longer.  Serve on toasted buns with something light like a salad with plenty of sprouts!  It's pictured above with a mixed greens, grated beet, raw mushroom, sprout, and balsamic-vinaigrette dressing.  A real, raw & cultured pickle served on the side aids digestion and adds a nice flavor contrast. 

Yield:  4 servings



According to the World's Healthiest Foods Website... 


"Tempeh has been a staple in Indonesia for over 2000 years. It is a highly nutritious fermented food traditionally made from soybeans and its high protein content makes it a wonderful substitute for meat. It is typically made by cooking and dehulling soybeans, inoculating them with a culturing agent (like Rhizopus oligosporus), and then incubating the innoculated product overnight until it forms a solid cake.

A food made from fermented soybeans, tempeh provides not only the protein found in soybeans but their many other health benefits as well. The soybean is the most widely grown and utilized legume in the world, with the U.S. being responsible for more than 50% of the world's production of this important food. Soy is one the most widely researched, health-promoting foods around. Soy's key benefits are related to its excellent protein content, its high levels of essential fatty acids, numerous vitamins and minerals, its isoflavones, and its fiber."  For more,visit this link:
http://whfoods.org/genpage.php?tname=foodspice&dbid=126

   

Marine Phytoplankton for Increased Energy without Stimulation

Who doesn't want more energy in this day and age?  Unfortunately, many people turn to stimulants, like coffee and sugar, to get it.  But the truth is, energy from caffeine and sugar is borrowed energy and gives no more energy to your body than a whip gives to a horse.  Eventually, it will leave you drained!  Marine phytoplankton is a different kind of energy supplement- a supplement that has many positive 'side effects.'  Marine phytoplankton is a single celled green organism grows in oceans, lakes, rivers, creeks, and waterways and is the basis of the entire food chain.  In fact, it provides up to 90% of the oxygen in the air we breathe.  This micro-algae looks like a green liquid when it is packaged and can be consumed by the dropper-full as a health supplement.

What do phytoplankton do for your health?
It contains every nutrient needed for the creation and maintenance of healthy, new cells.
It provides energy without stimulation by delivering vital life force at the mitochondrial level of cellular energy production. 
It provides you with a natural source of wide-spectrum, plant-based vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, and proteins.
It has been shown to improve immune system function and has antiviral, antifungal, and antibacterial properties.
It decreases aches and pains as a result of its anti-inflammatory effects. 
It aids in weight loss.
It increases feelings of calm and
well-being.
It improves digestion, circulation, and eyesight.
It normalizes blood sugar imbalances and reduces cravings.
It improves your body's ability to detoxify itself and helps protect against radiation poisoning.
It aids in nervous system repair due its content of phospholipids, DHA, and EPA- all of which are crucial to nourishing damaged myelin sheathing (the protective layer around each nerve fiber).
It improves sleep quality.
It helps you feel younger as a result of its rich content of zinc, sulfur, and silicon.  (These minerals act as internal cosmetics, naturally renewing skin cells.)
It improves memory and brain power.  The phospholipids and omega-3 fatty acids it contains have a unique ability to cross the blood-brain barrier, feeding the brain and master glands located deep within the brain.  This stimulates significant neurotransmitter production and increases mental clarity. 
It boosts your athletic performance and endurance levels by increasing oxygen uptake in your tissues, including your muscles.    It also provides bioavailable, living protein to your cells that is absorbed twice as well as any type of cooked protein source.
It promotes faster recovery from illnesses and injury due to its cumulative effect of properties that results in improved cellular repair.

Source:  Superfoods:  The Food and Medicine of the Future by David Wolfe.

     

Rockin' Raw Coconut Flour Chocolate Cupcakes Coated with Cashew Frosting

Have you ever read a recipe with so much alliteration in its title?

This cupcake recipe is very versatile, is a great snack, and is loved by children and adults alike!

Cupcake:

1/2 c. coconut flour
1/2 c. raw cacao powder
3/4 c. raw honey or truly, clear raw agave
1/4 c. extra virgin coconut oil
1/2 tsp. sea salt

1.  Place all ingredients into a bowl and stir until they form a dough.
2.  Place into a muffin pan (silicone is easiest for removal purposes)
3.  Place in the fridge for an hour or more to firm them up.
4.  Store in the fridge

Optional:  Add goji berries!

Frosting: 

1 1/2 Cups Cashews
1/3 cup water
1/4 to 1/2 Cup of Agave depending on sweetness desired
1/2 vanilla bean or 1 tsp. vanilla extract

1.  Blend all in blender until smooth and thick
2.  Spread onto your raw chocolate cupcakes!

Note:  As natural sweeteners and raw chocolate have come into the mainstream, many companies have jumped on the bandwagon and started selling them.  So- quality varies!  I've done my homework and chosen to trust Ultimate Superfood's brand cacao and agave.  Their agave is unheated and high in inulin (a beneficial fiber that slows absorption and feeds the friendly bacteria in your gut) AND it is packaged in non-leaching plastic... so you aren't getting hormone disrupting chemicals with your agave.  Heated agave, according to emerging research, is actually quite harmful to the body/liver and there are brands selling heated agave nectar as raw, so there is reason to be careful in this area.   Ultimate Superfood's Cacoa powder is also in non-leaching plastic.  Plus, it's an heirloom variety of cacao and clean (many on the market contain mold/microbes.  Test yours by spraying hydrogen peroxide on it and seeing if it foams.



  

 

How Zen Wisdom can Boost Your Health

"...For there is nothing that is good or bad.  Thinking makes it so."
- Shakespeare

Every thought that you have produces a hormonal response in your body.  To put it simply, happy thoughts produce a happy physiology with high levels of immunity while stressful thoughts produce a stressed physiology vulnerable to disease conditions.  Candace Pert has written an excellent book on the subject- 

In every circumstance, we can choose to see its positive aspect or its negative aspect... and both aspects- the dark and the light- are always in everything.  Zen wisdom says that it is not what happens to us that causes stress.  It is our interpretation of events.... it is as a result of our thoughts about it.  In fact, it is also our interpretation that leads to either soul growth or stagnation.

For example; 
You've just lost a job that you hated doing but you made a substantial income from.  At that moment, you could be celebrating your freedom and seeing it as an opportunity to embrace your new purpose.  You could be lost in mourning the job's and worrying about the future.  Or, you could be doing a little bit of both.  And depending on which you chose, your physiology would respond in different ways.  But if you remember that it is "your thinking that makes it so..." you can redirect your thoughts toward the positive aspects or opportunities in the situation, which will better supports your mental and physical health.

For more information, check out this interview with Andreas Moritz, author of an eye-opening book on this subject called Lifting the Veil of Duality:

insidepersonalgrowth.com
Lifting the Veil of Duality with Andreas Moritz
December 6, 2010
Listen to Interview

Get the Book:
  

Why Butter is Better for Your Health

Butter has gotten a bad reputation in the last hundred years as being bad for your health.  But is that really the case?  As it turns out, the truth about butter is emerging:  Butter benefits your health in many ways while margarine, long touted as a healthier option, is the real health menace!

Margarines are made of vegetable oils which have been heated to extremely high temperatures, causing them to become rancid.  Nickel (which is known to be harmful to human health) and hydrogen atoms are added to the oils in order to solidify them, along with deodorants and colorants to mask the unappetizing smell and gray color of the product.  The final solidification process creates carcinogenic trans-fatty acids.  Margarine contains many more harmful ingredients such as sterols that cause endocrine system problems and the preservative BHT, linked to abdominal pain, dizziness, nausea and liver problems. 

Butter, on the other hand...
- is rich in the most easily absorbable form of Vitamin A necessary for thyroid and adrenal health.
- contains lauric acid, important in treating fungal infections and candida.
- Contains lecithin, essential for cholesterol metabolism.
-  contains anti-oxidants that protect against free radical damage.
- as anti-oxidants that protect
against weakening arteries.
- is a great source of Vitamins E and K.
- is a very rich source of the vital mineral selenium.
- contains special saturated fats that have strong anti-tumor and anti-cancer properties.
- contains conjugated linoleic acid, which is a potent anti-cancer agent, muscle builder, and immunity booster
- is a good source of Vitamin D, essential to absorption of calcium.
- protects against tooth decay.
- is your only source of an anti-stiffness factor, which protects against calcification of the joints.  (This is found in butter made from raw, unpasteurized cream only.  The anti-stiffness factor in butter also prevents hardening of the arteries, cataracts, and calcification of the pineal or "master" gland in your brain.)
- is a source of Activator X, a substance which helps your body absorb minerals.
- is a source of iodine in highly absorbable form.
- may promote fertility in women.
- is a source of quick energy, and is not stored in our bodies adipose tissue.
- contains cholesterol, which is essential to children's brain and nervous system development as well as adults' intestinal and brain health
- contains Arachidonic Acid (AA) which plays a role in brain function and is a vital component of cell membranes.
- protects against gastrointestinal infections in the very young or the elderly.

What about the cholesterol in butter?  The Cholesterol Myths Uffe Ravnskov, MD, PhD and many other publications to date have shed light on the important role cholesterol plays in good health.  Cholesterol is actually a powerful anti-oxidant, used by our bodies to repair tissues, including damaged arterial tissue in the heart.  Though it is 'on the scene' when a person has heart disease, it is not the cause of the heart disease but part of our natural internal healing mechanism.

At the turn of our century, heart disease in America was rare. By 1960, it was our number one killer. Yet during the same time period, butter consumption had decreased - from eighteen pounds per person per year, to four.  Margarine consumption as well as refined sugar and flour consumption skyrocketed during that same period.  Coincidence?  Probably not!

Sources:
"The 20 Health Benefits of Real Butter," by Donna Gates, available from www.bodyecology.com.
"Myths and Truths about Cholesterol," The Weston Price Foundation, www.westonaprice.org.
"Why Organic Raw Butter will Benefit Your Health," by Shona Rotes, www.naturalnews.com.

Butter Buying Tips:

Choose organic, cultured butter, preferably from Grassfed (pastured) cows:















If you can find it, RAW butter (made from unpasteurized cream) is even better:  Go to www.realmilk.com for more information on local farmers who may offer it in your area. 

Two good books that reference the healing power of traditional foods, including butter, are The Maker's Diet by Jordan Rubin and Nourishing Traditions by Sally Fallon.  On-line, go to www.westonaprice.org for more information and articles. 

Whipped Strawberry Smoothie with Ginseng

Ingredients:

Meat of about a half of one young coconut
3/4 c. Spring Water
1 c. Fresh or Frozen Organic Strawberries
1 Scoop Cold-Processed Strawberry or Vanilla Flavored Organic Whey Powder from Grass-fed Cows
1 T. Raw Honey
1/2 tsp. American Ginseng

Blend till smooth and enjoy.  This has a 'whipped' texture thanks to the cold-processed whey powder.
Note:  If you don't have a young coconut, use a base of organic coconut milk instead (available at most health food stores).  I try to use young coconut meat whenever possible as I aim to eat as much fresh, 'alive' food as possible, but always use the best ingredients you have available to you at the time and you'll get GREAT results- I promise!  Intention is everything! 

ABOUT WHEY:
Whey has been used as medicine for ages;  In fact, Hippocrates, known as the 'father of medicine', recommended whey for its health-boosting properties.  In Ayurvedic medicine, whey is said to purify the nadis, or energy channels throughout the body.

The amino acid content of cold-processed whey powder makes it one of the best foods ever studied for muscle recovery/muscle-building, making this a great post or pre-workout shake.  It also makes a great breakfast because it keeps your blood sugar levels steady throughout the day (preventing sugar, caffeine, or junk food cravings and promoting body repair).

According to one of the largest, most respected natural health resources on the web, www.mercola.com,
Cold-processed Whey Powder
(NOT the whey isolate powder that you'll find in grocery stores or GNC!)...

• is extremely high in antioxidants
• supports balanced blood sugar levels
• enhances muscle endurance
• aids in liver detoxification
• supports immune function

Pro-optimal whey is sweetened with xylitol, a healthy, low-glycemic sweetener that feeds the friendly bacteria in your GI system and helps curb tooth decay- 














ABOUT GINSENG:

Ginseng boosts energy and endurance.  It also enhances your body's use of oxygen, providing support for aerobic activities, casual exercise, performance training, and sexual vigor.  It also helps to raise dopamine utilizations (improving mood!) and foster the growth and repair of tissues.
Source:  Power Juices Super Drinks: Quick, Delicious Recipes to Prevent and Reverse Disease by Steve Meyerowitz


 











Interested in making more POWER JUICES AND SUPER DRINKS???
Check out Steve Meyerowitz's new book- complete with a foreword by Gabriel Cousens, M.D.  Steve Meyerowitz is a veteran natural health promoter and Bestselling author of Juice Fasting and Detoxification.
 

Clary Sage Essential Oil Calms, while also Boosting Women's Health

Clary Sage

Clary sage essential oil has a calming, nurturing aroma and is especially beneficial for women.  It is simple to apply, allowing you to benefit from its properties almost effortlessly!


Clary Sage...

•  is a tonic, meaning it boosts overall well-being regardless of the challenges being experienced
•  contributes to the health of the female reproductive system, having a hormone-balancing effect for many that assists with cramps, menstrual pain, and perimenopausal hot flashes
• can be helpful in cases of low sex drive in women or impotence in men - partly due to its hormone balancing effects, and partly because of its ability to alleviate stress and fear, which can contribute to these challenges as well
• is an excellent relaxant, with aphrodisiacal and antidepressant characteristics 
• helps induce sleep for people experiencing insomnia
• alleviates feelings of paranoia, panic, or hysteria
• helps relieve post-natal depression
• assists with labor and alleviating labor pains for women giving birth
• assists general recovery and healing from illnesses and injuries of any type
• is a general tonic for the stomach and digestive system, relieving problems created by tension in this area (such as indigestion)
• helps keep the skin healthy when applied topically because it can regulate secretions of the skin
• on an emotional level, is known to increase feelings of confidence and courage, while decreasing feelings of nervousness, irritability and anxiety
• relieves stress
• can be beneficial for nervous disorders accompanied by weakness and debility
  
  
  Application Suggestions-
  
  1. Apply Clary Sage essential oil topically,
  2. Benefit from Clary Sage through inhalation by diffusing it into the air with one of Young Living's diffusers. 
  3. Apply to your wrists and temples.
  4. Use it as a perfume.
  5. Put a few drops on the bottom of your feet and it will enter your pores and circulate throughout your entire body.
  6. Add a few drops to a warm bath.apply at the wrists as a perfume or at the wrists, temples, or bottoms of feet for relaxation. 
  7. Put a few drops on your pillow at night for its dream-enhancing or relaxation properties.
  
  
  Sources:
  Advanced Aromatherapy, Dr. Kurt Schnaubelt
  Aromatherapy Scent and Psyche, Peter and Kate Damian
  
  Safety Information: Test a small amount of essential oil on the inside of your arm to check for allergy/sensitivity before applying to your body.  Always use oils in the recommended amounts (do not overuse them):  Your body will tell you when you've had enough in general, but it is important to note that using too much of any substance, natural or otherwise (even water!), will give you adverse effects.
  
  
  Where do I find Clary Sage oil?  
  
  
  The benefits above only apply to properly distilled, therapeutic grade essential oils.  The quality of oils in the general marketplace varies.  Many oils are distilled in a way that retains their scent, but not the therapeutic chemical constituents that give them their effectiveness.  Still other oils are cut with other ingredients or chemicals that reduce their potency and may have adverse effects.  At this time, these 'extra' ingredients are not required to be labeled.  Therapeutic grade essential oils are pure (meaning free of fillers) and are distilled using a process that was developed over many years and determined to optimize the measurable levels of therapeutic constituents of the oils.
  
  Therapeutic grade, pure essential oils that are regularly tested and researched for their potency are available from:  
  
  Bridget's Young Living Essential Oils Affiliate Webstore