Here's to your Health

Thumb-print Cookies

2010-06-16T18:12:00.000-07:00

1/2 cup honey**
1/3 cup warm coconut oil or clarified butter
1 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups whole wheat pastry flour
3/4 cup rolled oats
1 tablespoon cornstarch (or arrowroot)
scant 1/2 teaspoon fine grain sea salt
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
zest of one lemon
your favorite jam or preserves (preferably fruit sweetened) - berry goes nicely

**The original recipe is found here and calls for 2/3 cup honey

Preheat the oven to 350F and line two baking sheets with parchment paper.

Melt the coconut oil in a small saucepan and mix with honey and vanilla in a large mixing bowl. In a separate medium bowl combine the flour, oats, cornstarch/arrowroot, sea salt, baking soda, and lemon zest. Add the flour mixture to the honey and stir until just combined. Let the dough sit for 2-3 minutes and stir once again- the dough should be quite stiff.

Roll the dough into balls one level teaspoonful at a time, and place an inch or so apart on the prepared baking sheets. These will spread. Use a (damp) pinky finger or the back of a very tiny spoon to make a well in the top of each ball of dough. Fill each well to the top with 1/8 teaspoon of jam.

Bake for 7 - 9 minutes or until the bottom and edges of the cookies are just golden. Resist the urge to over-bake, because they will dry right out.

Basic Lettuce and Fruit Salad

2010-04-09T11:35:00.000-07:00

I know no one reads this blog, but I'm posting anyway. I made a delicious salad for lunch today, so I thought I'd share the happiness. It's really basic, but sometimes it's nice to be reminded of the basics, right?

Here's what you'll need for one lunch serving:

3-4 leaves of romaine lettuce

1 small apple (any flavor. I like pink lady or cameo)

4 medium strawberries

2 tablespoons raisins

1.5 teaspoons honey

1 teaspoon lemon juice

a pinch of sea salt

Tear or cut the lettuce and set aside. Chop the apple into small pieces and slice the strawberries. Put the apples, strawberries, raisins, honey and lemon juice in a bowl and mix. Mix the dressed fruit and lettuce and sprinkle with salt. Enjoy.

This salad was so refreshing and it made me all the more excited for summer. I can't wait for all that fresh and juicy produce!

I hope you are all feeling healthy and happy.

Bonnie

Interesting information

2009-06-11T10:58:00.000-07:00

My mother-in-law told me about a man she met in St. George. They started talking and she found out that he was a Vegan and had had a lot of success with helping people lose weight and gain health by sharing his knowledge with others. I have been looking at his website all morning and have found it very interesting...it's not anything really new to me after reading so much about plant based diets, but it does help solidify my views on things. I found this bit of information interesting and if anyone is interested in his website it is vegan-weight-loss.com

According to Dr T. Colin Campbell, nutritional researcher at Cornell University and director of the largest epidemiological study in history:

"The vast majority of all cancers, cardiovascular diseases and other forms of degenerative illness can be prevented simply by adopting a plant-based diet."

Heart disease, cancer, strokes, diabetes, osteoporosis, obesity and other diseases have all been linked to meat and dairy consumption.

tofu yogurt

2009-03-10T20:10:00.000-07:00

So, Olivia has been sick, and didn't eat anything for a few days. I started to get worried and decided that I needed a new approach. I bought some silken tofu and blended it with fruit to make something like a yogurt, and it turned out pretty good. She at 2 cups of it, and some scrambled eggs (organic, of course), and seems to be doing better this evening. I'm not really a tofu/soy buff, but I'd recommend trying it if your struggling giving up dairy, or getting your children to give up yogurt. It kept in the fridge a while, and tasted better after being chilled.

quick bean burgers

2009-03-10T19:50:00.000-07:00

hi all. i tried some pre-maid falafel mix last week. it was pretty good and really easy to make at home. here's some of the basic ingredients and proportions:

1 3/4 cup chickpea flour

1/4 cup ww flour

onion powder

garlic powder

salt

dried herbs like parsley

you mix all the ingredients in a bowl and add 1 1/2 cups water to 2 cups flour mix. stir it together and let sit 10-20 minutes, until water is all absorbed. you might try adding a little ground flaxseed to hold it together. to cook you can deep fry them, or, i just oil a cookie sheet and place patties on that, then bake for 25 min at 375, flipping halfway through.

i'm still playing around with this, so i don't have an exact recipe. adding a little uncooked millet before soaking lends a good texture, and bread crumbs help too. it's an easy way to use beans. i also use bean flour in breads, cakes and cookies to lighten them up, and sprouted beans in stir fry or coarsely ground and sprinkled on pizza's. cooked beans make great spreads and dips and black beans are excellent on their own or mixed with salsa and guacamole.

beans are my greatest culinary challenge, so if you have any ideas please post them.

All dried up!!

2009-03-08T22:22:00.000-07:00

Last Thursday I woke up and felt like drying a bunch of food. The kids thought that it was a fun project for school and we all pitched in! We dried bananas and made fruit leather. We made some granola(that the kids promptly devoured) and we even tried making the raw potato chips that I found in a recipe book of Mom's. They turned out surprisingly 'chippy', but I really didn't like the apple cider vinegar taste on them. Next time I will try lime or some other flavoring to keep them from browning in the dehydrator.

Anyway, we had a good day and filled all of our dryer trays with good snacks. It's really a lot of fun to teach the kids about healthy eating. Seth even decide to try all raw this week...we'll see how he likes it!!

recipe book

2009-03-02T10:54:00.000-08:00

Hi guys. I'm working on publishing a book of all my recipes (not for sale, just for me and anyone who wants one. cost is about 10$) and would like to add some of your favorites as well. This is kind of a culmination project to wrap up my 1 1/2 year obsession with health foods and allow me to move on to other things like my schooling and homeschool. Please keep posting and add digital pictures, if you can, so that I can add them into the book. Thanks.

Candice

REAL BROWNIES

2009-03-02T10:21:00.000-08:00

Hi. This is the promised recipe for Real Brownies:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

1 cup WW flour (very finely ground)

1/2 cup soy or garbonzo bean flour (also very finely ground)

1 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp sea salt

1/4-1/2 cup non-alkali cocoa (depending on your chocolate preferance)

Mix ingredients in mixing bowl until well combined or, I put all the dry ingredients in my dry blade blender and blended on high until it was all ground very finely, almost like powdered sugar.

1/4 cup applesauce (I use 1 medium apple pealed and cored)

scant 1/4 cup raw coconut oil (looks like shortening but not as smooth)

1 tsp vanilla

1 tsp cider vinegar

scant 1 cup water

scant 3/4 cup honey

I place all wet ingredients in my blender and blend until smooth then pour into the dry ingredients and use electric beaters on high until smooth and creamy. You can probably just use the electric beaters by mixing dry and wet ingredients in separate bowls; beat the oil until smooth, add apple sauce and honey. Beat again. Finish with wet ingredients and beat until smooth. Then add dry ingredients and beat until smooth. Grease a smallish baking dish, pour in brownie mixture and bake about 20 minutes. Check with a toothpick. The brownies should not be runny, but make sure you don't over bake. Cool completely before frosting.

Frosting:

1/8 cup coconut oil

1/4 cup honey (or to taste)

1/8 cup cocoa

1 tsp vanilla

1/2 tsp almond extract (optional)

3/4 cup date nut cream (1 cup walnuts or pecans, 1 cup pitted dates, scant 1 cup water blended until creamy)

Place oil in mixing bowl and beat on high until creamy. Add honey and beat again. Add cocoa and beat until a thick creamy fudge is formed. Add vanilla and almond extract and beat until combined. Add date nut cream and beat until smooth and creamy. Place in the fridge to chill until the brownies are ready to be frosted. Hope you enjoy these as much as we did!!

note: The coconut oil in the frosting will firm up and curdle a little when chilled, but this makes it easier to spread. Also, most of the sweetness of the brownie depends on the frosting, so make sure you use a tasty one.

Vegan Mayonnaise without Oil! (from mom)

2009-02-28T10:12:00.000-08:00

2 cups cashews, soaked for 4 hours or more
1 1/2 cups of water from soaking the cashews
3/4 cup fresh lemon juice
1/4 - 1/2 cups spicy brown mustard
2 teaspoons sea salt
garlic (the real recipe calls for 5 cloves, but I do not use any garlic at all)

Place the water and all of the ingredients in a high-speed blender and blend until really smooth and creamy. This is good with sunflower pates and salads and potato salads and on sandwiches. Use it like real mayo. It is really, really good! This makes a ton, so you can reduce the recipe if you like.

I think I am going to try this recipe without the mustard and make it slightly sweet for Waldorf Salad and Carrot-Raisin-Coconut Salad. I bet it will be good!

From Mom

2009-02-23T13:01:00.000-08:00

Leslie, that fudge sauce is great on banana ice cream, too. To make the ice cream, just push frozen bananas (remove peels before freezing) through a juicer with the homogenizing blank inserted or thaw the bananas a little and puree until smooth in a food processor. That is the only ingredient -- bananas! It is yummy plain or with other toppings, like the fudge sauce from Kristina's brownies.

I have two new recipes I like:

Mediterranean Collard Greens

4 collard leaves, washed and the center vein removed

Roll the leaves like a loose cigar and cut them in 1/4 inch slices. While they are still rolled, cut down the middle of each roll. Place the strips in a bowl and add

1 1/2 teaspoon olive oil
1 1/2 teaspoon fresh lemon juice ( I add 1 Tablespoon)
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/4 chopped red pepper
1 Tablespoon chopped olives (I leave them out. I don't like how they taste)
Some raw pinenuts.
Some golden raisins (optional)

Pour the dressing over the other ingredients. Stir really well to coat all. Keep the dish of greens on the counter for several hours, stirring occasionally. The marinate will soften the greens and make them more like cooked greens. This dish is really yummy.

Carrots with Moroccan Spices

2 peeled carrots
1 1/2 teaspoon olive oil
1 1/2 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
1/8 teaspoon salt
Dash cinnamon
Dash cumin
Dash cayenne
Dash black pepper

Slice the carrots very thin on a mandoline slicer or with a very sharp knife. Pour on the marinate and stir really well. A dash is really all you need of the spices, so don't overdo it! Keep on the counter for several hours and stir occasionally.

These are fun recipes and I like them a lot. It is about the only way I can eat collards. I really enjoy them this way.

Chocolate Fruit Dip

2009-02-23T11:15:00.001-08:00

Hey, I used the frosting from Kristina's raw brownie recipe as a fruit dip and it was yummo! I mad it a little thin and liked it better on the fruit. It's especially good on fresh oranges! Bananas and apples are great, too, though.

Les

2009-01-27T11:24:00.000-08:00

Hi All you health nuts ,I am finally posting on here. I always read your recipes and posts and really enjoy them, so I guess I should post too. I have the biggest sweet tooth, so I really didn't think I could ever do anything like this, but It's amazing what a little discipline does for you. Here are a couple of my favorite recipes to curb the sweet tooth:

Blueberry cheesecake
pg 509 in LOLF book

crust:

2c. Almonds
1c. raisins

filling:
4c. cashews
1lg lemon, juiced
8 Tbl. honey
2 t. vanilla
2 c. blueberries
1 c. water

for crust:
1. place the almonds in a food processor and blend until fine
2. add raisins and blend until well blended
3. pat crust down into a pie plate

for filling:
1. Place the cashews, honey, vanilla, lemon and water in a blender or food proceesor and process until smooth and creamy
2. Remove this mixture from blender and stir in the fresh blueberries
3. pour filling into pie crust. chill.

note: The filling can be made in a food processor, but will be creamier if you use a vita mix or strong blender. Soaking the cashews for a few hours will make this creamier if you are using a food processor.

My whole family loved this, especially Nathan. It's still really high in calories, so be careful and try to limit yourself to one slice ( It's about 320 calories per slice) But atleast they are nutritious calories, right?

My other favorite recipe is of course a CHOCOLATE recipe. I crave chocolate everyday, so I really needed a rich chocolate dessert that was raw and sugar free. I found a few brownie recipes on line and I'm still experimenting with them so I can have the perfect raw brownie recipe.

Here's one that my family really liked:
Brownies with frosting:

15 Minutes to Prepare

Ingredients:
1 c walnuts
1 c dates
1/4 c cocoa pwd( you can also use raw cacao from whole foods. I don't like carob, so I used cocoa, but I am going to buy raw cacao for next time so they're 100% raw.)

Directions for brownie mixture:
Food process the brownie ingredients until blended and dry chunky.
Press into a small pan, put aside

Icing:
2 avocados
1/3-1/2 c agave nectar
1/4 c cocoa pwd
2 T coconut oil
1 T vanilla extract
dash salt
dash cinnamon

Directions for icing:
Put all icing ingredients into blender or food processor, and blend on high until smooth. Spread icing over brownies and pop in freezer to set for 1 hr. then cut into 12 pieces.

I also added a few drops of mint extract. I have made it with and without the avocados. We liked it better without them, but they were still really good. The key to making them delicious is freezing them. They taste really good after freezing them for 1 hour and even better overnight. It's amazing how much they taste like real brownies. Hope you enjoy these as much as we do!

Flax Crackers

2009-01-27T08:10:00.000-08:00

If you haven't tried flax crackers, you might like to. Here are two I tried:

Savory Flax Crakcers

In a large bowl, soak in 5 cups water for 4 hours:

1 1/2 cups dark flax seed
1 1/2 cups golden flax seed
1 cups sunflower seed, hulled

Stir well. In a blender or food processor, grind until smooth:

2 stalks celery
4 tomatoes
1/4 cup nama shoyu or 2 T. Braggs Amino Acids or soy sauce
1 teaspoon or more chili powder
1 teaspoon sea salt
4 garlic cloves, minced

Pour all of this into the seeds. Stir really well. Add:

2 carrots, finely shredded
1 red bell pepper, very finely diced

Stir everything really well. Place 1/8 to 1/4 inch thick on dehydrator sheets. Dehydrate for 16-18 hours. Flip and remove the solid sheet. Place on screen sheet and dehydrate for a total of 24 hours or until dry. Break apart and store in ziplock bags.

Sweeter Crackers

In a large bowl, soak in 4 cups water for 4 hours:

2 cups pumpkin seeds
1 cup dark flax seeds
1 cup golden flax seeds

Stir and add a little Agave Nectar (1/2 to 1 cup). Stir really well. Place on the solid dehydrator sheets. Keep it around 1/4 or more inches thick. Dehydrate for 18 or more hours and flip onto screen sheets. Remove the solid sheet. Return to the dehydrator for a total of 24 or more hours until dry. Mine were still a bit more flexible, but the ones I bought in the store were really hard, so you could continue to dry for many hours if you want them hard. They are good.

The little flax seeds in these crackers don't completely break down when you eat them, but they still give you great nutrition. The next time I make them, I am going to try and grind the seeds first and then soak them and dry them.

There are lots of flax seed cracker recipes out there, so have fun and try some.

Love, MOM

Finally, a Bean Burger

2009-01-22T13:49:00.000-08:00

I've tried several Bean Burger recipes and they were all disasters, except this one. It's from the FatFreeVegan, and it was a huge hit last night; even Sabrina ate one and loved it. It seemed like a lot of onion, but it tasted great. Sorry, this is not raw, just all natural vegan.

1 yellow onion, quartered
1 clove garlic
1 1/2 cups cooked beans (any you like)
3 sundried tomatoes, soaked or 1 Tbs tomato paste
1/8 cup chopped red pepper, sweet
1/2 cup uncooked oatmeal
1/2 cup cooked brown rice
1/8 tsp chilli powder (optional)
1/2 tsp salt (I'd like a little more)
1/4 tsp oregano
1/4 tsp thyme
1/8 cup ww flour

Preheat the oven to 425 F. Place the onion and garlic in a food process and pulse to chop coarsely. Add the tomatos and red pepper and chop again. Add the beans and process until coarsely chopped. Add everything else and process until well blended-slightly chunkier than refried beans. Oil non-stick cookie sheet. Use a spoon to drop dough on cookie sheet into 6 mounds. Us a wet rubber spatula to flatten and shape into round patties. Bake 15 minutes. When bottoms are lightly brown, and starting to crisp, turn burgers and cook for 10-15 minutes, until brown. Don't overcook or they'll be more like bean chips. Enjoy, they are great and pretty easy too. What I like is that I'm getting Sabrina and Liv to eat onions, garlic, beans and rice all in one tasty burger. Rice and beans eaten together provides all of your essential amino acids with a lot less cholesterol than eggs. Hurray for Bean Burgers!!

Juicing

2009-01-21T17:20:00.001-08:00

I've noticed that Candice has basically been keeping this blog going all by herself, so I decided to add a recipe :) I haven't been eating very healthily (is that a word?) since I've been pregnant, but I recently got over my morning sickness and decided to try out the juicer that my mom gave me for Christmas. The kids love helping me put the veggies in, so it makes it really fun. I tried this one tonight mainly because I have a HUGE bag of spinach that needs to get used up this week. It turned out really good and the kids ate it better when I called it a soup rather than a juice :)

SPINACH SOUP

6-7 handfuls of spinach
1 handful of parsley
1 med. clove of garlic
1 lemon (I left the peel on)
4 large carrots
4-5 large celery stalks

Put all ingredients through a juicer. Add a bit of Real Salt to the mix, stir well and enjoy! I didn't have any tomatoes, but I think with 2 or 3 added it would taste a lot like V8 juice.

Sweet Roasted Vegetables with Creamy Polenta

2009-01-12T18:52:00.000-08:00

Roasted Vegetables:

4 cups chopped vegetables (brussels sprouts, potatoes, carrots, cooked chickpeas, butternut squash) chopped into

1 1/2 inch pieces

3 Tbs olive oil

1 Tbs cinnamon

2 Tbs raw, crystallized honey

1/2 tsp garlic powder

1 tsp sea salt

Creamy Polenta:

4 cups water

1 msg-free vegetable bouillon cube

1 cup finely ground cornmeal

1 1/4 cups sweet almond milk

Heat oven to 450. Prepare vegetables, place in roasting pan and mix with olive oil. Roast 20-30 minutes. Prepare the polenta by placing 4 cups water and bouillon cube in a large saucepan over med-high heat. Bring to a boil and slowly stir in the cornmeal, whisking vigorously to prevent lumps. Remove from heat, cover and let sit 15 minutes. Remove vegetables from oven, sprinkle with cinnamon, garlic and salt. Drop in the honey, scattering throughout the pan. Let honey melt and carefully stir vegetables to coat. Add almond milk to polenta and stir to incorporate. Serve vegetables and polenta side by side on a deep plate or bowl. Salt to taste.

This is adapted from a Martha Stewart recipe. She uses stewed tomatoes and italian herbs in place of the honey and cinnamon. I changed it because I don't use canned food, and tomatoes aren't in season. Brian and I both really liked it this way.

The basic 5 recipes

2009-01-11T19:37:00.000-08:00

I'm trying to make a collection of recipes that use the basic 5 ingredients of long term food storage, ie. wheat, beans, salt, oil and water. If you have any recipes that fit this criteria, please post them. Thanks.

Cooking website

2009-01-11T16:10:00.000-08:00

I found a fun cooking website that I thought you'd like: www.everdaydish.tv It has a lot of fun recipe ideas with video demos on how to make each recipe. I'm going to try to adapt a few of them to make them all natural (it's a vegan website, not chemical free). Have fun cooking.

Candice

Baked Potato Soup

2009-01-08T19:42:00.000-08:00

Soup Base:

3 cups warm water

1/2 cup cashew mayo or hummus

2 tsp dried dill weed

1 tsp salt, or to taste

plenty of black pepper

1 roasted garlic clove

1 small baked potato

In a high speed blender, add all ingredients for base and blend on high until steaming. Reduce speed to chop, and add 4 more small baked potato's. Pour into serving bowl and stir in corn and lightly steamed broccoli. I also added crumbled toasted wheat tortilla's. It was delicious!

My Favorite Breakfast Cereal

2009-01-07T19:37:00.001-08:00

1/2 cup 1 day wheat sprouts

1/2 cup frozen organic blueberries, defrosted

1/2 cup almond milk

Put it in a bowl and enjoy! I love it. You could add 1/4 cup rolled oats if you want, just let it sit a few minutes so the oats soak up a little of the milk.

Note: Trader Joes has the best organic blueberries that I've found.

Vanilla and Blueberry Swirl Ice Cream

2009-01-07T19:23:00.000-08:00

1 cup almonds

1 cup pitted dates

5 cups water

Soak almonds and dates in water for 1 hour. Place in a blender and blend on high for 2 to 3 minutes. Strain through a cheese cloth and chill for 1 hour. Return to blender and add:

1/4 cup pure maple syrup

1 tsp Vanilla or 1 vanilla bean, ground

1/4 tsp almond extract

a pinch of sea salt

Blend a few seconds. Pour into ice cream freezer and begin freezing. Add to the blender:

1 cup frozen organic blueberries, unsweetened

1/4 cup honey

enough water to blend

Blend until smooth and creamy. As the vanilla cream begins to thicken, slowly pour in the blueberry mixture to make lovely purple and white swirls. This is a new family favorite and is particularly good with chocolate cake.

Creamy Rice and Broccoli Casserole

2009-01-07T19:12:00.000-08:00

1 1/2 cups brown rice

3 3/4 cups water

2 cups chopped broccoli

2 Tbs Olive oil

1 tsp sea Salt

Heat oven to 375. Place above ingredients in a large glass baking dish. Bake for 1 hour. In a high speed blender, place:

1/2 cup raw cashews

1 cup roasted butternut squash

2 roasted garlic cloves

1/2-3/4 cups water

1/2 tsp salt

1 Tbs Olive oil

Plenty of black pepper

Blend on high until steaming. Remove rice from the oven, stir in the creamy sauce and serve. I loved this. The squash gave it a slightly sweet taste, and the cashew and oil made it rich and creamy. Yum, Yum.

1 Year

2009-01-06T10:06:00.000-08:00

It's official! I have agreed to join Leslie and Kristina in their "one year without refined sugar" adventure!! I joined a day late, but I figured it was better late than making up excuses for the next 364 days as to why I couldn't do it. Of course I can do it! I am trying to be more in control of my life by making healthy decisions that help me feel and live better. This was a pretty big one for me, the self proclaimed sweet tooth of the family, but I figured that the thought of losing the $100 that was required to join would be sufficient motivation (along with the desire to be healthy and prove that I can accomplish difficult tasks...not to mention that I now belong to a club! Yay!!) I am excited to start this new adventure, but I hope that you will all help us by contributing more sugar free recipes and lifestyle tips. Hopefully we can all be as good at this as Shylah has been. :)

Love you all!

Candice's Taco Salad

2008-12-20T18:29:00.000-08:00

I enjoyed this meal so much that I decided to write it down:

1 cup frozen corn, defrosted

1 cup cooked pinto or black beans

2 ripe, but firm, tomatoes

2 Tbs chopped fresh cilantro

2 Tbs chopped green onions, green part only

1/2 tsp salt, to taste

black pepper

juice of 1 lime

3 Tbs Oil Salad Dressing, homemade

1 pinch to 1/8 tsp chili powder

Mix all together in a medium bowl. Serve with Salad Greens, diced fried potatoes (fresh), and corn chips. Basic but delicious.

Quesadillas

2008-12-16T17:31:00.000-08:00

1 1/2 cups cooked pinto or black beans

1/2 tsp salt or to taste

pinch chili powder

dash cumin

1/2 tsp garlic powder

1/2 tsp onion powder

3 Tbs Olive oil

squeeze of lime juice

a little water for blending

6 very thin Whole wheat tortillas

Place everything except water and tortillas in a blender. Blend, adding water a little at a time, until smooth, but thick. Heat a skillet over medium heat. Spread tortilla with bean spread, cover with another tortilla and heat in skillet until lightly browned. Flip and brown. Remove from pan and repeat with remaining tortillas. Serve with fresh salsa or Ketchup. If you really like garlic, brush garlic infused oil on both sides of quesadilla before toasting. I loved these, and Sabrina liked them too, except that I only mashed the beans with a fork, instead of blending, which lended too much texture for her.

Coconut Joys

2008-12-16T17:16:00.000-08:00

2 cups unsweetened coconut shavings (dry)

1/4 cup honey gel or plain honey (add a tablespoon at a time)

1/2 recipe Chocolate cake Frosting (use as little water as possible)

Place the coconut in a dry blade blender or food processor and grind until very fine and oily. Pour into a bowl and add the gel or honey a little at a time. Using a fork, blend together until a very stiff dough is formed. Break dough into small balls and place on wax paper a waxed serving tray. Press each ball down, until a pit is formed. Put the frosting in a bag, and squeeze into the coconut pits. Freeze until set. Store extras in a freezer safe container. The girls loved these.

Honey gel:

1/4 cup honey

1 cup cold water

1 Tbs Arrowroot powder

Blend all ingredients in a blender. Pour into a saucepan and heat over med until mixture thickens. Cool completely and store in the fridge. I use this gel as filling in cinnamon rolls and in the place of shortening or butter.

High Fiber Chocolate Cake

2008-12-16T17:03:00.000-08:00

1 cup Whole Wheat Flour

1/2 cup Soy Flour

1 tsp Baking Soda

1/2 tsp Salt

1/4 to 1/2 cup non-alkali Cocoa

1/2 cup Fresh Applesauce

1 tsp Vanilla

1 tsp Cider Vinegar

1 cup Fresh Apple Juice (or water)

1/2 to 1 cup Honey

Mix dry ingredients together. Add wet ingredients and mix well. Pour into greased baking dish. Bake at 350 degrees for about 30 minutes. (Check with toothpick)

Frosting:

1 cup Pecans

1 cup pitted dates

1/4 cup honey

1/4 to 3/4 cups water (add a little at a time, according to blenders need)

1 tsp vanilla

1/2 tsp almond extract

1/8 to 1/4 cup cocoa

Place all ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth and creamy. Chill cake and frosting before spreading. We really loved this cake!

Candice

Discouragement

2008-12-12T19:03:00.000-08:00

Well, I've decided that it's the yeast in cheese that makes it addictive. The nacho cheese was good, but it seemed to stimulate a need to eat. I couldn't stop. So, I don't recommend using nutritional yeast, I'm pretty sure it's not that nutritious after all.

Well, I got pretty discouraged this week. I've been trying not to use any foods with preservatives or any chemicals, but I'm so stinking tired, that it gets really hard to not have any convenient foods. When Brian came home from school the other day, I started crying, and didn't want to do it anymore, so he bought me some all natural corn chips, and unsweetened shredded wheat to get me through the crisis. I also used a can of prepared pizza sauce on my homemade crust. Unfortunately, there was blood in my urine the next morning, and I felt like my intestines would tear open any minute. I guess the thing that gets frustrating is the perfection part of it: I eat one less desirable thing, and I'm in excruciating pain for hours, sometimes days, and it's very often accompanied by difficulty breathing and bleeding. So I just don't eat...sometimes...and then I throw up. The upside is that I am learning to prepare completely natural meals for my family. I know that will be a huge blessing to them. Another blessing is that it seems like there's someone watching over me, whispering ideas in my ear, and helping me to not stay discouraged for too long. I'm so grateful for that.

Anyway, those are my musings. Good luck with healthy living.

Merry Christmas.

Candice

Fantastic Nacho Cheese

2008-12-06T16:32:00.000-08:00

Here's a recipe from shmooedfood.blogspot.com:

2 cups cold water

1/4 cup raw cashews

1 cup nutritional yeast flakes

2 Tbs cornstarch (I used arrowroot powder)

4 ozs roasted pimentos or red peppers (you could use hot peppers, if you like)

1 Tbs fresh lemon juice (half a lemon)

1 1/2 tsp salt (I recommend 2 tsp)

1/2 tsp onion powder

1/2 tsp cumin

1/4 garlic powder

Place all ingredients in blender and blend until completely smooth. Pour into a sauce pan and heat on medium high until thickened, stirring constantly. Serve as dip or use in cheese soups. It is excellent.

Candice

Rice and Bean Rollups

2008-11-25T10:46:00.000-08:00

Brian loved these roll ups. They taste very fresh, but are quite filling as well.

1 1/2 cups cooked brown rice, cooked in salt water

1 cup firm cooked pinto beans, cooked in salt water

1 large tomato, finely chopped

1/2 red pepper, finely chopped

1 avocado, diced

1 cucumber, seeded and finely chopped

1 cup nut mayonnaise

4-8 Leaves greenleaf lettuce

4 to 6 tortillas, depending on size

Warm the tortillas in a preheated oven. Place all ingredients except lettuce and tortillas in a bowl. Mix to coat with mayo. Spread a layer of mixture over each tortilla (I used a large Indian flatbread, cut in half) then top with lettuce leaves. Roll up the tortillas and serve. Makes about 4 servings. If your rice and beans are not salted, you may wish to add some salt and pepper.

Candice

Delicious Chocolate Milkshake

2008-11-22T11:16:00.000-08:00

Hi everyone. So I've been experimenting with desserts this week. I had 3 failures that a blended together and made the best every chocolate milkshake. Here's about what I did, give or take a little:

I ground up some pecans and added about 10 pitted dates, then ground them together. I rolled that out and tried dehydrating it a bit, but it was to oily, so I squished it together, put it in a plastic bag and threw it in the fridge. Failure one.

The next day I put some dried apricots to soak in cold water so that I could make some jam. I forgot about them and they soaked about 3 hours. I tossed them in the blender anyway with a few cashews and a little water to make apricot cream. It was creamy, but had a funky taste, so I put it in a tupperware container and tossed that in the fridge too. Failure two.

Then I tried to make ice cream with almond milk. 1 cup soaked almonds, 10 pitted dates, 3 Tbs Maple syrup, 1 tsp vanilla and 5 cups cold water. I blended it together and poured it into the ice cream machine. It froze up nicely, but I had forgotten to strain out the pulp, so it tasted grainy and it wasn't sweet enough. We didn't finish it, so I froze the last two or so cups. Moderate Failure three.

A few days later I was cleaning out my fridge and found failures one and two and decided to blend a little of both of them together with 2 Tbs unsweetened cocoa powder, a little more maple syrup, a few more pitted dates, 1/2 tsp almond extract and 3/4 cup water. Tada! I very rich chocolate pudding. Then I remembered the ice cream in the freezer and tossed that in to the blender as well. I blended just a few seconds, until it was all mixed together, and....Wow!!! The best ever, one of kind, chocolate milkshake. Unfortunately, I don't think that I'll be able to recreate it; but it sure was fun while it lasted.

The point: it's not a failure till it rots and smells vile, so keep it around a few days; and, try, try, try again.

Good luck and keep blending!!

Candice

Keep it up!!

2008-11-17T11:11:00.000-08:00

I'm so glad that so many of us are making healthier food choices. I love seeing all your recipes and hearing about successes that you've had.

I just thought I would let you know something that I thought was weird, but also neat. As many of you know, I recently found out that I am pregnant, I have been extremely nauseated and nothing sounds very good to eat. However, I realized last week that the only things that don't make me even more nauseous when I think of eating them are fresh fruits and vegetables!! It is bizarre to me that the sound of a salad seems less nauseating than an order of french fries. I have to say, with my other pregnancies the thought of a salad would have done me in...so I guess that my body must have realized what is actually going to be beneficial :)

I know it's not a huge thing or anything, but I just thought it was interesting enough to share. Keep up the good work everyone!!

Spread it on thick!

2008-11-12T18:59:00.000-08:00

I've been trying to eat more raw foods and 100% chemical/preservative free. In short, I make everything from scratch. Here are 4 of my favorite (and easiest) spreads:

Chickpea Hummus:

1/2 cup raw cashews

1 1/2 cups chickpeas (soaked 10 hours, boiled for 10 minutes and rinsed in cold water)

1/4 cup olive oil

Juice of 1 Lemon

1 small clove garlic, crushed

1 tsp sea salt, or to taste

1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper

1/2 cup water

Place all ingredients in a blender in order listed and blend until smooth. Add more water to achieve desired consistency. I use this spread on sandwiches and in wraps. I also use it as a vegetable dip. Store in covered container in the refrigerator.

Cashew Mayonnaise:

1/2 cup raw cashews

2 tsp mustard powder

Juice of 2 lemons

5 Tbs cold water

1/2 tsp sea salt

1 tsp freshly ground black pepper

3/4 - 1 cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Place everything in blender except the oil. Blend until smooth. Reduce speed to medium-low and add oil in a fine stream. This should create a soft, spreadable cream. I love the taste of this Mayo, and use it on sandwiches and in soups to make chowders. It keeps very well in an airtight container in the refrigerator.

Date Nut Spread:

1 cup walnuts

1 cup pitted dates

1/2 to 1 cup water

Place all ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth. Place in an airtight container and refrigerate. Serve chilled with fruit or on bread in the place of peanut butter and jam. This spread has become a staple in our household. The girls love it. I often have a hard time getting Livi to eat the fruit as well as the dip! This also stores well in the refrigerator.

Apricot Jam:

10 dried apricot halves, cut in half

4 pitted dates, cut in half

1 cup water

Place all ingredients in a saucepan and soak for 1 hour. Heat over medium heat until boiling. Boil a few minutes, until fruit is tender. Pour into a blender and blend until smooth (add more cold water a little at a time, to achieve desired consistency) Place in an airtight container and refrigerate until thick and cold. Sabrina likes to eat this on skillet bread with date nut spread.

Keep eating healthy everyone. It's fun!!

My Morning Constitutional

2008-11-12T08:58:00.000-08:00

This the the recipe for my morning green drink. I love it.

In the blender I place: 10 ounces of pure water
4 ounces of cleaned spinach
1/2 a red or green bell pepper, washed and seeded
1 small to medium zucchini, washed and the top and bottom cut off
1 cucumber, peeled
1 avocado, peeled and pitted
1 apple, washed and seeded

I grind it all really well until it is a thick smoothie. It makes 5 half glasses of smoothie. I fill it the rest of the way up with cold, pure water and stir it well. I drink all 5 glasses throughout the morning. I really like it, but it doesn't fill me up very long. Oh well.

When we were in Hawaii, I made this in the cheapy blender provided with our room. It never did get "smooth" but I was glad to have it anyway. Smooth is better, though.

Another Yummy Recipe

2008-11-09T19:25:00.000-08:00

I made another recipe I liked. It was Veggie Enchilada. I made the corn tortillas and the veggie filling and then put them together and dehydrated them a couple of hours longer. They were so yummy, but they stuck to my teeth. I wish I knew how to cure that.

I am trying out recipes for Thanksgiving, but the girls said they are not planning on eating raw, so then I wonder if I should bother. I went to a party the other night and took enchiladas, mock salmon pate and cut up veggies. Lar brought salad with raw dressing. We shared and we both got plenty to eat. Darla ate it all, too. Lar had dehydrated cheeses, too. I haven't tried those, yet.

I have decided I don't like the taste of Braggs Liquid Aminos in recipes. I wonder if Nama Shoyu tastes different. Maybe I'll just substitute salt. I like the taste of salt.

Yummy Recipes

2008-11-05T08:12:00.000-08:00

I tried two recipes that I liked:

Mock Salmon Pate. (I would call it Nut and Veggie Pate)

1 cup walnuts
1 stalk celery
1 green onion
1/2 red bell pepper (necessary for the pretty reddish color)
1/2-1 teaspoon sea salt

Place all ingredients in a food processor and blend until smooth and combined. Serve rolled in a lettuce or cabbage leaf or on crackers. Brad ate his on bread and on crackers. He liked it.

Key Lime Pie

Crust:
1 1/2 cups macadamia nuts (could use cashews)
1 cup soft dates, pitted and soaked
1 ripe banana

Grind macadamia nuts in a food processor. Add banana and blend until smooth. Add dates and blend until smooth. Spoon into a pie pan and spread around.

Filling:

3 whole limes, peeled
2 cups dates, pitted and soaked
2 avocados

In a food processor, blend all ingredients until smooth and creamy. Pour filling on top of the crust. Refrigerate.

This is much better the next day. It tastes a lot lime-ier. This is a spoon-it-up type of pie. This makes a lot of pie. You could consider halving the recipe. I halved the Pate recipe.

Happy unbaking!

I Juice!

2008-10-15T11:52:00.000-07:00

I was blessed to get a juicer this week and have tried it out for the past two days with great success. I am making all sorts of concoctions for Greg that are said to help fight cancer and promote a healthy immune system. I, too, am drinking them and loving the new adventure. I learned that citrus fruits and tomato are not good for osteoarthritis, which I was recently diagnosed with. That news was a bummer, since those are some of my favorite foods.

Here is a website I like for juicing. It has lots of information on the healing properties of different fruits and veggies as well as techniques and recipes for juicing.

www.juicing-for-health.com

Love you all!
Les

News from San Francisco

2008-10-11T14:48:00.000-07:00

Wow!! Good job everyone. I'm so glad that you are all eating so healthy, it will make such a difference, as you can see already. I'm not able to eat raw right now, but I am eating a healthy diet with lots of nutritional supplements. The "fishfood" vitamins are helping a lot, and the baby is growing and seems to be healthy.

Keep up the good work!!

Really good pasta!

2008-10-11T13:20:00.001-07:00

Hi everyone. This is Nathan. I just wanted to let you know that I made a really good "pasta" today. It is the Pesto Pasta in "Living on Live Food" (p. 417). For those of you that don't have the book, here's the recipe. It really is good and bursting with flavor.

Noodles:

2 zucchini (I used 3)
1-2 Summer squash (I used 1)

Slice or spiralize the squash and zucchini and place in a large bowl. Set aside.
I used a mandoline and the noodles turned out kind of like thick fettucine noodles. You can also use a vegetable peeler, try to slice it thick. Or just do it with a knife

Pesto:

1/2 cup pine nuts
4-5 cloves garlic
1/2 cup fresh cilantro
1/2 cup fresh basil (I used dried cause that's what we had. Not 1/2 cup though)
2 Tablespoons lemon juice
3 Tablespoons Braggs liquid aminos (this is what gives it a great smokyish flavor)
2 cups tomato, chopped

For sauce: put all ingredients, except tomato, into blender or food processor and blend well. Add tomatoes and pulse for a few seconds til blended but not soupy. Pour sauce over noodles and mix.

Enjoy! This is really good.

Raw Strawberry Tart

2008-10-03T18:43:00.000-07:00

I have been asked a few times for the recipe of the strawberry tart I made for Candice's birthday party, so I decided that this would be a good place to post it. It is really good and quite rich!! I got it from 'The Joy of Vegan Baking' cookbook by Colleen Patrick-Goudreau.

Crust:

2 C. raw pecans or almonds
3/4 to 1 C. pitted dates, preferably Medjool
1/4 t. salt
Oil for greasing pan

Place the nuts in a food processor, and grind them until they are a coarse meal. Add the dates and salt and process until thoroughly combined. Press the mixture into a nonstick or very lightly oiled 8 or 9 inch tart pan or spring form pan. (This crust is good for any fresh fruit, no-bake pie or tart.)

Filling:

4 C. ripe strawberries, sliced
1 C. ripe strawberries, whole
5 pitted dates, soaked 10 minutes in warm water and drained
2 t. fresh lemon juice
1/2 C. fresh blackberries halved

Arrange the sliced strawberries on top of the prepared crust and set aside. In a food processor or blender, combine the whole strawberries with the 5 soaked dates and lemon juice. Puree until smooth. Pour this mixture over the sliced strawberries. Arrange the blackberries on top of the sauce and refrigerate for 1 hour before serving.

I really love this dessert!!

Finally some plants!!

2008-09-30T12:04:00.000-07:00

I'm so excited right now because last night Seth brought home some fruit bushes and an apple tree. As some of you know, one of my goals in the whole 'getting healthy' thing is to be able to grow most of my own food. I think that the less I have to rely on someone else for healthy food, the better off I'll be. So, now I'm on my way!! We planted 3 blueberry bushes, 3 grape vines, 3 golden raspberry bushes, and an apple tree last night. I hope to get my green house going soon and then I can grow my herbs and veggies all year round!

By the way, do any of you compost? I was thinking of trying that, but I'm not exactly certain what to do. Let me know if you have any suggestions. Thanks :)

2008-09-29T13:50:00.000-07:00

Today I made a good raw dish. I have never had raw corn. It is so good and tastes great by itself, but I like to spice things up a bit.

Corn from 1 Cob
A few cherry or grape tomatoes, halved
Cilantro*
Dash of sea salt
a little chili powder

Mix it all together and enjoy. I would have added a little lime juice but we didn't have any.

The cilantro that I used was dried not fresh. We don't alway have fresh herbs on hand. I found some really good dried herbs. The brand is "Litehouse" and they freeze dry the herbs. They seem to have so much more flavor than regular dried herbs.

I am glad to see that everyone is trying to eat healthy. I think that we will all be blessed for it.

Nathan

One Week Shows Improvement

2008-09-29T05:32:00.000-07:00

Today is Day 8 of my raw diet. I weighed myself and I have lost 10 pounds! That is amazing. I tested my blood sugars and the monitor read 105. That is amazing! I rarely am below 175 and am very often over 200, so that is a significant improvement. Good things are happening! I am enjoying the new way of eating, but I certainly have much to learn. Well, I have 100 days!

Putting in the work

2008-09-27T08:44:00.000-07:00

Well, I started a new diet and exercise program last Monday (the 15th) . My friend, Jen has lost about 25-30 pounds recently so I asked her to share her plan with me. Her eating plan didn't necessarily fit in with me eating mostly vegan, so I modified it slightly. I'm doing a lot better with the whole vegan thing I don't eat dairy or eggs anymore, and I only rarely eat meat. I figure I'm about 90% vegan...I'm getting there :).

Anyway, I digress, I started this workout regime 12 days ago and even though it's been tough, I have really been putting in the hours and sticking to my plan. My body feels great and I have never in my life lost weight so quickly before (except when I did that horrible lemonade fast....yuck!!). So far I've dropped 11 pounds and this week I have a lot more energy than I have had recently. I feel that incorporating so many more fruits and veggies into my diet and working out regularly have really helped clear my head...and body, for that matter.

I'm really glad that so many of you are eating healthier and getting fit. I'm happy to hear that some of you are going raw. I hope to get to that point by next summer. It's really great to have the support. Keep up the awesome work!!!

Sprouting

2008-09-25T13:54:00.000-07:00

Yeah! I just went downstairs and checked my sprouts. I finally started them yesterday. I didn't soak them first and was a little afraid they wouldn't work. Every tray has tinsey, tiny sprouts working their way out of the seeds. It is so exciting. I bought the Easy Green Sprouter. It is the same type Candice bought. I am glad it is working.

Day 3 was Scary!

2008-09-25T09:22:00.000-07:00

Last night the pain in my stomach left! It had been there since Day 1. My body just sort of adjusted. I thought it would take 2 weeks at least. I didn't go to bed hungry. I didn't wake up hungry. Yeah!

In the early evening I almost fainted! Those of you who know me know I don't faint easily. It really scared me. I thought and thought what I could do and finally I ate some whole wheat bread (not raw) and peanut butter. I felt stronger after a while. My heart really hurt from then on through the evening and night. Jenni said I should be sure to take a Vitamin B12 suppliment.

Tomorrow I will start taking a multi-vitamin and a vitamin C.

In the night, I tested my blood for sugars. Usually it reads 175-190, which, of course, is really high. This time it read 125. Yeah! Good things are happening! I am still RAW even though I ate the bread. 100 days!

Raw is ----different!

2008-09-25T08:55:00.000-07:00

On Day 2, I made Mock Tuna Salad from RAWvolutions for our dinner. It was not yummy! There is no nicer way to say it! It did taste better on Day 3, though. The girls and I decided maybe we should just eat the raw food and not make so many recipes. It is nice to try the recipes, though. I decided we needed a treat, so I made Fudge Balls from Living on Live Foods. Jenni said, "Well, this is the best raw food you have made." They were yummy. Jennifer Baker liked them. We all ate several.

Fudge Balls

2 cups dates (pitted and soaked)
2 cups almond butter (I think homemade peanut butter would be good, too and cheaper)
1/2 cup raw carob powder

In a food processor, blend the dates to a smooth paste. Add the remaining ingredients and process until blended and smooth. I had to use my hands for the last little bit of blending. Remove from the food processor and form into small round balls. They are yummy. I used medjool dates, which are large, moist and super sweet! I didn't soak them. By the way, I only made half of the recipe. I only had 1 cup of Almond Butter. I will try making my own Nut Butter next time. It is pretty expensive to buy it.

Quinoa Salad

2008-09-25T08:01:00.000-07:00

I was going through some recipes yesterday and came across one that I had forgotten. Every time I have made this my family loves it and eats it right up. I love the unique flavor of quinoa and it really makes this salad, so if you want to make this completely raw I'm sure you could use sprouted quinoa, though I've never tried it that way.

4-5 cups greens (I like green leaf lettuce and Romaine)
1/4 cup chopped pecans
1/4 cup chopped dates
1/4 tomatoes, diced (I like Roma)
3-4 radishes, diced
1/4 cup cooked or sprouted quinoa
juice from 1 large orange

Combine first six ingredients in a bowl. Use the orange juice as a salad dressing. You may want to add a bit of honey to the orange juice if it isn't very sweet. This is good as a side dish or as a stand alone dish. It's also really pretty garnished with orange slices.

We're Going RAW!!

2008-09-22T10:04:00.000-07:00

Monday, September 22, 2008
By Ruth Phelps

Well, Brad is off to Alaska. I figured this is a good time to begin my new eating habits. Last night I whipped up a recipe (3 recipes, actually) of Berry and Nut Bars from the RAWvolution recipe book by Matt Amsden. I borrowed Amy's dehydrator. The bars (biscuits) were dry enough this morning for Jenni and Bonnie to take some with them. I hope the dehydrator isn't too hot. It only felt warm. They are not super yummy, but they are super filling! That is a good thing. I think going RAW is a Good Thing! Here is the recipe:

Berry and Nut Breakfast Bars
2 cups raw almonds
1 cup raw walnuts
3/4 cup raw flax seeds
2 cups fresh strawberries, raspberries and/or blueberries (Iused only strawberries)
1 cup raisins

Using a food processor, grind the almonds and walnuts coursely, and then transfer the nuts to a large mixing bowl. Powder the flax seeds in a high-speed blender (it won't work in the food processor) and place in a small bowl. Liquefy the fresh berries in the blender, then add the flax powder and blend again really well. Add the berries and flax to the ground nuts, along with the raisins, and mix really well (you may have to use your hands to get it really mixed.)

Spread the mixture evenly on a Teflex-lined dehydrator tray to a thickness of approx. 1 inch. Dehydrate at 100 degrees for 12 hours. Flip over, take off the teflex and dehydrate for another 12 hours. Cut into approximately 18 pieces. End

So, I shaped my dough into biscuits 1 1/2 inches across and about 3/4 to 1 inch deep. I got about 20-25 per recipe. I was going to turn them over this morning, but they were done! I am keeping them in the fridge, but they are looking a bit moist. I am going to open the bag. They were warm when I put them in the bag. I think that is why they are moist.

Strenght in Numbers

2008-09-21T12:00:00.000-07:00

I think this is a great idea! I think I need all the help and support I can get. I've been trying to change our diet but it has been slow going for us. Luckily, our refrigerator broke down this week and we were forced to throw away everything we had in it. How is that lucky, you may ask. Well, now I have the perfect chance to start over without feeling wasteful. We want to go raw eventually, but for now we are about 50% raw, 40% vegan, and 10% animal. I like to categorize it that way so that I still see that we really are making progress. My goal for now is that by the end of the year we will be 80% raw and 20% other vegan and 0% animal.

We started this a few weeks ago because we (Greg and I) haven't been feeling up to par. We thought we just need to live a little healthier. Well, since, we have learned that there are some pretty serious health issues at the root of it all, so we are glad that we've already gotten a jump on things.

Here is one of our favorite snacks right now:

Fresh Salsa (raw and low-sodium)

4-6 ripe roma tomatoes, finely chopped
1/3 cup finely chopped red onion
2 fresh jalapeno peppers, seeded and finely chopped
2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lime juice
2 tablespoons freshly chopped cilantro
4 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 cup fresh corn kernels straight from the cob, rinsed
1/4 cup finely shredded carrot
1/2 cup sprouted black beans

Whole Wheat Tortilla Chips (vegan and low-sodium):

3 whole wheat tortilla chips, cut into 8 wedges each
Lightly grease baking sheet with cooking spray and arrange wedges on sheet
Lightly spray tops of wedges with cooking spray
Dust with cumin
Bake at 350 degrees for 8-10 minutes, cool

Starting fresh

2008-09-19T15:04:00.000-07:00

Hi Everyone,

You're probably thinking, "Why is she sending me another blog invite?," right? Well, apparently I've become obsessed :) This time however, I'm hoping that you all can contribute to this one. I was talking to my Mom (Ruth) today and we were discussing our views on doctors and how they just don't seem to care about, let alone listen to their patients; and how they seem to be guessing at a lot when we've gone to see them.

i.e. I took Shylah in to instacare once for some severe abdominal pain that she'd had for a couple of days (I mean she would writhe on the floor in agony) and the doctor poked at her stomach a bit and told me she was constipated. He recommended I buy some mineral oil to feed her orally and to go home and give her an enima. I did as he suggested (which was not pleasant for Shylah or myself) and she seemed to just get worse. We took her to another doctor a couple days later and from a simple urine test he found that she had a urinary tract infection!! I couldn't believe that the first guy hadn't even done a urine test. She could have been spared two days of horrible pain and I could have had eighty more dollars in my pocket.

This is not the worst thing that I have dealt with from doctors and it is by far not the worst thing my mom and sisters have dealt with. I'm not saying that there are not good doctors, there are; I've had a couple of really good ones. However, they seem to be few and far between from what I've dealt with and from what my family and friends have dealt with. I could go on and on about my frustration with the medical industry, but that really isn't what this blog is about.

I know that a lot of us have started to lean toward eating a more natural, plant-based diet and I thought that if we had a place to go and share what we learn with one another that it would be great. I, myself, have started eating vegetarian (I try to do vegan, buy sometimes I'm not very good) and the difference I feel in my body is amazing. I've heard that a lot of you are going raw and I think that is wonderful. I hope to be able to do that soon, but I won't for a while.

I truly believe that God has given us the means with which to be healthy and pain free. I believe that good food choices have the ability to fill us with health and vitality or even to heal us. I also believe that bad food choices fill our bodies with toxins and illness, and can ultimately take away the quality of our lives. After Kimmy died I read 'Original Fast Foods' and it seems like every page I turned just filled me with more and more insight. After the first few pages I knew that what I was reading was the truth and that this was how we were meant to eat in order to get optimal performance out of our bodies. And let's face it, when we are at optimal performance, our lives are better. On the other hand, when our bodies feel weak, sick, or sluggish the negative effects are felt in every aspect of our lives.

I hope that we all can have fun with this blog and can get some good ideas from eachother. If you received an invitation from me then that means you can post and add to this blog. If there is anyone you want to have contribute to this then please let me know. Or add them yourself if that is possible, I'm still not sure how everything works here. If you haven't read 'Original Fast Foods' I highly recommend it. I love you all, and hope you are well.

-Amy