4 Roots of Optimum Wellness

There are four essential parts to being healthy: Diet, Exercise, Sleep & Attitude.

Tuesday, December 31, 2013

Happy New Year & Blackeyed Peas

Wishing you all a Happy New Year as we ring in 2014. I'm looking forward to a better year than 2013.  How about you? Since so many of you have a tradition of eating blackened peas on New Years, I wanted to add the Healthy Journey Cafe favorite, Parsnip, Broccoli & Blackeyed Pea Soup. This great soup recipe is a hearty veggie soup with broccoli and parsnips...

Friday, December 20, 2013

Vegan Minestrone Soup Recipe

I'm still enjoying this scrumptious, hearty soup because it makes enough to freeze for leftovers. This recipe comes from Summer Tomato by contributing blogger Eylse Kopecky of FresHabits. Elyse used meat sausages, but I made it vegan with Tofurky sausages.* I also used a gluten-free quinoa and corn rotelle (available in the bulk bins at Nugget Markets in the greater...

Wednesday, December 18, 2013

Wisdom Wednesday

Tip: Bring the air of Christmas into your home with aromatic potpourri simmering on your stove. Try this tip from my dear friend, Joanne Kraft, who always makes her home a welcoming sweetness to all who enter. Click here for the recipe....

Friday, December 13, 2013

Mashed Red Potatoes with Shallots & Manchego Cheese

As I promised, here's the recipe for the mashed potatoes that my husband made for Thanksgiving. It's easy and delicious. You'll never miss the cream and butter typically lavished on mashed potatoes. I eat very few potatoes because of the high-starch (translation: it quickly becomes sugar in your body). Avoiding those types of foods keeps my body a mean cancer-fighting machine. Notice...

Tuesday, December 10, 2013

5 Tips for Christmas Bliss

Do you find yourself in a state of frenzy during the Christmas season, whether its from being bombarded by commercialization or feeling the stress of getting a gift for everyone on your list? Here are some tips for calming your heart and re-adjusting your attitude this season. Approach the season with a sense of gratitude. Be grateful for what you have—friends and family...

Friday, December 6, 2013

Spaghetti Squash & Kale

Spaghetti Squash is very nutritious. However, like all winter squash, it's best to purchase it organic because its frequently grown as an intercrop for remediation of contaminated soils. Meaning that contaminants are effectively pulled up out of the soil by winter squash plants. Is organic worth a few extra pennies? I think so! This is the most delicious recipe. And if...

Vegan Pumpkin Cheesecake Bites

Here's an idea for a quick dessert to take to a casual Christmas gathering. Make the Vegan Pumpkin Cheesecake and cut-up a section of the cake into bite-size pieces and then in half so they aren't so tall. Then cut a tiny (~ 1/8 inch) corner off a sandwich bag and add some of the coconut topping. Squeeze the bag so you force the topping into the corner with the hole and…...

Monday, November 25, 2013

Thanksgiving Dinner Menu

Thanksgiving is a time for family, good home-cooked food and remembering all we have to be thankful for. This year my family has much to be thankful for. As with every year, we will extend our gratitude and thanks to the One who provides our needs. Give thanks to the LORD for he is good—his faithful love endures forever. Psalm 107:1 Here is my menu for Thanksgiving...

Friday, November 22, 2013

Vegan Chocolate Pudding

For all you chocolate lovers, here is a simple and quick-to-put-together recipe for vegan chocolate pudding. Try it out and you may decide to include it in your holiday dessert line-up. Make sure the tofu you purchase is organic or it will for sure be made from genetically engineered (GMO) soy. Also look for the Non-GMO Project Verified label—a third-party...

Wednesday, November 20, 2013

Wisdom Wednesday

Tip: I eat my veggies mostly raw, but usually have cooked veggies in the evening as a side dish to wild-caught fish or in soups. You might be surprised to know that some foods are more nutritious cooked: Spinach—You absorb more calcium, iron and magnesium. Tomato—You absorb more lycopene. Asparagus—Nutrient content is higher in slightly steamed asparagus. Mushrooms—Provide...

Thursday, November 14, 2013

10 Survival Tips for Eating Out

© gpointstudio - Fotolia.com If you're working at changing your lifestyle habits to be healthier, you may be reluctant to go out to eat because you' might blow your new health trend. Never fear! I've got some tips that will get you through. Make your food work for you by being proactive. Restaurants should be about service and accommodating your health needs. Here are...

Friday, November 8, 2013

Pumpkin Spice Smoothie

I know there are many of you who LOVE when fall arrives because it means Starbucks offers there enormously popular Pumpkin Spice Latte for the season. Well… I dare you to get out your blender and give this version a whirl. I'm guessing you'll be saving your $5.95 and go the DIY route from now o...

Wednesday, November 6, 2013

Wisdom Wednesday

Tip: There is a running controversy on whether to vaccinate your children or not with various pro's and cons on each side. For further information on the subject, check out the new documentary, The Greater Good, on DVD. For the record, I chose not to have my son vaccinated as a child. He suffered no ill effects and was never denied entrance to any school. He is now a healthy...

Tuesday, October 29, 2013

Should I Get a Flu Shot?

Headlines read... Flu More Widespread in US Flu Season Hits Early and Hard Flu Cases on Rise at Hospitals It seems that every year the media hype over the flu and the need to get a flu shot reaches a higher high. "The worst flu season ever... " "Infection rates have officially reached epidemic levels... " Really? With drug stores sprouting up on every corner in even...

Friday, October 25, 2013

Macaroni & Vegan "Cheese" with Broccoli

If you and your kids find Mac 'n' Cheese to be sacred, I ask you to set you bias aside and give this vegan version a try. Your kids might be pleasantly surprised and you may find a healthier version. Don't give it away when you set the dish in front of them. Then step back and watch their reaction. The recipe comes from the Forks Over Knives website from the kitchen...

Saturday, October 19, 2013

Have a Healthy Halloween

I love the dress-up part of Halloween. When our son was young, I enjoyed coming up with fun costumes. One year I made a tyrannosaurus rex costume and my husband and I dressed as cave man and woman. We won best group costume at our community Halloween Festival as the Prehistoric Family. What I don't like is all the cand...

Friday, October 11, 2013

Apple Crisp

Fall is Apple Hill time in El Dorado County where I live. Located up the hill, heading East towards Lake Tahoe, at 3,000 feet elevation sits a bucolic farming region planted in apples, pears and wine grapes. The majority crop is apples, but you'll also find peaches, nectarines, cherries and several berry varieties. And let's not forget we're cruising into the Christmas...

Wednesday, October 9, 2013

Wisdom Wednesday

Tip: The arrival of cool, crisp mornings remind many of the impending flu season. What to do? Underlying your susceptibility to contract a dreaded seasonal illness is a Vitamin D deficiency. This vital vitamin is key to keeping your immune system ready to fight off illness. Here are some tips for being prepared: Natural sources of Vitamin D include adequate sun exposure...

Friday, September 27, 2013

Three Bean & Lemon Cucumber Salad

This is a twist on the original Three Bean Salad posted on Healthy Journey Cafe. The celery is replaced by lemon cucumber in this version. Lemon cucumbers are round and grow to be two to three inches in diameter. Changing color as it matures, its early, lemon-yellow color turns a golden yellow as it ripens. The mild, pleasant taste is complemented by a cool, crisp texture....

Friday, September 20, 2013

Black & Green Bean Corn Salad

This healthy salad has fresh, raw green beans and corn. Definitely a good crunch to this salad. Serve it over lettuce, with chips, or eaten just as it is—out of the bowl. I modified a recipe from the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine (PCRM) Food for Life Recipe of the Week to incorporate the abundance of green beans I had coming from my garden. If you've...

Wednesday, September 18, 2013

Wisdom Wednesday

Tip: I run a couple miles 3-4 days a week, but decided I need to strengthen my core. Here's a great slide show from the Mayo Clinic providing details for 12 exercises to do that. You don't need to do all 12 in a day. On Monday do 2. Tuesday do the next 3. Wednesday do the next 2. Thursday do the next 3. And Friday do the last 2. Take the weekend off and repeat again on...

Monday, September 9, 2013

Over the Top for Organic Food

I love that there are so many beating the drum for your health, dear readers. And there is no better person that I'd rather occupy the proverbial soap box with than Jennie Zraick. Listen to what she has to pass on today. I know some of you think I'm a bit over the top with my passion for buying organic food whenever possible. Perhaps you think my "conspiracy theory"...

Tuesday, September 3, 2013

Back to School Healthy Lunch Ideas

Even though my son is now 31, I remember making his lunch every day. I wanted to make sure he got healthy food to eat for lunch. There were plenty of easy pre-packaged foods to choose from in the grocery store, but there was no way my quest for simple would include pre-packaged items—full of artificial ingredients and sugar. Here are some ideas for sending your child off...

Thursday, August 29, 2013

The Genesis of a Kid’s App for Eating Healthy

A late-in-life discovery found me with cancer from a genetic condition. Believing that my healthy lifestyle had saved me from a more serious prognosis, I changed my diet even further (eliminating sugar, alcohol and meat except wild-caught fish), incorporated an herbal extract called Vitae Elixxir into my daily routine and beat the odds, returning to a healthful state. Now...