Tired of Spinach Salads?

I buy so much baby organic spinach to put in my green smoothies every morning!  I am addicted to getting my greens in early but I also have to feed the rest of the crew and they aren't doing green smoothies in the morning.  So I came up with an easy "formula," if you want to call it that, to get a pretty nice side dish on the table for dinner.

Here goes:

olive oil of some variety
greens  (yes, I do buy the already washed, chopped kind)
onion or garlic (or both)
vinegar or lemon juice (or both)
crumbled or grated cheese (optional of course)

You start out by heating your skillet and adding olive oil/extra olive oil/coconut oil or a combo of these. 

Saute chopped onion, add the garlic (if you want) and cook down until tender. 

Add your greens and let wilt (these are spinach, chard, turnip greens and mustard greens)

 Add in grape tomatoes if you're into a little sweetness!

Let cook down (it will reduce greatly!)

Add a sprinkle of sea salt and pepper, stir and remove from heat.

I love to drizzle a flavored vinegar over the top and garnish with either feta cheese or shaved parmesan.

That is it.  So easy ... and you get your greens in!

Pomegranate vinegar splashed greens!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

So don't worry about following a recipe!  As long as you have an oil, greens, an acidic flavor and a mild cheese you have the recipe to try something new!

Enjoy!
Krista

Downtime Anyone?

Happy Snowy Tuesday!  

You must be reading this because you are not running your kids around...


Are you happily at home after school was dismissed early?  All sports cancelled?  Got your favorite show ready to watch later tonight?  I do ... I'm claiming the spot in front of the fireplace to watch my Downton Abbey I missed on Sunday night (not that the football we watched wasn't dramatic as well!)!

Here's some info to mull over about your kids who are home resting tonight instead of practicing.

Depending on where they are in the season, they can be getting overworked.  Injuries might be happening and immunity might be an issue.  If that is happening, read this little bit of info on oxidative stress.  If that's not happening, read on because you may need to fuel properly to shovel yourself out of your house later without injury!

Nutrition ... how does it help you recover?

• provides fuel
• heals damaged tissues

Simple right?  Your body (or your little thoroughbred's) breaks down microscopically each day and repairs with some rest and good nutrients.  Yay!
But what if your body isn't done repairing (not enough rest or nutrients) before it has to go out and do it again?  Yep, it starts to wear down and overuse injuries start to become painful.  Yikes!

When athletes work intensely without proper rest and nutrients, oxidative stress occurs.  It's basically like the exhaust from a car that is not cleared well when you rev your engine.  These will break down or damage tissues instead of building them back up again.  If this doesn't happen, free radicals are produced and need to be neutralized quickly by one of the body's enzyme systems.  This can work up to a point, and then the balance begins to tip to stress on the cells.  To make a long story short, the harder a body is pushed, the result is more exhaust and that leads to stress on the DNA, proteins, and lipids.  This in turn turns into muscle soreness, losing power, and poor training which eventually leads to chronic muscle damage, impaired immunity and eventually "burn out." 

Oh boy ... so what's an athlete to do?

I've always been a fan of eating a whole food plant based diet.  What I didn't fully understand was how great it was for recovery!  (Probably shoulda eaten better in our years of track and field Jen and Terri!  Those boxes of jello under the bleachers for "energy" were so much fun! We thought we were so cool!)   Lots of studies have been done to prove the benefits of this kind of diet and not to bore you with statistics, but honestly if you could simply add more fruits and vegetables with high phytochemicals (see list below) you could save yourself or your young athlete some time off from injury or illness!  These phytochemicals are only present in real, whole foods, not supplements.

Foods High In Phytochemicals: 

• broccoli
• berries
• pears
• turnips
• celery
• carrots
• spinach
• olives
• tomatoes
• lentils
• cantaloup
• garlic
• apricots
• onions
• seeds
• soybeans
• green tea
• apples
• cabbage
• brussel sprouts
• bok choy
• kale
• red wine

Here is simple link to explain what a phytochemical is:
http://www.fruitsandveggiesmorematters.org/what-are-phytochemicals

Hope that helps demystify "oxidative stress!"  

Here is my current view ... someone obviously worked hard today and stole my spot for tea in front of the tele tonight!

King of the Couch

Go Eat Some Fruits and Veggies before your Favorite Show!
(And did anyone notice red wine on the list?  Yay resveratrol!)  

Krista 

Simplicity Rules!

It is now 3 weeks into the new year and you know ... good intentions sometimes meet reality and well, unless you have someone holding you to your resolution (beside yourself), it can fade about now.

The best resolution to encourage all kinds of positive benefits in your body?

Eat simpler foods!

More fruits and veggies at every single meal ... not just once a day. 
Not just us grown ups ... Have you heard this one:

"This may be the first generation of children to have a shorter life expectancy than their parents."

There are so many children that are developing diabetes (they predict 1 in 3 children), started to develop hardening of the arteries, take prescription drugs on a regular basis, and are treating cholesterol with statin drugs already!  Yikes, that is crazy right?

How can we prevent this?

Eat like our grandparents may have eaten.  Farm fresh foods are key.  Yes, it is the winter here in the northern hemisphere but learn to find real foods in your food supply.

I'll give you one hint today (as I can write pages on veggies and how to get kids to eat them!):

Keep cut up veggies ready to put on a plate when your kids get home from practice or school today.

That is the best time to get them to grab foods that are maybe not as attractive when other foods are available.  Put them out and watch what happens.  They will eat them.

The more we can model eating plant based foods that are part of our everyday diet, the more your children will develop a taste for them.  Sometimes it will take a few times for a kid to even try a bite.  Don't give up.  Offer a variety and see what happens.  

It's a simple way to get those phytonutrients into our kids!  These phytonutrients are key in keeping everything running on schedule, preventing more colds and doctor visits and for those athletes out there, it is key in preventing oxidative stress and helping in recovery!

More on oxidative stress next time ... gotta get my daughter ready for soccer tonight!  The crock pot has done it's job and now I'm pulling out the big bag of frozen organic broccoli for some magic in the oven.  I never loved broccoli as much as I do now!  Roasting at a high temp is really easy and everyone loves it!

Be Well!
Krista

Kale Chips!

Food is Medicine for Your Aching Bod!

Happy Monday Everyone!

I know my muscles are currently stressed ... ok, they're not really stressed, I just went through a brutal massage ... known as a medical massage by some people.  I'm currently working with a therapist who is awesome and finds the trigger points of my lower back and neck to release the crunchy fascia and promote healing and better circulation.  When she's done with her treatment I am very thankful although I'm seriously starting to bruise as I write this.  It's been a long almost 4 years without full vision and my neck muscles have just kinda said, "She doesn't use us, so we're going to sleep!"   Boy, they have been asleep and kinda turned to fossils!  We're trying to wake them up!

I'm not a doctor but I do know it all makes sense how everything is connected.  Did you ever notice your neck pain and then feel it in your pinky?  Or maybe the pain behind your knee when your back is acting up?  Or the shoulder pain that makes your tmj kick in?  Stressed at work?  You feel it somewhere guaranteed.  Sometimes it's chronic pain, sometimes it's our young athletes dealing with overuse conditions that leads to inflammation.  Those poor shoulders can sometimes work too hard  when swimming fly or throwing pitches!

If you are an athlete or an athlete's mom (aka mommalete in my house!) there is a good chance you have had an issue with some chronic pain at some point.  I know we are also approaching that age where some of us are getting hit with the dreaded "A" word of arthritis! 

How do you deal with your chronic pain?  Do you take ibuprofen?  Heat?  Cold?  Topical ointments?  Chiropractic?  Acupuncture?  I've done all of this!  And then some!  I wanted to pass on the benefits of eating well for pain.  You heard me ... I'm pushing the rainbow again!  That is the rainbow of fresh produce along with some spices and tea.  Not only is it just plain healthy to eat for the sheer healthfulness of raw veggies and fruit, but there is definitely healing that is enhanced with certain foods.  In my quest to heal myself from chronic back pain I have found these foods do help:

Foods that Promote Healing

• pineapple:  there are powerful anti-inflammatory enzymes found in this fruit. 
• berries:  all kinds of berries are powerful!  There are lots of phyto-nutrient antioxidants that help control inflammation and enhance the immune system.
• green tea:  another antioxidant that helps detox and protect the DNA in your cells from free radical damage.
• beef:  look for grass fed beef as these cows are not fed the chemically laden corn that regular cows at your supermarket are fed.  Grass fed beef has less saturated fat and is rich in nutrients.  
• tumeric:  a spice used for chronic pain and inflammation; the compound in tumeric is called curcumin which is an anti-inflammatory.  You can cook with it or add a supplement made with curcumin to your daily intake.
• garlic:  we all have heard the benefits of garlic ... it is a vegetable that promotes healing with it's strong anti-inflammatory properties.  Use liberally when cooking!
• ginger:  this root has also shown to have anti-inflammatory properties;  it actually blocks the enzyme cyclo oxygenase which is what commonly prescribed pain medications use.
• cold water fish:  rich in omega 3 fatty acids which research has shown reduces pain and inflammation more effectively than prescription NSAID medications.  Make sure you know your source as polluted waters can yield fish high in metals.
• water:  we are 66% water so we need to continually replenish ourselves.  Chronic dehyration leads to muscle spasm and increased blood viscosity.  You can use the formula 1/2 of your body weight in ounces per day.  I like to drink water out of quart sized mason jars!  It's easy to keep track and I can easily get my 2 in each day!

Loving this loose leaf green tea with jasmine! 

Give it a try ... if you are looking to get more healthy foods into your diet anyway, this may be the motivation to get you going.  

Real food, less medications, more energy and good days!  Whether that be for you or your athletes, anti-inflammatory foods that fight free radicals and decrease inflammation are good for everybody.

Be Well,
Krista

Immune Boosting Time!

Yes, it's that time of the year again!  If you watch the news or have kids that may be showing signs of illness, you know the routine:  wash your hands, sleep well, eat well, take immune boosting supplements, try to relieve stress through exercise, the list goes on.  Sometimes that is not an easy thing to do ... even with all of your best intentions.

I have always been asked about which supplements are good for keeping immunity up.  There are many you can find in the health food store such as echinacea, royal camu, vitamin C, etc.  They are great, however sometimes I feel like the most important thing you can do for yourself and your family is simply to eat well.  Oh yes, love the rainbow spectrum that you can find in the produce aisle!  My husband actually went shopping with me for a New Year's Eve gathering we had last week, and he laughs at me because I am like a kid in the candy shop when I see beautiful produce!

  

Collard greens!

Here are a few nutrient dense veggies and fruits you should be stocking up on:  carrots, sweet potatoes, kale for your vitamin A boosts;  bell peppers, strawberries, kiwi, papayas, oranges, clementines (these go really quickly in my house), broccoli, spinach for your vitamin C boosts and swiss chard, collard greens, spinach and other dark leafy greens gets you a good dose of vitamin E. 

Kale with Lemon, Basil and Corn

I actually had help with brussel sprouts!  Yay Hannah!

If you are constantly fighting with your kids over eating veggies in the winter, I have found that by roasting them at a high temperature (425 degrees) with a nice olive oil and sea salt makes them nice and crunchy instead of mushy.  If you want to try this make sure you chop them into bit sized pieces to cook them evenly.  Kids generally don't dig mushy veggies!  I do this with carrots, kale, and broccoli often as we still have braces on in this house and raw veggies tend to break brackets, and poke wires out!  

Happiness in our kitchen ... the busiest room in the house!

Sophie making her famous sweet potatoes! 

Wishing you all a healthy start to 2014 with some new colors on your plates!

Krista

Coconut Sugar ... new addition to the pantry!

As I'm trying to get as much sugar out of our house (kinda hard lately with all the goodies and hot chocolate snow days!), I have stumbled upon another sweetener to share with you.  Coconut sugar is still sugar but it is a lower glycemic, unrefined sweetener that tastes great!  You might want to check it out if you're looking for a healthier choice in your coffee, or baked goodies. 

It comes from the flowers of Indonesian coconut trees!  Oh the images floating through my mind's eye!  Bryan and I went to Bali, Indonesia for our honeymoon many years ago and I fell in love with it!  The beautiful flowers, gorgeous fruits and veggies, fresh fish, snorkeling among the most colorful sea creatures, monkeys stealing our water bottles ... I digress ... the nectar of the coconut flowers is collected, boiled and ground into powder to create the tasty sweetener.

Just an idea for you as so many of us are trying to get rid of the refined sugars that saturate the shelves of our grocery stores! 

Enjoy!
Krista

Getting Yourself Back on Track

So I'm sitting here in front of my favorite spot in my house for winter ... took a quicker than normal walk with Karma as the next big snow storm approaches.  Toes are freezing ... but the cat is at my feet under my grandma's rocker and all is well.

 So are you ready to get back into some structure after the holiday break!  I AM!  As much as I really enjoyed time off with my family, it is time to get back on track.  I have been incredibly lazy and haven't been cooking the usual meals,  mostly waiting to last minute because I could ... not too many time constraints which is so unbelievably weird for us.  I have learned I don't function well unless I have to ... know what I mean?  So, as nice as it's been, I am ready to refocus on wellness and balance in the new year.

I am not one of those health nuts who doesn't enjoy Christmas cookies, traditional foods, like mashed potatoes, pierogies (been eating them since my gram made them every Christmas Eve), Swedish mulled wine (glogg), Prosecco at New Year's, and all the other desserts and apps made by my creative friends this season!  Enjoyed every single one of them!  Isn't that what we're supposed to do?  Enjoy the good stuff?

I do have some ideas for new foods to pass on as I know many of you are going through that "cleanse" mentality.  I personally don't cleanse.  If that works for you, more power to you, however my physical make up just doesn't dig it.  So, my alternative to traditional "cleansing" is to pull back the things that have taken me a bit off my center.

• Water ... make sure to get in enough to keep hydrated especially when it is cold out and we dehydrate easily. 
• Sleep ... getting back on regular bedtimes and wake up times ... especially the kids!
• Cut the refined carbs ... just get the remaining cookies and candies out of the house!
• Make sure my green drink is fully loaded with lots of greens, protein and chia seeds.
• Serve as many colors to my family as possible ... rainbow of fruits and veggies.
• Move in moderation!  Even if it is just a quick walk around the block!  Get the muscles moving for more energy!

Wishing you all a fantastic and healthy 2014!

Krista

 This is what I do when I'm not running around ... 

Take some time for you today!