Showing posts with label Better Living Blog. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Better Living Blog. Show all posts

Monday, October 8, 2012

White Bean Soup for a Fall Day

Today is kinda cold here in the Dallas area...Woke up to 39 degrees and that is a bit chilly. So I wanted  to make up a pot of soup that is healthy and filling and tastes good. This is the soup I made....Must say it DOES taste good and very easy to create. You can put everything into a crock pot and turn it on as you leave out the door in the morning and it will be ready for you when you get home. I choose to cook mine on the stove since I was home anyway and cleaning out the fridge.

Here is Sandi's White Bean Soup
1 Can Organic Great Northern White Beans (15 oz) rinsed well
1 Can 14.5oz of Fire Roasted Diced Tomatoes
+ 1 Can of Water
5 Roma Tomatoes pureed in the blender
4-6 oz of Frozen Corn (if you use canned rinse well)
3 oz  Frozen Bell Pepper (if using fresh 1 small Bell Pepper)
4 oz Chopped Frozen Onion (or 1 small fresh)
dried garlic or 3 cloves fresh chopped
seasoning
2 - 3 Tablespoons Italian seasoning dried
1 Tablespoon Paprika
1/2 Tablespoon or more Black Pepper

After everything above cooks down you will want to add in the following.
1/2 Cup Brown Rice
1/2 Cup Quinoa

 (If cooking in the crock pot I would transfer the soup to a stock pan and cook the  Brown Rice and Quinoa in the soup. They will take in all the flavors from the soup and you will not taste the nutty flavor from the brown rice. Personally I find Quinoa to be bland but in this soup it is amazing! You might need to add extra liquid (I added fresh tomato juice but water is fine) as the rice and quinoa are cooking as they do take up moisture. Cook the soup at least 30 more minutes or until the rice and qunioa are cooked.

**YOU Will Noticed I have not added salt again. I personally am not adding salt to my soups as I find that my using most fresh or frozen produce, I don't have the need for the extra salt. You can add it of course just remember don't over salt.*8

You will have leftovers and I know..."WHO wants to eat the same thing day after day". Well here is a fun way to enjoy our leftover soup and yet it will be different.  Clean 1 cup of fresh spinach and place it in the bottom of a large soup bowl. Ladle your hot White Bean Soup on top of the Spinach. Let it sit for about 3-4 minutes and then stir and enjoy. The hot soup will cook your spinach and add a how new depth to your soup.

Other Add ins:
Steamed Broccoli
Steamed Carrots
Fresh Tomatoes Cut in Chunks
Spaghetti Squash
The list is endless...


Hope you enjoy this soup as much as we did. Love to hear from you. If you would like to share your recipes on our blog please drop me a  note at livingtheshweetlife@gmail.com
Til Tomorrow
Live Healthy!
~Sandi



Thursday, October 4, 2012

Vegan Chili Oh So Good

Dr Fuhrman got me thinking a whole new way about eating. I have been reading his books Eat to Live and Super Immunity and both books have recipes for soups and stews that are simple and easy for you to make and eat every day of the week. So, I decided to make up our own chili for us to eat on this week. I made this chili up on my way to RCIA Class Monday night. I put it in the crock pot at 5 pm.... it was ready to eat when we got home from class at 9pm.

Here is what it took.

1 can of Diced Salsa Style Tomatoes
(Fire Roasted in Tomato Puree) mine was Kroger brand
1 Can of Water (use the tomato can)
1 can Tri- Bean Blend 15 oz
(Simple Truth Organic from Kroger) rinsed under water
6 oz Frozen Whole Kernel Corn
3 oz Frozen Bell Pepper
3 oz Frozen Chopped Onion
chopped garlic as much as you like ( I use fresh some people use dry)
Adjust the following spices to fit yourself
Chili Pepper - 1 Tablespoon
Cumin- 1 Tablespoon
Paprika- 1 Tablespoon
Black Pepper- 1/2 Tablespoon
I personally do not add Salt... You can add salt if you wish.
This makes a small crock pot full of chili. I put it on to cook on high for 4 hours and it is perfect when i got home. It is vegan NO meat in it. I  plan to add mushrooms to my chili tonight to get a "meat" variety and will let you know how it works out. I plan to add the mushrooms at the end maybe the last 2 hours.

If you make  this I would love to hear how it turns out for you. Drop me a note.



Saturday, August 11, 2012

Anatomy of A Great Juice

Those of you who have been reading my blog for a while know I love to mix up the fruits and veggies and the more the merrier can really bring you bright burst of flavor. My niece has been coming over a couple days a week and she likes to make up juice the minute she walks in the door each morning. We talked about how to make up juices so that they are healthy for us and still taste good. Then I noticed that Olivia always grabs a handful of my kale as her first ingredient in her morning juice and works from there. So that is what we are going to do too. Start with the kale and build our juice from there. You need to work with 80 to 20 ratio veggie to fruits but in the mornings when I have my morning medicines I like to have more fruits than the rest of the day. So, when picking your recipes see what makes you happy. Juice those things together and taste often of the mix.


Add more or additional produce to the mix and make sure you take notes because when you hit on that perfect glass of juice you want to be able to make it again.

This is Olivia's Breakfast Juice
2 cup fresh bing cherries (pitted)
2 cup green grapes ( you can use red or black)
8 leaves of kale
2 granny smith apples
1 pear
2 large peaches
5 clementine oranges (peeled)
1 large naval orange (Peeled)
2 lemons (peeled)
1 lime (peeled)
4 carrots
2 Large Cucumbers

Juice everything in the order listed. The reason being the softer fruit leave residue behind in the juicer and the harder fruit like the apples, carrots and cucumbers will wash all the yummy sludge or residue out and none will be wasted. This recipe makes a HUGE pitcher full of juice. I love this ice cold and also pour some of this into freezer molds and make Popsicle for the hot summer day. Perfect for after my daily walk around the block in our 107 degree heat!
The most important thing to remember when making your juice up is to pick one piece of produce and start from there. I try to start all my juices from kale now. I then build my juice around whether I want it to taste green and fresh or nice and fruity. Second thing to remember is to take notes... snap a picture or two (those iphones and instagrams are good for something now right). Third thing is the most important thing...DON'T BE AFRAID TO PLAY WITH YOUR JUICE!! YEP YOU HAVE THIS MOM'S PERMISSION TO PLAY WITH YOUR FOOD!
Til Tomorrow
Juice ON!
Sandi


Monday, June 18, 2012

Tomato Basil Delights...

When I started writing this blog I knew I wanted to share my recipes for juice as well as other healthy creations. So as you know, I also started a Recipe Blog, Recipes 4 Shweet Living,  where you can find all the Recipes that we have come up with as well as some that I am sharing from my friends.
Tomato Juice has really helped me this past month. I have a great deal of pain from my Fibromyalgia, Rheumatoid Arthritis, pulling my back out, kidney and gallstones and tomato juice has helped me to control my pain level without having to take medicine. I just wanted to share a couple things that I created from Tomatoes on my Recipe Blog. Wanted to make sure you saw them so that maybe they will help you out too. (PS Tomatoes are great for fighting cancers too!)

Come by Recipes 4 Shweet Living and check out the Tomato Basil Juice Recipe.

While you are there come see what we did with the Pulp from the Juice. Don't want to throw away something so good, we want to use everything we can. YUMMO


Til Tomorrow
Stay Juicy
~Sandi

Monday, June 11, 2012

Day 83 The Journey Continues


No one said this juice journey would be smooth and easy but for a while there I thought I would be one of the unique travelers. When I started my cleanse it WAS easy and smooth. No hunger pains and I was not running to the bathroom every 5 minutes. The longer I traveled down the juicing highway, the better I felt and the less  my ailments bothered me.

Then after almost 60 days I hit the inevitable pothole in my juicing journey... I got SiCk. Yes, It was not the normal sickness like I am used too either, it was a new kind.  So after wondering "Is this detox?" and my eye getting worse and worse I decided to visit the Eye Drs. Well, it was a trip in itself. Everywhere I walked the nurses and techs stopped me and asked what happened in the past 6 weeks that I looked so much smaller. Nice feeling to know they noticed but alias sad I was there a month before I had to go for my regular 3 month eye check. Anyway I had a major eye infection due NOT to my juice cleanse but to the steroids I had to use in my eyes because of my Sjogren's Disease. So antibiotics were given to take care of my poor eyes and by now the infection is even showing up in my kidneys. So I had a decision to make Juice ON? or Juice and eat raw while taking the medicines? After much thought and prayer I decided to ...JUICE ON!

So my journey continues forward. I am happy to say that for the first time since I can remember I had no issues with a round of antibiotics. Must have been the juice! Not to long after my eyes improved, I decided go grocery shopping. Found some amazing steals and deals on produce and even carried it upstairs, All By Myself. Later that same day I realized I was feeling better BUT not quite to the point of lifting 15 pound bags. So out goes the back. So on goes my journey to healing and I learned something new too. Even though I feel amazing from juicing for 80+ days, I still have to remember my body is healing. Don't over do things.

So as my journey continues I reflect on the past 83 days. I started this journey at 259 pounds and a tight size 24. Here I am 212 pounds and a size 18. I feel so much better than I have in over 25 years. So far I have lowered my medicines by 2 and I am looking forward to seeing how well my stomach and esophagus have healed next week when I visit my GI Doctor. So a few little bumps in the road and some stones even (kidney) but what journey worth traveling doesn't have some obstacles to overcome.

I have no idea where this journey will lead me but I do know the detestation's goal is to reach Better Health and a New Life Change.
Til Tomorrow
Stay Juice
Sandi

Saturday, June 2, 2012

My Produce Haul from ALDI's...

Friday I decided it was time to stop in a store I have passed by but never been in before. So Kassy and I grabbed a cloth shopping bag and we drove to ALDI's to check it out. Walking outside the store we noticed the shopping carts were locked together...ODD. Okay, You pay a quarter to *rent* your cart. Good way to cut costs, you get your money back when you return your cart and hook it back up. Makes good sense to me. (I think I will apply the same method to Kassy cleaning her room.)

As we stepped into the store at first I thought, " Oh, No this is not a store for me. Looks like it is mainly all boxes and processed foods. THEN I discovered the small but wonderful fresh food section. WOW! We struck gold. We were trying to fill our one little bag with fresh food when the store manager came by and told us we can always ask the clerks for a quarter and they will *loan* us one for a cart anytime. HOW NICE!

Well let us show you our ALDI's Haul! Now, not all was for me and my Juice Cleanse. Yes you do see GREEN TEA...MY Morning Drink and also you see something that is not for me at all Rice Snacks. Those are for hubby. At least it is not fried chicken or M & Ms.
Let me give you a run down on the food cost for yesterday's shopping so you can see WHY I WILL BE RETURNING TO ALDI's.

Green Tea Bags 1.19
Granny Smith Apples 3 pounds 1.99 
Granny Smith Apples 3 pounds 1.99
Anjou Pears 3 pounds .98
Roma Tomatoes (8) 1 pound .99
Roma Tomatoes (8) 1 pound .99
Cantaloupe .99 
Jicama .89  for the whole thing!!!
Strawberries 16 oz .99
Pineapple .99
frozen peaches  1.99
Cucumbers- .59 each got 10 HUGE ones so 5.90
Huband's Rice Snacks 1.99
Large Mango Orange Naked Drink for Husband 3.99

Before leaving the store I made a point to speak to the manager and told him how excited I was to find the store and how beautiful the fresh produce looked. The prices were wonderful and why I was excited to find it (Juicing and what it exactly was.) I also asked him what my chances were of getting kale into any of the ALDI stores? He explained that the stores ordered all not for 1 but for all. So if folks were asking for it in other places then it would be ordered for all stores. So, IF you live near an ALDI and you shop there, PLEASE MAKE SURE TO ASK YOUR MANAGER TO ORDER KALE! EXPLAIN WHY. If you are eating RAW or semi-raw ask for it also. Don't feel comfortable asking in person...GO ONLINE and EMAIL THEM from their website. 

 FYI... You can do this for any and all of the stores you visit. Say your local Kroger's runs out of Kale on a regular bases (mine does)? go online and request that they order more. Explain that you are a regular client and come in for Kale and it is almost always out of stock. Kale is used in salads, cooked, it is used as a chip and you are using it to improve your life as a juice.  You will be so surprised how many people want to know all about what you are doing when you mention it. LOL

Well, This old lady got sure a haul yesterday of produce and I guess I have been feeling so good that i forgot that I do have a mess of underlying issues. ( fibro, arthritis,siccia  so much more). Someone left a big container of salt behind my juicer and I knocked it all over the kitchen floor. (One way to get rid of all the extra salt in my husband's diet). So out came the vacuum and when I reached over to make sure I got all the salt off the floor... I could not get up. I am sitting or rather bent over in the middle of my kitchen, tears rolling down my face... in pain but the tears are more from me laughing than the pain. I am talking to myself out loud cause I am the only one home...Self, GOOD THING YOU Have lost most of your spare tire around your middle or you would be laying on the cold hard kitchen floor for the next 4 hours til someone gets home from work. As it was I i did the "monkey walk" into the living room to the closet chair I could find and lowered myself into it. Then when the time came to get up I learned that I can not stand up. So one thing I have learned my friends....  Produce can be harmful to you health. LOL  Don't try to carry to much in one bag or two. Split it up into lot of bags and make several trips from the car to the apartment.

Well, Guess that is it for today. This old lady is feeling her age for the first time in the past 2 months so I guess I will grab my Mean Green and retire to the bedroom for a little much needed rest. I know it will take a while to recover so I better give myself plenty of good nutrients and vitamins to heal. 

Hope to post a new recipe or two tonight maybe tomorrow.
Til then...Stay Juicy
~SANDI

Wednesday, May 30, 2012

Stages of Juice Detoxification


I wanted to share with ya'll the different things you might be feeling as you start juicing. It is fine and normal to feel different ways and your body to go through different reactions as it releases the toxins it has been storing for years and years. I myself was amazed at the colors my tongue turned from day to day and it even depended on what juices I have been drinking.

 I just shared with you  the picture with you off all the tongues and what  I have learned from my support group on facebook with you. Some I use and you might want too...some I don't but you might find you will. It's all about sharing what we know or learn and letting each of us decide for ourselves which is right for us. 
If anyone is interested in joining our facebook group Rebooter Buddies just click and JOIN GROUP BUTTON.
As always if you have questions drop me a note and I will try to answer or ask from someone in my group. 
livingtheshweetlife@gmail.com

Also added new recipes today on the Recipes 4 Shweet Living Blog so pop over and check them out!

~~Juice ON!~~



The Different Juice Fasting Stages of Detoxification
A single cell within the human body is more complex than the most modern supercomputer. The process of removing a hundred thousand antigens, each with unique molecular properties, from trillions of functioning cells is indeed a complex process. Imagine three trillion cells being repaired during the function of countless biochemical processes needed for life. Even the best mechanics have to turn off the engine. Yet, the body has millions of micro mechanics that do this with ease.
One of the body’s automatic maintenance processes is the destruction of foreign microorganisms. When looking through a dark-field microscope, countless parasites are clearly visible. I observed parasites living inside blood cells. Several could be seen eating cholesterol, and I was amazed to see one swim. Watching lymphocytes moving in the blood was like a science-fiction movie. These complex, lymphocyte organisms attached themselves and engulfed toxins. As they did, their colorations flowed into fascinating patterns leaving me with a sense of wonder and respect for the miraculous ability and infinite complexity of the human body.

Fasting Detoxification Stages
Here is an overview of the detoxification stages during a juice fast. The time periods are a general estimation.

Stage 1 (Day 1 To Day 2)
On the first day of fasting, the blood sugar level drops below 70 mg/dl. To restore the blood to the normal glucose level, liver glycogen is converted to glucose and released into the blood. This reserve is enough for half a day. The body then reduces the basal metabolic rate (BMR). The rate of internal chemical activity in resting tissue is lowered to conserve energy. The heart slows and blood pressure is reduced. Glycogen is pulled from the muscle causing some weakness. The first wave of cleansing is usually the worst.
Headaches, dizziness, nausea, bad breath, glazed eyes and a heavily coated tongue are signs of the first stage of cleansing. Hunger can be the most intense in this period unless the enema is used which quickly assists the body into the fasting state by ending digestion in the colon.

Stage 2 (Day 3 To Day 7)
Fats, composed of transformed fatty acids, are broken down to release glycerol from the gliceride molecules and are converted to glucose. The skin may become oily as rancid oils are purged from the body. People with problem-free skin may have a few days of pimples or even a boil. A pallid complexion is also a sign of waste in the blood. Ketones are formed by the incomplete oxidation of fats. It is suspected that the ketones in the blood suppress the appetite by affecting the food-satiety center in the hypothalamus. You may feel hungry for the first few days of the fast. This effect is temporary. The desire to eat will disappear. Lack of hunger may last 40 to 60 days, depending on whether you are on water or juice.
The body embraces the fast and the digestive system is able to take a much-needed rest, focusing all of its energies on cleansing and healing. White blood cell and immune system activity increases. You may feel pain in your lungs. The cleansing organs and the lungs are in the process of being repaired. Periodically, the lymphatic system expels mucoid matter through the nose or throat. The volume excreted of this yellow-colored mucus can be shocking. The sinuses go through periods of being clogged, then will totally clear. The breath is still foul and the tongue coated. Within the intestine, the colon is being repaired and impacted feces on the intestinal wall start to loosen.

Stage 3 (Day 8 to Day 15)
On the latter part of an extended fast, you can experience enhanced energy, clear-mindedness and feel better than you have felt since childhood. On the downside, old injuries may become irritated and painful. This is a result of the body’s increased ability to heal during fasting. If you had broken your arm 10 years before, there is scar tissue around the break. At the time of the break, the body’s ability to heal was directly related to lifestyle. If you lived on a junk-food diet, the body’s natural healing ability was compromised.
During fasting, the body’s healing process is at optimum efficiency. As the body scours for dead or damaged tissue, the lymphocytes enter the older, damaged tissue secreting substances to dissolve the damaged cells. These substances irritate the nerves in the surrounding region and cause a reoccurrence of aches from previously injured areas that may have disappeared years earlier. The pain is good as the body is completing the healing process. The muscles may become tight and sore due to toxin irritation. The legs can be the worst affected, as toxins accumulate in the legs. Cankers are common in this stage due to the excessive bacteria in the mouth. Daily gargling with salt and water will prevent or heal cankers.

Stage 4 (Day 16 to Day 30)
The body is completely adapted to the fasting process. There is more energy and clarity of mind. Cleansing periods can be short with many days of feeling good in between. There are days when the tongue is pink and the breath is fresh. The healing work of the organs is being completed. After the detoxification mechanisms have removed the causative agent or render it harmless, the body works at maximum capacity in tissue proliferation to replace damaged tissue. While a short fast will reduce the symptoms, a longer fast can completely heal. Homeostatic balance is at optimum levels. The lymphatic system is clean except for a rare discharge of mucus through the nose or throat. After day 20, the mind is affected. Heightened clarity and emotional balance are felt at this time. Memory and concentration improve.

Stage 5 (Breaking the Fast)
The sticky, toxic, mucoid coating on the intestinal wall is loose, and the first meal frees it from the intestinal wall. Toxins enter the blood through the colon. The gallbladder dumps its waste in a heavy discharge of bile. This can cause an instant bowel movement upon eating followed by intense diarrhea. If the symptoms are too uncomfortable, an enema will help.

This article was written by, Mr. Tom McGregor, author of Eating in Freedom.

 

Sunday, May 20, 2012

So excite I Finally Got THE BLOG SET UP! RECIPE BLOG TOO!

I AM SO EXCITED! Can you tell? Marty and I were talking and we decided that since we juice 1 sometimes twice a day and I always make something out of the pulp at least once a day that I just had to add a RECIPE Blog as a companion blog to the Living the Shweet Life Blog. So of course I set to work getting that set up on Wednesday night. I have connected the two blogs together and yet they are also each stand alone blogs in case there are folks who don't want to listen to me ramble on and on... LOL



So Hope you will come by and check out Recipes 4 Shweet Living . I started adding some of our recipes that we are created and that we like. We try to work on the 80/20 ratio  but there are times when it is not that. I will let ya know if it is all fruits so you can be warned.  Like the one I will be blogging about tomorrow and the reason I am still up tonight. OH MY GOODNESS IT WAS SO GOOD!

Just looked at that picture...looks good to eat but you really can't read it to well. Thinking I just need some good graphics from my Shweet gal Carm.

Til Tomorrow
Stay Juicy
~ Sandi