Who doesn't love the rich, creamy comfort of a bowl of mashed potatoes? Here's a delicious take on the classic that will keep our taste buds singing and our waistlines, hips & thighs slim and sleek. Oh, not to mention this recipe is fabulous for our skin, hair, nails, heart and digestion too! Here are just a few of the amazing nutritional bennies of our lovely friend Cauliflower…
Cauliflower is an excellent source of alpha-linolenic acid and vitamins C and K, which, when combined with lower intakes of fats and carbohydrates, are linked to a lower likelihood of wrinkles and dry skinaccording to a 2007 study in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.
Cauliflower contains other important antioxidant phytonutrients, such as beta-carotene, beta-cryptoxanthin, caffeic acid, cinnamic acid, ferulic acid, quercetin, rutin, and kaempferol, all of which work together to protect our body against free radicals and reduce the risk of diseases caused by oxidative stress, such as cancer, cardiovascular diseases and various infections. They are also important in slowing down the aging process.
It has high amounts of omega-3 fatty acids, well-known for their anti-inflammatory properties.
Cauliflower is an Excellent Detoxifier due to its sulfur-containing compounds called glucosinates which help our body get rid of toxins and carcinogens. After broccoli, cauliflower boasts the second highest content of glucosinates. Eating cauliflower can help prevent various types of cancer and cleanse our body of toxins.
It can help prevent heart diseases in many ways including via allicin, which reduces the risk of stroke and many cardiovascular disorders.
Cauliflower contains excellent anti cancer properties via compounds such as sulforaphane and indole-3-carbinol, which have been found to reduce the risk of prostate, breast, cervical, colon and ovarian cancers. One Canadian study has shown the consumption of ½ cup of cauliflower/day may cut risk of prostate cancer by over 50%.
I enjoy this simple and satisfying dish at least once a week. I'm certain you'll love it too 🙂
Cauliflower Mashed Potatoes with Chives
Recipe for Creamy Cauliflower "Mashed Potatoes" (Makes 4-6 Servings)
Ingredients
1 Head Cauliflower broken into florettes
1/2 small clove Garlic
Coconut Milk or Almond Milk- to taste depending on how thick you like your mash (use less than you think as you don't want it to get too liquidy)
Sea Salt to taste
Fresh Ground Pepper to taste
1/4 tsp of fresh lemon juice (yes you read that right- you won't taste it & it adds a fab freshness)
Coconut Oil for garnish (optional – an option I go for always 🙂
Fresh snipped chives for garnish & zippy flavor pops
Method
Steam cauliflower and garlic over medium heat for about 8 minutes until a fork easily inserts into the side. (Be sure not to overcook as that causes it to get increasingly bitter, as well as lose nutrients)
Place steamed cauliflower, garlic & 1/4 tsp lemon juice into a food processor or heavy duty blender along with coconut milk. (Start with less than you think you need- as once the blender gets it all moving it will get surprisingly smooth & thin out quickly.)
Add sea salt and pepper to taste.
Process until mash is smooth and creamy. Check seasonings and adjust if necessary.
Pour into serving bowls and add a dallop of coconut oil for extra richness plus a sprinkling of snipped chives for some contrasting zip and green brightness. A little fleur de sel on top is always nice too:-)
Serve immediately (mashed cauliflower is best eaten immediately as it's pungency develops if it sits overnight)
Enjoy!
What's one of your favorite healthified recipe makeovers?
Do share with all of us 🙂
Lots of love,
XOXO
Juliane
PS. If you just can't give up your potato fix try my amaze lightened up Irish Style Colcannon Mashed Potatoes. SO much lighter & way better tasting than standard recipes.
“I‘m either the luckiest
gal on the planet… or I just have really low standards.” 🙂 That’s a great quote from my teacher, and, I have to say I’m right there with her! The fact is, there is such an
abundance of gratitude for life overflowing from me each day, it feels as though I’ve
cracked some secret code to a treasure chest of beautiful miracles. There
are many practices to which I attribute this freedom and joy… seven years of Soto Zen Buddhist Awareness Practice & Transcendental Meditation, my amazing Teacher, my cheerleaders, and a simple, yet powerful ritual…
my nightly Gratitude Journal.
My Nightly Gratitude Journal
Taking
a moment each night to record just a few of the infinite miracles for
which I am grateful each day, is a beautiful frame of mind to fall asleep. And it doesn’t
stop there, I wake up in the same beautiful space of gratitude. It’s an
excellent practice for everyone – including those of us sweethearts who occasionally wake up on the “wrong side of the bed” 🙂
It only takes a minute or two – though you’ll
find yourself wanting to write much more than you expected… that’s
the nature of gratitude, it has a compounding, expansive, contagious
quality. Keeping a gratitude journal is a really fun way to focus our brains on the infinite miracles in our lives, and away from conditioning’s incessant mantra of something wrong/not enough.
The greatest gift we can give to the world is our own happiness. It ripples out reaching farther than we can ever begin to imagine.
Love,
XOXO
Juliane
Do you have a favorite practice or ritual which brings you happiness or peace? Do share with us!
I say, follow your bliss and don’t be afraid, and doors will open where you didn’t know they were going to be.
Our hotel in Santiago, Chile. Image courtesy Ritz Carlton, Santiago
I was enjoying the first glimpses of Autumn just two weeks ago… It's true! While the USA, Europe et al begrudgingly hosted persistent wintery-mix at the end of March, South America- Santiago, Chile to be precise – was welcoming rainbows of fall foliage… and Jim and me! Visiting Santiago, Chile ranks right up there with my favorite travel experiences of all time, so of course I wanted to share a bit of the adventure with you!
Fall Foliage in front of a Santiago Home, forgive the quality of my iPhone shots please:-)
Although Jim and I were visiting on business, our endeavors involved lots of walking throughout the palm tree studded city and surrounding countryside providing ample opportunity to soak up the beauty of the Chilean geography, culture, people, food and wine.
Farmland near Santiago
Climate/Geography
Founded in 1541, Santiago is the beautiful and historically rich capital of Chile, located in the Central Valley, between the beaches of the Pacific Ocean and the slopes of the splendid Andean Mountain Range. Just South of Santiago lie the rich and beautiful vineyards of the Maipo Valley, one of the world's most esteemed wine producing regions. The country of Chile is incredibly long and narrow, stretching down the full western coast of South America's tail, a distance equivalent to the stretch between NYC and San Francisco! Due to Chile's varied terrain, the country experiences all climates, and in close proximity, making it ideal for skiers and beach lovers alike. Santiago's climate is very much like that of Los Angelos; mild year round and sunny all the time. It really was funny to see the leaves changing, boutiques displaying fall fashion, while back home we were preparing for the opposite season of Spring! Of course, the temperate climate of Santiago means sandals and layering are pretty much a go year-round, just like L.A.
Outdoor Patio of the highly acclaimed restaurant, Arola, in Santiago. Jim & I snuggled up under complimentary alpaca throws one evening to relive Sergi Arola's AMAZING puff pastry dessert we'd had just the night before! Image courtesy Ritz Carlton, Santiago.
Looking into the Eye of a Santiago Skyscraper
City/Culture
Santiago has a very European vibe. It's a clean, safe, walkable city, lined with elegant parks and winding side-streets. The architecture runs the gamut from 9th century neoclassical to art deco, neo-gothic, cutting edge modern styled glass skyscrapers and more. The landscape is shaped by the Mapacho River as well as the imposing Andes mountains, which can be seen glimmering in the distance from most points in the city. The city’s art collections are vast ranging from pre-Columbian to contemporary. Santiago is one of those wonderful cities filled with many unique neighborhoods where the more you look, the more you find; from cobblestone streets, to markets, boutiques, elegant restaurants, sidewalk cafes and discos. It's also very much a bar and pub city. Santiagans enjoy heading out to their favorite spot, perhaps to listen to some live guitar or jazz, which is exactly what we enjoyed one fine evening in the cozy lounge of our beautiful hotel. It was the best live jazz I've ever heard!
Late night festivities in the cozy lounge of our hotel.
People
Chileans are beautiful, warm, friendly and, as I noticed, quite romantic! I frequently saw couples sharing long kisses and sweet moments together 🙂 Santiagans dress with excellent style and tend to have great hair, the women usually wearing theirs in long, flowing styles. They speak a Chilean version of Spanish, and little to no English. I was inspired, for about a week, to take up Spanish when I returned home. Unfortunately for the purposes of this trip, I took French throughout school, and while it's similarties can come in handy as a Latin language, the rules of accentuation are totally different from Spanish and often threw me off.
Cuisine
The food and wine of Chile are amazing! The rugged mountains, pristine sea and fertile vineyards of the country permeate all aspects of its cuisine – not to mention the many cultural impacts neighboring countries, its native tribes and the Peruvian, Spanish and various other European influences have had. Given the vast Pacific coast of Chile, it's a small wonder that Chile's cuisine is heavily based on the fruits of the sea. Almost everywhere, you can find fresh seafood. The predominant dishes often feature grilled octopus, ceviches, clams, mussels, sea urchins, Chilean sea bass and abalone. Yes, I happily partook in all of the above 🙂
Tapas from Arola (Image courtesy Ritz Carlton, Santiago)
Menus are often categorized by: Mountains and Sea rather than the ubiquitous Land and Sea. Meat dishes tend to be Spanish-based with local modifications including Empanadas, meat pies in clay pots, and Chilean stews. Patagonian lamb, Argentinian beef, chicken and pork are commonly incorporated.
In addition to the fabulous Chilean food served at the cocktail parties, events and dinners we attended, we loved the sidewalk cafes complimented by gorgeous weather and the ambiance of serenades from strolling musicians! We had several favorite restuarants including the renowned Arola, of the famous Spanish chef, Sergi Arola. Arola is on par with any of the finest NYC restaurants we've ever dined – no surprise since Chef Sergi Arola has studied under the likes of Jose Andres in addition to participating in the first elBulli laboratory, no less! We all agreed the hand-made Puff Pastry Rolls (filled with caramel, raspberry pastry with custard apple and orange ice cream) were beyond amazing. So much so that Jim and I had to stop back the very next day to enjoy them again on the patio with chamomile tea before bed 🙂 Yes, I took a hiatis from my no-sugar ways- I never say never- especially worthwhile when said product has been thoroughly respected and prepared by one of the world’s top culinary talents.
The famous Spanish Chef, Sergi Arola, of Santiago's famous restaurant Arola.
Wine
Carmenere Red Wine, from the signature grape of Chile similar to Argentinian Malbec, was our libation of choice during most the entire trip. We couldn't bring ourselves to order anything else, it was that special. Carménère is a medium body wine with a deep red color and aromas of red fruits, spices and berries. Best to drink while it's young, the tannins are gentler and softer than those in Cabernet Sauvignon. And yes, you guessed it, the Central Valley of Chile is the world's largest area planted with Carmenere grapes.
My beautiful friend, Jane, and me!
Staying Healthy While Traveling
So after all the flying, wining, dining etc. what do I do to stay healthy and feeling great while traveling? Glad you asked:) This should so be it's own post so for now I'll just highlite some major points. First, 15 hours of flying equals major radiation, dehydration, germy airplane air, bad food and general energy zapping. During flight I get as much rest as I can and:
Drink as much water as possible avoiding all the dehydrating bevvies: coffee, tea, soda etc.
I bring my own airplane snax including:
My favorite sprouted granola: this stuff is actually green it's that unbelievably healthy- but the taste is majorly fab- like addictive! It contains all sorts of amazing things such as buckwheat, dandelion greens & sea vegetables like Spirulina.
Chlorella Tablets: Enough easy to chew tablets for our entire stay: Sea vegetables increase the body’s capacity for detoxification and also help strengthen the body’s resistance to electromagnetic fields from the flight. Sea Vegetables contain the entire spectrum of trace minerals, which are critical for efficient detoxification.
Fresh fruit including a banana and ripe avocado– just use a serated plastic knife to cut around the circumfrance of the avocado and spoon it out for an antioxidant rich, healthifying, beautifying, filling meal!
Green Tea packets: (I stow extras in my suitcase) contain polyphenols to protect DNA from damage inflicted from radiation and harmful chemicals.
Instant High Quality Miso Soup packets: (Again, I stow extras) a fermented soy product protective against radiation (used to treat radiation sickness), helps improve resistance to EMF exposure, neutralizes some effects of pollution, provides beneficial bacteria to the colon.
Upon arrival
Our first day in Santiago started with long hot showers, followed by the most amazing massage at the beautiful hotel spa (see the pool area in the pic below). Jim and I were majorly impressed by our masseuse, Natalie, and we discovered in talking with others, she's in fact really well known! If you’re ever in the area, be sure to book a massage with her. It's one of the best ways to detox after a lengthy airline flight. We took advantage of a good sweat in the sauna after – yet another excellent detoxification tool. Following the spa, we enjoyed a much needed, lengthy nap to recoup our energy before heading out to dinner and beginning our fabulous Santiago adventure!
The pool area of the Ritz Carlton, Santiago Spa. (Image courtesy Ritz Carlton, Santiago)
Staying Healthy During our Stay
While I practice and enjoy being Vegan, I feel the whole process should be fun so I approach it with an open mind. So, rather than holding myself to rigid standards, I am fairly comfortable compromising now and then, especially if I'm in a totally different culture or eating at a phenomenal restaurant. That said, I adhered to fruit for breakfast and salads as often as they were available. At catered cocktail events with beautiful appetizers floating by, I decided to indulge. At a tapas restaurant one evening, again, I indulged in some things I don't normally eat, as they were small bites. It didn't throw my system off because I stuck to very small portions of the foods I normally don't eat. This worked wonderfully as I was able to try everything I wanted without doing a complete 180. And, for the first time ever travelling, I have to confess, I experienced absolutely zero digestive difficulties! This is a major accomplishment as it's always been a challenge anytime I've travelled in the past. Neither did I gain any weight- probably another first 🙂 My energy was definitely down upon my return, which of course 15 hours of travel impacts. However, I really felt the few measures I took, below, gave me the most energy, health and fun experience possible:
Avoiding coffee: I've always overindulged in coffee in the past when travelling. Since I no longer drink it at home, it was easy to maintain the habit- and crucial, since caffeine is dehydrating, acidifying to the body and messes up sleep.
Drinking tons of water.
Lots of herb tea.
Tried to get as much rest as possible.
Eating fresh fruit for breakfast every day. Although I was able to have a couple bites of croissant or omelette- never too much though.
Having salads for or with lunches/dinners daily
Brought digestive enzymes to take prior to meals which might contain products I normally don't eat – admittadly I pretty much always forgot to take them tho!
Again, when indulging in gluten containing products, desserts, meats, dairy I'd only have a very small amount, and this seemed to work great.
Next time, I’ll probably make a few tweaks. While my system was fine if I limited myself to small tastes of the things I normally avoid. I did notice, the more I gave in, the more comfortable I became making less than ideal choices. Also, I noticed my cravings for the foods I'm allergic too (dairy, gluten, sugar) had returned somewhat when I arrived home. The awareness I gained from this trip's experiences helps me understand how to approach travel situations in the future. Yes, I want to experience the country and culture – yet, taking care of my body and soul is my first priority, always, so that I can be present and healthy in all my interactions in the world.
Until next time my friends!
Love,
XOXO
Juliane
What types of tricks do you have for staying healthy and sane during your travels?
The treasure house within you contains everything and you are free to use it. You don't need to seek outside. - Zen Master Dazhu
The only people for me are the mad ones, the ones who are
mad to live, mad to talk, mad to be saved, desirous of everything at the same
time, the ones who never yawn or say a commonplace thing, but burn, burn, burn
like fabulous yellow roman candles exploding like spiders across the stars.
When we are unable to find tranquility within ourselves, it is useless to seek it elsewhere.
-Francois de la Rochefoucauld
And the world cannot be discovered by a journey of miles, no
matter how long, but only by a spiritual journey, a journey of one inch, very
arduous and humbling and joyful, by which we arrive at the ground at our feet,
and learn to be at home.
- Wendell Berry
"When feeling urgent, you must slow down."
- Mark
Nepo
Continuous, calm, powerful use of the will shakes the forces
of creation and brings a response from the Infinite.
Every person that you meet knows something you don't; learn
from them.
-H. Jackson Brown
Fear doesn’t frighten me as much as it used to. I know it’s
from clinging and I know it will pass. I can tell myself, “I’m frightened now
because even though I know what’s true, I have forgotten it right now. I know
the possibility of remembering exists.” That possibility, that conviction,
gives me a lot of hope in the middle of the biggest fright.
-Sylvia Boorstein
I close my eyes
and see clearly . . .
I stop trying to listen
and I hear truth . . .
I am silent
and my heart sings . . .
I seek no contact
and I find union . . .
I am still
and move forward . . .
I am gentle
and need no strength . . .
I am humble
and remain whole . . .
-Ancient Taoist Meditation
We could say that meditation doesn't have a reason or
doesn't have a purpose. In this respect it's unlike almost all other things we
do except perhaps making music and dancing. When we make music we don't do it
in order to reach a certain point, such as the end of the composition. If that
were the purpose of music then obviously the fastest players would be the best.
Also, when we are dancing we are not aiming to arrive at a particular place on
the floor as in a journey. When we dance, the journey itself is the point, as
when we play music the playing itself is the point. And exactly the same thing
is true in meditation. Meditation is the discovery that the point of life is
always arrived at in the immediate moment.
My silky Chia "Rice" Pudding is one of my favorite desserts or snacks- in fact I just had it this afternoon topped with a little extra virgin coconut oil and cacao nibs. SO delish! In the recipe below, I've shared a few tricks I use to make my version even better than other recipes you'll find. The result is a luxuriously comforting, creamy and rich dessert that takes less than five minutes to prepare. It's a cross between tapioca pudding, rice pudding and classic vanilla custard.
Chia seeds, best known for their role in animal shaped potted plants, rival flaxseeds for nutritional super status. In fact, I now use Chia instead of flax because flax has 3 times the phytoestrogenic properties of soy. In addition, the oils in flax oxidize very easily becoming rancid and biologically harmful when the oxygen–rich environment of the body causes oxidative destruction of these oils after they are consumed.(1)Chia on the other hand is extremely shelf stable allowing it to be kept for several years! Chia is also incredibly satiating because it holds up to 10-15 times it's own weight in water. And, it's very versatile in it's recipe application- not to mention amazing for our skin, hair, digestion, overall health and beauty.
See for yourself…
Check out these 18 awesome reasons to enjoy Chia every day!
1. Chia boasts 8 times more Omega 3 than salmon, making it a super food for the heart and brain and an anti-inflammatory in the body.
2. It's super high in dietary fiber making Chia excellent for digestion as well as healing digestive issues and cleansing the body of toxicity.
3. Chia boasts 20% protein.
4. Its protein is a complete protein containing all 8 essential amino acids.
5. Chia is a gluten free whole grain.
6. Chia is very high in antioxidants, boasting 4 times higher ORAC value than blueberries!
7. It contains 3 times more iron than spinach
8. Chia contains 5 times more calcium than milk
9. Chia contains 7 times more vitamin C than oranges
10. Chia is an excellent egg replacement. Simply combine with water to form a gel, and add to recipes that call for egg.
11. Chia can also be added to recipes as a thickener. Just blend it up (in your Vitamix) alongside the rest of your dressing or sauce ingredients.
12. It has twice the potassium content of banana
13. Chia is great food for healthy hair, skin and nails.
14. It balances blood sugar levels, because of it's soluble fiber content, making it outstanding for diabetics.
15. Chia is easily digestible. For example, unlike flax seeds, which need to be ground to obtain their full nutrition, chia can be eaten and digested whole.
16. Chia seeds are great for athletes because they are highly hydrophilic. Chia seeds can absorb over 10 times their weight in water making them a great enhancer in hydrating our bodies; they absorb the water we drink holding it in our system longer.
17. Chia seeds gel when wet. In our digestive systems, this gel prevents absorption of some of the food (and calories) we eat, making the chia seed a great assistant for anyone looking to lose weight!
18. Chia can be sprinkled on salads, cereals, oatmeal, smoothies, yogurt (dairy & soy free of course). They can be added to dressings, baked goods and, of course, made into the delicious chia pudding below!
My favorite type of Chia Seeds are the white ones below by The Chia Company. However, when I can't get those, I also enjoy the Nutiva brand.
From The Chia Company, my favorite Chia source
Recipe for Creamy Chia "Rice" Pudding (makes 1 large serving, or 2 small servings)
Ingredients
1/4 cup chia seeds
8 oz almond milk
Madagascar vanilla extract to taste (I like a lot)
liquid stevia to taste (I use 1 1/2 droppers full)
cinnamon (again, I use a lot!)
pinch of Himalayan or Celtic sea salt (optional)
heaping teaspoon cacao nibs (optional)
extra virgin coconut oil (optional)
Method
Add almond milk to a small, heavy-duty pot and gently warm til baby bottle temperature (to keep raw) or lightly steaming. This is the 1st of my tricks which result in an immediate thickening of the chia into a delicious porridgey pudding.
Whisk the vanilla, stevia and cinnamon into the milk.
In the meantime, grind chia seeds with a pinch of sea salt in a spice grinder until fine and place in serving bowl/s. (The second of my tricks which adds to the immediate thickening of the chia.) You may prefer to leave your chia seeds whole, in which case you'll need to stir the chia, after you add the milk in step 5 below, several times throughout a 15 min period until thickened. This will create more of a rice or tapioca pudding texture.
Pour steamed almond milk mixture over the seeds, whisking with a fork til thickened.
If desired, top with extra virgin coconut oil for additional yummy richness.
Add a sprinkling of cacao nibs for a fabulous chocolatey crunch- plus another sprinkling of powdered stevia/raw honey/coconut nectar over the nibs if you're me 🙂
Enjoy!!
What is your favorite way to eat Chia?
"Kindness can become its own motive. We are made kind by being kind."
I must admit, applying the principles of Proper Food Combining (PFC) seemed a bit complicated to me – until I began practicing it. Therefore, I want to take this opportunity to share ten tips and compliments I’ve discovered along the way for easily integrating the concepts into your own diet.
1) The first step I took was printing the below chart I provided in my last post and taping to my refrigerator. I continually reference it to this day- in fact I’ll be getting it laminated. Our habits become so unconsciously engrained, having a well-placed guiding reference is crucial.
(click to enlarge & print)
2) It’s not necessary to make a 180 degree switch to becoming a vegetarian, vegan etc., to immediately benefit from Proper Food Combining (PFC) principles. Simply changing the way we pair our current foods will have a dramatic impact on our energy, beauty and weight. Ok, obviously if we’re committed to pizza, ice-cream & fries 3 meals a day this won’t apply… but I know you wouldn’t be reading this if those were your ideals. The point is, even without removing animal products, gluten, dairy etc. we can still benefit from just rearranging the combination and order we eat our foods. (As outlined in the sample Daily Menu example below.)
3) Letting go of our inner perfectionist is crucial. While having an ultimate goal is awesome, our bodies don’t respond well to drastic overnight changes. Like any challenge we approach in life, this is a process. So we can relax. There’s no pressure. We want to treat ourselves gently, through a gradual transition. Easing into these beneficial practices will give our bodies the chance to adjust. An entire lifetime of toxicity takes a good deal of time to cleanse away and our immune system can’t handle everything being stirred up at once. Any improvements we make are highly beneficial, taking us in the right direction, bringing greater health, energy and beauty our way.
4) While this one seems obvious, and will likely happen naturally… I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention the incorporation of Proper Food Combining (PFC) into our lifestyle is a perfect and easy time to increase the amount of fruits, greens and veggies in our diets. Again, the Daily Menu below shows where we might be able to make some easy swaps.
5) Another compliment to implementing PFC, which is almost certain to provide immediate rewards, is the gradual elimination of gluten (2), dairy (3), refined sugar and caffeine (4). These are all sources of a great many misunderstood allergy/physical/emotional symptoms as well as the culprits responsible for those seemingly unstopable cravings. Willpower is no match to the allergy/addiction syndrome (5) more on this in a future post. Fortunately, given all the delicious alternatives on the market today, eliminating these items is easier to achieve than some might think. I’ll be sharing a product substitution guide shortly to help us select delicious (in my opnion, even tastier!) alternatives. Trust me, removing these health zappers is not a sacrifice- without them we find more energy, beauty, health and emotional well being than I personally ever knew possible.
6)Once I began experiencing the combined benefits of a totally clean diet alongside PFC, I enthusiastically overhauled my entire kitchen to remove any remaining culprits. I’ve never regretted it! I knew I didn’t want to go back to cravings, temptations or looking & feeling subpar. Having only beautiful, clean, energy enhancing ingredients available makes meal preparation simple and easy. It was an absolutely wonderful experience letting go of all the sugar, wheat, coffee, processed condiments and any remaining animal products I’d been holding on to. I was ready to let it all go.
7) Start including my delicious Macaccino energy drink into your day in place of coffee. Wonderfully comforting and tasty, you will love the steady energy (from the Maca) and emotional uplift & balancing (from the Maca + the PEA in the Cacao- more soon on PEA) this cup of creamy goodness provides over several hours- not just one like our old pal, coffee. All this without the harmful affects, the subsequent crashes or accompanying jitters. Did I mention my Macaccino majorly curbs the appetite too?!
8) My older, pre-PFC, StyleNectar recipes are excellent as we’re transitioning. Not everyone is interested in becoming a vegetarian or a vegan and StyleNectar offers a wide range of excellent choices for us all. I do allow myself the leeway to stray from time to time. However, I notice the temptation to overindulge no longer exists now that my body is receiving exactly what it needs. The below Daily Menu sample indicates where and when to include any recipes which aren’t perfectly PFC. (And, I’ve also begun updating older StyleNectar recipes to make them easily customizable to your lifestyle be it vegan, dairy/gluten-free, traditional, etc. Stay tuned!)
9) Again, remember this is a process. We don’t have to, or even want to, implement everything at once. Anytime we commit to beneficial changes in our lives, we want to begin by first accepting and loving ourselves exactly where we are. This sets us up for a rewarding experience in which we’re able to offer ourselves the compassionate willingness to help ourselves become whomever we want to be. Take small steps. Small, incremental changes over the long term will be more beneficial than huge leaps and extremes. Set realistic goals!
A careful transition made in conscious, compassionate awareness will enable our bodies to safely adjust and begin cleansing. While attempting too much too fast will only stir up loads of toxicity our immune systems can’t handle. We’re likely to notice immediate benefits from instituting PFC as it provides a great deal of digestive relief since foods are able to quickly digest rather than getting backed up and ultimately putrifying into toxic funk. However, the removal of allergens, acidic and inflammatory foods from our diet, may bring on withdrawl or detox symptoms- I certainly experienced them. Many of us misinterpret detox symptoms as a sign our bodies are missing the old ways of eating. In fact, we simply need to stick with it, as always, making the time for enough rest and staying in tune with our bodies along the way.
10) If you remember anything make it to:
Always eat fruit alone (or with fresh, undressed greens) on an empty stomach. For example pairing fruit with fresh, undressed greens, such as in my Daily Detox Green Smoothieis fine since greens are neutral & add digestive benefit to anything with which they’re paired. Combining fruit with any other vegetables, fats/oils, protein, starch etc. creates a digestive backup in which the fruit putrifies causing the toxic, aging, energy-zapping nightmare outlined in mylast post. This means having fruit for dessert is actually not beneficial for us. I know, I was surprised too. However, when those extra pounds we never wanted melt off and our body becames leaner and more toned than we thought possible – simply because we’re no longer creating the toxicity those very fat cells were created to contain – then not eating fruit for dessert becomes a no-brainer. Plus, I LOVE me sweets! So lucky you! I’ll be sharing my favorite PFC approved dessert in my very next post. I have dessert every night – switching it up between 3 or 4 yummy options- ALL of which I’ll share soon:-)
Avoid combining Proteins (beans, nuts, meat) with Carbs (pasta, bread, starch, grains). And avoid mixing Proteins together (ex: fish with beef).
Save protein, heavier foods and cheat foods for the last meal of the day. This prevents the digestive backups which create aging toxicity and zap our energy, slowing us down physically/mentally, creating the urges for more food, coffee, sugar – anything to feel better – all of which increase toxic burden, weight gain and poor health.
Sample Daily Menu with Food Transit Times (1)
Start each day with a huge glass of lemon water (1/2 fresh lemon squeezed into 16 oz water). Our bodies are in cleansing mode all night long. We can continue to assist this process by flushing out toxins with a huge glass of structured lemon water.
2. Green leafy salad w/lemon (1 hr) w/oil or avocado (2 hrs)
3. Green leafy salad followed by cooked veggies (3.5 hrs) w/ yams or grains (4.5 hrs minimum)
Dinner Ideas
1. Green leafy salad followed by cooked grains (such as quinoa, buckwheat, oats, wild rice or amaranth) & veggies (4.5 hrs.)
2. Green leafy salad followed by cooked veggies & animal protein: fish, chicken, beef (6-8 hrs minimum- a full 3 days before meat is properly broken down & passed thru)
Starting your dinner with fresh greens will provide the enzymatic benefit to pave the way for excellent digestion of the food to follow.
Our bodies do a ton of healing, repairing and rejuvenating in our sleep because we’re not eating or, therefore, expending all our energy digesting. Starting each morning with fruit, the most easily digestible of foods, extends this cleansing period and provides great morning energy for ourselves! The same applies to lunch. The cleansing Daily Detox Green Smoothie is easy to digest and energizing for the very same reasons. Whole grains and nuts are a little harder to digest than fruit/greens, so save them for later in the day say as an afternoon snack. Meat is super hard to digest (takes about three days to be properly broken down and pass through) so we save it for last.
As always, feel free to ask any questions you may have in the comments below. I am very happy to answer them or go into further detail on anything you might need!
I am not a healthcare practitioner or provider. To the extent that any information is provided through this website, it is for general informational purposes only and is not intended to constitute or substitute for medical advice or counseling, the practice of medicine including but not limited to psychiatry, psychology, psychotherapy or the provision of health care diagnosis or treatment, the creation of a physician-patient or clinical relationship, or an endorsement, a recommendation or a sponsorship of any third party, product or service by me. If you have or suspect that you have a medical problem, contact your health care provider promptly. Information and statements regarding dietary supplements available on this website have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration and are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.
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https://stylenectar.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/stylenectar.png00Juliane Porterhttps://stylenectar.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/stylenectar.pngJuliane Porter2013-03-26 13:57:292025-09-24 13:47:27How to Properly Food Combine within Your Lifestyle, A Sample Menu
Ipromised to offer more information on the potential benefits of Proper Food Combining in my last nutrition post, The Secrets to Detoxing. Proper Food Combining may be the missing cornerstone to healthy eating and something we’ll want to understand if we’re interested in achieving and maintaining a beautiful, healthy body and mind for life. Entire books have been written upon these subjects so I must admit, attempting to write blog posts on them can feel rather daunting! However, I suppose that’s the benefit, condensing everything into the most important points so that you can save yourself the effort of sifting through reams of information and get to work applying these anti-aging, beautifying and energy enhancing secrets!
Proper Food Combining (1,2,3) may enable our bodies to process food efficiently and more effectively absorb the nutrients it needs to stay healthy. It’s based on the theory that different food groups require different digestion times and different digestive enzymes to aid in the digestive process: some acid, some alkaline. Therefore, correct food combinations are considered important for proper utilization and absorption of nutrients potentially leading to better digestion and ultimately, better health. Basically, the simpler the meal the better.
While the method is easy to follow, it’s certainly a far departure from the Standard American Diet (SAD). However, after just two weeks following the guidelines in the chart below, general emotional outlook and appearance can improve as toxins are cleared out of the system faster. Cravings are often eliminated- making it incredibly easy to stick to – while the immediate energy surge, effortless toning, melting away of excess body fat and glowing skin may serve as reinforcements against any ideas of going back to old habits!
I am continually shocked to learn the amazing wisdom available when I challenge what I find unacceptable… in this case the gut feeling I’d had all along that staying lean and feeling good shouldn’t be difficult. The constant battle against cravings, subpar energy levels etc., all stayed in place even though I was following the advice and workout recommendations of the most respected doctors and best-selling authors! Not that I wasn’t seeing major improvements along my journey – I was. However, until incorporating several aspects of proper food combining, it was all a little too effortful, requiring a level of will-power that wasn’t sustainable.
Here is where I really want to delve into the science of Proper Food Combining so you can understand the “how” behind it all. The chart (4) below offers an excellent summary for how to apply the results of all the science involved. And, since this will turn into a book if I explain every possible poor food combination, I’ve provided just two examples underneath the chart; what happens when we combine protein and carbohydrates, and how to consume fruit.Feel free to post specific questions in the comments below and I’ll be happy to answer them.
In the meantime, here’s a really simplified version that won’t put us all to sleep: Basically, when we improperly combine food, the environment required to digest it is compromised, for reasons such as improper levels of acidity, the wrong or inhibited enzymes, improper levels of digestive acid etc.. The result is the body’s inability to digest the food, causing it to putrify, ferment, produce gas and ultimately create a digestive, toxic nightmare. This scenario zaps our energy and turns any preexisting nutritive benefits into an age-accelerating, weight gain producing horror. The terrific news is, simply changing the way we eat can immediately reverse all that. As I stressed in my last post, the best way to transition into a cleansing lifestyle is gradually, so it’s ok and normal that we’ll have a learning/implementation curve. As always, we NEVER need to be perfect 🙂
(Click on chart to enlarge)
Examples:
Protein and carbohydrate concentrated foods. Breakdown of protein requires an acid medium, therefore, digestion of protein dense animal products requires high levels of hydrochloric acid. Since digestion of carbohydrate dense foods requires exactly the opposite environment, an alkaline medium, in order to be broken down, high carbohydrate foods that have been mixed with high protein foods will not digest but will sit there fermenting, producing indigestion, bloating and gas. Since this fermentation of carbohydrates will inhibit the digestion of the protein, even more gas, bloating and discomfort will be produced. This makes the typical American meal, composed of a big chunk of meat alongside bread and potatoes, a recipe for digestive disaster.
Fruits. Fruit digests very quickly. It’s extremely cleansing and excellent to eat at breakfast, while the body is still in cleansing mode after a night of fasting. Always eat fruit on an empty stomach such as at the beginning of the day. Otherwise, the fruit will get backed up behind another slower digesting food, and will sit in the stomach putrefying, turning what was once a cleansing, beautifying cocktail of nutrition into a toxic, aging, energy drain. I’ll go into further detail in a future post on how this resulting “toxic sludge” gets permanently baked into the body’s 98.6F environment- just one reason cleansing requires an ongoing lifestyle in order to remove years of toxicity from the body.
I will continue to expand upon the applications of Food Combining in my next post where I’ll include a sample daily menu following these guidelines. In the meantime, my incredibly delicious Quadruple Berry Acai Smoothie followed an hour later by this energizing superfood Macaccino drink, are giving my mornings a powerful start 🙂
Cleansing Quadruple Berry Acai Smoothie
Recipe for Cleansing Quadruple Berry Acai Smoothie (Makes 2, 32 oz servings)
Ingredients:
1/2 fresh lemon
10 oz fresh or frozen blackberries
10 oz fresh or frozen blueberries
10 oz fresh or frozen strawberries
2 frozen, unsweetened, acai packets (Pronounced ah-sah-yee, acai berries come from acai palm trees found in Central & South America. They’re touted as being a superfood for anti-aging, weight loss & overall health. If you can’t find Acai, substitute 1/4 cup dried Goji berries or just use fresh or frozen raspberries.)
2 tablespoons pomegranate concentrate, or sub a sprinkling of fresh or frozen cranberries
1/2″ of fresh ginger root (a fabulous anti-inflammatory which also aids in digestion!)
your favorite sweetener to taste
Method:
Place all ingredients into a Vitamix Blender.
Fill almost to top with water.
Process until thoroughly blended.
Pour into two 32 oz mason jars and enjoy the GLOW!!
PS. Don’t forget to post any questions you have in the comments below. I’m happy to do my best to answer them all. Also, thank you so much for all the amazing emails you sent me regading StyleNectar and my new Fine Art website too! I really appreciate the love. You all are AMAZING!
In grace, light and presence
Love 💕
~Jayashrii
Live Beautifully
&
Be well
Jayashrii (Juliane)💫
(Jayashrii is my Sanskrit Yogic name given by my teacher in India)
I am not a healthcare practitioner or provider. To the extent that any information is provided through this website, it is for general informational purposes only and is not intended to constitute or substitute for medical advice or counseling, the practice of medicine including but not limited to psychiatry, psychology, psychotherapy or the provision of health care diagnosis or treatment, the creation of a physician-patient or clinical relationship, or an endorsement, a recommendation or a sponsorship of any third party, product or service by me. If you have or suspect that you have a medical problem, contact your health care provider promptly. Information and statements regarding dietary supplements available on this website have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration and are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.
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https://stylenectar.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/stylenectar.png00Juliane Porterhttps://stylenectar.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/stylenectar.pngJuliane Porter2013-03-15 17:11:562025-09-24 14:34:31Proper Food Combining: The Missing Cornerstone to a Healthy, Beautiful Body, Anti-aging & Energy? + my Cleansing Quadruple Berry Acai Smoothie
I'd like to personally invite you to my new Art Studio website www.JulianePorter.com!
Kick back, relax and stay a while to look around. Browse my oil painting galleries including a selection of Portraits, Landscapes, The Sea, Private Collection Pieces and even a peek inside my sketchbook.
While you're there be sure to sign up for my Art updatesso you can stay up to date on what's happening in the studio. I promise not to clog your in-box. You'll hear from me 5-6 times a year on my latest works, sales, gallery openings & other painting news.
And, as always, feel free to contact meif you're interested in commissioning a painting (Portraits: Executive, Family, Children, Pet or Landscapes) for yourself or to surprise a special loved one! I always strive to create a timeless masterpiece of the highest standards incorporating both your vision and your budget. It's an enjoyable and creative process resulting in an heirloom treasure worthy of many generations of enjoyment.
Stop by today! I look forward to seeing you in the studio!
Love,
Juliane
Screen Shot of my New Website! Experience the real thing now at www.JulianePorter.com!
Have you ever considered commissioning a portrait?
How do you like my new Art Studio Website?
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https://stylenectar.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/stylenectar.png00Juliane Porterhttps://stylenectar.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/stylenectar.pngJuliane Porter2013-03-12 16:54:392025-12-06 15:02:13Announcing my New Art Studio Website!
It seems everywhere I turn lately I see info about detoxing, from the "Master Cleanse" to juice cleanses, menu programs, supplements, mixes, workouts, and products all supposedly dedicated to cleansing. Yes, many are a step up from the Standard American Diet (SAD), however, I notice a lot of commonly held myths being perpetuated and crucial information missing which might take the seemingly complex mystery out of why it's so easy for some of us to look & feel our best, while others of us attempt to follow the aforementioned options and either:
A) Lose weight while unknowingly aging ourselves inside & out via the very process.
B) Never get very far due to cravings, relapses, time-constraints etc.
As a StyleNectar reader you've followed my progression from eating what is widely considered healthy, organic fare (advocating portion control for richer recipes) to investigating vegetarian, raw vegan and Nutritarian approaches and arriving, finally, at my current status of being Vegan (for me a combo of 80% raw, 20% cooked food). For the record I must clarify while I absolutely respect & DO recommend learning the science/research behind Dr. Fuhrman's Nutritarian lifestyle (I eat 95% of the types of foods he endorses) I found two major shortfalls to his approach:
1) I don't find the recipes very tasty – the exception of his frozen banana ice-cream which, albeit yummy…
2) Didn't follow proper food combining guidelines. Improper food combining, (I'll be providing info on this soon) unbeknownst to many with the noblest of healthy lifestyle intentions, may actually be a major cause of diet sabotage and accelerated aging.
For those of us with exceptional standards, who aren't simply trying to wean ourselves off fast food and sodas, we'll be interested to understand the keys to appropriate food combining Dr. Fuhrman omits; huge secrets to anti-aging and optimizing one's health, longevity and beauty. Why doesn't he include them? My theory is he's targeting the large, average S.A.D. following audience who wouldn't be ready for this level of info.
Chalk it up to the fact I never watch TV (and I grew up without one) that perhaps I'm less conditioned and more apt to be open minded. My love of learning and obsession for figuring out how to optimize my short time on earth has the affect that I am always evolving and changing. As a result, many things have fallen away from my life which no longer serve me, providing a freedom I cherish, from the confines of habit and conditioning. Our lives are like pieces of art we refine for the duration. It all starts with acceptance of where we are, a desire to go beyond that which causes us to suffer, and a willingness to see the reality beneath the surface.
Anywho, back on track. You want the information, right?!
One of the biggest secrets to staying lean & aging beautifully pertains not just to WHAT we're eating but HOW we're eating it. Let's talk about digestion and enzymes. (1)
Enzymes are essential to life, perhaps more crucial than the air we breath as without them our biochemical processes would cease. Over 5000 different types of enzymes work together with vitamins and minerals acting as catalysts to accelerate chemical reactions. When our body has an abundance of enzymes, it can protect itself and repair the damage from almost all degenerative disease disorders. As we age our enzymes are depleted which causes us to age more quickly, get disease earlier in life, and acquire physical & mental impairments as our body degenerates. This explains why when we're young we can handle a diet of bread, pasta and cooked foods without much problem. However, this type of diet causes rapid aging and depletion of enzyme supplies.
The theory is that a lack of enzymes in the body makes the blood dirty (10), potentially creating the base for many diseases each time we eat a cooked or processed food. (5, 6) These dead or denatured foods have no living enzymes with most the nutrients diminished significantly.
The harder a food is to digest, the more enzymes required. The S.A.D. diet (an inflammatory, acidic diet of excessive protein (1), poorly combined meals & genetically modified, processed foods/chemicals/powders etc. all of which I'll talk about in a future post)requires so much work and enzymatic activity to digest that the body has none left over for cleansing and providing us energy! For most of us, all our energy is going just to digestion! The easier our food is to digest, the less enzymes required, the more energy for us and the less disease and aging we'll experience. Cooked and processed foods overwork and drain our body's energy.
An easily digested diet, based on fresh greens, vegetables & raw fruits, floods our bodies with enzymes, contributing to the body's ability to protect and repair, instead of continually and slowly draining the body's energy and enzyme reserves. The more enzymes we take in, the more quickly our body can restore and strengthen itself, freeing up energy from an otherwise taxing digestive process. Thus our body has a chance to detoxify and cleanse away aging, disease causing toxins trapped in our cells. Suddenly we have more energy than we've ever experienced before when all our energy was devoted to digestion alone! Excess fat melts away and our body becomes lean & toned with minimal effort.
Yes! You read that right.
When we're eating a toxic diet of inflammatory, acidic foods,(more later on exactly what these are) our body goes into overdrive not only digesting but hiding those toxins as far away from the internal organs as possible in FAT CELLS (9) created solely for the purpose! Transitioning to a cleansing, enzyme rich diet signals to our body that it's safe to shed those toxin laden fat cells so they may be released from our body. This results in our bodies becoming lean and toned just through changing what we eat! I personally was floored to figure out that it's not necessary or even ideal to overdo it spending hours working out – a process in itself, if overdone, creates excessive aging inside and out (2, 3, 4) – partly because the protein intake required to support such activity is incredibly taxing on the digestive system (7) and for other reasons I'll go into in a future post. This is not to say it's not important to exercise and be active. I personally love walking, ballet and yoga in moderation.
We benefit far more from an attitude of compassionate self-acceptance than we do from one of tough love via themes like Just Do It! which wreak of the unconscious forcefulness frequently followed by "beatings" in our heads for not living up to some arbitrary goal designed to sell product. As we can see from just looking around, these overpopularized slogans don't seem to be serving the population's waist line very well.
Leading to my final point about the overpopularized trend of temporary cleanses and why they're not effective. Say we do a juice "detox" for 3 days or a "cleansing diet" for month… What could be harmful about that you ask?
First, the sudden influx of non-toxic, enzyme-rich activity will signal the body to release a slew of toxins – flooding it with an overload of toxicity the immune system very well may not be able to handle which can result in an individual becoming quite ill.
Second, removing deeply embedded layers of toxicity acrued over a lifetime takes long term dedication and a careful transition into a permanent detoxifying lifestyle. Real cleansing, removing years of accumulated toxins, is a gradual process to be approached with a great deal of careful, concious awareness. It requires gradual changes of implementing an alkaline diet and long-term dedication. Otherwise, once the aforementioned temporary "detox" or "cleanse" is over, and we return to our previous, average diet, we're just reabsorbing all the toxicity we've stirred up into our systems, completely defeating the objective.
Below is a beautifying, satiating and enzyme rich green smoothie which would be a safe introduction for any person interested in transitioning into a detoxifying lifestyle. I personally switch it up with my Quadruple Berry Acai Smoothie(coming soon) each morning. Keeps me buzzing along until 3 PM! So not they way I used to be- I have to remind myself to eat these days 'cause I have so much energy. Oh- that's a point I forgot to mention- when we eat in this alkaline, enzyme-rich fashion, our bodies become so efficient at putting our nutrition to use- we don't actually NEED to eat as much! And that too, leads to decreased appetite as well as a lean, toned physique.
Please enjoy!
Daily Detox Green Smoothie
Daily Detox Green Smoothie
(Makes four, 16 oz or two, 32oz servings. Feel free to freeze or refrigerate leftovers.)
Ingredients:
16 oz purified, cold water (or a combo of ice cubes/water)
6 oz romaine (or green leaf lettuce)
6 oz spinach (or kale, collards or dandelion greens) NOTE: If you're not used to green drinks start with a smaller amount of the bitter greens. As your body chemistry changes from incorporating more greens, so will your palate, and you'll be able to enjoy larger quantities of the stronger greens. As always, be sure to rotate your greens so you're receiving a balanced intake of the various nutrients they provide)
1/3 of a fennel bulb (or sub celery - switch them up like we do the greens)
1 apple
1 pear
giant handful fresh cilantro WITH stems (VERY cleansing – or sub parsley)
1 lime or lemon, peeled and chunked
8 oz fresh or frozen pineapple (or sub banana or peaches)
Stevia to taste, if desired
Method:
Chunk the ingredients in order to fit into your heavy duty blender (The best investment we can make in detoxifying lifestyle is a Vitamix Blender)
Add the water and romaine to the blender and incorporate on low.
Add spinach, blending on low til incorporated.
In same manner add the fennel, apple and pear, using high if necessary.
Feed in the herbs, lime and pineapple and blend til incorporated.
Add stevia to taste and blend once more. (By limiting the amount of blending on high, we keep the smoothie colder & incorporate less air.)
Recipe Inspired by Victoria Boutenko's, Green For Life
Enjoy the sustained energy rush & Glow your way through your day!
I am not a healthcare practitioner or provider. To the extent that any information is provided through this website, it is for general informational purposes only and is not intended to constitute or substitute for medical advice or counseling, the practice of medicine including but not limited to psychiatry, psychology, psychotherapy or the provision of health care diagnosis or treatment, the creation of a physician-patient or clinical relationship, or an endorsement, a recommendation or a sponsorship of any third party, product or service by me. If you have or suspect that you have a medical problem, contact your health care provider promptly. Information and statements regarding dietary supplements available on this website have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration and are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.
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https://stylenectar.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/stylenectar.png00Juliane Porterhttps://stylenectar.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/stylenectar.pngJuliane Porter2013-02-27 14:57:072025-12-06 15:02:16Secrets to Detoxing: Enzymes & Digestion + my Daily Detox Green Smoothie
"Mo-o-o-m!" 11 x 14 Oil on Canvas Painting by Juliane Porter, Nantucket, Mass. USA
(Please click image for a better, larger view)
Icouldn't resist painting this sweet little duo floating near the dock of our cottage last summer. Mama duck, who was trying to catch a quick nap with her beak tucked into her back feathers, wasn't getting much cooperation from her spirited little one!
Please do let me know your thoughts. I always appreciate them a ton 🙂
Creamy Cauliflower “Mashed Potatoes”
Creamy Cauliflower "Mashed Potatoes"
Who doesn't love the rich, creamy comfort of a bowl of mashed potatoes? Here's a delicious take on the classic that will keep our taste buds singing and our waistlines, hips & thighs slim and sleek. Oh, not to mention this recipe is fabulous for our skin, hair, nails, heart and digestion too! Here are just a few of the amazing nutritional bennies of our lovely friend Cauliflower…
I enjoy this simple and satisfying dish at least once a week. I'm certain you'll love it too 🙂
Cauliflower Mashed Potatoes with Chives
Recipe for Creamy Cauliflower "Mashed Potatoes" (Makes 4-6 Servings)
Ingredients
Method
What's one of your favorite healthified recipe makeovers?
Do share with all of us 🙂
Lots of love,
XOXO
Juliane
PS. If you just can't give up your potato fix try my amaze lightened up Irish Style Colcannon Mashed Potatoes. SO much lighter & way better tasting than standard recipes.
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Gratitude Journal
“I‘m either the luckiest
gal on the planet… or I just have really low standards.” 🙂 That’s a great quote from my teacher, and, I have to say I’m right there with her! The fact is, there is such an
abundance of gratitude for life overflowing from me each day, it feels as though I’ve
cracked some secret code to a treasure chest of beautiful miracles. There
are many practices to which I attribute this freedom and joy… seven years of Soto Zen Buddhist Awareness Practice & Transcendental Meditation, my amazing Teacher, my cheerleaders, and a simple, yet powerful ritual…
my nightly Gratitude Journal.
My Nightly Gratitude Journal
Taking
a moment each night to record just a few of the infinite miracles for
which I am grateful each day, is a beautiful frame of mind to fall asleep. And it doesn’t
stop there, I wake up in the same beautiful space of gratitude. It’s an
excellent practice for everyone – including those of us sweethearts who occasionally wake up on the “wrong side of the bed” 🙂
It only takes a minute or two – though you’ll
find yourself wanting to write much more than you expected… that’s
the nature of gratitude, it has a compounding, expansive, contagious
quality. Keeping a gratitude journal is a really fun way to focus our brains on the infinite miracles in our lives, and away from conditioning’s incessant mantra of something wrong/not enough.
The greatest gift we can give to the world is our own happiness. It ripples out reaching farther than we can ever begin to imagine.
Love,
XOXO
Juliane
Do you have a favorite practice or ritual which brings you happiness or peace? Do share with us!
I say, follow your bliss and don’t be afraid, and doors will open where you didn’t know they were going to be.
– Joseph Campbell
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Santiago Style + My Stay Healthy Travel Tips
Our hotel in Santiago, Chile. Image courtesy Ritz Carlton, Santiago
I was enjoying the first glimpses of Autumn just two weeks ago… It's true! While the USA, Europe et al begrudgingly hosted persistent wintery-mix at the end of March, South America- Santiago, Chile to be precise – was welcoming rainbows of fall foliage… and Jim and me! Visiting Santiago, Chile ranks right up there with my favorite travel experiences of all time, so of course I wanted to share a bit of the adventure with you!
Fall Foliage in front of a Santiago Home, forgive the quality of my iPhone shots please:-)
Although Jim and I were visiting on business, our endeavors involved lots of walking throughout the palm tree studded city and surrounding countryside providing ample opportunity to soak up the beauty of the Chilean geography, culture, people, food and wine.
Farmland near Santiago
Climate/Geography
Founded in 1541, Santiago is the beautiful and historically rich capital of Chile, located in the Central Valley, between the beaches of the Pacific Ocean and the slopes of the splendid Andean Mountain Range. Just South of Santiago lie the rich and beautiful vineyards of the Maipo Valley, one of the world's most esteemed wine producing regions. The country of Chile is incredibly long and narrow, stretching down the full western coast of South America's tail, a distance equivalent to the stretch between NYC and San Francisco! Due to Chile's varied terrain, the country experiences all climates, and in close proximity, making it ideal for skiers and beach lovers alike. Santiago's climate is very much like that of Los Angelos; mild year round and sunny all the time. It really was funny to see the leaves changing, boutiques displaying fall fashion, while back home we were preparing for the opposite season of Spring! Of course, the temperate climate of Santiago means sandals and layering are pretty much a go year-round, just like L.A.
Outdoor Patio of the highly acclaimed restaurant, Arola, in Santiago. Jim & I snuggled up under complimentary alpaca throws one evening to relive Sergi Arola's AMAZING puff pastry dessert we'd had just the night before! Image courtesy Ritz Carlton, Santiago.
Looking into the Eye of a Santiago Skyscraper
City/Culture
Santiago has a very European vibe. It's a clean, safe, walkable city, lined with elegant parks and winding side-streets. The architecture runs the gamut from 9th century neoclassical to art deco, neo-gothic, cutting edge modern styled glass skyscrapers and more. The landscape is shaped by the Mapacho River as well as the imposing Andes mountains, which can be seen glimmering in the distance from most points in the city. The city’s art collections are vast ranging from pre-Columbian to contemporary. Santiago is one of those wonderful cities filled with many unique neighborhoods where the more you look, the more you find; from cobblestone streets, to markets, boutiques, elegant restaurants, sidewalk cafes and discos. It's also very much a bar and pub city. Santiagans enjoy heading out to their favorite spot, perhaps to listen to some live guitar or jazz, which is exactly what we enjoyed one fine evening in the cozy lounge of our beautiful hotel. It was the best live jazz I've ever heard!
Late night festivities in the cozy lounge of our hotel.
People
Chileans are beautiful, warm, friendly and, as I noticed, quite romantic! I frequently saw couples sharing long kisses and sweet moments together 🙂 Santiagans dress with excellent style and tend to have great hair, the women usually wearing theirs in long, flowing styles. They speak a Chilean version of Spanish, and little to no English. I was inspired, for about a week, to take up Spanish when I returned home. Unfortunately for the purposes of this trip, I took French throughout school, and while it's similarties can come in handy as a Latin language, the rules of accentuation are totally different from Spanish and often threw me off.
Cuisine
The food and wine of Chile are amazing! The rugged mountains, pristine sea and fertile vineyards of the country permeate all aspects of its cuisine – not to mention the many cultural impacts neighboring countries, its native tribes and the Peruvian, Spanish and various other European influences have had. Given the vast Pacific coast of Chile, it's a small wonder that Chile's cuisine is heavily based on the fruits of the sea. Almost everywhere, you can find fresh seafood. The predominant dishes often feature grilled octopus, ceviches, clams, mussels, sea urchins, Chilean sea bass and abalone. Yes, I happily partook in all of the above 🙂
Tapas from Arola (Image courtesy Ritz Carlton, Santiago)
Menus are often categorized by: Mountains and Sea rather than the ubiquitous Land and Sea. Meat dishes tend to be Spanish-based with local modifications including Empanadas, meat pies in clay pots, and Chilean stews. Patagonian lamb, Argentinian beef, chicken and pork are commonly incorporated.
Wine
Carmenere Red Wine, from the signature grape of Chile similar to Argentinian Malbec, was our libation of choice during most the entire trip. We couldn't bring ourselves to order anything else, it was that special. Carménère is a medium body wine with a deep red color and aromas of red fruits, spices and berries. Best to drink while it's young, the tannins are gentler and softer than those in Cabernet Sauvignon. And yes, you guessed it, the Central Valley of Chile is the world's largest area planted with Carmenere grapes.
My beautiful friend, Jane, and me!
Staying Healthy While Traveling
So after all the flying, wining, dining etc. what do I do to stay healthy and feeling great while traveling? Glad you asked:) This should so be it's own post so for now I'll just highlite some major points. First, 15 hours of flying equals major radiation, dehydration, germy airplane air, bad food and general energy zapping. During flight I get as much rest as I can and:
Upon arrival
Our first day in Santiago started with long hot showers, followed by the most amazing massage at the beautiful hotel spa (see the pool area in the pic below). Jim and I were majorly impressed by our masseuse, Natalie, and we discovered in talking with others, she's in fact really well known! If you’re ever in the area, be sure to book a massage with her. It's one of the best ways to detox after a lengthy airline flight. We took advantage of a good sweat in the sauna after – yet another excellent detoxification tool. Following the spa, we enjoyed a much needed, lengthy nap to recoup our energy before heading out to dinner and beginning our fabulous Santiago adventure!
The pool area of the Ritz Carlton, Santiago Spa. (Image courtesy Ritz Carlton, Santiago)
Staying Healthy During our Stay
While I practice and enjoy being Vegan, I feel the whole process should be fun so I approach it with an open mind. So, rather than holding myself to rigid standards, I am fairly comfortable compromising now and then, especially if I'm in a totally different culture or eating at a phenomenal restaurant. That said, I adhered to fruit for breakfast and salads as often as they were available. At catered cocktail events with beautiful appetizers floating by, I decided to indulge. At a tapas restaurant one evening, again, I indulged in some things I don't normally eat, as they were small bites. It didn't throw my system off because I stuck to very small portions of the foods I normally don't eat. This worked wonderfully as I was able to try everything I wanted without doing a complete 180. And, for the first time ever travelling, I have to confess, I experienced absolutely zero digestive difficulties! This is a major accomplishment as it's always been a challenge anytime I've travelled in the past. Neither did I gain any weight- probably another first 🙂 My energy was definitely down upon my return, which of course 15 hours of travel impacts. However, I really felt the few measures I took, below, gave me the most energy, health and fun experience possible:
Next time, I’ll probably make a few tweaks. While my system was fine if I limited myself to small tastes of the things I normally avoid. I did notice, the more I gave in, the more comfortable I became making less than ideal choices. Also, I noticed my cravings for the foods I'm allergic too (dairy, gluten, sugar) had returned somewhat when I arrived home. The awareness I gained from this trip's experiences helps me understand how to approach travel situations in the future. Yes, I want to experience the country and culture – yet, taking care of my body and soul is my first priority, always, so that I can be present and healthy in all my interactions in the world.
Until next time my friends!
Love,
XOXO
Juliane
What types of tricks do you have for staying healthy and sane during your travels?
The treasure house within you contains everything and you are free to use it. You don't need to seek outside.
- Zen Master Dazhu
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Inspiration Wall
The only people for me are the mad ones, the ones who are
mad to live, mad to talk, mad to be saved, desirous of everything at the same
time, the ones who never yawn or say a commonplace thing, but burn, burn, burn
like fabulous yellow roman candles exploding like spiders across the stars.
-Jack Kerouac, On the Road
When we are unable to find tranquility within ourselves, it is useless to seek it elsewhere.
-Francois de la Rochefoucauld
And the world cannot be discovered by a journey of miles, no
matter how long, but only by a spiritual journey, a journey of one inch, very
arduous and humbling and joyful, by which we arrive at the ground at our feet,
and learn to be at home.
- Wendell Berry
"When feeling urgent, you must slow down."
- Mark
Nepo
Continuous, calm, powerful use of the will shakes the forces
of creation and brings a response from the Infinite.
-Parmahansa Yogananda
Every person that you meet knows something you don't; learn
from them.
-H. Jackson Brown
Fear doesn’t frighten me as much as it used to. I know it’s
from clinging and I know it will pass. I can tell myself, “I’m frightened now
because even though I know what’s true, I have forgotten it right now. I know
the possibility of remembering exists.” That possibility, that conviction,
gives me a lot of hope in the middle of the biggest fright.
-Sylvia Boorstein
I close my eyes
and see clearly . . .
I stop trying to listen
and I hear truth . . .
I am silent
and my heart sings . . .
I seek no contact
and I find union . . .
I am still
and move forward . . .
I am gentle
and need no strength . . .
I am humble
and remain whole . . .
-Ancient Taoist Meditation
We could say that meditation doesn't have a reason or
doesn't have a purpose. In this respect it's unlike almost all other things we
do except perhaps making music and dancing. When we make music we don't do it
in order to reach a certain point, such as the end of the composition. If that
were the purpose of music then obviously the fastest players would be the best.
Also, when we are dancing we are not aiming to arrive at a particular place on
the floor as in a journey. When we dance, the journey itself is the point, as
when we play music the playing itself is the point. And exactly the same thing
is true in meditation. Meditation is the discovery that the point of life is
always arrived at in the immediate moment.
-Alan Watts
The best portion of a good
person’s life,
Those little, nameless,
Unremembered acts
Of kindness and love.
-William Wordsworth
A thankful person is thankful under all circumstances. A complaining soul complains eevn while living in paradise.
-Bahu'u'llah
In loving kindess,
XOXO
Juliane
What is your favorite inspirational quote?
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Creamy Chia Rice Pudding
Creamy Chia Rice Pudding
My silky Chia "Rice" Pudding is one of my favorite desserts or snacks- in fact I just had it this afternoon topped with a little extra virgin coconut oil and cacao nibs. SO delish! In the recipe below, I've shared a few tricks I use to make my version even better than other recipes you'll find. The result is a luxuriously comforting, creamy and rich dessert that takes less than five minutes to prepare. It's a cross between tapioca pudding, rice pudding and classic vanilla custard.
Chia seeds, best known for their role in animal shaped potted plants, rival flaxseeds for nutritional super status. In fact, I now use Chia instead of flax because flax has 3 times the phytoestrogenic properties of soy. In addition, the oils in flax oxidize very easily becoming rancid and biologically harmful when the oxygen–rich environment of the body causes oxidative destruction of these oils after they are consumed.(1) Chia on the other hand is extremely shelf stable allowing it to be kept for several years! Chia is also incredibly satiating because it holds up to 10-15 times it's own weight in water. And, it's very versatile in it's recipe application- not to mention amazing for our skin, hair, digestion, overall health and beauty.
See for yourself…
Check out these 18 awesome reasons to enjoy Chia every day!
1. Chia boasts 8 times more Omega 3 than salmon, making it a super food for the heart and brain and an anti-inflammatory in the body.
2. It's super high in dietary fiber making Chia excellent for digestion as well as healing digestive issues and cleansing the body of toxicity.
3. Chia boasts 20% protein.
4. Its protein is a complete protein containing all 8 essential amino acids.
5. Chia is a gluten free whole grain.
6. Chia is very high in antioxidants, boasting 4 times higher ORAC value than blueberries!
7. It contains 3 times more iron than spinach
8. Chia contains 5 times more calcium than milk
9. Chia contains 7 times more vitamin C than oranges
10. Chia is an excellent egg replacement. Simply combine with water to form a gel, and add to recipes that call for egg.
11. Chia can also be added to recipes as a thickener. Just blend it up (in your Vitamix) alongside the rest of your dressing or sauce ingredients.
12. It has twice the potassium content of banana
13. Chia is great food for healthy hair, skin and nails.
14. It balances blood sugar levels, because of it's soluble fiber content, making it outstanding for diabetics.
15. Chia is easily digestible. For example, unlike flax seeds, which need to be ground to obtain their full nutrition, chia can be eaten and digested whole.
16. Chia seeds are great for athletes because they are highly hydrophilic. Chia seeds can absorb over 10 times their weight in water making them a great enhancer in hydrating our bodies; they absorb the water we drink holding it in our system longer.
17. Chia seeds gel when wet. In our digestive systems, this gel prevents absorption of some of the food (and calories) we eat, making the chia seed a great assistant for anyone looking to lose weight!
18. Chia can be sprinkled on salads, cereals, oatmeal, smoothies, yogurt (dairy & soy free of course). They can be added to dressings, baked goods and, of course, made into the delicious chia pudding below!
My favorite type of Chia Seeds are the white ones below by The Chia Company. However, when I can't get those, I also enjoy the Nutiva brand.
From The Chia Company, my favorite Chia source
Recipe for Creamy Chia "Rice" Pudding (makes 1 large serving, or 2 small servings)
Ingredients
Method
What is your favorite way to eat Chia?
"Kindness can become its own motive. We are made kind by being kind."
-Eric Hoffer
References:
1. http://integratedsupplements.typepad.com/integrated_supplements_bl/2008/05/some-reasons-to.html
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How to Properly Food Combine within Your Lifestyle, A Sample Menu
I must admit, applying the principles of Proper Food Combining (PFC) seemed a bit complicated to me – until I began practicing it. Therefore, I want to take this opportunity to share ten tips and compliments I’ve discovered along the way for easily integrating the concepts into your own diet.
1) The first step I took was printing the below chart I provided in my last post and taping to my refrigerator. I continually reference it to this day- in fact I’ll be getting it laminated. Our habits become so unconsciously engrained, having a well-placed guiding reference is crucial.
(click to enlarge & print)
2) It’s not necessary to make a 180 degree switch to becoming a vegetarian, vegan etc., to immediately benefit from Proper Food Combining (PFC) principles. Simply changing the way we pair our current foods will have a dramatic impact on our energy, beauty and weight. Ok, obviously if we’re committed to pizza, ice-cream & fries 3 meals a day this won’t apply… but I know you wouldn’t be reading this if those were your ideals. The point is, even without removing animal products, gluten, dairy etc. we can still benefit from just rearranging the combination and order we eat our foods. (As outlined in the sample Daily Menu example below.)
3) Letting go of our inner perfectionist is crucial. While having an ultimate goal is awesome, our bodies don’t respond well to drastic overnight changes. Like any challenge we approach in life, this is a process. So we can relax. There’s no pressure. We want to treat ourselves gently, through a gradual transition. Easing into these beneficial practices will give our bodies the chance to adjust. An entire lifetime of toxicity takes a good deal of time to cleanse away and our immune system can’t handle everything being stirred up at once. Any improvements we make are highly beneficial, taking us in the right direction, bringing greater health, energy and beauty our way.
4) While this one seems obvious, and will likely happen naturally… I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention the incorporation of Proper Food Combining (PFC) into our lifestyle is a perfect and easy time to increase the amount of fruits, greens and veggies in our diets. Again, the Daily Menu below shows where we might be able to make some easy swaps.
5) Another compliment to implementing PFC, which is almost certain to provide immediate rewards, is the gradual elimination of gluten (2), dairy (3), refined sugar and caffeine (4). These are all sources of a great many misunderstood allergy/physical/emotional symptoms as well as the culprits responsible for those seemingly unstopable cravings. Willpower is no match to the allergy/addiction syndrome (5) more on this in a future post. Fortunately, given all the delicious alternatives on the market today, eliminating these items is easier to achieve than some might think. I’ll be sharing a product substitution guide shortly to help us select delicious (in my opnion, even tastier!) alternatives. Trust me, removing these health zappers is not a sacrifice- without them we find more energy, beauty, health and emotional well being than I personally ever knew possible.
6) Once I began experiencing the combined benefits of a totally clean diet alongside PFC, I enthusiastically overhauled my entire kitchen to remove any remaining culprits. I’ve never regretted it! I knew I didn’t want to go back to cravings, temptations or looking & feeling subpar. Having only beautiful, clean, energy enhancing ingredients available makes meal preparation simple and easy. It was an absolutely wonderful experience letting go of all the sugar, wheat, coffee, processed condiments and any remaining animal products I’d been holding on to. I was ready to let it all go.
7) Start including my delicious Macaccino energy drink into your day in place of coffee. Wonderfully comforting and tasty, you will love the steady energy (from the Maca) and emotional uplift & balancing (from the Maca + the PEA in the Cacao- more soon on PEA) this cup of creamy goodness provides over several hours- not just one like our old pal, coffee. All this without the harmful affects, the subsequent crashes or accompanying jitters. Did I mention my Macaccino majorly curbs the appetite too?!
Macaccino Energy Drink
8) My older, pre-PFC, StyleNectar recipes are excellent as we’re transitioning. Not everyone is interested in becoming a vegetarian or a vegan and StyleNectar offers a wide range of excellent choices for us all. I do allow myself the leeway to stray from time to time. However, I notice the temptation to overindulge no longer exists now that my body is receiving exactly what it needs. The below Daily Menu sample indicates where and when to include any recipes which aren’t perfectly PFC. (And, I’ve also begun updating older StyleNectar recipes to make them easily customizable to your lifestyle be it vegan, dairy/gluten-free, traditional, etc. Stay tuned!)
9) Again, remember this is a process. We don’t have to, or even want to, implement everything at once. Anytime we commit to beneficial changes in our lives, we want to begin by first accepting and loving ourselves exactly where we are. This sets us up for a rewarding experience in which we’re able to offer ourselves the compassionate willingness to help ourselves become whomever we want to be. Take small steps. Small, incremental changes over the long term will be more beneficial than huge leaps and extremes. Set realistic goals!
A careful transition made in conscious, compassionate awareness will enable our bodies to safely adjust and begin cleansing. While attempting too much too fast will only stir up loads of toxicity our immune systems can’t handle. We’re likely to notice immediate benefits from instituting PFC as it provides a great deal of digestive relief since foods are able to quickly digest rather than getting backed up and ultimately putrifying into toxic funk. However, the removal of allergens, acidic and inflammatory foods from our diet, may bring on withdrawl or detox symptoms- I certainly experienced them. Many of us misinterpret detox symptoms as a sign our bodies are missing the old ways of eating. In fact, we simply need to stick with it, as always, making the time for enough rest and staying in tune with our bodies along the way.
10) If you remember anything make it to:
Sample Daily Menu with Food Transit Times (1)
Start each day with a huge glass of lemon water (1/2 fresh lemon squeezed into 16 oz water). Our bodies are in cleansing mode all night long. We can continue to assist this process by flushing out toxins with a huge glass of structured lemon water.
Breakfast Ideas
Half an hour after the water:
1. Quadruple Berry Acai Smoothie (.5 or 1 hr depending on amount)
2. Fresh Vegetable Juice such as: Tangy-tart Power Green Juice (1 hr)
3. Fresh fruit (1 or 2 hrs)
4. Oven baked whole grain bread w/avocado (3 or 4 hrs)
An hour later (after our fruit has digested) have the Macaccino energy drink instead of coffee.
Lunch Ideas
1. Daily Detox Green Smoothie (1 hr)
2. Green leafy salad w/lemon (1 hr) w/oil or avocado (2 hrs)
3. Green leafy salad followed by cooked veggies (3.5 hrs) w/ yams or grains (4.5 hrs minimum)
Dinner Ideas
1. Green leafy salad followed by cooked grains (such as quinoa, buckwheat, oats, wild rice or amaranth) & veggies (4.5 hrs.)
2. Green leafy salad followed by cooked veggies & animal protein: fish, chicken, beef (6-8 hrs minimum- a full 3 days before meat is properly broken down & passed thru)
Starting your dinner with fresh greens will provide the enzymatic benefit to pave the way for excellent digestion of the food to follow.
Our bodies do a ton of healing, repairing and rejuvenating in our sleep because we’re not eating or, therefore, expending all our energy digesting. Starting each morning with fruit, the most easily digestible of foods, extends this cleansing period and provides great morning energy for ourselves! The same applies to lunch. The cleansing Daily Detox Green Smoothie is easy to digest and energizing for the very same reasons. Whole grains and nuts are a little harder to digest than fruit/greens, so save them for later in the day say as an afternoon snack. Meat is super hard to digest (takes about three days to be properly broken down and pass through) so we save it for last.
As always, feel free to ask any questions you may have in the comments below. I am very happy to answer them or go into further detail on anything you might need!
Much Love,
XX
Juliane
Sources:
I am not a healthcare practitioner or provider. To the extent that any information is provided through this website, it is for general informational purposes only and is not intended to constitute or substitute for medical advice or counseling, the practice of medicine including but not limited to psychiatry, psychology, psychotherapy or the provision of health care diagnosis or treatment, the creation of a physician-patient or clinical relationship, or an endorsement, a recommendation or a sponsorship of any third party, product or service by me. If you have or suspect that you have a medical problem, contact your health care provider promptly. Information and statements regarding dietary supplements available on this website have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration and are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.
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Proper Food Combining: The Missing Cornerstone to a Healthy, Beautiful Body, Anti-aging & Energy? + my Cleansing Quadruple Berry Acai Smoothie
I promised to offer more information on the potential benefits of Proper Food Combining in my last nutrition post, The Secrets to Detoxing. Proper Food Combining may be the missing cornerstone to healthy eating and something we’ll want to understand if we’re interested in achieving and maintaining a beautiful, healthy body and mind for life. Entire books have been written upon these subjects so I must admit, attempting to write blog posts on them can feel rather daunting! However, I suppose that’s the benefit, condensing everything into the most important points so that you can save yourself the effort of sifting through reams of information and get to work applying these anti-aging, beautifying and energy enhancing secrets!
Proper Food Combining (1,2,3) may enable our bodies to process food efficiently and more effectively absorb the nutrients it needs to stay healthy. It’s based on the theory that different food groups require different digestion times and different digestive enzymes to aid in the digestive process: some acid, some alkaline. Therefore, correct food combinations are considered important for proper utilization and absorption of nutrients potentially leading to better digestion and ultimately, better health. Basically, the simpler the meal the better.
While the method is easy to follow, it’s certainly a far departure from the Standard American Diet (SAD). However, after just two weeks following the guidelines in the chart below, general emotional outlook and appearance can improve as toxins are cleared out of the system faster. Cravings are often eliminated- making it incredibly easy to stick to – while the immediate energy surge, effortless toning, melting away of excess body fat and glowing skin may serve as reinforcements against any ideas of going back to old habits!
I am continually shocked to learn the amazing wisdom available when I challenge what I find unacceptable… in this case the gut feeling I’d had all along that staying lean and feeling good shouldn’t be difficult. The constant battle against cravings, subpar energy levels etc., all stayed in place even though I was following the advice and workout recommendations of the most respected doctors and best-selling authors! Not that I wasn’t seeing major improvements along my journey – I was. However, until incorporating several aspects of proper food combining, it was all a little too effortful, requiring a level of will-power that wasn’t sustainable.
Here is where I really want to delve into the science of Proper Food Combining so you can understand the “how” behind it all. The chart (4) below offers an excellent summary for how to apply the results of all the science involved. And, since this will turn into a book if I explain every possible poor food combination, I’ve provided just two examples underneath the chart; what happens when we combine protein and carbohydrates, and how to consume fruit. Feel free to post specific questions in the comments below and I’ll be happy to answer them.
In the meantime, here’s a really simplified version that won’t put us all to sleep: Basically, when we improperly combine food, the environment required to digest it is compromised, for reasons such as improper levels of acidity, the wrong or inhibited enzymes, improper levels of digestive acid etc.. The result is the body’s inability to digest the food, causing it to putrify, ferment, produce gas and ultimately create a digestive, toxic nightmare. This scenario zaps our energy and turns any preexisting nutritive benefits into an age-accelerating, weight gain producing horror. The terrific news is, simply changing the way we eat can immediately reverse all that. As I stressed in my last post, the best way to transition into a cleansing lifestyle is gradually, so it’s ok and normal that we’ll have a learning/implementation curve. As always, we NEVER need to be perfect 🙂
(Click on chart to enlarge)
Examples:
Protein and carbohydrate concentrated foods. Breakdown of protein requires an acid medium, therefore, digestion of protein dense animal products requires high levels of hydrochloric acid. Since digestion of carbohydrate dense foods requires exactly the opposite environment, an alkaline medium, in order to be broken down, high carbohydrate foods that have been mixed with high protein foods will not digest but will sit there fermenting, producing indigestion, bloating and gas. Since this fermentation of carbohydrates will inhibit the digestion of the protein, even more gas, bloating and discomfort will be produced. This makes the typical American meal, composed of a big chunk of meat alongside bread and potatoes, a recipe for digestive disaster.
Fruits. Fruit digests very quickly. It’s extremely cleansing and excellent to eat at breakfast, while the body is still in cleansing mode after a night of fasting. Always eat fruit on an empty stomach such as at the beginning of the day. Otherwise, the fruit will get backed up behind another slower digesting food, and will sit in the stomach putrefying, turning what was once a cleansing, beautifying cocktail of nutrition into a toxic, aging, energy drain. I’ll go into further detail in a future post on how this resulting “toxic sludge” gets permanently baked into the body’s 98.6F environment- just one reason cleansing requires an ongoing lifestyle in order to remove years of toxicity from the body.
I will continue to expand upon the applications of Food Combining in my next post where I’ll include a sample daily menu following these guidelines. In the meantime, my incredibly delicious Quadruple Berry Acai Smoothie followed an hour later by this energizing superfood Macaccino drink, are giving my mornings a powerful start 🙂
Cleansing Quadruple Berry Acai Smoothie
Recipe for Cleansing Quadruple Berry Acai Smoothie (Makes 2, 32 oz servings)
Ingredients:
Method:
PS. Don’t forget to post any questions you have in the comments below. I’m happy to do my best to answer them all. Also, thank you so much for all the amazing emails you sent me regading StyleNectar and my new Fine Art website too! I really appreciate the love. You all are AMAZING!
In grace, light and presence
Love 💕
~Jayashrii
Live Beautifully
&
Be well
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Sources:
I am not a healthcare practitioner or provider. To the extent that any information is provided through this website, it is for general informational purposes only and is not intended to constitute or substitute for medical advice or counseling, the practice of medicine including but not limited to psychiatry, psychology, psychotherapy or the provision of health care diagnosis or treatment, the creation of a physician-patient or clinical relationship, or an endorsement, a recommendation or a sponsorship of any third party, product or service by me. If you have or suspect that you have a medical problem, contact your health care provider promptly. Information and statements regarding dietary supplements available on this website have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration and are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.
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Announcing my New Art Studio Website!
I'd like to personally invite you to my new Art Studio website www.JulianePorter.com!
Kick back, relax and stay a while to look around. Browse my oil painting galleries including a selection of Portraits, Landscapes, The Sea, Private Collection Pieces and even a peek inside my sketchbook.
While you're there be sure to sign up for my Art updates so you can stay up to date on what's happening in the studio. I promise not to clog your in-box. You'll hear from me 5-6 times a year on my latest works, sales, gallery openings & other painting news.
And, as always, feel free to contact me if you're interested in commissioning a painting (Portraits: Executive, Family, Children, Pet or Landscapes) for yourself or to surprise a special loved one! I always strive to create a timeless masterpiece of the highest standards incorporating both your vision and your budget. It's an enjoyable and creative process resulting in an heirloom treasure worthy of many generations of enjoyment.
Stop by today! I look forward to seeing you in the studio!
Love,
Juliane
Screen Shot of my New Website! Experience the real thing now at www.JulianePorter.com!
Email: StyleNectar@gmail.com
Studio: 240-479-4169
Questions for you:
Have you ever considered commissioning a portrait?
How do you like my new Art Studio Website?
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Secrets to Detoxing: Enzymes & Digestion + my Daily Detox Green Smoothie
~ An introduction ~
A potential key to obtaining & sustaining
optimum energy, health & beauty.
Beautifying Daily Detox Green Smoothie
It seems everywhere I turn lately I see info about detoxing, from the "Master Cleanse" to juice cleanses, menu programs, supplements, mixes, workouts, and products all supposedly dedicated to cleansing. Yes, many are a step up from the Standard American Diet (SAD), however, I notice a lot of commonly held myths being perpetuated and crucial information missing which might take the seemingly complex mystery out of why it's so easy for some of us to look & feel our best, while others of us attempt to follow the aforementioned options and either:
A) Lose weight while unknowingly aging ourselves inside & out via the very process.
B) Never get very far due to cravings, relapses, time-constraints etc.
As a StyleNectar reader you've followed my progression from eating what is widely considered healthy, organic fare (advocating portion control for richer recipes) to investigating vegetarian, raw vegan and Nutritarian approaches and arriving, finally, at my current status of being Vegan (for me a combo of 80% raw, 20% cooked food). For the record I must clarify while I absolutely respect & DO recommend learning the science/research behind Dr. Fuhrman's Nutritarian lifestyle (I eat 95% of the types of foods he endorses) I found two major shortfalls to his approach:
1) I don't find the recipes very tasty – the exception of his frozen banana ice-cream which, albeit yummy…
2) Didn't follow proper food combining guidelines. Improper food combining, (I'll be providing info on this soon) unbeknownst to many with the noblest of healthy lifestyle intentions, may actually be a major cause of diet sabotage and accelerated aging.
For those of us with exceptional standards, who aren't simply trying to wean ourselves off fast food and sodas, we'll be interested to understand the keys to appropriate food combining Dr. Fuhrman omits; huge secrets to anti-aging and optimizing one's health, longevity and beauty. Why doesn't he include them? My theory is he's targeting the large, average S.A.D. following audience who wouldn't be ready for this level of info.
Chalk it up to the fact I never watch TV (and I grew up without one) that perhaps I'm less conditioned and more apt to be open minded. My love of learning and obsession for figuring out how to optimize my short time on earth has the affect that I am always evolving and changing. As a result, many things have fallen away from my life which no longer serve me, providing a freedom I cherish, from the confines of habit and conditioning. Our lives are like pieces of art we refine for the duration. It all starts with acceptance of where we are, a desire to go beyond that which causes us to suffer, and a willingness to see the reality beneath the surface.
Anywho, back on track. You want the information, right?!
One of the biggest secrets to staying lean & aging beautifully pertains not just to WHAT we're eating but HOW we're eating it. Let's talk about digestion and enzymes. (1)
Enzymes are essential to life, perhaps more crucial than the air we breath as without them our biochemical processes would cease. Over 5000 different types of enzymes work together with vitamins and minerals acting as catalysts to accelerate chemical reactions. When our body has an abundance of enzymes, it can protect itself and repair the damage from almost all degenerative disease disorders. As we age our enzymes are depleted which causes us to age more quickly, get disease earlier in life, and acquire physical & mental impairments as our body degenerates. This explains why when we're young we can handle a diet of bread, pasta and cooked foods without much problem. However, this type of diet causes rapid aging and depletion of enzyme supplies.
The theory is that a lack of enzymes in the body makes the blood dirty (10), potentially creating the base for many diseases each time we eat a cooked or processed food. (5, 6) These dead or denatured foods have no living enzymes with most the nutrients diminished significantly.
The harder a food is to digest, the more enzymes required. The S.A.D. diet (an inflammatory, acidic diet of excessive protein (1), poorly combined meals & genetically modified, processed foods/chemicals/powders etc. all of which I'll talk about in a future post) requires so much work and enzymatic activity to digest that the body has none left over for cleansing and providing us energy! For most of us, all our energy is going just to digestion! The easier our food is to digest, the less enzymes required, the more energy for us and the less disease and aging we'll experience. Cooked and processed foods overwork and drain our body's energy.
An easily digested diet, based on fresh greens, vegetables & raw fruits, floods our bodies with enzymes, contributing to the body's ability to protect and repair, instead of continually and slowly draining the body's energy and enzyme reserves. The more enzymes we take in, the more quickly our body can restore and strengthen itself, freeing up energy from an otherwise taxing digestive process. Thus our body has a chance to detoxify and cleanse away aging, disease causing toxins trapped in our cells. Suddenly we have more energy than we've ever experienced before when all our energy was devoted to digestion alone! Excess fat melts away and our body becomes lean & toned with minimal effort.
Yes! You read that right.
When we're eating a toxic diet of inflammatory, acidic foods, (more later on exactly what these are) our body goes into overdrive not only digesting but hiding those toxins as far away from the internal organs as possible in FAT CELLS (9) created solely for the purpose! Transitioning to a cleansing, enzyme rich diet signals to our body that it's safe to shed those toxin laden fat cells so they may be released from our body. This results in our bodies becoming lean and toned just through changing what we eat! I personally was floored to figure out that it's not necessary or even ideal to overdo it spending hours working out – a process in itself, if overdone, creates excessive aging inside and out (2, 3, 4) – partly because the protein intake required to support such activity is incredibly taxing on the digestive system (7) and for other reasons I'll go into in a future post. This is not to say it's not important to exercise and be active. I personally love walking, ballet and yoga in moderation.
We benefit far more from an attitude of compassionate self-acceptance than we do from one of tough love via themes like Just Do It! which wreak of the unconscious forcefulness frequently followed by "beatings" in our heads for not living up to some arbitrary goal designed to sell product. As we can see from just looking around, these overpopularized slogans don't seem to be serving the population's waist line very well.
Leading to my final point about the overpopularized trend of temporary cleanses and why they're not effective. Say we do a juice "detox" for 3 days or a "cleansing diet" for month… What could be harmful about that you ask?
First, the sudden influx of non-toxic, enzyme-rich activity will signal the body to release a slew of toxins – flooding it with an overload of toxicity the immune system very well may not be able to handle which can result in an individual becoming quite ill.
Second, removing deeply embedded layers of toxicity acrued over a lifetime takes long term dedication and a careful transition into a permanent detoxifying lifestyle. Real cleansing, removing years of accumulated toxins, is a gradual process to be approached with a great deal of careful, concious awareness. It requires gradual changes of implementing an alkaline diet and long-term dedication. Otherwise, once the aforementioned temporary "detox" or "cleanse" is over, and we return to our previous, average diet, we're just reabsorbing all the toxicity we've stirred up into our systems, completely defeating the objective.
Below is a beautifying, satiating and enzyme rich green smoothie which would be a safe introduction for any person interested in transitioning into a detoxifying lifestyle. I personally switch it up with my Quadruple Berry Acai Smoothie (coming soon) each morning. Keeps me buzzing along until 3 PM! So not they way I used to be- I have to remind myself to eat these days 'cause I have so much energy. Oh- that's a point I forgot to mention- when we eat in this alkaline, enzyme-rich fashion, our bodies become so efficient at putting our nutrition to use- we don't actually NEED to eat as much! And that too, leads to decreased appetite as well as a lean, toned physique.
Please enjoy!
Daily Detox Green Smoothie
Daily Detox Green Smoothie
(Makes four, 16 oz or two, 32oz servings. Feel free to freeze or refrigerate leftovers.)
Ingredients:
Method:
Recipe Inspired by Victoria Boutenko's, Green For Life
Enjoy the sustained energy rush & Glow your way through your day!
xoxo
Love,
Juliane
Coming soon: my Quadruple Berry Acai Smoothie which I alternate in the mornings with the Daily Detox Smoothie.
For my nutritional/wellness/life coaching program click here: http://www.stylenectar.com/stylenectar/holistic-health-wellness-coaching.html
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References:
1, 7. Dr. Campbell’s China Study, and Dr. Fuhrman’s book Eat to Live, http://www.healthbanquet.com/enzymes-for-health.html
2. http://eurheartj.oxfordjournals.org/content/29/15/1903.long
3. http://institutefornaturalhealing.com/2012/10/eat-this-before-your-workout-for-a-strong-recovery/
4. http://institutefornaturalhealing.com/2013/02/why-too-much-exercise-is-bad-for-your-heart-and-body/
5. http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2011/08/21/enzymes-special-report.aspx
6. http://www.enzymestuff.com/digestion.htm#4
8. http://www.vivawoman.net/2009/10/23/too-much-exercise-can-cause-aging/
9. http://www.wellnessresources.com/weight/articles/why_toxins_and_waste_products_impede_weight_loss_-_the_leptin_diet_weight_l/
10. http://voices.yahoo.com/why-take-digestive-enzyme-supplement-2603185.html, http://www.pyroenergen.com/articles/enzymes.htm
I am not a healthcare practitioner or provider. To the extent that any information is provided through this website, it is for general informational purposes only and is not intended to constitute or substitute for medical advice or counseling, the practice of medicine including but not limited to psychiatry, psychology, psychotherapy or the provision of health care diagnosis or treatment, the creation of a physician-patient or clinical relationship, or an endorsement, a recommendation or a sponsorship of any third party, product or service by me. If you have or suspect that you have a medical problem, contact your health care provider promptly. Information and statements regarding dietary supplements available on this website have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration and are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.
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“Mo-o-o-m!” Oil on Canvas, Sleeping Mama Duck & Baby
"Mo-o-o-m!" 11 x 14 Oil on Canvas Painting by Juliane Porter, Nantucket, Mass. USA
(Please click image for a better, larger view)
I couldn't resist painting this sweet little duo floating near the dock of our cottage last summer. Mama duck, who was trying to catch a quick nap with her beak tucked into her back feathers, wasn't getting much cooperation from her spirited little one!
Please do let me know your thoughts. I always appreciate them a ton 🙂
Much Love,
Juliane
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