Coconut Water

Added coconut water to my smoothie this morning but didn’t use it all – wasn’t sure what to do with the unused portion as there are no instructions on packaging indicating storage procedures on unused portions.
In an effort to find out I stumbled on this link which contains a lot of info….
General consensus seems to be refrigerate unused portion for no longer than 24 hours -OR- freeze and add to smoothies!
Blessings!
http://laurettamariepierce.com/2012/01/26/okay…-so-what-is-this-coconut-water-stuff/

Blessings and Health for the Year Ahead

Hubby and I recieved a very generous and appreciated gift over the holidays from my parents… A VitaMix!!
Wow!
Thanks Mom and Dad!!!

The possibilities seem endless ~
A confessing Sugarholic…I understand the need to drop the dreaded white stuff from my life and move on to the whole foods provided since time began.
With that in mind; I’m looking with excitement to the days, weeks and months ahead!

I created a drink this morning that is the first I wanted MORE of!! So yummy – and so good for me!
To try it yourself put in a high speed blender the following:

1/2 frozen banana
1 fresh mango
6 frozen whole strawberries
1 cup coconut milk
2 swiss chard leaves (large)
1 Tbsp psyllium husk
1 Tbsp. powdered hemp seed (I had hemp seed and ground in the coffee grinder)
1/2 Tbsp flax seed oil
1/2 Tbsp. maca powder
1/2 tsp. vanilla
dash cinnamon
dash stevia
3 ice cubes

Blend until smooth and Enjoy!!

Blessings,
Whole Foods Gal

OIL PULLING CONTINUED….

It’s been 3 weeks since my wisdom teeth extraction and I seem to be completely healed. The ortho said I healed quickly and I really do believe it is due in large part to the Coconut Oil Pulling. This week I had a crown which led to sore gums again…the dentist gave directions to swish with salt water. The following morning i woke pretty sore and immediately swished with Coconut Oil instead of the salt water. I could feel the soreness dissipating as I swished! On day 3 my gums are healed! Definitely 2 thumbs up on oil pulling for me – I’ll continue as a part of my daily personal regime! 

Blessings! 

Whole Foods Gal

OIL PULLING CONTINUED….

It’s been 3 weeks since my wisdom teeth extraction and I seem to be completely healed. The ortho said I healed quickly and I really do believe it is due in large part to the Coconut Oil Pulling. This week I had a crown whichglued to sore gums again…the dentist gave directions to swish with salt water. The following morningI woke pretty sore and immediately swished with Coconut Oil instead. I could feel the soreness dissipating as I swished! On day 3 my gums are healed! Definitely 2 thumbs up on oil pulling for me – ill continue as a part of my daily personal regime! 

Blessings! 

Whole Foods Gal

Can a Smoothie = the yumminess of a milkshake??

Absolutely! In my quest to replace excessive sugars pun healthy fats I’ve discovered the healthy richness of coconut milk for rich, tasty smooth smoothies….try the following for a yummy treat:

6-7 large strawberries

Stevia to taste

1/2 tsp Flax Seed Oil (preferably organic)

1/2 tsp. vanilla

1 cup crushed ice

1/2 cup coconut milK

Blend all together until smooth & creamy

Blessings!

Whole Foods Gal

OIL PULLING

What in the world is ‘Oil Pulling’?

I envisioned Oil Rigs with Monster Drills and lots of pressure being exerted to force something that wants to stay buried up and out into the light of day!

Who knew…my nano second image upon hearing the phrase couldn’t have been more ‘on’! 

After a bit of trepidation I opened wide to take a spoonful of Coconut Oil, allow it to melt in my mouth and begin swish, swish, swishing away for an eternity long 15 minutes.  

A month later – I’m a believer.Those toxins wanting to stay put in the deep of my body are being pulled up and out through the oil pulling. The latest confirmation for me came through a trip to an oral surgeon for wisdom teeth extraction. Sent home with the list of do’s and don’ts – were strict orders to begin on day 2 salt water rinsing up to 6x a day, which I followed to a T. By day 5 of this my mouth was as sore from the salt water havoc as my gums from the extractions. Wanting the feel of a clean mouth the oil pulling had been providing I felt it safe to swish with Oil vs. the Salt Water and went for it. Immediately, my mouth was soothed. Gums that were inflamed settled down, a taste bud on my tongue that had flared (think too many tomatoes in early summer!) settled right down and was gone within in hours. Feeling relief that nothing horrible and every thing good had come from this first oil pull I’ve resumed my daily regime of oil pulling and now – post op 1 week…I’m eating as tho I’d not had surgery, my mouth is not sore, and I can feel the gums healing.

I’m excited to visit the surgeon for post op follow up… and see if he is ‘surprised’ at the rate of healing!

I’ll check back with the update!

In the meantime…check it out for yourself – here’s a couple of links to give some info – http://www.coconutresearchcenter.org/article%20oil%20pulling.htm                                         http://coconutoil.com/oil-pulling-with-coconut-oil-for-dental-health/

Blessings!                     
Whole Foods Gal

 

Brazil Nuts

Did you know brazil nuts are the best source for Selenium?
Selenium is an essential mineral found in small amounts in the body. It works as an antioxidant, especially when combined with vitamin E. Antioxidants like selenium help fight damaging particles in the body known as free radicals
Food sources for Selenium are Brewer’s yeast and wheat germ, liver, butter, fish (mackerel, tuna, halibut, flounder, herring, smelts) and shellfish (oysters, scallops, and lobster), garlic, whole grains, sunflower seeds, and….Brazil Nuts top the list!
Selenium is destroyed when foods are refined or processed so eating a variety of whole, unprocessed foods is the best way to get selenium into our diet and one — yes, just one — Brazil nut per day will fulfill your daily required intake of 55 micrograms as one nut kernel contains 95.8 micrograms…Well over the daily recommendation!
Our goal should always be to consume as many of our vitamins and minerals as possible from whole food sources but please heed the advice that ONE nut per day provides all our needed Selenium.
Elevated Selenium can be harmful so LESS is MORE with this powerful SuperFood!

Blessings!
Whole Foods Gal

MACA = Energy?!

Had my first taste of the SuperFood Maca last night….1/2 Tbsp. in a favorite hot  chocolate concoction that I love (see recipe below)

My routine is to try for sleep by 11:30pm and up at 6:30am. The night before I’d stayed up past midnight so I should have been ready for sleep by 11:00…having enjoyed the hot chocolate drink with Maca around 8pm I was still full of energy well past midnight. I didn’t think much of the Maca I’d ingested as I’m a natural night owl and will always gain a ‘second wind’ near bedtime.

Making myself turn in for the night around 12:30 I realized as I lay there that I was WIDE AWAKE! Only then did I realize this must be the Maca. After the initial panic of what the following day had in store and how much I’d be dragging if I didn’t get to sleep soon I relaxed to pay attention to my body and how I felt.

I was energized but relaxed….not jittery as I’d be if I’d had coffee or another caffeine stimulant. My mind was clear and my thoughts were calm.

I’d turned off my alarm for the morning so I could ‘sleep in’ a bit longer due to the busy day ahead and my late ‘turning in’…so imagine my surprise when I woke refreshed, energized and at my usual time!

I’m a couple hours into the day and still feel…even keel. Seems I have a steady level of energy today. Feels good.

With that being said…can you have too much of a good thing? I’m sure! As said in the last post…it seems respect,  education and responsibility is required with intake of this seemingly powerful, natural herb; as it should be for everything we ingest.

The Hot Chocolate drink I make is approx a rounded Tbsp. of Dark Cocoa, rounded dash of Stevia, Cayenne Pepper & Cinnamon, and approx1 Tbsp. Unsulphured Molasses. To this mix I add boiling water. Mix all and add whatever you like for a creamer. I’m currently using Peppermint Mocha from Christmas which makes the drink even yummier! Coconut Milk is a great creamer too.

Knowing that the Molasses is full of iron I opted to leave it out of my drink replacing with the Maca to not load up on too  much iron; which could be harsh on my liver. This is an area I need education on.

So…my flesh says Wow! This Maca is great!!! I should have another drink on the way out this morning but wisdom says, No…let’s pay attention to our body and notice how long this energy supply lasts, and continue to learn about it.

The following articles bring more insight – http://macatalk.com/faqs/effects.html / http://www.raworganicmaca.info/maca-dosage/

Blessings!

Whole Foods Gal

SuperFood of the week ~ RED MACA

I’m always amazed when hearing of a Superfood that’s been used thousands of years enhancing lives with optimal health and yet…it’s brand new!!

For me this week the ‘Brand New yet very established SuperFood’ is MACA

A friend texted that I should look into it and while searching the aisles of my local CoOp, like a kid in a candy store, my eyes found the gem of the week. Being new to the herb I had no knowledge to choose between Yellow, Black, or Red  so decided to com home with the Red.

In a Google search I’ve found a lot of info…http://www.bewellbuzz.com/superfoods/what-is-maca/ and the following article shows that the Red seems to be a great choice ~ http://www.raworganicmaca.info/red-maca-how-is-it-different/

It appears in the minimal reading I’ve done while posting here that responsibility is needed when consuming this powerful SuperFood so I will start out s-l-o-w-l-y and record pluses and minuses throughout the week as I learn!

Blessings,

Whole Foods Gal

Coconut Health

I encourage everyone to educate themselves on the healthiness of Coconut Oil and make a commitment to turn from unhealthy oils and fats to those that are God given, unprocessed, and good for you!

Here’s a great article and guide to those that are healthy and those which are not…

http://www.realfooddigest.com/complete-guide-to-fats-and-oils/

Blessings,

Whole Foods Gal