Blood-building juice

My practitioner told me that things like blackberries, beets, and raspberries are good for Blood Qi deficiency, so I went home after my appointment and made this:

2 small beets, with greens attached (or one large beet)
1 granny smith apple
1/4 head of cabbage (got lots in my CSA bin that need used up)
1 small container of raspberries

Everything into the juicer; then add a little club soda. Best if the produce is let to chill in the fridge before juicing.

YUM!

Note to self

Things to blog about once my camera battery situation is resolved:

-raw chia pudding (YUM)
-roasted radish & greens recipe
-how to make seitan
-sprouting (lentils, couscous, etc)
-raw kale chips recipe
-veggie garden update

Vegan mac n cheese

This past weekend I tried this vegan mac & cheese recipe and was really pleased with the results. It's not going to fool anyone into thinking it's real cheese, but it's about the closest I've ever experienced. I did make a few substitutions/additions:

-subbed minced dried garlic for the garlic powder
-subbed chopped vidalia onion (added to macaroni before baking) for the onion powder
-subbed dijon mustard (all I had)
-added some cubed white bread to the top, with some slivers of earth balance
-subbed Braggs liquid aminos for the soy sauce

Enjoy!

Camera died!

Sorry guys (both of you), I have all these great posts backing up and my digicam is dead!! I hope to have it repaired soon. Might have to do all-text entries until then, which I prefer not to do. Stay tuned!

Find a CSA

Joining a CSA is a great way to get local, (sometimes) organic produce and support small farms. It's also a nice way to rotate more fresh fruits and vegetables into your diet! Keeping an open mind and a willingness to try new things will make the experience much more enjoyable :)

From the Local Harvest website:

Many farms offer produce subscriptions, where buyers receive a weekly or monthly basket of produce, flowers, fruits, eggs, milk, meats, or any sort of different farm products.

A CSA, (for Community Supported Agriculture) is a way for the food buying public to create a relationship with a farm and to receive a weekly basket of produce. By making a financial commitment to a farm, people become "members" (or "shareholders," or "subscribers") of the CSA. Most CSA farmers prefer that members pay for the season up-front, but some farmers will accept weekly or monthly payments. Some CSAs also require that members work a small number of hours on the farm during the growing season.

A CSA season typically runs from late spring through early fall. The number of CSAs in the United States was estimated at 50 in 1990, and has since grown to over 2200.

Raw energy!

I totally love these energy bars by Raw Revolution. They are the perfect thing to keep my blood sugar even, satisfy a sweet craving, and provide a few hours of energy when needed. Super simple ingredients, sprouted nuts - good stuff! They are thick and dense and not too sweet.

Friendly cleaning

This is one of my absolute favorite products. Dr Bronners makes several types of cleaning and personal care products - the only one I happen to use is the Magic Soap. They have lots of scents - baby mild (above) is the unscented. Read about it on their website - pretty cool!

There are T.O.N.S. of uses for this stuff - the website lists a bunch. I use it for hand and body wash, as well as a general cleaner. The best part is that you can dilute it waaay down - I do about 1 part DBr to 10 parts water! Same dilution for dishwashing liquid (not dishwasher) and general cleaning. Safe, cheap, and effective. Brilliant!