Thursday, June 26, 2014

Fresh Fruit Ice Cream and Sorbets- no machine




What could be more refreshing than a cooling fresh fruit ice cream or non dairy sorbet for dessert. No need to visit your local ice cream parlor because you can make a much healthier vegan version in literally minutes. You won't need an ice cream maker either.
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I like recipes that are easy and fast , and it doesn't get much easier or faster than this one. Just place the four ingredients in your high power blender or food processor and whiz quickly until just smooth ( a minute?)

Clever Tip for Parties or Serving Groups

Want to serve this recipe to a group. Look at this clever trick.
You can keep the scooped ice cream or sorbets frozen until you are ready to serve them. They will be look perfect. Each scoop will need about 3-5 minutes to thaw before eating them.


sorbets in a cupcake tin
                           Flavors: blueberry vanilla, Mango Lassi, strawberry lemon



sorbet in a cupcake tin


metal container ( or small pot) left too long and too hard to scoop out
If you leave the ice cream or sorbets in the freezer for a longer period of time, they will harden somewhat and become very firm. To eat them you will have to let them thaw for about 10 minutes and then you will have to place it back in the blender for a minute before eating them- Unless you do what I do.

This is what I do. After the sorbet is in a container in the freezer for the hour and half, I scoop it with an ice cream scoop and place each scoop in a compartment of a cup cake baking tin! Then I can put the twelve scoops back in the freezer and leave them as long as I want all ready scooped for whenever I am ready to serve them!

sorbet in a cupcake tin

This works great if you are having a party or just want to serve your sorbets to your family after dinner.

Your fresh homemade ice cream or sorbets will pre-scooped and ready to serve whenever you are ready for them! Use as many scoops as you want to eat and return the remaining frozen scoops to the freezer in a large ziploc baggy.


All Healthy Nutrient Rich Ingredients
You can feel good eating these healthy nutrient-rich desserts. Real fruit contains immune building antioxidants, vitamins, and minerals. If you add Greek yogurt, you add protein and probiotics. This is a delicious health giving snack or dessert the entire family will love. Or if you are vegan, use coconut milk.

You can use any kind of fruit that you like. You can buy fresh fruit , wash it , and then freeze it on a cookie sheet. You could also just buy a bag of frozen fruit. Either way will work.



The Ice Cream and Sorbet recipes

For these recipes, I bought organic frozen strawberries, organic frozen blueberries, and a bag of frozen mango chunks. I made three different flavored frozen treats. You can follow my recipes or experiment with different fruit and flavors that you like. Pineapple? Kiwi? Watermelon? Cantaloupe? They will all work, but for those fruits I suggest using the recipe that calls for a banana to give it some creaminess.

Honey
I used honey as the sweetener ,and I must say that it does impart a honey taste. If you don't like honey, you could substitute organic pure maple syrup, but that also has a distinct taste. So experiment with a sweetener of your choice. 

Sugar
If you want to use organic sugar instead of honey, you will need to mix it with water and heat it to make it into a  simple syrup first. Remember, the fruit is sweet to begin with, so you don't need a lot of sweetener. It will depend on how sweet your fruit is and your taste preferences.

Strawberry Lemon- Vegan  serves 4    ( Fruit, lemon juice, sweetener, banana)
1 and 1/2 cups of frozen strawberries
1/4 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice and a teaspoon of lemon zest ( I used an organic lemon)
2 Tablespoons maple syrup or sweetener of choice
1 medium banana ( not frozen) for creaminess


Blueberry Vanilla -Vegan  serves 4  ( fruit, almond milk, lemon, honey) 
1 and 1/2 cups of frozen organic blueberries
1 cup of vanilla almond milk ( or any milk of your choice + 1 Tablespoon of Vanilla Extract)
2 Tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
3 Tablespoons of maple syrup or sweetener of choice


This one is dairy unless you use non dairy yogurt
Mango Lassi- Dairy  serves 4  ( fruit, Greek Yogurt, honey, lemon juice) 
1 and 1/2 cups of frozen mango chunks
1 cup plain Greek yogurt
1/4 cup raw organic honey, maple syrup or sweetener of choice
3 Tablespoons of freshly squeezed lemon juice
** this ice cream that has the added yogurt takes a little longer to thaw - let it sit out for about 5 minutes before serving

Directions for making the ice cream or sorbets: 
Place a small metal bowl ( or a small metal pot) in the freezer for at about 5 minutes so it can chill.
Process the 4 ingredients in a high power blender ( like a Vitamix or Nutribullet ) or use a food processor until they become smooth and creamy. Do not over process or it will become too liquidy. Eat immediately, or place into the cold metal bowl in the freezer and freeze for about an hour and half. Scoop into bowls or scoop into muffin tins and freeze for later.

Tips: 


  • Before serving the strawberry lemon and the blueberry vanilla sorbet scoops  thaw quickly- let them sit out for about two minutes before serving. However, the sorbet with the Greek yogurt will need to sit out to thaw for about 5 minutes before serving.
  • You can substitute orange juice for the lemon juice or even use frozen orange juice concentrate and perhaps not need any added sweetener. 


Want a popsicle instead?


mango blueberry popsicle

Strawberry, Blueberry, Mango Popsicle
I took a scoop of each flavor and layered it into a popsicle mold and then inserted a stick. I froze it overnight and un-molded it in the next day ! 

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Wednesday, June 25, 2014

The Truth about Gluten


I was doing research for a gluten free class that I am teaching

I found  a very informative video called The Truth About Gluten and just finished watching it. I am sharing it because it is the best video I have ever seen about why everyone ( not just those with Celiac)  need to stop eating wheat. This post is part of my series called Informative Friday - but I had to post it early this week.

Dr. Den Doer  explains how our wheat industry has changed the actual wheat plants that produce the wheat that we eat . Today's wheat is now being grown with 4 times the amount of gluten and 4 times the amount of starch  that it used to have. Dr. Doer calls today's wheat, " Frankenwheat".  He says it doesn't matter if you eat Twinkies or whole wheat grain bread. Today's wheat is so full of gluten and starch that converts so fast to sugar, it is setting us up for inflammation and degenerative disease like diabetes and heart disease.

If you are already on a gluten free diet, why am I recommending this video? 

Because Dr. Den Doer explains that just stopping gluten is not enough- once the damage is done, you need to repair your digestive and elimination systems or your system will remain compromised and so will your health.  Dr. Den Doer gives very valuable information and suggestions for making the repairs.

He explains that by the time a person has full blown Celiac Disease, it  is the end of the line when all the damage is already done . He explains that gluten intolerance or sensitivity is the beginning and can affect ANYONE and ANY PART  part of the body because it is an inflammation. He also addresses why just going on a gluten free diet will stop the progress , but not repair.

If you have ANY health issue, or experience fatigue, headaches, MS, anxiety, depression, joint pain, eczema, or anything - you need to understand the role that gluten contributes.

In addition, if you do follow a gluten free diet, you need to understand how to repair the damage to your digestive system that has already be done and my still be affecting you and compromising your health.

The video is 1 hour and 20 minutes. It is well worth taking the time to watch.


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If you watch the video , please come back and leave a comment . I would love to know what you think.

Also : The book, Wheat Belly,   helps you understand the dangers of today's new wheat !- our wheat is not the same as 40 years ago . It has been genetically modified, and changed into a grain that has 4 times the gluten and 4 times the starch of the grain your grandparents ate. This means starch turns to sugar and a piece of bread now gives you 4 times the amount of sugar than it did 40 years ago . Wonder why so many people have allergies ? Wonder why so many people are pre- diabetic or diabetic, have heart disease or other diet related diseases.  This wheat is not even a real food. It is a creation of modern manufacturing.  This book gives a great argument for everyone cutting out wheat. It's a must read.


Pin It  Wheat Belly: Lose the Wheat, Lose the Weight, and Find Your Path Back to 
Health

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Tuesday, June 24, 2014

Guest Post on Thursday

blueberry, strawberry, and mango sorbet

blueberry, strawberry, and mango sorbet with cinnamon
Isn't this the most beautiful photo? I could dig in right now, and you'll be able to get the recipe tomorrow for this ridiculously easy to make healthy fruit sorbet. Can you believe only 2 minutes prep and 1 hour and half in the freezer.! Great healthy real food alternative for your kids! Stop by Driftwood-Gardens!
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Sunday, June 22, 2014

Cinnamon for weight loss- 3 reasons I eat it every day



Bottle of organic cinnamon


Cinnamon may be a common herb, but research is indicates that it has many nutritional benefits including that it may help with weight loss!. This post is part of a series called Simple things you can do to help yourself feel better. I'm always looking natural ways to help my metabolism, lose weight and or detox. Adding cinnamon to my food is one of the simple things I do.

loose cinnamon
Ground Cinnamon 
                                                                     

I love the taste and aroma of cinnamon, so I was delighted to find out that cinnamon is also very beneficial to our diet.. Cinnamon is actually made from the bark of  trees- the variety of cinnamon used in  research studies was - cassia cinnamon . 

3 Reasons I Eat Cinnamon Daily  for weight loss

***Blood Sugar Levels: Studies have suggested that 1/2-1 teaspoon a day of cinnamon can help stabilize or even lower blood sugar levels. I've noticed that when my blood sugar drops, I feel hungry and shaky, which makes me eat more. It can become a vicious cycle and usually, I grab something sweet when I feel like that which may bring my sugar up to high. . Cinnamon is supposed to help keep the blood sugar stabilized so I can avoid the blood sugar highs and lows which for me causes cravings!

****Fat Storing Hormones: I've also read that the  cassia variety of cinnamon contains compounds that may help lower fat storing hormones by 30% . Who doesn't want to store less fat! That works for me. In addition, cinnamon contains phenol which is known as a belly flattening antioxidant! Since many women store fat in their belly area, this might be beneficial.

****Fiber: Cinnamon also contains fiber- just an added little benefit. Since cinnamon is actually ground up bark, it is mostly fiber. Fiber is also good to help elimination and thus helps with weight loss.

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It's not hard to incorporate cinnamon into your daily diet. And unless you are allergic, there are no known side affects when consumed in normal amounts. Cinnamon is delicious and inexpensive ( although I like to purchase Simply Organic Cinnamon Ground Certified Organic, 2.45-Ounce Container)  which is slightly more expensive) and lends itself to so many recipes. I love it in oatmeal, but some Middle Eastern and Indian recipes use it in their cooking as well.. I've also cinnamon added to many Moroccan recipes.

 Healthy Recipes With Cinnamon. 

Simple Breakfast Detox Drink- Drink  this easy fat flusher upon waking to help flush, detox and balance Ph. This is my number one viewed  post of all time. Over 27, 000 views. You'll want to pin this one for when you need it. It helped me lose weight -  Simple Breakfast Detox Drink-

overnight oatmeal with blackberries and cinnamon
Overnight Oatmeal - Great way to start the day 

Breakfast overnight ( no cook) oatmeal ( This is my favorite- so good- so convenient- use any kind of fruit- tastes like a parfait- No time to make breakfast? You make this the night before and eat it right out of the fridge- you can make one for each family member. Talk about a healthy grab and go.

Banana Oatmeal Raisin Cookies ( no added sugar)  ( love these too- great for a grab and go breakfast or snack. They contain no sugar- but they taste great -even kids love them.)

Strawberries and figs dusted in cinnamon-  Fruit dipped in cinnamon looks Elegant, is Easy, and tastes Devine! Make them for your next party because of their beautiful presentation and simplicity.. Serve with a cheese platter for a great appetizer!

Butternut squash with cinnamon and cumin - Adds variety and an interesting zest to baked butternut  squash. Great side dish! Spices are so good for you- use as many as you can in your cooking.

apples and cinnamon roasted
Roasted Apples and cinnamon

 Roasted Apples in Cinnamon- Easy and great simple dessert. The apples caramelize with the cinnamon. Need I say more? Tastes like apple pie without the crust and calories!

Good article about Cinnamon and Type 2 Diabetes: Huff Post Healthy Living 

Another article that I found on  ezine about the Health Benefits of cinnamon

Disclaimer: The information in this post is for educational purposes only. I am not a medical doctor and am not trying to diagnose or treat disease. Always check with your medical doctor before making any changes in your diet or adding anything to your diet.


What are some of the simple things you do to make help yourself feel better? I love your comments, so please leave one. It introduces me to your blog, and I love to stay connected . I will visit and follow you on Twitter and G+ etc. 
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