Vegetarianism

The word vegetarian has many meanings to many different people. For many a Vegetarian follows a diet that excludes all animal meat and its byproducts. The truth is that there are many variations to this diet.

The ovo-vegetarian includes eggs in their diet

The lacto-vegetarian includes dairy in their diet

The lacto-ovo-vegetarian includes dairy and eggs

The vegan eats only foods from plant sources

Then there are semi-vegetarians, who sometime include poultry and fish in their diet.

Just because someone chooses to exclude animal products does not mean that they have a healthy diet. I have encountered many junk-food vegetarians who just replaced the meat with processed, sugary, fried foods.

Today I find that many people are trying to distance themselves from that word altogether. As the trend grows to eat less meat for better health and for the health of the planet many are also choosing whole foods over the junk for the same reason. May we all make choices that lead to a healthier lifestyle.

Get out and Garden

The past few days I have loved being out digging in my vegetable garden! The compost that I put on the garden in the fall helps to make the soil soft and easy to dig. To my surprise some lettuce and parsley survived this harsh winter, so did the kale but that was no surprise. The peas are in and today in goes the lettuce, kale, and spinach with the broccoli soon to follow. Now if you are thinking that it is too early to be planting outside you are mistaken. My Great-Grand Father taught me that peas get planted on or as close to St. Patrick's day as possible. I combine that with gardening by the moon phases, which says that you plant everything that grows its "fruit" above ground on a waxing moon such as peas and and broccoli. You then plant everything that grows its "fruit" underground on a waning moon such as carrots and parsnips. A waxing moon in when the moon is growing, going from a dark moon to a full moon and the waning moon from full to dark. I remember when I was young and I thought planting by the moon meant going out at night and planting in the moon light.

The peas that I plant are snow peas and sugar peas. Both have edible pods, the snow peas have a flat pod while the sugar peas have a fuller rounder pod. Both are great for steaming, adding to stir-fry's, adding to salads, and of course snacking on. When my son was little and spent many hour playing in the back yard I never have enough peas for dinner because he would snack on them all day long and I could not have been happier.

I like planting leaf lettuce now so that it will be coming up just as it is really getting warm and we are craving fresh food from the garden. I chose leaf lettuce so each evening I go out to the garden and pick just the amount of lettuce that I need for that meal instead of an entire head. This lettuce will not survive the summer heat but will go to seed, replant itself and in the fall start growing again for a fall crop.

In two week I will be planting carrots,, parsnips, radishes, and beets. The compost here again is a big help because the ground in my area is all clay and very hard for root vegetables to to grow in. With the addition of compost every fall I have been able to to create a soft soil for the root vegetables to grow quite large.

I will be waiting until it stays warm, around the end of May or April before I plant my tomatoes and beans. I don't start the tomatoes from seed because growing anything indoors for me usually does not work. I travel up to the Lancaster Pennsylvania area to buy beautiful healthy plants to finish off my planting.

If you do not have the space for a garden planting in containers is a great alternative. However you garden eating your own-grown vegetables is well worth any effort.

Daikon

What is a daikon? A Daikon is a root vegetable that is usually very long (up to 14 inches), white in color, and shaped like a carrot. It has a peppery taste and is best used in salads, side dishes and casseroles. The daikon is helpful with the digestion and the assimilation of fats as well as aiding in cleansing organ tissues. Theses roots are also a good source of vitamin C.

I like daikons best in my salad with dinner each evening. With a vegetable peeler I slice rounds into the salad. It gives the salad a mild spice. For a casserole I use fresh or dried daikon added in with whatever other vegetables are already called for. While fresh daikon is great for helping us digest and release fats from our digestive system dried daikon helps our organs release extra fats that they may be holding on to.

You can find daikons fresh in the produce sections of most food stores or in a dried form at a natural food stores.

Try a daikon tonight it will be a nice addition to your meal and your health.

Questions?

I would love to answer your health questions. Just leave your questions under comments.

An Onion A Day Keeps A Stroke Away

Stroke is just one of the many devastating effects of heart disease. Heart disease and stroke are not sudden onset diseases, they take many years of unhealthy living before you even know that it is a danger to you. Family history and taking a good look at your lifestyle are just two ways that you can help you determine if you are at risk. If you feel that you are at risk see your doctor, learn the early warning signs of a stroke and make lifestyle changes. These steps could improve the quality of your life in the years to come. I am at risk because I have a family history of stroke, grandmother, mom, brother. So, I have learned the early warning signs and I take special care with my lifestyle choices to reduce my chances of heart disease and stroke.
Just what is a stroke? There are two types of strokes, one is when a blood clot has moved into the brain and is preventing vital blood from flowing normally throughout the brain. Clots can form when the blood can not move freely through vessels due to clogged arteries and sticky “fatty” blood. Second is when a blood vessel has broken in the brain and blood leaks from the vessel causing damage. When our capillaries are weak they can break easily with such conditions as high blood pressure. Both are equally devastating but if you get medical treatment within the first few hours your chances of a full recovery are good. I have seen this happen.


I believe that there is no one cause for a disease and that there is not just one way to heal from a disease. There may be factors that are beyond our control but many more that we can affect everyday. I need to think differently, move differently, and eat differently then those in my family that have had strokes. Looking for the positive even in the worst of situations is hard but keeps you moving forward. Meditation can help you get to know yourself without the noise of society telling us what we want and need. Learn to listen to you, you may be surprised. Next, I exercise, I jump on a mini trampoline and stretch you just need to find something that gets you moving and make it a part of your daily routine. Floss, medical research has found that there is a direct lick between gum disease and heart disease. But for me I feel that diet can make the biggest impact on heart disease.
“An onion a day keeps a stroke away” that is the saying I like. Do you have any idea how powerful this food is? Onions are part of the allium family which also includes garlic, leeks, shallots, scallions, and chives. But the onion provides the best source of quercetin a powerful flavonoid that can help decrease platelets from sticking and lower lipids. They also contain organosulfurs that inhibit the production of cholesterol. Onions are not the only powerful stroke busters we need to keep our arteries and capillaries with strong antioxidants. They are the red, orange, yellow, and green fruits and vegetables that when combine with grain fiber also help to keep plaque to a minim.
Throughout the day I enjoy whole grains, nuts and fruits. My dinner plate will be more then half full with colorful vegetables and onions then a whole grain or starch and a protein. I use extra virgin olive oil and spices to bring out the bold flavors for a delicious meal. You can too. Be well!

Mushrooms

Did you know that mushrooms are a source of vitamin D? The media has brought to our awareness the importance of vitamin D in our diet. It is vital to the integrity of our bones, heart health, and lung function. Of course the sun is our best source of this nutrient but in the effort to protect ourselves from the too much sun we are depriving ourselves of this essential vitamin. FYI; the sun converts the cholesterol in our body into vitamin D. 15 to 30 minutes day in the sun is all you need for your days requirement. Winter produces another obstacle so we look to our food. Vitamin D is found in some animal sources but as of now only one plant source...the mushroom. Mushrooms contain a small amount of this nutrient naturally but the growing practices of using UV lighting is proving to increase this amount.

I love mushrooms but 2 of my kids do not so I have not used mushrooms as a main course too often. But kids grow-up and are not always home at dinner time so I bring on the mushrooms. This is what I made last night....

Stuffed Portabella Mushroom Caps

Marinate
1 TBS. worrestershire sauce
1 TBS. water
1 tsp. liquid smoke
1 tsp. olive oil

4 portabella mushroom caps

1 large onion
2 garlic cloves
⅛ head cabbage
2 inch piece daikon
1 carrot
1 orange pepper
2 artichoke hearts
6 large kale leaves
2 Tbs. Olive oil
Sea salt
⅛ cup Briggs liquid aminos or balsamic vinegar

Chopped pecons
Feta cheese, crumbled

Brush ¾ of the marinade over the top of the mushroom caps and let set for 15 to 30 minutes. Place into a 350° degree oven and bake for 15 minutes. Turn caps over and brush on the rest of the marinade, return to oven and bake another 15 minutes.

Have prepared all your vegetables before you start sautéing except the kale. Cut the onion, cabbage, and red peppers into thin slices. Chop the garlic and artichoke hearts into medium size pieces. Use a vegetable peeler to slice the daikon and carrots thinly. Heat the oil in a frying pan or wok. Add the vegetables in the order that they are listed adding a generous pinch of salt to the onions and letting them wilt a bit before adding the garlic. Sauté each vegetable a few minutes before adding the next one. After everything has been added up to the kale let it all simmer in the juices while you coarsely chop the kale. It will look like you have way too much kale but it will wilt down significantly. Add all the kale and the Briggs liquid aminos, continue cooking until the kale has wilted; this should only take a few minutes.

Remove mushrooms from oven and plate on a serving dish top side down. Sprinkle with chopped nuts then cover with a generous amount of sauted vegetables and top with crumbled feta cheese.

I Served this with herbed oven baked sweet potatoe wedges.

(Excerpts from Trish’s Dishes Copy right 2009)

Today is My Birthday

Today is my birthday and I love carob cake shared with my family. Most people think that because I do not eat white flour or white sugar that I miss out on all the sweat things in life. That is so wrong. Carob cake is just one of many cakes that I love to make and eat. Even though this cake is a sweat treat you are still getting good fiber and nutrients so that you are not robing your body of health.

If you do not know what carob is it is comparable to chocolate in looks and flavor but is a healthier alternative. The carob pod (chock-full of nutrients, by the way) comes from the Mediterranean, and its pulp is ground into a powder. You can purchase it as carob powder, carob chips, or in candy bar form in the baking section of most natural food stores. Be sure that you get products without hydrogenated oils, refined sugar, or palm kernel oil. Use carob to replace chocolate in any recipe, but know that while the taste is similar, you can tell a clear difference between the two.

Surprise your family with this healthy cake and enjoy!

Carob Cake

¾ cup non-hydrogenated buttery spread
1 cup honey
3 eggs
3 cups whole wheat
3 tsp. baking powder
½ tsp. salt
¾ cup soymilk or water, adjust liquid as needed
½ cup carob powder (more or less as you like it)
2 tsp. lemon juice
1 tsp. vanilla

Cream the margarine, honey, and eggs. Combine dry ingredients and add to creamed mixture alternately with the remaining liquids. Pour into two 9" cake pan; bake 20 –30 minutes at 350° cool in pans. Remove and frost.

Honey Icing

1 cup honey
2 egg white
pinch of salt

Combine honey, eggs, and salt in the top pot of a double boiler. Bring the lower pot with water to a boil the turn down to medium heat. Be sure that it continues to boil if not turn the heat up slightly. Put the top pot on the bottom pot; beat with an electric mixer until mixture stands in soft peaks. This will take about 10 minutes. When cooled spread over cake.


(Excerpts from Trish’s Dishes Copy Right 2009)