Trusted Personal Care Product Brands

Trustworthy Brands:

• 100% Pure Makeup

• Avalon Organics

• Desert Essence

• Devita

• Emerita

• Old Man Murray's

• Dr. O’Hhira’s producuts

• Active Organics

• Amrita

• Peelu toothpaste

• Weleda

• Some Juice Beauty products (read the label)

Be Well. ♥

Broccoli-Carrot Slaw

Broccoli - Carrot Slaw

Lemon juice dresses one of my all-time favorite salads that I invented to get the kids to eat Broccoli! It also gets apple cider vinegar in their diet (wonderful health benefits).

Broccoli_Carrot Slaw

Recipe

• 6 c. organic Broccoli Slaw, or 4 cups chopped up organic Broccoli and 2 c. shredded carrots

• 1 c. organic Parsley, finely chopped

Dressing

• 2 medium organic Garlic cloves, mashed in mortar and pestle with 1/2 tsp. Pink Sea Salt

• 4 Tbs. Vegenaise

• 1-1/2 Tbs. Bragg's Apple Cider Vinegar

• 1 Tbs. Lemon Juice

• 1/4 tsp. Black Pepper

• 1/2 tsp. Celery Seed (or you can add 1/2 c. fresh Celery, chopped

Combine veggies in a large bowl. 

In a small bowl whisk dressing ingredients until well combined. Taste and adjust seasoning. Pour over veggies and toss to coat.

Note:  This is a light dressing, not meant to look like the thicker Slaw dressing we're used to. ~ Bon Apetit! ♥

Quick Mini Veggie Wraps

Next time you shop buy two packages of Brown Rice Wrappers and Nori sheets to have on hand. You can improvise with the filling. Use organic, no-sugar-added Peanut Butter for the sauce base.

Mini Veggie Wraps with Peanut Sauce

Note: Add 1 tsp. Lime Juice for more zip.

• 4 sheets Brown Rice Wrappers

• 2 sheets sushi-grade Nori

• 1 1/2 c. organic Zucchini, shredded

• 1 c. organic Carrots, shredded

• 4 organic Scallions, cut into thin strips

• 3/4 c. fresh organic Cilantro, stems trimmed

• 1/2 c. organic Mushrooms, sliced thin

• 1/2 c. organic Red Cabbage, shredded

• 1/4 c. organic Yellow or Red Bel Pepper, thinly sliced

Spicy Peanut Sauce

• 1/4 c. organic, no-sugar-added Peanut Butter

• 3 Tbs. Coconut Aminos or Tamari Sauce

• 2 Tbs. Rice Vinegar

• 2 Tbs. organic ev Olive Oil

• 1 Tbs. raw, organic Honey (Maple syrup for vegan)

• 2 tsp. Sesame Oil

• 2 tsp. organic Garlic, minced

• 2 tsp. Ginger

• 1 tsp. crushed Red Pepper flakes (opt.)

• 2 tsp. Water or Lime juice

Mix all ingredients, whisking until smooth.  (You may add a few crushed peanuts if you so desire.)  Place in a bowl.

To make Nori, go through the same process, but do not dip in water.

 Place on a chopping board or kitchen counter covered with parchment paper.

Spread 2 tsp. of sauce along center, and place up to 3/4 cup of filling (1/6 of each veggie), in layers, on wrap. Fold ends in and roll firmly but carefully, so as not to tear sheet.

Cut into 1-1/2" slices with very sharp knife, and place on serving platter. Do this with remaining sheets or rice wraps. Serve with additional peanut sauce, or Tamari.

~ In Good Health! ♥

Zucchini Fudge Brownies

No one will ever guess these brownies are healthy! They are gooey and delicious.

Recipe

• 1 c. organic Black beans, drained

• 1 under-ripe Banana, cut into 5 pieces

• 1/4 c. organic GF Oat or Buckwheat Flour

• 1/4 cup organic Raw Cocoa powder

• 1/4 c. organic Zucchini, shredded

• 1-1/4 tsp. pure Vanilla Extract

• 1/2 - 3/4 tsp. Cinnamon

• 3/4 tsp. Baking Powder

• 1/2 tsp. Baking Soda

• 3 Tbs. Birch Xylitol or 1/4 tsp. Monk Fruit powder

• 3 Tbs. pure Maple Syrup (opt)

• 2 Tbs. brewed Green Tea or Water

• Toasted Pecans (opt.)

Preheat oven to 375º F. Line an 8×8 inch pan with parchment paper and set aside.

Place beans and banana in food processor and pulse until completely mashed.  Add the rest of the ingredients and process until combined, scraping often.

black bean brownies 4

Pour batter into pan, spreading it evenly, and push pecan pieces into batter.

black bean brownies raw

Place pan on middle rack of oven.

Bake for 22-27 minutes, or until edges curl away from paper. The brownies may seem a little gooey, but they harden as they cool. Place pan on a rack and wait 20 minutes before cutting into squares.

Turnover a New Chard Leaf?

My favorite Lebanese turnovers or pies are:  Spinach, Swiss Chard, Chickpea, and of course Zaatar (Thyme) Pies.

Make 1 recipe Basic Dough and let it rise for 90 minutes, or until about doubled.

In the meantime prepare Filling:

• 1 bunch organic Swiss Chard, washed and 1 inch trimmed from stem

• 2 c. organic Spinach, cleaned and chopped

• 2 medium organic Onions, chopped

• 2 1/2 tsp. Sea Salt

• 2 Tbs. organic Lemon Juice

• 2 Tbs. Sumac (found at Mediterranean markets)

• 1 c. organic Walnuts, chopped

• 1/2 c. Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Stack 3 leaves of Chard and slice lengthwise into 3 - 4 pieces depending on width.

Chop and repeat with rest of leaves.

Place in a large bowl.  Add Spinach. Chop onions and add to greens.

Sprinkle Salt over mixture and using your hands mash all together squeezing the greens and onions until slightly wilted.

swiss chard mix

Add lemon juice, sumac, walnuts and olive oil, and mix well. Taste and adjust seasoning.

Tilt bowl so liquid will drain taway from filling by propping with a cloth under one end.

Preheat oven to 400ºF.

Lightly grease a baking sheet with olive oil.

When dough is ready, roll into balls the size of walnuts, dipping the bottoms in flour and putting aside.

dough balls

Sprinkle flour on your board or countertop, and roll each ball into a 3.5” thin round using a little flour if sticky.

flat dough

Place 2 Tbs. of filling in center of round. Make sure liquid is squeezed out.

chard turnover1

Have a small bowl of water nearby.  Dip your finger into water and rub around perimeter of dough round to wet. Fold 1/3 dough over filling, sealing top tip securely by pressing.

chard turnover2

Fold other 1/3 overlapping the first and press to seal all along overlapped edge.

chard turnover3

Bring bottom 1/3 up and press along seams and tips to seal well.

chard turnover4

chard turnovers

Place on baking sheet, repeating until all dough it used up. 

P.S. If you are left with any dough balls, allow to rise for 10 more minutes, and pop in the oven to make into Pita bread!

Bake turnovers for 15 minutes or until bottoms are golden brown.

chard turnovers baked

Cool to room temperature.  Enjoy warm or cold.

~ Sahtein (double health!) ♥

Apricot Sherbert -Dairy Free

I remember Mom giving me a leg-up to get into the Apricot trees in our orchard in Lebanon, and picking the red-cheeked, juicy ones that were too high to reach from the ground. Our fruit picking trips always included a picnic featuring tasty Lebanese mezza dishes (appetizers) that Mom made the day before... Tabboouleh, stuffed Grapes leaves, homemade Arabic bread, Hummus or Baba ghannouj, cheeses, olives, fresh veggies, and watermelon for dessert.

1972

Recipe

• 2 lb. ripe Organic Apricots (@15)

• 1/4  c. Water

• ¾ c. Almond or Coconut Milk

• ¾ c. Birch Xylitol or 2 - 3 packets Stevia (to taste)

• 3 drops pure Almond Extract

• 1/2 tsp. Orange Blossom Water (Whole Foods or Middle Eastern market)

Split apricots and remove pit. Cut each into 1/6’s.

Reserve 1 Tbs. of the apricots.

Cook apricots in water in a non-reactive saucepan over medium heat, covered. Stir occasionally until cooked through, about 10 mins. Add milk.

Remove from heat and stir in sweetener. Let cool to room temp.

Puree the mixture in a blender or food processor until smooth. Stir in the extract, orange water and rest of the apricot pieces.

Chill thoroughly, then freeze in ice cream maker, or pour into Popsicle molds.

~ Sahtein! (double health) ♥

5 Things You Can Do Now to Improve Your Health

Many illnesses, including many cancers, cannot thrive in an alkaline environment. The American diet is extremely acidic...commercially raised red meat, coffee, sugar, fried foods and simple carbs... those make up the overwhelming majority of what we eat.

The components of what you put in your mouth and on your skin has to processed by your liver. This much abused organ is already working overtime to rid your body of toxins that you breathe and get on your skin ...household cleaners, register tape, etc..

FYI - 40 percent of cash register receipts printed on heat-activated paper have been found to contain the dangerous chemical Bisphenol A (BPA)!

I'm going to take just one from a very long list of dubious ingredients that we are commonly used in lotions, deodorants and makeup, namely: castor oil.

Castor oil and its derivativesare used in the manufacturing of soaps, lubricants, hydraulic and brake fluids, paints, dyes, coatings, inks, cold resistant plastics, waxes and polishes, nylon, pharmaceuticals and perfumes.

The castor seed contains ricin, a toxic protein.  Allergenic compounds found on the plant surface can cause permanent nerve damage, making the harvest of castor beans a human health risk. India, Brazil, and China are the major crop producers, and the workers suffer harmful side effects from working with these plants.

This is ONE of many, many ingredients we don't take the time to research, trusting that no company would manufacture and sell a product that contained toxins.  I wish that were so.

Parabens are another ugly story.  Parabens are a group of compounds widely used as antimicrobial preservatives in food, pharmaceutical and cosmetic products, including deodorants. Parabens are absorbed through intact skin and from the gastrointestinal tract and blood.

"Measurable concentrations of six different parabens have been identified in biopsy samples from breast tumors (Darbre, 2004). The particular parabens were found in relative concentrations that closely parallel their use in the synthesis of cosmetic products. They increase the expression of many genes that are usually regulated by estradiol and cause human breast tumor cells to grow and proliferate in vitro."

• Has anyone blown the whistle on cosmetic manufacturers?

• Do you still believe some government agency is really looking out for our health?

So on top of the hundreds of chemical substances our liver has to deal with, we pile on sugar (a toxin itself) and artificial sweeteners and hormone-filled animal protein, and preservatives.

We neglect the care this vital organ needs until it causes us pain or gets sluggish enough to cause alarming symptoms. Please don't wait that long.

Here are the 5 things you can do today to improve your health;

1) Eat Organic

2) Cut out sugar and white flour

3) Refuse to use products with ingredients you can't pronounce or don't recognize

4) Squeeze lemon juice in every glass of water you drink (lemons alkaline our bodies, making them inhospitable to most disease

5) Choose wild-caught, cold water fish (never farm raised) or organic free-range chicken as your animal protein of choice.

~ Be Well. ♥

Olive Oil, Virgin, Organic

Having grown up on the Mediterranean, I was thankful that Olive Oil is on our list of Yes Foods!  I don't think I could have given it up. Olive oil has a wide range of culinary and therapeutic uses. When I was young and sprained my foot or ankle, Mom would mix olive oil with crushed up 'styptic pencils' to make a paste  which she slathered on my foot/ankle and wrapped with gauze.  It took down the swelling and helped me heal. (Styptics  are a specific type of anti-hemorrhagic agent that work by contracting tissue to seal injured blood vessels.) She also used a drop or two when we had a mild earache.

Well, now Olive oil is a star in the cancer fighting arena! The main active molecules in olive oil have shown antioxidant activity. Virgin olive oil contains the highest levels of these molecules.

Oleic acid has shown activity in cancer prevention, while squalene has also been identified as having anti-cancer effects. Research has shown that consuming olive oil is beneficial for colon cancer as well as breast cancer.

I don't use any other oil for salads and it's wonderful for dipping bread in, as you must know. I substitute it for vegetable oil in many baking recipes and to top Hummus (another amazing food that I will discuss in the Recipe section.)

~ Dip it! ♥

A Delicious Fruit Salsa

I was looking for a tasty but out of the ordinary appetizer to serve at a function and stumbled on this recipe.  It was a big hit and fit with my diet beautifully so I want to share it with you. If you are not partial to spicy foods, omit the jalapeno.

This makes about 4 cups, and since it doesn't store very well, you may halve the recipe.

Spicy Strawberry Kiwi Peach Salsa

• 2-1/2 ripe organic Peach - peeled, pitted, and diced
• 2-1/2 organic Kiwi, peeled and diced
• 10 fresh organic Strawberries, diced
• 1 Jalapeno pepper, seeded and diced
• 2 Tbs. and 1-1/2 tsp. Lime juice
• 2-3 organic Green onions, chopped
• 1/4 c. and 1 Tbs. chopped fresh organic Cilantro
• 2-1/2 pinches Sea Salt

Combine the peach, kiwi, strawberries, jalapeno pepper, lime juice, green onion, cilantro, and salt in a bowl; gently stir to combine.

Very tasty on whole grain crackers or as a salsa with a mild fish, or roasted chicken.

~ Enjoy! ♥