Marvelous Muffins

I am not a big baker.
I do not bake because when I do, I tend to eat the whole batch of warm whatever-it-is and wind up with a serious tummy ache. A fresh, chewy cookie or muffin is my absolute undoing, so I don’t often offer myself the temptation. However, two things happened over the past week: I completed a major project at work (therefore I needed a reward) and I found this very healthy recipe for orange-blueberry muffins. At first I was skeptical that they would be delicious and satisfying, but they delivered the goods, with tons of fruit and fiber to boot! I hate to use the term “guilt-free” when it comes to food because that emotion should never be associated with eating, ever, but why not? I’m gonna say it! These are hip-friendly, tummy lovin’ muffins…and I ate three when they came out of the oven!

Ingredients
1/2 cup freshly squeezed orange juice
1/3 cup olive oil or butter
1/3 cup maple syrup or honey
2 Tbs. Tahini
Grated zest of 1 organic, un-waxed orange
2 cups whole grain flour (spelt, kamut, or whole wheat)
1 cup rolled oats
1 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. sea salt
1 cup fresh or frozen blueberries, thawed
nut or seed of your choice (optional)
--> pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, walnuts etc.

Directions
1. Preheat oven to 350F. Lightly oil a 12-cup muffin pan.
2. Put the orange juice, oil, syrup, tahini, and orange zest into a medium bowl and whisk until well combined.
3. Mix the flour, oats, baking powder, baking soda, and salt together in a large bowl until well combined. Add the orange juice mixture and combine, using as few strokes as possible so you do not over mix the batter. Fold in the blueberries.
4. Spoon the batter into the prepared muffin pans, filling each approximately 3/4 full. Sprinkle with nuts or seeds. Bake until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean (about 20-25 minutes). Let the muffins cool before removing them from the pan.
Or, do what I do: take a spoon and desperately dig them out like a complete maniac.

These muffins freeze beautifully. Eat half while they are still warm (you think I’m joking?), and once cooled, put the others in a thick plastic bag in the freezer. Take one out in the morning and put it in your bag for an afternoon snack at work. You will thank yourself for being so prepared and healthy!

This recipe comes from one of the best cookbooks I have ever read. It's called "Enlightened Eating" by Caroline Dupont. Pick up a copy, find food nirvana.

Have you Masticated Today?

I’m talking about chewing! When did we all stop eating mindfully and actually using our teeth? These days it’s hard to find time to eat, let alone do it “properly” so I thought it would be a good idea to remind us all why chewing is so important to our health and how to get back to masticating like we should.

Chewing your food properly is the first step in the process of digestion, which extracts the nutrients from what you eat. The bottom line is: the more you chew your food, the more nutrients will be available for your body to absorb. There’s no point in dropping extra cash on organic food, if you don’t even chew it up!

Here are some great reasons to start chomping again:
1. Chewing cleans your food before it hits your stomach since saliva is antibacterial. Certain food-borne bacteria can be killed just from chewing!
2. When you eat, it takes a while before satiety (“fullness”) signals reach your brain and tell you that you’ve had enough. If you rush your meals you will eat much more before these signals kick in, resulting in your consuming more food than you need. Just by slowing down when you eat you will more likely to eat less (apparently some people want to do that).
3. According to university studies, chewing stimulates the endocrine system, keeping your hormones in balance for a happier, younger-looking you. In particular, the parotid glands just under your cheekbones release a cell-rejuvenating substance, which gives you that youthful glow.
4. Chewing decreases your risk of indigestion and gas. By increasing the surface area of your food, the enzymes in your saliva can begin digestion earlier and prevent your stomach from working too hard. Also, when you chew slowly, you take in less air. You won't champion the next belching contest at the pub, but that's not something to be proud of anyway.
5. The more you chew, the more oxygen is sent to the brain. So take your time and give your meal a thorough munching if you want to keep your mind sharp and avoid those post-meal sleepies.
6. Scientists have also discovered that munching is magnificent for the memory. It may help keep dementia in the elderly at bay. It seems that the more you chew, the more short-term memory cells you develop. When people get older, they lose their teeth and start eating mushy foods. The short-term memory may be compromised because of this simple change in diet and behavior. Isn’t that amazing?

So it turns out grandma was right. Chewing sufficiently does make a difference in how we feel and even look! For best results, try chewing each bite 30 times or more. At first this may seem too time consuming, but remember that eating should be done without hurry anyway. Enjoying the flavour and texture of each bite will bring awareness and gratitude to the act of eating and you’ll naturally slow down. I like to chew my food until it’s liquid simply because I know that I am doing my body a huge favor – last time I checked, I didn’t have teeth in my stomach!

Organic Garden in your Kitchen

Since we’re now in the dead of winter and we’re not exactly getting much in the way of local produce anymore, I thought it would be a great time to introduce ya’ll to the wonderful world of sprouts! I’m sure that most of you have eaten sprouts before and seen them in those little plastic boxes at the grocery store, but I am going to show you that growing your own is so fast, easy and inexpensive that you can have your very own organic garden on your kitchen counter for the rest of your life.

Why should I sprout?
Sprouts are the most vitally alive and nourishing foods we can eat. Once sprouted, grains, seeds and beans have 15% - 30% more protein, up to 10 times the B-vitamins, more vitamin C, vitamin E and K, beta-carotene, calcium, phosphorus and iron. They absolutely qualify as “super foods”. For those trying to lose weight, sprouts provide a low-calorie, high-nutrient food that tends to support improved metabolism.
Sprouting at home takes only a few seconds a day and can produce a good part of your daily requirements of the nutrients you need from fresh produce. The hassles are minor, the costs are low, and the health benefits are immeasurable.

What can I sprout?
Chickpea, alfalfa, sunflower, lentil, wheat, quinoa, mung bean, adzuki bean, clover and radish are just a few of the protein and vitamin-rich sprouts of many possible seeds, grains and beans. Really, any “seed” that is endowed with the potential for the next generation of plant life is sproutable.

What do I need to sprout?
1. A jar, 1 liter to 4 liter (1qt. to gallon) size, depending on your appetite for sprouts and size of your family.

2. A bowl of the right size and weight to prop up the jar.

3. Some screen or netting and a rubber band. You can use an old pair of nylons, cheesecloth, or screen from a hardware store.

4. Fresh water.

5. Seeds with good germination, preferably grown organically. Avoid purchased garden seeds unless you know they aren't treated. Most natural food stores have the common sprouting seeds; if in doubt, ask if it's organic. You can also grab some right out of the bulk bin at a health food store – chickpeas are my favorite. Most seeds keep for a year or more in a cool dry place.

How to sprout:
Easy Sprouting Directions (for most small seeds)

1. Soak: Put 1 to 4 TBS. seed in a wide mouth jar. Cover with mesh and secure with rubber band. Add water, swirl, and drain. Add 1 cup cool water and soak for 4 - 8 hours (or overnight).

2. Rinse: twice a day, refill jar with cool water, swirl, and drain. Invert jar and prop at angle in sink or bowl.

3. Enjoy in three to six days, when sprouts are 3 to 5cm (1 to 2") long. Cover the jar with plastic and a rubber band, or transfer to a covered container, and refrigerate to store. It's really that easy!

Below are some photos of my own alfalfa sprouts. I like to put them on sandwiches or salads for added crunch, flavour and of course, nutrition.





Now, here is a hilarious video I found on YouTube featuring a groovy couple that is VERY enthusiastic about sprouting. It is fun, clear and concise, so after watching you should have the confidence to begin your life as a sprouter.

Remember, if you ever have any questions, please feel free to ask me in the comments section. I am your resource for all things holistic!
All the best. Happy sprouting, Sarah

My New Year's Breath-olution

Happy New Year, everyone. I hope you all had a safe and healthy holiday.

On New Year’s day I woke up to see Toronto festooned with a fresh frosting of snow; bright and clean and ready to take on the New Year. I felt so inspired by the sight of it all, I grabbed my camera, water bottle and headed out to the woods around my house. The things I saw that day were truly breathtaking – and I spent a good deal of time lying in the forest like a crazy person. I lay there in the quiet, looking up through the snowy trees and was suddenly compelled to breathe very deeply. Once I started I couldn’t stop and each time I inhaled, I let more and more oxygen into my starving lungs. I felt the long, slow deep breaths radiate through my whole body. It was then that I realized how long it had been since I had taken a proper breath! Weeks for sure, since my yoga routine was thrown out the window during the holiday rush.
So there, on the forest floor, my New Year’s resolution was decided: breathe deeply and often. I’m not sure what you’ve resolved to do to better your health, but if you’ve only cut back from eight coffees to seven, I invite you to join me in my breath-olution.

One of the reasons aerobic exercise is good for you (and is so good at clearing away mental cobwebs) is that it ups your heart rate and forces your lungs to take in more oxygen while expelling more carbon dioxide. This gives your heart a good workout - it is a muscle after all - and pumps a quick jolt of oxygen through your cells, even those that may have been operating at reduced capacity.

Shallow breathing (or chest breathing) causes a constriction of the chest and lung tissue over time, decreasing oxygen flow and delivery to your tissues. Deep, rhythmic breathing expands the diaphragm muscle, the cone-shaped muscle under your lungs, expanding the lung’s air pockets, invoking the relaxation response, and massaging the lymphatic system.

Breathing serves as the pump for the lymphatic system, just as the heart serves the circulatory system. Your cells must have oxygen to survive moment to moment. To thrive, they rely on a complex exchange between the circulatory system and the lymphatic system. Blood flow carries nutrients and ample amounts of oxygen into the capillaries, while a healthy lymphatic system carries away destructive toxins. Proper breathing is the moderator of this exchange.
The consequence of a sluggish lymphatic system is that you cannot detoxify properly. And if you aren’t breathing deeply or moving regularly, chances are your lymph fluid is not flowing as well as it could. As you can well imagine, this can lead to health concerns over time, including weight gain, muscle loss, high blood pressure, fatigue, and inflammation.

But the great news is that you can improve your lymph system cleansing by learning to practice deep breathing. The expansion and contraction of the diaphragm actually stimulates your lymphatic system and massages your internal organs, helping the body rid itself of toxins, and leaving more room in the cells for an optimal exchange of oxygen.

Remember to breathe through the nose, as it is axiomatic to invoking the parasympathetic nervous system and the attendant relaxation response.

By taking a few moments in your day to really pay attention to the inhalation and exhalation that supports your life, you will slowly and surely move toward a healthier and happier place. Try 5 minutes right now. Tomorrow, 10 minutes. You'll become addicted, I swear. Remember, small changes add up to big improvements - and what better way to begin than breathing?

My best to all of you in the coming year! May you all breathe deeply, sleep soundly, and of course, eat well. Love, Sarah

information reference: http://www.womentowomen.com/fatigueandstress/deepbreathing.aspx