The Benefits of Turmeric (Olena root)

I'm very fortunate to live in a place with such diverse and easily accessible natural medicines, provided by mother nature herself.
If there is one thing I've learned, it's that it's okay to be busy in our day to day lives, because that's our society in this day in age. However, it is CRUCIAL, now more than ever, to be able to stop and smell the roses. For the sake of your sanity and for the sake of your health.
You would be shocked at the healing potential that you are surrounded by
everyday.

In this post, I feel the need to give a little shout out to Turmeric. 

It's used in a lot of Indian/Thai cooking, curries and curry powder, rice dishes, dyes, and even yellow mustard. It's reason why yellow mustard is yellow.

It grows like ginger does (same family), as a plant but is harvested for the rhizomes. The plant itself will grow and grow for a few months, and when it dies off, you'll be left with weird finger-like roots popping out of the ground and THIS is what you want.

It grows in a warm, humid environment.

As far as the benefits go, there are almost too many to list. The main reason I use it is for joint pain, when I had a problem with my leg after running with the wrong shoes, and when I have a cold.

The healing property is the curcumin, but it also contains other minerals like iron, potassium, and others.

It reduces inflammation -- hence, the use for joint pain. Therefore if you have issues with arthritis, cystic fibrosis, IBD, acne, etc.

Increases immunity, and cell growth (studies have shown it has been used to prevent cancer).

Stimulates the gall bladder in aiding with digestion -- detoxing.

Circulation -- lowering cholesterol.

It has also been shown to prevent Alzheimer's, prostate problems, artery plaque build up, etc.

You can take it in pill form, which I think is stupid because they sell the ground up turmeric powder in bulk at your local health food store or specialty spice store. Some places, you can buy the actual raw root, which is EVEN better! With a nub of an actual root, you can let it sit until it starts sprouting and grow it! That's the best part :)

Super Easy Dessert Alert

I have a problem with chocolate.
Not afraid to admit it.
What's better than chocolate?


Not a lot of things....
So here was my quick fix :)

Vegan and SUPER easy chocolate peanut butter cups!

First Layer

Blend oats, peanut butter, agave/maple syrup, and a pinch of salt if there isn't already salt in the peanut butter.

Pack this half way down in a muffin tin. It should be a dry but easily moldable consistency.

Second Layer

Raw cacao powder, coconut oil, a splash of almond milk, and agave/maple syrup. This should be a thick liquid consistency.

Pour this the rest of the way in the muffin tins to fill it to the top.

THEN, freeze or refrigerate until the coconut oil based chocolate sauce is solid. Easy right? It's also super tasty and a natural home made way to make a peanut butter cup!

Wheat-free, oil-free, egg-free Pancakes

I used oats in this recipe, but any hearty grain flour will work. Such as spelt, quinoa, buckwheat, etc.

One more thing I'd like to mention before I go ahead and load the recipe on you. I am OBSESSED with THIS-

It's coconut oil cooking spray! The Gods have answered my prayers.

Oh and this is something I like at the moment too-

It's natural vanilla whey powder. It's very low in sugar and has lots of good stuff in it, and not to mention the fact that it's from grass fed and rbgh free cows! 

Protein Pancakes

-3-4 heaping TBSP of steel cut oats

-2 heaping TBSP chia seeds

-Half scoop of protein powder 

-pinch of baking soda

-pinch of salt

-drizzle of agave

-1/2 tsp cinnamon

-almond milk to thin it out (or water) which is about 1/3 cup?

Blend, and cook on a low medium heat with a non stick pan and some COCONUT OIL SPRAY and you're good to go! I added some frozen blueberries to mine, and topped it with raw honey <3

Avocado Pudding to the Rescue!

We all have those days...

Bloating
Cramps
Gas
etc., etc....

When our tummies get a little out of wack.

Whether it's something we ate,
or something we "drank too much of" the night before.

Regardless, I decided to blend up a few things that have helped me during these cases in the past for my breakfast this morning! Within a couple hours I was totally back to normal and had my happy tummy.

Avocado-Stomach-Ease-Pudding

1/4 of a large avocado (or half of a small avocado)

1 & 1/2 frozen apple bananas, or 1 frozen banana 

splash of almond milk (or you can use coconut water/coconut milk!)

1/2 tsp vanilla

2 heaping tablespoons of chia seeds

2 heaping tablespoons of arrowroot, dissolved in a small bowl with 1/4 cup hot water. Mix the two together until the arrowroot clumps are completely dissolved into a glue-like milk.

2 tablespoons of coconut oil 

Blend together until a thick green pudding!

You can substitute the banana for more avocado and a few dates. If you want to use the whole avocado.

Or add cacao powder for a chocolate pudding!

Try this if you're experiencing digestive problems,

Try this for a vegan dessert alternative,

JUST TRY IT!

Healthy Switch Up- Tuna Melt

Tuna Melts traditionally consist of tuna salad (canned tuna, mayo, and some other things like celery, mustard, etc.), tomato and cheese in a panini sandwich, toasted, or grilled cheese style

I just hate mayo.
And I'm not sorry about it.

I don't understand the concept of spreading or mixing an egg yolk condiment on things... The texture is like a combination of oily and creamy and I don't find any part of that appetizing or appealing.
Also, egg yolks are loaded with cholesterol, so not recommended for people with high cholesterol levels, heart problems, or obesity.

So here's my version.

Salmon vs. tuna: 

1. Salmon has b6, b12, tuna doesn't. 

2. "Per 100g salmon has 2,018mg of omega-3s compared to tuna’s paltry 243mg." (from men's health) Contributing to healthy skin, hair, brain function, weight loss, getting rid of inflammation and gaining muscle.

3. Tuna has been known to harbor more mercury levels. In fact up to 27 times more!

Bread,

Avocado,

and 

Healthy Salmon Salad

1 can of salmon (I used smoked salmon, which is even more flavorful!)

1/4-1/3 cup thick, plain, non fat, greek yogurt

1/2 tsp dijon mustard

1/2 tsp turmeric

1-2 Tbsp chopped fresh chives, green onion or scallions.

freshly cracked black pepper

hot sauce (optional)

Spread avocado on both sides of bread,

add as much filling as you please, and then....

MELT IT! 

Homemade Vegan (Almond) Yogurt

If you read my post on kombucha,
the same rules apply here!
Probiotics are amazing for your digestion, immunity, energy, and overall well being.

Here is another easy way to get some awesomeness into your system.

Step 1: Soak nuts in water over night. I used almonds.

Step 2: Strain the next morning and rinse.

Step 3: Blend with some water. Not too much, but not too little. You want a medium thick paste. Think thinner than nut butter.

Step 4: Leave in a bowl, covered with a cloth or paper towel for one day (about 12 hours) room temp.

Step 5: Add water if you want thinner, a splash of sweetener, vanilla, cinnamon, whatever you please!

Serve it up in smoothies or just by itself!

Gluten Free Blueberry Scones

Luckily for me, I stumbled upon a deal at Whole Foods the other day where they were selling boxes of blueberries for 1.99 each! (Regularly 7.99) So I bought four boxes.

I had to make something with them instead of just eating them out of the box like I did. (I pounded down one whole box in one sitting...)

Scones or pancakes?

I decided on the scones.

1 2/3 cups all purpose gluten free flour

1 1/3 cups gluten free oats

1/4 cup brown sugar

1/2 tsp cinnamon

2 tsp baking powder

3/4 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

1 stick of unsalted organic butter

1 Tbsp olive oil

splash of almond milk (optional)

1 cup organic blueberries (or less... or more)

Preheat oven for 400 degrees F, mix together dry ingredients and then chop up the cold butter into cubes. Mix/massage in butter until it is mixed completely with dry ingredients and then add olive oil, forming a dough. If you feel like this mixture is way to dry to pack into scone sized balls, add almond milk (however much is needed to create a solid crumbly dough). Next, add blueberries and mix gently with hands.

Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and put scones down. I sprinkled mine with a little bit of hemp seeds and dusted cinnamon on top. Feel free to sprinkle with more oats, raw sugar, brown sugar, or whatever you want. This recipe made 8 scones for me, but if you want them smaller you can do so. Bake for 12-15 minutes.

Perfectly, surprisingly, gluten free <3