New Holiday Tradition for my family

Hi Everyone.  Hope you all had a great holiday how ever you celebrate. We thought we were going to have a new little one over christmas weekend but it was a false alarm. Haley wants to have it tonight or I should say tomorrow morning on New Years day. She wants little Eli to be the first baby born so she can get all kinds of free stuff!  My little girl has always wanted to be the first at just about everything and shes just a weeee bit spoiled but I don't think this time she is going to get her way. There have been no signs of a baby showing up today, just to be on the safe side tho we are all staying in tonight.

Now to the new tradition: I needed a quick appetizer one night and I came up with fried artichokes with a cream sauce and artichoke bread patties. We make and eat alot of food around here durring the holidays, alot of it is fattening but all of it is better for you than the traditional stuff. This new recipe is no different its not low cal but its made with real ingredients and that is very important. Keep in mind this is a holiday or party appetizer not an everyday meal.

And yes these are fried but not deep fried and remember I always use grapeseed oil or denatured coconut oil so it will be ok to fry these. I am not sure how they would work baked but if you try it let me know how they come out. And remember use as many organic ingredients as possible I always do; but sometimes we just can't so do the best you can and feel good about your effort.
You will need:
2 cans of artichokes (in brine, drained)
1 1/2 c seasoned bread crumbs
1/2 c    grated pecorino romano cheese
1/2tsp  galic powder
1/2 tsp black pepper
1-2      eggs (or if you don't eat eggs, substitute 1/2 c milk or plain soymilk)
1 TB    water to add to the eggs (omit if not using eggs)
About 1/2 inch of grapeseed oil in the bottom of a hot skillet
Method:
In a medium bowl whip the eggs with the water, set aside (or just pour the milk into the bowl). In low larger bowl mix the bread crumbs and cheese together add garlic powder and black pepper you can add more than what I have if you want, set this aside.
Set the skillet onto burner and heat over medium heat add the oil. Cut the artichokes in half (top to bottom) and dip into the egg mixture first; then dredge in the breadcrumbs, place into hot skillet and fry on both sides until golden. Place on several layers of paper toweling to drain. Continue this until all have been fryed. Add the left over eggs to the remaining bread crumbs along with any pieces of artichoke that fell off durring dredging. Add some extra milk if you need to to make a thick batter. Form the batter into patties (or spoon into pan flattening to form a patty) and fry in left over oil. Set aside on paper towels to drain.

For The Cream Sauce:
In a small saucepan over medium/low heat melt 1/4 stick of butter or earth balance, add 1 1/2 cups of 1/2 and 1/2 or vitamin d milk. When milk starts to bubble add 3/4 cup grated pecorino romano cheese and stir until sauce thickens. Serve over artichokes with bread patties and some marinara sauce if you want.

Growing Pains

Wow!  The bakery is growing alot right now. We are now in California currently we have a small presence but we are about to have a much larger one. I think its because we have just introduced our bakers dozen value pack. It seems to be going over really well. Anyway this is all keeping me very busy which keeps me from updating my blog on a regular basis so please forgive me.

I did want to tell you about this really great asian dish I made the other night. I used Quorn chicken strips and my family didin't even know. This is how I did it.

Clean and slice into strips:
Broccoli
Carrots (baby ones are sweet and tender)
onions
Mushrooms (slice like you normally would, if they are very wide cut in half)
And any other vegetables you think would go good or you have in your fridge
Wash a couple handfulls of fresh spinach (more if you like alot of greens)
METHOD
Heat a wok or skillet and add enough peanut, coconut or sesame oil to coat bottom of pan. Throw in the veggies all except mushrooms and spinach and some red pepper flakes and toss around in oil, sautee until just beginning to get tender. Add the Quorn chicken and mushrooms continue to sautee stirring occassionally. Season with garlic, ginger, curry powder and liquid aminos. Sprinkle with a little brown sugar or fructose. Cover and let simmer about 3-5 more minutes. Be carefull not to let veggies over cook stir in about a tablespoon or 2 of General Tso's bottled sauce if you want and then add the spinach last and toss with all of the juices. This is great without the General Tso's but it adds a sweet/tangyness and a little more juice to spoon over rice.
The great thing about this is, like all of my recipe suggestions; it's just that a suggestion ment to teach you how to put flavors together so that you can use what you learn from one recipe and make adjustments to turn it into your own. For instance this recipe can be made your own by using as much of the spices as you like. If you like garlic use more if you don't like ginger go light on that. Also if you use denatured coconut oil it will be tasteless but if you don't it will give it a nice coconut flavor and how kool to add some unsweetened coconut flakes to this. Or serve over coconut rice.
Another idea would be to substitute another green or seaweed for the spinach adjusting the seasoning to match the flavor of the green for instance omitting the sugar.
Enjoy over your favorite rice or try over quinoa for added protein.

I love passing on these ideas and would love to know what you do with them so if anyone wants to let me know how they tweeked it to make it their own I would really like to hear form you.

My version of popular fast food

Most of my recipes are vegetarian even vegan but my family does eat chicken and some meat so I have to come up with healthy ideas for carnivore recipes. Having teenagers around that I have to feed makes it even harder to be creative all of the time.
My daughter Haley loves Subway; which I hate and can't understand; but what do they say," if you can't fight um Beat um! "LOL :).  So I came up with a recipe for her favorite sub (Chicken bacon ranch) that we can do at home. Heres what I do:
Cut a chicken breast into stripes, (You can also use your favorite fake chicken thats what I do and I love it) season with garlic, salt and pepper then fry out in a little olive or grapeseed oil set aside. Slice a sweet onion into thin slices and saute till golden in the same pan. Open a sub roll preferably wheat and on 1 side squirt some ranch dressing, use mustard of your choice on the other Haley likes honey mustard. Then Put some chicken and onions on 1 side of the bun and top with provolone slices or other cheese of your choice. Place on a cookie sheet and put  under the broiler until cheese is melted and bubbly. Remove and finish with what ever toppings you want, (my daughter likes fresh spinach, tomatoes, sliced banana peppers, and cucumbers. She also likes bacon on it so I either use Bac'Uns or real bacon bits (not that I like to use them but I don't buy bacon so its a way for her to have the taste without using too much of it).

You can also do a similar thing with Kentucky fried chickens mashed potato bowl which she loves and used to sneak sometimes until I started making it for her. Use the same principle as above except you can buy vegetarian tenders (Quorn makes a good one)  or Barberas makes a natural raw one that you have to bake first. Then make mashed potates and gravy and cook some sweet corn with chopped onions. Put it all together in a bowl and top it off with shredded cheese.

Another one is McDonalds new breakfast sandwich made with the sweet maple flavored muffin. At home we make small pancakes and use them for the bread and then drizzle maple syrup on the fake sausage and egg. Its yummy.
Use these ideas and see what else you can come up with on your own. Its turns out to be not only better for you and your family but alot cheaper too.

Wedding Cakes

I don't do alot of wedding cakes but I love to do them when I get the chance. I just want to brag a little on the 2 I did in August so I am posting the pictures here for all to see : ) I'm not sure why I can't get the cupcake one to stand upright so you have to turn your head to see it Sorry!

California Expansion

Great News! We are very excited about our expansion into the northern California area. We have hired Organic Brand Management from Capitola California to help us with the expansion. Andrew the owner is very talented in his field and with his help we should do well out west.
Along with the expansion we are also going to be rolling out a new group of value pack cookie bags. A bakers dozen of your favorite Everyday Gourmet Bakery cookies.

Oh and we are so excited to have been nominated for the best on-line vegan bakery in VegNews' yearly contest for the best vegan businesses. We will post the results of the contest when we get them.

Stuffed Jalepenos

This is a simple dish that you can adjust to fit your taste. I am a vegetarian and I use dairy products in some of my personal dishes so I use cows milk cream cheese. You can substitute tofuti cream cheese if you want.

Heres the basiscs of the dish:
Take jalepenos as many as you want I used 6 and slice in half horizontaly, seed and rinse well. (be careful your fingers will have hot oils on them)
Mix about 6 oz of cream cheese with chopped garlic, cumin powder, chipotle powder and chopped scallions or chives. Put this mixture into a plastic bag or frosting bag and cut off the tip end. Fill each half of pepper by pipping mixture into it. Place the peppers into a baking dish and set aside.

In a food processor or blender process 1 large or 2 medium fresh tomatoes (cut up) along with some sea salt, garlic, and cumin. Pour over peppers and place into a 350' oven, bake 30 minutes. Serve hot with rice. DELICIOUS!
Don't be affraid to experiment with other flavors in the cream cheese mixture. Also try other types of peppers
mild and hot.

Hospital Food

Who are the nutritionist that develop the menus for hospital food? I cannot believe what they serve to the patients and I really can't believe they call some of it food! 

My husband is in the hospital right now, something he has to do every 2-3 years or so. He is a heart patient and a borderline diabetic. He is also disabled due to a severe back injury and permanent nerve damage. I have kept his diabeties under control with diet and he eats a heart healthy diet at home. At the hospital last night they tried to feed him a dinner of bbq pork, mashed potatoes and corn.....when he asked the nurse if this was the correct plate for him she responded "yes sir this is a heart healthy meal, they do this scientificly sir". He refused to eat it telling her that his wife would kill him if he did and opted for a tuna sandwich which the nurse produced from the nurses refrigerator.  I was proud of him but also appauld at the hospital! How dare they give greasy pork to a heart patient and 2 starchy carbs to a diabetic whats wrong with this picture?
I really wish they would let me create a truely healthy menu, the patients would love it and they would not be getting food that could actually kill them!

Eco Village

You know how you have a dream that just seems to get further and further away so much so that you start to get scared that you will never acheive it. Well thats how I have been feeling lately about my husbands and my dream of becoming part of or starting our own eco-village. I puruse those eco village websites hoping to find just the right place for us to retire. Only to find that the expense of joining such a place is so high that I cannot ever see us affording it. I really only want to have a piece of land that is big enough to provide space for about 4-5 familys and allow for farming area to feed all of us. I want to create a community spirit that encourages love for one another as well as respect for each others personal space. With communal spaces and private dwellings. I am hoping that with enough involvement we can all share in the work as well as expences so that we can all benefit sharing in the bounty as well. I guess the best thing to do is to keep my focus on acheiving the dream and not let myself worry about it happening instead I WILL MAKE IT HAPPEN ONE WAY OR ANOTHER!

Whole Wheat Flax Bread

So I went to a bakery show in Toronto last month and discovered a few good products that I am starting to use in my bread. One is a new yeast that actually produces Vitamin D as it proofs. I have already been using that for about a month now. The other 2 are an organic dough conditioner that helps the bread be more consitent with texture and a whole wheat white flour that hasn't been bleached or over processed and still retains the whole grain fiber from the wheat. I just started using them and must say I love them both.
Next I will be adding DHA (omega 3) the brain food. I am using one derived from algae so its vegan and there are no worries of it containing mercury.

If you want to know more about our bread or any of our other products just give the bakery a call at 315-483-4159 or visit us at http://www.everyday-gourmet.net/.

Allergies

Right now many of you are suffering from common seasonal allergies. There are several ways to naturally fight against these. FIRST LET ME SAY THAT I AM NOT A DOCTOR AND  I AM ONLY RECOMMENDING THESE OPTIONS AS ALTERNATIVES THAT MAY OR MAY NOT BRING RELIEF. PLEASE RESEARCH MORE ABOUT EACH OPTION AND CONSULT WITH YOUR DOCTOR BEFORE TRYING ANY NEW REMEDY. There are homeopathic remedies that work for a variety of different allergies. Be sure to that you choose the one related to your specific allergy (tree pollen, grass pollen etc.) this is very important when working with homeopathics as they are formulated to work on a paticular condition. Some of you may know about using local honey. This can also be very effective in relieving allergies, again it is very important here to select honey from your local area as the honey bees from your area have produced the honey using local pollen supplies. It is thought that this will help to build your immunity to allergins from your area, working the same way as homeopahtics do. Both of these methods rely on enhancing your immune system in order to naturally fight off these allergins.

As is the case with Diet Enhance from EverYoung Natural Foods, which is a blend of vegan, organic nutrients from the origin of our food chain that have been clinically tested and shown to provide possible relief from seasonal allergies. It strengthens our bodies defense against foreign invaders such as toxins that include heavy metals, pesticides and the invasion of pollens and other allergens. By strengthening our bodies defense against such foreign invaders we are better able to fend off the symptoms of seasonal allergies. The seperate ingredients in Diet Enhance which have been clinically tested and shown to help our bodies in a variety of ways is made up of three algae the backbone being blue-green algae well known for its health benefits by enhancing the function of our bodies immune system. An interesting aside is that recent evidence suggests that this same blue-green algae may help to relieve the effects of sunburns caused by the suns UV radiation, in essence an internal sun screen.

As with other natural remedies patience is the key, many times it takes weeks for you to see full relief while these natural remedies are building up in your system. Therefore it is important to begin using them as soon as allergy season begins.

If you would like more information on Diet Enhance you can visit the website @ www.everyoungnaturalfoods.com or contact the company direct @ 1-888-483-4208.

Good and Bad Carbohydrates

Many of you do not understand the difference between Good and Bad Carbs so I would like to explain the difference for you.

Complex carbs like raw vegetables and fruit are part of the good group of carbs. Also in this group are whole grains like whole wheat, bulger, kamut, spelt and brown and wild rices. This group does not include white flours, white rice, or flours made with so called white whole wheat. It does not include white pastas in fact pasta in general is a simple carb also called processed carbs or refined carbs meaning that it has been processed and these types of carbs are void of nutrition they are also lacking in fiber and fail to slow sugar absorption, causing wide swings in glucose levels. Even when a label says that the product has been enriched with nutrients it does not mean it is a good thing. Generally when a food has been enriched it means that first it has had all of its nutrients removed then because the government actually governs some things they demand that some of the nutrients be put back. So they put a small portion of them back but it’s never the same and the small amount that is replaced is nothing compared to what was removed.

There are pastas available today that are made with whole grains like wheat and garbanzo bean flour. Dream Fields pasta is made with semolina but somehow is able to keep their effective carbs down to an acceptable level. I think it is the addition of a non-soluble fiber that allows for this. Either way if you are watching your carbs for any reason pasta is not your friend, so eat it sparingly.

Beans or legumes are very nutritious and inexpensive they are a low fat source of fiber and protein. They are in the good carbohydrate category and are loaded with phytonutrients, folic acid and iron.

I think you all know that white sugar is an evil and of course a bad or simple carb. There are alternatives to table sugar. These include agave nectar, xylitol, erythritol, honey, and crystaline fructose. I write about all of these in my book in further detail but basically they do not effect the blood glucose levels in the same way that sugar does not causing the same highs and lows. This makes them a better choice.

In general we should all avoid eating too many processed carbohydrates or simple carbs. We should eat a wide variety of complex carbs in all colors from all the groups: fruits, vegetables, legumes and grains.

New Healthy Muffins with 7g protein and 10g fiber

I just recently created these muffins that are truly diabetic friendly. They are great! High fiber and high protein and made with xylitol instead of sugar, flaxmeal, mesquite flour, whole spelt flour and whole oats (all organic)

We offer them in these flavors they are a big 6oz. size so you could eat a whole one for breakfast or try just a half. $2.79 each. You can reach the bakery at 315-483-4159 Monday thru Friday.
CARROT RAISIN
CINNAMON RAISIN
MAPLE WALNUT
COCONUT

Also I have created a "Cookie Pop" One of our soft vanilla agave cookies dipped in chocolate on a stick. We are working on a sugar free version of the chocolate that will work consistantly. But for now it is dipped in dark chocolate or milk chocolate and it is a big 5oz cookie. $3.50 each comes in a bag all tied up with a ribbon bow. I'M SORRY I didn't mean to tempt the ladies trying to loose weight but I have to let people know about the new products the bakery comes up with. I am working on the sugar free chocolate coating tho and I will make that cookie pop smaller...

Pre Order my book The Healthy Family Guide by: Charlene Venette

If you like the information that you read here then you might be interested in having my book which I am currently working on entitled "The Healthy Family Guide". I am hoping to finish it by this summer some time, i am still working on it but it will take longer than I thought. I will keep you updated. If you are interested please let me know so I can have an idea of how many to have printed up. I am doing it myself in order to save money. When I get an idea of how many I will need I will be able to post the price on this blog.

It is a simple to read book that covers in plain english all of that information that you hear in the media about how to be healthy. I break down the information into simple to understand terms and indentify the good and bad information so you will know what the truth really is about ingrediants, herbs, essential oils, fats, carbs etc. I also include inforamtion on how to convert a bad recipe into a healthy one along with alot of my own healthy recipes that are so delicious your family will really eat them. I have done the research for you and put it all together in one book making it a quick and easy reference for busy people that want to live healthier lives.

You can contact me via e-mail at cherrylipzzzgirl@yahoo.com or call me at the bakery at 315-483-4159.

Why Should We Eat Fruit?

I think we all know that fruit is good for us but here are some facts about fruit that you may or may not know. First let me say that eating as much organic or locally grown fruit as possible is important. Something you might find interesting: is a study that was done once on 2 groups of women 1 group ate lots of fruit but it wasn't organic and the other ate the same amount of fruit that was organic. Both groups saw an overall improvement especially in their skin, and digestion but the study was looking at the ability for fruit to help to cleanse toxins from the body and especially the liver. Where the first group saw good improvements as mentioned, it was noticed that their liver was actually working overtime showing very high liver enzymes in their blood. The other group that ate organic fruit did not have this same liver reaction in fact they all saw improvement in liver function and overall toxin removal from the blood and bowels. A very good reason to eat more organic produce.
Fruit Facts:
1. It is not usually suggested that people with arthrietis consume alot of oranges or orange juice. It is thought that they will cause inflamation and pain. Well, that is true of most of the oranges you find in a grocery store. The reason is that they are picked Green before the citric acid has had time to convert to fructose sugar, therefore it has very little vitamin C. Also oranges are generally sprayed with red dye and waxed to look fresher and also sprayed with fungicides. Its the high amount of acid that causes the joint pain. It is possible to eat oranges and not experience these bad side effects. You must make sure to eat only oranges that have been rippened on the tree. They are available you just have to look for them you might also stick to organic oranges which have generally been rippend on the tree and are not sprayed with pesticides.

2. Blueberries are known to be full of antioxidants. But they are also excellent brain food, here's why: (Briefly) As we age the stress chemical Cortisol (sometimes called the death hormone) increases and has several negative effects on us. It causes many of the symptoms of menopause, (memory loss, attention span & focus issues, mood swings and impulse control issues, lack of energy and inability to coordinate multiple tasks)
It also causes a drop in dopamine, the pleasure and mobility hormone which also effects our metabolism. This can lead to rapid and unhealthy aging.
Research by Dr. Joseph's at Tufts University has shown that blueberries can increase the manufacture and release of dopamine into our system. Although more research needs to be done it is interesting to find that the popular drug used for Alzheimer's patients has a similar makeup. How cool it would be if eatting just a 1/2 cup of little blueberries a day could help keep the cortisol at bay! :)

3. Did you know that Kiwi have 6 times the vitamin C of oranges and also contain vitamin E.

4. Melons are ususally just enjoyed because they are so good and sweet but they are also full of zinc, vitamin's A, C and potassium which gives you energy.

Hope you enjoyed these few fruit facts. Next time I will talk about vegetables. Alot of this information comes from a book I love to read and re-read by Dharma Singh Khalsa, MD "Food as Medicine"

The Big Salt Debate
From the book: Healthy Foods Your Kids Will Actually Eat! And everything you Really Need to Know about a better way to feed your Family by: Charlene Venette

There is one salt that we use in our home called Real Salt by Redmond. As its name implies, Redmond RealSalt® is-well, real salt. "Real salt, as opposed to what?"
Very simply, RealSalt® as opposed to the so-called "salt" most people unsuspectingly use. It may surprise many people, but in its natural form, salt is not sparkly white or free flowing. Actually, the "table salt" and many sea salts most people are familiar with have been bleached, refined, and mixed with anti-caking agents and iodine. Many so-called "table salts" also contain sugar, in the form of dextrose-meant to cover or disguise an otherwise harsh and bitter flavor. In fact, a quick glance at the ingredients label on most "table salt" products might surprise you! In addition to sodium chloride, you'll probably find calcium silicate or sodium silicoaluminate, dextrose, and potassium iodide.

By contrast, Redmond RealSalt® is real salt-unrefined and natural, free from any additives or chemicals of any kind. Real Salt has colored specks in it that may cause some to ask what are these specks? So, I went to their website and this is what I found.

RealSalt's unique "pinkish" appearance and flecks of color come from more than 50 natural trace minerals, including iodine. Other so-called "table salts" are white because of bleaching and refining. RealSalt® comes from an ancient salt deposit near the small town of Redmond, Utah, more than 150 miles south of the Great Salt Lake.

What are the Health Benefits of Salt?
"[S]odium is crucial for maintaining the health of every cell in the human system. It permeates the fluid between cells (often called the ‘extracellular fluid') and potassium exists mainly on the inside of the cells (in the ‘intracellular fluid')...If either of these minerals is deficient or in excess, cell permeability becomes compromised and the health of all the cells suffers.

Besides being a component of extracellular fluid that bathes every living cell, sodium is important in two other ‘salty oceans' in the body-our blood and our lymphatic fluid. It is also necessary for the production of hydrochloric acid, the digestive enzyme secreted by the stomach in order to digest protein. Along with potassium, sodium is required for the proper functioning of our nerves and the contraction of our muscles...
With the many crucial roles sodium plays, it's clear that if we had no sodium, we would cease to exist."
There are other natural un-refined salts available but they are do not have a label with a little girl under an umbrella on them. If you want to find a truly natural salt check out your local health food store, you will be amazed at the many varieties out there.

So I was thinking the other night when I should have been sleeping that I have all of this knowledge about food, healthy living and nutrition and no where to share it. Then I thought why don't I blog about it.

I started writing a book last year about how to feed your family healthy foods that they would actually eat, you know, a cook book for those that want to eat healthy but are affraid of what it will really taste like. It also includes helpful information about ingrediants, herbs, where to find things etc. so that you can make educated choices for yourself and your family.

Which brings me here. I am writing this blog in order to pass on some of the information and knowledge I have aquired over the years about food, nutrition, natural healing techniques, herbs and anything else I can come up with. I hope someone out there will read this and benefit from it.