Monthly Archives: September 2011

Quinoa with ginger and garlic

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I try to make everything I eat be something that will nourish, sustain, and nurture my body.  It does get easier when you keep doing it on a daily basis.  It’s such a great phone call when a client calls me and tells me what they made and are so excited about it.  Especially when they say how easy it was to put together.  It thrills me to no end that they have reached that point to where they have put extra thought to what they are eating and finally see really how easy it is to do to make their meal as healthy as they can…which brings me to my quinoa bowl.

First off…sorry the picture is a little blurry, I was so excited to eat it and had decided that I wanted to blog about my excitement.  Yeah yeah I know what you’re thinking…and yes little things like this do make me happy!  How can I not be happy when this little bowl of quinoa and friends are providing so much nutriment.  Let me list the benefits of quinoa’s friends that I have added to the bowl:

Ginger:  It’s helping my digestive system…who doesn’t want that?  Also, it’s providing powerful anti-inflammatory protection which means I won’t be hurtin on the inside because arthritis just doesn’t sound fun.

Garlic:  Who doesn’t like this friend?  There are so many benefits to garlic I should really do a whole blog on it.  But I find the most interesting fact about garlic is that it is a powerful antibacterial and antiviral agent due to Allicin, one of the sulfur compounds responsible for garlic’s characteristic odor.  Yay…doesn’t that make you happy to eat it??

Turmeric:  Yes I also added this yellow staining friend!  I have blogged about turmeric before but let me remind you that that it also promotes anti-inflammatory.  It has many benefits but one that is important to me is how it helps the liver to detoxify nutritive substances.

Extra Virgin Olive Oil:  Good ol’ EVOO.  Love this stuff.  I use it as a moisturizer for my skin as well!  Omega-3′s here…and you guessed it…reduces inflammation.

Kelp:  Yes I sprinkled on some kelp as well.  I have blogged about kelp and how great it is for your thyroid and the many benefits of it and sea vegetables in general.

So now after reading this…wouldn’t you be all giddy to eat this as well?  See, I knew you would.  So my point is you can have a plain bowl of quinoa or rice or pasta, whatever you’re eating, and add good healthy friends to it.  A little dash here, a little dollop there, a little splash everywhere…your body will thank you.  However, quinoa is a powerhouse all on its own because it’s a complete protein all by itself…I feel it just gets lonely.  :)

To your health!

Julie

Halibut with Shiitake Mushrooms, Ginger, and Scallions

Nutrition, Recipes 1 Comment

I can’t tell you how easy and flavorful this recipe is.  The halibut literally melts in your mouth.  It will take you a total of only 20 minutes.  Halibut is filled with omega-3 fatty acids which help to reduce inflammation in our bodies and shiitake mushrooms are good for our immune systems. We also are using ginger which also helps to reduce inflammation but it also helps with gastrointestinal distress and is known for its ability to relax the intestinal tract and reduce intestinal gas.  Another ingredient is tamari.  Tamari is a soy sauce but the difference is it doesn’t contain any wheat and it is traditionally brewed.  Koji inoculated soybeans are aged for six months in the brewing process.  Regular soy sauce these days is very highly processed and is usually just caramel colored water with a lot of processed salt.  Choosing soy sauce is like choosing a nice bottle of olive oil or wine…choose wisely.  I like the brand Eden because it’s organic naturally brewed and the flavor is amazing.

Recipe adapted from The World’s Healthiest Foods

Ingredients:

  • 3/4 lb halibut cut into 2 pieces
  • 1/4 cup light vegetable broth
  • 1/4 cup mirin rice wine (a sweet Japanese rice wine without the alcohol content)
  • 3 medium cloves garlic, chopped
  • 1 tablespoon tamari (a naturally brewed soy sauce)
  • 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
  • 1 tablespoon fresh minced ginger (great for digestion)
  • 2 cups fresh shiitake mushrooms, sliced 1/4″ thick
  • 1 cup chopped scallions
  • sea salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

  1. Chop garlic and let sit for 5 minutes to enhance their health promoting properties.
  2. Bring the broth and mirin wine to a simmer on medium-high heat in a 10-inch skillet.
  3. Add garlic, tamari, lemon juice, ginger, scallions, and mushrooms.
  4. Place halibut steaks on top, reduce heat to low and cover.  Cook for about 5 minutes, depending on thickness.  Season with sea salt and pepper.  Remove steaks and place on a plate.  Spoon scallions and mushroom broth over fish and serve.  Serves 2.

I like to serve this with some quinoa and fresh steamed broccoli.

To your health~

Julie

Mmm…Cholesterol!

Nutrition Leave a comment

Everyday when I talk to people about their diets and I bring up eating eggs for breakfast is when I get the comment “well I do eat eggs, but only the egg whites, I have to watch my cholesterol intake.”  I also get that when I bring up using olive oil, it scares them because there is saturated fat and it will clog their arteries they are just sure of it.  And I just shake my head thinking they are missing out on so many nutrients in those yolks and missing out on all those healthy fats that will  nourish their brains by not using olive oil at all.

The low-down on cholesterol is our body needs it!  Our body makes it.  Cholesterol produces cell membranes, hormones, vitamin D and bile acids which help you digest fat.  It is also vital for neurological function.   Cholesterol is a waxy substance that helps repair damaged epithelium as well.  Thats why plaque formation scares people because it can build up if your epithelium keeps getting damaged, it keeps trying to repair it.  However, if we start lowering our cholesterol trying to fix that problem, we are missing the whole boat on why the cholesterol is doing that in the first place.  Why aren’t we trying to stop the epithelium from being damaged?

My whole purpose to my business and passion is to have people eat a whole foods diet.  If you are not eating the whole food, you are missing out on so much nutrition your body is needing and craving.  When people tell me they don’t eat the yolk, it cracks me up (no pun intended) because I picture God creating these chickens, and the chickens producing these eggs to nourish us, but then I picture the chickens trying to tell us not to eat the yolks because that part is not so good for us humans!!  LOL…it just doesn’t make sense people.

So please incorporate the whole food into your diet, but also watch your portions, drink lots of water, and get some good regular sweaty exercise as well!  Here is a great article by Dr. Mercola on cholesterol.  Dr. Mercola is the founder of the world’s most visited natural health web site, Mercola.com. You can learn the hazardous side effects of OTC Remedies by getting a FREE copy of his latest special report The Dangers of Over the Counter Remedies by going to his Report Page.  Also below is a table to show the difference between egg whites and yolks.

To your health!

Julie

Here is a table to show the difference in nutrients between egg whites and yolks:

Nutrient White Yolk % Total in White % Total in Yolk
Protein 3.6 g 2.7g 57% 43%
Fat 0.05g 4.5g 1% 99%
Calcium 2.3 mg 21.9 mg 9.5% 90.5%
Magnesium 3.6 mg 0.85 mg 80.8% 19.2%
Iron 0.03 mg 0.4 mg 6.2% 93.8%
Phosphorus 5 mg 66.3 mg 7% 93%
Potassium 53.8 mg 18.5 mg 74.4% 25.6%
Sodium 54.8 mg 8.2 mg 87% 13%
Zinc 0.01 mg 0.4 mg 0.2% 99.8%
Copper 0.008 mg 0.013 mg 38% 62%
Manganese 0.004 mg 0.009 mg 30.8% 69.2%
Selenium 6.6 mcg 9.5 mcg 41% 59%
Thiamin 0.01 mg 0.03 mg 3.2% 96.8%
Riboflavin 0.145 mg 0.09 mg 61.7% 48.3%
Niacin 0.035 mg 0.004 mg 89.7% 9.3%
Pantothenic acid. 0.63 mg 0.51 mg 11% 89%
B6 0.002 mg 0.059 mg 3.3% 96.7%
Folate 1.3 mcg 24.8 mcg 5% 95%
B12 0.03 mcg 0.331 mcg 8.3% 91.7%
Vitamin A 0 IU 245 IU 0% 100%
Vitamin E 0 mg 0.684 mg 0% 100%
Vitamin D 0 IU 18.3 IU 0% 100%
Vitamin K 0 IU 0.119 IU 0% 100%
DHA and AA 0  94 mg 0% 100%
Carotenoids 0 mcg 21 mcg 0% 100%