Licorice, Vegan and Sugar Free "Ice-Cream" Easy

Licorice, Vegan and Sugar Free "Ice-Cream"

You must start with a stout or heavy duty blender or food processor.  I will usually use a Ninja for this.

Add to blender or food processor

4 cups frozen blueberries

1 cup almond milk

1 scoop pea protein

1 tablespoon (or to taste) anise spice

1/2 cup stevia in the raw.

Blend well and serve.  You can put it back in the freezer for a short period of time to harden it a bit more, but I would not recommend you do this for longer than 1 to 2 hours.

Chocolate Cherry, Vegan and Sugar Free "Ice-Cream" Easy

Chocolate Cherry, Vegan and Sugar Free "Ice-Cream"
You must start with a stout or heavy duty blender or food processor.  I will usually use a Ninja for this.

Add to blender or food processor
4 cups frozen pitted cherries
1 cup almond milk
1 scoop pea protein
2 tablespoon Dutch baking chocolate
1/2 cup stevia in the raw.
Blend well and serve.  You can put it back in the freezer for a short period of time to harden it a bit more, but I would not recommend you do this for longer than 1 to 2 hours.
Enjoy

End Destructive Food Cravings (Please Share)

End Destructive Food Cravings

(From a TEDx talk delivered at the University of Idaho in April 2018)

10 years ago,

I had…

Sleep Apnea, Major Depression, Brain Fog, High Blood Pressure, I was hospitalized twice for an irregular heartbeat.  I had Diabetes, Fatty Liver, and Neuropathy.  I was scared to death of Alzheimer’s… something that runs in my family and is sometimes called type 3 diabetes. 

I’m now a recovering crap addict, that’s C.R.A.P. and a recovering binge eater.  According to the Diagnostics and Statistical Manual, or DSM… Food Addictions don’t exist.  But anyone with one, knows they do.

I was morbidly obese for most of 30 years.  At my heaviest, I was almost 300 lbs.  (Demo belt) I kept my belt to remind me how big I was.  I don’t usually wear it, but I did today.  Since then, I’ve lost a few pounds, without surgery or diet pills.

For the past 6 plus years, my blood glucose levels, or A1C have been between 4.8 and 5.2, which is almost perfect.  My intention is not to brag, but to give someone hope. 

I’m now off medication for diabetes and volunteer as a lifestyle coach for the National Diabetes Prevention Program.

While not the whole story, destructive food cravings come from 4 primary sources:

1.         Food Insecurity.  I’m not talking about… not getting enough food to eat, I am talking about not getting enough of the essential nutrients.  Food Insecurity occurs when your mind and body do not get all the nutrients they need.  As long as you are food insecure, you will crave food.  Even if you were to eat a gallon of macaroni and cheese every day… even if you were to eat TWO gallons of macaroni and cheese every single day, if that’s all you ate, you would be food insecure. 

I actually had a college roommate who tried that, and ended up getting so sick he had to have vitamin shots to regain his health.   He was lucky, it could have been much worse.  For many, it is.

Some of you, may be on a similar path.

According to the World Health Organization, and perhaps for the first time in history, there are now more people in the world who are malnourished and obese than malnourished and underweight.  Let me repeat that.  There are now more people in the world who are malnourished and obese than malnourished and underweight.

Some believe it is too expensive to eat healthy.  That’s a myth… for most. 

It’s actually cheaper to eat healthy and be healthy, even on food-stamps, IF you know how. 

Many can even eat more than they usually eat, and still lose weight, if they eat the right foods.

The best solution is to eat a healthy, well-balanced diet, every single day.

2.         Crap.  If you eat crap, you will crave crap… period.

Also, if you eat crap, you will feel like crap, if not today, eventually, if you live long enough.  There is simply no getting around the law of the harvest.  No pill will ever completely change this.  Most of you have a pretty good idea what crap is.

The best solution is to avoid crap.  I know, that may sound harsh, but remember, I’m a recovering crap addict… think about it this way… how much alcohol can a recovering alcoholic safely consume?  NONE!

3.         Emotional distress.  First a story: Last summer my then, 3-year-old granddaughter and two grandsons were on a trip with me, returning one of my grandsons to his mother.  My granddaughter was wearing a sequin dress.  She decided it would be a good idea to remove a sequin and stick it up her nose. 

OK, how many of us have stuck something up our nose and got it stuck?  I did when I was a kid. It was on the weekend and was a hassle for my parents to find someone to get it out.

I tried to remove the sequin from my granddaughter’s nose, but couldn’t even see it.  When we got back to town we went to the doctor’s and the receptionist asked why we were there.  I said: “somebody stuck a sequin up their nose.”  The receptionist smiled and asked: “now, who did that?”  My granddaughter beamed with delight and patting herself on the chest, said, “me.”  When we got in to see the doctor, she was able to see the sequin, but unable to remove it.  She referred us to an ENT.  Afterwards, she offered my granddaughter a sucker.

Quite often when children are in distress, we give them comfort food.  Usually comfort food, is crap.  As we grow older, sometimes, when we are in distress, we seek comfort in food, and usually it is? crap.  Even if it’s healthy, it’s way too much, which only makes the situation worse.

OK, how many of you have eaten a whole carton of ice-cream, a whole box of doughnuts, a whole bag of cookies, or something similar, after a breakup?

The best solution… learn to manage stress in healthy ways, and seek appropriate help for trauma.

4.         Habitual responses to cues and triggers.  These are all around us.  Businesses and organizations have become quite expert at using smells, images, and social pressure, to separate us from our money.  For some of us, many of these cues almost compel us to eat.  While it is difficult, change is possible. 

The human is the only animal that can planfully and purposefully reprogram how we respond to cues and triggers.  I’ve done it and helped others do it.  It’s not easy, but its possible for almost anyone.

The best solution is to avoid difficult cues. However, much of the time, this is impossible.  The National Diabetes Prevention Program may help.  Other programs and resources may also help.

OK, one more tip for those of you who may be binge eaters, I have learned, as with most addictions, it can be very difficult to make healthy choices when either tired or stressed.  How many of you have heard an old commercial that says: bet you can’t eat just one?  Well, when I’m tired or stressed, I can’t eat just one of anything.  Because of that, I rarely eat after 5: P.M.  This strategy has served me well for many years.  Perhaps something similar will help some of you.

Remember!  You do not need to be a slave to cravings. 

There is hope and there is help.

You can choose to love yourself more fully, you can choose to live life more fully, you can choose your own personal optimal health, whatever that may be.

Thank you

 

The following is a recap of the talk which was done in my home.  I don't know if the actual talk was ever published.

Brown Rice and Lentil Soup

1 cup brown rice
2 cups dried lentils
1/4 cup diced celery
2 cup chopped onion
1 teaspoon thyme
1 teaspoon rosemary
8 cups water
3/4 cup diced carrot
1 tablespoon salt
1 bay leaf
1 can water chestnuts (optional)
1/4 cup quinoa (optional)
2 1/2 cup diced tomatoes (from a can)

Rinse lentils and brown rice.  Pour into a pot.  Cover with 6 cups water.  Put the lid on the pot.
Bring to boil.
Add 2 cups water and all ingredients except the tomatoes and bay leaf.  Put the lid back on the pot.
Bring to boil.
Add tomatoes and bay leaf (and water chestnuts if desired).  Put the lid back on the pot.
Bring to a boil, then turn to medium-low and allow to simmer for another 15 minutes.

The happy secret to better work | Shawn Achor

Try doing what is suggested.  Write down at least three things you are grateful every day and sincerely thank someone every day for something.  It will change your life.  It will help you reduce stress.  If you need to, it will help you be more physically and mentally healthy.

Diet and Exercise can help Reduce Medical Visits

Click on the link here to learn how diet and exercise can help to reduce the need for and cost of medical visits.
This will take you to citations in Google Scholar

Pete's Killer Quiche - absolutely delicious - and mostly healthy :-)

This is neither simple or quick.  It is also not the healthiest dish I make, but it is mostly healthy and very tasty.
Click on the links for information on health and nutrition.

Fry about 10 pieces of bacon.  Pour off the excess fat and cut into small pieces.  If you are vegetarian you can use a substitute and a spray oil in the frying pan to saute the vegetables.
I eat very little meat and bacon is very rare through this is a very occasional exception for me.

Cut up vegetables.

4-5 cups broccoli
4-5 cups zucchini
4-5 cups peppers
4-5 cups onion
4-5 cups mushrooms
4-5 cups tomatoes (as green as possible)

Start with the hardest vegetables, adding to the frying pan with just a little remaining bacon fat and saute vegetables.  Add one, stir a bit, then add the next until all are semi-soft, but not mushy.

A few cups at a time pour into a food processor and blend just briefly (including the bacon)

Pour into a large bowl.

Add 1 dozen jumbo eggs  I also do not eat a lot of eggs and while there are some good things about eggs, its a good idea not to eat too many too often.

Add 2 lbs pepper-jack cheese  I also do not eat a lot of cheese, but when I do it is a white or lighter colored cheese, which is generally less fat.  For this dish, the pepper-jack is absolutely the best.

Using a ladle add to 6-8 deep dish pie crusts which have not been previously baked.  Whole wheat or oat crust is best.  The ones I used in the video are easy and were just purchased at the store.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Bake for approximately 1 hour, until you can put a butter knife in and it comes back out clean.

Any you want to save until later, cover with aluminum foil and place in the freezer to be warmed later.

Lately I've been making it without bacon.  The last time I made this, I made 13 quiche.  It took me almost 4 hours.  I gave some away.  Froze some, will take a couple to my daughter, and we'll eat some.

I lightly sauteed:

4 heads of broccoli (I always slice the hard stems into small pieces and start sauteing them early)

1 red onion and 4 Walla Walla onions.

2 large jalapeno, 3 large Anaheim, and  6 small sweet peppers.

5 small zucchini

1 clove of garlic 

2 dozen eggs

2 1/4 pounds pepper jack cheese

and 1/2 cup cilantro.  I did not saute the cilantro.  I cut it into small pieces and added it to the two large bowls I used to mix everything before pouring into the pie shells.