Eat. Play. Love.

To celebrate Spring and help you jump start your health goals for the season, Cultivating Health is offering the Cultivating Clients referral program.

If you refer a friend, family member or colleague to Cultivating Health in 2012 and they enroll in one of my programs and mention your name, they will save $25 on their first visit! In addition, YOU will save $25 on your next visit!

Now, you don’t have to be a current Cultivating Health client to take advantage of this offer, so if you’ve ever been curious about one of my programs, this is a great opportunity to get your feet wet and test the waters. So what types of services can you take advantage of? The following programs are part of the Cultivating Clients referral program:

You Are What You Eat Consultation
Nourishing New Mamas Consultation
Personalized Health Coaching Program
Healthy Kitchen Makeover
Natural Foods Store Tours
Farmers Market Tours

Please note that group programs are not included in the referral program.

So what are you waiting for?

If you’re looking to find that youthful energy you seem to have lost, improve your digestion, think more clearly, love your body and feel its natural rhythms and generally improve your health, contact me today regarding a program and be sure to tell a friend! I offer free 15 minute phone consults so you can get a sense of what it might be like to work with me.

I look forward to hearing from you and your friends!

I love gardening, but sometimes your best intentions can go awry. Last fall, I planted greens in my cold frame, but then I kind of…sort of…very much…completely forgot about them over the Holidays. Needless to say, the only drought survivors were a row of mache and a mess of chickweed. Knowing that chickweed (Stellaria media) is chock full of nutrients such as B6, B12, C, D, beta-carotene, iron, calcium, potassium, phosphorus, zinc, manganese, sodium, copper, and silica, I knew that I had to do something with it. So I made a few nutrient recipes that I will share with you today!

Sauteed Chickweed & Cabbage 

Ingredients:

•  3 TBSP olive oil
•  1 TBSP balsamic vinegar
•  tsp cayenne pepper
•  6 garlic cloves
•  several handfuls of chickweed, chopped
• 2 cups cabbage, chopped
• dash of sea salt and pepper
• 1 tsp of cumin seeds

I sautéed the cabbage and chickweed in a little water for about 10 minutes or until tender and then added the rest of the ingredients and mixed. Joe prepared a side of venison to go along with our “wild” evening, and it was pretty darn tasty except that the chickweed was a little chewy. I should have removed the stems or used “younger” chickweed. Live and learn! The beauty of this dish is that you can use a variety of seasoning combinations. Think about how you like to prepare spinach and substitute chickweed. “Wildman” Steve Brill uses cumin, chiles, Brewer’s yeast and ground cloves in his “Chickweed Delight” recipe. I’ll have to try that next!

Chickweed & Cabbage

Aduki-Chickweed Pâté

My next chickweed experiment this week was delicious! It was inspired by “Wildman” Steve Brill’s Chickweed Bean Spread.

Ingredients:

• 2 cups soaked and cooked aduki beans
• 2 TBSP coconut vinegar
• 4 TBSP olive oil
• 2 tsp dried tarragon
• 2 tsp Lydia’s Organic Seasoning (a must have for your pantry!)
• 2 shallots
• 3 cloves of garlic
• 1 cup chickweed leaves
• small handful of chives
• ¼ cup of red miso
• juice of 1 lime
• sea salt and pepper to taste

I added the lime juice, miso, olive oil, shallot, garlic and seasonings to the food processor and pulsed for a bit. Then I added the aduki beans and processed for a minute or two. After the mixture became smooth, I added the chickweed and chives. Voila!

Aduki-Chickweed Pate

Unfortunately, according to my Facebook Friends, the picture of the pâté looks more like poop; however, I thought that was appropriate since chickweed is full of fiber which is helpful to elimination.

This morning, while writing this post, I sipped on fresh chickweed tea. While it tasted refreshing on its own, I added a lavender-lemon-mint tea for some extra kick. Just pour boiling water over a ¼ to ½ cup chickweed, cover and let steep for about 15 minutes. Because it’s so nutrient rich, this would be a wonderful concoction to accompany and detoxification program. In particular, it supports the kidneys. You could add other herbs and drink hot or pour over some ice for a truly refreshing beverage.

Chickweed Tea

Enjoy!

Eat & Drink Mindfully.

I’m not saying to skip the cookies and the wine, (and not just because those happen to be my favorite things) but enjoy them mindfully. Believe it or not, our bodies do know when to stop if we are paying attention. Alas, we often get caught up in the excitement of social gatherings and ignore the signals (flares in some cases) our bodies are giving us. Enjoy your food, slowly. Savor each bite and sip. Now, if you overdo it, don’t beat yourself up as this is not helpful and creates even more guilt and anxiety during the Holidays. When we have negative feelings or anxiety around particular foods, it creates a stress response in the body. Cortisol levels raise, blood sugar levels rise and a host of other physiological responses that create weight gain. Enjoy it, call it an experiment and let it go. Stay mindful and just notice how the food or beverage affects you right after you eat or drink it, a few hours after you consume it and even a day or so after the event. How’s your mood? Energy levels? Digestion? Are you having any cravings?Also, if you reduce sugar and highly processed foods where you can and cook whole, nutrient-dense foods at home, you’ll still manage to keep your energy levels up, maintain good digestion and keep your mood stable. Finally, remember to drink your water! Although the weather might be frightful and it feels as though your water needs are less when it’s cold, many of the foods and beverages we consume (i.e. refined carbs, alcohol, animal protein, sugar and caffeine) during the Holidays actually increases our need for hydration.

Deconstruct Your Cravings.

What are you craving? Why do you think you’re craving chocolate? Sometimes cravings are due to either a lack of nutrients or an over-abundance of certain foods. For example, to little or two much protein or fat can cause cravings. In addition, an overabundance of sugar and refined carbs in the diet can create sweet cravings. Cravings can also be due to dehydration, hormones, stress or a desire to embrace the seasons by incorporating particular foods. Perhaps your life is missing some sort of sweetness this time of year or reminds you of a happy time in your life that you are looking to re-create. Cravings aren’t a bad thing. They are your body’s way of telling you something important so embrace them? Understanding them will help you to make lifestyle changes that will result in increased energy and happiness.

Be Grateful.

In order to make room for more blessings, we first need to count the blessings we currently have in our lives. It’s easy to get caught up in the hustle and bustle of the season and to forget what truly matters. Consider naming then things that you are truly thankful for every morning when you wake up. Your blessings can range from the comfy sheets on your bed to your children and other significant others. It’s important to affirm the gifts the Universe has given us to remind us how lucky we are to be here so we take nothing for granted.

Be Bad.

If you don’t get all your decorations in place, gifts perfectly wrapped or your Holiday cards signed and mailed, let it go. There will be other Holidays. How fortunate are we to have homes to decorate? Gifts to wrap? Friends and family to send cards too? Amen to that! We often have unhealthy expectations of ourselves and other people that result in undue stress. Enjoy this time of year. Only do what you’re moved to do. Don’t feel pressured to keep up with your friends and neighbors and make unrealistic goals for yourself. Let it go and lose the guilt. Your friends and family will still love you. I promise.

Remember Self-Nourishment.

We often have a tendency to get caught up in doing things for others during the Holidays. Just remember that you’re only as good to others as you are to yourself. If you don’t recharge, how effective will you really be? Incorporate down time. It will go a long way to keeping you chipper and energized during the Holidays. Your family and friends will thank you. Plus, this is a great time of year to re-connect with ourselves and reflect on what our souls are calling us to do and who to be.

This is the time of year when folks pick up pounds of candy from Costco, Safeway, Target and other stores in anticipation of eager trick-or-treaters. Unfortunately, many of these yummy candy bars are full of partially hydrogenated oils, high fructose corn syrup and artificial colors and flavoring. So, what do you do if you want to give the kids a sweet treat, but aren’t comfortable with handing out artificial junk? If you have the time, making little snack packs with home-made trail mix or individually wrapped home-made cookies would be ideal, but many of us are busy can barely make it to the store to pick up something pre-made. So what is a parent to give to his/her costumed visitors that keeps the Halloween spirit alive without the scary ingredients? Well, fortunately there are some healthier alternatives out there that can be purchased at Whole Foods, a local natural foods store or ordered on-line. In the DC metro area, I have found some great treats at My Organic Market. So here are a few recommendations for you to check out:

Annie’s Bunny Fruit Snacks
Bare Fruit Snacks
Endangered Species Organic Bites
Envirokidz Mini Treats Koala Chocolate Rice Crispy Bars
Ms. May’s Naturals Freeze Dried Fruit Chips
Stretch Island Fruit Leathers

You can also give out packets of raisins, trail mix, and none food items such as pencils, stickers, fake bugs and other fun trinkets. I have to admit that I have had mixed reviews with the “healthy” candy that I have given out in the past. I generally do a combination of the fruit leathers, mini-chocolates, mini-rice crispy bars and dried fruit snacks. Kids either love them or are not impressed in the least and feel they have made a wasted trip to the door. I have had kids tell me that I give out the “best treats ever” while others have peered into my candy basket, turned around and muttered, “that wasn’t even worth the walk down the driveway.” I’m hoping that they remember me after they have tasted my healthier treat alternatives and visit again. In fact, I have had several repeat trick-or-treaters over the years who remember me as the “lady with the fruit leather.” We’ll see what happens this coming Monday. I encourage you to experiment with a variety of these products because you may just have given a kid one less fake sugar-laden, rancid fat-filled, artificially colored and flavored “candy bar.”

So, Parents, I’m sure you’re wondering what the heck you do with all that loot that comes home? The most important thing is too not make a big deal about the candy. Allow your child to indulge on candy for a day or two and then you can set some guidelines together. For example, you can tell you child they can only have one piece per day, but they can choose which piece of candy and when they will eat it. You can suggest to them that you donate the leftovers. At some point they will get sick of it – literally and figuratively. Also, if you’re rationing the candy, you might consider following the same guidelines so as not to create confusion or contradictions. Most importantly, be sure to share mindful eating techniques with your kids. Sit down with your child and show them how to savor that sweet treat and enjoy every moment of it. Explore and discuss the taste, shape, texture and smells of the candy. You don’t want your kids to feel any guilt around any type of food, no matter how “junky” it might be. This will go along way in developing healthy relationships around food for your child and even for you!