The occasional musings of an outspoken 23-year-old Canadian girl trying to make sense of this crazy world while pursuing simplicity, balance, health and happiness :)
otherwise known as:
pumpkin seed butter (organic but not raw)
hand-ground (by me) flax seeds
shelled hemp seeds
raw honey
all mixed up and stuffed in a huge medjool date! mmmmmm... candy for breakfast ftw! (also, breakfast at 2pm ftw, lol)
Seriously, I will be forever grateful to Sheri over at Green and Crunchy for the concept of stuffing dates with nut-butters and other deliciousness! I do it all the time now:)
I'm also having a carrot and a clementine. And I'm already planning my pre-work energy meal: multigrain pasta with tomato sauce, spinach, mushrooms, onions and green peppers and fresh rosemary, oregano and thyme, and a green salad with radish and alfalfa sprouts :) sounds pretty scrummy if I do say so myself.
disclaimer: this has nothing to do with weight loss, so kindly save your "omg you so don't need to lose weight!" comments (though I do appreciate them ;)). The next few days (and on) are all about cleansing my blood and organs of all the crap I put in my body over the last few days. I'm going a little aggressive with it because I feel particularly shitty, excuse my french (stomach pains, flank pains, etc). So here goes.
I don't know, it's simple. not really "breakfasty" on the outside, but this is the kind of light stuff I like to eat in the morning. I would have loved to add lemon to my water but I didn't have any.
orange and green superman breakfast
1 small carrot, cut up
1 small orange pepper, cut up
handful of organic baby spinach
small handful of radish and alfalfa sprouts (no dressing. I just chomp it into juice with some water in my mouth. sounds gross, i know, but that's how you're supposed to chew veggies! TO A PULP/JUICE. Chewing is the first stage of the digestive system.)
1 organic whole foods multivitamin (I use New Chapter. <3 'em)
giant glass of water
yum yum yummers. simple and delicious. my cells are thanking me big time right now, lol =P
see you next year, stuffin' and 'taters :(
PS: THE OLYMPIC TORCH CAME THROUGH MY TOWN (and this is a smaaaaalll town) TODAY AT 8:55 IN THE MORNING AND I TOTALLY MISSED IT!!!! weak.
Hemp seeds, hemp nuts, hemp oil... also flax seed, pumpkin, sunflower & sesame seeds, walnuts, most nuts actually...along with algae (eg. spirulina, chlorella).
all contain Essential Fatty Acids (EFAs) which, when eaten regularly, help protect your skin from the sun :)
(sesame seeds and whole grains are also good sources of selenium, which also minimizes the damaging effects of UV rays)
Here's the breakdown for those interested:
The seeds and nuts contain Linoleic Acid (LA), which is converted to Gamma-Linoleic Acid (GLA) -- an anti-inflammatory/hormone balancer/cancer-suppressor
-- in your body. GLA is also found in borage oil, evening primrose & blackcurrant seed oil.
These seeds and nuts DO NOT contain the vital EPA (eicosapentaenoic acid) or DHA (docosahexaenoic acid). Fish are able to produce these from the algae they eat, which we then absorb when we eat them. We can of course eat the algae ourselves; chlorella and spirulina provide valuable sources of these converted fats as well as a whole host of other nutrients.
If you do not regularly consume fish or algae (organic whole foods vitamins often contain algae as well), your body is able to -- when functioning properly -- convert these fats itself. Here are some ways to help optimize your conversion of fatty acids:
-Include good sources of the nutrients which aid essential fat conversion – zinc, magnesium, calcium, biotin and vitamins B6, B3 and C.
-Avoid things which inhibit conversion; alcohol, saturated and trans fats (from animal foods and processed foods), smoking, caffeine, viral infections, stress and excess intake of vitamin A and copper.
-Balance your intake of omega 3 and 6 fatty acids. Due to the widespread use of sunflower oil in food manufacturing we tend to have a much greater intake of omega 6 to 3 fats in our diets. This imbalance can lead to the conversion enzymes getting used up for omega 6, restricting omega 3 conversion. The ideal balance is around 3 to 4 parts omega 6 to one of omega 3.
-Some people may have less of the conversion enzymes and may need to be strict with the above nutrient supporters and inhibitors. These people include those with atopic allergies (asthma, eczema and hay fever that runs in the family) and those with diabetes.
-Include an algae (spirulina or chlorella) drink 4 times a week. (Odwalla's "Lifefood" juice - available at metro, fortinoes, basically everywhere - has a hefty shot of spirulina)
- Have a daily intake of nuts (preferably soaked and dried) & seeds.
Back to the skin point: How EFAs help protect and beautify your skin is simple. EFAs strengthen and increase the fluidity of your delicate skin cell membranes. These cell membranes are the guardians of your skin - keeping toxins out and bringing moisture and nutrients in. They also stimulate the production of skin's natural moisture protective coating, make the skin more resistant to environmental damage and help construct new healthy-looking skin.
Other vitamins that help promote healthy, beautiful skin are vitamins A, B, C & E and the minerals Zinc and Selenium. Specific food examples that are good for skin are berries, olive oil, organic green tea, leafy greens, mushrooms and most importantly WATER.
And that's all I got. Have a nice day :)
Here is a video that explains Omega-3s further and includes a yummy recipe :)
"If slaughterhouses had glass walls, everyone would be vegetarian."
-Paul McCartney
I couldn't figure out how to post this video, but it's right on the main page of this site. Meat.org
Disgusting. Heartbreaking. Essential to watch.
I'm crying my fucking eyes out but I'm still watching it. I suggest you do, too, and don't stop or look away, especially if you consume animal products.
It's irresponsible to be deliberately uninformed about the horrible, appalling shit we put our "food" through.
(the rest of the pictures are from dan's Bold, I just forgot to take one of the front)
The Cornerstone Vegetarian Restaurant
1 Whyndam St N
Guelph, ON
(519) 827-0145
waiting for our food to arrive
Crostini Platter with garlic hummus, sundried tomato pesto and green olive tapanade & green salad
(SO good!)
Pinto, Mushroom & Avocado Enchilada with salsa & salad, Mine
(ridiculously delicious. and filling.)
Grilled Aged White Cheddar Cheese, Dan's
(buttery and delicious. okay so I had a little nibble ;) )
3-Bean Chili with cheese, Dan's
(scrumptious. would have been better without the massive amount of cheese. good lord.)
And since I was in the mood for some raw superfoods for dessert, we headed to WOW raw cafe on Carden...
...for some of those Hemp Balls and Raw Chocolate Macaroons from last time (I actually got pictures this time!) and a Chocolate Parfait (their chocolate dream cake "batter", chocolate pudding and whipped "cream"). The parfait was nummyumnumnumumyummygood. Though the strawberries they threw in were pretty mushy...weak. But after I took those out it was basically chocolate heaven. ohbaby <3
I hiiiiighhhlly recommend The Cornerstone. It wasn't as ridiculously expensive as the reviews I read made it seem (though I wouldn't call it cheap), and the food was ohmygod good. There were also plenty of vegan options, save the desserts (they had some tofu cheesecake. meh.) even though I admittedly tried both of Dan's cheesy dishes. I'm a badass like that.
Giveaway #2: Smoothie Girl @ Smoothiegirleatstoo.blogspot.com is giving away a selection of four homemade nut butters in celebration of HEAB's one-year-blogversary. Heather (HEAB) is going to choose the 4 she wants and the lucky winner will receive 4 of the same nut butters.
From the left: Chocolate Monkey Smoothie (Banana and raw cacao with a dash of agave blended with almond milk) & Sweet Beet Juice (Apple, celery & beet). Both were delicious!
This is what Dan got: Tasty Tacos (Corn tortillas stuffed with a sunflower& sun dried tomato “refried bean mix”. Mixed with just the right seasoning and topped with guacamole and salsa).
He seemed to like it =P Sorry for the shoddy photography, these were taken on Dan's blackberry bold, lol.
I ordered: Falafel Wrap (2 delicious falafels wrapped in a collard leaf, topped with our WOW tahini sauce, red onions and fresh diced tomato). This was very good! The falafel is made from ground almonds, and it really tasted like the real thing! My one complaint would be that there was a bit too much of the actual falafel and not enough onions and tomatoes, it was extremely filling - I wasn't even able to finish it all! The salad dressing was particularily delicious; I think they just use their tahini, and mm-MM! so tasty.
nom
yummy :)
For dessert, we ordered: Hemp Balls (Looking for a lighter dessert? This will hit the spot! Small but MIGHTY DELICIOUS. Cashews, coconut, date, vanilla & hemp hearts), 1 each
and Raw Chocolate Macaroons (For you chocolate lovers simple and decadent raw chocolate coconut and agave), 2 each
but we ate them all before I could get pictures! =P They were that good. The hemp balls. Oh man. And the macaroons were just sooo sinfully chocolately (except not sinful at all because they were raw! =D)
All-in-all I highly recommend WOW cafe if you're ever in Guelph! There are lots of other great restaurants and stores on the same block to browse through as well, such as Footprints EcoStore, where I got some all-natural, organic bath bombs and a great oatmeal soap bar!
Happy Shopping!
(All descriptions of WOW dishes taken from www.WowRawCafe.ca)
