Stocking Your Cupboards With Healthy Stuff

Do you want you and your kids to get super-healthy? Throw out all of the crap in your fridge that is not good for you and the kids and replace it with healthy stuff.

Here is an idea of what should be on your new grocery list –
• Irish steel-cut oats. Oats do contain some gluten, but for most people they are quite tolerable and they are okay to have during a cleanse.

• Mixed-grain hot cereals. Be sure they’re gluten- and sugar-free—and this means no honey or maple syrup

• Rice cakes. Stay away from the ones with too much sodium or funky flavorings (like sour cream and onion rice cakes!)

• Flax crackers

• Gluten-free bread. There are many delicious alternatives to the usual bread you buy. Try some sprouted breads, as they are easier to digest and are less processed.

• Sweet potatoes, yams

• Grains: brown or wild rice, millet, quinoa, amaranth, buckwheat, corn.

• Nuts: almonds, walnuts, cashews, soy nuts, macadamia nuts, filberts, etc.

• Seeds: sunflower, pumpkin, sesame, hemp, flax. Flaxseeds must be freshly ground rather than eaten whole, otherwise you won't get full nutritional benefit.

• Nut or seed butters: almond butter, tahini, cashew butter, peanut butter (all unsweetened))

• Beans and legumes: black beans, lentils, chickpeas, lima beans, adzuki beans, black-eyed peas and fava beans. Dried ones are best

• Vegetables: kale, broccoli, cauliflower, green beans, asparagus, Brussels sprouts, zucchini, eggplant, collard greens, squash of all kinds, tomatoes, etc.

• Mushrooms

• Salad: arugula, radicchio, endive, mixed greens, peppers, avocado, tomato, radish,

• Fruits: apples, raspberries, cherries, peaches, blueberries, goji berries; frozen fruits for smoothies

• Citrus and exotic fruits lemons, limes, and unsweetened pomegranate juice for sparkling-water cocktails

• Herbal teas such as mint, chamomile and fennel.

• Nondairy milk, such as rice, almond, hemp, or soy milk (unsweetened)

• Healthy sweeteners: xylitol, agave nectar, and stevia for smoothies, milks, cereals and baked goods.

• Extra-virgin olive oil, expeller-pressed organic canola, high-oleic versions of sunflower and safflower oils, walnut oil, and flaxseed oil (the last is good to pour over things like salad or baked yam, but not to cook with).

• Seasonings: garlic, ginger, tamari; Himalayan crystal or Celtic sea salt. Regular table salt is bleached and stripped of minerals

• Flours to cook or bake with: bean, pea, soy, potato, buckwheat, tapioca, nut and seed, arrowroot, and rice. There are also prepackaged flour mixes that cater to the gluten-free shopper.

• Popcorn

• Corn chips

• Guacamole

• Hummus

• Frozen spinach, broccoli, and cauliflower to throw into smoothies . . . you won’t even taste it!

• Vegetarian stock for cooking

Try some prepared foods from health food stores. They are often very tasty and nutritious too.

Parenting Tips
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The Benefits of Juicing Carrots

As a mom who does not always cook for their kids like I should I get concerned my kids get enough of the vitamins that they need. They say “eating a carrot every day is like signing a life insurance policy” and that is because they are so healthy for you. When you drink carrot juice every day it is not only like taking a huge preventative measure to prevent any illness from happening in the future it can also cure some diseased conditions you have, or at least alleviate their symptoms. Drinking carrot juice has also been able reverse chronic conditions (like night blindness) and is known for making people look more youthful in general.

The high nutritional content of carrot expediently rushing into your bloodstream to feed your cells can give you an immediate burst of energy. n. It is a natural “upper” that encourages you to be bright, vital and active.

Carrot juice is tasty and combines nicely with a number of other nutritious fruits and vegetables such as juices such as apples, celery, spinach, tomatoes, basil, pineapples, mango, papaya and many others. It is the ultimate “foundation juice” to which other juices can be added.

All carrots are beneficial for your health however there can be some subtle differences in nutrition between varieties. For instance a dark purple heirloom carrot can contain the same powerful antioxidants as blueberries. A white carrot may have much less beta-carotene in it then an orange one but it may have more potassium.

It is also to your benefit to buy organic carrots as they will contain fewer pesticides than other types. Be sure to choose fruits that are firm and not too pitted or limp. Dehydrated, old looking vegetables might still have some nutrition in them but they will not really yield much juice.

Before you juice a carrot be sure to clean it well…You can buy special fruit and vegetable soap that helps get this residue off your fruit as well. Just remember to scrub them well before you cut them up and juice them.

Choose a quality brand of juicer that does not jump across the counter when fed carrot chunks. The best way to juice them is to cut them into finger length chunks and then use the hopper to push them through the hopper.

If you find tepid carrot juice unappetizing you can always serve it over ice. Another tip is to put it in the juice freezer or even blend the resulting juice with some ice. If you want the fresh carrot juice to taste a little bit spicier you can add a touch of curry powder, pepper and sea salt.

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