SMOOTHIES AND RAW FOOD - S.A.R.F.: May 2008

Thursday, May 29, 2008

COCONUT OIL

Follow this link to learn more about coconut oil.

TEN GOOD REASONS TO BUY ORGANIC

I have a link here to an article by John Roulac about buying organic. Please check it out.

Thursday, May 15, 2008

Did you know that you can grow your own Stevia? Even though at one time the FDA pulled this from the market, a few years later reinstated it as a "dietary supplement".

There are many places to obtain cuttings/plants so you can grow your own. Click on this site http://www.stevia.net/growingstevia.htm for more information on growing your own Stevia.

It is very easy to use; just take your leaves, dry them good and put them in a coffee grinder or kitchen herb grinder. You can even throw the leaves in a high-powered blender to sweeten up your smoothie.

One dried leaf, ground, is 10 to 15 times sweeter than an equal amount of sugar without the calories. Remember, a little goes a long way so experimentation is necessary to find the right amount for your particular taste.

HEMP SEEDS IN A "NUTSHELL"

Hemp seeds contain all the essential amino acids and essential fatty acids necessary to maintain healthy human life. No other single plant source has the essential amino acids in such an easily digestible form, nor has the essential fatty acids in as perfect a ratio to meet human nutritional needs. Hemp seeds are taken from cannabis sativa. Yes, I know what you are thinking, different kind of cannabis.

Hemp seed protein is the highest of any plant life available.

You can easily add this to your blender when making a smoothie. Mom and I buy the Hemp Chocolate Milk at the health food store. We are going to experiment to see if we can make our own healthy version of chocolate milk with hemp seeds and will be posting the recipe on this blog.

Check back to learn more about different ways of adding protein to your smoothies without having to eat meat. Meat is not the only place to get protein.

By the way, Avocados are full of protein and taste yummy in a smoothie or as a guacamole dip.

Wednesday, May 14, 2008

Good checkup

Hi there. I lost another 3 pounds, that is 29 total since starting Byetta. The doctor felt it was a great idea that I am consuming so much fruit and making smoothies. I educated her real quick as to what goes into a green smoothie. Like everyone else, even me at one time, she turned her nose up at drinking vegetables but when I explained that all you really taste is the fruit, she was more open to it and even became encouraging. My blood work has cleared up considerably and I owe it all to my new way of eating. You can do it too! Just throw everything into the blender, seeds and all. High-powered blenders work best. No particulate matter that way.

Wolfdog

Tuesday, May 13, 2008

S.A.R.F.

SMOOTHIES AND RAW FOOD

I have noticed that there a bunch of smoothie and raw food sites on the web nowadays. With SARF, I hope to change things up a bit. Smoothies and raw food seem to go hand-in-hand with all the wonderful things you can blend together to make a great tasting smoothie that is healthy and nutritious too. Keep checking back for recipes and useful information regarding this easy way to get your fruits and vegetables.

Wolfdog

HEMP SEED MILK RECIPES

HEMP SEED MILK: (watch the video) CLICK YOUR BROWSERS BACK BUTTON TO COME BACK TO THIS PAGE

1 cup of hemp seeds
1 litre of mineral/filtered water

Soak the hemp seeds overnight. Drain and rinse. Place in a blender and gradually add the water while blending on maximum speed. Pour mixture through a fine sieve (or squeeze through some muslin/cheesecloth for a smoother milk) into a jug or suitable container and enjoy.

For a creamier milk, use more hemp seeds or less water. Also try blending in 1 or 2 large bananas with the finished milk to thicken and sweeten it.

To make a delicious and uplifting chocolate milk, just add 1/3rd of a cup of Cacao pieces to soak with the hemp seeds and proceed as above.

Try this for a tasty treat

1/3rd cup of cacao pieces
1 cup of hemp seeds
1 tablespoon maple syrup/honey
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 litre of mineral/filtered water

Make the chocolate milk as above - by adding the cacao pieces in to soak with the hemp seeds.

Pour one pint into a small saucepan and warm very gently. Add the maple syrup/honey and cinnamon and stir well. Remove the pan from the heat while the milk is warm (but not hot) and enjoy.

NOTE: Hemp seed milk will separate and taste unpleasant if it is heated too much.

RAW CHOCOLATE SMOOTHIE:

4 heaped tsp raw chocolate powder
1 tblsp virgin coconut butter/hemp oil
1/2 tsp maca
3 bananas
1/2 avocado
hemp seed milk

Chop the banana and avocado into pieces, place in a blender with other ingredients and slowly pour in the desired amount of hemp seed milk while blending.

For a delicious basic chocolate smoothy just blend the cacao powder, banana and avocado with the hemp seed milk.

SUPER GREEN SMOOTHIE:

1 level tsp spirulina
1/2 tsp maca
3 bananas
1/2 avocado
hemp seed milk

Chop the banana and avocado into pieces, place in a blender with other ingredients and slowly pour in the desired amount of hemp seed milk while blending.

For a delicious basic green smoothy just blend the spirulina, banana and avocado with the hemp seed milk.

SESAME SMOOTHIE:

75g sesame seeds
3 bananas
1 tblsp coconut butter/hemp oil
1/2 tsp maca
1 heaped tsp cacao powder
1 - 2 tsp maple syrup/honey
hemp seed milk

Soak the sesame seeds in (filtered) water for at least 4 hours, or overnight. Drain and rinse, then blend the seeds on high speed with just enough hemp milk to keep them moving. When the seeds are blended to a paste add a little more hemp milk and the other ingredients and blend thoroughly, adding more hemp seed milk to achieve the desired consistency.

For a delicious basic sesame smoothie just blend the sesame seeds with the hemp milk, banana and coconut butter/hemp oil.

BEST CHOCOLATE MILK MAY NOT COME FROM COW

This is an article taken from http://wesh.com/ where a panel tested various chocolate milk varieties. Silk chocolate milk received a rating of 95 out of 100 and Promised Land got a whopping 100. Please keep in mind that many of the varieties tested were high in sugar and if you are diabetic like myself, you will need to take that into consideration when choosing chocolate milk.

Best Chocolate Milk May Not Come From Cow
Soy Milk Surprises Testers
J. Scott Wilson, Staff writer

One of the scariest moments in my parenting life came when I asked my 3-year-old what he wanted to drink with his dinner, and he replied, "Chocolate milk!"Who had told him about the stuff? Was there a Nestle pusher hiding in the bushes outside? Had that danged rabbit hopped in through an unguarded window? Was there a brown cow nearby?

I still haven't found the guilty party, but I suspect it's one of his day care pals, maybe the one who also turned him on to the concept of monsters under the bed.

In any case, chocolate milk has not yet been added to the drink menu at our house. However, after tasting the new breed of chocolate milks made with low- or non-fat milk, I just might have to consider it as an occasional treat. There's some good stuff out there and, of course, a few that dropped the ball.
This comparison covers ready-to-drink chocolate milk, as there's really a dearth of competition in the powdered stir-in category. It's pretty much either Nesquik or Ovaltine there. All the brands tested, unless otherwise specified, are made with non- or low-fat milk. Pay attention to the calorie counts and you might be surprised -- although the sugar counts, included here, might make you feel a bit woozy.
My usual five-person tasting panel ranked each milk, awarding a total of 20 points for mouth feel and flavor, for a possible perfect score of 100. Nutritional information is provided for each one.

PET Chocolate Milk: 210 calories, 8 grams fat, 35 mg cholesterol, 230 mg sodium, 27 grams carbs, 25 grams sugar.

This whole-milk drink was one of the cheaper ones on the shelf, but it sure didn't taste that way. It had a rich, velvety mouth feel and good flavor. The chocolate could have been a touch richer to stand up to the extra milkfat, but overall our control scored it a lofty 94.

Yoohoo Chocolate Drink: 130 calories, 1 gram fat, 0 mg cholesterol, 170 mg sodium, 29 grams carbs, 20 grams sugar.

And here we have the opposite end of the spectrum. While Yoohoo isn't technically chocolate milk, it does contain nonfat milk and is sold in the refrigerated case next to the milk. Once you open the container, though, all similarity vanishes. The mouth feel was exceedingly watery, and the chocolate flavor was faint and muddled.

One tester quoted Peanuts, pronouncing it, "Water with a brown crayon dipped in it." Final score: 56.

Nesquik Milkshake: 180 calories, 5 grams fat, 20 mg cholesterol, 180 mg sodium, 26 grams carbs, 24 grams sugar.

This is one of two Nesquik entries, and the name was rather misleading. You'd think a "milkshake" would be richer than regular chocolate milk. That wasn't true. The chocolate flavor was weak, and the mouth feel was average but not as rich as the standard Nesquik flavor. Final score: 78.

Nesquik: 200 calories, 5 grams fat, 15 mg cholesterol, 150 mg sodium, 32 grams carbs, 30 grams sugar.

This one has the same fat as its Milkshake cousin and a bit more sugar, and it goes to good use. The sweetness is well-balanced and the mouth feel is fairly rich. The chocolate flavor is fairly strong, but not terribly complex, like a low-priced milk chocolate bar. Final score: 82.

Organic Valley 1% Milkfat: 160 calories, 2.5 grams fat, 15 mg cholesterol, 290 mg sodium, 27 grams carbs, 25 grams sugar.

The chocolate flavor here was good, but the mouth feel was a bit watery. The sodium content in this entry was pretty high, and that could explain the chocolaty impact, as salty will often make sweet stand out. Final score: 88.

Silk Soymilk Chocolate: 140 calories, 3.5 grams fat, 0 mg cholesterol, 100 mg sodium, 23 grams carbs, 19 grams sugar.

No one on the planet was more surprised to find this as our clear winner. I've tried soymilk before, and while it wasn't actively repugnant it certainly wasn't my drink of choice. The Silk, however, has a rich, smooth mouth feel and an undeniably stout chocolate flavor. The testers agreed, awarding the Silk our top score of 95.

The Ultimate Chocolate Milk?

There is, however, just one more chocolate milk that you need to know about. This is not your everyday drink. It's far from the cheapest one on the grocer's shelf, and it's definitely not low-impact in the fat or the calories department.

But it's quite simply the best chocolate milk available in a grocery store, in the panel's opinion.

Promised Land: 240 calories, 10 grams fat, 35 mg cholesterol, 230 mg sodium, 33 grams carbs, 31 grams sugar.

I defy you to take a gulp of this milk. It is so rich, so thick that you have to sip it. The chocolate flavor will linger on your tongue long after the glass is empty. Eight ounces of this a week will satisfy you as much as a serving of any of the others every day. Final score: 100.

While the low-fat versions may not satisfy the way the Promised Land does, there is still some good sipping to be had. You might even find yourself with soymilk in your refrigerator on a permanent basis.

MOM'S STRAWBERRY AND BANANA GREEN SMOOTHIE

1 or 2 bananas (frozen is good)
1 cup fresh or frozen strawberries
Add 1 or 2 handfuls of kale or spinach
2 cups of water

Blend in your favorite blender (I use Blendtec Blender)

Note: If this is your first try at making a green smoothie start with a small amount of greens and then add more greens to taste.

Optional:
1. Try blending a few carob or cacao nibs for you chocolate lovers.
2. You can add other fruits of choice.
3. Try adding organic shelled hemp seeds for a little protein.
4. Also try adding wheat grass juice for extra nutrient value.