Low Sweet Vegan Green Smoothie

This drink was more on the veggie side. There are no mistakes with green vegan smoothies...just play and see what you come up with. Here's one way to go.

3 cups of spinach leaf
1 carrot
1 celery stalk
1 apple
a cup of pineapple cubs
2 Tsb of flax oil
water and love

So give a go and enjoy your fabulous body, mind and spirit.
hugs
Camber

Glow In The Dark Vegan Green Smoothie

January 26, 2010

This Glow In The Dark Smoothie is super yummy

When you blend this drink up and look at the magnificent neon green color, you just know it's packed full of fabulous sizzle. The ingredients will rush to the cells of your body and take good care of you.
Now let's get started

Hand full of spinach leaf
Palm full of parsley
2 or more stalks of kale (pull the kale off the spine)
Hand full green grapes
A bunch of cut pieces of pineapple, this is a big yummy in this turbo drink
2 bananas
2Tsp of flaxseed meal
water to the middle of your blender full of food.
Blend it and if it's to gritty, put more water in, till you love the texture of this wonderful drink

Now bottoms up my little pretty

Camber

July 26, 2008

Are Chia Seeds (Salvia Hispanica) the New & Improved Flax Seeds?

"The results were lower blood pressure, reduced low-grade inflammation, and it made blood thinner.  There are not many studies in the literature showing this kind of results from a natural grain.   It was rather spectacular."

-Dr. Vladimir Vuksan, U of Toronto researcher-


Three weeks ago my sister asked me if knew anything about Chia Pet seeds. Yes, you read that right--these are the same seeds that grew the hair of the 1980's sensation "The Chia Pet"!  She said she heard they were better than flax seeds--more nutritional bang for the buck--and you didn't need to grind them up or keep them in the refrigerator.  Even Dr. Andrew Weil is a big fan.
I was clueless--never heard of the them.  But I said I would check it out.  After looking into it I think Chia just may supplant my super food favorite flax seed, and here's why I'm starting to use these teeny tiny Peruvian poppy seed-sized seeds :

• High in Omega 3-s. Chia has the highest level of healthy omega-3 fatty acids of any plant, including flax.  This is in the form of alpha-linolenic acid.  A June 2008 article in Nutrition Reviews raves about the cardioprotective & neuroprotective benefits of ALA, as well as its effect in countering inflammation and its beneficial effect on autoimmune diseases.
• Fiber. Chia has the highest known whole-food source of fiber.  About 2 TBS.=7 grams of fiber, both soluble & insoluble. Note: This differs by brand.
• Needs no refrigeration. It's so rich in anti-oxidants (chlorogenic acid, caffeic acid, myricetin, quercetin and flavonols) that it doesn't need to be refrigerated, unlike flax seed. And it doesn't need to be ground up, unlike flax.
  
• Nutrients. It's chock full of important nutrients, including protein, calcium, phosphorus, magnesium, manganese, copper, niacin and zinc.
• Easy to use. It's tasteless & can be mixed easily in oatmeal, yogurt, baked goods, or smoothies. Or you can sprinkle it on salads.
• Keeps your blood sugar steady. You can add it to your water bottle, wait 30 minutes & give it a good shake. The tiny seeds form a pleasant gel, which will slow down the digestion of carbohydrates, preventing blood sugar spikes, and keeping you feeling full longer.  My sister adds lemon Crystal Light to her "Chia Water".  My husband & I drink it "straight up".  Or try "Chia Fresca", a traditional Mexican & Central American drink.  Mix 8-10 oz. of water, 2 tsp. of Chia seed, a little lemon or lime juice & some sugar.  "Chia water" is reminiscent of the bubble tea you may have tasted at a Thai restaurant.
• No gastric discomfort.  Flax seed is gas producing for me--Chia isn't.  No idea why!

The big buzz started when Dr. Vladimir Vuksan, a professor of endocrinology and nutritional sciences at the University of Toronto, published a study of 20 type-2 diabetics who supplemented their diets with about 3 tablespoons of Salba (the commercial brand of ground Chia seeds) everyday for 12 weeks.  Dr. Vuksan thought it would be a great supplement to lower the blood sugar levels of diabetics and decrease their risk of cardiovascular disease at the same time. The control group ate wheat bran, the other group ate the Chia seeds.  Turned out that both groups had equal drops in blood sugar.  But, some surprising cardiovascular benefits accrued for the Chia group!

Benefits found from the Chia Seed Study.

• Blood pressure decreased. The Chia group had a 6.3 point drop in blood pressure.  According to Dr.Vuksan, "That's better than a lot of medication."  The drop may be because of the Chia's unique combinations of  high omega 3's, high fiber, vegetable protein and magnesium.
• The C-reactive protein levels decreased by 30%.  CRP is a key measure of inflammation & an important marker for cardiovascular disease.  Anything that can reduce it by 30% is worth noting.
• Clotting factors dropped by 20%.  Based on previous research, this would translate into a modest decrease in cardiovascular disease.
• The ALA blood levels (the plant form of Omega-3) doubled in the Chia group.

The Aztec Legends Surrounding Chia seeds.

• A handful of Chia seeds could sustain ancient Aztec warriors for a full day.
• The Aztecs used Chia as a medicine to relieve joint pain and skin conditions.
• Aztec runners, who delivered messages between communities, used Chia mixed with water to sustain themselves on long runs.

How Much Do The Seeds Cost?  Which Brand Is Best?

• Chia seeds will set you back much more than flax seed will.  Bob's Red Mill Flax costs only $.14 an ounce.  I'm not giving up my flax, just adding Chia a few days a week.
  
• The plain Jane black seed Shiloh Farms brand costs about $.62 an ounce.  
• The ChiaLife brand costs about $1.20 an ounce at a local health food store, but $.88 an ounce online.
• Nature's Answer (the brand my sister uses) costs about $.77 an ounce.
• The Salba brand, which was used in Dr. Vuksan's Toronto study costs about $1.25 an ounce.  This is a white seed, that the company says is the culmination of 15 years of special breeding and results in a substantially enhanced nutrient density.  Who knows?  You be your own judge.
• The nutrient content for Salba, Natures' Answer & ChiaLife are all basically the same, so I'm not sure why Salba thinks their product is superior.  The Shiloh Farms brand just has basic fiber, carb & protein content on its label, not omega-3 or vitamin & mineral content.
• As far as my taste tests went, they were all the same.
• UPATE:  When I wrote this post I had only tasted the Salba brand of Chia meal (ground up Chia). I have since tasted the Salba Chia regular seed & I have to say, I really like its taste & texture.  If it weren't so expensive it would be my first choice.  Maybe the price will come down.

The above information is was provided by:
The Healthy Librarian

Eat fabulous and Think Fabulous, because it feels good

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Textured Vegetable Protien

Textured Vegetable Protein (TVP)?

To be turned on to sensible ways to eat makes for good common cents. Here is another way to save on the fake meat stuff we like to use in tacos, burritos, soups and many other delightful meals.

Textured Vegetable Protein

also know as TVP, it can be a sound way to get your dishes what what they need with out paying more money than need be.

Also known as textured soy protein, TVP is not tofu. It is, however, made from soy. TVP comes from defatted soy flour, which is a by-product of soybean oil, so it is plentiful in supply. It’s also quick to cook and a great source of vegetable protein without all the fat.
TVP comes in small dry chunks resembling, well, dried vegetables more than anything, or in a finely-ground form. It’s flavorless, but when you rehydrate it and add your own flavors, it makes a great protein-filled addition to many dishes calling for ground meat. Because of its varying texture, it’s versatile, and can take on the texture of many meats. For instance, it’s excellent in chili, tacos, veggie burgers and soups.

A 43-gram serving of TVP contains 120 calories and 21 grams of protein and hardly any fat. Since it’s so high in protein, it makes a great transition meat substitute; but since North Americans eat more protein than our bodies can process, you should gradually reduce or even eliminate TVP as well.
When it’s used to replace meat in stews and soups, your family will hardly be able to tell the difference and since you can marinate it in many of the same sauces as meat, it can take on many of meat’s flavors.

Though TVP is much healthier than most meats, it’s still a high-protein processed food, and high-protein diets increase the rate at which you age. With minimal proteins and a high fruit and vegetable diet, you’ll achieve the best level of health.

Natural food stores, health food stores and large supermarkets generally carry TVP; check the bulk section if you can’t find it.

Think and Eat Fabulous

Vegan Green Smoothie Co-Staring Kenya My African Grey

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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vU12hQRjBQE

Chesse Is A Legal Addition!

If you're detoxing from dairy you may needed a 12-step program. I found it so hard to give up cheese! Amazingly, little did I know that cheese has actually been proven to be addictive. It has been as equally harder for me to give up dairy as cigarettes were at one time. Perhaps more shocking thing is that the Dairy Industry has deliberately fed on cheese's addictive quality, with all of us being completely duped. I feel sickened by the following article. If you can honestly read the last paragraph of this article and not be furious, you are addicted.

Here is an excerpt from the article in the Orlando Sentinel July 13 2003:

Of all the potentially addicting foods, cheese may be the most complex. In research studies using vegan and vegetarian diets to control cholesterol or reduce body weight, most participants soon forget the lure of ice cream, sour cream, and even burgers and chicken. But for many people, the taste for cheese lingers on and on. Yes, 70 percent of its calories may come from waist-augmenting fat, and, ounce for ounce, it may harbor more cholesterol than a steak. But that cheese habit is tough to break.

Why is cheese so addicting? Certainly not because of its aroma, which is perilously close to old socks. The first hint of a biochemical explanation came in 1981, when scientists at Wellcome Research Laboratories in Research Triangle Park, N.C., found a substance in dairy products that looked remarkably like morphine. After a complex series of tests, they determined that, surprisingly enough, it actually was morphine. By a fluke of nature, the enzymes that produce opiates are not confined to poppies -- they also hide inside cows' livers. So traces of morphine can pass into the animal's bloodstream and end up in milk and milk products. The amounts are far too small to explain cheese's appeal. But nonetheless, the discovery led scientists on their search for opiate compounds in dairy products.

And they found them. Opiates hide inside casein, the main dairy protein. As casein molecules are digested, they break apart to release tiny opiate molecules, called casomorphins. One of these compounds has about one-tenth the opiate strength of morphine. The especially addicting power of cheese may be due to the fact that the process of cheese-making removes water,lactose and whey proteins so that casein is concentrated. Scientists are now trying to tease out whether these opiate molecules work strictly within the digestive tract or whether they pass into the bloodstream and reach the brain directly.

(some paragraphs about chocolate addiction snipped)

The cheese industry is miles ahead of them, having gone to great lengths to identify people who are most vulnerable to addiction. It dubs them "cheese cravers," and tracks their age, educational level and other demographics so as to target them with marketing strategies that are tough to ignore. With a $200 million annual research and marketing budget, the dairy industry is not content to have you just sprinkling a little mozzarella on your salad. It is looking for those Americans who will eat it straight out of the package, whatever the cost to their waistlines or cholesterol levels.

At a "Cheese Forum" held Dec. 5, 2000, Dick Cooper, the vice president of Cheese Marketing for Dairy Management Inc., laid out the industry's scheme for identifying potential addicts and keeping them hooked. In his slide presentation, which was released to our organization under the Freedom of Information Act, he asked the question, "What do we want our marketing program to do?" and then gave the answer: "Trigger the cheese craving." He described how, in a partnership with the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the dairy industry launched Wendy's Cheddar Lover's Bacon Cheeseburger, which single-handedly pushed 2.25 million pounds of cheese during the promotion period. That works out to 380 tons of fat and 1.2 tons of pure cholesterol in the cheese alone. A similar promotion with Pizza Hut launched the "Ultimate Cheese Pizza," which added an entire pound of cheese to a single pizza and sold five million pounds of it during a six-week promotion in 2000. The presentation concluded with a cartoon of a playground slide with a large spider web woven to trap children as they reached the bottom. The caption had one spider saying to another, "If we pull this off, we'll eat like kings."

Camber@ThinkFabulous.com
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