Simplify the Daunting

The most common excuse people offer for not pursuing a healthier diet is that they could never give up a certain food.  Sometimes their guilty pleasure is cheese, other times chocolate cake, steak or bacon.  Regardless, the thought of letting go of this tasty treasure is too daunting and they are therefore unwilling to take steps toward a healthier diet.

Here is the secret: you never have to decide to give anything up forever.  All you ever have to do is choose to eat healthy things today.  Today’s choices have nothing to do with yesterday’s choices or tomorrow’s choices.  Sometimes we need to remind ourselves that we are free to choose a chocolate souffle tomorrow… but today we are empowering ourselves with organic, whole, vibrant foods.

It is my belief that eating well never has to be a question of willpower.  When I got to the point of eating 100% raw vegan foods, it felt like a relief.  I was so excited to feel better and could not wait to try out some new foods.  This only happened for me, however, after years of starting to include some healthier items into my standard American diet, and educating myself about the benefits of plant foods and the various scary side effects of processed junk food.  I started to notice how my body felt after eating one food or another, and as a result I naturally noticed myself avoiding the foods that made me feel worn down or poisoned.

Some people will find themselves attracted to a strict dietary lifestyle change, others will be more interested in a moderate approach.  Either decision can have a very positive effect on health and wellbeing.  Regardless, no one ever has to make a dietary choice for the rest of their life – just decide for today, for this meal, this bite.  The rest will work itself out effortlessly if you listen to your body and its true cravings.

Lara

Have A Heart

WE ALL HAVE LOVE TO SHARE

LOTS OF IT ACTUALLY

SO SHARE YOUR LOVE

HEARTS WILL GLOW

More cake pictures

Here are the cakes in full view.

Can you tell that I love fresh strawberries?

Let them eat cake!!

I love raw desserts. I want to eat them for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. I still can’t believe that I can have my cake and eat it too! I am starting to spread the word too. I just made this cake for my dad’s birthday. I used Heathy Pace‘s chocolate cake recipe from her “Just Desserts” e-book. She’s right the apple does make it super moist!! I gave it a shot and tried the coconut whipped cream. A perfect finishing touch! You can see it dolloped on top. This cake was puuurrrfect with fresh strawberries and frosting that can fool any greasy spoon regular with a little bit of avocado cacao and agave! I topped it off with some fresh banana ice cream too.

Happy Birthday Dad!

Here is another cake I made. An ice cream cake this time and my own recipe!

The top is banana ice cream with a brownie layer underneath. I tried any phyo’s recipe for coconut ice cream and added my own little twist with FRESH nutmeg, ginger, and almonds. The bottom is carob, raisins, and pecans. Please stay tuned for a full recipe in our recipe section! The pictures of the cake are a little blurry, my apologies.

I am loving it up on Moosehead. Please stay tuned for more updates!

Much love Jaime

Garlic: The Stinkiest Medicine?

Versatile and delicious, garlic makes most entrees taste better: soups, salads, breads, crackers, sauces, spreads, wraps, etc.  One thing, however, is important to remember when eating garlic: make sure whoever you are sleeping with eats as much of it as you do.

In 1609, Sir John Harrington wrote in The Englishman’s Doctor:

Garlic then have power to save from death

Bear with it though it maketh unsavory breath,

And scorn not garlic like some that think

It only maketh men wink and drink and stink.

We all know the havoc garlic wreaks upon one’s breath and body odor.  This unfortunate aroma cannot be cured by a breath mint or deodorant – it literally oozes out of your pores until the culprit leaves your system.  I am here to implore you not to let this annoyance keep you from embracing garlic in your diet.  There have been more scientific studies on garlic than almost any other food you can eat (over 200 human studies and at least 800 animal studies) and the results are astounding, strong and consistent: garlic has magnificent healing powers.

Heart Troubles? Try Garlic.

• Studies show that garlic lowers total serum cholesterol levels and increases serum HDL cholesterol levels (which protects against heart disease).
• Garlic has been shown to lower blood pressure – specifically lowering systolic pressure by 8 mm Hg and diastolic pressure by 5 mm Hg in patients with high blood pressure.
• Garlic helps to inhibit harmful blood clotting (aggregation) as it prevents the clumping of platelets and lowers fibrinogen – a protein involved in blood clotting and linked with heart disease.
• Garlic promotes healthy blood circulation, specifically increasing circulation to capillaries.
• In a 1997 study, garlic has been shown to help protect the elasticity of the aorta – which an extremely important thing to protect!  This can help prevent an aortic aneurysm.

Cancer Troubles? Try Garlic.

• Garlic has been shown to lower the risk of cancers of the colon, stomach and esophagus.  The theory is that garlic’s sulfur compounds help to control carcinogens.  One study of 41,000 women showed that one or more servings of garlic a week was linked with a 35% decrease in risk of colon cancer.

• Allicin and other substances in garlic have been shown to protect colon cells from succumbing to the deleterious and toxic effects of cancer-causing chemicals as well as to actually stop the growth of already existing cancer cells.

Infection Troubles? Try Garlic.

• Garlic has been called the “Russian penicillin” due to its antibacterial qualities.  Allicin is responsible for garlic’s antimicrobial activity, and has been demonstrated to be effective against common colds, flu, stomach viruses, Candida yeast, and also powerful pathogenic microbes such as tuberculosis and botulism.

Odor Troubles? Well…

• Taking a long and hot bath may speed up the process of excreting the odor of garlic from the body.  Chewing on parsley, mint, basil and/or thyme may also help.

Many of the benefits of garlic are lost when it is heated – the raw form is the most medicinal.  Unfortunately the same substances in garlic that cause its foul and lingering odor are the ones that are largely responsible for its healing powers.  Garlic’s so-called volatile factors are probably responsible for its therapeutic properties.  These include the sulfur-containing compounds allicin, diallyl disulfide, diallyl trisulfide, etc.

Other Beneficial Substances in Garlic:

• Vitamin B6
• Manganese
• Selenium
• Vitamin C
• Good source of the minerals phosphorous, iron, copper, potassium, and calcium.

Although garlic does leave a rather unfortunate odor after it is eaten, it is incredibly delicious!  Here are some yummy raw recipes to help you include more healing garlic in your life:

• Sun Bright Solstice Soup
• Winter Fire Salad Dressing
• Seaweed Wrap

Finally, here is a lovely short video on the benefits of eating raw garlic (complete with calming background music):

Much love to all the stinky people!

Lara

Cinnamon: The Yummiest Medicine?

As a kid growing up in Acton, MA, I used to sip hot apple cider through a rather unique straw: a cinnamon stick.  It was surprisingly effective as a straw, but it would also tantalize my youthful taste buds with a continuous subtle hint of delicious cinnamon.  I doubt I am alone in associating cinnamon with happy childhood memories: winter holidays by a fire, surrounded by family and music; comforting breakfasts and desserts; happiness and magical camaraderie.

Cinnamon is obtained by peeling away the inner bark of evergreen trees native to Sri Lanka, southwest India and parts of Asia.  As the bark dries, it curls into the delightful cinnamon sticks – also called quills.  It has been revered as a medicinal (and tasty) spice since biblical times.  In the Bible, the first century CE Roman emperor Nero burned a year’s worth of cinnamon on his wife’s funeral pyre as a symbol of the depth of his loss.  Cinnamon was used in ancient Egypt for embalming purposes, as a medicinal herb, and in beverages.  It was even mentioned in one of the earliest books in Chinese botanical medicine, dated to about 2700 BCE.  Cinnamon was also one of the first commodities traded consistently between Europe and the Near East.  All in all, cinnamon is not exactly a new superfood – people of several cultures have known how amazing it is for literally millennia.

There are over 200 types of cinnamon.  The most popular kinds are Ceylon cinnamon (considered “true” cinnamon) and cassia (a Chinese variety).  North American companies frequently use cassia in lieu of Ceylon cinnamon or heavily supplement with cassia because it is significantly less expensive than Ceylon cinnamon – even though the taste is harsher and far less refined.  There is a simple test to determine whether your cinnamon has cassia mixed in: cassia is full of starch whereas true cinnamon is not.  Starch turns blue when it meets iodine, so unleashing an iodine dropper upon a sample of your cinnamon will reveal its ingredients.  Cassia will turn blue and true cinnamon will retain its golden brown color.

Like most delicious plant foods, cinnamon has many healing qualities.  Some of the scientifically confirmed effects of cinnamon are that it has antibiotic, diaphoretic (inducing perspiration – helpful for detoxing), antiulcerative, digestive, anticonvulsant, diuretic, and carminative (flatulence relieving) properties, as a sedative for smooth muscle, and as a stimulant for circulation.

In North America, cinnamon is most frequently used as a supplement to help regulate blood sugar.  In one scientific study of 60 people with type 2 diabetes, 1 to 6 daily grams of cinnamon for 40 days reduced fasting blood glucose by 18 to 29 percent.  Triglycerides were reduced by 23 to 30 percent, LDL cholesterol by 7 to 27 percent, and total cholesterol by 12 to 26 percent.

The essential oils in the bark are responsible for cinnamon’s healing qualities.  The oils contain many volatile substances, including the active components cinnamaldehyde, cinnamyl acetate, eugenol, trans-cinnamic acid, and cinnamyl alcohol.  These oils have been demonstrated to have antifungal, antiviral, bactericidal effects, and antioxidant properties.

Ground cinnamon and cinnamon sticks should both be stored cool, dark and dry in a tightly sealed glass container.  Ground cinnamon stays good for about six months and cinnamon sticks stay good for about a year.

Word of caution: much like spinach, cinnamon contains moderate amounts of oxalate and thus should be avoided by those with a history of oxalate-containing kidney stones.  Also, there have not been sufficient tests done on pregnant and lactating women to ensure cinnamon’s safety when used as a supplement during these times – although cassia appears to be safe.

Here are some recipes to help any cinnamon-consuming endeavors you may  have (I mean, who can blame you?):

• The Encyclopedia of Healing Foods – Tea recipe: 1-inch slice of fresh ginger, ¼ teaspoon cinnamon, ¼ lemon, 1 cup hot water. Either grind or juice the ginger, add all to the hot water and enjoy.
• Susan Power’s Rawmazing Cinnamon Bun recipe
• Our Squirrel Breakfast recipe
• And finally, our marvelous Chai Milk recipe

The Renegade Health Show has a very informative video about how cinnamon is harvested:

I have been doing quite a bit of recipe experimentation with cinnamon recently, so Vibrant Maine is bound to post new cinnamon recipes soon!  Until then, toodle-loo!

Lara

In Our Garden

Fresh & buzzing with storm energy arugula and lettuce from the garden.

I love the way food fresh from the garden
sparkles!

Lettuce love one another.

Ideas for Spring

Spring is a time for lovely new beginnings and inspiration. Clean your house, get some sun, plant a garden, smell the roses, eat some dandelion leaves, and…

1) Embrace the power of change

When I was growing up, I had an interesting and consistent method for releasing lethargic despair and becoming inspired and hopeful again: I would stay up late into the night and completely rearrange the furniture in my room.  When I woke up the next morning in what felt like a brand new room, it was like all the sadness that had been plaguing me had disappeared with the previous day’s furniture formation.  Changing seemingly insignificant aspects of your life can have a truly transformative effect on your state of mind, creativity, and can even motivate you to make larger positive changes in your life that may have seemed daunting before.  Moving furniture is one tried and true method – and here are some more ideas for you to ponder:

• Take a new route home.  Even if it takes you slightly out of the way, driving in new places can keep you on your toes, introduce you to interesting places you did not know existed, and prevent you from getting so stuck in your typical routine that you stop seeing the several exciting possibilities life has to offer.
• Write and send a snail-mail letter to someone.  Whether you choose a loved one you communicate with regularly, an old but distant friend, an acquaintance, or someone you have never even met, it is bound to be an interesting experience.  Let’s face it – most of us have not received a handwritten letter from a friend in about a decade.  It would be nice.  Find some stationary that appeals to you, sit down with the drink of your choice (herbal tea, green juice, straight-up vodka), grab a fun writing utensil, and start writing!  Maybe throw some dried flowers, photos, or a recipe to share in the envelope as well.
• Try out a new raw recipe.  Perhaps try one of our delicious recipes – and please let us know what you think!

2) Learn something new

Today, I picked up a book on organic chemistry from the library.  Seriously.  I honestly have no idea what I am getting myself into, but I wanted to learn about something completely foreign to me.  Learning new things keeps the brain young – always an important goal, even at my embryonic age of twenty-four.  Your subject of choice does not have to be as, well, dry and frightening as organic chemistry might be – learning anything new will do the trick.  Here are some ideas to begin with:

• Learn a new instrument.  Speaking from eight years of music teaching experience, it does not matter how old you are – you can pick up a new instrument and do well.  Though you are probably unlikely to be performing with the LA Philharmonic anytime soon, you can certainly experience the joy of creating a beautiful phrase.
• Learn about kinkajous!  A relative of the raccoon, this adorable creature enjoys honey, fruit, and insects.
• Learn about a different culture.  Consider studying the Yanomami who live in the Amazonian rainforest in both Brazil and Venezuela.
• Learn about ridiculously enormous sea creatures.  Fascinating.  Scary.  Really super awesome.

3) Watch this video. Feel free to laugh.

Wishing you all the best of Springtimes,

Lara

The Wonders of the Grapefruit

What would you get if you allowed an orange and a pomelo to spend quality time alone together in Barbados during the mid-eighteenth century?  A beautiful, delicious, and powerfully healing fruit… Grapefruit!

Named “grapefruit” due to its tendency to grow in clusters just like grapes, each innocent-looking grapefruit contains numerous potent healing properties – not to mention an addictive blend of tart and sweet tastes in every bite.

Healing for your heart:

As grapefruit is high in the fiber pectin (just like apples, carrots and peaches!), it can help lower unhealthy levels of cholesterol, which in turn helps to prevent heart disease.  Grapefruit also contains good amounts of the antioxidant lycopene (the darker red the grapefruit, the higher the lycopene levels), which has been shown to assist in protecting against cancer, macular degeneration, and… heart disease!  As heart disease is the leading cause of death in the US, we consider these qualities of grapefruit to be rather fabulous.

Good for your hematocrit levels (what?!):

Hematocrit levels is a fancy way of saying the percentage of red blood cells per volume of blood.  Studies have shown that eating grapefruit can help normalize hematocrit levels – in other words, if you have too many red blood cells per volume of blood, eating grapefruit is likely to reduce the red blood cells; and if you have too few, grapefruit will make its mission increasing your red blood cells.  The studies have also shown that if your hematocrit levels are perfect, the magical grapefruit will just leave them alone.  Mighty clever, yes?  This healing quality is most likely attributable to the flavanoid naringin in grapefruit (which is also largely responsible for grapefruit’s charmingly bitter taste).

Other fun facts about grapefruit:

• Good source of potassium, vitamin C and folic acid.
• Contains the healing phytochemicals liminoids, flavonoids, lycopene and glucarates.
• Glucarates may help protect against breast cancer by helping the body remove excess estrogen.

In general, grapefruit is a delectable treat for your palate and your health – low in calories and extremely nutrient dense!  Here is a cute and informative video by Freshtopia about this wondrous fruit:

Happy Citrus Eating!

Lara

Moosehead Lake, My Heart My Home

I have left my lovely Vibrant Maine friends down south and have gone  back home to Moosehead Lake for the summer. I will be working for my family at the Birches Resort. (Where I hope to implement some raw practices!) My boyfriend, Jordan, and I are staying in the cutest little cabin right on the lake. We’re planning to have an organic garden in our yard too! We’ll have all kinds of veggies, herbs, and big fat strawberries! The seedlings are sitting on porch just waiting to be planted. So with the gorgeous landscape and fresh veggies as bait, hopefully I can entice the other Vibras to visit all the time!

There I am standing on the dock and I look so small! You can see how vast the lake is. 

I will keep you updated, wish me luck with the garden! 

Jaime