Soy - What??? - A Beginners' Guide To Healthy Oils

 It's Not Nice To Be Fooled With Soy Isolates!

I had a bit of a shocker recently. A learning curve thing. I try to eat right and use healthy, good ingredients. But here's the fine print: Some soy products may be really bad for you. 

I DIDN'T know that!!

And so now I am aghast at how many products -including ingredients in your vitamins-  slip in this potentially evil substance, in particular soy isolate. Even eviler, it can be disguised under a few technical, hard-to-identify, and harder-to-pronounce names as well.

There is a LOT of concern that these can cause cancers to grow, bad estrogens, etc. So just when I thought it was safe and smart to use Smart Balance, etc. ...

(*But on a note of relief: my understanding is that fermented soy (think soy sauce and clean Thai food!) is still healthy!!)

I have gone back and changed my recipes to reflect this new knowledge. (If I missed anything, please let me know. I am ALL about good information here.)

~~

On to Thinking Positive:

 

How I Came to Appreciate Beautiful Oils and Butter

Healthy Living IS An Adventure!

First of all, let me repeat, that, to the best of my knowledge, fermented soy is not a culprit -thank goodness there as I love my soy sauces-  and most -if not all- of the ones I like to use seem to be made with the right ingredients.  It's the soy elements, in products, that have been toyed with that are most suspicious. And we have been led to believe that soy in all its forms is good for us. Maybe not so much.

And, as I begin to explore my options, there are MANY!!

I found this article, a guide to oils, over at Whole Foods.  It talks about good and bad oils. It's worth a read.

Here's a quick bite from it:

For baking: Coconut, palm oil ave the best reputation.
For frying: Because they stand up well to the heat, avocado, palm and sesame oil are ideal for frying.
For sautéing: Many oils are great for sautéing, including avocado, coconut, grapeseed, olive, and sesame oils.
For dipping, dressings and marinades: When it comes to making dressings and marinades, or finding oil that's perfect to serve alongside crusty bread for dipping, you're looking for terrific flavor. For this purpose look to olive, toasted sesame or walnut oil.

To start with oils, I read the above and a few other articles and then I ran off to Whole Foods to purchase a few good-for-me oils. I was happy to find such a good selection.

I purchased two high heat oils:
Grapeseed oil (a very clean, light, all purpose cooking and baking and wok/sautéing oil)
and
Avocado oil (also for frying and sautéing) (and it is not bad as a skin care product either!). 

 Of course there is the mainstay of Extra Virgin Olive Oil as well, but it is best not cooked at high heats.  

My favorite new oil is a French walnut oil (amazing!!) for salads and delicate recipes -it is best unheated. It's very delicate and oh sooo good for you.  

Soon, I plan to experiment with Almond oil and Truffle oils.

I love that many of these gourmet specialty oils can be purchased fairly inexpensively in smaller containers. And extra nice to find out, so far the sunflower, avocado, and walnut oils, that I am keeping in my refrigerator, do NOT solidify in the refrigerator like olive oil does. That's a convenient benefit.

As far as table spreads or more buttery blends to sauté with, I have also changed my ways there too.  I loved the taste of my old Smart Balance and Original Recipe Earth Balance.  Soy, I discovered, was amongst, if not their first ingredient!! They are now all in the past. And also, out went the Omega 3 Smart Balance Oil I had been using!

Earth Balance does have a soy free spread and I am cautiously trying that out. It's very clean tasting and not bad for everyday use. But now I am suspicious of foods with too many "ingredients" and being more careful. And I have returned to pure butter. I like mine unsalted or lightly salted, made from grass fed (not soy fed) cows milk.  With butter, you just need to use less and it does go further. So much for the myth that margarine with its fewer calories and omega 3's can be a healthy choice with benefits.

I also threw out my mayonnaise and I am soon to experiment with true French mayonnaise.

Along the road to healthy eating, one might just discover the wonders of better tasting food too!

Lucky for us, good groceries and good food producers care and thus (like my husband was about to do) we don't have to all go out and buy our own oil presses - although I did read up on that and it sounded kind of fun!


Bon Appétit!


-bbffair

6/10/2017  Notes:
I have updated my oils list. 
Some oils that I found iffy, or without enough information over time, I have deleted from my original list above. 
At this time, Grapeseed oil is my go-to oil for cooking. It is very light and clean and can sustain high heats and is perfect for high heat Thai. 
I continue to enjoy the soy-free Earth Balance spread and or pure unsalted butter.
And my go-to salad (no or low-low heat) oil is still a high quality Extra Virgin Olive Oil.

Spring Sprint

 Spring Sprint 

- 

In The Beginning

Did I say I was READY for Spring? I am READY for SPRING!

So for Week One -The Prep Week!-  of My Spring Sprint: 

Step One:

First of all I spring-cleaned my house top to toe! Yeah! It took me a week with two separately planned intense work days with my husband helping, but we DID IT!! (Since the radiation, I have to pace myself, my energy can get all used up and then I have to make up for it.)


But we DID IT!! We even got the famous sheepdogs all cleaned up and now even they are preening around like movie stars. Every body enjoys a tune up!

Jörg Hempel  http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Prunus_dulcis_LC0009.jpg
 
And so now my palette is clear. It feels like the RIGHT way to begin.

This was the Prep Week! I kept to my regular exercise with my big goal of getting the house clean and clear. The next six weeks, I'm going to be in full gear!

Next Week, I will post Week One or What A Spring Sprint Week Looks Like To Me.

Until then, the sun is out, the sky is blue, it's beautiful, and so are you, won't you come out to play!

Have a wonderful week end!

Kindest regards,

-bbffair


Dear Prudence

Dear Prudence, won't you come out to play
Dear Prudence, greet the brand new day
The sun is up, the sky is blue
It's beautiful and so are you
Dear Prudence won't you come out to play

Dear Prudence open up your eyes
Dear Prudence see the sunny skies
The wind is low the birds will sing
That you are part of everything
Dear Prudence won't you open up your eyes?

Look around round round
Look around round round
Oh look around

Dear Prudence let me see you smile
Dear Prudence like a little child
The clouds will be a daisy chain
So let me see you smile again
Dear Prudence won't you let me see you smile?

Dear Prudence, won't you come out to play
Dear Prudence, greet the brand new day
The sun is up, the sky is blue
It's beautiful and so are you
Dear Prudence won't you come out to play

-The Beatles

Here Comes The Sun

Spring Cleaning-Inside and Outside

Making Way For New and Renewed Life

 February, this year, seemed like a long, hard winter month to walk.  I often think of January like that, but not so much February.

Some of this was me and some of this just seemed to be going around. I finished radiation at the end of 2011 in December and I was whipped by it. But January wasn't as darn mean and cold as it usually is, so there was this sense of getting through the winter lightly. That is, until February snagged a bunch of us.


Spring, photo courtesy of: http://commons.wikimedia.or/wiki/File:Spring_2005.jpg

For the past ten months, in spite of cancer, I've been getting consistently lighter and healthier. I've been in my zone and fine tuning things and keeping the lightening going even through cancer. 

But in February???  I tipped up the scales six pounds! I'm still in my zone, but still!  How could that happen??? Time to regroup and rethink and get real.

(And yes I know, in my zone, that's not a big deal -to anyone else but me- but to me, it's a wake-up call before I get into anything more like really bigger trouble!)

I also have a theory. I think that the seasons are important to us, biologically, spiritually, physically, mentally. They affect us and are supposed to. So, for one thing it is natural when it gets cold and snowy and ye old winter winds are beating down your door, that you are supposed to get cozy by the fire with a little bit more you on your bones and take a few more zzzzz's in (even if you didn't have radiation treatments) and sup on root vegetables and hearty stew. But when winter doesn't walk you through it, you will still feel the season, and, even eventually, it may still catch up to you later and demand its due.

Anyway, this year, every single still-exercising, still eating mostly right and healthy, still working-it woman I know told me she tipped it up a few pounds in February and/or the scale just got stuck all month.

Tsk. Tsk.

But I wonder, thinking back on my contemplations of the plateau, if there really is some innate logic to this?  Perhaps it is the last step necessary to moving into the light of spring? Sort of like stepping back to boost your new, next upcoming leap forward.

Anyway, I'm counting on this AND I am recommitting  to my spring this year starting right here and now. I cleaned my house top to bottom, part one, last week, and will finish part two, the dogs, this week. I have cleaned out winter, cobwebs, cancer, worry, and all things that get bottled up and start to grow weird in those bottles. And I am recommitting to a strong five days a week forward in moving in my exercises, not so much more, but with more joie di vivre and light! I want that light in my body too!

And so the next six weeks, I'm channeling my light into my Light Body with new life. I'm going to re-lose that six pounds and aim for four more!

Anybody want to get into the sweet spring dance with me too? Time to Lighten Up!

-bbffair


Here Comes The Sun 

Here comes the sun (doo doo doo doo)
Here comes the sun, and I say
It's all right

Little darling, it's been a long cold lonely winter
Little darling, it feels like years since it's been here
Here comes the sun
Here comes the sun, and I say
It's all right

Little darling, the smiles returning to the faces
Little darling, it seems like years since it's been here
Here comes the sun
Here comes the sun, and I say
It's all right

Sun, sun, sun, here it comes
Sun, sun, sun, here it comes
Sun, sun, sun, here it comes
Sun, sun, sun, here it comes
Sun, sun, sun, here it comes

Little darling, I feel that ice is slowly melting
Little darling, it seems like years since it's been clear
Here comes the sun
Here comes the sun, and I say
It's all right

Here comes the sun
Here comes the sun, and I say
It's all right
It's all right

-The Beatles

The Joy of Going Nuts: Pine Nuts and Other Great Nuts

The Joy of Going Nuts

One of the joys of weekly food shopping over the last year for me has become my visit to the bulk bins at Whole Foods.

In the past, I used to buy a package of nuts -for me, most often, this would be walnuts that I used to use more of and so could justify buying a whole package at a time- but now that I have discovered the bulk bins at Whole Foods, I am free to experiment!

Nuts are healthful, nutritious, great add-ins, and a handy way to go vegetarian for a meal or a day without hunger, weakness, or deprivation.  That's all helpful. But, let's face it: they are also Yumm!

Anyway, at Whole Foods, I can now buy a sample of this or a handful or a week's worth of a bunch of different nuts and dried fruits, etc. so I've grown my nut-palate and become more familiar with what used to be exotic rare excursions into eating and using nuts.

<p><a href="http://www.freedigitalphotos.net">Image: FreeDigitalPhotos.net</a></p> 


Here is one of my favs:

The Pine Nut

It's not really a nut. It's a seed in a pine cone! Who would have thought those squirrels and even my dogs -the famous sheepdogs: Darla and Fisher- would be so smart. In the past, I've had them primarily in pesto dishes. But now, they color my salads, soups, vegetable dishes, my eggplant, chicken, and fish, and I even eat them raw all by themselves. They are lovely and delicate and guess what else, they are amazing nutrition-wise.

They are 58 calories in a TBSP but curb your appetite so they help with weight loss, they aid cardiovascular support, are high in iron, anti-oxidants -i.e. anti-aging, contain lutein, an antioxidant that is crucial to the prevention of eye diseases such as macular degeneration and cataracts and vitamin A in the form of beta carotene, another important eye vitamin, and containing protein and magnesium, they aid in energy boosting. That's a LOT of umphhhffff  for something with such a good Yumm factor.



A few of my other favs include:

Brazil Nuts

"A handful of Brazil nuts a day can reduce the risk of eight types of cancer by up to 76 per cent, scientists said yesterday. They are packed with the mineral selenium, which can help prevent cancer of the liver, lung, stomach, prostate, pancreas, brain, kidney and oesophagus by blocking the formation of tumours."    -How Brazil Nuts Can Beat Cancer  by Tim Utton and Robin Yapp

Also:   Brazil Nuts Hold Cancer Hope

Cashews

Okay, Just Yumm.  We know these are good for us. We eat them in Chinese and Thai chicken, for goodness sakes. They are best eaten you know, umm, naturally, and are still full of flavor. But here is a perfectly important point: At Whole Foods, you can buy the Thai salted, roasted cashews and they won't make it home, they are soooo delicious. But you can buy a handful and be gloriously done with it and leave the rest in the bin behind you. Ahh yes, a moment of zen.

Almonds

Edgar Cayce said 2 almonds a day warded off cancer / http://www.healingcancernaturally.com/cayce-almonds-health-readings.html

Dried Michigan Cherries

Here is my plug for the best of the best cherries from my own home state of Michigan. I dare you to compare!


*A word of caution and forewarning though: like all things, take your nuts in moderation. Don't overdo it. Some are fattier than others and for some people, they may be hard to digest in large amounts too, so use your good common sense!

And, with this, I ask you to journey to your own Whole Foods or other natural food bulk food bin aisle and do what you must: taste and experiment and let your senses have at it!

-bbffair

Healing Light

Today I finished my radiation treatments. I never thought I would make it. Every single day it was like that for me.

I cannot thank enough the amazing staff at the Radiation Department of University of Michigan Hospital that worked every day to get me through, who were so very very kind and gentle with me. This was one of the hardest things I have ever had to do.

Here is to healing light that it may touch all of us when and where we need it the most.

-bbffair

Shiva and Shakti Dancing

http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File%3AShiva_dancing_Tandava.jpg

Shiva Dancing

I found these awesome photographs of statues of Shiva dancing that I thought I would post today. This is definitely in the zone. This is how the body feels when it is free and light and dancing, when you let go and become one with your movement and your life force.

These beautiful statues led me on a journey to re-look up Shiva and Shakti, who is his counter-part. I love it when mythology shows up and calls out. There is always some morsel of something potent that is there.

This is some of what I found:


On Wikipedia:

"Shiva (ta: சிவன் ) ; ( /ˈʃɪvə/; Sanskrit: शिव Śiva, meaning "auspicious one") is a major Hindu deity, and is the destroyer god or transformer among the Trimurti, the Hindu Trinity of the primary aspects of the divine. God Shiva is a yogi who has notice of everything that happens in the world and is the main aspect of life. Yet one with great power lives a life of a sage at Mount Kailash.^[2] In the Shaiva tradition of Hinduism, Shiva is seen as the Supreme God. In the Smarta tradition, he is regarded as one of the five primary forms of God.^[3] Followers of Hinduism who focus their worship upon Shiva are called Shaivites or Shaivas (Sanskrit Śaiva).^[4] Shaivism, along with Vaiṣṇava traditions that focus on Vishnu and Śākta traditions that focus on the goddess Shakti, is one of the most influential denominations in Hinduism.^[3]
Lord Shiva is usually worshipped in the abstract form of Shiva linga. In images, He is represented as a handsome^[5] young man^[6] immersed in deep meditation or dancing the Tandava upon Apasmara, the demon of ignorance in his manifestation of Nataraja, the Lord of the dance, goodness, humility, and every good quality a human should have. It is said that He looks like an eternal youth because of his authority over death, rebirth and immortality. He is also the father of Ganesha and Murugan ; (ta முருகன் ) ;(Kartikeya)."

and

"Shakti (Devanagari: शक्ति) from Sanskrit shak - "to be able," meaning sacred force or empowerment, is the primordial cosmic energy and represents the dynamic forces that are thought to move through the entire universe in Hinduism.^[1] Shakti is the concept, or personification, of divine feminine creative power, sometimes referred to as 'The Great Divine Mother' in Hinduism. On the earthly plane, Shakti most actively manifests through female embodiment and creativity/fertility, though it is also present in males in its potential, unmanifest form.^[2]

The Kundalini-shakti from the Yoga tradition: life force/sexual energy that can be awakened for conscious creativity.

Not only is the Shakti responsible for creation, it is also the agent of all change. Shakti is cosmic existence as well as liberation, its most significant form being the Kundalini Shakti,^[3] a mysterious psychospiritual force.^[4] Shakti exists in a state of svātantrya, dependence on no-one, being interdependent with the entire universe.
In Shaktism, Shakti is worshiped as the Supreme Being. However, in other Hindu traditions of Shaivism and Vaishnavism, Shakti embodies the active feminine energy Prakriti of Purusha, who is Vishnu in Vaishnavism or Shiva in Shaivism. Vishnu's female counterpart is called Lakshmi, with Parvati being the female half of Shiva."

More simply,  the male Shiva, embodies transformation, and the female Shakti creativity.

I found a poem on http://swamij.com  (http://swamij.com/loop-secret-shiva-shakti.htm):

The Secret of Shiva and Shakti Swami Jnaneshvara Bharati(endless audio loop*)

Shiva and Shakti are one and the same. There is no place that He is not. There is no place that She is not. They are one and the same. She is in every thing. She is in every word. She is all there is. See Her in all things. Hear Her in all sounds. Know Her in all thoughts. Feel Her in all feelings. She is all there is. She is the one in the three worlds**. Shiva and Shakti are one and the same. That is the secret. (Shiva is the universal latent or masculine energy, and Shakti is the universal active or feminine energy.)

 But, for me, it feels very much like the statues tell it all. There is beauty that dances, life in movement and movement in life.

On the dancing path, one may only sense that freedom at first, but as the body lightens up, when one begins to embody that lightness, the dance become exquisite.

What's not to love about a dancing entity?

-bbffair

Chola dynasty statue depicting Shiva dancing as Nataraja (Los Angeles County Museum of Art)  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shiva

Breast Cancer Hurts

Breast Cancer Hurts

 I have had 11 radiation treatments out of a prescribed 30 treatment schedule so far that I began on October 27th.

After 6 treatments, I felt I could not go on. But my medical team convinced me to continue. This is a hard, hard road to travel, a day-by-day one.

This past October was Breast Cancer Awareness month and wow, I have never been so aware of it.

I cannot stress enough how much we need our health and good living and even then, this miserable disease can strike.

First the fear. Then the shock. Then the surgery.  The pain of surgery and the relief of getting the disease out of you in time. They got it all. They got clear margins. The surgery included taking two lymph nodes to see if it had traveled. Both were clean. Another blessing. But sooner or later you have to look in the mirror and face the shock and loss that comes with missing a part of yourself. I had a lumpectomy, but anyway you slice it, it is a partial masectomy and they take more than a lump. And then there is the too long recovery, the pain, the medicated days, the weakness. I spent long weeks sleeping and sitting on the couch reading.

When my strength came back, I was overjoyed. It feels so good, so delicious to jump, to stretch, to feel my vitality again. I have never been a fan of bras, but for now I have to do my aerobics in a sports bra to keep things from hurting, but I'm jumping and dancing again. I'm fairly small on top so with clothes on, even just a sports bra, you'd never know I'd had the surgery. Even naked, it's not too bad anymore, not as drastic as it seemed (like a deflated tire) right after surgery and more like a bite out of my missing lower breast. I try to love it even more these days. It saved my life by presenting the lump early. And after radiation, if it still needs a nip and tuck using some part of my body fat or muscle, these hero docs know how to put you back together.

I love my hero docs. My breast surgeon is the handsomest guy with a big smile and kind eyes and he oozes confidence. It's very helpful to have doctor heroes, especially very handsome ones too. I call mine my Dudley Do Right. He has that kind of Dudley Do Right great hair. And all I ever wanted him to say to me was: "I'll save you, Nell!"

I got a go free from the chemo experience. They have these impressive, expensive tests called Oncotype DX where they send a part of your lump to California and they analyze 21 genes in it that can help predict whether or not you should have it. These tests save lots of women (like me)  from having to undergo such a huge and invasive treatment. Yeah!

But with a lumpectomy, radiation is part of the treatment. I was trying to look at it like intense sunlight therapy.

I'm still trying to be as positive as I can. But this is hard and absolutely shocking to my system. It drains you and can be painful and make you feel so sick and is a very intense thing to go through.

I had no idea it was going to be this hard.

Today is my 12th treatment.

One day at a time.

-bbffair


< http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Breast_Cancer_Awareness_Month.png >

The Beauty of Plateaus

The Beauty of Plateaus

In the beginning of an adventure in getting your body beautiful or back to beautiful, weight wise, there can be all these amazing BIG results. They are impressive and ever so sweet.

But then comes the times when you hit plateaus. The going is slower, more precise, more streamlined.

Once you are "in your zone" this is more apt to happen. But this is a VERY GOOD THING.

Many of us are conditioned to believe this is where we are stuck or not making progress. (And, where that might be the case, it might be something much, much better than that. Though if we are stuck on our progress, we might need to make an adjustment, add or subtract something, have a few earlier, lighter dinners, something.)

But today I am not thinking about the kind of plateaus associated with being stuck. Instead, I am thinking about the ones where your body is deeply adjusting and  becoming one with its newer lighter being. It is memorizing and learning to live there. And that is a sign that this is a very nice place for the body to be in. Let it find its feet, stop upon the journey, and look out at (and from) the beautiful landscape and take some time to truly drink it in.

The definition of a plateau is: an elevated, fairly stable and level ground, something one might have climbed high or long, or with great effort to arrive at.

In the zone, your body may want to stay at or close to its new weight for awhile. My body likes to go up and down about 4 pounds for about four weeks each month as it adjusts and relaxes into the lighter weight. Then it lets go of the upper level and moves gently and naturally lighter the next month another 2-4 pounds.  Now I know that is not as drastic and freaky-thrilling as losing a ton in the beginning. (And, by the way, if you boot camp your way ALL the way up, you are much more likely to crash and end up at the bottom again and all defeated. So don't do that!)
But this is the part of the path that's perfect for gentle, natural, beautiful, healthful deepening momentum. The marathon part is over and the dance is poetic and sweet and totally to be enjoyed. It will release what may be left to release in its own perfect time. Your job is to fall into harmony with your body and believe again in the beautiful creature that you are.

By the way, isn't the picture above breathtaking! It's Castle Rock in Sedona, Arizona, a place of beautiful energy and healing. I've been there and been awed.

The photograph is kindly offered for sharing by the photographer named Grombo and is shared here by courtesy of Wikimedia Commons.  Info to look at his portfolio is below.

-bbffair

<By Grombo (Own work) http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Red_rocks_Sedona_Arizona.JPG /
http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/User:Grombo  /
http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Main_Page >

Being In The Zone!

Being In The Zone 
and
Knowing What Your Zone Is

This  wonderful thing happened to me around late July. I felt good about my body shape. I wasn't model perfect. But I was in my zone and I could feel it and see it. I could go out shopping and try on new clothes. I was stepping out more and more and then I got on a scale. (Well, I had to. I was beginning cancer treatment and they make you weigh in a lot.) So I got not just a sense of how it feels, but a sense of what it translates to actually.

Now, for me –I'm 5' 6-1/2"– I have a pretty large zone, about twenty-five pounds in which (so long as I am exercising and keeping up my muscle tone) I look and feel pretty good about myself.

At the top of my zone, I look good in and out of clothes. Above the top of it, I feel unable to get on a scale (i.e. fat).

At the lower end of the scale, I'm model thin or what I weighed when I was fourteen, only I'm more shapely in good ways. Below that, I feel and look anorexic and sickly.

However, for the most part, anywhere in my zone is a good place to be because none of it is *bad.* And even gradually moving towards hanging out in the middle of my zone is even more rewarding. It's healthy, alive, vibrant, and attractive.

Arriving in one's *zone* is a really cool thing if you've ever been out there in outer-zone space. It means you can relax. It's also motivating. You're not "on a diet" so much as you're in a LIFEstyle!

It is also helpful at the entrance of your zone for you to also get on the scale a LOT so you know what's going on within your zone. It's kind of like a doable reality check and check-in to keep you on track. For example, I go up and down by 2-4 pounds depending on what I've eaten. And *in the zone* a girl is more apt to lose any remaining weight slower and that's okay now, 'cause you're in the zone.

So right now, I'm in the middle of my zone, which is exactly where I want to be right now as I am also just starting radiation therapy and I might lose the rest of my lower zone with that, so I need my buffer. But I am also in a very good place too: my muscles like to move and I'm eating healthy, delicious foods.

Folks, I am doing the zone dance.

Here's to all of you getting to and being in your own zones!

-bbffair

 <p><a href="http://www.freedigitalphotos.net/images/view_photog.php?photogid=2365">Image: Grant Cochrane / FreeDigitalPhotos.net</a></p>

My First Adventure With The Mysterious Eggplant

Stuffed Eggplant

I believe in letting certain foods call out to me and, while shopping last week, these beautiful baby eggplants drew me close. They were perfect with unblemished, shiny skins and radiated health.

I have often loved eggplant in restaurants, but never knew how to cut or cook it. It seemed a very mysterious plant to me. But these called my name. It was time for me to delve into that mystery and go on an eggplant adventure.

I bought five of these small creatures and spent a few days admiring them in my kitchen. They seemed succulent and full of the promise of delight.

So, it was off to the internet, where I perused numerous sites, recipes, and youtube videos. I gleamed enough information to dare to try a recipe of my own and see where it might take me.

I decided to make stuffed eggplant.

I began by cutting the tops and ends off of two. Then I cut them both in half the long way. There were, to my surprise, no seeds to speak of. So I scooped out a cavity in each half but kept the pieces too.

Next –and this is important to preparing eggplant and something I didn't know but that the internet advised me on– I salted both sides of each piece and each half of the little creatures and left them on a paper towel covered plate for 40 minutes. This is to remove any of the potential bitterness. I have since learned that more seeded and thicker skinned eggplants are more bitter, that some eggplants with thicker skins need to be peeled. that some thinner skinned eggplants have delicious skins, and that there are over a dozen varieties. From what I now understand, they all will benefit from this salting which causes them to weep fluids and remove any bitterness.  At this point, I confess I was just getting introduced to an eggplant that hadn't yet told me it's kind. (When I looked up varieties on the internet, I thought the kind I had were too large to be baby eggplant. Later, I discovered that they can vary and that these were indeed baby eggplant, just a little larger than the internet examples, and grown hydroponically in Canada by Pure Flavor (www.pure-flavor.com). The picture -above- is from their website too.)

After 40 minutes, I rinsed my halves and pieces well in cold water. I am not a salt eater generally, so I wondered about this, but they washed very clean. I patted them dry and placed them in the refrigerator.

Next, I threw out my old olive oil. I smelled it and it seemed off. I think it is always important to smell the foods and ingredients you use. So I used my sunflower oil and about two teaspoons of Earth Balance soy free blend (from the health food cold section in my store). I heated this up hot in a skillet and chopped two big white button mushrooms into bits and threw them in and cooked them until they were very small and very browned. I added black pepper, lemon pepper, parsley flakes, and paprika as I cooked these.

I added one chopped fresh tomato and several tablespoons of DelMonte original stewed tomatoes (both pieces -that I chopped in the pan with my spatula- and juice).  I threw in bits of fresh rosemary, sage, and thyme and shook three shakes of cinnamon into the mix. Then I cooked and stirred this concoction for a while. When it all reduced, I threw in a couple of good splashes of vegetable stock (chicken would have worked too) and stirred all the reduced flavors back up from the bottom of the pan and cooked this until it was thick.

At this point, I removed it from the heat and stirred in a big handful of fresh baby spinach leaves, wilting them. I then added a handful of pine nuts and a handful of grated Romano cheese.

I pulled my baby eggplant halves and pieces out of the fridge, coated a round glass pan with olive oil Pam, took a spoon and amply stuffed the halves (but not packing it down) with the mixture and put the remainder over the pieces in between the halves.

I took an open jar of Paul Newman's Sockarooni spaghetti sauce from the fridge and topped each half and piece with a big spoonful.

Then I put the pan, -without a top- into a preheated 400 degree oven for 50 minutes.

I served these with grated Asiago cheese sprinkled over the tops with a few fresh cilantro leaves.

OMG!!!!!  It was delicious!!!!!!!  It was Dinner!!!!

Yeah Adventures in Foodland that make you feel Awesome!

-bbffair

Ingredients List:

2  (five to six inches long or the equivalent) baby eggplants
salt
Olive Oil and Soy Free Earth Balance
2 big fresh white button mushrooms
black pepper
lemon pepper
parsley flakes
paprika
1 medium fresh tomato
Del Monte original stewed tomatoes
fresh rosemary
fresh sage
fresh thyme
cinnamon
chicken or vegetable stock
fresh baby spinach
pine nuts
grated Romano cheese
Paul Newman's Sockarooni spaghetti sauce
grated Asiago cheese
fresh cilantro

Eat Your Broccoli!

EAT YOUR BROCCOLI!

Fresh vegetables are *GOOD* for you!

Lucky for me that I love my veggies.

It also seems that broccoli is making news as a cancer fighter.


Yeah!!! Go broccoli!

So, for me, having had breast cancer, I am now even more passionate about eating things to help my body get and stay healthy! So, along with my steamed veggies and healthy protein, I am definitely adding in eating raw as well.

This afternoon, I made a huge tray of raw fresh broccoli, white button mushrooms, parsley, tomatoes, and carrots. I even used ample dip. I ate all I wanted (about half the whole platter) and couldn't finish what was in front of me. Afterwards, for my protein, I finished with about 1/2 ounce of walnut halves mixed with about 1/8 cup of dried Michigan cherries.

My total calorie count was 330.

My nutrition count was 100%, tasty, filling, balanced, cancer-fighting, whole food.

Bon Appétit!

-bbffair

{Broccoli, photograph courtesy of freedigitalphotos.net <p><a href="http://www.freedigitalphotos.net">Image: FreeDigitalPhotos.net</a></p>}

Sleep

 Getting Your Beauty Sleep

I've been on a post-surgery sleep schedule. Which means my body wants to sleep and heal. It really works too. The more I sleep, the more I heal.

Sleep is a luxury for many. But it is a dieter's best friend and it also is pretty darn good for your skin too.

I am noticing that the more I can sleep, the more my body relaxes and lets go of what it doesn't need, (i.e., extra weight)! Seriously, this is very effective for losing those pounds and building health. So give yourself a sleep regimen and see for yourself if it doesn't make a difference.

Isn't this kitty cute? I have only to look at pictures like this and I get all sleepy in the best and most relaxing ways. I think I might need a picture* of a cat sleeping next to my bed at night for when I need help drifting off into those zzzzzzs.

-bbffair

*(My two sheepdogs might object to a live kitty and I am allergic to cats, but otherwise a real kitty can be helpful in the z-department too!)


<"Sleepy Cat" by ShivaPrasad Madaiah, courtesy of http://www.freedigitalphotos.net>