What the #*@% are Humans Eating?!

Quick explanation:

We were in a grocery store. We were dumbfounded by all of the things called food that had hardly anything real in them! People are slowly beginning to make the connection between what goes into (and onto) their bodies and the state of their physical health and overall well being. Are you aware of what you're really consuming?

We were about to throw in the towel and leave when I spotted this packet of smoothie mix. The thing that made me laugh out loud was that it says to just add banana and blueberries. What??? Then what's in the packet? The ingredients were unpronounceable for the most part. Gross. At least it contains flax! The token real ingredient.

Read the labels. Read labels very closely. Natural flavors are NOT natural. And better yet...don't buy anything that has more than one ingredient. Whole, simple foods are what we thrive on! Enjoy this photo montage of chemical cocktails that your trusted family food store is selling to you... Those brands that many of us have come to love and trust.  I ended up in a fit of bewildered laughter and many people were walking past us wondering what was so funny. It's funny ...and extremely disturbing. 

This??? Who came up with this?

Yes. Chips that taste like food truck meat. How can this be possible? Why?

There were about 20 bottles on the shelf. ALL were pink. Lucky!!!!

Maybe rainbow candy will trick kids into eating this?

Get all of the artificial food dyes in one cheesecake!

If you want to have bulging eyes, add this stuff to your coffee. 

It must be healthy. It's gluten-free!

Wow. Ridiculously good Bags of Cash.  (Oh. And some potato chips too.)

Everything about this is so bizarre. Bacon already cooked in a box. (The display was sitting next to the bananas in the produce section.)

Bright green "pistachio" muffins. Anything green is good for us, right?

Orange cheese was too boring. Rainbow=better. Am I cringing?

Shampoo or drink mix?

 

Contains no milk? Huh? Lots of weird chemicals though. And protein!

Rainbow wall of "juices". Virtually no juice inside. Just sugar, flavors and colors. Bright colors.

This won the prize for hugest sack of snack. I was starting to get a little disoriented from holding all of these "food" bombs.

Then I was starting to really lose it here. Girl Scout cookie flavored coffee creamers. Why?! (Cameraman was laughing. Resulted in a bit of a blurry image.)

This put me over the edge. Full mind-blown scenario. On this one they actually tell you what may happen if you keep eating these. Who names their food product that??? I was having a laugh-cry here. Oh boy.

Check out the new book "The Dorito Effect" by Mark Schatzker. It's full of fascinating and eye (and mouth) opening information about why packaged food and beverages (and chain restaurants!) are so addictive. We thought we knew all about this topic, but we learned a lot more from this book. It has taken our food shopping skills to the next level.

Ok. Here's one last image we captured that gives us hope!!!! Yay for avocados!!!! That town must have been having a guacamole fiesta!!! Yum.

Ps. There was also this: One grocery store we went to was offering a 10% grocery discount if you allowed their pharmacy to inject you with the flu vaccine. Sweet deal!... Or is it???

Consider cleaning your fridge and cupboards out. 

Eat real food. 

Skip the vaccines.

That is just my humble opinion. 

West Coast Waves to Alberta Prairies..and Back Again

Reflections of Mexico and Guatemala in West Vancouver, BC

Here's a little recap of the last two weeks. It's not really super creative or witty. But it IS what happened. Ready...Set...GO! :

We enjoyed an evening ferry ride and arrived in Horseshoe Bay, West Vancouver. We headed to Tanner's aunt's home for a lovely visit. We also visited a cousin and his wife who are expecting a wee one soon. We then headed east and visited a couple of friends on their new organic farm in the interior farm land of Chase, British Columbia. What a stunning farm with a riverfront view! We enjoyed two river swims and picked our veggie supper from the pretty garden. They showed us the straw bale and cob house that is almost completed. So great to reconnect with awesome friends doing awesome things!

Inside peek at the straw bale "truth" window and some crafty cob moulding. Beautiful!

After that visit we met up with some more special friends in the mountains outside of Invermere, BC. They had their trailer parked and their two kids were bouncing on the trampoline. We pitched our tent and watched some amazing storms. We swam with the little ones and picked fruits and veggies at the community permaculture garden that they have helped to build over the last few summers. It's so wonderful watching kids be excited about growing and harvesting their own food.

We crossed through the Rockies into Alberta. We met a good friend for lunch and spent the night with our sister-in-law in Calgary. 

The next day we drove north of the city for one hour to the town of Olds. I spent 5 sweet years there from 2008-2013 and it was so much fun to catch up with our friends and their families! We camped out in a small camper for a whole week on the property of some of our favorite friends there, who we sometimes refer to as our long lost aunt and uncle. When we arrived at their place, the Love Farm, some of my favorite musicians were packing up after a house concert the night before. They unpacked their accordion and bass and a couple of fiddles and serenaded us before they drove away to their next show. So special. Thanks OQO (and Ed!). 

I spent many hours discussing the topic of Fair Trade products and standards with long lost Auntie Bev. She and I and a small group started up the Fair Trade Olds committee.  We began in 2008 and guided the Town of Olds to become the first Fair Trade Town in Alberta. It was a wonderful time and we learned so much. Bev is still going strong and continuing to spread the word about the importance of knowing who and where your luxury products are coming from. Coffee or tea drinker? Do you use sugar or indulge in chocolate? These are a few of the many products shipped to us from less-developed countries. These countries are often lacking enough fair labor laws and regulations. You can expand your world consciousness by asking for Fair Trade versions of these items and more. Read more about Fair Trade here.

http://www.fairtrade.net/

In the trunk of our Jetta we brought along a large Rubbermaid tote full of mittens and sweaters and wintery items to consign at a very special women's clothing boutique. It is called reFind clothing & decor and it was a co-creation with my former partner, back in 2010. My eyes welled up as I entered that beautiful shop and saw that the floor plan had changed to expand the space. There were other tweaks that made it more lovely than ever.  I felt so proud of how she was evolving and growing up without me. Yippee!

One World Wellness hosted two cacao ceremonies in Olds. The first was a group of men and women. One friend brought along his singing bowls and a huge gong to add to the magic. It was pretty spectacular. During the ceremony an awesome thunderstorm watered the landscape. We ended the ceremony outside in the sunshine with singing and gonging. Beautiful. 

Funkiest spatula in our cacao yet!

The second ceremony was a women's circle at a local yoga center called Blissful Energy. And blissful it was. We were a circle of women of all ages. One woman traveled several hours to join us. We laughed, we cried and we collectively vibrated higher with the energy of the cacao medicine! We are looking forward to another ceremony there soon. Thank you special people!

I took a trip one evening with my sweet friend and she took me to meet a woman nearby who makes unique jewelry. I enjoyed chatting with them both and left with a few special handmade items with beautiful memories embedded. We then drove into the full moon rising and pink sun setting. We arrived at her friend's artistic retreat home. It was overflowing with gorgeous artwork. Mostly earthy, whimsical animal paintings. She also showed us her collections of other crafty things and insisted that we both take home a one-of-a-kind up-cycled bag. I chose one with rainbow ponies. Why not? I already know what it will get used for...someday soon. Stay tuned.

Roadside FREE sign. (Mirrored medicine cabinet included.) Note the forest in reflection. A little mixed multi-message from Mother Nature. 

On my last day in Olds, I treated myself to my first haircut in a year. I went to visit my sweet friend/ talented hairstylist. We had a great visit and I was so happy that she could fit me in. My hair is happy too. I had been trimming it myself for a whole year and it was time for professional intervention. Thanks Amy!

My last stop that evening was a women's book circle that a dear friend organized. The topic of discussion was something like "what would say if you could go back and tell your 20-something self about how to live life better?". I really enjoyed the variety of answers that the group shared. Things like telling yourself to have more fun, travel more, don't be so self-conscious, don't worry about what others think of you or your choices, take chances, laugh more, don't try to be so perfect, pursue your passions and be original. Wow. I can relate to most of those reflecting back on my 20's! Luckily, I have reevaluated my life in the first few years of my 30's. My 33rd year will be coming to an end in a month and I feel better than ever about my life choices. I feel like I can scratch out most of that list up there. Wee! Feels so good to be free of a lot of that self-limiting stuff. Try it for yourself. Once we let go of all of those fears, we open new doors that will lead us to new great experiences and adventures! We discover our gifts and wisdom and make leaps and climb mountains. This will inspire changes in our world as a whole. Like a domino effect, but in reverse. Imagine that!

The Love Mailbox that I passed a few times and then remembered to snap a shot. Love it.

In the words of Nahko Bear: "Be of service. Be a sensible person. Use your words and don't be nervous. You can do this, you've got purpose. FIND YOUR MEDICINE AND USE IT!" - from the song "Manifesto". He is my current favorite musician. Check him out. 

http://nahko.com/

Ps. If you feel called to donate to our One World Wellness Indiegogo campaign, here it is. 

If not, we would really like to know why our readers aren't interested in supporting the positive change that is so needed right now. $10? That's two lattes. $20? You can't event get a date at the movies for that. $50? That's a nice supper out. Every bit helps to get us to our next stop where we are leaving a trail of higher consciousness every step of the way.

Please click here either way and watch out little trailer. Thank you! Xo

https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/the-wellness-retreat-that-comes-to-your-door/x/11104312#/

Warm and Nourishing Vegan Recipes!

A common misconception seems to be that the word "vegan" in a recipe is synonymous with bland, boring, tasteless, cardboard, too healthy, etc. Well, I'm here to tell you that it isn't true in my kitchen! With a little creativity and some spice, you too can create mouthwatering vegan meals! 

I recently attended a (non-vegan) meeting and brought a vegan snack to share. The resounding response was "ooh! I hope it's as tasty as that snack you brought to our last meeting!" See? Folks can be trained to love vegan food!

I have been preparing vegan meals for several years and they just seem to keep getting better. I think I have only been avoiding sharing recipes on here because there are so many that we love! I didn't think I could ever share them all. But I'm going to try. Some of them are super simple. Others take some time commitment.

Well, without further ado : here are a few of our go-to meals and snacks to beat the chilly winter blues. Feel free to be creative and make adjustments as needed to suit your tastes. (P.S.  these are all gluten-free recipes, to boot!)

I hope they publish the same way that I typed them.  

Butternut Pear Soup

Makes about 6-8 servings

(Photo missing. Ate the soup too fast.)

We first tried this recipe from a vegan cookbook called reFresh. I have since tweaked it to suit our taste buds.

Preheat oven to 400F

You will need:

1 Large butternut squash

2 yams

1 large yellow onion,diced

2 Bosc or Anjou pears (not too ripe- harder is best), diced

1 inch chunk of fresh ginger, minced

1 cinnamon stick

1 cup white wine (any will work)

1 can coconut milk

2 Tbsp coconut oil

6 cups water

Salt and pepper to taste

Step 1: Halve the squash lengthwise. (Optional: toast seeds in the oven on parchment for a crunchy topping!) Place halves on an oiled baking sheet. Do the same with the yams. Bake in 400F oven for about 30-40 minutes. They will be ready when a fork goes in and out easily.  Remove them to cool. 

Step 2.  Bring water to a boil in a large soup pot. Add cinnamon stick and minced ginger and simmer on low-med heat. 

Step 3. Meanwhile, melt coconut oil in a medium skillet. Add diced onion and sauté until translucent. Then add white wine and pears and simmer until wine is cooked off. Set aside. 

Step 4.  When squash and yams are cooled enough to handle, peel the skins off (remove seeds) and cut into cubes. Add to the simmering soup pot. Turn off heat. Using a potato masher (or electric hand blender), purée the mixture in the pot to a texture that you like. 

Final step: Stir in coconut milk, onion and pears.  (Garnish with fresh parsley and/or minced red bell pepper for a flashy presentation! ) Salt and pepper to taste. Enjoy!

Potato, Fennel and Leek Soup

Makes about 6-8 servings

This one was fabricated by my talented man one evening while I was working. I was so impressed that I have to share it. (Also, we just started some fennel and leek seeds so that we can make it next winter too!)

You will need:

6 cups cubed Red potatoes (new potatoes work best) we leave the skins ON

1 bulb of fennel, finely chopped (save some of the green feathery tips for a garnish)

1 large leek, chopped finely

2 cloves garlic minced

2 Tbsp coconut oil

1 tsp. dried Italian herb blend

(I think rosemary is a key ingredient here!)

1/2 can coconut milk

6 cups water

Salt and pepper to taste

Step 1. Bring 6 cups water to a boil. Add potatoes and dried herbs and keep at a gentle boil until potatoes are soft.

Step 2. Heat coconut oil on medium heat and sauté leeks until translucent. Add fennel and garlic and sauté a few minutes more. 

Step 3. Mix fennel, leeks and garlic into pot with cooked potatoes. Add coconut milk. Turn off heat. 

Step 4. Using a potato masher, mash until desired texture is reached. We left ours a bit chunky. Garnish with fennel. Salt and pepper to taste. mmmmm!

Mango Chickpea Masala

Serves 4-6

I had two beautifully ripe mangoes to use up and we loooove curry, so I thought I would combine the two and...we fell in love.

2 cups cooked chickpeas

1 large yellow onion, diced

3 large red potatoes, cubed

2 ripe mangoes, peeled, cubed  

1 inch fresh ginger, minced

2 cloves garlic minced

1 large can diced/crushed tomatoes (or use fresh ones!)

1/2 cup fresh cilantro, chopped

Juice of 1 large lemon

1 green/red hot pepper minced

(Remove seeds and wash hands!)

1 can coconut milk (optional)

1/4 tsp mustard seeds

2 tsp curry powder

1 tsp cumin 

2 Tbsp coconut oil 

1 cup water

Salt and pepper to taste

Step 1. Melt coconut oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add onions and sauté until translucent. Add ginger, hot pepper, garlic and spices and stir for a few minutes. 

Step 2.  Add tomatoes and lemon juice and stir well. Add 1 cup water and potatoes and bring to a low simmer for about 15-20 minutes or until potatoes are soft. *Stir regularly to avoid scorching*

Step 3.  Stir in mangoes and cooked chickpeas. Add coconut milk if you choose to make this dish a bit richer. Salt and pepper to taste. Garnish with fresh cilantro. Serve over basmati rice or quinoa. It's also great solo with a few papadums toasted on the side!

These tasty papadums are gluten-free, made with lentil flour. Look for them in the ethnic foods isle!

Mexican Lasagna

Makes 12 servings

I was given this idea back in 2004 by a friend. It's gone through a metamorphosis and now it's a super tasty one-dish meal to satisfy your Mexican food craving!

Preheat oven to 350F

You will need:

1 package large Organic corn or other gluten-free tortillas

1 large can black beans (or 2 cups cooked), rinsed

1 jar of your fave salsa

2 bell peppers (red and green), sliced thinly 

1 large yellow onion, sliced thinly

1 cup corn kernels

1/2 cup sliced black olives

3 cloves garlic

1 jalepeno pepper, minced

1/2 cup green onions, sliced thinly

1 bunch fresh cilantro, chopped

Juice of 2 limes

2 tsp. ground cumin

1/2 tsp. turmeric powder

2 Tbsp coconut oil

*Optional: Daiya shredded  cheddar "cheese" to melt on top

And/or guacamole to top it off!

Step Uno: Melt coconut oil in a skillet and sauté onions until translucent, then add the bell peppers, corn, turmeric and half of the garlic and sauté a few minutes more. 

Step Dos: In a bowl, mix black beans, jalepeno, other half of garlic, cumin, salt and pepper and lime juice. Either hand mash or blend in food processor. 

Step Tres: Oil a 9x13 glass baking pan. Place one layer of tortillas in the pan, making sure to push them up the sides a bit. 

Spread a layer of the black bean mixture over tortillas.

Step Cuatro: Add a second layer of tortillas. Then spread the sautéed onion and pepper mix over top. 

Step Cinco: Place final layer of tortillas on top. Spread jar of salsa over the top. 

Step Seis: Cover with foil and bake at 350F for 40-50 minutes. 

Final step: Remove foil and sprinkle with green onion, black olives and cilantro (optional Daiya cheese can be melted on top).  Add a dollop of guacamole!

Chewy Gingerbread Cookies

Makes about 30 cookies

Strangely enough, I originally found this recipe on Martha Stewart's website quite a few years ago. (I know.) Thanks Martha. I adjusted it to be vegan and gluten-free. Just as addictive!! Beware!

Preheat oven to 325F (only when you are ready to bake...read on, you'll see)

You will need:

3 cups oat flour

2 Tbsp cocoa powder

2 tsp baking soda

2 1/2 tsp ginger powder

2 tsp ground cinnamon

1/2 tsp ground cloves

1/4 tsp ground nutmeg

1/2 tsp fine sea salt

1/2 cup dark molasses

1 cup melted coconut oil

3/4 cup agave syrup

2 Tbsp grated fresh ginger

2 tsp vanilla extract

1/2 cup granulated raw sugar (to roll balls in before baking)

Step 1.  Sift together dry ingredients. 

Step 2. Melt coconut oil on low heat. Then stir in agave, molasses, fresh ginger and vanilla until blended well. 

Step 3. Transfer liquid to a large bowl. Mix in dry ingredients until dough is formed. (Coconut oil will slowly harden so mix quickly.)

Step 4.  Roll dough into 1" balls and then roll lightly in granulated sugar. Place on parchment on a baking sheet. Place baking sheets in the fridge for 20 minutes until balls are hardened. 

Step 5.  Place baking sheets In preheated 325 F oven for 10-12 minutes or until cookies are cracked on top. Allow them to cool by sliding parchment off of trays. Then enjoy with a cup of chai!

Chai Latte (from Scratch)

(Makes 4 average mugs full)

I lived for 6 months at a yoga ashram when I was 21. I learned to make fresh chai tea and have never forgotten this super simple recipe. 

You will need:

Enough almond, rice or coconut milk (jug, not can) to fill your mugs 1/2 way full

1/2 cup loose black pekoe tea

2 Tbsp minced/grated fresh ginger

8-10 green cardamom pods, crushed

Enough water to fill the other half of your mugs

Agave syrup or honey to taste

Step 1.  Bring water to a boil in a small pot. Add ginger, cardamom and tea leaves and simmer for at least 10 minutes. 

Step 2.  Slowly bring milk to a simmer, stirring frequently. 

Step 3.  Strain tea mixture and fill mugs half way. Top them off with the hot milk. 

Step 4.  Add sweetener to taste and add a sprinkle of cinnamon on top! Yummmmm!

Holy smokes. That was a lot of typing and thinking. A food blog would be a huge commitment. Maybe someday...

I would love to hear what you thought of these.

End note:

Do your best to purchase locally grown and/or organically grown foods ( or grow some in your own yard). They are less likely to contain chemical sprays, chemical fertilizers and GMO's. Thank you for reading.