Cashew Rice Loaf

Happy Sabbath, well almost. I have a really yummy loaf in the oven right now, you'll all get to taste it tomorrow.

This comes from the Silver Hills Spa Cuisine book. This was delicious raw so I'm anxious to see how it is cooked.

Cashew Rice Loaf

1 medium cooking onion finely diced

1 cup finely ground raw cashews

1 cup fresh WW bread crumbs

1 cup cooked brown rice

3/4 cup milk ( I used unsweetened silk)

2 Tbsp sodium reduced soy sauce ( used Bragg's amino's)

1 Tbsp dried or minced fresh parsley

1/4 tsp celery salt

1/2 tsp salt or to taste ( I left this out because it seemed plenty salty to me)

Saute onion until translucent. Mix cashew, breadcrumbs, rice and onion together in a bowl. Add wet ingredients and spices. Mixture should hold together slightly when squeezed int eh palm of your hand. Lightly pack in an oiled 8 x 5 x 3 loaf pan and bake at 350 F for approximately 40 min. or until golden brown firm. Rest loaf for 5 min before removing from pant.

Quinoa, Pecan and Cranberry Salad

Here is the recipe that I made for class last week. Sorry it's taken so long to get it posted. With just a couple of changes this would work well as a breakfast. I don't remember the site that I got this recipe from but I'll look for it because there were several other recipes that looked really good.

Quinoa, Pecan and Cranberry Salad

1 cup quinoa, rinsed and drained
2 cups water
1/2 cup chopped toasted pecans
1/2 cup dried cranberries
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 tablespoons lemon juicesalt and pepper to taste

Bring the quinoa and water to a boil in a saucepan over high heat. Reduce heat to medium-low,cover,and simmer until the quinoa is tender, and the water has been absorbed, about 15 to 20 minutes. Scrape into a mixing bowl, and cool to warm, about 20 minutes. Once the quinoa has cooled, stir in the pecans, cranberries, olive oil, and lemon juice; season to taste with salt and pepper to taste. Let stand at room temperature for 1 hour

Gluten Free Pecan Burgers

I'm really liking this recipe. Not only did I eat a couple in class but we had them for lunch with cashew gravy. Just a tip warm up the burgers and then add the gravy. I put it over the burgers and warmed it in the oven. The gravy got a little too stiff. It tasted fine, just looked a little odd.

The recipe comes from Soups, Salads, and Sandwiches with the Micheff Sisters. I love all of their books and use them often.

Gluten Free Pecan Burgers

1 12.3 ounce box of Mori- Nu tofu

1 clove of fresh garlic, minced ( used 2)

1 small onion

1/4 cup Bragg Liquid Aminos

1 cup brown rice flour

1 cup pecan meal

1/4 cup cornstarch

1/4 cup nutritional yeast flakes

2 cups drained, mashed black beans

2 tablespoons canola oil

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Blend in a food processor the tofu, garlic, onion and Bragg's. Blend until smooth. In another bowl combine, rice flour, pecan meal, cornstarch and nutritional yeast.
Poor the blended tofu mixture into the dry ingredients and mix. Stir in the mashed black beans.
Spray a large baking pan with cooking spray. Add canola oil to pan and spread around.

Spoons 1/4 cup of the mixture and form into a round patty. The mixture will be soft but firms as it bakes.

Bake for 30 min, turning the burgers over after 15 min.


I have what looks to be a yummy loaf from Fat Free Vegan. I'll test it out on Thanksgiving.

Forks Over Knives

If you missed the showing of Forks Over Knives in Beltsville this past weekend, you're in luck. There is another showing in Baltimore.

DECEMBER 8 – BALTIMORE, MD – 6:30pm
Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health
Sheldon Hall615 N Wolfe St
Baltimore MD 21205

Q&A to follow with Dr. Bob Lawrence, Dr. Antonia Demas, Gene Baur, and the principal of the Stadium School in Baltimore Ronald Shelley.
To RSVP please go to http://tinyurl.com/3422fg3

What is Forks over Knives? It's a film showing the health benefits of a vegan diet. Featuring the research done by Dr. T Colin Campbell and Dr Caldwell Esselstyn on the effects of animal products on our health.

If you get a chance go see it. It will really make you think and realize that your health is under your control.

I came away with new resolve to continue to improve my eating.

Bok Choy

If you need a really simple and fast meal try this.

Sauteed Bok Choy

3-4 bunches of baby bok choy
3-4 cloves of garlic- minced
3 tbs fresh ginger

Chop bok choy into 1/2" pieces. Separate the white from the leafy greens.

Spray a fry pan with cooking spray and over medium heat saute the garlic and ginger. TIP: peel and freeze your ginger it's easier to have ready and grate into any recipe.

When the garlic is golden add the white portions of the bok choy. Add a couple of tbs of water and put the lid on the pan. When the white portions of are soft add the leafy green portion and toss until wilted.

Then add Bragg's , sesame oil sauce to taste. Serve over brown rice.

I would have taken a picture but it was gone to quickly.

Happy Sabbath, Happy Kitchen

My kitchen smells heavenly right now. It's a combination of bread, curry, allspice, onions, jalapenos, is your mouth watering yet? Mine is.



The bread is a whole wheat batter bread. One of my favorites from The Complete Vegan Kitchen, by Jannequin Bennett. This is the recipe I'm making for class today.

Whole Wheat Quick Bread

1 1/2 cups soy milk

1 tbs lemon juice

2 cups whole wheat pastry flour

1/2 cup all purpose flour or soy flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon salt

1/4 cup canola oil

1/3 cup molasses

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Grease and flour a 9 " loaf pan. Mix the soy milk and lemon juice and let stand for 5 min or until the soy milk as curdled. Mix all dry ingredients in a bowl. Add oil and molasses to the soy milk. Add the wet ingredients to the dry and mix thoroughly. Bake for about 50 min.

I love this as a breakfast bread as an alternative to our regular whole wheat bread because it's light and almost sweet.

The other recipe is a Jamaican Chicken Curry made with my favorite fake chicken and a lovely blend of spices. It's for a groups of food enthusiasts that will be meeting later today. This one has a kick to it and I'll post the recipe after the reviews are in.

Mushroom Stroganoff

This is one of my all time favorite recipes. As a meat eater I always loved stroganoff and it took some experimenting to get this one right and even longer to document it. I like to do most of the cooking a day ahead and then warm up and add the finishing touches the next day. Mainly because the flavors have some time to really intensify.

Mushroom Stroganoff

2 pounds baby Bella mushrooms sliced

1 medium onion

3 -4 cloves garlic

2 cups cashew sour cream recipe below

2 tbs Bragg's amino's

Process onions and garlic in food processor until chopped fine. Add onion and garlic to a sprayed dutch oven on Medium heat. You wan them to get golden and have lots of tasty bits on the bottom of the pan. Add the mushrooms , don't stir just yet. Let the heat start pulling the moisture from the mushrooms and use this to de-glaze the pan. Let the mushrooms cook down.

Now for the best flavor put this in the fridge over night. The next day all you have to do is warm up the mushrooms (if it looks a little dry just add 1/2 c of water) and add the cashew cream.

Cashew Sour Cream

1 cup cashew pieces

2 cups water

1 packet of George Washington's Golden broth

2 tbs nutritional yeast.

2 tbs lemon juice or to taste.

Add cashews and 1 cup boiling water to blender. Let this sit for a few minutes to soften the nuts. Blend until smooth add additional cup water as necessary while blending. Add seasoning and blend until completely incorporated. Add lemon and let stand for about 5 min.

Add the cashew sour cream shortly before serving. Serve over rice or noodles.

Tofu Sandwich spread

Sorry this has taken awhile to get back to posting. This is the recipe that made me realize tofu can be food. This is such a quick and easy recipe to mix up for sandwiches or dip.

Tofu Sandwich Spread
1 package extra firm tofu drained and pressed
4 TBS vegenaise
2 ribs finely chopped celery
1/4 onion finely chopped or 4 green onions
1/2 tsp mustard
1/2 tsp turmeric

Mix well and chill. Use on your favorite bread for a great sandwich.

You can also add chopped bell peppers or carrots.

Week 1- Step Fast

How are you doing with your weekly goals. Getting noon day sun this week was a bit of a challenge which will probably increase as the year moves on.

I have 2 dip recipes that I'm bringing for class tomorrow. Both from the book The Get Healthy Go Vegan cookbook by Neal Barnard MD. I enjoy all of his books and this one is no exception.

Now for the recipes.

Sun Dried Tomato Spread

1/2 cup sun dried tomatoes

2 garlic cloves

1 (12.3 oz) package of firm low-fat silken tofu

1/4 cup loosely packed fresh basil leaves

Kosher salt to taste

pepper to taste

Cover tomatoes in boiling water and allow to soften and rehydrate for 5 - 10 min. Drain and squeeze out any excess water. Place tomatoes in a food processor with garlic and process until well chopped and a paste begins to form. Add remaining ingredients and blend until smooth

Spinach Dip

1 small onion quartered

4 garlic cloves

1 (10 oz) package frozen chopped spinach thawed

1 (12.3 ox) package firm low fat silken tofu

1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice

1 teaspoon ground coriander

1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt

1/4 teaspoon pepper

Pinch of cayenne pepper

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Wrap onion and garlic in aluminum foil. Bake for 20 to 30 min until soft. Press water from spinach. Place all ingredients in food processor and process until smooth.

Both of these are yummy and I expect it will taste better in the morning when the flavors have all blended.

I think the spinach dip would make a great filling for pasta shells. The tomato one would also be great in a pita with lots of fresh veggies. I may have to experiment.

Bean Burgers

Here is our recipe from today's class.

Bean Burgers

1 cup garbanzo beans

1 cup cooked brown rice

1/2 cup quick-cooking oats

1 celery stalk, finely chopped

1 small onion finely chopped

1 garlic clove, minced

2 tablespoons Bragg's or reduced sodium soy sauce

1 teaspoon paprika

1/4 teaspoon black pepper

Drain garbanzo beans and mash coarsely. Mix all ingredients. Form into patties and cook in non stick skillet over medium heat until lightly browned on both side. (approx 4 min each side)

This recipe came from Healthy Eating for Life to Prevent and Treat Cancer by Vesanto Melina M.S. R.D. recipe by Jennifer Raymond M.S. R.D.


I have a stack of recipes to try for next week. Will it be Barley Scones, Oatmeal Drop Scones or No Meat Loaf.

Stay tuned I'll try to give a little hint before the end of the week.

New Session Starting soon

The new session starts on October 2nd at 9:40 am. I've been looking for interesting articles, recipes and fitness routines to liven up the winter months.



Just a couple of interesting facts:

1. the average persona gains 10 pounds between Thanksgiving and New Years.

2. on the up side it's been proven that if you want to improve a behaviour than spend time with people that have the behaviour you are seeking. So if you want to exercise more hang around people to exercise. Want to eat better? Socialize with people who eat healthy.

Endings & Beginnings

Today was the last Group Personal Training session. It has been an intese and fun 12 weeks and I'm sad to see it come to an end.

Here are the results from the fitness testing. Start are the results of the testing at the start of the class, the seconnd set from the last day.

1/2 Mile run: start 6:03 end 5:16

Each of the following were done in during a 1 minute timed test.

burpies: start 7 end 20

squats: start 38 end 58

push ups: start 32 end 50

sit ups: start 21 end 38

lunges: start 32 end 34

plank: start 1:31 on knees end 1:30 on toes

Weight: -10 lbs
Resting heart rate has dropped 20 points.

The interesting thing is age does not really matter in strength. We have 20's, 30's and me who was twice the age of most of the group and our results were similar. I was within 5 reps of them on the beginng and ending numbers. So we all progressed equally during the 12 weeks.

So it's never too late.

Group Personal Training update

I never would have imagined that I would do 300 squats, 200 push ups, 100 burpies in about 20 minutes but that's what we did today. That was after running 1.5 miles.

It started innocently enough. 4 squats, 2 push ups, 1 burpie. But you work up to 30 squats, then back down. If we had tried that earlier I wouldn't have made it.

Today 11 weeks into the session wasn't an issue. In fact I found myself dancing in the shower to the music over the pa system. There have definitely been some changes. I'm going to be sad when the 12 weeks are over.

The key to these workouts has been interval training, intensity, variety. Variety has made it fun because you know you are doing something new each day. The intervals give you a bit of a rest it's like a reward for getting through that last set. Intensity, we started out at a high intensity and have gradually increased.

Trailer | Forks Over Knives - The Official Movie Website

This link will take you directly to the FOK web site.
Trailer Forks Over Knives - The Official Movie Website

You won't want to miss this. If you have read the China Study, Engine 2 Diet you will want to see this and share it. The movie opens March 11-2011 but there is more information on the website. I hope this will catch the attention and open some eyes to the easiest approach to disease prevention.

Check it out.

The Vegitarian meat & Potatoes cook book

Now here is a fun cookbook. Usually I like cookbooks that have lots of photos but this book doesn't need them. All of the basics are here pot roast, soups, stews, pot pies. The variety is amazing, there is even a recipe for scrapple. Your mouth will water just reading the recipes.

I shared the book with a friend and her comments was "look there are only 2 steps to most of the recipes". I think I found one with 5 steps. These would be great recipes if you have kids that want to help in the kitchen. I want to try the pot roast.

I've also been looking at vegan cheese. The vegetarians in paradise website had a review on many of the vegan cheese products. The ones with good review are not easy to find. I did find Sheesh in Whole Foods last week. I bought the strong cheddar and a Mexican creamy spread. The cheddar wasn't bad, we put it on boca burgers. The Mexican creamy spread was too sweet, it really tasted like a spiced cream cheese but with a really over powering sweetness. I still like my cashew cheese best but I'll keep trying.

I'll keep you posted.

Another Summer salad

I'm excited that I've found so many healthy recipes lately in very unlikely places. Randy our trainer today was talking about being healthy. His philosophy is exercise, eat simple food and drink water.
I have to mention one more benefit of higher intensity workouts. My resting heart rate has dropped almost 20 points. So my heart is getting more rest in the down time, so I recover quicker from any workout. I've mentioned before that every workout is fun even though it's high intensity but he is also working the entire body in each workout.
Anyway you're here for the salad recipe.

Mediterranean Garbanzo Salad
5 cherry or grape tomatoes halved
1 small zucchini or yellow squash chopped
1/2 can of garbanzos drained and rinsed
4 olives halved
1 TBS chopped parsley
1TBS olive oil
1TBS lemon juice.
2 or 3 lettuce leaves chopped.
Toss and either eat as a salad or use as a pita stuffing.

Beat the heat

I read an article the other day that said to eat Thai food when it was hot to get your sweat reflex going. Much as I love Thai food I have a hard time eating it when it's hot.

The other school of thought is to eat cooling foods: cucumbers, watermelon anything light on the stomach. One of my favorite salads is from The Pioneer Woman web site. If you want to see the photos and step by step instructions. Go to http://www.thepioneerwoman.com/ and search for :Asian Noodle Salad.


Asian Noodle Salad
Ingredients
SALAD INGREDIENTS:
1 package Linguine Noodles, Cooked, Rinsed, And Cooled
½ heads Sliced Napa Cabbage, Or More To Taste
½ heads Sliced Purple Cabbage, Or More To Taste
½ bags Baby Spinach, Or More To Taste
1 whole Red Bell Pepper, Sliced Thin
1 whole Yellow Bell Pepper, Sliced Thin
1 whole Orange Bell Pepper, Thinly Sliced
1 bag Bean Sprouts (also Called Mung Bean Sprouts)
Chopped Cilantro, Up To 1 Bunch, To Taste
3 whole Scallions, Sliced
3 whole Cucumbers Peeled And Sliced
1 can (about 10 Oz.) Whole Cashews, Lightly Toasted In Skillet
_____
FOR THE DRESSING:
1 whole Lime, Juiced
8 Tablespoons Olive Oil
8 Tablespoons Soy Sauce
2 Tablespoons (up To 3 Tablespoons) Sesame Oil
⅓ cups Brown Sugar
3 Tablespoons Fresh Ginger Chopped
2 cloves Garlic Chopped
2 whole Hot Peppers Or Jalapenos, Chopped
Chopped Cilantro
Preparation Instructions
Mix salad ingredients together. Whisk dressing ingredients together and pour over salad. Mix with tongs or hands and serve on a platter.
Note: dressing keeps for up to three days before serving, without cilantro.


Also if you go to the www.pioneerwoman.com/tasty-kitchen/ you can find a nice selection of vegan and vegetarian recipes. Just look under the special dietary needs section.

P90X is for wimps

Just a little update on my personal group training. We're in week 3 and I've lost 5 lbs. This training has been just the thing to get my body out of it's rut.

I mentioned before there is an element of fun to each of the exercises. Also we haven't done the same workout twice.

Today we paired up, one person put a stretchy band around their hips and ran the length of the waterfront while their partner held them back. Try this with your kids.
Then we did the same thing backwards, then with weights.
Next get in plank position and start walking backwards kids would love this one too.

It's just fun. If anyone wants to learn more about the exercises and try them let me know and we can get a group together.

Tom and I did P90X last year and I felt good but it's nothing to this training.

I am so thankful to work for a company that promotes a healthy lifestyle. They understand how beneficial exercise is for stress relief , productivity as well as the monetary benefits for the company.

It's a huge contrast to my last company that offered first time cancer insurance. It was so difficult to sit in the open enrollment meetings while they talked about how wonderful this benefit was. "When you get cancer you immediately will receive a check for $1000 and you can do anything you want with it". HUH?

God is so good.

I've found some really great summer recipes and I'll start posting them for you.

Have a safe and blessed holiday.

IT training

I've have the privilege to take part in Group Personal Training this summer. The session will be 12 weeks long and week 1 was a doozie.

I mentioned a few weeks ago that the body gets comfortable with your routine and you don't reap the benefits of all of your hard work.

This is definitely the case with me. We've been running and running and I've felt that my fitness level has been going down instead of up. That was proven during the first week of our group class.

We are using the IT method but at a much higher intensity. None of the moves are complicated.
Here is a run down of our session:
- 1/2 mile warm up run, grab weights and head out to the water front.
- Form 2 lines and 2 at a time run the length of the dock holding your weight with both hand chest high.

Now as I'm running holding my weight I'm think. HUUUUMMM I just lost this same amount of weight so running would be easier.....something is not right.

-Sprint back, oh that is funny.

-Run the length of dock still holding the weight but then squat down and walk backwards, back to the start.

-Walking lunges holding the weight straight above your head.

-Squats with a jump and shuffle to the side, still holding that weight. In fact when you jump you lift the weight above your head.

-Go to a small incline. Keep your weights you don't want to miss out of this bit of fun. Again form 2 lines, then 2 at a time race to the top of hill then run easy down hill.

-Grab some water and then do 20 burpies???? OK we called them squat thrusts in school. Oh why did I drink that water.

You get the idea.

I alternated between feeling sorry for my team mates being stuck with me ( min of 20 years older and much heavier) and thinking they should be grateful to have the extra time to recover between activities.

It was tough but it was also fun. The activities are varied and playful.

But remember when I said don't be to hard on yourself? And to look at the big picture? There is a silver lining.

This week we did fit testing. 1/2 mile timed run followed by as many push ups as you can in a minute and the same for sit ups, burpies, lunges, squats and then planks to exhaustion. I was quite happy to find that with the exception of burpies my numbers were very close to my team mates. My weight is down and I can tell a difference in how my clothes fit.

So don't be afraid to push yourself but make it fun. If you can't do it then find someone that can push you. It's well worth it. I can't wait to see the improvement at the end of the session.

Working cook books

As promised I'll be bringing you my favorite working cookbooks. This will take several posts. One of the features a really serious cookbook should have, in my opinion, is a spiral binding. I hate trying to hold the book open and read it at the same time. I mean how many times have you spilled something on a page because you've had to set something on the book to hold it open? It's always something sticky. OH maybe that's just me. Anyway I 'm getting off topic.

My top pick for a working cook book is: Vegan Homestyle by Kay Hansen. This is the Betty Crocker of vegan cooking. The book is true to it's title and is home style cooking at it's best.

Everything I've tried in this book has been a delight. It's a little book ( all the easier to put it in your purse and carry around for some light reading) but packed full of recipes . There is a very yummy gluten recipe and then on the next page is the follow up, "what to do with gluten". I've been asked that question every time I mention making it.

Most of the recipes can be made from ingredients you already have in your pantry and are quick to prepare. So if you need some guilt free comfort food this is the book for you.

Beautiful Cookbooks

To me cookbooks have 2 basic categories. Working cookbooks and beautiful cookbooks.
I have both types in my collection and like I've mentioned before I will sit and read a cookbook like other people read novels. So here are a few favorites.





Vegan Fusion, Artful Vegan and The Conscious Cook all fall under the beautiful cookbook category.

These are the cookbooks that you would be proud to display on your coffee table. They're full of wonderful photo's. The Artful Vegan and The Conscious Cook have the perfect recipes for those special dinners when you have time to enjoy the preparation and the calories to spend. Vegan Fusion leans a little more to raw and are much simpler to prepare. All three have delicious recipes.

Next a selection of working cookbooks.

This is a moment made for worshipping

Just got back from a great run. Even though it was hot, humid, pretty darn slow, I ran with a light heart and an attitude of praise. Praise for a strong body, the desire to run and enjoy it, for the sun, the cooling breezes, the smiles on the faces of the other runners .

I like to listen to music while I run and my favorite is Run and Worship. It's a CD that I picked up at the ABC. I'm not trying to advertise here I just really like this CD. There is also a one for walking but I haven't picked it up yet.

The lyrics make me want to lift my arms in praise, how can you resist with lyrics like; this is a moment made for worshipping, this is a moment I'm alive or hallelujah God is near, there is no like my God.

We are fearfully and wonderfully made. :-)

Sweet Potato Fries

Ok for once I'm a little ahead of the game. I'm making sweet potatoe fries for class this morning and oh my they smell wonderful.

This recipe comes from The Engine 2 Diet. It's easy, healthy and sooooo good .

Sweet Potato Fries

2 sweet potatoes with skins on, scrubbed and sliced into stips

Preheat oven to 450. Place the potato slices on a sprayed basking sheet and cover with foil. Cook for 30-4- min, turning one. Remvoe the foil after 20 min and allow ther slices to brown.

Chicken Flavored Choplets

Here is the recipe for the gluten we had in class this past Sabbath. I would post a picture but choplets don't last long around our house. They're so easy to make 20 min mixing and 20 min cooking.



Broth
3 qts water
3T nutritional yeast flakes
1/2 tsp onion powder
1 packet GW golden broth
1/2 cup tamari
1/2 tsp celery seed
1/2 tsp garlic powder
2 bay leaves

Choplets
2 cups wheat gluten flour
1/2 cup all purpose flour
3TBLS nutritional yeast flakes
1 TBLS soy flour
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp celery seed
1/2 tsp onion powder
1/2 tsp Bill's Chicknish seasoning
2 cups water
3TBLS tamari

Broth: put all ingredients in a 5-6 qt pot and bring to a boil.

Choplets:
Stir together all dry ingredients, let mixer run for a couple of minutes to get all ingredients incorporated. Slowly add the wet ingredients. If you have a good mixer let it knead the dough for you for 5-8 minutes. Knead longer if you prefer very firm choplets.

Cut gluten into small pcs and drop into broth to boil for 20-25 minutes. Choplets double in size while cooking in broth.

Store with broth in fridge or freezer.

You can use any breading mix that you like. Sabbath I used flour, garlic powder, nutritional yeast. You can also coat and bake, use in soups, pot pie or grind to use in sandwich spreads.


I hope you try them. Let me know how they turn out.

Chickpeas , Garbonzos

A friend of mine has a really interesting name for them, it's sure to make you laugh but you'll have to ask me in person. Take a close look at them and see if you can figure it out.

My favorite way to eat them is by the hand full after they have been drained and rinsed. But there are so many ways to eat this wonderful bean.

Bean Salad

1 can green beans

1 can red kidney beans

1 can garbonzos

1 bunch green onions chopped

1 close garlic minced

2 TBLS flax seed oil

2TBLS lemon juice

1 TBLS honey

Mix chill and enjoy

Roasted Chickpeas

1 can chickpeas

1 TBLS olive oil

Rinse drain and put on a sprayed baking sheet.

Cook for 10 min at 450 degrees.

Shake pan to roll beans around and cook for another 10 min.

Add beans, oil, our choice of spices to a bowl and mix well.

Put the beans back in the pan and continue to cook for 10-15 min or until brown and crunchy.

Any spices can be added, garlic, paprika, chili pepper anything that sounds good.

I'll add more recipes this week.

Hang in there

A couple of things have been rattling around in my head the last few days.

1.I was just thinking about how hard we are on ourselves at times. We want everything now but change takes time.
It's important sometimes to step back and look at the overall trend of your habits. I'd like to say that I will never eat chips again and have it magically happen. That's not realistic but I can look back over the past months and see improvement in my eating. In fact we were discussing how a bad day of eating now is much better than our good days were a few years ago. Yes, I have days that I decide not to eat well.

BUT look at the overall picture. Is the scale more friendly? Do you feel better? Do people say you are looking healthy? Do your cloths fit better? Do you see your scores going up on your weekly goal sheet? If so that is real progress.


2. heart rate- did you know your body can get so used to an activity that you start losing the benefit? How do you get around this?

Don't get to set in a routine or workout. Switch things up. If you run or walk regularly try adding weight bearing exercise.

Squats, lunges, push ups using body weight are a great way to get a good workout without equipment. You can use the IT method with these very easily by alternating a set of any of these with an equal time of rest or stretching. Each will give you an aerobic workout as well as stretch building. This works really well if you are stuck in a hotel.

You're doing great keep up the good work.

Get up and move

I'm more convinced than ever to get out and walk at lunch.

During the first hour of a 12 hour flight I read an article about how sitting for long periods at a time increase the risk for developing metabolic syndrome. The good news is that it takes less than 20 minutes of exercise to prevent this. The bottom line was try not to sit for more than 4 hours at a time.

Keep moving :-)

Potatoes Au Gratin

Here is our recipe from today. I love this recipe because it's quick and easy.


Potatoes Au Gratin,


6 medium potatoes thinly sliced

2 onions thinly sliced

1 recipe of easy cheese sauce.


Layer in a 9x9 baking dish and bake at 375 degrees for 45 min.

Easy Cheese Sauce

1 c raw cashews

2 c water

2TBLS nutritional yeast

1/2 tsp salt

1 tsp onion powder

1/2 tsp garlic powder

1 small red pepper


Blend until smooth.


The cheese sauce freezes very well so you can make larger recipes and freeze in 2 cup containers for use later.

Food experiments

If oatmeal really turns you off then this might be a good way to try eating it. Nothing beats Old fashioned oats fiber and for keeping your blood sugar up all morning but the texture can really be hard to swallow. This recipe is easy to prepare , portable and heart healthy.

Raw Breakfast Oates

3/4C old fashioned rolled oates
1/4C grapenuts
1TBLS flax seed meal
1/4C apple juice
1 C fresh fruit I used berries

Mix the first 3 ingredients. A few minutes before you want to eat add the juice. When you are ready to eat mix in the berries and enjoy.

Nutrition Info
Serving Size 1 serving (menu makes 1 serving)
Calories 382
Total Fat 2.9 g
Saturated Fat 0.3 g
Trans Fat 0 g
Cholesterol 0 mg
Sodium 291 mg
Carbohydrate 89 g
Dietary Fiber 12 g
Sugars 25.04539 g
Protein 9 g



I also tried making Tofu Mayonaise this weekend and was very happy with it. It took less than 10 min, is very yummy and much less expensive than the vegan mayo that you buy.

Tofu Mayo

12.3 oz package of firm silken tofu

1/3 C water

1/3C raw cashews

2 TBL lemon juice

1TBL honey

1/2 tsp onion powder

1/2 tsp garlic powder

1/2 tsp salt

Blend all ingreients together until smooth. TIP boil water and add to cashews before blending, they'll blend smoother and quicker. If mixture is too thick and add a tbls of water or soy milk.

Have you tried any new recipes? Leave a comment to let us know what you've tried and if you would make it again.

Cook Book Review

Here are 3 of my "go to" cookbooks.


The Optimal Diet- This is the official CHIP cookbook. CHIP stands for Coronary Health Improvement Project. Recipes are easy to prepare, taste great, use every day ingredients and are healthy. This is a great book if you are wanting to prevent or reverse heart disease.

7 Secrets Cook book- by Neva and Jim Brackett. Delicious healthy recipes. Again these use basic every day ingredients. These take a little more prep time but still many can be quickly pulled together for a meal. The book also includes lots of tips for items that can be made ahead and stored.

Total Vegetairian by Barbara Watson. This book includes all of the recipes from Step Fast and more. All recipes are easy to prepare, tasty and healthy.

Stay tuned for more to come.

Vegan Chicken Pot Pie

Happy Monday

Here is the recipe that we tried on Sabbath.

Vegan Chicken Pot Pie

1 package vegetarian chicken

1 onion chopped

1 TBS Bill Best Chick'Nish seasoning

1 1/2 C of cashew cream

1/2 C vegetable stock

2 potatoes chopped

2- 3 cups mixed vegetables

1 recipe of pie crust.

Brown chicken and chopped onion. If it starts to dry out add a small amount of broth to get all of the brown bits of the bottom of the pan. Add the Chick' Nish seasoning, potato and remainder of broth. Let this cook for a few minutes and add mixed vegetables and cashew cream.

Pour into baking dish top with crust and bake until crust is brown.

Cashew Cream

1 Cup raw cashew nuts

2 cups water

1/2 packet GW golden broth

Place 1 nuts and 1 cup of boiling water in blender. Let sit for a few minutes and then blend. When smooth add the rest of the water and blend. Makes 4 cups but freezes well. If you want a thicker sauce add 1TBS corn starch

Pie Crust

from 7 Secrets cook book

1/2 C flour

2/3 C walnuts

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 C quick oats

1/4 C or more water

Place flour, nuts and salt in a food processor and blend about 1 minute until nuts are ground as fine as the flour. Pour into a bowl, add Oates and water mixing to form a ball. Roll out dough to fit your dish.

I used oat flour on this crust and could not get it to roll out nicely so resorted to crumbling it on top. In the past I've used whole wheat flour and it worked perfectly.

Web sites

Sundown is not far away but I wanted to share some great websites.

www.fatfreevegan.com Great vegan reccipe site

www.squeezeitin.com Fun site that shows how to work exercise into everyday living.

www.realage.com Take the Real Age test and find out how old your body is compared to you chronological age.

Next post recipe book reivew.
Happy Sabbath

Step Fast Atholton

Welcome to the Step Fast Atholton blog. Today is the first day of this blog so I hope you will check back often for updates.

S unshine
T emperance
E xercise
P roper Diet
F abulous Water
A ir, Pure and Fresh
S leep
T rust in God

Next week we will be starting our weekly logs using "my personal health goals". Each week we will have new goals that match the Step Fast principles. You will get points for each goal that you meet each week. Aim for a perfect score.