Posted by Alex on February 7, 2010 at 4:25 pm
My January Detox Tele-Group is nearing the end of our 8 week course. Checking in with my members has been great – everyone is working towards their goals and learning deep insights about how their individual body reacts to food and lifestyle stress:
“I’m finally losing weight - and my ‘mummy tummy’! My menstrual cycle is much better in terms of length and frequency, and my digestion is really improved. Making small changes to my routine and diet have been huge for me. I feel more liberated and I feel so much better!”
- Sarah C., Mom to 3
“I’m just really pleased with how I feel. It feels to natural to make these changes. I feel satisfied with the healthy foods that I’m eating now.”
- Christine D., Insurance Sales
“I’m more awake and my work is more productive. My energy is much better.”
- Trish P., Speech Therapist
**Keep your eyes open for my new April Fast-Track Detox! I’ll announce the details soon, and I’m getting all the pieces together to ensure that this program is a huge success!
Be well,
Alexandra
Posted by Alex on February 1, 2010 at 7:57 pm
We all have our gurus, mentors and people we look up to.
Mine is my friend Annie. When Annie says “Here, read this!” I read it!
Annie showed me a copy of Jennifer Katzinger’s
Flying Apron’s Gluten-Free & Vegan Baking Book and I could hardly believe my eyes. Katzinger, owner of the Flying Apron Bakery in Seattle, has written a lovely, workable, informative cookbook. Every recipe makes sense. They work! And there aren’t a lot of confusing ingredients and steps. This is a fabulous book for beginners and experienced chefs alike.
Everything from pizza crusts, cookies, cupcakes, pies, cakes, maple bars (my personal favorite!), tarts, pastries and breads are covered in this handy, pretty book. I give this book 5 STARS!
The good people at Sasquatch Books have given me a few copies to give away to my readers! Leave your comment here about why you would love to receive a copy of this book by this Friday the 5th of February.
Enjoy,
Alexandra
Posted by Alex on at 7:47 pm
I love vegetables in all forms. Steamed, raw, baked, naked and smothered in vegan mushroom gravy. I also love a huge heaping glass of fresh vegetable juice. Nothing makes my body light up with energy like the easy healing from concentrated vitamins, enzymes and phytonutrients!
While having a juicer is necessary to make this recipe, you might consider finally buying one! I’ve had my Juiceman Jr.($85) for 8 years and it shows no signs of slowing. We make fresh “green juices” at least a few times a week. I often make a double batch and stir in a teaspoon of vitamin C powder to the half I won’t drink fresh. The vitamin C protects the stored juice (kept in an air-tight glass container, of course) from losing it’s potency. This way I can have fresh, powerful juice for a couple of days and save time.
Here’s my current favorite juice recipe:
5 big leaves of kale
2 stalks celery
1 small or 1/2 of a large cucumber (peeled if you can’t find it unwaxed)
1-2 apples (Honeycrisp are my absolute favorite)
1 lemon, yellow rind cut away, but as much as the white pith still in tact, as this is where the majority of the bioflavonoids hang out
1/2 organic red bell pepper
Just wait – you will love this!
Posted by Alex on January 25, 2010 at 10:03 am
Daikon radishes have been used in traditional Japanese and Macrobiotic cooking to heal the body and to help it discharge fat, excess fluids and old animal foods lingering in the intestines. This “really big radish” has huge amounts of digestive enzymes which help the body easily deal with fats and proteins. Also used as a diuretic and decongestant, daikon can help ease the work of the kidneys by discharging more water and fluid retention.
Japanese researchers have found that daikon radish eaten with smoked or grilled animal protein increases the elimination of cancer-causing compounds. But why eat those carcinogenic foods in the first place?
So how can you use this powerful, peppery radish to help cleanse your body? Here are a few simple ideas:
- Grate 2 tablespoons of daikon daily and eat with a few drops of naturally brewed soy sauce (shoyu, tamari or Bragg’s Liquid Aminos) to help the body discharge old animal protein and fats.
- Make a simple broth to eliminate excess diary products: Heat 1 cup water, 1/2 cup diced daikon, 1 inch piece of kombu sea vegetable. Simmer for 15 minutes, drink warm.
- Reduce fever or “food hangover” symptoms with a tea made from 1/4 cup sliced daikon, 2 shittake mushrooms and 1 inch piece of kombu sea vegetable.
Eating out at a Japanese or Korean spot? Ask for a side of daikon along with your meal for extra detox points!
Posted by Alex on January 21, 2010 at 11:09 am
Drinking water is one of the first steps towards helping your body detoxify nasty chemicals and years of abuse.
The members of my 8 Week Detox Tele-Course have noticed great improvements in their digestion and skin health just from increasing their water intake! But what if the water you’re drinking is harmful, too? There are over 300 contaminants found in American’s drinking water. What kind of filter should you use? How does your city’s water rate?
The good folks at the Environmental Working Group are here to help again! The EWG has put together a national tap water quality database. It makes it easy for you to identify and understand the contaminants in your water — and find the right filter — all in one place. Simply go here and find out the basics – you’ll be glad you did: http://www.ewg.org/tap-water/welcome
Posted by Alex on January 19, 2010 at 9:25 am
Dear Alex:
I thought I would just drop you a line to let you know that I gave birth to a baby girl a week ago… a couple of years ago I picked up your book (The Great American Detox Diet) in Scotland and read it all the way home to New Zealand… you helped me with my vegetarian wedding menu ideas and with some ideas for good nutrition during my pregnancy. I thought it would make you smile that it was the talk of the hospital that this strict vegetarian girl was the most healthy they had seen! I had a massive post partum bleed which needed surgery to fix, but because my iron levels were so high I didn’t need a blood tranfusion. It turns out after losing 1.5 litres of blood, my haemoglobin levels were still in the “normal” range which is almost unheard of, they were still higher than lots of pregnant women’s levels that don’t lose 25% of their blood! So go you, thanks for setting me up for a more successful result than it could have been!
- Emily, New Zealand
Posted by Alex on at 8:58 am
I didn’t start eating green leafy vegetables until my mid-20’s when I learned how amazing they were for health. I started to love them immediately, and even crave them.
Greens provide your body with chlorophyll which is a proven cancer fighter, blood builder and helps to promote healthy intestinal flora. When your flora (the beneficial and necessary bacteria that live in your gut) are happy, the rest of your body will feel amazing! A great way to increase your immunity and overall energy, leafy greens are a daily staple on my detox diet. Here’s my favorite, quick strategy for great greens:
How to store your green leafy veggies
Don’t just throw them in the crisper without a bag – greens will dry out and wilt quickly. And don’t suffocate your greens! Too much moisture from a closed plastic bag will cause them to rot fast. Instead store your greens slightly wet in a perforated or slightly open plastic bag in the refrigerator – this way they’ll stay fresh for 2-3 days. Fresh herbs keep longer if you trim off about 1/2-inch from the stem, place them in a jar with 1 inch fresh water with a plastic bag over the top, and store upright in the refrigerator.
How to easily prepare your green leafy veggies
I like to do a quick saute on my greens. This wilts them slightly and removes any bitterness while keeping much of the nutrition in tact. When sauteeing greens, it is good to work with just-washed greens:
- Heat 1-2 tablespoons of unrefined coconut oil in a skillet over medium flame.
- Add a minced clove of garlic. Cook the garlic until just fragrant, and be careful not to burn or brown it – garlic gets bitter quickly.
- Chop your greens (kale, bok choy, collards, etc) into bite-sized pieces. Stack the washed leaves, roll them like a cigar and slice for evenly cut pieces. Place cut leaves in the skillet and stir frequently with a wooden spoon.
- Sprinkle with a little sea or Himalayan salt or naturally brewed soy sauce.
- When the leaves are bright green and don’t taste bitter anymore it’s time to eat!
- Try sprinkling with a little orange juice, lemon juice, gomasio, umeboshi vinegar or a few drizzles of your favorite vinaigrette.
Posted by Alex on January 13, 2010 at 8:00 pm
I’m holding a little contest to give away a copy of my new book! The reviews on amazon are great, and I want to share my excitement wit a lucky reader.
Just leave a comment here on this blog about why you want to check out my book!
(You can also order a copy here to give away to friends or loved-ones)
Posted by Alex on at 7:46 pm
This is an ancient Japanese remedy for quickly alkalizing the blood and is
useful for all sorts of conditions: Feel a cold or flu coming on? Drink a cup
of this. It makes a great hangover remedy too. As odd as this drink is for us Westerners, it works
well for upset tummies, hangovers, colds and more.
* 1 teaspoon Kudzu
* 1 cup
cold water
* 1 teaspoon Umeboshi paste
* Shoyu (or tamari soy
sauce)
* ¼ cup grated diakon radish
* ½ to 1 teaspoon Ginger Juice (to make juice just grate a little on a fine
grater. Take the
gratings in your fingers and squeeze out a few drops
of juice.)
Simply dissolve 1 heaping teaspoon of kudzu in 1 cup cold
water in a small saucepan. It will be
easier if you dissolve it in some of the water and then add the rest. Then
add the ume paste. Stir over medium heat until the liquid becomes more clear in
color and
it is okay if it comes to a boil. Add maybe 1/2 teaspoon of shoyu
(or tamari
soy sauce) and then turn off the heat. Add ginger juice
and grated daikon and stir well. Drink hot.
