All my life I was blessed to be able to eat whatever I wanted. My parents owned a restaurant and so what’s for lunch was whatever my little heart desired — and I weighed 70lbs in junior high and not much more after that. I could put down food like no other. I remember my grandpa complaining to my parents, when he thought I wasn’t around to hear, that I ate everything in the house and my voracious appetite was going catch up with me someday.
In college, I took a trip with my mom to Taiwan. They have night markets every night (similar to our farmer’s markets, but way, way better) and the best food EVER. I ended up in a eating contest with another girl –who could eat the most goodies from the most food stands at the night market. I won.
Not much changed until I had Mackenzie. All of the sudden, my body decided to stubborning hang on to 15 of the 45lbs I gained while pregnant. I got in the habit of eating dessert after EVERY meal and that little habit stayed with me for 3+ years. It was also around the time when I got endometriosis.
A few months ago, I started out trying to lose those pesky 15lbs after 6 years. I started logging my daily food intake, and I started making green smoothies, (see the related post HERE), reading and yes, giving up Dr. Pepper. After reading in depth about the inhumane treatment of animals in the slaughterhouse, the impact on the environment and the unsanitary conditions on the huge farm factories, I made the decision to become a vegetarian, eating only seafood and sustainable meat. (I won’t go into details, but Slaughterhouse by Gail Eisnitz is a book I think everyone should read. Personally, I think it’s important for you to know what you are putting in your body and where it came from, as cancer, obesity and heart disease are on the rise.) I am also currently reading, The China Study, by the way. And, no, the transition was not difficult and I don’t miss meat.
I feel great, have lost 7-8lbs and am learning to cook. (The keyword is LEARNING). So, if you know of any great vegetarian cookbooks, post them in the comment section!
Every morning, I get up early and I make myself, my husband and my daughter a “Green Smoothie” in my high powered Blendtec. The smoothie isn’t really green, it’s actually a lovely shade of purple (cause I put beets and lots of berries in it). It’s filled with about 15 servings of fruits and veggies and it’s delicious. The book is “The Green Smoothies Diet” by Robyn Openshaw.
I like feeling healthy and being healthy…and I don’t even like Dr. Pepper anymore. (GASP! I know!)
Here’s the basic smoothie recipe I got from the book.
| Robyn’s Green Smoothie Template Recipe
Makes 8 cups of 100% raw smoothie. Put 2 1/2 cups filtered water in your turbo blender. Optionally, add: ¼ cup raw, organic agave nectar (low glycemic index) ¼ whole lemon, including peel (anti-skin cancer, high in flavanoids) 2-3 Tbsp. fresh, refrigerated flax oil (omega-3 rich oil) Gradually add greens until, briefly pureed, the mixture comes up the 5-cup line (or less if you are “converting”): ¾ to 1 lb. raw, washed greens, added up to 5 ½ cup line: spinach, chard, kale, collards Puree greens mixture for 90 seconds until very smooth. Gradually add fruit until the container is very full, blend 90 seconds or until smooth: 1-2 bananas 1-2 cups frozen mixed berries any other fruit to taste: pears, peaches, apples, oranges,apricots, cantaloupe, mango, pineapple p.s. Tips: For beginners and those trying to convert children, consider using LESS greens and MORE fruit (especially berries and bananas) in the beginning, gradually working up to a 50/50 ratio as described here. With kids, consider using only spinach the first few days, then sneak in chard, collards, and kale, the other mild but excellent greens gradually. Add other savory or bitter greens only when your family are “experts” in green smoothies! Add a bit more water if you feel the smoothie is too thick. |
It tastes pretty good, even if it looks like strawberry preserves. Don’t let it scare you
