Herbs & Home

Just a quick post regarding herbs and home stuff.  I posted another lengthier post earlier today if you would like to check that out by scrolling down as well.

Check out this herbal tea (tisane)!  It's from a company called Cha Tale in the UK.  They have some of the best tasting herbal teas I have had so far and I drink a lot of tea!  I'm not usually that fond of herbal teas.  Mostly because when I drink tea I want to drink tea and have it TASTE like tea!  Most herbals aren't that tea-like.  Another reason I wanted to post this herbal tisane is because of the Cassia Seeds you see on the bottom.  They have a TON of health benefits including those for eye health and I have been focusing on eyes lately!

This next one is a combo of Pandan Leaves and Lemongrass.  NOT by the company I mentioned above but I still wanted to blog about it because of all the benefits of Pandan Leaves more specifically regarding pain relief.  I have an upcoming article and recipe for this tea over at The Raw Food World NEWS Site so be on the look out.

This past week hubby confirmed that the kidney stones he has gotten time and time again are directly linked to his Crohn's.  After tests it was found that they were made up of calcium and sodium.  It's not so much that he consumes those two things much it's that because of his Crohn's those two things don't break down like they should.  So now he's focusing on lower calcium and lower sodium foods, however, he is a meat eater, and because of his Crohn's can't eat many raw fruits and veggies or even some of his cooked veggies he used to call favorites.  If you are new to my blog - it's true - our house hold is a mixed diet household.  This is becoming more and more common these days.  On top of everything else he has to make sure that he's eating low fiber foods, too.  A few random things we have found that meet all of those rules are spaghetti, rice crispies, and apple sauce.  I will do occasional posts with additional findings.

Strawberry Camu Camu Smoothie With Activated Barley

Happy Friday everyone!  Today I have a smoothie recipe paired with the health benefits of 2 of the recipes ingredients!  Check out this Strawberry Camu Camu Smoothie with Activated Barley!

1 1/2 C Coconut Milk
1 Frozen Banana
10 Frozen Strawberries
1/2 t Camu Camu Powder
1 Heaping T of Sun Warrior's Activated Barley

I wanted to put greens in this but didn't have much left in the house this morning.  I will have to get more this weekend because I am going to seriously challenge myself to do a smoothie each morning - at least 5 times a week - Monday thru Friday - starting today!

I know pretty weird to start on a Friday!  And don't get me wrong!  I do my fair share of smoothies but the challenge to myself is to be more consistent with them.  I tend to go in spurts.  And I LOVE my greens but I need to up that amount and smoothies are an easy way to do that!

Why Activated Barley?

Barley has high concentrations of age fighting antioxidants and health boosting beta-glucans. Beta-glucans improve immune function, raise energy levels without sugar spikes, and reduce cholesterol. They use a Swedish method of low temperature steam, the barley is taken to the brink of germination before packaging. This suspends the barley at the highest point of bio-energy where it contains the best mix of protein, fiber, enzymes, and the ultimate slow burning carbohydrate. It ranks low on the glycemic index, has high tocotrienol and beta-glucan levels, thousands of active enzymes, is a slow burning carbohydrate chain, provides long-term energy for any workout, and it’s the ultimate slow burning carb.

Why Camu Camu?

Camu Camu is the highest known source of natural Vitamin C!  It has powerful anti-inflammatory properties, PROMOTES EYE HEALTH, guards against brain diseases, improves mood and balances, improves muscle tone, boosts the immune system, helps prevent viral and bacterial infections, supports healthy collagen, tendons, and ligaments.  You can purchase Camu Camu HERE!

Cranberry Blueberry Smoothie

I've really been rockin' the smoothies lately.  I'm having fun with them.  the Leafy Greens in my area are not looking very healthy these days or I would gladly include them in my smoothies.  I hope this turns around very soon!  I would like to start incorporating Kale, Spinach, and a few others in them.  I will say this one really surprised me tho!  I was asked by a reader recently to do a smoothie without milk or milk alternatives.  As you know I don't use real milk in mine but have been using Almond Milk as well as Coconut, Cashew, Hemp, and other alternatives.

This Cranberry Blueberry Smoothie has none of those in there!  BUT...this is what it DOES have in it...

1 C Organic Cranberry Juice
1/2 C Frozen Blueberries
1/2 Frozen Banana
1/2 Scoop of Garden Of Life's Raw Perfect Food Apple Flavor

I believe I fought off that potential head cold and I'm darn proud for that!  YAY!

I truly believe that foods are healing and also preventative!  I'm sure you know that Cranberries are an amazing food!  They help treat urinary tract infections, they help fight cancer and heart disease, help with kidney and bladder problems, help prevent dental problems, they promote weight loss, they have anti-aging properties, they improve mental health, strengthen immune systems, and relieve skin conditions.

We had some in the house because of the issues my husband has been going thru and I decided to incorporate some into my smoothie this morning.  This smoothie tastes WONDERFUL by the way!

As for the Blueberries...they pack a powerful punch, too!  Blueberries are high in anti-oxidants, they help preserve your vision, help banish belly fat, they are good for bone health, Blueberries help relieve constipation, they are known as a good "brain food", they are Heart Healthy, they are a Cancer Fighter, they help lower blood sugar, and they help with Bladder issues.

Cranberries and Blueberries!  My little fighters for the day!  Paired with a spec of Banana and GoL Apple Flavored Perfect Food...YAY!  

Spicy Chipotle Ranch Vegan Stew, A Word About Clove, and Chi's PLEASE!

I've been wanting to try and do something with one of our newest products called Spicy Chipotle Ranch.

Last night with what little I had in the house before shopping this weekend I made a darn tasty Vegan Stew with it!  I used Pinto Beans, Corn, Green Beans, Diced Tomatoes, Green & Red Peppers, Onions, Water, and Spicy Chipotle Ranch from Wildtree.  It was VERY GOOD!

I would also like to try this with Vegan Sour Cream for a dip in the near future!A few other suggestions that were vegan or easily veganized were: Taco Salad, Chipotle Black Bean Burgers, Stuffed Avocado, and Fried Zucchini.  

I told you earlier this week about this past weekend and the Strawberry Festival.  Well, while we were there - towards the end - and a girl brought her 4 week old Chihuahua with her.  He was so cute!  This is a pic of my sister with him.  He only weighed 1.8 pounds.  My sister LOVED him!  There was another Chi, there, as well, but didn't really want to be social with us. 

Last night Paco was snuggle-E after a while, again.  Of course, I wasn't going to complain about that.  In this photo you can see Suzie's back side as well.  I'm so happy they are all 'used to' each other now.  Sometimes Riley 'grumps' when Paco gets too close when HE is the one who wants to be closer to me - but - for the most part - every one is ok with the daily in's and out's of the 'Bliss House Hold".  Paco really likes to 'burrow' in blankets and be covered and that is common for Chihuahua's.  He's been hiding his eyes under blankets lately when he gets tired but tries to fight it.

And other times he uses the 'sleeping bag' method.  He's so funny! 

In other news - I still don't feel quite right since I have been to the dentist.  I have to say my front teeth where all the intense cleaning took place is getting a LITTLE better BUT my upper left hand side wisdom tooth is causing some 'ruckus'.  I think it's moving around again and it's sensitive but in a different way than the front teeth were sensitive if that makes sense. 

I have been 'upping' my intake of CLOVE to try and help things along.  How does CLOVE, help?  Well, they are known to have antioxidant, anti-septic, local anesthetic, anti-inflammatory, warming and soothing properties.  The spice contains health benefiting essential oils such as eugenol. It is a phenyl-propanoids class of chemical compound, which gives pleasant, sweet aromatic fragrances to the clove-bud. Eugenol has local anesthetic and antiseptic properties...useful in dental care essentials as well as in treatment procedures.

The other important constituents in this spice include:
essential oils:    acetyl eugenol, beta-caryophyllene and vanillin, crategolic acid;
tannins:   gallotannic acid, methyl salicylate (painkiller);
the flavonoids:  eugenin, kaempferol, rhamnetin, and eugenitin;
triterpenoids:  such as oleanolic acid, stigmasterol and campesterol
and several sesquiterpenes.

It's also great for digestion!  And...contains a good amount of minerals like potassium, manganese, iron, selenium and magnesium. Potassium is an important electrolyte of cell and body fluids that helps control heart rate and blood pressure. Manganese is used by the body as a co-factor for the antioxidant enzyme, superoxide dismutase.

But the benefits of clove don't stop there!  Clove contains very good amounts of vitamin A and beta-carotene levels. These compounds are known to have antioxidant properties. Vitamin A is also required by the body for maintaining healthy mucus membranes and skin in addition to essential for vision. Consumption of natural foods rich in flavonoids helps to protect the body from lung and oral cavity cancers.  Additionally, this spice is a good source of vitamin-K, vitamin-B6 (pyridoxine), thiamin (vitamin B-1), vitamin-C and riboflavin. Consumption of foods rich in vitamin C helps the body develop resistance against infectious agents and scavenge harmful oxygen-free radicals.

One of the things I have been sipping on a lot more than usual lately is Blue Lotus Chai's Rooibos Masala Chai which is heavy on the Clove as well as other beneficial spices.

So...there is your clove lesson for the day! teehee.  Hope you found something useful!

Coconuts!

Coconuts are an amazing resource to anyone interested in both improving and maintaining health! Raw, shredded coconut has a variety of vital health benefits thanks to its good-for-you fats and high fiber. Coconut contains high amounts of lauric acid and caprilic acid, which boast anti-viral, anti-bacterial, anti-septic and anti-fungal properties. Shredded coconut contains all the benefits of coconut oil. Besides supporting your health, our coconut flakes are incomparable in quality and flavor! Stay Tuned because I will have some Coconut Water Reviews coming up in the next few weeks! :)