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Healthy Kids

Movies and Popcorn – Summertime fun! Cheesy popcorn

Monday, July 12th, 2010

Dehydrated cauliflower popcorn

Part of summertime fun is seeing lots of blockbuster movies, having friends over for a swim, and then relaxing in front of the television for a comedy or action-packed flick. Well, I don’t know about you, but when we were little my mother would pop fresh popcorn, place it in a huge bowl in the middle of the room, and we would lay on the floor and munch away with friends and family while we were enjoying our show. Little has changed in my house since I was a kid, and the summertime fun still looks much the same, but with a raw twist: now I make cauliflower “popcorn,” and we are all the better for it.

Promise me that  you aren’t still making microwave popcorn … It’s not that I’m passing judgment; I mean, I used to buy the large cases of microwave popcorn from my discount warehouse store and pop a few bags in a week.  I mean, how convenient was that? A minute and 30 seconds away from munchy fun.

However …

Microwaving anything, even water (especially water), is an extremely toxic and overall damaging process to your body, mind, and the world. But microwave popcorn takes the danger to an even more serious degree.  The chemical coating used in microwave popcorn bags is so toxic, as it breaks down when heated, it turns into a substance called perfluorooctanoic (PFOA),  a major carcinogen. The butter flavoring that we all love causes even more damage. The fake butter flavor is actually an FDA-approved chemical called diacetyl that causes debilitating respiratory disease, affectionately known as “popcorn workers lungs.” The medical name for this condition is “bronchiolitis obliterans,” suffered by those who work in the factory that packages microwave popcorn.  Since discovering the butter-flavored disease, many companies have discontinued  the product. But many have not.  So if you want to make popcorn, air pop it or jostle it over a hot kettle and enjoy it the old-fashioned way.

If you want to try something new and RAW, adding great health benefits as well as a cheesy delight, try making cauliflower popcorn.  I promise you won’t be disappointed.

Live cauliflower popcorn

Chipotle Cheese Popcorn

I always make a few batches at a time, as they are gobbled up so fast.

Ingredients

  • 1 head of cauliflower, broken into 1-inch florets
  • 1–2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 1/4 cup walnuts or raw sunflower seeds
  • 1/4 cup nutritional yeast
  • 1 teaspoon sea salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon chipotle powder

Directions

Place cauliflower florets into a large Ziplock bag and coat with olive oil. In food processor, blender, or nut & spice grinder, add nuts or seeds, nutritional yeast, chipotle powder, and sea salt and process until finely ground. Pour over florets and close top. Shake bag until cauliflower is well coated. Cauliflower may be eaten RAW, or place on dehydrator rack on a grid and paraflexx sheet.

Dehydrate at 110 degrees for 2 hours for moist, 6 hours for slightly crunchy, and 10 hours plus for harder consistency. If fully dehydrated, it will have a 1-week shelf life!

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Summertime fun for Kids

Wednesday, June 23rd, 2010

Now that the kids are home from school, the refrigerator and freezer are constantly opening and closing.  Kids are always looking for a quick snack.  I do the fresh fruit thing, and of course, I  make more smoothies each day than I care to admit.  But, sometimes, a special treat puts an extra big smile on their faces.  I try to have the kids make the treats themselves, seeing the pride of their accomplishment puts an extra big smile on my face.  Melon pops, are super easy,  fun, refreshing and delicious.

Fruits and Vegetables come in a rainbow of colors.  And, like the the Crayola Crayon box, kids can  have a blast playing and creating with color.  For optimal health, eat a variety of fruits and vegetables everyday- Red, yellow/orange, white, green and blue/purple.  Here’s an example of how each color represents a health benefit unique to it’s color group.

Eat Your Colors

Color Group

Health Benefits

Melon Examples

Red

Help maintain heart health, memory function and urinary tract health

Watermelon

Yellow/Orange

Help maintain heart health, vision health and healthy immune system

Cantaloupe, casaba, piel de sapo, sugar melon, yellow watermelon

Green

Help maintain vision health and strong bones and teeth

Honeydew, Crenshaw, horned melon, galia

MELONS  May Provide

  • An excellent source of Vitamin C  (cantaloupe, casaba and honeydew)
  • An excellent source of Vitamin A (e.g., cantaloupe).
  • A source of potassium (e.g., cantaloupe, casaba, honeydew, watermelon).
  • A source of Vitamin B6, folate and niacin (e.g., cantaloupe, casaba, honeydew).
  • A  source of lycopene (e.g., watermelon).
Potassium is an essential mineral that functions primarily in the intracellular fluid by regulating electrolyte and water balance and cell metabolism. It also plays a role in the synthesis of muscle protein from amino acids in the blood.

Frozen Melon Pops

Delicious frozen natural treats that all kids love.

Melon Pops

Ingredients

  • 1 baby seedless watermelon
  • 1 Tuscan melon or cantaloupe
  • 1 honeydew melon
  • Popsicle sticks

Directions

Cut melons in half, and scoop out seeds. Using a small ice cream scoop, spoon out melon balls, trying to get as much of the meat of the fruit as possible. Insert a popsicle stick on the flat part of the ball, and place on a covered plate in freezer for two hours.  Serve immediately or keep in an airtight container in freezer for up to a month.

Fun Facts

  • On average, it takes about 10 to 15 bee visits for proper pollination to grow melons.
  • Watermelons are very helpful in detoxifying the kidneys, lowering body temperature and blood pressure
  • Melons will get softer after they are picked, but they will never get sweeter

In health and Love,

Diana

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For the love of your mother!

Friday, May 7th, 2010

Amelia making the cereal

Amelia making maple cream for Apple Muesli

Yummy breakfast!

“As is the mother, so is her daughter”

- Ezekiel 16:4

It’s almost Mothers day, and it reminds me of times when I was little and my mom and I would play in the kitchen, baking and preparing meals. Growing up, we ate a lot of soups, big salads, casseroles (my mom is a good ol’ American Baby Boomer) and tons of fresh fruit.  My mother and I found our time together in the kitchen to be the most joyful bonding experience ever. As I grew up and life had it’s wonderful twists and turns, my greatest memories of my childhood was going to produce stands, farmers markets, and creating around food. Who knew that years later, the simple joy of being a kid would transcend into my greatest joy in life- going to markets and preparing lovingly nutritious meals.

“The mother’s heart is the child’s schoolroom”.

-Henry Ward Beecher, US Congressional clergyman

It is no secret that children learn through imitating behavior from their parents. ” Incidental learning at home also influences how a child performs at school”, Dr. Spock had noted.  For example, if you want a child to love reading, then read with them.  If you want them to enjoy playing outdoors, then spend quality time with them in the great outdoors. If you want them to learn to prepare and enjoy eating healthy food, then spend time having fun in the kitchen and load your counters with fresh produce.

This week a lovely woman from Tacoma ,Washington sent me photos of her beautiful daughter in the kitchen lovingly preparing recipes from my book Get Naked Fast.  I shed a little nostalgic tear as I remembered the sweet tenderness of my own childhood.

“Anyone who doesn’t miss the past never had a mother”.

- Gregory Nunn

The role of the mother is paramount in the child’s emotional development.  The forming of a bond, or attachment with the mother/primary caregiver is of extreme importance for later development.  Meal time can be an opportunity to build and brighten the bond. Time in the kitchen may create a stronger, happier family environment.

“Children of all ages can learn to plan meals. If they help choose and plan some of the family’s meals, it will foster a healthy sense of pride and accomplishment for them. It also gives parents a chance to incorporate nutrition advice and to witness their child’s intriguing thought processes.”

- Dianna Griffis

Shopping together is an excellent time to talk about the day.  Casual conversation flows through children when they are in a comfortable environment, usually performing some activity.  Making a list together and then strategizing your game plan through the market’s grocery isles can become a playful and joyful experience to share. This not only strengthens the mother/child connection, but teaches the child that domestic chores are a joyful part of life.

Smells are closely related to memories. In a July 5th 2001 ABC Science article, “Smells and Memory 2,” Karl S. Kruszelnicki reports that smells make great triggers for memories. Many people can smell a food and instantly be taken back to their childhood. Cooking with children can help form these memories that will be a comfort later in life.

“When I stopped seeing my mother with the eyes of a child, I saw the woman who helped me give birth to myself”

-Nancy Friday

My mom and I on her land in Oregon.

My mother is still an inspiration to me, she is a woman of strength and substance.  She plays in nature, with her hands in the dirt,  creates love and life in her beautiful garden and amazing orchard.  She is a master in her craft and lives her dream atop a 5 acre hillside she created.  She bears fruits, and berries and vegetables all year long, and has become the woman I aspire too.   Happy Mothers Day , MOM!  I Love you!

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How smart are RAW kids?

Thursday, April 1st, 2010

Healthy Kids

When raising our children, we want to do the best for them, that means, of course providing  for them the healthiest and most promising future. Nutrition is one of the best ways to ensure that your child will develop into a strong healthy and happy child. Some parents get overly protective, and tend to go overboard on a theory while not necessarily paying attention to the signs of development. Since science is relatively new and constantly changing it is important that we don’t get stuck on a philosophy and be versatile with our children’s needs.

While raw plant food is certainly the most effective way to get ultimate nutrition into the body, we must not forget the need for fats in brain development.

Most children do not eat enough fruits and vegetables, nuts (or fish) and way too much processed foods, they are not getting enough Omega 3′s which without the brain cells cannot communicate or work properly as the brain is trying to form new neural pathways during the learning process. Foods with Omega 3′s fatty acids help improve brain functioning and restore memory:

Hemp, chia, flaxseed, walnuts, broccoli, squash walnuts and beans (and of course salmon, mackerel, sardines  and herring if you are so inclined)

Antioxidants help clean up the brain, they are like rust cleaners, they keep the rust off the brain- foods high in Vitamin E, vitamin C and alpha lipoic acids  are good examples of antioxidant foods that children should be consuming.Vitamin E provides good blood circulation to the brain which enables good brain functioning.

High antioxidant Berries

High antioxidant foods  keep the brain free and clear of free radicals-

raisins,

berries,

apples,

grapes,

cherries,

prunes

and spinach

High Sugar “cheap” foods are harming our children’s brains. With eating simple carbohydrates, a rise in blood sugar can be dangerous to brain development and the body- Complex Carbohydrates digests well and lower blood sugar.  Carbohydrates also have been said to “fuel ” the brain:

Buckwheaties

Buckwheat,

quinoa,

oats,

lentils,

chick peas

and bananas

Buckwheaties Recipe found on my Website.

“Complex carbs help evenly run our ‘engines’ without the spikes and roller coaster of simple sugars.”

While I cannot answer the question, how smart are raw kids?, I can tell you that children are what they eat.  And, they deserve to be given the finest food and nutrition during their most rapid growth period.  It is important to consider that when we reach for quick snacks or “cheap” foods on the go.  Our children are our future, and their health and happiness is counting on the proper brain nutrition for them to thrive.  I can promise you that my children are normal, they eat their fair share of “junk” food.  But, with their awareness of food, and the dedication I have to serving them the best food when they are home will outweigh their desire for a SAD (Standard American Diet) life.


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What do I feed my kids for snack?

Monday, March 15th, 2010

FRESH CUT FRUIT is the answer to the afternoon snack.

Kids are usually hungry when they come home from school and they are searching for a “pick me up” before they dive into their homework or after school activity.  Fruit provides instant energy, hydration and fulfills the sweet tooth that most children have today.  Children don’t grab for a piece of fruit they have to peel or seed, but if it’s sliced, cored, peeled, and placed in a beautiful bowl on the kitchen counter, watch how fast it disappears!

Pineapple is a favorite year round fruit from the tropics. If cut and chilled, it will retain many of its nutrients for at least 6 days.

Fun facts

  • You can grow a pineapple plant by twisting the crown of a store bought pineapple, allowing it to dry for 2-3 days, and then planting it.
  • Fresh pineapple is an excellent source of vitamin C and contains a special enzyme, called bromelain, which helps the body’s digestive system.
  • Choose a pineapple that has a strong sweet smell. Pull the innermost leaf of the pineapple straight up from the top, if it comes off easily, it is perfect and ripe

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Frozen Banana Pops

Friday, March 12th, 2010

Ingredients

  • A bunch of Bananas
  • Popsicle sticks (Or Bamboo Chopsticks)

Directions

  1. Peel and cut bananas in half.  Place popsicle stick up through center of the banana until secure, but enough room to hold the stick.
  2. Holding stick, dip banana in chocolate sauce, using a twirling motion to coat the entire banana.
  3. Place Buckwheaties on a flat plate and lay the chocolate-coated banana on the surface of cereal.  Roll gently across the plate, allowing Buckwheaties to coat completely.
  4. Place on tray lined with wax paper and cover.
  5. Place in freezer until solid.
  6. Store in Airtight container in Freezer for up to 2 weeks.

Chocolate Sauce

Directions

Set coconut oil jar in a warm bath to melt.  Place, cacao, agave and vanilla in small mixing bowl, add melted coconut oil and whisk together until smooth. Pour into a flat serving dish.  Extra sauce may be stored in airtight container at room temperature for up to a month.

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Buckwheaties

Friday, March 12th, 2010

Ingredients:

  • 2 cups buckwheat, soaked and sprouted
  • 2 tablespoons pure maple syrup
  • 1 tablespoon agave nectar
  • 1/8 teaspoon sea salt

Directions:

In a metal or glass bowl, soak Buckwheat groats for 12 hours in pure water.  Drain and rinse in a fine mesh strainer.  Lay strainer on top of a fitted bowl for run off. Sprout buckwheat groats by rinsing under cool water 4-5 times a day until little tails develop. (appx 24-48 hours)  Rinse one last time, place in a clean bowl, season with maple syrup, agave, and sea salt.  Mix gently and lay evenly on paraflexx sheet in Excalibur dehydrator, and dehydrate for 12-24 hours at 110 degrees. Remove and store in airtight container.

*For a morning cereal, add Almond Milk and Berries.

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