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Addicted to the Light
On the eve of this holiday, I have been trying to teach my son that Christmas is about giving and about feeling and expressing gratitude. Of course, he's five, so it's mostly countdown to presents, but we've created some cool Christmas cheer, too. Check out this collage he put together to be our Christmas card.
Holidays are hard, eh? It's hard to keep your equilibrium with all the extra parties and the entire part-time job that preparing for the holidays entails. What if you have extra stress happening at the same time? I'm not going to pretend I'm anywhere close to on top of my life. I'm so not!
As a matter of fact, I'm going through a "relationship transition" and moving house. I'm racking up some points on the "life stress scale"Interestingly enough, though, I feel great physically. One of the side benefits of having increased stress is that I've gotten addicted to running in the last few months. I'm also eating really well and my sleeping pattern goes like this; For 2 or 3 days, I sleep six hours, wake up rested and bound out of bed to get to work. Then, I get really tired and sleep hard for 10 hours. (Then, sometimes, I fall asleep with my son at 8:30 and am then WIDE AWAKE til midnight...)
All I can say is, I'm psyched to be addicted to things like vegetables
and exercise rather than sugar and alcohol. It wasn't always this way
How about a FREE teleclass on how to watch weight fall off naturally as a side bonus of getting hooked on good habits?
Natural Weight Loss-- How to Get Hooked on Good Habits and Watch Your Weight Go Down as a Bonus!
This teleclass is FREE on January 11th,
8pm EST. (If you can't make the live call, you'll have access
to the recording, but only if you sign up.) Click here to Register for this Teleclass.
Handy Tip ** I give away free products and services and
offer deep discounts on my programs, but only to the people who show up to my
teleclasses and workshops, so don't miss out!
Giving the Gift of Health--
Know what's less safe for our nation's children than fast-food? Their school lunch!
Each year the USDA buys some 100 million pounds of beef for
America's school lunch program -- but the USDA refuses to adopt
common-sense practices to ensure that meat served to our children is
safe.
A recent investigation by USA Today
found that the meat sold to U.S. school cafeterias faces less testing
and lower safety standards than the meat that's served in most
fast-food restaurants -- outlets that aren't otherwise known for their
health consciousness and are as cost-conscious as the most passionate
deficit hawk.
That's right: McDonalds, KFC, and Jack in the Box test the ground
beef they buy five to 10 times more frequently than the USDA tests beef
for U.S. school lunches! And these restaurants have for years
refused to buy certain kinds of lower-quality meat and chicken which
the USDA continues to accept.
Sign this Petition now to tell Secretary Tom Vilsack that our children need immediate, emergency
action to make sure that the food they eat each day is the safest
possible!
Recipes by Tina Annibell!
Tina is my recipe goddess. She blesses us with regular tried and tested recipes from her cooking classes, both here in the newsletter and here on my recipe swap. Everything she creates is divine. I'm a huge fan. Check out her recipe below!
** Perfect Low Work and Yummy Dish for over the holidays**
Tuscan White Bean Stew
Tip: The white beans (cannellini), along with garlic and rosemary or sage, are traditional ingredients in many soups and stews in Tuscany. Serve as a main course with a simple salad of mixed greens.
Ingredients
For the croutons
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
2 cloves garlic, quartered
1 slice whole-grain bread, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
2 cups dried cannellini or other white beans, picked over and rinsed, soaked overnight, and drained
6 cups water
1 teaspoon salt
1 bay leaf
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 yellow onion, coarsely chopped
3 carrots, peeled and coarsely chopped
6 cloves garlic, chopped
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon chopped fresh rosemary, plus 6 sprigs
1 1/2 cups vegetable stock or broth
Directions
To make the croutons, heat the olive oil over medium heat in a large frying pan. Add the garlic and saute for 1 minute. Remove from the heat and let stand for 10 minutes to infuse the garlic flavor into the oil. Remove the garlic pieces and discard. Return the pan to medium heat. Add the bread cubes and saute, stirring frequently, until lightly browned, 3 to 5 minutes. Transfer to a small bowl and set aside.
In a soup pot over high heat, combine the white beans, water, 1/2 teaspoon of the salt and the bay leaf. Bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce the heat to low, cover partially and simmer until the beans are tender, 60 to 75 minutes. Drain the beans, reserving 1/2 cup of the cooking liquid. Discard the bay leaf. Place the cooked beans into a large bowl and save the cooking pot for later use.
In a small bowl, combine the reserved cooking liquid and 1/2 cup of the cooked beans. Mash with a fork to form a paste. Stir the bean paste into the cooked beans.
Return the cooking pot to the stove top and add the olive oil. Heat over medium-high heat. Stir in the onion and carrots and saute until the carrots are tender-crisp, 6 to 7 minutes. Stir in the garlic and cook until softened, about 1 minute. Stir in the remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt, the pepper, chopped rosemary, bean mixture and stock. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to low and simmer until the stew is heated through, about 5 minutes.
Ladle the stew into warmed bowls and sprinkle with the croutons. Garnish each bowl with a rosemary sprig and serve immediately.
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