I'm Berry Glad to Know you

Image: health.com

Beautiful, bountiful berries - how vibrant and fragrant! During this season's warming up, consider these vitamin C, antioxidant, and fiber-packed berries:

Image: en.wikipedia.org

<---Blackberry

Boysenberry - slightly sweeter than blackberries

Raspberry - claim to fame - 8 grams of fiber per cup!

Image: www.muffintinmania.com

<--- Currant

Strawberry - peak of season is in May! These are technically not in the berry family but the Rosaceae family (I'm going to take a guess that this is where the medical term for the skin disease rosacea comes from)

Image: beenutfree.com

<--- Goji berry - otherwise known as Lycium, a great addition to trail mix, excellent as a tea

Blueberry - contain anthocyanins, resveratrol, and alpha-tocopherol

Lingonberry - (my first thought of was IKEA food items, turns out...) this is a Scandinavian berry that can be eaten fresh or used in jams, juice and more. Visit your local IKEA dreamland for more food items

Image: savingdinner.com

<--- Gooseberry - what pretty striped fruit! Native in Europe and parts of Africa and Asia

Cranberry - a true friend in times of wanting to prevent UTIs (cranberries can play a role in preventing bacteria from adhering to the bladder wall)! Granted, the best is fresh, unsweetened (no Ocean Spray!) but I've found a number of good juices. Cooked cranberries have a nice, full flavor when cooked and are great for autumnal dishes.

What to look for in the store: Plump, firm berries without bruises or wrinkles (except for dried goji berries, of course). Because berries mold oh-so-easily, make sure you choose a carton that has dry, unbroken ones. To help preserve shelf-life, wash them just before eating and freeze any you don't plan to use within 3-6 days.

Why berries Rock my Socks (and should yours too!) They are generally lower on the glycemic index, making it easier for those with blood sugar handling issues, i.e. diabetes, to enjoy. They have high water and antioxidant content, vitamins and minerals.
We can put berries in desserts, breakfast dishes, smoothies, yogurt, salads, and eat as snacks.

For portion-control, remember 1/2 cup of dried fruit & 1 cup of fresh fruit = 1 serving

Just about flipped my lid

Do you want non-rusting, BPA-free mason jar lids? I just bought some on Amazon and am anxiously awaiting their arrival!

The One Bite Wellness version of Larabar

For the record, I've been loving on Larabar since 2006 when I was traveling back and forth from Manhattan to attend a nutrition and health coaching school. They traveled well and, even when they were squished in my bag, it never affected their taste. My favorite Larabar flavors are Cashew Cookie, Chocolate Coconut Chew, Coconut Cream Pie, and Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough. I have always had a box of them in my refrigerator and a couple in my purse or work-bag as insurance against getting hungry enough to start thinking that fast food would ever be a good choice.

That being said, my DIY self has known for quite a long time that I am perfectly capable of making my own delicious (raw, gluten-free, and organic) bars...or at least it thinks so. Let's give it a try....

Coconut, cacao, vanilla, cocoa powder, almonds, and dates

 
I took about 1/2 pound of dates, soaked them overnight, and removed the pits before throwing them in my high-powered blender. I added in cacao nibs, 3/4 cup of almonds, 1/2 cup coconut, 1/2 tsp vanilla extract, and 1/3 cup of cocoa powder. The blender didn't like all these dry, sticky ingredients so the end product has large pieces of almonds and such. Next time, I will create more work for myself by using the wet container for dates and the dry container for the rest of it. Really looking forward to that :p. Anyway, it worked pretty well and here is the 8x8 pan of chocolate nut date bars which are 'resting' in the fridge before I cut them into sections and wrap them individually.

Bars-to-be! First, refrigeration.

So let's talk benefits:
1. fresh ingredients
2. <15 minutes from start to finish
3. save money
4. not support General Mills
5.  fun and creative ingredients


In the meantime, a spot of tea and bit of the bar are the perfect way to unwind from a busy day :).

Holy Sh*t! Overcoming fear...or outright terror

I wouldn't say that I was the bravest kid on any of the blocks I've lived on, but my curiosity often won out over my initial trepidation and I'd eventually pick up worms, jump off the top of the playground, hang upside down, and set up bike tricks with over-turned trash cans and boards of wood. My siblings and I even created 'taxis' with our bikes and would tie a jump rope to the back and have someone on roller-blades flying along behind. Adolescence and young adulthood brought more adventures. I'm here to tell these stories, which is fairly amazing as I reflect back. I'm sure most of you can relate :)

So, to put it bluntly - what the fuck happened? A quick parade through recent phone calls, lunches out, and Facebook posts seems to point to a lot of us feeling that 4-letter word (which I consider worse than the one I just used above)....fear. The sick brick of gooey black feeling sitting in the stomach, raising the heart rate, and then, the jittery nerves that make you want to do something, Anything but you don't know where to start. The two travel together it seems. Fear + Anxiety = 4-ever, carved into a tree somewhere.

What's the deal? When did we start worrying about jobs and/or living our dreams? When did start settling for less because we were AFRAID of asking and acting as though we wanted more?

I think we shut down more of our true selves, our core...and we let ego, the maniac it is, take the driver's seat. It's time for a Chinese fire drill - kick the ego out from behind the wheel and let the soul out of the passenger's seat.

A recent ski trip was the catalyst behind this writing. I hadn't been on skis in over two years and I started with the bunny slope. A bit of nervousness there as I practiced making it down the hill without smashing over little kids. Then I was coaxed over to the ski lift for the beginner's area. The first time I finished, I thought "I survived!" followed by "let's do it again!" and after a few times of enjoying the hills and gaining a bit more control, I heard a small voice saying, "hmm, I wonder what the black diamond slope is like"...

It doesn't look like much until you get up there...

Here are some tips that have helped me:

1. Breathing
2. Remembering the acronym: F.E.A.R. is False Evidence Appearing Real
3. Assess the True risk and take precautions - check your safety equipment before you mountain bike, zip-line, ride a rollercoaster, or ski down a mountain
4. Trust that the universe is conspiring to help you with your job, relationship, or whatever is getting you down
5. When you make the leap and take action, remember what it feels like when you've accomplished what moments before seemed impossible.

Sunset over the black diamond's steep slope

I felt equal amounts excitement and certainty of my impending death as I got into line for the ski lift to the top of the mountain (okay, a very large hill). Holding onto the rail and not looking down was key. Next was getting off the ski lift and looking over what I was just about to do...drops, bumps, ice. For some reason, all I could think about was how Cher's husband, Sonny Bono, was in the news years ago for dying while skiing. I looked at my ski partner-in-crime and almost said the words "I can't do this," as the kids and teenagers were racing past me to embark on the downward plane. The skyline was beautiful and I coached myself to think about the way down in terms of sections and decided not to look too far ahead - to just focus on the 20-30 feet ahead. I did well and was flying down the mountain (partly because I wasn't good at stopping/slowing down and partly a desire to get to the bottom and feel safer a.s.a.p.). In the end, I skied the slope three times and each subsequent time was only 10% less terrifying than the first, but I did it. I felt the fear and did it anyway. I was proud of myself and realized that most of my fears are only in my mind and that, if I had listened to the ego's convincing voice, I never would have left the bunny slope.

Next time, I'll get a helmet. You never know what crazies are out there :)

For the love of CHOCOLATE & Cacao

Milk chocolate bars and all their fancy nut and fruit versions used to be just delightful. As I learned that dark chocolate was better for health, I made the mistake of jumping from the low percentages up to 80%...and that was a bitter mistake I didn't repeat again. I used a version of the 'step-down' method, which was 'stepping-up' the percentages of cacao in my chocolates slowly.
Then, in a lecture with one of my teachers, the amazing David Wolfe, raw foods enthusiast, I learned Waaay more than I ever knew before about this...could it be true?....health food. Chocolate IS a health food, but only as you get close to the very source, the cacao bean.
Do you want a treat that will provide you with vitamins, minerals, and even FIBER? Holy crap (literally), it is way better tasting than the 'fiber alternatives' (think Metamucil).


Or, you could go crazy and get the 10 pound bag I do every year :)

But I would say that THIS option will provide you with enough as you get comfortable with trying more cacao in your foods during the next few months:

So how do you use it? Some quick ways are in oatmeal, smoothies, yogurt, baking, and trail mix are good places to start. More cacao recipes are on their way!
It's also Portlandia's 'safe word'
)

Thumbtack

I discovered a new service that helps you find local providers - everything from lawn care, salons, babysitting services, and more. Even though I've just started using the site to look around and to offer my One Bite Wellness services, I'm excited to see how this will grow. Check Thumbtack.com out and connect with local resources!

If you could be any Superhero, who would you be and why?

This superhero question was posed to me today and I decided to have some fun with it. Most people usually would choose an established character - 'The Hulk' or 'Superwoman' - but they really don't have the abilities Green Supreme has. You see, Green Supreme has dedicated her life to personally achieving a high level of fitness and vitality. Her enjoyment and drive during this endeavor have influenced her to drop the snappy business suit and to champion for better health - for everyone. She flies from city to city and teaches people how to include more greens in their diets, how to live in an environmentally-friendly way, and how to detox their hygiene products. Green Supreme has been planting organic fields of foods OTHER THAN CORN, (a nice surprise for us all) nationwide and is persuading the USDA to change it's subsidies and ties to Monsanto. She brings kale and bok choy to the masses and shows them how to blend, steam, and saute these nutrient powerhouses so that everyone can be a little more green supreme.

Create your own superhero here.