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RAW CARROT BARS

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CARROT BAR FILLING

2 cups organic carrots grated

5-6 tbs. of raw organic almond butter

1 tsp. Simply Organic Orange Flavor

1 cup dried organic cranberries

8 organic dates

1 cup finely ground raw organic pecans (Terrasoul. Terrasoul.com or Amazon)

1 teaspoon Simply Organic cinnamon

1 tablespoon organic agave

2 teaspoons Simply Organic vanilla

1 cup organic pineapple drained very well (Native Forest. Amazon)

*Grind the dates and pecans to make a paste. Put them in a mixing bowl.

*Add the carrots, agave, vanilla, cinnamon, orange flavor, almond butter. Mix well.

*Add in the pineapple. Mix.

*Spread on top of the Crust (see below)

*Cover with plastic wrap and keep in the freezer.

CRUST:

1 1/4 cup finely ground walnuts
3 tbs. ground organic golden flax meal (Spectrum on Amazon)
1 tbs. Organic coconut butter, butter flavored (Nutiva, Amazon)
1 tsp cinnamon 
*Mix all ingredients together well, especially paying attention to the coconut butter so there are no chunks.
*Press down firmly into a square baking dish.  Lay a piece of parchment paper on the crust to press down evenly.  (I used the Pampered Chef stone, square pan).
ZUCCHINI BAR FILLING:
2 cup grated zucchini (squeeze some of the liquid out).

8 dates

1 tbs. Organic agave 
1/2 cup finely ground raw organic pecans
1/2 cup finely ground raw organic pumpkin seeds
1 tsp. Simply Organic cinnamon
3 tbs. Organic, raw sprouted pumpkin seed butter or almond butter. (Jiva. Amazon)
1 cup chopped organic pineapple chunks well drained (Native Forest 14oz can. Amazon)
1 vanilla bean (slit the bean down the middle and scrape out the black seeds) or 1 tbs organic vanilla (Simply Organic Amazon)
*Grind up the dates, pecans and pumpkin seeds to make a paste. I used a cusinart to grind them.
*In a mixing bowl, Mix the ground ingredients with pumpkin butter, pineapple chunks, cinnamon and vanilla.
*Spread on top of the crust in the square baking pan. 
*Cover with plastic wrap. Keep these bars in the freezer.
They will cut better and will never freeze solid because of all the nut oils. Let them firm up in the freezer so they are easy to cut.

ALMOND RICOTTA CHEESECAKE

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almondcheesecake

Crust

Preheat oven to 400

  • 2 cups finely ground walnuts
  • 1/4 cup golden flax meal
  • 5 tbs. coconut butter
  • 1 tbs. agave syrup
  • Mix in all the above ingredients very well, incorporating the coconut butter thoroughly leaving a no chunks.
  • Pat firmly and evenly in a square baking pan.
  • Pre-bake in 400 degree oven for 10 minutes.
  • Set aside while you mix the cake batter.

Cheesecake Filling

Turn down oven to 350 degrees

  • 8 oz. Almond Ricotta cheese (I used Kite Hill brand from Whole Foods)
  • 1/3 cup organic agave
  • 1 1/2 – 2 tsp. stevia to taste
  • 1 – 5.4 fl oz coconut cream, liquid drained (I used Native Forest Organic)
  • 6 tablespoons organic aqua faba
  • 1 tablespoon organic lemon juice
  • 1/4 cup gluten free flour blend (Namaste.
  • 1 vanilla bean cut open length wise and the middle scraped out

In a blender blend together the almond ricotta, agave and stevia.
Add the coconut cream, lemon juice, vanilla bean and flour. Mix all together.

Whip up the aqua faba until like egg white consistency. Fold into the batter
Pour batter on top of crust.

Bake 350 degree oven for 35 minutes
Cool in fridge, best overnight. Top with fresh berries.

PASTA e FAGIOLI

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pasta

Ingredients

  • 4 cups cooked Organic Great Northern beans
  • *My Grandmother always used dried Great Northern beans. Soak the beans overnight. The next day she would then cover the beans with water, throw in a whole stalk of celery and fresh rosemary (I used 3 – 2 inch sprigs), cover the pot with a lid, and cook until tender (about an hour). If the water evaporates, add more water. You can use some of the bean stock as your broth. If you want use canned beans.
  • 1 cup chopped organic onion
  • 1 cup diced organic celery
  • 1 whole bulb of organic roasted garlic (You can roast this ahead of time.)
  • 1/4 cup organic olive oil
  • 3 cups of organic broth
  • 3 cups diced fresh organic tomatoes
  • Fresh organic Basil
  • Fresh organic Rosemary
  • 2 tablespoons organic lemon juice
  • Gluten Free Organic Pasta (Jovial. Thrive Market, Vitacost, Amazon)

Directions

Sautée the onions and celery in 1/8 cup of olive oil.
Add 3 cups broth, Cooked Great Northern Beans, chopped tomato, and fresh rosemary.  Simmer 20 minutes.

In the 1/8 cup olive oil add lemon juice. After removing the garlic from the bulb, mash it into the oil.

Add cooked pasta. (Leave the pasta on the el dente side) and the mashed garlic oil mixture to the soup.
Garnish with the fresh Basil.

RAW ZUCCHINI BARS

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Crust

  • 1 1/4 cup finely ground organic walnuts
  • 3 tbs. organic ground flax meal
  • 1 tablespoon Organic butter flavored coconut oil
  • 1/2 tsp organic ground cinnamon

Mix all ingredients together well, especially paying attention to the coconut butter so there are no chunks. Pat down firmly into a square baking dish. (I used the Pampered Chef stone, square pan). You can use a piece of parchment paper to pat down the crust.

Filling

  • 2 cups grated zucchini (squeeze some of the liquid out).
  • 8 organic dates no pits!
  • 1/2 cup finely ground organic raw pecans
  • 1/2 cup finely ground raw organic pumpkin seeds
  • 1 teaspoon Simply Organic cinnamon
  • 3 tbs. raw organic almond butter
  • 1 cup chopped dried apricots (my favorite Made in Nature).
  • 1 vanilla bean (slit the bean down the middle and scrape out the black seeds).
  • 1 tsp Simply Organic lemon flavor

Grind up the dates to make a paste. Mix in lemon flavor. Add all the rest of the ingredients. Spread on top of the crust in the square baking pan. Keep these bars in the freezer.

They will cut better and will never freeze solid because of all the nut oils.

Creating The Perfect Yoga Practice or A Perfect Morning Ritual

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*Put yourself in a happy joyous mood. Get your favorite essential oil diffuser going with some Young Living Joy, Bergamot, and Orange essential oils. Produce magnetic energy bringing joy to the heart, mind, and soul with a few drops of Joy essential oil in the diffuser. Add Bergamot essential oil to release anxiety and become uplifted. Boost your immunity and relax with Orange essential oil.

*In order to boost your energy and keep your endurance up during practice and during the day do a couple of ounces of the super anti-oxidant drink, NingXia Red.

*Rub down all your major muscle groups with some drops of Young Living Cypress which you have added to a carrier oil. This will help relax all those muscles for an even more effective practice. Cypress will also help ground you, calm you, and soothe any anger you may be holding.

*Put a drop of Young Living Lavender oil under your nose to help keep your balance steady. This will especially be helpful during any balance poses. Lavender not only is balancing physically it is also emotionally balancing.  It is documented to improve concentration and mental acuity. It will calm and relax.

*Find the physical and mental strength you need for the perfect practice with a few drops of Frankincense on your chest and neck. This will also increase spiritual awareness, promote meditation, and uplift your spirits. Take it to the next level!

*Keep focused and help attention performance with some Young Living Peppermint on the back of your neck. This will not only open your sinuses but it may purify and stimulate the conscious mind.

*Before you begin, balance your energy with Young Living Valor essential oil.
Put a few drops in the palm of each hand. To release the energy in the oil, take your index finger and circle your finger clockwise, stirring the oil in the palm of your hand three times. Now, take each hand and hold on to the bottom of each foot. You will be holding left hand to left foot and right hand to right foot. Hold each hand in the arch of each foot. This will take no more than five minutes to balance. You usually will feel a pulse sensation when it is balanced.

*Keep the lavender close at hand to apply another drop under your nose if you do the alternate nose breathing exercise, Nadi Shodhana.

Ref. Essential Oils pocket reference

Serious Detox-Bath with Young Living Essential Oils

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The most amazing bath recipe given to me by a friend, I added the essential oils. It has healing salts and valuable essential oil essences that can be an experience better than the sea. The aroma alone, as you close your eyes, while wrapped in the heat of the water will bring about bliss. If the tub has sauna jets turn them on to allow all the salt to penetrate every bit of your sinuses. Just breathe, bathing the sinuses with the healing salts and essential oils. As you are laying back, eyes closed, breathing, take the ginger wrapped in cheese cloth, squeeze repeatedly. This will help release tension and give each hand a nice bit of exercise they truly deserve.

*This is a detox-bath that should be done twice a week for 4 weeks.
*The bath should be as hot as you can take.
*Soak in the hot bath for 20 minutes.

Ingredients for Detox-Bath:
*3#s canning salt (I bought mine on Amazon).
*3#s baking soda,
*2 tbs. fresh ground ginger wrapped in a piece of cheese cloth
*1 cup of Epsom salt to add essential oils.

In the cup with the Epsom salt add the essential oils. Mix them in.
Add all the ingredients above to the hot bath water. Get in and soak for 20 minutes.

***Just up for a simple mineral bath soak reduce the ingredients to:
*1 cup each canning salt, baking soda and Epsom salt.
* add the essential oil to the Epsom salt, never directly into the water.

Recipes for adding essential oils:
*Sore Muscles:
5 drops each Young Living Cypress, Wintergreen, and Lavender.
*Aches and Pains:
5 drops each Young Living Peppermint, Marjoram, Copaiba.
*Cramping Muscles:
5 drops each Young Living Lemongrass, Peppermint, Rosemary.
If you are experiencing any kind of inflammation always add Copaiba.
*Skin Conditions –
*Dry Skin:
10 drops Young Living Lavender and 5 drops Geranium.
*Eczema:
5 drops each Young Living Lavender, Melaleuca (tea tree), Thyme.
*Itching or Rashes:
5 drops each Young Living Peppermint and Melaleuca.
10 drops Young Living Lavender.
*Uptight or Stressed:
15 drops Young Living Peace and Calming or
15 drops Young Living Stress Away.

Most importantly, in wanting to detox your body drink NingXia Red everyday.
This juice, made out of wolf berries, essential oils and other berries is a tremendously high anti-oxidant. It can help remove the free radicals from our bodies which can destroy our cells, lead to disease and play havoc with our bodies. I have experienced this drink aiding in my improved immune system, energy, youthfulness and a general feeling of GREAT.

Liver Flush

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This provides support for the organs to perform their functions,
Enzyme support (Designed to move digestive system to an alkaline environment)
This is a four day program.

To get started you will need:

  • 2 oranges – peeled
  • 1/2 grapefruit – peeled
  • 1/2 lemon – peeled
  • 1 1/2 – 2 inches of ginger root – peeled
  • 1/2 tablespoon of whole cloves
  • 1 tablespoon of pure maple syrup
  • 1 – clove of peeled garlic
  • 3 strands of parsley
  • 1 pinch of cayenne pepper
  • 2 oz. of water

*Blend for 2 minutes
*Strain out all the pulp
*Place back in the blender
*Add 2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil
*Blend for an additional 40 seconds
***Makes 10-14 oz.

Instructions:
*Upon waking, brush your teeth.
*Drink 8 oz. of water.
*Make your liver flush and drink it all at once.

DO NOT HAVE ANY OF THE FOLLOWING FOR THE ENTIRE FOUR DAYS:
No Fried Foods
No Alcohol
No Caffeine
No Dairy Products

The liver is the main organ responsible for detoxification in the body. The liver flush cleanse supports the liver and gall bladder and enzyme support; thus to prevent illness associated with toxic accumulation.
www.Thecleanse.com

BRAD LIKED THIS STIR FRIED QUINOA

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quinoastirfry

Ingredients

  • 2 cups cooked Quinoa
  • 1 cup finely chopped organic onion of choice
  • 2 large organic garlic cloves, minced
  • 4 tbs. Organic Wheat Free Tamari
  • 10 oz. Organic shiitake mushrooms
  • 1 cubed organic zucchini
  • 1 cut up stalk of organic baby Bok Choy
  • 1 cup shredded organic carrots
  • 1/2 cup slivered organic almond
  • 1/4 cup organic broth
  • 1 tablespoon organic lemon juice
  • Organic olive oil to stir fry.

Directions

Pour Olive oil in a wok or frying pan. Add the onion and garlic. Sautée until softened. Add the rest of the veggies. Stir fry adding the broth and lemon juice. Cook the veggies slightly, keeping them on the crisp side. Add the 2 cups of quinoa, almonds and the Tamari. Mix well, add a little more broth if too dry.

LOVE AND PEACE FOR THE PERFECT HOLIDAY SEASON

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It is the holiday season. As adults we have always urged the children to “Believe”. Believe in miracles, believe you can have all that you wish for, believe you can be what you want to be, believe in yourself, believe in others. In the hustle bustle of everyday life we, as grown-ups, tend to forget that we have to live our lives with that very thought of believing. The idea of believing is a thought that has images which will bring us everything we need or want in this life. What a simple concept, yet we find it so hard to “BELIEVE.”

The Magic, by Ronda Byrne will show everyone in 28 days how to be grateful so that all you believe will come true. The most perfect start to this New Year would be to do all the exercises presented in each chapter of the book, day by day to bring about amazing changes in your life.  Life is simple. We make it way too hard and complicated. The New Year challenge is to “DO” The Magic starting January 1, 2015. The result would be a perfect, abundant world full of love and peace. All one as to do is believe. Believe in Rhonda Byrne’s life experience and try it for yourself. Anyone looking for a life change full of love, abundance, happiness and joy should not wait- get the book and get started!
“Everyone thinks of changing the world, but no one thinks of changing himself.”
-Leo Tolstoy

Young Living essential oils can help keep that positive, happy, joyous, loving, caring attitude alive.

Some essential oils to look at:
*Citrus essential oils all have the amazing ability to be uplifting and change a negative into a positive. I always add them to my oil blends.
*Believe essential oil would be a very logical start for the New Year. Bring about feelings of strength and faith. The evergreen aromas promote a sense of well being and relaxation. Restore your feelings of hope with the beautiful aroma of Believe.
*Joy essential oil is a perfect holiday essential oil creating magnetic energy and happiness to the heart. Put a few drops on your heart and inhale to bring a smile to your face. A great gift to be given for use as a perfume with floral notes promoting feelings of security, love, support and joy.
*Clarity essential oil will keep one focused and mindful while traveling along the correct path to reach all dreams. It can be beneficial for clearing confusion, opening the conscious mind, stimulating and calming. It will help to keep one focused and relaxed. Clarity grounds and strengthens. Absolutely one of my favorites.
*Gratitude essential oil is of utmost importance in the New Year, supporting emotional and spiritual progress. A few Biblical Oils come together in this blend to keep reminding us of the importance of gratitude.
*Harmony essential oil will keep the positive attitude in check by elevating mind and body. It helps release negative memories. This oil is grounding, relaxing, helps overcome stress and despair so one can remain always grateful.
*Acceptance essential oil will open our minds to accept all people and possibilities that a grateful life presents. Overcoming the negative, promoting peace, confidence and awareness, the perfect qualities for a New Year.

The essential oils can be diffused or inhaled. Apply a couple drops behind ears, over heart, on wrists, base of neck, temples, or base of spine. Put 4-8 drops on cotton balls and locate on vents. Go to www.Etsy.com to purchase a beautiful filagree locket. Place a few drops of essential oil on a diffuser pad and place it in the locket so when the necklace is worn the aroma of the essential oil stays with you throughout the day.

Ref. Essential Oils Desk Reference

Inflammation

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Inflammation is the body’s immune response to promote healing. We need this to heal, but too much over too long of time is damaging to our bodies. An over active immune system can lead to joint pain, fatigue, damaged blood vessels, asthma, eczema and allergic rhinitis. All pain is ultimately due to inflammation. Silent inflammation means you are not well, on your way to chronic disease.
The Anti-Inflammation-Zone by Dr. Barry Sears is the book to read for an in-depth knowledge of inflammation and its demons.
Dr. Sears explains how hormonal balance, especially keeping the hormone eicosanoid in balance, is the key to true wellness.
Eicosanoids control inflammation, the underlying cause of chronic disease states.
Eicosanoids are produced from essential fatty acids that the body cannot make, they must be consumed as part of the diet and in supplementation.

CAUSES OF INFLAMMATION:
*Stress – emotional
*Physical Stress – low blood sugar, a fall, a broken bone.
*Digestive Issues – poor diet, IBS
*Blood sugar levels – diabetes
*Food Allergies
*Hormones
*Environmental Toxins – chemicals, synthetic fibers

FOODS TO FIGHT INFLAMMATION:
*Onions and Garlic – natural anti-inflammatory chemicals, quercetin and allicin that produce free radical-fighting sulfuric acid.
*Fish – Omega-3 fatty acids help reduce inflammation.
*Dark leafy greens – need Vit.E for cytokines
*Nuts, flax seeds – they have Vit. E, omegas, antioxidants all to help repair damage cause by chronic inflammation.
*Beets – with their crazy bright redness or betalains help fight inflammation.
*Ginger and Turmeric – anti-inflammatory properties.
*Grape seed and Olive oil – omega-9 with anti-inflammatory polyphenols.
The bottom line, lots fruits, veggies, deeply pigmented at every meal for fiber, and natural anti-inflammatory compounds. Oregano, green tea, blueberries, ginger to limit free-radical production in the body.
Stay clear from known allergens like gluten, eggs, dairy, and soy. Leave behind the hydrogenated oils, sugars and refined carbohydrates.

EXERCISE:
Exercise can lower the body’s C-reactive protein which lowers inflammation.
A theory is that exercise causes the body to make more antioxidants that seek and destroy free radicals seen with inflammation.
People who exercise regularly find it much easier to deal with emotional stress.
People who are regularly active, sleep better, manage weight better, feel better physically and have a happier outlook on life.
To reduce inflammation, try to get 30 minutes of moderate exercise a day, five days a week.

MEDITATION:
Meditation to reduce stress.

SUPPLEMENTATION:
Young Living offers many supplements and essential oils that may help in the reduction of stress and add nutritional support for a healthy lifestyle.
Essential Oils Integrative Medical Guide by D. Gary Young, ND on inflammation and essential oils:
Certain essential oils have been documented to be excellent for reducing inflammation. German chamomile, peppermint, helichrysum, spruce, birch, wintergreen and clove all have anti-inflammatory properties.
There are different types of inflammation for which one oil might be better than another:
Myrrh and helichrysum: inflammation due to tissue/capillary damage, bruising.
Roman chamomile and lavender: inflammation due to bacterial infection.
Ravensara, hyssop, and thyme: inflammation caused by viral infection.

Reference Guide for Essential Oils by Connie and Alan Higley:
According to Dr. David Hill, “Inflammation and oxidation go hand-in-hand.
NingXia Red and Longevity Capsules on a daily basis are a powerful combination to fight oxidation and inflammation system-wide.
Omega-Gize contains clove oil and fish oil, which have been shown to work together to reduce inflammation by up to 30%!
Life 5 a high-potency probiotic for a healthy immune system.
MultiGreens to boost vitality and relieve stress.
Sulfurzyme to aid in the body’s natural defense.

Reduce stress and anxiety with Lavender, Stress Away, Peace and Calming, German Chamomile. Diffuse into the air and meditate.

Ref.: www.activebeat, www.health.com