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Recipe for the holiday season: Butternut squash soup

I saw a box of butternut squash soup in the store the other day and it called my name. Not being a fan of things that come in packages, I decided to make it myself. I decided to figure it out without internet research, but based on what I'd put in a butternut squash soup if told I needed to make it from scratch without direction, and this is the result (slightly tweaked). I think it's quite yummy if I do say so myself.

It's great for this season, and really quite easy. The hardest part is chopping up the squash. Let me know what you think!

Ingredients:

• 1 small onion, chopped
• 1 tbsp chopped ginger, minced
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 2 tbsp cultured butter (can substitute with 2 tbsp coconut oil if dairy restrictions)
• 1 butternut squash, peeled, seeded and cut in 1/2 “ squares
  
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp nutmeg
• 32oz chicken stock (preferably homemade) (can replace with vegetable stock if vegetarian)
• 1 tsp raw honey (can substitute agave)
• add salt and pepper to taste

Saute the onion in butter for 2-3 minutes on medium temperature. Add garlic and ginger, stir to mix and cook for another 1-2 minutes. Add squash. Cook for another 4-5 minutes. Add cinnamon, nutmeg and honey, and stir well to mix. Add chicken stock, bring to a boil, and then reduce heat to minimum and cook until squash is tender (about 20 minutes).
Puree with a handblender and eat!

A sacred space to honour our bodies

When was the last time you took a few minutes to really appreciate your body? To feel good in your skin and thank all the processes that happen without you having to think about them or do anything about them? (like breathe or circulate blood or digest your food – just to name a few) When was the last time you took a moment to appreciate your body as the magnificent being that it is? Really… when you think about it, it’s miraculous what is happening inside of us at every single moment.

So often we look at our bodies with disdain and sometimes even disgust. “These jeans make me look fat” or “I wish I had better hair” or “will this skirt hide my ass?” How loving is that? This continual nitpicking and negative self-talk about our bodies only serves to keep us unhappy and dissatisfied with ourselves. And ultimately, it keeps the true health and vitality we seek just out of reach.

Believe me, I know of what I speak. I started studying classical dance when I was very young, and by the age of 10 could list off all the things that were “wrong” with my body. I would spend literally hours scrutinizing myself in the mirror, dissecting all that wasn’t absolutely “perfect” by some totally unachievable standard. By my teens, my list of body flaws was pages long. Even now, when I “should know better”, I struggle sometimes when I look in the mirror.

Recently I’ve been doing more work with clients on reframing this relationship with our bodies. How can we take some time to love and cherish these beautiful and incredible physiques we live and move in?

Here are three ways you can create sacred space to honor your body and thank it for all it’s doing for you every day:

1. Soak your feet in a tub of hot water with lavender essential oil and Epsom salts at the end of the day. It’s a beautiful and soothing way to ground yourself, to take a few quiet minutes before you go to bed to get into your body, and to warm up cold toes in the winter months.
2. Light some candles, pull out the yoga mat, and do some nice slow stretches and gentle, calming yoga poses like child’s pose before bed. This is a time to take some deep breaths, to calm yourself, and to quietly acknowledge what your body has been doing for you all day long.
3. Fill the bathroom sink with hot water and, using a washcloth or small hand towel, give yourself a hot towel scrub. Just dip the washcloth in the hot water, wring it out, and scrub your skin lightly until it’s a little pink and warm. You don’t need soap or oils, just use hot water. Light some candles to create some ritual around the experience. Wash yourself with the same love and care as you would your own child.

How will you honor your body this weekend? Will you join me and set aside some time – even just a few minutes – each day to really love and appreciate your body? Let me know what works for you! Every person is different and you’ll find a way and a practice that fits into your life and schedule. It only takes a few minutes, and you’ll be surprised at how powerful it can be in changing the way you look at yourself in the mirror.

Tri-color pepper salad with fresh herbs

Something I'm always encouraging my clients to do is to eat "by the rainbow". Eating a wide variety of colors ensures you're getting a wide range of different antioxidants. The pigments responsible for the different colors in plants (and thus your fruits and veggies) are the antioxidants. So, different colors = different group of antioxidants.

Inspired by this principle, I made this salad on the weekend. It's fast and easy and is a very colorful (and thus healthful) addition to your dinner table. Its simple and light flavor doesn't take away from other aspects of your meal, and it met to rave reviews from our friends (who asked for the recipe days later so they're not just saying that!)

Ingredients:

• 1 each: red, yellow & orange bell pepper, chopped in 1/2" squares
• 1/2 15oz can of organic garbanzo beans (if possible, get the low-sodium variety)
• 1/2 cup chopped fresh herbs (This is a great time to graze your herb garden if you have one. I took clippings of basil, mint, garlic chives, and dill)
• 1 bag organic baby spinach
  

Dressing:

• 1/3 cup pumpkin seed oil
• 1/3 cup raw apple cider vinegar
• pinch of fresh ground pepper and fresh ground sea salt

Combine the three peppers, garbanzo beans and fresh cut herbs in a bowl and mix well. Plate on top of the spinach, and toss with dressing just before serving.

Delicious and easy red quinoa pilaf (vegan)

Today is SPUD day. What does that mean? That means that today is the day that one of my favourite companies of all time, SPUD (aka "Small Potatoes Urban Delivery") delivers delicious, organic, local and best of all affordable groceries to our doorstep. Being the total food nut that I am, SPUD days are always good days. (if you live in LA, Orange County, San Francisco, Portland, Seattle, Vancouver, Victoria, or Calgary, check them out!!! www.spud.com. Enter the code CR5-994937 to get a $25 discount on your first few orders)

The only downside to SPUD days is that until the delivery arrives, we're down to the scraps in the fridge, and I'm required to be much more creative with dinner. Well, today's creation proved to be so delicious, quick and easy, I thought I'd share it.

Red Quinoa & Leek pilaf (Serves 2)

Ingredients:
- 1 cup red quinoa
- 2 large leeks, chopped
- 1 big bunch spinach, washed and chopped
- 1/3 cup pine nuts
- 1 tbsp coconut oil
- 1 avocado
- 1 cup cultured raw veggies
- fresh ground salt & pepper to taste

In a small pot, combine the quinoa with 2 cups water and a dash of salt and bring to a boil. Put a lid on the pot, turn the heat way down, and leave for about 15-20 minutes, until the quinoa is nice and fluffy and the water has boiled down.

While the quinoa is cooking, prepare the leek and spinach. Heat coconut oil in a med-sized pan, and add the leek. Cook for 4-5 minutes, or until just tender. Add the pine nuts and spinach, and cook until spinach is wilted - about 2-3 minutes. Set aside.

When the quinoa has finished cooking, add it to the leek, spinach and pine nut mix and add salt and pepper to taste. Divide the mixture between two plates, and add a 1/2 cup of the raw cultured veggies to each plate. Cut the avocado in half, and garnish each plate with avocado slices.

The one most important thing you can do for your health

Long before I decided to pursue a formal career in nutrition and wellness, I was passionate about finding the key to good health. There must be some secret. Something magical. A formula that if I just got it right, I’d find myself the vision of perfect health, fitness, and weight.

Since I’ve become a nutritional therapy practitioner, the top question I get asked is: What’s the one most important thing I can do for my health? What’s that one key change that is going to make all the difference?

Well… I am about to unveil that mystery. But first, indulge me for a moment and do a little play-along exercise. Grab a scrap of paper and pen.

#1. Write down the top five changes you could make RIGHT NOW to get healthier, fitter, and become your ideal weight.

#2. Look at the list. What feels the easiest? What do you feel is really doable, maybe even a little fun?

#3. Pick that one thing.

#4. Do it.

#5. Do it again, every day for 21 days.

And now… drum roll please as I unveil the mystery of true health…

That’s it. You just wrote it down. That one thing you think you can do and do for the next 21 days is the thing that is the one most important thing YOU can do for your health.

Disappointed? Looking for the magic formula? Ideal action? Worst or best food to eliminate or add to your diet?

Well, my friends you’re not going to get that from me. Because let’s face it. We all know what to do. Cut the pop. Eat more vegetables. Eliminate sugar. Drink more water. Eat less refined food and more whole foods. Exercise more. Get to bed an hour earlier. Have one less drink on the weekend. The list is endless when you get going. But none of that helps, because we all KNOW that, but we don’t DO it.

The most important thing you can do for your health is DO it. Do something. Anything. Pick one thing that feels easy, that feels right, that feels doable. And then commit to doing it. They say 21 days creates a habit they say, so commit to doing it for 21 days. Make it a habit and see how you feel.

And in 21 days, do the exercise again, and add one more thing. And you’re rocking and rolling.
Because it’s far more important that you actually DO something than that you wait to figure out the perfect thing to do.

So get out there. Follow Nike’s sage advice and just get the heck out there and do it.

Spinach toasts - slightly tweaked version of an old favourite

One of my fondest memories is my Gramma making me creamed spinach on toast when I was little. I can still remember hanging out at the old chrome-rimmed kitchen table, trying not to play with the violet that was always the table centrepiece (no one could grow violets like my Gramma), mouth watering with anticipation. I think my future as a nutritional therapist was solidified in those moments - what other little kid craves spinach?

I came across this recipe for "Spinach Toasts" on Dr. Andrew Weil's site and it looked suspiciously familiar. He made some changes to my Gramma's recipe (how cool that he knew her! ;) and I made some further tweaks to his. Here's the result:

Spinach Toasts

Description

Cooking spinach takes very little time, but you need to wash and drain it carefully, and remove tough stems first, which may take 5 or 10 minutes. Plan accordingly. The spinach on these little appetizers is a great source of iron and vitamins A and C.

Ingredients

3/4 cup purified water 2 bunches fresh spinach (about 2 pounds), stemmed 8 pieces thinly sliced sprouted wheat or gluten-free bread 1 small onion, minced 1 clove garlic, minced 1 tablespoon extra-virgin cold-pressed olive oil 1/2 cup whole milk, organic plain yogurt 1/8 teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg 1 tablespoon chopped fresh mint Freshly ground pepper to taste 11/2 tablespoons chopped raw walnuts GARNISH 1 red apple, cut in thin wedges

Instructions

Preheat oven to 300°F. Pour the water into a large stainless steel pot and bring it to a boil. Drop in the washed spinach and cook for 3 minutes, stirring several times. Drain the spinach in a colander over a pan to catch all the water, which you can save to make vegetable stock. Squeeze excess water from the leaves. Cut the bread slices on the diagonal to create 2 triangular pieces, then cut again to make 4 triangles. Put them on a cookie sheet and bake until lightly toasted, about 5 minutes. Meanwhile, sauté the onions and garlic in olive oil in a medium nonstick sauté pan over low heat until onions are softened, about 2 minutes. Remove from heat. Put the spinach leaves into a medium bowl, along with the onions and the garlic. Add the yogurt, mint, pepper, and nuts and toss thoroughly with a fork. Spread the spinach mixture on the toasts just before serving. Garnish with apple wedges.