Pray Eat Love & The "Daniel" Fast

Last Sunday I visited Empowerment Temple church in Baltimore.  During the service I learned that the congregation was preparing for a ten-day journey of prayer, fasting and spiritual enlightenment inspired by Elizabeth Gilbert's memoir, "Eat, Pray, Love." 

I loved the idea of embarking on such a journey with the entire congregation and welcomed the idea of growing spiritually while improving my health. We were instructed to read Daniel (chapters 1-3), to participate in daily prayer calls with the Pastor and to abstain from eating meat, bread and sweets for ten days.  I remember thinking, "cool, not eating meat is no big deal for me and I'll even cut out caffeine."

I am now on day seven of the ten-day fast and will admit this is one of the hardest things I've ever done. I can be extremely focused and disciplined when I need to be and although I have not touched one drop of meat, bread or sugar since last Sunday, I am climbing the walls! I dream of buffet tables laden with rotisserie chickens, broiled salmon, freshly baked breads, CHEESECAKE and huge urns filled with piping hot COFFEE!!! I am literally counting down the days and have already started planning my first meal after the fast.  

The good news is that during this fast I have gained clarity on several issues I was struggling with, I've notice a huge difference in my energy levels and I believe I've lost a couple of pounds.  I will continue to be faithful on this journey...just four more days to go.  I feel so good that I've decided to continue the fast with a friend for the next couple of months or so.  We won't fast for ten days in a row but we have committed to fasting for three days in a row every week.  NO MEAT, BREAD, SWEETS OR CAFFEINE.

We're starting our three day fast on Tuesday, October 5th--Tues, Wed & Thurs.  We will repeat this sequence every week for the next few weeks and YOU are invited to join us!  This invitation is for the fast only--without the prayers because that's something personal you can do on your own but if you want to offer a prayer or two I'm open to that as I always welcome a good prayer.  :>)  If you want in, leave a comment to this post with your email address.  I'll keep in touch with you via email for support and accountability. Worst-case scenario: you'll lose a little weight, increase your energy and improve your health through discipline and fellowship.  Let's GO!

Matcha Green Tea Latte

Green tea contains powerful antioxidants.  According to research, its benefits include lowering cholesterol, weight loss, fighting cancer and heart disease much more.  It took a while for me to warm up to green tea because when I made it it always tasted bitter so I ended up adding a ton of sugar, thus negating the effectiveness of the brew, I'm sure.  I found out later that the tea should be prepared with hot but not boiling water and it made all the difference.

Matcha tea is reported to have even higher levels of antioxidant than green tea leaves so I decided to give it a try and now I'm hooked.  I've made matcha smoothies and lattes and I can't wait to try it in food recipes.  Here's my recipe for matcha latte:

Matcha Green Tea Latte

created with love by LBTurner

1 1/2 teaspoons powdered Matcha green tea

1 tablespoon powdered creamer

1/4 tsp cinnamon

2 tablespoons honey or sweeten to taste

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 1/2 cups hot water

Add the 2 1/2 cups of water to a pot and bring to a gentle boil.  Turn off the flame and set it aside.  Mix together the powdered green tea, creamer and cinnamon in a medium mixing bowl.  With a wire whisk or bamboo whisk (chasen), slowly whisk the water into the mixing bowl.  Add the honey or sweetener and vanilla extract and continue to whisk. Garnish with a sprinkle of cinnamon or a dollop of fresh whipped cream if desired.  Makes approximately 2 1/2 cups.

Substitutions:

Substitute the powdered creamer with soy or whey protein

Substitute the honey with agave nectar, brown sugar or other sweetener

Want more info on the health benefits of green tea?  Check out these websites:

Green Tea Benefits    The World's Healthiest Foods    WebMD

Buy Matcha green tea: DoMatcha Organic Matcha Green Tea, 1.06-Ounce Tin    SerendipiTea Matcha Culinary Grade, Organic Green Tea, 4-Ounce Box

Detox-Tini: Shaken--Not Stirred

You work hard to keep your body looking good on the outside but what are you doing to keep your insides working at optimal levels of efficiency? Regular body detoxing has many proven benefits including assisting the body with the elimination of environmental and other toxins, increased energy, weight loss and much more.  Although natural dietary supplements can be good for our bodies, most of them don't taste so great.  Since I try to do a body detox at least once a month I needed to find something that was gentle and  effective.  My solution? A liquid herbal formula called Detox Drops.  I've created a "detox cocktail" to help make my detoxing experience a little more palatable. Here's the recipe:

1/2 cup V8 V-Fusion Peach Mango (or Acai Mixed Berry) Juice

1/4 cup unsweetened apple juice

15 drops of Detox Drops blend

4-5 ice cubes

Add all ingredients to a cocktail shaker (or covered jar) and gently shake to blend. Pour in martini glass, garnish with fruit slice or olive and sip gleefully.

You can drink this or a similar cocktail three times a day and the best news, other than the fact that this drink is delicious, is that if you prepare it with any of the V8 V-Fusion juice blends, you're getting 1/2 cup of vegetables, 1/2 fruits and natural antioxidants with each 8oz. serving.  Detoxing has never tasted so good and your taste buds and your internal organs will thank you. Try it for yourself and let me know what you think.

Note:  You can substitute the V8 V-Fusion peach mango juice for another low-sugar juice blend, add a few of the Detox Drops to hot or cold tea or take the drops orally.

Verde Cooler (Drink)

This recipe was inspired by Tyler Florence's "Fresh White Bloody Mary"

A couple of weeks ago I was watching a Tyler's Ultimate show on the Food Network.  One of the items he made was a white bloody mary that looked really good so I decided to make a simple, non-alcoholic version of it.  While I was shopping for the ingredients, I noticed the items I chose to use in my version were all natural detoxifiers so I decided to do a little research to learn about the various health benefits of the ingredients (see the ingredient benefits after the recipe).

Verde Cooler

created with love by LBTurner

1.5 pounds white seedless grapes

4 large stalks celery

1 large cucumber

Rough chop the celery stalks and cucumber.  Add all ingredients to food processor and process on highest speed or purify speed until thoroughly blended--approx three minutes.  Carefully strain mixture through a clean piece of cheesecloth into a serving pitcher.  Discard fruit/veggie pulp.  Chill for about an hour and stir well before serving.  Serve chilled with celery or cucumber garnish.  Makes approx three cups of juice.  Store unused portion in tightly covered container refrigerator for up to five days.

Health Benefits:

Grapes - blood purifier, diuretic, supports bone, connective tissues, muscles, gland, liver, and kidney health.  Also helpful for arthritis, rheumatism, urinary pain and cold constitution.

Celery - blood purifier, improves stomach, spleen, pancreas and liver function.  Cooling nature helps eye inflammation, headaches, excessive appetite, menopause, diabetes and more.

Cucumber - cooling, antioxidant, diuretic, blood detoxifier, improves bladder and kidney infections, sore throat, acne and more.

As you can see there are many reasons to give this easy, tasty concoction a try.  You will absolutely love it and your body will thank you for it!

Detox Chicken Salad

This is my all-time favorite chicken salad recipe.  I call it detox chicken salad because the fresh blueberries (considered a "superfood") are a powerful antioxidant and many of the spices in the detox spice blend are antioxidants and blood purifiers.

You can make the spice blend yourself or get a head start on the spice mix by purchasing the Ayurvedic Kapha Churna blend at Mapi.com.  If you purchase the spice blend you will have to add the organic dandelion leaf and organic lavender buds.

Don't be alarmed by the number of spices in this blend.  The combination is so tasty and so good for your body (detox, warming, circulation, anti-inflammatory and more) you'll find yourself reaching for it to spice up many of your other dishes--making the initial investment in the spices worth the extra expense.

Detox Chicken Salad
created with love by LBTurner

2 cups cooked chicken breast (cubed)
½ cup Smart Balance mayonnaise
½ cup fresh blueberries
1 tablespoon grated fresh orange peel
2 tablespoon chopped red onion
2 tablespoon chopped celery
3 teaspoon Detox spice blend
1 tablespoon chopped or sliced almonds or pecans (optional)

Detox Spice Blend:
1/4 teaspoon each: black pepper, fine sea salt, ginger root powder, cinnamon, crushed coriander, turmeric powder, turbinado sugar, organic dandelion leaf, organic lavender buds, parsley flakes.

Add all ingredients to a medium to large mixing bowl (except the blueberries). Mix ingredients thoroughly and then gently fold in the fresh blueberries. Serve as a sandwich on whole grain bread with lettuce and tomato slices or serve as an entrée with organic mixed field greens and tomato wedges.

Notes:
~You can substitute the Smart Balance mayonnaise with any low-fat mayo or plain, non-fat yogurt.
~ If fresh blueberries are not in season, use frozen thawed blueberries. You may also substitute the blueberries with fresh cranberries.