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Yummy Cold Busting Salad

Yummy Cold-Busting Salad

I finally broke down and got my first cold of the season last week, and though it thankfully only lasted two days, my poor hubby caught it and has been suffering for a good 4+ days. In an attempt to make him something comforting and immunity boosting, while making use of the relatively meager contents of our fridge, I concocted the following super healthy dinner salad for him. Low and behold, today he’s on the mend!  This recipe is a perfect example of how we can use food as medicine.  There are more essential vitamins, antioxidants and anti-inflammatory nutrients in this salad than you could ever dream of getting from a supplement, and being in whole food form, the delivery system to the parts of your body that need it are much more efficient.

This delicious salad features:

  • Kale, which is full of SUPER high in vitamins C, A, and K, as well as antioxidants and anti-inflammatory flavanoids which boost immunity and the body’s natural detoxification.
  • Fennel, which is loaded with vitamin C, and immunity-boosting phytonutrients, including anethol, which has major anti-inflammatory qualities.  Plus fennel has antimicrobial qualities, which are perfect for beating colds!!
  • Orange or grapefruit, whose unique citrus flavanones combine with the super high levels of vitamin C which produce extraordinary antioxidant and immune-supportive results.  Plus, the zest ensures that you get the amazing benefits of herperidin, an incredibly anti-inflammatory flavanone that is only found in the peel and white pith of the citrus fruit.
  • Garlic, which is an anti-inflammatory, ant-bacterial, and anti-viral superstar, and is one of the best foods to eat when you’re sick. It’s also very high in selenium, B vitamins, and helps your body to metabolize iron!
  • Flaxseed oil, which is rich in omega 3 fatty acids, which are very anti-inflammatory, and is also high in thiamin and manganese.
  • Raw apple cider vinegar, a true wonder tonic that helps your body beat just about anything.  It’s loaded with potassium, which helps cure sinusitis and runny nose symptoms; and it has massive antibacterial and anti fungal properties, which are obviously hugely beneficial for beating a cold!
  • Raw honey is phenomenal for when you’re feeling sick, thinning mucous, soothing sore throats, and boasting anti-viral and anti-bacterial effects!
  • Himalayan salt, which supports respiratory health and clears up congestion, is a strong natural antihistamine, eliminates persistent dry coughs, and provides your body with all the necessary trace minerals it needs to heal and be healthy!

Flourless Banana Pancakes

Flourless Banana Pancakes | The Organic Beauty Blog

We’ve been these eating flourless banana pancakes for years now, but since having a baby, these delicious, protein-packed puppies have become a weekly mainstay in our house.  They take just a few minutes to make, so they’re just as perfect for busy mornings as they are for long weekend breakfasts.  With just three ingredients, these pancakes are the epitome of clean, easy cooking.  Plus, no added sugar or flour makes them paleo, gluten-free, etc. etc. etc. — pretty much great for any diet.  And they’re a great alternative to the sugary, refined carbs of traditional pancakes.

Though I used to make a more complicated version (see my Flourless Blueberry Coconut Pancakes), now, we just opt for a pared down version.  I make little silver-dollar sized pancakes for my toddler and regular sized pancakes for us.

The key to getting them to puff up is using a super hot pan — I use my trusty cast iron.

Enjoy!

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How to Winterize Your Smoothies

Winterize Your Smoothies | The Organic Beauty

I love green smoothie. I’m not going to go so far as to say I moved all the way across the country to California so that I could have green smoothies for breakfast every day without any consequences — but that isn’t as far from the truth as you would think.  I really LOVE my morning green smoothies.  They are my absolute favorite breakfast, and I find them to be the most wonderful vehicle for getting insane amounts of nutrients and superfoods into my body in a very efficient fashion.

But as great as green smoothies are, drinking them in the colder months actually messes with your health, digestion, energy, and immunity.  Eating and drinking cold foods, especially during periods of cold weather, forces your body to work harder to warm it up and digest it.  Cold foods can throw off the delicate balance of your stomach lining, can increase phlegm, decrease immunity and cause or exacerbate digestive issues like constipation and diarrhea.  No fun.

In both Traditional Chinese Medicine and Ayurveda, eating and drinking warm foods is a big part of keeping one’s body running smoothly and optimizing digestion.  I get chastised about my smoothie habit by my acupuncturist every time I see her, and I am in a constant heated back and forth with the Ayurvedic practitioner inside me every time I opt for a smoothie or salad in the middle of December.

So what’s a smoothie and salad loving girl to do?

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Greens, Greens, Greens: Wintery Kale Beet Salad and Green Toddler Muffins!

SPONSORED POST: I’ve partnered with Milk & Eggs, an amazing farm direct grocery delivery service, to bring you guys some delicious, super seasonal, and always healthy recipes a few times a month.  I’m so excited to share some of my favorite dishes with you!

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In this installment of our collaboration seasonal cooking with Milk & Eggs farm direct grocery delivery, I am really excited to talk about more wintery seasonal eating, particularly of greens.  Dark leafy greens are one of the most nutrient-rich and delicious foods that come out of winter, and this is the perfect time of year to increase our intake of these blood-purifying, immunity-boosting foods.

To get the most out of the season’s local produce, specifically greens, nothing beats the Milk & Eggs Organic Farm Sampler Bag (pictured below), which is the most budget friendly way I’ve found to get a load of delicious, local, seasonal cooking going on in my kitchen and onto my family’s plates.  At the insanely reasonable price of $29.99, you get SO MUCH ORGANIC PRODUCE, it’s kind of crazy.  This week, I received a big bunch of kale, a bag of spinach, two heads of green leaf lettuce, celery, beets, a bell pepper, 3 heads of broccoli, a few bananas, an assortment of citrus fruits and a carton of strawberries.  WHAT?!  This usually costs me $50 or more at Whole Foods or my neighborhood natural foods store.

Seasonal Cooking with Milk & Eggs | The Organic Beauty Blog

In addition to being super budget friendly, the organic farm sampler is a great way to get all the fruits and veggies you need for the week!  This one bag has yielded countless salads, smoothies, soups, and toddler meals this week, and with the addition with a few other items in our standing order (organic greek yogurt, sprouted whole grain bread, wild-caught salmon), I’m able to feed our family of three delicious, healthy meals that come straight from our local California farms.  Boom!

My two favorite seasonal cooking recipes this week are lovely little showcases of winter’s bounty that made perfect use of my Organic Farm Sampler Bag!

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The BEST Lactation Cookies Around

 

the-best-lactation-cookies-aroundI never thought that I would have to worry about milk supply with a one year old, but alas.  Little M turned 14 months and started nursing like an infant again (growth spurt? developmental leap? who knows!), and my boobs just can’t keep up!  I’ve been upping my lactogenic tinctures and eating more milk boosting foods in general (read my 6 Ways to Boost Milk Supply for details on both of those), but I needed a little extra oomph.  That’s where these delicious lactation cookies came in! Seriously, this recipe is the best one I’ve found, and I’ve searched far and wide.

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L.A.: Affordable Farm-Fresh Groceries, Delivered!

Affordable Farm-Fresh Groceries Delivered | The Organic Beauty Blog

As a busy mom and business owner, grocery shopping can sometimes feel like an unnecessary hassle.  Don’t get me wrong, I love our weekend family trips to stock up on pantry items and the like, but for our weekly supply of organic produce, eggs, and seafood, it’s amazing to have high quality, affordable food come straight to our door.  Yes, health food stores like Whole Foods deliver through services like Instacart, but I can’t seem to place a single order under $200 at that place.  The food is great, but is it really necessary to drop that much cash on organic food?

Thankfully the answer is no.

Recently I discovered Milk & Eggs Farm Grocery Delivery, which connects health conscious, locavore consumers directly to local farmers (kind of like a CSA), at a 50% discount.  You can set up recurring monthly subscriptions that are completely customizable, or order one-off items.

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Total Beauty Salad

Total Beauty Salad Recipe | The Organic Beauty Blog

I’ve often posted the top foods to keep you looking young and beautiful.  While great separately, these foods actually taste amazing together! Try this delicious Total Beauty Salad for lunch or dinner a few times a week, and you will experience beauty, health, and vitality you thought would only be possible through supplements and topical remedies…

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Super Yummy Lactation Balls!

Yummy Lactation Balls

Continuing on our lactation kick here at The Organic Beauty, we have a new delicious recipe from a beautiful mama, my friend Tara at Tara Josette Snacks.  Tara is part of the amazing community of new mamas that I’m so lucky to be a part of here in LA, and she’s always bringing these super duper yummy lactation balls to our mommy playdates.  No joke, you guys, these things are FOR REAL.  After eating a couple delicious little balls, my milk got flowing like crazy, which was especially crucial after my supply took a hit when I starting my period again : ( (For more ways to naturally boost milk supply, click here).

The delicious lactation balls have a bunch of ingredients that are amazing for milk supply (like brewer’s yeast and oats) and quality (like coconut oil and nuts).  They are naturally sweet and are perfect for satisfying a sugar craving healthfully.  They’re loaded with healthy fats, protein, and whole grains, so they’re also awesome for keeping you full and stabilizing blood sugar. The long and the short of it.. They’re awesome.  Here are a few words about them from the lovely Tara:

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Dinner Tonight: Vegan Potato Leek Soup

Vegan Potato Leek Soup | The Organic Beauty Blog

Even though winter in Santa Monica comes in a very mild 50-60 degree variety, the evenings do get chilly enough to light the fireplace and incite a desire for soup.  Delicious warming soups are literally the only thing that used to get me through the gross New York winters I was subjected to for years, so I’m happy that the tradition can continue here on the West Coast, if under slightly (ok majorly) less depressing circumstances.

I’ve been posting some of our soup creations on my Instagram and received a request for recipes, so I’ll do my best to post our favorites here throughout the season, to inspire you all (especially those of you who are freezing your little butts off in the rest of the country ; )

Our weekly soup is influenced in no small part by what that week’s CSA bounty was, which keeps us on our toes and keeps things interesting.

This week, we got a ton of leeks, potatoes and herbs, so this soup was pretty much a no-brainer.  I added a can of organic coconut milk at the end to make it creamier, healthy-fattier, and a touch more decadent — and I highly recommend you do the same!  Almond milk will do in a pinch, but I really like the particular flavor that the coconut milk lends.  Enjoy!

Vegan Potato Leep Soup

Serves 4

V / GF

2 tbsp olive oil
6-8 medium potatoes, cubed (any kind will do, I used a mix)
2 leeks, halved and sliced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 tbsp fresh thyme
2 bay leaves
6 cups vegetable broth (I use water and Seitenbacher Vegetable Broth Powder)
1 can organic coconut milk
1 green onion, chopped (for garnish)
Salt and pepper to taste

Heat olive oil in a soup pot over medium heat. Add the potatoes, garlic and leeks and sauté for 5-7 minutes, or until leeks begin to soften.  Add the pepper, thyme and bay leaves and give it a stir.  Add the broth, and bring to a boil.  Cover, lower heat, and simmer until potatoes are soft, about 15 minutes.  Remove from heat, and remove bay leaves.  Puree with an immersion blender.  Add coconut milk and salt to taste. Puree until creamy.  Garnish with chopped green onion.