Literally, just before I was about to leave for California, I started my car to take my son to school and it would not start.  The battery was definitely dead.  Part of me was frustrated and the other part thought “I’ll wait to get back to get it fixed, at least that way my son would not be able to take my car and drive it around without my knowledge!”

Anyway, after I left for my trip, my 17 year old son (or almost 18 as he tells me) Zac, called road side assistance and they came and jumped the car.    As he was telling me what happened he mentioned that the positive and negative connectors on the battery were surrounded by thick rust which was making it a difficult to attach the jumper cables.  He explained how the service man fixed the problem…

He simply poured Pepsi over the connections and all the rust and guck disappeared!!!

I was kind of shocked at the reality of this – for if this is what Pepsi does to a car battery, what it is doing to our insides???  Surely it is not too good.

So next time you want to have a soda maybe you should think seriously about going for something else!

I did some further research at www.mercola.com, one other startling fact I found is that one sugary soda a day increases a woman’s chance of diabetes by 85%.

Now that there are a lot of holiday parties and get-togethers, passing on a sugary soda and instead having a Pellegrino with a little fruit juice or other flavors would be a good idea.  If you want additional suggestions, please email me at deborah@saucywellness.com

If the meantime as the weather gets colder and colder, here is a hearty stew to keep you warm on the inside.  I know there are no amounts for some of the items – I will leave that up to you to decide (have fun experimenting!).  But if you really want the exact amounts, you can always email me….

BEAN STEW AKA DEBORAH’S CHILLI

3 cups of beans any variety

(the smaller the beans the quicker they cook)

1 onion

3 cloves of garlic

1 package of frozen corn

I large can of crushed tomatoes

I red pepper

Zucchini

Carrots

celery

One handful chocolate chips

Oregano

Chili powder

2-3 Bay leaves

one piece kombu which is a seaweed optional*

Soak beans overnight

Sauté onions and garlic in a large soup pot until soft.  Drain beans and add to the pot.  Add 8 cups of water and bring to boil.  (Sometimes foam appears which can be skimmed off.)  Reduce heat and add canned tomatoes, kombu, bayleaves, chili powder, celery, carrots, red pepper and let cook until beans are soft.

Add sweet corn and zucchini and continue cooking for a further 10 to 15 minutes.

Serve with sour cream or cheese or just with some cilantro for those that are avoiding diary!

*Kombu is a seaweed that adds minerals the beans and also helps the beans to cook faster and be much more digestible.  You can always take it out before you eat the beans if it has not dissolved.

Note:  Never put salt in with beans when you start the cooking process, it prevents them from getting soft.  Instead put it in at the end.  This stop the cooking process and prevents the beans from getting mushy!

OPTIONS:  Anything can be put in this stew, e.g. Parsnip, turnips, squash.  Be creative – anything goes.  Try a jar of salsa for an extra twist!

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It must be the holiday season!  My email is clogged up with sale and discount offers.  And as much as I try and stay away from shopping this time of the year, it is inevitable that I will purchase holiday gifts for my children and family members.  In that vein, my oldest son dragged me to the mall on the Saturday after Thanksgiving, so the season was officially underway.  I have to admit that I had forgotten how wonderful it is to see so many people getting into the spirit of giving.

And to that end I wondered what I could give or offer to my loyal readers and friends…

So I came up with a couple of exciting plans!

1)   First, for the month of December I am offering my cookbook – “From Rainy Days to Sexy Nights” at a 20% discount for up to five copies, with an additional  10% discount on the entire order for purchases of more than five books.  Further, if you buy more than ten copies, I will include an individual consultation certificate (for you or a loved one, value $175) as well!  The books make awesome hostess or teacher gifts.  And, please remember that with every book ordered I donate money to the Green Olive orphanage in Kenya.  

Go to www.saucywellness.com/new-cookbook for all the details.

2)   I know how much fun participants always have my cooking classes, so I have decided to offer a 15% discount on all classes booked in December – they can be held anytime during 2011!!!  Just imagine a fun filled evening or lunch with some of your closest friends, where you get to cook, learn about health and eat an awesome meal…  There is no set up, as I bring everything with me.  For more info please email me at Deborah@saucywellness.com.  I have travelled across the country teaching cooking classes – let me bring one of my fun filled evenings to you!

3)   I have been asked to present “The Sensually Empowered Woman’s Summit” on December 6^th.  I will be one of “12 Experts” speaking over “5 Days” resulting in “1 Juicy YOU.”  I was very impressed with the organizer of this event – Deborah Rachel Kagan – and her promise that “the information is going to blow the lid off what every woman thinks about – and ultimately, wants to authentically live.”  My readers are invited to participate for free through the following link - http://www.1shoppingcart.com/app/?af=1272388.  Check out the materials on the site.  I hope you can listen in!!

See you next week!

Love,

Deborah

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This is a question that I have received quite a few times this week.  So I thought it might be helpful to share my thoughts (and, no, the answer is not “as much as you can!”).

Start by remembering that the Thanksgiving meal is just a part of the day.  Being with your family and sharing good times together is the much bigger part.  But I know that the food is a really important part of the day, and that someone (you?) will spend a lot of time preparing it with love.  I hope that you give or get the appreciation that is deserved for all of the effort required to put this feast together!

If you are the one preparing all the food, take some time to appreciate the environment that you have created for those that you love and care about.  Food cooked with love always tastes better!  Also, remember that is ok to ask for help – you do not have to do the entire thing on your own!  Let your guests pick up last minute items or make a dessert or soup.  I am sure that they will be happy to help.  You do not need to be worn out by the end of the day.  After all, it is your Thanksgiving too!

Ok, back to the food. For starters, this one meal is not going to drastically impact your weight, so relax and enjoy!!!

Here are a few additional suggestions:

1. Eat breakfast and lunch if your celebration is later in the day.  It is never a good idea to go anywhere starving.  You will always eat more and feel worse if you do.
2. Leave guilt at home for the day.  So many people eat something they enjoy and then beat themselves up afterwards.  Kinda takes away the fun, don’t you think?
3. Instead of taking spoonfuls of a dish, start with one spoonful.  You can always take more….  Since so many of us are conditioned to eat all the food on our plates, putting less on your plate is a good idea!  Alternatively, as my dad always says, “the food that does you the most good is the food you leave on your plate!”
4. Start with the things you really love and do not feel that you need to eat out of obligation.  No cook wants someone to force down their food.
5. Relish each bite.  Notice the flavors and the textures.  You will eat less, enjoy your food more, and get full faster if you eat deliberately rather than ravenously.
6. In a similar vein to #5, there is no need to shovel large amounts into your mouth all at once.  Again, taking smaller bites helps you to eat less.
7. Remember it takes 20 minutes for food to reach your stomach, so let some time go by before you dive in for seconds.  You are probably more full than you think.
8. It is ok to stop eating once you are full!!!  Do not feel pressured to keep going when your stomach is screaming for you to stop!
9. Keep it all in perspective.  After all, this is not your last meal.
10. And, again, ENJOY!

Happy Thanksgiving!!!!

With love,

Deborah

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I just spent a great few days in London, catching up with old friends and family.

And now, I’m currently in Kenya visiting my Dad who will be 80 on Saturday!

I will add more details when I get back next week, but wanted to give you a couple recipes in the meantime!

After one of my previous visits I made a dish inspired by the ingredients that are used here in Kenya.  I understand it is cold on the east coast so this dish will definitely help keep you warm.

I have also included a picture of a salad that I ate today made with arugula, tomatoes and avocado with a simple oil and red vinegar vinaigrette, which will go really well with the Groundnut Stew.

Hope you enjoy them…….

Sending healthy wishes from sunny Kenya…….

Deborah

GROUNDNUT STEW

2 leeks

2 cloves garlic

1 small red onion

Safflower oil

1 sweet potato peeled and cubed

1 cup lentils

water

4 tomatoes

½ bunch lacinato kale*

½ cup coconut milk

¼ – 1/2 cup peanut butter **

1 teaspoon Cinnamon

½ teaspoon Curry powder

Salt to taste

Cilantro

Saute leeks, red onion and garlic until soft in safflower oil.

Add sweet potato, lentils, tomatoes and water and let cook until sweet potatoes slightly soften about 5 to 8 minutes.  Add coconut milk, peanut butter, cinnamon and curry powder and let cook until sweet potatoes are really soft, add kale and let wilt.

Serve over quinoa or millet with cilantro

* lacinato kale is flatter than the more common curly kale and I prefer it for this dish, but curly kale or even collards would work in this dish

**try to get the kind with no added ingredients, I usually grind mine at the store.

Tags: Cook, lacinato kale, recipe

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I love going to famers markets and finding a new vegetable that I have never seen before and bringing it home to try.

Last week while in New Paltz, what I found exceeded even my expectation for usual. Anyway I brought it home and did a little research and it is called a Romanescu Cauliflower.   It is a form of cauliflower and has a long list of benefits.

The nutrients include:

Vitamin A
- Vitamin B1, Thiamin
- Vitamin B2, Riboflavin
- Vitamin B3, Niacin
- Vitamin B5, Pantothenic Acid
- Vitamin B6, Pyridoxine
- Vitamin B9, Folate
- Vitamin C
- Vitamin K
- Dietary Fiber
- Manganese
- Magnesium
- Protein
- Phosphorus
- Potassium
- Tryptophan
- Omega 3 Fatty Acids

The Health Benefits that people can very possibly get from Romanesco Cauliflower or Broccoli are:

Improves Eyesight
- Supports Vision
- Helps fight viral infections
- Protects from free radicals
- Lowers Risk of many cancers
- Improves healing
- Helps protect from colds
- Helps protect from flu
- Helps protect from infections
- Improves Lung health
- Supports red cell health
- Improves Bone health
- Improves Brain function
- Reduces Depression
- Reduces Constipations
- Improves Cholesterol Levels
- Improves Blood Sugar Levels
- Improves Blood Pressure Levels
- Supports Muscles
- Supports Nerves
- Supports Heart Health

I thought it was a perfect Halloween vegetable, with its bright green color and prehistoric look, don’t you agree?

And then I remembered a dish I ate growing up in England called Cauliflower and Cheese. Not that exotic I know, but what if I doctored it up a bit? Which of course I did and here are my results:

Cauliflower and Spicy Cheese Sauce

One Cauliflower of any variety (check to see how many colors of cauliflower you can find these days!)

1 tablespoon butter

1 tablespoon flour, whole wheat or spelt

8 – 12oz of sharp cheddar, grated

½ – 1 cup of milk or milk substitute

3 tablespoons mustard, preferably whole grain Dijon mustard (of course you can delete this ingredient if you want)

salt and pepper to taste

Cut cauliflower into small pieces and boil until soft but not mushy.

In a saucepan, melt butter and then add flour until thick.

Add milk and stir until mixture becomes thick.  Add cheese and stir until melted, then stir in mustard.

Drain cauliflower from water and then add to cheese sauce.

Put into a glass bowl and sprinkle with a little cheese and bake at 350 until crisp.

For the next couple of weeks I will be travelling. By the time you read this I will already be in England.  Stay tuned to see where I am next week!

My boyfriend just sent this to me, I couldn’t resist sharing it will you!

Tags: Cauliflower, Cook, Cooking, Nutrition

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I was very happy recently to receive a question in response to one of my blog articles on sugar.  I thought it was worthwhile sharing the question and the response with you:

Question: Your recent piece on sugar was interesting and I wondered if you could write about alcohol for your readers who watch just about everything they eat, exercise regularly and generally keep a pretty clean diet consisting of whole foods with little to no processed food. I personally stress over that glass of white wine and the sugars in it probably more than I should or maybe not. I would love you to weigh in on this and think some of your other reads would as well.  I have read that red wine is better for us but find that I wake up at 3 am after having a glass. Many women I know talk about how suddenly they can’t drink at all because of how different alcohols affect them, particularly as they hit menopause.  Why is that?

My Answer:  First of all, congratulations on taking such great care of yourself! Stressing out on what we eat or drink is usually never a good thing as the stress itself creates a contracted (tense) condition in our body.  It is very hard to sleep when you are tense but this is just one explanation of why you may wake up.  But as I always believe, we are all individuals and our bodies are all unique and there may be other contributing factors that are affecting you that you don’t realize.

I touched base with my very technical friend, Patricia Grimsley, MA, CHHC, Freelance Health Writer to get her opinion and these are her thoughts

“The effects of alcohol (e.g., wine, beer and hard liquor) are far reaching.  In fact, it is too involved for a short response.  There are numerous articles on the web that can provide painful detail.  Just enter (effects of alcohol consumption on the body” into any search engine.  Suffice it to say that alcohol affects each of us differently – based on our genetics, sex, age, weight and current health situation.

When we consume alcohol we immediately feel the effects because it is absorbed quickly into our blood stream (and to our brain) because it doesn’t have to go through the slow digestive process.  Due to a complex metabolic process alcohol can cause fat to build up in the liver, so the liver is most impacted by alcohol consumption – alcohol makes the liver work harder.  Incidentally, nighttime is the time that the body does its own healing work.  So alcohol consumption at night could interfere with sleep patterns.

Our bodies are brilliant and they tell us what we need to know.  If your body is waking you up at 3 a.m. after drinking wine, perhaps this is your wake up call to question whether or not this works for you”.

And I will add that the liver holds anger, so another question to ask is, Are you angry or holding onto anger?  Menopause is yet another very complex issue that is directly affected by stress, anger, anxiety and the loss of hormones.

I wish there was an easy answer but I have a couple of suggestions.   A glass of wine every once in while is not always a bad thing and sometimes it is just what you need.  If you prefer white wine and it doesn’t affect you the way red does, then I say go for it.  Don’t worry that red might be a little bit better.  However, you can try drinking a little bit earlier.  For every glass of wine, drink a glass of water.  And try drinking a cup of chamomile tea as well.

I hope this helps.

Deborah

Tags: Alcohol, Sugar, Wine

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For sometime now I have wanted to change hairdressers.

I had been going to someone for over six years and finally the time came where we needed to part ways.

Then I went to someone new, who was okay.  But he couldn’t stop talking about himself and how amazing he was. I started dreaded going to get my hair done.  (But I have red hair, which is tricky to keep constant at the best of times, and I was scared to move on to someone new.)

However, I made the decision and did some research and went to have consults at several local salons and finally found one that I wanted to try.

Of course I decided to try one week before I had a big family wedding but hey why not.  While at the hairdressers I realized that so many women are intimidated by their hairdressers, we stay longer than we should, we are scared to speak up and even the most powerful woman seems not to want to upset her hair stylist.

I realized that my hair stylist experience was similar to the way some people view marriage and dating.  You are with someone for way too long, you try to make it work and then after much agonizing you know it is time to move on.  I know I did that both in my marriage and at my last hair salon.  But there is a period where you miss the familiar, even if it wasn’t great and are nervous/excited for the new person to come into your life.

You try the new stylist with nervous anticipation, hoping that it will be great, similar to a first date.  And then if you are not sure you will come back for a second and third date just to confirm your original opinion.  But you were so hopeful that this date/stylist would be perfect.  He/She had all the right credentials etc, but it didn’t work for you.  So you decide to move on to another date/stylist.  And again you are hopeful that this will be the one that at least you can be with for a while.

I happened to be explaining my way of thinking to my stylist during my first appointment with him.  And he asked me how I thought the first date was going and if there would be a second…..

As it happens he did an amazing job on both the color and cut of my hair.  I will go back and am excited that we may be “dating” for a while.

In all areas of our life, we need to see where we are settling and not getting what we want.  But with a little effort the results you want can blow your mind.  And I always think the way we do one thing is the way we tend to do everything.  Look at your patterns and see where you are settling.  It might not be in your relationship but it might be that you are not doing something you have always dreamed of because it seems too complicated or difficult.  It could also be that you know you have to change your food because you are not feeling quite as well as you know you could.  Are you having too much caffeine, sugar, cakes/cookies etc?

Well I challenge you to stop settling, as I mentioned before, the hardest part is to decide to change.  It might take some soul searching and a hard look at yourself to see why you settle.  But once you start to take action you will be amazed at how empowered you feel.  If you need a little help, please feel free to reach out to me or comment on my blog.

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With such busy lives and huge to do lists, it is almost impossible to give in to pleasure.

What does giving into pleasure mean, exactly?  To me, it is not something that you need to plan for or necessarily expect.  It is just a moment when you have the option to have a pleasurable experience and you have a choice: 1) allowing the experience to happen; or 2) getting caught up with your lack of time, etc., and letting the opportunity pass you by.

Perhaps we do not really understand the benefit of allowing ourselves that pleasurable experience or how it will enhance our day.  Or even how to define a pleasurable experience.  I think that a pleasurable experience can be different for each one of us – but here are some examples:

• Taking a few minutes to sit in the sun and really enjoy the feeling of warmth.  For those of us in the north we know our days of warm sunshine are numbered, so go ahead and enjoy the feeling while you can!
• It could be taking the time to speak to someone you see all the time and only nod a greeting to, but this time really finding out about them.
• It could be taking a longer shower than normal and using a scrub to really take care of your skin or feel the hot water on your back.
• It could be being intimate when you are supposed to be doing something else.
• Or simply enjoying every bite of food you eat (try watching the movie Dangerous Beauty for more on this idea).

I have noticed with my clients and friends how resistant we are to allow pleasure.  That we are taught it is only something we can have when everything else has been done.  But I want to challenge that!!!

Try having pleasure first, or at least do what you need to in a pleasurable way or with a more open attitude.  I keep telling the people I work with that life is a set of experiences.  We cannot possibly know whether they work for us or not unless we go actively engage in the experience.  Could you imagine learning to ride a bike by just listening to someone telling you what to do? Of course not…  You needed to learn balance, which cannot be explained – it has to be felt.  And once you have mastered that skill, it stays with you.

I am asking you to try experience pleasure.  Really truly embrace it and go with it, whether for a moment, an hour, a day, a week or more.  See the results – how different your life looks, and how much more peaceful, less stressful and more grounded you feel.

I would love to hear what you discover.

To a pleasurable week!!!

Tags: Pleasure, Recreation, Time, Work

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Recently, I had a friend, Laura Mayer, staying with me for a few days.  One night, after eating dinner, I was about to put the pan that she had used to cook chicken sausage into the sink to wash.  But, all of a sudden, Laura said “Don’t do that.”  I was a little baffled – after all why wouldn’t she want me to wash the pot?  She said, “I have a trick to show you.”  She placed some water in the skillet we had used and proceeded to heat it on the stove.  She then showed me how doing this simple step makes all the stuff that sticks to the bottom of the pan come off effortlessly (with just a little scraping with a spatula).  I watched (AMAZED) as the skillet released its grasp on previously hard to remove material that had stuck to the bottom.  No more scrubbing, soaking or brillo pads – and it happened so fast!  So although I saw it with my own eyes, I was still in disbelief.  Over the next couple of days, I think I tried to let things stick to the pan on purpose, just to try the trick again.

Why is this little miracle so important?    I NEVER use non-stick pans due to serious health concerns that are under-reported in the media (If you want to learn more about this issue, here’s an article that talk about the dangers of non- stick pans: http://tinyurl.com/2863g3o).  As a result, I only use stainless steel pots and pans, so things tend to stick more.  So Laura’s little soaking/cleaning trick was an important revelation to me that I had to share with you!

Here’s to healthy eating and simple clean up!

Here’s a skillet recipe using beets, which are making an appearance now that all the hearty fall vegetables are showing up in the stores and farmers markets.  For all the nutritional benefits of this nutritional dynamo check out:  http://tinyurl.com/phua5

Now for the recipe:

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Tuesday was my boyfriend’s birthday and my plans to cook him dinner got changed so I decided to make something for breakfast instead on the spur of the moment.

I had not gone shopping and did not have a lot of stuff in the house, including no onions or garlic!  How I could have so little in the fridge was a little surprising to me.  But with the right stuff in your pantry there is always something you can do.

Here’s what I came up with from things in my pantry:

Black beans and salsa skillet eggs

1 can black beans

1 jar of salsa (I used medium heat)

1 tablespoon butter or oil for cooking the eggs

6 eggs, beaten

Shredded mexican cheese

Serves 3 to 4

Preheat oven to 350

Rinse black beans and put into an oven safe skillet with the salsa.  Let cook on medium heat for about 5 minutes.

Melt the butter in an another skillet and pour in the 6 eggs.  Let cook until mildly solid

Transfer the eggs to go on top of the beans and salsa.

Top with grated cheese and place in the oven until cheese is melted. 5 minutes or so.  You could also put under the broiler but you would need to watch it very carefully.

Remove and serve immediately.

I hope you like it as much as we did.  Let me know!

Until next week…….

Tags: Bean, Butter, Cheese, Cook, Garlic, Home, Onion, Salsa

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