Veestro Delivery!

For the most part I try to prepare meals using fresh, whole ingredients but there are times when I simply just don't have time to cook (or feel like cooking)! In times like those, Veestro is the perfect option to have stocked in your freezer. Veestro is an online organization that creates delicious vegan, plant-based, preservative free meals at an affordable price and then ships them straight to your house. If  you buy a meal plan, then shipping is free! So we usually buy a meal plan and then also buy individual items on top of that and get free shipping for the whole order. Then, when it's delivered, you just put everything in your freezer, and when you're ready, the products can be thawed, boiled, or microwaved for a simple and speedy preparation!

 They use dry ice to keep everything frozen in the package.

(Full Order)

So if you ever feel too busy or tired to cook but also don't want to compromise eating a natural, plant-based diet, I highly recommend checking out Veestro! 

Homemade Vegan Pasta Recipe

 

Today I have for you a very simple yet delicious vegan pasta recipe. I have to say I wanted to make this recipe because I wanted to use my pasta maker with my Kitchen Aid mixer that we've never used since we bought it years ago. However, after making the pasta dough I realized there was a part missing! So needless to say I had to do some improvising and make the pasta the good old fashioned way with a rolling pin and knife. The pasta still ended up being a great success and was quite delicious. I will order the missing part and do yet another pasta recipe, only next time I'm thinking whole wheat ravioli.

Ingredients:

• 5 1/4 cups all-purpose flour (I used 365 organic unbleached all-purpose flour)
• About 1 1/2 cups water 
• 2 teaspoons olive oil
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon tumeric

Note: This makes a lot of pasta, and you can always reduce the measurements. Also, you can add more flour or water as needed to make sure the consistency of the dough is right; you don't want it to be sticky or tacky but you also don't want it to be too dry.

Directions:

• In a large bowl, mix together the flour, tumeric, and salt. 
• Make a well in the flour and pour in olive oil and water.  Gradually combine ingredients, adding more water as needed. 
• Knead the dough on a floured surface for about 5-10 minutes or until texture is smooth. 
• Cover dough and let sit for 20 minutes. 
• Cut dough into several different sections (about 7)
• Roll out each section of dough using rolling pin on a floured surface (or using a machine) using flour as needed so your dough doesn't become sticky. 
• Starting with the end closest to you, fold the rolled out pasta sheet a few inches (going away from you), and then continue doing this until you have a flat jelly roll shape.
• Using a sharp knife, cut the jelly roll pasta dough forming your desired width. I made a pappardelle shaped pasta, about 3/4 inches thick. 
• Lay pasta strands on a floured towel and dust them with flour. 
• Let the noodles sit for about 10 minutes before cooking them, and then cook them in salted water for about 5 minutes. Cooking times vary widely so keep an eye on your pasta to tell when it's ready. 

Enjoy!

Relax in a Bath

No matter how much we try to avoid stress in our day to day lives, it still has a way of finding us one way or another. Taking baths is one thing many people overlook as a way to wind down and find some relaxation and peace of mind. Not only is it an underrated stress reliever, but they can also do wonders for soreness and pain, and they are a great sleep promotor. I love taking baths for all these reasons. So after a long day, whether you're sore from a hard workout, stressed from work/personal problems, or just wanting to sleep easier, light a candle, make a cup of tea, hop in a bath, and enjoy yourself. Here are some of the products I use during and after baths that I highly recommend. 

1. Epsom Salt

This will help to detox and relax your body and mind, and it also works miracles on muscle aches and soreness. I love the Dr. Teal's Relax and Relief with Eucalyptus Spearmint; the smell is amazing. Pour about 2 cups of this into your bath's running water and just soak and enjoy. This can also be used as an exfoliant by mixing a handful with your favorite body wash. 

Ingredients: Magnesium Sulfate (Epsom Salt), 

Fragrance (Parfum), Eucalyptus Globulus (Eucalyptus)

 Leaf Oil, Mentha Virdis (Spearmint) Leaf Oil.

2. Body Wash: ORIGINS Ginger Burst Savory Body Wash

This is my favorite body wash to use. As you can tell, the bottle is basically empty. Massage this all over your body before exfoliating to feel and smell wonderful. This stuff is like caviar for the skin. (If you love the smell of this, you will also love the ginger soufflé body whipped body cream.) 

3. Exfoliate: Sunshine Spa's Brown Sugar Scrub:

 This organic Beverley Hill's Spa scrub will leave you feeling like you've never felt before and makes your skin appear brighter and healthier. It naturally removes dead skin cells and leaves your skin rejuvenated and moisturized. Apply a generous amount to your body and massage in circular motions. This stuff is amazing.

Ingredients: Organic Brown Sugar, Expeller Pressed Almond Oil, 

High Oleic Safflower Oil, Sunflower Oil, Grapeseed Oil, 

Apricot Kernel Oil, Avocado Oil, Sweet Orange Essential Oil, Basil Leaf, 

Ginkgo Leaf, Sage Leaf, Natural Vitamin E and Fragrance. 100% Vegan

4.  Face mask: ORIGINS Drink Up 10 minute mask to quench skin's thirst

If my face is feeling dry, particularly in these fall and winter months, I like to use this face mask during my baths to give my skin moisture and smoothness. Alternatively, if your skin is breaking out, you can use a different mask that treats pores and acnes (staying on the Origins train, a great mask is the Clear Improvement Active Charcoal Mask). Make sure you apply this to a clean face.

Key Ingredient: Apricot Kernel Oil

Don't forget to spend time closing your eyes and just relaxing while in the bath. I like to put a hot wash cloth over my face to steam my face and lungs, and then rinse with cold water. 

5. Moisturizer: ORIGINS Make a Difference Plus + rejuvenating moisturizer and ORIGINS Make a Difference Rejuvenating hand treatment

After getting out of the bath use a moisturizer to keep skin from drying out. These are two of my favorite moisturizers. The hand treatment is great for your hands because it makes your skin feel moisturized and smooth without leaving your hands feeling sticky or greasy. 

Key Ingredients in Moisturizer: Rose of Jericho and Watermelon

6. Overnight Mask: ORIGINS Drink Up Intensive Overnight mask

On those particularly dry days, I will use this at night to give my skin that extra drink of moisture. I tend to use heavier moisturizers in the fall and winter because my skin gets very dry and I live in a desert. So depending on your skin's condition, you can skip this step. 

Key Ingredients: Avocado Oil, Mango Butters, Japanese Seaweed

<a href="http://www.hypersmash.com">HyperSmash</a>

Stay Tuned: New Recipe Soon!

This week I will be doing a homemade vegan pasta recipe with a homemade sauce. It should be very tasty and perfect for fall! Check back in a couple days! :)

5 Benefits of Yoga

As you all know, I'm working on getting my yoga certification so I can teach and share yoga with others. Here are just a few of the things I'm learning about the health benefits that yoga has to offer.


Yoga differs from other types of physical exercise in that it works your mind, body, and spirit. So while you're physically getting stronger (asana), you are also practicing your breathing (pranayama), and you're working on meditation (dhyana). The combination of these areas make for unique benefits.

Benefits of Yoga:

1. Happier Workout: Research has continually shown that by not triggering the "fight or flight" response while working out (like you do in most sports and exercise), you will feel happier and more refreshed after working out. By keeping an awareness of breath and continually being mindful of your practice, you are able to become very relaxed while still having an intense workout.

2. Weight Loss: Yoga helps with weight loss, not only because it is a workout but because it reduces your stress, which is one of the triggers of weight gain. It has been shown through research that when your body releases cortisol (a stress hormone), your body has greater difficultly losing weight. Yoga reduces your cortisol levels and increases your dopamine levels. 

3. Less risk of Disease: Yoga has been shown to reduce your risk of disease and even be a good treatment of some diseases because it helps your immune system, lung function, brain function, and so much more. The many different poses (asana) are great cleansers and do great things for your organs. Yoga can help with and prevent high blood pressure, cholesterol, and diabetes. The breathing practices can also help with asthma.

4. Decreased Stress: Yoga helps to reduce your stress because through use of breathing techniques and practicing them, you can train the autonomic nervous system to work in your benefit. This will help you not only while you're practicing yoga, but in stressful situations and in everyday life. 

5. Body Benefits: Of course we all know that yoga increases our flexibility, improves balance, builds muscles, gives us better posture, and promotes us spiritually. 



This is a great quote by Elliot S. Dacher MD who wrote Whole Healing: A Step-by-Step Program to Reclaim Your Power to Heal":

 “Yoga is a way to get to the source of ourselves. The challenge is not to see yoga as a treatment for disease, but as an opportunity to see something deeper in the self. To reconnect with the body is one way of artfully facing the reality of pain in our life and a means for accepting and being in our lives more deeply.”

Ten Benefits of Orange, Lemon Water

A great thing to do before you go to bed is to make orange, lemon water. I love to do this, and then when I wake up in the morning, I have a delicious and refreshing beverage waiting for me in my fridge to jumpstart my morning. The benefits of the water are wonderful, too. 

Here are 10 great benefits of orange, lemon water (besides the fact that it tastes delicious):

1. It cleanses your body. This is why I love to drink this in the morning. It helps to make you feel refreshed and renewed. The lemon helps your liver function by increasing enzymes and works as an antiseptic to cleanse your blood, liver, and other organs. Iron and B6 in oranges help to clean the blood as well. 

2. It's good for your heart. Both lemons and oranges are rich in potassium which promotes heart health among other things. 

3. It's good for digestion. Lemons help the digestion process in general, but they furthermore help with specific digestion problems like heartburn, bloating, gas, and more. By drinking it in the morning, it is a great way to promote good digestion throughout the day. Also the fiber in oranges help with digestion and constipation. 

4. Fights bad breath. This is another reason why it's good to drink this in the morning to help rid yourself of bed breath! 

5. Boosts your immune system. Once again, both oranges and lemons are filled with vitamin C, which is found heavily in our immune cells and are eaten up quickly when our bodies are fighting infections and other diseases. Our vitamin C levels also drop when we are stressed so it is important to keep vitamin C plentiful in our bodies! 

6. Prevents Cancer. Not only is Vitamin C good for your immune system, but by fighting off free radicals in the cells, it helps to prevent different types of cancer. 

7. Great for your skin! The anti-oxidants, like beta-carotene help to protect the cells from being damaged. This will help prevent wrinkles, signs of aging, and even blemishes too. It will help to make your skin glow! 

8. Helps aid in weight loss. Note that I use the word aid. The most important part of weight loss is exercising and eating right, but lemons will help in cubing hunger cravings. 

9. Lowers cholesterol. The soluble fiber in oranges helps to lower and maintain cholesterol. 

10. Reduces inflammation and mucus levels in the body. Lemons reduce your body's acidity, including in your joints which is one of the causes of inflammation. They also help to reduce your mucus level which is another great reason to drink it in the morning to loosen up your throat and chest after sleeping. 

These are just a FEW benefits of drinking orange, lemon water. Of course you could just drink lemon water, but I love to add the oranges for a special flavor and touch (and added health benefits). 

These are the 5 simple steps that I take to creating my morning concoction:

1. Before going to bed, take about 2-3 lemons and slice them up, squeezing the juice into a mason jar. 

2. Take 1-2 oranges and slice them up, also squeezing the juice into the mason jar. 

3. Toss in the lemon and oranges, even after squeezing the juice. 

4. Fill the mason jar with purified water or vapor distilled water. 

5. Put it in the fridge, and it will be cold and ready for you when you wake up! 

I don't normally drink the entire jar at once, but it is great to share, to drink throughout the day, or to have for the next morning! 

Enjoy! 

Delicious Fruity Sangria Recipe

Ingredients:

• 1 bottle red wine
• 1 lemon
• 1 orange
• 1 cup raspberries
• 1 lime
• 1/2 cup diced pineapple
• 2 shots brandy
• splash of orange juice
• 1 1/2 cups ginger ale or club soda
• (optional) 2 tbsp sugar 
• Handful of fresh mint

Directions:

• Pour wine and brandy into a pitcher.
• Cut the lemon, lime, and orange into slices. 
• Squeeze the juice into the wine then toss in the fruit slices. 
• Add the pineapple, the splash of orange juice, and the sugar (if you choose to use that)
• Chill overnight or for several hours allowing everything to marinate.
• When ready to serve, add the ginger ale or club soda, the raspberries, and mint! 
• Serve as is or over ice. Enjoy!