A Different Kind of Makeover
 It's hard to make
good choices in a messy kitchen. The kitchen is the place that should
nourish you and your family. It should support your intention to be in
control of how you take care of yourself. Clutter and disorganization
are obstacles to finding things, consuming things, and using your time
and space efficiently. Moreover, a kitchen stocked with high quality,
whole foods, sets you up to eat and function at your best, and to be
less dependent on eating out.
Here's a picture of me in front of my pantry, where I keep most of my
staples. For a complete list of what's actually in there, click here to find out!
|
This Month's Feature Article: A Pantry Makeover
If you are serious about improving your
diet and health, the way to begin is to take stock, and re-stock your
food supplies. Here are some simple guidelines for doing a pantry
makeover:
What to Store: Here's an easy rule: eat foods with ingredients you
can pronounce. Here are the staples to stock up on in your pantry:
Whole Grains: brown rice, rolled
oats, quinoa, 100% whole wheat pasta, multi-grain hot cereals, 100%
whole grain breads and crackers.
Canned Beans: preferably organic
(Stop & Shop has their own brand)-chick peas, black, kidney,
cannelini, black-eyed peas, aduki, lentils-any bean will provide a
quick, nutritious meal.
Snacks: Lara Bars, blue corn chips,
fruit-sweetened cookies, dark chocolate, whole grain pretzels, dried
fruit, organic popcorn.
Soups: Amy's Butternut Squash,
Trader Joe's organic black bean chili or lentil soup.
Condiments: extra virgin olive
oil, coconut oil, shoyu (100% soy sauce), pure maple syrup, agave
natural sweetener, shredded coconut, natural peanut and almond butter,
sesame oil.
Don't know what to do with those beans?
Click here for an easy recipe.
What to Toss:
Any product which has
partially hydrogenated oils, high fructose corn syrup or an ingredient
list a mile long (which includes all the artificial colors,
preservatives and chemicals). Here are some products that you may want
to consider upgrading to higher quality versions that have fewer, less
processed and natural ingredients:
Breads and crackers: those that do
not list a "100% whole grain" (see last month's newsletter) as a main
ingredient.
Sugared cereals: the less sugar the
better; sweeten the cereal with your own dried fruit or natural
sweeteners
Skippy, Jif, etc: even the grocery
stores offer their own brand with nuts and salt as the only ingredients.
Low-fat anything: beware of
products promoted as low fat because they are often loaded with salt
and sugar.
Totally overwhelmed about how to upgrade your
food supply and want support in making-over your health?
We need to talk: Click here.
|
Continuing the Offer:
Discover Four
Paths to Better Health
For only $99
Recipe for a Healthy Life
has teamed up with Bikram Yoga Westfield, Essential Balance Massage and
Acupuncture Health Associates to offer a powerful package of nutrition,
yoga, massage and Chinese medicine for only $99--a $400 value!!
A Four
Paths to Better Health Certificate includes:
--A Nutrition Consultation
--One week of unlimited Bikram Yoga
--One hour of Holistic Massage
--A Chinese Medical Analysis, Evaluation & Recommendations
To get started:
Contact Sharon Goldner at
Sharon@recipeforahealthylife.com or call 908-242-3763 to purchase your
certificate.
After you receive your certificate, contact each
practitioner directly to set up an appointment.
To learn more about
the practitioners and their services:
Bikram Yoga: Ginger Comstock, Bikram
Yoga Westfield studio, 361 South Avenue E, 2nd Flr, Westfield www.bikramyogawestfield.com.
Massage: Julien Griffault ,
Essential Balance Massage, 361 South Avenue E, 2nd Flr, Westfield www.jgessentials.com.
Chinese Medical Analysis: Andy
Rosenfarb, Acupuncture Health Assoc, 332 South Avenue E, Westfield, www.acupuncturehealth.net.
|
|
Recipe of the Month:
Pumpkin Brownies
Sweet to eat just as they are, these
brownies make a wholesome seasonal dessert. 
Yield: 16 square bars
Wet
Ingredients:
½ cup organic butter (1 stick, softened)
¾ cup of packed brown sugar
1 organic egg
1 tsp. pure vanilla extract
¾ cup pumpkin puree
Dry Ingredients:
1 cup whole wheat pastry or unbleached white flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. cinnamon
¼ tsp. salt
¼ tsp ginger + ¼ tsp allspice
½ cup chopped walnuts
Directions:
1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
Grease an 8-inch square baking pan with baking spray.
2. Cream together the butter and sugar until light and well blended.
Beat in the egg.
3. Add the vanilla and the pumpkin puree and continue to beat until
thoroughly mixed.
4. Sift together all of the dry ingredients (except the nuts) and add
to the pumpkin mixture to form a batter.
5. Fold in the chopped walnuts by hand.
6. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake until a knife or
toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, about 30 minutes.
7. Cool for about five minutes and flip over to finish cooling on a
covered surface.
Adapted from Moosewood Restaurant Book of Desserts
|
Making It Happen: A Different Kind of Clutter
Phew!
Now that you've cleaned up your kitchen, you are free to focus on other
things. Or, for others, the opposite may be true.
Even before we are ready to do the physical clean-up in our living
space, some of us have to first de-clutter our thinking
space. The logic is that our living environment is a reflection of
what's going on in our heads. That if we have bottled up emotions,
unexpressed feelings, or an overload of worry and responsibility, it
gets manifested in our physical stuff piling up. Here are a few ways to
unload and clear out the mental matter:
1. Express yourself--in
that needed conversation or even in a journal. Problems or concerns
don't have to be resolved, just aired.
2. Take a walk and get
some sun on your face and fresh air in your lungs.
3. Try alternate nostril breathing:
gently press your thumb on the right nostril and inhale through the
left; close off the left nostril with your ring finger and exhale
through the right. Then inhale through the right, and close it off with
your thumb to exhale through the left nostril. Continue for one to five
minutes and experience a clearer mind.
4. Take out your favorite CD
and sing along or drift away with the powerful impact of music.
5. Exert some energy
with a few gentle yoga moves, or by playing catch with your kid to
detoxify your mind.
If you would like help in
clearing out your mental clutter, this is another way a health
counselor can support you in improving your productivity and happiness.
Click here for a consultation.
|
|
 Next Cooking Class: Thursday
November 6th!
7:30-8:45
pm --In my Westfield
Kitchen
Recipe for a Healthy
Thanksgiving:
Come to my next cooking class to get
motivated and prepared to serve healthy
and delicious food for your holiday.
Sample foods cooked during
the class,
learn new cooking tips & receive recipes:
--Brown Rice
Pilaf with Bok Choy
--Cauliflower and Dill mashed potato
--Squash Muffins
$25.00 per person
|
 About SharonSharon
Goldner motivates individuals and groups to live their fullest
potential. As a Certified Holistic Health
Counselor and owner of Recipe For A Healthy Life,
she makes the connection between food, and the mind and body so that
individuals can easily understand their path to health and vitality.
She is a
graduate of the Institute of Integrative Nutrition in New York City,
and is certified by the American Association of Drugless Practitioners
and Columbia University Teacher's College. Her
training as a Vegetarian Chef at the Natural Gourmet Institute for
Health & Culinary Arts in New York City enables her to work with
clients in a fun and practical way as they create a realistic eating
plan.
Sharon is also a frequent wellness speaker for both
corporate and not-for-profit groups.
Her empowering message provides participants with the tools and
inspiration to improve their food choices and the quality of their
lives.
Call today! And create your own recipe
for a healthy life! 908-242-3763
|
|
Click Here To Join Email List
