Healthy Life Lessons

I get a lot of offers from PR companies to promote products and events on this blog.  I turn down most.  They have to fit in with my values and beliefs, and offer something to either myself and/or my readers.  Recently I was offered 2 tickets to Jillian Michaels' talk in Toronto, which is part of her Maximize Your Life tour , if I would promote the event.  I declined. Although I realize some readers might be really interested in winning these tickets, I felt it would be hypocritical since I do not agree with a lot of the messages Michaels sends to her audience and fans. Now, I reviewed one of her fitness videos a few years back, and was very impressed.  While she may have some good fitness DVDs out on the market, however, I do not watch the Biggest Loser.  I tried, and felt sick after a few minutes.  I have no time for this type of garbage reality tv that involves publicly humiliating people.  Furthermore, there is some evidence that watching this show can have a detrimenta

I am calling this a salsa because unlike a standard guacamole type thing, I've cooked down the onions, garlic and spices.  The reason for this was purely practical: as a counsellor and therapist I've realized it isn't very considerate to eat raw onions and garlic for lunch before sessions (for the sake of my clients!). In an effort to be kind to my clients, however, I discovered some unexpected deliciousness...so much so, that I think this is going to be a staple condiment from now on!  The flavours are intense and absolutely scrumptious.  I didn't even think it needed any salt, but adjust the seasonings to your own taste buds.  Enjoy on tacos, wraps (like I did on mine pictured above) or any mexican dish, spread on sandwiches, or just serve with corn chips or cut up veggies.  Yum, yum, yum! Red Onion Avocado Relish 1 red onion, finely diced 2-3 cloves garlic, minced 1/2 tsp chili powder 1/2 tsp ground cumin Jalapeno pepper, minced, to taste (optional) 1/4

It's almost time for my annual visit to New York City!  Only this year Adam is going too because he has research to do for his next book.  So it's more like I'm tagging along with him as I get to stay in his hotel.  The past few years, basically since my Grandma Ruth was moved to a home, I haven't been seeing the sights at all, just mostly walking to and from her home.  This time, I've decided to try and sneak in some activities.  I have already purchased tickets for a tour at the Lower East Side Tenement Museum .  Adam and I did a tour a long time ago, but they have several, so I'm going to do another.  I loved it, it was so incredibly interesting.  It is also perfect timing because I just finished Edward Rutherfurd 's novel, New York, which weaves fictional characters into the real history of the city from back in the 1600s to 2008.  I love, love, loved this book, and if you enjoy historical fiction, you will too!  I learned a lot of the city's hist

  I am so happy to have Adam home (like you have NO IDEA how happy!), I wanted to celebrate with some lovely dinners this weekend.  In order to be a treat for my husband, a meal better involve meat, if it isn't pizza.  So I did home made pizza one night, and this dish the other.  Traditional paellas are usually seafood and/or meat with both chicken and sausage.  I thought just using some spicy turkey sausage was enough meat, but you can also veganize this by subbing tempeh or beans for the meat, and using vegetable broth instead of chicken. I added in some non-tradition veggies, like cauliflower, to bump up the veg action of the dish, but that's entirely optional. This was definitely a winner. Funny thing, by the way, Adam and I actually have an authentic paella pan, however, this is the first time I've actually used it for paella!  If you don't have one, I am sure this will work in a large, deep skillet of cast iron pan, maybe? Paella 1-946 ml carton c

Source Little A's 4th birthday is today! And Big A's 7th birthday is in exactly a month.  Already I'm exhausted by everything involved in the planning and horrified at the cost.  Considering how bratty the girls have been acting lately, I'm feeling particularly resentful about all the trouble I'm going to, to make them a special celebration.  Not that I'm doing anything above and beyond what any upper middle class parent does these days, but maybe that's the problem...kids parties have become such a big to-do! In order to avoid what was way too much stress last year having separate parties for the girls within a few weeks of each other, I've gone back to planning a joint party to be held at a community centre NOT at our house. For Little A and her friends there will be a bouncy castle and lots of riding toys, slides, etc.  For Big A and her friends, there is going to be a karaoke dance party.  In lieu of gifts, once again, we are giving people

Who doesn't love a trip to the spa?  If I ever become a multi-millionaire, I think I'll build my own personal spa...or at least hire my own personal massage therapist and yoga instructor...who will also clean my house. If you too love spas, then you'll love this: SpaFinder Wellness is giving away a Mother’s Day Spa package for two valued at $300 to treat a lucky reader and mom to a spa and wellness day. The contest closes on May 8, 2013. You can enter here . Spafinder has also offered me a $25 gift card to give away to one of my lucky readers.  Gift cards are redeemable at over 2,000 spas, yoga, Pilates and fitness studios in Canada (over 20,000 worldwide!). To enter, please "Like" my professional Facebook page, and/or follow me on Twitter , then leave me a comment that you've done so.  This contest is available to readers Internationally. Boy, would I love a little spa getaway right now.  Adam just returned from 10 days in Washington, D.C., an

This was my first recipe using the home-made sugar-free chocolate chips .  Although the name suggests cupcakes, I feel justified in calling them muffins, since they are sugar-free, oil-free, whole grain, and contain spinach to boot.  If your kids aren't used to such virtuous baked goods, or may be more likely to recoil from errant green bits in their muffins than mine, than you can sub apple sauce or another pureed fruit for the spinach.  But even picky Little A gobbled these down, so I will definitely be making them again.  I can't wait to see what else I can make with these chips!! Double Chocolate Mint Chip Muffins (Vegan + Sugar-Free) 1/2 cup pureed, steamed spinach (or apple sauce, etc.) 2 flax eggs 1/2 cup stevia baking blend 1 can full-fat coconut milk 1 tsp vanilla extract 2 cups whole wheat, spelt or other whole grain flour 1/2 cup cocoa powder 2 tsp baking powder 1/2 tsp baking soda 1/2 tsp sea salt 1 cup sugar-free chocolate mint (or regular) chips

  With what seems like endless horrific events happening in the world lately, I think we could all use some chocolate, no?   One of the easiest ways to get my family to eat anything is to add chocolate chips to it.  I know, who can blame them, right? There are certainly worse things, however, it's the sugar that bugs me.  I feel like no matter what I do, the girls eat way too much sugar.  If it's not eating Adam's sweet breakfast cereals, or spreading honey over their toast every morning, than it's what they are being fed at daycare, birthday parties, playdates and virtually any place we go.  A trip to Costco, for example, inevitably involves the kids sampling at least 4-5 products that I would NEVER buy, many of them being cookies, refined flour products and/or chocolate or candy.  Sigh! This is why I rarely cook or bake at home using any sugar, and if I do use sugar, it is most often coconut sugar, or something less refined and lower on the glycemic inde

I couldn't bring myself to post anything today, besides a tribute to those who were injured or lost their lives in the events at the Boston Marathon yesterday. I don't know about you, but the whole thing, from afar, just seems so unreal. It's hard sometimes lately to not feel like this world is going to hell-in-a-handbag. I think the important things at times like this are gratitude and kindness: Acknowledging what we have, and remembering the importance of kindness and tolerance. He that is kind is free, though he is a slave; he that is evil is a slave, though he be a king. - St, Augustine

Happy Monday morning!  The sun is out.  It's mild.  Could spring actually be here?  It's hard to believe, I'm trying not to get my hopes up. Anyways, I found a little treat that is great for little ones. My girls always ask me to make jello.  Usually I refuse.  All that sugar and artificial colour?  No thanks! Then I found GoBio jelly powder mix at the health food store.  No sugar.  No artificial colours!  You actually add your own sweetener of choice.  I added 2 droppers full of clear stevia liquid and that was enough for the girls to gobble up 2 bowls each in about 30 seconds.  They absolutely loved it.  I'll definitely be buying this again!

I love discovering new, yummy, healthy foods.  Unfortunately, it happens far too seldom.  At the grocery store, anyways. Each time I go food shopping I scan the aisles for new products that are healthy and my family will love.  Honestly, this almost never happens.  Most of the food in the freezer section (aside from frozen fruits and vegetables), and the shelves filled with packaged goods are complete crap.  In fact, I am often disheartened by the plethora of disgusting, sugar-filled, processed crap that is still coming out.  Given what we know about the dangers of this sort of food, it still surprises me that food companies are cranking out increasingly unhealthy products.  Remember good ol' Cheerios, for example?  First there was honey nut and apple cinnamon flavours, which were bad enough.  But now they come in chocolate, banana and peanut butter.  All this means is a lot of extra sugar and artificial crap in your breakfast bowl. At the health food stores I often find awe

Give me a tortilla and I'll give you a meal.  Yes, I don't think a week goes by without at least one dinner involving burritos or some sort of filling wrapped up in a whole grain tortilla.  Love em!   These ones are sweet and spicy and satisfying.  Full of fibre and nutrients too!  These are pretty simple to prep and make, but give the peppers and onions time to cook down and get really sweet. Black Bean, Pineapple and Jalapeno Burritos 1 onion, thinly sliced 2 red bell peppers, thinly sliced 2 green bell peppers, thinly sliced 2-3 cloves garlic, minced Jalapeno pepper, to taste, finely diced 2 tsp mild chili powder 1 tsp ground cumin 1/2 tsp salt 1 14oz can crushed pineapple, with juice 1 can black beans, rinsed and drained (or 1.5 cups cooked black beans) 1/4 cup cider vinegar 1 can tomato paste A few handfuls roughly chopped fresh cilantro (optional) 4-6 large, whole grain/gluten-free tortillas Place onion, peppers, garlic and spices in a large skillet

Are you trying to lose weight?  Thinking about trying the Paleo diet? If so, you may want to pick up the book: Paleofantasy: What Evolution Really Tells Us about Sex, diet and How We Live .  In it, author, Marlene Zuk, a professor of ecology, evolution and behaviour at the University of Minnesota, debunks some of the myths about our ancestors that underlie the popular Paleo diet craze. Although I have not read the book, in an interview published in the Nutrition Action Healthletter she explains that what prehistoric folks were eating depends on exactly what time period and on what region of the world these peoples lived.  She also points out that often these people at only what was available and their bodies adapted to this, however, this does not mean that they were necessarily eating the healthiest diets.  Furthermore, while the Paleo diet forbids grains based on the assumption they were not eaten by our ancestors, Zuk points out that scientists have growing evidence that they

Recently I was asked to review this book.  I had never heard of the Specific Carbohydrate Diet, so I was intrigued, and, to be honest, a little suspicious.  Maybe it's because I'd never heard of it, or perhaps because I freakin' love carbs so I'm never enthusiastic about low-carb diets or any diet that eliminates a whole food group. The book provides very little detail about the scientific basis for this diet except that it was originally developed by a physician in New York named, Sidney Haas for his celiac patients.    In 1955 Elaine Gottschall wrote a book about the diet after it reportedly cured her daughter's ulcerative colitis.  The author, Erica Kerwien, recommends picking up Gottaschall's book to get some explanation of the science behind it. This is not meant to be a weight-loss diet, but is apparently intended to help individuals suffering from a number of chronic illnesses including Crohn's disease, ulcerative colitis, celiac disease, cystic

Good Monday morning?  How are you feeling? I still have this darn cold, but thankfully I got a super sleep last night so I definitely feel better than I did. Speaking of sleeps, I have another find that has made bed times around here a little more bearable. Little A is very particular about EVERYTHING and the whole bedtime routine is no exception. One of the things she has been insisting on for months is that her (special, very expensive black out) blinds be raised to let in "a little light".  Given how detrimental it is to sleep with light (messes up melatonin and can increase risk of breast cancer and other health problems!), this has distressed me, but if we ever tried to fight her on it, she would flip out and scream and cry until we raised the blind a bit. While it hasn't been a huge deal in winter when it gets dark early and the only light outside her window is from outside street lights, etc. (which is bad enough!), in summer it's a different stor

Hi. My name is Erica Berman. I am a multitasking addict. I finished my mindfulness course and I feel like it was an incredibly valuable experience.  I'll be honest.  I don't think I am ever going to meditate.  Not in the way we were instructed in this course anyways.  But I have discovered that many of the ideas and concepts in mindfulness are powerful, thought-provoking and potentially life changing.  So much so, that it is almost unsettling.  The teacher warned us that the 'symptoms' that brought us to the course may worsen at first, and this definitely was the case for me.  After 3 years of living insomnia-free, I could not sleep for 2 straight weeks.  My head was so full of ideas. I was having revelations about myself and about the world.  I could barely keep up with it all.  It was all very positive, but also completely overwhelming. Meditation is meant to be a fundamentally goal-less endeavor.  You are supposed to do nothing for a said period of time wit

Okay, yes this was a Passover meal for us last weekend, but honestly it's so good, I won't be waiting until next year to make it again.  You could use chickpeas or lentils to make it vegan if you wish, but since it was Passover I was restricted from making any legumes. Creamy Curried Chicken and Quinoa 1 head cauliflower, cut into florets 1 bunch broccoli, cut into florets 1/2 tsp olive oil Salt and pepper 1 onion, diced 3 tbls fresh ginger, chopped 3 cloves garlic, minced 1/2 tsp kosher salt 2 tbls madras curry powder (hot or mild) 1 tsp garam masala 1/2 teaspoon asafetida seeds 1/2 cup cider vinegar 1.5 cups unsweetened plain almond (or other non-dairy) milk 1 lb ground chicken (or 1 can/1.5 cups cooked chickpeas or lentils, drained and rinsed) 1 can tomato paste 1.5 cups quinoa Season cauliflower and broccoli and toss with olive oil.  Lay on foil or parchment lined baking sheet and roast at 350F for about 30 minutes. Cook quinoa according to packag

If you have kids, then no doubt beds, night time and sleep are top-of-mind issues in your home.  It starts when they're born.  Do you co-sleep?  Do you start them in a bassinett?  When do you move them to a crib?  When do you move them out of a crib?  Toddler bed or straight to an adult bed?  Single or double?  Railings or no railings?  And all this may be moot if your kids (and you) barely sleep at all, or if everyone just piles into one bed. In our home there has always been a 'no kids in our bed' rule, which works well for all of us.  It's always been this way, so our kids have rarely ever even considered the notion of co-sleeping with us.  Thank goodness, because the few times it has happened, no one sleeps much at all. Little A moved to a grown-up bed a while ago, but she has continued to insist on having railings.  A few months ago we coaxed her into giving up the one on the wall-side of her bed, but she has refused to give up the one on the outside of her b

Okay, last day of Pesach for 2013 and the last Passover recipe for the year. This was such a hit with the girls, they made me take pictures of them enjoying it for dessert (still in their bathrobes with wet hair from their bath).  This worked out perfectly since they make much prettier photos than do the jellyroll.  Or perhaps it's just my abysmal photography skills that made it look like a big turd. Pictures aside, this tastes amazing and it's suitable for Passover.  Also, the recipe is sugar free, gluten free and vegan.  No shit! Chilled Chocolate Raspberry Jellyroll 1 ripe avocado 1 cup xylitol, erythritol or stevia baking blend 2 flax eggs (2 tbls ground flax + 6 tbls hot water) 1 tsp vanilla extract A few drops liquid stevia, to taste (optional) 1/2 cup cocoa powder 1 cup almond meal or almond flour 1/4 tsp kosher salt 1/4 cup sugar-free, seedless raspberry jam or spread Puree avocado, apple sauce, sweetener, flax eggs and vanilla in food processor

Happy Easter Monday!  Wouldn't you know it, the last day of what has been a lovely long weekend and I woke up this morning with a cold.  Blech!  I guess I should be grateful that it's the first one I've had in months. Anyways, I made these for an end-of-Passover event we are attending next weekend.  I had another recipe in mind using almond meal, but then realized it isn't smart to bring products with nuts to big gatherings.  No worries, these are nut-free and A-M-A-Z-I-N-G!  Really chocolatey and fudgy, but not too sweet.  Oh, also gluten-free too.  They are so good, they don't even need icing, and I don't say that too often. Fudgy Passover Brownies 250g bag dark chocolate chips, melted 1.5 cups boiling water 1/2 cup apple sauce 2 eggs 1 tsp vanilla extract 1 cup coconut flour 1/4 tsp kosher salt Whisk together chocolate with water, apple sauce, eggs and vanilla.  Stir in flour and salt.  Scrape batter into a greased 9x9 square baking tin.  Coo