~Walking in the Rain~

     I enjoy walking in the rain and as long as it’s not thundering and lightening; walking in the rain feels good. Even though, I have walked in the rain before, today I passed several cars and witness some of the looks that were on their faces, some smiling even got a few waves, and others looked in curiosity. None-the-less it was a good walk.

~My Walking Views in the Morning~

 Nice and Steep.

Who needs a membership to some gym... when you have the great outdoors..

To get the results I want, I work out twice a day everyday.

And yep my second work out is at the gym..:)

At the top of this steep hill in my house (the Majestic)

Raw Beets & Red Cabbage Recipe~Black Folks Eating Right

Colors!! I love the colors in this salad; I think it’s important that a meal have lots of colors.  And one of the easiest ways to add color to your planted based meal is by having a large salad each day.

Whether it's a main meal or a side dish, add as many fresh vegetables as you like and even pick a color theme- how cool is that??

 In many black families, cabbage is a very popular side dish, which is usually cooked and while being cooked, bacon or some sort of meat is added, even if the recipe calls for a raw salad mayonnaise or salad dressing is added, and most of these condiments contain eggs and/or sugars.

This turns into an unhealthy meal quite quickly.

~Yes they have a vegan mayonnaise..its called Vegenaise, you will be hard press in telling the difference.

Red cabbage is a wonderful source of vitamin C, which assists in anti-oxidation, helping to keep your skin healthy and youthful.  It is also high in vitamin A, which is involved in maintaining healthy eyes.  Vitamin E is also contained in red cabbage, therefore helping in immunity building, DNA repair and other metabolic processes.  It is cleansing to the body and also contains calcium. 

Beets were the other main ingredient in this salad and I love beets.  

If you have not eaten beets raw, they taste like a sweet carrot.

Beets are also highly nutritious...

They contain unique pigments that are antioxidants and have been found to offer protection against coronary artery disease and strokes.  Raw beets are an excellent source of folates, but these levels can be depleted with extensive cooking.  They also contain the powerful antioxidant vitamin C and the essential mineral, potassium...heck they are just good for you!

I used:

2 Beets chooped

1/2 of a Red Cabbage chooped

2 cups mixed greens

Dressing

3 tbsp olive oil

1 tbsp fresh basil

1 tbsp fresh cilantro 

1/4 teaspoon of Apple Cider Vinegar

 Sea salt to taste

Vegan Dish: Soba Noodles with Swiss Chard Recipe~

   

 Choosing to eat a plant based diet, has given me the opportunity to explore new foods, to discover some interesting recipes and try them out. Even though, most of my dishes are salads, which I love, I also like to experiment with foods I’ve never eaten before. Like Soba.

     What is Soba?  Soba are Japanese thin noodles made of at least 30% buckwheat. Since buckwheat has a tendency not to adhere closely, the noodles also include regular wheat flower. They look very much like spaghetti noodles except they are a light brown in color. They are quite popular in Japan and gaining popularity in many other places. They also form the basis for many traditional Japanese dishes.

If you have a Asian Market near by, you can get Soba Noodles there or order some online.

See links below.

                                                                          ~~~~~~~~~~~~

What you will need...

1 1/2 bundle soba noodles

4 tablespoon olive oil

1 tablespoon sesame oil

3 tablespoons soy sauce

2 tablespoons vinegar

1 tablespoon sesame seeds

1/2 tablespoon Korean red pepper flakes

Chopped green onions

Cumcumbers
Swiss Chard

Directions

Cook soba according to package instructions. 
Drain water and rinse in cold water until cooled. 
Add the olive oil and sesame oil to the noodles and stir well.

Make sauce by combining the soy sauce, vinegar, sesame seeds, and red pepper flakes. 
Chop up your onions
cucumbers small pieces
and chard as you see fit.
Pour the sauce to the noodles and stir well until the noodles are coated with the sauce evenly.
Serves about 2-3

Enjoy

I am not a chef ; I am a mom exploring. Therefore just as I changed some things here, you can too. 

Thanks for stopping by...

Berry, Berry Boom Smoothie Recipe~Plant Based Diet

Since I’ve been juicing and researching I have come across a lot of smoothie recipes. 

If I decide to try  any of them, I will try what they suggest first; 
then I change it up a bit. 

I will  add a natural spice, or change a fruit of two, sometimes doing this makes my smoothies healthier than the original recipe called for and I like that.
 

Here is another delicious recipe you might like to try, I call it my:

Berry, Berry Boom Smoothie

You will need a

Blender

1/2 cup Fresh Blueberries

5-8 Fresh Strawberries

1 frozen Banana

½ cup Rice Milk

1/2 cup ice

 Blend until smooth.  
Serve immediately

 

Raw Almond Milk Recipe-Plant Based Diet

One of the many changes I've eliminated in my family’s diet is the consumption of dairy products. I would either purchase Rice Milk or Almond Milk, now I currently make my own Almond milk and it’s  easy and very good. 

You can purchase raw Almonds on line or your local Whole Foods Store.

You will need:

Raw Almonds

A blender

A cheese cloth, muslin cloth or, Strainer

Fresh Ground Cinnamon or Vanilla Extract

Water

MAKES about 2+ cups MILK

1-2 cups whole raw almonds and clean water to soak the almonds* preferable overnight, but for at least 12-14 hours

2-3* cups water

Soak your almonds for 14 hours at room temperature in a large mixing bowl with clean water.

Drain and rinse your almonds.

In a blender, blend the almonds with 1 cup of water until smooth

Then add your ground cinnamon or vanilla to taste

 I use 1 Table spoon of Vanilla Extract

…blend on high for about 1 minute.

Add the second cup of water and blend for 2 minutes on high.

 At this point it is up to you whether you would like your milk thin, the consistency of 2% milk or not therefore slowly add more water and blend for  another 2 minutes on high

Strain this mixture in a fine metal mesh, strainer or cheese cloth strainer and

 reserve the pulp for other recipes…(coming soon)

Refrigerate your milk in a sealed glass container for up to 5 days.

*Soaking nuts such as almonds helps to reduce phytic acid - making it easier to digest and reducing symptoms of bloating and gas when consuming nuts/legumes/grains/beans

Plant Based Diet The Farmer's Market

 has been 5 weeks strong of juice feasting and I am enjoying the results: the weight loss, as

Well as how my skin, body and self-feel, my plan was to do a 60 day juicing, but that lasted for 30 days...

           See what had happen was…I enjoy taking the time to research all  types of juicing recipes and vegetarian & vegan meals, that are all over the internet, and looking at all that food, and not having any patience is not good .

So, I ate.

 And it was GOOD!

However, 85% of my diet is plant based and raw

Any who, today I went to the Farmers Market

Picked up some Granny Smith Apples, 

10$ for the bushel

Red Delicious 14$ and

Strawberries that went up from 8 to 14$

And blue berries FREE!

12 in a bushel

CRAZY COOL!

Made a nice juice for the family

Recipe is here

2 My Health A Plant Based Diet

(source)

 Since I have been on this Plant Based, I have been doing a lot of research and  I came across this information , according to the CDC more than 75% of the $2.6 trillion in annual US health care costs are from chronic diseases. Diets high in meat and dairy are some of the main causes of most of these diseases.

·        Chronic diseases cause 7 in 10 deaths each year in the United States.

  About 133 million Americans—nearly 1 in 2 adults—live with at least one chronic illness.

More than 75% of health care costs are due to chronic conditions.

And it is worst in the Black Community.

My people are dying at an alarming rate: due to heart disease, strokes, cancer and diabetes.

What the old folks use to call “the suga.”

AND SISTAHS...Shaking my head!

With those numbers and facts, why aren't more people on a plant based diet? 

Are people not connecting the dots? Or just don't care about their health?

Humans are committing suicide at a snail's pace...

Did you know that the first sign to heart disease is DEATH.

Seriously...

 It  is interesting to me that as I scroll down my face book time line, I often see photos of steak dinners cooked or at some restaurant  Or statuses saying I want to go to such, and such steak house.

I've seen several post from people who say they are on some type of diet; but eat Mickey D’s Oatmeal, most mornings…

Either they have ignored the information about McDonald’s Oatmeal, or they don’t give a rats’ ass. 

But I digress.

One misconception about a plant based diet is that all one is eating is sticks and carrots all day. 

There are an ass of recipes out there...check out Recipe.com, Youtube, go to the freaking library, most of my information came from there.  Another excuse is: it’s too expensive or time consuming…so is waiting in the E.R. Or having to fill another doctor’s prescription; because of high blood pressure or high cholesterol, both are just the beginning signs of many chronic ailments.

Oh! And where are you getting your protein?

 The same place a cow does.  Eating plants! 

I eat like a Gorilla.

It has been drilled into our heads "that humans need meat and dairy to survive" and it’s one of the biggest lies ever told! 

Humans are getting cancer and heart disease from eating animals and drinking their bodily fluids.

But I digress.

2 My Health Mingz Plant Base Diet

I think the first day of anything is a challenge…the first few days of not smoking cigarettes, I thought 

I was going to kill someone.

I research herbs to take to help with the carving of nicotine and tobacco and found this herb called

Lobelia, in combination with the patch and my family has helped me kick the smoking habit.

I refuse to use any drugs, especially Cantex, it’s a mood altering drug that has some terrible side effects; one of them is thoughts of suicide…WTF??

I didn’t do much blogging about my cigarette free challenge, I think it was because

I was trying so hard to forget I was even a smoker.

Well, today is my first day and again it has been tough not to go RAID the fridge for something sweet to eat!

I’ve decided that at the end of my 60 days, I will eat something healthy…

My blogs will be my research center and online journal of sorts. I will talk about the benefits of many of the vegetables and fruits that I am using.
 I am excited!!

 Maybe something here will inspire you to challenge yourself for a healthier being!

Peace, Love and Olive Oil

Tomingo

~~other ideas~~

`Recipes

`Observation

`Feelings