Protein Rich Raw Hummus with Sprouted Chickpeas

Spring is HERE! Have you planned your garden yet? I am sure you are all anxious to be outdoors and get your hands dirty playing with the ground! Growing your own food can be so gratifying; there is something so magical about watching a tiny seed transforming into edible, living plants and fruits. And that is not all,  cultivating your own fruits and veggies  can save you some money as well!

But what if you don’t have a garden or access to any outdoor space? I cannot think of an easier way to get your hands on some fresh, home-grown produce than creating your own little sprout garden. Sprouts and sprouted legumes are small in size but gigantic in nutritional value!

Growing any kind of sprouts is easy, cost effective and really fun for kids of all ages. One of the easiest legumes to sprout is chickpea (aka garbanzo beans).  You will be surprised how delicious  they can be even when they are not cooked!

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Zinc and the Raw Food Diet

by Joanna Beujekian-Steven

When was the last time someone asked you how you could get enough zinc in your diet? Most likely, you’ve heard concerns about protein intake, bio-available calcium and heme vs non-heme iron, but zinc is a mineral that seldom ever comes up, even though according to the National Institute of Health “Zinc is needed for the body’s defensive (immune) system to properly work. It plays a role in cell division, cell growth, wound healing, and the break down of carbohydrates . Zinc is also needed for the senses of smell and taste.” Deficiency symptoms include hairloss, slow growth, poor healing rate, depression etc. And what’s more, while we can get nearly every nutrient on a vegetarian diet as easily as or more easily than the Standard American Diet, zinc is actually a little more problematic, and as the Vegetarian Society explains, “Only 20% of the zinc present in the diet is actually absorbed by the body” due to the presence of phytic acid, which is somewhat destroyed by cooking, a process raw foodists try to avoid.

Good sources of zinc usually include liver, oysters, and other foods no vegetarian would want to include in their diet! But even while eskewing meat and animal products, we can get enough zinc. Rich plant based sources of zinc include sesame seeds (14%/oz), shiitake mushrooms (14%/oz), pumpkin seeds (14%/oz and a great source of amino acids). hemp seeds (20%/oz, a source of complete protein), tahini from whole, unroasted sesame seeds (20%/oz), cashew nuts and pine nuts (11%/oz), cacao powder (~15%/oz), avocado (10% per avocado) etc. Raw, organic seeds in general are a very good source of nutrition, and are a valuable addition to any diet.

Nutritional Data courtesy of Nutrition.com.

Here are some recipes loaded with zinc to get you started!

Warm and Frothy Hemp Cacao

This warm and comforting raw vegan version of hot chocolate will be one of your best allies during the cold winter months! Rich in iron, protein and other life-giving minerals, this is a truly powerful drink! One serving will cover nearly half of your protein needs for the entire day. I like my cacao drinks fairly dark and bitter. For a sweeter beverage, use twice as much sweetener. Use hot water for a warming hot cocoa.

Ingredients

• ¼ cup hemp seeds
• 1 cup water, warm or hot from a kettle
• 3 T cacao powder
• 2 T maple syrup or dark agave nectar
• Optional: pinch cinnamon, lucuma, mesquite, maca etc.

Directions

˜ In a blender, combine all the ingredients until smooth. Taste, and pour in a mug.

Calcium-Rich Chia Pudding

Chia seeds are an amazing source of calcium, a mineral which can be a little hard to get in sufficient quantities on a raw food diet. Add to that sesame seeds, and you’ve got more bioavailable calcium than virtually anyone would get in a bowl of dairy and cooked cereal! Sesame seeds also provide a wealth of zinc, which can be a little hard to find in a vegan diet.

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup sesame seeds
• 1 1/2 cups water
• 2-4 T agave nectar
• 1-inch vanilla bean
• 1/4 cup chia seeds
• 1/4 t cinnamon

Directions

˜ Blend the sesame seeds, water, agave, cinnamon and vanilla until smooth. Strain through a nut milk bag. Add more agave, if desired. Sesame seeds can be a bit bitter, but as the chia seeds absorb liquid, the pudding will be creamy and mellower.

˜ Stir the chia seeds in the sesame milk. Drink right away, or set aside until thickened.

Rich and Elegant Chocolate Mousse

Feel virtuous while you indulge in this decadent chocolate mousse. Loaded with antioxidants and nutrients, your energy levels will soar with every spoonful!

Ingredients (serves 2-3)

• 2/3 cup maple syrup, agave nectar, or raw honey
• 1/2 t organic vanilla extract
• 2 ripe avocados
• 1/4 c. to 1/2 c. cacao powder
• 1/8 t. Celtic sea salt
• 1 t lucuma powder
• 2-4 T water
• 2 T goji berries

Directions

˜ Blend the avocados in a food processor until smooth. Add the other ingredients except for the goji berries, and keep blending until you get a uniformly colored and fluffy mousse.

˜ Spoon the chocolate mousse into a bowl, and refrigerate for about an hour. Sprinkle with goji berries just before serving.

Thank you, Sirova Raw Foods for the recipes.

http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/002416.htm

Save Yourself! – The Second of a Three-Part Blogging Series on Money

Right, the girls are all set up with their Money-Ed boxes (for more, see my blog from last week). Check. And as part of my ongoing quest to be an inspiration to my children, not just a good example, my own finances are in order. Check.

But honey, I’m tellin’ ya that it’s been a long and bumpy ride on the road to financial serenity. It’s only in the last few years that I’ve figured most of it out. I didn’t receive pocket money as a wee bairn, so when I got my first part-time job in Grade 11, I went a little crazy. OK, a lot crazy.

Heady on the power of this marvellous thing called money, which was mine, all mine! Mwuh ha ha ha!

If I recall correctly, my very first paycheck was spent on sumptuous cherry liqueur chocolates (it’s the alcohol that made them naughty, as I was underage) from a department store called Myer. I was then suckered into applying for a Myercard, and promptly found myself living as a Leo truly should – in luxury. Top-end skincare and make-up, gorgeous clothes, more cherry liqueur chocolates, the latest LPs (yeah, this was a few years ago)…life was good. Until that blasted bill came at the end of each month.

When I look back now I could just kick myself, thinking of the money I wasted. I could have spent far less while still treating myself, investing most of the money and becoming a squillionaire by now! But hey, life is for learning.

“Breathe Jo, breathe.”

What is it with (many) women and money?

We’re empowered in so many areas of our lives, yet oftentimes the thought of sorting out our finances leads us to curl up in the fetal position, sticking thumb in mouth and allowing a look of abject terror to sully our ’til-then blissfully serene faces.

It really, really, really doesn’t have to be this way.

We just have to have the courage to face our relationship with money. It reveals much about the way we live in other areas of our lives – for example, if we fritter away our money, then it’s highly likely we also fritter away our time. For me, at least, that was true, and sometimes it still can be.

I’ve read many books over the years, searching for the best ways to get my finances in order. Being a fairly organized person, I was always good at drawing up budgets, but I tended to over budget for ‘extras’ and not budget enough for long-term savings.

Most books gave me a pretty good grounding in investment strategies, ways to generate money, etc, etc., but then along came a book that gave me one of those good old ‘a-ha’ moments – The Energy of Money by Maria Nemeth, PhD. Wow! Powerful stuff. Maria quotes Joseph Campbell, who said ‘Money is congealed energy, and releasing it releases life’s possibilities’.

Although Maria is a psychologist, this was the first book I’d read that really linked money and spirituality, and that showed how to clear yourself to receive energy and support. You definitely have to face up to your patterns and beliefs, and to ’fess up to sometimes painful past money mistakes.

It’s so liberating to do that!

But you also have to have compassion for yourself. Maria even makes the link between ‘ism’ issues – such as workaholism and perfectionism – and how we allow these issues to avoid facing our realities. If you’re feeling brave, I’d highly recommend getting your hands on a copy of this life-changing book. It helps you see how the use of money’s energy can help bring you in alignment with your life’s intentions.

Another winning book, published more recently, is by the unstoppable force that is Suze Orman – Women & Money: Owning the Power to Control Your Destiny. She gets it. She knows that money can be a tough issue for women, and that we’d rather put our heads in the sand than face this far-reaching area of our lives.

I so love her intention with this book – she wants to empower women so that they will teach their daughters, and they their daughters… Of course we can be good with money! Of course we can have that power!

This book gives you heaps of straight-talkin’ nuts-and-bolts information about the importance of having a will, of having eight months’ salary saved, of not relying on a partner always being there, of how to invest for your retirement, and so much more – and it even, generously, includes an access code to information on her website, with more-detailed resources.

I love her chapter ‘Eight Qualities of a Wealthy Woman’, and that she offers ‘Cleanliness’ as one of these qualities – meaning that you should respect your life and your money (even arranging the latter neatly in your purse).

So, the Money-Ed boxes are in place. The girls have a good start. They also have me as their inspiration, and so will hopefully avoid some of those mad money moments that plagued my youth.

That is, as long as I can keep them away from cherry liqueur chocolates.