Eating on the Run: Gluten Free, Dairy Free Healthy Fast Food

You can indeed eat healthy foods on the run.  In our class Healthy Fast Foods, we demonstrate how to make quick and easy meals using 100% fresh whole, gluten free, dairy free, sugar free  whole fresh foods.   That’s for when you’re in a hurry and at home.

Sometimes you’re on the road and you just don’t have the tools or foods to whip up a quick meal.  That’s when having handy- dandy convenience packages of super foods comes in handy.  On today’s video you’ll see a show and tell form my trip to the health food store in search of high nutrient density fast food.

Take a peek:

Question for YOU! What are your favorite on the run healthy fast foods?

Comment Below.

Love, Health and Joy To You,

Dr. Ritamarie

Raw Foods Recipe for Bone Building Sesame Ginger Coleslaw

I love creating new  delicious health enhancing gluten free recipes, raw food recipes and recipes loaded with nutrients that support various organs and glands.   Today I’m going to tell you about Sesame Ginger Cole Slaw, a dish that is not only  raw and  gluten free, but also is very good for your bones.  Since osteoporosis is becoming an epidemic among women over 40, the more you can do on a daily basis to support bone health, the better.

In April 2011 we hosted a class  “Eating for Bone Health”, that is now available as a video. (http://www.drritamarie.com/rawfoodsuniversity).  In that course material we provided detailed lists of bone building nutrients and gluten free dishes that supports healthy bones, along with other gluten free recipes and videos of both information presentation and preparation of the recipes.   Since then, I’ve been experimenting with adding bone fortification to all my recipes. Today I would like to share a delicious summer picnic recipe for bone building Cole slaw.

In addition to supporting healthy and strong bone development, it’s loaded with antioxidants that fight cancer and contribute to hormone balance.

Sesame Ginger Cole Slaw

Ingredients

• 1 small red and 1 small green  green cabbage
• 4-5 carrots
• ½ – 1 bunch of dark greens, like kale, collards, bok choy, chard or spinach.
• Sprinkle of whole, unrefined salt
• ½ cup sesame tahini
• 1-2 inch piece of fresh ginger, depending on how much you like ginger
• juice of 1-2 lemons or limes, depending on size
• 5-10 pitted prunes, depending on how sweet you like it
• ½ teaspoon kelp powder, or more to taste
• ½ teaspoon salt (optional)
• ¼ cup of unpasteurized vinegar. I used coconut vinegar, and apple cider works well too.

Directions

1. Finely shred cabbage and carrots and place in a large bowl.
2. Finely chop greens  and place in bowl with cabbage and carrots. Shredded broccoli stems are a nice addition too.
3. Sprinkle with whole, unrefined salt and massage well to break down the cell walls and tenderize the vegetables. If you are on a salt restricted diet, rinse to remove the extra salt.
4. Blend tahini, ginger, lemon or lime juice, prunes, kelp powder, salt (optional) and  vinegar.
5. Pour sauce over vegetables and adjust seasonings to your preferences. If you like it sweeter, blend a couple more prunes or some dates with a small amount of water to a smooth paste and add to slaw. If desired, add a handful of sesame seeds for garnish and extra calcium.

This yummy dish and is good for your bones, is loaded with cancer fighting sulforaphanes and hormone balancing indole-3-carbinol and iodine to feed your thyroid. Enjoy it and share it with your friends using the Facebook and twitter links below.

Please use the comment field below to let me know what your favorite bone building foods are. To submit your recipes for inclusion on a blog post or in my newsletter, visit

http://www.drritamarie.com/newslettercontributions/

Love, Health and Joy,

Dr. Ritamarie

Raw Food Recipes:Gluten Free, Dairy Free Chocolate Pie & Cole Slaw

Earlier today, I polished off the last of the decadently delicious gluten free, dairy free and sugar free chocolate pudding pie and no-mayonaisse coleslaw I made Saturday evening for my son Kevin’s baseball party and I’m still smacking my lips.

These recipes are made with all raw food ingredients and are super easy and quick to make.  Enjoy Simply Divine Chocolate Pudding Pie and Quick and Easy Coleslaw, naturally high Omega 3 fats.  It tastes better than the deli style coleslaw I had as a kid.

Quick and Easy Cole Slaw

Ingredients:

• 1 bag organic broccoli slaw mix (or you can shred 1 broccoli stem, ½ small cabbage and 1 carrot
• ¼ cup hemp seeds
• ¼ cup sesame seeds
• 1/8 cup apple cider vinegar or lemon juice
• ½ cup water
• 2 pitted medjool dates
• 3/4 teaspoons salt
• 1/4  teaspoon garlic granules
• 1 inch piece of ginger (optional)

Directions:

1. Put the shredded slaw mix in a bowl.
2. In a blender, combine the remaining ingredients until smooth.

Notes: Add a little extra water if necessary to help it blend.

Additional picnic recipes are available in our class Picnic Foods and Barbecue for Gluten Free and Living Foods Diets

Ingredients:

Crust

• 1/2 cup dried shredded coconut
• ½ cup raisins
• 1/2 cup pecans
• ½ cup hazelnuts

Filling

• 1 cup medjool dates, pitted
• 1/2  teaspoon ground vanilla beans or vanilla extract
• ¼ teaspoon almond extract
• ¼ cup coconut cream or coconut butter
• ¼ cup macadamia nuts or additional ¼ cup coconut cream
• 1/3 cup raw organic cacao powder

Directions:

1.    Make crust: Process the coconut, raisins, pecans and hazel nuts in a food processor until well combined, nuts coarsely ground and it begins to hold together.   Be careful not to over process to nut butter.

2.    Remove from processor and press into an 8 inch tart pan or pie pan.

3.    Put the remaining ingredients in a high speed blender.

4.    Blend until smooth, adding extra water if needed until it’s thick and creamy like pudding.

5.    Pour the filling into the crust.

6.    Refrigerate or freeze to allow it to become firm.

Additional Dessert Recipes are in the book Dessert:  Making it Rich Without Oil

Be sure to comment below and answer my question for today:  Which is more important to you, how the food tastes or how nutritious it is for your body?

Gluten Free Recipes for Raw Food Diet Picnic and Barbecue Foods

Here’s a sampling of the gluten free, raw foods recipes we’ll teach you how to make in our Picnic and Barbecue class.

Gluten Free Raw Food "Not Dogs"

 

Gluten Free Raw Food Recipe for Veggie Burger with Bun

Cole Slaw

Jicama "Potato" Salad

Strawberry Short Cake

Go HERE to signup and learn to make these moth watering   summer picnic foods in our class “Picnic Foods and Barbeque for Gluten Free and Living Foods Diets. ” Enjoy Your Favorite Summer Celebration Foods Without Expanding Your Waistline and Draining Your Energy.  Learn to Create Mouth Watering, Nutritious, Easy to Make Picnic and Barbeque Foods Using Gluten-Free, Dairy-Free, Sugar-Free, Trans-Fat Free Raw and Living Ingredients.

The Dangers That Lurk in Your Usual Picnic Fare

Given the research linking processed meat and stomach cancer, refined grains, and mayonnaise to immune system disease, you would be wise to consider alternatives this year.

Whether you’re the host or the guest, it’s easy to whip up healthy picnic foods that everyone will enjoy, all while achieving the lean, strong, clear headed body you desire.

Our picnic foods look and taste so much like the “real thing”, you’ll shock your guests and delight your health conscious crowd if you tell them the ingredients. Made with gluten free, dairy free, sugar free whole fresh living plant ingredients, these light and delicious picnic foods will be the hit of the party.

Here’s what’s in Oscar Meyer, a popular brand of hotdog:

“Mechanically separated chicken, pork, water, corn syrup, modified food starch, contains 2% or less of salt, flavoring, potassium lactate, sodium lactate, sodium phosphates, dextrose, sodium diacetate, beef, hydrolyzed soy protein, sodiuerthorbate, sugar, sodium nitrite, sorbitol, extract of paprika“.

Contrast that to our “hot dog” ingredients:

“Raw organic nuts, paprika, onion powder, garlic powder, psyllium, Irish moss (a sea vegetable loaded with minerals), salt“.

In the book “Grocery Warning” , Mike Adams reports that “Feeding children hot dogs increases their risk of brain cancer by 300%” and many other startling facts about hot dogs.

In our class

We’ll teach you how to make whole, gluten-free, dairy-free raw and living foods versions of classic summer picnic food that wow your friends and leave even your guests satisfied and well nourished. The good news is you can make these foods quickly, no heat required.

• Instead of greasy burgers that clog your arteries and cancer promoting hotdogs on white flour buns that rob your energy and throw your blood sugar off balance, we’ll show you how to make delicious energy boosting plant based alternatives, loaded with antioxidant rich vegetables.
• Instead of mayonnaise smothered potato salad and coleslaw that increase your waistline and damage your immune system, learn to make our scrumptious health enhancing alternatives, rich in cancer protective, immune boosting omega 3 fats.

Join us for Picnic Foods and Barbeque for Gluten Free and Living Foods Diets. ” Learn:

• How to replace processed, high fat, low nutrient processed picnic foods with whole fresh food equivalents
• Methods to easily transform fresh veggies, herbs and nuts or seeds into delicious burgers and hot dogs
• Easy ways to make condiments that rival your old favorites: mayonnaise, mustard and ketchup, using whole fresh foods and NO sugar , hydrogenated fats or corn syrup
• How to make burger and hot dog buns without gluten or flour
• A quick and easy way to make onion rings to top your burgers or eat as a side – without deep frying or even cooking for that matter!
• How to make combine wholesome ingredients to create a guilt free dessert.

You can come to the live and in person class, watch  live  via the internet or view the videos after.

Love, Health and Joy,

Dr. Ritamarie

Gluten Free Diet and Behavior Problems

I spend my days teaching people how to achieve vibrant health, reverse disease, balance their hormones, sharpen their minds  and raise healthy kids on a nutrient dense, whole, unprocessed fresh organic food…preferably gluten-free diet.  I’ve raised my kids on whole foods since birth and as a result they have experienced amazing health and strength.

You can imagine my shock and horror at the news I heard about my younger son,  soon to be 13 years old.

Over the last few weeks we’ve been getting calls and emails from several of his teachers about his behavior.  It seems that he’s been having trouble focusing and has been goofing around with a couple of buddies.  We’ve talked to him, tried to figure out if there’s something upsetting him, blamed puberty and hormones and suspected a gluten exposure.

Yesterday his teacher called again and I asked if she’d seen him eating anything he wasn’t supposed to have, like gluten, dairy or sugar.  She seemed surprised that we kept him away from those foods.  I was surprised that she was surprised because we’d met with the cafeteria and alerted those in charge of his dietary restrictions.

What a shock to get a call from him today saying that his teacher saw him with pizza on his cafeteria tray and told him to throw it away and call home!

In further investigating with the cafeteria, we were informed that he’s been buying chips, cookies and pizza  for over a month…in spite of the fact that we’d had them register his dietary restrictions in their computer program…and they have perfectly acceptable vegan alternatives…beans, brown rice, potatoes, vegetables, fruit, veggie burgers!

It’s frustrating and embarrassing!

The good news is the time frame during which he’ been eating pizza almost exactly lines up with the time frame for the behavior problems!  Even his older bother has been complaining about his behavior over the last month!

Before we put him on a  gluten free diet, Kevin was what I would call oppositional.  Very defiant.  Hard to get him to sit still and listen to what we needed him to do.  After removing gluten, he became noticeably calmer and more present – more mature.

So now he’s taking the stand “It’s my body.  I can do what I want.”  SO NOW what?

We told him when he’s out on his own and paying his own bills, that’s true, but our money goes towards good healthy foods not junk food pizza!  Plus we need to help him be successful at school and food is a big part of it!

Our older son, now 17, was always such a dream about food…still is…so we never even imagined we’d have a challenge with Kevin!

I guess he’s going to have to be a student in our June “Kids in the Kitchen Class” and meet other kids his age working on a whole foods diet.

I believe we are challenged with what we most need to learn.  Perhaps I am on the verge of breakthrough strategies for motivating kids to eat healthy food.

Sad part about this whole thing is I make the BEST pizza and all the kids I’ve fed it to love it!  Why not my kid?  Hopefully he’s satisfied his curiosity and when he gets back on his regular diet, he’ll notice such a profound difference he’ll be hooked!  A mom can only hope!

We’ve canceled his lunch account and he’ll be bringing his lunch again.  Kids his age hate that, yet it seems the only way.  He lost the privilege.

I’d love to hear stories from other moms  and am also open to advice!!!!  Teach the teacher!

Please comment below.

Love, Health and Joy,

Dr. Ritamarie