The Green Fairy Returns
I find that kale salad is peace on the earth that is my body.
I imagine my blood humming with pleasure whenever I eat kale salad. I eat it so often that I had to change it up for variety. One of my favorite variations on the theme - what shall I call it - Cilantro Ginger Kale Salad.
I have taken to making large salads. They don’t last as long as you would think, because everyone eats them up so quickly.
Use one or 2 bunches of kale and 1 bunch of cilantro
Dressing:
1/2 inch square to 1 inch square of young ginger, chopped very fine
1 clove of garlic, chopped very fine or crushed through a garlic press
Juice of 1/2 lemon or 1 lime
1/4 c olive oil
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp ground cayenne
It is important to remember that the proportions in the dressing should be adjusted to taste and to the size of the salad. If you are using a LOT of greens, you may need to add a little more olive oil and lemon. This salad is no fun if it is dry. Kale leaves need to be dressed and pressed into submission for eating. When it is done right, it is a very satisfying salad, so don’t get caught up in trying to skimp on the olive oil.
Pour the dressing over the chopped greens and mix it in by squeezing. The squeezing softens the kale and distributes the dressing well.
Add tomatoes after mixing OR if your dressing is too lemony, add some chopped tomatoes before you mix by squeezing. This neutralizes the lemon taste somewhat and balances it out.
Remember: Green is gorgeous!
Tags: alkaline diet, alternative health, digestive, Food Cures, health, healthy, healthy food, Healthy Foods, healthy recipes, kale, meals, natural remedies, preventative foods, vegetables, well being
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Chew your food
Yes we hear it over and over again, but which of us remembers or has the diligence to follow through?
It is a challenge - but ever so necessary. Improper digestion is an extremely common problem, creating many sorts of symptoms.
One of the simplest ways to improve your digestion is to chew your food. That is what you were meant to do! Some foods are partially digested by saliva, so a few chomps and gnawings aren’t going to do it. The food must mix with the saliva. They do say you should chew every bite 50 times. Well, see if you can do 25. Make sure your saliva mixes with your food - that is how the digestion in the mouth works.
I find it impossible to chew enough unless I count chews. I expect that I won’t always have to do this, but old habits die hard, and until I am used to chewing completely, counting works fine. This might seem strange - but what else are you doing when you eat. How many of us love eating but sacrifice the actual experience by talking, reading, watching tv at the same time. Why not fully enjoy your food? If you are eating something you don’t fully enjoy, why?
Counting does not take the pleasure out of eating - it actually enhances the eating experience, because you are attending to eating rather than a tv program, a book, a conversation, an email, a cereal box.
Food is an essential part of our existence - don’t be afraid to rethink it!
Interesting things may occur to you as you chew.
For instance, I discovered that there is a huge difference between organic chicken and some kinds of..well..non-organic - the kind you might get in a restaurant of any sort.
In this example the non-organic quickly got mealy and unpleasant as I chewed, while the organic free-range chicken maintained good flavor and texture.
Dr. Isabelle A. Moser in her health book, How and When to Be Your Own Doctor, cites an experiment performed on a military population in Canada by Horace Fletcher. He required half his experimental group to chew thoroughly, and the other half to gulp things down as usual. His study reports significant improvement in the overall health and performance of the group that persistently chewed.
And saving the best for last — Proper chewing helps with weight loss.
Tags: , chewing, cleansing, health, healthy food
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About me
Greetings and thank you for coming. My name is Stefanie Naifeh and I am a professional singer and Trapeze artist. I am also now 42 years old. These two professions require very good health. A voice shows any unhealthful lifestyle choices transparently. I started training as a trapeze artist at the age of 27 and began working a year and a half later. I simply can’t live a careless lifestyle and at the same time stay fit and healthy and glowing. I have to take care of myself, and I think I do a pretty good job of it.
Throughout my life I have had difficulties with allergies, digestion, health. I didn’t even notice I had these problems for years because my unhealth just seemed “normal.”
I remember at the age of 20, before I really realized I had any chronic health problems, that I became interested in herbal remedies. This was at a time when big grocery stores had never heard of Echinecea and Goldenseal supplements. I read and read and experimented contstantly, making my own tinctures and even little pills from herbs I would get from the funky old health food store in Santa Monica, California.
Over the years I would try many kinds of cures and approaches to health and healing. (Probably, at times, much to the exasperation of friends and loved ones, whom I encouraged to try everything I was “into.”)
Nowadays I am much more shy about giving advice, but friends and family encourage me to speak of my experiences, my ideas, my ways. I seek and settle on simpler approaches and practices.
The biggest challenge I faced occurred when, at the age of 25, I found out I was allergic to wheat and gluten. This meant no bread, no pasta, no muffins, donuts…you get the picture. Later I also discovered difficulty digesting corn (tortillas, tomales, etc). How can someone live without those things! Then I found out I had a bad case of Candida (the digestive tract kind).
Except for Dr. Gruenn in Santa Monica, I never really got useful help from the medical profession. I had to figure it all out for the most part. It is an ongoing process. Some dietary changes did seem to cure me, but I could not sustain them. I am still seeking.
The purpose of my website it to share what I have found to be important basic information and practices with regard to health, well being, eating, digestion, energy, beauty, living. I try to sift through the barrage of conflicting confusing information that is out there, and pass on some common sense and my own experience trying things in creating simple codified bits of helpful hints.
If you like, you can comment on my thoughts and tell me of your experiences.
Tags: advice, age, breakfast, candida, cleansing, digestion, Food Cures, gluten, grocery, healing, healthy food, singer, Trapeze, water
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