EASY JUICE-BASED MEALS

  This week I took lunch with me to work instead of eating out (in which cases I mostly eat plain salad with soy sauce and bread). I came up with a simple plan how to fix both breakfast and lunch simultaneously in two steps.

Cucumber-avocado soup with wholemeal spelt flatbread.

Step 1: The previous evening make two juices. One is fruit-based for breakfast the next morning, and the other veggie-based for lunch the next day. Store in air-tight glass jars in the fridge.

Step 2: In the morning Vitamix your fruit juice with a big bunch of green leaves until creamy and smooth. Voilá, your breakfast is ready!
            Now Vitamix your veggie juice with one ripe avocado until creamy and smooth. Voilá, your lunch is ready! Pour back in the glass jar and take to work.

The beauty in juicing is that you can combine nearly anything together, and still come up with a nice taste. Natural tastes of fruits and veggies are so subtle that they mix well. I usually buy whatever is in season in the grocery store, and either make single juices or combinations according to my imagination. It´s all good for me!

  Now that I´ve been juicing mostly every day for a month, I can honestly say I´m feeling the difference. It is simple to put it in a nutshell: I feel satisfied. Never did think a thin cup of liquid could fill me up, but it does! It is a different, new kind of fullness I can feel in my throat rather than stomach. When I´ve had enough, the thought of more food & juice starts to feel repulsive. And it takes a lot longer to feel hungry again than before. I´d like to think it is because of the abundant amount of nutrients I´m getting now. No matter what the reason, I feel better and stronger now.
  I´d had a juicer for  years and years, but never did I drink juices this much and regularly. The biggest reason for that was that my old juicer didn´t extract as much juice from the same amount of produce as my new one, making more go to waste.

This is apple juice blended with two leaves of kale. Kale makes a nice, thick froth.

3/4 cucumber juice, 1/4 apple juice blended with 1 small avocado. Needs no salt.

  I´m impressed by the power of juice!

EATING PLAN FOR OSTARA

  This plan leans on whole grains, veggies and legumes. The baseline drawn from macrobiotics, but including less salty foods, as they tend to make me retain water. Also noticeable is that I´m returning back to work (tomorrow!), so speed is another important factor here.

8am Breakfast: 
2 cups (1/2 liter) kukicha tea with soymilk
3 big rice cakes with coconut butter and honey

Pasta and bolognese cooking up for on Monday. Two kettles, one for whole wheat pasta and the other for gluten-free kind for my son.

12pm Lunch:
2 cups (1/2 liter) bancha tea plain
Mon: pasta bolognese (with tvp=textured vegetable protein crumble, not meat)
Tue: vegetable-flat breads
Wed: tofu stir-fry & brown rice
Thu: tortillas with beans
Fri: pizza (vegan & low fat without cheese)
Sat: pancakes (including finely grated veggie like carrots)
Sun: miso soup with tofu

Creamy oat porridge with raisins and mulberries.

4pm Dinner:
2 cups (1/2 liter) kukicha tea with soymilk
oat porridge with raisins/honey/jam

7pm Supper:
apples

  The times given are merely approximate, and need to be adjusted to each day´s needs. This eating plan acts as a strong stem when planning my grocery shopping list. If I want to improvise, so be it, but with this in mind I won´t have to do the daily pondering of "what shall we eat today".

QUICK & EASY MACROBIOTIC BREAKFAST

  On busy mornings I don´t want to put any more time into making breakfast than is necessary. This meal follows the macrobiotic food recommendations, therefore being super healthy, but takes hardly any time to fix.

Big rice cakes topped with miso, cucumbers, nori sprinkle, and yeast flakes (my personal favorite, which tastes like cheese and contains lots of B vitamins) accompanied by 2 cups of bancha tea with soymilk.

  That´s a lot to eat but contains little calories. I can´t seem to cut down portion sizes, I rather cut down on calorie density. =)

MISO SOUP

  It is so much fun trying out new recipes! I´m exploring the macrobiotic way of eating now, and today made miso soup for breakfast. It takes a bit of getting used to, eating soup in the morning, but it tasted good and was warm and comforting, not to mention healthy.

Tofu and zucchini in miso-nori broth. (Seaweed is something I´ve never liked. I´ve tried it several times, and it usually makes me gag. BUT now I found untoasted green nori flakes, which are fine. I sprinkle them on almost anything, and when kept in small amounts, I don´t mind the taste. Cool!)

  The recipe (serves 1):

3 oz. (100g) tofu, cubed
1/2 zucchini (or any veggie you have in the fridge, like cabbage or carrots,) chopped roughly
1/2 clove garlic, grated
1 tsp dried green nori flakes
1 tsp dark brown rice miso
soy sauce, to your liking
water

+ Place zucchini and some water in a pot and bring to a boil. Let simmer for a few minutes, then turn off the heat. Add the rest of the ingredients and let warm for another minute or two.
  Serve with plain green tea and rice cakes.

  I´m used to eating sweet breakfasts rather than savory, so for me this is quite different. Not weird, but different. It feels like in the morning anything goes, as opposed to the evening when I seem to need sweet foods. Savory just does not satisfy in the evening, but for breakfast it´s a great alternative!

EATING PLAN FOR IMBOLC

  Taking a leap towards macrobiotics again. After eating raw foods for months, my body craves cooked grain now. And since I´ve always been a fan of intuitive eating, I trust macrobiotic-like food being good for me now. Variety is always good.

A basic macrobiotic-style breakfast. Oatmeal sprinkled with green nori flakes, small green salad, and kukicha tea.

  Ten years ago I bought my first ever macrobiotic cookbook. It was informative, even too much so, but it left me confused and not knowing how to proceed. The recipes were not mouthwatering either, so I buried the book in the shelf for years.
  The second macrobiotic book I ever bought was "Mayumi´s Kitchen". So much easier to read and follow, but it was not hard core macrobiotic, and after all did not differ that much from ordinary vegan eating. But it was interesting and a good experience.
  Now I´m eagerly waiting for my copy of "Changing Seasons". Until it arrives, I glimpse at the online version of it.

Purple cabbage-celery-apple salad with yogurt-ginger-mint dressing.

  I´m taking a relaxed approach to macrobiotics by focusing on whole grains or whole meal, home made products like porridge and bread. Along with grain I´ll eat both raw and cooked vegetables. Some fruit and vegan sources of protein accompany the previous, but not even every day. What I will add to my daily menu is small portions of seaweed, miso, and fermented cucumbers. White sugar is eliminated, but more natural sweeteners such as dates and honey can be used in moderation. That about wraps it.

Wholemeal pasta with carrot-parsnip-rosemary sauce and fermented pickles.

  Since I´m a girl with a major sweet tooth, this will be an experience to me. On weekends I will indulge in chocolate or candy, but otherwise I try to reduce my sugar intake. How awesome would it be to live sugar-free Mon-Fri?!

Wholemeal spelt bread dough on the way.

The plan: is to eat whatever low-fat grain-vegetable dish I want at any time of day. I will test and learn from the suggested 7-day meal plans of "Changing Seasons" macrobiotic cookbook, but I will also use other sources of vegan recipes, altering them if needed to lower fat content and increase wholeness in grains.

Chocolate-zucchini cake sweetened with dates.

  Meal times follow those of my diabetic ten-year-old son´s healthy ones:
 8-9am breakfast
12pm lunch
4pm dinner
7pm supper

    Yum, healthy Imbolc!

EATING PLAN FOR YULE

  Evolution has brought me to this:

Breakfast:
1 cup green tea w/ soymilk
2 cups freshly squeezed vegetable/fruit juice
1 banana topped with coconut oil and honey

There´s cucumber, celery, and apple in this glass.

Lunch:
1 cup water w/ Echinacea drops
raw food meal of choice

Tzatziki dip with veggie sticks is a great lunch option.

Dinner:
1 cup green tea w/ soymilk
2-3 cups green smoothie/pudding

Cinnamon-flavored green pudding. Made of spinach, banana, avocado, water, honey, cinnamon, and vanilla. I left the banana a bit chunky for something to bite on.

  If/when I get hungry in the evening after eating all three meals of the day, I´ll grab fresh fruits and veggies to fill me up.

  This plan combines raw foodism and principles of Clean eating by dr. Alejandro Junger (where he recommends eating two liquid meals and one solid meal per day)

  All the above examples happen to be green, but that´s not the intention (except for the green pudding of course =). I use mostly seasonal veggies and fruits as the base of all meals, bulking them up with avocado, coconut oil, and occasional cold smoked salmon or goat´s cheese. I´d love to eat an all-raw vegan diet, but at least for now my stomach doesn´t agree with nuts & seeds. A girl´s gotta do what a girl´s gotta do... which is enjoy this nutrient and enzyme rich fresh diet for the next six weeks or so!

I HATE KALE- GREEN CHOCOLATE SMOOTHIE

  My ten-year-old son hates vegetables. Cucumber and potatoes are the only things he´ll eat without a suffering face. But behold, Vitamix to the rescue! I have found a sneaky way to incorporate raw leafy greens into his diet, without him refusing one bit. In fact, he now asks for kale almost daily!

Chocolate smoothie, what a perfect way to start the day (and hide greens)!

A high-speed blender makes an unbelievably creamy and smooth texture. This stuff is very different from the produce of an "ordinary" blender, that leaves the smoothie more or less chunky.

The recipe (serves 1):

1-2 handfuls of kale (or other leafy greens)
1 banana
5 medjool dates
1-2 Tbsp cacao nibs
vanilla
3 tsp cacao powder
1/2 avocado
1-2 cups soymilk (for him, for myself I use water)

+ Blend everything until creamy and smooth.

This is satisfying and filling, and keeps us all going until lunch time.

TODAY´S GREEN SMOOTHIE

  This is the third day of gulping down masses of green smoothie. Here´s what nourished me today:

Looks delicious like this too, but I would not enjoy eating the greens whole. Blending magically makes the tough greens "disappear", and what´s left is a sweet fruity flavor.

A two-quart (liter) pitcher full of green gold... heavenly.

Here we go again! Yum!

The recipe for "Tummy Settler" by Victoria Boutenko (makes 2 quarts/liters):

3 cups romaine lettuce
1 cup parsley
3 cups pineapple chunks
2 bananas
3 cups water

+ Blend all until smooth.

EATING PLAN FOR SAMHAIN

 My stomach has gotten picky lately, so I´ll have to make some changes to my usual eating habits. It is unhappy with cooked vegetables, nuts and seeds (much fat in any form), and legumes. I don´t know why, and how long it´ll last, but for now I need to replace those foods with something else.
  So here is a brand new, healthy and slimming, eating plan for Samhain, with a new perspective. It now includes some organic dairy and even fish once a week.

 9.00am Breakfast:
 a cup of green tea
 a green pudding made with leafy greens, fruit, and vegetables

Green pudding made with dinosaur kale, zucchini, banana, and water.

1.00pm Lunch:
a cup of water + 20 drops of Echinacea extract
raw-food meal + an avocado, or 3.5 oz. (100g) cold smoked salmon (once a week), or 7 oz.(200 g) cottage cheese

A sample lunch of veggie dip, the sauce made with either avocado or organic sour cream.

4.00pm Tea:
a cup of green tea
a generous cup of flavored yogurt

Yes, dinner is really this simple, a bowl of yogurt. This one is apple & cinnamon flavored. It provides some fat, protein, and good bacteria for the gut, and acts as dessert for the day. Going cold turkey with sugar does not work for me. This much I allow myself.

7.00pm Snack:
a cup of green tea
1-2 apples

9.00pm Nightcap:
a cup of herbal infusion + soymilk
(and raw vegetables if hungry)

Saturdays: feel free to eat your favorite foods!

  This plan bases on one I created when I was sixteen, and lost nearly twenty pounds with it. I was way too skinny then, but luckily soon I left for the U.S. for a year as an exchange student, which fixed the problem more than enough. =)
  I use Erica Palmcrantz-Aziz´s book to guide me with the daily lunches. It keeps the menus varied and interesting without having to think for myself. =)

  I hope my stomach will agree with this plan, as it did twenty years ago. Wow.

BACK TO PRE-BABY WEIGHT?

  Okay, it´s settled. I will try to see if I can get back to my pre-baby weight after nearly eleven years!
  There is about seven pounds (3,5 kg) to drop, so it´s not that much really. But I guess mentally it makes a bigger difference. My BMI is now 21.0 and my goal is to drop it to 20.0. No more, I do not want to be skeletal.

  While getting ready for the lingerie photo shoot I came up with this plan for weightloss. It allows big portions of food, but restricts calorie dense foods to about 1200 kcal a day. Also apart from my usual lifestyle, I did some exercise. As a result I did see progress in less than two weeks!
  Here´s the plan:

Eating:
Include: grains, legumes, nuts & seeds, some eggs, berries, apples, and vegetables. Exclude: dairy, meats, seafood, sugar and fruit. Grains, eggs, and legumes cooked, everything else raw.

Apples grow here locally, and are now in season, so they are on my menu. Berries are the only other sweetish ingredient allowed, thanks to their locality. 

- Breakfast choices:
1. Viking porridge
2. Yogurt

- Lunch choices:
1. 2-egg omelet + 5oz. (150g) corn + raw veggies on top of the cooked omelet
2.  a generous cup (3dl) cooked pasta + 1/2 avocado +  raw vegetable sauce
3. raw vegetable soup + 1/2 avocado + 3 slices of wholemeal bread
4. vegetable salad + 1/2 avocado + 3 slices of wholemeal bread
5. a snug cup (bulging 2dl) cooked brown rice + 1/2 avocado + raw stir fry
6. a home made scone (2oz. (60g) wholemeal flour + pinch of salt + 1/4 tsp baking powder + 1/2 cup (bulging 1dl) finely shredded zucchini/carrot etc. + water. Combine all, adding water enough to reach a thick batter. Form into a flat round on baking sheet and bake at 440F (225C) for 15-20 min.).
7. 1 lb (400g) cooked potatoes + mustard/margarine/soy sauce + raw vegetable pieces

- Dinner choices:
Make a double batch for lunch and eat the other half for dinner to save time in cooking.

- Supper choices:
The same as breakfast.

Salt is used sparingly, but herbs in abundance. Cayenne pepper sprinkled here and there.

  All the above meals contain about 350 kcal, and if extra hungry, it is possible to have a fifth meal per day without gaining weight.
  Saturdays are the days off of the plan. Then I can indulge in anything I have craved during the healthy week. I have a massive sweet tooth, and it is utopia to think I´ll never eat sweets again. One day a week for the sake of staying clean for the rest.  

  Exercise:

On rainy days I feel heavy and soaked like this bumblebee, but I will need to overcome the uninviting feeling for a greater cause...

  Inspired by this I will do some jogging 3-4 times a week plus 30 min. walking (or other light exercise) twice a week. While preparing for the shoot I did 5min. walking for warm up, then 1min. jogging + 1min. walking x 15, followed by another 5min. walking for cool down. It worked.
  Now I´m doing 2min. jogging + 1min. walking x 10. Next step will be 3min. jogging + 1min. walking. Minute by minute rising the amount of jogging, keeping the total in 30min. so it does not become too time-consuming.

Light and pretty as a butterfly in the end?

   I will try to follow the plan until my BMI is that set 20.0. I have no idea how long it will take, but the firmer I am able to stick with the plan, the sooner I will see results.

  If I ever reach the goal, my pre-baby weight, it will be interesting to see what it would take to stay there. But I´m not there yet, so I´ll worry about that later. =)
  Now I´m off to the new start!

LEMONY GINGER YOGURT

  The past ten days I have been getting ready for a photo shoot (which is tomorrow), in which I am to wear some evening wear and lingerie. I do occasional modeling, but never did I think I would be asked to do lingerie! It is both scary and an honor. And if I survive through it, my self esteem should rise up a few (hundred) notches.

  This yogurt has been one of my favorite breakfasts/suppers during my slim down era. It has no salt in it, so it does not retain water in my tissues. Viking porridge serves the same purpose, and has been on my daily menu too.

My whole breakfast today. Yogurt and green tea.

Plain soy yogurt flavored with lemon zest, fresh ginger, and lemon balm. Needs no sweetener.

  The recipe (for one):

2 cups plain soy yogurt
zest of 1/2 lemon, grated finely
1 inch piece of fresh ginger, grated finely
a sprig of lemon balm, leaves minced finely

+Mix all and feel good!
  This yogurt has helped me lose some flab in just ten days. It works.

  Sometimes I wonder why I have to challenge myself, push my limits, find new experiences, to broaden my mind. Beforehand it can be nerve wrecking, like right now. But by tomorrow at this time I will be one big experience richer and wiser. I would not have it any other way! Life is for living, to the fullest, exploring, and learning.

SUPER HEALTHY VIKING PORRIDGE

  Vikings were fierce and strong folk, who even sailed to America way before Columbus. One of their power meals was "the Viking porridge". A porridge made of grains and seeds.

  Here´s my version of their superfood, including no dried modern ingredients we know as "superfoods".  (I´m not a fan of such long shelf life products that we were perfectly happy without before, and which have not made the masses any slimmer and thus happier so far. Call me a sceptic in this matter if you will.  =)

Oatmeal with local berries and pumpkin seeds.

Gooseberries fresh from the garden, and rolled oats fresh from the local farmer. No sugar or salt.

 The recipe (for one):

1/2 cup (generous 1 dl) rolled oats
1 cup (2,5 dl) water
a splash of soymilk
1/2-1 cup (1-2 dl) seasonal berries
0.7 oz (20 grams) seeds/nuts

+ (I´m lazy and make mine in the microwave oven.) Mix the oats and water in a deep plate and pop it in the micro oven, full heat, for 3 min. Stir and let rest for some minutes. Stir again and add as much milk as you like (I like mine rather runny). Top with berries and seeds.
 The berries taste surprisingly sweet when there are no other strong flavors disturbing the taste buds.

  Without the seeds there are less calories, but also the lot will not keep you satisfied as long. This meal, a viking porridge, keeps me feeling calm but energetic and gets me going until the next meal easily.
  The calorie content is approx. 300. I don´t usually care about calories, but now I have a small project to get ready for. I do occasional modeling, and today my agency informed me that I was chosen to do a lingerie shoot next week. I have never done lingerie before, and that´s wrecking my nerves! So I want to look my best, or should I say do what I can during these few days before the shoot. This porridge is my staple breakfast now (I moved the original omelette for a lunch option).

TOO SOUR

 In my eating plan for Lammas I decided to have a cleansing morning drink consisting of water, lemon juice, ginger, and cayenne pepper. Now that´s a tasty drink! BUT I found out that my teeth aren´t up to the challenge. =(  Apparently the juice is so sour that it makes my teeth hurt whenever I chew on food. For the most part of the day that is, not just during breakfast.

So it´s a bitter goodbye to lemon juice (but luckily the rind I can still use, yum!).

  Instead of the original morning drink I now have plain green tea, and I incorporate cayenne pepper and ginger in my daily meals.

EATING PLAN FOR LAMMAS

  I must be out of my mind to do this, but now I feel like I should try shedding sugar from my diet. Not only that, but also test out adding eggs to my mostly vegan eating regimen. I´m not sure how my digestive system will react to that, but since I feel the urge to do so, there must be something my body needs from eggs. We´ll see.

  I ditched fish, seafood, eggs, and all meats in 1993 as a teenager. In 2005 I let go of most dairy too. Every now and then I have had a craving for white fish, but I don´t even like it. I take it as a sign from my body that it is missing something animal-based. B12 vitamin perhaps? In any case, lately I have pondered on what would be the most ethical animal food to consume. I could not kill a living being, so meat is definitely out of the question. Fish is a more simple-looking creature, but I could not kill one only for my culinary pleasure either. I even feel bad for crabs and kinds being thrown in boiling water! What an awful way to die. No way would I ever do that either. Sometimes I have had to kill very sick small fish from my aquarium, and I have done it by boiling them. It feels awful seeing them take the final sprint (although probably purely by reflex) in the hot water.
  Milk (especially cow´s milk) is something I did not even understand to ditch until this millenium. Never before had I thought of what happened to the calves the milk was biologically meant for. It is so sad, and scary, that I dare not google for any links here...  =(
  Overall I do not want to eat anything I could not prepare myself from scratch. It´s just not fair.

  But eggs are a different story. I could easily go grab a fresh one from a chicken´s nest. No killing involved. I make sure I only buy organic eggs during my experiment. It is very important! There is so much inhumanity going on in many egg farms, and I want to do my best not to support them.

  But back to my eating plan. A nice and eco-friendly one.  =)
  My goal now is to reduce sugar consumption. In a way I think I´m substituting sugar with eggs. The experiment is to see whether adding a bit of animal protein will ease my addiction to sugar. Sugar is my only bad habit left, so I´m not majorly worried, but aiming for better is always the way to go.

So here it is, a breakfast omelet. The point of the eggs is mainly to hold the veggies together. This particular one is the second omelet I have ever made in my life (and I´m 36 already =). Tasty, packed with delicious veggies, and low in calories. Keeps me satisfied for surprisingly long, and gives a different kind of fullness than grain. Interesting.

For lunch and dinner, loads and loads of various types of veggies plus whole grain bread. Here is broccoli-potato soup with rye bread.

In the evening, a splash of whiskey or rum seasons my nightcap.. =)

  The plan:

Breakfast:
2 cups of refreshing and cleansing drink (juice of 1/2 lemon+cayenne pepper and ginger to taste)
an omelet made with two organic eggs, 1/3 cup of almond milk, salt and pepper, tons of finely chopped veggies. Once cooked, drizzle a little soy sauce on top and garnish with fresh herbs.

Lunch and Dinner:
2 cups of green tea, plain
1. a fresh, raw, vegetable salad+dressing of choice and whole grain bread. OR
2. vegetable soup made from whole, fresh veggies. Can be cooked or raw. Plus whole grain bread. OR
3. a scone/bread roll made with wholemeal flour and tons of finely shredded vegetables (zucchini is the best, but anything goes) and berries if desired.
 The recipe: 2 cups wholemeal flour
 2 tsp baking powder
 1/2 tsp sea salt
 water
 shredded/finely diced veggies (+berries if desired)
+ Mix the dry ingredients. Add enough water to get a soft/loose dough/batter. Add in the veggies and divide into four flat breads on a baking paper-lined tray. Bake in a 430F (225C) oven for 15-20 min. Butter up and enjoy!

Supper:
2 cups of nightcap (1 cup hot water+1 cup of almond or coconut milk+1/4 cup rum or whiskey to add flavor)
a handful of nuts/seeds OR
2 Tbsp strong tastes like pesto sauce or a few chili marinated garlic cloves

  My mealtimes follow that of my diabetic son´s:
9am Breakfast
1-2pm Lunch
4-5pm Dinner
8pm Supper

I´m trying to eat a steady amount of calories throughout the day, and at regular times to avoid getting too hungry (and then grab anything unhealthy at hand). This is once again an all-you-can-eat eating plan, but one that will not make you fat!

FRUIT´N NUT SALAD FOR BREAKFAST

  Recently I have learned that raw fruits suit my digestion much better than raw vegetables. They also include much more energy (calories) than vegetables, so they can be eaten for a meal by themselves. At first I thought the idea sounded too calorific, but after a while I noticed that I can´t eat nearly as much as I thought I would have to, to stay satisfied. And my stomach has staid equally satisfied.  =)

  Here is my staple breakfast for this Litha:

A bowl of chopped fruit and a handful of chopped nuts. To drink I have plain green tea. All-I-can-eat style.

  Ingredients vary depending on what´s available, and what I crave. This is what I used to make the above:

The recipe (for one):

strawberries
one banana
green grapes
a handful of pecans

+ Chop the fruit roughly, and the nuts finely. Combine and mix. Eat. Wow.

  Long time ago, ten years to be exact, when this fear of carbs was starting to spread, a friend of mine´s mom went on South Beach Diet. I visited them, and had not heard of low-carb eating before. I remember rolling my eyes when she explained to me about how she could now eat tons of cheese and meat, but no fruit or pasta, and lose weight. Her daughter, my friend, was also still a bit sceptical about it and asked "Have you ever heard of a person being fat for eating too much fruit?". I know I have not. That sentence came back to my mind now when first planning my fruit-boosted eating plan for Litha.
  I do not recall what the end result was for my friend´s mom. But I do know that we are all different, and each must find the way of eating for ourselves to feel and look good. They go hand in hand.

EATING PLAN FOR LITHA

  Eating simple and raw keeps fascinating me. I have tried many different ways of eating in the past, including petit macro and raw foods, and have found both good and bad in most. But none have felt perfect for me, so the search continues.

  I love carbs. Often I have been left craving for more carbs, and therefore indulged in generous amounts of chocolate in the evenings (I seriously wonder why I am not heavier than my current state!). So I figured incorporating more fruit and berries in to my diet might help fight the sugar cravings.
 I searched the net, and found banana diet and fruitarian diets, which both sound like the way I want to try next. Besides, what could be a better time to start eating more fresh produce than now, in the middle of summer?

  Here´s my own plan for this Litha:
 

Breakfast:
green tea, plain
raw fruits and berries + handful of nuts/seeds

Lunch:
water
raw veggies + grains (this can be anything imaginable like salads, dips, sandwiches, pasta, brown rice, lettuce wraps, etc.)

Dinner:
green tea
raw fruits and berries + handful of nuts/seeds
dried fruit for dessert (to imitate the concentrated sugar I´m used to in chocolate :)

  I know if I followed this plan to the letter, I would never have to step on the scale again. But I take baby steps, and think of it like a guide map rather than a book of laws. And I do not want to upset my stomach by making too drastic changes!

  Delicious, energetic, and healthy midsummer to all!

 

JUICE OF THE DAY

  My eating plan for Ostara includes one juice a day. This morning I had as follows:

I don´t do juice recipes. I simply grab what´s in the fridge, and throw that in the juicer. It´s difficult to go wrong. In addition to this juice, I had a handful of walnuts. 

  The recipe (about 2 cups):

2 small beetroots
1/3 of a fennel bulb
1 orange
1 grapefruit
1 green apple
a wedge of cabbage
1 stick of celery

+ Peel and juice. Enjoy.

  I love the way fresh juice makes me feel. So full, yet lively, energetic, and simply happy! I believe raw foods possess a magic ingredient, one that science cannot discover, one called love.

EATING PLAN FOR OSTARA

  My goal in eating is to stay healthy, slim, and energetic without having to count calories. Also I loath cooking, so I want to get by as easy as I can. My diet is mostly vegan, of which some is intentionally raw. I have found that juiced and blended foods suit my stomach well, so those are included  in this plan.

 "Daily essentials" make for the stem of my eating plan for this Ostara:
1. 1-2 cups of veggie juice
2. 1-2 cups of green smoothie
3. 1/2 cup of raw dip/sauce

  In addition to the previous I can eat pretty much whatever I want, including unhealthy desserts like milk chocolate.

  Another corner stone of the plan is the time of eating. I will try to finish eating for the day by 5pm. That supports the studies showing that it is in our genes not to eat in the evening or at night, and that only through this daily "mini fast" can our bodies do their job properly.
  After 5pm it is all about drinking water and brushing my teeth, which helps reduce my cravings. =)

Breakfast (by 10am): 
1-2 cups of veggie juice (with some apple or other fruit in it to give a bit of sweetness)
nuts or bread

Lunch (around noon):
1-2 cups of green smoothie (including greens and 1/2 an avocado, the rest is up to the content of the fridge)
pasta, rice, bread, tofu, etc.

 Dinner (by 5pm):
about 1/2 cup of dip/sauce with chopped veggies
1-2 cups of green tea with soymilk
dessert of choice (I´m forever addicted to chocolate...)

  The idea for each meal is to eat the daily essential first, and then have whatever (vegan and quite low-fat) I want according to my appetite.

  Two incredibly inspirational raw-foodists out there are Ms. Tonya Zavasta and Ms. Mimi Kirk. I want to be like them when I grow up!

KID APPROVED GREEN SMOOTHIE

  Like mother like daughter... It amazes me that a nearly-two-year-old can like raw foods and smoothies.

  We offer our children all sorts of foods, including meats (and eggs and dairy to our girl, who is not allergic to them), and they can choose for themselves what to eat.
  My son excludes all veggies and most fruit, and likes grain and meat. My girl on the other hand excludes most meats, eggs, and fish, but indulges in raw veggies and fruit, along with grain. Is it the man-gene that makes boys resent veggies?

  The sight of our breakfast made me laugh outloud yesterday:

Sweet green smoothies. 2 cups ( 5 dl ) for mommy, and 1/2 cup ( 1 dl ) for daughter.  The recipe: 1 Granny Smith apple, 1 banana, 1 stalk celery, 2-3 handfuls greens, small handful of stinging nettle (or any wild edible green, if available), water. Blend all in a high-speed blender until smooth, add water to your liking.

  In addition to the smoothie, I offered her fruit-flavored soy yogurt, rice cakes with margarine, and grapes. She didn´t want any of those, but instead pointed at a kettle, in which I had just cooked some beluga lentils for lunch. Holy moly is she healthy! She ended up having green smoothie and lentils for breakfast.

  It is said that small children know to eat instinctively. They know when, what, and how much to eat. I believe that can apply to us grownups too, as long as we choose from healthy foods. You know you are hungry for real, if a bowl of oatmeal sounds inviting...  =)

SOFT SMOOTHIES FOR IMBOLC

  It is that time of the month again... Time to check out Nelland Living on PaganPages.org!
  Now it is all about mouthwatering, but healthy, smoothies.

  As my eating plan for Imbolc is full of smoothies, I share a few really soft, mild, soothing, and easy-to-eat recipes to get anyone going nuts for smoothies.

  Let´s go!