Situated on the coolest corner in Gastown, Vancouver’s Chill Winston is a gem. With a menu full of shareables, veggies from the restaurant’s own farm plot in Tsawwassen, alternative proteins & wild meats that are organic, free run, antibiotic and hormone free, and ocean fare that is exclusively line caught and from sustainable stock, the only guilt you will have is from ordering more.
Mentors and role models are crucial to our kids’ development. I am lucky that my kids are growing up in a community where they are influenced and guided by their elders, and are learning to mentor younger kids themselves.
This beach-ready buttermilk fried chicken was fun to make and completely delicious.
After eating these at a baby shower, I dubbed them the world’s best crabcakes. I quickly pulled out my cell phone to write down the ingredients as the baby’s grandmother named ingredients. I had to figure out the recipe myself……
We’ve all been there: unloading the backpack at the end of the day and throwing away half-eaten sandwiches and mushy bananas.
You’ll have no dessert guilt after indulging in these flourless sugar free chocolate brownies!
Ingredients:
· 1 (14 oz) can of
black beans, rinsed and drained
· 2 large eggs
· ½ cup cocoa powder
· ¾ cup Xyla
· ½ teaspoon oil
· 1 tablespoon milk
· 1 teaspoon balsamic vinegar
· ½ teaspoon baking powder
· ½ teaspoon baking soda
· ½ teaspoon of freshly ground coffee or instant coffee
· ½ cup semisweet chocolate chips (xylitol chocolate to make them completely sugar free, or omit chocolate and use all walnuts)
· ½ cup walnuts (or any nuts of your choice
Directions:
– Preheat the oven to 350° F. Line a 9 x 9-inch square baking pan with parchment paper, leaving a 2-inch overhang on all sides.
– Blend the black beans, eggs, cocoa powder, Xyla ® xylitol, oil, almond milk, balsamic, baking soda, baking powder and coffee in the blender until smooth and pour into a bowl. You can also do this all by hand if you don’t have a blender. Fold in chocolate chips and walnuts at the end. Pour the brownie batter into the prepared pan. You can also sprinkle some extra chocolate chips on top.
– Bake the brownies until a toothpick comes out clean, about 30 to 32 minutes. Allow the brownies to cool completely before slicing them into squares.
This may sound easy and intuitive to some and overwhelming and foreign to others, but regardless, we all want to feel our best. So if you already practice these, make these 10 Simple ways To Nourish Your Body a mainstay in your everyday. If you are new to these, then start incorporating them one at a time into your day. I promise your body will reap the benefits. It’s the small but daily decisions in your life that lead to the biggest transformations.
Here’s my top 10 hit list on how to Nourish Your Body.
1) Drink warm lemon water upon rising.
This quick flush and detox alkalizes your body and sets your digestion up for the rest of the day.
2) Eat more greens
Incorporate greens into every meal. Salads, green juices, stews, pastas, eggs, soups. Throw in the kale, chard, spinach, arugula, watercress. The greener the better. Just eat more.
3) An avocado a day keeps the doctor away
Avocados are my god. They are loaded in vitamins, minerals and fiber and contain the healthy fats our bodies thrive on. This is the fat we so need. This is the fat that speeds up our metabolism; the fat that lowers the bad cholesterol; the fat that keeps us satiated so we don’t cave at 4 pm and eat whatever is in front of us.
4) Make dinner your lightest meal (An Avocado Will do)
This allows the body to actually refresh, rejuvenate and repair during sleep. Most the time we wake up tired because our body didn’t rest, digestion takes up so much energy. Try at first eating half of what you normally do. Never eat until you are full. You have eaten to much.
5) Exercise
Move your body. Movement heals everything. If you are tired, it invigorates; if you are upset, cranky, endorphins help you overcome that mood; if you are confused, it helps gain clarity.
Do yoga, run, bike, take a class, whatever it is, it will heal.
6) Body Brush.
Everyday before jumping in the shower or upon rising, dry brush your body in swift circular motions. This flushes toxins, gets lymphs moving and is a great skin smoother.
7) Cook
When you cook your own food, you know exactly what’s in your food. You have the control of how sweet/salty it is. Once you get in the habit of cooking, you won’t go back to eating out every meal. Pack lunches; have breakfast at home. Make restaurants the occasion.
8) Notice Habits
Become aware of the little things you do everyday. Are they helping you? Are the just habitual? If they are, then break the habit and see how liberating it is.
9) Omega 3’s
Get more Omega 3’s into your diet. Their anti inflammatory properties help you now and prevent future degeneration issues. Eat salmon, flax seeds, chia seeds, walnuts, oil supplements.
10) Take Pleasure, be Passionate
Do what you love. If you don’t know, make it a priority to discover your inner smile. Ignite and feel your spirit in your every step.
Alyssa Bauman is a holistic nutritionist, health consultant, speaker and writer who is on the crusade to empower healthy eating. The more you eat well, the more you want to eat well.
Foods Alyssa can’t live with out: Coconut Oil, Raw Cacao, Her Green Go-Go Juice, Avocado and lemons.
Check out www.nourished.ca for easy, yummy, healthy recipes that will nourish your soul and your body. Sign up for monthly nourished newsletters for transformative advice and nutrition tips.
OK, so many of us have found the idea of a dinner table more of an idealistic one; many dining room tables in many homes all over North America are covered in mail, discarded items and unfinished homework, rather than serving as a gathering place for the family to eat. Too many people take their meals at the TV or on the go that table manners seem to be a lost art. Perhaps it’s too late to salvage everything your grandparents insisted on, but there is definitely room for a modern-day reboot. Sweep the crud off that dining room table and start the process today!
Lay Down the Rules. Perhaps you can’t be like grandma and say no elbows on the table, but set some basic rules: no reaching across people or the table, no eating with fingers (except in certain cases), no burping at the table, etc. Simple stuff. If you must, make a chart and keep it up. Think of how proud and relieved you will be when you someday send your child off to college, knowing his table manners…well, perhaps later then, once he’s married. Maybe.
Practice. Sure, why not? Tea parties are perfect for boys and girls to teach table manners and etiquette. Have fun.
Provide Opportunities to Shine. When you go out to eat, don’t always automatically choose someplace silly and kid-oriented that needs no silverware, much less table manners. Kids older than age 7 can (should) be trustworthy enough to eat like people rather than pigs. Let them order something and help them to use their manner. When they succeed, praise them and let them know how proud you are. Plus, you get a meal that doesn’t automatically come with fries!
Some Basics:
- No open-mouthed eating
- No eating with fingers (unless it’s finger food, like fried chicken, pizza, etc.)
- Napkins in laps
- No reaching across the table or across other people
- Ask before taking a serving
- Say please and thank you
- USE the napkin
- Don’t chew or talk with open mouths
- Don’t talk about rude things at the table
- No burping
- If you’re a guest, eat what is served and don’t complain, unless you have a genuine dietary problem…which should have been advised of before dinner was served
- Keep elbows off the table
Good luck and God Speed!!
Kids love to create, and so by extension they love to cook. Cooking is both science and magic, producing edible wonders. Cooking for kids should be age-appropriate and easy to do. Here are some of the best kid’s cookbooks for sharing fun time in the kitchen with your brood.
Best All-Purpose Cookbooks
The Everything Kid’s Cookbook: From Mac’n Cheese to Double Chocolate Chip Cookies-All You Need to Have Some Finger Lickin’ Fun, by Sandra K. Nissenberg. This cookbook is packed with easy recipes of every kind, from snack and appetizers to main courses and desserts, as well as fun activities like puzzles, cooking tips, and even trivia. The language is very simple and direct, and is ideal for younger children. The recipes are generally healthy and low-fat, with nutrition facts and calorie counts for each one.
Do you hit the grocery store at 4pm with screaming kids and gray hairs emerging by the minute? Try our new Family Meal Planner. With days of the week across the top and even a space to plan snacks, you can make it part of your weekly routine, and even incorporate some of our fab family recipes. Family Meal Planner. Bon Appetit!