Natural Holidays

It seems as thought this time of year we all get a little carried away with indulging and stuffing ourselves with goodies we know we shouldn't.  I have done the same in many years past but I am waking up every morning telling myself "Baby steps. It's easy to give in, but it'll be worth it when I'm my healthier self."  I know it's SO hard to eat a healthful and balanced diet this time of year but I know I feel better when I eat how I know I should.  So here are a few of my favorite recipes that taste indulgent but are better than other options.  I hope you enjoy them as much as I do.

Vegan-Gluten Free Brownies are chocolaty satisfaction!

And who can go a holiday season without Vegan Eggnog? 

 

I can't go Thanksgiving or Christmas without stuffing.  Here is a better version that won't enlarge your waistline.

And what meal would be complete without Pumpkin Pie?  This no bake pumpkin pie is creamy and satisfying. 

Save Money DIY Foaming Hand Soap

I love being able to save money on products I use every day.  Here is a quick and easy recipe for foaming had soap that costs much less than purchasing from a store.  And you get to customize the smell!

Foaming Hand Soap Recipe
Ingredients:
1/4 cup Castile soap
1 tsp sweet almond oil (you can purchase Here )
2-3 drops you favorite doTERRA essential oils (see below for ideas)
fill to top with filtered water (for best results)
Add Castile soap and almond oil to an empty soap dispenser. Fill remaining with water

Essential oil combinations to try:
Soothing-Floral:
1 drop lavender for tissue restorative, calming, lessens anxiety and anti-microbial
1 drop geranium for balance, tissue regenerative, anti-bacterial and anti-depressant
1 drop ylang ylang for anti-depressant, sedative and balancing
Uplifting:
1 drop wild orange for anti-depressant, digestive, emotional balance and anti-septic
1 drop lemon for anti-depressant, refreshing, anti fungal and antiseptic
1 drop lime for anti-anxiety, antibacterial, and revitalizing
Holiday Cheer:
1 drop cinnamon for anti-inflammatory, purifier, and warming
1 drop wild orange for anti-depressant, digestive, emotional balance and anti-septic
1 drop white fir for antiseptic, anti arthritis and analgesic

 

Because quality is everything when it comes to essential oils, never buy your oils from the grocery store. Although they may be suitable for aroma, they aren't the quality you need for health purposes. This is why I support and affiliate for our favorite brand, doTERRA essential oils.

There are several ways to get your hands on wild orange, oregano and Clary sage essential oil: retail, discounted, or wholesale. 

But retail sucks.

So I recommend purchasing a discounted or wholesale account (similar to something like Costco) to get the best prices on this or other oils. Which is the best fit for you will depend on your needs. You may email me at angelaf.doterra@gmail.com for more information or visit my site here

 

 

 

*Any health-related topics shared on this site are solely the opinion of the author or guest author. These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. Any products or statements are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease. Our Journey to Natural  is not a replacement for your own best judgment or a medical professional where indicated. Always consult your own opinion and/or your health care provider when making important health care choices.

Easy Thanksgiving Sides

Today I showed my friends how to prepare a few quick and easy sides for Thanksgiving.  I'll keep this short and sweet so here are the delicious recipes and a few pictures.

Sage Stuffing

Makes one 9x11 pan or 24 muffins

Ingredients

8 tbsp. butter or coconut oil (1 stick)

2 1/2 cups milk (skim or rice is fine)

1- 12 oz bag dried bread crumbs or stuffing mix

1 medium yellow onion, chopped

4-6 celery stalks with leaves, chopped

1 can water chestnuts, chopped

1-2 drops doTERRA Clary Sage essential oil

Kosher Salt

Pepper

 

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350° degrees.

In a saucepan over medium to low heat, scald the milk and butter until it simmering. Then set aside.

Chop onions, celery, sage and water chestnuts. In a large bowl add stuffing mix and all chopped ingredients.

Then using a third of a cup, (thirds) slowly add the milk/butter mixture, and carefully toss until all incorporated. DO NOT OVER STIR/TOSS or it will be very mushy. It should have a fluffy appearance. We probably added 1 1/3 cups of the milk mixture. Don’t be worried if you don’t use all the milk mixture, you probably won’t need it all, but that’s okay because it’s great saved for the mashed potatoes.

Salt and pepper to taste, mixing lightly as you add.
Scoop into oven safe dish and bake until brown, about 20-30 minutes. Serve and enjoy!

Crock Pot Garlic Parmesan Mashed Potatoes

Ingredients

5 lbs red potatoes

2 cups or 1 can vegetable  broth

3 cloves garlic

1/2 cup coconut oil or organic butter 

1 1/2 cup organic sour cream

1 cup grated good quality Parmesan

1 tsp salt

1-2 drops doTERRA oregano essential oil

Instructions

Please note this makes a HUGE amount . Wash and cut your potatoes into quarters.  Place in the slow cooker with broth, garlic, and butter and cook on low 6-8 hours.  Potatoes should be easily pierced with a fork when done.  Add sour cream, Parmesan, salt and oregano. Use a potato masher to mash and blend until well combined and the potatoes are the desired consistency.  Serve or keep warm in crock pot until time to serve. Enjoy!     

Cranberry-Wild Orange Sauce

1 Cup Dark Cherry Juice
1-2 drops doTERRA wild orange essential oil
1 cup water
1 Cup Organic Sugar
1/4 tsp Salt
1 Cup Dried Cherries

24 oz Fresh Cranberries (sorted & cleaned)

Directions:

Combine the cherry juice, Wild Orange oil, water, sugar and salt in a large saucepan.
Over medium heat, dissolve the sugar while stirring for about 3-4 minutes.
Add the cherries and cranberries. Partially cover pot with lid or foil to prevent spatter.
Cook for 15-20 minutes, stir frequently the last 5 minutes.
Remove from heat, transfer to a container and store in the refrigerator.


Because quality is everything when it comes to essential oils, never buy your oils from the grocery store. Although they may be suitable for aroma, they aren't the quality you need for health purposes. This is why I support and affiliate for our favorite brand, doTERRA essential oils.
There are several ways to get your hands on wild orange, oregano and Clary sage essential oil: retail, discounted, or wholesale.
But retail sucks.
So I recommend purchasing a discounted or wholesale account (similar to something like Costco) to get the best prices on this or other oils. Which is the best fit for you will depend on your needs. You may email me at angelaf.doterra@gmail.com for more information or visit my site here

*Any health-related topics shared on this site are solely the opinion of the author or guest author. These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. Any products or statements are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease. Our Journey to Natural  is not a replacement for your own best judgment or a medical professional where indicated. Always consult your own opinion and/or your health care provider when making important health care choices.

 

DIY Bath Gift Baskets

I can NOT wait to get everything together to make these great bath luxuries for my friends and family!  I found so many great ideas and here are a few I am definitely going to make this holiday season!

Bath bombs are one of my families favorite treats for tub time!  These are going to be so easy!  I love that I can personalize the color and smell with my doTERRA essential oils. Get your Essential oils here: http://mydoterra.com/oilswithangie

http://www.mariasself.com/2012/02/diy-saint-valentines-craft-homemade.html

Next up this year will be Holiday room spray!  So incredibly easy. I will be using Holiday Joy for my home!  The combo of Siberian Fir, Wild Orange, Clove, Cinnamon, Nutmeg and Vanilla are  so uplifting and soothing.

DIY ROOM SPRAY

1 cup of water

1 TBSP Witch Hazel or Vodka

20-30 drops Essential oil

Mix all ingredients in a spray bottle and shake before each use!  

 

And finally I am looking forward to making and trying out all these facial scrubs.

 

 

 

Below are a few recipes to get you started on your own scrubs:

Simple Cinnamon-Vanilla-Oatmeal Facial Scrub
1/4 cup oatmeal
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 teaspoons honey
1 tablespoon plain yogurt

Cornmeal-Citrus Facial Scrub
1/4 cup cornmeal
1 teaspoon fresh-squeezed citrus juice (lemon, lime, orange, or grapefruit)
2 teaspoons honey
1 drop ylang-ylang essential oil (optional)
1 drop ginger essential oil (optional)

Avocado-Strawberry-Sugar Body Scrub
1 cup sugar
1/4 cup mashed avocado
1/4 cup mashed strawberry
1 teaspoon olive oil
1 teaspoon honey
1 cup minced fresh basil
1 drop rose essential oil (optional)


Rosemary, Mint & Salt Foot Scrub
1 cup coarse sea salt
5 tablespoons olive oil
3 sprigs fresh rosemary (remove leaves from stalk)
1 cup minced fresh mint
3 drops peppermint essential oil (optional)

Mix ingredients together and gently scrub your face, body, or feet. Rinse with lukewarm water and pat dry.

Don't they all sound so good enough to eat ! Yumm...the warm vanilla cinnamon..

Additionally you can scoop out a papaya or mango (or avocado) and save the fruit to eat later. Rub the inside surface of the skin all over your face and arms. The antioxidants and fruit enzymes will help soften your skin.

 

I hope all my friends and family enjoy their gifts this year and act surprised if they end up reading this. :-)

DIY Skin Care

Skin care is essential in the winter!  The cold dry air can wreak havoc on sensitive skin.  I have found a few recipes for making my own happy skin products.

Prone to dry skin? Try this DIY Ginger Lime Brown Sugar Scrub to help exfoliate and soften your skin this fall and winter.

  Click here for the recipe: http://doterrablog.com/diy-ginger-lime-brown-sugar-scrub

I have a hard time buying chemical filled shave cream from the store, but now I can make it with products I know and trust!

http://doterrablog.com/diy-shaving-cream

These lotions bars would make a great gift!  They would also travel better than bottles of mess lotion that can open in your bag.

http://doterrablog.com/diy-moisturizing-lotion-bars

Here is a great idea for taking care of your skin!  So man great ideas!

http://campwander.blogspot.com/2012/09/make-your-own-astringent-toner-makeup.html

If you're interested in Essential oils or any of these products, visit my site or shoot me a question. Happy Journey to Natural!

http://mydoterra.com/oilswithangie

DIY Reed Diffuser

I LOVE making my home smell amazing with baking, cooking and using diffusers.  What I don't like is the headache fake plug in's and air sprays give me.  I am so excited to make homemade reed diffusers.  This is a quick and simple idea that I think might be given as gifts this season.  Thank you for this amazing idea at http://doterrablog.com/diy-reed-diffuser.  This site is full of simple and wonderful make yourself ideas!

 

You can purchase the oils needed for this project at http://mydoterra.com/oilswithangie

Skinny Bitch

I have been reading the book Skinny bitch the last couple days.  That book has me cracking up with their blunt advice as well as making me sick to my stomach learning more and more about how meat gets to the supermarket. I highly recommend checking out this book for a quick read with tons of great information.  I'm not looking to be a skinny bitch, but a healthy one.  I came to the conclusion after reading Skinny Bitch that I am going to go Vegetarian and then Vegan.  I have been steadily cutting eating meat out of my diet anyways and now is the time to dive into the vegetarian lifestyle.  I've decided that I will not eat beef, pork, chicken or land animal first.  My goal is to make at least one meal a week meatless that will satisfy the whole family.

This won't be a very hard change because I don't feel so hot after eating these animals anyway.  The big thing about this change for me is making food for my Midwest born and raised husband who loves his meat!  I won't miss it, but he'll miss me making it.  I guess it's now time for him to show off his amazing cooking skills in the kitchen if he wants a pot roast or cheeseburger.  There are so many amazing resources out there for vegetarian and vegan recipes it's crazy.  I love Pintrest!  Hell if you Google "vegetarian soup" you're head will explode from so many options.  So the first meal I made was Pumpkin Risotto.  It turned out so creamy and delicious my family said they didn't even care there wasn't any meat or dairy in it.  Here is my recipe:

Pumpkin Risotto

3 Tbsp coconut oil
1 medium onion, diced
6 cloves garlic, minced
2 quarts vegetable stock
2 cups short grain brown rice
3 cups roasted and diced pumpkin or butternut squash
1 Tbsp Rosemary, chopped
1 tsp dried mustard
salt and pepper to taste

I roasted my Sweet Meat Pumpkin first because I am using the whole pumpkin for other fall goodies but I would peel, remove the seeds and insides and dice the pumpkin before roasting.

To roast the diced pumpkin simply preheat you oven to 350 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment, spread pumpkin on the baking sheet and bake 30-45 minutes until pumpkin is fork tender.

 Next Heat a large sauce pan over medium heat the pan then add the coconut oil until it's melted.  Add the diced onions and sauté until translucent.  Lower heat a little than add garlic and sauté about 2 minutes until fragrant.  Add the brown rice and sauté a few minutes until it begins to smell a little nutty.

 Next stir in your veggie stock one cup at a time until the rice absorbs most of the stock. Continue to stir while the stock absorbs into the rice.  This will be a LONG process but this labor of love creates the creamy texture by slowly releasing the starches.

Keep adding the stock until the rice is al dente.  Then add the rosemary, dried mustard, salt and pepper.

Now fold in the roasted pumpkin until throughout the risotto.  Spoon into a bowl and enjoy your labor of love!

What are Essential Oils Anyway?!?

My first experience with essential oils was very vague.  I was given Tea Tree oil by my roommate as she told me to try it for something.  The bottle sat in my medicine cabinet untouched until I moved then it went into the trash. I had no idea what is or what it was for other than knowing the name Tea Tree.  I didn't bother with it until my natural loving mother introduced me to the wonderful OnGuard from doTERRA.  The difference this time was I was taught what they were and HOW to use them.

 

Essential oils are according to Wikipedia is, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Essential_oil,

"An essential oil is a concentrated hydrophobic liquid containing volatile aroma compounds from plants. Essential oils are also known as volatile oils, ethereal oils, or aetherolea, or simply as the "oil of" the plant from which they were extracted, such as oil of clove. An oil is "essential" in the sense that it carries a distinctive scent, or essence, of the plant. Essential oils do not form a distinctive category for any medical, pharmacological, or culinary purpose."

I learned about essential oils with my cooking as well as research.  When you peel an orange, you'll notice a light mist when you break the skin. This is the essential oils releasing from the orange that tantalizes your nose with the sweet citrus smell.  These essential oils to the plant are their life blood. They help repair the skin of the orange if it were to become damaged while still growing.  We humans found a way to extract that and utilize the essential oil to our benefit.  There are so many plants we can use to help our ailments it's wondrous. We are able to use barks, flowers, leaves, and many more parts of plants to help our journey to be healthier and happier humans.

Essential oils have been used throughout history for their healing properties. The Egyptians were some of the first people to use aromatic essential oils extensively in medical practice, beauty treatment, food preparation, and religious ceremony. Frankincense, sandalwood, myrrh, and cinnamon were considered very valuable cargo along caravan trade routes and were sometimes exchanged for gold.  The Greeks, French and many other countries have historically turned to essential oils for many uses.  Now it’s our turn to learn as much as possible and utilize them as well.

I cannot imagine how my health would be suffering if I continued down the unnatural and chemical filled path I was on once upon a time.  I am so grateful I have learned there are other options out there!  I hope you are researching and learning as well.  I’d love to be a part of your journey to natural. 

Hello!

I am kicking off a new chapter in my life!  I want to share my journey with anyone willing to listen.  I have decided it is time to take my life and families on an amazing journey to be the healthiest and happiest ever.  The way I plan on getting there is by educating myself about the best natural ways to take care of myself and kiddos.  First a background of me.  I am a mommy of a five year old, rambunctious, sweet and daring little boy and a sweet, opinionated, independent one year old baby girl.  They are my world and I wand them to be care free and healthy little ones.  After watching Food, Inc. (http://www.takepart.com/foodinc) in Culinary School I decided that I was going to do as much as I could possibly do to be a healthier mommy.  I have watched other documentaries about the American diet and food system that keep reaffirming my decisions.  These two http://www.foodmatters.tv/  and http://www.fatsickandnearlydead.com/ are also incredible.  I'm 100% convinced diet and exercise are the key platform to a happy healthy life.  But there is more we can do!! 

I was introduced to herbs and natural healing at a young age by my mom.  I always thought she was crazy for having so many herbs, spices and plants around the house.  Growing up she would make tinctures with the dried and preserved plants she kept throughout the house to help with colds, sore muscles and anything other little life emergency.  She has been someone I look up to my whole life.  She introduced me to essential oils about a year ago when my daughter was a couple months old and had a little cold.  She gave me a tiny bottle of something (OnGuard) and told me to put it on the bottom of my baby's feet and it'll help her get better faster.  I thought to myself what will it hurt?  So I put a drop on the bottom of my little sick baby's feet a few times that day... And the next morning she was already feeling better!  Now every time I'd have a sick kiddo my mom would give me this little bottle of oils to rub on there feet or chest and it would help.  I am in love!  I can do something to help my infant feel better faster!  I have to share this with everyone I know!  I can't believe I didn't have this sooner! 

Each week I will be sharing what I know and do with essential oils from doTERRA.  If you like what you see you can order through my site http://mydoterra.com/oilswithangie and I'd love to teach you how to get your products at wholesale, earn free products and even make money!