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!