Cookies or Milk before Bedtime?

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Don't we all have those nights where we get an intense craving for something yummy before we hop into bed? Or worse are those nights where we lay in bed wide awake while all the thoughts of things we need to do the next day somehow get manifested into an intense hunger pang that keeps us from falling asleep. Its nights like these that we run into the kitchen, grab a glass of warm milk (just as our grandmas told us to) and of course a handful of cookies because you can't drink milk without a cookie right?  I've had many experiences of nights like these I think it is useful to know what foods can both satisfy the hunger AND settle the flurry of our busy minds.  Based on a macronutrients lecture given a few weeks ago I was given all the answers and I'm here to pass them on.

First of all it is helpful to know that the neurotransmitter that is responsible for calming the mind and promoting happy thoughts is serotonin. Foods that are rich in the amino acid tryptophan get converted to serotonin.  Foods that are high in tryptophan include turkey, eggs soybeans milk and oatmeal. There is a very important caveat to this however.  When high protein foods (such as the ones with high levels of tryptophan) are consumed alone, less tryptophan is actually allowed into the brain because all the other amino acids are competing for a ride to the brain as well. Therefore.... it is actually carb-rich foods that should be eaten before bedtime. Carbs will stimulate insulin production which (through a series of more complicated mechanisms) allows tryptophan into the brain more readily. In the brain tryptophan is then converted to serotonin. 

So... I guess our grandmothers were right about the milk being a high serotonin forming food but without the presence of a carb to stimulate the uptake the other amino acids tryptophan never actually makes into the brain. Therefore, next time you can't fall asleep have a carb rich food on hand (other than cookies I might add). Putting a little protein on top won't hurt because it will normalize the level so that you don't get a RUSH of serotonin which could cause other problems...One tasty suggestion is a puff rice cracker with nut butter on top.

Sweet Dreams!!

The Perfect Breakfast

Haven't we all heard that breakfast is the most important meal of the day? Despite the fact that most of what you hear through the media is false, this is one message that is in fact true! Breakfast primes the body to function properly which entails thinking clearly, having energy and avoiding strange or intense sugar cravings. Basically, if the right food is prepared, it can serve as fuel that will make you feel great all day. Before coming to Bastyr I regularly prepared myself a "breakfast porridge" that consisted of a warm grain, some flaxseed, berries and nut butter. It was tasty to be sure but in my first class as a grad student I was taught how to make it even more nutritious by turning it into a complete protein.

Complete proteins are usually found in animal protein sources but if grains and legumes are combined in a 3:1 ratio, they can also become a complete protein. The advantage of eating complete proteins is that you are feeding your body the amino acids that it cannot make on its own (otherwise known as essential amino acids). Quinoa is one grain that is very special in that it contains all the essential amino acids but lets be honest, eating quinoa every morning for breakfast will become quite bland after a week or so.

I experimented with my previous breakfast porridge recipe and found that the variety that comes with combining grains and legumes in a 3:1 ratio is actually delicious.

Ingredients needed:
2/3 cup grain (I chose brown rice but others include barley buckwheat, oats and millet)
1/3 cup legume ( I chose lentils but others include black beans, chickpeas, kidney beans, and mung beans)
1 T flaxseed
1 T nut butter
Frozen Berries
1 T Berry jam (look for one that has no added sugar. Hard to find but well worth the search)

Grind the grains and legumes in blender and add it to 2 cups boiling water. Once the porridge is cooked (or has become a texture that you like) add the other ingredients and enjoy! If it isn't sweet enough add a few drops of stevia.

At the beginning of the week I cook 2 cups of porridge and each morning I warm it up then add in whatever various toppings suit me that day. For instance, bananas walnuts  and cinnamon is a great natural sweetener and topping combination!

Regardless of what natural toppings you choose, you can be assured that you are feeding your body and excellent source of protein, vitamins and minerals that provide sustainable health for the day. What more could you ask for?  

Quick side note: If you want to make it even MORE healthful, you can sprout the grains before grinding them which enhances their nutritional value by up to 30%!! Sprouting "how to" post is on its way....

Back to the Blogging Basics

Can I just say how impressed I am by all that Seattle has to offer in terms of farmers markets, adorable restaurants and cozy coffee shops? This weekend I explored Ballard and literally was rendered speechless by the realm of possibilities for exploring. I perused the farmers market for about an hour which was hardly enough time to really get a good idea of what each stand had to offer....

My two new friends from Bastyr! 

Obviously i bought enough produce for a small army but couldn't resist. When the lettuce is twice the size of my head and the carrots are purple I must have them!!! I returned to my house (after quite the highway detour) and just had to sit on my bed to digest all that I saw and experienced. 

As I laid there thinking about how overwhelmed I could potentially be by everything I am learning in school and experiencing by living here, a brilliant idea came to mind! Instead of posting what I already know, I'm going to post what I am learning each and every day.  I'll be including what a life in Seattle teaches me as well as the highlights of what I'm learning in the classroom. In essence I hope to feed my readers kale instead of iceberg now! Just what I had intended to do in the first place though right?  I'll do my best to incorporate my weekly topics into delicious recipes and sustainable lifestyle modifications just as I was doing before. Let the new era of blogging begin...

Hearty Meal of the Week: Warm Chickpea and Chard Ragout

A little turtle I found on campus yesterday!

My first week of classes was exciting but incredibly exhausting. Sometimes I forget how much energy I expend just by sitting in class trying to absorb so much information! It also takes me a while to get used to a new schedule, routine and pace that school automatically infuses into my life. All that being said, I have no doubt that I am exactly where I am meant to be and all that I am learning will someday directly benefit my practice and anyone who seeks my help.

With the lifestyle adjustments that I was making this week I didn't post what I cooked on Tuesday which was a great chickpea ragout that has swiss chard and tomatoes. I found the recipe in my vegetarian times cookbook and it was the perfect lunch to pack as it gave me alot of protein AND some greens.

Here s all I needed:
coconut oil for sauteing
a bunch of carrots
1 onion
2 cloves of garlic
1/4 cup dry white wine
1 15 oz can of fire roasted tomatoes
1 bunch of swiss chard
1/2 cup vegetable stock
2 cans of chickpeas
Harissa: which is comprised of the following
-3 cloves of garlic minced
-1/2 teaspoon of salt
-2tablespoons olive oil
-1 teaspoon ground coriander
-1/2 teaspoon cumin

The simple preparation:
1. Saute the carrots, onion and garlic in coconut oil
2. Add white whine and harissa. Cook until the liquid is mostly gone
3. Add tomatoes and simmer for 5 minutes
4. Add chard and vegetable stock
5. Stir in chickpeas and simmer for 3-5 more minutes
6. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Unfortunately I don't have any pictures to share but to be perfectly honest the dish tasted better than it looked so maybe its a good thing I spaced it.

I doooo however have a picture of a beautiful lookout point that I found as I've been exploring my neighborhood.

I'm sure I'll be spending lots of time here: )

So far I've been able to easily access all 4 of the things that I mentioned in my last blog that make me happy!

Oh and I joined a little masters swimming club which gets me back in the water and surrounded by some like minded people: )
Alrighty I'm off to ride my bike to the nearby natural grocer to get the ingredients for some no bake millet treats. Its a beautiful sunny day and I plan to soak up every ray before the liquid sunshine begins...

Sunday Soup: Cauliflower and Mustard

What a fun weekend... Today I visited Redmond which is apparently the "bicycle capital of the northwest" according to the signage I found upon entering.

Then I went to an adorable coffee shop called Victor's Celtic Coffee Shop.

                                                   


I couldn't help but stop by Trader Joes on the way home since I've grown up without one and seriously love all the fun mustards, sauces and yummy snacks they offer. In fact its at Trader Joes that I found the mustard I used for the soup.

Before I start cooking soups with winter squash I thought I'd squeeze in a cruciferous vegetable since they are so good at detoxifying our bodies and supporting the liver. This is what I used:

Grocery List:
1 head cauliflower
2 shallots
1 yellow onion
1 large potato
2 cloves of garlic
4 cups of vegetable broth (I used the TJ's low sodium organic)
2/3 cup of white chedder cheese ( I used raw organic valley cheese )
4 teaspoons of dijon style mustard ( I used the TJ's mustard aioli)
sea salt
pepper
coconut oil for sauteing

1. Heat coconut oil in large sauce pan and then add the shallots onion and a big pinch of sea salt.

2. Once the onion is soft, stir in the potato that is chopped into small cubes.

3. Cover and let the potato soften. Then add the garlic and the vegetable broth and bring to a boil.

4. Once boiling add, the cauliflower and cook until it is tender.

5. If you have an immersion blender, blend the soup by hand otherwise blend it in batches in a regular blender

6. Stir in the mustard, cheese, pepper and add more salt if needed

This soup has a surprising twist with the mustard that I love. My roommates approved as well even though I spilled a whole jar of lemon pepper in the pan since the top wasn't screwed on tight enough. Whoopsie!

Don't mind the black peppercorn. It was remnants of the pepper spill...

Altogether the week is off to a great start. Tomorrow I have my first day of class (eeek). Can I say I've reverted back to middleschool tendencies and have an outfit laid out

Yes that is the color of my room. Not sure what to do about it...

...a lunch packed in a cutsie lunch bag

and I'm tucking myself into bed at 9:30.


I suppose being completely over prepared is better than the alternative but sometimes I've got to laugh at what a little girl I still am.

Sweet dreams and wish me luck in my first day as a big girl graduate student!!

The Little Things...

The entrance to my cute little house in Kirkland

It has officially been a week since I first arrived in the northwest. What a week! As hard as it is to leave behind a life of comfortable control, I've found that moving urges me to redefine myself, my values and ultimately what makes me happy. Before arriving in Seattle, I made a list of the top 4 simple things that make me happy so that I could make sure to instill them here.  I suggest this to anyone even if you aren't about to move. Have you ever asked yourself what little things make you happy?

Here are mine:
1. Fresh Local Food- I have to live by a farmers market or a grocery that provides it. Luckily, I have both here. Two farmers markets a week and a cute natural grocer (that I might actually apply to work for)!

PCC Natural Grocer near my house

2. Nature trails:  I need a dense patch of nature that I can walk to from where I live- Its easy to loose touch with nature if you have to drive a distance to be immersed in it right? Conveniently located across the street from me is a trail. My roommate even has a dog she lets me borrow for company: ) Oh and the path leads down to the lake where I can set up picnics. Side note but still note worthy...

Trail Across the Street

Jovi

Picnic Area that looks out over Lake Washington

3. A local yoga studio: Have a mentioned that I've fallen in love with yoga? It not only centers my mind, it stretches my body into alignment and forces me to breath. Its a need in my life. I have yet to find a studio that makes me feel at home but I'm going to my first class at Studio Be in downtown kirkland today. We'll see if its "the one".

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4. Routine: I THRIVE off of routine. I love the familiarity of it and the rhythm that it creates in my life. That being said I have already incorporated a few routines, one of which will directly affect my blog: my meal planning/cooking routine. I will plan on Sunday Soups, a hearty meat or bean dish on Tuesdays and something yummy baked on Friday. Friday I don't have class so it will be a good day for me to experiment with various baking techniques and mediums.  Besides those three consistent food postings, I'll try my best to incorporate little health tips that I find along the way.

Alas, as hard as I have tried to incorporate familiar and pleasant things into my life, there are a few things that I will take time for me to adapt to as they are still very unfamiliar to me:

1. There are drive-through espresso house/shack looking things on EVERY corner.

2. Nothing ever dries here. (ever). Good for skin. Bad for moldy bathrooms.

3. I have to bike uphill wherever I go. It still doesn't make sense to me how that is possible but it is. Hazards of living on a big surrounded by hills I suppose...

4. Everyone complains about the weather. I somehow assumed that everyone would be used to cloudy/rainy days after living here. Or maybe I'm just not used to people complaining about weather since CO weather is nothing to complain about!

Well that's all that I have for this week in a nutshell. Look forward to this sunday when I'll be making a Cauliflower Soup! Today I'm riding my pretty little bike (uphill) to the grocery store to get all the ingredients. Maybe I'll stop by an espresso shack for sustenance and talk to the server about the weather. Wish me luck!!

Weathering a transition with health and nutrition

As many know, I am moving to Seattle to study nutrition at Bastyr University. I've enjoyed a wonderful summer living in my parent's cottage, caring for our horses and preparing yummy food but today is the big move.  I'm the type of person who likes to feel settled and have a place to call home for more than a few months at time. Obviously, this season of my life does not offer such settlement but instead it hosts big life transitions that I've just recently been learning to weather gracefully. My words of advice?

Begin by taking some time for yourself to mentally prepare and breath. I've instilled a wonderful habit of waking up every morning and taking 4 deep breaths while setting an intention for the day. Starting the morning with this mindfulness practice is what I will continue during the transition which will hopefully instill a sense of peace and familiarity as I embark upon days full of the unknown.

Next make sure to schedule into each day a block of time devoted to movement. Whether it be a short walk, a bike ride, or if you can a yoga class, your body craves a chance to let out all of the nervous tension that builds up during a move.  It might be hard to follow your former routines during the midst of the transition period but regardless, stick to something daily.

As you might of guessed, my favorite words of advice are to eat healthfully. Feed your body the fuel it needs to cope with all the new environments and emotions. My rule of thumb during a move where I'm not in control of what is in my fridge or where I will be eating out is to at least incorporate something green into every meal. Whether that be a powder green drink or a fresh green salad, I just do my best. Your body will be able to put up a much better fight against the toxins it encounters if it has the nutritional support and antioxidants it needs to defend itself.

And finally, sleep.  I tend to trade in the precious commodity for extra hours packing or saying goodbye to friends but always suffer the consequences when my perspective on things become squirrelly. Sleep heals and protects  our bodies while renewing  our minds. Best of all its free! Why don't we indulge in it more often? No drug on the market can target and heal all the areas that sleep does (with no side effects but happiness and peace might I add). Anyway, I struggle with getting enough myself but you can be assured that I will be hitting my (new) bed hard tonight as today has much to offer.

I literally just landed in Seattle and am about to meet my new roommate since she is picking me up from the airport. Once I get back to my new house, I'll try to honor my own advice and pick up some healthy food and then sleep so that I can begin to unpack in the morning: )


So. Long story short: Next time your life feels like this.....

Grab a pair of these:

Eat some of this:

and then get some sleep....

You'll be just fine!

Once I'm settled in my house I'll be posting weekly meals and simple tips for living healthfully throughout the week. I'll also try to document the adventures and fun that I experience along the way.