Ingredients:
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As the summer heat persists, two things should be on your mind; where is the closest beach and how am I going to stay hydrated today?
Hydration is so important to almost all of our body systems; it keeps your blood flowing, flushes your kidneys, gets your digestive system moving, keeps your skin looking fresh.. I could go on and on but you get the idea.
Your daily needs for water not only depend on your body type and activity level but also the type of environment you live in. As temperatures rise during the summer months, so do your hydration needs. Use this great hydration calculator to figure out your specific needs.
Along with how much to drink, finding the right type of water can always be confusing. We are fortunate in the Lower Mainland to have great quality water at the turn of a tap, with no need to worry about fluoridation and other environment toxins. However, the added chlorine posses a laundry list of health risks and in a city like New Westminster where you are more likely to have an older house with lead pipes. But bottled is not the answer. Plastic bottles are not only hard on the environment but they also leach toxins into your overpriced water. Not to worry, inexpensive filtering units are easy to install and can be easily found at your local hardware store. Better yet,chlorine dissipates from tap water left to stand for 30 minutes or more.
Counting your 8 glasses a day can get monotonous so why not look to the market stalls to add some sparkle to your water, naturally. I’ve created a simple recipe for flavoured water that will tickle your taste buds.
Savoury Summer Sipper
Combine all the ingredients in 2 to 8 hours. The long the fruit and/or herbs sit in the water the more intense the flavours will be.
You can experiments with all kinds of different flavours; berries, citrus, other fruit or herbs like; mint or thyme.
Why organic, is a question I get quite often but also one that I find myself asking. The answer isn’t as simple as you might have expected. Choosing organic over conventional means health benefits not only for you but for the environment; including the soil, water, air and other species of both plants and animals.
One of the most useful tools I use when trying to eat clean on a budget is The Environmental Working Group’s Dirty Dozen. A list of the fruits and vegetables with the highest measured pesticide levels, those best to spend the extra on organic. Conversely, there is also the Clean Fifteen; a list of the safest fruits and vegetables to eat conventionally. You can access these lists here.
Aside from the obvious lack of a thick pesticide coating, organics actually happen to have more nutritional value. This difference was best described to me in Micheal Pollen’s The Omnivore’s Dilemma; simply put, pesticides allow plants to be lazy. Meaning they need to produce less of their own natural pest repellent; that’s phytonutrients to you and me. Many of which have been found to have anticancer properties; the well known lycopene in tomatoes for example. So yes, organic is not only better for the environment but better for you too!
Which leads me to this week’s recipe; strawberries have speckled many of the market’s produce stalls these past few weeks. Berries are listed high on the EWG’s Dirty Dozen, so buying them organic is a must. One of the greatest things about farmers markets is that you get to meet the face behind the food and ask them all of your burning questions. Not all the farms have their organic certifications and that’s just fine with me. Getting certified takes lots of time and money, both are better spent growing good local food in my opinion. Ask your farmers about their growing practices; whether they use herbicides, pesticides, synthetic fertilizers, the list goes on and on.
STRAWBERRY CHIA SEED JAM
The PB&J staple gets a healthy twist in this recipe. Skip the gelatin and refined sweeteners and opt instead for fiber, omega-3s and minerals!
INGREDIENTS:
METHOD:
Slice the berries into your desired size, I like whole strawberries in my jams so I left them that way. Plus, it cuts down on your prep time. In a small pot over medium heat combine the strawberries and water.
Simmer the berries until they have reduced down to a thick consistency, about 20 minutes. Add in the sweetener and simmer for 5 more minutes. Stir in chia seeds and transfer to jar. Let cool and then refrigerate over night.
In the morning, the jam should have a thicker consistency as the seeds have absorbed some of the water. They remind me of tapioca pearls.
I used my jam to test this strawberry margarita recipe; aside from being the healthiest looking margarita around, it was delicious!
By: Elizabeth Whalley R.H.N.
Do you smell that?
It’s the smell of fresh local tomatoes, coming soon to the Royal City Farmers Market! That’s right summer is just around the bend; bringing with it all the delicious harvests of the local farm. Get out your reusable shopping bags folks and experience all that Lower Mainland has to offer at the Summer Market!
I celebrate local summertime flavours in my take on this classic.
Purple Kale Pesto
Ingredients:
Method:
Soak almonds for four or more hours; this makes easy work for your food processor. I like to use almonds in this recipe but pine nuts also work well, no need to soak though.
Combine almonds, garlic, salt, olive oil, lemon juice and salt in a food processor (if you’re using Parmesan add it in now and omit salt). Pulse until a finely minced consistency is reached, add more oil if needed.
Add in kale and basil, continue to pulse until desired consistency is reached (I like my pesto coarse with lots of big basil leaf chunks). Season to taste.
This pesto makes a lovely salad dressing with the addition of a little more oil and lemon juice. Or it is the perfect complement to any whole grain (and gluten free) pasta, hot or cold.
Personally, nothing says ‘summer’s on its way’ quite like a little pesto over a goat cheese and heirloom tomato salad.
By Elizabeth Whalley R.H.N.
I’ll bet as part of your spring cleaning regimen you’ve dusted away all those cobwebs from even the hard-to-reach corners, wiped the winter grime from windowsills, and even thrown out that questionable jar of who-knows-what from the back corner of your refrigerator. But have you given any thought to what may have built up in your body over the past year?
Cleansing and detoxifying are important aspects of maintaining a healthy body. These days we live in a world where our bodies are faced with harsh toxins, chemicals and radiation at every turn. If not in our daily beauty routine then in our cereal bowl or along our morning commute. Our bodies are strong and very resilient, equipped to do lots of detoxing in our ever changing world, but giving your body a break every so often means it can get a leg-up on the competition. Shopping at the market is a great place to start! Local organic fruits and veggies mean no pesticides and less carbon emissions to get them to your plate. And naturally raised, organic meats mean your liver is not bogged down with hormones and antibiotics unlike supermarket products.
This simple springtime salad features lots of foods that support a little spring cleaning in your body;
Fennel and Radish Slaw
Ingredients:
Method:
A mandolin makes quick work of all the veggies in this recipe, however, slicing them all into matchsticks will work in a pinch. Combine the vegetables, apple and citrus zest in a medium-sized bowl. In a small bowl, combine the lemon and orange juice and slowly and whisk in the oil to emulsify. Drizzle over the salad, season with salt and toss. Garnish with chopped chive and fennel leaf.
