Last night I enjoyed another evening of wonderful healthy natural foods. A bed of alfalfa sprouts top with balsamic vinaigrette, served up with steamed Basmati rice and a baked fillet of salmon. Meals this healthy were not always my mainstay, now they are. For me it was fairly easy to make the transition to a healthy living lifestyle because I live in an area where the general population is predominantly health conscious. Thusly, health stores and co-ops are on every side of town. Because being health conscious is such a big part of the market trends in the area, consumers can find organic foods and other healthy options in most of the major grocery stores as well. This may not be the case in you town. So how can you make the switch to a more healthy lifestyle?
Food is the first step in the transition into a more natural lifestyle. Starting with food is a good because it dose not require you to go to far out of your way of your daily routine to do it. So you say that you don’t have any health food stores, co-opts or farmers markets in your area. How are you supposed to eat all natural foods? Start by looking at the ingredients of the item. Make sure that are no harsh preservatives in it such as sodium benzoate and Benzoic Acid. Both of these chemicals acidify the food which in turn acidifies the pH of your body. Another thing to watch out for is flavor enhancers such as monosoduim gultimate (MSG). Federal Food Administration (FDA) announced in 1995 that MSG leads to short term and long term health issues such as heart palpitations and Alzheimer’s disease. Also, watch out for food colorings such as Red No. 2, 4 and 32 as well as many others. Studies suggest synthetic preservatives and artificial coloring may be aggravating ADD & ADHD symptoms. By making sure these chemical additives are not in your foods, you have stated down the path of healthier lifestyle. Finally another to look for when buying conventional foods from your local major chain grocer is to make sure you know what the ingredients are, the simpler the better. For example, carrots, water and salt in a can of carrots would a safe bet. I like to say that if you can read it and understand it it’s probably not full of chemical.
A finally tip on making the transition from junk foods to health food is find healthy menus with organic recipes good recipes that include different essentials for daily nutrition. There are recipes all over the net you can find. Here is one I found just the other day:
Turkey Pot Pie
Ingredients:
4 tablespoons Organic Valley Cultured Butter
6 tablespoons flour
3 cups turkey or chicken broth
2-3 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley or 1-2 teaspoons dried parsley flakes
1-2 teaspoons dried basil
1/2 cup Organic Valley Heavy Cream
Salt and pepper
3 medium carrots
1 medium onion
1 celery rib
2 cups cooked, cubed Organic Prairie Turkey (or more as desired)
2/3 cup peas
1 recipe baking powder dough, such as Rosemary Buttermilk Biscuits
Instructions:
1. To make sauce: Melt butter in a large, heavy saucepan over medium-low flame. Stir in flour until smooth; cook over low flame, stirring often, about 10 minutes. Whisk in the warm broth, parsley and basil. Let it simmer slowly, stirring often, about 10 minutes. The mixture will thicken into a sauce. Stir in cream and season to taste with salt and pepper. Keep sauce warm.
2. To make vegetable-turkey mixture: Add water to a depth of 2 to 3 inches to a medium saucepan; bring to boil. Meanwhile, dice the carrots, onion and celery. Add them to the boiling water; cook at a strong simmer until vegetables are crisp-tender, about 5 minutes. Drain and stir cooked vegetables, turkey and peas into sauce. Simmer 2-3 minutes, then lower heat to lowest flame and keep mixture hot.
3. To make biscuits: Heat oven to 350 degrees. Butter a 9-by-13-inch dish, one that is at least 3 inches deep. Prepare biscuit dough according to recipe directions. Cut biscuits into 10 or 12 three-inch rounds with a sharp knife and a cup, or with a round cookie cutter.
4. To bake: Spread hot turkey-vegetable in the baking dish; top with biscuits and bake until sauce is bubbly and biscuits are high and golden, about 20 minutes. Serve hot from the oven.
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