On vacation~

The last week of work before vacation is here (finally!)  We're headed to Traverse City and then to my parents' cottage for the fourth of July week.  I'm going to take a blogging break until we return.  Have a great few weeks and I will see you soon!

Summer time is here~

The weather is just too beautiful here in the Mitten to spend much time online lately but we are holding steady to our clean-eating commitment and enjoying the fresh produce and outside grilling that summertime offers.  The weekend was not so clean, Father's Day and three birthdays brought with it lots of cake and ice cream and good stuff like that.  Such is life! 
We are in vacation count down, heading Up North next weekend where I will continue to do a lot of the cooking for both budget and health reasons.  But seriously, cooking breakfast in a cabin in the woods?  What could be better?
What is your vacation diet?  Do you eat out?  Cook in?  Throw caution to the wind or eat clean?

Jay in the kitchen at my parents' cottage

Happy Father's Day!



My dad!

 Thank you Lord, for this meal before us and family around us.  We thank you for those generations who came before us, who toiled to bring food to our tables and who brought spiritual food to our hearts.  Bless them today, and bless this food as we partake in  your provision.
Amen

Essential oils, not the kind you cook with!

At the request of my girl Margie, today I'm sharing a little bit of information about my recent interest in using essential oils so for you food bloggers, no kitchen stuff this time.
I have had sleeping difficulty for my entire life, my infant non-sleep habits are legendary.  As I've gotten older and taken on a very stressful job, things have progressed to the point where I've gone 48 hours without sleep and actually been sent home from work because I was exhausted.  I've been to a physician and tried to "reset" my sleep with prescription meds after the failure of the herbal remedies that a lot of people use.  The next idea is that I need to see a neurologist because there is something not working right.  Let me explain what I mean by not working, I have taken the highest dose of prescription sleep medication without falling asleep and 50 mg of Benadryl every four hours (do NOT try this at home,) doesn't touch me.  It isn't like I'm a high energy person, would that I were!  Nope, I simply don't sleep. 
So a sisterfriend, Mrs. Mac, is our own personal pioneer woman and is a constant encouragement for back to basics life, not just cooking.  She has recommended essential oils for sleep, specifically lavender, since she became aware of my problem.  WOMAN ISSUES ALERT-I also have the worse periods of anyone I know.  It's during that time of the month that I go for days without sleeping.  Mrs. Mac recommended Clary sage for that issue.  Like most people (at least I keep telling myself this,) once I hear something it takes a while to take action.  And honestly, I was just so discouraged that I had little faith in anything helping me and decided to just look forward to colonoscopies for the general anesthesia. 
A few weeks ago, with my cycle heading back into the the no sleep zone, I decided to prepare by ordering Clary sage and Lavender essential oil online.  While I was looking through the many essential oils (my goodness, this could become an obsession!)  I ordered sweet orange as well.  Essential oils are added to a carrier oil for direct application to one's skin so I ordered sweet almond for that because it sounded delicious even though one doesn't actually drink it.  If I can't eat it, I at least want to smell like baked goods.
So here's my experiment and now new routine:

At night, a few drops of lavender essential oil on a cotton swab which I place next to my bed while I do my nightly reading.  When I'm ready to go to sleep, I place the oil inside my pillow case. 
At the start of my period, I add a few drops of Clary sage to my lavender and do the same routine.
Every night during my shower, I put a mixture of sweet almond oil and orange essential oil into a small glass bowl which I warm on a cup warmer.  When I get out of the shower, I use the warm oil instead of perfumed body lotions and sprays.  I use this on my entire body including on my face instead of moisturizer.  I've even rubbed it on the ends of my hair that were giving me some fly-away issues.

Results!
No, the essential oil routine does not have the general anesthesia effect one enjoys during a colonoscopy.  But, it works better and better every day as my mind starts to recognize the scent as calming and sleep inducing.  I have not stayed awake past 10:00 p.m. since I've started using the lavender.  I still awaken a few times a night but I fall back asleep quickly.  When I wake up in the morning, I feel more energized. 
The Clary sage did not replace my need for Motrin for cramps but it reduced the amount I need.  I have needed 600 mg every 4-6 hours to make it through work and then to sleep at night.  With the Clary sage added to my lavender at bed, the hormonal insomnia was history.  In the mornings, I applied a few drops directly to my wrists and was able to take Motrin only first thing in the mornings.  AND, I usually have a 24-48 hour migraine during my cycle.  This month?  No headache whatsoever.  AND, the mood swings?  Nonexistent.
The orange oil has made my skin ammmahzing!  Super soft and my facial pores have never been smaller.  I need much less concealer around my eyes.  My forehead which is usually oily is not shiny halfway through the day.  Even my feet are staying soft despite summer time bare footing in the evenings.  Be careful with the feet, don't apply oil and then try to tap dance or anything.  Very slippery!

So there's my results so far.  I have paid lots of money for facials, which I maintain are a wonderful pampering experience.  However, the end results of exfoliating with baking soda once a week (which I started several months ago) and sweet orange/almond oil nightly has had better results than the professional facial ever did. 

Mrs. Mac has assured me that there is a cumulative effect to using essential oils.  In other words, you don't sniff lavender for the first time and becoming sleeping beauty.  Your mind starts to respond as your body detoxes and it all works together over time in a much gentler way than the instant fix pharmacology we are used to.  And she is the expert on brands and types to use so I'll defer to her wisdom (maybe she'll share a course for "dummies" on her blog) for specifics like that. 

At the end of the day, the point is, three weeks with the use of essential oils has improved my quality of life.  I have actually experience nights of 10-12 hours of sleep, I don't recall ever sleeping that long in my life.  It's not a terribly expensive thing to try and if you are interested, I'd say order one kind and give yourself several weeks to decide if it works for you.

Click!

Clean Eating for Dummies

Use 'em up!

Mac did a week's juice fast for which he over-bought.  Add that to our overflowing (aren't we blessed?) fruit and veggie stock, things were getting a little overwhelming around here!  When Saturday came around, the Mr. didn't need to buy quite as much but I certainly needed to figure out a way to use some items that weren't going to make it for another week.  I hate hate hate throwing away food!
So I took a handful of left-over basil and oregano, threw in some olive oil and garlic and made pesto.
Peeled some maters, added leftover cilantro, garlic (of course!) sea salt, cumin and blended it into the bit of left over salsa from last week.
Pureed the bananas that were browning.
All three were put into Ziploc freezer bags and into the freezer they went for future use!  And I went happily on my way without throwing away a single item.  The pesto and salsa can be used for dipping, topping or souping.  The banana puree will come in handy for baking, smoothies, milkshakes or stirring into oatmeal.  I didn't have large amounts of anything but they will still all go to good use down the road and will be dollars not spent nor wasted in the long run. 
How do you repurpose your food items?  I dare you to figure out a way to throw nothing away next week!

Mama Sara's $3 Sandwich

I told you that I used my leftovers to make pesto, right?  Well, it wasn't much pesto, maybe a quarter of a cup so I used it to make "Italian grilled cheese" sandwiches.  Dean declared I could make a fortune selling them, Mac felt that was an exaggeration but that I could "get $3 each for sure."  Here I offer you the opportunity to take advantage of the secret recipe before the copyright becomes official,  she said sarcastically.

Ingredients

• Whole grain bread
• Butter
• Feta Cheese
• Mozzarella
• Tomato
• Pesto (basil, olive oil, Parmesan cheese, garlic-blend or puree together)

Technique

• Butter ONE side (the Mr. butters both, oy!) of bread and lay in skillet, butter side down, to begin browning over medium heat
• Carefully spread mozzarella on bread
• Add tomato slice
• Add a tablespoon or so of pesto, spread
• Sprinkle on feta to cover
• Butter ONE side of second piece of bread and lay it on top, butter side up
• When first slice of bread is browned and mozzarella is melted, carefully flip and brown second side until feta is melted
• Serve with a bit of pesto on the side for dipping if you have enough!

I should've take a picture but I had no idea it would be such a hit!  I was just using up the stuff in the fridge!  If you believe him, Dean claims this grilled cheese has replaced his lifelong favorite of American cheese on Wonder bread (ugh!)  In fact, he has been know to make the processed nightmare for himself when I've made Colby grilled cheese on bakery bread.