"Blend"

Are you ready for a great spice to use on greens, rice, meats, and cheese?? In our house we call it "blend", sounds plain and ordinary but it really is just a blend of a few spices that we use on everything!!

1. Get an extra spice jar (empty out an old spice or buy a new spice at the grocery store that you need anyways and save the jar when your done)

2. This step you can do two ways.  My favorite is to go to mountainroseherbs.com and buy a 4oz package of the following spices: Turmeric Root Power, Cumin Powder, Paprika Powder, Red Chili Powder.  The other way to get these is to buy it in small containers that cost more, are less fresh, and less quantity than buying it in bulk.  While your ordering at Mountain Rose I suggest buying other spices as well, their Garlic Powder is awesome! I also use the Italian Blend, Oregano, Peppermint Leaf (for tea), and many many more.  Get whatever sounds good to you, its cheap, fresh and good for you!

3. In equal parts, fill the empty glass spice container with Turmeric, Cumin, and Paprika.  Top it off with 1/2 tsp of chili powder and shake! Use liberally on cheese, bell peppers, spinach, chicken, rice, etc!!

“The greatest wealth is Health.”

Love to all
*kate*

The Basics

For my first few posts I'm going to go over what I use as 'the basics' in my kitchen.  Alot of these foods I use later to build more flavorful, complete meals & recipes but you have to start somewhere! Be careful when buying your food, ALWAYS check labels and make sure you know what you are buying.  Packaging and simple terms such as "All Natural" can be VERY deceptive, if you don't know how to pronounce an ingredient it could be a red flag, if there are 20 ingredients you can't pronounce on the label put the food down and DO NOT BUY IT!!!!!!!!!! If you're going through your pantry at home I would toss it out and look for a better alternative. Look for items labled USDA Organic because that seal is the only proof the food you are buying is actually an organic item.  Just because the label says organic means it needs to contain 70% organic material, there is alot of chemicals, etc that can be added into the other 30% that makes it no longer "organic".  There are no laws or regulation against a package using the term All Natural. The FDA is not looking out for you, protect yourself and know what is in your food! :)

 Here is what I currenlty & always have in my pantry, most of it you can get at Whole Foods or a grocery store with a large organic/healthy section:

Kate's Pantry:

Brown Rice - I use long grain organic from bulk bins at wholefoods
White Rice - I use organic Jasmine or long grain
Quinoa - Organic from bulk food section (pronounced KEEN-WAH) I use white/tan
Black Beans - Organic, Eden is a great brand with BPA free lining
Raw Almonds- Organic from bulk food bin @ whole foods
Raw Cashews - Organic from bulk food bin @ whole foods
Other Raw nuts - mix it up with Pecans & Walnuts too, avoid Peanuts
Rolled Oats - I buy mine from Tropical Traditions (ORGANIC THICK ROLLED OATS) you can also buy from bulk bin or in bag on cereal aisle.
Apple Cider Vinegar- Organic, I use Eden brand, Bragg is more available, look for 'with the mother'
Sauerkraut - Organic, I use Eden brand! If open goes in the fridge!
Bulk Organic Spices- I'll go into this on another post
Various Organic Herbs & Teas -I'll go into this on another post
Dark Chocolate- I look for different kinds above 70% cocoa and not much sugar! Avoid Soy Lecithin & other fillers. Whole foods has a lot to choose from!
Garnet Yams
Seasonal Squash- My absolute favorite is Delicata squash, found only in the fall :(
Onions- Organic red or yellow
Garlic- Whole bulbs
Bulk Chicken Broth &/or Mushroom Broth - Pacific foods Organic

Kate's Fridge:

(Items change by season but this is what I have right now)
Greens: (all organic) Kale, Swiss Chard (rainbow, red or green, whatever looks best!), Collard Greens, various others that you find at your local market/store
Boxed Organic Spinach- I get a big box from whole foods for about $5.99
Salsa- Good, healthy addition to just about everything! Organic
Sauerkraut
Apple Cider Vinegar
Vital Farms Eggs- Or any organic, free range, brown eggs will do! I buy Vital Farms from WF. We keep at least 2 dozen at a time
Raw Milk Cheese- We buy ours from farmsteadfresh.com, its amazing and Lenore is very helpful! You can also buy raw milk cheese at whole foods in small blocks from Organic Valley in the cheese section. Farmstead Fresh Cheese
Bell Peppers- ORAGNIC, I buy whatever colors look best- green, yellow, red, orange!
Broccoli- Organic and lots of it!
Celery
Carrots - Organic with stems
Beets- Organic with stems
Tomatos
Avocado
Organic Berries (Rasberries, Blueberries, Strawberries...whatever is in season and looks best!)
Organic Whole Milk
Organic Cottage Cheese - Full fat, Kalona is an AWESOME brand if you can find it. kalona supernatural
Flax Seed Oil - The more recent press date the better, we use Barleans brand Organic (see below)

Kate's Freezer:

I switch up between the following proteins:
Organic Chicken Breasts
Wild Alaskan Salmon (I buy in 1/3 pound cuts, wrapped seperately) Whole foods!
Wild caught Halibut- Do not buy farm raised fish
Wild caught Sockeye Salmon
Whole Organic Chicken (for cooking in crock pot) YUM
Ice Cream - I'm a sucker for ice cream, I buy Haagen Dazs

Love to all
*kate*



“The doctor of the future will no longer treat the human frame with drugs, but rather will cure and prevent disease with nutrition.” ~Thomas Edison

New blog!

Hi guys! Lately I've been told by multiple people I should start a blog to share some of my healthy (& delicious!) recipes in easy to follow steps so you can make them at home. Most of the recipes are SO easy, quick and are full of nutritious ingredients. All of my recipes are gluten free and I rarely, if ever, use table sugar as a sweetener. Most of my baked goods are made with honey or unsweetened fruit juice and I will never use aspartame or a 'low calorie sweetener'.  The process of cooking your food can often make or break a meal both in taste and nutrition value.  For this reason all of my recipes will use the stove or oven! NO MICROWAVES ALLOWED. I have not used my microwave for about 2 years now and believe me, life is better without it! I hope you follow my recipes and learn to love healthy eating and nutrition as much as I do! If you ever have any questions or suggestions let me know!

“Don’t dig your grave with your own knife and fork.” ~ English Proverb

Love to all :)
*kate*