Most days I eat breakfast outside the house. If I don’t want to eat from a cafe or vending machine then I have to plan ahead and bring food with me. The same goes for lunch except I find that lunch food is much easier to prepare in advance…breakfast not so much. This is why I usually just end up eating some fresh fruit and a nut-based snack bar of some kind, maybe some yogurt. No complaints there I just wanted some variety so I decided to see if I could whip up some kind of omelet or frittata that could be made the night before and be just as tasty heated up the next day. Score!

Not only can you make these yummy frittas the night before you eat them you can prepare the ingredients for cooking for several days in advance and keep in jars in the fridge. Then when it comes time to cook one you just dump out the ingredients in the pan, add the eggs and away you go. No chopping veggies each night because you already did it. It’s fast and easy and gives me something a bit more substantial than fruit and yogurt.

Make Ahead Breakfast Frittatas

Ingredients:
2-3 pastured eggs
2 cups shopped leeks (white and dark green parts)
1 cup chopped mushrooms
Sliced ham or bacon
2 T Parmesan cheese

How to Make: Preheat oven to 350. Clean and chop veggies. Add veggies and meat to a hot cast iron griddle or skillet and saute until the mushrooms and leeks are soft, about five minutes. Whip together the eggs and cheese and pour on top of the veggies, tilting the pan until all areas are covered with egg. Put immediately into the pre-heated oven and cook for another five minutes.

Eat immediately or place in a to-go container for breakfast (or lunch) the next day.

I prepare the ingredients for 3 days worth of frittatas all at once. The ingredients for the other two are then kept in separate Ball jars in the fridge. Then I just grab a jar, dump the contents onto a hot skillet and cook away. This saves oodles of time because the leeks are not that easy to clean (grown in sandy soil).

For more make ahead breakfast ideas check out this book written by another blogger, The Busy Mom’s Make-Ahead Breakfast Cookbook. I have it myself and it is full of great recipes that are either make ahead, prepare ahead, or quick and easy to make first thing in the morning…all healthy and made with real ingredients of course. No junk. Recipes include homemade granola, breakfast bars, overnight slow cooker meals, muffins, breakfast sandwiches, and much more. I highly recommend you check it out if you struggle with healthy breakfasts in the morning.

It’s a key ingredient in curry powder. It is a gorgeous bright yellow-orange spice that adds color to your dishes and it tastes amazing when added to a variety of dishes. And I do mean a variety…one of my fave desserts is turmeric ice cream with ample amounts of the spice and grassfed cream. It is that amazingly earthy spice that has some pretty wonderful qualities…antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and anti-angiogenesis (blood vessel formation). Turmeric, also known as curcuma longa, is a very common herb that acts as a natural medicine which heals the human body and serves it in many ways. Since ancient times, turmeric has been a medicinal aid and a source of relief. Even today it is well known as a great aid for curing a cold and fever when you drink turmeric milk. This article expands on the qualities of this natural medicine and why you may want make sure you getting  enough turmeric in the diet.

Fighting Cancer:

Turmeric helps a person fight cancer. In 2010 a study was published by The European Journal of Pharmacology and it revealed that curcumin (an antioxidant found in turmeric) inhibited the metastasis of breast cancer cells that had been implanted in mice.  Consuming the spice would be advantageous for those in the initial stages of cancer so that the disease is prevented from metastasizing (spreading) throughout the body. This is huge because it is often the spread of cancer to vital organs that lowers the chance of survival. Anything that can stop cancer in its tracks is hugely beneficial and it can be supported with a spice that virtually anyone can access.

Weight Management:

Many health conscious folks in Asian communities swear by drinking turmeric milk with honey in the morning every day to keep fit. The same compound discussed above, curcumin also does wonders to regulate our metabolism and break down fats in the body. Both of these aspects can help us to maintain a healthy weight or lose some pounds. Exercising and eating healthy will always be the holy grail when it comes to maintaining a healthy weight but turmeric can be used as an assist if this is an issue for you. Another study, also done on mice, revealed this to be true when two groups of mice were fed unusually high caloric diets. The group that was also given turmeric did not gain nearly as much weight as their counterparts who were not given turmeric.

Healing wounds:

Turmeric also helps in healing wounds faster than any other medicine mostly because of its antibacterial powers. It has been used since ancient times for just this purpose. A turmeric paste would be applied to a cut or wound as soon as possible to stop the bleeding and heal the wound. It can be used in first aid today as well. To use this method yourself make sure to clean the wound thoroughly and eliminate any dirt and debris. Then cover the clean wound with turmeric powder and reapply as necessary. For rashes, bruises, stings, sprains, or bites mix the powder with water to create a paste and apply. This will help prevent infection, reduce swelling, and help with healing.

Boosting immunity:

Turmeric is also used to boost immunity. When ingested it helps fight off bacteria, viruses, and infection (sepsis). It gives immune compromised or ill people a much needed assist and healthy people an advantage when they are exposed to illness.

Anti-aging & Beauty:

Aging is sped up by free radicals in the body and antioxidants (like turmeric) help neutralize free radicals and the damage they cause to cells and organs. This slows down the signs of aging and improves overall health and vitality. Applying it directly to the skin via a mask can help with skin problems such as acne and dry or oily skin.

Turmeric is a pretty amazing spice that helps in healing wounds, improving immunity, fighting disease, and keeping a person fit and fine in life. Adding more of it to your life/diet seems like a no brainer.

How to Get More Turmeric:

Eat more curry dishes
Add to a fruit smoothie
Sprinkle on yogurt
Add to chicken soup or homemade broth
Sprinkle on eggs, rice, and potatoes
Add it to homemade soaps (or buy turmeric soap)
Drink turmeric milk (recipe below)
Mix with coconut oil or water for a topical paste
Add to tea
Take it in pill form

Easy Turmeric Milk Recipe

1/4 teaspoon turmeric
2 cups regular, almond, or coconut milk (full fat)
2 teaspoons raw honey
Dash of cinnamon

Bring all ingredients to a boil in a saucepan or heat up just enough to warm through if you want to preserve the benefits of the raw honey. Remove from heat and pour into a mug. Enjoy!

A few weeks back the kids went to a local orchard and picked some apples. We got a couple bushels and because small kids were picking apples and because we went to an orchard that doesn’t spray their trees with nasty pesticides, we got quite a few apples with blemishes and “issues”. The apples sat in the kitchen for awhile and we picked the nicest looking ones for school lunches and snacking. Then after a couple weeks we were left only with apples that were spotted, bruised, and unsavory looking. There were a few that needed to go immediately in the compost bin but the others I knew would make a tasty applesauce.

Always looking for easy I decided to make it in the crockpot and because I didn’t start my applesauce making adventure until nearly dinner time I also opted to make it overnight. I chose to leave the skins on the apples because there are so many nutrients, vitamins, and minerals to be had by leaving the skins in tact (vitamins A & C, calcium, potassium, phosphorus, folate, fiber, and antioxidants). It seems a waste to peel all that goodness off and throw it away. I just made sure to wash each apple thoroughly before coring and chopping.

Overnight Crockpot Applesauce Recipe

20 apples (cleaned, cored, chopped)
1 1/2 Cups coconut sugar
1 Cup apple cider or apple cider vinegar (I used ACV)
2 Tablespoons lemon juice
2 Tablespoons cinnamon or pumpkin pie spice (I used the latter)

Directions: Mix all ingredients together in the crockpot and cook on low for 6-8 hours. If it cooked before bedtime you can still leave it, just switch your slow cooker to the ‘warm’ before going to bed. In the morning (or when ready to eat) use a hand mixer (I like the Cuisinart Smart Stick) to smoosh the apples up and make applesauce. It is delicious hot breakfast to wake up to…especially on chilly fall days. Plus it tastes way better than the store bought stuff!

Looking for a cool summer treat that is easier than churning ice cream for hours and healthier than the stuff the ice man sells? This quickie sorbet is tasty, refreshing, healthy, and kid approved. I love that is so easy and fast to make as well. When the kids come inside after a long day playing outside or they finish up a sweaty session at their CrossFit Kids class I can make this up in a flash and not worry about unhealthy ingredients. In fact this sorbet has greens in it! It may be Popeye’s perfect ice cream.

It’s paleo, primal, and vegan.

Raspberry Spinach Sorbet

Ingredients:

1 Cup spinach
2 Cups frozen raspberries
1 Cup chilled almond or coconut milk
2-3 teaspoons sweetener (raw honey, coconut sugar) or a ripe banana (frozen)

Instructions:

Throw the ingredients together in your blender or food processor (I use a Vita-Mix). Blend until you get a creamy but thick consistency. Serve immediately as soft serve or stick in the freezer for a spell if you want a harder consistency. Works well with just about any kind of frozen fruit too. Enjoy!

Kombucha is pretty expensive to buy and yet it is so delicious, healthy, and great as an alternative for those of us who are tempted by soda that it becomes an easily justified expense. Well until you realize just how easy it is to make yourself that is. We have now established a pretty efficient brewing method in our home and we have gone from spending $4-5 dollars per bottle at the store to home brewed Kombucha for about .17 cents a bottle. Plus we are reusing all the Kombucha bottles we bought. So yummy, so good for you, and now…so cheap.

For those that don’t know, Kombucha is fermented tea made with tea, sugar, and a SCOBY or Symbiotic Colony of Bacteria and Yeast. It is full of probiotics and other healthy amino acids, has been consumed for thousands of years, and has been used medicinally in many countries and cultures. The image below is a SCOBY…the grayish, whiteish blob that goes in the tea and causes the fermentation process.

Not real attractive I admit,  but the finished product tastes divine and I don’t even like tea. I cannot stand iced tea (I call it dirt water) and most hot teas don’t tempt me much either. So imagine my surprise when my husband got me to take a sip of his Kombucha and I discovered that I loved it. It was fizzy, sweet, and very much like a soda pop with just a hint of a tea taste. The flavors were abundant and some were even swimming with yummy chia seeds. I was hooked and if you buy it in stores then you know well why one would want to brew it at home…it’s expensive!! I quickly decided that if I wanted to keep myself stocked with Kombucha I had to make it myself and lucky for us it is actually very, very easy.

The process did not start out smooth though. The first two batches ended up going down the drain because mold formed. The first batch we had out on our kitchen counter, next to the stove and the second batch we put in a cupboard that was drafty and dusty. Both times I think that foreign particles got inside the jar and caused the mold. For our third and subsequent batches we put our ferment jars in our upstairs linen closet where there is no dust or dirt floating around, the temperature is warm and stable, and they don’t get disturbed. We also switched jars from a huge one that had a spout to a smaller one that did not. We have had no problems since.

We currently use re-purposed gallon size pickle jars to brew our Kombucha. We bought them from Wal-Mart, threw out the pickles (because we only eat Bubbies brand), and that is what we now use, along with cheese cloth on top of each jar, secured with rubber bands. There are Kombucha Home Brew Kits available but we wanted a super cheap set up so we went with repurposed when we could and we bought our SCOBY on eBay.

We have been using an ice tea blend for the tea because that is what we had on hand for the tea drinkers in the home. Every Thursday we harvest and bottle two gallons of Kombucha and start two more brewing. We use a funnel to pour them into the bottles we have left over from commercial Kombucha and we also have several Bormioli Rocco Giara Bottles in various colors that we use. It is important to us to have bottles that seal so that the tea stays fizzy.

Some we drink as is and others we flavor with juice (cherry) and we add chia seeds to the majority of them. We all love the texture and it is added nutrition. Not a whole lot of work but the rewards are great. Once you have the jars, bottles, and a SCOBY you only need to buy tea, sugar, and anything optional that you add to the finished product like chia seeds and juice. You may also need to buy water unless you have a really good filter for your tap as chemicals and other common water contaminants can kill your Kombucha and SCOBY. You can harvest new SCOBYs for other batches from your original one. Pretty soon you will be giving them away and composting them as you get a new one with each batch. You will also grow to love the process…

Stuff You Need:

A one gallon glass jar
Glass bottles to pour the finished Kombuchas into
A scoby
Tea (organic black tea or a blend of black and green)
Sugar – Regular granulated sugar, no natural sweeteners (they won’t work)
A cloth cover (I use a flour sack dishtowel)
Rubber bands to seal it closed and keep bugs from getting inside

The Process:

Brew about 8 bags of tea with 3½ quarts of purified water. Add one cup of regular white sugar and allow to cool. Don’t worry about using white sugar either. It is not for you it is for the scoby to feed on and the sugar content at the end will be very low. Pour into your brewing jar, leaving room at the top for your scoby and for 1-2 cups of Kombucha leftover from a previous batch. If this is your very first time making it then use whatever liquid came with the scoby you purchased.

Cover the jar, secure it, and put it aside in a warm place (70-75 degrees) where it will not be disturbed for 7-20 days. Taste test after 7 days and see how you like it. If it is still really sweet and not very bubbly then let it go longer. Our sweet spot is about 14 days. Pour into small bottles rather than large ones or pitchers, this will cause your brew to lose its fizziness faster. Enjoy!

Have you tried to brew Kombucha at home yet???

Recommended: True Brews: How to Craft Fermented Cider, Beer, Wine, Sake, Soda, Mead, Kefir, and Kombucha at Home