Oven Roasted Asparagus (and Other Awesome Vegetables)

Are you tired of steaming vegetables in the microwave? Looking for a quick and simple way to create a different experience?

Oven Roasting is the answer and here’s why…

1. Its relatively quick and can be done while preparing other foods

   ** 10-15 minutes you can create a completely different flavor and texture with some of your old favorites (and even try some new ones)

2. You decide what spices and flavors make you (and those you’re serving) happy and wanting for more.

3. Fresh Vegetables are ideal—frozen work too—may need 3-5 minutes more if starting from frozen

4. Most any Vegetable can be roasted—broccoli, cauliflower, carrots, green beans, Brussels sprouts, peppers, onions, and the list goes on. You can even make a mixture of what you have on hand.

Oven Roasted Asparagus (and Other Awesome Vegetables)

Ingredients:

1-2 pounds of Asparagus or Vegetable you choose

1-2 tsp Olive, Canola, Sesame or other cooking oil

Cooking Spray (to coat the baking pan)

1/2-1 tsp fine Sea Salt

Any spices that you enjoy—-here’s where you get to be creative…

Let’s Make the Veg!

Preheat your oven to 450 degrees

Line baking sheet with Cooking Spray.

If making Asparagus, break off rough edges by naturally bending at the bottom, the stalk will break exactly where its meant to. Otherwise cut fresh vegetable to your preferred size (between 1-2 inch pieces) **If using frozen, skip this step.

Clean your Fresh Asparagus or Vegetables by placing them a colander and rinsing them in cool water. ** If using frozen (skip this step) .

Transfer Asparagus or Vegetables to a clean bowl, coat with cooking oil

Place Asparagus or other veg on baking sheet. Crowd-sourcing is important here. You want minimal overlap so there is even cooking.

Sprinkle with sea salt and other spices

If Asparagus, bake for 10-12 minutes Other Vegetables—10-15 minutes (or to the texture you prefer)

Enjoy!

ps—Love to hear from you! What Vegetables did you try with this recipe? What spices do you like?

Trail Mix Granola

Trail Mix Granola

I love recipes that have simple ingredients, simple instructions and require less than 30 minutes!

This easy, versatile recipe is a fun breakfast, snack or treat

It has a mild sweetness and the different textures keep it interesting.

Depending on what raw nuts, seeds or dried fruit you have on hand, you can make this recipe work for you!

Following are some great combinations—you can mix and match:

Slivered Almond + Raisin

Chopped Pistachio + Dried Blueberry

Chopped Pecan + Dried Cranberry

Chopped Walnut + Dried Cherry

Cashew Pieces + Dried Apricot diced

Trail Mix Granola Recipe: Total Time 20-25 Min

2 Cups Old Fashioned Oats (Gluten Free if desired)

1/2 C Unsweetened Shredded Coconut

1/2 C Raw Nuts or Seeds, Sliced or Chopped

2 TBSP Vegetable Oil, Canola, Sesame, etc

2 TBSP Maple Syrup or Honey

1 C Dried Fruit

Instructions:

Preheat Oven 350 degrees

Coat Large Baking Sheet with cooking spray

In Large Bowl combine oats, coconut, chopped nuts or seeds. Mix to combine

In same bowl add honey or maple syrup and oil. Mix well to coat all dry ingredients.

Place mixture on baking sheet, spread out evenly using a spatula or spoon.

Bake, tossing every 5 minutes, until lightly toasted, 15-18 minutes

After baking, place the cooled ingredients back in a clean bowl and mix in dried fruit. Allow to cool fully. Store in airtight container for up to 1 month,

1/4 C = 1 Carbohydrate

Serving Ideas:

Enjoy for breakfast or snack with Plain, Unsweetened Yogurt or Cottage Cheese for a matched protein

Can also enjoy with regular milk or nut milk like a breakfast cereal.

Is BMI linked to Self-Esteem?

Is BMI linked to Self-Esteem?    

What do you think? Is BMI linked to self-esteem?

Maybe you are now wearing a deer-in the headlights mask—saying, “well yeah, what do you expect”… 

You could be pondering, considering the connection, possibly curious.

Perhaps you are saying “absolutely not, nope, not me, not connected, and who cares about BMI anyhow”…

So what’s the Point of BMI anyway?

Classifying and categorizing, it’s something we learn as Toddlers or in Pre-School.  Creating order and buckets…noticing differences in ourselves and others.   Sizes, colors, differences, help a person to sort the world in a clarifying way.

That’s what BMI does for the medical community.

BMI is classification and clarification system for the medical community to plot a person’s data for medical risk against that of the remainder of people on the planet.

The Medical Community (got that? Not the media, your best friend or even your worst friend) measures a person’s body weight, BMI, Blood Pressure, Pulse Rate and Body Temperature upon arrival for almost any appointment.  These measurements classify and clarify where a person’s data lands in comparison to “charts and norms”.

The Real Truth about BMI and Body Weight…

What is BMI anyway? The Body Mass Index (BMI) is a value derived from the mass (weight) and height of an individual. BMI is an attempt to quantify the amount of tissue mass in an individual.

How about Weight?  Weight is the vertical force exerted by a mass as a result of gravity.

Vertical force as a result of gravity combined with an attempt to quantify body tissue…  Are you seeing anything here about  body image or self-esteem?         Me neither.

So that’s how it works, Body Weight and BMI are a system to check-in with the status of your health and potential health risk…  Not body-image or self-esteem.

If someone’s body weight has significantly shifted or changed in the last 3 months (more than 10%), this change can impact internal organ function and overall physical wellness.

In some cases, the weight change will positively affect organ function.  Too much change in body weight (especially quickly) can have alternative effects on metabolism and body function.

Your body weight is not your identity.

Your personality, your ideas, your vocation, your favorite color, your friendship circle, on and on create a unique and powerful picture of who you are at any given time.

If you notice that your body weight or BMI has more influence on your inner chatter and outward behavior, a wonderful opportunity is now available to you. 

We have so much more to offer…

Your body and mind are so powerfully armed with way more responsibility.   

Your greatest gift is to remember your magical energetic system.  

By feeding yourself well and appreciating the hum of amazing synchronous efforts your organs perform at any given moment, you can learn to show kindness to yourself.

The powerful and simple beating of your heart is nothing to be taken for granted.  It is a gift to remember and appreciate—as You are Here.

Gratitude is the answer.

Cambium Nutrition offers energizing workshops, forums and programs as well as one-on-one consultation. 

You deserve to live in a body fueled with energy to support your everyday life.  

3 Ways Other People Influence Your Food and Body Weight

The people that you see most often influence how and what you feed your body.  Whether you are by yourself when eating at certain points and with people or family at others, the energy and circumstances affect how and what you choose for your precious health.

So what’s happening, how is this affecting my food and body weight you ask?

Depending on who you are and how you choose, any of the following reasons are influencing you.

#1   Extra Food is Extra Food:

Each and every person requires food from all groups (no food group left behind).  Many times a child in a family or even a significant other will leave behind a few bites of food or sometimes more than a just few bites.  You might feel compelled to finish what’s left; not wanting to “waste food”.  This wonderful guilt is a very popular way influence body weight. 

Another common story at family meals or gatherings is finishing up extra helpings after you have already enjoyed your first serving; a sure-fired way to eat more than your wonderful body requires.

Leave that uneaten food on the plate where it came from, pack it away for later or get rid of it.  You are not responsible for polishing off the extras.  No guilt, simply store it away or toss it out and move on.

#2   Food Pushers and Prowlers:

Is there someone you see from time to time, or even more frequently that is trying to serve up something that feels irresistible to you?  When someone is caring for their nutrition and a friend, co-worker or even a family member knows you are committed to your health and delivers the donuts anyhow, sabotage is created.

No matter the reason that people are bringing the enticing food to work or your home, it is still your vocation to walk away. Even if your favorite relative insists on a second helping of her or his famous meal, you can politely refuse it.  Although this may be uncomfortable in the moment, you will be thankful that you honored yourself afterwards.

 More likely than not, this person or people will continue to bring food or offer you additional servings for time to come.  You are in charge of creating your body and health.

A client favorite mantra or saying, “if I really want that treat or (insert food item here), I know where to go and find it or I can make something just like it”.  Living in the moment, especially with food means enjoying the experience.  Enjoying the experience does not require overindulgence.

It’s not as if this very moment with cookies or cake is the last moment forevermore.  If you want a treat, another time, you can find it elsewhere and on your own terms. Not when your favorite food prowler/pusher is taunting your goals of self-care and balanced nutrition.

#3  The Topic of Discussion: Latest Food or Diet Craze                                                                

Whether you, a co-worker or close friend are searching for the golden answer on how your body will finally change, discussing the newest food or nutrition craze becomes a habit for some and maybe even an obsession.  Whether it's you or someone you know, the reader of this newest idea/craze is looking to tell someone about it, as soon as possible.

"The search is over, finally, here is the answer we have been waiting for".  Well that is until the donuts were brought in (possibly by the very same person who just read about the food craze—she is desperately missing them since she began and wants to watch you eat one, living vicariously through your taste buds and facial expressions).

After learning that you have been eating "old news" food choices or even what this latest craze says is wrong altogether, confusion emerges.  This confusion energy will lead right to a platter of extra sweetness, and some "oh well" energy.

Here’s a secret—no one nutrition/diet book is going to have the answer for every single person on the planet.  In fact, it’s likely that the book will have a moment of fame and then phase into the night, far away…

Here’s the other secret--as soon as that nutrition craze is phasing out, a new, completely different idea is about to explode and confuse everyone breathing fresh air into thinking that what the other book said was way over in left field.  And so the tide turns and the book industry does too.

The Truth:   You Are In Charge of You--No Matter the Company.

Although the 3 Reasons listed here influence many people. You are always the master of your own food experience.  You are the decision maker about what is acceptable to you and your body.  In fact your unique body deserves to be honored for it's own story, allowing you to fully live in and engage the life you want and deserve. 

Choose not just for the moment, but for the moment after too, creating confidence that you are honoring your body and life. SKS

Cambium Nutrition creates personalized meal plans that honor your unique lifestyle, relationship with food, likes, dislikes and health history. Your plan is designed and tailored to honor your goals, desires and ultimately to fuel your inner body with natural, beautiful energy

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Stop! Food has A Job

Stop!

More and more food advertising, cooking shows, weight loss products, food specialty shows, diet books, faddish gimmicks and baking competitions are coming forward every...single...day.

What do you believe now?  What makes sense in a world where is food being pushed and new materials are being published every day that contradict each other.  One day a protein source is a good idea and the next it is harmful and unhealthy.

It’s all so confusing!  Food push, diet push, food push, myth, confusion.

Food Has a Job

Let’s look at this with a totally different lens…  Food has a Job. 

YOU are the hiring (or not) director.

Got that?  You are the Director. 

You decide what goes in, what helps, what makes sense, what you want to feed your body.

There is no secret here.  Food is required to feed your body from the inside out.  Not enough nutrition going in on a regular basis, your organs will not function well, this includes your heart.  Too much food going in day after day, your organs are overloaded and overworking.

Take a moment and think of this scene: A place or country where someone is standing by a large barrel and is using a ladle or extra bowl to portion a porridge for people who are standing in a line waiting for this food in order to feed their bodies and survive.  This is a heartbreaking scene, but truly delivers the story on why we eat.  Food is required for energy.  Food has a Job.

Food = Energy

Did you notice that exact food choices are not being shared here?  This is your power center.  To point fingers at a certain food or food products is not the goal.  There are countless sources that are hoping you will exclude some foods and include more of others.

No doubt that each and every one of us has certain metabolic differences, nutrition stories, medical histories and ultimately lifestyles and patterns.  This is what makes you, fabulous You!

Following the next big food plan or weight loss craze is likely going to be a simple taste of someone else’s ideas.  At some point, you will naturally connect to what you know, have eaten before, and perhaps, enjoy.

Honoring Your Body with Food, enough to nourish your cells, is Your Power.

Choosing to learn why you are eating (if you are eating when you aren’t hungry or eating more than your body needs) is more powerful than completely leaving yourself behind to follow a new food or diet craze.

After all, this is Your Story, keep it that way.

Cambium Nutrition creates personalized meal plans that honor your unique lifestyle, relationship with food, likes, dislikes and health history. Your plan is designed and tailored to honor your goals, desires and ultimately to fuel your inner body with natural, beautiful energy

The Real Truth About Your Energy~3 Secrets Revealed

The Real Truth About Your Energy...3 Secrets Revealed

What would your life look like if you began each day with more physical energy? 

Have you ever wondered why so many people are tired, fatigued or feeling as though getting through the day without some sort of coffee, tea or caffeinated beverage is nearly impossible?

As a society and culture, this lag of energy, mirroring fatigue, can sneak up at any point during the day and for some before even getting out of bed, especially during the business or school week.

“Can my body feel more energized and revved for the day?  Doesn't sleep impact my energy?”  This is often the set of questions that are asked in consultation. 

An amazing transformation begins once your body is fed well and the 3 secrets are put into play. Choosing to honor your body with sleep becomes a natural part of this process as your physical energy flows in a more wholesome way.

Perhaps you’re asking, "is that even possible"?  It is totally possible… you can begin to experience the physical energy that your body deserves and for that matter that your mind and soul deserve!

Secret #1                    Food = Energy

The Food that you feed your body is what your body uses to produce physical energy.  That’s right, whatever you ate last, whether strawberries or ice cream, your body is breaking that food into the smallest of particles in your digestive system. Once the digestive process is complete, the particles travel to all parts of your body to provide nutrients via your blood stream.  These particles/nutrients are what feed every part of your body; your brain, your heart, your lungs, muscles…you get the picture. 

When your body has too much to process (is overfed) all of you is overfed.  The opposite is true too, when your body is underfed, not fed enough nutrition, all of you is underfed.  Scary stuff, over time neither extreme works in your favor and without a doubt affects your energy, vitality and ability to fully live your precious life.   Your powerful inner-body and organ system beg to be cared for in a healthy, nourishing way.

Secret # 2              Your Energy Shifts All Day Long—it’s supposed to!

Once the food you have eaten has been broken down in your digestive system and has traveled to its destination, it provides nutrition/energy.  Once that food/energy is utilized, that organ/body part will need more.  This is the reason that throughout the day, it is highly beneficial to feed your body at regular intervals.  Blood glucose (blood sugar) fluctuates every 3-4 hours. 

Secret # 3              Eating 5-6 Times each day Balances Your Energy

Ever seem to be hungry, tired (or both) around or just before 3 pm in the afternoon? This is a natural fluctuation that is better fed with fruit and protein than a hot cup of steamy coffee.  If blood glucose naturally fluctuates every 3-4 hours, and your last meal was lunch, right about 12 pm, 3 pm is an ideal time to give your body permission to be fed.  It wants to be fed!  When you try to power through without food or try and substitute a liquid or have nothing, you create a void. 

By the next encounter you have with food, your body will have found a whole new level of hunger.  If you are walking through the door after a busy day without having fed your body, you might just eat anything that isn’t nailed down, let alone feel like you are ready for bed and not quite sure how dinner will make it to the table.  This is a very common pattern if a meal or snack is skipped during the day.

Many people benefit from 5-6 balanced meals and snacks to support a natural flow of energy throughout the body.   This is your body talking to you!  Planning for meals and snacks that energize your body is a powerful way to support your body, health, life and of course…Energy!

By honoring the inside of your body first, you create the vitality to live a full and energetic life.

Cambium Nutrition creates personalized meal plans that honor your unique lifestyle, relationship with food, likes, dislikes and health history. Your plan is designed and tailored to honor your goals, desires and ultimately to fuel your inner body with natural, beautiful energy.