Year: 2013

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Commitment is Love

photo (4)I have been bothered by all the messaging in this world, from sports to Hollywood to the grocery store ads. It is all about pleasure—personal pleasure. It tells us to be discontent with our lives. It tells us we are too short or too tall, our nose is too large or too flat, we'd be smarter if we drove a smart car or cooler if our hybrid was a Prius.

Heaven forbid if you still have a “dumb” phone or are seen without an iPhone. Our world says, you can be loved if you are cool, hip, rad or sic(k). Sadly, there is too much self-love and love of stuff. This is how the media and advertising outlets are defining love—this self-love—and sadly, it can become all-consuming and never satisfying.

Ironically, a love based on stuff and how we look is temporary at best, and satisfying only for the moment. As a breath of fresh air, in January, our family committed a passage in the Bible, 1 Corinthians 13, to memory. This is the quintessential passage on what Love is and isn't. 4 Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. 5 It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. 6 Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. 7 It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. 8 Love never fails. ….13 And now these three remain: faith, hope and love.

But the greatest of these is love. I would contend that our society needs the above mentioned love to bind the wounds of hate, selfishness and disrespect and begin to heal. Every relationship from the most intimate to the most casual would do well if our code of ethics or standard bearer was 1 Corinthians 13. Imagine how your relationships would be if: Your love is patient, your love is kind. Your love does not envy, your love does not boast. Your love is not proud, your love does not dishonor others. Your love is not self-seeking, your love is not easily angered. Your love keeps no record of wrongs. Your love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth.

Your love always protects, your love always trusts, your love always hopes. Your love always perseveres. Your love never fails. This kind of love can't be manufactured or purchased, it has to be a gift of personal giving. It is the kind of love that says, "I am committed" to you and to our relationship. The list above is a big list, but we can all work towards adding one or two of these to our key relationships. Not sure where to begin re-read the verse and replace “your” with your name and it will give you a good starting point (ouch). Want to join me in a selfless (not self- love) revolution?

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Juices and Smoothies

photo (2)Do you ever wonder …

1. What is the difference between juices and smoothies?

2. Why are they good for me?

3. Why can’t I just eat the food?

The team of youngandraw.com recently posted a highly educational article on the subject matter. 

So here we go!

1. What is the difference between a juice and a smoothie?

What is a Juice?

A juice is the liquid of the plant, with all of the plants fibre removed.  Juices in our minds, are healing drinks.  We like to refer to them as “vitamin and mineral infusions.”  Juicing removes all of the fibre and some of the protein from the plants you are juicing.  This means that your body does not have to do any digestive work in order to extract the nutrients from your juice, as they are absorbed directly into your blood stream.  You can juice any plant that has juice to extract.  Fruits, vegetables and herbs are the most common juice ingredients.

What is a Smoothie?

A smoothie is a drink composed of blended foods.  This means that the foods have been broken down into liquid form, while still retaining all of their fibre.  Because the fibres are just slightly broken down but not removed, your body will still have to do some digestive work in order to fully break down and digest your smoothie, but not as much as it would have to if you just ate the produce.  Smoothies are a little more versatile in the ingredients that work well within them.  You can do greens, other veggies, fruits, nuts, seeds, superfoods, protein supplements, herbs, spices, really anything that you can dream up you can add to a smoothie!

What are the different health benefits of Juicing vs. Blending?
Why Juice?

Juices are really amazing healing drinks.  Juices are particularly good for people who have damaged digestive systems, who have difficulty digesting vegetables, or are ill in any other way.  This is due to the fact that removing the fibre releases all of the nutrients from those plants, without your body having to do any work.

Juices are great to have when you want to do a cleanse of your body.  This is because your body will not be putting any effort towards digestion, so all that energy can be directed to ridding the body of built up waste and toxins. Juicing allows the body to focus on healing while still providing nutrients to your body that would not be present during a water fast.  Juices are also awesome for supporting the healing of a damaged gut, and a plethora of other health issues depending on the ingredients present.

Why Blend?

Smoothies are awesome for those who need a quick meal on the go and do not have time to sit down and eat something.  They are great for a meal before or after a workout, because smoothies are light enough that they won’t weigh you down but they are substantial enough that you won’t feel hungry again in 15 minutes.  You can also pack them full of ingredients that will help with your recovery after a work out.

Smoothies are also great for those who are coming off of a fast of any kind, as it will help to re-introduce your body to solid foods again in a more gradual way than jumping straight into eating would.  Smoothies will help to cleanse out your colon, because they contains the fibre that will help to “sweep” out your intestinal tract. These fibres will bind to toxins and usher them out of your system. Smoothies are also amazing for those who want to start introducing more raw foods into their diets, but don’t know how.  You can hide a number of less palatable ingredients like dark greens and superfoods under the sweet taste of fruit in a smoothie.

How to make juices & smoothies

How do you juice?

To make juice, you will need a juicer. You can get a Centrifuge juicer, which will have a blade or disk that spins at high speeds, grating your fruits and veggies, and then straining them through a fine sieve in order to extract the juice, or a masticating juicer which uses a slower pressing action to extract your juice.  Juicing greens is really awesome because our bodies do not have the enzymes needed to break down the cell walls found in greens.  This means that by juicing your greens you will gain access to the nutrients locked inside those cells be removing those fibres.  This also applies to other veggies that are often more difficult to digest.

Greens are best juiced through a masticating juicer because the slower extraction process allows for more nutrients to be separated from the fibres in the plant than with a centrifugal juicer.

How Do You Blend?

We recommend that you get a high-speed blender if you are serious about making smoothies a mainstay in your diet.  A slower blender (one with less horsepower) will take longer to blend your smoothie and will not break down the fibres as well as a high-speed blender will.  This will introduce more oxygen into your smoothie, increasing the oxidation rate, which means you get less nutrition from your smoothie.

Blending with a high-speed blender will ensure that you get the least amount of oxidative damage, and the most pleasing and palatable texture.  For the absolute least amount of oxidation, pulse blend your smoothies.

Are there any foods that shouldn’t be juiced or blended?
There are a few plants that do not lend themselves to juicing or blending quite as well as others. Below is a quick list of a few things that are best to avoid when making juice and smoothies.

Foods that are not great for Juice

Too much fruit – It’s best for your body, and your liver in particular, to avoid juicing copious amounts of fruit.  Fruit is best processed in our bodies when it comes with all its natural fibres, otherwise the sugars present are released to quickly into your blood stream, and your liver has to work extra hard to filter them.  It is best to keep your juice fruit free, or limited to small servings of green apple.

Spinach or Chard every day – Spinach and chard are high in oxalates which can cause kidney stone issues in those people who are susceptible.  We recommend that you do spinach and chard only every other day, as opposed to every day, just to be on the safe side.  Aside from these two greens, you should be fine to juice greens every day.

Foods that are not great for Smoothies

Starchy, hard to digest veggies – It’s best to avoid putting really starchy veggies like sweet potato or regular potato, as well as very hard to digest root veggies like beets and carrots in your smoothies.  These ingredients will just be hard for your body to break down, even in blended form.  Stick to the more water rich veggies and leafy greens.

Too many ingredients –  It can be very easy to get carried away, wanting to add an abundance of nutrition into your daily smoothies.  There are lots of super foods, powders, potions, herbs, fruits, veggies and leafy greens out there, but you do not have to put them all in every smoothie that you make!  Keeping your smoothies on the simpler side (2-6 ingredients) will be much better for your digestion.  Otherwise it may do more harm than good.

As you can see, both smoothies and juices have their place and purpose in a raw diet, and in a healing plan.  Neither is better than the other, but rather they just have different applications and different areas where they shine the most.

Source: http://www.youngandraw.com/juices-vs-smoothies-the-difference-health-benefits-between-them/

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The nurturing power of food

“The shared meal elevates eating from a mechanical process of fueling the body to a ritual of family and community, from the mere animal biology to an act of culture.” –Michael Pollan

I am often asked what it is about food that I love so much. “What is there not to love?” I say. Then I immediately start to think of the food itself. I think of the thrill of tasting pungent black truffles for the first time or when I made my first batch of preserved lemons, anticipating their sour, salty and floral flavor permeating my food as it did while in Morocco. I think of the many times I’ve had a bite and then closed my eyes in order to shut out all other senses so I could simply taste.

When someone has a few minutes for me to get philosophical, I’ll tell them that food doesn’t need to be enjoyable, but the fact that it is tells me that we are loved. It’s because of this that I desire to share food with others. If those I feed can experience a bit of the joy and provision I feel when eating, then I’m satisfied. 

As the new year came and brought with it introspection and goals, I set out to create more shared memories around food. Besides my family, there are not many others who have sat at our table. I want to change that. It is so easy for me to make excuses. “My home is too small. What would I make? I’m too tired. The kids are too crazy.” But the reality is, it’s not about any of that. In fact, it’s not even really about the food.

Last night, some friends and I fed a simple meal of chili, salad, cornbread and cookies to a group of women and their children who came to the shelter for a warm meal and a place to sleep. We talked briefly of the fragrant chili, warm from cayenne and cumin, and the scallion flecked cornbread. And then we listened to them tell us of what brought them to this place, about how much they love their children and, with tears in their eyes, how hard things have been. We listened and we ate. This happened around the table, in the presence of food, as does much of life.
While I’m inspired by new flavors, intricate recipes and ingredients from around the world, it is the life that happens around the food that sustains my desire to keep cooking and feeding.

by Ashley Rodriguez    
food blogger

http://notwithoutsalt.com/

 

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New to Juicing? – 5 things you need to know

stockvault-lemon-juice130752Juicing seems to be the latest trend going around but really it has been popular in the health and fitness circles for decades. Here's 5 things you need to know:

1. There’s room for debate.

Fans of green juicing, or juicing raw vegetables, say that you can drink more vegetables than you can eat, and that juicing allows your body to more easily absorb the vitamins and antioxidants extracted from fresh produce. Juicing has been credited with alleviating everything from skin diseases and immune disorders to cancer and high blood pressure.

But skeptics claim that the detox and cleansing benefits attributed to juicing may be more psychological than physical. There’s also a lack of scientific evidence that proves that juicing your vegetables is significantly healthier than just eating them. If you’re not eating enough vegetables, drinking them might be one way to up your intake. The bottom line is, juicing certainly can’t hurt.

2. Your digestive system will thank you.

Juicing proponents believe that your digestive system can function more efficiently when drinking raw vegetables. Although you lose the benefits of consuming fiber when drinking your produce, it takes less energy to digest food in liquid form. Heating and cooking vegetables also reduces or destroys some of their enzyme content, which some say can impede digestion. With juicing, it’s believed that these food enzymes are not only preserved, but your digestive system also gets a “rest.”

If you juice for enzymes, you might also believe that the right food combinations can help with digestion. Food combiners believe that eating a protein like meat or cheese, which requires one type of enzyme to be digested, with a carbohydrate, which requires another kind of digestive enzyme, can result in bloating and indigestion. When you juice, you only eat one type of food at a time, so digestion is speedier.

3. Moderation is key.

Despite what some raw foodists and “juicearians” might say, it’s not best to live on juice alone. A juice fast, in which one consumes only juice and no solid food for a day or more, can have healthy benefits, but it’s not entirely necessary. Drinking green juice can still have healing effects when combined with a regular, healthy diet.

For best results, drink green juice on an empty stomach, and make sure it’s as fresh as possible. More extreme measures, like the lemonade-and maple syrup-only Master Cleanse, or juice fasting as a quick-and-easy weight loss method, are not recommended.

4. Not all juices are created equal.

You can get your green juice at a juice bar, health food store or through a delivery service, but be wary of bottled and pasteurized juices. And read the labels carefully: Too much fruit or fruit concentrate can increase the sugar level, and heating and processing can lessen nutritional value.

Buying a home juicer and doing it yourself can pay off in the long run, although the juicer you buy might also make a difference. Centrifugal juicers, which grind and strain produce at high speeds, are the most affordable machines, but also less efficient – some say the high speed generates heat, and decreases the amount of enzymes in the resulting juice. Masticating juicers “chew” produce and can make more juice out of the same amount of vegetables, while triturating juicers, the most expensive and efficient option, “press” produce and retain more nutrients.

While juicers extract only juice from produce and remove the fiber, blenders retain all of the content by simply mashing everything together. Fiber aside, the blender versus juicer debate might come down to a matter of taste: drinking celery juice mixed with carrot juice will probably taste better than drinking a celery and carrot smoothie.

5. The possibilities are endless.

If you make your own juice, experiment with combining different kinds of fruits and vegetables for taste and nutrition. Popular combinations include mixing leafy vegetables like spinach or kale with celery or cucumber, and adding beet, carrot or apple for sweetness.

Adapted from: http://www.pbs.org/wnet/need-to-know/health/juicing/10814/

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I am your ingredients farmer

20110204-FAT SICK and NEARLY DEAD

After watching the DVD Fat, Sick and Nearly Dead, I went to the “Extras” section and watched a few of the deleted scenes. There were some great farm interviews that didn’t make the cut and also a section on “How to Shop” from Harvard Nutritionist, Stacy Kennedy. 

One of the most memorable or significant messages she was driving home was to buy ingredients when you shop, not food. Now, most everything at the grocery store is technically food. However, what Stacy would call food is that which comes in a box or jar, whereas ingredients would be those things which are unprocessed or unpackaged. So, her emphasis was to just buy ingredients. For the last 15 years, we, at Klesick Family Farm, have been supplying families with ingredients—ultra fresh and organically grown ingredients. 

Another observation was that our shopping should not be in the middle of the grocery store. That makes sense. After all, that is where all the sugary drinks, the sugary cereals and the processed other foods are merchandised. Most ingredients are located on the perimeter where you find the produce, meat, and deli departments. 

One additional suggestion I would have would be to bring a shopping list to the grocery store and stick to it. Those end cap displays are there for a reason—because the stuff being merchandised there sells really well. But, if those items are not on your list, keep moving. Shopping at the grocery store can be like going to war with yourself. Most of the products being offered are not healthy or processed and it can take an incredible amount of will power to come through the checkout without extra stuff. Of course, if you shop at one of the natural food stores, the potential for damage is less, but those places sell a lot food too.

Ironically, because you receive a “box of good” you actually save money on your food bill, because you don’t have to fight with your will power at the grocery store as often. You are also getting a lot of great ingredients to keep you and your family healthy, conveniently delivered right to your door.

As a company, 95% of our sales are ingredients and all of those ingredients come from farms committed to raising food that respects the earth, the farm workers and the consumer. Which means every time you get your “box of good” two messages are sent: one to your body that you care about it and the other to the good food community saying, “Keep it up!”

Let’s keep working together to improve your health and the health of the world–one bite at a time.

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Juice Revolution!

A simple 3-day juice cleanse – a time to detox and reboot your body!

While we don’t recommend replacing your meals long-term with juices, a short stint of juicing can really make for a fresh start or a reboot when you’re feeling sluggish or bloated. Post-cleanse, we like to supplement a healthy diet with fresh juice, simply because it’s so refreshing! When you are done with the 3-day Juice Revolution cleanse, you’ll want to go directly to eating clean, fresh, whole foods for the next couple of days. Plan to follow up your cleanse with plenty of rejuvenating soups, salads, and fresh fruit (smoothies are great for this part). A juice cleanse can be a fantastic way to kick food cravings. 

You will need:

• A juicer

• Lots of organic fruits & veggies

• A positive  attitude

Get Started:

• Order your Juice Cleanse Box and included recipe plan here!

Reboot your health with this incredibly beneficial juice cleanse!

1. Feel better: Fresh juice is brimming with live enzymes, antioxidants, and vitamins! This is the stuff that nourishes your body, encourages cell renewal, and promotes energy and vitality. During fasting, the body burns up and excretes huge amounts of accumulated wastes and toxins. Once these have been disposed of, you will feel refreshed and renewed.

2. Get more vitamins: Juicing unleashes the vitamins present in whole, raw fruits and vegetables. A high-speed juicer breaks down the cell membrane walls of the plants, allowing your body to quickly absorb more vitamins and nutrients. Juicing gives you a quick hit of vitamins from the best source on earth: plants.

3. Get more veggies: You and every health expert in the world agree that you need your veggies. But, do you really eat enough? And, what about the really healthy stuff like dark leafy greens or beets? Juicing is an easy (and tasty) way to incorporate a variety of low-calorie, nutrient-dense vegetables into your daily routine.

4. Look better: Your skin will look and feel hydrated and you will likely even lose a few  pounds.

* A juice cleanse is not for everyone. Consult your doctor to be sure a juice cleanse is right for you.*

Check out what’s in our Juice Cleanse box here.

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Come on out and Join Us!

Spend an enjoyable and opportune evening connecting with those who grow, produce, and source the food you eat—from our farms to your table. Meet some of the stewards of our land, whose hands work the soil with care to provide our communities and future generations with wholesome food. Get to know some of our vendors, who take this wholesome food and masterfully craft it into healthy products for our families. Visit with the Klesick Family Farm team and discover the fun group of people behind your box of good. You will come away connected—it will no longer be just food, but you will remember the smiles and warm handshakes of those who share your care for our land and our food.

Event Schedule ~ “An Evening with Your Farmers”

6:45 Doors Open
• Organic Hors d’oeuvres:  Sliced Seasonal Fruit and Berries, Apple Blossom Honey and Raspberry Whipped Yogurt Mousse, Bruschetta and Flat Bread Station, Served with Extra Virgin Olive Oil and a Variety of Toasted Flat Breads, Specialty toppings include: Roasted Pepper Hummus, Roasted Garlic and Tomato, Boursin Cheese, Olive Tapenade
• Selection of Organic Wine, Beer and Ciders 
• Visit with Your Growers
• Photo Slide Show
 
7:15 Welcome ~ Tristan Klesick
• Farmer Introductions
• The KFF Team: The people behind your box of good 
• Door Prizes
 
7:45 Guest Speaker ~ Jon Scholl, President, American Farmland Trust
• The American Farm Bill and Conservation
• Assortment of Mini Desserts from Essential Baking Company
 
8:15 Ken Akopiantz, Horse Drawn Produce Lopez Island
• GMO Free San Juans, A Victory for Farmers
 
8:25 pm Assorted Mini Dessert Samplers – Essential Bakery
• More Farmer Introductions
• Door prizes
• Farmer Connections
 
9:30 Farewell
 
Further Event Details:
Saturday, February 2nd 
7:00 – 9:30 p.m.
 
Comcast Arena at Everett
in the Edward D. Hansen Conference Center, Ballroom 1
2000 Hewitt Ave, 
Everett, WA 98201
 
Adults only; Business/informal attire; $30 per person; Place your reservation online, under the Non-Food category on our Products page, or by giving our office a call.
 
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This Year, Chestnuts

Joelle’s family has had stately old chestnut trees as a part of their landscape for years. When we moved to our current farm in 2003, we planted a few offshoots from these trees. Our farm also has three magnificent old walnut trees. Trees like these are planted for the next generations. Based on photos of our farm, our walnut trees were planted in the 1940s. It must have been a trend because many of the farms near us have similar-sized English walnuts trees.
 
When Joelle and I attended the Great Lakes Ag Expo last December, we happened upon an MSU chestnut bulletin expounding the benefits for farmers to plant chestnuts. And since we already had the chestnut connect  ion with Joelle’s family, we decided to add chestnuts. Now, next to our apples, plums, and pears, there are 16 Basalta #3 and 3 Marival chestnut trees. Hopefully, we will see our first chestnuts in 2015, with strong production in 2017. But unlike the chestnut trees of old, these will be maintained to a height of 20 feet, instead of 60 or 70 feet. 
 
Planting trees is exciting. The very act of planting an orchard is a statement of optimism for today and the future. While I was planting the trees with Nathan (Nathan helps out on our farm and other farms, and is the son of Mike who works in our office), we started talking about how the farm has changed over the last 10 years. I commented, “Maybe this will be my last major change or addition for a few years.” Nathan, with a Cheshire cat grin, wilily retorted, “I haven’t seen it yet.”
 
Alas, I must concede he is right. I am such a dreamer and I love to grow food. You see, the winter time is a dangerous time for farmers because now we have time to dream, and the dreaming turns to planning, and planning becomes chestnuts or greenhouse tomatoes or late summer strawberries.
 
Regardless of my dreaming, there is a real need for healthy farm-fresh food choices and that need is greater than ever today.
 
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Instead of resolutions, let’s set goals.

Every year we make many resolutions saying that my next year targets will be this and that. I will do so and so… But only a few of us really follow those resolutions. This year, instead of focusing on all the things you dislike about yourself and turning those into a list of resolutions, why not focus on your positive qualities and set realistic goals to go along with those? Many of you have already joined the organic movement but what else can we do to improve our health, energy and life? We came accross the Method 30-Day Challenge and we love it! You can sign up for free and track your goals towards a healthier lifestyle!

**According to the Method 30-Day Challenge, these six things will change your life:
 
1. Be more active:
According to the American Heart Association, being more active lowers blood pressure, lessens stress and anxiety, helps boost your immune system and even sharpens your mind. Seriously. It makes you smarter.   
 
2. Eat less refined sugar
What can we even say about sugar that you don’t already know? Pastries, right? But refined sugars elevate triglycerides, lower good cholesterol and create blood glucose spikes that lead to energy crashes.   
 
3. Consume less caffeine
Caffeine is so awesome, people are always trying to ban it (see: 17th century Ethiopia; modern-day Four Loko). It's an antioxidant and may reduce cancer risk, but it also disrupts metabolism, messes with sleep patterns and tells your body to store fat.   
 
4. Eat fewer animals*
Meat, cheese and eggs are delicious — just … delicious — but doctors and nutritionists at places like the National Cancer Institute and the Mayo Clinic say cutting down on eating animals leads to a longer life. And although cutting meat, eggs and dairy completely is ideal, cutting back is great too. 
*including eggs, milk and all other dairy  
 
5. Cut the gluten*
Gluten is what helps most breads and baked goods stick together and taste delicious, and for that we're eternally grateful! But gluten can also cause bone and joint pain, digestive problems, autoimmune disorders, headaches and lethargy. Nix it and see how good you feel! 
*Gluten is a protein naturally found in wheat, barley, rye and most oats.
 
6. Drinking less alcohol:
In moderation, the occassional glass of wine can stave off heart disease. But alcohol is also a toxin that’s hard on your liver, suppresses fat oxidation, impedes weight loss. Taking a 30-day break will jump-start all that exercising you’re about to do.   
 
With the 30-day Method Challenge, you will find all the tools, resources and inspiration you need to change the way you live in one month, and the support you need to keep the change up. 
 
To sign up and for more information please visit: http://challenge.methodjuicecafe.com/ or find them of facebook at: https://www.facebook.com/Method30DayChallenge?fref=ts
 
**Source: 30-day Method Challenge