Avocado, Cucumber, Chickpea Salad

This is a light refreshing salad, perfect for a cookout on a hot day. A good companion to the heavy main course. Something light next to a big fat burger or BBQ chicken. Perhaps an alternative to potato salad. A vegetarian option that has protein.

I think this will be perfect for our Memorial Day Cookout. I'll be adding the left overs to some greens for my lunches.

What you will need:

Olive Oil
16 oz can Chickpeas drained and rinsed
1 teaspoon Garlic, minced
1/2 Yellow Onion, chopped
1 Cucumber, sliced
3-4 Smallish Tomatoes, diced
6 stalks Celery, sliced
2 Ripe Avocados, diced
2 tablespoons Fresh Dill
2 teaspoons Red Wine Vinegar
1 Lemon, juice

1 Lime, juice
Salt and Pepper

How to:

1.  Heat some Olive Oil in a saute pan over medium heat. Add the Chickpeas, cook them for about 7 minutes, stirring. This will make them a little crunchy on the outside and creamy n the inside. At the end, add the minced Garlic. Set aside.

2.  If you don't like fresh Onion, saute them in some Olive Oil until translucent.  This will take some of the sting out. Or you could just omit it from the Salad. Set aside with the Chickpeas.

3.  Toss the remaining ingredients together in a large bowl.

4.  Add the Lemon juice, Lime juice, Red Wine Vinegar, Salt and Pepper to taste.

5.  Chill and Serve.  Enjoy!


Everyone enjoyed it, took some home and I still have some left for my lunches!   I did make a double though.

Note:  The avocados were not ripe, so I couldn't use them.  The salad was still great, but we all agreed that the avocado would have been a nice addition.

Oatmeal Is Not Just For Cookies Anymore

So, today I had some oatmeal for breakfast.  I had been speaking with a co-worker who really enjoys eating it on a regular basis.  Lots of people do, not me. It's thick and pasty or runny; I could never get the consistancy right.  And don't talk to me about those premixed packets.  UGH!  Some of them smell good when you open up the packet, but that's it.  The artificial flavor taste fake and chemically to me. (Which is one of the issues that I have with so many prepared foods. I'll count that as a positive!!) I think they are trying to fool us with the smell into believing that we are eating something that tastes good too.

Anyway, back to the oatmeal. My co-worker brought me some of her oatmeal, told me what she does, and said "try it".  So I have. I got the 2% milk and heated it, cut up some fresh strawberries, add some premium Berkshire Sweet Gold Black Amber Maple Syrup. Looked yummy. It was OK. I think that I need to do some more experimenting. Or maybe I'll just continue eating Oats in my granola and cookies!

The Journey Starts With A Spoonful of Yoghurt

I'm starting my journey by eating yoghurt again. It is the season, after all, spring and summer bring wonderful fresh fruits. Today I tried something new.  Siggi's Dairy Coconut Yoghurt. I was browsing in the grocery store, (yes, I'm one of those people) and I LOVE coconut; so thought that I would try it. It's thick and creamy with a light sweet taste of coconut. The Siggi's Dairy uses all natural milk from grass fed cows (no rBGN).  It was more expensive, so I'll probably only use it on occasion.  Then I added Qia: Chia, Buckwheat and Hemp Cereal for a bit of crunch. Qia is full of protein, fiber and ALA Omegas. So the combo is both tasty and nutritious!

 I usually use Chobani Plain Non-Fat Greek Yoghurt, then add fresh fruit and sometimes granola. The fruit adds all the sweetness that I need, especially in season ripe berries! If you like a little more sweetness than I do, use the Vanilla or add your own honey, agave nectar or other natural sweetener of your choice. I do grab the occasional pre-mixed individual container.  They are a quick and easy choice. I prefer blending my own. It really doesn't take that long to cut up a little fruit. I keep the granola handy both at home and at my desk at work. The granola gets added at the last minute so that it doesn't get soggy. I enjoy this combo for breakfast, lunch or a snack.


I have made my own yoghurt in the past. We were making it at one of the restaurants that I worked for, so I would make it at home sometimes. I won't do that this time, there are so many more choices and the Greek style yoghurt has more protein. I do think that I will make my own granola sometimes. I used to do that too, both in the restaurant and at home. Just have to gather up some of the things that I enjoy to make it: oats, nuts, seeds, dried fruit, etc. I will probably add some Qia too! It takes a little prep and cooking time, but it's fairly easy. I'll dig up my old recipe and share it here soon.

This is a delicious and nutritious way to start the day, and my journey back to health.

Eating My Way Back to Healthy

from www.facebook.com/holisticdad

I need to be healthy again.

I've thought this off and on the last few years as I finally started to realize that my health wasn't getting any better.

I have tried doing a variety of things to improve my health.  I changed my diet for both better nutrition and weight loss, walked everyday (this actually worked), joined a gym, tried a variety of supplements, fads and quick fixes; only to end up back where I started.  Sometimes worse off because a new issue arose.  

It's not about being older and watching youth slowly slip away; or trying to retain the youthful look or feeling. After all, I'm only 25 (give or take 25 or so  :D )!!  Mentally, I still feel that I am. On a good day, I am physically too. Then the fatigue sets in or the memory fails. One of a dozen plus little signs starts to rear it's ugly head; and I'm reminded that I'm not one of the young ones anymore.

Over the last decade, my health has taken a slow nose dive. Nothing serious... but nothing with an easy fix either. I haven't been 100% for a long time. There are the obvious reasons: age, weight, reduced activity... Add in my health issues: uterine fibroids which has caused or contributed to heavy/irregular/extended periods (sorry guys if this is TMI) and an iron deficiency; May-Thurner Syndrome which caused the DVT and potentially contributed to the irregular periods; and low progesterone (or estrogen dominance) that has also contributed to the irregular periods plus fatigue, moodiness, crazy sleep patterns, cloudy brain (or a lack there of).  My Gaul Bladder was removed. I have nodes in my thyroid. Bunions. Degenerative disks (L4 & L5) which occasionally pinch the sciatic nerve. Acne. Dry skin. I'm sure the list goes on....

So, today I make the commitment to make a change. You are my witness and will share in the journey (well, those few that might actually be reading this). I'm going to make small changes. Exchange a not so great item for a better item. Choose nutritious foods that my body needs. Find out what my body needs and what won't work for me. Don't get me wrong, I'm not going to stop eating sweets or having a drink out with friends; just maybe less. I may try converting some of my favorite recipes. I will start walking everyday. This has worked well for me in the past, I just need to restart the habit. I will take daily vitamins. At least until I'm at a healthy norm then the fruits and veggies can take over.

This is just the beginning of the journey. I will learn, make mistakes, have set backs; but will always move forward. Feel free to contribute, give advise or ask questions. I don't have all the answer, but will share what I learn and where I find the information.

Half: One woman's journey...

HALF: One woman's journey to lose weight

Julia Kozerski's Website
Originally found  on Facebook.com from www.mamamia.com

‘While I genuinely believed that my hard work and dedication would transform me into that “perfect” person of my dreams, the reality of what has resulted is quite the opposite. My experience contradicts what the media tends to portray. While it is easy to celebrate and appreciate the dramatic physical results of such an endeavor, underneath the layers of clothing and behind closed doors, quite a different reality exists.’  J Kozerski


This series of photographs struck me on so many levels that it makes it hard to find a direction to start.

First:  It's Thanksgiving 2012, which means that many Americans across the country just stuffed themselves to the point of bursting.   The Holiday Mecca for over-eaters everywhere that starts today and goes through the New Year.  We are a nation of indulgers.  I include myself in this as well; I have too many things, need to lose weight, etc...  It's no wonder that our children are increasingly becoming more obese.  Ah, but this can be a rant for another day.  So our indulgences led this woman (and many other) to have the need to lose weight, which produced this series of photos on her blog.

Second:  So many of us think that we need to be perfect.  We strive to have perfect bodies, perfect grades, perfect homes, perfect family....  Because we want people to like us, love us even.  Because we think that everyone else has a perfect life.  So we do things like buy the nicest house, lose weight, send our kids to the best schools...., to make everyone else think that our life is perfect.  All the while, popular culture, the media, advertisements tell us that we should be perfect, that we can be, that we want to be.  If we only do this, buy that, eat this but not that; we can obtain our desires and look like the "pretty people" we see on TV and in movies.

Lastly (and more importantly):  I found these photos to be beautiful.  In their raw honesty, we see into the soul.  We see the woman, not her weight or the wrinkles of her skin.  She shines through.  She is flawed, normal, just a woman, not particularly special, but so perfect in her own way.  She is her perfect self.  I hope that we can all achieve this, if even for only a moment.