Raw Hazelnut Chocolate Brownies

I found this recipe on The Wannabe Chef last week and made them the next morning. I just couldn't wait. Evan's picture just made them look so sinful!

Ingredients:

For the cake:

• 2 cups (254 grams) raw, unpeeled hazelnuts 
• 1 heaping cup (172 grams) dates
• 1/2 cup  (50 grams) cocoa powder
• 1/4 cup (60ml) maple syrup (I used 3 tablespoons and it was fine)
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla

For the frosting:

• 1 avocado (avocados come in all different sizes so I'll just say mine was 287 grams with the pit and 212 with just the meat)
• 6 - 7 (88 - 103ml) tablespoons maple syrup
• 1/4 cup (28 grams) cocoa powder
• 1 - 3 teaspoons espresso powder (not instant coffee!)

Directions:

In your food processor, pulse the hazelnuts until it's a fine flour. Add the dates, cocoa powder, maple syrup and vanilla and process until a sticky dough forms. Place the dough between two Silpats or two sheets of parchment paper and roll out to about 1/4" of an inch thick (or really, however thick you want it). With a sharp knife, cut the dough however you like (I used 1 1/2" circular cookie cutters) and form the excess dough into a ball, roll out again and cut out more shapes. For the frosting, in the bowl of your food processor, combine all the ingredients until thoroughly combined and no chunks of avocado are left. It took me a few minutes to do this. If it's not sweet enough, add more maple syrup. The espresso flavor was really light even with quite a bit of powder, but I still liked the difference it made. Add the frosting to the brownies, garnish with crushed hazelnuts and store in the fridge. Yields about 12 of the brownie towers you see above. 

Source: Chocolate Hazelnut Cake {Raw/Vegan} - The Wannabe Chef

Hope you Enjoy and Have a Great Time Making!
 Let me know how your family likes it, my Linas loves it, too!

Linas & Lana

5 HEALING TEAS

What is your favorite herbal tea?

 

There's nothing quite as comforting as a cup of herbal tea. It warms the insides, and promotes an instant feeling of calm and well being. Unlike coffee, which is supposed to be drink quickly, tea sipped slowly. Tea invites contemplation and conversation. Tea-time, which in England usually takes place twice a day { at 11 and 4}, is by far my favorite part of the day. Sitting on the deck, slowly sipping my favorite pomegranate tea and just stare out at the gorgeous green view. If all of this wasn't beneficial enough - herbal teas also carry with them a whole host of health benefits. Here are some of my favorites. Sit back and enjoy a cuppa!

1. Peppermint tea: Excellent tea to have about 1 hour before sleep time. Mellows you out, sooths your digestion, reduces heart burn, dissolves gallstones, fights bad breath, relieves stress, and acts as a pain reliever. I make my own peppermint tea using fresh herbs from the garden. It’s so fresh and super easy to grow!

2. Pau D’arco: Great for eliminating candida, purifying the blood, strengthening the immune system, protecting the liver, and beneficial while healing cancer.

3. Ginger:  Treat yourself to a cup of piping hot ginger tea, a healthy drink that's great for digestive processes (relieves nausea, combats motion sickness, controls pain). Why go out and buy old tea bags when you can easily make your own homemade ginger tea by using fresh ginger?

4. Valerian: Is great for promoting deeper sleep and helps treat chronic insomnia, soothes and sedates the nervous system, helps calm hysteria and restlessness, alleviates PMS, soothes the digestive system, lower the blood pressure.

5. Pomegranate tea: High in antioxidants, and is great for longevity. Don't be surprised to find yourself with the natural energy to squeeze more out of every day. Sip your way to good health with this exotic white, red and Matcha green tea blend and the juicy flavor of pomegranate with touch of stevia for sweetness.Click here to find out more about The Pomegranate tea

What is your favorite herbal tea?
Linas & Lana

Positive affirmation for the day: I don’t have to please anyone other than myself. But learning to appreciate tea is a life long pursuit, and one you can enjoy any time of the day. 

Kid's Kitchen:: Healthy Treat Ideas

5 Sweet & Healthy Treat Ideas for Kids' Classrooms

My lovely daughter told me recently that she was stumped by her kid's classroom treat rules. No more cupcakes, no cookies, no candy. All that is well and good - she was all for healthy eating and wanted help brainstorming what to make when it was her turn to bring snacks for the class. Have you come up with any creative treats for your kids' classroom? These are just a few ideas puled from Internet and I'd love to hear yours!

• 1 Blood Orange Jelly - Little jellies, right in the orange peels, with no added sugar. Just jellify the orange juice and pour it back in. Kids love these!

• 2 Oranges and Dates - Cut dates up into little pieces and serve them with orange slices. Not exactly low-sugar, but it's natural!  

• 3 Fruit-on-the-Bottom Yogurt Cups - What about fruit-on-the-bottom yogurt cups, made with fruit, organic jam or berries? Cute and easy.

• 4 4-Ingredient Banana Oat Bars - These chewy banana bars are easy and fast, and they use only the banana for sweetness

• 5 Cinch® SNACK BAR PACKs - Click here: MULTIPLE CHOICE

Chocolate Decadence? Peanut Butter Crunch? Lemon Cranberry? There's no wrong answer. Because whichever one you pull out of the box has a healthy protein to keep kid feeling full. And that helps make sticking to the kids' classroom rules. What else have you taken to the kids' classroom lately? 
{While peanut allergy incidence in America is growing, it still affects a small percentage of the population}

CINCH® SNACK BAR ASSORTMENT PACK MULTIPLE CHOICE: 

Related: Recipes for Low Sugar Snacks for School Children?
Have a lovely weekend,
 Linas & Lana

Positive affirmation for the day: Whenever a sugar craving hits, I take inventory of my life and look at what areas need a little sweetness.

Health Benefits of...

Health Benefits of a Smoothie

Making a smoothie every morning as part of a daily routine is perhaps the best of your time. Anthony Robbins writes that you should "sell your car" if you still don't own a juicer. Even better, get a high end smoothie blender, and use it every day. Smoothies still contain fiber, thanks Tony.

Do It Every Day

Make a routine out of it. Set apart 10-20 minutes every morning. Further, the high water and nutrient content will keep you hydrated and provide you with a feeling of well being all day. The bottom line, the best way to get nutrition is from food, and by consuming a healthful smoothie every day you are getting most of your nutrition in one proven delicious dosage all before lunch.

Since this was my first encounter with the whole thing I started small with a five day challenge. If you want to join in the fun you can! The rules are simple: make a smoothie everyday for five or six days that includes two big handfuls of greens (spinach, kale, whatever you like!).

Click here for more creations: Green Smoothie Challenge

Achieve Optimal Performance

Consuming Raw Fruits and Vegetables in a smoothie every day will do several things for you: Give you plenty of natural fiber to ensure excellent digestion. Provide you with the scientifically proven best "brain fuel" in the form of fructose and help empower your immune system to protect you from illness and gives you a lots of energy. Linas and I drink smoothies every day.

 Positive affirmation for the day: A Smoothie A Day Keeps The Doctor Away . 

Who’s in for the challenge? What’s your go-to smoothie combo? Happy blending!
Linas & Lana

People That Inspire Me

Robyn O’Brien shares her personal story and how it inspired her current path as a "Real Food" evangelist. Grounded in a successful Wall Street career that was more interested in food as good business than good-for-you, this mother of four was shaken awake by the dangerous allergic reaction of one of her children to a "typical" breakfast. Her mission to unearth the cause revealed more about the food industry than she could stomach, and impelled her to share her findings with others. Informative and inspiring.

About this speaker
Robyn authored "The Unhealthy Truth: How Our Food Is Making Us Sick and What We Can Do About It." A former Wall Street food industry analyst, Robyn brings insight, compassion and detailed analysis to her research into the impact that the global food system is having on the health of our children. She founded allergykidsfoundation.org and was named by Forbes as one of "20 Inspiring Women to Follow on Twitter." The New York Times has passionately described her as "Food's Erin Brockovich."
Source: www.tedxtalks.ted.com...

She is regarded as an expert on children’s health policy. The Discovery Channel named her as one of its 15 Top Visionaries. Robyn’s work has also been recognized by individuals such as Dr. Oz, Robert Kennedy Jr., Ted Turner and Prince Charles. She is focused on restoring the integrity of the food supply and the health of children. Her work is seen in Food, Inc. filmmaker Robert Kenner’s 2012 video, Labels Matter, and with Jamie Oliver’s Food Revolution.
Check out more about Robyn!   Visit her website here:

Positive affirmation for the day: 

“In the absence of the truth, all of us stand helpless to defend ourselves, our families and our health, 

which is the greatest gift we have.  Robyn O’Brien’s courageous pursuit is an example of how we can all do our parts to protect the health of our families." —Erin Brockovich

With love and admiration, 
Linas & Lana
P.S Please read here:

                                     All Vitamins are Not Created Equal

http://myangellinas.blogspot.com/2012/07/all-vitamins-are-not-created-equal.html

Chocolate Fudge and Ice Cream without Dairy

Contributed by dear friend Perla Erickson
Certified Holistic Health Coach, ADDP 

LHC Alumni

Ingredients::

3 long blades of fresh lemon grass or “tanglad”

3 ½ to 4 cups water

¼ to 1/3 chunk of Organic Dark Chocolate (Trader Joe’s or your favorite chocolate bar)

Add:  1 heaping tablespoon of Organic Cocoa Powder

          1 Tbls  raw organic cocoa nibs or replace with 1 Tbls of cocoa powder

          1 heaping Tbls each of Sipping chocolate from Trader Joe’s

          4 Tbls  organic brown sugar or raw honey, (depending on the sweetness you want).

          1/3 cup raw almond, sprouted or mixture of almond and walnuts

          2 Tbls organic flax seeds

          2 Tbls chia seeds

          2 Tbls unhulled organic sesame seeds

          1 organic carrots                                        

Process all ingredients in the Vitamix.   Divide the mixture into 2: 

    ½ of the mixture is for chocolate fudge, add:

           1 avocado

           2 Tbls  Cinch powder

           1 Tbls  Energizing Soy Protein, Cocoa or Vanilla

Process in the Vitamix.  Add more sugar according to taste.

Freeze the other half of the mixture in a pyrex glass container. 

The Best Chocolate Fudge Ice Cream You'll Ever Have, I guarantee!

Linas & Lana

There is an emergency stash of bittersweet chocolate in the pantry.  

Positive affirmation for the day: I'm pretty sure what they served in heaven. My actions make this world a better place.