Feeling the fear

"I learned that courage was not the absence of fear, but the triumph over it. The brave man is not he who does not feel afraid, but he who conquers that fear."
Nelson Mandela

Mixed seed, mixed rice, blueberry breakfast pudding - vegan, gluten-free and low sugar!

Ingredients:
1 cup mixed brown & wild rice (I buy big canisters of mixed rice from Costco)
1/4 cup each flax seeds, dried blueberries (or raisins), sunflower
seeds, pumpkin seeds
4 cups water
1 can coconut milk
Cinnamon to taste (I use about 1/4 cup but that might be too much for some)

Directions
Put all ingredients in rice cooker, turn on.
Makes approximately 4-6 large servings.

Time Saving Tip - You can mix 4 cups of mixed rice with 1 cup each of the pumpkin,
sunflower, flax seeds and dried blueberries, and then just use 2 cups
of mixture when preparing.

Pizza!

Delicious Pizza (vegan but not gluten free)

6 sheets of Mountain Bread (http://www.mountainbread.com.au/cgi-bin/index.pl - from Costco)
1/3 cup of tomato sauce
1 onion, chopped
2 tsp of coconut oil
1 pepper, sliced
1/2 cup sliced mushrooms
handful of black olives, sliced

Fry onion in coconut oil until caramelized. Meanwhile, put 2 sheets of mountain bread next to each other on a cookie sheet. Brush with water. Add 2 more sheets, brush with water, and top with 2 more sheets, so you have 2 stacks of 3 sheets.  Spread with tomato sauce. Arrange veggies and caramelized onions over and bake in 400 degree oven for 20 mins.

Of course, you can substitute any sort of pizza toppings. Here's a hint though, when making a normally cheesy dish like pizza cheeseless, it helps to add savoury ingredients, such a olives, capers, onions, mushrooms and artichokes. Vegan cheese can always be added too! I tried the best smoky vegan cheese at a party last week that would be a delicious addition to any pizza!

What do me and Georges Laraque have in common?

Besides a love of hockey, Edmonton, the Green Party, that we both had a radio show on Power 92? (Just kidding about that last one...).

Answer: We both went vegan after seeing Earthlings.

If you haven't seen it, I recommend it, but don't watch it alone: http://www.earthlings.com/

"Take sides"

"Take sides. Neutrality helps the oppressor, never the victim. Silence encourages the tormentor, never the tormented." - Elie Wiesel

Veggies, rice and beans

There is something about cold weather that makes us want warm, filling, nutritious food. This is a simple little recipe that can be made easily with whatever you have on hand.

Ingredients:
1 - 2 tbsp of coconut oil
1 onion (I used white)
Veggies (I used 3 peppers and 5 tomatoes)
1 can of beans (I used white kidney)
1 - 2 cups of cooked rice (I used leftover brown and wild rice)
Nutritional Yeast (Optional)

Fry the onion in coconut oil until soft and getting translucent. Add the veggies. Cook them until hot. Add rice and beans and stir and cook until everything is hot. (You don't want to overcook the veggies as it's nice to keep all the enzymes you can). Add nutritional yeast to taste.

Improve you assets!

Here my Genius pal Lisa answers my questions on improving your backside: http://happyfit.ca/2010/06/16/backside-blues/

Not only will these exercises help your butt look good, but your glutes are one of your body's largest muscle groups, and the more muscle you have, the higher your metabolism!

My Brilliant Cousin Katrina on the Benefits of Chocolate!

http://www.naturallysavvy.com/food-and-drink/health-benefits-of-chocolate

"He who wants to keep his garden tidy doesn't reserve a plot for weeds."

"You cannot play with the animal in you without becoming wholly animal, play with falsehood without forfeiting your right to truth, play with cruelty without losing your sensitivity of mind. He who wants to keep his garden tidy doesn't reserve a plot for weeds." - Dag Hammarskjold