A great juicing resource

Are you familiar with Max Goldberg or since we're all know by our handles Living Maxwell? If you're passionate about healthy food and juicing he has a  great feature Pressed Organic Juice Directory, he’s curated juicing locations in different states, even in different countries. Max is also a great resource, I follow his tweets and posts as I find he's always manages to locate information I have yet to hear (legitmate information). 

He interviewed me for the Juice Directory. I do a lot of these Q/As and I really felt this was fun and worthy of the repost. Here’s  portion of the piece below, the rest can be found here

Why do you juice?
I’ll admit a couple ulterior motives for juicing others may not have mentioned (or admitted). I juice because it makes me feel nutritionally virtuous – getting so many nutrients into a couple of cups – and I also juice because it helps me successfully use up the farm box.
But juicing energizes me and my workouts, and helps debloat me when necessary. And I swear that any compliments I get on my skin have more to do with juice than topical products (although I love Joanna Vargas’daily serum which she refers to as “green juice for your skin”).

Tell me about your juicing lifestyle?
I was a “smoother” before I was a juicer and still alternate between green smoothies and juices. Although there are some common “players”, I feel juicing is where I’m most creative. With cooking, I’m more of a recipe girl but for juices I feel there’s really no messing up. Either the Vitamix or the juicer get action daily.

Do you have a juicing habit that no one knows about?
Ooh you mean a juice secret (or juicy secret)? Hmmm – pretty much everyone I know or e-know hears about my juices since I Instagram them constantly. If there are ingredients that I find are secret weapons, those would be coconut, fresh herbs and fresh turmeric. My best-kept juice secret, the “bikini greenie”, is in The Little Book of Thin’s pre-beach chapter (rude and annoying to mention and make readers wait, I know).

What is one of your favorite pressed organic juices?
Ooh can I name two? I adore both Jalapina from Organic Avenue and Swan Greens from One Lucky Duck.

How has your juicing evolved over the years?
My juices are less sweet and more interesting, but greens, lemon, and ginger will always be staples. Some things don’t change.

What kind of juicer do you have at home and how often do you make it?
I have a Breville. I know some purists will say this juice gets “heated” but you know what? I love it!

What are the biggest mistakes people make when juicing?
Too much fruit. We don’t need more fruit juice in our lives. I suggest 1 fruit (excluding lemon/lime) per juice.

What are your thoughts on juice cleanses?
I love juice/clean food cleanses like The Squeeze and Not Just a Juice Cleanse from Pure Food and Wine.

What are your best tips for staying healthy when traveling?Arm yourself. We have a Food First Aid Kit that we send clients away with and a Nutcase to bring Foodtraining abroad. There’s a tonic for every travel trap from the minibar to vacation-constipation. I also find seeking out juice shops is a great way to locate the healthy folks in town.
Do you seek out juice when you travel? Do you juice at home? What are your favorite ingredients? What type of juice do you have?

Juice and Smoothie Recipes on Instagram

I am fairly new to both the iPhone and Instagram but I'm having a lot of fun with them. I get a lot of questions about smoothies and juices mostly ..."what do I put in them?" It's funny, this is the one place this normally recipe-centric girl is creative. You can put whatever you want in them or whatever you have on hand. Here are some ideas:

Tuesday something very rare happened, I found myself with no greens- we were kale, microgreen and spinach-less. This proved a delicious, refreshing combo.

Have I mentioned the puppy? Yes, it's been a little over a week. This was my effort to make up for sleep with juice.

I love Prince although I named this smoothie only after making it. Some of my favorite ingredients are used here.
Do you juice or smooth? What are your favorite ingredients or combinations? Do you use Instagram...it's fun.

The Top 10 Things We Learned in Sun Valley

This past weekend Carolyn and I took Foodtrainers on the road and headed to Sun Valley, Idaho for their Harvest Festival. It was a fantastic event in a beautiful location. Here are some of our favorite foods and facts from the weekend.

We learned from fellow food trend panelist and author of Cooking Up A Business (Rachel Hofstetter) that you need to hear about something from three different sources to consider it a food trend.

We learned that LA folks were right Intelligentsia coffee is pretty great

We adored Velocio coffee, coffee bar by day, wine bar by night), a cool concept. And don’t even get us started on Noosa Aussie Yogurts.

We learned about the next great sushi roll: smoked trout and mustard at Ketchum’s 2nd Ave sushi. This may be the new “Philly” roll especially with Sun Valley mustard. 

We learned that we like molecular gastronomy done right  (definitely hadn’t had it right before) and the magic of liquid nitrogen. We enjoyed Intermezzo of lemon basil sorbet, would’ve love more if hadn’t been the palate cleanser after foie gras (not our thing...) For a taste of lemon-basilyness try this “Giadaesque” smoothie 

We learned that if something doesn’t exist on the market, you can produce it yourself. Allison Evanow saw a need for organic spirits and started Square 1 organic vodka

Her cucumber, basil and botanical flavors tasted pretty good at the Martini and caviar party at 8000 feet in the fabulous Roadhouse restaurant. We loved the pour your own shot bar, no mixers required.

 

Butternut Squash and caviar mini tacos

We heard from an adorable woman who was saddened she didn't bring her Vitamix with the recent SV fires. The Vitamixers mom is 97 and healthy as ever, juicing and smoothing her whole life way before the trend

That hemp can be used to make hollandaise sauce, thank you Glo café

And that fab couple Mike and Autumn from Manitoba Harvest? Love them.

We learned it's best not to wing it mapless when you start a hike

But if you do, wear your Fitbit (20,000 steps = x miles?) and bring a camelback

We learned an arnica massage and a Bowl of Soul (coffee, spice and chocolate) “no whip” from Java coffee hits the spot after.

We learned of the Restaurant Walk concept as the new pub-crawl. We hit 18 restaurants for their offering of the day: goat cheese and watermelon skewers and organic grilled quail (in photo Carolyn is showing her quail fear) were highlights. Two other facts: you should always seize the opportunity to sit in back of a flatbed and it’s ok to be pill poppers: Digestive Enzymes and Zyflamend when needed.

So we learned a lot and enjoyed ourselves but would love to hear from you

What do you see as the next food trends? What are you hearing about? 
The winners from last week's giveaways are:
Ginny Bakes Cookies- Nina
Heath Warrior Chia Bars- Amber
Veggie Gos-Emaliah
Thank you for entering everyone.

Meet Harissa

I love condiments, particularly spicy condiments, so I’m wondering why it took so long for harissa and I to meet. Harissa is from North Africa and I’m from North America but since when, in 2013, does geography throw a wrench in our eating plans? While I’m all for local bounty, I also love coconut water, matcha and Himalayan salt. So it was probably just bad luck that harissa and I hadn’t crossed paths.

My first harissa spotting was at Le Pain Quotidien. I enjoyed what I tasted but their harissa is very thick, almost a paste. I was intrigued and ordered harissa from one of my favorite sites mouth.com.This was the Mina brand harrissa and I have to say I fell in love. I've since learned this harissa is widely available even sold at West Elm (a desk and some condiments anyone? weird).

I dipped veggies in harissa, added it to scrambled eggs, folded some into my sardine/avocado combo and used it on grilled chicken breasts. For every ingredient I tested harissa on, it passed with flying colors. I want to try this recipe for salmon, kale and harissa next.

As much as I love to cook, I’m not someone who feels you have to DIY for everything if someone else can make it better. I’d cop to laziness but it’s really, without getting too deep, about insecurity. Can mine be as good? With Harissa, I didn’t think so but because of this blog post I decided to try. I used this recipe.

On a 100-degree day I cranked up my oven to 500

Roasted my peppers

Diced my chilies (not the Thai chilies the recipe called for but long green hot peppers). Remember the chili pepper/metabolism connection?  I also used ground coriander versus seeds (it’s all I had).

blurry, spicy chilies and garlic

 Combined everything in the Vitamix (recipe says to do in 2 stages but needed the volume for Vitamix to work).  I spooned the blended harissa into a weck jar,  refrigerated it as directed and you know what? Just as good as Mina’s.

Have you already met harissa? Do you make it yourself? What do you use it for? What's your current favorite condiment?

Smoothie Scientists and Giveaway

Yesterday we sent out our “Smoothie Support Group” newsletter tackling your most pressing smoothie issues: how to ensure your smoothie isn’t a gazillion calories, solutions for those of you who feel you rather eat versus drink your calories and the most common smoothie query “do I need a Vitamix?”

When I last posted about smoothie ingredients, one commenter said “You talk about things you put in your smoothies a lot and I have this image in my head of you with a zillion potions and powders, in a lab coat

Carolyn and I in front of Smoothie Central cabinet with all sorts of powders and mix-ins

That’s all Carolyn and I needed to read…enter your Smoothie Scientists in our labcoats. Here is our video debut (we’ll hone our skills, I promise) with our Thin Minty Smoothie.

6oz Harmless Harvest Coconut water
1 cup frozen blueberries (if you skip berries be sure to add ice cubes)

1 handful kale

1 scoop Sun Warrior Chocolate protein powder

1 Tbs Cacao nibs or powder

¼ avocado

Organic Peppermint extract
pinch Himalayan salt

6 drops NuStevia

Cacao, if you’re not familiar with it, is what chocolate is made from. The powder or nibs are high in fiber (good to get things moving), it keeps LDL or bad cholesterol from doing nasty things, is a mood booster and a source of magnesium (most people are magnesium deficient).

Turmeric Carrot Smoothie with must-have Strawesome 

I love to “smooth” it’s true and have been playing around with my Turmeric Smoothie

 6oz ice water (or I tried with carrot juice too)

1 scoop Vanilla Sun Warrior

½ frozen banana

1 tsp. nut butter (used cashew butter)

Ice cubes

Cinnamon

¼ to ½ tsp. turmeric

NuStevia (used their lemon flavor)

Reasons everyone should add turmeric to your diet daily:

• Weight loss- studies (yes on rodents but still) show turmeric added to diet resulted in less weight gain; less lower body fat, if you’re a “pear” turmeric is for you.
• One double blind, placebo-controlled study found that turmeric reduced symptoms of bloating and gas in people suffering from indigestion (love well executed bloat study).
• It is a natural liver detoxifier, important in the summer time with perhaps more cocktails consumed
• Good for healthy skin and conditions such as psoriasis
• It is a potent anti-inflammatory with zero side effects; therefore, it is a natural treatment for arthritis, soreness following exercise and nature's Advil
• Prevents various forms of cancer from spreading, described as “turning off cancer cells”

I want to try turmeric in a smoothie with Socal Cleanse hemp protein (which made our protein powder Hall of Fame). It’s what we call our Monday morning protein- excellent for bloat or when PMS strikes. Socal has generously offered to give away a bag of their protein to one of our thirsty (we didn’t say bloated) readers.

To enter comment below and tell us where you stand on the smoothing spectrum (smoothie newbie or seasoned smoothie maker), what your favorite smoothie is and what type of blender you use. If you haven’t lost your smoothie v-card, what’s holding you back?

What's Better Raw or Cooked?

Last week I posted the lovely Juli Novotny’s letter where she discussed her initial discovery of raw food. Thank you for all your emails and comments. A handful of clients came into their sessions asking, so if I want to feel like she did do I need to go raw? This reminded me of another, more in depth, email I had received a few weeks back.

Are there foods that I am getting no nutrients from because I cook them? How do I know how many nutrients I am losing and which ones? Are they the ones I care most about?

As always, I look forward to hearing what you have to say!!

I’ve been in book writing induced hibernation so I had our fantastic newish nutrition nerd Carla Vass tackle this. Here are her answers to my questions.

Let’s start with the case for cooked. Which foods are more beneficial when cooked?

Yes, tomatoes for sure. The antioxidant content of tomatoes significantly increases when cooked. Lycopene, in tomatoes, has been singled out as important for prostate health but lycopene is a very powerful anti-cancer weapon in general. It is 10 times as effective as vitamin E at wiping out free radicals which can affect our cancer risk. Tomato sauce, tomatoes cooked in chili and soups are important in a healthy diet. Additionally, cooked carrots, spinach, mushrooms, asparagus, cabbage and peppers  also supply more antioxidants, such as carotenoids and ferulic acid, cooked than they do when raw.

There is also the question of digestibility. Have you tried uncooked squash? The sturdy cell wall is difficult to digest without heating first. Dried beans need cooking. Other beans need heat to kill certain compounds. Lima beans contain the poison cyanide, which is released harmlessly as a gas during cooking.

And all cooking methods are probably not created equal, what’s best and worst?

Yes, steaming was the most successful method of retaining the vitamin content of food. Stir-frying and pressure-cooking also proved to be good methods of cooking. We expected boiling but deep drying is the worst (for this and other reasons). We also received a Vitamix question; vitamixers do not worry contents do not get hot enough to destroy enzymes or nutrients.

And the reasons for raw, which foods are most important to eat raw?

The nutrient most affected by cooking is Vitamin C. The cooked tomatoes we discussed above as potent anti-cancer weapons? Well almost 30% of the Vitamin C will be lost in half an hour of cooking. That Mr Vitamin C is very unstable but is also much needed for immunity, wound healing and assistance absorbing iron.

It’s probably a good idea for everyone to eat some raw leafy greens and high “C” fruits each day (papaya, kiwi, oranges, strawberries). Vitamin C, aside what are the other reasons for raw?

Advocates point out that people ate raw fruits, vegetables, nuts, and seeds long before they learned to cook. They say that a return to this original diet increases energy, strengthens immunity to disease, and improves mental health.

While I’m all for less processed I hate this type of argument about what people used to do. People used to not wear seatbelts and eat poisonous berries too-whoops. Can’t use chronology as a method for determining what’s best in all cases. Thanks Carla, good information.

I’ve done weeks here and there of raw food and it feels great. Part of the reason it feels great is that you’re eating very nutritious foods but part of it is also what you’re eating less of: fewer grains, no dairy and less salt too. I try to have 1 juice or green smoothie and 1 dark/leafy green or microgreen salad per day. Especially in the winter, I find warm food very satisfying.
As much as I  hate answers that start with “it depends” or sound like hedging in the case of raw versus cooked it does depend. In terms of vegetables, try to eat some raw and some cooked each day and watch out for those lima beans (who knew?).
Have you dabbled in raw food? Thought about nutrients lost in cooking? What would you say your percentage of raw versus cooked is in your diet?

What's Better Juices or Smoothies?

As I sit here, at my in-laws house, after Thanksgiving #1 with my family and Thanksgiving part duex with Marc’s family I’m looking forward to Monday. It’s not what you think; we’ve had a great time. I am excited because we’re testing out a cleanse from my favorite juice truck The Squeeze. With juice on my mind, I thought about this question I received from a client.

What is the difference between smoothies (drinking the roughage) and juicing (no roughage) in terms of my diet? 
I was posed a similar question for a Refinery29 article.

For starters, smoothies are made in a blender (for me that means Vitamix) and juices in a juicer (love my Breville). My client who posed the question was correct. With smoothies the fiber from the fruits, vegetables, herbs or spices are retained. Whereas when you juice the pulp (which contains fiber) is extracted leaving just the liquid behind. Fiber has such a healthy reputation that there can be a rush to judgment that higher fiber has to be better but it’s not that simple.

Juice and I'm talking primarily veggie juice, with the bulk removed, enables quick energy. Juice doesn’t play hard to get and your body doesn't have to "unwrap" or digest in order to access the nutrients. For those of you who enjoy spinning, juicing is akin to riding with little resistance (fiber) so you can go (or get your nutrition) faster. Eating a salad or drinking a smoothie is more like riding with tension or resistance. You’ll go more slowly perhaps in a more controlled, even manner.

There’s also the issue of quantity. When I juice in the morning I cover a large cutting board with greens, ginger, lemon, pear or whatever I have on hand. You’d have to eat 9 cups of kale to get the potassium, calcium and iron in two cups of green juice. I think of a daily juice almost like a multivitamin. Smoothies, on the other hand, don’t require as much in terms of quantity. My typical smoothie is approximately 1 cup of frozen fruit, a handful of greens, protein powder and then other random ingredients (cacao, yacon, coffee extract are current favorites). I digress, the point I’m making is that there’s a fraction of the produce in a smoothie versus a juice. From a calorie perspective, green juices hover around 150 per 16oz. Smoothies made with fruit, protein, some sort of liquid (almond milk or coconut water) and a little good fat can be double but you’ll get more staying power. 

I think I answered the “what’s better?” question in the most annoying manner that is saying “it depends” but it really does. I hate to be "bi-vegetable" but there are benefits to juicing and “smoothing”. Juice is a megadose of nutrients and smoothing is better for satiety, better for post workout recovery. Most days I’ll have one of each. So if you’re in the market for a Vitamix or a juicer, I can’t sway you either way. It’s like choosing between my family and my in-laws and let’s just say diplomatically that I’m “thankful” for both.

Do you juice or "smooth"? Which do you prefer? What are your current favorite ingredients? And after a holiday weekend, how was your eating? Parents or in-laws?