Chocolate Makes Me Oh Soooo Happy!
I am often asked “What is the difference between chocolate and coffee?” or chocolate and caffeine? or “Doesn’t chocolate contain caffeine?”
The answer is quite simple and very interesting. You have probably noticed a very different effect of coffee on your body than that of chocolate. Both chocolate and coffee have stimulants in them. The difference is the chemical make up of these stimulants. In fact, both stimulants have almost exactly the same chemical structure. They look identical – except for a change in one position. The difference is that caffeine contains a carbon with three hydrogens instead of one hydrogen in theobromine. This small difference has a huge effect. Coffee is intense. It is strong, fast acting, causes jitters and mental stress. The theobromine in chocolate is gentle and long lasting. It is a mild antidepressant and creates a “good feeling”.
So… eat your chocolate and be happy!
Chocolate is a great transition food and there are many delicious, living chocolate recipes at thelivingcafe.com! One of my favorites? . Our chocolate recipes are a scrumptious blend of raw cocoa (pronounced “kuh-KOW”), pumpkin seeds, honey… etc. Normally, you probably would not eat an entire cup of pumpkin seeds, but put some unbelievable chocolate on it and you will! Our recipes are amazing and a great treat anytime you need a little boost or just want to feel good about getting your daily dose of antioxidants.
FABULOUS FACTS ABOUT CHOCOLATE:
Cocoa is actually a FRUIT – and it is actually one of the most healthy fruits commonly eaten by man!
Recent research studies have shown a link between cocoa and cardiovascular health, with reduced risk of blood clots, strokes, and heart attacks.
Cornell University food scientists discovered that cocoa powder has nearly twice the antioxidants of red wine, and up to three times the antioxidants found in green tea.
Raw cocoa has the highest antioxidant value of all the natural foods in the world!
The ORAC score per 100 grams of unprocessed raw cacao is 28,000, compared to 18,500 for Acai Berries, 1,540 for Strawberries, and only 1,260 for raw Spinach.
Cocoa also appears to have anti-aging and anti-inflammatory properties. And cocoa is a good source of the minerals magnesium, sulphur, calcium, iron, zinc, copper, potassium, and manganese; plus some of the B Vitamins.
Cocoa has a high content of the “beauty” mineral, sulfur. Sulfur helps build strong nails and hair, promotes healthy and beautiful skin, helps detoxify the liver, and supports healthy functioning of the pancreas.
Fresh cocoa beans are super-rich in the type of bioflavonoid called flavanols which are strong antioxidants that help maintain healthy blood flow and blood pressure.
The antioxidants in cocoa are easily absorbed by the human body, and are more stable and long-lasting than those in any other foods.
Studies have indicated that consuming dark chocolate produced an increased sensitivity to insulin (which indicates a protective effect against diabetes).
You may also be surprised to learn that dark chocolate can help you lose weight! Because it has appetite-suppressant properties, cocoa is often added to weight loss products to help control hunger.
Raw cocoa beans contain over 300 chemically identifiable compounds. This makes cocoa one of the most complex food substances on Earth!
UP YOUR SHINE!
Alicia Overton, Co-Founder
www.thelivingcafe.com
10 Great Things You Can Do With Your Kids To Enjoy Living Foods
1. Help them plant a small garden and give them the freedom to pick any seed or plant they wish. Let them be creative with rocks, design, and water. This year I found small stevia plants in the herb section of the nursery, my kids had no idea why I was so excited. We bought 4 of them but sadly only two made it due to the fact that the kids could not contain themselves from eating all the leaves. The 2 stevia plants that survived grew to about a foot and a half high with several sweet leaves to enjoy anytime they check on their gardens.
2. Make some really good raw ice cream or Popsicles and invite a few of their friends over for a little party.
3. Announce “Let’s go on a picnic”! This could be in your own back yard, the park, or some other special place. Have each child choose something they would like to take. There are many living food snacks that are perfect finger foods to take along on a picnic. You could prepare a nutritious sweet juice, a salad with their favorite dressing, or a great finger food – and don’t forget the desert!
4. Allow your kids to explore the produce section of the grocery store. Give them the freedom to bag a few dollars of anything they like. If it’s their idea to get something more exotic looking they get so excited about what it might taste like. With my older kids, I can tell them what I need and they usually bring me the right thing. This is a great way to teach them to shop in this area of the store – the living area!
5. Make some cheesy Kale Chips. My kids don’t have a clue how healthy these chips are. They just go crazy for them.
6. Have them make you their own juice or smoothie concoction. Kids love to be creative and are more likely to eat what they create. I have to admit though, sometimes I have to do some pretty good acting to pretend that it’s delicious. Never correct them or tell them how, just sit back and watch the process. Soon, they will be asking all the time “what can we make today?”
7. Everyone loves granola. Gather 6 to 10 ingredients of various living seeds, nuts, raisins, berries, or whatever else you think will taste good in a granola. Place all these items on the counter. Each kid can now pick from the ingredients you’ve placed on the counter. They can now create, and mix their own granola creation up in a bowl. Make sure to give them their own shelf in the dehydrator, and don’t forget to name it.
8. Always have a bowl of fruit out for them to grab. Have this in a central place of the kitchen. Sometimes we simply line the fruit up along the counter edge. Your fridge is another great place to have living foods right where they can see them each time. Make a couple of yummy dips and cut up some of their favorite veggies so they can grab these snacks anytime and munch.
9. Make a Sprout Garden together. Have them help you pick out seeds and beans to sprouts, fill the containers with water, or create their own seed mix to sprout. Give them their own jar or container (a glass jar works best). All kids love to watch seeds sprout and grow. Let them taste the seeds at every stage and explain to them that this is their very own sprout garden.
10. Earth Day, any day. Turn out all the lights in the house – all day. The rule is you can’t switch on any lights or use any electric devices. Make a bunch of living foods without electricity. Squeeze orange juice by hand, cut up veggies by hand, mix up some dips, or make some zucchini noodles. At night, gather around light a few candles or give everyone a flashlight. You can do a few yoga stretches and talk about the earth. This is a very memorable activity and gets the point across that knowing more about living foods can come in handy if the power is out.
Up Your Shine,
Katherine
Oh My Omega!
Dr. Oz says his omega oil supplement is the most important supplement he takes every day.
After months of research on the subject I can see exactly why he would say that - and I thought I knew it all! I had my four-part lesson plan ready to make my power point animated videos, to entertain you all…
However(!), during a meeting at my child’s school I meet Shirley. I thought maybe we could strike up a conversation about horses because she lived in an area of town where everyone has land for horses. I shared with her that we bought a pony a few months ago and we just kept talking… and I came to find out she is really into health - just like me! I also discovered that Shirley is a single Mom of 4 children and owner of an Emerald City Smoothie bar. Shirley explained how her oldest daughter is disabled and she described her daughter as being unable to speak or follow much of anything. So, like most mothers, Shirley went searching for answers and found a solution that greatly improved her daughter’s life and I am sure the overall quality of life for everyone in her family. Her daughter can now speak and goes to a public school with the help of specialty teachers and classes. Omega 3s were the solution. Shirley also told me that she had helped several other moms and kids with the same problem.
Well, I being so knowledgeable, interjected my thoughts on the subject. I probably said something like “a tablespoon of flax-seed oil a day will give you all the omega 3s you need” to which she replied, “flax-seed only has ALA omega – kids need DHA and EPA which is only found in fish oil.”
I pretty much had nothing to say about that, and thought at first she was just a fish lover and didn’t understand that ALA is converted into EPA then into DHA. I admit my ego was not ready to fully listen at the time. But I remembered Shirley and what she had said. So, when I began making my video on omegas her words repeated in my head. I decided to check into the matter. She was more than correct! Flax is not the best way to get your omega 3s. I won’t bore you with all the details of why – just that the research and evidence is clear.
Our brain is 60% DHA fat and our ancestors originally got these important fats from eating fish, organs, eyeballs, and other gross stuff I’m sure most of us wouldn’t touch with a ten foot pole. However, in our modern-day eating fish is a whole different ball game including mercury concerns and toxins, environmental concerns, dolphins, and so on.
I continued my research for several more days, and found this: Omega 3 fatty acids fall into two major categories. Plant derived ALA omega 3s, and marine derived DHA and EPA omega 3s. ALA omega 3 sources are flax seeds, and flax oil, hemp seeds and hemp oil, chia seeds and chia oil. Other sources that contain smaller amounts of ALA omega 3 are leafy vegetables, pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, walnuts, almonds and pine nuts – just to name a few.
DHA and EPA omega 3 sources come from fish and algae (also known as seaweed). Flax seed is one of the most concentrated vegetable sources of Alfa Linolenic Acid (ALA), which our bodies convert into EPA and then to DHA.
However, not everyone tolerates flax-seed oil well. The human conversion of ALA to EPA and DHA is somewhat slow, only about 15% of ALA converts to EPA and 5% DHA. Also, several factors inhibit conversion of ALA to its long-chain metabolites (EPA and DHA).
Fish oils have been common sources of DHA and EPA omegas. However, Fish do not create their own DHA and EPA – they accumulate high levels of DHA and EPA when they eat seaweed. Therefore, another supplemental DHA source comes from seaweed. These supplements are much smaller and don’t have a fishy taste or smell to them and are much more palatable for the average American.
I was relieved to find this news, the actual source of EPA and DHA comes from seaweed and is vegan!!! A Swiss company actually has done their research and makes a omega 3 oil from seaweed with both EPA and DHA oils. Currently it is the only one of its kind. There are other seaweed oil omega supplements but most only have DHA. So check out www.v-pure.com. Their vegan omega 3 supplements appear to be a superior source.
Soon you will be able to view all the fun animated video lesson that we
have created for www.thelivingcafe.com We have made a 4 part series to explain all about omegas. If you find this information helpful you’ll love visiting thelivingcafe.com on a daily basis because we have several lessons on various subjects to share with everyone. And we won’t leave you hanging, we actually have several delectable recipes to help you get more out of each lesson. For instants the omega lessons will emphasis what foods you can eat to obtain the right balance of omegas in your diet. I would love to find more recipes with seaweed, so if you have a great recipe with wakame, nori, kombu, or other seaweed, please contribute this recipe to thelivingcafe.com community.
To become a contributing chef, or culinary artist go www.thelivingcafe.com and click on the “Become A Chef” link near the bottom of the page! Psst: Chefs earn up to 30% royalties on their recipes.
Up Your Shine,
Katherine
Hello Beautiful, Vibrant World!
Hi my name is Katherine Duvall. My Journey into better living started 14 years ago when I bought a bunch of candy machines (yes, candy), I had 25 small units. I sold and ate lots of candy, consequently I didn’t eat much better, and my kids also had the misfortune of eating all that candy. My oldest daughter began having migraines in 1st grade they would be so severe she would become sick and throw up, she also missed a lot of school. This continued into 2nd grade. I have a friend Lori who is a bit of a health freak, or at least I thought that at the time. Lori convinced me to de-junk my house of all white sugar, flour, and food coloring, and that was pretty much my entire kitchen. Out of desperation and not wanting to put my 8 year old daughter on some medication at that age, I did what Lori suggested. It made enough sense to me and I figured why not it might help my little girl. I filled 5 garbage bags of boxed processed foods and gave them all to my Sister and her two children. I then bought a bunch of containers and went to the health food store and filled all those containers with grains, seeds and nuts from the bulk bins. I had little to no idea what to do with most of my new found whole food supply. I did my best to incorporate those whole foods into our daily life. I remember mixing my brown and white rice to get my kids used to the idea. I went from cow’s milk to goat’s milk to rice milk, soy milk and now almond milk. I made soups, salads, and casseroles, several times the dishes didn’t turn out and my kids wouldn’t eat it. But I forged ahead never giving up. It was about 2 months later I noticed my daughter had completely stopped having migraines. Now, I was full on willing to be a health freak too. Even though we had been eating healthier, and my daughter was feeling much better, it wasn’t enough to completely heal my body. After 4 extremely difficult pregnancies with severe hyperemesis, my body was a shell of what it once was. I was experiencing severe fatigue, depression, and pain. It was a struggle to get through each day. All of my bad eating habits had caught up to me. I knew there had to be something more that could help, and there was. I saw a book by Nomi Shannon called The Raw Gourmet, and I was mesmerized by the cover and immediately picked it up, that’s all it took I was hooked on living foods. I continued to buy books, research, study, and try all sorts of new recipes. I was inspired by the dozens of people that had healed themselves, and overcome diseases, cancer, and more, just by eating fresh living foods. I bought all the necessary equipment, and tried several raw recipes some were good, others were Yuck. Thankfully with the help of friends like Shelley Abegg, and Julie Herbert I was given new insights and inspiration. Shelley’s recipes looked amazing and tasted amazing. My transition into eating living, and whole foods has taken years, I had to adjust slowly to a completely different way of eating and thinking about food. I also realized that my emotional, and physical (exercise) needed just as much attention. Today I have overcome my fatigue, depression, and pain. The benefits of eating whole living foods, makes our 6 year transition worth it, I could never go back to eating pre-packaged, or fast foods.
In January of this year, the girls and I decided to go looking for a horse trainer and horse. Well we found more than that… Alicia Overton, a phenomenal women, horse trainer, and overall animal lover. At the time I was reading the book Skinny Bitch. I lent it to Alicia and overnight she stopped drinking coffee, and eating meat and dairy. (Her story in a later blog) Alicia and I began talking about raw food, health, and horses. In the midst of our discussions I unveiled my idea for a website, at the time called purefoodnetwork.com. Alicia loved the idea, and encouraged me to start creating. Alicia is also a talented graphic artist, so together we formed a partnership. Both of us have had experience creating websites in the past with great success. For the past 5 months we’ve put all our love and time into creating TheLivingCafe.com.
TheLivingCafe.com is a series of Illuminating Videos, and extensive library of whole living food recipes. Our video lessons are those we feel everyone should understand and know. They are common knowledge, but often misunderstood, because of enormous greedy food corporations that have produced marketing campaigns to teach us about food. As a result many of us have been brainwashed and misled to think that cheap prepackaged highly processed foods, chemicals, animal cruelty, and government subsidizing is all OK. Here at TheLivingCafe.com we want to help you take control. We want to help you understand that what you put in your body will ultimately lead to how you feel. Our passion is too become a beacon of light, of knowledge, of hope that others can become a part of.
Through this blog we hope to bring a whole community of living food enthusiasts, chefs, artists, and novices together as a way to encourage and support one another. We have designed TheLivingCafe.com to do just that help you make better choices and have fun on your journey to better living.
Please get involved and leave us a comment, or suggestion we would love to hear from you.
Up Your Shine!
Katherine
