6 Tips for a Fall Detox

Toasting fall with a carrot, beet, cucumber, & apple juice in Boston.    

This may come as a surprise, but I'm not so keen on cleanses.  If I'm feeling toxic or low energy or- let's call it like it is- like I've gone hog wild with red wine and chocolate lately, then I curb my overindulgent ways by erring in the direction of raw fruits and vegetables and plenty of water.  I go for a run.  I meditate.  I spend some time in the steam room of my gym.  I don't endure days of a liquid-only diet.  I don't condone grown ups eating baby food for any reason.  And when students or friends tell me they're on the Master Cleanse, it makes me completely anxious.

'Please don't faint in my yoga class,' I think.

'Please don't end up with an eating disorder.'

I see the merit of giving one's system a rest and healthful restart, especially during certain times of the year and with proper supervision, if your organs need it.  However, more often than not, I watch cleanses used as starvation diets, with the virtuous disguise of a yogi ritual.

On the other hand, I am a junkie when it comes to lifestyle cleansing.  I would detox my home, thoughts, and habits all darn day if I could.  Give me a stack of junk mail, and I'll happily go to town.  Show me a bulging, bloated closet, and I'll delight in extracting the Mrs. Roper dresses and trucker hats until what remains is a functional wardrobe of wearable clothing.  Plop me down on a meditation cushion to consider my toxic thought patterns, and I am IN.

Cleansing of this kind is essential.  De-cluttering like this energizes us.  Evaluating the pollutants in our lives (both physical and psychological) helps us reconnect to our power source.  No forgoing of solid foods necessary . . .

To help you feel re-energized and inspired for the new season, here are my 6 Tips for a Fall Detox: 

• Closet Cleanse: Each season, it's important to review your wardrobe and shed items that no longer fit, you don't wear, or could be put to better use at a local homeless shelter.  If your duds seem too posh for the castaway pile, try consignment, perhaps using the earned money for a fun, fall purchase. 

The fruits of a previous closet cleanse, heading off to Goodwill.  

• Technology Diet: Pratyhara is the fifth limb of Patanjali's 8-limed yogic path, and I've been thinking about this guiding principle a lot lately, especially as it relates to technology.  Pratyhara teaches us a "withdrawal of the senses," as a way to hone our abilities of delving inward and examining our inner lives.  Before you kick off your newest chapter of 2010, try unplugging for a day or weekend.  Turn off all iPods, iPhones, Blackberries, TVs, laptops, etc., and experience the quiet and clarity that comes from this simple experiment.  You'll immediately notice that you, as well as your devices, will be recharged afterward.      

Recharging my laptop and myself at the Denver airport this summer. 

• Natural Supplement: To truly appreciate a change of the seasons, no matter how subtle, get outside!  Be with nature.  Supplement your daily routine with a trip to the mountains, a beach, lakefront, local park, or garden patch.  Even the smallest doses of time spent in nature can clear nervous energy and make you feel rooted.  

A stolen moment during the Natural Living Expo this weekend, Sturbridge, MA

• Feel the Burn: Sounds like I'm going to tell you to try Crossfit or some other calorie-scorching activity, right?  Nope.  (That's for another post someday).  Fire is one of the most cleansing elements, and integrating it into our lives can be effective for clearing old energy.  An aromatherapy candle easily calms, while the first sparks of a campfire excite.  Recently, I received the gift of a sacred piece of wood from Peru, known as a palo santo, which is said to purify and protect when lit throughout one's home.  I can't wait to try it.  The woodsy smell alone is enough to snap me back to the present moment.
• Play with Your Food: Too often conventional cleanses are restrictive and rigid.  Why not have fun with your food?  To savor the new season, bake apples for breakfast.  Be the first on your block to carve a pumpkin.  Try a new recipe using seasonal ingredients to connect you to the time of year.  
• Go Organ-ic: While I recommend buying organic whenever possible, I'm referring to your organs, here.  Twisting yoga poses bring attention to your organs, helping to cleanse internally.  No joke.  Try adding more twisting poses to your practice right now, such as twisting triangle (parivrrta trikonasana) or a seated twist (ardha matseyendrasana), below.

Have your own surefire ways of clearing old energy and making way for the new?  Share them here, and happy fall to you!

Kale Chip = Fail; Salad Success!

We all have our strengths and weaknesses, in yoga and life. I openly admit to being a crap pool player (perhaps the crappiest to ever live), but I'm pretty good at arm balances.

Regarding kale chips, I am very good at eating them. LOTS of them. By the handful. Crunching and munching them into oblivion. Making them? By dehydrating pieces of kale in the oven, set at a low temperature? Not so much.

The first attempt was an abject failure. A sloppy, slippery, goopy green mess. Still, I didn't lose hope. I persisted. The second attempt was better but overly salty. All I could envision was Padma Lakshmi delivering some scathing feedback at my own imaginary Top [Yogi] Chef Judges Table. "Did you actually taste these before you served them?" she would ask.

I redeemed myself on the third try. They were edible; I'd even say good. But not good enough for my readers. Instead, I leave all recipes and guidance regarding kale chips to the Canadian queen of holistic nutrition and fellow blogger Meghan Telpner. Her site Making Love in the Kitchen has 372 recipes for kale chips. OK, slight exaggeration. There are at least three, and they all look scrumptious.

Fortunately for all, I can hold my own with kale outside the chip category. Sunday night, I made an uber simple salad (per a suggestion from actual chef Dad) that was a big hit for dinner among friends and even bigger hit for leftover lunch for me on Monday.

Packed with vitamins K, A, C, and many more nutrients, yet slim on calories (a fringe benefit for swimsuit season?), this recipe is insanely simple to make.

1.) Wash, dry, and de-stem one bunch of kale.

2.) Roll leaves tightly and slice as thin as possible (4-6 leaves at a time).

3.) Massage with extra virgin olive oil (1 TBS) and fresh lime juice.

4.) Season with sea salt.

5.) Chill

Enjoy!

Looking Like A Keen Little Quinoa Cutie

"Any good recipes off the top of your head for a summer treat in the Hamptons?" came an inquiry from my om gal-pal, Kristen, this morning via an email.

As a matter of fact, I just whipped up a summery quinoa salad (pronounced keen-wa) last night, which would be a perfect dish to tote along to the beach or an al fresco fete in the Hamptons-- or, say, on the Vineyard with the Obamas? Otherwise, it tastes just as delicious and packs the same protein-filled punch (quinoa yields the highest amount of protein of any grain) when enjoyed in the understated fabulousness of your own humble abode. Here it is . . .

Cook a cup or two of quinoa according to directions on the box or bag, then place in a large bowl and allow to cool for 30 minutes. In a separate bowl, combine the following ingredients:

Juice of two limes

1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

1/2 cucumber, diced (or a whole one, if they're small)

2 plum tomatoes, diced

Black beans (I used approximately 1/2 of a 19 oz. can)

Corn (I boiled two ears from the farm stand, let them cool, then shaved off the kernels)

Salt & Pepper to taste

Add the contents of the two bowls together, chill, and serve.

I contemplated going in a more Mediterranean direction by substituting the lime, corn, and black beans with lemon, chickpeas, and parsley. I bet this combination would taste wonderful as well.

Healthy Summer Salad

From the famed Moosewood cookbook, this vegetarian recipe is incredibly easy and healthful. While I adhered to the recipe pretty closely, I think tossing in additional veggies or legumes, such tomatoes or white beans, might work really well too.  

Ingredients:

Bunch of parsley

3 cups shredded carrots

Clove of garlic (minced)

1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil

Juice of 2 lemons

Sea salt

Pepper

Chop the parsley, and combine it with the rest of the ingredients.  Voila!  This dish is amazing on its lonesome or as a refreshing accompaniment to your favorite garden burger.  Parsley is excellent for digestion.  The salad keeps well in the fridge and can be enjoyed for 3-4 days.  Given the lightning-quick prep time, it's also a perfect option to bring to your 4th of July cookouts.     

Friday, I'm in Love: Making Love in the Kitchen

You can bet with a blog title like Making Love in the Kitchen, Meghan Telpner's approach to healthy cooking contains heaps more fun than your typical healthy cooking site. Perhaps the cheeky name grabs your attention, but the holistic approach to nutrition and creative recipes keep you there. Some people need to be wooed into eating healthy; Meghan understands this but makes no superficial promises that eating her vegan raw chocolate pudding will make you look like Angelina Jolie. Instead, she cooks up countless How-To videos in which she seems to be having so much fun in her kitchen that you can't wait to do the same in yours. To her, the overall wellness of her nutrition clients and readers is far more important than the size of their waistlines. She's also super knowledgeable and sweetened to perfection- without ever being cloying or artificial. For all this, I love her site, and I'm pretty sure you will too.

My Marathon Cookies

Training for a marathon can be grueling, but occasionally it's also delicious. Turns out, things like carbs, salt, and sugar are not just permissible, they are necessary. Got that friends? Muy necesarios. Here's one of my favorite "recovery" foods after a long weekend run. The recipe came to me by way of my friend, who coincidentally goes by the moniker Dish Gal, as she's the anonymous foodie behind the mouth-watering blog DishThisBoston. This cookie recipe originally appeared on MyVeganCookbook.com; however, I've adapted it slightly, here. This variation of the crowd-favorite peanut butter cookie tastes amazing and packs a healthful punch, thanks to whole grains, salt, sugar, and even ground flax seeds to protect joints, not to mention peanut butter, which fuels 90% of all runners (OK, I made up that statistic, but I bet it's not far off!) Enjoy . . .

1/2 cup whole wheat flour

1/4 ground flax seed

1/2 cup oats

1/2 cup brown sugar

1 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/4 tsp salt

1 tsp vanilla

2 tbsp canola oil

1 tbsp applesauce

1/4 cup raw agave nectar

1/4 cup creamy style organic peanut butter

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Combine all ingredients in a mixing bowl and stir. It's easier to use your hands and kneed the dough a little. Then, drop tablespoon-sized mounds of dough onto a greased cookie sheet. Smash them down with a fork. Bake until the bottoms are golden and the edges brown slightly (about 15-20 minutes).

Santa's Cookies Get The Slimdown

You need to leave Santa the requisite cookies; however, you don't need to bore the guy with ho hum Chips Ahoy. Instead, try baking your own favorite, slimmed down recipe. Here's a great, low fat version of peanut butter cookies.

Enjoy!

Holiday Recipe Hit: Tofu Pumpkin Pie

Today, the "Elf of Health" is giving up the goods in the kitchen. I made the following recipe for tofu pumpkin pie last night (just click the link for the recipe) and toted it along to a holiday fete filled with yogaphiles, posh health club personal trainers, and other healthy types with discerning taste buds, and the results were unanimous: this low fat, seasonal treat takes the cake, err, pie. While the recipe is vegan approved, plenty of non-vegans gave it a thumbs up too, including our friend, Tom, who claims he was born in a sub shop and weighed on a meat scale . . . Give a yogi a glass of wine, and you'll be amazed by the fantastical tales that flow freely.

Pumpkin Soup From My Pals

Happy Halloween!

What better way to celebrate the kookiest holiday on Earth than with an earthy, healthful recipe for pumpkin soup? For this, I'm deferring to my friends north of the border, Canadian nutritionist and disarmingly charming fellow blogger Meghan Telpner and her dad, a topnotch advertising executive, who crossed paths with Om Gal en France and was duly converted into a dedicated yogi on the spot. However, for the purposes of their Halloween themed video clip, they're "cat burglars." Enjoy, and please share your thoughts if you give the recipe a try. I'd make it myself, but my pumpkin was stolen two nights ago. Dangerous neighborhood for a pumpkin, you know?

Click here for the entertaining clip and uber easy recipe.

[Postscript: If you have any information regarding the whereabouts of Rebecca Pacheco's pumpkin, please post a comment or email askomgal@gmail.com].

Veggie Daydreams & Transatlantic Sweet Potato Soup

Upon returning home from France yesterday, my cupboards were bare, but my legs were craving a jog, having been confined to an airplane seat all day. Thus, I bypassed grocery shopping in favor of a run. South Boston put on her finest last night with a sunset over Castle Island to give the sunrise I experienced along the Seine that morning a run for its money- in its own spectacular (albeit slightly less sophisticated), orange and violet hued way. After which, I returned home longing for a home-cooked meal.

In general, French cuisine, while a gastronomic delight, often fell short in the produce department (in my humble, veggie-loving opinion). After several evenings featuring looooong dinners that languished into the late-night hours, retiring us to bed with bellies full of wine, bread, "amuse bouche," soup, elaborate entrees, cheese, more bread, "pre-dessert," dessert, tea, and coffee, I found myself daydreaming about un-fussed food sans all the expert tinkering. Once, while preparing a midday picnic along our daily biking route (see produce-packed photo above), I caught myself chopping and popping cucumbers into my mouth as if they were bon bons. I don't think these cucumbers were any more extraordinary than cukes from the States, but my foray into uber-fancy eating on a nightly basis made me relish the fresh, uncomplicated crunch of what might be considered a typically ho-hum vegetable anywhere else.

Therefore, well before touching down on the tarmac at Logan, I was mentally concocting my first state-side meal. The aforementioned evening jog limited my options, as I didn't have my standard fridge full of produce with which to work. Yet, with scarcity being the mother of invention and all (particularly in the kitchen), I whipped up an easy soup that I think you might enjoy this season. It made for the perfect post-run, welcome home, veggie-friendly, oh-so-simple meal.

Bon appetite!

Transatlantic Sweet Potato Soup:

Start with the stock of your choice (i.e. vegetable or chicken). Given the state of my paltry pantry, I opted for the canned version last night, to which I also added water.

Add 2 peeled and halved (large) sweet potatoes. [Option: adding chicken or turkey chourico, here, adds protein and an added kick of flavor but is, of course, optional]. Bring to boil.

Once the potatoes are fully cooked (to the point of softness), remove and place in a large bowl. [Remove the poultry as well, if applicable].

Add 1 can of black beans to simmering broth.

Mash potatoes and puree if desired. Add mixture to broth, along with cumin, chili powder, fleur de sel (salt), and black pepper. (I used about a 1 tsp. cumin, a few dashes of chili powder, and salt and pepper to taste).

Slice poultry and replace in soup.

Voila! Serve with a side of short-grain brown rice, and you have a perfect, fall meal, chock full of vitamins and seasoned with a little spicy zing. For an added dose of crunch, I served peeled and sliced cucumbers with olive oil and balsamic vinegar as an appetizer, and they were, put simply, magnifique.

Om Gal Makes You Breakfast

Hopefully the holiday weekend treats you all to restful days, rejuvenating activities, inspiring friends and family, and wholesome meals made with love- starting with this one for pancakes! It makes for a perfect, lazy morning meal, pre-workout fuel, or post-workout replenishment.

The video was shot by my bro. Tell us what you think!

Friend Friday: O.G.'s BFF Shares a Recipe for Families

Hey OG,
I wanted to pass along a wonderful recipe that I found during my adventures as a new mom (with a very big baby). Having a healthy lifestyle is important to our family, so rather than feeding our baby organic baby food and ordering pepperoni pizza after he falls asleep, the whole family eats the same thing (albeit in different pureed consistencies for the member with the fewest teeth). Currently, this is what we are eating [wearing, wiping and playing with] during breakfast. I make one big batch on Sunday and it can last the week. Enjoy!

Ingredients:
2 cups rolled oats
1 cup milk
1 tablespoon honey
1-2 apples, peeled and grated
1/4 cup chopped hazelnuts
1 cup low-fat yogurt (any flavor you wish)

Directions:
Combine oats, milk and honey and leave soaking in the refrigerator overnight.
Next morning, add the grated apple, hazelnuts, and yogurt.

What's on the Menu, [BB]Cutie?

Tis the season for outdoor barbecues. Many will involve sizzling grills, chilled cocktails, and desserts with Cool-Whip, and most of these same gatherings will feature bikinis, shorts, strappy sundresses, and other skin-baring threads.

Summer attire and nutritional know-how need not cause you to forgo the festive fare. Instead, simply incorporate a few healthy options into your next backyard BBQ. Here's a sample menu including some of my favorite go-to dishes:

Starters
Garbanzo, Tomato, and Cucumber Salad: Toss one can garbanzo beans with 1 small carton grape tomatoes (or a few chopped Roma tomatoes), and 1 large cucumber (chopped) with balsamic vinegar, extra virgin olive oil, lemon juice, sea salt, and ground pepper to taste.

Whole Wheat Corn Bread: I've adapted this recipe from the Brand Name Light & Natural Cookbook, and it is scrumptious. Enjoy a slice for breakfast, lunch, or dinner. It even gets raves from O.G.'s S.O., who's never met a grilled slab of meat he didn't like and is a reliable barometer of whether I'm able to pull off healthy revisions to recipes without sacrificing flavor.

Heat oven to 450 degrees. Mix together the following dry ingredients:

1 c. cornmeal
1 c. whole wheat flour
1 tbs. baking powder
1 tsp. salt

Add the remaining ingredients:

1/4 c. honey
1/4 c. oil
1/4 c. unsweetened, all natural applesauce (or use oil)
1 c. skim milk
2 eggs

Beat all ingredients together, vigorously, for two minutes ("Holy forearm workout, Batman!"). Pour into a greased 8-inch square pan. Bake for 25 minutes. Heavenly when served warm.

Main Course
Turkey Burgers: Click here for the recipe.

Dessert
Tofu Chocolate Pie: I never throw a party without it.

Desserts That Won't Derail Your Diet

I tend to steer clear of the word "diet." For many, it calls forth experiences of deprivation, intimidation, boredom, and pining for dessert- and, as many of you can attest, my reverence for dessert is well documented. [Psst, look close at the accompanying photo where I'm pilfering the toppings off a friend's birthday cake].

Still, it's important to balance sweet indulgences with a healthful nutrition plan and lifestyle. It also helps to have a canon of low fat recipes at the ready . . . or, simply, bookmark this blog. Om Gal promises to continue to scour the sweet possibilities in attempts to unearth your new, favorite dessert, such as the following super easy and scrumptious peanut butter cookie recipe from Self magazine via Fresh Dining in Burbank, CA.

Ingredients:

1 egg yolk
1/2 c. natural peanut butter
1/2 c. low fat cream cheese
3/4 tsp. vanilla
1 c. all-purpose flour
1 c. Splenda
3/4 tsp. baking soda
1/8 tsp. salt

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Combine all ingredients. Spoon rounded tablespoons of batter onto a cookie sheet. Bake until golden (about 9 minutes). Share with friends! My fellow Om Gals provided their approval at a gathering over the holiday weekend.

The Skinny: 55 calories per cookie, 3 g fat, 5 g carbs, .4 g fiber, 1.7 g protein.

Upgrade Your Oatmeal

New seasons are exciting because they usher in welcome changes to our usual routines. We wear new clothes, watch different sports, and eat seasonal menu items. What's fall without football or summer without ice cream?

Chances are you're less inclined to eat an ice cream cone in February or pumpkin pie in July. Likewise, you may find that your hearty breakfast of choice in the colder months is less appealing now. Still, it's important to enjoy your whole grains and start off your day with a nutritious meal. My new fav alternative to a steaming bowl of oatmeal? Quinoa.

Quinoa is like oatmeal's brawnier, older brother. It's loaded with protein, packed with fiber, and one of the most nutritious foods on the planet. It's great for lunch and dinner but usually overlooked for breakfast. The consistency is lighter than oatmeal, the flavor nuttier, and it can be served hot or cold.

Quick Quinoa Breakfast:

Mix a few splashes of vanilla soy milk and/or a pureed banana into cooked quinoa. Top with honey and fresh berries; feel your day begin with spring in your step.

Om Gal Has A Confession

Shhh . . . Om Gal has a serious addiction. Until now, I've spared you the harrowing details of the rehabilitation program that I recently completed to address my dependency issues. I opted for a time-tested, no frills approach, foregoing the fancier treatment programs of stars like Lindsay Lohan and Britney Spears. You know the ones, which sit high atop mountain ranges in Utah or Aspen, staffed with supportive teams of counselors and providing endless alternative activities to drug use, like hang-gliding and [insert feigned gasp of surprise] yoga! My program was a bit more bare bones than that; I call it "Lent." My substance of choice? White, powdery, high-octane sugar.

Like most things in my life, I don't over-indulge, but I do feed my sweet tooth with small doses of sugary satisfaction on a regular basis. You can keep your pizza and fries; I'll bypass your chips and beer; pasta and movie popcorn have zero seductive power over me. But, cover anything in chocolate- strawberries, almonds, pretzels, graham crackers- and I go weak in the knees. Say the word "caramel," and I hear angels sing. Mention the country of England, and my first association isn't the Queen, Big Ben, Prince William, or The Bachelor, but rather Cadbury's Dairy Milk.

Over the years, I've refined my habit to be less damaging, like a "social smoker," for example. At home, my stash might include crystallized ginger, No Pudge brownies, fudgicles, or So Delicious dairy-free dessert (which earns the highest OMG accolades). I'm of enough sound mind to avoid the hard stuff, as in, ice cream, absurdly over-processed candy in colors that do not occur in nature, and cake, mostly because, in the case of cake, I just don't like it. Does nothing for me. I'd rather get my high elsewhere.

For Lent, I ventured into uncharted territory. All chocolate, candy, dessert, and sweets would go. To be candid, it was hell. During the first couple weeks, the withdrawal symptoms were fierce. I daydreamed about chocolate pudding, stared longingly at dessert menus, and finished each meal with the thought, "If I could, I would have [fill in the blank]." I'd given up chocolate before and survived, so I figured upping the ante was somewhat obligatory. Whereas I previously would forgo chocolate and have some fruit sorbet, instead, now, the land mines were everywhere- bowls of hard candy on receptionists' desks, sample stations at Whole Foods, even my healthiest friends couldn't be trusted. At any moment, hard candies emerged from purses, errant cookies were purchased at Starbuck's by an unwitting pal with whom I was having tea, and colleagues breezed into my office casually enjoying and offering the latest acquisition from the vending machine. It was enough to drive a gal mad.

About 3/4 of the way through my 40-day penance, I considered jumping ship (ideally, into a sea of chocolate). What harm was my addiction doing anyway? Who would want to sacrifice such gifts from the sucrose gods? And, finally, the real kicker, I'm not even that Catholic! Yes, I was raised Catholic. I like church. My heart swells when we get to say "Peace be with you" to one another. I pray. A lot. But, c'mon, couldn't I just lump my Lenten delinquency into the category of all the other Catholic beliefs and practices with which I disagree, like disapproving of gay marriage, for example? (Tsk, tsk on that one!). In the scheme of things, really, It's just a fudgicle, people! I wanted to say. Where's the harm in such an innocent frozen confection?

Still, I persisted. I managed. I occasionally "fudged" my way through with questionable substitutions like hot chocolate with "No Sugar Added" and the aforementioned holy grail of healthy desserts, So Delicious dairy free "ice cream," but I stayed the course because I'd committed to doing so.

Today, I'm back on "the stuff" and quite pleased about it. My ability to moderate cravings was enhanced by the experience. I've learned that two Hershey kisses are always preferable to 12 lbs. of dried mango as an alternative; the latter might be natural, but it packs some serious sugar and, consequently, calories. I've also realized how many attractive options there are, which will help you get your fix without blowing your nutritional practices of choice. Finally, I've yet to cause myself or others any real damage by being hooked on the sweet stuff . . . provided, of course, no one steals my chocolate sorbet. Then, you better prepare to duck and cover from the wrath that could ensue.

As homage to my post-Lent, corralled dependence on sugar, here's my new, favorite, simple recipe for what I like to call Tofu Chocolate Cutie Pie.

Blend one block silken tofu with 2 Tbs. vanilla soy milk. Melt 3/4 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips (vegan ones work beautifully too). Fold the melted chocolate into the tofu mixture. Pour the creamy mix into a pre-made graham cracker pie crust. Chill overnight. Share with your sweetest friends.

Delightful Contradiction: The Healthy Burger

While no longer a vegetarian, I haven't eaten red meat since age 9. To be honest, I don't really remember what a burger tastes like, but judging from its fan base, I gather it's pretty damn good. The following recipe is pretty damn good too; it even has the endorsement of my guy, a card-carrying carnivore.

Turkey Burgers with Grated Zucchini and Carrot

1 lb. ground turkey
1 medium zucchini (grated)
1 medium carrot (grated)
2 cloves garlic (finely chopped)
3/4 tsp. dried thyme
3/4 tsp. kosher salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
1 large egg

In a large bowl, combine all ingredients. Form mixture into patties. Broil in heated skilled (coated with olive oil), 4-5 minutes on each side until no trace of pink, flipping burgers once.

Serve on a crusty roll or whole wheat English muffin with lettuce, tomato, melted cheese, and mustard. Carrots, hummus, and kosher baby dill pickles make superb and healthy accompaniments.

Vegan Muffins for the Mainstream

These muffins are easy, healthy, and completely delicious. They happen to be vegan but certainly won't tip anyone off on taste alone. Give them a try. Bring them to brunch with friends. Send them to school with the kids.

Ingredients:
2 c. whole wheat flour
2 tbs. sugar
3 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. salt
1 tsp. cinnamon
1 1/4 c. water
1/2 cup applesauce (unsweetened)
1.5 cups chopped apple (peel first)

Combine dry ingredients. Combine water and applesauce. Add apples to dry ingredients and stir to coat. Add water/applesauce mixture. Spoon mixture into non-stick muffin tins (sprayed with vegetable oil spray). Bake at 425 degrees for 20 minutes.

Heavenly when served warm.

WholesOMe Honey Wheat Soda Bread

If you must be cooped up inside during the cold winter months, you might as well embrace the whole, cozy, homebody routine and start baking. Baking your own bread doesn't have to be an elaborate process. This recipe packs plenty of healthy whole grains, requires minimal ingredients, and tastes a hell of a lot better than the kasha loaf that I tried to make on Monday night, when I was taking a new recipe for a test-run. Thankfully, you can consider yourselves spared. It turned out purple (due to the presence of purple cabbage in the recipe) and putrid, and, despite his best efforts, even Om Gal's guy couldn't hide his horror. We're pretty sure that even the gulls in the Seaport District will forgo this one.

My honey wheat soda bread, on the other hand, is a time-tested favorite. It toasts well and tastes great with honey, jam, peanut butter, cottage cheese, and more.

2 c. whole wheat flour
1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. baking soda
2 tbs. honey
1 c. buttermilk
1 egg, slightly beaten

Combine flour, salt, and soda in a mixing bowl. Add honey, buttermilk, and egg. Stir just until moistened. Place in a lightly greased 1 quart casserole dish. Bake at 375 degrees, for 20 minutes.

Blissful Breakfast: Easy, Amazing Pancakes

1/2 c. Old-Fashioned Oats
1 egg
2 egg whites
1/4 c. cottage cheese
1 tbs. sugar
splash vanilla

Blend in a blender. Make lowfat, high protein, fiber-rich fabulous pancakes. Children will love them, as well as non yogi boyfriends, girlfriends, spouses, and hungover housemates.

(Fuel factor: I made these for a former roommate before she ran the Boston Marathon in 3:20 in 2007. Coincidence? I think not. Enjoy!).