Amaranth with Apples, Cardamom & Mint

An aromatic combination of ingredients makes for a warm and robust way to start the day. The amaranth cooks up to a porridge like consistency and the addition of the apples lend a bright crunch. Cardamom and mint elevate this simple recipe to something entirely different. When they're in season we love to swap the apples for fresh, juicy peaches.

INGREDIENTS:

• ½ cup amaranth cooked according to package directions
• ½ cup chopped apples
• ¼ teaspoon ground cardamom
• 1-2 fresh mint leaves, chopped

Combine all ingredients in a bowl & enjoy!


Makes 1 hearty serving or 2 small servings.

Shrimp & Goat Cheese Chili Relleno

These Relleno are so creamy and delicious it's almost hard to believe they're such a healthy meal choice! This has to be one of our favorite Love Cleanse Recipes; perfect for both a weeknight family dinner or as an impressive dish for guests. Also equally tasty made with zucchini in place of Poblanos if nightshades are a food intolerance for you.


We roast our own peppers at home either over an open flame or under the broiler in the oven. Once they're charred on all sides place the peppers in a bowl, cover and let sit for five minutes. This will allow you to easily slip off the skins.


INGREDIENTS:
Makes 2 servings.
• ½ cup quinoa
• 1 cup water or stock of your choice
• 2 Poblano peppers, roasted and seeded**
• ½ red bell pepper, roasted and chopped**
• 1 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 6 ounces of shrimp, peeled, deveined and chopped
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 14 ounces of organic fire roasted diced tomatoes, drained **
• 2 tsp lemon zest **
• 2 Tbsp goat cheese, plain or chili flavored, crumbled


INSTRUCTIONS:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  Cook quinoa according to package directions, using water or stock.  Set aside after cooked. Heat a large skillet over medium high heat. Add olive oil. Add shrimp & cook stirring occasionally for 2 minutes.


Add garlic & cook another minute or 2. Add red pepper, tomatoes & lemon zest. Stir together & allow to warm through. Add quinoa & goat cheese, stir to combine & melt cheese. 


Stuff mixture into peppers & bake for 10 minutes.


**If you are sensitive to nightshades, substitute a zucchini for the Poblano.  Slice a zucchini lengthwise & scoop out seeds, stuff with filling & bake about 20 minutes until zucchini is tender.
**Omit roasted red pepper & tomatoes if you are sensitive to nightshades.  
**Omit lemon zest if you are sensitive to citrus.

Meet Sarah McConnell!

CLIENT: Sarah McConnell

*Sarah is still in Phase 2 and tracking.

So far, Sarah has discovered the following food intolerances:

• Corn: Level 2 intolerance impacting mood, allergies, energy
• Dairy: Level 3 intolerance impacting allergies, mood, digestion and energy

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TESTIMONIAL:

"My life has taken a dramatic turn in the past 30 days.  I am a completely different person than I was 30 days ago.  Completely! Before I met Kim, I suffered from ongoing migraines, sinus infections, depression, insomnia, and general ill health.  I was always tired and felt irritable a great deal.

The cleanse is not easy for the first 7 days.  It takes tenacity.  However, once you begin to integrate different food groups, your world (and your palette) opens up.

I wish I had done this years ago! I immediately lost weight, stopped having sinus infections, depression went away magically, and by day 4 I was sleeping like a baby for the first time in 10 years.  The only times I have felt bad in the past 30 days have been when I integrated foods to which I am intolerant.  By simply removing these food groups from my diet, my health, emotional well-being and life have changed dramatically.  

I wake up feeling energized and happy...the way I used to when I was a child. You remember those Saturday mornings where you would luxuriate in bed with the knowledge that you didn't have to do anything, but you could do everything the world had to offer. I have returned to that land of peace and happiness, and am now living in the moment. No more anxiety, fno more fear, no headaches, and best of all: no extra weight!

Something else that all of my friends have been excited about...for years, I thought I had mommy brain and that I would forever walk around in a haze.  I am no longer confused or unfocused."

Go Raw Bars

When working with clients to help with cravings and regulate blood sugar, one of our first recommendations is to eat a protein snack both mid-morning and mid-afternoon. We bring you the tastiest, healthiest and must convenient snacks each month!

Go Raw Bars

 
Go Raw Bars contain soaked and sprouted seeds!  Why would one wish to soak and sprout seeds?  Seeds and nuts contain an enzyme inhibitor that makes them very difficult to digest.  This time consuming process allows you to soak up every ounce of benefit from each powerhouse packed seed.  And did we mention, they are delish? One of our favorites is the Banana Bread Flax Bar.  Chewy, moist and full of nostalgia, these would make your Grandma proud!

 
They can be found at Whole Foods or online here.

Pumpkin Berry Smoothie

A fresh twist on an old favorite...this packs so much goodness into one glass it even has greens blended right in - ya can't taste them a bit!

INGREDIENTS:

• 1/3 cup butternut squash or pumpkin – fresh or canned
• 1 cup organic mixed blueberries & raspberries
• 1/2 cup coconut water
• 1 jumbo kale or Swiss chard leaf or 2 small to medium leaves
• Thin, small slice of fresh ginger 
• 1 tbsp Extra Virgin Raw coconut oil or 1 tbsp coconut butter

OPTIONAL:

• 1 tbsp of Flax oil (Women Only)   
• 1/3 cup SuperFood Snack or Vega Whole Meal Optimizer (only for those not sensitive to food combining principles)

Place all ingredients in blender except kale or Swiss chard.  Blend everything to a creamy liquid consistency and add kale or Swiss chard.  Continue blending until greens are liquefied and drink.  

Makes one 12 ounce serving.

First Installment of our Healthy Food Ambassador Column!

The Love Cleanse is excited to announce our Healthy Eating Ambassador
column!

Our Healthy Eating Ambassadors have gone through The Love Cleanse
program and are now hitting the streets with their health goals still in mind months and/or years later. They are feeling good and proud of it!

They wish to share their favorite healthy dishes around town. As they have discovered, eating healthy can still be fun; and you can still find healthier options at some of your favorite “non-healthy” eateries.

We're proud to introduce Dawn Thompson, our first Healthy Eating Ambassador, which is fitting as she was one of our earliest clients 2 years ago.

Dawn Thompson
Founder of Dawn Thompson Interiors, Mother of 2 and leader of her girl's pack

Read below to see how I was able to incorporate what I learned through the Love Cleanse to find menu items at local restaurants that are both delicious and work for me.

I discovered the following:

• Shellfish makes me extremely tired.
• Gluten creates inflammation and fatigue.
• Eating nuts increases my cravings.

Here are some of my favorite dishes around town:

MANGIA PIZZA 

• They have a great Greek salad that I like to add grilled chicken to.

SANTA RITA CANTINA: 

• The Tilapia Pescado with black beans, salad, and guacamole
• Rotisserie Chicken Entrée
• A variety of fabulous salads!
• Santa Rita has an array of delicious, healthy shrimp dishes but I never order because I’m intolerant to shellfish.

GALAXY CAFE: 

• One of my favorites with so many options for me because they have an entire Gluten Free Menu featuring pasta dishes, sandwiches, wraps and even desserts!

ZOCOLO CAFE: 

• I get the Tostado salad (which is actually a fantastic fresh salad), with chicken on top and black beans and one small Tostada on the bottom.

 

24 DINER: 

• Their homemade Veggie/beet burger with a side salad is satisfying and tasty!

Cipollina's Nicoise Sala

CIPOLLINA

Some of my go-to dishes include:

• Nicoise salad
• Meditteranean Salad
• Love their rotating fish specials too

   GUERO'S TACO BAR

• The Grilled Veggie Alhambre is a huge plate of grilled vegetables with black beans, rice and I order Corn tortillas. Really good!

 

MANDOLA'S ITALIAN MARKET PLACE:

• Misto Salad with grilled chicken - Delicious!
• Also carry great shellfish items but again, these are NOT for me.

Raw Coconut Aminos Non-Soy Seasoning Sauce

Straight from the sap of a coconut tree, blended with sun dried-mineral rich sea salt and aged until it naturally ferments – this is one of the cooler products we have run across!  It contains 17 amino acids and up to 14 times the amino content of soy.  And best of all, it lends a rich smoky flavor to your veggies.  We tried it drizzled on our morning quinoa and found it absolutely decadent! You will definitely want this one.

Since it's entirely free of soy and other common inflammatory ingredients, it also fits the bill as Cleanse-Compliant. 

Currently sold in the raw food section of Austin Whole Foods Austin or for those in other cities - www.coconutsecret.com.

How to Beat Mid-Afternoon Slumps

Do you experience a witching hour between 2-4 p.m. that sends you to the nearest vending machine or renders you nearly unconscious and nodding off at your desk? Mid-afternoon slumps are common and typically related to diet.  The most frequent causes are:

• Food intolerance  
• Consuming too many carbohydrates or the wrong types of carbs for your system
• A blood sugar imbalance often triggered from processed foods, coffee and sugars
• Not eating regularly to maintain blood sugar levels

In order to fully kick slumps and cravings, it is important to learn how to eat right for YOU by discovering food intolerances and the correct amount of carbs to proteins for your system to thrive.

In addition, a healthy mid afternoon snack with a good mix of both protein and carbs balances blood sugar and can help stave off slumps and cravings. With our increasingly busy schedules, healthy, tasty snacks on the go are essential!

The Love Cleanse is launching a new healthy snack section in each of our newsletters.  Click here to see our first choices when it comes to choosing snacks that really beat those mid-afternoon blues!

Allergies Getting You Down? We Can Help!

If you suffer from allergies, it’s right about this time of year that your fuzzy green land of enchantment turns on you and has you wondering….why, oh why do I live in this city, again?!?

One of the most common complaints that our clients begin with prior to The Love Cleanse, is allergies.   Clients often inquire – “But it shows on my allergy tests, that I’m allergic to pollens!  This doesn’t have anything to do with foods, does it?”

Actually, it often does.  If a client is consuming a food, which is creating internal inflammation each and every day, one of the most common manifestations of this inflammation is hypersensitivity to our environment.  If you quell the internal fire and over-stimulation, the reactions to the external triggers will subside.

And different foods can trigger different “environmental allergens”.  I’m reminded of a client I worked with last fall who showed up with massive mold allergies, which often sent her leaping into the arms of the nearest doctor with cortisone shots.  As she went through the program, she was surprised and elated to discover that her “allergies” disappeared.  She identified that they were related to tomatoes.  

In January of that same year, she called me and said – “It’s not working anymore!   I was great all fall and winter but now I’m miserable with Cedar Fever!”.  So we went through a process of identifying what she could be eating which was triggering her “allergies”.  We quickly honed in on citrus.  She and her husband had a citrus grove and she was eating large quantities of lemons, limes and oranges for the Vitamin C content.  Upon removing citrus, her Cedar woes vanished.

Our bodies are brilliant megaphones shouting to us through our symptoms to heed its call.  Every sneeze, sniffle and scratch is a gift decked out with a shiny red bow!  Why put a band-aid on it?  Unwrap it and dive in to discover what’s inside.  It might surprise you.

Top 5 Foods that Trigger Seasonal Allergies:

Any food that creates inflammation could be the culprit for triggering a response to seasonal allergens.  However, these are the most common our clients have discovered:

• Dairy
• Citrus
• Chicken
• Nuts
• Tomatoes

Thai Fresh: Specializing in Cleanse Compliant Meals

THAI FRESH

909 West Mary Street

Austin, TX 78704

Phone: (512) 494.6436

Click here for a map of all of the Love Cleanse Restaurant Partner locations in Austin.

Upon moving to Austin 12 years ago after a stint in San Francisco – I visited every Thai Restaurant in town searching for the authentic Thai Food by which I’d become spoiled.  10 years later the Thai Prima Donna in me was finally satiated with the opening of Thai Fresh!  Jam Sanitchat grew up in Thailand and began cooking with her Grandmother at age 5.   Authentic, fragrant curries, Pad Thai and Veggie Stir Fries are their specialties. They offer market style Thai Food available to dine in or take out. 

During Phase 1 and the early parts of Phase 2 – Thai Fresh is your best bet!  If you are participating in the Concierge Program, we will deliver a cleanse compliant Thai Fresh stir-fry and citrus free hummus each day.  On the Self Pick up or TLC programs, you may order your own.  

After Phase 2 Reintegration, branch out and try their most flavorful dishes like the Papaya Salad or Panang Curry.