With this past weekend’s super frigid temperatures (when I pretty much don’t want to leave the house and love hunkering down with some movies), it just screamed comfort food to me.  But instead of reaching for one of my fav comfort foods (like homemade mac and cheese), I was busy creating a comfort food makeover – with a healthy twist.

Check out the ideas I shared on WTNH’s Good Morning Connecticut yesterday for clean eating, cozy comfort foods — Panko-crusted baked chicken (instead of fried), souffled sweet potatoes (light and airy, and oh so delicious instead of mashed potatoes and gravy) and some Hoppin’ John (collard greens and black-eyed peas – a Southern favorite, but without the pork).

Here are the two yummy dishes that I featured which I think you’ll enjoy:

Souffled Sweet Potatoes
(Adapted from Clean Eating Magazine)

I first tried this recipe at Thanksgiving as a savory side dish that was a departure from other sweet potato dishes I’ve made in the past. Sweet potatoes are a great substitution for white potatoes and nutritional powerhouses, full of antioxidants and fiber. This dish is a perfect makeover for traditional mashed potatoes and gravy.

Ingredients:

4 pounds sweet potatoes, well scrubbed
1 head garlic, cloves separated and unpeeled
1/2 cup low sodium vegetable broth
2 tbsp. fresh rosemary, chopped
1/2 tsp. sea salt
1/2 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
3 large egg whites
1/2 tsp. cream of tartar

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Place sweet potatoes on a baking sheet, prick each one several times and bake for 45 minutes to an hour, or until soft.
2. Place the garlic gloves in tightly sealed foil and bake on a separate baking sheet for about 30 minutes until tender.
3. Remove potatoes and garlic and let cool.  When cool enough to handle, peel the potatoes, squeeze the garlic from the skins and combine in a bowl with the broth. Mash until smooth and then add the rosemary, salt and pepper.
4. In a separate bowl, combine the egg whites and cream of tartar.  Use an electric mixer on high speed and whip for 2-3 minutes until stiff peaks form. Fold half the egg whites into the potatoes with a rubber spatula and then fold the rest in.
5. Coat a baking dish with cooking spray and transfer the potato mixture. Bake in the oven at for approximately 30 minutes until the top is slightly browned then serve and enjoy!

Savory Collard Greens and Black-Eyed Peas (Hoppin’ John)

I absolutely love collard greens, especially when prepared in this quick and simple fashion without hours of cooking.  Traditional Southern cooking calls for adding pork for flavor, but we can keep this dish happily vegetarian and healthy yet still flavorful. I love adding in the black-eyed peas for a more complete meal which you can serve with a side of brown rice.

Ingredients:
2 bunches collard greens
1 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
1 onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 15-oz cans black-eyed peas
2 tsp. apple cider or white wine vinegar
salt and pepper taste

Directions:
1. Wash collard greens, cut out stems and stack several leaves on top of each other.  Roll like a cigar and chop collards into small bite size pieces.
2. Heat olive oil in pan, add onion and garlic and saute for a couple of minutes until soft.
3. Add collard greens to pan and saute until bright green. Add a little bit of water if greens start to stick.
4. Add black-eyed peas and cook for a few minutes more until heated through.
5. Season with vinegar, salt and pepper.

What’s your favorite comfort food and what do you do to give it a healthy spin?

I love Barleans because they carry both fish and flax seed oils that are flavored and taste great – I love both the Strawberry Banana and the Mango Peach.  The flavor is delicious — you can take it “straight up”, add to a smoothie or add to plain Greek yogurt for added health benefits.  I often will stir a tablespoon into a cup of Chobani plain yogurt, then add some fruit and nuts for a healthy breakfast or snack.

For me this is a vast improvement from the days when I first tried Barlean’s fish oil – I still remember adding fish oil to my smoothies and it had a distinctly fishy taste that I didn’t like – this is so much easier and tastes great.

Have you tried Barlean’s Omega Swirl before? What’s your favorite flavor?

This summer I whipped up this clean eating recipe that I have been enjoying during our very hot weather. As much as I love summer, even I can get a little too hot!  This recipe will easily cool you down and it’s simple to make plus there’s no added sugar.  Even better, it only takes a few seconds in the blender and kids will love to help whip up this tasty treat.

Ingredients:

2 cups of watermelon chunks

2 tbsp. fresh lime juice

3-4 mint leaves

ice cubes

Put all ingredients in the blender and mix it up.  Adjust the flavors to your liking – go easy on the lime juice if you don’t like it quite as tart.  Add more ice for a thicker consistency.

I like to chill and then serve. And you can always add a little vodka for an extra kick.  :)

Give it a whirl and let me know what you think.

I’m thrilled to be featured in a new book premiering today, “Is She Naturally Thin, or Disciplined: Insider Secrets of the Sexy and Slim!” penned by my friend Sally Shields.  The book is so darn cool that I can’t help but be excited to share my story of how I stay trim and healthy.  And it’s chock full of beautiful pictures and stories of amazing women that will motivate you into action!

Today only, you can receive oodles of freebies within minutes… — hundreds of dollars’ worth of  F-R-E-E  gifts — if you do just ONE thing today!   In honor of the summer season,
my fellow contributors and I are all celebrating the official launch of Sally’s new and highly acclaimed book, Is She Naturally Thin, or Disciplined?

http://www.sallyshields.com/thinbooklaunch/

Today, TUESDAY July 19th, we have a personal goal to help Sally reach the #1 position on Amazon.com and we really need your help. And, for helping, we’re going to reward you in a big, no make that
HUGE way! 

This offer requires the tiniest investment, but will bring you a fabulous return: for only $14.95 you can get a copy of Is She Naturally Thin, or Disciplined?  ..and over 50 free gifts (from yours truly and lots of other amazing people too)!!!! 

You will get advice from over 50 relationship advice experts, health coaches and success coaches from around the world to give you an exceptional offer! 

Go here to find out more about this promotion that makes buying a copy of Is She Naturally Thin, or Disciplined? really worthwhile TODAY, Tuesday, July 19th! Get all of the details here:

http://www.sallyshields.com/thinbooklaunch/

Discover the secret advice and tips from real women who have found a solution to their weight issues at last … 

“This book is NOT ‘another one of those’; it’s radically different and inspiring. Seeing photos of women sharing their stories elevated this from another ‘rah rah’ book about dieting to one showing that whether you’re 20 or 70, healthy weight loss and a healthy life are possible.”
 
~Christa Allan, author

This is a one-time-offer… never to be repeated again, available for the next 24 hours only.  So, grab this unique bundle of gifts and order Is She Naturally Thin, or Disciplined? book right now.  At no other time can you get such value for so little. This is a truly unique offer that’s valid for TODAY ONLY!  

I hope you’ll join me in celebrating great health and vitality featuring amazing women telling their stories.

P.S.  Please share this offer with your friends and family. It’s easy…just send them this link by email to let them know about the many gifts we have made available for them today: 

http://www.sallyshields.com/thinbooklaunch/

The truth, however, is that an estimated 20 % of Americans are sleep deprived and get less than six hours of sleep a night.  What’s keeping us up at night?  All those electronic devices – the Internet, cable TV, our non-stop email  – just to name a few.  Diabetes, heart disease and obesity have all been linked to too little sleep.  When we’re sleep deprived, we’re less productive, have shorter attention spans and are more likely to be in or cause an accident.  And lack of sleep has also been linked to higher cortisol levels – the stress hormone.  When we’re not getting enough sleep, our body responds with increased cortisol levels which can lead to weight gain. 

Burning the candle at both ends may work for a while but the reality is that can take a toll on our health. This was brought home to me as I watching Oprah recently. Bob Greene, fitness and health guru was discussing his new book, 20 Years Younger:  Look Younger, Feel Younger, Be Younger!  In addition to healthy eating, exercise and skin care, I was struck by the discussion of sleep and its impact on aging when we don’t get enough.  He suggests 7-9 hours a night.  Are you even in the ballpark?

I have been making a conscious effort to get more rest. I get up every day during the week at 5:30 and have a daily practice that includes tongue scraping, drinking warm water to activate my internal organs, meditating, chanting and exercising.  That’s a lot to do so early in the morning!  But what a difference it makes when I actually get enough rest and feel more alert when I wake up.  Here are three strategies I’ve been using to help me ease into more and better sleep – I’m far from perfect but I am much more self-aware of my habits and patterns:

• Wind down before you get in bed.  I need to have 30-45 minutes in the pre-sleep mode when getting ready for bed. I used to just pop into bed and expect to go to right to sleep, but your body needs time to transition.  For me this includes quiet time with no TV or Internet and reading for at least 15-30 minutes. I also include the usual things in this time frame too – brushing my teeth, washing my face, etc. but it means I have to plan ahead and be mindful of the time.
•  No TV in the bedroom.  For my entire life, I’ve never had a TV in my bedroom.  I can thank my mom for that awesome habit! TV sucks you in, promotes poor sleep and can even do a number on your sex life! TV can be just fine in other parts of the house but leave it out of the bedroom if you want to support a better night’s sleep.
•  Eat early and allow 3-4 hours to digest your food.  Going to sleep on a full stomach after a late night binge promotes poor sleep, not to mention potential weight gain.  Your body needs to rest and recover during the night and eating too close to bedtime keeps the body far too occupied.  Ease into earlier, lighter meals in the evening that won’t leave you feeling uncomfortable before bed.

 Are you a sleep champ, supporting your health with sufficient zzzz’s or do you have room for improvement? How can you start sleeping more? Leave your thoughts on the blog and let’s share some sleep-tastic ideas!

It almost sounds silly to say that I was reconnecting with my body since I exercise almost every day and am very active, but our weekend retreat, Radiant Health for Women, was about slowing down, tuning into and really noticing what’s going in our bodies.  To be honest, I sometimes miss the cues my body is sending me when I’m running from one activity to another.

I don’t know about you, but I find it increasingly easy to be overwhelmed by the pace of my busy life and schedule. I have too much going on, not enough down time and am overstimulated by the 24-7 access to technology that so many of us are vulnerable to, spending far too much time emailing, Facebooking, Tweeting and the like.   I can easily get sucked into spending too much time doing and not enough time simply being.   

Ironically, I talk about self-awareness a lot when I speak to women about creating vibrant health as we age yet it’s something I continually need to work on – I believe that we teach what we most need to learn. In my recently published book, A Healthier You, I wrote at length about this topic in the chapter, “Clean Eating, Self-Awareness and the Power of Prevention,” and about how eating a healthy diet alone won’t necessarily prevent chronic disease.  In fact, increased self-awareness and knowing our bodies are equally important components to creating a healthy lifestyle.

It reminds me that just about two years ago I had a case of Shingles, a virus caused from too much stress.  Even though I was eating the healthiest of foods, my stress level was off the charts and I was doing a horrible job of running my business and managing my life in a balanced way.   Clearly my level of self-awareness about my own health and body was amazingly low. 

During the retreat, I remembered what it felt like to truly relax without my To Do list looming in the background — that felt liberating.  And I had a chance to practice restorative yoga that was also part of our weekend workshop, reminding me that more calming exercise has a place alongside strength training and spinning, it doesn’t all have to be go go go all the time!

Above all, this weekend tune up reinforced the notion that self-awareness, slowing down and tuning in shouldn’t only happen when we decide to make the time for it.  Like anything else that’s important to us, we need to make it a priority. And just as you endeavor to practice clean eating every day, why wouldn’t you and I practice increased self-awareness everyday? The key for me is to make daily baby steps that keep my stress levels in check so I don’t get overwhelmed to the point of having the Shingles again.

What about you? Are you aware of what’s going on in your body? Are you tuned into when you need more time for renewal and to unplug from your busy life?  And while going away for a weekend of rest is optimal, we can create opportunities for self-care and awareness right at home.

What will you do today and this week to become more self-aware, tuned in and to celebrate vibrant health? What do you most need right now?

I don’t have to tell you all the reasons that as women we don’t always take care of ourselves the way we should. I think we all know to well that we’re usually so busy taking care of everyone else, that our own health can take a back seat. 

But it does beg the question of “if not now, when?” Why are we waiting to take proactive action with exercise, eating, stress reduction and understanding the signs of heart attack?  A little education and awareness goes a long way to creating the life we really want to have. 

In celebration of today, you’re truly, The Clean Eating Coach, is all about not only wearing red but eating healthy and delicious red foods.  Here are three easy ideas to eat red today in a heart healthy way!

1. Red bell peppers- These delicious gems are bursting with Vitamins A & C, natural antioxidants, plus helpful doses of folic acid and Vitamin B which help lower high homocystine levels (which is linked to heart disease).  And you know what else, they are so easy to prepare and enjoy! Cut them up and eat them raw or roast them and add to your favorite soup.  This weekend, I’ll be making roasted red pepper and sweet potato soup. Yum!

2. Tomatoes- Can you say lycopene? Juicy red tomatoes (or canned organic tomatoes this time of year when store bought tomatoes are nothing short of dreadful) are chock full of lycopene which has been shown to help reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease.  This natural antioxidant helps protect cells from free radical damage.  Plus they taste so good. What about veggie chili with organic tomatoes or tomato bruschetta on whole grain crusty bread?

3. Beets - This deep red root vegetable is a natural detoxifier and anti-inflammatory.  Naturally linked to cancer prevention, did you know that beets will also help keep your heart healthy? Beets contain the B-vitamin choline which helps regulate inflammation in the cardiovascular system.  So think about juicing some beets, roasting them to sweet perfection, adding to a salad or even making borscht, yummy beet soup.

What will get you inspired to eat red and wear red on this important day? Isn’t your heart health worth a little extra effort?

One of the principles of clean eating that I often struggle with is drinking enough water.  As I know you know so well, drinking fresh clean water is essential to maintaining a healthy, clean eating  lifestyle. It helps up detox, helps our organs function more efficiently, helps prevent disease, supports weight loss and increases our energy, just to name a few.

I try my best to get ample amounts in, but truth be told, some days I’m a water drinking rock star and other days my efforts leave a lot to be desired but my goal is to become a water drinking rock star every day.

Over the last few months, however, I’ve had a steady increase in my water intake thanks to my trusty Copco cup. I discovered this awesome, reusable cup in September when we were in Maine.  We were in Stonewall Kitchen, one of my favorite gourmet stores, when I saw a large bin with brightly colored cups in hot pink, purple and orange calling my name.  What’s not to love about drinking water from a fun cup?! What I love is that it has a durable straw and a screw on top.  Sure beats wasting paper cups or bringing a glass to work that I sometimes tip over in meetings.

Best thing is water drinking is sooo easy for me with a straw. It just seems like it glides down effortlessly and before I know it, I’ve had lots of water throughout the day.

I bought an orange up when we were at the store that I promptly took to the office.  It’s snap to wash and refill each day.  But then I realized that it would be great if I also had one at home too – perfect for sipping during workouts and leaving on my nightstand.  I walked into Bed, Bath and Beyond and they had a huge bin of brown and pink ones.  I’ve even gone so far as to get a third cup for another office out of which I sometimes work so now I’ve got all my water drinking bases covered.

What’s your favorite strategy to stay hydrated every day? How to you ensure you get enough water in?

I have several friends that live nearby, not to mention plenty of clean eating colleagues – people committed to their own health and supporting those around them. What a difference it made when I was recovering to have healthy, clean food chock full of nutrients that my friends were sweet enough to deliver.  That was definitely a gift of love, a small token that supported my recovery in a powerful way.

What do I mean by a clean eating advocate? Just like any other advocate you may have, a clean eating advocate takes a stand on your behalf.  Could be a  friend, family member, significant other or co-worker that supports you in your clean eating endeavors. He or she might do one or more of the following:

• Listen and acknowledge when you tell them you are eating clean
• Not tempt you with “unclean” foods that will get you off track
• Brainstorm ways you can both practice clean eating
• Help you plan a week’s worth of clean eating meals
• Cook clean eating foods with you and then enjoy them together
• “Talk you down” when you’re tempted to eat less than clean or you’re in a downward spiral
• Bring you a basket of fruit instead of a pie or cake when coming over
• Remind you to drink plenty of water
• Encourage you to go to the farmers’ market to buy fresh, locally grown clean food and pick you up to ensure it happens
• Cheer you on from the sidelines and appreciate you for your clean eating efforts, every step of the way

I like to think of the clean eating advocates in my life as my “sister-friend support network.”  We’re all in some stage of creating or maintaining  this long term lifestyle and advocates make it fun and inspiring!

Do you have a clean eating advocate? In what way does he or she inspire you? If you don’t have one, who can you team up with to support your kick-butt, preventative lifestyle?

Truth be told, I’ve been on an extended hiatus getting healthy.  I spent several months this spring and summer dealing with a cancer scare and then having a hysterectomy which all threw me for a loop.   I’m used to being super healthy and feeling energetic most of the time, so even the threat of having a major health concern had me more than a tad bit scared.  I’m happy to report, however, that after a successful surgery, I got a clean bill of health, no cancer whatsoever! 

I’m convinced that my quick recovery was due in equal parts to a positive mindset, healthy eating before and afterward and an amazing support network of family and friends.   One of the best investments before the surgery, was a trip to my fabulous naturopath, Jennifer Botwick, for a pre-surgical protocol of supplements that got my body ready for surgery.  A helpful guided imagery CD and lots of Buddhist prayers helped me visualize an easy surgery with minimal pain and a fast recovery — that worked wonders!  The day after the surgery I have to admit that I felt better than after any surgery I’ve had before, the pain wasn’t bad at all and no terrible side effects from the anesthesia.  Nice!   Per Jennifer’s suggestion, I started drinking fresh vegetable juice from the health food store chock full of healing greens the very next day.  It was easy to digest and the perfect way to help my body to detox.  Believe it or not, I practiced clean eating even in the hospital!

And if weren’t for my wonderful friends and family, I’m sure I wouldn’t have come through so easily. I’ve learned that it’s important to ask for help when you need it, and ask I did.  From making me healthy, clean eating dishes and coming to visit to bringing me great books to read and lots of phone calls, my posse was right there by my side. Thank you!

I have to admit that taking a break from working so hard felt great. And the more I did it this summer, the more I realized that I was thoroughly enjoying my down time.  I guess I didn’t realize just how much both my body and mind needed some rest and healing.  So what was going to be 6 weeks off easily morphed into four months.

I’m looking forward to reconnecting with all of you and getting back to lots of  blog posts, classes and speaking about creating a clean eating lifestyle.  Stay tuned for lots of fun and inspiring conversations this fall.  And one of these days my new clean eating website will be done, chock full of great, clean eating information.

Here’s to your health and a wonderful , clean eating fall!