My husband is a chocolate chip cookie monster. It’s his favorite cookie. On Wednesday I made a big batch of these cookies (which I’ve been perfecting for a while) for our friend’s birthday today. The recipe below makes about 14 cookies. When I woke up this morning, there were two left. HE’S EATEN TWELVE COOKIES SINCE WEDNESDAY. IT’S FRIDAY MORNING. So while it’s a bummer I won’t be gifting these to my friend for his b-day, at least I know that they’re good. Sometimes I’m not sure if I like something I’ve made because I’m so used to eating grain and sugar free, or if they actually taste good. Scott is a chocolate chip cookie expert and said these were really good – but very soft. He’s one of those people that prefers a crunchier chocolate chip cookie. I am not. These are super soft and chewy, just don’t over-bake…
Healthy Key West Vacation
Last month Scott and I went to Key West for our one year anniversary (and four years together). Key West is a bit of a party town (hello, Duval Crawl) but I’m not much of a party girl anymore. Don’t get me wrong, it was awesome to have a few glasses of wine at dinner and bike up and down Duval Street. I saw a bunch of rowdy college kids, a middle aged mom getting kick out of Sloppy Joe’s and a ton of rowdy bachelorettes. While I like to keep my vacations on the healthy side, this isn’t to say I don’t indulge. As you can see above and below, I definitely ate a cronut. Or a dossant. Or whatever the hell they’re called. A doughnut made out of croissant basically. With cream in the center and raspberries on top. I don’t regret it one bit, it was awesome.…
How The Pharmaceutical Industry Ruined My Family
I was thirteen-years-old the first time I ever saw my mother crush up an Oxycontin and snort it on the dresser in front of me. It wasn’t the first time she had done it. It was just the first time she had done it in front of me. The first time she no longer cared that her daughter was in the room. Normally she just swallowed them. But like so many people who get addicted to prescription drugs, it escalated to snorting. Then eventually to heroin. I can’t place all the blame on the pharmaceutical industry. Truth be told, my family was pretty much ruined anyway. Some people are just inherently bad. Even without all the drugs, I know my family was never a very good one. But the drugs sure didn’t help, and they only made things for difficult for my siblings and me. My mother, who I affectionately refer…
DIY Essential Oil Deodorant (That Doesn’t Suck!)
I am not one of those girls who can sweat and not smell. I live in DC, where summers are hot, humid and gross. I go to the gym. I spend as much time outside as I can. And I’ve tried just about every organic, non-toxic deodorant on the market. And I’m going to be rill rill honest with you – none of them have worked for me. Not a single one. They may help a little, but they don’t stop the stank. This is the only organic and non-toxic deodorant I’ve ever tried that actually works. It’s what I use at the gym and I just made a bunch to take to Key West in a couple days (where I’ll also be sweating my pits off). I’m not exaggerating when I say this is awesome. Take is from a previously smelly girl who finally found a solution to smelling…
Paleo Breakfast Salad
I get really bored of eating eggs. So I have to be creative with them because there really isn’t anything better for breakfast. Eggs are incredibly nutrient dense and full of vitamins A, E, D and K, omega-3s and choline. Salmon tastes awesome and is also a rich source of omega-3s. I probably should’ve called this “anti-inflammatory breakfast salad” because that’s what it is. This is also a really easy breakfast to throw together, but it seems kind of fancy. It isn’t. And don’t be intimidated by poaching eggs. If you don’t know how to do it, watch this YouTube tutorial. Or just fry the egg! Paleo Breakfast Salad This Paleo Breakfast Salad is a really easy breakfast to throw together, but it seems kind of fancy. The poached eggs are incredibly nutrient dense and full of vitamins A, E, D and K, omega-3s and choline. Salmon adds more omega-3s.…
Three Day Preconception Meal Plan
Yesterday, I found myself searching for meal plans that nutritionists, bloggers, medical organizations and doctors shared for pregnant women and women trying to become pregnant. For whatever reason, I love seeing meal plans and getting an idea of what others are eating. Unfortunately, for the most part the meal plans were pretty terrible. They recommended oatmeal instead of eggs because of the fat content (um yeah, the omega-3s along with choline and vitamins A, E, D and K are kind of the point of eating eggs during pregnancy!), low-fat dairy products and a ton of fiber from “healthy whole grains.” Overall, the plans were very low in fat which is exactly the food a woman needs for optimal fertility. In fact, a study from Harvard found that women who ate two or more servings of low-fat dairy per day had an 85% higher risk of infertility than women who ate…
Eat This One Food Daily To Improve Acne, Anxiety and Allergies
Back in the day, I had the worst acne along with anxiety so severe I thought I’d go nuts. Let me tell you what’s not fun: having a face full of painful, deep, cystic acne. Along with a constant feeling of dread and terror. I tried everything for both, topical creams, prescriptions, expensive “cures” and even Accutane for my acne, meditating and Xanax and Klonopin for my anxiety. Nothing worked for either of them. Luckily, I’ve never had allergies but it’s likely that I would have developed them had I not drastically changed my diet. By now you might be wondering what these three things have in common. What can you do to improve all three of these issues? Start eating fermented food. Stop eating unhealthy, inflammatory foods that are damaging to the gut. Growing up, I subsisted on a diet of white bread, white sugar, and margarine. Sugar bread was a…
Metabolism Boosting Raspberry Coconut Oil Bites
I’m always trying new ways of incorporating coconut oil into my diet but can’t stand the taste of it when I’m just scooping it out of the jar, chewing it until it melts and swallowing it. Swallowing any oil is tough. It’s just weird and kind of gross. But it’s important to consume coconut oil daily, as it’s great for both the gut and metabolism. Coconut oil is high in medium chain triglycerides (MCTs) that boost the metabolism. Studies have shown that when people replace fats with MCTs, they burn more calories. What’s especially interesting about the fats in coconut oil is that the body doesn’t store it as fat but uses it for energy. The MCTs in coconut oil are immediately sent to the liver where they are used for energy. Thus, boosting metabolism! Many people wrongly assume that because coconut oil contains saturated fat, it’s unhealthy. The opposite is…
The Healthiest Fast Food Restaurants
It might be surprising to some of you that a holistic nutritionist would recommend a fast food place at all. But let’s be realistic, sometimes life is hectic and you didn’t make dinner and you’re starving and you just need to quickly grab something to eat. I’ve been there. Hell, I’m there weekly. Yesterday I wrote an article on the surprisingly unhealthiest fast food restaurants. In doing research for these articles, I found that those restaurants were at the top of “healthy” list because they offer low-calorie and low-fat options. This does not make them healthy. Just because you can eat a 1,200 calorie burrito at Chipotle does not make it unhealthy. People, stop counting calories. Start looking at ingredients and start avoiding chemicals. The Healthiest Fast Food Restaurants Chipotle You’ve likely heard that Chipotle has officially removed genetically modified organisms from their restaurants. This is huge. The landscape of our…
The Surprisingly Unhealthiest Fast Food Restaurants
In doing research for this article, I found that these were some of the top “healthy fast food chains” simply because they offer low calorie options. Because it’s not 1979 and I actually know nutritional science, I’m calling bullshit on these chains. Low-calorie does not equate to healthy. In fact, if something is touted as low-calorie, you can almost guarantee it’s even more unhealthy. This is because low-calorie or low-fat options are usually loaded with chemicals like MSG and other “natural and artificial” flavors to enhance the taste. Food manufacturers also add sugar, artificial sweeteners and empty carbohydrates to these foods. When looking for healthy options, we need to stop looking at calories and fat content. We need to pay attention to the actual ingredients, which more often than not contain a ton of toxins, chemicals, GMOs, preservatives and all around horrible ingredients. Even though these chains are often considered healthy,…