Why You Should Start Using Coconut Oil

The current research is showing that coconut oil is pretty amazing. I love how versatile it is and how many different beneficial properties are in this stuff.

I find myself reaching for it several times a day, and have multiple containers throughout my house and car. Because of this, I am cutting way back on personal care products, eliminating unnecessary and harmful chemicals from entering my body, and spending less money as well.

Please research it for yourself. You can click here for an article about the Top 10 Evidence-based Health Benefits of Coconut Oil, to get you started.

I currently use it in these ways:

Personal care/beauty:
As eye makeup remover
As face moisturizer
As body moisturizer (however in the winter, I still use a natural lotion since my skin can get so dry, but this is all my kids need most of the time)
As lip balm (I put it in squeezable containers and stick in my purse)
As deodorant (since it is an antibacterial- I use this and only this and it works great! Note: If you are using a commercial brand of deodorant, and switch to coconut oil, your body will go through a detox period of about 1-2 weeks where you will have pretty bad body odor since your body is releasing toxins that have been built up from your antipersperant. Just remember, "this too shall pass"! And when it does, it feels great to be free of all those chemicals and using something totally natural that actually works. )

Food:
Use to make coconut oil candies
Use instead of butter: On toast (I like to add cinnamon, jam, or a little honey), on brown rice, quinoa or other cooked grains (adding other spices too for a yummy pilaf), etc
Use as cooking oil: To saute vegetables, to grill pancakes, etc
Use in baked goods: Such as in muffins or quick breads (such as pumpkin)

Home remedies:
If I get a cut, a canker sore, or anything like that, I will frequently apply coconut oil. When I have done this, I seem to heal quickly.

What's your favorite way to use coconut oil?

Chewy Fudge or Vegan Frosting

(Note: This recipe is for the top layer of the above treat, aka the Frosting)

Chewy Fudge or Vegan Frosting-

1/2 cup coconut oil (warmed)
1/2 cup honey or maple syrup (I used maple syrup when making this to use as frosting)
1/2 cup + 2 Tbsp carob or cocoa powder
2 Tbsp almond butter (or other nut butter)

Whisk oil and honey. Slowly whisk in powder. Whisk in almond butter (or use a Vita Mix blender and blend everything until well combined- you will have to use your tamper, as it will be pretty thick).

If making fudge, pour into a loaf pan and freeze for 15 minutes. Then cut into squares and enjoy. :)

If making frosting, spread over your cupcakes or vegan cake (or make a pan full of these homemade bars to use as your "cake" like I just did!). Keep chilled until ready to eat. If you want the frosting to be softer, take out about an hour before serving.

Strawberry Bar Cake with Chocolate Frosting (vegan)

Since my son has so many issues with textures that makes him extremely picky, he requested a "Strawberry Bar Cake" for his birthday. He doesn't like the texture of regular cake, but he does like these homemade bars that we make. So I whipped up a special batch of our bars, pressed them into cupcakes and a small cake pan, then made some chocolate frosting using melted coconut oil (1 cup), maple syrup (1 cup), carob & cocoa powder (1/2 cup of each), and 4 Tbsp Sunflower Seed butter (since he's allergic to peanut butter)- recipe for the frosting can be found here. I blended this is my Vita Mix although you could use a hand mixer or whisk probably. After spreading the frosting on the cupcakes and cake, I put them in the freezer (or fridge). To soften the frosting, I took them out an hour or two before serving. They were delicious! Perfectly chewy and the frosting was amazing! The best part was that these didn't have any refined sugar in them (besides a small amount in the rice crispies I used), or white flour! And the ingredients used are actually good for you (raw almond butter, coconut oil, raw protein powder, raw oat flour, etc)!

Step 1: Drop a tablespoon of "dough" into your muffin cups.

Step 2: Flatten with a spoon.

Step 3: Add a layer of freeze-dried strawberries.

Step 4: Cover with another layer of "dough."

Frost with your vegan frosting and add sprinkles (all-natural, such as from Whole Foods)

What to do with the extra frosting? I put dobs of it into my mini muffin pan and added various toppings such as almonds (I pushed them in), unsweetened coconut, freeze dried raspberries, and natural sprinkles. Keep these in an air-tight container in your freezer for a great after dinner treat. :)

Healthy Kids' Snacks: How to eliminate (most) packaged food

I used to give my son packaged snacks when he was a toddler. Why? Because everyone else did, so it must be fine right? I got the healthiest ones I could find, organic mostly, to avoid artificial ingredients.

But then something interesting happened, almost without my realizing. He started getting addicted to them. The more he ate them, the more he asked for them. Just like sugar (and kind of like what happens when he watches TV/movies)!  His favorites were Goldfish cheese crackers. (Note: I didn't know anything about dairy being bad at this point).

Now, on top of this, he has sensory issues which makes him an extremely picky eater. He will only eat certain foods, in certain ways, on certain days. It drives me crazy. So once he started getting hooked on Goldfish, you guessed it, that's all he would eat. He would refuse all other food, besides his daily cow's milk (if only I knew better...) and maybe a couple other foods. (When I say refuse, I mean, if we didn't give it to him, he wouldn't eat anything else, due to his sensory issues that made him so extremely picky. This was a matter of keeping him alive, not about giving in to his demands). Luckily we would make an occasional smoothie with fruits and vegetables.

Long story short- he was getting sick at LEAST once a month on this diet. It was horrible.

So I started a slow shift to eliminate all packaged snacks (note: this was about 6 months before we took out meat/dairy from our diet and started daily juice & smoothies). I hoped that instead of asking for something in the cupboard when he's hungry, he would start asking for something in the fridge.

"But how could you raise kids without packaged food??!?" I hear all my mommy friends screaming at the computer.

Most people cannot fathom how anyone can live without dairy or meat, let alone packaged convenience foods. But we have managed to eliminate most, so I guess I'm proof that you can. (For more on how to go about making this change, see the last section of this post.)

The result? My son is healthy most of the year now, and since we bring home more produce than packaged foods, I'm happy to say that he looks in the fridge when he's hungry, not in the cupboard. And we all feel great, and none of us crave it anymore (unless I get really stressed out and want to eat emotionally, which thankfully doesn't happen too often! And by that point I don't have any junk around in the house so I have to eat a homemade treat which are still pretty darn tasty, minus the junk).

These are some snacks that I give my kids when we're out and about (aka Mess Free). Just keep in mind, I have a very picky eater, so this is just what works for us (some may seem odd to you, and some he won't necessarily eat, but my husband and I will, and your children might as well.)

Also keep in mind that this is in no way a "vegan meal plan," or attempt to contain a balance of all essential nutrients in all food groups. No, this is simply a list of ideas for snacks. I will update periodically.

Healthy Kids' Snacks for the road

OUR FAVORITE: Homemade bars
 
Dried fruit (no added sulfites or any preservatives) - raisins, craisins, dried apricots, etc

Freeze-dried fruit (all natural, no added ingredients)- strawberries, mango, blueberries, raspberries

Whole fruit: apple, grapes, banana, etc

Carrot & bell pepper sticks (bring hummus in container if not too messy)

Trail mix with raw almonds, dried fruit, unsweetened coconut, sometimes banana chips
(I would give this if my kids would eat the nuts & coconut!)

Homemade muffins (using whole wheat flour & honey instead of sugar)

Homemade pancakes (make a pancake sandwich with Sunflower seed butter in the middle)  

Homemade granola

Healthy Kids' Snacks (to eat at home):

Fruit sorbets (we put frozen fruit through our juicer with a special nozzle, and it comes out as a silky smooth "ice cream"- my kids love their "Strawberry Ice Cream"!)


Other fruit: Strawberries, oranges, kiwi, etc.
  Frozen blueberries

Frozen peas

Smoothies

Cinnabutter Swirl: Spread Sunflower Seed Butter on a piece of sprouted whole wheat toast, then drizzle with raw honey, sprinkle with cinnamon, take a knife and swirl around.

Guacamole- mashed avocado mixed with salsa, add a dash of garlic powder if you want. We dip veggie sticks in, or if need be, organic tortilla chips (we get unsalted).

Packaged snacks that we buy when absolutely necessary:

Fruit pouches (although most of the nutrients are cooked out when pasteurized so we try to go with fresh fruit when possible)
Popcorn (organic, non GMO, natural flavored popcorn)
Cereals: Joe's O's (Trader Joe's natural Cheerio's), Nature's Path Millet Rice Flakes (no sugar added, only sweetened with fruit juice), etc
Clif Bars for Kids "Z Bars"- pretty great ingredients for a packaged food

Final words to those who actually want to try eliminating packaged snacks: 
Do it slowly and they won't even notice! Slowly start incorporating more of these real foods, and you will naturally not need to buy as much packaged snacks as you used to. 

Then, when you are down to very little packaged snacks, do yourself a favor and AVOID THE SNACK AISLE at the grocery store. It is sooo tempting to walk down that aisle and see all the fun kids snacks, and start thinking: "Oh, my kids would love this, it would be such a fun treat for them!"  

Don't buy the old stuff again because you are done with it! If you already eliminated most of it, don't bring it back. Remember, it has hardly any nutritional value and is void of the amazing nutrition that fresh, raw plant foods can give them to fight diseases and keep their immune systems healthy. 

If I see something that really looks good, I think to myself "Hmmm, how can I make a healthier version of this?" And then I do and it's great!

If you get there anyway and put a couple boxes of some colorful cartoon character snacks in your cart, rationalizing that all the other moms do it to, think of me and know that even though we are the minority, we are a HEALTHY minority!

Choose HEALTH & enjoy delicious, REAL food creations with your kids, and let THAT be the tradition you start early in their lives. Later in life, they will turn to comfort foods, and wouldn't it be great if they remember your fresh fruit salads or green juice?? ;)

Good luck my friends!