Monday, January 25, 2010

Wholemeal Organic Coconut Damper


1 cup of Organic wholemeal/Spelt flour

pinch salt

3/4 cup of organic milk

1 cup of organic dessicated coconut

1 TBSP extra virgin olive oil


Place all the ingredients in a bowl and Mix .Pour into a greased or baking paper lined tin. Bake at 150c for an hour then 170-180c for 20-30mins slice and eat warm with butter or cool and slice and use like toast for breakfast...with lots of butter

Sunday, January 24, 2010

Haiti-need a different kind of change

Ok so I know that everyone has gotten on the Haiti bandwagon, and I am not writing to badger you to donate money but rather to encourage you to badger the International Monetary Fund to cancel Haiti's debt so that they can rebuild their country.
Please follow these links to the Oxfam site and sign your name to petition the IMF to make some positive change. No man is an island.....


The email from Oxfam below.....




22 January 2010
Take Action Send To A Friend

Make sure that earthquake relief doesn't create a new debt burden in Haiti


Dear Activist, As you read this, Oxfam's staff is rushing clean water and emergency supplies to earthquake survivors in Port-au-Prince, Haiti.But while our immediate focus will remain emergency relief, one major threat could still hamper all efforts to rebuild this country: Haiti's crushing foreign debt.Oxfam and other groups have helped extract a commitment from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to cancel Haiti's debt. But we need your voice to get them to actually follow through on their promise without delay.Will you help? Please, join us in urging the IMF to cancel Haiti's foreign debt now.Even before the earthquake, Haiti was weighed down by debt. They owed over $891 million to the IMF and others - a legacy of loans to unelected governments of years past.If these debts aren't canceled, Haiti will be sending tens of millions to the IMF and other international bodies even as it struggles to rebuild.World leaders are meeting in Montreal on Monday to decide on the amount of aid that they will give to Haiti. The IMF has said that it will work to cancel the debt, and this now needs to happen.If these debts are cancelled, the Haitian government will have a better chance to build their country, so that it is stronger than before.Email the head of the IMF, Dominique Strauss-Kahn, to demand that they cancel Haiti’s debts immediately.Make sure that earthquake relief doesn't create a new debt burden.Campaigning works. Thanks for taking action.Oxfam Australia's Campaigns Team.PS. To find out more about our earthquake response, visit our website







GET ACTIVE DONATE LATEST NEWS CONTACT US
Oxfam Australia works with communities around the world to find lasting solutions to poverty and injustice. ABN: 18 055 208 636Oxfam Australia, 132 Leicester Street, Carlton VIC 3053, AustraliaPhone 1800 088 110, 9am - 5pm AEST campaigns@oxfam.org.au

Salsa Anyone



A great addition to any savoury meal, a tomato salsa can be served as a salad in its own right, or serve it upon some grilled fish or perhaps some Mexicana foods.



500 g organic ripe tomatoes
4 organic spring onions, sliced finely or 1 red organic onion finely chopped
1/2 cup chopped fresh organic parsley
1 tsp sea salt
1/4 cup extra virgin organic olive oil

Cut the tomatoes in half, dice the flesh and place in a medium bowl along with the spring onions, fresh parsley, olive oil.
2. Stir to combine, then stand for 30 minutes to allow the flavours to develop.

ORGANIC EMPIRE, organic home delivery melbourne, local organic foods

Why eat organic tomatoes?????

Tomatoes are one of the vegetables that signal the summer months. Even though they are available almost all year round, it's in the summer and late autumn months that tomatoes are at their best in Victoria. Vine ripened and full of flavour, they lend themselves to so many different dishes and can be eaten as they are, straight from the vine.

At the moment there are so many varieties of tomatoes available, there are the local heirloom varieties as well as the standard tomato varieties that are available. Let's have a look at some of these varieties:


Rouge De Marmande: these are a big 'beefsteak' variety. Ribbed fruit with an outstanding flavour.



Tigeralla: has decorative striped fruit.








Black Russian: has an unusual black colour, but brings a beautiful flavour to the plate

Tommy Toe, which has an outstanding sweet flavour, and the red or yellow fruit, is delicious to eat straight from the vine.

Conventional tomatoes has an average of 34 recordable total residues, these include 2 known or probable carcinogens, 15 suspected hormone disruptors, 7 neurotoxins and 3 developmental or reproductive toxins, comprised of methyl bromide, nevinphos, parathion and many other chemicals. These conventionally grown crops not sounding so tasty.

Organically grown counterparts offer a plethora of vitamins and minerals minus the chemicals. High in vitamin C, E, K, potassium, beta-carotene and lycopene, the organic tomato definitely has more flavour. An interesting fact on organic tomatoes is that they have been found to deliver three times as much lycopene, an amazing antioxidant than conventional tomatoes. Order some local organic tomatoes here.

We have two farmers supplying our tomatoes, we have a farmer who runs his farm using solar power, and we have our local heirloom farmer, the punnets of organic heirloom tomatoes are sensational. Both farmers are providing exceptional produce, get stuck into some organic goodness this week


ORGANIC EMPIRE, organic home delivery melbourne, local organic foods

Sunday, January 17, 2010

11 WAYS TO GET HEALTHIER THIS SUMMER


  1. Have a healthier dinner, did you know that cooking or chargrilling meats at high temperatures has been linked to the formation of carcinogenic compounds called heterocyclic amines (HCAs) and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). Try some fresh fish steamed or perhaps some dare I say tofu…

  2. Try working out outside….instead of heading to the gym, pick up your skipping rope and head to the park or the beach. Use the children's equipment to do your step-ups, get creative everything that you need to get a great workout is there and its free

  3. Drink more water, when you are hydrated your skin looks great, your eyes fresh and your brain can work at its best. Just a drop in hydration levels of 1-2% can reduce your brains ability to perform at its peak.

  4. Make sure you wear sunscreen to protect your skin. Use organic sunscreen, most sunscreens contain a toxic list of chemicals, among them Avobenzone and titanium dioxide, these two active ingredients have been implicated in a host of nasty issues, namely cancer. There are alternative ways to protect your skin and get healthy contact us (tastesbetter@organicempire.com.au) to get some organic sunscreens or get hold of some zinc oxide based sunscreens although a little more expensive, they are good for you.

  5. Get outside and explore this amazing place we live in, discover your local beaches, forests and waterfalls. Researchers found that walking in your local forest can boost your immunity by a whopping 46% percent.

  6. Have a salad everyday. Not only will this increase your vegetable intake, but also your intake of enzymes, vitamins and minerals.

  7. Let the sun shine in, open the curtains as soon as the alarm goes off. Sunlight signals your brain to stop the production of the sleep hormone melatonin, and acts as a natural antidepressant, boosting mood

  8. Make sure you get good nights sleep; researchers have found that people who slept less than 7 hours per night were x 3 likely to catch colds than those who slept 8.

  9. Laugh laugh laugh, not only is it a great abdominal toner, it's a blood-oxygenator, endorphin-releaser, and general body relaxer

  10. Move your body; we were designed to be sedentary most of the time. We were made to move, dance, walk, stretch, expand and engage. So go for a swim, run, walk, talk, garden….keep moving!

  11. GO ORGANIC, get a box of the freshest organic produce delivered to your door. Save your health, save your money and your time. tastesbetter@organicempire.com.au

Stress Head



The kids are not ready, you can't put together an outfit to wear, the keys are hidden somewhere and you should have left thirty minutes ago. Mmmm sound familiar, to assist in this stress the body, has ways of rising to the challenge and preparing yourself to respond, the hypothalamus reacts initially by releasing stress hormones, the memory becomes more acute, your pupils dilate, the mouth dries up, immune system becomes impaired, the heart rate and the strength of contraction increases, your blood pressure rises, the lungs dilate, digestion slows down, sweat secretion increases and your blood glucose increases and often you will need to urinate more frequently. Now your body is prepared and activated for anxiety.


These amazing responses have evolved over time as a mechanism coined 'fight or flight'. These responses are what has kept our human ancestors alive, preparing for battle or escape, by improving their ability to perform under pressure and deal with outrunning a tiger or battling an army. Now days these same responses are used continually in our daily lives for different reasons, meeting the deadline? Being at work on time, and for more serious issues. Stress can be a good motivator sometimes, pushing you outside of your comfort zone, forcing you to deal with issues, but continual activation of these mechanisms can prove to be quite detrimental to the body and human psyche. The consequences can range from feelings of continual hostility, crying, and constant anxiety to over-eating and inability to sleep.


There are ways to deal with stress, that don't involve burning out and one of the most important in my opinion, is an adequate diet that caters for the increased needs of B-Vitamins, the stress vitamins,(good sources are organic bananas, organic broccoli, leafy organic green vegetables, wholegrains, lentils, salmon, nuts, sunflower seeds, free-range organic eggs) which affect the nervous system and calcium (found naturally in sesame seeds, organic dairy foods, leafy organic green vegetables, organic soy and tofu, nuts, and fish) which counteracts the lactic acid that your body produces when your muscles are continually tensed. As well as the vitamins C and A, which are depleted. (Try organic broccoli, organic parsley, organic capsicums, organic strawberries, oranges, carrots)


A well balanced diet does amazing things for our body's ability to deal with anything, and inconjuction with the following should help in keeping stress at bay…..


Try moving your body, go for a walk or a run


Hang out with people that you love, have a laugh with your friends and family


Take some deep breaths


Set yourself realistic goals and deadlines


Try avoiding drinking alcohol, smoking and Coffee.


Watch what you are thinking; be aware of your inner chatter.


Seek help if it all feels like too much.

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Globetrotting Gourmet



Do you love to travel and learn about food? Why not combine the two, have a functional holiday. There are many companies around that do food tours, but I have found one that is committed to sustainable and responsible tourism. I had the pleasure of meeting these guys at a Taste Victoria function last year, the duo, Robert Carmack and Morrison Polkinghorne personally take you on an Asian food tour, specializing in China and Vietnam.




If you are thinking of taking a holiday, take one with a difference and absorb a culture through your tastes buds. You can find out about them at http://www.asianfoodtours.com/ or give them a call on


(02) 9550 5510


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Monday, January 11, 2010

Berry Good



Berries, so delicious, so nutritious, but what is in the humble berry for your conventional grocer. Berries are one of the most heavily sprayed crops of fruits, treated with multiple herbicides, insectides and especially fungacides, metalaxyl, malathion, paraquat and the organophosphate chlorpyrifos. This equates to 7 known or probable carcinogens, 22 hormone disruptors, 12 neurotoxins and 6 developmental reproductive toxicants.


Organic Berries are berry good, no toxic cocktail to contaminate your precious fruit, worth every cent. Your health is worth it!!!

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New Goals, a New Year

New Year…new resolutions. I believe in goals as a powerful tool that takes us from where we are to where we want to be. So make this year the healthiest best year yet. Health-=Energy. Energy means unlimited potential, so set yourself some new goals. Do you want to move more? Eat better? Have more energy? Spend more time with your family friends. DEFINE IT, then get to creating a plan to make it real. Health is the most important thing that we can control….


So some tools for creating your goals, make them:

S pecific

M easurable

A ttainable

R ealsitic

T imely

A SMART GOAL would be I will eat 5 servings of fresh organic vegetables a day, or I will spend 10 minutes a day doing exercise. These goals are specific, measurable, attainable, realistic and timely.

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Saturday, January 9, 2010

Organic Raw Berry Tart


I think its such a shame to cook berries, they are up there with figs and mango's...foods that should just be enjoyed, they dont need excess sugar, they have all the sweetness we could ever ask for... so with this in mind perhaps try these delicious raw berry tarts. They are so easy to make look amazing and are great for you !!!

2 cups organic raw nuts (almonds, walnuts, macadamia nuts, pecans, etc) – don’t soak the nuts
1 cup organic dates, pitted
1/4 tsp himalayan sea salt (optional)
Organic blueberries, strawberries and blackberries
Organic orange rind grated
Put the nuts in a blender and mix until the nuts resemble crumbs. Add the dates and salt and blend again. Use your hands to press into a larger pie plate or use smaller ones to make individual ones. Make sure it is all flattened. Put in the freezer for around 15 minutes. Top with berries and rind and serve. MMMMM

Friday, January 1, 2010

What’s in Season-January

Berries

Corn

Melons

Apricots

Tomatoes

Herbs

Zucchini

Lettuce

cucumber

Nectarines

Garlic

Plums

Peaches

Capsicum

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Happy healthy New year

So it was once in a blue moon, things are possible, nothing is impossible. Whoever,however you are you can do more, you can get healthier, life can be better. New years is great time to refocus and refresh, decide where you want to be and chart the best course to get there. In order to embark on any kind of adventure, whether it be living day to day or trekking the Andes, there is one thing that everyone needs, you carry it with you everywhere, the less you look after it the more of a burden it has. YOUR HEALTH, the single most important thing that we ave control of in our lives, something that determines our energy, energy for the life, the people we love, the experiences we have...its everything....

So decide that if you do anything this year, you look after you!!!! You, your body, your mind, your soul. Nourish your body with only organic foods, think good thoughts, laugh alot, make no excuses, take time out, transform yourself, believe, achieve, life life to your best. We hope that this year is your best year yet!!!!!