Better than Hot Chocolate

This delicious, warming drink is made from carob, and you may use your choice of organic dairy or almond milk. The fresh ginger gives it just a little kick and the sprinkling of spices over the top will tickle the tongue. This will make 4 servings.

Ingredients

1 (1-inch) piece ginger, peeled and halved
3 to 4 tablespoons carob powder
2 cups organic milk/almond milk
Honey to taste
Pinch of ground cinnamon
Pinch of ground cardamom
Whipped cream (optional)

Directions

Bring 2 cups water and ginger to a low simmer in a small pot. Cover and simmer for 5 minutes over low heat. Remove and discard ginger. Add carob powder and stir until blended completely. Add milk and honey and heat until hot but not boiling. Pour hot spiced carob into mugs and sprinkle with cinnamon and cardamom. Add dollops of whipped cream on top, if you like.

Adapted from Whole Foods' Hot Spiced Carob recipe.

Holiday Tip for You

Nutrition is more than consuming the correct combination of vegetables. This holiday soak up all the season has to offer. Accept all the gifts of life by way of hugs, laughter, prayer, music, intimacy, and fun. When you are truly fed by the primary food (relationships, career, spirituality & physical activity), the rest of your food will take care of itself. And come January, you'll be feeling satisfied, refreshed and fully nourished to start the new year.

Tempeh & Greens Wrap

Ingredients:

1 package tempeh, cut into half inch fingers
apple juice or apple cider vinegar
garlic
greens
almond butter
tamari
ginger
water
miso
whole wheat tortillas (sprouted would be better)

Directions:

1. Make marinade of tamari, juice/vinegar, and minced garlic/ginger.  Thin with water to taste.  Marinate tempeh while preparing greens.

2. Rinse greens and separate from stems.  Chop or tear leaves to desired size.

3. Heat pan and stir fry tempeh over medium heat, turning occasionally until brown on all sides.  Meanwhile, add water to another pan and steam-sautee greens until done.

4. Mix miso and almond butter to form a paste and thin with a bit of water to make it spreadable.  Spread on wraps and add greens and tempeh.  Roll up like a burrito.

Enjoy!

Need the Perfect Holiday Gift?

Offer the gift of health! Do you know someone who has problems with:

* Women’s health issues; PMS, fibroids, menopausal issues, menstrual problems, cysts
* Heart disease, diabetes, osteoporosis
* Eating disorders, weight loss, food allergies
* Addictions with cigarettes, marijuana, sugar, coffee etc.
* Depression, mood swings, anxiety, headaches, insomnia
* Parasitic infections, chronic fatigue, candida
* Unusual, puzzling or hard to diagnose conditions

At High Level Wellness, our holistic health counselors are trained to work with food and health-related problems. Many clients seek such professionals after having worked with a wide array of traditional doctors, specialists and alternative methods of healing. Holistic health counselors have successfully treated all of the conditions named above without the use of pharmaceuticals.

While working with a holistic health counselor, your gift recipient will receive customized treatment (working along with their medical caregivers when appropriate) and food recommendations on their specific needs. Their questions and concerns will be answered with care, courtesy and understanding by a professional whose goal is to listen, respond and assist in profound healing of mind, body and spirit. For pricing and details about our programs, please contact our center at 856-428-5495.

Here are some other options for you. They make great stocking stuffers!

http://www.high-level-wellness-online.com/products.html

Be well.

Have Low Energy or a Cold? Try this Tonic.

Guru Nam's Energy Tonic
(The Chakra, Mantra Cookbook by Patricia Stein)

Ingredients:

Juice of 1/2 lemon
3 tbsps apple cider vinegar
2 tbsps honey
Fresh ginger (to taste, chopped or grated)

Directions:

Simmer ginger, lemon juice, apple cider vinegar over low heat. Add honey to sweeten.

Notes: Can add this mixture to tea that contains echinacea or goldenseal. Best time to take this is at sunrise and sunset.

Be well!

10 Easy Way to Stress Free Your Holidays

Great Holiday Article by Andrea Ramirez:

Overeating, over-planning and overspending. The end of the year, which is supposed to be a time of joy, reunion and celebration, ends up being, well, not. Here are 10 simple suggestions to help you truly celebrate and stay sane and healthy through January – and beyond.

1. Watch the sweets. It is easy to overindulge, but after the sugar high comes the sugar blues. Make a conscious effort to moderate your intake. And look for healthier dessert options. A cheap grocery store apple pie is not as satisfying as a home-baked one, full of healthy ingredients and love. If baking is not your thing, buy from a quality shop.
2. Eat with the season. There is a reason why there are so many apples, pumpkins and squashes around. Starchy vegetables and fruits deliver the right kind of carbs to keep you warm and help you cope with sugar cravings. The more satisfying your everyday diet, the less susceptible you’ll be to overeating at celebration dinners.
3. Plan and prioritize. It is always useful – and especially so during the holidays – to spend five minutes in the morning to plan your day. When shopping, always consider traffic (both cars and people) and go on a weekday morning if you can. Or research and buy online. This will also help you pick the better options.
4. Stick to a budget. One of the biggest sources of stress during – and after – the holidays is spending too much. Plan your budget and stick to it no matter what tempts you.
5. Reconsider gift-giving. Buying unnecessary stuff stresses your checkbook and your spirit. Propose alternatives. Have everyone draw a name from a hat, for example, to buy just one gift each, or chip in for a Broadway show and dinner. Make your own gifts or donate to charity in someone else’s name. Recover the value on the things that can’t be bought.
6. Share responsibilities. The holidays may not be the best time to practice your party-planning skills. Involve your family and friends. They will appreciate that more than a frazzled host, and it becomes a bonding experience, nourishing your relationships along with your tummy.
7. Keep your holiday expectations realistic. Most likely your life is not a TV show. Your parents may have an argument in the middle of Thanksgiving dinner. You may not get that iPod for Christmas. Just make the best out of the holidays by being present and enjoying what there is.
8. Consider volunteering. Especially if you are stuck in the city and can’t go home to see your family, volunteering is a great way to invest your holiday energy and avoid depression. Check out www.volunteermatch.org or www.nycares.org for local opportunities.
9. Set aside time alone. Family gatherings can be quite frantic and emotional. There is no better way to decompress than a couple of minutes by yourself. Anytime you start to feel overwhelmed, just quietly leave and take a walk around the block, breathe and recharge.
10. Give yourself something nice. A massage, a manicure, or an appointment with a holistic counselor. Or go for a movie. The best way to be helpful to others is by helping yourself.

If you want to learn more about health and lifestyle secrets to leading an amazing life every day, HLW is here to help. Call 856-428-5495 to schedule your free get acquainted session where you can discuss your individual questions with a certified HLW nutritional health counselor. Best of all, it’s absolutely FREE!

Pasta with White Beans & Rosemary

Ingredients:

* 1 ⅓ cups (½ pound) dried cannellini or great Northern beans, or two 16-ounce cans white beans
* ½ pound Brown Rice Pasta
* 1 ½ Tablespoons sea salt
* ¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil
* 1 package of baby spinach (cleaned)
* 1 teaspoon chopped fresh rosemary
* ½ teaspoon dried rosemary
* 1 very large or 2 medium-size onions, sliced paper thin
* 4 cups vegetable stock
* freshly ground black pepper

Directions:

1. If using dried beans, rinse and soak them overnight in 3 quarts of water. Cook for 1 ½ hours. Drain and set aside. If using canned beans, drain and rinse them. Set aside.

2. In a large pot, bring 3 quarts of water to a boil. Add pasta and sea salt. Cook over high heat until water boils and stir frequently. At 6 minutes, add the cooked beans to the pasta pot.

3. While the pasta and beans are cooking together, warm the olive oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add rosemary and onion and sauté until lightly browned and add spinach to cook all together for 10 minutes. When the pasta is al dente, drain it, and rinse it in cold water (to stop the pasta from continuing to cook). Transfer to serving bowl. Add browned onions and toss well. Add warm vegetable stock until you reach a thick soup consistency.

4. Sprinkle with freshly ground pepper and add sea salt to taste. Can garnish with fresh rosemary.

From page 266 of “Healthy Life Kitchen” by Marilu Henner with Lorin Henner (ISBN # 0-06-039364-5) and adapted by Rose Payne