In the summer of 2021, I ended up in the hospital emergency room for dyshidrotic eczema. I had a heat blister that turned into a foot infection a week later.
During my visit, the doctor confirmed my dyshidrotic eczema symptoms… and what I already knew and had researched on my own in 2020 when I first experienced the condition.
With sensitive and thirsty summer skin that many of us have felt, the fiery summer effects of global warming are intensifying.
Today in fall, it’s cooler and gratefully we did see an in-between this year with some colorful fiery leaves 🍁.
Dyshidrotic Eczema
But, anything at any time like air could make the dyshidrotic eczema situation worse. And being smart, not eating too much sugar and eating some organic foods, help offset some causes and effects.
In my world, I’m known to consistently eat diverse from the rainbow 🌈, so I ruled out any one food or even diet as a likely cause. In case you didn’t already know, I have an Ayurvedic balanced food approach coupled with sustainable anti-inflammatory, gluten, and non-gluten foods. Whole wheat is good in my book.
But I’m also sensitive to other people’s food allergies having worked closely in catering foods and party planning management for a decade or so.
It’s individual. And in my case, if it were a gut issue, it wouldn’t be just hot weather and summers. But for some people, it is about the gut.
And like those sensitivities, I’m also careful not to tip the scales and exacerbate inflammation with foods high in refined sugar or overdo on excessive gluten flour.
Funny that I love baking, right? 👩🍳
I like to also fold in gluten-free flours like oat or millet flours (it’s not just to feed birds) as it makes me feel better.
…plus, s spice is everything nice and honey is the best jam. That would make good song lyrics 🎶
Those types of foods restore the balance of my Pitta (and please my Vata).
It’s good to check in to your imbalances once in a while and see what they are as the body gives so many outward hints and signs. You can also take the Body Balance Quiz to learn more and gain insight.
And when you operate in balance year-round, then you really notice when something is “off,” even if it’s just ever-so-slightly.
You can tell when your spice or candle preferences change. It’s actually not that odd, and those are a couple of fun Ayurvedic ways we can all test our bodies with.
We need more fun these days as our bodies can be tested in not-so-fun ways. And, to help offset this, leaning more into a whole, plant-based diet that’s Ayurvedic and anti-inflammatory gives us all an edge, as we do good for our body AND for the planet.
Our bodies rely on this livable earth where 10 degrees hotter is still doable compared to the 800-degree temps on Mercury. 🌎
And besides heat, dyshidrotic eczema flareups (like I had seen) have been linked to hypersensitivity to cobalt and nickel that are found all over the earth and in some of the healthiest plant-based foods such as cocoa, nuts, and even leafy greens.
Hmmm, what’s up with the healthy causing flare-ups?
Especially when some are your food faves like they are mine (..and actually, most foods are as I’m a foodie!)… but giving up those would be a challenge… for me anyway, and not a good idea for anyone in general…
They contain other anti-inflammatory pro-health benefits that offset their cons. Those foods are good sources of essential vitamins and minerals our bodies can use and need.
So, one adaptation would be to potentially reduce and eliminate consuming those foods as spot-on skin treatments when needed. And then leaning on the other great foods. And that’s why a diverse diet is sustainable. And Mother Earth is the Queen behind it all. 👑
I take health seriously (and you probably do too!). So I breathe the mantra that if you don’t have your health, then nothing else really matters.
So something as annoying but not life-threatening serious, like irritated dry skin, shouldn’t be brushed aside. Dyshidrotic eczema that I’ve learned to partner with is still a sign of inflammation. And while acute, it’s not that cute ☺️.
But it can’t always be rainbows and sunshine. And that helps us appreciate what we do have. And so we adapt.
Then you know better, and you do better. Thank you, Maya Angelou, for those encouraging word reminders.
And as part of doing better…
Coming up with a year-round prevention plan is a good idea if you or others you know are affected by outdoor allergens and changing nature patterns.
And especially during these climate-changing times when we need to evolve as a planet, so we have a better balanced, livable earth that you and I grew up in and want to keep thriving in.
It’s also good to stay thankful for our bodies, and this week especially as we embrace Thanksgiving in America. We can think of all the things we DO have working for us that we can easily take for granted.
Our modern brain machinery like to focus on what we don’t have. But we can outsmart ourselves and be grateful we have a mind of our own 😉
And so we can stay in alignment with the person we want to be, that’s a better version than last year. Amen. That’s something else to be thankful for.
So I’ll leave you on that note. And, Happy Thanksgiving if you’re celebrating… and keep on keepin’ on! 🎉
Anti-inflammatory food ideas are delicious and good for health prevention. Finding the right healthy pairings, spices, and flavors bring make the rainbow variety out. 🌈 Learn more about anti inflammatory foods in this article.
One of my favorite happy and healthy topics is probably no surprise to you, it’s food… and coming up with food ideas to eat. And for a low-sugar but sweet treat with anti-inflammatory benefits, see the Chai Cookies below.
And I’ve probably talked about anti-inflammatory food ideas even more times, and this anti-inflammatory food guide for grocery shopping and easy meal planning ideas.
…And so to spice up your healthy food knowledge, here are 5 Trivia Questions for you.
The answers are at the bottom… but I have a hunch that you may know the answer to one or more of them, and will definitely by the time you finish reading to the end. 😉
…So here we go with the 5 questions!
What is the difference between an herb and a spice?
Which 4 vitamins are fat-soluble?
Where is gluten found in wheat?
Besides wheat, what are 1-2 starchy CROP foods we could eat? (Hint: Grown and raised in big fields)
AND…
What food category does pumpkin fall in?
I had to add that last tricky trivia question in there because pumpkin is all the rage in taste these days. It seems earlier and earlier each year.
I’m still pouring coconut flavors into my beverages as it’s too hot for pumping pumpkin for me just yet… and maybe you too where you are?
In all healthy fairness though, pumpkin puree we often add to our dishes and bakes, is a nutrient-dense anti-inflammatory food loaded with fiber prebiotics good for gut health.
The downside: it has a high/fair GI rating so it can raise blood sugar spikes but still good for an anti inflammatory meal plan idea.
And so, you’ve probably heard of nutrient-dense foods at the core of anti inflammatory food which means they’re packed with nutrients compared to calories. And they have few ingredients. Often they’re whole foods like fruits.
They’re preventative protectors to help fight inflammation that’s recurring, ongoing, or chronic inflammation. Inflammatory properties often have at least one of these symptoms: redness or irritation, heat, swelling, or pain.
Those are earlier signs that can lead to certain chronic diseases such as heart disease, Diabetes 2, certain cancers, and cognitive decline diseases. So one way to handle is to reduce inflammation occurrences with a healthy lifestyle and healthy eating.
And you’ve probably heard of polyphenols that are nutrients in plants and the orange color in pumpkin gives away its healthy advantage rich in beta carotene that’s converted into Vitamin A in the body as needed, so you can think of them as one and the same 🎃
Polyphenols protect the plant, but we get the benefit as an antioxidant (to help protect against disease) in vegetables, fruits, grains, beans, nuts, tofu, and our plant-based diet. These are also good for weight loss meal plans.
There are 13 essential vitamins our bodies can’t make on their own. We get them through food or supplements. They’re critical for key functions like immunity, metabolism, and digestion that help us lose weight and maintain healthy weight.
These are essential nutrients on the anti inflammatory diet and anti inflammatory food ideaas for your food plans.
Vitamins A, C, E
These 3 essential vitamins fight inflammation or swelling. These are important antioxidants that fight cell-free radicals, to help protect against cancer. And you already know one way (eat more 100% pumpkins!).
Since Vitamins A and E are fat-soluble, it’s good to pair healthy fat in your body with them. Like sweet potatoes with walnuts or a drizzle of olive oil that’s common in a mediterranean diet… or how about a healthy bake like carrot coconut oil cake? 😋 That’s one of my anti inflammatory recipes.
Foods like avocados and almonds are rich in Vitamin E and (monounsaturated) healthy fats, so that’s why you probably see these superfoods in the healthy news headlines everywhere you turn.
Vitamin C is easy to find in fruits, but it’s water soluble (I think of it like going down a water slide out of your body). And so, you can take more and that’s why I take a daily supplement, in addition to eating from the rainbow Vit C foods.
Vitamins B
Daily, we need our B vitamins. All 8 are essential like those listed in a B-complex vitamin, and they work in synergy with each other.
Vitamins A, E, D, K are also essential and are the fat-soluble vitamins. Sometimes you naturally take advantage of this. Like when you use EVOO to cook your salmon.
But being more intentional, you can find other opportunities like:
Carrots with hummus made with EVOO.
Spinach with walnuts.
Or an avocado green smoothie with a plant-based milk.
And, here are some of my fave good anti-inflammatory food ideas:
One morning snack I enjoy is celery with almond butter that has protein and fiber. Or natural peanut butter paired with a Granny Smith apple, sliced up bananas, or in good old-fashioned PBJ (or favorite seeded jam) toast.
Another good starter is watermelon with EVOO and mint. If you have a headache, the first thing I do is drink water that’s always good for hydrating your system. And mint is good for the aches.
In fruits and veggies, the different polyphenol-phytochemical pigments are healthy antioxidants. Here are some food examples and how you can eat from the rainbow 🌈:
Red
Red Apples – If you like crisp, Fuji or Gala varieties are easy to find. Or a traditional Red Delicious that’s a softer apple and tends to bruise easier.
Tomatoes – if you find a tomato medley, they all have differing degrees of sweetness, like a green tomato is less sweet. Yellow tomatoes are less acidic and taste sweeter than a red cherry tomato. And a plum tomato usually found in an Italian dish has a deep red or red-orange color different than a slightly sour grape tomato for a Greek salad.
Both overall, tomatoes and avocados aren’t as sweet compared to other fruits. They’re botanical fruits, but we think of them as veggies in our dishes. They actually come from the flowers of plants.
Squashes are considered fruits, and pumpkin popular in September and October is considered a squash. So a pumpkin is a fruit (and that answers that trivia question).
Orange
Carrots – are underrated I think. A bag of carrots is always good to have on hand and are usually abundant year-round. You can eat them as snacks, or cook them slightly soft for better nutritional benefits.
Or you can julienne them or puree them for your carrot cake and breads. If carrots get too dry left out, you can simply add them to a bowl of water to revive them. They’re a lot like us even though their roots are different! 🥕
Oranges – are seasonal even though we see them sometimes year-round. They’re more abundant in the cold winter months like November – January in the U.S.
But, nothing is guaranteed for any food, and you may have found oranges harder to find as there has been a crop shortage, as of 2021. You can find mandarin oranges or small clementines more easily. They’re less acidic and easier to peel if you want to find their good sides.
Yellow
One of the most practical fruits we have around is a banana. Green bananas have a lower GI (glycemic index) than ripe bananas. That makes sense as they’re not as sweet. I like to eat green bananas and use the ripe ones for baking or a smoothie. If you shop around, you’ll know where to get the greenest ones in your town.
Green
Avocado – already mentioned as a superfood, besides on toast, you can make a smoothie or a mousse dessert. You can add on top of any salad. And since they don’t last long after you cut into them, you can easily make an easy guacamole dip. 🥑
Spinach – spinach is a powerful vitamin-rich food and Popeye learned this when got his strength guzzling spinach down.
But for us ordinary characters, we can get bored with the bland spinach taste in a salad. So, I have many anti-inflammatory food ideas:
One idea is to wilt with a little liquid and heat, and then add to your plate slightly cooked to keep the nutrients intact. You’ll find you can add a lot more spinach once it’s tamed down with water and heat
It’s the difference between when your hair is just blown out shiny straight, compared to a wild frizzy humid hair day. 😄
And… when you have a big bag of spinach that can last a couple of weeks in the fridge, but by then is not as fresh… here are some FRESH spinach ideas:
Smoothie: Spinach, pineapple, Granny Smith apple, and nut or plant-based milk. The tart and sweet complements the green smoothie goodness. Add your powders and seeds all day! And you can substitute with kale.
Spinach con queso dip
On medium stove heat, you can wilt the spinach with warming milk, and then add cheese to melt, while stirring. And you can sprinkle baked kale chips on top for extra anti-inflammatory food ideas.
Tortilla with melted cheese spinach (Quesadila)
Bake tortilla. I like low and slow (200°F for an hour) so they don’t burn, and then add shredded or cut-up cheese that’ll be quick to melt in the oven. Add your fresh microgreens or herbs on top AFTER you bake.
I like to add allium-healthy flavors like red or green onions. And tri-color bell peppers for a mouth fiesta 🎉. And a bean spread (with EVOO smashed pinto or cannellini beans).
That is a super anti-inflammatory food idea and you may have heard that beans are the vitamins that Blue Zone Centenarians take. 🫘
Maybe spinach ain’t so bland after all!?
And one food that hasn’t been mentioned yet is fatty fish oils found in fish. Good healthy eating ones are small fish like sardines or wild fish like wild salmon. They would be good to add to any meal planns.
Blue
Blueberries – bake well into morning bars, balls, or scones.
Blueberries also great for smoothies, and jams. And if you’re not a fan or allergic, you could do the other common berries like strawberries or raspberries, or the newer popular berries like elderberries or red lingonberries. I think it’s interesting that we haven’t even come close to identifying all the berries around the world!
Purple/Black
Black beans – I like to bake black bean brownies or energy balls that makes these longevity bakes. You can add espresso on top of the cocoa to give some deeper flavors. Or you can make a cool beans soup. 😋
…Now that’s thinking like a Centenarian! These are worth adding to your anti-inflammatory food ideas.
Red Onions – On the outside, they’re s dark purple hue and inside they’re white. They are pretty and healthy.
Onion rings – And you can easily make healthy baked onion rings. Cut rings (parallel to the top of the onion like the latitudinal equator lines if you could imagine it like a globe). Then dip into a whisked egg, then flour, and then Panko bread crumbs. And then bake. So easy and impressive for a snack!
White/Brown
Mushrooms – these are fascinating as they have so many benefits to the earth and our immunity. The earth needs us and we need the food on the earth.
And adaptogens like mushrooms help with our stress and anxiety. And they have become a whole new taste revolution. Umami – oh, mommy!
Cauliflower – they are a good source of Vitamin C and low in calories for healthy weight loss. You can bake them into your pizza crust or eat my favorite ways, as Crudite. That’s raw on a veggie plate we always had when I worked in hotel catering.
Breakfast Quinoa – as a pseudo grain and naturally gluten-free, this is my go-to cereal. Quinoa takes a little bit of cooking time like rice, but you can batch cook in advance so it’s cool and ready for the next few mornings.
Lunch/Dinner Quinoa – It’s also versatile for your savory lunch meals and dinner salads. My favorite combo is chickpeas and quinoa with a coarser Celtic sea salt.
Warm Oats – this is definitely a morning staple. I like to eat warm with fresh fruit but that’s about Vata-me… andwhat aboutyou?
Cold Oats – You can also do Overnight Oats and just pull your cup or glass out of the fridge in the morning. Add your chia seeds, berries, yogurt, and bananas for a Pitta perfect parfait. 😊
Almonds – these are great snacks. And unlike a chip, it’s good to eat more than one. They have the healthy fat, but also vitamins, minerals, and protein.
Extra Virgin Olive Oil or EVOO
Besides cooking, EVOO is good for baking, dips, and on toast for some other anti-inflammatory food ideas.
Spelt and sprouted grains come from whole grains and have high levels of vitamins and minerals. They’re easier to digest with a lower GI (but not to be confused with gluten-free!). You can get GF versions, but those are wholesome wheat grains.
And that’s a good idea and thought to leave it on! I hope this helps you on your food healthy lifestyle!
…Oh, and here are the answer to the 5 TRIVIA questions above (that I copied here):
What is the difference between an herb and a spice?
Which 4 vitamins are fat-soluble?
Where is gluten found in wheat?
Besides wheat, what are some other starchy crop healthy foods we could eat?
What food category is pumpkin in?
Trivia Question Answers:
1.An herb comes from the leaves of plants, and spices from the other parts (flowers, fruits, seeds, roots).
2.Vitamins D,E,A,K
3.Gluten is found in the starchy endosperm in the middle layer of the wheat cereal grain. The seed is deep inside and the bran is the outside of the grain.
4.Corn, rice, and millet are a few. Millet is more popular for humans to eat outside the U.S. but you can find it if you look around.
5.Pumpkin is a squash, and squashes are fruit. So, a pumpkin is technically a fruit. You may never look at pumpkins the same, and at Thanksgiving when you think you need a fruit pie on the table.
And that’s a wrap!
For healthy recipes you can check out this one especially if you have a sweet tooth and want to avoid the inflammatory sugar.
These delicious and simple-to-make chai bombs are loaded with antioxidants.
Course desserts
Cuisine American, Indian
Ingredients
all spice (cloves)
Ceylon cinnamon
chai tea
molasses
coconut oil
coconut flour
cardamom
Instructions
The secret to these delicious cookies is to mix the ingredient dough and refrigerate for several days so the flavors have a chance to penetrate. Then scoop into balls and bake as you would cookies.
This week, I’m breaking down the secrets of Ayurveda and how it can free you from feeling stuck. And how it restores calm, improves mind-body health, and allows for daily creativity which leads to your best life new opportunities, and passions.
…Plus, I’ll clear up the common confusion about Ayurveda if you’re wanting to learn more… and how you can apply simple, but completely effective Ayurveda ways to your lifestyle where you’re at… and with a special invitation offer below.
Last time, in Part 1 of Ayurveda, I talked about why you want to care about the mind-body connection. If you missed that blog post or aren’t sure, you can go back and read that one too as it could make a game-changing difference in getting your best life today…
I also shared how change and permanence are part of the natural order in this life. They keep us going and growing.
You get to choose whether you want to do this life holding onto anxiety, fears, or worry, or letting them go daily for your emotional freedom and better moods.
…You can restore daily calm even with life chaos happening around you. That’s a healthy choice.
You can change how anxiety, overwhelm, irritations, and triggered situations stick to you when they don’t have to …but, interruptedly rear their ugly head into your system and you just want them to go away!
As humans, we experience these negative emotions to varying degrees. And everyone grows weary and tired at some point.
And, that’s when we want to be vigilant to snap out of those emotions after we purge, process, and know what’s behind them so we can take necessary action, and so that we don’t stay stuck in those places any longer than necessary.
…How?
You step out and sidestep into your daily calm and productivity with the strategy of partnering with your mind-body to soothe and get the most out of the situation and your life… with small effort and adding healthy enhancements.
At some point, you probably figure(d) out that Life is about being in the process. And filled with trying lessons.
Sometimes it can take several similar, but different scenarios to play out to catch onto the lesson and make changes for a better today, tomorrow, and life.
But, when you see your part and role in what happens next, your eyes are open and you can apply wisdom. That takes awareness in the moment or in reflection.
And if you have knowledge or know what to do, you can save yourself from unnecessary pain… and sometimes your life. Like if caught in a rip current wave, you survive by not panicking, calling for help that’s nearby, and swimming parallel to the shore if you can.
You also can survive your daily life situations and undesired moods weighing you down if you know what to do.
Getting through your non-life threatening situations can be challenging for a day or two, as moods can stick like mud, but don’t have to play out and grow into a season!…
And you don’t want them to, because health and stress are on the line, and your moods can worsen and influence you to make poor decisions and miss out on great opportunities.
[In physical health terms, moods are like inflammations… you want them out or on the way out within a few days, or else it could spread like poison ivy inside and become a bigger problem.]
But the really good news here is… you can nip-in-the-bud those less-than moods weighing you down as easily as they entered.
How?…
Co-create the right and comfortable environment that your mind-body wants, and therefore is what you also want!
Remember, you are not your mind-body. Your mind-body runs 24×7 and never shuts off when you’re asleep. Keeping your mind-body in mind (no pun intended), for your optimal life you want to do what will turn things around fastest for you.
That doesn’t mean you need to move or uproot your lifestyle, that just means a few healthy tweaks that your daily mind-body wants.
Ayurveda (the science of life) helps to restore and bring natural balance and order back into our lives despite constantly changing situations… and naturally, the way it’s intended.
In our work-life balance modern world there seems to be a gadget for everything to solve our daily problems and make life easier and help us live longer. But we don’t always use (and sometimes ignore) the most effective tool that’s already built inside us!
In Western world, our health is often seen through the lens of food, fitness, wellness, and self-care. In our healthy efforts, we don’t always get to the root cause and directly restore or heal what our mind-body needs. And that can lead to a long (sometimes painful) season.
…BUT be encouraged, it’s restorable and not your fault!
As you have free will to choose. You do what you feel like doing or think will help based on the (limited) knowledge you have at the time.
And also because…
Our Western Society… The Good and Bad
Conditioning that you and I have received since we were children, that goes like this… Oh, the doctor will fix that…
And as an adult, if you were sent home with a prescription for resting or exercising more, you’d be dissatisfied as most of us know that’s helpful but not what we want from our doctor. We expect a procedure, prescription, or two.
The problem is your body doesn’t want medicines if it can handle the foreign body disruptor on its own. But we don’t know what exactly our body needs because we can’t talk to our body or get inside for those knowing answers.
So, our common Western way is curing with medicines, “just in case,” and because we’re conditioned to expect those protocols.
But, too many antibiotics in the system damage gut health, and surrounding systems that alter your body. Good probiotics can only help so much to reverse effects.
So that’s the bad, but there’s a lot of good in medicine…
Like when used for a disease outbreak where massive chaos in the body has already erupted and medical intervention is needed. Your body needs help.
We can learn from Steve Jobs’ story in more than his genius Apple tech abilities. He passed away too young from cancer. Wisdom leaves clues.
Western medicine doesn’t usually prescribe natural herbs to cure cancer or other diseases.
Anything supernatural can happen in our favor at any time, but that’s not the common or wise protocol. God created doctors and gave us our brains to make good decisions to see doctors when needed.
…So then where does Ayurveda (science of life) fit in?
Ayurveda’s sweet spot is in health prevention, and helping change unwanted common everyday moods and annoying flare-ups.
It’s risky for most conditions that require medical attention. …and I wanted to clear up in case that wasn’t clear and obvious. So good, now you know what Ayurveda is good for…
Ayurveda works for what it’s meant for. But as a practice, not mentioned much in our society partly because prevention can’t be measured. And that’s not where medicine focuses attention.
So, it can get brushed aside or seen as a health fad.
…Even though Ayurveda has been around working as an Ancient healing system for thousands of years.
People smartly use it as part of their daily healthy lifestyle.
They can be part of the routines and habits we stack and track in our day.
When you have a healthy lifestyle and know how to use Ayurveda in your daily life, then you’re better off leaning into your balanced natural essence. There are no downsides to report.
And a decade later… in my opinion, it’s still the “best-kept secret.” And why I’m unpacking it here.
Your mind-body is a direct source that knows what it needs… and Ayurveda cracks that code.
Enter Eastern-Western Ayurveda Awareness
American society tends to lump natural, holistic, alternative medicines, and Ayurveda as mystical and woo-woo, when really what Ayurveda needs is rebranding.
Ayurveda is not just what you see as available products on the market.
Two things that could make people iffy in the beginning about Ayurveda (I know I was!) are:
1.. Messy oils, strange elixirs, and take-time-out routines. They don’t always mesh well in a Western modern society that’s go-go-go where schedules are filled to the brim and even fitting in eating can be trying.
2. Silent practices when you don’t have a door that stays closed or that can shut out the world around you. And without a list of to-do’s or worries for the day running in your head.
Those daily practices are more Eastern (slower-pace life) than Western techniques.
And what works in Ayurveda for Western-style living and restoring mind-body techniques, can be woven into your busy day with very little effort or inconvenience.
You can skip the Eastern-style practices and you won’t be missing a mood-improvement beat… I promise!
And some universal practices you may already be doing sometimes or regularly… like, yoga is a today-popular Western Ayurvedic general practice. Sometimes you have time to fit in, and sometimes you don’t, but it’s not the end-all-be-all to making moment-to-moment restoring changes because yoga reset to feel-good feelings lasts for a 90-minute class, a cup of tea, and maybe a relaxing spa visit, but then you’re back to your life, triggers and interruptions in your mind, and your work.
Even though I love yoga!… maybe you too?
In 2008, there were few studios when I had to search around so I’m glad it has taken root.
Another popular example is eating plant-based anti-inflammatory foods. Yup, that’s part of a healthy Ayurvedic lifestyle. Wherever you are, you have access to markets, online stores, farms, and gardens (…or you can start your own).
…So you may already have a ‘lil Ayurveda in you! 😉
…So, is an Ayurveda lifestyle right for you?
These are questions you can ask yourself and things to think about:
Are you interested in preventative health?
Are you interested in unleashing more daily creativity?
Are you a lifelong learner who is open to the deeper self?
And do you want to live sustainably healthier and longer?
…Like Blue Zone Centenarians who live healthy lifestyles that are part of their culture. They don’t live like most Americans (and not even the Adventist Health Blue Zone community in California).
Some live more simply, slower lives, eating from the land, and need less mood restoring without all the complicated high tech. 😉
And so many countries rank higher in longevity than the States, that’s ranked closer to the bottom. That’s a hard pill to swallow considering all the conveniences we have.
…Even though I can’t imagine my identity with any other culture.
So I added Ayurveda into my lifestyle to make up for the deficit.
And you can too. The thing is… you’re probably already habitually doing Ayurveda to some degree in your healthy every day routine. You’ve been using all your senses since you were born.
…But probably not for balancing moods consistently as you didn’t know what really works with your specific mind-body, type, and imbalance combinations you’re experiencing. That’s really what it boils down to.
And when you do change your moods and imbalances, then you can get to your inner creative self more easily and consistently.
Creativity Inside Us
Sometimes there’s a creative block. And we don’t know what we don’t know could be, or are missing out on our greatest passions that give us joy.
I was creatively mind-blocked in my corporate management work life.
I couldn’t be fully creative beyond short spurts of free time where I delved into hobbies for creative outlets.
In those few moments, I experienced calm, joy, and felt weight off my shoulders. I could get into a creative flow where I lost track of time and those were usually well into the weekend or on a Sunday.
…Have you been there or can relate?
Unleashing the creativity inside feels free-ing. And when I got longer stretches of time away from work, I realized I had creative hidden talents I didn’t even know I had, that were waiting inside me for the right-ready time.
…And you do too. Plus, ones that you haven’t uncovered because you have gotten there yet to take action.
After you remove the anxious, stressful, and overwhelming layers and feelings, you can get a direct path to your creative juices and energy.
That’s your ticket to your happiest and best life. When you feel lighter and good, you feel on top of the world.
You feel empowered at the very least, and maybe even superpowers to take on activities you didn’t know you could perform (like sing or dance… you get the point).
And that’s a time when you get the most out of your life and push the pedal forward and make breakthroughs.
It’s the opposite of these types of common feelings (that keep you uninspired and stagnant):
–Tired: where you don’t want to do much let alone work on a creative pursuit. You lack energy but with a good night’s rest you can be renewed and passion-filled again if you’re re-energized, aren’t triggered, feeling burnout, or are depressed.
–Anxious: where you’re trying to manage your anxiety symptoms to stay afloat… trying to stay relaxed while your body-mind takes over. That’s a bad time to make good decisions, let alone try and be creative.
–Irritated: where you’re trying to get over negative feelings and a critical-judgmental mind that permeate your system when energizing the wrong thoughts. Good creativity doesn’t emerge in non-loving attitudes.
But, you can change the channel or get your relaxed self back as quickly as you got in your tense state. Like in the shower, the ideas can come. Or in a joyful activity where you lose track of time.
And, if you’re feeling balanced and calm throughout the day as the normal way, that changes everything. You can switch to your creative self when you want without losing valuable time.
And those steps take you to your next move in life, passions, and pursuits.
And if that’s where you are ready to go and be your very best today, but maybe feeling off or not quite there yet, start with the body balance quiz that shows symptoms on the body as part of the mind-body connection.
And in creativity, I made this swirly dessert (nostalgic of Cherry Garcia and the tie die T-shirt era…). 🍥
Moisturize if your skin is dry may be what’s needed for you in these climate changing times. And if you’re experiencing eczema skin or other dryness signs, you’ll want to drench yourself and let these tips soak in like I did when I first discovered an eczema flair-up due to global warming…
And if that’s you, you’ve come to the right place for moisturize tips plus a moist healthy divine tasting chocolate banana bread recipe below you’ll love!
With global warming on the reality fast rise, the outdoor dry air is becoming drier, and this plays extra havoc on our affected bodies and down to the hypodermis and skin cells level.
In awareness, you can proactively moisturize (more), make healthy changes (10 tips below to check off), and not be blind-sided by your body’s need to adjust naturally.
You may find yourself needing more products as I did…
Cerave became my favorite daily moisturizer needed for the outside and water for the inside. But I found I needed more than moisturizers, products with hyaluronic acid for skin care, and soothing parched skin that became eczema developments from heat rashes. It was like a sun burn.
Drinking water and eating 90% water fruits like melons wasn’t enough, but it was a start.
If you feel like you’re drinking water like a camel and keep moisturizing like it’s already winter (and you’re still dry), there’s nothing wrong with you.
Climate change can affect sensitive skin with symptoms you may never have had before.
Like, I had good skin and no need to moisturize certain body parts until up to a few years ago.
One goodcheck is your home thermostat.
Another is your body thermostat. This will feel different despite our 98°F/36°C human bodies. If you’re Pitta imbalanced, your natural heat will be increased.
One of the first places to transition is testing the shower water temperatures you’re using based on outdoor temperatures and your body (balanced and imbalanced).
Shatavari is asparagus root, an Ayurvedic solution I use in summer, that helps to adjust internal thermostats and can help with flushed skin.
You can start on cool and end on cool if you’re high in Pitta or it’s summer. For Vata and Kaphas, you may already be on the cool side, so a little warmer to start and end is good. You can use Ayurvedic small changes to help change your previous habits.
That’s how knowing what your Ayurvedic body imbalances are can currently help to restore them. And adjusting your shower temperatures can too.
So, one takeaway (or reminder) is don’t stick with the same shower temperature year-round. Adjust to yourtemperatures.
Self-care and prioritizing our prized bodies above our stuff keep us running optimally through the seasons. And just like you change out your clothes from summer to autumn and winter, you want to change your routines and habits for your changing body.
Our skin, as our largest organ, acts as a barrier to our internal body organs we can’t see. We often take for granted when all is running smoothly. Your skin is constantly changing and renewing and a great place to start.
And retinol that I learned as the stronger Retin-A in our youth can help that process along if it doesn’t irritate your skin.
10 Moisturize Self-Care Tips:
FOR SKIN AND SPECIFIC BODY PARTS
At the bare minimum, take care of the entry points on your body.
1) Eyes: Your eyes aren’t just the window to your soul, they are the gateway to how you see the world. And if you have dry eyes, that’s one fuzzy world!
Adding eye drops helps (and especially if you’re on your digital devices more than ever). Blue light blocking UVB glasses are necessary as you never know when you’ll be walking in the strong sun and don’t want to end up with cataracts or eye diseases that’s a reality for aging people. I learned that from my mom.
As a society, we can seem to care more about what fashionable pair of specs we’re wearing and forget about our precious eyes.
Needing to moisturize our eyes when we wake up lets us know we’ve slept that swimming fish don’t need (not even the smart Dr. Seuss Goldfish ones). That could be a habit stack for nasal saline drops (another main entrance into the body).
2) Lips: Daily real self-care things can seem small (and sometimes inconvenient or annoying) but you’re naturally given your refined parts like tender lips so you can chew with your mouth closed (unlike an ape that happily spits out food in company).
At home, I like to bring in outdoor local wonderment by using organic honey, a household-must in more ways than one.
One way you may not have thought about is using honey to moisturize dry lips. Glossy raw honey works better than a honey lip balm, especially if you’re about to eat or drink.
…Plus you get a ‘lil sweet taste in 😉
Honey lips stay supple because the natural humectant locks in the moisture. And even helps for little salty cuts on the sides of your lips in between the top and bottom lip, if that happens to you.
It’s also antibacterial. The B.C. Egyptians are credited for discovering honey as a secret medicinal ingredient. They lived like the Kardashians and like Queen Bees.
Honey meant luxury. I wonder if the Queen Bee would’ve adapted to today’s changing climate. 😉 We still know that nature provides the best sources and that natural solutions can be the best answers to our problems.
…And this is why our natural bodies intuitively know what we need (and that I’m super passionate about). Our bodies are connection points to our mind and spirit that make us above other mammals.
For honey, depending on your need, you find a local raw honey source in your area or you use a good standby like Manuka honey (native to Australia/New Zealand) that has become the gold standard.
If you buy processed honey fillers, those aren’t the same. The sugar honey bear shows his age as he crystallizes. and is not one you want to add to your medicinal cabinet, as cute and wallet-friendly as a honey celebrity that he is. Instead, spend a little more on a lesser-known high-quality local honey.
3) Whole-body moisturize (before and) after showering for prevention.
If your skin feels raisin dry, steaming in the warm shower helps. If right after exiting the shower, you moisturize right away, you can seal in the moisture on certain dry parts with a product like Vaseline lotion that has petrolatum (it’s like adding a protective wax or protective coat to your nails). Rose Vaseline is good for heated Pitta moments.
And then add your favorite lotion if you’re still feeling dry skin. That’s a good habit to get into. We all have different skin so I mention a few good ingredients here…
And then in the evening, you can mix it up with shea butter, coconut or avocado oil, or Ceramide 3 lotions. You may even want to moisturize mid-day if you are super dry. I use different unscented or fragrance-free moisturizers to eliminate harmful phthalates.
And I keep natural, great citrusy scented hand creams close by. Mixing it up (biodiversity) helps your body to adapt better.
Don’t let all the hoopla of different ingredients overwhelm you, just focus on 3 things… moisturize, moisturize, and moisturize!
But if more severe and you need to soothe itchy inflammations, look for ingredients like aloe, colloidal oatmeal, vitamins C and E, and healthy oils (coconut, carrot seed, olive oils… if you can eat it, then you know it’s skin-safe and good food moisturizing ideas). Don’t forget honey… it’s sticky good!
For dryness around your scalp, try an oil like coconut oil and moisturizers. Try to leave in after your shower (or let soak in before you shower). We’re so quick to get cleaned off from the greasiness, but that’s sheer bathing luxury for your skin.
4) Salve and sesame oil: for dryness on and around nails and cuticles. You want to let your nails breathe (if you usually have them polished or wear artificial nails). Cooler weather is a good time to let your nails go au naturel. That also gives you a break from year-round time consuming and costly nail maintenance… That’s a breath of fresh air!
1) Moist salve (good for dry cuticles) and dry lips, 2) essential oil spray for pillow or yoga mats, and 3) moist lip balm almost as good as honey… PLUS a nice quote!
5) Shea Butter: For rough sandpaper hands or feet, an emollient-softening lotion with shea butter can feel rich and good. Hands and feet tend to be the first places that can get very dry so take extra mani-pedi self-care measures. Keep lotion by your computer, desk, and body so you can use throughout the day as needed or when you remember. If you have dry skin, you can never moisturize enough!
(The worst that will happen if you over-moisturize is you get butter fingers and something slips from your hand, but you’ll never get called into the principal’s office for moisturizing too much! I have Vata lotion in every room… basically that’s a variety of lotion potions to choose from for dry emergencies and convenience.
6) Aloe: Is another great skin quencher and is not fussy or sticky. It’s clear color (not the Kermit frog green color you may have seen with dyes, that sells better). Aloe is water to your skin. I never used to use aloe regularly. I only used it to quickly heal skin burns from the kitchen. But now it’s a great non-greasy moistener for in-between moisturizing with lotions. It’s like a sip of water to your skin, that is better than nothing when your skin is parched… it’s like drinking water, and it can tie-you over until you get a full drink.
FOOD AND DRINKS
7) Water andCoconut water: Is super hydrating from the natural Super Fruit. VitaCoco water is hydrolyzing, and can help if you’re not sugar-sensitive.
If you are, there’s nothing purer than plain water.
Natural water like Voss and Fiji water are treats but skipping the cases of grocery plastic bottle filtered waters (stripped of minerals) are good ideas.
A replaceable Brita pitcher and filter or home water filter system from your fridge can work better and is a better reusable water system.
8) Substituting ingredients: Preventing inflammation caused by dryness helps to maintain a healthy balance in your body.
You can subtly do this with small replacements like fruit sugar over refined sugar, and healthier oils like EVOO, avocado, or coconut oil over bad fats (e.g. margarine, butter, vegetable oil, hydrogenated oils… and the stuff I grew up with… you too?).
9) Seasonal foods: Lean into what’s seasonally “in” by shopping at the local farmers markets or in the abundant bins in grocery stores. You can often tell when there’s an abundance because the organic choice is also abundant.
You can see abundance from a distance.
When I did party planning in restaurants, the menus were always seasonal, based on the available foods priced reasonably. So you wouldn’t see watermelon recipes in the winter or pumpkin dishes in the spring.
10) Spices: are a great way to balance food seasonality and keep your food and dishes interesting year-round with reliable seasonings.
Isn’t spice the variety of life!? …in my world, anyway, it is (and hopefully in yours!). Oregano was one of my first favorites which goes well with red sauces and Italian dishes.
Then as spices evolved in the Western world, turmeric became a star. Plus, it’s anti-inflammatory and good to eat for dry, irritated skin (could be Vata and Pitta imbalance at the same time in changing weather).
Don’t let the turmeric drying and astringent texture to your tongue fool you into believing it’s drying you out. It’s body healing (and where you can get a glimpse of balancing wholeness through food).
Chocolate Banana Recipe
The healthier coconut oil and low-sugar chocolate cocoa-banana bread recipe below is inspired by a story from my childhood sweet (as in baked-goods) memories…
One day, my mom gave me a banana bread loaf to take to my first-grade class. I can’t remember what the occasion was if there was one…
I remember food sensitivities didn’t exist much back then, and a classmate once brought in baklava with nuts, and we all tried it, even though that’s more of an adult dessert (not so popular with first graders).
My other classmates also sometimes brought in more popular cake-type bakes and I think that’s where the recent past cupcake craze resurfaced again (as that was a thing back then for good ‘ol fashioned memories).
The banana bread I took to school was a one-time occurrence and definitely more in the adult taste category. But my teacher loved it (or maybe she just loved me I hope) …Or both, as she asked me for the recipe. 😊
So…that same day, I asked my mom to write down the recipe. English isn’t her first language and I’ve never seen a single written recipe she wrote as I don’t think that was popular back in her day,
All that despite a different home-cooked dinner she prepared like a cook pro almost every night.
Well… the next day, apparently my schoolteacher had tried baking the bread from the recipe I handed her because I recall she mentioned she thought there must be a missing ingredient as hers didn’t turn out the way my mom’s had. That’s the story I remember anyway.
I never asked my mom to write another recipe as the opportunity never came up again. But I think that memory from my formative years developed my skill and gradual interest in drumming up new recipes with old inspirations and replacing ingredients with healthier ones we have available now. Thank you, mom! And for passing on the passionate cooking genes. In her golden years, she still loved cooking (bless her heart).
And for your life, if you still think you can’t cook or bake, you never know what a decade can bring in your favor as your tastes change!
The bread has a darker brown color (less banana bread beige blah!).
I think that’s why fruit cakes have candied fruits in them because they give a pop of color that walnut and other beige nut colors don’t.
It makes you want to dig in or give as a gift (I also think).
On the healthy side of things, it’s also filled with less sugar and more healthy fat oil that helps us moisturize our bodies.
1cupbananas (up to 225 grams)you can use 1/2 cup minimum
Instructions
Combine wet ingredients with dry ones. Mix well.
Prepare baking pan with baking spray or light oil to prevent sticking.
Bake in 325 F˚/ 170 C˚oven for 65-80 minutes until a toothpick comes out clean.
EASY, Healthier Chocolate-Banana Bread
1 cup mashed bananas (225 grams)
1/3 cup coconut oil (73 grams)
1/3 cup maple syrup (the less the better)
2 eggs (room temperature)
¼ cup almond milk (59 mL)
1 tsp baking soda
½ tsp salt
½ tsp ground cinnamon
1-1/3 cups flour (168 grams)
1/3 cup cocoa powder (40 grams)
½ to 1 cup bananas. (up to 225 grams)
Combine wet ingredients with dry ones.
As my television baking teacher, Martha Stewart would say, it doesn’t matter which you to add first to the other: wet to dry or dry to wet. And in lingo I picked up from hotel catering days, we would say, “it’s 6 of 1 or half-dozen the other.”
Mix well and bake in 325 F˚/ 170 C˚oven for 65-80 minutes.
You gotta love the lower temperature bakes (they’re so few and far between… and that makes this a good year-round bake).
With this recipe, you also get to see the magic of the oven as the forming bread looks like it’s bathing in healthy coconut oil where you wonder if it will soak in or evaporate. And then when the bread is done, Voila! (or Wah-lah! if French isn’t your native cooking tongue 😜)…
Final tips: if you want a baking masterpiece or the first piece that’s outta this world (and to give it some contrasting color)… then embellish with crystalized ginger (sweet spicy taste) and calming orange zest flavors.
Also, decorate with poppy seeds to really make it pop out like in artisanal bread. You can also add a little shredded coconut snow effect (like you see in a snow globe if you really want to have some fun). ❄️
Until next time, take good self care! …And if you want to learn how to restore annoying imbalances (dry-related or something else), you can take my body balance quiz.
Food allergies is something I became deeply aware of first when I worked with groups planning parties and menus that had common food allergies and gluten sensitivities.
When I started in catering, there were only vegetarian food categories other than the menu everyone else ate from.
Then requests grew like “hold the onions” and “hold the garlic” became common.
At some point, I saw peanut and nut allergies crop up. When I dug deeper into creating menus for food allergies, we found that guests who had some peanut allergies could eat some tree nuts like pine nuts. We never had a problem with food allergy association groups.
Thankfully I didn’t work with shellfish menus often in my management work travels.
An affected person who has even a trace of the shellfish they’re allergic to in their body can send them into a threatening allergic reaction called anaphylaxis shock.
We always had Benadryl in the First Aid kit nearby.
In food awareness, we then slowly learned about Celiac Disease that can cause severe allergic reactions because gluten triggers the immune system.
And as we evolved, allergies and preferences became the norm. Restaurant servers greeted you at your table asking, “does anyone have any allergies?”
It almost became unusual when a guest like myself had no allergy requests.
A century ago that would’ve never been asked.
My Eczema Journey
And in my life journey, I discovered a skin allergy called eczema that was no fun. One day, that came from accumulating sweets, that tipped the scales and brought out the itchy spot allergy symptoms.
I learned this effect was dramatically reduced with low daily refined sugar intake and cutting out most processed flour. That’s not good news for someone who likes to bake where flour and sugar are core ingredients.😭
Buf I kept baking (and still bake today!) despite the facts… I found that baking isn’t a deal breaker. The answer for me was healthy baking and using certain triggering ingredients in moderation and in good quantity control.
Even better, I substitute for healthy ingredients that the body likes and doesn’t show food allergy reaction to. That’s aligned to my healthy and happy sensibilities.
And moderation is a good idea for all of us. Lowering processed gluten foods for everyone is a good idea in general, considering all the environmental factors and chemicals (plastics, pesticides, and phthalates) we have no control over in the current state of food manufacturing processes.
For foods, adding more plant-based 🌱 as in nature and not plant-based as in factories 🏭 helps your entire system run better.
Adding more healthy variety, and nutrient-dense plant-forward foods is a win for our bodies and our earth. It can be easy as exchanging pasta made from flour, once in a while for spaghetti squash. See easy spaghetti squash recipe below. 🍴🍝
Your lifestyle and food choices impact your healthy and daily running Body.
You can experience body inflammations that become chronic, and where seasonal and food allergies play a role and can be the canary in the coal mine. You can change your ways from those clues.
In awareness, you can optimize your healthiest body for the set of conditions you’re given.
Focusing on anti-inflammatory foods and including Mediterranean Diet foods that overlap in your meals, helps I believe.
It won’t hurt to reduce high amounts of processed, sugary foods, and alcohol as you can, and keep small quantities in your life.
Reducing junk and fried foods and excess from your diet can help reduce and potentially prevent inflammations from happening.
Replacing emptier calorie and excessively sweet snacks (most foods have sugar) to healthier nut snacks, high quality dairy, and lean proteins help curb hunger in between meals.
I used to fill up on nutritional bars as filler snacks, but often they’re loaded with sugar.
I went back to foods like chickpeas with rice, hummus dip, and lean proteins, and then more savory foods for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.
The Inflammation Free Diet for Food Allergies
The book I had been using as a guidebook for preparing meals, The Inflammation-Free Diet, re-entered my memory after my inflammation episode and in my mindfulness.
I realized that there was a connection bridged between spiking sugar inflammation and foods.
And that there are very few perfect foods, and even my beloved bananas have a high glycemic index that can add to inflammation.
In making healthy food choices, moderation and choosing to balance good back-to-earth foods seems to be the better ageless answer to healthily feed our bodies. Getting anti-inflammatory food ideas for meals waved in front of you doesn’t hurt either! 😉
Just like your body keeps score, your mind can keep a rough tally of what you consume over a week or month, that has a healthy, tasty, and enjoyable balance, so you don’t have to always jot down every food eaten.
There’s three people in you: your mind, your body, and you.
This natural way of preferring healthier variety and mixing up foods is one perk of being a Vata and someone who loves food. ♥
But if you do want to add new foods and be mindfully healthier, keeping a daily food diary or list is a good way to see and evaluate what you want to add or subtract out.
If you have episodes like acid reflux, heartburn, or a sensitive stomach, by writing down your meals you can discover what food allergies, patterns, and combinations don’t sit well together in your stomach.
This is how I figured out that pizza tomato sauce and yogurt are not good to have back to back or in your stomach at the same time.
(And one theory as to why Italians never have milk drinks or cappuccinos after 11:30 am where they could start their tomato-based lunch siesta. Just sayin’! 😉)
In moderation, some are based on what you have in your systems. Coffee can be difficult if you already have a heartburn episode going on while after that has blown over, you can go back to your cuppa joe. But I recommend the newer cold brew coffee method if you don’t wanna give up your coffee. ☕️
And you can find that garlic isn’t favorable to your body. But that doesn’t mean you have an allergy. It could just mean eat less if you don’t want to tip the scales to inflammation.
In moderation, all can be good, but you don’t know the exact limit your body has before a warning is issued through inflammation and flair ups. So you want to stay mindful of your quantity (or moderation in modern Ayurvedic terms).
You could discover your body likes more astringent or bitter foods. This is common in Kapha body types so lean in on this healthy advantage.
Every healthy food ingesting micro action you take accumulates, and can help toward your physical health as you also evolve and change habits.
You may also find certain food allergies or excess can affect your moods and mental health and can change over time and quantity.
Parts of your mind influenced by your senses are telling you to consume, when it’s better if you just stop, knowing there’s a lag time in mind-body communication.
That’s why it’s better to pause eating before you’re full so your body can catch up and notify your mind, “whoaaa… no more please!”
A yummy piece of cake to the body is neutral until it starts breaking down and processing the ingredients. The pleasure is up in the mind.
So getting your mind-body aligned is a better strategy here. Remember there’s 3 of us: mind, body, and ‘lil‘ol me.
Gluten Food Allergy Sensitivities
Our society acknowledges that certain individuals have a deep allergy sensitivity to gluten, especially over the past decade where Celiac disease has been identified as a potentially serious health condition.
Frequently asked questions include: what foods are high in gluten? Whole grains are healthy. They’re also guilty.
Wheat, barley, and rye are big offenders.
But corn, oats, and quinoa are gluten-free. And corn is the largest agricultural crop produced in the United States. So there are still many options for gluten allergies.
And this is how I turned to healthy baking. I’m someone who is gluten sensitive because it can flair up eczema, so I lean on so many other gluten-free foods and ingredients to bake with.
I witnessed this growing gluten allergy in planning hotel and restaurant catered parties for a decade.
This growing trend is not just Celiac Disease that’s an autoimmune disease. Sensitivity and disease both have gluten as the offender.
Now we have healthy food sections and those who only shop and eat gluten-free breads and foods.
This has led to new cooking flours and healthier choices for everyone.
Managing Food Allergies
If you experience chronic body or skin inflammations in your life, find out if food allergens could be a trigger for your body. Triggers change as you age.
Many people are allergic to nightshade foods because of alkaloids in plants. As a kid, I would get an allergic reaction when I ate eggplants. A rash would move up my back quickly. Red spots are common food allergy symptoms.
But as life moved, this was no longer an allergy trigger so children who grow up want to stay open with food choices as our bodies are changing.
We want to keep a variety of foods and food categories as diversity helps the gut and body.
To better manage, you can read food labels, and test with small bites along your journey to see if anything happens. See what patterns arise. Maybe the same ingredient in one food is in another that triggers an allergic response.
And you can also order a medical allergy prick test at an allergist’s office.
Another place to check is to self-diagnose your stress causes in your life and list out all the potential stressors for additional revelation.
Stress can come from past, present, or future-related thoughts and situations. Past trauma that you may know about, and future uncertainty can confusingly show up in your inflammation body life.
Situational stress can be a more obvious correlation for a pimple or a gray hair that’s in the mind-body connection.
You can start with these less serious body symptoms that show up, and try to connect dots in your life, chronic inflammation, and health history.
This could lead to learn something new about how to restoratively and preventatively take care of your body to operate optimally now and in the future.
If you need or want help in those areas, you can take the 2-minute body balance quiz to learn more about how to restore your healthy-happy body balance.
For now, I leave you to enjoy this gluten-free spaghetti squash recipe with your favorite sauce or at plain. One squash will yield about as much as a pasta box you would buy at the store.
I discovered spaghetti squash as a meal when vegetarians were the main special food needs categories for groups I planned catered meals for. Food allergies didn't exist in the zeitgeist back then.
Course dinner, lunch
Cuisine American
Equipment
Bread knife or safer sawing knife.
Spoon
Ingredients
spaghetti squash gourd
extra virgin olive oil
Instructions
Score the gourd lengthwise. do not try to cut the hard gourd raw
Bake your spaghetti squash for about 20 minutes at 350°F or so. Then softened, you can cut where you scored. Tip: for the ends (like on pumpkins, take the firmly planted inside squash knife and twist to the right at the top and then at the bottom of the squash and that should do the trick break it open fully into two halves)
Face the two halves down on a baking sheet. You can add a ‘lil EVOO if you like.
Bake for 50 minutes or until you can scoop out strands easily with a spoon. You can test with a fork if you like. About half way through, when you see browning, flip the halves so they're facing up, and add a 'lil more EVOO drizzle.
Optional: keep the healthy seeds and enjoy them as snacks! Roast them along when you're baking the squash.
FREE Intermittent Fasting Guide For Healthy Living
. 
The bread has a darker brown color (less banana bread beige blah!).
