Enchiladas

1 onion chopped
1/2 cup chopped celery
1/2 cup sliced mushrooms
1 cup frozen corn
1 can black beans
1 pkg. Morning Star Meal Starter – Griller Crumbles (look in meat alternatives frozen food section at grocery)
1 tsp basil
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp garlic powder
salt to taste
1 large can enchilada sauce
1 large can of vegetarian refried beans
1 pkg of soft corn tortillas – 24

Saute-onion, celery, and mushrooms together in a little oil or water. When tender add corn, black beans, griller crumbles and spices. Mix well and turn to lower heat. Add 1/2 can of enchilada sauce and simmer for a few minutes. Use 8 x 12 inch pan and pour a little of sauce in can over bottom. Start assembling enchiladas. Spread a little of refried beans on tortilla then put spoonful of mixture into tortilla and fold in half and layer in your pan. Continue to do this until all of the mixture and tortillas are done. Pour raw cheese spread over tortillas then pour the rest of enchilada sauce over the cheese mixture. Bake 375 degrees for 90 minutes, until bubbly. Serve with guacamole and sour cream.

Avacado Guacamole

1 ripe avacado
1 tsp lemon juice
1/4 tsp garlic powder
salt to taste

Raw Cheese Spread

1 cup raw cashews or sunflower seeds or almonds
1/2 large red bell pepper
1/4 cup water
2 Tbsp lemon juice
2 Tbsp nutritional yeast
1 Tbsp tahini
1 1/2 tsp sea salt
1 clove garlice
2 tsp onion powder

Blend all ingredients until creamy. Add more water if too thick.

Really liked an anonymous writer submission that I read over the weekend. He practices meditation by saying the 3rd & 7th step prayers from the Twelve Step program. He then repeats simple phrases like “Thy Will Be Done” and “God is Love” and “Truth”. It helps to be still for twenty minutes a couple of times per day and some people like to incorporate deep breathing to bring them peace. I have experienced the healing power of deep breathing and meditation and need to start setting aside the time to do it each day.

I learned something new this past Sabbath. There is a healing ministry located in Shelby, North Carolina called Hallelujah Acres. The focus is eating a Biblically based diet for healing many health problems. If you know anyone that wants to lose weight or work on any health condition by way of changing their diet, go to their website here: http://hacres.com/home/home.asp

I watched one of their videos over the Sabbath and learned that our bodies digestive system has to work very hard to digest animal products. Here is the simple principle that illustrates the process. Leave some meat, cheese, dairy or other animal product on the counter in a house that is 98 degrees hot. Walk out of the house and lock the door for 4 days. On the fifth day, walk back into the house. You will be overwhelmed with a rancid odor. That is the exact same way your digestive system has to deal with processing animal products. This is also the reason we need to apply deodorant to our body every day after a bath or shower. The animal products cause our body to have body odor as it is working overtime to process those foods.

Now here is the real interesting thing I learned:

The body eliminates toxins from underneath our arms. This is the main area that the lymph system removes toxins from our body. According to Dictionary.com: “Lymph acts to remove bacteria and certain proteins from the tissues, transport fat from the small intestine, and supply mature lymphocytes to the blood.”

Deodorant (the brand I used to put on my body) has aluminum chlorohydrate. Check out this article about how this salt is a neurotoxin and can cause Alzheimers and cancer. http://planetgreen.discovery.com/fashion-beauty/aluminum-chlorohydrate.html

I am no longer using deodorant as I gave up animal products for good. Our body does not need to work as hard to digest fruits, vegetables, nuts, whole grains, and legumes. If you leave those items on the counter in a similar 98 degree environment for 4 days, they will be wilted (except the nuts) when you come back on the 5th day. There won’t be a rancid odor.

Update 1. May 2009

My friend in Eastern Washington sent me this newsletter about Diabetes and the enormous problem it has become. Dr. McDougall shows how a plant based diet can help diabetics. Read more in his newsletter: Dr. McDougall

Just a short note to round out the week. Spring is slow to come this year and we are all waiting for warmer weather. Everyone is anxious to be outside working in their gardens. Gardening helps keep our mood in good shape. Anything that will help me forget about life problems is good therapy!

It has been a long winter. There has been a steady stream of bad news all over the media. If you listen to the negative events all day long, your mood will get bad. I am only viewing a 30 minute business report each night (Nightly Business Report on PBS) so as to not be subjected to all of the negative talk.

In just a couple of weeks, I will be outside working in the garden every morning after exercises. My mood will improve and the fresh air is great. Staying active with a daily exercise program will get you through winter and you will be in good shape for spring planting. I always am a little sore the first few days of spring but will be fine because of my stretching. If you are not walking or exercising in some way, give it a shot. You have your overall health and wellness at stake by simply walking every day.

Just got in from an excellent prayer meeting at my local church. We covered the Topic of Alcohol. There are many passages in the Bible that say drinking is not good. Study Proverbs and Isaiah and some of the other prophets and you will see how people 3,000 years ago had similar problems that our society has today. In our local area, a young man was drunk today and murdered his wife and young child. Sad but a reality in our world and the liquor industry just keeps on going because of the money in the liquor business.

One thing that I have learned in the past couple of years is our general health and well being is very much impacted by our Spiritual Health. When I have a close relationship with my Higher Power (Jesus), I want to take care of my Temple. That means waking up early each morning to give myself the time to go for a walk and do some strengthening exercises.

As a result, my mood is better which affects my emotional and mental well being. Chances of me being depressed are greatly reduced if I am taking care of my Spiritual, Emotional, Mental, and Physical health. Praise the Lord!

Each meal we eat, we can either strengthen our immune system or not. The food we eat determines whether we boost the immune system. The best diet is getting three daily meals with a nice assortment of beans, fresh fruits, legumes, nuts, vegetables, and whole grains. These foods are whole foods that have not been processed.

1. Defecation
2. Perspiration
3. Urination

Just finished listening to a presentation on PBS by Dr. Daniel Amen and feel it is well worth the time to share with others. He has produced a program only on PBS that is titled “Magnificient Mind at Any Age”. I wrote down twelve prescriptions that he brought out in his program. I will share his website at the end of this list.

1. Love Your Brain – watch what you eat and make sure you get the proper amount of sleep for you. In the early 1900’s, people slept for 9-10 hours per night.
   
2. Protect Your Brain – always use safety devices like bicycle helmets and seat belts
   
3. Stop Poisoning Your Brain – avoid alcohol, caffeine, tobacco, and cleaning agents without proper ventilation
   
4. Protect Your Memory – early detection yearly after age 50 is critical to catch Alzheimers
   
   
5. Sleep is Essential to Brain Health – exercise helps cognitive function. use natural substance like melatonin or kava kava before sleep aids that have side effects
   
6. Learn Brain Healthy Ways to Deal with Pain – alternatives for pain relieve such as fish oil, acupuncture, music therapy, and hypnosis
   
7. Brain Healthy Diet – lean protein, low glycemic, high fiber carbohydrates, beans, vegetables, fruits, nuts, and leafy vegetables
   
8. Physical Exercise – 30 minutes per day boosts blood flow to brain, produces new brain cells.
   
9. Mental Exercise – learn something new like a musical instrument, new language, crossword puzzles, avoid alcohol, tobacco. Studies show that these activities add 14 years to your life.
   
10. Notice What You Love About Your Life not What You Hate – write down five things you are grateful for each day
    
11. Notice What You Love About Other People More Than What You Don’t – be careful what you focus on and you will be happier
    
12. Develop Resilience – Resilience in psychology is the positive capacity of people to cope with stress and catastrophe. It is also used to indicate a characteristic of resistance to future negative events. In this sense “resilience” corresponds to cumulative “protective factors” and is used in opposition to cumulative “risk factors”.

Helped pioneer the use of brain SPECT imaging in psychiatry

Assistant Clinical Professor of Psychiatry and Human Behavior UC,  Irvine ,  School of  Medicine

Trained at  Walter  Reed  Medical  Center in  Washington ,  DC

Distinguished Fellow of the American Psychiatric Association

Award Winning Researcher, Writer and Teacher

Amen Clinics Website

I want to share a delicious recipe with the world. I made this today during a typically busy Monday afternoon in business. Prep time is about 20 minutes. Cooking time is 30 minutes.

• 2 – 12 ounce bricks tofu
• 1 cup water
• 1/4 cup Bragg’s Liquid Aminos
• 2 cups soft bread crumbs
• 1 cup finely diced onions (or 1/2 cup dried onion flakes)
• 1 1/2 cups finely chopped walnuts
• 1 cup quick oats
• 1 tsp. sage
• 1/2 tsp. garlic powder
• 1 tsp. onion powder
• 1 tsp. vege or sea salt
• 1 tsp. basil
• 1 Tbs. McKay’s Chicken Seasoning

1. Place bread crumbs, walnuts, oatmeal, onions and seasonings in a large mixing bowl.

2. Blend tofu with water and Liquid Aminos in blender; add to the bread crumb mixture in the bowl and mix well.

Hint: If your blender has less than a 6 cup capacity, you will have to blend in 2 batches.

3. Place in mounds on a non-stick or oiled cookie sheet. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes or until golden brown on top and bottom.

Hint: The fastest, neatest way to make these is with an ice cream scoop-large, medium, or small-whatever size you like. The mix should be quite moist-too wet to make balls with your hands. The dryness of your breadcrumbs will make a difference with this, but you can add more water if they seem too dry. A dry mix makes a heavier, drier product, whereas a moist mix results in a lighter, more moist and superior product.

4. Serve with Sweet-Sour Sauce

Hint: We like to place the balls or patties in a casserole dish and drizzle with Sweet-Sour Sauce. Then heat in oven just before serving.

Sweet-Sour Sauce

1/4 Bragg’s Liquid Aminos

1/4 cup honey

1 3/4 cups water

1/4 cup cornstarch dissolved in 1/2 cup water

Mix all together in blender. Pour into a pot and stir while bringing to a boil. Serve over Tofu Walnut Balls or a stir-fry-type vegetable dish.

Prep Time for Sauce: 5 min

Cooking Time: 5 min

Makes about 2 1/2 cups.

Just finished reading Dan Buettner’s book The Blue Zones: Lessons for Living Longer from the People Who’ve Lived the Longest! There is much evidence that eating a plant based diet will improve your health and lower risk of disease.

I have learned how to take nuts, oats, spices, vegetables, and whole wheat flour to make excellent meat substitutes. I have a food processor that grinds everything into a mixture that you bake in the oven for an hour. Just add some ketchup to the top of the mixture and it looks just like meatloaf.

The benefits of eating this way is lower cholesterol, lower blood pressure, and fiber from the vegetables helps your digestive system. You also do not need to eat as much because you will be satiated or feel full. This results in reaching your appropriate weight. Keeping healthy from the inside is so important. You can lose weight gradually with this diet and exercise will help speed up the process.

I have a few health products that will help you on your journey. One is a cleansing product that removes toxins, parasites, and any waste build up out of the colon and digestive tract. The other is a Coral Complex 3 which re-mineralizes the body.

Much of my success in maintaining a healthy weight is attributed to an exercise program. I have studied and read a lot about what the benefits are and have incorporated a program into my daily life. Did you know that if you walk for just 30 minutes a day, you will be healthier and help the body in a number of ways.

Studies show that an early morning workout which includes a 30 minute walk will increase your metabolism rate. The rest of the day you can be sitting at a desk and the rate you burn calories will be increased because you walked. Walking also is excellent for the digestive system and your cardiovascular system.

I also do a program that includes basic exercises:

1. 1. Exercise ball
   2. Inversion table for 10 minutes
   3. Push-ups
   4. Sit-ups
   5. Stretching for flexibility
   6. Yoga

The total time I spend to accomplish this every morning is around 90 minutes. I feel great and have been told I also look good as far as having strong and toned muscles. I find the key is to never miss a morning unless it is an emergency. I have plenty of cold weather gear for winter walks and have the gear for walking in the rain as well.