My neice Maddie’s most recent performance from a national competition entry. My family’s business, Caruthers’ Creative Center Dance Studio in Missouri, is one of the few African American owned businesses in the area that has stood the test of time. Congrats Maddie on your double platinum as well as the Competitive & Photogenic Award and 11th overall out of 80 dancers! Tough competition!
This multitalented teen was also nominated for All American in Cheer leading and made varsity squad as well as the competition team as an incoming freshman. In addition, she excels at tumbling. She has won numerous state band awards as well and is currently the only female trombone player. She has recently had a dance gig with Kaufman Center and to top it off, she does all of this while maintaining a 4.0 G.P.A along with winning many academic accolades, including the President’s Academic Award. She is an inspiration to those around her and a great influence on teens internationally. Great job Maddie and keep it going!
Thanks for reading and if you support our youth, SHARE it with someone you love, LIKE👍 and or COMMENT💬 below!!! ⬇⬇⬇ After all, the youth of today are our future.
Quiche is such a versatile and filling dish. It’s packed with nutrition and the star ingredients, eggs, have some bragging rights as well. There was a time that eggs were shunned and thought not to be so healthy for us. The logic was that since they are high in cholesterol (213 mg/large egg), that eggs are big culprits for heart disease. After a 25 year study, it was found that saturated fats in foods were the main culprit for high cholesterol in the blood, thus linked to cardiovascular disease. Dairy products high in fat and fatty meats are examples of foods that can trigger the production of cholesterol in the body. As of 2000, the AHA (American Heart Association) has revised its dietary guidelines so that an egg a day is fine and a cholesterol limit of 300mg/day is currently recommended.
Why are eggs good for us🍳:
Eggs contain Lutein and Zeaxanthin which are powerful disease fighting nutrients and antioxidants. They are a great source of protein (7 grams), 75 calories and 340 grams of carbs. Of the 5 grams of fat, they only contain 1.6 grams of saturated fat. The choline content is good for our brains and the carotenoids that they contain may reduce the risk of age-related macular degeneration. In addition, eggs contain Vitamin A, Folate, Iron, Calcium, Zinc, Vitamins D, B5, B12, B2, Phosphorus and Selenium (and Omega-3 if you use pastured or Omega-3 enriched eggs). Eggs have also been found to increase HDL (good cholesterol).
Keep in mind that we still must not go overboard as with any food. In about 30% of people who have been found to be “hyper-responders”, eggs can cause high LDL (bad cholesterol) and higher total cholesterol levels but in the majority of people, eggs have no impact at all on blood cholesterol.
Quick & Easy Broccoli & Mushroom Quiche Recipe
First the Crust
You can either buy it or make it yourself. This recipe may look overwhelming, but trust me, it’s not that bad. If you are making it yourself, here is a very quick rule to remember. As a rule of thumb, use 3 parts flour, 2 parts butter and 1 part water. More exact amounts are as follows:
8 ounces/1 cup of butter (cold)
2&1/2 cups of self-rising flour
1 teaspoon of sugar
1 teaspoon of butter
6-8 tablespoons of ice cold water
Add dry ingredients into food processor then pulse a few times. Add half of your butter to the food processor and pulse 6-8 times. Add the rest of the butter and pulse again 6-8 times. Sprinkle in about 2 tablespoons of the cold water and pulse again. Continue adding the cold water a tablespoon at a time and pulse after each addition. Do a pinch test of the crust mixture to see if it holds together and when it does, it’s mixed thoroughly enough. Take the mixture out and put it on a flat surface and begin to flatten it with the palm of your hand. Work it into a ball. Don’t over work the dough or it will be tough. You will see the small pieces of butter in your dough and this is good for a flaky crust.
Once you have formed a ball, divide the dough into 2 and lightly flour it. Wrap the pieces in plastic and refrigerate at least an hour. After an hour, take it out and let it sit at room temp for about 10 minutes to let it soften. This will make it easier to roll out. Roll the dough with a rolling pin into the shape of your pan. Roll it onto the pin and quickly transfer it by unrolling it into your pan. Be careful to fit the dough into the corners of the pan. Cut away any edges that hang over the pan.
Use parchment, wax paper or foil and lay on top of the dough then add dry rice or beans filling the pan 2/3 of the way. Bake at 350 degrees F/175 degrees C for 20 minutes. Take out and poke wholes in the bottom of the crust and after cooling a few minutes return it but without the dry rice/beans. Let it bake another 10 minutes. Take it out and let it cool completely.
Filling
Saute any veggies that you want for your quiche. My favorites include broccoli in combination with mushrooms, red bell pepper, red onion, fresh garlic and a very small amount of your choice of cheese (optional). Lightly salt and pepper to taste and add 1/2 teaspoon of cumin and sweet paprika. A dash of cheyenee will spice it up a bit! Saute all veggies over medium heat in a few tablespoons of olive or sunflower oil until onions and red bell peppers are beginning to carmelize, being careful to stir every so often to prevent sticking.
At the same time, you can mix your eggs for the quiche. For my family of 6, I use about 7 eggs, beaten in a medium size bowl, about 1/2 cup of flour added slowly while mixing, about 1/4 cup of milk (almond is great to add more nutrients and keep saturated fats at a low) and a pinch each of salt, pepper, cumin, and garlic powder. I love to add a small amount of thyme as well.
Putting it all together
Take your crust in your pan and place your veggies in it, being careful to drain off any liquid. Now is the time to add low fat cheese or if you use your favorite cheese that is high in fat, use very little (1/2 cup or less). Now add your egg mixture over the veggies and cheese. Bake at 350 F/175 C for about 30 minutes. Oven times and settings will vary so watch closely and check it after about 15 minutes. It should be firm but not hard or runny.
Hope you enjoy and by the way, don’t feel guilty about the butter. Remember, this amount is spread over the entire pan and in my opinion, if you’re gonna make your crust, there’s nothing like real butter! Enjoy your quiche for breakfast, lunch or dinner. Serve at room temp or even cold.
So if you liked the info on eggs or the recipe, comment back and or like. Always love to have the feedback!
There are a lot of myths about using moisturizers that could be causing you issues, stopping you from looking your best, and dealing with your problem skin. Where these myths have come from, nobody knows, but the reality s a lot different to what you might hear from a wide variety of sources. Here are some of the most common myths surrounding moisturizer use that you need to know to make a real difference to your daily skincare routine.
Chag Sameach to all celebrating Shavuot tomorrow, whether you are here in the Land of Israel or in the Diaspora! I pray it be reflective and a very enjoyable feast for you all.
Also, want to take the time to say thanks to all of my subscribers for the support. What a wonderful journey it has been and I plan to continue to work hard to bring content of interest. Please spread the word and ask others to subscribe. Also, don’t forget to like and comment!
Hey guys! Do you ever find yourself racking your brain thinking about the side dish you’re going to serve next to a juicy rib eye steak or grilled chicken breast? Well it happens to me more often than I’d care to admit. But there is an easy, delicious and healthy solution if you love grilled vegetables. For me grilled vegetables are a the best option if barbecuing with friends. It’s easy to make, it is healthy compared to other side dishes like fries, and it is very delicious.
Broccoli is one of the healthiest foods in the world and many people don’t eat it as much, but with just some seasoning it can be really delicious. Broccoli is rich in vitamin K, C, B6, B2 and E, chromium, folate and fiber among other healthy nutrients. Asparagus, similar to broccoli, is rich in vitamins A, E, C, K and B6 as…
There are so many detox methods available that it can be overwhelming to choose the best one and hinders many of us from taking action. First, we must consider if we need to detox. Take a minute to answer the following questions?
Do you feel run-down most of the time?
Do you feel like you are trying to get to a healthy weight but your efforts are getting you nowhere?
Do you have strong cravings for certain foods like sweets or carbs?
Do you have a fuzziness in concentration, suffer headaches, have joint aches and pains, suffer from an auto-immune disease of some sort?
Do you lack motivation to start and complete tasks?
If you answered yes to even a few of these, then maybe the answer to these problems is to reset your body by giving it an immune system boost and free your body of toxic build up. This is where a natural detox can be quite helpful to help you get your groove back! As always, it’s a good idea to talk to your healthcare provider before making such a change to ensure that it won’t be harmful to any current conditions you have or interfere with any medications you are taking.
I have been wanting to choose an appropriate detox that would help me to slowly get rid of toxins and be more gentle on my system. It’s no longer popular to do the Master Cleanse (Maple syrup, cayenne pepper and lemon) as a detox because it deprives your body of needed nutrients and minerals that we would normally receive through eating a balanced diet. If we do a 10 day or more fast, we surely deprive ourselves of other vitamins and nutrients and when we resume eating, what prevents us from returning to our previous state? We must make permanent and healthy changes to help improve our health. Thus, why not find something that we can do to maintain along with develop healthier eating habits that we can actually commit to long-term?
There are some great home detox cleanses that may fit your lifestyle and they are very easy and economical. Some may even be in your backyard. But, before you detox, what are your goals? Mine are to cleanse my liver and to boost my immune system…..get rid of that run-down feeling.
Here are a few detox options:
Dandelion Tea Detox
Although you can harvest this from most backyards, that doesn’t mean that you should. If you do, please ensure that the dandelion has not been exposed or grown in pesticide treated soil or sprayed with pesticides or chemicals. You can easily buy the roasted root or the leaves at any health food store and make sure that it is organic. It is a great liver cleanser which we all could probably use. It has been used for many centuries as a liver detoxificant and also helps to relieve skin conditions.
Ginger Root, Tumeric and Lemon Detox
Here is a great recipe and for more detail, please check the site below. This is one of my favorites and very easy to do. It gives me a huge energy boost and tastes great. I recommend shredding the ginger to help it to infuse stronger. This tea not only helps with your immune system, but also to decrease belly fat and alkalize the body. Check out my previous post as well for more benefits of this great tea:
I have recently been using cilantro in the form of a tea to help detox a family member. To my surprise, I recently found that this may not be the best route. As a matter of fact, it may be harmful depending on the cilantro or parsley source. These two herbs naturally absorb heavy metals. The problem is that in many countries, the land is full of pesticides from various sources and these pesticides contain metals & other harmful materials that get absorbed right into the plants. Unless you can get organically grown herbs, you are risking this problem. If you can grow these herbs yourself, pesticide free, this is another great option or use a pure source of the essential oil. Otherwise, this is not a good option if you are specifically wanting a heavy metal detox. In addition, you should make sure you do not get depleted of magnesium as you detox by this method.
Apple Cider Vinegar
This is a great choice and easy to add to your daily regimen as a chelating agent. Due to it’s acetic acid content, it gets rid of heavy metals quickly. Two tablespoons of apple cider vinegar can be taken in 8 oz of water and 2 tablespoons of raw honey (optional). Make sure to shake the vinegar well before using. The honey will dissolve as you stir and you can drink this every morning or any time during the day. Since it depletes your magnesium, be sure to keep a supplement on hand because magnesium is very important for body, muscle and nerve relaxation and plays a very large role itself in detoxification (magnesiums role in detox).
Green Tea
Green tea itself is not a detoxifying agent directly. It contains two things to help your body to better carry out the natural detox process and therefore, indirectly, helps as a detox agent. There are two things that green tea provides: polyphenols, which have a direct impact on your liver and anti-oxidants that go after free radicals. Since the liver is a major detoxifying organ, this makes green tea a great way to purge your system of toxins. Free radicals damage healthy cells, so this is why anti-oxidants provided in green tea are so crucial.
Strawberry Detox Smoothie
This is one that I would love to try, however, since strawberries are not in season all year round, this one would not be as easy for me to maintain. I have considered buying a bulk of them then prepping and freezing them for future use. In general, we should use fruits when they are in season to get the most nutrients out of them.
Lemons are great for the immune system and packed with vitamin C. Strawberries also provide vitamin C which helps to burn fat. Spinach provides nutrients and help to regulate your digestive system. Nevertheless, sounds delicious and if you crave sweets or carbs, this one may be for you!
1/2 cup pure coconut water.
1& 1/6 cup local, organic strawberries.
1/4 medium-large local, organic lemon.
1 handful of organic spinach. Kale is a great option as well.
2-3 teaspoons (maple syrup, raw honey, coconut sugar or a few dates)
2 scoops ice.
Blend well. Makes enough for 2 servings.
In summary, I hope one of these options works for you, and best of all, I hope if nothing else, you see that detoxing can be tasty and it does not have to involve starving yourself. If you make it a part of your every day diet and incorporate a healthy diet with moderate exercise, over time the weight will come off and you will have better health without depriving yourself of taste and nutrition.
Please vote on your favorite detox method below and comment/re-post/share!
Image source
tapin2life.com 