This blog will help you towards healthier lifestyle choices!

I owned a State Approved K-6 for over 20 years and when it closed, I was devastated. However, I decided to make lemonade out of lemons and so I thought: I went to school for 40 years (one class at a time) and I have a PhD, I'll just look for a better job.



And, I did.....look that is, the "finding" part eluded me. I was 60 years old, never got sick and could outwork almost anyone half my age but, as I was looking for a job, it was NOT looking for me!



In the first two years after my school's closure, I applied for over 450 jobs (everything from Starbucks, to Admin Assistant to jewelry sales) and had no luck.



Finally a friend asked why I was counting the jobs and I realized I was focusing on what was NOT happening instead of what might happen so I quit counting, but not applying.



In order to survive, I sold my house and lived off the proceeds while I continued applying. I lived extremely frugally because I knew that the money would not last forever.



Over the years, I have continued to live frugally and apply for jobs. However, there truly is ageism in America today and I have been unsuccessful in getting a "real" job.



What I have been successful at is cobbling together a life by working at my many part time jobs! Currently, I have 2 jobs each day (subbing in the Auburn School District and tutoring at Sylvan Learning Centers). And I do other jobs occasionally such as Real Estate Broker, Author, and Editor.



Because I am a Health Coach, my passion is helping people be healthier.
Over the years, I've learned much about how to be healthy even if I wasn't wealthy so I decided to share my expertise with you! I will bring you tips, recipes, and many ideas on how to choose a healthy lifestyle, even if you are eating out of the local Food Bank and/or don't have much money to pay for gym memberships!

Monday, March 21, 2016

Vegan Pineapple Raisin Brown Rice Breakfast

1 C cooked organic brown rice 1 small can pineapple chunks 1/2 C raisins 1 heaping T cinnamon Cook rice in rice cooker or in a pan (2 cups water to 1 C rice if it's in a pan). Just before serving, add pineapple, raisins, and cinnamon. This is a nice change from oatmeal.

Vegan Chili

Today, there was lighning, thunder, rain and hail. I just HAD to cook some chili! 2 C cooked small red beans, adzuki beans or black beans (choose your favorite) 2 cans fire roasted diced tomatoes 2 bell peppers, diced 1 onion, diced 3 heaping Tbs chili powder Put all ingredients into large
crock pot and turn on high for 3 hours or low for 6 hours. Choose less chili powder or more, according to taste.

Vegan Mexi Rice

My friend, Magaly, brought a similar dish to one of our meetings and I just loved it. I made a few tweaks so that it was vegan and here it is! 2 Cups cooked rice (I like white basmati for this dish,it smells wonderful as it cooks and tastes good too) 2 T McKay's Non-Chicken broth powder (I heap the tablespoons) 1 can diced green chilies with juice 4 ribs celery 1 T jalapenos (if you want it spicy) Put all the ingredients into a crock pot and cook on low for about 3 hours. I use a rice cooker and I cook everything together as I'm cooking the rice.

Thursday, March 3, 2016

Vegan Fresh Ground Whole Wheat Cranberry Nut Bread (goes great with Pumpkin Tofu Pudding)

This is just one of the many bread recipes I developed when I owned ECE Academy. We had about 80 children and served about 9 loaves of fresh ground whole wheat bread every day, made in my 3 Zojirushi bread machines. This is a 2 pound machine so be sure to adjust if you have a smaller machine. One of the reasons I loved my Zo's so much was the little pin that made the bread dough flip. I never had a mistake or bread that rose too quickly or too slowly. And, all of these recipes are kid tested. Oh, by the way, we did not serve butter with our bread, just the tasty bread! Of course, if you or your family have gluten issues you can substitute a non gluten flour. Just experiment to see what works! 2 tsp SAF yeast 3 Cups fresh ground whole wheat flour (2 cups of kernels = 3 cups flour) 1 1/2 Tbs Tofu white drink mix 3 Tbs wheat gluten 2 Tbs extra virgin Olive oil 2 Tbs honey or agave syrup 1 Cup plus 5 Tbs water 1 Cup cranberries 1/2 cup chopped nuts (walnuts, pecans, almonds) Place the yeast into the Zozirushi bread pan. Grind the wheat kernels into flour and put 3 Cups of it into the bread pan. Add the sea salt, Tofu White Drink Mix, and gluten. Measure oil first, then then honey or agave into the bread pan. Add 1 cup plus 5 Tbs filtered or distilled water into the break maker. Put bread maker onto the "raisin" bread cycle, add cranberries and nuts when it beeps. Watch and listen to be sure there is enough water in the bread pan. Add more as needed. Bread dough should look smooth and soft. Dough should not clunk around in the bread pan or have hard ridges on it. Note: This is one of my favorite breads during the holidays. I paired it with the Tofu Pumpkin Pudding recipe that is on this site. Yummy!

Vegan Fresh Ground Whole Wheat Apricot Bread

This is just one of the many bread recipes I developed when I owned ECE Academy. We had about 80 children and served about 9 loaves of fresh ground whole wheat bread every day, made in my 3 Zojirushi bread machines. This is a 2 pound machine so be sure to adjust if you have a smaller machine. One of the reasons I loved my Zo's so much was the little pin that made the bread dough flip. I never had a mistake or bread that rose too quickly or too slowly. And, all of these recipes are kid tested. Oh, by the way, we did not serve butter with our bread, just the tasty bread! Of course, if you or your family have gluten issues you can substitute a non gluten flour. Just experiment to see what works! 2 tsp SAF yeast 2 Cups whole wheat kernels (makes approx 3 cups flour) 1 tsp sea salt 1 Tbs Tofu White Drink Mix 3 Tbs wheat gluten 2 Tbs extra virgin olive oil 1 Tbs honey or agave 1 Tbs apricot extract 1 cup plus 5 Tbs filtered water 1 Cup dried apricots, diced very small Place yeast into the Zozirushi bread pan. Grind the wheat kernels into flour and place 3 cups of the flour into the bread pan. Add the sea salt, tofu white drink mix, and gluten. Measure oil first, then honey and apricot extract into the bread pan. Add 1 cup plus 5 Tbs filtered or distilled water and put into bread maker. Put bread maker on the "raisin" cycle and add dried apricots when it beeps. Watch and listen to be sure there is enough water in the bread pan. Add more as needed. Bread dough should look smooth and soft. Dough should not clunk around in the bread pan or have hard ridges on it. Because the apricots are dried, they will take up moisture so more water than usual may be needed. Note: in addition to being just plain good to eat, apricots provide Vitamin Ad, potassium, Iron and Beta Carotene.

Vegan Fresh Ground Whole Wheat Apple Cinnamon Bread

This is just one of the many bread recipes I developed when I owned ECE Academy. We had about 80 children and served about 9 loaves of fresh ground whole wheat bread every day, made in my 3 Zojirushi bread machines. This is a 2 pound machine so be sure to adjust if you have a smaller machine. One of the reasons I loved my Zo's so much was the little pin that made the bread dough flip. I never had a mistake or bread that rose too quickly or too slowly. And, all of these recipes are kid tested. Oh, by the way, we did not serve butter with our bread, just the tasty bread! Of course, if you or your family have gluten issues, you can substitute a non gluten flour. Experiment to see what works! 2 tsp SAF yeast 2 C whole wheat kernels (makes approx 3 cups flour) 1 tsp sea salt 1 Tbs Tofu White Drink Mix 3 Tbs wheat gluten 1 heaping Tbs cinnamon 2 Tbs extra virgin olive oil 1 Tbs honey or agave 1 cup diced apples (small dice) 1 C plue 5 Tbs filtered or distilled water Place the yeast into the Zozirushi bread pan. Grind the wheat kernels into flour an dplace 3 Cups of it into the bread pan. Add the sea salt, Tofu White Drink Mix, cinnamon and gluten. Add diced apples. Measure oil first, then honey or agave into the bread pan (this helps the honey to slide right out). Add 1 Cup plus 5 Tbs filtered or distilled water and put it into the bread maker. Put onto full cycle (on the Zo, it's the white bread cycle). Watch and listen to be sure there is enough water int he bread pan. add more, a tablespoon at a time, as needed. Note: Apples and cinnamon are an early morning smell that makes our school very special! the apples also give us good fiber and lots of vitamins and minerals.

Vegan Fresh Ground Whole Wheat Basil Onion Bread

This is just one of the many bread recipes I developed when I owned ECE Academy. We had about 80 children and served about 9 loaves of fresh ground whole wheat bread every day, made in my 3 Zojirushi bread machines. This is a 2 pound machine so be sure to adjust if you have a smaller machine. One of the reasons I loved my Zo's so much was the little pin that made the bread dough flip. I never had a mistake or bread that rose too quickly or too slowly. And, all of these recipes are kid tested. Oh, by the way, we did not serve butter with our bread, just the tasty bread! This bread recipe is the best smelling as it cooks! Every single person who came in when we were making this bread, wanted to stay until it was finished so they could have some! 2 tsp SAF yeast 2C whole wheat kernels (makes approximately 3 cups flour) 1 tsp sea salt 1 T Tofu White Drink Mix 3 T wheat gluten 1 heaping Tbs basil 1 heaping Tbs Shirley J's all purpose seasoning (onion flavor) 2 TBS extra virgin olive oil 1 Tbs honey or agave Place the yeast into the Zo bread pan. Grind the wheat kernels into flour and place 3 cups flour into the bread pan. Add the sea salt, Tofu White drink Mix, gluten, basil and Shirley J's. Measure oil first and then honey into the bread pan (this helps the honey to slide out easily). Add 1 cup plus 5 Tbs filtered water and put into bread maker. Put onto full cycle (on the Zo, it's the white bread cycle). Watch and listen to be sure there is enough water in the mix. The mix should look soft and not jerk around in the the bread pan.

Vegan Fresh Ground Whole Wheat Almond Poppy Seed Bread

This is just one of the many bread recipes I developed when I owned ECE Academy. We had about 80 children and served about 9 loaves of fresh ground whole wheat bread every day, made in my 3 Zojirushi bread machines. This is a 2 pound machine so be sure to adjust if you have a smaller machine. One of the reasons I loved my Zo's so much was the little pin that made the bread dough flip. I never had a mistake or bread that rose too quickly or too slowly. And, all of these recipes are kid tested. Oh, by the way, we did not serve butter with our bread, just the tasty bread! 2 tsp SAF yeast 2 Cups whole wheat kernels (makes approx 3 cups flour) 1 tsp sea salt 1 T Tofu White Drink Mix 3 T wheat gluten 1 heaping T poppy seeds 2 T extra virgin olive oil 1 T honey or agave syrup 1 T almond extract 1 c pule 5 T filtered water Place the yeast into the Zo bread pan. Grind the wheat kernels into flour and place 3 cups into the bread pan. Add the sea salt, Tofu White Drink Mix,poppy seeds and gluten. Measure oil first, then honey into the bread pan (this helps the honey to slide right out). Add the almond extract. Add 1 cup plus 5 T filtered water and put into bread maker. Put onto the full cycle (on the Zo, it's the white bread cycle). Watch and listen to be sure there is enough water in the bread pan. Add more, a tablespoon at a time, as needed. For those of us who are "almond" people, this bread tickles the senses and makes us very hungry! Note: For those who are gluten intolerant, you can use a non gluten flour. Experiment to see what works for you!