Spaghetti Squash Lasagna

This is a great gluten free alternative since there is no pasta in this recipe. I also do not use eggs, but you could add an egg to the ricotta cheese if you wanted. You could add ground beef to the spaghetti sauce if you preferred. 

1-2 spaghetti squashes, cooked, pulp scooped out
2 cups of spaghetti sauce, preferably homemade
1 cup homemade Ricotta cheese (see my recipe on this blog)
Parmesan cheese, optional
Mozzarella cheese, optional

In a small glass pan, layer the cooked squash and alternate with the spaghetti sauce and ricotta cheese. Top with more ricotta, Parmesan and mozzarella cheese (if desired) and bake at 350 degrees for about 10 minutes or until cheese is melted. Take care not to burn it or cook too long to dry it out.

This is really delicious and so nutritious!

Lamb & Lentil Soup with Baby Greens

The flavor of lamb with lentils is a delicious combination. If you like lamb, you will love this. This is a highly nutritious and wonderfully delicious soup on a cold and rainy day.

1/2 - 1 pound of Lamb sirloin and Lamb rib bones
3 onions, chopped
Celery, all the stalks chopped
Salt, pepper to taste
2 tablespoons Savory seasoning, all purpose - I used Kirkland
1 tablespoon Herbes de Provence seasoning
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce (optional)
1 tablespoon A-1 sauce (optional)
2 8 oz. cans of chopped tomatoes, or use 2 cups of ready made salsa, mild flavor
1 8 oz. can tomato sauce, or use 1 cup of ready made spagetti sauce
1/2 pound fresh baby greens (mix of spinach, kale, other green assortment, or use fresh spinach only).


In a large heavy bottomed stock pot, sear Lamb sirloin and Lamb rib bones in hot pan with a bit of coconut oil (or olive oil). Add 3 onions, cut up, and whole stalk of celery cut up to seared lamb and saute. Stir until they begin to be a bit translucent.
Add salt, pepper to taste; add tablespoon of a mixture all purpose savory seasoning plus tablespoon of Herbes de Provence seasoning. Stir for a few minutes to infuse the spices.

Add fresh cold water to fill the stock pot plus 1 tablespoon of Worcestershire sauce and A-1 Sauce and cook the broth for about 4 hours.

Add 1 pound of uncooked lentils; simmer the lentils until tender but not mushy. Add 2 cans of chopped tomatoes and 1 can of tomato sauce. Simmer the broth with the tomatoes and sauce about 15 minutes; the lentil soup will begin to thicken some. Stir occasionally so it does not burn. Taste and adjust seasonings.

Add 1/2 pound of baby Greens and simmer on very low for about 3 minutes. Ladle into soup bowls and serve with crunchy sourdough bread and butter.

Ricotta Cheese

I have fallen in love with homemade Ricotta Cheese from the first time I made it. I'm only sorry I did not discover this many years ago when my children where younger. I love to have a plate of melons with a dollop of ricotta cheese. So refreshing and nutritious for a light meal.

1 gallon of organic milk (not ultra-pasteurized)
1 pint heavy cream (not ultra-pasteurized)
1 quart of buttermilk
1 tablespoon salt

Place the milk, cream, buttermilk and salt in a heavy-bottomed pan over medium-high heat, stirring slowly occasionally. Bring the milk to about 180-190 degrees. (You will see that the curds have begun to form.) Take the milk off the heat and add 1/2 cup organic apple cider vinegar (I use Bragg's) and use a very gentle back-and-forth motion to stir it in. Let it sit undisturbed for about 1/2 an hour.

Place a fine-mesh cheesecloth over a colander and carefully scoop out the curds into the colander.

Let the whey drain out.

Put the ricotta in a container and refrigerate. You can use this for any recipe that calls for ricotta or cottage cheese.

Mom's Giant Triple Chocolate Cookies

This recipe is dedicated to my daughter in Israel who loves my cooking. She asked for this recipe so she can make them for her family.  

These amazing giant triple-chocolate cookies are made with rich cocoa, bittersweet chocolate chips, and drizzled with white chocolate on top. They are truly luscious...!!

1 1/4 cups butter or margarine, softened
2 cups sugar
2 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup cocoa, sifted
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 cups bittersweet chocolate chips or broken bits of bittersweet chocolate
1 cup broken walnuts (optional)
1 bar of white chocolate

Heat oven to 350 degrees (F). In large mixing bowl, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs and vanilla; beat well. Combine flour, cocoa, baking soda, and salt; gradually blend into creamed mixture. Stir in chocolate chips and walnuts (if desired). Get large tablespoon full of cookie dough and drop onto ungreased cookie sheet, spacing them apart as they will spread. Bake 8-9 minutes. (Do not overbake; cookies will be soft. They will puff while baking and flatten while cooking.) Cool slightly; remove from cookie sheet onto wire rack. Cool completely.

When cookies are cooled, carefully heat white chocolate over double boiler or microwave it for a few seconds at a time until it is melted. Drizzle melted chocolate onto the top of the cooled chocolate cookie and let it set to harden.

Makes about 4 dozen small cookies, 2 dozen large.

A Walking Miracle!

Today I walked 3.19 miles in 64 minutes. That isn't Olympic times, but I'm pretty pleased with my progress.

You see, I am the most unlikely person to be healthy - or to exercise! In fact, I am a walking miracle!

From the age of 7 I had chronic anemia and suffered with migraine headaches. I have had multiple bone/knee surgeries, chronic ankle sprains, severe hip joint pain, sciatic and debilitating back issues, gall bladder surgery...I could go on.  I have spent years in rehabilitation relearning how to walk. I am quite adept with every walking aid available: crutches, walkers, wheelchairs, canes, and my rehab required that I use a passive movement machine for nearly a year. I had a legal disability from the age of seven.

But, my disability never kept me from doing what I wanted to do! I am sometimes amazed that I have traveled around the world and done the things I have done - even with my health issues.

I always worked hard to come back from each surgery...

To be able to get from disabled to well - walking independently - took personal determination and faith that God was healing me. 

The past 20 years, I have had stroke-level high blood pressure, hypo-thyroidism, and severe acid reflux - all of which required daily medications (4 to be exact), as well as digestive issues. My
inability to process and digest foods properly was creating a health crisis.

Healthy Turnaround

I knew I had to do something drastic, so, I started with a 21-day juice fast.  After doing some research I came off the fast and completely changed my diet. I started eating more lacto-fermented foods, more organic fruits and vegetables, more juices, organic beef and liver, organic dairy, bone broths...all in very, very small portions. I eat about 5 small meals a day and stop eating or drinking juices after 6:00 pm. I added walking to my daily routine - generally 6-7 days a week.

What happened next completely surprised me! My high blood pressure dropped to normal!! I had no more acid reflux problems! So I was able to go off of 3 of my 4 medications! I discovered on the days I did not walk however, up went my blood pressure! So, I decided that walking was much more preferable to taking 2 pills a day.

I presently am on a personal campaign to make sure that I stay healthy - inside and out - and walking is one of the most important elements to add to a nutritious diet. I have to push through pains of exercise that I feel here and there (who doesn't?), but the end result is satisfaction that I have done something terrific for my overall health. I like to feel the fat turn to muscle too I have to say! It's true what they say...a leaner body is a healthier body. I feel healthier.

With every step I take around my neighborhood, I thank God that I can walk! There were years when I wondered if I would ever walk again. I want to keep my ability by walking daily and not create a disability with inactivity. you know the old saying:

 "Use it or lose it." 

It is not easy for me though, but I am encouraged every single day by how I feel overall and I do not focus on the aches and pains here and there. There are some days when the pain in my back or legs is terrible...but I walk anyway...just not a power walk.

An Action Plan

I've discovered that you really have decide what exercise works for you and then put together an action plan. It is fun to be inspired by other people's stories online through social networks or YouTube. I often will be inspired by a video I see and I say "I can do that!"

Walking App

Another thing is to get a good walking app for your smartphone. I just did this recently and discovered that it made a huge difference. I could see what I was doing: how far I had walked, how long I had been walking, how many calories I was burning, etc. All of this was a motivator to actually press through when I felt a little weary saying to myself, "make it to the next block!" So that has been a great little motivator in my hand. I also listen to my music while I am walking and so I have inspiration. Sometimes I will take my MP3 language lessons along (I am learning Egyptian Arabic).

You Can Do This!!

I share this with you because I had a list of excuses as to why I could not exercise. Mostly it was because of pain!!! I say, start slow!! Years ago I purchased a DVD so I could walk a mile right in my living room. If you cannot walk outside, I suggest you do that.

Also there are some great free videos online for doing upper body and lower body toning without having to walk. And, there is swimming. Seriously...there is no excuse!!

I hope you are inspired by my story. I pray that God will help you today doing something that will be the first step in the right direction for your health!

Top Nutrient-Dense Foods

I have come to appreciate the value of nutrient-dense foods. I have realized that much of the food we eat has little nutrient value and is more appealing to our palate and cravings. Because these foods do not feed what our body is craving, we wind up being hungry much of the day and going after all the wrong foods. In the past few months, I've been really focused on the foods that pack a punch in my lunch so that I need less in quantity and continue my weight loss.

So, I have certain homemade nutrient-dense foods that I make sure I eat each day.

• Mestemacher Three-Grain German sourdough bread (store bought)- about 2-3 half slices
• Homemade liver pate (chicken livers, beef liver) - 1-2 tablespoons
• Yogurt - 1/2 cup
• Yogurt cheese (lebane) - 1/4 cup
• Ricotta cheese - 2-3 tablespoons (on toast, or with fruit)
• Fruit in season - cherries, melons, apples, berries
• Greens (Kale, spinach, collards) steamed - about 1/4- 1/2 cup
• Fish head or beef bone broth - 1 cup
• Lacto-fermented vegetables - 1/2 cup
• Sauerkraut - 3-4 tablespoons

"Super Foods"

Below is a list of some of the highest nutrient dense foods -- sometimes referred to as "super foods." Try to incorporate some of them into your weekly meals.

• Kale
• Collards
• Bok Choy
• Spinach
• Brussel Sprouts
• Arugula
• Cabbage
• Romaine
• Broccoli
• Green pepper
• Artichoke
• carrots
• Asparagus
• Strawberry
• Pomegranate juice
• Tomato
• Blueberries
• Orange
• Cantaloupe 
• Sweet potatoe

The Value of Lemons!

It is said that lemons came to the west from Arab traders in the 12th century. The high vitamin C content made lemons a staple of long sea voyages to protect the sailors from scurvy. The value of lemons added to our daily diet - more than a sliver in a glass of iced tea - boosts our immune system, something we all need in our high-stress culture.


In addition, the peel of the lemon has lots of uses. I came across this graphic by Melissa Breyer at Care2 Healthy Living and thought I'd share it with you!

Add some lemons to your meals today!