I’m so glad I was introduced to Earth Boxes. My back yard is not the best for growing acres of veggies (too small and not enough sunlight in the right places), so these innovative boxes, that I can wheel in and out of the sun are just the ticket. Check out my 1st of hopefully many “vlogs”

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My daughter and all her friends love frozen yogurt and it seems there’s a new store opening on every street in our neighborhood. I’ve always been a bit suspect as the the exact ingredients in these ostensibly “healthy” paper bowls, so I was very interested in this great NY Times article, which tells all. It turns out that there’s a slew of ingredients that really aren’t healthy at all, and at almost 5 bucks a bowl (with toppings), I’ve gone right off the soft serve stuff. Read the rest of this entry »

My dad always used to be very sniffy when it came to Organic food, “they just throw a bit of dirt on it and jack up the price,” he’d mutter as he tucked into a large pork pie. My dad also says (albeit with a smidge of humor,) that vegetables are horribly overrated and for the most part, extremely unpleasant to eat. Moreover, he’s a chocoholic and in remarkably good health at the tender age of 85! As you may guess, I’m a huge advocate of Organic food Read the rest of this entry »

It’s not rocket science to understand that pesticides are harmful and have always been harmful to human beings, especially children and pregant women -  so the recent research linking organo-phosphate pesticides to Attention Deficit/Hyperactive Disorder comes as no surprise. The new study in the journal Pediatrics associates exposure to pesticides with cases of ADHD in the U.S. and Canada. In the U.S. alone, an estimated 4.5 million children ages 5 to 17 have been diagnosed Read the rest of this entry »

Wow – this Chantal Classic Teapot will make the perfect Mother’s Day gift (I hoping to recieve one!!). It comes with multiple lids, so that you can coordinate with your favorite tea of the day (green, black or even red tea). Don’t forget to order loose tea too. Remember loose tea, as opposed to tea bags, is far superior in taste and quality. I love “Three Treasures” Oolong  from Strand Tea.

How scary that it’s now been found that a neurotoxin called Hexane is often found in non-organic veggie burgers! An investigation by the Cornucopia Institute has found that most major brands of veggie burgers contain trace amounts of hexane, which is listed as a “hazardous air pollutant” by the EPA. Hexane is shown to cause nervous system failure and skin disorders in humans. Read the rest of this entry »

My daughter’s best friend has severe allergies to dairy, soy and gluten, but thanks to great companies like Enjoy Life, she really can enjoy the kinds of snacks that regular kids eat. Her favorites are the Enjoy Life Double Chocolate Brownie soft-baked cookies and I can see why – I bought a box the other day as she was coming for a play date after school, and my husband and finished up the box after dinner that night – my husband dipping them into a tall glass of milk! So whether you are celiac, gluten, soy/dairy-sensitive, these cookies should be a treat that you can enjoy.

When you next go shopping for meat, make sure that you know your labels, as its easy to be misled, especially if you care about animal welfare. “Raised without added Hormones” in PORK or POULTRY. This is a bit of a silly one because Federal law prohibits the use of hormones for hogs and poultry anyway, so the use of hormone-free labels on pork and poultry products intentionally misleads consumers by claiming that the product is different and therefore worthy of a higher price. Read the rest of this entry »

The 360 Cookware line is good for your health, your pocketbook and the planet. I love it because you can employ a “waterless” cooking technique whereby you literally use 1 tbsp of water to cook virtually any veggie you want. This not only saves on water, but does away with oil, butter and any fats that you might ordinarily cook meat or fish with too. The one quart saucepan will become your kitchen BFF. Throw anything from corn, zucchini to chicken breasts in with just 1 or 2 tbsp of water and because of the vapor-lock lid, you’ll end up with a juicy, succulent dish is just minutes. To cap it all, 360 Cookware is made in the U.S. by the most eco-friendly cookware company ever!

FYI: They have a sale on their 1-quart sacuepan now.

I typically make my own salad dressings, however, it’s just wonderful to have someone else’s once in a while (we always get tired of our own dressings), but I dislike dressings that contain sugar or thickeners – so I was thrilled to bump into Melissa in my local nail salon. She is founder and owner of Sismeliss and has created a line of incredibly delicious dressings. They are all made with the finest ingredients and are sugar-free. I left the salon with two bottles stuffed into my purse, and a couple of weeks later, the bottles are almost empty. Even my daughter (not a big salad eater), asked for a bowl of lettuce, carrot and cucumber salad with that “yummy” dressing on it!

They are also diabetic-friendly.