Manic Monday: Fajita

The weekend is over and it's back to reality! Each Monday we will post an easy recipe, either for the crockpot, quick fix or five ingredient or less recipe. Here's to eating healthy, simply!

This week's meal is a bit of a cheat.  It features Frontera's Classic Fajita Skillet Sauce.  Add this sauce to the following recipe developed by Rick Bayless, winner of Top Chef Masters:

Favorite Chicken Fajitas

1 onion, halved, thinly sliced
1 poblano chile and red bell pepper sliced
1 1/2 lbs boneless chicken, sliced into 1/4" strips (or tofu)
1 pouch Frontera Fajita Skillet Sauce

1.  Cook onion and peppers in 1 tablespoon oil in large nonstick skillet until tender.  Remove to a plate.  In three batches, cook chicken (or tofu) until brown, about 5 minutes.
2.  Stir vegetables and sauce into meat; heat through
3.  Serve in warm tortillas with cilantro, salsa and guacamole.
(I also like to serve over a bed of lettuce and salsa for a tasty salad!).

Smell Tactics

I can still remember the moments prior to tests in my middle school math class. The teacher would pass around a bag of mints, claiming they helped improve students scores on tests. I took her words to heart, popping a mint under my tongue with lightening speed, hoping I could maybe score a second mint later. It wasn't until recently that I learned her little trick had science on its side! Natural aromatherapy methods have been proven to not only increase alertness, but also do better on tests!

Aromatherapy has many wonderful uses. It can swiftly make your house smell better to anyone who walks through your front door, eliminate foul odors, and even change your mood! Research shows that Lavender essential oils reduce beta waves in the brain. Lavender oil also corresponds directly with relaxation, lessens depression, and allows for faster and more accurate computation skills! Lemon essential oils result in an increased ability to memorize information! Mint oils, such as peppermint and spearmint, have been shown to energize and increase awareness while aiding with the recall of information! Many more essential oils have been directly correlated to increases in brain functions and work magnificently!

Everytime before a test now, I'm reminded of those middle schools day and my teacher's words of wisdom. With a little "Thank you" in my heart, I appreciate her little trick and have managed to score better than I would have thought possible!

Celebrate Organics!

Join us this Saturday, September 18th, from 11 to 4 for our Harvest Hoedown!

September is organic month, and we're celebrating! Come into the store for taste samples, giveaways and fun! It's sure to be a hootin' good time!

Vegan Wednesday!: New Books

New Vegan books available at Food For Thought!

Ani's Raw Food Kitchen by Ani Phyo delicious recipes made with all raw and vegan ingredients.

Get Healthy, Go Vegan Cookbook by Neil Barnard M.D. 125 easy vegan recipes using easy to find ingredients.

Viva Vegan by Terry Hope Romero 200 Authentic and Fabulous Recipes for Latin Food Lovers.

Quick and Easy Vegan Comfort Food by Alicia Simpson Over 150 recipes for great tasting, down-home recipes.

30 Minute Vegan's Taste of the East by Mark Reinfeld and Jennifer Murray 150 recipes for tasty Asian-inspired dishes from soba noodles to summer rolls.

Vegan Cookies-Inside Your Cookie Jar by Isa Chandra Moskowitz & Terry Hope Romero 100 delicious dairy free treat recipes.

100 Best Vegan Baking Recipes by Kris Holechek 100 amazing vegan cookies, cakes, muffins, pies, brownies, and assorted treats.

New to Housewares: The Best Water Bottle Yet!

New to our housewares department: TAKEYA GLASS WATER BOTTLES! Takeya's version of this eco-friendly bottle is sure to make it your go-to water bottle after your first use! At 16 oz, it is an easy size to take along with you. Continuing the tradition of their line, the bottles feature an airtight, leak-proof twist cap. A smart addition is the silicone jacket that not only personalizes your bottle, but also protects your bottle (especially if you have clutzy tendencies, like me), helps keep your drink cold, and protects you from getting chilled! In addition, both the bottle and the jacket are dishwasher safe, making your clean up as effortless as possible!

If being an eco-friendly leader isn't enough of a reason to invest in one of these bottles, there are other reasons to consider switching out your favorite gym companion.

- There is no plastic or metallic taste to the water (or whatever else you put in bottles to take along with you) if you are using a glass bottle.

- It's BPA free (but be careful with the lids!), so you are poisoning yourself.

- Plastics break down over time and with temperature changes, making your water a potential carrier of harmful toxins and micro-organisms. Glass does not alter in this way.

- If you're like me and you have to have a cold drink with you on all of your daily adventures, liquids stored in glass will cool down more quickly in the refrigerator and will stay cooler for a longer amount of time.

-Glass bottles, if they get damaged or you decide to trade your's in, are very easily recycled. Plastic bottles are non-biodegradable and create a lot of waste.

Stop in and check out the new bottles today!

Supplement Shorts: Pau d'Arco

Ancient Incan Secret:

Pau d'arco turbocharges immunity! This Brazilian herb, packed with antioxidants, flavonoids and coenzyme Q10, boosts white blood cell count, effectively fighting off colds, flu and even cancer! What's more, "it fortifies mucous membranes throughout the body, blocking germs from entering your system in the first place."   In fact , it's such a powerful immune booster that researchers are currently studying its potential to combat HIV!

We carry the tea or you can try the capsules in 1,000 mg. per day.

Manic Monday Meal: Weeknight Chili

The weekend is over and it's back to reality! Each Monday we will post an easy recipe, either for the crockpot, quick fix or five ingredient or less recipe. Here's to eating healthy, simply!

Check out this recipe from StoneHouse 27!  They have low sodium, gluten-free cooking sauces that are tasty as part of a quick stir-fry meal.  Discover other uses for the sauces here, including this week's recipe:

Tomato and Chilies Sauce

This recipe is a hearty winter warmer as the Stonehouse 27 Tomato & Chilies sauce contains warming spices such as cinnamon and cloves. The recipe uses lean ground turkey with makes this meal super healthy!

Ingredients:

1 jar Stonehouse 27 Tomato & Chilies Cooking Sauce

1 lb lean ground turkey

1 can dark red kidney beans, drained

1 8oz pack fresh mushrooms, quartered

Preparation:
Over medium heat, add ground beef and contents of Stonehouse 27 cooking sauce. Stir to mix and then add fresh mushrooms and kidney beans. Cover and reduce heat to low. Cook for 25 minutes and add salt to taste.

Serving suggestion: For a family friendly meal, serve over cooked whole grain pasta and garnish with shredded cheddar cheese.