I'm Playing the Field. . . of Dates

     I was going to wait until tonight to right up this post but I'm to excited, so I've got to share. About a week ago I ordered a 15 lb. pkg. of Organic Khadrawy, Halawy Honey, and Deglet Noor dates from the Bautista Family Organic Date Ranch in California. Today, the package arrived. The box was slightly damaged, but fortunately it may have affected how some of the dates looked, but it definitely didn't have any affect on how they tasted. OMG they are out of this world! Where have these dates been all my life? The only dates I've ever had before this were Deglet Noor and Medjool dates from Israel; man have I been missing out. I'm never buying any other dates from anyone but the Bautista Family from this day forward.

Deglet Noor

 Khadrawy

 Halawy

Honey

My mid-morning snack for today. Best ever!

This was on the package of dates. 

I love knowing that my dates are fresh, organic, and NOT irradiated.

     You too can treat yourself to some of these luscious dates at www.7hotdates.com! =D

Of Recipes and Poetry

     Just felt like sharing another recipe with all of you. Try this on banana, apple, or celery. It really is delicious!




     This is a sample piece from the poetry book I am writing. I hope to get it published by the end of this year.

Hope

BY: Amanda Berg

 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

As the shadows begin to fade at the coming of the dawn,

I watch as the mist of morning rolls along,

Introduced into existence of the bluebirds song.

Life can be beautiful when it wants to.

Like the beauty of the ground of jade covered in glittering dew.

Hold onto everything that is good,

Shower yourself and others with laughter,

To forbid the moment of a doomsday mood.

Sometimes life presents us with sorrow

I just cling to the hope that it will be better tomorrow.

Wherever the path I’m taking goes

I know in my heart and mind

God is the one who I can trust to follow.

With him I know all will be well at the end.

Long Hard Day, but Fresh Persimmons Made it All Ok

     Hello everybody! Like the title says, it has been a looooong day! I had to get up at about 5:30 this morning to drive into Atlanta to retake my SATs. I figured that since I was taking a gap year to study nutrition, it wouldn't hurt to try and up my score a hundred points or so. All went smoothly and I'm feeling pretty good about the test!
     
     So this morning before the drive up to Atlanta, my mother and I started out our day with a lovely smoothie (which do to my tight time schedule I was unable to photograph.) It consisted of 2 cups pomegranate juice (juiced the night before), 3 bananas, two cups frozen wild blueberries, and a heaping tsp. of raw honey. Mom and I wanted to give our minds and bodies powerful fuel (I was going to need it!).
    
      The test seemed to last FOREVER, but I managed to get through it by refueling with a snack of organic dried mulberries (yummy!). These delicious berries are high in fiber, protein, iron, and calcium so eat up! Eventually the test was over and I was out of there, at 1:20 PM. : p
     
     Afterwards I went with my mom to Rainbow Natural Groceries (where I got myself a nummy salda) and The Farmer's Market to restock on food. When we got home I got to croon over my beautiful booty of grapes, apple, pineapple, tangerines, dried apricots, coconut water, celery, cauliflower, kale, tomatoes, banana, frozen berries, 3 bottles of kombacha (they were on sale!) and an entire BOX of of Hachiya Persimmons!! 

ALL MINE!! :D:D:D

     Spent the rest of the day doing house work until it was time for dinner. First I made my brother a nutrient and enzyme packed smoothie to have before he made his stir-fry because he's been saying he feel like he's been coming down with something. When my mom found out she asked me to make enough for her as well as she wanted to make sure her immune system was in top form. Here's what I came up with:

       The Immune Allies Smoothie

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

1 C. chopped pineapple

2 tangerines, peeled & deseeded

1 C. fresh or frozen bananas

9 frozen strawberries (or handful of fresh)

1/2 Tbs. Raw Honey

1/4 C. Water

Blend until smooth.

                                                

  Later, for myself, I made a nice big, thick, and creamy delight!

Dreaming of Paradise Smoothie

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

1 mango

1 1/2 C. chopped pineapple

1 1/2 ripe bananas

1/2 Tbs. raw honey

1/2 C. fresh thai coconut water

Blend until smooth.

  

     At the moment I am snacking on some globe grapes while surfing the internet. I am just so relieved that this day is finally done. I can stop worrying about the SAT and focus on my CSNN studies again. I hope everyone has a beautiful day, and that your life will be much blessed. 

Monday: Mameys, Mangos, and the Mall

Labor Day, Monday, was another lovely sunny day! I had my first Mamey Sapote that morning. The taste and texture really surprised me, as I had no idea what to expect of it. To me, a Mamey has the same taste and texture as a baked sweet potato with maple syrup. Yummy! I also had a fruit smoothie that I made for my entire family, and they all adored it (even my usuall raw avoiding brother).  

                       

Frozen

banana,

fresh strawberries

& blueberries,

raw honey,

& vanilla. My mom said,

"It's like having dessert for breakfast."

 

 

While enjoying our breakfast smoothies my family and I decided to watch the movie U.S. Marshalls. It turned out to be quite the thriller. I was on the edge of my seat almost the entire time and the movie even managed to throw in a twist I did not see coming. I definitely recommend this movie. I would watch the movie The Fugitive first since U.S. Marshalls is the companion/sequel to The Fugitive. You could still watch it without watching The Fugitive, but I think you would appreciate it more.

By the end of the movie my Mom and I were getting a bit restless so we left my brother at the house while we went to the Mall. First we walked around outside for a bit before walking the mall (stairs and all) for about 45 minutes before stopping at Borders to browse. I ended up purchasing an autobiography of a man who has Asperger's syndrome (a form of Autism). So far it's turning out to be a good read. I might write a review on it for my this blog when I finish it.

After arriving home I took my car out to stop off at Ingles to grab some more bananas and pick up my crate of organic mangos (which are ripening on top of the refrigerator as I as writing this). Seriously my family is in love with bananas. My family goes through 7 to 8 bunches a week. I put them in my smoothies, eat them as a snack or mono meal. My mom and brother has them in his Raw Cacao Hemp smoothies. My toy poodle, Penny, has a potassium deficiency so she always wants to eat bananas, so I feed her 1 to 2 of them everyday!

I hope everyone has had a lovely holiday!