The Hemp Connection [Search results for cherries] 

I just love cherries. When I was a little girl, we took a vacation to my mother's homeland, Germany. We visited her Onkel Gustav, who one afternoon took us to a part of his farm where he had some cherry trees, buckling under the pressure of the season's ripeness.

My mother looked at me and my brother and said,"Onkel Gustav says to eat as much as you want!" For a kid from Arizona who usually only got to eat cherries one week every summer when they were cheap, this was Cherry Nirvana.

We ate, and ate, and ate. We hung them over our ears like they were earrings. We threw them at each other. We ate some more. Our lips turned red, our shirts got stained. And we ate even more cherries. Eventually we had to get on a ladder to reach more cherries, because we'd eaten everything at the bottom of the tree.

Eventually, our pace slowed down and our bellies felt as though they were going to bust. So we sat down and relaxed for a little bit until Onkel Gustav said to us,"So, are you all ready for some lunch?"

My parents recently converted old family movies into video, so I can sit down and relive that wonderful memory any time I want. But this time of year, I'd rather relive that memory real-time by splurging on a bag of fresh cherries. Which is what I did this week.

Did you know that cherries contain anthocyanins? That's the chemical that makes blueberries so famous for being brain food. Anthocyanins are an antioxidant that can help to regulate pain and reduce inflammation. (Remember, PCOS is a disease of inflammation.)

Cherries have also been found to be high in melatonin. Melatonin is also a potent anti-oxidant. I like to call it the brain's"scrubbing bubble", because while we're sleeping it is actively scouring out oxidative damage from the day and keeping our brains safe from free radicals.

According to the California Cherry Advisory Board, cherries also have a nice boron content, which may help to strengthen bones. Many of you reading this blog are on psychotropic medications, some of which have been found to work against good bone integrity. For you, cherries are an excellent dietary choice!

If you happen to live in cherry country, now is the time to stock up and freeze some cherries to use throughout the year. You can also find cherry juice in many health food stores, which is great to add to a smoothie or to another juice you might be drinking.

One last note, which I do want to include, knowing how many cherries I can eat before realizing how many cherries I've eaten, is that 20 cherries equals about 80-90 calories. I'm usually an intuitive eater, but when it comes to cherries, I've learned that this is one food I do better with when I count them out ahead of time.

For those of you who need to watch your blood glucose and carbohydrates, you might do better eating cherries at mealtime, when the effect of their sugar content can be tempered with any protein you might be eating.

So…enjoy!

http://www.calcherry.com/
http://www.uga.edu/fruit/cherry.html

I was in Los Angeles over the weekend with a few free hours, so I did what I always do when that happens. I headed over to the Whole Foods Venice to see what was cookin'. That place is always packed with new foods and ideas!

I had the opportunity to try my first raw meal, a verde burrito from the restaurant 118 Degrees.* Very tasty!

And I learned about a new antioxidant from Hawaii, as well as other coffee producing regions…the coffee cherry. (Well, coffee cherries have been around for eons, actually, it's only recently that they have been processed in ways that humans can eat.)

A coffee cherry is the fruit inside of which coffee beans grow. So for a long time, the cherries were picked, the beans were extracted, and the cherries were discarded. When antioxidants became popular, it was discovered that these coffee cherries are pretty packed with antioxidants. The National Insitute of Health has actually ranked the coffee cherry higher in antioxidant content than pomegranate and green tea.

To date, coffee cherry is more of an ingredient in skin products than in food. There it has been shown to have powerful anti-cancer activity. Once food manufacturers figure out a way to process coffee cherries in a way that they can be transported outside of the tropical regions where they grow, you will likely see them used in more foods.

Unfortunately, the product I tasted it in was a soda pop, not the best all-around food choice when you're going for total nutrient density. I look forward to what else creative food manufacturers devise that would be more all-around healthful for someone who is trying to limit sugar intake as well as boost anti-oxidant consumption.

I've always liked to steer people toward red foods--pomegranates, grapes, berries, cherries, etc.--for antioxidant power. Looks like even when you head toward the equator, this rule of thumb holds true!

*My meal was tasty, and I would highly recommend it, but that comment is not meant to be a wholehearted endorsement of raw eating. I will be writing more about raw food soon.

It's my absolute favorite time of year, when cherries are cheap. I wait all summer for July! Even though I usually eat all my cherries before I have a chance to do anything else with them, a few years ago I did find a cherry salsa recipe in a Costco cookbook that earns raves every time I take it to a party.

Cherries are a great anti-inflammatory, and they are also high in melatonin. So they do double duty in helping to balance hormones. Eat them plain…throw them in a smoothie…try this salsa…no matter how you pit 'em, you can't go wrong!

From: Favorite Recipes The Costco Way

Cherry Salsa

Mix together in a bowl:

1 1/4 cups pitted, chopped cherries
1 tsp fresh lime juice
1 tsp fresh lemon juice
2 tsp fresh orange juice
1/2 tsp freshly grated lime peel
1/2 tsp freshly grated orange peel
3 tbsp chopped yellow onion
2 tbsp chopped yellow bell pepper
1 tsp finely diced serrano chile
1/4 tsp ground white pepper
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
1tbsp very finely chopped fresh parsley
1 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
2 tbsp honey
1/4 tsp salt

Enjoy!

Here's a snack with potential benefit other than immediate gratification!

Dark chocolate covered tart cherries. Dark chocolate is a great antioxidant. So are tart cherries.

Of course, if you eat them by the bucketful the cost of the choice can begin to outweigh the benefit.

But in moderation--even a couple thrown into a smoothie--you're doing better than you might imagine.

You can even take the cue from the photo and make your own, which allows you to dip the cherries in more chocolate and less sugar than pre-prepared versions might contain.

Here's a link to an online cherry store where you can buy some, if you can't find them in your local market.

I'm still trying to figure out why my clients have trouble with healthy eating. It's so tasty when you do it well!

Treat yourself!

I recently noticed that Starbucks has an apple bran muffin that it advertises contains DHA in the marine algae form. I checked into it, knowing we've got a lot of readers on the lookout for omega-3 options.

I was able to find the ingredients on the Starbucks website:

whole wheat flour, brown sugar, water, whole eggs, apples, wheat bran, honey, dried cherries (red tart cherries, sugar, sunflower oil), soybean oil, dried cranberries (cranberries, sugar, sunflower oil), raisins, rolled oats, unsalted butter (cream [from milk]), quick oats, molasses, nonfat milk powder, salt, baking powder (sodium acid pyrophosphate, sodium bicarbonate, cornstarch, monocalcium phosphate), calcium carbonate, ground cinnamon, sodium bicarbonate, natural flavor, vanilla extract, ground ginger, ground nutmeg, xanthan gum, dha oil (dha algal oil, high oleic sunflower oil, sunflower lecithin, rosemary extract, ascorbyl palmitate).

However, nowhere on the Internet could I find information about how much DHA this muffin actually contained.

So I wrote Starbucks, asking for the information. Starbucks politely wrote me back and told me they didn't have the information to give me.

Coupled with the facts that the primary oil used in this muffin is soybean oil, inCYST readers should know that there is a strong possibility that the omega-6 to omega-3 ratio of this product is likely higher than what you ideally want. Plus, the dried fruits are sweetened, you're going to be better off with another way to get DHA.

If Starbucks would be willing to switch out the oil and provide the DHA information I'm willing to revisit this topic. But given the fact that no one really seems to know if the omega-3 content is comparable to any other choices, the fact that this product contains omega-3's cannot really be considered to be advantageous.

Here's hoping we're educating all of you well enough that companies learn that just because it's not required by law, information on a label must be complete in order to be a selling point.

Montmorency cherries (and walnuts) have a high melatonin content, and I just discovered they're available in dried form at Trader Joes! I stopped by their demo table this afternoon and they had a great, simple cherry chicken salad.

Such a versatile food…on your oatmeal, in your trail mix, on your salads, or even…your Memorial Day bowl of ice cream.: )

Enjoy!

Cherry Chicken Salad

1/3 cup nonfat yogurt
1/3 cup walnuts
1/3 cup dried tart (Montmorency) cherries
1 can (or 6 oz cooked) chicken
1/3 tsp garlic powder

Recently the Environmental Working Group's annual"Dirty Dozen" list came out. It is this group's awareness tool for the health risks of pesticides. What is important to remember, in addition to the important message that pesticides in our foods can pose health risks, is that this does not mean that you have to avoid these foods altogether. Here are some ways to keep your favorite fruits and vegetables on your list.

1. Avoid top ten lists of"best foods". Any time you narrow your list of foods you eat to a dozen or so, you automatically concentrate their risks, as well as their benefits. I noticed that on this list of foods (listed below), several foods showed up that are common on diet diaries of clients who are trying to eat"healthy". If you eat blueberries because they are brain friendly, vary them with kiwi and watermelon. Every food has a benefit, and you don't want to miss out!

2. Eat organically. Organic produce is grown without the use of pesticides, immediately eliminating their risk.

3. Use a fruit and vegetable wash. I find them in my local grocery store, but if you don't see them, you can also order them online. Here is a list of brands available at amazon.com.

4. Eat locally and in season. When you eat fruits and vegetables that are not in season, they must be imported. And regulations about pesticides differ in different countries. It's nice to eat cherries in January, but you're going to have a better idea of what rules governed their production if you wait until July and get the ones your local farmer grew. (They are likely going to taste better too, since they weren't picked early and trucked thousands of miles before getting to your table.)

5. Become familiar with the"Clean 15". This is the EWG's other list that doesn't get as much press, probably because good news doesn't sell as much viewership and advertising time. It's the list of the cleanest fruits and vegetables, and it includes:
onion
avocado
sweet corn
pinepple
mango
asparagus
sweet peas
kiwi
cabbage
eggplant
papaya
watermelon
broccoli
tomato
sweet potato

OK, here's the list. Again, just because a food appears on this list doesn't mean you shouldn't have it. It just means these choices should be purchased, handled, and consumed with more delicacy, and should not be consumed in excess just because they're"healthy". If you'd like their wallet guide, and their upcoming iPhone application, click here.
Celery
Peacches
Strawberries
Apples
Blueberries
Nectarines
Bell Peppers
Spinach (this sample was found to contain as many as 48 different pesticide residues--wash thoroughly!)
Kale
Cherries
Grapes
Leafy greens
Carrots
Pears

My parents recently returned from a trip to Hawaii. While there they put together and sent me a fun box of native Hawaiian foods that they found. Of course there were the expected, and tasty, macadamia nuts, etc., but something that caught my eye, and which I am enjoying as I write this, is coffee cherry tea. This is simply tea made from the dried fruit that surrounds the coffee bean. It's mild flavored, and according to coffeesofhawaii.com, an 8 oz. brewed serving contains less caffeine than 4 ounces of decaffeinated coffee.

I first encountered coffee cherries at a tasting in the Venice, California Whole Foods last year. It had been packaged as a sugared soda, which I was not thrilled about. However, on returning home, I mentioned it to our network dermatologist's aesthetician and she shared that coffee cherries are extremely high in antioxidants. This was discovered when someone noticed that the hands of coffee pickers looked young, despite being out in the tropical sun performing hard labor. This extract, for that reason, is becoming popular in beauty products. (We saw a few at Expo West.)

In reading up on this tea, I learned that it's actually a very old cultural favorite in countries where coffee is grown. In Bolivia it is known as Sultana, also as"poor man's coffee". In Yemen, it's known by the name Qishr. Cascara is the Spanish word for"husk", which is why it is known by this name as well.

It's not an easy thing to find on the mainland, but if you're on your way to Hawaii…or Bolivia…or maybe even Yemen…be sure to look for this tea and give it a try! Or, like me, if you're firmly planted at more mundane coordinates, be sure to check out this website and order some online. At the very least you can sit on your patio, sip, and let yourself be taken away by a fragrant tropical breeze!

The other day it was brought to my attention that amazon.com had a pretty extensive grocery section on their website.

I liked a lot of the items they were selling and it occurred to me that highlighting some of them from time to time would be a way to provide a virtual grocery store tour for those of you who do not have the ability to attend one of our live classes or counseling options.

I also wanted to create options for the many people reading this blog who live outside of the United States who do not have access to many of the shopping options we have here in our own country.

I did, in the process, become an Amazon associate, but truthfully, I have done an equally good job of providing this new service if you only click through to look at the photo and don't buy. It's about becoming more confident in your food choices, and this seemed like a fun way to promote that.

I do, as a small business, have more of a desire to promote other small businesses, so the emphasis will be on products created by companies who have put as much of themselves into what they do as I have with inCYST.

From time to time I'll post some suggestions for your consideration. There are some great options out there, and I hope you enjoy learning about them!

Bergin Nut Company Almonds Whole Raw, 16-Ounce Bags (Pack of 2)
All nuts are great, and you'll get the best benefit if you vary the types that you eat.

KIND Bar Fruit & Nut Delight, 1.4-Ounce Bars (Pack of 8)
Kind Bars are one kind that are as bare and natural as you'll be able to find.

Amish Country Baby White Popcorn — 2lb.
Be sure to pop this in olive or canola oil.

Traverse Bay Dried Cherries, 4-Pound Box
Tart cherries contain melatonin, which you'll read about a lot on this blog. Great to throw into your oatmeal or trail mix.

Traverse Bay Dried Cranberries, 4-Pound Box
Another high antioxidant option for snacking!

KIND Bar Macadamia & Apricot, 1.4-Ounce Bars (Pack of 8)
Of the kind bars, this is the one with our favorite nut--very high in monounsaturated fats and very high on the"healthy" scale.

Just Tomatoes Just Strawberries, 4-Ounce Tubs (Pack of 2)
I love these snacks! Again, use for trail mix or keep in your desk to eat right out of the container.

Mary's Gone Crackers, Original, 6.5-Ounce Boxes (Pack of 12)
Crackers are the hardest category to find PCOS-friendly options in. Here is one of my favorite brands.

Bare Fruit 100% Organic Bake-Dried Apples, Fuji, 1 Pound Bags (Pack of 2)
If you like dried fruit, take advantage of it!

Seapoint Farms Dry Roasted Edamame, Lightly Salted, 4-Ounce Units (Pack of 12)
Edamame is one of four kinds of soy that is best for PCOS. It's a great, high protein snack or salad topping.

The Mediterranean Diet is healthy, it’s true, but it’s not the only healthy way to eat. It just happens to be one that is heavily researched… and therefore marketed by the commodity boards representing foods that grow well in the Mediterranean. It so happens that California, the world’s eighth largest economy, and Chile, a country with a large agricultural tradition, have climates similar to the Mediterranean. Both economies depend on our love of the Mediterranean diet to thrive, and they therefore are a big part of the reason why so much research money has been invested into this way of eating.
I love the Mediterranean diet myself, but I sure don’t want anyone out there from other cultures abandoning their way of eating because it’s Northern European… or African… or Tasmanian. Mother Nature doesn’t play favorites—she makes sure she takes care of her Eskimos just as she nurtures her Italians. I thought it would be fun to survey varieties of cuisines around the world so that no matter what your origin, there’s something out there that is good for you.

I’ll start with German food, which is part of my personal heritage and what I was enjoying for lunch today. I made a salad with vegetables that likely would show up on a German summer salad, including two different types of radishes.

We got rutabagas and potatoes in our box this week, and I made the rutabaga-potato salad recipe our chef created. I had some lowfat chicken-apple bratwurst in the freezer, so thawed and cooked them up to have ready for the rest of the week’s lunches.

And… for dessert, I had some plain yogurt that I ground some Trader Joe’s coffee/chocolate/sugar mix on top of.
Let’s break that down for closer inspection.
Salad My salad had two different kinds of radishes, carrots, onions, celery, and a variety of lettuces. I sprinkled some German dill salad mix on top, then added apple cider vinegar and canola oil before tossing. Radishes: Great for cancer prevention. See my colleague Dr. Chris Wharton’s article on why radishes are so nutritious for more information. That beautiful red color? Comes from antioxidants similar to the ones blueberries get all the credit for. Onions: Very important to German cooking. And they are part of the __________family of vegetables, famous for __________________________-- Lettuce: I mixed several varieties to get more red color, again, to get more antioxidants.
Bratwurst The traditional version is a little bit fatty, but these days there are so many varieties chicken, turkey, and low-fat sausage, it’s easy to make a high-protein, low fat choice. This lunch, I had the green apple/cinnamon chicken variety from Fresh and Easy. Each link only had 110 calories.
Potatoes Potatoes? Yes, potatoes! How many of you stay away from them because you’ve been told they are high glycemic? Well, they are, if you don’t eat them wisely, such as eating them, super-sized, as French fries dripping in pro-inflammatory omega-6 oil.
The poor potato in this situation is not the culprit here, it’s the messenger. If you eat a small baked potato in a balanced meal, you’re doing ok. The potato salad I made has two benefits. Baked and then cooled potatoes contain resistant starch, a form of carbohydrate that is not immediately absorbed into your bloodstream. It passes into your large intestine where it ferments and becomes food for healthy bacteria (food that feeds those bacteria is also called prebiotic). Secondly, the dressing for this salad was vinegar. And as you’ve heard here many times before, vinegar helps to keep your blood sugar stable after meals, potentially as well as metformin. So a little bit of potato salad, without the mayo, holds potential to be PCOS-friendly.
Vinegar One of the strong points of the German diet is the vinegar. In addition to the salad, it’s used in pickled vegetables, sauerkraut, and sauerbraten. If it's sour, it's likely ok to eat!
Cheese Though I didn’t have any with this meal, cheese is something Germans love! A common breakfast is a piece of thinly sliced cheese on a slice of whole kernel rye bread, topped with a tomato. Cheese, remember, in moderation, has been found to be associated with increased fertility. The reason it works in the German diet is because, unlike Americans, Germans don’t shred, smother, and melt it on anything and everything they eat. It’s eaten in small portions and used to accent the rest of the food on the plate.
Berries Germany is pretty far north, meaning in the summer it is a fruit basket of flavor. Currants, strawberries, cherries, apples, peaches, grapes… you name it, someone is growing it. Mit sahne (with cream) is a popular way to serve fruit, and if it’s real cream and it’s minimally sweetened, it’s wonderful treat!
I have to tell you, the German meal I described above left me feeling so full and satisfied I wasn’t hungry until long after sundown. It really reinforced for me the power of eating balanced. Talk to people of German heritage, and they’ll often tell you about a grandparent or great-grandparent who lived, relatively disease-free, into their 90’s. They certainly didn’t get there on 800 calorie diets… perhaps we should be taking this diet a little more seriously instead of discounting it because of its potatoes.

When you hear the word"antioxidant", it's likely the word association is there with the following"acai","pomegranate","cherries".

Do you know what your best choices for locally-sourced antioxidants are? Despite what the supplement guys will tell you, you really don't need to get them from ambidextrous Mongolian monks, you know.

Did you know there are non-nutritional antioxidants?

Or behaviorial antioxidants?

What the heck is an antioxidant, anyway?

Come spend a couple of hours with us at our new Santa Monica office, and learn how to equip yourself with an armory of antioxidant power that doesn't break your budget.

We'll even bring you lunch from Veggie Grill.

This is the first installation in our new series,"Traiing Your Mental Athlete", specially designed for high-energy creative types looking to maximize their focus, concentration, and overall creative productivity.

Presenter: Monika M. Woolsey, MS, RD, CEO, inCYST Institute for Hormone Health
Sponsor: BLANKSPACES Coworking Community
Location: 1450 Second Street, Santa Monica, CA
When: Saturday, October 22, 11 am to 1 pm (combine it with a trip to the farmer's market!)

Click here for information on registering to reserve your space. It's limited, so you will want to grab yours ASAP!

I love fruit. All fruit. I could survive on it if it was nutritionally complete.

I am also surprised at how many women with PCOS avoid fruit, because they've been told it's too high in carbohydrates. And then they tell me about what they binged on late at night after a full day of avoiding fruit.

Fruit isn't just carbs. It's fiber. And vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants! Lots and lots of antioxidants! This word should be tattooed backward on all of your foreheads so that every time you look in the mirror you are reminded that PCOS is oxidizing you faster than your body normally would allow itself to be…and your best defense is…fruits and vegetables!

Fruit is best eaten with a protein, so that its glycemic effect is lessened. I thought, while fruit was in high season, I'd post a weekly fruit idea and see how it gets you started.

I'm really in love with this tea and fruit idea I recently wrote about. It's really just decaffeinated tea with sliced fruit in the bottom, like you'd see in sangria. This really adds so little sugar to the batch that you can have it without worrying too much about the carbs. The tea itself has antioxidants, especially if you use decaffeinated green tea, which gives you a potent double whammy that is far better for your body than any soda ever canned.

You can make tee-gria with any kind of fruit that's cheap. So I've just been going to the store, buying a bunch of fruit on sale, and making decaffeinated tea. It's just sweet enough, without being too sweet, and a nice change from water. Right now I have peaches in my tea. I am curious how the cherries are going to taste!

The combinations of fruits and teas out there, could keep you busy experimenting for years! If you came up with a great combination in your own kitchen…please share with us!

Most people tend to think of soup as a winter/comfort food. I love it year round, but especially in the summer. I use my slow cooker, which doesn't heat up the kitchen. I have a week's worth of lunches or dinners when I'm finished, which I can heat in the microwave. Neither of those appliances heat up my kitchen. Plus, it's a great way to take even more advantage of summer's bounty and all of the related antioxidants. For me, a pretty perfect meal is a fresh salad with a vinaigrette dressing, a bowl of soup, a piece of hearty whole grain bread, and some fresh fruit for dessert. Tonight I'm making a red pepper/cauliflower soup and enjoying some of this week's very cheap cherries for dessert. Here is the recipe. And I'm putting some of my other favorites below. If you want something cooler, I'm giving you recipes for gazpacho and cucumber soup.

Bon appetit!

Red Pepper-Cauliflower Soup (adapted from Sunset Magazine)

6 large red bell peppers,stemmed and cored, halved lengthwise, and pressed flat
1 tablespoon olive oil
4 shallots, peeled and choped
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon cayenne
1 quart fat-skimmed chicken broth
1 head cauliflower, cut into florets
1 teaspoon sugar
freshly ground pepper
extra-virgin olive oils, chopped fresh chives, and lemon wedges (optional)

1. Preheat broiler to high. Arrange bell pepper skin side up on baking sheet. Broil, watching carefully, until skins are blackened,about 10 minutes. Remove peppers from oven and let cool. Peel over a bowl to collect juices; set peppers and juices aside.

2. In a large pot over medium-high heat, warm olive oil. Add shallots, salt, and cayenne and cook, stiorring until soft, 3 minutes. Add broth and cauliflower. Bring to a boil, then lower heat to as immer. Cover and cook 20 minutes. Add peppers with juices and cook, covered, until cauliflower is tender, 10 minutes. Puree in batches in a blender and add sugar. add pepper to taste.

3. Serve hot or cold, garnished with a drizzle of olive ol, some chives, and a squeeze of lemon juice of you like.

Chicken and Corn Summer Chowder (from Sunset Magazine)

2 slices turkey bacon, chopped (I used an apple-smoked ham hock)
1 onion, chopped
3 tbsp flour
1 lb. Yukon gold potatoes, chopped
6 cups reduced-sodium or homemade chicken broth
4 cups shredded cooked chicken (you can get this pre-cooked to make it easy)
kernels cut from 3 ears corn
1/4 to 1/2 cup Greek yogurt
2 medium tomatoes, seeded and chopped
1 avocado, pitted, peeled, and chopped
1 cup loosely packed cilantro leaves
2 limes cut into wedges
freshly ground black pepper

1. In a large, heavy pot over medium-high heat, cook bacon until fat renders and meat starts to brown. (Alternately, place ham hock into soup at last stage). Add onion, reduce heat to medium, and cook until soft, about 3 minutes. Sprinkle with flour and cook, stirring, until flour smells cooked (like baked pie crust) but hasn't started to brown, about 3 minutes.

2. Add potatoes and broth. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to keep mixture simmering and cook until potatoes are barely tender, about 5 minutes. Add chicken and corn and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low and stir inyogurt to taste. Heat through, about 2 minutes. Serve in soup bowls, garnished with tomatoes, avocado, cilantro, a squirt or two of lime juice, and pepper to taste.

Summer Gazpacho (from Sunset Magazine)

4 lbs. tomatoes, cored
1 1/2 lbs. cucumbers, washed and scrubbed
tomato juice base: 3 cups tomato juice, 3/4 cup red wine vinegar, 1/2 teaspoon pepper
2 large bell peppers, 1 yellow and 1 green, stemmed and seeded
1/2 cup diced onion
1 large firm-ripe avocado
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 cup Greek yogurt

Chop 3 tomatoes and 1 cucumber. Fill a blendor or food processor with vegetables; with motor running add enough of the tomato juice base to smoothly puree mixture. Pour mixture into a large bowl or tureen. If needed, puree any remaining chopped vegetables. Add to tureen with any remaining tomato base.

Cut remaining tomatoes, cucumbers, and bell peppers into about 3/8 inch cubes. Add to bowl along with onion; mix.cover, and chill until cold, about 2 hours, or up to 1 day.

Peel, pit, and slice avocado into 10 to 12 wedges; coat wedges with lemon juice. Stir gazpacho and ladle into wide soup bowls; top with avocado slices and spoonfuls of yogurt. Offer olive oil to drizzle into portions to taste; season to taste with salt. Makes 9 or 10 servings.

Cold Cucumber Soup (adapted from Emeril Lagasse)
6 pounds cucumbers (about 6 cucumbers), peeled, seeded, and coarsely chopped (12 cups)
2 yellow bell peppers, stem and seeds removed, coarsely chopped
4 green onions, chopped
2 jalapeno peppers, minced
2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh cilantro
1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh mint
1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh dill
3 to 4 garlic cloves, mashed to a paste with 1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons Essence, recipe follows
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
6 cups plain Greek yogurt
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 teaspoons white wine vinegar
2 tablespoons minced fresh chives

Directions

Combine the cucumbers, bell peppers, green onions, jalapenos, cilantro, mint, dill, garlic, Essence, salt, cayenne, yogurt, 2 cups sour cream, olive oil, and white wine vinegar in a large bowl. Working in batches, puree the ingredients in a blender until very smooth. Transfer the soup to the refrigerator until well chilled, at least 2 hours. Taste and adjust the seasoning if necessary. Serve the soup, with each bowl garnished with a dollop of the remaining sour cream and some of the minced chives.

Emeril's ESSENCE Creole Seasoning (also referred to as Bayou Blast):

2 1/2 tablespoons paprika
1 tablespoons salt
2 tablespoons garlic powder
1 tablespoon black pepper
1 tablespoon onion powder
1 tablespoon cayenne pepper
1 tablespoon dried oregano
1 tablespoon dried thyme

Combine all ingredients thoroughly.

Yield: 2/3 cup

Last night, after a long day at the computer, I walked over to the gym for a swim. And as I always do, I stop in to Trader Joe's to see what food and drink they were sampling. I have been so busy working I completely forgot St. Patrick's Day is just around the corner.and TJ's was sampling corned beef and beer for a themed promotion.

As I swam, I thought about some less fatty options you cysters could try this year. Which, beer fresh on my palate, led to my looking up recipes for beer soaked salmon (see below)…and then to a Google search for the health benefits of (moderate!) beer consumption to justify posting the recipe…and I found quite a bit!

•Hops contains flavonoids which may help to prevent certain kinds of cancer.

•Beer contains vitamin B6, which protects against heart diseases by preventing the build-up of a compound called homocysteine.
•Beer contains folate! And you know how much inCYST loves folate!

•Magnesium, another mineral you see us write about in this blog, is also found in beer.

•You'll find vitamin B12 in your lager as well, which is needed for maintaining normal growth, good memory and concentration.

Since many of the readers of this blog are trying to conceive, I must caution you that consumption of any kind of alcohol is not recommended if you are or are trying to be pregnant. In this beer salmon recipe from the Food Network, there is opportunity for the alcohol to evaporate with cooking, leaving the nutrients behind. You can use garlic powder instead of garlic salt, and cut the brown sugar in half, if you wish. Since it's maple syrup season, you might even substitute a little bit of that instead if you have some on hand.

I found a nice quinoa stuffing with leeks, walnuts, and cherries at http://www.myrecipes.com/ that you might like to try along with the salmon.

Of course, you can enjoy the meal with a nice hearty beer if you wish, there will surely be some left from your six pack at dinner time! In my house, it's going to be the Guinness seasonal that inspired this blogging journey.

May the face of every good news and the back of every bad news be toward you…
Happy St. Patrick's Day!