Shannon's Cleansing Sweet Squash Succotash Recipe [Vegan, Gluten-Free]

Guest post by Shannon Sodano.

When you live a life of overindulgence, your body is left feeling tired, your mind foggy and your spirits down. If you make simple shifts to your lifestyle that balance and re-boot your body, you can regain control of how you take care of yourself, leaving tiring habits and unhealthy cravings behind.

From Halloween sweets to big Thanksgiving and holiday meals, ‘tis the season of overindulgence. If you’d like to forget about gaining the typical 5 to 10 holiday pounds, not feel tired and lethargic from overeating all season and want to try a way of living that gives you more energy than you ever thought possible, a cleanse may be for you.

 A cleanse is a short-term way of eating and living where you focus on eliminating the foods and bad habits that make you feel sluggish and fill yourself up with those that restore and energize you. A cleansing diet includes foods that purify your insides and leave you with ample energy to live off. Cutting out certain things like sugar, alcohol and caffeine helps you sleep and get through your day better plus leaves behind less sluggish residue. Animal products are taken out too, since animals produce their own toxins.

Here is a simple recipe that can get you in the spirit of cleansing. It will prevent cravings, manage your waistline and give you lasting energy for the busy days of fall. Plus, it makes a great Meatless Monday meal! If you want to register or find out more about a Pre-Holiday cleanse visit www.shannonsodano.com/cleanses.

Inspired by the Native American tradition, this recipe makes great use of the bounty of fall vegetables and is a sweet, healthy and hearty meal.

DIY Lavender Sachet Hair Clip and Brooch

Lavender sachet brooch

A few days ago I got bored while waiting for my vegan lasagna leftovers to reheat. I very rarely get bored (there's always Instagram!) but I'm trying to get smarter about the time I spend on social media so that left the question: What fun thing can I do for 20 minutes? Pinterest!, my mind said. No!, I resisted. I decided I'd better make something with my ridiculously large stash of lavender.

A sachet seemed like the best idea given the time constraints. Basically, a sachet is a little pouch containing something with a fabulous scent or magical powers. I think lavender has a little bit of both, plus it's totally my accidental theme for this week!

Lavender sachet hair clip

Wanna make the same thing?

You'll need:

• one sheet of paper & a pencil or marker
• straight pins & a pair of scissors
• two fabric scraps of different colors and textures (I used crafting felt and a synthetic sports fabric, but cotton would be another good choice.)
• lavender flowers & lavender essential oil (Available at Mountain Rose Herbs)
• thread & needle or sewing machine
• random string of beads
• colorful embroidery or crafting thread

Do this:

1. Draw a shape that you like on the paper. Make it at least 1/4" bigger around than you'd like your sachet to be, unless you plan on having exposed edges like mine does). Cut it out to make a pattern/template.
2. Sandwich together the two pieces of fabric. Face to face if you wanna reverse it. Butt to butt if you want exposed edges.
3. Pin the pattern to the fabric sandwich. 
4. Cut.
5. Remove the pattern.
6. Repin and sew together leaving a little opening.
7. Use embroidery/craft thread and random beads to make a cute (optional) decoration on the sachet. It's probably easier to outline the template on the fabric with craft chalk and embroider/embellish on a larger piece of fabric before you cut or sew it. I just like to work in this order. You should do whatever works for you too.
8. Mix together some lavender flowers (enough to fill your sachet) and few drops of lavender essential oils. 
9. Make a funnel with paper to get the lavender into the opening.
10. Sew closed with the machine (if doing exposed edges) or tuck edges in and sew closed by hand, if you're not.

Now that you've got yourself a sachet, the question is what to do with it. Since I've been fighting the blues, I figured I would make the sachet into something I could wear all day. A hair clip seemed perfect!

I stuck a large bobby pin through the back piece of fabric. Automatic hair clip. A duck clip would work too. If your fabric doesn't have holes or open weave, stitch a clip to it with embroidery thread.

If you wanna wear it as a brooch, stitch a large safety pin or a brooch pin onto the back.

Now when friends and co-workers ask, "What's that wonderful smell," you can say, "It's me!" And when they ask why you're in such a good mood, you can say, "It's my handmade brooch!"

Tip: Store this inside a drawer or your purse when you're not wearing it so it can serve double duty.

Thanks so much for reading this blog entry! I hope it was helpful. Wanna keep nerding out about creative green living? Let's stay connected: Newsletter // Facebook // Twitter // Instagram // Pinterest // Bloglovin' // YouTube

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Vegan Lasagna with Homemade Ricotta Recipe [Gluten-Free]

We had a wonderfully satisfying Meatless Monday dinner of vegan lasagna last night. I tried out a new-to-me technique for making a dairy-free ricotta-like filling. Here's the recipe:

Vegan Ricotta

Ingredients

• 1 lb soft tofu
• ¹⁄₄ cup nutritional yeast
• 2 TBS tahini
• 2 garlic cloves
• ¹⁄₂ lemon juice of
• some Italian herbs Fresh is flavor magic but we didn't have any on hand so I used dried and it was good.)
• ¹⁄₂ tsp salt

Directions

1. I blended everything in my Vitamix by gradually going up to 5 and using the tamper. You could make it in a food processor too.
2. Another option is to mince the garlic then mix and mash everything together with a fork.

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Once you've got ricotta, you're ready to build the lasagna casserole. I love whole wheat pasta, but there are gluten-free options like brown rice flour pasta.

Vegan Lasagna

Ingredients

• 28 oz tomato puree or marinara sauce
• 1 box lasagna pasta gluten-free optional
• 1 carrot
• 1 handful mushrooms
• 1 eggplant
• 1 onion
• 1 cup frozen chopped spinach
• vegan ricotta use above recipe

Directions

1. Cook pasta according to package instructions. (Don't cook, if using no-bake lasagna.)
2. Meanwhile, sautee veggies in olive oil.
3. Cover bottom of baking dish with tomato puree or marinara sauce. You can pour it straight from the Tetra pack or jar if you're not making your own. My boyfriend prefers to mix it with the veggies (?!), so that's what we did.
4. Top with pasta.
5. Spread thick layer of vegan ricotta over pasta.
6. Top with a little more tomato puree.
7. Add a layer of your favorite veggies. Even frozen veggies straight from the bag work well. We used sauteed carrots, mushrooms, eggplant, and onions along with frozen chopped spinach.
8. Repeat steps 2-5 until you reach the top of the casserole dish.
9. Top with tomato puree, making sure all the pasta is covered.
10. Cover with foil or dish lid and bake for 40 minutes. (If you don't cover it, you will get crunchy pasta.)
11. Cool for 10 minutes then enjoy!

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What are your favorite vegetarian lasagna fillings? I know lots of vegans are avoiding soy these days; if you're one of them, I'd love some recommendations for a nut-based ricotta. 

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How to Organize Under the Bathroom Sink

 

A reader requested ideas for organizing under the sink. I figured I'd share actual photos of the tiny under sink cupboard my boyfriend and I shared in our wee Brooklyn bathroom. If that space can be organized anything can!

Use removable shelves.
All the items in the Before picture are in the After picture too. You can multiply your space by using removable shelves with multiple levels. They give you more surfaces to put things on without piling them. I actually took the before picture last to illustrate the point. (Y'all know under my bathroom sink isn't piled up like that in real life!)

You can find these shelves on Amazon and in the kitchen section of The Container Store and Bed Bath and Beyond. Measure your cabinet taking into account any pipes under the sink to make smart choices about which shelves to buy. Also consider the variety of heights of containers you need to store. You can see from the photo that I have a single and double shelf in this cabinet.

Get clever with containers.
I reused salad greens containers to create little bins that make it easy to pull out groups of items. This keeps me from having to move a million smaller containers and boxes to reach whatever I am looking for. This also prevents things from piling up.

Don't be afraid to repackage products into jars, bins, and bags that work better with your organizational method too. For example, I keep my cotton swabs and pads together in a sandwich container.

Be a bathroom minimalist.
Don't feel like you need to store everything you use in the bathroom in the bathroom, especially if your space is small. Keep back stock of toilet paper and hair products in another room. Or better yet, don't buy any until you almost run out. When we lived in Brooklyn, land of 24-hour bodegas, one spare roll of toilet paper was plenty.

Also, do not keep more than one trial or single use size anything per person in your house for longer than a month. They will pile up to become space hogs if you don't. (Yes, two hotel sized bottles of shampoo, though they may be from different hotels, count as more than one of the same item.) Stored those you do keep packed away in your overnight cosmetics bag, which you should keep in your suitcase instead of in the bathroom.

Do you have any tips for organizing under the bathroom sink? What's working really well in your home?

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How I Treated My UTI Without Antibiotics

Around 7pm last Thursday I felt a pain like one I'd never felt before- an intense burning ache shooting out of my vag right after I peed. I was so shocked I almost jumped off the toilet. Did I drink glass without noticing, I wondered. I started to plot what hospital I would have my boyfriend drive me to or maybe we'd take a taxi. I winced when I thought of the emergency room bill. Perhaps it'd just be better to die.

After peeing another two times with the same intensity of pain, but also without dying, I pulled myself together and hopped on the internet. A Google search of "burning when I pee" quickly uncovered that I had a urinary tract infection (UTI). Apparently this is a very common condition for women, one I managed to avoid for 30 plus years, but I guess my luck ran out. That and I probably reached the tipping point for the number of times you can absentmindedly wipe in the wrong direction without paying the proverbial piper.

Since Obamacare doesn't kick in until 2014, I decided to take matters into my own hands. Instead of taking antibiotics (which always give me a yeast infection anyway), I drank water. Lots of water. I drank 4 pints when I woke up and drank another pint every hour. I noticed that the pain felt less and less intense with each passing hour. By 7pm Friday I felt right as rain.

The only time I experienced any pain after that was the next day when I had to hold my bladder for about half an hour before we reached a public restroom while on a road trip. Still, I've been continuing to drink lots of water. I've even added some pure cranberry juice to my daily routine. It tastes horrible, but nowhere near as bad as a UTI feels.
 
Disclaimer: I'm have absolutely no medical or scientific training beyond 10th grade biology. Though I did get an A, the information in this post is not meant to replace the guidance of your physician. This post is purely to share my personal experience. If you experience UTI symptoms for more than 48 hours, I beg you to see a doctor.

Have you ever had a UTI? How did you treat it?

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7 Ideas for Organizing Jewelry

When I cleaned apartments professionally I noticed organizing jewelry was an issue many women struggle with. So many of us keep heaps of earrings, necklaces, rings, and bracelets thrown around on top of our dresser. It's great because everything is visible. However it also makes it hard to dust, it makes it very easy to loose pieces, and there is risk of scratching your furniture.

My sizable collection of jewelry and years of retail experience have provided me with lots of ideas for keeping jewelry visible, easily accessible, and organized.

Vintage dishes

I store my post earrings, earring backs, and rings in a dainty sectioned candy dish. I also store bracelets in a small bowl. Tea light candle holders and 4 oz mason jars also make sweet jewelry holders. You can find cute ones at your grandma's house or at an antique store.

Glove molds

These are wonderfully quirky way to store and display your favorite rings. I found a great glove mold in the clearance section at Fishs Eddy. I keep it in the kitchen to hold my ring and bracelet while I cook or do the dishes.

DIY Wall Jewelry Display

I made my own jewelry display for free. You can too! Here's how: 1. Grab a large piece of cardboard and a piece of fabric that is about 2 inches bigger squared than the board. // 2. Staple or glue the fabric to the board. // 3. Staple or pin a cute ribbon to one corner then another corner to create a hanger. // 4. Stick pushpins in the board. // 5. Hang earrings, light bracelets, and necklaces from the pins. // 6. Clip hair accessories to ribbon. // 7. Hang from a picture hook.

Another way to make a hanging display is to use a screen, picture frame, and a few pretty vintage knobs. Check out this DIY jewelry screen tutorial by Lauren Conrad.

Key Racks

I hang my chunkier necklaces from a little row of key hooks. I got mine at Anthropologie clearance section but you can probably find a cute one secondhand. I don't recommend storing anything too precious this way, as the strain of the weight of the beads does make the string more likely to break sooner.

Retail Display Racks
You can purchase retail grade acrylic and metal jewelry displays for pretty cheap on Amazon. For example, this slightly decorative metal earring rack can hold 78 pairs of earrings and is under $8. You can find inspiration for more beautiful and clever jewelry display by poking around well merchandised boutiques and booths at craft fairs.

The problem with a rack is it needs to sit on a dresser. That's fine if you don't have a cat or curious kids, but a hanging one might better suit the needs of those who like a clear dresser top.

Egg Cartons

Vintage Hen Egg Tray via Etsy seller Cynthia's Attic

If you have lots of little post or clip on earrings, egg cartons are an eco-friendly storage option. The carton is a little ghetto fabulous but it can be stored out of sight in a drawer or on a shelf in your closet. Vintage ceramic and glass egg trays and deviled egg plates are a classier, more displayable alternative that can be found on Etsy and eBay.

Jewelry Box
If the thought of tossing your jewelry in a dark abyss to never be seen again doesn't turn you off, go ahead and put it in a jewelry box. Just kidding. If you can keep your jewelry to a minimum, putting it in a jewelry box, especially one with little slots for rings, is fine.

How do you store your jewelry?

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Meatless Monday: What's Your Favorite Veggie Dog?

Last week I mentioned that I am taking the October Unprocessed 2013 challenge. Hosted by Eating Rules, the annual event encourages folks to eat real food made without funky ingredients.

While most of my meals don't come out of a box, bag, or jar, I do have my vices. I can't resist a good veggie dog. I actually don't like veggie dogs very much, but I love the condiments: a fat zigzag of ketchup and mustard over kraut or kimchi, pickles on the side. Don't even get me started on the soft, pillowy buns smeared with Vegenaise... My mouth is watering at the thought!

Image via Field Roast

I also love the ritual of veggie dogs. We usually have them for lunch on Saturday or Sunday afternoons. I take the buns and dogs out of the freezer. My boyfriend grills the dogs. I prep the toppings. We eat them together in front of the television while watching whatever sport is on.

Why resist something that feels so amazing? Well, I assumed veggie dogs were made of something terrible. But when I looked at the label of our Field Roast Frankfurters, I was pleasantly surprised. I noticed the ingredients weren't so bad after all: water, vital wheat gluten, wheat flour, liquid smoke, some veggies and spices.

Don't get me wrong; I am not claiming Field Roast Frankfurters are healthy. There is an alarming amount of sodium (690 mg!) these dogs. Think of the sodium in the toppings and we're looking at something close to 1K for the meal. The frankfurters contain 8g of fat per link (yikes!). There's also not much in the way of vitamins and micro-nutrients. I'm not a huge eater, so when I eat hot dogs I'm wasting tummy space that could've been used to hold more nourishing foods like veggies and whole grains, and healthier fats like avocado or nuts.

Who knows, maybe this Friday night I'll get my act together and marinate some carrots so we can enjoy vegan carrot hot dogs over the weekend. For now, I kinda wanna celebrate this sometime food for not being as processed as I thought it was.

What's your favorite veggie dog? What do you think of the ingredients and "nutritional value" of it? Would you eat a carrot hot dog?

Thanks so much for reading this blog entry! I hope it was helpful. Wanna keep nerding out about creative green living? Let's stay connected: Newsletter // Facebook // Twitter // Instagram // Pinterest // Bloglovin' // YouTube

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