who wants to play ball for #FRD2014?

my three super power identities are colliding...

mom + food ambassador + pitching coach = a real troublemaker

there are so many reasons to make a food change in your family... the main reason i did it was to see if a diet change would help alleviate my daughter's ADHD/sensory processing/social issues and function better in school.

helllllllllers it worked.

when i start working with a pitcher, i look at what she does well and what we need to fix.  i celebrate her correct habits and i teach her how to fix her bad habits.  we make new muscle memory patterns. at first, the right way feels so wrong;  it's uncomfortable to change.  so, we do video feedback & mirror work, i demonstrate, we copy each other, we practice A LOT.  there are so many elements to pitching: posture, snap, leg drive, arm circle, balance, spacing, foot work... yikes.  it can be overwhelming!

if becoming a great pitcher is a priority, she will persevere through practice to reach her goals.

when i decided that real food was going to be my priority as a mom, i applied that same mentality of athletic perseverance which continues to help me everyday.

it is rough in the beginning... at 15 yrs old, i cried after my first few lessons cuz i was so afraid i'd fail and let my team down... at 35 years old, i cried a week into my food change because i was so afraid i was wasting my time when another path could probably fix abbie quick.

alas, there is no crystal ball.  will all this hard work and change be worth it?!

no matter what is driving you here, this food revolution team has no tryouts.  we have a jersey waiting for you.  your reason for joining the team may be a different reason than mine, but we're all in the same dugout... working together in the same direction.

i have spring training fever for the 3rd annual world series event:

FOOD REVOLUTION DAY - MAY 16th 2014

there are no negative side effects when you talk about adding more real food to your diet while removing the fake stuff.

it's time to lead your team and "pitch out" some/most/all of the "food like substances" from your pantry, fridge and freezer.

you pick your pace - it's not a race.  

1.  have a team meeting - inspire and explain why you are going to make some changes.  go on, check out this amazing real food video contest together over some homemade popcorn!  make some family goals together!  challenge each other!

2.  get.your.kids.involved.  we gotta train the rookies if they are gonna make it to the big leagues!!!

3.  meal plan and start practicing to cook more dinners from scratch - 1 meal... 2 meals...3 meals a week!  (my goal is 3-4 meals from scratch a week).

4.  harness your consumer power & be picky with your patronage.  my family votes with our $$$ to create and reward the american food system we want to live in - become a food patriot and join the food revolution!

5.  athletic/academic perseverance = cooking perseverance.  they are one and the same!  so apply your bad ass to the challenges of feeding your family more real food and don't.ever.give.up.

6.  need some training?  connect up with your local nutritionist to help ramp up your food regime and fill in the gaps.

we're gonna win some and lose some...
we're gonna cook our little fanny's off...
we're gonna work to get food education back into our schools...
we're going balls out for real food!

let's gather and light.it.up!

xoxo



ps

here's some food for thought:

learning seed's food additive guide

foodcorps educational resources on pinterest 

dr joel fuhrman explains the ideal diet for athletes & highly active people

dr mercola - does your child have ADHD symptoms? stop feeding them this...

infographic - the shocking effects of artificial food dyes

tonight is movie night - grab your popcorn peeps!

what are YOU doing tonight at 7pm CST?

i hope you can tune in and get inspired!  grab your family and friends and get together over some shake and bake popcorn for a fabulous food documentary!

nobody home but you tonight?  i promise it'll be the best solo movie date you'll ever have!!!

check out this food patriots link for more information.

let's light twitter up with food revolutionaries:

join the #FoodPatsChat after from 8:15pm - 9:15pmCST!

tweet tweet!!

make me - shake and bake homemade popcorn
1/3 c popcorn
2-3 T extra virgin coconut oil
sea salt

heat up your pan with the coconut oil and place three kernels with a lid on it.  when the kernels pop, dump the rest in and shake and bake over med high heat!

i loved making this impromtu video with my kids:)

xoxo

make it - cottage pie with mac attack

can you believe i made this video using my iVideo app on my phone?  i still can't freakin believe i did it!!!

it's funny how the best content ends up coming from non-planned, relaxed evenings in my kitchen:)

mac blew me away.  he is 9 years old now and he hasn't been as into my crazy kitchen-ness as the other two have been.  we connected more than we ever have in the kitchen last thursday... i think we're all falling in love with making food together:)

here is a great knife safety video i had him watch with me awhile ago.  check it out here and watch it with your older kids when they are ready!

and here is the full recipe link:

jamie oliver's cheesy cottage pie with scallion mashed potatoes

mullies recipe notes:
-we used coconut oil.
-we omitted the cheese.
-we mixed 1 organic sweet potatoe, 2 small organic russet potatoes and 2 medium organic yukon potatoes.
-we used gluten free beer.

jo, thanks as always for the inspo baby!

xoxo

the food patriots world premiere event

from left: ambassador and stevenson high school teacher christina erickson, SHS teacher sara lohrman, D76 board of ed vice president laura vogt, moi, chicago ambassadors sarvin haghighi and colleen foster.

me and the lisle food ambassador katy vodicka.

2014 is gonna be a good year.

meet my food revolution teammates!  gathering with these lovely lady food ambassadors has been a highlight of the year so far for me.  i am so excited to watch our collective relationships and food revolution power grow! 

here was the best and craziest part of the night: i walked into the theater with laura, sarvin, christina, sara, and two SHS colleagues.  as we picked our seats out, two audience members stood up to let us in and heeeeeyyyyoooooooooooo one of the strangers turned out to be colleen foster, the chicago ambassador we had never met!!  then, just two rows up, i see another super cute girl turn around and wink at me... she turned out to be katy, whom i knew was coming, but had never met before either!!  can you believe it!?  in a sold out theater of 250 people, we all sat together... 

now that is some magnetic.food.rev.power.

become a food patriot and join the food revolution!

i'll never forget emailing jennifer & jeff spitz last november with my dream food revolution day 2014 initiative.

food documentaries can be so informative.  however, some can leave you feeling judged, hopeless and down right upset (not to mention hopeless) at the plethora of food challenges our nation and globe are facing together.

food patriots informs and leaves the audience inspired, hopeful and ready to connect with the other local real food forces all around us. 

...it sparks a conversation about our food that erases our cultural, demographic and economic lines like nothing i have ever experienced before.  

...it gathers our collective voices and empowers all of us to harness our consumer power.  

...it makes you feel like small changes can actually mean something and that the mountain isn't.so.high if we climb it together.  

i'll be sharing what we are all planning, doing and celebrating so that you can follow our real food journeys as they evolve this year...  as food ambassadors, as food patriots, as wives & husbands, as moms & dads, as teachers and coaches...   let's go balls out for real food and light it UP together shall we?!

meet food patriots holly kim & bruce dir!  holly is the local mundelein trustee who invited me over a year ago to watch a rough cut of food patriots in november of 2012.  i had just became a food ambassador a few weeks before with no clue of what to do or how to start reaching out to my community.

bruce is the owner and head brewmaster at our local mundelein craft brewery, tighthead brewing company.  he donated his time and two kegs of craft beer for this wonderful event.  i love you and your beer so much!  thank you bruce!

and i love you too holly for buying a dvd for our local fremont library and for connecting to me so long ago... jiggity jig!

looking good jeff!

i can't wait to wear my t-shirt tomorrow at temple shalom's public screening!
join me at 12:45pm for a free chipotle burrito lunch!

we helped out bruce and brought back his brewing equipment in our swagger van.  this above shot was taken just before laura and i walked to the parking garage only to realize we forgot what level the swagger van was parked on.  hope you're staying warm on the sidewalk honey!   ooooooops.

a lucky, 3-guess finish to a wonderful night.

see you tomorrow!

xoxo


ps

wanna see more great pics from the premiere?  check out their facebook photos here.

a february ambassador challenge - a veggie frittata for my daddio

i made this for lunch on a 1/2 whim.  

my dad came over on valentine's day and i really wanted to make something fun and festive.  

i was on a roll with my coconut yogurt love fest... 

each month, our ambassador community receives monthly challenges and it came to my rescue! welcome to the mullies my little veggie frittata!!!

here's my recipe narrative... 

i opened my fridge, scavenged my onion basket and grabbed what sounded good:

1 fennel bulb (stems and fronds saved for a later dish)

1 turnip (1st time putting that in a dish... for realz)

1 ruby red beet (what a great idea on valentine's day to make everything red, right!?!?)

1 shallot

i chopped the goodies all up and fried it up with some coconut oil in my cast iron.  i fried it low and slow for at least 15 minutes and added some sea salt and freshly ground black pepper.  

next, i cracked four local, pastured raised eggs into a bowl, gave it a splash of light coconut milk and whipped it up with my fork.

then i poured the eggs into the cast iron, gave it a good mix up and let it set for a bit while i sprinkled a weeeeeeee bit of lovely parmesan cheese on top.  oh to hell with my zits.  

lastly, it went into my oven to get bubbly and oh so delishUSly crispy.

i took my picture as soon as it came out of the oven.  

my dad and i enjoyed lunch so much... my favorite part is when he bites into my food while closing his eyes, chews for a bit and then looks up and says, "you are such a great cook".  

sometimes i really make some magic.

so when my kids & hubby don't super love and appreciate my made.from.scratch.food and give me "bologna-pony", i just think about him and how much he would love it.  

you always loved watching me play "balls out" on the field and now we get to eat "balls out real food" together for the rest of our days.  how lovely is that?

i adore being a human garbage disposal with you... 

love you dad:)

xoxo

ps

and jamie o is right about this frittata popping the perfect leftover for your lunchbox... i had a wedge the second day and the third for breakfast and lunch.  

a food patriots world premiere gathering

tonight is the night!

food patriots is premiering downtown at the chicago cultural center at 5:30pm!

and it's sold out babycakes:)

wanna see the film too?  i have two great options for you:

come join me this sunday at 12:45pm at chicago's temple shalom for a public screening!  rsvp today for a free chipotle lunch:)  yum.

can't do that either?  well then join us on feb 26th for the online premiere and twitter chat hosted by consumer union!

oh this is just so exciting!!!

now back to TONIGHT - look who's joining me!!!!

the lovely lake county food rev ambassador teammate christina erickson (and she's bringing two Stevenson HS co-workers)

the lovely chicago food rev ambassador sarvin haghighi

the lovely lisle food rev ambassador katy vodicka

chris is meeting me later on and i'll be headed downtown with my friend and school board member laura vogt!

our local craft brewery tighthead brewing company will be there sponsoring the event.  i.love.their.sweet.nectar.so.much.  thank you thank you bruce for supporting this event and donating your amazing product to help spread the message of the food patriots & food revolution.

"When it comes to healthcare, the environment, jobs and national security; changing the way America eats is the most patriotic thing we can do.  So we call people who are doing the Food Patriots."

now that's what i'm talking bout baby.

the food revolution is going to make a ton of real food education connections tonight and what a kick off to get us geared up for food revolution day 2014 on friday may 16th!

i'll see you you on the red carpet!

xoxo


ps

save the date! the lake county food rev team is hosting a screening of food patriots on wednesday, may 14 at stevenson high school!

dear mr hospital

do mountains intimidate you?  how about large hills?

i guess it depends on how you feel about heights.

the below letter was recently written by my girlfriend catherine, one of my real-food partners in crime.  

thank you for letting me share it today!

i'm pretty sure palos community hospital is not alone in offering cheap, less.than.desirable.fake.food choices to those who require low sugar, nutrient dense, whole food the most.  i wonder how many letters from concerned patients and families have been penned and sent?

wake up mr hospital food.    

you're on a fake food tippy top that needs a food revolution pronto.

***

To Whom it May Concern,

I just returned home from a visit with my mother-in-law at Palos Community Hospital.  During my visit, the doctors and nurses were all very friendly and helpful, but I was confused about what she was served for lunch.   During her visit with the doctor, he told her that he was increasing the dosage for her high blood sugar medication.  About an hour later, her lunch was brought in complete with pasta, meatballs, white bread, steamed veggies, juice cocktail (high fructose corn syrup was the second ingredient), chocolate milk, and ice cream.  I have to say that these last three items are banned from my house, not only because they are high in sugar, but because they are processed foods, and unhealthy.

So I am not asking why my mother-in-law, whose medication was just increased for high blood sugar, was given a very high sugar lunch, but I am wondering why the hospital would give anybody such a high sugar lunch.  As health professionals you must know that it is sugar that leads to diabetes and obesity.  I noticed that the lunch aimed to be low-fat, but recent science has proven that it is not fat (at least healthy fat from healthy animals, nuts, etc) that causes obesity and disease, but artificial fat and sugar.  I also noticed unhealthy preservatives in the "butter."

According to the book, "Spark" by John Ratey, "65 percent of our nation's adults are are overweight or obese, and 10 percent of the population has type 2 diabetes, a preventable and ruinous disease that stems from inactivity and poor nutrition."  (p.4)  As an institution of health, I would think that Palos Community Hospital would be interested in making patients well, not just with medication, but also with the foods they serve and promote.  I am wondering if there is a plan to make meals at Palos Hospital lower in sugar, higher in fiber, and less-processed.  Perhaps that juice cocktail, ice cream, and chocolate milk could be replaced with an apple?

Thank you so much for your time,

Catherine Shannon

***

rock on sister sledge!

is there hope for a real food revolution in hospitals?!  check out these inspiring links:

uno - a video of a doctor who talks real food
dos - a radio interview with OHSU's Steven Hiatt

fists up high and tight to those healing hospitals for pitching the fake food OUT!

xoxo

pour some coconut yogurt on me

that was yesterday testing the whole shabang out.  oh mama i'm home.  

i was super excited the day i got my new yogurt maker at my bunny's suggestion... and super stoked to try it out.  why homemade coconut yogurt?  2 reasons: 1. mac tolerates and loves sheep's milk yogurt, but he is allergic to casein and i should really avoid it.  2. it's expensive at almost $6 bucks a pop for 16 oz!  we were going through 4 tubs a week and that adds UP fast per month.  so we figured the machine would pay for itself in less than two months when you figure the cost of buying the coconut milk and the other ingredients.    

so, i started experimenting:  the first batch was great but way too watery, second batch batch was grainy with too much arrowroot and didn't taste tart at all.  the 3rd batch was flat out gross (almond milk did not work).

wed was my 4th try. 

i wasn't having a very good day wednesday.  patience was not my middle name.  between trying to get the kids organized for dinner, evening activities and leaving to work at my pitching clinic... triple oyes. if you could get into my head, this is what it would have sounded like: 

"what the f am i doing!?  slaving away at this stupid homemade yogurt!?  who do i think i am?  i can't even find a decent recipe to follow online... argh... i'd like to take this gumption and stick it right up the yogurt maker's butt."

and then came a new day - to the mullies i say...

i finally got the swing of it!

homemade coconut yogurt

(i did find this article helpful!)

2 cans full fat coconut milk (i used organic)

1 can light coconut milk 

2 T arrowroot starch

2 tsp powdered pectin + 2 tsp calcium water (both provided in the box!) *key texture ingredient

1 packet yogo brand yogurt starter packet (or 4 tablets of pro-biotic powder, which is what i used in my first round and it worked great!... just open them up to get the powder!)

    

directions:

1.  combine and begin heating all three cans of coconut milk in a small saucepan until smooth. 

2.  once smooth, set aside 1/2 of milk & make the "slurry": mix the 2 cups of milk + 2 T arrowroot  mix 3.  heat to 180 degrees

4.  add slurry back to heated milk and fully incorporate

5.  let cool to 110 degrees

6.  take 2 c of milk and place in blender or nutribullet.  

5.  to the blender: add 2 tsp powdered pectin + 2 tsp calcium water + yogurt starter/pro-biotic powder and blend for at least 30 sec to make sure fully and utterly incorporated.

6.  add 2 cups back to the to the rest of the milk and mix thoroughly.  (if you have room in your blender mix it all together!)

7.  pour into your yogurt maker and enjoy the best damn coconut yogurt e.v.e.r.

strawberry-granola-coconut-yogurt parfaits with honey

layer the following:

yogurt

granola

cut strawberries

honey

and repeat

you could add in so many other wonderful things... blueberries, peaches, raspberries, bananas, oh my... knock your socks off!

here is the fam this morning for a v-day breakfast of champions.  i had two helpings:)

happy valentine's day my little love bugs.

cheers to getting some fabulous sexy sauce tonight:)

xoxo

ps

do you eat 200% natural?

rub that sleepy sand out of your eyes and watch one of the most hilarious videos i've.ever.seen:

the "natural effect"

gotta love it when humor can get you to start brushing your hair.

beep beep.

get your organic box-o-produce here.

xoxo

cook off your chili willies!

i mean helllleeeeerrrrrrs....

my crock is so good that i don't even enter my own chili cook off - i mean, i'd win it every year!  HA!

our 4th annual chili cook off was a smashing hit - i hope you super love the pics as much as i do.  

so get your peeps together and get your crocks rockin with some chili or soup! 

warm.it.up.chi-beria!!!    

super sangria 

(fills up my jug-a-lug)

3 bottles of shiraz

1 liter orange peach mango juice

1 cup apricot brandy

1 cup triple sec

2 cans orange la croix

2 cans peach pear la croix

sliced lemons and oranges

frozen raspberries (ooooops, they are still in my freezer... forgot em!!!)

combine all the liquors and chill.  right before serving, add the la croix and frozen raspberries.  

slice up lemons and oranges or whatever fruit you want and drink up!

the only way to announce the winners!  on top of the island!

the coveted apron WINNERS!!!!!

congrats to tanya on her 1st place chili: "chuck norris oatmeal" & to john on his 1st place soup: "shrimp gumbo".  john overwhelmingly received the most votes even after my pig of a husband ate all of the shrimp.

two claps for lisa, our 2nd place soup winner with her thai coconut lentil soup!

brett (on the right with my first apron ever made!), is the 2nd place chili winner with his delicious chili (the name is so creative that i can't write it down).  once again, he got to take home his prized shake weight:)  hee hee, keep pumping iron dude, perhaps you'll get a new apron someday!

meg and stace rocked the dessert out of the park... the name says it all!

oh what fun times!!!!

to all of you pluggin along on your 2014 food revolution resolutions so far... 

have you pitched out the fake food yet or WHAT!?!?!?!?

go on, get together with your friends and family and cook up some 

balls.out.food.

let it go and pitch it out!!!

xoxo