Cindy Spratt, Holistic Nutrition

ALL NEW BLOG!! You guessed it: we are smacking our faces right into the teenage realm over here and it sure feels like those first few seconds of a roller coaster (helmets on, wind in your face, fear in your throat)! With arms & hearts wide open, we are doing our best to stay in tune with our son as he moves into a most meaningful time in his life, while also trying desperately to figure out how to meet the insatiable FOOD NEEDS!!! Whoa! Other parents warn you, yes, but un...til it hits your home, you can't quite be prepared for the all day & night eating that has taken over the kitchen. Here's some of what I know & what I've been learning about the teenage food adventure and how we can all work together, be prepared, and manage the food avalanche of this next life stage. HERE WE GO!!

BATCH COOKING DAY 2: We Rocked it Ladies! So much yum, so many meals made & ready to devour! What we pulled off today: Sesame Broccoli Quinoa Salad Raspberry Oat Bars with Homemade Chia Jam ... Thai Coconut Carrot Soup with Garlicky Green Black Bean & Yam Burrito Filling Watch for more seasonal batch classes on offer every season and JOIN IN on all the abundant, nutrient-dense food and kitchen fun! Batch Cooking Online! Eat to feel good. Feel good about eating.

BATCH COOKING WINTER SESSION DAY 1: TOTAL SUCCESS!! Here’s what we made: Lemony Chia Pudding Raspberry Chia Jam Flax & Sesame Crackers... Creamy Green Dip Cozy Winter Lentil Stew AND Chocolate Chip Power Cookies!! Yes, all in one class! Tomorrow’s session will be just as awesome! Rocking Batch Cooking!! Eat to feel good. Feel good about eating.

These squishy, wrinkly morsels are one of my ultimate TOP NOTCH foods of all time. If you’ve made any of my healthy treat recipes you already know that I use dates as a sweetener & a binder for many goodies and not JUST because of their big yum flavour Health benefits of dates: Their high fiber content makes dates the ultimate sweetener as the fiber slows the release of glucose into the bloodstream - so you will be energized for longer and with less of a post-sugar crash... Dates are loaded up with minerals: potassium, magnesium, copper, manganese, iron, & calcium - we need as many mineral rich foods in our modernized & mineral depleted diet as possible! Dates contain potent antioxidants (flavonoids, carotenoids, & phenolic acid) which help neutralize free radicals and prevent cancer Dates support strong brain health & may reduce inflammation in the brain & improve communication between brain cells (so cool!) They are excellent for pregnancy as they can promote & ease labor as well as support increased mineral needs during pregnancy How to use more dates? Sweeten your nut milk or smoothie Use as a binder & sweetener for cookies, bars, energy balls etc. In chocolate mousse, cupcakes, raw desserts & raw brownies mmm... Eat more dates & feel energized through these blah February days!! Eat to feel good. Feel good about eating.

Funny thing: these Banana Oat Bars are an old recipe on the website, but I wanted to revamp them this weekend and what happened was this....banana cake?! No matter, they are so delicious, the only thing I ended up doing differently was melting some extra chocolate for an icing of sorts...mmmm. As I work on more recipes to fuel the ravenous teenager, I realize that all my healthy treats do just this: are heavy in nutrient density, always contain healthy protein and fat, and ar...e a heck of a lot more satiating than anything you’ll find at a supermarket! You can make these bars (or cake) in less than a half hour and call them any old thing you like!! What matters is that they’ll make your body happy and your kids full!! Find the recipe on the website: Banana Oat Bars Feeding healthy kids & ravenous teens. Eat to feel good. Feel good about eating.

As my son grows & grows & grows (& grows!), I’m learning how to adjust to the food demands that his almost-teen body needs. He is ravenous pretty well ALL of the time and so, there must be good food around for his hungry hands to grab at or the body’s demands for nutrients will trick his developing brain into telling him that he needs sugar. This is THE KEY: the body asks for nutrients as it works so hard to keep up with the development of the mind, tissues, cells, & organs,... so in order for the ravenous reach-for-anything-and-everything behaviours to meet true satiation, the body MUST RECEIVE NUTRIENTS. Not sugar, not filler carbs, or boxed cereals, junk crackers, or pepperoni & cheese sticks, and definitely not sugar laden and caffeine laced energy drinks, sure to offer up hyperactivity & heart palpitations. And so, here is the puzzle: how do we keep up with the demands of our growing teens & preteens without relying heavily on processed foods? Firstly, make a big pot of this noodle soup - the rich broth is loaded with body supportive minerals, the sprouted quinoa noodles give those teens usable carbohydrates for energy, and the veggies provide added nutrition & fibre to support good digestion and protect those busy cells (watch for the Veggie Noodle Soup recipe going up on the website today!) Second, TEACH your kids what to reach for and when! We have an after school smoothie program that saves my ravenous son from stuffing his face with anything and/or grumping it out until dinner. The 4pm smoothie is a SAVIOUR. And he also knows that if he’s still hungry, it’s only fruit or veggies before dinner. Then, if he’s filled up too much to eat that much dinner, it really doesn’t matter because he’s full of good food, high in nutrients & quality fibre. I’m currently writing a blog on feeding the ravenous teen where I’ll share lots of tips I’ve learned over the years about feeding hungry kids without breaking the bank OR resorting to processed junk - watch for it!! Feeding healthy kids. Eat to feel good. Feel good about eating.