green bayby!

the early bird likes her greens, that is for sure. and yesterday was a big day for the green and yellow packer nation. handily putting the chicago bears to bed for the season, green bay is going all the way. and so it's only fitting to make today's post green.

in honor of the big event, i decided to throw caution to the wind, put my fears aside, and take the plunge. i juiced. for the first time. and it was amazing.

the early bird is no stranger to the wonders of juice and i have long been enjoying them - in new york i developed a pretty serious thing for liquiteria and bequ juice - but never before have i had juicer and veggies in hand and done the dirty deed myself. lucky for the bird, the tiger has a very nice juicer, that he doesn't use and is willing to share. and even luckier for the bird, berkeley bowl has all one's veggie needs, fresh and cheap, so that it actually makes economical sense to roll up your sleeves and get into juicing. by new york standards, you will pay anywhere upwards of $8 for a fresh green juice. today i juiced at home with produce that cost less than $4 all together, which yielded enough juice for 2 juices today and enough for another 2 with the leftover veggies i will use tomorrow. so, for under $4, i made 4 green juices. yes, the juicers are a bit of a labor of love to clean. but cleaning the produce and cleaning the juicer is actually not that labor intensive and it most certainly is worth bringing the cost of green juice down to about $1/juice.

okay. so green juice. what do i put in it? i used kale, romaine, celery, cucumber, parsley, and green apple. i could have also used ginger and lemon. why do i drink it? well it's pretty simple - the healing elements that are found in green leafy vegetables are so powerful and synergistic, that there is no synthetic equivalent. there is no synthetic medicine or supplement that can do what raw, fresh green leafy vegetables can do. and doctors, nutritionists and dietitians all recommend that we get 3 to 5 servings of these green leafy vegetables every day. juice is an excellent way to get these servings. it is also ideal because they are still raw and their nutritional values have not been compromised at all as a result of heat or preparation.

yeah, kermit, it's not easy being green, it's AWESOME! why?

well, the five main benefits of the ingredients in green juice are:

• chlorophyll
• trace minerals (potassium, magnesium, calcium, chromium and selenium)
• vegetable protein
• enzymes
• alkalizing abilities

these components give the immune system and muscles the building blocks they need, bring oxygen to our blood and tissues, prevent disease, and help balance the alkalinity of our blood, in turn, helping us flush out the build up of lactic acid in our joints and muscles. a green juice a day will keep the doctor away, at least in a more positive way than say no health insurance keeps the doctor away.

ask the bird.

curiosity might have killed the cat, but the bird can satisfy yours.

you have questions, i know you do. and i have answers, at least i hope i do. so ask away. email me at theearlybirdlikeshergreens@gmail.com and stay tuned for answers here on the blog.

turmerific!

so over the course of the past few months i have developed an ever-increasing fondness for turmeric. it's just so good. and so good for you. and last night the tiger and i were out to dinner with friends at an ethiopian restaurant in oakland at which i broke my ethiopian food virginity. i'm not sure how i got this far in life without ever having had an ethiopian meal, but somehow i did, and, like with most other life experiences or "firsts", the longer you wait to do it, the more anxiety builds up. so this was a big deal for me. would i like it? would i even know what to do when the big family style platter was set down in front of us all with a few baskets of that crazy bread? would i make a mess? would i embarrass myself? would it be painful? so i took a big breath, threw caution to the wind, took the plunge, and let a red lentil dish called mesir wat take my innocence and ignorance away. red lentils in a berbere sauce. mmm mmm mmm. it doesn't get much better than that. and, so, just like that, my turmeric adoration was whipped back up into high gear. and so this is a post about a spice. a spice that makes anything it touches better and that might be one of the best things on the planet for us. it has insane health benefits. the active ingredient in turmeric is curcumin. it has long been known for its anti-inflammatory benefits, but has more recently been shown to help heal or prevent many health conditions from cancer to alzheimer's disease. it is a natural antiseptic and antibacterial agent. it has shown itself to be useful in preventing and stopping growth of existing cancers such as prostate, breast, melanoma, and childhood leukemia. it is a natural liver detoxifier (turmeric and beets will undo any and all of your sins. okay, maybe not all of them.) it reduces the growth of plaque build up in the brain which may slow or prevent the spread of alzheimer's disease. in chinese medicine, turmeric is used to treat depression. it is a natural painkiller, it aids in fat metabolism in the body, and its anti-inflammatory properties make it a natural treatment for rheumatoid arthritis. so, hurry up and get your hands on some turmeric. it's a little yellow wonder powder.