From ruby red raspberries to earthy dumplings with a difference, raw vegan chef Ani Phyo shows small treats can have a big impact. Ani shares two of her favourite recipes with Diary of a Vegan from her new bestseller: Anis Raw Food Essentials (see book for full recipe details).

CUSTARD TARTLETS
MAKES ABOUT 6 TARTLETS

To make tartlets, which are traditionally small pastry crusts, divide and press Basic Piecrust into the compartments in a tartlet pan to make individual mini pies. These tiny pies are filled with Whipped Cashew Kream, and topped with a variety of fruits for a beautiful display.

1 recipe Basic Piecrust (page 263), made with almond meal

2 recipes Whipped Cashew Kream (page 266)

Your favorite small fruits for topping each tartlet, such as 1 blackberry, 3 blueberries, 1 raspberry, or cacao nibs

Line the compartments of a tartlet or multiple brioche pan with plastic wrap first, then press the piecrust firmly into the pan. Remove by gently lifting up the plastic wrap.

Next, spoon the whipped kream into each tartlet. Top each tartlet decoratively with one type of fruit or the cacao nibs.

Serve immediately, or keep in the fridge.

Will keep for 2 or 3 days in the fridge.

KOREAN DUMPLINGS
MAKES 4 SERVINGS

Traditionally, to make dumplings, a shredded vegetable filling is enclosed in a circular wrapper thats folded over the filling. Its easy to make, but making your filling, then stuffing all your wrappers, can take a bit of time. This is a fun thing to do with friends and kids, as extra sets of hands will speed up your process.

WRAPPERS

1 recipe Tomato Wrappers (page 173), dehydrated as directed, cut into 16 squares about 31?2 inches across

FILLING
MAKES ABOUT 2 CUPS

1?2 cup Green Cabbage Kimchi (page 131), squeezed dry and sliced finely

(if you dont have kimchi handy, see note below)

3?4 cup finely chopped lettuce, such as iceberg, bok choy, or romaine

11?4 cups finely chopped bean sprouts, or your favorite sprout

2 tablespoons finely chopped green onion (about 1 whole green onion)

1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil, for flavor, or raw if you prefer

Place all the filling ingredients in a mixing bowl and toss to mix well. Squeeze out all excess liquid completely before using. Make sure the filling is drained well, otherwise your wrapper will get soggy quickly.

Place a wrapper square in the palm of your hand, shiny side up. (The side that dehydrated against the Paraflexx liner needs to be facing upward.) Scoop 1 tablespoon of filling into the center of your wrapper, and fold and seal a pocket in the shape of a triangle. Then fold so that the two far edges of the triangle meet, and pinch together. See Mandu Making, page 238.

Serve with Soy Vinegar Dipping Sauce (page 239).

KIMCHI SUBSTITUTE: If you dont have kimchi on hand, use . cup of shredded napa cabbage tossed with . teaspoon of Nama Shoyu or Bragg Liquid Aminos, a pinch of cayenne (to taste), 1 teaspoon of minced garlic, and 1 teaspoon of grated ginger. Set aside to marinate and soften for at least 5 minutes before using. Be sure to squeeze out all excess liquid before using.

Mandu Making

TO MAKE YOUR mandu, follow these easy steps:

• Make sure your wrapper is shiny side up. The side that was against the Paraflexx liner should face upward.
• Squeeze all excess liquid from your filling, the drier the better. Any moisture will damage your wrappers.
• Spoon a tablespoon of filling into the center of your square wrapper.
• Fold the wrapper in half to form a triangle, sealing in the filling, and secure the edges closed by pressing firmly.
• Join the corners of your triangle and secure into a ring shape by squeezing together. A drop of water on the corners will help to hold it together if needed.

Alternatively, instead of using dehydrated wrappers, which can tend to get soggy when filled with moist fillings, use very thinly sliced daikon radish. Set out at room temperature for 30 minutes to wilt and soften, then fill and fold over into a stuffed semicircle.

Find out more at www.aniphyo.com. Buy your own copy of Anis Raw Food Essentials here.

Parents now have an alternative to the toxic plastic bottles, which research has shown leaches the chemical bisphenol-A (BPA) into food and drink.

Jen Moore, founder of Pura Stainless, has developed an electro-polished stainless steel bottle thats BPA free, hygienic, lightweight and durable. Best of all, it wont leach chemicals into the drink inside.

The product is also the first and only infant and toddler bottle to be designed to work with wide neck nipples.

The Green Dove caught up with Jen to get the lowdown on her new award-winning bottles and to get her thoughts on why the public has only recently been told about the cancer-causing chemical, BPA.

What was the inspiration behind the product?

Pura Stainless was created with a simple vision: to make a difference by responsibly manufacturing a safe, durable, and cost-effective alternative to bottled water and the inadequate reusable bottles available to consumers. While our legacy product is a line of stainless steel adult bottles, we founded the company with a goal of producing the first adaptable and 100% plastic free bottle in the world.

As you know, the Pura Kiki bottle is the first and only infant and toddler bottle to be designed to work with wide neck nipples and spouts from a variety of manufacturers and comprise a stainless steel cap.

We discovered vegan chef Christy Morgan on Twitter and instantly fell in love with her philosophy and her food. The Green Dove asked the LA-based veganista, who has whipped up dishes for the likes of Alicia Silverstone, to share her journey, insights and one of her fave recipes…

How did you become the Blissful Chef?

I’ve been studying plant-based nutrition for about eight years and teaching for four. I came up with the name “The Blissful Chef” as a way to brand myself and create an image that people will remember. The name fits me well, because to feel bliss is to experience true happiness and spiritual joy. My life, business, teachings, blog, and whole existence is all about spreading happiness and joy to others through food, and helping them access their bliss.

What inspires you?

In live, I’m inspired by all of my amazing friends that do what they are passionate about everyday and those who have dedicated their lives to saving animals. With cooking, I’m inspired by the changing seasons and the different produce that is available throughout the year. I love gardening, and find growing my own food to be a fascinating process. I’m also inspired by different cultures. Often times I just open the fridge, see what’s in there and whip something up.

Your fave raw vegan treats?

I love raw vegan desserts because they are made with wholesome ingredients and they are so rich that I only need a little to be satisfied. If I eat baked desserts, like Uncle Eddies cookies for instance, I can literally eat the whole bag in one sitting. I love raw chocolate, Earth Cafe pies, and my Heavenly Raw Chocolate Mousse.

If you could recommend one thing about veganism to someone who’s not, what would it be?

Eating a healthy, balanced, plant-based diet I feel is the best thing for our minds, bodies, spirits and for the planet. But if you can’t go whole hog overnight, then start by having two plant-based meals a day (or as much as you can). Slowly start transitioning the “good” things into your diet, like whole grains and dark leafy greens, then start taking away the not-so-good things (meat, dairy, sugar, alcohol, processed foods). I have some great tips on my blog for making the transition that are extremely helpful and realistic.

The 80/20 Rule
This is the only thing that keeps me sane and not OCD about my diet. If you can eat super healthy 80% of the time, you can let yourself be a little naughty 20% of the time. Hold on now, Im not talking about having hamburger and fries for that 20%, but if you are at a party or want to go out to dinner with your friends you can have something fried or a piece of cake with frosting. I dont compromise as far as eating only vegan foods, but sometimes I do eat sugar or have more oil than Id like to when I eat out. Im human too! I just have a rule that at home Im making the healthiest food possible, with wholesome organic ingredients, no oil and no sugar. That way I can relax when I go out with friends.

It doesn’t serve you or your health to be fanatical about your diet. But it is the most important tool that you have for creating optimal health free of physical pain and mental suffering. Your food choices will affect everything in your life, so choose them well.

Check out The Blissful Chef blog for more ramblings from Christy Morgan, natural food chef and educator, who continues to study plant-based nutrition with the best in the field, has cooked for Alicia Silverstone, and continues to be sought out for her accessible approach to nutrition and holistic living.

Follow Christy on Twitter @TheBlissfulChef.

Avocado, Strawberry, & Grape Tomato Salad

Strawberries are the most popular berry in the world. They go great in salads and as a compliment to a savory dressing like Balsamic Vinaigrette like in this recipe.

1 head butter lettuce, leaves torn or chiffonade
2 avocados
1 medium carrot, thin julienne
10 grape tomatoes, quartered
6 strawberries, ends cut off and sliced
1 cup yellow pepper, thinly sliced
Pinch of pepper and sea salt

Balsamic Vinaigrette

1 tablespoon olive oil

Ten years ago, Marguerite Alston was faced with a major health challenge that would change her life forever. A malignant melanoma diagnosis sent her stress levels off the scale. Her future was suddenly uncertain.

“I vowed at that point in time that I would do all that I can to look after my body, mind and spirit,” she says, now fully recovered. “I wanted to learn all that I could about nutrition and gain a deeper understanding of what I can do to make sure I live a long, vibrant and healthy life and I never wanted to deal with cancer ever again.”

Before we bring you the second installment of our interview with the BodyMind Institute founder, Lars Gustafsson (see below), The Green Dove brings you this inspirational Q&A with Marguerite (pictured below), BodyMind student and now practitioner.

Students of the Institute not only learn the fundamentals of nutrition through body, mind and spirit, but also discover how to apply the information to their own lives to make gentle yet major shifts that last a lifetime.

If you missed part one of our interview with Lars, please click here.

TGD: What courses did you study at the BodyMind Institute?

MA: I started with the 90 Day Renewal course and have since taken the Level I, Level II and am currently enrolled in the Raw Certification.

TGD: Can you give an insight into what brought you to the Institute?

MA: In 2000, I went through some significant life changes that resulted in lots of stress throughout the year.

I understand theres an issue with the herbicide atrazine showing up in dangerous quantities in drinking water, mostly throughout the central U.S. Why is this happening and whats being done about it? – Marcus Gerde, Spokane, WA

Atrazine is an herbicide that is widely used across the U.S. and elsewhere to control both broadleaf and grassy weeds in large-scale agricultural operations growing corn, sorghum, sugar cane and other foods. While its use is credited with increasing agricultural yields by as much as six percent, there is a dark side. The nonprofit Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) reports that atrazine exposure has been shown to impair the reproductive systems of amphibians and mammals, and has been linked to cancer in both laboratory animals and humans. Male frogs exposed to minute doses of atrazine can develop female sex characteristics, including hermaphroditism and the presence of eggs in the testes. Researchers suspect that these effects are amplified when atrazine and other harmful agricultural chemicals are employed together.

Atrazines wide use makes its impacts that much scarier. NRDC reports that it is the most commonly detected pesticide or herbicide in U.S. waters, with the highest levels found in Indiana, Missouri and Nebraska. The Southeast also faces atrazine overload issues. What irks many public health advocates is that, even though study after study implicates atrazine in a long list of environmental and health problems, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) still allows farms to apply 75 million pounds of it each year. The European Union banned atrazine in 2004 due to persistent groundwater pollution there.

Critics of the EPA accuse the agency of selling out the health of the American people so industrial agricultural companies can make big profits. Indeed, in 2003, the EPA estimated a total annual economic impact, if atrazine were to be banned, of over $2 billion, including a yield loss plus increased herbicide cost averaging $28 per acre. In 2006, the EPA concluded that triazine herbicides (such as atrazine) posed “no harm that would result to the general U.S. population, infants, children or other…consumers.”

In light of the EPAs refusal to consider a ban on atrazine, NRDC and other groups have taken up the cause of educating consumers about the dangers posed by our national addiction to dangerous herbicides and pesticides, and lobbying elected officials to add their voices. President Obama has promised to take a hard look at atrazine, but it remains to be seen how long it will be before any such review takes place.

Of course, organic farmers arent waiting around for Obama to ban atrazine. By planting diverse crops, rotating them regularly and employing other age-old agricultural techniques, a new generation of American farmers is learning that expensive chemicals may not be able to boost their yields enough to warrant the high financial and environmental costs associated with constant chemical spraying.

As for you and I, the best way to prevent ingesting atrazine with our tap water is to buy a water filter that employs activated charcoal. NRDC publishes a free list of water filter recommendations on its Simple Steps website. If youre on a well, NRDC recommends having its water tested annually for atrazine and other contaminants. Even bottled water producers may not filter out atrazine from their source aquifers, so filtering at the tap is the only way consumers can be sure to remove it along with other contaminants.

CONTACTS: NRDC, www.nrdc.org; Simple Steps, www.simplesteps.org; EPA, www.epa.gov.

You just have to browse the web or your nearest book store to see the world is obsessed with dieting. Yet if statistics are accurate, were not just tipping the scales, were on our way to breaking them. It has taken many of us years of restrictions and meal replacements to figure it out: diets dont work.

From calorie counting to cutting out carbs, a Pandoras Box awaits those who still dare to follow the latest diet craze. Yet achieving and maintaining your ideal figure is actually more simple than what weve been lead to believe-and it comes with a bonus: vibrant health.

There is one major requirement thats needed on this path to ultimate wellness and the body weve all dreamed of: taking full responsibility. Taking charge and becoming our own nutritionist and not relying on big business to deliver a magic bullet that is nothing more than body-disruptive chemicals dressed in drag.

Perhaps its an assumption to say most of us were taught the same stuff in school, none of which covered off real nutrition and how to actually apply it. Yet, the lesson of nutrition is one of the most important life lessons we can ever learn. We also werent taught that nourishing ourselves is actually fun and can lead us to a full, love-fueled life. A nourished, healthy body results in clear thinking, more energy and, for many, a channel to the divine. No pill could ever compete with that.

Enter Lars Gustafsson: author, speaker, life and nutrition guide. Born in India to Canadian parents, he grew up living an authentic mix of tribal and western life. “This upbringing,” he says “created a balance between the scientific passion of the west and the ancient wisdom of the Far East.”

For 23 years, Lars has explored nutrition, fitness and healthy lifestyles. As founder of the BodyMind Institute-a global enlightened school of learning-he teaches that nutrition is so much more than just the food we eat. Its the total way we nourish our mind and body.

“Over these years I found that I needed to personally experience something in order to accept it as fact. In the end I have found that it is only through personal experience in the application of any information can you make your own informed decisions. Your own level of personal truth will grow according to your willingness to experience more.”

In 2003, Lars introduced The BodyMind Nutrition Certification online programs to meet an emerging demand for true to life systems, formulas and programs, creating the opportunity for people everywhere to discover and pass on a nutrition and lifestyle process that creates a personal discovery of balance in body, mind and spirit.

“I believe in the scientific method, that there are natural laws that govern our physical universe … yet in these 23 years I have often found the ‘unexplainable’ happening all around me,” Lars says. “These have created questions which led me to find hard scientific data that hasn’t found it’s way into the mass media or awareness of the masses.”

“Over these years I found that I needed to personally experience something in order to accept it as fact. In the end I have found that it is only through personal experience in the application of any information can you make your own informed decisions. Your own level of personal truth will grow according to your willingness to experience more.”

Most recently, Lars has teamed up with raw food nutritionist and expert David €˜Avocado Wolfe to deliver a program in raw food nutrition-a course that shares more than 15 years of Davids sought-after knowledge. With this course and other programs including 90 Day BodyMind Renewal and Sports Nutrition, the BodyMind Institute is changing the way we look at real nutrition, forever.

As a student of the BodyMind Raw Nutrition, the 90 Day BodyMind Renewal and the Nutrition I certifications, I wanted to reach out to Lars, to hear first hand how these online courses are bringing real nutrition to people at their own pace, in their own time. What I discovered is a man with a passion that goes beyond simply developing courses. Lars Gustafsson is making a difference, one person at a time through life-enhancing education that literally changes lives.

So passionate is he about reaching those who share his dream to make a difference, that with David Wolfe, Lars is offering free entry to the BodyMind Institute Level I BodyMind Nutrition Certification for those who sign up for Davids Raw Nutrition Certification. Its a $1,500 gift, he explains, to reach those who also want to make a difference-to their own health, the health of others and the health of the planet.

“Lets bring about a stunning shift to our planet together,” Lars (pictured left) says.

We hope you enjoy part I of our interview with Lars (below), as he takes you behind the scenes of his passion that is giving back in a big way. Next Monday (May 17) we will share part II of this special interview.

To find out more about Lars and the BodyMind Institute, please click here.

The Body Mind Connection: The Key to Ultimate Health by Shanon Dunn. Main photo courtesy alicepopkorn

I heart the holidays and I love to travel. But there’s no doubting the menu options for vegetarians and vegans can be a little limited.

In a quest to visit just about every continent on earth (still quite a few to go, mind you) we at The Green Dove often refer to the travel-fabulous ResponsibleTravel.com, an earth-friendly company that keeps the animal and earth-loving lot very much in mind when it comes to making travel plans. To date, they have 33 vegetarian and vegan destinations on their books, which you can check out at the click of a mouse.

From a Pyrenees caravan park to bed and breakfast accommodation in Cornwall, this fab site is a must for any vegetarian or vegan adventurer or rest-and-relaxation seeker.

Booking a vegetarian or vegan holiday means you can relax, rather than trying to explain your dietary requirements in (possibly) another language.

A must-visit includes eco accommodation in Ventimiglia on the Italian Riviera. Be sure to write!

Living green can be overwhelming. Where to start? From eco cars and planet-friendly cleaning products to organic wines and veganism, its little wonder many opt to do nothing for fear of not being able to do it all.

Yet its the little steps that add up to mean something big.

A great way to test the eco waters is at this years Go Green Expo, to be held at the LA Convention Center from January 22 to 24. Get the goss on natural personal care products, green gadgets, eco-celebrities, yoga classes, green industry and activists including Ed Begley Jr., Mariel Hemingway, John Picard and Eric Corey Freed.

With more than 300 exhibitors, the Go Green Expo is a favorite for those who are eco-curious or full immersed in all things environmental.

Food and wine lovers also mark the event on their calendars thanks to the local restaurant and wine tasting pavilion. Pet lovers can also help fido go green at the Pet Expo.

For 50 per cent off the online ticket price, check out the Go Green banner on The Green Dove home page for the exclusive code.

Find out more about the 2010 Go Green Expo at www.gogreenexpo.com

Go Green Expo Los Angeles is proudly sponsored by The Green Dove, CBS Television, The Los Angeles Business Journal, Natural Health Magazine, Natural Home Magazine, Spirituality & Health Magazine, Mother Earth News, Kiwi Magazine, Green Lifestyles Magazine, Whole Life Times, The Sierra Club and more.

Traditional Beauty Tips that Pass the Test of Time…

Everyone may not like being told “I told you so”, and most women may also not like thinking their mother was right. However, on stepping upon the threshold of 30, and with my mother now in her early sixties, I cant help but notice that on a good day, she looks not more than maybe only five or ten years older.

And with each wrinkle, thinned out skin or spot I notice, I hear her quite literally echoing voice telling me “I told you so”. So what was it exactly that she used to always harp on about while growing up?

Quite simply, endless beauty tips that at that time seemed to have been written on stone tablets alongside Moses 10 Commandments. But these then thought of as primitive beauty routines now seem charming and simple in an age where we’re constantly fed a barrage of beauty adverts and overly photo-shopped images of perfection.

In my own desperate attempt to look great, I have ventured down every possible winding road that ultimately lead me nowhere, and pick-pocketing

Eating out of a can has never appealed to me. Besides the fact that the food inside is dead, it has always seemed just not quite right on some level. Perhaps great if youre stranded in the desert (hopefully with a can opener in your pocket), but for every day living I just dont do it.

I know there has been some talk over the years of aluminium leaching into the foods inside the cans. Whether thats true, I cant say. However, new research is suggesting its the plastic that lines cans these days thats doing the harm.

Dr Fredrick vom Saal, PhD, who is an endocrinologist at the University of Missouri, specialises in studying the effects of bisphenol-A (BPA), the toxic chemical that comes from plastics that wrap just about everything we buy in supermarkets. He says the number one canned food to steer clear of is tomatoes. The following info may well make you re-think your mothers famous spaghetti sauce.

Dr vom Saal says bisphenol-A is a synthetic estrogen that is linked to all sorts of dis-eases from reproductive problems to heart disease, diabetes and obesity. Its the acidity in the tomatoes that reacts with the BPA that causes the chemical to leach into the food. Appetising huh?

Whats the solution? Learning to live like your great grandmother perhaps, and only eating organic food that looks how its supposed to. Freshly picked. Oh and speak to your local grocer about supplying more organic, non-packaged foods. The greater demand, the more supply.

While Im on the subject of stuff to avoid, here are some other foods, as published in a story on Shine.com, that you may want to re-think.

Microwave popcorn ~ Chemicals, including perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA), in the lining of the bag, are part of a class of compounds that may be linked to infertility in humans. In animal testing, the chemicals cause liver, testicular, and pancreatic cancer. Studies show that microwaving causes the chemicals to vaporize – and migrate into your popcorn.

Non-organic potatoes ~ Root vegetables absorb herbicides, pesticides, and fungicides that wind up in soil. In the case of potatoes theyre treated with fungicides during the growing season, then sprayed with herbicides to kill off the fibrous vines before harvesting. After theyre dug up, the potatoes are treated yet again to prevent them from sprouting.

Conventional apples ~ If fruits held a “most doused in pesticides contest,” apples would win. An increasing number of studies are starting to link a higher body burden of pesticides with Parkinsons disease.

A better way to use cans

A Good Reason to Can the Can by Vegan Girl at www.diaryofavegan.com