Golly gee, it's happened to me! My son, E, age 7, has turned into a pasta-craving picky eater. Fruits are fine, but bread products are preferred. Vegetables look to him like 4-inch hypodermic needles poised to pierce his skin. And everywhere we go, he notices the desserts. Life has become a never-ending negotiation about how much of this he has to eat before he gets some of that.

I tell you this not to brag (yeah, right), but so you will think, "Ha! Howie goes telling everyone else how to feed their kids and here he can't even do it right in his own home. What a fraud!"

No, wait. That's not right either. Keep Reading…

Q: How exactly do I make a breakfast smoothie that includes green leafy veggies. Do I put them straight into the blender with the other ingredients or juice them first? 

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Falafel, the mid-eastern chickpea balls that usually get deep-fried and smothered in salad and sauces in a pita pocket, has long been one of my favorite foods. I have very fond memories of being a penniless student in Jerusalem in the mid-1980s, buying a large falafel in pita, and refilling it again and again from the fixings bar until I had eaten a huge lunch for about 70 cents.

Of course, the deep-frying is a problem these days. (It always was a problem, I just didn't know it.) So I was delighted to find a no-oil-added version of falafel in Louise Hagler's Meatless Burgers. I've adapted it to make it a little spicier (and therefore more authentic to my taste buds).

Ingredients

• 2 cloves garlic
• 2 cups cooked garbanzo beans (one 15-oz can, drained)
• 1/4 cup water or leftover broth from the can of beans
• 1/2 teaspoon Bragg liquid aminos or low-sodium tamari or soy sauce
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
• 1 tablespoon ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon ground coriander
• 2 cups bread crumbs (I used sprouted wheat bread in the food processor - Trader Joe's and Alvarado St. Bakery make excellent loaves)
• 1/2 cup minced onions
• 1/4 cup chopped parsley

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 F.

Mince garlic in food processor. Add garbanzos, water, salt, pepper, cumin and coriander. Process until creamy. Transfer to bowl. Add breadcrumbs, onion, and parsley, mix, and form into burgers (flatter is better for baking).

Arrange burgers on oiled baking sheet and bake for 15 minutes on each side.

Serve in whole grain pita pockets lined with humus, filled with chopped lettuce, tomatoes, red or orange peppers, and cucumbers, and drizzled with a mixture of sesame tahini and lemon juice.  Eat right away or pack for an envy-inviting lunch.

Andrea Beaman is one of the most sensible and kind voices out there on the topic of feeding and treating yourself right. What other health and nutrition guru would admit to smoking the occasional cigarette (but only after a couple of drinks!), and explain it in a way that shows us how to quit all our unhealthy addictions?

Andrea was FitFam's guest on the December Member Call. Listen online (60 min) or download the mp3 below to discover:

• several healthy holiday treats
• whether short fasts during the holiday season will make things better or worse
• the mindset shift that allows anyone to "find the time" to prepare healthy food every day
• three convenience foods that can turn anyone into a healthy short-order cook on a moment's notice
• how to quit smoking by not quitting smoking
• the secret to breaking food addictions without struggling or feeling deprived

This recipe is based on Jennifer McCann's Banana Oatmeal Cookies. I've added sesame seeds and chocolate chips, and streamlined the process to make it a little simpler. Thanks, Jennifer!

Ingredients:  Keep Reading…

These sweet, quick and completely healthy snacks are cheaper and better versions of the raw food "bars" - like LaraBars - that have sprung up everywhere and cost a pretty penny.

If you know a chocolate lover, you'll make them a friend for life with this recipe:  Keep Reading…

I recently pointed out in a forum, "… oil of any kind is so concentrated with calories and so devoid of nutrients that it has little place in a healthful diet." Someone took issue with that statement, reminding readers that fats are essential to life.

Quite so, but there's a difference between fats and oils. Oils are highly processed foods, especially these days with the chemical methods of extraction and the need to preserve them to keep them from going rancid, and add nothing but empty, fiber-less calories to your diet.

So how do you get by without oil? Here are some strategies:  Keep Reading…

Mia (my wonderful wife) has been interested in seeing how far off the grid we can get. She's studying and playing with natural building, researching solar energy, and thinking and writing about the various ways we are dependent on the "Matrix" of culture and industry that maybe don't serve our families' well-being.
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Here's a quick and simple granola recipe that lasts a long time in the cupboard without requiring refrigeration. It serves 4-8, depending on how hungry they are!

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For those of us who've discovered that we live healthier, happier and more responsibly without consuming vast quantities of animal products, it's the "ritual gatherings" that can be the most challenging to our lifestyles.

The Thanksgiving Turkey, the Christmas Roast, the Passover Gefilte Fish (well, if you've never tried it, you might not understand the full charm of a fishburger floating in coagulated brine), and the Labor Day Cookout - these are the times that try plant-eaters souls. So with that in mind, I offer a simple and delicious recipe for a plant-based burger: the Sweet Potato Burger.  Keep Reading…