Vinny’s grandparents have told him that living with Alzheimer’s disease or dementia is one of the scarier prospects of growing older. So he has decided to do a series of posts about some lifestyle choices that could make a positive difference to our mental health in later years. He’s all for starting these habits early, for a longer and more active life. Read on for his third installment. Featured recipe: Smoothies.
Part 3 – Drink Water
The elixir of life
Humans can last days, even weeks, without food. But without water, we’re in trouble. Just 4 hours without water can lead to mild dehydration, with effects like fatigue and headaches. Going as little as 24 hours without water can have dire results. Brains lacking water lose the ability to retain short-term memories and to recall memories from the past. Lack of water over longer periods makes your little gray cells shrink. A thirsty brain ages before its time, resulting in brain fog, confusion, and worse.
Yogurt bowl with rhubarb, ginger, cinnamon, and walnuts
Fend off those “senior moments”
Vinny’s grandparents have told him that living with Alzheimer’s disease or dementia is one of the scarier prospects of growing older. So he has decided to do a series of posts about some lifestyle choices that could make a positive difference to our mental health in later years. He’s all for starting these habits early, for a longer and more active life. Read on for his second installment. Featured recipe: Yogurt bowl.
Part 2: Choose Mood Foods
The foods you choose affect your mood. And what is mood but your brain’s reactions to the world around you. Vinny’s yogurt bowl is a treat filled with probiotics and flavenoids to calm your brain and keep it firing on all cylinders.
This delicious dessert owes its existence to Hannah Rothchild’s comic novel The Improbability of Love, a satire of the art world served up as a sensory experience fit for royalty. I was presenting this novel to our neighborhood book club. More
This dessert is so good, people call it Nice Cream. The riper the banana, the sweeter the dessert.
Ripe bananas also have higher levels of antioxidants, which as any frequent reader of Vinny’s blog will know, fight chronic disease and inflammation.
One interesting thing about fully ripened bananas is that they also produce a substance called tumor necrosis factor (TNF). TNF combats abnormal cells to help shrink cancer tumors. The more dark patches a banana has, More
Enjoy a replay of a recipe we posted a few years back for a summertime drink that’s as good for you as it tastes. Fresh lime juice gives this cooler its Yoda color, and sparkling water adds the bubbles. For a gourmet touch, add some lime sorbet.
It’s that wonderful time of year when we host our annual gourmet dinner, which has been going on for a very long time now. We never get tired of trying out new recipes for our friends.
This year we chose a Spanish tapas theme, with the hope that we could prepare many of the dishes ahead of time and just enjoy ourselves on the evening.
To welcome our guests, we served a cocktail originating from Valencia, where oranges reign supreme. More
To honor the people who gave their all in the Great Wars, I’m reposting some recipes I first brought to you in 2012. These traditional recipes were in vogue during the scarce years of the Second World War… but many probably go back much farther than that, handed down by mothers and mother’s mothers in Britain ever since they began to grow potatoes and cabbages… and gooseberries! More
Eat more leaves and berries… and onions. And tomatoes!
Eating for a long life
Put these 10 foods on your grocery list every week and you’ll up your chances of living a longer, healthier, happier life! So says Dr. Joel Fuhrman, M.D. More
“I love mangoes,” Isla said one day. “Can we grow some?”
Vinny sighed. “Not here in Canada, kiddo. Mango trees thrive in India, where people call mangoes the Food of the Gods. Mango trees live long and prosper there. Some specimens are over 300 years old and still going strong.”
Anyone who’s skated Ottawa’s Rideau Canal knows all about our iconic BeaverTails. Nobody ever leaves the ice without a bite of these sugary deep-fried pastries decorated with cinnamon, chocolate, or lemon, or some other delightful combination of sweet and sour.
As I was focusing on Ottawa’s winter wonderland for my gourmet dinner party, Frozen in Ottawa, I thought tiny BeaverTails would make a perfect hors d’oeuvre. They would go well with the sweetly tart cocktail we served, Frozen Blues.
BeaverTails are served hot on the Canal. But as my theme was “frozen,” I served mine cold. More
A duck walked up to a lemonade stand. And he said to the man
running the stand… “Hey…. Got any grapes?”
The man said, “No, we just sell lemonade. It’s cold and it’s fresh and it’s all home made. Can I get you a glass?” The duck said, “I’ll pass.” (waddle waddle waddle)
I used to find salads a chore – so much washing, peeling, and chopping. All that, only to end up with tasteless, watery, food suitable only for hamsters.
Beet and apple vinaigrette. Full of fight-o-nutrients!
Will waved his grandpa’s cane in front of him, as if he were fending off a stampeding herd of dinosaurs. “Fight-O-nutrients!” he roared, charging across the room. “I need some for lunch, please, Vinny?”
I braced for a high five, as Will raced back toward me, his free hand raised, his sword hand busy. “Gotta keep my energy up!”
No problemo,” I said. “It’s summer time and the livin’-healthy thing is easy. Just eat lots of bright veggies and fruits, and phytonutrients are yours for the taking. These are salad days!”
“Salads are boring. And I hate veggies,” moaned Will. “Isn’t there something else?” More
Instead of the suspicious fats usually lurking in rich desserts from heavy cream and butter, this chocolate pudding hides a secret agent known far and wide for his success in fighting disease. His name? Detective Avocado. More
Totally in awe is the only way to describe my state at 1:00 am on the eve of my sister’s birthday, as I stared at my work.
I had been in desperate need of a cake. Not just any cake… but a gluten-free confection, so the birthday girl could have some, too.
Chef Janet Rörschåch’s blog suggested a beautiful angel-light cake made from eggs and ground nuts, decorated with vanilla-infused fruit and boozy whipped cream.
The pièce de resistance was glittering threads of sugar, spun from hazel nut centers. Perfect! More
Here I focus on how to use this wonderful fruit. First and foremost, let’s see how to get past the blushing hard skin to the juicy seeds, or arils, inside. More
It’s summer time and love is in the air. Alas, humidity and heat are also abundant. What to do! We need ways to stay cool and fit. Enter Lady Pomegranate.
Pomegranates have played a role in both our spiritual and physical lives for thousands of years. The blood-red seeds spilling forth when you cut into the thick skin appeals to people on a primal level. More
I’ve never tried reblogging before, but thought I’d give it a try this 17th of March. It’s St. Paddy’s day! Vinny’s Irish tea party from last year has lots of great links to recipes, songs and stories to help you celebrate the day with your family. Erin go bragh!
“It’s Saint Paddy’s day tomorrow,” says Vinny, “Let’s throw an Irish tea party! Get out your top hats and Irish bowlers, invite Tiger and Firefox, and set the table.
A scoop o’ colorful puréed veggie soup helps the antioxidants go down.
Antioxidants unmasked
Among scientists she goes by the name of antioxidant. But Vinny’s friends know her as Auntie Oxidant. By either name, she is a kid’s best friend. She is a powerful protector from degenerative disease. This fighter disarms invaders called free radicals, bent on destroying our cells. More
These traditional recipes were born during the scarce years of the Second World War… but many probably go back much farther than that, handed down by mothers and mother’s mothers in Britain ever since they began to grow potatoes and cabbages. More
Spotted Puddink in English tea cups, with stirred vanilla custard
Flour of England, fruit of Spain,
Met together in a shower of rain;
Put in a bag tied round with a string;
If you’ll tell me this riddle,
I’ll give you a ring.
You may have already guessed the answer to this little riddle: steamed pudding!
There’s a strange new animal stalking the aisles of the produce section of our grocery store these days. It’s beautiful and a little dangerous looking… with long, scales tipped in green overlying a glossy, red, leathery skin. It’s almost as if it’s breathing flames at you… or getting ready to stab you with poison darts!
Oh No! It’s Dragon Fruit… Hide!
Of course it’s not an animal at all. It’s a delicious but sinisterly attractive food called the Dragon Fruit. I say ‘sinister’ because you do have to be a little careful. More
What a lovely limey shade!—Yoda image from Tim Ketzer, as used in “Star Wars”
Soda might taste good but the science cannot be ignored. It’s bad for your innards. Drink water, instead.
For those good times when you want something special, though, here’s a recipe you might like. It’s perfect for the hot weather (should it ever arrive…). Or mix up a big bowlful for Christmas… Yoda Soda is as lovely a shade of Yule-tide green as Yoda’s complexion!
The words for the Prune Song appear in Vinny’s book Cook Up A Story, so Vinny thought you might like to hear the tune, here. Granny learned The Prune Song at camp when she was a girl. She would sing it whenever we washed a load of dishes together. I loved it (and Granny, too!). More
Cook Up a Story 