Author Archive | Jennie Lyon

5 Fantastic Reasons To Grow Your Own Fruit And Veggies

It’s fair to say that there is more pressure than ever on the different food resources around the world. One of the ways to alleviate the pressure is to grow your own produce in your garden. Here are some other benefits of exploring this option. 

Get The Kids Outside

An overlooked benefit of growing your own produce is that it does give you a reason to get the kids outside. There’s no reason why you can’t get the whole family involved in this idea. Your kids might love exploring how to prepare their own meals from scratch, including growing their own ingredients. This is a cool skill to teach them, even from a very young age. 

Explore New Recipes

One of the best and brightest benefits of growing your own fruit and veg is that you will be able to use the produce to explore different recipes and meal possibilities. These could be a big hit with your family and ensure that you do get tremendous benefits from options like this. For instance, you could take a look at a vegan chili recipe from The Mediterranean Dish. Going vegan can be difficult because it’s a massive change to your diet. Growing your own veg will make this a lot easier. 

Save Money 

Or, if you are struggling with your monthly budget, then it might interest you to learn that growing your own fruit and veg could save you a lot of money. It will help ensure that you don’t have to spend a fortune on different products in the superstore. It’s true to say that eating healthy can be expensive, but it doesn’t have to be when you live off your own plot of land. 

Help The Planet 

Of course one of the best reasons to grow your own veg and set up a little plot in your back garden is that you will be helping to save the planet. Particularly, if you take the right steps. Various research shows that composting – which will help your fruit and veg grow – you also help the planet. You can even ensure that more carbon dioxide is trapped underneath the ground rather than spreading into the atmosphere. So, while simple, this is definitely going to ensure that you’re doing your part to save the planet. 

Be Healthier 

Finally, one of the most important reasons to grow your own fruit and veg in your garden is that it is going to allow you to eat a healthier diet and ensure that your family is following the same diet too. Unfortunately, a lot of farmers are now using a wide range of chemicals in their produce while livestock is being pumped full of drugs. Experts believe that the impact these chemicals have on our body could be wide stretching and even lead to processes such as oxygenation. 

We hope this helps you understand why it is beneficial to grow your own fruit and veg rather than constantly relying on the products that you can buy in the superstore. If you take the right steps here, then you’ll be amazed by the incredible results that you’ll witness. 

How to Bake Simple Vegan, Organic, Whole-Wheat Oatmeal Cookies

 

Baking is one of my all-time favorite activities to do with Eben. No matter what we are whipping up in the kitchen, we always have fun. In addition to entertainment, baking with your children is a wonderful opportunity to teach them math and science skills, without them even knowing they are learning valuable lessons.

Here I share a divine recipe for one of Eben’s favorite homemade treats: vegan, organic, whole-wheat oatmeal cookies. He loves that they’re sweet — and I love that they include wholesome ingredients that are good for him, such as whole wheat and fruit.

Read on to learn how to bake my simple vegan oatmeal cookies.

What you will need:

  • 1 1/2 organic bananas
  • 1/2 organic apple
  • 1 cup organic whole wheat flour
  • 1 cup organic vegan carob chips
  • 3/4 cup organic oatmeal
  • 1/2 cup organic brown sugar
  • 2 tsp organic vanilla or almond extract
  • 1/2 tsp organic cinnamon
  • dash of nutmeg
  • dash of salt

Step 1: Blend It!

Add the bananas, apple, and vanilla extract to a blender and blend well.

Step 2: Get Mixing!

Add all of the dry ingredients to the banana-apple mixture and mix well.

Step 3: Get Baking!

Scoop large tablespoon-sized dollops of the cookie dough onto a cookie sheet and bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes.

Step 4: Enjoy!

Remove the cookies from the cookie sheet to cool. Then, enjoy with organic almond milk!

How to Bake Gluten-Free, Vegan Pumpkin Carob Chip Cookies

 

I love everything about fall. The cool, crisp weather, decorating for Halloween, spooky stories, and anything that includes pumpkin. Pumpkin is one of those members of the squash family that in my opinion doesn’t get used often enough! Not only is pumpkin packed with vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, and fiber — it tastes yummy too!

This fall instead of simply carving a pumpkin, grab your kids and bake a batch or two of my gluten-free, vegan pumpkin carob chip cookies. They are divine! And since this brightly colored squash is so good for you, you won’t feel bad indulging your kiddo’s sweet tooth with a cookie or two.

What you will need:

  • 1/2 cup organic coconut oil
  • 1 1/2 cups organic raw sugar
  • 1 cup of organic pumpkin
  • 1/4 cup organic flax-seed
  • 1/2 cup organic applesauce
  • 1 cup organic gluten-free carob chips
  • 1 teaspoon organic vanilla
  • 2 1/2 cups organic gluten-free flour
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
  • 1 teaspoon nutmeg
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt

Step 1: Mix it Up!

In a mixing bowl combine the coconut oil and sugar. Then, mix for a couple of minutes.

Step 2: Add the Goodies!

Add the pumpkin, flax-seed, applesauce, and vanilla and mix until smooth.

Step 3: Add the Dry Ingredients!

In a separate mixing bowl combine the flour, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt, mix thoroughly, then slowly add in the wet mixture and mix until smooth. Then, add the carob chips!

Step 4: Preheat + Prepare

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F. Then, line a cookie sheet with eco-friendly parchment paper or a reusable silicon mat. Add small flat balls of cookie dough onto your cookie sheets and bake 15 minutes or until golden.

Step 5: Cool and Enjoy!

Remove the cookies from the cookie sheet and allow them to cool. Enjoy!

Ways to Make Your Garden Organized & Sustainable

If your garden isn’t working for you, it’s a good idea to make some changes. Making it a little more organized and structured will certainly help you get more out of it going forward. And at the same time, you should also think about how you can make your garden a little more sustainable because this is something we’re all trying to do better at right now. Read on to find out about some useful tips on how to do this.

Create Distinct Zones in the Garden

First of all, you should try to create a series of distinct zones in your garden. That way, you’ll be able to split the space up better and create a better sense of organisation too. You could have one zone for vegetables, another for socializing with friends and family and a space for kids to play, for example. It’s a good idea to tailor it to your specific needs though.

Cut Down on Harsh Chemicals

Cutting down on the number of harsh chemicals you use in your garden is a good idea if you want to make it a little more eco-friendly and a bit more sustainable. There are lots of cleaner and less harsh alternatives that you can turn to if you don’t want to rely on harsh chemicals that come with a range of negative side effects.

Compost Your Food Waste

Another great way to make your garden more sustainable is to start composting. Starting your own compost heap is really easy and it’s something that anyone can do. Composting also allows you to do something with the food waste that would otherwise go in the trash. You’ll then have a lot of great compost to treat your flowers and plants with, which is always useful. 

Do More to Tackle Weeds

Doing a little more to tackle the weeds in your garden will help you to keep it looking tidy and organized. It’ll be much more presentable and a lot less overgrown. You should also look to a weed control service if you have a large garden or you simply don’t have the time to do the work yourself. Either way, get them under control.

Selectively Choose Plants and Trees

It’s important to look at the soil in your garden and choose the plants and flowers that are going to be best suited to it. That means being a little more selective and ensuring you’re choosing the plants and flowers that are going to flourish in a healthy way in your garden. That’ll make the space look better and more organized, while also making the garden more sustainable too.

It’s more than possible for you to make your garden a little better organized and a lot more sustainable if you take the right steps. The tips above will help you to make that a reality, so start making them happen if you want a garden that you can be proud of and one that’s eco-friendly too.

Set Aside Creative Time Every Day

Do you set aside creative time for yourself each day? If not, you should try to set aside just 30 minutes to write, draw, paint, scrapbook, photograph, or do whatever it is that you find creative? It will help keep your creativity flowing and also will help chase the blues away. Plus, you deserve 30 minutes each day to work on your creativity. My favorite creative activities are writing and take a guess – blogging. Ha!

What is your favorite creative activity?