Summer Dessert : )

New York green market, my favorite place in the city, is now full of summer produce : )

every weekend, i'm so looking forward to going there, wondering what new in season they have.

i'm usually not a huge fruits person, but this season, how can i resist when you smell the sweet aroma of peaches, apricots, plums, and all the berries!

of course, it's just good to eat as it is.

but hey, i like creating something different.

--yes, for me, cooking is an art project.

so i made this "summer fruit cocktail" : )

recipe

for jello

heat up organic, sugar free cranberry juice,--or any juice, with kanten algae until it melts completely.

add small cut apricot and squeeze a bit of lemon juice, and simmer.

pour it into heat safe cup, and let it cool, then in the fridge.

cube cut any summer fruits --- peaches, plum, cherry,...

cut jello into small cubes.

mix everything and add some berries and mint leaves.

serve cold and enjoy!

cute little baby deer!!

as you know, there are lot of wild deers on fire island.
and this time, i ran into a cute baby deer!
soooooooo adorable!!! : )

i wonder if the white patches on the body is something to do with it drinking mother's milk?
---if you have white patch or pimples on your skin, by the way, that indicates that you are overconsuming dairy products, according to oriental diagnosis.

anyway, i was so excited and wanted to go and touch it!
but didn't, of course, being afraid of ticks.

they say that lavender oil or mint work well to repel ticks as well as moschitoes.
also eating certain foods could attract those bugs since your blood becomes muggy.
paultry, eggs, and sugary foods, especially chocolate! are what you may want to avoid or minimize eating while in the woods.

more about it, http://wholelifewithjin.com/lyme.html

ahhhhh, negative ion...

one week on fire island....
my body and spirit is completely refreshed, recharged and re-energized.

i had been feeling streesed out ----who isn't? living in manhattan??---and the sympathetic nerves were hyper active.
but waking up with the birds songs, walking in the woods, reading on the beach and swimming in the ocean....
now i could literally feel that the parasympathetic nerves were more active and i was completely relaxed : )

interesting thing is that even though i drank way too much wine during the vacation ---- i mean, really---, and "indulge" myself way too much, ---i mean, REALLY---, i didn't have any trouble with my health whatsoever.
---if i do the same in the city, my body immidiately reacts!
not even sneezing or runny nose.

isn't this the power of nature?

yes, we human being is part of nature, and we must be in the nature from time to time......

Healthy & Delicious! Macrobiotic Snack : )

i snack between meals.
and not always a healthy choice.

then i rememberd a traditional japanese snack.
onigiri --rice ball !
* i use brown rice, of course : )

to add a little flavor and fun, i spread a bit of soy sauce on top and grill.
it's called " yaki - onigiri".
this is a must for japanese BBQ.

very tasty, easy to make, and healthy!
try with pickled veggie and bancha tea.

Another reason to not eat Meat!

at least, not "industorially raised" meat.

today's times reported that astonishing 70% of all antibiotics used in this country are fed to farm animals !!!
and mainly used to increase growth and lessen the chance of infection in crowded, industrial farms.

yuck!!

read the full story
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/07/24/opinion/24fr3.html?_r=1&ref=opinion

August 6th and 9th

August 6th and 9th are very important days for us japanese.
even after 64 years, we still remember the tragic events of human history.
the days when nuclear weapons were dropped on human beings.
8/6 in hiroshima, 8/9 in nagasaki, 1945.

In today's new york times, a japanese designer, issey miyake, posted a message as one of the A bomb survivers, which makes me proud of his courage and want to share it with my friends.

I hope Obama, as well as all the world leaders, will visit Hiroshima and Nagasaki and see what happened there with their own eyes, and declare total elimination of nuclear weapons.

no more hiroshima, no more nagasaki.
peace, Jin

Message from Issey Miyake

today's new york times'op ed.
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/07/14/opinion/14miyake.html?_r=1&ref=opinion

Back to the "Core"

so, it seems i've gone to "extreme yin" over the holiday weekend.
and my body is honest : (

but the important thing is, to have "core diet", which means "not doing the balancing act between extremes" , but instead, "being in and around "neutral"".
that is, whole grains based diet.

as long as you have this "core"diet to go back to, i guess it's ok to indulge yourself from time to time. right? : )

so, let's have fun and don't feel guilty just over 5 different desserts!!
---ok, maybe not 5 desserts at one time.....

Your Face Never Lies...

Here are some stuff im having on my face, after the over- indulgence--
and also what each means from oriental diagnosis.

1 little pimples on my nose
discharge of excessive fat, sugar and flour product.
heart and circulatory system could be troubled.

2 fleckles on my face
elimination of excessive carbohydrates, including sugar, honey, fruit sugar, and milk sugar.

3 red color on the white of the eyes
expanded blood capillaries, caused by excessive consumption of yin foods and drinks.
could indicates disorders in the circulatory and respiratory functions.

4 also on my finger tips....
cracked, split fingertips. well, not that horrible, but more like a extra dry-ish fingertips.
this condition also shows excess yin foods are being dischargedm including sugar, sweets, fruits, juice.....

like to know more?
"Your Body Never Lies--the complete book of oriental diagnosis" by Michio Kushi

Over-indulgence, then...

so, i had a great july 4th holiday weekend : )

starting with a great japanese movie, "the departures", and went to harvest some veggies in my little organic garden in prinston.
then on the 4th, i was invited to a BBQ in NJ, where i had a great food.

home made grilled pizza, some veggies and sea food, and followed by......
5 different kinds of dessert!! ----all home made, and super delicious : )

beautiful weather, good company, and great foods, how could i turn down the offer???
so i tasted all the dessert.
blueberry sorbet, chocolate pound cake, cherry pie, mixed berry crumbles, and chocolate/nuts biscotti.
and in the evening, i went to another small party, where i could enjoy the great view of fire works on hudson river.
and, there was strawberry shortcake!!!!
yes, i tasted it, too.....





a few days later, today, i can see the consequense on my face, so clearly...... : (