The Official Blog of The GEM.

SHINE BRIGHTER. Our goal is to live better and be better.

Tag Archives: Vitamix


This Fall Food will Give Your Insides a Warm, GEM~my Hug

Posted on by diamondsonyourinside and currently has 1 Comment on This Fall Food will Give Your Insides a Warm, GEM~my Hug

Our desire for warmer, more grounding, fall food starts to increase now that cooler weather is upon us. fall foodYour body craves the comfort of roasted veggies, rich stews and robust soups.

Inside The GEM, folks start to line up for our famous Lentil Soup, Sauteed Arugula and Mushroom Salad and Turmeric Lattes. SHAZAM! Those things are good and they give your insides a warm hug.

While you are ALWAYS welcome at our door for your daily dose of fall food goodness, we think you should branch out and try some new things at home. This Black Bean Chili was inspired by Pamela Salzman’s Turkey Chili recipe (also amazing). Look for her new cookbook coming next year!

In the meantime, try this on a lazy Sunday afternoon or at your next tailgate party. You won’t even miss the meat!

 

BLACK BEAN CHILI – A Fall Food Fav

 

INGREDIENTS

4 tablespoons olive oil

2 cups chopped red onion

2 cups chopped celery

2 cups chopped carrots

1 poblano pepper chopped

1 jalapeno, seeded and finely diced (optional)

2 cloves garlic, minced

¼ cup organic masa harina

2 tablespoon ground cumin

2 tablespoon ground coriander

1 teaspoon dried oregano

¼ teaspoon cayenne (optional)

2 teaspoons sea salt (or more to taste)

freshly ground black pepper to taste

6 cups veggie stock, divided — OR WATER, just adjust salt content!!

3 cups frozen organic sweet corn

3 15-ounce ounce cans cooked black beans (drained and rinsed)

 

DIRECTIONS

  1. Heat oil to a large pot. Add the onion, pepper, celery, carrots, peppers and garlic to the pot and sauté until tender, about 10 minutes.
  2. Add the masa harina, spices, salt and pepper to the pot and cook, stirring frequently for 5 minutes.
  3. Add 5 cups stock, 1 1/2 cup corn and the beans to the pot. Take the remaining 1½ cups of corn and puree with the remaining ½ cup stock/water in a Vitamix.
  4. Add the pureed corn to the pot. Mix well and bring to boil over medium-high heat. Lower the heat to a simmer and cook, partially covered for 30 minutes.
  5. Top with condiments like chopped onion, cilantro, avocado and Bearitos corn chips.

 

Enjoy! And, remember, you are welcome at our door for your daily dose of happy and healthy.


What Pink Ribbons Don’t Say About Breast Cancer Prevention

Posted on by diamondsonyourinside and currently has 5 Comments on What Pink Ribbons Don’t Say About Breast Cancer Prevention

In my former, pre-GEM~my world, pre-breast cancer, I spent 17 years in marketing and product development for a luxury linen company. It was a great paying job with lots of responsibility and lots of high-level stress. I was burning the candle at both ends, and was generally a hardcore, bitter, very impatient person. And, I knew it all.

On October 19, 2009, 18 days into “Breast Cancer Awareness Month,” that world came to a halt. I was broad sided with a diagnosis of breast cancer that spread to my lymph nodes. Leslie kicked kancer's ass

Crap. I hated pink ribbons. Even more, I hated setbacks.

Later, I realized this setback would be my life changing experience. I was about to learn about peace and happy and a truly healthy lifestyle the hard way.

During my year-long treatment of chemo, surgeries, radiation, sheer exhaustion, I started to dig deep into illness and disease and what I could do to help in the healing process AND make certain it never came back. I learned about alkalinity and inflammation. I discovered very quickly that my previous lifestyle did nothing for my optimal health, so I set out to quell all inflammation in my system.

How?

  • I immediately went out and bought a juicer and Vitamix
  • Went totally on a hard-core, plant-based diet
  • Did a TON of reading and research

I became obsessed with everything related to food and healthy living and quickly discovered first hand the power of juice, clean food and positivity. I learned that inflammation is the root of all disease, so I set out to change my life. I also learned it wasn’t just about food!

What did that mean? In addition to food, your thoughts and your stress are major causes of inflammation.

I needed more. I earned a degree from the Institute of Integrative Nutrition, an incredible nutrition school that takes a holistic approach to wellness and focuses on relationships, work, exercise and spirituality as essentials to building good health. I studied lots of brilliant minds on the subject.

The goal: to clean up every dark corner of my world. I dumped the toxic people (oh, yeah baby!), the toxic thoughts, the toxic attitude. I refused to let that stuff into my world. Added yoga, deep breathing, cleaned out my personal care and cleaning products. I changed my environment so to speak. That was a great place to start.

So what about the (toxic) food? So I began embracing a whole-foods, plant-based diet. I cooked, I juiced, I bought organic.

What I quickly realized was there was no place nearby where I felt secure about the quality and selection of the food and juice. Organic was rarely mentioned and almost never honestly served. I couldn’t eat every meal at home, right? So, what happened next? Mary Kathryn and I decided to do it ourselves! Wonder-twin powers activate!

From there, The GEM was born. We created The GEM to be a community where people come to get healthy and happy. And WOW! We were floored by the response. Our baby quickly became a place to find approachable, healthy habits that have a profound effect on your long-term health. Anti-cancer, anti-inflammatory, anti-energy vampires. Let food (and disco) be thy medicine, right?

We invite everyone to experience this place of healing and happiness called The GEM.  And hopefully you leave with a little something better than when you enter. Come on in! Don’t wait for a sucker punch from Life to change your thoughts and your habits!

The GEM is living proof that by removing toxins from your life, you will be healthier, stronger and happier. So while the pink ribbons aren’t visible, the disco ball is a constant reminder of the happy, healthy life we all can attain.

YOU ARE YOUR BEST ADVOCATE–whether it is cancer screening or anything else. Take control of your health and happiness each and every moment.  And, don’t be a boob. Perform monthly breast exams. Peace.