Feel good, French style

Organic Avenue founder Denise Mari

After a long winter, are your pipes starting to feel a little rusty like mine?

I recently caught up with Denise Mari, founder of Organic Avenue, and asked her to share her detox tips. Organic Avenue is the NYC-based healthy lifestyle company famous for its LOVE* (Live. Organic. Vegan. Experience.), detox cleanses, and celebrity following (Gwyneth Paltrow, Alicia Silverstone and Russell Simmons are all fans).

Here is Denise’s advice on getting some of your own LOVE* going, whether you’re looking to detox, cleanse or simply add some powerful foods to your everyday diet.

Celebrities and fashionistas have flocked to Organic Avenue. What inspired you to create it 10 years ago?
DENISE MARI: I discovered that the more organic, plant-based, whole foods and juices I ate and drank, the healthier I became. I continued to study and practice the vegan and raw food diet, and then learned that adding an alkaline emphasis was a miraculous way of eating, living and being.

Why is the alkaline angle important?
Sugars create acidic conditions in the body, and acidic conditions cause breakdown. In combination with the cleansing aspects of vegan raw foods, adding alkalinity creates the most optimal situation for the human body. Acidic leads to disease, alkaline leads to health. Most food choices in the modern world, along with stress, are all acid contributors.

It’s fantastic that you demystify eating raw, organic and vegan by calling it LOVE*. How did you come up with that?
A boyfriend of mine suggested the use of LOVE* for Organic Avenue. I tweaked it a bit, but it’s stuck! And it keeps the focus of my day on its many meanings.

This time of year, everyone wants to detox. How can a cleanse help?
A cleanse is a great way to start. It allows a reboot. It gives a new sense of confidence and energy needed when undertaking new goals for a new year. Most people complain of not having enough energy. The biggest benefit of cleansing—once over any detox hump—is a sense of clarity of purpose and energy to fulfill and set goals.

It amazes me that some cleanse offerings out there are not good quality or even organic. What sets your products and juices apart?
We are committed to organic because we are committed to the environment. If we don’t clean up our environment, no matter what we do we are all going to continue to get sick. As Dr. Robert O. Young says, “If the fish is sick, do you treat the fish or change the water?” We must stick to organic—no pesticides/herbicides/synthetic fertilizers/GMOs—and promote clean farming if we want clean, healthy and happy bodies. Organic Avenue also chooses to bottle in glass and biodegradable vegetable plastic. There is always more we could do, and we are always looking to improve.

Even though I don’t eat raw or vegan all the time, I try to eat as much organic and plant foods as possible, and it feels great. Do you have to be a full-time raw eater to feel the LOVE*?
I think there are benefits to full-time raw eating. Listen to your body and proceed slowly. Sometimes a full raw-food and juice fast are best for the short-term, and other times for the long-term. I have experienced tremendous clarity, motivation, health benefits and energy when 100 percent raw, and have experienced more grounding and emotional comfort when adding some consciously cooked foods too. I personally practice a combination with an emphasis on and goal of being as whole-food focused as possible, cleansing regularly, and juicing daily.

If one wants to make a single change or addition to his or her diet, what brings the most bang for the buck?
Green juice every day. Start with one, and work your way up from there. The more greens you drink, the stronger and healthier you will become. It works every time.

What change to your eating has given you the most bang for your buck? We’d love to hear from you!

Live épanoui*

Elisa

* in full bloom

Thank God for Whole Foods. Visiting my family this week-end in the suburbs of Washington, I made my pilgrimage upon arrival. Number one on my shopping list: Food for Life’s Ezekiel 4:9 Sprouted Grain bread.

It was a shock to discover that Marylanders pay only $2.79 a loaf, whereas New Yorkers pay $5.79!..but it’s worth it!

Unlike normal bread, sprouted grain bread is flourless, made from organic freshly sprouted grains, beans and seeds. Since it’s not refined, it’s a lasting source of energy that keeps your blood sugar stable. Translation: it’s probably the only thing that tastes like bread that actually keeps you thin, full and satisfied.

Ezekiel has become my secret weapon. Toasted and wrapped in foil, it’s the perfect portable meal or snack.

The baguette has finally met its match!

Any other sprouted grain fans out there?

Live épanoui*

Elisa

* in full bloom

When my Maman was a student in Paris, she used to go to Angelina’s, a turn-of-the-century tea salon across from the Tuileries gardens. When I was little, she began taking me, and that’s where my addiction began.

Angelina’s serves what is arguably the best hot chocolate in the world (with a little bowl of fresh whipped cream to enjoy it with).

Hot chocolate is my favorite way to zap the Winter Blues. I make this simple version at home using cocoa powder. The trick is to buy it unsweetened — with just 15 calories a teaspoon that’s a lot less calories than using melted chocolate but just as good!

You’ll also make Michael Pollan proud. In his Food Rules, An Eater’s Manual, he advises “sweeten and salt your food yourself.” Start with clean ingredients and sweeten to your own taste.

Ingredients:

-          Droste or other brand unsweetened cacao powder (I haven’t tried raw cacao powder but it must work nicely too)

-          Organic milk (I use half water, half milk. Use your milk of choice.)

-          Agave syrup

Put 2 teaspoons cacao powder in your mug. Add a little of your very hot milk to make a paste, stirring well. Then add the rest of the milk. Sweeten to taste.

What’s your favorite hot chocolate? We’d love to hear your recipes and favorite places.

Live épanoui*

Elisa

* in full bloom

At this time of year, you’re bombarded by articles and advertisements telling you how to lose weight and start eating “healthy”. The problem is they tend to make eating healthy sound as fun as a visit to the dentist or washing your hair on a Saturday night. After all our holiday merriment, gingerbread cookies, Christmas hams and toasts to the New Year, now we have to – collective SIGH – eat “healthy” — carrot sticks, apple slices, salads, grilled chicken, hold the dressing… Personally, I’ll take the dentist!

As long as you put your food in two buckets: healthy versus yummy, or good versus bad, you’ll feel guilty the rest of your life. You won’t relish your brownie or your hamburger and fries without your little demons shouting “you’ll be fat!” or “you’re so BAD!”

Here’s an alternative scenario. Forget the good versus bad, and reframe your thinking. Instead of passing judgment on your food, and yourself in the process, begin learning about, and sampling the pleasures of REAL food.

What do I mean by real? Real foods ( i.e.  fruits and vegetables, nuts, seeds, animal products if you eat them, and whole grains such as brown rice, oatmeal, and quinoa) speak your body’s language. It’s natural, unrefined or minimally so, down to earth and from the earth, full of nutrition your body knows how to process, and tastes delicious. Granted, real food is HEALTHY, but it’s also got so much more going for it.

Raw brownies - REAL food that's really delish!

There are lots of resources out there to get a better understanding of what’s real (Ezekiel 4:9 Cinnamon Raisin cereal, Spicy lentil and spinach soup, raw unheated and unfiltered honey) and what’s not (Special K cereal, Lean Cuisine, honey in plastic bears).

Last week, for example, I got to sample mouth-watering hummus and brownies made by raw foodie and health expert Diana Stobo at an Organic Avenue event.  I don’t eat exclusively raw by any means, but I love to borrow from their books because it’s always delicious and always REAL.

Another favorite is Gillian McKeith’s You are what you eat. Gillian offers simple, practical advice on what to buy, how to eat, and how to feed your family.

Granted, it can difficult in our society to always eat REAL. All the croissants I had in Paris over the holidays don’t qualify, for example. But once you learn the difference, and then little by little start buying and eating the REAL stuff, I promise your little demons die a natural death. You actually start looking forward to eating quinoa, along with your croissants.

Do you have any questions or recommendations when it comes to eating REAL? I’d love to hear from you.

Live épanoui*

Elisa

* in full bloom

Over the holidays, it’s quite easy to indulge in too much of a good thing. Take my cousin Patty’s pecan pie. I look forward to eating it the whole year – a moist, gooey yet crunchy, decadently sweet recipe with a homemade flaky crust. This year, I planned carefully, leaving a little room in my tummy for a nice slice at the end of our meal. As we lingered over dessert and coffee, naturally, I went back for a second helping (or three? somehow I can’t remember…but I do remember relishing every last crumb!)

That is, until I woke up the next morning feeling like a 2 ton truck had driven over me. What do you do if you have a few bites too many? First, breathe a sigh of relief. Your body is a highly sophisticated machine that strives for balance and homeostasis – meaning it will always seek to come back to its normal state. Overeat one day, and the next day, your body will crave much less food, and simple, natural fare.

If I overindulge, I try to follow my body’s lead, listening to my appetite (or lack thereof), and choosing whole, natural foods like green and root veggies, quinoa or brown rice, and fruit if I need something sweet. Most of the time, I find it easier to detox with plant foods, but if you feel good with a little lean protein like fish or chicken, that works too.

I also have a secret weapon, which becomes my sanity broth during the holidays. I make a big pot of homemade veggie soup on Sundays, and have it for dinner a few times during the week. It’s filling enough for cleansing meal. After a few nibbles at a holiday party, coming home to a nice bowl of soup hits the spot.

If you’re really pressed for time, try cleansing with a green juice from your local health food store or on-line from Organic Avenue.

But how do you prevent pie-eating accidents in the first place? During the holidays, I combat craziness by being extra-kind to myself. I’m not going to be able to do it all, so a few things have to slip – whether it’s the dance class I did not wake up for this morning or the errand that will have to wait until next year.

Paying attention to myself also means taking a few minutes of me time before showing up to a holiday party or family event. Even doing something simple like closing my eyes and feeling my toes, reading a blog I like, or walking a few blocks lets me relax and ease my mind. If I’m kind to myself, I’m going to be able to be extra-kind to others, including any family members who tend to ruffle feathers.

That’s the holiday spirit to me – calling in the Sunday-best version of myself, savoring a few special treats in good measure, and knowing that in a couple of weeks I’ll look back on the laughter, the stories and the pies with a big smile in my heart.

Live épanoui*

Elisa

* in full bloom