Dry Skin - Anyone???

I have always suffered from dry skin & have always kept multiple containers of lotion on me always - aka Lotion Queen. Last May Mary-Ann began raving about Aim's new Daily for Life line of lotions (which includes natural shampoos & conditioners). I tried it a couple of times, but was hesitant because I had my dry skin regiment that worked for me. 5 months later I received a container of the body butter, Sheame on You & the hand lotion, Upper Hand from Merrily so I decided to try it out for one month.
Oh My Gosh, these products amazingly moisturize without leaving a greasy feeling. You don't have to keep reapplying them (the case I always run into) they are both so absorbent. My absolute favorite is the body butter - hands down. If you're struggling with dry skin - give this stuff a try. You will be satisfied!

Contact me for details on how to order- jane@cestnaturelfoods.com

Dessert Balls + Melissa's Favorites

Here are the recipes from the October Cafe - the ever Famous ball recipes... ENJOY

Peanut Butter Balls pg 136 RBk2
1 cup peanut butter
½ cup raw honey (I prefer Agave Nectar)
½ cup sesame seeds
¼ cup desiccated coconut
1-Blend all the ingredients together thoroughly in a food processor & shape into small balls (I just mix all the ingredients together on top of wax paper on the counter)
2-Roll in some desiccated coconut ( I also like to replace w/sesame seeds or puffed brown rice ) & refrigerate for 30-60 minutes before serving. (I prefer to freeze them before serving. I feel they test best frozen!)

Date Balls
Dates w/the pits removed
Desiccated coconut
Water
1-Place equal amounts of coconut & dates in a food processor (or blender). Using the steel blade pulse until the dates are chopped evenly. (With blender add a few tbs of water to get the mix going)
2-Add a little filtered water to form a pliable dough. Roll into balls & dip into coconut.
3-Store in the freezer. Serve frozen

Colleen’s Halva Balls pg 135 RBk1
½ cup raisins
½ cup dates
½ cup tahini
Sesame seeds for coating
1-Place all the ingredients together in a food processor & blend until a thick paste is formed.
2-Shape into balls & roll in sesame seeds.
3-Store in the freezer. Serve frozen

Carob, Coconut & Sesame Seed Truffles pg 134 RBk1
4tbs carob powder
½ cups desiccated coconut
2tbs sesame seeds
2tbs tahini
2-4tbs raw honey (I prefer Agave nectar)
1-Blend all the ingredients in a food processor, adding 1 tbs filtered water to bind the mixture
2-Roll into small balls.
3-Roll in some extra coconut or sesame seeds
4-Store in the freezer. Serve frozen


Delia’s Cashew Kisses pg139 RBk 2
2 cups cashew nuts
2 tbs tahini
200g(?) fructose sweetened carob chunks
1-grind the cashews finely in a food processor. Add enough tahini to just bind the mixture & roll into balls.
2-Freeze for 30 minutes
3-Melt the carob chunks gently in a double broiler
4-Dip the cashew balls in the carob, place on wax paper & chill until needed.

Melissa's Favorites

Peppermint Carob Balls
1/2 c cashew-macadamia nut butter (Trader Joe's)
1 1/2 T carob powder
1 T honey
1/2 t almond extract or peppermint extract Mix well, roll into balls, roll balls in almond meal so they are not sticky

Date Nut Shake
1 large banana
2 medjool dates, pitted
1/2 cup raw walnuts
1/3 c coconut milk (whole, not "light")
7 ice cubes
Mix all in a blender...it's like soft serve ice cream!

Confetti Veggies (chop everything small & uniform to look like confetti) green beans, blanched (my pref) carrots,blanched (my pref) jicama red pepper yellow pepper or corn, purple cabbage, black olives, pine nuts. Toss veggies, drizzle with olive oil, season with Mary-Ann's salts of your choice.

Soft Veggie Tacos
Filling: red, yellow and orange peppers, cut thin (matchsticks), cilantro,purple cabbage ( I measure by what looks pretty)

Guacamole: mix avocados, a sprinkle or two of Mary-Ann's garlic salt and a squirt of lemon or lime juice

Corn tortillas warmed directly on a gas burner (a trick from Kim)

I like tomatillo sauce on mine but have not yet experimented with making my own. This is also good with warmed veggies, made by saute-ing purple onion, zucchini, corn or yellow squash, orange pepper or carrots (all matchsticks).