With the approaching season change from Summer to Autumn, it's especially important to physically, emotionally and spiritually shed the skin of the past few months and move into a new phase. A wonderful way to facilitate this change is to do a Philosophie cleanse. 

What can I expect during a Philosophie cleanse?

During the cleanse duration (either 5 days or 14 days) you can expect to experience a challenging first 2-3 days. Most of our Philosophie cleansers get headaches between days 1-3. Some only experience them for 1 day and then it goes away. Others may feel it in their body or feel overly lethargic as the toxins are moving out of the system. I call Day 3 the *Magic Day* because this is when you really feel an energetic and physical shift. You feel more energy, more excitement, more focus and notice your skin is glowing and your body feels overall much lighter. Clothes feel looser. If you can get past day 3, you will fly to through the rest.

What if I get hungry in between the meals and snacks on the cleanse menu?

No problem! This cleanse is NOT a fast. It's not a deprivation but instead, a SATURATION of nutrients. It's much more important to snack on foods from the cleanse (have another helping of soup/smoothie/salad or have an additional smoothie) rather than feel hungry. That's not the point. We encourage you to eat as much as you want to feel satisfied and to allow the body to recalibrate. By the 3rd day your body will be regulated and only crave what it's truly hungry for nutritionally. 

A few extra tips for the Philosophie Cleanse:

• try and plan your cleanse when you don't have evening plans (i.e. dinner plans, social events)
• if you do have social events, eat your Philosophie cleanse food/meal BEFORE going and BRING your snack of juice, smoothie or trail mix in your bag so you a can nosh while you're there. If there's a veggie platter or fresh fruit, you can snack on that, too!
• Make sure you get EXTRA sleep. Go back to sleep in the morning if you have the ability to. Call in sick to work. Take a vacation day if you need it. Take a nap. Your body will be working extremely hard to cleanse the system, so be sure to nurture yourself. 
• drink half your body weight in ounces EVERY day. This helps accelerate the cleansing process and speeds up the painful first few days ;) 
• find a friend and do the cleanse together. If you live with someone else, have them do it too or give up something that's difficult for you to watch or be around. If your husband/girlfriend/mom won't do the cleanse with you, have them give up coffee and processed food and sugar for the duration of your cleanse. If you gather 3 friends to do the cleanse with you (co-workers, friends, family, neighbors) you not only get a really amazing discount but you can cook together, have get togethers, support each other!  
•  
• join the facebook Philosophie Cleanse group! email us for the invite. 
• Journal. Stream of consciousness. Do art. anything to let whats going on inside come out. Although eating food appears to mostly be a physical act, it's actually very tied in to our emotional and psychology. Work through what's going on within your heart and mind. Let go of what isn't serving you to allow space for what WILL work. 

Leo's cousin, Omri and my sister-in-love came to visit this weekend! Omri and Leo are only 7 weeks apart and soooo sweet together. Today I was making Philosophie Superfood Smoothies for the hubby, sista, Kai (my toddler) and myself and the babies WENT NUTS for it. We gave them little tastes which then turned into huge gulps. Lots of grabbing and whining for it. They were SO happy and elevated... all of us giggling, jumping, loving-- high on the superfood magic.

Here's the recipe I used (I tripled it for all of us):

• 8 oz coconut mylk (can use almond, hemp or oat mylk)
• 1 T Green Dream
• 1 T Cacao Magic
• 2 handfuls frozen organic kale
• 2 ice cream scoops of coconut mylk Mint Chip vegan "ice cream"
• fresh mint (about 10 leaves)
• 1 T Cacao Nibs
• 1 frozen banana
• 1 T coconut oil
• 1 T sunflower seed butter (could use any nut butter)
• 2 handfuls of ice

BLEND!

In Joy....with those you love most!!!!

The Jaffe Family <3

Fiber breakfast cookies with Cacao Magic

You know how you’ve heard people say “eat dark chocolate” for antioxidants and abundant health? Yeah, that’s because of UNPROCESSED, RAW, VEGAN Chocolate… CACAO! Cacao powder is chocolate in it’s most raw and nutritious form. The Philosophie Cacao Magic has Cacao nibs, Cacao powder, Tocos (Vitamin E- good for skin and nails), Mesquite (high in iron & protein), Maca (good for energy & balancing mood) and 3 medicinal mushrooms that are excellent for anti-aging, preventing cancer* and healing the body.

WET INGREDIENTS

• 1/2 cup chopped prunes or prune puree*
• 1/4 cup sweetener (such as maple, brown rice or agave syrups)
• 1/4 cup apple sauce
• 1/4 cup nut butter (such as almond, pumpkin seed or tahini)
• 1 Tbsp olive oil
• 1 egg or 1/2 ripe banana
• 1 tsp vanilla

DRY INGREDIENTS

• 1 cup whole grain flour (or gluten-free flour)
• 1/2 cup psyllium
• 1/2 cup ground flax
• 2 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp sea salt
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 cup or more of nuts, seeds, trail mix, or chopped dried fruit
• 2 TBL or more of Philosophie Cacao Magic

*to give them a sweeter taste, you could add chocolate chips!

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. Place chopped prunes in a blender and just cover with boiling water. Let soak while you prepare the dry ingredients. Also, lightly oil a large baking sheet and preheat oven to 350.
2. Measure all dry ingredients into a large bowl and mix well. Measure all wet ingredients into the blender with the soaked prunes (do not drain), then liquify and stir into dry ingredients, combining well. Drop batter by the heaping tablespoon onto the greased cookie sheet and flatten just a bit with wet fingers or the back of a wet spoon. Bake for 15 minutes. Make sure you have a glass of water or cup of tea with each cookie. Makes about 20 cookies.

This recipe makes the cookies slightly crunchy on the outside. For a softer cookie double the amount of prune puree and apple sauce. This will make them almost muffin-like.

Enjoy!

This amazing recipe was contributed and created by Julie Collier–THANK YOU, JULIE! Please keep sharing your delicious, creative recipes, Philosophie lovahs! I’ll keep posting them as you send them in!

What are superfoods?

Superfood is a term sometimes used to describe food with high phytonutrient content that may provide health benefits as a result. For example, blueberries are often considered a superfood (or superfruit) because they contain significant amounts of antioxidants,, vitamin C, manganese, and dietary fiber. You don't need specific foods for specific ailments. A healthy diet incorporating a variety of the following superfoods will help you maintain your weight, fight disease, and live longer. One thing they all have in common: Every superfood is going to be a 'real' (unprocessed) food, you don't find fortified potato chips in the superfood category.

How can I use and incorporate superfoods in my daily life?

• Beans
• Blueberries
• Broccoli
• Dark Chocolate (RAW chocolate is best!)
• Oats
• Oranges
• Pumpkin
• Salmon
• Soy
• Spinach
• kale
• Tea (green especially)
• Tomatoes
• hemp seeds
• Walnuts
• almonds
• chia seeds
• Yogurt

if you click on the words above I offer other posts I've written with more info about the wonderful superfoods and also a few recipes to use them in!

 All of my superfood blends have all the best superfoods in one place. No need to purchase them all separately, just buy one bag instead of 8! 

Cacao Magic superfood blend has raw Cacao powder, raw cacao nibs, tocos (vit E for hair, skin, nails) chia seeds (good fats to burn bad fat), maca (balances mood), reishi (chinese immunity herb), cordyceps (chinese herb for weightloss) and chaga (energizing herb with no caffeine).

The Green Dream superfoods have chia seeds, maca, mesquite (high in iron), tocos, spirulina, hemp powder and fresh vanilla bean.

Our Berry Bliss superfood blend has camu camu (top antioxidant food in the world), pomegranate, acai (combats stress), goji (prevents heart disease) organic whey protein (recovery & rejuvenation-very clean protein source) tocos (improves digestion, glowing skin & strong nails from Vitamin E) camu camu (immunity) and mangosteen (antibiotic & anti-fungal).

the Yummiest Superfood Yet ... Dark Chocolate

Research has shown that dark chocolate is packed with antioxidants and can lower blood pressure. It's recommended that you look for chocolate with 60% or higher cocoa content; the darker, the better! In addition, the darker it is, the lower the fat and sugar content. Now that's my kind of health food!

here are two recipes using dark chocolate/cacao (chocolate in it's most raw form):

1. Peppermint Patty Recipe

2. Delicious Chocolate Cake

and Here's an awesome breakfast I've been making lately--super filling and superfood rich!

Superfood Oats

• 1 C Steelcut oats (follow instructions on the box)
• 2 T Cacao Magic blend
• 1 T goji berries (see pic below)
• 1/2 Organic Canned Pumpkin
• 1 t coconut oil (i like Garden of Life brand)
• 2 T almond butter (i get Trader Joes brand, raw & creamy)
• 1 T Agave or Raw Honey (i buy from our local farmers market) or Stevia if watching sugar
• Cinnamon to taste
• fresh berries for topping (like raspberries, blueberries, strawberries)

1. follow instructions on box for cooking steelcut oats. (can also use quinoa or instant low-sugar oats)

2. The last minute or so, add the pumpkin, almond butter, goji berries and cinnamon. Stir all ingredients until mixed.

3. Remove oats from heat. Mix the coconut oil, cacao powder and agave/honey/sweetener in the bowl you'll be using and mix well with a spoon until it forms a chocolate sauce. Pour oats in bowl. Add fresh berries. Enjoy!

*double/triple the amount so you can save in containers for easy power-breakfasts in the next few days!

Now that I'm a mommy and wifey, I don't just have to think of my own nutrition and health. I have to consider my children and husbands well-being as well. 

My son, Kai, is a little over 2 years old. His first solid food was butternut squash pureed, followed by a puree of green vegetables. He didn't have any sugar until a few months ago when he went to a birthday party, and to be honest, he didn't even care for it much. I was terrified once he had the processed kind of sugar he'd never want to go back to his clean ways of eating. Au Contraire.

His palate is so sophisticated now. He can eat anything no matter where we go. He loves spicy foods- he's happy and at home in any Indian restaurant and equally safe at sushi or any other ethnic cuisine. We've traveled to Paris, Costa Rica, Tel Aviv & South America and he's happy no matter where we go and what we feed him. This takes a little more effort on my part, to pave the way to healthy foods being part of his normal routine.

Phases and Bumps along the way

Sometimes he's not in the mood for a certain type of food. He'll push things he's loved for months away or throw it on the floor for our dog to eat. My trick is to lay out ONLY fruits and vegetables to start with-- a huge variety-- some cooked, some raw. Some warm, some cold. All different colors and flavors to entice his little appetite. He LOVES organic frozen veggies, which makes it super easy for me. He especially likes peas & lima beans, eating them one by one. I don't usually add any butter or salt to the veggies because he eats them without. So what's the point? He takes "butter" (Smart Balance) on his gluten-free waffles in the morning as a treat and loves it, but doesn't expect it yet. He's never touched syrup and there's really no reason to introduce it.

The best time to give him the foods he's not in the mood for is when he's super hungry after playing outside. Sometimes I just need to give him a "gateway" food to get him started. When he was super little just a few little Organic Puffs would do the trick. Now I'll give him half a piece of an organic cookie or the green flavored Pirate's Booty (our version of junk food) and after a few of these snack items he moves right into veggie land. Works pretty much every time.

Other days he just doesn't feel like sitting in his high chair and eating. On those days I let him run around and snack as he pleases. He'll graze on the veggies and fruit I put on a plate on the coffee table and run around and grab what he wants when he chooses to.  Many parents are really militant about kids sitting in their chairs and eating, and I understand their feelings. I get that sentiment, that it's more "proper" to eat meals sitting in their high chair. With my lifestyle (always on the go) and my manner (I'm not a very "proper" person myself) I allow him to guide the way, as the most important thing to me is Kai getting the nutrients he needs to GROW "properly", while being a formal "correct" child falls a bit lower on the priority list. Every child is different. Some kids really need that type of structure to stay well behaved. Kai is (luckily) really flexible and adaptable with my crazy on the go lifestyle.

Green Dream and Philosophie superfood blends save the day

When all else fails, I can make a Green Dream smoothie and at least feel good about Kai getting all the nutrients and greens he needs for the day. In one smoothie I can be sure he's getting good fats, vegan sources of protein, no weird fillers and nothing processed. This makes things a lot easier and makes me feel secure in what he eats for the rest of the day. Lately one of the only ways I can consistently get green veggies into his body is through smoothies. And that's fine with me! Sometimes in the morning I'll add Cacao Magic powder to his oatmeal or even a dash of Green Dream. Other times I'll sneak it into an "ice cream" where I blend frozen bananas, spinach and green dream or cacao blend. These tricks ensure the love of my life is getting everything he needs nutritionally. Not to mention the hubby benefits from these tricks as well! If you're interested in buying Green Dream, Cacao Magic or Berry Bliss blends, email me: sophie@thephilosophie.com and mention this post for a mommy discount!

I'm not sure where the "green" phobia in kids begin, but I can't help but think it's from parents trying to drive the foods down their kids throats. Kai loves Green foods and actually gravitates towards these foods vs running away from them. I think this practice starts early, but that you can retrain your kids brains by sneaking greens into a smoothie or into an ice cream... so they don't feel they are missing anything. I mean let's revisit Green Eggs and Ham by Dr. Suess! In the end, he lovessss the Green Eggs... it just took TRYING them!

In Gratitude and Elmo obsessions,

Sophie

PS. SPEAKING of Green Eggs... an easy way to make your own Green Eggs is to blend the eggs and fresh spinach in the blender until smooth. Then cook as you normally would! Kai loves them, your kids will too!

Now that I'm a mommy and wifey, I don't just have to think of my own nutrition and health. I have to consider my children and husbands well-being as well.

My son, Kai, is a little over 2 years old. His first solid food was butternut squash pureed, followed by a puree of green vegetables. He didn't have any sugar until a few months ago when he went to a birthday party, and to be honest, he didn't even care for it much. I was terrified once he had the processed kind of sugar he'd never want to go back to his clean ways of eating. Au Contraire.

His palate is so sophisticated now. He can eat anything no matter where we go. He loves spicy foods- he's happy and at home in any Indian restaurant and equally safe at sushi or any other ethnic cuisine. We've traveled to Paris, Costa Rica, Tel Aviv & South America and he's happy no matter where we go and what we feed him. This takes a little more effort on my part, to pave the way to healthy foods being part of his normal routine.

Phases and Bumps along the way

Sometimes he's not in the mood for a certain type of food. He'll push things he's loved for months away or throw it on the floor for our dog to eat. My trick is to lay out ONLY fruits and vegetables to start with-- a huge variety-- some cooked, some raw. Some warm, some cold. All different colors and flavors to entice his little appetite. He LOVES organic frozen veggies, which makes it super easy for me. He especially likes peas & lima beans, eating them one by one. I don't usually add any butter or salt to the veggies because he eats them without. So what's the point? He takes "butter" (Smart Balance) on his gluten-free waffles in the morning as a treat and loves it, but doesn't expect it yet. He's never touched syrup and there's really no reason to introduce it.

The best time to give him the foods he's not in the mood for is when he's super hungry after playing outside. Sometimes I just need to give him a "gateway" food to get him started. When he was super little just a few little Organic Puffs would do the trick. Now I'll give him half a piece of an organic cookie or the green flavored Pirate's Booty (our version of junk food) and after a few of these snack items he moves right into veggie land. Works pretty much every time.

Other days he just doesn't feel like sitting in his high chair and eating. On those days I let him run around and snack as he pleases. He'll graze on the veggies and fruit I put on a plate on the coffee table and run around and grab what he wants when he chooses to.  Many parents are really militant about kids sitting in their chairs and eating, and I understand their feelings. I get that sentiment, that it's more "proper" to eat meals sitting in their high chair. With my lifestyle (always on the go) and my manner (I'm not a very "proper" person myself) I allow him to guide the way, as the most important thing to me is Kai getting the nutrients he needs to GROW "properly", while being a formal "correct" child falls a bit lower on the priority list. Every child is different. Some kids really need that type of structure to stay well behaved. Kai is (luckily) really flexible and adaptable with my crazy on the go lifestyle.

Green Dream and Philosophie superfood blends save the day

When all else fails, I can make a Green Dream smoothie and at least feel good about Kai getting all the nutrients and greens he needs for the day. In one smoothie I can be sure he's getting good fats, vegan sources of protein, no weird fillers and nothing processed. This makes things a lot easier and makes me feel secure in what he eats for the rest of the day. Lately one of the only ways I can consistently get green veggies into his body is through smoothies. And that's fine with me! Sometimes in the morning I'll add Cacao Magic powder to his oatmeal or even a dash of Green Dream. Other times I'll sneak it into an "ice cream" where I blend frozen bananas, spinach and green dream or cacao blend. These tricks ensure the love of my life is getting everything he needs nutritionally. Not to mention the hubby benefits from these tricks as well! If you're interested in buying Green Dream, Cacao Magic or Berry Bliss blends, email me: sophie@thephilosophie.com and mention this post for a mommy discount!

I'm not sure where the "green" phobia in kids begin, but I can't help but think it's from parents trying to drive the foods down their kids throats. Kai loves Green foods and actually gravitates towards these foods vs running away from them. I think this practice starts early, but that you can retrain your kids brains by sneaking greens into a smoothie or into an ice cream... so they don't feel they are missing anything. I mean let's revisit Green Eggs and Ham by Dr. Suess! In the end, he lovessss the Green Eggs... it just took TRYING them!

In Gratitude and Elmo obsessions,

Sophie

PS. SPEAKING of Green Eggs... an easy way to make your own Green Eggs is to blend the eggs and fresh spinach in the blender until smooth. Then cook as you normally would! Kai loves them, your kids will too!

What are superfoods?

Superfood is a term sometimes used to describe food with high phytonutrient content that may provide health benefits as a result. For example, blueberries are often considered a superfood (or superfruit) because they contain significant amounts of antioxidants,, vitamin C, manganese, and dietary fiber. You don't need specific foods for specific ailments. A healthy diet incorporating a variety of the following superfoods will help you maintain your weight, fight disease, and live longer. One thing they all have in common: Every superfood is going to be a 'real' (unprocessed) food, you don't find fortified potato chips in the superfood category.

How can I use and incorporate superfoods in my daily life?

• Beans
• Blueberries
• Broccoli
• Dark Chocolate (RAW chocolate is best!)
• Oats
• Oranges
• Pumpkin
• Salmon
• Soy
• Spinach
• kale
• Tea (green especially)
• Tomatoes
• hemp seeds
• Walnuts
• almonds
• chia seeds
• Yogurt

if you click on the words above I offer other posts I've written with more info about the wonderful superfoods and also a few recipes to use them in!

 All of my superfood blends have all the best superfoods in one place. No need to purchase them all separately, just buy one bag instead of 8! 

Cacao Magic superfood blend has raw Cacao powder, raw cacao nibs, tocos (vit E for hair, skin, nails) chia seeds (good fats to burn bad fat), maca (balances mood), reishi (chinese immunity herb), cordyceps (chinese herb for weightloss) and chaga (energizing herb with no caffeine). 

The Green Dream superfoods have chia seeds, maca, mesquite (high in iron), tocos, spirulina, hemp powder and fresh vanilla bean. 

Our Berry Bliss superfood blend has camu camu (top antioxidant food in the world), pomegranate, acai (combats stress), goji (prevents heart disease) organic whey protein (recovery & rejuvenation-very clean protein source) tocos (improves digestion, glowing skin & strong nails from Vitamin E) camu camu (immunity) and mangosteen (antibiotic & anti-fungal). 

the Yummiest Superfood Yet ... Dark Chocolate

Research has shown that dark chocolate is packed with antioxidants and can lower blood pressure. It's recommended that you look for chocolate with 60% or higher cocoa content; the darker, the better! In addition, the darker it is, the lower the fat and sugar content. Now that's my kind of health food!

here are two recipes using dark chocolate/cacao (chocolate in it's most raw form):

1. Peppermint Patty Recipe

2. Delicious Chocolate Cake

and Here's an awesome breakfast I've been making lately--super filling and superfood rich!

Superfood Oats

• 1 C Steelcut oats (follow instructions on the box)
• 2 T Cacao Magic blend
• 1 T goji berries (see pic below)
• 1/2 Organic Canned Pumpkin
• 1 t coconut oil (i like Garden of Life brand)
• 2 T almond butter (i get Trader Joes brand, raw & creamy)
• 1 T Agave or Raw Honey (i buy from our local farmers market) or Stevia if watching sugar
• Cinnamon to taste
• fresh berries for topping (like raspberries, blueberries, strawberries)

1. follow instructions on box for cooking steelcut oats. (can also use quinoa or instant low-sugar oats)

2. The last minute or so, add the pumpkin, almond butter, goji berries and cinnamon. Stir all ingredients until mixed.

3. Remove oats from heat. Mix the coconut oil, cacao powder and agave/honey/sweetener in the bowl you'll be using and mix well with a spoon until it forms a chocolate sauce. Pour oats in bowl. Add fresh berries. Enjoy!

*double/triple the amount so you can save in containers for easy power-breakfasts in the next few days!

Tonight I wanted something light and nutritious, and this soup hit the bulls-eye.I didn't warm it, I ate it as a gazpacho (considering it was 80 degrees in LA today, my internal temperature was still toasty!)

A cucumber a day keeps the body happy! This soup contains everything you need to alkalize and energize--quickly and simply.

Philosophie Ultimagreenerizer Soup!

• 1 1/2 cucumbers (I used smaller, Persian cucumbers which are easier and a bit sweeter) 
• 2 sticks celery
• 1 cup spinach
• 1 avocado (I used half because I wasn't that hungry)
• 1 lemon, juiced
• 1 clove garlic
  
• 2 tbsp hulled hemp seeds
  
• 1 tbsp apple cider vinegar
  
• 1/2 tsp crystal sea salt 

Put all of the above into a food processor and blend! Pour into a bowl and add:

• 1 tbsp nori flakes (or take nori sheets and tear it up)
• more sea salt to taste
• a swirl of olive oil, mix well with a spoon

I ate this soup with a piece of whole wheat bread... dipping as I went. It's my favorite way to eat soup! If you're gluten free, there are plenty of gluten free options for bread out there. Or you could eat this with little crackers, or just as is!