Cruciferous!

Yesterday, walking into the grocery store, I ran into someone who has made a positive impact upon my life -- a lovely lady named Kris. About three or four years ago I met Kris at the softball field as we rooted for our daughters. I don't know how many of you can feel or sense "energy" from or around people, so if you can't or haven't you will think I'm a kook, but I can normally feel the gist of who a person is, and some folks' energy comes across more strongly than others. With Kris, her bright, positive, substantial energy preceded her. I knew right away she was a good egg. We enjoyed each others' company, and moved past small talk very quickly. At the time, Kris was a vegetarian (she may still be, I don't know) so she was one of my early inspirations for changing my diet. When softball season was over, with our kids in different schools, Kris and I fell out of touch. I tend to get "tunnel vision" in life, dealing only with what is right in front of my face as a mom and wife, which is something I need to work on. Maintaining a broader perspective is much healthier. When I saw Kris yesterday, I was sorry we had fallen out of touch. We plan on getting together soon for coffee.

In the few minutes we had to catch up, I learned Kris is dealing with breast cancer. With a bright spirit like hers, I'm sure she will regain her health. I look forward to sharing with her what little I've gleaned from my research and experience with diet, from Kind to Crazy Sexy to Macrobiotics.

Inspired by Kris, last night when I was preparing a pot roast for the meat eaters, I decided to feature cruciferous vegetables as well. You all probably already know about cruciferous veggies, but just in case you don't, they are thus named for the shape of their flower -- a cross. They include all manner of cabbages, broccoli, cauliflower and more. Cruciferous vegetables contain cancer-suppressing compounds, so we can all benefit from their consumption.

When my boys eat meat, they like potatoes. I see potatoes as an excuse to eat brussels sprouts! That sounds like a stretch, but remember my Colcannon from my Christmas menu? I've not made it since, so it was about time. More cruciferous!

I didn't dig out my recipe but did it from memory -- I cut small new potatoes to uniform size, boiled them about 12 minutes, added halved brussels sprouts on top of the boiling potatoes for three more minutes, drained it all and dressed it with a little earth balance, a little veganaise, a little bragg's liquid aminos and a little liquid smoke -- very delicious and Irish!

To continue with my cruciferous consumption extravaganza, I made broccoli stem juice this morning from the scraps of last night's bounty. The juice also included an orange, an apple, a big leaf of kale, some romaine, some ginger and two cucumbers.

Like magic, these scraps become this:

The broccoli stalks have a lovely, almost sweet flavor, and they contain a shocking amount of juice. I wound up with about twice as much juice today as what I get with other combos, and there was hardly any pulp.

By the way, I want to share a few things that make my juicing easy and efficient:

I soak all the organics in a big bowl of water, and then I just scrub them well with this handy brush which fits in the hollow of my palm. Then there's no need to peel them. The nice sharp peeler is helpful, however, with whatever non-organics I use. finally, a large, sharp, well-balanced knife makes the prep easy and swift.

Eat your cruciferous veggies, and, if you are so inclined, say a prayer or send good vibes to Kris. The world is a better place with her in it.