Inspired Life Newsletter – September 2011

It is the supreme art of the teacher to awaken joy in creative expression and knowledge. — Albert Einstein

Back to School Lunch Tips

It’s the second week back to school and I know most parents can already feel the pressure of packing a fun, yet healthy lunch. Here are 3 tips for doing both:

  1. Try to appeal to a child’s sense of sight, by cutting their sandwiches into fun shapes. Also, play around with a variety of colourful fruits and veggies (great for colour and texture).
  2. Kids love to dip. We all know ketchup and ranch can be staples in a child’s meal, but how about a healthy dip alternative? Try Hummus, guacamole or yogurt.
  3. Think beyond the sandwich. Sandwiches are great, but eating the same thing everyday can be dull. Thermoses are great lunch alternative for soup, chili or stir fry. Even wraps can be a nice change from sandwiches.
Try to get your kids involved and have fun. Let them have a say in which (healthy) snacks are going into their lunches.

GREEN Events in Toronto:

September 21 – Insider’s Guide to GreenBuild
September 25 – Toronto Garlic Festival


Recipe of the Month:

The temperature is dropping and fall is officially on its way. I thought it would be nice to have a warm and comforting recipe for this newsletter. What better combination than apples and soup. Enjoy!

Squash and Apple Soup

You can garnish this autumnal squash and apple pureed soup with very thin, unpeeled apple slices or with sliced green onion.

  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 1 small onion, halved and thinly sliced
  • 3 garlic cloves, crushed
  • 1 tablespoon minced fresh ginger
  • 1 pickled jalapeño pepper, seeded, deveined, and finely chopped (wear gloves when handling; they burn)
  • 1 1/2 pounds butternut squash, peeled, seeded, and thinly sliced
  • 2 teaspoon sugar
  • 1 pound MacIntosh apples, cored, peeled, and thinly sliced
  • 1 pound Granny Smith apples, cored, peeled, and thinly sliced
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons chili powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon dried thyme
  • 1 1/2 cups chicken or vegetable stock

Instructions

  1. Heat oil in a Dutch oven over medium heat. Add onion, garlic, ginger and jalapeño and sauté 5 minutes or until onion is softened. Add squash, sprinkle with sugar, and sauté 5 minutes or until crisp-tender.
  2. Add apples, chili powder, salt and thyme and stir to coat. Add stock and 1 1/2 cups water and bring to boil. Reduce heat and simmer, partially covered, 30 minutes or until squash is tender. Working in batches, transfer to a blender or food processor, cover, and puree until smooth. Return squash and apple soup to pan and cook until heated through.

Serves 4.

Source: The Ultimate Soup Cookbook, Reader’s Digest


Did You Know…

Laughing lowers levels of stress hormones and strengthens the immune system. Six-year-olds laugh an average of 300 times a day. Adults only laugh 15 to 100 times a day. (source)

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