Healthy chocolate recipe made from cacao powder

Recently, I made a chocolate from scratch - from cocoa powder! It tastes a bit different from the ones you get at stores, but it's a lot more healthier and yummy! I was asked to share the recipe by quite a few people, so here it is!

As usual, I didn't measure any of the ingredients, but made it with the "this-is-about-right" amounts, so you will need to adjust them according to your taste.

Ingredients:

- cacao powder (about 1/2 cup)
- coconut oil
- cinnamon
- stevia (or other sweeteners you like, such as honey, agave nectar, brown sugar, etc.)

How to make it:

- put cocoa powder, cinnamon and stevia in a container and mix them well. Check the taste at this point and make it a bit sweeter than how you like it to be
- put coconut oil in a pan and heat it until it becomes liquid (I was able to skip this step, as I live in Florida and my coconut oil was already in a liquid form without heating it!)
- Using a tablespoon, add coconut oil into the mixture of #1 above. When you do this, stir every time you add another spoonful and keep adding it until it gives the thickness of your liking. Make sure not to add too much oil and make it too weak. The color should be dark and it should be pretty thick, not liquidy.
- Optional: Add dark cherries, blueberries, raw nuts, if you like. It tastes better if you defrost frozen ones and use them, rather than using fresh ones.
- Optional: sprinkle rough xylitol on top of it evenly
- Put it in a refrigerator

That's all!

It's super yummy!! Try it and let me know how you like it!

Me :)

PS: People say cocoa contains antioxidant. It may be. However, just eating chocolate is not quite enough to get it! Taking vitamin E is a great way of getting antioxidant! You can get it at my online store, Kenkobi Factory: www.KenkobiFactory.com. We ship internationally.

This one has dark cherries in it! :)

New non-fat dressing recipe

I didn't really cook till just a few years ago. I was always very busy and just didn't have the time (that is my excuse!).  Once I started it, I found cooking to be quite fun. I really enjoy it. I don't want to give you a false idea, though, that I'm now a super cook! I'm nowhere near that, yet! Everything I make is very simple, but is easy and quick.

While I get some recipes from my friends or the internet, I often invent new ones of my own. I just come up with the idea of mixing certain things and can imagine how the taste would come out - well, most of the times.

With this reason, my recipes usually don't come with the exact measurement, as I hardly measure things. I just put things together with the amount which I feel "right."

Anyway, I just came up with the most delicious salad dressing, so wanted to share it with you:

- 2 tablespoons of plain Greek yogurt
- 2 tablespoons of mustard (I used stoneground one, simply because I like that kind, but I think any kind would do)
- a bit of unsweetened coconut milk
- a bit of stevia

It is very creamy and sooooo good! Try it and let me know how you like it.

Have a great weekend!

:)

PS: If you want to take healthy oil by supplements, my online store, Kenkobi Factory, can help you! Go visit www.KenkobiFactory.com! 

I LOVE salad!! :)

My thoughts on Father's Day

It was the Father's Day yesterday. After I sent him a short "Happy Father's Day" message, I thought something like this:

"When it comes to parents, we tend to remember all the bad things they did when we were little, like 'they scolded at me on this' or they did this or that. But the truth is, besides the fact that I wouldn't even be here without them with all the opportunities to do many great things in life, they also did so many great things for us which are easily 100 times more than those little unpleasant mistakes they made.

Like for me, my parents sent me up to college because they believed in good education, helped me when I needed, take me to nice restaurants whenever I go back to Japan, etc., but I haven't been showing my appreciation for them enough. Not fair for them.

Looking back, my dad got up early in the morning to go to work to support us every day for over 30 years. And on his day offs, he again got up early to take us to the amusement park, the zoo, and many other places to make us happy. Factually, he didn't have any day offs for over 30 years!!

And my mom cooked for us every day. She said she didn't like cooking very much, but still cooked for us every day. I loved everything she made. I never had frozen food for dinner. And she didn't let us have fast foods for lunch saying it would not be good for our health, while other kids brought them for lunch. As a kid, we liked things like that and I complained to her, but she held her position.  

They have done just so much for me and it is sometimes overwhelming. I always mean to do more for them in return, but get caught by the busyness of everyday life and haven't done enough for them. 

I can't stay with them much either - they are in Japan and I'm here in the US. But I guess there are still things I can do for them from here, or there might be even things I can do, because I'm here. But either way, I want to and need to do more for them.

Thank you so much for all you've done for me so far and for your constant support."

So, I wrote down exactly how I felt and sent another message to them. My dad wrote me back and said, "Oh wow, it was very touching. I'll save this forever and put a copy of it in a frame." Haha... funny. But I guess they understood how I feel about them. An honest communication is really nice. :)

I suggest you take care of your parents, too. :)

With love,
Tomoko

PS: If you want to give your parents a gift of health, my online store, Kenkobi Factory, has various high quality vitamins, supplements. Please visit www.KenkobiFactory.com

I was like this when I was a child - totally looked like a boy!!!

Wheat-free basil bread

My friend introduced me to wheat-free bread using oat bran recently and I'm really into it now. I'm inventing many different versions. I came up with another recipe and it was SO yummy, so I wanted to share it with you:

- 30g oat bran
- 2 tablespoons plain Greek yogurt
- 1 egg (or 2 egg whites)
- pinch of sea salt
- pinch of basil

1. Mix all the ingredients
2. Put parchment paper on a flat metal cooking tin
3. Lay the "dough" on it
4. Sprinkle Parmesan cheese on top, if you like
5. Put it in the oven at 350 and bake for 8 minutes

O-h-h-h-h !!!! It is sooooo good!!!

:)

PS: It is best to get your nutrition through actual foods you enjoy! I'm a huge believer of that. But if you can't get enough of certain nutrition by your foods and need extra vitamins or supplements, my online store, Kenkobi Factory, can help you! Please visit www.KenkobiFactory.com. We ship internationally.



I tasted it to make sure the recipe I'm sharing was good before I posted it, and it was deliiiissshhh!! :)

Best detox program

I try most of the supplements myself before I carry them in my online store. While I understand everyone's body is different and the same item could work differently on each person, I want to make sure what I'm selling is actually good and high quality.

Many people are interested in detox nowadays, so I have tried several detox supplements myself. And I think I finally found the most effective detox method, so I wanted to share it with you.

Ready?

"EXERCISE" (and water)

I know!!! I can hear all your "ugh's" from all over the world! So sorry to disappoint you, but that is the fact! Of course, you can take some high quality detox supplements WITH IT and get even better results, but after all, you are going to have to work harder than just swallowing some pills to get the best result on this. Life is tough, huh?

I have to confess - I'm really bad at this, too. I mean, in this busy schedule, who could take the time to exercise, right? I don't care for just running or going to the gym for a treadmill. I like playing the actual sports - the "real" stuff, you know? Like tennis or volleyball. But it's so hard to find the day when everyone's available to play that the day will never come!

With this perfect excuse, I haven't done any regular exercise in double digit years! I started sometimes, continued for 2-4 weeks, and then quit.

A few months ago, a group of us got together and bought one-year gym membership at a local hotel. It's just 5 minutes away from where I live, but I still hadn't been there even once!

Recently, I ran into one of them and she convinced me that I should go, so I finally went. All I did was super-fast walk for just half an hour and spent some time in sauna, but, boy, did I feel great! From the point on, I started going 3-4 times a week.

Exercise is actually very good for you, even if it's a very mild one. It promotes blood circulation, and also puts your attention outwards and takes your mind off of things. It is quite therapeutic - physically and mentally. Just start from what you can. Some is better than none. You can always work it up gradually, if you want to.

Well, it's been only a couple of weeks since I started this healthy habit, but I started. :) And the more of us get together, the easier it gets, because we can be accountable to each other and encourage to continue. Plus, it's a lot more fun when we do it together!

So who wants to join me?

:)

Me

PS: Of course, there are some excellent detox supplements available at my online store, Kenkobi Factory. You can take a look at here: www.KenkobiFactory.com

This may work!!

Super easy summer dessert

LONG time ago, I was addicted to McFlurry (like, REALLY REALLY long time ago!). But if you like dessert like that, here is a healthy and super tasty substitute:

- Greek yogurt (or "yogourt" for people in the UK!)
- stevia (or other sweetener)
- 1 tablespoon ground flaxseed/ flaxseed meal
- pinch of cinnamon

You can add blueberries or strawberries, if you like.

That's it. Easy, right? And it is super yummy!!!

PS: During summer, taking potassium will help you get through the hot weather. You can get it at my online store, Kenkobi Factory! www.KenkobiFactory.com

Wheat-free pumpkin scone recipe

A couple of weeks ago, I posted a wheat-free sourdough bread recipe. With just slight change, you can also easily make a pumpkin anything - pumpkin scone, pumpkin pancake, pumpkin muffin, etc. I was asked for a recipe from quite many people, so I'm posting here separately.

Ingredients:

- 2 tablespoons oat bran
- 2 tablespoons pumpkin (you can get a canned one which has been already cooked and mashed)
- 1 egg or 2 egg whiltes
- svetia or other sweetner to your taste
- a pinch of cinnamon or pumpkin pie spice

Mix all the ingredients.

For pancake - with oven

1. Put parchment paper on a flat metal cooking tin
2. Lay the "dough" on it
3. Put it in the oven at 350 and bake for 8-9 minutes

Here is the photo of it make in the oven (made with 2 egg whites)

For pancake - in pan

1. Prepare small skillet by heating up to medium heat and spray cooking oil
2. Pour mixture in pan and cook on one side until bubbles start to form on the pancake. Then flip.

For muffin

- Pour mixture in a muffin shaped container (use silicon container, so it won't stick)
- Put it in the oven at 350 and bake for 18 minutes.

Needless to say, if you use whole egg, it comes out more yellow, and if you use 2 egg whites, it comes out more white.

When I know I won't have much time the next morning, I make the mixture the night before and and make it all ready, so all I need to do in the morning is to pour the mixture and put it in the oven. By laying the mixture over night, it becomes thicker and you'll be able to make thicker scone. You need to adjust the baking time depending on how thick your scone is. The thicker it is, the longer, of course.

And here is the photo of muffin (made with a whole egg)

You can try many different ways and see which ones you like :)

Enjoy!!

PS: I believe that the best way to get nutrition is through real foods. It's much more tasty than vitamins or supplements, and making good foods are fun! But if you can't get enough of certain nutrition or vitamins, my online store, Kenkobi Factory can help you! www.KenkobiFactory.com