Satisfying the Palette

Saturday was the day to do focused shopping - my younger daughter heads to college next week, thus there were storage containers to purchase, toiletries and a quick trip to our favorite make-up store, Bare Minerals. My older daughter needed to find a dress for a wedding and also needed to replenish her Bare Minerals as well. I had heard about this company a few years back and knew that the claim to fame was few ingredients and allergic reactions. While in Germany last year for my alternative cancer program, I once again heard about this company from EWG (Environmental Working Group, an agency that rates cancer causing chemicals in skin care products, cleaners and other chemical-laden products. When I think about "palette" in this context, I am brought back to my concept of my tag-line, "Feel Great Look Great From The Inside Out". This concept was born when I learned about skin care, wardrobing and social presence and modeled for an agency during college. Prior to this experience, I was very unconfident in my presence. I carried this concept into my weight control classes that I coordinated in the health promotion department at the hospital where I worked and created a fun program for teens focusing on total body care - good nutrition, fitness, skin care and wardrobing for unique body types. In our family, we are cautious about what products we use on our bodies and are moving into changing cleaning products as well. The skin care line at Bare Minerals is nice and what I also really like about it is the natural look that is created, emphasizing one's unique beauty instead of changing one's look entirely. Consider taking an outing and create your own palette of color! The other palette that was satisfied Saturday evening was taste. I've mentioned often that being creative with food comes naturally for me. I love blending flavors and presenting food on the plate that appeals to the eye as well as the stomach! This week, the organic eggplant and tomatoes were abundant, so I decided to create a greek meal. I oven roasted diced eggplant with onions, then added diced tomatoes and a sprinkle of oregano, continuing to roast until the eggplant was browned. I then mixed grass fed ground bison with gluten free bread crumbs, an egg, onion powder, oregano and feta cheese. I made burgers out of the mixture and fried them in a greased pan. For the carb lovers, I made a focaccia on Samis Millet and Flax pizza crust. I order the millet-flax line of grain products from Samis Bakery as these products are wheat free, many are yeast free and the fiber content is high. I cut the crust into wedges, brush with olive oil, onion and oregano and bake to brown. Needless to say, our taste palettes were very satisfied. To finalize satisfying the palette, I took a short bike ride, soaking in the sun, blue sky and beauty of nature. Being active and being outdoors will surely help one to Feel Great and Look Great, From the Inside Out! I hope this combo might be worth a try! Julie