Inspector Gadget..

When snow falls, nature listens.
~ Antoinette Van Kleeff

This snowy, blustery weekend marks one year since I climbed into the drivers seat of my health.  It was last January when I embarked on this ten day detox in preparation for my trip to the Cleveland Clinic Center for Functional Medicine.  My decision to travel two hours in the name of health was based on my hesitance to climb aboard the pharmaceutical merry-go-round.  I just know too many people who are managing their side effects of whatever medication they are on and that just didn’t interest me.  My willingness to travel and step outside of what was known and comfortable to me has been life changing.  It brought me to the root cause of my fatigue, brain fog and fear of needles high cholesterol.  Functional Medicine, by very definition, means treating the person who has the disease rather than the disease the person has.  And it has made all the difference. I’m not certain that my celiac ever would have been uncovered by my physician here in Pittsburgh based on the three very basic and common symptoms I was having.  And yet, had it not, I would have continued on doing permanent and irreparable damage to my intestines.  That two hour trip to Cleveland is worth every cent in gas, time and effort.  For a more in-depth look at Functional Medicine, this article breaks it down very concisely.

And if my feelings on the subject aren’t testimony enough, I got this yesterday from a close friend whom I strongly encouraged to get herself to Cleveland for another approach:

I think a lot of people are sick and tired of feeling sick and tired, and I’m here to tell as many people as possible that there is another way.  Virtually all of the blogs that I follow closely (Against All Grain, Deliciously Ella, A Clean Bake, The Domestic Man to name just a few) all started their journeys by facing a health crisis of some degree and turned their lives around by becoming their own best health advocate and by rethinking the fuel they put into their bodies.  It’s definitely food for thought…

Now, nothing says kitchen time for me like a snowstorm and a new gadget.  This spiralizer arrived at my doorstep on Friday afternoon and I knew immediately what I had to make.  Zucchini noodles with sun-dried tomato pesto caught my eye a few weeks ago and it sealed the deal on my desire to finally purchase a spiralizer.

Pesto typically includes pine nuts and pine nuts contain a wealth of antioxidants, including vitamins A, B, C, D, and E, and lutein.

Sun-dried tomatoes serve as excellent sources of minerals, especially potassium and magnesium. Potassium helps your nerves communicate and regulates your electrolyte balance, while magnesium maintains healthy bone tissue and aids in energy production.

The spiralizer is effortless:

Zucchini is an outstanding source of manganese and vitamin C, and is a great source of fiber.

After a quick sauté of the zucchini in a pan, mix in the pesto:

A hearty meal after shoveling snow:

It’s been a year of change and a few challenges, (and a lot of needles), but I wouldn’t have it any other way.