Mighty Matcha!

We love matcha! What's not to love? It's green, delicious and, pound for pound, it has more antioxidants than blueberries, goji berries, and pomegranates. Matcha is finely groung Japanese green tea. Because you dissolve the powder in order to drink it, (versus steeping traditional green tea leaves) you are actually consuming the whole leaf. That means more antioxidants, more chlorophyl, and more catechins. You're basically getting more of all the good stuff, which is what makes matcha so mighty! Enjoy the sunny weather this weekend with an iced matcha latte. It's a super easy and delicious way to add some matcha to your diet.

Iced Vanilla Soy Matcha Latte

1/2 to 1 tsp Rishi Tea matcha powder (depending how strong you like it)

2 oz hot water (not boiling)

4 oz vanilla soy milk (or rice, or almond, etc)

A little bit of honey (or whatever sweetener you like best)

A glass of ice

Dissolve the matcha in the hot water and whisk until frothy. Stir in your sweetener of choice. Stir in the vanilla soy milk. Pour over ice, dust with more matcha, and ENJOY!

For more interesting match recipes, check this list out.

You have something on your face...

...and it could be doing some damage. The Good Guide recently published a couple really interesting word clouds to illustrate the ingredient exposure of two daily beauty routines that included a list of skin and hair products that were used throughout one day. One routine included standard, national brand products, while the other included a list of Good-Guide-approved products. The differences they found are really interesting. The overall number of ingredients was really about the same, but the kinds of ingredients are what makes this really eye-opening.

Daily Routine #1 (standard national brands)

Seeing as these are word clouds, the words that are displayed more prominently are the ingredients that showed up in the greatest amounts, and therefore the ones this person was exposed to most. You'll notice a few of the more prominent words are a little scary, particularly petrolatum, dmdm hydantoin, parabens, phenoxyethanol, and methylchloroisothiazolinone. They're a mouthful, for sure, but, more importantly, studies of their toxicity have shown some grim results.

Daily Routine #2 (Good Guide approved brands)

Now here is the same daily beauty routine, only the products have been replaced with ones that are recommended or approved by Good Guide. Unfortunately, artificial fragrance is still a big one. However, we'd say you're doing your skin a big favor by replacing petroleum bi-products and harsh chemicals with things like sunflower seed oil, vegetable glycerin, and hydrolized milk protein.

Rainbow to the Rescue!

Lucky for you, we have a huge selection of natural skin, body, and hair care products, along with a full line of vegan make-up. Start off clean with Wild Carrot Herbals' utterly lovely smelling Cardamom Facial Cleanser. Then, gently moisturize with some Weleda Almond Moisture Cream. Give your hair that fresh from the beach look with John Master's Organics Sea Mist hair spray, made from a whopping 3 ingredients: water, sea salt, and lavender oil. And if you're feeling fancy, we've got a whole line of natural, vegan cosmetics from Zuzu.

To read the full article from Good Guide, including a full product list from this experiment, go HERE. The Good Guide is a great resource for product ratings, as is the Environmental Working Group's Cosmetics Database. And, for a really fun approach to natural beauty care, check out this super fun blog about items you can find right in your kitchen, appropriately named You Have Food on Your Face.

HERB OF THE WEEK: Black Pepper

Ok, so it's already Thursday, and we're just now taking the time to blog about our Herb of the Week. But, this little powerhouse of a pepper is a good one! Black pepper seems like one of those things that's just so commonplace it's often overlooked. With so many peppers to choose from, and each recipe seemingly more fancy than the next, black pepper just isn't getting the attention we think it deserves. It has been used medicinally for centuries by Buddhists, Ayurvedic practitioners, and perhaps even the ancient Egyptians. Ramesses II's mummy was found with black peppercorns stuffed in the nostrils. We won't go quite that far, but here is our own little Ode to Black Pepper.

WHY WE LOVE IT

1. It's delicious! Paired with a dash of salt, generously shaken on meat or tofu, or as a tasty added kick to homemade chai.

2. It has long been used to aid in digestion and relieve stomach ailments from gas to constipation. Consuming pepper stimulates the production of digestive enzymes and stomach acid, promoting better food digestion and shorter gastrointestinal food transit times.

3. Well-known for its sneeze-inducing properties, black pepper is great for clearing nasal congestion or relieving sinusitis.

4. The essential oil of black pepper is used to improve circulation and treat pain.

5. And perhaps the coolest benefit of all: Piperine, a compound found in black pepper, increases the bioavailability of a large number of nutrients. So, by adding black pepper to your meal, you're not only giving it an extra tasty kick, but you're actually boosting your body's ability to use all the good stuff that's in it.

So, not only does black pepper come complete with its own impressive list of direct health benefits, it helps you benefit from a variety of other foods and nutrients as well. A true team player! It doesn't get much better than that.

Sweet Tooth Solutions

Over the past few months, we've likely all eaten more than our fair share of sugary things. The way the holidays from Halloween through Easter all tend to run together, there isn't a month that goes by without grocery shelves filled with specialty candies and dinner tables piled with desserts and goodies. Come spring, we're all about ready to crash. Oh sugar, how you taunt us. There's really no denying the profoundly negative effects of refined sugars on our bodies. And so we are left with sugar substitutes, but where does that really leave us? Many of those have their own lengthy lists of negative health effects, and a lot of them just don't taste very good. Sweet teeth, rejoice! Rainbow has sugar substitutes that are not only sweet and delicious, but they have low glycemic index ratings, (suitable for diabetics and those on candida-conscious diets) and some are actually beneficial to your health. So, whether it's your morning cup of coffee or tea that needs a better sweetener, or you're in the mood to do some baking, why not give one of these a try?

Jerusalem Artichoke Syrup from Bright Earth Foods

We know, it doesn't necessarily sound sweet and delicious. The Jerusalem artichoke, or sunchoke, is rich in inulin, a naturally occurring polysaccharide. Inulin is actually a fiber that is not digested in the stomach, so it enters the intestines virtually unchanged. There it fosters the growth of "good bacteria" in your intestinal tract. There is also evidence that it may even boost calcium absorption.

Try these recipes!

Coconut Nectar & Coconut Crystals from Coconut Secret

These two sweeties are made from the sap of a coconut tree. Coconut sap contains several different minerals, vitamin C, broad-spectrum B vitamins, and 17 amino acids. Both of these products are minimally processed and evaporated at low temps. Neither is subjected to the high temperatures that many processed sweeteners are, (even agave) so they are both enzymatically alive. The flavor is sweet and somewhat earthy, but not coconutty.

Try these recipes!

Stevia from NuNatural

Most of us have tried, or at least heard of, stevia by now. This sweet herb is even sweeter than sugar and has no caloric intake.

XyloSweet

Xylitol is a naturally occurring sugar alcohol that our own bodies produce in small amounts. It is just as sweet as sugar with only 40% of the calories. And, rather than attack your teeth like sugar, xylitol has actually been shown to prevent tooth decay.

When you can't make it to the beach...

You can still enjoy some marine moments at home. We have a veritable bounty of oceanic goodness right now at Rainbow! Sea vegetables are highly nutritious and great for detoxing and environmental protection. The vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants in sea vegetables have been shown to improve the condition of skin, hair, nails, teeth, and gums while supporting respiratory, cardiac, thyroid, and metabolic function. Their detoxifying and regenerative properties are widely hailed. Species that are extra high in iodine, like our purple dulse, even offer natural protection against the effects of radiation. With all this nutrition packed into such a tasty and versatile group, why not add some to your diet? At Rainbow, we have everything from blue green algae powder to kelp fronds to Nori sheets for you to use in everything from soups to smoothies to snacks.

Here are two deliciously nutritious - and incredibly easy - suggestions to get sea vegetables on the menu in your life.

Sweet - Kelp Energy Bars

These are easy, delicious, and packed full of nutrients and energy to go. Make a batch on Sunday, and snack on these all week.

• 1/2 oz kelp fronds (Ours are from Oregon!)

• 2 cups sesame seeds, almonds, or hazelnuts (Or, use a tasty mix!)

• 1/2 cup maple syrup

FIRST Powder your kelp fronds in a blender. Even though you are converting them to a powder, it is best to start with whole fronds.

THEN Add nuts and/or seeds to the kelp powder in your blender and grind to a coarse mix.

POUR your coarse mix into a bowl. Add the maple syrup, and stir.

SPREAD the mixture onto an oiled cookie sheet. Press the mixture into a 1/4 inch thick mass.

BAKE at 325 for 20 minutes. Cut into squares while still slightly warm. Let them cool completely and ENJOY!

ALSO TRY using birch syrup, brown rice syrup, light molasses, or honey. Add some of your favorite seasonings like cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice, or cardamom. You can even mix in some raw shredded coconut. Use what you like!

Adorable striped box not included.

Salty - Green Popcorn

You can make this and keep in a sealed container for up to 3 days before your popcorn starts getting a little tough.

• Popcorn (We recommend popping on the stove top in olive or safflower oil. If you are using olive oil, just be careful not to burn it.)

• Nutritional Yeast (maxi flake works best)

• Any of our fine sea veggie powders - sea veggie mix, spirulina, kelp, chlorella, etc.

• Salt

• Black Pepper

FIRST Make popcorn :)

THEN sprinkle with your green powder of choice, nutritional yeast, salt, and black pepper. So simple. So delicious.

ALSO TRY garlic, cayenne, cumin, curry powder...you name it. It will be tasty! Tired of popcorn? How about roasted chickpeas for a super munchable, high fiber crunch? Toss them with oil and roast at 450 for 30-40 minutes, then season as you would popcorn. YUM.

Happy (and healthy) snacking!

when your throat is screaming….

I just got over a spring flu that ran through me like a

Changing seasons

We're approaching a time when the days are shortest and the nights are longest.  Like the rest of the animals, our bodies would like us to slow down.  In stead, we pile holiday activities on top of our already full work schedules. The patterns of nature suggest we slow down, but the patterns of our society suggest we keep on at a modern hectic pace.

How does one find balance, and therefore maintain good health, in the midst of such extremes?  Nature holds many answers to this question.  The trees have dropped their leaves, so follow their lead, and let go.  Prioritize, and take care of what's necessary, but let go of the superfluous.  The animals are gathering and bulking up, so nourish yourself well.  But before you reach for a nourishment band-aid (chocolate, for instance), you need to ask yourself, "What truly nourishes me?"  Your answers may surprise you, or they may feel familiar.

And alwa

Salt
Salt, a crystalline compound, essentially consists of charged particles that assist with the communication between  cells in our bodies.