Naturally Sweet Antioxidant Brownies

Quick, easy brownies packed with antioxidants, protein and just the right amount of sweetness. Decadent and satisfying without any added sugar. 

I crossed my fingers when I made these, actually. I tweaked a recipe I found on a sugar bag, just hoping for the best. But these are AMAZING! This is your new favorite dessert. I promise.

I believe in always eating mindfully and consciously. If you want something sweet and it serves you in some way in that moment, just eat it and enjoy. No guilt!

I couldn't eat a whole tray of these because they're so rich. But with no added sugar, I don't even have to think about it. Truly awesome.

Cacao is packed with antioxidants that help protect our DNA and cells from oxidative stress and free radical damage. These brownies are the perfect excuse to eat lots of this amazing ingredient, without the damaging effects of sugar!

• 1 cup cacao powder
• 2 scoops vanilla plant protein (get my favorite here)
• 1/8 tsp sea salt
• 1 cup unsweetened coconut milk
• 1 cup chopped dates
• 1 egg
• 1/4 cup coconut oil
  
  Preheat oven to 350F

Grease 8x8 brownie pan with a little additional coconut oil

Mix cacao powder, protein powder and sea salt in a medium sized bowl.

Blend coconut milk, dates, egg, and coconut oil on high in a food processor until you get as close to a puree as possible. Dates may not blend completely.

Add puree mixture to the dry ingredients and blend thoroughly with a rubber spatula until everything is incorporated. 

Spread evenly into greased brownie pan. Bake for 25 mins or until a toothpick inserted in the brownies comes out clean. Let cool completely and refrigerate for at least 4 hours before serving.

Enjoy!

Laser Scar Resurfacing with Cap Aesthetics

I had the chance to try out laser treatments on some of my surgical scars recently, and I'm excited to give you a little run-down of my results. 

My amazing obstetrician, Dr Cap, recently added laser skin treatments to his clinic's offerings and I was curious to see if this non-invasive treatment could lessen the appearance of some remaining scars on my body. The laser his clinic offers is called the Cynosure Palomar ICON aesthetic system.

My arm, 5 months after I had surgery to repair my broken humerus in 2007.

As you probably know, I was in a severe car accident in 2007 that nearly killed me and left me physically scarred for life. I thought the appearance of the scars on my face and arm were pretty much what they were going to be forever, and I was more or less ok with that.

But when I was given the chance to just test this out and see what would happen, I jumped at the opportunity. Why not?

It's not like I love my scars.

If I could lessen their appearance, I was all for that!

My scar 8 years after surgery but Before we started laser treatment.

So we started a course of three treatments on my arm first, and then my face.

The treatment was uncomfortable, but quick. The laser felt like a fast, hot sting, kind of like a rubber band hitting my skin. It didn't enjoy it, but it was totally bearable. And Paige, who was doing the lasering, said we could stop and take a break at any point. She was very considerate of how I was feeling and she made the whole procedure a lot more pleasant.

She did a few passes up and down my scar to make sure it got the full benefit of the laser. My skin did start to feel hot, but when it was all over, I got an ice pack immediately to help calm the initial inflammation. The laser triggers the natural healing ability of the skin, and promotes collagen production, so it makes sense that there would be SOME discomfort in order to trigger that process. Even though my skin felt sore for a few hours after we completed each session, I honestly forgot to apply ice at home and I completely forgot I'd had anything done.

I'm just going to post the photos and let them speak for themselves. They were all taken with an iPad or iPhone, under less than ideal lighting circumstances, and they have not been retouched.

My scar, healed after the first treatment and right before we did the second. Already starting to flatten out!

My arm scar healed after the second laser treatment. The skin got a little more red after the second treatment but the scar is shrinking.

My scar after the final treatment, much more skin toned and a lot flatter.

My scar today, different lighting but it's accurate for how much better it blends with my skin.

With the positive results on my arm, we decided to see how my facial scars would do! Since we were lasering my face, I also decided to try the "photofacial" to help eliminate the rosacea in my cheeks that cropped up during my pregnancy with Little J.

My forehead scar just a couple of months after I was released from the rehab hospital. It was a never a "BAD" scar, but it bothered me.

My chin scar, and rosacea before treatment.

My forehead scar before we started treatment.

For these scars and my cheeks, we also did three treatments, using different laser tools/handpieces for the scar tissue and the vascular redness. One was called the 1540 for the scars, and the other was the MaxG for the rosacea. 

My forehead scar after completing treatment. More filled in and skin toned.

Me today. Feeling much more like "me".

We were unable to laser the part of my scar that runs through my lip because the tissue is so different, but the scar on my chin is much flatter and less noticeable now.

My rosacea is also greatly diminished, but without completely eliminating the healthy pink-cheek look I like!

It was an awesome experience overall and I am really happy with the results. I wanted to share it with you because if you have scars that are preventing you from feeling like your true self, I'm all for transforming them! All of my treatments had no down-time and the soreness that remained after each session felt and looked like a sunburn. It always faded within a couple of days and all I had to do was protect my skin from the sun for two weeks.

Easy.

Your "whole healthy" is whatever you want it to be, and if feeling better about your appearance helps you achieve that, go for it. No matter what you've been through, how you feel now is 100% up to you. Sometimes scars tell a story that leaves you feeling empowered. Sometimes they remind you of a traumatic experience and prevent you from healing emotionally. Mine had elements of both, so I chose to deal with them in different ways. If you live in Southern California, you can get these laser skin treatments at Cap Women's Health in Encinitas, California.

Whatever you've experienced, however you look on the outside, you ARE beautiful. Don't ever forget that or tell yourself anything different. Cheers to your health and happiness,

XO Maggie

I did purchase these treatments, but I also got a discount in exchange for talking about my experience. All opinions are my own.

Quick Scones, Gluten Free

I don't miss many foods now that I have to keep to a completely gluten free diet.

I don't have celiac disease, but I'm seriously gluten intolerant and eating gluten essentially shuts down my brain function. Debilitating brain fog that feels sticky and thick, headaches, difficulty forming sentences, crippling fatigue... it makes me feel like my brain injury is fresh. Which I HATE. So making a change to my diet to avoid all that was, and is, 100% worth it.

Sometimes I miss Montreal bagels, and real French pastries, but there is a bakery in Montreal that makes a mean gluten free croissant now, and they SHIP TO THE US! So I get my fix on occasion by ordering online. 

But good scones. Oh man, I haven't had one since I was a kid. Not too sweet, just the right crumb and texture, holds butter well... I've had few that are ok but they're all too sweet to be "real" scones in my book. I had pretty much accepted that I would never find a gluten free version that met my standard.

And then my husband made one by accident. And it was WONDERFUL. And fast, and easy, and all that good stuff.

So here's the recipe!

Banana Scones

• 1 cup all-purpose gluten free flour (no gums! Get the recipe for my custom AP flour blend instantly when you sign up for my newsletter)

• 1 scoop vanilla plant protein - get my favorite from my nutrition partner HERE

• 1/4 tsp sea salt

• 1 tsp baking powder  

• 1 tsp baking soda

• 2 mashed bananas

• 1 egg

• 1 TBSP avocado or melted coconut oil

Preheat oven to 350º F - Makes 1 dozen mini scones

Thoroughly mix all ingredients together until fully incorporated. Dough should resemble fluffy cookie dough. Spoon golf ball sized amounts onto cookie sheet lined with parchment paper. Use wet fingers to shape into little triangles, or to your liking.
Bake for 15 minutes until springy to the touch and brown on the bottom. 

Let cool completely before serving, and enjoy! 

•••

 Original/Plain Scones

• 1 cup all purpose gluten free flour (no gums added to the flour mix!)

• 1 scoop vegan vanilla protein (get my fav from my nutrition partner HERE)

• 1 TBSP psyllium husk

• 1 tsp each baking powder and baking soda

• 1/4 tsp sea salt

• 1 egg

• 1 TBSP avocado or melted coconut oil

• 1/2 cup plain European style whole milk plain yogurt (also, no gums!)
 

Preheat oven to 350F Makes 10 mini scones

Blend dry ingredients together in a bowl until all one color. 
Blend wet ingredients in a separate bowl, then add dry ingredients to the wet and mix thoroughly.
Mix until fully incorporated. Dough should look and feel like fluffy cookie dough.
Drop golf ball sized lumps of dough onto a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper.
Shape into triangles or desired shape with wet fingers.
Bake for 15 minutes until springy to the touch and brown on the bottom.
Let cool completely before serving, enjoy!

Apple Cinnamon and Pumpkin scone attempts are up next! Keep an eye out for those before Halloween.

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Gut Feelings

Your gut is trying to tell you something. Those butterflies in your stomach? Feeling nauseated before a big presentation? Feeling depressed or anxious while dealing with a gut-related disorder? Constant stomach cramps, gas, and bloating? Your gut is begging you to pay attention.

There are millions of nerves in your gut talking to your brain, and vice-versa.

And they influence each other.

Getting my gut healthy has made my mood, energy levels, immunity, and digestion healthy for the first time since early childhood.

The gut is now known to be a "second brain" with massive amounts of neurons that communicate directly with the brain between our ears, and houses more bacteria than we have cells in our bodies, also communicating with those neurons by releasing vast amounts of chemicals that transmit messages.

The bacteria in your gut can influence and impact those signals your brain is getting, and our mood can also impact the health of those bacteria!  Basically, if your gut isn't happy, you probably aren't either, and if you're stressed out, you likely aren't doing your gut any favors.

The two are directly connected.

Growing up, I remember having stomach aches all the time.

As a teenager, I was frequently sick with colds and flu and took a lot of time out of school. I was tired a lot and took frequent "mental health days" to cope with the stress of my advanced high school curriculum. 

After I was released from the hospital, the stress, feeding tube, painkillers, and antibiotics had wreaked havoc on my digestion. I was in the bathroom and in pain after meals pretty much daily. It took my gut getting to this miserable state for me to wake up and seek out a good probiotic. I didn't know it would make such a big difference, I just figured it was worth a shot.

Getting my gut balanced and healthy after my accident was the sun appearing after a dark, cold, thunderstorm. I felt happy. I felt like I could handle this whole recovery thing. I didn't get sick any more. I knew I could still create a life and career I loved not in spite of, but because of, my severe traumatic brain injury. Many people have commented on my positive attitude despite everything that happened to me, and while some of that is just my personality, I know I would not have found my way out of the depths of despair I felt for years without finding the magic of a good probiotic.

I'm not a scientist, but I felt so dramatically better in mind and body after I started taking probiotics, I know it has to be the reason. But it's not just my opinion.

The research backs up what I experienced.

If your gut or your mind are in turmoil, maybe a probiotic is the key to changing your life. No guarantees, but talk to your doctor about trying it. I have found that these small, simple things are what have made the biggest difference in how I feel and how I heal.

See more about the nutrition line I love HERE.

 

Finding Ease When I Eat

READ PART ONE - EATING IS HARD

Ease is a necessity in my life now. I'm done with hard. But getting there was a process. Long before my life-changing oral surgery (read PART 1), I married my fiancé and got my American green card. I settled into my new life far from my Canadian home, and I tried to get all of the basic necessities squared away so that I could have support as I continued healing. I was doing everything right. But I soon got an unwelcome surprise.

I couldn't get health insurance.

All of my preexisting conditions made me essentially uninsurable for anything we could afford, so for the first year and a half after my accident, I crossed my fingers and hoped no unforeseen complications would arise. Healing myself became my mission.

No insurance? Fuck it. NO PROBLEM (I hoped). I still believed I could get 100% better. 

I was fiercely determined and optimistic, and the book The Brain That Changes Itself showed me that miraculous healing was possible. I thought my brain injury was completely to blame for how physically bad I felt, so I didn't think I could do anything except fight through the fatigue, do brain exercises, and keep doing my correspondence coursework toward finishing my journalism degree. I hoped I would heal and feel stronger the more time went by. But I didn't.

A chat with my best friend, before the two-year anniversary of my accident, changed everything.

My doctors told me that the majority of my cognitive healing would happen in the first two years post-injury but I did not feel mostly healed. At ALL. So my girl, who had traveled by plane and by bus to get to me when I was in the ICU, had my back once again.

With close friends in 2009, after going gluten free.

It seemed, she said, that my symptoms lined up with having a gluten intolerance, so while we were still on the phone, I jumped on Google and looked it up. Sure enough, what I felt every day was staring me in the face from my computer screen. I immediately started paying attention to what I ate and how it made me feel.

Eating apple pie on a trip to the local mountains gave me a headache and had me passed out in the car minutes after we left. A "healthy" multigrain turkey wrap for lunch on a study break at home left me exhausted with debilitating brain fog only minutes after I ate it. That direct correlation was all the evidence I needed that gluten was hurting me; I cut gluten out of my diet completely.

Two weeks later, I actually felt like a PERSON again. I had more energy, I could do more, I could handle a full day of studying and I wasn't completely wiped after small outings with my husband. And I could suddenly feel where my body still actually suffered because of my injuries, instead of just feeling generally bad and tired all. of. the. time.

I still got tired often, and I still hurt. I cried. I had anxiety about my future. I still had the damn partial denture.

But it felt different. I felt lighter. Clearer. Hope for a full recovery surged inside me because now the possibility felt real. I felt so dramatically better from such a simple change, and I believed even harder that I could achieve a full recovery with gluten out of my life. I completed my final classes and received my journalism degree in 2010.

Discovering my intolerance to gluten led me to being my whole healthy.

But going gluten free wasn't the magical solution I hoped it would be. Eating was made even harder because I had to read every label at the grocery store and take every precaution to avoid gluten. I tuned into everything I put in my body, but the more I searched for healthy food, the more unsure I felt about what to eat.

Labels screamed health claims at me, trying to make me buy, and I didn't know what to believe. I knew I had to avoid gluten but it was a steep learning curve to learn all of the places that gluten hides. I leaned on pre-made gluten free meals that were "safe" choices I could microwave and eat easily without my front teeth, but I sacrificed nutrition for convenience. Overall, eating gluten free made me feel dramatically better, but I wasn't healing as fast as I wanted to be. I knew healing slowly was normal but I was so frustrated.

I lived online, craving social connection with far-away friends but also reading and learning as much as I could, hoping to one day return to a career in journalism. I was still passionately interested in current events, environmental news, and now optimal wellness and brain health. I learned about the benefits of exercise for the brain, and saw some things about meditation and mindfulness that were echoed by the way yoga seemed to help me. I started to learn about GMOs and the controversy there, too.

I began to really see that everything we eat is either fighting disease, or feeding it. 

I learned the horrific truth about factory farming, I watched FOOD, INC.,  and a rancher friend told me that most cattle are slaughtered before they're two years old because they are often so sick, they wouldn't live much past that anyway. 

Eating meat from sick animals couldn't be the way to achieve real healing,and  I decided that over-processed food was probably killing my recovery, so I turned my back on long ingredients lists, health claims, and convenience. I searched, what felt like the entire internet, for truly pastured beef, eggs, chicken and organic produce direct from the farmer.

Happily it wasn't hard to find these things called CSAs, or Community Supported Agriculture, where you bought in bulk direct from a farmer, on a certain schedule, and you got a variety box of fresh produce, or different cuts of meat, delivered right to you.

As I got to know my farmers and saw exactly where my food was coming from, I knew I could never go back to buying meat at the store. Not only was the quality and flavor light years better, but I could feel the nutrient-dense food healing me. I still had bad, hard days, but I was happier, and being able to participate in my food was immensely gratifying. Plus having a freezer full of food meant less trips to the store, saving me time, energy and brainpower. Finally, eating was joyful.

I was getting micronutrients I'd been missing. Rebuilding my brain and bones demanded serious nutrition; I needed the right vitamins and minerals for proper function of everything in my body. Eating nutrient rich pastured meats and organic, local produce (we also planted a garden) gave me a huge boost and my healing took a few more leaps forward. I was able to be more social and go on more adventures with my husband, I went to regular yoga classes, and I built and ran a blog about the racehorse, Zenyatta, her stablemates, and her trainer.

I also talked to a holistically-minded Doctor of Osteopathy (D.O.) to see what else I could do, if anything. The doctor spent over an hour with me and recommended a series of supplements to take in addition to the healthy food I was eating. I was hopeful, and walked into the vitamin store as soon as I left his office, buying every single supplement he had told me to get.

My probiotics and Fish Oil

Then I jumped on the computer that same day to research WHY he had recommended these supplements and what benefits I could expect from taking them. I trusted him, but my journalist brain still wanted to know the who, what, why, and how of everything I was experiencing. I had to know that I wasn't just spending our minimal amount of money for nothing. It made sense that if I was burning calories at a crazy rate, then my body would be burning through nutrients, too, but I needed to see some facts. It didn't take me long to get the information I was seeking and a couple of supplements stood out with the science to back them up. 

Omega-3 fish oil and probiotics seemed to have the most overall health benefits to help me reach the level of wellness I ached for.

I didn't notice anything right away, but I kept taking them and soon, I noticed that my physical pain, that had been so constant, was almost gone. I have not been on a single prescription pain killer since I left the hospital but I owe that more to my pain tolerance than an absence of pain. Finally my aches and constant soreness eased. Then my mental processing speed got noticeably faster, and I didn't get dry eye when I wore my contact lenses anymore. Omega-3 essential fatty acids found in fish oil are vital for good brain health, and can have a powerful anti-inflammatory effect in the body. Now, I was living proof.

Then there was the gut-brain connection. I've struggled with my digestion my whole life but it was never so problematic as the months and years following my lengthy hospital stay. I was never able to pinpoint a trigger food and I'm pretty sure the drugs and antibiotics I'd been given in the hospital totally upset the balance of my gut flora. I wanted to have normal, pain-free digestion and absorb as many nutrients from my food as possible, and when I started researching probiotics, I got excited. It seemed like it was THE thing I'd been missing my whole life and sporadically taking acidophilus when I was a kid was not nearly enough. And the more I learned about the effect our gut health can have on our brains, I wondered if healing my gut could help heal my brain too. 

Adding a high quality, multi-strain, probiotic to my supplements was a no-brainer, but soon my experience told me that there are many probiotics on the market that do not contain what their label claims or even work at all. I am so thankful to have fantastic probiotic brands now that really work because I totally wasted my money on brands that did nothing to help me.

Once I found a probiotic that worked, the difference in my digestion was dramatic. Going off gluten hadn't affected my gut at all and an endoscopy showed that I do not have celiac disease, but taking a powerful probiotic that actually worked made a difference within days. I could digest my food fully, and happily, and my bowel movements were total supermodel poops. They looked awesome (don't be gross, you know you look at your poop too. And if you don't, you should). My mood also leveled out and I felt a lot more emotionally stable. Probiotics eased every meal time for the first time in my life, so I take a probiotic every single day. If I have to go without, I feel the discomfort start to return. I don't let it go longer than a few days. 

Those two supplements are like my "foundation" supplements.

I don't need an expensive test to find out if I need them and they have broad, far-reaching health benefits to support my whole, healthy life. I take other specific supplements based on the results from the micronutrient blood test I do every year from Spectracell Labs, but I don't go a day without these two. Proper nutrition and supplementation has been fundamental to my healing.

As I write this, I am actually preparing to go to LA tomorrow to pick up my quarter beef from my dear friend Shreve and her Star Brand Beef. We make the trip once a year and come home with enough truly grass fed, grass finished beef to stock our freezer for the year and beyond. Her perspective is enlightening; read more HERE, and HERE.

Playing today, the way I couldn't for 7 years.

With dental implants and all the nutrition I need now, eating is something I love. I look forward to every meal, I smile often and easily, and I have the most energy I ever have (pre-injury included). I easily get up early every day when my toddler wakes up and spend the day with him, I work out, and I manage our house and my business. The hard stuff I experienced when I was injured was brutal. My recovery was long. But I know the healing of meditation, yoga, and exercise were made all the more powerful by getting the right nutrients into my body that allowed them to work. It's not complicated.
Eat real food.
Don't diet.
Pay attention.
Use the right supplements.

To find out more about the supplements I love now, click HERE.

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