CHOCOLATE PUDDING – AVOCADOS

PARKINSONS

4 years ago Melvin started to have hand tremors so a few months later he saw a Neurologist who confirmed that it was Parkinson’s.
I have always been an optimist & worked hard to try and heal whatever problem we had so now too I took the time to search for answers & see what I could do to bring health back to Melvin.
Years ago I studied Reflexology and it has saved us many a trip to the doctors office by massaging and stimulating the nerve endings that run to any specific part of the body. So I have been massaging his hands regularly these past years.

My grandparents and mother taught me many ways to put nutritious meals on the table so after I got married, I continued to serve home grown vegetables, fruits, herbs and seeds. Living on the farm allowed us to have our own cow’s (milk, cheese, butter & cottage cheese), chickens and eggs as well as grains that we seeded into our fields. Very little of our food was bought in the grocery store.

The daily chores, gardening as well as the huge yard to play in gave us the exercise we needed so all in all we continued to be healthy and free from diseases.

But with farming along came chemicals and toxins that invaded our space and Melvin ended up with Parkinson’s. The Neurologist at last week’s conference said that Parkinson is found more in rural areas where there are chemicals and pesticides. We learn as well that these poisons cause cancer and many other diseases so knowing this made us realize we need to be much more careful with these products.

Now that we know that much, we are also fighting back & working at living a healthier lifestyle to hopefully decrease the symptoms even though they say there is no cure.

The Conference we attended last Saturday gave us a good number of ideas on how to strengthen the body and keep fit but they also shared the importance of eating well.

I will continue to share more of the recipes I have come up with that use nutrient-rich vegetables, fruits, healthy fats, seeds, sprouts and organic grains.

The hotel had a “Wellness News” paper that I picked up so I will share a recipe that was on it. I made the recipe the other day and found it too sweet, too thick and too chocolaty so I changed the amounts of most ingredients and added salt. I made the recipe again and we now love it.

AVOCADOS – Our bodies need healthy fats & avocados are nutrient-rich with much of the fat being heart-healthy monounsaturated fat! Avocados also provide pantothenic acid, dietary fibre, Vitamin K, copper, folate, B6, Vitamin E, C, alpha-carotene, beta-carotene, crypoxanthin, lutein & zeaxanthin.
Maybe some in your family are like Melvin and they don’t like avocados. I do try to use them & hide their taste in salads, but I really like this pudding recipe and I think we can fool anyone!

HEALTHY CHOCOLATE PUDDING – 3 servings
1 large avocado (7/8 cup or 166 grams)
1/4 cup maple syrup
1/4 cup cocoa
1/3 cup milk
2 teaspoons vanilla
pinch of salt
Put all the ingredients into a small deep bowl and puree with a hand blender until very smooth. Spoon into dishes. Great as is or can be topped with a spoon of whipped topping or ice cream. Enjoy!
I will share more on our Parkinson experience & as well healthy recipes in my next blog – Winnie!