Archive for May, 2015

To My Surprise As A Food Revolution Ambassador for Jamie Oliver’s Food Revolution (Bowling Green, Kentucky)

CJ MillerFor three years now and going into my second year as the Food Day coordinator for all of Kentucky, I consider myself blessed in many ways. First and foremost I consider it an honor and a privilege to be welcomed into such amazing movements. The wonderful people I have met from around the globe and the food education I have received while on my real food culinary journey has been priceless.

This year as Ambassador I am harvesting many crops that have been planted throughout my journey. What’s so amazing about this crop is the willingness of this community to nurture the seeds I planted and give of themselves freely so everyone can benefit from its bounty. When I started the Food Revolution it was me on my computer with more ambition than any human should ever have and tons of ideas and no idea how to move forward with them.

The moment this all changed is when I adapted to Jamie Oliver’s advice — he said, “Don’t do this alone. It can be very lonely if you do.” He was right. I had a resource of over 300 ambassadors and a community that was in dire need of food education and resources galore that I needed to tap into. The first year on my journey was the year I planted seeds and planted ideas in the community’s minds about what we all could do to raise awareness.

To my surprise, the stories resonated with people.

My speeches did not go unheard; they are forever planted in the minds of the community that is so desperately seeking change, starving to be nourished by real food and thirsting to understand the confusing world of food. Things in my community and around the world are changing and I consider myself to be lucky to watch this miraculous growth.

While I have been watching, the community has banned together more and more of us want and demand real food. To my surprise the supermarkets are adapting to this overwhelming amount of need for real organic foods.

America is no longer the most overweight country (as of now).

My friends, family, and loved ones are healthy and happy and they are living better lives because of the switch to real foods. I have even put myself under the gun. I have stopped drinking soda. I just went 80 percent meat free, gluten free, and started to exercise. This year I will be hosting the first Food Revolution Day at the SoKY Market Place Farmers market.

We are going to welcome the community to join us as we educate everyone about real food and enjoy the day. I will continue the entire season advocating for Real Food every Saturday morning at this market also. I will also be holding basic cooking classes at Hotel, Inc, a place that helps the less fortunate get on their feet.

I am currently working on getting into the school system and looking for sponsors for year-round events. I will also speak my real food jive anywhere I am invited.

What is coming up in the near future?

The farmers market I am working with is going to open up a state of the art kitchen that will have the ability to host cooking classes. I am starting a campaign this year called STOP-EDUCATE-THINK. I am encouraging everyone to STOP before they eat, EDUCATE themselves about the food they eat, and THINK strongly if the consequence is really worth it. I truly hope this change progresses and we finally win this Real Food fight. I am positive anything can happen to my surprise.

Chef CJ Miller everyone!

Thank you for stopping by, CJ, and for doing so much in the way of improving food options throughout all communities.

You can reach him through Facebook now and I really hope you stop by his page to see what else he’s been up to.


Food Revolution With The Eating Game

Food Revolution Atlantic and The Eating Game have joined forces and want to reward you!

Have a picky eater at home?

This program was designed to help parents of Autistic children make meal time fun instead of a battle but it’s useful for all. Let your children choose what is for breakfast, snack, lunch and supper to be sure they enjoy and it eat.

You still have control to ensure they are getting what makes them healthy but you are giving some over to make it a team effort instead of a war.

Be sure to visit Food Revolution Atlantic’s Facebook group before this Friday – Food Revolution Day – for your chance to win your own copy!

Thanks for entering, reading and Good Luck!

Sarah Butland


Listen Up and Eat Delicious Plus Nutritious

We all know there has been a dramatic change over time in what we taste. Boneless chicken breasts have gone from good to poor, even bone in meats demand a game of trouble shooting to try to find one that tastes good.

And why buy unseasoned when some companies are doing it for us – saving time and hassle?

The reason was discussed recently on CBC’s The Current in connection with The Dorito Effect: The Surprising New Truth About Food and Flavor by Mark Schatzker. Take a listen and finally understand what’s happening in your mouth and in the money making world of today.

Buy Local, Taste Flavour

It’s time to tell the companies we prefer real farmers, free range animals and vegetables not coated in pesticides – if the sign says “dangerous – keep out” while the foods are in the fields we should be leaving them there.

Many say it’s cheaper to eat junk but that’s because we keep buying it. The more pop, fast food and prepared stuff we buy the lower the cost for the company producing it so they can have more sales, lower prices and higher quantity. But this makes me – and you – sick!

Keep an eye out for sales on kale, asparagus, strawberries in the store and you’ll notice, when you eat them, even within the few days before spoiling, you feel better and fuller. Buy your meat from a local butcher and understand that a turkey actually looks like a turkey without the feathers on it.

Visit a farm on Open Farm Day this year on September 21st and learn how real food is raised and grown – not made.

Grapes –  I bet you can’t resist a bowl of them.

Carrots – cooked or raw, they benefit all.

Marketing shouldn’t have to cost farmers millions of dollars, we should be smart enough to choose healthy every day and then when we do, the prices will be awesome compared to the manufactured stuff making us  sick.

Your health is priceless. You only have on life – make it delicious!

Thanks for reading,

Sarah Butland


Meet Holistic Lifestyle Coach Anik Gallant!

5 easy habits that will instantly boost your energy!

The following are some of my favorite health tips that I share with my clients. You can follow them without changing your current eating habits. By simply adding the following steps into your day, you will greatly improve your level of energy and feel great.

1) Warm lemon water. As soon as you wake up in the morning, add 1-2 slices of fresh organic lemon to 1 cup of warm water and sip while you get ready for your day. Lemon helps kickstart your digestion for the day and brings your body into a more alkaline state. Doing this every morning gently detoxes your liver and will help with weight loss.

2) Green smoothie. Before you eat your breakfast (and after your lemon water), start your day with a Green Beauty Smoothie. Packed with fruits and veggies, this alone can fill you up. If not, just eat what you normally would for breakfast in addition to the smoothie. The Green Beauty Smoothie is packed with nutrients ready for quick absorption and is sure to give you energy.

Green Beauty Smoothie

3 cup water

1 ripe banana

4 dates, pitted

1/2 cucumber, with peel

2 stalks celery

1 apple, with peel

1/2 organic lemon, with peel

1 big handful of leafy greens (such as kale, spinach or romaine)

1/2 scoop super green powder (such as spirulina or chlorella)

*Place ingredients into blender, blend and enjoy! Makes 2 large servings.

3) Daily salad. Eat a large salad 5 days a week. Get creative and make your salad appetizing to you! Load it with your favorite veggies, sprinkle some hemp seeds, almonds, pumpkin seeds or dried cranberries. Try and keep your dressing options simple (homemade is always better than store bought). I personally like a blend of olive oil, balsamic vinegar, lemon juice, a dash of maple syrup, salt, and pepper. Finally, add a healthy side of protein to your salad, such as lentils, beans, chicken, eggs, tuna or beef.

4) Snack smart. Between meals, try not to snack. Ideally you want to give your digestion time to process all the food from your previous meal before eating something. If you do feel hungry and choose to snack, here are some good options:

  • A fruit smoothie. Fruits made into liquids are quickly digested and provide you with immediate fuel. Make with almond milk instead of juice to help balance blood sugar.
  • Eat an apple with a handful of organic almonds.
  • Cut up some carrots, peppers or cucumber and eat with hummus, bean dip or salsa.

Choosing healthy snacks will fill you up until your next meal and are light enough to keep your energy levels steady during your day. Remember to avoid munching on simple carbohydrates like cookies, chips or crackers which can make your blood sugar levels drop and make you feel tired.

5) No eating after 6:30pm. A healthy body starts with a healthy digestion. Our bodies heal and repair during our sleep time therefore it’s important that by bedtime your stomach is empty with no more food to digest. If you have food in your stomach when you go to bed, your body has to work overtime to digest instead of healing and repairing. The result: waking up groggy and tired. To help reduce cravings and munchies attacks, sip on some room temperature water or herbal teas throughout the evening.

A New Brunswick Resident

A New Brunswick Resident

Anik Gallant is a holistic lifestyle coach and creator of Blissfullyorganik.com, a food and lifestyle blog where she publishes healthy and delicious gluten-free recipes. She’s passionate about inspiring healthy living in others and loves sharing useful tips for everything related to food, health, yoga, and living an amazing life. Connect with her or sign up to receive your free copy of her recipe e-book every month. www.blissfullyorganik.com


Let’s Celebrate Food!

My Lil' Chef

My Lil’ Chef

May 15, 2015 will be Food Revolution Day but I want to celebrate all month. With posts and giveaways, photos and videos, and an invite to you to come on over and tell me what you’re eating this month.

Jamie Oliver has started a revolution, one that shouldn’t have been needed but we made it something that is desperately vital. He wants healthy foods in schools. Easy, right? Not so much but it can be.

Your kids go to school, let them eat actual food!

Schools should be teaching about fruits, vegetables, the process of planting and growing our own food. Cafeterias should be accessing a community or school garden to fill the plates of our children yet we’ve been letting other businesses profit from our kids!

Businesses of owners who would cringe at the idea of their own kids eating what is being served so let’s make a change.

Food Revolution Ambassador’s Are Here!

I’ve connected with other like-minded individuals this month who, though they may not have the official title, are working to improve what we all eat and are here to talk about it. Please make these awesome people feel welcome and eat up!

And please also sign Jamie Oliver’s petition on his site to be a part of the change!

Thank you for reading and following along. Let’s make a difference today.

Sarah Butland

New Glasgow, NS Food Revolution Ambassador