The Fess Parker Wine Country Inn and Spa in Los Olivos California is the...
By Nancy and James Chuda founders of LuxEcoLiving and co-founder of Healthy Child Healthy World
Step into paradise. Once you enter the Fess Parker Inn...
Fresh and Easy Grilled Portobello Mushroom Sliders for Spring
By Hannah Canvasser LuxEco Editorial Assistant
This recipe can be as simple or complex as you would like. Whether you are looking to show off your spring honed barbecue skills and house make your ingredients, or pick up already-made items from your local market, these sliders will leave omnivores confused about their eating-orientation, vegetarians thrilled to be dining at your place, and the neighbors wanting an invite.
Meet the Finger Lime, That Strange Fruit That Looks Like Caviar
Finger limes, or caviar limes, as they are often called, have appeared on the menus of innovative chefs and mixologists slowly but surely over the past few years. The finger lime plant, native to Australia and only recently commercially available in the U.S., produces small oval fruits about the size of a finger.
Vegan Presidents and Action Heroes?
By Sahar Ghaffari, LuxEco Living Editorial Assistant
In a recent interview with Wolf Blitzer on CNN, former president Bill Clinton announced that his recent 24 pound weight loss was thanks to a vegan diet. The 64 year old Clinton went on an “essentially plant-based diet” living primarily on vegetables, legumes, fruit, and protein supplements mixed in with almond milk in the mornings.
Makini Howell: Vegan Queen
By Rachel Sarnoff, Writer and Founder of EcoStiletto.com and MommyGreenest.com and LuxEco Advocate
Who can get Casey Affleck, Joaquin Phoenix, Liv Tyler, Jenny McCarthy, Daryl...
Organic Topsy Turvy Strawberry Panna Cotta
A very special recipe from Nancy's Organic Kitchen
by Nancy Chuda, Founder of LuxEco Living
Ingredients:
1/2 packet (1 teaspoon) unflavored gelatin powder
1 1/2 tablespoons cold water
1...
Vegetarian Once a Week? Flexitarians Enjoy Just Another Meatless Monday
By Hannah Canvasser LuxEco Editorial Assistant
Vegetarians can receive the proper proteins and nutrients they need with many health benefits. The trick? Eating meat, occasionally.
Obesity is a current main health topic because it is unfortunately a growing one. With obesity rates rising in America many studies have aimed their focus to find the root of the problem, narrowing in on eating trends in the United States. It was typical of my grandparent’s generation to sit down to red meat three times a day. Maybe some sausage and eggs for breakfast, a beef casserole for lunch, and meatloaf and french bread for dinner; sound a little excessive on the arteries? In 1971, Vegetarians and Vegans became popular with Frances Moore Lappé's publication of Diet for a Small Planet- revealing the waste build up behind grain-fed meat production, and arguing that a plant diet is best for one’s body and the earth. Though Lappe was one of the first to come out with valid arguments against grain-fed meat production, being a Vegetarian does have its set-backs, and receiving proper proteins and nutrients wasn’t as easy as it seemed.
Are Your “Organic” Eggs All They’re Cracked Up To Be?
By Lorri Ballance Laird, LuxEco Advocate
For many consumers, eggs are a staple in their diet. What’s better than a yummy omelet or frittata on a Sunday morning? While many food-conscious consumers make an attempt to buy products that are produced organically and/or sustainably, they may be getting duped when reaching for that carton of eggs labeled “organic” or “free-range.”
Slavery, Chocolate-Coated Slavery
Forrest Gump may have been on to something when he compared life to chocolates. You really never know what you’re gonna get in a box of chocolates, do you? The truth behind chocolate is more bitter than sweet. The Ivory Coast produces 40% of the world's chocolate, and it just so happens to also be notorious for this little thing called child slavery. Children, both local and from other third world countries, are sold to farms in this area where they are physically abused while working in risky and inhumane conditions. Some children are sold into the trade by parents who are tricked into believing their children will have better lives at the farm. Others are trafficked, stolen from their families, lured by the promise of…chocolate. In these farms they are forced to work 60 hour weeks with little or no food (depending on their performance on the field). These children lose their fundamental human rights when they enter these farms and “modern” society turns a blind eye to the atrocities. Every time we buy a box of chocolate that is not fair trade stamped, we (often unknowingly) endorse child slavery.
For Colette:Burgundy4U is my dream come true
Part two:Burgundy4U
It was a hot and muggy summer day late in the month of August. The white wine was on ice. The defrosted shrimp...
Victory For Organic Dairy Standards
New USDA regulations for organic milk have just been adopted earlier this month on February 12, 2010. Family farmers, animal rights activists and organic...
In The Spice Cabinet: Healing Through Home Remedies
By F.R.E.E. Will, LuxEco Editorial Assistant, Author of In The Spice Cabinet series
A member of the same family as the more known ginger plant, the rhizome, or root, of the tumeric plant has quite the storied history. Native to the Indian subcontinent tropical regions of Southeast Asia, tumeric has been used in both ancient Chinese and Ayurvedic medicine for its anti-inflammatory properties and has been used for ailments ranging from jaundice to various forms of arthritis. Also well documented are the antiseptic properties of the volatile oils contained in tumeric making it quite effective in dealing with skin afflictions from minor cuts to more severe conditions like eczema and psoriasis; not to mention undeniably cheaper than the vast amounts of antiseptic sprays and creams on the market that serve the same function.
Whole Foods To Ensure Organic Claims Of Non-Food Products
By Alanna Brown, LuxEco Editorial Assistant
For those who spend the extra dough to shop organically, it is fair to expect that a market touting the sale of only organic goods should supply consumers with fodder and non-fodder products on an even keel. One such market, the well-known and widely shopped Whole Foods, is making sure those expectations are met. As of June 1, 2011, the organic grocery chain will require that all personal care products and cosmetics making an “organic” claim can prove it.
Nancy’s Organic Kitchen Chiles Rellenos with Salsa Verde
By Nancy Chuda founder and Editor-in-Chief LuxEcoLiving and co-founder of Healthy Child Healthy World
One of my favorite Mexican dishes is Chiles Rellenos or chiles...
Losing Taste, Redefining Creative Process
Photography: Lara Kastner for Metropolis
In each of our lives, we are given a unique set of gifts, challenges and even obstacles. ...
Kimberly Jones purveys the best affordable wines from France
By Nancy Chuda founder and Editor-in Chief LuxEcoLiving and co-founder Healthy Child Healthy World
Queribus Castle and the Cru overlooking Maury France
If you had to...
How Can I Get My Child’s School To Be Greener & Safer?
By Janelle Sorensen, Chief Communications Officer, Healthy Child Healthy World
Expert Opinion courtesy of Healthy Child Healthy World
When my husband and I toured schools to...
Captain Planet Seeds Students to Grow a Greener Future for Agriculture
By Nancy and James Chuda founders of LuxEcoLiving and Healthy Child Healthy World
Santa Paula California Limoneria Ranch
An Afternoon in the Orchard Celebrating Sustainable Agriculture
Not...
I Would Rather “Sei” It In The Ocean
How do you take the fame and publicity of a recent Oscar win and parlay that momentum for a good cause? Well, how about...
School Gardens Teach Sustainable Organic Living
Hands on instruction in the garden transfers young students green learning at school to green living at home. Johnna Walker, the garden instructor, teaches the importance of sustainability.
By Alanna Brown, LuxEco Editorial Assistant
Larchmont Charter School, an alternative neighborhood school within LAUSD, takes green living to the future—to our children—with the implementation of green learning. Our precious earth is in their itty-bitty-but-quickly-growing hands, so best to start showing them how to take care of it, and themselves.
Chef Pinks Bacon and Brine is Mighty Fine: One of the Best Tastes in...
By Nancy Chuda founder and Editor of LuxEcoLiving and co-founder of Healthy Child Healthy World
Solvang California, Bacon and Brine
Chef Pink and Courtney Rae are...
Antonelli’s Cheese Shop in Austin Texas is a real love story
By Nancy Chuda founder and Editor in Chief of LuxEcoLiving and co-founder of Healthy Child Healthy World
"We've been asked many times, "Why a Cheese...
Quick and Refreshing Strawberry Basil Lemonade for Spring
By Hannah Canvasser, LuxEco Editorial Assistant
Take a break this spring with a refreshing strawberry basil lemonade. With the first strawberries of the season, and a few simple ingredients straight from your farmers market, this extravagant looking beverage will have your friends wondering where you've hidden your bartender. The trick is with the effortless simple syrup, which not only dilutes the fresh squeezed lemon juice, but gives the lemonade its sweetness as well as it's basil background flavor.
Travels with Journey: The Carmel Country Inn by the Sea is Pet Perfect
By Nancy and James Chuda founders of LuxEcoLiving and Healthy Child Healthy World
Carmel by the Sea at The Carmel Country Inn
Like the candy, Carmel...
Oil Spill Kills Gulf Coast Shrimp Season; A Culture Hangs in the Balance
By Elizabeth Grossman, Author of Chasing Molecules: Poisonous Products, Human Health, and the Promise of Green Chemistry, High Tech Trash: Digital Devices, Hidden...
Hats off to history on Derby Day
By Nancy Chuda founder and Editor-in-Chief of LuxEcoLiving and co-founder of Healthy Child Healthy World
What's a hat got to do with it?
The Kentucky...
Chef Seth Nathan Brings Delectable Culinary Skills To Mad And Vin Restaurant
I loved mt experience at Mad and Vin. Mostly, I enjoyed our conversation with chef Seth Nathan while dining with friends.
The Palm Restaurant in West Hollywood sets the bar for the best lobster and...
By Nancy and James Chuda founders of LuxEcoLiving and co-founders of Healthy Child Healthy World
West Hollywood California, The Palm Restaurant
Photos courtesy of LuxEcoLiving...
LuxEco’s Green Light Intiative at the Natural Products Expo
By Nancy Chuda, Founder and Editor in Chief of LuxEco Living and Founder of Healthy Child Healthy World
While amping up for this year's Natural Products Expo in Anaheim, CA and getting the LuxEco team ready for our "Green Light" Initiative in which we search out and highlight the best natural, organic and eco-friendly products that the Green Movement has to offer, I can't help but to reflect on the evolving nature of "GREEN."
Jim and I attended the first Natural Products Expo in Anaheim, CA almost two decades ago... and it was far from gluten-free. We were young, energetic, and held an undying faith that our world was unnaturally occurring; wearing Birkenstock and eating jerky we found our tribe. Or did we? back then, fair-trade was a hearty handshake.
In the Spice Cabinet: Healing Through Home Remedies
The story of sage is truly one that has come full circle. From being a prized herb for its healing and cosmetic qualities, to a useful culinary seasoning, to being relegated to holiday cuisine, then fading into obscurity only to be brought back to the forefront of alternative medicine. Find out more about this robust herb in the latest installment of "In the Spice Cabinet"
Amy Dixon Bakes the Very Best at The Baker’s Table
By Nancy and James Chuda founders of LuxEcoLiving and Healthy Child Healthy World
Santa Ynez California breakfast at The Baker's Table 3563 Numancia Street
COME HUNGRY!
You...
The Best Cheese and Wine in the World: Bridlewood Winery hosts Mons Fromager- Affineur...
By Nancy and James Chuda founders LuxEcoLiving and Healthy Child Healthy World
Santa Ynez California, twilight time
It's a marriage of two of the most celebrated...
Brown Butter Cookie Company is as good as it gets
By Nancy Chuda founder and Editor-in-Chief of LuxEcoLiving and co-founder of Healthy Child Healthy World
When you walk in the doors of the Brown Butter...
WATCH: Timelessness Made by Hand in Memory of Vincensia Dilorio
By Nancy Chuda Co-founder of LuxEcoLiving and Healthy Child Healthy World
There is nothing more satisfying then the taste of a handmade ravioli. Stuffed with fresh ricotta cheese and spinach, or goat cheese smothered in a fresh sauce made from homegrown, roma or prized heirloom tomatoes.
Pasta is one of the world’s most popular foods and comes in hundreds of different shapes, varieties and with dozens of different ingredients.
[Virgensia Dioreo]
Nancy Chuda, Fouder of LuxEcoLiving.com and Vicenzia DiIorio
The tradition of making pasta is timeless throughout the world. Almost every country has identified a noodle in part of their customary culinary cuisine . But the Italians, hands down have the most varieties. Spaghetti (coming from the Italian, spago which means cord) is the most popular variety ... and is long thin noodles that come in a variety of thickness and goes well with all traditional sauces. Capellini or angel hair pasta is the thinnest pasta of all and takes barely one to two minutes to cook; goes well with very light sauces or the classic basil, olive oil and crush fresh tomatoes.
The New Waldorf Astoria Welcomes Travels with Journey: 8 Paws and Counting
If you think Beverly Hills has lost it's elegance and classic history step into the lobby of the new Waldorf Astoria and dream again. This remarkable hotel has brought new meaning to "life at the top". It is A-listed beyond a doubt. And best dog-friendly hotel in the world.