Lassens

Celebrate Earth Day by Supporting Some of Our Beautiful Earth! Written by Gayle What’s 2 million acres, almost 80 years old, has more than 1,200 miles of maintained trails, stretches from the San Francisco Bay area to the LA County line, ranges from semi-arid desert to the coast and Redwood Forest, has more that 450 […]

Everything About This Salad Sings “Spring!” Written by Gayle There’s nothing like fresh salads to help me feel the joy of a beautiful Spring day.  We are lucky to have wonderful produce year round, but when I saw papayas in the Ventura store on my visit this week, I had to make this fantastic salad.

Wise Watering Written by Gayle Now that warmer weather seems to be upon us, the hot days are sure to follow.  And as we all know, we are in a long-term drought.  Let’s all be a little more wise about using our water.  Here are some tips: Water in the morning.  Don’t wait until the

Simpler is Better! Written by Gayle I love to throw open my windows and let in the fresh Spring air!  It always reminds me of the Spring Cleaning ritual of my childhood.   We don’t make such a production of it these days, but there is nothing like having a clean house or room or

Take a Little Bit of This, and a Little Bit of That! Written by Gayle I try to be very aware of what I eat and what my kids eat (and now my grandkids!)  It’s so easy to grab whatever is on the store shelf and just rip open the wrapper, especially when there isn’t

We Love Super Things! I don’t know what it is about super things, but from the time we were children, we have loved them.  Check out the play time of any three- or four-year-old, and you’ll see lots of capes and masks. You like the rolling pin for a weapon? This kid of mine wore

Take a Yearly Tradition and Make it Better! Written by Gayle When my kids were little I wasn’t that excited about the annual egg-dyeing activity.  I was wary of the unnatural colors that were in the commercial egg-dyeing products.  But I wasn’t creative enough to figure out this solution–use nature’s dyes! Today I did a

Basil–How Did I Ever Live Without It? Written by Gayle I love panini sandwiches.  But I don’t have them very often because I don’t have a panini pan (and I don’t really want more appliances in my kitchen, if you know what I mean!)  But I will get creative in my methods and make an

It’s Not Too Late! Written by Gayle It never fails–the weather gets to me every March and reminds me that I should have started my garden in February.  But with our great climate, gardening can really begin any time! The best place for a garden in my yard is too far away for me to

Sara Snow’s Fresh Living A Review Written by Gayle This year at the Natural Foods Expo West Show, I was able to hear Sara Snow speak.  She was warm and friendly, and I came out of the session feeling that there was even more that I could do to make our home and family and

Even if You’re Not Remotely Irish, You’ll Love This Bread! Written by Gayle Irish Soda bread is an easy recipe to get you in a lucky Irish mood!  I have adapted several recipes to make this one more healthy and absolutely delicious! Irish Whole Wheat Flax and Orange Soda Bread You’ll Need: 2 cups Organic

Have You Ever Tried Sprouting? Written by Gayle When I was in  I college had a wonderful roommate from Southern California.  We liked to make meals that were quick and healthy, and she introduced me to sprouts (OK, it was a long time ago, people, and I was pretty unsophisticated then!)  We used to melt