10 Ways to Cleanse Your Body

If you are feeling sick or out of touch with your body, cleansing your body can be a good way to get rid of bad toxins and feel better again.

• Dry skin brush before you take a bath or shower. I also like dry brushing my face, but use a brush made especially for your face so it has softer bristles.
• Take a warm salt water bath or steam in the shower.
• Deep breathing can help calm you down. Do yoga. Try just doing 20 minutes of yoga a day or picking up a yoga DVD or video series.
• Drink water. Try adding a couple extra glasses a day.
• Try eating healthier. Go on a cleanse or add a couple healthy foods in to your diet. Check out these 30 cleansing foods that naturally cleanse your body.
• Use a neti pot to naturally cleanse your sinuses.
• Try the hydro therapeutic technique of taking a shower with hot water and then switching to cold. Afterwards, get under covers.
• Go for a run or walk. Try exercising at least 20 minutes a day or move your body in some way.
• Get a massage or do a self massage with your favorite oils.
• Try drinking hot tea with herbs in it or taking an herbal soak bath.

What do you do to cleanse yourself? Let me know in the comments.

3 Vegan Cheese Sauces

Have you ever tried making vegan cheese sauces? I missed cheese when I became vegan and I am always looking for a good cheese alternative. These are three of my favorite cheese alternative recipes.

Basic Cheesy Nutritional Yeast Sauce 

The secret ingredient to this cheese sauce is the nutritional yeast which gives the sauce a cheesy flavor. You can find nutritional yeast at most grocery stores or health food stores.

Ingredients: 

• 2 tablespoons Earth Balance or butter alternative
• 1 tablespoon all purpose flour
• 6 tablespoons nutritional yeast
• 3/4 cup soymilk
• 2 teaspoons mustard (I have also used mustard powder)
• Salt and pepper to taste

Instructions:

1. Mix the flour and milk together in a medium bowl until all the flour clumps are gone.

2. In a large pot, melt the butter spread over medium heat.  Add soymilk and flour mixture and nutritional yeast to pot and stir.

3. Reduce heat to low-medium. Add additional ingredients and cook 5-10 minutes or until the sauce thickens. Add additional flour to thicken sauce if needed.

Potato Carrot Cheese Sauce

This is similar to the above recipe, but it uses vegetables.

Ingredients: 

• 2 cups potatoes, peeled
• 1 cup carrots, peeled
• 1/3 cup melted Earth Balance or oil
• 1/2 cup water
• 1 tablespoon lemon jioce
• 1/2 cup nutritional yeast
• Salt and pepper to taste

Instructions:

1. Chop the potatoes and carrots and boil them for about half hour or until tender.

2. Blend all ingredients together or combine or a large bowl.

Daiya Cheese Sauce

If you want to use a fake cheese alternative to make melted cheese sauce, I love the Daiya cheese brand,

Ingredients: 

• 1 cup cooked white cannellini beans
• 1/2 cup soymilk
• 1/3 cup Daiya vegan cheese shreds
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 1 tablespoon Earth Balance or olive oil
• 1 teaspooon turmeric (to give it color)

Instructions:

1. Mash or blend the beans with the soymilk, Earth Balance, turmeric and salt and pepper.

2. Heat on low over medium heat. Add the cheese and cook, stirring, until the cheese is melted.

Let me know if you try any of these sauces out.