SUMMER SHOTS and JUICY DARLINGS

We grew some new muscles this summer. It was HARD WORK and A LOT of heavy lifting but we loved every day of it. Here are some snap shots to share with you There are some Juicy Darlings missing from this summer montage but they will soon be added! xx We love you, Carolann and Vicky.

WHEN THE MARKET ENDS with THANKS

It's not often I find myself at a loss for words...but right now THANK YOU are the two right words for this moment, the last day of the farmers market. My son and I moved to Old Lyme in June and we got juicin'! We set up a juice stand and haven't stopped since. It's been a wonderful way to get to know a community through its farmers and makers and the people who support them. Allott and our dear friend Vicky and I have LOVED, LOVED, LOVED getting to know so many of you over the past four months and we can't wait to see more of you. So please stay tuned for future plans: The Lyme Juice Company will pop up again and hopefully we'll pop up just when you need a burst of something delicious, nutritious and made with LOVE. To all of you who have stopped by the stand and supported us in our first weeks and months here, thank you. Thank you for welcoming us here and for enjoying a healthy break with us. Thank you, Lyme Farmer's Market, for being a beautiful stomping ground. Allott and I have loved being in the field with all of you.  xx

JUICE-ICIAN with a Mission

ANNA MAY has been on the road to Dakota and she's still right at home on Highway 395...and she's ready to be guest Juice-ician at The Lyme Juice Company on Saturday, September 24th - at The Lyme Farmers' Market. Anna is a twenty-one year old traditional folk musician, singer and songwriter whose voice mixes in jazz with an American twist but her French stuff will make you wilt too. Anna's music is inspired by the people in her life and their stories, the places she has traveled to and the coastal town in CT where she grew up.  

Anna doesn't sit around hiding behind walls and closed doors waiting for life to happen to her. She's out there living and breathing, responding to all that she experiences and lucky for us, she's creating beautiful lyrics and melodies. Here's proof - check out her song Highway 395.

She's just back from an eye-opening journey to North Dakota in support of the Lakota people and Sacred Stone in protest against The Dakota Access Pipeline. Here is a link to Anna singing Acadia's Song, a song which holds a special connection to this cause. [See below for lyrics]. 

Anna was christened into the world of activism with guidance from songwriter and activist, Jen Taylor, and musician/aerialist Dani Bobbi Lee. After a long and arduous car ride through the MidWest, they pitched a tent at the Rosebud Camp on the Missouri River and began their work offering music, massage, and conversation as well as helping in the community kitchen at the children's school. They took part in indigenous drum and dance circle and even said hello to Joan Baez {OMG. Right??!!]. The Om Fly Circus from East Haddam CT topped things off with an acrobatic circus jam on the grounds of Rosebud Camp.  Anna May says that the experience was "bright, joyous and that the Lakota people are resilient despite dire circumstances."

For more pictures and a first hand account of their experience, click here to read Jen's account of their journey to Dakota.  

Pictured below: The wonderful children they met and played with; hooping silhouette at sunset; the view from the Missouri River bank from the Standing Rock Sioux Rosebud Camp, looking out from the tent at the main Red Warrior camp with the tipi of the Elders Council in view and horses drinking at the water's shore.

The Sacred Stone Camp website explains why it's so important for all of us to pay attention to what's going on out there: 

"The Spirit Camp is called Iŋyaŋ Wakháŋagapi Othí, translated as Sacred Rock, the original name of the Cannonball area. The Spirit Camp is dedicated to raising awareness and stopping the Dakota Access pipeline, the dangers associated with pipeline spills and the necessity to protect the water resources of the Missouri river. It rejects the appropriation of the name “Dakota” in a project that is in violation of aboriginal and treaty lands. The word Dakota means “the People” in the Dakota/Lakota/Nakota language and was never intended to be used in a project which violates traditional ceremonial areas...

The Dakota Access threatens everything from farming and drinking water to entire ecosystems, wildlife, and food sources surrounding the Missouri. The nesting of bald eagles and piping plovers as well as the quality of wild rice and medicinal plants like sweet grass are just a few of the species at stake here. We ask that everyone stand with us against this threat to our health, our culture, and our sovereignty. We ask that everyone who lives on or near the Missouri River and its tributaries, everyone who farms or ranches in the local area, and everyone who cares about clean air and clean drinking water stand with us against the Dakota Access Pipeline." 

The message is clear and Anna wants to help spread the word and build awareness: "Water is Life. A pipeline that threatens to contaminate a clean water supply should not be built. The Lakota people need HELP NOW in order to make it through what will surely be a very harsh winter." Visit Sacred Stone Camp to see what supplies you can donate. 

Always On The Road - Anna May pictured here with friends on a different road trip. 

HAPPY FACES: Inside and Out

INSIDE OUT. Skin covers approximately 18 square feet of a body. It’s our largest organ and our first line of defense when it comes to fighting off disease, infection and the toxic build up that comes at us from all directions in the outside world.

Our skin also works from the inside out to rid our body of impurities.

Keeping your skin clean and your pores clear on the outside not only rids the epidermal layer of pathogens that colonize there but it also allows the body to expel waste from the inside out.

Today's take-away: Healthy skin comes from proper skin care, inside and out. Here are some key rules to follow

• Know your skin. If you can’t figure it out, ask some one who can
• Use products that work well with your skin and do not contain harmful ingredients. Choose products you can trust. What’s in your cleanser, toner, and moisturizer? Can you pronounce it? If not, then you might not want to put it on your skin
• Make sure to have regular facials, especially when seasons change
• Eat the right things - Here are some autumn fruits and vegetables that you can eat for optimum skin health: Apple, Beetroot, Carrot, Lemon, Pumpkin seeds [packed with zinc which is vital to the creation of new skin cells and helps to control oil production], Sweet potato, and Tomato
• Check with your doctor or nutritionist and ask if adding a supplement is right for you. Biotin [B7] is a co-enzyme that plays a key role in maintaining healthy hair, nails and skin. It keeps us looking young and is often added to beauty products… but that’s a bit of a gimmick because Biotin is not effectively absorbed through the skin. It’s better to consume foods in which Biotin can be found such as eggs, avocados, cauliflower, berries, fish, legumes, mushrooms and …organ meats [Go on, be brave].

LET'S FACE IT. Summer is over and we’ve changed swimsuits for sweaters. September is a month where we add layers of long sleeves and evening wraps but it's also a month to take off some layers - the layers of summer. Sun, sweat, make up, sunscreen and chlorine all build up a thick layer of summer fun on your skin. No matter how fun summer was, it’s time to come clean. Clear it all away, scrub off those layers. As part of healthy skin care, make time for yourself and book an appointment for a facial. I check in with Patti Davidson at Faces for a deep-cleansing and exfoliating Decleor facial.

HAPPY FACES – The Lyme Juice Company is adding a new juice this week to aid good skin health and create a glowing autumn for your largest organ - your skin. HAPPY FACES will be made from organic beets, carrots, lemons, apple, and spinach. Come on over and show us your HAPPY FACES at The Lyme Farmer’s Market - Saturdays from 9-12:30 until October.

LET'S POP UP TO THE PARTY - Lyme Juice Bar at Your Special Event

LET’S POP UP – The Lyme Juice Bar can POP UP at your home for your fabulous house party. or POP UP at your corporate event. Lyme Juice can POP UP and juice for you and your guests at your wedding or POP UP on the morning after your big day. Or just POP UP to the party and get juicy making locally grown artisanal cocktails. Your guests will LOVE the delicious, FRESH and healthy flavors we make. Email Carolann@goodgirlgogogo.com and let’s figure out the juicy details together!

The Lyme Juice Company makes hand pressed juice with organic produce from Upper Pond Farm and other local farmers every Saturday at Lyme Farmers Market 9-12:30 from June to October. 

Lyme Juice believes that you’ve got to use it or lose it, so we make sure to use everything up…

We source fresh fruits and vegetables from local farmers and our delicious organic pulp goes back to a local farmer to feed farm animals or to use as compost. Some of the pulp also goes straight to the Lyme Juice Kitchen where we are always busy developing and testing new delicious gluten-free recipes for chips and muffins and crackers. Come visit us at The Lyme Farmers’ Market and see what we’ve made. It changes each week to match seasonal crops.

To keep things fresh and ALIVE, the produce that we don’t use at the market on Saturday gets made into apple sauce [our Green Apple and Ginger is DELISH] and pies [apple and pear, oh yeah!]. We also make Chicken ‘n Vegetable and Vegetarian Starter Kits - we do all the shopping and chopping for you - All you need to do is add it with your own spices to your soup, curry or slow-cook pot. 

Just wait until you taste Vicky’s Witchy Broth - there’s magic in them bones! Her healthy collagen-dense bone broth is made from local, grass-fed cows and sells out quickly - make sure you place an order at the beginning of the week.  Call us. We love you! Xx Carolann and Vicky.

UP BEET: A HAPPY JUICE

The Lyme Juice Company is adding UP BEET to its menu this week. Upper Pond Farm in Lyme, CT will be picking some beets for us on Friday to bring fresh to market on Saturday morning.

UP BEET will be made from organic beets, carrots, orange, apple, lemon and ginger. We can’t wait to see your happy UP BEET faces when you taste it!

Beets are loaded with good things and are associated with numerous health benefits, including improved blood flow, lower blood pressure and increased exercise performance. The pigments that give beets their rich color are called betalains. Betalains function both as antioxidant and as anti-inflammatory.

Beets are very low in saturated fat and cholesterol, a good source of vitamin C, iron, and magnesium as well as an excellent source of dietary fiber, folate, potassium, and manganese.

Manganese? Yes, please! Manganese is an essential trace element that supports healthy bone development. It is anti-inflammatory and a co-enzyme in metabolic activity. Dr Axe writes about Manganese noting that it:   

• helps to prevent osteoporosis and arthritis
• is important to antioxidant and enzyme function
• helps to maintain cognitive function
• fights diabetes
• supports lung health
• balances calcium levels
• balances iron levels
• reduces PMS symptoms

Only note of caution is that beets are high in sugar. They are usually well tolerated but contain oxalates and FODMAPs in the form of fructans, short chain carbohydrates that feed the gut bacteria. FODMAPs can cause unpleasant digestive upset in sensitive individuals, such as those who suffer from irritable bowel syndrome. If you are on a strict diet you might want to check with your doctor or nutritionist to make sure that the anti-inflammatory benefits outweigh its high sugar/fructans content.