My recipe for Tummy Tonic originated one morning when my friend, Noelle, showed up to my house with an upset tummy. She was always getting nauseous and said the only thing that settled her stomach was some juice from our nearby raw foods cafe. “Every time I go there it costs me $8.00 for one cup of juice. Tou need to make this“, she said.
I took a few sips, and then got to work. Noelle knows how I love to create my version of a food dish or drink from taste; it’s like playing a game of Sudoku.
I later shared my Tummy Tonic with my grandmother during her visit who also suffers from chronic nausea and she couldn’t believe the immediate relief. When she got home she shared some with her friend who then used it on her- get this- dog.
One of my daughters gets an upset stomach often from nerves, the poor girl worries about everything. Toni’s Tummy Tonic to the rescue.
So what’s the secret?
Toni’s Tummy Tonic Ingredients
Cinnamon Sticks, 5-7
Fresh Ginger, 1-2 whole peeled and sliced thin
Whole Cloves, 2 tbspns
Ground Ginger, 2 tbspns
Organic Honey, 1 cup
Non-Concentrated White Grape or Apple Juice, 1/2 Gallon
The first thing you’ll need is a big stock or soup pot.
1. Place sliced ginger, cinnamon sticks, cloves and ground ginger in a stock pot 3/4 full of water
Whole Ginger, peeled and sliced
Whole Cinnamon Sticks
Whole Cloves
2. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat
The cinnamon sticks and cloves will float, but ginger sinks to the bottom
3. Let it boil for a few minutes, then cover and reduce heat to simmer for about 10 minutes.
4. Leave it covered, turn heat off and let it steep for an hour.
Let it steep for at least an hour
5. Place strainer over another large pot and strain and discard ginger, cinnamon sticks and cloves by pouring through strainer into another pot
6. Add honey to juice in pot and stir
7. Combine juice with the fruit juice; you may not have enough room in one pot and will therefore need to pour half of your juice in one pot and half in the other to add the fruit juice to both pots
8. Store in juice containers in the refrigerator
This recipe makes about 2-3 gallons so there’s plenty to share with your friends, family…. or friend’s dog.
From branding, design and contract law to the creative process, working with brands and “vlogging,” I came away with a lot of practical hands-on information.
After arriving home from Denver yesterday and preparing for my trip to Salt Lake City tomorrow, I had to take time out to write about my experience at Bloggy Boot Camp Denver.
I just attended this SITS Girls event for the first time, just a month after attending a much larger blogging conference, also as a first-timer (aka: “newbie”). It’s amazing to me how different and false my expectations were for both.
Connecting with brands at Bloggy Boot Camp
It’s simple mathematics. One would expect that attending the largest female blogging conference with over 4,000 conference attendees and hundreds of brands for three days would yield more new connections and more knowledge than attending a one-day conference with a mere 127 bloggers and a handful of brands, rights? Wrong.
I’m not knocking the large conference because it definitely has its purpose and place, especially for experienced bloggers. I’m just saying this was a perfect example of not judging a book by its cover.
Back to mathematics. With ticket cost, travel and hotel, I spent nearly $2,300 attending BlogHer11 in San Diego. I purchased a ticket for both myself and my producer, Noelle, even though she is not a blogger because this is not a conference you want to attend by yourself.
For Bloggy Boot Camp I spent a total of about $800 with ticket, travel and hotel, but felt that I got at least twice the worth, if not more, of knowledge, information and connections in return. However, because my ticket to Bloggy Boot Camp was cheaper, and there were much fewer attendees and it was only one day, I honestly did not expect to get as much in return as I did.
First of all, SITS Girl, Tiffany Romero is one of the smartest people in the blogging industry that I’ve come across so far. Along with Franchesca, they pulled together a group of speakers who were so spot-on with information for new bloggers. From branding, design and contract law to writing, working with brands and “vlogging,” there were many new bloggers in the room who came away with a lot of practical hands-on information.
I’ll break down some of that information for you.
Branding
One of the first speakers was Amy Bradley-Hole from BeBetterBranding.com who spoke on the topic of branding. I have to be honest and say that when I heard the topic, I thought I had this area “covered”, because, after all, I had already been through the branding process with The Organized Cook and a professional branding agency before I had even began blogging. So I figured I could just coast on autopilot for a spell and catch up on some Tweeting. Not going to happen. When Amy started speaking I couldn’t tune out. Setting aside the adorable Louisiana accent, Amy talks like she’s reading from her very own book of poignant and clever quotes. Here’s a few for starters:
“Branding is nothing more than deciding who you are and how you’re going to let the world know”
“When you get dressed in the morning to go out in the world, you are branding yourself.”
“To create your brand, it’s important to know why you are the way you are.”
If you’re a new blogger or are considering starting a blog, BeBetterBranding.com is a great resource for you.
Example of some great branding- my favorite business card of the day from Whipper Berry
The Creative Process
Jillian from CatchMyParty.com offered great advice to many of us struggling with inspiration and time management for blogging suggesting that you set aside just 15 minutes a day to write saying,
“If you only write when it’s convenient, you’ll only write one day every other year.”
Jillian from CatchMyParty.com speaking on "The Creative Process"
But my favorite quote from Jillian came when she said,
“Notice how the world is conspiring to help you.”
I get it, Jillian, and I notice!
Danielle Liss, center, spoke about "Contract Law"
Contract Law
Think contract law is boring? Only Danielle Liss from KittenaGoGo.comcould make this subject so entertaining and funny. Her presentation is available to anyone who requests it via email from her, and if you plan to sign any brand contracts, I highly suggest it.
These speakers were just to name a few of several creative and informational speakers.
After a day of great information, networking, connecting with brands and a giveaway (that I won), we broke for some photos on the SITS Girls red carpet and a simple but elegant cocktail party hosted by Mirassou Winery.
Me, Jennifer Kirlin from Bella Grey Designs (look forward to some projects we're collaborating on) and publicist, Andrea Mueller (yes, she is as adorable in person)
Then we hit the streets of Downtown Denver and a fabulous dinner at The Corner Office with new friends Amy Bradley-Hole (yes, she is AmyBHole on Twitter), Jennifer Kirlin from BellaGreyDesigns.comand many more.
View of Downtown Denver from Bloggy Boot Camp Cocktail Party hosted by Mirassou Winery
Which brings me to my next random photo of the The Corner Office ladies room with a wall of sticky notes and disco ball; I couldn’t help but love it. Hmmm. I wonder how this would look in my guest bathroom?
blank sticky notes and pens were available to write your own graffiti- so fun!
I’m still not exactly sure about the SITS acronym. I know, The Secret To Success Is Support is their tagline. So is it, “Support Is The Secret“? Or, “Secret Is To Support“? In any case, if you’re interested in attending a Bloggy Boot Camp, with the SITS Girls I highly suggest it. But if you’re simply not able to attend, start by visiting them on Facebook and receiving a free gift of the SITS Girls Top 10 Secrets to Blogging Success.
After the conference, I stayed over for a day for a guest segment on Denver Fox News.
Maybe I’ll see you at the next Bloggy Boot Camp!
For some other great articles about Bloggy Boot Camp check out:
Toni takes The Organized Cook to NBC News in Salt Lake City – KSL! She shows Richard Piatt how to Reincarnate the Leftover using her weekly meal planning algorithm.
It’s true. My Sunrise Breakfast Bowl recipe requires only one muffin pan. There are no spoons, bowls, spatulas or skillets to clean which makes this the perfect breakfast recipe for kids to make.
Sunrise Breakfast Bowls from The Organized Cook
Kids are proud to make breakfast, but tiny hands are not well suited for frying, flipping or boiling.
My girls love to cook and could crack an egg before they were out of diapers, so they’re able to make this easy recipe almost completely on their own with just a little help getting the muffin tin in and out of the oven.
Sunrise Breakfast Bowls from The Organized Cook
Sunrise Breakfast Bowls
Ingredients:
Whole grain bread- 12 slices with crust taken off
Eggs- 1 dozen
Bacon- 1 package precooked bacon
Butter
Directions:
Preheat oven to 375 degrees
2. Grease a muffin tin with butter and place one slice of bread into each hole pressing down in the middle.
Press bread slices into each hole of a greased muffin tin
3. Crack one egg directly onto each slice of bread.
crack one egg onto each slice of bread
Cracked Eggs by Toni Spilsbury, The Organized Cook
Precooked Bacon
4. Heat bacon in the microwave according to directions (about 1 minute) and place one cooked slice into each egg
Yes, I use the precooked bacon and am proud of it. I love cooking with- and eating- bacon but hate bacon grease… what a lovely invention, this precooked stuff. Let someone else clean the grease!
place one slice of precooked bacon into each egg
5. Bake until egg is just cooked, or until desired consistency- yolk runny, about 10 minutes; slightly runny, about 13 minutes and cooked thoroughly, about 17 minutes
Mother's Day Breakfast Made Simple
Serve with fresh fruit.
More Savory & Sweet Breakfast Ideas
Looking for more breakfast ideas?
For a “sweet” and simple breakfast that kids can make, try our “Berry Perfect Coffee Cake” and video:
Toni's Berry-Perfect Coffee Cake from The Organized Cook
For a “savory” breakfast idea, our Steak & Egg Open-Face Sandwich with Pan Gravy is perfect for Father’s Day:
Steak & Egg Open-Face Breakfast Sandwich
For more information about The Organized Cook Weekly Meal Plan System, visit:
Family meals are important. Iʼll show you easy ways to spend less time and money at the grocery store, less time in the kitchen and more time with your family.
Three months of our most popular menus from The Organized Cook™ Weekly Meal Plan System including grocery shopping lists, cooking instructions and lots of time and money saving tips in one book that's easy to fit in your purse.
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