This week we'll explore cherry recipes and how to enjoy raw tofu. We'll also delve into a provocative book about honoring your needs and my exciting new electrolyte discovery (a new supplement).

Eat Colorfully

Seasonal Ingredient Spotlight: CHERRIES

We're at the height of stone fruit season now, so let's talk about cherries this week. These beautiful, sweet, luscious fruits are as versatile as they are wonderful. Although cherries are of course great for popping into your mouth whole, you can also pit them and use them in a wide variety of ways.

Curious to expand your cherry horizons? Here are some less typical but delightful ways of enjoying them (just make sure to remove the pits and stems first):

• Use them to top a salad. Their sweetness is a great complement to savory ingredients and the color contrast is very eye-catching.
• Blend them into smoothies or nicecream. Cherries go well with a lot of different flavors, so the possibilities are endless. Cherry vanilla? Black forest cake? I have a Bourbon Cherry Chocolate Chip Nicecream on my blog that we adore.
• Juice them. Yes indeed, you can add a handful of cherries into homemade juices if you have a juicer; they create an incredible bright pink color. I recently made a pineapple cherry juice that was delicious. I love the Nama J2 juicer, which you can save 10% on by using the code BRUSSELSPROUT10 at checkout.
• Muddle them into a cocktail or mocktail. Just a few cherries create fabulous color when muddled into a drink, like this Cinnamon Cherry Paloma.

Try This Week: RAW TOFU

Too hot to cook? No worries; even if you don't feel like firing up the stove, you can still enjoy protein-packed tofu. This may surprise you, but raw tofu (if done correctly!) is delicious. It works great on a hot summer evening, or even if you're just crunched for time.

Most importantly, the key is to get super-firm tofu. I like the Trader Joe's tofu because it's organic, really firm, and very high in protein, plus it's reasonably-priced. Getting super-firm is a must because the texture is dense and chewy rather than soft. Cut it into small cubes and dress it up however you like. I usually just marinate mine really simply with lemon zest, lemon juice, a tiny dash of olive oil, and generous salt and pepper.

My other tip: if you're new to raw tofu, include some major crunch factor elsewhere in the meal. I either serve it alongside a bunch of textural elements or I incorporate some crunch into a tofu salad with ingredients like like diced carrots, diced apples, nuts, etc.

This is one of the easiest, fastest, most no-fuss ways of adding great plant-based protein into your diet, so I encourage you to try it out.

Live Colorfully

A Book to Explore: THE WEDDING PEOPLE

I just finished a really unique book that I'm excited to pass along: The Wedding People by Alison Espach. It tells the story of a depressed woman who arrives at a high-end hotel, only to find that she has mistakenly been booked into a venue reserved for a very expensive wedding. The woman is there for a very specific reason, which I don't want to give away.

Overall, the book explores the themes of being true to your own needs and looking inward to find who you truly are. It manages to be both funny and sad at the same time, and is thoughtful and refreshingly different throughout. The premise is unlike any other book I've read.

I will say that this story deals with severe depression and isolation, albeit with a happy ending. If that would bother you, then this might not be the book for you.

Remember that you can always browse my favorite book list if you need some ideas.

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Self-Care Pick: ELECTROLYTES + A SUPPLEMENT TO TRY

I'm excited to tell you guys about my new discovery: an electrolyte supplement free from all the garbage that is found in most electrolyte supplements.

Many electrolyte supplements contain large amounts of sugar, artificial flavors, and coloring agents. Powdered options often contain anti-caking ingredients. Many options contain a huge amount of sodium, which is more appropriate for intense exercise and sweating, but not much potassium, magnesium, etc. While these might be fine for occasional use (for example, on a big hike or during travel), they're not great for everyday.

My quest the past few months: find and try some electrolyte options that are free from all those additives. I was looking for an option that (1) had no added sweeteners or flavors, (2) had a nice balance of sodium, potassium, and magnesium, plus some trace elements like selenium, and (3) was travel-friendly.

Ultimately, I decided upon using Buoy and have absolutely loved it. It's a liquid form (but a small bottle, i.e. travel-friendly) and contains 87 (!!!) different minerals with no sugar, no sweeteners, and no stabilizers. It's actually made from a mineral-rich sea salt from a specific region in southern France. I just add a little squirt to my water, matcha, etc, numerous times a day.

I put the Buoy drops through a very serious test last week when we were in Maine for my birthday. I walked 20 miles on each of three consecutive days on the beach, in the sun and heat. Usually this situation leaves me feeling like I just can't keep up with hydration and can yield headaches and muscle cramps. Not this year! I powered through three barefoot 20-milers in the hot sun and felt great the whole time.

Want to try Buoy? I've had such good experiences so far that I asked them to give a discount for Rogue Brussel Sprout readers. You can save 20% on your first order if you shop through this link (you'll see a "Lee sent you 20% off" coupon pop up). I've been using their "Hydration Drops" in the blue bottle. Their products are also available on Amazon.

Thanks for joining me for this issue of Eat Colorfully, Live Colorfully! I'd love to hear from you, so please feel free to reply with questions, thoughts, or requests. If you missed a previous issue, you can view all my newsletters here. Have a great week!