Free Cooking Your Way to Gorgeous by Scott-Vincent Borba

skin types. Parsley is a natural cleanser full of vitamins and minerals that can stimulate circulation and help release impurities. Sure, it tastes bitter, but when combined with spinach and oatmeal, parsley creates a scrub that leaves your skin looking sweet.
    In a small bowl, mix 1/2 cup of finely ground oatmeal with 1/2 cup of fresh parsley and 1/2 cup of spinach to make a smooth paste. (If your supermarket does not carry finely ground oatmeal, use a coffee grinder to grind up your oatmeal at home.) As the parsley and spinach are stirred around and agitated in the bowl, they will release water to create a binder. Work the mixture into a paste and apply to a clean face. You may look like you got stuck in a salad wind tunnel, and bits of greenery may be falling off your mug; so if you can relax with a magazine that would be ideal. Leave the paste on for 20 to 30 minutes. Rinse off using lukewarm to cool water. You should see a noticeable improvement in your complexion.
    Watermelon Salsa
    Makes 4 Servings
    T his is a delicious side salad or salsa topping for fish, meat, or chicken. All natural and loaded with vitamins, it’s incredibly good for you. The high-water content and antioxidant lycopene in watermelon are keys for eye health.
    Ingredients:
    3 cups diced watermelon
    1 large mango, diced small
    1/2 large onion, diced small
    2 jalapeño peppers, seeded, rinsed, and diced extra fine
    Juice of 2 small limes
    1 teaspoon white balsamic vinegar, or distilled white vinegar
    1 teaspoon California ground chile (mild)
    1/2 teaspoon cumin
    1/2 bunch cilantro, stems removed, chopped
    Salt, to taste
    Preparation:
    Toss together the watermelon, mango, onion, and jalapeños. Add the lime juice, white balsamic (or distilled) vinegar, ground chile, and cumin. Toss again. Add the chopped cilantro and toss again, and salt, to taste. Note: the salt may cause the melons to expel too much juice; if the salsa gets too watery, drain off the excess before serving.

    It is said that 80 to 90 percent of all communication is nonverbal. That means the body, smile, and eyes are doing a lot of the talking. Now that you’ve learned from this chapter what foods and home-spa treatments you can enjoy and experiment with for improved eye health and eye-area youthfulness, you’re set to turn back on your flirty gaze! Remember, we can rarely hide our emotions with our eyes. So if you feel good, everyone will see it, and react accordingly, too.
    Of course, feeling good is a top priority, but looking good is also high up on the list, no? In the following chapter we delve into recipes, spa treatments, and information that will feed your face to fabulous.

    Caring for the Eyes: Common Challenges
    Many of us grapple with eye-area challenges, be it wrinkles, fatty deposits, puffiness, or dark circles. Since there is only so much that cosmetic concealers can do, we must also fight to maintain—or not further age—a youthful eye-area appearance. Let’s go over a few of the basics.
1) Don’t smoke. Smoking and exposure to UV rays both weaken collagen and cause premature wrinkling and sagging.
2) Use sunscreen. Apply sunscreen around the eye area; be careful not to get too close to the lash line. Many sunscreen brands now sell SPF (sun protection factor) eye powder that comes with a tiny brush for delicate application. Color Science has a great one that I recommend.
3) Moisturize. Dryness is bad for the eye area. Apply an eye cream nightly. You don’t need to spend a lot; most drugstore moisturizers will provide the hydration you need. I also provide you with home- spa treatments for moisture in this chapter.
4) Wear sunglasses. You should always wear sunglasses in bright sunlight for protection of the delicate eyelid skin as well as your retinas. They are also helpful for reducing squinting. Cheap (street-vendor or dollar store) sunglasses often don’t have the same UV protection that reliable name-brand sunglasses do.
    Nothing to Crow About
    Squinting