Last night, I didn’t have a dinner plan.  I will spare you all the reasons why; they aren’t important.  But at 6:15pm, I was without a plan and had about 45 minutes to get it figured out.  I wanted to fix pizza but the pizza dough in the freezer was frozen solid, and, there wasn’t enough left for our whole family.  I was mad with myself for not being on top of this like a “really good wife and mother”.  There was a battle going on in my head --  Perfectionist and Self-Loather were letting me have it and I could hardly think through my options for all the noise.  I almost called my husband and told him we’d meet him somewhere for dinner; I was that desperate.  But what a hassle that would be!  We’d have to put on clothes suitable for being in public, hair would have to brushed, shoes located, and then it would be late by the time we got home; plus, it would just be expensive.  I considered calling my husband and having him stop at the grocery store on the way home.  Self-Loather had brought along Helpless and Hopeless.  I was ready to give in.  I repented for ever judging anyone who fed their family prepared foods, and told myself this healthy eating from scratch thing was just too hard. Then Stubborn showed up.  She and Perfectionist make a great team and suddenly I knew what I would do:  stop feeling sorry for myself, suck it up, and just make pizza from scratch.  The voice in my head was loud:  I will NOT give in!  I will NOT give in!

With determination I began flipping through my cookbooks.  My first choice, the King Arthur whole wheat cookbook, had a pizza dough recipe but it was lengthy and complicated.  Not an option.  In my mind I scanned my recipe file; nothing there.  Then I remembered the good old plaid cookbook that had been a wedding gift so long ago.  The Better Homes and Gardens NEW COOKBOOK, copyright 1989. There is always a recipe in there for the most basic of things and sure enough on page 247 I found one for pizza.  A quick scan revealed that it said to pre-bake the crust, then top and bake again.  I started to doubt, then Stubborn told me pre-baking was a waste of time and to hurry up and get busy.

So at 6:16pm I started mixing dough for pizza.  The recipe said to combine 1 ¼ cups flour, yeast, and salt in a large bowl then add 1 cup warm water and 2 Tablespoons oil.  Beat this with an electric mixer, then gradually add the remaining 1 ½ cups flour while kneading by hand, until the dough was “moderately stiff” and “smooth and elastic.”  I quickly grabbed my bag of King Arthur organic white flour from the pantry and started in.  At 6:20 my dough was “moderately stiff” and “smooth and elastic.”  I couldn’t believe it – 4 minutes!  The recipe said this would take 6 to 8 minutes!  And oh, it felt so good to have my hands in that dough!  I worked Helpless, Hopeless, and Self-Loather right out of my head.  The recipe only yielded 2 pizza crusts so I did it again.  In about 8-10 minutes, I had fresh homemade pizza dough resting on my kitchen counter, enough to feed my whole family.  Ahhhhh, satisfying.

As usual, my thoughts turned toward processed convenience foods.  I wondered what the big deal was – this was so easy.   And, I was in total control of the ingredients.  Not only that, but our pizza would have cost more.  I paid $7 for a 5lb bag of organic flour and only used 5 ½ cups – that is barely a dent.  To buy enough pre-made crust for our family would have cost at least $7.  Some of you are gasping at the price of my flour, but you can see that even at that price I am saving money by cooking from scratch.

What took the longest amount of time in my dinner preparations last night was not the making of the dough from scratch.  It was the baking of 4 different pizzas, and this would have been true had I used pre-made crusts.  The total cooking time for 4 pizzas baked back-to-back was about 40 minutes.  I made the kid-friendly pizzas first because they would be sitting out longer and would be cooler when it was time to eat.  During the baking time, I threw together a salad and made my own salad dressing.  The girls set the table and my husband stood nearby, nibbling and chatting.  We were home, eating our own food that we prepared ourselves.  We didn’t have to brush our hair, change our clothes, or drive anywhere.  There was no wait to be seated, harried servers, or immodest dress to shield from my son.  And I didn’t have to worry about what scary things were in our food, because I had made it myself.

When dinner was over, instead of driving home from a restaurant, the five of us ran outside and played in the yard until just after dark.  My 8 year old daughter joyfully announced, "I love it when we are all outside together!"  Helpless, Hopeless, and Self-Loather were now very distant memories.  Satisfaction and Thankful had just moved in.

Was this a gourmet meal?  No.  Would I have preferred a healthier meal than white flour pizza?  Absolutely.  And we could have had all the above had I been a better steward of my time and planned out our meals for the week.  But even when you live by the seat of your pants, you still do not have to buy into the myth that you don’t have time to cook.  And boy, our pizza was delicious.  Next time, I will try this recipe with our freshly milled whole wheat.

So, I ask you this:  Where are the savings when buying pre-packaged, pre-made, processed foods if you aren’t saving time or money?  There are no savings.  In fact, ultimately, you lose money – you pay more for these pre-packaged foods, and spend more time and money at the doctor’s office.  The idea that we don’t have time to cook from scratch is just a sales pitch from big companies out to make a profit.  Who are they fooling?  You?

"...be ye therefore wise as serpents, and harmless as doves."  Matthew 10:16

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Well, it’s happened again:  another food recall.  This time the recall is with Nestle’s Toll House Cookie Dough.  According to FOX News, 69 people in 29 states are sickened with e coli symptoms, all having consumed this cookie dough raw.  The FDA confirmed that recent tests found e coli in the dough.

So my question is this:  is it really that hard to make your own cookies from scratch?  Because when you do, you not only save money but you take control of what you eat.  Have you checked out the ingredients of Nestle’s Toll House Cookie Refrigerated Dough lately?  When you buy a processed food you get a lot of ingredients you wouldn’t normally choose to eat.  Here are the ingredients for Nestle’s refrigerated cookie dough, cut and pasted from their website:

INGREDIENTS: NESTLE TOLL HOUSE MORSELS (SEMI-SWEET CHOCOLATE [SUGAR, CHOCOLATE, COCOA BUTTER, MILKFAT, SOY LECITHIN, VANILLIN - AN ARTIFICIAL FLAVOR, NATURAL FLAVOR]), BLEACHED ENRICHED FLOUR (WHEAT FLOUR, NIACIN, REDUCED IRON, THIAMIN MONONITRATE, RIBOFLAVIN, FOLIC ACID), SUGAR, MARGARINE (PALM OIL, WATER, SUNFLOWER OIL, HYDROGENATED COTTONSEED OIL, SALT, VEGETABLE MONO- AND DIGLYCERIDES, SOY LECITHIN, SODIUM BENZOATE, CITRIC ACID, NATURAL AND ARTIFICIAL FLAVOR, BETA CAROTENE COLOR, VITAMIN A PALMITATE ADDED), WATER, CORN SYRUP SOLIDS, MOLASSES, EGGS, EGG YOLKS, BAKING SODA, SALT, CORNSTARCH, SODIUM ALUMINUM PHOSPHATE, VANILLA EXTRACT, VANILLIN - AN ARTIFICIAL FLAVOR

Do you have some mono- and diglycerides in your pantry that you just picked up from the local chemist?  What about sodium benzoate?  Did your kids make some in their chemistry lab and bring the extra home for dinner?  And just what are corn syrup solids?  Why do cookies need sodium aluminum phosphate?  You know people wear safety goggles when they concoct these types of things in the lab! Do you really want to eat them? And don’t get me started on vanillin – an artificial flavoring derived from wood pulp.  Have you been near a pulp mill and smelled the sickening smell it gives off?  Well that slurry of smelly waste has been put to good use – flavoring your children’s treats.

“Welcome home from school, Junior!  Mommy has a special bowl full of sodium benzoate just for you!”

“Mommy and Daddy are so proud of you for keeping your room clean this week.  We’ve saved all the mono- and diglycerides just for you!”

Um, no.

Now compare the above list to this one:  butter, sugar, flour, eggs, vanilla, salt, baking soda, and chocolate chips (note: Ghirardelli uses real vanilla in their chocolate chips, but Hershey's and Nestle use vanillin).

The difference in the two is striking, isn’t it?

It takes a little more time to mix up the ingredients for home made chocolate chip cookies than it does to slice and bake, but my bet is that after considering what is in the slice and bake variety you’ll be much more willing to make the time to bake your own.  

Who do you trust to feed your family?

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Picture time ...  The last three posts were long enough without adding pictures, but I wanted to give you a good visual to go along with what you were reading.  Plus I just like pictures.

Back in September I spent about a week stocking my freezer.  I took pictures as I went along, hoping to use them in the blog somehow.  So here is a quick little picture tour of my week of hard work ...

A few dozen muffins ...

Spaghetti sauce and meatballs ...

Hamburger buns ...

Pizza dough balls ready for the freezer ...

Several loaves of fresh bread ...

And a very well-stocked freezer!

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How are you doing with your meal planning and preparation?  Have you tried any new foods?  Have you started making a menu?  What convenience foods have you stopped buying?  Have any of you begun searching for local farmers?  Now is the time of year when farmers begin taking orders for beef and poultry.   If you think this is something you want to try, get on the web now and search for local farms, markets, etc, then contact the farmers and get some information.

When we last “talked”, I challenged you all to step out of your comfort zones and try something new.  I took on the challenge also and the following week prepared fish for my family for the first time ever.  I tried to start simple so as not to get overwhelmed and chose to prepare salmon cakes.  That meant I didn’t have to pick out or handle any raw meat, I just had to open a couple of cans of salmon (there is canned salmon available at health food stores that does not have any bad ingredients).  It did involve picking out bones and skin, as well as mixing up the mixture with my hands, but it wasn’t near as smelly or disgusting as I feared.  My husband was my biggest fan.  He loves fish and he has fond memories of his mother preparing salmon cakes when he was little so he gobbled up several right away, exclaiming at how good they were.  My children had really good attitudes, and everyone tried some.  We had lots of ketchup available.  It wasn’t their favorite dish, but all I asked was that they try it and they did willingly.  For me, I managed to eat one but it required a lot of ketchup.  Even though I still don’t like fish, the fact that I actually prepared fish and ate some was huge.  This is just what I have been telling you – making changes is a stair-step situation, not something you do all at once.  You take one or two steps up the stairs at a time.  Every step up is a step in the right direction.  And one step down doesn’t necessarily put you back at the bottom.

Cooking at home will keep you stepping right up the staircase toward healthier eating.   And having a good armory of recipes is one of your best strategies for defending your family from the processed food invasion.  You can easily find any recipe you want on the web.  Sometimes it may take some searching and creativity to find recipes that use whole foods rather than seasoning packets or canned soups or packaged pie crusts.  But you can also easily make these things at home yourself.  If you find a recipe that calls for “cream of …” soup, you can make your own cream sauce using a recipe from a basic cookbook.   Following are a few recipes that can take the place of processed, pre-packaged grocery store foods.

Have you read the ingredients of taco seasoning packets lately?  They are full of questionable ingredients!  These questionable ingredients are there for a reason:  they add “flavor” cheaply, provide shelf-life, and keep the seasoning from clumping and hardening in the packet.  They are definitely not essential and you don’t want to put them in your body.  Here are two taco seasoning recipes:

Taco Seasoning by Leanne Ely (author of Saving Dinner)

1 cup dried minced onion

1/3 cup chili powder

2 tablespoons cumin (you can add more if you like)

4 teaspoons crushed red pepper

1 tablespoon oregano

4 teaspoons garlic powder

2 teaspoons onion powder

Simply combine everything, cover tightly, store in a cool, dry place.  You can use however much you like at a time, but approximately 1 tablespoon is the equivalent of one seasoning packet.  This is a “bulk” recipe, so it makes a lot and you use a little at a time.

I don’t know who to give credit to for this next recipe.  It came from a homeschooling chat forum 4 years ago.  It does not make as much as the above recipe, so I usually quadruple the recipe.

2 tablespoons chili powder

4 ½ teaspoons cumin

5 teaspoons paprika

1 tablespoon onion powder

2 ½ teaspoons garlic powder

1/8 – ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper

Again, mix everything together and cover tightly.  I typically use 2 tablespoons per pound of meat.  Remember that this recipe doesn’t include salt, so don’t forget to salt the meat!

Sausage is another processed food that contains a lot of unnecessary ingredients you definitely don’t want to consume.  While there are a few brands of sausage available at health food stores that are probably okay, it is really easy to make your own.

Turkey Sausage from The Urban Homemaker at www.urbanhomemaker.com

1 lb ground turkey

1 teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon nutmeg

½ teaspoon sage

½ teaspoon thyme

1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper

Mix all together and shape into 12 small patties.  It is easiest to skip the spoon and use your hands to get this mixed up well.  Fry til done or bake at 350 for 10 to 15 minutes in a shallow pan.  Be careful not to overcook or they will become tough.  You can adjust the recipe to suit your tastes.

The following pork sausage recipes came from my farmer friend Kimberlie of West Wind Farms about 4 years ago.  They are designed for large amounts of meat so you will need to adjust accordingly.  Just remember that you can adjust the seasonings however you like best but go easy on the salt!  Since she gave me these recipes, she has begun selling her own incredibly delicious sausages so if you live nearby you can visit her at the Franklin Farmers Market on the 2^nd, 4^th, and 5^th Saturdays each month.  We especially like her sage breakfast sausage.

Spicy Sausage

4 lbs ground pork

5 teaspoons salt

4 teaspoons sage

2 teaspoons pepper

½ teaspoon red pepper

½ teaspoon cloves or 1 teaspoon nutmeg

1 teaspoon sugar

Mix thoroughly.  Shape into patties and cook.

Seasoned Sausage

My copy here is a little tattered and I am not sure of the exact amount of meat – I think about 2 lbs ground pork – but I use this full recipe with just 1 lb of pork because we like more flavor.

2 ½ teaspoons sage

½ teaspoon  thyme

½ teaspoon red pepper

¾ teaspoon pepper

½ teaspoon garlic powder

½ bay leaf, crushed

dash celery seed  (for a more Italian flavor use fennel seed instead)

We love the seasoned sausage recipe to make sausage for pizzas, calzones, etc.  Instead of shaping it into patties, just brown it in a skillet and add the seasonings to it.  Then you can sprinkle the sausage on your pizza.   My son loves it when I make French bread and fill it with cheese and seasoned sausage, roll it up, bake it, then serve it with pizza sauce.  This is a really portable meal, too.  And remember, now that you have a guide for seasonings, experiment to make it tailored just for your family.

Pizza sauce is yet another simple thing you can make at home.  Many of the commercially prepared sauces are loaded with preservatives and other undesirable ingredients.  You can so very easily find a recipe for homemade pizza sauce on the web.  All you need is a can of tomato puree or tomato sauce, and some seasonings such as garlic powder, onion powder, basil or oregano, a pinch of sugar, salt, etc.  However I have discovered that Muir Glen makes a wonderful canned pizza sauce.

Switching gears a bit ... here is a recipe for a breakfast favorite in our family, baked oatmeal.  You partially prepare this the night before by mixing together the yogurt and oats and let it sit on the counter until you are ready to bake it.  The next morning you add in the eggs and baking powder, mix, and bake.  The process of letting it sit out overnight not only saves you time in the morning, but it makes the oatmeal much more digestible.  If you remember my post about chicken stock, you will recall that it is really good for you when your body doesn’t have to work extra hard to digest what you’ve eaten.  So this recipe is a great way to start or end the day – it is easy on your digestive system!

Baked Oatmeal from The Urban Homemaker www.urbanhomemaker.com

12-24 hours before you want to eat, mix together:

½ cup melted butter

¾ to 1 cup Sucanat (found in health food stores)

3 cups rolled oats (not quick oats)

1 ½ cups yogurt, kefir or buttermilk

1 teaspoon cinnamon – optional

Mix this together, cover with plastic wrap or dish towel, and let sit 12-24 hours in a slightly warm spot in your kitchen.

When you are ready to eat, add to the above mixture:

2 eggs, beaten

2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

½ cup dried raisins or 1-2 tart apples, chopped, or anything you like – optional

Bake in a greased 11x7 baking pan at 350 for 25-30 minutes.  You can eat it plain or pour some milk over it, etc.  This makes a great Sunday morning breakfast because it is so fast in the morning.  It is also great for dinner served with eggs and sausage.  The texture is a little like cake.

Oatmeal is, surprisingly, one food that most people don’t realize is super easy to make.  It seems that everyone buys those little flavored oatmeal packets.  Next time you’re at the store, read the ingredients, and don’t buy those again.  Basic oatmeal is an extremely nutritious food, is very hearty and comforting, and is super easy to flavor yourself.  On the other hand, oats are one of the more difficult grains for our bodies to digest so it is very smart to soak your oats overnight before cooking them.  This also speeds things up the next morning.  Here is a very delicious and very healthful way to cook oatmeal:

Per person, in a stainless steel pot with lid, combine ½ cup oats, one tablespoon plain yogurt, and a half cup of warm (not hot) water.  Do this the night before (12-24 hours before you want to eat).  Cover it and leave it sitting on the counter or stove top.  In the morning add one cup of milk.  Stir well over low or medium heat until the mixture is bubbly and thick.  Add salt to taste.    Now, add whatever else you want … Try some real maple syrup and cinnamon with a banana sliced up in the bowl … try just honey … try adding raisins or diced apples or nuts … Be sure to add a dollop of butter or a drizzle of cream for extra vitamin D and A to help your body assimilate all those vitamins better.  This breakfast will keep you satisfied through to lunch and possibly longer.  Remember, the above proportions are per person, so if you are cooking for two then you will want one cup oats, 2 tablespoons yogurt, one cup water, etc.

Finally, popcorn.  Popcorn is probably one of the most “contaminated” foods available at the supermarket, yet one of the easiest snacks to make at home.  It is so surprising how many people out there not only have never popped popcorn on the stove, but didn’t even know it was possible.  First of all, do yourself and your family a favor and never ever buy microwave popcorn again!  Not even the kind that is supposedly healthy.  All you need to pop your own popcorn is a large, heavy pot with a lid and handle (one long handle, not the two little handles on either side).  Start with good quality popcorn.  If you can get it, use organic popcorn to insure that it is not genetically modified.  Use good quality salt; unrefined salt such as RealSalt or Celtic Sea Salt.  Pop the corn in coconut oil for great flavor (coconut oil is great for your thyroid) and then top it off with plenty of melted butter.  Yes, you read that correctly, I am giving you permission to put butter on your popcorn!  Butter has vitamin D and A, which work together, and are much needed by your body.   Popcorn is a nutritious snack when prepared naturally on the stove.  It is high calorie so just remember keep it as a snack – don’t overdo it!  So here is how to pop popcorn on the stove:

In a large, heavy pot with a lid and handle, plop a generous dollop of coconut oil and 3 kernels of organic popcorn.  Set the pot on high heat and cover with lid.  Listen carefully for the kernels to pop.  When at least 2 have popped, then quickly lift the lid and pour in 1/3 to ½ cup of popcorn.  Quickly cover and, holding the lid tight with one hand, shake the pot constantly until popcorn begins to pop rapidly.  Very slightly lower the heat and continue shaking occasionally until popping slows.  At this point you can lift the pot from the heat by about one inch, holding it there until the popping completely stops.  This will help keep the popcorn from burning.  Once popping is complete, then immediately pour the popcorn into a big bowl.  Add salt.  Repeat this process until you have enough popcorn for everyone who is going to have some.  When you’ve made enough, turn off the heat and plop in several big dollops of butter.  The pot will be hot enough to quickly melt the butter.  When melted, pour over your popcorn and stir it with a big spoon.  Then quickly enjoy it while it’s warm!  Some fun variations include mixing ¼ to ½ cup parmesan cheese (fresh grated, not the stuff in the green can) in with the butter, or, you could add ½ cup of maple syrup (real syrup, not the other junk) to the butter for sweet popcorn.

There is not room or time for me to type in all the recipes for things you can make at home instead of buying processed at the store. My purpose here is to give you a few simple and very practical recipes that will help you see how easy it is to prepare your own seasonings and mixes rather than to buy them at the store.  Now you can see that you DON’T need those little seasoning packets, or those prepared foods from the store.  You can do it yourself at home!  It isn’t just easy, it is so much better!

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Part 2 of a 3-part series.  If you missed part 1, you can access it via the sidebar on the right under "Recent Posts."

The Planning:

Right here is the key to success: PLANNING.  You need to be planning the menus for your family, and making your grocery list based on those plans.  There is no reason in the world why you cannot do this TODAY.  Whether you have lots of money or zero money, whether you have a gourmet kitchen or a closet, whether you work or stay at home, whether your family is picky or adventurous, you can sit down and make a menu.  And you should.  Maybe I need to write a whole article on this subject.  Hmm…

For years I have been making weekly menus and grocery lists.  I choose to do it once a week but there are no rules, just do what works for your family.  Be flexible because your family’s schedule, tastes, and budgets will change over time.  To make my weekly menu I list each day of the week and quickly jot down the activities that never change week to week – taekwondo on Tues/Thurs, art on Mon, piano on Thurs, etc.  Then I add in the extras – haircuts, evening meetings, field trips, etc.  This shows me which days need to have a crock pot meal because I won’t have time in the afternoon to cook.  After I’ve assigned a menu to each day, I make notes to remind myself what needs to be done ahead.  For example, I might write a note for Monday reminding myself to get out meat to thaw for Tuesday, or to soak some beans for Tuesday.  These are things that are easily forgotten and result in wasting all your time planning.  I tend to save my old weekly menus to refer to because it gets hard coming up with something every week.  Some smart moms have a meal rotation where they rotate through the same series of meals every 30 days or so.  It is all a matter of coming up with a method that works for you.  The only rule is:  just do it.

Supplement your meal planning with your own homemade convenience foods.  It will make life much easier.  Think about what your family eats the most and stock your freezer accordingly.  It is a huge help to have my own homemade convenience foods at the ready although it does take some advance planning/time/effort to have them there.  Most often I bake in bulk – such as when I make tortillas I will make 4 recipes at a time and freeze the tortillas into one meal amounts, or when I make pizza dough I will do as much as my mixer can hold, then freeze each ball of dough.  I will soak a couple of pounds of dried beans overnight, and then let them cook all day in the crock pot.  When they are done, I freeze them in can-sized portions.  There have been times when I have devoted a full week to stocking my freezer with homemade “convenience” foods.  It was work but well worth it.  The freezer was loaded with muffins, tortillas, stock, spaghetti sauce, sloppy joe mix, pizza dough, lasagna, etc.  If there are ever left over pancakes or waffles, these go straight into the freezer for quick kid-breakfasts.  Every refrigerator comes with a freezer attached – use yours for something more than a holding place before throwing mystery leftovers in the trash.  A deep-freeze is not required in order to bake and freeze a few things in advance, and it will be well worth your time and effort to do so.

The Meals – Breakfast and Lunch:

There are some amazing moms out there who cook a family breakfast and/or lunch every day.  For some, due to the family’s schedule, breakfast or lunch is their main meal of the day. Think outside the box and come up with a plan that is tailored to your family. I would love to get up and prepare a real meal for my family every day.  I think everyone would be better off but so far I have not been able to make it work.  Sometimes, I will manage to get up and prepare oatmeal for everyone (topped with maple syrup or honey, cinnamon, and my husband likes to slice a banana into it), or biscuits and sausage (using ground turkey which I season myself and shape into patties).  Once we even had breakfast burritos.  Sometimes for the kids I will mix up pancake batter before going to bed, let it soak all night on the counter (this makes the grains more digestible), and have it ready for them in the morning.  This is really easy because all you do in the morning is add the eggs and leavening, then pour it straight onto the griddle from the blender.  Sometimes I will cook some sausage links from the farm, either to go with the pancakes or to just eat alone.  The norm for us, however, is I will have a fried egg on toast and a glass of milk and the kids will have either an egg, a leftover biscuit, yogurt, or toast. They always have milk to drink and sometimes a small glass of OJ.  Often my son will have a banana also. Sometimes they like beef sticks (from the farm – think “healthy Slim Jim”), and my middle daughter really likes grapefruit.  

For lunch, I may have any of the following:  leftovers, cheese and an apple, occasionally I’ll have an almond butter and honey sandwich or grilled cheese, a cheese tortilla or even a tortilla spread with peanut butter and honey.  Sometimes I will have a big salad with farm fresh lettuces and carrots, loaded with chunks of cheese, raisins, maybe some toasted nuts, and homemade dressing.   The kids will usually have a sandwich – peanut butter, cheese, turkey…If they didn’t have yogurt for breakfast, they might have it at lunch.  Sometimes, especially in summer, I will make kefir or yogurt smoothies for everyone.  Sometimes they will have leftovers from dinner.  Most days I will cut up an apple or orange which everyone will share.  In the summer we enjoy strawberries and peaches.  The kids also like the beef sticks or jerky for lunch along with a slice of cheese and piece of fruit.   A lot of our breakfast and lunch foods are interchangeable as you can see. 

Snacks typically include fruit, carrots, celery, nuts, beef jerky...  My son has taken to having some crackers and peanut butter.  If there is an open bag of chips I can’t keep them out of it.  Popcorn is a favorite snack and dessert.  I make this with organic popcorn which I pop on the stove in coconut oil and top with melted butter.  Sounds decadent but this is a very healthy snack!

Finally I have to mention a favorite pantry essential:  Larabars.  I forgot to list them in my pantry list, but there is always a box in there.  I love these things and buy them by the case!  They come in decadent flavors such as cinnamon roll, cherry pie, chocolate mocha, gingersnap, yet they are nothing more than a combination of spices, ground nuts, and fruit (mostly dates).  This is my choice of breakfast or lunch when I am on the go, along with a couple slices of cheese.  Another on the go lunch (or breakfast) for me, is raw cheese slices and a handful of almonds.

And now, dinner.  My ultimate goals for a meal are:  healthy and simple.  Secondary goals are to always have an animal food and vegetable or fruit (preferably raw).  Here is a week of meals from earlier this month…. Sunday night: eggs, biscuits, sausage; Monday night: beef stew with salad and cornbread; Tuesday night: bean soup in the crockpot, salad, cornbread; Wednesday night: baked chicken with rice, salad, green beans; Thursday night: mini-meatball soup with blueberry corn muffins and orange slices; Friday night:  slow-cooker beef and bean burritos.  You can see that all of the meals came straight from my pantry, I used the crock-pot 3 of 5 nights, and we had soup/stew 3 of 5 nights.  These were all very easy meals to prepare and also very healthful.  We often have breakfast for dinner, whether it is eggs and sausage or pancakes or waffles (although I try to limit heavy grain-based meals).   Soups are the best meals for meeting all the goals mentioned above.  This is one reason why I always try to have stock on hand.  You really don’t need a recipe to make soup and you can use a crock pot or simply set it on the back of your stove to simmer a while.  Chili is another favorite.  Other simple favorites are beef roasts, pork roasts, or roasting whole chickens.  Slow cooking with low heat is the most healthful way to prepare meats, and it is also simple to do. With different roasts I usually serve some type of potato or rice, a cooked vegetable or two, and maybe a salad.  It helps to think “meat ‘n 3”, i.e. have some type of meat dish and a few sides (2 veggies and bread, or just 2 veggies).  This is one of the easiest ways to cook.  Don’t get fancy.  I save more involved recipes for weekends or days when I know I’ll be home.  This includes chicken pot pie (totally homemade, including crust), quiche, drumsticks, wings, pizzas, and other “gourmet” type meals.  My menus are not revolutionary, they are just regular ol’ foods.  Often it feels like country cookin’.  I simply cook meats and vegetables, and skip the pre-packaged seasonings and pre-prepared foods (unless I made them myself).

You may have noticed an entire food group missing from my kitchen.  ?  Have you?  It is fish.  Personally I hate fish.  It makes me gag to think about it.  However fish is a really healthful food, despite the mercury fear, and I really need to learn to like it and add it to our diet.  My kids need to be exposed to it, and my husband loves it.  So I have challenged myself to give it a try.  I have collected a few recipes which I might be able to tolerate and plan to try salmon cakes this week.  I’ll let you know how it goes, and will post the recipe in part 3 of this series.

Why am I telling you this?  Because I know that some of you out there think that some of this whole foods stuff is gross, and you need to decide now to overcome.  The food that God created is not gross.  It is good for you and your body needs it.  Some of you have called or emailed to tell me about your cooking accomplishments as you try out new foods and new techniques.  This is great!  Don’t be embarrassed at what you haven’t done before; be embarrassed about your refusal to try.  So let’s work on this together, shall we?  I will try to like fish, and you will branch out with new veggies and get your hands deep into the cavern of a whole chicken.

The Conclusion:

Well, now you know how it is in my kitchen.  Sometimes things flow along pretty smoothly in here, other times it isn’t so great.  Hopefully this peek inside my kitchen will help you revolutionize your family meal plan.   It has been a little uncomfortable going public, but if you have found the freedom to move from “I don’t know where to start” to “I can do that!” then it has been worthwhile.  Changing a few things in your diet is hard enough, but to change an entire philosophy of eating and grocery shopping is really hard!  Especially when it involves an entire family.  Don’t let your job, your kid’s activities, your husband’s work, your lack of space, your budget, your tiny dilapidated kitchen, or your picky eaters be your stumbling block.  I know of people with far less money and resources than all of you, without your support systems, who are making this work well.  Know that you CAN make changes, decide that you WILL, and then DO IT.  Instead of thinking about what you can’t do right now, think about what you CAN do.  You will be surprised at the number of changes you can make NOW – just think about it and pray about it.  This is a good thing and God will guide you. 

Remember, eating this way will take more time and effort but with some thought, planning, and creativity it CAN be done!

Proverbs 14:1 Every wise woman buildeth her house:  but the foolish plucketh it down with her hands.

Proverbs 31:14, 15 She is like the merchants’ ships; she bringeth her food from afar.  She riseth also while it is yet night, and giveth meat to her household…

Next, in Part 3, recipes…

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Are you trying to make the switch to whole foods but finding yourself wondering what in the world is left to eat?  Are you feeling overwhelmed trying to move from the seasoning packet to the homemade mix?  Do you wonder how in the world you will ever have time to really cook?  Food prices getting you down?  Several of you are asking questions that give me the feeling this is where you are – motivated, yet frustrated; helpless, yet hopeful.  You want to make changes, and feel like you know what to do, but actually making that happen is another thing entirely.

For me, I can listen all day to a concept and feel like I understand it and agree with it, yet when it is time to actually implement what I’ve learned my mind just goes blank.  Sometimes it helps to hear the little details behind the concepts.  I’ve been asked to describe what is in my pantry and what we eat in a week, including snacks.  After mulling this over for a while I decided that this might really be helpful for some of you, and that is what I hope to do with this peek inside my kitchen.  But before I start let me emphasize that while this post may be all about me, I am in no way saying that I have it all together!  My kitchen right now is quite disorganized, and I frequently don’t plan well.  I have goals but often miss the mark entirely.  Sometimes I make a mess of everything (literally and figuratively!) and feel like I am in over my head.  So I’m definitely not claiming perfection. You absolutely don’t have to do it my way.  This is just a glimpse into my ideals and methods.  Hopefully this post will spur you on to a plan and method tailored specifically for you.

Because this is long, I’ll break it up into more than one post.  I will start with a little tour through my kitchen, continue with the meal specifics, and hopefully end with a few simple recipes.

The Pantry:

If you want something to eat right now, the pantry is not the place to look.  Most everything in there typically requires some type of preparation before it can be eaten.  This can be really frustrating, but with a little time and advance planning you can have a kitchen loaded with delicious, ready-to-eat, nutrient-dense foods.  The pantry is where you store all those ingredients before combining them to make some delicious treat or meal.  My pantry contains several buckets of various grains, brown rice, dried beans, almonds, pecans, lots of spices, honey, maple syrup, sucanat, salt, canned tomatoes of various kinds, canned green beans, coconut oil, olive oil, vinegars (balsamic, apple cider, white, brown rice, white wine…), arrowroot powder, baking powder, baking soda, herbal teas, organic popcorn, organic raisins, sweet potatoes, winter squash, garlic, onions, and a few ready to eat foods like organic crackers, non-GMO corn chips and taco shells, refried beans and baked beans.  And of course a loaf of my homemade whole wheat bread. I also keep on hand a bag of organic white flour and organic unrefined white sugar – these are rarely used except during holidays or to dust the counter.  Most of these foods have been purchased in bulk at a discount.  Sometimes I have split bigger items with friends (30 pounds of raisins is a LOT … and a pound of sage or thyme goes a looooong way).  I have tried to move most everything from plastic to glass, and use different sized mason jars for this job.  The organic spices are much cheaper when purchased by the pound, and for the ones you use most this insures you always have some on hand.  Spices used less frequently can be split up and shared with friends.

The Refrigerator:

We bought a new refrigerator over the summer.  Our first fridge was purchased in 1995 back before we had any kids.  I was working part time and definitely not doing any real baking.  The bottom shelf of the door was always filled with Diet Coke and Diet Mountain Dew.  There was often a pound of ground beef or a package of chicken breasts slowly spoiling on the shelf, a gallon of skim milk gone sour, and some lifeless iceberg lettuce.  Things have definitely changed around here!  Not only has our family grown by 3 since then, but our entire way of eating has drastically changed.  We definitely needed a new refrigerator.   It was funny to shop for fridges.  They are designed with processed foods in mind.  Soft drink holders seem to be standard features.  Even the freezer has a special compartment just the right size for a frozen pizza.  Fancy fliers showed how all of today’s modern convenience foods could fit so nicely in these state of the art refrigerators.  Well, we managed to find a fridge that meets our needs but we sure haven’t filled it with modern foods, nor do we use the special frozen pizza compartment.  In our refrigerator you will find whole milk (4 gallons/week), OJ, butter, homemade buttermilk, homemade sour cream, farm fresh eggs, condiments (mayo, ketchup, mustard, jelly, naturally brewed soy sauce, etc.), oils requiring refrigeration such as flaxseed oil, farm-fresh lard, almond butter and peanut butter, produce, kefir, yogurt, kombucha, cheese, homemade salad dressing, (scary) leftovers, beef jerky from a local farm, and organic deli turkey for my husband’s lunches. 

The Freezer:

We have a deep-freeze in the garage where I keep all of the meat I purchase from local farms.  This summer we upgraded from a small upright freezer to a 19 cu. ft. chest freezer, as we had outgrown the old one.  Every year we purchase a side of beef and about 40 whole chickens.  The first year we bought beef from the farm, the freezer door didn’t shut all the way and we woke up the next morning to find a real mess running through our garage!  We won’t have that problem with this new freezer!  The beef and chickens are all raised on the pasture.  We get to specify how the beef is cut so it serves our family well.  I request the bones and stew meat for stock, I get to specify how thick the steaks are cut and how many per package, as well as how many pounds per roast.  I can have as much turned into ground beef as I want, and can have as much of that turned into hamburger patties as I want.  I even get to choose how it is wrapped.  Through the years I have come to know our beef farmer very well and our families are now good friends.  Going to their farm several times a year gives me the opportunity to see next year’s beef grazing in the pasture.  I see for myself that these cows are always clean and well cared for, and I also see how the pastures are maintained.  When I think about what a blessing this is for my family, I am joyful and humbled.  Every time we have beef, we know which cow and which farm.  Another bonus is that since we’ve become friends, my beef farmer can specifically choose which beef we get based on the needs of our family.  This is service!  The chickens have been another blessing.  While I haven’t formed a friendship with the farmer, he is all about wanting to make sure his customers know everything they need to know about how the chickens are raised and processed.  I pick up the chickens directly on his farm, just a few hours after they have been processed.  They have just barely been chilled.   I have seen all of his equipment and he has explained everything to me about how it works.  Through the year he will send occasional email updates about the farm or health/nutrition issues.  Although they’re whole, the chickens are very versatile because I can cut them up myself for parts, or cook them whole and use the meat for various other recipes.  Every carcass goes into the stock pot to make wonderful, delicious chicken stock.  So of course my freezer has chicken stock and sometimes beef stock, both homemade.  This past fall I also purchased a quarter of a pig from the same farmer who raises the chickens. We got several pork roasts, chops, ribs, and a lot of ground pork which is perfect for seasoning as sausage for a homemade pizza. Occasionally I will buy different cuts of meat from another farm that processes specifically for retail; such as packages of chicken drumsticks or the occasional boneless chicken breast, or ground turkey.  Also in my freezer are a few bags of chicken feet to add to my stock.  And then there are bags of fresh blueberries, purchased in bulk over the summer from a farm in Alabama, which I washed and froze.  These are used in smoothies and baking.  I am learning that when there is a great deal on healthy foods I know we’ll eat, that it is well worth the trouble to buy in bulk.  With that in mind there are often bags of homemade applesauce from Tennessee apples, or bags of pumpkin, or Tennessee strawberries, or corn that I bought in bulk and scraped off the cob.  The deep-freeze can be one of your best friends as it allows you to enjoy the summer’s bounty all year, without the loss of nutrients from the high temperatures of canning.

The freezer in the kitchen is where I keep things I have made ahead to freeze such as pizza dough, tortillas, bread, and muffins. What doesn’t fit here will overflow into the deep-freeze.  Other foods include the chicken carcasses waiting to become stock, coconut, yeast, opened bags of frozen fruits and veggies, etc.  There are also containers of pinto beans and kidney beans which I have cooked and frozen in 15 oz portions just as if it were a can of beans from the store, as well as chopped up chicken to use in salads and sandwiches.

The Grocery Store:

These days I can almost go to the grocery store without a list because a majority of our food comes from other sources.  I still make a list, though, because it is the smart thing to do; a list keeps me focused, prevents unnecessary purchases, and keeps me from having to make another grocery run later in the week.  Typically my grocery cart will contain apples, bananas, celery, onions, garlic, orange juice, yogurt, deli turkey, kombucha, and occasional spices and condiments.  Everything else comes from a farm or food co-op.  The beef and pork are picked up once a year; the chickens are picked up just a couple of times during the summer.  My different food co-ops are weekly, bi-weekly, and monthly.  With most of these I alternate driving time with other people so I am not making these runs myself each time.  Every Saturday, even in winter, I visit the Franklin Farmer’s Market where local, seasonal meats and produce are available year round.  One food co-op gives me the ability to buy organic canned foods, organic spices and seasonings in bulk, and even environmentally friendly household products and personal care products.  I order online and pick up monthly.  The prices are just a bit cheaper than the grocery store but mostly for me it is more convenient.  And I like supporting the smaller, local business rather than the giant super stores.  A few friends think this sounds like a big time vacuum and that I am running myself crazy.  I try to remain flexible and willing to change things when needed.  My methods are currently working for my family but they may not be possible for your family.  Just be willing to think outside the box as you figure out your own plan based on your time, resources, budget, and space.

This concludes the first part of a peek inside my kitchen.  Coming soon:  meal planning and specifics.  Stay tuned!

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I just read some articles about the salmonella outbreak that has been linked to a peanut processing plant in Georgia.  FDA inspectors claim this is one of the largest food recalls in history.  There have been 500+ confirmed cases of salmonella linked to this one small peanut plant, and at least 8 people have died.  Initially word was that the contaminated food was a peanut paste used in crackers and other highly processed foods served in hospitals and nursing homes (gasp!).  But now the plant has halted all production and is recalling foods produced as long ago as 2007.  The list of recalled foods includes a variety of processed peanut products (peanut paste, peanut meal, granulated products, etc) as well as the actual roasted peanuts themselves.  Affected retailers and companies span the nation, in addition to all consumers – junk foodies and health-conscious consumers alike.  Yes, that’s right.  While lots of cookie and ice cream products are affected, so are  items found only at your local Whole Foods and Trader Joe’s.

The story is nothing new.  It probably happens at processing plants everywhere, yet this one just happened to get caught.  According to FOXNews reports, the plant’s routine testing revealed salmonella at least 12 times in the past yet the production lines were never cleaned.  When the company re-tested and got a negative result they continued to ship out products.  (Inspectors state that in products such as peanut butter you can have pockets of contamination allowing a contaminated food to test both positive and negative, therefore one positive test should result in destroying the entire batch.)  Once people began to get sick and the plant was identified as the source of the outbreak, the plant was inspected and found to have “mold, roaches, a leaky roof, and other sanitary problems.”  Delicious.

What is frustrating about this story is that it wasn’t just “junk brands” that had to be recalled, as the initial reports suggested.  You can read the recall list for yourself here:   http://www.foxnews.com/projects/pdf/PeanutButterProducts2009.pdf

On it you will find items from Trader Joe’s and Whole Foods; respected brands such as Health Valley, Arbonne, Keebler, Sam’s Choice, Little Debbie, Nestle, and Famous Amos; and other familiar brands like Hy-Vee, Naturally Preferred, Private Selection, and WalMart’s bakery.  And, it pains me to say it, Larabars made the list.  We love Larabars and consider them to be a good choice for whole, raw foods.   Some of these names are brands that we not only trust to provide clean, safe food, but they are brands that are supposed to be on a level above all others because they are closely associated with “all natural” and “organic.”  Yet we now see that the ingredients on highly processed “health foods” come from the same nasty places as all that other junk we Food Snobs are too good to eat.

Years ago I was sitting at a Shoney’s restaurant in Birmingham, Alabama, waiting to meet a social services client.  The restaurant appeared clean and well-kept.  While waiting I observed one of the largest roaches I’d ever seen crawling around the food bar.  At the same time, the restaurant was having its health inspection.  I watched the inspector carefully examine the food bar and surrounding areas.  Eventually the roach crawled up under the food bar and never came out.  When I left the restaurant, the new health score was in the upper 90’s (I can’t remember specifically but 98 or 99) yet this roach had been crawling all around and inside the cabinets of the food bar right in front of the inspector.

It is tragic that innocent people were sickened and even killed because of someone else’s carelessness at the peanut plant.  Many of these people had no choice over what they ate as they were invalids in nursing homes and patients in hospitals.  Possibly a mom just like you purchased some chocolately peanut butter cookies for her child’s birthday party, and a child became seriously ill.  We can all agree that we would never ever knowingly purchase and eat food from a place where we knew there were unsanitary conditions such as mold and roaches, and especially the risk of salmonella.  That’s just the point.  When we choose to buy processed foods, whether they are conventional or organic, we relinquish control over what goes into our bodies.  We put our trust in food safety regulations and inspectors. We pass the torch to a total stranger, someone we have never met or seen and whom we know nothing about and who doesn’t know us… someone who has profits in mind above all else. This is false trust and it is foolish.

Even organics are not immune when referring to processed foods.  While researching this article I learned that Larabars are owned by General Mills.  Just another big company trying to tap into the “all natural” market.  The result is more money for the rich execs but less quality for you and me.  If you want to be in control of what your family eats, then you must quit buying processed foods.  Instead buy whole foods that you have to prepare yourself, and get as much as possible from a local farmer who knows you and your family by name.  This is how you form a real, trusting relationship with real people, and it is wise.

Coming soon … a peek inside my kitchen to show you just what I’m talking about.

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This article from www.mercola.com came through my email this morning.  I hope you will read it carefully.  This is THE argument for eating ONLY animals from a farmer you know and trust.   When an animal has been raised eating foods that contain pesticides and toxins, you can't simply wash it off like you can an apple because the pesticides and toxins wind up fabricated right into the animal itself. 

I tried to cut and paste the article here but it won't post correctly so I am just posting the link.  Please read it!!  Just a note:  don't waste your time reading the forum comments at the end.  These are written by people we do not know and therefore cannot rely upon them for information or decency.  So please just ignore those comments.

You Need To Know This If You Eat Tyson Chicken by Dr. Joseph Mercola

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What the Doctor (Should Have) Ordered

Cooler weather is here to stay and we are on the brink of the holiday season.  This is the perfect time to talk about homemade stock. 

Can you identify this processed food?

Chicken stock, chicken flavor (maltodextrin, water, dextrose, salt, chicken flavor [chicken stock, salt, enzymes], autolyzed yeast extract, onion powder, chicken fat, modified food starch, ascorbic acid, sugar, rosemary extract), salt, dextrose, spice extract, carrots, celery, flavoring, onions, water, sugar, sodium phosphate, autolyzed yeast extract, soy lecithin, citric acid.

Here is a picture:

Now identify the homemade version:

Bony chicken parts, filtered water, celery, carrot, onion, vinegar, parsley.

And, a picture …  Can you SEE the difference????

Both are supposed to be the same thing yet one can bring good health and healing while the other can slowly rob you of your health.  One originates in a lab and is manufactured in a processing plant while the other comes straight from God’s creation.  Have you figured out what it is?

Chicken stock.  Yes, it isn’t just a folk tale – chicken stock, and all properly prepared bone broth (fish, beef, chicken), is truly good for what ails you.  Stocks are definitely nutrient dense for many reasons but the secret to their “power” lies in the use of acidic wine or vinegar which draws valuable minerals from the bones into the stock in a form that is ready to use by your body.  That means your body does not have to work hard to digest stock.  Think of it as “ready to use” minerals, a far better electrolyte solution than Gatorade.  Be sure that any store bought stock will not have undergone this simple preparation.

Bone broths (yes I am using “broth” and “stock” interchangeably), like all whole foods, are just loaded with good things but because they are so easily digested broths are superior to other foods. Good stock is your best source of usable calcium, especially if you cannot have dairy.  Other healing minerals include iodine, magnesium, and potassium.  Gelatin is another particularly important aspect of good stock because it is a powerful digestive aid in that it enables the body to fully use proteins.  Gelatin is helpful for cancer, arthritis, anemia, diabetes, muscular dystrophy, and more.

If you are sick, whether serious or mild, your body is working hard to strengthen its defenses and repair the problem.  To do this requires vitamins and minerals, as well as energy.  If your body is already running on empty, it makes the job much harder.  Digesting the healthful food you eat is how your body gets what it needs to have a strong immune system.  If you are not giving your body nutritious foods, then it is expending a lot of effort for very little result.  If you are giving your body sugary treats, you are literally suppressing your immune system for several hours at a time.  So your body is working and working and working to fight off sickness and heal itself, yet it is fighting a losing battle.  And even depleting your body of more energy and strength in the process.   This is where bone broths come in.  They are just what your body needs – all the right minerals in a form that won’t require any extra energy to digest.  Lots of bang for the buck.

So what is wrong with broths from the grocery store?  Read over the ingredient list at the top and see that store broths are made of a lot of processed chemicals.  Some of them are actually known to cause cancer.  A good stock must be properly prepared using the very best ingredients you can afford.  Think of it as health insurance.  You would spare no amount of money if it meant the health of a loved one.  This is no different.  And the good news is, you can easily make your own nutritious stock at home, using ingredients you probably already have on hand.

Here is a recipe for chicken stock from Nourishing Traditions by Sally Fallon, page 124:

1 whole free range chicken or 2 to 3 pounds of bony chicken parts, such as necks, backs, breastbones and wings

gizzards from one chicken (optional)

feet from the chicken (optional)

4 quarts cold filtered water

2 Tablespoons vinegar

1 large onion, coarsely chopped

2 carrots, peeled and coarsely chopped

3 celery sticks, coarsely chopped

1 bunch parsley

If you are using a whole chicken, cut off the wings and remove the neck, fat glands an dthe gizzards from the cavity.  By all means, use chicken feet if you can find them – they are full of gelatin.  Farm-raised, free-range chickens give the best results.  Many battery-raised chickens will not produce stock that gels.  Cut chicken parts into several pieces.  Place chicken or chicken pieces in a large pot with water, vinegar, and all vegetables except parsley.  Let stand 30 minutes to 1 hour.  Bring to a boil, and remove scum that rises to the top.  Reduce heat, cover and simmer for 6 to 24 hours.  The longer you cook the stock, the richer and more flavorful it will be.  About 10 minutes before finishing the stock, add parsley.  This will impart additional mineral ions to the broth.  Remove whole chicken or pieces with a slotted spoon.  If you are using a whole chicken, let cool and remove chicken meat from the carcass and reserve it for other uses.  Strain the stock into a large bowl and reserve in your refrigerator until the fat rises to the top and congeals.  Skim off this fat and reserve the stock in covered containers in your refrigerator or freezer.

A few comments … chicken feet sound gross but they are a very valuable addition to your stock by adding silicon which is good for strong, flexible bones, healthy cartilage, connective tissue, skin, hair, nails, etc.  A local farmer is your best source for healthy chicken feet.  Also, I rarely use a whole chicken in my stock.  My family eats a roast chicken several times a month.  When we have had all we’re going to eat, I take the entire carcass, skin, fat, meat bits, and all the juice and put it in the freezer.  When I go to make stock, I will use 2 or 3 of these carcasses at one time and add in 4 to 6 chicken feet.  I don’t even wait for them to thaw – just dump it all in the pot with the vinegar, water, and vegetables like the recipe says.  This is an extremely economical way to make stock – we lose count of how many meals we get from just one chicken!  And the stock is always gelatinous, rich, and delicious.  I try to let my stock simmer 24 hours, even when we are not home.  Sometimes I just turn the heat off when we leave and turn it on when we return.  The results are still excellent.  Remember that simmer doesn’t mean rolling boil; simmer means just barely bubbling.  Finally, you’ll need to let the stock cool on the stove before you strain it.  I have left it sitting on the stove for an entire day before and when I finally got around to straining it, it was still warm.  Once you refrigerate the stock, it will take at least one overnight in order to gel and form the fat on top.  After skimming the fat, I freeze it in quart sized containers.  Sometimes it is helpful to freeze a little in one or two cup amounts or even in ice cube trays so you always have the right size for your recipes.

Good news:  you can use the above recipe with the carcass from your Thanksgiving turkey!  Just put the whole thing – skin, bones, meat bits, juice, fat, everything – into the pot and follow the above recipe.  You will get 6 to 8 quarts of golden rich, nourishing, and truly delicious stock.  For FREE!

Bone broths are not just good for you, but they are truly delicious.  Once you have had the real thing you will never be able to go back.  Anything else will be bland and watery.  Soups will become a special treat that you will want to eat frequently because they will not only be so easy to make but delicious as well.  Last year I got caught without stock and ended up getting a mild flu.  My sweet husband knew I needed some good soup so he made a special trip to the health food store and carefully read the label of every can/carton of broth available.  He did his best to pick the least offensive one.  He came home and made my special soup … No one could eat it!  It was absolutely tasteless.  And this was certified organic, all natural broth!  There is a huge difference between the processed stuff at the store and the real thing you make at home.  Homemade broth is superior in every way.

Our ancestors may not have understood the science behind it, but they never doubted the healing power of bone broths.   They witnessed it many times.  I have felt it myself, and seen it work on my own family.  Be a wise woman and make stock right away.  Make sure you always have a good supply on hand, and make a point to eat it once a week during cold and flu season.  It is just what the doctor should have ordered!

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After spending so much time defining whole foods and talking about buying directly from the farm, I thought I would give you an example of just such a meal.

I don't know that I have ever actually photographed my dinner plate before!  I know for sure I have never posted a picture of it on the web!  Well, this is what we had for dinner tonight.  Everything we ate came straight from a local farm and is in season in Tennessee right now.  OK, maybe some of the seasonings didn't quite come from the farm but the big stuff did.  Parmesan drumsticks, sweet potato dollars, and kale.  A very satisfying, and very healthful meal.  A great end to this would have been a fruit salad of fresh cut up grapefruit, oranges, apples, and banana (citrus and apples are also in season right now).

Here are the recipes (with a few comments):

Parmesan Drumsticks from Saving Dinner by Leanne Ely, p. 27

Combine in a bowl:  1 cup parmesan cheese (freshly grate your own!), 3 teaspoons oregano, 2 teaspoons paprika, salt and pepper to taste (remember to use unrefined sea salt).

In a small frying pan, melt 1/4 cup butter with either 1 T olive oil or coconut oil.

Dip 12 chicken drumsticks, no skin (you could leave the skin on if you like), into butter mixture and then into cheese mixture and place on a baking sheet.  Bake at 350 for about an hour or until chicken is completely cooked.

I always double the cheese and butter mixtures, and use 15 chicken drumsticks for my family of 5.  There are usually about 3 or 4 leftover for lunch the next day.  This recipe is a big favorite of my kids and it is all whole foods, nothing processed, no chemicals.  Hooray!

Sweet Potato Dollars from Nourishing Traditions by Sally Fallon, p. 405

Peel 3-4 sweet potatoes and slice crosswise in 1/4" thick slices or "dollars".   Melt 3 Tablespoons butter with 3 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil (I used coconut oil).  Brush a cookie sheet (you may need two cookie sheets) with the butter mixture then arrange the dollars in one layer on the pan and brush with the remaining butter mixture.  Season lightly with sea salt.  Bake about 45 minutes at 350.

These are another family favorite and there are never any leftovers.  Again, all whole foods, nothing processed, no chemicals, and loaded with nutrition!

Kale

The kale came from our CSA box.  All I did was chop off the long stems, rinse it well, then chop it into smaller pieces.  Pour a couple tablespoons of olive oil into a large pan, heat it on medium low, toss in a few cloves of finely chopped or minced garlic (however garlicky you like it is how you decide how much) and saute for a minute.  Don't let the garlic brown -- just flavor the oil.  Then add the kale, toss it to coat it with the oil, add a pinch or two of red pepper flakes and a splash of balsamic vinegar while tossing the kale, then when it is slightly wilted just turn off the heat and put on the lid.  I let it sit on the stove until we are ready to eat.

OK OK my kids don't like kale either!  But everyone has to have one bite or one small portion, depending on their age.  The 2 year old will get one small piece on her plate before she gets any other food.  When she eats the whole bite, she can have the rest of her dinner.  This works best if she has NOT been snacking before dinner!  My 8 and 11 year olds will get a small portion on their plates with the rest of their meal.  They know that the kale must be entirely eaten before getting seconds.  And they have learned from experience that it is much better warm than cold.  Remember, it takes dozens of times of trying a food before a child will like it.  So don't give up.  My kids learned to LOVE brussels sprouts this way (well, we are still working on the 2 year old).  It really makes a big difference to have only one thing per meal that the kids are not crazy about so that they will be more motivated to eat it in order to get more of what they do like.  And if they choose not to eat it, they don't get seconds, and they won't starve.  They really won't starve.

This meal does take a little hands on preparation but it is really very easy to make.  The chicken goes in the oven first, then prepare the sweet potatoes and they can go in the oven at the same time as the chicken.  It will take you about 15 minutes to do the potatoes so both dishes will be ready at the same time.  While they are baking, prepare the kale then set the table.  It really helps to have a helper washing and peeling sweet potatoes.  I really wanted a fruit salad to go with this tonight but I had a very late start and my husband said we had enough food already.  But a fruit salad could easily have been prepared ahead or at any time during the meal.

I really like this meal because it is all from the farm, not the grocery store so I have had personal contact with each person who grew or raised what I fed my family.  I know that everything was farmed organically by good people who really care and who know me on a first name basis.  And rather than having my food shipped across the country in big 18-wheelers, I obtained it by simply driving to the local farmers market or farm within a few miles of my house.  Another great thing about this meal is the rich color.  It is not only pleasing to the eye, but that rich color is truly all natural and it means the food is LOADED with good stuff that is good for my family.  The chicken lived outside in the pasture, soaking up the sunshine, and ate a healthy meal of bugs and grass, the way God designed, which makes the chickens healthier.  Animal foods are our best sources of protein and without them our bodies cannot effectively assimilate other vitamins.  The sweet potatoes and kale were grown in fertile soil free from pesticides and chemical fertilizers.  Both are overflowing with vitamins that will boost my family's immunities, strengthen their heart and bones, support their vision, and many other things.  The use of fresh butter and coconut oil will also support our thyroid.  And, as I talked about earlier, the garlic is a powerful ani-fungal, anti-viral and anti-bacterial herb.

What did you have for dinner tonight?  We had chicken, sweet potatoes, and kale.  It was really good.

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Back in September I wrote about the importance of buying as much of your food as possible from the farm, and also buying food in season.  The same farm where we buy our beef also sells awesome vegetables.  This past summer they offered their first "Simply Summer CSA", and today was the first day of their third Winter Vegie CSA.  CSA stands for Community Supported Agriculture.  This is simply a way for the farmer to guarantee sales in advance (and make a living wage!) and a guarantee for the consumer to receive local, farm fresh produce all season.  It is a great deal where everybody wins.

The summer CSA boxes were loaded with awesome summer produce.  We loved the bounty of fresh potatoes, tomatoes, peppers, squash, zucchini, herbs, corn and even some eggplant.  But I have to say that nothing quite beats the beauty of a winter CSA box when it is loaded with huge heads of fresh lettuces, bunches of dark leafy greens, brightly colored red and purple radishes, fat red beets, bunches of purple turnips, fresh onions, and bright orange carrots that are the sweetest you'll ever taste.  Just the sight of one of those boxes will make even the pickiest eater's mouth water.  Yes, it is picture perfect and I admit I have taken a few pictures of my CSA boxes!  Here are two pictures from today's box:

Today's box had several heads of lettuce, a bag of mixed lettuce, a big bunch of bright radishes, a mixture of peppers, parsley, turnips, and a variety of fresh greens.  I have never been one to like greens, but because of the large quantity that came in my CSA box I have not only learned to like them but have actually been looking forward to them this year!  As we were unloading the box together I mentioned to my son that because greens are so plentiful this time of year, God must have intended for us to eat them now.  Greens are absolutely LOADED with a plethora of vitamins but especially vitamin K, vitamin A and vitamin C.  This means that, among other things, greens will help your body build strong bones, fight cancer, fight heart disease, and have strong immunities.  Just what our bodies need during flu season!  And because these greens were just picked this morning they have more of these good vitamins than greens from the grocery store.

Recently Dr. Joseph Mercola wrote an article for his newsletter about why it is so good to buy your food locally.  Some of the reasons included better taste, better for you, supports local farm families, etc.  It is true that fresh, locally grown food is better for you and the environment.  Local farmers are less likely to use GMO seeds, they are more likely to practice sustainable farming that protects and nurtures the environment, they use less packaging (and recycle most of it) and the environment is not polluted by emissions from delivery trucks.

We love driving to the farm to pick up our boxes of fresh vegetables.  It is great to get outside the city and see Tennessee's rolling farmland with the trees changing colors.  We get a break from the busyness of the week for a short drive in the country and a breath of truly fresh air.  Sometimes we get to walk around the farm and visit the greenhouses where our food is grown, or feed the chickens and gather eggs, or help lead the cows to new pasture.  We learn something new every visit and always leave assured that the very best care was given to insure that our food was raised in the best possible way.  The healthiest way.  The animals are better off, the land is better off, even the bugs are better off.  And we know for sure that we are better off.

Farm fresh!  It sure is different than the grocery store...

**edited to add:  My dear mother has kindly pointed out that I said that buying from the farm keeps from polluting the air by emissions from delivery trucks, then immediately said how I love driving out to the farm.  She felt that was contradictory.   Let me clarify by pointing out that there is a difference in my personal vehicle driving a few miles to my farm vs. a big 18-wheeler driving across country or even across a couple of states.  While both vehicles produce emissions, my vehicle is much more kind to our air than the big truck.  Hope that clears it up!

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Something really satisfying to me is preparing a meal or dish that I know is 100% good for you, that is rich with color, and that tastes like it was prepared by a gourmet chef.  Tonight was one of those experiences and as I was cleaning the kitchen I thought it would be good to post the recipe on the blog.  I well remember the early days of our diet changes when it seemed there was nothing to eat because it was all so bad.  Something tells me that there are a few of you out there who are feeling the same way.  Well here is a totally healthy recipe that is extremely easy to make, and my husband gave it RAVE reviews tonight!

I’ll post the recipe and then add a few comments at the end … Now don’t turn up your nose…

Curried Butternut Squash Soup with Coconut Milk

from www.canada.com

2 Tablespoons olive oil

2 onions, finely diced

3 garlic cloves, minced

1 Tablespoon minced gingerroot

1 Tablespoon curry powder or paste

4 cups water (or chicken broth – it will taste better and be healthier)

7 to 8 cups diced butternut squash (this is a large one, about 3 lbs, but mine was about 5lbs … to prepare the squash, peel it, then cut the bulb end off, cut that part in half, scoop out and discard the pulp and seeds and dice; then slice the long end in half and dice; you’ll need a good cutting board and a big sharp knife)

2 teaspoons sugar (this little bit won’t hurt anyone)

1 ¼ teaspoons salt (remember to use real sea salt)

1 14-oz can unsweetened coconut milk

2 Tablespoons lemon juice (I omitted this entirely)

Warm oil in a large stockpot over medium heat.  Stir in onions, garlic, gingerroot and cook 5 minutes.  Sprinkle on curry powder and cook 1 minute, tossing continuously.

Pour in water (chicken stock) and bring to a boil.  Mix in squash, sugar, salt, and lower heat to a lively simmer.  Cook 30 minutes, or until squash is very tender.  Pour in coconut milk and simmer 5 minutes.  Stir in lemon juice (I left this out).

Puree soup in batches in a blender and return to a smaller pot, if desired.  Reheat before serving if necessary.

This is a rich, creamy, colorful and very flavorful soup.  But what makes it so healthy?   Several things … For one, butternut squash is in season right now.  Eating seasonal vegetables means that it is probably a better price, it has not come a long distance, and therefore it has not lost any nutrients.  However, its thick skin does make it keep its nutrients longer.  Butternut Squash is a winter squash.  One cup has more than 100% of the recommended daily amount of vitamin A in the form of beta-carotene which is a powerful anti-oxidant and anti-inflammatory.  It is also rich in vitamin C, potassium, fiber, manganese, folate, copper, vitamin B1 and B6, omega 3 fatty acids, vitamin B3, and pantothenic acids.  All of this means that winter squash can help prevent heart disease, osteoarthritis, cancers, diabetes, rheumatoid arthritis, asthma, and many other conditions.

Another healthy ingredient in this soup is the ginger.  Ginger is so much more than flavorful (which it definitely has a lot of!).  Ginger is a very powerful healing herb and is used and respected world-wide for its powerful healing properties.  It can help motion sickness, upset stomachs, headaches, congestion, and can even help lower fevers.  It helps stimulate circulation, aids metabolism, can reduce spasms and cramps, cleanse your colon, and is also an aphrodisiac and helps with stress relief.  Ginger is loaded with powerful antioxidants.  It also helps fight off colds, flu, and infections.  I have successfully used it to lower fevers, fight nausea, and lessen the severity of colds.

Garlic is yet another powerful healing herb.  It is an antibacterial, antiviral, antiseptic, antiparasitic, antiprotozoan, antispasmodic … Garlic has been successfully used to treat high blood pressure, bacterial infections, gastrointestinal infections, sinus infections, eye/nose/ear infections, and much more.  Garlic is truly nature’s antibiotic.  But garlic is also directly effective against viruses!  I have personally successfully used garlic to treat colds, viruses, and ear infections.

There is no way I could begin to tell you all the great things about coconut products, one of which is the coconut milk that is used in this recipe.  Lauric acid is the principle fatty acid in coconut milk.  It has potent antiviral, antifungal, and antimicrobial properties.  It supports your metabolism and is excellent for your thyroid.  Contrary to what you may have heard, coconut products can help you lose weight!  There is definitely not room here to tell you everything about coconut!

Finally, this soup is great for you because its base is chicken stock.  Chicken stock, and all meat stock, is a basic element for a healthy diet as long as it is homemade.  The store bought stuff in a can is loaded with chemicals that will damage your health.  When meat stocks are properly prepared they will be loaded with minerals, namely calcium, magnesium, and potassium.  The gelatin that comes from the stock bones is helpful in fighting and preventing cancer, bone disorders, arthritis, and other similar ailments.  And it isn’t just a folk tale that chicken stock is a cure for the flu.  It is good for flu, colds, asthma, and many other health problems when consumed frequently.  And one of the most important aspects of meat stocks is that it aids in your digestion.  If your body is not digesting well, then it can’t get all these great nutrients from your food.  I plan to post about making healthful chicken stock soon.

Well, now you can understand why I was so jazzed about tonight’s soup. Isn’t it so cool that just one dish can do so much?  And if you listened to typical, conventional diet advice you would have missed out.  Maybe you will try this recipe too.  It really is a good thing.

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Well, the holiday season is here.  Candy is literally everywhere and everyone is thinking about those tantalizing, decadent desserts so prevalent this time of year.  Some of you may disagree (ha!), but I thought now would be a good time to take a closer look at sugar.

Most granulated sugar originates from the sugar beet and sugarcane plant.  Did you know that there are powerful companies who have genetically modified the sugar beet so that it will tolerate repeated spraying with herbicides?  And that the EPA has just increased the allowable amount of herbicide residues on the actual plant part that becomes sugar by 5000%?  Now think about this:  half of the world’s granulated sugar comes from the sugar beet. GM sugar is already in most all processed foods in the form of high fructose corn syrup, including your children’s breakfast cereals, but before long it will be in your sugar bowl and in all of your favorite homemade treats.  The only way to avoid this is to buy organic and cook all of your meals from scratch.  If you are not aware of the dangers of genetically modified food (known as GM or GMO or GE for Genetically Engineered) then you need to watch “The Future of Food,” a documentary produced by Deborah Koons Garcia, at www.mercola.com.  Or visit www.futureoffood.com.

Back to sugar.  Even if it isn’t genetically modified, sugar has been through 10 steps in the refining process before it ever reaches your sugar bowl.  Even organic sugar.  And by the way, organic sugar is nothing but a guarantee that it is not GM.  The extensive processing of sugar cane removes the vitamins, enzymes, protein, and minerals that God originally put there and leaves you with a substance not only devoid of all nutrition but harmful to your health.  The list of ways sugar damages your health is mighty long.  Here is a sampling:  Sugar can …suppress your immune system; interfere with your body’s ability to absorb valuable minerals; increase your bad cholesterol and triglycerides and even lower your good cholesterol; cause hyperactivity, anxiety, and crankiness in children; feed cancer cells (especially breast and ovarian cancer, among others); cause autoimmune disease (including arthritis); cause depression; contribute to Alzheimer’s Disease; lead to addiction; cause learning disorders; cause hormonal imbalances …. And much, much more.  I didn’t even mention tooth decay, fatigue, gallstones, ulcers, or heart disease!  For 24 hours after eating sugar, your immune system is literally suppressed making you more susceptible to colds and viruses every time you eat a piece of candy, drink a soft drink, have some ice cream, or have “just one” cookie.

High Fructose Corn Syrup (HFCS) is another, even more dangerous, form of sugar.  It is the number one source of calories in the U.S. due to soft drink consumption.  HFCS is also in most processed foods.  It is sugar from corn.  Based on all that I have read, the corn that isn’t pretty enough to sell as corn (and this includes most all GM corn) gets shipped off to the processing plant where it is processed so many times I couldn’t begin to list all of the by-products that wind up in your different processed foods.  But HFCS is one of them.  It carries with it all the dangers of regular old sugar except it is worse because your body metabolizes it faster than any other sugar.  On a side note, did you know that because of the numerous by-products from the processing of corn that go into your food, examination of a snip of any American’s hair or fingernail would reveal corn isotopes?  Yes.  Check it out in Michael Pollan’s book, The Omnivore’s Dilemma, pages 19-23. 

If you have read my previous blog entries, you will know that it doesn’t take rocket science to see that God did not create white sugar or HFCS.  All good things come from God, and these are not good things.  These sugars are definitely not whole foods, they are not nutrient dense or synergistic or anything good at all!  God did create us to enjoy sweet things, however, and he perfectly designed sweeteners for us to enjoy that would boost our health at the same time.

Raw honey is yet another amazing whole food creation.  It tastes great and at the same time is loaded with nutrition.  In fact, according to Beth Holland’s booklet, “Some Common Nutritional Fallacies,” honey is made of at least 165 different components, including “amino acids, enzymes, vitamins, minerals and at least 25 different kinds of sugar.”  Unlike sugar, raw honey actually helps your body’s metabolism.  Honey is anti-bacterial, anti-viral and anti-fungal.  It contains vitamin B2, B6, iron, manganese, and a slew of many other nutrients.  I read about a study where honey was used on the incisions of c-section patients.  These patients had far less infection and more rapid healing than the patients treated conventionally.  Honey has many medicinal uses, whether topical or internal, from sunburns to coughs.  You shouldn’t be surprised that honey can do so many things because, after all, God created it just for us.  Don't forget Proverbs 16:21 where God gives us the bottom line on honey ... it is sweet to the soul and health to the bones.  But remember this is talking about raw honey.  Pasteurization destroys all of these great things, and most honey at the grocery store has been pasteurized.

Other natural sweeteners that God created for us include molasses and maple syrup.  Like honey, both of these have nutritional value.  Maple syrup is an excellent source of manganese and zinc.  This makes it rich in antioxidants.  Maple syrup is also good for prostate health, your immune system, and your heart.  Maple syrup that has been cooked over a wood fire, the traditional way, is the best because it avoids equipment that has been cleaned with formaldehyde.  My favorite source for maple syrup is www.vermontel.com/~knsh.   Molasses, especially Blackstrap Molasses, is loaded with good things as well.  It is rich in iron, calcium, copper, manganese, potassium and magnesium.  It is good for your bones, your heart, skin, hair, hormones, nervous system, and boosts your energy.  Make sure you buy unsulphured molasses so it is free of processing chemicals.

Sucanat is yet another healthy sweetener.  It is simply un-refined sugar cane.  The brand name means Sugar Cane Natural.  According to Wikipedia, Sucanat is simply pure, dried sugar cane juice which is extracted by machine then heated and cooled, which forms the brown granules.  Because it is un-refined,  Sucanat retains its molasses content.  Sucanat is not as loaded with nutrients like honey, maple syrup and molasses, but of all the sugars derived from sugar cane, Sucanat is the most nutritious.  It most resembles brown sugar in flavor but I have used it successfully as a one for one substitute for white sugar in recipes.  Some people do not like its strong flavor and use Sucanat with Honey instead.  I am not sure about this product, but I do know that it is still a better alternative than white sugar.

Everywhere I go it seems that someone is pushing candy on my kids.  From the bank teller to church, there is candy everywhere.  If your child participates in any kind of class, there is often a candy treat passed out at the end.  Even in my 2 year olds mid-week Bible class, there is always candy passed out when class is over.  Is this really the message we want to send to our children?  That candy is a reward for having done nothing but show up?  People think I am over the top when I complain about this.  But think about it -- diabetes, obesity, endocrine problems, auto-immune disease, depression, cancer, learning disorders ….addictions …   “It’s just candy!” 

God knew that we would enjoy sweet things.  He talks about a land flowing with milk and honey.   It is good for us to enjoy sweets on occasion, especially when they glorify our creator by nourishing our bodies!  That, my friends, is so sweet.

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God makes good things.  Of the many wonderful things he created, whole foods are one of them.  But just what are whole foods?  And then there are processed foods.  What are they?  How does one tell the difference between the two?  My purpose here is to help you understand and identify both.  Then you will be well on your way to making good choices for your family dinner table!

Apples, eggs, steaks, whole milk, butter, lettuce, carrots… Hungry yet?  These are all examples of whole foods.  Foods that are considered whole are foods that God created, and they are as close to the way he created them as possible.  The list above is a good example of this.  Whole foods are natural and they haven’t had anything done to them to change them much from the way they are in their original state.  For example, you could buy a carrot in the grocery store in a cellophane bag, or you could buy a bunch tied with a rubberband with the green tops still on, or you could buy them sliced/diced and frozen.  They can be eaten raw or cooked.  But these are all easily recognizable as carrots and they are a whole food. 

Whole foods are not always identical to each other; within one food group there is a lot of room for variety, shape, color, size, texture, taste, etc.  Apples are a good example of this:  there are red, green, and yellow apples, some are sweet, some are tart.  Another example is whole raw milk.  Depending on the breed of cow, her feed, health, and the time of year the milk may be creamier at times than others, it may have a creamy color or it may be slightly yellow, and it may taste sweeter than at other times.  And if the cow has gotten into a patch of onion grass, the milk will taste like it!  Raw honey is also a whole food with many variations in flavor and color depending on what flowers the bees visited.

Whole foods will provide a variety of necessary vitamins and nutrients when eaten alone, or you can take whole foods and combine them together for even greater nutrition.  This is synergism, which I will talk about later. Whole foods always contain the specific vitamins and nutrients that God intended for them to have, because he created them for the purpose of nourishing our bodies, which he also created.  Another aspect of whole foods to consider is that different whole foods are produced through the earth at different times of the year, and in different regions, as opposed to being available year round.  This is all part of God’s plan.

And now let’s look at the opposite of whole foods:  processed foods.  After reading this I hope you will understand that the phrase “processed food” is actually an oxymoron.  The following items are all processed:  boxed cereals, soy milk, canned soups, Velveeta, American cheese, toaster pastries, soy hot dogs and other concoctions, white flour, white sugar, boxed mixes, low-fat and skim milk, animal crackers, Crisco, and the list goes on and on and on …  Examine this list and you will see that none of these items occur naturally.  Whole foods become processed when they have had things done to them that change them dramatically from their original state, altering their original God-given nutrition.  The end result is always not only less nutritional but often damaging to your health in the long run.  Also note that many processed items have had vitamins added to them – flour and cereal are enriched, low-fat and skim milks have vitamin D added, etc, because vitamins cannot survive the process of processing.  There is no processed food that can grow from the ground or that can come directly from an animal.  All processed foods originate in a lab, then go to a factory and finally arrive neatly packaged at the grocery store, gas station, or vending machine.  Processed foods are always the same, box after box, with no variation.  Processed foods are available everywhere, all the time.

White flour, white sugar, and table salt are good examples of processed foods.  White flour originates with wheat that grows in the field and is then harvested and ground into flour.  But there is another part of the process:  the germ and the bran are mechanically separated from the wheat.  What is left over is then often bleached to make it a snowy white.  This is white flour and it is all starch -- no nutrition -- so synthetic vitamins are then added back into it to keep people from getting debilitating vitamin deficiency-related diseases (pellagra, for example, and even insanity in some cases).  But don’t be fooled.  Of the 90+ vitamins that are removed, only about 4 are added back and they are not in the amounts or forms that God created.  The germ and the bran are what contain all of the nutrition and are sold off for other uses – animal feed, or neatly packaged jars of wheat germ, or bran cereal, etc.  Business executives have made a lot of money from this.  White flour is a processed food.  The same is true of white sugar.  Sugar cane actually has some nutrition in it, but all of it is stripped away in the process of making white sugar.  What is left is bleached and refined so that you have freely flowing, snowy white sugar granules that have zero nutrition.  Then there is table salt.  Real salt is coarse and gray with colored flecks in it and is full of naturally occurring minerals.  But this beautiful food that God created is put through many processes, including intense heat and bleaching, which results in the healthful benefits being lost and gives the consumer a freely flowing snowy white product known as table salt.  White flour, white sugar, and table salt are well known to have adverse health effects such as diabetes, high blood pressure, and obesity.  The list of documented problems with just these three items has no end.  And you will find at least one of them, often all three, in almost every processed food item available.

Here are more examples of foods God created and are healthful in their whole state, but are ruined through man’s processing:  Raw honey is loaded with nutrients.  It has living enzymes and is also anti-bacterial and anti-viral.  Pasteurized honey has no nutrition.  Corn is a healthful, seasonal vegetable but corn syrup is dangerous to your health.  Fresh, whole, raw milk is loaded with beneficial bacteria and enzymes that are good for your digestion, and it is also antibacterial.  Pasteurized, homogenized milk has lost all of these qualities and can actually be harmful to your health.  Low-fat and skim milk have dry milk powder added back to make it thicker and add color.  I could write pages about ways  man has messed up God’s perfect creation by processing it.

There are some areas where it may be difficult to identify whole or processed foods with confidence.  Dairy is one of those areas.  Milk has already been discussed.  Cheese was mentioned briefly; cheese is basically a whole food however many cheeses have had undesirable things done to them and added to them leaving them nutritionally deficient.  Yogurt is a whole food yet most yogurts available are highly processed as they have had many undesirable ingredients added to them.  When faced with uncertainty, it is extremely important to read the labels!!  If it is full of hard to pronounce ingredients that you know didn’t come from the farm, then you are looking at a processed food.

Whole foods have synergy.  The different parts work together as part of a whole package. Processed foods cannot do this.  According to Webster’s dictionary, the term “synergy” means, “combined action or operation.”  Think of each component of a whole food as a synergist – “something that enhances the effectiveness of an active agent.” This is how you get “synergism” … the interactions of each “agent” (think: nutrient) working together results in a “total effect…greater than the sum of the individual effects.” (Quotes are from Webster’s Dictionary)  Let this sink in a moment.  We marvel at the amazing parts of God’s creation, such as the ocean, the stars, the many animals … yet we tend to totally ignore his incredible creation of food that is so diverse and has such potential to nourish and heal us, if we would only let it.

“And God saw every thing that he had made, and, behold, it was very good.” (Genesis 1:31) God created us.  God created the earth.  God, in his infinite wisdom and with his intimate knowledge of us, created perfect foods to nourish us.  To God be the glory!

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For the person who wants to improve their diet, the grocery store can be a very scary place.  The purpose of this entry is to give you a simple guide for navigating the grocery store.  This is all about “what” and not about “why.”  We’ll save that for another time.

Before I get started, I want to say that I believe we should buy as much of our food as possible from the farm, especially meat, dairy and vegetables.  But for some people this just isn’t possible.  There are also some food items we just can’t get from a farm.  Thus, here is “Grocery Shopping 101.”

First, here is the bottom line:  eat only what God created to be eaten, and make sure it is as close to its natural state as possible.  For example:  eat raw cheese, don’t eat American cheese; drink whole milk, not skim milk.

Second, at the grocery store you will find that a majority of the items in the above category will be located around the perimeter of the grocery store rather than in between the aisles.  There are a few exceptions but not too many.

And now for the specifics:

Produce … Fresh vegetables, in season, grown as locally as possible and preferably organic … Fruits are good but only in moderation.

Meat …  Look for organic meat from animals that have lived and eaten on the pasture as opposed to confined and grain-fed.  These meats will be much higher in nutrients.

Dairy … Avoid processed dairy products, including yogurt that lists sugar, corn syrup, artificial sweeteners, and other chemicals and processed items in its ingredients.  Look for whole milk, unprocessed cheese, full fat sour cream, real butter.  Avoid dairy that has been “ultrapasteurized”, that does not require refrigeration, or is reduced fat or fat free.  Look for whole milk that comes from pastured cows, preferably non-homogenized.  Locally, that would be Hatcher Family Dairy milk.

Oils …  Look for Extra Virgin Olive Oil, unrefined coconut oil, palm oil, cold pressed sesame oil and peanut oil and high oleic safflower oil.  Avoid soybean oil, cotton seed oil, corn oil, canola oil and any oil that is hydrogenated or partially hydrogenated.

Salt … Unrefined Sea Salt is the best and it may not be available at a regular grocery store.  Two excellent brands are Celtic Sea Salt and RealSalt.  You want salt that has not been refined, bleached, or had chemicals added to make it flow smoothly.  Real salt will be gray or speckled and coarser than traditional table salt.

Sweeteners … Always avoid white sugar, brown sugar, and corn syrup.  Look for unpasteurized honey, molasses, organic maple syrup, or unrefined sugar such as Sucanat. 

Always, always avoid “new-fangled modern convenience foods.”  This is when you really have to think.  Ask yourself, “Is this really a food?”  “Was this food item available 75 years ago? 100?  If not, why?”

All of the above guidelines can be applied to the many products in the grocery aisles.  For example, if you were to buy spaghetti sauce, simply read the label and avoid those brands that list high fructose corn syrup on the label.  Keep in mind that when you bake from scratch at home you would never use ingredients such as “autolyzed yeast extract” therefore don’t purchase products that include this on the label.  Often you will find that the most simple of products will have the longest ingredient list.  This is a big warning sign.

Grocery shopping in this manner will be overwhelming at first but it can be done!  Your first few trips will be long as you scan the shelves and read the labels.  You may be very discouraged to find that many of the items you are used to buying are now “off limits.”  Take heart!  Talk to your grocery manager and ask him to supply more brands and choices.  He is often willing to special order.  Or, learn to make some things from scratch at home – you will be surprised at how many convenience foods you can actually make yourself for very little trouble (for example, spaghetti sauce!).

Remember, don’t make all of your diet changes at one time.  Take baby steps.  Decide what is your biggest priority and start there.  The other things will fall in line.

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I get excited about the strangest things.  Ever since becoming a homeschool mom, I just laugh over the crazy things I get excited about.  These days I get really excited about food.  Call me crazy, but I get excited about food!  Especially food that is straight from the source, as opposed to food from the grocery store.  A few years ago a friend gave me some milk she had just milked that morning.  It was so fresh, and unadulterated…I was excited!  As I was carrying it to the car, someone inquired about it.  When I explained what it was, she was disgusted.  “Ewwwww!” was her exact response.  Shocked, I replied that all milk at the store comes from an animal and she exclaimed, “But I don’t want to know about it!”  What?

“And God saw every thing that he had made, and, behold, it was very good.”  These are the words of God from Genesis 1:31.  This is what God had to say of his creation.  News flash:  God not only didn’t create Lunchables, Velveeta, Pop Tarts, artificial sweeteners or margarine but he didn’t create the grocery store, the dairy case, or the milk carton either!  God created the cow, and from that cow comes our meat and milk.  Good food comes from the farm.  Yes, the farm.  And when the thought of that disgusts us, we are not only not appreciating God’s perfect creation but we are not living in reality either.

Every week it seems there is a new food scare.  Recently there was a huge beef recall.  A meat processing plant that had been cited for disgusting violations in the past had apparently messed up again.  Their meat went to regular grocery stores as well as a nationally known health food store that advertises organic and all natural meats, and charges a premium price (I don’t think their customers were getting what they paid for!).  Earlier this year there was the tomato scare where people were getting salmonella from eating tainted tomatoes at restaurants.  Remember the spinach scare last year?  People were getting E. coli from eating spinach!  Even the organic spinach was pulled off the shelves because it was all coming from the same place.  Just last week the news broke about babies in China getting sick from drinking their baby formula.  Apparently the processor added a chemical to increase the protein content, and this sickened and even killed babies in China.  These things just should not be!  We have become too far removed from the source of our food, and it isn’t working out so well. 

Do you know where your food comes from?  And who has been handling it?  I know of people who won’t eat food prepared by certain people because they know that kitchen isn’t very clean, or that person has a lot of pets in the house.  There are other people who won’t eat food that other people have had their hands in, for example, a tray of cookies sitting out for sampling at the grocery store or a church potluck dish that has been sitting out.  We know that in each of these situations the food has been at risk for spoilage or contamination in some way.  Yet we are perfectly fine eating food from the grocery store, prepared or grown in places we have never seen and packaged by people we have never met.  There may be laws in place specifically designed to keep food clean and safe, but these laws are violated all the time, and people get sick.  Maybe the processing plant is perfectly fine, but what about the ingredients?  Scientists are doing things to our food that are perfectly legal, yet can still make us very sick.  Scientists have genetically modified corn and have experimented with using it in different ways.  Several years ago some of this corn, changed from the way God created it, wound up in taco shells at the grocery store.  Someone who purchased and ate those taco shells nearly died as a result. (You can learn about this from the documentary, “The Future of Food.”  Go to www.mercola.com to watch it free.)  It makes one feel pretty powerless, doesn’t it?  When we leave the handling and preparation of our food in the hands of strangers, we put ourselves and our families at risk.

Good, healthy, safe food comes from the farm.  When you hear news of the latest food scare, do you run to the fridge to check labels and code numbers?  If you buy your food from the farm, you will never have to worry again about who has been handling your food because you will already know!  In fact, that person will probably have become a friend.  You can probably send them an email, give them a phone call, or drive to their house because you will know who is handling your food.  In fact, that farmer will probably try very hard to keep in touch with you.  Now that’s a change from the typical grocery store and the big companies who supply it! If you were to buy a side of beef for your freezer, you will know that every burger, every steak, and every roast came from one single cow and you will likely even know where that cow was slaughtered and maybe even who it was who did it.  If you were to buy a share in a Community Supported Agriculture program for fresh vegetables and greens, you would never have a concern about salmonella or E. coli in your spinach and tomatoes because you would know that your farmer doesn’t use tainted fertilizers or irrigation. 

A small scale, local farmer who sells directly to the consumer will have a special interest in the quality of his food.  He will not only personally know the children who are eating his food and relying on it to nourish them, but he will know that if his products aren’t good quality that he will no longer have a livelihood.  And you will have the opportunity to find out how well he treats his animals, or what he fertilizes his vegetables with. You will quickly develop a relationship with the person who produces your food as you learn how much this person cares about what they are doing, if they are honest and hard-working.  When you buy from the farm, you take the responsibility for feeding your children back into your own hands.  You go from powerless to powerful.

Tonight, when you sit down for dinner and thank God for the hands that prepared your food, who will you think of?

Here are some websites to help you locate farms near you:

www.foodroutes.org

www.localharvest.org

www.buylocalfood.com

www.eatwellguide.org

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Most everyone knows of the verse in Ecclesiastes which tells us, “….there is no new thing under the sun.” (Ecc. 1:9)  While I’m sure this verse is speaking of more important things than blogging, it still holds true.  There are bazillions of blogs out there, and a wealth of nutritional information as well.  Everything that I say in this blog has been said before, and probably more eloquently (and grammatically correct!).  My purpose here is not to reinvent the wheel. Rather my purpose for this blog is to serve as a single place where I can refer friends and friends of friends who are curious about what I am doing when it comes to feeding my family.  I love telling people about what we do but it can be very time consuming.  My hope here is to eventually cover all the most asked questions and most requested topics.  By saying it once, hopefully I can continue helping and encouraging others without neglecting my other responsibilities.

If I have referred you to this blog, you already have a good idea of who I am.  But if you happen to wander by and get to reading you may wonder who in the world is “The Grain Girl” and why does she think she has something worthwhile to say?  At least, that is what I would think if I just happened by!  So let me get the introductions out of the way …

I am married to a wonderful husband and father who is also a wonderful physician.  We have three children who are 11, 8 and nearly 3.  I have been homeschooling them from the beginning.  And, I am a follower of Jesus Christ, the only son of God.  This belief and commitment affects everything, including how I view my role as a wife, mother, and homemaker, and also how I view my food.

My journey toward better eating began in earnest about 6 years ago.   The first thing I did was rid our home of all things “partially hydrogenated.”  From there it was a series of baby steps over several years, changing one thing at a time in our diet.  The book What The Bible Says About Healthy Living was a great motivator and opened our eyes to the philosophy of not eating anything except what God created to be eaten.  Since then we have made huge changes to our diets which have affected our entire lives.  Nourishing Traditions by Sally Fallon has become my “nutrition Bible” and is my most referred-to book. I have developed my own network of farms and resources for acquiring healthy food for my family, and I have spent countless hours reading, researching, seeking out, and baking nutritious foods for my family.  It has been time well-spent with no regrets. 

In the summer of 2007 I made an open invitation in my Sunday school class – anyone who wants to can come over and watch me bake bread, learn about how to do it, and especially why.  More than 10 people wanted to come!  I had two classes in my home that were a huge success!  Not long after that, my sister and I were invited to teach a bread class to the ladies group at the church where we grew up.  It too was a huge success.  A year later I am seeing fruit from those seeds that were planted.  Not only did several people immediately begin making changes, but their lives are affecting others, and others … and it is going from there.  Relationships were formed that probably would never have happened otherwise. Opportunities to minister! I am frequently on the phone or email answering questions and talking to people about diet.  Which brings me to the purpose of this blog … it is hopefully going to be a way to keep on with helping/encouraging others while not neglecting my other extremely important responsibilities.  I am excited and I hope this blog becomes a great resource for many!

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My very first blog .... This is something I never thought I would do but lately it has become apparent that this might be the perfect way to help people who are searching for a new way to better health.  And it seems that I am constantly coming in contact with people who want to make changes but have no idea where to start.  Just yesterday while having my car serviced I met a lady with tons of questions.  Who would have expected that?  I am meeting people everywhere, and everyone knows they need to make changes but they are just too overwhelmed to know where to start.  It helps them so much to actually meet someone who has the information.  Somehow that makes change less of an obstacle.  The problem for me is time.  It takes a long time to have one of these phone calls, or to type in an email answering questions.  I love to do it, but do not have the time to say and type the same thing over and over.  It seems that a blog is the answer.  Type it in once, and refer people to it.  They can post their questions and I can answer as time allows.   A dear friend keeps telling me, "Amy, this is your calling."  So.  Here we are!

This post is just a test to see how this whole thing works.  Hopefully I can carve out the time to type a little here and there.  I am eager to get this up and running.  It has been on my mind for a long time.  But right now we are headed off to the farm to pick up fresh chickens for the freezer!

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