New Direction

     I haven't written for some time.  It's been crazy hectic around my home.  I am working on a new food project.  As you know from many of my posts, I don't like the conventional gluten free approach due to it's lack of nutritional value.  Many of the recipes I have on this blog have a decent nutritional value but some don't.  My hope for my family is to see food as fuel.  Many of the wonderful, gluten -free people I read about, have spoken to, etc. are just trying to NOT get sick.  I want to go further than that.  I want to heal my family.  Several months ago I began learning about natural yeast.  Most people have heard of sourdough, natural yeast is much the same but less sour.  The premise is that the wheat is very hard to digest.  Also, much of the available nutrition in wheat is unavailable read more here.  In order to break down the gluten in wheat and to make it's nutrition available, the wheat needs to go through some sort of change.  One could be to sprout the wheat, another to ferment (sourdough or natural yeast breads) the dough.  Fermenting has the benefit of adding probiotics to the system.  Those with autoimmune disorders need to strengthen the immune system in order to really heal.  Probiotics help with this healing.
     I have been experimenting with fermenting bread dough for a little bit now.  I have been letting it sit for 24 hours or nearly that.  It takes some time for the good bacteria to break down the gluten enough to be safe.  So far I only have the way my children act and feel with the baked goods I've made from the natural yeast.  I haven't seen any reaction.  My next step is to buy several gluten tests and use them to test the dough at various times of fermentation.  I have two kids with Science Fair Projects that will test the theory that fermentation makes wheat safe to eat for those who are sensitive to gluten.
     Okay, so that is all fine and good, but how does the bread taste?  I have made pancakes, pizza dough, crepes, waffles, french bread, crackers, and cinnamon rolls.  Everything was well received.  The cinnamon rolls were divine.  I haven't had such a wonderful, fluffy, yummy, cinnamon roll in SUCH a long time.  So, I'll keep you posted.

Update on Cauliflower Pizza Crust

I found a recipe that added almond flour to a similar recipe to the one I posted.  I tried adding 1/2 Cup almond flour to my existing recipe.  To make the flour I just put the almonds in my Blendtec and pulsed a few times being careful not to go too far and make almond butter.  The crust held together very well and I liked the added nutty flavor.

Cauliflower Pizza Crust

     Sure wish I had taken a picture of this beautiful pizza crust.  Sounds kind of strange doesn't it?  My cousins' wife told me about this and so I had to try it.  It is SO much easier to make than other GF pizza crusts.  My only complaint is that it doesn't hold together well.  I'm going to do some research and see if I can tweak this a bit to make it stay together better.  I found recipes all over the internet and most were the same.  One website said to squeeze the excess water out of the cauliflower to help the crust firm up - I will try that next time.

Cauliflower Pizza Crust                                                                 Preheat oven 450 degrees

1/2 large head cauliflower (or 2 + cups shredded)

1 large egg

1 Cup finely shredded mozzarella cheese

1 tsp. dried oregano

1/2 tsp. dried minced garlic (or fresh)

1/2 tsp. onion salt (I omitted this)

Shred cauliflower into small crumbles.  Careful not to puree - just crumble.  Place cauliflower crumbles in a large bowl and microwave them (dry) for 8 minutes.  My microwave cooks faster so I did it in 3 min.  Cool cauliflower.

In a medium bowl mix the crumbles with the remaining crust ingredients.  On a pre-greased 9-12 inch round pizza pan form a crust being careful to make it even.  If desired coat the pizza lightly with olive oil.  Bake in oven for 15 minutes or until crust is golden.  Remove the crust and top as desired.  Place the pizza back in the oven and bake until cheese is melted and bubbly (or golden if you like it like that!)

 

I Did It!

 Last year I decided to continue my herbal education and get my Nutritional Herbologist certificate.  I was most interested in the auto-immune disorder portion of the class.  I got hung up on one assignment and it was months before I finished the course.  I'm happy to say that I finished the class and passed the test!!!  I have loved the Herbology courses and am trying to save up enough money to take the next step or get a certification in Aromatherapy.  Essential oil are a passion of mine and I've been using them for years.  I would love to be able to teach what I know to others!

Very Bad Sunburn

Okay, so this isn't about food.  That's okay, I originally made this blog for lots of topics.  Food just became the main one.  I recently (last week) acquired a very bad burn on my face and neck.  Although my hair is red, my skin isn't as fair as most.  I don't burn easily.  It turns out that I had unknowingly used an essential oil that causes photo sensitivity.  I have been using essential oils for years and understand that you have to use caution with them.  Unfortunately, I didn't research this particular oil very well.  Here's a list of oils that should be avoided when going in to the sun.  It's best to use them in the evening and don't go in to the sun for 12 hours after using them.  More research showed that you could go in the sun if you used the oils on areas of the skin that would not be exposed to sun.  I will be even more cautious than that because I don't remember applying the oils to my face and it was burned terribly.

     Angelica
     Bergamont (unless it is bergaptene free sold as Bergamot FCF
     Bitter Orange (cold pressed)
     Cumin
     Dill
     Grapefruit
     Lemon
     Lime (cold pressed as well as distilled)
     Orange
     Mandarin
     Tagetes
     Tangerine (cold pressed)
     Yuzu

I've done quite a bit of research on how to treat a sunburn and have tried many of them.  I'm going to talk about a few that gave relief.  Drink LOTS of water to help with dehydration.  Aloe was one of the top treatments.  The aloe I had on hand was not pure aloe and it burned when I put it on.  I'm going to buy an aloe plant and use that the next time I have a burn.  The first thing to do is to cool down the burn.  A cool shower, bath, ice pack, milk, yogurt, cucumber, white vinegar, etc. will do the trick.  I added plantain powder and lavender essential oils to the bath which helps soothe the skin.  Unpasteurized honey alone or with vinegar was very nice.  Honey is a humectant and will keep the moisture in the skin.  I made a mixture of water, a drop or two of peppermint essential oil, a few drops of lavender oil and some colloidal silver and put that in a small spray bottle.  That mixture cooled and soothed my skin.  I sprayed that on whenever needed.  I also applied coconut oil as frequently as I needed to keep my face from feeling tight.  I'm still working on completely healing from this burn but have to say that these ideas have given me a lot of relief.

Yummy Quinoa Mac & Cheese

     Mac and Cheese is one dish that most children like to eat.  There are tons of recipes for homemade mac and cheese that can be substituted with gluten free noodles.  I like this version because it is good for you, tasty, and my kids will eat it!  Many additions and substitutions can be made with this basic recipe.  If you need step by step instructions (with pictures) here's a great blog.  It's the recipe I used and made changes to.
I've done this a couple different ways.  One is to omit the egg, stir everything up and there is no need to bake.  This was great when we needed a quick dinner.

Ingredients:

1 Cup Quinoa

1 Medium Onion, Chopped
1/2 Tsp. Salt
1 Tbsp. Olive Oil, Extra Virgin
2 1/2 Cups Water
2 Cups cheddar cheese

1 Cup milk of choice (I used almond)

3 Tbsp. Butter, Unsalted

2 Tbsp. gluten free flour
2 Eggs
1 1/2 Cup Broccoli, Finely Chopped (or cauliflower, ham, peppers, etc.)



Directions: 
1. In a large skillet, add olive oil and onion to cook for 2-3 minutes. Add quinoa and stir to combine; let cook for 5 minutes for quinoa to become aromatic and slightly opaque. 
2. Add water, salt, and pepper to quinoa mixture; let simmer 15-20 minutes until 95% of the water is absorbed and the quinoa is softened.
3. In the meantime, melt butter and flour is saucepan over medium heat; stir to combine. Add cheddar cheese and milk; stir continuously over medium heat until all cheese is melted and fully incorporated with the milk/butter/flour mix. 
4. Combine, eggs, quinoa, chopped broccoli with the cheese blend; stir gently and well.
5. Pour into greased baking dish.
6. Bake at 400* for 30 minutes until top is slightly browned.

Chia Seed Pudding?

I bought chia seeds the other day.  I don't know if you've ever seen a chia seed before but they are tiny.  A little research showed that these seeds contain tons of nutrition.  Omega 3 fatty acids are just one of the health benefits.  Some call chia a superfood.  I found that chia seeds are incorporated into food as a thickener in dips, puddings, tossed in to smoothies, etc.  There are many recipes on the net for pudding.  Today I'm going to share a Mock Tapioca Pudding.

Mock Tapioca Pudding

1 cup milk (I used almond milk)

1 tsp. vanilla

10 or so drops of stevia

1/4 cup of chia seeds

Combine all ingredients in a bowl.  Stir mixture.  Place in fridge for at least one hour.  It doesn't get much easier!

Gluten Free Navajo Tacos

Who doesn't love Navajo Tacos?  I know they are really well received in this house.  I have rarely made them and not at all since the family went on the gluten free diet.  I was looking for an easy bread recipe and came upon this.  Oh, it was heavenly and EVERYONE loved it.  If a good all-purpose flour is needed, check below the recipe.

Gluten-Free Fry Bread
makes 4-6 fry bread, depending on size
2 cups flour
1 egg
2 Tbl vegetable oil (I use olive oil)
1 Tbl baking powder
1 tsp salt
1/4 cup powdered milk or powdered milk substitute
3/4 cup warm water
vegetable oil for frying (I use coconut oil)

Pour approx 2″ of oil into a saucepan and heat over medium heat.

Mix flour, baking powder, salt, milk powder until combined. Beat egg, add oil and add to flour mixture. Add 1/2 cup water and stir with a fork, adding the remainder of the water if needed. Dough should be soft and somewhat sticky yet firm enough to hold shape.

Form into tennis ball sized balls and let rest for 5 minutes under wax paper or paper towel.

Drop a small piece into oil to test the heat – it should quickly bubble and turn golden brown within 20 seconds or so.

Pat each ball into flat rounds, approx 6 inches across and drop into the hot oil. Let cook 45-60 seconds and the flip over. Bread is done when it’s golden brown.

Drain on paper towels and enjoy. Sprinkle with powdered sugar for a sweet treat or top and serve as tacos.

All-Purpose Flour

1 cup sorghum flour or brown rice flour
1/2 cup millet flour, almond meal, buckwheat flour, or quinoa flour
1/2 cup tapioca starch, potato starch or corn starch

Doesn't This Look Good

I'm trying to come up with an egg roll that is gluten free.  Many buy rice wrappers for this but I haven't found them yet.  This wrap was made from large cabbage leaves and the egg roll was sauted in coconut oil.  Toothpicks held the egg rolls together.  I thought this was good but next time I will pump up the flavors of the filling! 

Sugar

This video is really good.  It has a really good explanation on how sugar is harmful.

Can Essential Oils help ADHD/Autism?

     Essential oils have been such a blessing in my life and in the life of my family.  I'm not sure when I began using them - I can say that it has been many years.  The wonderful thing about them is that their effects are immediate.  For example, my daugher, Karlyn , was coughing something fierce the other night.  I got out the essential oil blend for coughs and colds and put it on her chest.  In less than a minute she wasn't coughing anymore.  Does cough medicine work in less than a minute?  Not for me.  Essential oils are powerful!  They are the "life blood" of a plant.  They have the ability to help oxygenate and detoxify the body.

     You can imagine that when I found out there was a study done on ADHD and essential oils that I was all over it.  Many have also linked it to help for those with autism and I can see why.  The study was done using three essential oils, Vetiver, Cedarwood, and Lavender.  Vetiver and Cedarwood turned out to be the most effective.  Results were measured by using a T.O.V.A. test administered prior to the study and then again afterwards.  This test measure the impulsivity of the child.  The oils relax the body while stimulating the brain.  The best form of delivery is inhalation.  I put cedarwood and lavender in my diffuser (I am waiting for the Vetiver to be delivered) and watched for results.  I found that my son definitely calmed as he inhaled the essential oils.  I can't wait to see the results of the Vetiver. The study was done for 30 days with the child being exposed to the essential oils 3 times a day and during the night.  I'm going to be doing my own experimentation but already am hopeful with the first results.

        

Nutritional Yeast Question

I recently had a comment on this blog concerning nutritional yeast.  The poster had heard that nutritional yeast could act like MSG.  MSG is just plain something that we all should avoid.  Maybe at some point I'll post some research on MSG so you can see what I mean.  I found varying points of view on the issue of nutritional yeast and a blog that had some information that summed it all up and had many comments that could help someone make the decision on nutritional yeast for themselves.

Why This Blog?

Why am I blogging about food?  That's a great question.  This blog has 0 - yes zero followers.  I do get some occasional readers and I think I've had 4 comments.  A little pathetic, I know.  Mostly this blog is for me.  I can  write my successes and failures with food, put recipes that I'm trying all in one place, etc.  My secret hope is that maybe others or even one other person will find something helpful and hopeful in what I write here.  Today I want to tell you part of my story.  This story is the reason I feel passionate about nourishing foods.  Not just eating but looking at food as if every bite counted toward health.  The fact is, each bite does count - good or bad.

Why, as mothers (and father too), do we neglect our own health but when needed, we will move heaven and earth to help our children or spouse.  When you think about it, what wouldn't we do for our children?  My story doesn't start with my children and I'm nowhere near the end.  This story won't be for everyone to read.  It gets kind of personal at times and maybe a little TMI but it is what it is.

I had warning signs of health issues very early in my life.  My skin was covered in excema.  If someone with impetigo breathed on me I would break out with it.  I remember a family reunion where I was covered in bandages because impetigo was all over my body.  It just occurred to me that kids must have thought I was a freak growing up!  In the eighth grade I started my journey into womanhood and boy was it rocky.  I had anxiety so bad that it was interfering with my life.  I have always been really active.  Hiking, biking, running, water and snow skiing, soccer, etc. and always slender.  So why was I having such trouble?  I married my awesome hubby pretty young, 18.  I remember telling him that we better not wait to try having kids because I was pretty sure that I had endometriosis.  E ran in both sides of my family and my mom had a really bad experience with it.  Sure enough, we had trouble getting pregnant.  As a matter of fact, we chose adoption over infertility treatments to have our first four beautiful children.  The endometriosis was getting so bad that I was having 1-2 good weeks out of every month.  I predicted that I would have a hysterectomy around age 30.  My anxiety was getting so bad that I started having compulsive thoughts and actions.  I didn't want to live like this but I was only trying hit or miss things to make things better.

I came to a point where I decided to have the hysterectomy.  Nothing worked out for that to happen and I ended up changing my mind.  Thank heavens for that!  My mom started on a new "diet" that eliminated the "whites."  I thought, why not try it.  I thought we were already eating a fairly healthy diet but it wasn't nearly as good as I thought.  I made a really tasty french bread and pizza.  We had the typical mac n cheese, store bought wheat bread, and all the other processed goodies that make up the typical American diet.  Stepping back a bit, I have a son that was having numerous behavioral problems.  He would scream for an hour or more at a time plus a multitude of other things.  We tried a variety of things and then took him to a former nurse who now practiced natural medicine.  She told us he was pre-diabetic and gave us some stuff to take to help with his obvious sugar cravings.  We eliminated sugar from our diets.  So now we had eliminated white flour and sugar plus we added in all types of grains, wheat, spelt, kamut, millet, quinoa, buckwheat, etc.  I was feeling great!  Best I had felt in a long, long, time.

Out of the blue, 17 years into our marriage, I was pregnant.  It was quite a shock.  There could be many explanations to why it happened.  Maybe it was Heavenly Father's timing.  I think it had a lot to do with how good I felt, my endometriosis symptoms fading away, and eating nourishing foods...  To be continued.  

Best Stir Fry Ever! GF

I don't know if I have ever mentioned my new love, Bountiful Baskets.  If you've never heard of BB - it's a co-op for fruits and veggies.  There are also other things that can be ordered like bread, sometimes honey, olive oil, etc.  I've been ordering and picking up baskets for almost a year now.  The fruits and veggies have been amazing!  This past week I added on an Asian pack to the basket order.  It was HUGE!  Last night I made the most delicious stir fry.  I didn't exactly measure anything in this recipe.  I couldn't find a recipe that matched what I had for a sauce and so it's made with what I had on hand.  This was my first time trying fresh water chestnuts.  Much better than the canned variety.  Next time, I'll use rice noodles instead of brown rice.

Doesn't this look yummy!

Asian Sauce

1 clementine orange

1 slice fresh pineapple

1/4 C soy or tamari sauce

grated fresh ginger to taste

tsp or so of apple cider vinegar

1 clove of garlic, pressed

Blend all ingredients well and set aside.

Stir fry

Pre-cooked chicken, cubed (optional)

Bok choy leaves and stems cut up

Asian cabbage cut up

Fresh snow peas

Fresh water chestnuts peeled and cut up

Carrots cut in strips

Diced green onions

Any other veggies or greens that you like in stir fry

Place all ingredients in a large sauce pan, including sauce.  Saute for 5 minutes or less.  Serve over rice or noodles!

Green Smoothie Girl

Friday night I had a fun opportunity.  I was able to go see Green Smoothie Girl.  Honestly, I really didn't know much about her although I scoured her website, watched all her videos, and read some of her blog just prior to going to hear her speak.  The things she said just validated the journey my family and I have been on for the past few years.  You see Robyn (Green Smoothie Girl) changed her life because her son needed her to.  In the process of helping her son, she also helped herself.  She overcame 3 autoimmune disorders during the process. One of these days I will share my whole story with those reading my blog.  Nothing Robyn said was news to me.  We have pretty much come to the same place on our own separate journeys!

Granola

It seems like granola is one of those items that everyone has a recipe for and every recipe is a bit different.  I've got a basic one that can be made according to your likes.

8 or more cups of oats

1 C coconut oil or butter

1 C Agave or honey

1/2 Cup ground flax

1/2 C ground quinoa

2 C dried fruit (anything you like, raisins, prunes, dates, cranberries, etc.) diced

Place oats in a large bowl.  In a large frying pan melt coconut oil.  Add flax, quinoa, and dried fruit and stir together.  Pour wet mixture in to oats.  Mix thoroughly.  Spread mixture on cookie sheets and "dry out" in a 175 degree oven.  Turn over every 20 minutes until mixture is dry.

What Works Best For Weight Loss?

     For most of my life, I was under the impression that keeping a healthy weight was mostly due to exercise.  It wasn't until about 4 years ago that I've ever had to think about weight.  I've always been really active and ate fairly well.  Then I had two babies.  My weight at the first Dr.'s visit of my second pregnancy was the same as what I weighed on the last appointment before I delivered the first baby!  I couldn't seem to lose that weight no matter what I tried.  My sister then pointed out an interesting fact about exercise.  A person has to burn 3500 calories, over and above what the body needs for daily activity, in order to lose 1 pound!  We need somewhere around 2000 calories per day in order to function.  That amount can vary according to our physical activity, weight, etc.  It only makes sense that we turn to what we eat as the culprit of our inability to lose weight.  One thing to remember is that if we don't eat enough, we will hold on to weight.  It comes down to what we eat.  I'm not a calorie counter and I will never be.  IMO, the most important thing to remember is to eat foods that are filled with nutrition.  Nutritious foods will fill us up and give us energy.  You've heard of an empty calorie?  What does that mean?  That means that a food we have eaten has nothing of value in it.  If the food eaten has no nutritional value, my body will not feel full and I will crave more food that has no value.  Exercise is also extremely important to our bodies.  It helps us strengthen, tone and keep moving.  Our heart, lungs, muscles, etc. need the exercise to feel good!  FEEL GOOD!  Make a good choice today!

Gluten Free Diet Thoughts

I don't have any research to back up this post, just my own opinion and observations.  When my children first started the gluten-free lifestyle, I did as much reading as I could on healing.  I soon realized that healing needs to be defined before you can decide when it happens.  Would it mean that a person could eat gluten again?  Would it mean that the person in question had energy and vibrancy?  My research was fairly conclusive that a person would never be able to eat gluten again.  However, there are some folks that believe otherwise.  I believe that anything is possible.  I decided that I couldn't know for sure if the kids could ever eat gluten again but I would be able to tell when they felt and looked great.  At first, I didn't see this happening and had to figure out why.  Then I realized that I was just trying to replace gluten foods with gluten-free copycats and I had abandoned some of the principles of good health that we had practiced previously.  It really wasn't all bad, the kids needed to feel some comfort in the foods they ate and not feel completely different from their friends.  I can say that two out of three of my gluten-free kids are doing great and feeling great most of the time.  They have realized that even though some foods are gluten-free, that doesn't mean they are good for you.  For instance, store bought, gluten-free mixes are packed with sugar and flours that are mostly starches.  These make the mixes taste good, but they aren't great for you.  We've since decided that our choices would center around produce, legumes, etc. and the other would have a small place at the table.  Truly I can say that the family members that have embraced these choices truly are healthy!  

How Do I Get My Family To Eat Better?

     I have heard, many times, "my kids won't eat that!"  I have some ideas for encouraging healthy eating habits in a family.

1.  Work on changing one thing at a time.  Nothing seems to derail a change in diet like doing too much at one time.  Food changes can be overwhelming.  Once you have mastered one change, move to another.  I usually suggest eliminating sugar first (unless there is a food allergy or intolerance) because it is the most obvious and the easiest to work with.  Sugars would include all whites - white flour, white sugar, etc.  

2.  Everyone in the family has the same food choices.  Several years ago it was thought that one of my sons had pre-diabetes.  My husband and I decided that we would eliminate white flour and sugar from our diets so that our son could feel better.  If we had just eliminated sugar for our son, it would have been very difficult for him to watch the rest of us eat sugar-filled items while he couldn't.  After some time with a nearly sugar-free diet we learned that the real problem is gluten and that three of our children have some degree of gluten intolerance.  Our whole family went gluten-free for quite some time.  Now that the three have a handle on their foods, we have allowed for some wheat breads to come back in to the house - mostly for cost sake.

3.  Only have good choices available.  My sister and I had a conversation the other day about food choices.  If a child has a choice between an orange and animal crackers, the child will generally choose the animal crackers.  This can be the hardest step in change because it requires cleaning out the cupboards and fridge and getting rid of the foods that we wish to take out of our diet.

4.  Make good foods convenient.  Another difficult part of changing to healthy foods is that they are often not convenient.  That might mean peeling and cutting fruit and veggies ahead of time and having a healthy dip prepared.  I wash and tear lettuce when I get it so that anyone in the house can have a salad at any time.  Instead of wasting lettuce, it is gone very quickly now.  At this time, I can't keep enough homemade popsicles in the freezer because they are eaten so fast.  It takes a bit of time to prepare them but it is SO worth it.

5.  Let your kids be part of the preparation.  Nothing helps a kid want to eat a food like helping to make that food.  Also, let them be part of the planning  My kids know that if they don't like something we are eating, they can't complain.  They may go make something for themselves (we have parameters set) or choose not to eat.  It sounds harsh but it has actually solved many a problem in our home.

I would love to hear your ideas for helping a family make better food choices!
     

Nutritious Popsicles

How do you get your kids to eat their fruits and veggies?  Make them in to a fun snack!  This popsicle

has almond milk, oranges, a little agave, and ice.  I wanted to show the chocolate popsicles but they were

gone as soon as they were frozen.  That one contains avocado!  Any smoothie can be made into a cold treat.

You can get all sorts of things in to smoothies from spinach to pineapple.  Give it a try!

Yummy!

Creamy Broccoli Soup

I am pretty excited about this recipe.  Mostly because it's my own creation AND it tasted so yummy.  I put cheese in it because I told my 8 year old I would.  Next time I won't.  It didn't need it at all.

1 cup grated or blended carrots (I used 3 large carrots processed in my Blentec
1/2 a large onion chopped
2 cups vegetable or chicken broth
2 cups broth or almond, soy, or dairy milk
1 - 1 1/2 large avocado
1 cup of cheddar cheese (optional)
2 cups cut and cooked broccoli

Place carrots, onion, and broth in stock pot and simmer until onions are tender.  Place chosen liquid in blender with avocado and blend until creamy.  Add avocado mixture to stock pot and simmer for 5 minutes.  Add cheese and stir until melted.  Stir in broccoli and serve!

This picture does not do it justice!

BLENDTEC!

I am so excited.  My husband, after watching a food documentary, decided it was time to take charge of his health.  Okay, so I've been telling him this for years but if a documentary will do it, it's great!  It's always good when he's 100% on board with something because he researches and buys the best gadgets to make it happen.  Hence, the Blendtec.  Can I just say, "it's awesome!!!"  I made fudgesicles with avocado, yummy, lots of smoothies, soup, cookies, pizza dough, etc.  I just found this blog and can see that it is going to be good, http://www.greensmoothiegirl.com/blog/ .
Brent's and my goal has been to reduce our meat and dairy.  Veggies and fruits are now the center of the diet and the meat is either not present or a side dish.  This has been going on for a couple of weeks and Brent has lost 5 lbs.  He's also added the stationary bike to his routine.  I'm still needing to add in an exercise routine.  I'm at my target weight already but would like to be more physically fit.