Nourishing Traditions Part I: Fats

Okay, so I'm reading this book (or cookbook I should say) on recommendation from a co-worker.  Nourishing Traditions is 634 pages thick.  The beginning is a review of main foods or ingredients I should say.  Fats is the first part.  So for my vacation I decided to read it.  One of my strengths is that I am a Learner.  Therefore I read everything.  If you don't feel like starting the read this is a summary of the take aways for me on "fats."

Fats are not a bad thing if they are the right kind.  They can actually be good for you.  If you don't get enough of the healthy kind you can get cancer, heart disease or other health problems.

Therefore, saturated and monunsaturated fats are the best then polyunsaturated in limited amounts.

Eggs are a good source of omega-3 fatty acids.  But they need to be organic free range (insects and green plants) eggs not supermarket eggs.  Otherwise you get more omega-6s than you need in the eggs and not enough Omega-3s.

Saturated fatty acids help make up your cell membranes and helps them function properly.


"Prevention of heart disease will not be achieved with the current focus on lowering cholesterol--either by drugs or diet--but by consuming a diet that provides animal foods rich in protective fats and vitamins b6 and b12; by bolstering thyroid function through daily use of natural sea salt, a good source of usable iodine; by avoiding vitamin and mineral deficiencies that make the artery walls more prone to ruptures and the buildup of plaque; by including antimicrobial fats in the diet; and by eliminating processed foods containing refined carbohydrates, oxidized cholestral and free-radical-containing vegetable oils that cause the body to need constant repair." --Nourishing Traditions


I was told to use expeller-expressed oils.  Why you say?  It is the safe, modern technique for extraction that drills into the seeds and extracts the oils keeping the antioxidants safe and the fatty acids.

Fat Soluble vitamins are good for you.  vitamin a, vitamin d, vitamin k and  vitamin e.  And guess what?  yummy butter is the best source for these nutrients.  But "the fat soluble vitamins occur in large amounts only when butter comes from cows eating green grass."

To help with join stiffness know that pasteurization destroys the "antistiffness" factor that is only present in raw butter, cream and whole milk.

In regards to oils--coconut oil is the best.  You can do medium amounts of olive oil.  And small amounts of seaseme oil, safflower oil, and flax seed oil.  Don't use canola oil.  For more info, read the book.

Carbohydrates are next . . .

Cooking with the girls!

Last weekend I had 4 friends over to cook "gluten free" and other allergen free recipes.  God made us for community and cooking in community was no exception.  And we are going to do it again and have each of us bring a new recipe to the table.

Here is a look at what we did:

Lemonade (this was adapted from Elana's Pantry)
 2 quarts water
¼ cup lemon juice (fresh squeezed) (or a little more with some fresh lemon peels)
 3 dropper-fulls stevia

1. Fill a 2 quart jar with water, almost to the top, leaving 2 inches of space for other ingredients
2. Add lemon juice and 3 dropper-fulls of stevia
3. Serve cold, over ice, with a slice of lemon or you can freeze strawberries or raspberries in your ice cubes for a colorful look

 Sesame Crackers
see http://www.elanaspantry.com/sesame-crackers/ for recipe.  All I can say is yum!!

We made the following topper for them that worked out fantastic. http://www.elanaspantry.com/parsley-pesto-with-sundried-tomatoes/

I don't recommend salsa with them.  But butter, coconut oil also work well.  next time I want to try them with guacamole and maybe make them a little thinner and crispier.

Roasted Asparagus http://www.elanaspantry.com/roasted-asparagus/ I've made this recipe since then and it continues to be a hit

Finally, we made Agave Lime Chicken.  http://www.elanaspantry.com/agave-lime-chicken/  This turned out to be super moist and super easy.  We loved it.  One recommendation:  I actually sliced baby potatoes to put around this too and most of us enjoyed them, my husband did not want me to mix the potatoes in.  It was a little too sweet for him.

(Note: for dessert we made a Cocount Butter Cookie and a Chocolate cupcake.  While they were okay I want time to work on the recipe before I share it.)

Review: stellaLucy Gluten-Free Market and Gluten Free Menus

Recently my mom showed me an article about a store in San Clemente (California) that was a Gluten-Free Market.  The article spoke about people going gluten-free to help with health reasons like lupus, arthritis, etc.  And how it can be difficult to find all the items that are out there.  I was curious so I checked them out online at http://www.stellalucy.com/.

There are so many different products out there that I run into each time I go to a different grocery store but the thought of going somewhere that had everything in one place was exciting.  And you did not have to go searching for the "gluten-free" tag because everything was gluten free.  So then i just had to worry about--no corn, no soy, no dairy, no sugar. 

Well, I found my opportunity.  My grandma turns 70 this weekend so we decided to drive up to OC (Orange County) to have dinner with her and my grandpa.  And of course to stop at stellaLucy!

The shop assistant was super helpful.  She took all my food restrictions to help point out what products I might want to consider.  While I don't normally do this due to budgeting, I walked out of the store with 9 new products.  I will give an update on them as I use them.

The other shout out I must give is that I tried the gluten-free menu at PF Changs and Claim Jumper recently.  Both were satisfactory, expecially the gluten free Chicken Lettuce Wraps and Egg Drop Soup--yum!  I know there might have been something else I should not eat in there but I felt fine after so an occasional visit is not a problem.

And I can't wait for tomorrow.  I am doing some gluten free cooking with some of my girlfriends.  It should be a good afternoon of experimenting and prayerfully, good eats.