Bone Broth for Healing

Topic of the Day: Bone Broth

Last night I made bone broth. Sure, I've made broth before, but never a healing bone broth. The difference with the two is that one is simmered for several hours and the other isn't.

I had a chicken and was about to throw it out, but remembered reading about the many benefits of using bone broth. Here they are:

Boosts immune system 

Improves digestion and tooth health

Improves allergies and brain health

Healthy development of joints, bones, ligaments, and tendons

Healthy hair, nails and skin

Decreases inflammation

Calms the mind

Aids in sleep

The elements in the bone are what helps you heal. These are bone marrow, calcium, collagen, chondroitin, gelatin, glycosamino glycans, glycine, hyaluronic acid, magnesium, phosphorus, potassium, and proline. 

Bone broth is assistive in repairing your body from bacterial and viral infections. These are just a few of the many wonderful benefits of bone broth. 

For more detailed information and recipes, please check out these resources:

http://www.naturalnews.com/040493_bone_broth_immune_health_nutrients.html

http://wellnessmama.com/5888/how-to-make-bone-broth-tutorial/

http://www.mindbodygreen.com/0-9890/10-benefits-of-bone-broth-gut-healing-recipe.html

My New Favorite Snack

Meet my new favorite snack: Red Bell Peppers!

My two favorite things about red peppers are the crunch and sweetness. Its scientific name is Capsicum Annuum and is a nightshade veggie.  Capsicum is the "hot" part of a pepper, but bell peppers have very little of this, therefore they are on the sweet and tangy side. 

One cup of these crunchy yummy goodnesses only have 1 gram of fat. That is impressive and is chock full of nutrients, phytonutrients, antioxidants, and anti-inflammatory properties.

Are you ready to see all the many vitamins and minerals bell peppers have? Here goes in descending order:

vitamin C

vitamin A

vitamin B6

folate

fiber

vitamin E

molybdenum

vitamin K

potassium

manganese

vitamin B2, B3, B1

tryptophan

vitamin B5

magnesium

Did you know paprika comes from powered bell peppers? Yep, that's right. 

Do you know how to choose a good one? Choose those that are deep in color, no spots or dark areas. Heavy and firm are good traits for them to have.

They are sensitive to moisture. If you refrigerate them, cover with a damp cloth.  If you want to speed up their ripening, sit them on your counter.  

I prefer my bell peppers raw, but there are many great ways to prepare them. When we get closer to autumn, I'll post my stuffed bell pepper recipe. Other ways of eating them are sautéed, stuffed, finely chopped in recipes, roasted, and part of the Louisiana Trinity of onions, celery, and bell pepper,  

Just remember that bell peppers are one of the dirty dozen meaning they have more pesticide than other veggies. If you have the option, choose organic for this tasty snack.

Shoulder Recap and New Adventures

Today I had a follow up appointment with the orthopedist for my snowboarding shoulder injury. She was doing her assessment and checking my range of motion and was impressed. She ultimately said, "You healed yourself!" and wanted to know what I did to get to this point. 

Now you have to realize she is the one that said 8 weeks ago that I needed emergent surgery to repair  (or screw the labrum back to my shoulder) the tear. I didn't feel surgery was in my best interest. I was on a mission to heal myself and I did just that. I went to physical therapy twice which I don't think was critical in my recovery.

I took to acupuncture, Body Talk, chiropractic care, Chinese medicine, yoga, positive affirmations, juicing, and eating whole foods. These were my ammunition against surgery. She was impressed by my regimen.  We talked more about it and got on the subject of me going back to school to be a health coach.

This is my exciting news to share. I am on a new adventure with my life and career. I enrolled in the Institute for Integrative Nutrition to become a Health Coach. I start next week and can't contain myself from excitement. I'll be learning more than 100 dietary theories. 

I'll be studying with the world’s top health and wellness experts. My teachers will "included Dr. Andrew Weil, Director of the Arizona Center for Integrative Medicine; Dr. Deepak Chopra, leader in the field of mind-body medicine; Dr. David Katz, Director of Yale University’s Prevention Research Center; Dr. Walter Willett, Chair of Nutrition at Harvard University; Geneen Roth, bestselling author and expert on emotional eating; and many other leading researchers and nutrition authorities." How cool is that! 

Now what makes this more exciting is that my doctor asked if she could refer some of her bariatric patients to me. Once I am able to see patients I just have to give her a call to set up my referrals. I am psyched! 

Vegan Sugar?

Did you know there was vegan sugar? I just discovered that today. I am not a vegan, but it was cheaper than the organic pure cane sugar I've been buying. Who would have thought this since cane and beets are plants?

There was an associate at Whole Foods that I asked why this was vegan. I was really surprised by the answer. When sugar is made, bone char is used. According to Whole Foods' website, "Not all sugar is created equal. Our vegan cane sugar is made without the process of bone char making it 100% suitable for vegetarians and vegans."

I am glad I know now that sure is processed with cow bones. After doing a little research, it seems that there is a charcoal filtering process making sugar and this is where the cow bones come in. The bone char (charred cow bones) is then used as the charcoal filter.

I guess this won't really make a difference, but it is a surprising discovery. 

Cooking Marathon

Let the cooking marathon begin! I am officially on the wire for getting all my cooking deadlines completed. I got up at 06:00 this morning and got my kitchen all sparkly clean. Then the cooking began.

Is is now 09:53 and I only have a champagne vinaigrette,  whole wheat honey pound cake and chocolate chip cookies (I used maple syrup instead of sugar) completed. This isn't very good. My internet connection was out for a few hours and I had no access to my recipes. We are so dependent on technology. One little foul-up like an internet connection out and we are disabled.

Finally the internet is now working. I have the carrot souffle in progress and will tackle another dish soon. I thought the girls would be excited about helping, but hey have no interest. They are officially on winter break and in TV mode (they watch little to no television during the school week, therefore this is all they want to do).

Well, off to cooking! Happy day to you and yours.

Christmas Eve Menu

Here's my menu for Christmas Eve dinner. I feel like I need to add a few more veggies or sides, but for the most part this is it. Do you think this is enough for 40-50 people? Today will be my shopping day and am feeling overwhelmed. I have done this before and not sure why I'm feeling so anxious. I wonder if it's because I am going the whole food organic route this time.

Appetizers

Assorted Nuts/Fruit/Cheese Tray

Pesto Cream Cheese Bake

Holiday Shrimp

Nutty Date Ball

Salad

Red and White Salad with a Champagne Vinaigrette

Artichoke Oregano Antipasto

Sides

Carrot Souffle

Hot Buttered Cauliflower Puree

Wild Rice Casserole

Main Course

Roasted Turkey Breast

Slow Cooked Pork Loin

Baked Chicken or Roasted Beef

Desserts

Pecan Pie

Apple or Pear Tarts

Lemon Basil Sorbet

The Power of Food

Food is a powerful source of fuel. This fuel can be good or bad. I have been, for the most part, processed-free since October 1, 2012. I have been able to see a clear difference in my overall wellbeing, mood, less fatigued, and just out right feel better.

Now this is the part where I show you how profound the effect food has on our bodies.  The past two weeks I've been in situations of fasting or eating what everyone else is eating. My mother cooked a "special" dinner for us to celebrate our 10 year anniversary. Then a few days later we went out to dinner at a restaurant. Therefore, I ate what was available. Actually we dined out 3 times in 2 weeks + my mom's dinner.

The outcome is very moody and irritable. Since I went processed-free, my mood has been even keel without any outbursts. That's not the case right now. Since last Saturday I have been so irritable and moody. At first I thought maybe it was hormonal, but this has not been an issue over the last 3 months. I am really convinced it is the food. My kids are bearing the brunt of the situation because they are setting me off for the most random and tedious things. I truly need to apologize to them for my voice raising. They noticed something is just not right with me, too.

Some of the foods I ate which I normally wouldn't are white processed flour, white processed sugar, processed cornmeal, bread, and several other items which I know are GMO. Don't think I am nuts. I know these foods are affecting me in such a way.

My big challenge is the role of hostess for my in-laws on Christmas Eve. They want to bring junk food and I would prefer to cook everything for 50 people. I'll keep you posted on how that goes.

Greek Yogurt Pancakes

My girls wanted pancakes today, but only yummy pancakes. I've been searching hi and low looking for the perfect recipe and I finally came up with one. Actually it is a variation of several recipes.

Here's my take on Greek Yogurt Pancakes:

3/4 cup Greek yogurt (plain or any flavor) = ~6 ounces
1 egg
1/2 cup whole wheat pastry flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon almond milk (or any liquid; omit if using all purpose white flour)

Mix yogurt and egg until smooth and creamy. Add flour and baking soda and mix well. Add almond milk and stir. Pour onto hot griddle. Flip when bubbling. Remove from griddle when cooked.

This makes approximately 12 slightly larger silver dollar size pancakes or 8 moderate size pancakes.

Today we used strawberry Greek yogurt which gave it a sweet taste drizzled with pure maple syrup. To add your own twist, you could use vanilla in the batter or a sprinkling of pure cane sugar or honey. Personally, I like mine plain without syrup.

These were certainly a hit with my family. I made two batches and they were just about gone before I was finished making them. I had to scoop pancakes off their plates in order to get this picture. They were perfectly moist without being floury or cake-like.  It is always a great feeling of accomplishment when there is nothing left!

I believe this will be our new go-to pancake recipe. Next time I will certainly double it instead of having to make two batches. The great thing is that they are full of protein.

Pompous Grocery Shoppers

I've been following a few blogs and Facebook pages lately and got rather irritated. The basis of all these sites is to eat well. Don't get me wrong, it's not the owners of the sites I'm bothered with, it's the people commenting.

What I feel is that the ones making these horrible comments must be ones who don't have to work, are very rich and don't care how much their grocery bill costs, money is no object, make 6 digit incomes, and don't really know what happens in the world outside of theirs. The truth is that the majority of people are not in that category. People of all incomes want to eat well and do what they can to provide as healthy a meal as possible to their families.

A lot of us do this to stay healthy, it's the right thing to do, have food allergies or intolerances, doctor prescribed, and choice we make. I know there are many other reasons we do this, but I am sick and tired of people belittling others because they can't purchase organic foods 100% of the time, they shop at Walmart, or they buy organic foods from the Big companies that voted against Prop 37.

I don't agree with Walmart's practices, but I do shop there because it is more cost effective for my family. I try to avoid the Big company products when possible. I try to shop at Whole Foods when I can afford shelling out $150 on a bag and a half of groceries.

When I grocery shop it takes me forever. My family quit shopping with me because I have to read every single label. I can get good stuff at Walmart with a bit of reading and perseverance. Our Walmart even has a gluten-free section. Contrary to what people believe, Whole Foods and other health food store chains sell GMO laden foods. I put down many items at Whole Foods because of the ingredients, so don't go all pompous on us Walmart shoppers when you can get the same thing at Whole Foods.

True, I cannot get everything I need at Walmart, but don't discount the fact that they do offer healthier options that can also be found at Whole Foods. In addition, not every city has a Whole Foods, Trader Joe's, or other "health food" grocer.

Day of Cooking

I am officially exhausted! Today I baked until my little heart was content. I started with Deliciously Organic's Pecan Pie without Corn Syrup. Next I was on to brownies, cranberry sauce, cupcakes, sweet potatoes, and a baked chicken.

I ate throughout the day on all my creations. They all tasted rather lovely. Well, the only thing I did not taste was the pecan pie. I wanted to wait 24 hours for it to set before cutting into it. Although the recipe calls for a grain free crust, I used another recipe. I tried 100 Days of Real Food's pie crust. It's pecan pie for breakfast in the morning.

Next in the line up was brownies. I got this recipe from King Arthur Flour. The name of the recipe is kind of silly, but to the point..."Tasting is believing whole grain brownies." What more convincing do you need than that? I will attest that they were quite yummy. I had more than my share for the day.

Homemade cranberry sauce is always a staple on our dinner table for the holidays. My family now reminds me to make it because they have grown to love it. I remember the first year I made it. There was so much left over. Last year, there was maybe a tablespoon or so left. That sure does make me feel good. My daughter will eat it from the ramekin with a spoon like it is peanut butter. No recipe for this one, I wing it every year.

My favorite of the day was and is the cupcake. I used my Better Homes and Gardens Cookbook I got from my wedding many years ago and modified it with whole wheat pastry flour and unrefined cane sugar. I still cannot get over how good these cupcakes are. Here's their recipe for a citrus yellow cake but I omitted the lemon and of course made revisions. Right now they are not frosted. I'm not sure if I will. We are having a Disney Junior Sofia the First: Once Upon a Princess movie premiere party. Maybe I will whip up something Sunday and let the kids frost their own.

Last was the chicken and sweet potatoes. It was good, but after all the snacking on our goodies, our appetites just weren't where they should have been.

You know what I think made my day of cooking really fun and great? The girls helped me. I didn't ask for their help; they just offered. Usually when I ask, they just don't want to do anything, but something was different today. I bet having the girls in the kitchen offering their services helped me get my cooking mojo back. We had FUN! Cooking has become fun again.

Cooking Queen

I was a baking and cooking queen this weekend. Cooking used to be a great passion of mine then I had kids. The joy of cooking stayed outside when I walked in my house. I think part of the frustration of not liking to cook any longer is the kids have such minimal palates. They only like certain things and aren't willing to try as many new things as I would hope.

Although I love my kids and get excited when they want to help around the house, I cannot stand it when they want to help cook. Yes, they help me all the time in the kitchen, but it doesn't mean I like it. I do a lot of smiling. Maybe when they get a bit older I will enjoy them cooking with me. A cooking task that takes me 10 minutes will now take 30-60 minutes with their assistance.

My advantage this weekend was that no one was home. I was in cooking heaven. I made granola, tomato bisque, pumpkin muffins, and whole wheat honey bread. When everyone arrived home the kitchen was smelling some good and I got to feed hungry little tummies with my homebaked yummy goodness! It was a great feeling because that joy of cooking is slowly coming back.

31 Days of Unprocessed Food

It has been 31 days that I have been eating, for the most part, unprocessed food. It was very somewhat challenging at the beginning, but got easier as time passed. I got through it and plan to keep it up.

What I thought would be the most challenging day for my children and me wasn't so much after all. We got right through Halloween without too many obstacles. For me, I thought I would go crazy with the candy loot. But to my surprise, I wasn't really interested. I even went out to buy some UNREAL candies. I don't even want the better option candy. I was sitting next to the buckets full of candy and the smell of the sugar was grossing me out.

My eldest daughter ate a few pieces and said "let's get rid of this junk." What? Am I hearing that correctly? My two younger girls normally would eat and eat candy on Halloween literally until they fell asleep. This year, not a chance. They ate some, but didn't have the usual interest. This is a high five moment for me. This makes me feel good. Although they are not eating 100% unprocessed, they have not been eating food dyes and junk food. Some words and phrases I heard were, "too sugary," "too sweet," "yuck oh," "that has dye in it," "did you read what's in it?," "can you believe people eat this stuff?" They can taste the difference. They now know and can taste the difference in food that is good or bad for you!

Instead of keeping the candy (we won't eat) in the house, we learned that one of the local toy stores, Learning Express is having a buy back candy program. For each pound of candy you turn in, you get one Boo Buck up to 5 pounds. They each are hoping they will have 5 pounds of candy. It was quite ironic because we received a catalog in the mail this week from Learning Express Toys.

Well, back to my 31 days. I did loose some weight which I had not intended and my calcium level dropped but was corrected. Now looking at the up side, I feel much better. I don't feel sluggish. I have more mental clarity. I have more energy. I don't get cravings for junk any longer. My pH level has become more neutral therefore less aches and pains. I am enjoying the art of cooking once again and actually cooking. I am eating more fruits and veggies. I have learned to tolerate green drinks; still not a huge fan of them (I just can't get over drinking that color green). The skin on my face doesn't seem so splotchy. I have been an advocate for eating real food and educated many. But, I think the best part of this month is the progress with my kids. They can actually taste the difference between foods that are good for you and those that are not.

Thank you to Andrew Wilder from Eating Rules and allowing the public to participate in his October Unprocessed 2012 Challenge. You have taught me a lot!

Day 23 of the October Unprocessed Food 2012 Challenge

Today is day 23 of the October Unprocessed Food Challenge 2012. It has been going well except for the weight loss I had. I had no intention of loosing weight, but I did. I started off at about 128 pounds (5' 8") and went as low as 119 pounds. Somehow I was able to regain it back and am at a more stable 124 pounds.

It seems your body uses what it needs. Not eating all that other stuff has made me feel much better. I just have to remember to stay hydrated. We had a catered party at our house on Saturday, October 13 and I think I gained back everything I lost by default from eating what was available at the party. That was my cheat day.

I have learned to eat my veggies and even to tolerate green drinks. Still not a fan of the green drink, more so because the color than the taste, but I am drinking them occasionally. My cravings for sweets has gone away completely. I usually suffer with chronic back pain which has been minimal to nonexistent. What I figure is that the foods I am eating now are more alkaline which shifts my pH level to a more normal level. It is great being in that normal pH range. Obviously there is less internal inflammation.

This past weekend we went out of town which was rather challenging. I did bring some unprocessed food, but it wasn't enough. I succumbed to a Mexican restaurant and sandwiches. I am now paying for it. I am not sure what I am reacting to, but it is either the PB&J sandwich or turkey cold cut sandwich on honey wheat or anything from the Mexican restaurant. My legs from hips to my ankles have broken out in a rash and chicken-like raised bumpy skin. This used to happen to me often, but since becoming more conscious of what I eat, I am more mindful and thought I had an idea of what causes it.

I have had allergy testing and no foods come up. All of the standards like nuts, wheat and dairy are negative. Therefore they tell me I am imagining this and I have folliculitis. This food challenge has proven to me that I have not had folliculitis since I was a kid. My thought is that it is either the bread or cheese (dairy) that I react to.

Eight more days to go! This should be rather easy to maintain beyond the challenge permitting I cook most everything. The girls have been enjoying this month since I have been cooking and baking more often.

The kids have adapted fairly well, although they are not 100% unprocessed, yet. My oldest gets why I am doing this and the two younger ones just tolerate it. We live in a society that eats horribly. They are always tempted by their school peers. Their school lunches are much different from their peers. I could go on for hours about the lunches that the school provides, but I won't. I am just happy to say my kids think it tastes bad and want me to send lunch each day.

Waking up to Biscuits

I had this really great idea I would wake up early this morning and make biscuits. I followed a recipe from my Kitchen Aid mixer cookbook. I substituted whole wheat flour for all purpose flour. With my experience baking with whole wheat flour, things tend to be drier than usual so I added a wee bit more almond milk and honey.

The out come is still dry (yet not as dry as usual). What can I do to make my whole wheat creations less dry? Any help would be appreciated. The recipe called for it to bake for 12-15 minutes. I set my timer for 12 minutes which was way too long. As you can see from the picture below, they were cooked a few minutes too long.

I just hope the kids like them!

Addendum:
The kids LOVED these biscuits. I thought they were way too dry but they loved them. Maybe they liked them so much because I used Halloween shapes.

The next day I used a Better Homes and Gardens recipe for drop biscuits. These were so much better and moist. My kids had them for breakfast, snack, and dinner. They could not get enough of them. Lucky for me I made a large batch to accommodate all the biscuit needs. MM asked, "so, what's your secret ingredient to make these the best?" I love it when the kids are this passionate about something they eat (especially when it is not candy or junk food).

My Little Garden

So, here it is...my little garden. 

I am so thrilled that everything is still alive. I planted the lettuce and parsley on October 2 and it has been 20 days. That is rather impressive to me that there is that much lettuce already grown. The parsley just started to sprout a couple of days ago. Maybe I do have a green thumb after all.

If I continue to have success, I will certainly consider planting more (especially herbs).

Pop-tarts, Whole Food Style

My kids LOVE Poptarts. The only problem is that they are not the healthiest snack item. In addition, there are so many ingredients and things inside my kids can't even pronounce. This is when I went on a hunt for toaster pastry recipes.

Granted they are not very pretty, but they sure were good. There is certainly lots of room for improvement, but it is certainly a good starting point. 

Here's what is inside the Kellogg's Pop-Tarts:

Now, here's what's in mine:

• 2 ¼ cup whole-wheat flour, plus extra for rolling out the dough
• ½ tsp salt
• 1 cup cold, unsalted butter (2 sticks)
• ½ cup water plus ice
• 1 egg beaten with a splash of water
• 7 – 8 tablespoons jam or jelly (I used all fruit spread)

That's it and nothing more!

I adapted the recipe from 100 Days of Real Food. Give it a try. I think you will like it.

A Little Gardening

I decided to plant a few things this autumn and can't wait to post the pictures. I wanted to wait a few days before taking after pictures. It is so surprising how quickly they have sprouted.

The girls and I planted seeds for two types of lettuce, parsley, and coffee. It is a start. We hope to plant some herbs in the near future and other vegetables. Since this is so new to me, I am still trying to figure out what I can and cannot plant this time of year in the south.

Lucky for me there is the LSU AgCenter. They have been such a great resource. They were at New Orleans City Park's Fall Garden Show. There was so much to see and learn. Probably the only reason I am growing lettuce and parsley is because they offered free seeds. So, thank you LSU AgCenter for those seeds!

Pictures will be posted hopefully in the next week or so.

Day 9 of the October Unprocessed Food 2012 Challenge

Here I am at the end of Day 9 of the October Unprocessed 2012 Challenge. So far so good. Some days are a breeze and others are not such a breeze. Breakfast seems to be the most difficult meal for me to prepare. We have been a cereal family when it comes to breakfast. This is going to be the hardest thing to wean from my kids. They LOVE cereal. They eat it for breakfast, lunch, dinner, and snack time.

I was eating grits the first 2 days for breakfast, but got tired of it really fast. I thought to make oatmeal, but I never have the time in the morning. Therefore my go to breakfast has been an apple. It probably isn't enough, but I am getting something healthy in my body.

I have noticed little to no food cravings. Sweet cravings is what I used to always have, but not anymore. I have been snacking on almonds and carrots when I get an urge to nibble on something during that 3:00 P.M. crash time.

I have been eating more salads and just about daily. I even starting eating spinach! To eats greens is one thing, but to drink them is another. I have been looking into juicing, but there is something about drinking greens I just can't get past. I bought 2 different store bought green drinks. I drank them but had (what felt like) a crazy I can't believe I am drinking this stuff look on my face. Maybe with time I will get over my fear of drinking greens, but in the meantime I will try to drink juice that has another hue.

My kids are finally getting what I am doing; maybe not 100%, but I think they are getting it. I have been sleeping better. So much better that I don't want to wake up. I have not slept this well in ages... like before kids 8 years ago.

The only down side of eating whole, real, unprocessed food is that I am loosing weight. I am 5'8" and am down to 125 pounds. I think it is on the slimmer side of what I should be. I am more comfortable in the 127-129 range. I know you are going to think, but that is only 2 pounds, but it is actually 5 pounds over the last 6 weeks since I have been more mindful of my food. I am having to pin and belt my pants which is rather frustrating. I am figuring I am just not eating enough or my body is adjusting to eating and using what it needs.

My next goal with eating well is to start exercising. I just wish I could find the time.