Category: Nutrition + Health

Menu Plan Monday on a Tuesday

August 31st, 2010 · Vina Barham · Menu Plan, Nutrition + Health 2 comments

So, I decided that we’re not going to do the Gluten-Free Diet after all. Fickle mind I am! We’ll still mostly eat rice and alternative grains, but our family is going to enjoy a little bit of wheat here and there. Healthy eating requires that important Pleasure-element that I wrote about here so a bit of moderation on stuff that is not the greatest source of nutrition while focusing on nutrient dense and pleasurable meals that bring fullness to body, mind and soul.

Here is our Menu Plan for the week:

Monday

Breakfast: Homemade Granola with Yogurt
Lunch: Turkey Sandwich on Sourdough Bread and Sugar Snap Peas
Dinner: Roasted Chicken with Red Onions and Prunes, Roasted Potatoes and Summer Salad
Snacks: Rice Cakes with Peanut Butter

Tuesday

Breakfast: Egg and Sausage Burrito
Lunch: Chicken Salad Sandwich + Kombucha
Dinner: Chicken Tacos and Black Bean & Corn Salad
Snacks: Carrot Cookies

Wednesday

Breakfast: Hearty Muffins + Strawberry Kefir
Lunch: Egg Salad Sandwich with Bacon
Dinner: Creamy Salmon Bake + Green Bean Casserole
Snacks: Kale Chips

Thursday

Breakfast: Coconut Pancakes + Blueberry Smoothie
Lunch: Sardine Melt on Sourdough Bread + Kombucha
Dinner: Mac N Cheese with Brown Rice Pasta + Meatballs (with Liver) + Salad
Snacks: Oatmeal + Peanut Butter Cookie

Let’s Talk Gluten And Why Life Is Better Off Without It

August 24th, 2010 · Vina Barham · Nutrition + Health 3 comments - Tags: gluten-free

Photo By Bernat

Let me first put it on the table that I am MUCH more opinionated on this blog than I am in real life. For many reasons, one being that you have chosen to come to this blog to read what I have to say about stuff. And two, well, I get to think through what I am going to say as compared to real life, where I often end up with my foot in my mouth.

Just thought I’d get that off my chest.

Now back to gluten. Gloriously gluey gluten.

It seems that it’s all the rage these days. I often come across gluten free pizza, cookies, and whatever else you can think of. Not only are they ridiculously way more expensive but it seems like it’s the “in” thing to do. I’ve bought a gluten-free something before without really understanding what the heck is so wrong with gluten anyway. Out of curiosity, and well, yes, the desire to be “in.”

I’ve read of other real food bloggers explanation regarding their decision to go gluten-free and it didn’t really resonate with me until I came across a few books that I started to put two and two together. I’m slow like that. (And I’m proud of it.)

So now that I finally get it, I had to quickly make a decision that Life is Better Off Without Gluten. The question is, could I and my family truly live without it?

First: What The Heck Is Gluten Anyway?

Taken from the Primal Body Primal Mind Blog:

Gluten (the Latin word for “glue”), is a substance found in numerous grains such as wheat (durum, semolina, spelt, kamut, rye, triticale and barley). It is typically present in oats, too, due mainly to modern processing methods. What is called “gluten” is actually made up of two proteins: gliadin and glutenin, which make up at least 80% of the protein content in most grains. Used in baking it gives bread dough its elasticity and baked goods their fluffiness and chewiness. It is also used as an additive and stabilizing agent in innumerable processed foods and personal care products. Insanely, gluten is nearly everywhere. Laws do not require its labeling on all products so the consumer is left to judge for themselves whether gluten may be an additive or not.

And Why Is It So Bad For You?

Many people associate Gluten-Free Diets with Celiac Disease without understanding that the consequences of gluten sensitivity can be quite debilitating even for the rest of us. Gluten may in fact be the silent culprit in many health challenges that millions of Americans face today. In the book, Dangerous Grains: Why Gluten Cereal Grains May Be Hazardous To Your Health, authors Braly and Hoggan claim that gluten sensitivity (GS) is at the root of a proportion of cases of cancer, auto-immune disorders, neurological and psychiatric conditions and liver disease. The implication is that the heavily wheat-based western diet of bread, cereals, pastries, pasta – is actually making millions of people sick.

Want some evidence?

A 2002 review paper in the New England Journal of Medicine (Jan 17; 346(3):180-188) found that fully 55 diseases are known to be caused by gluten. These partly include heart disease, cancer, nearly all autoimmune diseases, osteoporosis, irritable bowel syndrome, as well as many common psychiatric illnesses, partly including anxiety issues, ADD, depression, dementia, schizophrenia, Hashimoto’s (autoimune thyroid disorders), migraines, epilepsy, Parkinson’s, ALS, neuropathies (having normal EMG), and most other degenerative neurological disorders, as well as Autism, which is technically an autoimmune brain disorder.
A study published in 2009 in the peer reviewed journal, Gastroenterology (July;137(1):88-93) compared 10,000 available blood samples from individuals 50 years ago to 10,000 people today and found that there has been a 400% increase in the incidence of full blown celiac disease.
The book, Dangerous Grains, contains more than a dozen case histories of people who have recovered from a wide variety of chronic conditions – back pain, chronic fatigue, the auto-immune disorder lupus – simply by following a gluten-free diet. Both authors claim great personal benefits from such a change. “After eliminating gluten grains,” writes Hoggan, “I realized how uncomfortable and chronically ill I had been for most of my life.”

And here’s the kicker: gluten-containing grains have exorphins which are morphine-like compounds that make them quite addictive. I mean seriously, how many of us stop at just ONE slice of fresh-baked bread?

Side note: Isn’t also interesting that wheat is highly subsidized by the government?

Anyway.

While most Asians and Africans are rarely diagnosed as with Celiac Disease, I suspect that gluten might be one of the other factors in my continuous struggle with insomnia, anemia, bloating, fatigue, and depression. I am way better now than before, after cutting out sugar and switching to a more traditional diet that is high in protein and good fats, but I still eat way too much gluten containing grains. I mean, what is life with croissants?

So is this Good-bye Gluten? Hello Paleo-Diet?

Sort of. I’m not saying good-bye to all grains because let’s face it, I’m a rice-lover and will always be. Plus, my body is probably designed for rice being that I am from the Philippines. So for now, I think we’re going to give gluten-free a try. If gluten-grains are potentially dangerous for my overall well-being, why even bother ? Besides, that means I don’t need to learn how to make sourdough bread ever.

Oh gluten. LIfe is sounding better off without you already.

8 Easy and Frugal Ways To Make Your Food More Nourishing

June 8th, 2010 · Vina Barham · Nourishing Food, Nutrition + Health, Real Food + Eating Well One comment - Tags: kitchen tips

Photo by Catsper

There’s a season for elaborately done + uber-healthy meals. And there’s a season for simple yet nutrient dense meals that make your bank account giddy with extra change. If you are in the latter, here are some ways to cope with grace:

1. Simplify With Greens
Add a simple raw/fresh green salad in place of cooked vegetables to your dinner meals. Skip the lettuce and go for the deep green stuff. Nothing is simpler than throwing a good salad together. Add nuts, cheese, boiled eggs, anchovies? Oh yum!

2. Eat Your Liver
Try sneaking in ground liver to your ground beef recipes. Making meatloaf or meatballs? Grind your liver in your food processor and mix it up with your beef. Try to find organic grass-fed calf liver. Super cheap-er, super nutritious and your family won’t even know what hit them (just don’t put too much in there!)

3. Go Brown
Substitute brown rice pasta in place of your regular one. If you eat a lot of pasta, try heading to your Trader Joe’s and stack up on their brown rice pasta for a mere $1.99 per package. It’s the best value I’ve seen and it compares well to more expensive brands like the Tinkyada.

4. Serve It Smooth
You can make a smoothie as yummy and nutritious as you’d like. Add greens, a little bit of flax seed oil, a little bit of coconut oil, yogurt/kefir, frozen berries and a bit of maple syrup and voila! Nourishing breakfast on the go!

5. Stock Up The Salmon
I read here that canned seafood (as well as canned corn, canned poultry, canned beef and canned beans) at Trader Joes come in BPA-free cans (I plan to confirm this at some point myself). So stock up on their canned wild alaskan salmon for fast nutritious meals and snacks. Who says you can’t afford to eat your Omega 3s on the cheap?

6. Add The Eggs
Add it in your salad. Add it to your meat + rice. Add it to your creamy pasta sauce. Or just eat it plain for a quick nutritious and affordable protein. Boil a few and have it handy dandy in the fridge when the hunger strikes. (You read about my take on eggs before, right? Right. Just checking.)

7. Cook In Broth
I usually make broth at least once every other week. I like having broth for cooking rice so it can soak up the good stuff even if we are not eating anything soupy for that day. It’s really easy to make chicken broth and here is an article why this needs to be a staple in your diet.

8. Spice It Up
Herbs and spices not only add so much depth and flavor to dishes, but a whole lot of health benefits as well. Add cinnamon to your oatmeal, tarragon in your dressings, cumin in your meatloaf, stevia to your tea, fresh basil to your salad and more.

Did I miss anything obvious? Probably. So chime in and tell us how you make your food more nourishing, simple and cheap!

Best Nourishing Sunscreen Options and A Homemade Recipe

May 28th, 2010 · Vina Barham · Natural + Sustainable, Nourishing Lifestyle, Nutrition + Health Comments Off - Tags: homemade sunscreen lotion, natural sunscreen

Photo By MassDistraction

Summer is coming up and many mothers everywhere are scrambling to get the latest sunscreen protection for their little ones. I was that mother last year. I found mine at Target, Aveeno Baby I think. But every time I dabbed that lotion onto my baby’s precious skin, my gut whispered foul. I was torn. Sunblock was necessary, right? I had to protect her for those harmful UVA rays, right?

Well guess what? Aveeno Baby made it to the Environmental Working Group’s Hall of Shame. Yikes. (Breathe. It’s okay. It was just one summer. She won’t get cancer. Forgive. Release. Whew.) The more I researched about sunscreens, the more I am convinced of one thing: I’m staying clear of them.

41% of sunscreens contain a type of Vitamin A (retinyl palmitate), which may actually increase cancerous skin tumors and lesion. While it’s good to consume vitamin A veggies, not so much for applying on skin.
Most sunscreens are awesome protecting skin from the UVB rays which causes the skin burn, but they virtually leave the skin exposed to the UVA radiation, which penetrates deep into the skin and causes all that bad stuff you truly want to protect them from. Because sunscreen users may feel justified in staying longer in the sun, many may be at more risk of melanoma skin cancer caused by the UVA rays.
Sunscreens block almost all of your body’s Vitamin D production, an essential vitamin for our immune system among other things. For people like me who live North of the equator, are dark-skinned or are likely deficient or have low-levels of Vitamin D as many children nowadays are, we need direct sun contact daily for 10-15 minutes, or vitamin D food sources such as Cod Liver Oil.
FDA is a little bit behind in updating the regulations, so just because it’s being marketed as “safe” for your baby, you really can’t trust the profit-driven industry for saying so. After all, they have their shareholders to report to.

So What’s The Best Sunscreen Option?
I grew up in sweltering hot summers in the Philippines, and now that I think about it, I really don’t remember applying sunscreen on my skin. We simply carried umbrellas around in the heat for instant shade. But who does that anymore? The thing is, that’s the simplest sunscreen option I can think of. And avoiding direct sun contact between 10 am -2 pm. No messing with our skin. Or having to shell out money for cool sun-protective gear like Coolibar . Of course don’t forget those sunglasses. They aren’t just for fashionistas, you know!

But suppose you have to be out in the sun for an extended period of time, and you really feel like you ought to put at least something on. What to do? You can check out EWG’s top sunscreen options. The most accessible one seems to be California Baby as you can get it from Target. I checked out the reviews on Amazon and many prefer it to Soleo and Naturals, which are also both recommended by EWG.

OR.

You can just make it yourself .

Basic Homemade Sunscreen Recipe
Folks over at the EWG think you shouldn’t mess with this stuff at home, but if you really want to give it a try, you really just need three basic ingredients: (1) Oil a.k.a. The Carrier (2) Beeswax a.k.a. The Water Repellant and (3) Zinc Oxide, the broadest spectrum UVA and UVB reflector that is approved for use as a sunscreen by the FDA and is completely photostable.

For oil, you can choose sesame oil or coconut oil or make your own combination. Beeswax you can find at your local beekeeper if you’re nearby one, or you can find them also at candlemaking shops or crafts store. And zinc oxide you can get at your local CVS or drugstore.

Directions::

Heat 1 cup or oil in pan over low flame.
Add 1 ounce of beeswax. Stir until beeswax is completed melted
While stirring, add 2 TBSP of Zinc Oxide very slowly. Handle with care. Do not inhale.
Once everything is mixed, pour into a mason jar and let it cool.
You can keep it in your fridge to store.

Some folks like to add essential oils, but unless you know how the oils react to each other and to zinc oxide, I’d stay clear of that. Alternatively, you can also use your all-natural lotion you use now and add the zinc oxide. There are also other recipes online that do not have zinc oxide as an ingredient. I also hear that even just dabbing coconut oil on your skin gives you some protection.

My sunscreen option this summer? Staying out of the sun during specific hours and donning my umbrella! What about you?

Coconut Series: Coconut Oil and Wrap Up

May 18th, 2010 · Vina Barham · Nourishing Food, Nutrition + Health, Real Food + Eating Well 2 comments - Tags: coconut oil, coconut series

Photo by Daniele Satori

If you’ve been following this series on Coconut, it’s not news to you that I simply adore this wonderful nut! Probably in part because I grew up with it and have so many wonderful memories associated with it. We often made coconut salad from the freshly grated meat of the coconut we bought from the wet market, coconut pies, coconut popsicles…I can go on and on! But more recently, I discovered just how much coconut is super good for you.

The Wonders of Coconut
I’ve been highlighting in my previous posts the health benefits of coconut, but in case you need more nudging to regularly include it in your diet, here’s some more from Bruce Fife’s Coconut Research Center. (Disclaimer: I am not a health professional. I am only a mom who loves to learn about how to nourish my family better. Some medical professionals, mostly Western, think that the claims below border sensationalism but there are many experts from around the world that confirm many of these findings. )

Kills viruses that cause influenza, herpes, measles, hepatitis C, SARS, AIDS, and other illnesses.
Kills bacteria that cause ulcers, throat infections, urinary tract infections, gum disease and cavities, pneumonia, and gonorrhea, and other diseases.
Kills fungi and yeasts that cause candidiasis, ringworm, athlete’s foot, thrush, diaper rash, and other infections.
Expels or kills tapeworms, lice, giardia, and other parasites.
Provides a nutritional source of quick energy.
Boosts energy and endurance, enhancing physical and athletic performance.
Improves digestion and absorption of other nutrients including vitamins, minerals, and amino acids.
Improves insulin secretion and utilization of blood glucose.
Relieves stress on pancreas and enzyme systems of the body.
Reduces symptoms associated with pancreatitis.
Helps relieve symptoms and reduce health risks associated with diabetes.
Reduces problems associated with malabsorption syndrome and cystic fibrosis.
Improves calcium and magnesium absorption and supports the development of strong bones and teeth.
Helps protect against osteoporosis.
Helps relieve symptoms associated with gallbladder disease.
Relieves symptoms associated with Crohn’s disease, ulcerative colitis, and stomach ulcers.
Improves digestion and bowel function.
Relieves pain and irritation caused by hemorrhoids.
Reduces inflammation.
Supports tissue healing and repair.
Supports and aids immune system function.
Helps protect the body from breast, colon, and other cancers.
Is heart healthy; improves cholesterol ratio reducing risk of heart disease.
Protects arteries from injury that causes atherosclerosis and thus protects against heart disease.
Helps prevent periodontal disease and tooth decay.
Functions as a protective antioxidant.
Helps to protect the body from harmful free radicals that promote premature aging and degenerative disease.
Does not deplete the body’s antioxidant reserves like other oils do.
Improves utilization of essential fatty acids and protects them from oxidation.
Helps relieve symptoms associated with chronic fatigue syndrome.
Relieves symptoms associated with benign prostatic hyperplasia (prostate enlargement).
Reduces epileptic seizures.
Helps protect against kidney disease and bladder infections.
Dissolves kidney stones.
Helps prevent liver disease.
Is lower in calories than all other fats.
Supports thyroid function.
Promotes loss of excess weight by increasing metabolic rate.
Is utilized by the body to produce energy in preference to being stored as body fat like other dietary fats.
Helps prevent obesity and overweight problems.
Applied topically helps to form a chemical barrier on the skin to ward of infection.
Reduces symptoms associated the psoriasis, eczema, and dermatitis.
Supports the natural chemical balance of the skin.
Softens skin and helps relieve dryness and flaking.
Prevents wrinkles, sagging skin, and age spots.
Promotes healthy looking hair and complexion.
Provides protection form damaging effects of ultraviolet radiation form the sun.
Helps control dandruff.
Does not form harmful by-products when heated to normal cooking temperature like other vegetable oils do.
Has no harmful or discomforting side effects.
Is completely non-toxic to humans.

Baby Step #3: Embracing Coconut Oil
I’ve written about using coconut milk and coconut flour as two small steps you can take towards welcoming coconut into your life. But the real deal is coconut oil, my friends. It’s what makes coconut a wonder food. So if you are ready to step it up this week, join me in giving Coconut Oil a go in our kitchen, and beyond.

How To Incorpoate Coconut Oil In YOur Kicthen

Substitute for Cooking Oil:You can simply substitute coconut oil in place of any cooking oil you’ve previously used in most recipes. Extra virgin coconut oil might retain the coconut taste, so if that bothers you, you might want to try the high quality refined kind. It’s best used in SE/South Asian cooking, since many of the recipes lend well to the coconut taste. Also, because it has a high smoke point, it’s excellent as a frying oil.
Baked Goods and Deserts: Again, you can simply substitute coconut for the butter in the recipe you are using. Coconut oil also works well with recipes using coconut flour. I hear it’s great for popping corn.
Drinks: You can add it to your smoothie, protein shakes, cocoa and of course, cocktails!
Dressings and Condiments: You can use in place of oils in recipes or blend it with other oils to suit your taste.

Uses for Coconut Oil Beyond the Kitchen
Besides its versatile culinary use, coconut oil is also a staple in body care. I love coconut shampoo as well as using it as a moisturizer. I don’t have the time and space to cover everything that you can use coconut oil for, but one thing I want to try in the future is to make this Homemade Natural Deodorant by Lindsay at Passionate Homemaking, using coconut oil.

Sources of Coconut Oil
You can buy Organic Extra Virgin Coconut Oil online from Amazon. They carry Aloha Nu and Nutiva, which are two of the most highly recommended brands. (Below are links to Amazon, which will earn me a teeny weeny commission if you decide to purchase them through this link. Much thanks for the support!) Whole Foods carry their own 365 brand of organic coconut oil as well.

Aloha Nu Certified Organic Extra Virgin Coconut Oil

Nutiva Organic Extra Virgin Coconut Oil

Wrap Up (And A Favor)
So in closing, this is probably the most I’ve ever talked about coconut in my entire life. And I hope it served to encourage you to consider this nut as a healthy addition to your life. Of course, all things in moderation, yes? I’d love to hear the different ways you’ve included coconut into your kitchen and elsewhere!

So, I’ve been thinking about how best to use my time blogging these days. I’d love to write helpful articles, and honestly, writing about food-related posts/recipes is not my strength. But I thought I’d tackle it anyway. But only if they are helpful. Well, are they? I’ll be asking more questions like this in the coming posts, and probably do a survey at some point to better cover issues that are relevant to you, my dear reader, that are also dear to me. Thank you so much for journeying here with me.

Coconut Series: Baking With Coconut Flour (And A Simple Coconut Bread Recipe)

May 11th, 2010 · Vina Barham · Nourishing Food, Nutrition + Health, Real Food + Eating Well 2 comments - Tags: coconut bread, coconut flour

Photo By Elena's Pantry

There is so much to love about coconut. Perhaps that’s why we call it the “Tree of Life” in the Philippines. You can get so much use out of this one giant nut (yes, it’s a nut, hence coco-nut.) Even after you eat the yummy flesh and drink the juice, you can still get use out of the coconut husk by drying it up and using it to scrub and polish your wooden floor (if I remember correctly!). I have fond memories of cleaning our house with it. I grew up living so “green” without even knowing it. Anyway. Moving on.

Benefits of Coconut
A lot of people are looking for gluten-free alternatives these days, and I’m surprised that coconut flour has not been picked up as a superfood option. Compared to wheat bran, it has twice as much fiber. And why is fiber good for you? From the book Cooking with Coconut Flour: A Delicious Low-Carb, Gluten-Free Alternative to Wheat by Bruce Fife:

High-fiber foods are generally lower in calories. By simply adding high-fiber foods to your diet will lower your calorie intake. Fiber absorbs fluids so your stomach will also feel full sooner, which mean less calories for you to consume.
Good bacteria in our intestines get their primary nourishment from fiber. When we eat a lot of fiber, the good bacteria will dominate your digestive tract. We need these good bacteria to produce vitamins, improve nutrient absorption and overall promote good health.
Coconut fiber, specifically has been found to expel intestinal words. In some parts of the world, it is a traditional practice to eat coconut meat as a way to get rid of parasites in the body.
Fiber reduces many factors in heart disease. It helps reduce cholesterol, blood pressure and increase insulin sensitivity. Coconut flour, in particular, has a positive impact on blood lipid levels and will lower your LDL (bad) cholesterol while increasing your HDL (good) cholesterol. It improves antioxidant status and reduces oxidative stress.
Dietary fiber helps moderate swings in blood sugar by slowing down the absorption of sugar into the blood stream. Coconut fiber has been shown to be very effective in moderating blood sugar and insulin levels. Which makes coconut flour a really good alternative in baking, since often there will be some sugar involved.
Fiber also cleanses our digestive tract by sweeping along parasites, toxins and carcinogens with it. This helps prevent toxins from getting lodged in our intestinal tracts. It also readily absorbs fluids, and are found to soak up to 20 to 50 percent of carcinogenic compounds.
Coconut is a good source of many trace minerals. Coconuts generally grow in mineral rich volcanic soil, compared to grains that are mostly grown in mineral depleted soil. Coconut also does not contain phytic acid, like wheat and other grains. You don’t have to worry about soaking, sprouting or souring before using it in your baking needs.

If I haven’t convinced you yet to check out the benefits of adding more coconut in your diet, you can read this article written by Mary Enig, Coconut, In Support Of Good Health In the 21st Century (stuff that we Islanders have known for years!). Moderate use in conjunction with a varied diet of healthy foods is key. I personally want to focus on getting more nutrient-dense superfood in our diet instead of thinking about all the food we shouldn’t eat. And coconut is one of those superfood that I’m more happy to consume. If you’ve never tried coconut ever, give coconut milk a go and check out my Easy Peasy Curry recipe I shared last week. Today, we’re going to look at the goodness yumminess of baking with coconut flour. And we’re going to keep it simple too (for mamas like me who are culinary-challenged!)

Cooking With Coconut Flour: The Basics
Perhaps one of the reasons why coconut flour has not yet gained popularity is that it is quite difficult to work with for those who are not familiar with it. Most of our recipes in baking are designed for wheat flour and other similar grains. We can’t simply substitute coconut flour in our recipes and get the desired results. I would highly recommend buying Bruce Fife’s book Cooking with Coconut Flour: A Delicious Low-Carb, Gluten-Free Alternative to Wheat. He has a lot of great simple recipes that you can build on. Before I share a simple coconut recipe adapted from this book, I want to highlight a few things about using coconut flour:

Coconut flour lacks gluten. Which means you need to use more eggs that a regular recipe would to hold together your baked goods.
Coconut flour is highly absorbent. Which means you need to add a little bit more water/liquid to the recipe. A general rule of thumb if you are trying to substitute some coconut flour in place of wheat flour is to add 1:1 ratio of coconut flour to liquid.
Because coconut flour is highly absorbent, you need to keep the liquids in the recipe to a minimum. Using butter or coconut oil keeps it from drying out.
Sugar is an essential ingredient in baking with coconut flour. You can reduce it, but don’t omit.

Okay, let’s get on to baking!

Simple Coconut Bread Recipe
This recipe is from Bruce Fife’s book I’ve linked to above. I highly recommend it!
Ingredients:

6 pastured eggs
1/2 cup butter or ghee
2 tablespoons honey
1/2 teaspoon Celtic sea salt
3/4 cup coconut flour
1 teaspoon aluminum free baking powder (or you can omit)

Preheat oven at 350 degrees. Combine all ingredients (by hand or using a mixer) until there are no lumps. Pour into a greased 9×5x3-inch pan and bake for 40 minutes. Remove from pan and let it cool on rack. Yum!

The Coconut Series: Why I Heart Coconut Milk And An Easy Peasy Curry Recipe

May 4th, 2010 · Vina Barham · Nourishing Food, Nutrition + Health, Real Food + Eating Well 9 comments - Tags: coconut milk, coconut series, recipe

: Photo By DePaula FJ

I grew up in the land of coconuts. We enjoyed “buko,” the Filipino term for coconut, in all forms imaginable. We ate buko ice cream, drank buko juice, used buko milk in all kinds of dishes, and had plentiful of buko type desserts. The best way to eat a coconut is to eat it fresh: chop the fruit open, drink the yummy juice and grate the coconut flesh to eat.

So why is coconut so good for you?

Two Words: Lauric Acid. From the Weston A Price website:

The lauric acid in coconut oil is used by the body to make the same disease-fighting fatty acid derivative monolaurin that babies make from the lauric acid they get from their mothers= milk. The monoglyceride monolaurin is the substance that keeps infants from getting viral or bacterial or protozoal infections. Until just recently, this important benefit has been largely overlooked by the medical and nutrition community.

You can also read more on the various health benefits of coconut from the book, Eat Fat, Lose Fat, written by Mary Enig and Sally Fallon. Here, the authors attempt to correct the common (and mistaken) assumption that tropical fats and oils (coconut and palm) are unhealthy and that they contain healthy saturated fats that we need more of.

For a more global perspective on coconut oil, you can read this excerpt from the Asian Pacific Coconut Community on experts findings on the health benefits of coconut oil.

Since coconut oil is mostly absent in most American kitchens, let’s start with something more familiar: coconut milk.

Why I Heart Coconut Milk

Because it’s so yummy. Now, I’m not talking about the thin, watered-down, low-fat anemic version they sell at Trader Joes (yes, I am biased). We’re talking creamy fatty milk. I often use Chaokoh Thai Coconut Milk that you can get at your local Asian store. But recently, I discovered a BPA-free, organic option with Native Forest Coconut Milk. You can get it online via True Foods Market and Amazon (both of which I am an affiliate of, but I highly recommend these brands.) You can mix it with pineapple juice and lime for a non-alcoholic version of pina colada. You can use it to boil glutinous rice with a little bit of honey for a sweet dessert. But best of all, you can use it to make curry!

My Curry Recipe I Can Make With My Eyes Closed

Can I just say that I can eat curry everyday of my life? Okay, maybe not everyday but I just don’t tire of it. It is my default dish when I don’t know what to make for dinner. My poor husband. I use premade (Mae Ploy) curry paste I get at our local Asian market. You can make your own if you’d like with the help of a tutorial at Thai Food and Travel. Be warned! This recipe is not exacting. I’m a notorious eye-baller. I don’t measure anything and sort of just do as I feel like it. You can omit the fish sauce and palm/cane sugar but it makes for a more authentic taste in my opinion. Add a little bit at a time until you figure out the taste you are going for.

Ingredients:

2 tbsp coconut oil (or butter)
1 small onion, chopped
1 tsp grated ginger
salt and pepper
2 tbps or more of curry paste
2-3 lbs chicken pieces (I prefer dark meat)
2 cans of coconut milk (14 oz)
2 tbsp fish sauce
2 tbps palm/cane sugar
Garnish: green onions, red pepper, cilantry

Heat oil in a large saucepan. Add onions and cook until translucent. Season with S & P. Add ginger. Cook and enjoy the fragrance. Add curry paste and mix. Push onions to the side. Brown chicken in the middle for a few seconds. Mix together with onions and cook for several minutes. Turn down heat to low and let it sit for a minute. Add coconut milk. Stir to mix. Add fish sauce and cane sugar to your liking. And you are done!

I like to add garbazo beans and carrots for some reason. You can garnish with green onions, slivers of red pepper and cilantro. Serve on rice. Yum. I hope you enjoy it!

Next week, I hope to continue writing about the wonders of coconut and share some recipes using coconut flour. Yum! Also, I’d like to ask if there’s anything you want me to cover in particular. I’m here to serve

This post is part of Fight Back Friday and Real Food Wednesday.

Nourishing Breakfast Series: The Mighty Egg Part 2

April 6th, 2010 · Vina Barham · Nourishing Food, Nutrition + Health, Real Food + Eating Well No comments - Tags: breakfast series, mighty egg, nourishing kitchen basics

Photo By Inspector 81

In The Nourishing Breakfast Series: The Mighty Egg Part I, I discussed about why farm fresh eggs are the best kind of eggs you want to spend your money on. But let’s get real. Some of us have pretty tight budgets that we have to work with, and we can’t exactly shell out $5-$7 per dozen eggs. So today, we’re going to sort through the confusing labels we see on egg cartons sold at your typical grocery store and come up with the best alternative to farm fresh eggs.

Label Sorting
Labels such as “Cage-Free,” “Omega-3 Eggs” and “Organic”, while seeming helpful for the consumer to make informed decisions, can also be looked as a marketing technique by those in the egg industry. People nowadays are more careful about what they buy for health and environmental reasons. And many of these labels simply leverage that to get consumers to choose their eggs over other ones. So let’s look into these labels and figure out what we really need to consider when purchasing eggs from the grocery store:

Hormone Free

Vegetarian Fed:

Cage-free

Omega 3:

Certified Organic:

Free-range/Free-roaming:

USDA’s criteria

Certified Humane

The Certified Humane Raised label

So What’s The Next Best Choice to Farm Fresh Eggs?
Your best choice is an informed choice. Look into your local options. My default eggs are from Stiebrs Farms here in Washington, labeled Certified Organic, Certified Humane, Free-Roaming. They are usually available at the natural coop store and at Whole Foods. They cost about $4/dozen. My second default eggs are from Wilcox Farms, also from Washington. Trader Joe’s sell them for $3/dozen. As much as I would love to have farm fresh eggs on the table every day, I’m also a practical girl. Once in a blue moon, I’ll fork out $7 to get me some dozen lovely eggs straight from the hen’s nest. Like I did yesterday.

So there you have it. Everything I know about eggs, probably more than what you want to digest in one sitting. What about you? Where are you in the journey? If you haven’t yet, subscribe for free today! And if you liked the article, feel free to spread the word.

How To Travel Light In This Life: Seriously Slow Down

April 1st, 2010 · Vina Barham · Nutrition + Health 7 comments - Tags: simplify, slowing down. travel light

Photo By Low Fat Brain

It’s ironic that the week I scheduled to write about slowing down, the pace around our household got a bit more hectic than I’d like to admit. Truth is, I’m still struggling in this area of slowing down. Although I am convinced that this is a major key in living simply and authentically, it doesn’t come naturally to me. Even when I grew up in a culture (Philippines) where slow is the pace of life. Because I’m finding out that slowing down is not about the pace, but something else altogether.

Slowing Down From the Inside Out
To slow down means to let go of my agenda for the day. To let go of expectations. It’s to ultimately let go of…control.

Isn’t that what motherhood is about?

Bed still unmade at 3 pm? Dishes piled up from last night and it’s already time to make dinner? Wishful projects left unfinished here, there, everywhere? Yes, yes, and yes, because there’s a little one who has a totally different agenda in mind.

Do I try to control her to get her to acquiesce to my perfectly laid plans? Do I try to distract her with something else? Or do I try to slow down my mind, my plans, my hopes, my heart and embrace the moment for what it is?

Our Problem With Slowing Down
So why is it so hard to slow down? Because our mind is still about winning. About getting ahead or keeping up. Like in story of the tortoise and the hare.

There once was a speedy hare who bragged about how fast he could run. Tired of hearing him boast, Slow and Steady, the tortoise, challenged him to a race. All the animals in the forest gathered to watch.

Hare ran down the road for a while and then and paused to rest. He looked back at Slow and Steady and cried out, “How do you expect to win this race when you are walking along at your slow, slow pace?”

Hare stretched himself out alongside the road and fell asleep, thinking, “There is plenty of time to relax.”

Slow and Steady walked and walked. He never, ever stopped until he came to the finish line.

The animals who were watching cheered so loudly for Tortoise, they woke up Hare.

Hare stretched and yawned and began to run again, but it was too late. Tortoise was over the line.

The tortoise wins the race and so we’re told it’s good to plod. But what if he never won the race? What if he lost big time? It doesn’t cut out for a good story, doesn’t it? Slowing down is still about what we end up accomplishing.

Slow Is Good
Slow sex, long baths, slow cooking, lazy afternoons, getting lost in a good project, long walks with our kiddos, vacations, yoga: this is the stuff life is made of. When time stands still and we don’t care what day it is.

We often say that we all have 24 hours in one day, but really, right now is all we have. And slowing down is about embracing that moment, however joyful, however monotonous, however painful. It’s more than mindful living. It’s about growing a grateful kind of contentment that moves us towards all that breathes Life.

Slow Down: A Road To Peace
When we first start practicing the art of slow down, our anxieties and fears are revealed. We fret about what we are not doing, what we are not accomplishing, the stuff we find our identities and worth entangled with.

As we slow down, we quiet down those anxieties and fears and we put ourselves in the path of grace. The path where everything is accepted, everything is beautiful, everything is a gift.

We enter into a mindful life where our bodies and spirits are in sync with the rhythms of Creation. We slow down to savor every bite, to sway to the breeze of the wind, to breathe in the ocean air deep in our lungs. We notice the small things, we delight in the everyday mundane.

And without even knowing it, our live becomes a testament of gratitude. Our actions are not motivated by our desire to prove ourselves worthy. Instead, our actions become a thankful response to the all the goodness we receive in this life.

Tips For Practicing Everyday Slow
Here are some ideas to get us into the practice of slowing our lives down:

eat slow
cook slow once a week
take up knitting
grow a garden
write a letter, with a pen and paper
do only one thing at a time
journal
meditate
sit still
drive slow
take a stroll
wash dishes by hand
take a sabbath
take breaks throughout the day
keep a “to-be” list along with your “to-do” list
take deep breaths
try yoga
pay attention to what you are doing
light a candle
turn off the TV
get rid of your watch

What about you? Do you have other tips on slowing life? Thoughts?

Nourishing Breakfast Series: The Mighty Egg Part 1

March 30th, 2010 · Vina Barham · Nourishing Food, Nutrition + Health 3 comments - Tags: breakfast, eggs

Photo by Woodley Wonderworks

I love me some eggs. I can eat eggs everyday. Boiled. Over-easy. Scrambled. French Omelet. And the list goes on. They are an inexpensive source of protein, and so much more!

Eggs are Good For You
For a long time, eggs were (and perhaps still are) shunned as a high-cholesterol food that causes coronary heart disease. We are still advised nowadays to limit our consumption to one per day, and if necessary, to skip the egg yolk part of the egg, which is actually the most concentrated source of choline, a B vitamin that is necessary to keep cholesterol moving in our bloodstream. Eggs, the right kind of eggs, provide high quality protein and are rich in just about every nutrient we know of. Especially vitamins A and D. They are also found to be good for your eyes.

But Not All Eggs Are Created Equal
As we discussed last week that not all milk is equal, similarly not all eggs are the same. The best eggs are those from chicken that are allowed to roam about in their natural environment. Chickens, if left on green pastures, will eat about 30% grass in their diet. The rest of their diet will be from flax meal or fish meal along with bugs and worms they find on the pasture.

Commercial Eggs are mostly from chickens raised in very tight spaces. They hardly see the light of day. They are fed mostly grains instead of grass, among other things. Because they are so tightly packed, they have to be de-beaked to avoid harming one another. More on that later.

Nutritional Content Comparison

Photo By Roger B

The difference in the diet of a commercial egg-laying hen and a farm free roaming pastured egg-laying hen is most evident in their nutritional content. Mother Earth News did a study in 2007 that compared farm fresh eggs with commercial eggs and the results were as follows:

Farm Fresh Eggs had 7 times more Beta-Carotene (79 mcg vs 10 mcg)
Farm Fresh Eggs had 2/3 more Vitamin A (791.86 IU vs 487 IU)
Farm Fresh Eggs had 3 times more Vitamin E (3.73 mg vs 0.97 mg)
Farm Fresh Eggs had 2 times more Omega 3 (0.66 g vs 0.22 g)
Farm Fresh Eggs had 1/3 less cholesterol (277 mg vs 423 mg)
Farm Fresh eggs had 1/4 less saturated fat (2.4g vs 3.1 g)

But studies even dating back to 1974, like the British Journal of Nutrition, found that pastured eggs had 50 percent more folic acid and 70 percent more vitamin B12 than eggs from factory farm hens. Back then, and still now, farm fresh eggs are just plain better for you.

A Visual Comparison of Commercial Eggs vs Farm Fresh Pastured Eggs

Photo From The Tasting Buds Blog

I really wished I thought of this first, and that I had time to do it, but over at Tasting Buds, Peter and Jon did a visual comparison of farmer’s market eggs and conventional eggs. The differences are pretty clear: egg yolks are deeper and darker, egg whites are clearer. And taste? Oh my. Richer. Fuller. Yum Yum. But clearly, I’m biased.

Chicken Welfare and Environment
The commercial egg industry has a lot of dirty secrets, literally. I’ll spill the top three I can think of:

Male chicks are killed by the thousands by tossing them in a conveyor belt and fed into grinding machines. (Check out this article by the The Examiner.)
Chicks are forcefully de-beaked. Because they live in such tight conditions, they have no room to forage, which is their natural activity. As a result, they feather peck each other aggressively. The only solution is to remove their beaks, a form of mutilation if you think about it.
Chicks are forced molted: they are starved for 14 days so that they can start the egg-laying process again. Forced molting is a very stressful process to go through. (You can read more at theUnited Poultry Concern website.)

The Winner: Farm Fresh Eggs
Fresh eggs from your local farm are simply the best! Your farmer’s market is your best source. Although they usually go for about $5/dozen eggs, it is worth the price!

You can also find a Community-Supported Agriculture Farm for a weekly supply for fresh eggs. You usually have to be subscribed to a share (like a produce share or a chicken share) to sign up for the egg share. Some will even deliver to your door! Our family hasn’t done this yet, but we’re looking into it.

Or better yet, keep your own chickens! One day, when we have a bigger yard, maybe I’ll consider it!

The Reality
I doubt anyone would argue against buying farm fresh eggs, but reality is, many of us still buy eggs from grocery stores which stock their shelves with commercial eggs. Perhaps the farmer’s market is a little bit to far to drive to every week. If this is you, Part 2 is for you. Because not all commercial eggs are the same either! Next Tuesday, we’re going to sort through the confusing labels we see on egg cartons sold at your typical grocery store.

What about you? Do you eat farm fresh eggs? Where are you in the journey?