Lifestyle Changes Part Two: The Problems With Going Out to Eat Regularly (and why it is especcially hard for me to avoid)

As I am sure many people know, there are a few consistent problems with going out to eat too often. I would like to go over a few that are the most important to me and add my insight from my restaurant working experience (going on about 8 years now).

Some restaurants, of course, are more aware than other ones about these issues. The widespread farm-to-table movement is definitely proof of that. But I find that these problems still exist, even with the purest ideology. For the most part they are industry standards and can be very difficult for a restaurant to modify.


#1 Factory Farm Meat and Dairy

Unfortunately, CAFOs are still an overwhelming norm in America. The percentages vary depending on where you look, but according to FarmFoward.com, over 99% of the meat raised in the US comes from CAFOs. In stark contrast to pastured animals, animals raised in these horrible places are fed grain, corn and soy; kept in cramped close quarters and injected with various hormones and antibiotics (in the US, chickens and swine are not allowed to be given hormones, but can be given antibiotics; cows can be given both). Both of which end up in the final product.

According the Sally Fallon Morrell, people on an otherwise healthy diet can handle a small amount of commercially raised meat (Nourishing Traditions). She calls them "compromise foods" and warns to only eat them in small amounts. In other words, they are not the worst things you can eat if in a food-limited situation. However, she does put pasteurized, homogenized milk (commercial milk) into the "newfangled" category and warns that they are "best avoided by everybody". This is a problem because, while most good restaurants nowadays have better meat options, they still have (pardon me) crap milk options. I have noticed this working in restaurants and going out to eat. For some reason, chefs (pastry and savory) seem to overlook the dairy they use while at the same time ordering high quality meat. Therefore, it is more of a prerogative for me to avoid dairy in restaurants, but it can be difficult. Cream sauces, cream based soups, and desserts are the most obvious. I do make an exception for butter because it can be a much better cooking oil or sauce option when trying to avoid other things such as...

#2 Gross Modern Vegetable Oil

This is actually #1 for me personally. My biggest pet peeve if you will. Modern vegetable oils, including soy and canola as the top offenders, but also corn, cottonseed and some olive oils, are extracted by a process that strips any nutritive value, destabilizes the fats, and involves harsh chemicals (called a solvent) and, sometimes, hydrogenation. The result? Cancer and heart disease causing cooking oil not fit for even the poor rats they have been tested on. In the groundbreaking article "The Oiling of America", Sally Fallon Morell and Mary Enig describe the dangers of modern vegetable oils:

"Because polyunsaturates are highly subject to rancidity, they increase the body's need for vitamin E and other antioxidants. Excess consumption of vegetable oils is especially damaging to the reproductive organs and the lungs—both of which are sites for huge increases in cancer in the US. In test animals, diets high in polyunsaturates from vegetable oils inhibit the ability to learn, especially under conditions of stress; they are toxic to the liver; they compromise the integrity of the immune system; they depress the mental and physical growth of infants; they increase levels of uric acid in the blood; they cause abnormal fatty acid profiles in the adipose tissues; they have been linked to mental decline and chromosomal damage; they accelerate aging. Excess consumption of polyunsaturates is associated with increasing rates of cancer, heart disease and weight gain; excess use of commercial vegetable oils interferes with the production of prostaglandins leading to an array of complaints ranging from autoimmune disease to PMS. Disruption of prostaglandin production leads to an increased tendency to form blood clots, and hence myocardial infarction, which has reached epidemic levels in America."

The BIG problem is that almost all restaurants use some type of vegetable oil, and I have found that it is almost always soy or a soy oil blend. Soy oil is particulary damaging because it retains soy proteins which have an array of health issues associated with them. Also, many people are allergic to soy which is why is it so troubling that restaurants continue to use the oil. Also, most restaurants that claim to use olive oil tend to use a "blended oil"  that also contains a vegetable oil and is a cheaper alternative to pure olive oil. In fact nowadays, olive oil can even be mislabeled and can be unknowlingly adulterated with vegetable oil. (http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2007/08/13/070813fa_fact_mueller).


I would also like to add that finding out what oil a restaurant uses can be very difficult. It is not an issue many people seem to be aware of, or they may believe they are doing the right thing by using a "healthy" vegetable oil. I have worked in great restaurants that cook with a good amount of butter and olive oil, but would still use veg oil for smaller tasks such as roasting nuts and salad dressings. For that reason, I do not eat salads out too often, but you can always sneak in your own dressings. High-end restaurants will tend to stick to olive oil in sauces because it tastes better and I think it would be easier to ask about sauces than cooking oils. I would recommend choosing a few restaurants that you visit often and being very honest with a server, bartender, or manager and tell them why you prefer your food to be cooked with a pure olive oil or butter. I do NOT recommend lying about an allergy. Even though it may be tempting at times, I think it is disrespectful to the people who actually struggle with them.

The oil issue is directly linked to my next concern...

#3 GMOs
Corn, soy, cottonseed and canola oils are all genetically modified. Milk products may also contain GM proteins from growth hormones (rbGH and variations). Restaurants not cooking from scratch may have many products with corn and soy in them, but the most common are the cooking oils. Unfortunately, even restaurants that try to avoid GMOs have a hard time with it because they are not labeled in this country. It is not the restaurants fault, and we should all do our part to try and get GMO lableing laws past so that they have the option to avoid them. Check out this great interview with Jeffrey Smith about avoiding GMOs at restaurants.
 https://www.thenourishinggourmet.com/2011/10/avoiding-gmos-when-eating-out-with-jeffrey-smith.html.

 

#4 MSG
 MSG, or mono-sodium glutamate is an isolated salt of glutamic acid and used as a flavor enhancer in almost all processed foods. Since its arrival in the American market in the late 40s, MSG has been extremely controversial and, I think, there is well over enough evidence to prove that is is bad for people. MSG is an excitotoxin, meaning it has the ability to literally stimulate cells to death; specifically brains cells, by the use of glutamate receptors which are abundant in the brain. There is a wonderful book by Russell L. Blaylock called Excitotoxins in which he connects MSG with Alzheimer's disease and other degenerative diseases, as well as obesity and poor development in children.

MSG can come in different forms and by many different names. Restaurants may order hundreds or no processed foods. Of course restaurants that cook from scratch will probably not add MSG to foods. If they are an Asian restaurant, they may add some form of it (and even still try to claim that they are MSG free). My biggest concern in restaurants in soy sauce and worcestershire sauce. If made traditionally, these sauces do not need to contain MSG; however most commercial varieties do. I would say, to be safe, stay away from most brown sauces and any cocktail such as a Bloody Mary that may contain either of these. Ask if the restaurant makes sauces from scratch and avoid Asian restaurants that you do not know about or get dishes with no sauce. 

#5 Tap Water

I described a little of the dangers of unfiltered tap water here.
Restaurants do not filter their water so you will always have more exposure there. The main culprits are stocks and soups, pasta/rice/beans or anything that needs to be cooked with water, coffeee, tea and house-made cocktails or drinks. This is the least concerning to me, but I do feel that it should be mentioned as a reason to perhaps not go out to eat every day.  

I do not go out to eat very often, for the above reasons and also cost, but these issues do very much affect me personally. When you work in a restaurant, generally they are obligated to serve you some sort of "staff meal" at least once a shift. It varies widely, as does the quality of the food served. You are also, hopefully, obligated to try the foods that you serve to guests. I was so happy when I started in my new place because they serve us the same foods that are on the menu. Other restaurants would order food specifically for the staff and it would not be as high quality. Now, I am served the same farm-to-table foods that are on the menu. However, the above rules all still apply. Also, I am in the suburbs now. When I worked in NYC, I could run out and get a smoothie or something nearby (I even use to down some raw oysters at a nearby inexpensive seafood restaurant on my break), but not anymore. So recently I have been trying to bring in some snacks and not rely on the staff meal too often. But it can be difficult... the food we serve is excellent and it is very generous of the kitchen staff to make us food at the end of a shift when they are tired too.

Now with all this concern piled on more concern, you would think we should all boycott all restaurants. However, going out to eat is also a very enjoyable experience and many restaurants exist that I would like to support even though they may participate in one of the above offenses. My advice would be, if going out in your neighborhood, to ask around and to focus on restaurants with some type of ideology that you agree with, say organic, local, or even an ethnic favorite of yours, and ask them all your questions in advance. Maybe email them if talking in person makes you uncomfortable. These restaurants are more likely to be used to questions and, for me anyway, I would prefer these types of questions to other ones. I think the 90/10 rule is a good one; if you eat really good foods 90% of the time, 10% of the time you can compromise and not worry. I am headed on vacation soon for Chirstmas, so I will be going out at least one meal a day. 

How do you handle going out to eat? Are there any restaurants that you recommend? Any more advice is greatly appreciated!





 http://naughtynutritionist.com/soy/soy-hidden-health-dangers/
 http://www.goodsearch.com/search-web?keywords=the+oiling+of+america
www.eatwild.com
http://www.msgexposed.com/
http://www.labelgmos.org/
http://seedsofdeception.com/

The True Cost of Food Part 2: Adressing the Elitist Myth

I wanted to write this one a few weeks ago when this article came out, but alas, life gets in the way...

A few weeks ago articles appeared in mainstream news sources that referred to a Stanford University Study in which organic foods were measured against conventional foods in terms of nutritional value. In the NY Times article, the author starts against organic foods by stating that organic foods are no more nutritious than conventional and that they are not less likely to contain harmful E.coli.  Other articles, such as the one that appeared on Yahoo, used the same format; which mounted to what seemed to be an outright attack on organic foods. For people who tend to skim the first few lines of an article and move on, the impression would be that an important study found that organic foods are not worth more money and are therefore not necessary to buy. As the article continued, the author did point out some positive outcomes of the meta-analysis; organic produce had consistently lower pesticide residues than conventional ones and organic chicken and pork had lower levels of antibiotic-resistant bacteria (such bacteria, it has been argued, is a direct result of antibiotic use in CAFOs).

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/09/04/science/earth/study-questions-advantages-of-organic-meat-and-produce.html

Thankfully, the rebuttals started pouring in. I first received Dr. Mercola's article which drew my attention to The Los Angeles Time's response:

http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/editorials/la-ed-organics-20120905,0,5514318.story

The LA Times points out that nutritional values are not the main reason that people buy organic products. They also talked about the havoc that conventionally grown produce wreaks on the environment. A big point of the study was that, even though organic produce has lower pesticide levels, conventional produce still falls under allowable levels by the EPA. The LA Times pointed out that the EPA levels are most likely outdated and most pesticides have not been thoroughly tested.

Dr. Mercola's article was even more enlightening. He listed some studies that DID show that organic foods have higher nutritional values. He also outlines the larger argument, and shows why it is in the governments interest to stomp out demand for organic farming practices, especially in light of the recent GMO debate.

http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2012/09/17/organic-vs-conventional-food.aspx

All of this made me think of another argument, one that all of us have probably come across one time or another. The idea that organic foods are an elitist concept and the people who claim the market share on them are a privileged few. Article after article brings up the cost of organic foods over and over again, as if that is the real debate and the other reasons for buying organic are secondary.

My personal reasons for going organic pretty much include all the reasons one would. The primary one being that it is better for the environment. Second, it lessons the toxic load on our bodies and we already live in such a toxic environment; every little bit helps. I believe one of the biggest problems with chemical testing is that we do not test for cross-reactions with other chemicals and we have let so any chemicals loose into the world that humans (and other forms of life) have become the guinea pigs for chemical interactions. Also, organic foods taste MUCH better than conventional and, if bought locally, travel much less distance to get to me. All that being said, I generally put more of an emphasis on local food than certified organic, although both are normally grown using sustainable methods. I do not necessarily believe in (paying for) organic certification, however, if you are buying from a grocery store and not direct from a farmer, it can be a good way to ensure a higher quality product.

It can be very frustrating when one is trying their hardest to take care of themselves and their families and others look down on their efforts as "elitist". I am reminded of one of my favorite Joel Salatin quotes:

"True elitism is some bureaucrat standing up on his hind legs saying consumers are too stupid to find a clean farmer. The real elitists are those who say farmers are dirty and want to hurt their customers. I don't understand why I'm called an elitist for wanting to eat what my grandmother grew up on. Real elitists are the ones who deny me that privilege, and erect a host of barriers to protect global industrialists from peasants with pitchforks...like me."

The sad thing for me is that it is not "my grandmother" anymore, it might be my great-great grandmother...or even further back. But the point is the same, why should we be called elitists for not playing into the system? Does anyone really want to government to decide what foods we can and cannot eat, while making the pockets of companies like Monsanto bigger and bigger? There are plenty of ways to keep the cost of foods down while enjoying a healthy and low-toxicity diet. Because my husband and I almost never go out to eat, we probably spend much less money on food than anyone we know. Mercola mentions a few reasons why organic food can be more expensive and some shopping advice here:
http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2010/10/20/organic-food-is-more-expensive.aspx

I do believe, as the organic food movement grows, the idea of these foods as elitist will wither because local foods are seen as less of a highbrow market (I think, anyway). Also, many people who have had illnesses have turned to traditional foods to get better and have informed their friends and family of the benefits of such a change. I have a lot of hope for the future but have also experienced some of the "elitist" backlash myself. 

What are your thoughts on the subject? What is the perception of local or organic food where you live?

Lessons From Our First Thanksgiving

My husband and I cooked our first Thanksgiving dinner for a group yesterday and I have to say that it went very, very well! All the food was delicious; I can't take credit for any of the recipes, but I can take credit for the work! We learned some valuable lessons though and I think we will be much better prepared for next year.

First lesson: Pay attention while shopping
I had never cooked for a group before so I just bought  A LOT of groceries, thinking that we would just use any leftovers for ourselves. That would have worked out well if we had a refrigerator about twice the size of the one we have. We did make it work, but next time I think I should really pay attention to recipes and only buy what we need. I bought a ton of sweet potatoes to mash and we only used about half of what I bought PLUS we have leftover mash. I love sweet potatoes, but I think that might have been overkill. 

Second Lesson: prepare basting liquid before putting turkey in the oven
I rubbed butter under the skin of turkey and figured it would mix with the natural juices of the bird while cooking and create a basting liquid. However, I think partially do to the leanness of a free-range bird, not a lot of liquid was seeping out. So we created an emergency basting liquid by pouring olive oil, white wine and a little honey over the bird about half-way through and then basted it about every 20 minutes. We saved it but I wish I had known to do that in the beginning.

Third Lesson: Unless you have proper chafing dishes, buffet style may not be a good idea

Probably self- explanatory, nothing stays the right temperature! We should have left everything on the stove, considering our small space, but our family really wanted to do an attractive buffet. May have to pick up some chafing dishes for next year. 

Fourth Lesson: Keep it simple!
This is always the most important to me. I never cook for a large group and also almost never try really creative things, so it was important to keep everything simple and only use recipes I knew I could make. I think it is fun to try one or two things that you never have before though, like I rolled out my own pie crust for the first time (NT recipe). And made mashed potatoes for the first time. But both of those tasks I knew would be pretty low- stress. Also, when cooking for a "non-experimental" group of eaters, it makes things easier to have simple staple dishes. Plus, you can bring out wonderful flavors, like the sweetness of grass-fed butter, in simple dishes. 

Some thing did work out very well. We bought a beautiful local turkey and mostly organic food, so we kept up with our usual ideals. I actually have used Thanksgiving as a time to try a new farm that I have not tried before and get a "taste" of what their chickens may be like for future buying. We compromised, of course, on all the food not being local. If we had been with a group that would appreciate local produce, we could have changed the food choices and have included them. But like always in these situations, I just do my best to buy regionally or domestically (whole foods has asparagus from Peru this time of year! That is just too crazy for me...)

As things have been a little stressful around here lately, it was nice to have a day where we turn off our minds to our everyday lives and tell ourselves we deserve a little break. I am definitely looking forward to the next holidays for that very reason. This was actually the first year in a long time that I have not worked on Thanksgiving (Thanksgiving is a big restaurant day in NYC) so my heart goes out to those who did have to work. It was nice to have a taste of what a "normal" holiday can be like!

I would love to hear how your Thanksgiving went; what would you change and what worked?

Easy Soaked Hummus

Hummus has been on of our favorite foods for a long time. It was my husband's go to snack for a long time, although he normally ate store bought. Even after we had stopped buying processed foods, he would still run out to the convenience store in a pinch for some hummus. The main problem with hummus from the store is that it is not soaked and sometimes made with rancid vegetable oils. Homemade hummus tastes much better and has a better texture; store bought tends to be thin and watery. After experimenting a bit in our new home, I think I have come up with a pretty good recipe for making soaked hummus.

Some people are concerned about using dried chickpeas for homemade hummus because they are hard to cook down, even when soaked, enough to become very soft. I actually like a little more texture to my hummus so I am good with that. Another option may be to use Eden Organic chickpeas, which come in a bpa free can and are packed with nori seaweed. Adding seaweed to beans while cooking is a traditional method and makes the beans easier to digest, even if they are not properly soaked. To soak dried beans you will need:
1. two cups dried chickpeas
2. four tablespoons acid (I use raw apple cider vinegar)

*I always use this table here, but you could find many others
http://www.wonderfulingredients.com/soaking-grains-and-beans

Very easy, just cover the chickpeas and acid with clean water. The beans will double in size so leave enough water and room for that to happen. I try to get the water level just right to where I am leaving enough room but not wasting more water than I have to. Chickpeas take about 24 hours of soaking to reduce phytic acid content. I normally always do about a day and a half for grains and beans that do not sprout easily (from my experience, that includes chickpeas). 

When the beans are ready to cook, thoroughly rinse them off to diminish the acidic taste from your medium. Cook with fresh water on low heat. I leave it on the stove for a long time, up to 45 minutes even, to get them as soft as possible. Like I said, they will not become as soft as canned beans and eventually they will reach a point where they maintain their texture even with prolonged cooking. After they are done I like to rinse them with cold water to make them less hot before going into the blender and again reducing any leftover acid flavor. My recipe is:

2 cups cooked chickpeas (you will have some left over)
1 tablespoon tahini
Juice of 1 lemon
1 hot pepper(optional)
3 cloves garlic (lightly roasted or raw)
1/2 cup evoo
1/4 cup water
sprinkle of sea salt to taste
various herbs to taste

I puree the chickpeas with the evoo and lemon first with a good sprinkling of seas salt. From there you can add a little bit of water or more evoo to get the consistency you like. I like a thicker hummus and personally I find most recipes use too much water. I like the rich olive oil taste much better, but you can play with ratios of water and evoo (obviously there is a cost issue here too). Next add the garlic, hot pepper if you wish, and tahini. We do not like a strong tahini taste, but you could add one or two more tablespoons if you do. Get your herbs out and play around while blending them in. I like herbs de Provence as an all around mixture.

You can garnish with the extra chickpeas if you like or save them for something else. If you have any lemon juice leftover, you can squeeze some more on top before serving with a sprinkling of sea salt. I have been playing around with making my own crackers and also crostinis from leftover bread, but I snapped this picture with the organic brown rice crackers I buy sometimes. Along with some slow-cooker veggies, this makes a great afternoon snack or light lunch. You could even eat the hummus with some cut up raw veggies or placing a dollop on top of a salad to reduce the overall carbohydrates of the meal. Simple and Yummy!

Easy Sauerkraut (Nourishing Traditions Style)

Homemade Sauerkraut is just about as simple and nourishing as it gets! It makes a wonderful condiment to many meals and is much less expensive to make at home. This is also one of those cases where store bought products can be a far cry from the traditional food. I have been using the small batch method that Sally Fallon Morell introduced in "Nourishing Traditions". I am so grateful for this method, as some other ones out there seem time consuming and unsuitable for a small space. In NT, Sally writes, " The ancients understood the fact that important chemical changes took place during this type of fermentation. Their name for this change was "alchemy". Like the fermentation of dairy products, preservation of vegetables and fruits by the process of lacto-fermentation has numerous advantages beyond those of simple preservation. The proliferation of lactobacilli in fermented vegetables enhances their digestibility and increases vitamin levels. These beneficial organisms produce numerous helpful enzymes as well as antibiotic and anticarcinogenic substances."
Wow! A great, easy process that preserves veggies, increases vitamins, and can prevent cancer? Count me in : )

 
Basically the method in NT involves pounding a whole head of cabbage with either salt or a combination of salt and isolated whey (you can make it from raw milk or yogurt). I have not been making whey recently, although I want to start up again, so I went the all salt route. The first time I made it, I used Sally's full recommendation of 2 tablespoons of salt. However, and probably because I used only about 3/4 of the cabbage instead of the whole thing, the end product was very salty. This time I cut back to 1 1/2 tablespoons for the whole cabbage. FYI: For the use of whey, you can use 1 tablespoon salt and 4 tablespoons whey. Make sure you core the cabbage and remove the outer leaves that are no longer hard. Sally's "basic recipe" also calls for a tablespoon of caraway seeds, which are a delicious addition.

I tried to cut it as fine as possible, but it can be very difficult. If anyone knows of a knife or tool that makes this easier, I would love to hear it. Also, the cabbage will continue to soften over time so if you happen to cut it more coarse, you can always hang on to it longer.

I filled up a plastic bowl with the washed cabbage and got ready to pound it out. I definitely recommend doing this on a carpet on the floor if you don't live in a building alone and do not want your neighbors freaking out. Also, I found that being able to kneel helped use more force and I can imagine traditional cultures doing it that way. I probably pounded for about 10-12 minutes. You will hear bubbling noises and notice some liquid coming out in the bowl. You do not have to go too crazy because once it gets put in the mason jar, you will probably find that you have more than enough liquid to cover the cabbage. 

Transferring the cabbage to the mason jar (or jars in this case) is not the most graceful process. I used a fork and my hands and did the best I could. The recommended size is a wide mouthed quart jar. After you add some cabbage (maybe every other forkful) , press down with your pounder if you can, or another tool if it does not fit, to get as much in there as possible. I used a muddle type tool that we got for guacamole a long time ago.

I kind of felt like I let Sally down a little because I found it impossible to get all the cabbage in one jar. However, I realized the cabbage I used might really be considered a large one and not medium like she recommends, so I felt better : ). Make sure the cabbage is covered with its juices AND that you leave some space at the top of the jar. Both equally important things. The cabbage will ferment and expand so you need space. You will see bubbles and the jar will probably pop the first time you open it. You can transfer it to the fridge after three days and it will continue to slowly age. I added some herbs de provence to this batch and it turned out great. Sally has many recipes in NT and there are endless combinations of spices to be played around with.

One of my favorite new quick dinners is adding the sauerkraut to my slow cooker stewed veggies with melted butter. The sweet butter complements the sauerkraut and the mix of temperatures works well together. I can imagine sauerkraut in almost any soup to be divine... 

I heard Sally Fallon Morrel speak once and she mentioned that she thinks people overdo it on sauerkraut and that you only need a little bit. She states in the book, also, that it is a condiment and should be used as such. I agree and I think I was one of those people overdoing it when I first found out how good it was for you. I read that it helped with digestion so I began to buy it from a local organic farm in NY that made it with their own cabbage. It was daunting at first because I thought I needed to eat a whole bowl at a time; after hearing her speak, I cut back and discovered I felt just as good with just a forkful with meals...


 Books:

One great book that I have heard about again and again is "Wild Fermentation" by Sandor Katz. He also just released anther one called "The Art of Fermentation". Also, Glowfglins blogger Wardeh Harmon has released "The Complete Idiots Guide to Fermenting Foods" that just got a glowing thumbs up review from the last WAPF journal.

Whole Chicken Value Cooking

My Husband and I have been trying to keep food costs relatively low as well as getting the most bang for our buck and being able to experiment a little in the kitchen. I've talked about how much we love to make an easy dinner put of a pack of chicken wings or thighs, but I have recently discovered how much fun it is to cook a whole chicken. You can get many great meals out of it, up to five (or more!) depending on the size of the bird, not to mention some rich chicken stock to last for many more meals.

We purchased a medium sized bird from one of our local farms. A little pricey, but the quality is better than a Whole Foods or Trader Joe's chicken, although they can be good deals as well. Pastured chicken is much more flavorful and can even be slightly gamey. I like to cook it for a long time so that it has a fall off the bone texture. That takes about an hour and a half at 375 degrees. We cover it with lots of spices; sea salt, black pepper, thyme, oregano, parsley, cayenne...just to name a few. We love the skin when it is crispy and very flavorful.

We got 4 full dinners out of this one little bird. We could have been more stingy and gotten more out of it, or we could have filled up a little more at once and gotten less. Regardless, we had very good eating for almost a whole week...

The first two nights, we typically get to enjoy full pieces on the bone. Afterwards we make stews or sautes out of the meat we can pick off. And by the last night, I bake whatever is left of the bird at 350 again for 20 minutes or so and we pick every last bit we can off. And as always, we save every bone for stock making.

Dinner One:

Not sure what cut this is but it includes the wing and surrounding areas, served over veggies that were prepared in the slow cooker for two hours while the bird was cooking as well.

Dinner Two:

Thighs for each of us, served over sauteed rise and black beans (soaked and prepared in advance) with some frozen broccoli thrown in. Nice easy meal...

 Dinner Three

White meat stew, we don't love the white meat so the easiest thing to do is to chop it up and slow cook it with some veggies so it gets really soft. We had some cabbage in there that complemented things nicely. And yes, those are jalapenos in there, we like things spicy around here. Also while not local, Whole Foods has been carrying a lot of organic hot peppers recently which I have never seen before and am super excited about. We also buy some local ones here, although I doubt they are organic.

Dinner Four:

Like I said, Picked whatever we could off the bones and made a saute with the leftover black beans and some frozen broccoli and peas. This was the end of the week and we were running out of fresh veggies. I keep frozen organic veggies on hand to supplement with in a pinch. There was actually a lot of meat left over and it was so tender and delicious from the long cooking. We probably could have stretched it into two meals or had it for lunch the next day.

And nourishing stock!

Not sure why it is so dark (I don't bother to filter it that well). I actually got a mason jar and a half and froze the whole one. I even had bones left over that couldn't fit in the slow cooker and I double stewed this round of bones and plan to use the weaker stock to cook rice and beans with. So even though the whole bird was more expensive, it really gave us a lot more nutrition than buying parts separately.

I should also mention that cooking the whole bird is the only time I have ever seen any visible gelatin form. I had never seen the clear big pieces, either in finished stock or as a by-product of cooking before. The bird ends up stewing a little in its own juices and when I take it out of the fridge the next day (I just store it in the glass bowl I cooked it in) it has a nice big layer of gelatine on the bottom which I take out and add to the bones for stock making. Maybe that is why the stock is so much more cloudy?

One day it would be great to do the whole process with a whole stewing bird and get to use the liver to make a nice dinner also. I definitely could have been more creative, but we tend to keep things simple and I eat dinner after getting off of work late most nights so these meals were perfect and easy for us. Do you enjoy cooking whole birds? Any suggestions for better, easy dinners?

Lifestyle Changes Part 1: Clothing Concerns

I have been eating organic food for really as long as I have been shopping for myself. It took me a little longer to catch on to the "local" scene, but it has been already a few years since I went to my first farmer's market and never looked back. However, all these years I never really gave that much though to the clothing that I was buying and wearing. To be honest, I did give it thought, and some guilt at times; I always assumed it would be something that I would change eventually in my life and in my own time. One of the great reasons to go local is to support the local community and to ensure that farmers receive a good wage for their hard work. It makes sense that this philosophy should natural extend to other purchases one would make. However, most clothing is full of toxic materials and made in factories far away by abused worker's hands. Aside from the occasionally organic shirt from companies like H and M and American Apparel, I have pretty much worn whatever I wanted and tended to stick to big, known companies for most of my clothing.

About a year ago, I decided I would slowly start to change the way I saw clothes and how I shopped. I would not say that clothing and appearance are a huge part of my life, but I can say that I do like to feel good about the way I look every day and enjoy getting "dolled up" once in a while. I started giving myself 3 month, seasonal increments where I would not allow myself to buy any clothing. I also started shopping more for used apparel, mostly on ebay, that I could obtain for a much lower cost. I started to change the way I saw clothes. I tried to get out of the "more is better" mentality and focus on finding used clothes that I really liked and felt reflected my personal style and taste. I started going to thrift stores and trying on many different things, focusing on the way they fit me instead of whether they were the current style or color. Before long, I discovered that I really enjoyed myself and found joy in searching for hidden treasures or items that I could make work but other people may have passed over (before I would mostly purchase things online and hated shopping in stores).

By nature I am a bit of an extremist (probably no shock, as I have noticed a lot of people concerned with food issues are), so at first there was a little of a "yay! now that I am buying used clothes I can buy as much as I want!", but that waivered over time and now I am actually more frugal than ever. I should also mention that I was living in NYC at this time, which is pure thrift store heaven and it is a lot harder to control oneself while shopping there.

In addition to buying used, I also have started buying from small organic shops as well, trying to have an attitude that it is okay to buy new if it is either from an organic or "sweat shop free" company. One that I really like is Alternative Apparel (similar in style to American Apparel) that sells Alternative Earth which makes very cute organic basic tees. Also, Whole Foods recently started carrying a line called Threads for Thought which has cute inexpensive basics as well. Workout clothes tend to be the hardest because quality and fabric really matter, but I did find a company called Green Apple Active that I have been generally happy with, although they don't seem to have a lot of "high intensity" workout gear.  Things like sports bras and sneakers really should be bought new, but I tend to take really good care of them and make them last a long time so I feel less guilty about that. 

So generally that is my plan so far. It could obviously be improved tremendously. I greatly admire people who do things like make their own clothes or people who generally don't care about clothes and are okay with throwing on whatever covers them (I don't mean to sound sarcastic, I really think that is a good way to go and makes a lot of sense). I have a lot of nice clothes that I really don't wear that much as they are no good for homesteading and we don't generally go out too often, AND I wear a uniform to work, so I expect over the next few years the amount of clothes I buy will drop dramatically still. I even have a few basic tees with a couple tiny holes in them that I keep wearing. I even like it a little because I feel like I am really "wearing" my clothes and they are really my own (this is one of those "if my old self met my new self shock type of things"). I do have a little guilt over fueling the whole cycle of people buying from large companies. For example, I have a Kate Spade purse that was a great thrift store find, but by buying it am I encouraging the consignment store to keep buying them, and in turn encourage consumers to keep buying them? Maybe a little.As far as I know, there is not a lot of "local" clothing companies really getting started around here and buying domestic is probably as close to "cottage" as one can get in terms of that. But for now, I think as long as I also support some other companies who are doing good, and support thrift stores in general because they reduce waste, I think I am good with this plan for now. What about you? Did it take you a while, like it took me, to improve your outlook on clothing? What is your general plan? 

Easy Cottage Project: Baby Herb Garden

 As we do not own the house that we live in and do not know how long we are going to stay here, I have been very limited in my ability start a garden even though I yearn to. Planting in pots has been a decent alternative, so I have been starting a few little plants lately. One project I did was to start a mini-herb garden in the backyard and it has truly been a lot of fun watching the little plants sprout and grow everyday!

I purchased the seeds from Amazon, organic and only for about 5 dollars. Not my first choice of course, but I have been having trouble finding independent nurseries that sell seeds; most of them are outdoors and have no temperature control. I have heard of really good heirloom seed stores online, but I figured I would just start with something inexpensive and easy and move up from there.

I also found the pots in the shed, so really the 5 dollars and the soil that I had purchased previously was the only start-up cost I had. I really have not done much gardening so I need all the (small scale) practice I can get. I did not soak the seeds as the package suggested, partly out of laziness and partly because it is pretty humid here and I did have some good organic planting soil on hand so I figured they would be okay. Most of the seed packets say they should be about 1/4 inch into the soil so most of them I placed right on top and just lightly dusted some soil on top with my fingers. I have them tucked to the side of a fish pond that is in our backyard so they are somewhat protected by the elements. I have been watering almost everyday and waiting a day or so if we have heavy rain, which has been happening a lot here. I also protect them with an old shower curtain if the rain gets to be too much during a storm. I also have a good organic fertilizer tea that is made locally that I splash into the watering can every few days. Right on schedule, the little seeds started budding and then growing into beautiful little plants. The mustard greens started first and have continued to be the most anxious. The sweet basil also looks very lively and the cilantro and dill are catching up.

My poor sage toppled over the second day or so and some of the seeds got knocked out. They sprouted on the ground at the same time they lone survivors did in the pot. I was going to replant them but I think I will just wait and see how they little guys on the ground do.

It has actually been a lot more fun than I thought it would be. I am going to bring them into our side porch once it gets cold outside and hopefully be able to keep some going throughout

the winter. I have harvested the bigger ones a little bit; my

culinary uses may be limited  on this scale.I should have used much bigger pots to be able to cook with them every day. But it is therapeutic, if not a little bit of a pain, to trim to little baby leaves and they are fragrant enough to add a little something to stocks and dishes.

In addition to my little herbacious ones, I also am trying to keep alive two blueberry bushes that are heading into hibernation. We plan on growing some more pot-plants soon and maybe even some cold weather veggies during the winter.  What are your experiences with small scale gardening? Any advice for very limited space?

Homemade Chicken Stock: Slow Cooker and Single Diner Style

I have been using my slow cooker non-stop lately. I have a Vitaclay, which has a clay bowl. It is a natural material that is also naturally non-stick, a lovely alternative to ones that contain teflon or lead. I have a small, 6 cup one which is great for one or two people. Generally if I make dinner for myself and fill the pot all the way, I have plenty left over for the next day as well. Neither my husband or I have set schedules and he has been very busy with grad school lately that we do not always eat dinner together or at the same time; so some nights I eat alone and some nights with him, but the slow cooker is perfect for either. I have been making a lot of dinners composed of just veggies and protein in it. Basically just throwing cut up veggies, any combination I have, and adding protein on top. It is great for a number of reasons. It is the ultimate lazy dinner, as it takes very little time to prepare and only uses up a couple of dishes. I have never been one for cutting veggies evenly or developing my knife skills at all, and you don't really have to with this method. For the most part, you can cut as haphazardly as you want, making sure tougher veggies are small enough to keep up with the non-tough ones. The combinations are endless and pretty risk-free, as the flavors blend together much more than they would if everything was cooked separate. I also love the texture of the prepared foods. The way mine have turned out so far (I am sure I could experiment more and keep the veggies a little less tender), the veggies and meats are very very soft. However, they are so much more flavorful than they would be otherwise because everything is contained in the pot, making it impossible for flavor to escape. All the liquid is contained in the pot as well, and I make sure to consume all of it together to retain all the nurtrients that would be lost with other cooking methods. However, the most important thing I have made so far with my slow-cooker is home-made chicken stock. 

I could do a whole post on why you should make chicken-stock and why it is so good for you (maybe I will?), but I think for the most part it is a given. What most people might not know is the BIG problem with store bought chicken stock. They can contain added sugar, flavorings or MSG (natural flavor is an acceptable term for MSG also). They are also always pasteurized, which kills any heat sensitive vitamins. They also do not taste great and it is impossible to trace where the chicken came from that was used for it. There are of course some great recipes and "how to" guides for chicken stock from various sources, but mine is a little different because it is adapted for small spaces and single diners. 

I use left-over chicken bones from dinners I make regularly. Since I tend to buy small cuts of chicken, like wings or thighs, these tend to be small but plentiful. Larger bones contain more nutrition, and using a whole carcass is ideal; but this way works well too, and I figure as long as I consume it regularly I am getting plenty of added nutrients to my overall diet. I usually freeze the bones as I go, in either glass or plastic, and make the stock when I have enough. When I am ready, I throw the bones in the slow-cooker pot. Than I add whatever veggies I want. I think carrots and celery are always good basics. Also, any non-sulfer veggie can be thrown in. The sulfur veggies, like broccoli, tend to have an overpowering flavor when used for stock. The great thing is that you can use veggies that are just past their prime, like some wilted kale that you do not think will saute up nice. Add some garlic cloves, no need to chop, and some course cut up onion if you want. Next, I add some spices of my choosing. Lots of herbs and some cayenne pepper, as we like things spicy around here. And don't forget to add a good amount of sea salt and some apple cider vinegar, just a small splash, to help draw the nutrients out of the bones. Add pure water to just under the lid. The first time I did this, I ended up having a less-flavorful stock because I added more water than bones, figuring my yield would be small; but after discovering I had much more stock than I thought I would, I ended up cutting the water significantly the next time.

 

Side note: Pleas forgive these horrible pictures! I am working on adding good pics to all my posts soon but for now I just wanted to have something to show so I used my cell phone camera...

I set the timer for 12 hours, which in the Vitaclay means using the "stew" setting and adding eight hours to the timer. It will stay in "warm" mode 12 hours after cooking so at most you have 24 hours to drain the liquid.

The Next day, I strain the stock through a small metal sieve while saving all the bones and veggies. Normally I add the stock to a mason jar for storage. You can also freeze it if you are not going to use it within a week. The way to make it extra frugal, and what I do, is save the bones and veggies for the next batch and just "refresh" it with a little more bones and veg and then repeat the process all over again. If you want to be REALLY frugal (who doesn't?), you can add the veg to a pureed soup after you use it for stock a couple of times. The stock I end up with is not as solid as it would be if I used a whole carcass, but like I said it still has plenty of nutrients and does become cloudy and have some solid pieces in the fridge, so I know there is some gelatin in there. You could also add chicken feet to the stock to add nutrition and still be able to use a small slow-cooker. That's it! You can then use to stock for cooking or drinking. Drinking stock with protein-rich meals helps with digestion and adds flavor and nutrition. Yummy!


http://www.westonaprice.org/childrens-health/slow-cooker-rules
http://www.westonaprice.org/food-features/why-broth-is-beautiful
http://www.thenourishinggourmet.com/2011/09/bone-broth-take-frugal-to-a-new-level.html