Stir It Up! » Blog

I really need to work on some upcoming nutritional presentations (more to come!), client pictures, my classes, consulting prep work, oh, and family things – (that reminds me, I really need to register my son for kindergarten, pay the bills, clean, do some laundry, and….ughhh!!).  So, I thought, hey, what a great time to do a post! Okay, not really, but I really loved this and wanted to share. The kids and hubby loved it too! Anyway, the pictures might not be great and the wording might be off, so please ignore if so!

The other day, while at Whole Foods, as my 5-year old was explaining to me that he was growing hair under his arms (thank goodness we don’t actually eat food with hormones or I might have believed him!), I was trying to concentrate on what to cook for dinner.  I saw some shiitake mushrooms and I knew I wanted to do something fun with them. I had read an article talking about how they were the “medicinal mushroom” and were great for the immune system. Regardless, I just love them. Anyway, for the sake of shiitake, we came up with this Oriental Ground Beef Veggie Mash.

This is what you need:

• 1 pack of fresh shiitake mushrooms
• handful or two of thinly sliced carrots
• 2-3 handfuls of fresh spinach
• head of broccoli
• or whatever veggies you like and have on hand…
• 1.5 lb or more grass fed ground beef
• 1-2 tbsp coconut oil or ghee
• 3-4 tbsp toasted sesame oil
• 4 tbsp Tamari  (gluten free soy sauce) or Coconut Aminos (I use some of both)
• 1 tbsp fresh ginger
• 1 orange, juiced (optional)
• dash of salt & pepper
• Maifun Brown Rice noodles (optional)

Get out a large pan and put about 1-2 tbsp of coconut oil so it melts in the pan. Then add the mushrooms and carrots and sauteed them until they start to get soft.  Next, drizzle 2 tbsp roasted sesame oil (since unlike the coconut oil, it is not meant for high heat) and about 2 tbsp of organic tamari (gluten free soy sauce).

Now, set aside your mushroom and carrots once done and try not to eat them all. Mmmm, shiitake mushrooms….

Next get out a pot and start to boil a little bit of water so you can steam your broccoli. Then chopped the broccoli and put it in the pot so it can cook for just a few minutes. Be sure to not overcook it, especially since you’re going to cook it just a bit more once all of the food is together at the end.

After just a few minutes, pour the broccoli into your colander. I used my Ulu knife to chop the broccoli even finer but you could use a regular knife or even skip this chopping part.

Next, in the same pan you used for the carrots and mushrooms, add the meat and cook on both sides (I kept it in a big hunk) until brown. Then spread it out with a spatula and add some tamari (about 2 tbsp). Once that is almost all brown, added 2-3 handfuls of spinach, stir it all together and let it cook for a few more minutes on low.

Lastly (yup, already lastly), add about 1 tbsp fresh ginger, dash of salt and pepper, juice from your orange, and then the rest of the ingredients, cook on low for a few minutes and then it’s ready to serve!

That was it! It only took about 30 minutes from prep to cooking and it was a great meal. I ate it this way (see above) but for something different for my family, they tried some super thin (which made them fun) gluten free brown rice noodles by Annie Chuns. I usually don’t like to use noodles because I’d rather the family eat more veggies and meat (and less filler), but thought it would be a nice change for them. I do love that these noodles only have two ingredients, brown rice and water. I bought mine at Kroger, but you can get them online, or I would bet Whole Foods would have them.

The kids clearly enjoyed them, and any excuse to use chopsticks…

By the way, this is post-shower. They get dirty and greasy, but they aren’t that greasy!

It. Never. Ends.

Junk food, with lots of sugar and artificial colors, is constant. For many of us, it’s gone way beyond birthday parties, class treats, vacations and holidays.  How about a lollipop from the doctor?  Or some jellybeans for going to the bathroom?  Perhaps some candy for getting a haircut?  Great T-ball game, here’s a sno-cone.  Really, a cookie for going to the grocery store?  A popsicle will mend that boo-boo.

When did junk food become a reward for everything our kids do? I love this article from US News because I could totally relate. After I posted it to Facebook, I noticed many read it so I have to assume they feel the same. If you haven’t read it, it’s worth a peek.

I’m just saying, why can’t we do better snacks and treats? Why do we have to have cupcakes, bright red and blue popsicles, AND candy ALL at the same party.  Sometimes I talk to different groups, like Girl Scout troups, for example. When I go visit them, I talk about why we want to eat healthy and then I provide many healthy snacks for the girls to sample and then rate the taste from 5 (super yummy) to 1 (gross). MOST of the girls like, no…LOVE, all of the snacks I bring.  By the end, as I walk around, I hear kids yelling, “I’m giving them all 5s!!!”. Yeah, now I’m bragging. But, still, the kids are happy with these foods. I don’t understand why our expectations of our kids are so low that we think they will be disappointed with anything unless it has lots of color, preservatives and sugar. Our kids deserve more credit (and better options) than this.

With predictions like 1 out of 3 kids will get diabetes, can’t we all just try a little harder. I know if you  are reading this blog, chances are good that you are very health conscious (YAY for you, and I mean that!!). But I think if we all stand our ground, insist (or at least suggest) bringing say fruit and water to soccer games (like we use to do way back when) instead of Goldfish and Doritos, it would be a start.  A good start. What do we have to loose? Actually…a lot.

Okay, enough rant for one day.  I just wanted to share on a more positive note a treat that our family enjoyed this weekend  that won’t make us feel, tired, sick, or bad later.   Knowing that is half of the enjoyment! Anyway, they were nut-free for our friends who came over, and I think the cookies were really enjoyed by all!

This is a rendition I got from Paleomg (I love her stuff btw). Anyway, the recipes called for Sunbutter and I really couldn’t tell that much of a difference from the almond butter. You can get this at Publix or Whole Foods and it’s a great alternative for school treats or just for those with tree nut allergies.

Here is what you need for the cookies:

• 2 cups sunflower seed butter (the jar is 16 oz so I was a little short so added 1 tbsp coconut flour)
• 2/3 cup raw honey (or 1 cup coconut palm sugar) I used honey. Would like to try with coconut palm sugar to see how it turns out. So play around with a cup +/- and see how it tastes.
• 2 eggs
• 1 vanilla bean stem, slit lengthwise, little baby beans removed with the edge of your knife
• 1 tbsp vanilla extract
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 tsp celtic sea salt
• 3/4 cup dark chocolate chunks (crushed from a bar) or chips

Here is what you need to do:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Place all ingredients in a large bowl and mix well.
3. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
4. Use tbsp to scoop out a dollop of cookie mix and pour onto baking sheet. Space out so cookies do not form together when they bake.
5. Bake for 14-16 minutes, be careful not to overcook these.

With treats like these, who needs anything else (well, besides some almond or coconut milk for dipping of course)??

Okay, I totally should have taken a picture of these when the chocolate was melted. Next day, after being in the fridge picture just doesn’t do these cookies justice…

We love dried fruit, but it can be really expensive. Anyway, we thought it would be fun to try to make our own in the stove. And it was so easy! I don’t know why we haven’t done this before. We pre-heated the oven to 210, cut up some strawberries in halves or quarters, added some blueberries, put in on a piece of parchment on a cookie sheet and let it cook for about 3-4 hours.

Later in the afternoon, when we opened the oven we were rewarded with a really nice smell.  When I tried them,  I was expecting them to be dried & crunchy (like they were freeze dried or something) but of course they were not.  Not at all actually. But instead, we were pleasantly surprised with super sweet, warm jelly-like texture.  It actually reminded me of fruit roll ups when those first came out. I can remember it clearly back when I was in the 1st grade. Do you remember that too? Anyway, little did we know (or care) at the time, that those are just a little fruit concentrate with some hydrogenated oil (there’s that word!), corn syrup, dried corn syrup (because we need more corn syrup), oh and then sugar and food coloring.  I promise these baked berries did taste similar to me though, and without any added sugar!

I think if I had turned off the stove and let them sit another hour or so they would have gotten a little harder, maybe even crunchy, but I just couldn’t wait that long.

So I had to get a quick picture before the disappeared. As I kept checking on them in the stove, I needed to keep trying them. You know, just to be sure they were okay, and man were they okay!  Did I mention that I just hit 3 weeks of  a “no sugar” detox, so you have to know that my taste buds went crazy for this. 

But…I wasn’t the only one who loved them, as you can see. You snooze, you loose around here…

What a fun, simple (it doesn’t get any simpler) and delicious treat!

Hope everyone is enjoying the beautiful spring weather!

Good Easter morning!!

I feel like I should be posting a fun paleo treat or something since it’s Easter morning but we are out of town and I don’t have all of my standard cooking ingredients so will have to save that for another day. Instead I wanted to share with you one of my favorite blogs and a yummy recipe to go with…

If you haven’t checked out Multiplydelicious.com you are missing out!  Heather, who is author of the site, amazes me. A friend and I thought her site wasn’t one person but rather a company, only because her pictures, food, and creativity is out-of-this-world. I have found some of my favorite recipes from her site over the years and now she has just released her own e-book. Click here to check out her awesomeness!

In celebration of her book, I wanted to cook one of her recipes and as always, she did not disappoint. We made her Tuna Bacon Cakes and they were great! I ate the leftovers for days on a spinach salad (yes, with my balsamic vinegar).

Tuna Bacon Cakes

• 1 cup cooked sweet potato, mashed
• 2 to 3 green onions, finely diced
• 10 ounces canned wild albacore tuna, drained
• 2 to 3 slices cooked bacon, diced
• 2 tablespoons cilantro, finely chopped
• 1 small garlic clove, minced
• zest from 1/2 lemon (about 1/2 teaspoon)
• 2 pastured eggs
• 2 tablespoons coconut flour
• sea salt and fresh ground pepper to taste
• coconut oil, avocado oil, or bacon grease

Instructions:

In a large bowl mix together all ingredients through coconut flour.  Season with salt and pepper.

In a large non-stick skillet over medium-high heat add fat of choice (coconut oil, avocado oil, or bacon grease), just enough to coat pan.

Form mixture into patties, should make about 7 or 8 patties.

Place about 3 to 4 patties into skillet, leave enough room around patties so they cook evenly.  Cook patties on each side until golden and cooked through, about 3 to 4 minutes on each side.

This was more of an adult meal (for us since my kids don’t love the smell of tuna) but I loved them!  Did I mention how great they were with some guacamole? Do I mention guacamole in every post or what? It’s just so good!

Oh by the way, I just found these cans of tuna at Costco. I originally bought mine at Whole Food for $4 something a can. I got 6 cans at Costco for $9.99.  I love that place!

Hope you all found your Easter Eggs…

And have a very Happy Easter!

I am so intrigued by nutrition and how it affects us (and our families) now and how it will affect us in the future.  There are many, many different philosophies, diets, debates, claims and studies that are contradictory in today’s society. Is meat great for us or will it cause heart disease? Are eggs a good source of protein or do we need to worry about cholesterol? Should we eat low fat or high, good fat? Is dairy good for us or does it make us sick?
 
I’ve been learning some great things through my program at The Institute of Integrative Nutrition and I am excited to learn more and share with you all.  One thing is certain regardless of what we all believe — the less inflammatory foods we can consume, the better off we are, and THAT is a fact.  Inflammation can cause anything from weight gain to lowering your immune system (since 70 percent of our immune is in our gut) to heart disease to diabetes, arthritis, autoimmune diseases, and more.

So what are some of the worst offenders?

-First and foremost, as many of you may already know is hydrogenated oil. We need those out of the diet or at least kept to a minimum. But in addition, we also need to limit polyunsaturated vegetable oils like safflower, sunflower, corn, peanut and soy.  They have a very high omega-6 content and very low omega-3 content and therefore, this imbalance encourages inflammation. A better choice is a good olive oil, for no to medium heat. For high heat, look to coconut oil, grass fed butter, or ghee.

–Commercial or grain fed meat– There is a lot of controversy lately over eating meat or going vegetarian. I think most of the concerns you hear about regarding meat, is about the grain fed meat filled with omega-6s. Feedlot raised animals are fed a diet that is high in inflammatory omega-6 fatty acids but low in anti-inflammatory omega-3 fats. They are fed GMO grains like soy beans and corn. These animals are also, they given hormones to encourage growth and then the antibiotics, to prevent or recover from illness. That is a lot of things that our bodies don’t need. Instead (ideally) try to stick with grass fed meat, organic chicken, and wild fish.

–Refined sugar– On top of the many reasons why sugar is not good for us, it is also reported that processed sugars and other high-glycemic starches increase inflammation, which causes physical pain, overheating, redness and swelling in addition to internal inflammation. The Dartmouth Medical School also found that sugar causes acne.. Try coconut palm sugar, sucanat (sugar cane), dark honey, pure maple (in limited quantities) or some stevia instead.

–Processed grains are similar to refined sugar in that they have a higher glycemic index than unprocessed grains and can increase inflammation. In addition they are filled with gluten, which can damage our gut and cause inflammation because our bodies have such a hard time digesting it. Try to stick to grains like quinoa, millet, amaranth, gluten free oats, and brown rice. Click here to how to best prepare these grains.

On another note,  I finally found a great little kids book today about nutrition called Eat Healthy, Feel Great by Dr. Sears…

It is simple for the kids to comprehend and it really got my 5 year old’s attention. The kids asked questions and it gave me the opportunity to give my own examples while we were reading.  Be sure to do the same so they fully understand and you can teach them what you believe in the process.

I know, probably too many pics of my kids, and not really even good ones, but I needed some pictures for today’s post!