My kids LOVE peanut butter, but store-bought peanut butter is full of preservatives and sugar. So, I decided to make my own. Then I thought that if I was going to spend the time making it, I should make it super healthy. Peanuts have been getting some "bad press" because of the fungus that is often found on them, which creates a toxin called Aflatoxin. We've been eating peanut butter in our family since my husband and I were married, and fed it to our children. As far as I can tell, we've had no issues with peanuts, but I had just purchased a bag of organic raw almonds...So, I made almond butter instead. Not only is it packed with nutrients, but it's delicious too! Since I was only experimenting, I used inexact measurements and made a small amount. This is what I did, which yielded about a cup of almond butter:
In my MagicBullet, I threw in 3 handfuls of almonds (here is some information on almonds), 2ish tablespoons of coconut oil (Here are some health benefits from coconut oil), and a few dashes of cinnamon (health benefits of cinnamon). After a minute it was completely pureed and perfect! The coconut oil made it a bit runny at first, but once it cooled back to room temperature, it got more solidified. If you wanted to add some sweetness to yours, you could add some honey, agave or stevia. Since I'm trying to avoid sugars, I opted to leave it as is. A drop of pure vanilla extract might be something yummy to add as well!
Our family is also limiting the amount of grain and yeast products we are eating, so we've had to get creative with meals and snacks. Many people typically think of things like sandwiches or soups for lunch because they're quick and easy. Most canned soups that I find have either some form of gluten, MSG or both. And breads, even gluten free breads, have yeast to help them rise. Thinking outside the box, we've decided to try romaine lettuce for sandwiches. My kids love it! They decided to try the new almond butter on their lettuce sandwiches. I couldn't make the sandwiches fast enough for the boys; and the girls, well, they eventually decided it was good enough to eat. To be fair, they were expecting something more like peanut butter. It just wasn't what they were expecting.
Saturday, October 18, 2014
Saturday, October 4, 2014
Paleo vs. Gluten Free
As I have mentioned in my very first post, this blog and my facebook page are ways to document my growth as a stay at home mom of 4. Now that I am not a full time teacher, I have time to think about and research healthy choices for my family. Today I did a little bit of research about the Paleo diet. Now that I am surrounding myself with people who are health conscious, I'm hearing more discussions about gluten, preservatives, Paleo, toxins, and all kinds of other healthy living issues. One thing that came up a while ago was that there are still a lot of yucky things in foods that are gluten-free.
In Stacey Kimbrell's class earlier this year, she listed all the different names for MSG and other toxic ingredients that we find in the foods on the shelves of our local grocery stores. Names like formaldehyde can also be renamed so they are less recognizable by the consumer. For example, MSG can also be called whey protein, brewers yeast, yeast extract, and even "natural flavor". This page lists the different ingredients that can break down into MSG when processed. This allows the food companies to use the MSG as a preservative without any red flags for most people. So, for a while I brought my list of chemical names, looked at box and bag labels, checking each of the words on the label that I couldn't pronounce to see which toxins were in the foods I wanted to buy. Then I had to make the decision of "do I need or want it bad enough that I will allow myself and my family to ingest toxin x"? Many times I purchased the product thinking that we wouldn't be eating that much of it, or it was essential for a recipe I was planning to make, or it was a convenience food. I found myself making decisions like this: My husband wanted chips to snack on, and I had a coupon for either Bugles or Green Giant Veggie chips. I immediately grabbed the veggie chips thinking they'd obviously be the more healthy choice. Just for kicks and giggles, I compared the nutrition information and ingredients on the Bugles and the veggie chips. Surprisingly, the veggie chips had the most "chemical" ingredients. I used my coupon and purchased the Bugles, even though the ingredients list contained some of those naughty, yucky, hard to pronounce words. At least they were gluten-free, right?
I can read labels on gluten-free crackers, chips, cereals, etc. and see all kinds of unnatural ingredients. It has only taken me a few months, but I have realized, the easiest way to avoid these poisons is to eat food that hasn't been processed. Hence my search of information on the Paleo Diet. I Googled "Paleo Grocery List" and I found these two helpful sites: paleoonabudget.com and paleogrubs.com. Both have at least 2 weeks worth of meal plans and links to some amazing recipes. One of the authors mentions a few times how easy it is to make Paleo meals because the ingredients are so simple. You don't have to have all kinds of canned soups, dressings, or flavor packets to make these meals. Just stock up on meats, veggies and fruits! Paleo Poor also gives a list of seasonal fruits and veggies, so you know which ones will be the best buy. Not only that, she also lists which are "clean", "dirty" or considered more nutritious than the others. So, if I'm on a budget (which I most definitely am), I can decide to get a clean fruit or veggie that is not organic, and spend my extra few cents on getting the organic fruits or veggies that are considered "dirty".
So, today was my first Paleo shopping trip. It was so easy! I found a few things that were manager specials because they were a little wilted. But if we eat them tomorrow, they'll be just fine. According to my seasonal list, I purchased fruits and veggies that are in season now (squash, apples, sweet potatoes), so I didn't have to pay the extra for them to get shipped from the other side of the world. I didn't have to stress about which big words I needed to look up on my danger list. Amazing!
In Stacey Kimbrell's class earlier this year, she listed all the different names for MSG and other toxic ingredients that we find in the foods on the shelves of our local grocery stores. Names like formaldehyde can also be renamed so they are less recognizable by the consumer. For example, MSG can also be called whey protein, brewers yeast, yeast extract, and even "natural flavor". This page lists the different ingredients that can break down into MSG when processed. This allows the food companies to use the MSG as a preservative without any red flags for most people. So, for a while I brought my list of chemical names, looked at box and bag labels, checking each of the words on the label that I couldn't pronounce to see which toxins were in the foods I wanted to buy. Then I had to make the decision of "do I need or want it bad enough that I will allow myself and my family to ingest toxin x"? Many times I purchased the product thinking that we wouldn't be eating that much of it, or it was essential for a recipe I was planning to make, or it was a convenience food. I found myself making decisions like this: My husband wanted chips to snack on, and I had a coupon for either Bugles or Green Giant Veggie chips. I immediately grabbed the veggie chips thinking they'd obviously be the more healthy choice. Just for kicks and giggles, I compared the nutrition information and ingredients on the Bugles and the veggie chips. Surprisingly, the veggie chips had the most "chemical" ingredients. I used my coupon and purchased the Bugles, even though the ingredients list contained some of those naughty, yucky, hard to pronounce words. At least they were gluten-free, right?
I can read labels on gluten-free crackers, chips, cereals, etc. and see all kinds of unnatural ingredients. It has only taken me a few months, but I have realized, the easiest way to avoid these poisons is to eat food that hasn't been processed. Hence my search of information on the Paleo Diet. I Googled "Paleo Grocery List" and I found these two helpful sites: paleoonabudget.com and paleogrubs.com. Both have at least 2 weeks worth of meal plans and links to some amazing recipes. One of the authors mentions a few times how easy it is to make Paleo meals because the ingredients are so simple. You don't have to have all kinds of canned soups, dressings, or flavor packets to make these meals. Just stock up on meats, veggies and fruits! Paleo Poor also gives a list of seasonal fruits and veggies, so you know which ones will be the best buy. Not only that, she also lists which are "clean", "dirty" or considered more nutritious than the others. So, if I'm on a budget (which I most definitely am), I can decide to get a clean fruit or veggie that is not organic, and spend my extra few cents on getting the organic fruits or veggies that are considered "dirty".
So, today was my first Paleo shopping trip. It was so easy! I found a few things that were manager specials because they were a little wilted. But if we eat them tomorrow, they'll be just fine. According to my seasonal list, I purchased fruits and veggies that are in season now (squash, apples, sweet potatoes), so I didn't have to pay the extra for them to get shipped from the other side of the world. I didn't have to stress about which big words I needed to look up on my danger list. Amazing!
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