Banana-Oat-Goat Bread

Yes, that's right! There's a little goat in this recipe.

Kid #2 suffers from a sensitive gut--nothing serious. Through practicing an elimination diet, and taking copious notes on what he ate, time, and how he felt 20, 40, 90, 120 minutes later (additionally we would check him 4-6 hours after eating), we narrowed his "trigger" foods. Immediately, we focused on dairy and gluten, two common irritants.

While gluten is fine for our little guy, dairy in large amounts causes pain and bloating (and all of the other nasty things that go along with a sensitivity to lactose--I will spare you the details!).

Although we don't typically drink milk in this home, we do eat cheese and yogurt; additionally, we occasionally bake with milk so finding a substitute for cow dairy was essential.

Thankfully there's goat dairy. Goat dairy does have lactose, however, it's easier to digest which often allows otherwise sensitive people to be able to freely consume goat milk products. Goat's milk, unlike the cheese, is sweet similar to cow milk making it an easy substitute in baking.

After determining that our little guy is sensitive to cow dairy, we immediately switched him over to goat dairy and he has been doing great!

Additionally, he has become a little "foodie" in the making; currently, his pizza of choice is goat cheese and mushroom...very sophisticated!

Now the recipe...


Hearty Banana Oat-Goat Bread


Ingredients

1 cup unbleached all purpose flour
1 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 cup rolled oats
2 T whole flax seed
1/2 cup sucanat or brown sugar
1 T baking powder
1/4 t baking soda
2 t cinnamon
4 eggs
1 cup smashed bananas
1/2 cup goats milk (although cow dairy, or unsweetened rice milk can be used too)
1/3 cup unsweetened applesauce
1 t vanilla




Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly coat a 9x5 loaf pan with oil or butter and dust with flour.

In a large bowl mix together all dry ingredients.

In another bowl beat the eggs until bubbly--about 2 minutes. Then pour in bananas, vanilla, milk and applesauce and stir.


Add wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and stir until completely blended. Pour into prepared loaf pan. Bake for 45-50 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.

Kale-Carrot-Chicken Wraps

These sweet and spicy wraps are great for lunch or a light dinner. I know kale is not for everyone, my kids would rather eat mud. Really. Nevertheless, it's important to role model healthy eating, and so we incorporate leafy greens on a daily basis.

I have been a bit obsessed with making different versions of this kale salad lately. This recipe was built around a jar of pepper jelly.

It all began with an encounter with a jam maker at the local Farmers Market. I had noticed this particularly unfriendly lady before, and like most of the other customers, I passed her by. For some reason, a couple of weeks ago, I was inclined to stop and strike up a conversation. EXCEPT she ignored me. I asked her questions in my usual friendly way and got no response. No love for me. It was so weird. She looked right passed me and didn't make a sound...not a peep...or a nod...just a blank stare.

I know what you're thinking, maybe she was blind and/or deaf? BUT NOOO she talked to familiar customer just fine. SO I made it my mission to befriend the grumpy jam maker. Step 1: I bought her jam.

I picked up some pepper jelly. (Don't ask me about step 2...I don't know)

I love having a jar of sweet and spicy pepper jelly on hand. It's great to add to goat cheese for an appetizer or as a flavor to build a meal around. Which is how I came to thinking up a recipe using kale and pepper jelly.

There are two tips for eating kale, #1 De-rib. Always remove the tough inner rib, leaving just the leaves; and #2 Chop of the leaves into little bite sized pieces.

To make these wraps just add about 1/4 of a chicken breast to helping of the Kale-Carrot Salad and wrap in your favorite tortilla or flat bread.

Kale Carrot Salad
1/2 bunch kale, de-ribbed, and chopped into small pieces
2 carrots, shredded or sliced
1/4 C raisins (optional)
2 limes, juiced
1-3 t of pepper jelly*
1 T water
2 garlic cloves, minced or pressed
salt to taste


Place the kale, carrots and raisins into a large salad bowl. In a small bowl mix the limes, pepper jelly, water, garlic and salt together. Add to the kale and toss.


*You can substitute pepper jelly for a combination of honey and red pepper flakes. Adjust the heat to your personal preference.

(Crockpot) Black Bean Soup with Wakame

Black bean soup is a great way to get your daily servings of legumes. I decided to make some soup this week even though it's hot in the Mid-Atlantic region. We have an air conditioner, right?!

As I was looking through the standard black bean recipes, I remembered that I had some dried Wakame in the cupboard and thought it would be a good addition to this flavorful soup.

Wakame is a sea plant (doesn't sea plant sound better than seaweed?!) often added to soups or salads and used mostly in Asian cooking. It is commonly found in its dry form at either Whole Foods Market or an Asian grocers.

Sea plants are extremely beneficial in the diet. Nutrient rich, sea plants contain up to 10x the amount of calcium as whole milk. Naturally high in other minerals such as iodine, magnesium, and sodium, sea plants often retain their salty flavor from the ocean. If you have ever had Miso soup then you are already familiar with Wakame.

Because this soup has so many strong flavors, the Wakame is barely detectable.

Black Bean Soup w/ Wakame

4 slices of bacon, chopped

1 large onion, diced

1 8oz package of mushrooms, sliced

5 garlic cloves, minced

1/4 C chili powder

2 T ground cumin

2 T dried oregano

2 t mustard seeds

10 cups chicken broth

1-1/2 lbs dried black beans rinsed and picked over

1 15 oz can diced tomatoes

1 15 oz can plain tomato sauce

1/4 C dried Wakame

1 15 oz can of black beans, drained and rinsed

1 T olive oil

Directions

1. Put beans into a large saucepan and cover with water. Bring to a boil and then reduce heat, cooking for an additional 15 minutes. Drain and put into crockpot.

2. In a skillet, add olive oil, onions, bacon, mushrooms and mustard seeds. Saute for 5-7 minutes on medium heat. Add mixture to crockpot.

3. Add the rest of the ingredients to the crockpot, stir and cook on low for 8 to 10 hours.


Steps 1 and 2 can be done the night before.

Getting Organized and Weekly Menu, albeit a little late

If you haven't been able to tell, I am still "off" on my timing and blogging. I assure you that it's eating as usual here, but nonetheless, the blogging has taken a backseat to life.



With that said, we've had a great meal plan this week, which I will share with you in a sec; but first take a look at this, Sandwich in a Can:

Never mind the nasty-factor, this is a sad commentary on the state of food and our obsession with fast and easy meals. Making nutritious, home cooked meals doesn't have to be time consuming and out of reach for busy people, it just takes planning. Meal planning, specifically, and prepping for the week in advance alleviates the stress of "what's for dinner?"

Preferably, for the busy person, all shopping for the week takes place in one outing. This requires organization and a detailed grocery list.


Here are some ways to get organized, get that meal plan together, and get the shopping done so the food is in your home ready to eat!

Getting Organized:

• Take inventory of ingredients already in stock in your pantry and refrigerator.
• Look at your calendar. Are there some days that are busier than others? On those days will you need "fast food?" If so, consider the crock pot or making a one dish meal, such as a lasagna, in advance so that reheating is all that's necessary.
• Make a meal plan for the week. Start with 4-6 dinners. Consider doubling the recipes that can easily be made into a lunch or frozen for future consumption.
• Create a shopping list from your meal plan. Don't forget to check your list twice for all ingredients and make sure you write them all down.
• Schedule your shopping day, don't forget your list, and stick to it! Veering away from your list will wreak havoc on your budget.

In my experience, two areas in particular dictate a persons eating habits: time and money. Creating a meal planing-shopping system will help with both and lend itself to healthy eating habits.

Weekly Meal Plan

Sunday- Pulled BBQ Chicken Sando's and Baked Sweet Potato Fries

Monday- Shrimp Taste-Off (meaning two differently seasoned shrimp to get the kids excited about something they don't normally care for. It was a big hit. We had garlic and buttered shrimp, and Old Bay spiced shrimp.) Green salad, and a small side dish of pasta tossed with lemon, Parmesan cheese, Bouquet Garni spice, salt and pepper. Dee-lish and like most of my meals, only took 15 minutes to put together.

Tuesday- Taco Night

Wednesday- Cobb Salad

Thursday- Chicken and Veggies served over Brown Rice

We're Alive and Quinoa & Roasted Corn Salad

(kid #1 on a tractor somewhere in middle America)

Yes! We are alive and well!

4 weeks ago today, my family rolled into Northern Virginia after 4 long days driving across the country. We left our home, family and friends in California for an adventure, a new chapter, and a shared professional goal to work in Washington DC. It's not disappointing. We are having a blast.

We absolutely love our itty-bitty apartment in urban Arlington, VA. It's quite a different environment from our very suburban home along the American River in California, but great nonetheless. Our apartment is so small that it only takes 10 minutes to clean. Love it! and our little "one-butt" kitchen.

On another note, I have to share with you the most disturbing part of the trip. Brace yourselves. While in some Podunk town in middle America we stopped for breakfast at a regional diner and there it was...the most appalling and disgusting thing I have ever seen on a menu. Are you sitting down? Really sit. The featured combo breakfast on the children's menu was pancakes with rainbow sprinkles, blue soda, and a cookie. No joke. I can almost tolerate or at least expect the pancakes, but who in the world had the idea to pair pancakes with a cookie? AND DON'T GET ME STARTED ON THE BLUE SODA. Ridiculous.

Parents, please don't feed your kids blue soda, sprinkled pancakes and a cookie for breakfast. or ever.

Okay tantrum done.

On to good food...

This salad was so good. and easy. Perfect for a summer side dish, meal, and/or potluck item. It looks a little blah, but it packs a punch of flavor.

Quinoa and Roasted Corn Salad

1 1/2 Cup Cooked Quinoa

1 1/2 Cup Cooked or canned beans, rinsed and drained

Corn from 3-4 ears of corn, cut off the cobb

3/4 cup peppers (I used a combo of italian sweet and anaheim--tailor to your desired spicy)

3/4 cup chopped cilantro

Dressing

1 T red wine or balsamic vinegar

5 T lime juice

1/4 t cumin

1/3 c olive oil

Directions: Set oven for 425. Place corn (already removed from the cob) and chopped peppers in baking dish (NOTE: you can oil your dish, but do not add oil to your veggies while roasting). Roast for 10 minutes, then cool. Toss the salad ingredients together, add the corn/peppers once they've cooled. In a separate bowl, mix the dressing ingredients and toss with the salad.

Note: you might want to make extra dressing to add to the salad on the second day.

Enjoy!

Spelt and Broccoli Salad w/ Avocado-Orange Dressing and Weekly Dinners

I really love spelt. Really. Love. Spelt.

I only wish it had a better name. Doesn't "spelt" sound like some sort or bird seed or an ingredient in a horse pellet?

I'm not sure what I would call it, but I would include something about it's nutty flavor. Or it's golden color. How about "Honey Nut Grain," doesn't that sound better than spelt?

This salad is perfect for spring. Light and tasty.






Spelt and Broccoli Salad

4 cups cooked spelt
1-2 heads of broccoli crowns, chopped into bite-sized pieces
1 bunch of green onions, trimmed and chopped
1 cup of grape tomatoes (optional)

Dressing
1/2 avocado, peeled and pitted
1/2 cup Orange Juice
1/4 cup olive oil
2-3 T balsamic vinegar
Salt and Pepper to taste

put dressing ingredients in blender and mix until creamy. Toss together.


Weekly Dinners
Sunday-Green Salad with Chicken
Monday- Pizza w/ Chard
Tuesday- Bean Soup
Wednesday- Macaroni and Cheese and Green Salad
Thursday- Chicken Enchiladas

Asparagus Pie

Oh my, this is good. Breakfast, lunch, dinner or just a snack, this tasty seasonal recipe is yum, yum, yum!



Ingredients
1 bunch asparagus, trimmed and chopped into 1/2 inch pieces, approx 1-1/2 cups.
1 cup chopped greens (spinach, chard kale), finely chopped
2 T butter
6 oz Feta
4 eggs
1/2 cup whole milk
1 pie crust (I used a pre-made spelt crust from Whole Foods)
salt and pepper to taste




Directions
Heat butter in a skillet, add asparagus and greens and cook for 5-7 minutes, stirring regularly. Salt and pepper to taste.


While your veggies are cooking, evenly place feta into the bottom of the pie crust. Poor veggies on top of the feta.


In a separate bowl mix eggs and milk. Carefully poor egg mixture over the top. Bake for 35-40 minutes on 375 degrees.

Breakfast O' Champions

Pears and Kefir Cheese with an Egg, Whole Grains, and Kale.

Why do we eat boxed cereal for breakfast? Because it's fast? Nonsense.

The meal above took less than five minutes to make.

1. Get out a medium skillet and the leftover "Not My Grandmothers Brown Rice".

2. Put a teaspoon of butter in the skillet and warm, add rice and stir for about 30 seconds.

3. Push rice over to one side of the skillet. Crack egg in the other half.

4. While egg is cooking, slice a pear and scoop out about 1/4 cup of Kefir Cheese.

5. Plate.

Viola. Filling, tasty, and health promoting meal first thing in the morning.

Not-My-Grandma's-Brown-Rice

Where in the world have I been?

I have been somewhere between the West and East Coasts. You see, we're moving. Again. But not like we did last year.

Last year's move two doors down was the first step towards our BIGGER move. In a little over two months the family will be heading from the Golden State of California to Washington DC.

We have never lived on the east coast so this will be a big change. I have been super preoccupied with finding housing and schools, while wrapping up clients and classes, all the time being a wife and mom. It's a busy time for sure.

My posts, for now, will be less frequent than in the past. I hope you all hang with me though, because my food journey in Washington DC is bound to be interesting.

In the meantime, I hope you enjoy this version of Not-My- Grandma's-Brown Rice.

My Grandmother Dorothy made "brown rice." Although, technically it was white rice cooked in broth which made it brown. She would saute the onions in butter, add the rice, poor in the broth and let it cook for 20 minutes. I used to request this dish from my mother at least once a week.

My version, just as tasty, is much hardier and better for you. Serve as a side dish, or a light meal on it's own. This combination is perfect to add to an egg for a well balanced breakfast.

Ingredients

1 T Butter

1 medium onion, diced

2-3 cloves of garlic, minced

2-3 cups of chopped greens (try collards, broccoli greens, kale or chard)

1 Cup Whole Grain (try Brown Rice, Spelt, or Barley)

3 Cups Broth

salt and pepper to taste

Directions

Heat skillet, add butter, onions, and garlic. Saute until soft. add grain and greens and stir mixing well. Add broth, reduce heat and cover. Cook for 40-45 minutes. Check broth occasionally adding a little if needed.

NOTE: In the photo above, I used radish seeds along with brown rice as my grain, and kale as my green.

Weekly Menu

Yes I'm alive! It's been two weeks since my last post but that doesn't mean we haven't been eating....just nothing exciting!

I spent the first week eating our way through the pantry, freezer and refrigerator.

I hate it when things start to pile up. We had weird combinations like pancakes-chicken-salad. I made several soups and salads with all sorts of things...a little steak here, and little chicken there...one sausage, a handful of dried beans...not to worry it got put into something. We ate through it all in one week.

Last week I was just plain lazy. I made two large salads, 1 whole bird, 1 slab of beef, and we ate wraps....all week. The kids mostly had grilled cheese sandwiches.

I lost 4 pounds during the two weeks so maybe it wasn't all bad, just not anything to write about. The wraps were really good though.


Back to usual now.

Weekly Menu

Monday- Chicken Enchiladas
Tuesday- Sweet Potato and Kale Soup (tastes better than it sounds)
Wednesday- Taco Salad
Thursday- Gnocchi with spinach and cream

Graze like a Rabbit and Weekly Dinners

If we can learn anything from a rabbit, it's that you can never eat enough ruffage. It's true. So when I'm asked, "what's a good late night snack?" I respond: salad.

I know it's not always fast to whip up a salad, after all there's a lot of chopping involved, and we want our snacks quick and easy. So what I like to do is always keep a ready made salad on hand. I keep it stored directly in the salad spinner and placed in the refrigerator.

The spinner, by design, keeps the moisture away from the produce allowing it to stay fresh for up to 9 days. (Hopefully you will have eaten it all by then!)

Enjoy!

Weekly Dinners

Sunday- Tri Tip, Roasted Root Veggies, and above salad

Monday- Burritos w/ Sauteed veggies and topped with the above salad

Tuesday- Grilled Chicken Wraps (also using the above salad as a topper)

Wednesday- Chili and maybe a side salad

Thursday- Homemade Mac and Cheese with a side salad

Do you get the picture? When you have a salad ready to go, you have an instant meal, side dish or snack.

Remember: Salad dressings are a downfall for many a salad. Make sure to make your own or simply use oil and vinegar. Penzey's Spice House also offers many great dry dressing bases that are free of mystery ingredients.

Happy New Year! Poblano Pepper Beef Recipe and Weekly Dinners

Poblano Beef over Cheesy Polenta (recipe Below)

The holidays are done and now is the time for resolutions.

I like to make resolutions that are fun and easy to keep. Past resolutions have been to be more fun, read more fiction, and make Beef Wellington.

This year I resolve to continue to run. Along with some friends, I will be running the Shriners 8k in June. Some cooking goals for 2010 are to actually make the Beef Wellington, a souffle, and buy a pasta machine.

Weekly Dinners

Sunday- Poblano Beef over Polenta

Monday- Handmade Gnocci w/ roasted delicata squash, bacon, peas, and browned butter

Tuesday- Out to dinner for my 35th birthday

Wednesday- Sloppy Joes

Thursday- Sausage Soup (a new favorite, recipe will be posted for sure)

Friday- Halibut w/ a wild Mushroom Cream sauce, brown rice and roasted Brussels Sprouts

Poblano Beef over Cheesy Polenta

Ingredients
2 Poblano peppers, seeded and sliced
1 large onion, sliced
3 cloves garlic, smashed or minced
1 T chili powder
Salt to taste
1 1/2 lb top sirloin, cut into 1 inch cubes
4 large tomatoes, chopped (or 28oz can of diced tomatoes)

Polenta
4 cups broth or water
1 cup dry polenta
1 cup grated jack cheese


Start the polenta first. While polenta is cooking make the beef.

Polenta: Boil water, add polenta and stir constantly for 1 minutes. Reduce heat to low and cook for 20 minutes, stirring frequently.

Beef: In a 12" pan, Saute onions and peppers until soft, about 3 to 5 minutes. Add garlic, chili pepper, salt, and beef. Continue to cook until beef is almost done about 5 to 7 minutes. Add tomatoes and simmer another 5 minutes. Serve over polenta.

Pears and Kefir Cheese

If you are looking for something really quick and tasty to add to your table, this is it.

Sliced pears tossed in fresh lemon juice to prevent browning with a side of Kefir Cheese.



What's Kefir cheese?

Sometimes called yogurt cheese, its thick and smooth and has a tangy flavor, similar to yogurt with a little added salt. In my opinion it's like a combination of yogurt (flavor) and cream cheese (texture).

It was so quick to put together, I will definitely be serving this as a part of our Christmas day breakfast.

Brought by my most awesome friend Jami, this addition to our brunch table was a huge hit. I polished off the last three pear slices after everyone left.

Mediterranean Quiche

This recipe came from my good friend Kristi. It was DEE-LISH. Serve along side the creamy-cheesy scalloped potatoes for that perfect brunch combination.

Mediterranean quiche:

Ingredients

2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 cup sliced yellow onions
1 medium zucchini, chopped
1/4 pound mushrooms, wiped clean and sliced
1 teaspoon minced garlic
4 ounces oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes, drained and chopped
3 tablespoons chopped fresh basil
2 teaspoons chopped fresh thyme
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
3 large eggs
1 1/4 cups half-and-half
1/2 cup grated Gruyere
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper
Savory pie crust, recipe follows
3 ounces goat cheese, crumbled

Directions

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.

In a large skillet melt the butter over medium-high heat. Add the onions and zucchini and cook, stirring, for 6 minutes. Add the mushrooms and cook, stirring, until the liquid is rendered and the vegetables are wilted, about 10 minutes.

Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute.

Add the tomatoes, basil, and thyme and season lightly with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring, for 1 minute. Remove from the heat and let cool.

In a bowl, beat the eggs and half-and-half together. Add the salt, pepper, grated Gruyere, and crushed red pepper.

Spoon the vegetable mixture into the prepared piecrust, pour in the egg mixture, and crumble the goat cheese on top. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes until set. Remove from the oven and let cool for 30 minutes before serving.

Persimmon-Apple Cookies

Looking for a way to use up those persimmons? These cookies are perfect for Santa (or yourself!)

I'm not a huge fan of persimmons, but I really like these cookies. Adapted from a recipe that I found online, these cookies have the perfect amount of spice.

With the addition of apples, the flavor is reminiscent of apple pie.

Ingredients

2 ripe persimmons, pureed
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 egg
1 cup white sugar
1/2 cup butter
1 cup chopped apples

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (180 degrees C).

Dissolve baking soda in persimmon pulp and set aside.
Sift flour, spices and salt together, set aside.

Cream together butter or margarine and sugar until fluffy, beat in egg and persimmon. Stir in dry ingredients. Stir in apples.

Drop by teaspoonfuls onto greased cookie sheet. Bake for 15 minutes.

Creamy-Cheesy Scalloped Potatoes

Oh these are so good. Perfect for brunch or a side dish at dinner. These can prepared a day or two before and cooked the day of your party, making these perfect for a holiday party side dish.

Ingredients

6 Medium Yukon Gold or Red Potatoes

2 Cups Cheddar Cheese

3 (approx) cups Bechamel Sauce (recipe below)

Directions

1. Boil potatoes until almost fully cooked. Should be soft enough to easily poke a fork into but not enough to where they fall apart. Drain and refrigerate until completely cool. Peeling is optional. I never peel my potatoes.

2. Once cooled, thinly slice potatoes.

3. Layer potatoes and cheese in a 9 inch square or round baking dish.

4. Pour bechamel sauce over the top

5. Bake on 350 for 1 to 1.5 hours (depending on how cooked your potatoes were before...the longer you boil the less you have to bake).

Bechamel Sauce

Ingredients

4 T Butter

4 T Flour

3 Cups of Milk

Salt and pepper to taste

Dash of Nutmeg

Directions

Melt butter in saucepan over medium heat. Whisk in flour stirring constantly until it makes a smooth paste. Add milk and continue to stir, slowly bringing to a boil. Once there, reduce temp and bring to a low simmer. Cook for 20 to 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. Sauce will become thick and creamy. Add salt, pepper and nutmeg to taste.

This post is part of the Make it From Scratch blog carnival.

Weekly Dinners

I can't do it anymore. No more. I'm done. I quit and I'm going back.....back to shopping on Fridays.

I tried the Tuesday Farmers Market and Whole Foods combo trip for 4 weeks. It makes sense to hit both places in one outing instead of breaking it up into two (Friday Whole Foods and Saturday Farmers Market). But alas, old habits are hard to quit.

I realized that I really like having a full fridge and pantry to play around with on the weekend. I also learned that while I like my weeknights meal planned, I like my weekends to be spontaneous. I also really miss my Saturday farmers. Don't get me wrong, there are plenty of great farmers at the Tuesday Market in Roseville, but I don't know them and they don't know me and there's something sad about that.

So, I am going back.

Meal planning on Thursday night or Friday morning.

Whole Foods on Friday morning.

Farmers Market on Saturday.

(On busy weeks or weeks where my meat supply is full, I will skip Whole Foods and hit Trader Joe's)

A set meal plan for the weeknights and the freedom to play around in the kitchen on the weekends.


This weeks menu:

Sunday- Sun dried Tomato and Roasted Garlic Pizza with Cream of Broccoli Soup.
Monday- Crab Cakes and Green Salad
Tuesday- Pot Roast, Green Beans and Potatoes
Wednesday- Enchiladas
Thursday- Chicken Pot Pie

John's Grass Fed Beef

Rarely do I endorse a product, but this is more than a just a mere product....this is a way of life.

Eating locally raised, pastured fed beef is reminiscent of a simpler time. A time where our food system was almost entirely comprised of local food sources. A time where "lifestyle diseases" were rare or unheard of.

As a holistic nutritionist, I encourage everyone to eat traditionally, and tailor your foods to your unique nutritional requirements (ie. many people are sensitive to gluten, dairy, soy. While these foods might be good for some, they aren't good for everyone...know your body and it's individual needs).

Also, consuming nutrient dense traditional and basic foods such as meat, poultry, dairy, whole grains, fruits, veggies, seafood, nuts, seeds and legumes, are better for you, period.

Grass fed beef is seasonal, and it's time to start thinking about making your reservation.

If you live in the Sacramento, CA area, and have a freezer big enough, please consider John's Grass Fed Beef.

From Mary @ John's Great Grass Fed Beef:

We are now taking reservations for our 2010 crop of delicious grass fed beef! We are going to be able to hold the price this year to the same as last year—or $3.92 per pound hanging weight. This includes all processing and the Cut & Wrap fee (many producers of locker beef quote their prices without including Cut & Wrap and make the buyer pay it themselves). The final price cut and wrapped in the freezer will probably work out to something in the ball park of $6.25 per pound, depending on the individual animal and how you want it cut. This of course averages the expensive steaks that you'd pay over $10 per pound for in the stores as well as the cheaper meat like hamburger.

To reserve beef you need to send a deposit of $100, and let us know if you want a whole, half or quarter beef. Deposits can be made by check or we can send you a PayPal invoice so you can use your credit card if you prefer.

As the time for processing the beef (May or June) gets close, everyone on our reservation list will have the chance to give their custom Cut and Wrap directions to the processor. The decisions to be made for the directions include things like whether you want some stew meat or all that type of meat ground for hamburger? How much fat content in the hamburger? Sirloin Steaks or Sirloin Roast? How thick to cut the steaks? How many steaks per package? The processor will gladly walk you through the decisions over the phone, but if it all seems like too much to decide you can simply ask for their Standard Cut and Wrap. The Standard seems to please most folks.

A half of a 1,000 lb steer will usually yield roughly 275 lb hanging beef, which in turn yields approximately 190 lb cut and wrapped beef in the freezer. A quarter will yield approximately 95 lb cut and wrapped. A whole beef will cost roughly $2,000, a half will cost roughly $1,000 and a quarter roughly $500. Of course 1,000 lb is an estimated average weight. The loss to hanging weight and then to cut and wrapped weight varies with each animal and how you have it cut.

Our beef is fed no antibiotics, hormones or other chemicals. Pretty much all the cattle eat is grass and clover pasture. They get a little hay in the winter and as bribes when we move them from pasture to pasture so that we don’t have to chase them.

Advantages of our grass fed beef:

Our beef is not given any hormones or other growth stimulants

Because our beef is fed only grass and perhaps a small amount of hay, we know for a fact that they do not eat any animal products, candy or other unsavory things

Research has shown that the ratio of Omega 6 fats to Omega 3 fats in grass fed beef is in the healthy range, while in grain fed beef it is not

Grass fed beef is a great source of CLA (conjugated linoleic acid), a fat that reduces the risk of cancer, obesity, diabetes, and a number of immune disorders

Grass fed beef has far more Vitamin E and Beta-Carotene than grain fed

Grass fed beef is better for the human eating it, better for the animal,better for the environment and encourages family farming. It is awin-win-win situation.

Most beef sold in stores, even health food stores, is not natural “real beef”. Even though it may be organic, the cattle are fed grains, and grains are not what cattle are designed to eat—grass is!

Beef, in its natural grass-fed state, is quite different from grain fed beef and is actually a healthy food

Our cattle live contentedly in natural grassy pastures rather than in crowded and unsanitary feed yards

Our beef is USDA Inspected

Our beef is healthier for you to eat. Even feeding grain for a short "finishing" period of 30 to 60 days drastically reduces the benefits of raising them on grass, so we do not do it

Our beef is DELICIOUS, TENDER and JUICY!

Easy Party Pinwheels

'Tis the season for parties. Seems like attending parties is all we're doing this week.

LOVE parties. LOVE appetizers and finger foods.

This simple and festive bite-size appetizer was easy and tasty.

Ingredients:

4-8oz jar pepper jelly

4-8 oz of goat cheese

2 12x12 (roughly 17 oz) sheets of puffed pastry

(This homemade pepper jelly came to me courtesy of my good friend Gina. It was made by her friend Jenny's mom!--thank you Gina and Jenny's mom for this delicious pepper jelly.)

Directions: (preheat oven to 400 degrees)

1. Roll out the puff pastry

2. Spread on goat cheese and pepper jelly (to taste).

3. Roll up

4. Slice in 1/2 inch sections

5. Place cut side down on baking sheet bake for 20 minutes.

YUM!

Cleansing After the Feast-Weekly Dinners

Boy was Thanksgiving good. My plate was full of turkey, mashed potatoes, (shredded) Brussels sprouts, sweet potatoes, and a cornmeal muffin. I won't mention all of the desserts.

My son's birthday falls a few days after Turkey Day, which means more overeating (at least it did for me!).

Now, I am ready to cleanse.

"Cleansing" Daily Diner style does NOT mean starving. Even in the most bloated of moments, I still love food and will continue to eat. What it means is to lighten up the meals by having more calories from unrefined, complex carbs (veggies, fruits, beans, whole grains) than fat and protein combined. These unrefined carbs are naturally cleansing.

The key word is more (not only). When I cleanse, I don't give up the animal fats, oils or protein rich foods, just limit them.

Since both myself and Hubby currently feel glutinous, I have created our weekly meal plan around these lighter, cleansing foods.

The good news is that these cooler months are the best time for local leafy greens, root veggies, winter squash, and cruciferous vegetables, so lightening the load will still be delicious.

Weekly Meal Plan:

This week will deviate from the usual way we meal plan.

Instead of having specific meals for each night, we will be eating "buffet style" from the refrigerator. In the fridge, there are three soups: lentil with root veggies, cabbage with onions and potatoes, and black bean-mushroom chili. To accompany these soups, there is really large salad made of butter leaf, red leaf, arugula, and cilantro as the base.

Each night, I will roast some red onions and veggies such as, Brussels sprouts, carrots, parsnips and turnips with balsamic and a little salt. These are intended for the salad.

I know it's sometimes hard to eat a salad in the winter....seems to cold too eat cool-crisp lettuce. To "winterize" a salad, let your greens sit out and become room temperature. Then add the roasted veggies while they're still warm. You can even warm the dressing. A nice warm oil and vinegar combo goes great and is super easy.

There will be meat involved too. I don't believe in avoiding (real, whole, unprocessed) foods. We'll just be tailoring them a little more by keeping the higher protein/fat meals to breakfast (the most important meal of the day).

Our lunches and dinners will consist of the soups and salads.

Eat Well!