real food breakfast date...

There's a lot of love going on in my kitchen lately, all stemming from a new Sunday morning tradition (going strong for two weeks now): breakfast date!  Since our diet has changed we desperately miss our breakfast outings to a local restaurant where my favorite thing to order was either a bacon waffle (yes, bacon in the batter!) or a 'special skillet'.  

This is basically the same idea once everything is mixed together, but the breakfast we've been making at home tastes even better and the ingredients are far better for us.  When people find out that we've changed our diet they usually ask one of two questions, "what do you eat?" or "aren't you hungry?".  I imagine they think we saute a chicken breast in water and place it with care over dry greens (puke), but that couldn't be further from the nourishing, whole food truth!  In fact we eat exactly like we've always eaten...except way better! 

Eating healthy isn't, for me, at all about cutting calories and watching my fat intake.  The only thing I've 'cut' from my diet is excess sugar and processed foods.  We barely go out to eat, which isn't exactly convenient, but at home we're eating the best foods ever and lovingly preparing them with fresh, whole, organic ingredients.

  

I assume most restaurants use vegetable oils for frying because it's cheap (can we please go back to the days of lard?).  High heat and vegetable oils do not mix as they are extremely unstable.  In fact all processed polyunsaturated fats (even expeller-pressed oils found in 'healthy' organic foods) are toxic and lead to so many of the health problems and diseases prevalent in our society.  If you change one thing in your diet, change your fats!  For more information on the damage caused by replacing animal fats with vegetable oils and the history of fats in our country read The Oiling of America written by Mary Enig, Phd and Sally Fallon... 

(excerpt): 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.

<sup>So basically...fertility, lung cancer, growth, intelligence, wrinkles, weight-gain, clogged arteries, arthritis and pms.  That's what jumps out at me.  Yum, yum extra yum!  I'll take some coconut oil, thank you very much, with a side of organic butter, preferably raw.  And some pastured, organic eggs, raw cheese, nitrate-free organic meat, organic potatoes and sour cream...and call it breakfast!

Here's our routine:
  
I wash and peel potatoes, shred them in my rotary slicer by Nutra-Ease, fill my cast iron skillet with coconut oil and fry until they're golden brown.</sup>  

 

^{In the meantime, Mr. Humble starts some nitrate-free, organic Chorizo (Nieman Ranch) sauteing (or I'll throw some uncured organic bacon in the oven) fills his pan with coconut oil and butter, whisks three of the best eggs money can buy and cooks them on low heat, adding our meat, raw jalapeno pepper jack and organic veggies after the eggs are set...and then makes another.}

^{Then we top everything with spinach, avocado, organic salsa and homemade sour cream (homemade cultured foods are good for healing the gut!) and have a long, leisurely breakfast looking into eachother's eyes (ah! but really just shoving food into our mouths and going on and on about how this is the best breakfast we've ever had and how happy we are at this very moment)}

Easy Homemade Sour Cream:

The easiest way to make sour cream at home, without buying a culture, is to buy some raw heavy cream (I can get Organic Pastures brand locally) and either a homemade or good quality yogurt (I like St. Benoit brand) or Kefir (Organic Pastures now makes a raw Kefir for around $5). 

I've also tried making sour cream with pasteurized heavy cream, but have only had good results with Strauss Creamery brand...the Clover brand ended up being too thin and runny (as seen in the opening pic).  Sometimes for a larger batch I'll use one pint raw cream and one pint Strauss and it turns out thick and beautiful every time.  I guarantee this will be the best sour cream you've ever had in your life!  I can't even eat store-bought anymore!
 

Humble Kitchen Sour Cream  

1 pint Heavy Cream (preferrably raw, always organic)

4 Tbsp Kefir or Yogurt (homemade or good quality store-bought)

*Pour cream into a mason jar, add kefir or yogurt and stir with a non-metal spoon.  Cover with a coffee filter secured with a rubber band and allow to culture for 18-24 hours in a warm spot (70-80 degrees).  Place in fridge to cool.

We use our homemade sour cream for breakfast, mixed with avocado in guacamole, mixed into salsa, stirred into soup, in smoothies, over sweet potatoes...almost every meal!

*For more information on cultured foods and how to make them at home please refer to Cultures For Health

fats and chips...

When we switched to a more traditional/nourishing diet the hardest thing for us to give up was bagged chips.  At first we thought, 'well, if it's ok to eat potatoes, then we can eat chips.'  After all, they're gluten free (warning: a gluten-free label does not equal healthy!) and a bag of Kettle chips usually only has potatoes, oil and salt listed on the ingredients.  Not too bad, right?  And definitely ok if they're organic...WRONG!  Valerie reminded us that even the organic versions of our favorite snacks still contain 'bad oils'.  Which oils are bad and what's so bad about them?...

"Today most of the fats in the diet are polyunsaturated from vegetable oils derived mostly from soy, as well as from corn, sunflower, safflower and canola. Excess consumption of polyunsaturated oils has been shown to contribute to a large number of disease conditions including increased cancer and heart disease; immune system dysfunction; damage to the liver, reproductive organs and lungs; digestive disorders; depressed learning ability; impaired growth; and weight gain.

One reason the polyunsaturates cause so many health problems is that they tend to become oxidized or rancid when subjected to heat, oxygen and moisture as in cooking and processing. Rancid oils are characterized by free radicals—that is, single atoms or clusters with an unpaired electron in an outer orbit. These compounds are extremely reactive chemically. They have been characterized as "marauders" in the body for they attack cell membranes and red blood cells and cause damage in DNA/RNA strands, thus triggering mutations in tissue, blood vessels and skin. Free radical damage to the skin causes wrinkles and premature aging; free radical damage to the tissues and organs sets the stage for tumors; free radical damage in the blood vessels initiates the buildup of plaque. Is it any wonder that tests and studies have repeatedly shown a high correlation between cancer and heart disease with the consumption of polyunsaturates?  New evidence links exposure to free radicals with premature aging, with autoimmune diseases such as arthritis and with Parkinson's disease, Lou Gehrig's disease, Alzheimer's and cataracts.

Elevated triglycerides in the blood have been positively linked to proneness to heart disease, but these triglycerides do not come directly from dietary fats; they are made in the liver from any excess sugars that have not been used for energy. The source of these excess sugars is any food containing carbohydrates, particularly refined sugar and white flour.

The much-maligned saturated fats—which Americans are trying to avoid—are not the cause of our modern diseases. In fact, they play many important roles in the body chemistry:

• Saturated fatty acids constitute at least 50% of the cell membranes. They are what gives our cells necessary stiffness and integrity.
• They play a vital role in the health of our bones. For calcium to be effectively incorporated into the skeletal structure, at least 50% of the dietary fats should be saturated.
• They lower Lp(a), a substance in the blood that indicates proneness to heart disease. They protect the liver from alcohol and other toxins, such as Tylenol.
• They enhance the immune system.
• They are needed for the proper utilization of essential fatty acids.
  Elongated omega-3 fatty acids are better retained in the tissues when the diet is rich in saturated fats. 
• Saturated 18-carbon stearic acid and 16-carbon palmitic acid are the preferred foods for the heart, which is why the fat around the heart muscle is highly saturated. The heart draws on this reserve of fat in times of stress.
• Short- and medium-chain saturated fatty acids have important antimicrobial properties. They protect us against harmful microorganisms in the digestive tract.

The scientific evidence, honestly evaluated, does not support the assertion that "artery-clogging" saturated fats cause heart disease. Actually, evaluation of the fat in artery clogs reveals that only about 26% is saturated. The rest is unsaturated, of which more than half is polyunsaturated.<sup>"  

*From The Skinny on Fats
 Written by Mary G. Enig, PhD and Sally Fallon

further reading: How Vegetable Oils Make Us Fat</sup>

^{The problem then becomes, as usual, what CAN we eat?...since nearly all packaged foods contain polyunsaturated fats that have oxidized and gone rancid from processing.  The healthiest fats and the ones we should be eating regularly include organic butter, lard, tallow, chicken, duck and goose fat, coconut & palm oil, extra virgin olive oil, expeller-pressed sesame, flax & hempseed oil and fish liver oil.  Well, I probably won't be cooking in fish liver oil anytime soon, but I do cook EVERYTHING in coconut oil, which benefits our health in so many ways:} 

<sup>"Some of the most recent research has come from people suffering from Alzheimer’s disease, with reports of people improving or even reversing the effects of Alzheimer’s by using coconut oil. Alzheimer’s is now seen as a type 3 form of diabetes, and for years we have seen positive results from people with both type 1 and type 2 diabetes in using coconut oil. We have also seen a lot of reports of coconut oil health benefits from those suffering from hypothryroidism, as coconut oil helps boost metabolism and raise body temperatures to promote thyroid health. Restricting carbohydrates and increasing coconut oil in the diet has also led many to report losing weight with coconut oil. Candida sufferers also report health benefits with coconut oil as research now confirms, and those suffering from various skin diseases are also seeing tremendous health benefits by applying coconut oil directly on the skin. The benefits of coconut oil for healthy hair are also well known, and other healthy benefits of coconut oil included fighting off bacterial infections and viruses. Coconut oil is also increasingly being seen to benefit athletes and fitness trainers giving them an advantage in sustaining energy levels longer without drugs or stimulants."

*From CoconutOil.com</sup>

^{Enough said...next time you're craving something salty and delicious make your own chips using coconut oil instead!  (providing you can tolerate potatoes or brown rice, etc.) It's takes a little more time, but they taste so much better and your body will love you for it.  An added bonus: you'll eat less since you're the one doing the prep and you'll be satisfied quicker by the good healthy fat!}

Potato Chips

Thin sliced organic potatoes, use a slicer or your first time making these will be your last!  
Coconut Oil
Himalayan Salt

Heat oil in skillet.  Place sliced potatoes in a single layer, sprinkle with salt and turn when golden brown.  Continue in batches until all potatoes are crisped.

 ^{or fry some brown rice tortillas in coconut oil until golden and crispy and make nachos for the ball game!}

<sup>Nachos

Fry brown rice tortillas in coconut oil and break apart
Cook grass-fed, organic hamburger, adding:
  2 Tbsp Cumin, 2 tsp Oregano, 1 tsp Cayenne Pepper, Himalayan Salt & Pepper
Chop red and green bell peppers, red onions and jalapeno or habanero peppers
Top all this with raw pepper jack cheese, homemade sour cream (recipe to follow) and guacamole.

Enjoy the game!</sup>