Tips for Using Nourishing Traditions

My well-loved copy

I'm going to let you in on some of my health secrets today.  Nourishing Traditions, by Sally Fallon is my nutrition bible.  It has been for about 10 years.  It is what inspired me to teach people about nutrition and to go to school to get my health coaching certification.  I have attended several of Sally Fallon's workshops and lectures, and met her a couple of times.  In person, she is lovely, sweet and mild mannered.  I draw most of my inspiration for the Traditional Foods Tele seminar Series from Nourishing Traditions.

I want to share some tips for using this phenomenally popular text:

1. 1f you have it but have merely skimmed it and kept it on the shelf, I encourage you to study it - especially the first 50 pages.  
2. Sally Fallon is the founding president of the Weston A. Price Organization.  A major goal of the organization is universal access to clean raw milk.  I agree that all people should have access to clean raw milk.  I also think people should have a right to grow and process their own food, right to clean air, and right to clean water. (I'm sure Sally Fallon would agree, especially since her other project is the Farm-to-Consumer Legal Defense Fund.)
3. That being said, you don't need to have access to raw milk to be able to follow the principles of a Traditional Foods diet, described by Weston A. Price, and Sally Fallon.
4. You do not need whey in order to soak grains or in order to prepare lacto-fermented vegetables.  This is a great thing to do if you are a cheese maker and have an abundance of whey to use up, but you do not need to obtain raw milk to carry out the principles of a traditional foods diet.  
5. This way of eating does not advocate eating huge amounts of animal protein.  It advocates using all parts of the animal, including the fat, bones, cartilage, organ meats, and some muscle meat, as traditional peoples did.  
6. If you have pre-existing health problems, you may not get well following a hodgepodge of the many recipes or principles outlined in Nourishing Traditions.  For example, if you have an abundance of Candida albicans, you may gravitate toward a lot of properly prepared dairy and grains, which may exacerbate your condition by feeding this yeast.  Most likely, one single food (even raw milk) is not the silver bullet to solving complex health conditions.  You will need to choose foods that help your specific condition, and most likely seek the help of a holistic health practitioner.   
7. You do not have to cook elaborate meals each day to stay on a traditional foods diet.  Just follow the main dietary guidelines.  Use saturated fats, buy the best quality free-range eggs you can afford, use Celtic sea salt, avoid commercially processed grains, soak grains overnight (in water with a splash of vinegar or lemon) before cooking, save your bones for bone broth, eat several types of fermented foods, eat organ meats, source grass-fed meat, eat plenty of vegetables, especially green ones.  You're going to need a source of vitamin K2 so incorporate raw egg yolks, raw organ meat,  raw grass-fed butter, natto or high-quality cod liver oil into your diet.  Or eat insects :) 
8. My Traditional Foods Teleseminar series is like a study group/support group for this way of eating. 

TF Breakfast Cookies: When Life Hands You Unsoaked Grains, Soak Them!

I've started a little side-activity of selling baked goods at the local farmer's market.  It works out great for me because it fuels my creativity for coming up with new healthy foods, or healthier versions of standard foods.  I start with a recipe that sounds like a good idea in terms of taste and nutrition, and then see if I can make it healthier.  Of course, I don't mean, how to make it low-fat or low calorie.  By healthier, I mean nutrient-dense and along the lines of "non-irriitating to the human body."  Non-irritating to the human body would mean - low in refined sugar, free of refined vegetable oils, and grains that are properly prepared.  Improperly prepared grains can lead to interference with your mineral absorption and gastrointestinal distress.  Essentially, the "healthiest" foods are those that would be included in a Traditional Foods (TF) Diet.  A traditional foods diet takes just a little more "ahead of time" prep work in the kitchen, but it pays off for your body in terms of how accessible nutrients are for your body.  You're not just what you eat, but what you absorb!  

Sweetened with Bananas and Traditional Foods-Friendly!
(13 large cookies if you double the recipe.)

No Time to Cook Breakfast?  Grab a Breakfast Cookie.  (These Babies are Gluten-Free.)

I've been looking for a crunchy way to enjoy oats for a while.  Granola and conventional oatmeal cookies are not the best for your digestion as the mostly raw grains have not been soaked first.  Soaking grains in something acidic helps to reduce enzyme inhibitors and phytic acid.  A quick internet search for pH of bananas puts them at about a 5 (acidic).  This recipe has no refined sugars, only sweetened with bananas and the added raisins and cranberries.  These cookies are crunchy on the outside but soft and oat-cake-like in the middle.  

Recipe: TF GF Breakfast Cookies

(adapted from recipe at Find Your Balance Health)

Makes:  12-15 small cookies

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups rolled oats
 (gluten-free)
1/4 cup of oat flour (pulverize rolled oats in the food processor, does not have to be finely ground)

3 bananas (mashed)
1/8 cup chia seeds (optional)
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon Celtic sea salt

1/2 cup shredded coconut (unsweetened)
1/2 cup walnuts, chopped
 (extra points for crispy nuts)
1/4 cup raisins
1/4 cup dried cranberries
1/4 cup melted coconut oil
 (or butter)

Mix together rolled oats, oat flour, mashed bananas, vanilla, cinnamon, ginger, and chia seeds in a medium-sized glass or stainless steel mixing bowl. Cover with a towel and allow to sit overnight or for 8 hours at room temperature.

Preheat oven to 350F.

Add salt, coconut flakes, walnuts, coconut oil, raisins, and cranberries. Mix with your hands to combine well.

Using your hands form into cookies. Batch makes about 12-15 depending on size. Bake for about 20-25 minutes until lightly golden brown on top.

Walnuts and chia seeds pack omega-3 fatty acids!

I may experiment with adding more fat to this recipe, as that would make it more suitable to my metabolic type that does better with a diet emphasizing protein, fat, non-starchy vegetables, and minimal grains and fruit. Contact me if you would like to eat according to your metabolic type.

Best Dude Food Recipe #2: Meatloaf Sandwiches with sauteed Mushrooms, Caramelized Onions, and Raw Cheddar on Naturally Leavened Whole Grain Bread

These meatloaf sandwiches were our next favorite meal that we've had this year, after the Salmon Tacos described in the previous post.  My inspiration in making these came from working at Oddfellas Cantina in Floyd, Virginia.  They serve their homemade local beef meatloaf on homemade grilled bread with sauteed mushrooms and melted cheese.  I copied the idea, and added caramelized onions, which are essentially, food crack.

I had actually never had, and certainly never made, meatloaf until several years ago when I had bought a share of grass-fed beef.  Buying a share of a beef is a cost-effective way to purchase local grass-fed beef.  The butcher will often give you much of the portion as ground beef, and so I was looking for ways to use it.  I was making many of recipes from Nourishing Traditions by Sally Fallon at the time, and so I learned to make meatloaf from her recipe.  Meatloaf is one of those foods that is really more of a technique, and you can use whatever you have on hand.  Here is what I usually do:

Ingredients:

1 pound of ground meat (I usually use grass-fed beef, but have used lamb and bison)1 cup or so (I confess that I seldom measure) cooked brown rice, sprouted bread crumbs (Ezekiel Food for Life when I am not eating gluten-free), or kasha (toasted buckwheat - recipe to follow)
1/2 onion diced
2 carrots, peeled or scrubbed (I peel, but perhaps scrubbing is better), chopped somewhat fine
2 stalks of celery, chopped somewhat fine
a pinch or two of thyme- dried or fresh.  You could also add rosemary, red pepper flakes
sea salt (pink or gray)
black pepper
2 cloves of garlic
Organic ketchup, or something else creative to glaze the loaf.  One year I canned plum butter, which was great for glazing meatloaf.  

Preheat the oven to 350.

I saute the carrots, onion, and celery, and add dried thyme, crumbling it in my fingers as I put it in.  Add salt and pepper to taste.  Then I put the raw ground beef in a bowl, with the cup of brown rice, add a good sprinkling of salt and fresh ground black pepper, minced raw garlic, and sauteed veggies and mix to combine.  (Note to recovering vegetarians:  You will be forming an intimate relationship with raw meat at this point.)  Have your rectangular glass baking dish ready, and form the meatloaf into a log shape in the dish.  If you want to make sandwiches, picture cutting slices of the meatloaf and shape your log according to the shape of your bread.  Glaze the meatloaf with ketchup, spreading it with a knife.  Add 1/2-1 inch of water to the pan to keep the meatloaf from drying out.  Bake until browned on the outside and no longer raw on the inside.  (Not that the rawness would hurt you, it would actually be good for you, providing enzymes, just not so appetizing). 



Caramelize onions while meatloaf is baking.
Thinly slice 2 red or white onions.  Melt 1 teaspoon of butter and 1 teaspoon high quality extra virgin olive oil in an iron skillet over medium heat.  Stir every few minutes for 20-30 minutes, then turn the heat a little lower and cook for 15 more minutes or until sufficiently soft and brown.  It takes a lot of time to caramelize onions, and you have to watch them because they can burn easily, especially after they start to caramelize.  For more info. see
http://simplyrecipes.com/recipes/how_to_caramelize_onions/

Serve meatloaf for dinner with pureed parsnips (peel, cube and boil until tender, then mash with butter and salt) and steamed beets (peel, cube and place in steamer basket over a pot with a lid and a few inches of water, steam until tender.  Salt to taste).

For Lunch: 
Recipe:  Meatloaf Sandwiches with sauteed Mushrooms, Caramelized Onions, and Raw Cheddar on Naturally Leavened Whole Grain Bread

Here in Floyd, I am lucky enough to buy locally-made naturally leavened whole grain organic bread.  I confess that I have gotten addicted to Sweet Water Bakery's products since moving here.  Their products are prepared with respect to the principles for preparing grains as outlined in Nourishing Traditions.  I am making a committed effort to going back to a gluten-free diet, however, as the gluten (even when fermented) wreaks havoc on my digestive system and causes fatigue.  Some people are able to tolerate gluten however.  If you are interested in seeing if gluten causes a problem for you, look for information on my spring cleanse elimination diet teleclass in the coming months. 

Cut meatloaf slices to desired thickness.  Lightly salt and pepper if needed.  Preheat oven to 350.  Cut slices of bread and spread with organic unsalted butter (Don't skip buttering the bread!!!)  Lightly salt.  Toast lightly in oven.  Place slices of meatloaf atop non-toasted side.  Top with sauteed mushrooms, caramelized onions, and raw cheddar cheese.  Put in oven until meatloaf is hot and cheese is melted.  See if it is not one of the best sandwiches you have ever eaten. 

Serve with leftover beets, Sauteed collard greens, organic raw sauerkraut or kimchee.