MIlk

I haven't talked about milk in a long time and I get questions about it all time. Let's readdress the issues.

First off; milk in the stores is not good for you. Plain and simple. Why? Here are a few reasons to start with:


#1: Most of the time the cows it is derived from are treated with hormones and antibiotics, not to mention the fact that they are eating corn or grass that has pesticides on it.You get all that in your milk. Yuck.

#2 The milk is then pasteurized and homogenized which kills any enzymes it once had to actually help you digest the high amount of proteins that are in the milk. Now, the milk is left without nutrition and actually can leach the calcium from your bones. You get plenty of calcium in other foods that are actually digestible. It is a great myth that you need milk for calcium.

#3: Milk creates mucous. Mucous feeds yeast. It can cause allergies and ear infections. In fact, dairy is the number one allergy. Anyone who has stomach issues, stuffy noses or runny noses or ear infections should always eliminate dairy right off.

The Goodman household never drinks milk. We do use milk to cook with , to make yogurt and to culture Kefir. We buy our milk right from the Cow. Organic grass fed cows. It still has enzymes, it still has vitamins. Since the cows we have around here are the black and white type, mucous production is still an issue so we still don't want to drink it. If you can get the brown type cow milk, it has a much lower propensity to create mucous. Even so, milk should be a food not a drink. All mammals are weaned. Mom's milk dries up. There is a reason. It is very high in protein and is needed in infancy. However , as the baby or animal grows, they actually loose some of the enzymes used to digest the milk. I am sure that is all part of the master plan. We don't need all that protein anymore. Our systems are changed to adapt to what we now need.
Once my babies were weaned, we went right to rice milk or almond milk. Never , ever, not once did I ever put cow's milk in a bottle. Ever. The earlier you introduce cow's milk to a child, the higher chance they will have a dairy allergy. And, once you get one allergy, you are that much more likely to create more allergies.

Culturing milk for yogurt or kefir actually puts back the enzyme in the milk that most of us are lacking; lactase. It will render the milk more digestible. Culturing also creates probiotics in the dairy to help with beneficial bacteria. Many harder cheeses like cheddar and Parmesan are cured over 60 days and they too are much easier to digest. Many people still cannot handle milk in any form and a couple of mine have those issues. If you cure your yogurt for 24 hours, it will be much more broken down and even easier to digest. I still do not recommend dairy in any form to those with a true allergy.

So, if you are lucky enough to get raw milk, spend the extra money. I get mine from Save Your Dairy in Queen Creek with a drop off near my home. You can google them and find out more. If you don't live here, google raw milk to see if you have some close to you.

Goats milk is another option, I have a friend in Queen Creek that is selling some of her raw goats milk and some eggs. Goats milk is much easier to digest and many can handle goats milk even if they can't handle cow's milk. It has much less proteins.

You may email Denise at:rockin7ks@aol.com. She is selling the milk for $4 per half gallon. It is great for yogurt as well. I can't wait to try my hand at some goat cheese. As soon as I get to that, I will blog my adventures.

If you are looking to start your own yogurt or kefir, I bought my cultures from Culturesforhealth.com. I would be happy to give any tips I have learned. It is super easy and way cost effective.

So, homework assignment: if you are a dairy drinker or have cold cereal for breakfast, break the habit. Your body will love you for it. If you have kids with runny noses, cut the dairy and watch the magic happen.

Azure Standard

I have blogged about Azure Standard before but in case you didn't hear; listen up. My friend, Terri Hirning did a post about them today and made me fall in love all over again with them. I get all my grains from them, my beans, my gluten free products, some produce, coconut milk, nuts and much, much more. They have organic products for cheaper than you can buy the regular non-organic items here. They have an enormous catalog that you can order for free. They have various drop locations around the U.S. and they come once a month. Free delivery. They are amazing and their standards are superb. If you want to know why I love them even more today, go check out Terri's post today and you will see why. Read it here. Also, if you didn't already have a phobia of pesticides like I do, she has a little on that too.

Thanks Terri! We need to do lunch again!

Soaking 411

Soaking is so very easy that it hardly deserves a post all too itself. However, the benefits far outweigh the minimal time it takes to presoak. All it really takes is a couple minutes the day beforehand, which in the end helps you be a little prepared for the next day.

There are different methods out there but so far, this has worked for me. I have had a great coach, Miss Kara Bagley. For those of you who are soakers, please feel free to share your method so we can all learn off each other. Here is how it goes down in my kitchen:

12- 24 hours before the time of cooking, and preferably 24 hours, start your soaking. It is easiest to remember to just start it after your breakfast so it is ready for the next breakfast, if you are going for a breakfast food. Most gluten free grains do fine with 7-10 hours of soaking.

* Put in your flour called for in the recipe. Use a glass bowl. Hopefully you are using a good, freshly ground whole grain. No need to have a sprouted flour when you are going to soak.

* Add in the liquid called for. If it is milk, use buttermilk or kefir. If it is water, you need to add an acidic medium. Add 1 T. of acid base per cup of liquid. This can be kefir, lemon juice, yogurt, vinegar or buttermilk. If the mixture is too dry, you can add the oil and sweetener like honey, maple syrup or molasses. It doesn't have to be thin, just moistened.

* Cover with a lid or plastic wrap so it won't get dried out. Just don't let the plastic wrap touch the dough. No plastics in our food, please. Keep in a warm place , away from a draft. In the oven is great ( no heat) or on the counter out of the way of a vent.

* When you are ready to prepare, add the rest of the ingredients. I find sometimes I need to add a little extra liquid as the soaking expands the grain a bit.

I have found that not all of my recipes work this way as some don't have much liquid but rely on fruit or eggs as a base. I will use sprouted flour in that case. If you are doing oatmeal, I think it tastes best to soak with the lemon acid then rinse before you cook it. It will take a much shortened cooking time for oats after you soak. The first time I soaked my oats, my daughter asked me if the oats were different. She loves oatmeal but always had a bit of a stomach ache after she ate them. I told her they were the same steel cut oats but I soaked them. She didn't have a stomach ache. See, soaking works! I am sold.

If you don't know what kefir is, stay tuned. We will have a little chat about raw milk, kefir and yogurt next. So much to learn. I am still new to much of this too so I would love any comments. It's a learn as we go process. Thanks for joining. I am impressed with all you great moms out there trying to make your lives better. Such a noble mission.

And, if anyone out there has the creativity to design me a new blog header, I will give you something for free. I am so done with my template. I need something new. Just shoot me an email and I will give you my new slogan. Thanks!

sprouting, made personal

Baseball season is almost over, so hold tight ladies. Posts should be a little less spaced apart. I have lots of email requests to post about so I promise, I will get to them. But, this is one I have been trying to post for a couple weeks now. I think I have it down so it is time. First, let me explain why sprouting and soaking is now "my thing".

I have known about sprouting and soaking for some time now. It seemed like just too much to handle. I didn't want to "go there" simply because it seemed like it would be way too much work and we were just fine where we were. However, I have learned, when the time is right - when it applies to you specifically, it happens and it somehow doesn't seem like such a big deal.

I have been reading Nourishing Traditions and was really getting into the spirit of the book. It seemed like a good idea. Then, I had my 10 year old do an Organic Acids Test to see if he had Candida (yeast issues) and bacteria ,as I suspected. He did, but what I did not suspect is that he was showing a high likelihood of celiacs disease. I was totally shocked. This kid is healthy as can be and doesn't have stomach issues but he does look a little "puffy" and has a stuffy nose a lot. So, I left that office with a new purpose. Sprouting and soaking now applied to me. It was now personal.


I am directing this little conversation specifically to sprouting grains for use in breads and cereals. Sprouting seeds, beans and grains for greens is another chapter. Not ready for that yet. Sprouting and soaking of grains changes the composition of the grains. It enacts enzymes to help in digestion. It breaks down the phytic acid which is contained in the raw grain. Phytic acid prevents absorption of many minerals in the intestines. Breaking it down will help the body to get what it needs out of the grains. Also, by soaking and sprouting, the hard to digest proteins are broken down so they are easier to digest. By doing this, many people who have trouble with gluten are able to tolerate grains again. Especially when using grains that have a lower gluten content like spelt and kamut; some of my personal favorites.

In learning about this process, I found out that in times of old, like our great grandmothers, grains were always soaked. Always. In fact, when grains were collected in the fields, they would sit in a holding area on the farm first where they would be subject to rains and dew that would in sorts, soak and sprout them. Then, they were delivered in a now broken down state. Today, we just harvest with machines and ship out. We have lost understanding over time of why food was processed the way it was and the benefits the methods contained. I was shocked that I never really heard about all this before. Kind of even ticked off that this was kept from me from the so called "nutritional guru's" of the world. I mean, come on. Why isn't this a bigger deal? I know some people know it but why did I only hear about this in the last year? Not that I was ready then but still...

It got me thinking of why every other person has celiacs or stomach diseases now. It is an epidemic. Between the methods of preparation these days, the pesticides in the soil, the genetically modified seeds and overuse of wheat, we are killing ourselves. It is time to take control before we are all in a sickly state.

Well, I decided to get on with it. I have a couple of great friends who were also "there" and had some great tips and websites for me to visit. There are different methods and I found some that worked for me without disappointment. I will address soaking in the next post but here is my method for sprouting my grains in preparation for drying and grinding. Easy as pie. In fact, easier. Pictures included. ( Thanks to the nino's who bought me a new camera for Mother's Day; you rock.)

#1 The night before, put grains of choice in a bowl covered by a couple of inches of water. Cover with a towel and leave them there for 12 hours.

#2 Dump them into a plastic colander, making sure that the holes are smaller than the grain and rinse thoroughly in good water; no tap please. We don't want chemicals.
Then, put the colander over the empty soaking bowl and spread the grains up the sides and bottom so they have a little breathing room. I keep them about 1 inch deep. Cover with a towel and rinse 2-3 times per day.

#3 Repeat the rinse process until sprouts appear, about 1/8 to 1/4 inch long. It takes anywhere from 1 to 3 days, depending on the grains. These ones have just started. A few of the grains went super nuts and sprouted a little faster than the other kids.You don't want the sprouts to get too long or the flour will make a mushy product. Just barely sprout them. Check to make sure that none of the grains are rancid or rotten. I just shift through a bit and pull out any that look a little gray or mushy. If you keep them too wet, they may spoil. That is why I love the colander method. I have never had a problem at all. You also can sprout more at a time by using a colander versus a mason jar. Smaller grains will probably take the mason jar method, like millet or barley. Use cheescloth or a mesh screen attached to the band for draining.

#4 Put in the dehydrator, on mesh drying sheets or parchment paper and dry at 110 degrees until dry. Check by biting down and making sure they are crunchy. It usually takes me most of the day. If you don't have a dehydrator, put them in the oven if your oven temp can go that low or heat it up a bit then turn it off and leave the light on. You don't want to cook the grains, just dry. It is getting hot enough here that you could start drying them outside. Just cover with mesh so birds don't get to it or dust blows in.

#5 Store until you are going to grind in the fridge. You want to use it as soon as you grind it to keep in the nutrition. You can store flour in the fridge if you have left over flour.

It makes the flour lighter and works perfectly in all your recipes. I love them in my tortillas and crepes especially.

There is so much more to tell but that will have to be another story. Soaking and fermenting are just as easy , if not easier. I have my routine now and it truly is no big deal. Even on my very tight schedule. A monkey could do it and he would be much healthier if he did. Hey, there's an idea for the zoo.

30/6/30 challenge

I need a new challenge. The race is over, the sugar thing is over. My arms are flabby and somehow squeezing in workouts seem near impossible with my schedule lately. However, one thing I have learned is that when you make a commitment to something, somehow, someway you find time. You also know that I like company when I commit so here you are ladies....

The 30/6/30 challenge. Easy, peasy.

Thirty minutes of exercise (minimum), 6 days a week for 30 days. Many of you are already doing this but for me, this hasn't happened in months. Breaking a sweat a couple days a week just isn't getting me swim suit ready. More than that, I need energy. I need to move the muscles and feel life. I know that when I get in the routine, I get addicted to it again. 30 days will give me that routine. The hopes are that you don't quit after 30 days, but keep going at a good pace.

Are you ready? Start Monday. Take Sunday off only. Change it up daily so you are getting a good circuit train. Take prisoners; kids are great, friends/husbands are better. Shoot me a post so I know I am not alone.

Thanks for joining.


Have a super wonderful Mother's Day. May all your wildest dreams come true. Or, at least may you get a hot breakfast made by other hands. Sit back and watch this sweet , inspiring video by none other than the inspirational Miss Stephanie Nielson. Love this girl. May we all enjoy the simple things.

Watch "New Life" here.

The Enlightened Homemaker 12 step program

Hi,

My name is Shari and I have been clean for several years now. It hasn't been easy. I have strayed now and then. The temptations are all around me. The peer pressure is overwhelming. The world tries to convince me that I am the freak for being clean. I am the different one. But, my clean life helps me to think clearer, live better and help others. You too can come clean. You too can take the steps to live a better life, no matter what the world tells you is the norm.

I didn't come clean overnight. I get emails all the time, especially recently of how and where to start. It is all so overwhelming and not knowing where to start and where to get help keeps many from beginning the journey. So, my friends, I give you my 12 step program to living clean. (You know we are talking about clean eating, right?)

Some of you may be on step 3 or 4, others may not even be near step 1 but you are here, and you are reading so you must have some desire for an intervention. It is time. Pick whatever step you are on and continue up the ladder. Many of you read my blog and think that living this way is too much. I agree that if you tried to do it all overnight, it would be. I started my journey 20 some years ago and I am finally at a place where I think I should be. I am not an expert but it is working for us and it feels right. So, do not get discouraged , just trod along at a pace that is right for you. The important part is beginning, getting a support group and not wavering in your determination. Are you ready? Sure you are.

1. Make it personal. Why do you want to live clean? Why is it important for your family? What issues in health do you need to resolve? Make it a spiritual matter and make it important. Read! Study! Learn! Pick up "Nourishing Traditions" and study it. Understand how food affects us. Gain a testimony of nutrition.

2. Stop drinking soda! If this isn't your vice, skip step number 2. If you are a very occasional drinker, no biggie. Soda is the bane of our existence. It is the downfall of American health. You can't go anywhere without seeing half of the crowd , if not more with 44 oz. in their hand. It destroys the stomach lining. It makes us fat. It deprives us of nutrition, weakens our immune system, and decays our teeth and bones. Need any more reasons? And, please, oh please, keep it out of the house and away from kids. Limited special occasions probably won't kill us but it is the daily habits that do.

3. Get Naked in the pantry. Take a personal day and go through the pantry. Read labels. If it isn't real, get rid of it. If it isn't naked, unadulterated food; purge. Give it away. Do what you may but at the very least, don't buy it again. Start reading labels when you shop. You are a real person, you need real food.


4. Start saving and buying equipment. Add little by little important accessories for your new healthy lifestyle. You will spend money up front but in the end, they will save you time and money. You need a grain mill, a Bosch, a pressure cooker, a dehydrator and a juicer if you can. There are many great small gadgets as well to make life easier but focus on the big equipment first. You can't get the best out of food if you lack the tools to make it. Save. Hint for Mother's Day.

5. Read and collect recipes. If all your recipes call for "cream of" soups and pre-packaged items, it is time to refill the recipe box. Get a binder and start collecting and
printing recipes off the Internet. Put them in a binder in categories and sheet protectors. Have an arsenal to choose from and practice them! Tell your kids that there is a new sheriff in town and the law has just changed. They are free to leave if
they don't like it.

6. Start with a daily hot, whole grain breakfast. Breakfast is the most important part of the day. The body should never start the day off with sugary, artificial cold cereals and pasteurized milk. Poison. Wake up earlier, make something to feed the soul and mind. Whole grain muffins, waffles, pancakes, hot cereals. It doesn't take long and you can make extra and freeze for those hard mornings. Wholegrain toast and eggs also work great on those days you can't spare a moment.

7. Pack lunches. School lunches are horrible. They are dead and void of nutrition. Pack a healthy sandwich on wholegrain bread, fruit, veggies, healthy chips. Brain food. Get creative but keep it real.

8. Cut down on meat. Use more grains, veggies and beans. Replace some of the meat at first in recipes with something vegetarian. Chances are no one will notice. Your grocery bill will go down as beans are cheaper than meat. Your body will thank you.

9. Use organic as much as possible. Especially if the produce has thin skins. Find local farmers markets and co-ops to help lower the cost. Produce that sits in stores and on trucks looses nutrition. You want to get it as fresh and pesticide free as possible. Try to get raw milk also if you can. AZ allows it and there are a few places to get it. (email me if you want info)

10. Start adding in new grains and beans. There is way more to whole grains than wheat and oats. Way too many people are becoming allergic to wheat as we over consume. We need to rotate and get the benefits from all sorts of grains. Millet, spelt, barley, quinoa, kamut, teff, amaranth, etc. Read up and try something new. There are lots of beans so stray a bit from the pinto. Variety is a good thing. Flavors are wonderful.

11. Get cultured. Learn about the goodness in homemade yogurt and kefir. Probiotics are vital for a healthy body. Making it at home is easy and cost effective. Especially if you can get raw milk. You can go to Cultures for Health online to buy many of your cultures.

12. Sprout and soak. Learn the importance of pre soaking the grains before you cook to help them digest easy by enacting enzymes and reducing phytic acid. Read "Nourishing Traditions" to gain an understanding of how other cultures and our country in past prepared food and had little disease as a result. Start with one grain and go from there.

What is beyond step 12? Man. I hope not much more. I am just there now and although it seemed overwhelming at first, I have to admit, it is quite easy when I finally took the plunge and committed. I can't imagine doing anything more in the food area than step 12 except perfecting the art and understanding the concept more. But, then again, who would have thought even a year ago that I would be almost meat free and making kefir? Evolution. Step by step.

I will be blogging about my new adventures as I go along. I have much to share. When baseball season ends, I may get some quality posts out to you! But, my friends, for now, make the commitment. Improve wherever you are. If your family
doesn't share your joy, well.... you are the boss in the kitchen. Take control. Someday they will thank you. I promise.

Online photography class for kids and teens

My photography master SIL has put together an online photography class for kids and teens for the summer. Each class is 4 weeks long with online tutorials and homework assignments. Great for your little photographers. Check out the link here for details!

Good fat, bad fat.

Back in my working days, I worked along side one gentleman who was a "weight freak". This is totally different from a "health freak" only the "weight freak" thinks he is actually the "health freak". It is sort of a problem we have here in America. You see, the weight freak wants to look good. He likes to work out. He falls for all the sensationalism of "slim down" products. He thinks that working out 2 hours a day and pounding down a protein bar and eating "low fat" is what healthy is. At all cost he wants to keep that days of yor teenage figure (not today's teenagers, mind you).

Problem: That weight freak is killing himself.

Back to my story. My co worker ate anything "low fat." He would cringe at my delicious, healthy, brought from home lunches that had butter or nuts as ingredients. Real cream, real cheese. You know. "fattening foods." I would tell him over and over that his fat free , store bought Rice Krispy treat bars would kill him, not my butter laden food. I assured him that I would retain my figure and still eat real food. I would be healthy. I would joke with him that if he kept eating all those "low fat" labeled foods in neat little containers ,with no real food ingredients ,but few calories, (run on, I know) , he would die of a brain tumor.He joked that I would die of a heart attack. That argument went on for years. It ended only because he died of a brain tumor. It was no longer a joke. Ironic, but True story. Of course, many reasons can contribute to cancer, I know that. But, I do know that diet can play a very important role just as the role of diet can fight cancer when it strikes. He fed his body continually to feed cancer cells.

Our bodies need fat. It is essential for cellular functions on every level. Fat signals to our bodies that we are full. Fats feed our brain. Fats help us to absorb vitamins and minerals. Fats help to bind histamines and get them out of our body. When you deprive your body of fat, you are doing a huge disservice to the body on a whole. However, the type of fat you need is not the fat you are going to get along with a super size portion of fries. You want the good fats. The fats that are in nuts, avocados, seeds, coconut oils, olive oils, flax seed, raw milk and butters, raw cheeses and eggs. Without them, we don't absorb important vitamins.

It is also important to get a balance of the Omega 3 and 6. Our diets today are heavily weighted on the 6 side. They are in the seeds and some nuts and in our cheaper oils, like the soybean variety. The important omega 3 oils are in fish, flax seed and walnuts. Cod Liver oil is a great source of Omega 3 and 6. If supplementing, please make sure you get a top quality brand that is mercury free. I prefer Carlson's brand. It can be purchased at most health food stores or from New Beginnings. If you are an allergy sufferer, Cod liver oil is a great way to help get the histamines out of the body.

Of course, as with everything, moderation is key. The good fat is easier to process and therefor used by the body better. If you overdo, of course you can gain weight but that is with anything. If you don't eat fat, that full feeling takes longer to come to. Fat actually signals to the brain that you are "done." Ever went on that fruit and veggie diet and could eat fruit all day and never felt full? You need it. Kids especially need it. Their brains are growing and they need fat to make it , well, fatter. A tsp. or so a day of Cod Liver oil is great for kids or try using some flax oil in your salad dressings. Avocado's are a great source of fat. Try to make a pudding out of it. My friend Terri told me about it and it is great for the little ones who don't know the difference. One avocado, some cocoa powder , a little honey or coconut sugar and blend it up. Add a little banana if you want and you have some chocolate pudding. It has the exact same texture as the real deal and my little guy thinks it is the bomb. He doesn't know he is getting brain food. He is just impressed that he is getting "choclit".

I have never, ever bought anything that says "low fat." Almost without exception, the fat has been replaced by something that should not be edible. The body knows what to do with fat, it doesn't know what to do with plastic. You are a real person, eat real food. Just eat a little less of it.

I just ate a delicious homemade biscuit with sprouted spelt and kefir topped generously with real deal butter. Yummy. Two of them. I had a scrumptious spinach salad with fruit, soaked nuts and a dressing made with coconut oil and raspberries. The "weight freak" would cringe. I devoured. I feel full. I feel healthy. My brain feels fat but I do not. Eat up. Get "fat", the real kind.

Kids drops in

New post tomorrow but for now, the kids drops just arrived at my door along with a few extra cleanses and pills. Up for grabs! Email me about getting your products and I will ship the out of towners by Wednesday.

Thanks!!

Upcoming great posts:

Turning brown eyes green
Fat
12 step program
soaking and sprouting adventures

Excited?? Ok, maybe not but it may be worth something.

Job charts

For some reason lately, the issue of kids and chores has come up several times. My friend, Mary, sent me this little tid bit of info and testimonial. Check it out! It is totally free!

"Shari- This little site (myjobchart.com) has changed the way we work! my 7 and 5 year old love logging on each day to see what their tasks are and how many points they earned that day. It's fun, it's simple and surprisingly our kids stay motivated!

We have customized pictures and points for each child of the rewards they are working towards such as, date with dad, movie tickets or a new toy. We have noticed less whining because our kids know what is expected of them.

We have tried everything and nothing seems to stick! Finally we have found something that we can be consistent with (because our kids reminds us) as our kids grow. If you value work and teaching your kids responsibility, as i know you do, you will LOVE myjobchart.com!"

Mary

***Now, if only I could get my 16 year old to think this would be fun. I think I have to resort to withholding car keys at this point.

Thanks for the tip, Mary!