all over the map....

This blog post is all over the map, but good information nonetheless! I am still not back in the kitchen cooking & creating quite yet; however; I urge you to read on in the event that you learn something new or are just amused by the very pregnant-brained woman and her latest blog post.....

1) I have just finished reading "My Life in France" by Julia Child, which for someone who isn't able to be in the kitchen creating, is a wonderful way to stay connected to the culinary world. If you are looking for a thoroughly pleasant, well-written read that is focused largely around the joy of food, art and life - then look no further. This book is for you. And in the words of dear Julia "bon appetit" or Enjoy the book, since you aren't really going to be eating the book.

Also, I'd like to point out that I do know that one should underline a book title, not frame it with parenthases -- but I just can't figure out how to accomplish this seemingly simply task on my blogger account and have no energy to figure it out at this time. Please forgive my literary faux pas.

2)IMPORTANT HEALTH FLASH:

The FDA has now renamed aspartame (aka Equal or NutraSweet) to AminoSweet. This name sounds completely innocent and harmless, right? No so my friends, not so! Check your labels for this re-named toxic chemical which as been linked to birth defects, cancer, diabetes, and the list goes on. Avoid it like the plague. Read more about it here.

While we are on the subject of artificial sweetners, let's just touch on saccharin, the pink packet you know as Sweet n' Low. It was accidentally produced in 1878 when a chemist Constanin Fahlbery was working on coal tar derivatives. Mmm...yum! It became popular during WW 1 when we faced a sugar shortage. It remianed popular after the war due to it being a calorie-free sweetner. Saccharin was banned in Canada in the 1977 due to it's carcinogenic properties and reminas banned to this day. In October of 1989 the Environmental Health Hazard Assessment office of the California Environmental Protection Agency added saccharin to the list of chemicals known to cause cancer. It was removed from the list on April 6, 2001.

3) If you are in need of some nutritionally sound information, please visit this website. This girl, Meghan Telpner, has got it going on. She is always posting inventive recipes and highlighting the health benefits of common foods and herbs. Meghan inspires me!

Bacon before bed....

This post is mainly to inform all of you that I am still here. I do not have anything nutritionally sound to offer today. I am going to share about my "food" life over the past four weeks, mostly because I think it will thoroughly amuse those of you who know me well. I have not touched: vegetables. Except for sweet potatoes once and a bit of avocado. Ok, I am not counting french fries as a vegetable. But I have eaten A LOT of the following: hamburgers, cheeseburgers, french fries, potato chips, donuts, waffles, bacon, fudgescicles, popscicles, and anything else that is completely un-healthy, I've probably had my hands on it.

I did not know, or rather, I did not belive, that I could be so, so, so, so, so, so, so sick from nauseau and morning sickness turned into all-day-sickness. I do not exaggerate. I have heard the horror stories about women who endure, but I can now personally identify with those women. And, let me say, that it is those women who have experienced this same sickness that encouraged me to push through. Also, my husband is a jewel, he has been working full time, being Mr. Mom and taking care of me. Bravo, baber. Thank you.

I promise to return with good, sound nutritional information soon. I see the light at the end of the tunnel, and I am so excited.

p.s. yes, I am eating bacon before bed each night, and it's soo good.

Protein Power

This blog topic will be about protein, and the word is at the top of my list these days. The average person should consume around 35 grams of protein per day, which is very easy to accomplish. However; when you're pregnant, you should consume at the minimum 80 grams of protein per day. Ideally a pregnant woman's protein intake should be more like 100 grams per day. This is a daunting task and one I am rising up to meet, daily. Don't just immediately go to: oh that's easy, protein bars and whey protein shakes, waa-laa. Right, and how many protein bars and protein shakes can you choke down for 9 months straight without completely losing it? I am still scarred from my first pregnancy. I did what every pregnant and working woman in America does, and that is exactly the protein bars and whey protein shakes regimen. Yuck. So, so, so very over that. I want food. Real food. I am the type of pregnant woman who needs food, and needs it RIGHT NOW. The goal is to incorporate protein into nearly everything I am consuming and it's keeping me on my toes. I feel like I am eating all the time, and it's only just begun. My staples are eggs, meat, nuts, soy, peanut butter, legumes and my prize ultra protein - raw bee pollen (CAUTION: run in the other direction if you are allergic to bees). Not to mention all of the yogurt and cheese, which I quite enjoy. Ok, and ice cream.

Anyhow, I am not normally a big "milk" drinker, but I have been drinking a soymilk concoction to aid in protein intake. This "milk" has 19 grams of protein. I sip on this concoction all afternoon with interimtent nut (walnuts are bad to the bone) & seed snacking along with the standard breakfast, lunch, and dinner fare. Anyhow, if you are feeling like you want to step into protein world, give it a try:

Lish's Protein Milk or "Milks" in Bodhi's words

(and, yes, Bodhi likes the milks too!)

1 cup unsweetened soymilk

1/2 banana

2 Tablespoons peanut butter

2 Tablespoons Cacao nibs or Dagoba Cacao powder (sold at Whole Foods)

2 Tablespoons flax meal

1 Tablespoon agave (or less, it's not bad without actually or omit if you use vanilla soy)

1/2 c ice

Blend until smooth and enjoy.

You may argue that this isn't much different from a protein shake, but I'd like to point out that it's made with real whole foods, and not from a powdered base. At least, I feel better about it ;)

I will be experimenting with quinoa flour, as quinoa is a complete protein grain. I'll let you know what I come up with, probably some quinoa protein muffins. Stay tuned.....

A healthier banana bread.....

Here you have it, my version of banana bread. It's just as yummy, and has a few healthful ingredients which are not called for in traditional banana bread recipes.

On stovetop:

Slowly melt 1/2 c (one stick) butter

You can use medium heat, just be careful to watch it closely. Do not let it reach a boil, just barely melted is perfect. You can microwave the butter to melt it, but it's detrimental nutritionally. Microwaving anything is detrimental nutritionally, but that's a blog post for another day......

Mash 3 well-ripened bananas in a bowl and add:

1/4 tsp cinnamon

1 tsp vanilla

1/3 c sugar

1/3 c molasses

1 egg; beaten

the melted butter

Sift together in bowl:

1 1/4 c flour

1/4 c flax meal

1 tsp baking soda

pinch of salt

Mix wet ingredients with dry ingredients, then add in 1 c chopped walnuts.

Bake @ 350 degrees for approximately 40 minutes or until center is baked through.

Variation ideas:

1 banana & 5 oz. frozen peaches; thawed, mashed

1 banana & 2 overly-ripe pears; peeled, chopped, mashed

The Weekender

Sometimes in our home we enjoy eating 'breakfast for dinner' and this Frittata was one such craving, genius on my husband's part. I affectionately refer to it as the Weekender because it's easy to throw together, it's the kind of food that you want to keep eating over & over, and it's hearty.

I also promised to give credit where credit is due, and it was my husband's idea to crisp up the cheese on top of the frittata via the broiler after it baked on the stove top, and it made this frittata perfect; seriously, perfect. Good job lovey.

You do need one nicely sized sautee pan that is both oven & stove top safe. In my dreams, I use Le Creuset, in reality; Emeril's tri-ply stainless from Bed, Bath & Beyond is a decent compromise. But one fine day, I'll have glorious pictures of my fanciful, color-coated Le Creuset cookware to share with all of you.

the Weekender Frittata:

Over medium heat:

Sautee a 1/2 lb ground or *link breakfast sausage

While sausage is cooking:

peel and cube one nice sized potato (i used new potato).

finely chop 1/4 c red onion

chop 1/2 of a red bell pepper (1/3 c or so)

Shred 1/2 c sharp cheddar cheese for use later.

Remove sausage from pan to random bowl for holding and immediately add the potato & onion to the hot pan. Pour in just a bit of water, maybe 2 tablespoons to accelerate softening the potatoes. Cook the potato & onion for about 15 minutes, stirring often and scraping up the sausage "yummies" from the bottom of the pan.

Pre-heat your broiler to "hi" or 500 degrees.

Mix with bulbous whisk:

6 eggs

1/2 c half & half

2 tsp basil

salt & pepper (i always do this on the fly, use your judgment)

Once potatoes haved cooked 15 minutes:

Add sausage back to pan, gently mix into potato mixture.

Add the chopped bell pepper; incorporate.

Add the egg mixture to cover evenly as it will start to set right away.

Cook the frittata for about 3-4 minutes, until the eggs are firmly set around the edge of the pan. Move the frittata from the stove top to the pipping hot broiler and let it cook for 4+ more minutes. Add the cheese to the top of the frittata once the top is set and no longer jiggly, and let the broiler bake the cheese until it's a deep golden brown and nicely crisped, about 5 more minutes per my broiler.

*If you use link sausages, once cooled; chop them into bite sized pieces before adding them back to cook your frittata.

America's Food Crisis, coming to a grocery store near you soon....

I watched Food, Inc. last night. I was aware of several of the issues represented in the film, but boy, oh, boy was it a most informative refresher. I was just waiting for them to bring up Monsanto, and they did, near the end of the film. If you don't know anything about Monsanto, you should know these two things:

1) They started out as a chemical company, and are now pioneering the way for genetically modified foods. I dont know about you, but I work hard to keep chemicals and food separated, not combined. Mosanto's pride and joy is the Roundup Ready soybean. They control something like 80 % of the soybeans in the USA. That should scare you folks, scare you right into action. Write a letter to your Congressmen and let them hear your voice. There is power in numbers. Power of the people, it still works today.

2) President Obama named Monsanto the head of agriculture for the United States of America. This means that without intervention of the people, Monsanto is now on a fast track to control the majority of food in America from seed to market. They already have an insane monopoly on the soybean, sueing small time farmers who don't use their product, but whose crops have involuntarily become contaminated with Monsanto's Roundup Ready soybean by winds blowing the contaminated seeds from neighboring famers who DO use Monsanto's soybeans.

We eat three times a day, 365 days a year. To me, it's worth putting in some research from time to time to ensure that one is abreast of the food world and can make educated decisions about what to put on the table. There are always "new and exciting" opportunities available to us in this country. New and exciting does not always mean it's best, or healthiest. Unfortunately, so often, the American public readily ingests media propaganda becuase "they" said so and don't ever think twice. Let me just give you a news flash which will never appear in mainstream media. You cannot trust the government with your health. They absolutely do not have your best interest in mind, they have their pocketbooks and stocks in mind. The food and drug industries in this country are like peanut butter and jelly. You can't have one without the other. There is so much money involved, that no one at ground level is going to make any positive change until we, the people, rise up and demand a change in our agriculture. It is incumbent for you to assume full responsibility for your health, don't allow that responsibility to fall to someone else's shoulders. You are your own advocate. And as your own advocate, I strongly encourage you to watch Food, Inc. (if you have Netflix, you can watch it instantly online right now) or forgoe your daily Starbucks and spend your money on renting Food, Inc. You are getting the better end of the deal, trust me. You may want to order your Venti half-calf Caramel Macchiato with organic milk from now on ;)

Recommended resources:

Food, Inc official trailer; watch it here

Michael Pollan's Book The Omnivore's Delimma

www.organicconsumers.org

The Future of Food Film --- watch it for FREE here, courtesy of Hulu.

What's the big deal with GMOs (genetically modified organisms)? Well, I'm glad you asked. I just came across a very informative article and encourage you to click here to read it.

Whole Foods CEO John Mackey in the Wall Street Journal "The alternative to Obamacare"

Kick'n it Crunchy Asparagus Style....

Lish's Quick Tip for Crisp Asparagus:

Don't actually cook your asparagus, just quickly sear it in a very hot pan.

Here's how:

1) Pre-heat oven to 400 degrees

2) Coat oven safe glassware with olive oil

3) Roast 1/4 c of sliced almonds or pine nuts until golden brown or to your liking (7 min or so)

4) While nuts are roasting, break asparagus ends off

5) Remove hot pan from oven and immediately set asparagus into pan to sear, move the asparagus around with a spoon so as to aid it in crisping up evenly.

This produces, in my opinion, the perfect asparagus. There's nothing worse than soggy asparagus. I mean, come on, peeps. If I am going to eat the stuff and suffer the consequences of "asparagus pee" then I am most definitely not eating it soggy!

Did I mention that this method of "cooking" your asparagus is healthy too? The less time you cook your vegetables, the more nutrients you retain.

In the words of dear Julia .... "bon appetit"