Political Nutrition

Ridiculous how simple this is. No, really. First, kudos to Megan at Detoxinista . Her fabulous recipe got me thinking anything is possible. Of course this time of year, anything is possible. :) So, the key to all of this is going to be the ingredients. I need to stress that. I can't vouch for what I don't use. And again, for those who do not know me, I know nothing about diet, nutrition, health other than my own personal road well travelled. Through Diabetes and Heart Disease and the FDA's goddamn food pyramid that nearly killed me. So. Back to food. I love food. I live for food. And my kids. And my husband. Ok there's a few other good parts in here. But I do love food. Probably genetic on my Dad's side. The Hungarian-Slovak need for really deliciously rich foods. My mom taught Piano. Therefore, my mom had piano recitals. She served food. And there were these amazing cookie bars. Blonde Brownies. They had butterscotch chips maybe? Hell I don't know. I o...

Everyone has their favorite foodie blog to tell them what to eat and how to eat it. I've got one of my own that I write... does that make me right? Maybe. Maybe not. Here's the key. Don't just assume that because someone says it's fabulously nutritious and prevents every ailment in the modern world... well.. that it's true for you.  Take Kale. Nutritious? Probably. So are most plants to someone. For me, since it can promote blood clots, really bad idea to eat it. And stomach issues. If you're prone to any gastric issues... don't eat it. Oh wait... but it prevents cancer! Cancer won't kill you if you're already dead of a heart attack. In other words, not all super foods are super for everyone. And everything in moderation.  If you can tolerate Kale, great. Have it a few times a week at most. Not all day every day. Nothing is good for you in high doses, and the more nutrients a food packs, the less you need to eat of it. This isn't som...

I pulled out my grandmother's lemon bar recipe, courtesy of my sister who keeps all these things. One look gave me the heeby jeebies. 2 CUPS of sugar. And of course that wonderful butter pastry crust. So, absolutely not going with Almond Flour on this one. Sorry, but I could not fathom making a mockery of something my taste buds have always had a soft spot for. And hubby not liking coconut, which is of course the perfect choice, left me in a quandary. You can't make a half-assed Lemon Bar. So I went with the coconut anyway. Hubby's not the diabetic one, so he can live with it. I am only sharing this recipe because I've changed it enough that it isn't actually my grandmother's anymore, and I also assume... rather this is an educated guess... she got it from a cookbook anyway. Sugar Free Grain Free Gluten Free Lemon Bars This isn't in a cookbook yet. But if I ever publish one it will be cause these are that good. Really. Lemonlicious Lemon Bars G...

For those who stop by my blog to feed their bellies... today it's about feeding your soul. So if your soul is well nourished... don't keep reading. I'm on a rant today. And if you find something that offends you, so be it. This is my space. My blog. And my rant. You might try to ignore what the politicians in DC are doing. It might seem to be the same old stuff. Fighting a battle that only exists in their minds. Derived from their quest for control and power. Let's keep things simple. The job of our government, as laid out by our founding fathers, is relatively simple. Provide infrastructure and security to ensure the welfare of our citizens.  Let's define welfare. Well-being. You know, a population that has the basic tools for a decent life. Food. Education. Opportunity. The right to live a decent, whole life. The ability to call a doctor if you need to. And the chance to share in the miracles of modern science such as a vaccine that can keep you in good ...

Brownies must be fudgy. They must be loaded with Chocolate. And they must melt in your mouth. If you are diabetic, well, they have to be sugar free and grain free too. Impossible. Well, as you know from my previous post, I thought so. But I managed a fair simulation of a good brownie anyway. Now I have Swerve. I'm not running a commercial here folks. I'm deadly serious. I have a sweetener, natural, no side effects, that allows me to have my brownie in it's most decadent form. That's it.  So, for anyone using my recipes, I highly recommend switching from the splenda to Swerve. Go back to equal equivalents to sugar in your recipes. The weight, feel, and baking qualities of sugar will come back to your confections. If you are not baking, use the Swerve confectioners to avoid granular texture. So new and improved here we go: 4 oz unsweetened chocolate, I prefer Ghirardelli but use Baker's if you like. 3/4 cup Butter (organic) or Ghee 3/4 cup Almond Flour,...

I know what you're thinking. That I'm going to say just eat what you want in moderation. Let's leave insanity aside for a moment. The reality is, I've spent decades... ok a long time... eons... eating the wrong foods for the right reasons. I am the chronic dieter who fails each and every time to lose weight and keep it off. I make yo yo dieting look like an improvement. What I will share with you is this. Over the summer, I dropped 15 pounds. I've got a ways to go, but time is on my side. We're not talking water weight. Not targeted toning. Not "Wow that was easy" weight. 1-2 pounds a week. Slow and steady like a tortoise.  I haven't given up my chocoholic ways. Too may nutritional benefits to chocolate to do so. I did give up some really stupid foods. Here they are in no particular order. Bread.  Corn. Rice. Potato.  Cereal. Sugar. Pasta. Pizza. Peanuts. Watermelon.  Grain and hormone fed meats and dairy. All whea...

Just look for a moment at these beauties. Ok. Now these. So do you really care what I had for dinner? Chez Miller's was hopping in the kitchen, while the Tucson Monsoon was raging outside. Sorry, I didn't take any photos outside, Too busy taste testing. So the recipes. If you watch your fat intake, don't try these at home. Or anywhere else. For the rest of us... enjoy. The beauty of a low carb, grain free life. We get to eat this stuff. Appetizer Mozzarella Sticks. You can cheat and use string cheese, but I used some good pasteurized chunk Mozarella. Sliced into 1/2" strips. I made 12.  Take 1 cup of Chickpea Flour divided into 2 bowls, 1/3rd in one, 2/3rds in the other. In between these two bowls, place a bowl with one beaten egg. In the large bowl of flour, add 1 tbsp of onion powder, 1 teaspoon red pepper, 1 tsp parsley and whisk till well blended. If deep frying, set oil to 350 degrees. Or use deep skillet. Dredge chee...

Right now I'm just sitting at a kitchen table, with an absolutely heavenly smell emanating from the oven. I have no idea what it will turn out to be. Total experiment. But anything that smells this good has got to taste even better.  I don't know anything about the science of cooking. Never went to culinary school. Don't have a professional photographer to doctor up my blog photos. They are what they are. But since I do this for nobody  but me, and my friends and readers who still love to eat but wonder what's left in the nutritional cupboard that won't kill them... I don't have to concern myself with those details.  So this is all about that work in progress I've got going. I want a snack bar. One packed with protein, and a little chocolate, that tastes yummy and won't hurt me. Sure they sell them in the stores. But I cannot pronounce the ingredients, let alone define them. So no way.  So here's what batch one looked like.  Then b...

Almost half of the U.S., geographically, now permits medical marijuana. 20 states. DC too. Obviously this dreadful scourge on society turns out to be nothing but. Sure it makes people silly. Like opiates pumping through an IV at the hospital don't? Lots of medical professionals who slammed it before are sort of taking it all back now. Now I don't have cancer or any other proscribed illness or even chronic pain, so at this juncture I have no need for a prescription. And that's a good thing. I'm a huge proponent of this though, because as most of us have known someone who has suffered the effects of chemotherapy or chronic, horrific, pain... marijuana, nature's remedy, is just as effective a medical treatment as any pill they can create to alleviate this kind of suffering. But wait. Turns out there's a new twist. According to recent research, people who smoke pot actually aren't fatter, you know, from eating too much because pot causes you to have unco...

If you don't know about my previous foray into truffle squares, you may need to visit my alter ego blog for a moment.  Murphy's Chocolate Truffle Squares Now with any fabulous new twist on a recipe, there's always a few transformations. For us the lightbulb went off with my daughter's upcoming return to college. She's been eating like a nutritional champ all summer. But what to do about those midnight cram session snacks? Or the flight back? What to snack on? Well, chocolate is always a good answer. Yes, even for us low-carb grain-free zealots. But this time all did not go as planned. So let's refresh shall we? Murphy's truffle square This is what we were aiming for, but on a grand scale. Full cookie sheet size, thicker bar, less chocolate since it's not supposed to be dessert. Yum. So we started with the Coconut Macadamia Crust. I added some chopped pecans for good measure. And a little almond butter too. Now I didn't use it the first t...

I'm debating whether even to share this with you. And if you are looking for a quick and easy chocolate fix, this isn't it. At least the blog isn't. You have to read the whole damn thing to get to the good part. If you aren't willing to at least make that effort, I'm not giving you the secret. You see, last night it was a chocolate cream pie so amazing you would never ever believe it's part of a grain-free, gluten-free, low-carb au natural eating regimen. That was yesterday. Murphy stopped by. I'm not making this up. Murphy took a perfectly perfect chocolate cream pie, low carb, gluten-free, egg-free, and to die for good, and messed with it overnight. Now you could say it's my fault, I'm no Martha Stewart. Thank God. I don't particularly like that woman. But the thing is, Martha Stewart is one fabulous cook. She has a ridiculously great coconut chocolate cream pie recipe and I wanted to bake it for a friend who is in need of the aforesaid...

Work Study is an integral part of many students' lives. It helps them financially get through school, and is an opportunity to gain some incredible job skills. Oh I know there are a bunch of yahoos in DC who want to deeply cut funding for work-study. But I'm a big fan. It's a damn good program. But seriously... my daughter's first year assignment? The main Dining Hall. Now you might think woo hoo. She gets to clear off tables and wash a few dishes. But this was a hell of a lot more than that. First, the dining hall was in her dorm. One floor down. So early morning shifts were no big deal.. roll out of bed and slide down those stairs. Secondly, she was in the kitchen. Yep. Learning valuable life skills that she brought home with her. Now this is where it pays off. I got a deep fat fryer for my birthday. Now don't get started on the whole "that's not healthy" thing. Because now that we're eating real food, fat is our friend. Not in ridiculous am...

It was supposed to be a fun-filled relaxing weekend... extended of course with a few days off of work. Supposed to be. My dear friend Murphy showed up. First up, the concert we were all going to attend, The Airborne Toxic Event , a particular favorite of ours, turned out to be a 21 and over venue. We were going with friends, had everything arranged. Now our friends are somewhat known to TATE, and typically, we enjoy perhaps a personal meet and greet and maybe a chair or two in the SRO space. But. We didn't want to chance the youngest member of our party not being able to get in, so we did the responsible adult thing and opted out. After all, we'd just been to their show in Burlington a few months ago. Fabulous by the way. Event night rolls around. Sitting in the kitchen, having a light supper, ruminating on the fact that we should be elsewhere getting ready to have a blast... and my friend calls and says they can get us in, 21 or not... hop in the car and go! But hubby ha...

I know some of you are starting to wonder why it is that my photos are all taken before I remove my oh so deliciously tempting cuisine from the oven. Why don't I do what normal people do? Spend a few hours plating it all up and pretending I'm a real foodie blogger. Create atmosphere. Lighting. Buy a real camera. Get a tripod. Be professional. Perhaps I do it this way because things that rise so beautifully tend to fall when they hit the cool air. Or because they look so much prettier on the rack. Or maybe my food is just so darn fabulous it doesn't make it to the table. Um no. It's because once removed from the oven, they are placed on a cooling rack on the counter which is normal people height not short people height. Now try to take photo of something from above when it's in your face not at your fingertips. Really. I either have to ask for help from hubby, which is like admitting some sort of huge defeat in my book, not to mention the extreme laughter tha...

So what is this new eating plan that has me cooking and baking once more? And ignoring my political duty to rant and rave about Floridian justice and a morally bankrupt social strata? The fact is when I'm upset, and this whole "sure he killed him but he isn't guilty of anything" verdict has me upset... I eat. I also eat when I'm happy. And sometimes when I'm hungry. While some people can eat and eat and eat and their body shapes never change or they just run a damn marathon to compensate... I am a well rounded human being, pun intended, and marathons do not fit my lifestyle. Back to the plan. Well, it's a combination of different, trendy, new weight loss programs. In other words, skip the trendy and go with what works for us... so we stick with it. No grains. No Starch. Meats, poultry and dairy? Free range and hormone free... and NOT grain-fed. No Sugar. Ok maybe a teaspoon here and there :). So if you are looking for low-fat... stop here. Won't find...