4 AUG 2015 :: Learning about healthy foods

My latest listing at my Etsy shop (work2gather.etsy.com) was a digital form for tracking your food intake.  It is part of my quest to eat better and lose some weight.  I have finally started moving in the downward direction in pounds, so I don't want to stop that trend!!!   :-)

Every information source I go to has a "unique" twist on the food issues they are concerned about.  It has taken some time (in years) to get through all this mixed information and begin to create a plan I can live with.  My new form is the latest of many, and already I am thinking of revisions to make it better.  I have decided just to keep developing my forms and list them all, watch which ones are preferred by people (if any), and continue developing healthy food directions as one of my priorities.

I know that a lot of people are connected to internet apps and other smartphone products, but I like to have paper options to work on...so, I will act as though there are others like me who want to have that information in a private place, not on the internet, and where notes can be kept about the process for their personal history.

In my quest for information

• I discovered a Canadian government source that was a lot better than the American government sources I had accessed before.  I will have to find it again so I can share the web address.
• I discovered a website that has some great information products I can use, and is from the vegetarian/vegan perspectives.  (Healthy foods are all about the recipes... I will look almost anywhere for a good recipe that might become a favorite.)  I was happy to find an infographic on nuts because I haven't quite figured out how much of what nuts are the best to eat. (I have read about almonds and walnuts being protein sources, and know that sunflower seeds have great nutrition, and wonder about other nuts and seeds.  I thought it was good to eat some every day, then I read it was every week.  This part of my nutrition quest is still being researched!)  I printed a lot of pages to read and add to my main collection. 
• I found out the US government food site is updating their serving size materials... and will have to check back for that.  I had to use a 2011 PDF for serving requirement information for my new record form.
• I discovered a popcorn website when I was trying to find out how many calories were in the amounts I eat all the time -- and whether it was part of the grains food group.  (It is.)  I discovered some recipe ideas that I never would have considered for popcorn, but want to try, including making popcorn into a crumb mixture like we do for crackers, bread, and other foods.  Reading through their recipe book inspired me toward making some flavored toppings that are different than what I normally eat.
• I returned to the 21day Fix program's blog website for more videos and recipe ideas.  I discovered some great salad ideas that go beyond lettuce and dressings.  (I had my first "Cucumber Salad" the other day because I noticed one on this site.)  More about this site follows....

Portion control is a huge problem for everyone that wants to lose weight.  I loved the color-coded containers that the 21day Fix program uses.  Their containers go in this order and are sized largest to smallest...

PURPLE  ::  fruits
GREEN  ::  veggies
RED  ::  proteins
YELLOW  ::  carbs
BLUE  ::  healthy fats
2 ORANGE  ::  seeds and dressings
and now they have a drink cup for their newest "smoothie" product.


I decided their containers follow the USDA recommendations in some ways.  I looked for the exact measurements of the containers when I first went to the site awhile back, but couldn't find them anywhere.  I did find some of them with the recipes and/or food videos.

• I think the YELLOW carbs container is probably 1/2 cup size because the regular portion for brown rice and other grains is 1/2 cup. 
• I wasn't totally sure about the GREEN container.  I know that dark leafy green servings are suggested to be 2 cups by the USDA, but regular veggies are listed as 1 cup portions.  I think the program container is probably 1 cup.  (I did see a YouTube video that measured the volume in the containers with water in a measuring cup and BOTH the Purple and the Green containers were about a 1 cup measure.)
• The ORANGE container is for seeds and dressings, which I have read are both recommended at 2 Tablespoon portions.  The photos make it look larger, almost at a quarter cup portion, which would be 4T.  I still need to find out more.

If I had enough money to spare, I would purchase the program, but it is approximately $80.  From what I read or heard the first time I checked on this site, the cookbook would be worth the price!  :-)  -- not really, but it sounded like a great thing to have.  There are YouTube reviews of the package you receive through your purchase and food prep hints and more.  (In checking on the YouTube reviews I noticed an ad for the containers separate from the kit - at about $18, and probably plus shipping.)


In watching some of the videos, I discovered other links to calorie/container guides.  You might find these helpful, too. 

I need to find my previously collected materials and try to figure out some more menu plans, maybe using the container guides for a week or so.  I will try to let you know how it turns out.  I wish I could make a video like all those other people!   :-)  One of these days....

22 APR 2015 :: Just a quick note

I found two really great old cookbooks today, at the Salvation Army's 50% Sale Day that I love to go to...from the early health movements.

One is called ::  WHOLE-GRAIN BAKING SAMPLER by Beatrice Trum Hunter.  I have been browsing through it and am already impressed by some of the bread recipes.  I am looking forward to trying them... and maybe the cracker recipes, too.  I would love to master the healthy cracker and eat it instead of bread when I can.  Then I can move on to chips for my salsa and bean dip cravings.  :-)

The other one is called ::  THE SIMPLER LIFE COOKBOOK from Arrowhead Mills, by Frank Ford.  I wanted this one because it has a section describing some of the health foods I read about but don't really understand why they are important. 


I will be sharing these efforts with you as time goes by.  Maybe I need to create a book review focus!
Until next time,
Deb

9 APR 2015 :: Introduction - and a recipe!

It looks like I have found the blog title for food issues... it is a constant reminder that we cannot live without food, and we need water to create food, and seeds, and land, and air... 

I don't know how the content of this blog will develop. The issues concerning our food supplies are great, and little people (most of us) don't have the power to change what is happening in government and farming and commerce.  What we can do is to try to grow our own food, as much as possible, and learn how to make it last through the best recipes and preservation techniques.

For many years I have been trying to discover the best ways to preserve different food.  The idea, to me, is to recover the ways it was done before we had electricity for refrigerators and freezers.  Solar power may help to create better food storage that isn't dependent on someone else providing it...or the equipment needed to process food for long-term storage.

I like to collect as many ideas about food creation in urban areas as I can because big cities don't have the land space to grow a lot of food, and when neighborhoods start community gardens on vacant lots, they get lost to future development.  Roof gardening is a great concept, but buildings need to be reinforced for the added weight to the roof activities.  All of these things need to be explored.

GMO practices are taking over our food supplies, which means we need to make sure heirloom varieties don't disappear.  We need to learn how to make and save our own seeds...the smallest containers (or space) needed for different plants...new ways to grow food of all sizes, from herbs to tomatoes to trees.  I don't know how much we can accomplish in the area of GMO food, because a lot of damage has already been done, but we have to try.  The documentary GENETIC ROULETTE is worth watching.  Rodale has always been a leader in organic farming methods.  Permaculture seems to be the current rising force for permanent investments in healthy, organic, food sources.

I hope we can find ways to share our wisdom, but I have to figure out this blogging process on the way to that destination.

I decided to add a recipe that I use in my own kitchen.  Hope you enjoy it, and that I can provide more low-cost recipes in the future.

In Christ,

Deborah Martin
work2gather.us



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I don't know how healthy this quick and tasty (in my opinion) dressing recipe is, but it came from my family history. I don't know its origins, but it has been a stand-by for hard times in my kitchen.


HOMEMADE FRENCH DRESSING

Equal parts of white granulated sugar, cider vinegar, oil, and ketchup, with added garlic cloves, and a "marinating" period before use.


That's how I learned it as a child...watching my mother make it.
-----  In my adult life, I have tried it with white vinegar instead of cider vinegar, sliced garlic cloves or garlic salt instead of cloves, and spiced ketchup instead of regular flavor.

I'm not sure what else I might try as I make it in the future, but I do like the cider vinegar, several cloves of sliced garlic that let it fall into a salad as you pour it, and Heinz ketchup (they have a jalapeño flavor of natural ketchup now, which works really good in this recipe).  I use safflower oil now, but have used canola oil in the past, and maybe vegetable oil.

Glass vinegar bottles are really nice for this recipe, but plastic vinegar bottles work fine.  The small size bottle works for 1/2 cup portions of the main ingredients; a full recipe is usually 1 cup of the main ingredients and fits in the large vinegar bottle.  Since the recipe is made with equal parts of sugar, vinegar, oil, and ketchup, you can make any amount you want.

I recently used this dressing for a HEATED pasta salad meal because I needed to sauté some veggies before I added the pasta and canned beans.  It worked out great!  I loved it, and plan to do that again soon.