The Salt of the Matter

This really is one of those 'duh!' moments for me.

In the picture is regular table salt,

sea salt, and reeeal salt!

First, let's just be clear.

Salt is NaCl - sodium chloride.

It is a chemical compound.

These two elements can be brought together upon manufacturing will.

This is what happens when you get the

typical table salt, with the additive of calcium silicate

which helps keep it from caking.

Then there is sea salt.

This one is not the iodized sea salt which contains

other ingredients such as dextrose.

This one is just 'sea salt' and calcium silicate - again.

I am wondering just how they get all the nutrients out of the salt

and how they get it so bright white.

I could find no such information in my search.

Most salts on earth are not a true white.

And here is the 'duh' part.

I grew up on a ranch.

We gave the cattle, sheep, etc.

salt with trace minerals.

Guess what...

we (humans) need those trace minerals too.

So,

I found Pacific Salt Sea Salt.

It is the real salt.

No additives - so yes, it will cake if it sits that long.
It is a soft greyish-white color.

The great part is that we are now naturally

getting trace minerals in our diet.

We are not salt-aholics so

our diet now contains more of what we need

and less of those anti-caking chemicals.

As far as price goes.

I think the real salt was about twice the other

which means it was about $2.00 rather than $1.00.

We don't go through a ton of it so I deemed it affordable.

The flavor is slightly milder and a bit more savory

as opposed to the acrid tang of regular salt.

It seems to add to or bring out the flavor of food

rather than masking it.

We've been using it for several months now and love it.

That's why we still have these others in the cupboard.

Might have to use them as ice-melt or something.

Until next time,

Nimble Fingers and Even Stitches

A Healthy Diet Invitation

We are at it again.

For the month of August,

we are eating our healthy diet.

We don't venture too far from it for the rest of the year,

we just aren't as adamant.

We are doing this in great part due to a neighbor who wants to

but needs support and encouragement.

There might be several of us all doing it

so thought it might be fun if we invited you too.

We have among us borderline diabetics and gluten intolerant.

I need to make some calls tomorrow and find out who is in.

We begin Friday the first of August.

So here we go...

These are things we eat and things we avoid.  Last year, we did no grains, processed sugars, or chemicals.  Eliminating chemicals was the most difficult part.  Since then, hubby has continued to eat no wheat.  His joints are greatly improved by that.  We have continued to minimize grains in our diet.  One thing that made a lot of sense to me is that your body recognizes three things: sugars, fats, and proteins.  Grains are sugars.  Fats are good.  Proteins are best.

1st.  ~  No grains nor processed sugars.  We do eat fruit since they are natural sugars, and we don't typically O/D on them.  Once you eliminate grains and sugars, you can really taste their sweetness.  Honey or real maple syrup are okay, but we found that we didn't have anything to use them on.

2nd.  ~  Fats and oils: We use avocado or olive oil which are both stone fruits as well as butter or lard.  We do not use vegetable oil, shortening, or margarine.

3rd.  ~  Dairy: Eat as much as you like.  Eggs, milk, and cheese are good.  If we could get milk straight from the cow, that would be best.  The least processed the better (ie. no skimmed or ultra-pasteurized.)  Cheese without a ton of chemicals is difficult to find if you are avoiding chemicals.

4th.  ~  Nuts and seeds:  Eat all you want - just watch as they tend to add 'mystery' ingredients and cook in canola oil.*

5th.  ~  Meat: as much as you like.  Try to opt for 'natural' - not by government standards, but by real standards.  We still buy chicken and pork since we do not have a local source - yet.  We get grass fed/fattened beef, wild game, and fish. 

6th.  ~  Veggies and Fruits: Any and all.  The darker the better & lots of greens.  Herbs are really just greens with lots of flavor.

7th.  ~  Sauces and dressings: Beware!  Most are a mixture of oils, chemicals, sugars, and grains.  There is wheat in soy sauce, some ketchup, salad dressings, licorice, ... the list goes on and on.

8th.  ~  It will be difficult to eat out.  Most restaurants add starch &/or sugar even to their veggies.

There is no limit to the amount of food you eat as long as it is within the parameters above.

I lost 8 lbs. & hubby about 15 lbs. in one month changing nothing but our diet.  Hubby didn't move like an 80 year old man any more and was no longer in pain.

Wheat is a natural inflammatory & appetite stimulant.  I will just encourage you to do your own research before taking the government (FDA) word for what is safe and good for you.  

Example: Several of the approved food colorants are proven carcinogens.

There is a new book out "The Big Fat Surprise" which hubby and I would both recommend.

The Weston A Price site is good as well.

*Canola - click here

Before the Egyptians began cultivating crops to feed cities through the winter, the 'natural' human diet was very close to what we have listed above.  This makes a ton of sense to me and was the reason I gave it a whirl in the first place.

Disclaimer: We are not doctors, licensed nutritionist, or medically certified in any way.  We do continually do our own research in regards to nutrition.  We are in no way responsible for your health.  We do believe in being responsible for our own health & nutrition.  If we can in some way help others we would love to do so.  Again, we would encourage you to do your own research.

You might be thinking this is expensive,

but it is amazing how much all the grains and sugars cost.

Our grocery spending didn't really change when we changed 

from eating those things to what we do on the diet.

Hunter-Gatherer Diet Results

We survived!

We went without grains, sugar,

chemicals, preservatives, & monotrisurtablepshaekhra???

Today, I had ketchup on my hamburger.

Happy me.

Mr. LB gets a Blackberry-peach crisp

and homemade vanilla ice-cream.

(Never mind the bit that spilled on the counter.)

We did well at sticking to it.

It was most difficult when traveling or

attending any sort of event.

Everything served was either sugar

or preserved/processed.  Trying not

to be rude and still eat was a challenge.

I will preface this by saying that neither of us

is really 'over weight.'  

We could lose a couple pounds, but 

not more than 10-20 max.

Mr. LB lost 10-15 lbs. and actually had to

begin eating a little oatmeal in the mornings

after about 3 1/2 weeks.

He was loosing too much and

couldn't eat enough in a day to keep his energy up.

He did notice that his joints

were virtually painless even 

after a day of about 65 miles on a dirt-bike.

I lost about 8 lbs.  My energy was fine - 

or at least not drained.

He works a lot harder than I do.

What I noticed was that

I got tired of eating and not feeling

full or satisfied.

We will continue to move towards organic,

and unprocessed whenever possible.

As I become a better gardener and canner,

that might be easier:)

I have plenty to learn.

Mr. LB is going to continue to

keep grains to a minimum.

One of the things we missed most

was cheese - just regular chemical-laden cheddar (or colby-jack.)

Next, was just the completion of the dish-

like rice, pasta, or tortillas.

(Tacos without shells are really difficult to eat with your fingers.)

It's strange how we are trained to what the whole flavor is

or have preconceptions about a complete meal. 

We have been lucky in that our lettuce

is still going, cucumbers and tomatoes are coming on,

corn from friends, berries in the front yard,

and plums everywhere. 

It has been a worthy trial and

one that we will continue at times
and at other times just keep in mind as we eat

a taco with our hands:)

PS: I might make me lavender cookies before summer goes away.

Until next time,

Nimble Fingers and Even Stitches

Hunter/Gatherer Diet & A Very Healthy Recipe

Mr. LB & I began a one month trial

being on only a basic hunter/gatherer diet.

Say what you will,

it's more difficult than you think.

We can eat all the meat, veggies, & fruits we want.

We can also have tea, coffee, & milk.

(except I'm allergic to milk so that ones out for me.)

We can also have a few things like

vinegar, sea salt, and a few cheeses.

This is not a no carbs diet, we can eat a spud,

nor a no sugars diet,we can eat apples.

It is just a diet that you would have

if you were to hunt or gather your food

(for the most part)

Hubby thought that the no grains,

white flour, & processed sugar

would be the tough part for me.
(I am Italian after all)

Oh no, the tough part is figuring out

what's for dinner.

This diet means no 'processed' foods & no chemicals!

(processing as in chemical processing)

Preservatives, artificial anything, coloring, etc.

I can't believe how many things have color preservatives 

in them - really???

Do we really need those?

Even apples have a FDA approved shellac.
We had a talk about it last night.
If we lived in the 1920-30's,
it wouldn't have been nearly the challenge.

Town for us is a bit 'rural.'

Finding something organic is almost impossible.

We have a farmers market which I have been attending.

Even they use chemical fertilizers.

Think back woods 'bigger is better.'

I figure at least it is fresh and unprocessed.

After 3 days, I told him

I was ready to say 

mixed salads for a month.

Mr. LB wasn't too keen on that idea.

He works hard and eats a lot.

His issue is getting enough calories to keep him going.

I will keep you posted.

We do have a garden,
but it's not quite producing yet.
This is the first garden in about 3 years,
so we don't have a store of home canned foods
to work off of.
Nearly everything canned has preservatives
of some fashion.
I almost leaped for joy
when I found organic kidney beans.
We had chili for dinner last night.

I will share a little 'recipe'

that I have used in lunches

rather than sandwiches.

The Mr. LB Roll-up

 6 leaves of lettuce (good sized leaf lettuce)

1/2 avocado (cut lengthwise then into 6 slices)

fresh real cheese (it's a soft goat's milk cheese)

6 onion slivers (I cut a lg. onion like a pie & use crescents)

6 slices or strips of meat of your choice.
Pepper - optional

Lay out dry lettuce leaves.  
If you have a thin slice of meat,

lay one slice on each leaf.  
If you have strips, lay it in the middle.

Next add a little cheese along each strip of meat, or

down the middle of each slice of meat.

Now add a slice of avocado, onion & pepper.

Begin rolling from the end of the lettuce that was closest to the stem.  
I just stack them in a container,

but you could put a tooth-pick through 
each one.

Makes 6
(Mr. LB tried cutting the avocados a little different this time - they were a little harder to roll up, but still tasted the same:)
Enjoy

Until next time,
Nimble Fingers and Even Stitches