The Doctor of the Future

I found this visionary quote the other day and wanted to share it:

"The doctor of the future will give no medicine, but will interest his patients in the care of the human frame, in diet, and in the cause and prevention of disease."

-Thomas A. Edison

Harvest of Gratitude

This year as Thanksgiving has been approaching, it has struck me more than ever before why it is so appropriate that we have this tradition of giving thanks at this time of the year with an abundance of food. I guess my family, in a sense, lived closer to the land this summer, as our garden was the biggest we've had so far. And since a good portion of it was root vegetables, which are now in storage, I have felt the tremendously gratifying feeling that comes from providing for one's own family and preparing for a "rainy" day. This year, more than ever, I feel the spirit of thanksgiving and the desire to celebrate my gratitude with family and friends. I've never thought about it quite that way before.

May you also feel that special feeling and enjoy this beautiful tradition with your loved ones!

Perfect Pumpkin Bread

This bread is seriously addicting! My friend, Jennalee, sent the recipe link to me and I've made it twice now.  Since we harvested our pumpkins, I've been wanting more pumpkin recipes, so I was excited to try this. And honestly, this is a recipe that can't be improved upon.  It tastes perfect--both ways I made it. I modified it, as usual, to substitute whole wheat for white flour and honey for refined sugar.

The first time I made it, I think my pumpkin puree was too watery, and I put more cloves than the recipe calls for. Though the bread sunk because it was too moist, it still tasted amazing. The second time, I did the spices right, cut the butter amount in half, and added 50% more pumpkin. That batch was scrumptious too. So, I've concluded that if you like pumpkin, then however you make this recipe, it will be perfectly delicious.

PERFECT PUMPKIN BREAD

3 c. whole wheat flour
1 tsp. ground cloves
2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1 tsp. ground nutmeg
1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1 1/2 c. honey (I even used only 1 c. and it was tasty)
1 c. butter, very softened
3 large eggs
2 c. homemade pumpkin puree, or a 16 oz can

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and grease two loaf pans.
In a medium bowl, mix flour, spices, salt, baking soda, and baking powder, and set aside.
In a stand mixer bowl, cream together butter and honey. Add eggs and beat well. Add pumpkin and mix again.
Add dry mixture gradually, mixing between each batch.
When all mixed thoroughly, pour into two prepared pans.  Bake side by side for about 1 hour or until passes the toothpick (or knife) test.

School Lunch: Are You Kidding Me?

Have you seen this?  (Maybe I'm the only one without TV here...)



I, who have not had TV reception for over a year, sadly had not heard much about Jamie Oliver and his "Food Revolution."  So when I watched this clip of his experience in WV, I was as horrified as he was.  I so wish I could do what he is doing--boy, does our country need a revolution!--but since I can't, I'm glad someone has the guts and the ability to do it.  Too bad it had to be someone from outside our country!

On one of my favorite nutrition blogs a while back, the author wrote about this very topic and even mentioned Jamie Oliver.  His post came at a time when I had just withstood the temptation to enroll my daughter in the free school lunch program.  I'm so glad I didn't give in to that so I can continue providing her with the healthful food she needs and enjoys.  I don't want that one meal outside the home to sabotage my efforts! 

I realize there are some schools that are making positive changes in their school lunch programs (like the school in OH where my daughter attended), but most are feeding their kids crap.  And I don't use that word anymore.


I also don't use the phrase Jamie uses at the end of this video--but that's exactly how I feel too.  These kids have no concept of good nutrition and are literally being handed terrible eating habits on a silver platter.  What a great way to set the groundwork for diabetes, heart disease, obesity, and early death, eh?  The poor kids undoubtedly feel chronically disgusting and don't even know it.  Talk about "overfed and undernourished"!

I guess my revolution will just be small, in one family at a time, as they make small improvements in their lifestyles, and as my seven-year-old daughter offhandedly teaches her peers about the evils of sugar and the goodness of whole wheat and honey...

Budget Saver Tip #27: Storage Buckets

A while back we found out about a cheap way to get the buckets we needed for various dry food storage items (like wheat, oats, and beans).  In this way we have been able to provide ourselves with all the buckets we need without paying much money at all.  What we do is go to the bakery at Wal-Mart (and this might apply for other grocery stores as well) and ask if they have any empty buckets they need to get rid of.  More often than not, they do, and they'll sell them to us for a dollar or two each.  Usually we have to clean them free of frosting or "garlic spread" or some other such sticky, processed substance, but once clean and dry, they provide the perfect storage for our dry goods.

Anyone have additional ideas for getting deals on food storage containers?

Thanksgiving Traditions

Now that we're officially in the Thanksgiving month, many of us are thinking and planning for traditional menus. So I'm curious: Are any of you making changes--healthy improvements--for the season?

Since my siblings and I will all be enjoying Thanksgiving at our parents' house, where Mom has always been our foremost example of healthful eating and positive changes, our delicious desserts will be all (or almost all) refined-sugar-free. (I don't know if everyone will appreciate that as much as my mom and I will, but hopefully someday they will.) That means less worry for the mothers about how much our children are eating, and less guilt for everyone about over-indulging ourselves on that day.

Other than that positive change in my extended family, I think our traditional food will remain pretty much the same. And since we make nearly everything from scratch anyway--including real mashed potatoes and real stuffing--what's to change? Once, a family member tried to make the stuffing "healthier" by cutting the butter down by half and it tasted like breadcrumbs--it just wasn't stuffing! What a disappointment. I decided then that there are times when it may be more important to stick with a good, wholesome tradition than try to fool with the recipe! I figured we only have stuffing once a year and one bite is packed with so many memories of family in years past that it simply isn't Thanksgiving without it.

I'm sure the same could be said for many of those sugary foods most people eat after Thanksgiving dinner. And it could be justified that it's only once a year, so no big deal (though for many people it's only the beginning of a sugar overload throughout the end of the year). But if you can make a positive change without sacrificing taste or enjoyment, why not do it? That's what I tried last year when I brought the yam dish (which people typically fill with marshmallows and/or other forms of sugar)--and was happily successful.

So who of you are making changes?  I would love to hear your ideas!

Post-Halloween Traditions

Last year after Halloween we had a definite problem at our house: Waaaaay too much candy.  I underestimated people's generosity, and even without going door-to-door, my kids ended up with an astonishing amount.  We have always had the rule (like I had growing up) of one candy per day, but even with that, I figured my kids had enough candy to last them a year.  And I didn't want it hanging around that long, offering a temptation and causing tantrums when I said no (because a child was sick, etc).  So, in desperation for ideas, I posted a question on Facebook: What do you do with your kids' candy after Halloween?

I was very surprised by how many responses I received--and especially by the realization that I was definitely not the only parent who didn't want Halloween candy to stick around very long.  Since I received so many great ideas, I thought it would be good to post that question again here, for the benefit of others.

So what post-Halloween traditions do you have for getting rid of the candy...?

How Much Wood do YOU Eat?

I had briefly heard of this additive before, but I didn't realize how many products it's in until I watched this news clip!  Nor did I realize that the FDA has put no limit on how much of it can be in any one product.  The clip makes it sound like not such a bad thing that so much of our country's processed (and not quite so processed) foods contain "cellulose" (how's that for a euphemism?!)--after all, it doesn't appear to harm our bodies in any way.  But my feeling is, it doesn't provide any nutritional value or benefit to our system, so should we really be eating it?  I mean, we're not beavers or termites!

What do YOU think?

Transition

Lately I've been thinking a lot about the four seasons. I haven't always lived where there are four distinct seasons, and the warm winters sure were a nice break! But I'm actually glad I get all four seasons again, even though I don't really like winter that much. (I get cold easily and I hate being cold, and I live in one of the coldest places in my state.) But I've been realizing this fall what is good about this yearly weather transition, as it relates to gardening, biorhythms, and motivation. Here are some of my thoughts:

1) I love gardening and get a thrill out of it each year, but by the time cold sets in, I'm ready for a rest.  And so is the soil, so together we lie low till spring, grateful for the change.

2) With fewer daylight hours naturally comes the body's urge to sleep more.  And after a busy, active summer, that's probably a good thing (not taken to extreme).  I believe in taking time each day to be still (though some days that is easier to come by than others)--to think, meditate, pray, study scriptures--and winter strikes me as the season to be still.  Of course, with all the holidays, most of us end up with way more to do than we have time to do it in, but when possible, I think there's a reason I want to hole up ("hibernate") in my warm house and bake or read or watch a movie with my kids. Winter is also the time to do some of those inside things we don't get a chance to do while the weather is nice.

3) Winter is way too long, in my opinion, but its tedium does get me itching to be out in the soil again, and even by February, I start planning the next garden. The enforced break reawakens my creative juices and warms up my green thumb, and by planting time I am newly motivated and eager to begin a new round of learning.  I'm also eager to become more physically active again (and sleep less).

So in this coming season of being still, I want to try to do better at embracing this transition and enjoying the little things a little better.  As long as I can stay warm, that should be possible. :)