My Summer Diet: The Switch. Fitness

So, last week I ate only vegan breakfast and lunches with a specific color emphasis.  This week I am going to eat lacto-vegetarian breakfast and lunches. Which means I cannot eat eggs or meat until dinner time. I also will not be eating dessert until Friday, like last week. However, the new focus is Fitness. I will be blogging not only about the foods but also about the different exercises I choose to do.

I will try any fitness exercise recommended to me this week, so if you want to challenge me feel free!

I will be doing at least 30 minutes a day of some type of exercise. I will try to post pictures as I can. We're going to see if this week will have more effects than last week. However, last week is an unstable week to compare it to as I did have allergic episodes which could have aided in a weight loss process. The overall goal is not weight loss for me, but a healthier me. So, if eating healthier causes me to lose weight that means I was over the weight my body prefers. However, if I gain weight, for example through muscle growth (due to increased exercise) then my body was at a weight it desired and my muscles now have more tone.

Next week I plan to add back in the availability to eat eggs during breakfast and lunch, definitely I do not have to, I just can. And the week after I will add back availability to eat meat. Right now I am testing fat content and encouraging veggie and fruit use. So, let's see where this takes me!

All About Baking: Gluten-free Tea Party

This past Saturday I threw a super cute and fun Tea Party for my lovely sister-in-law, Kristen's birthday! The theme was Alice in Wonderland, with small and large tea pots and a variety of teas and goodies.

Kristen and I

Here's what the invitation said:

Alice: Unbirthday? I'm sorry, but I don't quite understand. March Hare: It's very simple. Now, thirty days has Septem -No. wait... An unbirthday, if you have a birthday, then you - March Hare: She doesn't know what an unbirthday is. Join us for Kristen's 27th birthday party as we celebrate in style, mad style. According to Cheshire Cat, most everyone is mad here. So, for the madness we are going to have a beautiful tea party accompanied by a tasty spread and give wonderful gifts. This will be an Alice in Wonderland themed party (in case you haven't noticed yet), but don't be alarmed all that requires of you is to wear a dress and not be late for this very important date :) Mad Hatter: Would you like a little more tea? Alice: Well, I haven't had any yet, so I can't very well take more. March Hare: Ah, you mean you can't very well take less. Mad Hatter: Yes, you can always take more than nothing.

 This Tea Party was not just any tea party, it was a Gluten-free Tea Party. It was my first time baking gluten-free. I made homemade scones, tartlets, cucumber sandwiches, chocolate cupcakes, lemon curd, and devonshire cream.

The Scones (click for recipe)
This recipe turned out beautifully. You would never know these little things were gluten free. They tasted scrumptious.

Kristen had the cutest flower shaped liners to place them in.

The Tartlets

This recipe turned out beautifully. Tasted more like a shortbread cookie, but did the job very well.

The Cucumber Sandwich

*Gluten free bread cut with a rabbit shaped cookie cutter, sliced cucumbers, dill cream cheese*

The Chocolate Cupcakes

*The recipe was not a choice recipe

*The cupcake was sticky and stuck to the paper

*The icing did a good job of hiding the stickiness

*Next time I would not use a cookbook, but rather a 5 star rated recipe from the internet like I did with the others

blurry, but you can see it is sticky

Stuck to the wrapper

Still cute though

The Lemon Curd

* I love Lemon curd, and it is so easy to make

*Also refrigerates for a long time, like a jam

The Devonshire Cream

YUM YUM YUM

So, tasty! This was the best part and goes so well with scones!

Whipped cream, cream cheese... does it get much better?

The Decorations

My two tea cups from Turkey (the pink and blue), my mini Mexican tea set, and 2 antique tea cups from Debbie Gosney set with yellow carnations on a platter. Dressed with my yellow Turkish pashmina and a purple scarf.

Kristen's antique Hall tea pot, my baby mug, Italian tea cup, Limoge mini tea pot, Hummel mini tea set,  Malaysian pewter mini tea pot, and kid tea pot and tea cup. Dressed with 2 Turkish pashminas (you can't see from this angle) and scarf from Thailand (a gift from my friend, Maureen) 

First time using Kristen's China set.

Antique tea pot that I want to find one similar to.

Orange gerbers

Everyone's name was written on a playing card... remember Alice in Wonderland.

Paint the roses red!

Guests:

My mom, Mary Urban (local author - book, Tapestry of Trust, is now available on Amazon.com and Barnes & Nobles. com)

Kristen's mom, Debbie Gosney (local company owner, Wood Designs)

Debbie's friend, Linda.

Kristen's friend, Miranda.

Kristen, the birthday girl (VP at Wood Designs)

Andrea, me (Graduate student)

Isaac, Kristen's baby and my nephew!

Baby Isaac!


This was All About Baking: Gluten-free Tea Party. Stay tuned for more All About Baking!

My Summer Diet: When Allergies Strike

So, for the end of my weekend I ate a lot of blueberries and eggplant. The high antioxident colors of blue and purple might be good at fighting cancer cells, but they sure are lousy at fighting allergens.

On Friday I experienced terrible allergy eyes. I wear the really advanced Acuvue Oasis contacts that expose your eyes to more Oxygen during the day, well they also have only 14 days of good wear in them. If I forget and put them in on day 15 I pay for it. I could hardly see once the afternoon hit. I put on my glasses, used allergy eye drops, took singulair and sudafed, ibuprofen, and took a nap. Nothing still blood shot and tears just dripping down my face. (That's a pretty image isn't it?) I had to cancel any plans I had for the evening and opted for bed early with a warm rag over my eyes. Thankfully I woke up Saturday morning cured. And, I put in new contacts.

So, I was already bewildered at my chances of having two allergy attacks, if you will, in one week, that when Saturday's came I was taken by full force surprise. (As you may have read in My Summer Diet: Red Disaster, I experienced a reaction to Stevia). 

In the years past I had had reactions to eating gluten-free baked goods. The baked goods are more dense and contain ingredients that my body is never exposed to, and apparently is extremely sensitive to. However, since I had been back from Peru I thought that maybe my body had changed, because I had eaten 2 gluten-free cupcakes on June 3 at my sister's bridal shower. I was so relieved to be cured, because it is so much easier for me to not react to gluten-free products since my sister-in-law reacts to gluten full products.

Well.... I had not be cured. I baked gluten free baked goods for my sister-in-law's tea party that I threw for her birthday on Saturday. (Which you can read about in All About Baking: Gluten-Free Tea Party). I ate 1.5 small scones, 1.5 lemon curd tartlets, 1 mini cucumber sandwich, and 2 mini cupcakes. I tell you the amounts to allow you to imagine how little I ate of gluten-free products. Because they were so little, I would say normally I would have eaten more, but I wasn't too terribly hungry. Anyways with just that small amount of food, I was soo soo sick. I could hardly stand, I wasn't hungry at all. My stomach hurt so badly, I couldn't sleep well. Sunday morning I woke up early and the first thing I did was lay on my floor for an hour. I felt terrible. I'm pretty sure I even ran a low grade fever. 

The best I can explain to you how I felt is as if I had food poisoning. My body for some strange reason reacts to the flour or xanthan gum or something as if it were food poisoning. 

So, with 3 allergy attacks in one week combined with my diet plan I lost 2.5 pounds. My guess is allergies can really kick ya into weight loss. This week I am using a different strategy, see My Summer Diet: The Switch for more details.

This was My Summer Diet: When Allergies Strike. Stay tuned for more!

Food Facts: Milk

Cow's Milk. 
Is it good for you? Is it natural for humans to drink it? 
What is it? What makes it? What are the health benefits? What is the difference between whole milk and skim, evaporated and sweetened, raw and pasteurized, buttermilk and regular?

Ever thought about milk? Wondered any of the above questions? Well, I'm going to give you some really cool milk facts. I hope you find them as fascinating as I did.

Milk is as natural to drink as it is to eat red meat. It is a food source, and can contribute nutrients to your diet.

Nutrients in milk

• Natural balance of 3 macronutrients: carbohydrates, protein, and lipid
• Carbohydrates?
• Lactose is a sugar molecule, which is a carbohydrate
• Proteins?
• The major protein is casein
• The minor protein is whey (what people use for protein supplements)
• FYI powdered milk is concentrated protein whey, so you can buy powdered milk for a fraction of the cost and still use it as a protein supplement
• Lipids?
• contains some saturated fats
• does contain cholesterol
• Whole milk = none of the fat is removed
• Skim milk = all of the fat is removed
• 2% and 1% = percentage is removed
• When you remove fat you do NOT remove any cholesterol
• Naturally contains Calcium, riboflavin (B vitamin), and tryptophan
• Fortified with Vitamin D to aid in the absorption of Calcium
• Tryptophan is an amino acid that contributes to an increase in sleepiness (for lack of scientific terms)
• So, a glass of milk before bed CAN make you fall asleep easier
• Riboflavin can be lost due to light exposure
• Milk industry has gone through a variety of bottles to keep this from happening



Amber colored was thought to help reduce light exposure
• Vitamin A is a required fortified vitamin in reduced fats milk

Hormones give to cows

• rbST
• Bovine somatotropin
• a hormone given to cows to increase production of milk
• Also, given to butcher cows for increased muscle mass
• The only way to ensure that you are drinking milk that is from a non-hormone cow is to buy Organic 

Raw vs. Pasteurization

• Milk is highly perishable in the raw form and susceptible to bacteria easily
• Pasteurization is a process that reduces the microbial content of milk
• This is done by exposing the milk to a high temperature
• UHT milk (Ultra High Temperature) is a higher temperature pasteurization process that allows for the milk to be packaged and not need to be refrigerated, it is also typically thicker

What does it mean by homogenized?

• Milk is an oil in water emulsion, meaning it does not stay in a uniform liquid, naturally it separates
• Before homogenization people would have to shake their milk to mix it
• Homogenization is a process that makes milk a permanent emulsion (unless it spoils then you see serious separation with horrible odors)



Notice how the raw milk (not homogenized) has two layers?

Evaporated vs Sweetened Condensed?

• Evaporated milk 
• 60% water removed
• heat treated
• reduced fat versions started with skim milk
• Sweetened Condensed milk
• 66% water removed
• 15% sugar added
• reduced fat versions started with skim milk

Cream

• Fatty part of the milk that occurs during the separation of natural emulsion

Buttermilk

• A probiotic (see next section)
• Cultured by adding acid producing bacteria
• If your recipe calls for buttermilk, but you do not have it, add a teaspoon of acid like lemon juice or vinegar

What are prebiotics and probiotics?

• Both benefit the GI tract
• Prebiotics
• non-digestible food ingredients
• fiber added to food 
• bacteria in the gut feeds on this
• Probiotics
• Live microbial cultures added to food
• Found in yogurts, buttermilks, and some cheeses

Cooking with milk

• Slowly, using low heat
• Not the best for microwaves
• Heat causes coagulation (when the proteins clump and form sticky masses)
• Add acid or enzymes to milk
• Add your coffee to your milk
• Covering or stirring during heating can reduce skin formation

This was Food Facts: Milk. Stay tuned for more food facts!

All About Baking: Ingredients

What do the ingredients in your baked goods do? Why do we use them? 

The Roles of your Ingredients

Fat

• Butter, Margarine, Crisco, Oil
• Creates tenderness and texture
• Decreases cohesive forces in batter, allowing it to move during baking

Eggs

• Nutritive -  whole protein value, Vitamin A
• Creates leavening (affects fluffiness)
• Increases cohesive forces - provides structure - when the proteins settle they don't move
• Emulsification (create a solid homogenized batter)
• Color (yellow in egg yolk)
• Flavor

Sugar

• 
• Natural white or brown
• Flavor
• Tenderness
• Browning, crisp
• Attracts water which delays starch gelatinization (becoming a gel)
• Decreases cohesive forces, similar to fat

Flour

• All purpose, cake, or bread*
• Provides structure via gluten* development  (*see Food Facts: Gluten for more information)
• Cake flour is best for high volume, fine textured cakes
• Tunnels found in cakes are a result from undermixing or overmixing, or too much flour

Leavening

• Air
• caused by mixing, creaming, beating
• volume is increased when more air is incorporated
• Steam
• high initial temperatures in oven
• causes steam to create volume
• examples: popovers
• Carbon Dioxide
• baking powder
• mix of baking soda and acid 
• double reacting - 1st with moisture, 2nd with heat
• baking soda
• used in presence of an acid (i.e. honey and buttermilk are acidic)
• yeast
• feeds on sugar and starch, biproduct is CO2

Liquid

• Milk, water, evaporated milk, buttermilk, yogurt, sour cream, cream
• Dissolves sugar and salt
• Adds moisture, reacts with baking powder
• Hydrates starch and protein
• Amount of moisture determines texture
• example is the difference between a cookie and a cake

Heat

• 
• Reacts with baking powder
• Denatures proteins, sets the gluten structure
• Browning (Maillard reaction - sugar + heat)
• Promotes starch gelatinization (forming a gel)

My Summer Diet: Hello Yellow

You are my sunshine when skies are grey!

Today was a busy bee day. Which works out since it was a yellow day.

Secret Ingredient: Lemons

High in Vitamin C, natural detox, flavors water beautifully.

For breakfast I ate a yellow apple with 2 T peanut butter and drank a glass of lemon water.

My yellow apple and peanut butter.

For lunch, I was not sure if I was going to have the time to create something yellow. I was starting to stress about it, just a little. So, I prayed a quick prayer that God would help me through this yellow day. It might sound like a silly thing, but He is where we should turn our hearts in every stressful moment, no matter how big or small. Stress affects our soul and He is our soul keeper. Anyways today in lab we ended up making three different types of vegan recipes. They were tofu stir fry, analog meat dip Mexican style (which is a soy product made to look like meat), and hummus. Chick peas and LEMON!!! It couldn't have been more perfect. Not only was I able to eat my yellow color, but I was able to eat vegan! God is faithful in every part of our lives :)

My bee trail led me next to the pool with two precious kids that I babysit. And, afterwards when we were relaxing I did indulge in 3 saltines, I didn't bother to see if they were vegan, but they're relatively healthy.

I did some fun work outs before dinner time. Which I ate my left over pumpkin soup from yesterday, palm size of boiled chicken, a half cup of non fat cottage cheese, and 2 slices of sunflower bread.

But, then it happened, 11:00pm I am starving. I mentally calculated my caloric intake for the day and it was only around 1100, and 1200 is the minimum anyone should have for a regular day. Especially since I swam and exercised. SO, I had to do it, I ate 1 serving size of my carrot muffins that I made the other day and froze. So, they were still healthy containing whole oats on top and carrots inside.

So, note to self, eat the appropriate amount of calories, so I won't have to eat late at night.

That was My Summer Diet: Hello Yellow. Stay tuned to hear about Mr. Green tomorrow!

In the Pantry: Whole Grains

Whole Grains. You've heard of them. Maybe you like them, maybe you don't. Well, I'm here to tell you that you NEED to eat them.

What is a whole grain? A whole grain is exactly what it says it is whole. It is not part of the grain, but it is grain in its entirety.

• There are 3 main parts of a grain.
• 
• Bran - responsible for fiber, contains phosphorus (aids in absorption of Calcium into bones), protein (can't begin to tell all of the wonderful benefits of proteins), and thiamine (vitamin B1)
• Germ - most concentrated source of nutrients, including fat, B vitamins, and iron
• Endosperm - starch (sugar chains) and protein (to make gluten!)
• You can buy all three parts separately.
• Bran: in a container that says bran, it will add fiber to what you are making
• Germ: also bought in a container, can spoil because contains fat
• Endosperm: what you know as flour.
• What is flour?
• Flour is a refined product of the grain. It is where the bran and germ are stripped from the endosperm to create a high glutenous product that serves very well in baking. It is often enriched, meaning they fortify it with iron, B vitamins, and folic acid.
• Why do I need a whole grain if it is fortified?
• Well, to put it simply you do not absorb fortified items the same way you do as when they are in their natural environment. 
• Here's a parallel, follow me with this. It is like tanning. You can A. tan outside with the natural sun, B. tan in a tanning bed, or C. spray on your tan. However, you might look tan with all 3, but you will not benefit from producing Vitamin D from the latter 2. So, nature always provides the best method.
• How many whole grains should I eat a day?
• You should eat 6 ounces of whole grains every day. Your body will greatly benefit from all of the nutrients and even the sugars. As, this complex carbohydrate serves as brain food.
• What are some good examples of whole grains I can eat?
• Whole wheat anything
• Brown rice
• Barley
• Buckwheat
• Corn
• Amaranth (never heard of it, but read about it, GOING TO TRY IT)
• Bulgur
• Oatmeal, rolled or steel cut*. 
• Quinoa*



So many different types of whole grains!

• BY THE WAY Multi-grain does not mean whole grain, it means the product was made from multiple types of grain... corn plus wheat plus rice etc.

*Steel Cut Oats -- these are oats that are cut and not rolled. Rolled oats are flattened to increase cooking time, steel cut are just cut. They can aid in making you feel fuller longer, but they do take about 20-30 minutes to cook. They also are not nutritionally better than rolled, just fill better.

*Quinoa: Ancient Peruvian Secret (As the article I read called it)

Buy yours today!

Quinoa contains a super high amount of proteins. It contains almost if not all essential amino acids needed by your body. It only takes about 10 minutes to cook, and can be used in all types of preparations. Whether you want to eat it in the morning like oatmeal with milk and sugar (this is how I first ate it in Peru) or you can throw it with vegetables. You can eat it hot like a pasta or cold in salad form. This grain is highly nutritive and beneficial to your body. If you haven't tried it you should, and if you don't like it the first time don't give up. Because it grew on me.

Quinoa Plant

This was In the Pantry: Whole Grains. Stay tuned to find out more of what should be in your pantry!

My Summer Diet: Code Orange

Code Orange day was a success of bright colors!

I must say I love the color orange. 

I love giraffes, sunflowers,

harvest moons, sunsets, 

bonfires,

elevation, my GFO watch,

and just the ever boldness that orange brings to your day.

So, the secret ingredient for today: PUMPKIN!

You do not just have to wait until fall to eat pumpkin, you can indulge any time of the year with Libby's canned pumpkin. 

Here's what I ate today:

Breakfast: Pumpkin Oatmeal

Pumpkin Oatmeal. 1/2 cup of pumpkin added to 1 serving of steel cut oats and 1 T of brown sugar plus 1 t. vanilla!

Lunch: Pumpkin Soup and 2 slices of Honey Sunflower Wheat bread.

The ingredients.

Chopped.

Rinsed.

Supporting orange day with my new Give Fifty One watch!

Boiling.

Pureed and ready to eat.

Dinner: Pumpkin soup, 1 serving of cheddar cheese, sweet potato chips, and 1 serving of boiled chicken.

Mira a la color!

That was My Summer Diet: Code Orange. Stay tuned for how tomorrow's yellow turns out!

My Summer Diet: Red Disaster

Today was the first day of my summer diet program. Let me tell you... disaster. 

I decided today that I wanted to try Stevia to sweeten my breakfast. I had just learned in my food class that Stevia is a natural sweetener made from a South American plant, and it bonuses by containing no caloric value. 

 Little did I know that after sprinkling a little sweet packet onto my poorly cut, but ever so beautiful red grapefruit, that I would feel like I wanted to gag.

The expectation. Looks lush right?

I hadn't had a grapefruit in YEARS, so I thought maybe it was a mind thing and I just had to press through it. The more of the grapefruit I ate the more my throat hurt and the more I was beginning to think I was full. I had just spent 30 minutes cooking my new steel cut oats, and I was very excited to try them. But, I couldn't even try them, I felt off. I had no desire to eat and my stomach was in the 'I'm not sure if I'm too full or going to be nauseous stage'. So, I went ahead and sweetened my oatmeal with Stevia and placed it into the fridge to eat for tomorrow. 

I left for school, feeling shocked by the fact that 3/4 of a grapefruit could possibly have made me full. It wasn't until during my class that I realized my throat still felt stiff and that my stomach was upset. I drank all of my Nalgene thinking that would do the trick. I even force fed myself my beets and quinoa at lunch time, thinking I would feel better if I ate something. Maybe I was just over hungry?

During class we made baked goods that I couldn't try because they weren't vegan, however, this was one of the first times in my life where I wasn't even tempted, food sounded horrible to me. Then I decided to ask my teacher if Stevia could make me feel this way or if it was the grapefruit. She told me it was probably the Stevia, that sometimes they mix it with sugar alcohols. (When I got home tonight I discovered that they did not mix it with sugar alcohols).

Because of my nauseous state I had to break my diet. I bought Reed's Extra Ginger Root ginger ale from Earth Fare. Also, to cleanse my palate of the lingering Stevia flavor, I bought a vegan 72% dark chocolate bar. I did not eat the entire bar, in fact, I ate the squares in segments of time over a 4 hour time period. The bar I am not including as a dessert this time, just because it was high in anti-oxidants and low in sugar and was still vegan. I plan to finish the bar on Friday for my black and brown day. 

I highly recommend this beverage. It one eliminates most nausea and two has a wonderful flavor. If I drank sodas this would be the top of my list.

I then ate dinner around 7:45 having a whole wheat, turkey, lettuce, TOMATO, and mustard sandwich from McCallister's with the lovely Erinn Honeycutt. Along with it I ate the small fruit cup which included 2 grapes, 1 STRAWBERRY, 3 pineapple chunks, and 5 honeydew. And, would you believe I ate the whole thing? Me, Andrea Urban, I finished a fruit cup. I know I was shocked.

Upon returning home I did some research. And, it turns out that a common allergic reaction includes throat swelling/stiffening and nausea. Thankfully I took my Singular and Sudafed before I left today.

If you are allergic to ragweed, there is a high chance that you will be allergic to Stevia.

Plant allergies.... 

Anyways I am now ending my Red day, excited about my Orange day. Hoping for wonderful results. And, now I know that I am not compatible with Stevia. Oh, and in case you are wondering, I will not be eating the premade oatmeal from today, I will make a fresh non-Stevia containing serving tomorrow.

That was My Summer Diet: Red Disaster. Stay tuned for more My Summer Diet!

Food Facts: Gluten

I am super excited to shed some much needed light onto what exactly gluten is. I will not be giving an opinion on whether or not to eat gluten, purely just the fun facts.

GLUTEN

• What is it? 
• 
  

• Is the product of two proteins found in wheat called glutenin and gliadin. 
• The production occurs when the wheat is exposed to moisture and manipulation (kneading, rolling, mixing, stirring, beating etc.)
• It provides the viscosity and elasticity found in your baked good. In other words it is like a rubber band that holds the wheat product together. And remember rubber bands come in all widths and lengths. 

Notice fat rubber bands, skinny rubber bands, small, large...

• How does it affect food?
• There are different types of flour produced based on protein levels to create the perfect wheat product
• Durum is the highest protein flour and is used to make pasta.
• Hard is a medium high protein flour that is used to make bread. You can buy this flour in the form of bread flour.
• Soft is a low protein flour that is used to make cakes. You can buy this flour in the form of cake flour.
• All-purpose is a mixture of hard and soft flour. It is supposed to be able to be used in all purposes for the common cook. 
• Needed to create the correct texture in baked goods. It is not easily replaced.
• What affects the gluten development?
• Hydration: the proportion of liquid and flour determines the viscosity of the product. Hydration is essential for gluten development. The more liquid the softer, creamier the texture (think cake).
• Manipulation: is the process of incorporating air which is also essential for gluten development. When you over manipulate a product it becomes denser and tougher.
• Fat content: limits gluten development, is used to tenderize the product.
• Sugar content: competes with the starch in the flour for water, the starch is not the same as the gluten protein. So, the sugar does not affect the gluten development like the others. 
• GLUTEN FREE
• Gluten free is a baking option for people who have allergies to gluten or for people who find that a gluten free diet works well for them. 
• When you use gluten free flour you are using a flour that is made from other grains that are not wheat. You can use rice, tapioca, teff, quinoa, oat, coconut or buckwheat flour. Or you might use starches like corn, potato, tapioca, or arrowroot starches. Each type has a difference in viscosity, color, and thickening properties. It is best to research the type you want to use to ensure you get the results you want.



These are some gluten free grains.

• When baking gluten free, it is recommended to use a mixture of flours to create a similar texture to a gluten product. However, other than flour one key ingredient that you might not be aware that you need is a type of gum.
• GUMS
• Most common for at home baking is Xanthan gum and Guar gum.
• Gum is a sticky product found in plants
• It is used in baking to make your products thicker, to create a viscosity similar to gluten
• Xanthan gum is a corn derivative 
• Guar gum is a legume derivative
• Tips on Gluten free baking: How much GUM to use
• • Bread and pizza dough recipes: Add 1 teaspoon xanthan gum or guar gum per cup of gluten-free flour used in bread and pizza dough recipes
  • Cake, muffin and quick bread recipes: Add 1/2 teaspoon xanthan gum or guar gum per one cup of gluten-free flour used
  • Cookie and bar recipes: Add 1/2 teaspoon (or less) xanthan gum or guar gum per one cup gluten-free flour used
• Why do I need the Gum?
• Because without gum your gluten free flours do not have enough rubber band like properties to keep the baked good together resulting in a lot of crumbling.

I personally have not baked gluten free, however, I will be experimenting this upcoming weekend as I bake for my sister-in-law's birthday party! I will update you on how the recipes work out, which ones are best and any new facts I learn about it.

This was Food Facts with Gluten. Stay tuned for more food facts to come!

My Summer Diet: The List. Week 1

Grocery List:

**Prices according to Harris Teeter website, only priced what will be completely used this week, the other stuff will be used in the weeks to come as well.

• 1 red grapefruit $0.78
• 1 red apple       $1.00
• 1 beet               $4.00 (most stores sell in bunches, so save for next week)             
• 1 sweet potato  $0.87
• 1 yellow apple   $1.00
• 1 yellow squash $1.00
• 1 avocado         $1.27 (2 count bag)
• 1 eggplant         $2.00
• 1 red onion       $1.16
• 1 cucumber      $0.99
• garlic clove       $0.50
• 1 sweet onion   $1.16
• choice of tomato
• carrots
• russet potatoes
• celery
• arugula
• spinach
• frozen blackberries 
• frozen blueberries
• bag of lemons (for drinking in your water as well)
• peanut butter (natural)
• Parmesan cheese
• pinto beans
• 3 cans of diced tomatoes
• 1 can of crushed tomatoes
• 1 can of tomato paste
• green chili peppers
• refried beans
• can of pumpkin
• whole wheat, water mix pancake mix
• whole wheat pasta noodles
• quinoa
• whole rolled oats
• whole grain artisan bread
• almond milk, if you want for flavor, not necessary
• 96/4 ground beef
• meats of choice, remember 2 nights you need to eat fish

NOTE: Most of these ingredients will be used in week 2 or later on in week 1, so since this is the first week it will be the longest list. Please freeze and refrigerate appropriately.

>>Keep everything to 1 serving size<<

Monday

Breakfast: Red grapefruit + red apple cinnamon oatmeal*. 

Lunch: Beet quinoa salad*

Dinner: Your choice of tomato with your choice of meat.

*Signifies recipe at bottom

Tuesday

Breakfast: Pumpkin oatmeal*

Lunch: Pasta Fagoli*

Dinner: Baked Sweet potato with choice of meat.

Wednesday

Breakfast: Yellow apple slices with 2 tablespoons of peanut butter

Lunch: Lemon quinoa salad*

Dinner: Incorporate yellow squash with choice of meat.

Thursday

Breakfast: Avocado spread on toast (Whole grain artisan bread)

Lunch: Arugula and spinach salad (Incorporate extra vegetables from the week, like tomato, carrot, onion)

Dinner: Meat with your choice of greens, I would recommend more spinach just a different way.

Friday

Breakfast: Blueberry pancakes* 

Lunch: Vegetable quinoa salad*

Dinner: Eggplant parmigiana* made with meatsauce.

Saturday

Breakfast: Blackberry oatmeal*

Lunch: Refried beans*

Dinner: Russet potatoes prepared how you like plus a meat of choice.

Sunday

Breakfast: Potato and white onion hashbrowns, cooked in very little olive or canola oil.

Lunch: Roasted galic spaghetti*

Dinner: Leftover vegetable medley or leftover pasta fagoli (stir fry) plus choice of meat.

*Recipes

1. Red apple cinnamon oatmeal. Prepare 1 serving of oatmeal with water using the stove top, adding half of the red apple, cut into small chunks, into the bowling water and oatmeal. Cook until the oats and apple are cooked all the way through. Add 1/2 to 1 teaspoon of cinnamon, plus no more than 1 tablespoon of brown sugar. Flavor with 1-2 tablespoons of almond milk if desired.
2. Beet quinoa salad. (This makes 1 serving, if you want to make more than one and save the other half for your green salad day you can, as this also has greens in it). Prepare this the night before to save time!                     
   • 1/3 cup of sliced beets (Steam until tender, about 7-10 minutes)
   • 3 tablespoons quinoa (cook with water until tender and water is fully absorbed, about 15 minutes)
   • 1/3 cup water
   • 1 tablespoon olive oil (whisk following ingredients, until star, to create dressing)
   • 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
   • 1/4 teaspoon white sugar
   • 1 clove garlic, crushed
   • 1/8 teaspoon salt
   • 1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper *
   • 1/4 cup red onions, sliced (Mix with beets and qunioa)
   • 1/2 ounce arugula, chopped (small hand full) - Place salad on top of arugula and serve
3. Pumpkin Oatmeal. Prepare 1 serving of oatmeal with water, using stove top or microwave. When fully cooked add 2 tablespoons of canned pumpkin (refrigerate the rest in a new air tight container) and cinnamon. You may add walnuts or almond milk for flavor addition.
4. Pasta Fagoli. (This makes more than 1 serving, a serving size is 1.5 cups). Prepare this the night before to save time!     Chop or dice 1 potato, 1 cup of carrots, half of the white onion, half of the red onion, 1.5 cups of celery, and a few pieces of fresh garlic. Add all of the chopped vegetables to a saucepan with 1 tablespoon of olive oil, cook until the are softening. Add can of diced tomatoes and the can of pinto beans. Cook until evenly heated and all the vegetables are softened. Flavor with basil, thyme, rosemary, garlic powder, fresh ground pepper, and sea salt. (To your liking).  Freeze extras in 1 serving sizes so you can grab and reheat easily. This is a mixture of colors, so you can eat this for lunch on a red, green, white, or brown day if you don't have time to prepare the other! 
5. Lemon quinoa salad. Prepare the night before for best results. (1 serving size)
• 3 tablespoons quinoa (cook with water until tender and water is fully absorbed, about 15 minutes)
• 1/3 cup water
• 3 tablespoons of fresh lemon juice (whisk together with the following, until star)
• 1.5 tablespoons of olive oil
• 1/4 teaspoon dill
• 1/8 clove garlic crushed
• 1/2 teaspoon parsley*
• 1/2 cucumber sliced into half moons
• 1/8 cup of white onions, diced
6. Blueberry pancakes. Whole wheat pancake mix, mix with water. Add desired amount of drefrosted blueberries to your pancakes. (Great thing about only add water mix, you can make just 1 serving!). Use canola oil spray for the pan. Sprinkle with powdered sugar (tiny amount).
7. Vegetable quinoa salad. Dice red onion, cucumber, carrots, celery, and other vegetable you choose. Eat no more than 1.5 cups of total vegetables. Mix with cooked quinoa, prepared the same as early that week. Pour on 1-2 tablespoons of a vinaigrette of choice.
8. Eggplant parmigiana. Slice your eggplant into the desired thickness. Soak them in water. Brown 96/4 ground beef with remaining red onion. Pour in can of diced tomatoes, crushed tomatoes, and tomato paste. Add basil, thyme, rosemary, oregano, a sprinkle of sugar, salt and pepper. Grill your eggplant either on a grill or on the oven racks. Place grilled eggplant into a pan, cover with sauce, sprinkle with parmesan cheese. Bake. Eat! **Freeze extra sauce**
9. Blackberry oatmeal. Prepare oatmeal as usual. In a saucepan place desired blackberries (1/4 cup) with a tablespoon of sugar and a tablespoon of water, cook until broken down. Mix with oatmeal. Flavor with almond milk if desired.
10. Refried Beans. Eat refried beans with avocado, carrots, green chili peppers, and diced tomatoes. (Read labels to create 1 serving size). **Fridge what you do not use from beans, peppers, and tomatoes**
11. Roasted garlic spaghetti.  Roast garlic in the oven with a tiny bit of olive oil. Turn on a sauce pan, heat the rest of your diced tomatoes, add basil and oregano and roasted garlic. Boil whole wheat pasta. Mix and enjoy. Add an arugula or spinach salad for a nice balance crunch!

My Summer Diet: The Set Up

So, this summer I decided to create a diet plan for my sister. Then after thinking about the plan, I realized how healthy this is and that I want to try it out for myself! 
Why?
1. Because I hate to recommend something I have never tried.
2. To know if it is a bad set up and plan. To learn ways to tweak it. Because this is for overall health advantage, not necessarily for people to lose weight. Yes, if you are overweight you will lose weight, but this is a step process diet that will teach you to make healthy choices over time. 
3. To see if there are physical benefits. Am I less tired? Do I have more energy? Am I starving? Am I satisfied? All worth while questions to consider when changing your diet.


Disclaimer: A diet is your everyday food choice system, it is not necessarily a miracle drop 10 pounds and get off the diet program. This is a set up that will adjust the foods every 3 weeks, to eventually have you eating normal without thinking 'diet' but yet you will be eating super healthy.


I will be updating my blog every week with a grocery list, breakfast and lunch plan, and suggestions for dinner. I also will update every day or two to tell you if I enjoyed my food, hated my food, or just how I felt that day. Enjoyment is a big part of eating, and I don't want to lose it!


So here are the plans for the next 3 weeks (starting Monday) of my life. [In 3 weeks I will make adjustments, making it less strict]


Daily goal: at LEAST 10 minutes of vigorous exercises a day. (Run, jog, brisk walk, jumping, skipping, etc.)

So the set up:

Breakfast and Lunch everyday is VEGAN. That means absolutely no dairy or meats. (No eggs, butter, milk, cream, cheese, meat, mayo etc.)

Dinner you can have 1 serving of meat (that means no bigger than the size of the palm of your hand and no thicker than a quarter inch).

Dinner you can have 1 dairy serving, only 1. So, that means you can look at the serving size. You CAN add together different types to make 1. For example, you can have 1/4 serving of butter plus 1/2 serving of milk plus 1/4 serving of cheese.

Dinner: have fish at least 2 times a week, if not more.

You MAY have 2 desserts between Friday and Sunday. 2 desserts means if you have 2 servings of cookies on Friday that is all you can have that weekend.

Drink only water or lemon water. No alcohol, we will add that back during adjustments, but for 3 weeks no alcohol. Drink 10 - 8 ounce servings a day, at the least. 

Food Rules: Absolutely NO processed foods. Do not boil vegetables, only grill, stir fry (use spray canola oil), or bake, because boiling loses important nutrients. You can boil if you make a soup.  Only can you eat whole grains, so if you want bread buy whole grains, but make sure it is vegan. Multigrain does not mean whole grain. Also, try incorporating quinoa and oatmeal as much as possible.

Overwhelmed? Well, here's a way to make a vegan crunch more appetizing and fresh and fun. 

The Color Days. So, in order to ensure that you are getting all the nutrients that your body needs and craves you are going to incorporate one color of food (still eating others as well) into each of your meals.

Monday: Red. You must eat something red for breakfast, lunch and dinner. 

              What is red? Red apples, blood oranges, cherries, cranberries, red grapefruit, red pears, pomegranates, raspberries, watermelon, beets, red peppers, radishes, radicchio, red onion red potatoes, rhubarb, and tomatoes.

Tuesday: Orange. You must eat something orange for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.

               What is orange? Cantaloupe, grapefruit, mango, nectarine, orange, papaya, apricot, peach, tangerine, butternut squash, carrots, pumpkin, and sweet potato. (Sweet potatoes are super healthy!)

Wednesday: Yellow. You must eat something yellow for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.

                   What is Yellow? Yellow apples, yellow figs, golden kiwi, lemons, yellow pears, pineapple, yellow watermelon, yellow beets, yellow peppers, yellow tomatoes, yellow potatoes, yellow squash, corn, and spaghetti squash. 

Thursday: Green. You must eat something green for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.

               What is green? Avocado, green apple, green grapes, honeydew, kiwi, lime, peas, artichoke, arugula, asparagus, broccoli, brussel sprouts, cabbage, green beans, celery, cucumbers, leafy greens, leeks, lettuce, okra, green peppers, spinach****, and zucchini.

Friday: Blue/Purple. You must eat something blue or purple for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.

           What is blue or purple? Blueberries, purple grapes, plums, purple figs, purple asparagus, eggplant, purple potatoes, purple carrots, purple peppers, and red onions.

Saturday: Black/Brown. You must eat something black or brown for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.

           What is black or brown? Blackberries, black currants, prunes, raisins, black olives, brown pears, russet potatoes, mushrooms, dates, and ginger.

Sunday: White. You must eat something white for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.

            What is white? White nectarines, white peaches, jicama, onion, parsnips, potato, shallot, turnip, popcorn, white corn, cauliflower, celery root, and garlic.

In the Pantry: Ripening Fruit

Ever wonder why you can buy bananas that are green, place them into your fruit basket and they ripen quicker than you would like? Or wonder why when you keep your fruit in a bag they ripen practically overnight?

Here's your in the pantry tip to keeping up with your fruits.
*First of all only fruits ripen after picked, vegetables do not.
*Second of all ripening is the process of starches becoming sugars... hence why fruits are sweeter when they are riper.

Notice how when your banana is green it is tougher (starchier) and when it is yellow or brown in is mushier (sugars).

In order to ripen, fruits give off a gas hormone. All fruits give off this hormone, however some give off more than others. The APPLE, for example, gives off the most.

"I give off a lot of gas"

So, when you place apples in a fruit basket among other fruits the other fruits will ripen at an accerlated rate, causing browning probably sooner than you anticipated. Also, if one apple is bruised (a precursor to higher hormone) the entire batch of apples will go bad faster. So, when people reference bad apples, they are referring to the fact and phrase that one bad apple can spoil an entire barrel. 

Ripening Persimmon in a bag.

If you keep fruit in bags they ripen faster because the hormone they give off has no where to go making the concentration then is higher.

In conclusion, if you want your fruit to ripen faster place them in a bag or next to apples. If you want them to last longer and stay fresh, keep them out in a bowl with fresh air and no apples. Fruit should last 7-10 days after purchasing.




This was In the Pantry: Ripening Fruit. Stay tuned for more!