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------------------------------------------------------------It is hard to believe it is already two months into the New Year. How are you doing on your New Year's Resolutions? Have you forgotten them already? Want to get recharged? Come to one of our cooking classes. We are here to encourage you and to get you excited about a healthier lifestyle. Remember, healthy living is simple! VIDEOS Did you miss a class you really wanted to attend? Watch them on line in our Class Video Classes section. We will be streaming most classes live, and then archiving them for anyonen to watch later. Need help with a particular appliance? We're putting short instructional videos in our Product Demonstrations section. Bosch Universal Mixer is already there, with many more to follow! New Book "Deliciously Organic" by Carrie Vitt Husband, kid and party friendly, Deliciously Organic is brimming with the recipes and flavors families love, all recreated using wholesome, unrefined and organic ingredients. Carrie has a 24 hour special on her web site if you purchase from her. Click here. Events Bread Making 101 Wednesday April 13, 2011
10:00AM - 1:00PM
Registration $6
Taught by Ashley McCord
Click here to register
This class is for anyone who wants to get started grinding their own wheat and making their own bread products. This class is shorter than our regular "Getting Started" class - we will concentrate specifically on making bread!
We will cover the two electric mills: Wondermill, Nutrimill
We'll also discuss all electric bread making options using: Zojirushi Bread Machine, Electrolux Kitchen Assistent, Bosch Mixer
In addition to making basic breads, we'll show you how to: Make muffins, pancakes, and coffeecake; Choose the right size pan for your bread; Shape, rise, and bake your bread.
Dehydration Saturday April 16, 2011
10:00AM - 1:00PM
Registration $6
Taught by Ashley McCord and Sue Becker
Click here to register
We will cover the basics of pressure canning as well as the "how tos" of food dehydration. We will thoroughly cover the variety of uses for a food dehydrator and demonstrate numerous ideas using the dehydrated foods including beef jerky, fruit leathers, grapes, vegetables, vegetable powders and even yogurt! A fun and lively class!!!
"Real Bread - The Staff of Life" Thursday April 21, 2011
7:00PM - 8:30 PM
Registration Required - but FREE
Taught by Sue Becker
Click here to register
A special nutritional presentation on the health benefits of freshly milled whole grains. Sue will discuss the history of white flour and how its consumption relates to the common diseases that plague many of us. Compelling and life changing information!
This is a special video taping for a bible study program that Sue will be a part of. Sue would love for everyone to be a part of this event but we must ask that young children not attend. This is not a cooking event and, to minimize any noise interference, the store will not be open.
Bring a friend that you have been wanting to hear Sue's message.
Meal of the Month Tuesday April 26, 2011 10:00AM - Noon
Registration $6
Taught by Sue Becker and Ashley McCord
Click here to register
Many of us think of pressure cooking only for the winter months with savory soups and stews cooked to perfection in a pressure cooker. But Ashley and Sue will show you just how valuable a pressure cooker can be in the summer months when heating up the kitchen is the last thing we want to do. Come learn how to prepare a great meal in minutes to beat the heat!
Mommy and Me Gluten Free Wednesday April 27, 2011
11:00 AM - 1:00 PM
Registration $10
Taught by Sharon Feskanin and son Alexander
Click here to register
Author and teacher Sharon Feskanin will be sharing her nutritional knowledge and cooking tips for allergy free baking. Sharon is a lively and engaging teacher who is passionate about helping parents and kids learn to eat healthy, even on a food restrictive diet.
This class is specifically geared for kids and will have some class participation.
Class is limited to 20 adults with one child, age 7 or older.
Sharon will be available after the class to sign your copy of "Mommy and Me Gluten Free" now available in our store.
ARTICLE
Whole Grain Goodness BY Sue Becker
I am continually amazed every time I do research on a nutritional subject, that I am somehow led back to the incredible goodness of whole grains. Such is the case again.
With all the talk in the news about the dangers of radiation exposure, I was reminded of a book I read about 8 years ago. Diet for the Atomic Age was written by Sara Shannon, a nutritionist and researcher, who was becoming increasingly aware of the growing number of health challenges resulting from radiation exposure, not only high level exposure from nuclear fallout but also low level exposure that most of us experience daily.
In her quest to learn more on the subject, she found that much was written on the dangers of radiation exposure but little on protection. Ms. Shannon indeed found data confirming that we can protect ourselves, but the information was both "scattered and sparse." Her continued search led her to compile the information into one book. This past week, I have been rereading Diet for the Atomic Age, and I am compelled to share with you some information about whole grains and beans that I hope you will find encouraging. The information I wish to share is not exhaustive on the subject, nor is it intended as medical advice, and I do not necessarily agree with the author's philosophical views. This book is not about milling your own grain, as the author makes no mention of it. Rather, it is an unbiased look at the health benefits certain foods can offer. I hope you find the information presented as enlightening and encouraging as I have.
After extensive research, Ms. Shannon found one fact consistent among the experts and research: food and overall physical health offered the best protection and recovery from radiation exposure. She discovered that there are naturally occurring components in food that can either chemically combine with toxic substances in the body or to prevent their uptake. Fiber is perhaps the most well known of these substances, but the others such as phytates, sulfur containing amino acids, calcium and iodine are just as important. She then lists the most abundant food sources of these substances.
I find it fascinating that whole grains are first on her list of protective foods. Not only do whole grains offer the protection of much dietary fiber, but they are also high in complex carbohydrates, B vitamins, iron, zinc, calcium and trace minerals.
She lists 5 ways that whole grains help to protect us:
- Grains are low on the food chain, so they are less likely to contain the concentration of contaminants that are found in foods at the top of the food chain, such as meats and large fish.
- The high fiber content and phytates found in whole grains are powerful chelators of toxic substances. Both fiber and phytic acid can bind with toxins, such as heavy metals, and remove them from the body through the natural elimination process.
- The bulking factor of the abundant fiber found in whole grains shortens the transit time of waste from the bowels, therefore it hastens the removal of these toxins from the body.
- Being neither very acid nor very alkaline, whole grains help us to maintain a more neutral pH range, which has been found to increase our resistance to radiation.
- Whole grains provide vitamin B6, which is a necessary nutrient for a healthy thymus gland, a key player in healthy immune function. In addition, the high calcium content in whole grains provides protection against the uptake of radioactive strontium. Whole grains are one of the riches food sources of vitamin E and selenium which, of course, are invaluable for preventing cellular damage caused by free radicals.
Ms. Shannon reminds us that whole grains, and not refined flour, offer this protection. She states that is it important to eat grains in their whole form, with the bran and germ intact, and only the inedible chaff removed. She confirms that once the whole grain is milled into flour the nutrients are quickly oxidized. She encourages the use of a variety of grains such as brown rice, millet, barley, corn, buckwheat, wheat, oats and rye and states that "for optimal health, at least half of every meal should be grains!"
Fresh vegetables are second on her list. Vegetables in general promote health and are not only high in fiber, but vitamin C and folic acid, which are known blood builders. Vegetables that contain sulfur have been found to have strong protective power against radiation. These include vegetables of the cabbage family: broccoli, brussels sprouts, cabbage, cauliflower, chard, kale, mustard greens, onions, parsley and watercress. The sulfur is contained in amino acids that are found in these particular vegetables. These sulfur containing amino acids function as antioxidants, free radical deactivators and poison neutralizers. They have a high affinity for radioactive substances and for toxic heavy metals. They bind with them, and in this form, the poisons can be excreted in the urine. So mother was right: EAT YOUR VEGETABLES.
Next on her list of important foods are dried beans. Phytates, including phytic acid, are phosphorus compounds that are found in most plant foods, but are especially abundant in beans, peas, and whole grains. Phytates have come under attack in recent years by some teachers advocating the soaking or fermenting of grains and beans before consumption to break down the phytate component. It is believed by some that phytates, because of their ability to bind with metals, bind with valuable minerals such as calcium and iron, creating deficiencies in the body. In reality, however, phytates have the property of combining with toxic and radioactive elements and forming compounds that are eliminated through the bowels.
Protease inhibitors are another controversial component found in beans. Protease inhibitors can decrease the absorption of injurious proteins, thus contributing to cancer prevention. The author acknowledges the potential of phytates to bind with certain nutrients and protease inhibitors to prevent protein absorption but states that these whole foods have an ample supply of the necessary minerals and proteins, and a healthy body more than compensates and is capable of obtaining sufficient proteins and minerals from these foods. She suggests that, if digestion is poor, and someone is not accustomed to eating whole foods, especially beans, they add dry beans slowly to the diet until the body is able to adjust and digestion improved.
Experts agree that one of the greatest concerns after the release of nuclear contaminants will be radioiodine carried downwind for hundreds, even thousands, of miles. This contaminant can be absorbed easily by the thyroid gland. Saturating the thyroid with supplemental iodine will prevent the uptake of the radioiodine. Sea vegetables are a great source of iodine. We carry CGF Chlorella 500 mg, by Nutribiotics , a highly digestible and absorbable, super green aqua cultivated plant food. It is naturally high in iodine. Chlorella is a super energizing and alkalizing plant food.
Also mentioned in the book were foods to avoid. Of course at the top of the list were refined and processed foods. Sugar should be avoided in food as well as drink. Sugar robs your body of calcium, which is stored in the bone marrow, and the body will replace it with radioactive strontium, which has a similar structure to calcium.
Sara Shannon sums up her findings with this statement: Ideally, grains-that is, whole grains, not (white) flour products-should make up at least HALF of your daily diet. For maximum benefit in the case of a radiation accident or spill of water increase the proportion of grains to about 70%! Also increase the amount of miso (or other fermented or cultured food), sea salt (such as Redmond's All Natural Sea Salt) and sea vegetables in your diet, and avoid sugar entirely. (Emphasis and parentheses mine.)
Finally, I want to reiterate a common theme throughout the book: a healthy body is one that will best be able to combat the effects of radiation exposure. It is easy to become discouraged about the prospects of future nuclear accidents or even the current daily exposures to radiation. It would be easy to feel hopeless since we can not control or prevent any of these events from happening. But my desire is always to encourage. I hope you see that there is something you can do to protect yourself and those you love. We must continue in our journey to return to a diet consisting mostly of whole grains and the foods God has given us to promote health and vitality. But good health does not happen overnight. The best time to protect yourself from radiation exposure or any health challenge for that matter, is not when a big event takes place but NOW-eating the foods that will promote optimal health: real bread and real food.
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