Thursday, March 26, 2009

Spring Daze

This week my grand daughters are out of school (& playschool) for spring vacation - & I've hung out with them several days! Today was sunny (YEA) & we walked to the track by their mom's work so they could ride their bikes around - fun! Stopped to visit their mom, then went to Grocery Outlet to see if there was still some of the Coconut Oil my dau. spied there the other day! Yes!! & way cheep (& Organic, unrefined :) - got several bottles, but wanted to try it first (I've had that brand before, but not that packaging).

So I didn't get them all - ratz!! Went back later in the day & there was only one left! I hope folks that really appreciate it picked it up! I did mention it to the checker & an older lady (It's GOOD for you!) I did find some smoked salmon & got more greek style olives that second trip :)

I've been mixing coconut oil with almond butter for my grand daughters, & they tell me when they want more - their moods have been good the last few days, & even 'melts' don't seem to last long! The 4 yr old is particularly volatile, so this is good! I think it's helping with 'brain chemistry' & they sure enjoy it! The oldest said 'grammie, we need more!' & handed me the almond butter ;)
Their dog Dax, a husky mix (almost 13) waits for his spoonful as well - coconut oil? don't mind if I do! This description of dogs 'going nuts' for the coconut oil applies - I give my chihuahua Gracie a dab (about 1/2 spoonful) & Dax a couple of Tbsp - I'd been putting it on a cottonball to swab Dax's ears, as he tends to have yeast & 'itchy' ears - & my daughter just got him a 'senior' kibble.

I have been keeping up with the exercise for the Lenten Challange - got to Ballet last Sat & then Tue, & played with the hula tape again this week. & walking & . . . .

One of the Docs from our office is out of town, so I received part of her CSA 'share!' I was so excited. It included salsify, so I looked up some recipes & adapted one that called for both salsify (related to dandelion & lettuce - you cook the root & can use the long leaves in salad) & jersulam artichokes! Sauted in Coconut oil, & added some garlic & 1/2 an onion.
For liquid I used nettle/alfalfa infusion It was a hit! My daughter grew up eating Jersulam Artichoke tubers, & loves them - with this quick saute (<15 min) the veggies are crunchy crisp, & the flavors go well together! For dinner I added a bit of coconut milk, curry paste & powder & some of the greens (kale & flowering turnip tops) also quite nice! & made some coconut rice (added about a cup of coconut milk while my brown rice, quinoa & teff was a' cooking) . . . Gracie & I both enjoyed it!

I've been reading Nina Planck's 'Real Food' & appreciating again growing up with mostly real foods. The big 'culprits' of 'industrial foods' were the wessen oil & crisco, white flour & white sugar we consumed! & my mom had cooked for the haying & planting crews, so made the best deserts!
We lived across the road from a dairy, so drank plenty of raw milk, ate range fed beef, & prob. good 'farm raised' chicken & eggs, plus venison & trout. As Nina, who began farmers markets in London & NY says, isn't it intriguing how real fats & meat are (sometimes) thought to be 'bad' & are falsly acused of causing all kinds of diseases - that were rare 'till we began eating 'industrialized foods,' inc. relatively new oils (soy, corn, rape - excuse me - modified rape or 'canola'), lots of refined sugars (now GM sugar beets, & high fructose corn syrup)
Several folks mention when farmers tried to fatten hogs by feeding them coconut oil, they got skinny! So they switched to corn & soy oil, & (like so many people,) they got nice & fat!

I also ran across a blurb countering the supposed 'dangers' of feeding dogs 'table scraps' - well, what did they eat for the last several thousand years spent as human companions?? - meat & 'people food' (ie: grains & veggies & some fruits - Gracie esp. loves raw apples & carrots) . . . . rather like the 'dangers' we're told exist if we eat foods we've eaten for thousands of years (alergies excluded ) . . . Marion Nestle gives the 'formula' for pet food: "a half a pound of grains, a quarter of a pound of meat, you bury them within it, you throw in some vegetables, you throw in a couple of supplements that you can buy at a supermarket and you’ve taken care of it."
When I first got Gracie, I made her food, then life happened, & I fed her kibble (Organix - a good brand!) So I've been feeding her bits of my meals (she is sturdy, but still small!) & she loves it!

So that old La Leche League formula: eat a wide variety of food in close to its natural state, is still my watchword.

3 comments:

Nicole said...

Hi Dia, thank you for stopping by my blog and writing such an indepth comment. Coconut oil sounds amazing. I'll definitely be on the look out for it. Thank you also for your healing for Isis. She is getting better and now home, actually asleep on my lap while I'm typing. Thank you again. Blessings, Nicole
http://themoderngoddess.wordpress.com

Genie Sea said...

The only reason table scarps are now dangerous for dogs is because they are dangerous for us! There are a lot of "foods" out there that have very few real ingredients.

Miss Robyn said...

I am into whole organic foods.. have cut out milk due to allergies and it worked. I now have organic GMfree soy milk. I am going to try the coconut oil for self massage.. i have been using black sesame oil which is an ayurvedic practice. I might even try coconut oil in cooking sometimes.. must look into it.