Herbed Chicken Salad

Herbed Chicken Salad

3-4 cups of cooked chicken, cut up into cubes
1/2 cup mayonnaise (preferably homemade)
1/3 cup sour cream
two handfuls of parsley, finely chopped
handful of tarragon, finely chopped
handful of thyme, finely chopped
several sage leaves, finely chopped
2 pickles, finely chopped OR dill pickle relish
1 tsp dried dill
1 cup of grapes, sliced in half (optional)
1 cup of pecans and/or walnuts (preferably soaked and dehydrated) (optional)
salt and pepper to taste

1.  Combine all the ingredients in a large bowl and stir to combine.

Use to make sandwiches on sprouted bread, or if you are on GAPS, like me, eat wrapped up in a lettuce leaf.  Yum!

Things M Says (part 38)

critiquing me, like a judge on Top Chef


M: "This is a really nice smoothie, probably the best one you've made so far.  It's got a good flavor from the kefir and berries, and it's really cold.  Overall, very delicious Mom."
me: "Um, thanks."

Candy-Making and Cookie-Baking Extravaganza 2010

So I've been making quite a bit of progress on my Candy-Making and Cookie-Baking Extravaganza 2010!  I've also taken a lot of my favorite recipes and morphed them into my favorite versions.  Now they can truly be called k's.  So far I have made these items:
Peanut Butter Cups
Almond Joy cups
Coconut Citrus Fudge
Homemade Eggnog (in a blender)
Maple Shortbread and Classic Shortbread

And I've made these:
Cinnamon and Vanilla Nuts (I used pecans and cashews, gonna try walnuts and almonds later today or tomorrow)
Lemon Curd Bars (we have SO MANY lemons from Ryan's parents' house)

And of course we will be having some lovely breakfasts, like:
Baked Oatmeal with Dried Fruit, Yogurt and Maple Syrup
Crepes with Berries and Cream
Blueberry Buckle (recipe coming soon!)

And back to the treats again.  There are so many other recipes I want to try this week, like:
Almond Roca
Traditional Fudge
Caramel Corn
Bûche de Noël
Sugar Plums
Buckwheat Sourdoughnuts
Molasses & Cranberry Cinnamon Rolls
Sprouted Grain Doughnuts with Coconut Vanilla Glaze
Maple Sugar Candied Nuts

Lunch: Green Salad w/ Leftover Chicken, Tomato, Onion, Kefir

I didn't get hungry for lunch until nearly noon, and then I was busy so I didn't take my coconut oil until closer to one.  Then I made this salad, poured my kefir, and by then I wasn't starving anymore.  I ate my salad calmly and now I sit here satiated but with fewer calories in my belly than usual.  I hope this works and I start losing some pounds again.


Coconut Oil: 2 tablespoons taken in hot water with squeeze of orange.
Lunch: 

• 2 cups greens, 1/2 cup leftover shredded chicken, one diced tomato, 1/4 - 1/2 diced onion, 2 tablespoons Basic Salad Dressing
• 1 cup strawberry water kefir

Water Kefir

Water Kefir

1 package hydrated kefir grains

1/2 cup organic sugar

1-2 tablespoons molasses

1 pastured egg shell, rinsed clean

1 cup diced fruit

Note: do not use tap water, it will kill your kefir grains; do not use Brita water, it doesn't remove flouride and other toxins that can kill your kefir grains

1. Fill a half gallon glass jar with filtered water.  Now pour a little of the water out into a saucepan and bring to a boil.  Turn off heat and add sugar to boiling water, stirring until sugar dissolves, and then pour sugar-water back into the jar to fill it up again.  

2. Add molasses to the jar of water and stir with a wooden spoon to mix in.  Gently add water kefir grains and egg shell.

3. Cover with a dish towel or cheesecloth to keep out dust and bugs and so the kefir can breathe.

4.  Let sit on the counter for 1-2 days.  Then, pour contents through a strainer into a new jar.  Discard egg shell.  Reuse kefir grains for your next batch.

5.  With the strained kefir in the new jar, you can now choose a fruit to flavor the kefir.  I like using strawberries.  Add diced fruit to kefir jar, cover again, and let sit at room temperature for 1 more day.

6.  Remove cover and replace with a screw top lid.  Leave at room temperature for a couple of hours to build up fizziness.  Place in refrigerator to stop the fermentation process.

Beet Kvass

Beet Kvass

2-4 beets, peeled, and cut in a large dice

1/4 cup whey

1 tablespoon sea salt

1. Place beets into a half gallon glass jar.  They should fill the jar about 1/3 of the way up.  Add whey and salt.  Add water to fill the jar.  

2.  Cover with a cloth to keep bugs and dust out, leave at room temperature for 2 days.  

3.  Using a strainer, remove diced beets from kvass.  Then using a screw top lid, transfer to the refrigerator to stop the fermentation process.

Results After Two Weeks

I'm losing weight!  I have lost 3-5 pounds now, depending on which part of the day I weigh myself.  I'm going to continue on with recipes in the Eat Fat, Lose Fat book, as well as modeling my tried and true dinners and recipes to work within the framework I have started.

For example, last night I had grass-fed ground beef flavored with homemade taco seasoning.  I topped it with shredded raw, grass-fed, mild cheddar, salsa and cubed avocado.  Add one cup of milk, and lacto-fermented carrot sticks and all the bases are covered.

(The only thing I would have liked would have been to make my own lacto-fermented salsa like this recipe over at Nourishing Gourmet.)

I'll post new recipes soon.

Dinner: Indonesian Coconut Steak, Sauerkraut, Salad, Milk, Macaroon

This recipe for dinner was pretty good.  I made it two nights ago and am just getting around to posting it.  I'm getting tired of coconut-flavored everything though, so tonight I am making a plain ol' grass-fed steak and a green salad with milk and a pickle.  I ate these coconutty leftovers today for lunch, so I'm ready for a savory change.

I will probably make this one again because it incorporates beef stock so nicely though.  That's a big plus.  I am aiming for more calcium in my diet, so bone broths are one surefire way to increase my intake.  I am also drinking a cup of raw milk twice a day instead of once like before I started my Operation Lose Baby Weight challenge.

Coconut Oil:
Dinner:

• Indonesian Coconut Steak
• Homemade Sauerkraut
• Green Salad with Carrots, Celery, and Parmesan Cheese with Basic Salad Dressing
• 
  

Indonesian Coconut Steak

serves 4

3 tablespoons lard or Mary's Oil Blend

1 large onion, sliced

1 garlic clove, crushed

1 1/2 pounds boneless sirloin or skirt steak, sliced into 1/2-inch strips (I used grass-fed NY strip steak from Sprouts, it was on sale)

1 teaspoon ground ginger

1 teaspoon ground cumin

1 teaspoon ground coriander (I omitted this, I was out!)

1 teaspoon chili powder

2/3 cup desiccated coconut

2 teaspoons coconut or maple sugar (also called palm sugar)

1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice (I also added the zest to add flavor after having no coriander on hand)

1 1/4 cups beef stock

1 red bell pepper, seeded and sliced thin, for garnish

2 to 3 small green chiles, seeded and sliced thin, for garnish (I omitted)

small onion slices, for garnish (I forgot to reserve some, so I cooked them all and had to omit these)

1.  Heat lard in a large saute pan over medium-high heat.  Add onion slices and garlic and saute 5 minutes, or until soft.  Add beef slices and saute, stirring, until browned, about 10 minutes.

2.  Stir in ginger, cumin, coriander and chili powder and cook 2 minutes.  Stir in coconut, sugar, lemon juice, lemon zest, and beef stock.  Lower heat and simmer, uncovered, for 20 to 25 minutes, stirring occasionally, until sauce is reduced and meat is well coated.  Garnish with slivers of bell pepper, green chiles, and small onion slices.

Basic Salad Dressing

1 cup olive oil (I use Chaffin Family Farms from CA, it's very mild and buttery)

1/2 cup raw apple cider vinegar (I use Bragg's)

1 teaspoon onion powder

2-3 tablespoons whole grain mustard

3-4 cloves minced garlic

1/2 teaspoon dried thyme

1/2 teaspoon dried basil

1 teaspoon sea salt (I use Celtic Grey Sea Salt)

1.  Add ingredients in order to a jar or salad dressing shaker.  Shake together to emulsify and pour over salads.  Store in the refrigerator.

Why I Eat Liver, and Dinner: Liver Stir-Fry, Broccoli, Sauerkraut, Fruit, Milk

Today was a momentous day.  I bravely purchased liver, committed to try liver, and then made it for dinner.  Little did I know that after it came out of the pan, breaded in seasoned sprouted flour and surrounded by diced bacon and browned onions, that I would fall in love.  I know it sounds strange, but liver is delicious.  Liver not only tastes good cooked this way, but is immensely good for you.

Organ meats have been traditionally consumed and revered for their healing properties by our ancestors.  We can learn a lot from the way our forepeople valued organ meats.  The added benefit of looking into the science behind what our ancestors did can help us wrap our heads around incorporating organ meats into our diets.  (Though make sure that you differentiate between studies done on grass-fed organ meats and feedlot organ meats, since the nutritional difference is vast.)

Liver contains all kinds of nutrients, most strikingly a very high amount of vitamin A.  Even the difference between grass-fed red meat and grass-fed liver is striking.  Liver contains over three time more iron, 27 times more vitamin C, over 100 times more vitamin B-12 and folic acid, and that's not even mentioning the vitamin A.  Grass-fed red meat contains 40 IU and grass-fed liver has 53,400 IU!  Liver is also a source for vitamin K2, sometimes called "Activator X" by real foodies and Weston Price foundation folks.  However, chicken liver is much higher in vitamin K2 than beef liver.  Still, liver is good for you.

Vitamin K2 does many things, like promote bone growth and make your teeth grow in straight and strong.  Here is a list of vitamin K2-rich foods, which include chicken liver, pate, grass-fed butter, grass-fed hard and soft cheese, and natto.  I eat all these items except for natto.  But I am determined to try it on a day when I feel especially brave.  My boys love natto, which is very fortunate.  You can buy natto at Asian markets, and they are cheap.  Make sure you buy organic natto, so that you know the soybeans they fermented are non-GMO.

I have been easing into the idea of sauteing liver.  I started by purchasing braunschweiger from U.S. Wellness Meats, which is 60% beef and 40% liver.  Braunschweiger is a nutrient-dense, satisfying organ meat sausage that is wonderful on sprouted crackers and cheese.  Now that I know I have the tastebuds to handle liver, I think I will try some more unusual organ sausages.  Their liverwurst contains grass-fed liver, heart and kidney and looks like a good segue way into even more adventurous organ meat sausages.  Maybe I will even try ordering some head cheese, which contains grass-fed tongue and heart.  Baby steps, my friends.  This is where they can get you to.  This coming from me, the gal who thinks the texture of yogurt is gross.  If I can eat liver, anyone can.

Oh, and my boys loved it.  They happily chewed it, no problem.  Liver is very velvety if you cook it right.  They even asked for more until they were both stuffed.  I know they got their nutrients, and I know that I got mine.

Coconut Oil: two tablespoons taken 20 minutes before dinner in raspberry leaf tea

Dinner:

• Liver Stir-fry with Onions and Bacon (I cut the recipe in half)
• Steamed Broccoli with Butter (I was too full to eat this)
• Sauerkraut (homemade jar was finally done!)
• Fresh fruit with Coconut Sprinkles (I had half a grapefruit)
• one cup of raw milk

Liver Stir-Fry

serves 4

1 pound beef or calf's liver, cut into strips

juice of 2 lemons

1/2 cup sprouted flour, or unbleached white flour

sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

1 pound sliced bacon, cut into pieces (I did a small dice)

2 large onions, chopped

1.  Place liver in a large bowl with lemon juice and marinate for several hours in the refrigerator.

2.  Pat piece dry and dredge in a mixture of flour, salt and pepper.

3.  In a cast-iron skillet over medium heat, cook the bacon until crisp.  Remove with a slotted spoon and place on a heated platter (I used a glass pie plate set on a burner that was warm but turned off).

4.  Cook chopped onion in bacon fat until browned.  Remove with a slotted spoon and place on warmed platter/pie plate.

5.  Stir-fry liver in remaining fat until browned on each side, only about 1-2 minutes per side, until medium-rare.  If you overcook, it gets that "liver" taste.  Serve immediately with bacon and onions.

Lunch: Salmon Dill Cream Cheese Roll-ups, Crackers, Celery Sticks, Carrot Dilly Sticks, Kefir, Kvass

That's a really long title, but everything fit onto one small plate.
Coconut Oil: two tablespoons coconut oil taken in raspberry leaf tea
Lunch:

• Smoked Salmon Roll-Ups With Dill Cream Cheese
• Rich, Whole Grain Spelt Crackers (soaked)
• Lacto-fermented Carrot Dilly Sticks and celery sticks
• Strawberry Kefir Soda
• Beet Kvass

Smoked Salmon Roll-Ups with Dill Cream Cheese

serves two

6 tablespoons cream cheese, softened

2 tablespoons chopped fresh dill, or 1 teaspoon dried

salt salt and pepper to taste

4 ounces sliced smoken salmon, preferably wild*

(*I found very reasonably priced wild smoked salmon at Trader Joe's, woohoo!)

1. In a small bowl, mix cream cheese with dill and season with salt and pepper.  Spread mixture over salmon slices and roll up.  Chill well.  Slice into 1/2-inch rounds.  Serve with toothpicks, or on crackers.

Rich, Whole Grain Spelt Crackers

1 cup plain, whole milk yogurt

1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened

3 1/2 cups freshly ground whole grain flour (I have used spelt and whole red winter wheat, both with good success)

2 teaspoons sea salt

1. Cream yogurt and butter together. Add flour and salt and stir to combine.

2. Cover with a towel and a plate, find a warm place to soak 12-24 hours (or overnight).

3. After the soaking period, preheat oven to 400 degrees.

4. At this point you can add any herbs, cheeses, or spices to your dough you might like to try. I have only attempted cracked pepper and parmesan cheese, but it was delicious! The possibilities are endless, but the crackers are truly delicious all on their own. Don't feel you need this step, it is optional.

5. Use white flour, sprouted flour, or arrowroot powder (because each of these options have no phytic acid) to roll your dough out very thin. Use a pastry or pizza cutter to cut dough into small squares or rectangles.

6. Place onto a parchment-lined baking sheet. You can put the crackers fairly close to each other, they do not spread. You can prick with a fork, but I have not seen much of a need for it.

7. Bake 8-12 minutes, checking every minute or so after 8 minutes have gone by to make sure they do not overbrown. You know the crackers are done when they are slightly brown on the edges and the middles of the crackers look drier.

8. Remove from baking sheet to cooling racks immediately, but be gentle so they do not break. Enjoy!

Lacto-fermented Dill Carrot Sticks

several carrots, peeled, cut into sticks (to fit into your glass jar)

1 tablespoon whey

1 tablespoon salt

1 tablespoon fresh dill, chopped, or 1 teaspoon dried dill

filtered water

1. Put carrots into a glass canning jar, packed tightly.  Add whey, salt, dill.  Then add water to fill the jar, screw on a lid tightly and leave at room temperature for several days.  It's normal for the water in the jar to get cloudy.  Taste after 5 days and see if you like the flavor, if not, wait a few more days and taste again.

Strawberry Kefir Soda

1 package hydrated kefir grains

1/2 cup organic sugar

1-2 tablespoons molasses

1 pastured egg shell, rinsed clean

1 cup diced fruit

Note: do not use tap water, it will kill your kefir grains; do not use Brita water, it doesn't remove flouride and other toxins that can kill your kefir grains

1. Fill a half gallon glass jar with filtered water.  Now pour a little of the water out into a saucepan and bring to a boil.  Turn off heat and add sugar to boiling water, stirring until sugar dissolves, and then pour sugar-water back into the jar to fill it up again.  

2. Add molasses to the jar of water and stir with a wooden spoon to mix in.  Gently add water kefir grains and egg shell.

3. Cover with a dish towel or cheesecloth to keep out dust and bugs and so the kefir can breathe.

4.  Let sit on the counter for 1-2 days.  Then, pour contents through a strainer into a new jar.  Discard egg shell.  Reuse kefir grains for your next batch.

5.  With the strained kefir in the new jar, you can now choose a fruit to flavor the kefir.  I like using strawberries.  Add diced fruit to kefir jar, cover again, and let sit at room temperature for 1 more day.

6.  Remove cover and replace with a screw top lid.  Leave at room temperature for a couple of hours to build up fizziness.  Place in refrigerator to stop the fermentation process.

Beet Kvass

2-4 beets, peeled, and cut in a large dice

1/4 cup whey

1 tablespoon sea salt

1. Place beets into a half gallon glass jar.  They should fill the jar about 1/3 of the way up.  Add whey and salt.  Add water to fill the jar.  

2.  Cover with a cloth to keep bugs and dust out, leave at room temperature for 2 days.  

3.  Using a strainer, remove diced beets from kvass.  Then using a screw top lid, transfer to the refrigerator to stop the fermentation process.

Preparing for Monday: Sauerkraut

Okay this one I am saving for last because I am a little scared. I have never made sauerkraut, but several recipes reassure me that it is very simple to make. There are some with just cabbage, salt and water, and others add caraway seeds. For simplicity I am going to stick with the cabbage-water-salt recipe.

I have done a similar lacto-fermentation process with these Dilly Carrots, and it was VERY easy. Sauerkraut, kimchi, and various other naturally preserved condiments are all lacto-fermented and therefore contain beneficial bacteria.

By way of clarification, lacto-fermentation includes whey and salt in the preserving process. You can use the term "cultured", by using just salt, usually twice the amount called for in the lacto-fermented recipe. For example, if I am making sauerkraut with 1 Tablespoon salt and 1 Tablespoon whey, then I can omit the whey and just add two Tablespoons salt.

Lacto-fermentation is sometimes called lactic acid fermentation. I like this definition from "The Benefits of Lacto-Fermentation" by The Nourishing Gourmet: "Lacto-fermentation happens when the starches and sugars in vegetables and fruit convert to lactic acid by a friendly lactic-acid producing bacteria." So there you go! This is how you can awaken your foods into live, cultured, probiotic foods. Think yogurt, but with way more possibilities.

Cultured Sauerkraut

2 heads organic green cabbage

3 1/2 Tablespoons salt

1. Shred cabbage, mix in salt, and put into a non-reactive bowl for 15-30 minutes. The salt will draw the water out of the cabbage, making it unnecessary to pound it.

2. If you have a fermentation crock or fermenting jar, like this one I have, then transfer cabbage to the fermenter. That will ensure that no air is in contact with the cabbage. Cover with a towel to keep light out of the jar. If you do not own one of those fermenters, you can weight down the cabbage with a plate, or bowl, or jar, or bucket filled with water, placed directly on top of the cabbage in the bowl. Just make sure the cabbage is completely submerged. Cover with a kitchen towel to keep dust and bugs out.

3. Let ferment for several days at room temperature. Just taste it every day and see how the flavor is. If using a weight method, make sure you take the weight off and clean it every day, and skim any scum that might appear.

Try to have one lacto-fermented item per day, preferably per meal. Enjoy!

(Cross-posted)