Make Your Own Bread Again

So you might have seen this recipe already. I found it somewhere online; not sure if it was a facebook post, Greatist or MSN. Then after making the bread and telling a friend about it, I saw it highlighted again as a top story on MSN.

If you missed it, then you're getting another chance. If you like bread but don't love to make it, this link is for you!

My Mother's Peasant Bread: The Easiest No-Knead Bread 

You Will Ever Make

Two different batches. The color of the bread came out the same, it's just the lighting in the kitchen that was different.

That link, from www.alexandracooks.com, takes you through every step with details and advice. I've made this bread twice and we love it. Why? You ask. 

1. It's simple
2. It's delicious
3. It only has 6 ingredients: flour, salt, water, sugar, yeast, butter. And very little of everything except flour.
4. I used whole-wheat flour and it worked!

The second batch I made, I added pepitas in the buttered bowl. Next time I plan to try the recipe with some oat flour replacing some of the whole-wheat flour. The website offers a gluten-free option as well.

My bread did not rise as well as Alexandra's, but I'm working on that. Guessing it might be the whole-wheat flour, or perhaps with bread I need to adjust it a little for living at 5300 ft, or I realized that I did not mix my yeast/sugar/water before dumping it in the flour. No matter - still delicious. And I did not have Pyrex bowls, so I used two of my Polish pottery bowls that worked perfectly.

Action Item: Come on, try this bread. It still takes a little time, because you do have to let the dough rise for 1.5 - 2 hours at first, then 30ish minutes the second time. 

For Further Reading: I was going to list some articles about the benefits of making your own bread. Instead I'll ask you to go to your search engine and type in "why you should make your own bread" and the results give you a good overview: save money, healthier for you, to stop feeling bloated, you know what's in it, etc. Bread is time consuming and I know you can't make all your bread at home without skipping workouts or taking time off work, but you can make it often. And when you can't, be sure to buy bread with whole grains and very few ingredients. 

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Energy Bars

From the Bicycling magazine blog. My mixture didn't look like this;
mine are chocolaty! The chocolate chips melted after pouring
in the heated maple syrup and peanut butter mixture. Yum!

I typically do not like the name "energy bar," but in the case of these bars they definitely gave us energy (or helped us maintain our energy) during some hiking at 8000+ feet elevation.

I found this recipe in a friend's facebook group (Smoky Mountain Military Cycling), and it's actually from a Bicycling magazine blog. These are very tasty bars and I really appreciated the versatility and simplicity of the recipe.

View the recipe here. For my bars, I used oats, my son's favorite cereal (multi-grain and low-sugar flakes), finely chopped walnuts, chopped dried apricots, chia seeds, maple syrup, natural peanut butter and dark chocolate chips. I only made half a batch the first time. I wanted to make sure we liked them before using so much liquid gold (aka maple syrup.) My conclusion is that these are definitely easy to make and delicious to eat. The problem is that these have quite a few calories - I didn't even calculate the calories in ours - but at least I know that each ingredient in these bars is a good one! No hidden additives, artificial anything or preservatives. We all enjoyed these on the trail. These energy bars are a good idea for extended exercise such as long runs, hiking or cycling.


Action Item: Make your own energy bars or granola bars when you can. Homemade versions are healthier, cost less and prevent lots and lots of unnecessary packaging!

For Further Reading: Eating During Exercise. A reminder that each person has different needs during long-duration activities (over 60 minutes), and it usually takes trial and error with hydration and nutrition to learn what works best for you and your body.

Seriously?

I read yesterday that Taco Bell was rolling out it's new waffle taco breakfast (link to the article is below). Seriously? These "foods" are completely unnecessary in my opinion, and probably yours if you are reading this. If you are even considering eating the waffle taco breakfast (or anything similar), please choose not to if you value your health. Not just because of the high fat content and the unnecessary calories, but I can only imagine the added ingredients to make it salty and addictive. In the time it takes to drive to a fast food restaurant and wait in line, I'm pretty certain you could toast some bread, add peanut butter and grab a banana for the road! It costs less, it's healthier and there's no wasted wrappers and containers. Win, win, win, win and win. OK, I went a little too far, but I've very passionate about skipping fast food restaurants completely and especially for the meal that sets the tone for the rest of your day!

In the coming days, I'll talk more about healthy meal options. If you have a favorite quick & healthy breakfast or lunch, email me at foodsthatfuelus@yahoo.com.


Action Item: If you eat at fast food restaurants regularly, try cutting back a little each week. Find other convenient ways to eat. Making your lunch in the morning will take extra time, but consider that if you make your lunch you could have time to sit quietly in the sun while enjoying a lunch that fuels you for the afternoon. If you run to Burger King, you're probably in a car, in traffic, waiting in line and rushing. Choose health.

For Further Reading: Taco Bell Rolls Out Waffle Taco Breakfast (If you really want to see what this "breakfast" looks like!) Check out Taco Bell's Ingredient Statement if you want to see what's in their food. I'm not picking on Taco Bell (I was gained my freshmen 15 by eating Taco Bell); I feel the same about most fast food restaurants. I'm sure you can now also find other restaurants nutritional info online.

And remember, there are still a few days left in National Nutrition Month. A great time for you to start or reinforce some healthy eating habits. Visit the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics website for more tips and advice: www.eatright.org.

Dress Your Greens

I ran across this cute graphic on Pinterest, and so far I've tried the balsalmic vinaigrette. It was perfect for me. Many of you might already make an oil/vinegar type salad dressing, but I have a history of buying a pre-made dressing, not liking it and having to suffer through until the bottle is empty!

These recipes are great because they only make a small amount, and like it says - you probably have most or all of the ingredients in your kitchen already. Better yet is that these made-at-home toppings have  no artificial ingredients, no added sugar and no unnecessary salt! Perfect way to top off a healthy salad.


Action Item: If you have the ingredients, try one today!

For Further Reading: If you search, you'll find an unlimited number of salad dressing recipes. Narrowing them down and/or trying any of them is the hard part for me. Start here, and see if these interest you: Three Homemade Salad Dressing Recipes

Dogs Eat Veggies Too

Not my dog, but looks like our dear Tobasco
who died a few years ago!

I've been toying with the idea of making homemade dog food; I've done a little research and spoken with friends who make or have made their own. Part of the reason is because we make some much waste with fruits and vegetables - I compost as much as I can, but not being much of a gardener I run out of places to put the compost-like substance I create! If it was higher quality, I would share with all the neighbors. I digress. The next best thing I decided would be not to create so much to put in the compost bin. If I can divert some small bits of veggies and fruit to our dog's bowl that will solve our problem.

Our son must have heard me discussing this, because I walked into the kitchen the other day and he was smashing dog treats to mix with cut carrots. He told me "put this on your blog, Mom."

Since I had already researched this a little, I ran to get my "safe foods" list. So we added a little pumpkin puree that was in the fridge (and may go bad before I use it.) Then chopped apples from a half-eaten apple my son had decided he didn't want earlier in the day. Get the picture... there's always a little of this and a little of that around the kitchen. If you don't make smoothies, then the dog may appreciate the food!

We put everything into a blender, added a little water to get it to mix. I think my blender/food processor is on it's last legs after too many batches of peanut butter! Anyway, we added it to his food and he gobbled it up. Not to be gross, but I waited a few days to post this just to make sure he didn't get sick or leave unhappy poop all over the yard. So far so good!

Lots of foods are safe for dogs. Lots of foods are not. Be sure to only feed them fresh fruits and vegetables, not processed foods or foods with added salt, sugar or sauces. Dogs can also eat rice, other grains, beans and plain meat.

Here's the best link I've found. This person is not a vet, but has done lots of research! If you search for homemade dog food, you'll find tons of options. Just be sure to double-check the information.

So far we've discovered that our dog does not like carrots. Unless they are too small to detect. He will pull out every carrot bit otherwise and leave it beside his food bowl. At this point, I'm only supplementing his dog food when I have leftovers, but it's a win/win for the family.

Here are some food combos we've tried:

Apples, broccoli, spinach, black beans and carrots

Apples, water, pumpkin, treats - put it through a
blender and strainer!

Action Alert: Dogs need healthy food and exercise just like we do. (Cats too, but sorry I have no experience with them.) Store-bought food can be great. I was told to check the ingredients and make sure the first one is not grain. If the food is beef & rice for example, the first ingredient should be beef.

For Further Reading: 10 People Foods for Dogs and Dog-Approved People Foods (these lists are a little easier to get started with, the link above is great but almost overwhelming!) and How to Choose A Healthy Dog Food

Fruit Leather

I grabbed a several pieces of fruit leather (fruit roll-ups) while at the store. I checked the ingredients first, especially making sure they contained no artificial food coloring. I then asked myself "why don't I make these more often?" Homemade fruit leather is healthier, less expensive and requires no packaging.

So I searched for the recipe a few minutes ago in order to share it (see the link below)... use whatever fruit you have on hand, blend it, place it in a pan and cook it on a very low temp for hours. I think I lightly oiled the pan rather than using plastic wrap or parchment paper. I was worried about heating the plastic, and what might come out of that and I also had no parchment paper.

Action Item: Check your kitchen, you should have fruit or even applesauce (natural, please). Try a batch of these today! They're not just for kids, but a great snack for anyone.

For Further Reading: Two Peas & Their Pod

HFCS

If you're watching your sugar intake, take extra care to watch out for high-fructose corn syrup (HFCS). And if you're reading this and concerned about what you eat, you're probably already aware of high-fructose corn syrup. If not, read the links below or search for other articles for more information. Research has shown that HFCS is a huge contributor to obesity and various illnesses; especially because it comes in processed "foods." Here's an excerpt from an article by Dr. Mark Hyman, "The main reason you should give up high fructose corn syrup is that it's a big red flag for very poor quality food. If you see this ingredient on a label, I guarantee you the food is processed junk. So, if high fructose corn syrup is anywhere on the label, put it back on the shelf. You should never eat this food."

The problem I've encountered is that HFCS is EVERYWHERE. You know it's in soda, but it also likely in your ketchup, barbecue sauce, syrup, bread, yogurt, applesauce, peanut butter, salad dressing, crackers... you name it. Have I said this before - read the labels! Now most of you probably agree with me, but most of this "food" in the picture is not food. Though it is eaten regularly by many people and occasionally by a few people; it should not make up most of your caloric intake.

This is why we should try to stick with foods that are natural (in their natural state) or foods that have very few ingredients (ie. three to five). It's a challenge, but those foods are out there. In some stores, they stick all the healthy foods in one section which cracks me up and makes me sad for too many reasons to name.


These are two condiments that we like with no HFCS and low total sugar and/or sodium. Better yet, if you are efficient and good with time management and/or really want to save money and eat healthy, then try making your own ketchup or barbecue sauce. Looking for a yummy whole wheat cracker, try Triscuits Thin Crisps Original: they have only three ingredients!

Let me know your thoughts and if you have any great recipes for making these products or others on your own! Especially salad dressing, I need some good ones.


Action Item: Check your cabinets again. Are you eating HFCS that you don't know about?

For further reading: High Fructose Corn Syrup: Any Concerns? and The Not-so-sweet Truth About High Fructose Corn Syrup