The Sunny Side Is Up

Emptiness - in my soul

I’d like to think I am strong woman who doesn’t care for complaining and always finds the sunny side of life, but there is one thing (that I’ll admit to publically at least) I have been whining about terribly these last few months: NOT HAVING PASTURED EGGS.


Surely other people cry and make the pouty face when they see a pale, yellow yolk puttering in the pan.


My husband has been consoling me with promises of our very own chickens when we move.  That helps a little.

There is some sunshine after all.  It's finally spring and eggs are in season! 
My “egg dealer” – we’ll call her mama pollo (heh heh) -- is back in business now that “the girls” (as she affectionately calls them) are laying more regularly.  So mama pollo is a friend of mine that raises her own chickens outside of the city in a suburban neighborhood.  She wanted eggs from chickens that were treated well, ate well and had good living conditions; one way to ensure that, was to do it herself. I love it.

Meet Belina – chilling on the back deck ...

Photo by T. Allen

The key to pastured chickens is that the hens have a covered place to roost and rest; fresh air, can primp and preen; and can freely forage for bugs and greens (their natural diet).  Eating bugs makes them happy.  And happy, healthy chickens lay delicious, healthy eggs.

Check out the yolk from a happy chicken compared to a yolk from a chicken in a conventional get up.

Yolk from happy chicken

Yolk from chicken in conventional outfit - "the basic grocery store egg"

By “conventional” I mean: either factory farmed in warehouse barns (photo below) or crammed into small wire cages (called batteries) with other chickens and no room to hardly move; they are given a feed that consists of mostly genetically modified (GMO) corn (because it’s cheap) and possibly antibiotics, as they are often sickly under these conditions (geez, who wouldn’t be).  There is far more that can be said about how chickens are being factory farmed these days, but essentially, they are used soley as egg-making machines, have awful living conditions, are stressed, cranky, pissed at their neighbors and fighting all the time; less healthy, not eating their natural diet or able to roam freely as their ancestors before them once did.  This set up allows manufacturers to produce higher volumes of eggs which can in turn be sold to us at a lower cost, ~$2/dozen.

Factory Farmed Chickens / "High Density Floor Confinement" (Photo via)

Knowing this, purchasing quality eggs is one area on my grocery list that I just won't skimp on.  

And oh baby... it’s SO worth it!  Eggs from pastured chickens have a deeper and sweeter taste.  The yolks are golden in color and plump and proud in stature. 


Want more reasons to go out of your way for pastured eggs?


Pastured eggs are nutritionally superior:

·        Up to 10x more omega-3s (roles in brain/nervous system health, joint health, vision health, immune support, anti-inflammatory, etc)

·        3x more vitamin E (anti-oxidant functions, immune building, cancer preventative, preventative against CVD,  anti-inflammatory, etc.)

·        7x more beta carotene (vision health, immune function, gene expression, growth & development, etc.)

·        5x more vitamin D (immune function, nervous system, bone health, gene expression, etc.)

·        No added hormones, antibiotics or other drugs (the way it should be)

·        Less cholesterol and saturated fat (still worried about fat and cholesterol content of eggs?  Check out the: Let's Talk Fat post)

·       Rich in conjugated linoleic acid, CLA (more on CLA in a later post; you're gonna want to know about this “good fat” known for being a potent defense against cancer and more --- stay tuned!)

(Sources: Linus Paulding Institute; Eat Wild)


Ok, so how do we find good quality pastured eggs?

OPTION #1

If you know someone who raises their own chickens in a healthy environment as mentioned above,  you are golden.  And be kind to your local mama pollo.  Expect to pay $3-$5 per dozen.  Or if you are super lucky, you might have a generous neighbor who just keeps you in supply with their extras. 

OPTION #2

If you have a local farmer’s market, get there early and purchase from a local farmer that adheres to the organic pastured standards (just ask).  And of course, be kind to your local farmer as well!  Expect to pay $4-$6 per dozen.  

OPTION #3

Purchase eggs from your local natural foods market.  Read the label as best as you can looking for: organic and pastured. Expect to pay $3-$4 per dozen.  


Organic on the label means: ~80% of their feed is from non-GMO and there are no animal by-products in the feed; they have access to the outdoors year round and are allowed 2 sq ft of floor space.


Pastured on the label means: chickens are typically in a moveable enclosure where there is access to fresh growing vegetation.


But let's be clear: there are numerous words on egg cartons these days (free range, cage free, day range, free roaming, roaming free, etc).  For example: "free range" on the label doesn't necessarily mean or guarantee anything... it's loosely regulated, further making understanding egg labeling torturous and confusing --- which is why options 1 and 2 are preferred.  Rodale has a nice article on new labeling laws that may come into play making this easier on the consumer.


Here's a fantastic link that can help you find a CSA or farm in your area:
http://www.localharvest.org/

Does all this make your head spin?  Yes, mine too. Let's move on to the eating part. 

The egg is gloriously versatile and is used in baking, meringues, Italian desserts, eggnog, cocktails, stirfries; it can be scrambled, cooked over easy, poached, fried, hard boiled; you can make omelets, quiches, soufflés, frittatas, you name it!  It's a chef's delight, for sure.

One simple breakfast favorite in our house is an egg over easy/medium served over a bed of quinoa.  ...Along with some fresh ground kelp and a generous handful of cilantro (yes, we sort of like cilantro!).

Pastured egg over easy over bed of quinoa with side of fruit

But another favorite is making a frittata, which can easily make a delicious, high protein, veggie-filled meal for breakfast, lunch or dinner.  Below is a recipe for a Savory Vegetable and Caramelized Onion Frittata.  

Savory Vegetable and Caramelized Onion Frittata

So.... what is your favorite egg dish? 


And tell me I am not the only one who dreams of living in the country again ... a big yard complete with a designated chicken playground and all the fresh pastured eggs I can imagine...?

Savory Vegetable & Caramelized Onion Frittata

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Frittatas are such a wonderful way to kickstart your day by serving up a flavorful dish, high in protein and packed with a bounty of beautiful vegetables.  For a balanced meal, partner this fabulous frittata with a side of whole grain toast and fresh, in season fruit topped with a dollop of cultured whole milk yogurt.  Feel free to change up the spices and the vegetables to suit your fancy – it’s hard to go wrong!

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Preparation time: 30 minutes

Makes 2-4 servings (6 slices)

2 teaspoons butter, divided

½ yellow onion, sliced into half moons

4 shitake mushrooms, thinly sliced

¼ red bell pepper, julienned

2 cloves of garlic, roughly chopped

2 leaves of kale, coarsely chopped

6 eggs

3 tablespoons whole milk

¼ teaspoon sea salt

¼ teaspoon ground white pepper

1 teaspoon ground coriander

3 tablespoons coarse grated carrot

2 tablespoons fresh chopped parsley, plus more to garnish

1/3 cup grated mild cheddar cheese

Set oven to broil.

Heat a medium-size stainless steel pan over medium heat.  Add 1 teaspoon of butter.  Add the onions and cook for about 15 minutes until they are almost caramelized.  Add the mushrooms and bell pepper.  Sauté together for 3-4 more minutes.  Add the garlic and kale and cook for another minute or so until kale turns bright green and begins to wilt.  remove from heat and set mixture aside.

Whisk eggs and milk together in a medium size bowl.  Mix in the salt, pepper and coriander.  Over medium-high heat, re-heat the same pan that was used to cook the vegetables and coat evenly (especially around the sides) with the remaining teaspoon of butter.  Add the egg mixture and cook about 75% of the way without stirring; there will still be uncooked yolk on the top. Add the cooked vegetables and then top with the carrot, chopped parsley and cheese. 

Place the skillet in the oven to broil for about 3-4 minutes, until the cheese is a little golden and bubbly.  Keep an eye on it so it doesn’t burn  Remove from the oven, slice into 6 pieces and serve garnished with a little extra parsley.

Copyright 2010, S. Nester, Original recipe

Raspberry Scones with Lemon Ginger Tea

Good Morning Sunshine!


I whipped up these yummy scones for breakfast this morning, er brunch rather and thought I'd share.  They are vegan-style scones so do not contain the usual milk, eggs and butter.  

Just to be clear, I am a big fan of organic pastured butter and usually rely on it for the texture and flavor it adds.  Butter does indeed bring out that comforting and satisfying flavor that we all linger for in a baked good.  I am all for quality, whole food fats, rich with CLA and omega 3s --- but more on that in a later post.  

Mmmm.... Butter (photo via)

Okay, okay - another post (stay tuned).  However, in this recipe I used melted organic coconut oil as the fat, which I am also fond of.  I like having the option of making a scone with whatever I have in my house, so if there is no butter on hand (which by the way is a crisis in our kitchen), and I want to make a batch of breakfast scones, or cake or cookies for that matter, well... no problem.  So I share this recipe with you to potentially add to your baking repertoire.


This recipe is made with a cup of fresh ginger and lemon tea that is blended into the dough.  Therefore, this recipe sort of comes with a cup of fresh ginger tea on the side.  There will be some left over and I certainly encourage you to enjoy it and sip away.  Although fresh ginger root is always my preference, if you do not have it on hand you can substitute with 3 ginger tea bags if you'd like, but be sure to brew a strong cup so the ginger comes across.


One of my favorite things to do when I get up in the morning is have a nice cup of warm water with a lemon wedge and fresh pieces of ginger (and sometimes a little honey).  It gets the digestion 'a going and primes the pumps if you will.  It's just a great habit to drink a glass of water upon awakening anyway to start the day off keeping our bodies nourished and well hydrated. 


The Raspberry Scones with Lemon Ginger Tea recipe is below.  A couple of quick notes:

• use whole wheat pastry flour and not whole wheat flour
• oil and water work better at room temperature

So, I hope you enjoy this delicious (lighter-style) scone, along with a warming cup of tea... and well the bicep work out you'll get from grating the apple and stirring the dough.  

Heh, you're welcome. 

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Raspberry Scones with Lemon Ginger Tea

These scones have a lovely blend of bright flavors happening.  They are a little on the lighter side because there are no eggs, butter or milk (dairy-free) in this recipe.  The freshly grated bits of ginger root help give this scone a kick, but if you want to go easy on the ginger, you can always slice the ginger into coins to make the tea and then discard the whole pieces before using the tea. 

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Tea:

2 tablespoons finely grated ginger root

1 cup boiling water

2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice

Dry:

3 cups whole wheat pastry flour

1 tablespoon baking powder

½ teaspoon sea salt

Wet:

1 apple, cored and shredded (about 1 cup)

2/3 cup sucanat or rapadura

½ cup of melted coconut oil

2 teaspoons lemon extract

Zest of one lemon

¾ cup raspberries

Pre-heat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit. 

To make tea, infuse the grated ginger in boiling hot water for 15 minutes.  Cover tea to trap the oils.  Add the lemon and allow to cool. 

Stir together all dry ingredients in a large mixing bowl.  In a small bowl, stir together apple, sugar, oil, extract and zest.  Gently fold in the raspberries.  Slowly begin integrating the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients. 

Begin adding ½ cup of the tea to the mixture until the right consistency is achieved. You want the dough to be firm and not sticky.  Feel free to drink the left over tea as it’s wonderful for digestion!

Shape the dough into a flattened disc about 1 inch thick.  Place it on a lightly greased baking sheet and cut into 8 slices.  Pull the slices apart so the heat can circulate while baking.  Bake for 12-18 minutes.

Preparation time: 15 minutes

Baking time: 18 minutes

Yield: 8 scones

Copyright 2011, S. Nester, original recipe

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Millet - it's not just for the birds

My aunt lives in Orlando, Florida and for Christmas, she mailed me some oranges picked right off the tree in her back yard. I was nothing short of ecstatic to get them. For one, I am obsessed with getting snail mail and two, I love food gifts. Inside the box was a sweet handwritten note tucked inside; it wished us a Merry Christmas and sent her love, after she called out that the oranges were pesticide free. Sweet. And seriously, these oranges were blissfully divine tasting; sweet, juicy and you just can't eat them without making noises.


These perfect oranges made their way into our Christmas morning breakfast.

On the menu: orange millet pancakes with maple orange syrup, scrambled eggs with basil and feta, a side of blueberries and French pressed coffee. Sadly, this was the first Christmas for my husband and me to be away from our families, which makes me think this is probably the first time I've ever made breakfast on Christmas.

 

Okay, so I have a slight infatuation with whole grains. I feel they are terribly underappreciated, especially millet. There are many studies that show eating whole grains instead of refined grains will lower the risk of chronic diseases. Amazing... and worth several more posts alone to cover the amazingness.
When I mention millet, people have heard of it, but they often crinkle their faces, tip their heads side ways and say, “Isn’t that bird feed?” Why, yes. Yes it is, but it’s human feed, too.

MILLET

Millet is sweet, mild and fluffy. It’s a fantastic GLUTEN-FREE whole grain that earns its rightful place in the pantry. It’s highly nutritive being rich in iron, protein, calcium, phosphorous, potassium, magnesium, B vitamins and is a fabulous source of soluble fiber. Millet is cooling and very alkaline making it easy on the gut; being easy to digest makes it a major bonus for those with GI issues. I love that it’s a super inexpensive, budget friendly grain, about $1.29 / lb from the bulk bins. It’s been around for literally a few thousands years and was the staple grain until wheat farming came into the picture. It was commonly used in breads back in the Old Testament days as well. (Ezekial 4:9 & 27:17)

Keep in mind that millet doesn't rise like other flours so works well as cereal or used in flat breads or paired up with whole wheat pastry flour for example.

Also, if you have some arthritic pain, you can make a warm poultice with millet porridge.
Combine millet with water in a small pot and heat until warm; put mixture in a cheese cloth or piece of cotton or flannel fabric and apply to the affected area (not scolding hot of course). Millet has anti-inflammatory properties and stimulates circulation around the painful area.
Make a whole grain baby cereal.

When baby is ready for solid foods (after 6-8 months), toast ¼ cup of millet in a dry skillet and grind in a spice grinder into a flour; add ¼ cup of flour to 1 cup of water and cook over medium heat, whisking constantly. If the cereal consistency is too thick, add a little more water or breast milk.

***Note that the freshly ground flour goes rancid pretty quickly so store it whole in an air tight container and ground it as you need it.

You can eat it in your pancakes, feed it to the birds, rub it on your body and make a nutritious cereal for your baby. Are you not sold yet?

Ok, here’s a good place to start…
Orange Millet Pancakes
Pancake batter
1 1/3 cup plus ¼ cup whole millet
2 tablespoons sucanat or rapadura
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon sea salt
1 egg
½ teaspoon vanilla extract

1 cup whole milk
1 teaspoon orange zest
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
2-3 tablespoons safflower oil

Syrup
1 ½ cup 100% pure maple syrup
½ cup fresh squeezed orange juice with pulp


Ground 1 1/3 cup of millet in a grain mill or spice grinder until it's a fine powder. Over medium-high heat, dry toast the remaining ¼ cup of millet in a skillet for about 5 minutes, or until the millet begins to pop and gives off a toasty aroma. Next, quickly pulse the sugar in the spice grinder to make the sugar finer but not into a powder.

Combine the flour, sugar, baking soda and salt in a small bowl and set aside. In a separate bowl, beat the egg. Add vanilla, milk, zest and stir to combine. Using a whisk, stir in the oil.

Pour the wet ingredients into the dry bowl and whisk until combined well. Finally, whisk in the ¼ cup of toasted millet.

Heat a cast iron pan or griddle over medium heat and allow to get very hot. Place a little bit of safflower oil (or other high heat oil) in the pan and scoop ¼ cup of batter into skillet. Cook for about 1-2 minutes on each side, once pancake batter begins to bubble and when it turns golden brown. Repeat until batter is used up, but be sure to stir the batter and scoop from the bottom each time as the millet will settle.

Meanwhile, over medium-low heat, combine the maple syrup and orange juice to gently warm it. Drizzle over pancakes and garnish with an orange slice.


Preparation time: 35 minutes
Makes about 10 5 inch pancakes

Copyright 2010, S. Nester, Original Recipe

Call Me Miso

One of my teachers handed me a jar full of broth and 2 containers of miso today, followed by “You look like you could use this…”

Um, thanks? Actually, yes, THANK YOU! Miso is exactly what I need to boost my system right now. I can hardly spell S L E E P let alone get enough of it. I’m feeling run down. My brain is cramping and my eyes scream how tired and overwhelmed I feel. Clearly, it’s finals week.

As I write this, I am sipping on a cup of miso soup. I’m taking a break and just reminding myself to slow down and breathe.
I always keep miso in my fridge. It’s straight up, a medicinal powerhouse. 


Here’s the 101 on miso…


What is miso?
It’s a fermented, thick soy bean paste. It’s typically made of soy beans, rice and/or barley, salt and a bacterial culture called, koji. It’s a staple in Japanese cooking and has been around for about 2000 years because of its belief in promoting longevity through strengthening the body and preventing disease.


How is it made?
The legumes are cooked and then mixed with salt and a cultured grain (rice or barley with the koji bacteria). The mixture is allowed to ferment and typically aged in a wooden vat at ~90°F, from 2 months up to 3 years.


What does it taste like?
There are several varieties of miso that range in color from tan to dark browns; the darker it is the longer it has been fermented. The darker misos (reds, browns) are saltier, more robust and complex in flavor; more savory and pack more nutritional value. The white misos are more mellow, light, sweet and mild tasting and are probably a good place to start.

What are its benefits? 
- excellent source of protein, vitamins and minerals- contains living enzymes and friendly bacteria that aid digestion
- intensely nourishing to the gut (a good probiotic source)
- detoxifies heavy metals
- high in anti-oxidants and protects against free radicals
- anti-carcinogen
- alkalizing and helps promote resistance to disease
- strengthens blood and lymph
- strengthens immune system
- may help lower LDL cholesterol
- it’s very grounding and comforting
- slows signs of aging- low in fat and calories
- protects against environmental toxins and exposure to radiation
(microwaves, cell phones, x-rays, CT Scans, nuclear, etc.)
***Research Dr. Shinichiro Akizuki and his studies from the 1945 atomic bombing victims in Japan.


Where do I buy it?
Check the cold section of your local natural foods market. Be sure it’s organic and unpasteurized. If it’s refrigerated, it’ll keep for several years.


How do I use it?
Energetically, the darker misos are better in the colder seasons and the lighter misos are better in the warmer seasons. You can use miso in place of salt or soy sauces; you can add it to marinades, dressings, spreads and dipping sauces.

The most common way is to use miso is to add it to soup or broth: place a tablespoon of miso in the bowls the soup will be served in and add the soup. Stir in to dissolve. Be sure to NOT cook miso over the high heat as this will destroy the beneficial enzymes and health promoting properties. If you desire to add miso to the whole pot of soup, then reserve a ½ cup of the soup in a small bowl and add your miso to that; mix until miso is dissolved and then add the mixture to the pot of soup; only allow to cook over low heat for a minute or so and then remove.

Here is a recipe by Cynthia Lair that I love, Rosemary Red Soup. It has miso in it and is hands down the most gorgeous-colored soup I’ve ever seen! It serves as a lovely entree soup or appetizer. 

Here’s a very basic recipe for miso soup by Heidi Swanson as well. I like to add ginger, garlic and toasted sesame oil to mine and serve over brown rice, which makes for a fabulous breakfast during the colder months.

You can call me miso because I am having a cup of this magic every morning and evening for the next week or so.

Note: Miso can be high in sodium so if there are health concerns, always consult your health provider.