REAL Food Friday #23

Hello and Welcome to REAL Food Friday!
I'd like to thank all of the conscious bloggers who followed the guidelines and 
shared REAL FOOD recipes and posts. Thank you for sharing!

We're your hosts
Joyce @ It's Your Life
Lydia @ Lydia's Flexitarian Kitchen 
me...Mary @ Back to the Basics and Mary's Kitchen 
Deborah @ Kneaded Creations
Janine @ My Lamp is Full
Also, please welcome Marla @ Organic4 Greenlivings 

<a href="http://maryshealthymeals.blogspot.com/"><img border="0" src="http://i1287.photobucket.com/albums/a627/greenmary_smith/REALFood1_zpsb7242283.jpg"/></a>  
If you're interested in co-hosting let us know! 

You can email Mary at mari_backtonature@yahoo.com

Each host chooses their own features so be sure to hop around and see if you were featured.  There were SO MANY amazing links last week it was tough choosing. Last week I had ZERO features because we were sick so I'm making up for it this week!

My Features:

Monster Veggie-Loaded Burger w/Eggplant Bun from Made to Glow

 Quinoa Chili from Nourishing Bites

Making and eating Kale Chips from Losing my Gut....

How to Make a Smoothie, Plus 5 Healthy Recipes from One little Project

In case you missed "What is Real Food" here's a recap...

I know "Real" food may not seem like as much fun as the sugary, chemically, DIY recipes out there on the internet.  This is why REAL Food Friday is so unique.  This is the place to share your unprocessed, gmo-free, locally grown and/or fair trade posts.

We are trying to make a difference 1 recipe at a time!
If your post includes items like *margarine, *granulated sugar, *food dye, packaged baking mixed with ingredients that you cannot pronounce (betty crocker, duncan hines, pillsbury) then it WILL be deleted.  These are garbage ingredients.  Sorry...Not real food.

Here's a great reference from Food Myths:
Do you ever think about how far the food you eat travels?  Who grew it?  Who picked it? How much in processing it's been through before you took a bite? Real Food is:
-Supports fair farmworker wages
-GMO Free
-Little to no processing/processed ingredients
-Supports local markets/vendors and isn't transported long distances to get to my plate
-Honors fair trade principles when I buy from othr regions
-Meat and dairy should be humanely raised and on real food themselves-Not genetically engineered feed, drugs, hormones and antibiotics.

Link up your Real Food posts!  Processed and "junk food" posts will be deleted.
The party runs from Thursday at 7pm EST through Monday at Noon.

Please follow your hosts and consider adding the Real Food Friday button.

Asian Chicken Wrap

I'm on a roll here people!!!  For a few weeks now I've been in a bloggy/cooking rut!

Sometimes the more tired you feel the less productive you are and then the worse you feel.  I'm giving our fridge and our plates a little DETOX and you're going to love what I have in store for you!

I started with a Soy Free Pineapple Kale Smoothie recipe.

Asian Chicken Wraps
from SELF

INGREDIENTS:

• 2 tsp OLIVE or COCONUT oil  *NEVER use canola oil*
• 8 oz white mushrooms, chopped
• 1 lb lean ground chicken
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1/2 tsp fresh ginger, minced
• 1 cup green onions, sliced
• 1 (8 oz) can sliced water chestnuts, drained and chopped
•  **Or supplement with a FRESH option**
• 8 large lettuce leaves
• 1 tbsp toasted sesame oil
• 1/2 tbsp rice wine vinegar
• 3/4 tsp lower-sodium soy sauce  *Preferably Non-GMO*
• 1/2 tsp honey
• crushed red pepper flakes, to taste

source

 When I make these tonight I'll use a darker leafy green (romaine or Kale)

DIRECTIONS:
Heat oil in large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add mushrooms and cook for 5 minutes or until tender, stirring occasionally. Place mushrooms in a large bowl, set aside.
Add chicken, garlic and ginger to skillet and cook for 6-7 minutes or until chicken is brown, breaking the meat up as it cooks. Combine the chicken mixture with the bowl of mushrooms; add green onions and water chestnuts; toss together. Combine sesame oil, rice wine vinegar, lower-sodium soy sauce, honey and crushed red pepper flakes in a small bowl; whisk to mix well. Divide chicken mixture evenly between each lettuce leaf and top with sesame oil mixture. Optional: Garnish with fun, bright extras, like the red peppers and scallions seen above.

REAL Food Friday #22

Hello and Welcome to REAL Food Friday!

I'd like to thank all of the conscious bloggers who followed the guidelines and shared REAL FOOD recipes and posts. Thank you for sharing!
We are looking for co-hosts.  Please comment below with your URL.

We're your hosts
Joyce @ It's Your Life
Lydia @ Lydia's Flexitarian Kitchen 
me...Mary @ Back to the Basics and Mary's Kitchen 
Joining us again this week is Deborah @ Kneaded Creations 
Also, please welcome Janine @ My Lamp is Full 

<a href="http://maryshealthymeals.blogspot.com/"><img border="0" src="http://i1287.photobucket.com/albums/a627/greenmary_smith/REALFood1_zpsb7242283.jpg"/></a>  
If you're interested in co-hosting let us know! 

You can email me at mari_backtonature@yahoo.com

I have no features this week.  We're sick over here but I promise I'll make it up to you next week!

In case you missed "What is Real Food" here's a recap...

I know "Real" food may not seem like as much fun as the sugary, chemically, DIY recipes out there on the internet.  This is why REAL Food Friday is so unique.  This is the place to share your unprocessed, gmo-free, locally grown and/or fair trade posts.

We are trying to make a difference 1 recipe at a time!
If your post includes items like *margarine, *granulated sugar, *food dye, packaged baking mixed with ingredients that you cannot pronounce (betty crocker, duncan hines, pillsbury) then it WILL be deleted.  These are garbage ingredients.  Sorry...Not real food.


Here's a great reference from Food Myths:
Do you ever think about how far the food you eat travels?  Who grew it?  Who picked it? How much in processing it's been through before you took a bite?

Real Food is:
-Supports fair farmworker wages
-GMO Free
-Little to no processing/processed ingredients
-Supports local markets/vendors and isn't transported long distances to get to my plate
-Honors fair trade principles when I buy from othr regions
-Meat and dairy should be humanely raised and on real food themselves-Not genetically engineered feed, drugs, hormones and antibiotics.

Link up your Real Food posts!  Processed and "junk food" posts will be deleted.
The party runs from Thursday at 7pm EST through Monday at Noon.

Please follow your hosts and consider adding the Real Food Friday button.

Soy-Free Pineapple Kale Smoothie

I love healthy smoothies as a meal.  One thing I don't like is tofu because of the soy.  I also a big fan of green smoothies so this recipe I found is fantastic!

Pineapple Kale Smoothie
Ingredients:
1 cup pineapple
1/2 ripe banana
1 cup kale
1 cup almond milk
2/3 cup plain yogurt or Greek yogurt (preferably non-GMO)

Directions:
In a blender, process 1 cup frozen pineapple, 1/2 ripe banana, 1 cup kale, 1 cup unsweetened almond milk and 2/3 cup nonfat plain yogurt on high until smooth, 1-3 minutes.  Optional: Add ice and blend for another 30 seconds.

Kathy Lee needs to Shut her Face

Harsh?  Maybe!  Accurate? You bet!  Have you heard or seen anything about LittleOwlCrunchyMomma?  She hasn't used "traditional" forms of shampoo for 3 years.

check out this awesome momma!

Jacquelyn Byers is a brave women.  Not only is she shunning harsh chemicals, she's willing to share with all of us!

And Kathy Lee...
Since when does "not washing your hair with chemicals" translate to "not showering?  AND...What the heck do you think people used BEFORE these major corporations came around with their chemical-laden products?

Watch this video  HERE at around 6:30 minutes.  Kathy Lee...Have you looked in the mirror lately?  You look TOXIC!  Since when does "not wanting to use chemicals" been a bad thing?  I wonder if this has something to do with ADVERTISERS for her silly little TV show...Hmmmm.

Sometimes I get really pissed.  Do you notice how Kathy Lee says "blogger" like it's a dirty word?  I get most of my REAL LIFE information from Bloggers...Kathy Lee!  This is one of the many reasons that I don't watch cable TV crap.  It's full of this sort of nonsense.  And by nonsense I mean mindless drivel from self-entitled spoiled brats who previously ran sweatshops in their spare time. 

How to make a SCOBY

SCOBY stands for Symbiotic Culture of friendly Bacteria and Yeast.  I have read different opinions  from different bloggers.  Some say not to bother growing your own SCOBY, while others say "It's so easy."

I went with Raw Dakota Kitchen: How to Grow Your Own SCOBY.  
It really was easy.
From Heather @ Raw Dakota Kitchen

How to grow a SCOBY:

1 bottle of store bought kombucha (GT Original is what I used)

2 organic tea bags (1 green, 1 black)

2 cups hot boiling water

1T organic white cane sugar**

Use really clean hands :)

I used a wide mouth quart jar to do this. Steep tea bags AND dissolve sugar in boiling water, placing all in quart jar.  Allow to steep until water is room temp or overnight, which works best.  Once cool, remove tea bags and add the entire bottle of store bought kombucha.  (Make sure it's cool; the heat can kill the SCOBY and the kombucha) Cover with a thin towel and put someplace where it won't be disturbed for about 2 -4 weeks.  I put mine on top of the fridge.  You want your SCOBY to be about 1/4 in thick before you start brewing your tea.

Heather says: **You really should use old fashion white sugar, organic if possible. White sugar is the most easily digestible for the SCOBY and it gives the highest amount of glucuronic acid, which is your goal.   Don't worry about consuming it; the SCOBY will eat it up!  

 

*I used 2 tablespoons of sugar for good measure*

My SCOBY is almost 2 weeks old at the moment.  Once I have a few free moments (maybe this weekend) I'm going to start brewing my own Kombucha.

What is Kombucha?

From Food Renegade,  "The beverage the ancient Chinese called the “Immortal Health Elixir?” It’s been around for more than 2,000 years and has a rich anecdotal history of health benefits like preventing and fighting cancer, arthritis, and other degenerative diseases. Made from sweetened tea that’s been fermented by a symbiotic colony of bacteria and yeast (a SCOBY, a.k.a. “mother” because of its ability to reproduce, or “mushroom” because of its appearance), Kombucha didn’t gain prominence in the West until recently."

The potential health benefits include: Detoxification, Joint Health, Improves digestions, Reduces inflammation and Boosts Immune system.

You can find related articles here:
http://www.fitday.com/fitness-articles/nutrition/healthy-eating/the-health-benefits-of-kombucha-tea.html

http://www.foodrenegade.com/kombucha-health-benefits/

http://www.kombuchacultures.com/kombucha_health_benefits.html

Joyce over at It's Your Life is also brewing her own Kombucha.  

Check out her SCOBY!

REAL Food Friday #21

Hello and Welcome to REAL Food Friday!

I'd like to thank all of the conscious bloggers who followed the guidelines and shared REAL FOOD recipes and posts. Thank you for sharing!
We are looking for co-hosts.  Please comment below with your URL.

We're your hosts
Joyce @ It's Your Life
Lydia @ Lydia's Flexitarian Kitchen 
me...Mary @ Back to the Basics and Mary's Kitchen 
Joining us again this week is Deborah @ Kneaded Creations 
Also, please welcome Janine @ My Lamp is Full 

<a href="http://maryshealthymeals.blogspot.com/"><img border="0" src="http://i1287.photobucket.com/albums/a627/greenmary_smith/REALFood1_zpsb7242283.jpg"/></a>  
If you're interested in co-hosting let us know! 

You can email me at mari_backtonature@yahoo.com

My Feature this week is:

Heirloom Tomato Salad from Jordan's Onion

Sweet Potato Egg Cups from On the Home Front

In case you missed "What is Real Food" here's a recap...

I know "Real" food may not seem like as much fun as the sugary, chemically, DIY recipes out there on the internet.  This is why REAL Food Friday is so unique.  This is the place to share your unprocessed, gmo-free, locally grown and/or fair trade posts.

We are trying to make a difference 1 recipe at a time!
If your post includes items like *margarine, *granulated sugar, *food dye, packaged baking mixed with ingredients that you cannot pronounce (betty crocker, duncan hines, pillsbury) then it WILL be deleted.  These are garbage ingredients.  Sorry...Not real food.


Here's a great reference from Food Myths:
Do you ever think about how far the food you eat travels?  Who grew it?  Who picked it? How much in processing it's been through before you took a bite?

Real Food is:
-Supports fair farmworker wages
-GMO Free
-Little to no processing/processed ingredients
-Supports local markets/vendors and isn't transported long distances to get to my plate
-Honors fair trade principles when I buy from othr regions
-Meat and dairy should be humanely raised and on real food themselves-Not genetically engineered feed, drugs, hormones and antibiotics.

Link up your Real Food posts!  Processed and "junk food" posts will be deleted.
The party runs from Thursday at 7pm EST through Monday at Noon.

Please follow your hosts and consider adding the Real Food Friday button.

The Not-So-Hidden Affects of Refined Sugar

This is not intended to be judgemental in any way.  I still struggle with my addition to refined sugars.  This is a place to share facts about "REAL Food" versus fake food and/or poisonous additives.

What is Refined Sugar?

From Become Healthy Now, "The completely refined white sugar product is now over 99.9% sucrose and for all practical purposes contains no nutritional elements such as vitamins, minerals, proteins or fibers. This accounts for expressions such as "empty calories" and "junk food"

According to Family Education, "Every year the typical American consumes between 120 and 150 pounds of refined sugar. ² That translates to over one-third of a pound a day, 600-plus calories of teeth-rotting, health-destroying sweetness."

Keep in mind that I'm not referring to ALL sugars.  This does not include honey or the natural sugar in fruits.  This article only pertains to "Refined Sugar."

From Global Healing Center, "Dr. Martin classified refined sugar as a poison because it has been depleted of its life forces, vitamins and minerals. "What is left consists of pure, refined carbohydrates. The body cannot utilize this refined starch and carbohydrate unless the depleted proteins, vitamins and minerals are present. Nature supplies these elements in each plant in quantities sufficient to metabolize the carbohydrate in that particular plant. There is no excess for other added carbohydrates. Incomplete carbohydrate metabolism results in the formation of 'toxic metabolite' such as pyruvic acid and abnormal sugars containing five carbon atoms. Pyruvic acid accumulates in the brain and nervous system and the abnormal sugars in the red blood cells. These toxic metabolites interfere with the respiration of the cells. They cannot get sufficient oxygen to survive and function normally. In time, some of the cells die. This interferes with the function of a part of the body and is the beginning of degenerative disease."2"

Where do you find Refined Sugar?

From barbeque sauce to worsteshire...from deli meats to pretzels...refined sugar is every where.  The obvious offenders are sodas, candies, ice cream and cakes.  Did you know that most store-bought breads contain refined sugar?  Yogurt is another repeat offender loaded with sugar.

According to Mercola.com "And now most infant formula has the sugar equivalent of one can of Coca-Cola, so babies are being metabolically poisoned from day one of taking formula.
No wonder there is an obesity epidemic in this country."

How does Refined Sugar Affect the Body?

You don't have to be a doctor or scientist to see the obesity epidemic in this country. In the US alone, 34% of adults are obese (not just overweight).  Carrying excess weight increases your risk for deadly conditions such as heart disease, kidney disease, and diabetes.
In 1893, there were fewer than three cases of diabetes per 100,000 people in the United States. Today, diabetes strikes almost 8,000 out of every 100,000 people.¹

Gaby Taubes, in a NY Times article Is Sugar Toxic?, wrote about  a lecture from Robert Lustig "Sugar: the Bitter Truth."  You can find the video on YouTube.  Gaby writes, "If Lustig is right, then our excessive consumption of sugar is the primary reason that the numbers of obese and diabetic Americans have skyrocketed in the past 30 years. But his argument implies more than that. If Lustig is right, it would mean that sugar is also the likely dietary cause of several other chronic ailments widely considered to be diseases of Western lifestyles — heart disease, hypertension and many common cancers among them."

So far we have Cancer, Hypertension, Heart Disease, Diabetes, Toxicity and Obesity.  I haven't even begun to research the effects of Refined Sugars and Children.    It drives me absolutely crazy when I hear parents talk about their ADD kids and at the same time give them SODA to wash down their ADD medicine.  Sugar cereal anyone...Ya, I'd like a little red #5, blue #3 with my High Fructose Corn Syrup thank you very much.

All kidding asside, refined sugars are killing us and killing our families.  Have you lost a loved one to diabetes?  Do you struggle with addiction or obesity?  There is way out.  At least, there is hope if you are willing to try.

I recommend the following books:








There is no "magical cure" or "perfect pill" but Where there is a Will, There is a Way.  I'd love to hear from you!

Ladies and Gentleman...It's ALIVE!!!

I am so excited.  I am in the process of making my own Kombucha.  For my first time around, I decided to make my own Scoby...I'll that later.  I'm just sharing my picture today.

Tomorrow I'll share HOW I did this, plus the health benefits of Kombucha!

REAL Food Friday #20 is LIVE!

Hello and Welcome to REAL Food Friday!

I'd like to thank all of the conscious bloggers who followed the guidelines and shared REAL FOOD recipes and posts. Thank you for sharing!
We are looking for co-hosts.  Please comment below with your URL.

We're your hosts
Joyce @ It's Your Life
Lydia @ Lydia's Flexitarian Kitchen 
me...Mary @ Back to the Basics and Mary's Kitchen 
Joining us again this week is Deborah @ Kneaded Creations 
Also, please welcome Janine @ My Lamp is Full 

<a href="http://maryshealthymeals.blogspot.com/"><img border="0" src="http://i1287.photobucket.com/albums/a627/greenmary_smith/REALFood1_zpsb7242283.jpg"/></a>  
If you're interested in co-hosting let us know! 

You can email me at mari_backtonature@yahoo.com

My Feature this week is:

12 Most Popular Posts of 2013

In case you missed "What is Real Food" here's a recap...

I know "Real" food may not seem like as much fun as the sugary, chemically, DIY recipes out there on the internet.  This is why REAL Food Friday is so unique.  This is the place to share your unprocessed, gmo-free, locally grown and/or fair trade posts.

We are trying to make a difference 1 recipe at a time!
If your post includes items like *margarine, *granulated sugar, *food dye, packaged baking mixed with ingredients that you cannot pronounce (betty crocker, duncan hines, pillsbury) then it WILL be deleted.  These are garbage ingredients.  Sorry...Not real food.


Here's a great reference from Food Myths:
Do you ever think about how far the food you eat travels?  Who grew it?  Who picked it? How much in processing it's been through before you took a bite?

Real Food is:
-Supports fair farmworker wages
-GMO Free
-Little to no processing/processed ingredients
-Supports local markets/vendors and isn't transported long distances to get to my plate
-Honors fair trade principles when I buy from othr regions
-Meat and dairy should be humanely raised and on real food themselves-Not genetically engineered feed, drugs, hormones and antibiotics.

Link up your Real Food posts!  Processed and "junk food" posts will be deleted.
The party runs from Thursday at 7pm EST through Monday at Noon.

Please follow your hosts and consider adding the Real Food Friday button.

Books on HomeBrew

A while back I wrote about making beer.  I shared a bunch of different "HomeBrew Kits" and info.  well, we still haven't had a chance to make beer.  Between the holiday craziness and Mary's Heirloom Seeds we've been a bit busy.

I'm going to check out these books so I thought I'd share a few of the MANY books out there on HomeBrewing.
*these are affiliate links so I make a small commission if you make a purchase*










**BONUS**  This one includes Kombucha!  I just started my scoby yesterday!



All of these books have been rated 4+ stars in reviews out of a possible 5.  I especially like "Beer Making Book" because it is for small-batch brews with seasonal recipe.

AND...I found a book about how to GROW your own ingredients for beer!!!

REAL Food Friday #19 - First of 2014!

Hello and Welcome to REAL Food Friday!
HAPPY NEW YEAR!  Did you enter the giveaway yet?

I'd like to thank all of the conscious bloggers who followed the guidelines and shared REAL FOOD recipes and posts. Thank you for sharing!
We are looking for co-hosts.  Please comment below with your URL.

We're your hosts
Joyce @ It's Your Life
Lydia @ Lydia's Flexitarian Kitchen 
me...Mary @ Back to the Basics and Mary's Kitchen 
Joining us again this week is Deborah @ Kneaded Creations 

<a href="http://maryshealthymeals.blogspot.com/"><img border="0" src="http://i1287.photobucket.com/albums/a627/greenmary_smith/REALFood1_zpsb7242283.jpg"/></a>  
If you're interested in co-hosting let us know! 

You can email me at mari_backtonature@yahoo.com

My Features this week are:

Mujadara from Raia's Recipes

Sourdough Pancakes from Grace and Gusto

In case you missed "What is Real Food" here's a recap...

I know "Real" food may not seem like as much fun as the sugary, chemically, DIY recipes out there on the internet.  This is why REAL Food Friday is so unique.  This is the place to share your unprocessed, gmo-free, locally grown and/or fair trade posts.

We are trying to make a difference 1 recipe at a time!
If your post includes items like *margarine, *granulated sugar, *food dye, packaged baking mixed with ingredients that you cannot pronounce (betty crocker, duncan hines, pillsbury) then it WILL be deleted.  These are garbage ingredients.  Sorry...Not real food.


Here's a great reference from Food Myths:
Do you ever think about how far the food you eat travels?  Who grew it?  Who picked it? How much in processing it's been through before you took a bite?

Real Food is:
-Supports fair farmworker wages
-GMO Free
-Little to no processing/processed ingredients
-Supports local markets/vendors and isn't transported long distances to get to my plate
-Honors fair trade principles when I buy from othr regions
-Meat and dairy should be humanely raised and on real food themselves-Not genetically engineered feed, drugs, hormones and antibiotics.

Link up your Real Food posts!  Processed and "junk food" posts will be deleted.
The party runs from Thursday at 7pm EST through Monday at Noon.

Please follow your hosts and consider adding the Real Food Friday button.