Halloween & Pumpkin Seeds

It was pumpkin carving day at our house today!

The boys were up to their elbows in guts but the hard work paid off as we enjoyed the glow from our jack-o-lanterns!


Afterwards, I rinsed the seeds we saved, tossed them with olive oil, salt, and spices and turned them into yummy, crunchy goodness!

Toasted Pumpkin Seeds
Start with about 3 cups rinsed, well-drained pumpkin seeds. Preheat your oven to 350 then spread seeds on a baking sheet, drizzle with olive oil, and season with generous amounts of your favorite seasonings (I used kosher salt, pepper, onion powder, granulated garlic, cumin, coriander, and a small amount of cayenne pepper).


Toss to coat. Bake at 350 for 30-40 minutes, scraping and mixing seeds every 10 minutes, until seeds are beginning to brown, smell toasty, and just begin to pop. Scrape up any stuck seeds and spread to cool.


Store at room temperature in an airtight container for up to a week or so...if they last that long! As Little C says, "these are so AWESOME!"

And they just might be the perfect snack for this time of year; pumpkin seeds are great source of zinc which boosts your immune system! (For more health benefits of pumpkin and more pumpkin recipes, check out last year's Hey Punkin' and I Love Pumpkins posts.)

Save the Tatas!!

October is Breast Cancer Awareness month so I felt it would be timely to post about dietary considerations for breast cancer prevention. Are there specific nutrients and foods we should be consuming to take better care of our tatas? Certain regional diets show protection or increased risk of developing breast cancer: Traditional Oriental diets are associated with a very low risk, Mediterranean diets with an intermediate risk, and Western diets with a very high risk. So what are people eating (or not eating) that is affecting their risk of developing breast cancer? Research surrounding nutrition and breast cancer wants to focus on specific isolated factors in foods that may protect against breast cancer development. As Steve Austin, ND puts it in the book Breast Cancer: What You Should Know (But May Not Be Told) About Prevention, Diagnosis, and Treatment:

Researchers are now trying to prove that broccoli protects against cancer because of its sulforaphane content. But others say it must be the beta-carotene. Some feel the high level of vitamin C in broccoli may be responsible. Glucaric acid in broccoli has its advocates too, as does indole-3-carbinol. Who knows? It could be the fiber. Researchers are keeping busy looking for the magic bullet when they already have a veritable assault rifle to use against cancer. Attempts to attribute its effects to any on ingredient miss the boat; such efforts don't necessarily even constitute good science. Perhaps it just doesn't sound intellectual enough to say "Eat broccoli—it's good for you," though that may well be what we need to hear.

Cruciferous Veggies
like broccoli, cabbage, and Brussels sprouts protect against cancer. There are many compounds in cruciferous veggies that have mechanisms of action that protect against breast cancer. Indole-3-carbinol (I3C) deactivates estrogen (and increased life time exposure to estrogen is linked to increased risk of breast cancer). Isothiocyanates, such as sulforaphane found in broccoli, increase the activity of enzymes that detoxify cancer-causing agents. Glucaric acid found in broccoli interferes with mammary cancer in rats, most likely due to its ability to promote the body's ability to excrete cancer-causing chemicals. (Other foods high in glucaric acid include oranges, carrots, spinach, and apples.)

Fiber in whole grains, fruits, veggies, legumes, nuts & seeds helps prevent the reactivation of estrogen by gut bacteria and reabsorption by the body. Lignans, a specific type of fiber found in the highest concentration in flaxseed, interfere with estrogen activity. Adding 2 tablespoons of freshly-ground flaxseeds to your daily diet is a simple thing you can do to increase your daily fiber consumption and protect against breast cancer.

Soybeans contain numerous compounds that protect against breast cancer. Genistein, a phytoestrogen, interferes with the formation of new blood vessels—it can cut off the blood supply to cancerous tumors. Phytoestrogens (found in all plants) bind to estrogen receptors in the body in the place of estrogen, effectively blocking estrogen and encouraging its excretion. There are some problems with soy—it has become very prevalent in our diets, it is highly allergenic and difficult to digest, and is typically genetically modified. (I will explore soy more in-depth in a future post!)

Fat, if we eat too much and the wrong type, can increase our risk of breast cancer. Research often shows mixed results, but looking carefully at the data shows us that in cultures where less than 20% of calories come from fat breast cancer incidence is lower than in cultures where greater than 20% of calories come from fat. Rates of breast cancer are even greater in cultures where 35-40+% of calories come from fat. The Nurse's Health Study reported no relationship between dietary fat and breast cancer, but these results are misleading – none of the participants were categorized into the <20% range that seems to be protective when you look at cross-cultural data. Fish and olive oils are cancer protective—their higher levels of omega-3 fatty acids reduce inflammation. Being obese increases your risk of breast cancer because the body stores estrogen in fat.

Eat Organic!
Pesticide residues collect in fatty tissues, like the breast and many have estrogenic effects. "According to the [EPA]'s own data, at least 67 currently used pesticides cause cancer in animals." If you are not vegetarian, it is especially important to eat organic animal products because pesticides in feed and hormones used in raising commercial meat are stored in the fat of the animals in high concentrations. See my previous posts about milk and beef for more information. Certain foods fruits and veggies are more important to eat organic than others—basically, the thinner the skin, the more pesticide residue. For more detailed info, check out the Environmental Working Group's 2011 Shopping guide for the "dirty dozen" and "clean fifteen."

This post is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to eating well for cancer prevention. For more detailed information, I highly recommend the book How to Prevent and Treat Cancer with Natural Medicine by Michael Murray. I'll end with another quote by Steve Austin, ND that sums things up nicely, "Vegetables, fruit, and fish provide protection. Beans, whole grains, nonfat yogurt, and olive oil are fine. Other nonfat dairy products are okay in moderation. But most of the rest of the American diet is linked with trouble."

Yours in health,
Dr. Crystal

...and Schnitzel with Noodles!

I loved Chef Brett's post about her favorite things (and I totally have baker's envy for that beater blade)! It inspired me to post about my favorite kitchen gadgets too--and while they don't involve schnitzel, they kind of have something to do with noodles...

I love my small-volume liquid measuring cup. I use this whenever I am making dressings or marinades from a recipe and any other time I need to measure any liquid volume in teaspoons, tablespoons, or less than 2 ounces.

My girlfriends bought me my microplane grater for my birthday years ago and I use it any time I need to zest citrus or grate chocolate. Sometimes I'll use it for garlic or fresh ginger when making soup or stirfry.

Chef Brett introduced me to this favorite: a digital probe thermometer. I use it to make this:




Lime-honey-blackberry glazed pork tenderloin... And any other meat I'm roasting or grilling (like Earl Grey and Lemon-Brined BBQ'd Thanksgiving Turkey)! It has pre-set temps for various meats and levels of doneness and you can also set it for any temp you need. This is indispensable in my kitchen--I use it at least weekly.




For years I wanted a mandonline slicer and I finally bought myself this $40 version last year. I was never sure if I would use it enough to justify the storage space, but the answer is a definite yes! This inexpensive one works fine, but I fantasize about this one made by Kai... Drool...

I told you there would be noodles--my favorite use for this tool is to make this:




Zucchini "noodles" sauteed in butter and olive oil with garlic, onions, chicken, Parmesan, and herbs. So tasty! It is also great for making my latest favorite indulgence: three cheese scalloped potatoes. There really is nothing healthy about this dish but it is amazingly delicious and I reserve it for that 10% of the time when I don't worry about what I'm eating (since I try to make healthier choices 90% of the time).





Speaking of unhealthy choices, I use this favorite gadget--my immersion blender--to make this:





BACON JAM!! Chef Brett and I made this recipe together last month and it's phenomenal! Again, so not healthy but it feeds the foodie's soul so that's healthy in a whole other way, right? I also use my immersion blender to make salsa, peanut sauce, soups--any time the recipe says "transfer to blender" I get to skip that step (as well as the blender lid and hot food flying all over the kitchen) thanks to this wonderful thing. It even has a mini food processor attachment that's great for chopping nuts, herbs, garlic and ginger paste...

So, those are a few of my favorite things--what are yours?

Dr. Crystal

Pickled Beets

I learned this year that I love pickled beets on a tuna fish sandwich! My mom used to make pickled beets and, as a child, I thought they were gross. Isn't it wonderful how our tastes evolve? That's why we have a rule at our house that you have to try everything on your plates. I never make my kids eat something they really don't like, but they have to at least taste it--it's a pleasant surprise to all of us when they realize they like something they thought they didn't. They don't like pickled beets much yet, but who knows, they might change their minds!

Start with 2 dozen small beets, tops trimmed off, leaving an inch or so of stems and the roots on, scrubbed well. Simmer, covered, until fork tender. Reserve 1 cup of cooking liquid, drain beets, and spread on a cookie sheet to cool enough to peel.





I found that wearing rubber dishwashing gloves worked perfectly for peeling--the textured grips made peeling a snap and my hands didn't turn pink!

Peel then slice into 1/4 inch slices--you may want to halve them if you prefer smaller pieces. Return to the pan along with:

3 medium onions, sliced into 1/4 inch slices
1 cinnamon stick
6 whole cloves
1 cup reserved beet cooking liquid
2 cups apple cider vinegar
1 1/4 cups sugar
2 tbsp salt






Bring to a simmer, simmer 5 minutes, remove cinnamon stick, and keep simmering while you pack into hot, sterile jars. Fill jars to within 1/2 inch of the top. Process in a boiling water bath for 10 min. (For more information about how to can, I found this nice description plus pictures at canningbasics.com.)






This recipe should make about 4 pints.

Now you have pickled beet yumminess to get you through the winter--and they are so pretty too, thanks to all those wonderful antioxidant anthocyanidins!!

Yours in health,
Dr. Crystal

A few of my favorite things

Today was my 3 year old son's first day of preschool! While I was feeling nervous and apprehensive about preschool starting he was all ready to go the minute he got up this morning. We had a little preschool monster on our hands in fact, "Let's go to preschool now!" he demanded. In response I pointed out he didn't have any underwear on and they weren't open yet so it wasn't the most opportune time to go. After getting a lunch packed and the appropriate clothes on we headed out to preschool with Led Zeppelin as our companion. It was a quick and successful drop off with big kisses and hugs and I waited till I was a few blocks away to shed my tears. As nervous as I was for him and overwhelmed with "holy moly my kid is growing up" feelings myself this moment is one of my favorites.

Another thing to top my favorites list is baking. This week while waiting for preschool to start my son and I had a few extra days together so one day we decided to bake some cookies. My favorite chocolate chip cookie recipe is none other than the Nestle Toll House recipe. As we were gathering ingredients I discovered that the bag of chocolate chips I had purchased a few weeks before had two thirds fewer chips in it than when I bought it. Hmmmm… I sense some taste testing went on without my knowledge. So instead of scrapping the plan I found another one of my favorite items, Trader Joes roasted almonds, with 50% less salt. I don't pay particular attention to my sodium intake, I just really like these almonds and find that they are just salty enough. Since I was going to need chopped almonds I got out one of my favorite kitchen tools, an antique nut chopper that my Mother-In-Law gave me. This tool is easy to use and clean and safe (with supervision) for the little ones to use. We added about a cup of the chopped almonds along with a third of a bag of chocolate chips.

My newest favorite kitchen tool is the BeaterBlade for the Kitchen Aid mixer. It scrapes as it mixes and makes the cooking making process a breeze.

Next we scooped the cookies which brings me to the last favorite on my list today – the cookie scooper. When I worked in commercial bakeries we used large cookie scoopers to make giant cookies, it has only been in the last few years that the general public has known the wonders of the scooper. One Christmas I was lucky enough to receive two of these cookies scoopers (thank you sister and sister-in-law) – so now when I scoop cookies my 3 year old helper can scoop too. It is a fast and easy process that requires little coordination.

My real favorite thing in my memory was baking cookies with my wee one. This week has taught me that they grow up fast and I want to try to remember every moment of snuggling and baking I can.

A Spaghetti First

So, this may seem hard to believe, but tonight I made spaghetti sauce from scratch for the first time. Now that I've done it—and it was so yummy—I don't know why I didn't do it sooner! I'm in the 3^rd phase of a diet (in which I've lost 15.5 pounds in 26 days, yay me!) where I am avoiding all starches and sugars. Most readily-available jarred spaghetti sauces have added sugar so I decided to have a go at making it from scratch. I referenced two recipes—one from the June 2011 Bon Appetit and another I watched on an old episode of Rachael Ray's 30 Minute Meals—but I really kind of made it up as I went along. Since I can't eat pasta yet, I ate mine over roasted spaghetti squash. My whole family loved it, so I think I'll likely be making my own sauce for spaghetti night around here from now on!

Simple Scratch Spaghetti Sauce

2 Tbsp fat—I used 1 Tbsp rendered bacon fat and 1 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 medium sweet onion, minced
5 cloves garlic, minced
1 pound sweet Italian sausage (I used Johnsonville all natural)
dash hot pepper flakes, ground fine (optional)
½ cup good quality red wine
1 – 28oz can crushed Italian style tomatoes, preferably organic
1 – 14.5oz can diced or petite cut tomatoes, preferably organic (I used S&W with sweet onions and roasted garlic—not organic, but yummy)
½ - 1 tsp kosher salt
1/3 c beef stock (I used homemade that I had frozen into ice cubes)
8 drops alcohol-free stevia extract (you could use 1 tsp of sugar or honey or natural sweetener of your choice, or omit altogether)
1 Tbsp minced fresh basil (or 1 tsp dried)
1 Tbsp minced fresh oregano (or 1 tsp dried)

Heat fat in a heavy, deep pan over medium heat until it shimmers. Add onions and cook until soft and starting to caramelize, about 12-15 minutes. Add garlic, pepper flakes, and Italian sausage, breaking up sausage into small pieces with a spoon. Cook, stirring frequently, until sausage is thoroughly browned. Drain off most of the fat by scraping the sausage and onion to one side of the pan and using a spoon or paper towel to remove the bulk of the fat. Add wine and let cook until mostly evaporated, about 3-5 minutes. Add tomatoes, salt, beef stock, stevia, and herbs and simmer for 30 minutes to allow flavors to combine. Adjust salt and seasonings as desired. Serve over al dente pasta or spaghetti squash seasoned with salt and pepper, top with freshly grated parmesan cheese if desired, and enjoy!

Coffee! Coffee! Coffee!

I love coffee, the smell, the flavor, the ritual, either at home or in a coffee shop, the feeling I have after one cup. The problem is that my body doesn't like the 2^nd or 3^rd cup and sometimes even has issues with that 1^st cup. So just like Dr. Crystal I have a love/hate relationship with coffee. My dad has always, in my memory, been a coffee drinker. I remember at Christmas time we had to wait till dad made coffee to open presents, although we could open our stockings while we waited. I had a few cups of coffee while in high school; I always drank it black because it was easier than trying to figure out the "right" way to drink it. When I got to college I discovered the mocha, then the latte, but it was still just an occasional drink, I was just as happy with a cup of black tea. That lasted until I had a kid. Now I feel I need coffee every morning and I couldn't possibly get through my day without 3 cups with half & half. My body takes issue with both the coffee and the half & half but alas I am not ready to shake the habit yet. Not sure what I am waiting for but I want to do it. I would like to occasionally get a latte or a good high quality cup of coffee from one of my favorite Portland coffee shops, Speedboat Coffee or Case Study Coffee, and truly enjoy the experience, rather than cheapening my experience by drinking Costco coffee every morning from our hand-me-down coffee pot that lived in our basement for years. Soon I say! Soon I will do it, I will kick the habit and my body will thank me.

 

As for a recipe in regards to coffee was going to tell you how to brew the perfect cup of coffee at home, instead I am going to refer you the Stumptown Coffee Roasters website. They are known in Portland for producing high quality beans and high quality coffee drinks. (This is where the aforementioned coffee shops get their beans too).

Enjoy!

 

Coffee cake recipe to follow soon!