Some General Guidelines for Conscious Eating

When I asked my friend Carol for her healthified cinnamon roll recipe, she graciously said she’d give it to me.  Carol is really knowledgeable when it comes to quality, sustainable food.  She ended up giving me a lot more information than I asked for.  I was not expecting to acquire all of the wonderful morsels of knowledge from her that she gave me, and it was all so good, I really wanted to share it with you all and asked her if I could post it.   I love passionate people!  There are attractive to me.  I want to be around people who love what they are doing, believe in what they are doing (even if I don’t agree).  I do agree with my friend Carol here, though:)!  So here are all of the wonderful tidbits from Carol about the ingredients in her cinnamon rolls and more, although the information is great to know in general, not just for the Cinnamon Roll Recipe alone (she might be rolling her eyes at me now:).

Chocolate Nibs: pure chocolate heart of the roasted bean after de-shelled; 100 % chocolate fresh roasted and unprocessed is not bitter.  the flavonoids in the dark chocolate serve as antioxidants which keep your body healthy and young and also act as a natural blood pressure relaxant. I am not talking about chocolate that is under 70 % then I think the sugars & processing negative factors outweigh the positive chocolate effect.

Cinnamon: it regulates blood sugar and lowers the bad (LDL) cholesterol

Eggs: the fresher the better for baking; try for a local friends back yard if possible

Honey: you want to buy local raw honey as it carries the immune stimulating properties that support your personal environment

Meat: try to buy Heirloom and grass fed….. i.e. food that has not been genetically modified….. ( avoid GMO) Grass fed meat is not the same as grass fed meat on properly managed land. Read about it at http://www.klesickfamilyfarm.com/main/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/Beef-Intro-Letter.pdf Be sure to read the part about where grass fed beef has omega 3’s and 9’s…. the same amount as a farm-raised salmon. Grocery store, grain finished meat has no omegas.

Olive Oil: you can use vegetable oil but olive oil is better for you and sooooo much more flavorful. This comment was made in the context of bread dough.

Organic: buy organic & local whenever you can. Find a CSA close to you and support them. In the end you are supporting yourself and your world.

Produce: try to buy Heirloom….. i.e. food that has not been genetically modified….. (avoid GMO)

Walnuts: good for your heart and full of omega 3’s

Wheat: you can grind your own fresh wheat berries. (I used organic white wheat) to be very fine; ( though more coarsely ground stone ground wheat is often considered better than finely ground) you can combine wheat and white for a lighter dough if you don’t grind your own grain. Fresh ground ( and used) grains have more enzymes , vitamin E, and Lipoprotein than their bag stored cousins. Find someone with a grain mill and consider what you have to trade.

Read more about fresh group and whole wheat at : http://www.livestrong.com/article/477291-what-are-the-benefits-of-fresh-ground-wheat/#ixzz1mnKxPYcO

Yeast: I use quick rise and am unaware of the differences.  Stick it in the freezer; no matter what the books say this does not kill yeast (at least it hasn’t killed mine).

Here is uneducated thought about buying local. Buying local honey that is created in the environment where you eat it offers protective immunity.  Local eggs created in the back yard of your neighbor is preferable to mass produced grocery store eggs.  The obvious benefit is presumed freshness, but another very real benefit is that little pollution was created in the process of picking them up plus the way the chickens are managed is human and non crowded.  If you want to see how chicken want to live, watch http://vimeo.com/13210456 this is family friendly film.  If you want to see what the less fortunate chickens, the ones that produce 98% of the world’s eggs, watch the DVD “Food Inc.”.  Parents are recommended to watch this first and decide if your kids can understand this movie.

The more local sustainable food you buy, the fresher your food is, the healthier your economy is, the richer your air is, the less likely your produce will have been picked by an exploited adult or child worker.

Try to buy organic.  We have no idea what is in our food.  Fresh organic food has nothing toxic in it, and once you have tasted the difference you will know why.  If you can’t by 100% organic, avoid the dirty dozen.  Read about the dirty dozen here: http://www.thedailygreen.com/healthy-eating/eat-safe/dirty-dozen-foods#fbIndex2.

Finally the following website is a popular local CSA (Community Supported Agriculture).  You can read his one page short description of local organic farming here. Thanks so much Carol for your insight.  We (the Sarrs) are not 100% organic.  In fact we might be 10% organic.  We are traveling down this road though.  Are any of you going organic?  Or with just certain products?  After watching Food Inc. for the 4th time, I have now started consciously making a decision to buy AT LEAST one portion of organic produce every week.  It’s not all about getting the LOWEST prices; it’s about honoring the temple of the Holy Spirit that God has graciously given us to be stewards over.  May we be found faithful.

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Sonja

Go here for Carol’s Cinnamon Roll Recipe.

Shared @ Frugal Days, Sustainable Ways.