Herbs and spices

some of the smartest foods we know!

Herbs and spices are what make ordinary dishes into extraordinary dishes.  Thankfully they are all alkaline.  Eat as much as you want and add plenty when cooking.  There are many ways to use the stems and seeds of herbs that generally are picked for their leafy parts.  Throw them into a freezer bag instead of your trash bag.  Punch up the alkalinity (and flavor) of any finished dish by sprinkling with flat leaf parsley, cilantro or chili flakes, basil leaf, ground ginger, cumin, crushed black pepper or cinnamon.   

Herbs are the leafy part of aromatics, like the leaves of parsley and sage, and can be eaten cooked or raw although some, like sage and rosemary are not as appetizing eaten uncooked because of the texture.  Since heat brings out the aroma of any ingredient, cooking them, even a fast toss in a dry sauté pan increases the intensity of the flavor.  Bruising has a similar effect.  Smell a whole basil leaf then bruise it either by rubbing it between two fingers, tearing it or cutting it then smell again---much stronger aroma, right?

Cooked herbs add the tantalizing aroma and therefore the perceived taste which you will smell long before your eyes ever see the finished plate.  There are two ways to cook herbs in a dish.  You can either start out with them in the bottom of the pan, heated in oil to which you will add the other ingredients and cook for a long time, or you can add them in at the end of the cooking time to give an extra boost of flavor.  Some work best one way, some the other.

For example, start out a fresh tomato sauce with a whole sprig of rosemary heated in oil in the bottom of the pan.  When the aroma is strong, it is time to add the tomatoes.  Rosemary needles and stalk need time to melt, releasing the perfumed oils of the plant.  The needles will fall from the stalk which you can remove later.  The longer it stays in the sauce, the stronger the flavor in the sauce.  Basil on the other hand, should be cut or torn and tossed in at the end.  Basil is delicate and its aroma weakens the longer it is cooked. 

Experience and experimentation will give you the know-how with herbs.  But, for now you can use the following rule for best results---the more delicate the leaf, the shorter the cooking time, the more dense the leaf the longer the cooking time.  That means mint, basil, parsley, dill, cilantro, and chives which have delicate leaves can be used raw or at the end of the cooking process.  Their stalks, like parsley stems, which are woody rather than delicate, can be used in soups and stews with a long cooking time.

Sage, oregano, tarragon, thyme, rosemary and bay all have tougher leaves, and therefore should be heated in oil at the beginning, or placed inside the turkey, on top of the lamb, on the bottom of the roasting pan, or in the Dutch oven with the sauce, for example, and cooked for a long time.  Their stalks can be used as well along with the leaves in the cooking time, but removed before serving.  Bay leaves should also be removed as they do not break down or soften during the cooking process even if boiled in a stock or sauce.

A lot of chefs I know prefer using dried herbs to fresh   If you are using dried herbs, you will use less than the fresh so a little goes a long way.  Take parsley for instance, a teaspoon of dried parsley flakes is denser and therefore stronger in flavor than a teaspoon of minced fresh parsley.  Rubbed sage is more intense than fresh chopped, and dried oregano more than fresh picked.  As for cooking time, I think all dried herbs should go in at the beginning.  From the point of view of flavor, dried is a satisfactory substitute, but eating anti aging gastronomy is about eating smart.  The only smart thing to do is to use fresh herbs and a lot of them.

Buon Appetito e Buona Salute, Chef AngelaB

P.S.  My current book EAT SMART, AMERICA, AN ANTI-AGING DIET PRIMER  $ 2.99 is available now for Kindle on Amazon 

http://www.amazon.com/Smart-America-anti-aging-primer-ebook/dp/B008H76MAK/ref=sr_1_5?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1341433257&sr=1-5&keywords=eat+smart%2C+america

and  for NOOK  at Barnes & Noble

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/s/angela-bell?keyword=angela+bell&store=ebook

It’s just another tax, Mr. Bloomberg!

To ban or not to ban sugar drinks of a large size is all over the news and on the social networks with both sides having their say.  Americans are raised on sugar starting with baby formula, then refined grain products in the form of sandwich bread and pasta, followed by prepackaged foods with more sugar, more refined grains and high fructose corn syrup, energy drinks, sweetened fruit juices, baked goods, pizza, sweet tea and soda.  Banning large size soda isn’t going to put a dent in America’s love affair with sugar.

But, I think both sides are missing the point---by arguing the merits of its effect on obesity they are missing the bigger, more dire picture.  The debate should not be over the benefits of the ban, the debate should be over legality, the constitutionality of the ban itself.  As my brave, Scottish immigrant mother would say if she were still alive today,  it’s gall some people have, to do what they think is best for me.  It’s I alone who will do that and no one else.   That intervention, or should I say intrusion, has to stop somewhere and I say, stop it here!  Send elected government officials and the misguided members of the Supreme Court a clear message.    As a citizen of the republic of the United States, it is I, and I alone, who will make the decisions as to how I spend my hard earned income in the consumer market.  You will not force me to buy health insurance, you will not limit my food choices by telling me what is good or bad for me based on the standards of other government regulators, nor will you force me in the future to buy an American made automobile, or U.S. grain fed beef or prohibit me from the purchase of table salt. 

Although I am a strong advocate of ridding America of all added sugar, my position is this.  There is nothing more important to the sustainability of life than the food we feed ourselves.  NO ONE should make that choice for us.  If we allow this ban to take effect, what’s next, and next and next?  At some point, we may find ourselves shopping at the Agway for human food right between the dog chow and bird seed.  And, by the way, Mr. Bloomberg, why don’t you call the related penalty what it really is, according to the Supreme Court---a tax!

Buon Appetito e Buona Salute, Chef AngelaB

P.S.  My current book EAT SMART, AMERICA, AN ANTI-AGING DIET PRIMER  $ 2.99 is available now for Kindle on Amazon 

http://www.amazon.com/Smart-America-anti-aging-primer-ebook/dp/B008H76MAK/ref=sr_1_5?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1341433257&sr=1-5&keywords=eat+smart%2C+america

and  for NOOK  at Barnes & Noble

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/s/angela-bell?keyword=angela+bell&store=ebook

What makes you fat?

I recently heard a popular cooking network star proclaim with gusto during her segment in which she was demonstrating how to make a vegetarian stew from chick peas, not to worry about the amount of carbs in the dish.  “It’s a myth,” she said, “that carbs make you fat.  Carbs don’t make you fat,” she yelled with conviction as she pointed a bejeweled finger into the camera, “fat makes you fat, you nerds.”  Wrong---if only it were that simple.

People watching their diet often cut down on dietary fat in order to lose body fat.  After all, it was long believed that obesity and other chronic diseases associated with obesity were the result of eating too much fat.  For decades the medical community as well as the USDA recommended a low fat diet in order to lose weight and reduce risk of obesity and heart disease.  In previous posts I explained the reasons for avoiding bad sugar and bad flour, two carbohydrates that do, in fact, make you fat, now let’s talk about dietary fat.  We need fat in our diet.  Our bodies need it as a source of energy, to process the fat soluble vitamins A,D,E, and K, and as the source of essential fatty acids, important for the normal function of certain glands, metabolic functions, growth and reproduction.

Not All Fats Are Equal

 There are three types of fat.  Two are bad fats.  They are fats that raise cholesterol and can therefore increase the risk for heart disease.  The two bad fats are saturated and trans fats.  Saturated fats are in foods that are often referred to as fatty meats like bacon, salt pork, sausage, short ribs, steak with marbling and the skin of poultry, and in lesser amounts in lean meats and poultry.  But it is also in dairy products such as cheese, ice cream and sour cream and certain oils like palm and coconut oil, although it is uncertain at this time as to whether or not saturated fats from dairy products have the same effect as saturated fats from meat and poultry.  All animal protein and dairy contain some saturated fats and coincidentally, all animal protein and dairy are highly acid producing in the body as well.  Which means, once you start eating good food, that which is alkaline producing, you will avoid these bad foods altogether or at least reduce the portion size to a minimum.  For those of you new to this blog, by good food I mean a diet of 60% (minimum) of alkaline producing foods on each and every plate. 

Trans fat, the second bad fat, is manufactured by hydrogenating liquid oil into a solid fat.  Trans fats are identified as such on food labels, but only if the amount exceeds a minimum of .5 grams so you must read the ingredients list on all packaged foods and look for the term hydrogenated oil or partially hydrogenated oil.  Foods most likely to contain trans fats are snack foods, baked goods and butter substitutes.  And again, since these foods are all highly acid producing, once you start eating good food, these too will be avoided. 

The third type of fat is the good fat---unsaturated fat of which there are three:  monounsaturated, polyunsaturated and omega-3.  Nuts and seeds, oils made from nuts and seeds and avocados are good sources of monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats.  Omega-3 fatty acids are found in many species of fish such as salmon, sardines, herring and mackerel and in soybean products, walnuts, flaxseed and canola oil.  Since most people don’t  eat fish species that are rich in omega-3, or soy products or flaxseed, that leaves canola oil which is the oil I recommend for all cooking applications not just for the omega-3 fatty acid, but also because it has no flavor and therefore does not interfere with the flavors from seasonings and other ingredients.  For those of you who don’t eat fish, there are of course omega-3 over the counter nutritional supplements available.  Omega-3 is beneficial in keeping arteries free of plaque. 

Now, I think you can see why I say that the cooking network star is wrong about fats making you fat.  They may indeed contribute to a heart attack, but make you fat?  No!  Bad sugar and bad flour, two carbohydrates, make you fat.  Now that you “nerds” know that some fats are good and some fats are bad, how do you avoid the bad and enjoy the good?  Look at it this way, avoid fatty animal proteins, high fat dairy and hydrogenated oil, and the next time you want to snack, grab a few nuts or seeds.  As for the fish?  Well, there is a pill for everything. 

 Buon Appetito e Buona Salute, Chef AngelaB

P.S.  My current book EAT SMART, AMERICA, AN ANTI-AGING DIET PRIMER  $ 2.99 is available now for Kindle on Amazon 

http://www.amazon.com/Smart-America-anti-aging-primer-ebook/dp/B008H76MAK/ref=sr_1_5?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1341433257&sr=1-5&keywords=eat+smart%2C+america

and  for NOOK  at Barnes & Noble

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/s/angela-bell?keyword=angela+bell&store=ebook

               

Reader Beware--- of WWW.com

The world wide web is a wonderful source of information, even more so than going to a reference library in any major city.  However, there is no such thing as modern day internet information police, no one to say, whoa, if you break the law by publishing untruths as fact, you go to jail.  No, in this amazing America, we have the freedom to do just that, publish untruths, that is.  For that reason, it is reader beware.  

I was recently disappointed by a site that generally gives good advice regarding nutrition, when I read an article that argued the merits of dining on foods made with enriched all purpose white flour.  The article argued that using the enriched flour would give you the important b vitamins (stripped out with the fiber then added back in) that you might otherwise be missing from your diet. 

What it did not mention was that eating foods made from refined flour (enriched or not) which has no fiber to slow the digestive process, has an immediate effect on blood sugar level.  Because there is no fiber to slow down the release of sugar, the body responds to the spike in sugar by releasing insulin.  The insulin secreted by the pancreas does its job, reducing the blood sugar level which then causes a tired feeling and makes the person crave more sugar.  Eventually the cycle results in overload to the pancreas, weight gain, obesity and diabetes.  The more refined the carbohydrate, the faster the release of sugar and insulin, the higher and lower the peaks and valleys of energy and mood. 

So telling the reader it is okay to eat white flour because it will provide beneficial b vitamins is like telling someone it is okay to eat Pufferfish (the second most poisonous vertebrate in the world) because it is one of the best sources of omega 3 that you might otherwise be lacking in your diet.  Your autopsy will show you died of tetrodotoxin poisoning, but that you had excellent levels of omega 3. 

Still more untruths from well known sites:

Non-sugar sweeteners may help control weight and blood sugar by reducing caloric intake

This assumes the calorie in calorie out basis of weight control is valid.  It is not.  Furthermore, artificial sweeteners are highly acid forming in the body.  The best way to control blood sugar is to eliminate all added sugar, refined grains and avoid acid producing foods including artificial sweeteners except for Stevia which has been shown to be alkaline producing. 

Tart cherries have the highest anti-inflammatory content of any food

This article stated that according to researchers, cherries may help individuals suffering from osteoarthritis manage their disease.  But, tart cherries are NOT the highest anti-inflammatory food.  Cucumbers have ten times the anti-inflammatory content.  Researchers arrived at their conclusions based on a study of 20 women---20 subjects!  Really?  Scientific study?  And this was allowed to be presented at a medical conference.

Fat makes you fat

This statement was from a popular food network star and later reprinted on the corresponding website.  True that excess intake of saturated animal fat is nutritionally bad, BUT the fat known as omega 3 is GOOD.  Grains, sugar and refined flour make you fat, not fat!

Low Vitamin B6 Linked to Inflammation

In this study, researchers looked at 2,229 adults.  That is not bad!  However, the only vitamin looked at was B6.  If B6 was low, you can bet that there were other B vitamins equally low since B vitamins are never all alone in their food sources.  And maybe they should have looked at each vitamin and mineral to rule them out as possible links to inflammation.  The fact is that inflammation is the result of a diet of acid producing foods.  Food is linked to inflammation!  The only conclusion I draw from this study is that the researchers took a giant leap of faith.

One of the many ways in which I earn a living is writing.  I recently began writing articles, op-eds and blogs for businesses who sell articles to their customers who have websites covering the whole spectrum of topics that one finds on the world wide web.  I, as most content writers do, subscribe to writing job boards and obtain writing assignments through a bidding process.  Personally, I never bid on a job unless the subject is one in which I have some level of expertise, such as food, or based on personal experience, such as my personal health and wellness.  Being part of the process has provided me with knowledge of how the articles come to be on those sites, and furthermore, explains why so many of them are misleading and unreliable, not to mention inaccurate.    

Without naming names, the process goes like this.  A writing service, Words and More Words (fictional name) contracts with the website owner of ABC Financial Services (also fictional name) to provide 5 articles per week on any subject of interest to its readers, with a length of 500 to 700 words each.  Words and More Words advertises for a writer on a job board who can write in good English, the only qualification.  The advertisement asks the writer to bid for 5 articles with 2 rewrites of each for a total of 15.  There is no specific topic mentioned.  The writers bid.  Lowest bid (usually from outside the U.S. where they can afford to charge much less) gets the job. 

Does it matter to Words and More Words that the subject matter was not specified?  No.  Does it matter to the writer?  No.  Why?  Because everything the writer needs to know is already written on the web.  The writer simply searches to find information for the article, writes it, rewrites it 2 different ways and submits 15 finished articles to Words and More Words.  The writing service then submits 5 of them to ABC Financial for posting to their website. The other ten are sold to various other customers or to another provider of content who maintains a database of rewritten articles for sale.  And the same misinformation that was already on the web spreads like a rampant virus.  No one is an expert on everything and few are experts at some things, but web content providers have their own version of a don't ask, don't tell policy and just don't care.

  The conclusion is this.  As my logic professor of many years ago often said to me and my equally naïve classmates, “question authority”.  By that he did not mean just government, church, or parental.  By that he meant, consider the source of information.   Question the authority of the writer, the expertise, the veracity, the reliability, the source! Reader Beware!  

Buon Appetito e Buona Salute, Chef AngelaB

P.S.  My current book EAT SMART, AMERICA, AN ANTI-AGING DIET PRIMER  $ 2.99 is available now for Kindle on Amazon 

http://www.amazon.com/Smart-America-anti-aging-primer-ebook/dp/B008H76MAK/ref=sr_1_5?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1341433257&sr=1-5&keywords=eat+smart%2C+america

and  for NOOK  at Barnes & Noble

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/s/angela-bell?keyword=angela+bell&store=ebook

                

Game meats

Eating an anti-aging diet of at least 60% alkaline producing food to 40% acid producing can sometimes be a daunting task.  It helps if you know how to cook.  For those of you who don’t, I recommend you buy my first book, volume one of the Cooking Skills for Life series,  As Good As It Gets.  If you can’t cook from scratch you will be dependent on prepared and processed foods, most of which are acid forming due to high fructose corn syrup, table salt, sugar and refined grains that are in most manufactured packaged foods. 

Since all animal protein and grains are acid producing, it makes it difficult for those of us who are used to eating meals based on them as the center of the plate ingredients, to satisfy our need to eat what we were served when growing up.  Well, we don’t have to give them up and become vegetarians.  We just need to eat fewer and smarter.  Most of us eat far too much protein anyway.  So, it just means instead of an 8 or 12 ounce potion of steak, cut it down to 4 or 5 ounces and load up on a variety of vegetables and alkaline sauces you can make to accompany it like salsa verde, tomato salsa fresca, sauces made from chilis, herbs and fruits like blueberries, figs, lemons and cherries.  There is another way as well, and that is to choose animal protein wisely.  Not all meat is equal.  One of the less acidic varieties is game meats. 

These animals are considered hunting animals, and forage or graze for their food.  Having lived in Maine for 25 years, I am familiar with the meat of the deer and moose, and have on occasion tried bison.  They are all leaner than the traditional meat cuts of beef, lamb and pork.  All three make an excellent chili when cooked in an acid like tomatoes and wine, paired with chili peppers and cooked using a long, slow stewing method.  Rabbit was one of my favorite dishes when growing up, and ever since culinary school I have had a love affair with duck, but I am unfamiliar with the likes of ostrich, elk, alligator, kangaroo and yak.  Although less acidic producing than beef or pork, game meats are still nonetheless on the acid producing side and therefore, like all of the other animal proteins, should be eaten in a portion size equal to the size of your fist, or smaller if you have a fist like mine, and should never equal more than 40% of the plate, even less if grains are included.  And as always, cook and pair the animal protein with as many alkaline forming ingredients as possible.  Here I use chilis, sour cherries, herbs and shitake mushrooms to boost the alkalinity and pair the venison with a plateful of garlic sautéed broccoli rabe and a side of great northern white beans and caramelized onion.

Eat smart, America!

 Chocolate, chili, cherry venison

Yield  :   4 servings          

Preparation Time :  45 minutes 

Cooking Time:  20 minutes

Ingredients

1 1 to 1- 1/2-pound venison loin, cut in two to four equal pieces for more even cooking and more exposed surface for marinating   

2 cups red wine

3 bay leaves

2 sprigs of thyme (remove some leaves for garnish)

1 ancho chili, seeds removed and crumbled

4 cloves of garlic, crushed

4 cups beef stock

1/4 cup dark chocolate (minimum cocoa of 70%)

Sea salt

Crushed black pepper

Garlic granules

Canola oil

16 ounces of shitakes, sliced

Sour cherries, crushed with seed removed

Lemon wedges for garnish

Directions

In a large stainless mixing bowl, combine the wine, bay leaves, thyme, garlic and ancho chili.  Add the meat , cover and marinate in refrigerator overnight.  Turn the pieces part way through.  Remove and pat dry.  Let the venison come to room temperature before cooking.  Do not discard the marinade.

In a sauce pan combine the marinade and beef stock.  Bring it to a boil and let it reduce by half then half again to the desired consistency of a sauce.  Remove the bay leaves, garlic and thyme.  Add the chocolate then puree to blend in the chili.  Stir in the cherries and set the sauce aside, keeping it warm. 

Pat each piece of loin with salt, pepper and garlic granules.  Coat the bottom of a sauté pan with canola oil.  When the oil ripples, add the venison pieces and brown on all sides.  The pan must be hot enough for the meat to sizzle when placed in the oil.  When all sides are caramelized, move the pan into the oven at 425 degrees and roast for 5 to 10 minutes uncovered.  The meat should be served rare on the inside.  Remove it when the temperature reaches 115 degrees and let it rest while the temperature reaches 120.  Cut it into thin slices, against the grain on a diagonal.    

For the mushrooms, add a small amount of canola oil to the same pan.  Cook quickly over high heat and serve.  The mushrooms will pick up all the little bit of caramelized venison from the bottom of the pan. 

Recommended Service:   Make a bed of garlic sautéed broccoli rabe.  Place the venison slices on top, cover with mushrooms and drizzle with chocolate, chili, cherry sauce.  Garnish with thyme leaves and lemon wedges.   Serve with a side of white beans and caramelized onions.  A glass of Zinfandel wine is an excellent accompaniment to the chocolate, chili, cherry venison. 

Buon Appetito e Buona Salute, Chef AngelaB

P.S.Both my first book AS GOOD AS IT GETS, COOKING SKILLS FOR LIFE, VOLUME 1 $ 4.99  and my current book EAT SMART, AMERICA, AN ANTI-AGING DIET PRIMER  $ 2.99 are 

available  now for Kindle on Amazon  and  NOW FOR NOOK  at Barnes & Noble

Corn Fed America!

SODA BELLY

Duck is one of my favorite proteins.  It has the meaty texture of lean beef with a unique, sweet flavor that pairs well with my anti-inflammatory, original fresh salsas and dipping sauces, especially blueberry ginger and peppery raisin.  But my admiration of all things duck does not include foie gras for which a customer asked recently.  Here is a longer version of my response, which I am reprinting from an earlier posting.  For all of you who are trying unsuccessfully to rid yourselves of the fatty middle just above the waistline, this is especially for you.

What do ducks raised for foie gras and Americans have in common?  They are both corn fed.  How are they different?  Ducks are forced to eat it, we do it willingly, happily even, all on our own---corn cereal, corn bread, corn dogs, corn tortillas, corn starch, corn chips and the most consumed of all, high fructose corn syrup.  And, then there’s the corn we can’t see, in soft drinks, fruit and energy drinks, condiments, packaged foods and even in the meat from corn fed animals. 

As a chef, I have known for some time that geese, and more recently ducks, are force fed through a tube resulting intentionally in a diseased, fatty liver ten times the normal size for the production of foie gras.  But, until recently, what I didn’t know was that the food of choice for ensuring the grotesquely fatty liver is---corn.  It doesn’t take a scientific study to draw what is an obvious conclusion.  Hmmm, fatty liver around America’s middle, foie gras, fatty liver, foie gras, fatty liver, foie gras…

Eat smart, America!

Beyond the Bull does not serve any added sugar from corn or any other food sources.  The reference to corn in the above article, is processed corn (not fresh) used to sweeten prepared foods, juices, soda and just about everything boxed, bagged and canned.  Beyond the Bull prepares all menu items from scratch, avoiding all added sugar whether from corn or sugar cane.  

Buon Appetito e Buona Salute, Chef AngelaB

P.S.  My current book Eat Smart, America, an anti-aging diet primer is available now for Kindle on Amazon.  Download it today.

http://www.amazon.com/Smart-America-anti-aging-primer-ebook/dp/B008H76MAK/ref=sr_1_5?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1341433257&sr=1-5&keywords=eat+smart%2C+america

The Whiter the Bread

Have you ever heard the old saying the whiter the bread the sooner you’re dead?  Well, just as all old wives tales have some truth to them, so do old sayings.  When I was a child growing up in Connecticut, we lived on what one could describe as a mini farm.  There was a pond with a damn, a pond large enough so that I couldn’t swim to the other side, (at least not before encountering a snapping turtle or two),  a vegetable garden, a chicken coop, and at one time or another, goats and sheep.  As you can see, my parents provided us with fresh, unprocessed food, sometimes canned or frozen which they prepared, and only occasionally did they serve any factory prepared foods from a can, bottle or box, that is until shortly after I was born, the last of four children.

            By that time, foods like tv dinners, Chef Boyardee spaghetti in a can and Wonderbread were staples of the American diet.  As mothers (mine included) went to work outside the home to bring in the second income that would send their kids off to college some day, it was my generation that took to eating spaghetti with red sauce out of a can or a dinner of meatloaf and gravy, with peas and corn and mashed potatoes off of a compartmentalized metal tray set on top of another metal tray in front of the television.  The favorite school lunch was the fluffernutter made with peanut butter, marshmallow fluff and Wonderbread. 

I had no idea at that time, nor did my parents, of course, that feeding my body the fluffernutter resulted in the same effect as feeding my body a six pack of beer, but without the buzz.  There was added sugar in every component of my favorite sandwich of which I continued to eat long into adulthood.

The peanut butter, although it was rich in protein, was made with added sugar and salt.  The marshmallow fluff was corn syrup and the soft white Wonderbread was made from refined flour, flour that had been chemically bleached, stripped of all nutrients including fiber, then enriched in the manufacturing process by adding salt, sugar, vitamins and finally gluten enhanced to obtain the doughy consistency.  When we feed our bodies foods made primarily with refined flour, such as pasta, pancakes, pie crust, flour tortillas, biscuits, pizza, pretzels, cakes, cookies, and foods that are battered or dredged for that crispy outer skin, we may as well replace them all with Wonderbread.  No wonder laxatives and stool softeners are such a big business in the U.S.  

The world wide web is a wonderful source of information, even more so than going to a reference library in any major city.  However, there is no such thing as modern day internet information police, no one to say, whoa, if you break the law by publishing untruths under the guise of fact, you go to jail.  No, in this amazing America, we have the freedom to do just that, publish untruths, that is.  For that reason, it is reader beware.  

I was recently disappointed by a site that generally gives good advice regarding nutrition, when I read an article that argued the merits of dining on foods made with enriched all purpose white flour.  The article argued that using the enriched flour would give you the important b vitamins (added back in) that you might otherwise be missing from your diet. 

What it did not mention was that eating foods made from refined flour (enriched or not) which has no fiber to slow the digestive process, has an immediate effect on blood sugar level.  Because there is no fiber to slow down the release of sugar, the body responds to the spike in sugar by releasing insulin.  The insulin secreted by the pancreas does its job, reducing the blood sugar level which then causes a tired feeling and makes the person crave more sugar.  Eventually the cycle results in overload to the pancreas, weight gain, obesity and diabetes.  The more refined the carbohydrate, the faster the release of sugar and insulin, the higher and lower the peaks and valleys of energy and mood. 

This is the same cycle for all refined grains, all grains that have been stripped of their fiber, not just refined wheat for white flour, but for refined corn, oats, rice, barley, and rye as well.  As of the writing of this book, I am replacing the old slogan the whiter the bread, the sooner you’re dead, with a new one, the more refined, the bigger the behind.  

More information on anti-aging gastronomy can be found in my latest ebook for Kindle now available on Amazon http://www.amazon.com/Smart-America-anti-aging-primer-ebook/dp/B008H76MAK/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1341931244&sr=8-2&keywords=eat+smart%2C+america

Buon Appetito e Buona Salute, Chef Angela B

Fight Hot Weather Inflammation!

Yes, this blog is all about anti-aging gastronomy, but the fact is that not only does acid forming food cause inflammation, but other forces outside our bodies as well.  One of those is the weather.  I am not referring to the old wives tales about joint pain forecasting storms or an impending cold front, although old wives tales are always based on some truth.  No, I am talking about the extreme hot temperatures plaguing our nation recently.  Here in the upstate of South Carolina, the temperature has been hovering around 102.

Having moved to the upstate from southern Maine via Charleston, SC, I expected that it would take my body a few years to adjust to the climate.  Well, it has been more than a few years, four years to be exact, and I still cannot step outside for more than a few minutes at a time when the mercury rises above 95.  Why?  Not because I sweat or sunburn easily (which I do) or feel faint or show any signs of heat stroke or exhaustion, nothing that ordinary.  It is because whenever I step outside in temperatures that rise above 95, my bones ache.  Okay, they don’t really ache, but it sure feels like they do.

Stress causes inflammation and exacerbates the symptoms of inflammation.  So, for anyone whose body has an inflammatory process going on whether in the form of an immune deficiency disease, a response to an infection,  joint swelling or an old injury such as a stress fracture,  the heat will cause a flare up---more severe symptoms, anything from mild pain to difficulty breathing.  That is why my bones ache. 

Flare up is an appropriate word considering what the extreme temperature can do to the body.  My first summer in Charleston, I visited my primary care physician on at least four occasions with headache, body aches, swelling at the sites of old ankle and knee injuries and what I felt was a low grade fever, always leaving without a prescription and with a lecture about staying out of the sun.  To me, staying out of the sun meant wearing a hat when going outside, which I did.  Finally on the fourth visit, I asked her why I always felt like I had a fever and she responded with, “This is the south.  You’re living in Charleston which is a tropical swamp.  The normal body temperature here in the summer is 99.2, not 98.6.”  That explained everything.

Now, living in the upstate, I am no longer in a swamp, but the heat is just as severe.  The difference is that I have learned ways to cool my internal temperature and prevent the stress to my body.  To southerners who have lived here all their lives, it is common sense, but to someone from Maine, it still takes a concerted effort to remember these five steps to keep the body cool and stave off the stress that stokes the flames of inflammation.

Drink ice water and lots of it.

Seems like common sense.  Not to me.  I never drank water with ice in it---too cold.  But, here you need the ice to cool down your core according to the long time residents of James Island.  So, ice water it is!

Take breaks before you need them.

Don’t wait until you feel sick or so hot you can hardly walk to take a break.  And by take a break I mean get out of the heat and into the AC.  The hotter the temperature, the more frequent the breaks, so today, with the temperature at 98 in the shade, ten minutes at a time for picking vegetables was enough for me.

Slow down.

That means slow your movements.  Don't run, walk!

Stay inside.

If you don't have to leave the AC, whether in your car, office or home, don't.  There is plenty that can be done indoors when the temperature soars.

Eat.

Even though you don't fell like it, you still need to eat.  Limit your diet to the alkaline producing foods like cucumbers, tomatoes, grapefruits, watermelon and lots of greens for their high water content and their ability to keep your blood glucose even throughout the day.  Add small amounts of protein with some healthy fat from omega 3.  Extra salt and sugar are not recommended which means on a day like today, Red Bull is not your friend.

Eat smart and stay cool, America!

Buon Appetito e Buona Salute, Chef AngelaB

P.S.  My current book Eat Smart, America, an anti-aging diet primer is available now for Kindle on Amazon 

http://www.amazon.com/Smart-America-anti-aging-primer-ebook/dp/B008H76MAK/ref=sr_1_5?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1341433257&sr=1-5&keywords=eat+smart%2C+america

 All proceeds from my books will be used to open the first EAT SMART restaurant to serve anti aging gastronomy in the upstate SC.    I am 75% of the way there with funding.  Every book I sell gets me one tiny step closer.  For your support and generosity---thank you. 

Happy Fourth of July, America!

Not only am I celebrating my American heritage independence from the tyranny of the oppressive British rule, but on this fourth of July, I am proud to celebrate my independence from bad food---hot dogs, hamburgers and white buns, macaroni salad, ice cream and cake.  Instead, our picnic this year is tomato and cucumber salad, corn on the cob, skewered chicken, lamb kabobs, marinated green beans and dark chocolate chili frozen pot de crème (on a stick for the kids!)

And, I am also celebrating the release of my latest ebook for Kindle, EAT SMART, AMERICA---having just gotten the word from Amazon.  This one is a prequel to the next in my series of Cooking Skills for Life, Volume 2, Good Food Bad Food to be released in August.  Eat Smart, America---an anti-aging diet primer introduces the reader to a way of eating that reduces inflammation in the body and therefore, reduces the risk for age related chronic disease. 

Those of you who have been following me on this blog and on my facebook page know that I firmly believe that all age related chronic disease is the result of inflammation, a result of a diet high in inflammatory foods---meat, dairy, refined grains and sugar.  I practice what I preach and have enjoyed the benefits of eating a diet rich in alkaline producing foods---foods which have rid me of those same age related symptoms of pre- diabetes, pre, cholesterolemia, pre-hypothyroid, joint and muscle aches and pains, psoriasis, dry skin, and on and on and on, that we all expect as we age.  Well, it doesn’t have to be that way.  Eat Smart, America will show you the way it should be!

Lastly, due to eating a diet rich in alkaline producing food, I am celebrating my independence from prescription drugs, medical offices, anti-inflammatories, antihistamines and decongestants.  Eat smart, America!

Buon Appetito e Buona Salute, Chef AngelaB

P.S.  My current book As Good As It Gets  which teaches the basic cooking methods you need to cook fresh foods from scratch is also available now at  http://www.amazon.com/As-Good-It-Gets-Cooking/dp/1477466886/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1338323791&sr=8-1.  All proceeds from my books will be used to open the first EAT SMART restaurant to serve anti aging gastronomy in the upstate SC.    I am 75% of the way there with funding.  Every book I sell gets me one tiny step closer.  For your support and generosity---thank you.  

Sugar is Sugar…all equally bad!

Sugar is sugar.   A true statement, one that is used as a marketing tool to convince the viewer of the television advertisement that corn sugar, the new moniker for what was previously known consumer wide as high fructose corn syrup, is simply nature’s sugar in another form.  Whether it is corn sugar or cane sugar, the body doesn’t know the difference, says the actor posing as a concerned parent as he strolls through the corn fields while his school age daughter holds onto his hand and skips alongside.  Using a clever framing technique, the producers get the viewer to make the decision that if corn sugar is the same as cane sugar, then it follows that high fructose corn syrup is okay for our kids. 

Well, they are right about one thing.  Sugar is sugar.  Whether it is high fructose corn syrup, corn sugar, natural sugar in the raw, brown sugar, beet or cane sugar, or the refined white sugar in just about every cake and cookie in the world, they are all equally bad.

It is hard to believe, but there are still medical doctors practicing today who claim weight gain is the result of consuming too many calories, more calories than can be used by the body.  It is the old calories in, calories out mantra.  Therefore, according to them, to maintain or lose weight, all one has to do is consume fewer calories than the body can use.  If that were true, I should be able to eat all of my calories in sugar and as long as the total caloric intake is less than what I can use, I should lose weight.   Simple, right?  No, it isn’t.  After decades of yoyo dieting I can give you plenty of anecdotal evidence from my own experience that not only is it not that simple, but it is also not true.  Not all calories are created equal.   The body uses different foods for different purposes and with different processing methods and results. 

Take sugar, for instance.  Not all sugar calories are created equal.  More specifically let’s compare the following two sugars, an added sugar (regular white refined table sugar) one that is added to foods either by you or the processor, such as a pop tart manufacturer, and the natural sugar in a potato.  The regular white refined table sugar is sucrose consisting of half glucose and half fructose and the sugar in a carbohydrate such as potatoes is 100% glucose.  The difference between 100 calories of sucrose and 100 calories of glucose is in how the body metabolizes each.

The fructose in the 100 calories of table sugar that you consume is processed by the liver, whereas the 100 calories of sugar in the potatoes is processed by all of the cells in the body.  In the case of glucose from the potato, with the help of insulin, the body allows the glucose to enter into the cells to be used for energy.  When there is too much glucose, it is stored as fat.  That is where one problem lies.  In the case of fructose, if the amount or rate at which the fructose hits the liver is too much for it to handle, the liver converts the fructose to fat.  That is where another problem lies. 

The difference, however,  is that most people eat potatoes only a few times a week and can certainly use the energy and prevent the conversion to fat.  But, when you down a quart of cola or sweetened fruit juice several times a day, the fructose in liquid form hits the liver immediately and if the rate at which the liver has to convert the fructose is more than the body needs, which is usually the case with soda drinkers, again the liver converts the fructose to fat.  The result is weight gain, a fatty liver and insulin resistance, one form of adult onset diabetes. 

You know that hard to get rid of fat around the middle?  That happens to be where the fatty liver lives.  Eliminate sugar and watch it disappear!   Hmmm, perhaps that explains why women who love their bottle of wine have the same middle profile as the men who love their case of beer and the preteens and teenagers who love their six packs of soda. 

What else besides table sugar is made up of fructose and glucose?  High fructose corn syrup, slightly higher in fructose for extra sweetness, was intentionally developed to mimic the sweetness of table sugar.  Calories in, calories out?  No.  All calories are not the same. 

Now that you know that table sugar and high fructose corn syrup are almost identical and both are equally bad foods, what do you do about it?  You avoid it.  I know that you would not feed Fido a chocolate bar which is toxic to canines, so why would you feed your own body sugar, which is equally toxic.  You should, in fact, avoid all added sugar including that which is expressly labeled on prepared foods whether the label reads sugar, cane sugar, high fructose corn syrup, corn sugar or anything that ends with the letters ose. 

Unless the prepared food has been specifically produced for diabetics, you can be certain that there is sugar lurking somewhere in the ingredients.  Some of the sneakiest offenders are condiments like relish, ketchup, salsa, pickled foods, salad dressings, sauces, jams and jellies, all laced with sugar.  Kool aid, sweetened iced tea, powdered fruit drinks, soda, energy drinks and punch are loaded with sugar as are most prepared baked goods, crackers and chips. 

So what can you do if you are a southern belle who loves her sweet tea or a football fan who loves his sports drinks?  That’s what my next book Good FoodBad Food, Cooking Skills for Life, Volume 2, is all about, finding a feel good food substitute to protect your body from the long term ill effects of bad food like sugar.  The book is due to be out on Amazon in August.  Watch for it!

Buon Appetito e Buona Salute, Chef AngelaB

  P.S.  The first in my series of Cooking Skills for Life, Volume 1, As Good As It Gets, is on sale now at Amazon. http://www.amazon.com/As-Good-It-Gets-Cooking/dp/1477466886/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1338323791&sr=8-1   All proceeds will be used toward opening the first eat smart restaurant in upstate SC, first to serve a menu of anti-aging gastronomy.  Thank you for your interest and support.  EAT SMART, AMERICA!