Leggo your Eggo! What's in your pancakes and waffles?

Ahhh, yes.....how easy these were.  Pop them in the microwave (kids could even do it themselves), throw some butter and syrup (lite,of course) and I had a quick and easy breakfast!


Here is the list of ingredients that are in Eggo pancakes.  

Kellogg's^® Eggo^® Buttermilk pancakes

Ingredients

ENRICHED FLOUR (WHEAT FLOUR, MALTED BARLEY FLOUR, NIACIN, REDUCED IRON, THIAMIN MONONITRATE [VITAMIN B1], RIBOFLAVIN [VITAMIN B2], FOLIC ACID), WATER, HIGH FRUCTOSE CORN SYRUP, SOYBEAN OIL, BUTTERMILK, EGGS, CONTAINS TWO PERCENT OR LESS OF LEAVENING (BAKING SODA, SODIUM ALUMINUM PHOSPHATE, MONOCALCIUM PHOSPHATE), SALT, SOY LECITHIN, VITAMIN A PALMITATE, REDUCED IRON, NIACINAMIDE, VITAMIN B12, PYRIDOXINE HYDROCHLORIDE (VITAMIN B6), THIAMIN HYDROCHLORIDE (VITAMIN B1), RIBOFLAVIN (VITAMIN B2).

Throw some Aunt Jemima syrup on those flapjacks:

INGREDIENTS: HIGH FRUCTOSE CORN SYRUP, WATER, 

CELLULOSE GUM, SALT, NATURAL AND ARTIFICIAL FLAVORS,

 CARAMEL COLOR, SORBIC ACID AND SODIUM BENZOATE 

(PRESERVATIVES), SODIUM HEXAMETAPHOSPHATE.

Whew doggy!  

What a great way to start the day!  

If it's in a box, frozen, pre made and you can get lots of coupons for it.....you can guess it will have corn in it!

Corn is the cheap way to sweeten!  That's why they use it in everything.

At our expense.  

Literally.

What's in your cereal?

I am in constant search of foods that my family can eat that do NOT have:

corn

soy

peanuts

These 3 are known as the "evils" of my house!  They are genetically modified, universally altered beyond repair, and full of toxins that can do a number on anyone's body.

Remember....corn has NOT always been bad.  It was not until sometime in the 80's or so that it became genetically modified and also universally altered to contain a fungus in it's DNA that is not even able to be killed by autoclaving.  

But things are different now.  

The corn your grandmother grew and the corn you grew up on is NOT the same as it is now.

I found out rather quickly that our beloved Cheerios would be off limits.  I just now ran through each type of Cheerios  that is made and NONE of them are ok.  

EVERY SINGLE ONE HAS CORN IN THEM!!

Corn by many different names.  

Corn meal, corn syrup, maltodextrin (from corn), modified corn starch just to name a few.

You can see for yourself here on their website.  What's in Cheerios  Pick your favorite and see what's in it!  Remember, the ingredients are listed by predominance....so what is first on the list is what it has the most of.

All those years of giving my children Cheerios......and all I was doing was feeding them toxins and fungus.  

Good thing I know now.

What's in your cereal?  

Step away from the light switch!

Yes, that's right.  

My finger has been tightly pressed against the light switch.  

With all my might I have been trying to keep it there. 

Not a "real" light switch, mind you.  

But a spiritual one. 

You know what I am talking about.  

I bet many of you right now have one hand on the computer and one hand stretched out trying to keep your grubby little finger on that switch.  

Taking that finger off would mean change. 

It would mean hard work and discipline. 

It would mean letting God take control.

And GASP...... 

It would mean not being able to eat everything you want.

My finger has been on that light switch since around March.

I even have a dimmer switch.

You know.

I started just slowly sliding that dimmer down.

One little bite here.

One little bite there.

Gotta taste the organic mac & cheese my kids are eating, right?

After all, I went over 6 whole months without taking a bite of anything that was not on the list. 

(Ok- with the exception of those few stinking mini's at Halloween. Satan made me do it!)

As my finger was sliding the dimmer, the darkness was starting to set it.

The fatigue started coming back.

The cravings so strong I was unable to resist.

My mood became more...well...moody.

As the dimmer switch continued down

my motivation to do anything went with it.

One year ago today I started this journey.  

It has not been easy.  

I did not like being in the desert.

Not too many people do.

I successfully accomplished my goal.

It took oh, about 4,239 hours longer than I wanted it to!

My spit floated.

It was a joyous day.

I got a lovely massage.

Then it happened.

Slowly.

The one little bite here.

The "ok, that won't hurt to eat just one".

I can handle eating pizza now.

I can eat a "real" hamburger now.

I am still in control.

A donut won't hurt.

For pete sake, it is a birthday.

Eating cake is what you do on birthdays.

I don't want to make everyone go to Jason's Deli again.

I'll get right back on it tomorrow.

All you professional dieters know what I am talking about.

"I'd better eat it today, cause tomorrow I have to start over and I will NEVER get to eat this again!"

Really?

It's that black and white?

Never?

So we gorge ourselves to satisfy our cravings with all intent of NEVER eating those foods again.

Because remember.....

We are starting over tomorrow!

But tomorrow never happens.

The cycle has started over again.

Eat.

Feel miserable.

Feel guilty.

Get depressed.

Eat.

Feel miserable.

Feel guilty.

Get depressed.

Eat.....

Raise your hand if you know what I am saying here!  

Can you relate?  

Thought so.

So what does a light switch have to do with all this?

It's our spiritual light switch.

God so wants us to be in the light.

He does not want us to be in darkness.

But you know what I discovered?

Sometimes being in the dark is easier.

If I take my finger off the switch and let God turn the light on....

I will have to change.

I will have to start eating yeast free again.

Oh, how much He wants to have me in light.

Not darkness!

Quite frankly, if I stay in the darkness I can just stay in bed.

I don't have to take responsibility for as much.

I don't want to take my finger off that switch!  

I have gotten somewhat comfortable in the dark.

Oh, don't get me wrong.

I am totally miserable right now.

I have gained 15 of the 35 pounds back.

My clothes are tight.

I am bloated all the time.

My joints hurt again.

My IBS is returning.

I am tired all the time.

But I don't have to work hard at being miserable!

It's easy!

But it's no way to live.  It's NOT how God designed us to live.

I must remove my finger from the light switch and allow God to reclaim control of my life.  

If left to my own devices.....I will choose food.

My flesh will battle to the end for food.

I have to take my finger off the switch. 

God is not going to force me to do it.

Is your finger holding down the switch so tightly?

Are you stuck in the darkness?

Are you miserable like I am?

If you are struggling to get out of the darkness......

join me in 

STEPPING AWAY FROM THE LIGHT SWITCH!

Slowly take your finger and start moving the dimmer UP.  

Let the light start to shine again.

God never created us to be under slavery to food or illness. 

He wants to set us free.

He is waiting to set you free.

He is longing to set me free.

I have to make the first move.

I have to move my finger off the switch so I can get out of the darkness.

The light may be hard to deal with at first.

It seems like bondage again having to go back to the desert.

I have been there now!

I KNOW how hard it is to stay on a yeast free diet.

I also know that my God loves me enough to not let me go back to where I came from.

He provided me with immeasurable strength for over 6 months.

He will do it again.

If I let Him.

Today is a new day.  Just like last year on this day, I started yeast free again.

I need to cleanse my body of what I have put in it since March.

I have to go to the desert again.

But that's ok.

I have been there before.

And my Father will be with me the whole way.

Almond Meal Waffles

I REALLY wanted to go to IHOP tonight, however, my wonderful hubby wouldn't let me.  So we decided to come up with a pancake/waffle idea that would meet all our restristicions.....and still taste good! 

 I wasn't sure the kids would go for it.  

We didn't tell them at first that the waffles were made from almond meal.  

They could tell there was a slight "difference" but they gobbled them up anyway! 

7 months ago before I had taken all the processed foods out of the house,they would have spit them right back out! 

I can honestly say that their tastes have slowly changed..for the better.

 I did let them put some pure maple syrup on them. 

 Karianne and Jeff also tried some homemade strawberry "coolwhip" on top.  (Just real whipping cream mixed with some strawberries and whipped until consistency of cool whip)

The first batch we made with Xylitol and the second batch we used raw honey as the sweetner.  

I think I prefer the Xylitol batch best.  

(The sugar from the honey I believe made me a bit bloated so I still need to stay away from any sugar source for now.)

I would also say to use powered Stevia as a sweetener.  It's the main one I use. 

Here is the recipe:

1 cup almond meal(finely ground works best)

2 eggs

1/4 cup water

2TBSP olive oil

1/4 tsp salt

1 TBSP Xylitol (or Stevia- would need less)

Mix all the ingredients together.  Put about 1/4 cup of mix into waffle maker.  You can also make small pancakes from this.

This makes only about 4-5 small waffles.  

(We ended up making a second batch!) 

Sour Cream Chicken

This is an easy one dish meal.  I "modified" it from Doug Kaufmann's cookbook, " Eating your way to good health"

4 TBSP melted butter
3 pounds chicken
1 TBSP olive oil
1/2 cup chopped onion
1 tsp salt
1 cup sour cream
1/4 tsp pepper
Veggies of choice (I used 2 bags frozen steamable mixed vegetables)

Saute chicken in butter and onions in olive oil until lightly browned. Combine veggies, sour cream, salt and pepper.  Spoon over chicken in a casserole dish.  Bake at 350 for 55-60 minutes. (Make sure chicken is done) I also covered half of the dish with almond meal to give it a little extra "crunch".  It was good!

Taco Salad...without the taco!

I was craving Mexican recently so I decided to come up with some sort of "taco salad" mixture.    It was quite tasty!

1 pound grass fed beef
seasonings: chili powder, onion powder, red pepper, salt, pepper( and any other you think will taste good! Cumin, chopped onions...)
About 1/2-2/3 cup sour cream
1 jar organic salsa ( I used Green Mountain brand)
Mozzerella cheese- shredded(small amount and optional)

Cook beef with spices. Add salsa to the meat and stir.   Put over large plate of salad greens and any other veggies you like. Top with a bit of cheese is desired.

Grain free egg, sausage, and bacon quiche

I decided to come up with some breakfast quiches that I could freeze and heat up quickly on busy morings. Here is what I came up with!

The measurments are just estimates!

12 eggs (can't remember exactly how many!)
1 cup sour cream
1 pound nitrate free bacon ( I use Hormel Naturals)
1 pound nitrate free sausage (I used Jones Farm)
1/2 whipping cream
1/2 cup chopped onions
salt
mozzerrella cheese- shredded (small amount)

Cook bacon and sausage.  Crumble/cut into smaller pieces. Put meat and a few pieces of chopped onion in a muffin tin.  Whip together eggs, sour cream, whipping cream, salt, and cheese.  Pour mixture over the meat in the muffin pans.

Cook at 400 for about 20-30 minutes.   Freeze them in single ziplocs.

"The Power of Sugar" How it can suppress your immune function by 50%.

Worried about the Flu? Avoid Sugar!

       

With the  Flu on everyone’s mind this flu season, it is important to step back and look at the big picture. Why do we get sick with infections? 

Sure, there needs to be a pathogen present (such as a virus or bacteria) but being exposed to them is no guarantee we will get sick. 

Ultimately our immune system needs to fail in order to give way to sickness.

There are several pieces of research today which prove that our immune system can fail us following the consumption of high sugar foods. 


Consuming 100 grams of simple sugars (glucose, sucrose or fructose) including honey or orange juice can reduce the ability of your immune system to destroy pathogens. 

The effects start within 30 minutes and last for about 5 hours with roughly a 50% reduction of white blood cell action. Sanchez, Reeser, Lau, & al., 1973). 

Read that again! The effects last for about 5 hours and reduce your white blood cell action in half!

Another study confirms this by looking at what happens to immune defenses after ingesting Coca-Cola (Ringsdorf, Cheraskin, & Ramsay, 1976).

While 100 grams of sugar sounds like a lot, it is important to realize that your average bottle of supposedly healthful Naked Juice contains about 60 grams of sugar (do not forget to look at serving sizes!).

 Grab a scone with that and you are looking at another 24 grams of sugar (Nutritiondata.com). 

Or have a venti Starbucks Tazo green tea Frappuccino without the whipped cream and you are looking at 95 grams of sugar from your drink alone. (Starbucks Coffee Company, 2009)

Although the mechanism is unknown, we can speculate that sugar’s negative effect on the immune system has to do with the fact that Vitamin C appears to compete with glucose in cellular absorption (Mann, 1975). 

In other words, if we can consume foods which will NOT flood the system with glucose, Vitamin C will still be able to get into our cells and do its job. (Murray, 1998) 

These foods include those which do not contain either sugar or refined carbohydrates (which turn into glucose rapidly in the bloodstream). 

Think foods high in protein, fiber, and good fats. 

So instead of having a flavored drink from the local coffee shop with a muffin for breakfast, consider having 2 free range eggs, with a slice of organic whole grain toast and some fresh tomatoes from your garden harvest along with a cup of unsweetened herbal tea.

Consider your 3 year old preschooler having a TreeTop organic apple juice box. 

With 26 grams of sugar, you ought to question what effect that might or might not have on that little body’s resistance to germs. 

Offer some animal crackers or organic fruit leather, and you might be heading for trouble.

 Please remember, that young children seem to most often catch infections in daycare settings and examine the provided meals with this perspective.

While there are a lot of effective strategies that will help boost your immune system, I believe that first and foremost we must ensure that we provide our bodies with nutrition that will help the immune system work as it was intended.

Bibliography
Mann, G. a. (1975). The Membrane Transport of Ascorbic Acid. Ann N Y Acad Sci 258 , 243-51.
Murray, M. N. (1998). Encyclopedia of Natural Medicine, Page 151. Rocklin, CA: Prima Publishing.
Nutritiondata.com. (n.d.). Retrieved 09 14, 2009, from http://www.nutritiondata.com/facts/foods-from-starbucks/9732/2
Ringsdorf, W., Cheraskin, E., & Ramsay, R. (1976). Sucrose, Neutrophil Phagocytosis, and Resistance to Disease. Dent Surv 52 , 46-48.
Sanchez, A., Reeser, J., Lau, H., & al., e. (1973). Role of Sugars in Human Neutrophilic Phagocytosis. Am J Clin Nutr 26 , 1180-4.
Starbucks Coffee Company. (2009). Nutrition by the Cup Brochure. NSP09-06223 SKU11003590 .

     

Flu season?  Could it have anything to do with it coming at the same time as Thanksgiving, Christmas, Valentine's Day?  How much sugar have you eaten since November?  Bake a bunch of cookies and holiday candy for Christmas?  Dive into your kid's valentine candy every year?  

Hummm......If eating sugar reduces your white blood cell action in half up to 5 hours after eating sugar, let's see: 

Breakfast: OJ, cereal, milk, maybe Starbucks on the way to work= about 100 grams of sugar

Lunch: pizza and soda or fast food meal= about 100grams of sugar

Snack: chips, soda, cookies at work=100 grams of sugar

Supper: meat, starchy veggie,bread, mashed potatoes, a little ice cream for dessert= 100+ grams of sugar

snack: chips, soda, candy from kid's party=100 grams of sugar

So- the total sugar for the day could be as much as 500 grams of sugar.  Now- did you wait 5 hours between eating all that sugar?

Bet not!  

So all day long your body is functioning at 50% of what it should be with regards with regards to your immune function.  

Then it happens.  

Your co-worker sneezes on you.  Your child comes home from school after being with 25 other snot-ridden children all day long, you go to Target and the person who used the cart before you has the flu.     

Get the picture?

Sugar effects the immune system to the point of "allowing" you to get sick.  

A little sugar goes a long way. 

About 4 grams of sugar are in 1 teaspoon.  

1 teaspoon of sugar yields to over 1 million yeast colonies.  

Huh?  

So that 400 grams of sugar you just consumed in a day not only cost you 1/2 of your immune function it also gladly supplied food to produce 125 million yeast colonies who are now having a field day boring holes in your intestines and making their way into your blood stream.  

Just in case you have not read any of this blog, yeast/fungi are the root of almost all chronic illness.

Sugar=yeast=illness

When is the next holiday?

Oh, goody....

Easter candy is just around the corner.

Perhaps those Cadbury eggs don't seem so appealing after all!