Why you should switch to SOURDOUGH!!!
When I was at uni we learned about a thing called phytates. They are a pesky substance found in particularly high levels in whole grains and wholemeal foods. Phytates act like a magnet in the body and binds essential nutrients, particularly iron, making the nutrients bio-unavailable. In other words the body can't absorb the nutrients.
I found this really confusing at the time. I asked my lecturer "why are we recommendeding wholegrain/wholemeal varieties if it has this effect on the body?" and she said "well that would be like reccomending full fat milk just because it has a lower glycaemic index".
Not satisfied with my answer I asked another lecturer, I also asked, "why are we fortifying breakfast cereal with iron if the body won't be able to utilise it?" She smiled and said "because  the industry is interested in profit and people are easily influenced" So I asked what do I recommed then, do I not recommend breakfast cereal?" She said always advocate minimally processed food and cooking from scratch.
One of my textbook had a really interesting chapter about the developing world and the techniques used by these cultures.
The common theme is that grains and legumes/pulses are always soaked overnight and thoroughly washed before use. The grains will semi-sprout, which as it turns out completely changes how the grain is digested - the body now identifies it as a vegetable instead of a starch. The phytates are also released from the grains.
The simple process of soaking, drastically enhances the nutrient quality and absorption.
I now use these techniques at home by making my own bread, pasta and flour for other baked goods.

A kilo of wheat costs about $3 or much cheaper if your in the country. Soak the wheat in filtered water for about a day (this should be rinsed first and then thoroughly rinsed after soaking - I do it 3 times). Then they go into the dehydrator overnight. To mill into flour you'll need a high powered blender, coffee grinder or a miller.

That's great and all but if you don't have these item, that's alot to outlay, plus you might also say......that sounds like alot of work!!! and it is.

There is an alternative - sourdough. Sourdough ferments the grain and breaksdown the phytates and makes it easier for the body to digest. This is another technique that traditional culture are still using.
Sourdough is quite a lengthy process and with 4 kids I need a simpler solution. So here is my sourdough bread machine recipe.

Place in the machine in this order
1/2 cup of starter
3 3/4 cups or organic plain four
1T organic raw sugar
1t salt
12T warm filtered water (this quantity will depend on the consistency of your starter, you might only need 10T or you might need 14T)
Select the dough setting
Once thats finished select the basic cycle with a dark crust BUT you must delay the timer by 12 hours - alternatively leave it in the machine overnight, then bake.
Sure it's not "authentic" but who cares? If it really bothers you, you can always shape it and bake it in the oven after the 12 hours if you really want.

To make a starter
Combine 1 cup of flour and 1 cup of warm filtered water. Stir and cover with a damp towel for a day. Feed it a tablespoon of flour and a tablespoon of water everyday for atleast a week (but it really need two weeks I believe). Keep your starter going, the older it is the stronger it becomes.

If you really can't do this either, then buy sourdough bread at the bakery.

Next post I'll teach you how to make sourdough pasta.
Kylie x

Back into the swing of things! Soup Recipes

So I'm back from my tour which was a once in a lifetime experience for my family. We had talked about  doing a trip around Australia for years and to finally do it was awesome!
However now I'm back into exhausting routine of doing the school run and household chores -ugghh!!! But on the upside I can get back into my exercise (which was sadly neglected), make our food from scratch (which was difficult to do out of a camper trailer), re-establish my veggie garden and get back into my research which is ofcourse my passion.
So I kinda feel like I starting over and thought this would be a golden opportunity for my to share what I'm doing, how to go about it and hopefully inspire you to make some healthy sustainable changes.
In the upcoming blogs I'll help you establish a veggie garden, provide you with simple recipes and techniques to improve you and your family's health. I'll also be talking alot about alkalinity and gut health as it's sparking my passion at the moment (well more than before).
So to start us off I'm sharing my two favourite soup recipes, as it's winter here in Australia and I LOVE SOUP!!!
My purpose is to wean you off adding cream and show you how delicious and healthier it is to use nut stock (even if you hate nuts, I promise I'll win you over!)
And those of you with kids with nut allegies, I encourage you to have them tested with sulphite free nuts. Double blind studies are showing that more children react to the sulphite preservative than the nut itself.

Warning, I have 4 kids and have lost the ability to cook in anything other than bulk, so halve the quanties, if necessary.......or you could freeze portions for lunch.

Broccoli Soup
4 broccoli heads
2 large brown onions
3/4 cup cashews or almonds (cashews taste better, but almonds are healthier, they also need soaking and deskining)
2 cups filtered water for stock
Extra filtered water
Salt & pepper to taste
2T oil, I use grapeseed, avocado or macadamia, but avocado is my favourite for this recipe.
Optional: Add a bunch of kale, it's a super food and easily hidden here - unless it's disguised my kids won't eat it!

Blend nuts and water for about 5 mins until smooth. While this is going sautee the onions (and kale) a little, add the broccoli and sweat it down for a few minutes.
Add nut stock and enough water to cover broccoli. I use about a teaspoon of rocksalt in the pot and after I've served the kids, I add a bit more to mine. (remember babies have 50,000 more taste buds than adults and this gradually depletes with age - they are supertasters so don't over saturated their sense of taste).

Simmer on a low heat for about an hour.
Blend and serve.
You can make a thick nut cream with 1/2 cup of nuts and 1/2 cup of water blended throroughly for garnish if you fancy.

Cauliflower Soup
2 cauliflower heads
2 large brown onions
1 clove garlic
2 apples
3/4 cup cashews (experiment with other nuts)
2 cups filtered water for stock
extra water
2T oil
Salt & pepper to taste
optional 1/2 t cinnamon and dash of cardamon

Same procedure as the broccoli but make sure the apples go in with the onions.



These soups are super cheap to feed the family, couple with some homemade bread - Yum!
Younger kids, or fussy older ones, can have it stirred though pasta or rice. But if you establish soup early on, as an extension of baby food, you should get less resistance.

Try nut stock with your old favourite such as pumpkin, tomato and potato & leek.



Feel free to post your favourite soup recipes.

Until next time
Kylie x

PS Check me out on Facebook at the undeniable truth about FOOD or my website www.asnatureintended.biz
Plus my book The Undeniable Truth About Food is dirt cheap these days from most online bookstores.

Hello Again

So I have not done a blog in quite a while...
I have been very busy! I recently had my first book published called The Undeniable Truth About Food.
In addition it undertook the crazy task of rating and reviewing every grocery item in the major supermarkets in Australia. To say I have been busy is an understatement! The manuscript is currently with a publisher so hopefully won't be too far away from release.
I rated products in terms of 3 criteria: Nutrition, Food additives and type of packaging used. In order to get a favourable review, it needed to have less than 8g of total fat, 10g of sugar and 500mg of salt. There needed to be no harmful food additives and packaged in either glass, foil, or or waxed paper. For those who are unaware of this fact; all types of plastic packaging (though some are better than others) leach its chemicals into the food/drink.; as does cellophane (as it is now dual layered with plastic), plastic lined tetra cartons, paperboard, polystyrene, steel can and aluminium cans.
It was a big job as I need to obtain the maunfacturers specifications for each product also. This is because we have a 5% labelling loophole which means that anything that is less than 5% of the overall product does not need to be labelled. A stupid law that I have a petition to have abolished.
What I found was that not including baby food, there was 71 products that got a favourable review. 71 out of thousands of items. But I looked at it another way, once the obviously unhealthy food was removed, it was 71 items accross 54 product lines. That's actually pretty encouraging. It means that at least one company is doing the right thing. My new book The Ultimate Supermarket Handbook will guide you to these products as well as teach you how to select meat, fruit, vegetables and many other staples.
In 2 weeks I am taking off with my tour The Undeniable Truth About Food - with my 4 kids, the 4WD and the pop up camper trailer! I am very excited! We are going to Adelaide, Melbourne, Hobart, Canberra, Sydney and Brisbane. Tickets are $22 and are available at http://www.ticketmaster.com.au/
My book is available at bookstore and online I know the book depository has it for $11 and has free shipping http://www.bookdepository.co.uk/
I will keep you posted. I have a bit of media coming up with magazine, newspaper, radio and possibly TV.
More soon xx