Day forty five. Keeping Up With The GMO’s. {health update}

We are chugging along on our little challenge of keeping our home GMO free. While we have noticed significant changes in our health, we still struggle. I would love to say if you stop eating GMO’s all together it will be a magic “cure all” for everything. It isn’t. But it has caused improvements and I would hope to think in the long run, several years down the road, we will reap the benefits of a healthy lifestyle.

Our son, who is the whole reason this “non-GMO for 60-days” started has been cleared for not having Celiacs Disease. I am so relieved to know that we do not have that hard, life-long battle ahead of us. My heart goes out to those Mom’s who do have children who suffer with this disease. His biopsy also came back negative for a lactose allergy and negative for any enzyme deficiencies. AND he gained 1 pound, he was most excited about this! Praise God!

His GI Specialist was very intrigued by our new diet changes and asked several questions. It was nice to connect with a Doctor who did not just throw medicines and a “diagnosis” at us. He agreed that staying away from processed foods and gluten could only benefit his little body. He also was pretty sure that he has a high gluten intolerance, while not full blown Celiacs, he just cannot process gluten the way he should and reacts. Over time, if he continued to eat gluten without changing his diet, he could develop Celiacs later in life.

We have done a “test” and gave him a small bit of gluten at dinner one night- not telling him – just to see how his body would respond. I was pretty surprised (and sad that I caused this) but he wet his bed, started biting his nails, was super irritable and complained of a tummy ache over the next couple of days. Poor kid! Thankfully, we know what causes his problems and I am learning how to cook gluten-free. If you have a favorite gluten-free recipe please share!

I have a follow up with my GI Specialist on Wednesday this week. They have been pretty vague and really will not give me much information as to the results of my colonoscopy over the phone. Talk about frustrating! They just tell me to “keep taking your medicine and we will talk at the appointment”. I will have a whole post on that medicine and it’s nasty side-effects and why I stopped taking it. It should be fun talking with the Doctor about it on Wednesday 🙂

Did you get a chance to guess the secret ingredient yesterday? If not, take a look at these ingredients and see if you can guess this product from the ingredient list before reading the answer.

#8

CORN SYRUP, HIGH FRUCTOSE CORN SYRUP, WATER, CELLULOSE GUM, CARAMEL COLOR, SALT, SODIUM BENZOATE AND SORBIC ACID (PRESERVATIVES), ARTIFICIAL AND NATURAL FLAVORS, SODIUM HEXAMETAPHOSPHATE.

The Answer:

Aunt Jemima Original Syrup. Full of sugars, artificial and GMO ingredients. Yum. Why not try a pure maple syrup instead or maybe some local honey? We love the 365 brand from Whole Foods.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Cinco de Mayo, Recipe #5 {Organic Margarita}

I am ending today with a classic Cinco de Mayo favorite, margarita’s. Did you know there are organic tequilas out there? I was pleasantly surprised. The unfortunate thing is they are not sold everywhere. If you cannot find one near you I would suggest getting the highest quality tequila you can find. Here is a list of all the organic tequila’s I could find: 

1. Republic Tequila 
2. 123 Certified Organic Tequila 
3. Tequila Alquimia – Añejo
4. Tequila Tierras – Añejo
5. Artá – Reposado
6. Casa Noble

 

Photo Credit: www.examiner.com

This margarita is simple and refreshing:

• 2-parts organic tequila
• 2-parts agave nectar
• 1-part fresh lime juice
• 8oz ice
• shaker

Serve it blended for a frozen drink or on the rocks, my personal favorite. Drink responsibly and Feliz Cinco de Mayo!

 

In case you missed the 5-days of healthy Cinco de Mayo recipes here they are again:

 Recipe #1 – Homemade taco seasoning 

 Recipe #2 – Fresh Salsa 

 Recipe #3 – Kicked-up Guacamole 

 Recipe #4 – Slow-Cooker Chicken Taco Soup 

Cinco de Mayo, Recipe #3 {kicked-up guacamole}

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Yesterday I shared my favorite recipe for a basic salsa, today I am introducing you to yet another dip obsession of mine…guacamole. I love anything with avocados, yes, even the raw chocolate mousse made from them. They are not only delicious but they are packed full of nutrients, essential vitamins and minerals. Take a look at how jam packed 1/5 of a avocado is with nutrients:

http://www.californiaavocado.com/avocado-nutrients/

 

Guacamole is a very cheap and easy to make at home. Currently, at Publix you can get a 7oz package of Wholly Guacamole for $3.49. Now, I do think this brand is really good and if you need to have some in a pinch I would recommend it. But, there is absolutely no need to spend that amount when you could make it for a fraction of the cost at home.

Here the price break-down for my recipe, it makes roughly 2 1/2-3 cups:

• $.96 (4) Haas avocado @ Aldi – if you do not have an Aldi near by Costco has a 6pk for $4.99 and Publix is $1 each.
• $.46 (2) roma tomato’s @ Aldi
• $.25 (1) lemon @ Publix
• Spices and oils I had on hand: olive oil, apple cider vinegar, garlic, cumin, salt & pepper

TOTAL = $1.67 + the ingredients I had at home already.

You absolutely cannot argue with that price! It is different than your typical guacamole because I add the dressing, but I really enjoyed the extra creaminess it provided. Give it a try this weekend and tell me what you think.

Ingredients:

• 4 ripe avocado
• 4 Roma Tomato

Dressing:

• 2 cloves of garlic, minced
• 1/4 c. extra virgin olive oil
• 1/4 c. apple cider vinegar
• 1 heaping t. cumin
• Half lemon, squeezed
• 1/4 t. kosher salt
• freshly ground black pepper

Chop the avocado and tomato and place in a medium size bowl.  Whisk dressing in separate bowl and pour over the avocado and tomato mixture. Chill and serve.

Know Your Ingredients. When is Healthier NOT a Better Choice?

Did you guess the Know Your Ingredients, Name This Product from yesterday? This product is actually better off with you buying the full fat version. The “healthier” option is actually contains more genetically modified ingredients than the original version! In case you missed it from yesterday, here is the ingredients list again. Try to guess it before scrolling down to the answer.

#8.

WHOLE CORN, SUNFLOWER, CANOLA, CORN, AND/OR SOYBEAN OIL, MALTODEXTRIN (MADE FROM CORN), LESS THAN 2% OF THE FOLLOWING: WHEAT FLOUR, SALT, CHEDDAR CHEESE (MILK, CHEESE CULTURES, SALT, ENZYMES), WHEY, MONOSODIUM GLUTAMATE, BUTTERMILK, ROMANO CHEESE (PART-SKIM COW’S MILK, CHEESE CULTURES, SALT, ENZYMES), WHEY PROTEIN CONCENTRATE, ONION POWDER, PARTIALLY HYDROGENATED SOYBEAN AND COTTONSEED OIL, CORN FLOUR, NATURAL AND ARTIFICIAL FLAVOR, DEXTROSE, TOMATO POWDER, LACTOSE, SPICES, ARTIFICIAL COLOR: YELLOW 6 & 5, RED 40, LACTIC ACID, CITRIC ACID, SUGAR, GARLIC POWDER, SKIM MILK, WHEY PROTEIN ISOLATE, CORN SYRUP SOLIDS, RED AND GREEN BELL PEPPER POWDER, SODIUM CASEINATE, DISODIUM GUANYLATE, DISODIUM INOSINATE.

The Answer is:

Doritos Nacho Cheese, 100-Calorie Pack

A few of you guess it right! Good job. I L-O-V-E-D Doritos and would crave them during my pregnancies. Do not judge 🙂 The companies have it right when it comes to grabbing you with an addicting taste… they are good. Am I the only one?

Let me compare the two labels for you so you can see where they trick you into thinking “healthier” is better for you.

I think it is sad. Healthier should not mean adding more additives and extra not-so-good-for-you ingredients. It seems by doing this they are sending out the message that healthy does not really taste good. I think the major food companies are wrong here. Do you?

Day Forty One. Non GMO Lifestyle.

Day Forty One.

It gets easier. Let me tell you. If you are new to the non GMO life, please do not give up! You can do it and your budget can do it too! At first I felt completely overwhelmed, I felt like I couldn’t eat anything and that everything took a million years to prepare, plus the food cost was craaaazy. You know what I am talking about, right? If you are new to my blog, I encourage you to check out the first few days of our journey and learn more about the “why’s” we chose this for our family. Here are the first few days: Day One. Day Two. Day Three.

We have had many ups and downs in the last couple of months during this journey, but I honestly can say, I feel like we are getting the hang of it. Our bodies no longer crave the processed packaged foods, we choose veggies and fruit instead of french fries if we go out to eat. I cannot say the same for my sweet tooth 🙂 I still want something sweet at night so I have had to learn a new way of baking or spend the extra $$ and buy the over-priced organic versions of my favorite baking supplies. Trust me, it IS worth the extra money, it is.

If you feel like you cannot afford to eat all organic and non GMO, you are probably right. I hate to say it, but I have to be honest, it is not cheap. For our family, we felt that by continually feeding ourselves the processed, GMO laden foods we are actually causing more damage to our bodies that we will pay for later on in life. Why not give up that Starbucks, or $10+ movie ticket and try to buy local, organic foods? Go to your local farmers market on a Saturday or find a farm share near you for your produce. If you could make just one change today what do you think would be most important for your family?

All that being said, I really just want to encourage you if you have already started trying to eliminate GMO’s or you are just thinking about it, you CAN DO IT. I would start with snack foods, things in packages. Try snacking on fresh fruits and veggies, nuts and seeds instead. Start slow and keep making changes as you can. Even if you can only get 75% percent of your diet to organic that is still better than nothing! Right?!

Did you have the chance to guess the Know Your Ingredients from yesterday? If you missed it here are the ingredients again. Remember this is actually sold as “food”, even though I do not see one real ingredient in this list!

Know Your Ingredients. Name This Product!

#7

WATER, CORN SYRUP, HYDROGENATED VEGETABLE OIL (COCONUT AND PALM KERNEL OILS), HIGH FRUCTOSE CORN SYRUP, LESS THAN TWO PERCENT OF SODIUM CASEINATE (FROM MILK), NATURAL AND ARTIFICIAL FLABOR, XANTHAN AND GUAR GUMS, POLYSORBATE 60, SORBITAN MONOSTEARATE, BETA CAROTENE (COLOR).

The answer is:

KRAFT COOL WHIP!!

Here is my favorite recipe for homemade whipped cream. You will never want store bought again. It is SOOO easy and very versatile, which is always a huge bonus for me. I do not have a picture of my own, but next time I make it I intend to change out the picture.

(photo taken from: culinarymasterclass.com )

Fresh Whipped Cream

Ingredients

• 8OZ Organic Heavy whipping cream
• 2 T. Powdered sugar (organic!)
• 1 Heaping teaspoon of vanilla extract

 Preparation

1. PLACE MIXING BOWL IN THE FREEZER FOR UP TO 30 MINUTES BEFORE YOU MAKE THIS.  YOU WANT THE BOWL TO BE VERY COLD FOR BEST RESULTS.
2. WHIP THE CREAM IN A MIXER ON HIGH UNTIL SOFT PEAKS START FORMING.
3. SLOWLY ADD THE POWDERED SUGAR AND VANILLA.  BE CAREFUL TO NOT OVER MIX AT THIS POINT.
4. PLACE IN REFRIGERATOR UNTIL READY TO USE.