Whole Foods Diet - Before and After

Before - May 2010

After - January 2011

I am an advocate of the Weston A. Price Foundation and its dietary guidelines.  I put the diet to the test this summer.  My daughter Carrisa, who wanted to learn how to prepare healthier food, came to stay with me during her break from college.  We had a glorious summer together.  It was like being in a cooking school every day.  We hiked together early in the morning.  We gardened and grew our own organic vegetables, we shopped at local farmer's markets, and we cooked THE MOST AMAZING FOOD.  We made it a point to never deprive ourselves, in the dietary sense of the word, and made delicious, nutrient-dense food our daily fare.

Kudos To Carrisa

I have to give credit to Carrisa.  No matter how wonderful the WAPF dietary guidelines are, no matter how much cooking Mom was willing to do, it would not have made a difference if Carrisa had not been 100% committed to making a change.

Carrisa is back in school now and she has been amazingly consistent in choosing the highest quality nutrient-dense food that she can find. Carrisa does not compromise.  Even while she maintains a busy work and school schedule she still manages to find time to prepare her own meals. She is an inspiration to me and I believe that the good results that she has experienced speak for themselves.

You can check out the dietary guidelines for the Weston A. Price Foundation in my September 3, 2010 post.

Brett's Squash Soup

Brett's Favorite Squash Soup

2 T. olive oil
1 medium butternut squash, peeled and cubed
2 carrots, diced
3 parsnips, diced
1 small onion, sliced
6 c. chicken stock
1 bay leaf
6 sprigs fresh thyme
1/2 t. coriander
2 T. rice vinegar
salt and pepper to taste

Saute vegetables in oil for 5 minutes.  Add stock and bay leaf and bring to a boil.  Reduce heat, cover, and simmer for about 20 - 25 minutes.  Add seasonings and vinegar and when sufficiently cool puree in small batches.

This soup is a winter favorite in our family.

Edible Flowers

Calendula begins to bloom in our garden in late winter.

Calendula

Some of my favorite edible flowers are anise hyssop, arugula, basil, borage, calendula, chive blossoms, dandelion, dill, johnny-jump-up, lavender, mint, nasturtium, pansy, pea, rose, rosemary, and thyme blossoms.  These flowers add beauty and flavor to spring and summer salads.

I grow all of these flowers in grow boxes and pots.  Some of the herbs are known as perennials and they become permanent garden residents.  Some of the flowers are called annuals - but they are often so hardy that they will  re-seed themselves.  When an annual plant re-seeds itself -  it is an indication that the plant particularly thrives in the location you have planted it.

I seldom plant my garden in neat and tidy rows.  So it is a joy for me to see plants re-seed themselves and return again.  They often spread themselves out and mingle together luxuriously creating beautiful and surprising tapestries of color.  I like surprises and I find these mixed beds much more pleasing than a contrived and organized garden bed.

Quinoa With Dried Cranberries

Quinoa Salad With Dried Cranberries

1 c. quinoa, rinsed well
1/4 c. lemon juice
2 T. olive oil
2 thinly sliced green onions
1/2 c. minced parsley
1/3c. dried cranberries
1/3 c. toasted pumpkin seeds
1 t. sea salt

Bring 2 c. water to boil in a saucepan.  Add rinsed quinoa and 1 t. sea salt.  Reduce heat, cover, and simmer for about 30 minutes or until the quinoa is done.  Set aside to cool slightly.

While the quinoa cooks whisk together lemon juice and olive oil in a shallow bowl.  Add onion, parsley, cranberries, and pumpkin seeds.  When quinoa is sufficiently cool fold it into the mixture and stir to blend.  Adjust salt and add pepper if desired.

Carrisa's Beef Stew

Beef Stew

CARRISA'S BEEF AND MUSHROOM STEW

1 chuck roast, cut into 1 - 2 inch cubes
3 spoonfuls of arrowroot powder
4 - 6 slices of bacon, cut into 1-inch cubes
4 c. beef stock
1 large onion, diced
5 cloves garlic, minced
dash of oregano
2 bay leaves
1 6-oz can of tomato paste
2 carrots, cut into chunks
6 golden Yukon potatoes, peeled and cut into quarters
8 oz. mushrooms, sliced
1/2 bunch parsley, minced
butter
salt and pepper to taste

Put arrowroot with a dash of salt and pepper in a zip-lock bag.  Add cubed beef and shake until the beef is thoroughly coated.

In an enameled cast-iron pot cook bacon pieces over a medium low flame until cooked.  Set aside on a paper towel to drain.  Add a slice of butter to the pan drippings and turn up the heat up to medium.  Brown the beef and set aside on a plate.

Add 1/2 c. beef stock and deglaze the pan.  Add the browned beef, bacon, remaining beef stock, onion, garlic, tomato paste, oregano and bay leaf.  Bring to a boil, reduce heat, cover and simmer until the meat is tender or about 1 hour.  Add carrot and potato and simmer for an additional 1/2 hour - hour.

While the vegetables are cooking saute the mushrooms in a saucepan in butter until tender. 

When the stew is ready stir in the sauteed mushrooms and minced parsley.  Add salt and pepper to taste.

Roast Duck

Roast Duck

When I make roast duck I follow Julia Child's recipe in "Mastering The Art Of French Cooking."

The secret of making delicious duck is to not over cook it.

ROAST DUCK

1 5 1/2 lb. duckling
1/2 t. sea salt
1/8 t. pepper
a pinch of thyme
1 small sliced onion
1 medium slice carrot
1 medium sliced onion
Shallow roasting pan

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.

Season the inside of the duck with sea salt, pepper, herbs and sliced onion.  Secure the legs, wings, and neck skin to the body.  I use twine.  Prick the skin around the thighs, back, and lower breast.  Dry the duck thoroughly with a paper towel.

Place the duck breast up in the roasting pan and strew the carrot and onion around it.  Set the pan in the middle level of the oven for 15 minutes to brown slightly.

Reduce the heat to 350 degree and turn the duck on its side.  Remove accumulated fat occasionally with a bulb baster.  Basting a duck is not necessary.

About 20 minutes later turn the duck to its other side.

15 minutes later salt the duck and turn it breast up.

The duck is done to medium rare if the juices from the fattest part of the thigh or drumstick run faintly rosy when the meat is pricked.  The duck is well done when the juices run pale yellow.

When done, discard trussing strings and place the duck on a platter.

SAUCE FOR DUCK

To make a sauce spoon out all but 1 Tablespoon of fat.  Add 1 - 2 c. of stock and boil rapidly scraping up roasting juices and crushing the vegetables until the liquid is reduced at least by half.  Correct the seasoning.  Add some butter and swirl around in sauce.  Pour sauce over sliced duck and serve.

Wild Foraging

In the winter in southern California you can grow a wonderful assortment of vegetables in the backyard garden.  Cool season vegetables that do well in the winter are lettuce, Swiss chard, spinach, broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, leeks, green onion, garden peas, endive, escarole and kale.

In the winter I always seem to get out of a garden mood.  I really like the IDEA of a winter garden.  I have yet to actually do one.

Come winter I like to spend my time hiking in the hills. The hills are green and as the rain comes wild edibles and wild flowers begin to appear.  When I am out hiking in the winter if I keep an eye out I might find wild edibles such as wild onion, miner's lettuce, mallow, rose hips, or wild strawberries.

Foraging is fun.  If you are interested in learning more about wild foods I recommend getting a good plant identification guide or taking a class.