Make Your Own Yogurt

I make my own yogurt on a regualr basis and often get lots of folks asking me how to make it. Here are the simple instructions so you can also make your own yogurt!

I like to use whole or 2% milk because I believe it is better for you than fat free. I buy raw milk at the Farmer's Market whenever it is available and make each batch of yogurt with a 1/2 gallon of milk.

First heat the milk to 180F, this takes about 10 minutes on my small gas stove. I set my timer so I don't forget about it and have it boil over! If it does by chance boil then it is OK to let it cool down and continue.

Once it is at 180F take it off the stove and pour it into a big mixing bowl. I only do this because I think it will cool down quicker this way and it is easier to stir in the starter yogurt.

Cool the milk down to 110F, I find this usually takes about 45 minutes and again I set the timer because I tend to forget about it!

Next  add some yogurt from a last batch as a starter for the next batch, 

usually 6 or 8 ounces for a 1/2 gallon of milk

Mix in the yogurt so it is smooth and not lumpy

Ladle the mixture into containers for the finished yogurt. As you can see I like to use canning jars, they are economical, just the right size and easy for me to give to family and friends!

I put all the containers in a tray that will then go in to the 200F oven. 

Heat the oven to 200F and then make sure to turn it off. 

You want to keep the yogurt warm but not too warm! 

Sometimes I put the yogurt jars in a cooler with a warmed up heating pad

 any warm place will do.

I like to cover the jars with an old towel to keep in the warmth.

Notice what time it is when you put the yogurt in the oven

and 6 to 8 hours later take it out of the oven

You can see it is firmed up after the 6 to 8 hours in the oven

I like to eat it chilled with berries, cinnamon and sometimes 

with walnuts, almonds or oatmeal.

So now you know how to make your own yogurt!

Enjoy!

Don’t be Fooled by the Labels

We go to the store to find all kinds of ‘healthy’ food and read all the fancy labels with the terms, natural, fresh and cage free that imply these foods were produced on a lovely farm with nothing but fresh air and nutrients from the soil. They want us to believe these foods are pure and natural and made with wonderfully intact organic ingredients.

Oh it is all a gimmick, it is ‘big foods’ way of trying to lure us into believing all those unhealthy, processed and packaged foods are really nutrient dense healthy foods.

Help me understand how it can be OK to put the words blueberry and pomegranate on the front of a cereal box and as well have pictures of those fresh fruits but then have nothing that even resembles either of those foods in the box of cereal.

Do you know what natural flavorings are? Really they are chemicals used to make something taste a certain way. Chemists in a lab create natural flavoring like artificial flavors and really there is nothing natural about them.  Do not be fooled by the term naturally flavored.

We get all twisted up about eating organic which can also lead us to misinformation. For instance if you are drinking organic soda, you are still drinking soda that is loaded with sugar and calories that will still spike your insulin levels and really is not any better for you than non organic soda. The other day I was buying fish and there was organic salmon in the case, which means the salmon was fed organic corn. I would prefer to eat wild caught salmon instead of farm raised or organic because it is still fed an unnatural diet of corn. Now if we are eating fruits or vegetables of course we want to eat organic but once we start processing the food eating the organic version is not that much more helpful.

Next time you are shopping for eggs, go to the Farmer’s Market and ask the farmer about his chickens.  The labels on the eggs in the grocery store says ‘cage free’ which leads me to believe these beautiful, happy chickens are communing with each other out of the cages and now have this happy little cage free life. Imagine my horror (and now yours) when we find out the term ‘cage free’ stipulates by the FDA that the chickens only be out of their cages for 5 minutes a day. They do not have to be outside and able to get fresh air either.

So you see the government and ‘big food’ want you to believe you are eating something you are not. They are trying to give us the impression that our food is all healthy and free from chemicals. Do you really thing 5 minutes a day makes a chicken cage free?

Go to your Farmer’s Markets and talk to the farmers. Ask them how they grow the food they are selling and know that you are getting what they say you are getting.  Secondly if you must buy processed foods look at the ingredients NOT the pretty pictures and descriptive words and better yet buy whole foods that do not require labels.

Thanks for letting me rant!

It’s that time of year again when everyone is talking about their resolutions or avoiding them altogether. A resolution is a goal or intention you set for yourself for changes you would like to make in your life.

For many years on New Year’s Eve my daughters and I would sit down and write our resolutions for the next year, they were usually the same things year after year because I never made a plan for how to accomplish any of the changes I wanted to make.

The resolutions were so broad and open-ended such as; get a better job, pay off credit cards, lose weight, be a better parent, eat better etc. These were all well intentioned and I probably changed my food for a day or a week and I may have exercised for a few days but that was the end of it. What I really perpetuated more than anything was the feeling of failure - that I wasn’t able to keep the resolutions. So I pushed them aside and kept on the same path I had been on the previous year of over eating, being too sedentary, over spending etc.

This year my first intention is to create resolutions that I can maintain and work towards in order to feel joyful about the New Year and the new goals I am accomplishing. In order to be successful I have to break down the general goals into manageable pieces that I can work towards a little at a time. Remember, it is the small changes that build up over time that make the difference.

These 7 steps will give you a road map for creating success with your resolutions.

Write your goals in the present tense so that your mind /unconscious sees this as happening and will work towards it. If you put the goal in the future tense then your unconscious will keep thinking it is something happening in the future.

7 Steps to Creating Attainable Resolutions

1. Define your goal

2. Refine your goal

3. Make your goal very specific

4. Visualize each day how you will feel once this goal is complete. Become comfortable with that feeling so you can remember it anytime you want.

5. Create a game plan – write it down

6. Determine how you will measure your success

7. Periodically (monthly or weekly) reevaluate the goals to determine if it is still realistic or needs to be redefined.

Here is a sample of how to work these

7 Steps to Creating Attainable Resolutions
regarding paying off credit cards

1. Define your goal

I am paying off my credit cards.

2. Refine your goal

I am creating financial abundance and more peace of mind.

3. Make your goal very specific.

I am earning $12,000 more this year, $1000 a month.

4. Visualize each day how you feel once this goal is complete. Become comfortable with that feeling so you can remember it anytime you want.

Feeling the excitement at paying off the credit card and having enough money to do fun things.

5. Create a game plan

I am doing 3 things each day that lead me towards creating more money. Such as submitting proposals, advertising, making cold calls, applying for a new job, getting a part time job etc.

6. Determine how you will measure your success

I know I am working towards success as I make payments that are more than the minimum without creating additional credit card charges.

7. Periodically (monthly or weekly) reevaluate the goal to determine if it is still realistic or needs to be redefined.

I am failing at doing 3 things each day and need to be more realistic in doing two things each day. Or I have earned enough money to pay off all my credit card charges; do I want to create a new goal or intention?

Here is another sample of how to work these
7 Steps to Creating Attainable Resolutions
regarding losing weight

1. Define your goal

I am losing weight

2. Refine your goal

I feel good about the size and shape of my body.

3. Make your goal very specific

I am losing 25 pounds and becoming more physically fit

4. Visualize each day how you will feel once this goal is complete. Become comfortable with that feeling so you can remember it anytime you want.

I am feeling joy each time I look in the mirror, I love all the compliments and the way my clothes fit.

5. Create a game plan - start with something small and manageable

I am eliminating junk food, especially in the late afternoon and replacing it with apples, nuts or other whole foods. Six days a week I will do some form of exercise, weights, running, walking, or yoga for a minimum of 20 minutes.

6. Determine how you will measure your success

With each pound shed I know I am working towards my goal. With each 5 pounds shed I will do something special for myself like get a massage, buy a small piece of jewelry or go to a movie.

7. Periodically (monthly or weekly) reevaluate the goal to determine if it is still realistic or needs to be redefined.

I am successful with eliminating the afternoon junk food binges so now I am going to eliminate bread at lunch and dinner.

I have lost all 25 pounds and want to keep up my exercise program and healthy eating.

Find a partner to share your resolutions with, someone to share the ups and downs with as you travel this journey to a Successful and Happy New Year.

Hugs,

Helen

Click here to download the 7 Steps worksheet

Label Comparison

Is it just me or do you find yourself misled by the labels put on 'processed' food.

Let's take for instance the Kashi Go Lean cereal vs the Kashi Go Lean Crunch cereal. When I have seen these two cereals in the store I have seen that they both have a lot of fiber (9 & 10 grams) and a lot of protein (12 grams). Plus they say GO LEAN on them and Kashi seems to be a name I could trust. They each have the words naturally sweetened on the label and the clusters has a picture of the cereal with blueberries on it. So if I went out to buy cereal I think I would pick up the Crunch just because it was more appealing with the pretty picture of the blueberries. Oh but did I mention that there are no blueberries in them but that you could have the blueberries in them if you wanted. Why do I feel a little bit decieved?

So at first glance I figured these would have about the same amount of calories. I mean they both say Lean on them and they both say 'stay fuller longer' so really except that one is a crunch and one is not I figured they would be pretty equal in calories.

Upon further inspection I noticed that in fact there was a large difference in the calorie count. The Kashi Go Lean Crunch has 240 calories in the cup that is 2.3oz (65 grams) and the Kashi Go Lean has 130 calories while in the same size of cup there is 1.6oz (45 grams) of cereal weight in the cup. I dumped each of these single serving cups into one of my regular bowls to get a visual of the quantity and it sure looks like they have the same amount in each cup.

Looks like it is a pretty healthy serving of cereal.

Is it really just me or do you also think this is a little bit decieving?

That is just one more reason we need to watch the labels of anything we are eating because what the company wants us to believe and what is the truth about a product may be very different.

I could be eating Kashi Go Lean Crunch, thinking I am eating something healthy for me but really I could be eating the same size container of Frosted Flakes with less calories than the Kashi Go Lean Crunch. Ok so the quality of ingredients is different but calorie for calorie I would stick with the Kashi Go Lean IF I was going to be eating cereal.

Be sure to check the labels for the calorie count to make sure you have not been misled by the pretty pictures and fiber and protein count.

Helen's Health Tip: Read the labels and be sure you are eating what you are being led to believe you are eating. Watch the calorie count and other misleading information.

To nourishing yourself,

Helen

Quinoa Breakfast

I like to have a breakfast that leans toward sweet but have given up eating those processed muffins, cereals, scones and donuts.Instead I have a great breakfast full of whole foods that is easy to prepare, low calorie and very satisfying.

The ingredients are simple:

Red quinoa (just cause I prefer red quinoa to white quinoa)

Plain yogurt (I make my own with organic skim milk)

Blueberries (I eat a lot of organic frozen blueberries and buy fresh or best yet pick my own!)

Ground flax seed (I buy it already ground)

Cinnamon (I prefer Ceylon ground cinnamon from www.renegadehealth.com)

I usually cook up a couple of cups of quinoa at a time and then have it to eat and enjoy quickly and easily. I also make 4 pints of yogurt at a timewith a 1/2 gallon of milk so it is always easy to add to breakfast. Frozen blueberries are the easiest to have around, I put a bag of them in the refrigerator so I have them all thawed and ready to eat.

1/3 cup red quinoa

1/3 cup plain skim yogurt

1/3 cup blueberries

1 Tablespoon ground flaxseed

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

Delish!!

This breakfast has 183 calories, 2.2 gr fat, 26 gr carbohydrate, 4 grams fiber, 7.5 gr protein

Why do we eat?

Why do we eat?
Let's see, it seems to me that this planet called Earth can produce all the plants, animals and water that we need to live a healthy nourished life. So why do we choose to eat lifeless chemicals called "food" that are not nutrient dense and causes more harm to our bodies than the glorious, delicious, fresh whole foods we produce naturally?

When you sit down to eat do you think about nourishing your body, filling that hungry hole or satisfying a desire that comes from an emotional need to eat?

When we eat for nourishment we look for the freshest whole foods we can find. We tend to prepare them minimally to keep the nutrients intact and keep the food as nutrient dense as possible. When we eat these nutrient dense foods we are able to eat large quantities without harmful consequences as our body uses the nutrients without having to store excess fat or carbohydrates. We feel lighter and healthier, we are better able to move and find the joy in life because that is what we have gained from the food we nourish our bodies with.

When we eat to fill that hungry hole we will often reach for the easiest, most accessible food available regardless of the nutritional quality or benefit. That might mean reaching for an apple but more times than not it means picking up some sort of processed food that is prepackaged and filled with lots of chemical and preservatives. More times than not we neglect to limit the portion size because we are so hungry and continue to eat until we feel that overfull feeling.

If we are eating to fill that emotional hole we primarily reach for foods that are high fat, high salt and high calorie that we call comfort food. It is usually food that has been processed from potato chips to ice cream or big pasta dishes and the results are always the same. Too many calories, too much fat followed by guilt and shame from our food choices. Now the advertisers who are trying to sell us the processed foods are targeting those weak moments when we are feeling deprived, neglected or in need of some comfort. We are led to believe that eating the comfort foods will make us feel better or make us better people when in truth they make us feel terrible and full of shame and guilt. The high fat, high calorie (also read high salt and sugar) foods do things like cause obesity, depression, diabetes and the list can go on and on but never once do they improve our health or our mental or emotional condition either.

So let me ask the question again. Why do we eat?

Quinoa is Easy to Prepare!

Quinoa is an excellent source of magnesium, B vitamins, fiber and protein. It is easy to digest and so versatile and delicious for breakfast as a cereal, in a vegetable stirfry or in a cold salad.

To prepare quinoa:

1 cup quinoa - in a strainer rinse it in cold water first

2 cups water

Bring to a boil, cover and simmer 10 - 15 minutes until all the water is absorbed. Fluff with a fork and enoy!

You will notice a white spiral tail (the germ of the seed) when the quinoa is done.

I will often have it for breakfast, substituting it for oatmeal, with plain yogurt, berries, a sprinkle of flaxseed and cinnamon.

I made a delicious salad with quinoa, jicama, strawberries and pumpkin seeds and a lemony viniagrette. It was light and refreshing! Really you can add any vegetables, legumes or fruits to it in any combination you like to enjoy this healthy food.

How do you like to eat quinoa?

Helen