Wise Traditions: Sally Fallon Responds

I recently stumbled across a website produced by the Weston A. Price Foundation featuring a FAQ section with responses by Sally Fallon, author of Nourishing Traditions, which I have mentioned before and which Jordan Rubin references in his books.

Fallon discusses a host of foods and health issues, including soy, supplements, the benefits of cod liver oil, sweeteners and concerns with raw dairy just to name a few.

If you haven’t read her book yet, reading her answers to some of these questions will give you an idea of her stance on nutrition.

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Making Kombucha at Home

You may have read my previous blog on kombucha, a raw, highly nutritious fermented drink containing naturally occurring vitamins, probiotics, amino acids, antioxidants, etc.

After a month of purchasing kombucha from the store, I am considering ordering a starter kombucha “mushroom” and making the drink myself at home. It only costs 20 cents a cup when made a home! Whereas, if you purchase it at a health food store, it usually costs $3.50-$4.00 per 32 oz. bottle

There are a number of places online where you can order a kombucha starter. Sally Fallon specifically recommends two websites:

www.gemcultures.com

www.laurelfarms.com

I particularly recommend you check out the Laurel Farms website. Laurel Farms is the only place you get a starter kombucha “mushroom” and kit that has been approved by the FDA. Laurel Farms website also gives instructions on how to make kombucha at home.

The kombucha benefits are enormous. Read more.

One thing you may notice when purchasing kombucha, even the kind that contains 5% fruit juice, is the somewhat sour taste. But due to the added fruit juice in some versions sold at the health food store, the taste is quite palatabe, even delicious. My sister has made kombucha at home and commented on the extremely potent sour taste of the homemade version of the brew. However, if you mix it with a small amount of fruit juice, you can take the edge off of it quite easily.

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Soaked-Flour Breads

I have continued reading Sally Fallon’s Nourishing Traditions and have been attempting many of her recipes. For those of you who don’t know, Fallon’s bread recipes call for the flour to be soaked in yogurt, kefir or homemade cultured buttermilk (or water and homemade whey for those with milk allergies) for 12-24 hours prior to baking. (Many of these recipes are also referenced in Jordan Rubin's The Maker's Diet.

I made my first loaf of bread (banana bread to be exact) this way the other night. It ended up taking 2.5 hours to cook and I still do not think that it tastes banana-y enough. However, the bread is very moist and the texture is delicious. I have decided to alter the recipe the next time by adding an additional banana, as well as a ½-¾ cup of additional flour just before baking. I think this may help the flavor and the baking time.

In addition, I made her basic muffin recipe (adding blueberries for a blueberry muffin version) last night. After the long cooking time of the banana bread, I was worried that the muffins might take just as long also. So, after soaking the flour for 24 hours in water and whey, I added the rest of the ingredients (doubling the amount of maple syrup called for to ensure the muffins were sweet enough for my taste), then I added an additional cup to cup-and-a-half of spelt flour to thicken the batter a bit. (I like spelt flour best for baking.) Rather than taking 1 hour to bake as the recipe indicated, my muffins only took 30 minutes to bake. I’m sure that was due to the additional flour. The muffins taste fine, although they are a bit hearty and not as moist as the banana bread. In addition they are not blueberry tasting enough. Simply adding 7 blueberries on top of the dough just doesn’t cut it. The next time I make them, I’ll mash ½ cup of blueberries and add it to the batter, and add only ½ cup of additional flour at the end rather than a full cup. Then I’ll continue to add the blueberries on the top of the muffin dough prior to baking.

Soaked flour breads are much healthier for you than regular breads as they allow the flour to sour and ferment, giving it a natural ability to rise without the help of yeast or other additives, and breaking down the hard-to-digest qualities of the grain so that your body can more easily absorb the nutrients.

My next project will be attempting Fallon’s Sourdough Bread Start recipe, which calls for rye flour and takes 7 days to make. From there I’ll be able to use the starter to make real, old-fashioned sourdough bread. Sourdough starters can also be bought online (if you do not wish to take the time to make them yourself): www.gemcultures.com/bread_leavens.htm

Sourdough bread can then be used not only for sandwiches, but also for other recipes like kvass and other healthy fermented beverages.

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The Maker’s Diet: How to Get Started

The Maker’s Diet is a 40-day plan to help reboot your body and make a lifestyle change in your eating habits. If you have read the book, you’ll know there are three phases to the 40-day plan: Phase 1 (restricted diet/cleanse), Phase 2 (less restricted diet/cleanse), Phase 3: how you will be eating for the rest of your life.

If you are healthy person and/or do not feel the need to lose any weight, Jordan Rubin suggests that you can simply start at Phase 3. If, however, you are suffering from an illness or condition and would like to do a cleanse to detoxify your body and/or lose weight, you should start with Phase 1.

If you have decided to start at Phase 1, then you should look at the list of foods at the back The Maker’s Diet that you are to eat during that phase and do your grocery shopping accordingly.

If, however, you would like to start with Phase 3 and simply slowly transition from the way you are currently eating to a Maker’s Diet lifestyle, here is a list of what I consider to be the initial essentials:

Distilled, Pure Water – If you get it at the grocery store, make sure it says distilled somewhere on the label at least. Some companies just label them “pure,” “drinking water” or “spring water." Some of these may be distilled, but not all of them are. So look with a savvy eye at what you're purchasing Better yet, find a pure water store in your area that distills and purifies its water.

Organic Extra Virgin Coconut Oil - I order Wilderness Family's Extra Virginia Traditional Fermented Philippine Coconut Oil in bulk along with a group of friends. We purchase a case of 6 1-gallon buckets. Each is around $50. It lasts a long time, you can use it in all your cooking/baking, and the Wilderness Family brand tastes less "coconuty" than any other brand I've tried. If you're not interested in ordering from Wilderness Family, Nutiva is a decent brand that is cost effective.

Organic Unrefined Extra Virgin Olive Oil (Spectrum or Napa Valley is what I get – it’s unrefined and cold-pressed)

Organic or Free-range, Raw Cow’s Milk Cheese - Horizon now sells raw cow’s milk cheese. Organic Food Depot also offers raw cow's milk cheese - the brand name is Morningland Dairy. However, I purchase raw milk cheese through Quail Cove farms because it is a comparable price to the other brands, but more importantly it tastes so much better! They carry two good brands: Bunker Hill raw milk cheddar and Minerva signature raw white cheddar. Both are delicious.

Raw or Nonhomogenized Whole Cow’s Milk - from organically fed or preferably free-range, pastured cows – If you are hestitant to make the committment to raw milk (necessitating investment in a cow share if you live in Virginia), then your next best option is something like what Yoder Dairies provides. Yoder Dairies is located just off the corner of Princess Ann and Kempsville in Virginia Beach. If you live elsewhere, do a search for a local dairy in your area … make sure the cattle are not given hormones or antibiotics and there are no preservatives or additives in the milk.

Free-range Eggs - I get mine through Quail Cove Farms. They are the least expensive free-range eggs I've yet to find: 2.79 per dozen, and they're large and delicious. Yoder Dairies also carries free-range eggs from time to time. Organic Food Depot also sells local free-range eggs (Wilda's) for about $3.50 per dozen.

Organic Whole Milk Plain Yogurt (for smoothies – go here http://www.biblicalhealthinstitute.com/Resources/JordanRubinsRecipes/tabid/80/itemid/206/Default.aspx for a recipe) – Purchase plain, organic whole milk yogurt from pasture-fed cows. Seven Star Dairy is my favorite brand. It is available through Organic Food Depot. I purchase fruit (usually stawberries) seperately (enough for 2 cups), puree them in the blender, adding 2 Tbsp of raw honey and 2 Tbsp of pure maple syrup. I then add this to my plain, organic whole milk yogurt. This recipe makes the most delicious yogurt I've ever had--and without sugar!

Raw Honey - Obtaining raw, unfiltered, unheated honey is very important. However, as it is expensive, I have a few suggestions. If you and your family eat honey on toast, in homemade salad dressing or in anything else unheated, use a brand like Really Raw Honey, or something comparable like Honey in the Rough, or Al & Bea's Pure Honey (Elizabeth City, N.C.) Be sure this honey has never been heated and is completely unfiltered. Honey such as this is avaialbe through places like Organic Food Depot, some Vitamin Shoppe stores, and of course through local bee farmers. If your finances do not allow you to use raw unheated honey for cooking/baking, purchase something such as local unfiltered, raw honey (produced by Golden Angels Apiary - available through Organic Food Depot) which has never been heated above 110 degrees. While this is slightly heated honey, it is more cost-effective when baking wherein the honey will be heated anyway. One option for Virginians is Golden Angels Apiary raw, unheated, Tupelo, light and mild in 5 lb jars for around $20.

Sprouted Whole Grain Bread or Whole Grain Spelt, Kamut, or Sourdough Bread – Berlin Bread Factory is a good brand or Food for Life's Ezekiel Bread (although I like it better toasted). If you are like me, you may prefer to make your own bread, which is extremely cost-effective. I purchase organic wheat berries (grain) for anywhere from .52-.71 per pound, depending on brand and if I purchase in bulk. This is extremely inexpensive. I also purchase spelt berries (grain) as well for around $1.09 per pound. I also buy a variety of other grains including Kamut, barley, rye, dry corn, rice, etc. All of these items I get through Quail Cove Farms, which has the best prices on grain in the Hampton Roads area. I sprout the grain, dry it and grind it into flour for baking bread. If you don't wish to sprout your grain, you can also use it for soaked recipes. Sue Gregg's recipe books offer a number of usage options for whole grains using simple, everyday appliances such as a blender and coffee bean mill. If you do not have the time for this, try to stick to Ezekiel bread for the benefits of sprouted grains.

Other Sprouted Grains – hamburgers, burrito/taco shells, hot dog buns, etc. All of sorts of items are available in a sprouted-grain format through companies like Food for Life and Alvarado Street Bakery.

Pure Maple Syrup (organic or natural)—we buy ours at Costco in bulk, not organic but it’s still pure.

Organic Fruits and Veggies – Organic Food Depot carries an enormous selection of competitvely-priced produce. Many of their items are even less expensive than non-organic produce at other grocery stores like Farm Fresh and Harris Teeter, etc. For example, I have purchased organic green peppers for .51 cents each and organic red peppers for $1.51 each at Organic Food Depot. See my blog for the link to what fruits and veggies to buy organic.

Organic or Free-Range Meat - Organic Food Depot sells a wonderful local brand called Gryffon's Aerie. Their beef is the most delicious, free-range beef I've ever eaten. (I also sometimes buy the organic Naturals beef at Harris Teeter because it’s certified.) Another fantastic option is Trader Joe's, which carries a wide selection of free-range meats. (Just make sure the meat you’re getting is antibiotic free, hormone free and preservative/additive free.)

Organic or Free-Range Chicken - I buy chicken through Quail Cove Farms. They sell Amish-raised free-range chicken that is priced so well my friends can't believe it. Harris Teeter also sells organic chicken, but is it far more expensive than Quail Cove Farms.

Celtic Sea Salt - Available at both Heritage Health Food store and Organic Food Depot. Real Kosher Sea Salt via OFD is also a decent option.

Seasonings – Get rid of all seasonings in your cupboard that have sugar in them. Replace them with organic and/or natural seasonings as you can afford. Your seasonings should never say "natural flavorings" on the ingredient label. This could mean they contain MSG. The most cost-effective seasonings that I've found are available through Quail Cove Farms. You can buy them per cup or per pound. Either way, it equals a huge savings!

Organic, Unfiltered Juice - You want to purchase juice as close to raw as possible; not from concentrate. Harris Teeter, Farm Fresh or Organic Food Depot all carry not-from concentrate organic juice. Bionature is a good brand.

These are the major things you should start by changing. When my husband and I switched to eating this way, it was very costly at first because I wasn’t sure where to find the things we needed, and we ended up overspending simply from lack of information as to where to purchase things in our area. We do not have a Whole Foods in Hampton Roads, so I went to a lot of small, overprice health food stores in the area at first. When we found the Organic Food Depot and Quail Cove Farms, I was overjoyed. Then when Harris Teeter and Farm Fresh started carrying some organic foods, particularly Harris Teeter’s very reasonably priced ones, it became even easier to shop organically on a budget.

For those of you wanting to start eating according to The Maker’s Diet, don’t be afraid about the money. If you plan your meals and snacks ahead of time, you can shop and eat following The Maker’s Diet with only a small increase in your budget. For example, before switching to this way of eating, I had a budget of $100 per week for food for my husband and me. Now that we are eating The Maker’s Diet way, I spend about $115-125 per week. Overall, that’s only about a maximum one-quarter increase in my budget—-not bad considering how much better we both feel eating this way.

Here are a list of other things to add to your as continue to transition into Phase 3:

Make sure the nuts you buy are raw and organic – commercial nuts absorb a lot of pesticides. Before consuming, be sure to soak raw nuts and seeds in water/salt mixture (brine), then dry them in either a dehydrator at 115 degrees or on your oven's lowest setting (can take up to 9 hours). This is the only healthy way to consume nuts and seeds. (Flax seeds and sesame seeds when consumed in small amounts are the exception).

Switch from chips and processed snacks to some of the snack options I mention on my blogs about where to shop: organic dried fruit (no sugar added)—Harris Teeter and OFD, organic raw nuts (prepared as described above)—Harris Teeter and OFD, baked millet and flaxseed pita chips by Sami’s (via OFD), organic salsa—Harris Teeter and OFD, Lara Bars (via OFD), etc. A lot of these items are also carried at places like Whole Foods. Or you can make your own tortilla chips using natural corn tortillas (containing only corn, lime and water) from Trader Joe's - spread with organic extra virgin coconut oil and broil in the oven, then add sea salt.

Ketchup – switch to fruit-sweetened ketchup in order to avoid the high amount of sugar and high fructose corn syrup in commercial ketchups. Westbrae Fruit Sweetened Ketchup is what I get via Organic Food Depot, but I know that Whole Foods stores carry it also.

Organic Omega-3 Mayonnaise with Flax Oil – this is a product made by Spectrum. Switch to this in order to follow The Maker’s Diet list of healthy oils and fats. It’s delicious. Carried in many health food stores, Organic Food Depot, Whole Foods, etc.

Super Seed fiber powder by Garden of Life – for when or if you decide to go back and do Phase 1 of The Maker’s Diet. This is also good to have on hand for weekly cleansing during a day of fasting, etc.

Primal Defense Ultra by Garden of Life – time-release living soil and probiotic organisms for healthy digestion, I swear by these.

Cod Liver Oil – a very healthy supplement for natural source of vitamins and omega-3 fatty acids. Be sure to purchase a brand that uses only wild cod so that mercury and other toxins are not present (i.e. Olde World Icelandic Cod Liver Oil by Garden of Life, or Cod Liver Oil by Spectrum)

Organic Flax Seed Oil – do not cook with; instead use in homemade salad dressing, smoothies, and other things to give you healthy omega-3 fatty acids and living enzymes.

Kombucha – fermented Chinese tea drink (sweetened with 5% fruit juice) containing enzymes, amino acids, probiotics, antioxidants, etc. It’s a great substitute for soda if you’re used to carbonated drinks. I often drink this instead of juice as well – less calories. Kombuch is extremely healthy for you. The guava flavor is good and so is the mango.

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Finding Safety: Body Care, Hair Care, Skin Care, and Cosmetics

Are you fully aware of what types of chemicals are being absorbed into your body? Probably more than you realize! Not to mention what these personal-care toxins are doing to damage the environment. Men though they may use less personal care products over all, are subject to this commercial ingredient lunacy as well as women. Even babies are being born with high counts of toxins in their bodies.

Last fall I decided it was time to start switching over to more all-natural/organic personal care products. Many of you may want to do the same. But, with the host of companies trying to sell you on their brand of organic or natural items, how do you know what’s best?

After doing a year’s worth of research, trying various products, and using the Environmental Working Group’s sub-site Skin Deep (a personal care product rating system based on ingredients and known toxins) to determine what products have the safest ingredients and still work well, I have come up with a number of products that I love.

My biggest piece of advice? Check out the Skin Deep website above. It has a catalogue of not only gazillions of commercial personal care products and cosmetics, but also a number of organic and all-natural ones as well. Visiting this site will give you an idea of how products are rated and what ingredients to avoid. This is a fantastic place to start. Do a quick search to see how your products rate. Here is Skin Deep’s link to “what not to buy” due to very high-risk ingredients. Also, here is a link to their recent news reports.

Here is a list of ingredients I avoid:
Propylene Glycol
Aluminum
Artificial Colors (such as FD&C)
Benzoates
DEA, MEA, TEA
Hydroxyl Acids
Retinoic Acids
Sodium Lauryl Sulfate
BHT
Isopropyl Alcohol (made from petroleum)
Phthalates, Dibutyl Phthalate, DBP (on label: “fragrance”)
Fragrances (this does not include essential oils)
Parraffin
Formaldehydes
Parabens
Mineral Oil in all its forms (see below)
Talc
Toluene
Benzoates

Various Names of Mineral Oil:
Petrolatum
Paraffin
Clearteck
Drakeol
Hevyteck
Filtrawhite
Frigol
Kremol
Kaydol
Albline
Nujol
Paroleine
Saxol
Adepsine
Glymol
Lignite
Carnea 21
Ervol
Gloria
Hydrocarbon oils
Peneteck
Primol
Triona B
Blandlube
Crystosol
Molol
Protopet
Bayol F
Crystol 325
Fonoline
Bayol 55
Kondremul
Neo-cultol
Parol
Penreco
Perfecta
Petrogalar
Primol 355
Primol D
Tech Pet F

It is important to ALWAYS read the labels—even for all-natural and organic products. Not all companies that advertise their products as all natural and/or organic actually avoid the ingredients listed above. So it is essential that you become aware of what ingredients to avoid. This will make your shopping experience much more efficient. I keep a list of ingredients to avoid in my wallet for when I shop (either online or in-store).

In addition to the Environmental Working Group’s Skin Deep website, there are plenty of other helpful websites:

One of these is Dr. Bronner’s. Not only does Dr. Bronner’s sell some of the most pure soap available on the market, but in addition, their website provides some wonderful information on how to read the labels of organic/natural skin and body care products. Make sure to check it out. (And you wouldn’t believe what some companies put in soap these days. Try switching to Dr. Bronner’s. It’s safe, it’s economical. You can get it in bulk. It’s available at most health food stores and through the Organic Food Depot)

If you are one of those people who needs convincing about switching your personal care products, view this article about the toxins and cancer-contributing ingredients found in everyday beauty products. I can’t believe the government can allow the use of some of these things.

Another great website is www.treehugger.com. This website is a wonderful resource when scoping out what products are available and what products are safest. It provides a large list of options on alternative cosmetics and personal care products. Wonderful stuff!

Another fantastic website is www.organicconsumers.org. Here you can read articles on the latest issue regarding organic food ratings, what to look for when buying organic food (how companies can trick you) and personal care products as well. You can even find a list of ingredients to avoid in personal care products and a survey you can submit to be a part of petitioning for healthier restrictions.

Without further ado, here is my personal-care list of Top Safe Favorites:


Cosmetics

Meow Cosmetics
Pure mineral foundation powders, blush powders, eye shadow powders, eye liner powders. This company is at the top of my list. Check out their website. Need I say more? I don’t think so.

Ecco Bella
Ecco Bellas products are available through the Organic Food Depot online catalogue or via other sellers online. I endorse their lipsticks, lip glosses, eye liners, eye shadows, blush powders, face powders, concealers, mascaras etc., but I DO NOT purchase their lotions, skin care, liquid foundation and a few other products because they contain parabens (estrogenic chemical preservatives). Make sure to double check on this when viewing their webpage, but the last time I checked these few products were not paraben-free.

Real Purity
Wonderful blushes. My favorite is Pearl Mocha. They offer lots of other cosmetics and skin care that is safe and pure as well, even toothpaste! These products are also available through www.bewellstaywell.com.

Anise Cosmetics (Nail Polish)
What a find this has been! Nail polishes that are formaldehyde-free, phthalate-free and toluene-free. I can personally vouch for how amazingly healthy and long my nails have gotten since I stopped using highly toxic, commercial nail polish. Instead I use Anise nail polish a couple times a month. My nails no longer discolor when using their polish, and my nails no longer peel, break and chip so easily. For those of you living in Virginia Beach or Chesapeake, you can get Anise nail polishes from DSW Shoes in Greenbrier, across from the mall. Otherwise, you can order them online.

Gabriel Cosmetics & Zuzu Luxe Cosmetics
I have not yet had a chance to try these products, but many of them look wonderful and have gotten good reviews from other consumers. Not all of the products are the safest on the Skin Deep rating list, but take a look and be sure to review the ingredients. You can also do an assessment of your own on the Skin Deep website be inputting the ingredients of a product not listed in order to see how it will rate. Gabriel and Zuzu offer skin care and cosmetics.

Jane Iredale Cosmetics
These products are especially made for women who have sensitive skin or who have undergone plastic surgery of some kind. Most of these products rate quite well. Again, be sure to check Skin Deep for ratings and look at the ingredients. (When visiting the site, click on “Jane Iredale direct” to view products.) My favorite Jane items are the daytime eyeshadow kit, the 24-karat gold shimmer kit and the lip liners. The lipsticks and glosses are nice too and have a 3 out of 10 rating.

Organic Makeup Company
Foundation, powders, lipsticks, lip liners, eye shadows, etc. I have tried their eye shadow liners, their lipsticks and their glosses, all which I love. Their products are available through Amazon.com and www.bewellstaywell.com, as well as other websites. The latter site is also a good place to find other safe brands of cosmetics. But once again, read the labels. There are some products on bewellstaywell.com that don’t rate as well as others and contain talc and other ingredients that are best avoided. Organic Makeup Company’s main site does not actually sell its products, but it does provide a wonderful guide of ingredients to avoid in cosmetics.

i.d. bare minerals
This is a mainstream, commercial mineral makeup company. As such, they do not post their product ingredients on their website (generally a sign that they are hiding something). Through doing some research, however, I found that ONLY their eye shadow powders, blush powders, and select foundation powders are safe, pure minerals. Some of their products are not completely pure such as Mineral Veil, as well as their lipsticks, lip glosses, mascaras, etc. The Mineral Veil, for instance, contains parabens (estrogenic chemical preservatives). So, if you choose to purchase product by i.d. bare minerals, make sure to read the label, or simply stick with the eye shadows and blush powders.

Honeybee Gardens
Nice products: lipsticks (not as few ingredients as Real Purity and some others, but still non-toxic), mascara, lip glosses, eye liners, eye shadow powders, etc. I have not tried any of these products yet. I have only tried their water-based nail polish and deodorant powder—neither of which I was thrilled with. However, I still plan to try their cosmetics, as many of their colors look wonderful. They also carry skin care products, I believe, but not all of them are as pure as other skin care products I’ve seen. Again, read the labels.

Afterglow Cosmetics
Powder foundations, powder blushes, eye shadows, powder eye liners, lipsticks, lip glosses. Afterglow has pure products. I have tried their powders, but not their lip products. Personally, I wasn’t a huge fan of their foundation powder and blush. However, I have yet to try their lipsticks, which, if you look at the website, look very colorful. However, of all the mineral pure companies, I prefer Meow Cosmetics.


Skin Care, Body Care, Hair Care

Trillium Organics
This is a recent find of mine, and I am in love with this company’s products, all of which are handmade. Organic body polish, organic body oil, organic body butter, organic body soap, organic face polish, organic perfume etc. All products are made with the purest ingredients. Their organic body polish serves as a body scrub in the shower and a moisturizer. The organic body soap contains pure saponified oils that gently cleans without being harsh. Their products are scented with pure essential oils. The most popular scent is pink grapefruit. I cannot say enough about how wonderful these products are. Their body soap can even be used as a shampoo. All of the oils and other ingredients used are non-comedogenic, meaning they won’t clog your pores.

Kiss My Face
Kiss My Face’s “Obsessively Organic” is a great skin care line. But I don’t use any of Kiss My Face’s products that are not in the “Obsessively Organic” line. The ingredients for "Obsessively Organic" rate between 0 and 4 on the Skin Deep site. Most of these products do, however, contain “organic water of ---” ingredients. So, according to Dr. Bronner’s informative website that I mentioned above, these may not be the purest organic products. However, they are relatively safe compared to their more commercial counterparts. I have been using Kiss My Face Obsessively Organic skin care (normal to oil) for almost a year and have noticed a substantial difference in the way my skin feels and looks. The most amazing product they offer is the Break Out Gel. This stuff clears zits like nothing I’ve ever used. It will even prevent and significantly reduce oral cold sores on the lips.

derma e
Derma e carries a variety of skin and body care products. They have a regular line and an organic line. Both are reputable. All products are paraben free. I usually supplement my organic Kiss My Face skin care products with a few anti-aging products from derma e. Their anti-aging products work well and include many of the same ground-breaking components found in commercial skin care lines, but with one key difference--derma e's products don't contain all the additional fillers, chemicals, and synthetic preservatives and fragrances.

Burt’s Bees
This company has achieved a lot of notoriety recently, even to the point that their products are now carried in many Rite Aid pharmacies and Wal-Marts. Most of their skin care products are safe, but always check the label nonetheless and search for the specific product of your interest on the Skin Deep Website to see how it rates. Not all of the Burt’s Bees products are the best choices, but many of the skin and body care products are very nice, especially the lemon butter cuticle cream and hand repair cream. Most of their skin care products are comparable safety-wise compared to Kiss My Face, but not all of them.

Giovanni Hair and Body Care
I love this company’s shampoos, hairspray, root booster, etc. Wonderful organic products. Do look at the ingredients. I know a few of their products contain parabens. You can purchase the hair care products at your local Vitamin Shop. All of their products (hair care and body care) are available via the online catalogue through Organic Food Depot for those of you living in the Virginia Beach/Chesapeake area.

Aubrey Organics
Aubrey offers great organic hair care. It is very pure. They pride themselves on providing truly pure, non-toxic products, while avoiding fillers that even some other organic companies/labels use. They also offer some cosmetics and perfume, none of which I have tried yet. But I have been very happy with their Clarifying Shampoo. Some of their products, as with most companies I suppose, contain a few too many ingredients for my taste, but on the whole they have very pure ingredients and rate between 0 and 4 on the Skin Deep website (with the majority of those ratings being 2 and 3). Some of their products do contain benzoates, so do look at the labels.

Aura Cacia
I can’t vouch for all of all of Aura Cacia’s products, but I do love their Pure Essentials Aromatherapy Spritz and their essential oils. The Pure Essentials Spritz can also be used as a perfume (I have not tried their actual line of perfumes yet). I am someone whose asthma flares up at the slightest commercial scent, and even some “organic/all-natural” ones, but this particular brand has given me no problems. The vanilla scent is my favorite. The spritz simply contains pure essential oils. Watch out for those ingredients, though. Some of their other products contain things I don’t want to use.

Other companies I have looked into but haven’t tried yet include:
EO and Terressentials.


Menstrual Care & Personal Lubricant

It’s important when getting rid of toxic products in your home to remember that commercial tampons and sanitary pads are not healthy, nor safe. The rayon used in commercial tampons and pads is bleached with chorine, creating dioxins (a toxic byproduct). And the cotton used in commercial tampons and pads is filled with insecticides and pesticides—not a healthy combo for sensitive regions. Here’s another link with more info.

Organic Cotton Tampons & Pads
One solution is to switch to organic 100% cotton tampons and pads. Here are some reputable companies: Natracare, Organic Essentials (this is not a direct link to their site, but rather to a separate seller), Seventh Generation. A number of these companies also sell organic cotton balls, organic cotton nursing pads, etc. In addition, the Organic Food Depot sells Natracare and Organic Essentials products via their online catalogue as well as a few in store.

The Diva Cup
Ladies, let me tell you the truth about this, while we’re on the subject. I am a convert of the Diva Cup! I will never go back to using tampons, organic or not. Do you want to experience a period that doesn’t feel like a period? You’ve got to try the Diva Cup. Not only is it economically and environmentally friendly, but also you can reuse it for a long time—one Diva Cup can last up to ten years! It’s made of silicone and is safe and easy to use. Check it out. Warning: after using the Diva Cup you may never try using anything else! Here’s a link to the least expensive seller of the Diva Cup that I’ve found online. The Organic Food Depot also sells it through their online catalogue.

Personal Lubricant
This is another important topic, although no one really discusses it. Ever think about what kind of ingredients are in those commercial lubricants? Well, let me just say it’s stuff we don’t want to be using! Take a look at the label on your KY Jelly or Astroglide sometime—whoa, there are a whole lot of toxic ingredients there!

Instead try Firefly (all natural) or Flutterby (organic), lubricants that feel better, last longer, don’t contain toxins and don’t dry out.


Deodorant

There are a number of aluminum-free deodorants on the market, most made by organic/all-natural companies. I have tried a lot of them, and the only one I’ve found that really works is Crystal. Their product comes in the following forms: rock salt, roll-on or spray on. The one that works for me is the roll-on. I have learned that in order for these products to work, you have to use a lot of them, sometimes even a couple of times a day. But at least you’ll be toxin-free in doing so! You can get them at most local pharmacies, some grocery stores and even Wal-Mart.

However the best natural deodorant that I have found yet is available through an online-based company called Oyin Handmade. Their deodorant, called Funk Butter, is handmade just for you each time you order, so it can take up to to three weeks for you to receive your products, but the wait is well worth it. Funk Butter is available in two scents as well as unscented. I strongly recommend the unscented. Their scented versions both contain fragrance oils rather than essential oils. The unscented version works just as well.


I hope this information has been helpful. Remember, become an expert label reader and know your ingredients! That is the only way to really keep yourself safe as you shop for these kinds of products. All of the information I’ve noted here is not necessarily the “hard and fast” rule for personal care products because companies can always change their products or the ingredients in their products. So again, become a savvy label reader and you’ll do a lot to keep yourself healthy.

Also, feel free to experiment by making your own skin care products and cosmetics. There are recipes on the web (Skin Deep’s campaign for safe cosmetics section has some as well as Really Raw Honey, etc.)

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Recipes

Here are a bunch of recipes that I use.

You’ll notice that most of them fall into Phase 2 and Phase 3 of the Maker’s Diet. For Phase 1, my husband and I mostly ate cooked/baked/grilled chicken/fish/beef with seasonings along with some sort of cooked vegetable at dinner, and I sautéed the veggies and meat in extra virgin coconut oil. We also ate a lot of yogurt and made smoothies using yogurt and organic frozen berries. I also ate tuna for lunch (The Maker’s Diet has a good tuna salad recipe at the back) and snacked on fruits and veggies. We also ate eggs and omelets for breakfast. We only did Phase 1 for a week and then moved on to Phase 3 because neither of us was in bad health or needed to lose weight, so we just did a 1-week cleanse instead of a 2-week cleanse. But you may wish to do the 40-day diet precisely, and, if so, then the recipes below will not help during Phase 1, but may come in handy later. For recipes specifically for Phase 1, and as well as the Phases 2 and 3, see Jordan Rubin’s The Maker’s Diet (in the back of the book) or go to the Biblical Health Institute website to view a variety of recipes by Jordan Rubin, Sally Fallon and others.

Also, just so you know, not all of these recipes call for soaking the flour or using yogurt rather than yeast as Sally Fallon's Nourishing Traditions often recommends. I am currently in the midst of experiments with more of Fallon's recipes and have not posted them here. But I highly recommend you purchase her book and start experimenting as well.

(Use all organic ingredients as much as possible with the following recipes.)

*Note on honey substitutions: Honey has a greater sweetening power than maple syrup, sucanat, rapadura, or traditional sugar. Twelve ounces (weight) of honey equals one standard measuring cup. In baked goods, reduce the amount of liquid by ¼ cup for each cup of honey used; add ½ teaspoon of baking soda for each cup of honey used; reduce the oven temperature by 25 degrees to prevent oven browning. For easy removal rub a bit of extra virgin coconut oil in the measuring cup before adding honey.

APPETIZERS/SNACKS/CONDIMENTS

Healthy Salad Dressing
1 part organic oil (sesame, peanut or flax seed are good; avoid the oils listed on The Maker’s Diet AVOID LIST)
1 part organic vinegar (or organic rice vinegar or organic apple cider vinegar)
1 part raw honey (unfiltered and UNHEATED) – Organic Food Depot

Mix. Delicious on salad.

Hot Cranberry Punch
4 C. unsweetened pineapple juice (if you can’t find organic, just use regular—at least it
doesn’t have sugar in it)
4 C. Cranberry Juice (Harris Teeter carries it organic)
1/3 C. Raw honey
1 C. water
1 tsp whole cloves
1 cinnamon stick

Tie cloves and cinnamon stick in cheesecloth. Combine all ingredients in crock-pot. Cover and cook on low setting for 4-10 hours. Serve hot, in punch cups.

Protein Balls (snack item)

½ C. Goatein (by Garden of Life, available at OFD)
½ C. Raw Honey
½ C. Peanut butter (organic is best)
½ C. Whole rolled oats (no quick oats)
½ C. Sunflower seeds
½ C. Sesame seeds

Blend.

Add: Chopped dates (optional), walnuts (or other nuts), and unsweetened shredded coconut.

Roll into balls and refrigerate. You can also roll in crushed granola (unsweetened) before refrigerating.


BREAD

Banana Bread
(my Great-Grandma’s recipe with my modifications)

½-¾ C. of raw honey
½ C. extra virgin coconut oil
½ C. sour milk (you can use regular milk just add a few drops of vinegar to sour it)
1 tsp. soda
2 C. flour or more, depending on consistency, (I use Spelt) and dash of salt
1 C. walnuts (optional)
2 eggs
3 bananas, ripe (mashed) [don’t use more than 3]

Bake at 300 degrees for 1-2 hours, depending on flour used. Spelt takes less time than Kamut because it’s denser.

Chocolate Zucchini Muffins
3 eggs
1 c. extra virgin coconut oil (or if all you have is olive oil on hand, you can [though it’s
not the healthiest choice] use ¾ c. olive oil and ½ stick of butter)
3 tsp vanilla
1 2/3 c. honey
3 c. grated zucchini (about 3 medium-sized zucchini or 2 zucchini and 1 carrot (chop in food processor
2 1/3 c. flour (spelt) – at end, add more if needed (don’t want too runny)
½ c. alkaline-free organic cocoa
2 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. salt
¼ tsp. alkaline-free baking powder
½ c. nuts (optional)
1 c. grain sweetened chocolate chips (by Sunspire)

muffins – 25-30 minutes @ 350 degrees – makes about 2 dozen
bread – 45 minutes @ 350 degrees (more crumbly)

Start with oil, eggs, vanilla and honey
Add zucchini, carrots
Mix all dry ingredients together first, then mix in to wet ingredients

Add nuts and chocolate chips at end.

Mini-Muffins Recipe
From Michele’s Kitchen
(All Ingredients are Organic)
Ingredients
½ cup Amaranth Flour (Arrowhead Mills)
1 cup Graham Flour (Bobs’ Red Mill)
2 tsp. Baking powder
1 tbsp. Vanilla Extract (Simply Organic)
1 egg
½ cup kefir or yogurt (Lifeway) – this helps it to rise, amaranth flour is delicious and
healthy but doesn’t have gluten in it
¼ cup sunflower oil (Hain)
¼ cup of honey (Southworth)
1 Banana, mashed
½ cup each Just Tomatoes dehydrated fruit, use two berry types

In a medium bowl, sift together the amaranth flour, graham flour and the baking powder. In a large bowl, beat together the vanilla, egg, kefir or yogurt, oil and honey. While stirring with a wooden spoon, gradually pour the flour mixture into the liquid mixture. Beat for a few seconds, just until the mixtures are blended. Fold in the banana and the fruits. Spoon the batter into oiled mini-muffin tins. Bake @ 350*F for 15-20 minutes or until done.
*****You may use one or several of the following variations on these muffins.
Substitute Pumpkin or applesauce for bananas.
Substitute Safflower Oil for Sunflower Oil.
Substitute Pastry, Rice, Spelt or Oat flour for Graham Flour.
Add cinnamon and/or nuts instead of dehydrated fruit.
Add spice of your choosing such as, cinnamon, nutmeg or cloves.

Pizza Crust
1 C. warm water (I just use a mug and fill it about 2/3 of the way full)
1 tsp. raw honey
1 Tbsp. yeast (Rapunzel is a good brand through OFD, or just regular quick-rising yeast)

Dissolve yeast and honey in warm water, stir. Set aside until frothy.

Pour yeast mixture into large bowl and add:

Flour (I use Spelt, make amazing pizza crust)
1 tsp. salt

Mix. Add more flour if needed to make dough consistency.

Grease your pizza pan or stone with extra virgin coconut oil.

Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Place kneaded dough on pan and spread. Add toppings and cook for 25-30 minutes (depending on your oven). At about 12 minutes, put aluminum foil over pizza to keep cheese from browning.

Blend olive oil and fresh garlic (or organic garlic powder) and spread with brush on the crust.

Rachel’s Cornbread
(mix by hand)

1 C. cornflour/meal (finely ground)
1 C. brown rice flour (or other flour such as spelt, kamut, millet, etc.)
4 tsp. baking powder
1 C. milk
1/3 C. extra virgin coconut oil
1 Tbsp. raw honey
1 egg – don’t over beat (do egg last)

Grease 9 x 9 pan
Bake 425 degrees, 22 minutes


MAIN MEALS

Beef Stroganoff
2 pounds of stew meat
2 cans cream of mushroom soup
1 pkg. onion soup mix
1 Tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
1 8 oz pkg. mushrooms, sliced
Heat on low all day. Just before serving, add half a cup of sour cream.
Serve over rice or noodles.

Chicken and Corn Chili (this one’s really good!)
4 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
1 (16 oz.) jar salsa
2 tsp. garlic powder
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp chili powder
salt to taste
ground black pepper to taste
1 (11 oz) can Mexican style corn (I just use regular corn and put my own spices in it)
¼ lb dry pinto beans, soaked and cooked (or a 15 oz can pinto beans)

Place chicken and salsa in slow cooker the night before you want to eat this chili. Season with garlic powder, cumin, chili powder, salt, and pepper. Cook 6-8 hours on low setting.

About 3-4 hours before you want to eat, remove chicken from slow cooker, and shred it using two forks. Return meat to the pot, and continue cooking.

Stir the corn and pinto beans into the slow cooker. Simmer until ready to serve.

Crock Pot Mushroom Chicken
1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 package of chicken gravy mix (or any gravy mix, sometimes I use a shitake mushroom gravy mix from OFD)
1 cup organic white wine (or 1 cup chicken broth)
1 can of cream of mushroom (or chicken) soup
8 oz. cream cheese

Put chicken in crock-pot. Sprinkle gravy mix on top. Pour soup over that, then pour wine or broth over that. Cook on low all day. 30 minutes before serving, put cream cheese in. When ready to serve, remove chicken and whisk the sauce together. Serve over pasta or rice.

Crock Pot White Chicken Chili
¾-1 lb. (when dry) great northern, pinto, or cannellini beans, soaked and cooked (or 3 15 oz cans)
2 1/2 c. chopped, cooked chicken
1 c. chopped onion
1 1/2 c. chopped red, green, and/or yellow pepper
2 jalapeno chili peppers, stemmed and chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 tsp. ground cumin
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. dried oregano, crushed
3 1/2 c. chicken broth
Shredded Monterey Jack cheese (optional)
Healthy chips (optional)

In a crock pot combine the drained beans, chicken, onion, sweet pepper, jalapeno peppers, garlic, cumin, salt, and oregano. Stir in chicken broth. Cover; cook on low-heat setting for 8 to 10 hours or on high-heat setting for 4 to 5 hours. Ladle soup into bowls. Top each serving with some cheese and healthy, no-oil chips (see my posting on food available at the Organic Food Depot), if desired, or serve with hearty bread. Makes 8 servings.

Dev’s Chili Con Carne
2 lbs. ground hamburger
1 large onion, diced
1 28 oz. can whole tomatoes (drained), or diced tomatoes
½ lb. dry beans (red, pinto or black), soaked & cooked (or 2 -15 oz cans red kidney beans)
1-2 chopped cloves of garlic (or 2 Tbsp. of garlic powder)
2 Tbsp chili powder
2 tsp cumin powder
1 tsp salt
2 tsp cocoa powder
2 tsp oregano
A dash or two of red pepper powder (don’t get too crazy with it)
Brown hamburger with diced onion and garlic. Drain. Mix browned hamburger with all other ingredients (except beans) in crock pot, chopping up whole tomatoes with firm spatula while mixing in spices. Then add beans (precooked). Mix. Cook on low all day. Serve topped with shredded cheddar cheese. You can serve with healthy chips or whole grain sourdough or sprouted bread.

Slow Cooker Chicken Taco Soup (thick enough to be a chili)
Original recipe yield: 8 Servings

INGREDIENTS
1 onion, chopped
¼ lb (when dry) chili beans, soaked and cooked (or 16 ounce can chili beans)
¼ lb (when dry) black beans, soaked and cooked (or 15 ounce can black beans)
1 (15 ounce) can whole kernel corn, drained
1 (8 ounce) can tomato sauce
1 (12 fluid ounce) can or bottle beer (OFD carries organic beer)
2 (10 ounce) cans diced tomatoes with green chilies, undrained
1 (1.25 ounce) package taco seasoning
3 whole skinless, boneless chicken breasts
1 (8 ounce) package shredded cheddar cheese (or preferably raw cheddar cheese)
1 (8 ounce) container sour cream (or piima cream, see my dairy fermentation posting)
1 cup crushed healthy chips (optional) – (available at Organic Food Depot, see posting)

DIRECTIONS
Place the onion, chili beans, black beans, corn, tomato sauce, beer, and diced tomatoes in a slow cooker. Add taco seasoning, and stir to blend. Lay chicken breasts on top of the mixture, pressing down slightly until just covered by the other ingredients. Set slow cooker for low heat, cover, and cook for 5 hours.
Remove chicken breasts from the soup, and allow to cool long enough to be handled. Stir the shredded chicken back into the soup, and continue cooking for 2 hours. Serve topped with shredded Cheddar cheese, a dollop of sour cream, and crushed healthy chips, if desired.


DESSERTS

Honey-Sweetened Cream Cheese Frosting (delicious on Chocolate Zucchini Muffins)
8 oz. cream cheese softened
1/3 cup raw honey
1 tsp. vanilla

Blend until smooth. Ice cake while warm.

Honey-Sweetened Fudge Sauce/Frosting
Blend raw honey with cocoa powder or carob powder until desired texture and flavor are achieved.

Monster Cookies
Preheat to 350 degrees
½ cup extra virgin coconut oil
1 cup Sucanat or Rapadura
¾ cup raw honey
(or you can use 1 & 1/3 cups raw honey and no sucanat or rapadura)

Cream together.
Add 3 eggs and mix. (When cutting recipe in half, use 2 instead.)
2 tsp baking soda. Mix.
1 tsp. vanilla. Mix.
2 C. peanut butter. Mix.
1 C. flour (spelt or spelt/kamut blend). Mix.
4.5 C. rolled oats. Mix.
Optional:
1 C. grain sweetened chocolate chips (by Sunspire)

Shape into 1.5 inch balls. Press somewhat flat on cookie sheet. Bake 350 degrees for 10-12 minutes.
Makes 5 dozen.
(I usually cut this recipe in half.)

Whipped Cream Topping
(Sally Fallon also suggest an alternative using Stevia)
1 cup chilled coconut cream (or heavy whipping cream)
2 Tablespoons maple syrup, or honey

In a chilled bowl with chilled beaters gently beat the Coconut Cream (or heavy whipping cream) to not quite soft peak stage (The cream must be cold, taken from the fridge). Add the maple syrup or sweetener of your choice. Carefully beat to desired stiffness.


PIE

Healthy Pie Filling
(see Pie Crust and other filling recipes and tips below)

3 Options:

1) Sucanat/Rapadura and spelt flour
2) Maple syrup and cornstarch
3) Apple juice and cornstarch (this is my favorite—or a blend of #2 and #3)

When using cornstarch as thickener:
Heat syrup and/or juice to BOILING. Mix 2-3 Tablespoons cornstarch in ¼-1/2 cup cold water and mix into boiling liquid (in a medium sized stove pot, don’t use a small one or it will boil over). Pour over fruit filling. Sprinkle with spices of your choice.

Pie Crust (using extra virgin coconut oil – so good and so much more healthy!)
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour (I use Spelt)
1 t salt
1 T. raw honey
3/4 C chilled, unsalted butter, cut into small pieces (this is technically not the best choice according to The Maker’s Diet, but I’ve never tried it using ,only extra virgin for the whole recipe)
coconut oil)
3/8 C (6 T) chilled extra virgin coconut oil
1/4 C ice water
2 tsp. apple cider vinegar

I use a food processor to combine the dry ingredients with the butter and coconut oil. Put the flour (spelt), honey and salt in the food processor and add the chilled extra virgin coconut oil (broken into pieces). Pulse until the coconut oil is worked into the flour and no large pieces remain. Add the chilled butter and pulse until the largest pieces of butter are no larger than small peas. At this point I dump this mixture into a bowl since I prefer to incorporate the water by hand using a fork. Add the apple cider vinegar to 1/4 C ice water and then add this mixture to the flour mixture, a couple of tablespoons at a time, tossing the mixture with a fork. As you continue to add the liquid the mixture will begin to come together in a ball. At this point you can squeeze the mixture together by hand. You don't want to knead the dough; work it just enough to bring it all together in a cohesive mass. Divide the dough into two equal pieces, wrap each piece in plastic wrap and smash it down somewhat to make a thick disk. Chill the dough for at least an hour before using.
This crust is absolutely delicious either for double crust pies or for single crust pies where the crust is not pre-baked. I have found from experience that this crust is simply too rich to bake empty and then fill. When I have attempted to bake the pie crust by itself it tends to melt down and slide to the bottom of the pie pan.


Fabulous Pumpkin Pie Recipe
Here is a healthy version of a classic pumpkin pie recipe.

Nut Crust: Makes one 9 inch pie crust.

2 1/2 cups finely ground nuts (pecans are the best, almonds, walnuts or a combination of mixed nuts works very nicely too)
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon (optional)
1 T to 1/3 cup sucanat, raw honey or natural sweetener of choice - depends on how sweet you want your crust (see my note at the top of this page on raw honey substitution)*
1/4 cup extra virgin coconut oil (or butter) melted

Stir together ground nuts, cinnamon and sugar. Mix in melted extra virgin coconut oil. Set aside 1/2 cup of the nut mixture for topping the pie.

Press mixture onto the bottom and up the sides of a 9 inch pie plate. Chill for about 30 minutes.

Pumpkin Pie Filling
1 1/2 cups pumpkin puree (either canned or home-made)
1/2 cup maple syrup or or honey
1 1/2 cups coconut milk
4 eggs
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ginger
1 teaspoon cinnamon
(2 Tablespoons flour if you use maple syrup, honey)

Heat the pumpkin puree in a heavy pan, stirring frequently. Add the coconut milk to the pumpkin, continuing to stir. Keep it hot, but don't let it boil. In a heatproof bowl, beat the eggs and maple syrup or honey together. Beat in the dry spices. When the pie crust is ready, beat the egg mixture, while slowly adding the hot pumpkin mixture into it as a thin stream. The resulting mixture will be hot, but you do not want to have "cooked" eggs. Carefully pour the hot pumpkin filling into the hot pie crust. Return to the center of the oven and bake at 400 degrees. If the pie is very full, finish filling it when the pie is part way in the oven with a cup or ladle so that you do not slosh the filling all over. The pie is done when the outside edge of the filling is firm and slightly puffed, but the center is still jiggly. Place on a rack to gently cool, so the custard can finish cooking and set. When cool, add a whipped cream topping.


OTHER PIE RECIPES

Stir-&-Roll Pie Crust
1 1/3 C flour
1 tsp Salt
1/3 C Extra Virgin Coconut Oil
3 tbsp cold Milk

Pumpkin Pie Filling
3/4 C sucanat or rapadura
1/2 tsp Salt
1 3/4 tsp Pumpkin Pie Spice *
2 large eggs
1 15 oz can pumpkin
1 12 oz can evaporated milk

Mix sugar, salt, Pumpkin Pie Spice in a small bowl. Beat eggs in a large bowl and stir in Pumpkin and sucanat spice mixture.
Gradually stir in evaporated milk. Pour into 9" pie shell. Bake in preheated 425 degree oven 15 minutes. Lower heat to 350 and bake for 40 to 50 minutes or until knife inserted near,center comes out clean. Cool on wire rack for 2 hours and serve or refrigerate. Makes 8 servings.

• Can use 1 tsp cinnamon, 1/2 tsp ground ginger and 1/4 tsp ground cloves
instead of Pumpkin Pie Spice.


Glutenless Crust
2 Cups glutenless flour (buckwheat, amaranth, quinoa)
¼ to ½ Cup extra virgin coconut oil
¼ teaspoon salt
?? water

Mix flour and salt, cut in extra virgin coconut oil, add water gradually until the dough holds together. As with the sprouted crust, I recommend just pressing the dough into the pan, and using waxed paper if you make a top crust. You could also roll out a bunch of mini-crusts and patch them together.

Details and Tips for Pie Crusts
Pies are either two-crust, like apple and cherry, or one-crust, like pumpkin, pecan, and cream. All the above measurements are for a two-crust pie. The top crust is always smaller, so for a one-crust pie, reduce everything by about a third, not by half.

Measurement is only important in the liquid oil crust, because to maintain flakiness you shouldn't add more stuff after stirring. In every crust, what matters is the liquid-solid balance, for a dough that will be pliable enough to roll out but not so wet that it sticks to everything and comes apart. In flaky crusts, you take care of this during the water-adding stage. With sourdough, I start it kind of wet and then add more flour until it's stiff enough. So I generally don't measure at all.

In a two crust pie, separate the dough into two balls, one of them noticeably bigger than the other. After a few pies you'll develop a feel for the relative sizes. Then roll out the big one for the bottom crust.

For a roller, I just grab the nearest wine bottle. In ease of use, it's so close to a rolling pin that it's not worth my trouble to get the rolling pin out of the drawer. (And it's easier to clean!) You will probably need more flour than you think. I spread some on the counter, roll the crust a bit, flip it, roll it more, then add more flour, because the original flour gets absorbed in the dough. You need to keep both sides floured. Start rolling with light pressure and work up to heavier pressure as it gets flatter. What you're aiming for is a circle close enough in size to what you need that you don't have to trim the edges. This is a skill that comes with many crusts. You'll probably get nowhere near a circle and have to trim and patch.

There's nothing wrong with a patched-together pie crust. It tastes the same and you can't even see the patching unless it's on the top crust, and even then it's only going to bother people you don't want to associate with anyway. Even after making hundreds of crusts, I often end up patching because whole grain flour is so uncooperative. Some people take the trimmings and bake them separately (or tragically throw them out), but I use everything in the crust.

So you roll out the bottom crust, wipe a thin coat of oil in the pie pan, put the crust in, roll out the top crust, then put the filling in and quickly put on the top crust and get it in a hot oven. The wetter the filling is, the more important it is to put it in the oven very soon after you put the filling in, or the wetness will soak into the bottom crust and damage it. Some people like to do a little sculpture at the edge of the pie where the top and bottom crusts join. I just press them roughly together. The important thing here is that the filling doesn't run out of the bottom crust and down the inside of the pan. If it does, you'll just get a caramelized spot.

Baking time varies between pies. The temperature is generally 350-400 F, at which a filled crust will be done in around 30 minutes, but the filling often takes longer.

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Local vs. Organic

Time magazine online recently posted an interesting article on the dilemma of eating local vs. eating organic.

I agree that if you are buying organic oranges that have been flown from California to your local Virginia health food store or supermarket, you may, in fact, be supporting a process that is harmful to the environment. Polluting the air with extra gasoline in an effort to ship organic food to buyers can be taken to the extreme. So choose wisely when you buy. The best option for consumers is to look for food that is both local and organic. It may sound hard to do, but it can be done. Local co-ops like the Organic Food Depot carry fresh, local produce daily, as well as local honey, and other products. Yoder Dairies, as I’ve mentioned before, is a great way to support local dairy in the Hampton Roads area. Yoder also carries local, free-range eggs. The Organic Food Depot carries Gryffon’s Aerie beef and other meats, which are local and grass-fed, and Central Meats provides local meat and fowl as well. Supporting your local (and organic as much as possible) farmers is a good way to ensure that such products remain readily available in your area.

If you find that certain items that you need cannot be found locally, then I advocate purchasing what is most healthy for you. We are stewards of the earth, yes, but we are also temples of the Holy Spirit. So let's make sure our bodies are healthy first and foremost, while continuing to do our best to protect the environment as much a possible at the same time.

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