Why Food Matters

Leave a comment October 1, 2013 nourishinggrace

Improving Wellness with Holistic Nutrition

“Give the body discipline and you will see that the body is for Him who made it.”

Amma Theodora – Sayings of the Desert Fathers

A holistic approach to nutrition focuses not only on a healthy diet, but considers that each person is unique, addressing them as a whole. This includes emotional, and physical health. In fact, the very word diet comes from the Greek word diata, which literally means “our manner of living”.

You can have the healthiest diet in the world but if you are not digesting and absorbing nutrients, it’s simply not nourishing you. Holistic nutrition considers the stomach and digestive system the core of whole body health, because every system in the body relies upon it.

As Orthodox Christians we also believe that each person is unique, created in the image and likeness of God. And…. we also believe that our spiritual life and health begins with our stomachs. So, as we consider steps we can take to improve our health, let us first and foremost consider our Faith. The Church gives us guidance, applicable throughout the ages, about the right role of food in our lives. From an Orthodox perspective, “eating right, or eating well is also about eating for the right reasons”.

“Our initial struggle must be to gain control of our stomachs…

Food is to be taken in so far as it supports our life”

(Father John Cassian – On Control of the Stomach – 4th century)

In other words, we should eat to live rather than live to eat!

So why is this generation so worried about diet and nutrition? Some background is required. While we might say “we are what we eat”, there is a great irony that we, as a nation, eat quite poorly and deficiently.

How did we get in this situation? For one thing, at no other time on the earth, have we been so disconnected from the sources of our food. And from that perspective, it’s easy to be unaware of the the ill health of livestock within modern “industrial” animal husbandry, the unlabeled genetic modification of our seeds, and the pesticide and herbicide laden nature of our produce.

These issues, however, are worth our attention, because “we are what we eat”. There is a complex and symbiotic relationship between the quality of our air, the health of our soil, the health of plants and animals, and our own health.

Nutritionally, we have traded in wisdom for knowledge and traditional foods for overly processed convenience foods. Our ancestor’s cultural eating habits were determined by tradition and despite their varied ethnicities, their diets had one thing in common – they ate a whole foods diet, one that was local, seasonal and organic.

The last century has shown serious trends away from nourishing foods. Now, there is much uncertainty about what even embodies a wholesome diet. People are concerned, and justifiably so.

Humanity has an intimate relationship with food, for our food becomes our very bodies – flesh of our flesh and bone of our bone. “Our genes make their day to day decisions based on the information they receive from the food we eat… in that sense, food is less like a fuel and more like a language conveying information… that information programs your genes, for better or worse.” (Shanahan MD,Catherine, 2011: p 7)

A calorie isn’t just a calorie and nutrient density and quality really do matter. How you nourish yourself over the long run has either a negative or positive affect on your health.

We routinely eat ingredients in our foods which have been created in laboratories and are not even pronounceable, but how often do we question them? The petroleum based preservative BHA, found in beer, butter and cereals, has been classified by the Department of Health and Human Services as “reasonably anticipated to be a human carcinogen”. Another is titanium dioxide found in your salad dressing, coffee creamers and icing… guess what – it’s also used in paints and sunscreens!

There are many processed things called “food”, but few that are worthy of keeping us vibrant and well!

These are big issues, but the great news is that through education – organic foods, Slow Food and Buy Fresh Buy Local movements are popping up across the country and are very available. People are learning about the wisdom and health benefits of traditional and ancestral food. They are returning to Farmers Markets, buying shares in their local Community Supported Agriculture – CSA’s … at heart, connecting and investing, not only in their health, but also in their communities.

Even if you have really bad eating habits, it’s never too late to begin fresh again. God created us with tremendous abilities to detoxify, heal, grow and regenerate!

Below are some easy steps you can incorporate over time to improve your overall wellness. Remember – healthy eating doesn’t mean eliminating the foods we love. A healthy diet is about balance. If 85% of our diet is healthy, then that baklava proves a guilt free pleasure!

And one last thing… as you begin steps toward wellness, embrace and enjoy the journey! Don’t just eat healthy, eat well. Take pleasure in your meals and dine with family and friends whenever possible… it’s just more delightful together!

Let’s eat to live and make every bite count ~ one morsel at a time!

[box] Make a Diversity of Whole and Plant Based Foods the foundation of your diet. That doesn’t mean you need to give up meat, but strive to make produce the foundation of your eating. Whole foods are those as close to their whole natural state as possible. They look like what they are like an apple or a carrot. Whole grains, and brown rice are also whole foods. They come perfectly packaged with the fiber and nutrients essential for their optimal absorption by our bodies. There is a synergy in the combination of nutrients found in each whole food, in other words, they are more effective in their whole food form.

Avoid refined and processed foods. Reduce sugary snacks, sweets and sodas. Simply stated, refined and sugary foods are very depleting for the body. At the turn of the century, the average american consumed about 2 pounds of sugar per year; we now routinely consume upwards of 100 pounds per year. Last year 60 Minutes did a great expo titled “Is Sugar Toxic”.

Stay adequately hydrated! Good clean water is vital for life and involved in almost every function our bodies perform. Get at least 8 – 8 ounce servings/ day.

Exercise regularly. It reduces stress, increases circulation, releases those good feeling endorphins and promotes weight loss. Moderate your exercise to your ability.

Reduce and Manage Stress. Prayer, a positive outlook and exercise are most helpful in mitigating stress. Stress is a great challenge to our immune system, taxing nearly every organ in our body. It takes a high toll on health.

Add Probiotic rich foods to your diet: These foods are alive, and quite symbiotically, their life gives us life! Probiotics work with our immune system to keep us healthy, but they need to be continually replenished. “Studies have shown that live-cultured foods containing probiotics help to prevent a whole range of allergic, autoimmune, and inflammatory diseases.” (Shanahan MD,Catherine, 2011:pp. 147-148) Click here for a list of probiotic rich foods.

Know thy fats! Essential fatty acids are an important part of a healthy diet and should be included. More about them can be found here and here. Also, learn more about the traditional fats which have nourished civilizations well.

Watch your portion sizes. Saint John of the Ladder sums it up well, “Master your stomach before it masters you.”[/box]

The ultimate goal is to Go organic, local and seasonal! You can do it! Buy free range -pastured meats, pastured eggs and dairy and produce as close to their source as possible. Their nutrition is superior. Looking for a farmers market near you? Local Harvest has a nationwide list!

It’s taken our family over two years to dramatically change our diet and we have enjoyed the adventure and the journey ~ slowly making changes, one morsel at a time.

Above all, whatever your diata, keep the Feasting and Fasting cycles of the Church. In her wisdom, she provides this rhythm for the nourishment of body and soul. And in this life, our journey in Christ, through “prayer, daily Christian living, and worship, which ultimately lead to union with the divine uncreated Light” is the ultimate source of our wellness.

about the author

Victoria Cherpes is a wife, and homeschooling mother of three beautiful daughters and Sunday School teacher. On their small urban family homestead, they enjoy tending their Victory Garden full of lettuces, berries and vegetables, weeds and bugs; raising figs for the local market and amateur beekeeping.

She is currently pursuing her Master’s Degree in Holistic Nutrition at Hawthorn University and is a student member of the National Association of Nutrition Professionals (NANP).

If you have any questions, you can reach her at nourishinggrace@yahoo.com

[box] Sources:

Shanahan MD, Catherine (2011-04-22). Deep Nutrition: Why Your Genes Need Traditional Food. Big Box Books. Kindle Edition.

Ballentine M.D., Rudolph (2007-01-25). Diet and Nutrition: A Holistic Approach. National Book Network – A. Kindle Edition

Lipski PhD, Elizabeth (2012). Digestive Wellness: Strengthen the Immune System and Prevent Disease Through Healthy Digestion (4th Edition)

Mandell, Catherine (2005) When You Fast: Recipes for Lenten Seasons

Ward, Benedicta (1975). Sayings of the Desert Fathers. (http://www.scribd.com/doc/75385925/Apoftegma Fallon, Sally (2001).

Nourishing Traditions: The Cookbook That Challenges Politically Correct Nutrition and the Diet Dictocrats. (2nd ed)

http://www.nj.goarch.org/resources/spirituality.htm%5B/box%5D

This article was original posted at Orthodoxmom.com and has been slightly revised.

leaven and life

Leave a comment September 30, 2013 nourishinggrace

The inspiration of this post is the intersection

of two books currently actively used in our kitchen :

The Foods of the Greek Islands – Algaia Kremezi

and The Art of Fermentation – Sandor Ellix Katz

sour·dough – (noun) leaven for making bread, consisting of sour fermented dough, typically that left over from a previous batch

“The hunger for love is much more difficult to remove than the hunger for bread.” – Mother Teresa

In the beginning, all risen breads were sourdough. Bread was a great mystery but the women knew that if they blended warm water, flour and time, then nurtured the mixture through regular feeding, that eventually the dough would become alive, bubbles would form mysteriously in the mixture and when it was baked the texture would be lighter with an intriguing taste. Commercial “fast acting” strains of yeast were unavailable and so the only leaven was the natural product of the fermentation of wild yeast and bacteria, which transformed into a sourdough. The Latin fermentāre means to rise.

As often happens, the first fermentation of sourdough likely occurred by chance. How many of you would think to bake (or brew into beer) the accidental fermentation of grain, left unattended, souring on your kitchen counter? In this day and age, probably not many of us, including me – especially considering how germophobic we are… we’d rather not deal with the naturally present bacteria on any surface!

But fermentation is an age old method of preservation, that involves cooperation with a community of microbes we can not even see. And that cooperation enhances the nutritional quality of the foods fermented. It was a surprise for us to learn that a natural sourdough will not mold, instead, due to the lactic acid (this wonderful preservative produced in the sourdough) it keeps longer than commercial bread. Sourdough breads are also what is known as predigested, and therefore easier on our digestive systems, reducing gluten content and allowing absorption of more nutrients.

The organisms necessary for fermentation are usually always present on the surfaces of grain and flour. Unlike commerical strains of yeast, which are similar or the same, sourdoughs cultivated by people in different places can be very distinctive, such as San Francisco sourdoughs.

Our planet was created with great diversity and that’s the beauty of a sourdough – that you can’t pick and choose your naturally present wild yeast. Although all healthy sourdoughs contain lactobacilli and the lactic acid produced by it, each sourdough starter is essentially very unique. Natural sourdoughs are not static microbial communities Instead they are very dynamic. More than that….they become their environment and so, if you begin a sourdough starter it it will develop unique flavor characteristic to whatever yeasts are present in your air and your flour.

Patience is a virtue. A sourdough starter takes days if not a week to mature to the point that it may be used in baking… and there is no such thing as fast acting or fast rising prozymi or starter A sourdough bread rises anywhere from 8 to 24 hours, depending on your recipe and the conditions.

Traditionally, Greek Orthodox women make their sourdough starter around the Feast of the Elevation of the Cross, celebrated on September 14. The starter is called prozymi. In many Orthodox Churches, fresh basil is used to sprinkle Holy Water, a sprig of which is taken home and placed in the prozymi. If the prozymi is started around Pascha (Easter) then the mixture contains a handful of the flowers used to decorate the Epitaphios. This sourdough starter is then used for baking Prosphora – an offering – the bread we make for Communion.

“Concepts create idols, only wonder grasps anything.” Saint Gregory of Nyssa

It’s been said that the elderly Orthodox women in Greece, if asked, will tell you that the transformation of the flour, water and basil or flowers into the prozymi occurs by Gods Grace alone, and well, that is entirely true… for that is our belief ~ that all life is a gift and sustained from a loving God.

These women are grounded in Christ – living within the seasonal rhythm of the Church, anchored but always anticipating the upcoming feasts and living and incorporating the faith into daily life.

Give us this day our daily bread. Laboring a sourdough, this wild yeast fermentation of the prozymi becomes an endeavor of trust and of creation – fashioned through a relationship with God. This becomes our offering- the prosphora – A simple, humbling endeavor, to place God above all, offering up our whole lives to Him.

And all that inspired us to incorporate prozymi into our family traditions too and so we’ve coincided our sour dough starter with the Elevation of the Cross.

Happy Feast!

Below is is a Basic Sourdough / Prozymi Starter

There are slight variations in every sourdough recipe, some call for rye flour, some call for adding a piece of fruit, like a plum or grape which has a little hint of white film -which is yeast and called the bloom, and others – like the Orthodox tradition call for adding our blessings from Church.

Timeframe about 1 week Ingredients

[box] Flour (any kind) water – non chlorinated

fresh basil, fresh organic plum or grapes (optional)

In a jar or bowl mix 2 cups of water and flour. Stir mixture vigorously. Add basil or fruit if using. Cover the mixture with a cheesecloth or any other porous material that lets the air circulate.

Store batter in a warm place in the 70-80 degree range. Visit the batter daily and stir it to distribute the yeast. After a few days you will notice some bubbles on the surface of the batter. The yeast is letting you know it is active.

Remember, your home is it’s own ecosystem. Every ecosystem has its own unique micro-organism communities – the ecosystem in your home plays a role in how slowly or quickly your batter will germinate. Once yeast activity is evident, strain out the fruit.

Add 1 or 2 tablespoons of flour to the mixture each day for three days. The batter will begin to thicken and rise. Add more water when necessary. By about day five your starter should be bubbly. With a clean spoon, remove about half the sourdough starter, if you compost you can throw it in your bin.

Stir in 1/2 cup flour and about 1/4 cup water. You now should have an active starter – cover it and leave it at room temperature until it has almost doubled. You can now expand the starter for baking bread or refrigerate it overnight and start expanding the next day. [/box]

If your are looking for some recipes to use with your starter, this is a great resource. And, if you are thinking to bake phosphoro for Church a very well detailed recipe can be found here, on OrthodoxMom.com . What a beautiful post!

summer salsa

3 Comments September 30, 2013 nourishinggrace

This time of year is all about preserving the freshness and bounty of the season… and that usually requires me to act fast, you know what I mean? There comes a week, during the peak harvest, when the farmer’s market surplus of tomatoes reduces their cost to $15 dollars for a 30 pound box – at least around here! Tomatoes for 50 cents a pound! It’s an irresistible sight I both long for and dread. With so many tomatoes, one needs to act quickly or they will go bad – let them sit even overnight and you are guaranteed to loose a few to the compost.

So the season of harvest has me re-thinking our methods of preserving. As a mom and student of holistic nutrition, I want foods teaming with life and nourishment for my very vibrant family. A few years ago I learned about a different method of preservation… fermentation.

Unfamiliar with fermenation?

The art of fermentation is as old as humanity, but one that has largely disappeared from our western diets. Fermentation is fairly simple because it preserves without the use of hot water baths and pressure cookers. Conventional canning methods kill all bacteria; whereas fermentation is actually a cooperation with the bacteria (germs!) that are naturally available on the environment of the produce. In fermentation, the naturally present bacteria feed on the sugar and starch in the food which creates lactic acid and that preserves the food, while also creating beneficial enzymes, b-vitamins, short-chain fatty acids, and various strains of probiotics.

Fermentation not only preserves produce, but also transforms ingredients into a more digestible state and creates more nutrition than it’s original vitamin content.

These foods nourish us deeply because through fermentation, nutrients become more absorbable – pregested like the lactase in yogurt which has been broken down and is why those with lactose intolerance may be able to handle yogurt or aged cheeses.
Ferments are laden with probiotics -which have numerous health benefits. Historically, people would get a large portion of the healthy bacteria necessary for their digestive systems in the form of fermented foods. Studies show that these good bacteria- probiotics are integral and critical to good health. Our modern food industry, instead, has left us as a generation that turns to supplements to re-innoculate our digestive tract. Yet with a traditional ferment, each morsel of can provide trillion of beneficial bacteria- far more that you can get from a probiotics supplements. (Mercola) That’s pretty amazing!

Through the fermentation process, many foods accumulate increased levels of B vitamins, including thiamin (B1), riboflavin (B2) and niacin (B3) as compared with the nutrition of the raw ingredients prior to fermentation.

In a nourishing sense, fermentation is a virtue!

The finished product – through the slowness of time and the inner-working of a microbial community becomes greater than it’s original constituent ingredients. And, it lasts! It’s true to say that ferments and the art of nourishment requires patience and time and nurturing.

In our day, that is a choice, one that more and more of us gladly make – for the very word nourish means to feed or cherish, to preserve, look after or suckle. In that sense, nourishment means relationship… one involving care and love.

Fermented products can be an acquired taste, but some well known examples of fermentation include sauerkraut, kimchee and brined pickles.
Ready to give ferments a try? A great introduction to fermented foods is a fermented salsa that a friend shared with us. It is delicious and a family favorite – even with the kids! For a small batch, you’ll need:

3 lbs of fresh tomatoes – chopped – do not discard the juice
1 bunch of cilantro or basil (our cilantro has died out, so we are using fresh basil)
1 small onion (about 3/4-1 cup)
3 tablespoons sea salt
1 head garlic – peeled and chopped finely
Optional – 1 jalapeño chopped – with or without seeds depending on your tastes
1 lime – I try to use only local ingredients in my ferments – so I usually skip this
2-3 clean mason jars
Clean bowl and spoon.
All your utensils, cutting boards and bowls should be clean. It is not necessary to sterilize them.

Rinse tomatoes and wash your hands.

Chop ingredients to the salsa consistency you prefer. It is not necessary to discard the juice as this becomes our brining liquid. Mix all ingredients well in bowl.

Spoon into jars and either with a wooden spoon or your clean hands press the salsa below the liquid.
Seal tight and leave out of direct sunlight on the kitchen counter for 3-5 days.

Open the jars periodically as this will release some of the gases and also make sure to continue pressing your salsa below the brine line if necessary. Frequent tasting – once the ferment has reached the taste consistency you love, enjoy some and then move it to the refridgerator. The cooler temperature there slows down the fermentation process.

A taste of this salsa in winter will unleash the vibrant delicious flavors of summer! It can be enjoyed with your favorite organic chips, with scrambled eggs, on a taco or anywhere that you normally would enjoy it. One word of caution that I offer… if this is your very first ferment or your diet is generally spartan of probiotic rich foods, please start out with just a tablespoon per day for about a week to build up your internal probiotic community slowly.

Fermentation is making a niche comeback and one that has been recognized by culinary mega-giants like Williams Sonoma which now sells vessels for fermenting. This is great news!