Tuesday, November 25, 2008

Roasted Pumpkin Seeds

Have you ever wondered why those tasty nuts and seeds always sit so heavy on your stomach? Well, it is because there are enzyme inhibitors in nuts.  The inhibitors are there to protect the seeds so that they don't sprout under less than ideal conditions.  However, these enzyme inhibitors can cause digestive problems in us as well as keeping some of the great nutrients that are found in nuts not even available to us.  

The Solution
Soak your nuts in warm filtered water with sea salt over night and then either roast the nuts in a 150 degree oven for 12 hours or put the nuts in a dehydrator for a day.  This not only makes the nuts more easily digestible, but quite a bit tastier as well!

Pumpkin seeds
Since I was roasting a pumpkin for Thanksgiving today I thought it would be a great opportunity to try out roasted pumpkin seeds as well.  Pumpkin seeds are full of all kinds of important nutrients and natural oils.  Plus, they make a tasty snack to have laying around the house this time of year as people gather around to talk, reconnect and break bread.

This post is part of Kitchen Tip Tuesdays.  To find more posts head over to Tammy's Recipes.

Tuesday, November 18, 2008

Beef, It's what's for dinner!

I am so excited that while we were gone to Kansas, our meat arrived!  Not just any ole meat, mind you--free range, hormone free, antibiotic free, straight from the good ole state of New Mexico meat.  My parents and I bought a half of a cow.  :)  Now we probably paid way more than you would in a store (about $7 a pound), but when you factor in that we are getting a wide range of cuts of meat for that price and that similar types of meat sell for $5 in the grocery store, but you can only get ground meat that way, then I'd say in the long run we saved money.  Besides the fact that I really need red meat for my anemia issues, I believe strongly that all of the hormones pumped into our food is really negatively affecting our society--especially children who are most susceptible.  Ever wonder why girls are starting puberty younger and younger?  What about the boys?  And why are so many more couples having a hard time conceiving?  While I believe there are many factors to this issue, I think a major factor is the amount of hormones pumped into our bodies everyday by our beef, chicken, milk, eggs, turkey, etc.  Having this abundance has got to put serious strain on our bodies ability to effectively regulate our hormones. 

So, in the long run, I'm glad to be paying a little more money for some quality meat that I know is nourishing my  family.  

By the way, if anyone is interested I bought our meat from Ranney Ranch in Corona, NM.  Or, you could check out the Eat Wild website to find some local grass fed beef in your area.  I believe that is how I found my local-ish meat as well.  The website also has great information on why eating grass fed beef is so much better for you.

Monday, November 3, 2008

Embarking on an Adventure


This week a large portion of the family on my husband's side is embarking on an adventure. My mother-in-law, sister-in-law and myself are the wedding decorators for one of my best friend's wedding. The fun part about this wedding is that it is two dear friends. My husband has known the groom since he was a teenager from Kansas Bible Camp. The bride is a dear friend we met while in Oklahoma City after college. We met her at church and God knit our friendship together. We are so excited from them, but have also decided that we are a little crazy to not only be doing the decorations and in the wedding party, we also made all of the favors--homemade apple butter. We think ceremonies are important and that people do not place enough importance on the ceremony of a wedding. If something is just haphazardly thrown together with no thought then we are missing something. God loves ceremonies and believes they are important. Look at all the covenants--ceremonies. He has us perform a ceremony as identification of his body--baptism. He even calls Christians His bride and invites us to one day join the wedding feast. God values the picture that ceremonies create not only to those involved in the ceremony, but to those who observe the ceremony. Weddings seem to hold an extra special place as cited above, but also because Jesus performed his first miracle at a wedding. There is something holy about knitting two people together with Christ.

With that in mind, we decided to help this couple with their ceremony, because they are special and we want this ceremony to honor God, as a picture of how their marriage will honor God.

The above picture is an early picture of one of the tables we hope to create at the wedding. I will post more pictures after we return.

Sunday, November 2, 2008

Virginia


I thought it was about time to post some pictures of our trip. This is inside Luray Caverns. It's a beautiful place and such a different type of cave than Carlsbad Caverns. Luray seems to be more interactive because the cavern isn't as tall so you feel like you are right in the middle of the beauty.








I've also officially decided it's much more fun to experience things through my kiddo. He loved the caves! "Wrock" "wrock" that's all he kept saying--he loves rocks!










I'd also like to take this time to mention that my family rocks. This was about the best cake I've ever eaten. My sister-in-law made this cake and it was really beautiful before we started eating it. ;) That icing was really fantastic and I definitely need to get that recipe. Every time I make frosting it's thin and runny--look at how thick that stuff is!



Sorry for a rambling post.