My Kinda Knowledge

My reading up on sugar, namely from Sweet Poison, enabled me to know the answer to a trivia question last night at the pub!  "What gland produces insulin?" - the Pancreas was my answer, my team mates however disagreed so I was overruled 2:1 & I was damn right. Thankfully they didn't have views on the Queens of the Stone Age, as that was my other correct contribution to the evening.  Next time I shall have to be more persuasive about my knowledge on bodily functions...

I do feel I've been doing a lot of reading lately & quite overwhelmed by the newfound knowledge, Toxic Oil in particular.  I do, however, remember feeling this way a year ago when I read Sweet Poison, but now most of that comes as second nature.

As ever a little knowledge raises more questions & a thirst for answers.  So I'm keen to find more sources & explanations:  mostly about sugar, more about oil, what they do to us & definitely more about homemade GF bread.  Good books, good blogs, good recipes & good breadmaker reviews!  Suggestions welcome.

Just be mindful my reading platter is pretty full already with Toxic Oil, Fat Chance, Fed Up plus The Failsafe Cookbook... & for desert Keith Richards biography!

And as I type, I'm proving out some of that newly read material, there's a trial dinner experiment going on the oven right now... cooking chips with Supafry, yes animal fat... I have never done this in my life!  I'm sure its what I grew up on, before vegetable oil became the norm, but have never used it myself.  Sure I've eaten both lard & dripping at my Nans house way back, but this is a whole new adventure.  Although I've been partial to buying oven chips from the freezer section & just whacking them in the oven at times, mostly the last few years I like to make wedges or chip shapes cut myself & have just used olive oil, occasionally seasoned with herbs & salt.  So to go the whole hog of a deep fat fryer, the smell & danger that brings to my house is off limits right now.  My normal method is to pre-nuke spuds anyway once chipped before sticking in oven, so this is what I'm trying hoping that will soften them enough to soak up the fat & give the desired flavour.  I'll venture into limiting microwave use another time... too many new things on the go right now, its hard to quit every convenience factor of the 21st century.

The Verdict:  Exterior crunch & interior softness perfect, taste...ok, but for the grown-ups in the house a little greasy.  I think akin to adjusting back to full-fat milk at first.  Maybe I just used too much fat or perhaps I could combine with olive oil to be nearer the taste we are used to.  They certainly crisped up better than with straight olive oil.  The kids took to them fine. Chips are just chips to the non-decerning palette!  The roasting pan was easy to clean & the oven didn't smoke as I feared it might, so all-in-all a successful attempt.

The Process:  Peel & slice spuds.  Rinse & microwave for 8mins.  Add 5mm slither of Supafry to roasting pan, heat in oven.  Drain spuds & add to roasting pan, turn to coat in oil.  Cook for approx 30mins at 200C or until golden (turning halfway).

Chop Pot Choc Top Treat

Nearing the end of a week where I'm flying solo, more treats were in order.  I was also in a very efficiency minded mode today trying to pack as much in as could like dog walking, food shopping, multi cooking, kid napping & house cleaning, not to mention a playdate with a top treat.

Todays experiments were the No-Knead Bread, from Toxic Oil & modified Chocolate Brownie, from Sweet Poison Quit Plan.

The latter I've tried numerous times, both in a tin & individual muffin cases.  It has to be my favourite recipe from the book, not only because its so yummy & satisfies the chocolate fix, but because its so quick (about 20min all up!).  There have been some flops along the way, but I think I've nutted out the process & today felt game enough to add some Macadamias.  I substitute with gluten-free flour, & now add the magic xanthum gum for that bit of extra of "normalcy".  If you melt the butter first its easier to mix with just a hand blender & save getting out a food processor, thus avoiding all the extra clean up - especially as my hand blender attachments all fit nicely in the dishwasher.  Its quite a stiff mix, so liquifying the butter puts less stress on the blender (mine tends to stop if it works too hard).  I now reduce the amount of cocoa to about 1/3 cup as found it too intense for my adapted palette.

The engineer in me is always trying to tweak & streamline the process - not just from a taste perspective, as I'm no chef, but more from a ease of making or remembering point of view.  So reducing equipment & simplifying measurements was the name of the game today.  My blender has the "chopping pots" for want of a better description, in 2 sizes, I used the larger one & a glass pyrex jug.  I melted the butter in the jug, poured into the "chop pot" & added the dextrose, mixed, added eggs, mixed, added flour, xanthum gum, cocoa, mixed, added whole macadamias & mixed just a very wee bit more.  "Spoonulaed" into buttered tin, baked for 12mins (then another 5 as still really gooey).  Job done.  Had I used the silicon case I could have gotten away with the suggested 12mins (muffins take no more than 10).  During the cooking time, I quickly washed up the chopping pot, blade, cup, spatula & jug I'd used.  Thinking about that now I could have meted the butter in the cup, which just necessitates a quick clean & dry before using it to measure the dry ingredients, but maybe 1 cup is also the same amount of melted butter required - will check next time!  See, ever the engineer looking for process improvements.

The equipment

The cooking

The result

The pleasure

The No-Knead Bread is still in progress as its now set aside for 12 hours.  I'll cook that in the morning & report back later.  I have high hopes as I also slow cooked a lamb casserole which I plan to have again tomorrow, but with the bread.

Pesto Prompt

Perusing the facebook posts I see I've omitted to follow-up with my homemade Pesto outcome.  My memory really is shocking at the moment!  Today I left the house in my usual mad dash, trying to wrangle a toddler or two, to make an appointment.  After said appointment, I nipped to the bank, or shop as I told my daughter to get money, as it was a hole in their wall, she interpreted that as we'd been to buy money... anyway I digress.... so I thought I have time to pop back home & walk with the dog to kinder instead of driving there & waiting in the car.  I opened the door to the smell of rather yummy, but very strong scent of Bolognese cooking on the hob.  Yes it was still sat there simmering away, reducing as I would like but had not intended at that time when not present.  Ooops!!  So had I not given pooch a thought & driven straight to kinder instead the whole house would have probably been reduced to ashes.  My memory, you'll please have to excuse, is not what it was.  Distraction has become my middle name.

So to the Basil Pesto - I followed the recipe straight from Toxic Oil.  For convenience I used pre-grated parmesan.  The recipe produced just the right amount to fit in an empty Sacla jar.  It tasted more garlicky than the shop bought one & not as oily.  It was so quick to make, much quicker than checking ingredients list whilst shopping.  The kids loved helping, but didn't even question the switch when it was served up on their pasta the next day.  The other half however said it was nicer & had great texture, I have to agree. Yummy!

Each time I've used some I just add a little more Olive Oil to cover the top.  I'm hoping it will last a week sealed in the jar if kept refrigerated.  That's about the norm for us to get through that amount.  David says it freezes well, so I will make a bigger batch next time & do that.

Affiliation Awareness

I’m so happy that I’ve quit sugar & proud of myself in being able to do so.  Part of the support in doing so comes in the knowledge sharing for me & I hope that being able to impart that helps others discover better inner health. 

The blogging process helps me share my journey & experiences, I hope you find it interesting & even fun sometimes.  I write as I feel & speak openly, for that I could apologise, but I mean no offence, so please don’t take any.

I Blog, I Facebook, I Pinterest, I Make – as part of that I like to share things I Love.  As a result I have chosen to join affiliate programs for Sarah Wilson & Book Depository to share my interest in quitting sugar & other books I enjoy.  If you are hungry for more too & support me in my adventures, then please consider clicking on hyper links & images that I share to them.  For those two sources I receive commission on sales made, not very much but it all goes into the piggy bank towards more FF GF recipe trials & experimental handicrafts for my Made ‘Em hobby shop.  Other links within my pages are simply just things I’ve discovered, like, wish to share & for which I get no commission.

Sarah Wilson quit sugar & also happens to be gluten-free so I love her recipes & follow her blog avidly.

Book Depository is a great source for all books.  They are based in UK, provide good value for money & offer free worldwide delivery.   

August 2014 update:

As part of my discovery journey into food & health we have moved away from many processed foods & to make like simpler bought a Thermomix.  I totally am in love with this clever piece of technology, from my engineering head perspective, as well as my heart & love for good food.  I'd hankered after one for a while, but once I realised the savings I would make, in monetary terms due to its milling capabilities of ingredients like rice & buckwheat to flour, & also time due to its speed & multi-functioning ability.  I knew once I had it that I would enthuse about it so the natural step was to become an independent consultant, which would also give me that chance to meet with other people interested in real food, thus create an income & business interest to get my teeth into that I am passionate about.

Fructose Friendly Party Food

I thought a follow up to my party rant was to post some useful types of party treats you could try to make more fructose friendly food to give guests, particularly mini(beast) guests.

These are some snaps of food from my kids last party which was bug themed:

*

Snail Scrolls with Cheese & Marmite ;  *Spider Eggs (Olives)  ;  Cheese & Grape Butterflies

I know the grapes are probably high up there as fructose goes, but you could make more savoury with olives, or choose blueberries instead - even cheese balls crisps.

I also made ladybugs - some dextrose biscuits, which I topped green dextrose/coconut icing with 2 pieces of quartered strawberries as wings & a blueberry for head. These were devoured before I had chance to photograph. Another time I think I'd opt for a savoury version - crackers, cream cheese, cherry tomato, black olive & sprinkled chia seeds.

* Not my photo, but I did make some of these - just forgot to photograph!

Party On !!

Its been a long week & the next is looking even longer :( so I've baked a few treats for us to get me through it... I find the process therapeutic & when it involves the kids it can be fun too.  I like to see them enjoy the results & know its not doing them the harm that processed goods or those containing refined sugars can.

On days like those its good to see them accepting the sugar-free ways I've introduced to our home, however on days like today it becomes more apparent that kids just love treats & its down to me to be the moderator, they "like the old me" have no control over the sweet delights.

Today we had a toddler party to attend & fair play to my friend she eats very wholesome, from the land, far better than I so there were plenty of healthy options there, she'd catered for the gluten free & coeliacs .... but as ever a kids party is not a kids party without cake & sweets so where did my munchkins head first!! Jelly snakes, sweet arrow root biccies & choc topped caramel slice.  I guided them to make healthy choices - yummy homemade soup, corn chips, cheese, humous, olives, all of which they love (given no other options!) but not today with the lure of sugar in their sights.

I know! I try to think its only a day & parties are the exception I make, but this is the second party in a week, plus there was a kinder activity which, fair to say was just an excuse to eat more party food.

When it comes to "lolly-bags" which in my day were just called "party bags" I just can't see the need to put in more sugar to continue the party effects further.  For my own kids parties the most I've ever put in was one chocolate each, I scour dollar shops, Kmart & Coles for small booty & split-able multi-packs to make it appealing to them.  Usually balloons, pencils, notepads, curly straws, themed novelties & stickers.

Anyway ranting aside, I just hope the kids learn moderation & start making more healthier choices in future. I eeked out the lollies 1-a-day from last weeks bag (after I'd binned half of them).  The kids fully understood these were not to be eaten all at once & not the norm.

So back to baking, I gave the Anzacs another go - they tasted just as good but I'd used a new baking tray (bigger, but thinner) & they spread more & came out thinner.  The other thing I tried was the first thing from a new ebook I'm excited about that I bought this week - Hungry Tums...Sweet As.  It was a successful (taste-wise) attempt at the Orange & Almond Syrup Cake, it came out a little more dense than I expected, but I think that might have been the GF flour & silicon case into the mix.  I chose a square silicon & slightly larger mould rather than the suggested 22cm round tin.  I also added a small amount of Chia seeds to kind of create a citrus poppyseed look/taste, just for experimentations sake, unfortunately the slice I've pictured doesn't show them to their best effect.  I look forward to trying more recipes from the enticing book written by another fructose-free devotee, whose coincidentally also only been on it almost a year like myself.

Honey its Ironic

As I sit here dabbling with the format, I note my template is rather ironic... to the right is what appears to me, a honey-eater bird.... I chose the background for the colour, maybe I should rethink it.

Anzacs Revisited

Having just purchased a new recipe eBook this morning & begun perusing the TO recipe section I was starting to get a little peckish so once the kids were asleep hit the kitchen with a vengeance.  Using neither of the above resources(!)... I decided to give the Anzacs another go to test a combination of the recipes of previous attempts. (1. Sweet Poison, 2. This is Taryn, both sugar-free, but #2 is also gluten-free).  I'm only wheat-free & felt the latter lacked oats & sweetness, the former was too crispy & sweet.  I had used glucose syrup in both those recipes although #2 called for Rice Malt Syrup, which I didn't have at the time... I have lots now thanks to being on special at Coles. 

I kept closest to #2 but replaced 1 cup flaked almonds with rolled oats. For sweetness I used 4 Tbs of RMS & only 1/2 cup dextrose.  I believe the original recipes had similar quantities of butter & syrup, but stated them differently.  I found it easier to measure 4 tablespoons as opposed to 1/4 cup of the sticky stuff.  Not being an expert in the baking department I note #1 uses baking powder & #2 bicarbonate soda - I have no idea what the difference is & stuck to bicarb as it came to hand first.  The other compromise (& fair to say guesstimate) I made was to adjust the cooking temp to 140degC, because of the inclusion of dextrose but also as my oven seems to need less time otherwise.  

I also wanted to avoid using baking paper (considering the last batch with xanthum gum were hard to peel off) so used a silicon sheet to lay them on & ran out of space after 12, therefore greased a separate metal tray with butter for the remainder.  Now for some reason those on the metal tray browed quicker, even though the silicon sheet was laid on a metal tray.  I ended up having to cook those for a further 10mins to achieve same golden colour.  If anyone has thoughts or knowledge to why this would be I'd be keen to know.  I would have thought the overall temperature around & directly underneath would be the same ???

Both sheets were easy to remove the biscuits from & I transferred to a wire rack.  At this point the biscuits has some sponginess, but upon cooling increased crunch.  The aroma awoke the mini taste-testers & the returning biscuit expert.  All of which gave a big thumbs up verdict :)   So I am writing this one up for keeps!

Fructose-free Wheat-free Anzac Biscuits

The texture was awesome (if I do say so myself!) & the flavour just right.  The silicon tray batch which were cooked 10min longer did have a very slight bitter tinge, but not enough to put anyone off.

A few have gone down very well this afternoon with a nice cuppa coffee.  Some soda water would have also been refreshing, but alas the gas cylinder has just run out (first time) & upon trekking to both KMart & Woolies they were all out :(  

Heavyweight sales for diet books - Herald Sun Article

This is the outcome of the Herald Sun interview, in which my comments didn't feature :

After listening to her sister and housemate reel off its many health benefits, Philippa Hinton went out and bought herself a copy of I Quit Sugar, an eight-week detox program and recipe book written by media personality Sarah Wilson.

''They fuelled my curiosity and it had such a big presence in shops. I guess I just wanted to see what all the hype was about,'' Ms Hinton said.

She isn't the only one - the book is now in its 10th reprint since February. Precisely 2400 copies marched out the doors of Dymocks alone in the week ending April 27, helping put I Quit Sugar third on the chain's non-fiction best sellers list.

Of that list, 12 of the 15 books were food-centric titles, nine of them relating specifically to diet and nutrition (the others are cookbooks).

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The Fast Diet ranks No.2 - having sold 3000 copies in a single week - two months after its release.

Angus & Robertson's online store's weekly best seller list tells a similar tale. The Fast Diet tops the table, followed by The Sweet Poison Quit Plan. I Quit Sugar rounds out the top 10.

The figures confirm what dietician Naras Lapsys knows; given the number of Australian adults now classed as overweight or obese - 63.4 per cent according to the Bureau of Statistics - it's not surprising that those dissatisfied with their appearance have become a receptive audience.

''Being unhappy with how we look is ingrained in our society. Television, books and magazines all play on human insecurities,'' Dr Lapsys said. ''The latest diet books are no different.''

David Martus, a Dymocks store manager, said books relating to diet have an almost exclusive female following, although the anti-sugar titles seem to have wider appeal.

In the case of Ms Hinton, 26, the book was used to complement an already healthy lifestyle.

''I eat quite well, but there's so much more awareness now, the presence of natural foods and the whole 'super foods' movement.''

Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/entertainment/books/heavyweight-sales-for-diet-books-20130511-2jejg.html#ixzz2T2Uq9rJB

The interesting facts for me to take from this are that people are obviously increasingly interested in the food they eat & health associated risks, enough to read about it & that its a more popular topic than any other non-fiction at the moment. With regards to Sugar, interesting to note from the article that its not just women who are followers.

A shame its a small article & more interviewees comments were not featured.... but some press is better than none regards spreading the word.

Sugar High on Readers List

 Well I have just partook in an interview with the Sydney Herald Sun, to discuss my experience with quitting sugar, thanks to an open invite yesterday by David Gillespie on his facebook page: Sweet Poison. The article is about how there are 12/15 in the current top non-fiction books list that are about healthy eating & diets at the moment - 3/15 about quitting sugar! Now thats worthy news... 

So I've been sugar free for almost a year now & was told about the Sweet Poison phenomenon by a good friend. I borrowed the book, soon got hooked, bought my own copy & subsequent follow-up of his, Quit Plan.  Since then I have bought the eBook: I Quit Sugar by Sarah Wilson, her cookbook & follow both their blogs. I have also read Big Fat Lies & now have Toxic Oil on the go. The latter two I'm struggling with because vegetable oil is intrinsic to so much of our daily staples & convenience foods... await my verdict once I've fully read TO. Though the opening sentence as to how it makes you exceedingly vulnerable to cancer, scares the pants off me enough to want to do it!

So what makes me believe these books?  Initially I would say interest in healthy eating & weight loss, hence picking up the first one. Upon reading I would say the scary reality of what eating fructose & vegetable oil lead to, backed up by the scientific facts, charts & logic that Gillespie applies. Subsequently I would say the practice of quitting sugar & benefits I personally found: weight loss, increased energy, decreased nana naps, better inner health, decreased appetite, loss of sugar cravings,  ability to say no to sweets, plus my childrens acceptance & understanding to healthy food choices.

I do believe in moderation & a little of what you fancy does you good, so the kids are allowed "occasional foods" such as cake for parties & the odd biscuit/chocolate for other social treat times. For myself however sweet alternatives have to be used as the sugar addiction just kicks in & when I quit again (i.e. post Easter & Xmas) that 10 day headache is just not worth it! 

Fingers crossed my interview makes the cut & I can post a link here shortly.

Banana Excess

Finding I had an abundance of bananas lying around that were starting to go spotty I wanted to try a recipe from Sweet Poison for Banana Muffins to use up some. I followed the recipe, but halved the ingredients & added a little Xanthum gum hoping for some sticky magic, given I was using GF SR flour, & decided to reduce the time to 15mins as my oven seems to operate extra hot. The batch made 24 mini muffins. They smell incredible & look the part... taste verdict YUM! Well in my FF GF opinion they do.... I await the tastes experts to awake from their nap & pronounce them deeeeelicious or normal, both would be good ratings, as opposed to "not normal" or yuk.

Sweet Poison - Banana Muffins

The rest of the bananas I've cut up & stored in bags in the freezer so I can whizz them up into ice-cream later. The kids love that as a dessert treat once a week. Its so simple, no other ingredient needed as the frozen bananas provide the sweet flavour & texture of real ice-cream. I do occasionally add some fresh cream, if I have any, or berries, nuts or coconut to change flavour. Cutting the pieces up small before freezing means they are easier to put into hand blender for convenience to whizz as & when, rather than getting out the food processor.

Not so sweet

For anyone wondering how the Anzacs turned out - the texture was awesome & the xanthum gum certainly helped prevent crumbliness of the usual GF disasters I bake. Flavourwise though they definitely did not taste sweet... I did use Glucose Syrup ilo Rice Malt Syrup & maybe that was the issue, but another time I would combine the Sweet Poison & This is Taryn recipes & included Dextrose for a bit of sweetness & traditional oats (given that I'm only Wheat-free).

I picked up David Gillespies Toxic Oil from the library today so am hoping that sheds some light into the nasties of fats & leads me down a path more healthy. Cutting the fructose has definitely enabled me to lose some weight & prevent further weight gain, but I am struggling to lose that little extra to be in a healthier BMI and a lesser dress size. This could be down to portion size or just those weaknesses of mine... chips & crisps, which I seem to have convinced myself are acceptable non-fructose, but know they are not really "healthy" alternatives.