Make Healthier Choices

Helping people Make Healthier Choices about real-food choices for optimal heath.

Recipe Renegade

Milk Kefir Bread – A Healthier Bread

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If you’re anything like me, you like to occasionally enjoy a nice slice of homemade bread, a cookie, or perhaps a cupcake–especially around holidays. When I eat something that might not be the healthiest, I try to prepare it with real, wholesome ingredients.

If you’ve read my article,  Are You Still Eating Wheat?, you probably already know why this recipe is healthier than other bread recipes. Not only does it contain einkorn flour, it has milk kefir, a fermented milk, which acts as a preservative. This bread will stay fresh for longer than loaves made with water or milk.

milk-kefir-bread-mhc-recipe-renegade

 

Einkorn, is our oldest wheat and the only one left that has not been hybridized. Today, most wheat is sprayed with glyphosate before harvest. The wheat flour I’ve listed in my recipe from *Tropical Traditions is tested for and does not contain glyphosate. It has a lower gliadin to glutenin ratio than modern wheat and can be tolerated by some who have gluten intolerance. DO NOT eat this wheat or wheat bread, if a doctor has instructed you to avoid wheat or gluten!

Milk Kefir Bread
 
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Easy-to-make bread-machine bread.
Author:
Ingredients
Instructions
  1. *Add first six ingredients to bread machine in order they appear.
  2. Add yeast to the center on top of flour.
  3. Lock pan into machine.
  4. Set machine to: 1½ lb., Basic, and Medium.
  5. Press: Start
  6. *Follow bread machine instructions for your particular machine.

 *If you use my affiliate link for your first ever order at Tropical Traditions, you’ll receive this book absolutely free and I’ll receive a discount coupon for referring you:

If you are in the market for a new bread machine, consider this WestBend Bread Machine. Thrift stores are full of bread machines that have a square loaf pans. It’s rare to see one that has a rectangular pan like this one:

WestBend Walmart

Did I mention that I LOVE my WestBend Bread Machine?

If you love rye, check out my article, Is it True This Can Reverse Diabetes? and recipe for Rye Bread.

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Nourishing Traditions

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Nourishing Traditions

                                                    by Sally Fallon with Mary G. Enig, Ph.D.

This book is one of my all-time favorites. Not only is it politically incorrect, it is full of information about how our ancestors ate. Most of us know we have become more and more sick with each generation and with each new “healthy” way we’re told to eat. This book cuts through the crap and tells it like it is. It’s not just a cookbook; you’ll find lots of great information about and recipes for healthy eating, including fermenting. Whether you’re a seasoned cook or a beginner, you’ll likely learn new cooking tips. Click on “PREVIEW” under the book for a sneak peek!

 


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My 17 Best Tick Defenses

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It’s Tick Time! Ewww!

If you’re anything like me, you can’t stand a fleeting thought about those disgusting arachnids. Honestly, I don’t want to come in contact with any arachnid that needs to be killed with a hammer or rock. Living in New Hampshire, though, gives me no choice since the state has become a hot spot for ticks and the diseases they carry. In the last few years, my own county has come in first in the United States for Lyme disease. Uggghhh! Ticks not only carry Lyme Disease (the Borrelia burgdorferi bacteria), they carry Bartonella, Babesia, Rickettsia (Rocky Mountain spotted fever), Ehrlichia, Anaplasma and more.

This CDC page shows maps of seven different ticks and where they can be found: Tick Maps

Due to El Niño, tick season has unfortunately been around continuously for me this year. The 2015/2016 exceptionally mild winter didn’t bring them deep underground. December and January brought ticks to my dog and in January, I had symptoms of being re-infected. Keep in mind that spiders, fleas, and mosquitos can also carry Lyme Disease.

FREE TICK TESTING:  As of today, 5/5/2016, Bay Area Lyme Foundation is currently accepting ticks for free testing. Please go to their website for more information.

Natural (and Toxic) Tick Repellents

Aside from spreading food-grade diatomaceus earth (DE) on my lawn in the areas we tend to walk most, I have an arsenal of tick repellents.  Three are sprays:

PLEASE NOTE: If you choose to use the insect sprays listed or any other insect spray, PLEASE READ AND FOLLOW ALL DIRECTIONS, AND HEED ALL WARNINGS!

 

 1.  I use toxic, tick-killing spray that contains permethrin on my shoes (especially white sneakers – they love white) and spray on my pants from the knees down.  NEVER, NEVER PUT THIS ON YOUR SKIN!!! It is said that when ticks crawl over dried permethin on clothing, it will kill them. Most experts who tout using natural products, admit that the toxic products we are exposed to can NEVER compare to having Chronic Lyme Disease. Permethrin on clothing is said to withstand at least 6 washings, although I spray it more frequently. Those of us who have Chronic Lyme Disease know we need to protect ourselves and our families at any cost from this debilitating, financially crippling disease. I, unfortunately, get lax and usually bring out the sprays after the first bite of the year.

 

2.  As the weather warms and I switch from pants to shorts, I spray myself from the waist down with Buzz Away Extreme.  Its active ingredients are: castor oil, soybean oil, cedarwood oil, citronella oil, peppermint oil and lemongrass oil. Inert ingredients are: purified water, coconut oil, glycerin, lecithin, sodium bicarbonate, citric acid, sodium benzoate, and wintergreen oil. This product‘s smell is too strong for me (strong not offensive) so I use yet another product from the waist up.

3.  I use Ticks Away Natural Spray from the waist up, since it has a milder smell than Buzz Away Extreme. It’s a New Hampshire product, sold by Cardigan Mountain Soap Works in Alexandria and I find it works well.  This company also has a “bugs away” soap that I use during tick season.  Ticks Away ingredients are: distilled water, pure essential oils, emulsifier, sorbitol.

4. Spreading Diatomaceus Earth (DE) on the lawn, especially in areas people tend to walk, can help. DE doesn’t feel sharp, but to small insects that have an exoskeleton, it can be deadly. Cutting their exoskeleton causes them to bleed out.

Trying Something New

I’ve seen a meme circulating Facebook touting that Lemongrass and Eucalyptus essential oils, mixed with water, will repel both ticks and fleas and is safe for both humans and dogs. I have Améo Lemongrass on hand, but today ordered Améo Eucalyptus Raidiata that will be in next week. I will try this mix as soon as it arrives and update my findings. Eucalyptus Radiata, by the way, is milder than Eucalyptus Globulas –figures–I had Globulas on hand. Spending quite a bit of time researching, I found Eucalyptus Radiata listed in a couple Essential Oil pet books as safe for pets. If you decide to try Améo’s clinical-grade essential oils, please contact me first so I can show you how to purchase them at the reduced, wholesale price.

My other thirteen defenses are:11 chickens
Yup. Chickens. Thirteen free-ranging, adult chickens. (Not all are pictured.) They do a great job of eating bugs, including ticks.

 

I’ve also been told by a friend, who also has Chronic Lyme Disease, that her doctor suggested she use Sawyer Products Premium Insect Repellent with 20% Picaridin. I have not yet tried this and know nothing about it. If you’ve ever used it with success, or not, please let us know if it worked by leaving a comment below. And please–let us know your best tick defenses!

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Homemade Sausage

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Do You Eat Pork?

I don’t eat a lot of pork—an occasional bacon for breakfast, maybe a ham for Easter and sometimes home made pork sausage. I only buy local pork and try to keep it to a minimum. Like Dr. Axe says: You eat pork; you have parasites. I don’t worry much about parasites; I fuel my body with no less than a couple handfuls of moringa oleifera every day. Moringa oleifera is said to be anti-parasitic, anti-bacterial, anti-fungal, and anti-viral.

Sausage and French Toast on Rye Round MHC RR
Sausage with Rye French Toast and Fresh Orange Slices

I realized if I wanted to avoid pork, I’d have to find another way to make sausage. I was pleasantly surprised when I deviated from pork in this recipe. The first time I made it, I only used half a pound of beef for fear of ruining the entire pound—it was delicious! I’ve not yet tried this recipe with ground chicken or ground turkey, but I’m guessing the ground fennel might need to be replaced with ground rosemary. But that’s only a guess. When I’ve had a chance to make these with poultry, I’ll update this page.

Sausage
 
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Ingredients
  • 1 Pound Grass-Fed Ground Beef (or Ground Pork)
  • ½ Teaspoon Himalayan Salt
  • ½ Teaspoon Ground Black Pepper
  • ½ Teaspoon Thyme
  • 1 Teaspoon Sage
  • 1 Teaspoon Onion Powder
  • 1Teaspoon Garlic Powder
  • 2 Teaspoons Ground Fennel
  • 2 Teaspoons Demerara or Evaporated Cane Juice/Sugar or ¼ Teaspoon Stevia
    • Instructions
    1. Mix all ingredients in stand mixer until well blended.
  • Divide into 6 or 8 sections and make patties. (I use an old-fashioned ice-cream scoop to measure and flatten in my clean hands.)
  • Cook in cast iron pan on medium heat for approximately 4 to 5 minutes on each side or until completely cooked through to middle. The thicker the patty, the longer it will take to cook.
    • Notes
    I use an ice cream scoop to spoon out the meat.

    Click below for more information about Zija International’s bioavailable, enzymatically alive moringa oleifera:Zija Independent Distributor

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    I Haven’t Washed My Legs For Six Months

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    Should I be embarrassed?

    You probably said, “Ewww!” when you saw my title. When I first came up with the title for this article, I didn’t think it could possibly be true—then I counted the months. October through March. Yup, that’s six months. And now we’re into April. Should I be embarrassed?

    Body Scrub Legs

    Honestly, living in New Hampshire with a pellet stove, on top of a dry cold, can’t be good for anyone’s skin. Every winter I constantly scratched at my legs. Once I started using this scrub as a shaving cream, the scratching stopped. I rub it on, rinse off the excess Epsom salt granules and shave. I don’t wash off the coconut oil, since coconut oil is said to have antiseptic, antibiotic, anti-fugal properties.

    Jennifer’s Favorite Body Scrubs

    Ameo Winter Scrub 2 MHC RR

    iconicon CAUTION! If you’re going to use this scrub, please be advised that it will make your shower and bathtub floor slippery. Please don’t use this without first installing bathtub safety strips! Please clean bathtub/shower directly after using and be certain all coconut oil is removed.

    5.0 from 1 reviews
    Body Scrub
     
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    An Elite 16 oz. wide-mouth mason jar works great for storage.
    Author:
    Ingredients
    Instructions
    1. CAUTION: This mixture will scratch food processor bowl. Processor is optional.
    2. With knife blade in bowl, place Epsom Salt in food processor (or bowl).
    3. Process for a couple minutes to refine granules.
    4. Add remaining ingredients and process until completely mixed.
    5. Store in glass jar.

      ALTERNATE INSTRUCTIONS:
    6. Place Coconut Oil in small pan on stove top.
    7. Heat on low heat just until melted.
    8. While oil is melting, process Epsom Salt in food processor (optional) using knife blade.
    9. Add Epsom salt and remaining ingredients to melted coconut oil.
    10. Mix thoroughly.
    11. Place in glass jar and allow to harden/cool before using.

      *Olive oil is only necessary in colder climates/seasons to keep mixture soft - more or less might be needed depending on your climate/temperature.
    Notes
    CAUTION! If you're going to use this scrub, please be advised that it will make your shower and bathtub floor slippery. Please don't use this without first installing bathtub safety strips! Please clean bathtub/shower directly after using and be certain all coconut oil is removed.

    My favorite essential oil is Proshield by Améo. Please contact me at RecipeRenegade @ MakeHealthierChoices.com to learn how to purchase Améo clinical-grade essential oils at wholesale prices.

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