Nell Stephenson's Blog, page 75

Thanksgiving Turkey: Hold the Salt

Nell,

I always have used a salt and sugar brine in years past for my turkey, but I no longer want to do that since I’m really enjoying how I feel on the Paleo diet.  What do I do without salt for this festive dinner, though?  I can’t imagine a no-salt turkey will cook properly, will it?

Many of the popular ways to prepare the bird is to use a salt in some way, shape or form.

Personally, I’m not opposed to using some salt for certain cooking methods; being an athlete, including some salt in my diet is actually a healthy thing to do, in order to make up for the electrolytes I’m losing through sweat.

However, I’d hate to present the erroneous message that the only way to guarantee a flavorful, juicy bird is to use copious amounts of salt… even if it is sea salt (there’s barely a difference in sodium content between sea salt and good old Morton’s, incidentally…).

Just as we do with all other meals, turn the focus away from salt being a seasoning and redirect it towards seasonally appropriate fresh or dried herbs, spices and other natural flavorings to make a truly Paleo rub, jus or gravy without compromising what True Paleo is all about.

Use a rub.  Sage, thyme, rosemary, lemon, orange zest and even a hint of clove can be macerated and then rubbed under and on top of the skin for a lovely dose of flavor.
Inject the bird with salt-free broth, a dry white wine, or olive oil, you can directly inject moisture into the bird, akin to brining, but without the salt.
Use a salt free brine.  Many organic spice companies now offer salt-free blends that make it easy for you to create the perfect flavor profile. Look for one containing just dried herbs and spices and rest assured you’re not going to end up with a turkey that’s too salty or dried out!

 

 

Turkey Talk

Thanksgiving is just days away and I’m fairly sure there are at least some of you who may be nervous about hosting your first Paleo Holiday Meal.

Last year I extended an offer to all readers to post questions and concerns regarding turkey prep, side dish recipes and more or less all things related and I’m doing the same again now.

Your questions are sure to be similar to those of other readers, so don’t be shy!  Email me and I’ll use the questions I get as blog topics!

What’s The Point of Paleo?

The Paleo Diet is, according to Dr. Cordain, whose opinion we should really regard most highly in this space:

“based upon eating wholesome, contemporary foods from the food groups our hunter-gatherer ancestors would have thrived on during the Paleolithic era, the time period from about 2.6 million years ago to the beginning of the agricultural revolution, about 10,000 years ago. These foods include fresh meats (preferably grass-produced or free-ranging beef, pork, lamb, poultry, and game meat, if you can get it), fish, seafood, fresh fruits, vegetables, seeds, nuts, and healthful oils (olive, coconut, avocado, macadamia, walnut and flaxseed). Dairy products, cereal grains, legumes, refined sugars and processed foods were not part of our ancestral menu.”

He also refers to it as an anti-inflammatory diet.

Even if you’d never heard the word “Paleo”, would it be that far-fetched to imagine that a meal made of fresh, local veggies, wild proteins and natural fats would be  a healthier option than one consisting of pizza, a soft drink and a cupcake?

Herein lies the problem; far too many are simply inserting the word ‘Paleo’ before products from pancakes to breads to cereals to ice cream.

Is a gluten-free, corn-syrup free, hydrogenated-oil-free cupcake better than a commercially bought one that contains wheat, corn syrup and crisco?

Maybe so….but ever so slightly.

But that doesn’t make it something we should eat with any regularity… or at all.

To address my question in the title, then, I believe the point of  the True Paleo may be a lot of different things to many different people…but one who follows the real deal isn’t thriving on foods marked ‘Paleo’ that are so far from being ‘based on what our paleolithic ancestors ate’ and completely devoid of anything remotely valuable nutritionally speaking that they’re not anti inflammatory, healthy or  remotely close to anything that is good for our bodies.

Please don’t jump on this Faux Paleo Bandwagon.

If you want cake, eat cake.  If you want ice cream, go ahead.  But give it a second thought if you’re trying to fool yourself that these good choices for a weekly part of your True Paleo regime…they’re simply not.

Start Where You Are

Did you know that if you get in even a short bout of exercise first thing in the morning, before a healthy, Paleo breakfast, that it can be the easiest way to set the stage for a more active and productive day?

Even a thirty minute walk. If it’s been quite a while since you engaged in any activity, your first step could be a shorter duration than thirty minutes.

There is no judgement on where you start.  You are where you are and getting frustrated with yourself for where you think you should have been by now does no good.

Refocus that energy on now and get moving!

What starts as a one mile walk can build to two, then three and so on.

Following that up with a Paleo first meal of the day such as two soft boiled eggs over steamed kale with avocado on the side, for example, helps to boost your metabolism even further and allow you to function on a fat-burning, rather than fat-storing, metabolism.

It is that simple.

Sure, it may take a while, but patience combined with a slow but safe and steady proves to be the healthiest and most sustainable way to go to achieve long term weight loss and overall optimal health.

So- go Paleo, get moving and focus on the now!

Up &  at ‘em!

Kettle Bell Conflict

I have seen it a million times and I saw it again today and it never makes the cringe factor any less.

You’ve probably seen it, too:  a trainer in the gym with their client doing a kettle bell workout.   The trainer has a close eye on the client and is making sure she’s executing each swing with perfect precision.  But then… over there, in the corner, another gym member watches and then tries to emulate the very same movement pattern with a weight far too heavy and fails miserably, putting himself at great risk for injury.

Even worse is observing a trainer teaching a client improperly and then standing by while the unsuspecting person dances on eggshells just waiting for a back or shoulder injury to take place.

Don’t get me wrong; when done properly, a kettle bell workout can be a fantastic means to build strength.

But like with any other specialty, just make sure you watch your own back and make sure your trainer is educated and has practical experience with this particular workout technique.

Ask.

Don’t assume, or go by the credentials (if they have any) after their name.

I have great credentials, a degree from USC in Exercise Phys and a certification from ACSM plus seventeen years experience- but I do not do kettle bells myself, so I would not in a million years work with them in a workout session with a client.

As long as you do your own due diligence, you have a world of different types of workouts to choose from.   Not asking questions, however, can lead you straight down the path to an injury, and it could be serious.

Easily prevented!

Veggie Sides…Or Main Dishes?

One of my biggest pet peeves is the way we as a society have come to view veggies: as ‘side’ dishes.

While I’m eternally grateful when I see a menu listing the ‘sides’ and including items like steamed broccoli or sautéed garlic spinach, there is still something fundamentally wrong with thinking of  veggies as anything other than a crucial part of every meal, including breakfast, and including snacks.

Think about the template we showed on Dr. Oz in which every plate is 2/3 full of veggies.

2/3 is hardly an afterthought, or a side.

If you agree, why not implement this approach at your upcoming Thanksgiving meal?  

It won’t be that big of a stretch, since we are all accustomed to having lots of dishes to choose from on this festive day… only this time, rather than the gluten-rich stuffing, the marshmallow topped yams and that (awful) green bean casserole, why not a variety of veggie dishes?

Choose whatever is locally and seasonally available and go to town!  Focus on seasonal themes, tastes and whatever is fresh and  you simply won’t go wrong.

Naturally dried cranberries tossed with oven roasted Brussels sprouts and pecans, pomegranate seeds tossed into a winter green salad and rosemary infused yam puree topped with golden delicious apples are just a few ideas from which to create your own inspired Thanksgiving dinner!

The more veg, the better.  Not only will your palate thank you, but the way you’ll feel compared to if you’d eaten a ton of breads, cakes and cookies will thank you all the more!

Sometimes the Obvious is Unspoken

Several years ago, my husband took me on a trip to Paris, when we’d first  begun dating.  

 One of the little places we popped into for a casual lunch served lovely fresh salads consisting of locally sourced proteins on a bed of lettuce with a simple herb dressing.

My husband, fluent in French, spoke at length with the server about how delicious the meal was and she happened to mention that it was completely organic, but added it as an afterthought as though it was hardly worth mentioning.

Not because being organic is unimportant; rather it was because it was assumed it was obvious that it was organic because…why wouldn’t it be?

I loved that approach and couldn’t agree with it more.

Why should’t all our food be organic?   How have we gotten to a place where what should be the norm is so far away from the norm that when we do come across it, it needs to be labeled?   

Imagine if we keep going down this route and get to a point where all of our food is packaged for longer shelf life and has to be labeled for what was once obvious?  Like ‘Red Apple’ or ‘Green Lettuce’.

Makes me cringe.

What can we do?

Support those who are doing the right thing and create a situation where the demand for the poor quality food decreases.  

Those who are in a position to do a little more might consider paying things forward in the form of funding a local high quality food drive for others in their area who cannot afford it or getting involved in the community in whichever way they can so that everyone can have access to real, fresh, whole, organic food.

We’ve all got to do our parts and make change and stop the cycle before it gets violently worse.

A Cupcake By Any Other Name Is Still A Cupcake

When I was vegan, I would occasionally enjoy baking a vegan cupcake for a special occasion.  

Back then, while being vegan was certainly something people had at least heard of, it wasn’t nearly as popular as it is now, nor was it as easy to find restaurants, cookbooks and categorized menu items listing which were suitable for a vegan lifestyle as it is now.

When I first started following the Paleo diet in 2005, the same thing goes. Some had heard of it, most misunderstood it but it was far less likely that you’d find even a recipe or website devoted to Paleo than it is now, when we have hundreds (or more?) of faux Paleo cookbooks, blogs and even podcasts touting the benefits of Paleo…kind of.

Here’s the thing…Using the naughty little treat I mentioned in the title as an example; when you come across a recipe for a cupcake of any description, it’s still a cupcake.  Whether it’s gluten free, raw, vegan, Paleo, sugar-free, high fiber or ‘diet’…it’s still a cupcake.

A cupcake does not a healthy meal or snack make.

A special occasion or rare treat is where this type of food-item comes in handy.  A child’s birthday party might be the perfect place to serve a Paleo cupcake after the kids have eaten a healthy lunch, while your anniversary might be a good time to enjoy a Paleo Torte after a meal of grass fed filet and garlic spinach.

Notice the key element- making this treat part of the whole meal allows the net glycemic load to be lower compared to if you were to simply eat a cupcake on its own after a snack.

Whatever your eating preference may be, whether vegan or vegetarian or gluten free or any of the many other ways one might choose to eat, don’t kid yourself into thinking that anything other than a diet based on loads of fresh veggies, wild proteins and healthy fats at each meal is the way to go.

Not ‘Paleo pancakes’ for breakfast, a “Paleo wrap’ at lunch, a ‘Paleo bar’ as your twice daily snack, ‘Paleo almond-flour crust Pizza’ for dinner.

That’s not healthy and it’s not Paleo.

At the very least, be honest with yourself.  If you’re eating cupcakes regularly (or whatever your ‘treat’ item may be), take a good, hard look at what your daily diet consists of and you might find out a lot about why you’re not losing that weight or why those migraines are still making a daily appearance or why your skin hasn’t cleared up.

Unless your cupcakes are made of raw kale, wild salmon and avocado, don’t make them something you’re eating with any regularity.

 

A Friendly Little Reminder

OK, it’s time to come clean and get moving.  Of course, you don’t have to go as far as to run nearly naked  in the snow, like the active people in the pic above, but you see the point..

Put your hand up if this describes you:

You’ve been meaning to begin implementing a better eating plan and more physical activity before the holiday season was in full swing but now, since Thanksgiving is just around the corner, there’s a little devil on your shoulder encouraging you to ‘wait until January 1st and ‘enjoy the holidays’ (as if to say it’s a choice between being healthy versus doing so- and not possible to do both simultaneously).

Don’t worry; no one’s going to see you put your hand up.  Regardless, even if they did, you already know what’s going on… and it’s not too late.

Remember how you felt the last time you had a sugar binge or opted to go ahead and eat that gluten-rich stuffing or dairy-laden egg nog.  Rather than create a situation where you’re walking down that very same path again this year, you have the choice to change the outcome this time.

Start now.  Get up and move.   Eat more veggies.  Cut out sugar cold turkey.  Go Paleo, whether it’s 100% right away or in stages.

You’re going to feel better as soon as you make the first step, even if you have a long way to go…

A Paleo Guest at a Non Paleo Thanksgiving?

Don’t panic.  It can be done. 

Granted, it’s far easier to stay Paleo when you’re the host, but even if you’re going to the most traditional of parties for turkey day, you can still stand your ground with some simple preparation strategies.

Call ahead and explain to the host/hostess that you’ve recently learned you have some food allergies and that you’d like to bring a few dishes to share with everyone.  Emphasize that you don’t need anything special prepared for you so it’s clear that you’re not asking the menu to be changed.  The term ‘food allergies’ does a nice job summing it all up, rather than explaining you’re no longer eating grains, dairy, legumes, sugar and salt because you’re Paleo… unless you know the host well and are fairly sure they’d be interested.
On the day of the meal, make sure to keep your meals balanced leading up to the main dinner.  The idea of ‘saving calories’ in order to eat large quantities later than day often ends up backfiring via over eating in a big way.
Once at the gathering, as always, chat about Paleo when asked, rather than turning the theme into a lecture about the dangers of anti nutrients.  It’s really not the time or place, again, unless someone asks.  Incidentally, don’t be surprised if someone does ask; if you’ve been Paleo for a while now and have cleared up your skin, lost that weight or are exuding energy now more than ever, it’s almost guaranteed others will want to know what your secret is!
Focus on the positive.  If you have that overbearing family member or friend who tried to force you to ‘just try it’, politely explain you really cannot, for medical reasons, eat any gluten/dairy etc.  Worse case scenario, you could always use that tactic of too much information in this isolated instance, but save it for that. Someone who is over the top pushy and cannot be stopped just may need to be pulled off to the side to a quiet conversation with just a little bit of  ’well, you see, if I were to have a bite of that pie, the gluten would make me quite bloated and crampy and might lead either to constipation or diarrhea…”  Again- way too much information, but in an absolute pinch, it could do the trick.

While I’m kidding about that last pointer (kind of), the take away is that even when you’re at the house of the most picky or pushy person, you don’t have to give in and eat non Paleo foods.  Chances are, however, that this situation would not be the norm.  I find that nine times out of ten, the host is more than happy to honor everyone’s eating preferences, especially when you’ve offered to help them with the prep!