Today the Nourishing Road has moved over to WordPress. I’m so excited about the move. Continue reading
Pruning Thorns in Your Bed of Roses.
Can Cholesterol make you smarter? Part 2
Charlie is a week away from his 9 month mile stone. Weighing in a just under 21lbs and crawling around everything in sight. This weekend, we were relaxing around the kitchen table, enjoying a family roast with my in-laws. We were all generally chattering away and having a lovely time, when out of no where baby Charlie repeated the words ‘Thank you’.
If I didn’t have the
witnesses I would never had believed it! He didn’t understand the meaning, but he was copying his Mama perfectly. Clever boy!British Bangers and Mash
Butternut Squash Soup
‘Lets put Cholesterol under the Microscope’. Part 1
Lets put Cholesterol under the Microscope.
Sorry to keep you in suspense. It’s a big subject and I want to do it justice. Here’s a sneak peek at some of the topic I’m going to discuss:
- Why Cholesterol is essential for life and we simply can not live without it.
- Why lack of Cholesterol can cause impaired cognitive function.
- How Cholesterol actually helps to HEAL the body.
- Why HEART DISEASE and other illnesses are not caused by Cholesterol.
- The real villain of clogged arteries and foods we SHOULD be avoiding.
Want to know what we eat in our kitchen? Well, I’ll tell you this, it’s got Cholesterol written all over it.
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Cheats Chili. Make a Meal of your Leftovers.
Book Review: The Mood Cure
“Milk = Calcium, and Oranges = Vitamin C”.
But did you know that for the body to assimilate calcium you also need adequate levels of magnesium and vitamin B? Did you know that vitamin C requires bioflavonoids to work efficiently?
Well I did not. I also didn’t know that my ‘false moods’, (i.e. feeling depressed for no tangible reason, or crying with no cause) were actually because of deficiency in amino acids! Yes, amino acids can give you back your zip, zest and zeal!
Before we find out how, here’s a little background knowledge on the author. Julia Ross is a specialist in the treatment of eating disorders and addictions. She is described as a pioneer in the field of nutritional psychotherapy. For over 15 years she has been working with natural nutritional solutions at The Recovery Systems Clinic in Mill Valley, California where she is the Executive Director. She studied Clinical Psychology to Masters level and is author of 2 books: The Diet Cure and The Mood Cure.
One of the first pleasant surprises I read in ‘The Mood Cure‘ by Julia Ross, was the diet. Ross explains that a ‘happy, stress reducing diet’ must include about 30 grams of protein with every meal (yes even breakfast!) and also heaps of good fat. Ross explains that a good diet, exercise when appropriate and good quality vitamin supplements are sometimes all it takes to start to feel ‘sunny’ again. For those of us who are ‘burnt out’, extra supplements and amino acids are required. A good way of telling if you have any problems is to take the questionnaire. CLICK HERE to take it now. Once you have a better understanding of your specific needs and which amino acid you are deficient in, you can read the book. [ It is essential to read the book for yourself, and not to rely upon my experience. I am not a doctor or a medical professional.]
Ross focuses on several area of the body which can be damaged due to lack of nutrients. Thyroid function, blood glucose levels, adrenal glands, amino acid levels, sleeping problems and sex hormone imbalance. The two areas I want to go into more detail about are ‘False Mood’ and Amino Acids.
Amino Acids are concentrated forms of protein, the same kind we find in food like beef and eggs. They are completely natural, not addictive and have very few side effects. Here are the four main amino acid’s which Ross holds responsible for our moods:
(Read this if you missed my previous post about The Mood Cure)
Butter 101
My wonderful sister-in-law Liz (check out her craft blog here), makes her own butter from raw milk. It tastes so amazing that I asked her to share how she does it. It is surprising easily, and best of all it retains all the fat soluble vitamins A, D, E and K. So welcome to Liz and her amazing butter!
My comments are in italics.
To make butter:
1) Separate the cream from your milk (preferably raw, but pasteurised cream will work too) and leave in a warm room overnight.
[When we made this the cream was too cold, so Liz had to literally hug the jar next to a radiator. HA! It must be room temperature, or you just get whipped cream.]
3) You will see a yellow top forming in the blender. This is your butter! When there doesn’t seem to be any more butter rising, use a spatula to scrape the butter out and put it into a mixing bowl. You may want to whizz the rest of the cream up further to check for any little bits of butter that were missed.
4) Using filtered water, clean the butter by squashing it and moving it around in the water. Empty the bowl of water, using a sieve to catch the butter, and repeat about 10 times. It is very important to make sure that every last bit of the cream is out of the butter, as it would make the butter go off. If in doubt, wash one more time.
5) Then, shape your butter, and put it in a butter dish. Keep at room temperature and enjoy! You can use the leftover cream in any recipe that calls for milk. [if your milk is raw, you can let it sour then use it as a soaking agent for grain recipes like Crepes]
Thanks you Liz for sending me the pictures and the ‘how to’ explanation. If you have something you’ve made, or done that is ‘nourishing’ for your family and you’d like to see it posted on my blog…send it my way: thenourishingroad@gmail.com. I’d love to learn more about you, so include any information your happy for me to share.
What do people think of Liz’s butter? Please share your thoughts in the comments below. Or how about joining my Facebook page (click here)?






