Green Tea... My New Coffee

If I could go back in time and tell my year-ago-self that in the future I would be experiencing energy-filled days without the help of a cup o' Joe, she would be shocked.  Actually, she would be wondering how I am surviving. Well, poor year-ago-self, let me tell you - I am thriving!  What a gift to be past the caffeine addiction and have an amazing amount of sustained energy!

Just three months ago I was on a first-name basis with the nearby Dunkin' Donut's employees.  Erin definitely was running on Dunkin'.  And this seemed perfectly logical and necessary for me to get through my busy days.  Yes, it was the coffee.  Delicious, aromatic coffee.  Um, yes, and creamer.... (by the way, if you're a coffee drinker and need creamer - at least check out the organic varieties I saw at Meijer the other day!).

I am surely not knocking coffee altogether.  I totally get everything about enjoying a cup of coffee with a friend.

However, the hubby and I - in a determination to shed the weight we were still holding on to even after changing our eating habits - went on a 30 day cleanse starting in July. We found out that it was strongly suggested we not drink coffee during the cleanse.  So I did the only logical thing I could think of and loaded up on a couple Starbucks Caramel Macchiato's with organic soy milk and whip the weekend before we started - no, not GMO-free caramel, I'm quite sure.  And then I quit coffee.  For 30 days. Actually, in the last 70 days, I've had half of one cup.

But, why give up something that was so precious to me?

What I learned as I prepared for my cleanse was that coffee raises the acidity in our bodies and the goal of the cleanse was to create an alkaline body in order to avoid disease.  Another reason that caught my attention is that coffee is a crop heavily sprayed with pesticides - and surely much of the coffee I was drinking was not organic.  In fact, upon starting our cleanse I was given a list of 25 reasons to stop drinking coffee.  If you're interested, I can pass the list on to you.

I was a little sad when I thought of my weekly coffee/Skype call with my friend.  Would it be the same camaraderie without actual coffee?  How about my nightly coffee with my hubby?  How sad to give that up!

I can now say I am very thankful to no longer be a slave to the coffee I once felt completely necessary to get through a day.  And I can also still enjoy an occasional cup should I choose.  I like feeling in control of my coffee consumption rather than feeling controlled by it!

And guess what?  There are healthier alternatives that still give me that satisfying cup of warmth in the morning.  One such discovery ... Green Tea with a touch of honey.

I am also enjoying the tea varieties I have found at Big Lots.  In fact, today, October 6, Big Lots has a 20% off sale going on - just get a coupon.

Shake It Up!

Is it just me, or can a smoothie make almost everything taste good?

In our house, my famous peanut butter/banana/chocolate shake is the go-to snack option most often begged for by my children.  I've served them to grandparents and friends with glowing reviews as well.  And the best part is they're healthy (although high in calories, if you're watching your consumption).

These shakes are perfect for a snack that stays with the kids.  With Daddy's long commute, a lot of times we eat dinner late around here and the kids need something with some staying power.  I have also found this smoothie is good for a pre soccer/baseball game boost.  Add a scoop of our newest find from Isagenix and you are in nutrition heaven.

Oh, you need a recipe, you say?  Okay, to be honest, I just throw the ingredients in a blender, mix it up and taste it.  The kids often discuss, "Oh, it's more banana-y today," or "Mom, did you use almond butter today?"  The point being, if you have a blender and at least some of these ingredients, you too can be a super cool mom making a shake the kids will beg for.  And if you add something different than what I suggest, let me know.  Maybe I will try that next time, too!

If you run across some good bananas on sale, grab a bunch of them.  If you live in Northwest Indiana, I suggest checking out Evan's Farmers Market at 8201 Taft St in Merrillville.  If you stop by often enough you can sometimes score some awesome deals in organic produce.  Lately their organic options have been poor but they often have bananas for $.39/lb and I have bought ripe bananas there for $1 a big box.  They aren't always organic, but because of the thick skin on bananas I compromise on this particular fruit at times.  When I score a deal, I peel, bag and freeze the bananas whole.  A frozen banana thrown in a blender along with other smoothie ingredients give a great consistency!

Finally, the very modifiable recipe...

For two servings:

2 frozen bananas
3T cocoa (a bit less or omit completely if you use the shake mix)
2T honey (raw is best)
1/4 c organic peanut butter (or organic almond butter)
1C unsweetened almond milk (or organic milk or water if you use the shake mix)
optional:  1 scoop of Isagenix IsaLean Chocolate Shake

If your bananas were not frozen, add a glass full of ice.  Blend, taste and enjoy!

It's Like Christmas Every Two Weeks Around Here

Hooray!  Today was a Timber Creek Farms delivery day.  If you live in Indiana, Illinois or Wisconsin, you are likely in an area where your family can experience the fun that we do with a produce delivery from Timber Creek Farms.

Really, I could go on and on, but why don't you just take a peak at what we received in our boxes today:

Oh, phooey, I forgot to add these because we grabbed them for a soccer game snack:

 

And a tomato and two apples were gone before I snapped the picture .... but you get the idea, right?  

This is the box called the Farmer's Market Box and typically it is automatically delivered to my door every other Thursday.  The part that makes it like Christmas is that we never know exactly what we are going to get.  For example, this week included fennel, bok choy and green mustard.  Typically these particular vegetables wouldn't make my shopping list, but when included in my fruit and veggie box, I have the opportunity to educate myself about an item and figure out what to do with it.  YUM!

The kids always gravitate towards the fruit box, of course.  Every delivery there is something different for them to enjoy.  As they unloaded the box, a couple of my grapefruit loving kids were chatting away about how they could not wait for breakfast tomorrow morning.  

And guess what? With the delivery fee the Farmer's Market Box is less than $55.  What a deal for organic produce I didn't have to drive to the store for!  

Typically I will receive my boxes and then plan out some meals to make the best use of all these great whole foods.  These boxes become the base of our dinners for the next several days and snacks become a no-brainer.

I have used Timber Creek Farms for many years and have come to appreciate their efficient service and excellent produce.  Give it a try and eliminate some of your grocery trip while being assured that you are getting whole food that has not been engineered or contaminated.  

There are many different types of boxes you can order depending on your family size and preferences.  Visit Timber Creek Farms at tcforganics.net, call them at 630-553-1119 or email valerie@tcforganics.net.  Tell them Erin Taylor sent you and let me know how you like your box if you decide to give it a try.

A Label You Should Know

Have you taken the time to research the GMO issue yet?  If so, and if you're like me, you may be tempted to stick your head in the sand and forget the whole thing.  I agree, is seems overwhelming.  But WAIT... just take this thing one step at a time and I promise, you will get there.

Until you are knowledgeable about all of the GMO ingredients out there, and until you become adept at what to look for, it is quite likely that your grocery cart will be loaded with less than ideal food sources.  If an item you are purchasing is USDA organic, GMO ingredients will not be used in the product.  That is one way to avoid supporting GMO crops.

Another way is to look for this label on products that you purchase:

In fact, for a wealth of information on GMOs, the nongmoproject.org website is a wonderful place to start!  You can even look up your favorite food items and see if they are verified non-GMO.  For example, a quick browse through the verified products shows that Hodgson Mill, a brand I have used often in baking, has many products verified to be GMO-free and more of their products in the process of verification.  I like feeling confident that I am feeding my family foods that have not been tampered with genetically.  This might not be so difficult after all!

A Spoonful of Sugar

In July of 2012, the USDA deregulated genetically engineered sugar beets.  If you read my last post, and especially if you took the time to do a bit of research on GMOs, you know that this news does not bode well for the average consumer.

However, this blog is intended to help "average consumers" like me take charge of where grocery dollars are spent.  One simple way to avoid GMOs is to use an organic source of sugar in baking and canning.

One of the stores that has helped our family turn our pantry into a GMO-free zone is Costco.  Check out this 10 pound bag that commonly lands in my cart on Costco shopping days:

For just over $10 I buy this big bag of evaporated cane juice and use it in place of the refined sugar that used to be dumped into my baking.  As a family we are striving to cut down our sugar intake in general.  For the occasions that we want to use some sugar, even though this bag is more expensive than the refined and bleached alternative, it is completely worth it to us!

In the past two years I have taken up canning as a useful hobby. This year I stepped it up by being sure to use only organic ingredients in my preserves.  Last week when I scored some organic peaches, this organic sugar came in handy for some delicious peach butter.

It has been satisfying to be able to label my homemade concoctions "organic" because I have put trust in each ingredient I have added to the pot.

Finally, for baking, this sugar is absolutely delicious.  We made organic cupcakes for my daughter's birthday using this sugar and they were amazing!  More recently, I added this sugar to zucchini bread.  It was just delightful!

Your super simple tip for the day?  Head to Costco and get a membership!  Then dump your white refined sugar and grab this bag for your sugar needs.  Any of your trusted baking recipes will be fabulous using this organic sugar in place of refined sugar.  It is just one small step you can make toward an edifying pantry!

The Day We Did A 180

It was a normal day.  My kids had probably poured themselves cereal that morning for breakfast.  Good old Corn Flakes maybe.  Lunch was likely PB & J with some chips and carrots with dressing to dip.  Maybe our snack that day was my famous no bake oatmeal/chocolate/peanut butter balls.

I really don't remember what I fed my children that day.  What I do know is that over the course of a normal afternoon I took the time to watch a documentary that changed my perspective on every single food item I had served my children - for their entire lives.

I didn't know!  I had no clue what a GMO was.

The documentary I watched is Genetic Roulette. I was stunned.  The Corn Flakes, the peanut butter, the jelly, the bread, the chips, the dip, the chocolate chips... nearly everything I had offered my children that day was made with genetically modified ingredients!  Overwhelming?  YES!

But I did not let the new knowledge go.  I was on a mission to figure out how to get these ingredients out of my home.  And after months of research and perseverance, I did it.  If I can do this, anyone can.  Your first step?  Educate yourself.  You can get an idea by watching this small YouTube clip.


I would suggest taking an hour of your day and renting the full version which you can get here:  http://geneticroulettemovie.com/.

Watch the documentary and then come back and visit this blog. Together we will figure out how to clean up our pantries!

Where To Buy Good Snacks To Have on Hand

I would love to have some type of completely homemade snack for my children every afternoon.  In fact, I hope to soon add a page where I can share homemade snack options (your ideas are quite welcome!).  However, like most dear readers who may choose to check out this blog, I live a busy life.  I've got four kids, I home school, I've started an at-home business, we are active in church, we've got soccer and horse-riding and AWANA and baseball and piano and... you get it, right?

So what do you do when you don't have homemade on hand but you don't want to compromise on junk from the gas station on the way to whatever-it-is-you-have-going-that-day?  I've found that having a basket of packaged snack options in our pantry has been very helpful.

Maybe one of the biggest surprises in my quest for organic eating has been the boxed and pre-packaged organic options at... BIG LOTS.  Yes, you read that right.  The first time I got a text from my friend and GMO-free eating mentor (truly, she should be writing this blog), raving about her Big Lots finds, I was a bit skeptical.  Upon checking it out myself, I have found it to be a little treasure trove.  Plus, I nearly always get the bonus of the friendly cashier commenting on all the healthy food I'm buying.  It's like a little pat on the back as I check out.

At the same time, while I do worry about them selling out of our beloved granola bars if I tell too many people about the Big Lots secret, I want them to continue to carry these items.  Maybe there will be such a rush on organic food that they will create a separate department for these items.  This would be helpful because right now it is a bit of a hunt up and down the aisles to find the good stuff.

On my last trip to Big Lots I stocked up on Nature's Path Organic granola bars and oatmeal packs.  At about $2.50 a box they are a great buy.  At other grocery stores I have seen this brand sell for double the price.  The kids have easily adapted to this brand over the big name brands with more questionable ingredients.  Nature's Path has a lot of flavor varieties which makes it fun, too.

Of course that is not all I found, but that's a start.  Have you been organic food shopping at Big Lots?  What did you find?