Good advice

I just came across this British propaganda poster from WWII and think it is a perfect mantra for whenever you are cooking and something goes amiss.

Southwestern Stuffed Squash

Okay, here is my first recipe....this is pretty basic and easy for beginning cooks. The ingredients are also relatively simply to find. This is a really filling and warming meal and great for fall and winter, but also for the colder days of spring. Several things you will notice in my recipes are that I like to share the "whys" of a recipe and I include a lot of details.

This is my adaptation of a recipe that was shared with me by the office of Dr. Anne and Dr. Dave Stewart.

Serves 6

Ingredients:

* 3 acorn squash or squash of your choice (I like acorn squash, as they provide a
greater area to fill with the meat mixture)

* 1 pound ground turkey (I used one and a half 12 oz. packages of Organic Prairie)

* 1 large onion, finely chopped

* 3 cloves of garlic, minced or put through a garlic press

* 1 jar Drew's Organic Double Fire Roasted Salsa (this is key! I've tried other salsas, but this really adds the pizazz you need as there aren't many other spices in this recipe)

* 1 tablespoon ground cumin (I like to get the Frontier Organic brand from the bulk section of my natural foods store)

* 15 oz. can of Eden organic black beans, rinsed and drained (or 2 cups of soaked and cooked per Nourishing Traditions) (Eden Organic beans are the only ones that don't have BPA in the can lining and have been soaked before cooking, which makes the beans easier to digest)

* 1 cup sharp cheddar, grated or thinly sliced

* sea salt

* a few tablespoons of coconut oil (I like Green Pastures) and olive oil (I like Bionaturae Organic Extra Virgin)

Cooking directions:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F with the rack in the middle position.

Wash squash and cut in half lengthwise. Scoop out seeds and discard. Sprinkle some sea salt on the cut side of each squash and place cut side down on a baking sheet and bake until tender (about 45 minutes).

Melt a few tablespoons of coconut oil in a large pan (prevents sticking in stainless steel cookware) over medium heat. Add turkey and cook, stirring and breaking up with a fork or spatula to make small pieces, until lightly browned.

In a separate skillet, heat a few tablespoons of olive oil over medium-low heat and add onions, stirring occasionally and cooking until caramelized. Stir in garlic and simmer a few minutes.

Stir onion and garlic mixture into turkey, add salsa, cumin and sea salt to taste. Cover and simmer for 30 minutes. Stir in black beans and simmer uncovered 10-12 minutes.

When squash is tender, reduce oven temperature to 325 degrees F. Fill each squash with the turkey mixture. Top with cheese. Place on baking sheet and bake until filling is heated through and cheese is melted, about 5 minutes.

My daughter, who is 2 1/2, enjoys this recipe also....with a slight modification: she eats her turkey mixture out of one bowl, and I scoop out the squash and mash it with butter in another bowl.

Beyond gluten-free

Right before my 30th birthday I discovered that I have a gluten intolerance, which was starting to affect my thyroid. I eliminated gluten from my diet and after six weeks, my thyroid was back to normal. I was previously a big believer in the healing powers of food, but this gave me personal proof!

I had already been on the path of replacing processed foods with organic produce and pastured meats, dairy, and eggs since the birth of my daughter the year before. I had been using Nourishing Traditions as my culinary bible and reading the Weston A. Price website whenever I could. I dutifully took my cod liver every day. I even took a great leap of faith and secured a cowshare which provides us with the best full-fat, real milk I have ever consumed.

But going gluten-free was a challenge. Eating out became more difficult. Trying to explain it to family and friends became tedious. And then I realized that more and more processed foods were sneaking their way back into my house!

And then some bloodwork came back, indicating that I was almost pre-diabetic. And then the other shoe fell when my husband's health checkup revealed a whole host of things that needed remedying.

Thankfully we were blessed to be seeing a wonderful holistic family doctor that believes that food can be your medicine. And when I looked at the dietary changes we would be making, I was both excited and petrified.

Here is the general outline:

Organic/pastured meats
Full-fat/organic dairy
Pastured eggs
Organic vegetables and fruits (twice as many veggies as fruit)
Soaked nuts and beans
Only dry red wine for alcohol
Healthy fats (coconut, butter, lard, olive oil)
NO grains of any kind (corn on the cob is allowed, but no wheat, rye, barley, oats, rice, quinoa, millet, etc)
NO gluten (found in most grains, as well as random other places like soy sauce, lots of processed and commercially prepared foods)
NO flours of any kind (almond, bean and chickpea flours are allowed)
NO sugar of any kind (no fruit juice, dried fruit, maple syrup, agave, honey, refined or unrefined sugar, regular potatoes, or anything made from these items)
NO artificial sweeteners

Thankfully I had already established a network of local farmers and merchants who could supply me with the proper foods. The hard part was finding recipes and techniques that allowed me to cook them without feeling bored or deprived. (Oh, and try explaining all THAT to friends, family, or your waiter!)

Away we go...

Here's my confession: I have never blogged and don't read other people's blogs with any regularity. And the confession behind the confession: the other night I watched Julie & Julia and got inspired.

At first I was inspired just to try some different cooking techniques. I am fortunate enough to have a freezer of local grass-fed beef and pastured poultry to experiment with, after all.

And then I thought more about what was really calling to me...making delicious, nourishing, grain-free, sugar-free, raised-right food for my family and creating a resource for myself and others who are looking to do the same.

I'm envisioning this as a place to share my love of cooking real food...and the quest for the good recipes that can make that possible.