Whole Grains and Phytic Acid – Process grains naturally

How to process whole grains naturally

Whole Grains: Good or Bad?

In reaction to the over-processed, nutrient-deprived grain products that fill our supermarket shelves, many families have returned to using whole grains. Whole grains are what our ancestors used before we reinvented food to what you see today. So shouldn’t this return to the past be great?

Yes, but we are missing a pivotal step.

Whole grains are what our ancestors used, but we have lost the skills that allow us to naturally process the grains so that our bodies properly utilize the nutrients in the grain. Even our ancestors “processed” the grain before eating it. They didn’t use heat, machines, and extruders; instead they used God’s natural fermentation process to help release the nutrients from the grains.

Grains naturally contain phytic acid, a nutrient blocker. This phytic acid keeps the grains safe while going through the intestinal track of animals so that the seeds can travel to new places to be reintroduced to the ground. However, this is bad news for humans. We want to gain nutrients from the grain and this phytic acid blocks the absorption of magnesium, calcium, zinc, and other essential nutrients.

Therefore, we need to soak and ferment our grains (including seeds and beans) to decrease the phytic acid before we consume them. For oatmeal, this can involve taking 2 cups of oats, 4 cups of warm water and 2-4 tablespoons of whey, yogurt, or buttermilk and soaking them for 7 to 24 hours. Other grains can be soaked in other methods to get rid of the phytic acid.

Do you have any questions about soaking, fermenting, or phytic acid?

How to soak oatmeal

By |October 23rd, 2017|Brooke S., Food or Foe, Traditional Recipes|0 Comments
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Healthy Fats

Healthy Fats | Boholistic Moms

I don’t know how you were raised, but if you were raised during the 80’s and/or the 90’s you may have been raised on a low-fat diet. Fats were bad. All of them. Butter was replaced with margarine. Lard was not even mentioned, much less used. Cheeses were artery cloggers and vegetables were all eaten plain.

This was my life from 1983 until around 2001.

I mention in my other post how confused I was about the need to avoid fats and to lessen my calories. Then eventually people began to say to avoid carbs too.  How could I possibly avoid fats, avoid carbs, and lessen my calories to keep my weight balanced?  It became apparent to me that something was awry.  These “food experts” didn’t really have their act together.  In fact, did they even know what we should eat to be healthy?

I found the answer out in 2013.  The answer was so simple that I’m amazed that I’d spent so long trying to figure out the solution to my food dilemma.

Eat real food.

I go into this in more detail here, but in this post I want to speak exclusively about healthy fats.  Eating healthy fats, because truly not all fats are bad.

You need healthy fats to produce cholesterol which is the mother of all hormones.  You absolutely need cholesterol in order to produce hormones in your body.  All of the highest fat REAL foods contain cholesterol.  These two are the dynamic duo of proper hormone production.  Without healthy fats and cholesterol, you cannot function the way that you were made to function.  Your hormones help to regulate your brain, […]

By |February 12th, 2015|Brooke S., Food or Foe, Real Food Recipes|1 Comment
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Making a Bone Broth

 Making a Bone Broth

When considering real food and traditional foods, the journey cannot truly begin without the basic knowledge of bone broth.  Our ancestors could not have survived without broth (or stock) and many traditional cultures used broths as the fundamental building block for many recipes.  Only within the last 100 years has broth become a thing of the past being replaced by broth in a carton, can, or even worse broth by bouillon cube.  The flavors of soups, curries, and other recipes have suffered from the loss of knowledge about traditional broths and many households no longer recognize the authentic taste or texture of an authentic broth.

Traditional Bone Broth RecipeWhat is Bone Broth?

“Broth (or stock) is a mineral rich infusion made by boiling bones of healthy animals with vegetables, herbs and spices.”1 Broth is a highly nutrient dense super food!

Why Bone Broth?

What doesn’t bone broth have?  As I researched the benefits and the mineral properties of bone broth, the information regarding the benefits were extensive.  Here are a few basic “why’s” to bone broth:

  1. Calcium2 – important for strong bones and teeth
  2. Magnesium2 – vital for many needed inner processes including calcium management
  3. Glycosaminoglycans2 – important for connective tissues, tendons, and joints
  4. Phosphorus – Bones are made of calcium and phosphorus7
  5. Amino acids proline – “vital for healthy connective tissue (ligaments, joints, around organs, etc)”1
  6. Amino acids glycine – “plays extensive roles in digestive health, proper functioning of the nervous system and in wound healing” and “Glycine is […]
By |February 28th, 2014|Brooke S., Real Food Recipes, Traditional Recipes|3 Comments
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