I am not a Trekie or exceptionally big Star Wars fan, but I am a total Shuttlephile.  I would always save my money to buy the Astronaut Ice Cream at the gift shop when we would visit the science museums.  At a young age I was never particularly a very good student (much to the chagrin of my Dad having to work hard to pay for private schooling I am sure), until someone pointed out to me the fact that the Space Shuttle had an awful lot to do with both Math and Science—after that I was sold on academics.

 

 

According to NASA, none of the food that astronauts eat is peculiar and a lot of it can even be found on a grocery store shelf—but the packaging is, well, cosmic.  Now, if you are not into vegetables, but you are into Space Exploration, be sure that NASA is going to make your Mom proud and ensure that you get all of your nutrients; Shuttle crew members do get to pick their menu items though.  

They plan a breakfast, lunch and dinner; snacks are listed with the meals.  Types of food available include rehydratable, thermostabilized, irradiated and natural form items.  Rehydratable items include both foods and beverages. One way to conserve weight during launch is to remove water from certain food items. During the flight, water generated by the shuttle fuel cells is added back to the food just before it is eaten (“Space food,” 2006).

 

 

“Food affects morale.” Astronaut Mike Massimino click here to see video

 

Of course the first man to experience three spatial dimensions of food as it floated around was John Glenn.  The menu and amenities improved past the Mercury Program until the Space Shuttle Program started in 1981.  The Space Shuttle galley (aka kitchen and dining area) is on the mid deck.  It has a water dispenser and an oven to heat the space techno-packaging that is required to eat in space.  As you can imagine there is some pretty technical stuff inside the Space Shuttle so things like crumbs getting into the panels or spilt liquids are a big deal.

 

During a typical meal in space, a meal tray is used to hold the food containers. The tray can be attached to an astronaut’s lap by a strap or attached to a wall. The meal tray becomes the astronaut’s dinner plate and enables him or her to choose from several foods at once, just like a meal at home. Without the tray, the contents of one container must be completely consumed before opening another. The tray also holds the food packages in place and keeps them from floating away in the microgravity of space.  Conventional eating utensils are used in space. Astronauts use knife, fork, and spoon. The only unusual eating utensil is a pair of scissors used for cutting open the packages (Dismukes , 2002).

 

The final dinner on the final Shuttle Mission (STS-135, 08 Jul-21 Jul 2012), the Shuttle Crew ate an “All-American meal.”  As a matter of fact, if you are playing along with the home game, you can get their entire mission menu here or try to recreate it at home with this “formulation” which is NASA kitchen speak for “recipe.” 

 

“Since the crew is launching in July, we thought it would be fun to have a typical summer meal often enjoyed in our backyards with friends and family,” said Michele Perchonok, NASA food scientist and manager of the shuttle food system.   The crew’s American menu begins with crackers, brie cheese and sausage. The entrée features grilled chicken, Southwestern corn and baked beans. The meal concludes with the quintessential American dessert—apple pie (“Special American meal,” 2011).

 

When you are planning food for the crew of the most expensive and most complicated machine ever built, it is good to know that you can still get a taste of home.  I am not sure if generic menu items like “candy covered chocolates” are cover terms for M&M’s®, but I know I certainly would not want to leave earth without a package of them somewhere on board.  (Look closely at the photo below)

 

Welcome home Space Shuttle Discovery and congratulations to 39 successful flights by the 252 crew members.  

 

 

Wilson
Pro Deo et Patria

Photo Credits:

Space Shuttle from NASA (Silverware overlays modified by Pantry Paratus)

Astronaut Brian Duffy STS-92 mission commander from NASA

Astronaut Food from NASA

Astronaut Richard A. Searfoss, STS-90 mission commander from NASA

Space Shuttle Flying Piggy Back Past Reagan International Airport by NASA

Citations:
NASA, (2006). Space food (FS-2006-11-029-JSC). Retrieved from website: http://www.nasa.gov/centers/johnson/pdf/167750main_FS_SpaceFood508c.pdf

Dismukes , K. (2002, July 4). Food for space flight Retrieved from http://spaceflight.nasa.gov/shuttle/reference/factsheets/food.html

Special American meal planned for final space shuttle crew. (2011, July 08). Retrieved from http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/shuttle/shuttlemissions/sts135/american_meal.html

 

Links for further “Discovery:”

Inventions that came from the Space Program: http://curiosity.discovery.com/topic/physics-concepts-and-definitions/ten-nasa-inventions.htm

Video of the Shuttle fly over (mounted on top of a modified 747) the DC area this morning: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ilZMXxa7ovI

Food For Space Flight: http://spaceflight.nasa.gov/shuttle/reference/factsheets/food.html

Inside the NASA kitchen: http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/shuttle/shuttlemissions/sts135/american_meal.html

Interesting Space Shuttle facts: http://www.nasa.gov/pdf/566250main_SHUTTLE%20ERA%20FACTS_040412.pdf

More on space food:

http://www.nasa.gov/centers/johnson/pdf/167750main_FS_SpaceFood508c.pdf

http://www.spaceflight.nasa.gov/living/spacefood/index.html

http://advlifesupport.jsc.nasa.gov

http://jsc-web-pub.jsc.nasa.gov/hefo/hhfo/aft

http://haco.jsc.nasa.gov/biomedical/nutrition

 

The weather is just getting so nice out!  Chaya and the kids went hiking yesterday and it was a perfect ending to such a tremendously significant holiday. 

 

Today we have a guest blog post from our friends over at JustBackpacksOnline.com on a cool new trail mix recipe that I cannot wait to try this year!

 

                           

 

Vanilla Fruit and Nut Trail Mix

Dry Mixture:

1 1/2 cups oat meal
1/2 cup wheat germ
1/2 cup cashews or brazil nuts
1/2 cup almonds
1/2 cup dried cranberries
½ cup raisins
1/2 cup coconut (or to taste)
cinnamon to taste

Wet Mixture:

1/4 cup olive oil
1 tsp. pure vanilla
1/4 cup honey

Directions:
Stir the dry mixture together in a large bowl. Pour the wet mixture over the dry. Toss gently, to ensure it is well-coated. Turn out onto an oiled baking sheet. Bake at 375 for about 20-30 minutes, or until lightly browned. When you take it out of the oven, allow it to cool before serving or storing. Feel free to sprinkle cinnamon on individual serving to add additional flavor.

 

 

This is a great recipe for the kids’ lunches, as well as for the trail or campsite, or roadtrip menu.

 

 

Check out our friends over at JustBackpacksOnline.com, they will be your one-stop-shop when looking for a new backpack this year. They have all the good gear like Black Diamond, Mammut and Vaude, at the right price.

 

 

 

Wilson

Pro Deo et Patria

 

Photo Credits:

Montana View by Pantry Paratus

Trail head by mp0sdr2
Oats and Raisins by mhX3tqm
Coconut by mtLGEu6

Black Diamond Octane Backpack by JustBackpacksOnline.com

 

---

 

 

This year, 2012, marks the 100^th anniversary of formal medical term “Vital Amine” spawned by the investigation into what inputs the body needs to function properly.  Like an electrical circuit with cold soldered joints or leaky pipes with ill-fitted joints, the body requires certain elements and compounds found in nature and taken in through our diets to function properly as designed. 

 

 

A Polish chemist named Caisimir Funk in 1912 blazed a trail by coining the term “vitamin.”  He was on the search to find the cure for the crippling disease Beriberi.  “’Beriberi,’ a Sinhalese word meaning, ‘I cannot, I cannot,’ became the name of the disease because a victim is too sick to do anything due to extreme stiffness of the lower limbs, pain, and even paralysis” (Ettlinger, 2007).  “Vital Amine” was originally where the research took Caisimir Funk’s theory, later it was shortened to vitamin when it was discovered that not all of the must haves for the body were amine compounds.

 

“Amine: A chemical compound containing nitrogen. Amines are derived from ammonia” (Medterms.com, 2012).

 

Like most vitamins we know about today (some of them as late as 60 years ago) we generally knew about the effects of not having them in our systems before we knew the name of the vitamin or from which nutritional source it came.  “Ancient Egyptians recognized that eating liver cured night blindness (a symptom of Vitamin A deficiency)” (Joachim & Schloss, 2008).

 

 

(Joachim & Schloss, 2008)

 

Among the thirteen vitamins that are formerly recognized (and it would not be pushing it to say “agreed upon”) there are two types: fat soluble and water soluble.  However you have plenty of subcategories inside of certain Vitamin letter categories (A, B, C, etc) that make the accounting interesting.  The discrepancies come largely from the two approaches: natural sources or synthetic sources of these vitamins.  It seems that nature really likes “package deals.”  The discussions about how much we need in our diets, terminology, etc generally is revised every five or ten years depending on new scientific discoveries. 

 

 

 

 When James Lind proved in 1747 that British Sailors suffering from Scurvy was a result of the lack of fresh vegetables and citrus, he knew that they were missing “some essential substance” in their diets.  He was correct, and that missing essential substance has a name, Ascorbic Acid, or vitamin C.  But not all “must haves” are alike.  Vitamins are usually included in the same sentence as minerals, so what is the difference?  Vitamins are compounds and minerals are elements.  Some vitamins can be easily destroyed by heat (specifically cooking) like the B vitamin group and by cold such as vitamin C. 

 

Vitamin C Compound

 

The periodic table of elements annotated with essential and trace minerals

 

You body is into bundling nutritional compounds, and that is why the “package deal” where you get the vitamins and the parts that come with it are so important for a balanced diet.  As your body constantly cycles Calcium, vitamin D (true to its name “Ergocalciferol”) is what transports Calcium from dietary input (fish, eggs, liver and fortified milk) to the rest of the body.  Without Calcium, the nervous system, skeletal system and circulatory system would suffer immensely.  While your body can produce vitamin D from the sun, it cannot synthesize Calcium.  This is especially important to know because without a Calcium input your body will use its reserves.  “What reserves?” you ask?  We are talking about your bones.  So vitamin D deficiency does not cause Rickets directly, rather it is the missing parts of the nutritional puzzle that vitamin D provides to your body.  A sugary cereal that provides your daily supply of vitamin C is not really the whole story, because that sugar is going to throttle your body’s vitamin B transactions causing further ill effects physiologically.  “Sugar consumption rapidly depletes vitamin B₁, B₂ or riboflavin [which] is found in a variety of whole foods.  Frequent cracks in the lips and corners of the mouth is a sign of deficiency” (Fallon & Enig, 1999). 

 

 

So if I am getting my “Recommended Daily Value” (“Recommended Daily Allowance” was the old term before 2001) of vitamin A, that must be good, right?  It is true that everyone must have vitamins, but how much of them depends.  “The exact amount of vitamins needed is under constant debate, and differs for people of different ages, genetic backgrounds and geographies.  As well, the RDV is the amount of vitamin needed to prevent symptoms of deficiency; it is not necessarily the amount needed to achieve glowing health” (Joachim & Schloss, 2008).

 

 

 A balanced diet with fresh vegetables and meat with fat is hard to beat!

 

Wilson

Pro Deo et Patria

 

Photo Credits:

Vegetable Testing taken from Library of Congress

Vitamin Chart compiled by Pantry Paratus (see citation below)

Vitamin C chemical compound taken from NIH (National Institute of Health)

Annotated Periodic Table of Elements taken from NIST (National Institute of Standards and Technology)

Sugar by mgyUgay

RDV Continuum by Pantry Paratus

 

Citations:

Ettlinger, S. (2007). Twinkie, deconstructed, my journey to discover how the ingredients found in processed foods are grown, mined (yes, mined), and manipulated into what America eats. (p. 37). London: Hudson st Pr.

Medterms.com. (2012, March 19). Definition of amine. Retrieved from http://www.medterms.com/script/main/art.asp?articlekey=2221

Joachim, D., & Schloss, A. (2008). The science of good food. (p. 587). Toronto: Robert Rose.

Joachim, D., & Schloss, A. (2008). The science of good food. (p. 588-589). Toronto: Robert Rose.

Fallon, S., & Enig, M. G. (1999). Nourishing traditions, the cookbook that challenges politically correct nutrition and the diet dictocrats. (p. 38). Washington DC: New Trends Publishing.

Joachim, D., & Schloss, A. (2008). The science of good food. (p. 590). Toronto: Robert Rose.

This will be Part III of the topic we are discussing here: food, its source, the implications of what happens in the modern system(s) and the safety net at the end of the process, irradiation.  As Chaya mentioned in Part II, if someone was texting while driving and was completely fine with doing so because they could just count on an airbag to stop them from killing passengers, you would take notice in a big hurry. 

 

 

It is true, you can irradiate a multitude of sins and therefore abate them, but how did people eat for thousands of years before electromagnetic cure-alls? 

 

I recently passed by the title, Hungry Planet, What the World Eats, in the library (not a book we sell).  These “chance encounters” with interesting books are typically not without consequence for me.  My curiosity seems to have a hotline to my inner nerd which loves these kinds of books.  My inner nerd then has complete override for my “thrift” sense and I typically end up buying so many good books this way. 

 

In this book, written by Peter Menzel and Faith D’Aluisio, they take on the topic of what different people eat around the world, even different cultures inside of the same country.  The book is scientific in a sneaky way, so if you are not into facts and figures you can still walk away from this book with a big advantage to the comparative value from the pictures alone. 

 

I found this link on the web with a nearly complete preview of the book.  You can flip through some pages and see the people in the different settings and what they ate for that whole week.  Please keep in mind that the authors did this with 30 families in 24 countries—this is no small undertaking!

 

Try to read this blog with anthropological lenses.  People are generally going to eat what is close at hand.  If you have ever looked into the Paleo diet, you may recall that the menu choices are largely what you could pick up on your way through the woods.  Animal proteins and fats appear high on the list, beans come in below the middle and donuts and squirty cheese in a can dead last.  Local food sources means that history has not left us great Inuit recipes for coconuts and the Mayans are not known for their seal cuisine either.

 

Along the way people probably craved variety in their diets.  The earliest ledgers for business transactions may not available, but I would wager that primitive economies were based on food transactions.  “Hey, I grow potatoes.  I see that your family produces milk—can we trade some of our surplus?”  Mutually beneficial exchanges beget economies and societies had the division of labor to move beyond subsistence to development. 

 

 

With the advent of the merchant class, food was marketed more widely.  Today, I can have pineapple in Montana any time of the year.  Food has a usable life before it spoils and so expedients were developed to increase food consume-ability.  Cooking is a great example of such a revolution in food.  Humans do not have the teeth to rip off chunks of raw meat like a dog, nor do we have the necessary enzymes to digest grass like a cow.  To this end, some foods are deemed edible after they are cooked (i.e. raw meat, fibrous vegetables, grasses fermented into beer, etc).    

 

Treating food, plant or animal, with high heat changes it, simplifies it, so to speak, so our teeth and gut can deal with it more effectively.  In general, it transforms organic matter that, when raw, is unpleasant to eat, difficult or impossible to digest, and unhealthy or even deadly into nourishing and palatable food.  On average, chimps spend six hours a day chewing, and people (that is to say members of the cooking species) only one.  (Crosby , 2005)

 

Gathering around the table is something people have taken very seriously over the years as captured in the book Hungry Panet, What the World Eats.  Some of the weightiest customs in culture are those dealing with food.  At the dinner table we talk about topics of interest, invite our friends over to our house to eat, we contemplate our provisions with gratitude, divide labor for clean up, offer prayers before meals, etc.  Look at the activities and traditions leading up to meal time: cleaning, planting, growing, harvesting, hunting, butchering, shopping and possibly traveling.  But who wants to impress a guest with raw meat or indigestible grains?  This intractable problem was solved with cooking. 

 

“The phenomenon accelerated mightily as our ancestor learned how to increase the proportion of available organic matter that they could digest by inventing cooking” (Crosby, 2005). 

 

 

“Once humans learned to cook, everything changed. The heat in cooking breaks down the fibrous collagen in meat and the stringy fibers in plants, making chewing easier and providing the luxury of consuming way more calories in far less time. We became ‘cookavores,’ according to Harvard anthropologist Richard Wrangham” (Yoon, 2007).

 

So what does all of this activity around the dinner table have to do with irradiation?  Answer: food safety.

 

Food safety historically was one of three options: eating it fresh, cooking it or a function of food preservation through various means such as: smoking, salt curing, dehydrating, freezing (seasonally dependent), burying, fermenting, etc.  The industrial age changed many things the world over; refrigeration is the biggest thing to happen to food since fire.  Refrigerators preserve food by greatly decreasing the rate of decomposition.  Food that can last longer can be shipped further.  As foods traversed great distances, people no longer knew the producers.  With food across political boundaries, I speculate that people wanted legal teeth to protect them against negligence. 

 

In the modern day, the list of activities leading up to the family fuel stop at the table (if the opportunity is taken at all) can be limited to simply shopping or ordering out if need be.  For almost a century now, the Federal Government has taken jurisdiction over the chain of custody of the food supply from farm to fork.  Since food is produced the way it is, the variables are far too myriad to ensure that everything is safe to eat without the magic bullet of irradiation.  What does not get genetically modified or treated with antibiotics can simply be zapped. 

 

 

Due to the nature of meat and its higher propensity to become spoiled quickly, irradiation does make some semblence of sense.  What I cannot understand is why is animal feed irradiated?  In nature, the longest shelf life award goes to honey, behind it would be grains and cereals (ostensibly animal feed).  So why irradiate them unless the whole food system is so skewed that the only recourse left is to nuke everything as a matter of policy.

 

As Chaya mentioned in Part I and Part II, the answer is in knowing the local farmer and supporting him/her.  Someone you know and from whom you buy food is generally not going to hide behind anonymity or perpetrate negligent food production practices that put you in danger.  This transparency in the food system is what is needed to get the system back into balance.  A sound Permaculture design is needed on the local level which can scale up from there.  This leaves a lot of room for the entrepreneurial farmer to fill needs close to home.  I can only guess, but looking at the food that the Farm Bill supports, if backyards produced more gardens instead of lawns, and cows ate more grass instead of corn, the Farm Bill would no longer be a carrot or a stick.  Food would be closer, cheaper, safer, healthier, far more transparent, taste better and would not need to be irradiated. 

 

Wilson

Pro Deo et Patria

 

 

Essay by Crosby, A. Titled: Baked, Broiled, Roasted and Fried, which appears on page 52 of:

Menzel, P., & D’Aluisio, F. (2005). Hungry planet, what the world eats. (p. 52). Napa: Material World Books. DOI: www.menzelphoto.com

 

Ibid.

 

Yoon, H. (2007, January 31). In praise of braise. Retrieved from http://www.npr.org/templates/text/s.php?sId=7061089&m=1

 

Photo Credits:

Cooking in hearth by mY3Yax8

Airbag by mlllwaW

Pineapple by n6iVOjI

Dinner by mfJ2FOw

Shock by 2dCEQse

The ladies at church were gathering for an instructional Saturday morning. When I found out that the subject was going to be “milling your own flour” I was astonished—I pictured women in ankle-length dresses turning a stone! “What?  People do that?” I thought.  That Saturday morning changed my life, because it changed my health and the health of my family.  It also started us on this journey to whole, real food and to preparedness. 

 

My pastor’s wife was as passionate about her bread then as she is now.  So when I started learning how to bake and my bread was, well, less than yummy, she took me in and mentored me through the learning.  I want to introduce you to her now.  Robbin is an amazing lady; she is one of the busiest people I know, and yet she has prioritized her family’s health in such a way that she never succumbs to store-bought convenience.   She is extremely busy, and yet she never misses an opportunity to bring other ladies along in their journey to create this fresh, real food for their own families.   

 

We asked Robbin some of the most frequently asked questions that we get through email and at the expos. 

 

---

 

I grew up eating cheap, soft white bread.  Is it me, or is home-milled flour a completely different flavor?  Will I ever get used to that?

Robbin: Yes, it does have a different flavor.  About three months ago two different ladies told me their husbands and their children would not even touch wheat bread (from the store).  Now that the ladies are milling their own wheat, their husbands only want this delicious freshly milled bread.  And get this; the kids have thanked me for teaching this to their moms.

 

I’m really confused by the different wheat names.  What wheat do I use when?

Robbin: When the recipe calls for pastry flour, or when I don’t use yeast, I use soft white wheat.

 

Robbin: Hard white wheat and hard red wheat are interchangeable, just a taste preference.

 

My favorite is hard red wheat for my bread (w/ yeast).

 

When I make banana bread and muffins I use soft white. For pancakes and scones I use various grains like Kamut, Barley, Spelt and brown rice.

 

Chaya: Hard wheats = yeast breads, soft=non-yeast breads (Cream of Tartar, whipped eggs, baking powder, baking soda)

 

 Will home-milled flour work for everything I want to cook? It seems so heavy.

Robbin: Honestly- no, not everything- As of yet, I have not had success with making sourdough bread with this wheat. When I did make it, the best I could do was  2/3 store bought bread flour & 1/3 freshly milled wheat. 

 

This past December I used the freshly milled soft wheat for our ginger bread house, and it was a little disappointing.  The bread stuck in the stoneware.  It just wasn’t as good as the  “unhealthy” bread.

 

Chaya: I agree—I have not been able to duplicate croissants or angel food cake with wheat.  You can find some creative alternatives if you experiment with things like potato starch and oat flour for some of those specialty products. But for everything else—yes! 

 

 What do they mean by “quick bread”?

Robbin: Simply, “no yeast” (or no rise time.)  This makes me think of the Matzo we use for communion. When the Israelites had to make bread in a hurry to leave for the Passover, they made “quick bread” without yeast. Examples of this would be banana bread, apple bread and muffins.

 

This just made me think about the crackers I made in December – I made barley crackers that were delicious.  They could be a quick bread!  One of my favorite cookbooks is King Arthur’s Whole Grain Baking.  The cracker recipe came from there. (The carrot cake recipe is amazing!)

 

 I’ve tried milling my own flour and my bread came out really hard! What could be the problem?

Robbin: Too much flour!

Chaya: This is really common in the kneading stage; I recommending oiling your hands before you knead and resist the urge to keep adding and adding flour!

 

 What is your favorite type of baking—is it bread or desserts?

Robbin: Oh my – that is hard!  I guess now I must say bread.

Chaya: Yes, it’s my favorite type of baking too…but the desserts are my favorite type of eating!

 

 My bread loaf was raw in the middle and burnt on top!  Help!

Robbin:I am spoiled. I have a really nice oven with a bread setting on it.  But check the temperature of your oven, Even though your dial says 350 – it may be higher. (I own an oven thermometer.) 

I always cover bread with tinfoil half way through baking.  I have large size Norpro pans that make the perfect size bread, and cook evenly.

 

Chaya: I love those Norpro pans.  They cook evenly and it’s easy to get the bread out of them! I started using them way back when you taught me how to bake bread.  In a pinch, I’ve used stoneware and glass pans and I’m never as happy with the results. I use all three sizes–I try to always make a smaller loaf so that we have a loaf to give away.

 

 They say I should use my flour within 2 hours of milling it.  I like to have some flour in the kitchen for quick last minute recipes, like if I want to bread something.  Does this mean I have to pull out my mill every time?

Robbin: I try to put in in the freezer within a few minutes of milling to keep the health benefits. I mill my wheat and put it in a Ziploc brand freezer bag. I use a sharpie to label the flour.

I always have several types of milled flour on hand.  That is the only way I’ve been able to cook / bake this way for my family while working full time, and going to college part-time.

 

 How do I know if I have kneaded my bread too long? Not long enough?

Robbin: This might sound silly – But I can just tell by looking at it.  I would be more concerned for not kneading enough.  Does it look “stringy?” Because it should be stringy, and slight bit sticky; not dry.

 

Chaya:  Over-kneading is generally only a concern if you’re using an electric mixer.  If you are kneading by hand, there is little risk of that!  Sometimes the ingredients you choose will change the texture (i.e., adding lecithin makes it stickier), so it will be something you learn with practice. 

 

 Making home-made bread seems like a hassle when so many store labels say “whole grain” these days!  Is there a difference?

Robbin: Great Question!  There is a huge difference! 

Our government allows companies to say whole grain if a very small percentage of the product is whole grain.  I would like to recommend an article by Sue Becker on this topic.

          Here is a quote from her article “Bulk up on Fiber”

 

          “Do not be fooled by store bought “wheat” breads, dark in color that appear to be whole grain. Read the label! It is very difficult, however, if not impossible to buy commercially prepared bread or flour that is not stripped of its fiber and therefor[e] will not give the same beneficial effects as bread made from grains you have milled yourself. Even flour labeled “whole wheat” has had some of the bran and nearly all of the oil-containing germ removed to prevent spoilage.”

 

Chaya: If you would like to read more about the benefits of whole grain and the differences between real whole grain and what they’re selling you at the grocery store, be sure to read THIS BLOG.

 

 Did you personally experience any changes in your family’s health when you started making your own breads?

Robbin: My husband’s cholesterol went down shortly after we made this change. My eczema greatly improved

And I now have normal bowel habits, as opposed to once every few days…) This is the case with my one year old granddaughter too. My daughter feeds her the bread daily to help regulate her.  If she doesn’t eat the bread she gets constipated.

 

Chaya:  I remember watching your family’s health improvements, which was part of my motivation!  We all experienced some drastic changes in our digestion, in our energy levels, and in the elimination of severe allergies! Always borderline-hypoglycemic, my sugar levels evened out.   My husband saw warts literally disappear, and my toddler son (who refused to potty train) potty trained himself completely the day after we switched to this bread.  Coincidence? I was convinced that his inability to potty train was because of poor digestion and bowel habits. 

 

What’s the trick to doing this every week?  My life seems so busy—how am I going to add this in?

Robbin: I usually do this every other Saturday or every 3^rd Saturday.  I make 3 or 4 loaves of bread each time I make it.  After the bread has completely cooled, I slice it put it in freezer bags.  I separate the large loaves into two bags.  I get loaves out as needed and our bread is always fresh.  You can’t tell it’s frozen.

 

Chaya: Great tip!  Not everyone can bake fresh bread weekly, which is just the reality.  But if you schedule it on the calendar and use the freezer method, your family will get the benefit of fresh bread without such a time commitment!  Personally, I bake 3 loaves every week because my growing family eats that much.  I leave one loaf out immediately and put the other 2 in the freezer.  If I have extra left by the next bread baking day, I bake the same amount for either charity or for future use.

 

How long will it take to get the hang of making homemade bread? Am I doomed to baking paper-weights?

Robbin: When I made paperweights I threw it in the trash.  This only happened one time.  Give yourself a few tries.

 

Chaya: (Laughing) I made paper weights a couple of times!  But making bread with you ended my paperweight production completely.  If anyone else is having this problem, find someone who is doing this and ask to join in!  Also, be sure to give yourself some grace.  It can take awhile to get the bread exactly how you like it, but it will happen!

 

I’ve tried milling flour but I find that in a pinch I keep resorting to the flours and baking mixes on my shelf for convenience.  How did you overcome this and commit to purely milled flour?

 

Robbin: That’s easy!  I don’t buy flour!  That is why I didn’t have a wonderful gingerbread house this year.

I have 15 large buckets of grain in my garage, I am not buying flour.  Nor do I buy white sugar or brown sugar.  I have honey granules and succulent.

 

Chaya: Robbin, the best advice you gave to me was to “Throw it all away! If you don’t, you’ll cheat!” I cheated once or twice and then took your advice.  It was like jumping out of the nest for me.

 

---

 

Thank you, Robbin, for helping us all out in this quick Q & A about bread baking.  You’ve encouraged many ladies to begin this beautiful act of love through the years.  May your bread basket overflow! 

..

---

 

Interested in more information on baking bread?

Whole Wheat vs. Hole Wheat

What I Put Into My Bread–The Why

Homemade Bread Recipe–Pantry Paratus Style

Today I am going to be talking shop with David Holder of Above the Rest Outdoors (www.abovetherestoutdoors.com) on the topic of Elk Hunting. 

 

David, here at Pantry Paratus we are interested in all things food.  And for us here in this part of the country, “going out for food” can mean a trip to the grocery store or walking into the woods with a hunting implement. 

 

For me growing up on the East Coast of the United States, getting the opportunity to bow hunt for Elk in the Rocky Mountains was something on the order of, “Yeah, I may actually get to do that once in my lifetime—someday.”  Now that I am actually fortunate enough to live here in such a beautiful place, I often wake up and think how awesome it is to see so much game right in city limits!  

 

Wilson: “Tell us about yourself, have you always lived in NW Montana?”

David Holder: “No I actually grew up outside of Washington, DC.  I moved to Great Falls, MT when I was in my twenties.  I have now been in Montana for the last 19 years.  Great Falls was the first stop.  I took a job with the fire department and that was what led me here.   I was a bow hunter in Virginia and I was kind of in the same mindset you were in that I may want to do something like that out West someday.  When I moved out here I was amazed at how many big game animals we have to choose from.  I think we have between ten to twelve big game species to hunt just here in the state of Montana, but elk for me are probably the top of the list simply because of the calling, the interaction you have with them and trying to see if you can win at their game.  Also elk hunting is not for the faint of heart; I love a physical challenge as well as the mental battle in playing that chess game with the animal—elk hunting proved to be perfect for me. 

Wilson: “The first thing I notice about your website is that your whole family is involved.  So how competitive is it living in the same house with four people passionate about the same sport?  Do you have to hear about who go the biggest game animal for a whole year?”

David: “So far I have not had to deal with that because they have not passed me.  My oldest son Warren I think has shot somewhere around sixteen big game animals.  It is not so much competitive because we are all pulling for each other.  As you will see there on the website, even if I am not the shooter, a lot of times I am there running the camera.  I can tell you I am more nervous and pulling more for them to shoot something than I ever am myself.  It is something you cannot put into words as a father.  This is the part of the industry that I guess we do not understand; it is great that you got something on film to use in your next season or series.  But I am fortunate that every one of those archery kills that my son has made, I have been there to capture it on film so that he will be able to go back and look at it forever. 

Wilson: “Wow, what a legacy to leave to your sons!”

David: “Yes it is.  My wife is a full time financial advisor for Edward Jones, and she has a career of her own while still trying to get into the woods as often as she can.  So I am very, very fortunate that my whole family is into it.  Not everyone wants to go as often as I go or to some of the places that I go.  But, everyone is passionate about it at our house.  We are all thinking about elk season the day after it ends.”

 

Wilson: “What do you recommend to get children into archery at a young age, and what can be done to make the sport more appealing to women?

David: “I guess that I have a couple of answers for that.  I pass this along at all my seminars, start them early.  I mean my boys have been shooting since they were two years old.  All I did was go to Walmart or the local department store and bought a kids bow (the kind with the suction cups) and replaced the string with a real string from one of my old bows so that they can nock a real arrow.  This way they can put a real carbon shaft arrow on the string and it will stick in a target—and when they see that arrow sticking in the target, those kids are hooked!  The distance does not have to be long, just a few yards.  Also, take them on hunting trips.  Do not take them on a seven mile hike up the side of a mountain and expect them to do it.  I started with my kids in the pack and carried them up to the top of the mountain.  I think that just showing them what it is like to be outdoors, to hear the animals, they really like it.  Also, I avoided the inclement weather days with them.  You asked about getting women involved, my wife grew up in a hunting family but the women did not do that; it was more for the guys.  So, I just built upon that and started taking her along without the expectation to have to shoot anything right now, just getting her to experience the sights and sounds of the outdoors.  There is a whole lot more to hunting than just killing an animal.  The average person does not know what a grunting elk sounds like or what it is like to see an elk laying upside down with his feet in the air in a wallow—where he suspends his normal sense of security—trying to mask his scent.  I don’t care who they are, when they see that they are going to start to enjoy it and want to be a part of that.”  

 

 

Wilson: “I saw it on The Truth 13 DVD and I have also heard you say that the caller and the shooter should not be co-located.  Could you explain to our readers why you want to place the caller and the shooter apart from each other?”

David: “It is a simple one statement answer.  You want to call the elk through you and not to you.  What I mean by that is, when you are trying to call an elk to you then you are not understanding or putting yourself in the situation of that wild animal.  Realize that elk do not walk up to each other and greet by shaking hands with each other.  When an elk responds to a call and he considers himself there, he is often seventy-five, one hundred, or even one hundred fifty yards away.  He lives by his nose, and he only wants to get close enough to recognize who is there.  A lot of time people will call an elk to them and he will be hung up at one hundred yards away and not be able to get him any close and wonder, ‘what did I do wrong?’  You did not do anything wrong, that elk did what he knows he should do.  But if you put your shooter up seventy-five yards forward (and your caller back) now that elk that was hung up at one hundred yards is only twenty-five yards away from the shooter.” 

Wilson: “Now you can close that gap without educating the elk.” 

David: “Right.  Don’t change anything you are doing, just add that partner.  I cannot say this enough, adding that other person does not double your chances, it increases your chance for success exponentially.”

Wilson: “I remember watching the video on your website where the wind changed noticeably when you were hunting those two young bulls.  The grass started to bend to the left from the point of view of the camera, while you were off screen to the right.  Those bulls picked up your scent and you could see their whole expression change drastically—they were out of there!”

David: “That is right.”

 

 

Wilson: “Wow, your website is so well done!  You have quite a set up there for “how to” videos.  I really like your metrics for the reviews of gear as well as outfitters.  If Santa Claus is reading this, please consider bringing a Primos bow sling to me this year.  David, did you ever think that you would be so lucky to get to do this for a living?”

David: “Actually no.  It is one of those things that grows year after year.  I got in touch with Primos about nine years ago and started doing seminars for them.  I could not believe that people were asking the guy from Virginia for help, but I immediately realize that a lot of people who had been doing it for a lot more years than I had were still unsuccessful.  I realized that a lot of it was a lack of information, misinformation, or a lack of time to get to these places.  People were afraid of the unknown—not knowing where to go, where to start.  I want to say that the largest downfall in that realm is that a lot of people will talk about calls, even buy one, but when it comes down to using it they will not for the fear that they will run everything else off.  That is the one thing I urge people to do is to use the calls.  Now, no one wants people out there blowing them incorrectly all over the place.  It takes time to learn how to use the call.  I can tell you right now from years of experience that a large part of being able to call those elk, not necessarily to call them in, is to call them so that I can move in closer to get a shot at other elk.”

Wilson: “I have heard you say that you use percussive sounds of items that you find in nature such as pounding rocks on the ground or breaking sticks.  Could you talk more about that?”     

David: “Sure.  I think that the best call on the market on the market is free—banging rocks on the ground.  I have told hundreds of people all throughout my seminars that using rocks is one of the most realistic sounds that you can throw at an animal.  This is a sound that you can use to mimic an elk so that they do not think that you are a bear walking through the woods.  It is all about injecting that realism in there along with a short cow call or muted bugle.  Often that realism in there allows me to see an elk that the average person doesn’t.  That elk may have heard another cow call or bugle from a hunter, but they probably have not heard the sound of hooves [from rocks being pounded on the ground] from a hunter.  That may be what it takes to convince that elk and allow me to get a little bit closer.”

Wilson:  “I think that your website really captures that skill and how to be a better hunter.  I can watch you do a call and practice it myself in my living room in the month of May.”

Wilson: “I noticed that your wife cites her Christian faith in her bio.  I have determined that ethics, hunting or otherwise, is completely ungrounded unless it is based in faith.  How have you been able to enrich your faith from spending so much time in the outdoors?  Do you see a connection between the two?” 

David: “Absolutely.  With all the time I spend in the woods, not so much anymore with the camera crews I am alone, but when you are up on the mountain reflection time is often.  You are constantly looking for that extra guidance.  You are looking at things that are so spectacular that you could not possibly explain them to someone else.  If you cannot look up once and awhile and say ‘thank you,’ then you are missing the whole reason for the creation.  And kind of a humorous point to that is the journal article on my website God likes Elk, which kind of sums up the whole thing.  So the next time you are riding home with your buddy wondering what went wrong, remember you are messing with one of God’s favorite creatures.  He protects them and they get by a lot of time.  The good Lord understands the constitution of the land and He even thinks of you.  It is more remarkable than a blog or even a video can capture.  You just have to realize, that it is not just about the animal.  I think that God really like Montana when he built this place—it does not get any more spectacular than some of the places we choose to hunt.”

Wilson: “Yes, indeed!  Just being out there is part of the sport.  We are very lucky to just get the opportunity to hunt such a beautiful animal in such a beautiful place.”

 

 

Wilson: “Here is a question about the mental fortitude necessary for hunting from your journal post God likes Elk, ‘What would you tell hunters to stay motivated when they get up early and go out day after day without any filled game tags to show for it?’”

David: “I did not go into details about our Arizona hunt this year, but it can happen on the first day or the last opportunity on the last day.  I had seven days of hunting planned for that trip.  Arizona is supposed to be that slam dunk draw where you are supposed to get a bull.  There a few things that people should know about that because it is not a slam dunk, it is mostly all public land.  They had not gotten much rain in three months, so they rely on water holes.  I got off the plane September 8^th and it began to rain for the entire seven days.  Water holes were everywhere.  We had thunderstorms, roads were so muddy so that you could not get anywhere.”

Wilson: “I bet the animals were all bedded down tight.”

David: “We had no idea that this weather was going to happen.  Someone has to remember that when we carry a camera, we take a lot of our opportunities and flush them down the toilet right there.  You add that extra person to move.  In this particular situation it took until the last 45 minutes on the last day to fill that tag.  We had been chasing this particular herd for two days.  We managed to call one bull to us and fill that tag at 30 yards.  Do not let anyone give you the impression that it is that easy when you see it on TV or the internet.  You are seeing five minutes over five days.  You have to remind yourself that it can happen in an instant, without warning.  It is not uncommon for elk to approach without saying anything.  This is something that I have built my entire elk hunting philosophy on: the day before elk season is the greatest hunting day ever, because in your head is the perfect hunt.  You imagine yourself on a certain hill, the weather is perfect, the wind is in your face—but you have to go out there not expecting to see that.  You learn that it just takes time and experience—and knowing when to back out.  Sometimes the wind is wrong and you have to back out and come back to hunt another day.”  

 

To be continuted . . . click here to read part 2

We may be transplants to Montana, but it hasn’t taken long for us to take pride in all things Made in Montana!  That is because Montanans are a winning combination of both hard working and extremely creative.  

Mary Ippisch is no exception.  Like many Montanans, her yearly harvest became a family tradition; not satisfied with freezer-burnt zucchini she transformed her fresh harvest into a delicacy-in-a-jar, sweet zucchini relish!  What started out as kids eating it by the spoonful turned into gifts for other friends and family; and now?  She’s in business!

We (as a family) love Bitterroot Sweet Zucchini Relish, and so I was very excited to speak to Mary.  I asked her a few questions about her journey from home canner to business woman.

Where did this recipe come from?  Do you ever can anything else?
My sister gave me the original recipe almost 30 years ago and she got it from a friend.  Over the years I have modified it quite a bit.  I have been canning this recipe and jams and other fruits for about 30 years.  

So do you water-bath can or pressure-can your zucchini?
I prefer the water-bath canner even though I hear that the newer pressure canners are much safer!

I know that this started out as a way to preserve your own harvest, but now that you are in production, where does the produce come from?
I purchase my produce during peak season from local growers and when I can’t get it from them, then I go to my local grocer and he gets the produce from his suppliers.  I prefer to buy locally when I can.

Tell me about your journey from home-canner to commercial production.  What’s your story? And do you actually still do all of the canning?
Over the years my family and friends have always enjoyed receiving the relish.  A couple of years ago, my sons encouraged me to market my product.  So I started the process with getting licensed, product analysis, becoming a food manufacturer, label designing, etc.  The batching up process was interesting.  My oldest son helped me with the calculations.  He is a culinary graduate, so he knows food and how to increase or decrease.  Yes, I do all the processing myself with help from friends and family.  It has been an exciting year for me and my new business.

The label on your jar is as “gourmet” as the product itself!  How did you arrive at the product name and label?
I wanted the label to be interesting and colorful.  I came up with the idea of the state flower “Bitterroot” and its origin/legend*, hence the story.  I wanted the colors to be something that would stand out on the shelf (and it does), not just the usual green and yellow pickle colors you see with the other brands.

What advice would you give to someone who knows they have a good product?
I knew the relish was good, but had no idea that it would take off like it has.  I believe if you have a passion for something and you want to market your product or idea, you shouldn’t let anyone get in the way of your dreams.  I surround myself with positive people that share my passion.  This motivates me to continue doing what I want to do in spite of the economy, government regulations and anything else that might seem to get in the way.  Most people run into issues and problems and quit.  I say have some tenacity and get through the problems.  I consider problems to be a challenge.  It is so surreal to go into the grocery store and see “Your” product/hard work sitting on the shelf, and it’s even more of a thrill to see someone purchase your product.  I am currently working on other products, hopefully for next year.

I have found your relish to be very versatile—it is great tartar sauce and I’ve created a Cold Beet Salad recipe with it. It’s also delicious on its own.
Yes, it is—and you ought to try it in barbeque sauce!

Mary’s relish, Bitterroot Sweet Zucchini Relish, is beginning to take off in the local Montana market.  For now, it’s not available everywhere, but you could request it at your local store–we sure did!

*There is a story from the Native Americans that the sun heard a mother crying because her baby was starving.  The sun turned the woman’s tears into the “Bitterroot” (Lewisia rediviva) so that her family would always have food.  It’s a beautiful wildflower with several edible parts.

 

*****************************************************************************************************

Relish-Beet Salad

First, let me say that beets are (used to be?) my least-favorite vegetable.  My family loves them and so I’m learning to cook with them.  I started with a basic recipe, and modified it to meet the average person’s time constraints and pantry supplies.  The result was amazing!  I absolutely loved the flavor, color, and presentation! 

•    4 beets
•    4 potatoes
•    4 carrots
•    1 ½ cup of Bitterroot Sweet Zucchini Relish (to taste)
•    ¼ cup olive oil
•    4 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
•    salt to taste
•    1 teaspoon of dill (to taste)
•    3 green onions, chopped

     1.    To retain the maximum color of the carrots and potatoes, boil them separately from the beets.  If you don’t care, save a pot (the carrots are still orange). Quarter and boil all of the vegetables for approximately ½ hour.
      2.    When the vegetables have cooled, dice them into cubes.  
      3.    In a separate bowl, combine the relish, olive oil, vinegar, salt, and dill.
      4.    Coat the vegetables with the dressing, and then add the green onions.  Toss lightly.
      5.    Thoroughly chill before serving.