Sugar-free, dairy-free Banana ice-cream

As I’ve already mentioned, I don’t like sugar! We don’t have it in the house and only eat it on other peoples’ special occasions! But I don’t think it’s sustainable to replace something with nothing, so I’m constantly looking for yummy healthy sweet things that my kids can enjoy, things that compete with, or even surpass sugar on a sweetness level. One thing that’s really easy to whip up is banana ‘ice-cream’. But you do need an Oscar or similar type of juicer/food processer.

Take a bunch of bananas, peel them and put them in a bag in the freezer. Don’t forget to peel them coz it’s seriously impossible to get a banana peel off a frozen banana! 

Once it’s completely frozen cut the bananas in half and press through the Oscar, using the mincing attachment. That’s it!!

Drizzle some honey over and add a sprinkle of carob, cocoa, roasted desiccated coconut, raisons or just enjoy it plain.  

It’s so yum, you’ll have to make some for you too! You can do this with any fruit, just remember to cut, peel or otherwise prep them before you freeze them. I find that banana is the closest to real ice-cream and other fruits are more like sorbet, but they’re all tasty, especially when the fruit is ripe, and it’s fun mixing them. We always have a bag of frozen fruit in the freezer, they keep for a long time and it’s a great way to make use of seasonal fruit like strawberries or mangoes long after they’ve gone out of season. And it’s an instant dessert if you have guests over, but that doesn’t mean you have to wait for a special occasion! 

The ultimate stress management!

One day, a few weeks ago, I had a mini melt down. Nothing too dire, just a little work related stress coupled with too little sleep and an upcoming event that was taking up too much space in my head. As a result I arrived home at the end of the day feeling exhausted, resentful and totally over-extended. I walked across the lawn laden with bags, baskets, grocery bags and a very tight feeling in my chest. I saw my husband in the veggie garden and yelled at him that I’d had a terribly day, and nothing is worth this, moan, groan, blah, blah, to which he replied,’ Come pick tomatoes!’.

That was his reply!

So I downed tools, in the middle of the lawn, went into the tomato cage and picked tomatoes. I looked under the fig tree that they creep up against and between all the leaves and on all the foot paths, and in my thorough search for tomatoes I managed to lose all the stress of my day. I felt my shoulders relax, my expression loosen, the tight ball in my chest dissolve. Be it the act of being amongst green things that grow, or the hunter-gatherer in me getting her fix or simply the feeling of warm soft sawdust beneath my feet, I felt completely in command of my stress levels by the time I left the vegetable garden! 
We have now coined a new phrase in our household, ‘Go pick tomatoes!’. It doesn't really mean, ’Please go pick some tomatoes’, it means, Go take a time out, go for a walk, chill, pick tomatoes, do whatever it is you need to do to get back into a calm balance within yourself! Because no matter how well you eat or how fit you are, if you operate from a space that’s easily disrupted by stress, then the cracks will start to show eventually! And I learnt that day, in between the green leaves and ripening figs and bright yellow tomatoes that I owe it to myself to take time out. 
That time-out is as valid and essential as time-in!  
That no one will do it for me.
I cannot give if I’m all emptied out and only I know what fills me up and if I need to go pick tomatoes to fill up, then that’s what I will do!
So take a time-out today, even if it's just five minutes, for you to fill up.
Go pick tomatoes!  

Kharma's Birthday... no sugar.

I don’t like sugar. At all! So it seems fitting that my first post should be about tackling my daughter’s fourteenth birthday party in a world where sweeties are synonymous with parties. But first, a little history: At the age of one and a half my daughter, Kharma, lost weight instead of gaining weight. It was scary! A little boy in her play group was experiencing similar symptoms and after a brief trip to a nutritionist, recovered almost immediately.

 I made my appointment and subsequently had my life turned on its ear! This crazy lady was telling me that my daughter was probably gluten intolerant and threw in the concept of food combining just to further complicate things! She also said small children often test inconclusively in allergy tests so the best thing to do was to exclude possible problem foods and see what happened. So off I went, clutching my list of do’s and don’ts like a ticket to another planet! Within a week she stabilized and by two was back to normal. It’s been roller coaster ride fraught with terrible recipes, inedible birthday cakes, unpalatable dips, sticky pancakes, and a veritable smorgasbord of expensive experiments. Thirteen years ago, things were very different!

We’ve come a long way since that first gluten-free birthday cake which was, once you took away the pretty name, mielie meel koek ! It was so bad, not even the dog would eat it! And there was ample to sample, since all but one kid had licked their koek clean and chucked them in the bushes! I have made great friends with dates and honey and found that when you add a teaspoon of cocoa powder to something it suddenly becomes very popular! But my daughter was having none of this, she wanted ‘normal food’, chocolate cake, mocktails. She’s had her fill, you see. She thinks I’m too radical and my husband thinks I’m not radical enough! But my son is my trusty culinary sidekick! Fully prepared to taste anything I come up with!

So this is what I was up against and here’s my menu of goodies and baddies for the day:                              

For snacks I gave them a platter of raw fruit and veg, pickles, tinned fruit and some toothpicks and the idea was to come up with the best and the worst combinations. I buy Offenau Gherkins and Rhodes tinned fruit coz the only dodge ingredient they use is sugar.

The Mocktails were hard in the beginning coz many online recipes use soft drinks and I can’t actually feed that stuff to my kids so I just made up my own using mostly fresh homemade juice, soda water, homemade coconut milk (recipes to follow!) the frozen grapes were a hit!

I waved a white flag at the birthday cake and the ice cream! Time, dedication, and budget only allow for so much! But I don’t have a white flag for preservatives; colourants etc. and my kids thankfully know to stay away from anything they can’t pronounce!

Next day we kept it simple with Super delicious greens and yellow pear tomatoes out of the garden!!  My daughter didn’t complain!

Kriek, kriek

Our Blog has been a little quiet lately, but that is about to change. A good friend of mine, Mariella, has agreed to share her amazing lifestyle and insights with us on this blog... watch this space.

Gluten Free Bakery

The Joy of Baking Fresh Earth Food Store Style

There is nothing tastier than a freshly baked, warm slice of bread straight from the oven. Bread is central to our lives, regardless of our culture and can be wholesome and nutritious if baked usingtraditional baking methods and the finest ingredients.

We bake daily, using only the freshest ingredients that includefree range eggs, natural butters and the best quality unbleached, natural and organic flour available, to offer you the choices you deserve.

We bake aselection of breads and confectionary inspired by our ‘as-close-to-nature-as-possible’ philosophy. Each product is made slowly and with care to maximiseflavour and texture.

And that’s not all. We are also pioneering gluten-free baking, with our bakery dedicated to the creation of an ever-growing number of gluten-free products, from sandwich bread and yummy pizza base to cookies and desserts worth saving this Earth for.

Other selections from our Bakery include cornbread, foccacia, bagels, rye breads, pies, and a selection of cakes, each one made with love and skill using the finest natural ingredients.

We never allow artificial colours, flavours, sweeteners, unnatural preservatives or trans fats in any of the products we sell, so the next time the smell of freshly baked-bread leads you to Fresh Earth Food Store, you can be certain that anything you buy from us is not only good for you and your family, but also for Mother Earth.

If you are unable to visit us at our store in Emmarentia, you can order online from freshearth.co.za and we will deliver directly to your home.

The effects of inferior water on our health

by Dr Cornelia Botha

Due to the route our water takes to reach us our water is often contaminated with toxic, heavy metals, pesticides and other harmful chemicals. Chlorine itself is known to destroy essential fatty acids in the body, as well as the beneficial bacterial in our gut. This is in addition to being carcinogenic. The dose considered the safe upper limit for water purification in the US is .3mg per litre. In SA 1.0mg per litre is used.

Haloacetic acids (HAAs) are a common undesirable by-product of drinking water chlorination. Exposure to it has been associated with liver cancer and sperm damage. It also causes hardening of arteries and converts HDL to LDL cholesterol.

Trihalomethanes (THM) are also formed as a by-product when chlorine is used to disinfect water for drinking. They result from the reaction of chlorine and/or bromine with organic matter in the water being treated. As environmental pollutants, these chemicals are considered carcinogenic. They are known to cause liver, kidney and nervous system diseases – not to mention menstrual and fertility problems

Other water is also polluted with organic chemicals like petrol, diesel and paint thinners. Harmful pesticides are to ubiquitous that traces have been found in the snow at the poles!

In 2002 a study found that 95% of the US population had chemical endocrine disruptors present in their fat. Endocrine disruptors contribute to infertility, PCOS, Acne etc. Nonylphenol is an example of an endocrine disruptor. It is considered to be a xenoestrogen due to its tendency to mimic estrogen and in turn disrupt the natural balance of hormones in a given organism. It is formed during the production of certain detergents.

Due to its high production and diverse use patterns, nonylphenol is found in many of the worlds bodies of waters. It was detected in Pretoria tap water in 2005. Nonylphenol is persistent in the environment, therefore lingers around to potentially negatively affect organisms it comes in contact with. Nonylphenol also bioaccumulates, which is dangerous to animals and humans which eat meat.

Conclusion:

We take for granted that the water we drink from our taps is free of disease and disease causing chemicals. The impact is far reaching – cancer and infertility are two examples of diseases we don’t easily connect with drinking water.

It is difficult to test whether you’re sick because of chemical contamination, but it is possible to test for heavy metal toxicity. If you have heavy metal toxicity it is treatable by medical chelation and carefully selected herbs, which should be administered and supervised by trained practitioner. The best you can do for yourself is to drink filtered water more often than not. Choosing the right water filter for your situation can be complicated but we’ll cover this topic in our educational talk on water quality on 15 April 2010.

Bottled water is not a healthy and sustainable long-term solution, because of the impact that the millions of plastic bottles have on the environment, not to mention the harmful chemicals that can leach out of the plastics.

Water is possibly the most precious resource we have on this planet. We need to become more aware of how we interact with it on a daily basis. Avoid wasting water. Who knows how long we’ll have the luxury of easily available fresh water?

Plan from Vegan Meal Ariel Cohen from Free Food

Hello, I was asked by Matthew and Karen to create a vegan eating plan for the Fresh Earth web site so here it is!

I hope it serves to inspire you to consider going vegan and realize how easy and rewarding it is to follow this lifestyle. ‘Life’ been the operative word here – by going vegan you are not only supporting personal life and longevity but you are declaring that you will no longer play a role in denying or negatively impacting on the life of other beings either.

I had been a vegetarian for 15 years and after falling ill in 2001 I decided to become vegan -excluding all animal ingredients from my diet and offer vegan plant based creations which where also wheat free, gluten free and sugar free - from this Free Food was born in the early part of 2007 and has been growing from strength to strength, with its relevance becoming more and more visible, immediate and necessary in an ever increasing conscious society and planet.

Sincerely,

Ariel Cohen - Free Food (Plant Based Creations)

Vegan Meal Plan:

http://www.freshearth.co.za/store/p-2452-vegan-meal-plan-1.aspx

Vegan Recipes (wheat free, gluten free, dairy free, sugar free):

http://www.freshearth.co.za/store/c-18-vegan-recipes.aspx

We can’t afford to only treat disease, we must learn how to stay well

The body is confronted with toxins on a daily basis from the environment and from within. The sources of toxins are varied and vast. They include urban pollution such as car exhaust fumes (lead, carbon monoxide), industrial smoke, smog, and tobacco smoke. Medications and drugs are toxic. The foods we eat contain toxins ranging from chemical additives, preservatives, colourings, radiation, pesticides and herbicides, hormones and genetically modified foods. Some foods, such as alcohol, are toxic to our liver. The way we prepare foods can be toxic - heated and burnt oils from frying and charcoal broiled meats. Our water is contaminated with various chemicals, bacteria, xenoestrogens, chemicals (such as fluoride) and heavy metals (such as aluminium). There are many toxins in our household environment – especially those from cleaning materials, gas emissions from cookers and boilers, paints, plastics, insulation materials, carpets and even geopathic stress.

Microbes such as bacteria, parasites and viruses are toxins and place a burden on our endocrine and immune systems. Even healthful organic fruit and vegetables contain toxins naturally present in the plant. In addition our body produces various toxins from its own biochemical processes that generate disease-causing free radicals. One of the most consistent sources of toxic exposure is from endotoxins produced by bacteria in our gut. Luckily, our body has its own powerful detoxification system.

The body’s mechanisms to protect us from toxicity
The body eliminates toxins either by directly neutralizing them or by excreting them in the urine or faeces (and to a lesser degree from the lungs and skin). The intestines, liver and kidneys are the primary organs of detoxification. The liver carries the weight of responsibility when it comes to detoxification. It is responsible for filtering the blood to remove large toxins, synthesizing and secreting bile containing cholesterol and other fat-soluble toxins, and enzymatically disassembling unwanted chemicals.

How toxins affect our health
Toxins are a serious threat to health. They drain energy and increase susceptibility to disease or directly cause disease. Accumulation of toxins can wreak havoc with normal metabolic processes and increase our sensitivity to chemicals, some of which are not normally toxic. Up to 90% of all cancers are thought to be due to the effects of environmental carcinogens combined with deficiencies of the nutrients the body needs for proper functioning of the detoxification and immune systems.

Symptoms of toxicity - chronic headaches, foul smelling stool or breath, chronic fatigue, feeling of toxicity (dull headaches, chronic hangover as if from too much alcohol), sensitivity to chemicals, caffeine-containing drinks and foods keep you awake, chronic allergies, unexplained itching

Diseases of toxicity - acne, anaemia, autoimmune disease, cancer, eczema, gallstones, Gilbert’s syndrome, inflammatory bowel disease, psoriasis, toxaemia of pregnancy, hives or urticaria, liver disease, especially acute or chronic hepatitis

Children and food toxins

There are about 3500 food additives currently in use. In the United Kingdom, 4.5kg’s (dry weight) of food additives are eaten per person, per year. This is 10 times the amount used 30 years ago. Children have an increased exposure to, and intake of food additives, as they are the ones most targeted by food manufacturers of artificial, brightly coloured, sweet tasting foods. Preservatives, colours and flavours are the best known additives but antioxidants, emulsifiers, stabilizers, gelling agents, thickeners and sweeteners are also commonly used in our foods. These chemicals can pose many dangers to human health if consumed regularly and in large quantities. It is important to read food labels to avoid hidden chemicals often identified by E-numbers. E-numbers are codes allocated to certain food additives. There are numerous websites explaining which numbers refer to which chemicals. Here are some examples of E-numbers:

E Number	Name	Where it is found	What it may cause
Colourings
E102	Tartrazine	Soft drinks, sweets, ice-creams, chewing gums, puddings, jams, bottled sauces, smoked haddock	Hyperactivity, migraines, asthma attacks, skin rashes, itchy skin, runny noses, restless sleep
E110	Sunset Yellow	Hot chocolate mix, sweets, packet soups, orange fizzy drinks, jams, Swiss roll, ice-creams, trifles, yoghurt	Skin rash/ swellings, hyperactivity, stomach upsets, vomiting
E160(b)	Annato	Margarines, cheeses, crisps, ice creams, custard, icings, sponge cakes, soft drinks, fish fingers, meat balls	Hyperactivity, allergic reactions
E173	Aluminium	Cake and pastry sugar decorations	Potentially toxic to brain cells, associated with Alzheimer’s and bone abnormalities

E Number	Name	Where it is found	What it may cause
Preservatives
E210	Benzoic Acid	Jams, syrups, salad creams, salad dressings, fruit juices, margarines, soft drinks	Asthma attacks, skin rashes, gastric irritation
E220	Sulphur dioxide	Fruit juices, fruit salads, dried fruits, jams, desiccated coconut, sausage meats, soft drinks	Asthma attacks, hyperactivity, gastric irritation
E250, E251	Sodium Nitrite, sodium nitrate	Cured meats, tinned meats, sausages, hams, frozen pizzas	Dizziness, headaches, breathing difficulties, hyperactivity
E282	Calcium Propionate	Breads, processed cheeses, frozen pizzas	Headaches, skin irritation, restlessness, irritability
Others
E420, E421	Sorbitol, mannitol	Chocolates, sweets, pastries, ice creams, raisins, packaged cakes, chewing gum	Flatulence, bloating, diarrhoea, nausea
E621	Monosodium Glutamate (MSG) – flavour enhancer	Packet snacks, sausages, packet soups, tinned beans, processed cheeses, flavoured noodles, cooked cured meats, cooking stocks, many top brands of chips and salad dressings	In sensitive individuals may cause palpitations, dizziness, fainting, thirst, nausea, headaches, cold sweat around face/ armpits

Basic ways to avoid toxicity

Support Detoxification Systems
• Avoid toxins which overstimulate detoxification pathways in the liver
• Use chemical-free products on your skin, including healthy alternatives to aluminium-containing underarm deodorant.
• Going Green is in and there are many products available to support a healthier environment. These include non-toxic home-products and organic sprays for use in the garden.
• Eat adequate anti-oxidant nutrients to prevent free-radical damage caused by detoxification, including vitamin C and beta carotene-rich fruit and vegetables, selenium (tuna, oysters, mushroom, herring), zinc (oysters, ginger root, lamb, pecan nuts, dry split peas) and vitamin E (seeds, nuts, beans, peas), phytonutrients found in fresh fruit and vegetables.
• Eat a fibre-rich diet (e.g. flaxseed, soluble fibre such as oats, pectin from apples) which speeds up the transit time in the stool, reducing the load on the liver, and is needed to eliminate bile and for good colon health.
• Herbs such as silymarin (milk thistle) prevents damage to the liver by acting as an antioxidant and by increasing the rate of liver tissue regeneration. Dandelion root helps cleanse liver cells of toxins and stimulates bile flow
• Methionine, a protein, helps remove heavy metals through its sulphur content (also found in garlic and onions)
• Lipotropic agents, choline, betaine, methionine, vitamin B6, folic acid and vitamin B12 promote the flow of fat and bile to and from the liver, and choline assists with peristalsis

Good food, good digestion
• Include essential fatty acids in the diet which help good gut flora to adhere to the walls of the intestine.
• Ensure gut flora is balanced and that the bowel is free of yeasts, parasites or any other pathogens, and if necessary supplement with a good probiotic.
• Eat a balanced diet in which sugars, refined foods and oils and food allergens are eliminated.
• Drink plenty of fresh, filtered, bottled or distilled water daily.
• Eat organic foods which lessen your exposure to chemicals and hormones.

Detoxification methods
Enhance liver detoxification through a supervised liver detox (including coffee enema) or gall bladder flush.
Skin brushing is important in removing dead skin cells that clog up pores and make it difficult for proper elimination via the skin. It also gently stimulates circulation.
Saunas and lymphatic drainage to improve toxin elimination via the skin, and to increase lymph flow.

Caution: who should not detoxify and why
Pregnant or breast feeding women should not detoxify, as toxins are mobilised that may jeopardise the pregnancy. In addition, it is a time when cutting down on nutrient intake needs to be optimal and fasts are not advised. Detoxification can be dangerous for people who are underweight, or who have diabetes, hypothyroidism, or hypoglycaemia, as their nutrient requirements are altered. People with a compromised immune system, including those who are recovering from surgery, should also avoid detoxification. Drug addicts or alcoholics should be cautious when undergoing detoxification processes, as they may have severe withdrawal symptoms that need to be supervised. Physically weak people who have undergone surgery, have cancer, or the elderly may not have the stamina to undergo
a detoxification programme.

Our job in learning how to stay well is to support our natural detoxification capacity by limiting our exposure to toxins and by consuming nutrients which assist in detoxifying them. This will help us to feel well now, and in the future by lowering our risk of developing deadly degenerative illnesses (such as cancer, arthritis, diabetes, heart attack and stroke) that are so prevalent in a 21st century urban environment.

This post was contributed by Jacqueline Wildish

Ask your health question http://www.freshearth.co.za/store/c-5-your-health-questions.aspx

A Fresh Earth

A fresh earth is exactly what we would like to see in the future, so we named our business after our deepest desire.

Our passion lies in creating a new understanding of health and sustainability through a combination of modern world creations and the reintroduction of some forgotten principles.

With our love of great food and the inherent understanding of the importance of conscious eating, we have done our best to bring you an eating and shopping experience that adds value to your life in every possible way.

We love to create the best quality meals from scratch, because we know that food in its purest form — untainted by artificial additives, sweeteners, colourants and preservatives — is the best tasting and most nutritious food there is.

So fresh earth it is! Dining and retailing in a responsible, authentic and respectful way that puts people - the earth - before everything, ensuring prosperity for all.