Sugars - GI ratings

Stevia	0	Best Healthy Sugar Alternative Though it is 200-300 times sweeter than table sugar, stevia is not a sugar. Unlike other popular sweeteners, it has a glycemic index rating of less than 1 and therefore does not feed candida (yeast) or cause any of the numerous other problems associated with sugar consumption. Read more about stevia at Organic Lifestyle Magazine (OLM). Please note that Stevia and Truvia are not the same thing.
Xylitol	7	Xylitol is a natural sugar alcohol sweetener found in the fibers of fruits and vegetables which can cause bloating, diarrhea, and flatulence with initial consumption. It's said to be safe for pregnant women, and is said to possibly treat ear infections, osteoposis, respiratory infections, candida, and is it even helps fight cavities. In fact, in Finland, virtually all chewing gum is sweetened with xylitol.
Agave Nectar	15-30	A sweet syrup made from the Blue Agave plant, Agave Nectar is obtained by the extraction and purification of "sap" from the agave plant, which is broken down by natural enzymes into the monosaccharides (simple sugars): mainly fructose (70-75%) and dextrose (20-26%). Read more about agave nectar at OLM.
Fructose	17	Though fructose has a low glycemic index rating, fructose consumption should be limited. Fructose is linked to heart disease as it raises triglycerides and cholesterol. It is devoid of nutrition.
Brown Rice Syrup	85	It is not recommended for diabetics, since its sweetness comes from maltose, which is known to cause spikes in blood sugar.
Raw Honey	30	A Healthy Sugar Alternative in moderation         With antioxidants, minerals, vitamins, amino acids, enzymes, carbohydrates, and phytonutrients, raw, unprocessed honey is considered a superfood by many alternative health care practitioners and a remedy for many health ailments. Choose your honey wisely. There is nothing beneficial about processed honey.
Coconut Palm Sugar	35	Originally made from the sugary sap of the Palmyra palm , the date palm or sugar date palm (Phoenix sylvestris). It's also made from the sap of coconut palms. With a relatively low glycemic index, Cocnut palm sugar is the new rage among health nuts. It's often called "coconut nectar sugar" or "coconut sugar".
Apple Juice	40	Fresh apple juice is good for you, though we recommend eating fresh raw whole apples. Concentrated apple juice (sometimes used as a sweetener) is closer to refined sugar than fresh apple juice.
Barley Malt Syrup	42	Barley malt syrup is considered to be one of the healthiest sweeteners in the natural food industry. Barley malt is made by soaking and sprouting barley to make malt, then combining it with more barley and cooking this mixture until the starch is converted to sugar. The mash is then strained and cooked down to syrup or dried into powder.
Amazake	43	This is an ancient, Oriental whole grain sweetener made from cultured brown rice. It has a thick, pudding-like consistency. It's not easy to find in the U.S., but it is a great alternative to refined table sugar.
Sugar Cane Juice	43	Healthy Sugar Alternative in moderation Sugar cane juice has many nutrients and other beneficial properties and is said by some health practitioners to be almost as medicinal as raw honey.
Organic Sugar	47	Organic sugar comes from sugar cane grown without the use of chemicals or pesticides. It is usually darker than traditional white sugar because it contains some molasses. (It has not been processed to the degree white sugar is processed).
Maple Syrup	54	Maple syrup is made by boiling sap collected from natural growth maple trees during March & April. It is refined sap and is therefore processed.  It has a high glycemic index, and though it is much more nutritious then refined table sugar and high fructose corn syrup, there are better choices.
Evaporated Cane Juice	55	Evaporated cane juice is often considered unrefined sugar, but juicing is a refining process, and evaporating refines further. Though better than turbinado, cane juice (unevaporated) is a better choice as a sweetener.
Black Strap Molasses	55	White refined table sugar is sugar cane with all the nutrition taken out. Black strap molasses is all of that nutrition that was taken away. A quality organic (must be organic!) molasses provides iron, calcium, copper, magnesium, phosphorus, potassium and zinc, and is alkalizing to the body.
Turbinado	65	Turbinado sugar is partially processed sugar, also called raw sugar. Raw Sugar
Raw sugar	65	Raw sugar is not actually raw sugar. It is processed, though not as refined as common white table sugar. Therefore, given a choice between raw and white, choose raw. There are many different variations of raw sugar with many different names depending on how refined it is.

http://www.organiclifestylemagazine.com/blog/healthy-sugar-alternatives.php




PALM TREE SUGAR
http://bigtreefarms.com/index.php/page/product/39/79/79

SweetTree - Coconut Palm Nectar

Organic Coconut Nectar - Truly Raw

Organic Yacon Syrup
http://www.navitasnaturals.com/products/yacon/yacon-syrup.html

Gluten-Free Pancake

Breakfast was a homemade pancake with gluten-free mix, added flax seeds, chia seeds, and cooked oatmeal (that might not have needed to be cooked before hand). Did use one egg (NOT Vegan!, but from a local farm and from humanely raised chickens), and unsweetened almond milk. Forgot the baking soda, but it was fine. Had some real maple syrup with it along with my usual coffee, agave (or experimental sweetener) and almond milk.




November 3, 2011

Qdoba Vegan Lunch

Ate a Vegan lunch (well, hope it was cooked vegan) at QDOBA today ... rice, black beans, corn salsa, red sauce, guacamole in their "naked burrito" (a bowl!). Filling and yummy!

November 2, 2011

Dairy-Free Homemade Ice Cream

ICE CREAM :: DAIRY-FREE, NO-REFINED-SUGAR ICE CREAM! 


In a Vita-Mix, use frozen berries (tonight was strawberry), add the best sugar of your choice (brown rice syrup, etc.) and COCONUT MILK! AWESOME!!! 


Just tweaked the original strawberry by adding some Dove powdered chocolate!


YUM!

And another one ...


"So Delicious" Coconut Ice Cream CHOCOLATE with Alive! multi-nutrient powder, ice, soy milk and almond milk since I ran out of soy and it needed more liquid, and some very optional Dove chocolate powder.  That's it!  Whiz in a Vita-Mix and Voila, you've got a shake!  [11.29.2011]

Roasted Beets, Toasted Pecans, and Greens ... Oh My!

Tonight I had roasted sliced beets, pan toasted pecans, my "holy trinity": onions,

mushrooms, and garlic cooked in Spanish olive oil. Then the greens from the 

beets, and torn bite sized sheets of red leaf lettuce all in a pan - oh, and one 

date. YUMMY and o-so-healthy! Now who's gonna clean the kitchen?

Why Cats SHOULDN'T be Vegan

As I mentioned here in my first blog post, I loved Alicia Silverstone's book, The Kind Diet.  HOWEVER, I do disagree with one (rather big) thing: CATS SHOULD NEVER BE FED A VEGAN DIET!!!


ALL cats are "obligate carnivores", which is a fancy term that means MEAT-EATER. That's the final word. Why some cat food company doesn't come out with the proper and natural cat food and sell it to us, I don't know. If I owned a cat food company, I'd make food out of whole birds and mice. (Gasp, animal cruelty!). I don't want to feed myself those things, but I'm not a cat.


What cats DON'T need are exactly what you will find in ALL brands of kibble: grains, starches, flours, vegetables and fruits, and unknown things we'd rather keep that way. The fillers used to make kibble couldn't be worse for your feline friends - even the "gourmet" brands with prices to match. Cats need to get water from the food they eat - more specifically from the muscle tissue. If you see your cat drinking out of the water bowl frequently, check for kidney or thyroid problems.  


DO cats get berries in the wild? Yes, if they eat the whole bird; and whatever mice and small rodents eat. But you will never see an outdoor cat nibbling on a corn husk!


So what SHOULD we feed our house cats (in lieu of Vita-Mixing birds and mice)? From what I've read (I can get sources later, if you need them), preferably ORGANIC, CANNED food, with whole sources of meat, not by-products.  The brands I have found so far at my local Whole Foods or Co-op are "Organix", "Newman's Own", "Pet Guard", "Evangers", and online at PetFoodDirect.com. I'm not too thrilled that most, if not all of these contain brown rice, but I guess if you're trying to pick the best that you can most of the time, a little brown rice is far better than the other options.


I also will supplement my cat's diet with real chicken. Did a ton of research on that, too, and found two suppliers that are mainstream and produce healthy, happy chicken on farms where they get to live happy chicken lives before being as humanely murdered as one can.  "Smart Chicken" is found at Meijer, and "Bell and Evans" is at Whole Foods. 


With a little thought and care, our pets can eat as well as we can, but within their species requirements.

The Blog Begins

Hello. I'm "SpaNancy", owner of Vanities Spa in Lexington, Kentucky, and a confirmed FOODIE!   I am starting this blog as a way of archiving my recipes so I can remember when I've brought together really tasty ingredients; and to keep it open so others can share in the journey, too!


In America, we have the blessing of having TOO MUCH. We get to ponder HOW to eat, not "if" we'll eat. So along my American food path, I have dabbled in most every diet that has come down the street. I've eaten, "right for my blood type", I've been in "The Zone", and was pals with Jenny Craig for a while. None of these choices have done much for my health, my mood, or my body.  


One day I found myself bored with food, trying to decipher what to eat for dinner (again), and I decided to have a look at Alicia Silverstone's book, "The Kind Diet" to get some new inspiration. I'm a former left-coast L.A. girl, and have been aware of PETA since high school. I love animals and have a big heart, so her book was, for me, a nice and pleasant welcoming into her Vegan world. I revisited some information that I had let slip to the recesses of my mind (as we do), and picked up some new food combinations that sounded delicious. This was an exciting NEW adventure!


Being "nearly vegetarian" already, the changes weren't too tough. I needed a milk replacement for my morning coffee and found Silk Almond Milk to work just fine (the unsweetened version) ~ and the one from Whole Food's "365" is also delicious. My "find healthier food path" had already led me to grass-fed cows milk, and I remember the "Eat Right for Your Type" book had recommended Type A's eliminate milk in favor of soy, so this adjustment wasn't totally foreign.


Before reading The Kind Diet, I thought I had found the healthiest milk - since I knew what they did to the average milk (added hormones, antibiotics, etc.). I first chose organic low fat milk and thought I was doing a good thing. Then I read that cows need to be fed grass, not grain, so I searched for a grass-fed cows milk and found one at Meijer. After reading her book she taught me one more thing. The protein in milk, casein, isn't so good for us humans. THIS could very well be the cause of my now year-long runny nose. So I found my milk replacement, and found some delicious (but in no way low-cal) ice creams that are dairy-free. One is called "Purely Decadent" and it IS! Rice Dream is also very good, as is the one made with almonds. Watch the sugar in those, though.  


Dairy Covered.  Almost.


CHEESE. Uh-oh, next to sweets and ice cream in particular, how am I going to give up CHEESE??? Of course, Alicia, has some solutions for us. She has already done the homework and found several Vegan cheeses. "Vegan cheese?  Sounds disgusting." WELL, it's not French Brie, that's for sure. But, you know what? It's not that bad. In fact, now that I'm not having brie every week (or day!), I don't miss it. I even made a Vegan pizza WITHOUT cheese! (Recipe to follow on this blog!) I have also used the Vegan cheeses for sandwiches, and pizza, and they work fine. No, even the 'melty' ones don't really melt all that well.  But it will do. I will find my pleasures in other foods, like KALE!  


So this is the beginning of my new "mostly vegan" path. Try to eat as close to the source as possible most of the time. Organic. Local. Cruelty-Free.  


I had to laugh at my Mother, who was raised on a farm, but won't buy organic milk because she thinks it's weird. "Mom, organic milk is what you grew up on!" LONG before the industrialization of the American food chain, organic was all there was!  


I won't go into what 'we' have done to the food that we eat (save that for later), but WOW, 'we' have made a MESS and everyone's health is suffering because of it. Teenage girls are getting breasts and periods WAY too early (thank you hormones in milk and meat - and McDonald's, don't get me started!), and illness is affecting all age groups, not just the elderly. It's truly a shame.  


On a happier note, the wave of shopping from your local, organic farmer is on the rise. Mega-Markets are stocking organic foods as if it were mainstream now (getting close) and more and more people are seeing the connection between what we eat and how we feel (and LOOK!).  


Join me in this new food adventure, won't you!


Bring on the KALE!!!


SpaNancy.
Lexington, Kentucky
November 26, 2011