Vegetables rock. They never get boring, truly there must be millions of variations to get your veg in. While I’m starting to feel the itch for fresh spring veg, I’m also still ever so enamoured with hardy winter varieties. These roasted root veggies have all the flavour of stuffing without the bread. Perfect with roast chicken or turkey, you could even mix them up and throw them in the roasting pan with your bird.
There’s a little sage bush right outside my house, its starting to spring back to life and I’m enjoying the bounty of fresh sage. Crispy friend sage is sinfully delicious, but it also adds a certain aromatic lingering presence to all things hearty and roasted.
I hope you all had a great weekend, mine was jam packed with birthday cake and love as my little baby Mav turned 1. Such a big day, hard to believe it was just one year ago he came into our lives and made life so much more joyous. Being a mom has been such a trip. Did you fall into the parent role naturally? Or does it take time for everyone? It took awhile before I even thought of myself as a mother, there’s so much to learn and I’m sure it’s endless. Now I’m starting embrace this fairly new role, I am now the one who makes birthday cakes (delicious paleo ones) and kisses sore knees. About that cake, I really wanted to share it with you. Admittedly I am a terrible party planner but I ace the catering side of things. Perhaps I’ll make the cake again just so that we can photograph it and share the recipe, it was sooooooo perfect!
All cake aside, we’re talking root veg. This Roasted Balsamic Sage Root Vegetable Stuffing is about to become your new best friend.
I thought you had potential, your packaging made you look so healthy and natural. Your golden amber hue reminded me of honey, as did the title ‘nectar’. Nectar? This is a term reserved for rare purity, divine nectar, nectar of the Gods- call it what you will. You hijacked this term and used it miles out of context. You continue to trick people with your low-glycemic index and tasteless sweetness. I won’t stand for it anymore, and I’m telling the world, agave syrup is not your friend.
Processed food is processed food. You can call it what you will, you can dub it the ultimate alternative to sugar, you can sing its praises from the mountains high but when all is said and done, many health foods are just as processed as those weird cheese slices wrapped in plastic.
Ok well maybe it’s not that bad, but I kid you not, a lot of stuff being touted as healthy and natural, is far from it. This happens for a number of reasons, because health is an industry just like any other and people are out to make money. There’s not much stopping companies, aside from reputation, from putting whatever they want on a label. When agave nectar came on to the scene it sounded like such a precious and wonderful natural substance. I would use it instead of honey for a long time until I found out that it’s mostly fructose and difficult for our livers to assimilate. Really it just turns to fat, something that doesn’t happen quite as easily with an actual natural sweeteners.
I’m writing this series because I want to bring awareness to the gaping holes in the food labelling/marketing procedures. People can say whatever they want about their revolutionary new product, but the proof is in the pudding. Many of us are just trying to be health conscious, but we don’t necessarily have time to research every single ingredient we ingest and it’s natural to see something labelled ‘healthy’ and assume that must be the case.
In the first part of this series we talked about the dangers of soy, a long time pseudo health food. Today I want to go into more detail about some common sweeteners. I’m not even going to get into aspartame because I think by now most people know about the dangers associated with this rat poison in disguise. But lets talk about agave, because there’s still a lot of people under the impression that this is a good alternative to sugar.
Agave “Nectar”
Agave is far from being a whole food, it’s actually highly processed and unlike the name suggests, doesn’t fall into the category of a true ‘nectar’ whatsoever. The extraction of the sweet syrup comes from the starchy root of the plant. It’s a process similar to that of high fructose corn syrup and requires a transformation of the plant fibre inulin into sugar.
This is done by means of enzymatic or thermal hydrolisis. In the case of raw agave nectar, enzymatic hydrolosis technically ensures the agave syrup is still raw.
The process converts inulin into fructose and the finished product is anywhere from 70% fructose or higher. In contrast, high fructose corn syrup is 55% fructose and 45% glucose and even THAT causes problems with insulin response. (1) (2)
But…Agave has a low glycemic index, making it good for diabetics right? Wrong.
Just like research has proven high fructose corn syrup to be dangerous for diabetics, agave syrup could be even more so. The dangers of agave syrup lie in the fact that our bodies just weren’t designed to process such high levels of fructose. The main fuel used in humans is glucose, at least with glucose we can use it up as energy but fructose is pretty useless.
So what’s the problem with concentrated fructose? Well the common assumption is that fructose is a naturally occurring sugar present in fruit. In actuality, fructose is just one type of sugar present in fruit, there’s also levulose,sucrose and glucose. Accompanied by the whole fruit itself, complete with fibre, antioxidants and enzymes, it’s far less harmful to consume fruit than it is to consume their extracted sugar concentrate.
There are key differences between levulose, glucose and fructose, the most important being that levulose and glucose are digested in the intestine. Fructose is processed through the liver, which is why it doesn’t spike insulin levels. It’s for this reason that agave syrup is promoted as a low-glycemic sugar substitute for diabetics, but it is by no means safe.
Because fructose is processed through the liver it immediately turns into triglycerides or stored body fat. The effects of this are amplified as it inhibits leptin, the main hormone responsible for helping us feel satiated. This then causes us to eat more, perpetuating the problem that it’s supposed to be helping.
Studies show fructose sweetened beverages leads to increased insulin sensitivity (3). So while agave may have a low-glycemic index it’s still not appropriate for diabetics to consume. A better option would be whole fruit or natural sweeteners like honey and maple syrup that have a balanced ratio of fructose and glucose.
With diabetes and obesity on the rise, more and more evidence is coming out to show sugar being the culprit. The explosion of popular diets with the goal to balance blood sugar is a direct reaction to the worlds growing addiction. Yet we still want some sweetness in life. Dried fruit is great but we want our treats, and we are all guilty of this. I think it has a lot to do with how we were raised and many of us grew up eating a SAD diet high in sugar and refined carbs.
So the market started churning out these low glycemic sweeteners. First it was aspartame, well gosh it took us awhile to catch up to that one! I’m still horrified that diet sodas are even allowed on the shelves. If this is news to you please check out the documentary Sweet Misery: A Poisoned World. Then it was sucralose, stevia, and xylitol, which are far less devastating than aspartame but still a far cry from being healthy. For a lot of us, the taste of artificial sweeteners is a major turn off, there’s no denying they all have a strangely fake sweetness, one that provides no energy whatsoever.
But in an age where sugar is fast becoming the major health villain, we take what sweetness we can get. Then along came agave syrup in the 1990’s, before the 90’s we lacked the technology to even be able to produce the stuff. It caught on as a low GI, healthy alternative to sugar that didn’t spike insulin and that tasted sweet without the after taste of the artificial sweeteners.
Southwestern Indigenous peoples used agave in their traditional diets, but the processing was closer to how we make maple syrup. They would gather sap from the plant and boil it down to make a thick syrup. This is quite different from the often genetically modified enzymatic treatment commonly used to extract the sweet liquid today.
It sure is unfortunate that manufacturers put whatever they want on labels. It’s empowering to know the truth before we invest in something that lacks any real merit. There’s also something about the taste of agave syrup, it really is just pure sweetness, lacking any depth of flavour. It strikes me as being cheap to produce and is basically the organic industries version of high fructose corn syrup. Unfortunately, agave is probably even less healthy than regular old cane sugar. At least normal sugar has a ratio of glucose and fructose that our bodies understand.
I now try and stick to truly natural sweeteners of which there aren’t very many Coconut sugar (succanat), maple syrup and raw honey. Sweetness in life is nice don’t get me wrong, but lets save the agave for natural fibre production.
If you haven’t already, check out part I of the series all about the dangers of soy.
Wow today is one those brilliant sun ray filled, first purple crocus blossoms of spring kind of days. A worthy day for the most easy and tasty little tostadas on the porch for lunch.
Rolled out the yoga mat, not that I got much of anything done with my little man who likes to chew on the corners. Eek, that’s almost as bad as letting him eat subway bread, right?! Ha. Gross who puts plastic chemicals in bread. Don’t worry I promptly stopped his little fangs from devouring my mat. Then he went straight on to pulling dirt out of the planters, oh children.
These crispy little paleo tostadas can easily be made into a larger paleo tortilla, with a bit more crunch than my other paleo tortilla recipe. Whats nice about this recipe is that it doesn’t use eggs. I don’t know about you but we go through eggs like nobodies business. It was one thing when we had like 40 chickens producing ample amounts but now that we don’t I feel like I took those annoying chickens for granted. Come on though, they would come in our house and we would come home to a rooster on the stove…not cool. Though really it was the dogs fault, he learned how to open the door and then the chickens would come in and clean up (and dirty) the floor. Even still I’m trying to convince J to build a small chicken coop because I miss having fresh free run eggs. I ate a lot of hollandaise when we had those chickens. I’d make a batch with 20 egg yolks every week and good pastured ghee, shazam that was the life.
Anyhow, nowadays the eggs don’t flow in such abundance so I try to limit cakes and coconut flour recipes that call for 10 eggs. Do ya feel me! Paleo is very egg-celent and egg-centric.
Top the tostadas with whatever you have kickin around. We had some leftover grass fed beef so I fried it up with some chipotle, onions and garlic which just hit the spot. Mashed avocado with lemon and garlic is really nice too for a tasty snack. Ah just let your imagination run wild. That’s the beauty of toppable foods like pizza, tortillas, chips, pancakes, people love them because you can get creative. Darn, writing this is making me hungry again…
Combine tapioca,salt and almond flour in a large bowl.
Combine water and oil and mix into flour until fully incorporated.
Drop 1 Tbs of batter into hot frying pan and allow to cook on high for a few minutes each side.
Meanwhile in another frying pan melt some coconut oil or fat, add onions, garlic and chipotle and sauté until soft, add ground beef and cover until cooked.
Top each tostada with some beef, feta,avocado and green onion and enjoy
Is it safe to say that we all want to be the best version of ourselves?
We want to feel alive and vibrant, not stagnant and numb. But sometimes we lack the tools to get to that sweet place…
Welcome to biohacking, a fairly new health movement that does just that- propels us to be the best we can be. Finding flow and balance, utilizing technology to our human advantage, biohacking teaches the principals to stack the deck in our favour.
I want to be clear and say that biohacking isn’t about inserting chips into our bodies and embracing some sort of cyborg lifestyle (at least not to me anyways). It’s not about embracing technology to a point where we lose touch with nature, in fact I see it as quite the opposite. Biohacking can help us to grow a stronger connection to our nature so that we can live in more optimal ways. Its no secret that the path humanity walks along at present isn’t working too well. Collectively, people and the planet are sicker and more disconnected than ever. Bringing back that connection to ourselves and our environment is crucial to finding healing in a crazy world. Why not utilize what’s proven to propel ourselves forward on this journey of constant improvement?
Blending together ancient fundamentals with modern technology, we have access to a lot of information about our human nature. We can learn from the past and use the tools of the present to track our progress. Harnessing this knowledge enables us to quantify data and apply it to improve our lives. Through nutrition, fitness, sleep, meditation and our environments we can implement certain techniques to hack our way to wellness.
What works best is a question that can’t be answered unless we quantify and track our progress. For anyone who has a website or business, tracking key metrics is critical to growth and ultimately success. The same principles apply to many things, people often track calories for weight loss, profits and expenses for taxes, mileage for gas, the list goes on. When we apply tracking principles to our health and wellness we optimize our chances for success. We strive to move forward, to improve- if only by .1% every day, we’re still improving.
Since there’s no such thing as perfection, improvement is the name of the game. What would happen if we actually noted how many times a day we check our phones? Usually this is an unconscious activity and something we do without thinking, but is it necessary, is it helping us move forward or is it a waste of time? We can navigate everything from mundane energy wasting tasks that are best outsourced, to balancing our blood sugar levels for optimal energy and focus.
Often biohacking gets grouped into the categories of either body building or futurist theories. It’s a lot more than that, and I think its time the principles were explored a little deeper in order to apply to everyone.
Biohacking is cracking the code of body, mind and spirit. Dave Asprey calls it a state of high performance. I think it’s more than that, it’s understanding ourselves better so that we can achieve a state of high being. Finding out of the box solutions to our woes, working with technology yet still understanding its limits. Heck you don’t even have to use technology, really there are simple hacks like sleeping in pure darkness or cutting sugar from the diet that literally can change everything.
One must have the utmost respect for the human life-force, we’re pretty complex! But if we can get within our complexities and understand the root of our problems, then bam- we hack our biology and we attain something greater than we thought possible. Knowing is half the battle, which I why I like to spend my free time reading scientific studies, teehee.
So far what makes the most sense to me is coming to grips with certain manipulatable human tendencies that cause us undo suffering and fixing them. Like hormones, so many people have hormonal imbalance, but when we have the tools to fix that, life becomes more manageable. Biohacking is just another way of looking at a set of tools to help us be even more awesome.
Over the next few weeks I’m going to delve deeper into the topic of biohacking. Stay on the look out for detailed articles on biohacking the body, mind and spirit.
I lurve pancakes. Especially banana pancakes a la Jack Johnson that fill you right up to the brim with good energy. Yeah, that kind.
Maple syrups great and all but I like my pancakes with berries, and to kick it up a notch, berries and coconut cream with a hint of vanilla. So good.
Today is the day we cut the top off the rug, sew it to the bottom and pretend we made it longer. Yes, daylight savings. It’s still light out at “7” and it definitely brings on the feeling of spring. We went for a sweet hike through the woods along the winding river trail cutting in and out of the suns rays. It was gorgeous and peaceful and fuelled by pancakes, the best fuel.
This is actually the first time Baby Mav ever had pancakes. He loved them! And he singularly plucked each berry and popped it in his mouth with anticipation of the burst of deliciousness. J said that I should make Mav pancakes every day, though I think secretly he just wants pancakes every day. Who doesn’t?
Coconut flour is a delicate creature, it soaks up moisture like nobodies business. That’s why when you go to fry the pancakes make sure you use enough oil or butter, it may seem like too much but its not. At least a tablespoon per 3 pancakes. Which is part of what makes these pancakes so energizing. Also if you’re avoiding sugar, it’s not crucial to add the honey, I think they’re great without it. Hope you all had a fantastic weekend and thanks for reading!
Coconut Flour Banana Pancakes with Berries + Cream
Author: Chantelle
Prep time:
Cook time:
Total time:
Serves: 2
Ingredients
2 eggs
1 banana, mashed
2 Tbs coconut oil
⅓ C coconut flour
¼ tsp sea salt
¼ tsp baking soda
1 tsp honey
½ tsp vanilla
1 can coconut milk
1 C fresh or frozen mixed berries
2 Tbs coconut oil or ghee for frying
Instructions
In a small saucepan combine berries,vanilla and coconut milk, reserve ½ C coconut milk for pancakes. Heat on medium-low until berries have softened and the milk turns purple.
Combine eggs, banana,coconut oil, honey and remaining coconut milk in a large bowl.
Add coconut flour,salt and baking soda and mix well.
Heat a large cast iron skillet or griddle, melt oil or ghee and drop about 1½ Tbs worth of batter per pancake onto skillet. Cook for about 2 minutes per side until nice and golden.
Serve with warm berries and cream sauce and enjoy!
Hey I'm Chantelle, my alter ego would be a mermaid if I wasn't such a terrible swimmer. I love writing authentically and cooking in my pyjamas. My favourite pastimes include eating avocados, travelling the world and hanging out with a toddler.
(succanat), 
and 
. Sweetness in life is nice don’t get me wrong, but lets save the agave for natural fibre production.
