Are gluten free baked goods "for the birds?!"

My good friend's husband likes to say, "gluten free baked goods are for the birds!" He says this as he looks down at all of the crumbles that have now landed in his lap and on the ground attracting masses of hungry birds.

It is true: The bulk of GF baked goods are dry and crumbly. You see, some of the redeeming factors of gluten are; it holds things together (like "glue"), it holds in moisture, and it allows little air pockets to form giving baked goods a nice lift job.

I set out on a mission, a mission that took... Oh about a year or so. The mission was to find a way to create moisture AND cohesion, all in one supreme baked good. And of course, because this is "Tiffany's Healing Foods" I was to do this in a way that did not sacrifice my integrity... My belief that we should strive for more nutritious and unprocessed foods, rather than their refined alter egos.

My mission was a success!! I have created a top 10 list based on this year of field work. I consider them "GF healthy baking secrets." Stay tuned for the list....

PS... Also, stayed tuned for "Secrets of Gluten Free Cooking Sweets and Treats" DVD. If you would like to be notified when it comes out, please click here, and enter your name and email (this remains private and we do not sell emails nor do we spam).

Here's to foods that heal!

Tiffany

How you eat is how you live

Our relationship to food is a reflection of our relationship to life. Another way to think of this is “how we eat is how we live.”

As we forge ahead, blazing new frontiers in consciousness, we are faced with the task of honestly evaluating what serves the purpose of fueling and contributing to this voyage, and what needs to be left behind. This is the metaphor for conscious evolution.

Our relationship to food is a reflection of our relationship to life.

If you are sincerely interested in pushing the edge of the possible, in creating a sustained movement in culture based on new and integral values, how is this reflected in the way that you eat?

It’s an important question and one that I find myself pushing into on a daily basis. Its easy to separate what we eat from how we live and what we believe in, but does that really make any sense in light of our expanding awareness of the nature of unity?

Once we acknowledge the holistic reality of the many “parts” of who we are and how we live, we are faced with the fact that our choices lead to increasing integrity and transparency or they contribute to inertia and the experience of separation.

What is the best way to fuel the body? We are figuring this out right now, together! There is no one right “answer” as there are many different bodies with different needs in varied climates with varied ages and ethnic backgrounds and changing seasons… you get the point. But there are some beautiful bites of wisdom, some ancient and some modern, that can offer us tremendous guidance on our path to Eating for Evolution!

In the goal of Tiffany's Healing Foods to bring you cutting edge information merged with ancient wisdom that will serve to enhance the functioning and coordination of all aspects of being. Together we will discover and develop a truly enlightened relationship to food!

Love,
Tiffany

Appreciation & "Eating For Recovery"

I expereinced some medical issues this last week, and needed some minor surgery.
Being a holistic health care practitioner, my slant is definitely towards "alternative medicine," but I have prided myself on being both knowledgeable and respectful of "western medicine."
After this experience my cognitive "respect" grew much deeper and transformed into a solid and genuine heart felt appreciation of western medicine and its "tools."

The surgery went smoothly, the Dr's and nurses were fantastic, the center was clean, the drugs did what they were supposed to, and my "problem" was handled.

The need for alternative treatments was loud and clear while recovering. With my knowledge of herbs and foods, I was able to speed recovery, ease the burden on my liver (from the drugs and anesthesia), aid with sleep, and help relax myself.
I'm sure I could have gotten more pills for those various symptoms, but I know they would have created other symptoms. So I took what drugs the Dr said were necessary, and I took care of the rest with food and herbs!
It is such a beautiful thing that we have a tremendous degree of influence over our bodies (for the positive or negative) based on what we decide to eat, and sometimes it makes the world of difference the amount we eat.
Good rules when recovering (some of these I learned the hard way :)):
1. The first meal post op should be small and light. I recommend staying away from animal products and nuts, as well as greasy foods.
2. Chew really well and make some nice, easy to digest grains. I choose quinoa and buckwheat.
3. Go for cooked rather than raw. It will be easier to break down cooked foods until your stomach "fire" gets back up to par.
4. Drink lots of pure water and hot herbal teas.
5. Stay away from sugar, especially ice cream :)! Sugar lowers immune function and drains energy from the body. It also feeds bacteria, yeasts, and molds inside your body.
6. Clear broth soup is great idea... so are steamed veggies.
7. REST! That is a hard one for me, but I gave in to it and slept more than I had since I was a teenager. My body is really thanking me.