Healthy with Jodi

Cooking Class on Air Fryer

    Such a fun Class! So simple, so easy, so Fast!  You really can make good food, that is healthy, that tastes better than you ever imagined!  I hold classes so you can taste and see how simple meal prep ideas can be.  You can cook.  You can reach your health goals without boring food.  Food is supposed to be enjoyed so let me teach you how to not be afraid of the kitchen!

    Fried Zucchini spirals.  Slice them different and you have chips!

    Spring rolls…keep it veggies or add meat.

    Fried Bananas with Maple butter…endulgence dessert!

    Honey Maple Carrot chips…with and without sugar.  Keep your carbs low by substituting carrots or root veggies for potatoes or startches.

    Air frying is like convection oven cooking.  It blows the air around and evenly cooks your food.  The shorter the cook time, the least amount of nutrients lost.

    Frying with oil destroys properties and turns to trans fats.  Use healthy  high heat oils such as Coconut oil and Avocado oil.

    Costco has many Organic foods, the maple sausage with a pork free casing was a major hit!

    Look under my recipe tab for individual recipes and click on the amazon link if you want to get an air fryer and get started cooking light and healthy!

     


    New Year’s Resolutions Revisited…

      Metabolic Progress Basic Ideas for healthy living

      Nutrition
      Eat the meals when hungry, not by the clock. Snack in between meals, usually 2x a day. No carb feasting.
      If you are trying to lose weight, most likely you are not “Hungry” 6 times a day, Learn to listen to your body.

      Exercise
      Walk for 45 minutes, 5 times a week (3 days of interval training and 2 days of steady weight training).

      Sleep
      Go to bed 15 minutes earlier this week.
      Your goal is to get at least 7 hours of restive sleep per night. Integrate meditation as needed to achieve this goal.

      Stress Management
      Do a Relaxing Breath at least twice a day. (If you don’t like bathing then do a foot soak/bath.)
      Find activities you enjoy doing, and schedule 3 hours each week and do them.

      Detoxification
      Take five baths per week with Epsom salt and soothing music. Each bath should last at least 15 minutes.
      Buy ORGANIC FOODS
      Stick to grass-fed, pastured protein and eggs, and wild-caught fish as much as possible.
      Avoid GMOs and MSG
      Drink clean water

      Organic Farmland Hits Record Highs – More Organic Food Available

        organic food

        U.S. Organic Farmland Hits Record 4.1 Million Acres in 2016

        California still reigns supreme when it comes to organic farmland, but several other states are catching up.

        A new report has found that U.S. land for organic farming reached 4.1 million acres in 2016, a new record and an 11 percent increase compared to 2014.

        As of June 2016, the number of certified organic farms in the U.S. reached 14,979, a 6.2 percent increase of 1,000 farms compared to 2014 survey data.

        A recent report on organic acreage from Mercaris found that the top five states in organic cropland are California, Montana, Wisconsin, New York, and North Dakota. California leads the U.S. with 688,000 acres. However, Montana has seen a 30 percent increase in organic farmland, reaching 417,000 acres in 2016, an increase of 100,000 acres since 2014 and adding 50 new organic farms.

        The report also estimates that North Dakota, Colorado, and New York all increased their organic farming acres by more than 40,000 since 2014. North Dakota has surpassed Oregon as the fifth leading state in organic acreage. Oregon is sixth followed by Colorado and Texas.

        Scott Shander, an economist at Mercaris, attributes the increase in organic acres to farm economics and consumer demand for organic foods.

        “The organic industry is growing and with lower commodity grain prices, and farmers are looking to add value and meet consumer demands,” he says.

        According to Alex Heilman, a sales associate at Mercaris, the number of organic acres is likely to continue increasing, especially with larger companies such as General Mills and Ardent Mills launching programs to increase organic acres.

        “I think we will see more of an impact of those programs in the next few years as more farmers start the transition process (to organic),” he says.

        Organic alfalfa/hay was the leading organic crop grown with more than 800,000 acres in 2016. This was followed by organic wheat, corn, and soybeans with 482,000, 292,000, and 150,000 acres respectively. Organic oats reached a record level of 109,000 acres in 2016. Organic wheat showed the greatest increase with nearly 150,000 more acres since 2014 and a 44 percent increase since 2011. Plantings of organic corn increased by 58,000 acres since 2014.

        The percentage of acres planted to organic crops such as wheat, corn, soybeans, and oats remains small compared to conventional crops in the U.S. Organic corn accounts for only 0.31 percent of total corn acres; organic wheat was 0.9 percent of total wheat acres; organic soybeans were 0.2 percent of total soybean acres. Organic oats account for the highest percentage of an organic crop with 3.6 percent of total oat acres.

        Acreage of both organic corn and soybeans has seen small increases as a percentage of total acres for both crops in the past few years, according to the report. This may be due to the fact that the U.S. is importing large amounts of organic corn and soybeans, which is depressing the U.S. market and prices for both crops. According Shander, 25 percent of organic corn and 75 percent of organic soybeans used in the U.S. are imported.

        “It’s a global market that is dictating U.S. prices,” he says. “Demand for organic corn and soybeans is still growing strongly, but production in the U.S. is not growing as fast so more of the production will be international.”

         

        This article is courtesy of http://civileats.com/2016/11/09/u-s-organic-farmland-hits-record-4-1-million-acres-in-2016/

         

        More Organic Food Information

        Why Should I Eat Organic? Reasons Why You Should Eat Organic…

          Importance of Organic Foods

          Organic Foods – Nutrient Density

          Simply stated, nutrient density means how many nutrients you get from a food, given the number of calories it contains. Nutrient density is a simple way to connect nutrients with calories.

          – World’s Healthiest Foods

          What’s In Organic Foods?

          Higher Nutrient Content

          More Vitamins & Minerals per Calorie

          More Essential Fatty Acids & Amino Acids per Calorie

          More Antioxidants per Calorie

          What’s Not in Organic Foods?

          *Acetylcholine Esterase Inhibitors

          Acetylcholine

          Acetylcholine is the body’s most predominant neurotransmitter.

          Essential for Memory Recall & Quick Thinking

          Nutrient Density: Organic Legumes, Vegetables, Fruits

          Acetylcholine Esterase

          Acetylcholine Esterase is the enzyme that clears the neurosynaptic junction allowing for the next impulse to come.

          This is an especially important cycle for inhaling/exhaling during respiration and the contractions and relaxations of the heart muscle.

          ◦Thus Pesticides have an adverse effect upon the Lungs & Heart.

          List of Banned Chemicals

          http://scorecard.goodguide.com/chemical-groups/one-list.tcl?short_list_name=brpest

          Consequently, “The nutritive value of crops and their ability to handle pests and diseases is diminished.” The bottom line, Kittredge says, is, “across the board, our foodstuffs are less nutritious than they were. It’s well documented. Between 1940 and 2009, in a basic salad, USDA records show a 55-70 percent decrease in mineral levels.” – Remineralize the Earth

          We identified 191 matched pairs with valid comparisons of antioxidant, vitamin and mineral levels. Of these, 119 organic samples within the matched pairs had higher nutrient levels, or 62% of the total matched pairs.

          ◦State of Science Review: Nutritional Superiority of Organic Foods – Charles Benbrook, Xin Zhao, Jaime Yáñez, Neal Davies and Preston Andrews- www.orgain-center.org 53 pages