Ohhhh nuts....looks like ice cream...but it isn't

I have been asked a lot of questions about nutrition so I will try to post more on meals. This was my post workout snack today. It is not a "prescription" meal, just an example that you can be creative. It's home made Greek yoghurt topped with some fruit and some cashew nuts on the side. The greek yoghurt provides protein I need for recovery, calcium, vitamin D, some good bacteria, the fruit provides more vitamins, anti oxidants, and sugar I need for immediate energy, the nuts provide essential oils and a bit more...it is in effect a full meal but look at the portions sizes. This is NOT my breakfast, lunch or dinner though, I am not advocating for anyone to starve. 

Homemade yoghurt and greek yoghurt...

We are a natural yoghurt family. My daughter was eased into dairy using natural yoghurt because it is more easily digested than full on cows milk. I usually put some fruit into it so that she has something to chew. It's an excellent source of nutrition and as an added plus, the good bacteria in it helps keep your gut healthy.

I discovered recently that manufacturers here add "starch" to natural yoghurt (read flour). I was so disappointed. I generally keep off from flavored varieties because of the sugar and chemicals in them.  There are two brands that offer greek yoghurt and though they claim to be completely dairy (no starch), they are mostly available in Nairobi (I live in small town Nakuru) and are expensive.

I decided to make my own. How hard can it be?


STEP I: Making the yoghurt. Boil some milk and let it cool to warm. If you want low fat yoghurt, use low fat milk. But I don't believe in low fat milk. I use whole milk.

Stir in a spoon ful of the natural organic yoghurt to the milk while warm. The photo below shows two jugs of milk (in the process of forming yoghurt) immersed in warm water. You need to keep the milk warm for 6 - 8 hours as the yoghurt ferments. I kept the water warm by re-filling it with boiled water every hour. I had stored the boiled water in a thermos in order to save energy heating water all the time. I am sure you can find other ways to keep the milk warm. If you want a thicker yoghurt, ferment longer BUT use caution. The longer you ferment, the tangier the taste. After 12 hours you mightn't like it that much.

STEP II - Sieving out Whey to make Greek Yoghurt.   Greek yoghurt is simply made by taking the natural yoghurt and taking out some of the liquid part of it (called Whey). This is done by using a cloth (the cloth below doesn't run colour....don't worry!) You can also use coffee filters. I put the cloth in the microwave for thirty seconds to sterilise it but you don't have to do that. I'm a bit anal like that.

AND...Voila! Greek Yoghurt! This contains more protein than natural yoghurt (duh, it's the concentrated form) and makes a great part of post workout snacks. It is also great to cook with. So there you go, a project for a Saturday or Sunday, make enough yoghurt for the week!

Just as foods are not created equal, a calorie is not just a calorie...why I would rather eat natural fats than sugar loaded foods

We have demonised carbohydrates and fats in this journey towards healthier living, weight control and avoidance of lifestyle diseases. In fact, the most common phrase is "I don't eat chips (fries) any more" and "I steam my vegetables"....Avoiding fat and potatoes and white rice.....Don't get me wrong, any food in the wrong amount is harmful. Too little and you deprive your body of nutrients it needs to remain strong and healthy. Too much and in some cases you can suffer toxicity and get lifestyle diseases and what we seem to fear most, become over weight and obese. Even water is toxic if one drinks too much of it. My argument is not that fats and carbs are not bad, it is that we often don't put enough emphasis on what I consider to be an even greater evil. Processed Sugar.

Sugar is a type of carbohydrate, it is a simple carbohydrate which simply means that it is easily broken down by the body. All carbohydrates eventually end up as sugar in our system. However, complex carbohydrates which come in the form of natural foods are very different from the very simple sugars we get in processed food and as sucrose which we add to our tea.  The way our body treats them is what makes the big difference.

On the face of it, fat looks like it 'the devil', at 9 calories per gram, it packs in more energy that can be stored away than sugar at 4 calories per gram. However, sugar has something that bulky fat doesn't....he's a little Speedy Gonzales.

Lighter "Speedy" rushes into our bodies and produces an exaggerated hormonal response mainly, increased insulin production. Insulin is the hormone that causes energy to be stored in fat cells.......light bulb moment!

The most obvious of this is more insulin, more fat storage, the fatter we grow. But there is more, just like any drug, our bodies begin to become resistant to too much insulin. Which is why there is a direct relationship between sugar consumption and type II diabetes. To make it worse, processed foods usually contain added sugar in the form of 'glucose', 'diastatic malt', 'dextrose'. 'fructose' in the form of corn syrup...they put it there because when we eat it, we will want more.

Fat is an essential nutrient our bodies need. I remember reading somewhere that those that eliminate fat completely from their diet "die a violent death"....I am not sure what that means but I am positive I don't want to find out. We crave it when we are low on energy because it packs a lot of energy. However, for little amounts, it carries a lot of energy so it is easy to over eat it.

So from this little information we can see a calorie is not a calorie. Speedy's calories in my opinion are worse because of the effect they have on insulin, which in turn affects your overall health.

We cannot completely eliminate sugar from our diet, all carbohydrates break down to sugar eventually...and yes, carbohydrates are also an essential part of our diets. The trick is to eat more complex carbohydrates for energy that are slow released into our systems and not drug our bodies all the time with simple and processed sugars.

Which means, no soda, eat the fruit or make a smoothie out of fruit so that you ingest the fibre as well instead of drinking commercial juices. It also means no cereal with "corn syrup" in it, and reading those labels before you buy anything in the supermarket. Your health is worth it.

Have an active day!