Under the Weather: Thought For Food

[Illiterati]

The annual cold seems to have arrived early, with congestion, sinus issues, etc. The kid and I hit the local Asian market yesterday and got the makings for a good decongesting soup:

A variety of mushrooms (four types of yummy fungi) and dim sum that can be popped right into the broth.

I am SO looking forward to this tonight for dinner.

 

[Joelist]

There's also the good old remedy - chicken soup.

 

[Overmind One]

The annual cold seems to have arrived early, with congestion, sinus issues, etc. The kid and I hit the local Asian market yesterday and got the makings for a good decongesting soup:

A variety of mushrooms (four types of yummy fungi) and dim sum that can be popped right into the broth.

I am SO looking forward to this tonight for dinner.

That sounds so awesome. Mushroom soup is perfect...you can even have chicken mushroom!

 

[Illiterati]

That sounds so awesome. Mushroom soup is perfect...you can even have chicken mushroom!

No, no chicken mushroom. Just mushroom with a clear broth. The dim sum will round out the flavor nicely, I'm thinking.

 

[shavedape]

Vitamin D should be a staple supplement even living in sunny California. It seems to work too good for me though and can set off some autoimmune reactions if I take too much. My doc thinks that's not possible. I think he's full of shit.

At any rate, you should also be taking probiotics of some sort. The current theory is that the gut controls much of our immune system so it's worth a shot to take a daily probiotic. The first thing some people will tell you is that probiotics don't survive stomach acid into the intestines so they are a waste of time and money. But some brands are coated and formulated to make it to your intestines relatively intact (think enteric coated aspirin type of thing).

Also, there's the theory that even if the probiotic "bugs" don't make it to your intestines alive the simple fact that you're adding bacteria to you stomach and gut produces an immune response. Truthfully I don't know if either theory is correct but I'm giving it a try and so far so good. I've been using these tiny Enzymatic Therapy Pearls and they seem alright. I "feel" better taking them but admittedly that could simply be placebo effect.

You can also try upping your cultured food intake like with yogurt and real fermented pickles, etc. (Real kimchi is very good for you but it's an acquired taste for some people.) Definitely avoid sugar though! My friend eats Activia yogurt like a mad man but fails to realize it's loaded with sugar which neutralizes any good effects he's getting from it. Just the other day he was complaining about "coming down with something". I tried telling him that eating sugar-laden yogurt and eating leftover Halloween candy was bad for his immune system and wasn't doing him any favors. Neither is adding a huge shot of hazelnut syrup to his coffee each morning. But it's like talking to a brick wall with this guy. He's got no self discipline when it comes to food.

At any rate, avoid sugar (which I know you are), take vitamin D and take some kind of probiotic.

 

[Illiterati]

Vitamin D should be a staple supplement even living in sunny California. It seems to work too good for me though and can set off some autoimmune reactions if I take too much. My doc thinks that's not possible. I think he's full of shit.

At any rate, you should also be taking probiotics of some sort. The current theory is that the gut controls much of our immune system so it's worth a shot to take a daily probiotic. The first thing some people will tell you is that probiotics don't survive stomach acid into the intestines so they are a waste of time and money. But some brands are coated and formulated to make it to your intestines relatively intact (think enteric coated aspirin type of thing).

Also, there's the theory that even if the probiotic "bugs" don't make it to your intestines alive the simple fact that you're adding bacteria to you stomach and gut produces an immune response. Truthfully I don't know if either theory is correct but I'm giving it a try and so far so good. I've been using these tiny Enzymatic Therapy Pearls and they seem alright. I "feel" better taking them but admittedly that could simply be placebo effect.

You can also try upping your cultured food intake like with yogurt and real fermented pickles, etc. (Real kimchi is very good for you but it's an acquired taste for some people.) Definitely avoid sugar though! My friend eats Activia yogurt like a mad man but fails to realize it's loaded with sugar which neutralizes any good effects he's getting from it. Just the other day he was complaining about "coming down with something". I tried telling him that eating sugar-laden yogurt and eating leftover Halloween candy was bad for his immune system and wasn't doing him any favors. Neither is adding a huge shot of hazelnut syrup to his coffee each morning. But it's like talking to a brick wall with this guy. He's got no self discipline when it comes to food.

At any rate, avoid sugar (which I know you are), take vitamin D and take some kind of probiotic.

The only yogurt I ever eat is from Mountain High. Their whole fat variety. No gelatin added to it, and it's very good.

I have discovered that we have fish broth (we usually have that and miso paste in stock here) in the house, so that'll be the soup base in this wonderful remedy for stuffed heads and chests.

 

[Jim of WVa]

The only yogurt I ever eat is from Mountain High. Their whole fat variety. No gelatin added to it, and it's very good...

Yes, the Bulgarian style yogurt. My sister gets it in Nova Scotia, but you can't get it here.

 

[Jim of WVa]

Vitamin D should be a staple supplement even living in sunny California. It seems to work too good for me though and can set off some autoimmune reactions if I take too much. My doc thinks that's not possible. I think he's full of shit.

At any rate, you should also be taking probiotics of some sort. The current theory is that the gut controls much of our immune system so it's worth a shot to take a daily probiotic. The first thing some people will tell you is that probiotics don't survive stomach acid into the intestines so they are a waste of time and money. But some brands are coated and formulated to make it to your intestines relatively intact (think enteric coated aspirin type of thing).

Also, there's the theory that even if the probiotic "bugs" don't make it to your intestines alive the simple fact that you're adding bacteria to you stomach and gut produces an immune response. Truthfully I don't know if either theory is correct but I'm giving it a try and so far so good. I've been using these tiny Enzymatic Therapy Pearls and they seem alright. I "feel" better taking them but admittedly that could simply be placebo effect.

You can also try upping your cultured food intake like with yogurt and real fermented pickles, etc. (Real kimchi is very good for you but it's an acquired taste for some people.) Definitely avoid sugar though! My friend eats Activia yogurt like a mad man but fails to realize it's loaded with sugar which neutralizes any good effects he's getting from it. Just the other day he was complaining about "coming down with something". I tried telling him that eating sugar-laden yogurt and eating leftover Halloween candy was bad for his immune system and wasn't doing him any favors. Neither is adding a huge shot of hazelnut syrup to his coffee each morning. But it's like talking to a brick wall with this guy. He's got no self discipline when it comes to food.

At any rate, avoid sugar (which I know you are), take vitamin D and take some kind of probiotic.

When I am on an antibiotic, I like to eat those tubs of unsweetened, unflavored, low-fat yogurt. Get my GI tract coated with the stuff.

 

[Bluce Ree]

The only yogurt I ever eat is from Mountain High. Their whole fat variety.

Brings a tear to my eye when I see people doing this right.

 

[Illiterati]

Brings a tear to my eye when I see people doing this right.

People don't seem to realize that other, less healthy things, are added to lowfat yogurt in order to make it taste/feel better in the mouth.

 

[Overmind One]

People don't seem to realize that other, less healthy things, are added to lowfat yogurt in order to make it taste/feel better in the mouth.

The real problem is that people do not realize that eating fat is HEALTHY and that the whole "lowfat" craze is a marketing buzzword having little meaning when it comes to health. In fact, the vast majority of lowfat offerings in processed foods are exceptionally UNhealthy.

Time for another fun lowfat foods list :

• A bowl of molasses soup made with molasses, jelly beans, gumdrops and gummy worms for noodles.
• A chocolate cake sandwich (9-in) with chocolate fudge filling, sprinkled with 10 ground sugar cubes.
• A quart of ice cream blended into a shake, with whipped cream and caramel.
• An entire bag of chocolate mini candy bars, washed down with Classic Coke

Low fat diets lead to obesity and an unhealthy metabolism. Low fat diets lead to this:

 

[Jim of WVa]

People don't seem to realize that other, less healthy things, are added to lowfat yogurt in order to make it taste/feel better in the mouth.

Not the plain kind. Actually, they need to make the full-fat, unflavored yogurt available in more places.

 

[shavedape]

Not the plain kind. Actually, they need to make the full-fat, unflavored yogurt available in more places.

I've heard that it's hard to find the plain full fat "Greek" yogurt for some reason. I know Fage (love the name) makes it but a lot of places only carry the 2% milk fat version. I get around this dilemma by making my own yogurt and kefir. I also use organic coconut milk to make yogurt too (got some culturing by the warm light of my oven as I type these very words).

I started culturing stuff at home awhile back when I got sick and tired of searching for something that didn't have a ton of additives to it. Just looking at the Activia label again the other day gave me shivers. How they can pass that junk off as healthy is beyond me. It's like the Frankenstein monster of yogurt.

 

[Overmind One]

I've heard that it's hard to find the plain full fat "Greek" yogurt for some reason. I know Fage (love the name) makes it but a lot of places only carry the 2% milk fat version. I get around this dilemma by making my own yogurt and kefir. I also use organic coconut milk to make yogurt too (got some culturing by the warm light of my oven as I type these very words).

I started culturing stuff at home awhile back when I got sick and tired of searching for something that didn't have a ton of additives to it. Just looking at the Activia label again the other day gave me shivers. How they can pass that junk off as healthy is beyond me. It's like the Frankenstein monster of yogurt.

It is too easy (and wise) to just make it at home like you used to do. I have made it a couple of times, but I found it to be too time consuming even though the steps are simple and few. Something like 18 hours? Quart of milk, small amount of yogurt starter cultures like maybe 4 tablespoons, a plain thermometer which can measure 200 degrees at least and time. Heating the milk 10 185 degrees then cooling it to around 115 degrees, add the starter and then let stand covered in the pot for about 6 or 7 hours (until curdled), then blend the curds back into the liquid and refrigerate overnight. Simple, and not convenient, which is why 90% of yogurt consumed in America is probably purchased from a grocery market. Besides that, homemade yogurt does not last nearly as long because it has no preservatives.

 

[shavedape]

It is too easy (and wise) to just make it at home like you used to do. I have made it a couple of times, but I found it to be too time consuming even though the steps are simple nd few. Something like 18 hours? Quart of milk, small amount of yogurt starter cultures like maybe 4 tablespoons, a plain thermometer which can measure 200 degrees at least and time. Heating the milk 10 185 degrees then cooling it to around 115 degrees, add the starter and then let stand covered in the pot for about 6 or 7 hours (until curdled), then blend the curds back into the liquid and refrigerate overnight. Simple, and not convenient, which is why 90% of yogurt consumed in America is probably purchased from a grocery market. Besides that, homemade yogurt does not last nearly as long because it has no preservatives.

I hear you about all the hoops you have to jump thru to make yogurt at home. Truth is I've done my best to edit down the process as much as possible. Since I like to cook I have a number of thermometers on hand but I admit it sucks when dealing with dairy milk as I have to get it to 185 F and then let it cool to 115F before adding the culture. Once that's done I just pop it in the oven with the light on for several hours and that's it.

Kefir is much easier though as you don't have to take the temp of the milk, you just throw the kefir grains in and leave it on the counter overnight. Easy peasy. (The taste of milk kefir kinda sucks though and I'm not a freak about making it I admit.)

What I like about culturing coconut milk is that I don't have to mess around heating it to a specific temp. I just toss in the culture starter and let it sit in the oven with the light on for a few hours and it's done. And kefir grains love coconut milk I've found, but they have to go back into regular milk every other batch so as to stay alive and working.

BTW, Trader Joe's carries a really great organic coconut milk that's just coconut milk and water. It's dirt cheap at .99 cents a can and it cultures really nicely I have found.

 

[Overmind One]

I hear you about all the hoops you have to jump thru to make yogurt at home. Truth is I've done my best to edit down the process as much as possible. Since I like to cook I have a number of thermometers on hand but I admit it sucks when dealing with dairy milk as I have to get it to 185 F and then let it cool to 115F before adding the culture. Once that's done I just pop it in the oven with the light on for several hours and that's it.

I never thought of doing that! I tryed my second time making it to just heat the milk to 115F and then adding the culture without heating it to 185 first, but the bacteria did not curdle the milk in 7 hours. It was more like 10, and the finished product sucked because I only chilled it about 4 hours before eating some. . The last time was the best and it yielded two pints from a quart of milk. I used plain Dannons for the starter. But it took like 18 hours total from milk to serving dish. But it was great and I had berries and other stuff to throw into it.

Kefir is much easier though as you don't have to take the temp of the milk, you just throw the kefir grains in and leave it on the counter overnight. Easy peasy. (The taste of milk kefir kinda sucks though and I'm not a freak about making it I admit.)

I have not tried this. I looked up the kefir when you mentioned it some time back, and it looks interesting. Can you buy it prepared, and is the texture different from yogurt?

What I like about culturing coconut milk is that I don't have to mess around heating it to a specific temp. I just toss in the culture starter and let it sit in the oven with the light on for a few hours and it's done. And kefir grains love coconut milk I've found, but they have to go back into regular milk every other batch so as to stay alive and working.

BTW, Trader Joe's carries a really great organic coconut milk that's just coconut milk and water. It's dirt cheap at .99 cents a can and it cultures really nicely I have found.

Trader Joe's is fast becoming my go-to store for so many things! It seems to be the ONLY place left that still sells soy-free tuna in cans. Do they sell a prepared kefir?

 

[Joelist]

Depending on the nature of the illness, just eat a bunch of White Castle's. It will have a most cleansing effect.

 

[Illiterati]

I've heard that it's hard to find the plain full fat "Greek" yogurt for some reason. I know Fage (love the name) makes it but a lot of places only carry the 2% milk fat version. I get around this dilemma by making my own yogurt and kefir. I also use organic coconut milk to make yogurt too (got some culturing by the warm light of my oven as I type these very words).

I started culturing stuff at home awhile back when I got sick and tired of searching for something that didn't have a ton of additives to it. Just looking at the Activia label again the other day gave me shivers. How they can pass that junk off as healthy is beyond me. It's like the Frankenstein monster of yogurt.

Hang Mountain High whole milk yogurt in a cheese cloth overnight and you'll have something very like Greek yogurt come morning.

 

[shavedape]

I never thought of doing that! I tryed my second time making it to just heat the milk to 115F and then adding the culture without heating it to 185 first, but the bacteria did not curdle the milk in 7 hours. It was more like 10, and the finished product sucked because I only chilled it about 4 hours before eating some. . The last time was the best and it yielded two pints from a quart of milk. I used plain Dannons for the starter. But it took like 18 hours total from milk to serving dish. But it was great and I had berries and other stuff to throw into it.



I have not tried this. I looked up the kefir when you mentioned it some time back, and it looks interesting. Can you buy it prepared, and is the texture different from yogurt?

Well, real kefir is made from kefir "grains" which are these weird cauliflower looking things. They grow when you put them in milk and over time they get bigger and bigger. They don't sell them in stores really so you have to find someone locally who is giving them away. You can buy some from people online but it's a standard thing for people to give their extras away as a good karma sort of thing. I've gotten kefir grains twice from people that I found online locally.

And I would gladly send you some of mine but this batch hasn't grown big enough yet to be separated. The problem is that I keep using them for coconut milk and they only grow bigger in regular milk so they are growing at a slower rate for me. But if you give me a few months I'll gladly send you some to try out.

As for the "kefir" you see in stores, that isn't the same thing. It's basically a yogurt drink, that's all. And I should add that all kefir is more liquid than yogurt is. It's best for smoothies to be honest.

Trader Joe's is fast becoming my go-to store for so many things! It seems to be the ONLY place left that still sells soy-free tuna in cans. Do they sell a prepared kefir?

Yes, TJ does sell kefir like I described above. It tastes like liquid yogurt to be honest, which isn't a bad thing. I'm just saying chances are you won't taste much difference between commercial kefir and yogurt. The real milk kefir made from grains has a more pungent and different taste than yogurt I find. I much prefer it when made with coconut milk. Only problem is having to store the kefir grains in regular milk between batches.

 

[Jim of WVa]

Not the plain kind. Actually, they need to make the full-fat, unflavored yogurt available in more places.

Wikipedia claims that Bulgarian yogurt is never pasteurized. If so, then it may not be legal to sell it in the US.