Category Archives: Mrs. Cog’s Corner

Mrs. Cog's Corner

Gluten Free Pumpkin Bread

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From Mrs. Cog's Corner

Another household favorite that we were anxious to replace when going gluten free was our holiday chocolate chip pumpkin bread. It is our "go-to" traditional gift for kids' school teachers, co-workers, extended family members or anyone else we wish to bestow some holiday cheer upon.

After a few batches of experimentation, we were able to adapt our traditional recipe into a gluten free version that was equally delicious.

Preheat oven to 350 °

In a large bowl combine:

  1. 2 ¾ cups of sugar
  2. ¾ cup of vegetable (we now use coconut) oil
  3. 3 eggs  - mix together well

Then add to the mix:

  1. 3 ¼ cups of all purpose Gluten Free flour (we prefer Bob's Red Mill)
  2. ¾ tsp. baking powder
  3. 2 tsp. baking soda
  4. 1 tsp. of each: nutmeg, cinnamon, allspice and ground cloves
  5. One can of pumpkin (approx. 30 oz.) - mix well

6.  Add ½ cup of water and mix all ingredients until smooth

Here is where you can get creative: We add a 20 oz bag of dark chocolate chips (both Nestle and Hershey's brands are gluten free). You may prefer to add only a 10 oz. bag of chocolate chips. I prefer walnuts, but not everyone does so sometimes I will add them to a few special loaves at the end.

This recipe makes about 5 to 6 small loaves or two regular sized bread loaves. Remember with GF cooking to grease and flour your pans with gluten free flour.

Baking times vary dramatically with elevations and oven types. I find the small loaves are usually baked in approximately 50 minutes (with a convection oven at 3,000 ft.), but sometimes it has taken longer. The larger loaves bake for approximately 70 minutes, but check one after 60 minutes to gauge the baking time in your oven.  After you determine the best baking time for each size you are baking, you may want to note it for future reference.

We have found these loaves freeze well, so after wrapping the finished product twice in foil, we mark the GF bread with a special colored ribbon so it is always easy to find in a few months when digging through the freezer for a special treat. Enjoy!

Mrs. Cog's Corner

Laughter

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From Mrs. Cog's Corner

"The art of medicine consists of keeping the patient amused while nature heals the disease." - Voltaire

"A clown is like an aspirin, only he works twice as fast." - Groucho Marx

There is nothing quite like laughing. For a moment, close your eyes and think about how you felt during and just after you laughed so hard there were tears on your cheeks, or even a good old fashioned belly laugh. A certain refreshing energy from laughter can leave you "recharged" and there is a reason why.

Physically, laughter increases your oxygen intake, boosts your heart rate and circulation, and cues the brain to release endorphins. This triggers a reduction in stress, muscle relaxation and a boost to one's immunity system according to the Mayo Clinic.

Laughing actually reduces pain. The process of a good hardy laugh helps the pituitary gland to release hormones that act like an opiate on your system. The effects can last for a while. These endorphins actually increase tolerance to pain. Tests have shown laughter to be efficacious in post operative patients, those that suffer from arthritis and in many more instances.

But just as important in these trying times of change, laughter can aid us to attain focus. Through relaxing and releasing stress by laughing, we are better able to put circumstances into perspective and more accurately gauge the proximity of danger so we can be more realistic in our assessment.

Laughter is therapy.

Laughter is contagious. The people in this video were simply reacting to a man who was laughing and couldn't help themselves.

Per Ivy League Grad Schools - Laughter is Serious Business.

Seriously... who can resist the "serious" baby?

Read more:

 ...laughter helps the pituitary gland release its own pain-suppressing opiates. http://www.care2.com/greenliving/8-health-benefits-of-laughter.html

Laughter, scientists have discovered, can do as much good for your body as going for a run. Volunteers who watched 20 minutes of comedies and stand-up routines experienced a dramatic drop in stress hormones, blood pressure and cholesterol. Their appetite was also stimulated just as it is with exercise.http://www.laughteryogaamerica.com/read/news/laughter-can-help-ease-stress-pain-and-even-fight-cancer-1882.php

What may surprise you even more is the fact that researchers estimate that laughing 100 times is equal to 10 minutes on the rowing machine or 15 minutes on an exercise bike. Laughing can be a total body workout! Blood pressure is lowered, and there is an increase in vascular blood flow and in oxygenation of the blood, which further assists healing. Laughter also gives your diaphragm and abdominal, respiratory, facial, leg and back muscles a workout. That's why you often feel exhausted after a long bout of laughter -- you've just had an aerobic workout! http://science.howstuffworks.com/life/laughter7.htm

“If you can laugh at it, you can survive it.” And as research on the subject grows, it is becoming more evident that laughing can make us healthier physically as well as mentally. http://www.scientificamerican.com/article/a-healthy-laugh/

But Beware...

According to a New York Times piece published last year just before the holidays, a British medical journal forewarns there are "many harmful effects wrought by laughter." http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/12/20/who-says-laughters-the-best-medicine/?_php=true&_type=blogs&_r=0

Mrs. Cog's Corner

Food Is The New ‘Health’care

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From Mrs. Cog's Corner

The content on this page is for discussion purposes relating to health and well being only and is not intended to be medical advice. Links and sources provided are for informational purposes and do not represent an endorsement of a person, product or treatment.

One of the best things to come out of the sudden revelation that nothing is what it seems is the knowledge that I can be self reliant enough to keep myself well. Having just scratched the surface of research into ancient natural practices that enabled people to live far longer lives while enjoying a much higher physical quality of life, it was all news to me.

Real food is defined in various ways. One seemingly sound theory on "genuine" food says the less you do to food between the time it is grown or raised and when you consume it, the better it is. This generally works for me as it makes it much easier to source where food comes from and what it really is.

The unsung benefits of many foods and spices is mind-boggling once we begin the trip down the rabbit hole.

Did you know there are increasing reports that Alzheimer's can be reversed (implying prevented as well) by simply mixing coconut oil into your food each day? It cues the body to make ketones which reverse the condition in the brain. There are dozens of more stories and studies like these here, here, and here are a few more.

Walnuts have been proven to reduce and prevent cardiovascular disease and prevent diabetes. The amazing medicinal power of blueberries in aiding vision and fighting UTI's and many more treatments/preventatives are well documented. Fresh spinach for cognitive and anti-cancer benefits, tomatoes are rich with lycopene, a powerful antioxidant to fight cancer and potassium to help regulate healthy blood pressure, and sweet potatoes are steeped in Vitamins B, C and D as well as iron and magnesium giving a monster boost to immunity and an acknowledged natural substitute for hormone replacement therapy and gastro disorders. The lists go on and on and the internet is full of resources on the medicinal value of any natural food you might enjoy.

I imagine like myself, you may not be used to eating these fresh healthy foods all the time. Processed unhealthy foods are created to be addictive by design. Junk carbs actually stimulate our hunger centers for more, rather than becoming satisfied with our intake. There are plenty of resources available on the internet for free that can help with tips to retrain the yen for junk cravings.

Fear not. If the switch to natural foods for our health maintenance needs seems daunting, we can always pop over to WedMD and find warnings of the side effects and interactions of tomatoes and other foods that might be considered medicinal. The big pharma backed medical establishment is ever ready to support your limiting these healthy alternatives that as of yet cannot be patented.

The bottom line is every snack I can substitute something healthy for something that isn't is big progress. I have actually had to throw away what was once considered yummy junk food in the house, because fruits and nuts were eaten instead. Bringing healthy homemade soup to work, packing a fresh salad with crunchy nuts when we leave the house, coveting gluten free granola treat recipes and cooking up extras with dinner to have for lunches throughout the week are all ways to transition to healthful diets.

Read More:

Food is medicine – that’s the mantra of culinary medicine. As a pioneer in the field, Dr. John La Puma maintains that food is the best way to prevent, treat and even reverse illness. He’s harnessed the power of a healthy diet to fight obesity, diabetes, arthritis, metabolic syndrome, heart disease and depression. Even your cancer risk could be reduced – over 80% of cancers are caused by controllable lifestyle factors, which include diet. http://www.doctoroz.com/videos/culinary-medicine-healing-food

Some of the most powerful medicines on the planet are masquerading around as foods and spices. While they do not lend themselves to being patented, nor will multi-billion dollar human clinical trials ever be funded to prove them efficacious, they have been used since time immemorial to both nourish our bodies, and to prevent and treat disease.  So valued were these in ancient times that they were worth their weight in gold, and entire civilizations either rose to great power or collapsed as a result of their relationship to them. http://www.greenmedinfo.com/blog/5-food-medicines-could-quite-possibly-save-your-life

Food as medicine is at the heart of natural health. Most, if not all, modern diseases are caused by years of wrong eating. Pretty much all of them can be cured by right eating. While good, natural food will lead you back to full health, there are times when a specific food acts as medicine to help heal or cure. http://www.natural-health-for-you.com/food-as-medicine.html

Americans are bombarded with information about "healthy eating," but we suffer from higher rates of obesity and chronic disease than ever before. We are told one year to avoid fat and the next to avoid carbohydrates. It is enough to make anyone distrust nutritional advice altogether, particularly anything that claims that "food is medicine." http://www.takingcharge.csh.umn.edu/explore-healing-practices/food-medicine

An interesting insight into the food we eat:

http://youtu.be/JXZ1dH7tJWw

To follow up from above, the following article has many links to information on natural treatments for Alzheimer's. The testimonies of success in using coconut oil to treat Alzheimer’s has been nothing less than remarkable, especially considering the widespread failure of the drug companies to find drugs that can effectively deal with this disease. We bring you the research and the testimonies here. http://coconutoil.com/coconut-oil-research-alzheimers/

Earlier this month on Facebook I asked the following question: Have any of you (or someone you know) been able to stop taking some prescription meds after making a change to your diet? If so, I’d love to hear about it! I was definitely expecting to hear some great success stories, but was completely taken aback by almost 800 comments sharing amazing and – in some cases truly unbelievable transformations. http://www.100daysofrealfood.com/2013/03/22/let-food-be-thy-medicine/

Food contains informationthat speaks to our genes, not just calories for energy. We are learning from research in the field of nutrigenomics, that good “talks” to our DNA switching on or off genes that lead to health or disease. What you eat programs your body with messages of health or illness. In Asia, I was speaking to the converted, simply illuminating with science what they have applied every day for thousands of years. http://drhyman.com/blog/2011/10/14/eat-your-medicine-food-as-pharmacology/

Medicinal Food News: http://www.medicinalfoodnews.com/

"Let your food be your medicine" said Hippocrates, the Father of Medicine, who compiled a list of over four hundred herbs and their uses. Herbs, spices and other nutritional substances are the oldest form of medicine known to man. While modern or "allopathic" medicine is barely a century old, the practice of natural medicine using nature as a pharmacy can be traced back through all of the ancient civilizations. Over many centuries, man's experiment with plants has yielded a vast stock of natural medicines to help us heal many ailments, and almost always without harmful side effects. Many pharmaceuticals are still derived from the extracts of wild plants, such as digitalis from the purple foxglove flower. Amazingly enough, less than one percent of the over two hundred and fifty thousand plant species on earth have even been studied for their medicinal properties! http://www.landofvos.com/articles/kitchen.html

As part of a healthy diet, whole foods play a significant role in helping our bodies function at their best. There are hundreds of extremely nutritious whole foods, but the dozen on this list do more than contribute healthy nutrients -- they help you heal. In fact, every food on this list boasts multiple healing effects, from fighting cancer to reducing cholesterol, guarding against heart disease, and more. Eat these super-healing picks and start feeling pretty super yourself. http://www.caring.com/articles/12-foods-super-healing

About This Reference database: This site is part of a public education project created by Mike Adams, the Health Ranger, and hosted by Truth Publishing. Its purpose is to educate and empower consumers with information they can use to prevent and even help reverse degenerative disease. Nature's foods contain powerful medicine in the form of phytonutrients, and knowing how to use those natural medicines empowers people with the information they need to be healthier, happier and free from the ravages of chronic disease. http://www.healingfoodreference.com/

As long ago as 652 A.D. a Chinese physician called Sun Shu Mao had a book published entitled 'One Thousand Ounces of Pure Gold'. He was best known as a herbalist and acupuncturist and believed that life was more important than the title of his book. He discussed many dietary treatments of various diseases including goitre and night blindness. http://www.sacu.org/chinesefood.html