Oh my, Butternut

I hardly take the time to make blended soups, but OH this soup, people. You won't wanna stop. It takes some time to do the roasting and blending, but totally worth it, folks. And yes, it's not fall - but this soup makes me want  fall!

You have the option to make it with coconut milk, heavy cream or any other creamy substance, it's delicious either way. I adapted the recipe from here because I like me some more garlic, onions and butter, baby!



Nourishing Butternut Squash Soup 
Serves: 4

Ingredients:

• One medium Butternut Squash, cut in half
• 1 onion, peeled and cut in fourths
• 4-5 garlic cloves, peeled
• salt and pepper (for roasting onions)
• 1 Tbs. Olive or Coconut Oil
• 2 cups of Broth
• 3 Tbs. Butter
• 1 tsp. Cumin
• Pinch of nutmeg
• 1/2 tsp. ginger
• 3/4 cup coconut milk, heavy cream or any other dairy substitute. 
• Salt and Pepper to taste

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees
2. Cut the squash in half and remove the insides. Lay flat (cut part down) on a cookie sheet and bake for 15 minutes. In the mean time, chop onion and peel garlic, coat with olive oil and salt and pepper. When the 15 minutes are over, throw the veggies on the other side of the cookie sheet and roast for another 25 minutes. When done, you should be able to easily poke a fork into the squash.
3. When cooled, scrape the squash into a food processor or blender along with the roasted onions, garlic and broth. Blend until smooth.
4. Then melt the butter in a pot and add blended squash, cumin, nutmeg, ginger, salt, pepper and milk. Heat, serve and enjoy!

              - Sarah

“If you’re afraid of butter, use cream.”

 "If you're afraid of butter, use cream."

- Julia Child

“If you’re afraid of butter, use cream.”

“If you’re afraid of butter, use cream.”

 

“If you’re afraid of butter, use cream.”

Hot Buttered Cinnamon Tea

Now that the weather has turned and the days are chilly I long for a cup of hot tea in the morning. Coffee usually gives me the jitters and causes my blood sugar to dip - so black tea it is. I love it. I'm not sure any other word can describe my relationship with tea. There's something about savoring a few moments of quiet in the morning with my hot cup of tea and a brief prayer as I begin my day. Now, to be honest those moments hardly happen around here with three little ones, but a girl can dream, can't she? It gives me the boost to get going in the morning without the horrible crash later in the day, and it taste ooh so delicious.

A beautiful Tibetan woman drinking Yak Butter tea.

A few weeks back my sister told me she was drinking butter in her coffee. I immediately thought, "Eww!" But after some convincing, I had to try it, and maybe it was good after all? I was out of cream as usual so I made my tea, blended it with butter and honey and was immediately hooked. Thanks sis!

I looked up hot buttered coffee and found a bit of information on it, apparently it's an Ethiopian tradition to drink butter in your coffee and in Tibet they drink Yak butter in their tea. So I'm not crazy after all!

When I told my mother about my newest obsession she said, "Like hot buttered rum? Oh yeah!" Yes Mom, just like hot buttered rum. :)

According to a travel and leisure website it's considered one of the world's strangest street foods. "It's made by churning or shaking yak butter, black tea, and salt together in a covered container; the result is best consumed when it's hot and foamy." Locals usually drink dozens of cups a day and if you are a guest in their home local custom dictates that your cup is filled after every sip.

So interesting!

Now, I don't have yak butter, but I do have delicious Kerrygold butter made from cows grazing on green grass in Ireland. It's a slice of heaven if there ever was one and taste wonderful in tea. Here is my "recipe" if you are interested in trying it out:

 
Hot Buttered Cinnamon Tea

12 ounces hot black or Rooibos tea (or coffee if you prefer!)
1- 2 tbl butter
1 tbl honey
A dash of cinnamon

Blend your tea, butter and honey with an immersion blender or countertop blender. Blend till creamy and frothy. Pour into your favorite mug, top with a dash of cinnamon and enjoy!

Let me know what you think or if you have tried this before, I would love to know!

~ Sarah

"You learn about great food by finding the best there is . . . then you savor it, analyze it and discuss it with your companions . . ." - Julia Child

Linking up with Party Wave Wednesday and  Pennywise Platter

Blood Sugar Woes. . .

Do you have blood sugar problems? I sure do. If I don't eat some protein or healthy fat every few hours I am exhausted, grumpy, impatient and jittery. I lose all patience for my children and start to blame my problems on the world around me. When in reality I simply need to eat some food!

Ever feel like this?

 I then get on this cycle: blood sugar dips, eat a quick snack, blood sugar rises, feel great, blood sugar dips, eat food and lose patience, blood sugar rises, feel great and happy, blood sugar dips,and that's it. At that point I am too exhausted to deal with every day life.

At first I just thought it was my problem, being grumpy and all. My cross in life. Well, yes and no. I can choose to "offer" it all up and still complain about how hard life is and how tired I am or I can offer it up and do something about it. 

I need to work on uniting my sufferings with Christ' sufferings, but I also need the humility to realize that I can and should do something for my blood sugar problems. This is taking care of myself.

What helps most with blood sugar regulation?

Healthy fats, healthy fats and healthy fats. I can't say it enough. Healthy fats are released slower into your body during digestion, therefore causing your insulin to regulate. If you eat enough with all of your meals your blood sugar will not dip. 

What are my favorite healthy fats? 

Coconut Oil - a super great fat but not everyone likes coconut oil. I understand!

Butter - yes, it's a healthy fat! Full of vitamin A. We eat lots of butter with our veggies. If you disagree, read this article. I used to eat margarine and avoid butter like the plague. It didn't do me any good!

Lard - yup, good 'ol pig fat! Turns out that it's full of vitamin D. We buy ours from a local pig farmer, it's very inexpensive and taste great! Read more about it here.

Nuts, cheese, avocado, extra virgin olive oil - these are the more obvious ones, I have to carry nuts in my purse. Because of that my kids love them!

I havn't always eaten heatlhy fats, in fact I avoided them for so long. Much to the detriment of my health. We had thousands of dollars in health bills those few years! I feel great when I eat better and my energy levels are amazing. Once I jump back on the vicious cycle of insulin rushes I get so down and grumpy, it's no fun! It takes a bit to recover and gain the extra motivation to eat more healthy fats. 

What does our typical day look like?

Breakfast: Oatmeal with raisins, butter and cream. Eggs with LOTS of butter and cheese, bacon, homemade sausages, sauteed spinach in butter.

Snack: Cheese, nuts, avocado, muffin loaded with butter.

Lunch: Leftover meat, some veggies fried in lard or butter,  raw milk.

Snack: Nuts, carrots and hummus, cheese, tomatos in olive oil, raw milk, fruit, full fat yogurt.

Dinner: Meat with all the fat, veggies and tons of butter or lard, rice with butter, potatoes cooked in lard. Beans with sour cream or cheese.

Snack: Popcorn with coconut oil or butter, celery and peanut butter, full fat yogurt and honey, fruit.

Every day is different but what is not different is the amount of fat I need for my blood sugar. Anytime I stray from eating this much fat I can tell a huge difference in my energy level and mood. On another note, butter is so tasty I don't mind eating so much! Just ask Julia Child, she will tell you all about butter!

For further reading:

Stomp The Weight Loss Accelerator Using Coconut Oil - Healthy Home Economist

Good Fats, Bad Fats, and Why I eat plenty of Butter - Keeper of the Home

Why You Need to Eat More Lard - Rodale

Books on the topic:

The Coconut Oil Miracle - Bruce Fife

Eat Fat, Lose Fat: - Sally Fallon and Mary Enig

Let me know your tips on how to deal with Blood Sugar problems!