Nourishing Traditions: The Cookbook That Challenges Politically Correct Nutrition and The... (149 page)

Peel, quarter and seed the apples and place in water mixed with juice of 1 lemon. Heat butter in a heavy skillet. Remove apple quarters from lemon water, pat dry and grate into the melted butter. Cook gently until excess moisture is evaporated. Drain raisins and add to the pan along with remaining ingredients. Cook, stirring, until mixture is the consistency of thick applesauce.

APPLESAUCE

Makes 4 quarts

½ case organic tart apples

juice of 2 lemons

1 cup maple syrup

2 teaspoons cinnamon

½ teaspoon nutmeg

Cut apples into quarters and fill a very large enamel or stainless steel pot. Squeeze lemon juice over top and add about 2 cups of water to the pot. Bring to a boil and simmer, covered, for several hours until apples are very tender. Push down with a potato masher occasionally and check that the apples are not burning. Allow to cool and pass in batches through a food mill. (See
A Word on Equipment
.) Stir in syrup and spices. Store in refrigerator or freezer. Serve with whipped cream and toasted crispy almond slivers (
Crispy Almonds
).

WHIPPED CREAM

Makes 2 cups

2 cups good quality heavy cream, preferably raw, not ultrapasteurized

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

pinch of stevia powder

Beat cream in a clean glass bowl with a whisk or an electric beater. When cream makes soft folds, beat in vanilla and stevia powder

SWEET CHEESE TOPPING

Makes 1½ cups

1 cup cream cheese
Whey and Cream Cheese
, softened

3 tablespoons raw honey

Place cream cheese and honey in a food processor and blend well.

BAKED APPLES

Serves 6

6 large baking apples

6 tablespoons butter, softened

½ cup Rapadura (see
Guide to Natural Sweeteners
)

grated rind of 2 lemons

juice of 2 lemons

1 teaspoon ground ginger

½ teaspoon ground cinnamon

¼ teaspoon ground cloves

¼ teaspoon ground cardamom

¼ cup currants or raisins

¼ cup coarsely chopped
Crispy Almonds
, or
crispy pecans

Core apples from stem side through the center (but not entirely through) and peel from top to about
¹
/
₃
the way down. Cream butter and Rapadura. Stir in remaining ingredients and place a spoonful of stuffing in each apple. Place in a buttered baking pan with a little water. Bake about 2 hours at 325 degrees or until apples are tender.

Modern scientific inquiry has substantiated the old saying, "An apple a day keeps the doctor away." Studies have shown that regular apple-eating helps reduce the risk of strokes. Apples are rich in boron, which helps prevent osteoporosis, and they have a low glycemic index, which means that they do not cause a steep rise in blood sugar and therefore can be eaten safely by diabetics.

Apples are also rich in a type of fiber called pectin, which requires a cautionary note. Studies of rats on diets high in raw pectin show pathological changes to the villi of the small intestine. An apple a day may keep the doctor away, but lots of raw apples can cause digestive problems. Is this why macrobiotic adherents warn against eating raw apples? SWF

The current practice, encouraged by doctors and the American Heart Association, of increasing the consumption of vegetable oils in the diet is a nutritional disaster. Unsaturated fatty acids are needed only in small amounts in the diet. They are in adequate supply in vegetables, nuts and meat. It would be difficult, even in the average American diet, not to get adequate amounts of unsaturated fats.

Unsaturated fats found in vegetable oils increase the production of "free radicals," which are by-products of cellular chemistry. They are like tiny hand grenades that devastate body tissues, leading to degeneration and early aging. These little free radical killers lead to hardening of the arteries and cancer. In fact, the major cause of aging is probably "free radical" formation. William Campbell Douglass, MD
The Milk Book

APPLE COBBLER

Serves 6

8 tart apples

juice of 1-2 lemons

grated rind of 1 lemon

1 tablespoon arrowroot

2 tablespoons Rapadura (see
Guide to Natural Sweeteners
)

½ teaspoon cinnamon

¾ cup
Crispy Almonds

¾ cup arrowroot or
bulgur flour

6 tablespoons butter, softened

¼ cup Rapadura

¼ teaspoon sea salt

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Peel and core apples and cut into slices. Toss with lemon juice. Mix Rapadura, lemon rind, arrowroot and cinnamon together and toss with the apples. Place in a buttered baking or souffle dish. Place almonds in food processor and process to a powder. Add butter, arrowroot or bulgur flour, Rapadura, vanilla and salt and process until smooth. Crumble this mixture on top of the apples. Bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour. Serve with
whipped cream
or
sweet cheese topping
.

Variation: Peach Cobbler

Use
8 ripe peaches
in place of apples and omit cinnamon.

Variation: Blueberry Cobbler

Use
6 cups blueberries
in place of apples and omit cinnamon.

Deficiency in manganese—which is widespread in the United States—can lead to defects in the metabolism of both fats and carbohydrates. Manganese activates dozens of enzymes throughout the body. It is involved in the formation of bone and cartilage, in blood clotting, in the effective use of insulin and in cholesterol synthesis. Rats on manganese-deficient diets develop fatty livers and show impaired production of fatty acids. Other signs of deficiency in animals include poor reproductive performance, growth retardation and abnormalities of bone and cartilage. In humans, lack of coordination, trembling hands and proneness to seizures may indicate manganese deficiency.

Manganese is absorbed with difficulty, but the body stores it in the bones and certain organs and excretes very little, thereby indicating that it is effectively recycled. Excess of calcium in the diet may inhibit manganese absorption.

Two native American foods are outstanding sources of manganese—blueberries and pecans. It is also found in other nuts, grains, ginger and cloves. SWF

We can summarize from the preceding data that the present enzyme-deficient diet may be responsible for the reduction in brain weight and size, unfavorable enlargement of the pancreas, wasting of the precursors of metabolic enzymes, and many degenerative trends. Added to the modern catastrophe called the stove are hundreds of food factories whose job it is to "refine" or denature foods. In almost every case refining eliminates much of the enzymes in foods and, in many cases, also adds potential carcinogens to them. Edward Howell, MD
Enzyme Nutrition

ALMOND FOOL

Serves 4

2 cups
Crispy Almonds

2 teaspoons gelatin (See
Sources
), dissolved in ½ cup warm water

¼ cup Rapadura (see
Guide to Natural Sweeteners
)

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

½ cup water

2 cups
whipped cream

1 10-ounce package frozen berries

½ cup water

¼ cup maple syrup

Pulverize almonds in food processor. Process with Rapadura, vanilla, water and gelatin mixture until smooth and fluffy. Fold whipped cream into almond mixture and chill well. Meanwhile, puree berries with water and maple syrup and chill in a separate bowl. To serve, spoon almond mixture into serving dishes and top with a generous spoonful of pureed berries.

Nutrition pioneer Weston Price considered the fat-soluble vitamins, especially vitamin A, to be the catalysts on which all other biological processes depend. Efficient mineral uptake and utilization of water-soluble vitamins require sufficient vitamin A in the diet. His research demonstrated that generous amounts of vitamin A ensure healthy reproduction and offspring with attractive wide faces, plenty of room for the teeth and strong sturdy bodies. He discovered that healthy primitives especially valued vitamin-A-rich foods for growing children and pregnant mothers. Working in the 1930's, he found that their diets contained ten times more vitamin A than the typical American diet of the time. This disparity is almost certainly greater today as Americans have forsworn butter and cod liver oil. In Third World communities that have come into contact with the West, vitamin A deficiencies are widespread and contribute to high infant mortality, blindness, stunting, bone deformities and susceptibility to infection.
Vitamin A Vagary

TAPIOCA PUDDING

Serves 8

1 cup medium or small pearl tapioca

4 cups whole milk

3 eggs, separated, at room temperature

½ teaspoon sea salt

¾ cup Rapadura (see
Guide to Natural Sweeteners
)

grated rind of 1 lemon

pinch of sea salt