Happy Holidays everyone! Well it is that time of year when we are tempted beyond belief to go against our better judgment and indulge in sweets and goodies of all kinds—many of which are not gluten free. For many this means suffering through a host of unwanted side effects! Symptoms from gluten intolerance can range from upset stomach, indigestion, hives and for some the symptoms can be much more serious.

It is no fun to suffer though the holidays and so I set out to adapt one of my favorite holiday cookie recipes, the snickerdoodle, from gluten-rich to gluten-free! I noticed that the key to a nice soft cookie is in the baking. Make sure your oven is fully heated before putting the the cookies in and make sure they are taken out on time (after about 10 minutes). As always please be sure to use all organic ingredients. Happy Holidays. See you at “The Hut!”

Gluten-Free Snickerdoodles

(makes about 24 cookies)

1/2 cup butter (1 stick, softened)

1 1/4 cups sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla

2 eggs

2 3/4 cups oat flour (or gluten-free flour of choice)

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 cup salt

1 teaspoon cinnamon

For topping:

2 tablespoons sugar

2 tablespoons cinnamon

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. In large bowl mix together butter and sugar. Add eggs one at a time, then vanilla and blend together. Mix flour, baking soda, salt and cinnamon together separately and then add all ingredients together and mix. Form cookies into small balls and place on baking sheet. Top each cookie with sugar, cinnamon mixture and bake for 10 minutes. Cool and serve!

Please show your support for Tiera Matara, Miss Teen Kapa‘a 2012, who will be competing today in the Miss Hawai‘i Teen Beauty USA!

Tiera is an advocate for healthy lifestyle and organic foods. She has a passion for helping influence others to take control of their health and she is spreading that message today at her pageant! Healthy Hut is one of Tiera’s many sponsors and she is a supporter of Healthy Hut too!

We at Healthy Hut wish Tiera the best of luck! Please go to her facebook page  to show your support! You can also learn more about her by reading her blog. Aloha, and see you all at “The Hut”!

Aloha all,

In honor of Thanksgiving I would like to share with you my simple and delicious sweet potato recipe. This recipe uses Okinawa purple sweet potatoes, ginger, cinnamon and coconut milk to give it a sweet and creamy consistency—perfect for Thanksgiving, or anytime. To make it easier, try making the potatoes a day or two beforehand and then just heat them up in the oven right before you serve Thanksgiving dinner. Find all your ingredients here at ‘The Hut’!

Purple Sweet Potatoes

Serves: 4–6

Ingredients:

3 large Okinawa sweet potatoes

1 can organic coconut milk

1-3 teaspoons ginger powder

1-3 teaspoons cinnamon powder

1-3 tablespoons coconut oil (optional)

Wash potatoes, poke several times with fork and place on cookie sheet. Bake in the oven at 350 degrees for 30 to 50 minutes until well done and soft when poked. Remove from oven and allow to cool for a few minutes. When cool enough to handle remove skins and place in large mixing bowl. Add can of coconut milk, spices and coconut oil and stir. Mash with fork as you go until potatoes are smooth. Serve an enjoy.

Aloha everyone, I have been experimenting in my kitchen again and you know what that means…. a new, awesome recipe for you to try!

Well I just finished reading this great book, “Born to Run” by Christopher McDougall and I am now super hyped on barefoot running and eating chia seeds. The Tarahumara or “Running People”, legendary for their amazing endurance and vigor, make a drink called, iskaiate, made from chia seeds, lime juice and sweetener. This drink is said to give them super running powers, although I’m sure it’s not that simple.

I have been trying chia seeds in everything from smoothies to fruit salads to my latest creation: “Coco-Chaco-Chia Pudding”, which I will be sharing with you here. This recipe took a few tries to get it right but I think I finally nailed it. First, allow me to share a little bit about chia seed health benefits with you.

Chia seeds are high in protein, antioxidants, B-complex vitamins and various minerals. The best thing about chia seeds, however, is that they are high in omega-3 essential fatty acids, also known as EFAs. Why is that so great? Well, in our modern diet, we are comsumeing way too much omega-6 and hardly any omega-3 EFAs. Research suggests that an imbalance of omega-3 and omega-6 can eventually cause various health problems including arthritis, obesity, diabetes, cancer, depression and heart disease.

Most packaged foods contain high amounts of omega-6 EFAs due to the vegetable oils used in them. For this reason it is easy to see why the average person consumes 20 to 50 times the amount of omega-6 to omega-3! (The ideal ratio is 1:1 by the way.)

When we consume imbalanced foods regularly it can create imbalances in our bodies as well. This is why it’s a good idea to get as much omega-3 in our diet as possible. I believe that supplementing with chia seeds can help.

The following is a  great dessert recipe that can be adapted to your taste and dietary needs. Less or more sweetener may be used depending on what you prefer. If you cannot have any sugar then I suggest using stevia or xylitol, which are natural sugar substitutes.

Look for all ingredients here, at the Healthy Hut in Kilauea. Always use organic ingredients when possible.

For those who want to delve in and do further research on these topics please visit the resource links listed below.

Resources: chiaseedshealthbenefits.com/; www.chrismcdougall.com/; http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barefoot_running; www.nomeatathlete.com/tarahumara-pinole-chia-recipes/; www.optimal-heart-health.com/omega_3.html; http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2002/03/13/omega3-fats-part-one.aspx; http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2008/09/23/the-incredible-importance-of-omega-3-s.aspx; www.whfoods.com/genpage.php?tname=george&dbid=96; www.eatwild.com/articles/superhealthy.html; http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Xylitol

Coco-Chaco-Chia Pudding
Servings: 3-5
1 can of coconut milk
2 tablespoons cacao (cocoa) powder
1 tablespoon maca powder
2 tablespoons honey or agave syrup (more or less to taste)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 1/2 tablespoons chia seeds

In a large bowl combine cacao (cocoa) powder, maca, honey or agave, vanilla and a little coconut milk and stir. Add a little more coconut milk and stir again, making sure to get all lumps out and make smooth. Repeat this process until all the coconut milk is blended in. Next add the chia seeds and mix well. Cover and put in the refrigerator for six or more hours. When well chilled and gelled, stir once more and serve. Enjoy and live well;-)

Market surveys show that health conscious consumers buy and trust products that prominently display the word “natural” on the front of food packages, even though the “natural” claim does not necessarily deliver any added health benefits to consumers above and beyond those of their conventionally manufactured counterparts.

ConAgra is one such company using a “100% Natural” labeling claim to win over consumers. ConAgra’s Wesson Oils, however, are anything but “100% natural” — because the oils are made from genetically modified (GM) plants. ConAgra sells four types of widely used cooking and food preparation oils under the Wesson brand. All Wesson Oils are sold with a label on the front of the bottle that prominently states they are “100% Natural.”
We are looking for Center for Food Safety members who have purchased any of the following cooking oils in the last few years sold under the Wesson brand name: Canola Oil, Vegetable Oil, Corn Oil, and Best Blend. If you have purchased these products believing them to them to be “100% Natural” and not to contain genetically engineered ingredients, please contact us at adeeringer@icta.org right away. Please include “Wesson” in your subject line and your state of residence in your email.

Connect with CFS by clicking here.

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After a break neck 14-day tour  around the Rajastan state of  India, we headed south to   Philipkutty’s Farm on a small tranquil island on the southwestern coast .

The island is surrounded by the  Vembanad Lake  in the state of Kerala.   Canals, streams, marshes and flooded rice patties are  intricately tied into the 80-square-acre  lake and make up what Keralites call the Backwaters.

Philipkutty’s Farm is a small family- run inn called a home stay. Guests  live with the hosts and are housed in one of five lakefront villas which were built in traditional Keralan bungalo style. White stucco walls and verandas overhung with dark red tile roofs make up the Keralan look, complete with swings large enough for two.

We could lie back and listen to the birds singing or women chatting while doing laundry along the  shores.  The family and guests dine together three times a day around a large round table in the outdoor pavilion. It appeared we had arrived at a perfect rest stop before continuing on our tour.

We were greeted by Anu, our hostess and quickly  introduced to Aniamma, known to all as “Mummy” .  They were daughter and mother-in-law, the  owners and operators of this retreat.

Philipkutty’s was originally established over a half century before by Mummy’s father-in-law.  After his unexpected death, his wife, Anu and Mummy took over. In 1999 Mummy’s son added the bungalows and created the homestay experience, giving travelers a taste of Keralan hospitality. This mostly organic farm produces commercial crops in addition to the ingredients used for home stay’s meals including the spices .

We were offered the opportunity to take a cooking class with Mummy and Anu. We were  immediately at home in the demo kitchen. We started off with Pineapple Pachadi, a basic dish and  a staple on our dining table while a Phillipkutty’s. Here is the recipe for all of you to enjoy. Most ingredients available at Healthy Hut, except the fresh curry leaves, which may be found at your local farmers market.

Pineapple Pachadi  (serves 6-8)

This dish is  similar to a raita.  It is a cross between a sauce and relish.  Its savory, sweet and tart flavors made it a delicious accompaniment to  the spicy dishes we ate, like  the Shrimp Masala.

Ingredients:
2 tablespoons coconut oil
12 fresh curry leaves
1/2 teaspoon black mustard seeds
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper
6 medium shallots, minced
2 long hot green chiles, seeded and minced
1 cup finely chopped pineapple
1/2 cup water
1/2 cup finely shredded unsweetened coconut
1 1/2 cup plain whole milk yogurt
salt

Heat the oil in a small sauce pan. Add six of the curry leaves, the mustard seeds and crushed red pepper and cook over high heat until the curry leaves sizzle and the mustard seeds pop ( 30 seconds or so) remove from heat.

In a medium skillet combine shallots, green chiles, pineapple, water and the remaining curry leaves and simmer over moderate to low heat until most of the water has evaporated ( 10 minutes )  Add the coconut and yogurt and cook. Continue stirring until heated through ( do not bring to boil,  three minutes ). Remove from the heat , stir in the fried curry leave mixture  and season with salt. Let cool to room temperature and serve.