Blog Articles
Welcome to Your Primal Life, where I provide an array of informative articles to help you on your journey towards healthy living. Gain insights into providing wholesome food options for your loved ones and discover effective strategies to encourage them to embrace these choices. Delve into topics like homesteading, nutrition, recipes, healing herbs, functional body movements, and so much more to help you along this journey. Join me on this transformative path to maximizing your family’s well-being.
I Don’t Know Where to Start?!
Switching from a typical American lifestyle eating the standard American diet (SAD) is best done in steps, at least for most people. It can be overwhelming, there's a lot to learn and even more to unlearn. So take it a step at a time. For those ‘all or nothing’ people out there, go for it. My suggestions for getting the ball rolling: Remove processed foods. Yes, you can do this! The processed food litmus test; Did your great-great-grandmother eat it? Replace sugars/sweeteners with high-quality fats. Yes, easier said than done, but once you master this you will...
Watermelon Lime Sherbet
“Watermelon is so much more than just a highly refreshing summertime treat. From the perspective of a growing body of clinical research, it is a truly medicinal food.” ~Sayer Ji, Founder of GreenMedInfo.com Eating nutritious food is not about deprivation! This is similar to a soft-serve when first made. If you freeze, pull out 20 minutes prior to consuming. Prep Time:20 mins Course: Dessert Cuisine: American Servings: 6 Author: Coach Nanette Equipment Food Processor Ingredients 6 cups Seedless Watermelon, cubed and frozen - freeze cubes on a sheet tray, minimum...
You Can Sleep When You’re Dead
That’s a line my husband likes to use when he wants to do something besides getting a good night’s sleep. Of course, he's one of those who can fall asleep as soon as his head hits the pillow. For me, sleep is more of a challenge. I understand how important it is, know what steps need to be taken, and have improved my quality of sleep significantly. However, I don’t always follow through. So I'm in a bit of a ‘practice what you preach’ mode here. I don’t believe sleeping pills provide much relief, not sustainable anyway. They have way too many risks and side...
School Box Lunches Made Easy
Does the thought of making 180 school box lunches for your kids this school year stress you out? Want to learn how to easily plan and make them? By following these 3 tips, you’ll learn how to make delicious, healthy lunches that provide energy and satiety to support your kids during school. You’ll be confident they’re getting the nutrition they need for their growing bodies, health, focus, and learning. Traditional school lunches and snacks seriously lack nutrition. Before I knew better, my kids’ lunches consisted of goldfish, juice boxes, chips, cookies,...
Beware of Toxic Laundry
The air inside the typical home is more polluted than the air outside, even in large industrial cities, as reported by the Environmental Protection Agency. We spend much of our time in our homes, so we must eliminate as many toxins as possible. Carpets, upholstery, cleaning supplies, and personal care products are just a few of the offenders. It can be overwhelming, but you have to start somewhere and your laundry is a good place to start. Look at the labels on your laundry products. If you see warnings or words that you can't pronounce, stop using them. Just as...
Baked Fish with Shrimp Hollandaise Sauce
This is delicious with any fish deemed safe on the EWG's Consumer Guide to Seafood; flounder, rainbow trout, wild salmon. Prep Time: 20 mins|Cook Time: 20 mins|Total Time: 40 mins Course: Main Dish Cuisine: French Servings: 4 Author: Coach Nanette Ingredients 4 Fillets Fish - rinse, pat dry, season with salt & pepper 1 Pound Shrimp - peeled, deveined, chopped 3 Each Egg Yolks - can use 1 egg, won't be as rich 1/2 Tsp Dijon Mustard 1 Tbsp Lemon Juice - can use white wine vinegar 1/4 Tsp Sea Salt 1 Pinch White Pepper 1/2 Cup Butter - melted Parsley garnish...
Gomasio
Who has tried Gomasio? Who even knows what Gomasio is? It is a traditional Japanese seasoning or condiment made from toasted and ground sesame seeds and sea salt. It’s great on stews, soups, stir-fries, Asian dishes, and is an absolute game-changer on roasted vegetables. Our family has quickly grown to love it. I may add a few peppercorns to the grinding step next time. Let me know how you use it! Gomasio - aka Salt of the Gods or Sesame Salt Prep Time: 5 mins|Cook Time: 10 mins|Total Time: 15 mins Course: Condiment Cuisine: Japanese Author: Coach Nanette...
Low Carb (Keto) Spaghetti Carbonara
My aunt lived in Italy for several years and came back with many delicious recipes. My favorite was her Spaghetti Carbonara. It must have been everyone’s favorite because it has been a family gathering tradition ever since. I had not had it for many years due to my diet choices, but have now learned to make it fit into my lifestyle. And I might add that it is as good as I remember. We love it and it’s creamy and delicious! It fills that pasta urge without the grains and the carbs. My dear cousins, feel free to chime in. Low Carb (Keto) Spaghetti Carbonara Prep...
A Primal Thanksgiving
Thanksgiving is by far my favorite holiday. To me, it’s a great reminder to slow down, appreciate my family and the many blessings in my life, and enjoy some personal time. We typically host at our house. It’s lots of work, but work we do together and that I enjoy. And no, not all of our guests eat the way we do. The menu has evolved over the last several years as we have become more committed to a healthier lifestyle. In the beginning, I made dishes we don’t eat to accommodate our guests. I no longer do that, but I certainly welcome whatever they wish to bring....
Rethink Breakfast
I was once a big pusher of breakfast, but have evolved into more of an ‘eat when you’re hungry’ kinda gal. Kids usually wake up hungry though, so when processed grains and sugars went off our breakfast table we had to get creative, and quick! I often hear moms complain that there are so few breakfast options that don’t contain grains. When riding the processed cereal train, yes it's hard to see. No judgment from me, I used to ride that same train. When health issues motivated us to go grain-free, we learned, we had to learn. Don’t buy into the myth that there...
What, You Don’t Have a Microwave?
Visitors are often taken aback when they realize we don’t have a microwave. We did have one, but decided to get rid of it after learning the potential health risks of microwaving food and beverages. The family was a bit more reluctant about this change than they are to most of the changes I propose. They are troopers, we have adapted and it is now a non-issue. Microwave ovens use short radio waves to affect the food’s water molecules to generate heat. This changes the chemical structure of the food or liquid. I’m no scientist, so that is my layman’s explanation....
How Does Your Pantry Stack Up?
Out of the Top 50 Essential Paleo Pantry Foods from Mark’s Daily Apple, I was only missing 8. Not bad. Of those 8, I would probably only consider bringing 2 of them in. I can live without the rest. Here is the link to his great list; http://www.marksdailyapple.com/top-50-essential-paleo-pantry-foods/. Not everyone is familiar with all these items and I'm often asked where I shop. Our groceries come from several different sources. My husband gardens some, with plans on much more next year! I get as much produce as possible, and sometimes chicken, cheese, coffee,...
Coach Nanette