The Return of Jam

Ever since I was a teenager, I've loved the art of caring for a home.  I know that seems weird.  I had other aspirations, of course; what teenager doesn't?  I wanted to become a famous artist, do video game art, illustrate best selling novels.  The passion I had for art was like a steamy affair, though.  It came on quickly, burned brightly for a while, and then faded gently into the night. 

My love of home caring has been more like the slow easy love of married people.  It may not burn as brightly, but it burns forever.  That's why, when I had to make the choice between art school and getting married and moving in with Chad, I chose the home life. 

One of my all time favorite home caring crafts is food canning.  Now I bet you're wondering exactly how strange I could be; who likes canning?  I'll admit that I'm an oddity.  My sister used to call me a grandma because I liked doing all these old fashioned things like canning, knitting, sewing, cooking. There's just something so empowering about knowing how to provide for yourself, whether it's preserving food or making your own clothes.  I think I was a homesteader in a past life.

I've been canning for several years now, and I've gotten pretty good at it.  I tend to only can high acidity foods (like fruit and pickles) in a water bath canner though, because I feel like it's easier and more nutritious to freeze vegetables rather than process them in a pressure canner for long periods.  So I do a lot of pickles, canned fruit, and jam.

Jam was always my favorite.  It's so easy, and so very delicious.  However, if you're not a canner, it may surprise you that, when you make jam, you usually put in more sugar than you do fruit.  Every time I tell someone that, they're usually pretty shocked.  My mother-in-law told me that the next time I make her jam, to just not put in so much sugar.  It's not that easy, though.  With traditional pectin, you have to have a large quantity of sugar for it to properly jell.  There's no way around it, or at least that's how it seemed.

Recently, I found a kind of pectin that doesn't require any sugar.   There's a few different brands out there, but the kind I've been using is Ball RealFruit Low or No Sugar Needed Pectin. 

However, once I finish this jar of pectin, I plan on buying Pomona's Universal Pectin, which I hear is far superior. 

Whichever kind of pectin you choose, the cool thing about them is that they'll jell without any added sugar at all.  You can add artificial sweeteners if you want (I hear Splenda is the only kind that will hold up under the canning process though), and stevia and xylitol both work well, too. 

So once I got the pectin, I knew I had to try it.  I went straight out and bought four pounds of strawberries.  I had planned on adding a little xylitol to cut the acidity of the strawberries, but unfortunately, my local Wegmans was out at the time.  Instead, I decided just to use a little sugar, since I knew it wouldn't be very much.

The recipe on the pectin jar is very simple.  For the no sugar needed jam, it states:

For 2 (8 oz) half pints of jam, you will need:

2 cups prepared fruit (usually crushed or finely chopped)
1/3 cup unsweetened fruit juice, thawed fruit juice concentrate, or water (I used water)
3 tsp bottled lemon juice (use only with blueberries, peaches, and sweet cherries)
1-1/2 tbsp Ball No Sugar Needed Pectin

The instructions said you can increase the quantities to make your desired amount of jam, but not to exceed 10 jars.  I ended up making 6 jars with the strawberries.  There's also a recipe for low sugar jam that calls for up to 1/2 cup sugar for the two half pint jars.  I figured even that was too much.  So for my jam, I had 6 cups of fruit, and I added about 1/2 cup of sugar to the whole recipe. 

It's different than regular jam.  The consistency is a little thicker, less jelly-like.  The color is a little duller, and of course the flavor isn't as in-your-face-sweet.  However, just because it's different doesn't mean it's bad.  I find this jam heavenly.  It's very fruity.  Regular jam is almost candy-like, but this one, amazingly, tastes like real fruit. 

I tried it on a peanut butter and jelly sandwich (with coconut bread), and it was wonderful.

 

Now that I know I can make jam again, I can't wait to actually start producing it!  I have a box full of peaches and nectarines ripening in my dining room.  As soon as they're all soft enough, I plan on doing a detailed walk-through of low sugar/no sugar jam making!  

Until then, you'll just have to be envious of my delicious strawberry jam.

The Amazing Shrinking Man

Chad's brother comes to visit once a year.  On last years' visit, Chad and I had just found out about the science behind low carb eating, and were both fascinated by it.  We were at that stage where we wanted to go out and tell everyone about it, even though most people quickly dismissed what we said.  We had read both Good Calories Bad Calories and Why We Get Fat on my kindle, but decided to buy a paper copy of Why We Get Fat as well so we could loan it out to friends and family.

Last June, Chad's brother (who I'm going to call Fred from now on) was a pretty hefty guy.  He's a moderately tall fellow, and he had a lot of muscle, but when you looked at him then, you just saw a fat guy.  He had a couple of double chins, and a pretty big beer belly.  We shared a room at a hotel with him a couple of years ago, and I swear, neither of us got much sleep because he snored so loudly all night long. 

So when he came to visit last year, we decided that was a good time to have him read Why We Get Fat, which is a condensed version of Good Calories Bad Calories by Gary Taubes.  Even so, it's still a pretty hefty book and can be a little hard to get through.  Fred's a smart guy, but he said he skipped through most of the book and just read the conclusion.  I was a little disappointed when he said that, but I figured, hey, not everyone is going to be open to the idea that everything they know about nutrition is wrong. 

In November of last year, Chad and I drove down to spend a few days with Fred.  We were pretty amazed when we saw him, because he'd lost about 20 pounds since we'd seen him in June.  Apparently, he'd taken the conclusion of Why We Get Fat (which includes a meal plan), and just ran with it.  I was pretty happy that he was doing so well, and although I was excited to see if he'd lose any more weight, part of me was worried that he'd stall out and revert to his old ways.

It's June again, and Fred made his yearly visit.  Actually, we all decided to meet up in Cleveland so we could go to an Indians game.  We stayed in a nice motel downtown.  We were all waiting in the lobby of the hotel for Fred, watching out the window for his car.  When it pulled up, Chad went out to help him with his bags, and his mom and I stayed inside and watched.  Then all of a sudden, this tall skinny guy stepped out of the car.  Chad said he was worried for a minute that he was unloading luggage from some stranger's car.  Fred was almost literally unrecognizable.  He was practically a different person! 

At dinner that night, I had to ask (because I'm the only one who's forward enough to ask direct questions) how much weight he had lost.  He said he started at 255 and was currently 190, which is a 65 pound weight loss!  I was pretty stunned.  It was a few days before I could look at him and actually recognize him as Fred. 

I actually just looked at some pictures of him from last year, and now it's hard for me to see that big round guy as my brother-in-law.  Isn't that funny? 

Both he and Chad are pretty private people, so I would never put his picture up on my blog.  So instead, I had an amazing artist make a rendition of the changes Fred has gone through over the last year.

Chad had to borrow a pair of pants from Fred while we were in Cleveland (chad only brought shorts, and one day ended up being in the 50s with Cleveland-strength winds).  Now keep in mind that my husband is a bean pole, and Fred has always been a very hefty man.  Although Chad had to wear a belt and his butt looked a bit like a balloon, Fred's pants fit him pretty well. 

So there you go, friends.  Even though it may not seem like people are actually listening to you when you yammer on about low carb, maybe they really are, and maybe it will change their lives.  So don't stop yammering.

I Survived!

It's been about a week since my last post, and I have to apologize for taking so long to update.  Spending so much time with Chad's family was exhausting, partially because we were doing so much, and partially because I was eating so badly.  There was at least one day where I had a sugar buzz all day long, which leaves you feeling pretty grouchy the next day, by the way.

By Saturday, the last day his brother was in town, I was pretty much done with it.  I told Chad that I had to avoid sugar at all costs, because it was making me feel terrible.  I was also done with bread and potatoes.  Bleck!

So Sunday, Chad and I returned to our regularly scheduled eating plan.  Eggs and bacon for breakfast, lunch meat and cheese for lunch, and some locally raised goat kabobs for dinner (which were surprisingly good), with lots of veggies and some fruit thrown in.

I have lots to write about, but it's 7:30 and I need to get downstairs and pack Chad his lunch.

Calorie Silliness

After reading Good Calorie, Bad Calorie by Gary Taubes, I couldn't understand why people were still convinced that the calories in-calories out idea was important.  It's especially surprising when I hear low-carb folks urging us that calories still count.

I have personal experience that says calories aren't really that important.  When I was a low calorie vegetarian, I was eating about 1700 calories a day, and gaining weight.  Once I switched over to being a low carb meat eater, my calories went up to 2300 or so a day, and I lost weight!

The same is true for Chad.  He used to eat about 2100 calories a day, and was slowly gaining weight.  But after switching to about 2500 low carb calories, he's lost about 20 pounds while also putting on muscle.  Are you sure calories count?

A new and really fun example of how silly the calories in-calories out idea is, is Sam Feltham, from Smash the Fat.  He's in the middle of a 21 day experiment where he's purposely eating 5000 calories a day (a 2000 calorie a day surplus for him) to see exactly what it will do to his body. It's important to note that the food he's eating is low-carb, paleo fare.

Since I'm on vacation, gallivanting across the countryside with Chad and his family, I'm writing this about a week before it posts.  But so far (day 9), Sam has actually lost two centimeters around his waist, and hasn't gained a thing.  This might change by the time he's finished, but something tells me he won't come even close to the weight CICA says he should gain.  A quick calculation shows me that CICA says he should gain about 12 pounds by the end of the experiment.  But he's half way through, and he hasn't gained anything! 

Maybe it's true that some people need to cut their calories in order to lose weight.  After all, everyone is different.  But to say that everyone needs to cut calories is, I believe, harmful to most people.  You shouldn't feel hungry, even if you're trying to lose weight.  A little hunger before a meal is alright, but constant hunger is a sign of problems.  And unfortunately, for most people, cutting calories makes you pretty hungry.  So then your body, being smarter than you, turns your metabolism down a notch, and it becomes harder to lose the weight.  I've been there.  I also know what it's like to be exhausted all the time while cutting calories. 

If you want to watch Sam Feltham's experiment, he has daily youtube videos, and also posts updates on twitter frequently. 

Week of Weakness

Every year, Chad's brother comes home for a week-long visit.  It's something I always look forward to.  Chad, along with his dad and mom, take time off from work, and the whole gang goes gallivanting across the countryside, enjoying all the local sights.

Mostly, though, we do a lot of eating.  That's what his brother does.  When he takes a vacation, it's all about the food (and also the local beer).  I swear, I must eat out more in the week he's home than I do all the rest of the year. 

The worst part is, every year I tell myself I'm going to behave and eat healthfully even if we're eating out.  That only lasts until I get a menu in front of my, and before long I'm eating french fries, drinking pop, and scarfing down desserts. 

However, this is the very first year I'll be low carb.  The cool thing is, his brother is also low carb (and has managed to lose about 20 pounds), so with a majority of low carb people, we might be able to actually eat in a way that doesn't make us all gain ten pounds in a week. 

On the other hand, I think it's ok to indulge once in a while.  If you're always denying yourself, there's a good chance you'll find yourself binging and then feeling really guilty about it. 

But on yet another hand, we're talking about a whole week here.  It's not indulging when you eat badly for a whole week.  That's more like falling off the wagon. 

Oh, decisions decisions... 

Paleo Make Believe

Back in April, I read a post on Robb Wolf's blog entitled Veggie Burgers, Meatless Chicken and Paleo Bread.  It was a pretty interesting argument against the paleo folks who accuse the vegetarians of being silly for eating meatless meat, because in all honesty, that's no different than paleo bread. 

The most amusing thing to me was how annoyed some of the commenters were with how, OMG, paleo bread is so fake and why would anyone want to eat something that's not a whole food?  And why are there only paleo treat recipes out there?  And who would want to eat anything but hunks of meat and vegetables anyway?

I was a vegetarian for almost 14 years, so I get it why other vegetarians want to eat fake meat.  I hated it when anyone would make fun of me about it, because they just weren't listening to me when I would tell them I wasn't a vegetarian because I hate the taste of meat.

Of course, I found out that vegetarianism wasn't doing me any favors, and I switched over to a low carb diet.  And you know what?  When I first switched, I needed those substitutes in order to stick with my new way of eating.  I drank diet pop, and I ate low carb cake and sugar-free jello.  It was a really hard switch for me, because I was addicted to sugar at the time.  If I didn't have those low carb treats on hand, I'm almost certain I wouldn't have made it this far.

That's why it bothers me when people look down on folks who eat sugar free candy, or paleo bread.  It's not your place to decide what another person eats, and if you make them feel like a failure because they're not living up to your perfect standards, then they won't stick with it.  They'll think, "I can't eat this way if it means I have to give up everything I love.  If I can't be perfect, I may as well not do it at all," and they'll quit trying all together.  Isn't it more important that people are improving their health?  So what if they're eating paleo bread or low carb cookies?  It's their choice to make, and if it helps them make the transition, then all the better.

Also, to the commenter who complained that there are only paleo treat recipes on the internet...  Seriously?  How many ways are there to cook meat and vegetables?  Who gets excited by pot roast recipes?   Paleo/low carb treat recipes are popular because they're really hard to make and it's a niche category, whereas you can open any cookbook or cooking website and find out how to cook meat. 

A Great Big Thank-You

I want to thank Tom Naughton from Fat Head blog for being a really cool guy.  I sent him a letter a while back (which I posted here if you're interested in reading it) letting him know that his awesome documentary Fat Head literally changed my life.  He asked if I would be ok if he posted that on his website, and of course I said yes!  I want everyone to know the kind of positive changes that can happen to you if you just cut out the junk and eat a natural, wholesome diet.

But along with my letter, he posted a link to my blog, and I'm really grateful to him for that.

I've been blogging for months now, and I enjoy it a lot.  I haven't promote it very heavily, because I figured if people found it and liked it, they'd tell their friends.  That theory doesn't work too well in real life, though.  I was pretty happy if I got 5 page views a day, even though I knew that 1 of them was Chad, and at least 2 more were search engine bots. 

The day after Tom linked to my blog, I got 1200 page views, which was huge!  I got comments for the first time!  Really nice comments, too, from thoughtful people.  I've found some new blogs in the process that I've been enjoying reading, and I feel even more encouraged to continue blogging about my own low-carb/paleo way of life.

So thank you, Tom, for your support, and thank you also to all the new visitors.  I hope you'll stay and join the conversation!