Weezl's phase 1- recipe testing and frugalisation- come one, come all!

ceridwen

vandanfc wrote: »

My worries about rapeseed oils are based on this:

http://www.westonaprice.org/The-Great-Con-ola.html

Thanks - thought I vaguely remembered I have some other reason why I dont buy this oil:)

Difficult for Bob & Shirley - and I focused straight in on the line in this article about there not being enough olive oil for everyone in the world (goes off on a tangent in my thoughts as to why that is.......ie would there be enough if there was only 1 billion of us? = probably).

Sorrees our Weezl....we're heading into "strength of the food lobbies - and blow OUR interests" territory. Perhaps we could just stick it down as a little "recommend" on our list of suggestions as to how "beef up" the health angle of the Plan for those who have/are prepared to make more money available for food.

So - stick to the Plan as it is - but I seem to recall we were planning on adding a list of suggestions as to how to change it from "healthy-er" to "healthy" - so a change of oil on that list deals with that I guess.

weezl74

vandanfc wrote: »

My worries about rapeseed oils are based on this:

http://www.westonaprice.org/The-Great-Con-ola.html

Hi vanda, welcome back

I'm reassured about using rapeseed oil after reading it Vanda, so I'm a bit bewildered .

my summary is that it's only a problem in a diet without other fats to balance it, or which is lacking in certain other vitamins.

All fats would to some extent be harmful if consumed under those circumstances.

Happy to read other research evidence if anyone has it though, and I don't have a closed mind, I just haven't read anything well cited or referenced which makes the case against rapeseed oil yet...

I only want to get a meal planner to Bob and Shirley that's healthier or as healthy as their current one, and which tackles their debt.:)

ceridwen

A film that everyone ought to see at least once methinks:

Soylent Green

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=1296155071179146825#

an important "fact-ion" (one could say) film that lies somewhere there in the head of many of my generation and "rises to the surface" of our minds at intervals.

EDIT: I've added a link to this permanently on my foodgrowing blog/MSE homepage now for anyone who decides to view it in the future - but cant think where the link is.

vandanfc

"I'm reassured about using rapeseed oil after reading it Vanda, so I'm a bit bewildered ."

Does the "processing" process alone not worry you ?? Can there actually be any omega's left in the oil after commercial processing - in a cold pressed oil okay, but mass produced oils ???

ceridwen

vandanfc wrote: »

"I'm reassured about using rapeseed oil after reading it Vanda, so I'm a bit bewildered ."

Does the "processing" process alone not worry you ?? Can there actually be any omega's left in the oil after commercial processing - in a cold pressed oil okay, but mass produced oils ???

Your article does bear a second read-through Vanda. I see where Weezl is coming from in her comment about this - but the article as a whole to me reads anti this oil.

(I can see we might have to give a few footnotes/links on a list of healthy substitute ingredients for those who can manage to spend a few more £s than that £100 of Shirley/Bob).

weezl74

not in a controversial way or being too debatey Vanda, but no, an oil having been processed puts me off it not one jot.:o

The only alternative is for me to squeeze it out of the olives or seeds myself or to buy mega expensive 'cold-pressed' oil, which is unregulated and which loses all it's health benefits when you cook with it.

But i may well be missing something and you lot are much more knowledgeable than me.

If shirley currently uses all cold-pressed oils and doesn't ever heat it up, and has found a food planner that works for her under those parameters, then more power to her elbow say I, you go for it Shirley

OK so recipe testing wise, the old stylers have suggested a version of the onion tart made with a very thick white cheesy sauce to bind the onions and fill the flan without requiring egg.

Is anyone willing to try that out?

Lesley/IOIWE if you have any time on your hands;) then a nutrition profile of the cereal bars with apple in posted earlier would be FAB

Allegra

weezl74 wrote: »

Hi all again , another question:
And thinking ahead to plannner 2, I wonder if anyone has any ideas of how to de-egg the onion tart? It would need to 'set' the filling, like the egg does and give a little extra body to the dish.... All thoughts welcomed

I've actually been mulling over this already, as my other half does not eat very eggy stuff such as quiche or omelette, so if I was to have a go at it I'd have to find a way to replace eggs with something else.

So I decided I'd try mashed potato What do you think ? I'm happy to test it out over the next couple of days as I have all the ingredients in and stuff on the mealplan can happily sit in the freezer for a little while longer....

Allegra

weezl74 wrote: »

OK so recipe testing wise, the old stylers have suggested a version of the onion tart made with a very thick white cheesy sauce to bind the onions and fill the flan without requiring egg.

Is anyone willing to try that out?

And there is that option, too. I could have a go at that one, I suppose, but do have a minor concern - when cooking with reconstituted skimmed milk (as I do), the amount of flour needed to achieve a thick enough consistency for something like this can be quite difficult to "cook out". Mind if I stick to my mashed spud idea for the first test ? I'll be happy to try the alternative if we find the mash onion tart does not hit the spot....

In_Search_Of_Me

pots sound good...could also use cornflour (if thats on the list!) to thicken if too squishy? Pots would be filling too!!

maltesers_2

weezl74 wrote: »

not in a controversial way or being too debatey Vanda, but no, an oil having been processed puts me off it not one jot.:o

Hi I'm back - thanks for the well wishes.

Re the debate on processed oils. From what I have read there is nothing healthy about any of the heat processed vegetable oils and it is these that add to the myriad health problems in modern western diets.

As I understand it we need essential fatty acids Omega 6 and 3 in a ratio and the modern diet is way too overloaded with Omega 6 which is in the vegetable oils and spreads made from them.

In theory the rapeseed oil could have a good balance of the Omegas but the processing destroys it and may even change it to trans fatty acids.

Quoting from the article at http://www.westonaprice.org/knowyourfats/conola.html
“The oil is removed by a combination of high temperature mechanical pressing and solvent extraction. Traces of the solvent (usually hexane) remain in the oil, even after considerable refining. Like all modern vegetable oils, canola oil goes through the process of caustic refining, bleaching and degumming--all of which involve high temperatures or chemicals of questionable safety. And because canola oil is high in omega-3 fatty acids, which easily become rancid and foul-smelling when subjected to oxygen and high temperatures, it must be deodorized. The standard deodorization process removes a large portion of the omega-3 fatty acids by turning them into trans fatty acids.”


I personally only use traditional fats and oils for cooking that have been used for centuries rather than since industrialisation. It relies mainly on olive oil and saturated fats which are supposed to be unhealthy but more and more studies are coming out which shows that they are not. It was the margerine industry in the US which originally condemned saturated fat and big business continues to do so because it is in their interests to do so.

I don't think it is possible to get a decent source of Omega 3 from industrial heat processed vegetable oil. By far the best way is to introduce oily fish as was done earlier or another natural source such as seeds, nuts ets. To be honest most people don't bother to get enough and don't care anyway. Even in hospital, in the heart ward, the food was rather unhealthy (I was offered a donut when I can round from the op because I had missed dinner (after nil by mouth since previous day) and all that was on offer for breakfast was sugar laden packet cereal.

By all means explain why Omega 3 is important to Bob and Shirley and include oily fish in the plan as an option but otherwise don't worry - on the tight budget it is impoosible to have perfect nutrition.

This is what another expert has to say about the balance


http://wholehealthsource.blogspot.com/2009/05/for-those-not-scientifically-inclined.html

In the modern U.S. and most other affluent nations, we eat so much omega-6 (mostly in the form of liquid industrial vegetable oils), and so little omega-3, that we create a very inflammatory and pro-clotting environment, probably contributing to a number of chronic diseases including cardiovascular disease.

There are two ways to stay in balance: reduce omega-6, and increase omega-3. In my opinion, the former is more important than the latter, but only if you can reduce omega-6 to below 4% of calories. If you're above 4%, the only way to reduce your risk is to outcompete the omega-6 with additional omega-3. Keeping omega-6 below 4% and ensuring a modest but regular intake of omega-3, such as from wild-caught fish, will probably substantially reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease and other chronic illnesses.

Bottom line: ditch industrial vegetable oils such as corn, soybean, safflower and sunflower oil, and everything that contains them. This includes most processed foods, especially mayonnaise, grocery store salad dressings, and fried foods. We aren't meant to eat those foods and they derail our metabolism on a fundamental level. I also believe it's a good idea to have a regular source of omega-3, whether it comes from seafood, small doses of cod liver oil, or small doses of flax