What I’ve Learned Wednesday: Links From Real Food Blogland 9/28/11

One of the things I like most about being a Real Food-er is (virtually) meeting all the amazing people who make up this worldwide community of crunchy food fanatics. Many of them can be found blogging about their traditional-fooding lives, and most of them have been doing both of those things a lot longer than I have. Thankfully, they are around to teach me.

Whether about gardening or gadgets, farming or fermentation, pudding or politics, real food blogs are always buzzing with new things to learn, recipes to try, or interesting stories to read. So I thought it was time that I start sharing with my own readers what I discover from them.

Here’s what I’ve learned this week:

Virgin coconut oil cures Alzheimer’s disease. Sarah from The Healthy Home Economist shared an inspiring story of a holistically-minded wife who aimed to halt her husband’s progression of severe dementia without the pharmaceutical drugs prescribed to him. When she turned to virgin coconut oil, loaded with brain-powering medium-chain triglycerides, the man’s decline into dementia was not only halted, but reversed to only a mild case of Alzheimer’s within 18 months of treatment.

An awesome way to score local, healthy food, for free! “Gleaning” is a term I hadn’t heard used in this sense before, but after reading this helpful guide from The Morris Tribe about taking unwanted goods from others in your community, I’ll be sure to give it a shot! If you’re willing to help out your neighbors, look past imperfections, and be open to anything offered to you, you just may find yourself with a free giant bushel of apples like Kelly did!

How to make wine from pears. Can you just imagine how delicious a homemade pear wine would be?! Aah! If pears were something that grew here locally, I would be all over this. Fermenting things like kombucha and dairy are fun, but wine? That’s impressive. And I’m sure would be fabulously tasty! I’m inspired to make some wine from other fruits which I can find locally (pineapple wine!? Yes!!), thanks to this post from Common Sense Homesteading.

 

Here’s what I Plan to Eat:

 

 

I recently started using the super-amazing online meal planning program, Plan to Eat. It’s the perfect way to gather up all those awesome recipes from all the blogs we read, and actually get them on the table — instead of just drooling over them online! So now on WILW, I’d like to share which ones I’ve grabbed from all you bloggers out there, and added to my meal planning menu. If you’re a member of Plan to Eat, you can simply “friend” me on there, and add the recipes I’ve uploaded directly to your own recipe book and meal calendar! So easy.

Here’s what I added to my recipe book this week (link to their spot in my PTE recipe book is the first one, followed by their blog link):

Ultimate Beef & Liver Chili: Here’s a great way to sneak in some nourishing liver onto your unsuspecting family members’ plates. Mommypotamus shares her tips in this post for hiding the taste and working in those organs into a classic chili.

Latik — Filipino Squash Stew: Jen from Real Food Freaks knows how to make this authentic ethnic dish thanks to her husband who grew up in the Phillipines. Hearty squash mixed with other veggies cooked in bacon fat, plus shrimp, pork, and coconut milk = one amazing stew I’m sure I’ll enjoy.

Slow Cooker Chuck Roast Supreme: I can’t use a slow cooker here at our hippie house (uses too much power), but I CAN use a solar cooker, which we’ll be making soon. When we do, I can’t wait to try this recipe for a roast from my favorite type of meat to buy — the cheap stuff! Check out this chuck roast from Riddlelove. It’s even GAPS-legal!

Sweet Potato Crackers (Grain-Free): This grain-and-nut-free cracker recipe is a simple way to make a healthy snack. The Coconut Mama says her crackers only stayed crispy for an hour or two, but I bet with a good dehydrator, these could stand up to longer-term storage. They look perfect for eating with cheese, dip, or some liverwurst. I say that like I already eat liverwurst — haha! (I hear it’s good and good for you!)

Pecan Crusted Apple Crisp: Oh, wow. This grain-free treat comes to us from Jill at Real Food Forager. A rich, coconutty crust with sweet, juicy apple filling, and a crunchy, buttery pecan topping? I’m sure it tastes just as heavenly as it looks in the video tutorial!

 

What have you learned lately from your favorite blogs? Any new recipes you plan on trying out?