Monthly Archives: February 2009

Oil

I was recently asked if it was true that we shouldn't cook with oil at all. The simple answer is I believe it is okay to cook with oil in moderate amounts. The more complicated answer is you need to use the right kind of oil(s).

Saturated fats, trans fats, monosaturated fats, polyunsaturated fats, organic, conventional, GMO, there are a lot of factors to consider. There are so many choices at the grocery store that it can be a little overwhelming. Then throw in the misunderstandings of how fat works on our bodies and we wind up with a lot of people eating and cooking with margerine and higher and higher levels of heart disease in this country.

I suggest that you avoid vegetable shortening and margerine. I think it's important to avoid GMO foods whenever possible and unfortunately I have come to believe that most corn products in this country are contaminated which means if you are using corn oil it should be organic. I believe cold-pressed or expeller-pressed oils are the best. (Cold pressing produces a high quality oil unlike a heated process which destroys nutrition, flavor and color. Expeller pressing produces less oil but the seeds are not chemically treated before pressing and there is no heat applied during the process.)

There is an excellent book by Mary Enig, Ph.D., Know Your Fats : The Complete Primer for Understanding the Nutrition of Fats, Oils and Cholesterol that is the encyclopedia of understanding fats. If this is a subject that you are interested in I encourage you to get this book.

A quick excerpt:

natural fats and oils that should not be be used for frying or be heated include flaxseed oil unprocessed, cold-pressed canola oil, and unprocessed, cold-pressed soybean oil
Natural fats and oils that are safe for most deep fat frying include coconut oil, palm oil, lard, tallow, high oleic safflower oil, high oleic sunflower seed oil and regular sunflower seed oil with added sesame oil and rice bran oil
Natural fats and oils that are safe for one-time (my emphasis) frying include corn oil, olive oil and peanut oil

Dr. Enig herself prefers to use a composed oil for sauteing and frying that is one-third coconut oil, one third sesame oil and one third olive oil. Once the coconut oil is melted and blended in the mixture remains liquid at room temperature. And yes, contrary to what you may have heard, coconut oil is good for you.

Just remember when you use fat in your diet make sure it's a good fat, and use it in moderation.

photo courtesy of commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/User:Alex_Ex

Pizza Pizzazz

by Mirabaking, recipes

My friend Karen just asked me for a pizza dough recipe. This recipe is one of my favorites in part because it is very versatile and works up so quick. The original recipe was published in The Tightwad Gazette by Amy Dacyczyn as Cuban Bread; I modified it to use for pizza, calzones, parmesan sticks, anything that requires a pizza-type dough. The “big” difference, as far as I can tell, between pizza dough and bread dough is the addition of oil. This helps create a chewy, denser crust and adds some of that delicious flavor. The addition of ground ginger may seem a little strange but it's a tip I learned from my Uncle Joe. He claimed that the ginger “aggravated” the yeast and helped it to rise the dough. Research shows that he was right and the tiny bit of ginger does not seem to have a measurable flavor effect. Give it a try.

Pizza Dough

5 C. whole wheat flour
1 T. yeast
2 C. hot water
1 T. salt
1 T. sugar
1/2 t. ground ginger
2 T. olive oil

mix together 3 C. wheat flour, yeast, salt, sugar and ginger
make a well in the center of the flour mixture
add water and oil
stir together
add in remaining flour until a smooth dough has been formed
grease the dough (I grease the dough instead of the bowl to ensure complete coverage)
cover with a towel and let sit one hour or until doubled in bulk
turn out onto a floured surface
punch down the dough
knead 4-5 times and start making pizza

And if you're making a lot of pizza I have quadrupled this recipe before and it still works fine.

Enjoy!

edited: It was pointed out that I forgot the pizza baking directions so here's the second half of the recipe.

preheat the oven to 400 degrees F
(note: I like to use unglazed floor tiles in my oven as a pizza stone, they give great coverage and hold the heat very well)
have cornmeal ready to sprinkle on the pizza peel to help prevent the pizza from sticking
if you don't have a peel you can put the cornmeal directly on the tiles, just be careful transferring the pizza into and out of the oven

Cut the dough in half and roll out into your pizza base
mix together 1/4 C. olive oil and 1 clove crushed garlic
brush some olive oil mixture onto the top of the pizza base
par bake the crust for 5-7 minutes until base starts to bubble
take out of the oven, crush the bubbles
top with your favorite sauce, toppings and cheese
return to the oven and bake another 10-12 minutes until done

picture courtesy of freedigitalphotos.net

Bread And Beans

by Miragrains, questions

My friend Helene recently asked if it was possible to use leftover cooked grains in making bread. The answer is most definitely yes. It does change your proportions but adds a wonderful moistness to the loaf. One great example is the receipe found here. Another use for leftover cooked whole grains is use them in muffins. This is actually my favorite way to use them because it's quick and easy. Unless you separate the egg whites and beat them it does make a denser muffin but we like them that way.

Her other question was regarding de-gassing beans, I'm pretty sure we all know what that means. Helene is hoping to avoid taking lots of beano. Let me start by saying that flatulence is a normal bodily condition. I don't think it's possible to completely get rid of gas and, of course, beans are not the only food that has this effect on our system; cabbage and broccoli are some others and many people have a problem with dairy.

Beans contain certain oligosaccharides that people cannot digest; we simply do not have the necessary enzymes in our system. One method of supposedly reducing the effect is to soak the beans overnight in warm water with baking soda. In the morning rinse the beans and cook. You can add baking soda to canned beans to reduce this effect however you need to use caution because too much baking soda will reduce the B12 in the beans and may leave a soapy taste as well. Another method is to boil fresh bay leaves with the beans. This has the added benefit of imparting a nice flavor. For cabbage dishes adding caraway seeds is supposed to help reduce the gassy effect.

Don't give up eating beans just because of the effect they may have. Beans are high in both soluble and insoluble fiber, protein, an excellent source of B vitamins and, depending on what kind of bean, lots of different minerals. Eat well, be well.