Wrapping up the Real Food Challenge

This week Jenny from Nourished Kitchen shared her knowledge of the importance of incorporating meat into our diets, and what to look for to make sure the meat we eat is nutrient dense and safe.

Meat is a tough one for us (and I imagine most other city-dwellers). $6.00/lb for good beef, lamb, or bison uses up my food budget a lot faster than my frugal mind can handle sometimes. Knowing how dangerous the hormones and antibiotics we consume second-hand from conventional meats are has encouraged our family to eat less meat - we eat vegetarian dinners about a 1/3 of the time and incorporate meat into a dish rather than serving it as the main course on the other nights.

Downside: I've struggled with anemia both of my pregnancies so far. I had to have a blood transfusion after my last, and have been keeping track of and trying to improve my iron levels this time with hopes for a different outcome. I have never dealt with obvious signs of anemia outside of pregnancy, and this could just be what my body does when I'm pregnant, but I would wager that all but eliminating red meats from our diet hasn't helped.

Purchased some yummy meats this week and made lamb meatballs and bison chili! Both super-delicious!

Read my post on Thinking Outside the Grocer if you are struggling to find a source for quality meats.

The other topics this week were all great as well. If you missed them, check out the archives.

To wrap this challenge up, I'm going to list the changes we've made as a direct result of the knowledge and/or encouragement Jenny has shared. Thanks so much for helping us take steps to better nourish ourselves and families this month!

We have...

Started soaking our flour, rice and other grains, and beans before cooking them.

Purchased coconut oil and ghee in bulk.

Made (and LOVED) milk kefir for the first time.

Made bone-broth half a dozen times and used it in even more ways!

Stopped eating dried pasta (for the most part - and this is a HUGE sacrifice for us!).

Tried new-to-us foods like arrowroot and sucanat.

Learned a TON that we haven't had a chance to implement.

Had our thoughts on food challenged in too many ways to count.

Found about a hundred topics to research further (never ends, does it?). :)

******

Love the great summary Jenny shared on the final day of the challenge:

Stay Natural & Unrefined. Eat only natural, whole foods in their unrefined state.

Avoid Modern, Processed Foods. Avoid processed, packaged, refined foods even those sold as "natural" foods. If you're great-great-great-great-great grandmother wouldn't recognize it, don't eat it.

Sour, sprout or soak. If you eat grain, beans, legumes, nuts or seeds, make sure that you properly prepare them to maximize your body's ability to assimilate their nutrients.

Love healthy fats. Enjoy wholesome, healthy, unrefined natural fats liberally - and especially on your vegetables.

Brew mineral-rich stock. Make homemade, mineral-rich broth and stock weekly, and consume it daily.

Eat grass-fed, pasture-raised and wild-caught.Eat meat, including offal, and make sure it's from a trusted source that relies on traditional methods of raising their animals: on fresh pasture.

Keep dairy raw and fresh. If you eat dairy, keep it raw or, at the very least, make sure it comes from grass-fed animals and is not subject to ultra-high-temperature pasteurization.

Get Your Good Bacteria. Consume naturally fermented, probiotic foods and beverages daily.

Get involved. Grow your foodshed and give back to the community. Fight for farmers and consumers rights and against the industrialization of our food supply.

Maximize nutrient density of your foods by preparing and consuming them with time-honored tradition.

I hope those of you who have participated in this challenge, or followed along in any way, are interested in learning more! I'll be posting on some real-food topics in the near future and Nourished Kitchen is going to be posting video tutorials this month!!!

Also, you should check out the Recipe Cards that Nourished Kitchen puts out by mail each month. I received a month's worth and they are GORGEOUS and wonderful! Jenny is offering a discount of $28 on a year's subscription if you order using the code 28DAYS through March 28th.

List post is linked to Nourished Kitchen. You should stop by to read the week 4 reports of other bloggers!