High fat membrane-stabilizing flavorful ideas

Pulsed ketogenic diets show promise for cancer, nerve degeneration and epilepsy.  These are high-fat, adequate-protein, low-carbohydrate diets (mostly greens),  A ketogenic diet forces the body to burn fats rather than glucose.  If there is very little carbohydrate in the diet, fat is converted into fatty acids and ketone bodies.  A metabolic switch allows us to burn ketone bodies rather than glucose.

Until recently, most people worked hard physically.  One had to be strong to survive and was usually very tanned.  Diet was simple and sparse, so a peasant was muscular, lean and tan. Today we call that look healthy, but historically it mean't lower class.

People near the top of society stayed indoors more, so their skin was very pale.  They did a lot of social eating and were well-fed; and they didn't have to labor, so they were not muscular and what they ate went to fat.  A woman who had radiantly healthy pink skin and a nice handful of fat was a turn-on (filled membranes made her happier and sexually easier).  

Generally, young women (before commencing to breed) are fat or plump.  A body fat percentage minimum of 20% is recommended for women who want to conceive.

Young skin has plump, water-filled cells.  A cell’s ability to hold water decreases with age. A healthy cell has an effective membrane, which keeps water and nutrients in, and encourage waste products out.  Fatty acids keep cells healthy and its membranes functioning.  Not getting enough essential fats or proteins results in unstable membranes that cannot keep their buoyant shape, which shows as saggy, aged skin. 

Fats assist absorption of antioxidants and fat-soluble nutrients, and strengthen cell membranes, and ultimately the skin (for a dewier, more supple face).

Olives (and their oil) are packed with powerful phytonutrients, which are often in smaller amounts in other fruits and vegetables.  Few foods offer so many hormesis-inducing antioxidants and anti-inflammatories (some unique to olives themselves).  Olives are too bitter to be eaten right off the tree and are cured to reduce their astringency.

Avocados (a famous natural aphrodisiac) supply 4 grams of protein, 15 grams of carbohydrates and 31 grams of fat.  They contain mostly fat, good stabilizing fat.

Coconut oil is a saturated fat that stabilizes membranes.  All fats have fatty acids. There are two ways of classifying fatty acids.  The first is based on saturation [saturated, monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats]. 

Another classification is based on length of the carbon chain of each fatty acid [short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs), medium-chain fatty acids (MCFAs) and long-chain fatty acids (LCFAs)].  Coconut oil is mostly MCFAs as well as some SCFAs. 

MCFAs are absorbed more efficiently, and are broken down and used mostly for energy and thus seldom end up as body fat.  MCFAs help protect against atherosclerosis. The best dietary sources are coconut and palm kernel oils.  Chocolate is also a MCFA source.

When coconut oil is added to a balanced diet, it promotes cholesterol conversion into pregnenolone.  One can replace common inflammatory vegetable oils with satisfying coconut oil. 

In traditional medicine around the world, coconut is used to treat many problems from skin infections and burns to asthma, bronchitis, fever and flu.  Coconut oil has healing properties possibly beyond that of any other dietary oil, and is used extensively by Asian and Pacific populations. 

Besides killing many bacteria and viruses, it kills fungi and yeasts that cause candidiasis, ringworm, athlete’s foot, thrush, diaper rash and other infections.  Coconut oil expels or kills tapeworms, lice, giardia and other parasites.

No-bake bites:
Preparation time, less than 15 minutes:

• 1 cup cashews;
• 1 cup almonds (crispy almonds or soaked/sprouted almonds best);
• 3 cups dates, re-hydrated (pour some hot water on them and let them sit an hour);
• 1-2 tablespoons coconut oil;
• 4-6 drops lemon oil (or zest of 1 organic lemon and juice from half);
• about a cup of shredded coconut.

• Anti-inflammatory and sinfully tasty.  Preparation Time: 1 minute
• 2 tablespoons coconut milk;
• 1 tablespoon unsweetened cocoa powder;
• 2 tablespoons coconut cream;
• 1 teaspoon raw honey;
• 3/4 teaspoon vanilla extract.

Butter is wrongly demonized because it has a lot of saturated fat (not how the animal is treated or fed, or whether the milk was heated or not).  Most dairy fat is saturated,  Most other animal fat (like chicken fat or lard) is mono- and polyunsaturated.  Butter, being almost pure dairy fat, is very high (63%) in saturated fat.  Ghee is butter with its protein removed.  

Butter is made by churning cream to separate the  butterfat and buttermilk.  Butter is made more quickly 'American style' from fresh sterilized cream or more slowly 'European style' with fermented (pre-digested) cream.  

Whipped cream is made by whisking (mixing air) into cream with more than 30% fat.  Nitrous oxide is also used to make whipped cream. Whipped cream (one cup cream blended per tablespoon of xylitol) tastes delightful, is immune boosting and anti-inflammatory.  Flavors like lemon or cinnamon potentiate the benefits.

All mammalian mothers are programmed to put bacteria in their milk and these microorganisms build beneficial biofilm and aid digestion unless killed by Pasteurization.  The heat of Pasteurization also alters milk proteins making them less digestible (and more allergenic).  The natural health community has long been touting the benefits of raw milk.

Sour cream (12-16% or more milk fat) has been cultured with bacteria that make lactic acid (0.5%+), which sours and thickens it.  Sour cream is traditionally mixed with ground spinach or beets.  Sour cream can fill blintzes (and polyphenols in blueberries induce hormesis).

Creme Fraiche (28% milk fat) is slightly soured with bacteria, but not as sour or as thick as sour cream.  Crepe Suzette classically carry citrus polyphenols and creme Fraiche.

Clotted cream slowly heats whole milk to make a very high-fat (55%) product. 

Alpha S1-caseins differ between species.  Most European herds produce less inciteful caseins than most American herds.  A difference in caseins partly explains allergies. Perhaps one reacts to sheep's milk, but cannot do goat's milk but can drink breast milk safely.  Milk allergy is a reaction to a protein that is harmless to someone non-allergic. 

Invisible lectins (glycoproteins) from eggs, meat and/or milk in animals fed grains plus other dietary lectins not reduced by traditional fermentaton (in preparation) move through us as well.  Lectins confuse membrane hormone receptors, metabolically making us allergenic and flabby. 

Lactose intolerance is a non-allergic food sensitivity, and discloses lack of lactase (from us and/or our biofilm), needed to digest the major sugar in milk.  Some degree of lactose intolerance is normal for most adults.  Lactose intolerance usually occurs after much more intake than the little bit of milk protein that triggers allergies. 

Invisible lectins are also present in the milk and meat (or eggs) of animals fed grains (instead of grass, seeds and insects).  Whether or not the animal got sun determines how much vitamin D is in milk, cream or butter (or eggs and ice cream).

The ingrained saturated fat, cholesterol and heart disease connection is a link, but not a cause.  Substituting sugar for fat (based on the false calorie hypothesis) enhances profit for industry while it destroys individual health.  Saturated fats can actually modulate mood and improve blood lipids (while they make more stable and less reactive) membranes.

High-fat dairy from grass-fed and sun-drenched cows is among the best sources of vitamins D and K2.  Other good sources include egg yolks, goose liver and natto (a fermented soy-based dish).  

Chopped liver (cow, calf, chicken or goose) traditionally uses caramelized onions, hard boiled eggs, salt, schmaltz and gribenes in the mix.  Schmaltz, (Yiddish for rendered chicken fat) is the oil for chopped liver.  Gribenes are the crispy skin cracklings created during schmaltz collecting.  Gribenes give chopped liver extra flavor and texture. 

Fish eggs (roe) have many benefits.  One teaspoon of fish eggs provides 17,000 IU  vitamin D.  Vitamin D improves mood and fights infection, prevents cancers, heart and artery problems and autoimmune disease.  

Fish eggs also contain zinc, K2 and vitamin A as well as omega-3 fatty acids (1-2 grams/day EPA solves depression).  Fish eggs boost metabolism and reduce inflammation.  Roe also help fight as well as repair hepatitis or cirrhosis. 

Although salted, caviar is a rich source of vitamins A and D, as well as omega-3s.   Caviar is a famous hangover remedy and is a rich source of acetylcholine.  Fat lines the stomach and both slows absorption, and increases tolerance to alcohol. 

Arginine in caviar helps increase NO and blood flow, thus improving mood, relieving inflammation and quickening memory.  Increasing NO also aids engorgement.

Cold water fish (like smoked whitefish and/or lox and cream cheese potentiated with chives) and cod liver oil or krill oil are very immune boosting, symptom relieving and anti-inflammatory.

The origin of salami is unknown.  A fermented sausage was made in the Mediterranean region more than 2,000 years ago and became the preferred way of preserving meat. 

The word salami comes from the Italian "salare" (to salt).  Roman soldiers were often paid with salt, hence the word "salary."  The salt was often used to make salami. Salami was usually made from pork left-overs but other meats (including beef) are also preserved in this way.  Salami is fermented, and contains beneficial lactic acid bacteria. 

In fermentation meats are cured with salt and stored in 20~45°C for up to a few months. The big thing behind fermentation is microorganisms (starter culture). Alive lactic acid–making bacteria are used to make salami. Lactic acid made by those bacteria contributes to salami’s special flavor.

In past, fermented sausage was made by natural fungi at home. Although the flavor was sweet to people’s taste, they could not make the sausages with the same quality because of fungi’s changeable features and different environment.

To have stable sausages, certain bacteria were selected: lactobacilli and Micrococacease. Their main role is to produce acid components during fermentation, which gives salami its unique flavor.  Those bacteria (like most) are beneficial. 

Lactic acid can cause pH in meats to drop to 4.5-5.5. This mild acidity makes new meat products which have gel-like texture. Low pH causes big muscle proteins to form smaller ones by coagulating them. Digested short proteins produce chewing features associated with salami’s attractive texture.

Salami’s aroma comes from its ingredients’ change caused by starter cultures. Meats contain three nutrients (carbohydrate, protein and fat).  While protein change is responsible for texture, the remaining two are related to flavor.  

Fermentation takes place in the absence of oxygen, and in the presence of beneficial microorganisms (yeasts, molds and bacteria) which get their energy via fermentation. During fermentation, microorganisms break down sugars and starches into alcohols and acids (lactic and acetic).  Your food has been transformed into a more nutritious version of itself, and can be stored for much longer without spoiling.

There are three types: lactic acid fermentation, ethyl alcohol fermentation and acetic acid fermentation.

During fermentation, foods experience digestion.  Many compounds like acetic, propionic and butyric acids are made from fermenting carbohydrates. Also, fatty acids in meats can meet oxygen to form different chemical products, which boost aroma.

To encourage fermentation, certain conditions boost these beneficial microscopic critters. Their environment needs to be:

• Protected from spoiling organisms.  Good bacteria are boosted by creating an uncomfortable environment for the bad ones. Create a salty environment (using brine), add a starter culture, eliminate oxygen and/or increase acidity (add vinegar).
• Fermentation occurs at about room temperature, and cool is best for storage.
• Needed are sugars and starches or fiber.

Fermenting also takes time—days, weeks and even months.  Much fermented food requires brine (salt and water) and a starter culture, like whey. 

The flavors and smells of fermentation are compelling, literally alive.  We like foods with sour, umami and complex tastes/flavors/aromas.  Fermentation, which increases microbes, produces all three. 

Umami is one of our five basic tastes; the other four are sweet, sour, salty and bitter.  Umami is savory and is most often associated with meats (or their sauces) and salami, cured ham, seafood including anchovies and dried bonito as well as tomatoes, mushrooms and some cheeses.

Umami is used in many forms worldwide. In Asia, umami is mostly found in beans and grain, fermented seafood (fish sauce, which is part of all curries), shiitake mushrooms, kombu and dried seafood. In the West, we also ferment (cure) meat and dairy.  

The simplified chemical version of umami is monosodium glutamate (MSG).  MSG is excitatory (and when used to excess, MSG becomes toxic) so the inherent balance with calming and restorative GABA is lost. 

One reason that umami creates its own flavor is because MSG and ribonucleotides combine.  This synergy in taste leads to pairings like bonito and kombu seaweed in dashi.  Although MSG is a cheap way to enhance flavor, it lacks sophisticated RNA overtones.

Besides rounding out the taste and aroma of dishes like dashi where it predominates, umami also elevates other flavors, especially sweet and salty.  When paired with salt, saltiness seems elevated so one uses up to 40% less salt.

Umami elevates fatty flavors.  Just a little bit of dashi added to clam chowder or other soups infuses a slightly smoky flavor reminiscent of bacon without actually using it.

One can use umami to decrease sodium in fish or meat dishes; using dashi or veal stock are excellent ways.  A famous umami combination is sun dried tomatoes, dried shiitake mushrooms and parmesan cheese.  If a recipe calls for fermented, or dried ingredients, use those instead of the fresh to get the ultimate umami profile.

Cured meats in general (not only bacon, but also ham, salami, prosciutto and sausage) have been a traditional way of preserving.  Many of these products contain organ meats, less-desirable cuts and various scraps.  This is beneficial, it reduces waste, and these parts are often the most nutritious.  If a tasty sausage helps one eat more liver, so much the better.

The mix is then seasoned with spices and sugar, and treated with a preservative like curing salt (sodium nitrite).  Salt helps prevent growth of dangerous bacteria, pulls moisture out of the meat (making it more flavorful), and helps “cook” it via fermentation.  This takes weeks or months.  Sugar also aids fermentation and feeds probiotics.

Two main ways to cure are: dry curing, which produces stronger flavor and was more popular before refrigeration; traditional wet curing takes longer, and creates milder flavor since it lets water soak into the meat.  After curing, some meats (famously bacon) are then smoked to add even more flavor. 

Salami (four slices, about 3.5 oz) provides 20-28 fat grams (10-12 saturated).  Salami supplies more than 18 grams pre-digested protein, as well as vitamins and minerals.  Processed deli meats contain lots of sodium to help preserve (and enhance taste).  A salami serving has 1,000-1,600 mg sodium.  Green leaves are high in magnesium and potassium to balance.  

Isothiocyanates (in mustard) enhance detoxification of potentially toxic nitrogen derivatives.  These cyanates block use of iodine, especially the large amounts in fresh juices.  Such foods include cabbage, mustard, turnips, peanuts, soybeans, millet, pine nuts, cassava, broccoli and kale.  These foods supply many nutrients, and are not to be avoided.  Cooking usually deactivates problematic compounds.  

In traditionally cured meats, nitrates and nitrites form nitric oxide during fermentation, to give cured meat its darker pink color relative to uncured meat (if the bacon is nitrite-free, it will be darker on the outside, and pink or red inside).  Botulism is a serious danger from cured meat, and nitrites effectively prevent it.

Pepperoni is a variety of salami. Salami is a dried fermented sausage which can be made of pork, beef, veal, horse, donkey, poultry or game parts.  Different spices, smoking and vegetables give different salami their particular taste.  Pepperoni limits its ingredients to beef, pork and poultry and is generally spicy.

Our ancestors got about 11,000 mg of potassium a day, and about 700 mg of sodium.  In today's diet, daily potassium intake is about 2,500 mg, along with 4,000 mg of sodium.

Both ions have one positive charge, smaller potassium competes with larger sodium and protects from oxidative damage (a fibrosis trigger outside the cell).  Although dietary ratio influences balance some, the Na+-K+ pump keeps potassium intracellularly and moves sodium extracellularly, creating bioelectricity.  

Electrical potential is created in different ways.  A Donnan equilibrium accounts for much membrane potential without any active transport.  Potential is generated by the diffusion of ions drifting down their concentration gradients. The asymmetric distribution of ions is caused by charged, nondiffusible ions, e.g., proteins inside the cell. 

Other than channels and pumps, membranes do not pass ions well.  For resting potential, potassium (K+) channels dominate.  For action potential, sodium (Na+) channels open (activate) then close (inactivate).

The Na+-K+ pump controls and sets the intrinsic activity of cerebellar neurons.  The pump is more than a homeostatic "housekeeping" molecule that determines ionic gradients; but is an important central energy sensor.  

Fermented products have a high salt content.  The high salt content of cured meats can even be a virtue because sometimes it’s hard to get enough salt when processed junk food is eliminated. The best way to regulate salt intake is to eat it to your taste, so if salty cured meat is what you’re craving, enjoy it without guilt.

All meats,chicken and fish (salmon, cod, flounder and sardines) are good sources of potassium.  Milk and yogurt, as well as nuts also have a lot.  Besides bananas and oranges, good sources include Swiss chard, Chinese cabbage, broccoli, cantaloupe, potatoes (especially their skins, which make a tasty mineral-balancing marriage with caviar), spinach, collards, watermelon and sweet potatoes. 

Contraction of any muscle (the basic switch for most cellular endeavors) depends on a 100- to 10,000-times-higher-than-resting intracellular Ca++.,  As soon as the Ca++ is put back again by a carrier enzyme in the plasma membrane, and an energy-catalzed Ca++ pump in the membraneous sarcoplasmic reticulum, the cell relaxes.

This carrier enzyme (Na+-Ca++ translocator) uses the Na gradient generated by the Na+-K+ pump to remove Ca++ from the intracellular space, slowing down the Na+-K+
pump results in a permanently elevated Ca++ level in the muscle, which may be the mechanism of the long-term negative effect of cardiac glycosides like digoxin.

A recipe for egg cream from the 1800s: The yolks of three eggs, and a spoonful of new milk or cream, plus two drops of cinnamon oil.  This made a very tasty nourishing mixture. The oil of cinnamon is cordial and tonic, and the egg yolks and cream are effective for lung complaints.  Today, egg cream is a sugary drink concocted with fizzy bubbles, milk and chocolate syrup.

How to freeze egg yolks:

Place one egg yolk in each ice cube cavity of a clean ice cube tray. Add a pinch of salt to each yolk (if you will use them in savory recipes) or a pinch of sugar (if you will use them in sweet). Freeze overnight until solid, then transfer to an airtight freezer bag. To use, thaw in refrigerator and then mix well.  They keep frozen for up to three months. 

Leftover egg yolks can be safely refrigerated for 3-4 days. 

Quiche is an extraordinary dish. It can be made ahead.  It can be served hot or cold, and can make any meal, breakfast, lunch, dinner or late-night supper. A quiche might have 2 cups milk, 1 cup cream to 6 eggs and can be garnished inside with anything that goes well with eggs. Traditional garnishes include spinach and mushrooms.

Egg nog is made of milk, cream and eggs.  It can be mixed with almost any alcohol.  Brandy, Madeira or sherry have traditionally been used.  Recipes with sucrose could substitute xylitol, weakening pathogenic virulence and balancing host immune response. 

Madeira Sauce:

• 1/4 cup Madeira
• 1/2 cup beef stock 
• 2 tablespoons black truffle butter or use black truffle oil mixed with butter.
• In a small saucepan, heat the madeira and beef stock until reduced by half. Whisk in truffle butter and season with salt to taste. Keep warm. 
• Avgolemono (egg-lemon) is many Mediterranean sauces and soups made with egg and lemon juice mixed with broth, heated until they thicken.

Zabaglione with Fresh Berries: Yields: 6-8 servings Prep time: 15 min Cook time: 20 min Ingredients: 5 egg yolks; 1/3 cup granulated sugar (xylitol); 1/3 cup dry or sweet Marsala* wine; 1 cup heavy cream (whipping cream), whipped until stiff; 5 1/4 cups fresh berries.  * Marsala is traditionally used, but you can also substitute sherry, Madeira, Grand Marnier, sparkling or dessert wine.  This can be combined with a bourbon, rum, or Calvados, or other brandy, or a favorite liqueur like praline or Frangelico.  Citrus juice and zest, vanilla, or ground ginger or other spices may also be added. Boiled custard is a variation of zabaglione and is made in many flavors. "Stirred egg custard" comes together quickly with common ingredients. No baking needed!  To make it more drinkable (and more immune stabilizing), omit carbohydrate starch.  Using starch will make a more solid custard. Mayonnaise is a thick, creamy, French sauce often used as a condiment. It is a stable emulsion of oil, egg yolks and either vinegar or lemon juice, with many options for embellishment with other herbs and spices.  In making classic Hollandaise sauce, butter is clarified (heated until water, milk solids and fat have separated, and drained to give pure fat).  Whole butter is about 15% water and thins the sauce as you whisk it into the thickening eggs and lemon juice, while clarified butter is all fat, and thus thickens.  The trick is to heat the egg yolks enough for thickness, but not so much that proteins coagulate and the sauce separates.  Bernaise sauce is made of a reduction of butter, vinegar and wine mixed with shallots and tarragon, and is thickened with egg yolks.  It is served with meat, fish, eggs and vegetables. For tasty rich salad dressings, whisk together vinegar, mustard, garlic, egg yolk, salt and pepper. While whisking, slowly add olive oil until the vinaigrette is emulsified. Toss the greens with enough dressing to moisten.   In Caesar salad dressing, yolks provide richness, while anchovies (they can empower a green goddess as well) add a briny blast as well as umamis. Green Goddess dressing: 2 cups 2-3 tablespoons egg yolk 1 and ½ tablespoons dijon 3 tablespoons lemon juice 1 cup rice bran, grape seed, olive or coconut oil 2/3 cup sour cream 1 cup scallion, chopped 1/3 cup tarragon, chopped 1/2 cup parsley 1 clove garlic. in a food processor, add egg yolk, dijon, garlic and lemon juice.  With the machine running, drizzle in oil until mixture thickens. add sour cream, parsley, scallions and tarragon and allow to process until well combined. Crème fraîche is a bacterially soured cream with 30-45% butterfat and a pH of about 4.5.  "Crème fraîche" is French, but many similar soured creams exist.  It is used both hot and cold and often finishes hot savory sauces.  With a fat content greater than 30%, curdling is no problem.  Crème fraîche is part of many desserts.  Crème caramel, flan, or caramel custard is a custard dessert with a layer of soft caramel on top, as opposed to creme brûlée, which is custard with a hard caramel top. Two main bases exist for ice cream (an emulsion of air, water and fat).  French style is made with egg yolks, which make it soft, rich, smooth, creamy and custardy.  American style has no eggs, and relies on cream fat for softness (and more sugar for sweetness), but is not as rich and smooth, and also tends to freeze harder.

Eating dark chocolate with a high cocoa content (70-80% cocoa flavanols) increases endothelium-dependent vasodilatation (elastic ability of the artery to expand and contract). Additionally, chocolate consumption decreased leukocytes (white blood cells), a marker of systemic inflammation and also reduced leukocyte adhesion.