Grinding tallow to render the fat.
I do not subscribe to the low fat, low salt method of cooking, although I do agree with the nutrition experts that humans should limit sugar. Humans need fat – real fat, like the kind in raw butter and whole milk from grass-fed cows or the marbling on a steak, also from grass-fed cattle. Little kids need it even more, as their brains will not develop properly without the essential fatty acids found in fats from real food. Cholesterol is so important to your body’s functions that it will manufacture the stuff if you don’t get enough in your diet. The notion that cholesterol causes heart disease is one of the biggest lies ever perpetrated on the public. In fact, people who eat the most saturated fat and have the highest cholesterol levels live the longest (proven in several large, long-running, high-quality studies). Contrast this with what medical experts in the US trumpet about how everyone should have statin medications to reduce cholesterol.
Salt is a must for fermented dill pickles.
At my house, we add more salt to our food at the table than is considered politically correct. However, we use high quality Celtic sea salt, which is very different stuff compared to table salt (less sodium, because it’s not highly purified, and lots of trace elements). Because we rarely eat commercially processed foods, we don’t get any added salt other than what we add ourselves. And no, we don’t we have high blood pressure, as the medical and media pundits will try to convince you happens when you ignore their guidelines.
These treats appear once or twice a year.
Personally, I think the current dietary guidelines still allow way too much sugar, and I would cut that even more. And no, I don’t think it matters whether the sugar is raw, organic or any other kind of fancy, high-priced sugar. We eat very little sugar in this house. The average American eats about 130 pounds of sugar a year (which means many of them eat a lot more than that). That works out to 38 teaspoons of empty calories, cavities, heart disease and diabetes every day. At our house we might go through 15 pounds a person in a year, and that’s pushing it. Sugar is addictive and that’s a roller-coaster I’d just as soon avoid. I have also found that sugar winds me up to the point that if I eat or drink anything sweet within a few hours of bedtime, I can’t go to sleep. Most of the sugar I buy ends up in the hummingbird feeders. I do like a little honey – which does have some nutrients in it – in my morning cup of coffee. Occasionally I bake a special treat for hubby or a kid such as birthday cake, but I rarely eat more than a mouthful. By the way, for you dieters out there: if you make sure you eat at least three ounces of good quality protein at each meal, you’ll find that sugar and carb cravings will pretty much go away within a few weeks.
So chuck the sugar, add a little sea salt and some high quality fat. Bet you’ll feel better.
