Mexican Egg Casserole

Mexican Egg Casserole

Again I saw this on pinterest.com. I’m telling you it’s addictive! Anyway, I came across this egg casserole and wanted to try it. I love egg casseroles. I don’t think they should be reserved for holidays although they do come in very handy at that time of year. During the week they make our mornings easier when all we have to do is warm up a dish that I’ve already prepared and add some sliced berries or veggies. Plus, they are tasty and varied. I thought this one sounded interesting but after taking a look I knew I’d have to changes some things like removing the bread and adding more eggs.

Here’s my version.

Mexican Egg Casserole

8 oz. uncooked chorizo (spicy Mexican sausage)

8 oz. ground turkey

1 medium onion, chopped

Ingredients for Mexican Egg Casserole

1/2 red bell pepper, chopped

1/2 green bell pepper, chopped

1 tbsp. minced garlic

1 cup baby spinach (I used 1 package frozen chopped spinach because I had some on hand)

18 eggs

2/3 cup organic half and half

1/2 tsp. ground mustard

1/2 tsp. salt

Freshly ground black pepper, to taste

1/2 cup grated Swiss cheese (used mozzarella because I had it on hand)

1/2 cup grated extra sharp cheddar cheese

1/2 cup grated jalapeño cheddar cheese (I omitted this as I was afraid it would get too spicy for Dr. Court to handle)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Grease a 9″ by 13″ baking pan with a saved butter wrapper.

Whisk the eggs, half and half, ground mustard, salt, and black pepper together, and set aside.

In a skillet, brown the chorizo and ground turkey until cooked through then add the onion and bell peppers and sauté until tender. Add garlic and sauté a minute more and then add spinach and cook just until spinach wilts (if using fresh).

Place the meat and veggies in the pan, then add the egg mixture and top with the cheeses. Cover and bake at 350 degrees for 35-45 minutes or until cooked through, uncovering for the last 5-10 minutes so the cheese will brown slightly on top.

Serve with some fresh sliced berries or cherry tomatoes.

Meat and veggies go on the bottom.

Add eggs and cheese.

ENJOY!!

Easy Cheesy Zucchini Bake

Again, I saw this on pinterest.com but it reminded me of a something my used to make when I was growing up. My mom’s version was yellow squash, onion, salt and pepper and cheese and poppy seeds. It was also delicious and as I’m typing this I realize I haven’t made it in a while will have to! Back to this Cheesy Zucchini Bake. It really is super easy and delicious. I’ve made it a few times and I think the version I’m going to show you is my favorite. It even tastes great leftover the next day.

Easy Cheesy Zucchini Bake

Ingredients you’ll need!

2 medium-sized zucchini, cut in slices or half-moon slices (I used 1 large zucchini and 1 ½ medium yellow squash)
2 medium-sized yellow squash, cut in slices or half-moon slices
½ cup chopped fresh basil (or less, depending on how much you like the flavor of basil)
1 thinly sliced shallot
1/2 tsp. dried thyme
3/4 tsp. garlic powder
1/2 cup + 1/2 cup mozzarella cheese but another white cheese like Swiss would be good too

1/2 cup coarsely grated Parmesan (I would use a little less if you only have the very finely grated Parmesan from a can)

Salt and fresh ground black pepper to taste

Grease the pan with a leftover butter wrapper.

Preheat oven to 350F.  Spray an 8″ x 8″ baking dish with olive oil or use a leftover butter wrapper to grease the pan.  Wash the squash and cut in slices or half-moon slices.  Wash basil, spin dry or dry with paper towels and finely chop.  Slice shallot.

Combine the ingredients.

Combine the sliced squash, chopped basil, sliced shallots, dried thyme, garlic powder, ½ cup of mozzarella and ½ cup of coarsely grated Parmesan and stir together until the veggies are coated with cheese and the herbs are well-distributed. Season with salt and fresh ground black pepper.  Put the mixture in the baking dish and bake uncovered for about 25-30 minutes.

When the zucchini is nearly cooked through, take the casserole dish out of the oven and sprinkle over the remaining 1/2 cup of mozzarella cheese.  Put the dish back in the oven and bake 10-15 minutes longer, or until the cheese is melted and nicely browned and zucchini is fully cooked.  Serve hot.

Serve hot and enjoy!

P.S. This goes amazingly well with the meatloaf from the Everyday Paleo cookbook. This meatloaf recipe is by far my absolute favorite! It’s fantastic! So good in fact, I would make it every week! 🙂

P.P. S. If you haven’t seen or heard by now Sarah Fragoso has a new cookbook out. Everyday Paleo Family Cookbook with brand new recipes! Check it out too.

My Visit To Biotics Research

As many of you know, I have been lecturing quite regularly around the country for Biotics Research.  I lecture on the connection between neurologic conditions and nutrition.  We cover topics such as anxiety, depression, Parkinson’s disease, and Alzheimer’s disease.

While I’ve recommended Biotics supplements since I began practice 7(!) years ago, I never had the opportunity to see their corporate headquarters and manufacturing facility in person. All that changed last weekend with my trip to Houston, Texas to lecture and to visit their amazing facility.

My journey began with a very early morning flight from Manchester to Houston by way of Detroit.  If you live in Vermont or New Hampshire you know that direct flights are a luxury most of us rarely have the pleasure of!

I arrived early in Houston at about 11.  By noon I was in Rosenberg, Texas – the base of operation for Biotics Research.  When I arrived I had lunch with the owners of the company and keeping with the healthy theme, we all had salads.

After lunch, I was given a tour of the entire operation.  What an experience! I have always recommended Biotics products to my patients for two reasons; they are very effective, and perhaps most importantly, they are the highest quality in the industry. My tour of the facility just confirmed my convictions.

From the moment a raw ingredient arrives at the manufacturing facility to the time the supplement ships to you, it is accounted for, cataloged, checked and re-checked to ensure safety and efficacy.

Raw ingredients arrive at the facility and are quickly quarantined so they can be logged and tested for safety.  Although all raw ingredients come with a certificate of analysis stating the identification of the raw ingredient and some safety specs, Biotics retests ALL of it.  They look for several things.  They first do a quick check to identify the substance.  They must make sure they are getting what they think they are getting! Then safety checks begin. This is NOT the industry standard. Most companies rely on the raw ingredient suppliers to check their products. This is, of course, a conflict of interest. Many of you have been frustrated by back-ordered products from time to time from Biotics, and this is almost always because Biotics was forced to reject a batch of raw ingredient because of contaminants.  This is for your safety. It is actually a good thing!

After a raw ingredient has been identified it undergoes safety and potency testing. Potency must be known because supplements with little or no potency are useless at best and harmful at worst.  In addition to potency testing, they test the raw ingredients for heavy metals, solvents and pesticides.  The FDA has set standards for minimally acceptable levels of contaminants in raw ingredients for supplements.  Biotics has its own standards that EXCEED what the FDA requires.  Pretty awesome stuff!

There are thousands of square feet of production rooms, each made with hardened stone floors and steel ceilings so they can be power washed between each run of production to prevent cross contamination. After all, Biotics can’t make all 300+ of their products at the same time.  They must rotate production runs and this requires that the same manufacturing rooms and machinery be used for your GTA and your PheniTropic! What they must do to clean the production machinery is even more amazing.  They wheel each machine out of the manufacturing room, disassemble it and clean every nook and cranny possible! Sometimes this must be done daily! All of this is done to make the Biotics supplements safe and effective for you.

Once a product is finished, safety checks are still not done.  Each lot is randomly tested for quality after it has been quarantined to make sure that it is safe for sale. Biotics is so concerned about quality control, they even catalog the labels on the bottles just as they catalog the raw ingredients! It is all to make sure nothing in your product is unaccounted for at any time!

The history of Biotics Research is even more fascinating.  From their involvement in helping uncover the devastating health consequences of Love Canal to being the first American company to bring CoQ10 to the market, Biotics Research isn’t just a supplement producer. Research truly is part of their heritage. If you’d like to know more about their history, give me a call and I’ll be happy to speak to you about it.

My trip to Houston was a great one. Not only was I able to speak to almost 50 doctors about how to help their patients with chronic neurologic issues, but my visit to Biotics strengthened my resolve that quality supplements are a critical part of a health program.

Cauliflower Pizza Crust

I saw this on pinterest.com and knew that I had to try it. Who doesn’t love pizza? However, we all know that it’s not very good for us. First of all, the crust is made from wheat which we try to limit as it’s very pro-inflammatory and can be the cause of major food sensitivities for millions of people. There is often not enough protein on a slice nor are there enough vegetables.  As you know, we recommend eating protein and veggies and/or fruit at each meal about every 3 (+/- a half hour) hours. That makes pizza a treat to be eaten during one of our “cheat” meals. The problem for me is that when I have a “cheat” meal I tend to feel bloated and gross for a few days after which isn’t fun. When I saw this I thought it could be the answer to my problem.

It was! It tastes soooo good! It gives you all the flavor of pizza without all the bad stuff. Plus, I get to control the quality and quantity of toppings that I put on it. Personally, I love a pizza loaded with meat and veggies but that’s hard to come by at most pizza places never mind that you never know where their ingredients have come from. A bonus is that this isn’t hard to make. Seriously…not hard at all!

It would be a great recipe to make with kids as it’s healthy and fascinating to see how cauliflower becomes crust! They could make their own individual pies with the toppings of their choice. The recipe makes more than enough for multiple batches.

Check it out and let me know what you think!

Cauliflower Pizza Crust – original recipe from Eat. Drink. Smile.

1 cup cooked, riced cauliflower
1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
1 egg, beaten
1 tsp dried oregano
1/2 tsp crushed garlic
1/2 tsp garlic salt
olive oil (optional)

pizza sauce, shredded cheese and your choice of toppings*

To “Rice” the Cauliflower:
Take 1 large head of fresh cauliflower, remove stems and leaves, and chop the florets into chunks. Add to food processor and pulse until it looks like grain. Do not over-do pulse or you will purée it. (If you don’t have a food processor, you can grate the whole head with a cheese grater). Place the riced cauliflower into a microwave safe bowl and microwave for 8 minutes (some microwaves are more powerful than others, so you may need to reduce this cooking time). There is no need to add water, as the natural moisture in the cauliflower is enough to cook itself.

Note from Eat. Drink. Smile. for those that don’ t have a microwave:

You can steam the florets on the stove before ricing them. The texture/consistency won’t be the same (It will be more like a purée) but it still works fine once you mix all the ingredients together! I know because I’ve tried it that way too!

One large head should produce approximately 3 cups of riced cauliflower. The remainder can be used to make additional pizza crusts immediately, or can be stored in the refrigerator for up to one week.

To Make the Pizza Crust:

Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Use a leftover butter wrapper to grease the cookie sheet. (When I get out a new stick of butter I freeze the wrappers for occasions such as this.)

In a medium bowl, stir together 1 cup cauliflower, egg and mozzarella. Add oregano, crushed garlic and garlic salt, stir. Transfer to the cookie sheet, and using your hands, pat out into a 9″ round. Optional: Brush olive oil over top of mixture to help with browning. (The mixture should be about a half-inch thick. Mine was a little thin and burned at the edges.)

Bake at 450 degrees for 15 minutes.

Remove from oven. To the crust, add sauce, toppings and cheese. Place under a broiler at high heat just until cheese is melted (approximately 3-4 minutes).

Enjoy!

*Note that toppings need to be precooked since you are only broiling for a few minutes. For our pizza I used roasted chicken leftover, tomatoes, basil, green onions, olives, and pizza cheese. I also used an organic pizza sauce. The options are really only limited to your imagination.

Organic No Better For Us Than Conventional Food?

A recent Stanford study concluded that organic foods contained no more nutrients than conventionally farmed foods.  They also found that organic foods contain significantly less pesticide residues than conventionally farmed foods.  But that’s not what the media decided to report! They reported that organic food is no better for us than conventionally farmed foods. Quite different. See my blog below for the real deal!

Read the transcript:

Hi everybody, Dr. Court bringing you another Ninety Seconds of Knowledge. Today we are going to talk about a recent study that came out of Stanford that said organic food is no better than conventional foods. I’ll read you the conclusions of the study here, “The published literature lacks strong evidence that organic foods are significantly more
nutritious than conventional foods. Consumption of organic foods may reduce exposure to pesticides residues and antibiotic resistant bacteria.”  However, what the media picks up on as evidenced  by this title here from the New York Times, Stanford Scientist Cast Doubt on the Advantages of Organic Meat and Produce. That will go out there into the blogosphere and into everybody’s mind and say that organic food is no better but here’s what you need to consider. Pesticide residues are cumulative. In fact, they found that organic food had 30% less pesticide residue than conventional food and they also noted that there was a 33% higher risk of ingesting antibiotic resistant bacteria in conventional food than organic food.  So, that’s another big point.

This pesticide residue point is the big one however. Pesticide residue exposure is cumulative and just like the evidence of poor dietary choices are not readily available in every person those poor dietary choices and dietary indiscretions add cumulatively.  That results in the chronic diseases that we see such as heart disease, Alzheimer’s disease and cancer. Your exposure to pesticides may not manifest as problems today, tomorrow, next week or next month but perhaps when you’re in your fifties, sixties, seventies, eighties or nineties. It may manifest then as an issue, so it’s always best to go with organic.

I think there are some serious flaws in this study. Hopefully there will be more study in the future. If you have any questions let us know.
Additionally, check out this downloadable guide to buying produce. This list, compiled by the Environmental Working Group, tells you which foods have the lowest amount of pesticide residue and which have the most.