Tag Archive for: phytic acid

How to Make Whole Wheat Sourdough Muffins

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Embracing Motherhood How to Make Sourdough Muffins

I have tried so many different recipes for sourdough bread, and I never found anything that really worked (or that I really liked) until I stumbled across this recipe and found the perfect solution! Who needs to make loaves of bread when you can have these perfect, single size, delicious little muffins? We love eating them toasted for breakfast with butter or cream cheese, as an “English muffin” for an egg sandwich, with lunch meat and cheese for a portable school lunch, or as a bun for hamburgers. Everyone who comes over LOVES these muffins!

The sourdough process is extremely beneficial for your health because it is the best way to get rid of the phytic acid in the grain. Phytic acid prevents us from absorbing phosphorus and it leaches valuable minerals from our bodies. (Read my blog: The Dangers of Phytic Acid and What to Do About It to learn more.) It also breaks down the sugars in the grain which makes it easier to digest.

Ingredients

  • 1 c. Sourdough Starter (Blog Post: Sourdough Starter Recipe)
  • 2 c. Raw Milk (Blog Post: Why We Drink Raw Milk)
  • 4 c. Fresh Ground Flour (I get my wheat berries here, but you can find some similar here too. I use this grinder. You could also just buy some organic sprouted grain flour here.)
  • *2 T. Raw Honey (Optional: It helps to neutralize the sour flavor. Get some here.)
  • 1 ½ t. Real Salt (I buy my Real Salt in bulk here, you can buy a shaker here, or a refill pouch here.)
  • 2 t. Baking Soda (Optional too, I think it just helps them rise a bit better.)
  • Coconut Oil (To grease your hands and the pans. This coconut oil would be best, but on our budget, I buy this.)

Materials

  • Mixing bowl
  • Towel or saran wrap
  • Stirring utensil
  • Baking sheet (I use the standard baking sheets I’ve had forever, but in a perfect world where money was no option, I would love some stone baking ware like this.)

Directions

Part 1: Mix it Up and Let it Sit

  1. Mix together the sourdough starter and the milk. I usually don’t mix it until it is completely dissolved, I just try to stir it up for a bit to make sure it mixes more evenly when the flour is added.
  2. *Add the honey. If you are going to add the honey, now would be a good time. My raw honey is usually solid at room temperature, so I put it in a glass cup and microwave it until it melts. (I added this when I first started making these to cut down on the sour flavor, but now that my family is used to it, I don’t add this anymore!)
  3. Add the flour until you achieve a solid, but pliable consistency. When you use freshly ground flour, it has plenty of phytase that will break down the phytic acid. (Read more about the dangers of phytic acid here.) If you don’t have the time to grind it fresh every time you use it, you can always leave your flour in a sealed container on your countertop at room temperature. Just don’t freeze it or it will kill the phytase.
  4. Cover with a towel (or saran wrap) and leave in a warm undisturbed place for 8 hours. It is best if it can be slightly warm during this process (but not over 90°F). I usually just tuck mine away on the counter during the warmer days, but if it’s cold, I’ll put it on top of the stove and turn on the stove to like 200°F.
  5. *Notes: If you’re just starting to get your family used to the taste of sourdough, I would start out only letting it sit for a few hours. This will still be enough time for the sourdough to break down some of the phytic acid. Then, you can gradually increase the time to 8 hours, and you can even leave it overnight if that’s more convenient. If you set it out and 8 hours later, you’re not ready to make your muffins, pop it into the refrigerator until you’re ready to use it.

Part 2: Make Your Muffins

  1. Preheat the oven to 350˚F.
  2. Get the dough ready. The dough mixture should have risen to almost double its size by this time, and you’ll need to use a wooden spoon or spatula to scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl to loosen the mixture before dumping it onto your countertop. (*If it didn’t rise, it probably wasn’t warm enough, or maybe the starter isn’t good anymore.)
  3. Add dry ingredients and knead. Sprinkle your salt and baking soda on top of your lump, grease up your hands with some coconut oil, and knead the dough to mix everything in. *If your dough is too soupy, you can add a little bit of flour at a time until its more stiff and pliable. **It is very important that you don’t add the salt until the end because it hinders the fermentation process. You don’t want to skip it though because it tightens the gluten structure and prevents the dough from getting too sticky. 

    Sourdough Mixture Ready to Make Muffins

    Sourdough Mixture Ready to Make Muffins

  4. Grease the baking sheets. I like to use coconut oil.
  5. Make dough blobs. Make sure your hands stay nice and greased up with coconut oil and then pull apart a little blobs of the dough, roll them in your hands until they are formed into nice little cookie dough balls, and place them on the baking sheets. (This recipe should make enough for two sheets of muffins.)

    Rolling Dough Into Balls (Yes, my pans are atrocious!)

    Rolling Dough Into Balls (Yes, my pans are atrocious!)

  6. Flatten the blobs. Use the palm of your hand to press them down, and then even out with your fingers.

    Flatten the Dough Balls

    Flatten the Dough Balls

  7. Place the muffins sheets on top of the warm oven. Cover with some towels and leave them to rise for about an hour. (If you don’t have an oven underneath your stove, you can turn your stove to warm and place them inside with the door open.)

    two trays of sourdough muffins covered with towels so they'll rise

    Covered Sourdough Muffins

  8. Bake at 350˚F for 10 minutes.
  9. Place in Ziploc bags and store in the fridge or freezer. I like to cut them in half and toast them or use for sandwiches, English muffins, hamburgers, etc.

    Homemade Sourdough Muffins Fresh Out of the Oven

    Sourdough Muffins Fresh Out of the Oven

*I adapted this recipe from The Fresh Loaf, which is a GREAT resource for all bread making.

Tips and Tricks

Cutting these little buggers in half can be a little tricky, but my husband came up with a way that works really well even on the thinnest of muffins. First of all, hold the muffin up on its side and insert just the tip of the knife all around the edges (almost like you’re scoring it). Then, gently saw back and forth while rotating the muffin in a circular motion until you get to the middle. Walla!

cutting technique for homemade sourdough muffins

How to Cut These Sourdough Muffins

These muffins are kind of little, so they can get stuck in a toaster. I prefer making them in my toaster oven.

Toasted Sourdough Muffins with Butter

Toasted Sourdough Muffins with Butter

These muffins taste great with an egg sandwich, with scrambled eggs, or my favorite…sunny side up eggs!

Check out my sourdough starter recipe here, or take a peek at some of my other sourdough recipes like these sourdough pancakes and sourdough pizza crust.

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How to Make Your Own Sourdough Starter

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Embracing Motherhood How to Make Your Own Sourdough Starter

Using sourdough is one of the pillars of healthy eating in our family because it is the best way to get rid of phytic acid, which is in all grains (and basically anything that is a seed) and prevents us from accessing the much needed phosphorus located in grains and leaches minerals such as calcium, iron, zinc, and magnesium. (Read more about phytic acid in my blog here.) Not only that, but the souring process breaks down all of the sugars in the flour and makes it much easier for the body to digest. Making sourdough can seem like a daunting task at first, but once you get the sourdough starter established, it can become a very easy part of your routine.

I got my first sourdough starter from a friend, and things didn’t turn out so well. The problem could have been any or all of the following: 1) the starter flour was different than the flour I was using to bake with, 2) my gallon size jars were too big, 3) my hard winter wheat grain was too dense, and/or 4) I didn’t feed it enough. So I scrapped the project and waited until I had more time to do it properly. Now, I have an excellent starter that’s nice and poofy, some great containers, the perfect grain, the time to feed it regularly, and some great sourdough recipes that I love using.

Materials Needed

  • Sourdough Starter Packet (I got mine from Breadtopia via Amazon)
  • Wide Mouth Mason Jars (I use 2 jars at a time. You can get some here or in the canning aisle at your local grocery store.)
  • Coffee Filters (To cover the mason jars. This keeps out the fruit flies and lets the sourdough “breathe”.)
  • Fresh Ground Grain – (I get my organic prairie gold wheat berries here, but you can find some similar here too. I use my Wondermill Grain Grinder to grind it up, but you can also get a hand operated grain mill if you’re looking for a cheaper option.*I’ve tried hard winter wheat berries, and they just didn’t work as well.)
  • Filtered Water (We have city water that fortunately has no flouride, and we bought a simple filter to get the chlorine and other chemicals out. You can also let water sit out for 24 hours to evaporate the chlorine.) 
Sourdough Starter

Sourdough Starter

Starting the Starter:

  1. Put 1 t. of dried starter into your mason jar(s) and add 1 T of lukewarm filtered water. Stir until softened.
  2. Add 1 T of freshly ground flour and stir. (You can grind a big batch of flour and keep it on your countertop, which is what I do, or you can get a little coffee grinder and grind some fresh every day. The more freshly ground the flour, the more phytase will be available to break down the mineral leeching phytic acid. Don’t freeze your flour, this will “kill” all of the phytase.)
  3. Cover the mason jar with a coffee filter, screw the cap on to keep it in place (or place a rubber band around it), and let it sit for 24 hours.
  4. For the first few days, you’ll just add tablespoons of water and flour, but once your starter is established (you will notice the bubbling action of the fermentation), you can increase the amounts to 1⁄3 c. of flour and 1⁄4 c. of water. *You want the consistency to be soft but not soupy, and you want to be able to mix it easily.

Frequently Asked Questions

  • Is my sourdough established? After you feed your sourdough and let it sit for 24 hours, you should see it get poofy, double in size, and there should be little holes dotted throughout. Because of this, you never want to let your jar(s) get too full.
  • How should I maintain the starter? If you’re like me and want to use the starter as often as you can for things like sourdough muffins, sourdough pancakes, and sourdough pizza crust, you’ll want to leave it on the counter in warmish place (not near a drafty window) where it can be left undisturbed but remain within easy reach, and feed it 1⁄3 c. of flour and 1⁄4 c. of water every day. If you won’t be using it very often, you can keep it in your refrigerator. When you want to use it, take it out of the refrigerator, feed it, and let it sit out until it gets nice and poofy again, preferably 24 hours. Try not to let more than 2 weeks go by between feedings.
  • What if I need more? You can always double the amount of flour and water each time you feed your starter or feed it every 12 hours if you need a quick boost in volume.
  • What should I do if I forget to feed my starter every day? If you miss a day here and there, you should be fine. But if you miss more than a couple of days and the starter starts to turn black, you are getting near the point of no return. But still, try to feed it, stir it really well, and see if it will come back.
  • How do I know if my starter has gone bad? Make it a point to really stick your nose in your starter and smell it when it is first established. It should have a pleasantly sour smell. If it goes bad, it will have a rotten and putrid smell. When this happens, you just have to throw it away and start over.
  • When should I clean out my jars? When wet sourdough dries, it is VERY hard to clean! This is why I highly recommend cleaning any measuring cups with sourdough starter in them right away! If you notice that the inside sides of your jars are getting caked with lots of dry sourdough and especially if the dried sourdough is turning black, it’s time to clean your jars! Get a fresh clean mason jar(s), transfer as much of the wet starter as you can into the new jar, and soak the dirty jar in hot soapy water. Warning: It will not be easy or fun to clean! It will require a lot of scraping and perhaps even some more soaking, but you will be glad you did it when it’s over. 🙂
  • Why should I go to all of the trouble of using sourdough anyways? All grains (as well as seeds, nuts, corn, oats, tubers, and bean…even coffee beans) contain phytic acid. Phytic acid is found in the hull of the grain and protects it. If we eat phytic acid without breaking it down first, not only can we not access the phosphorus inside (which is needed by every cell in the body), but it leaches valuable minerals (such as calcium, iron, zinc, and magnesium) from our bodies. By making sourdough, we are releasing the phytase within the grain which is the only thing that can break down the phytic acid. I did an insane amount of research to learn more about this fascinating topic and you can read more about what I learned in my blog: The Dangers of Phytic Acid and What to Do About It.
  • Where can I find some good sourdough recipes? Well, I’m glad you asked! It just so happens that I have a collection of my favorite sourdough recipes here. I especially like my sourdough muffin recipe.

    Sourdough Muffins

    Sourdough Muffins

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How to Make Soaked Steel Cut Oats

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Embracing Motherhood How to Make Soaked Steel Cut Oats2024

If you’re looking for a breakfast alternative to commercially processed cereal, steel cut oats are a great alternative! I buy organic steel cut oats in bulk from Country Life Natural Foods, and with 7 g of protein and 10% of our daily recommend iron per serving, they are a healthy and economical breakfast choice that the whole family enjoys. When you top them with butter, you’re getting plenty of healthy fats. They do have a considerable amount of phytic acid that prevents us from absorbing necessary minerals, so that’s why I recommend soaking them first.

Ingredients

  • 2 c. Organic Steel Cut Oats (I buy mine here, but you can get a smaller amount here.)
  • 2 T. Apple Cider Vinegar (I buy mine here, but you can get some here too.)
  • Filtered Water
  • 4 Quart Pot
  • Butter
  • Real Salt (I buy mine here, but you can get some here too.)

Directions

  1. Place the steel cut oats in a pot and cover with about twice as much water.
  2. Add the apple cider vinegar.

    soaking oats

    Adding Apple Cider Vinegar

  3. Let sit overnight or for 8 hours minimum. The ideal would be to soak for a complete 24 hours to get rid of all of the phytic acid, but anything is better than nothing.
  4. Bring to a slow boil stirring often.
  5. Once it boils, turn off the burner off, cover with a lid, and let it sit until all of the water is absorbed (about 20 minutes).
  6. *If it’s really hard to stir, add more water. If it’s still really soupy, turn the burner on low and leave the lid off, and cook until more of the water evaporates/is absorbed.
  7. Serve with butter and salt. Sometimes we like to add brown sugar and milk for a sweet treat.
Steel Cut Oats with Butter and Salt

Steel Cut Oats with Butter and Salt

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Why We Avoid Commercially Processed Cereals

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Embracing Motherhood Why We Avoid Commercial Processed Cereals

I remember how when I was growing up I would always read the side of the cereal box as I ate my breakfast and marvel at all of the nutrients that I was getting so early in the morning. It seemed too good to be true…and it was!

The Facts

In her book, Nourishing Traditions (my food Bible), Sally Fallon talks about the evils of commercially processed cereals.

Granola, like all processed breakfast cereals, should have no place on our cupboard shelves. Boxed breakfast cereals are made by the extrusion process, in which little flakes and shapes are formed at high temperatures and pressures. Extrusion processing destroys many valuable nutrients in grains, causes fragile oils to become rancid and renders certain proteins toxic.

In her article, “Dirty Secrets of the Food Processing Industry” on the Weston Price website, Sally Fallon explains in further detail the reasons why cereal is unhealthy. She also cites two startling studies done with rats, one of which was designed as a joke, but the results turned out to be anything but funny.

In this study, there were three groups of rats. The control group was fed rat chow and water and remained healthy throughout the experiment. The second group was fed cornflakes and water. Before they died, these rats developed aberrant behavior, threw fits, bit each other, and finally went into convulsions. Autopsies revealed dysfunction of the pancreas, liver, and kidneys, and degeneration of the nerves of the spine, which are all signs of insulin shock. The third group was fed the cardboard box that the cornflakes came in and water. This group lived longer than the group that ate the cornflakes. (The first box rat died the day the last cornflake rat died.)

The bottom line is that cereal, fortified or not, is anything but healthy. In our home, we have worked hard to not make commercially processed cereal a regular part of our lives, and this healthy homemade cereal recipe has really helped. We also enjoy properly prepared steel cut oats.

The Reality

When I first learned this information, I threw out all of my cereal (along with all of the other processed food that was junking up my cupboards), but since then, I’ve found more of a happy medium. In our family, we try to eat mostly good most of the time, and we especially like our routine meals and foods to be as healthy as possible. But that being said, I do have a few “go to” items in my pantry such as granola bars, Cheerios, Saltines, and Ramen Noodles that I can bring out in a pinch. Sometimes, I am terribly tired and sometimes my kids are incredibly picky, and they just need something to fill their bellies. There are many food purists that would completely disagree with me, and there are other parents who only feed their kids mostly processed foods. I’d like to think that we fall somewhere in the upper middle (leaning as much as we can to the healthy food without becoming obsessed about it).

For Futher Reading

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