Dehydration!

I have been fascinated for some time now with the process of food dehydration. I have seen it popping up all over the blogs, and I have done some studying of the raw lifestyle. While I don't think I could ever go completely raw--I love BBQ WAY too much!--I do agree with the principle of eating your food as close to its natural state as possible. We visited my husband's family this weekend, and imagine my delight when I uncovered a brand new dehydrator in my mother-in-law's pantry. I was so excited to try it out it was ridiculous. Unfortunately, my camera is on its last legs, but I documented the entire yummy process for you. Begin with whatever raw fruit you'd like. Apples and bananas are what seemed the easiest--and the fastest. With different fruits/foods, the times vary according to moisture level, and we were only there for a day after I made my discovery.

Slice everything up, the thinner the better so it will dry faster, and arrange on dehydrator trays.I sprinkled some cinnamon on top because obviously, cinnamon makes everything extra delicious.



Just stack the trays on the machine, place the lid on with the vents open and plug in.

Then, all you have to do is wait.



The next morning:
I had to try them right away, so I did. And then I put some in my oatmeal too :)
The cranberries are not my own dehydrated creation. Ocean Spray was responsible for that.
The overall result was great, and I loved them! They tasted much cleaner than regular dried fruit, without any extra oil or sugar. My little project was a success and I can only hope that a dehydrator of my own is in the future (do I really have to wait til Christmas??).

Coco Mole Lara Bar

I love lara bars for a lot of reasons. They are so dense, with very minimal processing and ingredients! This one has 6: dates, almonds, walnuts, unsweetened cocoa powder, cinnamon and chili. I actually found a whole almond in this one! This bar is definitely an interesting combo with the chocolate and chili, but I love the spiciness.

Lara bars typically have a lot of fat in them, but it’s all “healthy” from the nuts, so it’s a great source of those omega 3’s! I usually have just a half of one at a time because they are so nutritionally compact, but each full bar contains 9 g fat, 5 g fiber and 4 g protein.

Blog Makeover

This cool dude is giving away a blog makeover, so I thought I'd give enter and give it a shot. He's done work on quite a few of the blogs that have inspired me to create my own site, and I could definitely use the assistance! Click here to check out his own amazing site or to enter for yourself :)

Gnu Glavor and Fiber Bar-Cinnamon Raisin Flavor

Gnu (say it like "new") bars are actually some of my favorite bars and I eat them pretty frequently. They have several flavors, but the Cinnamon Raisin one is by far the best tasting. Super chewy with kind of a nutty taste and really cinnamon-y. Whole raisins, whole oats (which is nice if you like to be sure what your eating) and crunchy little millet pieces. Whopping 12 grams of fiber, but not much protein or anything else, really. They sure are yummy, though, and will definitley help you meet your 25 g/day quota--oh yeah, and banish post-workout hunger pangs until lunch time!

ReBar

My main criteria in a bar is that it is healthy (of course) and provides a good balance of fiber and protein for satiety since that's the main point of a snack--to keep you full. There are millions of bars out there, but my additional complicating factor is that the bars I eat must be soy free. I am pretty sensitive to soy products, and unfortunately, soy proteins are found in the majority of bars.

Surprisingly tart with mainly dried fruit-ish flavors--not the 17 or so vegetables listed on the back. Soft, with a good bite quality. This bar is 100%ORGANIC, gluten-free, dairy free, GMO free, and most importantly, soy free! I usually try to select bars with a little fat in them since I don't get it from many other sources, and helps to hold me over for a little longer, so we'll see how this one does in terms of longevity between my snack now (11:20) and lunch (who knows??*) This bar has 6 g fiber, but only 2 g protein. I also liked that this bar tastes pretty sweet, but has no added sugar, not even the "healthy" ones they try to sneak in there all the time like brown rice syrup or cane juice. The only drawback was a slightly bitter aftertaste, but that went away as soon as I brushed my teeth. Overall, I liked this bar quite a bit and would probably purchase it again.

*I ended up eating lunch a little before 3:00, and I was starving by then, but I didn't get a hunger rumble til about 2, so not that bad there!

Any way you slice it...

Cutting up pineapples is messy business. Ever since Hawaii, though, I am in love with them and have to purchase them every time they're on sale (I got 3 for $5 one time!!!). Anyhow, all this fruit finagling has allowed me to become quite the expert on the most efficient way to prepare this rather prickly thing. Observe: Pineapple in the raw:

First, rip off the top. Trust me, it's not that hard :)

Then, slice off the top and bottom so you have a flat surface

Next, slice off strips of the rind all the way around

You then have all these little eye things, so...

You have to pop 'em out. Sounds violent, I know. But you have to do it unless you enjoy tearing your tongue to shreds while you're eating. Which I do not.

When you are finished de-eyeing your pineapple, cut it into halves

Quarters

And strip the core. You really just have to take off a little bit.

Finally, cut into cubes. Ta-Dah!

The End.

Eat this

Guess what this is?
It’s a pickled turnip! Dustin, my sister and my sister’s friend Jess, went to an absolutely amazing Mediterranean restaurant called Café Med a little while ago, and this little guy arrived on top of my salad. Plus, I love pickles, and who eats turnips these days? It actually tasted a lot like horseradish—not too bad.

Getting Started

Even though this blog is new, I've been posting my experimentarian projects on the personal blog that my hubby and I have. So to get started, I thought I'd post some of my previous adventures in eating. Hope you enjoy!
P.S. Lots of bar reviews coming up, so stay tuned!

About The Experimentarian

Are you going to eat all that? Does that taste like cardboard? What IS that?
These are all questions I get asked on a fairly regular basis. Well, "that" happens to be my food, and the answers tend to be "yes," "no," and "none of your business, " in that order. However, with the recent explosion of foodie blogs on the net, I've decided to make it your business!

I've been accused of being a picky eater, but the truth is I'm actually pretty adventurous when it comes to my food--as long as it's healthy, I'll try it! That's where the name, and the phrase, the experimentarian comes in. I love to try new things when it comes to what I eat, and I'm continuously on the hunt for new meals, snacks and recipes. I figured since I try new things almost every day, it might be cool to share the knowledge I'm gaining with others like me (I can't be the only one, can I???).

I eat tons of fruit and veggies, but alas, I personally can't thrive and survive on those alone, so all the major food groups are included. I don't limit what I eat with the exception of soy products (sensitivity), which definitely adds another element to searching for healthy eats since many, many items on the shelf contain soy. Therefore, the only requirements I have when it comes to my finds are that they are healthy, soy free and at least LOOK appetizing!I'll try it, buy it, taste it and test it and share my take on whatever yummy or yucky things I come up with.