*** please note these classes will balance ALL CHILDREN and adults….and those on GF/CF diets as well***

I am offering a new series called small Changes, BIG Impact: Balancing Children with AD/HD and on the Autistic Spectrum Through Food, starting this Thursday, March 11, at 7:15pm in NW DC at the Silver Spring line. The first class is called “Gluten-Free Optimally”: What your ASD or AD/HD child eats may be one of the most important things to begin to bring them to balance… and…the BEST DIET may not be what you think!  Come learn why gluten-free/casein-free (GF/CF) diets may not be enough…they bring temporary relief and may lead to other issues. Learn the components of a diet that will help bring your child to balance. THIS IS THE FIRST OF 6 CLASSES for Balancing Children Through Food. They are all held on Thursday evenings.
REGISTER HERE for small Changes, BIG Impact March 11

Classes are $55 in advance or $65 at the door. Register for a class below by clicking on the date.
March 18 Nourish Your Brain Food: Healthy Fats and Supplements
April 8 Drink to a Healthy Gut: Fermented Beverages
April 15 Eat Your Probiotics: Lacto-fermented Vegetables and Fruits
April 29 Gelatinous Stock for a Healthy Gut
May 6 Super GF Whole Grains: Amaranth, Millet, Quinoa and Buckwheat

Since Alexandria is sold out, register for the class in FALLS CHURCH on Saturday, 3/13, from 9:30am-12 noon. You may register HERE.

I will be teaching traditional soaking techniques…for legumes and for whole grains. Many people do not know that WHOLE GRAINS MUST BE SOAKED prior to cooking and eating. There are many reasons for this…one of which is to UNLOCK THE NUTRIENTS in the grains themselves and make them available to the body. And did you know that often those with Gluten sensitivities can tolerate soaked grains??  I will also be teaching some NEW TECHNIQUES for soaking legumes. They are easy, and your beans and legumes will be more easily digested than ever!!

You may also order your Bean and Grain chart at class so that you have it handy in your kitchen!

I look forward to cooking with you!

Lacto-fermented pickles and salsa

Right now, almost every ketchup you can buy in the store adds YET MORE SUGAR to your child’s diet. We KNOW children DON’T NEED MORE SUGAR in their diets. Any way you look at it, ketchup, organic or not, is tomatoes and sugar.  And kids LOVE to slather that stuff on anything they can.

If you make your own ketchup, and mustard, and mayonnaise…and pickles…and salsa…and apple butter, among other things, and LACTO-FERMENT them, you can help your child by adding important PRO-BIOTICS, ENZYMES, and VITAMIN C to their diet. Last summer, Rachel Cross (musician and visual artist EXTRAORDINAIRE-for more about her, visit www.rachelcrossmusic.com) and I offered a SUMMER CAMP for kids…All About REAL Food. During that camp, children lacto-fermented their own pickles and salsa…and LOVED THEM!!! They couldn’t get enough of them. These were 9-12 year olds. WHO SAID KIDS DON’T LIKE TO EAT FOODS THAT ARE GOOD FOR THEM?  The kids even wrote their own song about the benefits of these foods…called “MAGICAL FOODS”. If you would like to hear their song, check back here soon…I’ll upload an MP3.

Join the Ketchup Revolution!

The kids can't get enough of lacto-fermented SALSA!

Learn how to make your own ketchup at a class with me…Saturday morning, February 27 in Alexandria, VA or Saturday morning, March 20 in Falls Church, VA, or buy my DVD and learn to make it yourself at home! (See the class schedule page for more information and to register!)

beef bones after cooking

NUTRIENT-DENSE STOCK, (aka “Bone Broth”) made well is a wonderful first food for babies when they are ready to move off the breast or the bottle. It is high in CALCIUM and easily absorbed minerals, high in usable protein and acts as a protein sparer, meaning one has to eat less protein when one uses stock in their diet. STOCK is also an important part of a healing protocol for anyone with digestive issues, eczema, and allergies, and anyone on a GLUTEN-FREE or CASEIN-FREE diet.

I work with a lot of families with children on the Autistic Spectrum in my private practice in Takoma Park, MD, helping moms and dads bring their children to balance through food. One of the issues children and adults on the Autistic Spectrum or with AD/HD share is a compromised gut and difficulty digesting different molecules. Most people know about the issues with gluten and casein, but there are other foods that are best kept out of the diet as well. NUTRIENT-DENSE STOCK made well is an important part of a healing protocol for these children. It is healing to the gut lining, high in usable protein and easily absorbed minerals, and acts as a protein sparer among other benefits.

I am teaching a class on The Secrets of Making Nutrient-Dense Stock on Saturday, February 20, from 9:30am-12 noon in Falls Church. To  register, see my page on Class Schedule 2010.

I look forward to cooking with you!

One of the healthiest fats for cooking-beef tallow. A wonderful by-product of making NUTRIENT-DENSE GELATINOUS STOCK.

I will be teaching all the WHYS, HOWS,  WHATS and FOR HOW LONGS about whole grains AND legumes this Saturday, February 6, in Alexandria, VA. This information is in addition to what may be found in the Nourishing Traditions cookbook. To register, see the 2010 class schedule page.

And if you can’t make it to class, you may pre-order a beautifully hand-illustrated BEAN and GRAIN chart.

Delicious SOAKED oatmeal, with butter and milk from pastured cows.

Rich gelatin from beef stock made well.

You need good bones to make good STOCK…don’t try to make it from bones produced from cows on feedlots, or chickens in battery cages. First of all, it won’t work. Second of all, it won’t be nutrient-dense! Meat and bones from animals in CAFOs are nutritionally inferior. Perhaps most important, STOCK is healing food. One cannot get healing food from animals that were treated with antibiotics or hormones, or fed the wrong food, or, just plain not treated well.

Hope to see you in Alexandria. If you would like to register, go to the page that lists the Class Schedule for 2010.

Happy and Healthy eating!

beef tallow-a healthy fat to cook with!

What I lovingly refer to as the “Bean and Grain Chart” is now ready for pre-order. It is beautifully hand-illustrated by Eleanore Marcey, and will be 11 x 17 and laminated. The chart lists all the “whats, hows and whys” one needs to know to soak your legumes and grains for optimal digestion and nutrient availability. This is the first of several charts we will be producing this year to help you to “cook well to be well”.

Order your chart HERE. It is $25.25 including the service charge if you purchase it through PayPal.

You may also send a check for $20 plus $4.25 shipping/handling made out to me, Monica Corrado, to PO Box 5451, Takoma Park, MD 20913 along with the address to which you would like your chart sent.

I will have charts available for purchase at my classes starting in February.

Happy SOAKING! )

Be well!

Check out the Conference Brochure…and come!

Just wanted to let you know about the classes I will be teaching in January and February.

I will kick off the year with a  Lacto-fermentation class in Reston on Thursday, January 7, 7-9:30pm…a Secrets to Making Nutrient-Dense Stock class on Thursday, January 28, same time, in Alexandria. On Saturday, Feb 6, I will be teaching my NEW TECHNIQUES for Soaking Beans and Whole Grains class and on the 27, it will be a REAL Condiments (Lacto-fermented, of course!) class in Alexandria. For details on what the classes will cover and to register, see my SCHEDULE OF CLASSES page.

I look forward to cooking with some of you very soon! All the best to you for a wondrous, wonder-full, delightful, abundant, joyous and deliciously healthy 2010!