Turn Autumn Leaves into an Animal Kingdom
Let the season’s falling leaves inspire a collection of your favorite creatures. A pointed leaf can become a great horned owl, while a round eucalyptus leaf makes a cute hedgehog or mouse. Attach the creatures to card stock to make an eye-catching wall hanging or a handmade greeting card.
Materials
Assortment of flat dry leaves
Felt-tip pens and markers
Glue
Googly eyes, optional
Tiny pom-poms, optional
Card stock
1 Decorate the leaves
Place your leaf on a flat surface. Use felt-tip pens or markers to draw your creature. Let the shape of the leaf inspire you or try one of the suggestions below:
- To make a hedgehog, draw the fur on half of the leaf and then draw curled legs on the other half, under its belly. Add a red dot or pom-pom for the nose, draw or glue on a an eye, and don’t forget to add a smiling mouth!
- To make a mouse, draw the face, ears, and eyes, or glue on googly eyes. The stem of the leaf can be the mouse’s tail. (If your mouse is tailless, simply draw a tail on the card stock in step 2.)
- To make the owl, first draw the wings and the beak, then draw on or glue on the eyes.
2 Display the leaf creatures
Glue the leaf creatures to card stock and hang on the wall, or fold into a greeting card with the leaf creatures on the cover.
Understanding Gluten
There was a time, not too long ago, when wheat was known as the staff of life, and bread and pasta were embraced as part of a healthy diet. But as the ever-swinging pendulum of diet trends traces its inevitable arc, wheat and all its progeny are now scorned and turned into symbols of disease and gluttony.
With more than 3 million Americans now actively trying to avoid gluten, this controversial protein associated with wheat has sparked a new global food category that’s projected to be valued at $7.59 billion by 2020. But is there any science-backed reason to jump on board the gluten-free bandwagon? Here, our Director of Nutrition, Lindsey Kane gets to the nitty-gritty of gluten in easy-to-digest bites.
Although some serious conditions related to gluten exist, statistics show that 22 to 25 percent of the population is following a gluten-free diet without any clear indication that gluten might be a problem for them.
As with most diet trends, anyone looking for quick-fix weight loss is eager to jump on the bandwagon. Some actually find a gluten-free diet to be beneficial, particularly for weight loss. But the truth is, any weight loss usually has little to do with the absence of gluten and everything to do with an increased awareness of food choices. In other words, because gluten often lives in highly processed empty carbs (bread, crackers, pretzels, cookies, cakes), a gluten-free diet can indirectly lead to weight loss.
While few would make the case for refined white flour as a nutritional powerhouse, unrefined whole wheat flour has plenty of health benefits. It’s rich in fiber, which is great for controlling blood sugar and promoting a healthy heart. It’s also a source of magnesium, which supports sleep and muscle repair, and manganese, which is important for bone health, hormone balance, and your immune system. Still, gluten can cause serious problems in a small portion of the population.
Here are some of the reasons to avoid gluten:
- Celiac Disease (CD)
This autoimmune condition affects 1 to 3 percent of the population. Though it’s not fully understood, those with CD experience a reaction to gluten, that causes the immune system to ignite friendly fire against its own tissue, ultimately damaging the intestinal wall and leading to nutrient malabsorption, which can increase the risk of other autoimmune diseases and cause long term damage to your gut. Unfortunately, about 50% of those with celiac disease are asymptomatic, which explains why it can go undetected for several years. Pro tip: there is a genetic component behind CD, so if you share a hereditary link with someone diagnosed with CD, be sure to get tested. - Non-Celiac Gluten Sensitivity (NCGS)
With no definitive biomarkers to define what doctors call NCGS, the diagnosis relies instead on ruling out other conditions with overlapping symptoms such as IBS, and an improvement in these symptoms when gluten is removed and a recurrence of symptoms when gluten is reintroduced. The research on this is still new, and a multitude of inconclusive studies and scientists are beginning to question whether what was once called Non-Celiac Gluten Sensitivity, is in fact related to an intolerance of fermentable sugars like lactose and fructose. - Wheat Allergy
About 1 percent of the population has an allergy, which can bring on symptoms such as swelling, itching, skin irritation, nasal congestion, mouth tingling, and burning.
Get Your Vitamin Zzz’s
You’ve heard time and time again that getting at least eight hours of sleep every night is important. But the relationship between food and sleep deserves just as much attention.
How much sleep you get affects what you eat, and what you eat affects how you sleep. There are a handful of nutrients that play a major role in the production of sleep-related hormones and neurotransmitters, meaning that adding them to your diet could have you sleeping like a baby. Luckily, you can find these essentials in some very delicious foods:
- Calcium and Magnesium produce a calming effect and promote relaxation. You’ll find calcium in leafy greens, broccoli, artichokes, almonds, sesame seeds, tahini, and yogurt. Avocados, dark chocolate, figs, black beans and lentils, spinach, and chard are full of magnesium.
- Melatonin helps control the sleep-wake cycle. Levels of this hormone rise after the sun has set and stay elevated most of the night. When the sun rises, melatonin levels drop, prompting you to wake up. Cherries, corn, ginger, oats, radishes, red wine, walnuts, and raspberries make a great evening snack.
- Omega-3 Fatty Acids contribute to the body’s own production of melatonin. Egg yolks, salmon, sardines, tuna, and walnuts are great sources of this healthy fat.
- Tryptophan promotes the synthesis of serotonin, which promotes the production of melatonin. You’ll find high levels of it in bananas, beans, cashews, chicken, eggs, pumpkin seeds, tofu, turkey, and yogurt.
- Vitamin B6 is also involved in the production of serotonin, the precursor of melatonin. Avocados, bananas, chicken breasts, grass-fed beef, pistachios, tuna, and turkey are all great sources of B6.
- Zinc is yet another nutrient involved in the production of serotonin and thus, melatonin. Garlic, grass-fed beef, kidney beans, peanuts, pumpkin seeds, oysters, and shrimp are full of zinc.
Artwork by Ekström Design
What’s the Story Behind Yakitori?
Dining in Japan is famously rule-bound. Drinking partners must pour each other’s drinks—never their own; it’s bad luck to stick your chopsticks straight up in a bowl of rice; remember to remove your shoes when dining at low tables on tatami floors; and dip your sushi fish-side down, never rice first, very lightly in soy sauce. But at izakaya, the Japanese equivalent of a gastropub, the rules are much more lax. Drinking is the first order of business, the food—served in the style of small plates—is there to help it go down easy.
Don’t expect to find sushi on the menu at an izakaya, or to slurp down a bowl of ramen. Instead, fill up on snacks like gyoza (dumplings), tempura (batter-fried foods), and karaage (fried chicken). There’s also a subset of izakaya, known as yakitori-ya, specializing in grilled chicken. At these restaurants you’ll find every bit of the bird, from wings, thighs, skin, gizzards, livers, and shoulder blade threaded onto skewers and grilled over a special charcoal known as binchotan. The cooks keep a close eye over the meat, controlling the temperature of the fire by fanning the coals with paper fans.
This week, you can enjoy an izakaya-style meal at home with our yakitori-style meatballs with ginger dipping sauce. Called tsukune, these chicken meatballs come with a Paleo dipping sauce but don’t require a flight or a lesson in table manners to enjoy.
Five Apps to Help You Fall Asleep Faster and Wake Up Feeling Rested
A good night’s sleep is actually as essential to your well-being as diet and exercise and just like eating healthy and working out, getting enough sleep requires a commitment and a shift in priorities. Here, our dietitian shares her favorite apps for getting some serious shut-eye.
Sleep like an astronaut
Developed by scientists using sleep-based research by NASA, Sleep Genius uses snooze-inducing melodies to help users rest smarter and longer. For those who are tired of waking up to a blaring alarm clock, the app offers an alarm featuring soothing sounds played in a five-minute cycle. Other features include a power-nap setting for a quick and restful mid-day slumber.
$4.99
4-star User Rating
Requires iOS 7.0 or later
Compatible with iPhone, iPad, iPod Touch, and Android.
Wake up refreshed
Sleep Cycle doesn’t mess around when it comes to getting a good night’s rest. Tell the app when you want to wake up, then place your phone face down next to your pillow before you conk out for the night. The app will track your sleep sounds, measuring your lightest and heaviest cycles of sleep, so that it can sound your morning alarm when you’re in your lightest phase of sleep rather than at an exact time.
Free
Requires iOS 9.0 or later
Compatible with iPhone, iPad, iPod Touch, and Android.
1, 2, 3, Nap!
Not only is Pzizz fun to say, it’s helpful when you need to recharge but don’t have the time to take a long nap. The team of engineers behind this app mix music, voiceovers, and science to create sounds that put you to sleep in a blink… or two. The app will wake you up after a quick power nap, or you can set the audio to run all night.
Free
Requires iOS 8.0 or later
Compatible with iPhone, iPad, iPod Touch, and Android.
The sound of sleep
Be the DJ at your own sleep party with Relax Melodies. Mix and combine more than 50 tunes and nature sounds to make the perfect bedtime soundtrack. Don’t have the energy to create your own mix? You can doze off to the most popular playlists made by other users.
Free
Requires iOS 9.0 or later
Compatible with iPhone, iPad, iPod Touch, and Android.
The unbeatable alarm
Alarmy is the world’s most annoying alarm clock—and the most effective for anyone who has trouble getting out of bed in the morning. The alarm won’t turn off until you shake it a certain number of times, solve a math equation, or get up and take a photo of a preset location (like your bathroom sink).
Free on Android, $1.99 on iOS
Requires iOS 9.0 or later
Compatible with iPhone, iPad, iPod Touch, and Android.
How a Good Night’s Sleep Can Help You Eat Better and Eating Better Can Help You Sleep
Spend a night tossing, turning, and staring into the darkness and it shouldn’t come as a surprise if the next day you find yourself in line at the drive-thru loading up on doughnuts, diet sodas, and burgers. And when night rolls around again, you’re likely to be once more counting cracks in the ceiling during the wee hours.
Eating and sleeping have a tight relationship. It’s easy to understand how a proper diet can lead to a good night’s sleep. Less obvious but equally important is the effect a restful night has on the ability to make healthy food choices.
Poor sleep leads to low energy, which kills willpower and reduces inhibitions. When we’re tired, it’s easy to think that food will give us back the pep we’re missing, and our bodies compensate by igniting cravings for the most efficient source of energy—highly refined carbohydrates, aka sugar.
A few of the benefits of getting a solid eight hours of shut-eye include:
- Reduced cravings for unhealthy foods
It’s difficult to maintain your willpower when you can barely keep your eyes open. The amount of sleep you get has a direct impact on the part of the brain in charge of making rational decisions. When you get a full eight hours of sleep, you’re more likely to make the right choices in regard to food. - Feeling fuller, longer
One of the many benefits of a good night’s sleep is that it helps maintain your hormonal balance. When you’re well rested, leptin, the hormone responsible for making you feel full, can do its job, and ghrelin, the appetite-inducing hormone, is less likely to spike unnecessarily. - Burn calories more efficiently
Getting the right amount of sleep supports a healthy metabolism, which helps burn calories at an appropriate rate. A lack of sleep may make bodies more resistant to insulin, which can be a risk factor for obesity and diabetes.
To make sure you get a good night’s rest:
1. Keep a consistent sleep-wake schedule. That means no sleeping in on the weekends or staying up late when you have to get up early for work the next morning. Try using a sleep app to help you set a consistent bedtime and prompt you when it’s time to start winding down for bed.
2. Turn down the heat. Research has shown that cooler temperatures—ideally between 60°F and 67°F—promote better sleep. Cool temperatures may also stimulate what’s known as brown fat, which burns more calories than white fat and has been shown to improve insulin sensitivity.
3. Soak up some sun. Exposure to daylight early in the morning can help calibrate your circadian rhythm and regulate your sleep-wake cycle.
4. Get to the gym. Regular workouts can reduce stress, which can help you fall asleep at night. Mornings are generally considered the best time to work out; exercising less than three hours before bedtime may interfere with some people’s sleep.
5. Drink plenty of water throughout the day. Every single biological process, including hormone balance and body-temperature regulation, benefits from proper hydration. Keep a water bottle close at hand during the day and drink from it often. You’ll be less likely to snore, reduce the chance of leg cramps, and have more energy the next day.
6. Unplug. Turn off your computer, shut down your phone, and table your tablet at least two hours before going to bed. The light from these devices can interfere with the release of melatonin, keeping you alert when you should be sawing logs.
Artwork by Ekström Design
5 Things the Mediterranean Diet Can Do for You
Fresh, in-season produce, best-quality seafood and meat, and above all, plenty of olive oil (and other good-for-you unsaturated fats)— we call this the Mediterranean Diet, and research points to its many health benefits. If you’re a regular Sun Basket customer, you’re already following the Mediterranean Diet to some extent. Our recipes lean heavily on this healthy and delicious way of eating. And Sun Basket’s team of dietitians are big fans.
Because it’s one of the most inclusive of diets, the Mediterranean Diet has broad appeal and is easy to follow. “It’s the best of both worlds,” Lindsey Kane, director of nutrition says. “The flavors are amazing, and the health benefits are measurable. It’s one of the best examples of how nutritious food can also be delicious.”
Five Things the Mediterranean Diet Can Do
1. Increase Longevity
A landmark study of American female nurses found that those on the Mediterranean Diet in middle age were about 40% more likely to live past 70, free of any of 11 chronic illnesses, including type 2 diabetes, Parkinson’s Disease, and many cancers.
2. Keep Your Brain Sharp
Australian researchers recently found that the Mediterranean Diet is associated with lower rates of cognitive decline and Alzheimer’s disease. The diet even improves ordinary cognitive functioning: those on the diet also showed better memory and executive functioning, such as reasoning and planning.
3. Help Prevent Breast Cancer
In one of the largest studies, scientists analyzed the eating patterns of more than 4,200 women in Spain, and found that those consuming a Mediterranean diet were 62% less likely to get breast cancer than those following a standard low-fat diet.
4. Reduce the Risk of Heart Disease
One European study followed more than 2,500 Greek adults for over a decade, tracking their medical records, lifestyle habits, and eating patterns. Those who most closely followed the Mediterranean Diet were a whopping 47% less likely to get heart disease, regardless of their smoking habits, age, family history, or other lifestyle factors.
5. Help Maintain your Weight
It’s a common misconception that high-fat diets lead to weight gain. Results from one major study show that those following a Mediterranean diet lost significantly more weight than those who ate a low-fat diet.
5 Things the Mediterranean Diet Can Do for You
Fresh, in-season produce, best-quality seafood and meat, and above all, plenty of olive oil (and other good-for-you unsaturated fats)— we call this the Mediterranean Diet, and research points to its many health benefits. If you’re a regular Sun Basket customer, you’re already following the Mediterranean Diet to some extent. Our recipes lean heavily on this healthy and delicious way of eating. And Sun Basket’s team of dietitians are big fans.
Because it’s one of the most inclusive of diets, the Mediterranean Diet has broad appeal and is easy to follow. “It’s the best of both worlds,” Lindsey Kane, director of nutrition says. “The flavors are amazing, and the health benefits are measurable. It’s one of the best examples of how nutritious food can also be delicious.”
Five Things the Mediterranean Diet Can Do
1. Increase Longevity
A landmark study of American female nurses found that those on the Mediterranean Diet in middle age were about 40% more likely to live past 70, free of any of 11 chronic illnesses, including type 2 diabetes, Parkinson’s Disease, and many cancers.
2. Keep Your Brain Sharp
Australian researchers recently found that the Mediterranean Diet is associated with lower rates of cognitive decline and Alzheimer’s disease. The diet even improves ordinary cognitive functioning: those on the diet also showed better memory and executive functioning, such as reasoning and planning.
3. Help Prevent Breast Cancer
In one of the largest studies, scientists analyzed the eating patterns of more than 4,200 women in Spain, and found that those consuming a Mediterranean diet were 62% less likely to get breast cancer than those following a standard low-fat diet.
4. Reduce the Risk of Heart Disease
One European study followed more than 2,500 Greek adults for over a decade, tracking their medical records, lifestyle habits, and eating patterns. Those who most closely followed the Mediterranean Diet were a whopping 47% less likely to get heart disease, regardless of their smoking habits, age, family history, or other lifestyle factors.
5. Help Maintain your Weight
It’s a common misconception that high-fat diets lead to weight gain. Results from one major study show that those following a Mediterranean diet lost significantly more weight than those who ate a low-fat diet.
Our Customers: Akka Bradford
Facebook LIVE—August 16, 2017
Host Alicia Egan, Data Science Specialist and beer maker Koji Hamada, and Test Kitchen Recipe Auditor Josh Liebeskind cook salmon burgers on the final stop of our Great American Road Trip. Sun Basket’s resident Pacific Northwesterners share their memories of growing up in Washington and Oregon (with salmon burgers always on hand) while sipping on Koji’s homemade cream ale brew.
Curious to know more about pre-Prohibition style ales? Or how essential salmon burgers are to life in the Pacific Northwest? Join us in the kitchen to learn more!
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