I could eat the title and I could eat the book.
As we’ve discussed often at Thyroid Fix in 6 – the key to reversing thyroid, autoimmune and inflammatory disease is to lay a supportive foundation by eating real, whole, nutrient dense foods including healthy fats like coconut oil, avocados, olives and butter….I’ll say it again…BUTTER! Pastured butter is loaded with anti-inflammatory fatty acid and rich with nutrients for heart and bone health.
A common misconception which we’ve discussed in this community often is the idea that fat makes you fat. And weight management can be a real challenge for those with thyroid, autoimmune and inflammatory disease, but that couldn’t be further from the truth. Fat doesn’t make you fat – sugar does! However, that is not the point of today’s post. Today we talk about nourishing foods, your health and my friend and traditional foods idol, Molly Chester’s new book, Back to Butter.
I was so fortunate to meet Molly in 2006 over a feast with friends. Molly and I hit it off immediately, diving deep into talks about food culture, recipes and real food. I knew I liked this girl from the get-go, but the corn salad she brought to the party blew me away and the deal was sealed.
When Molly and I lived in Los Angeles, we both were facing different health challenges with many symptoms overlapping. Over the years, we’ve enjoyed several cups of tea excitedly discussing food, health and nutrition. Often, we would trade stories of our ailments and refer each other to people doing the best work we could find in holistic health, nutrition and medicine.
Molly and I have since moved to greener pastures – literally. She and her husband, John, now run the breathtaking Apricot Lane Farms. And my family, just relocated to Sonoma Wine Country so our son could experience his formal education on a 32-acre biodynamic farm where he’d not only learn about traditional scholastic subjects, he’d also have the opportunity to connect to the land and unite with mother nature’s cycles.
When you fall in love with real food, you find yourself wanting to be close to it. To connect to food in a visceral way. To touch the earth with your own hands, know the farmer who provided your eggs, and gaze at animals doing their part in the cycle. Molly and I share this sensibility for food and for the land. And in her book, Back To Butter, we are taken on a delightful journey to her farm, her kitchen, her pantry (of which I am jealous!), and her home…all the while accompanied by her lovely mom (both inside and out), Sandy Schrecengost.
I can remember the day Molly shared with us that she and her mom were going to write a cookbook. I was over the moon with excitement. I’ve seen this girl cook! And, she is dishing out this news over the best plate of Brussels sprouts I had EVER eaten in my life, Thanksgiving 2009. I helped myself to 5 helpings. I’m not shy. And you better get out of my way if there’s something I have my eye on at a buffet. But I digress…these Brussels sprouts were divine and much to my delight, I discovered Molly’s secret recipe is in her new book!
I don’t know what’s more exciting Back to Butter – the foreward by Beck (whose music I LOVE!), the scrumptious food photography, the sweet pictures of Molly, her mom and the farm or the recipes themselves. Deliciousness like roasted shrimp salsa, the classy chicken salad (hey, I’m a classy gal!) and those crazy yummy Brussels sprouts (holla!) are featured. You’ll learn traditional methods for soaking and sprouting and fermenting whole foods as well as info on which fats to use and why. This cookbook is crammed with goodness and a reference you won’t want to do without. Back to Butter is the total package – an exploration into the real food that nourishes your body and soul, a personal journey to Apricot Lane Farms, tips for proper food preparation that are simple to do and easy to understand, recipes you can make that guests will be clamoring for and the hope for a future where the world is healed by food.
There were several times I literally tried to dive into this book’s food photos, the images were beckoning me to pick up my fork and have a taste. After reading, Back To Butter, you’ll be packing your bags and your shovel…ready to accept this invitation from her delightful family including their most charming member, their dog, Todd. My bags are packed – so Molly, you can expect a visit real soon!
Get Back to Butter for your collection now (seriously, get this book!) Be sure visit Molly’s website, Organic Spark for more nourishing goodness at www.organicspark.com.
For the TLC crew, there are loads of recipes in this book that will work with the protocol I laid out in The Thyroid Fix in 6 —Home Healing Program but there are also recipes that won’t be supportive to your healing without a tweak here and there. Still, you can’t go wrong with this cookbook and I’ve found it’s been a joy and delicious pleasure adapting some of the recipes to my specific needs.
If you’re looking for even more ways to nourish your body and soul, I provide a ton of resources on healing your thyroid naturally, including:
- Our totally free Thyroid Healing Type Assessment, Report and Coaching Sessions
- Right here on my blog, where I talk about what’s worked best for me and my clients, as well as the latest research and resources I come across. You can subscribe to get new blog posts delivered right to your email by signing up on the righthand side of the page.
- My book, Healing Hashimoto’s Naturally — part memoir, part instruction manual for how I personally healed my Hashimoto’s disease.
- My exclusive free 6 Thyroid Myths That Can Keep You From Healing workshop — with info on the comprehensive Thyroid Fix in 6 program, which walks you through, step-by-step, the exact actions you need to take to heal your thyroid and get your life back! We’ve seen hundreds of participants in the Thyroid Fix in 6 avoid, decrease, or even eliminate the need need for thyroid medications.
- The incredible Your Best Thyroid Life Video Bundle, in which I personally invited 27 of the world’s top health experts to share their best tips for living with and healing thyroid disease.
Jen Wittman is a Certified Holistic Health Expert, Chef, Author & Vitality Coach, who teaches women how to reverse thyroid and autoimmune conditions naturally. She’s helped hundreds of women decrease (or even eliminate) their thyroid medications and has helped others stay off thyroid medication entirely.
Through her free Thyroid Healing Type Assessment, Jen teaches easy and simple steps to thyroid healing that can fit into your busy day. She also provides print outs to bring to your next doctor’s appointment so you can get the support and respect you deserve.