The Workarounds

There are some foods that we all really love,

but our bodies really don't.

Today, we're talking about inflammation.

I'm gonna show you some ways

to work around your body's can'ts, won'ts,

and don't want tos,

so that you don't have to sacrifice any

of the flavor or texture in all of your favorite dishes.

Mm.

[upbeat music]

Inflammation is pretty much your body's first line

of defense when you get injured,

and that is completely normal.

But an inflammatory diet can cause prolonged stress

on your body and lead to chronic health issues,

which is something you definitely don't want.

I'm gonna lay out some of the key offenders for inflammation

and give you my substitution strategy

that you can add to your culinary toolkit.

You're welcome.

The first big offender that I wanna talk about,

processed meats.

I love processed meat, don't get me wrong,

but there are plenty of substitutions

that I love to use when I need the texture

and sometimes the flavor from processed meats.

So, if I'm making a sandwich, I'll take a celery root.

Instead of crispy bacon bits,

I'll make crispy shiitake strips.

And lentils and beans are my absolute favorite

when it comes to replacing ground meats.

And now for the MVP of inflammation, all-purpose flour.

It has been processed to remove the germ and the bran.

So, this lowers the amount of fiber and protein in it

and just gives you simple carbs.

Really not good for your body.

But don't fear, spelt flour is one of my favorites.

It has a little bit of a denser texture,

but if you sift it,

you'll still get the lightness from AP flour.

Semolina flour is made from Durham Wheat,

and here we have chickpea flour.

I love cheese, but my stomach does not.

Regular milk, it's fine,

but it doesn't really add anything

to baked goods in terms of flavor.

It's more for fat

and a liquid to balance out the starch in baked goods.

So, you can use any number of alternative milks

to substitute in almost any recipe.

It just depends on your preference and potential allergens.

This next one might surprise you,

but another inflammatory food is vegetable oil,

because vegetable oil is very high in omega-6 fatty acids,

which are not the good kind.

You wanna try to find oils

that are higher in omega-3 fatty acids

like avocado oil and extra virgin olive oil.

And another substitution in baked goods

that my mother used to use all the time.

Instead of oil, she would use grated apples.

They add a lot of moisture to your baked goods

and keep it light and fluffy

without having processed oil added to.

So, it is time to level up our anti-inflammatory game.

We've talked about foods that are neutral

or will not cause inflammation,

but let's talk about foods that are anti-inflammatory

and actually reduce the stress on your body.

So, we're talking about dark, leafy greens.

You have kale, collards, spinach, all of that family.

Fresh ginger root, bonus.

Avocado, turmeric, flax seeds, blueberries,

watermelon, pineapple.

There are so many anti-inflammatory foods

that are absolutely delicious.

So, you can just stay away from the processed stuff.

[gentle music]

So, for most items that cause inflammation,

it's not as simple as remove it or just a one-to-one swap.

You have to kind of recalibrate your recipes

to match the texture and the flavor as much as possible

so you're not disappointed with the final outcome.

[gentle music]

So, we all know and love lasagna, right?

However, it can cause inflammation.

So, to reduce that, I like to use mushrooms

for the bolognese instead of ground meat.

So, while we're cooking our mushrooms,

we're gonna keep the heat very high

because we wanna evaporate a lot of this moisture

so that we get that deep caramelized flavor

and lots of umami

that's gonna give you a similar feel to ground meat.

A little onion, garlic, and carrot.

Woo, oh, that onion really gets you.

So, I like to use dried herbs in something like this

because the flavor is a little stronger

and you don't have to worry about them turning brown

and kind of muddled.

And I'm gonna add my tomato puree.

Lots of lycopene.

Tomatoes are really good for you.

The little bit of brown sugar.

It's not a refined sugar.

See, doesn't this look like a real bolognese?

Oh my god.

So, while the mushroom bolognese is cooking,

I'm gonna show you how to make our almond cheese

and ricotta substitute.

Actually really exciting.

So, dairy is inflammatory to some people,

because it does have high levels of saturated fat.

It also irritates some people's stomach.

Some people are lactose intolerant,

so small amounts of dairy might be okay,

but large quantities can really upset your stomach

and cause inflammation.

So, I like to use raw almonds

pureed until they're nice and warm

and then it makes a soft, spreadable cheese-like texture,

pretty awesome.

And it's literally just gonna get mixed with the ricotta.

So, we have half and half ricotta and almond cheese,

so that way you're still getting some of the richness

without all of the dairy.

So, this is my anti-inflammatory lasagna.

I have semolina pasta noodles, mushroom bolognese,

and almond ricotta cheese with a little Parmesan on top

because it is still lasagna.

[light upbeat music]

I'm making buns for this salmon burger

with whole wheat flour.

It's still soft, still fluffy,

but it'll give you a little bit more of a robust flavor

and a little bit of a denser bread

that's great for burgers

'cause it'll stand up to the bite and the chew.

Whisk the yeast until it's fully dissolved

and let it sit in the warm water until it gets foamy

and starts to bubble up.

[light upbeat music]

Oh, nailed it.

I missed my calling for the WNBA, I swear.

I also missed about three feet of height

to be able to do that, but.

Gonna add a little more flour.

So, our dough has sat and it's risen.

It's beautiful.

Look at that.

What you wanna do if it gets sticky is just add a little bit

of oil to the countertop.

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Don't press too hard

with the brush when you're doing egg wash

'cause you don't wanna deflate the buns.

If you want a burger, use salmon.

[upbeat music]

We're gonna do it in batches.

So, this will give us some larger pieces

and some smaller pieces so it has a nice texture.

[food processor whirring]

I'm gonna add the remaining salmon.

[light upbeat music]

So the salmon patties have been cooked

in a cast iron skillet to get a nice sear on them.

And now, I'm ready to assemble.

[light upbeat music]

That is like the perfect anti-inflammatory burger.

And it gives you all the satisfaction

of eating a regular burger

with none of the inflammation and stress on your system.

Yay.

So, there you have some of my workarounds

so that you can get the best food possible

and live your best anti-inflammatory life.

[upbeat music]