Gluten-Free High Protein Focaccia Bread: What proteins are the healthiest?

Read on to learn the science about why a mixture of low-quality proteins used in this dough is healthier than high quality proteins in meats.

This dough turned out well. It was the perfect thickness, not too thick but a soft full pizza crust filled with tads of olives and the flavor of rosemary. I used edible flower tissane for the water part…edible flowers like nasturtiums were placed in water then brought to a boil. The water was poured off and allowed to cool to 120 degrees Farenheit. Of course, this is just me being a farmer fairy and regular filtered water works just as well.

1 3/4 c garbanzo
1/4 c sorghum
1/4 c millet
1/4 c amaranth
1 c tapioca flour

4 T sugar
2 t yeast
1 1/4 c water

2 ounces black kalamata olives
1 T finely chopped fresh rosemary

Steps:

1. Heat up water and place sugar and yeast in a measuring cup.
2. Add water at the correct temperature of what you would bathe a baby in. It should be a comfortable warm. Let this mixture bubble while you premix the different flours. Garbanzo flour tends to be lumpy so rub it between your palms to remove bumps or run it through a metal colander with the back of a large wooden spoon to quickly sift.
3. Add the yeast-water-sugar solution to the premixed flours. Mix well.
4. Let dough mix in mixer for 3 minutes. Grease a large 8 by 11 in baking sheet, or grease a 12 in tart pan.
5. Add olive and rosemary. Mix to combine.
6. You can use a tart pan or a simple 8 by 12 in baking sheet. Either one generously coat with expeller pressed coconut oil (for no flavor, or use virgin coconut oil), and dust generously with tapioca flour. You do not want to use wax paper or aluminum because wax paper adds PUFA’s which are chemicals that make the paper non-stick, but are endocrine disrupting chemicals that last forever in your body.
7. Spread dough on the center of the baking sheet. The dough will not cover the entire sheet. Instead it will leave about an inch on the long sides and 2 inches on the short sides. Spread it out evenly. If you use a tart pan, quickly spread to an even height.
8. As dough rises in the next 20 – 40 minutes it will cover more of the baking sheet, and the dough will continue to expand with baking.
9. When dough looks puffed up to double the starting size, add your toppings:
10. You can sprinkle dehydrated cherry tomatoes on the dough half through rising so they get slightly incorporated into the dough. Finely sliced sun dried tomatoes can also be used.
11. Saute onions while the dough rises and use these if you are not going to put cheese on the dough as this makes a flavorful sweet dish and adds an unami like cheese would. Saute your onions in coconut or olive oil.
12. sautéed red peppers
13. A sauce is optional, but if you want to make a deep dish pizza make a sauce by cooking down 1 pound of cubed tomatoes then purée with 2 t tomato paste.
14. 1 T chopped chives
15. Thinly sliced fresh tomato
16. 1 1/2 c mozzarella cheese (organic and fresh) or skip the cheese
17. Finely sliced artichoke hearts
18. Zucchini slices
19. An alternative to the three tomatoes (dried, fresh, and sauce) is to use sliced roasted eggplant along with just the tomato sauce and other ingredients. Roast eggplants alone tossed in avocado oil and topped with chopped garlic at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for 20-30 minutes.
20. After you add your toppings place in a 400 degree preheated Fahrenheit oven and bake for 10 minutes, then reduce heat to 340 degrees Fahrenheit for 25-40 minutes, depending how thin your dough was spread and what pan you are using. When it is done you should be able to lift up a corner and see light brown crisp dough underneath. Or press lightly and it should completely spring back without leaving an indentation.
21. When the focaccia is done you can optionally spread with fresh basil leaves.

What are the scientific and metabolic reasons I should be either vegan, an omnivore, or have a high meat diet?

Either side of the two spectrums of veganism or high meat/paleo diets can be equally harmful because of the amino acid methionine. For vegans, the high intake of this amino acid is not balanced by enough B12 intake, and in high meat eaters, there is simply too much methionine consumed and it clogs up a key metabolic pathway, one-carbon metabolism. Methionine is an essential amino acid that is found in high concentrations in animal-based foods such as meat, fish, dairy products, and is also in high concentrations in grains. When methionine is metabolized, it is converted to homocysteine, which is a key marker of inflammation. A lack of nutrients that operate in one carbon metabolism, such as vitamin B6, folate, vitamin B12, riboflavin <{Powers, 2003 #371}> and DHA can also result in high homocysteine levels. Vegan diets low in B12 and high meat diets have been found to increase the risk of high homocysteine levels.

Vitamin B12 plays a critical role in the metabolism of homocysteine, and a deficiency of this vitamin can lead to a buildup of homocysteine in the blood due to an inability to metabolize methionine . Vegetarians and vegans have been found to have a higher risk of developing vitamin B12 deficiency because animal products are the main dietary sources of this vitamin. Some plant-based foods are fortified with B12, but these supplemental forms of B12 are not as well absorbed as the B12 coming from animal products.

On the other hand, a high meat diet (high in methionine) quickly leads to high levels of homocysteine. In fact, studies show that consuming high levels of methionine from meat results in increased inflammation and communicative diseases, that is diseases caused by lifestyle not a contagion like a disturbed microbiome.

In a broader context, elevated homocysteine levels pose a risk, potentially leading to inflammation, pregnancy complications, and cardiovascular issues. The plausible mechanism through which homocysteine contributes to cardiovascular diseases involves damage to the blood vessel lining, heightened oxidative stress, and increased inflammation. Monitoring homocysteine levels serves as an indicator for the progression of cardiovascular diseases, particularly non-contagious lifestyle diseases like coronary artery disease and stroke. High homocysteine in pregnancy is associated with increased oxidative stress, gestational hypertension, preeclampsia, increased incidence of gestational diabetes, spontaneous abortions or miscarriage, low fetal birth weight and other complications of pregnancy .

Remarkably, a mere 15% reduction in homocysteine levels translates to a substantial 19% decrease in stroke risk and an 11% reduction in the risk of coronary heart disease. The imperative to safeguard against such complications is particularly paramount during the crucial phase of growing a baby or maintenance of anyones optimal health. Mitigating these potential damages is of utmost importance for the well-being of both the mother and the developing fetus.

Protein Combinations

Incomplete proteins are better than complete proteins (mostly)

High quality proteins are generally called such in science for those proteins that have all the essential amino acids. These are also called complete proteins. On the other hand low quality proteins are of such nomenclature when the protein is incomplete. But this is confusing because it does not mean the protein is “low” quality or “high” quality. In fact a low quality protein when combined with other low quality proteins is healthier and provides a greater range of essential phytochemicals and antioxidants than those that are generally referred to as high quality proteins. Consuming high levels of high quality proteins as defined by science is shown to increase levels of homocysteine, and therefore of inflammation and disease.

High quality proteins that are replete with all the amino acids are animal products including sea food. Low quality/incomplete proteins are from plant sources and are missing one or more of the essential amino acids. The incomplete proteins should be combined in the following ways to make a complete “high” quality protein. These combinations are as follows.

Beans + Grains
Lysine + Methionine

Beans + Nuts
Lysine + Methionine

Grains + Vegetables
Methionine + Lysine

Brewers Yeast + Grains
Lysine + Methionine

If one evenly balanced a consideration of the positive and negative effects of protein sources then “high” quality proteins would be those sources that contain more nutrients than protein such as essential healthy fats and minerals. These are plant sources because fats from mostly plants are the required fats (with the exception of the n-6 arachidonic fat from poultry with some levels in meat). This focaccia dough has a mixture of bean and grains so you are intaking complete proteins.

During pregnancy these foods would be seeds, legumes, nuts, shellfish, wild small seafood, and eggs. Seeds and nuts have healthy fats and minerals in high concentrations as well as B vitamins (depending on which seed/nut).

Some plant proteins are complete proteins, even if they are lower in some of the amino acids. These are hemp seeds, quinoa, blue-green algae, soybeans, Sacha Inchi powder (the ground Sacha Inch beans), and buckwheat. Kasha (toasted buckwheat) is frequently included in this book as a breakfast topped with hemp seed milk and berries. This is a super way to start your day and takes 1 minute with one hand to make which is perfect for a newly lactating mother juggling a fat little basketball that moves by it’s own will rather than the desires of it’s mommy to stay still so she can cook.

The exception to the rule of incomplete proteins being better than complete is for eggs and seafood. This includes eggs of all species because of their high levels of choline, B12, and cholesterol which is needed for your increased needs for bile due to the hyperlipidemic state of pregnancy. Eggs are also 100 percent digestible or have a protein digestibility amino acid score (PDAAC) of 1. There are some flaws with this method of evaluating how much a protein in a food is actually digested, but it gives you an range compared to other foods. Beans are in the 0.7 to 0.78 range for the PDAAC.

Seafood is valuable as a protein source not because it is a complete protein but because of the omega-3 fatty acids it contains, selenium, and high levels of other nutrients. Also seafood has not been shown to contribute to inflammation nor disease.