Gluten Free Green Mommy

I have moved my blog to gfmum.wordpress.com I will keep what I have already done here but new posts and recipes will be at the other site. I was really not liking blogger but I love wordpress. I have transferred all my posts and recipes to the new site. Please join me there.

Thanks!
Kim

Almond Coconut Cookies

2010-01-25T09:33:00.000-08:00

I have been trying to decrease my intake of sugar and simple carbs. I usually don't really have a sweet tooth but because I am trying not to eat sugar I am therefore craving it. So this morning I wanted to make a cookie that would satisfy my craving for something sweet but would still be lower in carbs and even offer some nutrition. These cookies are gluten free, dairy free, egg free, soy and corn free and very low in sugar. They are sweetened with a bit of honey. What they are not is taste free. They are surprisingly good. Additionally they are high in fiber and are incredibly satisfying. And Yes! the kids and husband actually like them. Store them in the fridge and feel free to use these as a healthy snack in between meals. I have also used grape seed oil for the first time. Grape seed oil is a bit pricey so I had resisted buying it. Then I read a bit about it.

Grape seed oil is an excellent source of the antioxidant Vitamin E, as well as a beneficial monounsaturated fats, including oleic acid, an omega-9 fatty acid that researchers from the University of California, Irvine found can suppress food cravings in between meals. During digestion, oleic acid is converted into oleoylethanolamide (OEA), a hunger fighting hormone that stimulates cells which tell your brain that you're full. Further, adding grape seed oil to high glycemic foods, like refined breads, white rice and potatoes, can slow the rise in blood sugar levels. Fast rising blood sugar triggers your pancreas to release a flood of insulin, a hormone that lowers blood sugar but also signals your body to store fat. A caveat: The nasty chemical hexane is often used to extract the oil from the grape seeds so look for organic or expeller pressed varieties. (Excerpt from Living Without Magazine Feb March 2010 issue)

So, I think I will be using much more of this very mild and neutral tasting oil in the future. Impressive isn't it?!

Almond Coconut Cookies

2 cups raw almonds

1 cup fine shredded unsweetened dried coconut

1/8 tsp cardamom

1/2 tsp nutmeg

1/4 cup grape seed oil

1/4 cup honey

1/2 tsp sea salt

4 oz 60% -72% chocolate. (I used Ghirardelli)

In a food processor add almonds and process until you have as fine a meal as your machine will make. Add remaining ingredients and process for another minute or two. Line cookie sheets with parchment paper. Take teaspoons full and roll into balls and press down into discs about 1/2 inch thick. Bake in preheated 350 degree oven for 10 minutes until they are just starting to brown. While cookies are baking, slowly melt melt chocolate in a small nonstick pot. When cookies are done let them cool for a bit then drizzle chocolate over top. Store in the fridge.

Kim's Whole Grain GF, DF Bread ~ Simplified Version

2010-01-14T18:16:00.000-08:00

I have been making my whole grain gluten and dairy free bread for a couple of years now. Last June I finally posted my recipe with detailed instructions. That recipe is far and away my most visited post. That makes me happy! The hardest part of being gluten free is trying to stomach gluten free rice based "bread". I still make this once or twice a week. But as time has gone by I have started making some changes. The recipe is still basically the same but I have started making it a bit simpler with fewer ingredients. The result is the same. I still end up with the best tasting bread I have ever had. I just made some this morning and for lunch had a slice of it, still warm, dipped in olive oil with minced fresh rosemary, kosher salt and fresh ground pepper. Bliss! Anyway, here is what I am doing now.

Kim's GF DF Whole Grain Bread ~ Simplified Version

1 1/3 cup water warmed to just beyond body temperature
1/4 cup canola oil
1/4 cup honey
3 lightly beaten eggs
1 1/2 tsp salt

1 cup teff flour - ivory or dark (May also use brown rice flour)
1 cup sorghum flour (May also use 1 cup of millet, buckwheat, quinoa, amaranth)
1 cup potato starch
1 slightly heaping T xanthan gum
2 1/4 tsp - 1 T dry active yeast (Start with smallest amount and if you didn't get the rise you wanted try more next time)
1 T sesame seeds
1 T flax seeds

The directions are the same as in my original recipe. I don't always take the time to sift but you get a better blended loaf if you do. I also add a few more flax seeds and sesame seeds to the top of the batter after I pull the paddle out of the bread maker just to make it prettier. (I am also told that this can be done with egg replacer if you are allergic to eggs.) Try this. Eat and be happy!

Thank You ~ My Amazing New Shun Knife

2010-01-14T15:56:00.001-08:00

In December one of my favorite blogs was having a Holiday Giveaway. Brian, from Fire and Salt, contacted several companies to participate. These companies generously donated some very cool items to be given away. I entered to win and unbelievably did win. I won an incredible Shun knife, courtesy of Kai USA. To be completely honest with you I had never heard of Shun knives. I must have been living under a rock. This knife is amazing. I have never had or even used a knife like this. Even my ever skeptical husband proclaimed "Geez! I think you could shave with this thing." I am loving this knife and am incredibly impressed with it's performance. I had become accustomed to my knives chopping at irregular angles and needing to use considerable effort aka muscle. With this knife I can cut very precise and even cuts. The knife is balanced, weighty and comfortable in your hand. It is so sharp that you need almost no effort at all to cut through anything. This makes prepping/cutting/preparing so much faster. Now the problem of course is that I am going to need more of these because I now know how completely inadequate all of my other knives are. So thank you to Brian at Fire and Salt and Kai USA for my new Shun Classic Ultimate Cooks Kitchen Knife. I love it.

Lentil and Cauliflower Salad

2010-01-09T10:38:00.000-08:00

I just whipped this up for lunch. Had my camera been working I still wouldn't have been able to pry it away from my girls to take a picture. Sorry. This was fast and easy to make and very satisfying. I was stunned when both of my girls devoured it. Yes, even the three year old who hates all vegetables.

1/2 cup brown lentils
1 cup raw cauliflower chopped into tiny florets
1/2 cup olive oil
1/4 cup rice vinegar
1 large clove garlic
small pinch of cumin
few drops of agave or honey (maybe 1/4 tsp)
salt and pepper to taste

Bring water to boil add salt and then add lentils. Cook until they are tender but not mushy. While those are cooking prepare the cauliflower and put into medium sized salad bowl. For the dressing: Using a blender or small food processor add garlic, vinegar salt and pepper, blend until smooth. Add cumin and olive oil. Blend until you have a creamy emulsion. Taste for salt and pepper and add a tiny bit of honey or agave. This is just to cut the tang of the vinegar, not to make it sweet. I like to use rice vinegar for salad dressings since it is a bit milder than white vinegar. When lentils are done to your liking drain and give a quick rinse. Add lentils to cauliflower and toss with desired amount of dressing. Serve immediately. I make this salad fairly often. I use this same dressing and lentils and sub veggies. I love this with finely sliced green cabbage or lots of fresh coarsely chopped parsley, celery or broccoli.

Against the Grain

2010-01-08T10:28:00.000-08:00

Here is an excellent article from Columbia University.

Some quick stats: 1 in 100 people in the US have CD. 97 of those people don't know they have it. Only 1 in 6 people who have CD have typical gastrointestinal symptoms. Many are completely asymptomatic. Untreated CD can lead to cancer, diabetes, and a host of other autoimmune diseases. 80% of medical research in the US is done by drug companies and because CD is treated without drugs there is very little attention given to the disease. Most physicians receive their continuing education from drug reps. Physicians taught in the US are still taught that CD is a rare disease of childhood.

Perfect GF Shortbread Cookies

2009-12-17T19:17:00.000-08:00

Christmas may begin. For me it doesn't feel like Christmas until I have had my mom's famous shortbread cookies. My mom made these every year when I was a kid. They were always every ones favorite. I used her recipe but subbed the all purpose wheat flour for my gf all purpose flour. They turned out EXACTLY as I remember them and my mom agreed. They are light, fluffy, fragile, buttery, melt in your mouth perfection. They are the way shortbread cookies should be. Once, I tried a commercial shortbread. That is not shortbread. This is shortbread.

Fabulously Perfect Real GF Shortbread Cookies

3 cups Kim's all purpose flour mix

1 cup of icing/confectioners sugar

1/2 cup cornstarch

1 lb butter softened to room temperature ***This must be real butter, not margarine or shortening***

1 tsp vanilla

Preheat oven to 325. Cream butter and dry ingredients. This takes a while. Add vanilla. Beat until fluffy. You may drop by teaspoonful onto ungreased cookie sheet ( I always use parchment paper to make my life easier) but these are best if you use a cookie press. In the pictures below I used a piping bag as my cookie press just died. Then decorate the cookies with maraschino cherry bits, chocolate chips or sprinkles. They are meant to be small and delicate. Bake for 15 minutes. Do not brown. This will make 7-8 dozen small cookies.

Kim's All Purpose Gluten Free Flour mix

2009-12-15T14:12:00.000-08:00

We have been gf for 3 years next month. In that time only once have I purchased an all purpose flour. I tried Bob's Red Mill and I greatly disliked it. It had bean flour in it and I just don't like the flavor of bean flour. Everyone and their dog sells their own special blend of "All Purpose Gluten Free Flour." It costs a small fortune. I found that when I was browsing the internet for recipes and someone listed an all purpose flour mix, I would just click on by because I will not buy that stuff because of the ridiculous price. Then a couple of weeks ago I decided to create my own. No, I have no plans on trying to sell it. Most of them are roughly the same anyway. But I have to say, I was really, really pleased with the way it worked. I have used it as a 1:1 substitution for wheat flour in some of my favorite Christmas treats (recipe to follow) and it turned out EXACTLY like as if I had used wheat flour. That said, I have yet to try this in anything fried and I have not tried it in bread but it did work great in everything I have tried it for. So here is what I did for a very, very small fraction of the cost of buying a prepackaged "All Purpose Mix."

Kim's All Purpose Gluten Free Flour Mix

1/2 cup white rice flour
1/4 cup tapioca flour
1/4 cup potato starch
1/2 tsp xanthan gum

I used the inexpensive flours I get from the Asian market. They are very fine and powdery. I just mix it all up in a Ziploc and store it in there. I hope it works as well for you as it has for me.

Teff Polenta with Grilled Veggies

2009-12-11T12:51:00.000-08:00

A while back we discovered teff. Not familiar with teff? You're not alone. When doing a spell check the word isn't even in the spell check dictionary. Here is some info on teff. We read about it's nutritional benefits and we were sold. Without discussing it with me, Ron ordered 25 pounds of the ivory teff flour and 25 pounds of teff seed. He has such faith in me that I would be able to figure out what the heck to do with it all. I just finished my 25 pounds of flour last week. It lasted about 7 or 8 months. I use it in place of brown rice flour in many cases and it is the base of my bread recipe. The seed, well that is another story. We use it in our 9 grain cereal and I have used it to make cornless cornbread (which was awesome and I will post soon) but beyond that I am not sure what to do with it. For lunch today I was craving something light and yet hearty. I was determined to use some of that teff seed. I whipped up something that reminded me of corn polenta but only much, much better. Have you ever had one of those meals that just makes you feel happy? One that makes you feel satisfied, not guilty, not craving, not bloated and just plain...well... happy? Well that is how this dish made me feel. I was able to get Sage (5) to try it and she liked it and came back for more. I couldn't get Rori (3) or Justus (18 months) to even try it. Oh well at least one of them tried and liked it. I loved it. I served it with grilled veggies. I sliced the veggies and grilled them outside, dry, with nothing on them. Once they were done to my liking I drizzled olive oil and a bit of kosher salt on them. They too were fantastic!

Teff Polenta

1-2 T olive oil

3-4 cloves of minced garlic

1 can diced tomatoes

1/2 cup teff seed

3 T minced fresh basil

1 1/2 cup water

salt and pepper to taste

Warm olive oil in medium skillet. Add minced garlic. Cook on medium heat for a minute. Add tomatoes, teff seed, basil, water, salt and pepper. Stir and cook covered for about 15 minutes on medium low. Remove lid, turn off heat and stir. Let it sit for about 10 minutes and as it does it will thicken more. Serve with a drizzle of olive oil on top.

Kale Chips

2009-12-07T20:57:00.000-08:00

I'll admit it, I don't like kale. Kale is that stuff that sometimes comes on your plate as a garnish that you quickly remove. Kale is that stuff that you see in salad bars that the salad is sitting on. It is a green, leafy veggie that is a bit tough and I think it is a bit bitter. So when I kept seeing other people blogging about kale chips I quickly clicked on by. But I kept seeing it and everyone raves about it. So, trying to be open minded I decided to give it a whirl. I made Kale "Chips". I am not going to bother to post a picture because to be honest, they are not very pretty and this has been blogged about so much by so many others, what is the point, right? I am adding it here so that I don't forget about it. Do you ever do that? Just completely forget about something that you love??? Anyway, stunningly, these are amazing. Seriously, they are fantastic. The first time I made them my mom and I ate an entire bunch to ourselves. I should point out here that she had the same kale aversion that I had. Then I served them as an appetizer to about 15 people. I made 3 bunches (or are they heads?) and it was all eaten. Now for the most unbelievable thing... all 3 of my very picky kids and my husband all like them (although my husband won't admit that he likes them, he did eat a lot of the plate)!! That is what I should have done: taken a picture of my kids devouring them. Now here is the best part; it's nutritional benefits. This is now a regular in our house. Making it is so easy that it isn't really even a "recipe" but here is what I did.

Kale Chips

1 bunch of kale (washed and dried)

olive oil

kosher salt

Preheat oven to 350. Tear kale up in bite sized pieces. Toss the tough, woody stem. Lay the pieces out on a cookie sheet and do not let them overlap. Lightly sprinkle with olive oil. It would be good to have a sprayer for this but I don't so I just drizzled it. Then, very lightly sprinkle with kosher salt. Bake at 350 for about 15 minutes or until they are crispy. (If they are not crispy and are still a bit pliable, they will be tough~ and then you just have kale) Serve immediately as a substitute for potato chips or the like.

Flax Bread

2009-11-30T16:00:00.000-08:00

Here is one to put in the regular rotation. Super high in fiber and omega 3 and 6. It is grain free, sugar free, dairy free and obviously gluten free. I made this last week. I can take no credit for it but I wanted to post it with the changes that I made so that I could repeat it - often! This one comes from Elana's Pantry. Here is the original recipe. Here is what I did.

Flax Bread

1 cups flax meal

1 teaspoons baking soda

1/4 teaspoon xanthan gum

1/2 t salt

1 T agave nectar

3 small eggs, whisked

1/4 cup water

⅓ cup olive oil

Preheat oven to 350. Spray a glass pie plate. Pour in batter and bake for 20 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Let cool slightly and cut into wedges. Great as a side for dinner.

This was awesome with butter and would probably have been great with some jam. I had to restrain myself from eating the whole pan. (with that much fiber, that would not have been pretty.)

Celiac Disease: It's More Than Just The Trots

2009-10-18T17:40:00.000-07:00

Let's say that someone in your family had a history of breast or testicular cancer. Then one morning you are in the shower and you feel a lump in your breast or testicle. What would you do? Would you go see your doctor to be evaluated? Of course you would, right?! You wouldn't sit at home and try to ignore the lump. You wouldn't say, "my breast/teste is too important to me so I don't want to find out what this lump is because that may mean losing it." That could possibly be suicidal, right? Well, Celiac Disease is no different. Untreated Celiac Disease can cause conditions that can be fatal. It should not be ignored. Good nutrition is the basis of health and Celiac Disease prevents good nutrition. In CD, even minute amounts of gluten (which is found in more than just "flour") will destroy your small intestine. It will cause damage even if you are not having symptoms. Your small intestine is where all the vitamins, minerals, protein, etc is absorbed. They are absorbed by tiny little finger like projections called villi. Celiac Disease flattens and destroys those villi making it impossible to absorb the nutrition you need to stay healthy and fight disease. Gluten will eventually cause disease, debility and yes, even death in a person with CD. CD is an auto immune disease. It is not an allergy, a sensitivity or an intolerance. It needs to be taken as seriously as cancer. It is more than just the inconvenience of a few extra trips to the bathroom.

I talked to a woman a couple of weeks ago and she was saying that her friend has a daughter with CD. "But she (the young girl) has so many other health issues that (the mother) just lets it (the CD) go." She said that the diet was just too hard and the child's symptoms weren't that bad so they just don't worry about it. I could not believe what I was hearing. Clearly it isn't completely the mothers fault that there is a Grand Canyon's worth of education missing in this family. That mother has no idea that most, if not all, of the child's other issues are a result of her Celiac Disease and just because she wasn't having diarrhea did not mean that it wasn't an enormous problem. The woman told me that this poor little kid has crippling Rheumatoid Arthritis. It is so bad she can't even walk up stairs. It is heartbreaking to me that the mother doesn't know that RA is also an autoimmune disease and that it was likely triggered by untreated CD. Why didn't the girl's doctor educate the mother? Maybe it was because he didn't know. When my husband was diagnosed they weren't looking for CD so we had no idea what was coming. We were completely unprepared. The day he got that diagnosis the doctor handed him his biopsy results and said "you need to go on a gluten free diet, permanently." That was it. No further education. Done. He just got instructions to follow up for another biopsy in one year. When my friend was diagnosed this March, her GI doctor told her that "at least you can still have Mexican food." (I can't even count the number of ways that this is wrong.) Again, no education, no referral to someone who could educate.

The newest research says that 1 in 100 people have CD and that if you have a blood relative that has CD, you have a 1 in 22 chance of having it. Mark my words here and now: those numbers are inaccurate and the true number is much, much higher. Of all the people I know that have CD, they are not the only one in their family who has it. If you have a family member that has CD you NEED to be screened. Saying that the diet is just too difficult or you don't have the time to do it or that you love your bread or pasta or whatever too much, isn't a good enough reason to not get screened. You need to ask your doctor to have the appropriate blood work done. If he/she refuses then find another doctor. Some doctors still believe that CD is rare. You need to be screened even if you don't have diarrhea. Some people have constipation. Some people have both and some people don't have a single symptom and do not feel sick. That doesn't mean that they don't have the disease or that the gluten that they are ingesting is not damaging their body. It may just mean they don't have symptoms yet. When you do get your blood drawn keep in mind that a negative result does not mean that you don't have CD and are free and clear forever. It just means that you don't have enough antibodies in your blood on that day. That could change in a month or a year or never. The point is, you won't know if you aren't screened. There is a grey area or continuum in CD diagnosis, meaning that there is a period of time from when the disease starts to when antibodies can be detected in your blood. That period of time is different for everyone. So, if you have symptoms or if you have a family member who has it, you should be screened regularly. If you have any autoimmune diseases (Type 1 diabetes, Arthritis, thyroid disorders etc) know that autoimmune diseases tend to come in groups. Meaning, if you have one you are at greater risk to have another.

I wonder about the number of kids that are on the autism spectrum (Aspergers, ADD, ADHD etc). There was a recent study just released about about the incidence of autism. Turns out it is much more prevalent that previously thought. I bring this up because I am absolutely positive that had we not had the diagnosis for my husband; my oldest daughter would be diagnosed with ADHD. When she ingests gluten she has more behavioral symptoms than GI (although she does have those too depending on dose). She gets hyperactive, defiant, belligerent, aggressive, angry, sad and volatile. It is horrible to see and our hearts break for her when this happens. I wonder if we would ever have gotten a diagnosis of CD if it weren't for her daddy's diagnosis since she doesn't present with "typical" symptoms. Prior to eliminating gluten from her diet her only other symptom aside from the behavioral stuff was that she was small.

The previous mentioned friend had both her daughters tested and one was positive. Other than just being small, she had no symptoms. My friend encouraged her family to get tested. They did. Both her father and her only other sibling both have it. Now, I am no statistician but that does not work out to 1 in 22. It's the same in my immediate family. 2 of our 3 kids have it. There are many in my husbands family that likely have it too. His mother and her father, though not diagnosed, in retrospect likely had it too. They both died in nursing homes with atypical Alzheimer dementia with a long history of bowel issues and depression. My husband is one of seven children. One other has an "assumed celiac" diagnosis and others report symptoms but have not yet been screened. That's not 1 in 22 either. That is only a few examples of many I could site.

Here is a list of possible symptoms of CD. Here is a list of conditions that are associated with CD. Here is a list of conditions that are probably associated with CD. Yes, it's a huge list and like I said, some people have no symptoms at all because the damage has just started. Don't wait until you have a laundry list of those ailments and don't wait until you have cancer. If you have a family member who has CD you must be screened and your children must be screened. Screen now and screen often. And pass on the message!

****If you are the owner of a gluten free / Celiac blog, please consider linking this post to your blog to help spread the message. Help me to increase Celiac awareness. Thanks****

GF, Grain Free, Doughnut - Muffins

2009-08-04T15:30:00.000-07:00

I am on several Celiac message boards where people exchange all sorts of information about CD. A subject that has come up several times is fiber. Apparently a common complaint among people with CD is that they just can't seem to get enough fiber in their diet. I can't say that I understand that. I think others must eat a lot of processed prepackaged premade food. Of course the complaint that always accompanies the fiber complaint is that GF foods cost more. I don't get that either. Ron and I were talking the other day and we were trying to figure out if there are any items that cost us more now that we eat GF. We could only come up with one thing that costs more. Pasta. We like one particular brand - Tinkinyada and it is the most expensive (but it is worth it). Other than that we couldn't come up with a single thing that costs us more. We kill these two "birds" with one stone by buying almost no processed foods. We buy a bunch of different flours/whole grains (and then grind into flour) and we buy them in bulk. Yes they are more expensive than wheat but because I make all our bread, muffins, pizza crusts, cookies, cakes etc etc that more than evens out. And thanks to CD we now eat so much better than we ever did before. We routinely eat grains that I had previously had never heard of but are real powerhouses of nutrition. Along with better nutrition comes more fiber. Lack of fiber is NEVER an issue in my house. In this past week I made two different baked items that were grain free, gluten free and sugar free and oh ya super high in fiber. Yesterday I made these "Doughnut - Muffins." They were so good. We ate 12 in less than a day. Even 2 of the 3 kids liked them. Here is the original recipe. I didn't make many changes but I will post what I did change.

Doughnut - Muffins

1 cup flax meal
1 cup almond meal (I processed 1 cup raw almonds in my coffee grinder)
1 T baking powder
1/4 t salt
1 1/4 t nutmeg
1 t cinnamon
4 packets Truvia (stevia)
2 T agave nectar
2 T honey
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, melted
4 eggs, beaten
1/2 cup water
.
Topping:
1/4 cup sugar
1 t cinnamon
2 T melted butter

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line muffin tin.
Mix dry ingredients well (exclude those used for topping). Add beaten eggs, melted butter, water, and sweeteners to the dry mixture. Mix well. Divide batter into 12 muffins. Bake for 20 minutes. Allow to cool slightly. Then (for the kids of course) melt butter in a small bowl. Dip a muffin top into the butter then dip it into the cinnamon sugar bowl. Tastes just like a cinnamon sugar cake doughnut.

New Picture

2009-08-03T11:54:00.000-07:00

Life has been too busy to blog much. So for now, for my family, here is a recent pic. The kids love riding on their wiggle cars. Often they will all ride on the same one (always with Justus driving). It is hard to get a good picture of all of them at once. I so wish Justus and Rori had had clothes on. It's just too hot here to bother though.

Low Carb Chocolate Cupcakes

2009-07-20T14:21:00.000-07:00

I was craving something sweet again today. Like I said before I don't have much of a sweet tooth so I figure I am only craving this because I am trying not to eat sugar. I went to one of my favorite food bloggers; Elana's Pantry. Sure enough she has a recipe for chocolate cupcakes using coconut flour and agave nectar. Perfect! Here is what I did as I made a few changes based on what I had in the house. I used some Truvia in place of some agave to help lower the carb count. These were AWESOME. I know what I will be having for birthday parties now!!!! Please check out the original recipe and Elana's site. She has some wonderful recipes that are lower carb, dairy and gluten free and organic. As always I do this blog to keep track of what I do in the kitchen so I can repeat recipes we like. I am not trying to take credit for someone else's recipes.

Chocolate Cupcakes

1/4 cup coconut flour

1/4 cup cocoa powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/4 tsp salt

3 eggs

1/4 cup coconut oil

1/4 cup agave nectar

2 packets Truvia

Not so eloquently I dumped it all in a bowl and whisked until smooth. I lined and filled 6 muffin tins. Baked at 375 for 13 minutes. They look identical to any other wheat filled chocolate cupcake and tasted just as good. Elana has a recipe for a vegan chocolate frosting. I used that idea but used butter, agave and cocoa powder. It was better than frosting with icing sugar. I didn't measure anything precisely but I guesstimate that I used 5 TBSP softened butter, 1 T cocoa powder and 2 T agave nectar and whipped it all together. I put it in the freezer for a few minutes to help it harden a bit before frosting the cupcakes. Seriously, these are fantastic!

Cookie Failure

2009-07-11T16:46:00.001-07:00

Today I was craving a cookie. I don't normally have a sweet tooth but because I am trying to watch my carbs I was craving sugar. You know how that goes. I started out with a recipe and was actually going to follow the recipe, which I seldom do. But I barely got started and just knew it had to be wrong. Way to dry. Seriously dry. Like the flours wouldn't even mix in. So the changes began. I ended up with a chocolate peanut butter chocolate chip cookie. It was the usual: gluten free, dairy free and it sugar free (sweetened with agave). I hear so often from friends and family, "your such a good cook" etc. But really it is just about lots of practice and many failures. Today is a great example. FAILURE. These cookies were so bad. I gave one to Sage and she popped a bite into her mouth and started to chew. She then stopped chewing and just stared at me. It was written all over her face. "These are disgusting." I bust out laughing. I delayed chucking them in the garbage so that Ron could sample. At first he said they were okay. Then he took another bite and he says, "dry wall compound would go down better than these." Oh well, you win some you lose some.

Blueberry Muffins (Coconut Flour)

2009-07-09T15:22:00.000-07:00

Like I said, I am loving coconut flour. Here is another winner. Grain free, gluten, dairy and sugar free. Probably relatively low carb although I haven't calculated it out. I have already made these 3 times in the last week. They go fast. Again, they get the kid stamp of approval.

Blueberry Muffins

3 eggs, room temperature

2 T coconut oil, melted

1/4 cup agave nectar (honey would work fine)

1/2 cup fresh or frozen blueberries (if frozen, defrost them and dry them in paper towels)

1/4 tsp salt

1 tsp vanilla

1/4 tsp nutmeg

1/4 cup coconut flour

1/2 tsp baking powder

Preheat oven to 400 degrees and line muffin tin with paper or oil. Whisk together eggs, oil, and agave. Add salt, vanilla, nutmeg, coconut flour and baking powder. Whisk until smooth. Gently fold in blueberries. Try not to mix too much or your batter will be blue. Spoon into 6 muffin tins and bake for 15 minutes.

Italian Sausage and Garden Veggies

2009-07-01T12:36:00.000-07:00

This is what I made tonight. We loved it enough to have 2 bowls and then be uncomfortably full. I hate it when I do that. The dishes were not even done and I had to sit to write the recipe down so that I could do it again. My garden is doing pretty well and I had lots of herbs and veggies that I needed to use up. Then I added the olives because Ron thinks everything is better with olives. Anyway, it was really good.

Italian Sausage and Garden Veggies

6 Italian sausages cut into pieces

1-2 T olive oil

1 large onion coarsely chopped

5 cloves garlic minced

10-12 small chopped fresh tomatoes or 1 (14 oz) can diced tomatoes

1 carrot sliced

1 green pepper coarsely chopped

1 zucchini sliced and halved

1 yellow squash sliced and halved

1 cup coarsely chopped green olives with pimentos

1 large sprig fresh rosemary finely chopped

6-7 sprigs fresh thyme stems removed

3 TBSP fresh oregano

1 cup fresh chopped basil

1 14 oz can tomato sauce

In a large pot heat olive oil. Add sausages and brown the outside. Add onions and garlic. Cook for a couple of minutes and then add next 5 veggies. Cook until veggies are nearly soft. Then add remaining ingredients. Simmer for 20 or 30 minutes and serve with pasta. Or for a low carb meal sub roasted spaghetti squash for the pasta.

Balsamic Salad Dressing

2009-06-28T14:33:00.000-07:00

Since going GF I have become accustomed to reading the label for everything we buy. If you don't have any diet restrictions you maybe haven't done this. It's an eye opener. There are some things that have so much stuff in them that don't seem to resemble food. I try to eat with the thought in mind: "if it's not food then don't eat it." Over time I have noticed that my tastes have changed. One item that always has lots and lots of stuff in it is bottled salad dressing. I can not stand the taste of it now. The vast majority of them have soybean oil in them as a base. I really dislike anything with soy. I think it tastes funky. So I always make my own salad dressings. The variety and possibilities are endless. It is a fraction of the cost of buying it. You can make small amounts so you don't have to worry about it expiring. Then there is the whole thing with buying more things that will eventually cause more trash. Best of all, homemade salad dressings taste way way way better than bought!!! And it only takes a minute to make them. Here is one of my favorites.

Balsamic Salad Dressing

1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
pinch of salt
pinch of celery seed
2 tsp agave nectar
fresh ground pepper

These are approximate measurements. I never measure when making salad dressings. Just wing it and adjust to your tastes. Mix everything in a mason jar and your good to go!

Beans Beans the Musical Fruit....

2009-06-24T10:51:00.001-07:00

Every time I think about making beans I can hear my dad saying that little rhyme. You know the one right? Anyway, in an effort to try to eat a healthy GF diet AND not go broke we are trying to incorporate more beans into the rotation. We always have them on hand and while I have always liked beans I have trouble coming up with different and satisfying ways to make them. This morning I came across this site. It is awesome. I have never seen so many bean recipes. At the top of the page you can choose the type of bean you are interested in making and then your choices are narrowed a bit. There are so many recipes here, like 4521 of them, that it will be hard to choose. If it is good I will pass on what I made. And once again, I am grateful for my pressure cooker!

Low Carb Banana Nut Muffins

2009-06-22T09:59:00.000-07:00

My new favorite thing is coconut flour. Do you know about this? I had seen a few recipes with it and I had seen it at the store but I had disregarded it because it was a bit pricey and I already have approximately 3 dozen different flours. How many flours must one have, right? Well, this one is a must. I started reading about it's benefits. When I got to the part that said it was seriously low, low carb and was considered a nut flour, I was sold. I ordered some right that minute. I got mine here. It arrived quickly and I have been baking nearly everyday for the last week. When I was pregnant with my first and third babies, oddly not the second, I was diagnosed with gestational diabetes. This was really unfair. I have absolutely no family predisposition, I am white, and my BMI is on the low side of normal. My only risk factor was being old, 32 at the time. The first time I had it I even had to take insulin shots. That really sucked. I was told at that time that since I was insulin dependant that there was a 50/50 chance that I would become a type II diabetic within 5 years. Well, lately I have noticed that I just can't tolerate high carb meals. I feel that familiar lethargy and thirst. Combine that with that video I posted a week or so back about how sugar effects the brain.... Anyway, I have to change the way I eat. Even more so than I already have. So, I made these this morning. They are gluten free, dairy free and sugar free. With my calculations I think these muffins are about 9 carbs a piece. If someone comes up with a different number please let me know. Additionally, they got the kid stamp of approval.

Banana Nut Muffins

3 mashed over ripe bananas
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda

6 eggs
4 T coconut oil melted
3 packets Truvia
1 tbsp agave nectar
1/2 t cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1 tsp almond extract
1/2 tsp salt

1/2 cup coconut flour
1/2 cup cashews chopped

Preheat oven to 350. Line muffin liners with paper or oil pan. Mix first 3 ingredients in a medium bowl. Then mix next 8 ingredients in large bowl. Then whisk in coconut flour. Whisk until smooth. Fold in bananas and cashews. Fill 12 muffin tins nearly to the top. Bake for 25 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.

Kim's Gluten Free, Dairy Free, Whole Grain Bread

2009-06-10T10:52:00.000-07:00

I think the most common complaint about being on a GF diet is the loss of wheat bread. If you have ever bought a loaf of gf bread you know what I am talking about. It is hideous. It has a funky texture, you can not eat it if it isn't toasted, it falls apart, it has to be kept in the freezer and for all that you pay a fortune. On top of all that, it is nutritionally void. it is usually made of white rice flour and tapioca flour. Metabolically speaking, those are nothing but sugar. And fiber...ugh, none. Wouldn't it be nice to have yummy bread again? Well, here it is. I have been asked several times to post this recipe. It has taken this long because I was going to save it and then figure out a way to market it and then make my millions. ;) Yes, it's that good, in our opinion. But since I will probably never get to that here it is. The directions look like this is really involved. It isn't. I have just added all the little options and possibilities.

I have posted a revised simplified version of this same recipe. There are fewer ingredients and the result is the same. If you want to combine several flours for a varied nutritional profile then use this recipe. If you want speed use the simplified one.

Kim's GF, DF Whole Grain Bread

3 large eggs lightly beaten

1 tsp apple cider vinegar

1/4 cup oil of choice (canola, olive, corn, coconut, grapeseed etc)

1 1/3 cup milk of choice - unsweetened (rice, hemp, almond, cows) warmed to about body temperature

1T +1 t honey

3 T brown sugar

1/2 cup millet,sorghum, quinoa, amaranth or buckwheat (choose one)

1/2 cup second choice of flour - millet, sorghum, quinoa, amaranth or buckwheat (choose one)

1 cup multi grain rice flour, brown rice flour or my favorite teff flour

1/2 cup tapioca flour

1/2 cup corn starch (potato starch works too)

3 t xanthan gum

1 1/2 t salt

2 1/4 t dry active yeast

optional add ins:

flax seeds

sesame seeds

sunflower seeds

add in a total of about a 1/4 cup

Directions:

Combine first 6 ingredients in bread maker pan. Sift next 7 ingredients and then add it on top of liquid ingredients. Toss in your add ins. Make a little well in the dry ingredients and add the yeast in to the hole. Start the bread maker. I do not have a bread maker that has a setting for gluten free bread. So during the initial mixing part I help it out a little. I use a soft spatula and scrape down the sides and help everything get all mixed in. GF bread needs less time as there is no need for additional punch downs like with wheat bread. My machine allows me to program in personal recipes so I use the following settings:

No preheat

Knead 1 = 5 minutes

Knead 2 = 15 minutes

Rise = 60 minutes

Bake 50 minutes

Temp 340 degrees

This makes about a 1.5 lb loaf and I always used to make this bread on the regular bread setting and it turned out fine. I now use my own program just so that I can speed up the process. It takes about 1 hour less my way. One other thing I do is remove the paddle after the mixing is done. I just don't like having the hole left in the middle from it. I just wet my hand, reach in and grab it, then smooth the top down, filling in the hole. Just make sure you grab it before any rising has started.

This recipe is really forgiving. I routinely mix and match the flours. I usually make this without any rice flour as I am not convinced that rice is terribly healthy. Besides, if you use much rice flour then you get the typical texture of gf rice bread which I don't like. Depending on which flours I use it will alter the look and texture as well as taste. We like them all. Often the bread rises really well but by the time it is finished baking and cooling it will fall a bit in the middle which will create an uneven top. We couldn't care less how it looks because it tastes GREAT. My mom eats gluten and she loves this bread. So much so that the last time she came to visit I baked her a loaf to take home. I have been making this for nearly 2 years and although it looks pretty involved it goes pretty quickly. Recently I bought a loaf of gf bread because I wanted to make turkey stuffing and that was just more convenient. It was approximately $6 per loaf! And it tasted like styrofoam to me. I could not eat it. Not even toasted. And this was the only bread that I used to be able to choke down, best of the best so to speak. My bread can actually be eaten as bread instead of toast. (I could never eat the store bought stuff unless it was toasted.) As with all gf baking, it is best on the first day but it is still good after several days. You could slice and freeze to use as needed but we usually eat it all in 2-3 days.

*xanthan gum: if this is your first time baking gluten free bread, you might not be familiar with this ingredient. This is needed for most gf baking. It is what replaces the gluten in wheat bread. It's what holds everything together. When you buy this be warned it is kind of pricey but it is essential and it will last a long long time.

**gf flours are expensive. We have found a way around this to some extent. We will buy 25 pound bags of several whole grains and then grind our own flour. We decided to go this route since CD is a lifelong diet change, the grinder etc will pay for itself over the years. We either get the grains directly from the mills online or we get it from our usual health food store. Given a little notice the local store can order it for us and then we get a discounted price from them. It is also safer to do it this way as there is no possibility of cross contamination from those bins and scoops. We use this online company. On their site they also have some great information on nutritional values of the grains they sell. We also bought our grain mill here. They have several different ones available. Another option for buying gf grains is to go to an asian supermarket. The one we have here is incredible. They have every possible flour. They are also much much cheaper than getting those 1 1/4 lb bags of flour from your grocery store. The only problem is that they are not labelled gf. So if that is important to you then you could try online retailers as well as a health food store or grocery store but you will pay a little (or a lot) more for that certification.

Edited July 20/09: I have had several people contact me asking how to make this bread without a bread maker. Honestly I hadn't tried, until today. I was really winging it with the mixing times, rise times, baking temp and baking time but it turned out perfectly. Like picture perfect. So here is what I did today.

I put the first 6 ingredients in the bowl of my kitchen aid. I mixed on low speed for a few seconds just until it was all mixed. Then I added everything else with the exception of the flax seeds, sesame seeds, sunflower seeds and yeast. I mixed that for 2 minutes on medium speed. I added the remaining ingredients and mixed for another 2 minutes while occasionally scraped down the sides. I sprayed a glass bread pan and let it rise in my oven with the oven off but the oven light on. (Although here in Arizona simply leaving it on the counter is sufficient.)I let it rise for 40 minutes. I took it out of the oven and preheated the oven while it continued to rise.

I baked it for 35 minutes at 350 degrees. Here is what it looked like. I wish you could taste this!!!
So, yes it can be done and yes it turns out perfectly. A couple other things I did with this loaf (yes, I am forever playing with this recipe) I omitted the apple cider vinegar, I used whole goats milk, subbed potato starch for the corn starch and used just teff and sorghum flours as the base.

Nutrition and Behavior - Video

2009-06-07T21:26:00.000-07:00

This video is fascinating. Definitely worth the time to watch. It talks about the effects of diet on brain function. Dr. Blaylock has summarized a ton of studies in this presentation. It really is making me look at food in a different way. Please take the time to watch and let me know what you think.

http://dprogram.net/2009/01/27/videodr-russell-blaylock-nutrition-and-behavior-aspartame-msg/

Pumpkin Custard Squares

2009-06-03T16:50:00.000-07:00

I have 3 kids who seem to be living on air. They won't eat. I am so frustrated that I have resorted to disguising healthy food as dessert. I made these squares today and 2 of the 3 kids liked them. They are gluten and dairy free with no refined sugar. I am going to pretend they are good for us.

Pumpkin Custard Squares

Crust:

1 1/2 bags of gluten free ginger snaps (process in food processor to end up with about 3 cups of crumbs)

1/2 cup coconut oil

Custard:

1 29 oz can pumpkin

1 tsp salt

3 tsp cinnamon

2 tsp ground ginger

1/2 tsp cloves

1/2 tsp cardamom

5 eggs

1 cup honey

1 14 oz can coconut milk

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Mix cookie crumbs and coconut oil and lightly press into 9 x 13 inch baking dish. For the filling mix all ingredients well and pour into unbaked crust. Bake at 350 for 1 hr 10 minutes or until custard is set and toothpick comes out nearly clean. Let cool and refrigerate. And no, the topping on top of the square in the picture is not dairy free.

Translation Please - Part 2

2009-05-22T21:29:00.000-07:00

Here are the translations.

1. "I'm stuck!" This is what she was screaming when she had crawled into the dryer and got herself high centered trying to get out.

2. This is her saying her full name. "Rori Raine Sanders."

3. "I'm going to brush my teeth."

4. "I'm pooping now!" This was shouted at panic volume. I came running into the bathroom to find her standing in the sink with one hand holding the mirror for balance and the other one with a death grip on her bum cheek. She had apparently been applying make-up when the urge caught her off guard. Oh the indignity of being two.

5. "Chocolate milk."

6. "I don't need a diaper anymore. I am big now." She should really be saying that she is big again since this is the second time around with the whole potty training thing.

7. "Justus Ronan is eating bird poop." I had hoped that I misunderstood this one. But no, I went out to the patio where he had crawled and had been innocently, or so I had thought, entertaining himself. He turned around to look at me when I called his name and sure enough there was bird poop all over his chin, lips and tounge.

8. "Dinosaur." This is what she was screaming as she ran down the hallway to my room in the middle of the night. "hinasore hayseen me." "Dinosaur is chasing me."

9. "May I please sleep with you?"

10. "Kiya (our dog) is sleeping with me." (Hopefully Kiya will protect her from those damn dinosaurs that keep chasing her.

11. "Here Mommy, Boogie." Lovely.

Translation Please

2009-05-04T12:55:00.000-07:00

A big part of my day is trying to decipher my 2 year old's speech. I swear she is working with about half of the alphabet, at best. She gets so frustrated in repeating everything she says, that she says it louder and louder until she is screaming it. I think she thinks I am deaf. Sometimes I repeat back to her what I have heard and she will say "YA!" (Ya, you dummy, that's what I said!) We often have to get Sage to be our interpreter. So let's play a little game. How many of these can you figure out?

1. Huck Me!

2. ho -e hane handus

3. me hus me heef

4. me poopeen now!

5. haucat heok

6. no hypa, me hig now

7. husus honan eeteen hurdpoop

8. hinasore

9. heepitoo?

10. hiya heepeen hit me.

11. heer mommy, hoogy

Okay, can you figure any of these out? I would love to see your comments with some guesses. I'll post the translations in a day or two.

It's Mother's Day today and as my gift Ron took the girls out of the house so I could have some quiet time (Justus is napping). This is the absolute best gift I could receive. There is NO gift that could be better than some time to myself. Before I had kids I hated being alone and had to fill in those times with phone conversations or TV or something like that but now since having kids I just can't get enough time alone. (Honestly it is a rare thing.) I used to look at those people who went to movies or restaurants alone and think they were pathetic loners who couldn't even come up with one friend or family member to go with them. I now know that those people are parents and they are loving that time alone. So Happy Mother's Day to all you tireless moms. Here's wishing you some peace and quiet all by yourself!

Gluten and Dairy Free Pancakes

2009-04-26T12:09:00.001-07:00

You know how it is, whatever you try not to think about is the only thing you can think about. That is me with carbs and dairy right now. I would appear to be on a quest to see how much weight I can gain in the shortest amount of time. But it does make for some great eating. I found this recipe in the magazine "Living Without." I had never seen this magazine before but it has been around for 11 years. It is full of recipes that are gluten and dairy free. I can take no credit for the following recipe but want to pass it along because it is so good. These pancakes are light, fluffy and moist - and dairy free!. They also happen to be made with nothing but the bad kind of carbs but like I said, I can think of nothing else lately. Besides the kids all love them and they are quick and easy. I usually don't bother with making flour mixes but since I have made these pancakes 3 times in the last week it is saving me time to premake the mix.

Pancake Flour Mix

2 cups white rice flour

3/4 cups tapioca flour

3/4 cups sweet rice flour

1/2 cup potato starch

2 tsp xanthan gum

Pancakes

2 cups pancake flour mix

1 T baking powder

1/4 t salt

1/4 t nutmeg

1 1/2 cup milk of choice

3 large eggs

2 T agave nectar, honey or sugar

4 T melted coconut oil

Mix all dry ingredients well in large bowl. Mix wet ingredients in medium bowl. Pour wet into dry and stir until just combined. There should be small lumps. Cook until golden brown.

Amazing, Chewy, Gluten Free Cheese Buns

2009-04-20T09:49:00.000-07:00

Okay, call me a hypocrite. Last week after Justus weaned himself I found myself not breastfeeding or pregnant for the first time in 5+ years. It makes me kinda sad that that part of my life is over but there are some perks. It occurred to me a couple days after he weaned that I could now try dairy again. After that thought struck in the morning the entire day all I could think of was all the things I could have again. By 4pm I couldn't stand it anymore and declared that I was going shopping. I *may* have gone a teensy bit overboard. If it had dairy in it, I bought it. I came back with about 40 lbs of cheese, cream, butter, milk, ice cream, sour cream etc etc. The following day I made the most amazing lasagna ever. (I got that in the oven and then realized that I was going to have nothing to give Justus so I then made a gluten and dairy free lasagna for him. It ROCKED! I will try to post that recipe soon too) I still feel guilt over eating this. I am hoping to get this out of my system and go back to at least mostly dairy free. Dairy doesn't like me either. I get gut aches, bloating and my ears get all plugged up but these are all things that I can ignore until I can try all the things I couldn't in the previous years. I have to get this done and quick. My 20 year high school reunion is this July. While I am not trying to lose 20 pounds before then I really don't want to gain 20 pounds before then either. If I continue to eat like this I will be too embarrassed to go.

First thing this morning the idea of these cheese buns popped into my head. I had seen a food network show more than a year ago and I wanted to try it so bad but it has a ton of cheese in it. I found the recipe this morning and made my own version. The original was from "Simply Delicioso" and she called them Yucca Buns. Here is what I did.

Cheese Buns

1 cup tapioca flour

1/2 tsp salt

1 tsp baking powder

pinch garlic powder

2 egg yolks

2 cups of grated mozzarella cheese

half and half

Preheat oven to 350. Line cookie sheet with foil and spray with nonstick cooking spray and set aside. In a large bowl mix the first 4 ingredients. Then add the egg yolks and cheese. Using your hands, mix it well. At first it will be like flour coated cheese. Then add half and half 1 TBSP at a time while continuing to mix with your hands. When the dough is well blended, uniform and able to stick together, roll into eight balls. Bake for 15 minutes until very lightly golden. Don't brown them. Browning will change the flavor. Let cool for as long as you can stand to and eat warm.

I have to confess that although these are certainly not low fat I ate them with butter. Lots of butter and a little orange marmalade. They were so moist and chewy like a cheese bun should be. There is no way a wheat bun could be this good!

The Best Ever Devilled Eggs

2009-04-10T14:20:00.000-07:00

Being that we raise chickens, I always have fresh eggs and am always looking for ways to use them up. There are only so many times a person can have plain eggs for breakfast. Honestly, if I eat another scrambled egg anytime soon I will likely wretch. I don't make devilled eggs very often because peeling really fresh eggs is an excersice in extreme frustration. I have tried countless ways to peel them in a manner that does not produce an egg that looks like it has already been predigested and I am still looking for that magic technique. If you know of any tips PLEASE leave a comment. Anyway, this morning I tried again. I choose the least fresh of the bunch but still they were only maybe 3-4 days old so they still looked terrible. However, they tasted fantasic. As far as I am concerned they were the best I have ever had. They are just eggs, right, how good could they be? Try this and find out.

Best Ever Devilled Eggs

7-8 eggs
1/3 cup mayo (more or less depending on how creamy you like it)
2 tsp Dijon mustard
1 tsp rice wine vinegar
1 T chopped fresh dill (optional)
salt and pepper to taste

Place eggs in a pot and cover with water. Once boiling set timer for 10 minutes. Don't overcook the crap out of them. Timing does make a difference. If you leave them in there too long the yolks get that grey color around the outside and are sort of dry on the inside, ick! After 10 minutes drain, crack shells by jiggling the pot back and forth, and cover with ice water. Peel (or try to). Cut in half, pop the yolks out into a small dish. Combine all remaining ingredients with yolks and mash together until creamy. Check for seasoning and then refill the egg white halves. If you want them to look prettier you can sprinkle with paprika but I can't be bothered. I also didn't bother with a picture since mine are never pretty. Fresh and yummy, yes. Pretty, no.

Liar Liar Pants on Fire

2009-04-07T21:38:00.000-07:00

Boy, they sure do learn to lie at an early age don't they. This afternoon Justus was in his walker minding his own business while the girls were playing dress up in my shoes. All was well until Ron and I heard Justus let out a scream. You know that scream that says "I'm really hurt!" Ron goes running over there and Rori is standing beside Justus with a pair of my shoes, with heels, in each hand. We ask her "why is Justus crying." She responds "I don't know." We ask "did you hit him?" She says "No." We ask "did you hurt him." Straight faced she says "no." We ask "did the shoe hit him." (We were hoping she would take the bait and admit that it was the shoe that hit him, not her.) Again she says "no." A few minutes later when Justus had calmed down, Rori's lie became apparent, literally. The shoe had left a heel print in his forehead.

Wicked Good, No Guilt, Kid Loving, Whole Grain Breakfast Cookies

2009-04-06T13:02:00.000-07:00

Since I have gone back to work Ron is having to step up and be Mr. Mom on those days. He is really doing a great job. However, he does hate to cook. His idea of nutrition and mine are very different. He will give the kids meals based on it's ability to get them to stop saying "I'm hungry." I offered to give him some suggestions to make it easier to decide and I even have stuff in the fridge and freezer that would be easy to get together quickly. I had another idea this morning. What if I made something healthy that the kids would like so much they would ask for it and there would be no preparation or planning necessary? Breakfast cookies! I just whipped these up with the girls and the second batch is already in the oven. Rori who usually senses when something might be good for her and then will subsequently reject, it has already asked for seconds, as has Sage. Even Justus could eat these. They are whole grain and have no refined sugar. Of course they are gluten and dairy free, as always. These are downright healthy, guilt free "cookies".

Breakfast Cookies

Dry Ingredients:

1/2 cup amaranth flour

1/2 cup quinoa flour

1/2 millet flour

1/2 cup buckwheat flour

1/2 cup teff flour

1/2 cup tapioca flour

1/2 cup teff seeds

1/3 cup sesame seeds

1/3 cup flax seeds

1 tsp xanthan gum

1 tsp baking soda

2 tsp baking powder

1 tsp salt

1 1/2 tsp cinnamon

1/2 tsp nutmeg

1/2 tsp cloves

Wet Ingredients:

2 eggs

3 very ripe mashed bananas

1/2 cup apple sauce

1/2 cup vegetable oil

1/2 cup brown rice syrup

1/3 cup honey

1 TBS vanilla

optional

1 cup chocolate chips

1. Combine all dry ingredients

2. Combine all wet ingredients

3. Mix all together and add chocolate chips if you wish. (Difficult stuff, hey!)

4. The dough is very thick and muffin like. Scoop large tablespoon balls onto parchment lined baking sheets. Bake for 13 minutes at 350 degrees or until the edges are starting to brown.

Cesear Salad Dressing

2009-04-04T11:27:00.001-07:00

I love this time of year in Arizona. It makes me feel like I am living in paradise. My family in Canada are still dealing with snow and cold and here I am harvesting from my garden. I will savor it because during the summer it feels like hell and is just as hot. My garden is coming along really well. Last night I made a Thai noodle dish with chicken and broccoli. The broccoli was right from the garden. It was awesome. My lettuce is also doing really well. It is growing faster than I can eat it. So I have been eating a lot of salads lately. Even Sage is loving the lettuce. She routinely has a fistful of it and eats it just plain. Rori on the other hand... If it is green she won't even try it. Anyway, here is the salad that I have been eating nearly daily. I never buy salad dressings anymore. They are gross. Nearly all of them. Ever look at the ingredients on those dressings? Ick! It is so easy to make your own. This is my favorite. It is a cesear dressing but I put it on regular leaf lettuce from my garden.

Cesear Dressing

1/2 cup olive oil
1/4 cup lemon juice
1 minced garlic clove
3 anchovy fillets
1 T Dijon mustard
1 raw egg yolk (make sure it is fresh)
salt and pepper to taste

Put everything into a blender or mini food processor and blend until smooth. Lightly dress salad and top with whatever you like. My personal favorites lately have been pine nuts and black olives!

New Pics

2009-03-23T11:35:00.000-07:00

I have been so uninspired in the kitchen lately. I don't know what is the matter with me. Anyone have any ideas? Please send any suggestions my way. Until then, pictures for my family. It occured to me the other day that we have been really bad about taking pictures of the kids. When Sage was a baby we took so many pictures. There were fewer of Rori at the same age and now with Justus... Yikes. Poor guy. We've got nothing, almost nothing. Here's what we do have for recent kids pics.

More of Justus eating. He really does do more than eat although pictures would seem to prove otherwise. In case you noticed the hideously dirty windows in the background, we can thank the girls for that. They were "helping" me wash windows. And now I have a real job of it...

Here is Justus on the swing at the park, 9 months old.

Rori, dirty face and all, in the dryer. This time I was lucky enough to find her in her diaper. The last time I found her in the drier she had taken her diaper off and then had trouble getting out of the drier when she needed to pee. So, she peed in the drier. Lovely.

This last one I took today. I don't know if it is my computer but it kinda looks like Justus may have some liver failure going on as he looks jaundiced next to Sage who is so pale. He's fine. He is just tanned. We have been spending a lot of time outside lately. But now that it is rattlesnake season that is likely to change.

Things I've Learned Since Becoming a Parent

2009-03-15T11:21:00.000-07:00

The juice from blueberries can be used as a wood or clothing dye. Make sure you get it right the first time because there is no correcting of mistakes. Rori has used this dying technique for several items with terrific (and permanent) results. For example, her baby doll. It is now a beauitful shade of purpley blue, head to toe. Despite me trying to correct the dye job in the washing machine, her baby is still purple. When blueberries are used to dye fingers, nails and lips it is also very effective although slightly less permanent with effects lasting only a week or two. If smeared onto unfinished wood it produces a gorgeous swirling blue/purple that absolutely will not fade no matter what you do to it.

I should find a way to market this dye.

Death and Geography

2009-03-12T19:25:00.000-07:00

Well, it has been a crappy, crappy week to say the least. I got a call from my mom last Thursday night saying that my Grandpa was in the hospital again and not expected to live through the weekend. He has been in and out of the hospital for last 6 weeks with some regularity. I booked my flight immediately and left less than 24 hours later. I arrived in the small town hospital at about 4am with my 9 month old baby in tow. Grandpa was finally sleeping comfortably so I didn't wake him. I was back at the hospital the next afternoon and he was sleeping again. I waited with my entire family for him to wake up. He did, sort of. He knew who I was and who Justus was but it was really difficult for him to stay awake. He fought really hard to stay awake and visit and play with Justus. Finally, I hugged him and told him I loved him and said I would be back the next day. That was the last time I saw him alive. He died the next day, peacefully, surrounded with family and his best friend of 80 years. I arrived a couple of minutes after he passed. He finally looked peaceful. For him, I am glad that his struggle is over but for the rest of us, this sucks. I am so thankful that I was there for my mom and got to see him one more time. My last memory of him will be of him playing with Justus, making his silly faces at him, holding his hand, and making those funny noises he made when he played with babies. Right up until the end he was being a jokester. The day before he died he was sleeping intermittently and was kept company with a long line of loved ones. At one point he woke up to see several of the men in the family in the room along with my cousin Stacey. This group of people is particularly squeamish about anything medical. (Actually my cousin Chais said that just being in the room with that catheter was freaking him out.) Anyway, sensing his audience, he leans over to Yvonne (the wonderful lady who loved him and took care of him for years, never leaving his side) and says "I have to go to the bathroom." That apparently resulted in a stampede toward the door. I can just envision them all elbowing each other in an effort to get out the door as quickly as possible. Then Grandpa says "can't you tell when I am bullshitting you?" The last practical joke and it couldn't have been more perfect.

The funeral is tomorrow, Friday the 13th. I came home yesterday. I am really, really disappointed that I can't be there both for me and for my mom. I feel like I live a world away at times like this. My family will say goodbye and the grieving and adjustments to the huge vacant spot in our family will begin. But for me it feels sort of surreal. I am so separated and so busy with my life, grieving is different. After my Grandma died 9 years ago I felt this way. I thought about her a lot but she wasn't a part of my daily activities so it didn't feel real. Then the next time I went home and there was a big family gathering it finally sunk in. She wasn't there. I spent the entire day choking back tears. My family had already done this. It wasn't their first time. For me it was like she had just died. I expect it will be the same again. So tomorrow my family will gather to say goodbye, my cousin Jodi will give the amazing eulogy she wrote and I will be here, a world away.

Busy in the Kitchen Again

2009-03-04T11:00:00.000-08:00

I have been busy the last couple of days in the kitchen. I wish I could say that I had recipes to post but I haven't been feeling too inspired. I did however make an unbelievably great beef stew last night. It was the best stew I have ever had. Ron however hated it. Why? you may ask. It had red wine in it. I wish I hadn't told him that there was wine in it because I am sure he wouldn't have known. He would say otherwise though. I coated the beef in rice flour and salt and pepper, browned it in olive oil with onion and lots of garlic. Then I simmered it in mostly red wine and some beef stock and several sprigs of fresh rosemary and thyme. When it was tender I added big chunks of sweet potatoe, carrots, lots of quartered mushrooms, peas, and potaotes. It was so good I ate until I hurt. (Hmmm, why do I wonder why I am gaining weight?) As much as I loved it he hated it so I won't be able to make that again without lots of grumbling on his part. And since I love to cook for him I guess that means there is no point.... Damn!

This morning I had lots of bananas to use up so found a recipe on a favorite bloggers recipe list that used a full cup of raw almonds processed in the food processor and 4 bananas. Even the batter was good as the girls and I ate nearly as much of that as went into the oven. You can check out the recipe here. Scroll down to the Banana Spice Cupcakes. These were absolutely fantasic - and I didn't change a thing which never happens.

Back to Work

2009-03-01T12:11:00.001-08:00

So last week I went back to work. During orientation I have to work full time. I worked three 12 hour shifts in a row. This time I am working day shift which is 7am to 7:30pm. Honestly, this week was ROUGH. For us all. Justus is still breastfeeding and since I wasn't around all day he had to make up for it at night so he woke every hour or less. This meant I was up at 4:15 for 3 days in a row and got to bed at 9:30 or 10:00. Starting a new job is always a little stressful in that there is so much to learn so by about 3pm I was on brain overload. I got home exhausted but missing my family terribly. I haven't ever been away from my kids for more than a couple of hours. As hard as it was for me, I think it was probably harder on Ron. He has never had all three kids to himself for more than a couple hours also. Additionally, Justus is teething and not used to not nursing throughout the day. I called him at 1pm the first day to see how it was going and there was a long pause before he said, "I am not cut out to be a stay at home dad." Uh-oh, we had just started. When I had got home all three kids were still up (which is nearly 2 hours past their bed times). I was stunned to see that the house was spotless and that the laundry was done. Not only that, he had taken all 3 out of the house, took them to the park, done the grocery shopping and did some clothes shopping for the kids. Now, that was brave. I HATE taking the kids out alone. Ron on the other hand can't stand to stay at home all day. He ended up taking them out for several hours each day. Unbelievable. When I got home on day two i think I walked in to the smell of PineSol. I was about to be soooo impressed although a little perplexed since he washed and vacuumed the floors the day before. Yes, he had been scrubbing the floors but it was not for routine cleaning. One look at his face told me there was a story. The toilet had become plugged and in the short few steps it took him to get the plunger, Rori flushed the toilet and caused it to overflow nastiness all over the bathroom floor. I am so glad I missed that one. Another of the weeks highlights, was Kiya our dog, chewing up a poopy diaper and spreading it all over my bedroom, then running off (she knew Ron was unhappy with her) and going missing for many hours. We found her when I got home. She had come home and was hiding in a closet upstairs. The poor thing was covered in cactus needles. It looked like she had lost a wrestling match with a cholla. So I spent the next hour plucking needles from her while she cried and bled. It was terrible.

Anyways, it was a long week. I am completely exhausted and really behind on catching up with friends and family. (Which is why I am posting this.) Oh, and why have I gone back to work, a few people have asked? Well, the hospital that I wanted to work for, like all other hospitals was hiring very very few nurses. I had wanted to wait until Justus was a year old before going back but when I saw the exact job that I wanted on their web site, with the right number of hours and the right shift I felt like I couldn't not apply for it since it may be a long time until that comes along again. So I applied and got it. I will be working on call, maybe 4 shifts a month. The extra money will be nice but the reason I needed to go back sooner rather than much later was that I have been so inactive that I needed to work some hours in order to maintain my licence. So there's the story!

Picadillo

2009-03-01T10:07:00.000-08:00

Here is the dish we always have with the Cuban Black Beans. Nothing compares to it. Total comfort food. Definitely a must try!!

Picadillo

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 pound ground beef
1 large onion, chopped
1/2 cup chopped red bell pepper
4-6 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon ground cumin
2 teaspoons chili powder
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon paprika
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 14 oz can diced tomatoes
3/4 cup beef stock
1 tablespoon white sugar
1/2 cup chopped prunes
3/4 cup chopped pimento-stuffed green olives
2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
1 tablespoon capers, drained

Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the ground beef. Cook and stir until no longer pink, about 10 minutes. Stir in the onions and bell pepper. Cook until soft, then add the garlic. Season with cumin, chili powder, oregano, paprika, and cinnamon. Cook and stir for about one minute to release the fragrance. Pour the tomatoes and beef stock into the pan, along with the sugar. Stir the prunes, olives, capers. Simmer on med low for 20 - 30 minutes. Add vinegar before serving. Serve along side white rice and black beans.

Cuban Black Beans

2009-03-01T10:01:00.000-08:00

There are some dinners that I make over and over again. This is one of them. I serve it with the Picadillo. I have served it to guests several times and am always asked for the recipe. I have also started to use the pressure cooker to do the initial cooking of the beans which works well. Here is the recipe without the pressure cooker.

Cuban Black Beans

2 cups dried black beans, washed
1/4 cup olive oil
1 large onion, chopped
1 medium green bell pepper, chopped
6-10 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
1 T dried oregano
1 T cumin
2 cups chicken or vegetable broth
1 can diced tomatoes with green chili's
1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
salt to taste
1 TBSP white sugar
1 teaspoon black pepper

Soak beans overnight. Drain water and replace with fresh water. Boil beans in water only for approx 1.5 hours until they are tender. (Adding anything acidic i.e salt, tomatoes, onions etc during the initial cooking process makes the skin of the bean more tough so it takes much longer to cook.) In a large pot add olive oil. When hot add onion, garlic and green pepper. Cook until tender. Add cumin, oregano, tomatoes and chili's and cook until fragrant about 2 minutes. Add chicken stock and cook covered over med low heat for another couple of hours. Keep enough stock in the beans so they don't dry out but not enough that you have a soup. Think thick stew consistency. When you are ready to eat you can remove the lid to reduce the liquid if necessary. Then add salt to taste, apple cider vinegar, sugar and pepper. Serve along side white rice.

I'm Back!

2009-02-21T11:35:00.000-08:00

It has been a long time since I have posted. Life seems to be getting even busier. There are so many things I think about that I want to write about that it brings on a complete catatonia. So I figure I just need to write whenever I get these ideas and forget about making sure it is worded just right etc etc.

Lots has happened since I last posted. Of most important, my sister and her daughter visited for a week at the beginning of February. It was so great to have them here. Besides the fact that 6 out of the 7 of us were sick at some point in the visit it was still so worth it. My sister and I are so different and like she said, we were not ever really close until we had kids. She may be my baby sister but I look up to her in a lot of ways. She is strong where I am weak. She is incredibly disciplined, athletic, creative, artistic, brave and driven. She has an amazing sense of humor and still knows how to have fun (something that I sometimes forget how to do.) I think it is so great that we in many ways are different but there is no one else I would rather hang out with. I am hoping to go home to Alberta this summer for 6 weeks and I greatly look forward to spending some time with her and her family.

I have also gone back to work. It is great to be a nurse, really. I hadn't planned to go back until Justus was a year old but the right job came along so I had to apply for it. I got it and started this past week. It will be a huge adjustment for us all. I have never been apart from my kids for more than a couple hours at a time. Ron had never been the sole parent for more than a couple hours at a time. This past week I did 8 hour days and we all survived. Ron did amazingly well but I think he is now a little more appreciative of what I have been doing for the last 9 months. I expect to work maybe one or two 12 hour shifts a week. The extra cash will be nice but I needed to do it more to keep my license current as I have been pretty inactive for the last 5 years.

The girls seem to be outgrowing their dairy sensitivity. So Ron has been bringing it into the house. Justus is still terribly sensitive and since I am still breastfeeding it is still entirely off limits for me. I think Ron is trying to torture me. Yesterday he brought home 2 differently kinds of good quality ice cream. It's killing me. The girls are begging for it. Sage keeps asking "why can't I have more ice cream?" So I decided that they can have all they want today. Maybe if they eat enough of it they will get it out of their system. Or maybe it will make them sick and we will be done with it that way. As of noon today the girls have had 4 bowls each. It might be a rough night!

More later. I hope.

Things I've Learned Since Becoming a Parent

2009-01-29T19:31:00.001-08:00

Lesson Number 2:

No matter how much you prepare your kids and teach them what is appropriate chit chat in a public bathroom, they will, none the less, embarrass you.

I was in a public bathroom with Sage (4) recently. We took turns as usual. The bathroom was very busy but still quiet. So I of course was a little anxious and she must have known it. She had been pretty quiet herself. I figure she must have been trying to think of what to say to embarrass me. As I am trying to be quick finishing up she looks at me, with a funny look on her face and loudly says, "Mommy, you have hair on your ______." Now, this isn't news to her. While we are not a naked house, she has seen all of me on a fairly regular basis. She is looking at me now expecting a response. I think I hear the woman in the next stall trying to stifle a laugh. What am I supposed to say to that? I know everyone in there is also waiting for my response. I chose to ignore the comment and change the subject. "So what do you want for dinner," I respond in a whisper. Yeesh!

Ditching TV Among Other Things

2009-01-24T19:34:00.000-08:00

In the last week of December Ron and I made a decision to discontinue our satellite service. This is something that I have been wanting to do for some time and I had suggested it more than once. But like most North Amercians, we are a teeny bit addicted to TV so Ron nixed the idea. I let it go. Then in the beginning of December it became his idea. Then of course it turned into a great idea. I was fully supportive of "his" idea but really didn't think he would do it. First he started with the TVs. We had an embarrassing 6 flat screen TVs. One in nearly every room and even in the kids rooms (which we had always said we wouldn't do). He started selling them off on Craigslist. I love Craigslist. Soon enough we had just one left. The he cancelled the satellite service. I was stunned and more than a little impressed. First he kicks gluten without even a flinch, then dairy, then aspartame, then TV and now he is working on soda in general. Since he has no other "real" vices he is on a fast track to becoming perfect. So you might be asking yourself, why would we do this? No, we're not starving or having trouble paying the bills. This is really all just a part of a bigger picture. There is a lot to gain by ditching TV. First, the most obvious, is the cash you dish out every month for 7000 stations (and none of them are worth your time). Then there are the countless hours you can reclaim that can go to important things, like your family. We find we are spending more time as a family. We are playing games together, reading, making things, building things, going for walks, cooking, hanging out outside etc. Ron and I are talking more. Ron has started reading again. Him and I are both getting more sleep. Both of us had the habit of turning on the TV when we are tired to "just watch a couple of minutes." Hours later we are still staring blankly at the TV. Then we wake up tired the next day and our patience is short with the kids and sometimes with each other. Then we'd miserable and lazy and only want to, guess what's coming... watch TV. The TV was on in the background all the time whether or not anyone was watching. Since it has been off there is a beautiful calm in the house. I am enjoying the lack of the constant din. The girls are more often playing with each other. They are pretending, creating, learning and running. None of those things are done in front of the TV. We are spending more time outside and our attention is more fully on the present moment. How many times have I wished that the kids would just be quiet for a bit so I could hear or see something on the TV... TV is an escape, a drug, a diversion. I don't want to be diverted from my life. I want to live it. At the end of our lives, will we look back and think "wow, I remeber that one TV show...."? We want our kids to have great memories of the time we spent together. Memories aren't made waching TV. Life is so short and I want to be present for all of it. I don't want to waste my precious time being told how I should look or what I should want (also why I don't buy magazines anymore). I really don't care what the Hollywood stars are doing, saying or wearing. I love the fact that my kids have no idea what a BRATZ doll is or who Hannah Montana is or what High School Musical is. I love that they adored the castle that Ron made for them at Christmas and that it wasn't MADE IN CHINA or made from plastic. As I get older I find myself deploring the consumerism that defines American life. Everything is disposable, everything is about appearances and having the right car, handbag, hairstyle, jewelry, cell phone, clothing, body shape and bra size. I think that we have all lost sight of what really matters. Have have have get get get buy buy buy does not make us happier. Maybe it feels good for a minute but why? Because we have one upped the Jones', or because we are one step closer to looking just so? In the last few months we have tried to reverse our years of that mindset of having and getting. We are constantly selling stuff we don't use or need. Our entire focus is probably the exact opposite of most people here in Scottsdale. And you know what? It feels good. Really really good. We aren't just selling stuff but we are giving stuff away too. I have discovered freecycle. This is an online group (probably one near you) that is all about the giving and receiving of free stuff in an effort to keep things out of the landfills a while longer. Right before Christmas we went through the kids toys and gave away everything that they didn't use regularly. The whole lot of it went to a foster mom of 3 girls for their Christmas gifts. Even Sage felt good about that. So, to those of our friends and family who know about us ditching our TVs and selling all of our stuff: No, we are not starving or even having financial difficulties we are just trying to make the most of our lives.

Okay, I will step down from my soap box now.

Cute Kid Quotes

2009-01-17T21:36:00.000-08:00

We went to San Diego last week for a mini vacation. It was great and we all had a lot of fun. However on our way home the kids were tired, we were tired and we had stopped for one reason or another about a dozen times in the first 100 miles or so. That makes for a very cranky daddy. Actually both Ron and I were pretty miserable and irritable. After one of our many stops Rori started crying in the car for no discernible reason. Sage knew how Ron and I were feeling so she took it upon herself to try to talk Rori down. So she says "Rori, you have to stop crying or Daddy is going to have an aneurysm."

Ya, she's 4...

Cute Kid Quotes

2009-01-14T21:07:00.001-08:00

Sage was tucking Ron and I into bed.

"Night night. Sleep tight. Don't let the bed bugs bite. Stomp them or kick them."

Things I've Learned Since Becoming a Parent

2009-01-08T14:32:00.000-08:00

Does the learning curve in parenting ever flatten out? Even a little? I think I am going to make this a frequent type of post.

Number one most important rule in parenting: Never, ever, under any circumstances take your eyes off a 2 year old. I repeat, NEVER. It only takes them about 2 seconds to get into something they shouldn't. And if for what ever reason you have not followed rule number one in parenting AND said 2 year old is quiet... Well, you are in deep trouble.

This is the result of me loosing track of Rori for a few seconds. Lipstick. And by the way lipstick doesn't come off walls very well. This is something else I have learned as a parent. While I was guilty of not keeping a close eye on her for a few seconds, Ron made the worse mistake of not watching her for a few minutes. I was out of the house with Justus and Ron had the girls at home. They were all outside in the garage on a colder day while Ron was working on something. Rori got cold so she went inside the house - alone. After about 5 min (or so he says) he asks Sage to go see what Rori is doing inside. Sage goes inside and comes out and says "Dad, you have to come inside. This is serious." It was. She was up on the bathroom counter, sink plugged, water running on full. I am told there was a 1/2 an inch of water on the floor and it was running out into the hallway. The drop down drawer was full of water as was the cupboard under the sink. When we built this house and chose the sinks we didn't have nor want kids so we chose the more aesthetically pleasing sink that did not have an overflow hole. Turns out that was another bad decision on our part. When I got home and heard the story I of course asked if he thought to take a picture first before cleaning it up. Apparently though he didn't think it was as amusing as I did.

For My Mom

2009-01-04T14:12:00.000-08:00

Sometimes I am amazed at just how busy I am. My mom left more than a week ago and this is the first time that I have had to sit down and write. She arrived here on the 23rd for Christmas and left a week later. This was an unusually short stay for her. Unfortunately for all of us she has a life back in Alberta and she can't just come and stay for as long as we would like her to.

We had a great Christmas this year. It is so fun to have kids this age. They get so excited about Santa. And for me it was extra special because my mom was here. My mom is the queen of Christmas. She loves it and everything that goes with it. She always has an amazing tree which she puts up in November and doesn't take down until mid January. She wraps her gifts with perfection and a bow. All the gifts that she gives are chosen with such unbelievable thoughtfulness. I'm sure she must think about the perfect gift for each loved one all year long to ensure she nails it. Every year she used to do a ton of baking. Her shortbread cookies can not be compared with any other. And there were the millionaire squares, haystacks, uncooked cookies, naniamo bars to name a few. She was always so sure to make the number of gifts given to my sister and I were the same and the amount of money spent was the same. She always wrapped every gift in our stockings and made sure that it was unique Santa wrapping paper we had never seen before. The stockings were always our favorite and she (I mean Santa) packed them tightly and they often overflowed onto the floor. Just the act of setting up the Christmas tree was a special night. We would have a fire in the fireplace, eggnog and a big array of her baking. We would get to stay up late to set up the tree. My mom single handedly made Christmas the best day of the year. No matter how hard I try, I will never be able to do such an amazing job. Once again my mom made my Christmas for me. I can not even put into words how much her being here made this the best Christmas I have had in a long time. She has always been an amazing mom and now she is an amazing grandmother too. She has the patience to play with the girls for hours which is something I have trouble doing. One of my favorite pictures of her is of her sitting in our laundry basket playing with the kids. Always the mother, she is forever trying to take care of me by watching the kids or taking them out for a walk so I can nap in a quiet house or cleaning my house while she is supposed to be here visiting and relaxing. For all of my mom's life she has focused on taking care of everyone around her and often at the expense of her own happiness. I know of no one else who is so completely unselfish and giving. She has a heart bigger than she is. Things between her and I have not always been so rosy. But I grew up and finally was able to see things as they are. She is my best friend. When something great happens I want to call her first. When something funny or horrible happens it is my mom I call. I can always count on her to lend an ear or a shoulder when I need it. If there were only one thing I could give my mom, it would be to give her the happiness that she has given to everyone around her for so many years.

Thank you mom for being you and helping to give us all a wonderful Christmas. Can we book your flight for next year??

I love you mom!

Here are some pics taken over the holidays.

Here she is, my beautiful mom.

Justus' first Christmas.

Here is Rori in front of the gift her daddy made her. Ron made the girls a castle. The girls asked for knights, horses and other creatures that I can't remember the names of right now. We are so happy about the girls asking for this kind of stuff rather than Dora stuff or Hannah Montanna stuff or princess stuff. I won't get started on that right now... This view of the castle doesn't show how amazing this thing is. Oh and Ron really was there for Christmas. That's him in the background with no head. Other than that he seems to have escaped the camera, again.

Grandma and the girls.

Me and the girls. Sage had clearly had enough of the picture taking and Rori was only laughing because I was squeezing her knee.

Grandma feeding her only grandson.

Sprouted Quinoa with Cinnamon Apples and Coconut

2008-12-28T10:22:00.000-08:00

Since going gluten free we nearly always have a hot breakfast. We usually have eggs or our 9 grain breakfast cereal. Last night I had trouble sleeping and I laid here thinking of all the things I wanted to make today in the kitchen. I then remembered a breakfast I haven't made in a long time. I ended up getting out of bed way too early because of it. I just had to start it. I was starving. I started the quinoa soaking long before the sun was up. When it was finally ready to eat the house had filled with the scents of coconut and cinnamon. I like to soak quinoa instead of just rinsing it. If you have the time to soak it long enough for it to start sprouting it is even better. The flavor is mellow and nutty. This morning I made a huge pot so I could have some leftovers. The weather here has been cold and this is the perfect start to the day.

Sprouted Quinoa with Cinnamon Apples and Coconut

2 cups whole quinoa (soaked for at least a couple hours then well rinsed - this helps remove the bitter coating and any grit)
4 cups of water
pinch of salt
2 diced apples
pinch of cardamom
pinch of freshly grated nutmeg
1/2 t cinnamon
1 cup of coconut milk
1 t vanilla extract

Bring water to a boil. Add all ingredients except for the coconut milk and vanilla. Cook on medium for approx 20 minutes or until all the water is absorbed and quinoa is tender. Remove from heat. Add coconut milk and vanilla. We like to eat ours with some maple syrup or agave nectar. YUM!

Quinoa and Black Beans

2008-12-21T15:39:00.001-08:00

In my attempt to eat healthier, cheaper and with less meat I came up with this tonight. It was I think the best vegetarian meal I have had in a while. Ron liked it too. The kids.... ya right!

1 cup quinoa, soaked for several hours and rinsed well
2-3 T olive oil
1 small onion diced
3 cloves garlic minced
1 1/2 t cumin
1 14 oz can diced tomatoes
2 cups broth (I used chicken)
1/2 package of frozen spinach
1 cup frozen corn
1 can black beans, rinsed
salt and pepper to taste

Soak the quinoa for several hours so that the grain swells. Rinse well. Heat oil. Add onion and garlic. Cook until soft and onions are clear. Add quinoa, cumin, salt and pepper. Stir to combine and add tomatoes, broth and spinach. Cover and cook maybe 15 minutes or until quinoa is to desired doneness. Add beans and corn. Stir to warm through. Check for seasoning and serve.

GF DF Millionaire Shortbread Bars

2008-12-21T11:28:00.001-08:00

The original recipe comes from Karen at Gluten Free Sox Fan. She called it Millionaire Shortbread Bars The original was not casein/dairy free so I had to make some changes. I also do not use baking mixes so I created my own mix for that. I don't think Sage had even swallowed her first bite before she was mumbling "mom this is soooo good. I want some more." And Rori was saying "own piece mommy, own piece mommy" after I gave her a bite of mine. Here is what I did.

Shortbread:
3/4 cup butter flavored Crisco
1/4 cup granulated white sugar
1/2 cup powdered sugar
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/2 cup rice flour
1/2 cup teff flour
1/4 cup potato starch
1/4 cup tapioca flour
1 teaspoon xanthan gum
1/2 teaspoon salt

Caramel filling:
1 - 14 oz can coconut cream
1/2 cup granulated sugar

Chocolate topping:
3.5 oz bar 70% cocoa, chocolate. I used Lindt which is dairy free.
Powdered sugar to taste. (I used about 1/2 cup. Ron will say that is not enough but I like it that way)
1 T coconut oil

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease with coconut oil (or use a cooking spray) a 8 x 8 inch pan.

For Shortbread:- Cream the Crisco and sugars until just light and fluffy. Beat in the vanilla extract. In a separate bowl combine the flours, xanthan gum and salt. Then add flour mixture to sugar mixture. Beat until it resembles a course sand. It should clump together when pressed between your fingers. Press onto the bottom of your greased pan and bake for about 20 minutes, or until pale golden in color.- Remove from oven and place on a wire rack to cool while you make the filling.

For Caramel Filling:- Add coconut cream and sugar to saute pan. Mix over med high heat. Continue cooking for 20 or 30 minutes until it reduces, thickens and turns light brown. Pour the coconut cream over the shortbread and leave to set.

For Topping: Melt the chocolate and coconut oil in microwave by heating for 30 seconds and then stirring. Repeat this until it is all melted. Once it is melted add the powdered sugar. Pour the melted chocolate evenly over the caramel and leave to set. Keep refrigerated.

Lentil Cesear Salad with Pine Nuts

2008-12-21T11:16:00.000-08:00

I whipped this up for lunch today and loved it. I am hoping this lunch negates my breakfast of peanut butter fudge which was so fantastic. That was a recipe where I can't find the one that inspired the final product. I will keep searching because it too is a keeper. Anyway the salad was terrific too and ultra healthy.

Dressing

3 cloves of garlic, minced
4 anchovy fillets
1/4 cup lemon juice
1 T Dijon mustard
1/2 cup olive oil
1 egg yolk *make sure you have really fresh eggs*
salt and pepper to taste

Combine everything in a mini food processor and blend until creamy.

For the salad I combined one romaine heart, 1/4 cup pine nuts and half a cup (raw measure) of cooked brown lentils. I cooked them in salted water and I like them a little firm to the bite. I hate it when they get over cooked and started to fall apart and taste grainy. Spoon dressing over top, as much or as little as you like. Then toss it all together and voila lunch is served. Actually I added 5 or 6 anchovy fillets diced finely but I love them and no one else seems to so feel free to omit.

A Flurry of Blogging

2008-12-21T11:12:00.000-08:00

A flurry of blogging here. I have tried several new recipes in the previous silent weeks. I never thought to write down what I made and consequently some of those things will be one time wonders. I have to make a better effort to write down / blog about what I do so I can repeat them. So the recipes that will follow on my blog are as much for me as anyone.

Belly Laughs

2008-12-20T12:51:00.000-08:00

No explanation necessary.

For My Dad

2008-12-20T09:45:00.000-08:00

My Dad just left this morning after visiting for 4 days. He drove here all the way from BC. He loves to drive and dislikes flying - hard for me to understand that. Anyway, we had a great visit. I think the last time we had a visit that long and unrushed was before we had kids. I was a different person back then. Actually, Ron and I are nearly unrecognisable from ourselves of back then. I think that if him and I were to meet that couple now we wouldn't like them. We'd probably hate them. We stood for everything that we disagree with now. So when he visited the last time we didn't have much to talk about. Actually he ended up leaving a day early. Since that visit all of our visits have been pretty quick. Short and sweet we'd say. So now jump forward about 6 years and things are different. I found that I really loved having him here. We have a lot in common now. I enjoyed just hanging out with him. We didn't really do anything and stayed close to home. I loved to see him with my kids. It is a very sweet side of him that I can't remember seeing before. I know he was always like this but I just don't remember seeing it. It warmed my heart to see him cuddling Justus and feeding him. He read to the girls at night and tucked them in at night. That made my heart swell. My dad loves music and brought along his mandolin. (He plays in a bluegrass band that I have yet to hear play, much to my disappointment.) Sage and Rori love music too. Sage would sing, making songs up as she went along and my dad would accompany her on the mandolin. It sounded great to this mommy's ears. Rori would dance to the music they were making and Justus watched intently and excitedly kicked his legs. I can't think of a better Christmas gift. I also enjoyed cooking for him. His favorite of the week was a Latin themed dinner. I have posted the recipes so that his sweet wife Cari might make it for him. The black beans and rice dish would be good all by themselves but we always add the Picadillo. I first had Picadillo in a Cuban restaurant here when I was in labor with Justus. It was very good but kinda pricey. Then I found a recipe for it on allrecipes.com and I have been making it frequently ever since (and for a whole lot less money). The original recipe was posted by a DarcyStarz7 and I have made a few changes that work for us. Now I like this version much much more than what I had in the restaurant.

Cuban Black Beans

2 cups dried black beans, washed
1/4 cup olive oil
1 large onion, chopped
1 medium green bell pepper, chopped
6-10 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
1 T dried oregano
1 T cumin
2 cups chicken broth
1 can diced tomatoes with green chili's
1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
salt to taste
1 TBSP white sugar
1 teaspoon black pepper

Soak beans overnight. Drain water and replace with fresh water. Boil beans in water only for approx 1.5 hours until they are tender. (Adding anything acidic i.e salt, tomatoes, onions etc during the initial cooking process makes the skin of the bean more tough so it takes much longer to cook.) In a large pot add olive oil. When hot add onion, garlic and green pepper. Cook until tender. Add cumin, oregano, tomatoes and chili's and cook until fragrant about 2 minutes. Add chicken stock and cook covered over med low heat for another couple of hours. Keep enough stock in the beans so they don't dry out but not enough that you have a soup. Think thick stew consistency. When you are ready to eat you can remove the lid to reduce the liquid if necessary. Then add salt to taste, apple cider vinegar, sugar and pepper. Serve along side white rice.

Picadillo

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 pound ground beef
1 large onion, chopped
1/2 cup chopped red bell pepper
4-6 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon ground cumin
2 teaspoons chili powder
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon paprika
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 14 oz can diced tomatoes
3/4 cup beef stock
1 tablespoon white sugar
1/2 cup chopped prunes
3/4 cup chopped pimento-stuffed green olives
2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
1 tablespoon capers, drained

Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the ground beef. Cook and stir until no longer pink, about 10 minutes. Stir in the onions and bell pepper. Cook until soft, then add the garlic. Season with cumin, chili powder, oregano, paprika, and cinnamon. Cook and stir for about one minute to release the fragrance. Pour the tomatoes and beef stock into the pan, along with the sugar. Stir the prunes, olives, capers. Simmer on med low for 20 - 30 minutes. Add vinegar before serving. Serve along side white rice and black beans.

Here are a couple pics and a video of my dad's visit. Thanks for everything Dad/GranDan. We love you!

Cooties and Houdini

2008-12-06T10:59:00.000-08:00

It seems like forever since I have posted. We've been sick. All of us. Each more than once. It has been going on for nearly a month now. I am starting to wonder if it will ever end. When every one else gets sick I usually don't but this time I got it too and bad. I even went to the doctor and agreed to antibiotics which I haven't had since before Sage was born. I am a firm believer that a huge part of your immune system comes from your GI tract and if you take antibiotics and kill all those good bacteria then you are leaving yourself more vulnerable to getting the next thing that comes around. But this time I was desperate. I had a sinus infection that was so painful that my teeth hurt so bad that I couldn't eat. The silver lining of course is that I ended up loosing 6 pounds. It made me wonder if anyone ever tried to come up with a way to eliminate your sense of smell as a weight loss gimmick. I cooked yesterday for the first time in over a week. I made my 10 veggie spaghetti sauce. I also have more than a weeks worth of laundry and house cleaning to catch up on. Justus is sick now. He has a fever but no other symptoms. Last night I had to give him Tylenol every 4-5 hours. His temperature got as high as 103.3. I can't imagine how miserable he must have felt. I was soooo miserable at 101.7. You know, it really sucks living here so far from family when we are sick. Ron was as sick as I was and also took a trip to the doctor and got some antibiotics so he wasn't any help to me. I really felt like if I could have just had lots of good uninterrupted sleep this wouldn't have gone on so long. But we have no family here to help out. All our friends also have kids so understandably they need to stay far far away from us. Okay I will stop complaining now.

Houdini the Mouse has set up residence in our CAR. We were at home a couple days ago and Ron needed to get something out of the glove box. He opened it, screamed like a girl and jumped back exclaiming "Holy Crap! There are 2 mice in the glove box!" Sure enough, there was a mound of foam shreds, from somewhere in the car, all piled up in there like a comfy little nest. So glad that discovery wasn't made while we were on the interstate. Not only that but there was mouse crap everywhere! Dandy. How can mice crap that much? We saw one run out of the car later that day and since then we have traps set up in there. But that mouse is friggin Houdini. It keeps getting the treats out of the traps and tripping the trap all without getting caught in the trap. I am scared to use mouse poison for fear of it dying in there and then the car stinking of dead mouse. And Mom, I bet you are rethinking about not renting a car when you come visit!

Out of time again.

Cute Kid Quotes

2008-11-24T19:47:00.000-08:00

Sage saw Santa at the mall so the inevitable discussion ensued. Why isn't he at the north pole making the toys?

Me: I think the elves help make the toys.

Ron: Ya, Santa has them doing all the hard work. Do you think he pays the elves for making the toys?

Sage: No. They do it for free.

Ron: Well, does Santa at least feed the elves?

Sage: No. They use forks.

Finally One That Likes To Eat

2008-11-21T14:15:00.000-08:00

I don't have much time but I thought I would post a few pics and videos.

Here is Justus taking a bath in the kitchen sink. Seems very 70's, doesn't it? He loves the water.

We have also started feeding him solids. It is so nice to finally have a kid who likes to eat. We started with sweet potato. Then we tried teff cereal, avocado, peas, carrots, green beans and a oatmeal mix of baby food. I haven't bought any baby food yet and am going to try not to. I still had some left from Rori. He has liked it all but the green beans didn't like him. A couple days ago I made carrot and turnip which he loved and froze it in ice cube trays. I also did blueberries and banana. He has also started to sleep better. He now goes 2-3 hours. I know that sounds bad but he had been waking every 1-2 hours so this feels like a big improvement. I am going to keep offering him as much as he will take in the hopes that he will sleep better and better.

In an attempt to have good and green pest control we got 2 kittens. What were we thinking? They have found a new home now.

I guess that is all I have time for now.

Intolerance

2008-11-11T20:45:00.000-08:00

I have been laying here trying to sleep. I can't. I can't stop thinking about something that happened today. Maybe if I write it, it will go away.

Today we decided to go see a movie or I should say movies. Ron took the girls to "Madagascar" and I went to see "Changeling" with Justus. We always go to the same theatre because it is always like a ghost town. I honestly don't know how it stays in business. We like that because we always have the kids with us and many times we are the only ones in the theatre or almost. Today was different. We didn't realize it was a holiday so there was a huge line up with tons of kids to go see "Madagascar". The theatre I was in had maybe 10-12 other people in it. Now I consider myself a polite and considerate person. In the past 4 years since having kids I have left numerous movies because of fidgeting kids or kids that won't stay quiet. Not only do I leave but I do it pretty quickly. I remember the days before having kids and remember how annoying it was to hear a kid crying in the back. So today I half expected that I may not get to see the whole movie. But Justus was so good. We sat in the last row on the side, right by the door for a quick exit if need be. I nursed him for the first bit of the movie and he kind of napped. Then he woke up and was just quiet in my lap. Every now and then he would let out a quiet coo but that was about it. I had just been sitting there thinking how much I was enjoying myself (since I never do this) and how well Justus was doing. He really is a great baby. Moments later some old crotchety jackass with bionic hearing got his diaper in a wad when he must have heard Justus fart or something. He gets out of his seat maybe 3 or 4 rows up and comes over to me.

Jackass With Bionic Hearing: "Would you mind if we enjoyed our movie?" (Dripping in sarcasm)

Me: "No, not at all." I wasn't trying to be flippant at this point. I was just stunned.

Jackass With Bionic Hearing just stands there all indignant staring daggers at me.

Me: "Are you joking?"

Jackass With Bionic Hearing: "No. I am not." And he walks back to his seat while continuing to glance back at me and glare.

I could not believe it. I sat there stunned for a bit. Seriously, a baby's very quiet, happy coo was interfering with his enjoyment??? This is so North Scottsdale. I shouldn't have been surprised I guess. I slowly packed up and left. I left because I felt like I had no choice. Had I not left I have no doubt that he would have created a scene. At that point I didn't care about his enjoyment or lack of but I was concerned about bothering someone else and honestly after that I wouldn't have been able to enjoy the movie anyway.

What is the matter with some people? How miserable must his life be that he can't enjoy a great movie because of a baby's occasional quiet coo. And honestly I do mean quiet. If I had thought for a second that he was bothering anyone I would have left immediately. Why have people become so intolerant? There just seems to be so much hatred, anger, self righteousness and general irritation here. I suspect it is because of all the money here. Have I mentioned lately how much I don't want to raise my kids here?

Thoughts? Comments????

And no, I don't think I do feel better.

Aspartame

2008-11-09T20:18:00.000-08:00

Okay, since I am at it anyway, sleep can wait a couple minutes more.

Ron has been a huge consumer of diet sodas since he was a teen. By huge I mean everyday, sometimes a couple liters worth. I have bugged him about it so much he was just tuning me out. Then we watched the documentary "Sweet Misery". (I LOVE the documentary channel.) Since then, he (we) have completely stopped. Here is another one worth watching.

Okay, to bed now. I am so tired with Justus waking every hour or two it is likely that I won't even remember writing this in the morning.

Milk is Evil

2008-11-09T19:48:00.001-08:00

I have been thinking in the last year that milk is evil and that it is really no good for anyone. I know that sounds really crazy to many people but it does make sense. Humans are the only mammals to consume the milk of another animal. When you think about it that way it sounds kind of gross doesn't it? I am not saying I don't like it myself, I do. I like it in all forms and it has been really difficult for me to avoid it entirely while I have been breastfeeding but I do, usually. Actually, it is really hard to avoid. It is in EVERYTHING. It is way easier to avoid gluten than it is to avoid dairy. (Try both simultaneously!) I grew up thinking that milk was necessary in your diet to get enough calcium. Turns out that isn't the case. I was allergic to dairy as a baby, my mom tells me and I was slow to gain weight. When switched to soy formula I gained weight quickly. But after that for who knows why my doctor told my mom to go back to cows milk formula. Anyway, as an adult I thought I was not allergic anymore. Then I had to cut it out of my diet 100% while nursing Rori. Then when she weened I started eating it again. That was when I noticed issues with it. Terrible stomach pains when I had it. Did that deter me? No. Of course not. The pain eventually went away. Now in hindsight I know that Sage was sensitive to it too. What I didn't know back then was that in order to see if your breastfed baby is sensitive to it you need to eliminate it from your diet 100% for about 2 weeks. It can stay in your breast milk and in your body for that long. Now nursing Justus I figured it out right from the very start. In my personal opinion colic = milk sensitivity. Since then I have read about many different symptoms of milk sensitivity that range from the expected "big D" (diarrhea) to anxiety, cough, depression and insomnia. Since all 5 of us in this house have some kind of issue with dairy it has led me to believe that dairy is evil. Then I came upon a documentary called "White Mischief". Now I feel vindicated. If you have some time (45 minutes) please check this out. It is well worth your time.

Moroccan Chicken

2008-10-28T15:18:00.000-07:00

There are a few recipes that I make over and over. Honestly, for chicken there aren't very many of them. We, unfortunately, prefer red meat but that is another story. This is a recipe that I found on the Food Network. We love this and have it frequently. It is easy to make but takes a little preplanning for the marinating. It is so worth it. I make extra so that we can have left overs. I guess traditionally this would be served over couscous but we do brown basmati rice. It smells so good while it is cooking that it is the longest hour ever waiting for it to be done. Every time I have served it to others it gets rave reviews. I have posted the recipe with all the changes that I make. It is possible that I am unable to follow a recipe exactly. I can't remember the last time I did that. This would also be good served with some teff flat bread which I am now making regularly. I am so happy to have discovered teff. It is my favorite flour to work with. Anyway, here is the recipe. Please try it. You won't be disappointed

Moroccan Chicken

8 tablespoons olive oil
2 lemons, zested and juiced (about 4 to 6 tablespoons juice)
10-12 boneless skinless chicken thighs (about 4 pounds)
1/2 cup chicken broth
1 large onion, cut into smallish wedges
3 medium zucchini, cut into 1/2-inch half moons or chunks
3 yellow squash, cut into 1/2-inch half moons or chunks
3 medium plum tomatoes, quartered
1/2 cup dried pitted prunes (about 10-15)
1/2 cup black olives, pitted
1/2 cup green olives
Coarse salt and freshly cracked black pepper

Spice Mixture:
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
2 teaspoons ground cardamom
1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon sweet paprika
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1 tablespoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon cracked black pepper

In a medium glass bowl, combine the spice mixture, 4 tablespoons of the olive oil, the lemon zest and lemon juice. Add the chicken thighs and stir to coat. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate at least 1 hour or up to 3 hours.
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
Remove the chicken thighs from the marinade. In a Dutch oven over medium-high heat, brown the chicken thighs on both sides in 3 tablespoons olive oil, about 2 to 3 minutes per side. Set chicken aside on a plate. With the heat on medium, add 1 tablespoon olive oil to the pan, and saute the onion until golden, about 5 minutes. Place the chicken thighs on top of the onions and add any accumulated juices from the plate. Arrange the zucchini and yellow squash and tomato quarters on top of the chicken and tuck in the prunes and olives. Season well with salt and pepper. Pour over the chicken broth. Cover and place on the bottom rack of the oven. Let cook undisturbed 1hr, until the vegetables are tender and the chicken cooked through.

Serve over brown basmati rice.

And Now... A Mouse

2008-10-24T14:41:00.000-07:00

The desert has really been creeping in this summer. Last Sunday night when Ron was at work (this stuff always happens when he isn't here), I got up in the middle of the night to go to the bathroom. Out of the corner of my eye I thought I saw something run under my bed. I tried to convince myself that it was all in my head. I couldn't bring myself to look under the bed. Instead I just worked on my denial and tried to go back to sleep and not think about it. The following morning, in the daylight, I got my courage up and took a quick peak under my bed well actually I made Sage look first. Nope nothing there. All is well. It must have been my mind playing tricks on me. (Whatever it was it certainly would have still been there, right? More denial) Later that night it was all a distant memory when Ron walks into the kitchen and turns on the light and then states quite matter-a-factly, "oh, we have a mouse." Damn it, my denial will never work so well for me again. So there we are chasing this mouse all over the living room turning over the furniture. Amazingly after about 10 minutes Ron actually caught the tiny mouse. It was sooo small. Being the animal lovers we are (as in non snake, salamander or toxic toad type animals,all of which can be unceremoniously killed as far as I am concerned) we put it in a bucket to show the girls in the morning and then release. Because the little thing looked so terrified Ron even fed it. Here is a video, just for you mom! (My mom is petrified of mice.)

Then yesterday morning I noticed some large coffee grounds on the kitchen counter. More denial. As my sister so cruelly pointed out coffee grounds are not that big. Maybe course ground coffee.... More denial. So now we have mouse traps set up in the house. No kill of course.

And in case that wasn't enough wildlife in the house we had several birds again. Ron had removed the patio doors to refinish them and 3 of those desert birds came in again. Cactus Wrens I think. There were bird turds all over the house. How can they crap that much in such a short period of time? Maybe that is where the expression "had the shit scared out of you" came from.

What's next toxic toads, squirrel, rabbit, chipmunk? Maybe I need to rethink getting a cat. Maybe dealing with all the cat hair would be worth it.

Ethiopian Night

2008-10-20T20:29:00.000-07:00

Once again I find myself being grateful for the Celiac diagnosis. Not for the disease I should clarify but for the diagnosis. Had we not needed to change the way we eat we wouldn't have had such a cool dinner today. A few weeks ago Ron saw on TV a program that talked about Teff. It is a gluten free grain which happens to be really nutritious. It is a mainstay of the Ethiopian diet. From Teff they make a bread called injera. He thought it looked good so he went ahead and ordered 25 lbs of the whole grain AND 25 lbs of the flour without even running it by me and without even ever trying the stuff. I guess he has some confidence in my abilities in the kitchen. Anyway, it arrived last Friday. It is really good. It is mild and I think the closest thing to wheat that we have tried yet. So then I started looking for recipes for injera. It sounded pretty simple but lots of people mentioned it being really hard to make. I can't imagine why. Here is the recipe: 1 1/2 cups of teff flour, 2 cups of water. That's it. You mix it up and cover it with a dishcloth and let it sit on your counter for 2-3 days to let it ferment. Then add salt and pan fry it like a thin pancake. Fermenting is supposed to be really good for you but I have never done it before. I started it Friday and we had it today. We really liked it. It was like a sourdough pancake or crepe. Along with the injera I made 2 other Ethiopian dishes. I have to confess, I thought Ethiopian cuisine was probably not much more than a timber float (glass of water with a toothpick). Boy, was I wrong. It was unique and wonderful. I was pretty impressed that I even had everything in the house to make it. Here are the recipes.

Berbere

1 teaspoon fresh ginger grated
1 teaspoon whole cardamom seeds
1/2 teaspoon whole coriander seeds
1 teaspoon whole fenugreek
1/4 teaspoon whole nutmeg freshly grated
1/8 teaspoon whole cloves
1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon whole allspice
2 tablespoons finely chopped onions
1 tablespoon minced garlic
2 tablespoons salt
1 cup paprika
2 tablespoons ground cayenne pepper (I have kids so used 1/8 t)
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
1-1/2 cup water

In a cast-iron skillet, toast the ginger, cardamom, coriander, fenugreek, nutmeg, cloves, cinnamon, and allspice over low heat. Do not burn; this should only take a minute or so. Set aside to cool. Then grind in spice grinder.
Combine the spices, onions, garlic, 1 tablespoon of the salt, and 3 tablespoons water in a small jar of a blender and blend until smooth.
Combine the paprika, cayenne pepper, black pepper, and the remaining tablespoon of salt in the skillet and toast over low heat for a minute or so. Stir in the water, 1/4 cup at a time. Then stir in the blended mixture. Stirring vigorously, cook over the lowest possible heat for 10-15 minutes.
Transfer the berbere to a jar, packing it in tightly. Let the paste cook to room temperature, then cover with a film of oil. Store in the refrigerator between use.

Beef Stewed in Red Pepper Paste (Sik Sik Wat)

2 onions, finely chopped
1/4 cup olive oil
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon finely chopped ginger root
1/2 teaspoon ground fenugreek
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
3 tablespoons Berbere
2/3 cup dry red wine
1/2 cup water
8 oz. tomato sauce
2 teaspoons salt
3 lb. lean boneless beef, cut into 1" pieces
Black pepper

In a large stewpot, cook the onions over moderate heat for about 5 minutes, or until they are soft and dry. Do not let brown or burn.
Add the garlic, ginger, fenugreek, cloves, allspice, and nutmeg. Stir well. Add the berbere and stir for 3 minutes. Add the wine, water, tomato sauce, and salt, and bring the mixture to a boil. Add the beef and turn the pieces around in the sauce to coat. Cover the pot and simmer the beef for about 1 hour over low heat. Season with black pepper.

Alecha Wats

1 onion chopped
2 tablespoons oil
1 1/2 teaspoons berbere
2 carrots peeled and cut into 3cm slices
2 green bell peppers, de-seeded and quartered
1 1/2 cups water
1/2 cup passata (tomato sauce)
1 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon ginger paste
2 potatoes cut into thick slices
1 tomato blanched, skinned and cut into 8 wedges each
1 small cabbage cut into wedges
salt and pepper

Add the oil and onions to a large saucepan and fry until the onions have softened, add berbere, fry for a minute then add the carrots, green peppers, water, tomato sauce, salt and ground ginger. Bring to a simmer and cook for 10 minutes before adding the potatoes and tomatoes. Cover and cook for 10 minutes before adding the cabbage. Season to taste and cook until the vegetables are completely tender (about 25 minutes).

As I said this was unique and very good. Even Sage ate 2 bowls. We made it fun by eating on the floor Ethiopian style and we were going to do it without utensils too but I just couldn't. Too messy. Traditionally Ethiopian food is eaten without utensils. The injera is folded in quarters and used to scoop up your meal. The girls got quite a kick out of this. It was fun. We will definitely do it again. I also have leftover Berbere so I need to find some more recipes to use it in. I feel pretty fortunate to have a husband who is almost as adventuresome as I am when it comes to trying new foods.

Green Eggs, No Ham

2008-10-12T19:55:00.000-07:00

We finally got our first green egg today. We have been patiently waiting for this. I had never seen one before. They are sometimes called Easter eggs. Pretty neat hey?

We are supposed to have 6 different varieties of chickens. I can't even remember what the different kinds are but it is so interesting to me the different colors they produce. One chicken produces a twin routinely (2 yolks and 2 whites). That is the big one shown here. Anyway, enough about eggs. Things have been really busy here lately. I can't seem to find the time to blog or even to return e-mails lately. Part of my problem is sleep deprivation and the constant headaches and migraines I have had lately. I don't know what Justus' problem is but he has been waking every hour or two every single night for the last month. Honestly I don't even know how I am sane. Or maybe I'm not. I know that sounds like an exaggeration when I say he is waking every hour or two but it honestly isn't. So anyway that is my excuse for anyone that cares. I had good intentions of writing every day, ha. Maybe every couple weeks at this rate.

The weather here is gorgeous. No bashing the desert today. This is the best time of year. We are spending lots of time outside and it feels great. What doesn't feel so great is the realization of just how out of shape I am. I may not be obese but I feel like I may as well be. I took all 3 kids out for a walk today. Sage and Rori were in the double stroller and I carried Justus in my Ergo carrier. I was smart enough not to go too far. I forgot the cell phone (and my gun) so I didn't dare get myself in a position where I needed to call 911 due to exhaustion. About half way home which was all up hill I convinced the girls that it would be way more fun to walk the rest of the way home. When they got out of the stroller I promptly put Justus in. What a relief.

I had a busy day in the kitchen today. I made cornbread for breakfast. Not so nutritionally balanced but so satisfying. Then I set out to do the impossible. I wanted to make a pie. We haven't had one for so long. The challenge was this; it had to be gluten free, dairy free, and made from dried fruit. I should mention that I hate working with pastry. Like my mom tells me she did so many years ago, it always leaves me trying to refrain from hurling it against the wall. To add to my challenge, Sage was "helping". I am not sure if I am mentioned before but we grind all our own flours. We buy lots of different kinds of grains in bulk so we make and have just about everything you could need for gluten free baking. Back in February Ron was ordering a bunch of grains and he got a *little* carried away. He also purchased a bunch of dried stuff. I have no idea what to do with it for the most part so that is why I wanted to do this with dried fruit. Anyway, unbelievably it turned out. I made a peach apple pie. The crust was not too bad to work with and was made with wild rice mixed flour, potato starch, sorghum flour, tapioca flour, and Crisco (butter flavor). It was darker in color due to the rice blend but it tasted really good. It was even tender and flaky. I have to say, I was pretty impressed with the way it turned out.

Dinner was also a self imposed challenge. I wanted to do a vegetarian meal that was entirely made from our bulk stores. I made a "stoup". You know, soup that is thicker like stew. It had white beans, dried vegetable soup mix (onion, spinach, carrot, celery, potato, tomato), beef broth, canned tomatoes, quinoa, fresh thyme and rosemary and garlic. We had that with the rest of the cornbread. It too was surprisingly good.

Well if you have made it though reading this boring post you must be related to me. So for you here is a little video clip of the girls.

Cute Kid Quotes

2008-10-05T14:08:00.000-07:00

Sage was opening a new pad of construction paper and 2 sheets were already loose enough that they fell out. She was quite upset about this. She also had an explanation for it.

"Maybe some stupid little boy with a half brain this size (she holds out her clenched fist) did it. Ya, he had a brain the size of a pea. He did it!"

Where on earth did that come from???

I'm Done

2008-10-03T20:05:00.000-07:00

Okay, that is it! I am sooooo done with desert living. I am sitting here on my bed reading e-mail when something catches my eye on the floor beside my foot. Something frickin moved! And fast. Oh crap, I thought, it's a scorpion. I cautiously lean over, after hastily moving my foot, to get a better look. I can't believe what I am seeing. This is a first. It's a tiny salamander. How he got into my bedroom, I can't imagine. So now I am frantically looking for something to get it with. Right now I am wishing that my room was a little less tidy. There isn't anything laying around but a small piece of paper. At this point I don't even know if I should kill it or try to catch and release it. Maybe that is a moot point though, the thing just ran under my bed and I can't see it. Oh, this is just f&^*$%g GREAT! I am having visions of this thing joining me in bed at night. Why does this always happen when Ron isn't here?! My heart is racing and I am feeling near panicky thinking that if I don't find it and get it now I may not see it again until it makes babies in my underwear drawer. I grab a hanger and start flicking it under the bed to scare the little thing out. It works. Damn it is fast but due to my horrible adrenalin surge I am faster. I smash my tiny piece of paper down on him (so much for catch and release). I press ALL my body weight into the paper and hold it there for, I don't know, maybe an hour. I just know that if I lift my hand and that thing runs, I will scream and wake up all the kids and probably my neighbors. Cautiously, I lift the paper thinking that the blood I see on the carpet is a good sign. There he is or rather was. Nothing left but a twitching tail and a blood smear on my carpet. Did I mention that I am ready to leave the desert?????

A Few Recent Pics

2008-10-03T17:33:00.000-07:00

I haven't blogged for a while. It's hard to believe but I don't have much to say. Or maybe it is more about lack of any time to say it. So until I can find some time here are a few recent pics. This first one is of Sage sitting on my bathroom counter begging for me to put makeup on her.

Here is Rori enjoying her favorite part of baking a cake. In all honesty it is me and Sage's favorite part too. This time I used a mix that I bought from Costco of all places. This cake was incredibly good. There is no way that anyone could tell that it was gluten free.

I just like this picture because it shows how blue Justus' eyes are.

Right before I turned on the camera Sage had Justus laughing so hard. Of course when I turned the camera on he turned serious again.

Watching these next two videos makes me lightheaded.

Chickens

2008-09-19T20:32:00.000-07:00

Okay, Lisa had asked me to post some pics of our chickens and our eggs. So here they are. The girls are routinely fighting over who gets to look in what nests and who gets to carry in the eggs. Sage won this round.
Today Sage asked me to make her an egg with "runny yolks" and toast. She never eats the yolks. But today she did.

I Want Some More Magic Potion

2008-09-19T19:30:00.000-07:00

Holy Crap I seem to have created some kind of miracle here tonight. Ron is at work so I am home alone with the kids. Somehow I have managed to get all three asleep by 7:05. Better yet, I got the girls to sleep together in the same bed. I am in shock. This is a first. I can't believe I managed that. Add to that the house is actually pretty clean as are the kids. I read to them for about 40 minutes to boot! I also made a coconut curry fish thing that was really good. The kids actually ate. I have to say I am pretty impressed with myself right now. I figured that I better write this all down so tomorrow when the magic potion wears off I can remember this moment of shining glory.

Pumpkins

2008-09-18T14:42:00.002-07:00

We grew 4 small pumpkins this year. This morning I quartered and cleaned one. I drizzled it with olive oil and salt and pepper. I roasted it for 30 minutes at 400. Then sprinkled brown sugar on it and put it back in the oven for another 10 minutes. It is really pretty good. I was thinking about making a pie with some too. But that is going to require some time. Until then does anyone have any other ideas for pumpkin?

Life in the Desert

2008-09-18T14:42:00.001-07:00

It has already been an eventful day today. The kids got up at their usual early hour of 6 am. Sad now that I think sleeping in is 7 am. Since the weather is best here in the morning we went out as soon as we were out of bed. It was really nice because this time Ron was with us. Usually it is just me and the kids waiting outside for Ron to come home from work, or he is working outside. This morning was really nice because we had no plans or things to do so we were just sitting outside enjoying the morning. The sun was shining, the birds were singing and the tarantulas were out. Yes, that's right. We had a large tarantula on our driveway this morning. These don't freak me out as much as the snakes do, not even close so I was able to get up close to get a good picture.

Isn't he cute? And the fun didn't stop there. Lefty was also enjoying the morning. He was hanging out with us just off the driveway where we were all sitting.

Nope the excitement didn't end there. Sage caught her first lizard. He was a tiny one again and both the girls amazed me by holding it. Not me.

Ron commented that tomorrow we are likely to see a javalina, bobcat or god forbid a rattlesnake. Maybe I won't leave the house anymore...

Oh ya, and how could I forget the huge scorpion that Ron killed in the kitchen last night. I should have taken a picture of that too.

Crisis Averted

2008-09-18T14:42:00.000-07:00

Well, I nearly had to move out of the house this morning with nothing but the clothes on my back and possibly even leaving everyone behind. It went something like this. The previously discussed captured snake spent the night in a plastic jar, in the garage, on the saw table immediately beside the door to the house. I saw it there when I went out to check the chickens this morning. The lid, without holes was firmly attached, I checked, from a distance. A couple hours later we had been coming and going and the door that leads to the house was kept open. As I went inside for the last time I noticed that the jar was empty. Assuming that he let it go I called out to Ron, "did you get a picture of the snake?" He answered "no, not yet."

Me: "What do you mean not yet?"

Ron: "Well, I will as soon as I am done here!" Him irritated with me thinking that I was asking him to do it now.

Me: "Well, WHERE IS IT?" The shear panic is rising in my chest. I am looking at the empty container with the lid slightly ajar, the open garage door and remembering how difficult it had been to catch it in the first place.

Ron: "What do you mean 'where is it?'" Now he is running toward me as I stand there in horror.

Both of us turn to Sage and shout "what did you do with the snake?" Poor kid had no idea what we were talking about. "Nothing" she replies in complete innocence.

Me: "Oh CRAP, oh crap, oh crap!"

I had to censor what I really wanted to say since the girls were right there. I quickly brought the kids with me in the house and closed the door hoping and praying that it wasn't already in the house. I assumed that Ron was staying in the garage to try to find it. Turned out I was wrong to make such a stupid assumption. I quickly got ready for my appointment thinking of the gravity of the situation. What if it is in the house? It was small, about 10 inches and the diameter of about a pencil. It could go anywhere and not be seen for a long, long time and during this time it would be GROWING. What happens if it is in the house and it comes out when Ron isn't home. What do I do then? Could I barricade myself in a room until Ron came home by stuffing towels under the door? Probably not, it was small so it could squeeze in if it was going to try and get me. There was only one real option: I was going to have to move out until Ron could find the thing. I tip toe back towards the garage, visually scouring the floor as I went, to tell Ron of my plan to move out in the case that he hasn't found it yet. Again to my astonishment I carefully open the door and see Ron continuing about his business of doing whatever he was doing when I asked him where the snake was. Me: "Did you find it already?" Ron: "I'm not looking for it. There is no way I will find it now." That's it then, I will have to move out! As I am about to tell him about his new job as a single parent I look down and right there in the middle of the garage, there it is. It's just laying there. Now I am probably screeching, "it's right there, it's right there!" I am already running back inside the house now to get away from it. Ron is shouting at me to get the camera and I am shouting back "JUST GET THE SNAKE!!!" He did and I did. Here is the picture of the evil little thing. It is kind of blurry because my hands were shaking so much and because it was trying to escape. Anyway, crisis averted.

Lizard Rodeo

2008-09-17T13:20:00.000-07:00

Some days I would be happy to leave the desert and not return. Today is one of those days. Ron took Sage out this morning and I was home with Rori and Justus. I was in the kitchen when something caught my eye. A lizard. There was a freakin lizard in my kitchen! Eeewww. And Ron wasn't here to rescue me. Just like he wasn't here to rescue me both times with the blasted ants. I grabbed the girls "bug catcher" nets and started the rodeo. To my amazement I caught it without too much effort. It was tiny, just a baby. I was still freaking out though. Then the little guy JUMPED out of the net and ran under the stove. Rori and I were both screeching. Rori kept saying "me scared, me scared." Me too. I called Sage and told her I had a job for her when she came home. She happily accepted the challenge. When they got home the little guy was still under the stove so we had to just wait him out. Of course he decided to come out when it was only me in the kitchen again. I managed to catch him again and RUN outside with him in the net. Here is a picture of the tiny little guy.

As I sit here and write this Sage is outside busy trying to catch crickets to feed to the sand snake that Ron just caught outside. I am so unjustifiably terrified of all snakes I can't bring myself to go to even look at it. If they decide to keep it, OUTSIDE, I will try to get my courage up to go take a pic of it to post. I am going to have nightmares. I want to move home.....

Devilled Eggs

2008-09-17T12:52:00.000-07:00

Seriously, this doesn't get old. I find myself going outside to the chicken coop to check for eggs several times a day. The weather is getting nicer here so the kids and I are out there frequently giving them treats and checking to see if they left any for us. It is totally cool. Even so I can't bring myself to touch them, especially their feet. They really give me the willies. Ron gets the willies from the eggs themselves. He is a little weirded out when it comes to eating the eggs. He says he is more comfortable with the eggs from the store and that maybe he just doesn't like to know where his food comes from - animal food that is. I said that if we were real farmers he would end up being a vegan. Anyway, today I wanted to use up some of our eggs. I should say that I am not an egg lover, as in to eat an egg all by itself, but I do a lot of baking that requires eggs. I am going to have to try to change that. We have 12 chickens (6 different breeds) and they lay every 24 - 36 hours. We have so many because we have never done this before and we never thought for a minute that all 12 would survive. But they did so when all of them are laying likely by the end of the month we will have more than we know what to do with. Back to the cooking. I made devilled eggs. One kind of egg I do like. I didn't know that really fresh eggs are impossible to peel. Therefore I didn't bother with a picture. They weren't that pretty. But they sure were good. I didn't measure as usual so I'll just post what I put in there.

6 eggs, hard boiled, cut in half yolks removed
mayo
Dijon mustard
lemon juice
fresh dill
salt and pepper to taste

The lemon juice really added a little zip. Very good. Now if anyone is actually reading this and has some other good uses for eggs please let me know.

Tomato Soup with Basil, Spinach, Beans and Rice

2008-09-15T12:25:00.000-07:00

Gee, I am on a roll today (but no longer in a good mood - Rori just drew all over our leather couch with a pen and I can't get it off even with the "lipstick and ink remover"). I made a tasty and healthy lunch. Again, if I could just get the kids to eat it I would be ecstatic. I used to love tomato soup, Campbells. But Campbells doesn't make a single soup that is gluten free. So I have been making my own which it better tasting and better for us and has no non food ingredients. Today I did my usual creamy tomato basil and brown rice but decided to amp it up a little. I added the beans to create a complete protein with the brown rice. I also added some rough chopped fresh spinach. I am determined to use up this huge bag of spinach without wasting any of it. Additionally the iron in the spinach and the pumpkin seeds will be better absorbed due to the acid in the tomatoes. Hey, gluten free, dairy free and vegetarian!

Tomato Soup with Basil, Spinach, Beans and Rice

2 T olive oil

1 onion diced

3 large cloves garlic minced

1 can (14.5 oz) diced tomatoes

2 cups soup stock

1 can white beans, drained and rinsed

1 t dried basil, fresh would have been better

1 T honey

salt and pepper to taste

1 large handful coarsely chopped fresh spinach

1 cup cooked brown rice

pumpkin seeds to garnish

Heat oil in large pot. Saute onion and garlic with salt until soft. Add tomatoes, stock, beans, basil, honey and pepper. Simmer for 10 - 15 minutes. With an immersion blender blend until smooth. Add spinach and simmer for another couple of minutes. Add rice and stir until heated through. Sprinkle pumpkin seeds as a garnish. YUM!

I Did It Again

2008-09-15T09:53:00.001-07:00

On Saturday night I made Masaman Chicken Curry with brown basmati rice. It is a Thai curry made with coconut milk, potatoes, and onions. It has a red or yellow color and is a bit spicy. As the curry was cooking I did the same thing with the spinach. I packed my food processor full of fresh spinach and pureed it. I added it to the curry. It turned it green and made it look like I made green Thai curry which is a spicier curry. Once again you could not taste the spinach. I think I am definitely on to something here!

Crepes!

2008-09-15T09:33:00.000-07:00

I woke up this morning feeling great and happy to have the life I have. I chatted with my sister online for a bit and then went outside with the kids to check on the chickens. 3 eggs this morning. This just doesn't get old. It is so exciting to see these eggs just materialize. It is really cool. The weather was beautiful, finally it is cooling off here. So the girls played outside and I nursed Justus while we waited for Ron to get home. After being outside for about an hour we came inside for breakfast. I figured I would make an attempt at crepes. Crepes are something that I love and have been missing since being GF. But this morning I decided to wing it and give it a try. Unbelievable they turned out perfectly and I had no recipe that I was working with. Here is what I did.

Crepes

3 small eggs (yes the ones we got this morning)

1/2 cup sweet rice flour - give or take

plain hemp milk

pinch of salt

splash of vanilla

I mixed it all up playing with the flour and hemp milk to get the right runny consistency. I melted some margarine in a large non stick pan with rounded edges. I poured in about 1/3 of the batter and swirled the pan to get a thin layer. I let it brown slightly and flipped it. For the filling I defrosted some mixed berries and added some sugar. A couple spoonfuls of that, fold the crepe over and sprinkle with powdered sugar. This was really really good and still gluten and dairy free! I honestly can't believe it. What a great start to an already great day.

Sneaking in the Vegetables

2008-09-12T20:32:00.000-07:00

As I have said before, my family seems to have a veggie phobia. Even Ron, if given a chance, could go days and days without a veggie passing his lips. Today I had decided to make baked beans. We really like these. I make them from dried beans and do it in the crock pot all day. They are really, really good and they don't have any non food ingredients i.e. preservatives etc. Typically we like them with, what else, wieners (yes, I get the hypocrisy of that). This is my point, not a healthy meal. Yes, there is onion in there but that is it for any veggies with this meal. Beans are great for you but there should really be another vegetable included in dinner. But I know my family. If I were to make a salad as a side, so we could get in our leafy greens, it would go largely untouched. My solution? Put the salad in the beans. Gross hey? It wasn't. I pulled out my food processor and packed it full of fresh spinach and pureed it so it was smooth. I put it in the crock pot at the beginning of the day. Ya sure, spinach is much better for you if you eat it raw. I probably cooked out a lot of the nutrition in it but not all I am sure. So how was it? Really good. You couldn't tell by looking at it and you couldn't taste it. I let Ron eat a whole bowl before I told him. If I had told him first there would have been some problem with it that he would have attributed to the spinach. When I did tell him he did admit that he couldn't taste it. I would post my recipe but I don't follow one. And honestly this wasn't my best batch. I got a little heavy handed with the apple cider vinegar. It had nothing to do with the spinach. Anyway, I am really pleased that I was able to sneak that in there without being able to taste it. I am going to try doing this with other dishes now (sorry honey, it's cause I love you!). I'll keep you posted!

10 Veggie Spaghetti Sauce

2008-09-11T16:46:00.000-07:00

My mom always made her spaghetti sauce from scratch. I didn't know any other way until high school when I was over at a friends place for lunch and she made spaghetti and used the stuff from a can or jar. To say that I was unimpressed was an understatement. So I too have always made it from scratch. Mine isn't anything like my moms at all though. My moms is great but since my family seems to be veggie phobic I use spaghetti sauce to load them up on veggies. I hide them in there. I have served this to guests many times and nearly always I am asked for the recipe. I do put ground beef in here but I should try it without.

10 Veggie Spaghetti Sauce

1 lb ground beef
1 large onion
7-8 garlic cloves
1 ribs celery
2 carrot
1 green pepper
1 small zucchini
1 bunch fresh spinach
8 oz fresh button mushrooms
1 small eggplant
1 small yellow/summer squash
2 small cans tomato paste
2 15 oz cans tomato sauce
28 oz can diced tomatoes
salt and pepper to taste
1-2 T oregano dried
1 T basil dried

In a large pot brown ground beef. Once browned put beef in food processor and pulse. This just give the ground beef an equally fine texture. Then return beef to pot. Add onions and garlic to food processor and pulse until you get a uniform fine texture but not so much that it has turned into a puree. Add to beef. Repeat with celery, carrot, green pepper, zucchini, spinach and summer squash. Do each vegetable separately in the food processor or you end up with a puree. Sprinkle with salt. Cook until softened. Add tomatoes. Dice eggpland and quarter mushrooms and add to sauce. Simmer for an hour or so. Adjust seasonings to taste. This makes a lot so I freeze meal sized portions. When I am stuck for something to make on short notice this is perfect.

Vegetarianism Too??

2008-09-11T13:29:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I finally read about the number one cause of green house gasses. I had heard about this before and didn't want to believe it or even really think about it. Now it is really bugging me. I love beef. Really, I love all meat. I was raised on meat and potatoes. While I really like lentils and beans, a meal without meat leaves me feeling unsatisfied. I can easily scarf down a pound of beef steak, mmmm prime rib! I hate the idea that I am knowingly contributing to global warming. Yes, we are already doing a lot to reduce our carbon footprint, probably a lot more than most. We use those cfl's instead of regular light bulbs, and try to use as little electricity as possibly by turning off any unused lights, TV's appliances and fans, we keep our house warmer in the summer than some of our friends can tolerate, I make all my own cleaning supplies, I will be starting to line dry our clothes as soon as Ron can rig up a line for me, we raise our own chickens for eggs, we cloth diaper, breastfeed, avoid the impulse to buy buy buy, avoid plastic anything when possible, avoid buying bottled water, we have only one car and it is a Prius, we white trash up our house by blocking out the summer sun by covering the windows, we let it mellow if it's yellow, we buy and sell used clothing, we buy used and sell nearly everything we can, we are currently trying to downsize our "stuff", we have a garden, we compost, we stopped competing with the Jones's long ago and we rarely eat out. I should feel no guilt about eating meat but I do. So much to Ron's dismay he is going to start seeing more meatless meals. Besides the whole greenhouse gasses thing it will be better for us too. Maybe we can even shed a few pounds, lower our cholesterol and our risk for heart disease and cancer. So that said, does anyone have any great meatless recipes they would like to share??

9 Grain Breakfast Cereal

2008-09-11T12:58:00.000-07:00

Never in my life have I had or cooked so many hot breakfasts. In years gone by I was quite happy with toast or cereal. Actually, I craved toast. I could eat bread with every meal and in excess. Now that I make my own gluten free bread - which is really, really good if I do say so myself, I don't eat bread to excess. I really do think that those things that you absolutely love and can't imagine life without and crave with every fiber of your being are those things that probably aren't any good for you. So now that we are gluten and dairy free, breakfasts are almost always hot. Our most frequent breakfast is our homemade hot cereal. Because gluten free grains are ridiculously expensive (and I have to say that that really really picks my ass!!) we buy in large quantity bulk. From those whole grains we make breakfast cereal, aka porridge, and all the flours I use for baking. One of my favorite web sites has detailed information on the nutritional profile of all sorts of grains and beans and it is also where we bought a bunch of our storage stuff from. All these grains together pack so much more nutrition than most other breakfasts possibly could. Best yet, we all love it. Yes even the kids.

1 cup multi grain wild rice blend (a mix we purchased that has wild, red, brown, black etc etc)
1 cup millet
1 cup buckwheat
1 cup quinoa
1 cup dried corn
1 cup flax seeds
1 cup sesame seeds
1 cup Teff
1/2 cup amaranth seeds

We grind the first 5 ingredients until we get a course texture. The last 3 go in whole. Yes, you should grind at least some of the flax seeds in order to break them open to get all the nutrition out of them but leaving them whole gives some extra crunch. Mix it all up and store in the fridge. To cook: bring 3 1/2 cups of water to a boil, add 1 t salt. Add 1 cup cereal and reduce the temp to med low. Simmer while stirring frequently for about 20 minutes or until desired consistency.

This is really high in fiber, protein, iron and B vitamins. And with some brown sugar, agave nectar or fruit it is really satisfying. As a kid I always had porridge with milk. With this we eat it plain with sugar but my mom and dad liked it with milk. Hmmm I wonder how it would be with coconut milk??? I will have to try that.

I will try to get around to posting my bread recipe too. I made it yesterday but with this cereal blend ground into flour and subbed that into the recipe. It was really good.

Cloth Diapers

2008-09-07T20:29:00.000-07:00

I started cloth diapering Justus when he was 3 weeks old, I think. I went in clueless. I was just feeling so guilty about the whole waste thing. So I did some reading about it. Turns out there are a lot of reasons to use cloth diapers. Just for the record, I am not trying to convince anyone to do it. I think that everyone needs to come to this conclusion on their own. Although, what a better world this would be if everyone did it. Turns out cloth diapering is pretty addictive. They are so darn cute and there are thousands and thousands to choose from. I like to buy from WAHM's (work at home moms), then I can actually feel good about buying diapers. There is no more guilt. I just wish I would have started this when I had baby #1, then diapers for #2 and #3 would be free. Even though I just started, I can already see how this is much, much cheaper over the long run. And it is cheaper in ways I didn't even anticipate. I can't tell you how many times one of the kids pooped and it shot all the way up their back to their shoulders. It really sucked when this happened in public and I was left trying to get the clothing off without covering their hair in poo. Assuming I was at home I would take the outfit off and usually start the whole scrubbing and soaking process. Sometimes I would look at the piece of clothing and think, "well I didn't really like this anyway," or "this is almost too small" and then just chuck it. More than once I just cut it off. This is what I love most about cloth diapers. Ya I love them for selfish reasons. Ever since getting the bugs worked out of the whole cloth diapering learning curve, I haven't had a single blow out. While we were on vacation I used disposables. I came home with several articles of ruined clothing and a new appreciation for my beloved cloth diapers. As for the care of cloth diapers... Really no big deal. I put them in the washer before bed every couple days and then put them in the drier in the morning. The days of rinsing large squares of fabric in the toilet, safety pins and plastic pants are long gone. It's better for baby, better for mom, better for the wallet and better for everyone else. I would encourage all new moms to do a little research and keep an open mind. It really is not anymore difficult or anymore work than disposables.

Shrimp Tacos

2008-09-06T20:06:00.000-07:00

Sometimes I surprise myself. A lot of my cooking is a result of me seeing a recipe and then making so many changes it becomes indistinguishable from the original. Today I was looking at what was in the fridge and trying to figure out what I was going to make for dinner. I decided on shrimp tacos which is something I order in restaurants all the time but I have never thought about making them at home. For any family and friends in Canada I can probably assume you have never heard of shrimp or fish tacos. If so, then you might have the same gut reaction that I did when I first saw it on a menu down here, yuck! Actually, it took me years to even try one. These are so popular down here you can get them at fast food joints. I love shrimp tacos. Better yet, they are usually gluten and dairy free. I couldn't find a recipe that sounded like what I had in mind so this entire dinner was truly winging it. Tonight I made refried pinto beans without the refry which is done from dried beans and cooked in the crock pot then mashed before serving. Refried beans has been another acquired taste since living in the southwest. Again, it is something that I used to hate but now, if they are done right, I really like them. Also, as a side, I made a mexican rice. I browned brown basmati rice in a bit of olive oil on the stove top until it was all nutty smelling and then cooked it in my favorite kitchen appliance, my rice cooker, with onion, garlic, chili powder, cumin, paprika and salt. But for the star of the show...

Shrimp Tacos

Corn tortillas (4 inch ones)

raw shrimp (3-4 large shrimp per taco)
olive oil
salt and pepper to taste

1/2 cup mayonnaise
1 finely minced garlic clove
1 t lemon juice
2 T finely minced parsley or cilantro
1 t honey
salt and pepper to taste

diced tomato
chopped cilantro
avocado sliced
cabbage finely shredded

In a saute pan heat oil on med high. Add shrimp and salt and pepper. Cook only for a couple minutes until they are pink and slightly curled. The best way to ruin shrimp in my opinion is to over season them and over cook them until they are little pieces of rubber.

For the sauce just combine mayo, garlic, lemon juice, cilantro honey and salt and pepper and let sit in the fridge for an hour or more.

Heat the tortillas in the microwave for 30-45 sec in a damp paper towel so they are soft and pliable.

Assembly. Tortilla, sauce, cabbage, shrimp, tomatoes, avocado, cilantro and rice. This is soooo good. I now need not go to a restaurant to enjoy these.

Cute Kid Quotes

2008-09-05T19:51:00.000-07:00

We were on our trip back to Alberta and we were driving through some random town and out of the blue Sage says "Is this where dead people live?"

On our way home from our trip we were driving through southern Utah where it was raining. It was a desert landscape and there were lots of desert sage that were very aromatic. Sage says "What's that stink?" Ron responds, "it's the Sage." Sage says "no it isn't. I scrubbed my armpits in the bath at the hotel last night."

One night when Ron was leaving to go to work Sage calls out to him as he is walking out the door, "Bye Daddy! Don't be scared of the ugly people!!"

Success Again!

2008-09-01T20:34:00.000-07:00

Two weeks ago today Ron had his gallbladder removed. The following day at 10 pm we decided to make a trip back to Alberta. I think if we had spent more time planning or contemplating it we would have come to our senses and laughed at the mere idea of taking 3 kids (ages 4,2 and 3 months), in a Prius, for 3 days of driving, to go to a family wedding. Oh and don't forget we have to remain gluten free and Ron was only 2 days post op. Sounds insane doesn't it? It does to me. But we did it anyway and we are so glad we did. It was great. Well, not the 6 days total of hour after hour after hour after hour... in the car. That kinda really sucked. It wasn't the kids but just the shear amount of time in the car. We did 10 hours the first day, 14 hours the next day and 9 hours the last day. UGH! Eating gluten free and dairy free is not easy while travelling. We packed a cooler and a big box of snacks and ate out at restaurants only three times. This was the part that made me the most nervous. Both Ron and Sage have the same reaction to gluten, gut aches and horrible mood disturbances. If either of them were to get contaminated it would be a MISERABLE trip and someone would be coming home in a body bag. The mood stuff lasts longer than the gut stuff so if we got glutened at the beginning it would ruin the whole trip.

Here is a pic of the girls sleeping together for the very first time. It was our first night in the hotel.

It was a very short trip, only 6 days in Alberta. But it was a very busy 6 days. Ron's nephew Steven was getting married on Saturday the 23rd so much of the reason that we felt we needed to try to do this was because the majority of Ron's large family would be in one place at one time. None of either of our families, excluding my mom, had met Justus and many had not met Rori. My dad was sweet enough to make the 10 hour drive from Salmon Arm, BC to spend a measly 4 hours with us while we were getting ready for the wedding.

The wedding was great. We didn't tell anyone we were coming except for the groom. It was fun to see so many surprised faces. It was also wonderful to see our kids with their family. The girls ran around non stop with all their cousins' kids and Justus was happy to be passed around for hours. I initially didn't want to stay for the dinner, not only because we had RSVP'd "no" and I didn't want Steven to stress about another whole family being added at the last minute but also because of the gluten thing. Amazingly, though, it turned out really well. Aside from the rolls (I can't tell you how much I wanted a dozen of those, being that Canadian bread is about a 1000 times better than the crap we get here), pasta salad and dessert everything was gluten free. Me being the paranoid one had to ask the caterer about everything but they didn't seem to mind.

The following day we got to spend more time with Ron's family. Again, I was just so happy seeing the kids having so much fun with family. On Monday I got to see my mom and sister and her family. Last summer Sage and Taylor took 4 and a half of the 5 weeks we were there to decide that they liked each other. This time they made that decision in about 5 seconds. The weather was great. I was in heaven sitting outside on Dani's deck watching the kids play on the grass.

Here is a pic of my sister and I. It isn't terribly flattering of either of us but I love it anyway.

Dani made an incredible dinner, all gluten and dairy free. We had a standing rib roast (oh that amazing Alberta beef) that we rolled in fresh, chopped rosemary from her garden and coarse salt and pepper and she cooked that on the BBQ rotisserie, corn on the cob, baby carrots again from her garden, and baby dilled potatoes that Wes pulled from the garden right before she cooked them. It was so incredibly good. Oh, I should add that my mom, as usual, made an amazing dinner for us the night we arrived. We had salmon that her husband had caught last summer, swiss chard and baby carrots from her garden. Veggies right out of the garden are sooooo good. Even Rori who has boycotted vegetables all together was eating the swiss chard. I was stunned.

Justus is calling me right now so I will finish this later.

To Be Continued...

Beef Curry with Corn

2008-08-10T16:49:00.000-07:00

So as I said, I did a lot of cooking this weekend. Here is what we had for dinner tonight. I found the recipe online. But as usual I changed so many things I think I am safe in calling it my own. We love Indian food and I have so far found it really easy to make. I know that some of the ingredients may not be in your spice collection but if you like Indian like we do you might want to invest in these as they are pretty standard and are used over and over. Oh, got so excited to eat I forgot to take a picture. Sorry. I served it with rice and a potato dish I will hopefully post soon.

2 T vegetable oil
1 t cumin seeds
1 half-inch piece cinnamon stick
pinch of ground cinnamon
4 whole cloves
pinch of ground cloves
3 green cardamom pods, cracked open
1 medium diced onion
4 garlic cloves minced
2 t ginger paste
1 t turmeric
1 lb lean ground beef
1 large diced tomato
1 t ground cumin
1 t ground coriander
1 t garam masala
1 t paprika
salt to taste
1 c coconut milk
2 T lemon juice
1/2 cup corn

Heat oil in a heavy skillet over medium-high heat. Add cumin, cinnamon stick, whole cloves and cardamom; stir until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add onion, garlic, ginger, cinnamon, cloves and turmeric and cook until onions are translucent. Add beef and brown. Add tomato, garam masala, cumin, coriander, paprika and salt; stir and cook for 2 minutes. Add coconut milk and lemon juice. Stir in corn. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer until reduced about 30 minutes.

Our Usual Pancakes

2008-08-10T12:01:00.000-07:00

When we first got the diagnosis of CD, Ron was sad about losing pancakes. So the search was on for some decent gf recipes. I think I have tried probably a hundred. The first several came out with the consistency of "snot" - Ron's description. The next ones graduated to the consistency of raw egg whites. Finally we have one that is really good. I make it often. Actually, since CD, I have never had so many hot breakfasts. Since most boxed cereals are out (why must they put malt in everything?!) that certainly changes what our mornings would otherwise look like. I have added blueberries to these as well as pureed pumpkin or banana slices with pumpkin pie spice. All are really good. Here it is.

GF, DF Pancakes

1/2 cup multi grain rice flour (we grind our own but subbing brown rice flour would be fine)
1/2 cup millet flour (you could sub any flour here)
1/3 cup potato starch
2 T sugar
3 T ground flax seeds
1 1/2 t baking powder
1/2 t baking soda
1/2 t salt
1/2 t xanthan gum
2 eggs
3 T oil
enough water to get desired consistency

Just mix all together. Yum!

This Weekends Entertainment

2008-08-10T11:21:00.000-07:00

I have been cooking up a storm this weekend. I have made some regulars and some new ones. I want to get around to posting all the recipes but as always time is a little short. First I will start with my cornbread. Cornbread is something that I didn't have much as a kid but since moving down to the US I have acquired a taste for it. We like the sweeter version of it. I love it with butter and honey. Since butter is out (unfortunately it still contains some casein in it) I have to settle for gf df margarine which is barely a substitute. If anyone knows a better sub please let me know. Butter is what I miss most. Anyway if you like the savory kind of cornbread just omit the sugar.

Cornbread - gluten and dairy free

1 cup cornmeal
1 cup corn flour
1 t xanthan gum
1/4 cup flax seed meal
1 T baking powder (gluten free)
1 t salt
1/3 cup oil
1 cup non-dairy milk (we use original flavor hemp milk)
1 egg
1/2 cup sugar

Preheat oven to 400. Mix all ingredients and pour into a 8x8 sprayed pan. Bake for 20-25 minutes until top is golden brown. Test doneness with a toothpick.

Chocolate Banana Ice Cream

2008-08-09T10:25:00.000-07:00

It's not hard to find good gluten free ice cream. However it is hard to find really good GF and dairy free ice cream that doesn't cost a fortune. And we have been missing ice cream. So this is what I made a couple days ago. It was so good. Even Ron gave his stamp of approval. I made this with the use of an $8 ice cream maker from Walmart.

1 can coconut milk
2 large ripe bananas
2 T cocoa
1 t vanilla extract
2 T honey
pinch of salt

I put everything in the blender and then dumped it into the ice cream maker. 20 minutes later this is what it looked like.

It was so good. We will definitely be making this again soon. It took great will power to not eat it all at one time!

Honey'd Squash

2008-08-03T12:00:00.000-07:00

Okay, I really shouldn't be writing right now. I have been laid up with a migraine for 2 days so the house looks like it has been ransacked by child burglers. In my defense though the laundry is going, I have done 2 days worth of dishes already and dinner is in the crockpot. I am just so excited though I had to share this. We have lots of yellow squash from our garden. Ron planted it. I wouldn't have. It is not a favorite of mine and I really don't use it much. However, I am determined to use it all up. When we were camping and saw that elk it reminded me that I have a couple packages of ground elk in the freezer. I told Sage about it and she wanted to try it. Go figure. She sees the beautiful animal and wants to eat it. Neither of them will eat anything that has ground beef in it but today they both ate elk burgers. I seasoned them simply with salt, pepper and garlic powder and then fried them in some olive oil. They were really pretty good. The best part though was the squash that I served with it.

Honey'd Squash

2-3 cups yellow squash cut up into bite sized peices
2-3 T olive oil (actually I used the same pan as the burgers - hey I never claimed to be low fat mommy!)
Salt and Pepper to taste
1 T honey

Saute up until browned and tender. Then add 1 T honey and saute for another minute. Serve hot.

This is so good it will be my new favorite way to have squash. Sage even ate some which is a shocker. Rori? Well, I will need a miracle to get her to eat any veggie. Seriously, you have got to try this. I wish I had taken a picture to post but it was so good I ate most of it while it was still so hot it was scalding my mouth.

Camping - Against All Odds

2008-08-01T19:25:00.000-07:00

When I think back on my childhood some of the very best memories for me were of camping. We haven't gone in about 7 years. That last time ended badly. We drove for hours and as we were pulling into our campsite, in northern New Mexico, it started to rain. No actually it started to pour. We hoped it would clear so we went ahead and set up the tent and camp site and waited for the rain to stop. It didn't. A couple hours later we packed it all up, soaking wet and drove all the way home. It kinda left a bad taste in our mouths. Lately I had been thinking that I wanted to try it again. I had several concerns about it even being possible. With a 3 1/2 year old, a 21 month old (who is newly potty trained) and a newborn, a tent, a Prius, and several food restrictions it seemed more than a little daunting so I didn't mention it to Ron. Then one morning he comes home from work and announces that he wants to go camping. Sage knew what camping was and was really excited. I was excited too and more than a little apprehensive. What the heck would we eat? No gluten means no hot dog buns. Hot dogs without the bun? Yuck. Camping without hot dogs? It's just not right. But since we told Sage about our idea to go we were kind of committed.

So Monday afternoon Ron started to get the car packed up and I started to bake. I made my awesome whole grain bread, brownies and rice krispy squares. All were gluten and dairy free. The rice krispy squares I made with coconut oil instead of butter and they were so unbelievably good that I could have eaten them all myself. Ron and I agreed that they were better than the original version. When Ron was done packing it would have been difficult to squeeze an extra toothpick in. Then a new concern hit me. Will this tiny car make it up the 5000 + ft elevation climb? We left Tuesday morning. Sage was so excited she chattered nonstop for the entire 2 1/2 hour drive. It was so sweet. That is one of the best things about having kids; you can see the world through their eyes. Anyway, the car made it there without a problem and it still managed to get 46 miles per gallon. Man do we love that car. We got a good campsite on the Mogollin Rim which is about 30 minutes east of Payson and set up the tent. Here is a pic of us setting up and proving that we really did this trip in a Prius.

At first Rori was a bit of a princess. She kept saying "dirt, dirt." But within the hour both girls were exploring the campsite and having a blast. The weather was so perfect. Daytime highs were in the mid to low 80's. Here in Scottsdale it was 113, I was told. It is amazing to me that in just a 2.5 hour drive we were in beautiful weather, green trees and clear air. The air smelled so good. I had forgotten what clean air smelled like. The first day we just hung around the campsite and took

walks and relaxed. I can't even put into words how happy I felt to see my girls playing outside. Sadly this is something they can't do at home. Between the heat, rattlesnakes, scorpions, javalina, bobcats, coyotes and cactus, playing outside isn't an option. Dinner was hot dogs, of course, on my bread with various other junk as expected on a camping trip. It was so good. I didn't feel cheated at all. Justus is such a good baby. He slept the entire trip there and then seemed so happy to be outside too. He kept starring up at the trees and smiling and laughing. He was perfectly content.

As expected, getting all 3 kids to sleep in one tent was not easy. But eventually they finally dropped. In Rori's case she literally dropped. She fell asleep while crawling around on the floor. But the very best thing about the night was that Justus slept right through for the first time. I didn't sleep well as I kept waiting for him to wake up and I was acutely aware of the fact the Ron was having a terrible sleep. In the morning I saw just how bad his night was. The air mattress he was on had a hole and by morning it had completely deflated and he was sleeping on the rocks. He woke up less than cheery. The rest of us though were happy as can be. We had breakfast and went to Payson

to get Ron a new air mattress. On the way back we stopped at Christopher Creek for the day. We had so much fun. Ron was teaching the girls how to fish for crawdads. The creek is small, clean, warm and shallow. It was beautiful there and I could have stayed all day. We had lunch on the bank and played in the water for a couple hours. We all got some "color", aka sunburned, even Justus.

That night went a little smoother in respect to getting the girls to sleep. They were just so exhausted. Justus only woke once during the night and Ron and I slept better too. So all in all we had a great trip. I didn't want to come home. I think that if we had a 5th wheel the kids and I would be perfectly happy to stay up there for a couple weeks at a time. Not only was the weather perfect and the kids were so happy and content to be playing outside, Ron and I were able to relax a bit and just sit and talk. Amazing what can happen when there is no TV. We also found that the people were so friendly there. People smiled at each other and said "hi". Here is North Scottsdale people don't even look at each other never mind smile or god forbid actually talk to one another. Sage surprised me with how friendly she was with complete strangers. She was so cute when she started chatting with our neighbors, an elderly couple. She said, "Hi, I'm Sage and this is my little sister Rori and I have a little brother Justus." Justus and Ron were back at the campsite while the girls and I went for a walk. The woman asked Sage if her brother was a little brother or a big brother. Sage replied, "He is my little brother. He is a baby and he came out of mommy's..." This is where I jumped in to stop her from giving them a lesson in the birds and the bees.

The first evening we were there an elk was wondering through the campsite. He was beautiful. He had huge antlers and we all had a great view. Rori kept repeating "elk, elk." Sage just wanted to get closer. I wish I had gotten a picture of him.

When I was a kid I used to see my mom and dad and all the other adults just sitting around the campfire just doing nothing. I used to think "how boring". Now as an adult myself I can appreciate those perfect moments of complete content in feeling the warm sun on my skin or the warmth of the fire. Watching the kids be kids and listening to the birds or the sound of the fire. These simple moments make me appreciate the wonder that is my life.

Gratitude

2008-07-22T18:45:00.000-07:00

Some days I feel so tremendously grateful for this amazing life and family that I have. Today is one of those days. As many of my friends and family know, my life was almost very different than it is today. I was engaged to someone who was all wrong for me. I thought I knew what love was. Then Ron came into my life. He is a gift. He has taught me what love really is. We have been married for more than 13 years now and I love him more with each passing day. Not only is he a better husband than I had ever dared to dream about but he is an amazing father. Today was a great example of both of those. I wanted to get out of the house alone (with baby of course) so since we are a one car family we all drove to the restaurant where I was meeting a friend for lunch. He then took the girls across the street to go see a movie while I got to visit with my friend. Brave brave man to take 2 young girls by himself to a movie. After the movie was over we all drove to the pool. He then took the girls swimming for the rest of the afternoon. Since J is so little I couldn't go. Again, brave man, he managed both girls by himself all afternoon while I got to go browse in some stores. When he and the girls got out of the car to go to the pool, I was watching as he carried R in one arm, held the swim bag in the same arm and held S hand with the other, I was just in awe. What could I have possibly done to deserve a man like this? After 14 years together I still think he is the sexiest man alive and I am so grateful that he is mine!

To my best friend, partner, lover, soul mate, co-parent; thank you for being mine. I love you more than words can ever express.