Category Archives: cooking

February 10, 2011 · 8:11 pm

My day feels upside down and backwards and I’m just trying to keep up!

I think I am thrown because of my last minute dash to Pennsylvania yesterday.  Today feels like Saturday and Sunday all at once.

Over the weekend we found out that my maternal grandmother was hospitalized with pneumonia and other recurring health issues.  My mom headed up to be there on Sunday.  Tuesday she called saying that it was time to come visit because my grandmother may be nearing the end of her life.

It’s times like this when I am grateful for Tate and I’s decision to move “back East” and be closer to family.

I am sorry to say that it had been three years since I’d seen her and it was very important to there, even just for a few hours.

The cartime totaled just under 12 hours roundtrip but I had great company

Brother, niece, sister ♥

My sister Yarrow was a rockstar and drove the whole way (after we rendezvoused on I-81 between C’ville and WV)!  Thanks!

I returned home just after 2 a.m. and crashed hard then slept in late this morning, hence the weekend weird feeling.

Last day at the gym :(.  I spent it in a Pilates Reformer class and spent a little time on the treadmill then hurried home to EAT!  I was hungry!

This meal came together quickly and was perfect!  Filling, tasty, and healthy.

Veggie “Fried” Rice Gracefulfitness Style

  • 1/2 tsp coconut oil
  • diced half an onion
  • shredded cabbage
  • 3 leaves of chard cut into ribbons
  • diced half a green pepper
  • 1/2 cup short grain brown rice (leftovers!)
  • 1 serving tofu
  • minced fresh ginger
  • minced fresh garlic
  • red pepper flakes
  • salt
  • dried ground lemongrass

Served with a steamed turnip and glass of ginger soda!  Dessert was the last Super Snacky Snap Happy Ginger Snappers.  Time to make more of these, they were great!

It’s another gorgeous day in the neighborhood so I hope/plan to get out on a walk (and rack up some miles) after doing a few things around the house.

4 Comments

Filed under cooking, food

Tagged as ,

February 6, 2011 · 4:42 pm

Soak It Up

I want breakfast.  Again.  It was so damn good.

The sun was shining in

The avocado was perfectly ripe and rich

The local eggs were full of flavor

But the homemade english muffins, the english muffins trumped it all!

I saw this recipe for english muffins on Taste is Trump weeks ago and have been gathering ingredients and waiting for just the right time to make them ever since.

The stars aligned this morning because not only did I have ever thing I needed in the kitchen, Tate and I were both home and planning on a lazy Sunday morning.

The ingredient list is short and these are super simple to throw together but they do take some fore-thought because the flour must soak for at least 12 hours.

Soaking flour or grains before using promotes the break down of phytic acid, resulting in increased absorption of key minerals including iron, magnesium, calcium, and zinc.  The process of soaking grains/flour also helps make the gluten easier to digest.

Yesterday evening I mixed 2 cups of whole grain spelt flour with about 1 1/4 cup plain milk kefir (the recipe calls for 3/4 cup kefir but my bowl was still full of flour, not dough, after adding it so I poured in a little more to make a dough ball) and 1 tsp honey.  I covered the bowl with a clean dish cloth and left it on the hutch overnight.

And I awoke to a dough ball waiting for me

Added 1/2 tsp baking soda, 2 tsp baking powder, and a few pinches of rosemary salt and mixing it throughly with my hands.

I divided the dough into 8 balls

At this point I made another little adaptation to the recipe, I rolled each ball in cornmeal before shaping to give it that crusty english muffin quality

Eight little hand-shaped muffins

One hot and dry cast iron skillet

Flip!

Mmmmmmm

I put a lid on my skillet to ensure that the insides got done and cooked each side on low for 8 minutes or so, watching closely to make sure they didn’t get too dark.  The first batch I made took longer because they were thicker, the second batch I flattened out more and it worked better.

The taste was awesome, the texture is doughy with a perfect english muffiny crust but they do lack the air pockets some muffins have.

Overall, I can’t wait to make these again, they are pretty amazing and, of course, I LOVE that they are super nutritious from the spelt flour, kefir, and soaking method.

Next time I’m going to try cinnamon raisin!

Don’t worry Kath, you’re invited! 🙂

It’s a gorgeous day and time to soak up some sunshine!

 

12 Comments

Filed under breakfast, cooking, food, recipes

Tagged as