So the pre-soaked bread did not turn out exactly how I planned it. The dough was very stretchy and very promising at first. I used a recipe that I found online and it turned out okay, but did not rise very well and I had to use lots of extra flour. So I decided to use the recipe that I used last time that produced very good bread. The dough looked really good - but when I went to punch it down it was super duper runny. When I went to form it into bread/buns it pretty much wanted to run off the counter. The buns ended up being really flat. (you pretty much need 2 to make a sandwich!)
So I think I will try this again with some variations - but not this time. It is way too close to when the baby comes. I will just put the pre-soaked bread on hold until later. Right now I just need to have something edible and taste-worthy in the freezer to get me through those first few weeks.
Right now I have several things soaking to be baked tomorrow. So we'll see how those turn out.
Friday, April 29, 2011
Wednesday, April 27, 2011
Is trying something new!
Well, I am thinking about trying something new:) We'll see how ambitious I get . . .
I am reading so much lately about why to use sprouted grains/nuts/seeds and the benefit healthwise to doing so. Unfortunately I am having a bit of a hard time finding the sprouted stuff and I'm not sure I want to pay for it. There is an alternative though and that is to soak your flour, oats etc. before using them in baking. The only trouble with this is that I have to plan ahead and I am not a very 'plan ahead' type of baker! If I want brownies, then I make brownies. But if I'm going to be soaking the flour I need to premix the dough at least 12-24 hours ahead of time. So I'm going to make a list (I hope!) and try to make a bunch of soaked goodies for when the baby comes. If I'm smart I'll learn how to always have something on the go so I can have these goodies in the freezer.
I'll keep you posted on how it goes!
I am reading so much lately about why to use sprouted grains/nuts/seeds and the benefit healthwise to doing so. Unfortunately I am having a bit of a hard time finding the sprouted stuff and I'm not sure I want to pay for it. There is an alternative though and that is to soak your flour, oats etc. before using them in baking. The only trouble with this is that I have to plan ahead and I am not a very 'plan ahead' type of baker! If I want brownies, then I make brownies. But if I'm going to be soaking the flour I need to premix the dough at least 12-24 hours ahead of time. So I'm going to make a list (I hope!) and try to make a bunch of soaked goodies for when the baby comes. If I'm smart I'll learn how to always have something on the go so I can have these goodies in the freezer.
I'll keep you posted on how it goes!
Friday, April 15, 2011
Struggle with Heartburn
Last summer TR took steroids for several weeks in order to get his colitis under control. For a few weeks it worked, and then his symptoms started coming back. That's when we started the new diet and everything changed. He has never taken another prescription for his colitis since.
But while he was taking the steroids he was also on an antacid. He was told the steroids were hard on his stomach and the antacids would help with that. He also has a narrowing of the esophagus presumably from too much acid and so the hope was it would help with that too.
The only problem is that he never experienced heartburn. One winter he did, but not since then. After he was done with the steroids he had lots of heartburn. And so now he has been on antacids everyday. Several weeks ago it got really bad. To the point that even if he remembered to take them every day he still had heartburn, sometimes really really painful.
And now . . . he has stopped taking the antacids. And there is no heartburn! I can hardly believe it. He says that occasionally there is some minor heartburn, but he was experiencing that even with his antacids.
Wanna know what he did???
He started taking coconut oil. A little in his tea every day. Yes in his tea. I've done it and it tastes good and not oily at all.
All I can say is how very thankful I am. I have a real dislike for prescription drugs. To me the list of side effects makes them very unattractive. If there is a natural and safer way to handle the body's problems I think it is way better. And I was worried about how these antacids would harm TR's body over such a long period of time.
I really couldn't say that he's out of the woods yet. It's only been about a week. But so far so good! What a wonderful blessing!
p.s. If you want to know more about the wonderful things that Coconut Oil can do read "The Coconut Oil Miracle" by Bruce Fife. We have ordered a big jar of Coconut oil and I'm going to see what else it can do for our family. I'll keep you posted :)
But while he was taking the steroids he was also on an antacid. He was told the steroids were hard on his stomach and the antacids would help with that. He also has a narrowing of the esophagus presumably from too much acid and so the hope was it would help with that too.
The only problem is that he never experienced heartburn. One winter he did, but not since then. After he was done with the steroids he had lots of heartburn. And so now he has been on antacids everyday. Several weeks ago it got really bad. To the point that even if he remembered to take them every day he still had heartburn, sometimes really really painful.
And now . . . he has stopped taking the antacids. And there is no heartburn! I can hardly believe it. He says that occasionally there is some minor heartburn, but he was experiencing that even with his antacids.
Wanna know what he did???
He started taking coconut oil. A little in his tea every day. Yes in his tea. I've done it and it tastes good and not oily at all.
All I can say is how very thankful I am. I have a real dislike for prescription drugs. To me the list of side effects makes them very unattractive. If there is a natural and safer way to handle the body's problems I think it is way better. And I was worried about how these antacids would harm TR's body over such a long period of time.
I really couldn't say that he's out of the woods yet. It's only been about a week. But so far so good! What a wonderful blessing!
p.s. If you want to know more about the wonderful things that Coconut Oil can do read "The Coconut Oil Miracle" by Bruce Fife. We have ordered a big jar of Coconut oil and I'm going to see what else it can do for our family. I'll keep you posted :)
Wednesday, April 13, 2011
Recipes
Broccoli Smother in Coconut Chicken Sauce
~ From The Coconut Oil Miracle
1 head broccoli divided into flowerets (about 4 cups)
1/2 cup chopped green pepper
1/2 onion chopped
1/4 cup coconut oil
1/4 cup flour
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1 can (14oz) coconut milk
1 cup water or chicken stock
1 can (4oz) mushrooms
3 cups cut up cooked chicken
Cook broccoli in steamer. While broccoli is cooking, saute pepper and onion in oil over medium heat 5 min. Remove from heat. Blend in flour, salt and pepper. Cook over low heat stirring constantly until vegetables are tender. Remove from heat. Stir in milk, water, mushrooms and chicken. Heat to boiling, stirring frequently. Reduce heat and simmer 10 min, until sauce thickens. Serve over hot steamed broccoli. Serves 4.
LOVED this! Of course I made a few modifications. We're just about out of coconut oil so I just sauted the veggies in some olive oil and didn't blend in the flour until after I'd added the coconut milk. We also added 2 cloves of garlic (TR said it wasn't enough but he really likes garlic!) And we served some pasta with it too. Very very good, as good as any cream sauce made with cream/milk.
~*~
Mint Chocolate Chunk Ice Cream
~ From Ice Cream and Frozen Desserts
3 cups half and half
1 cup cream
1 cup packed fresh mint sprigs, coarsely chopped, stems and all
1 strip lemon zest
3/4 cup sugar
dash of salt
4 egg yolks
4 oz (100grams) chocolate chunks
Combine half and half, cream, mint and zest. Simmer over med heat. Remove from heat. Cover and let stand 30 min. Add sugar and salt. Return to heat and cook until sugar dissolves. Add eggs slowly (put the eggs in a glass container, add a little of the ice cream while mixing, slowly adding more until the eggs are getting hot, then add to the pot). Heat to 175 F (or until the mixture coats the back of the spoon, not boiling). Strain. Cool and then process in ice cream maker.
I finally broke down and bought a thermometer and it's so much better than guessing! I didn't have the mint leaves so I just used extract. Can't remember how much, 1 or 2 tbsp I think. So I omitted the 'let stand 30 min' part. WOW. This is the best ice cream I've made. Super creamy and rich. LOVED IT! A little more work than the other recipes I'm used to, but very worth it.
~ From The Coconut Oil Miracle
1 head broccoli divided into flowerets (about 4 cups)
1/2 cup chopped green pepper
1/2 onion chopped
1/4 cup coconut oil
1/4 cup flour
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1 can (14oz) coconut milk
1 cup water or chicken stock
1 can (4oz) mushrooms
3 cups cut up cooked chicken
Cook broccoli in steamer. While broccoli is cooking, saute pepper and onion in oil over medium heat 5 min. Remove from heat. Blend in flour, salt and pepper. Cook over low heat stirring constantly until vegetables are tender. Remove from heat. Stir in milk, water, mushrooms and chicken. Heat to boiling, stirring frequently. Reduce heat and simmer 10 min, until sauce thickens. Serve over hot steamed broccoli. Serves 4.
LOVED this! Of course I made a few modifications. We're just about out of coconut oil so I just sauted the veggies in some olive oil and didn't blend in the flour until after I'd added the coconut milk. We also added 2 cloves of garlic (TR said it wasn't enough but he really likes garlic!) And we served some pasta with it too. Very very good, as good as any cream sauce made with cream/milk.
~*~
Mint Chocolate Chunk Ice Cream
~ From Ice Cream and Frozen Desserts
3 cups half and half
1 cup cream
1 cup packed fresh mint sprigs, coarsely chopped, stems and all
1 strip lemon zest
3/4 cup sugar
dash of salt
4 egg yolks
4 oz (100grams) chocolate chunks
Combine half and half, cream, mint and zest. Simmer over med heat. Remove from heat. Cover and let stand 30 min. Add sugar and salt. Return to heat and cook until sugar dissolves. Add eggs slowly (put the eggs in a glass container, add a little of the ice cream while mixing, slowly adding more until the eggs are getting hot, then add to the pot). Heat to 175 F (or until the mixture coats the back of the spoon, not boiling). Strain. Cool and then process in ice cream maker.
I finally broke down and bought a thermometer and it's so much better than guessing! I didn't have the mint leaves so I just used extract. Can't remember how much, 1 or 2 tbsp I think. So I omitted the 'let stand 30 min' part. WOW. This is the best ice cream I've made. Super creamy and rich. LOVED IT! A little more work than the other recipes I'm used to, but very worth it.
Tuesday, April 12, 2011
Set back
So I just have to say that as much as our diet change has been about TR I think I have benefited equally from it. I never thought I had too many problems before, but the truth of it is that I just didn't know that you could feel better! I wish I could say that I have more energy, but considering that I am just over a month away from having a baby I am actually quite drained!
Last week we were in the city for an appointment and I went out to eat at Pizza Hut. It took me about 3 days to really recuperate from that. Not only did I eat food that is hard to digest, but I also didn't eat very much food throughout the rest of the day. I really should have packed more food from home, but because I hadn't and didn't really like the options I found at the convenience stores we stopped at, I really didn't eat that much. BIG MISTAKE!
What a difference eating properly makes. I've been trying a few new recipes lately. I'll try to post them soon . . .
Last week we were in the city for an appointment and I went out to eat at Pizza Hut. It took me about 3 days to really recuperate from that. Not only did I eat food that is hard to digest, but I also didn't eat very much food throughout the rest of the day. I really should have packed more food from home, but because I hadn't and didn't really like the options I found at the convenience stores we stopped at, I really didn't eat that much. BIG MISTAKE!
What a difference eating properly makes. I've been trying a few new recipes lately. I'll try to post them soon . . .
Saturday, March 26, 2011
Dreams
We recently ran out of the organic flour and I had to buy some flour from the store. My bread turned out awesome :( I say that is sad because I don't think that the flour from the store is the healthiest option and so we picked up more organic flour. And I'm going to keep on trying to improve it until I love the organic bread. It's not awful, it's just different. It's way crumblier (good if you want breadcrumbs though) and the taste is stronger, it doesn't rise as much and the crust is often way crunchier. I also really don't like how it feels to mix it with my hands, and I have to sift the flour every time I use it, making it more time consuming.
But I WILL NOT GIVE UP. This flour will not have the better of me. I refuse to believe that I can't make good bread with it. I just have to keep trying.
Today I tried again and so far so good, but I haven't cut into the bread yet :) The dough actually had air holes in it and was a lot more flexible than usual. I just kneaded it a lot more. Knead for 5 minutes. Let stand. Knead for a few more minutes, let stand. I must have repeated that 5 times or so. The buns tasted really good and if the bread turned out then I guess I know what I have to do.
My next dream is making my own cheese. Right now I've ordered a few books from the library and then the next step will be getting the starting cultures and whatever else I need. I'm thinking it will be way cheaper than buying the organic cheese from the store, plus I can control the ingredients. And I don't know about you, but there is a great satisfaction in doing it yourself. Yes it takes work, but time is relative. And what better way to spend my time than to make good things for my family, and save money at the same time.
But I WILL NOT GIVE UP. This flour will not have the better of me. I refuse to believe that I can't make good bread with it. I just have to keep trying.
Today I tried again and so far so good, but I haven't cut into the bread yet :) The dough actually had air holes in it and was a lot more flexible than usual. I just kneaded it a lot more. Knead for 5 minutes. Let stand. Knead for a few more minutes, let stand. I must have repeated that 5 times or so. The buns tasted really good and if the bread turned out then I guess I know what I have to do.
My next dream is making my own cheese. Right now I've ordered a few books from the library and then the next step will be getting the starting cultures and whatever else I need. I'm thinking it will be way cheaper than buying the organic cheese from the store, plus I can control the ingredients. And I don't know about you, but there is a great satisfaction in doing it yourself. Yes it takes work, but time is relative. And what better way to spend my time than to make good things for my family, and save money at the same time.
Tuesday, March 8, 2011
BBQ Sauce & Moroccan Veggies
So I'll tell your right now - the BBQ sauce is awful! Incredibly awful . . . TR said it smelt like something that had been left out for weeks, and it didn't taste much better! The name of the recipe however is . . .
The Best BBQ Sauce
1/2 cup oil
1/2 cup finely chopped onion
1 tbsp honey
3 tbsp. worcestershire sauce
1 tsp. sea salt
1/8 tsp. pepper
Dash of tabasco sauce
Heat oil over medium heat. Add onion and saute about 5 min. Stir in remaining ing. Simmer 5-10 min. After it had cooled a bit I blended it so that we would have a smooth sauce. Up until the blending it looked okay, but the oil didn't want to mix properly so I don't think it would have worked without blending. Maybe it was the kind of oil I used (extra virgin olive?). Whatever the case I will be taking this recipe out of my book and into the garbage.
Moroccan Roasted Root Vegetables
4 cups root veg. cut in 2 cm cubes
1/2 tsp ground turmeric
1 tsp. dried parsley
salt and pepper
1/4 cup olive oil
Preheat oven to 425 F. Mix spices and oil. Coat veg. Arrange in single layer on baking sheet lined with wax paper.
Cook uncovered 40-50 min, turning occasionally.
This was AWESOME! We all really liked it a lot. Even Chloe asked for seconds. I just did potatoes this time and left the peel on. They were crunchy and soft on the inside. The flavour was really really good. I am sure that this will be a staple in our house from now on :)
* Just a little side note about turmeric. It is a really healthy spice, but in order to get the full benefits (I read this in a book about fighting cancer) it needs 2 things. You need to mix it with oil before you add it to the dish (it stabilizes it I guess) and you should eat pepper at the same time too.
The Best BBQ Sauce
1/2 cup oil
1/2 cup finely chopped onion
1 tbsp honey
3 tbsp. worcestershire sauce
1 tsp. sea salt
1/8 tsp. pepper
Dash of tabasco sauce
Heat oil over medium heat. Add onion and saute about 5 min. Stir in remaining ing. Simmer 5-10 min. After it had cooled a bit I blended it so that we would have a smooth sauce. Up until the blending it looked okay, but the oil didn't want to mix properly so I don't think it would have worked without blending. Maybe it was the kind of oil I used (extra virgin olive?). Whatever the case I will be taking this recipe out of my book and into the garbage.
Moroccan Roasted Root Vegetables
4 cups root veg. cut in 2 cm cubes
1/2 tsp ground turmeric
1 tsp. dried parsley
salt and pepper
1/4 cup olive oil
Preheat oven to 425 F. Mix spices and oil. Coat veg. Arrange in single layer on baking sheet lined with wax paper.
Cook uncovered 40-50 min, turning occasionally.
This was AWESOME! We all really liked it a lot. Even Chloe asked for seconds. I just did potatoes this time and left the peel on. They were crunchy and soft on the inside. The flavour was really really good. I am sure that this will be a staple in our house from now on :)
* Just a little side note about turmeric. It is a really healthy spice, but in order to get the full benefits (I read this in a book about fighting cancer) it needs 2 things. You need to mix it with oil before you add it to the dish (it stabilizes it I guess) and you should eat pepper at the same time too.
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