Sunday afternoon cooking school

Late winter, early Lent, and a Sunday with nothing to do. The weather has been breaking out in nice days, but it seems that it does not coincide with the weekends. So I wind up sharing my morning coffee with these guys, who have a bit of natural assets to deal with the newly fallen white stuff

Something about ducks in the snow makes me feel sad. Makes me think of the movie Dr Zivago , and being banished to Siberia

Yes, I am dating myself with that reference. What can I say - I am an old person. Almost. Numerically that is.

So while the ducks wandered across the frozen land and "Somewhere my love" kept filling my head, I started to think about dinner. Chicken was planned, but I wanted to do something a little more exciting. A little more interesting. A little death defying. And then I realized that what I needed was to spend this meal prep time teaching my son some knife cuts and a simple way to garnish. Yes, I know how to do these things, but normally it seems like putting on a string of pearls and a matching sweater set just to step into the laundry room . When no one else is there. At 2 am. It's nice but not nessisary.

We were planning to eat some cucumbers with dill, so it made a very nice medium to teach the three most basic knife cuts- slice ( top left) dice ( bottom two) and julienne  ( top upper  right). Ripe cucumber, sharp knife, basic safety rules like curl your fingers under away from the knife and it makes for a safe, satisfying lesson. He was wowed. Then I moved on and showed him how to make a cucumber look "fancy" with a zester. Run lines down the peel, slice and it looks purty

 My son adores any kind of food that is made to be eye appealing.Garnishes, bento boxes, tomato roses- he gets super excited about . If I teach him how to do any of these , it gets stuck in his memory forever. I was on a roll with these tricks, so I decided to teach him another fun sort of trick- polenta in an artsy way. Polenta is basically broth brought to a boil , and cornmeal whisked into the broth and seasoned with herbs, butter, cheese and so forth. It can be poured in a bowl and topped, poured on a serving platter and topped or poured on a cookie sheet, chilled and cut. Polenta was on the menu , so I decided to show him the last option

Polenta cooling on a cookie sheet

Polenta cut in circles with a biscuit cutter and a few leftover bits cut into squares.

Next came a veggie. Asparagus has been inexpensive here, but it is one veggie he is still not crazy about. I keep telling him that the trick to find how to like a veggie is to investigate different ways to prepare it. He watches a lot of TV cooking shows and was fascinated when some chef used this idea. It's asparagus! It's bacon! It's fancy !

Remove the woody ends from the asparagus stalks, grease a cookie sheet and wrap each stalk in a slice of bacon in a spiral sort of fashion. Bake at 375 for 30 minutes and serve

Put it all together with your favorite recipe for chicken parts, and it makes a nice( and fancy sort of looking) meal

Dinner cooked, lessons taught, bellies full , ready to conquer a new week.

Comforts on a winter eve

Slowly I turned...step by step....

Okay. Maybe not so many turns, but definitely slowly and step by step. I managed to get the pedometer on correctly , and went about my day with the desire to take at least 1000 steps  . The number is only an impressive goal when you factor in recovery- normally 1,000 steps would be a very bad thing. The pedometer does not display the number on it ( Nintendo DS Personal Trainer Walking) , so you wait till the end of the day when you upload your data to find the number. I knew it was less than 1,000 because it had not turned green, but  it was sort of like Christmas Anticipation to discover the actual number. Drumroll....699 ! Hey- it's a start. A point to build from as I regain strength. Consider how excited people get when a baby takes it's first step. This is sort of similar :-)

I made two different dishes for dinner yesterday. Being the second of three Ember Days, it was another opportunity to go meatless, yet keep it nourishing. Meatless does not mean vegetarian, so you have opportunities to incorporate bone broths into your meals.Bone Broths are so healthful that there is a saying in South America that it can raise the dead. It's liquid gold, and can turn the simplest ingredients into very nourishing dishes . I used it ion both of these,

Cheesy Polenta-Veggie Bake

6 Cups bone broth ( I used chicken)

1 lb Aged Cheddar

3 Eggs, beaten

1 t salt

1 1/2 Cups Polenta

1 Large Red Pepper, cut into small pieces

2 Cups Shitake Mushrooms, chopped

1 t Paprika

Preheat over to 350 degrees

Bring water to a boil. Add polenta, stirring constantly until thickens. Turn heat down and add remaining ingredients. Stir until well blended.Pour into 13 x 9 pan and bake uncovered for 45 minutes to an hour. Cool for at least 10 minutes before serving.

Turnips in Creamy Mustard Sauce ( a Mark Bitterman inspired dish)

2 Tbs. Butter
1-1/2 Pounds turnips peeled and cut into 1 inch chunks
Sea Salt and freshly ground pepper
1 Tsp. raw sugar ( I used Splenda)
1 Cup more or less chicken stock ( I used chicken bone broth),
2 Tbs. Dijon mustard
parsley
1/2 cup fresh cream

Heat the butter on medium heat in a saucepan of a size that will allow the vegetables to sit on its bottom in a single layer.  When the butter is hot, add the vegetables, give them a toss and sprinkle on salt and pepper to taste. Allow the vegetables to cook, uncovered, stirring occasionally for about 10 minutes until they begin to brown and they are nicely cooked.

Both were perfect for a cold, wintry day . The polenta reminded me of mac and cheese in a way , being creamy and cheesy with a comfort food quality. The turnips were absolutely delicious ! The sugar and mustard removed any bitter twang of the vegetable and the cream gave it a comforting mouth feel. I thought of the people in Sweden at this time of the year, living in almost total darkness for a couple of weeks. I could see why turnips are a popular vegetable in their cuisine- packs a potent bite like the cold darkness of winter itself. Both are going to show up again on our table.

Going to press for more steps, and maybe a go at the little pedals without a seat thing.

Polenta chocolate cake GF

Yesterday I decided it was time to at least LOOK for some ideas for next years curriculum. There are a few things we have not yet covered formally in homeschool which will be covered, and then there are things I believe Nick will enjoy and benefit from. Those descisions are easy- the actual application of these things is what is in question. So I started surfing for ideas and inspiration, and kept running into homeschoolers who blog about their homeschool AND homelife. These kinds of blogs I love, but inspire me to do bad things. Like bake. I got some glimmer of an idea for how to do next years work as well as a massive desire to make a cake !. Doing so in the traditional way would have been a bad thing. I am finding that I can tolerate one serving of gluten per day ( according to the energy testing ), and cake is gluten. Not only that but unless I make cupcakes or a cake that will serve 3, leftovers would be a problem with my son. I suddenly remebered a recipe I had for a gluten free cake that sounded promising, so I headed to the kitchen to make a guilt free , gluten free cake- Chocolate Polenta Cake !

Polenta Chocolate Cake GF

1 cup instant polenta
3 cups water
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
7/8 cup dark chocolate
OPTIONAL: 1/2 cup or more raisins -- preserved ginger, glace cherries, candied peel,
nuts -- whatever else you'd like to add

Bring water to the boil. Add polenta and baking powder while stirring and stir/mash well
(a slotted spoon helps) to stop it from getting lumpy.
Immediately add remaining ingredients and stir well (a wooden spoon works well at this point)
until the chocolate's melted and everything is mixed in evenly.
Turn into a small springform loose-bottom tin; leave to cool in the fridge. When completely cooled,pop out and enjoy.

Verdict- it tastes less sweet than a traditional cake and has the consistency of a brownie. You never run the oven so it is a good option for a hot summer day. I don't think I would serve it as a birthday cake or a company cake, but as a kind of snack cake it works.

School's out

In spite of my best efforts, it seems brain cells in my son have gone to "Lala"land, and it is either take a summer break or do harm to our relationship, each other, several trees and more. When "Up" becomes a number and so forth,it's time to take a break. Sometimes he just needs to have stuff gel. So School is out for summer !

Amongst my notes and studies about the body meridians, I came across an article that was comparing the benefits of belly dancing with things like tai chi or qigong for it's abilities to get the energy freely flowing in the meridians and stimulate the lymphatic system, and I remembered having a Video of a pair of Belly Dancing for Fitness twins. It was very enjoyable exercise till my son started laughing at me while I was doing the tape and trying to hang all over me while I exercised. I stopped, he is older and also works out, so I wondered if I could find this on Youtube . SCORE !!!! I decided to add this to my exercise routine. If nothing else,belly dancing is a great way to strengthen the muscles that can prevent women from having things like bladder and uterine prolapse and some of the more unpleasant side affects of menopause. Besides that, it's fun ! So yesterdays exercise looked like this

QiGong breathing exercise
Smiling at Organs
Five animal frolics (QiGong)
Belly Dance workout on YouTube
pedal 30 min

Breakfast and lunch were the same ( swap hummus for the corned beef) but dinner was another variation on a polenta pizza- this time with roast veggies
In this mix was zucchini, asparagus, mushrooms, red pepper and red onions. Simply slice them and place on a cookie sheet to roast with the polenta crust.

Polenta Pizza

1/2 cup milk
2 1/2 cups water
1 c cornmeal
1 T oil
toppings as desired

Bring milk and water to a boil, whisk in cornmeal, stirring
constantly till the mixture is as thick as oatmeal. Remove from
heat and stir in 1 T oil. Spread on a baking sheet to a depth of 1/2
inch, cover with plastic wram and refrigerate 1 hour.Bake at 425 for
25 minutes till it begins to crisp. Prepare toppings( cook your sausage,
vegetables, etc). Place on crust, top with cheese and return to
the oven for 5 minutes, or till the cheese melts.
Here is the finished product with a salad- romaine and watercress topped with fruit salad. We seem to agree tat we are totally addicted to fresh fruit as the only topping for a salad. I don't know why- it just seems to pair so well !

Other good news- I finally found what I am going to wear to this outdoor wedding this Saturday. After searching the stores and not finding what I wanted, I remembered that I had a nice sleeveless summer dress in my closet. It's kind of a funky thing, but can be dressed up or down. I have no idea how casual or how dressy this wedding will be, so I decided that if I added a form fitting tee shirt under it , it would make a cute jumper kind of thing ( and prevent me from going on the quest for a strapless bra.
I like it- and now I just have to figure out what shoes to wear, what to do with my three hairs, make up and all that. At least I will have free time to ponder with school being over !

An ordinary day, PCOS and weekly weigh in

Isn't it funny how a food can provoke such a strong emotional response ? It seems universal that when we hear cake, we think of pleasure , celebration and possible diet derail. We hear apple and we think healthy, but when we hear liver, it is almost always a negative mental picture. It's the core stuff behind the psychology in advertising and such. Eating is so much more than the simple process by which we gain physical nourishment !

Fridays are always happy days here , where projects are wrapped up, the prospect of two days of different activities is in the foreground and so forth. I made polenta with golden raisins and topped it with frozen mixed berries. When these are stirred into the hot polenta they defrost and release their juice into the mix. Mmmmm ...

I got back to my ab work , we did strength training , walking, school and got into a fascinating discussion about boomerangs. Nick likes to flip to How it's Made when he has a break between subjects, and lately he has been watching with a really critical eye. My dad did a lot of woodworking and repairing things in non traditional ways, and some of my ancestors on his side were stone masons. It seems he may have inherited that trait, and it is fun to watch him think out loud !
Lunch was a cup of Peanut Soup, Colorful salad over mixed greens and baked sour cream and onion chips

Colorful Salad -makes 10 1/2 cup servings

1 c. parsley -- chopped
1 c. cilantro -- chopped
1 small red onion -- chopped
2 red peppers -- chopped
2 medium cucumbers -- peeled and seeded, chopped
2 c. corn kernels (fresh or frozen)
2 stalks celery -- chopped
3 carrots, chopped

Mix all but carrots together. Dress the mixture with any Vinaigrette Dressing.

Dinner was Indian style lamb with sweet potatoes. Kind of a curry dish without the intense heat. The green is kale, and I would imagine you could make this dish with spinach, chard or any dark green,

Indian Style Lamb with Sweet Potatoes

½ lb lamb chops, cut into cubes
1 medium-sized onion -- quartered and sliced thin
2 TBS minced fresh ginger
3 medium cloves garlic -- pressed
1 tsp garam masala (or curry powder if none can be found)
5 cups finely chopped kale
3 cups sweet potatoes -- peeled and cut in 1-inch cubes (about 1 large potato)
1 TBS + 1 cup chicken broth
salt and white pepper to taste

Prepare all the vegetables by chopping and have ready.
Heat 1 TBS broth in a large-size stainless steel braising pot or skillet.
Healthy Sauté onion, garlic,ginger, and lamb in broth over medium heat
for about 5 minutes, stirring frequently.Add garam masala, mixing well
for about half a minute. Add 1 cup broth and stir in sweet potatoes and
kale. Simmer on medium low heat covered for about 15 minutes, stirring
occasionally, or until lamb,potatoes and kale are tender. Season with
salt and pepper. Serves 4

Weigh in again, and as I have mentioned before it is not an easy road. PCOS makes it very difficult because of the way the body metabolizes food. In PCOS weight is not the cause of, but a symptom of the disease. To successfully lose weight the underlying cause has to be addressed, and then the body balances and weight loss happens. With eating nutrient dense foods my body is balancing ( I am seeing many non scale changes), and the weight loss will follow. Working to build muscles will also causes a temporary gain , and many people have found the scale to go crazy while they are strength training, but progress soon comes if you persist. I had another gain this week, but I am not concerned about it- I am addressing bigger issues than the number on the scale , and that number will drop as a result in time.

Me- UP 2.2
Nick- maintain
Bob UP 0.6 ( he is experiencing seasonal allergies at the moment , and I believe he is carrying a couple of pounds of junk in his head at the moment)

Mountains where they should not be

Day one of additional ab work, and I learned something very important about my body. I laied down to do some crunches, something i have not attempted since my days before pregnancy, and noticed that as I rolled up, my abdomen formed a mountain ridge down the center- weird to say the least ! I continued my planned work and felt around on my abdomen while I was working and noticed a weird separation feeling with my hands. Not painful, but weird in the fact that I had not seen this on other people doing ab exercises. So after I finished I started nosing around sites with anatomy discussions and such , and finally came upon a description of what was happening , why it happened in the first place and some possible solutions.

It seems that I have an abdominis rectus separation- it happens with abdominal surgeries( I had two major ones in the span of a year) and pregnancies where the mother has weak abdominal muscles- like me with pregnancy squeezed between the two surgeries. In the case of this separation, traditional ab work will never repair the damage, but other isometric type exercises can improve the condition. Often time surgery is required to reconnect the muscles. Instead of feeling defeated when I read this, I am taking it as a red flag. Someone says I can't do this on my own- consider it done ! I WILL do it, just to prove to the person pronouncing it that they are wrong. So I made notes of what exercises have been proven to help and I am going to work with them. Last night after all the days work was done I was a little sore , but I noticed that I seemed to have more "stability" for lack of a better word. I also seemed to have greater bladder control ( something that has become a very big issue, and I believe is linked to this muscle tone issue as well). I will continue and see how this improves.

Last night for dinner I tried a new to me recipe, Polenta Vegetable Casserole. Think of a cross between a Shepard's pie and a lasagna but minus the meat and a whole lot less cheese. It was pretty okay- meaning it was tasty, but a little too fiddly for my tastes. I served it with a salad made from romaine, watercress, baby spinach, arugula, dried cranberries and sliced almonds

Polenta Vegetable Casserole

2 cups fresh organic baby spinach
1 cup zucchini -- chopped
1cup broccoli -- chopped
1 cup red pepper -- chopped
1 cup green pepper -- chopped
1 cup fresh tomatoes -- chopped
1 cup fresh mushrooms -- chopped
1 medium onion -- chopped
1 tablespoon oregano
1 cloves garlic -- chopped
1 tablespoon Mrs Dash
1/8 cup water
1 jar pasta sauce -- no or low salt
Polenta
6 cups water
1 1/2 cups sun-dried tomatoes -- soaked overnight & cut into small pieces
4 cloves garlic -- minced
2 cups cornmeal
Cheese topping
1 cup mozzarella cheese -- grated

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Saute' vegetables, herbs and seasonings in
water for 15 minutes until the vegetables are tender, adding more water
if needed to prevent sticking. Mix in pasta sauce, reserving 1/4 cup.
Meanwhile, bring 6 cups of water, sun-dried tomatoes and minced garlic
to a boil.Then slowly add cornmeal, stirring constantly on low heat for
5 minutes until the cornmeal thickens.
Spread 1/4 cup pasta sauce over bottom of 8 X 11 baking pan, then spread
a layer of polenta over the sauce. Place a layer of the vegetable/sauce
mixture on the polenta and then another layer of polenta
and vegetable/sauce mixture. Sprinkle grated cheese over top. Bake in oven
for 20 minutes until heated through. Serves 8.

Polenta, hummus and weigh in-Oh My !!

First, the food. Yesterday was a pretty much normal day of school, exercise routine and Reiki work. Yay for ordinary , for it makes up so much of our actual lifetimes .

Breakfast was instant polenta cooked with a tablespoon of raisins and then topped with 1/3 of a cup of cottage cheese and frozen blueberries. The decision to use the cottage cheese was made in an attempt to use up the last of the container. Bob takes cottage cheese and cereal 2 mornings a week ( 1/2 cup each time) and Aldi's only sells cottage cheese in roughly a pound container. It means that we either do not have enough or get surplus that carries over to the next week , leaving not enough so buy more and run the risk of the new stuff going bad before it is used. Having a family of 3 and measuring portions can cause some weird little annoying things. I am still looking to find a half egg- which is what you need when you reduce a recipe for 6 people ( using 1 egg) TO FEED 3 !

Lunch was Green Monster soup from the freezer ( kale, broccoli, leeks, sweet potato, white potato), baked sour cream and onion crisps that have been lurking in the cabinet and falling out whenever I go in there for the last 3 months, veggies and 3 different kinds of hummus. Red pepper, walnut and eggplant. Why 3 ? Two were all ready in the fridge and the 3rd was made to use up some leftover baby eggplant

Eggplant Hummus

2 baby eggplants, roasted at 375 for 1 hour
1 can garbanzo beans drained
2 tablespoons sesame seeds
1/4 cup olive oil
2 cloves of garlic, chopped
juice of 1 lemon
water as needed


Place all in a food processor and blend till smooth

Dinner was Turkey spinach burgers( ground turkey, frozen spinach, 1/4 c oat bran, 1 chopped onion) , tossed green salad with walnuts and cranberries and Quinoa Bean salad. This one you can make ahead, stores in the fridge for about a week and makes for a very different, colorful, tasty dis to pass at gatherings.

Quinoa Bean Salad

2 cups cooked quinoa
15 oz can garbanzos or white beans drained and rinsed
1 carrot finely chopped
1 cup rasins or currants
1/2 cup raw walnuts chopped
4 plum tomatoes chopped
1 small red or white onion chopped
1 green pepper chopped
1 red pepper chopped
1 yellow pepper chopped
3 cloves garlic minced
1/2 cup goji berries
2 teaspoons soy sauce or braggs annimo acids

Place in a bowl and mix well. Store covered in refrigerator for several hours to allow flavors
to blend

And it is Saturday Morning, so the contestants step up to the scale.

Me- DOWN 2.4 lbs
Nick- DOWN 2 lbs
Bob- DOWN 3.0

Another week down, another week to go !

Easter Vigil is a cooking vigil :-)

Incredibly busy day with shopping , ch0pping and getting Bob out the door on time for Easter Vigil mass. One of those days when those things are the only exercise you get in because it is all you have time for !

Breakfast was polenta with dried tropical fruit blend, topped with blueberries and pumpkin seeds. Pumpkin seeds provide a good level of zinc to the body, which can help fight off colds and bouts of seasonal allergies amongst other things. Bob and Nick suffer from tree pollen, and now hat the trees are blossoming here, it's a preventative step.

Lunch was pasta primavera from the deli- I forgot to bring my phone , so no picture.

Dinner started off with a salad made from romaine and watercress, topped with a mix of pineapple, mango, papaya and one lonely very soft and heading south leftover pear from last week.

Following as a main dish was something I am calling Pasta primavera al fresco. I cooked 1 cup whole wheat pasta with kale, beet greens and spinach, and in a seperate pan with about a teaspoon of olive oil I sauteed 6 cloves of chopped garlic, then added a half cup of water and a chopped red pepper, green peper, pack of snap peas, 2 carrots , a half pound of mushrooms sliced, 2 diced roma tomatoes and a tablespoon of dried basil. I let it stir steam till tender and then drizzled it with a tablespoon of balsamic vinegar. Toss the pasta and veggies together and serve topped with a tablespoon of Parmesan cheese. Very yummy !

We are going to gather with my family for dinner today and I am bringing two vegetarian , low fat dishes to share. I will get to meet my newest grand nephew and catch up with my siblings and nieces/nephews. It will be good day- may you all have a wonderful Easter with you and yours !!