Dear Santa...

I think this is the year you should bring me...

the WONDERMILL!!

I tried the Blendtek, and I love that machine. It makes the best batters and smoothies and even grinds up the grains, but then...my sister got a Wondermill for free, because her blog is so cool that they thought "oh, lets just give this cool chick a mill". Well, my blog isn't cool at all and will never get freebies, so what I'm saying is while visiting her house last month she had some yummy chocolate muffins with flour milled from the Wondermill. Yep, the texture was amazing. And, I realize I am missing out on that wonderful fine-milled flour. So. I'm pretty much hoping you get my list this year.

Love you Santa. Always have, always will!

Keane

What is it that just lures me in?  A great beat, uplifting clean lyrics, and of course his stage presence...humble, happy, and no swear words! Couldn't wait to see them again. This time it was outdoors and amazing as always. Thanks to my soul sister who came with me last minute since my concert companion had a raging headache! This one is for her!

Coconut Ice Cream

"You're nicer than that little red hen," she says, "because you let me eat your ice cream."

 
Coconut Ice Cream:

1 1/2 cups half and half
1 1/2 cups cream
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp coconut extract
1/2 cup agave nectar
1/2 cup unsweetened coconut

Towards the end of freezing, add 1/2 cup chopped almonds.

Adjusting

First day of summer break:

fake blood (red food dye) droplets on the carpet

flooded bathrooms from water balloons

new bread experiment...have to stay sane somehow

 my version of a grain mill...blendtek

 top and clockwise: spelt, white wheat, millet, rye

The master piece!  So divine. Love the crunch of the millet.

1 cup rye
1 cup spelt
1 cup white wheat

blend/mill it measure out 4 cups flour
Mill 2 cups white wheat in addition. So there are 6 total cups o flour.
Add 2 1/2 cups hot water and sit for one hour.

Mix in:
1/2 cup honey
1 1/2 T. yeast
1/4 cup oil
1/4 cup gluten
1/2 T salt
1/3 cup toasted millet (put it on a pan and stir until brown)

Knead, rise, shape, rise, bake 350 for 30 minutes.

Byron says, "this is the best bread I've ever had!" Good thing he stopped by today!!

Ice Cream

A Tale of No Sugar...

I've been eating no sugar for over 2 years now. I was fine to just go without, really. I'd have a bite of something-if it was really worth it (had to be homemade from scratch, or decadent to the max). Anything more than a bite throws me into a head spin and I get achy. The really amazing thing is I started this for myself not realizing that it would be something that would help my family in the future.

I don't know any other 8-9 year old as strong as my little guy. He hasn't been able to have sugar or artificial sweeteners since September. It's been 9 months. He made it through all the holidays without any candy and treats. I look back and can't believe how well he has done. It has been easy for him. I can count 2 times when he actually got upset about being the only one without a treat. We remedied that and always made sure we had something sugar free for him at school parties, birthday parties, family get-togethers, scout meetings, church (thanks to his teachers) and every where else. He is happy having chex mix while everyone has popsicles at the neighbor's pool (thanks to my friend). I found this blog about a month ago and we cheered knowing we'd have ice cream this summer. Milk has become a staple now (surprisingly rare in our fridge) and I've graduated from the pint of cream to the quart (my stomach shows it too!) Thanks to this gal, simplysugarfreeandglutenfree.com, she has done all the work in figuring out the no sugar recipes!  Now we don't have to go without.

I have fresh mint in the yard and never know what to do with it. This turned out great and the kids knew right away where it came from...it smells like fresh mint, but tastes sweeter-good thing!  I tweaked the recipe slightly:

Fresh Mint Ice Cream


2 cups milk
2 cups cream
1 tsp arrowroot pwdr or cornstarch
1 tsp unflavored gelatin
2 cups fresh mint, chopped
2 eggs
1/2 cup agave
2 drops peppermint extract (I added this)
5 drops stevia (I added this)


Combine milk and cream in sauce pan. Put gelatin and arrowroot powder in two separate bowls and mix in 3 T. milk mixture in each bowl. Let them soften. 


Heat milk mixture over medium heat. Add mint and stir. After about 3 minutes, add gelatin and stir until scalded (almost to a boil). Turn heat down immediately.


Beat eggs in a bowl until light and fluffy. Add sweeteners and beat until doubled. Add 1/3 of the milk mixture while beating. Add mixture back into pan along with arrowroot or cornstarch. Stir well and cook 2 minutes until ice cream mixture coats the back of a metal spoon and will hold a line when you draw your finger through it. Should be done at 165 degrees. Don't boil. Remove from heat. 


Let mint leaves steep in mixture for 10 minutes. Strain into a bowl, using the back of a rubber spatula to press all the mint flavor out of the leaves. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for for 3 hours to overnight. Freeze in ice cream maker. I love my Cuisinart Ice Cream Maker...get one!

Green Smoothie

I've been drinking a chocolate, peanut butter, banana smoothie for lunch; a smoothie my middle sister makes. It is actually somewhat healthy and sugar free! So, I was craving it today, but also wanting to use my spinach to get some greens in my system. The result? Absolutely AMAZING! I should have doubled this recipe just for me!

Green Smoothie:

1 banana
1-2 cups milk (just happened to have some, since we've been making sugar-free ice cream like crazy)
1 big spoonful of almond butter
1 spoonful of honey
fill the blender up with spinach
about two handfuls of ice cubes

This is my oldest sister's version of her green smoothie, if nothing else, just to check out her blog because she is one cool chic!  http://californiapixie.com/2012/05/09/tales-of-a-good-green-smoothie/

Chocolate, Peanut butter, Banana Smoothie:

1 banana
1-2 cups milk
1 spoonful honey
2 big spoonfuls peanut butter
2 big spoonfuls cocoa powder
6 or more ice cubes

Its like the peanut butter choc ice cream at Baskin Robbins (or Basket Robbins...thanks to my littlest ray of sunshine)!

ENJOY!!

Back to Bread

I visited my friend last week who had her 5th baby boy 3 months ago and is already pregnant with her 6th (hoping for baby girl). All these littles are under the age of 9. One little guy needed a snack, so she grabbed for the home made loaf of bread. I couldn't believe she was still finding time for bread making. She is the one who inspired me to make bread long ago. I asked her how she was able to do it still. Her reply was that she only does the basics and what matters. Yes, our e-mailing and phone conversations have gone from almost daily to about once every 3 months. So, what did I do this week?

Made bread.

I've never posted this recipe. It is the one she gave me awhile ago.  It is such a tasty loaf and so easy to make.

Here's to what really matters in life...

6 cups wheat flour
2 1/2 cups hot water
1/4 cup olive oil
1/2 cup honey
1 T. + 1 1/2 tsp yeast
1/4 cup gluten
2 1/4 tsp salt

Combine flour and hot water in mixing bowl. Cover with towel and rest for 30-60 minutes. Add remaining ingredients. Add more water or flour until dough is right texture (sticking to bottom but not sides). Knead for 10 minutes. Let rise until double. Shape and place in greased bread pans. Rise and bake at 350 for 30 minutes. 

Random Posting

From one extreme to the other: As I leave a store today, a helpful customer is standing by the door opening it for anyone coming or going.  This eager customer resembles my Aunt Jan. It made me grin big.  I miss that cute Jan.  Then I get in the car and start cutting through the parking lot, I'm aware of a car that has the "right of way" through the parking lot, so I stop. Well, the teen driving the car gives me the biggest bird I have ever seen, or should I say the first I have ever received?! I found myself just smiling big. I followed him out of the parking lot hoping that he could see my big smile through his rear view mirror. And my thought was-  I'm glad there are Aunt Jan's in this world, helping us to see life as it really is. That helpful customer made my day and anything else that happened, didn't matter.

Thai Heaven

Curry in a Hurry...use to be a place to eat in SLC. Not sure if it is still there, but this meal was whipped up in a hurry and it turned out divine. I had left over jasmine rice from a previous meal and a bunch of rice paper and these wonderful ingredients to make peanut sauce. I lost the recipe (given to me from the owner of the Asian market), so what is listed is what I threw together...and I liked it!

Thai Curry Rice
Saute 1/2 chopped onion, 1 bell pepper, 3 cloves garlic in olive oil. Add 2 cups chicken stock, 1 can coconut milk, chopped carrots, handful of chopped cilantro, handful of spinach. Season (to your liking) with chili paste (1 tsp), curry powder (2 tsp), and soy sauce. Simmer then add already cooked jasmine rice. Simmer until thickened and ready to eat. If I had these on hand, I would have thrown them in too: juice of a lime and fresh ginger.

Thai Spring Roll
Chop up veggies. This one had lettuce, carrot, cucumber, green onion. Hold rice paper under hot tap water until soft. Takes only seconds. Place veggies in the center and wrap sides in then bring bottom up and tuck, roll up to the top.

Thai Peanut Sauce
These measurements are all approximate and I used my large spoon for the Tablespoon.
1/2 cup coconut milk, 2 T. plum sauce, 1 T. Hoisin Sauce, 1/2-1 cup peanut sauce, soy sauce- just a bit. Add whatever more it needs to taste how you want it.

Bakeries outside of America

You can never go hungry in Germany. Bakeries everywhere. It was heavenly. We spent an hour walking the streets of one little town and counted 8 bakeries.

Pastries outside of America

Too busy this year for any bread baking, however; I have had some yummy pastries! Top is a danish from Denmark. Anderson's Bakery right across from Copenhagen train station. I had just enough time to get this delicious morsel and hop back on a train via Germany. All I wanted was a real danish from Denmark...and it was amazing. Almond filled. They were out of cheese.

The second picture: These pastries greeted us every morning at the breakfast bar in Sweden. We had an amazing host. Even when they were out of town, the housekeeper would make sure the breakfast bar was set, including fresh pastries!