Our 4th of July Vacation

As we do every year, we left the increasing heat and traveled up to my parent's cabin. This was G's first trip to the Pines and it did not disappoint. The boys were in heaven because they were able to be OUTSIDE for longer than 10 minutes without melting. I was in heaven because someone was cooking for me and the boys were so entertained by everything I actually got to read a bit. In the middle of the day!!

G, of course, got plenty of snuggles from the Grandparents.

And her brother.

There were a few fishing adventures and there were daily bike rides. E was tired of fishing once he caught a fish. E also fell a bit while riding his bike, so he told me he doesn't ride his bike at the cabin. Only at home.

On the 4th, we dressed G up in her patriotic outfit and headed out to the Annual community parade. Our float didn't win anything this year, but Papa's chili won the Chili Cook-off the night before! After the parade, we chowed down on hotdogs, fruits, and salads!

The sparklers were very exciting! B LOVED them and would have used up the rest of Amee's boxes if she would have let him. E was excited about the idea of them, but completely freaked out by holding them.

One of this year's favorite activities was playing with the giant balls. Every night they would roll them down to the golf course and play with them. Their laughter could be heard all through the forest!

Our trip was so great, I was sad that it had to end. Prince Charming and I brought G home with us, and the boys got to stay an extra 4 days with Amee and Papa. I thought that they would be homesick (especially E) but they really didn't miss us too much. They were sad to come home, too. While they were away we were able to do some toy cleaning. And by cleaning, I mean purging. It was great. They haven't missed anything yet.

We absolutely LOVE the cabin and it is one of our favorite places on earth. Thank you, Amee and Papa, for showing us such a great time.

Rest in peace, Dear Cutie

Oh, Cutie. I am sorry that it is so hot here in our yard. I am sorry that I didn't check on you sooner. I hope that your passing wasn't too hard, but very peaceful. Thank you very much for blessing our family with your delicious eggs. We will miss having you around. I might even start to miss you pecking at my feet (even though you freaked me out sometimes.) I hope that chicken heaven blesses you with many of your favorite treats!

Rest in Peace, Dear Cutie.

Blender Waffles

Blender Waffles (Makes 4 waffles)

Place in blender and blend at high speed for 3 minutes:

1 1/2 cups uncooked rolled oats

1 1/2 cup yogurt or buttermilk or kefir or any acid medium you choose (I use yogurt)

2 tbsp olive oil (I have used coconut oil and LOVED the results)

1 tsp vanilla extract

The batter should always swirl about a vortex in the blender. If it doesn't, slowly add more liquid until the hole reappears. This is the secret to light and tender waffles.

Cover the blender and let stand at room temperature overnight or 12 to 24 hours.

Preheat the waffle iron.

Just before baking add and reblend at high speed for 1 minute:

1 egg

Optional additional liquid (if batter needs thinning for vortex)

Blend in thoroughly but briefly (assisted with rubber spatula if needed):

2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

1 tsp salt

**Batter should puff up, so you really only need to pulse these ingredients one or two times. Then you can use your spatula to stir it a bit if you feel it needs more mixing.**

Pour your batter into your waffle iron, sprayed with olive oil. Bake until crispy!

Enjoy!

(I would caution against doubling this recipe as it would overflow in a normal sized blender.)

Grain variations:

Brown rice or millet - equal parts of each grain

kamut, spelt, wheat

buckwheat - reduce to 1 cup. It expands

Barley - hulled, not pearled. Reduce to 1 cup, it expands

Quinoa - Rinse the quinoa in a strainer the night before for 1 or 2 minutes. Let it stand in a bowl of water overnight. Then drain and rinse for another minute. This removes the bitter flavor. The batter will be very thin. Fill your waffle iron almost completely to the edges.

Am I training her, or is it just a phase?

Ever since we got to the cabin, G money has been waking up EVERY night. Sometimes it is 3am, sometimes it is midnight. Each time, after listening to her try to work it out for a while, I end up feeding her.

I am starting to think that I am training the poor child to wake up and eat. It will be easier to let her cry it out at home because she will be down the hall and I can put my ear plugs in. Just when I am sure that I am training her to wake up and eat, I fear that she might actually NEED to wake up and eat. But, before we got here she slept through the night just fine.

I am pretty sure that upon our arrival back home, she won't be happy with me when I don't show up to feed her in the middle of the night. We need to get back to what we used to do. I am hoping that it will be pretty easy and that once she is back in HER bed in HER room, she will remember what to do.

Granola

This is the granola recipe that we have been loving! I thought I would post it so that others can enjoy it, too! I have it with milk in the morning or sprinkled on yogurt for a snack. I bet it would be delicious on vanilla ice cream!

Maple Granola

3 cups rolled oats

1 cup dried unsweetened coconut chips

1 cup pecans or walnuts, quartered

1/2 cup pure maple syrup

1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil (sounds weird, but use it!)

1/2 cup packed light brown sugar

1/4 cup sesame seeds

1 teaspoon coarse salt

3/4 to 1 teaspoon cinnamon

1/2 cup raisins

Preheat the oven to 300. Mix together oats, coconut, nuts, syrup, oil, sugar, sesame seeds, salt, and cinnamon. Spread granola in an even layer on a rimmed baking sheet. Bake, stirring every 10 minutes, for 40 minutes. Add raisins, and bake until granola is toasted, about 10 minutes more. Let cool completely.

Granola can be stored for up to 2 weeks. I doubt it will last that long!

**I have been experimenting with replacing the brown sugar. I would like to omit it completely or replace it with a more natural option. I will be sure to post my findings. I would also like to try replacing the olive oil with coconut oil to see what that is like. But, for now, the recipe is perfect and I LOVE it.

Enjoy!

The switch to Whole Grains

In my quest to eat healthier, the first change I decided to make is to switch to whole grains. I have to admit, I wasn’t too excited about this change. The whole wheat flours available at the store aren’t fantastic and whole wheat pasta just isn’t as tasty. After some research, I found that the whole grain world is quite vast and if I do it right, it can be tasty, too! Whole grains offer a bonanza of nutrients and dietary fiber. They are especially high in the B-vitamins as well as vitamin E and have a wide range of nutrients and minerals.

During my research I learned that freshly milled whole grain flour can turn rancid and isn’t good for storing. I also learned that 24 hours after grinding 40% of the nutrients have oxidized and after 3 days 80% have oxidized. Enter the grain mill.

This bad boy is called the Nutrimill and it sounds like a jet engine. However, it certainly gets the job done! I am able to buy grain (any kind I like) in bulk and grind the flour when I need it.

It turns out our bodies have a really hard time digesting whole grain. The bran of the grain contains phytic acid, which combines with key minerals such as calcium, magnesium, copper, iron and zinc and prevents their absorption in the digestive tract. So, every time I eat whole wheat bread, brown rice, and oatmeal, all of the whole grain goodness passes right on through. There is a way to unlock all of the great nutrients and that is by soaking. Soaking the grains helps enzymes, lactobacilli, and other organisms to neutralize the phytic acid and break down complex starches and difficult to digest proteins. So, those people that have a hard time digesting gluten would certainly benefit from soaking.

This isn’t a complicated process and all it requires is some forward thinking. Whole grain flour (oats and brown rice, too) is combined with an acid medium (like yogurt, whey, or apple cider vinegar) and water. That soaks for 12 to 24 hours and then it is ready to use. Pain in the butt? Nope. If I am making bread I just throw all of the soaker ingredients together the day before. Then, when I am ready to bake, most of the prep has already been done! If I know that we will have oatmeal in the morning, I just put the oats in a mason jar with water and the acid medium right before bed and let them soak overnight. In the morning, I just add the rest of the water and the stovetop oatmeal is ready in 5 minutes. If we are having brown rice with dinner, I just throw everything in the pot in the morning and let it soak on the stove all day.

I am really enjoying this journey towards healthy eating. I love the science behind bread making and I really like the culinary challenge of finding the perfect recipe. All wrapped up in this whole grain business is the desire to rid our home of processed foods. I certainly won’t miss them, but I have a feeling that E might start to wonder where his Cheerios went and why he can’t have them anymore. While I would love for this change to happen over night, I do know that it will take time to replace the store bought stuff with homemade goodies that they will love. I did find this Healthy Snacks eBook and it is great. There are lots of things in there that I can’t wait to try. I also made waffles out of oatmeal the other morning in a blender. They were so flippin’ fantastic I was sad the recipe didn’t make more.

I will try to be better about posting all of my trials and tribulations during this process. I am having so much fun, I can’t wait to share!

The Changes

I made a reference in an earlier post about the book The Omnivore's Dilemma and the movie Food, Inc. I am also reading a book titled, Real Food: What to eat and why and have been inspired to make some pretty great changes in our home.

Five months after having a baby, I still have baby weight to lose and have been feeling rather sluggish and gross. Two changes that I decided to make immediately were to eliminate store bought breakfast cereals from my diet as well as stop eating foods after dinner. Now my breakfasts choices consist of eggs, fruit, whole wheat toast, homemade granola, yogurt, oatmeal, and smoothies. I don't miss my Honey Bunches of Oats.

I plan on doing future posts dedicated to the specific changes I am making. I will write about things like whole grains, raw milk, meat and fish, produce, the benefits of lacto-fermented foods, and fats/oils. I have been doing research in each of these areas and have been pretty impressed with the information that I have come across and can't wait to write about it. I also plan to write about how these changes will affect our monthly grocery budget. I am pretty confident I will be able to lower the grocery bill.

Exciting times at the Nest especially since I told Prince Charming that all of the butter he puts on his popcorn is actually good for him! As long as it is the right butter, of course!