photo credit: Dr. Hemmert

I don’t plan to turn this into a recipe blog, but I made the most amazing mashed potatoes last night and had to share them.

The recipe came from the book Earth to Table: Seasonal Recipes from an Organic Farm. We had to do a few slight changes, mostly the milk. Saffron’s been showing a pattern of tummy trouble after cow’s milk, cheese, and ice cream. So feel free to make it straight out of the book, or change a bit for your own needs. And don’t be shy if you’re not a fan of Brussels sprouts, this will change your mind!

• 5 medium Yukon gold potatoes, diced
• 3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 3/4 cup finely chopped bacon (I used 5 slices of veggie bacon, fried then crumbled)
• 1 1/2 cup finely chopped Brussels sprouts
• 1/4 cup local dry white wine
• 2 tbsp minced fresh thyme
• 1 1/4 cup milk (I used unsweetened almond milk)
• 1/2 cup unsalted butter
• 1/4 cup diced chives
• salt and pepper to taste

Place potatoes in a saucepan and add enough cold salted water to cover by 1 inch; bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce heat and simmer until potatoes are tender, about 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, in a skillet, heat 1 tbsp oil over medium heat. Add bacon and saute until slightly crisp, about 4 minutes. Add Brussels sprouts, wine, and thyme; cook until Brussels sprouts are tender and wine has evaporated, about 8 minutes. Remove from heat.

Drain potatoes and, while still steaming, add bacon mixture. Add milk, butter and chives. Using a fork, lightly mash potatoes until crushed but still chunky. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Serves 6

I made a double batch of this last night, planning to use the leftovers later. There was only enough leftovers for 1 person, that’s how much got ate. Even Michael, who hates Brussels sprouts with a passion got seconds before I told him what the green stuff really was.

Number 2 on my list of 12 Things is to make granola bars that don’t fall apart. Well check that off the list already!

Amy from Crunchy Domestic Goddess tweeted an old recipe of hers and I figured it would be a great way to spend the afternoon with the boys while Saffron napped. They took turns pouring ingredients and mixing it all up, standing on a kitchen chair and being very careful.

They even got excited to get to choose what would go into the bars. The little chefs were coming up with all sorts of ideas, not all that wold probably work (mashed banana bars?). We finally decided on dried cranberries, dried blueberries, raisins, and the last of the almond slices. Very yummy!

And the verdict? Very good! A little crumbly, but not falling apart like they usually end up for me. I think I over cooked them a bit, which probably added to the partial crumbling. But over all far more chewy than the other recipes I have tried.

Finally, a bar to replace the store bought, individual packaged ones we used to get. Now hopefully, Michael will stop buying more boxes of bars because he hates my crumbling ones.

Woot!

photo credit: Davichi

I think I may be on a never-ending quest to eat better.

It seems simple at first. Skip the junk food, eat more veggies, drink water. Hey, I can do that. Then the rules get more complex. You start reading the labels, and reading the debates that seem to grow around food. Is this healthy? Is that? Everyone has their own definitions.

This weekend I took another baby step towards eating better, one that is loaded with controversy. We stopped buying cow’s milk.

I’ll admit, I bought into the “cow’s milk is healthy” line of thought. There are many compelling reasons given on why we should be drinking it. Slowly, though, I started creeping sideways. Well, cow’s milk is good. But it should be organic. From grass-fed cows. And raw. And…

I ran out of sidesteps to take.

Face it, we’re not cows. Cow milk is made to grow baby cows. To put on an incredible amount of weight in a short period of time, with little to no boost to brain development. In a logical culture, there wouldn’t be a need for milk because we’d just breastfeed to the biological weaning point then move on to water.

But we’re not a logical culture. So we say breastfeeding toddlers is icky, while giving them glasses of the breastmilk of cows.

This weekend I bought cartons of vanilla and chocolate almond milk. It’s yummy, the kids like it, it works great with granola. And the kids have stopped moo-ing, which is nice.

But most importantly, it feels like another step towards eating healthy for us. Not according to that guru, or that expert. For us, it just feels right.

Sure, there are a thousand more steps to take to get really, truly healthy. And I’m coming to the conclusion that we may never actually get there. Which, is OK, in a way. Everything in moderation, and that includes health food. I’m just trying to get a little more moderate, a little more healthy.