Saturday, February 16, 2008

I know, I know...

So I haven't posted in a while. I'm sorry, I really am. I've been incredibly busy, and I've been working overtime pretty often. I'm also hoping really hard for a new job (!!!) and I tried some cooking experiments that went awry.

I just finished another Pendant Audio script for season 2 of the Kingery, and I'm way behind on recording my lines. Basically, we've been working most nights until about an hour before bed time. And then a situation at work has me kind of angry, so when Clark decided to get up at 2 a.m., I kept myself awake thinking about stuff. I got up at 3 a.m. and played Super Mario Galaxy for an hour. And then I watched half of a really bad sci-fi movie before calming down enough to go back to sleep at 5 a.m. for another hour or so.

But I can post a couple things for you all. :)

First of all, this here is the BEST reason to make egg free brownies:



Licking the bowl, yay! Isn't it strange how the smallest things can make us feel a little more 'normal'?

I also made almond milk. I roughly followed a recipe I found online.

ALMOND MILK (STAGE TWO)

1 cup almonds
water

Put the almonds in the blender. Add water to the four cup mark. Blend for 10 minutes.

I strained the almond pulp through a clean bandana. It worked very well. Do not try coffee filters. They will rip.


Clark LOVED the almond milk. I was really heartened by how easy it was, so I tried to make almond milk yogurt. This did not work. It separated, which is normal, but it also turned a weird shade of brown, which was not normal. Oh well, back to the drawing board. Marilyn on the Pecanbread list has some good suggestions, so I saved those for when I'm ready to try again.

I also purchased a five pound roll of ground turkey at Smart and Final. It didn't have any additives listed, so I thought I'd give it a try. I left it in the fridge for three days to thaw, and on the third day it leaked through everything in the world. -_-

So I cleaned it all up with help from my hubby and I decided to make a modified version of the chicken sausage recipe from the SCD Recipe site. I improvised with spices I had on hand.



SIMPLE TURKEY SAUSAGE (STAGE TWO)

5 pounds turkey
1 1/2 tbsp salt
1/2 tbsp ground celery seed
1/2 tbsp turmeric

I mixed it all by hand and then took four pieces of foil and plopped some of the turkey mixture onto each one. I then rolled each piece of foil into a sausage shaped log, and put them all on a cookie sheet. I cooked it at about 325 degrees for two hours. I didn't let them rest for 24 hours and I forgot to poke holes in the foil, but it turned out fine, and Clark loved it.


I didn't even really thoroughly mix the spices, so I didn't take a photo of the finished sausage 'cause I was embarrassed. :)

I liked it with ketchup. Mmm.

Also last weekend I made roast chicken, which turned out beautifully. I then discovered I really don't like roast chicken. I prefer my chicken dry, or fried, not moist. I know, I'm really not a foodie by any stretch. I then made a soup with a whole chicken, and that was no fun either. I am NEVER doing that again. No picking four bajillion tiny bones out of soup! I nearly screamed when I pulled the liver out of one of the chickens, and then later after the soup was done, I saw a vertebrae. A VERTEBRAE. I am so not in touch with my inner cave girl. *shudders*

So, it's back to parts for me, and I think I'm going to keep getting turkey parts, because I really love the flavor of turkey soup. Maybe I'm just sick of chicken. It's entirely possible. Understandable, even.

I've cut out eggs entirely for myself, and I think it's helping with my arthritis.

Oh, and Valentine's Day! I know how this makes me sound but...look, back when I got valentines, kids did not hand out candy with every freaking valentine! Clark was so disappointed he couldn't eat any of his candy, so I whipped up some SCD frosting for him right quick and put it on his brownies today. He was so happy.

SCD frosting (STAGE ONE)

2 tbsp honey
3-4 tbsp spectrum shortening
dash salt

Beat until well combined. Frost and eat. This will firm up HARD in the fridge, so be aware.


OK, that's all for now. I don't even know what stage to put these recipes. Give me some guidance, and I'll stick them where they need to go.

Thanks to the people who are checking up on me. I can only type so much in a day, because my right hand starts to really bother me, so I have to pick and choose sometimes, especially with the writing. I've been kind of all over the place emotionally and I am now having major cravings for non-SCD foods when I get my period. It's incredibly distracting. -_-

9 comments:

Anonymous said...

Are you taking vitamins? Taking 100mg of vitamin B6 cuts down on a lot of period-related problems. Better to take it as part of a balanced B-complex, but usually the B-complex pills don't include enough B6.

Gin said...

Glad you are OK. When you turned up missing from here as well as the SCD forum I was afraid that you or Clarke was ill. Understand one has to make a living:^)

You made me laugh with the whole chicken scenario. Good thing you don't live in Mx we get the feet stuffed inside with the other innards to be cooked. Took me a long time but I even throw them in the pot now. Brothes in Mx are super delicious.

Jasmine said...

What a very fine mom. You should be proud of yourself. I am proud of you.

Maybe try Yogi's Moon Cycle tea for balance - the aroma alone imparts tranquility. When I get anxious, I just hold my tongue until I have mug-in-hand :^)

Anonymous said...

I just wanted to say how much I enjoy reading your blog. And Clarke looks so beautiful! His symptoms must be night and day since starting SCD? I cannot imagine what that must be like - and all by changing his diet? Good job cooking and trying new things.

Kat said...

I'm giving your frosting recipe a try soon! Thanks! Oh and the turkey sausages too, I'm in need of a new breakfast.

As for where to put them:
Frosting and turkey sausages can go Stage 1
Almond milk stage 2

Unknown said...

Thanks, Kat. I think I was mostly being lazy. I'll go put them where they go. :)

Susan

Unknown said...

I should respond to some of you other people!

Infmom, I am looking into getting a legal B6 supplement. I have to order from Freeda online and return the ones I bought at a drugstore. Le sigh.

Gin, eep! Yeah, the feet would have flipped me out but I've seen them in Asian markets...I know everybody says they make soup awesome but I just can't quite bring myself to do it.

Nutty meatfruit, aww, thanks for your comments. You are too sweet. And hey, I love tea! I should make sure to treat myself at least when I feel like poop.

Wendy, thanks for the nice comments about me, and Clark too! He is doing much better since SCD...so much so, it's insane. It's like he's a different kid. Thanks for stopping by again. :)

Susan

Unknown said...

LOVED the photo of Clark licking the bowl!! You are so adventurous -- with the cooking -- LOVE TO ALL,
Mom

Anonymous said...

De-lurking. Clark is adorable. I'm doing a mother-daughter SCD adventure. My kid has a tic disorder--which has disappeared. A few months into the diet she was tic-free. We've been on for 2 years, and it continues to be an evolving process.

Good for you, this is not an easy journey. But it does get better!