My problem...

...is selective memory.  One of them (problems), that is.  I can forget to remove my car keys from the ignition before I lock my car.  I can forget why I went into the laundry room.  Or the kitchen.  Or the living room.  But I can remember every excrutiating morsel of the last real piece of bread I ate - the dense, chewy crust surrounding a moist, yeasty crumb.  It's a curse, I tell you.  Especially when one is gluten-sensitive-intolerant.  I would LOVE to forget bread.  It would then be easy to pretend that I am on Mars and that THIS is bread:

It has risen!



It has fallen!

Faced with all my tomatoes, I just HAD to have a bread-like substance on which to slather a bit of mayo and a nice thick slice of tomato.  I did some research on gluten-free focaccia and came up with an "Awesome" recipe.  That should have set off the warning bells - Gluten-Free/Awesome?  Oxymoron at best.  I forged ahead and it smelled divine, it rose wonderfully and browned just so.  Even when it collapsed, it was still focaccia-like.  Then I cut into it and...well.  Let's say this could be the national food of Sponge Bob Square Pants' world.  But I slathered on the mayo and set a nice thick slice of tomato on top and called it dinner.

Oh, dear Blogosphere, how do I love thee?

Let me count the ways --- nah, they're too many and I'll run out of fingers.  I have gotten so much from all of the bloggers I follow - inspiration, support, a much-needed laugh, you name it.  And all of the new little gems that I find whilst wending my way through that amazing maze of one post to a commenter, to a post, to a commenter, etc.  I should leave a trail of crumbs (as in cookies, get it?) so that I can find my way back to some of these amazing blogs.  But I usually get distracted and then lose the link.

One of those great discoveries was Kim at Jabez Farm.  And, thankfully, not only did I NOT lose the link, but I stuck it at the side of my blog so I could follow her on a regular basis.  She has saved me from a Gluten Free wasteland.  She is amazing.  And she introduced me to my new, most used and loved cookbook:  The Whole Life Nutrition Cookbook.  I want to make everything in it.  I even worked myself up into a frenzy about posting my results. Then I was reminded that it's been done before and Meryl Streep owns it.  And, 'though I know this is probably not a popular sentiment, I hated the movie.  Besides, the only one who could ever "play" me is Kathryn Hepburn.  And that's not likely.  So.  I ramble.

On Sunday, I tried out my first two recipes:  Thai Fried Rice and Thai Chicken Curry.  It was scrumptious!  I have been eating it for three days and I am not tired of it.  Did i mention it makes quite a bit?  The list of ingredients was daunting at first, but it is so easy to make!  What I need to know is, can I grow my own lemongrass?  If so, I would make this on a regular basis.

But, without further ado, the recipes:

Thai Fried Rice (adapted from The Whole Life Nutrition Cookbook)

Cooked brown jasmine rice (about 4-5 Cups)

1+ T. virgin coconut oil
1 bunch green onions, sliced diagonally ½ in. thick
½ cup raw cashews
5 cloves garlic, crushed
¼ tsp. white pepper (didn't have, so used black)
¼ cup raisins
1 med. firm tomato, diced
1 tablespoon whole cane sugar or agave nectar
1-2 tablespoons tamari (use wheat-free for a GF diet)
½ cup chopped cilantro

1.  In a large skillet, heat coconut oil over medium heat, then add green onions and cashews; cook a minute or two until cashews are lightly toasted, stirring frequently. Add crushed garlic and pepper and continue stirring. Add raisins and stir to coat with oil.

2.  Add cooked rice and continue stirring. Add more oil if needed. Add chopped tomato, sugar and tamari. Cook a few minutes longer, stirring. Take off heat and add chopped cilantro.

Thai Chicken Curry (adapted from same)
Serves 4 (must be BIG eaters!)

4 boneless chicken breasts
5 kaffir lime leaves, optional (finding kaffir leaves in my area isn't an option)

Sauce:

1 can coconut milk
4 small shallots, peeled, roughly chopped
1 stalk lemongrass, ends trimmed and chopped
6 cloves garlic, peeled
2 tablespoons fresh ginger, chopped
2 tablespoons Thai fish sauce
1 tablespoon tamari (wheat-free) or ½ tsp. sea salt
3 tablespoons unsalted peanut butter or cashew butter (cashew butter is pricey!)
2 tablespoons whole cane sugar or agave nectar
1 tablespoon curry powder
1 teaspoon crushed red chili flakes (more/less to taste)
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon turmeric
¼ teaspoon white pepper (ditto: black)

Garnish:

½ cup chopped cilantro

1.  Cut chicken into large pieces and place into a 9x13 inch baking dish along with the kaffir leaves, if using.

2.  Place all sauce ingredients in a blender and blend on high until smooth and creamy. Cover chicken with curry marinade. Cover and refrigerate for 3-24 hours.

3.  Preheat oven to 400. Place pan of chicken and marinade uncovered in oven and bake for 30-35 minutes or until done. Garnish with cilantro.

Winding down and winding uP.

I get all happy on Friday.  I AM TGIF!  I get in my little Ford Focus Wagon and say, encouragingly, "Sweetheart!  It's Friday!  Only one more round of commute for the week and then you get some time off!"  Of course we both know that we only get one day off.  Saturday is a commute of another nature, with just as many miles logged.  Then we drive up the mountain to deliver eggs to our weekly egg customer (this week they had to settle for a half-dozen chicken and a half-dozen duck).  I also get to visit their dog (sweet Georgia, who knows I keep treats in the car) and their two Nigerian wethers, Roger and Wilbur.  More often than not, I am slightly the worse for wear by the time I get back into my car to head to the office.  Good thing there's no wardrobe checker at the door.

Since this weekend is going to be a mixed bag, weather-wise, I will split my time equally between my outdoor lists and my indoor lists.  Some day I will have to go back and re-read these Friday posts.  I am sure they are good for a laugh.  I've tried to get some of my weekend errands done during the week so I can have more usable time on Saturday.  Besides cleaning the house (I swept up a groundhog-sized hair ball this morning! - everyone's shedding!), I want to complete some of my UFOs.  I mean, really, how long will it take to weave in some ends?  I seem to have a real problem with actually finishing these things.  But, the holidays are coming up, I am going to 'do' a craft fair with Sylvie in November, and I want/need to get more on my Etsy site.  So there.  I have such lofty aims, don't I? 

Last night I managed to make a Queso Blanco AND make dinner at the same time.  I guess those fish oil capsules are paying off!  I made the poached salmon with the carrot pilaf and it was great!  Of course, it took longer than 20 minutes because I used long grain brown rice.  And I didn't put toasted pine nuts in the pilaf, I used some chopped sultanas in their place.  Yum!  I am also going to try my hand at some gluten-free baking this weekend.  So far, I have had very mixed results in finding edible food replacements (read: bread/bread products) that are gluten-free.  Glutino's Pretzel Twists are wonderful, but pricey.  I wrote them a nice email telling them so and they sent me coupons!  Cool beans!  But, on the flip side, last weekend, out of sheer desperation, I dropped $6 on a King Arthur Flour Gluten Free Bread Mix.  Here is my description of the outcome:  ick.  I should have heeded the warning bells that were set off when I read the directions on the outside of the package - 3 eggs.  I find it almost impossible to describe the texture of this non-bread product.  Pudding?  Bread?  Pudding Bread?  Even though I hate-hate-hate waste, and especially hate wasting eggs that are few and far between of late, I could only choke down a third of the so-called loaf and gave the rest to the chickens.  THEY loved it.  So I am going to try my own gluten-free baking.  I believe, however, I first must have a stand-up-and-testify moment and acknowledge that there is NO such thing as gluten-free bread.  There.  I've said it.  But, hope springs eternal in this bread-lovin heart.

What I am learning about being Gluten-Free.

I would have to say that the most important thing I've learned is that (gasp) I can live without bread.  There, I've said it.  It's been viewed.  That doesn't mean that I don't really, really miss bread.  What I've also learned is that - so far - it's no problem to go without gluten-free bread.  I have not met one piece, rendition, loaf, slice, crumb or otherwise of GF bread that I can choke down.  Of course, I have just begun this journey so there is still hope that I may find a stand-in.

Another plus side to this (besides feeling better) is that I've lost weight.  I was really surprised at how many things I ate that contained gluten.  This means that the usual snack suspects were no longer on the Good To Eat List.  I am not counting Cape Cod Potato Chips here because those have become an obsession.  Those are on my Don't You Dare Eat List.  The one meal where I feel the loss of gluten most of all is breakfast.  Muffins, coffeecake, toast, scones, sigh.

So, as the saying goes around the farm, I just pulled on my Big Girl Pants and got creative.  This has had some added benefits - I am using grains and flours I've never tried before; some I've never heard of.  Sorghum flour?  Wha?  Guar gum?  er...  There is a wealth of information on the Internet at my fingertips and lots of others have paved the path towards tolerable - yes, even delicious - gluten-free food.  My biggest excitement in the breakfast arena has been rediscovering a food of my childhood.  Fried Mush.  Oooh.  Doesn't that just sound delish?  I was born and raised my first few years in Newport News, Virginia.  Both my parents had been in the Navy and my dad had finished his degree in mechanical engineering in Ohio.  Looking for work, he ended up finding a job at the shipyards in Newport News.  So, in my formative years, I was exposed to hush puppies, spoon bread, mush, and being referred to as "A Mess".  That was a big compliment back then and down there - and, although I can still be referred to as a mess on many occasions, I continue to view it as a positive comment about myself.

Back to topic.  My mother was and is a stellar cook.  My dad was exclusively the Grill Man.  But he also had some 'specialities d' Papa'.  One was fudge and the other was fried mush.  Basically, fried mush is plain speak for sauteed polenta.  I prefer fried mush - it's not pretentious.  It's a Mess.   Sorry, I couldn't help myself.  To make a mess of mush, one simply stirs cornmeal into boiling water with a little salt, stirs it until it's thick, lets it cook for a while, then takes it off the heat.  A quick smear of butter in a loaf pan, pour in the mush, let it cool, then put it in the fridge overnight.  In the morning, slice and fry in butter until slightly crispy around the edges.  Serve with maple syrup.  MmmMmm.  It goes wonderfully with a couple of eggs and bacon.  Or just all by its lonesome in a small pool of real maple syrup.  Mush has given me back Breakfast.