An update on things is in order.
As for the eating less sugar and generally eating healthier idea… We are definitely eating less sugar. Actually we don’t eat sugar at all now. And it works! We stopped eating bread, pasta, rice, potatoes and other high on carb veggies and of course plain sugar. The occasional high carb veggie sneaks in once in a while, but that’s totally ok. If I miss something from this “diet” or lifestyle, I think it must be bread and maybe a baked potato now and then. The funny thing is that most people look at us in awe and wonder how we can manage… Wow, you really have self discipline! I could never do that! Thruth is – this was actually really easy for us. Practically effortless. But we’ve never been bread-and-potatoes kind of people (like most Norwegians are!) in the first place. I admit that I miss the idea of bread, the idea of baking and the symbol and culture around bread making. But I have no problem restraining myself if I walk pass a smorgasbord to put it that way…
We now eat a sugar and gluten free diet. We’ve both lost almost 10kg ( 22 pounds) each. I’m a happier person. Literally. My PMS and mood swings have drastically decreased. I don’t feel tired all the time. I can manage with a normal 7 hours of sleep and get up and feel rested. (I still sleep in though, but it’s mostly due to old habit and not that my body needs it) I used to be a wreck if I didn’t get 9-10 hours minimum. I don’t feel depressed. I’m usually buried under blankets and pillows with the phone on silent this time of year. Obediently chanting the modern mantra life is a bitch and then you die - but not this year. I’m thinking that this “diet” has at least something to do with it. I also eat a lot of omega 3s, like oils from fish and flaxseed.
Yes, I hate the word diet. It makes me think of eating low calorie, high fiber bars tasting like sawdust with a touch of chocolate... Gulping it down with a large shake made from some strange colored powder and an array of funny looking pills for dessert. No thank you. I need real food. Our bodies need real food. It’s ok to use pills and bars as an addition to a healthy diet, but living on powders and shakes is not s good thing (isn’t that just common sense?). I need my food to come from sources that has touched dirt and seen sunlight! I also think of the word diet as something limited to a certain period of time. Like when you need to lose weight or eat more proteins to build muscles or stay away from milk to see if it helps on tummy ache… And therefore I don’t like to call this a diet. I look at it as a change of life or eating habits for the foreseeable future. Some family members are already asking when we’re going back to eating like we did before… Uhm? Why should we? But you’ve lost the weight now! Uhm (again) yes, but what do you think will happen if we start eating like we did again? Why do you think we got these problems in the first place?
That’s really a fun, but very common lack in logic thinking.
Christmas is coming up – you just gotta have potatoes! And rice cream!
Rice cream is a very common Norwegian dessert during Christmas. It’s a porridge made from white rice and milk. This is mixed with whipped cream into a thick… mass. (I know there is something named rice pudding, but I don’t know if it’s the same thing). This is served with a sweet sauce made from red currant (or some other berry) juice and sugar. Instead of this, we are going to have whipped cream (no sugar, maybe xylitol) with cloudberries mixed in, which is also a traditional dessert. Mhm.
Showing posts with label Food. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Food. Show all posts
10/28/2009
8/12/2009
Focus: food
A few gems recently arrived in my mailbox.
Never mind the sawdust – as I said; we’re renovating…
Animal, Vegetable, Miracle: a year of food life by Barbara Kingsolver. I first heard about Barbara Kingsolver through Therese’s blog earth and living. After checking Kingsolver ( I actually thought her name was KingsLOVER up until now… Wouldn’t that be more fun?) out on Amazon I just knew I had to read her books. And this one will be the first. I’ve just skimmed through the index and read a few sentences here and there… Have to finish the one (ehm …three…) books I’m already reading first. Oh my, I cannot wait to sink my teeth into this book… It’s mainly about when her family moved to a farm and decided to become locavores; eating only locally grown food and growing as much of it themselves as possible. The book even has recipes and facts about different issues regarding food and food production, although it is essentially the story of her family’s journey and thoughts. I even love the book itself; the paper was nice, the cover was beautiful and textured, it was perfectly bendy, the whole feel of the book, the paper, the print – it’s just perfect. Yes, I kind of have a book fetish.
The other book is Seed to Seed: seed saving and growing techniques for vegetable gardeners by Suzanne Ashworth. It’s a very straightforward and good book about saving seeds. Good winter reading, because next spring will be my first attempt to grow a larger amount of vegetables. And seed saving is so important, so fragile, so magical and for most of us: a lost art. Something that everyone had to know and learn in order to survive just a few hundred years (or maybe even decades) ago; - today it is a professionalized and institutionalized craft that just a few people know much about.
And the dvd is The Future of Food by Deborah Koons. The first time I saw this film was at a permaculture course in England in 2006. The film “offers an in-depth investigation into the disturbing truth behind the unlabeled, patented, genetically engineered foods that have quietly filled U.S. grocery store shelves for the past decade.” And it seems that it’s maybe just a matter of time before these foods will quietly fill our shelves as well. Theoretically there are almost no GMO foods in Norwegian grocery stores. Rules are strict, and the chains generally don’t want to sell it and customers don’t want to buy it. Thank God(ess). But still; almost half the food samples being analyzed by the veterinary institute has GMO. And now our politicians wonder about allowing two types of GMO corn (link in Norwegian) after recommendations from scientists… This film is full of facts and numbers, and might feel a bit heavy from time to time, but it really is a mindblowing, shocking and eyeopening ride.
Never mind the sawdust – as I said; we’re renovating…
Animal, Vegetable, Miracle: a year of food life by Barbara Kingsolver. I first heard about Barbara Kingsolver through Therese’s blog earth and living. After checking Kingsolver ( I actually thought her name was KingsLOVER up until now… Wouldn’t that be more fun?) out on Amazon I just knew I had to read her books. And this one will be the first. I’ve just skimmed through the index and read a few sentences here and there… Have to finish the one (ehm …three…) books I’m already reading first. Oh my, I cannot wait to sink my teeth into this book… It’s mainly about when her family moved to a farm and decided to become locavores; eating only locally grown food and growing as much of it themselves as possible. The book even has recipes and facts about different issues regarding food and food production, although it is essentially the story of her family’s journey and thoughts. I even love the book itself; the paper was nice, the cover was beautiful and textured, it was perfectly bendy, the whole feel of the book, the paper, the print – it’s just perfect. Yes, I kind of have a book fetish.
The other book is Seed to Seed: seed saving and growing techniques for vegetable gardeners by Suzanne Ashworth. It’s a very straightforward and good book about saving seeds. Good winter reading, because next spring will be my first attempt to grow a larger amount of vegetables. And seed saving is so important, so fragile, so magical and for most of us: a lost art. Something that everyone had to know and learn in order to survive just a few hundred years (or maybe even decades) ago; - today it is a professionalized and institutionalized craft that just a few people know much about.
And the dvd is The Future of Food by Deborah Koons. The first time I saw this film was at a permaculture course in England in 2006. The film “offers an in-depth investigation into the disturbing truth behind the unlabeled, patented, genetically engineered foods that have quietly filled U.S. grocery store shelves for the past decade.” And it seems that it’s maybe just a matter of time before these foods will quietly fill our shelves as well. Theoretically there are almost no GMO foods in Norwegian grocery stores. Rules are strict, and the chains generally don’t want to sell it and customers don’t want to buy it. Thank God(ess). But still; almost half the food samples being analyzed by the veterinary institute has GMO. And now our politicians wonder about allowing two types of GMO corn (link in Norwegian) after recommendations from scientists… This film is full of facts and numbers, and might feel a bit heavy from time to time, but it really is a mindblowing, shocking and eyeopening ride.
8/06/2009
Neglected
...that’s what this blog is at the moment. Between the breastfeeding, diaper changing (and washing…), and the craziness of renovating our house (one wall at the time…) and just living, it’s just not at the top of my priority list. I felt a strange urge to just delete this whole blog (and start another one…*sigh*), but I’m going to give it another chance. I have a long history of starting new projects and not finishing or keeping up, so maybe I’ll just accept that I cannot write a post every day or even weekly at the moment. It’s just how it is, but it still is. I also felt like writing in Norwegian again, because sometimes writing in English takes a bit longer and I catch my self using it as another excuse to neglect this blog…
But here we are. Or I am at least.
I just came back from the library with two books that I’m expecting quite a lot from. They are both in the category I ironically describe as “things I don’t want to know” – as in “ignorance is bliss”. One is written by a Norwegian educationalist, researcher and writer; Erik Sigsgaard and is called “Kjeft Mindre – Historier om oppdragelse”, or in English… something like Yell/scold Less – Stories about upbringing”. I have a 5yo and I have a bad temper. Nuf’ said. I need that book.
The other one is written by a Danish family who turned their life around completely after living many years on a bad diet and a life full of toxins and chemicals. They have raised quite a stir in Denmark and a bit of discussion in Norway as well with their books and advice about food. Basically they recommend a diet free of milk, gluten, sugar, “fast” carbohydrates and artificial stuff/E-numbers/food additives among other things. Their book is called “Kjernesunn Familie” in Norwegian. Kjerne = Core. Sunn = Healthy. Familie = Family. You get the picture. I need this book as well. We need it. Too much pasta, too much additives, sugar and stuff that really does no good to our health either physically or mentally.
Driving home with T. (the 5yo) this evening; “mama, I want ice cream”! Me – trying to explain why she cannot have ice cream every day. She – having a total breakdown in the backseat because of it; not giving a damn (pardon the French) about my logic explanations of course. So I stopped at the grocery store and bought some fruit and we went home and made our own ice cream. Version one – Black currants from the garden, a dash of organic soy milk and a teaspoon or two of xylitol ("Bjørkesøt" -instead of sugar; made from the birch tree). Version two – Banana and soy milk. Version three – mango. They are in the freezer at the moment. Quite an experiment. I hope she likes it – at least she enjoyed making them.
And I’m making “jam”;- soaking organic dried apricots. Tomorrow I’ll probably boil them for a few seconds, and then throw them in the blender. Voilá – organic apricot jam – no sugar. Did you know that most “conventional” dried apricots are treated with sulphur to keep the colour orange? Buy organic brown apricots. Apricots do not stay orange when they’re dried…
PS. I just love the library. What an amazing public service. Libraries make me happy, and proud and humble somehow.
But here we are. Or I am at least.
I just came back from the library with two books that I’m expecting quite a lot from. They are both in the category I ironically describe as “things I don’t want to know” – as in “ignorance is bliss”. One is written by a Norwegian educationalist, researcher and writer; Erik Sigsgaard and is called “Kjeft Mindre – Historier om oppdragelse”, or in English… something like Yell/scold Less – Stories about upbringing”. I have a 5yo and I have a bad temper. Nuf’ said. I need that book.
The other one is written by a Danish family who turned their life around completely after living many years on a bad diet and a life full of toxins and chemicals. They have raised quite a stir in Denmark and a bit of discussion in Norway as well with their books and advice about food. Basically they recommend a diet free of milk, gluten, sugar, “fast” carbohydrates and artificial stuff/E-numbers/food additives among other things. Their book is called “Kjernesunn Familie” in Norwegian. Kjerne = Core. Sunn = Healthy. Familie = Family. You get the picture. I need this book as well. We need it. Too much pasta, too much additives, sugar and stuff that really does no good to our health either physically or mentally.
Driving home with T. (the 5yo) this evening; “mama, I want ice cream”! Me – trying to explain why she cannot have ice cream every day. She – having a total breakdown in the backseat because of it; not giving a damn (pardon the French) about my logic explanations of course. So I stopped at the grocery store and bought some fruit and we went home and made our own ice cream. Version one – Black currants from the garden, a dash of organic soy milk and a teaspoon or two of xylitol ("Bjørkesøt" -instead of sugar; made from the birch tree). Version two – Banana and soy milk. Version three – mango. They are in the freezer at the moment. Quite an experiment. I hope she likes it – at least she enjoyed making them.
And I’m making “jam”;- soaking organic dried apricots. Tomorrow I’ll probably boil them for a few seconds, and then throw them in the blender. Voilá – organic apricot jam – no sugar. Did you know that most “conventional” dried apricots are treated with sulphur to keep the colour orange? Buy organic brown apricots. Apricots do not stay orange when they’re dried…
PS. I just love the library. What an amazing public service. Libraries make me happy, and proud and humble somehow.
6/19/2009
For the love of ginger
Try this:
Simmer a few pieces of ginger root in water for a couple of minutes to make a strong tea. Strain and add a few slices of lemon. Mix half and half with apple juice/cider. Enjoy hot or cold. Mmmhmmm :)
“A variety of uses are suggested for ginger. Tea brewed from ginger is a folk remedy for colds. Three to four leaves of Tulsi taken along with a piece of ginger on an empty stomach is an effective cure for congestion, cough and cold. Ginger ale and ginger beer have been recommended as "stomach settlers" for generations in countries where the beverages are made, and ginger water was commonly used to avoid heat cramps in the US. Ginger has also been historically used to treat inflammation, which several scientific studies support, though one arthritis trial showed ginger to be no better than a placebo or ibuprofen for treatment of osteoarthritis. Research on rats suggests that ginger may be useful for treating diabetes.”
- Wikipedia
Simmer a few pieces of ginger root in water for a couple of minutes to make a strong tea. Strain and add a few slices of lemon. Mix half and half with apple juice/cider. Enjoy hot or cold. Mmmhmmm :)
“A variety of uses are suggested for ginger. Tea brewed from ginger is a folk remedy for colds. Three to four leaves of Tulsi taken along with a piece of ginger on an empty stomach is an effective cure for congestion, cough and cold. Ginger ale and ginger beer have been recommended as "stomach settlers" for generations in countries where the beverages are made, and ginger water was commonly used to avoid heat cramps in the US. Ginger has also been historically used to treat inflammation, which several scientific studies support, though one arthritis trial showed ginger to be no better than a placebo or ibuprofen for treatment of osteoarthritis. Research on rats suggests that ginger may be useful for treating diabetes.”
- Wikipedia
6/05/2009
Loving right now..
It's June!
Having the time and energy to make healthy and delicious food.
Summer reading. Elizabeth Gilbert: Eat, Pray, Love.
New shoes for T. from Goodwill.
And a new skirt for mama. From Goodwill.
3/12/2009
Food Waste Reduction Challenge – part III
So, to the challenge wrap up.
What can you do to reduce food waste?
- Meal plan. If you don’t do it already; this will be your friend and a great tool in so many ways.
- Use a list when you go shopping. Use the meal plan and stick to your grocery list.
- Plan your shopping. Shop in bulk and not on impulse. And keep your trips to the grocers/mall to a minimum.
- Consider writing an inventory of your freezer and food storage/cupboard. Do an archaeological excavation and find out what you’ve got to work with.
- Consider keeping up with the inventory lists so that you can use everything before it’s past its due date.
- Involve the whole family in the meal planning. Let everyone have a say in what you buy and make. Get everyone involved.
- Use the opportunity to educate your kids about food, cooking, composting etc. Make food together. Make compost. Make art.
- When you throw food away – take a look at what gets thrown out. How can you reduce this, or how can you use it in different ways?
- Get into the world of composting.
- Get into cooking. Read food blogs. Get/stay inspired.
- Grow some of your own - it's so much fun and and it will make you appreciate food more and thus wanting to waste less.
So the key to wasting less? Make a plan and stick to it :)
What can you do to reduce food waste?
- Meal plan. If you don’t do it already; this will be your friend and a great tool in so many ways.
- Use a list when you go shopping. Use the meal plan and stick to your grocery list.
- Plan your shopping. Shop in bulk and not on impulse. And keep your trips to the grocers/mall to a minimum.
- Consider writing an inventory of your freezer and food storage/cupboard. Do an archaeological excavation and find out what you’ve got to work with.
- Consider keeping up with the inventory lists so that you can use everything before it’s past its due date.
- Involve the whole family in the meal planning. Let everyone have a say in what you buy and make. Get everyone involved.
- Use the opportunity to educate your kids about food, cooking, composting etc. Make food together. Make compost. Make art.
- When you throw food away – take a look at what gets thrown out. How can you reduce this, or how can you use it in different ways?
- Get into the world of composting.
- Get into cooking. Read food blogs. Get/stay inspired.
- Grow some of your own - it's so much fun and and it will make you appreciate food more and thus wanting to waste less.
So the key to wasting less? Make a plan and stick to it :)
3/04/2009
March
It’s March already. March is kind of the first month of spring, isn’t it? Well, it definitely doesn’t seem like it. So much snow – I’ll bet some of it will stick around till the summer solstice or something.
But I finished the diaper cover. Pictures coming soon; I’m waiting for some pinkish ribbon to arrive in my mailbox to make it a little cuter. I also ordered a bias trim “maker”. You see, I’m dreaming of getting the sewing machine out of its dusty corner, but it’s not possible to get enough room here now for more stuff. But the storage room/office in the basement is slowly getting closer to finished. Yey for that and yey for not having to live amongst cables and computers and office supplies anymore. Yey!
Three Ostheimer figurines have arrived; a mother, a father and a toddler. Now I just have to order a baby – I just can’t seem to figure out which. Do I order the baby in the crib? (Is it removable for play?) Or do I order an older sister figurine? You see – the problem with the latter is that this figurine has a green dress. Green. And T. will most likely be really upset if “she” had a green dress and her baby sister had a pink one. Major crisis alert.
But I got to order it soon, wrap it up nicely, make a card, and maybe something else to celebrate her transition into siblinghood.
I took another photo of her rainbow playsilk – thinking of writing more about toys. And I will – just not right now. But the playsilks are her favourite toys of all times. She uses them for everything and they are always involved in her play in one way or another (together with all kinds of ropes and string).
Right now I’m going to make a humongous amount of fruit salad with some walnuts and raisins. Yey for that too.
Speaking of food; who said vegan meant boring and difficult? Check out this food blog and be inspired.
But I finished the diaper cover. Pictures coming soon; I’m waiting for some pinkish ribbon to arrive in my mailbox to make it a little cuter. I also ordered a bias trim “maker”. You see, I’m dreaming of getting the sewing machine out of its dusty corner, but it’s not possible to get enough room here now for more stuff. But the storage room/office in the basement is slowly getting closer to finished. Yey for that and yey for not having to live amongst cables and computers and office supplies anymore. Yey!
Three Ostheimer figurines have arrived; a mother, a father and a toddler. Now I just have to order a baby – I just can’t seem to figure out which. Do I order the baby in the crib? (Is it removable for play?) Or do I order an older sister figurine? You see – the problem with the latter is that this figurine has a green dress. Green. And T. will most likely be really upset if “she” had a green dress and her baby sister had a pink one. Major crisis alert.
But I got to order it soon, wrap it up nicely, make a card, and maybe something else to celebrate her transition into siblinghood.
I took another photo of her rainbow playsilk – thinking of writing more about toys. And I will – just not right now. But the playsilks are her favourite toys of all times. She uses them for everything and they are always involved in her play in one way or another (together with all kinds of ropes and string).
Right now I’m going to make a humongous amount of fruit salad with some walnuts and raisins. Yey for that too.
Speaking of food; who said vegan meant boring and difficult? Check out this food blog and be inspired.
2/26/2009
Food Waste Reduction Challenge – part II
So – what have we learned from the challenge so far?
Meal planning! So easy and such a great tool both in terms of food waste reduction, eating healthier, more organic, locally, more vegetarian/vegan…. Generally seeing the whole picture and getting an overview of our diet. And of course it’s a good tool when it comes to budgets and grocery shopping as well.
Composting. I know this challenge is about reducing food waste as much as possible. But I have to say, although I agree on keeping it to a minimum, I don’t feel all that bad about the food waste we give our rabbits or even what ends up in the compost pile. Because what ends up in both those places finally comes back as food on our table. That’s what it’s all about - keeping the energy in the system as much and as long as possible. And it does not contribute much to CO2 emissions or keeping people starving someplace in Africa.
What kind of food gets thrown out in our house? Mostly its stuff that comes in big jars or packs. And mostly it’s stuff bought on impulse (big lesson there. Meal plan!). Big jars of fancy sauces, olives, pickles, dressings and “economy”/budget size packets of cooked meats and sandwich spreads. No one seems to fancy the five olives left in a slightly murky jar in the back of the fridge. This can be changed of course – I could use the five olives when I make pasta sauce or something. It just *almost* never happens. Speaking of pasta; it’s another thing that gets thrown out now and then. Somehow we can never manage to cook the right amount of pasta – it’s too little or way too much. And the last thing is mostly bread and vegetable scraps. The rabbits eat most of it.
Another thing I’ve been thinking about is buying more locally produced food. With our climate this isn’t always easy, and definitely requires planning. We can produce quite a lot in this garden. Preserving; canning, drying, making jams etc. And storing; fresh potatoes, carrots, pumpkins etc. And there’s no problem getting local produce (or at least made in Norway) during the summer - buying in bulk and storing in a cold room in the basement. One of the most difficult things is fruits. We love fruit. And it’s so much better then feeding your child sweetened biscuits and candy. Locally produced fruit is difficult to find; it’s mostly apples and maybe some pears and berries. What to do if we’re going to stop buying bananas, oranges and grapes from faraway places? (Because we should – shouldn’t we really?)
Meal planning! So easy and such a great tool both in terms of food waste reduction, eating healthier, more organic, locally, more vegetarian/vegan…. Generally seeing the whole picture and getting an overview of our diet. And of course it’s a good tool when it comes to budgets and grocery shopping as well.
Composting. I know this challenge is about reducing food waste as much as possible. But I have to say, although I agree on keeping it to a minimum, I don’t feel all that bad about the food waste we give our rabbits or even what ends up in the compost pile. Because what ends up in both those places finally comes back as food on our table. That’s what it’s all about - keeping the energy in the system as much and as long as possible. And it does not contribute much to CO2 emissions or keeping people starving someplace in Africa.
What kind of food gets thrown out in our house? Mostly its stuff that comes in big jars or packs. And mostly it’s stuff bought on impulse (big lesson there. Meal plan!). Big jars of fancy sauces, olives, pickles, dressings and “economy”/budget size packets of cooked meats and sandwich spreads. No one seems to fancy the five olives left in a slightly murky jar in the back of the fridge. This can be changed of course – I could use the five olives when I make pasta sauce or something. It just *almost* never happens. Speaking of pasta; it’s another thing that gets thrown out now and then. Somehow we can never manage to cook the right amount of pasta – it’s too little or way too much. And the last thing is mostly bread and vegetable scraps. The rabbits eat most of it.
Another thing I’ve been thinking about is buying more locally produced food. With our climate this isn’t always easy, and definitely requires planning. We can produce quite a lot in this garden. Preserving; canning, drying, making jams etc. And storing; fresh potatoes, carrots, pumpkins etc. And there’s no problem getting local produce (or at least made in Norway) during the summer - buying in bulk and storing in a cold room in the basement. One of the most difficult things is fruits. We love fruit. And it’s so much better then feeding your child sweetened biscuits and candy. Locally produced fruit is difficult to find; it’s mostly apples and maybe some pears and berries. What to do if we’re going to stop buying bananas, oranges and grapes from faraway places? (Because we should – shouldn’t we really?)
2/02/2009
Food Waste Reduction Challenge – part I
We’re on. One month of food waste reduction.
This whole challenge made me think about food in many ways, not just about how to waste less, but also about how it’s made, where it comes from, who gets paid for it, where it travels, the footprint it makes, where it ends up and many other things.
Crunchy has a few good tips on how to start off – I’m getting to that. Our fridge seriously needs to get cleaned out and I bet I’ll find remnants from Christmas and other stuff in there that will probably walk out by its own soon.
Today I have made a two week meal plan for the first time in my life. Based on what’s in the fridge and freezer at the moment. To me this challenge is not only about food waste reduction, but also about saving money, eating healthier and more locally produced/organic/environmentally friendly. A meal plan is an obvious step in the right direction. We also went grocery shopping and bought a lot less than usually because of the meal plan. Yey! We still have a lot of potential when it comes to grocery shopping though. Too much stuff that is unnecessary and unhealthy gets in to this house.
Since food waste is the main theme in this challenge, I’m going to start composting again. As of tomorrow the compost bucket is going back in. I had a compost pile in the garden last summer, but this winter most of our food waste goes straight in with miscellaneous garbage. And we even have rabbits…. SO – Two boxes/buckets are going up on the wall in the stairway down to our basement. One for rabbit food and one for food waste/compost. So at lest it is used in a much better way than just throwing it in plastic bags and waiting for the garbage truck to transport it someplace else…
This whole challenge made me think about food in many ways, not just about how to waste less, but also about how it’s made, where it comes from, who gets paid for it, where it travels, the footprint it makes, where it ends up and many other things.
Crunchy has a few good tips on how to start off – I’m getting to that. Our fridge seriously needs to get cleaned out and I bet I’ll find remnants from Christmas and other stuff in there that will probably walk out by its own soon.
Today I have made a two week meal plan for the first time in my life. Based on what’s in the fridge and freezer at the moment. To me this challenge is not only about food waste reduction, but also about saving money, eating healthier and more locally produced/organic/environmentally friendly. A meal plan is an obvious step in the right direction. We also went grocery shopping and bought a lot less than usually because of the meal plan. Yey! We still have a lot of potential when it comes to grocery shopping though. Too much stuff that is unnecessary and unhealthy gets in to this house.
Since food waste is the main theme in this challenge, I’m going to start composting again. As of tomorrow the compost bucket is going back in. I had a compost pile in the garden last summer, but this winter most of our food waste goes straight in with miscellaneous garbage. And we even have rabbits…. SO – Two boxes/buckets are going up on the wall in the stairway down to our basement. One for rabbit food and one for food waste/compost. So at lest it is used in a much better way than just throwing it in plastic bags and waiting for the garbage truck to transport it someplace else…
1/27/2009
1/05/2009
2009
Happy new year :)
Not so much happening here during Christmas – we all got the flu and sinus infections and ended up with antibiotics and painkillers, herbal remedies, cough syrup and the lot.
Most of us are better now – my husband is still on antibiotics, but is feeling better.
I just hate the thought of antibiotics in the first place, but this time it felt like the only way to survive Christmas. Luckily our four year old was really sick for a couple of days, but quickly got better with a lot of TLC – sleep/rest, smoothies and too much television… It’s wonderful to see how her body works and heals itself from illness in a whole other way then ours. When she gets sick – she really gets sick, but usually it lasts for a few days and then its over. With us it’s another story. Often we’re walking around feeling sick-ish for days or even weeks – low energy, cranky, body hurting in different places… Why can’t I just get sick and then start the healing process? I’m thinking it’s because her four year old body is so much healthier than ours in terms of (for example) – getting a lot more exercise, eating (and drinking) a healthier diet than us (a paradox isn’t it), not being vaccinated, not usually taking any kind of medicines, not been exposed to so many years of pollution and toxins…
So – after these last few weeks of feeling sickish my body desperately started craving fruits and vegetables. I don’t know if it’s a psychological or physical kind of craving, but it doesn’t really matter. It’s a cliché, but it feels real – my body needs fruits and veg and healthy green stuff right now. At the moment I have aversions against almost all kinds of meat.
And lucky us – we got a juicer for Christmas from some very nice friends.
Before breakfast today:
1 green/yellow apple
A big handful of fresh spinach
A slice of lime
Another apple
Throw it all in the juicer and enjoy. Both the four year old and I love it. And no, you cannot taste the spinach. At all.
Not so much happening here during Christmas – we all got the flu and sinus infections and ended up with antibiotics and painkillers, herbal remedies, cough syrup and the lot.
Most of us are better now – my husband is still on antibiotics, but is feeling better.
I just hate the thought of antibiotics in the first place, but this time it felt like the only way to survive Christmas. Luckily our four year old was really sick for a couple of days, but quickly got better with a lot of TLC – sleep/rest, smoothies and too much television… It’s wonderful to see how her body works and heals itself from illness in a whole other way then ours. When she gets sick – she really gets sick, but usually it lasts for a few days and then its over. With us it’s another story. Often we’re walking around feeling sick-ish for days or even weeks – low energy, cranky, body hurting in different places… Why can’t I just get sick and then start the healing process? I’m thinking it’s because her four year old body is so much healthier than ours in terms of (for example) – getting a lot more exercise, eating (and drinking) a healthier diet than us (a paradox isn’t it), not being vaccinated, not usually taking any kind of medicines, not been exposed to so many years of pollution and toxins…
So – after these last few weeks of feeling sickish my body desperately started craving fruits and vegetables. I don’t know if it’s a psychological or physical kind of craving, but it doesn’t really matter. It’s a cliché, but it feels real – my body needs fruits and veg and healthy green stuff right now. At the moment I have aversions against almost all kinds of meat.
And lucky us – we got a juicer for Christmas from some very nice friends.
Before breakfast today:
1 green/yellow apple
A big handful of fresh spinach
A slice of lime
Another apple
Throw it all in the juicer and enjoy. Both the four year old and I love it. And no, you cannot taste the spinach. At all.
12/08/2008
12/01/2008
Honey cake/gingerbread cake
I love making this cake when Christmas is approaching. It’s an old and traditional Norwegian recipe (or that’s what I’ve heard). Although it’s called “honey cake”, it’s very spicy – like gingerbread. This cake keeps for a long time as long as you keep it wrapped in foil or in an airtight container. The recipe even says that you should not cut the cake until after it has been in the fridge for a week. Let’s see if we can wait that long ;)
Set the oven on 175 degrees Celsius (ca. 345 °F).
150 grams of butter/margarine
100 g sugar
150 g honey
3 eggs
225 g plain white flour
1 tsp baking powder
2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp ginger
½ tsp black pepper
Mix the butter, sugar and honey until it has a creamy consistency. Add the eggs and spices. Sift in the baking powder and flour and mix.
Use a rectangular bread tin – butter and dust with flour before you pour the dough in and straighten it out a bit with a spatula.
Bake for about 45 min. – 1 hour (my recipe says 1 hour, but that is way too long in my oven. Check on the cake once in a while to determine how it comes along).
Cool and put it in foil or some plastic wrap and put in the fridge for a week.
Serve with butter or cut it lengthwise and butter it before serving.
7/05/2008
The verdict
Eagerly preparing the tasting of our rose petal jam. Properly dressed for the occasion of course.
Main course; Wooden fish head and sausages (with velcro).
And then this monstrous thing for dessert; just a plain slice of bread with whipped cream and rose petal jam... or sauce as it turned out. I've found lots of different variations on the rose petal jam recipe and most of them says that you should tear the petals into large(ish) pieces, put the petals or the finished jam in a blender or remove the petals altogether (for jelly - got to try it). Our recipe said nothing about that, so when the jam was ready I got the old "feeling a bit sick" about all thing roses again... Not good. It certainly didn't look like anything I'd like to eat. So I put it in the blender and got a thick rose petal sauce.
I couldn't finish this, but it was great! Nothing like potpourri, I promise. It was a very delicate, sweet and even child-friendly. I kept thinking of weddings, overly romantic "chick-flick" movies and the hot flashes and dizziness of falling in love. Don't know what came over me :)
I'm going to buy some good quality vanilla ice cream and serve it with lukewarm rose petal sauce. Decorating with some rosebuds, lemon verbena leaves or lemon balm...
Mid-summer luxury in a jar. Recipe:
Rose petal sauce/jam
750ml water
500g sugar
250g rose petals
Juice of two lemons
(I made half this)
Remove the white heels and a little of the though part at the bottom of the petals. (If you don't the jam will be quite bitter). Put them in a blender and pulsate for just a few seconds or tear them to smaller pieces. Mix in half the sugar. Leave overnight in the fridge. Dissolve the rest of the sugar in a pan with water and lemon juice. Add the petals and sugar mix and simmer for about 20 mins or until you get the consistency you want. Pour into clean jars and seal.
I have no idea how long this will keep in the fridge, but I guess the safest thing would be to put small portions in plastic bags, yogurt jars, ice trays or something and put in the freezer.
7/01/2008
Rose petal jam
We're trying out something new and different - rose petal jam. At the moment the rose petals are in the fridge soaking in sugar... Didn't read the whole recipe and suddenly discovered that I had to let them sit in the fridge overnight... Oh well. But here they are in all their velvety, sweet-smelling loveliness...
I've just recently discovered the opportunity of using rose petals and rosewater in cooking. I used to think that roses in food smelled like really cheap soap or potpourri no matter what kind of fancy recipe. I didn't like the smell of it - not even the essential oil or the actual rose itself - it all made me feel a bit sick. But something has changed - I don't really know what. Maybe it all started with buying some Turkish (ehm.. Greek) delight while I was in Crete this spring. I just fell in love.
I was skimming through some books the other day, looking for ideas and inspiration for some mid-summery crafts and activities and stumbled across a recipe. My rose bushes (rosa rugosa) are in full bloom, and instead of just picking the petals and drying them for "something" - I thought I'd try this out. So now I have lots of ideas... homemade rosewater, jam, jelly, sauce, sugar, Turkish delight, other kinds of candy, different kinds of creams and beauty products, sachets for the bath tub, used in incense recipes, dream pillows, potpourri, dried and used to make art, put in a herbarium... The sad thing is that we removed a lot of the rose bushes this spring because they stung, took a lot of space, invaded the garden, looked... well, a bit sad... (Cut back hard and they will come back up looking as healthy and luscious as ever before). The good thing is that they will probably continue their invasion, and I will have even more petals for future projects. And rosehip tea and soup in the fall! I'm in love.
Recipe and verdict still to come.
6/14/2008
In the fifties
Who wouldn't love to have a cherry red dress like this? This is from an old sewing book I've inherited from my grandmother. I don't know exactly how old it is, but I'm guessing the mid fifties. And this is from the introduction:
"As a woman, you can hardly find any better way to express your intelligence and personality..."
(Loosely translated by me.) And this one sentence kind of sums it all up. Thankfully most women have found both more and better ways to express their intelligence since then ;) Not that I don't love sewing, I do. And I love this book. Sadly the patterns are all gone, but the illustrations are wonderful. Maybe one day - when my sewing experience and knowledge has increased quite a bit - I'll try to make something inspired by these. I love dresses, but a cocktail cherry red one like the one above may be a bit bold... And when to wear it? And with the gloves and all (are these called gloves in english?). I don't have too many invitations for dinner parties and cocktail hours and proms laying around these days ;)
One of the other books I inherited was a fifties cookbook. With stains and all. So much history and memories in there. Even the smell of the book - it smells like my grandmothers house.
Lots of fifties moral, etiquette and facts in here as well. And several chapters about arranging dinner parties and what is appropriate and whats not - how to set the table, how to serve somebody - always remember to hold the coffeepot with a small napkin in your right hand... With 20 photos to illustrate the most important things to remember, how to behave and where the hostess should sit or be at all times, what to wear (a neat little black dress with a white apron for the help/waitress of course), one whole chapter about folding napkins, - and did you know that the average housewife handles about 150 items in the kitchen each day? Yeah, right! ;)
Smorgosbord for lunch... And maybe one of these cakes for dessert? (This is from yet another book - The Big Norwegian Cake Book - (yey!) it's from the eighties.
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