There are a lot of jars in there, filled with whole grains (rolled oats, steel cut oats, millet, oat bran, flaxseed, etc.) AND a beautiful variety of dry beans, lentils, peas--for all that delicous beany-ness that I'm forcing encouraging my family to enjoy. I purchased these organic foods inexpensively from this great food co-op. Here's one of my fav's: QUINOA.
You pronouce it "KEEN-wah." It's one of those amazing superfoods--a 'grain' which is actually in the cruciferous vegetable family, cooks up like rice and surprisingly contains "complete protein" (meaning that all 9 essential amino acids are present...wow I'm a geek). If you're a foodie like me, you can read more here. It's quick cooking (maybe 15 minutes) that you prep & eat like rice. I often mix ours in with yogurt for the kids, a little into chicken salad, and also Jada's baby food.
Below is a batch of homemade granola--a make-ahead breakfast that the kids can eat like cereal (since they're always begging for cereal). This one (recipe here) has a simple honey/coconut oil glaze, and you toast it in the oven until it comes out golden & delicious:
And for another 'weird' food--alfalfa sprouts! My sprout-loving friend (thanks, M!) got me into doing a little sprouting. I'm hoping to try grains/beans randomly when I get around to it.
And--this next picture is one I probably shouldn't post because it's a little high on the gross-o-meter...but because I want to avoid all pretensions of 'having it together' (you all know I don't, right?) Okay. You can't tell ANYONE. But we recently discovered this in the bottom of the piano bench:
It used to be a banana--a whole banana (you can tell because the seeds rotted through the flesh and the banana juice apparently eroded the paper it was adhered to for so long). By the looks of things, it was tucked safely away for 1-2 years (maybe? I don't know--how long does it take for a whole banana to ripen, rot, ooze, then dry out completely and decompose under a few books in an enclosed wooden piano bench?) I'm kind of guessing on that timeline. But what's frustrating is that I don't have a clue which child was the source of such an irritating (yet slightly entertaining) experiment. Who was the most awnry a year or two back? Hmmmm.
It used to be a banana--a whole banana (you can tell because the seeds rotted through the flesh and the banana juice apparently eroded the paper it was adhered to for so long). By the looks of things, it was tucked safely away for 1-2 years (maybe? I don't know--how long does it take for a whole banana to ripen, rot, ooze, then dry out completely and decompose under a few books in an enclosed wooden piano bench?) I'm kind of guessing on that timeline. But what's frustrating is that I don't have a clue which child was the source of such an irritating (yet slightly entertaining) experiment. Who was the most awnry a year or two back? Hmmmm.
2 comments:
I always enjoy hearing of your kitchen adventures--LOVE homemade granola also (with cranberries and coconut . . . yum!!)and I love it mixed into some Greek yogurt (double yum!!). ;o) And no shame in the banana--having children unfortunately dials up the gross meter a few notches. Every single time I clean the boys room I find dry/stale bread crusts and apple cores tucked into hidey holes. And on a kind of related note, is there anything so gross as stepping on a peeled banana you did not realize was on the floor??
Not a boring post at all!! :) I love all your healthy tips! And after looking at all those wonderfully organized jars and homemade granola and home-sprouted sprouts......that banana picture made me feel so much better about myself! haha! (I once found an apple core under a bed that was barely recognizable as an apple core. ugh!)
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