Another go around with almond milk...and this time I win!

A couple of years ago when I was trying to consume less dairy I bought already made almond milk and man did my taste buds find it nasty. This time around knowing that I have a moderately unhappy reaction to dairy gives me more motivation and I found my brain in a better place to try almond milk again. I took the challenge in a little different direction this time though, I decided to try making my own and see if I could come up with something that I would be happy splashing in a coffee drink (since that is about all I actually use milk for anyway these days and guess what...I did!
It turns out that almond milk isn't rocket science. It also turns out that it is much better with a little added sweetness which a couple of dates and a little vanilla are well suited to provide! I read every recipe on the web I could find (they were all very close versions of the same) and it only took following one to realize that I like a texture that was more milkier than it is watery so no problem smaller amount of water or a few more nuts and the problem is solved!
It is now easy and quick enough for me to make that I even took my ingredients (and my mesh bag for squeezing the pulp out) on a trip to NYC so that I wasn't tempted to have a splash of dairy where it wasn't an actual splurge! This was great because it allowed me to eat mindfully and to make each and every splurge really count in a city that is FULL of amazing food! 

Continuing the lifestyle changes...and enjoying the process!

Several pretty great things have happened this week. I discovered that I can make lemon curd with honey instead of refined sugar and it is pretty stinking fabulous. I found a way to make quinoa for breakfast that I actually enjoy AND I created a whole new daily routine, to add to the new weekly routine of 3x a week of infrared therapy that I started a couple of weeks ago. See? Great stuff happening around here!

A check in on the inferred therapy shows that contrary to my suspicion it is VERY helpful! When I first get done I will admit that I don't feel great I feel sort of gutted and my vision is awkward, which at first was super disconcerting BUT after a bit of consideration when a marathon runner is done running or a power lifter is done lifting, they also feel extreme fatigue they might not loose their vision but still, knowing that this is temporary and will clear up as I cool down makes it ok and sort of put me back in the no pain no gain game...which I love!!! SEE?!? It really is all in the attitude!
The immediate benefit I am getting from this therapy is that I am able to get up as little as only three times the night that I do it! THREE TIMES as opposed to getting up every 35-45 minutes all night long!!! Also my muscle spasms are reduced for quite a few hours! So better sleep and less pain...that a winner in my book! I am looking forward to keeping up with this therapy!

Onto my quinoa! OMG can I just tell you that if you make it according to the package (Ic water 1/2c quinoa) it is not spectacular at all BUT if you add 2TBL of coconut milk (the real stuff in the can) and two chopped dates to the water when you cook it ooolala it becomes great! This makes enough for two breakfasts so you only have to make it every other day...which is also a plus! I top my bowl with another TBL of coconut milk and I gotta say I will be okay for breakfast in May when eggs are eliminated!

At first I am pretty sure that I won't be having much that is sweet at all with even fruit likely being held to a minimum so I really wanted to try and see if I could make lemon curd with honey instead of refined sugar that was actually good not gross so that once I could have some extra sweetness and hopefully eggs) I had something in mind that I already knew would hit the spot. (Its all about being prepared even though it will be august at the EARLIEST by the time this happens) Other than the honey, I made another change, I decided not to strain it of the egg bits, why take that protein away? Instead I got out my trusty immersion blender and poof, silky smooth unstrained lemon curd that was as amazing warm as it is chilled!

Onto the daily change, or the biggest daily change anyway. Last week I started doing 30 minutes of yoga after I walk the dog and before showering every morning. This had been amazing. How have I never done this before? Well actually I know why, yoga didn't interest me, it isn't an adrenaline rush like lifting something heavy can be, but seriously it is time for me to stop feeling sorry for myself and start rolling with the punches that have come my way, which in part means finding a challenge that I can stick with. Because yoga incorporates flexibility and balance with strength and breathing this seems like an obvious choice to anyone outside the box, but for me it took a long time to wrap my head around. Then in walks yogaglo. Well in walked a friend who has practiced for 30 years, and she told me that she had started using an online subscription for yoga and so of course I had to check it out...(after thinking about it for 6 months hah I told you I suck)
If you have never heard of yogaglo and you have EVER considered doing yoga in the comfort of your own home you really do need to check them out. It is an online subscription (there are a lot of them, this is the Cadillac version just go for it, it's worth the extra money per month) featuring thousands of sessions with top notch instructors. There are literally 44 different focuses to choose from and 32 specific body parts to narrow it down for you!

So rolling out of bed to a sip of chamomile tea while feeding the dog, leaving with the hubby for a walk with the dog and then coming home to have a yoga session before my quinoa breakfast has made this a really great week...and its Wednesday and usually by Wednesday I am feeling like if I can  just live through Wednesday I will make it to Friday...this week for the first time in the memorable past I am feeling positive!

Embracing the challenge of change in our weekly menu

The fact that I love my kitchen is not newsworthy, well not so much the kitchen itself. I don't love the narrow, cramped galley but do appreciate the counter space after being at Liesl's in New York...each time I return it will seem spacious for a week as I readjust!

What I do love is the fun creativity that happens in the kitchen. As a kid my mom made it so much fun that I remember thinking about how great it would be when I had my very own kitchen! Not a house or a family or a job, just my own kitchen. Obviously cooking was a big part of my childhood, my mother is a genius in the kitchen. She is adept at cooking many different kinds of foods. She was smart, as a young woman each time she made a friend who had lived anywhere but here she would somehow manage to get them to teach them whatever the local cuisine had been where they had lived. She learned to cook some Texan, Chinese, Vietnamese (off the top of my head) all from friends of hers that had spent years cooking for their families in those respective places. Some truly great food came out of her kitchen...it wasn't all that turkey soup that I dreaded! 

When my dads health took a dive, mom had to learn a new way of cooking and she attacked that like she does everything else. Salt, sugar and fat are not easy to leave out of a recipe, especially when you are used to the richness and depth that these ingrediants impart. I think that her attitude has once again been such a good useful example for me. 

If we attack changes in the kitchen as a challenge to learn rather then a sad deprivation sentence I am convinced that the finished product will be much better. 

I didn't used to like quinoa, lets face it it is no risotto! It took me a lot of playing around with it trying to figure out how to richen it up and make it seem like more than it is. In fact until I changed my goal I was never happy with it but once I decided to embrace the texture and be happy with imparting depth and richness, only then did I relax into playing with it. Once we are no longer fighting to make one thing into another and start thinking about how to complement whatever it is we are attempting to cook then things begin to come together. I now love quinoa, for me I found that the trick to teasing great flavor out of it is to toast it first, just as I would sesame seeds in a dry cast iron pan and then I choose what to cook it in from a robust mirepoix to plain old water depending on what I am using it as a bed for or serving it with. It cooks faster than rice, it never sticks, it is not finicky at all and it is packed with protein and iron. If you haven't made quinoa recently give it a try! Make sure that if you want to try toasting it that you buy pre-rinsed quinoa, and heat your broth/water while you are doing the toasting so that you get the joy of seeing the sizzling seeds hit the hot water! 

Even one small change makes a difference. I remember when I read Barbara Kingsolver's book on their experiment of gardening and eating local I came away really loving her attitude of any little change that we can embrace making a difference. (This is when I started gardening). Little differences in the kitchen can help us build a healthier foundation, they provide a platform for us to build on! Our eating habits shouldn't be about all or nothing they should be about making changes that we can be happy with and use over a sustained period of time!