Continued Sustainable Garden Update

A couple of weeks ago we gave you a peak into the life of our brand new 2500 square foot vegetable garden, we couldn't pack everything into that one post so here we are on continuation.

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Puffy Pillows of Perfection

The summer has begun, and quite frankly I couldn't wait for no schedules, no wake up calls, just relaxation.  With that said, we do need to keep a little structure around here during the summer, it's nice to have something to look forward to.  So this year, just like last, we have days of the week that we plan to do things.  This summer we have a cooking day, so my kids and I get to choose anything we want to make.  First week out of the gate my daughter chooses beignets, in honor of the Princess and The Frog movie.

Have to admit that they turned out just perfect, like pillows of perfection.

She did all the work, from the yeast and the eggs,

To adding the bread flour, and all the kneading.
This was her dish, and she was into it.

After the 2 hour rise time, she rolled out the dough, measured her beignets, and they were ready for the fryer.

Oil at 350 degrees, she carefully fried them under my watchful eye of coarse!

Added a little powdered sugar, and we ate a good portion of them, and just had to share them with friends.  Good first day of cooking.

French Quarter Beignets

Recipe courtesy of Paula Deen

Ingredients

1 1/2 cups lukewarm water
1/2 cups granulated sugar
1 packet active dry yeast (2 1/4 tsp)
2 eggs, slightly beaten
1 1/4 tsp salt
1 cup evaporated milk
7 cups bread flour
1/4 cup shortening (we used butter)
Oil, for deep frying ( we used sunflower oil)
3 cups confectioners' sugar

Directions

Mix water, sugar, and yeast in a bowl and let sit for 10 minutes.
In another bowl, beat the eggs, salt and evaporated milk together.  Mix egg mixture to the yeast mixture.  Add 3 cups of the flour to the yeast mixture and stir to combine.  Add the shortening (butter) and continue to stir while adding the remaining flour.  Remove dough from the bowl, place onto a lightly floured surface and knead until smooth.  Coat a large bowl with oil or nonstick cooking spray.  Put dough into the bowl and cover with plastic wrap or towel.  Let rise in a warm place for at least 2 hours.
Preheat oil in a deep-fryer (or large heavy pot) to 350 degrees F.
Roll the dough out to about 1/4 inch thickness and cut into 1-inch squares.  Deep-fry, flipping constantly, until they become a golden color.  After beignets are fried, drain them for a few seconds on paper towels, and then dust them with confectioners' sugar.

Eat many!
Enjoy!

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Going Paleo???

I start this by saying that I have been sick three times this winter.  Now that may not be too many times for some, however I have gone probably in the neighborhood of about 4 years without getting so much as a cold, so three times in about 3-4 months was huge.  And these weren't just little colds with the sniffles, I have had a stomach bug, the flu, and a fever that kept me in bed for 4 days.  I simple couldn't get up, of coarse we note that this was over spring break.  Kind of a debbie downer of a break.  It was during this last bout that I thought maybe my diet needed some tweaking.  Was I not getting enough fruits and veggies, was I eating too many processed foods?  I was also struggling with some big time depression, and breakthrough allergy symptoms in the middle of winter.  What is that??  (I do allergy shots, and take allergy medicine daily which I'd like to get off of).  So a change was definitely in order.

During the middle of my daughter's spring break (she has two weeks), she went with me to Barnes and Noble to do some searching for a different way to eat to clean out the junk in my system. I didn't think that I ate poorly, limited or eliminated the proceed food, ate fruits and veggies, maybe not the recommended amount, but they were there.  We finally settled on a Paleo cookbook that looked like something I could use, and my family would like.

This was the winner.  How could you not like the pancakes on the front cover.  I can totally do that! :)  It provided me with a start on my journey to clean up my eating.  I'll share my favorite little tip that the authors have in this book.  It's homemade nut milk.  I usually put milk in my coffee, and seen an how dairy is off the menu, this is the perfect substitute for my morning cup.  

Take 1 cup raw almonds add 3 cups of filtered water, and soak at room temperature for at least 24 hrs.  I have let mine sit for up to 2-3 days before processing.  Place soaked almonds and water into a blender for about 1-2 minutes until nuts are finely chopped.  Cover a strainer with a few layers of cheesecloth, and strain the nut pulp from the liquid.

I've used some already this morning in my coffee, what a great substitution for milk.  There are several different nut milks that they make in this cookbook that I plan on trying like walnut, pecan, and cashew milk, and they have recipes that you can use these milks for in the cookbook.

I'm about 2-3 weeks into my new adventure, and the family is on board, and I feel better.  Can I know it's just the diet, and nothing else?  No, but it feels good to feel better, and eating more fruits and veggies, and less process food never hurt anyone!  I'll keep revamping some of my favorite recipes to fit my new way of eating.  Excited!

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