Bird and Little Bird

And the Survey Says...

After last week's eventful beginning, we were scheduled for our follow-up allergy testing yesterday afternoon. Baby Z. handled the whole situation with relative flexibility and good humor, with the notable exception of really not wanting the doctor to take his pulse or look in his ears. But the scratch test bit went swimmingly. Well, the actual procedural bit anyway. The results? Not as favorable. Indeed, the small fry is officially allergic to eggs and peanuts (which we knew going in), but we are adding tree nuts to the list now as well.

 

Admittedly, this news doesn't change a whole lot for us. Dan has a lifelong tree nut allergy as well, so we have lived as a nut-free household pretty much always. So, the shift brought about by yesterday's news won't be so much related to the function of day to day living, grocery shopping, or eating. It will be more about mindset. And I'll be the first to admit that the knowledge that your resident small people have potentially life threatening reactions to foods commonly found in the world outside your front door is tricky to integrate into one's mental landscape without some amount of anxiety. So there is that.

But, hey, how much better to find out all of these things now, on our own terms, than at a preschool potluck on some future afternoon when the situation is far less controlled and far more scary? I keep reminding myself that knowing exactly what we are up against is pretty useful, actually. Even if it doesn't make a whole lot of sense at this precise moment.

I was joking yesterday that my cheerful resolve is in pretty good shape due to years of constant use and and regular excercise.

Except I wasn't really kidding at all.

Don't forget about the big Alphabet Glue May moving sale!  Any and all issues of Alphabet Glue are on sale until May 15th! Enter "may25" at checkout for 25% off. There are lots and lots of great book recommendations, printable pages and fun science and craft projects in there; perfect for getting busy with the small folk this summer!

Soba Noodle Salad for Kids Who Like Cabbage.

For better or weird, a cabbage and noodle salad is one of the things that my super picky eater will always approach with enthusiasm. She is a particular fan of purple cabbage, especially if it is made available in really small, still crunchy bits. As a result, I've tinkered with somewhere around one billion variations of the esteemed Asian noodle salad over the last couple of years. This one is my current favorite.

Cabbage, Sesame and Soba Noodle Salad

1 package soba noodles (I used gluten-free black rice soba for the salad pictured here)

2 or 3 cups shredded cabbage

3 carrots, grated

1/8 cup sesame seeds, toasted (you can toss them around an ungreased pan for a few minutes to do this- medium heat works well)

1 small bunch scallions, diced (I generally use the white, and about inches of green)

1/2 lb. snow peas, cut into 1 inch pieces and parboiled

Dressing

1/4 cup tamari or soy sauce

3 Tablespoons fish sauce

2  Tablespoons toasted sesame oil

2 Tablespoons rice vinegar

3 Tablespoons brown sugar or honey

Cook the soba noodles according to the package instructions, drain them, and rinse them in cool water. Put into a large mixing bowl, and add in the veggies. Mix up the dressing ingredients, using a wisk to make sure that everything is well combined. Taste, and adjust the seasoning as needed by adding more vinegar, more sugar etc. Toss the noodles and veggies with the dressing. Serve cold or at room temperature.

 

On Snacking.

I mentioned a bit yesterday about our recent need to get our family's metaphorical food ducks in a nice, serviceable row. There have been various challenges lately, the biggest one probably being the fact that Mariam seems to really require regularly scheduled programming in the snacks and meals department and in the event that she doesn't get the food that her body needs exactly when it is needed, bad mood related things are sure to follow. Even after being gluten-free for over a year (her celiac diagnosis was in November of 2011), she still doesn't do a great job of recognizing when she is getting hungry, and unless I'm nearby to make sure that she eats, she simply doesn't.

 

So, it has become increasingly important that I have well thought out and foolproof to execute meal plans in place for breakfast and dinner, seven days a week. And that I pack school lunches that she approves of ahead of time and swears that she will eat. And, quite honestly, that I pick her up from school in the afternoon already under the assumption that she will not have eaten the lunch that I packed and that I will need a snack at the ready.

 

This week, popcorn is proving a popular snack choice for the car ride home. I decided to forgo the air popper and do my popping via stovetop pot, just for fun. I don't really recommend it, but if you take the lid off the pot at all while said popping is taking place, kernels will fly out all over the kitchen and babies think that this is amazing.

I tossed the popcorn with butter, sea salt and grated parmesan, and then packed it into half-gallon canning jars. When Mariam gets into the car in the afternoon, it is easy to turn on an audiobook and hand her a jar and a cloth napkin. She can unwind for a few minutes while she snacks and listens, and then by the time that we get home, she is much better able to think about an additional healthy snack choice to get us through until dinner time.

Whatever the reason might be, it sometimes feels like our food learning curve has been a bit steep. Maybe because we've been wading through the waters of going gluten free while also being nut free, and having the baby be allergic to eggs. There's a lot to think about, really. So, I am. I'm thinking, and planning, and spending a lot of time with my Cuisinart.

And eating a lot of popcorn, too.

Eleven Below.

Perhaps you fellow East Coasters are already aware of this, but I do feel the need to state, on the official record, that it is very, very cold here. I think that today's low is something like negative eighteen and because I am neither an Arctic explorer or a native of Siberia (or northern Minnesota for that matter), I find this turn of events ever so slightly shocking.

The windows of the house are covered in this feathery, thin ice that is pretty to look at, but obviously indicates outdoor conditions that might be best avoided. It is sparkly though, and it makes us house-dwellers feel awfully grateful for our cozy indoor environs.

The baby is taking advantage of the extra time spent housing-about by working on his incredible case of bedhead. Mariam's hair used to look like this in the morning when she was a peanut as well. Actually, it still kind of does a lot of the time. I love it.

It turns out that everybody enjoys a good pomegranate when it is made available to them. The baby especially. He sat at the table and ate seed after seed with his little fingers this morning, affording me enough peace and quiet to drink a cup of coffee undisturbed. Amazing.

And, it being the last week of January means that I am all but living in Glueland. Designing, printing, cutting, pasting, digging through stacks of library books and compiling lists of favorites. Volume Eleven is coming together quite nicely, and should land in your virtual laps sometime very soon, although I'm still in the midst of determining exactly which day this will be.

Stay warm out there!

 

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On Snow Days and Settling Back In.

That Time of Year.

Zero Degrees at the Backyard Buffet.

The Non-Existent To-Do List.

This is one of those weeks where I look back and think that somehow, it seems to have gone by so very quickly and that both a lot got done and nothing got done at all.  Or, I guess we could say that a lot got done, but not necessarily the stuff that I had planned to get done. Right. I guess no surprises there.

On the list of things accomplished that were somewhat unintentional: making rice milk.  Not to offend any vegan sensibilities, but I do consider being dairy-free a hardship (albeit a minor one) in that it limits my ability to do exceedingly pleasurable things like say, eating a pile of delicious cheese.  Indeed, one of the great tragedies of dairy-free living has been the absence of cream in my morning coffee.  To some, this would be a small inconvenience. Yet, in the very early morning after a relatively sleepless night with a teething baby, it is sort of a big deal. I've been using coconut milk as a substitute, which has been mostly satisfactory, but I wanted to try something new. 

I've been using rice milk in smoothies lately and I thought that if it were just slightly less watery, it might make a good coffee addition for days when a coconut hiatus becomes appealing.  So, I tried my hand at making up a batch of homemade rice milk.  It was really easy to make and the general household consensus is that it is really good for something not procured from a cow, although because it is slightly thicker than something like Rice Dream, it is probably better suited to smoothies than cereal. I used this recipe and will likely make this again soon.

In other news, there is a fun Alphabet Glue post up on the Rhythm of the Home blog today. Pop on over to check out some great photos of Alphabet Glue in action (shared by some fellow bloggers and favorite internet neighbors). There's a giveaway too.  Also, if you'd like to take a peek at the comic book project from Volume Eight, you can download a free excerpt of the issue at The Crafty Crow and it includes the comic book templates and instructions!

 

While We're on the Subject...

Of food, that is. Because I think that all last week, I pretty much only wrote about food here.  Which is fitting if we decide to think of this blog as a digital extension of my brain (which is basically what's going on here- this is why you end up with the random posts about my laundry and how much I like cupcakes).  But this recent obsession with my kitchen and what comes out of it should be considered a positive turn of events for certain.  For so many months I have been semi-wallowing in my disappointment at our descent into the impossibilities of allergen-free living that I have been pretty much wholly uninspired in the culinary department.  It was getting pretty sad there for awhile.  And, honestly, I'm probably not quite done with it. There are still days when I am a total loss for what to make, and if I haven't thrown something together to put into the crockpot by about 1 p.m., we are very likely going to have a pretty strange dinner. 

Part of the gradual rebound of my love affair with the kitchen that I'm currently undergoing is the result, I think, of looking for new inspiration in places that offer more realisitic options for us.  My days of ogling fancy Martha Stewart recipes are over.  At least for now.  And that's okay; I think I'm finally coming around to using this situation as an opportunity to make some nice changes, rather than seeing it as something to accomodate short term while complaining loudly. 

One thing that I've been doing lately is making green smoothies.  I think that this is something I used to do long ago, but it has been a good while, and I hadn't really thought about green smoothies until I recently came across this post from Stephinie's blog. She had linked to this recipe.  It looked good, but it had a number of things in it that are on the list of problematic foods around these parts.  So, I modified it to fit our particular needs, and I must say, I'm pretty happy with the results. 

Allergen-Free Green Smoothie

1 cup rice milk

1 1/2 cups assorted frozen or fresh fruits (we've been doing peaches and mangos)

2 bananas

2 Tablespoons ground flax seed

2 large leaves kale, torn into small pieces

Put the kale and rice milk into the blender and blend on high speed until smooth.  Add in the bananas, other fruit and flax.  Blend on high speed until smooth.  This has been making enough smoothie for a large glass for me, a small one for Mariam and a half sippy cup full for Zak.

 

Amaranth in the a.m.

For many years, we were unencumbered oatmeal enthusiasts.  Oatmeal wasn't just a breakfast food in this house; it was an institution.  So, when Mariam was diagnosed with celiac and oats had to go out the door (along with so many other things), there was a bit of trauma.  I know that the oat question is a controversial one in gluten-free land, and that many families choose to continue incorporating oats into their diet provided that they are certified gluten-free.  I don't want to ruffle feathers per se, so I'll just say that we don't take this approach, primarily because of emerging research that suggests that oats themselves create an immune response in people with celiac disease that is similar to the one triggered by gluten, and that this is true even when the oats are "gluten-free."  Also, our gastroenterologist said not to touch them.  So there it is.

Eliminating oats has left an odd hole in our family breakfast routine.  Oatmeal used to be an easy and popular option for all of us; one of the few breakfasts that we would generally all like to eat together.  Mariam and Dan have found solace in eggs and corn tortillas, but since baby Z is allergic to eggs, I can't go that direction myself.  In the last couple of weeks, I've happened upon a new solution to the breakfast foods conundrum.  Amaranth.  I'm not sure why I didn't think of it earlier, but it is pretty much perfect.  A warm bowl of amaranth porridge with a bit of coconut milk and some maple syrup.  Not a bad breakfast at all, actually. 

Move over, oatmeal. 

Amaranth Breakfast Porridge

1 cup amaranth

4 cups water

a pinch of salt

maple syrup and coconut milk to taste

Begin by combining the amaranth, salt, and water in a small saucepan with a lid.  Allow it to come to a boil, and then lower the heat to medium-low.  Let simmer, stirring occasionally, until the mixture thickens and the water is absorbed.  It will be a consistency similar to oatmeal or porridge.  Add more water if needed to get the desired texture.  Spoon into bowls and top with coconut milk and a bit of maple syrup. 

This will keep well in the refrigerator for the better part of a week and can be easily reheated on the stovetop with a bit of extra water to get it back to a smooth consistency.

 

Rhythm of the Home for Autumn (and Allergy-Free Caramel Sauce for You).

It is a rainy, rainy day here in Vermont, so it does seem appropriate to announce that the Autumn Edition of the Rhythm of the Home magazine is here!  I have a recipe for an allergen-free caramel sauce in the new edition, which you can find here.  Also, those of you have visited Rhythm of the Home in the past will notice that the magazine has a brand new (and oh-so-beautiful) design.  You cannot imagine the amount of behind-the-scenes love and effort that went into the new site, so when you have a moment, please hop on over and take an appreciative look!

Eighteen Pounds and Counting.

Some of you may remember my high, high hopes for the tomatillo plants of gardens past.  Indeed, I have planted at least one tomatillo each of the summers that we have lived in Vermont, only to be disappointed when the husks formed on the plant in early summer and then failed to grow any larger than an average sized pea.  So, it was much to my surprise when the volunteer tomatillo plants in our community garden plot began to prouduce actual, real, fat green tomatillos. In abundance.  Apparently, tomatillos need to be planted in pairs to produce, which is exactly what we accidentally did when moving the volunteer plants from one side of the garden to the other earlier in the season.  We gathered eighteen pounds of tomatillos from just a few plants this past weekend and honestly, I don't think that we got even half of what the total harvest is likely to be.

 

So what exactly is to be done with eighteen pounds of tomatillos?  Salsa verde, of course.  Annie 2.0 happened to talk to our community garden neighbor the morning of the tomatillo haul, and he mentioned that he would be going out of town for the better part of a week.  He invited us to pick all of the peppers and cilantro that we wanted.  Annie gathered up a few pounds of poblano chiles and super spicy tiny little red peppers of some kind (a Thai chile variety, I think).  And we got to work.

 

Most of our canning jars from previous years have been gradually absorbed into our drinking glass collection; we tend to break stuff and I don't even bother buying actual drinking glasses anymore.  Even if that wasn't the case, we probably still would have needed new jars because as it turns out, eighteen pounds of tomatillos makes a lot of salsa.

 

As in, nineteen pints and two half-pints of salsa.  I suspect that it will last us a little while.  Although considering how good it is, perhaps not. 

I'm actually typing this with my left hand while eating chips and salsa with my right.

Adirondack Blue.

 

We harvested the first of our potatoes from the community garden plot this past weekend.  A big, heavy, delightful bucket full.  Mostly, they are a variety called Adirondack Blue, a medium sized potato with a thin skin and very, very purple flesh.  Also, they are ridiculously tasty and an official source of happiness in the world.

I was not quite as helpful as I might have been during the actual (semi-laborious) process of digging up potatoes.  It seems that the small guy has decided that it is really best for everyone if I am never more than an arm's length away from his actual person. Which makes things like potato digging tricky.  As well as cooking, showering, going to get the mail... You get the idea.

Anyway, he's super cute, so I'm trying not to worry about it all that much.  Someday he will be six feet tall (or maybe even the 6' 5" our pediatrician predicts) and I will be considerably less interesting to him and I will probably be nostalgic for all of this togetherness.

Back to the potatoes.  I'm thinking more and more these days that the simplest of preparations are really the way to go with such good ingredients.  On at least a handful of occasions since bringing home the potato haul, I've cut them up into smallish strips or chunks, tossed them with olive oil and sea salt and then roasted them at 400 until they were just a little crunchy around the edges. Really good all by themselves, even better mixed with some cut up avocado and piled on top of a nice salad. 

Even with all of the potato roasting that's been going on, we've got a lot of potatoes left on the shelf.  Mariam noticed this as well and inquired about exactly how many potatoes a person could realistically eat. 

Well, we are about to find out.