Where Was I Again?

I stopped doing posts so long ago.  It was so frustrating.  The computer we had was a dinosaur and every time I turned it on, I had enough time to go out and get a bite and when I came back it would still be trying to log me on and wake up.  And then I switched over to an iPad which did nearly everything under the sun except make this a simple task. But to be honest, I think the biggest problem was that I was so sick of my own voice, I couldn't bear it anymore -- so I stopped.  And that is all fine and lovely, but I did record so many things here.  I recorded my two kids doing things that I would have forgotten had I not written them down.  And I recorded times in my life -- not in big huge significant ways, but in small ways: cakes and play dough and swim lessons and tarts and cookies and running and risotto.  I don't know.  But it did mean something to me.

Anyway.

Food 52's Roasted Cherry Ice Cream

Makes 1 quart

• 2pounds fresh sweet cherries (such as Bing), stemmed and pitted
• 1cup granulated sugar
• Generous pinch of kosher salt
• 3/4cup water
• 1 to 2tablespoons lime juice, or to taste

1. Heat oven to 400° F.
2. In a 9-x-13-inch roasting pan with sides, mix the pitted cherries with the cup of sugar and a generous pinch of salt. Toss well to evenly coat. Roast for 30 to 35 minutes, until the fruit has softened and its juices are bubbling and starting to thicken. Add the water, then roast for another 5 to 10 minutes or until the juices start to bubble again. This step essentially creates a simple syrup in the pan. Remove from oven and let cool to room temperature.
3. Transfer the cherries and all accumulated juices into the jar of a blender, and blend well. Add lime juice to taste. Keep in mind that the freezer dulls sweet flavors, so aim for a base that tastes slightly too sweet before churning. You should have about 4 cups of purée. 
4. Strain the purée through a fine-mesh strainer, pushing gently down on the solids to extract as much juice as possible. Scrape the underside of your strainer to get all of the purée. Straining is optional, though I find it worthwhile to get a smooth, velvety sorbet.
5. Cover and chill the purée until very cold, at least one hour or overnight.
6. Pour the chilled base into the ice cream machine and churn according to manufacturer directions, or until the sorbet is thick.
7. Transfer the sorbet into a freezer-safe container, and press plastic wrap against the top to prevent ice crystals from forming. It should keep well for up to a month.

Hanging on the wall outside a bathroom door at a bustling and lovely restaurant in Portland.

Mixed Berry Chia Seed Jam Oat Crumble

It's funny how much stress it was causing me when I first started this ridiculous elimination diet, because I truly had no idea what to eat.  Everytime I read anything about the diet, they always said to eat 'plenty of fish and vegetables'. This is all fine and dandy, and I couldn't agree more.  However, the thought of mucking about with fish first thing in the morning is positively revolting.  This must be why I am naturally more of a scone or buttery/jammy toast sort.

I reeeaaallly like breakfast. A lot. In fact, I sometimes start looking forward to it at 3am.  And so I had no idea what to eat, which meant I wasn't really eating much.  I inadvertently lost a tiny bit of weight, felt like a shitty wreck, got sick, and was completely out of sorts.  Not awesome, to say the least, and also kinda not the point when I'm trying to figure out why I feel just generally lousy as it is.  And so, I typed into google late one night 'what to eat for breakfast when you can't eat anything', and voila!  Here we are!  And my favorite part is that my six year old loves it.  She has been having me pack it for her everyday for her snack at school, along with a small tupperware of fresh fruit to go with it.  And since my girl won't eat a damned thing in the morning before school, this is a very wonderful thing indeed.

Something sweet to eat during an elimination diet

If you fnd yourself in the throes of an elimination diet and pretty much can't eat anything, this is the perfect thing to put a smile back on  your face for a moment or two.  (Until you realize that what you really want is a croissant, of course, but you can't bloody have one of those.)  It is rather unfortunate though that I only discovered this recipe on day 23 of my no gluten, no dairy, no eggs, no soy, no booze diet -- which is technically the last day before I start reintroducing.  But who cares, these things are wonderful, and I intend to keep making them even if I'm not actually allergic to everything under the sun. (Please, God, don't let me be allergic to everything under the sun!)

These are a fabulous alternative to those nasty Lara bars I sometimes buy in a fit of desperation, too.  These have texture, these have ingredients you can actually see and recognize, and these are not just an emulsified sticky mess. Instead they are more like a healthy, protein-packed oatmeal cookie that really fills you up. That being said, they are not the sort of thing to eat as you wander around the house, or maybe while driving.  They are crumbly sons a bitches and you will leave a trail in your wake. So grab a napkin. Or a plate. Or a platter. Depending on the size of the bar that you've just broken off. Or just do as I do, stand in the kitchen and scarf down the lot.

My Beloved Gluten-Free/Vegan Bread, For Your Perusal

Here we are. Both a recipe and a masterwork, I'd say. No?

And the only reason I am putting it here, is because I keep misplacing the blasted thing and that would be rather sad indeed, don't you think?  Afterall, it took me a whole year of tweaking, and trying, and experimenting, and going into debt for ridiculous and bizarre flours.  So I should have something to show for it in the end, yes? Yes.

Anyway, that's a story for another day.

garbanzo flour -- 192 grams
potato starch -- 128 grams
sorghum flour -- 64 grams
millet flour -- 64 grams
arrowroot -- 64 grams
ground chia seeds -- 43 grams, could do 64 grams without major debacle
golden flax meal -- 32 grams
xanthan gum -- 2 teaspoons, roughly 10 grams
salt -- 2 teaspoons, minus a tiny pinch to appease the sensitive
instant yeast -- 7 grams/quarter ounce

Everything, except chia seeds, salt, and yeast, are Bob's Red Mill. Yeast is RedStar because that one claims to have won a major award or something. Salt is Saltworks because that's what a Romanian named Adelina kept going on and on about.

2 cups water
3 tablespoons agave, sometimes honey
2 tablespoons oil, grapeseed, olive, or whatever floats your boat
2 teaspoons apple cider vinegar 

Acupuncture, a new favorite past time

Emilia and I had an impromptu mommy-daughter acupuncture appointment today.  She sat in the chair next to me, ate the lunch I had packed for her that morning, chatted with Ying, listened as I recounted the most recent chapters of All the Light We Cannot See (I've been giving her a blow-by-blow account of this fabulous book, and she is always asking me 'what happened next, mama?').

And then she is quiet, as I slip off into the stillness that is acupuncture for my few remaining minutes.  Afterward as I was getting dressed and looking at my phone, I saw about four hundred and six pictures that the girl surreptisously snapped as I laid there, likely smiling to herself all the while, because her mama was none the wiser.  So if you find this terribly shocking, blame the girl, not me.

What it says

Live simply, expect little, give much.
Fill your life with love, scatter sunshine.
Forget self.
Think of others and do as you would be done by.

(That ought to fix me up in the morning. Thanks mom.)

1:48:35! #pdxmarathon

My goodness, but I am so proud! It was fun, it was flat, it was crowded, it was fast, and it was sunny. I feel lucky spending the day doing what I love.

To run, to smile, to feel light -- it fills me with gratitude.  This is what keeps me afloat and this is what helps me exhale.

The solitude of running never feels like solitude to me; instead it grounds me, it settles me, it makes my heart want to explode sometimes in happiness -- and that is a wonderful thing.  To wit, I'm apparently wicked fast! (And I also have incredibly sore knees. Whoa!)

And it was a positively beautiful day

It's amazing the difference
A bit of sky can make.
-- Shel Silverstein, Where the Sidewalk Ends