a hippie with a minivan

shopping and processed foods…

The way I shop for groceries has evolved so much over the years… and what I choose has changed greatly….

I cringe when I think of the things I used to buy when I moved into my first apartment… a lot of pre-packaged, chemical laden “convenience” foods… I could cook a few things but I was inexperienced and had limited knowledge…

In the post about HFCS I almost wrote that now we avoid processed foods but changed it because really we avoid most processed foods..

Why I almost slipped though is because we do avoid almost all of what some people consider processed foods to be… and what I used to think was a normal way to eat…

Now, I still buy many foods that have been processed, but I make most of our meals “from scratch”….

I bake our bread (but the flour has been processed)

I make cookies (but I buy butter, and chocolate chips etc…)

I use canned tomatoes and canned coconut milk, I buy ketchup and milks and tamari… I buy peanut butter and cheese and oats…

Many of the foods that make it into my home have been processed in one way or another…

There are also some more processed foods that like to buy… frozen perogies are a quick and inexpensive meal (I should try making them though because they are probably not that hard when I think about it) and a box of Annie’s organic mac and cheese has made a quick lunch for the boys more than once… and the list can go on…

but I am comfortable with the ones we buy because they are mostly have minimal ingredients… or at least are made with ingredients that I can understand and can be found in most peoples pantries…

We do also do buy “junk foods” … not on a regular basis….but chips, and chocolate and Ice cream and other treats can be found in our home… I do choose products that have the least ingredients and make sure they do not have anything that we avoid… artificial colours or flavours or sulfates and other chemicals I would rather not consume…

The more time goes by, the more I have been replacing the processed foods that I buy and I will continue that trend… but I have to say that I am pretty happy with the way we eat now and it can only get better…

garlic and cheese flatbread…

I saw a video on the epicurious podcast recently that featured this amazing looking flatbread topped with things that just didn’t appeal to me…

but the dough… omg… the dough looked amazing…

It looked silky and light and the way that it crisped up when baked just made me drool… I knew that I had to make it my way 🙂

So for the dough…

1 cup warm water
1 1/4 teaspoons active dry yeast
1 teaspoon sugar
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

I used my mixer since the dough is really sticky and it is important not to use more flour… actually.. I even added a a few more tbsp of water because the dough was a bit too dry…

So in the bowl, add the water, the yeast and the sugar and let foam…

Mix the flour and salt together and then add to the water/yeast mixture….

Mix and then knead for 10 min…

as I said… the dough should be really sticky…

After kneading, transfer to an oiled bowl and let rise until doubled (about 1 1/2 hours)

When doubled….form into a ball and transfer to a well oiled baking sheet and cover with plastic wrap…

Let is rise for another 30 min…

Shape the dough by patting and stretching it out onto the pan…

Look at the little bubbles that have already formed!

Cover again with plastic wrap and let is rise for a 3rd time for another 1 1/2 hours….

all of those grooves are there naturally…

perfect for adding the toppings…

So for the topping I mixed about 1/3 cup of olive oil with a few minced cloves of garlic … and poured that over the dough…

then, I finely grated a bit of mozzarella all over it…

then sprinkled with some kosher salt and a bit of dried parsley…

time to cook!!
Place in a 475 degree preheated oven and bake until golden brown (about 20 min)…

It will be amazingly crispy on the outside but light and airy on the inside…

This is going to be a recipe that I will keep coming back too… I know it!!

It is so simple but the texture and flavour is just amazing…

Creme Brule style Baked Oatmeal…

I found a basic recipe on Recipezaar a while back and it has become a staple in our mornings…

Of course, I have changed it to our liking… so I will share my recipe….

Dry mix

2 1/4 cups of oats
1/4 cup of brown sugar
1/4 tsp of salt
1/2 cup of raisins… or chocolate chips… or both 🙂

Wet mix

1 2/3 cup of water
1 2/3 cup of milk
2 eggs
2 tsp vanilla

Topping

1/3 cup of brown sugar

preheat oven to 350…

In a bowl… combine the dry ingredients…

In a 9 X 13 baking dish combine the wet ingredients… then add the dry and mix well… place in the oven and bake for about 40-45 min… (the center will be slightly jiggly)

spread the brown sugar over the top and place back into the oven… the sugar will start to melt…

Then broil for about a min or two until the sugar starts to bubble and brown…

Enjoy!!

more on high fructose corn syrup…

I found this article in the news…

tests have found that HALF of the HFCS tested has mercury…

this is disturbing…

MONDAY, Jan. 26 (HealthDay News) — Almost half of tested samples of commercial high-fructose corn syrup (HFCS) contained mercury, which was also found in nearly a third of 55 popular brand-name food and beverage products where HFCS is the first- or second-highest labeled ingredient, according to two new U.S. studies.

HFCS has replaced sugar as the sweetener in many beverages and foods such as breads, cereals, breakfast bars, lunch meats, yogurts, soups and condiments. On average, Americans consume about 12 teaspoons per day of HFCS, but teens and other high consumers can take in 80 percent more HFCS than average.

“Mercury is toxic in all its forms. Given how much high-fructose corn syrup is consumed by children, it could be a significant additional source of mercury never before considered. We are calling for immediate changes by industry and the [U.S. Food and Drug Administration] to help stop this avoidable mercury contamination of the food supply,” said the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy’s Dr. David Wallinga, a co-author of both studies.

read more of the article here

Though we avoid a lot of processed foods and most junk food, we avoid HFCS… we are lucky that here in Canada, sugar in most products has not been replaced by HFCS as it has in our southern neighbours…so avoiding it even if you do not eat well is still a lot easier…

I just wonder why these tests weren’t done before….

little house on the mountain…

I was looking through some pics yesterday and found some pics of one of the houses I grew up in…so I thought I would share…

We moved a lot… but this is one place that we stayed in the longest during my childhood before we came to Montreal and one of the places that I have the most memories from…

I think my mom was paying about 50$ a month in rent to live in it… the owners lived right next door and they had two children who were very good friends of mine… It was one room, with a loft that had two beds on the floor that my mom and I shared… there was a water pump with cold water and we had minimal electricity… enough for a fridge , a radio and a small TV … we had a wood stove to heat and cook on and no bathroom… the outhouse was a bit up the hill and baths were no more than cleaning ourselves with a washcloth in warm water by the fire…

When I was not at school, I spent my days in the forest going as far as I felt comfortable.. I climbed trees and discovered buroughs… I played in the stream and built dams with rocks… I played with my friends and tried to find were the cat had hidden to have her kittens… It was simple, it was rough at times but it was an amazing place to live…

The house is no longer there and the area of Nelson where it once stood (Mountain Station) is now filled with lavish houses… so different then the time that we were there…

These pic were taken on a trip back to BC about a decade ago… the house looked the same as when we lived there except for the stairs that seem to have fallen apart…