Simplifying with Thermomix

Today I chopped and mixed my falafel.  I rinsed out the bowl and continued on to make our favorite oatmeal breafast cookies.  I weighed and blened the batter in my Thermomomix.  How many times do I use my Thermomix every day?  I use it all the time. Even if I used it less, it would still be essential.

Saturday Lunch

I look forward to Saturday mornings. There is no place I'd rather be at 9 am than the farmer's market. When I get home, I feel energized and hungry for a giant salad made up of what I found that very morning.  On the side, we always have rice, lentil and spinach pancakes fried up in coconut oil.  Right now,  I am loving salad greens with seasonal citrus and crunchy radishes and cucumbers. And a handful of sprouted pumpkin seeds and roasted chickpeas take these simple salads to the next level. The highlight of this week's Saturday lunch was Baby Brother crunching on cucumber slices along with the rest of us.   We had a rocky start with introducing cucumber this past summer.  The two times we gave him a piece of cumber, he got several hives on his belly and a red rash around his mouth.  So we stopped giving him cucumber until this past week. We were bummed that we couldn't share a family favorite.   Can you believe that he stole one from my plate the other day and that I had to fish it out of his mouth half-chewed? Papi, who named me "allergenista" because of how seasoned I am with allergy safety, was shocked. I had made a huge mistake in leaving my abundance bowl at the edge of the table with allergic Baby Brother so close by. I was terrified one moment and totally relieved 30 minutes later when my little guy showed zero reaction.  So something good came out of this major allergy error.  Thank goodness I didn't make the same mistake with cheese or Big Brother's glass of cow milk! As a result of the non reaction to the stolen cucumber slice, we decided to give him cucumber with dinner the following day.  He has since tolerated cucumber every day this week.  

Baby Brother's lunch without cucumber

Both Brothers eating cucumbers.  Big Brother loves cucumber
towers drizzled with olive oil and lemon juice

A plate of spinach, lentil, rice pancakes in the middle of the table
for us all to grab

Baby Brother's cutting board can now include
cucumber.  No need to slice on a separate
cutting board to avoid cross-contamination

Weekly Happiness

Bringing home local and delicious produce and provisions brings me a lot of joy.  I love going as a family with Baby Brother in sling, something that won't last much longer. Today happens to be gorgeous, and the sunshine warming and invigorating.   I usually place everything out after lunch and then start prepping and menu planning for the week. Real food, real connections and real nourishment bring real happiness. 

Lentils Two Ways

things can go array in the kitchen, pockets didn't
turn out, so topped with leftover basmati rice in a pinch

It is Sunday morning, 11:00, and my Thermomix is cooking up some simple lentils.  I am hungry for lunch already. Even after a bowl of oatmeal and bacon. Baby Brother is napping after being up a lot last night. Big Brother is out with Papi on his new blue bike with pedals and training wheels. So It's the perfect moment to have some alone time in the kitchen with a mug of rooibos while I prepare two make-ahead lunches: a lemon-basil lentil salad and veggie coconut lentils to top soaked brown rice.  The best part is having extra lentils to freeze for later use.  

This coconut lentil and veggie filling is a Jude Blereau recipe.  I recommend her cookbook for good background reading on wholesome food: Wholesome Food For Children. The recipe includes this lentil filling in spelt pocket pies; however, my first attempt at the pocket pie dough, leaving out the sesame of course, was a total disaster.  It was 1:00, I was starving in that-hungry-breastfeeding-way, and the dough wasn't working out.  So, on top of leftover rice it went and all was fine in the end.  It's much easier on top of leftover rice anyway.  No spelt anymore with Baby's wheat allergy.  I'm bitter about this, as I love baking with spelt flour. I left out the corn and added peas instead.  I have always preferred peas over corn.  I also topped with some cilantro since everything is better with cilantro.   I have begun to triple this recipe, because I like to get an extra meal out of it, and to use up whatever greens are in the fridge.  

Click here for both lentil recipes:

Coconut Lentil and Veggie Pocket Pies
Bragg's Liquid Aminoes are wheat- free and last time a checked, safe from sesame cross-contamination.
There are coconut aminoes if looking for soy-free. Or you can use coconut aminos if there is a soy allergy or sensitivity.

Lentil Salad with Basil and Lemon (here you will find the instructions for making batch of  lentils in your Thermomix)

Click here for more on soaking the brown rice

Saturdays: Planning Week's Menu Around Local Fruits and Veggies

Working Backwards: beef and veggie stirfry, braised pasture-raised chicken {precut in 8 pieces from Whole Foods-I call that "fast food"} and greens with olives, tomatoes and soaked brown rice, chicken curry with carrots and broccoli, lentils two ways: coconut veggie and lemony basil salad, pear compote for steel cut oats, waffles and pancakes, sweet potato topped with bacon and greens and raisins, sweet potato maple frosting for vegan and gluten-free birthday cake, local grass-fed garlicky skirt steak paired with: sauteed green beans, grilled little green pepper boats stuffed with tomatoes/garlic/olives, and roasted turnips drizzled with local raw honey (from CSA basket). Delicious oranges for wedges and orange/basil dressing for quinoa lunch salads.  Maybe some kale chips with roasted chickpeas for snacking.  

On Saturdays after returning from the market, lunch is whatever was for dinner the night before.  This way, I am freed up to I wash and store veggies so that meals are less of a hassle during the week. Big Brother can play with Dad and Baby Brother, while I can relax in the kitchen and listen to podcasts. Then, this time of year, it's cool enough to enjoy a mid-afternoon neighborhood family walk.