Sourdough Bread, take 1. Aaaaaaaaaaction!!!!

You do have to read the title in a movie producer tone of voice.

Today I finally gave sourdough bread a shot.  From scratch.  COMPLETELY from scratch.  In fact, a lot scratchier than  I initially intended!

I wanted to try a recipe for a kefir sourdough bread.  It's easier for your body to digest... and mostly I really like sourdough and I love my kefir.  It's my pet that does tricks! :P  This recipe is somewhat unique because instead of a culture you feed and tend to regularly you make the starter each time.  Basically I used some of my kefir (the cultured milk, not the actual grains) and mixed it with flour to dough consistency and let it rise overnight.  Then today I dumped that lump into the kitchenaid and added the other basic ingredients -- more flour (more on that later), salt, honey, olive oil... the usual.  This recipe also called for some yeast which I was hoping to avoid (bakers yeast can do a real number on some people so I was hoping to avoid as long as I was making sourdough -- more on that later too).  Mix the dough and allow it to double.  The rising process takes a lot longer this way, but the longer rise time is what makes it so much easier on your belly to digest the stuff.  So patience is a virtue, and all that.  The amount of yeast in this recipe (made 3 loaves) was equal to the amount that is called for in 1 standard loaf of bread, so the starter had to have time to work its magic too.  After the dough doubles, divide into thirds, shape, put in pans, let rise and bake.  Not too much different from standard, except that it takes longer for the rising.

This afternoon I went to mix the dough and discovered that I am completely out of flour.  COMPLETELY out of flour!  Yikes!!!  Thank heavens I have my wheat grinder!  Instead of doing about 2/3 wheat or spelt and 1/3 white I had to do all wheat flour.  I wasn't planning to start by grinding my own wheat!  But I do love my grinder and it worked out great.  Since I was using all freshly ground whole wheat flour I did have to increase the water in the recipe by at least double.  Otherwise it was all crumbs instead of a knead-able dough.  Seems to have worked fine.

In reading other recipes I think I can skip the yeast next time.  It looks like if I use more starter and allow a lot longer for the rise time I can skip the yeast.  I don't mind having a stronger sourdough flavor so I'm planning to give that a shot next time.  I just may have to set alarms on my phone so I don't forget to move the bread along!

These 3 loaves of bread came out a little bit flat.  They taste great, but they're probably more compact that they were intended to be.  I think part of this is due to the wheat flour vs. bread flour.  Also I kept forgetting that I was making bread so I probably didn't let it rise properly (either too long or not long enough).  It's a bit dense, but not unpleasantly so.  It smells divine and tastes so good I can't believe I"m eating wheat bread and LIKING it!!! 

KEYfer or keFEAR -- however you say it.

Several months ago I was going through a course of antibiotics (shocking.  Oh, wait, that's just life as usual.) and my sister brought me a bottle of kefir.  It's a yogurty tasting dairy beverage.  Very tasty actually.  I had been on so many antibiotics that my body was getting really bad yeast infections as a result.  The kefir was a tasty way to help re-balance my body without a lot more pharmaceutical intervention. 

When I was recently banned from all dairy (those dietary restrictions have all been lifted but I still drink less dairy than I used to since it helps my skin and stomach be happier that way) my mom and I discovered coconut milk kefir.  I got a couple of bottles of strawberry coconut milk kefir and really enjoyed them.  However, the price was prohibitive for regular use.  Normal dairy kefir costs around $3+ per quart.  Coconut milk kefir is closer to $5.  Neither one is just jumping into my regular daily diet at that price!

Last weekend I was involved in a Saturday Boutique in Salt Lake that a friend had helped organize.  It didn't end up making me much money (which I had somewhat anticipated since I hadn't had time to make it a really nice display with new items since I was still recovering from my tonsillectomy and strep).  The woman who was displaying right behind me (so our chairs were side by side) and I chatted during the "down-time".  We got to talking about health products and I mentioned that I really liked kefir.  It just so happens that she makes her own kefir.  I had researched at one point exactly what kefir is and what it different between kefir and yogurt (trying to see if it was worth the cost) so I had learned a bit about how kefir is made but hadn't given it much more thought.  Sweet Anita offered to send me some real kefir grains so I can make my own.  She gave me some simple guidelines on kefir "production" and I was thrilled! 

A few days ago my grains came.  I dropped them into a glass container, added less than a cup of milk, and let it "wake up" from its time in the mail.  After about 24 hours I poured out the milk (now called kefir) and could see that the grains had already grown some!  That first batch wasn't ideal, as it was a "waking up" batch (I'm not very good when I first wake up either ;))  So I dumped that bit and poured in a couple of fresh cups of milk.  That was around 24 hours ago.

This morning I checked on the culture.  When I tipped the glass container the fresh kefir was obviously somewhat "gelled" I guess you could say.  So this afternoon I poured the kefir in small batches through a little bamboo strainer (I got at the health food store -- the kefir doesn't like metal) I put the now much-larger grains in a fresh glass container, poured on a couple of cups of fresh milk, rubber banded a cloth over the top, and set it back in its corner of the cupboard.

The fresh kefir I put in the blender, added about 1/4 tsp. of vanilla, a sliced up banana and maybe 1/2 c. of ice.  Blend it all up and it's a delicious smoothie!!!
Now here's my reasoning for even bothering with kefir:

(Source)

Easily digested, it cleanses the intestines, provides beneficial bacteria and yeast, vitamins and minerals, and complete proteins. Because kefir is such a balanced and nourishing food, it contributes to a healthy immune system and has been used to help patients suffering from AIDS, chronic fatigue syndrome, herpes, and cancer. Its tranquilizing effect on the nervous system has benefited many who suffer from sleep disorders, depression, and ADHD (attention deficit hyperactivity disorder).

The regular use of kefir can help relieve all intestinal disorders, promote bowel movement, reduce flatulence and create a healthier digestive system. In addition, its cleansing effect on the whole body helps to establish a balanced inner ecosystem for optimum health and longevity.

Kefir can also help eliminate unhealthy food cravings by making the body more nourished and balanced. Its excellent nutritional content offers healing and health-maintenance benefits to people in every type of condition. 

Considering my variety of health issues (including an excitable nervous system and messed up digestive system) kefir is a good option to help balance out those systems.  I'm sure you know that yogurt is beneficial for the digestive system, but it only goes half-way.

(source)

...but they contain different types of beneficial bacteria. Yogurt contains transient beneficial bacteria that keep the digestive system clean and provide food for the friendly bacteria that reside there.  But kefir can actually colonize the intestinal tract, a feat that yogurt cannot match. 

As kefir ferments (similar to the way yogurt is made, but MUCH easier) the grains feed off available sugars.  This means that you can use regular cow milk  to make kefir and end up with a lactose-free beverage.  The lactose (milk sugar) is consumed by the kefir. 

Kefir is a much stronger probiotic than any yogurt and much more useful than any pill, powder, or capsule because it is more readily accessed and used by the body.

There's lots more information available about kefir, but I'm trying to not bore you completely.  I have found this to be a fascinating study as part of learning how to help my body improve itself.  As I play more with my kefir I will eventually come to a point where I will have available grains to share.  I have a few family members already "in line" to try this out, but if anyone else wants to try some when I have some ready feel free to ask and I'll do my best to not kill it.  Kefir is said to be a very hardy culture and can even be left for weeks to months in milk refrigerated if you need a break from the daily dose for some reason.  I'm excited to try more methods with my kefir, including cream cheese, other cheeses, sourdough bread, etc.  

I love it when something so good for you can also taste so good!

(note: none of these pictures are my own, but the are examples of what I'm talking about because I'm all about the visuals :) )

Aaaachoooooo!!! Itchy... itchy... itchy... scratchy... sniffle...

Today I went through a batch of allergy testing.  So far it's only been the epidermal stuff, nothing injected all the way into the blood.  Next week they'll do some injected stuff to check the negative results.  So far I've had a few definite positives and a couple of border-line positives.

We will certainly not have a cat in our house.  Sad, cause I love cats!  We were planning to get one someday.  But the cat spot popped right up and created a huge welt.  The nurse wiped that stuff off after a few minutes before the reaction could get any more serious. 

As an alternative, birds are out.  I'm apparently allergic to feathers also.  So much for my favorite blanket stuffed with down.  It's my favorite snuggly!  I guess I'm looking for a new favorite blanket now.

Also allergic to cottonwood trees (not a big surprise there), mountain cedar, and oak.

I think I've always known I'm allergic to weeding ;)  At least I seem to be allergic to most weeds they tested.

The foods they tested that seemed to be at least borderline reactive are wheat and soy.  

While the dairy-free eating has been helping my stomach hurt less, cow milk didn't show up as an allergen for me.  I will still be dairy free for the next month (as well as wheat free).  I'm guessing I'll take out soy after that.

"Cheesy" Ham and Potato Soup, Chocolate Chip Cookies

Last night I made a family favorite, Cheesy Ham and Potato Soup.  It turned out great!  With no dairy, of course.

"Cheesy" Ham and Potato Soup

about 8 peeled and cubed potatoes

1 onion, cut as small as your family requires

2 cups cubed ham 

Dump all the chunky stuff in a large pan.

I had most of a can of chicken broth in the fridge left over from some delish fried rice I made earlier in the week, so I started by dumping that over.  Then in the blender, combine about 2 cups cold water and 1/4 c. white bean flour (I made my own by running cheap white dried beans through my wheat grinder on its finest setting).  Buzz the mixture up so there will be no lumps.  Pour into the pan and begin to heat.  Put another 2 - 4 cups water in the blender and add 1 tsp. xanthan gum (can be found at the health food store) and buzz it up again.  Pour into the pot.  I also have some coconut milk creamer on hand (from Sunflower Market).  It is quite rich but not particularly coconutty.  I poured in about 1/2 cup.  (Note: NOT regular coconut milk, this was in the dairy section and is intended to be a non-soy, non-dairy creamer).  Let boil gently or simmer until the potatoes are tender.  Add salt and pepper to taste.  Ladle out a cup or two of soup (chunks and all) and dump it back into the handy blender.  Buzz it until it's smooth.  Pour back to the soup pot.  Mine still seemed a little thin at this point so I let it simmer down for about 15 minutes.  When I served this up I grated a little "cheap cow cheese" for everyone else and sprinkled it over their servings.  For me I sprinkled on a little rice cheese.  Green onions or bacon crumbles would be tasty on top too.  Very satisfying!

(This picture is of my bowl.  I only had mozzarella type rice cheese so that's the gooey white strings you can see. YUM!  And yes, I used one of my girls' plastic IKEA spoons to eat dinner.  What can I say?  I need to find where the rest of my cutlery is lost and do some dishes :P )

Chocolate Chip Cookies

I "needed" a little sugary "pick-me-up" last night.  I was really depressed because my esophageal symptoms are not getting better yet.  In fact right now they're pretty horribly flared up.  I took my pills very carefully last night, one at a time with LOTS of water.  And after 20 minutes I could still feel obstructions.  So I made chocolate chip cookies.  Obviously ;)

The recipe I used calls for using all butter.  Some recipes use butter, some use shortening, some use a combination.  Butter in cookies tends to spread more, shortening tends to mound more, and a combination gives a middle ground.  Differences in dry ingredients makes a difference in whether it really needs extra spreading power, mounding power, etc.  Basically, it's not a great idea to substitute butter and shortening out willy-nilly in baking.

Since I didn't want to use 1 cup of my costly Earth Balance spread, I used 1/2 cup of shortening and 1/2 c. coconut oil.  Coconut oil got a really bad rep many years ago because it is all saturated fat.  However, coconut oil has shorter something or others so it does something less evil and isn't supposed to be as bad as all that.  Sorry, you can do your own research, LOL, I don't feel like looking it all up again right now to get the jargon right.  I've read the health fanatics view of it, the scientist's view of it, and some in-between views and decided that it wouldn't be an evil sub for butter in things.  However, it can be VERY expensive too!  I happened to find some on an awesome sale (nearly 1/2 off!) so I got some to try.

I used at least half oat flour in these cookies instead of all white flour.  Again, my oat flour was made by running cheap oats through my wheat grinder on the finest setting.  I know in a couple of weeks when wheat goes I'll have to modify that too, but I was only willing to make so many concessions last night ;)

Most chocolate chips have diary in them.  However, at my local health food store they do carry specialty chocolate chips in their bulk section.  (They have them pre-packaged too, for more money of course).  They're "naturally sweetened" dark chocolate.  The ingredients are simple and don't contain any dairy at all.  They do have a very dark chocolate flavor which just makes them that much better in my opinion :D   I also tossed in some chopped pecans.  The cookies turned out great.  I put most of them in bags in the freezer.  I discovered last summer that throwing cookies in freezer bags in the freezer is an ideal way to keep them.  If I want it warm I can put it in the microwave for a few seconds, or I can just leave it out a bit to thaw, or even eat it frozen!  It makes it easier to eat only one or two cookies instead of being "obligated" to eat two dozen before they go stale.

One dietary issue I'm currently researching is sugar.  I know normal sugar can cause a lot of issue (besides just tubb-esity) so I'm looking into reasonable alternatives for when I'm not willing to concede sweetness.  I'm sorry, but I'm not going to completely give up cookies, cakes, brownies, chewy spree, sour patch kids... you get the idea ;)  So I'm looking at ways to improve what I love so it does less damage to my body when I do eat it.   I have a couple of items on my list of "experimental foods" for when I get another few dollars to try something out.  I'm sure I'll let you know how it goes: good, bad, or ugly :D

Pure Heaven. That's all I can say.

I love ice cream as much as the next ice cream loving girl, and I've missed it lately.  I'm sure I've missed it more because I know I can't have it on this dairy free diet.  And here is my answer to the ice cream crisis.  I just made Chocolate Coconut Frozen Custard.  The flavor is fantastic, the texture is absolutely to die for!  (Though I'd recommend against taking that literally.)

Back at my family's New Year's party my brother-in-law was putting their new Christmas present of a commercial ice cream freezer through its paces.  He made some incredible chocolate frozen custard.  I begged for the recipe against my better judgement (not that it took much begging ;)) but was wise enough to not make it willy-nilly.  In my lack of willy-nillitude I actually hadn't tried out the recipe yet.  Here is the recipe the way I made it today.  Hang on... just found a smudge I missed licking up......


Chocolate Coconut Frozen Custard

1 can coconut milk with rice milk added to make 2 cups total  (I think next time I might try a little less coconut and more rice milk for experiment's sake)
2 egg yolks
1 Tbsp corn starch
1/2 c. cocoa (I probably used closer to 3/4 c. to  balance out the coconut, but I also like rich and dark chocolate flavor)
2/3 c. sugar (the coconut milk is quite sweet so I only used about 1/2 c.)
dash of salt
1/2 tsp. vanilla  (shoot!  I think I forgot to add this!  I'm always forgetting vanilla since it is generally added at the end.)

*Mix cornstarch, cocoa, sugar, and salt together in a bowl.

*In a medium saucepan whisk the egg yolks into the milk (both still cold).  Whisk in dry ingredients.  Gently heat mixture (I have a gas range and didn't go above medium heat) until it starts to thicken (coats the back of a spoon so you can draw a line in it.  165 degrees.  I recommend going by the temperature if you have a thermometer available.  The coconut milk is already thick enough to coat spoons and such!  I probably got mine a little too hot -- it was near a boil. I waited until it felt the way gravy does when the cornstarch has kicked in.)

*Cool over ice until the mixture reaches room temperature. (Long story short, we buy ice and I didn't want to use it.  So I let the pan sit and cool a bit, stirring occasionally, then moved it to my refrigerator stirring when I thought of it until it was room temperature.)

*Add vanilla (yeah, I forgot this part.  Oopsie!)

*Freeze in your handy ice cream freezer.

It seems to me that this froze a little faster than usual.  The parts that were touching the side were hardened fully like regular hardened ice cream instead of the usual soft-serve that comes out of the ice cream maker.  The coconut milk hardens a lot sooner than the typical cream mix.
After snitching liberally, and running a couple of spoonfuls next door as a "victory lap" I have two containers in my freezer that I'm saving for later.  I think they're probably 8 oz. containers. (Actually I checked and they're 10 oz. containers, so it makes a bit more than 2 cups.  Though I suppose I could have looked at the recipe and figured that out through not-too-strenuous deduction.)
I plan to get some bananas and make some hot fudge sauce (with no dairy, of course) and make a banana split.  I'll come back and add pictures when I get around to that part.  Right now I really ought to pay attention to non-dessert dinner :)

Edit: I ended up not making the hot fudge sauce.  I was horrified to discover that I only have a couple tablespoons of cocoa powder left.  As that is my only road to chocolate I must conserve.  The bananas were super tasty with the frozen custard of course.  Also note that this is rich enough that it doesn't take a whole lot to feel very decadent and satisfied.  Most of a small banana and maybe as much as 1/2 c. of frozen custard made for an idea chocolate buzz :)

Yummy Salad, Successful Milk!!!

This time I don't have pictures to share with you, but I *do* have recipes!  Okay, they're my style of recipes with no proper amounts :")  but they're worth sharing!

Cauliflower and Pea Salad
1 head of cauliflower cut into bite sized flourettes and rinsed
1/2 bag of frozen peas
chopped green onion (I didn't have any on hand, so I settled for onion powder)
chopped garlic cloves (again, I just used powder)
salt and pepper to taste
mayonnaise

Super simple.  Toss cauliflower, peas, and onion in a bowl.  In a small bowl stir together remaining ingredients, then mix it all together.  You may be surprised how tasty this is.  I was!  I'm now a believer :)


Rice Milk that actually resembles Milk!!!!!!!
1 c. rice (dry)
water to cook rice
plenty of other hot water (I used just hot from the tap)
bit of salt
bigger bit of sugar or other sweetener
dribble of vanilla

Cook the rice (I just tossed it into the rice cooker while I was making lunch for the kids)
When it's done but still hot,  put scoop of rice in your blender and add hot water.  It was probably about 2/3 c. of rice then filled to the 4 c. level with hot water from the tap.  Blend it till the cows come home.  Or at least until it's smooth (really doesn't take that long).  I then poured it through a strainer into a bowl (one with a pouring spout would have been nice, in retrospect)  Continue blending hot rice and hot water and straining into the bowl.  Add flavorings to the mixture to your liking.  Strain from the bowl into a pitcher or jug and refrigerate.

I got a bit of rice milk from the store (Rice Dream, I think it is) and it's okay.  My biggest problem with it is that it seems TOO sweet to me.  If you like the flavor of rice custard then this is something I bet you'll enjoy!

(Thanks for the recipes, Rachel!!!  You're a life saver!)

Rice Milk, take 1.

After the soybean catastrophe I thought I'd try my hand at rice milk.  After all, I have rice on hand so what's the risk?  Again I did my research, read comments on recipes, etc.  And once again it was a disaster LOL!  On the plus side, it was not nearly as nasty smelling as the soymilk.  On the negative side, there was no milk to it!  I ended up adding at least double the water the recipe called for and still got nothing better than a pot of glop.  I tried letting it sit in the cloth in the colander and still got nothing.  I tried squeezing it through the cloth and got a little gummy "sweat" beading through the cloth.  Ick!  The recipe didn't specify variety of rice for the milk so I suspect trying a different variety of rice may render a more positive result.

I'm not going to try the same recipe again though.  Thankfully I have received some great advice on how to make these things properly!  So stay tuned.  I may yet figure them out :)  That could mean that you won't get such entertaining photos as these of my culinary mishaps though.

Soy Milk Experiment

I did try making my own soy milk.  I searched numerous recipes, gleaned tips and tricks, researched my health food store, and finally took the plunge.

I have almost used all of my quart of purchased soy milk by now.  I've used it over cereal, added it to Pero, and had a small glass or two plain.  I tried the original flavor so I could better compare the prepared stuff to my homemade stuff.  It is so expensive that I really want an alternative.

Saturday afternoon I set the beans to soaking.  Sunday afternoon I set to work.  I carefully made sure the bean hulls all came off and were discarded to make the flavor milder, which took nearly an hour.  I ground batch after batch of soaked soy-beans with water in my blender which leaked all over.  I put them in my big pan and painstakingly stirred and monitored it to prevent scorching while it came to a boil.  By that point I was pretty sure it stank. 

I added a bit of orange rind (carefully excluding the bitter pithy part) in order to further neutralize any lingering beany taste.  I added sugar and a touch of salt as per the recipes and recommendations.  And I let it cool a bit, cracking the door open a bit to wash the bean stink out of the house.

Finally I got a square of unbleached muslin from my fabric stash (clean with no fabric softener) and lined a colander with it.  I poured batch after batch of pulpy juicy into the colander, gathered the edges of the cloth and "milked" the juice through the fabric, leaving only bean fragments behind.  I burned my hands trying to just finish it and dripped "milk" on the counter and dropped bean fragments on the floor.

After the milk had cooled further I carefully transferred it to a sealed glass pitcher in the refrigerator.  I decided to wait until it was thoroughly chilled to really taste it so I could try to keep a proper perspective.  It had a beautiful creamy color and texture and I tried to keep an open mind.

When I opened the pitcher for a taste it stank like beans.  It tastes more like fresh green bean soup than anything like milk.  Gag!  I tried warming it up and adding it to sugar and cocoa powder like the hot chocolate I once drank.  No amount of sugar and cocoa  could mask the flavor.

So here's my personal experience: Homemade soy milk is sick and disgusting. I can handle the store bought stuff, but this half-gallon of headache is going down the drain.  And now I need to go scrub the pots, bowls, colander, counter top, floor, and wash a load of laundry with the offended cloth.  What a mess!

Next stop: rice milk.  It can't be any worse, right?

And it begins...

This last week my gastroenterologist started me on an elimination diet because medications alone are not fixing the symptoms of my eosinophilic disorder.  It appears that I have EGID (Eosinophilic GastroIntestinal Disorder)  Basically it's an inflammatory response to allergens which causes various pains, inflammation, and other issues through my digestive system.  The doctor also agreed that some, many or perhaps all of my other chronic issues should be corrected by identifying and removing the triggers for me.  Interstitial cystitis, ear infections, migraines, kidney stones...  I could live without all of those.  Happily this sounds and feels like it makes a lot of sense.  It coincides with questions and concerns I've had for some times now.  Unfortunately, it's going to mean some big changes; and I don't like big changes.

As of a few days ago I am now eating entirely dairy free.  Lactose-free eating is similar, but not entirely the same.  I also have to avoid casein which is still present in many lactose-free foods and is also highly prevalent in manufactured foods.  Most store-bought bread contains dairy, as well as margarine (butter is obvious).  The church cannery potato pearls are a no-no now too.  I'm getting really good at reading labels!

Being a highly emotional eater (and I mean any emotion -- anxiety, joy, boredom...) any major dietary change is difficult for me.  Being on an extremely limited budget makes any major dietary change difficult for me.  Thanks to so many wonderful friends nearby and online I have been blessed with a wonderful support group to get me started.  Thursday night I could be found standing in the kitchen with my stomach rumbling and a "deer-in-the-headlights" stare towards the pantry and fridge.  Right now I'm happily fed and even just had some brownies and soy milk!  The key for me is knowing what I can eat.  Being the research fiend that I am, I've found lots of information on dietary substitution.  I was totally overwhelmed though.  With my wonderful friends I've found what's a reasonable way to begin, and how to do a lot of it with things I even have on my shelf!

Since I get really excited about my discoveries and love learning new things, I'm sure I'll post a lot of my experiences here.  In one month I will also be going wheat free.   There's a difference between wheat free and gluten free -- explained here.  So much for my brownies, right?  Well, I'm learning ways around that too.  I've been pretty sneaky in some of my adventuring and I just might accidentally get my family healthier at the same time ;)  The key to wheat free seems to be my wheat grinder!  I got a wheat grinder quite a while ago, because what good are buckets of wheat without a grinder?!  I love the grinder I got.  It takes up very little space, connects easily to my kitchenaid, and also came with a hand crank so it can be used without power.  I have compared the grind from the popular "Nutrimill" and my mill, the KitchenAid Grain Mill.  With each on the finest setting I could not tell a difference at all.  I now have a small selection of white bean flour and rice flour made with the stuff sitting in my pantry!  In two months I will see the doctor again and we'll re-evaluate my symptoms.  If they are not resolved then we'll remove the next three major allergens from my diet: soy, peanuts, and shellfish.  I also have allergy testing scheduled for next week which may help identify other allergens.

My sweet neighbor invited me over the other day, knowing that I was completely overwhelmed (and starving).  She has had experience preparing and eating dairy free, wheat free, and even vegan (at different times) so she is a huge help.  One of her recipe books I looked at, Country Beans, had recipes for "Cream" of Chicken Soup, among other things.  It's made with white bean flour and it's really good.  Who would have guessed???  I also saw a recipe there for Instant Pea Soup that I based a recipe off.  Okay, so here are my discoveries:

****I already mentioned the Cream of Chicken Soup.  It's made of boiling water, ground white bean flour, seasonings, and chicken.  It took minutes to prepare and is wonderful by itself or used in recipes.

****I made spaghetti for dinner last night.  I make my sauce from scratch and usually add a can of tomato paste to thicken the sauce.  I had tried my hand (well, my grinder) at making white bean flour since I had a bag of white beans in the pantry.  I had about 1/4 cup of the flour sitting in a bowl by the stove because it didn't fit in the container with the rest.  So I gave it a shot!  The bean flour thickened the sauce beautifully and nobody knew!  (I never did tell the girls and I only let Michael in on the secret tonight, lol).  Instead of Parmesan cheese on my spaghetti I tried out Nutritional Yeast.  Sounds nasty, right?  Well, it's not what you expect!  It's not like the yeast you use in bread at all.  It has a wonderful naturally cheesy flavor and was a great spaghetti topper!

**** In playing in my pantry I also found a couple of bags of dried split peas.  I really don't like split pea soup, but I know my mom does and I was having fun playing with my grinder.  I ground the split peas into fine flour and mixed in seasonings (I'd seen a proper recipe for it in the Country Beans book).  I took it to my mom tonight and she tried it out.  Two Tbsp. of the powder was mixed into hot water.  It ended up really needing a blender or food processor (she has a cute baby food processor which worked great).  After a few seconds of good pulverization there were no lumps and it was a thick, creamy pea soup.  It wasn't the classic pea soup, though.  I took a taste and actually liked it!  It tastes like fresh peas from the garden!!!  We discussed such ideas as serving it garnished with fresh diced tomatoes... and maybe some crumbled bacon.  I may have to grind my other bag up and make some for me!

****I love popcorn.  I really do.  I really love home popped theater-style popcorn.  I have some theater type buttery flavored oil (artificially butter flavored) and buttery popcorn salt that I got for a Christmas gift.  The oil is fine, but the salt has dairy in it.  Last night I popped up a pan of popcorn and added a touch of salt and then sprinkled it with the Nutritional Yeast.  It was delicious!  I would eat that if I'm going dairy-free or not! 

****This morning (okay, afternoon.  I finally slept well last night!  and all morning, lol) I wanted to make some hashbrowns for "breakfast".  I usually use freshly grated potatoes in hot oil, then add butter halfway through for more flavor.  I had a fresh onion on hand so I was using that too.  Since I can't use the butter or margarine I used the buttery flavored popcorn oil in place of the oil/butter combo!  It looked funny, thanks to the artificial coloring, LOL, but it was very tasty.

****I have been researching the best way to replace an occasional glass of milk (like with my brownies) and milk in recipes.  Soy milk is the obvious replacement.  Rice milk is also pretty widely available.  Neither fits well into the $0 budget.  So I learned how to make my own!  I did buy a quart of prepared soy milk at the health food store today so I have something to compare to, then a bit of instant dry soy milk (lots cheaper, but I'm wary of dried milks), and also some plain soybeans.  Right now I have soybeans soaking in water in my fridge.  Tomorrow I'll see how the homemade variety turns out.  I'm going to add a touch of sweet brown rice for extra flavor and texture.  The quart of milk, powdered milk to make a quart prepared, and beans to try making my own (at least a quart when I'm done) all together cost $5.  If this dairy-free thing is going to happen for years instead of weeks, hopefully someday I can get a soymilk machine.  Purchased in bulk the beans can be very inexpensive.  Even if I end up not being able to eat soy, the machine works for all sorts of other alternative milks (rice, beans, etc.which are all quite cheap)  Considering the cost of the prepared milks at the store, the machine would pay for itself in no time. 

****Tonight I needed a good reason to want to drink milk.  I love milk and could happily drink it alone, but I mean a good reason to make me want milk enough that I could be happy with the soy milk.  So I made brownies.  I made them from scratch partly because I didn't have a mix on had, partly because they're not very hard anyway, and partly because I bet the mix ones have dairy in them.  I had to replace the melted butter/marg. for oil.  Then when it came to adding the 1 1/2 cups of flour, I pulled out my smallish bin of flour from the pantry and it only had 1 c. in it.  I had my big thing of flour right there in the pantry, but unfortunately I'm lazy.  My canister of bean flour was just right there, and it and it had worked so well in the spaghetti...  Well, I finished mixing it up, added some walnuts, and spread it in the pan.  While they were in the oven I set to "cleaning" the bowl.  Nasty.  The original flavor was fine, but the aftertaste was supremely beany.  Nasty indeed.  Oh well, the brownies were already in the oven.  I was very brave and tasted a bit of brownie when they were done.  It actually tasted fine.  So I took a whole piece with a glass of soy milk.  The flavor was a bit different, but not noticeably beany!!!  Michael took a brownie later (I didn't warn him, of course).  He mentioned that they tasted a little different also, but ate the whole thing.  When I admitted about the bean flour he could see that that was the difference, but even according to him it wasn't bad, just different.  Phew!!!  The milk was okay.  I didn't like drinking it by itself, but between bites of brownie it was fine.  I'm a little suspicious of the soy because this is the most soy I've had at at time before and my tongue felt a little funky.  I may end up losing it after all, but I'm game to give it a shot first.

If any of you happen to know great dairy free or wheat free recipes, I'm always happy to collect them :)  I have to say, though, that if I go through all this and don't lose some weight I'm going to be very upset, LOL.  Along with everything else I'll have to be very careful about my chocolate.  And you probably know how I feel about chocolate -- pretty much the same way I feel about my right hand: I expect it to be there and perform its duties! I suppose I could live without it, but it would be a very sad thing.  Fortunately I do like dark chocolate.  Any chocolate 70% cocoa or darker is very unlikely to have dairy in it.  I will have to be a good ingredient reader.  Mostly things will be made from scratch so I can monitor the diary (and eventually wheat) content.  There are dairy-free semi-sweet chocolate chips available, but even in bulk they're about $4/lb.  Pre-packaged they were closer to $6/lb!  I'll have to find an alternative to my comforting mug of hot cocoa.

All I can say is that if it makes everything else better, it will be worth it.

 Picture of my soybeans soaking over night in preparation for milking them tomorrow.  Moo.