The Daily Burns

It would seem Asher is developing his father’s knack for efficiency. I was just saying that I will have to give them a shower today because we don’t have time for a bath. …The big reason they don’t get bathed regularly being that we often don’t have time for a bath….and they both cry through showers. He was asking why and I explained that when I give them a bath that means I have to sit and pretty much do nothing for 30-45min (quick bath just seems a waste…thus the quick shower. And yes, I do usually read during bathtime, but i’ve got STUFF to do today). He said, “well, you could play your flute.”

This is brilliant! I rarely play my flute anymore b/c the only really good time to do it is during naptime/roomtime. But that would keep Grace awake (not to mention I’m usually doing chores or cooking during that time). Never would have occurred to me, but the next time we have bathtime (again, NOT today kids!) I will definitely practice my flute. Thanks Asher.

Family, Jennifer's Posts

Culture, Ryan's Posts, Theology, Video

Ladies & Gentleman….(drumroll)…Children of ALL ages….I bring you: The bread recipe that has taken 7 months to figure out! Granted similar recipes can be found, but I’ve yet to find one that didn’t include a sourdough starter. I have had little patience for babysitting yet another ferment on a regular basis, so I’ve been trying to find a ‘lazy woman’s sourdough’.

First, details: I’ll give details on why I’ve done what I’ve done AFTER the recipe. That way folks that don’t really care about the science can just have the recipe already. Then fellow food-nerds can wallow in my overly detailed explanations that will follow….and those who don’t care at all about my bread making endeavors will have stopped reading by now. I apologize in advance for the fact that my ‘recipes’ are not exact and there’s a lot of trial & error/guesswork involved. I suppose that’s why people say bread-making is an ‘art’. It’s taken me a few years to ‘feel’ it….and it’s still not necessarily the same result twice.

Jenn’s Tweaked Version of the Bread Beckers “Slightly Sweet But Very Simple Whole Wheat Bread”

1 cup cool or lukewarm water
1 cup kefir or thinned yogurt (i use home-made kefir, no idea if this makes a difference or not) *
1/2 cup oil (olive or coconut…or butter, though this last one might be heavier? i’m not sure) (1/3 cup if using egg)
1 egg (optional)
2TBS honey
2TBS blackstrap molasses (can probably use all honey or all molasses if you like..explanation will follow)
1tsp yeast
5+/- cups whole wheat flour
1 cup white flour (optional, but i used it)
2tsp. salt

in a glass, ceramic, or plastic bowl (so, preferably no metal, though if u try it & it works, lemme know), mix: water, kefir, sweetners, yeast, oil, egg (optional). Let that sit while you mill your wheat (heh)…or let it sit for 10 min or so (i didn’t time it, i have no idea…just let it sit awhile…). In the mixing bowl mix: 3-4 cups flour, salt. Turn on mixer (i use cookie hook first, then switch to dough hook when it starts getting thick), pour in the liquids. Add more flour 1/2-1cup at a time till it’s…uh…enough? i’m sorry. i’m not good at explaining bread dough texture. Something about atmospheric conditions and how many legs you’re standing on in any given moment or something. In fact, i typically add just a tad too much, it’s fine, just a bit heavier than hoped for. Anyhow, if you want the 1 cup of white flour (I’ll explain why I’m ok with this later), add it first, then add more whole wheat till it’s no longer super sticky & looking more like dough…it’s all incorporated & rolling around in the mixer**. I ‘knead’ (in the mixer) for 5-7min. It gets loud & the motor warms up a bit. Again…i’m not entirely sure when i’m done. I’ve not perfected kneading. Rumor has it if you knead by hand you’ll know better when it’s ‘done’. I’m too lazy to knead by hand. I think it’s like 15min by hand or something. Some sort of ‘window pane test’. I’ve never experienced this with whole wheat dough, though i guess this is what you’re supposed to achieve. My Aunt Helen could probably shed some light here.

then grease a large non-metallic bowl, turn the dough in it to moisten a bit, cover & leave sit in a warm place for 16-24hrs. I let mine sit on the counter (the thermostat claims it’s 70 degrees lately, but i don’t believe it….i still need a sweatshirt). I started it at about 2pm & at 7am it needed to go into the oven w/the pilot light on for a few hours. Anyhow, when it looks like it’s probably doubled (I’m also really good at forgetting where it started so not sure if it’s doubled), punch it down & shape however you want. This last batch i put into 2 loaf pans (1 in my stonewear which makes a pretty big loaf & one in a metal pan which makes a small/medium loaf). If you want hamburger buns, just form them into roundish mounds. I used to twist them all fancy, but then it made them too thick. Just a smoothed-out blob of dough works better. let rise till doubled, then bake @ 350 for approx. 30min or until you can tap on the top & it sounds hollow.

Here’s the kicker: WAIT! If this is sandwich bread: wait!! If you want it to maintain a sturdy shape (i.e. doesn’t collapse with the slightest pressure while you’re slicing) & a ‘crumb’ (inside texture) with integrity (i.e. can hold up to a sandwich)….WAIT until it is COMPLETELY cooled! it’s sooo hard…nothing’s better than hot bread with butter….unless that leaves you with annoying sandwiches the rest of the week.

Since i make 2 loaves, i like to keep one out & slice as needed, then slice up the other & freeze it. That way I can just take out slices as I need them (thaw in toaster as needed). Ok….this is the first time I’ve done it, but i’ve seen it recommended elsewhere & kept meaning to do it that way.

*for casein-free folk you *might* be able to sub a lemon juice/water mix (like 2-3TBS lemon juice + remaining water), but i make no flavor guarantees…and it’s not likely i’ll put forth the effort to trial it. lemme know if u do!)**

** if you don’t have a heavy-duty mixer (thanks again Pop & Gigi for the heavy duty mixer christmas gift 3 years ago!), i’m not exactly sure what you should do…perhaps mix till it gets to where your mixer seems to be getting angry with you, then hand knead?

The ‘Science’
Um…after all that i’m not gonna go super duper in-depth. If you want to know ALL the details about why phytates are bad…or any of my crazy ideas that follow. google it.

Non-metallic bowls: Supposedly metal kills yeast. I have experienced this with killing sourdough starters by stirring with metal spoons. I’ve also had many a sourdough bread not rise in a metal bowl. I do however mix it in my Kitchen-aid which is metal. But I don’t keep it there long.

I added the kefir (original recipe calls for 2 cups water), because an acidic medium helps neutralize phytates. This is the reason I make sprouted wheat flour for quickbreads & cookies. There are soaked recipes for these things, but i don’t like them. Sprouting accomplishes the same thing as soaking does (some might argue more). But sprouting, dehydrating & grinding are far too labor intensive (& buying sprouted wheat flour is far too expensive), so I’m not going to do it unless I can’t find a yummier easier alternative. For bread, this is that alternative. So…phytates in an extremely simplified explanation: Enzyme inhibitors that make digesting the grains/beans/seeds more difficult. It’s good news for ’seeds’ in the wild because animals gnosh on them, but many pass through undigested….in their own wonderful little pile of compost, to go on to grow into a new plant. Bad news for us though. Best case we’re just not getting all we can out of the grains, worst case it’s wreaking havoc in our intestines. Bread Beckers folks have written an argument against this theory…but i disagree with it. I’ll stop there.

If you want to know why I said said, “olive, coconut oil or butter” see Nina Planck or weston price they can explain why ‘real fats’ are better, and why vegetable oils in particular are not good for high-heat cooking better than I can (& why corn & soybean oils will never be in my pantry). I HIGHLY recommend Nina Planck’s book, “Real Food; What to eat and why”.

The honey molasses mix: It might well work with just honey. In which case, just do a 1/4 cup honey. But yeast likes blackstrap molasses. Not sure if it’s the calcium, magnesium or iron or what. i forget… But it likes it. I however don’t so much, thus I don’t do ONLY molasses….I’ve never been a fan of black licorice which is what it tastes like to me. For what it’s worth, yeast also likes ginger so If YOU like ginger you can add a tsp of powdered ginger to the water mix to make your yeast really happy. Ryan’s not a big fan of gingery bread so I was glad to see that this still worked without it.

The original recipe calls for 1.5 TABLESPOONS yeast. i only used 1 TEASPOON (i bet 1/4 tsp would work too given enough time). The reason for this is that “a little leaven leavens the whole lump”. …It just takes longer for it to do so. This is a GOOD thing because (and again, I’m not an expert, just a crazy person who reads stuff by crazy people too often): 1) it gives the ‘acidic medium’ time to works it’s magic against the phytates. 2) something about the longer the yeast gets to proliferate the more digestible IT becomes (a lot of people are sensitive to commercial yeast…and may or may not know it…it’s usually grown on corn…). 3) The longer it gets ‘predigested’ by the yeast & kefir, the more digestible the gluten becomes (gluten being the protein in wheat, which again, many (some might say most) people are sensitive to & don’t even know it). This is where I’m ok with a bit of white flour. This guy claims that “bran is bull….” well…you get the idea…and that we should only consume slow ferment white bread. I’m not entirely convinced since I want to get as much nutrition out of every bite that I can…and i wonder how fine ‘traditional’ cultures were able to sift wheat on a regular basis. Whole wheat, in it’s entirety I think does work toward nutrient-dense…though I agree I would never purposely add bran in isolation to anything just like i prefer not to use white flour in isolation (though ok ok…i cheat on the latter a good bit). So the cup of white flour can add some lightness but it’s mostly whole wheat, so has all that ‘goodness’….and the long ferment deals with the sugars in the white flour.

As for why I would not use any refined salt (even ’sea salt’…if it’s just labeled, ’sea salt’ it’s probably refined. Unrefined salt is more expensive so they’d be putting that pretty info on the label), and why I prefer freshly milled wheat….well….that’s too much for the scope of this already-too-long-post (both info would be found in the “Real Food” book). Store-bough whole wheat would work though. Ryan’s already in bed. I’d like to go join him.

If any of you try this let me know how it goes!

Jennifer's Posts, Recipe

I just spent the past 55 minutes making liver pate, cleaning the kitchen and and weeping in sorrow, joy, shame, gratitude….listening to the following on my laptop. It is a message a woman named Rachel Barkey gave a couple weeks ago in Canada. She is a wife & mother of 2, and is not expected to live to her 38th birthday. I’m not one to fwd every video I think is interesting or funny (only the MOST funny ones. ), but here ya go. I put my “non-fwding” pride on the line & demand you sneak in an hour to listen/watch. I picked it up from the Girl Talk blog. I also stole this from that blog post:

Many people have asked Rachel, “Why? Why is this happening to you? To Neil? To Kate and Quinn? To your family and friends?”

“I don’t ask ‘why?’” says Rachel. “Because I know.”

Please watch or listen and learn what Rachel knows.

Jennifer's Posts, Theology

I’ve mentioned before that although my women’s bible study has long since finished going through, “Stepping Heavenward” with the study guide, I figured I should still um…START it…and work on it during my morning ‘devotional’ time. I had just finished commenting on twitter that I feel “behind”…even though I’m not going through this WITH anyone (on earth anyway..ha), and I’ve not been given a time-line….why must I always make things into rules I have to follow, or better yet a competition?

Anyhow, on I went with the business of the study. I was too look up 1John 5:19 & Matthew 4:8-10 in regards to ‘worldliness’ & who ‘has authority to rule over this world’. While reading 1John I got a little distracted by a mention of an ‘unpardonable sin’. I’ve seen mention of this elsewhere and it always makes me feel uncomfortable. Given my propensity toward legalism and wanting to know I’m following “the rules” purely for the sake of the rules, I’ve always gotten nervous at the notion of an unpardonable sin. I mean…surely I’ve committed “every sin in the book” in one form or another….including verbal blasphemy. Enter nagging doubt. So I read the study notes in my bible, but it was mostly just a redirect to a mini-article that was in Mark. Not wanting to get distracted, I made a ‘mental note’ (aka: will forget it in 30 seconds never to return again) to look it up after i “finish”. Then off on my merry way to Matthew 4. Except I accidentally went to MARK 4. After struggling to figure out how the heck Mark 4:8-10 ties in with the given topic, I realized I was in the wrong book. But then I noticed, “hey, there’s that article on the unpardonable sin”. So of course I read it. Feeling sufficiently relieved, I went back on my way.

Then I stopped. Wait….that was NOT my run of the mill “i get distracted far too easily” type-distraction. That just slew an enemy that would’ve been lying in wait for me the rest of the day (week/month/life?)…sorry..been reading too much old school Sir Lancelot…. Suddenly I became aware of the Goodness of my Father in Heaven…and reminded that indeed….He loves…ME. How quickly I forget. How sweet for him to “distract” me, to shine a light on my doubt…helping me realize not only “what it means” but the reminder of the assurance of my salvation –> it cannot be ‘lost’…the goodness of God & richness of His love & mercy (toward me..even me!)…that He would ‘interrupt’ my bible study to encourage me and gird me against that doubt that hangs on my every word waiting to accuse me.

Jennifer's Posts, Theology

For those readers who like to read books as much as blogs, I’m selling a bunch of my books on Amazon. I put over 60 of my books up for sale on Sunday. I’m selling them for a number of reasons, but sufficed to say that buying these books will be supporting a good cause. So… go buy my books please.

Random, Ryan's Posts

I added a few new photos to Flickr. Click to view.

Photo, Ryan's Posts

Guess since it’s been over a month we’re due for a review on the bubble and bee shampoo, lotion stick and (rootbeer..mmm..) lip balm.

For those who missed the first mention of it, I bought the above (actually the lip balm was a freebie!), due to winning a $25 gift card from Traveling with Baby. I went for the Shampoo Discount Package. I have tried plain old castille soap (i think i liked this except the vinegar rinse made me smell of vinegar…but i was doing it wrong. so perhaps i could try just the soap again…), only baking soda (again i did it a bit ‘wrong’ but my hair was breaking, brittle and falling out all over the place…F-R-I-E-D) & aubrey organics shampoo/conditioner (heavy, limp, greasy & buildup issues). Yet still for some reason i felt compelled to try this “for real” natural shampoo, because it had a label that really seemed to live up to the ‘natural’ claim.

I also wanted to try the lotion stick b/c I have also had ‘issues’ with ‘natural’ moisturizers…the reale-o trulio versions doing nothing for me and the super high priced but…”wait..what are all those chemicals on the label? i thought this was natural”..if i’m paying too much for a product I want it to REALLY be “all natural”. I still SO VERY wish plain old coconut oil worked for me….so many people swear by it….ok, i’ll stop before i get bitter.

Here we go: The lip balm:
I did not order this. But i am SO thankful they sent it!! It is rootbeer flavored & boy is it yummy. I have on more than one occasion put it on & then people walk around sniffing asking where the rootbeer smell was coming from. heh. So if you’re into that sort of thing, ++. As for performance, LOVE it. Asher has some chapped lip issues and complains about most chapsticks i put on him b/c they burn, but this does not. However, it DOES help his lips…and I don’t get that ‘chapstick withdrawl’ sensation when i miss a day…if you’re a kindred obsessive chapstick/lip gloss user you know what i mean…they get peely and..well…kinda chapped…like they’re addicted to something in it (i find this most common in the super tingly varieties). weird. anyway, doesn’t happen here.

The lotion Stick:
Went with Chai guy. I LOVE chai tea. mm….and this smell lived up to it. Not sure i’d want my man necessarily smelling like chai tea…though that’s who the scent is intended for. Anyhow, First: this does work great. I had some scaly rough rashy skin on my hands leftover from scratching a rash that enveloped my upper body for a couple weeks (culprit was flax seeds i had started adding to my daily smoothie…weird). Anyhow, no matter what or how much i slathered on my hands, those splotchy rough areas were persistent. Chai guy kicked it out & even though i’ve gotten lazy about using it (& my hands are dry), it’s still gone. The downside? It’s a firm stick…hence the name. NOT conducive for rubbing about on jointed body parts. i found it annoying and time-consuming. I should try the body butter probably. I like slathering moisturizer, not frantically rubbing it until i can get it to the point of attempting a slather sensation.

Shampoo:
This is not “normal” shampoo. It is a soap-based hair product that does not come with matching conditioner. You use diluted vinegar as a ‘rinse’, which not only softens & detangles (& adjusts ph or something) but helps remove soap residue. I went with the Lemon shampoo partially b/c my hair is pretty ‘average’ (not super dry, not super greasy) and partially because Ryan dislikes the smell of tea-tree oil (!! i personally really like it).

I was mostly concerned about smelling of vinegar. I used both apple cider vinegar & white vinegar. Both work fine, though I think the white leaves less of a strong odor in the bathroom…but I could be wrong. Ryan is the odor police (who gags after i shower if he enters before it’s been aerated), so ask him. Apparently when my hair is wet, it does have a vinegar aroma, but seeing as how it’s only wet when I’m alone (Ryan is a water hog so we won’t share shower time till we have a double shower head), I don’t mind. As long as I’m not walking around all day smelling of vinegar & people start describing me as “the one with long hair who smells like vinegar”, I’m fine.

As for my hair? I am TOTALLY 100% SOLD. It’s awesome. Shiny, NO fly-aways, not greasy (i wash every other or every 3rd day, and it’s fine, but if it’s 3 days i do have to wash my bangs..and by the end of the day it is evident i need a shower, which i had to do w/regular shampoo anyway), super soft, and i haven’t used any “product” (smoothing spray, mouse, hairspray) in a month. Granted, my ’styling’ (or lack thereof) doesn’t really cry out for any….but i had gotten dependent on a shine enhancer to both add shine & control flyaways. As mentioned earlier I’m tempted to try plain old castille again but this shampoo uses saponafied jojoba oil as one of the soaps & I’m wondering if that makes a good bit of difference (jojoba oil is supposed to be very close to the oil that our body makes which naturally softens our hair). I’m loving my hair lately so I’m not in a rush to mess that up.

There you have it. When I run out if it is “ok’d” by the bookeeper I absolutely will buy more shampoo from them. I’d like to try the body butter too, but I have a hard time spending money on beauty care products so we’ll see if I ever get around to it. I am not being paid to endorse them, I’m just happy to do it gratis.

Also, I made sure to type this up tonight b/c their deodorant is apparently being featured on a “green” segment on the Today Show tomorrow 7-11am (Eastern Standard…I don’t know what that means for us Pacific folks, and I’m too lazy to look it up since um…I’m not sure any Pacific folks even read the blog). I thought that was fun.

Jennifer's Posts, Random

I think i’ve decided Dandelions are my favorite flower. I don’t care if they’re not ‘really’ flowers. we seem to be living in the capital of the dandelion world. they’re EVERYWHERE. the kids are so excited. flowers everywhere AND they’re allowed to pick each and every one! We have had a consistent glass filled with them this whole week.

I already posted about the song last year, so I won’t re-do that. Just read this old post & it explains why they’re among my favorite flowers (daisies of all kinds being next in line). Why I love Dandelions

Jennifer's Posts, Theology

I promise i am getting to the “what i learned on my lent vacation” and “how i feel about the bubbleandbee shampoo” posts. As with most peripheral hobbies of mine, when i have the time for them, i often don’t have the brain power or energy to persue them. But persue them I do, just at a snail’s pace.

In the meantime I just read this and it’s something I’ve been purposing more and more lately to remember (reading “stepping heavenward” has helped keep it in view, and to plug it yet again, i promise it’s a really fun read!!). Of course some days/moments it’s easier than others.

anyway, pretty sure it’s quoting a quote, but all i’m gonna give you is the blog where the rest of the goodies can be found (back to that lack of brain power or energy): Radical Womanhood

Years ago when I was going through something really tough as a mom, I had an older woman in my life who kept saying to me, “You know this is for you.” When I was dealing with kids being cranky or not sleeping or not eating or, you know, destroying my house or not being able to keep up with the laundry or feed them or just the myriad things that go along with mothering, she would always remind me, “You know this is not just about your children. This is for you.”
I did not appreciate that statement back then; I really didn’t. But you know what? I understand it now because motherhood is the greatest tool I know for God to shape me and mold me and chisel me for eternity.

Family, Jennifer's Posts