Modern Daisy Hippee

I’ve made several (or more) attempts at making whole wheat tortillas from scratch and none of them have really turned out well.  They either get too crispy, too doughy or just didn’t taste right.  I don’t give up easily though, so I continued to make them, adjusting various details each time.  I got the formula right because this time they turned out AMAZING!

Well, it’s still a whole wheat tortilla, so maybe “amazing” is a bit of an overstatement.  They are an acquired taste if you’re used to white flour products.  The point is, they are fully cooked, still soft a day later and taste pretty much the way they are intended to taste.  That’s success in my book.

I don’t remember with certainty where I got my original recipe.  I’m pretty sure I modified a basic white flour tortilla recipe and incorporated some ideas I found others using.  For example, instead of traditional lard or shortening, I use olive oil.  I’m taking all this time making my own tortillas so they are healthier and olive oil fits that bill best.

There really isn’t much to the recipe…

3 cups whole wheat flour, 2 tsp baking powder, 1/2 tsp sea salt, 2 Tb olive oil, 1 cup warm water

Mix the dry ingredients together, add the olive oil, then mix in the water slowly.  I use my stand mixer, first with the paddle beater to mix everything.  Then I switched to the dough hook to knead.

A couple of things I did differently this time…  Because I’m using whole wheat flour & that takes longer to absorb the moisture, I allowed the dough to sit for a few minutes after mixing.  Then, I added more water gradually, as I kneaded in the mixer, to make sure the dough was nice and soft.  I probably added about another 1/3 cup of water in all.  I did that in stages, kneading quite a bit after each addition to make sure the dough didn’t get too wet.  That’s the other thing that was different…  I kneaded with the mixer much more than I have before.  I let it go until the dough formed a nice, soft ball.  I did let it sit in between some water additions also.  I can do other things while the mixer is kneading, so even though it took a bit of time, I wasn’t standing there watching it all along.

Next, I divided the dough into balls, each weighing about 2.2 oz…  a total of 12.  I put them back into the bowl & covered it so the dough could rest about 20 minutes.  Then I heated my griddle.  I use cast iron on the stove.  I let it get hotter than I usually do…  medium high; this time I let it start out more on the high side.  While it was heating, I started rolling out the tortillas…  Roll each one out once, let them rest, then roll out again.  As I was doing the second roll out, I also started cooking the tortillas, about 30 seconds per side.  I think it was key to have the griddle nice and hot.  It seems counter intuitive, however it seemed to allow them to cook all the way without getting too crispy.

After I cooked each one, I put them in a large freezer bag in a towel.  The moisture created by putting them into the bag seems to help keep them soft.  I’ve done that before to save a batch that was too crispy.  I’m not sure how it would have worked if I had just put them directly in the towel.

It might seem like a lot of work, although I’m sure if I do it regularly, it will be much easier.  It’s worth it to me to know exactly what’s in my food & now that I have it down, these seem a lot tastier than the ones I can buy at the store.

Yesterday w=142.5 / bf=31%
Today w=142

On day 2, I basically duplicated my food from day 1. For dinner, I had some Thai peanut cabbage spring rolls. I also had some almonds & cashews to snack on. I didn’t feel like the green smoothie yesterday morning so I had rye flakes first, then later had the smoothie.

No smoothie today. Breakfast was cooked rye flakes & lunch was quinoa cakes with yogurt sauce. That was basically satisfying. I think I’ll have whole wheat pasta for dinner. I’ll either have it with the leftover butternut squash soup as sauce or some leftover jarred pasta sauce.

I did some stretching yesterday. My back muscles still feel sore, although not so much.

Parachute fabric for my yoga swing arrived too. More on that later… I have to be sure it works out before I say too much about it, right?

I’m still doing fine with no caffeine… yippee! I did have some oatmeal… actually cooked rye flakes, which winds up tasting much the same as oatmeal. I added a few sliced almonds, cinnamon & a bit of raw honey.

For lunch I decided to use up some of this butternut squash from the garden. I roasted one for about half an hour. Then I sauteed some leeks in olive oil, added a cup or so of water, cut the squash in 1″ chunks & added that. I let it simmer for about an hour, then blended the squash with some of the liquid & put it back in the pan, stirred it together with nutmeg, salt & pepper to taste.

I thought grilled cheese would go wonderfully with this soup & didn’t want to eat regular bread. I made sort of a crepe pancake… 1 egg, about 1 cup whole wheat flour, about 1/4 tsp baking soda, about 1/2 cup milk & a bit of water to thin. I didn’t really measure anything so that’s why “about” (I’m guessing how much I used). I heated a pan with just a bit of olive oil, poured in the batter & spread fairly thin. I cooked 2 pancakes, then put feta & cheddar cheese in between, grilling each side until browned. The “recipe” would make about 4 pancakes.

It tasted great & gave a gourmet touch to comfort food. The soup was creamy & thick. I thought it would also be great as a pasta sauce. I’m sure I’ll do that with some of the leftovers by adding some Italian herbs. Heck, maybe I’ll do that for dinner.

Case study for what?

I’ve been lax in my dietary considerations. It’s coming through in how my muscles feel, as well as my weight. I’ve been stretching, although alone that doesn’t seem to be cutting it.

I need to get back on track with my eating, continue stretching/yoga and maybe some other activity. The main correction is with what I’m putting in my body. I’m getting back to the diligence I had a while ago.

Today (morning)… W=145 /BF=31%

For breakfast, I had a green smoothie. I used frozen mixed fruit (I know, that’s taboo… it’s much more convenient though & I need some practicality here), mustard greens from the garden & organic baby spinach (from the store… hasn’t really come into the garden yet), a little flax seed & about a Tb raw honey. I didn’t use a lot of greens because I wanted to be able to drink it. The spinach isn’t very strong tasting, however the mustard greens can be. Their smell is strong for sure.

I wanted the greens because it’s supposed to be good for muscle health & flexibility. That’s what I’m going for. I’ll probably have some oatmeal also because the smoothie isn’t super filling. So far, I haven’t made coffee. We’ll see how that goes. I don’t want a caffeine withdrawal headache.

I’m growing radishes and while I was looking up recipes for how to use them, I came across one for radish leaf pesto.  I was wondering if the greens were edible anyway, so it was cool to find this recipe.  I was skeptical about how it would taste because pesto is usually made with basil and I LOVE basil.  I couldn’t imagine radish leaves could compete.

Well, I was sure wrong.  I used pine nuts and grapeseed oil with a bit of salt, blended it together with some radish leaves and presto…  pesto!  (I know, that was totally corny.  I just couldn’t help myself.)  The original recipe I came across used hazelnuts and some other things I didn’t use.  It’s plenty yummy the way I did it.  Grapeseed oil was suggested to avoid the bitterness of olive oil when it’s put in the blender.

I was just happy to know I can use the greens from the radishes.  I don’t like to waste things.  And, the garden can be a bit of work.  It’s awesome to find ways to use what I grow that are so great!  Now I just need to find something as wonderful to do with the radishes!

I had to share this story my boyfriend just shared with me about his trip to the grocery store with his friend.  His friend was getting some turkey from the deli and requested Boars Head.  The girl at the deli counter asked him if he was sure that’s what he wanted because it had no preservatives in it & would only last about three days in the refrigerator.

The key point here is that she asked if he was sure he wanted something that was JUST FOOD.  Ironic, right?  It usually seems like we have to search for items with no preservatives and that would be the “selling point”.  This girl thought it was a bad thing.

Interesting to see where our culture is.

Well, I had to start over with my starter.  I forgot about it for a couple of days and it grew fuzzy mold.  I’m on Day 10 of my second batches.  I made sure to put the glass jars someplace where I can see them more easily.  That way I’m less likely to forget about them.  I also thought about setting an alarm on my calendar.  I’m finding that unnecessary now though with where I put them.

I’m doing one with whole wheat flour and one with buckwheat.  I had thought I was overfeeding it by adding 2 Tb of water & flour, so cut it back to 1 Tb.  I just realized that was a mistake.  I also hadn’t been discarding any because I wanted it to build up.  Well, now I realize I’m supposed to be essentially doubling it (or close to it) at each feeding otherwise it may not work properly.

I assume as a result of that, there doesn’t seem to be a whole lot happening with the buckwheat flour.  The wheat flour has been bubbly for a while now though.  I’m not sure if that’s because I thought I was actually under feeding it or it’s just taking longer.  It reacted right away the last time.

Today I took out some of the buckwheat starter & fed it properly.  I also took off the top layer of the wheat starter & fed it.  We’ll see what happens.

Clearly, I have no idea what I’m doing.  I’m in the trial and error phase of learning how to do this.  That’s fine because that’s how I like to learn things.  Hands on is the way to go!

Some people treat their cars better than they treat their bodies. You learn about how to take care of your car so it keeps working to get you around. You need to maintain it by having certain services performed periodically. This keeps the parts working properly and usually prevents major problems. You need to use the proper fuel for it to run. It won’t run if you just cram any old thing into the gas tank.

Your body is the vehicle that takes you through your life. It’s the only one you have. You aren’t able to go out and get a new one if the one you have stops working. The condition of your body also contributes to the quality of your life. If your body is not well maintained, it will not perform well and may not be able to take you everywhere you’d like to go. If it is maintained in optimum condition, you’ll have the energy and stamina to do much more.

Of course, most of us do the most basic upkeep of our “vehicle”, keeping it clean by using routine basic hygiene. Most of us do NOT give much thought to the products we use for this though. At least not in terms of how healthy or unhealthy it is. I’ve learned that most personal care products in the U.S. commonly contain ingredients that are banned in Europe. Apparently Europe has more stringent standards for deciding if products are “safe” than we do here in the U.S.

I suppose most of us figure we’re putting that stuff on the outside of our bodies, so what’s in it doesn’t matter as much as the things we put inside our bodies. We may think that if it doesn’t visibly harm our skin, it’s ok. Consider this though. Our skin is actually an organ and absorbs into our body, at least some of what we expose it to. It stands to reason that it would absorb into our body a significant amount of the things we rub onto it and into it every day. Some people say that if you wouldn’t eat it, don’t use it on your body. I tend to agree with that concept.

Obviously, what you are literally putting INSIDE your body is the fuel you use. If you want your body to function optimally, you’ll want to use optimum food. To me, what is truly healthy is REAL food. That means the way nature made it, as close to natural as possible. There are lots of things that are put into lots of our “food” products that are not, in my opinion and that of others, not actually food.

Dig a little deeper when you’re checking out the ingredients listed on some of the processed foods you use to find out what they actually are. (Better yet, stay away from those processed “foods”).  Some of those unrecognizable ingredients are controversial and suspected of dangers, to put it mildly.  Of course, with the whole food, I also believe organic is healthier. Not because it contains more nutrients, which it may. Instead it is because of what it does NOT contain… chemicals.

Watch out for words and phrases listed on the front of a package. Some may be misleading…  like “natural”. It really doesn’t mean anything, at least not at this time. Look at the ingredient list to find out what is really in the product. Another term to look out for is “natural flavors”. What does that mean anyway? I’ve learned that it could mean the product contains MSG, which is one of those controversial ingredients for a variety of reasons (which are far too extensive to go into here).

The bottom line is that your body is your vehicle for life. The way you treat it will be reflected in the way it treats you. Educate yourself about the things you choose to put in, on and around your body. Create extraordinary health to support you in creating your extraordinary life!!!

Have a beautiful day!

I’m on a mission to eat more naturally and get all artificial food additives out of my diet.  One of the most difficult types of products to do this with is breads, so I’ve been practicing with making my own.  When I was looking up recipes for English muffins, I found some that called for sourdough starter.  I already knew you could make sourdough starter because I knew someone a long time ago who did that.  So, I looked up how.

As usually happens, when I start something new, that lead me down another path.  I found several recipes or instructions on how to do this.  Some were more complicated than necessary.  I wound up simply mixing a small amount of buckwheat flour with an equal amount of water.  The simplest instructions I found called for rye flour.  I used buckwheat because I had that & didn’t have rye.  It seemed to be working.  I forgot about it for a couple of days and wound up throwing it out.

Now I’m starting over with more buckwheat flour and a second batch just using whole wheat flour.

Here’s the recipe:

2 Tb. flour

2 Tb. water

Mix in a glass container.  Cover loosely.  Feed every 24 hours.

“Feed” just means to add in another 1 Tb. of flour & 1 Tb. water, mix & cover loosely again.

I’ll get into more of the details as I go through the process.  Today is Day 2.  Apparently the starter will be usable in about a week.

Step One to getting my body back!!!

I cleaned out my pantry to purge any “bad” foods.  Mainly I’m looking at “toxic” additives.  Ideally, I’m looking to keep only foods that are whole or close to whole.  I want some convenience, so I’m not eliminating canned and packaged products altogether.

As it turns out, the pantry wasn’t too bad.  I had some crackers that, of course, had partially hydrogenated oil in them.  The surprise is that refried beans also have partially hydrogenated oil.  I’m not a big fan of refried beans anymore, however I used to eat bean burritos all the time.  They were convenient and I thought, healthy.  That just goes to show you that you don’t know what you don’t know.  Anyone can think they’re eating healthy and not be.  I’m thinking of all the bean burritos I’ve eaten and how that translates to the amount of partially hydrogenated oil I’ve consumed in my life.  Of course, I’ve eaten many other things that I’d consider pseudo-food because of this ingredient.

I have pretzels and dried fruits in my pantry also.  These were intended as healthy snacks.  I thought I’d find additives that are unacceptable by my new “whole” standards.  I was happy to find that they really aren’t too bad.  Especially the “Craisins”, which I love…  just cranberries and sugar!  Yippee!!!  I can still have those with no concerns.

Canned chicken broth is not ideal.  As it turns out, there’s a bunch of sugar in it.  In fact, it’s listed several different ways…  sugar, dextrose, etc.  Swanson’s adds claim there is no MSG in their chicken broth, however there is something listed as “chicken flavor”.  I don’t know what that means.  Usually when a label lists “natural flavor” or something along those lines, to my knowledge, it’s the same as MSG.  So, that’s a little perplexing and I’m going to look into it further.

The instant oatmeal isn’t too bad, however I want to use more whole products, so I’m getting rid of the last few packages of that.  The granola and breakfast bars are also going.  Some have partially hydrogenated oils, so that’s a no brainer as far as I’m concerned.  Others just have lots of sugar and other non-whole stuff.

So, if you’re wondering what the big deal is about “partially hydrogenated” stuff, I’ll write a separate post about that & link to it from here when it’s done.  For now, I’ll just say it’s what you might call a “pseudo” food and not “whole”.  The chemical structure of it is not compatible with our bodies.  It essentially becomes toxic.  Unfortunately, it’s in a LOT of stuff.