Adventures in Baking

I awoke this morning and entered my kitchen with three realizations:
- I am hungry (and not for my usual cereal)
- Those bananas are looking a little sad
- Those blueberries are looking a little sad!

Now, I am not the cook in this relationship. But with Ben's somewhat unaccommodating work schedule, I've been faced with two choices: flee from the kitchen in terror and retreat to takeout menus, or embrace this as an opportunity to experiment (and yes, make some errors) in cooking. This morning's realizations seemed like an awesome opportunity to concoct some muffins, so here is the recipe for my own little experiment, combining elements of various muffin recipes from Mark Bittman's How to Cook Everything (an awesome cookbook to own)...

Blueberry Banana Muffin Recipe
Ingredients:
2 Cups flour (I used 1 Cup all-purpose and 1 Cup whole-wheat)
1/2 Cup sugar (plus extra for sprinkling on top)
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 egg
1 Tablespoon melted butter (plus extra for greasing the tin)
2 overripe mashed bananas
1/4 Cup plain yogurt
1/4 Cup milk (I added this after everything was mixed since the batter looked too dry)
1 Cup fresh blueberries

Directions:
Preheat oven to 400ºF. Grease a 12 compartment muffin tin with butter.
Mix together the dry ingredients in a bowl.
Beat together the egg, butter, bananas, and yogurt.
Fold the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients with a spoon or spatula (you don't want to mix too much, the dry ingredients should be moistened but not totally smooth.) This is where I added a splash of milk (you can see from the second picture that my batter was too dry.) Stir in the blueberries.
Spoon the batter into the muffin tin compartments. Sprinkle the tops with sugar (and cinnamon, if you like.)
Bake 20-25 minutes, or until the muffins are nicely browned. Remove from the oven and let sit for 5 minutes before removing them from the tin (in my case, I let all but one sit for 5 minutes.)

The verdict: Good tasting and a moderately healthier option than some other muffin recipes (with the use of whole wheat flour and yogurt). But, I think they could have stood to have a bit more sugar in them. Next time, I might also try adding some lemon zest to the batter and nixing the cinnamon on top. But all in all, a delicious and filling muffin.

Thank God for Summer Salads

Now that the weather has turned brutally hot (well... brutal for Chicago), I've been craving a lot of cold (low-maintenance!) dishes that contain fruits and vegetables. I'm also a big believer in ingredient experimentation (add a little of this, a little of that) and voila! It's pretty safe with salads (no scientific food-chemistry), so feel free to add whatever vegetables you have in your fridge. Anyway, here's what I had for lunch today inspired by this Bon App etit recipe:

Ingredients
Salad:

1/2 cup cooked pasta (I used leftover elbows and rotini)

handful salad greens (I used spinach and romaine)

1/2 cup (maybe 6 or 7) cherry tomatoes, quartered

1/2 red bell pepper, chopped

a few sprigs parsley, chopped

1 green onion, chopped

handful crumbled feta cheese

Dressing:

extra virgin olive oil

fresh lemon juice (one lemon)

rice wine vinegar

dijon mustard

minced garlic (one small clove)

salt

black pepper

Combine all the salad ingredients in a bowl. Mix the dressing ingredients in a small bowl (taste as you go to get the desired proportions, I'd say the dominant ingredients should be the olive oil, lemon juice, and mustard), then pour over the salad and toss well. You could really add whatever vegetables you have on hand. I also think this is best if all the ingredients (except for the greens) are mixed, chilled to let the flavors blend, and then combined. But do what you like, don't be scared, go for it!

Makes 1-2 servings.

RunRunRunRun

So I don't usually talk about my fitness goals on here (mostly because I feel ashamed of how pathetically amateur I would sound). But in the midst of an unusual burst of optimism, I feel the need to gush.

Today I went running. In Chicago. In February. Did I mention it's pretty cold here? Anyway, I should point out a few things before you're tempted to yank the horn that I am currently tooting on right out of my clenched fists. I give you exhibit a: I have always hated running. And most athletic activities in general. And I have always envisioned myself as "the fat kid". I don't say this in an effort to elicit an "ohhh", but rather to further point out how our perceptions of ourselves and our abilities are not always accurate (and in fact, usually are not accurate at all). Exhibit b: I grew up in Arizona. Well... sort of. I lived in Arizona until I was 8 years old, then I lived the rest of my childhood in upstate New York. But... I have a theory on this one (and feel free to call me crazy, that's totally your God-given right). I have theorized from my own observations and experiences, that a person's ability to tolerate extreme temperatures is entirely dependent on the climate they were exposed to as a small child. Take me, for example. I feel like I am always cold. Always! And actually, further evidence suggests that my "normal" body temperature (ie: the temperature of my body when I am not inflicted with fever) is between 97º and 98º (there's a lot of fascinating info on body temperatures... For example, I had no idea the average body temperature for people living in Russia is 97.9º!) Then there's Ben (who grew up in the Dakotas and northern Wisconsin). He is always overheated. I actually think a lot of this has to do with the circulatory system of the two sexes, but the point is I do not deal with cold weather very well. And finally exhibit c: I am not the most motivated person (frowny face ). But every now and then, I surprise myself.

This year I was extremely adamant to write an official 'New Year's Resolutions' list, because if I've learned anything from previous years, it's that writing something down doesn't make it so. So this year I have a new strategy: I'm going to keep my goals at the front of my mind, stop focusing on numbers, and pay more attention to how I feel. No more weigh-ins or measurements. And no more beating myself up! I'm well aware of what's good for me and what's bad for me, and I know what makes me feel better. Around my high school years, I became increasingly aware of the body image issue. And I always thought there was some secret floating around that I wasn't allowed to know, some unmentionable way of living that all the pretty, thin girls knew about and weren't telling me. And now I know it's more complicated than that. There are genes, body-type determinants, activity-levels, nutrition factors, etc. etc. etc. And I really think there are too many things to do in life than waste time worrying about it. So here's to the new year (only 2 months late), here's to living life, and here's to listening to our bodies. If you pause to listen, I think you'll find they can tell you a lot.

Wheat Berry & White Bean Salad

This is my new favorite warm weather salad! The heartiness of cooked wheat berries paired with the tanginess of a lemon vinaigrette really says 'summer'. It's super simple, totally filling, and absolutely delicious.

Ingredients
Salad:

3 cups cooked hard red wheat berries

2 15 oz. cans cooked white beans 

2-3 green onions, chopped 

1 cup celery, sliced 

2-3 tomatoes, diced 

Vinaigrette Dressing: 

3/4 cup olive oil 

4 Tbsp. lemon juice 

4 Tbsp. rice wine vinegar 

4 Tbsp. fresh parsley, chopped 

2 Tbsp. honey mustard 

1/2 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp. black pepper

Mix the dressing by stirring all the vinaigrette ingredients together in a medium size bowl. In a large bowl, mix the salad ingredients. Pour the vinaigrette over the salad and mix well. Let chill for several hours to let the flavors blend (or, if you just can't wait, do what I did and dig in). Yum!

Makes 6-8 servings.