Butternut Squash Soup

Butternut squash is part of the winter squash family with the tough inedible skins.  I find this annoying to cook.  I like ease.  I like trouble free.   I try not to use the microwave so the best way I've found to cook these is to, clumsily, cut the gourd in half length wise, scoop out the seeds and roast on about 300 for a couple hours; until the meat is soft.

I'm always glad when I go through the trouble because not only are they delicious but they are high in vitamins A and C, iron and riboflavin (B2).

Interestingly we think of them as a vegetable but from a botanical point of view they are a fruit because they contain their own seeds.

Anyway after I cooked the squash and scooped out all the flesh, I added about 5 cups of low sodium chicken broth, some curry seasoning, cracked black pepper and blended it up nice and smooth.  I then added frozen corn.  The heat from the soup thawed the corn which added extra liquid instead of increasing the amount of chicken broth I used.

I love love love this soup.  I ate it with pretzels because it was the only gluten-free crunch I had.  Steve enjoyed it but wouldn't satisfy him as a meal so in the future this will be a side, appetizer or a snack.

If anyone has an easier way to cook these tough beasts let me know!

It's Worse Than I Thought

I've never been a cook, chef, kitchen wonderment.  I seem to be able to bake just fine though, which is odd.  I've created my own cheesecake recipes and a bangin' crust that people seem to love.  But trying to actually cook a meal is not my strong suit.

I get bored, sidetracked, annoyed.  I'm not sure if it's because I really don't have a grasp on the basics or because I just truly have no interest in cooking.  My husband is a magnificent cook so I've never really had to worry about it.

Anyway I've been trying to navigate the kitchen in order to clean up this family.  Sure Steve can continue with the cooking but that would mean his style which is not clean, nor good for his diet.

It really dawned on me today when I tried to bake kale chips, that I saw on one of my favorite blogs- little monster, at how much trouble I am in.  How hard can that be??? Well for this moron it was apparently super difficult.

The ones that weren't over-salted were burnt.  HA!  Seriously I need a FREE lesson on the basics of cooking.  I applaud all others who are such amazing cooks even if that means cooking kale chips at a reasonable degree without numbing the tongue from an overdose of salt.

HELP!

New Ingredients

We picked up our CSA share which is all yummy stuff but then we had to hit the health food store for a few new ingredients.

Surprisingly I am very fond of a rice/potato/soy spaghetti I found.  It was not sticky or chewy and the girls nor Steve really noticed a difference.



The only, small, complaint I have is that I no longer make just one big fruit shake for the family.  I make Steve's then the girls and I, per usual, drink where ever the left over is.

The girls typically get just fruit and milk or juice.  Steve's is now seeds, nuts, fruits, water and coconut butter to make it creamy.  I have to say it is really delicious. 

I think I've nailed the fruit shakes.  I have found a satisfactory pasta substitute and we are really digging the white quinoa as a substitute for rice.  It took a time or two to cook it just right.  We add chicken stock but it doesn't soak in the flavor it kind of sits on it so the product tasted really salted.  We just need to watch that.  The best part is the girls are not noticing any changes.
Once again the biggest challenge is the cost.  The second is learning not only how to cook but how to cook with unfamiliar ingredients. 

We'll get there, slowly but surely!

A New Normal...Not Quite

My husband was recently diagnosed with Psoriatic Arthritis....or so the doctor thought but that's an entirely different story for another day. 
The story for today is his body seems to be riddled with arthritis; in some spots it has deteriorated his joints to that of a 70 year old man.  Steve is only 39.
Our new normal begins now. 
It's a normal we need to get used to quickly that incorporates a life of eating the best foods to heal his body that we can find.
This isn't going to be an easy journey but one we are making as a family. 
The Internet is full of information as well as our brilliant acupuncturist and our newly found holistic nutritionist.
I hope to gather my thoughts and document this.
I hope to reach an entire cyber-world that can help guide and shape this new life with ease.
I hope to one day see my husband forgo so many meds just to get through the day. 
I hope that day is soon.