cooking – Page 19 – GUTSy Performance Nutrition

Thankfulness Brings Increase + Parsnip Carrot Cake Oats

January 10, 2015April 3, 2021by Rebecca5 Comments

I cozied up with the first of the year baking dense loaves of rustic pumpkin + rosemary bread and drinking a good, strong pot of tea. I had a plan to identify main themes from the old year and move forward with a new vision and sense of putting 2014’s dis-ease to rest.

Though I know it’s not so simple as wiping the slate clean on New Year’s Eve and waking up in the new year free from the baggage that has accumulated, the introspective process of looking back at the bigger picture of the year helps me move foward into the new. From this practice, one particular message from Ryan Hall, an elite runner I follow, came to the surface and has since been floating around my consciousness. Nearly a year ago, Ryan shared about thankfulness, being thankful for what you have in the moment.

I can measure 2014 by the swinging polarity between connected and dis-connectedness, of being ready for life’s battles and feeling broken down and unworthy. I’ve often felt a sense of discontent, not-enough-ness, of missing out on living, especially when I look to social media. These feelings of inadequacy have been a catalyst for many negative behaviors in the past, and they were certainly a theme that stands out this past year.

On Thursday past, I was looking to shed light on what I can achieve in this new year to be more satisfied, to measure up. Instead, Ryan’s words came back and reminded me of what I can be. This winter season is one for filtering out the clutter, the noise, the comparing and measuring, to simply be thankful. What I have to offer–what I bring with me into 2015 that is less than I thought it should be by now–is exactly what I can be thankful for in the present.

When I get quiet, I know my truth is that everything I need will be provided at exactly the right time. There will be room for big achievements and worthy mountains to climb in the coming months. But for now, I am focusing my energy on looking for the good in each situation. This year, I plan to live more fully by Ryan’s words. Thankfulness brings Increase.

Parsnip Carrot Cake Oats, serves 1-2

We began the new year with a baked-version of these oats, but this is the one I’ve been making lately. It smells like the holidays are still with us, with the addition of spices and orange peel, but tastes oh-so-January with the hearty duo of carrots and parsnips. Use any type of oats. Sometimes I mix in a combination of old-fashioned and Scottish-style. Old-fashioned oats can be ground semi-fine with a coffee grinder or food processor to achieve the Scottish style consistency.

1 1/2 cups water
1/8 tsp. salt
⅛ tsp. cinnamon
⅛ tsp. ginger
Pinch of nutmeg
1 small carrot (50 g), finely shredded
1 small parsnip (50 g), finely shredded
1/4 cup raisins or dates
3/4 cup old-fashioned oats
orange zest
1-2 Tbs. ground flax seed

On the stovetop, put the water, salt, spices, raisins, and shredded roots in a small saucepan and bring to a boil.
Once it comes to a boil, turn down to medium and let cook until it is soft and nearly all the water has been absorbed, about ten to fifteen minutes.
Take off the heat, and zest about 1/3 of an orange over the mixture. Stir in the ground flax.

Autumn, Winter

Beets, Tahini, Flatbread + Lentils

December 15, 2014January 9, 2017by Rebecca4 Comments

Shannon and Anneke walked in to the kitchen and immediately curled their noses. Bec! You’re stinking up the house. After lifting the lid on the pot, they were even more disgusted. Beets! Gross!

An hour later, Shannon at least, was singing a different tune: I love beets! Beets, beets, beets. Let’s eat beets. For months afterwards, the subject of beets made their way into many a conversation, joke, and non-sensical late night roommate Facebook exchange. They even made their way into our school life as Shannon and I sat in our farming class plotting how to make more money than all the other students on our hypothetical farm. Our proposed course of action was growing and selling beets, of course.

I have long since forgotten what sort of meal became of the beets that day when Shannon and Anneke walked in, but I’ve no doubt vegetables took center stage. Anneke, Shannon, and Kaci embraced my fondness for all things vegetable as whole heartedly as any semi-normal 20-something college person could, with only the expected amount of jabbing. My fondness for the full spectrum of produce even made it into Anneke and Kaci’s toast for my wedding.

I’m going ‘home’ in a few days to celebrate family and Christmas and to perform my semi-annual reset in the farmhouse sunroom, where I will take in the dazzling morning light, open spaces, and cows over morning porridge. I’m super excited about a few things, and one of them is having a dinner party with Shannon and our fams. Last time we held a party, I was on a Middle-Eastern-themed-beet-tangent as well, so I made beet hummus and rose-flavored everything. I have come full circle as far as flavor combinations go so these beet flatbreads just might make an appearance. Luckily for me, I will be welcomed in to perfume Shannon’s home with the aroma of roasting beets.

Clearly, stinking up our house that winter afternoon was the right thing to do.

Beets, Flatbread, Tahini + Lentils, serves 4-6
There are many components to this recipe, making it somewhat labor-intensive. All the separate components save the flatbread can be made ahead and then reheated to eat with freshly made flatbread. On a rushed day, use purchased pita-type bread to serve instead.

Lentils
1 cup lentils
3 cups water
Juice from 1/2 a lemon
1 clove garlic, crushed
1/2 tsp. cumin
salt to taste

Roasted Beets
10 medium-size beets, tops and bottoms removed

Lemon-Tahini Cream
2 Tbs. tahini
1 1/2 Tbs. lemon juice
2-4 Tbs. water (as needed)
1 small garlic clove
Salt and pepper, to taste

Flatbread, adapted from Gluten-Free & Vegan Bread
1 Tbs. chia seeds
1/2 cup hot water
1/2 cup brown rice flour
1/2 cup garbanzo & fava flour
3/4 cup millet flour
1/4 cup amaranth flour
1/2 cup arrowroot starch
1/2 cup ground flax seed
1 tsp. salt
2 Tbs. extra virgin olive oil
1/2 Tbs. honey
3/4-1 cup warm water

Hazelnuts + Toppings
1 Tbs. extra virgin olive oil
dash of ground allspice
2 bay leaves
1/8 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/4 cup toasted hazelnuts, coarsely chopped
1/8 tsp. salt
Dried dill, for sprinkling
Dried rose petals, for sprinkling

Bring lentils and water to boil in a medium saucepan. Turn down to a simmer and cook for 20-30 minutes, until soft. Remove from the heat and stir in the remaining ingredients. Set aside.
Halve or quarter beets. In a large piece of foil, wrap all of the beets and roast in an oven, preheated to 400 degrees F, for 45-60 minutes. Check part way through for doneness, by opening up the foil bundle and stabbing with a fork. The beets should be tender all the way through. When done, remove from the oven and let cool slightly. Then, slice them into smaller pieces.
For the Lemon-Tahini Cream, puree all the ingredients in a food processor. Add additional water or lemon juice, to reach the desired taste and consistency.
In a small sauté pan, heat oil over medium heat. Add spices and bay leaves and cook until the spices start to smell warm and toasted, about 4-5 minutes. Remove from the heat and stir in the hazelnuts and salt. Set aside.
To make the flatbread, soak the chia seeds in the ½ cup water for at least 15 minutes. In a large bowl, combine the flours, flax seeds, and salt. In a separate bowl, combine the oil, honey, ¾ cup warm water and chia-mixture. Stir together and then add this liquid mix to the dry ingredients. Stir until it comes together with a wooden spoon. The dough should be fairly wet, so add more water if needed. Heat a cast iron skillet over medium heat. While the skillet is heating, divide the dough into 8 pieces and roll out each one on a counter, using brown rice flour to keep it from sticking. Each piece should be roughly 6 to 8 inches in diameter. Don’t worry about getting them perfectly symmetrical. As each piece of dough is rolled out, transfer to the skillet and cook on each side for about 4 minutes. Some of the edges will brown and crisp up; this is normal. As each flatbread is done, transfer to a warm oven until they are all cooked.
To serve, spread tahini cream onto the flatbread, top with lentils, sliced beets, and hazelnuts. Garnish with rose petals and dill.

Autumn, Winter

Garam Masala + Winter Squash Breakfast Porridge

December 7, 2014March 19, 2015by Rebecca3 Comments

If my hair looks slightly more orange than usual, it’s because I’ve been eating winter squash every meal of every day for the past four plus weeks.

Oh. Wait. The hair is actually going back to being blondish-orange, just like when I was five. By that I mean I’ve been plucking gray hairs with a vengeance because apparently two years past the quarter-century mark, and the aging process has progressed significantly. What’s more, I carry a heating pad around to warm my old-lady bones most days, and the stair handrails at work are especially useful for pulling my body up to the fourth floor office.

Okay. Slighht exaggeration. Turns out I can be lazy and dragging myself up the stairs is the best way to get to the top given the no-elevator-unless-more-than-three-minutes-late-to-an-important-meeting policy I’ve implemented. Heating pad story is true though(!) Okkkkay let’s skip the eye rolls and aging talk and get to this winter-squash porridge, now please.

There may be a fair amount of recipes for mornings in this space, but most are never eaten for breakfast!

I love breakfast foods, but I grew up regularly eating Stink Bug Porridge, aka oatmeal with raisins, and I’m ruined forever to anything but porridge-y foods in the morning. Don’t ask how my dad giving it that terrible nickname led me to beg for oatmeal even more.

William and I eat oats most mornings and though he never deviates from his stink bugs, I’m constantly changing up the ingredients, depending on the season. Lately I’ve been see-sawing between pears and pumpkins, always adding a bit of spice. I was inspired by this pie that uses Garam Masala, but since pie is not exactly an everyday food around here and our Thanksgiving last week involved pie eaters that favor traditional flavors like Chocolate pudding(?!?), porridge was a better bet to experiment with.

So…most other breakfasty items actually get rebranded as dessert. Don’t get me started, people that know me. Yes, I consider healthified muffins and granola dessert. Also, eating bacon earlier than 4pm should be outlawed and breakfast sausage is just not my thing. I knowwww. Girl grew up on a cattle ranch and can happily eat mostly-vegan for weeks at a time. So weird.

My siblings often joke about my first memory, age two, of being dropped on my head off a horse (a story for another day!), and if it weren’t for William being so completely normal–aka eating real dessert and bacon for breakfast–my parents would probably disown me.

Garam Masala + Winter Squash Porridge, serves 1

If you’re new to experimenting with these spices, start with less and add more to taste. I’m going to begin with only a dash of each to my dad’s Christmas stink bugs in a couple weeks… ;)

1/2 cup thick rolled oats, certified gluten-free if necessary

1 cup water

1 cup roasted winter squash

1/4 tsp. garam masala

pinch ground cardamom

dash cloves

dash salt

1 Tbs. ground flax or pumpkin seeds

Stevia, honey, brown sugar, or sweetener of choice

In a small saucepan, boil water, and then add oats and winter squash.
Turn down to medium heat and cook until most of the liquid is absorbed and the oats are tender, about 8 minutes. If the squash does not readily break apart, mash it with the back of a spoon.
Stir in the spices and seeds and turn into a serving bowl. Add sweetener to taste.