Bee-Squee Part 2: Sweet and Savory

This weekend's biscuit project was a double-feature. After an inspiring episode of Master Chef this past Monday, I wanted to be adventurous and take a risk. One of the chefs made this amazing-looking French pastry with an egg baked right inside. It had been poached in such a way that when you cut into the pastry, the egg yolk ran and blended with a creamy wine sauce. Swoon.

Grocery shopping is less strategic for me, now that I don't have to plan out the week's lunches with the same attention to detail as I did before. So when I sampled some store-made pimento cheese, I had a flash of inspiration. What if I folded pimento cheese right into the biscuit dough? I'm brilliant! I grabbed a tub, lots of butter, and a bag of flour just in case I might be running low.

For my base recipe this time, I consulted my Better Homes & Gardens and went with the "Biscuits Supreme" recipe. Lots of butter, lots of baking powder. It called for cream of Tartar, but I decided to follow the sage advice of my great Grandmother Amlin and use baking soda, mixed right into the buttermilk. Holy cow, the dough starts rising as you're cutting it, quite lovely!

There's a reason they say not to over-work your dough: the biscuits won't rise as much. With the addition of about a cup of pimento cheese, the biscuits didn't rise as high, but they were still light, flaky, and addicting. I sprinkled the tops with cayenne pepper.

Another new tip I learned, also from Granny Amlin: melt butter in your cast iron skillets, lots of butter. As you put each biscuit on the pan, put it top-side down to coat the top in butter before flipping on the correct side to cook. Then the tops are crispy and golden-brown. Ahhhh.


I used my cast iron griddle this time, it worked just as well.


My next biscuit recipe was a sweet biscuit. I used a half a cup of sugar in the recipe. When I laid the biscuits into the skillets, I made a small indentation in each with a spoon, and dropped a dallop of raspberry strawberry jam in the center of each biscuit. The jam bubbles by the end, and makes for the perfect breakfast-on-the-go. I know because I had two(!) after my run this morning.

Look how nicely they rise!

And last but not least - the egg-speriment. Alas, the egg was almost completely raw and I couldn't eat it. But it looked beautiful - I used the pimento cheese dough. I want to continue working on egg pastries after my biscuit project ends.

Sometimes it's fun not to follow instructions or a recipe, and just try something, even if it doesn't work out how you thought it would.

the bee-squee project: recipe 1

sometimes it's good to think inside the box. tonight, that's exactly what i did, with a few last-minute touches. i followed the recipe from a bag of gold medal self-rising flour, the very recipe that inspired me to start a biscuit challenge. they're called "extraordinary buttermilk biscuits," so i figured it was worth a shot. besides, i have a lot of buttermilk in my fridge right now, best to put it to good use.


the recipe was pretty simple, especially since self-rising flour comes with baking powder already added. i personally think that self-rising flour is a bit silly, but it was in my yellow cake recipe from the weekend, and i'm a stickler for using the correct ingredients when i start the first time.

i laid out my ingredients. it seems that people are a fan of baking their biscuits on baking sheets - i buttered the bottom of my cast iron skillets, because that's how the ladies in my family make biscuits. i followed the directions, decided to add a tsp of kosher salt to the mix as well because i like my biscuits nice and savory, and at the very end, brushed the biscuits with a wash of beaten egg, honey, a dash of cayenne pepper, and topped the biscuits with a sprinkle of kosher salt before putting in the oven.


cutting the dough - i know very well that it's not good to over-work it, and i guess i didn't because they rose nicely!


the biscuits pre-wash. i cut them with a cocktail glass, they're about two inches in diameter.


in the oven and ready to go...


bret was home and needed dinner - our fridge is kind of shy of groceries right now, save eggs, bacon, a little onion, and a bit of low fat feta cheese. i made him a dinner of buttermilk scrambled eggs in butter with onion and spices, feta cheese, and bacon stacked into two small biscuits. he loved it!



finally, because i don't have much biscuit experience, i decided to experiment and make a smashed biscuit flat bread thing. it was absolutely delicious, like a dense, flaky buttermilk pancake. i pan fried it in butter and managed to restrict myself to a total of two bites of flat biscuit and half of a regular biscuit. seamus got the rest, lucky dog. the intact leftover biscuits are coming with bret to work tomorrow.

bee-squee

or - biscuit. biscuits always make me go "squee," the really fabulous flaky biscuits that just came out of the oven and are dripping with melted butter and jam or honey.

i must make biscuits, that is my project for the week. i'm starting with a very basic recipe on a bag of self-rising flour that i got to make yellow cake over the weekend (that cake was a hot mess, made the icing way too pasty and my niece and nephew had a very hard time making it look decent. photo is below, my father actually photoshopped it, that's how bad it was. maybe i should be working on icing cakes, but i'd rather work on biscuits).


how will i make biscuits on a regular basis and not gain a million pounds? well, my evening ice cream and dinner's carbohydrate will be replaced by that day's test biscuit (if it's good, if it's just one bad bite, that doesn't count).

so i need advice - what makes your perfect biscuits perfect? i'm sure i'll figure out my own little spin on it, but in the meantime, i'd love some ideas.

recovery and ice cream

it seems like almost every moment of my day is in some way or another related to running: i'm sleeping (very deeply, deep enough that i've been waking up with a stiff neck), eating, and drinking water to recover and rebuild. i'm eating and drinking water to prep for the next run. i'm putting my feet up so they can un-swell from all the time spent pounding my feet into what's starting to feel like over-tenderized chicken paillards. from all the calories i consume (meticulously recorded of course), i should be gaining weight, but i'm losing at a very slow but comfortable pace of about a pound a week.

i'm running so much i don't feel like posting on daily mile anymore. if someone on my facebook feed posted the runs i do, i would feel like a slacker and decide that any effort to get in shape was futile and go watch master chef on the couch. i keep wondering how i'm doing it, and then i realized it yesterday run-walking a miserable, hot, sore and tired 6 miles. i'm doing it because i can. what a wonderful feeling! hopefully this will be my takeaway for most daunting things in life. previous to signing up with rogue, i didn't do things like run in the afternoons during the summer because it would be too hard. there are many things in life i haven't tried because i think they would be too hard. bad thinking! we should instead do things because we can. and if we don't finish it, we still could. we could because we started. and there's my inspirational thought for the day. i think taking advil this morning fueled my optimism.

in the spirit of doing difficult things, i purchased a cake decorating kit at target yesterday - can't wait to crack it open with my foodie nephew richard tomorrow and make some yellow cake with chocolate buttercream - and embellishments galore.

sunday is father's day, and i get to celebrate it with two fabulous dads: my brother and my father. we will enjoy burgers (i got a beet patty from whole foods waiting to be grilled in my freezer), beer, and cake. how exactly am i supposed to focus on my work, on a day like today?

the feast of grain

today, the western world celebrates pentecost. like most religious observances, pentecost stems from pagan practices. in the most ancient of days, the original pentecost was a celebration of the spring harvest.

in the old testament, moses instructs the israelites to observe shavout, a "feast of weeks" to occur on the first day after the sabbath that occurs during passover. the israelites were instructed to offer sacrifices of grain from their harvest and celebrate with feasting:

"Instructions are given for the 'Feast of Weeks' and how to count it from the first day after the Sabbath that falls in the Feast of Unleavened Bread. They were to come with offerings from their grain harvest and their flocks and bring them to the priest who would wave them before Yahweh, after which they would partake together of a sacrificial feast from the things which they had brought. Some of their fields were to be left unharvested for the provision of the poor who were to be remembered at this time. It was to be a "holy convocation" (a formal assembly) in which no 'customary' work was to be done." (source: Wikibooks)

the shvout was a time when the israelites were to make themselves known to their god with gifts, prayer, and time spent in fellowship with friends and family.

the christian pentecost is not so different. a more random thought: why don't christians observe passover? this makes no sense to me - why not complete the last week of lenten fasting with the passover feast, followed by easter? no, it wouldn't fit with the calendar. i find christianity to often be overly rigid and frustratingly illogical at times. the version of jesus i imagine is much like gandhi: kind, loving, fasts for peace, does not exclude the sinner from his infinite grace. and then i see the religion of christianity often very different from said example. there is so much history behind its practice, why is that history ignored?

i hope no one is offended by any of this - i like to roll these thoughts around in my mind.

pentecost means "fifty days" in greek, and the christian feast of pentecost falls 50 days after the crucifixion of christ. according to the book of acts, the holy spirit made himself known to the disciples during the very first pentecost. filled with the voice of the holy spirit, the disciples spoke the gospel in all languages at once. western europe has since celebrated the feast of pentecost with warmer weather, the abundance of their harvest, and their faith:

"Pfingsten, das liebliche Fest, speaks of Pentecost as a time of greening and blooming in fields, woods, hills, mountains, bushes and hedges, of birds singing new songs, meadows sprouting fragrant flowers, and of festive sunshine gleaming from the skies and coloring the earth - iconic lines idealizing the Pentecost holidays in the German speaking lands." (source: Wikipedia)

as someone who isn't particularly religious or devout, i'm not sure about the speaking in tongues part. i'm not sure about the timing of western religious holidays. i do believe that we can all improve ourselves and find takeaway from most spiritual lessons. a good example of that is, from the example of the greek gods, to fear the wrath of the gods. here is my pentecostal takeaway:

love your family

know your purpose (for some, that is to know god. for others, that is to be a great mom or dad. but we all need an intention), and let that purpose speak through you

meditate, quietly, and with a sense of grace

whenever your speak, do your best to communicate in a way that your listeners will understand

enjoy the fruits of your season

share bread with those you love the most

i watched eat pray love this weekend. i didn't particularly enjoy the movie, but i do want to start meditating. i spend too much time absorbed in my routines, my schedules, all the things outside of myself. my most profound memories of bikram yoga, during that time when i survived misery in part by pulling my muscles to shreds in a steaming stinky studio, when the teacher would instruct us to "meditate" in the midst of a particularly impossible balance pose. i looked in the mirror into my eyes and saw my intention to succeed and managed to balance, even if it was for a fraction of a second. i knew myself and my purpose. the rest of the world fell away, crashed to oblivion.

today i celebrated the spring harvest, the day of knowing my intention. i shared bread with bret, the person who i love the most. after the mavericks game, i will meditate and do foot drills.

Breakfast!

Breakfast really is the most important meal of the day. If I didn't eat breakfast, I would probably turn into some sort of prehistoric monster thing. However, if we want to be our best, breakfast also has to be nutritious, natch. Yesterday morning, while sweating through the first mile of a 5-mile run, followed by a 9.5 mile bike ride (waah), I mentally concocted a breakfast so delicious it negated my need for a stop at Starbucks during the bike ride. It truly was amazing, probably in part because I was hungry enough to eat my shampoo bottle. It was also vegetarian, healthy, and a perfect mix of protein, carbs, sodium, and fiber to "fuel my recovery," as my running coach encourages us to do.

Ingredients:
1 egg
4-5 strips Tempeh Coconut Curry Marinated Strips (better than bacon and virtually fat free!)
1 Thomas's Everything Bagelthin
2 tsp Earth Balance Buttery Spread
Cholula, if desired
Salt and Pepper to taste

Spray your egg pan with a little bit of olive oil and prepare however you like it best - I did mine over-easy with the yolk just a bit runny. To cook your egg that way, heat the skillet on medium-high. You want to drop the egg on with a nice sizzle to keep your egg at about the same size as your bagel. Season with salt and pepper. Cook on that side for 1.5 to 2 minutes, flip, and turn the burner off. Yes, it will finish cooking, and it won't burn while you prep the rest of your food.

When you get your egg pan heating, spray and heat a cast iron or nonstick skillet on medium high. When the pan is hot, fry your tempeh strips for a couple of minutes on each side, or until nicely browned. Do not burn your tempeh, it is absolutely no bueno.

Toast your bagel thin and spread each half with the Earth Balance. Flip your egg on the bottom half and douse (well, I like dousing, you might like a dash) with Cholula. Add the tempeh strips, serve if desired with your favorite fruit and a big hot cup of coffee.

it's tuesday!

this morning i ran about the place thinking, holy cow, tomorrow will already be wednesday. as i munch on a fabulous lunch, i'm reminding myself that it still only is tuesday. i'm trying to focus on my various tasks at the office, not on planning my three-day trip. i'll put together a quick to-do list, then get back to my work.

the office provides us with a multitude of great healthy lunch options, but i had a salad leftover from last night - my veggie burger was filling enough on its own - and half an avocado that needed to be eaten, so i packed a bento box. thankfully, i'm falling back into my age-old "eat this, not that" routine of picking items that are significantly lower in calories than others. it's easier than i remembered to have a 400 calorie lunch instead of a 600 calorie lunch, and be just as full.

i'm sure that the question of the weigh exists - i have not weighed since last week, because i went out of town this past weekend to an amazing wedding with the best food ever. i ate like it was my last meal. weight loss experts would probably grumble at me to get my butt on a scale, and i probably should, but the last thing i need is to feel discouraged. i know what to do to lose weight, and it doesn't involve a scale at this moment. i think next monday morning will be an ideal time to step on the scale and see what it tells me. then i can start the weekly weigh-in routine again and record my progress. right now, progress is changing the eating habits.

former lunch example:
sandwich that included a veggie patty, cheese, and maybe avocado, approx. 400 cals
1 serving potato chips, approx. 150 cals
piece of fruit or small cookie, approx. 100 cals
total: 650 calories
hungry again: in 2.5 hours

today's lunch:
salad with spinach, croutons, 2tbsp low fat feta, 1 tbsp sweet vidalia onion dressing, 1/2 of an avodaco, and small amounts of carrot, tomato, and red onion, approx. 300 cals
fresh blackberries and strawberries (1 cup each), approx. 100 cals
greens supplement, 30 cals
total: 430 calories

when i get hungry again is still TBD. but i will say that a half of an avocado is every bit as delectable and indulgent as a serving of chips, and much more filling.

wacky week

in the interest of not hating dinnertime (key for me to eat dinners at home), i bought yummy, low-calorie ice cream treats. lots. blue bunny's bomb pops, skinny cow ice cream sandwiches and truffle bars, and jamba juice fruit bars. they are all under 150 calories, and will get me through a summer of low calorie chilling. i figure if my intentions are good, then my food choices will be as well. if there are great choices at my fingertips at home, i won't sabotage my success by the end of the day.

this week's biggest potential roadblock is a two-day trip up to dallas. i drive up wednesday and come back friday. i'll be doing lots of whole foods demos, which can either result in healthy or very unhealthy choices (will i hit the salad bar or the pizza station?) because i have to log in my results, and i have to use my food to have the energy to run ridiculous numbers of miles, i plan to hit the salad bar. they have such wonderful options as tofu cubes, butter beans, and red quinoa to top organic spring greens. who could possibly say no to that? and if that's not enough, they always have at least one vegan, broth-based soup. and fresh fruit for dessert.

i'm trying to figure out how my workout schedule will coincide with my work schedule. wednesdays are proving to be a challenge, because i have to combine several miles of running with cross training. on a normal work day, i will be able to run before work and take spin class after work, or the opposite. this wednesday, i drive to dallas for a 3pm demo and don't finish until 7. then i have to get up at 4:15 because my brother has decided i need to run with his thursday running group. thankfully, i don't have to be at whole foods until 11, so i'll be able to take a nap. here is my tentative schedule of wednesday-friday so far:
wednesday
5am wake up, run 4.75 course to brodie and back
6:30am bike to starbucks, eat breakfast, bike back (10 miles total)
9am-11am work, load car for dallas
11:30am leave for dallas
3-7pm demo
8pm pass out

thursday
4:15am wake up, run 6 miles with my brother's group
7-9am nap
9-10am work
11am-7pm demo
8pm pass out

friday
rest and hydrate for saturday's 12-miler
7-10am work
11am-3pm demo
3-7pm drive to austin

there may be meetings in there, i'm not sure yet. also, i'll probably have to get work done over the weekend. but this actually seems manageable, now that i have everything broken down.

time for bed!

to your health

the coaches at rogue have warned via discussion board not to eat too few calories while training for our fall marathons - they do not want us to feel depleted. according to them, our goal should be to maintain, rather than lose, weight. well, i want to lose some pounds, and i think i can do it slowly. i've done extensive research to figure out how many calories i can eat a day and still lose weight (1800). beyond that, i've figured out how many calories i can eat most days and be satisfied (1500-1600, yes i am a hungry lady.) on days when i'm going to work out more than an hour, it will take all 1800 of those calories to satisfy me. and every single calorie is going to have to count: i need nutritional benefits from all fuel that goes into my body.

to help micromanage my eating habits, i found a great iphone app (i got the free version) that tracks my calories, weight loss progress, and workouts. anytime i eat, it will go into the app. because i have my phone everywhere, it will be easier than dragging a note pad with me. plus, this app has most foods in it (i don't have to calculate how many calories in that tablespoon of sesame seeds on my salad, it can tell me).

finally, here are my rules:

everything i eat must be delicious, or at least sound delicious. if my food doesn't satisfy my palette, it will not satisfy my body. the lean cuisine plan doesn't work for me because frankly, their meals aren't that good.

everything must be nutritious. crackers with my sandwich are not a good option - besides, for the same calories as 5 crackers, i can have a big bowl of greens with fresh tomatoes and 6 croutons.

snacking needs to make sense. i cannot have chips - at 150 calories per empty calorie serving, they do nothing for me, vs. 1/2 cup of baby carrots, 10 mini pretzels, and 2 tbsp hummus for the same calories.

snacks cannot exceed 400 calories per day. there are not exceptions.

think hard about condiments - cottage cheese may not be as yummy as blue cheese, but the same amount has a third of the calories.

i have to have a greens supplement every day.

i like my rules, they sound yummy. tonight, i hit the grocery store.

the rise of the new food pyramid

this entry was inspired by information from Mrs. Q's blog post about the new food pyramid.

i am in love with the brilliant, intuitive new food pyramid. The plate interface allows families to build their meals together instead of building servings and trying to figure out how that fits with whatever menu or refrigerator options might be in front of them.

this is wonderful - i'm a planner, and my meals are no different. when i sit down to write out my week's menu, this plate is much easier to decipher than a triangle. it's per meal, rather than per day, so very simple. hopefully it goes into sizes - for example, a protein should typically be the size of a deck of cards. but at least this gets us all thinking in the right direction.

what do you think?