Scrambling

I am loving reading everyone’s requests for winning the baked goods! Seems like the lemon poppyseed cookies and birdseed bars are in high demand 😉 Keep on piling in those entries!

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I don’t think whatever that sickness I had yesterday had much of a chance…in fact, I think I effectively slept it off. Between dozing all morning yesterday and sleeping until nearly 8:00 this morning, I was good to go today. I woke up still a little “bleh,” but ate something and took 875% of my d.v. of vitamin C and I was feeling better already.

I actually received this sample along with my iHerb order, and I figured there was no day better than today to use it. Yes, that is 525 mg of vitamin C per serving, and yes, that does equate 875% of my daily value of the stuff.

I was a little worried I was going to turn into a clementine or something, but I’m still alive. Even better than alive, dare I say.

Maybe this was the reason why I felt so good all afternoon? It’s probably just coincidence, but oh well 😉

Good enough to go grocery shopping, even!

…unfortunately, I would have been better off at home. Ugh, $60? Really? I am so upset because I didn’t need to spend that much. In fact, I had just cashed a check for $45 an intended to spend no more than that.

I decided to just go to Price Chopper (from here on out to be called “The store which shall not be named,” AKA TSWSNBN) rather than Hannaford (closest thing I have to a Whole Foods around here, though I’m thinking it’s less expensive from what I hear) because of the whole convenience thing. TSWSNBN = 5 mins away, Hannaford = 1 hour away. It’s convenient if I’m in the area because of work/going to see Teddie, but not on a day like today.

Anyways. I get there and start cringing at the produce prices, but shrug it off thinking “I didn’t spend any gas money to get here at least.” and carry on. Note I pretty much just buy produce that’s on sale. If you can call it that.

Not only that, but they were out of just about everything I needed – most imperatively, dates.

I almost started crying when the stock-boy told me they were sold out. My lip started quivering and I had to breathe deep, but luckily I spared him the waterworks. And moved on to wanting to hit him over the head with the chopped dates he suggested I get.

You know you’re a date addict when you move from feelings of despair to ones of extreme anger.

Not only that but all their produce was on its outs, they didn’t have any old fashioned rolled oats unless I wanted to buy them in the tiniest container possible for $4 and I bought a moldy yucca.

So basically, I have to go to Hannafords and/or the co-op sometime soon anyway. And had I known that from the get-go, I just plain wouldn’t have wasted my time and money there today.

UGH! Okay, rant over. Onto happy things.

Like banana scrambles.

Oh hail yes. I feel better just looking at that. Don’t you?

It’s like food therapy.

See, the other option for breakfast the other morning was a banana scramble, but the French toast had the louder scream.

When I saw Jenny suggest a banana scramble on that very post, I knew it was fate. I had to try one, once and for all. I might start cheating on my pancakes for these babies, too.

But oyu know what I haven’t had in a while?

Anything gingerbread. I’m assuming this has been done already, since it is gingerbread and all…but here’s how I did it:

Gingerbread Banana Scramble

adapted from The Edible Perspective’s Cinnamon Banana Scramble

• 1/3 c. quick oats
• 1 T. oat bran
• 1 t. chia seeds
• 1-2 T. milk
• 1/2 of a large banana
• 1/2 t. cinnamon
• 1/8 t. ground clove
• 1/8 – 1/4 t. ground ginger
• 1/4 t. ground nutmeg
• 1/2 – 1 t. molasses
• pinch of maple sugar

Mash the banana with the oats. Mix in all remaining ingredients and then form into a patty with your hands. Place on a pre-heated, greased pan and cook until golden brown on both sides. Top with peanut-ginger sauce.

Peanut-Ginger Sauce

• scant 1/4 c. peanut flour
• 1/2 – 1 t. molasses
• 1/2 t. maple syrup (or to taste)
• pinch ground ginger
• heavy pinch ground cinnamon
• 2-3 T. milk

Whisk together all ingredients, starting with just 1 T. milk and adding more to get to your desired consistency. Check for sweetness, adding more maple syrup as your taste buds call for it 😉

The only thing that would have made this better would have been having it between French toast. Too bad I was out of bread :[

But naturally, when new obsessions are born, they do not die quickly. As a snack post-workout, I decided more were necessary as an almost-lunch-but-not-quite.

On a note unrelated to banana scrambles, I think this was when I realized I might be more of a “late morning” workout kinda gal. I’ve never given myself the chance to workout anytime other than mornings, before starting my day. I felt like my mind was so much more in it today, though.

Maybe I was just high on Vitamin C, though.

In keeping with my almost-tradition of making just about everything either gingerbread or carrot cake, though, these ones were carrot cake.

I die.

Carrot Cake Banana Scrambles

adapted from the Edible Perspective’s Apple Scramble

• 1/4 c. quick oats
• 2-3 T. applesauce
• 5 shredded baby carrots (do you find it funny to imagine me shredding poor little baby carrots?)
• 1 t. chia seeds
• 1/2 t. ground cinnamon
• 1/4 t. ground nutmeg
• pinch ground ginger
• 1/2 T. shredded coconut
• pinch maple sugar
• 2-3 T. milk

Combine all ingredients, adding in more milk as you see fit. Carefully form a patty (or two) and place it on a preheated, greased pan. Cook until golden on both sides.  Serve and top with peanut-carrot sauce, coconut, carrot, pecans and molasses.

Peanut-Carrot Sauce

• scant 1/4 c. peanut flour
• 1 shredded baby carrot
• 1/2 t. maple syrup (more or less as desired)
• 2-3 T. milk

Whisk all ingredients together, adding milk 1 T. at a time until you reach your desired consistency.

I think this one would have been ever better with a banana instead of applesauce, just to add a little bit more sweetness to the carrots. I didn’t really want to go on three bananas today, though. What can I say?

What else happened today? Well, naturally I made more bread. Do I even need to say I love Sarena’s bread anymore? It’s probably engrained in everyone’s brains already.

I made this loaf with 6-grain flour that I’d almost forgotten about, adding in a little Vital Wheat Gluten to make up for the heavier flour.

You know bread is good when you can eat it plain without even toasting it.

I made Chelsey’s granola and burnt all the raisins.

Luckily, I don’t mind the occassional taste of char. You probably think I’m being witty right now but I’m totally serious.

Ironically, I also had to make it with quick oats. The whole reason I wanted to get rolled oats at the store was so I could make granola. My heart was dead-set on making granola though, so I didn’t give up. It worked better than I thought it would!

Aaand lastly – sausage and peppers and a baked sweet potato.

You know what I realized? I don’t think I like green peppers anymore.

And also: Jenn’s method of baking a couple sweet potatoes at a time (in the oven) for grabbing one on the fly, totally works. I baked this one when I baked one for last night, and after reheating in the toaster oven, it was just as good as if it were fresh out of the oven. It’s a great trick if I’m craving a sweet potato for work the next day since it takes an hour in the oven and I now flat-out refuse to microwave-bake my taters.

What are your time-saving techniques?

Seitan Sausages

I had better not be getting sick.

My boss has been sick for the past…well, it seems like he’s always sick…but really sick for the past two weeks. I’ve been feeling 100% but all of a sudden this afternoon I got a tickle in my throat.

When these things happen, I tend to go a little overboard. Call it paranoia of catching the nasties, if you will. But as soon as there is even a vague hint of a cold or the nasties, I come home and start chugging the vit C and fresh veg.

And seitan sausages.

What, you don’t look to sausages to cure the plague?

…oh. Maybe it’s the higher protein content that I am hoping will shield me from infection.

You may or may not recall my mention of being burnt out on tempeh.

As well as my mention of limiting my grocery spending.

Enter: seitan. I used to make it all the time. What happened?!

I have no reasonably excuse for our time apart. I do enjoy seitan, after all.

But it was time to take vital wheat gluten’s and my relationship to the next level.

Every since first hearing I could make my own “seitan sausages,” I was intrigued by the idea.

Every time I went to make them though, I was turned off by all the many steps.

I think I was just being lazy, though. Truth is, making them was not difficult. I could have read the directions to Kaia and she’d have been able to make them, for Pete’s sake.

I based my seitan sausages off of these recipes. The flavors weren’t anything that tickled my fancy for what I envisioned in my mind, so I took the template and tweaked to my liking.

Aren’t they creepy looking?! No fear, though – they taste phenomenal. Perfect to go with a “sausage and peppers” theme. With pasta and jarred pasta sauce.

The initial idea was to have them with Chelsey’s Mexicalian cilantro pesto, but it was as I was chopping the cilantro for my sausages that I remembered I’m not a cilantro fan.

I think I get my herbs mixed up, and can only remember which ones I like when I smell them fresh.

From now on, I’ll just be that girl over in the produce aisle, sniffing all the herbs before landing them in my cart.

Hey, they have those little shower-sprayers for a reason. For wackjobs like me.

Either way, I still sauteed some sliced sausage up with onions and jarred roasted reds. We had no fresh. I’m telling you, my fridge is empty. I’m going to make it work, though. The cilantro was the last fresh bit of green in there, which is why it still made an appearance. The rotini tossed in jarred pasta sauce pulled it all together.

It’s the little things, people. The little things.

Tonight I had one in a similar fashion, but with polenta. Mmmm, mm. I love polenta.

Seitan Sausages:

yields 3-4 sausages

adapted from “Have Cake Will Travel”s fauxsages.

• 1/2 c. + 2 T. vital wheat gluten
• 2 T. nutritional yeast
• 1/2 t. italian seasoning
• dash crushed red pepper
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 T. onion, chopped finely
• 1 T. fresh cilantro, optional
• 1/2 t. sea salt
• 2-3 sundried tomatoes in oil, chopped
• 1 t. dried chives
• 1 T. olive oil (I used the olive oil in the sundried tomato jar)
• 1/3 c. + 3 T. water

Preheat oven to 325* F. In a large bowl, combine the VWG, nutritional yeast, italian seasoning, pepper, garlic, onion, cilantro, salt, chives and tomatoes. In a small bowl, whisk together the oil and water. Add to the VWG mixture, and mix to combine. Knead a few times. If you’ve got some herbs/onions/tomatoes wanting to fall out, that’s fine.

Divide the mixture into 4 equal parts, roll out a bit, and wrap tightly in a piece of aluminum foil. Repeat for the remaining, and place in a baking dish. Bake for one hour to an hour and 15 minutes. When done, unwrap and allow to cool. Or eat right away.

Some notes:

• I think I overcooked mine a bit at an hour and 15. Next time I’d probably just do an hour.
• I’d also like to try baking them in something, like tomato sauce. Maybe if they were baked in the foil for half the time, then taken out and baked in tomato sauce?
• Needs more cowbell.

On another note, I wanted to share this fab little snack/dessert/what-have-you:

Averie’s banana oat cakes. The fig jam is a critical element.

What do you do when you have a hunch the plague is after you?

Seitan – yay or nay?