gluten – Page 8 – morestomach

we went to get dw fitted for a few suits
this summer
doing the grown up thing,
chatting with a proper
tailor
dw standing in front of a
3-way mirror
being tucked and nipped
and damnit, me kissing him silly
cus he is just so dang c u t e
(fyi: making out in public,
in a men’s fancy schmancy suit store
is only entertaining for me,
everyone else gets all flustered)

pda aside,
i always equated getting clothes specially
fitted and tailored
to be oh so grown up,
adult,
and well, i realize i am a
grown ass woman,
i feel so (not to mention, act) adolescent
does this feeling ever go away?
i hope not

when i was younger i wasn’t
much of a snacker
sure we had the random dorritos
or triscuits in the house,
sometimes,
however that was later, when my
sisters grew up and for
convenience sake there were
nibbles available
but when it was pretty much
just me in the house,
with my gparents,
there was never enough in the grocery
fund for cookies or fruit roll ups
as a result, i’m awful with
remembering to pick up
snacks
and even with the means to buy
them now,
and even when it’s on the list
i draw blanks with what to buy
so poor dw’s lunches are
always bland:
(he’d be the kid in the cafeteria
with nothing to trade)
the leftovers from the previous
night’s dinner
maybe a piece of fruit
and
that’s it
i know, right?

goldfish crackers are a
childhood staple,
not my childhood,
but you know,
~~the white folk~~
i could buy them now
i suppose, but they’ve been on
my radar to attempt,
and since i’m a grown up without
little ones to mind
i spent a sunday morning rolling the dough,
cutting the fish shapes
no lie, they’re adorable
they taste like the real stuff
i think i would just rather
re-learn how to grocery shop
for snacks

homemade goldfish crackers
adapted from she wears many hats

8 oz Sharp Cheddar Cheese, shredded. i used cabot’s seriously sharp cheddar
4 TBL cold coconut oil, Cut Into Cubes
1 cup spelt flour
pinch of salt
2 TBL ice cold water

in a food processor pulse everything but the water until the mixture looks like coarse sand

add in the water, one tablespoon at a time. resist the urge to add more. just don’t.

divide the dough into 3, wrapped in plastic and chill for 20 minutes.

preheat oven at 350F.

remove dough from fridge and allow for the cold edge to warm a smidge. remember, coconut oil is finicky, it gets hard at a lower temp but also melts real easily.

roll out the dough and cut into desired shapes. for the first 3 dozen i made little goldfish and then i got over it and just cut the rest of the dough into little random shapes with a pizza cutter. it all tastes the same, trust me.

place crackers on parchment paper lined cookie sheet. bake for about 15 minutes. store at room temp in air tight container.

may is disappearing quickly,
much quicker and cooler than anticipated.
we’ve been traveling this season,
almost at a manic pace.

i must confess that i am
better suited for the quiet mundane of
A Set Schedule.

last week, for something to divert my attention from
work,
i began a series of confessions on
facebook,
ranging from the silly to the downright
mean.
i won’t divulge them here,
but i will share with you this one confession:
for all my desires for a happy gut,
soaking & fermenting,
sometimes i just want a quick & easy recipe
where none of that is required,
and so enters this recipe for bread.

while it does require an overnight rising,
therefore requiring some forethought,
it’s a very easy recipe
there is no kneading involved
but you will need a dutch oven.

june is shaping to be a usual summer month of berry picking and csas
it will shape in the everyday kind of way that happens only when you’re staying close to home
and i confess to reveling in the very thought of sameness.

what confessions would you like to share?
no worries, i won’t judge! 🙂

dutch oven bread smothered with garlic-herb olive oil
adapted from simply so good

3 cups organic AP flour
1 3/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp yeast, i use red star
1 1/2 cups warm water, i just turn the tap on to warm

dump all ingredients into a bowl and mix with a fork or, you know, a handy dandy dough whisk. it’ll be a lumpy mess, not too wet or dry. cover with plastic wrap, leave on counter, forget about it for 18-24 hours.

when ready, heat oven to 450F. when it’s reached that temp, put dutch oven or cast iron pot in oven for 30 minutes. meanwhile, generously dust counter with flour. dump out the dough onto the counter and just shape into a mound or ball. cover with kitchen towel for the 30 minutes the pot is in the oven. when ready, put the dough into the pot (be careful to not burn yourself!) (edit to add: an option is to plop the dough on parchment paper and then plop into the pot. less chance of getting in contact with the hot pot!), cover and bake for 30 minutes. then remove lid and bake for an additional 15 minutes. remove bread and allow to cool on rack.

optional:
during the first 30 minutes of baking, in a sauce pan add 1/4 cup olive oil, 1 generous tsp of dried herbs (oregano, dried thyme, or italian spices is fine) and 3 cloves of minced garlic. on med-low heat just allow the oil to warm through, infusing with the herbs and garlic. for the final 15 minutes of bake time, when you take the lid off the pot, with a pastry brush, brush the olive oil on top of the bread.

great for dipping, or if you have any leftover, make into croutons.