slow food

I really have missed being a slow cook.

The size of my kitchen does not matter to me.  I did enjoy the forced minimalism in my camper kitchen.  I found out how little I really need in my kitchen, and it was freeing to have just want I wanted at my fingertips.

But it's hard to create the controlled environment I need for some projects, without a house.  And besides that, most kitchen work I do is messy and smelly and takes sitting undisturbed for too long.  It just didn't work well for our particular situation.

So, the first thing I did when I moved in was to try to create a sourdough.  That flopped- I think because of the softened water.  I'll try again with bottled water next week.  I am right now experimenting with sauerkraut.  I tried fermented carrots, but that didn't work too well... For several reasons, I suspect.  I've also made yogurt, which I was so excited about.

The best part is getting back into soaking grains.  This had to be put on hold in the camper because of water use.  It takes a lot of water to properly soak and rinse any grain, and I just couldn't fill up the grey tank with dirty rice water, so we just didn't eat much rice or quinoa.  It doesn't use so much water to soak flour, but I wasn't making bread or anything with flour on the road- we took a cup of sugar and two cups of flour with us, and nearly of all of it was still there when we moved into this house.  Instead, we bought 3 loaves of bread a week.  Two sourdough, and one either cheap sandwich bread or a multigrain.

I have rediscovered how much I love long kitchen chores.  I just love putting the beans and rice and flour to soak the night before, and waking up to deal with all of it properly in the morning, while the kids eat breakfast.  there's just something... I don't know, comfortable, about the way I make chili, starting 2 days in advance with dried beans, instead of 30 minutes before we eat by dumping all the cans together and swishing in a few spices.  I like long processes better.

So, one by one, I'm replacing all the prepackaged food with made from scratch.  We've had no hamburger helper type stuff for 2 months now (that stuff really makes me sick, I couldn't eat half our meals on the road).  I've now successfully replaced store bought bread.  This summer I'll slowly replenish our supply of frozen fruits and vegetables so that we are eating stuff I processed myself next year.  I'd like to make my own peanut butter, but I am not sure it's possible with only a blender.  Tomorrow I will make my own oat flour and possibly quinoa flour for a mulitgrain bread I have in mind.  This week will be full of other soaked flour foods- I'll make my own pancakes and waffles and muffins, then freeze them.  Next week I'll tackle the pasta problem (I do really want bow ties, maybe I can make them by hand.).

After that, I'll go after the canned goods we buy every week- which is really only beats and baked beans, nothing too complicated I should think.  How awesome would it be to have a year's supply of homemade baked beans stocked up in the garage?  I just love the idea.

So, if anyone is interested in making some weird hippy food with me soon, let me know, I'll be happy to have someone to talk to while I cook!