Try This

Back when we were newlyweds and I used to work in D.C. I basically had to put horse blinders on while heading for my train home each night. Why? I had to walk right by an Auntie Anne's Pretzels booth. It just about killed me. Those delectable, crispy, salty, melt-in-your-mouth buttery delights were my favorite thing in the world.

Well, I found a pretty darn good substitute today. And if I had dunked them in melted butter at the end, I'm convinced they would've been just as good. But short of that, they're pretty darn amazing. I surprised the kids with these after school and man, we sorta died and went to heaven. Just thinking of those dry, nasty cardboard box frozen versions that have been sitting in a 7-11 warmer all day makes me want to dry heave after eating one of these babies. Never again.

Chewy on the inside, crispy on the outside. Sweet or savory. Gorgeous. Try it. Recipe here (discovered through our old friend Pinterest.)

I have about 4 other soft pretzel recipes pinned to try as well, so I'll keep you posted if they top this one.

(Eat 'em hot because it's a crime to miss out on that melty, mouthwatering perfection factor the next day.)

And hey, if you're looking for a less time intensive but impressively easy and tasty (and healthier than store bought alternatives) snack. Try making potato chips in the microwave. It totally works. Here's a pic of ours (kids loooooved them) and here's the Recipe.

(We shook them up in a ziploc bag with oil, garlic salt and pepper, but I bet a packet of ranch or some vinegar would be great too.)


POST EDIT:
Alright, I tried a couple more soft pretzel recipes and here is our favorite. This other recipe from Our Best Bites was beat out by the slimmest margins. I did them both in a night and we've discovered the secret to resurrect the leftovers. Just pop 'em in the toaster and they're almost as good as fresh out of the oven. The kids have been stealing them for lunches and I dunk mine in anything from icing to pasta sauce to butternut soup - divine!

Weekend Getaway

Well, we did it! Something we realized on the drive out of town that we have never done. Ever. An official, us only, weekend getaway. We've done an overnight a couple times, a few long dates, and even a full week in NYC together, but even most of those were either with a nursing baby or a work trip where we only had dinner and a couple hours at night to enjoy together (nyc.) Granted I am almost 8 months pregnant, but we did it - we got away for 2.5 days, just the two of us.

AND IT WAS FABULOUS.

Thanks to some good friends who offered so convincingly (and tripled their kid count), we headed out to the coast for the weekend and explored some new sights. Kangaroo Valley, Nowra, Shoalhaven, Kiama, Berry, Jervis Bay... we did our fair share of driving, but loved it all. Just that feeling of stopping the car on a whim, hopping out, shutting the door and walking away to whatever interests you - without being responsible for the safety or opinions of 4 other beings and their belongings. Incredible.

I didn't realize how depleted I was until I felt the exhilaration of release. It's not like my life's a drag or motherhood is drudgery. It's just a total full time job emotionally, physically and mentally. It's draining. It's fantastic, but it's draining. You have your own agenda as a human being - like a string coming from your forehead, pulling you forward. But as Mom, there's also these other 4 strings tied to 4 other sections of your brain pulling you simultaneously in 4 different directions and the multitasking and balancing and maintenance is crazy taxing on that little old brain!

Anyway, it was awesome. We found a couple cheap but nice places to stay which allowed us more freedom to drop some moula on some serious food. Definitely my second favorite perk of a getaway. Hungry? Duck into a restaurant. Hungry again? Just grab yourself an icecream - no guilt, no begging, no taking out a loan to get one for everyone! Still hungry? Try out that little cafe for some homemade goodness. Oh yes. I was made for this.

My one regret was that the lady at the River Adventures place didn't let us take the rapids route in our canoe (they were all level 1s - would've been totally fine.) However, it was probably for the best seeing as apparently I have some sort of mental block on canoe navigation. When I tried my hand at sitting in the back to steer, we both just about fell out of the boat we were laughing so hard. Darren in disbelief, me in humiliation - I simply could not get my brain to register which way to paddle to keep us straight so we crazily zigzagged the river for the last half hour. Memorable.

 We explored some little inlets on the still river and discovered a whole Teletubby world of green hills dotted with wombat holes (and poop.) It started to drizzle and we felt like we were the only two people left in this lush green world.

 Honeymoon Bay was pretty gorg. See those kangaroos hopping through this beachside campground?



I don't know what happened to this tree to give it such a peppermint stick effect, but I loved it.

And man, getting to spend some one on one with this guy was pretty priceless. Seeing as we both usually fall into bed every night over a sleepy conversation before my hypno-tracks knock us into oblivion. We needed some daylight to reconnect. Man, I love him.

Of course, the night before departure Summer vomited and was up with fever, so we almost didn't make the miracle happen. But our friends are amazing and insisted they could handle it and we owe them big time.

Sleeping in 'til 10. Pulling over for an impromptu waterfall hike. Indulging in seaside fish'n'chips at nine in the morning.

Fantastic getaway.

I Sprout

Sometimes I find myself prematurely turning into an old lady. I like nuts in my brownies and grains in my toast. I can't handle full strength juice and insist on diluting everything else too (much to my husband's chagrin.) I can hardly keep my eyelids open past 10pm. My cooking is increasingly plant based and beans are my friend. I find this to be an acceptable and even imperative beverage most days.

I no longer care what I look like in public or use makeup regularly (not that this was ever my strong point.) Our candy bowls are filled with nuts and dried fruits and I pour chia and flax in everyone's cereal. I make our yogurt, admit to wearing what Darren calls "ninja shoes" on occasion and I smell like a walking coconut.

While not all of these things may be considered positive I certainly am making us all pretty darn healthy. Perhaps it's less of a "grandma" thing and more of a "granola" thing? (Researching the how-tos and benefits of dehydrating, encapsulating and consuming my own placenta after birth certainly is...) But I digress. Onto the point of this post: SPROUTING.

Does anyone else sprout?

Do you have any idea how easy and nutritious it is?

(Are you laughing at these questions because 2 posts ago we ate Lucky Charms for dinner??)

Here are some fun facts:
 - sprouted seeds/grains/nuts are whole foods full of living enzymes
 - vitamin content of some sprouted seeds increases 100% - 2000% in just days (!!!)
 - grown quick, year-round, indoors, without sun/soil, in limited space, generating no waste
 - sprouting breaks proteins into amino acids and starches into simple sugars allowing vitamins/minerals to be absorbed/digested twice as easily/quickly with less carbs than dry grains
 - sprouts are considered life generating, Bio-genic superfoods
 - a powerful source of antioxidants (minerals, vitamins and enzymes), fibre & fatty acids
 - assist in protecting our cells against damage from free radicals
 - can protect against disease/cancer, lower cholesterol, regulate blood sugar & slow effects of aging
 - easy to store and just pennies per serving (think emergency food storage...)
 - rivals meat, veggies and fruits in nutritional quantity
 - a garden in your kitchen: virtually free, very fast and super easy!

I snapped a few photos lately that can give you the idea, but really all you need to do is purchase a sprouter (the old nylon over a tilted jar technique always fermented my sprouts, don't put yourself through it!) and check out a couple websites. Many garden/health stores have sprouters for about $20 or plenty online. And my favorite site for ALL things sprouting related: Sproutpeople

All it takes is a few tries and you'll be a pro. As long as they haven't been "treated" for planting, you can sprout virtually any seed or grain, just look up its specifics at Sproutpeople and give it a go. Here are some of the ones we do...

nuts, lentils, soy/black/adzuki/mung beans, buckwheat, chick peas, barley, quinoa, wheat, peas, sunflower/alfalfa/mustard/pumpkin seeds, brown rice, etc.

 Generally, you start out with a good soaking, usually overnight, to unlock the enzyme inhibitors and make them come "alive."

Then you rinse and throw them in your sprouter, individually or in a funky awesome "mix" for kicks.

 Most seeds/grains like to be rinsed once or twice a day, (even though with this "Sproutamo" sprouter design, rinsing is less imperative.) If you've got a bunch of smallish seeds or are doing a big batch, 10 swings in an old oranges net uses centrifugal force to keep them from being waterlogged.

You can see the sprouts starting to bud out the very next day.

This stackable sprouter makes rinsing/draining a breeze...

Taste 'em each time you rinse, but generally their nutrition/taste peaks at just a cm or two long.

You'll learn things along the way: Adzuki and mung beans like to be sprouted under pressure (place something heavy atop the seeds), almonds/pepitas/sunflower seeds are actually best just "soaked" for a while, chick peas are a complete protein and don't like to be rinsed, buckwheat makes for very cloudy water and needs multiple rinses, flax/chia are gelatinous and should be planted, not sprouted, etc.

Here's my mix at days 2 and 3...

 And the stacker at days 2 and 3. Below you see day 5 or 6 (alfalfa and certain beans take a while.)

Okay, so you successfully sprouted a couple cups of goodness - now what?

They're so versatile.

Throw them in or atop pretty much anything and you've got yourself a brand new fresh taste. Obviously, raw will maintain their amazing power punch of nutrition, but still great stirred into stirfries, soups, stews, etc. Some people dry/dehydrate them and grind them for breads. Sprinkle them on your sandwiches, salads, wraps, burritos. Blend them into dips or smoothies. Sprouted chick peas make your hummus immeasurably healthier. Sprouted beans/grains cook faster. Sprouts add crunch to your baked potato, scrambled eggs, quesadillas or curry... Get my point? Our weirdest favorite: on peanut butter toast with honey drizzle. Don't knock it til you try it - DEElish!

liked it on poached egg on toast

* Warning: kidney beans will sprout, just don't eat them raw - make sure to cook them once sprouted due to a potentially dangerous chemical found within.

 These are actually some samples I brought home from a raw foods demo, but you could certainly make crackers from sprouted grains or this "eggless" cashew based dip with sprouted nuts. I made a cream cheese sunflower seed ball version of this raw chocolate dessert that was an awesome snack.

Look up some recipes online and experiment - just get them into your diet. They're fast, easy, super healthy and think of the great skill you'd have if you ever find yourself in an emergency without access to fresh produce. No digging, no planting, just fresh greens in 2 days! Do it.

(Here's a quick reference/good visual CHART for soaking and sprouting.)