Back Again

The flu was rough, after I got better, the hubs came down with it. So far the kids are still healthy, praying it stays that way. 

I've been doing a fair amount of baking, so I'll share that with you today.

Actually let's start with wheat berries. 

Here we have hard red wheat, hard white wheat, and soft white wheat.  Hard wheat is used for yeast breads, and soft wheat is used for cakes, biscuits, and non yeasty things. Hard wheat can also be used for cakes and biscuits, but soft wheat is a lighter texture. 

I ground some popcorn to make cornmeal and made cornbread.

It was delicious! I don't remember what we had for dinner that made make cornbread. I had no idea I could use popcorn to make cornmeal. My favorite thing about that is popcorn is non gmo. 

I made pancakes. 

My griddle isn't cooking evenly anymore, but that didn't affect the flavor. Something I love more about these pancakes than any other pancakes I have ever made is they were just as delicious the next day.  Never before have I been able to reheat pancakes without them being mushy or weird. These tasted and looked freshly made.  

Biscuits. I love biscuits like A LOT! 

These biscuits are light and fluffy, and delicious. I think they are the best biscuits I have ever made. I used my regular recipe, but they are so much better! They also are very good days after being made. It is interesting to me, they don't get hard in a day the way the other biscuits I have made do. I love it.

Then of course there is bread.

I made bread on a Sunday and since we were sick we didn't use it up very fast. On Saturday it was still soft, no mold and made a delicious sandwich.

It slices perfectly and has basically the same calories as the bread we've been eating, but is much more nutritious. 

Overall, so far this is going very well. We have been sick so I can't attest to any health benefits yet. We also have been still consuming some processed foods in effort to use them up. This week will really be the first full week for my husband to be only consuming gluten in things I make. I have been gluten free except what I make for the last couple weeks, but having the flu sucked the life out of me. I have noticed the hip pain I had been having is going away. It used to hurt to touch my hip, now it is only a little bothersome when I lay down. This is a huge improvement. I had been blaming our mattress, but perhaps my diet has more to do with that than I thought. I will be reporting back on any other changes, good or bad we see. 

have a blessed day

Food Talk Friday

I have a tip for you today. It's easy, and will save you a lot of money on a very common baking item.
Vanilla Extract!

You can make your own. You only need 2 ingredients, and a container to store it in.

Ingredients:
Vodka (the cheap stuff, but at least 80 proof) I hear you can use rum too, but I haven't tried it
Vanilla Beans (I like at least one whole bean per cup of vodka, but I usually add more)

I cut the beans in half, the snip up the center making a V shape. Drop them in the vodka. Let it sit 6-8 weeks and you will have the best Vanilla extract ever!

the jar is full with vodka, the beans sink to the bottom

You can just put the beans down in the Vodka bottle if you like, but I pour mine into large mason jars and use a reusable lid. Then I place them in a paper sack and stick them in a cool dark place (aka my pantry). Occasionally you can give it a shake for fun and to mix it up a bit. I like to see the progress.

I write on the sack so I know when to start using my vanilla

Look at this nice dark vanilla

This is from my first batch

Now for a little number crunch. If you go and buy real vanilla extract at the store (at least in my area) you are looking to spend about $2.00 an ounce. I made 8 cups or 64 ounces today for $17.00. That is a mere $0.26 an ounce. That is a savings of $1.74 per ounce to make it yourself.  I made my first batch of 4 cups November 18, 2011. Yes you read that right 2011. I still have about 1/2 cup left, but started more so I wouldn't be out.  When I finish up the vanilla I'll just drop the beans into the other jars that I have.


I know we just finished up Christmas, but you could get a big head start! This makes a great gift. Bottle it up in a pretty bottle for the baker in your life!

Have a blessed FOCUSed day!