In The Beginning

Using recipes from The Flying Apron cookbook, I now have a loaf of quinoa bread in the oven and dough in the fridge for tomorrow morning's blueberry-cinnamon scones. The bread smells exactly of quinoa, nothing more or less. It is not rising, but remains a small, foot-long log, exactly the same size and shape as it was an hour ago. I think that it will be sliced and toasted, like biscotti, and dipped in soup. Perhaps a sprinkling of sea salt and rosemary will liven it up.

Zoe sits behind me and sings "we like MILK, we LIKE milk, we like MILK, we LIKE milk..." and then adds "pink, white, brown! pink white brown!" between verses. I think this is UmiZoomi inspired.

My small, kitchen counter is cluttered tonight with the freshly purchased flours, rices, sweeteners, and oils that gluten-free vegans enjoy. I don't think that it costs more to eat fresh vegetables and fruit, but it definitely costs more to bake like a vegan. Especially an organic vegan. I am excited to see what brown rice flour can do for me. And I want to make Annie something special for her birthday.

I am imagining a small restaurant/cafe/food truck that serves vegan soups, breads, salads and ALSO specializes in healthy meaty dishes, too. For the past 10 days I've fed Pete lots of quinoa and broccoli, even smoothies with kale and chia - and he'll eat it as long as there is a nice piece of salmon along the way. And it's remarkable how delicious that piece of salmon can be even without a buttery sauce. And brocolli without cheese? Suspiciously edible.