When the black book from the past saves the day!

Ok, I am still in a limbo mode. I think it is because Kidtwo has bad allergies and a stomach that is not working and I feel GUILTY! Kids are not eating very well, and after 10 days alone with them (and some hectic times with deadlines coming up, so night shift everyday) I am also EXHAUSTED. I so need a break - but there is no such thing as a break if you're wheat and milk free... All premade junk either has wheat or milk. Well almost all. Yesterday I took Dani's advice (thanks for the support my friend!) and went to buy the kids premade food "Pyttipanna" - that is potatoe cubes with sausage cubes and some onion, all ready to be fried in the frying pan. Gluten and milk free (but helluva list of additives in the ingredient list, I spotted maltodextrin, corn starch, several E-codes, and much more that I just want to forget).

The funny thing was that as I was so tired of having the kids in front of the telly all day I decided to go and visit a friend, and I said we'd bring food. Well, the only place open was a gas station, and the only things they have are these deep frozen pyttipanna, deep frozen french fries and pizzas... Ha, lucky me they had pyttipanna! But the funny thing is that the friend is Chilean, and as I wrote on my other blog, the Chilean cuisine is not one that favors premade food. You make your dinner from scratch, either you yourself, your mother, or an employed nanny. So obviously my friend was not familiar with this Finnish dish and both she and her daughter were amazed. I laughed, said here I am running a blog about the connection between food and health and what do I do in real life? I go and introduce junkfood to a little toddler. Now she'll be screaming for pyttipanna for the next weeks to come! ;-) Lovely.
 
Today, still without having been to the grocery store (I do not count the Shell gas station in the category of grocery stores...), I managed to still make spinach pancakes for breakfast, minced meat soup for lunch for me and dinner for the kids (and friend), another oven baked cinnamon pancake (served with apple sauce and coconut cream). And only then did we go to the grocery store, by bike (big mistake!).

The minced meat soup was a keeper. Can you believe it, a recipe from our home cooking class anno 1992! Just love my black book from junior high - filled with information on basic cooking recipes and nutrition, minerals ... even how to clean clothes! Anyway, I made some modifications to the recipe because I lacked a big part of the ingredients (potatoes, celeriac, parsnip) - still it worked out quite well.

Here's a picture of the black book recipe (check out my writing style back then...charming!):

Minced meat soup a la Mia:
1 onion
3 (organic) carrots
1  (organic) sweet potatoe
1 red chili pepper (organic)
some celery (organic)
chicken bone broth (out of meat broth but will make some soon, have the pasteur fed meat down in the freezer)
400 grams minced meat
garlic
olive oil
paprika spice
organic tomatoe paste
oregano

Heat the frozen bone broth to boil, add some water (if necesary) and sea salt. Fry the minced meat. Chop the roots and boil, then chop the other vegetables and add after a while. Oh, I fried the onion on low grade in olive oil first, tought it would soften the taste for the kids, and worked. Add tomatoe paste and then the meat and crushed garlic, paprika spice, oregano. Serve hot (could be served with some kefir yogurt or coconut cream).

Minced meat soup (and in the right hand corner, the pancake)

Cardamom pancake  (I am making up the amounts, did not measure, sorry!)

1-2 tbsp Fiber Husk (psyllium husk)
3 dl water
1 dl coconut milk
2 eggs
2-3 tbsp maca powder
pinch of salt
rapseed oil
cardamom

Mix the husk with the water, let the husk do its job (mushy). add the coconut milk, the eggs then the maca powder, salt and some rapseed oil and of course the cardamom (according to your preferences). Add a little bit of oil to the baking mold and then poor the mix into the mold. Bake in 250 d celcius, for about 30 minutes. Serve with apple sauce and coconut cream. Success: Kidone ate two slices, Kidtwo one (note the reversed order now, usually it is the other way around) and I ate...ahmmmm.... the rest....=)))!