Gothic Granola

Tiny Carrot! All the kale is gone from the garden; it got eaten by bugs. And now the apartment is filled with ladybugs--where were you a few weeks ago? I also pulled up some tiny beets; clearly the root veggies need more time underground.

Not much is new around here. Last weekend we hiked at my husband's stepfather's family property and we just returned from camping at said property this weekend. Pants and Pomely had fun!

Like last post , this post also contains two variations on the same recipe. My grandparents helped TC and me get a nice waffle iron, "one that flips," as TC specified. Previous waffle recipes I have made did not turn out well. There were mitigating factors: too much liquid, not enough liquid, the dynamics of small pans, the problems of converting traditional recipes to vegan and gluten-free. Also, the iron I had until I moved West was drenched with a peculiar sadness; it was never truly "mine." Nevertheless, waffles, with all their nooks and crannies, hold memories. Ownie Mom made chocolate waffles on various occasions and gave us a bag of "chocolate waffle mix" for when my cousins and I went to the OBX with our grandparents. I remember my grandmother soldiering through making vegan waffles for me when I became vegan (the recipe isn't even listed here, it was that terrible and goopy of a recipe I pulled from some website).  My grandparents also introdu...

Post #253 I have bloody scrapes on two fingers, a nice purple bruise and cut in one calf, a ruined batch of flapjacks, too much sugar, and a cancelled personal training session.  Then there's this.

Sometimes aggressively remaking a recipe yields better results. I have made these waffles three times now and the last time, while not perfect, was the best of all three. These are more anti-James food since I used both avocados and strawberries, both of which are foods to which my brother objects. Good thing I made these just for me! I mucked up my waffle iron with the wet batter in the process, but I consider it well broken-in now. The cocoa makes the avocado taste more apparent, I think, unless it’s obscured with lots of sweetener. The strawberry version below has no cocoa.

Of the inspirational folk who I follow on teh interwebs, I noticed a theme in the past few days. Be yourself. Cassey Ho of Blogilates posted this on her Instagram . Bertice Berry wrote this meditation on doing what is right for you, no matter how unpopular . Media messages regarding "a new year, a new you" to me sound like a harsh break.  Gradual change over time is more sustainable, and is, hello, how the world works, than suddenly, perhaps, trying to eat six cups of kale a day instead of meat.  Or suddenly trying to stop thinking negative thoughts. Take a breath, take another, and notice--without judgment--what you're doing.  Notice what you'd like to let go of.  Think hard on how you want to do it.  Then get to it.  Notice when you slip from your goals.  Get up.  Keep going.  Most things become less difficult with time.  I saw this quote on my quote-of-the-day calendar from 2011 that I turn every time I go home:...