Day 4: Thankful for small things

I began having ruminations today of never, ever having another baked-good. Never, ever again.

My son Seth asked me, last night, to send him some Congo squares. I had already planned to make pumpkin breads this weekend and send them on to my older son, Bennett, and his fiancé, Lindsey, in Washington DC. Tossing together some Congo squares would be easy, especially since I would be cooking with my little sister (through Big Brothers Big Sisters) on Saturday. She would enjoy baking the squares and we could split the batch between her and Seth’s care package.

But what about me?

I love to bake. I love to eat. I love to eat things that I bake. My husband loves to eat things I bake. Living a low carb life for the past 18 months has caused me to cut back, honestly, almost to zero, the number of baked goods I would produce in any given month. No more banana bread from the old bananas. There weren't even any bananas. Biscuits, which I humbly must confess that I have mastered, were in the past. Cookies? Nada. The same with pies, cakes, scones, all the things that I baked and then ate. No wonder I lost 20 pounds.

And then, Kim, my nutritionist , said those magic words…”no more counting carbs”. Did that mean….could it mean….that I could bake again? And eat what I bake?

Well, the rule against anything white was still in place, as I still had insulin levels to manage. That’s fine. I don’t miss them. But being vegan means no butter, no eggs, and no milk. Furthermore, I need to keep fat levels down and whole grains up to combat the nasty insulin invaders. All the things that make baked goods melt in your mouth, light and fluffy, dense and creamy. Like crispy, moist cornbread.

Lord, I think I need a cold cloth.

It occurred to me at some point this morning, in between creating a Business Law quiz and grading papers, that the vegan lifestyle did not just start 4 days ago. Many people, and many people who love food, have been doing this for a long while. There had to be some recipes in the universe that would satisfy my need. Maybe even a corn bread recipe. And there were.

Good ole Google led me to www.picklesnhoney.com and a terrific simple vegan cornbread. In addition to a terrific recipe, it also introduced me to the concept of a “flax egg”. Little did I know that 2 tablespoons of ground flaxseed and 6 tablespoons of water, when mixed and allow to sit in the frig for 15 minutes, would turn gelatinous and serve as a replacement for 2 eggs. But it does and it did.

The cornbread was delectable, especially with a bit of homemade blueberry spiced jam from this past summer’s wild blueberry crop. Crispy along the edges, moist inside with whole grains that gave it a great crumb and a nice texture. A tip – I replaced the maple syrup with a molasses/agave blend. Can’t have corn bread in New England without molasses. http://www.picklesnhoney.com/2011/10/05/simple-vegan-cornbread

A vision of vegan pancakes will dance in my head tonight.