Real {Fast} Food – review & giveaway!

Apr 232012
 

Cover2You know the person that you always call when you have a question about healthy food?  The one you call, not because they make you feel guilty for eating the way you do, but because they give you really good, helpful advice in quick, easy-to-follow steps?

That would be my friend Trina Holden.

When I first met her, we were rooming together at a conference.  She brought a cooler with her own yogurt she’d made from raw milk.  Along with whole wheat rolls (from soaked, sprouted wheat flour, I’m sure) and, get this, homemade mayo.

Our other roomie and I enjoyed the fruits of Trina’s obvious passion for real food.  But we soon learned something else about Trina: she was also very passionate about saving time and living intentionally.

Real {Fast} Food is not just a recipe book; it’s an inside look at how a busy mom of three little kids makes “real” food fast and easy.

But the best thing about it is the fun and conversational style it’s written in.  Reading Real {Fast} Food is just like talking to a friend on the phone.  Trina’s passion for real food is infectious, her time-saving tips easy and memorable.  She makes meal planning fun and batch cooking simple.

Real {Fast} Food is empowering: it gives you not only a fabulous collection of “normal” recipes made with real food, but the know-how of planning and preparation, and the “why” of eating this way. 

There’s no condemnation for those who don’t follow every technique she outlines.  In fact, the book makes it easy to pick and choose new real food methods to try without feeling like you have to do it all.  But Trina’s batch shopping and cooking methods will give you more time to invest in your real food experiments.

And after reading Real {Fast} Food, you’ll find that things like soaking a recipe or sprouting wheat berries don’t sound so intimidating any more.  Trina explains seemingly complicated concepts in simple language and easy steps, complete with color pictures of the process.  Her whole wheat bread recipe was the first I’ve ever had turn out so well—Real {Fast} Food open to Chicken Pot Pie while making last night's dinnerand all because her simple explanation of the way the gluten works finally helped me understand how long I needed to mix my bread dough.

We love the Apple Egg Muffins, and the Nut Butter Brownies are as heavenly as they are healthy!  Whether you want to learn how to make your own tortillas or just looking to save time and eat more real food, Real {Fast} Food will be a boon to your kitchen.  It’s available on Kindle and Nook, but I’m guessing you’ll also want the PDF version so you can print it out and put it in a notebook for frequent use.

Trina is giving away a PDF copy of Real {Fast} Food to a Pink House reader.  Just comment to enter!  Giveaway ends April 30 at midnight.  Congratulations to Annie — commenter #20 was chosen by Random.org as our winner!

Enter the other giveaways on the Real {Fast} Food Blog Tour:
Read more reviews of Real {Fast} Food:

Listen to a podcast interview with Trina on FLN Radio!
And visit the Allume blog for a post by Trina summarizing her book.

Be sure to “like” the Real {Fast} Food Facebook Page for all sorts of real food tips and photos.

of water, probiotics, and kefir soda

Mar 132012
 

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When our third little one had tummy issues and I had to go off dairy, people started recommending probiotics.  But I didn’t know where to start.  So I didn’t.

Until a friend asked if I was interested in some water kefir grains.

I’d only ever heard of milk kefir—and sour milk didn’t sound appetizing to me, let alone anyone in my family.  (I mean, despite my friend’s easy-peasy sounding recipe for homemade yogurt, I haven’t tried that yet, either.  Did I mention we’re yogurt snobs around here?  Let me know if you find a homemade yogurt recipe that is anywhere equal to our favorite brands, Brown Cow and Zoi Greek!)

But water kefir?  The recipes I found online actually sounded like it could be good!  And just a glance at the purported health benefits convinced me it was worth a try.  I wouldn’t even be wasting expensive milk!

After just a few weeks of drinking kefir, I decided to try introducing a bit of milk and cheese back into my diet.  And so far, it has yet to result in any spitting up from my son!  Maybe he’s just outgrowing his dairy intolerance.  But I’m guessing all those good probiotics coming through mommy’s milk have at least something to do with it.  And considering how the kefir seems to be aiding my digestion as well, I think I’ll just keep right on drinking these incredibly frugal probiotics!

My favorite easy flavoring is a slice of lemon.  But the best kefir soda I’ve had so far was when I mixed it with leftover mashed, frozen strawberries.

I’m not a natural foods blogger, but I wanted to compile my favorite links and resources here for all the people I’m sharing my water kefir grains with.  Hope it’s helpful!  (If you don’t have a kefir-growing friend nearby, you can order grains from Cultures of Health.)

Have you tried kefir?  I’d love to hear your kefir experiences and favorite links in the comments!

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cooking

Nov 032011
 

where I get to cook

When I have someone to do the dishes for me, I remember again how much I love it.  Cooking.  Baking.  Combining ingredients, tasting, testing, to make something satisfying and filling.  Something to warm the soul and the stomach.  Something that speaks love to my family and any guests.  Something that tastes like home.

I’ve been baking cookies for as long as I can remember.  But I don’t know when I actually fell in love with the process of cooking, non-measuring, and tasting (every good cook taste tests, right?).  Aunt Margie taught me how to make bread.  And Mom taught me how to read a recipe—then quickly learned that I would not be confined to such ideas as actual measurements.

When I was almost 12, my little sister was born.  With Mom on bed rest, I naturally took over most of the cooking for the family.  Mom wasn’t there to make me follow the recipe, and I began to experiment and create my own unique combinations.  There were plenty of flops (not to mention the times I misread the recipe and added, say, baking soda in place of powder to things like pancakes…).  But I developed some favorites, as well—like my garlic olive bread twist.

By the time I was falling in love with my husband, I already knew that “the way to a man’s heart was through his stomach.”  Naturally, I made sure to have plenty of caramel rolls on hand whenever he was visiting, and I tried to show some efficiency and accomplishment in the kitchen in case he was watching.  Just don’t ask Marlys about the rolls I burnt that night he told me he loved me…

Marrying a farmer stretched my cooking horizons in more ways than just eating naturally and in season.  His little sister might have hated the idea of learning to cook back in 2001, but by the time we got married, she was what I’d classify as a gourmet.  I didn’t want the contrast of going from her cooking to mine to be too shocking for my beloved food connoisseur.  So I kept trying and experimenting and browsing through my sister-in-law’s Gourmet magazine when it was lying around.  And I learned through trial and error, kind of like taste testing recipes as I cooked them.

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dressed to my apron

Oct 202011
 

The FlyLady says to get dressed to your lace-up shoes when you start your day.

Others like to step into their pumps to stop the frumps.

Me?

making green tomato salsa, photo by my cousin RebekahI’d be a barefoot-in-the-kitchen kind of girl—except for our concrete floor.

I’d be a wear-my-comfy-foot-shaped-Keens-for-housework-each-day kind of girl—except that I like to be able to easily slip into an outside pair of shoes to run to the herb garden or the freezer or the shed.

I’d be a wear-my-Romeo-shoes-around-the-house-so-I-can-easily-slip-in-and-out-of-them kind of girl—except that my heels blister way too easily.

So I’m a Birkenstock kind of girl.

And I get dressed to my apron when I am ready to tackle my housework.

How about you?  What’s your dressed-and-ready-to-face-the-day attire?  What’s the costume that keeps you awake and on task?

I Love My Aprons

Sep 172011
 

the apron a gift from a dear friend and fellow tea drinkerI’m so glad you dropped by my kitchen!

Let’s pour a cup of tea and swap apron stories for a bit, shall we?

I’ll cut a slice of homemade bread and get out the raspberry freezer jam.

And then, if dinner-time’s a-comin’, I’ll tie on an apron and you can keep me company while I cook.

Sound good?

~Gret

“Don’t take off your apron, whatever you do, it’s peculiarly becoming.”

-Little Women by Louisa May Alcott, page 204

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Your Aprons

Sep 162011
 

Apron Fabrics“Felicity…was very nicely dressed in a pink print and a frilled muslin apron.”
-The Story Girl by L.M. Montgomery, page 13

“An angular woman panoplied in a white apron so stiffly starched that it could easily have stood alone…”
-Emily Climbs by L.M. Montgomery

“…slipped into the blue calico dress and tied on the crisply ruffled, pink apron.”
-These Happy Golden Years by Laura Ingalls Wilder, page 384

Big aprons.  Little aprons.  Floral print aprons.  Striped canvas aprons.  Our aprons are as varied as we are.

And the stories behind them are even more numerous than the aprons themselves!  I’ve told stories of aprons of my grandmothers and aprons made by my cousins.  I’ve shown you pictures of my little girls in aprons and my sisters in my aprons. From vintage to modern, each apron is a story and a fashion statement. Now I can’t wait to hear the stories of your aprons and see pictures of the pretty prints!

il_570xN.233872994Not only do we want to hear your stories—we want to give everyone a chance to start or add to their own apron collection!  One apron-wearin’ blogger or apron-lovin’ reader will win this beautiful, vintage-inspired apron (pictured at left) from the Posey Lane Etsy Shop.

To enter the giveaway, comment with something about aprons—what you love about aprons, why you want to find an apron, or who you remember wearing an apron.  (For additional entries, Like Little Pink House on Facebook, Like Posey Lane on Facebook, Heart Posey Lane on Etsy, or share the giveaway with friends on Twitter or Facebook.)

Click “add link” to participate in the blog carnival link-up (you’ll automatically receive five entries to the giveaway for sharing a link to your apron blog post).  {Giveaway ended September 23, 2011.}


“Susan had on a new black silk blouse, quite as elaborate as anything Mrs. Marshall Elliott ever wore, and a white starched apron, trimmed with complicated crocheted lace fully five inches wide, not to mention insertion to match.”
-Rilla of Ingleside by L.M. Montgomery, page 4

“Nobody but Miss Cornelia would have come to make a call arrayed in a striped blue-and-white apron and a wrapper of chocolate print, with a design of huge, pink roses scattered over it.  And nobody but Miss Cornelia could have looked dignified and suitably garbed in it.”
-Anne’s House of Dreams by L.M. Montgomery, page 61

“Cecily declared that she hated to go to sleep because she was sure to dream that she was at Aunt Olivia’s wedding in her old faded gingham dress and a ragged apron.”
-The Golden Road by L.M. Montgomery, page 75

Congratulations to Grace Anna for winning the lovely vintage-inspired apron from Posey Lane!

Be sure to read Grace’s apron story over at her blog, Graceful Notes.

“She had on a dress of plum-coloured drugget with a large, snowy apron, and she wore it with the air of a queen.”
-Emily Climbs by L.M. Montgomery,

Apron Week Memories…
(highlights from your comments)

  • “I’ve loved aprons ever since seeing Lucille Ball wear them in “I Love Lucy” (which I watched during my lunch hour when I walked home for lunch from school). They looked so feminine, so glamourous… Aprons seemed to add the right amount of whimsy to the daily grind of housework/cooking. Donning one lightens the load – I swear!” -Gianna Patton
  • “I’ve always loved wearing MY aprons, but I thought I was the only girl “of my age” who felt domestic and pretty wearing an apron. I’m so glad I’m NOT the only girl. I’m feeling inspired to make another apron now!” -Elisabeth
  • “I love aprons because 1. They remind me of my Grandma who is in Glory 2. I am clutzy, so they are vital to me when I cook 3. An apron can tell a lot of stories 4. A well-used apron is often a sign of a good cook!” -Bekah
  • “I LOVE LOVE LOVE aprons, I have two well worn aprons that were made with much love and care for me. The first one I received when I was 13, when I began seriously dabbling in the kitchen from my Nana, it is pink gingham and almost worn through. The second was made for me for a wedding gift from my sister-in-law, it is blue and white check trimmed with a pink and white lipstick kiss print fabric with a pocket made of the same that is hand embroidered with ‘kiss the cook.’ I wear one or the other pretty much every day to protect my clothing from the kitchen mess and also from the messes that can happen as a momma of 4 under 5! I would love to have another pretty apron, one that I can wear when we have hospitality or when I am preparing a nice meal for my husband on our ‘date night in’.” -Michelle
  • “Currently laying under a quilt made with fabric from my childhood apron that my grandma made for me. What a special, cherished memory I have!” -Claire
  • “I love how cute and feminine aprons can be…along with keeping food from getting all over your clothes while cooking (especially when pregnant).” -Jessica
  • “I mainly have Christmasy aprons that I do like to wear during the holiday season. I remember an apron my aunt gave me when I was young and it had a hand towel sewn onto the front of it, very handy for messy or wet hands! I may have to dig that apron out, where ever it is… You have inspired me to get into the habit of wearing aprons!” -Terri
  • “I made an apron for myself when I was little…it was a little crooked and not very sturdy, but I wore it proudly.” -Arielle Salzman
  • “I love how aprons make you feel freer to get into the cooking and not worry about ruining your clothes… When I wear one, I feel all official, like a serious homemaker. But I’m not.” -Jessica
  • “My mom made my twins sis and me reversible matching aprons when we were only 2. Over the years, they were worn out, covered with paint, messes, flour…you name it! I still remember they were pink and blue and oh so adorable! They are packed away somewhere in our memory boxes…waiting for the day when perhaps we will be blessed with our own daughters. Today, I still wear aprons — mostly for how practical they are but they also make me feel more ‘homemakerish’ and feminine!” -Samantha R.
  • “I think my favorite apron memories involve my older brother, who is an avid cook and also fisherman. My mom did have a large apron for him with t-bone steaks on it. But then I found an apron I just had to have for my brother. It showed a picture of a rainbow trout frying in a pan, and the caption said, ‘The end of the rainbow.’ That was one gift my brother really liked.” -Natalie G.
  • “I LOVE aprons!! My special apron is one from my great-grandmother. I wear it often instead of saving it– I enjoy it a lot more on me than I would in a drawer.” -Laura
  • “I love to slip an apron on when I’m doing house or garden work. My favorite is red and white checkered, and ties beautifully in the back. I made it myself one summer on a whim. It somehow lends an air of grace to any situation.” -a farmer girl
  • “I love aprons, especially pretty ones, because they represent so much: home, love, good meals, a mother’s love, family… A pretty apron makes cooking that much more enjoyable!” -Caitlin Baker
  • “I do love to wear an apron, just makes me feel so homemakerish and attractive. My favorite memory thus far of wearing an apron is when I was cooking for the man I love and he gently placed his hand on my arm and made sweet remarks about my apron… oh how I hope to someday wear an apron for him every day of my life!” -Kate
  • “I like aprons because my husband REALLY likes them.” -Melissa B.
  • “I have always loved wearing my mother’s apron. Frilly, feminine aprons make kitchen work so much more fun and make me feel fulfilled, somehow.” -Lois
  • “I adore aprons! Practically speaking, they keep your good clothes in good condition! But they just make me feel delightfully old-fashioned and ladylike when I wear them.” -Melea Bulkley

{September 26, 2011} Apron Week is over…but the fun is just beginning.  I’ve found so many apron boards on Pinterest, and I plan to keep pinning and re-pinning the apron pictures I find.  Not to mention frequenting—and pinning from—all the cute apron sites I’ve found in the process of Apron Week!  (Do you have one to add to the list?)

Apron Memories: Tie One On - An Apron Of Course !

“Diana…wore her afternoon pink print and a lawn apron fearfully and wonderfully ruffled and frilled; and very neat and pretty and rosy she was.”
-Anne of Avonlea by L.M. Montgomery, page 251

Posey Lane Apron Week at LittlePinkHouse.netThanks to Posey Lane
for sponsoring
Apron Week at
the Little Pink House!

Click here to read all the apron posts.
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