A Work in Progress

It's been awhile since I've posted here...I think I need to work on being a little more disciplined...I thought I would give you a peek at what I've been working on lately...I've actually been making this blanket since we found out we were expecting, but it's been slow going...it has luckily been on the cooler side here, since on really hot days knitting with wool has been a little bit of a torture.  Although time seems suddenly of the essence as I enter into my 32nd week tomorrow...must keep knitting! More belly pics to come...

And the weeks keep on a comin'...

Where does the time go? Week 29  has already begun...and I am starting to feel the weight creeping down my back and into my legs.  The heat is taking its toll as well...and as far as I keep hearing from everyone, this is just the beginning...it's hard to believe there are 11 weeks to go and thus that much more to grow...both the little squish and me included!

Bananaramalicious

So it's been a few weeks of ups and downs.  We had a little accident the babe and I.  I managed to cut the palm of my hand at work with a pair of scissors while trying to cut a button in half (long story) and ended up with 9 (painful) stitches, unbeknownst to me that when pregnant (at least in Spain) they don't give you any anestesia for these things..in my 31 years, I've never had so much as a broken finger and alas at 7 months pregnant I ended up with my first real gash.  As you can imagine it has been a bit of an upset in the house, since I am the one that usually does a lot of the cooking...but my Lor has been quite a huge help these days, cooking, cleaning, tying plastic bags on my hand so I can shower..
...and then yesterday, despite the bandage and the awkwardness, I broke down and made a banana bread..when desperate: MAKE BANANA BREAD! And apart from remedying my longing for the kitchen, it also came out delicious...though I burned the bottom just a tad...

This bread is great because it combines healthy flours and very little sugar.  It does have butter, but hey, we can't all be saints now can we... I usually substitute flaxmeal for a part of the flour mixure in most recipes and it always comes out great! So I hope you give it a try...the photo is a little bit terrible since it was late and my iphone was all I had handy...

Banana Bread

Yield: 2 medium loaves (or 1 big, 1 small as pictured)

1 cup spelt flour
1/2 cup flaxseed meal
1/2 cup buckwheat flour
1/2 cup wheat germ

1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt

125gr (1 stick + aprox 1 tblspn)  unsalted butter, room temperature


1/2 cup packed  brown cane sugar (if you like your bread more on the sweet side add another 1/4 cup--I don't think it really needs it with all the banana, but sugar is a personal choice in my book)
2 large eggs

3ripe bananas for batter + 2 or 3 more for layering on top (optional) 

125grms yogurt (about 1/2 cup) + 1/4 cup milk (reg milk/soy etc will all do)

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1 cup coarsely chopped walnuts (optional)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Grease 2 bread pans (I used butter, but to each his own..) In a bowl, whisk together flours, wheat germ, baking soda, and salt.
In a large bowl, beat butter and sugars with a mixer until light and fluffy (I actually don't have a mixer and just do this manually--but of course, if you have a mixer, I highly reccomend using it.) Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. In another bowl, mash bananas with a fork (you should have about 3/4 to 1cup (aprox); stir in milk and vanilla.
With mixer on low (or stirring by hand), alternately add flour mixture and banana mixture to butter mixture, beginning and ending with flour mixture; mix just until combined. Fold in walnuts if using.
Divide batter among loaf pans and cut the remaining bananas in half, placing them on top. Bake until a toothpick inserted in the center of each loaf comes out clean, 45 minutes (aprox), rotating pan halfway through. Let cool in pan 10 minutes; transfer loaves to a rack to cool at least 10 minutes more.

WEEK 27

This week the heat has started to make its presence known, just in time for the start of my 3rd trimester! I'm starting to feel...really pregnant, and I have this inkling of a feeling that this is only the beginning...bring on summer!

Home Sweet Home

So I'm not from LA, but I think this is probably relevant for some east coast Whole Foods Markets as well...needless to say, this video made me a little bit homesick on this hot and muggy Barcelona afternoon...have a laugh!

(I can't figure out how to make it bigger!!)

first spotted on Lovely Morning

25 weeks!

We are going to try to post a new belly shot every week...but between the rain, life and a bad photo shoot we've been a little behind...But from here on out, we will make sure that this belly gets it's rightful moment in the spotlight---in front of our neighborhood church, the Sagrada Famila, wow right?

Apricot-Peach Tart with Almond Frangipane

We are lucky to live on the same block as a little organic food shop here in Barcelona...these shops are called "herbolarios" and although they are in abundance, not very many of them carry fresh produce...luckily ours does, and lots of it! The other day I was happily surprised to find fresh apricots and peaches! I've never made a fruit tart before...

but it was easy as pie! I burned the tips of the fruit a little, but it was still as delicious as ever...

I just ate the last piece this afternoon..

I'm not sure if it's because I modified the crust recipe and added wheatgerm, or if there was just a lot of butter, but I found that the dough kept getting stuck to the cutting board and was hard to roll out so in the end I just ended up pressing it into the tart pan and it worked perfectly!  On the next try, I might try adding a quarter cup of crushed almonds to the crust recipe...hmmmmm

Plum-Almond Tart

Adapted from Smitten Kitchen

Makes 1 9-inch tart or 8 4-inch mini-tartlets

For crust:

1 cup spelt flour
1/4 cup wheat germ

1 tablespoon raw brown canesugar
1/8 teaspoon salt

125grms (1/2 cup + 1 tablespoon aprox) chilled unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
2 tablespoons ice water

1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract

For filling:
1/3 cup whole raw almonds (about 2 ounces)

1/4  cup raw brown cane sugar
1 large egg
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature

1 1/2 tablespoons cognac

7 small apricots + 1 large peach cut into 3/4-inch-thick wedges--you can vary the fruit ratio or even replace either for plums if you prefer)
1/4 cup blueberry jelly

Whipped cream (optional--we ate ours with Vanilla Ice cream! Although I don't think it needed it...)

Make crust: 

Preheat oven to 375°F. Combine first 3 ingredients--cut in butter until mixture resembles coarse meal (by hand or with an electric mixer). Mix 2 tablespoons ice water and vanilla in small bowl.  Add water mixture to dough and mix until moist clumps form.
Gather dough into ball and roll out as much as best you can on floured surface--if you can go all the way great, if not try pressing the dough into a 9" tart pan as described above. Trim overhang, fold in, and press. Using fork, pierce dough all over. Freeze 15 minutes.

Bake crust until pale golden, about 30 minutes and let cool. Maintain oven temperature.

Make filling:

Finely grind almonds with sugar with handheld mixer. Add egg, butter and 1 tablespoon cognac.  Process until smooth and pour into crust. Arrange peach and nectarine slices atop filling. Bake until the fruit is tender and filling is golden and set, about 1 hour.

Melt jelly with remaining 1/2 tablespoon cognac in small saucepan over medium-low heat. 

Brush jelly mixture over plums.

Cool tart. Serve at room temperature with whipped cream, or ice cream or whatever you like!