Mediterranean Miss

Yasas blogdears,

I’m going to start this post with a bit of a story because I’m a little uncomfortable about something and I’d love to get it off my chest. I’ve been keeping it from you for weeks, so here we go. Lately, I’ve been so busy that I’ve had to forego my favorite market wanders in favor of grocery story only weekly shops. I was wandering through the produce section (on a hunt for kale, no doubt) when I was arrested by something that smelled absolutely fantastic. My body craved it like no other, so much so that I put the kale back down and went on hunt to find it: it smelled of rich herbs and lemon and perfection.

Was it some kind of a pasta? A salad? A soup? No, blogloves, no. Walking by the rotisserie section, I discovered the source of my hunger’s desire. This.

Tuscan rotisserie-style chicken with a serious abundance of herbs

Chicken. Now, I don’t eat chicken. I don’t eat much meat, in fact. I have never been the biggest fan of too much red meat, so I tended to enjoy fish the most to begin with. I left the chicken behind, and continued my shop. I walked in front of that rotisserie stand three times, battling with myself the whole way: I can’t buy that, I can’t eat that. It’s meat, it’s chicken. Haven’t you seen those documentaries? What a monster you are. How could you even consider eating the flesh of an animal that most likely died, terrified, in a too-small cage? Plus, meat’s so bad for you; you know that.

Those thoughts worked on me until my body fought back. I was craving a little protein and absolutely tired of trying to come up with ways to eat soy products that wouldn’t make me feel sick. That thought is ultimately what helped me reach out and grab that yummy morsel my body was craving. There comes a point when you need to do what is best for you. My body had been patient for months, but it was finally reaching out to remind me that my primary goal in life is to take care of the beautiful vessel I’m lucky enough to have been given.

I brought that chicken home, paired it with a simple cucumber salad, and enjoyed one of the best dinners I’ve had in a long, long time:

Don't mind the paintbrushes lurking in the corner ^~

Allowing myself to eat meat was an enormous change for me, but the positive changes I have seen in my body are incredible. I have more energy, for the first time, I am not cold, I am putting on muscle like nobody’s business and, interestingly, I have lost weight. A significant amount of weight, in fact – I checked the scale when my clothes started slip-sliding to see that I’d lost ten pounds in the past 6-7 weeks. Interesting.

So what’s a girl to do? For now, I am going to continue eating what my body is asking for. While there is no way to avoid the ultimate conclusion of the meat industry (slaughter), I am going to ensure that I am only choosing from free-range, organic sources so that the industry I support is one that cares for the animals that are blessing our bodies with strength and beauty.

• Do you eat meat? How do you feel when you do? What do you do to deal with the reality of the industry?
• When (if) you began eating meat again after a period of avoiding it, were you worried about how you would be perceived?

I’m so interested in reading your thoughts on this post. I’ve been feeling guilty for weeks, and I’d love your advice. I made sure to never tell anybody I was a “pescatarian,” because I didn’t like the title. A life is a life, whether fish, chicken, or human. It really doesn’t make a difference how you slice it, in my opinion. I really feel awful, and I feel awful for feeling awful. Things like this don’t help:

I have been feeling so much pressure, so much guilt, that it has caused me to neglect my body and my body’s needs. For me, for right now, I am finding a balance that works. Every little thing makes a difference, and I am slowly accepting that, ultimately, my choices are keeping my body strong, and supporting a free-range movement. While meat will never be a staple in my diet, I am slowly coming to the conclusion that it is okay to eat it from time to time.

ANYWAY! Let’s move on, I apologize for the rant.

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There. Topic-change space.

This evening Andrew is coming over and he and I are going to play host to another couple I’m friends with, Kate and Ken. Ken is a very talented guitar player and musician; I love to hear him sing. You can too, by visiting his myspace page. Kate and I go way back to my Commerce days; we were floormates in first year, and housemates in second year.

Having friends over for dinner means having my house party-ready, however. So, today, I woke up and decided to tackle the floors, countertops, etc etc etc.

While I was cleaning, I realized that I still had some rhubarb lurking in my fridge. My pots were clean (^~) so I decided to make a Miss staple: a gluten-free coffee bread that I pretty much inhale post-bake. Rhubarb is one of my favorites; I love the sour contrasted with the sweet. In my opinion, strawberry-rhubarb combos are an insult to the standalone deliciousness of a simple rhubarb pie.

I assembled my ingredients and got to work so that I could finish cleaning the loft while it baked:

Nutty Gluten-free Rhubarb Coffee Cake

• 1 cup packed brown sugar
• 2/3 cup organic apple sauce (oil sub!*)
• 1 egg
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 1/2 cups bob’s red mill AP GF flour
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 cup almond milk (or soy, or dairy)
• 2 large “stalks” rhubarb, chopped (this makes for a very fruity bread. Cut back if you wish)
• 1/2 cup of pecans, walnuts, almonds, cranberries, raisins, etc

1. Preheat your oven to 350
2. Combine your sugar, oil, egg and vanilla extract.
3. Combine your flour, baking soda and salt. Add to the wet mixture, alternating with the milk
4. Throw in your rhubarb and nuts
5. Bake in a well-greased pan, uncovered, for 35-45 minutes or until it looks like the picture below.
6. Comment on MM to let me know what you think!

** I often substitute organic apple sauce for oil in recipes. It adds a touch of sweetness, is perfect for a nice, moist cake, and cuts back a little bit on calories. Use it on par:  1/2c oil = 1/2c applesauce

I always top my breads the same way - cute.

And plated; be more careful than I was because I totally broke my pretty loaf right in half :\ It still looked sweet sitting on the plate, though, and it made for a delicious breakfast slice.

And yum. Make this now, please.

That’s pretty much it for this Miss. I’ve got to get ready for our party tonight. Look for a recap tomorrow
Also, for my Toronto blogloves: watch out for that severe weather alert. Looks like it might hail on top of the predicted thunderstorm, so park undercover!

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