Broken Oven Finds Family Time

As someone that loves to cook, the day you turn on the convection oven and smell a horrible (so horrible you call the gas company because you swear there is a gas leak) is one you hope will never come. Alas, I have been without my oven for three days and I am about to go nuts! I did not realize just how much I bake! If you are new to meeting me, you may think I am a sweet-freak (OK, I am to some degree), but really I just love to cook. I am a gluten-free baker that is seeking (as soon as our kiddos are both in school) to have my own "thing." I honestly do not know what that "thing" is yet; I do know it has to do with cooking, being with my family and sharing love through food. The journey is still being revealed.

I had high hopes for this weekend: grain-free zucchini bread, grain-free apple spice muffins, and possibly a little blondie action. No oven=no baking. I also had an order for my Martha Muffins and can't bake those either. You would think I was back in that dreaded boot and couldn't run (I spent January to April in a boot for a triple-stress fracture injury from "overuse" - that's an entry for another day)! Today, I am excited to report that I am more grateful for my handy side oven today! Dinner is not lost! Our sweet little roasted beets made it into an 8x8 pan (I cannot remember when I made something that small)!

 

 So for supper we're having roast beets (from our garden) with kale (from our farmers' market) and beet stalks (per our eldest daughter's request) with Amish-made butter and nutritional yeast.

4-5 large beets (roasted - I went with 500 degrees for about 40 minutes in my little side oven, that runs pretty low in temp)

2 cloves garlic 

1 tablespoon coconut oil

6 stalks of kale, stalks removed

about 1 cup beet stalks (save the greens for smoothies or salads later)

2 tablespoons butter (or coconut oil or butter substitute)

1/4 cup nutritional yeast

3 cups cooked rice (we used jasmine)

splash of Braggs Amino Acids (or gluten-free soy sauce) 

1 teaspoon coriander

salt and pepper to taste

sunflower seeds

Heat the coconut oil until fairly hot. Add the garlic, salt and pepper and saute until aromatic. Add the kale and beet stalks and saute on medium heat until slightly tender. Add cooked rice and combine until all are warm. Add butter and nutritional yeast. Stir until combine. Add the splash of Bragg's Amino Acids and coriander and stir. Add salt and pepper to desired taste.  Garnish with raw sunflower seeds.

Once beet are roasted, transfer from pan into a bowl of ice water and peel the outsides off. Chop beets and toss into rice/vegetable mixture. Serve hot.  

To prepare for this meal, we had some family time outside. Saturday, we had our visit to the farmers' market; our weekly farmers' market trips are favorites for us. We love seeing the people that picked out food! Today, our three year old was playing music with a stick and a shovel, my husband was picking his guitar, our almost seven year old was cutting beet greens and pulling beets, and I was observing, in silence. I would come in and out of the house, collecting the plants they were collecting. Then, our older daughter chopped the beet greens and went off to her art project. I roasted the beets, and made the rest of the meal.

Enjoy a meal and time with your family tonight!

Blessings on the Journey!