A MESSAGE FROM PEGGY

Merry Christmas! December is a busy month for celebrating special times – Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, the beginning of winter, and several other occasions I’m sure. It’s a special time for family, reflections, and gratitude.

Jeff says I’m a “bah-hum-bug” kind of Christmas gal because I don’t like to decorate, trimming the tree is a chore, and I stopped gift shopping several years ago. I like to think I just have a new perspective – lots of baking for friends, family, and neighbors, wonderful fellowship and fabulous meals shared among them all, and time to slow down and reflect before the new year ushers in new plans and a hefty schedule.

We sincerely thank each and every one of our customers for your support this year. We continue to grow and expand our offerings of organic sprouted grains, beans, and flours. In 2011 we plan to offer sprouted oats and quinoa, and to provide our sprouted legumes (black beans, mung beans, green peas, garbonza beans, lentils) in retail packaging. Each of these new products will be available as sprouted flour and as whole sprouted grains/beans for cooking and home grinding.

The WAPF (Wise Traditions Conference) was a grand affair! So much valuable information from all the sessions and so many beautiful faces of customers we got to meet. Our sprouted flour baked goods samples were a hit. I got so many requests for the brownie recipe it’s in this issue as promised. Also included is my Daddy’s Favorite Pie recipe and Tea Cakes for a cold afternoon with piping hot aromatic tea or hot cocoa. Enjoy! And many blessings to you all!

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• 3 cups To Your Health Sprouted Rye flour
• 2 cups whole buttermilk
• 12 Tablespoons butter, softened
• 1 ½ cups date or maple sugar
• 4 eggs, lightly beaten
• 1 Tablespoon vanilla
• 1 Tablespoon chocolate extract (optional)
• 1 Tablespoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon sea salt
• ¾ cup cocoa powder (or carob powder)
• Crispy pecans or walnuts, chopped

NOTE: You can make any substitutions you’d like, such as sweetener, fat, or liquid. If you’d like suggestions please email me at: toyourhealth (at) mon-cre . net

Place softened butter and sugar into a large bowl or stand mixer and cream. Add eggs, vanilla and chocolate extract. Blend well. Stir baking powder, salt, and cocoa powder into the flour in a separate bowl. Slowly add the flour mixture to sugar and egg mixture alternately with the buttermilk, beginning and ending with the flour mixture. Spoon batter into a buttered and floured 9 x 13 glass or ceramic baking dish. Sprinkle top generously with chopped nuts. Bake in a 350 degree oven for about an hour or until a toothpick comes out clean.

NOTE: I bake in a convection oven at 325 degrees for one hour.

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Speedskating is definitely one of the most technically challenging sports that there is, and as a result, can be one of the most beautiful things in the world, or one of the most incredibly frustrating! There are days that everything just flows, the timing, rhythm, pressure and 101 other things needed to skate well are all there. And then there are days where I feel like I am fighting against my skates and the ice, and everything is just so much harder than is should be. Of course most days are somewhere in between, but for the last month or so, I have been feeling like I can’t remember how to skate to save my life–even though I have done it almost my whole life! To be perfectly honest, it has been enormously frustrating.

And then, I got on the ice this morning and I actually felt OK. At first I was afraid that it was just a momentary feeling, but as practice went on, my skating kept feeling better and better! Skating is never easy (although speedskaters become good at making it look easy!), but when it is right there is a wonderful synergy between me, my skates and the ice–everything just flows, I almost feel like I am floating—and for the first time in over a month that feeling was back!

I realized that this is why I skate, for this incredibly beautiful feeling. Yes, I am an incredibly competitive person and I love to win. And through skating I have met and worked with many wonderful people, and have had many amazing opportunities and experiences, but to me that’s just icing on the cake. I skate because there is nothing I love more than the feeling of just floating around the track at 30 MPH, and nothing more difficult to master! As I gear up for the most important part of the racing season starting with U. S. Allround Championships Dec. 30–31 it is nice to finally be feeling good on the ice again. I’ve got a month of good training left, and am excited to see what I can do and just how fast I can skate this year.

Park City has turned into a winter wonderland with over two feet of snow at my house in the last week. I think the perfect meal for this kind of weather is a good hearty soup and some wonderful bread. Enjoy my favorite cornbread recipe!

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This recipe has got to be a couple hundred years old. My copy says to bake in hot oven until edges are brown. You may need to experiment, but start with a 350 degree oven and bake for 11–13 minutes. Be sure to line your baking pan with parchment to prevent sticking. Any of our sprouted flours will work, even the gluten–free flours. If using spelt or rye flour you may need to add water, 1 tablespoon at a time to get a good dough consistency for rolling out.

• 3 eggs
• 1 cup butter, softened
• 1 cup maple or date sugar
• 3 cups TYH Sprouted Flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder (aluminum-free)
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Cream butter and sugar. Add eggs and vanilla, blending well. Stir baking powder into flour and add slowly until a nice dough forms. Roll dough on a floured surface to 1/4–inch thickness. Cut dough into circles or use a cookie cutter. Place on lined baking sheet and bake at 350 degrees for about 11–13 minutes, or until edges brown. Simple and delicious.

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• 2 tablespoons sprouted Wheat or Spelt Flour
• 1 cup maple or date sugar
• 2 eggs, lightly beaten
• ½ cup whole fat buttermilk
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract or flavoring
• 1 Sprouted Pie Crust (see Recipe here)

Add flour and salt to sugar in a large bowl. Add eggs, blending well (I use a whisk). Add melted butter and blend. Add buttermilk and vanilla and blend. Pour mixture into unbaked pie shell. Bake in 350 degree oven for 35–40 minutes. Always great!

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• Eatin’ After Eden, the Meat of the Word, by Sylvia W. Zook, MS, PhD. Also go to www.eatinaftereden.com for sound nutritional guidance.
• Toxic Sludge Is Good For You!, Lies, Damn Lies and the Public Relations Industry, by John Stauber and Sheldon Rampton.
• Fast Food Nation, by Eric Schlosser – A golden oldie that’s always a good read to pass on to others less informed.
• Dying To Look Good, by Christine Hoza Farlow, DC – The disturbing truth about what’s really in your cosmetics, toiletries and personal care products … and what you can do about it.
• Raw Meaty Bones, by Tom Lonsdale – Another great pet food book.
• ALL of the Real Food Media Bloggers – check their Blog for great food and nutrition articles.

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