Best Blueberry Pancakes

It was blueberry pancakes for breakfast, lunch and dinner. A business trip had taken him away till Thursday. Since Sunday evening, cleaning out the fridge of leftovers was the aim of my cleaning out the fridge game.

Sometimes, leftovers were just the best. I did not have to remind the cook of no salt, low salt and fry only till golden. She knew what was expected and why. Then came those blueberry pancakes. When blueberries were in the fridge pancakes happened. Blueberries can be added on top of pancakes as they are fried or in a small amount of batter to be used. Common sense rules in the kitchen!

Making pancakes is an easy filling meal. Blueberries, when available, upgrade my pancakes to gold star status. I'm ready. No recipe required, only the desire to do it. Even a mistake is still delicious. Begin with flours of your choosing. I use organic, always, then add 00 Italian flour ( a more optimistic version of a sort of gluten-free) This mix pleases everyone. A wire whip to sift through the dry ingredients adds air for light, cloud-like pancakes. Adding baking powder and a tiny amount of baking soda prior to using the wire whip lightens the dry mix and is needed for leavening..(When an acid is added, baking soda rides along.)

Adding eggs with olive oil/avocado oil or melted grass fed butter with 'buttermilk' to create a 2 to 1 ratio of liquid to dry ingredients results. Vanilla can be added into the liquid 2-cup measure. Buttermilk can be made using oat milk, regular cow's milk or any other milk. (I have discovered that oat milk makes the best buttermilk.) Adding fresh lemon juice to the milk transforms it into buttermilk, the homemade cheaper, delicious and custom made version. Organic is now available. My dad used to drink ready made buttermilk. I could not. But in baked products, a zesty flavour results, nonetheless.

Adding the liquid into the dry ingredients transforms the mixture into an airy glorious batter. Leftover batter can be used again with a myriad of other ingredients such as chopped chicken, salmon bits, veggies, red onions and mushrooms - just like a sub or a burrito. You decide the framework of those rolled yummies.  ... A hearty meal results saving you time, cost and effort. 

Some foods, dressed up as meals, can transform meal time preparation into the simplest of food fare with time leftover to do other important things. And in a pinch, cooled leftover blueberry pancakes can stand in as a snack for mom and dad and 'cookie' for the kids.

Out of The Mouths and Hands of Children

It began in earnest. Being invited to a Lego city/airport event near the kitchen made this baba feel very special. I had to follow them, I was told. These two radically changing grandsons were quickly becoming thinking people, ready to tell and show me the world in so many words and blocks..

Thinking for oneself is a critical life skill, of course, but remember dear children, your mom and dad are the bosses of you till you are 18. I will remind you. The moment to move to another locale this morning was followed, enthusiastically. How would the afternoon unfold? There was so much to say, show and explain to me. It was time for a break. Into the kitchen we went. I sat at the table replete with learning material. Their mom was a genius. There was nothing that did not excite her as she home schooled these  brilliant scholars in readiness for her visionary school of the future. Fractions were already on the table. Three hours a day. that's all. Cursive writing was on the menu, too, between sports, whales and butterflies. So many parts all in one. Anything, even pasta making and doughnuts were curriculum material.

The former three-year-old, now 4, went on about not drinking dairy. “Well, I replied, in my day that was what was offered and we drank for health and strong bones. It was my story back then. "But I also believe what your mom says."There was no choice then. We bought dairy products from a dairy, a close connection to the farm, a higher quality choice. Cabbage rolls and pierogies needed these toppings. The older boy - all of seven - began his tirade about glucose-fructose. You have learned that lesson well, my sweet boy. This sweetener was everywhere, I knew, the reason many products are not for sale in our family.

We went upstairs to see Legoland in action. They were anxious to show me with an intensive conversational landscape what was happening there. I asked why with every breath I took. Even the 'puppy' crawled underneath the bed to be near her brothers. It was action, born of words. More miracles to be seen and heard. Then it happened. A week later a look at the single serving box of Fruit Loops, in the hands of the 7-year-old during a family visit brought me to attention. Here we go again.

RFK Jr. had spoken about the food dyes ruining health and causing disease in America. In Canada it was a different story in a few cases perhaps. Fruit Loops had been the exhibit under cross examination today. More processed foods beckoned for that closer look. But there were so many more foods under the microscope. 

This child's red pen began circling the real food colours listed on the side panel, an exercise in homework, I thought. Such insights, Big words indicating the health benefits introduced him to another world of health and discovery. He showed me the proof, happy to know that in Canada, in one instance, anyway, a healthier choice had been produced. Nice touch but not enough. My grandson  seemed pleased at the revelation, nonetheless, And so we continued. ....

Making Health #1- (March 30th post- during power outage)

Making America healthy again should have been the mantra, all along. Optimum human health should be at the top of all government agendas. There was a time when I was naive that I believed all the nutritionists and scientists, created in universities all around the world, then hired by food companies, were there to protect the food supply - farming, agriculture and food processing - for the human race. Is there a hidden agenda? Is there a money trail unknown to the consuming public that allows food groups to exist in a format that helps create that non-stop desire to eat? We are in charge, are we not??

Food's purpose is to help the body recover, heal and maintain a steady stream of valuable food nutrients keeping it in good condition for growth and development. We have organic, NON/GMO, hothouse, greenhouse and others. The food world of the past was a simple time, a cleaner time, too. Gluten free did not exist. The whole point of eating is to refill our reservoir of health for the human body. Longevity is the name of the human game.

So RFK is now in charge. Someone should have been all along. Glucose-fructose, an inexpensive sweetener, is bad news and has been for decades. I wrote about its deliterious effect on our bodies years ago. ... I was shocked from what I learned. Focus, a British publication, illustrated its journey with a gigantic color filled diagram showing where this manufactured sweetener was heading- straight to the liver where garbage generally goes, arrows pointing to this overwhelmed organ. It was scary. 

Glucose-fructose is still with us today, floating in all manner of products we use everyday. ... Decades ago, its introduction was found in familiar drinks called 'cocktails' but has been found in many 'everyday' add-ons such as ketchup, relish, mixes. When does it end? 

Taking short cuts, too often, with food, is a path to ill health. Even Dr. Oz has spoken about this food dilemma. How are we to discern those things that are 'o.k. for us to eat? Why did additives and preservatives become so prevalent in our food supply. The bottom line. That's why.

The food pyramid has changed. Who's intentions are being considered here? Has it now mandated us to consume more carbs? Should we be concerned? A trip to the perimeter of the grocery store with its live food section called produce, meats, and dairy, selected bakery items should be the first line of defense in keeping us healthy, the purpose for visiting any food market and a requirement for all food shopping adventures.

Eat an apple. It's a composite meal in one, loaded with taste. There are thousands of varieties, I have learned; its history, beginning in North Carolina with over a 1,000 varieties lost then found. Experts estimate over 11,000 heirloom varieties are extinct. Apples' history abound. They are everywhere for us to indulge, yet sometimes overlooked as the food to buy. We are smart creatures. I have heard. Do we know enough of the value in visiting the produce aisle for optimum health and wealth?

As I walked to the local pizzeria for that popular slice of pizza, the young boy passing me complained to his classmate,”I'm still hungry”. He had just finished eating his pizza slice. I looked towards him, remarking that an apple might have tamped down his hunger. Maybe he will think the next time and place one or two of these crunchy delights in his back pack to satisfy hunger when it comes calling. The urge to eat is ever present. Embracing real food helps reduce the mindless indulgence we all face everyday with food. Sometimes it is thirst not hunger that we feel.

A freshly minted body might cope with wrong choices for a time but not forever. The body accumulates toxins from some foods we choose to eat on a regular basis, then one day, responds in ways not expected. 

Homemade can be everything we hope it can be. But remember, the sauces added into the mix of protein and vegetables can cancel the benefits of the food or meal just made. And sugar in all its guises is not required for dietary health. It captivates our appetite to think it is an important link to health. It's not and never was! .... (Healthy fats help with the absorption of vitamins A,D,K,and E into the body) And fries could help. Beforehand, eat that delicious salad, a close ally of healthy fries. I do whenever I can.