Gut-Healing, Immune Boosting, Veggie-Packed Beef Barley Soup

It's time for another recipe from the Soup Goddess! Go here to find out who the Soup Goddess is, and to find links to her recipes!

Check out all those veggies! I added some Swiss chard stems. Gorgeous.

Here in West Michigan, it's been cold with a mixture of rain and snow. As ready as I am to be outside enjoying a mild spring, meals like this one are helping me stay warm and cozy until that happens! The homemade broth in this soup is good for the gut, which is where most of your immune system resides. So if your family is still getting sick even though winter is "over," make this soup to give their systems a boost! It's also chock full of delicious vegetables which certainly can't hurt. :)

Veggie-Packed Beef & Barley Soup

Ingredients:
1-1.5 lbs stew meat and 10 cups homemade beef broth (or combination of beef and chicken broth
OR
1-1.5 lbs beefy soup bone (mostly meat with a little bone) plus additional bones without meat, and water to cover

1/4 c. butter
2 c. onions, chopped
1 medium turnip, peeled and chopped into 1 inch cubes
1 small sweet potato, peeled and chopped into 1 inch cubes
1 medium potato, peeled and chopped into 1 inch cubes
3 carrots, peeled and sliced
1 c. chopped celery
1 c. cauliflower florets
6 large swiss chard leaves, including stems (optional)
2 cloves garlic, minced
3/4 c. barley, soaked overnight in warm water and 1 T. apple cider vinegar
1 1/2 t. fresh thyme, or 1 t. dried
1 1/2 T. fresh oregano, or 2 t. dried
1/2. t. rubbed sage
1/4 c. fresh parsley, chopped
unrefined sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

1. If using beef soup bones, in the morning before you want to eat the soup, cover the bones with water and a splash of apple cider vinegar in a large pot or crock pot. Cook over low heat for at least 8 hours. This is your beef broth!
2. Melt butter in a soup pot. Add all the chopped veggies and simmer 10 minutes. (I add them as I chop them, and then cook for a few minutes more after they are all in the pot.) If you are using Swiss chard, strip the leaves from the stems. Chop the stems and add them with the rest of the veggies. Reserve the leaves.
3. Add your beef now if you are using stew meat instead of soup bones, and cook a few minutes longer to brown the beef.
4. Add the broth (from your simmered bones, adding water to make 10 cups, or already-made broth. In a pinch, use organic store-bought broth). Add salt and pepper to taste. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer 20 minutes.
5. Add the soaked barley, Swiss chard leaves if using, thyme, oregano, and sage. Simmer until the barley is tender.
6. Add the chopped parsley. Taste and adjust seasonings, adding more salt and pepper if necessary.
7. Serve with crusty bread for a delicious & hearty meal!


 This is part of the following blog carnivals: Whole Foods Wednesday, Healthy2Day Wednesday, Thank Your Body Thursday, Simple Lives Thursday, Pennywise Platter Thursday


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Real Life, Blogging, and Balancing Acts

My lenten break from blogging officially ended on Easter Sunday, a week ago.

I had hoped that on Easter Monday, I'd be back with a vengeance. But my break was so thorough that I didn't write any posts for all of lent (except for MAK and MAM), so I had nothing to publish. I didn't work at all on the new domain. I didn't work at all on Good Bites, my upcoming free eBook of easy, healthy, bite-sized snacks. So what was I doing?

I was being a mom of two kids, one of whom is having a tough time with potty training and the other of whom is having a tough time with sleep. I was being a wife to a stressed out seminarian. I was being an artist: a good friend and I have been re-creating a piece of choreography and had a performance last week.

All those things take precedence over this blog.

And yet, I had some important affirmations during my blogging break. Several friends told me they appreciated my blog. Why? Because I don't judge. My vision is to inspire people to make positive changes for better health, without making them feel like failures because they aren't perfect. Eating real food is a journey! Some people have a radical conversion, but most people make one change at a time. I want to be here to encourage you, one little change at a time.

So where am I at? I'm still not quite sure. I know I want to keep blogging. I'm not sure if now is the season for me to be serious about it. There are a lot of things standing in my way: the stress of grad school, interrupted sleep, wanting to be present to my kids, and a computer that's on the fritz.

I'm seeking balance. I feel sort of like this is the start of a new year, and I'm making resolutions. It seems fitting, in a way, to start fresh after Easter. We just celebrated the most mind-blowing event of our faith. Christ was dead, but now he is alive! This knowledge changes everything, so why not start fresh?

My Easter Resolutions

Find time for prayer and scripture. I want to bask in the light of His presence, morning, noon and night. A three-year-old who wants to be with me constantly, an early rising baby, and a never-ending to-do list get in my way. Any moms out there want to share their secrets?

Prioritize sleep. Remember that series I was going to start, Get More Sleep in 2013? Instead of writing about it, I'm going to do it. I'm working on going to bed earlier, keeping my daughter on a good rhythm so she doesn't get overtired, and taking naps when possible. I want to wake up rested again. Someday, I want to get up an hour before the kids and write. But today is not that day.

Practice Sabbath, even in the kitchen. We have failed over and over at keeping a Sabbath. We know we need it. We know it pleases God. But we have so much going against us: my husbands schedule with classes during the week plus working at a church on Saturday and Sunday leaves us no free day. We try to find time here and there, even if it's not a full day, but the stress of no real rest is wearing on us. We hope that in a couple short months (when things slow down for the summer), that will change. A large part of the rest for me needs to be from all-things-kitchen. It's easy to never really stop in a real food kitchen: there are always ongoing projects. Always something to soak or bake or thaw or ferment. I need to learn how to pause. To plan ahead, and to let go. You may see some posts about this popping up in the next few months as I work on it.

What does this mean for Plus Other Good Stuff?

I think I'm going to try blogging once a week. No pressure to be the best real food blog out there with multiple posts every week and video tutorials and eBooks and all that jazz. Someday those things will come. But for now, it's just me, writing to you, about real food.  No judging, no guilt trips, just simple, delicious, nourishing goodness.

What Do You Want?

Since my posting will be limited, I'd love to know what you want to learn about and prioritize that! What are your biggest challenges in the kitchen? What are you unsure about? What processed food are you having trouble finding alternatives for? Share in the comments so this blog can bless you.



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A Lenten Break

image by Jamiesrabbits

I'm writing this at 1:30 AM. Remember that series I was going to do, about getting more sleep in 2013? I'm not exactly a good role model right now.

Our kids have been sick for a week. Even kids of real food families get sick. As much as we try to fight it by taking our cod liver oil and drinking our smoothies, we get sick. Sometimes, it's nasty. I haven't had a good night of sleep for about nine days.

This week, life has been a constant stream of immediate physical needs. Wake up, try to nurse the baby. Baby won't nurse because she too stuffy, so try the bottle. If that doesn't work, try the eye dropper. Caedmon, time to use the potty! Man I'm hungry. Scarf down some cottage cheese over the sink. Better start some laundry. Toddler peed on the floor. Does he have any more clean clothes? Must be in the laundry basket. Man I'm hungry. Baby needs a diaper. Maybe she'll nurse now? Oh no she's coughing. Take her into the bathroom, turn the shower on hot and breathe in the steam. Now she's tired, I guess I'll just put her down for her nap? Man I'm hungry. Go downstairs, finally get some real breakfast for myself and Caedmon. He doesn't want eggs, he wants peanut butter toast made into sandwiches. How about an egg first? He coughs so hard it makes him gag and throw up. New bib. New shirt. New pants. Do you want some honey lemon tea for your cough? My eggs are cold now. I would like to get dressed at some point. Shoot my clothes are in the room where Esther is trying to fall asleep. Shower? I'll wait until Steven gets home. Can I eat breakfast and pump milk at the same time?

I'm trying to remember that someday these kids will not be so reliant on me for their every waking need. Someday we'll play board games together, and go for walks in the woods together, and maybe they will even help around the house. (You know, in a way that's actually...helpful.) Someday my husband will not come home from a long day of class and work and meetings only to spend the evening doing homework. Someday we might all sit down to dinner together for more than 8.5 minutes.

But for now, it's just one thing at a time. Sometimes the baby has to cry while I help her brother with something. Sometimes Caedmon clings at my leg saying "I need you mommy!" while I try to make dinner.

And sometimes, lately, both of them need my attention, and I'm trying to finish writing a blog post. Which brings me to my next point:

 I'm taking a Lenten Break from blogging.

As much as I want this blog to grow and bless and reach more people, teaching them how to cook and eat real food in a friendly, judgement-free environment, I need a break.

I want to be more present to my children. I want my husband and I to spend our time together together, and never hiding behind our laptop screens. I want to seek the Lord in prayer. I want the scriptures to come alive to me again.

So you won't see much of me for the next 40 days. I'll still be writing for Modern Alternative Kitchen and Modern Alternative Mama. And I might even work on my ebook, or design my new website, or write a few blog posts. But I won't publish them until after Easter. I won't be ruled by this blog. I will only work on it when both kids are sleeping, so they never have to compete with a computer for my attention.

Lord, bring my life back into balance. Grant me sleep. Bring peace into my days. Help me to spend this Lenten season seeking you, only to realize that you've been seeking me all along.

I pray the same for you, dear readers. This Lent, may your life swing into balance. May you let go of anything that is hindering you. May you journey to the cross and fall on your face before him. May you seek the Lord, and be found in him.

"I sought the Lord, and afterward I knew, he moved my soul to seek him, seeking me; It was not I, who found O Saviour true; no I was found of Thee."

How are you celebrating lent this year?

Mexican Hot Chocolate Ice Cream

I love chocolate ice cream, but I love it even more when it has something a little bit special going on. Like peppermint. Or peanut butter. Or cinnamon and cayenne pepper.

The spices in this ice cream make it a perfect winter treat; despite its iciness, you will feel oddly warmed after eating it. It's not too spicy, but has a nice, subtle, slow burn from the cayenne, and a sweet tingle from the cinnamon.

The consistency is divine, thanks to Jeni's Splendid Ice Creams at Home, which has the best homemade ice cream recipes EVER. (Forgive the superlative: it's true.) I alter Jeni's recipes quite a bit, as I outlined in my series on the book here: Part 1, Part 2, and Part 3. Basically, I've done by best to make the healthiest and most delicious ice cream imaginable. Yeah, it's that good.

And oh yeah, Valentine's Day. Make this for your sweetheart! It's not pink or heart-shaped, but what better way to say I love you than with homemade ice cream?!

Ingredient notes:

• For information on where to find healthy chocolate & my chocolate eating rules, see this post: Ingredient Spotlight: Chocolate. I used some Lindt Chocolate, which doesn't follow my rules but was certainly delicious!
• I used whole raw milk, and vat-pasteurized, grass-fed cream from a local farm (since I don't want to give up too much of the cream from my weekly raw milk share).
• I used coconut sugar in this recipe, but sucanat would also work well. These are the healthiest options for granulated sweeteners. Feel free to mess around with the sweetness to your liking: I reduced the quantities significantly from the original recipe, but it tastes plenty sweet to us.

Now on to the recipe!

Mexican Hot Chocolate Ice Cream 

(inspired by Queen City Cayenne Ice Cream, from Jeni's Splendid Ice Creams at Home)
Yield: About 1 Quart

Ingredients:

(Chocolate Paste)
1/3 c. cocoa powder
1/4 c. coconut sugar or sucanat
1/3 c. filtered water
1 1/2 oz. bittersweet chocolate (55%-70% cocoa), finely chopped

(Ice Cream)
2 c. whole milk
1 1/4 c. heavy cream
1/3 c. coconut sugar or sucanat
2 T. honey
1 T. + 1 t. arrowroot
3 T. cream cheese, softened
1/8. t. unrefined sea salt
1/2 t. ground cinnamon
1/8 t. cayenne pepper (mine is very hot so I used a little less than that)

Directions

1. Make the chocolate paste by combining the cocoa, 1/4 c. sweetener and water in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil on medium heat, stirring, and boil for 30 seconds. Remove from heat, add the chopped chocolate, and stir to melt.
2. Measure the cream and milk in a glass measuring cup. Pour into a large saucepan, leaving about 2 T. in the measuring cup.
3. Add the honey and 1/3 c. sweetener to the saucepan and whisk to combine. Heat over medium heat to bring to a gentle simmer.
4. Meanwhile, add the arrowroot to the measuring cup with the remaining milk and whisk to combine.
5. In a medium glass mixing bowl, whisk the chocolate paste, cream cheese, and salt until smooth.
6. When the cream mixture is gently boiling, whisk in the arrowroot/milk mixture. Continue to heat, stirring with a heat-proof spatula, until it thickens slightly. If you're not sure if it thickened, taste some with a spoon (blow on it first!). Your tongue will know.
7. Whisk the cream mixture into the chocolate mixture. Add the cinnamon and cayenne and stir well.
8. Put a lid on the bowl, and chill either in a sink full of ice water or in the fridge. (It's okay to leave it in the fridge overnight if you run out of time!)
9. Churn in your ice cream maker. When it is cold and creamy and looks like ice cream, transfer it to a container. (Jeni says it takes about 25 minutes.)
10. Place in the freezer to chill for at least four hours before eating. 

 Part of the following link-ups: Keep It Real Thursday, Pennywise Platter Thursday, Simple Lives Thursday, Tasty Traditions

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Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links. Purchasing through them supports Plus Other Good Stuff. Thanks!

When is Baby Ready To Eat? (What To Feed Babies Series)

 Welcome to the first post in my series on What To Feed Babies! We're starting off with a topic of much debate: At what age should babies start eating? On the one hand are doctors who recommend starting rice cereal at four months or earlier, and on the other hand you have people like this mom, who exclusively breastfed her daughter for almost two years, choosing to follow the baby's cues for being ready for solid food.

My Experience With Baby's Readiness

Having two very different children has given me an interesting perspective of a lot of baby-related things, including determining when a baby is ready for solid foods.

As a first time mom, I eagerly awaited the 6 month mark, thinking (even if I tried not to) that somehow my baby would magically be ready to eat foods when he hit that milestone age. Six months came and went, and so did seven, and eight, and nine...and this kid did not want to eat!

He would get angry when I tried to feed him my lovingly made vegetable purees with a spoon. And he would gag if I tried to give him soft, "gummable" chunks of food like banana or avocado to feed himself. I had read all about how egg yolk is a great first food for babies starting as soon as four months, but here was my eight month old refusing to even taste it!

As it turned out, Caedmon did not really start eating any significant quantity of food until past his first birthday. By that point, I was able to just give him table food, and bypass the puree stage completely. (Less work, woohoo!) Of course I worried needlessly over it, as many first time moms do when their child is not doing something by the time the average age rolls around (we're there now with potty training). But now I am quite confident of this: he just wasn't ready. He was a marathon nurser and apparently breast milk was enough to sustain him for that first year.

My daughter, of course, is a different story. We introduced solid foods not long after her six month birthday. Now, at almost nine months, she seems to already need three meals a day! She was not quite sitting unsupported (one of the solids readiness signs) when we started feeding her, but since all the other signs were there, I felt comfortable starting. This girl loves to eat!

So there you have it: two completely different scenarios of two completely different kids.

Solid Food Readiness Signs

 

If you search the internet you'll find all sorts of lists of "readiness signs" to tell you when babies are ready to start eating solid foods. Here are a few common ones:

• Loss of the tongue thrust reflex (baby doesn't push food out of his/her mouth automatically)
• Can sit unsupported
• Working on the pincer grasp to pick up small objects (thumb and forefinger)
• Interested in food when others are eating

And I'm adding another: eats food when it's given! If your child meets all the signs but doesn't want to eat, all you can do it wait until they want to. If they are growing and gaining weight and are otherwise healthy, you don't need to worry. The best thing you can do in that case, if you're breastfeeding, is to make sure your diet is as nourishing as possible so you can sustain both yourself and your growing baby.

Here is a great article detailing the readiness signs and myths regarding when to start solid foods, and here is some very well-researched information on why to delay solids until at least 6 months.

When did you start feeding your baby solid foods? Which signs gave you the go-ahead?

This is part of Fat Tuesday, Traditional Tuesday

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Meal Plan February 4-10 + Other Good Stuff

I've decided to highlight some interesting links and articles that I've been reading when I post my meal plan.

Exclusive Breastfeeding For Six Months?

I've been doing research for a post that will be up tomorrow about when babies are ready for solid foods. I came across this article from January 2011 stating that some scientists believe it could actually be harmful to exclusively breastfeed for six months without introducing solid foods. This goes against the recommendation of the World Health Organization, the American Academy of Pediatrics, and other organizations who recommend exclusive breastfeeding for six months. I found this quote by Justine Roberts of Mumsnet interesting:

"....it is quite hard work trying to exclusively breastfeed for six months without introducing solids. If that turns out not to be correct advice, we'd like to know as soon as possible."

What do you think? Is it more difficult to exclusively breastfeed for six months, or introduce foods as early as four months? I'm sure this depends on your situation and whether or not you had a difficult start to breastfeeding. Either way, I'm not convinced that starting solid foods at four months is the best idea. Let me know your thoughts!

Good Stuff From Last Week

• I'm excited to try these Potatoes with Bacon and (hidden) Liver! I've tried hiding liver in spaghetti sauce before, and it just made it taste like liver. But I'm intrigued by this one. She claims that people she has served it to couldn't tell there was any liver in there. Do you believe her? Have you ever tried to sneak liver into anything? (If you're not sure why you'd want to sneak liver, click on the recipe link; she has a great explanation of liver's benefits!

• Oh my. This Homemade Cookie Dough Butter looks dangerously good. But not as dangerous as most desserts: it contains healthy fats from nuts and real butter, and is naturally sweetened with honey. Yeah, I'm gonna have to make that soon.

• Are you a fan of Girl Scout Cookies? My most memorable Girl Scout Cookie moment was in high school, after finding out some nasty stuff about a boy I liked: I indulged in a whole sleeve of Thin Mints. I cringe to think of it now! Jill from Modern Alternative Kitchen gives the low down on Girl Scout Cookies and suggestions on what to do instead of buying them.

Quinoa Salad with Maple Vinaigrette

Meal Plan February 4-10

My meal plan might look fairly similar to last week's...I didn't get to some of those meals, so they are reappearing. :) You know me...I never follow my meal plan exactly.


Monday
Dinner: *Pizza (crust from Real {Fast} Food) topped with One-minute Pizza sauce, grass-fed cheese, organic pepperoni, and veggies
Lunch: Leftover chicken sandwiches
prep: thaw beef soup bone, soak barley

Tuesday
Dinner: Beef Barley Soup, crusty whole grain sourdough bread
Lunch: Leftover Pizza

Wednesday
Dinner at church
Lunch: Leftover Soup
prep: soak quinoa, thaw salmon

Thursday
Dinner: Baked Salmon, quinoa salad with maple vinaigrette
Lunch: Easy Mac & Cheese
prep: thaw cooked white beans from freezer

Friday
Dinner: Leftover salmon & quinoa
Lunch: White Bean Dip

Saturday
Dinner: Spaghetti with doctored-up store-bought sauce (I'll add grass-fed ground beef and saute diced onion and celery, and season the heck out of it), salad with homemade balsamic vinaigrette
Lunch: leftover bean dip
prep: make quiche crust

Sunday
Dinner: Quiche with greens, mushrooms and bacon
Lunch: Leftover spaghetti

*Note on the Pizza: I learned in Real {Fast} Food to make a double batch of dough every time and freeze half of it in balls the right size for a pizza. Then next time, homemade pizza is just a matter of thawing the dough, rolling it out, topping and baking. Much less of an ordeal and perfect for a busy day!

*I'm sharing this at Modern Alternative Kitchen and Organizing Junkie. Check them out for some great meal planning inspiration!*

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Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links. Purchasing through them supports Plus Other Good Stuff. Thanks!

What to Feed Babies {a series}

My sweet Esther is almost nine months old, and is loving eating solid foods. Our first child was a late eater, choosing to exclusively breastfeed until he was almost one, so it's been interesting to have a baby who actually wants to eat solids at a normal age!

We are feeding her in a pretty unconventional way. She doesn't get rice cereal, we don't buy packaged baby food (although there is some decent stuff out there these days!), she eats a lot of animal foods instead of just the standard fruits and veggies.

Many parents want to feed their baby healthy foods, but don't know where to start. There is also a lot of not-so-great information out there about what to feed babies. It can be really confusing!

I want to share our experiences with you, and give you the resources you need to feed your own real food baby. I'd also love to hear from you about your own experience feeding your babies! 

Here are some of the topics I'll be addressing.

This Series Will Cover...

• How to know when your baby is ready for solids

• Superfoods for babies: Which foods to emphasize

• How to prepare nutrient-dense foods for your baby

• Baby Lead Weaning vs. Purees 

• The importance of animal foods for babies 

• Why a grain-free diet is best for babies

• and more!

In addition, I'll be giving you reviews of some resources that can help you through the journey of feeding a real food baby. I'm hoping to do some giveaways, too, so stay tuned for the details!

What do you want to know about feeding babies? What have you struggled with?

This is part of: Make Your Own Monday, Natural Living Monday


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