Lunch Box Chronicles: Days One-Hundred Eighty Two through One-Hundred Eighty Nine (Seven Days - On Eating)

Cinnamon Raisin Spelt Bread Pudding
In the Shadows Reflecting on the Week

In the shadows, we gain perspective. As we peer back and look forward, we see what worked, what didn’t, what we should change, and what we should keep just the same. Last week was a first for us, but perhaps, not the last. As Tim scaled the Great Wall in search of vast opportunities in the eastern frontier, I had to take on the daily drive from Upper Manhattan to Westchester and back again, throwing in a few Brooklyn and NJ detours along the way. Tim works where the kids go to school, so the drive is usually not on my agenda, and certainly not round-trip twice a day. The kids and I planned how to make seven days less stressful even though the days and nights required more organization from the tween and teen and more mileage from the quinquagenarian. We did seven days solo, and we did it well.

Homemade Home Fries

Spelt Right Bagels, CC, Bacon,
Homemade Pear Sauce, Homemade Custard

We planned it around food, around dinner and breakfasts, around go-to-bed times and early rise times, around planning ahead, packing your backpacks, having your phones, and not-losing it when you did not have your phones. We planned for mistakes, we made mistakes, but we got over them. We cooperated. We made messes. We cleaned them up. We did homework. We forgot homework. We laughed, sang, yelled, danced, and smiled.

The Dining "Room" Table -
 It's More Like the "Dining Corner"

Most transformative of all, though, was that for each of our meals - breakfast and dinner - we sat at our dining "room" table beautifully set and lit as if for guests, and ate our foods with appreciation of their inherent gifts rather than inhaling the foods as an afterthought on the way out the door. It became ritualistic to gather together to share these two meals, talk about the day to come, and the day that just finished. By being purposeful, we calmed our souls and set the tone ready to take on the challenges of each day. We started a new tradition, which we will incorporate into our daily routines. It worked, and we like it.

In all of this, I also made some new recipes, received feedback, and made them again, modified and better as result of the input from the peanut gallery.

So, we are not going to offer all of the recipes for the week (that would be totally insane), but we will tell you our menu, show you some photos, and give you a revised version of the recipe that started and ended this 7 day sojourn: Cinnamon Raisin Spelt Bread Pudding, but this time with less bread, smaller chunks of bread, and less sugar. Definitely, a better version within the shadows."

Sunday
• Lunch and Dinner: two batches of moujadara (Lebanese lentil rice stew)
• Dessert: Cinnamon Raisin Spelt Bread Pudding

Monday
• Chicken Pot Pie (I made the inside; Spencer made the crust) YUM! and salad with homemade dressing
• Protein Bars for Olivia (made by Mom with love as a sure solution to curb the protein lows. Quick recipe: 3 cups all natural rice crisp cereal (I used Trader Joes), 1 cup unsweetened raw almond butter, 1 cup Bob’s Red Mill ground flax seed, 3/4 cup natural Tjs natural chocolate chips, 3/4 cups natural Tjs white chocolate chips. Mix all ingredients but chips together in large bowl. Melt chips in double boiler. When they are melted, mix in. Press the mixture into a buttered 9 inch pyrex pan. Cool in fridge. Cut in squares when done. Put in baggies for quick snacks for school.
• Homemade apple sauce (just peel, slice, de-core a bunch of old apples, add water as need, cook until mushy, add cinnamon to taste, organic sugar (optional), mash with a potato masher)

Tuesday
• Breakfast, homemade spelt banana muffins (made the night before), homemade apple sauce (made the night before) scrambled eggs
• Snack - protein bars (recipe above)
• Dinner: Shepherds pie (made the night before) and salad

Wednesday
• Breakfast - homemade custard (made Tuesday night)
• Dinner - the most amazing chicken and mushroom soup with onions, carrots and potatoes. In large sauce pan, sauté a finely chopped onion with pulverized garlic and 1 teas salt, add 4-5 chopped carrots, keep sautéing, add 2-3 chopped potatoes, keep sautéing, add 2-3 chicken breasts, sprinkle in tarragon, basil, salt and pepper, add frozen green beans if desired, cover all with filtered water. Cook until all is cooked. Take out cooked chicken, cut up chicken in small chunks and put back in. Add more flavor if desired (made Tuesday night)

Thursday
• Breakfast: (spelt right bagels with cc and bacon!?!, homemade pear sauce (pear-ple sauce as named by O), homemade custard squares, side of bacon)
• Dinner: leftovers – lentils, chicken soup, hamburgers, and whatever else remained in the kitchen with homemade homefries.
• Time to go grocery shopping

Friday
• Green Bean Stew with tomatoes and chickpeas
• We all fell asleep after dinner, then Olivia woke grumpy and protein deprived (the green bean stew was not enough to help with a protein low). I made a quick meat and tomato sauce over noodles to help her out.

Saturday
• Both kids out
• Beth dinner solo at local Italian Restaurant (It was a little over-the-top to have so much free time!!). No clean up, no planning, no nothing. Wow!

Sunday – start all over again (Tim arrived home safely from his eastern adventure, but still is on eastern time, so went right to bed after an early dinner. Just to prove that I love him as much as I love the kids, I made….)
• Spelt Right Cinnamon Raisin Bread Pudding –with less sugar (in the shadows)
• Chicken pot pie, non-traditionally made by being folded in Spelt Right triangles (pictures to come)
• Green Bean Stew – repurposed from Friday’s dinner with local ground beef, onions, eggplant, and olives sauteed in EVOO with the green beans. Very very good!
• A new batch of apple sauce
• Green leaf salad with endives, black olives, dill pickles, and tomatoes with homemade dressing with EVOO and balsamic vinegar
• AND, whole spelt white and dark chocolate chip cookies.

Monday- will see a repeat from all the leftovers from Sunday.

What are we going to do for Tuesday??

I believe I am obsessed….

Here is the revised recipe - a picture of which is in the shadows.

7 slices Spelt Right cinnamon raisin bread. Place on baking sheet and bake at 375 – 400 until crisp (10 minutes each side). Let cool. Put in plastic bag, and crush with rolling pin Set aside.
2 TBL melted butter
4 eggs beaten
2 cups milk
1/4 cup organic evaporated cane sugar (so much better than bleached white sugar!) (we halved the amount)
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon natural vanilla
(we took out the raisins)

Instructions:
Butter the bottom and sides of an 8" glass baking dish. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Put bread in bowl, pour melted butter on bread.
In medium bowl, combine eggs, milk, sugar, cinnamon, and vanilla. Beat until well mixed. Pour over bread, and lightly push down with a fork until bread is covered and soaking up the egg mixture.
Bake in the preheated oven for 45 minutes, or until the top springs back when lightly tapped.

Yum!

Lunch Box Chronicles: Day One Hundred Sixty Four (I've Gone Bananas!)

SPELT BANANA BREAD WITH A SPLASH OF ORANGE JUICE

My intent was to write something funny, or inspiring, but I feel neither humorous nor inspirational, just a bit bananas.

Some of you know my story, others have bits and pieces, and many simply don't know or don't care. Don't worry, though, I'm not hurt. I get it! Everyone else's story can't become your own.

You would have too many layers to unfold, too many tangles to untangle. Life is too complicated. Inertia moves us from moment to moment. We do what we can just to survive.

And, we hope somewhere along the way that, if we work hard enough, hang tough, and remain dogged with our mission, we might actually achieve that which we set out to accomplish. But, I've been told that it also takes some luck.

Well, I've had some good luck. And have worked hard. And have hit some brick walls, experienced some bruises. But, I am still moving forward. My goal is to build a business - Spelt Right Baking - to have people chose better options for eating bread while having the grain spelt become a household staple - "Of course, I have spelt in the cupboard, right along side my quinoa, emmer, and wild rice." And to have Spelt Right be the brand that everyone associates with spelt. And, side by side with these goals, I hope to benefit my family and my business partners, for sticking by me, cheering me on, being a part of that essential luck, and keeping me from going completely bananas.

PS: Did I mention that Spelt Right is on its way. We did our very first demo in the NYC Whole Foods - Upper West Side - and we plan on doing many more. And, with a little luck, we hope to get into many more stores in this great city.

Here is a DELICIOUS recipe - whether you are going bananas or not.

SPELT BANANA BREAD WITH A SPLASH OF ORANGE JUICE

1/2 cup softened butter

3/4 cup organic evaporated cane sugar

2 TBL molasses

2 eggs beaten

1 cup whole VITA spelt

1 cup sifted (white) VITA spelt

1/4 cup orange juice

1 teaspoon aluminum free baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

3 ripe bananas mashed

Pre-heat oven to 350. Cream butter and sugar; add eggs; beat well. Add dry ingredients. Mix. Add bananas and orange juice. Mix well. Butter and dust with flour a baking dish. You can use a flat Pyrex type dish, 9" x 7"or a 5"x 9" loaf pan. For the flatter dish, bake for about 45 minutes until toothpick comes out clean. For the loaf pan, about an hour.

Lunch Box Chronicles: Day One Hundred Fifty-Four (The Five Star Alfredo Sauce Recipe Scratched on a Paper Bag)

You never know what you will find scratched on a paper bag.

My son, Spencer, and I were lucky to be the beneficiaries of a FIVE STAR alfredo recipe inked on said receptacle.

Spencer has been lobbying for fettuccine alfredo for several weeks. The problem is that he can't eat regular wheat without feeling really lousy, so going to an Italian restaurant is not an option.

Fortunately, we now live in NYC, one of the most gastronomically diverse cities in the world. And, we live close to one of the best neighborhoods for Italian provisions, Arthur Avenue in the Bronx.

Shall I admit that I have become slightly addicted to the seemingly infinite supply of homemade pastas, fresh mozzarella and ricotta, imported cheeses, locally cured meats, and sinful desserts? Not to mention the wine, cappuccino, and friendly conversation?

On this President's Day, the family set out on an excursion to buy Italian groceries to make the coveted alfredo sauce. Destination? Teitel Bros. on Arthur Avenue.

We were headed there not only for the cheeses and imported butter, but for the farro (emmer variety) pasta. Farro is a concept "deeply rooted in Italian tradition." The term "farro" is reserved for three cultivated hulled ancient wheat species, including einkorn (farro piccolo), emmer (farro medio), and spelt (farro grande). The beauty is that we know that Spencer can eat each of these varieties without getting the modern wheat blues.

As I was searching for the farro pasta hidden behind other tempting provisions, the owner Ed, asked what I was looking for. I reminded him that I'm the spelt lady, who was in the week before, and was looking for the farro we purchased the other day. "Ohhh, the lawyer, I remember," he said. He moved aside the bottles of olive oil, and opened the gateway to the Farro Pasta. I felt like a hoarder as I stacked 6 boxes in my arms. "The kid wants fettucine alfredo," I said as I tried to clarify that I was not chowing down all the pasta myself.

"Would you like a recipe?" Ed inquired. "Mike here is an expert. He owned a five star Italian restaurant in NJ. He has the best alfredo recipe." Spencer beamed at me as if we had just hit the jackpot. "Absolutely," I said. As I tried to scratch down the recipe, however, Ed, Mike, and now John saw that my attempts to keep up with the recitation of the recipe was becoming futile. Mike took over, got a paper bag, and a pen, and unlocked the key to the secret of a divine alfredo sauce (see photo above).

Good thing Spencer was around as a second set of ears. I did not quite get all of the directions straight and the writing on the paper bag was slightly cryptic. Between the two of us, mom and son, we were able to decipher the alfredo recipe. The result was close to divine. For fear that I might not recite the recipe as it should be, I will reveal only the secret ingredients (fresh ground nutmeg, Italian butter, and an egg yolk) and you will have to go to Teitel's yourself for the recipe and the magic.

Lunch Box Chronicles: Day One Hundred Fifty-Three (On Being Prepared)

Sundays are my days to prepare the

meals for the week.

Regardless of what I have penciled in my calendar, the week inevitably takes twists and turns and morphs into something completely unrecognizable from that which appeared on my calendar.

Is it just me? Or, does this happen to everyone?

Sundays are kind of like my emergency preparedness day – my kitchen looks like we are anticipating an ice storm or nor' easter or worse, but really I am just preparing for another predictably unpredictable week, two very hungry kids after long days at school, and two very tired parents after grueling work days.

Usually Sunday’s pickings can be rationed through Wednesday, sometimes they last through Thursday.

By Friday, we start foraging for berries, insects, and roots – luckily Sunday is not too far around the corner.

Making these meals is an adventure because NY offers a complete tapestry of food choices.Above, I am shopping on Arthur Avenue in the Bronx, the other "Little Italy" at Teitel's Italian Shop. I got some incredible cheeses and farro-emmer pasta (there are three types of farro - emmer, einkorn and spelt) there and cut a few deals on prices buying in bulk.

So on that particular Sunday, I made Chicken Parmesan, Farro Pie (which was essentially baked ziti, but I varied the recipe with fresh mozzarella and farro pasta), and Walnut Pepper Pies made with Spelt Right Pizza Dough. I just threw together the chicken parmesan so have no recipe to share, but the Farro Pie, and Walnut Pepper Pies are worth replicating. Here is the linked recipe for the Walnut Pepper Pies. And the recipe for the Baked Farro Pie.

Ingredients:

One organic onion (finely chopped)

4-5 cloves of garlic (finely chopped or minced with salt)

1/4 – 1/2 cup of extra virgin olive oil

Pomi – crushed tomatoes – all natural, no citric acid – in a carton (no BPA in packaging)

One Pound Grass Fed Ground Beef (optional)

1-2 Teaspoons of Sea Salt

Ground pepper to taste

6-10 leaves of Fresh Basil (chopped finely). Can use dried basil

Two packages of FARRO pasta (from Zeitel's). I used ziti and spaghetti because I did not have enough ziti (if you do this, note the different cook times)

One small container of whole milk ricotta

One half to one pound of natural mozzarella (shredded or pulled apart)

Instructions:

Place chopped onion and garlic in olive oil in large stainless steel pan. Saute until onions are brown. Add ground beef. Saute until browned. Add Pomi tomatoes, salt and pepper to taste. Add one teaspoon of organic sugar if desired. Stir all ingredients. Cook on medium low for 20-25 minutes. Stirring occasionally. Add chopped basil.

In the meantime, boil and drain pasta according to instructions on panel. Rinse, and then toss with extra virgin olive oil to keep from sticking.

Preheat oven to 375F.

In a 9 inch glass baking dish, spread a little of the sauce on the bottom to keep the pasta from sticking. In the sauce pan, toss the pasta sauce and pasta. When thoroughly tossed, place the pasta in the baking dish. Spread ricotta on top. Then sprinkle with mozzarella. Bake until bubbling on top. Guaranteed to be a hit with the kids.

Lunch Box Chronicles: Day One Hundred Fifty-One (On Simple Things in Life and Turkey and Cheese in a Pocket)

OK, it's true. The more I try to simplify my life, the more I fill in the holes with more to do. It's just who I am. Things don't change that easily. And. one thing that hasn't changed and likely never will is my obsession with feeding my family and friends and colleagues and neighbors well (and looking for simple solutions for busy lives). Look out neighborhood! I might show up with basket of goodies or some warm soup!!!

Here's a simple recipe. Perfect for school lunches or an after school snack. Turkey and cheese in a Spelt Right pocket. YUMM!

TURKEY AND CHEESE HUGGED BY SPELT RIGHT DOUGH

Ingredients: One Spelt Right Pizza dough fully thawed and proofed. (That means that it should fill the bag after it has risen). Your favorite cold meats and cheeses. Mayonnaise or other dressing if desired. We used all natural turkey and cheddar cheese.

Lightly oil (with EVOO) a stainless steel baking pan. Preheat oven to 375-400F

Cut dough into 6-8 equal pieces. Stretch dough to about 1/8 inch thick in circle. Place a fair amount of turkey and cheese or other filling on half of dough. Gently stretch over berries and pinch on ends (see pictures).Place on baking sheet; bake for 20-30 minutes until lightly browned on the bottom.

Can be served cold or reheated. My kids had these for lunch and after school snacks and loved them! As Olivia said, "this is not food; it is art."

Lunch Box Chronicles: Day One-Hundred Thirty-Four (Happy Birthday to Me!!)

Having entered into August, the month of this Lioness's birth, I was finally the beneficiary of an incredible spelt birthday cake made by our in-house cake boss, Spencer, who has recently reached the ripe age of 14.

He pondered for several days on the perfect cake for mom's big 48th....He concluded that A GERMAN CHOCOLATE SPELT CAKE made with organic spelt flour and organic sugar would be fitting.  Unbelievably rich and complicated!!!

This cake and the process that went into it brought us full circle to the reason we have become such a foodie family.

Spelt German Chocolate Cake

Ingredients (adapted from AllRecipes.com)

• 1/2 cup water
• 4 (1 ounce) squares German sweet chocolate
• 1 cup butter, softened
• 2 cups organic cane sugar
• 4 egg yolks
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 cup buttermilk
• 2 1/2 cups Vita Spelt organic white spelt flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 4 egg whites
•  
• 1 cup organic cane sugar
• 1 cup evaporated milk
• 1/2 cup butter
• 3 egg yolks, beaten
• 1 1/3 cups flaked coconut
• 1 cup chopped pecans
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
•  
• 1/2 teaspoon butter
• 1 (1 ounce) square semisweet chocolate

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease and flour 3 - 9 inch round pans. Sift together the flour, baking soda and salt. Set aside. In a small saucepan, heat water and 4 ounces chocolate until melted. Remove from heat and allow to cool.
2. In a large bowl, cream 1 cup butter and 2 cups sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in 4 egg yolks one at a time. Blend in the melted chocolate mixture and vanilla. Beat in the flour mixture alternately with the buttermilk, mixing just until incorporated.
3. In a large glass or metal mixing bowl, beat egg whites until stiff peaks form. Fold 1/3 of the whites into the batter, then quickly fold in remaining whites until no streaks remain.
4. Pour into 3 - 9 inch pans Bake in the preheated oven for 30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. Allow to cool for 10 minutes in the pan, then turn out onto wire rack.
5. To make the Filling: In a saucepan combine 1 cup sugar, evaporated milk, 1/2 cup butter, and 3 egg yolks. Cook over low heat, stirring constantly until thickened. Remove from heat. Stir in coconut, pecans and vanilla. Cool until thick enough to spread.
6. Spread filling between layers and on top of cake. In a small saucepan, melt shortening and 1 ounce of chocolate. Stir until smooth and drizzle down the sides of the cake.

Although the cake should have taken about 2 hours to make, it took Spencer nearly 6 given we don't even have an electric mixer (it broke somewhere along the way), and he had no help from adults.  

Tim put together a wonderful last minute birthday gathering at Gritty's on Exchange Street in Portland.  The photo is the cake perched on a ledge overlooking Wharf Street from back side of Gritty's.   

Typical of planning though, Tim was right on time, but I was an hour and a half late with Spencer and Olivia in tow.  It turns out, that while Spencer had a great time making the cake, he forgot to feed his own body during the process, and had such a protein low it was as if we were full circle back to where we started 7 years ago with this diet change.

Both of us quickly realized that the melt down was simply a lack of eating - and we called Tim to order a Gritty's burger for Spencer upon his arrival.  

With Spencer fed, friends imbibed, and kids clamoring, we had a wonderful time.  "Happy Birthday day to me...."

Lunch Box Chronicles: Day One-Hundred Thirty-Three (Studies Recommend Spelt as Part of Healthy Diet)

Recently, an on-line customer informed me she eats Spelt Right products because diet change, which includes spelt, has helped her reduce the symptoms of metabolic syndrome which is related to insulin resistance.  She said that, on the recommendation of her endocrinologist, she went off of white starchy flours and on to ancient grains like spelt and quinoa.  As a result, she lost 30 pounds.

I have heard similar stories, but this piqued my curiosity. 

I started researching and found an interesting article in the Annals of the New York Academy of Science, entitled Adjuvant Diet to Improve Hormonal and Metabolic Factors Affecting Breast Cancer Prognosis.   This article contains some incredible information based upon various studies.

It a nutshell, it states what we many of us know, but hate to admit.  Americans (and others adopting the "Western Diet") eat a lot of junk, don't exercise much, and are getting sick as a result.  The good news is that there are ways to turn this around.  One is to eat better, and one of the recommendations is to eat spelt.

The abstract of this relatively lengthy article states that “western lifestyle, characterized by reduced physical activity and a diet rich in fat, refined carbohydrates, and animal protein is associated with high prevalence of overweight, metabolic syndrome, insulin resistance, and high plasma levels of several growth factors and sex hormones….[T]hese factors are associated with breast cancer risk and, in breast cancer patients, with increased risk of recurrences.  Recent trials have proven that such metabolic and endocrine imbalance can be favorably modified through comprehensive dietary modification, shifting from Western to Mediterranean and macrobiotic diet.”  (emphasis added)

Among the other dietary recommendations, the article suggests that breast cancer patients “reduce high glycemic index and high insulinemic index foods, such as refined flours, potatoes, white rice, corn flakes, sugar, and milk, using instead whole grain cereals (unrefined rice, barley, millet, oat, spelt, quinoa)

So, yes, I can say with confidence (and based upon experience) spelt is good for you.

And, if you want some great tasting spelt, try Spelt Right.

Lunch Box Chronicles: Day One-Hundred Thirty-Two (Word of the Day: Anodyne)

Anodyne - one of the words introduced at a CLE - continuing legal education course I took this week.  (I still bounce between the dual worlds of lawyer and entrepreneur). 

Anodyne - n. a drug that relieves pain; analgesic; anything that alleviates mental distress; adj. capable of relieving pain or distress. 


Yes, I could use an anodyne.  

Being an entrepreneur is STRESSFUL.  My brain feels it; my neck feels it; my soul feels it.  But thankfully, there are some human anodynes in my life who make this peregrination (oooohhh, I love big words) more palatable.  

My anodynes are folks who say, "I might not get it, but I'm here for you" or "Yes, I get it.   I've been there.  It IS hard, but you can do it.  If it were easy, every one would do it."   But, they go one step further; they not only offer words of encouragement and inspiration, they act.  Not only do they say, "How can I help," they roll up their sleeves and get in the thick of it.  They brainstorm on ideas; they find suppliers; they find bakers; they find funders. They say, it is ok, because I believe in you.  

They are what differentiates well wishers from anchors.  They are the people I love.  And I hope that someday I can offer my personal anodynes ranging in age from 9 to 85, a little relief of their own.  I hope one day I can offer them the fruits of my labor - for the lack of a better word - a lasting legacy.

So, at the risk of being a little self serving, I offer this Spelt Right pizza recipe as an anodyne to the stresses of just being.   Whatta Pizza!   

Ingredients, one Spelt Right Pizza Dough, fully thawed and risen.  Sauce of your choice.  Shredded mozzarella and provolone, black olives, mushrooms sauteed in olive oil and garlic, onions, fresh tomatoes, and whatever else serves to ease your pain.   Work dough gently into a lightly oiled baking pan.  Assemble as you would any pizza.  Bake at 450 for 12-20 minutes..check the crust!    Let cool slightly.  Indulge.  Feel no pain. 

Lunch Box Chronicles Day One Hundred Thirty-One (Blabbing vs. Blogging)

It was recently suggested that in order to promote marketing for Spelt Right and relay my passion behind this business, I should blog more.

I should do a lot of things more...like sleep more, exercise more, clean more, do my books more, play with my kids more, listen to my husband more.

But, there are also things that I need to do less, and one, as mentioned by my business partner, I need to blab less and blog more.  Clever juxtaposition, but true.  Blog more, blab less.

I need to complain less too, and worry less, and work less, but what this simply reveals is that there is a lot less and a lot more to life.  Perhaps, I just need to count more - count my blessings, count my friends, count my family, and count the endless number of four leaf clovers that grow in our yard.

With all of the great people in my life, despite all of the mores and all of the lesses, there is one guess - and that is "I guess that I am lucky."

As Joan Armatrading sang "I am so lucky that I'm as lucky as me."  Just have to keep reminding myself of that....

Lunch Box Chronicles Day One Hundred Thirty (Lord of the Flies 14 Year Old Birthday Party)

Themed birthday parties are the craze - My Little Pony for pre-schoolers, Glee Sing-a-Longs for Middle School Girls, 80s Rock Oldies for High Schoolers, but for middle school boys - YOU DON'T NEED A THEME....Chaos simply prevails - Dare I say, "Lord of the Flies" absent cannibalism was our unplanned theme for Spencer's 14th birthday.

I should have known that we were heading in that direction when Spencer mentioned that he simply wanted to invite friends to BURN their middle school homework.  And, Tim added fuel to the fire when he gifted Spencer a real CROSS BOW.   Mother Nature continued with the theme when she mysteriously planted a HORNETS NEST in a bush which the kids proceeded to trounce with pitch folks, hard rakes, and shovels.

It was chaos!

It was amazing to watch my young cake boss who expertly created his own spelt birthday cake earlier in the day transform into a member of a roaming gang within a few hours.  With flames rising, arrows careening, and angry wasps swarming, it was nothing short of miraculous that there were no major injuries.  At the conclusion of the chaos, there were only a few scrapes, loads of mosquito bites, and happy full bellies.

Luckily, these boys were not stranded on a deserted island with nothing to eat.  Instead, they had at their disposal endless amounts of Spelt Right pizza and the heavenly spelt chocolate cake made by a devilish kid.

It was a long three hours.  One that I do not wish to repeat, BUT....

as Shakespeare reminds us "All's well that ends well."

Spelt Right Pizza Dough - Perfect for Birthday Parties- Theme or No Theme

Heavenly Spelt Right Pizza for a Devilish Crowd

Someday we will convince Spencer to turn over the recipe for these divine cakes

Lunch Box Chronicles: Day One-Hundred and Twenty Nine (Happy Belated Birthday Emma)

It's been awhile since I have written as I have been working diligently to find the perfect partners to help Spelt Right grow while making our bagels and breads the best ever.   Life has been challenging - not challenging in a life or death sense - but challenging in a balancing the many pieces of a perpetually busy life sense.  Good thing I have good people in my life to reign me in at times.

My time this summer has been split between home and AWAY.  The kids' birthdays are one way to anchor me and those anchors have been one of my links to sanity.

Our cake boss days continue - Spencer has been on a cake making mission.   He made one in early June for his older sister's birthday - Emma - 19 years vibrant.

As always, the cake was quite amazing - soft, tasty, chocolatey - simply out of this world...On a recent business trip, I brought a piece of cake to my business associate from AWAY.   Perhaps not the best move.....We have created another addict to spelt chocolate cake - his simple request each time I return on a business trip - BRING A PIECE OF THE SPELT CHOCOLATE CAKE.

Enough on cakes and more on birthdays - I am very proud of my 19 year old.  She did a stellar job her first year in college, and now is doing a stellar job as an intern at the VIA advertising agency in Portland.  I like to take some credit that perhaps she learned some of her work ethic from her mom while making bagels at Spelt Right during the past three summers- but maybe I am taking a little too much credit.

Perhaps, this kid, now woman....is just stellar.   Happy Belated Birthday Emma.

Lunch Box Chronicles: Day One-Hundred and Twenty-Five (Let Food Be Thy Medicine)

http://www.themotherhoodblog.com/2011/06/let-food-be-thy-medicine-guest-post-by.html

MONDAY, JUNE 6, 2011

Let Food Be Thy Medicine: Guest-post by Beth George of Spelt Right Baking Company

In today’s guest-post, Beth George, co-founder and owner of Spelt Right Baking, tells the story of how one mother's desire to help her son grew into a new business that helps many. 

*This is a story Beth has told many times, and much of this article appears word-for-word on the Spelt Right Baking's "About" page. We are happy to re-publish the origin of Spelt Right here, at The MotherHood, because we believe in Beth and Tim's mission to raise awareness along with the bread they bake.

Photo courtesy of Bates College and Beth George.

Transformative is the best way to describe the diet change in our family. 

We certainly are not perfect. It's tough to find all-organic foods, especially in Maine where we live, but the changes we've made are significant: we don't buy foods made with industrial wheat and other industrial grains, or artificial colors, flavors, or preservatives. We've also eliminatedhydrogenated oils, MSG (monosodium glutamate), HFCS (high-fructose corn syrup), and anything that reeks of highly refined or altered foods. 

It has improved our lives beyond expectation.

As stated by the great philosopher Hippocrates in 460 BC, “Let Food Be Thy Medicine; Let Medicine Be Thy Food.”

Our son, who is now 13, use to experience significant health and behavioral problems, and was diagnosed between the ages of four and seven, with ADHD, Asperger’s, Pervasive Developmental Disorder and a host of other disorders. He also had frequent ear infections and a compromised immune system. Sometimes he would flap his hands, moan, and get red-hot ears; he might rock, become extremely agitated or hyperactive. At times, though, he was quite calm, introspective and manageable.

At the time he was diagnosed, I was practicing law as a child advocate attorney representing hundreds of children in the system—in juvenile courts, in state custody, and in special education. I witnessed a misdirected, overburdened, over-budgeted, and ineffective system. The kids had tons of resources thrown at them but things were not improving. I was shocked by the number of kids being diagnosed with various disorders and systematically placed on drugs, with no quantifiable improvement. Most were recidivists in the juvenile system and many, within a few years, made their way into the adult criminal system.

I witnessed a system that was/is broken and I wanted to change it—the problem being that systems are hard to change. The issue hit home when my son, our middle child, was being diagnosed similarly to the kids for whom I advocated. I knew that I had to stop the train with him or my child could become embroiled in the same, ineffective system.

LOOKING FOR ANSWERS

I was not convinced of the accuracy of the diagnoses, and was skeptical about the recommendation to test psychotropic drugs on our son. We wanted to find out what was triggering the physical and emotional reactions in him and resisted the proposed drug therapy. I started out by reading the current research and talking to other parents, which led me to consider my son's problems as possibly a reaction to specific foods.

One doctor we had consulted recommended that we try non-wheat breads. I had seen a loaf of spelt bread at my nanny's apartment and asked why she was eating it.  She told me that it was wheat-free bread, and that she felt better eating it compared to 'regular' bread. (This was pre-2006 when the FDA had not yet required that all spelt products contain the phrase "Contains: wheat".Spelt is not a wheat-free food.*)

I thought I would buy some for my son. It was good and he had no adverse reactions to it, but it fell apart easily—which made him cry at school. So, I decided to try and make my own spelt bread that tasted good and would not fall apart.

By the time my son was nine, we moved beyond bread and had completely changed his diet, eliminating all artificial additives, preservatives and colors.

The results were profound. 

After implementing a regulated, but very satisfying diet, my son's life was completely turned around. He is now free of any diagnoses and is in the gifted program in middle school. He is one of the nicest, most creative and grounded thirteen-year old boys I know. Additionally, he is a budding chef and baker, and can make just about anything from scratch.

This is nothing short of remarkable given that he could barely sit at a desk just a few years before.

A BUSINESS IS BORN

In the process of helping my son, I have helped myself, and have learned how to help others. 

In 2007, as a result of the need to find better food for our son, I and my husband, Tim Kane (vice president of a local college) created an all-natural baking company,Spelt Right Baking.  pizza dough—ever! (Currently all our products are available online.)

Also since 2007, I have been writing, talking, and baking my way to get attention for this very important issue: to educate others on the critical importance of healthy, nutritious foods for our mental and emotional well-being.

In the course of growing our business, we have heard from so many of our customers about their own health challenges, including diabetes, insulin resistance, Lyme Disease, arthritis, migraines, heart and artery disease, skin issues, obesity, behavior problems, and how they have been able to improve their health through diet change, including a switch from industrial grains to heirloom grains like spelt.

We have come to the conclusion that America does not face a health crisis, but rather a nutrition crisis.

I think about the money that the government could save (just in the educational system alone) if people simply fed their kids better foods. I am convinced that the special education and juvenile justice systems would become less burdened, not to mention the health care costs of the general public.

SHARE YOUR STORY WITH US

We would love to hear the stories of other families that have found health and sanity through diet change.

You can post on our blog: http://speltrightbaking.blogspot.com/ or email me directly beth@speltrightbaking.com.

Thank you and be well!

Beth George, co-founder and owner, Spelt Right Baking

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THE MOTHERHOOD is a COMMUNITY-BASED MAGAZINE written for — and by — parents. Born March of '06, in Maplewood, NJ, we write about local and national issues that impact families of every type. Once a print magazine, we can now be found here, as a blog, and also here, at www.themotherhoodmagazine.com. YOU are invited to join the discussion! Post a comment, or send in your original idea for an article! BACK ISSUES OF OUR PRINT MAGAZINE ARE AVAILABLE in limited quantities. Contact us at liduggan65@yahoo.com for more information.

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