Comforting

[clevermanka]

Sleep note: The past three nights I've been too cold to fall asleep. I have to leave the mattress pad on high for about an hour while I lay there, chilled, before I even feel drowsy. Once I finally fall asleep, I'm okay (except for one night I got up to pee, but was able to fall back asleep). Replacing the down comforter with the down blanket is helping, but the blanket alone isn't enough to get the bed cozy enough for me to fall asleep. I need to either:

1. Remember to turn the mattress pad on High two hours before retiring
or
2. Put the comforter on top of the blanket, turn the mattress pad on High within an hour of retiring, and then push the comforter off when I go to bed

Since I need to remember to turn on the mattress pad under either circumstance, the first one makes more sense to me. That way I don't have to worry about piles of bedding unnecessary for the entire night. OTOH, it's a wonderful feeling to crawl under that giant comforter when crawling into bed. That thing really is a comforter.

By the time I get this figured out, it's going to be spring and warm weather.

Last night I made a pretty amazing faux curry (curry spices are verboten on the AIP). Here's what I did.

Faux Curry
1 lb ground beef
2 onions, chopped
3-4 garlic cloves (or more)
1/2 can coconut milk
1 c broth--chicken or beef
1 acorn squash, cooked
1 t ground ginger
2 t turmeric
2 T coconut aminos
2 c cooked chard (or any other leafy green--spinach would be great, I think)

Cook down the onions until golden. Add garlic. Add beef and brown. Scrape acorn squash meat from shell and put in blender with broth, spices, and aminos. Blend until smooth. Add to meat mixture. Stir until heated through. Remove from heat. Add coconut milk and greens. Stir to combine. Ta da!

Comments

[msmitti.livejournal.com]

That faux curry sounds yumtastic!

The warm weather may be on its way. (hoping, hoping!)

[clevermanka.livejournal.com]

I've been pining for a curry the past week or so.

[carmy-w.livejournal.com]

That actually sounds pretty good! I'm not much for most Indian food (I have no fireproofing whatsoever, as far as my tastebuds are concerned), but I'd try that one!

Do you have one of those plug in lamp timers laying around the house? Maybe you can use that to turn the mattress pad on & off? (because I can't remember to do anything, but my phone/computer/calendar/etc. remember ALL THE THINGS)

[clevermanka.livejournal.com]

Do you have one of those plug in lamp timers laying around the house? Maybe you can use that to turn the mattress pad on & off?

That's a very good idea! Thank you!

Also, yes, this curry isn't spicy in the slightest. The only heat comes from the ginger, and I didn't include enough for it to be overpowering.

[redheadfae.livejournal.com]

That sounds delish! I just cooked down some pork ribbones and got a few cups of broth, maybe I'll try it with ground pork.
Natty Grocers had kale for 1.50 a bunch yesterday, I've got to try cooking up some chips.

[clevermanka.livejournal.com]

OoooOOOoooo! Kale's still on sale at Natural Grocers? I'll have to get down there. Hope it's still that price tomorrow! Thanks!

[redheadfae.livejournal.com]

I think the sale was over yesterday, by the flyer I just found, but I'd call them, they had quite a few bunches.

[clevermanka.livejournal.com]

Ah, well. I bought about thirty bunches of kales and chards while they were on sale, so if I missed the last few days, it's not a big deal.

[redheadfae.livejournal.com]

What can I do to keep that much?
I'd love to know because it often goes bad before we can use it all up. Do you make it all into chips?

[clevermanka.livejournal.com]

I wash it, chop it, and cook it down. Then I put it in freezer-safe storage containers and pop 'em in the chest freezer. If I'm feeling particularly industrious, I'll buy a giant mess of onions and garlic and cook those beforehand to add to the greens. One onion and two or three cloves of garlic for every two bunches of greens.

I do the same thing with the big bags of baby kale from Costco. Two or three onions per bag for that. When I spend a day cooking greens I usually devote four hours or so to it and I wind up with probably twenty cups of greens.

Two big bunches of greens = one sink full = one two-cup container (with added onions)

[redheadfae.livejournal.com]

Just saute it in a skillet? Awesome, thank you!

[clevermanka.livejournal.com]

I use a big soup pot 'cos greens take up a LOT of room until they cook down. OH! I also throw in a wee bit of broth to keep things from sticking.

[redheadfae.livejournal.com]

Souper, thanks :)
I just bought a big stock pot that will work fine.

[shanmonster.livejournal.com]

What's your opinion on those coconut aminos? I'm neutral about them. I don't find they taste good or bad. They're just ... there.

[clevermanka.livejournal.com]

I love 'em! I think they taste better than soy sauce. Which is a good thing for me, since I can't have soy.

Interesting that you don't taste them very much. Perhaps you're not using enough? I use kind of a lot in every recipe. More than I would with soy sauce. Or perhaps they just don't make your tastebuds zing. *shrug*

[shanmonster.livejournal.com]

Hmm. Dunno! I thought I was using it generously, but I guess it just doesn't zing me. Glad you like them!

[clevermanka.livejournal.com]

I know it's not just you. My buddy tama_grey wasn't a fan when I tried to introduce her to them, either. =D

[aprilstarchild.livejournal.com]

ooOOoooh I bet I could veganize this. I'd probably use cooked lentils and/or basmati rice instead of the beef. And I'd add hot sauce.

I can't make curry 'cause one of my roommates is allergic to some of the usual ingredients; but turmeric and ginger are fine!

[clevermanka.livejournal.com]

Hurray! Happy to help!

[kalimeg.livejournal.com]

Sorry, but turmeric IS curry -- it is curcumin. So it wasn't all that faux, and if it sits well, that is all you need to worry about.

[clevermanka.livejournal.com]

Um, no. Curry is a blend of spices that include seed spices--things I can't have. Turmeric is a root spice, and therefore okay.

[siro-gravity.livejournal.com]

The "too cold to fall asleep" thing happens to me, too. It's right up there with the "waking up because I'm freezing and can't back to sleep because I'm freezing. I think my body temperature plummets when I fall asleep, so it doesn't matter how many blankets once I'm already cold. It's like putting blankets on an ice cube.

I got one of those bed mattress heating thingies a couple years ago, but it felt like the heat was escaping. This year I got an electric radiator and keep it going in the bedroom -the whole room is hot, but it works for me. I also have a new futon the top layer of the futon is wool. And I use a large number of cotton blankets. I do better with many layers rather than one jumbo layer.

I've never had a down comforter...it sounds super cozy.

The blended squash sauce is a great idea. I will definitely try that.

[clevermanka.livejournal.com]

Isn't it nuts how hard it is for some of us to sleep? I mean, talk about a crucial thing and yet our bodies fight it, somehow.

I use vegetable puree for tons of stuff. I make a puree out of broccoli and cauliflower stems/stalks, too! Waste not, want not. =D

[msmitti.livejournal.com]

That faux curry sounds yumtastic!

The warm weather may be on its way. (hoping, hoping!)

[clevermanka.livejournal.com]

I've been pining for a curry the past week or so.

[carmy-w.livejournal.com]

That actually sounds pretty good! I'm not much for most Indian food (I have no fireproofing whatsoever, as far as my tastebuds are concerned), but I'd try that one!

Do you have one of those plug in lamp timers laying around the house? Maybe you can use that to turn the mattress pad on & off? (because I can't remember to do anything, but my phone/computer/calendar/etc. remember ALL THE THINGS)

[clevermanka.livejournal.com]

Do you have one of those plug in lamp timers laying around the house? Maybe you can use that to turn the mattress pad on & off?

That's a very good idea! Thank you!

Also, yes, this curry isn't spicy in the slightest. The only heat comes from the ginger, and I didn't include enough for it to be overpowering.

[redheadfae.livejournal.com]

That sounds delish! I just cooked down some pork ribbones and got a few cups of broth, maybe I'll try it with ground pork.
Natty Grocers had kale for 1.50 a bunch yesterday, I've got to try cooking up some chips.

[clevermanka.livejournal.com]

OoooOOOoooo! Kale's still on sale at Natural Grocers? I'll have to get down there. Hope it's still that price tomorrow! Thanks!

[redheadfae.livejournal.com]

I think the sale was over yesterday, by the flyer I just found, but I'd call them, they had quite a few bunches.

[clevermanka.livejournal.com]

Ah, well. I bought about thirty bunches of kales and chards while they were on sale, so if I missed the last few days, it's not a big deal.

[redheadfae.livejournal.com]

What can I do to keep that much?
I'd love to know because it often goes bad before we can use it all up. Do you make it all into chips?

[clevermanka.livejournal.com]

I wash it, chop it, and cook it down. Then I put it in freezer-safe storage containers and pop 'em in the chest freezer. If I'm feeling particularly industrious, I'll buy a giant mess of onions and garlic and cook those beforehand to add to the greens. One onion and two or three cloves of garlic for every two bunches of greens.

I do the same thing with the big bags of baby kale from Costco. Two or three onions per bag for that. When I spend a day cooking greens I usually devote four hours or so to it and I wind up with probably twenty cups of greens.

Two big bunches of greens = one sink full = one two-cup container (with added onions)

[redheadfae.livejournal.com]

Just saute it in a skillet? Awesome, thank you!

[clevermanka.livejournal.com]

I use a big soup pot 'cos greens take up a LOT of room until they cook down. OH! I also throw in a wee bit of broth to keep things from sticking.

[redheadfae.livejournal.com]

Souper, thanks :)
I just bought a big stock pot that will work fine.

[shanmonster.livejournal.com]

What's your opinion on those coconut aminos? I'm neutral about them. I don't find they taste good or bad. They're just ... there.

[clevermanka.livejournal.com]

I love 'em! I think they taste better than soy sauce. Which is a good thing for me, since I can't have soy.

Interesting that you don't taste them very much. Perhaps you're not using enough? I use kind of a lot in every recipe. More than I would with soy sauce. Or perhaps they just don't make your tastebuds zing. *shrug*

[shanmonster.livejournal.com]

Hmm. Dunno! I thought I was using it generously, but I guess it just doesn't zing me. Glad you like them!

[clevermanka.livejournal.com]

I know it's not just you. My buddy tama_grey wasn't a fan when I tried to introduce her to them, either. =D

[aprilstarchild.livejournal.com]

ooOOoooh I bet I could veganize this. I'd probably use cooked lentils and/or basmati rice instead of the beef. And I'd add hot sauce.

I can't make curry 'cause one of my roommates is allergic to some of the usual ingredients; but turmeric and ginger are fine!

[clevermanka.livejournal.com]

Hurray! Happy to help!

[kalimeg.livejournal.com]

Sorry, but turmeric IS curry -- it is curcumin. So it wasn't all that faux, and if it sits well, that is all you need to worry about.

[clevermanka.livejournal.com]

Um, no. Curry is a blend of spices that include seed spices--things I can't have. Turmeric is a root spice, and therefore okay.

[siro-gravity.livejournal.com]

The "too cold to fall asleep" thing happens to me, too. It's right up there with the "waking up because I'm freezing and can't back to sleep because I'm freezing. I think my body temperature plummets when I fall asleep, so it doesn't matter how many blankets once I'm already cold. It's like putting blankets on an ice cube.

I got one of those bed mattress heating thingies a couple years ago, but it felt like the heat was escaping. This year I got an electric radiator and keep it going in the bedroom -the whole room is hot, but it works for me. I also have a new futon the top layer of the futon is wool. And I use a large number of cotton blankets. I do better with many layers rather than one jumbo layer.

I've never had a down comforter...it sounds super cozy.

The blended squash sauce is a great idea. I will definitely try that.

[clevermanka.livejournal.com]

Isn't it nuts how hard it is for some of us to sleep? I mean, talk about a crucial thing and yet our bodies fight it, somehow.

I use vegetable puree for tons of stuff. I make a puree out of broccoli and cauliflower stems/stalks, too! Waste not, want not. =D