Sunday morning I sat down to type. I wrote a long, long post full of all sorts of thoughts, then went to insert a link and lost the whole thing. When things like that happen, sometimes you just have to walk away and come back to it the another day, which I did and so here I am.
Last night my husband's grandmother died. She was 92. Her left leg, below the knee, began to turn purple and cause severe pain about a month ago, and the nursing home did nothing about it for weeks, providing her only with Tylenol. The family finally got her into a doctor, but it was too late. A blood clot had formed, which had cut off all blood supply, and the leg was gone. Because of the state of grandma's health, and her level of dementia, they were concerned that she would not be able to survive surgery, or mentally deal with the consequences of becoming an amputee should she pull through. She's been on hospice care with very heavy pain management while gangrene, then sepsis, set in. The nursing home has been reported for the neglect, which ultimately resulted in her death.
So, my husband's mom has been holding vigil, and crashing on our couch for a few nights since we live blocks away from the hospital. It's been a little stressful.
In better news, last week I heard about the PussyHat Project, knitting pink cat hats for the Women's March on Washington. As soon as I could, I ran over to the knit shop and picked up two skeins of yarn. I wanted one for myself to wear here in solidarity with the ladies in D.C., and then my two girls wanted ones as well, then I found out my sister is hoping on a bus from NYC and going! So, knitting four hats in a weeks time has eaten up most of my free time.
On food news, today I'm trying out the Vegan Chia Oatmeal from Oh She Glows, blog that focuses on faux healthy vegan eating. I say "faux" because the blogger still uses salt, sugar and oil, and also uses a lot of the latest superfoods, which gives the appearance of healthy but is really just misleading.
Recipe:
http://ohsheglows.com/2015/07/22/vegan-overnight-oats/The recipe is alright, but really needs some tweaking. In the summer I usually make a meusli with banana milk, and this is very similar.
I also made hummus this morning. The recipe I use is modeled after the Cook's Illustrated Restraurant Style Hummus, minus the salt and oil. Their recipe calls for 2 tbsp olive oil and 6 tbsp tahini, so it is insanely rich. Delicious, true, but my hummus should not have the utritional profile of dessert.
The order of the ingredients is what gives this hummus it's smooth texture. Some tahini is used for richness and flavor, since I'm not doing MWL and my kiddos need the calories.
MY HUMMUS
3/4 c dried chickpeas
1/2 c chickpea cooking liquid, divided
1/4 c lemon juice
3 tbsp tahini
1/2 tsp ground cumin
Dash smoked paprika
Pinch cayenne
1. Cook chickpeas in ample water in Instant Pot for 40 min (or preferred cooking method).
2. Drain chickpeas, reserving 1/2 c cooking liquid. Purée chickpeas, and spices in food processor of blender until smooth.
3. Combine 1/4 c cooking water and 1/4 c lemon juice. Pour into machine while running to blend with chickpeas.
4. Combine tahini with 2 tbsp cooking water. Pour into machine while running to blend. Add remaining cooking water if needed to achieve desired consistency.
We're off to see friends over an hour away. Bringing this hummus with veggies and low salt wheat thins for snacks. Have a super day!