Hey Diddle Diddle

I DO understand that "in the moment" questions about things that make zero sense to someone are kinda exceptions... but I've been noticing over the past year or so that not too many (read: not enough) people take the time to try to figure out things for themselves. Seems people are quick to ask how/why/when/where without bothering to think the answers are super easy to find. Hi Google! I ♥ you!
There is NOTHING wrong with asking questions, nor should anyone ever be afraid to ask one ... but sometimes it will pay off to find the answer yourself if you can.
So for once and for all I am about to placate quite a few, 'cause I'm gettin' sick of answering the question "What are fiddleheads?"... or "how do I cook them?"... though the cooking question I fully understand, but only because I tend to want recipes from people I personally know that have cooked the dish. You know, 'cause it's already had a test run. Ever try to find a recipe on line, and read the comments that appear under it? I swear every person says stuff like "this was good & all, but I'd add/leave out *insert food item*" or they complain about oven temp/cooking time... ad nauseam.

Soooo.... in answer to the 2 questions I have been asked REPEATEDLY over the past two months (What are fiddleheads?/how do you cook them?) .........

 FIDDLEHEADS:

"Fiddleheads or Fiddlehead greens are the furled fronds of a young fern,^[1] harvested for use as a vegetable. Left on the plant, each fiddlehead would unroll into a new frond (circinate vernation). As fiddleheads are harvested early in the black season before the frond has opened and reached its full height, they are cut fairly close to the ground.
Fiddleheads have antioxidant activity, are a source of Omega 3 and Omega 6, and are high in iron and fibre.^[2]
The fiddlehead resembles the curled ornamentation (called a scroll) on the end of a stringed instrument, such as a violin. It is also called a crozier, after the curved staff used by bishops, which has its origins in the shepherd's crook." (Wikipedia)

So there is the technical answer. My answer to "what are fiddleheads?" ? THREE DIFFERENT KINDS OF AWESOME, THAT'S WHAT!!! Seriously, if you dig asparagus... you'll love the @#$% outta fiddleheads! (Asparagus is the only vegetable I can even remotely compare fiddleheads to, but the truth is, they're only vaguely similar in taste/texture)


How do you cook them? Well, I'll tell you how I cook them.... and lucky you... I took pictures.

First you gotta clean them off. I bought one of those sink strainers at Ikea years ago (totally worth the $10 bucks)







See?

 THEN.... you can cut a little bit of the ends off, or just break them off. I couldn't break them off AND take a picture. I'm just not that awesome... so I cut them.

 Next up:

• boil some water... 
• while the water is boiling, slice up some bacon (like 3 or 4 slices) into 1" to 2" chunks. 
• throw the bacon into a frying pan

• check the water... & once it's boiling throw in the fiddleheads.

Take note of the time....

'cause only 1 minute later....

• Take the fiddleheads off the burner. 

You can strain them, in a colander, or use one like I've got over my sink... (OR just do what I did and use a slotted spoon... 'cause I'm wicked lazy and didn't want to do a bunch of dishes)... then dump them into the frying pan with the pretty much cooked bacon. Stir um all up together....

and if you have some lemon (I HIGHLY recommend organic lemons, holy crap they're yummy!!)... cut a wedge off and squeeze it in there too...

THEN... dump it all in a big bowl and eat the $#!& out of it!! 

 There really are TONS of recipes out there for fiddleheads, but this is MY favorite (for now) way to cook them... and after not eating since yesterday around 3pm (not including multiple cups of coffee & tea)... it tasted EXTRA yummy :)

Enjoy! ... and by all means, if you have some tried & true recipes for fiddleheads, PLEASE share 'um!

Eat Me

You know those nights (or days) when you're just craving something sweet... something almost like a bread pudding? Remember how many times you've looked at the nutritional info for things and thought "damn!" and instead denied yourself what it was you wanted? Wouldn't it be awesome if you could have your "cake" (or bread pudding) and eat it too... without regrets?

You can! I am on the cusp of zombie vag week (*dear men reading this- seriously, get over it. This shit happens monthly- learn it) and my craving for something bread-y and sweet is rather overwhelming.. luckily I know exactly how to fix that, and fill me up, AND still stick to following Paleo (yes, I am still following Paleo)... so here's what you should try... 'cause this shit is good!

• grab a bowl that is microwaveable

• take two eggs (preferably local & organic)

• crack them into the bowl, the add a couple shakes of organic cinnamon 

•  add like 2 packets of Splenda® or Truvia® (preferably Truvia® for health reasons)
• put in the microwave for like 2 minutes

• pull out of microwave, and dribble like 2 to 4 tblsp of Almond milk on it

 NOW EAT THE SHIT OUT OF IT!!

*notes:

you can mush up a banana first (helps to do it first) then add the other stuff

OR.. maybe some diced up apple....

I like to sprinkle some cold fresh blueberries on top, in fact I think that is my favorite.

You can totally leave out the fruit.. but try to still use the berries they rule! It's so ridiculously low carb/low sugar/low everything that you kinda want to laugh at how yummy it actually is. Not kidding. The whipped eggs and cinnamon totally poof up into a bread-y/soufflé like consistency. It's weird and awesome all at once. You can tweak this however you like it... but for some sugar/sweetner packets, two eggs, & cinnamon... it's a helluva quick fix. I just add the almond milk (since I don't use regular milk anymore) so it's more bread pudding-ish. I also know that if I stir the pants off it once it's cooked, then add the almond milk & berries it kinda like porridge.

Ok, that's all. I hope someone was able to use this (or even some of this) to make something yummy. I hate it when every recipe out there makes a person feel like they must have gourmet everything, and like need to go freakin' harvest shit under a full moon or a soufflé will fall flat or somethin'. I like fast, easy, & inexpensive, just as much as I like things to be healthy and good for me.


If you're one of those people that needs to know the nutritional value of everything, it breaks down like this:

2 eggs: 140 calories, 1.5g fat, 1g carbs, 6g protein
tsp (approx) cinnamon: 6 calories, 0 fat, 2 carbs, 0 protein

the fruit:
1 small banana (like about 6" long): 89 calories, .33g fat, 23 carbs, 1.1g protein
1/2 cup chopped red apple: 33 calories, .11 fat, 8.6 carbs, .16 protein

berries:
1/4 cup blueberries: 21 calories, .01g fat, 5.3 carbs, .27 protein

Almond milk
4 tblsp Almond Milk: 15 calories, 0 fat, 1g carb, 0 protein

SEE?!

ENJOY!♥