recipe: pumpkin porridge!

Unless it involves snow days (and thus days off from work/school), I do not like winter. I hate being cold, I hate wearing socks, I hate short days with less sunshine, and I hate that I spend less time outside.  Good thing my family and loved ones almost all live in the Northeast! Thanks guys!

But winter weather always means soups and chilis and oatmeal- dishes that warm from the inside while I put on another pair of stupid socks and crank up the heat.  Since going mostly Paleo a few years ago, I have missed out on my beloved oatmeal and Kashi has missed out on my many dollars of oatmeal purchases.

After spending an inordinate amount of time on the Internet looking for a way to re-create oatmeal sans oats (fauxtmeal, anyone?!), I came up with a satisfying, nutrient-packed mixture that also tastes delicious.

Take that, winter weather!

Pumpkin Porridge/Fauxtmeal

This is for one serving, but it is super easy to make this ahead or multiply and make for more!

Ingredients:

• 1/4 c canned pumpkin
• 1/2 c canned coconut milk (works best if it's full fat)
• 2-3 tbsp ground flax seeds
• 2 tbsp finely shredded coconut
• 1-2 tsp maple syrup (optional)
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1 tsp coconut oil or butter
• 2 eggs, beaten
• Optional toppings: syrup, frozen berries, crushed walnuts/pecans/almonds

Instructions:

• In a small mixing bowl, combine pumpkin, coconut milk, flax seeds, shredded coconut, syrup if using, vanilla extract, and cinnamon.
• In a separate bowl, beat the eggs
• Place a small saucepan on medium heat.  Allow coconut oil or butter to melt and coat the pan.  (This prevents the porridge mixture from sticking if it gets too hot)
• Add porridge mixture to saucepan.  Stir occasionally and let come to a boil.
• Take pan off heat.  Add beaten eggs to heated porridge.  Mix constantly for 1 minute- if you let the eggs sit too long, you will get scrambled eggs in your "oatmeal."
• Once the eggs are beaten in, return the pan to low-medium heat.  Continue to stir for 2-3 minutes.
• Take off heat, enjoy in bowl with desired toppings!

Notes/Substitutions:

• You can use applesauce or a mashed-up banana in place of the pumpkin.  I think bananas are gross and I'm allergic, but I know that applesauce works.
• If you want to use a different milk, just know that the fat in the coconut milk is what gives this a nice creamy texture.

Now back to hiding under a pile of blankets wishing for a beach vacation!

2014: the year I quit shampoo

As the previous post mentioned, 2014 was a pretty cool year for numerous reasons.  One of my notable accomplishments (or something I'm proud of that I tell everyone about, but no one really cares and they're just stuck listening...one of those things for sure) was that I quit shampoo.

I have always been meticulous about making sure my hair looked and felt clean and presentable.  With baby-fine blonde hair, prone to getting oily quickly, that meant shampooing often.  I was the poster child for lather, rinse, repeat.  And then repeat again until you're convinced your hair will look clean.  Not only did greasy hair FEEL gross, it also made my bright blonde hair look much darker..not a fun look.  So how did a Suave-clarifying-shampoo-obsessed woman quit shampoo?

After deciding to visit Costa Rica, I made a snap decision to honor the country's commitment to sustainable tourism by quitting shampoo in favor of more natural products with fewer synthetic chemicals.  (By the way, visiting Costa Rica was also done on a whim.  I like to live like Andy Dwyer on Parks and Recreation.)

Following a month of epic hair failure while using Dr. Bronner's liquid soap as a shampoo--note to everyone, if you have hard water, do not use Dr. Bronner's as shampoo, it will not. end. well.--I finally stumbled on something that worked.  Enter the baking soda & vinegar phase of my life.  I guess my life is like a middle school science experiment?

Before describing what I do and how I figured it out, I will share a little proof with you of how well it works.  Here is a look at my hair today, Thursday.  I washed my hair on Sunday.  I haven't washed it since then.  Then I went to the gym today (STOP JUDGING I WILL GO MORE NEXT WEEK).  Here is a post-gym, no-wash-since-Sunday photo of my hair:

I wish I could go back in time and show myself this as a WAY better option than lather, rinse, repeat and repeat with sulfate and paraben-laden Suave shampoos.  No-poo is more environmentally friendly, more wallet-friendly, and more time-saving-friendly method of hair care.  So, here's what works for me:

• Wash my hair with about 1-2 tablespoons of baking soda dissolved in warm water.  Shake it up, put on hair, massage in, let sit for a minute.  Then I use my fingers to massage my scalp and rinse out.
• Spray my scalp with a 50/50 mixture of Bragg's Apple Cider Vinegar and water.  I add a couple of drops of rosemary essential oil because it is good for the scalp.  Let sit for a minute, then rinse.
• Condition from my shoulders to the ends of my hair with diluted Dr. Bronner's conditioning rinse.  I dilute mine extra because my hair is so fine.

And voila!  No lathering, rinsing or repeating.  I now have the opposite problem- I like to see how long I can go without washing my hair with it still looking clean.  Mega turbo props to the Almost Exactly blog, which got me through my most horrifying, "why isn't my hair clean/dry/detangled/pretty" moments, and is an ongoing inspiration in DIY/natural hair and skin care!

Here's an inside look at the MVPs of my no-poo process:

Clockwise from top left: 

1. Mini bottles for EVERYTHING.  Essential when you make your own haircare products and also nice for travel!

2. Dr. Bronner's Organic Shikakai Conditioning Rinse: I went 5 months without conditioning my hair until I found this product!  My hair needs less conditioner now that I'm not stripping it of oils with traditional shampoo, but my ends are looking much healthier thanks to this.

3. A wide tooth comb and my boar bristle hairbrush: the comb detangles my hair when wet and pulls out much less hair than my old paddle brush.  The boar bristle brush adds shine and helps pull your hair's naturally occurring oils from your scalp all through the length.

4. Klorane's dry shampoo.  Ok, technically this isn't no-poo, nor is it as natural as everything else, but it is the BEST.  It absorbs any excess oil without the gross "there's dry shampoo in my hair" feeling.

So... what do you think of no poo?  And more importantly, did you know a person could write this much about their own hair?  I didn't until now!

Hello, reader.

Welcome! 

This blog is mostly for me (possibly for my dearest friends, and maybe my mother).  I have never been good at journaling--nor do I expect to be a regular updater here--but maybe I will be better at typing up random recaps of my life and things I love than I was at writing about stupid teenage angst.

While I don't believe in New Year's Resolutions, I realized that 2014 was a pretty badass year in Bossy English-land.  Highlights included traveling to Paris--a lifelong dream of mine, Costa Rica, and Denmark; completing my coursework to become a school leader; and reconnecting with lifelong friends.

As I was ringing in the New Year among friends and firework-crazy Danes (more on that later) I thought: I should really write some of this down.  My elephantine memory won't last forever. 

Expect to read a lot of random ramblings here, including:

• Travel stories
• Paleo recipe recaps
• Social justice-y rants
• My attempts at more healthy, natural living: aka being a modern hippie
• Occasional wit

If you're my friends or mother, thanks for putting up with me in another medium.  To rando internet land- I don't know how you found this silly blog, but I hope you enjoy reading it.