Titty Bikkies

Until I had a newborn of my own I had no idea bout such things as latching, supply, on-demand-feeding, nipple confusion, formula-nazis, nipple shields, and just the day to day relentless grind of having a tiny screeching thing attached to my chest pretty much 24/7.

Having a baby is wonderful, of course.  It's the most incredible thing ever and while I look back on that newborn baby time with a mixture of amazement (that I managed to come out the other side relatively unscathed, both mentally and physically) and nostalgia, it's bloody hard work.

We had a new addition to our family last week which made me a blood-aunty for the first time: my little sister had her baby.  My two year old is completely in awe and already smitten with this tiny creature. She begs to touch her face, wants to stare at her all day, and has been drawing picture after picture "for Aunty J's baby".

It's hard to know what to do when someone has a bub.  There are all these rules around what's appropriate and what isn't, when to visit, whether to visit at all for the first little while.  I used to wonder why people were so specific and strict particularly in that first month ... then I had my own and of course it made a lot more sense.  Feeling as if I'd been run over by a bus but at the same time having to settle and feed a constantly crying infant, still unsure how to change a nappy and in a sleep-deprived haze.  That feeling of being "raw", of walking around without a layer of skin.  Not being able to even think about doing something so simple as cooking a meal or having a shower.  Those early, early days are rough, perhaps tougher on some than on others, everyone (and every baby) is different.  But when someone close to me has a bub, I cook, and I bake.

These bikkies are supposed to get the milk flowing, which is helpful if you've got a hungry baby who sleeps best with a full tummy.  The 'secret' is the brewer's yeast and flaxseed.  And I guess, it can't hurt to just have some yummy snacks on hand for when you're tied to the lounge for hours.  This is my special recipe, using the least amount of sugar as possible and lots of healthy goodness packed inside.

Titty Bikkies

Ingredients:

1 cup coconut sugar (available in many health food stores)
1/2 cup rapadura sugar (or brown sugar if you can't get rapadura)
1 cup softened butter (or coconut oil for a healthier alternative)
2 eggs
2 cups SR flour (white or wholemeal)
4 tbs flaxseed meal
1 tbs vanilla
2 tsp cinnamon, ground
4 tbs brewer's yeast (health food stores generally stock it, don't use anything but brewer's yeast specifically)
pinch salt
3 cups thick-cut oats
1 cup dark choc chips (or dried fruit if preferred)

Method:

Beat the sugar and butter until fluffy, then add eggs and beat again.  Sift flour into another bowl and mix in all dry ingredients, then add dry ingredients to the butter & sugar mixture.  Stir to combine, adding a few tablespoons of water if too thick.  Roll table spoon sized balls of the mixture between palms and place on a baking tray, pressing down lightly with the back of a fork.  Bake at 170 degrees celsius for approx 8 minutes until lightly browned.

Another tip is to save a little raw mixture as it's purported to 'work' better than the cooked bikkies.  It's also just flaming delicious!

Soft chocolate and apricot biscuits

I love the food blog world.  Thousands of people, from all over the world, all baking and blogging in delicious harmony.

On a rare day of "nothing", after having dusted (yes! dusted!) our many bookshelves, I spent an hour or two trawling the many interesting food blogs I've accumulated in my favourites list over the last 9 or so months.  I came across a simple recipe for soft chocolate cinnamon and apricot biscuits and decided to give it a go.

The recipe can be found here, in the "I Bake For You :-)" blog.  I had to improvise a little (no SR flour = added extra baking powder; ganache = used 80g dark choc melted with a splash of cream in the microwave), but they still turned out very well.  You could add extra apricots for a more rustic texture, or slightly more sugar or milk chocolate instead of dark for a sweeter biscuit.

These ones were light and fluffy, 'cakey', and not too sweet.

Old Man Jordie

This entry was supposed to be about Anzac Day and the classic foodie tribute to our fallen heroes, the Anzac biscuit.  But at dawn this morning, my husband and I awoke to our old puss, Jordie, in extremely poor shape.  Sick, lethargic, eyes downcast, not even a hint of a purr and a total lack of appetite signalled that there was something horribly wrong.  We cancelled our roadtrip plans and instead took him to the vet.  The news was grim: Jordie's system was shutting down, fast, and with no obvious signs of the cause (apart from a moderate heart murmer), there were limited options.  We made the most difficult decision a pet owner must inevitably face - to end his suffering and put him to sleep. 

Jordie was a 12 year old, fluffy, cuddly, "big boned" domestic cat.  I adopted him five years ago from a couple who were moving to a place where they could not keep pets - a favour to friends of a friend.  He took no time at all to settle himself in to my home; the first night, he self-righteously pushed his way under the doona and curled up against the small of my back, taking advantage of my warmth.  Since then, his aggressively affectionate nature has appealed to house guests (mooching figure eights around their feet), small children (amiably going all "rag-doll" like when small arms would struggle to lift his 8.5 kilogram frame), and even supposed cat-haters (my father, who begrudgingly would scratch his chin after Jordie muscled his way onto his lap). 

I know he was "just a cat".  I've owned pets who've lived and died; stroking fur as the vet injects the green dream, a small soft body going limp in my arms.  Or back on the farm, where countless pets met an untimely end - too many times to count, all in my childhood years.  But he was still my furry friend; my "snuglepuss", my old man Jordie.  Always there when I walked in the door, with his slightly arthritic limp and gutteral hungry miaow.  Yesterday afternoon I had a long nap, and he curled up in the crook of my arm for two whole hours - he must have been so hot under the sheets - reluctantly, gently, creeping out of bed as I slowly awoke.  I will miss lovingly cursing him, as I pick white hair out of my clothes.

Quinoa Anzac Biscuits

Ingredients

2 tbs golden syrup
2 tbs water
150g butter
1 1/2 cups quinoa flakes (or rolled oats)
1 cup SR flour
1 cup dessicated coconut
3/4 cup brown sugar (firmly packed)

Method

Heat oven to 180deg; line two baking trays with non stick paper.  Melt butter in a small pan with golden syrup and water.  Sift flour into a large bowl; add quinoa flakes, coconut and sugar, and stir.  Add golden syrup and butter mix, add to dry ingredients and stir until it all comes together in a dough.  Roll into golf ball sized balls, place on tray and press down slightly with the back of a fork.  Cook in oven for 12 minutes, let cool on tray before removing gently.

"Lest we forget"