Knish 3.0: Kasha, Broccoli Cheddar

B claims that our favorite brand of Greek yogurt's fat-free version is just as tasty, if not more so, than their full fat version.This flies in the face of human biology, as our bodies are programmed to seek out certain things, sugar, salt and above all fat. It's why these things make food taste good. Remove one, two or three of them, and things just don't taste right. I suspect B's sense of femininity and body image has something to do with fooling herself into this yogurt deception, but what do I know.

I bring this up because I noticed I used plain AP white flour in my knish dough today. Otherwise, I've been eating almost exclusively whole grain breads, whether made at home, at the falafel joint yesterday, the brown rice in my rice n' beans and rice n' lentils, the pita chips I buy for my family, the pretzels, and on and on. I think I became conscious of whole-grain products years ago as a health measure, but I do believe I like the taste of (most) whole grain products more than their refined grain counterparts (one glaring exception -- any grain product from the sweet side of life, from cookies to pancakes, are kinda ick. An exception to that exception - graham crackers) Am I Betsying myself into thinking this actually tastes better? I don't think so. Whole grain is WHOLE, it's not removing fat or sugar or salt, it simply is not removing the bran (fiber) of the bigger grain. This actually does bring some flavor, a certain nuttiness in some grains, a rich leafy undertone in others.

I gotta make another stab at graham crackers, replace the molasses with more brown sugar...

On a side note, not as sore as I hoped from yesterday's upper body weight lifting. Think next week to go from 3 to two times a week full body, with more reps across the board.

TODAY'S COOKING:
Knishes: As I went along, I kept thinking about how to do this x10. That's a lot of potatoes to peel and chop and boil, that's a lot of onions to cry over while dicing and slowly caramelizing. Made double batch of dough, used half of it, the other half for some sort of sweet knishes later in the week. Cranked the oven to 425 this time (recipe calls for 375) and checked occasionally -- 28 minutes gave some nice browning to the tops. I think I may even go hotter next time. Potato knishes came out good, I'm happy with the potato-onion balance, and dough has a nice thinness to it. Needed a little more salt and a healthy dose of freshly ground black pepper would help, too. The kasha was good, cooked with water, a little butter and salt, a little pepper, and sauteed fresh mushrooms with a little garlic. Needed a little more salt. After it cooked, I mixed in two eggs, which helped firm up the mix in the final knish -- it had a little bit of firmness when bitten, instead of just crumbling. I also made a handful of broc-cheddar knishes. A cup of broccoli quick-steamed, chopped, and mixed with equal amounts potato mixture and shredded mild cheddar (left over from burrito making.) They came out rather attractive, and the cheese gave a nice saltiness to it.

BREAKFAST: 8:45am, toasted pumpernickel bagel with cream cheese, onion and tomato, .75 bowl, hunger 4/5

LUNCH: 12:30pm, breaded tilapia, 2 bean burritos, pickle, large green salad, watermelon, 1.25 bowl, hunger 4/5 

DINNER 1: 5:30pm, broccoli cheddar knish, kasha knish, .75 bowl, hunger 4/5 
Broc-ched knish better than expected. It is very American, and has a sheen of health to it, I think this could be popular.



DINNER 2: 7:15pm, hot dog, a little lime sorbet, peanuts & chocolate chips, .75 bowl, hunger 4/5

EVENING SNACK: 9pm, watermelon, whole wheat pita chips, .25 bowl, hunger 4/5