Gratitude Monday -- Proper Pan Edition

I have a real baguette pan. It was my birthday gift to me. It arrived the day after my birthday and just a few hours after making a test loaf of French bread to determine how much psyllium fiber to use.

For that loaf I used cornflour, Robin Hood GF Flour, and coconut flour so tried five tablespoons.

It went well.

The next day I tried out the new pan swapping the cornflour for almond flour. It is very good. It wasn't quite as dry a dough as the first, but still worked really well.

As you can see it grew a bit and drooped over a pan edge.

I don't care.

I have a proper French bread pan and for it I am grateful.

The photo is of that very first batch of French bread from the new pan.

Gratitude Monday--Normal Adventures Editon

It was a normal day like any other and for it I am grateful. I sat crunching tortilla chips dipped in salsa mixed with my homemade coconut milk- based sour cream thinking about what I have.
On the table we have an electric kettle,  Mike had selected some fruit for dessert, and there are a few other items including a pencil and some scrap paper where I make notes for what I have to do during the day so I don't forget.
That includes what I've decided to make for supper so I don't forget about it.

The table is paid for. So is everything  on it, and so is the house it sits in. We have no debt save the  month bills and when I put something on Visa it is for convenience's sake. I am able to pay it off as soon as I get the bill.

I drove over to a grocery store afterward. My car is owned outright and it sits in a garage, also paid for. This keeps my car and my husband's truck safe from weather and thieves. Neither of our vehicles is a favourite target for vehicle theft, but they are still safe and that is what matters.

I went out to get the dairy-free version of ice cream and found two brands to try. One such branch is made right here in Alberta and was on sale.

The above are simple, normal day things and for each and every one of them I am grateful.

Gratitude Monday --Gummed Up Edition

Today I am grateful for gum.
This is nothing new, I've always liked it. But since I had braces in my 20s I got away from chewing it regularly.
Oh, I would on occasion, but not the way I did in my teens.
I've gotten back into it in the last year or so, keeping gum in the car. I occasionally have it, but mostly it is for my husband when he is driving. It keeps him alert.

However, that's not my point. Y'see I like to have something in my mouth, especially when I am writing. After I stopped smoking I used toothpicks, but I've gotten away from them in the past few years.
Why gum did not occur to me until a few weeks ago mystifies me, but that is what happened.
I started writing the current story in early October. It went well enough, but I wanted something to chew on as chewing, as the hogs are my witnesses, helps me think.
Finally one day soon after I started this story the little light went on: "Gum!" it blared in the way only a little light can.
So I bought some, and then another some, and I now keep a mint flavour and a cinnamon flavour right here beside me.
I swear it helps, and for it I am grateful.

Gratitude Monday -- A Layered Lesson Edition

Yesterday afternoon as I prepped some veggies to go with a roasting ham I needed an onion.
We have several large white onions courtesy Mike's dad and for them I am grateful.
Some of them are moldy.
This is not a problem as all one has to do is cut the icky bits away.
As I did this I saw how most of the onion had mold.
As I cut into it, stripping away layers and layers of grayed, slimy flesh, I was thinking it can't be all bad. There must be some good in it. Eventually I found the good bit.
I am grateful for that, too, as initially this onion looked rather hopeless.

I am sure you know where this is going, and I am equally sure you are thinking it's a cliche. There's a solid reason for that: it is.
But it's still a valid lesson and a great reminder that there is good in everyone and everything if we take the trouble to look deep enough.
It's a reminder I needed as I have been tempted lately to write some people off.
I will still do it, but I will advise myself that they are not hopeless and there is good in them, they are simply not good for me.
The lesson has layers like the onion that taught me it, and for it I am grateful.