Throughout the second and third trimester there is more of an increase of appetite and with some extra energy cooking can actually be enjoyable again. I always feel like I will never want to spend time in my kitchen again throughout the first trimester and beginning of the second one. Now that I am more aware of trying to eat properly during pregnancy I have a little bit more motivation to make my own food. (Less unnecessary ingredients that way.)
A while back I wrote about getting rid of caffeine and sugar. This continues to challenge me this pregnancy. I have finally gotten any sugar I have out of the house through not buying anymore when it all ran out. If one misses things like chocolate chip cookies, cake, ice cream, and jam there are ways to eat these foods, but with less of the ups and downs one gets from sugar. My favorite ways to sweeten treats are through raw honey, maple syrup, and molasses.
In this past week I have had the strong desire to make raspberry jam, but I did not want to eat several cups of sugar with it. If you go and buy Pomona's Universal Pectin, one can make great jam with honey. There are recipes included. I wish I had known about this stuff when my parents had this amazingly large plum harvest a few years ago. I closed my eyes, while dumping sugar into the fruit, but I knew if I did not make something, all the plums would go bad. My raspberry jam made with Pomona's Universal Pectin is milder than sugar based jam, but I think the integrity of the fresh fruit taste is much better. All I can say is this raspberry jam with my homemade bread has been a treat!
Now on to the next craving, cookies and cake. One may not achieve the same kind of texture with honey, but cookies and cakes stay pleasantly moist when sweetened with just a little honey. I put in a 1/2 a cup of honey for recipes that call for a cup of sugar. Most of the time I will not use more than a 1/2 a cup of honey in any of my baked goods. This goes a long way. One can also use maple syrup instead. This leaves me feeling nostalgic for fall.
My favorite discovery is raw honey in homemade ice cream. Again it is just around 1/2 a cup again. I buy a pint of cream, add a cup of milk, some vanilla, and volia! This is some enjoyable ice cream. I do not have an ice cream maker so I put it all in a stainless steal bowl and use an electric mixer for a few seconds every half hour. This process takes about two to two and half hours. It is really easy, but requires one to be home as keeping track of time carefully. Once the time is up, I let ice cream sit in a freezer safe container for a few hours longer.
Let's face it. I seem to be obsessed with making things this pregnancy. I cannot help but want to feel like I am busy. This helps me forget about the naps I wish I was taking, and keeps me energized to take care of my children. I have always enjoyed creative tasks. Who says taking care of the home cannot be creative?
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