You know what is a total buzzkill? Fitting triumphantly into your skinniest pre-pregnancy skinny jeans one week and the next having someone ask you if you're pregnant again. You know, because of your belly?
Zing!
Yes! (I mean Yes! that happened. Not Yes! I'm pregnant.)
Urgh.
It's okay, I've mostly gotten over it and I do think this friend is far more mortified (still) than I was. Also, I'm still nursing and my belly was never my best feature, let's be honest, and yadda yadda yadda, I have a beautiful baby boy in exchange, so who really cares, right? Except of course that one does care even if one is sort of amazed at how much less one cares now than one would have before one became a mother. Oh, self! You contain multitudes.
Luckily for me, I can identify pretty clearly the factors standing between me and Rock! Hard! Abs!, or, you know, Abs That Do Not Look Like They Are Encasing A Fetus. And those factors would be 1. Total and absolute sedentariness (is that a word?) and 2. My afternoon cookie-cake-whatever-as-long-as-it-is-sweet-and-delicious break that I've been doing religiously since Hugo's birth.
Since daily exercise is really limited only to what I can do at home during Hugo's naptime, it's the afternoon cookie break that I'm training my eyes on. It needs serious reforming and Sara Forte's The Sprouted Kitchen cookbook is currently my reform master.
Specifically, her recipe for Sesame Date Yogurt Cups, which jumped out at me last year when I was reviewing the pages for a blurb (full disclosure!) and hadn't left my mind since. They're so simple – just dates mashed with sesame seeds and then layered with yogurt that's been flavored with a pinch of cinnamon and crisped brown rice – but so much more than the sum of the parts. I mean, flavoring yogurt with cinnamon? So good. Pairing dates and sesame seeds? Of course! Putting them together with crisped rice on top for texture? Lady, you are so smart. These lovely little treats are as satisfying as they are virtuous. I really love them.
(If salt is your vice, not sugar, may I direct you to the recipe for nori popcorn on page 161? You're welcome.)
Sara's cookbook is full of little gems like that; healthy ingredients matched up in inspired ways that would have never occurred to me and that taste so, so good. Sara's idea of enlivening that old standby pesto with lemon zest and lemon juice to serve with lentil meatballs is so easy and yet I'd never tried it before. I usually ignore pesto, but now I plan on using this combination as a dressing for grain salads and cooked beans, anything, really, that needs a little kick. I loved her zucchini roll-ups, in which za'atar and Greek yogurt give grilled zucchini slices new style. And I cannot wait to try what sounds like breakfast cereal nirvana: pearled barley cooked in coconut mik and cardamom, then topped with toasted coconut, pomegranate seeds and a drizzle of pomegranate molasses. Yes?
YES FOR THE LOVE OF GOD.
Happily, I have an extra copy of this lovely book for a giveaway! So for a chance to win a copy of The Sprouted Kitchen, please leave a comment below and I'll pick a winner at random tomorrow. Good luck!
Update: Erin is the winner and has been emailed! Thank you all for participating – comments are now closed.
Sara Forte's Sesame Date Yogurt Cups
Adapted from The Sprouted Kitchen
Serves 4
7 Medjool dates, pitted
2 tablespoons toasted sesame seeds, plus more for sprinkling
Sea salt, optional
2 cups whole-milk plain yogurt (or Greek or goat's milk)
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 cup crisped brown rice
1. Soak the dates in warm water for 10 minutes to soften. If the dates are soft enough, skip the soaking. Put the dates in a bowl with the sesame seeds and a pinch of salt, if using. Mash together to create a chunky paste. Press a fourth of the date mixture into the bottom of four small glasses.
2. In a bowl, stir together the yogurt and cinnamon, then spoon 1/2 cup of the yogurt into each jar. Sprinkle a few sesame seeds and a couple of spoonfuls of the crisped rice on top. Eat immediately.
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325 responses to “Monday Giveaway!”
This book looks lovely. And as I’m on the front-end of pregnancy I predict I will need it for just the reasons you do in approximately one year’s time.
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Sara’s blog is one of my favorites, and I’d love a chance to win her book! That yogurt just might be my breakfast tomorrow…
Thanks for the giveaway!
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Sounds like a fabulous book. We could all use a little more health in our lives.
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I saw her cookbook in a magazine and I am so intrigued! Would love to win it.
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It’s funny that you should have this cookbook “The Sprouted Kitchen” to giveaway today b/c my husband and I just planted some herbs yesterday and have begun doing green shakes and juices and are all about motivating each other to make better eating choices. This book would be so very welcome in our home!
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haha healthy eating is so important, but can sometimes be so boring. I’ve had my eye on the cookbook for a while now
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As if you fit into your skinniest jeans, be proud woman!! I’m still waiting for that moment… one year later… Maybe I am in need of a little more inspiration, the likes of which I might find in this lovely cookbook.
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This book sounds really nice 🙂
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Salt is my vice 😉
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You make this nursing mama with a sweet tooth and not-so-quickly-disappearing belly feel like it is all gonna be okay.
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It was the 80s; I was wearing a flowing prairie dress I loved; I was objectively speaking, ahem, a little chubby then; it was parent-teacher night at the Catholic high school at which I taught English. I was clearly not married (baby face and no wedding band)… one of the lovely parents asked me when I was due! Can’t remember who was more mortified….. It probably has happened to most women at one point…non te la prendere troppo.
And yes, I’d love The Sprouted Kitchen.
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I definitely could use some healthy recipes!
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Sounds wonderful.
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Delicious! Dates and yogurt = yes. Can’t wait to try her Almond Butter Cups.
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Haha, just about laughed out loud when I got to the part about you referring to your self and all its multitudes. Haha! And lovely cookbook–I’ve been meaning to get a copy of it!
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A week ago I decided to finally try my doctors’ (strong) suggestions and go gluten free. Sara’s blog has been such a wonderful resource for getting started – I’ll have to get her book either way, but I’d love to win it here!
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Just about to start a manic new job so healthy eating inspiration will much appreciated!
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The book has been on my wish list for a while. Everything on her blog is so yummy.
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Delish! Thanks for the giveaway!
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Still have a little belly 2 years after my (twin) girtls were born
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I would love a copy of this book! The recipes sound so lovely!!
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I love the sprouted kitchen blog, so I am so hoping to wind.
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Nori Popcorn?!?! HELLO!
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I’ve read great things about that cookbook and I would love a copy! Thank you.
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I could so use some inspiration to eat better, but beautifully. I thought by mid-february I’d see some new year’s progress. Ha! We all know how that goes. But before spring at least, this book would help me shift my ways. Meg
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Hi hoping to wind
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I love your blog and i am hoping to wind
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That sounds positively yummy!
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Luisa, my mom gave me your book for Christmas. She wrote in it that she had planned on doing a collection of my grandmother’s recipes but you had already done it. My parents are Grman but I grew up in the US and spent summers in Germany. The first time I flew alone to meet all these people I didn’t know, I was 6 ( when my oldest was 6 I thought my parents were crazy- especially since the next year I travelled alone with my 3 year old brother. Anyway, I really enjoyed your book and your blog and you have reignited a new engagement with food which I happily share with my 16 year old! It’s great fun and very satisfying. Thanks! Eva
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I LOVE her blog and have made so many delicious things from it!
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I would love to own this gorgeous book. Thank you!
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Yum! This book sounds lovely. I’m in the middle of triathlon training, and trying to eat healthier as a result. This would be perfect!
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That sounds too tasty not to try! If only I can find some crisped brown rice…
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Yums! I”m on a date kick right now
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That looks spectacular! I’ve been eyeing this book for a while now.
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I’ve had the exact same thing happen to me…except I was less than gracious and snapped “no, I’m just fat.” Causing the lady in question to back away (literally).
As I’m reading this I’m eating fudge babies made with dates, cocoa powder and walnuts…and that’s it! Odd but addictive! Would love to explore the book!
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Just what I need to revamp my diet.
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Thanks for a chance to win this wonderful book!
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Ahhh, the 4o’clock kaffeestunde!!! Even after 3 decades living in america i still sometimes pause in the afternoon and feel the urge for a good cup of coffee WITH a little pastry or some good cookies!
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When my first daughter was born, I left the hospital after 24 hours. Flowers were delivered to our apartment and the delivery guy looked at my belly in total confusion before he remarked: “I thought the baby was already born.”
Ten months later I was pregnant again just when I had decided to get rid of those extra kilos.
Made a resolution to eat more greens and less meat, so the book would be most welcome.
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Heard so many good things about The Sprouted Kitchen cookbook, frequently visit their website for ideas and would love to have a copy of the book. And yes, it’s that time of the year when winter gets to you and sweet baked things are ever so appealing…
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I really need to cook and bake with dates more often. I love them when I eat them and I have loads of recipes for them but I rarely make anything with them!
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You funny lady.
I think fabulous that you can turn that around into a good story, a book rec, and an opportunity to get truly excited about delicious food. Hooray!
But also, as some above may have already said, it is worth, even for the tiniest tummy, checking to see if you have any separation in your rectus abdominus (google it?). You can fix it, and for long term postural health it is so helpful.
love, your yoga teacher reader
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Yes please!
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I’m a new reader of your blog. I enjoyed reading your book, which introduced me to your blog. I spent a few summers in Germany and many of your recipes prompted found memories of my time there. Thank you for today’s recipe, now I have another treat to try with the dates I bought to make the whole wheat sweet potato/date muffins I made yesterday. They are delicious! My 21 mo old son will eat then up and I can fell good about it!
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Steinbacher and unsweetened coconut for me! But that popcorn…go on…
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This looks amazing!
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Anything with Molasses is a big yes in my book!
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Hm, finding new uses for pesto sounds like a sure fire way to inspire some retreads. Count me in!
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I would love to have some more healthy eating inspiration!
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