barley, health & diy links

The weather has changed. It's changed from very, very hot to warm! Well, we've also had bursts of rain and when there's this *drastic* weather change, everyone gets the sniffles! I kid you not. It's just a part of living in Jeddah.

Here's a super health food that I gave my bunged up and weepy-eyed household.

Barley. Washed. Soaked. Boiled. 

I used extra water to boil it so that I could strain the barley water to drink. It's nice in the summer with lemon and honey, served cold. But for cooler months, it's nice mixed with hot milk and honey.

Drinking Talbina (barley drink made with barley flour and water) is from the traditions of the Prophet Muhammad صلى الله عليه و سلم. I made the barley water the way that I did so that I could cook the actual grains in a bit of butter, milk, cinnamon and honey, and serve barley porridge for breakfast!

And another go to drink: The ultimate immune system boost drink

Anyone with the love of crochet, check this out: Can crochet improve your immune system? Now we're talking!

I LOVE natural remedies! Do you? Here are some other great ideas that I haven't tried yet but hope to:

8 ways to freshen your home 

Home-made deoderant

Natural toothpaste

Something strange happened. Good, in many ways, but I've been hit a bit of a curve ball too! In my last post, I mentioned that we are homeschooling full time. Well, things have changed. Just when I was really getting used to having my kids at home during the day, they're going back to school. And that surprisingly made emotions fly too!

And just when I thought I could use those rolls of sticky, book adhesive for something as beautifully organised as this weekly planner, possibly in our new home, I will probably have to use them over the next few days, to cover books!

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in all the chaos ...

... I mustn't forget the Algerian Action Craft Auction!

Remember? Algerian Action are fundraising for little Youcef to have much needed medical treatment. It has been postponed and will begin on the 8th of June in sha Allah and run for a week. I will be auctioning off one of my crocheted creations in sha Allah. Will you be creating something to auction off? 


And before I head off to get some work done, here are some things I've been admiring in cyberspace:


Pulled Chicken Sandwiches, Algerian Stuffed Galette and Cornflake Crusted French Toast. All perfect for summertime family meals when it's too hot to cook eat heavy meals! 


Handmade Healing Salve

A beautiful, fresh and simple doily


A fun font collection


Paper party decoration tutorials


And all these amazing truffle recipes for a special treat ... some time!


By the way, deux yeux Teux Deux?

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healthy, mind

 

The mornings are getting warmer.  I'm fearing the end of cool breezes wafting in.  So, we had to get in another morning walk.  Just me and the boys. 

 

It was a great way of exercising, bonding with my 6 year old and getting a stationery fix.

Did you want more healthy pics?  

Oh, ok!  Steamed salad of fennel, beetroot, french beans.  And on the right, is something that was going to be a base-less quiche (with carrots and fennel).  But I ended up adding some oats to it!    

For more oaty goodness you could try this.

Muesli, granola, call it what you want.  But it's great with milk, yogurt or all on its own. 

That's 2 cups of rolled oats, 2 tablespoons of olive oil, 2 tablespoons of dessicated coconut, about 6 plump dates (chopped), a small handful of almonds and a tablespoon or so of cinammon (depending on how much of a hit you want!)  

Mix it up well, spread on a tray and bake until lightly browned.  It smells delicious too!  

Nourished Mama is giving away some Pukka tea.  Have a look!

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this week

Purpley-grey skies.

Cold nights and brighter days.

Mirages.

 

Healthy breakfasts.  Join us, if you like.

Green tea.

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One of the things I'd like to keep up from my days in Algeria is my salad intake. The salads need not be boring. I particularly LOVE salad with steamed veggies: carrots, beans, beetroot, potatoes, fennel, etc. etc.!

Here's my simple, easy peasy vinaigrette. I love recycling glass jars and always have a couple or a few lying around!

That's white vinegar and olive oil. Equal parts, as you can see.

A bit of salt and pepper.

And a good old shake! Pour it over the salad and keep the rest in the fridge for another time.

For a less exciting salad, you could always add a more exciting dressing, add a little mayo or mustard and honey, or lemon instead of vinegar. The possibilites are endless!

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'flued under

So we need a lot of ...

Lemons always have a "feel good factor" to them. The vibrant yellow and that sharp tang!

And some ...

This honey is from ... yes, you guessed it, Algeria!

And we chose other forms of vitamin C, like these little jewels ... 

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summer fruits

You really know the summer is with you when you have lovely summery fruits at your disposal!

And you can always try new things with them.

That's Saffron Bread with cream cheese and yummy fruits! A hit with the kids!

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allergies and anaemia

Originally posted on 05/04/2007


Y is 4 years old. Since the age of about 6 months he’s had eczema. Initially, I used the tubes of cream the doctor’s gave for him. Then I used Chinese cream. That helped but as soon as I’d stop using it, his skin would flare up again. When we moved to Jeddah, we took him to a dermatologist who gave some anithistamine syrup and creams. It all helped and and now it’s an on and off thing. The important thing was to try and prevent it from happening in the first place.

Trying to figure out what a child is allergic to is not so easy. First, I thought it was cow’s milk. So we got him Soya milk instead. This was for breakfasts and things like that as he was still on breast milk. Then I thought it was egg. But after a trial thing we saw that the egg was not affecting his skin. Then I thought it was cheese. But, even that proved to be ok. Finally we figured out that he was allergic to nuts. Alhamdulillah, he isn’t affected so much by it. I know of children who suffer a great deal from nut allergies (breathing difficulties, etc.) So now we have to watch him anywhere near nuts. He knows he shouldn’t have nuts, so he asks if he thinks something has nuts in it. Even his sisters will warn us if they think something has nuts in it. Recently, his skin flared up again. I was racking my brain thinking of what it might be. Although I know that he reacts to nuts, I also think certain additives or colourings also affect him. On his last trip to the doctors Abu HAY insisted on some sort of blood test. The doctor decided to test him for anaemia as he said it’s a common cause of allergic reactions. Two weeks later, we found out that he is very anaemic. So now he has to have a tonic every morning to increase the haemoglobin in his blood for atleast 3 months. He also has to have iron in syrup form. And of course, liver and lentils are iron-rich foods he should eat.

If your child has allergic reactions such as eczema or even asthma, maybe you should have him/her tested for anaemia.

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flowers and muesli on yellow days

The last couple of days have been yellow! Sandstorm! Of course I'm delaying the clean-up operation until I'm a bit more certain of the weather conditions. Today's brought along quite a warm gust of wind compared with the cooler breeze of other days. I can only imagine what a sirrocco is like!

So, away from the yellowness of swirling sand, we've been enjoying other colours.

And a little bit of making and baking. Do you get enough nuts, grains and seeds in your diet? I don't think most of us do. But I'm definitely a Muesli fan! That's another thing that's hard to come by here. I've been meaning to make my own but thought it would be too difficult. I don't know why. Then I saw Farhana's Granola post and it reminded me that I had stocked up on pumpkin and sunflower seeds to make my Muesli. I'm so glad I finally made it!

Here's how:
I put about 2 handfuls of porridge oats, about handful each of pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, roughly chopped almonds, coconut flakes and raisins and a little less of sesame seeds. Really it just depends on what you like. I added about 1 tablespoon of oil and half a cup of apple juice and toasted it all in the oven. I did keep checking and stirring it all. And when I was happy with it, I just left it to cool. It's a really good snack too. You can always add honey or brown sugar to it if you like.
The photo doesn't do it justice, but it looks so much better than most of the Muesli from the shops and it smells wonderful too! Ma sha Allah.

It was really good with yogurt and a light drizzle of honey.

The next day, I used some of the seeds to make these wholemeal pretzels.

I wonder if it will be a yellow day tomorrow.

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