Adventures With Whole Wheat: My Family Suffered So Yours Doesn’t Have To (Prologue)
Posted on 19. Oct, 2009 by Kate in Musings, Recipes
I stood in the bathroom hurriedly pulling half my youngest daughter’s hair into a lopsided ponytail when Nate walked in, kissed me goodbye, and said, “I don’t know what you made, but it tastes like chalk.”
112 Responses to “Adventures With Whole Wheat: My Family Suffered So Yours Doesn’t Have To (Prologue)”
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I am the mother of six learning to live in the country surrounded by in-laws. I've been married to the amazing Nate Palmer for 16 years; he is teaching me how to be a farm girl. In my spare time (okay--time I try really hard to set aside), I like to write. My first book, FALLING AWAKE, will be published in 2012 with Covenant Communications.
A True Short Story
My first published work entitled "More Than Pinecones" is in this collection of true Christmas stories.
Allison
19. Oct, 2009
You’ve gotta love a guy with the, uh, self-confidence(?) to freely state his mind.
I’ve got one of those, too.
Kate
19. Oct, 2009
@Allison, thanks for stopping by and commenting. I don’t know if it’s self-confidence or no sense of self-preservation!
Jenni
19. Oct, 2009
Ooh, very intriguing first sentence. It makes me want to know, what did you make? But the bigger question is, Why does Nate know what chalk tastes like?!
sloth
19. Oct, 2009
Those were very tasty.
Karen
19. Oct, 2009
Well, they sure do look good!
L. A. DeVaul
19. Oct, 2009
I used to think those calcium vitamins tasted like chalk. I can’t imagine muffins tasting worse than those.
Shandrae
19. Oct, 2009
Cooking with whole wheat can be a challenge! Sounds like you’ve got it figured out now, though. So, did Nate survive his comment?
Nate
19. Oct, 2009
It was rough for a while, but persistence is a very valuable virtue! And you’ve got it.
Name (required)
19. Oct, 2009
ha ha ha! absolutely hilarious! good job!
Elisabeth Calvert Smith
19. Oct, 2009
I’ve had that problem, too! Most recently with banana bread. . . By the way, I just read an article in Cooks’ Illustrated reporting the results of an experiment using different combinations of white and wheat flour. They determined that if you use more than 25% whole wheat flour in a recipe that calls for white flour, the wheat flour will negatively change the taste and texture.
M. Gray
19. Oct, 2009
Ah, but chalk could be a compliment. Maybe Nate gets ulcers from spicy food!
Debby Black
19. Oct, 2009
Did you figure out what he was talking about – you are such a great cook!!
notolaf
19. Oct, 2009
Well, hon, I don’t know what you just ate!
Kate
19. Oct, 2009
@Jenni, good point, I never wondered why Nate knows what chalk tastes like.
@ L.A. Do you have to chew calcium vitatmins?–ick!
@Shandrae, Debby, and notolaf, you’ll have to tune in to
Adventures With Whole Wheat to find out.
@M. Gray, That’s the positive way to look at it.
@Elisabeth, Where were you with this wealth of information 3 years ago when we were suffering through my ignorance? Was that test with only hard red wheat or did they consider hard white as well?
@Nate, Thanks for the confidence. You are a patient man.
Thanks for all the comments. This has been so fun to “hear” and “see” from you all, shy as you may be about commenting.
It’s not over yet. Comments can be added to this post until Saturday. I’ll post the winners of the book on Saturday evening.
The leading one line blogger has 22 comments as of right now. If you’ve been thinking about commenting, jump right in. If you’ve thought of something else to say, that counts, too.
Thanks all! See you tomorrow.
Chas Hathaway
19. Oct, 2009
Ha, ha, haaa! I’ve tasted chalk-bread before, but it was of my own making.
Although I had a friend who brought our family a plate of chocolate chip cookies once that looked rather pale and white. He explained, “Oh, well, we didn’t have eggs or brown sugar, so we just made them without.”
I’ll tell you, chalk-olate chip cookies, if I’ve ever had them!
- Chas
L.A. DeVaul
20. Oct, 2009
Your one sentence post is one of my favorite because it tells a whole story in one sentence. Awesome.
Yes, I had to chew those calcium vitamins. I don’t think they make the chewable ones anymore because people stopped buying them.
Karen H
20. Oct, 2009
Did the pigs like them?
David J. West
20. Oct, 2009
I have tried to visit everyone competing.
My Mom used to make bread that would crumble very very easily. Unfortunately the first time my Dad had some, never mind he was eating piece after piece he said “Hey this bread is really crumby.”
Notice Crumby not crummy but Mom heard Crummy and was upset for awhile.
Kate
20. Oct, 2009
@Chas, cookies without sugar?…has your friend ever heard of biscuits? So sorry you had to eat that.
@L.A., ahh, so nice, thanks for the vote!
@Karen, There are no true culinary disasters on the farm, only more food for the pigs!
@David, I feel honored that you visited and commented. And I’m not really a fan of cats although they’ve grown on me since moving to the farm. They’re rather a necessity here, especially in the barn, and now I enjoy their nightly visits to my back door for cream.
Tonight’s comment stats from other one-line-bloggers: 38, 27, 25…clearly, I need more comments to win this contest since I’m at 18. So please help me, pretty please!
Karen H
20. Oct, 2009
This might be considered cheating: if you replied to people in separate posts, would that up your numbers? are posts from the owner of the blog counted towards the end number? you said that you were competitive. i was just wondering.
Kate
20. Oct, 2009
Blog owner posts are not counted in the comment totals. Otherwise….
Name (required)
21. Oct, 2009
I love you blog I look on it all the time. I have even tried two of your recipes. I hope you win!
Sharon
21. Oct, 2009
My first whole wheat bread were bricks…maybe chalk is better than bricks.
Jeff
21. Oct, 2009
Hewwo, Katwina Iwene!
Kyle
21. Oct, 2009
Was it a snowman you made? Given certain constraints, it could taste like chalk.
Jenni
21. Oct, 2009
Sharon’s making me giggle.
Jenni
21. Oct, 2009
Oh, forgot to mention. The only thing more challenging than baking with whole wheat is baking without any wheat at all. My father-in-law was recently diagnosed with celiac disease. Coming up with a gluten-free menu for an anniversary party was . . . interesting. (And eye-opening at the sticker shock of specialty flours.)
Kyle
21. Oct, 2009
At least Grandpa has a reason he can’t eat some of the stuff my mom (Jenni) makes. The rest of us have to.
Kate
21. Oct, 2009
@Kyle, now I’m laughing out loud!
Karen H
21. Oct, 2009
So what did they taste like the next time you made them?
Karen H
21. Oct, 2009
@Jenni – my mom has gluten intolerance as well. Making food for her when she comes over is interesting. You have to be careful which type of “flour” you use to replace the wheat flour because each one has its own unique properties. I don’t envy you the fun you had to make up that menu.
Maureen
21. Oct, 2009
You can tell your family what I do. You don’t have to like it, you just have to eat it. Good luck in your endeavor.
Name (required)
21. Oct, 2009
Well, if these weren’t a hit, your Sweet Momma’s Biscuits are sure a big hit in our family. Hope you win your book
Kyler
21. Oct, 2009
My question is: what did you leave out, or inadvertently put in that caused this taste? ‘Cause honestly sis, you are your mother’s daughter.
Karen
21. Oct, 2009
Looks like you and David are top runners. Tamara dropped out, L.A. isn’t bribing anyone, and M.? Not sure, she’s behind but may catch up.
Alena
21. Oct, 2009
I liked the fires scentance. It made me want to know one of two things: 1) What did she eat and 2) did the person resposible for the cooking follow all of the directions?
Betty
21. Oct, 2009
Okay Mom said I had to leave a comment tonight. I am not a fan of the whole wheat stuff. Growing up on Mom’s whole wheat bread, and how blessed we were that she made homemade bread, just doesn’t sit right with me anymore. It was great hot though. I like the hard white wheat. I ground some at mom’s and add it to pancakes and other receipes. Keep on trying at least they weren’t like bricks. That is an improvement!!!!
Kate
21. Oct, 2009
@Name (required), aka anonymous on this blog, thanks for your vote!
@Jeffwee, Hewwo!
@Kyle, I hope your Mom doesn’t share all of our college antics with you!
@Jenni & Karen H., my cousin’s husband is allergic to wheat. It is amazing how she creates meals and everything from scratch because you can’t believe what gluten is in–even some varieties of canned pinto beans have it.
@Maureen, good advice and thanks for stopping by. New visitors are always welcome.
@Name (required), aka anonymous #2, I’m so glad you liked the biscuits. They are a family favorite here, too.
@Kyler, Has Mom read your comment?
@Alena, you’ll have to tune into Adventures With Whole Wheat Part 1 for the answers to those questions.
@Karen, thanks for the update. Bribing?? I’m simply offering an incentive. Bribe!–Ha!
@Betty, few things taste better that homemade bread fresh from the oven. Thanks for visiting!
WooHoo! What a day for comments. Thanks so much to everyone. You are superfantastilistic commenters! Two more days to go so please keep those comments coming!
Tonight’s stats: The two closest blog counts stand at 43 and 30. We’ve pulled into second place. (cue applause)
Kyler
21. Oct, 2009
Well seeing as how I don’t see a comment tagged with her name I’d say no, she hasn’t. And even if she had, so what? She knows she has a tendency to leave out ingredients. I think it’s a Liebes trait that we all inherited.
Kristine
21. Oct, 2009
I love your recipes – and your writing – even if your muffins had a bad day.
If you are taking requests on recipes, I have been searching for years for the perfect bread machine recipe. . . . white bread, of course.
Jenni
22. Oct, 2009
Yes, do post your bread recipes — especially the whole wheat one (that isn’t a brick). I remember that your Christmas card mentioned your breakthrough. It must have been a triumph!
David
22. Oct, 2009
I never really minded whole wheat bread when I was a kid. It was always good hot…and…since there were so many of us we usually only ate it hot (if we didn’t it was gone). I ALWAYS had it with lots of jam too!
Jane
22. Oct, 2009
100% whole wheat has it’s issues.
But I’m with the commenter who asked how Nate knows what chalk tastes like…hee hee.
And does he have seconds even though it tastes like chalk?
Warren
22. Oct, 2009
Hi Kate, Nate pointed me at your blog. I think he is trying to repent. We have had similar experiences in our home. Ann has figured out how to satisfy the kids. If she receives a comment like the one from Nate, she just smiles sweetly and says “put a little sugar on it”
cj
22. Oct, 2009
Ah the dilemmas of cooking with wheat. I must admit, after so many failures I tend to be a bit shy when exchanging wheat for white. I’ll just try to learn the secrets from more experienced bakers like yourself without the trial and error part…hopefully.
Stacy
22. Oct, 2009
Where’s the ranch dressing? I heard that’s Nate’s favorite thing to have with any meal…or snack. Everyone knows you’re a great cook, Katrina.
Kyler
22. Oct, 2009
I was just talking with mom a bit ago and we both concluded that we couldn’t see dad making the kind of comment Nate made about her cooking. He never really complains about it, does he? And yet the rest of us can get rather vocal about it.
Kate
22. Oct, 2009
What a nice cache of comments to come home to! I’ve been visiting elementary schools all over the county today with author Frank Cole. He will soon be a guest on my blog–as soon as I/we win this commenting contest!
Frank is a fantastic presenter and quite a genuine person. If you have a boy, his new book, “Hashbrown Winters” is a must read. Girls will like it, too, but boys will love it.
Tonight’s stats: Us: 47, the other top two: 52 & 32 We kept second place, but now it’s time to slide into home. Tomorrow is the last day to comment. You may comment more than once! Please keep those comments coming for one more day!
Victory is near.
@Kristine & Jenni, I’m glad you enjoy the recipes. I don’t know anything about breadmachines, but Shandrae has one.
@David, You’re making me hungry.
@Jane, Where is your one line post friend? I do believe you are the mastermind behind this idea!
@Warren, Hello! I have to try Ann’s sweet demeanor.
@CJ, Let us do the suffering for you. That’s why we’re here.
@Stacy, While Ranch covers a multitude of culinary disasters, Nate can’t stomach it for breakfast, too!
@Kyler & Mom, You’ll have to tune in to Adventures With Whole Wheat Part 1 to learn how Nate’s words saved his children.
Jenni
22. Oct, 2009
The comments about your dad not complaining while the rest of you dished out bad critiques hit home. I’ve often thought it funny that my dad can tease me about my cooking, but my husband cannot. Or rather, that my dad can tease me and I’ll laugh, but my husband doesn’t get the same response. (Maybe I hope my dad’s teasing is based on gaffes from my teens?) You’re a great sport!
Elisabeth
23. Oct, 2009
Hi, again! Hope you win the contest