Hi there its ME....on Day 1 Post-exercise class thoughts! - Wednesday, 22nd January 2014.

We slept fitfully because my 'phone kept pinging with unneeded messages in the middle of the night.   He's feeling ill with 'flu like symptoms, sleeping badly because of said 'phone so we wake up late...eek! it's 8.30 am.......

Oh dear....I've just discovered this draft blog, written a few days ago now, since when I've been busy getting myself organised and trying to sort out a ton of papers, which had accumulated, somehow without any real effort on my part, recovering my equilibrium and myself after Christmas....and trying to write!

During this trying time, I've been cooking with Spelt flour, making cookies as per  the recipe found on the packet of my store-cupboard's Doves Farm Organic White Spelt Flour.

Before that, I was making Flatbreads out of Pippa Kendrick's book "The Intolerant Gourmet" ISBN 978-0-00-744864-7 Page 220 & P 221, eating them for breakfast spread with my lovely Very Berry Merry Jam and then eating them with my Kale Pesto - Mmm! delicious!

Now today, 5th February, I've used my Spelt Flour to make a similar flat bread and creating my own recipe for a flat bread...which is delicious,  really lovely, eaten hot with my own kale pesto spread lightly on top.

Now Spelt  is a wheat  and in today's world, something of a rarity since, from the beginning of the 20th century, this flour was mostly,completely dropped, in favour of bread wheat; but Spelt has been grown widely since Roman times, was "known in Europe from the Bronze Age to medieval times" - this information helpfully found on Wikipedia, and now viewed as an historic crop.  We in Britain have been able to buy Spelt Flour from "health food shops" another Wikipedia quote, for some time now and apparently also bread too, via an online source, I see.  It seemed rather expensive for me, I'm afraid, so I will just have to make it myself and soon! Spelt grain is grown and ground into  flour by Doves Farm Foods of Hungerford, Berkshire and sold at Sainsbury's Supermarket from where I buy my supply, "and health food shops" too, which is another quote from Wikipedia.  It makes lovely biscuits or home-made cookies, may be used in soup making, "especially in Provence" and "its nutritional value is comparable with soft wheat and it does not need rich soil." - both comments from my copy of  The Concise Larousse Gastronomique ISBN 0-600-60009-2 see Page 1211 and Page 1212

As for Seville Orange marmalade well, that's another story altogether and one I explore in my next post..

See you soon...

Daisy

PS now, having attended three exercise classes, and its getting better and easier, I'm not quite so exhausted, thank goodness, but now I can't ever stop again.....oh dear me!!!

PPS - I've just checked my Concise Larousse Gastronomique for information on soft wheat, finding on Pages 1388 that "soft wheat is ground for flour of varying degrees of whiteness, depending on how much of the husk is removed" - OK so I just wanted to check this out

 Quote Sources are as follows and I hope all are OK with my utilising their information for my blog-post?

Wikipedia on Spelt
The Concise Larousse Gastronomique on Spelt Pages 1211 and 1212; and on Pages 1164 and 1165 for Seville Oranges - ISBN 0-600-60009-2; and on Page 1388 for Soft Wheat under "Wheat"
Pippa Kendrick's "The Intolerant Gourmet" - ISBN 978-0-00-744864-7