Is it only me?

[boy in a kilt]

Whatever part of my brain that controls (or doesn't as the case may be) what I eat seems to shut off about this time of year.

During the spring and summer, I'm one of those people who can eat a single cookie and be ok with it. But then I seem to switch modes once the rains start in winter and I can happily eat a pound of oreos. Anytime I eat a little bit of something sweet, it seems to set me off.

[BleeckerSt_Girl]

Nature had it all planned out....We are like bears gorging on fatty salmon to get enough fat on us to make it through the hungry cold winter. Nature didn't count on us having access to unlimited fatty food all through winter whenever we want.

[RoadRaven]

Nature had it all planned out....We are like bears...

YUp, thats me... I might be a bird... but come winter-time i'm a bear

Thank goodness its the beginning of summer now!

[lph]

For me it goes with feeling cold. Drives my fat-hunger (hey, that's really a WORD in Norwegian ) crazy. I can finish eating lunch, and still feel "hungry" because there wasn't enough fat in it. It helps if I dress really warmly at work and drink lots of hot drinks.

But I just polished off a whole bar of dark chocolate, so who am I kidding...

[KnottedYet]

Yup, me too. Must be gettting ready for winter. In my case I crave fats. Butter. Olive oil. Nuts. Meat. Cheese. Salmon.

Mmmm, buttered cheese dipped in olive oil....

[boy in a kilt]

Me too.

Normally, my diet is about 20-25% fat. Except for this time of year.

I munch on sunflower seeds a lot. Oral fixation as much as anything. When I'm working in the field or I'm really keyed up at work, I can go through a quarter pound in a day.

SGTiger brought home some white chocolate covered almonds and I can't stay out of them. I don't even like white chocolate (the word abomination comes to mind).

And cheese. I was down at QFC today buying lunch (sushi and a look bar) and found myself in the cheese section seriously contemplating a pound of gouda.

My meat cravings never get really bad. Once in a while I want a steak but that's about it. Mostly I'm ok with a small serving a day.

[Dianyla]

I munch on sunflower seeds a lot. Oral fixation as much as anything. When I'm working in the field or I'm really keyed up at work, I can go through a quarter pound in a day.

So I suppose I shouldn't tell you about Trader Joe's Chocolate-Covered Sunflower See... whoops!

[boy in a kilt]

So I suppose I shouldn't tell you about Trader Joe's Chocolate-Covered Sunflower See... whoops!

I've had chocolate-covered sunflower seeds.

I'm one of those geeks who will throw a bunch of unshelled seeds in my mouth, crack the shells with my teeth and spit out the shells. I didn't used to like seeds that much until this past summer. My soldiers and I spent three days looking at a flat piece of ground in Yakima and occasionally calling artillery fire. They got me hooked.

My current favorite are Spitz Chili Lime. They are a bit hard to find up here in Seattle so I always buy a few bags when I go down to Portland. The Plaid Pantry down the road from my National Guard Armory carries them.

[sundial]

I'm one of those geeks who will throw a bunch of unshelled seeds in my mouth, crack the shells with my teeth and spit out the shells.

Fox Mulder of X Files fame used to do that. Gosh I miss that show!

[BleeckerSt_Girl]

I'm one of those geeks who will throw a bunch of unshelled seeds in my mouth, crack the shells with my teeth and spit out the shells.

Tough guys do that with walnuts.

[BleeckerSt_Girl]

Yup, me too. Must be gettting ready for winter. In my case I crave fats. Butter. Olive oil. Nuts. Meat. Cheese. Salmon.

Mmmm, buttered cheese dipped in olive oil....

MMMmmmmmm......greased salmon stuffed with lard and swimming in olive oil....

I waded my way through a giant chunk of blue cheese in front of the computer yesterday.....mmmmmm......

[Zen]

Mmmm, buttered cheese dipped in olive oil....

I can't even say what I want to say about that. Use your imagination.

[kelownagirl]

I'm afraid I'm like that year-round. I honestly think I have no satiation point for sweets (chocolate especially), white bread and butter. I'm sure I could easily eat an entire loaf of fresh bread. Yum.

(PS Has anyone ever tried Bernard Callebaut's Chocolate Bread? O.M.G. )

[Running Mommy]

Nope.. I do it too! Seems to me the time to make pumpkin ANYTHING! Bread, scones, cookies... PIE!

Over the weekend I made the most EVIL Cookies. They are my standard- which really isnt your standard recipe- chocolate chip cookies (3 kinds of choc chips mind you). But instead of the half butter/half maragarine the recipe calls for, I used half butter/ half peanut butter! OMG are they GOOD! They also have oatmeal in them, so they have a good texture to them. I think they are called rocky mtn chocolate chippers or something. All I know is I have to get them out of my house! They are calling my name- BIG TIME!!
ugh!!

[Zen]

How did I miss THESE?!

We got lots of feedback about the yummy cookies at the rest stops. We are very fortunate that one of the She Got Bike! organizers, Margaret Hartka, loves baking almost as much as she loves riding her bike. Margaret supplied all the sweets for the rest stops and offered to share the recipe for the s'mores bars.

Enjoy! And remember the more your ride the more cookies you get to eat!



Margaret's Totally Awesome She Got Bike! S’mores Bars
6 tablespoons (3/4 stick) unsalted butter
¼ cup firmly packed light brown sugar
6 tablespoons golden syrup, maple syrup or dark corn syrup
2 ¼ cups rolled oats
½ cup unbleached all-purpose flour
½ teaspoon salt
1 cup graham cracker crumbs
1 cup semisweet or bittersweet chocolate chips
1 1/3 cups mini marshmallows
In a medium-sized saucepan set over medium heat, melt and stir together the butter, sugar and syrup, cooking until the sugar has dissolved. Stir in the oats, flour, salt, and graham cracker crumbs.
Press slightly more than half of the mixture into a lightly greased 9x9-inch pan. Let cool completely. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Sprinkle the chocolate chips evenly over the top, then the marshmallows. Top with remaining crust mixture. Bake the bars for 15 to 20 minutes. Remove from the oven and let rest for 20 minutes, then cut into squares while still slightly warm.