We haven't been having the best sleeps here at Struan Farm since COVID-19 took over the world. I know we're not alone on this score by any stretch, have read about people having some of the same problems: restlessness, insomnia, and nightmares.
I used to have terrible nightmares as a child, waking my family up all too regularly with blood curdling screams in the middle of the night. Once I woke up an entire camp of Girl Scouts in tents. Not sure what was going on in my head or subconscious in those days, but as an adult when I have a nightmare I know it's because I'm anxious about something or lacking adequate sleep. And during Level 4 lockdown I've had several nightmares that have woken John up from a reasonably sound sleep, as well as some pretty bizarre and disturbing dreams. John is a light sleeper at the best of times, but he also doesn't need as much sleep as I do to function.
In an effort to address this we've taken to having a cup of chamomile tea right before bed. It's soothing and definitely helps. And this past week I made a quick batch of rice pudding for dessert one evening, and discovered that for some reason that helped me sleep too.
Rice pudding is inexpensive and easy to make. The recipe I used can be found here. Rice, sugar, milk, a knob of butter and vanilla extract are put into an ovenproof baking dish, with nutmeg sprinkled on top. I also decided to toss in a handful of raisins, and set my kitchen timer to stir it every 20 minutes during the two hour bake. The pudding rests for about 25 minutes when it comes out of the oven before serving. I also decided to sprinkle a bit of Syrian 7 Spice on top before serving, which gave it a warm spicy kick.
It was delicious. Comfort food of the first order, and it worked for me. If you can't sleep, give it a try.
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