Irish Yellow Broth

Irish Yellow Broth

Irish yellow soup is a traditional irish soup that is one of my family's new favorites. Very simple to make, this soup is thickened with and given its flavor by steel-cut oats.  I promise, you will not even taste the oats. They take on the flavor of all the wonderful vegetables and stock. This recipe helps use up left over vegetables in the fridge, as well.  I served with fresh cut fruit and homemade rolls. 

  Ingredients:

4 TBS olive oil or butter

2 onions, minced

2 celery stalks,  minced

2 carrots, finely chopped

2 potatoes, finely chopped

4 TBS all purpose flour

8 cups vegetable or chicken stock

1/2 cup medium steel cut oats

3 cups chopped kale or spinach

4 TBSp cream (optional)

salt and freshly ground pepper

chopped fresh parsley, to garnish

Directions:

1.  Heat the oil or butter in a large saucepan.  Add the onion, celery, carrot and potato, and kale and cook for 2 minutes, or until the onion begins to become soft.

2.  Stir in the flour and cook slowly for 1 minute longer, stirring constantly.  Pour in the stock and bring to a boil.  Lower the heat and simmer for 30 minutes until the vegetables are tender. 

3.  Stir in the oats and cook for 15 more minutes, stirring occasionally.   Turn off the heat and allow to sit for 30 minute.  When serving, add the cream and season well with salt and pepper.  Garnish with parsley.  

I am so thankful to live in one of the prettiest places on earth.  

             We turn toward love like sunflowers to the sun, and then the human part kicks in.

                                                                                - Anne Lamott

            Perhaps everything terrible is, in its deepest being, something that needs our love.
                                                                                -Rainer Maria Rilke

Kale Salad even the Kids Love

Kale Salad even the Kids Love

Kale Salad with garlic lime dressing

Ingredients:

5-6 cups de-ribbed, finely chopped, curly kale

1 and 1/2 limes, juiced

3 TBS olive oil

1 TBS soy sauce

1/8 tsp nam pla (fish sauce)

a dash of saracha 

1/4 tsp ground pepper

1 TBS brown sugar, or equivalent sugar base

1 clove garlic, grated finely

1 carrot, grated finely

With your hands, mix the above ingredients together in a bowl, ensuring that the kale is well massaged.  Doing this breaks down the sometimes tough leaves of the kale, leaving the kale crunchy but deliciously edible!

"It (hope) is not so much about believing the impossible but believing that, because our knowledge is limited, there may be many possibilities of which we have not conceived. It is about leaving room for the improbable or at least the unproven; actually, not just leaving room, but actively making room. It is the daring act of staking a claim in the unprovable.  That is what makes it hope rather than optimism, because it is active."

                                               - Denise Inge, taken from the book A Tour of Bones

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

                                             

Black Bean Cakes

Great Black Bean Cakes 

(Finally, and thank you Cook's magazine chefs)

Ingredients

2 cans black beans, rinsed and drained

2 large eggs

2 Tablespoons all purpose flour

4 scallions, minced

3 Tablespoons minced fresh cilantro

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 teaspoon ground cumin

1 teaspoon hot sauce (optional, but I use Siracha sauce)

1/2 teaspoon ground coriander

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon pepper

1/2 cup tortilla chips, crushed

8 Tablespoons vegetable oil

Hamburger buns ( or just eat plain with the chipotle corn sauce)

Directions

Triple line a baking sheet with paper towels and spread the beans over them.  Allow to stand for 15 minutes. Meanwhile, whisk the eggs and flour in a large bowl.  Stir in the scallions, cilantro, garlic, cumin, hot sauce, coriander, salt and pepper until well combined. 

Process the tortilla chips in a food processor until well combined.  Add the beans and pulse 5 times.  Transfer the beans and tortilla chips to the egg mixture and combine well. Cover and refrigerate for 1-24 hours.

Heat 2 tsp of the oil in a non-stick skillet.  Arrange the bean mixture into firmly packed balls, about 8 all together.  Flatten out to 3 inch patties and fry in the oil, adding oil each time you flip.  Each side should take close to five minutes. 

Chipotle corn sauce:

Dry fry 2 cups of corn, cool and add 

3 Tablespoons plain yogurt

3 Tablespoons mayonaise

2 tsp minced canned chipotle chile in adobo sauce

1/8 tsp salt

1 tsp brown sugar

1 tsp Siracha sauce

I love to stack 2 cakes and then heap on corn sauce and cilantro.



"We are what we repeatedly do.  Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit."
                                                             - Aristotle

Warm Apple Salad

Warm Apple Salad

Ingredients

2 apples

2 red or white onions

2 red skinned potatoes

1 squash, any winter variety

olive oil

sea salt flakes

3 oz walnuts 

3/4 cup whole oat groats (you can find in any health food store) or substitute wheat berries

1 3/4 cup water

1 vegetable bouillon cube

2 Tablespoons berry flavored balsamic vinegar

freshly ground pepper

baby spinach, red chard, or arugula

5 oz blue cheese

Directions

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees. Cut the apples, onions and potatoes into wedges. Cut the squash into smaller chunks.  Coat with 2 tsp olive oil and salt.  Lay out on a baking sheet and roast for 20 minutes.  When 10 minutes of time remain, add the walnuts. When finished, cover with foil to keep warm. 

Boil the groats in the water with bouillon for 12 minutes. Allow to sit for 10 minutes and add the the balsamic and the remaining oil. 

Arrange the lettuce on plate.  Mix the groat mixture with the vegetables and pour evenly over the lettuce.  Season with salt and pepper. Top with crumbled blue cheese. Serves 4. 

"I see a generation of people ON THE HOOK.  Man, we are tough on one another, starting with ourselves.  When Jesus said to "love your neighbor as yourself," I don't think He meant judgmentally; but that is exactly how we treat our own souls, so it bleeds out to others.  Folks who thrive in God's grace give grace easily, but the self-critical person becomes others-critical.  We "love" people the way we "love" ourselves, and if we are not good enough, then no one is."

                                             - Jen Hatmaker,  For the Love

Sour Dough Bread

     I have spent time over the last six months testing and compiling recipes to share with you. I am so excited!  In addition to cooking, my life has been a whirlwind of kids' events, work, and trying to keep a peaceful house and marriage (sometimes, not too organized OR peaceful).  So, when I share my recipes and thoughts with you, be encouraged to stop for a few minutes each day and taste something savory and healthy.

     I have been enlightened on numerous occasions this year with friends that have come into our lives and continue to be in our lives.   I have read books that revitalize me, books that make me laugh, and books that leave me haunted and sorrowful, but thankful to be alive. I will share some of these amazing experiences with you. I have been reminded to take the time to connect with others.  Food and drink are great bonding enablers. Go ahead, break bread and sip with those you love. 

Easy Dutch Oven Sour Dough

     I love this recipe!  It is so easy.  Virtually NO EFFORT.  The results are a wonderful-crispy outer crust and a soft, springy middle.  Try to time the results so you can eat the loaf warm (this is the hardest part of the recipe- 22 hours from start to finish).  The bread is fine one day later to cut and toast, as well.  

     Ingredients

     

     17 1/2 ounces of bread flour, plus extra (about 4 1/4 cups)  I have used whole wheat flour, a combination of white and whole wheat, and even added wheat germ and nutritional yeast to the bread. I would start simple for your first go around.

     1/4 teaspoon active-dry yeast

     2 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt

     12 ounces of filtered water

     2 Tablespoons cornmeal

     Directions

     Whisk the flour, yeast and salt together in a large mixing bowl until well combined.  Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and allow to sit for 19 hours.

     After 19 hours, turn the dough on a floured surface and punch down a few times.  Cover with a towel for 15 minutes.  After 15 minutes, shape the dough into a ball.  Place on the towel and sprinkle cornmeal over it until the ball is covered.   Close up the towel and allow the dough to rise for 2-3 hours. 

     Near the end of the final rising, heat the oven to 450 degrees and place the dutch oven in the oven to preheat.  Carefully transfer the dough to the oven, cover, and bake for 30 minutes. Remove the lid and bake for an additional 15 minutes.  Allow to cool for 15 minutes before serving. 

Griddled Apple Cheddar Sandwiches with fresh herbs

This quick lunch sandwich is easy, healthy, earthy, sweet and delicious.  I can't believe how good all the flavors and textures were when combined.  This recipe makes two sandwiches.  Enjoy!

Griddles Apple Cheddar Sandwiches with fresh herbs

4 slice whole grain bread ( I like the 7-grain sour dough)
2 tsp coarse ground mustard (I love "Koops")
4 thin sandwich -size slices cheddar cheese
1 small gala apple, cored and very thinly sliced into circles
1 tsp honey
1 tsp roughly chopped rosmary
2/3 cup alfalfa sprouts OR thinly diced cabbage
1/8 tsp freshly ground pepper

Place the oven rack on the second highest shell and preheat oven to low broil.  Place the bread on a sheet pan in a single layer and broil until toasted.  Remove from the oven

Spread the mustard on the untoasted side of the bread, lay 2 pieces of cheese on each slice and half of the apple slices.  Drizzle honey over the apple slices.  Place the pan back in the oven and broil for 5 minutes, or until the apples become soft.  Remove from the oven.  Place the rosemary and sprouts or cabbage on top of the apples, sprinkle with pepper, then place the other piece of toasted bread on top.


     "What is becoming clearer and clearer to me is that the most sacred moments, the ones in which I feel God's presence most profoundly, when I feel the goodness of the world most arrestingly, take place at the table."

          Shauna Niequist, taken from her book, Bread and Wine; a love letter to life around the table, with recipes

Curried Tofu Salad

Curried Tofu Salad

     Taken from the conscientious omnivore web site, this is my "meat-etarian" husband's very favorite vegan dish.  He makes it for me all the time and eats it for dinner right along side me.  This is my all time favorite dish and packs a punch for healthy living.   

2 packages tofu, extra firm, pressed and diced

2 TBSP soy sauce

1 red bell pepper, chopped

1 bunch green onions

1 carrot, peeled and shredded

chopped cilantro, in whatever amount you like (we use about 1/2 cup)

1/2 cup raisins

2 oz slivered almonds

1 small "toe" of fresh ginger, minced

1 garlic clove, minced or pressed

1/2 cup vegan mayonnaise

juice of 1/2 large lemon

1 tsp apple cider vinegar

4 + tsp curry powder

1 tsp sugar or agave nectar or honey

1 dash of cayenne

a dash of white pepper

several cranks of black pepper

     In a large saucepan over medium to medium high heat, sauté the tofu ( in a bit of olive oil) until browned and firmed.  Ensure that this cooks for a long period of time to allow much of the liquid to evaporate.  Add soy sauce, toss,  and set aside to cool.  In a separate bowl, blend all of the dressing ingredients.  Taste and adjust the seasonings.  Add the tofu and the rest of the ingredients.  Enjoy the family secret!

Time Enough

by Dennis O'Driscoll

The tally of years
added up so rapidly
it appeared I had
been short-changed,
tricked by sleight
of hand, fallen victim
to false bookkeeping.

Yet when I checked
my records, each
and every year had
been accounted for,
down to the last day,
and could be audited
against old diary entries
(client briefings,
dental check-ups,
parent-teacher meetings,
wedding anniversaries),
verified with credit
card statements
(multi-trip insurance,
antibiotics, concert bookings,
mobile top-ups).

And, although
nagging doubts
remained—an
inkling that I had
been ripped off
in some way,
given short shrift,
made to live at an
accelerated pace,
rushed through
my routines with
unseemly haste—
nothing could be proved,
no hard and fast
statistics adduced.

I had, it seems,
unknown to me,
been living my
life to the full.

"Don't lose the meaning behind the trappings of the looks on the outside."
               -taken from "The Nightmare before Christmas" movie

Pear Clafoutis with Quinoa

Pear Clafoutis 

     This is a light dessert and best eaten warm.  It is vegetarian, not vegan, but packs a boost of protein and amino acids.  Serve with coffee, ice cream or cream.  

3-4 large ripe pears

2 oz butter, melted

4 eggs

1/2 cup sugar

1 tsp vanilla bean paste or extract

3/4 cup quinoa (ground or whole)

2 cups full fat milk

1/2 tsp nutmeg

powdered sugar for dusting

     Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.    Peel and core the pears, then thinly slice.

     Use a little of the melted butter to grease a tart dish, then pour the remaining butter in a bowl with the pears and lightly toss to coat each slice.  Arrange the pear slices decoratively in the tart dish.  You may overlap if you have extra slices.

     Beat the eggs and sugar with an electric mixer until light and creamy, then stir in the vanilla.  Slowly add the flour and milk and mix until combined.  

     Pour the mixture over the pears, sprinkle with nutmeg and bake for about 1-11/4 hours, until set and firm to the touch in the centre.  Rest for 10 minutes and dust with powdered sugar for serving.

  

    Lately, I have been thinking about all of the hurt and sadness in this world.   Disease, abuse, power, selfishness, and anger are what drive much of the sorrow of this world.   I do not want to be one of the people that cause pain in this world.  I want to realize the parts of me that are not good, claim them, and then endow myself with the capacity to create, to forgive, to redeem and love freely.
     One question that I am asking myself daily is this:  "Is this how I want to live?"  I pray for continual transformation.  Remember that God sees who we are becoming.  We have to accept the potential that who we are now and who we are becoming are a series of choices; sometimes little, continual choices.

     "The entire human experiment is one of lavish grace and divine favor."
                                               - Laura Traux

Moroccan Quinoa Spaghetti Squash

Moroccan Quinoa Spaghetti Squash

1 whole spaghetti squash
3 TBSP olive oil
salt and pepper
1.5 oz pine nuts, or almonds
2 leaks, cleaned and finely sliced
3 large cloves garlic
1 tsp grated ginger
1.5 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp ground turmeric
1 tsp chili flakes
1 red pepper, deseeded and chopped
2 zucchini, or tomatoes, or both cubed
salt and freshly ground pepper.
1 and 3/4 cups water
1 cup quinoa grain, rinsed and drained
2-3 TBSP fresh cilantro, chopped

     Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  Cut the squash in half lengthwise and place in a dish with one inch of water.  Cover with foil and bake in the oven for 1 hour.  Remove the seeds with a spoon and then, using a fork, gently pull away the stringy flesh and place in a bowl, leaving 2 halves of squash that are bowled.  Brush the insides of the squash with olive oil, sprinkle with salt and pepper and place in the oven for 20 minutes.  Meanwhile, dry roast the pine nuts.
     Heat the 3 TBSP olive oil in a large pain and sauté the leeks until soft, add the garlic and ginger and cook for one minute.  Stir in the cumin, paprika, turmeric and chili, and cook for 30 seconds.  Add the pepper, zucchini, tomatoes, salt and pepper and 1 cup of water.  Stir and simmer, covered, for 10  minutes.
    Add the quinoa to the pan with 3/4 cup of water.  Cover and simmer for 15 minutes.  Stir in the cilantro and toasted nuts.  Spoon the mixture into the squash halves and return to the oven, baking for 15 minutes, or until golden.
    This is very fragrant and tastes wonderful!  Remember that quinoa is a complete food: high in protein, full of vitamins and gluten and wheat free.  It is also delicious. Enjoy!




             Ring the bells that still can ring
          Forget your perfect offering
          There is a crack - a crack in everything
          That's how the light gets in.
                - Leonard Cohen

          "I am more powerful than I can imagine
            and more fragile than I think."
                - Laurea Truax

Italian Greens

Italian Greens

1 pound washed Spinach (leaves and stems), or collard greens or Kale

2 tsp olive oil

4 cloves garlic, minced OR 2 tsp pesto

2 TBSP lemon juice

2 TBSP white wine

     Heat the oil in a large sauté pan.  Add the stems and cook until bright green.  Add the leaves, along with the garlic, lemon juice and white wine.  Bring to a rapid boil and cook just until the leaves are wilted and the juices have reduced in half.  Italian greens are delicious with crusty French bread, pasta, or any other Italian dish.  

     While reading the Serenity Prayer today, I realized that there are many circumstances in this life that I cannot change.  Those things just need to be prayed for.  In the situations where I can make a change, I need to ask for help and be honest about my shortcomings, my downfalls, and my sins.  We need to know there is potential for change. Change cannot happen without stopping what you have been doing and then do something DIFFERENT.   Change can only happen when people ask for help and have a vision of hope.   What can you do differently?  

Serenity Prayer

God grant me the serenity
to accept the things

I cannot change; courage to change the things I can; 


and wisdom to know the difference.



Living one day at a time; 
enjoying one moment at a time; accepting hardships as the pathway to peace; 
taking, as He did, this sinful world
as it is, not as I would have it; 
trusting that He will make all things right
if I surrender to His Will; 
that I may be reasonably happy in this life
and supremely happy with Him
forever in the next. 


Amen.

Let us be Women who Love

Oatmeal Bread

2 cups cooked old fashioned oats ( I always use left overs)

1 and 1/2 cups buttermilk (you can substitute soy milk, just add 1 TBSP lemon juice)

2 cups whole wheat flour

1 tsp baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

     Put oatmeal and buttermilk in a large bowl, mix well and cover with foil.  Allow to sit for 2 hours. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  Sift the flour, baking soda, and salt in a medium sized bowl, then add to the oatmeal mixture.  You may need a little extra flour if too moist.  Shape into a round loaf  and place on a baking sheet.  Slash the top.  Bake for 45 minutes and allow to cool.

     This is a heavy, rich quick bread and best served warm.  If you want, you can brush with a bit of cream or butter after cooling for 20 minutes.  Serve with berry jam and barley soup!  

          Recently, I have been thinking about what it means to be a woman alive on this planet.  Each moment and day that goes by is one that is closer to the grave.  So how am I to spend my time?  How do I make the most impact on my world?  How should I live with my husband, my kids, my town, my work, my church, my friends, my family?  I have been reading several books which have led me into a deeper understanding of where my heart should be fixed.  One of those books is "Jesus Feminist" by Sarah Bessey.   Included is a poem that wraps up what I should be doing.  Let us be women who love.  

Let Us Be Women Who Love

by Idelette McVicker

     Let us be women who Love.

     Let us be women willing to lay down

        our sword words, our sharp looks,

        our ignorant silence and towering 

        stance and fill the earth now with 

        extravagant Love.

     Let us be women who Love.

     Let us be women who make room.

     Let us be women who open our arms

       and invite others into an honest, 

       spacious, glorious embrace.

     Let us be women who carry each 

       other.

    Let us be women who give from what

    we have.

    Let use be women who leap to do the

       difficult things, the unexpected

       things and the necessary things.

     Let us be women who live for Peace.

     Let us be women who breathe Hope. 

     Let us be women who create beauty.

     Let us be women who Love.

     Let us be a sanctuary where God

       may dwell.

     Let us be a garden for tender souls.

     Let us be a table where others may

        feast on the goodness of God.

     Let us be a womb for Life to grow.

     Let us be women who Love.

     Let us rise to the questions of our

       time. 

     Let us speak to the injustices in our

       world.

     Let us move the mountains of fear

       and intimidation.

     Let us shout down the walls that separate

       and divide.

     Let us fill the earth with the fragrance of Love.  

     Let us be women who Love. 

     Let us listen for those who have been

       silenced.

     Let us honor those who have been

       devalued.  

     Let us say, Enough! with abuse, abandonment, 

       diminishing, and hiding.  

     Let us not rest until every person is

       free and equal.

     Let us be women who Love. 

     Let us be women who are savvy, 

       smart and wise. 

     Let us be women who shine with the

       light of God in us.

     Let us be women who take courage

       and sing the song in our hearts.

     Let us be women who say, Yes to the

       beautiful, unique purpose seeded in

       our souls.  

     Let us be women who call out the 

       song in another's heart.

     Let us be women who teach our children

       to do the same.

     Let us be women who Love.

     Let us be women who Love, in spite 

       of fear.

     Let us be women who Love, in spite of

       our stories.

     Let us be women who Love loudly,

       beautifully, Divinely.

     Let us be women who Love. 

Vegan Sloppy Joes

Vegan Sloppy Joes

I  know that this is a favorite of many. Quick and easy to make in the summertime, try this healthy variation of sloppy joe that will leave your kids very happy!

2 pounds soy crumbles (I like boca)

1 onion, chopped (1/2 cup)

1 small potato, finely diced

1/3 cup celery, finely diced

1/3 cup carrots, finely diced

1/3 cup green bell pepper, finely diced

1/3 cup fennel bulb, finely diced

1/4 cup julienned kale

1/2 cup ketchup

1/3 cup water

2 TBSP Worcestershire sauce

1/2 tsp salt

1/8 tsp (or more) of red pepper sauce

6 hamburger buns

     Combine the crumbles and onion and cook until the onions are clear.  Add everything but the buns. Salt and pepper to taste before serving.  Enjoy!


Heard this on the Writer's Almanac this morning and found it to be a very interesting and so true poem:

Who the Meek Are Not

by Mary Karr

Not the bristle-bearded Igors bent

under burlap sacks, not peasants knee-deep

in the rice paddy muck,

nor the serfs whose quarter-moon sickles

make the wheat fall in waves

they don't get to eat.  My friend the Franciscan

nun says we misread

that word meek in the Bible verse that blesses

them.  

To understand the meek

(she says) picture a great stallion at full gallop 

in a meadow, who-

at his master's voice-seizes up to a stunned 

but instant halt.

So with the strain of holding that great power

in check, the muscles

along the arched neck keep eddying,

and only the velvet ears 

prick forward, awaiting the next order.