Salt and Healing

This is an article that is a couple of years old but when we held our annual Seder Supper this week, the salt and the tears thought reminded me of what was written in this post. So here it is again.

Salt has been something I have used as seasoning and symbolically felt it was a preservative. The thought of salt as a healer has not been the predominate thought in my mind.

Yeast of course is the ingredient that causes that dough to rise and then after the baking process we have beautiful fluffy bread

We have become part of a new book club and the first get together was at our home. The antique table that makes such a statement in this little house in the woods, was spread out, all 3 leaves added to it and 10 of us were seated there. Once the table is spread out it fills just about all of our dining/living room area! Over the course of 4 hours food was consumed, wine was poured, all the while seasoned with animated conversation that ranged from areas of justice, environmental concerns to each person being asked, and answering the question “how did your parents influence the direction of your life in the high school years and were they involved in the decisions you made? Where they supportive of what you chose to do?”.

In the holding of the question and the answering that came thoughtfully and at times painfully, one could hear pieces of others sacred and precious life journey. The table once again became the sacred space that held the salt of seasoning and the grains of healing journeys. Animated conversation was woven with hushed speaking when deeply personal moments were laid before this new group. The salt could be tasted in each story, and as in the Seder Supper tradition, the salt water with bitter herbs is a reminder of the tears of the journey. There was much symbolic salt in our evening.

As the guests left and we cleared up the dishes, as I stood alone at the sink late in the evening pondering, I thought of the spaces, empty spaces in many of our lives where we long for this kind of intimate dialogue yet rarely find it. The places where we could love growth and the comfort this affords us, almost like the symbolic comfort food that bread is. Where the yeast has done its work to provide the necessary working to bring us this light, sustaining, food of comfort and life - the bread of life which is an essential for us to live. Safe places to verbalize ideas, to be seen and heard and honoured are a kind of bread of life to the soul and spirit. They are the places that Holy Presence comes with fragrance, salt and yeast.

The Sacred Table must always hold space for the salt of healing, seasoning and preservation (holding with honor and giving dignity) as well as the yeast the provides the necessary combination and action to give us the comfort food, this bread of life that comes in surprising ways to feed us.

Journey Into Health By Food - Beginning

The time has come to accept that fact that I have to change how I eat - a change I have resisted for some time. I love to cook and I love to eat - those things need not change. Being a chef I love to try new ideas and combinations, create and share meals with family and friends. But I live with chronic pain and fatigue due to fibromyaligia and that may not change and this has become really discouraging to me. So the time has come to make some changes that can move me into accepting what is, doing what I can to keep my body, mind and soul healthy and to let this be an adventure that helps me to live well. This is not going to be an easy journey because it means I have to stop reaching for comfort food, for the salty foods such as chips that I crave. Arriving home late from work, often after 11PM, it is tempting to have a snack of some sort but I need to stop eating that late in the day. I will need to be much more intentional about where and how I choose to get my groceries and tap into creativity at an even deeper level. Step one has to order an organic food box delivery every other week (probably increasing to weekly soon) and let this be the base for my food planning and preparation.

This “Journey Into Health By Food” will hopefully be an honest dialogue, not hiding the struggles but also celebrating the ways the change feels good. Creativity is an essential ingredient to finding energy when the fatigue and pain gets tough going so I am looking forward to letting the creativity become a part of the fuel for this journey into change. I am also accessing several books for this journey, as well as the help of friends who have walked it, and hopefully there will be wisdom there to share with you as well.

Sooooooo…our first food box is here and I was so excited to see what was inside and think of what could be created by the contents! I remember my friend Erin writing about her journey of trying to create with what was in her food box and I thought of that again while looking at the fresh contents of our delivery.

Contents:
4 apples
1 bunch of bananas
2 grapefruit
1 avocado
1 small bunch carrots
2 yellow onions
1 bunch of chard
1 head of cauliflower
1 garlic
2 tomatoes
½ bunch of parsley
4 small yams
Small bag of mushrooms
1 piece of ginger root

The first thing I did was take a couple of slices of ginger root and a couple of slices of a lemon to make a pot of ginger lemon tea. You can let it steep for a little bit then remove the ginger, but leave the lemon, and reheat it anytime during the day. The benefits of ginger are numerous. It has anti-oxidents in it and also because it is classified as a herb it has essential oils, calcium, protein, phosphorus, iron, vitamin C and much more. Ginger also helps digestion and a cup of ginger tea can help an upset stomach or help when you feel nauseated. It will also increase circulation so the tea is good to drink if you feel cold. I enjoy fresh slices of ginger sauteed briefly with sliced green onions in a little sesame oil and then you add cubes of tofu and saute until they are golden.

A fresh apple was a good snack as I was unpacking the box of goodies and putting them away. Another day one of the grapefruits was a delicious afternoon snack with a cup of lemon tea.

We cooked 2 yams for dinner the first night - slicing them in chunks, sprinkling them with oil, salt, pepper and a touch of smoked paprika and then roasting them at 425F for about 40 minutes until they are tender. The cauliflower can be a lovely soup but it is also delicious done in the simple Southern Italian way - steam it until al-dente then saute it in a small amount of hot oil with minced garlic until golden then add fresh lemon juice and a touch of salt and pepper (this is comfort food to me). Chard was something my Grandma always prepared and I love it best just steamed with a touch of seasonings. It is also lovely if you add the steamed chard to spaghetti noodles, add a touch of olive oil and lemon juice, salt and pepper and fresh grated parmesean cheese with just a hint of nutmeg added to the mix and you have lunch or supper.

The parsley out in our garden is a bit tired looking after the winter so this fresh bunch in the box will be lovely on steamed potatoes with lemon juice too or I am thinking of using it in a salad. The tomato and avocado each diced then finely chopped parsley added with a drizzle of balsamic vinegar, a drizzle of olive oil and a hint of salt with make a great lunch. I have some walnut burger patties that would be good with this salad - a great combination of raw fresh foods, lovely green colours (our liver loves greens because of their ability to cleanse this vital organ) and vegetarian walnut patty.

Coconut oil is one of the best high heat oils because it resists oxidation at high heats(therefore keeping it as a good fat) so I am going to switch to this as my cooking oil. It is best to have the pan really hot before you add your oil for frying and then cook quickly at this temperature to sear and seal the food you are cooking. Coconut oil will now be on my shelf along with the olive oil.

It feels good to start this adventure into health by food and I hope it will also be one of learning to use what we have, appreciating our food sources better and experiencing the joy of sharing it with others along the way. It fells hopeful to begin a fresh way to eat, to savour, to linger and to live even more richly and wisely!

Soup's On

From Eastern Europe to the South Pacific or into Great Britain, on the West or East Coast of North America you can always find a good bowl of soup. There are many places I have not yet travelled to but I am sure that one day I will be able to try soup in many new destinations. Soup that is creamy or a clear broth, full of vegetables and/or meat, seafood chowders, cold or hot in temperature - there are so many ways to create a great bowl of soup.

Soup is one of those all purpose kind of dishes. You can have it for a light meal, commence a larger meal with a bowl of soup, try it when you are not feeling well, have it when you are in a hurry, or create it will all the leftovers in the fridge! It is a highly versatile kind of dish that comes all in one bowl! And I love soup in any variation I can find. Making it yourself you know exactly what is in it and a healthy meal can be created. It is also a very economical meal when you have a little of several ingredients combined to create a larger quantity that can do for a number of meals.

A good stock is helpful when making soup. If you can make your own and freeze it in zip lock bags then you are set with the base ready to go at any time - chicken or turkey stock or vegetable stock are the most common to have on hand. An organic, low salt stock cube is also a good thing to keep in your pantry but I suggest reading the label and knowing what the ingredients are as MSG comes in many names. Also keeping a supply of carrots, onion, celery and potatoes on hand is a good idea as they are base ingredients for many soups as well as the carrots, onion and celery being the base for vegetable stock making.

Butternut squash soup was on the menu in our house last week as there was a lovely squash in the fridge and it needed using up along with carrots, celery, onions and potatoes. There were several bags of chicken stock in the fridge as well. The seasonings you add become the way to make any dish your own unique creation. I like to add a little curry powder and cumin with a hint of cinnamon to this particular soup which seems to bring out the rich flavour of the squash. You can add coconut milk and ginger for a more Asian flavour if you like. And I like exotic spices with richly coloured foods.

Bright bold coloured foods remind me of silk fabrics in rich luscious colours that the women of India and Pakistan wear and somehow I connect those colours with the strong aromatic flavours that are released by exotic spices blending with the dishes being cooked. Bold colours and flavours always seem to speak to me of LIFE!

The best flavour in soup seems to arrive when you firstly sweat your vegetables and then also let the soup refrigerate for 24 hours after cooking to allow the mingling to continue even further.

Simple soups are great for a quick meal that is satisfying. When I lived in Italia, Signora Giulia often brought some chicken broth to a boil, added Pepe Bucato pasta, which is a very tiny pasta, looking like pearl barley. When your broth comes to a boil add some pasta and some finely chopped green onion and let it boil for a couple of minutes till your pasta is soft. Squeeze in the juice of a half lemon and throw in some finely grated Parmesan or Pecorino Romano cheese and you have a great lunch, or a simple supper ready in no time.

If you have ingredients in your fridge you don’t know what to do with just look up the ingredients and soup on the internet and see what you can find. You could have a great surprise dish coming to dinner tonight! The fragrance of the cooking will let them know that “Soup’s On”.

Some Things Blend...Some Things Don't

Blending flavours as well as textures seems to be part of what creates food dishes that we either really enjoy or that we would say no to a second time. The combination of textures and flavours is what creates comfort food for us as well. Winter and early spring time on the West Coast, where we live, tends to be very dull and rainy which creates the longing for comfort food or slow cooked foods. Slow cooked foods such as stews are often prepared in a season when we like to hibernate. Dull rainy weather certainly has me longing to stay indoors and curled up with a good book and a pot of something simmering on the stove that permeates the house all day with its deepening abundance of fragrances.

Recently I was sitting curled up in my big reading chair, flipping through some Fine Cooking magazines a friend has passed along, and I came across a recipe for Lamb Stew with Chick Peas and Parsnips. The colours in it looked very exotic and I could almost smell the cumin in the lamb stew!

Staying creative is an important part of keeping my energy level up and right now that is coming through trying new recipes that catch my eye. Well actually the bright colours in the photos of the recipes are often what catch my eye to be quite honest! Imagine how much more important it is to have a great colour combination in your meal ingredients in order to visually increase the appetite of those who come your dinner table. Anyhow I digress…back to the Lamb Stew. I get carried away in my passion around food and life!

One of the main characteristics of ‘stew’ is the long slow cooking that tenderizes all the ingredients so you have a soft, flavourful texture with the juices that result providing a rich flavourful gravy that holds it all together. Chickpeas in a lamb stew intrigued me but I also know that they do not soften in texture through cooking, rather they continue to keep a very mealy texture. But if you never give it a try you will never know will you. While this recipe does call for a leg of lamb, the local grocery store didn’t have one but they did have some nice size lamb shoulder chops and they work just as well. Parsnips are one vegetable I am not really keen on as their very strong flavour seems to overwhelm all else on the plate. But once again it is time to be creative so why not try something that challenges my taste buds. I was able to cook the lamb the day before and the bay leaves and cinnamon stick in the broth smelled so good! Once the lamb is cooked and tender you drain the broth off and save it, save the meat and just discard the rest of the ingredients that have done their job in flavouring the meat and broth. When you see ‘braised’ dishes on any menu this is how they have been cooked. The next day near to dinner time the onions were sauted with the spices that really add the exotic to this stew - cumin, cayenne, coriander, and tomato puree. The paprika creates the deep rich red colour and the prunes add a sweetness. Fruit and strong spices are an excellent marriage in exotic flavour dishes. So far this was on its way to being a great stew for dinner. The parsnips and chickpeas were added as required and I also through in a carrot for colour and I let it simmer slowly until David arrived home from his meeting and we could sit down to dinner.

This lamb stew had wonderful flavours and I loved the blend of the exotic seasonings. Personally I found the parsnips to be too strong and I would substitute turnip. The chickpeas are indeed an ingredient that belongs with foods that carry Middle Eastern and African ingredients. I would use them on their own and create more of a vegetable/legume stew with these seasonings or else leave them out when using lamb. It is all a matter of personal taste and that is the beauty of trying something new and discovering what tastes and textures you like blended together.

Eating is a necessity to life but making it an adventure allows the senses to participate is this ritual that nurtures us, give us energy, comfort us, and draws us into community.

The Handy Ulu Knife

Every kitchen needs to have a good set of knives in your collection of essential equipment. The two knives that most chefs find essential is a good chef knife and a good paring knife. There are a couple of other knives that we find easy to use and one of them is the ulu knife or the mezzaluna knife. In Alaska it is called the Ulu knife and in Italy it is the Mezzaluna or Half Moon knife.

A number of years ago my parents went up to Alaska and they brought me back this little ulu knife that sits in a handy wooden stand. I keep it on the window sill where it is in sight and quick to grab. The beauty of this little kitchen tool is that you do not need a large space to chop up herbs or nuts. I find that using my chef knife for chopping herbs or nuts I end up making a mess of things and they spill off the chopping board. The ulu knife allows you to do quick chopping in a limited space and it saves a lot of mess. At least in my case this is so!

This morning I was making up a batch of granola and the pecans needed to be chopped. I was able to put a handful on my little cutting board, quickly roll the ulu knife back and forth over them and the nuts were the right size and ready to add to the rest of the ingredients in not time at all.

Once the spring comes and my herbs are back and ready to use I will be able to add them fresh to various dishes. The handy ulu knife allows me to quickly and cleanly chop up the rosemary, parsley, sage, thyme or chives. Not only do I love the feel of these beautiful fresh living herbs as I sprinkle them into a dish, but the cutting process releases their fragrant aroma and you see the beautiful rich variations of green colour.

This little knife is a great addition to your everyday knife collection in the kitchen.

Thanks Mom and Dad for this gift of a very useful and long lasting tool for my culinary crafting.

A Taste of Lamingtons

Warm sunny days with no particular schedule are often an invitation to sit down with a lovely beverage and something light to nibble on. Add to that being on a vacation and you have the perfect recipe for finding a little café from which to not only enjoy some good food but to watch the world go by from the idyllic setting. These invitations were hard for us to resist on our recent holiday in New Zealand so our stops became a regular occurrence in various towns and cities as we drove through both the North and South Islands of this beautiful country.

Stopping to enjoy the sunshine and a good cup of tea is a multi-dimensional stop. It brings one of my most sacred ingredients around food and community together - stopping to linger and be present for little precious space of time. By intentionally sitting down I find my senses gathering together so that where I am in that moment becomes the only thing I need to be present to. As one whose brain is always pondering, wondering, working overtime, even this part of me just needs to stop working so I can be present and my sub conscious can let go of all that energy that is often needlessly spent on anxiety. Watching the world go by is also a creative time and so ones’ journal needs to be ready to put impressions or thoughts on paper.

Every culture has their own special sweet dishes and Lamingtons are something I remember from my first visit to New Zealand almost 30 years ago! I had forgotten what the flavours and textures were so my taste buds and memory wanted to be reminded of just exactly what they were. They look like they are a jello cube covered in coconut and in fact they are sponge cake dipped into cherry jello and then covered in coconut, with fresh cream between the two layers of cake. I can’t say I would try them again - my taste buds have become reacquainted with the flavour and texture of this New Zealand sweet dish and just this one meeting was enough! One has to try these national specialties at least once for sure.

Travelling is not just about seeing the countryside, at least if you really want to experience another place it involves much more. Some places are very exotic while others are much more like home but there are always foods, music, mannerisms, customs and ways of doing things that hold a difference from our way. Stopping for a cup or tea or coffee and enjoying a light snack is a good place to start trying the simple culinary tidbits that are unique to another place. New Zealanders love their cup of tea at any time of the day and in any season. It is a custom that quite appeals to me as I too love a good strong cup of tea. A cup of tea is never taken on its own - you simple must have a little something sweet along with it. On that day, a stop while passing through Taupo New Zealand, it was the time to have tea and a lamington and the opportunity to try something unique to this place ’Down Under’.

A little bit of time to stretch our legs and walk around Taupo on our way to Wellington, a good cup of tea and something sweet, a few thoughts in the journal and then we were on our way again. Ah, it was a lovely little moment of lingering!
In fact it was a whole month of lingering through the gorgeous days of our holiday.