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| A pretty little finch. |
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| The feisty humming bird. |
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| Two in one shot! |
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| Can you spot both of them eating? |
Sunday, July 24, 2011
A Little Birdie Told Me
A while back I had seen a few birds lurking around my garden. A finch here, a humming bird there. So naturally I had to encourage these cutie pies. I bought feeders and my husband erected a stand. Lo and behold, we have frequent guests now!
Tuesday, July 19, 2011
Holes in Life
Last night's meal was filled with whole, fresh food. We opened the good wine and even offered spirits.
But the food was utterly unimportant.
Yesterday, I listened as my heart-broken girlfriend related their most recent set-back through hot, angry, tears of despair. I didn't know else to do, so I offered her what I felt was the least I could do: offer her drinks after work.
Later on, I watched as our husbands played in a softball game. Our usually jovial friend was rather listless and said very little. After the game, I mentioned that I had offered his wife drinks when she got off work, but would he like to join us for dinner in the meantime? It was all I had to give.
By the time the meal was ready, the wife was able to join us. This was not the most lively meal we have shared with this animated couple. (And my house was a mess--Quelle horreur!) Sure we ate, drank, chit-chatted and shared a few jokes. But on this particular night, there were dark clouds on the horizon.
Later on, after we said our good byes and I started dishes, I heard myself stupidly repeating over and over, "The least I can do is feed you... At least let us offer you another drink."
I do not have pictures of a whole-some, home-grown, home-made meal (it is not to be remembered). I have instead pictures of the mess afterward.
Because something occurred to me:
In the quest for "whole" living, we often find our lives (despite our best efforts otherwise) to be messy, difficult and full of deep, dark holes.
One of my favorite sayings is "Good food, good wine, good friends." I have always thought of this as an expression of the good times. But perhaps it is most important during the most difficult of times.
Maybe the simple offer, "Can I feed you and pour you a glass of wine" is truly the BEST we can do for friends on their journey to whole-ness. For this particular meal, the important thing was sharing it; breaking bread in fellowship.
My constant prayer is that this family will very soon be whole.
But the food was utterly unimportant.
Yesterday, I listened as my heart-broken girlfriend related their most recent set-back through hot, angry, tears of despair. I didn't know else to do, so I offered her what I felt was the least I could do: offer her drinks after work.
Later on, I watched as our husbands played in a softball game. Our usually jovial friend was rather listless and said very little. After the game, I mentioned that I had offered his wife drinks when she got off work, but would he like to join us for dinner in the meantime? It was all I had to give.
By the time the meal was ready, the wife was able to join us. This was not the most lively meal we have shared with this animated couple. (And my house was a mess--Quelle horreur!) Sure we ate, drank, chit-chatted and shared a few jokes. But on this particular night, there were dark clouds on the horizon.
Later on, after we said our good byes and I started dishes, I heard myself stupidly repeating over and over, "The least I can do is feed you... At least let us offer you another drink."
I do not have pictures of a whole-some, home-grown, home-made meal (it is not to be remembered). I have instead pictures of the mess afterward.
Because something occurred to me:
In the quest for "whole" living, we often find our lives (despite our best efforts otherwise) to be messy, difficult and full of deep, dark holes.
One of my favorite sayings is "Good food, good wine, good friends." I have always thought of this as an expression of the good times. But perhaps it is most important during the most difficult of times.
Maybe the simple offer, "Can I feed you and pour you a glass of wine" is truly the BEST we can do for friends on their journey to whole-ness. For this particular meal, the important thing was sharing it; breaking bread in fellowship.
My constant prayer is that this family will very soon be whole.
Monday, July 11, 2011
Yellowstone National Park
We spent last week camping in beautiful Yellowstone with my brother and his lady. We saw lots of wildlife, tons of Bison, beautiful mountains, waterfalls, canyons, geysers and wildflowers. Enjoy a sampling of photos: |
| We drove through Grand Teton to get there. (Nice face, babe) |
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| The Grand Canyon of Yellowstone |
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| Bison herds everywhere! |
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| Good Ol' Faithful |
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| A chipper chipmonk |
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| Lamar Valley |
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| I will spare you from ALL of the flower pictures I took. |
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| Can you see the grizzly bear on the horizon? |
Friday, July 8, 2011
Veggie Pot Pie
(adapted from The Essential Vegetarian Cookbook, by Bay Books)
The recipe I "follow" for this dish gives measurements in grams (150 g broccoli florets, 50 g butter) which my American head cannot comprehend.
Here's how I make it work:
Steam:
1/2 butternut squash, cut into 1-inch cubes
3 small red potatoes, cut into 1-inch cubes
1-2 carrots, roughly chopped
(could also add or substitute yams, peas, etc)
Saute 1 diced onion in oil. Add to steamed veggies and set aside.
In sauce pan:
melt 2 T butter
add 2 pinches of flour (1 1/2 T) - I used gluten free flour for camping
slowly stir in 1 1/2 cup milk
bring to a boil to thicken, stirring constantly, about 1 minute.
Remove from heat, add 1 cup grated cheddar cheese and 2 egg yolks.
Stir to combine and melt cheese.
Pour over veggies.
There are many ways to top and serve this dish:
Divide veggie/sauce mix into six individual ramekins or pour into casserole dish to serve family style.
Cover with: puff pastry, pie crust, or biscuit dough
Don't forget to bake according to topping requirements!
For our camping trip I will reheat the veggies in a pot on my camp stove, ladle into bowls and top with a sliced gluten-free cornbread muffin!
And, by the way, you'll have to wait until we return to see pictures of how this turned out!
The recipe I "follow" for this dish gives measurements in grams (150 g broccoli florets, 50 g butter) which my American head cannot comprehend.
Here's how I make it work:
Steam:
1/2 butternut squash, cut into 1-inch cubes
3 small red potatoes, cut into 1-inch cubes
1-2 carrots, roughly chopped
(could also add or substitute yams, peas, etc)
 |
| Steaming the potatoes for pot pie. |
Saute 1 diced onion in oil. Add to steamed veggies and set aside.
 |
| Veggies for pot pie include: broccoli, potatoes, butternut squash, carrots and sauteed onion |
In sauce pan:
melt 2 T butter
add 2 pinches of flour (1 1/2 T) - I used gluten free flour for camping
slowly stir in 1 1/2 cup milk
bring to a boil to thicken, stirring constantly, about 1 minute.
Remove from heat, add 1 cup grated cheddar cheese and 2 egg yolks.
Stir to combine and melt cheese.
Pour over veggies.
 |
| Veggies are sauced and ready to be "pie-d" |
Divide veggie/sauce mix into six individual ramekins or pour into casserole dish to serve family style.
Cover with: puff pastry, pie crust, or biscuit dough
Don't forget to bake according to topping requirements!
For our camping trip I will reheat the veggies in a pot on my camp stove, ladle into bowls and top with a sliced gluten-free cornbread muffin!
And, by the way, you'll have to wait until we return to see pictures of how this turned out!
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