Grilled Corn Salad

My mom asked me to bring my grilled corn salad to the family reunion. I first made it for a meal we shared at Travis's on the 4th. I got the recipe from William Sonoma (they call it Charred corn salad). It's so good, even as a leftover.


Grilled Corn Salad
serves 6-8

Grill 6 cobs of corn, husks and silks removed, brushing them with
2 Tb olive oil mixed with 1 tsp salt
turning them occasionally, until charred spots, about 15 minutes.
Let cool till can handle and cut the kernels from the cobs.

In the serving bowl mix -
2 Tb fresh lime juice
1 Tb fresh orange juice
1 tsp diced chipotle chile in adobo, plus 1 Tb adobo sauce
(I don't measure this, just cut up a smallish chili out of the can, which I refrigerate in a jar to always have on hand, and spoon out some of the sauce.)
1 garlic clove (I always add more)
1/2 tsp honey (which I don't measure either, just eyeball it)
1/4 c good tasting olive oil
Add to this 'sauce' -
the griller corn kernels
1 15oz can black beans (I used black soy beans)
2 Tb chopped fresh cilantro (I used more)
1/2 c jicama (I used more)
1/4 c chopped red onion (I probably used more)
2 c quartered cherry tomatoes

Serve at room temp.

Stuffed Grilled Chilies

I looked through my posted recipes the other day and noticed I haven't posted my stuffed poblano chili recipe, which is odd since it's a definite favorite, not just to me, but to everyone I've made it for. I've been making it for several years now and am going to give you the recipe from my memory. I originally got it from one of the first "Real Simple" magazine issues, and I don't know if over the years I'm making it exactly the way they did.

6-7 Poblano chilies - these look like pointed bell peppers, though usually a darker green. Every store labels them different: like ancho (which is really dried poblanos) or pasillo ... So that's why I'm telling you what they look like.

Cut a slit down one side and remove the seeds and wash and drain. You'll be spooning filling in them and evening the filling amount in each in the end. I stuff the filling, shoving it well in so it doesn't easily come out when cooking (it does, but it's worse if you don't pack the filling).

Filling:
8 oz grated cheese
1 15oz drained canned beans - I usually use black soy beans since they are higher fiber and protein. My next choice would be black beans; then pinto.
1/3 cup raisins
1/4 cup salsa
2 tsp chili powder

I soak mesquite wood chips for at least an hour and have a chip pan I insert under the grill grate on one side. I leave this side on high for the entire cooking time. Before I had a nice grill, I used to put the drained, soaked chips sealed in heavy-duty foil with holes poked in it for smoke escape.

On a preheated grill place the stuffed peppers away from the wood chip side on high. Turn the burners under the chilies to low - near the end I often turn these burners off, still leaving the chip side on high. Cook with the lid closed. I grill them about a half-hour. Turn them over half way through, but be conscious of the slit opening so you don't dump all the filling out. They should get some dark blistering on both sides. Remove to a serving tray and cover with foil till you're ready to eat.

I don't think the recipe called for a sauce, but from my Rick Bayless Mexican cook books, I often make a sauce to serve the chilies with. He has you chopping onion, tomato, jalepeno and what not and add to cooking cream. My simple version is to heat cream and simmer down a bit, to thicken, and add some salsa.

I'm sorry I didn't take a picture. Dawson's photoblog site does have a picture of these, both on the grill and a plate (though he wanted flames for effect so put paper pieces in the grill to catch fire, good grilling though should not have flames). And I'm kicking myself I didn't take a picture of the 6 dancing chickens suspended over beer cans on the grill last night. The Norwegians did! They loved it - and it was so good. I posted this recipe with a picture a couple months ago.

Authentic Mexican cooking for stuffing all sorts of chiles, burritos and enchiladas often adds some chopped dried fruits. Not a lot, but to have an occasional bite of a bit of sweet is good.

Easter Story Cookies

My friend Ellen just sent me this. I think I have it, or something like it, in my stash of calendar research. What's coolest to me, is that my friends so know me that they think of me when certain things come their way.

This is a great hands-on tradition for the kids - it's another Eating History thing (I mentioned this in the Seder post). Kids or no kids, I suggest we do it for OUR inner-child......

EASTER STORY COOKIES
To be made the evening before Easter.
You need:
1c. whole pecans
1 tsp. vinegar
3 egg whites
pinch salt
1 c. sugar
zipper baggie
wooden spoon
tape
Bible
Preheat oven to 300 degrees F.

Place pecans in zipper baggie and let children beat them with the wooden spoon to break into small pieces (I have a wooden meat pounder I use for doing this). Remember that after Jesus was arrested He was beaten by the Roman soldiers.
(Read John 19:1-3.)
Let each child smell the vinegar. Put 1 tsp. vinegar into mixing bowl. Remember that when Jesus was thirsty on the cross he was given vinegar to drink.
(Read John 19:28-30.)
Add egg whites to vinegar. Eggs represent life. Remember that Jesus gave His life to give us life.
(Read John 10:10-11.)
Sprinkle a little salt into each child's hand. Let them taste it and brush the rest into the bowl. This represents the salty tears shed by Jesus' followers, and the bitterness of our own sin.
(Read Luke 23:27.)
So far the ingredients are not very appetizing. Add 1c. sugar. The sweetest part of the story is that Jesus died because He loves us. He wants us to know and belong to Him.
(Read Ps. 34:8 and John 3:16.)
Beat with a mixer on high speed for 12 to 15 minutes until stiff peaks are formed. The color white represents the purity in God's eyes of those whose sins have been cleansed by Jesus.
(Read Isa. 1:18 and John 3:1-3.)
Fold in broken nuts. Drop by teaspoons onto wax paper covered cookie sheet. With each mound imagine the rocky tomb where Jesus' body was laid.
(Read Matt. 27:57-60.)
Put the cookie sheet in the oven, close the door and turn the oven OFF.
Give each child a piece of tape and seal the oven door. Remember that Jesus' tomb was sealed.
(Read Matt. 27:65-66.)
GO TO BED! Feel sad about leaving the cookies in the oven overnight. Remember Jesus' followers were sad when the tomb was sealed.
(Read John 16:20 and 22.)
On Easter morning, open the oven and help yourself to cookies. Notice the cracked surface and take a bite. The cookies are hollow! Remember that on the first Easter Jesus' followers were amazed to find the tomb open and empty.
(Read Matt. 28:1-9)

"For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, so that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have everlasting life." - John 3:16

Palm Sunday

Our Supper Group friends just left - our brave friends. It's snowed a few inches, but the heaviest is supposed to start around midnight. I'm anxious to hear how their drive home went! It was raining in Denver when they left to come to our house. I'll let you know how much snow we get. It's not supposed to move on till tomorrow late afternoon. The meal turned out great, even though I was grilling the chickens in the snow! We had a great time and conversation.

I came home from church with lots of palm fronds (I do that every year) to decorate the kitchen table and set out my wool sheep and Jesus on a donkey. Everyone thought it so cool that I had to take a picture to post.

I found one tradition in all my readings for Palm Sunday that I've been doing several years now. My ancestors on my dad's side in the Netherlands carry on this tradition: baking bread chicks on a stick with colored streamers and parading them about homes and church. I bake a large bread shaped chicken with baby chicks sticking out around her. Where does this come from, and why Palm Sunday?

As Jesus overlooked Jerusalem, He wept. Jesus knows us and loves us, even with all our ordinariness. Jesus wished He could "gather them under My wings like a mother hen gathers her chicks under her wings". (Matthew 23:37, Luke 13:34)

Here's my recipe for a hen and chicks bread-

1 cup hot water in a blender with- 1 small unpeeled, cut up and seeded orange (cut off some skin to use as chick beaks)
1/2 cup raisins
Let soak a bit and then blend well. Pour into a bread-making bowl and add-
1 pkg (2 tsp) yeast
1/8 cup oil or melted butter
1/8 cup honey or sugar
1-2 Tb molasses
2 tsp-1Tb cinnamon
1 cup flour

Mix these ingredients just until the dry ingredients are moistened, and with a cover on to keep warm, let sit to sponge for 10 minutes. Then add- 2 tsp salt & more flour till dough begins to clean the bowl and form a ball. Knead for about 10 minutes.

Shape the dough into loaves or the chickens (one large or 2 small). Let rise on a greased baking sheet, covered with a towel. Bake about 30 minutes at 350 degrees. (I haven't done this this year yet. If I do, I'll take a picture and add it here.)

I do a large ball for the hen body, then lots of small balls around her body for the chicks and one small ball on top of her body for her head. Take a toothpick to make indents and add currents or cut up raisins for eyes and slivers of orange peel for beaks.

I pulled out art work that I set on an easel for this week. I have Leonardo da Vinci's "Lord's Supper" as well as a modern painting of the scene. I have Rembrandt's "The Raising of the Cross" where he paints himself in the picture. And then Michelangelo's "Pieta". I saw these scenes frozen in Mel Gibson's movie "The Passion of Christ" and it caught my breath - a work of art!

Passion Week is before us. One day the people cry "Hosannas" that soon changed to "Crucify Him"!

Grilled Chicken etc

This morning was MOPS. I woke at 3:30 am and couldn't go back to sleep. My mind often kicks into gear and there's no stopping it, so I'm tired. I spoke - telling a piece of my story, and why I'm often called "The Calendar Girl" (not that I've posed naked for a calendar - cute movie by the way).

It hit me about the timing of MOPS and next week starting Holy Week. What would Christianity be without the cross and resurrection?! and yet we 'celebrate' other holidays moreso and especially Christmas. It's so easy to embrace a baby and shepherds and sheep and kings and presents! Who wants to embrace a cross?!

I'll talk more on this later. If you buy the dozen egg thing (like advent) at a Christian store, today would be the first day for opening a plastic egg and seeing what miniature is inside and reading about it - often from a Gospel story.

Last night I did a dry run on grilling a chicken, before doing a large amount for our supper group Sunday evening (why is it called a 'dry run'?). Travis had done it for us awhile back and I had posted a picture of the 'Dancing Chickens'? So yesterday he instant messaged me the how-to along with the 'whys' (the science). It's so good, and easy, and I'm going to be doing it a lot.

He marinated/brined the chickens for about three hours. Since I did one chicken I cut his recipe in thirds. Here's his recipe:

1 gallon water (1 qt hot in the beginning to dilute the salt and sugar, then add cold, including ice)

3/4 c salt

2/3 c brown sugar

1/2 c soy sauce

herbs (thyme, rosemary, bay, pepper, onion, garlic)

olive oil (I think I forgot this)

Submerge with a weighted plate in a bucket (I did the one bird in a ziplock bag) for three hours.

Rinse well.

Have the grill preheated hot.

Have hickory chips (mesquite is too powerful for this) presoaked and ready to add to grill with the chicken.

Have a beer can for each chicken - emptied of half its beer - and punch more holes in its top. Put the chicken over the can, which will hold it up for the entire cooking time on the grill.

Squeeze a lemon half over the chicken and put the other half in the neck cavity.

Sprinkle with some herb mixture (I used our no-salt mixture).

Travis has a grill with 2 burners and kept one turned off with the wood chips on the 'high' side. I have 3 burners, so kept one on high where the chips stayed, the middle on low, and the third burner off, where I put the chicken (and a winter squash). We'd check the temperature, trying to keep it around 300-350 degrees, and periodically turned the birds. You can't have a burner on under the birds or you'll have flare-up flames!

One bird is done in an hour. Travis cooked the three birds in a little over two hours. I'm going to be cooking four birds Sunday (and it looks like it might be snowing!) so I'm going to allow for at least 2 1/2 hours.

I did the winter squash along with it. You could roast sweet potatoes with it, which are really good done on the grill (skin on of course!) And oh, leave the skin on the chicken too!

Brining initially pulls water out of the meat while pushing salt in. The salt denatures the proteins, which means that they can't coil up as tightly when they cook, so then the proteins don't squeeze as much liquid out of the meat, leaving you with a moister bird. So, although brined meat starts out with less moisture, it actually has more at the end of cooking because it hasn't been wrung out like a sponge.

BLT Soup

We just had a wonderful soup and Monte wants me to post the recipe (this is his way of making me write it down so I-don't-forget-it type of deal!).

Costco has some great natural thick-sliced bacon, but it's too salty for us to just eat as is. So I might keep getting it and divide it up for a black bean pizza (did I post that recipe?) and this soup.

BLT Soup
4-5 thick slices of bacon
Cook these till done, and crumble them.
Now some of you might not like this, but I cook the bacon in my soup pot and proceed to saute the veggies in the bacon fat. If you prefer not then saute the following ingredients in the order listed here, in oil, in your soup pot-
1 chopped onion
1 chopped bell pepper
2 chopped celery ribs
3 garlic cloves, minced
1-2 diced tomatoes (and since I'm supposed to be writing out exactly what I did ... I had some cherry tomatoes that were on the counter just starting to wrinkle and no one was wanting to eat them fresh anymore, so I cut them in half. So with these I had probably 2 tomatoes worth or maybe even more. But I figure since Monte loves stewed tomatoes, it wouldn't hurt anything.)
Chopped or shredded romaine (I used kale- and probably about 1-1 1/2 cups thin sliced)
1 quart chicken broth
1/2 cup cream
(pinch of chipotle pepper flakes)
pepper (and salt - hardly use)

I cut my home-made baguette bread down the middle and in 1-2 inch pieces, drizzled them with virgin olive oil and sprinkled them from a hand grinder mixture of pepper, garlic and salt. Bake (I have a convection oven) them till crispy. This is one of my versions of 'croutons'.

And just for your information, it's snowing. It's been blizzarding all day and we didn't go to church. There were probably only a handful of people there since the highway was a parking lot, no one going anywhere! Yesterday, March 1st, was in the 70's! The snow has never left the ground this winter like it often does, since we've been getting bits of snow here and there. We're so anxious for Spring, yet March can be our snowiest month!

Spiritual Birthdays and Tacos

Yesterday was Dawson's Spiritual Birthday and next Wednesday is Travis's. When our kids were little there'd be God-talk-times, but there seems to be a definite time when children ask deeper questions and want to commit their life to God. Monte said he did it when he was eight, soon after realizing that his dad wasn't 'God' and in control of everything. He simply transferred that trust in his dad to trust in God.

I wrote these times on the calendar for each of our kids, calling them their 'spiritual birthday'. Then each year we'd celebrate that birthday with a special treasure hunt meal. The meal needs to have a lot of condiments that we can hide around the house. Since curry (which makes a great treasure hunt meal) isn't a favorite of my kids, we tended to do a taco meal. We'd make up riddles as clues to be left with each food item, guiding them to the next. Eventually everything is at the table and we can eat. There's a final note at their plate reminding them of their treasure in Heaven.

I quick fry corn tortillas so they're soft. Then there's bowls of cooked ground meat, grated cheese, chopped tomatoes, lettuce, green onions, and sour cream, and sometimes guacamole, chips and salsa, and maybe beans. It's one of my favorite childhood meals I grew up with, and my family loves it too. I prefer the soft cooked shells to the traditional crisp shells because the first bite tends to crack the shell down the middle and everything falls out! If you travel to Mexico soft corn tacos is traditional.

I still remember the first time we did this - and we usually retell the story. Heather was just learning to read. Monte was out of town and my sister Kelli was living with us (and that's another story!) so I wrote out very simple clues. Travis, not able to read yet, was practically hanging on to Heather's shirt tails waiting for her to sound out the clues so they could run and find the food. Like she'd be saying, "Look in the re-frig g g g ..." with a hard 'g' sound, as she was slowly walking upstairs. Finally I said, "The refrigerator is not upstairs!" And they'd take off running and laughing.

When Deuteronomy says several times, "teach the children diligently", "tell the children" - this is kinda like another commemoration as is the Lord's Supper and Passover. I'll tell you, our kids never grew up wondering if they were a Christian or not. And what great memories we have celebrating (partying) together around God's Truth and Presence in our lives!

Salmon Patties

Since I'm on a recipe roll, I've been wanting to add this, which I made for supper Thursday. It's a great one for a quick-fix meal, along with a salad. For years I've made Tuna Patties, which is in my Hearth & Home cookbook, but I started playing with canned salmon and new recipes. So here's what I like the best:

Salmon Patties
1 6oz can salmon (preferring wild salmon), drained
1 egg
2 scallions, including the greens, finely chopped
1/2 tsp no-salt seasoning
1/2 tsp parsley
1/8 cup bread crumbs (mine of course are whole grain from my homemade left-over bread pieces)
1/8 cup mayonnaise

Form into two patties and dip in 1/8 cup flour to lightly coat. Pan fry 4-5 minutes per side in a well oiled skillet to brown well.

A Nice Dipping Sauce -
1 Tb mayonnaise and sour cream
sprinkle garlic pepper and pepper flakes (I buy a garlic pepper mix grinder and then a chipotle seasoning mix)
1 tsp fresh lime juice (I always have a basket of limes and lemons on the counter in my kitchen)

I think we had these with broiled tomato halves. I love pesto sauce broiled on these; and sometimes just bread crumbs mixed with some olive oil, and even some parmesan cheese added.

Bean Salad Mixture

Wednesday I went to Wild Oats, which is now turning into Whole Foods. I was planning on making a dish for supper from a free weekly recipe I get from NPR's Splendid Table - and I had to get some more cod liver oil for Monte (which I'm now taking, when I remember). There was a nice lady giving samples of a fresh bean salad, and letting everyone who walked by, have the hand-written recipe (I've seen her somewhere else before and I'm trying to remember ... and unfortunately it'll probably come to me in the wee hours of the morning, waking me up, arrfff!). I loved it, so added it to my menu for supper.

I've had canned versions of marinated bean salad that are ok, but I loved the freshness of this, having just been made. I'm going to give you their recipe and then tell you how I did it. I always alter things - but that takes 'knowing your ingredients' as a chapter in one of my cookbooks is called.

Bean Salad Mixture
1 can kidney beans, drained
1 can garbanzo beans, drained
1 can cut green beans, drained
1 chopped green pepper
1 cup chopped onion
Dressing:
1/4 cup oil (I always use a good flavored olive oil)
1/3 cup sugar (I used a lot less, and often use sucanat)
1/2 cup cider vinegar (I tend to use a mixture with a touch of Balsamic)
1 tsp celery seed
1/2 tsp pepper
1/4 tsp salt (I usually omit salt, depending on other ingredients)
1/8 tsp dried basil
1/8 tsp dried oregano
Combine them all.

The only canned ingredient I used was the garbanzo beans. I used some frozen green beans and broccoli, from last years garden, slightly thawing them. And then I told you above what I used in the dressing. I always use less sugar and salt than recipes call for. A bit of balsamic adds sweetness, but I don't like to use a lot since it's a strong vinegar. If cheese is in a recipe, then there's enough salt, and canned foods usually have salt. And I love to allow the olive oil flavor to come through. Fresh herbs would be better too - use more when they are fresh.

I see this dressing as a base recipe that any veggie could be added to, even parboiled potatoes. And come summer with the garden in full swing, I'll be using this recipe.

Sprouts

Yesterday I made yogurt and started sprouts (see Recipes label for homemade yogurt). I've been growing sprouts for over 30 years.

In the late 60's, moreso early 70's, I was a Hippie. That era brought about the Health Food movement. As a teen I didn't usually eat sandwiches, preferring sandwich fillings alone. My favorite was, and still is, to take sandwich meats and a cheese slice and roll up around a large helping of sprouts. All that just to say I bless the movement that started making sprouts available. I actually love snacking on handfuls of sprouts.

When Monte and me were first married we were readying ourselves to move to Australia to do geology in the Outback. The place was so remote there would be no fresh produce. So I learned how to make sprouts and was going to take a lot of sprouting seeds with us. The project fell through, but had we gone, Heather would have been born there, and who knows where living across the world would have taken us.

Back then I'd put about a Tablespoon of seeds in a quart jar to soak about 8 hours. I cut a piece of pantyhose and rubber-banded it to the top of the jar as a screen so I could drain and keep rinsing the seeds several times a day for about 5 days, keeping the jar on its side out of sunlight, but on the counter near the sink. Once nice and green then I'd cap the jar and store them in the refrigerator.

I made sprouts this way for years. Then I've bought various sprouting trays over the years. Most of these 'recipes' still require that you soak the seeds about 8 hours so the seed volume increases and the seeds don't fall through the holes in the trays.

I bought a new sprouter I ordered from Johnnyseeds.com that doesn't require pre-soaking the seeds. It comes with 3 sprout trays. I like its way of watering/rinsing the seeds. After experimenting a bunch, I'm settling on premixing my favorite combination of seeds - alfalfa, broccoli, and radish (spunky) - and starting just one tray at a time so there's 3 stages of growth. My picture shows 4 trays because I have two of these sprouters to keep us with fresh sprouts constantly, and not have to store them in the refrigerator for long at all - so they will be truly fresh and ALIVE!

With sprouts you get live enzymes and natural vitamins. Fresh sprouted seeds give you an increased vitamin, mineral, and protein content by 30-600%. They turn from seeds into extremely nutritious vegetables. My top tray has wheat kernels. These can be eaten in just a few days when the sprout is about as long as the kernel - sweet (not grassy like wheatgrass). The B-complex content in germinated wheat increases 600% in the first 72 hours. Vitamin E content is tripled and vitamin C increases sixfold, and who knows what other micro-nutrients are created out of the 25,000 science has now recognized in vegetables and fruits.

Sprouts can be juiced. We add them to salads, sandwiches, wraps, tacos, oriental dishes, omelets, and just as a side dish or snack. Creative Monte likes them on his whole grain waffles with yogurt and real maple syrup. I draw the line there!

Purim Katan

Purim actually falls on Good Friday this year because of the 19-year cycle of the Jewish Leap Year. So in leap years they actually celebrate Purim twice. Today is the early Purim - Purim Katan.

Purim celebrates victory over enemies, like the redeemer in Esther. Mordecai self-sacrificed himself in raising and teaching Esther - passing on the Torah by educating the children. The lesson of Purim is to not lose hope and continue to teach the generations.

In the story of Esther lots were cast ("pur" in Persian) and a day was chosen for the annihilation of the Jews. Persian law could not be changed, but the people were allowed to defend themselves - but only because of Esther's intervention. She was called, and she obeyed, saying, "If I perish, I perish".

Purim is a carnival celebration full of hilarity. It's celebrated with costumes and the story of Esther is either read or dramatized. Every time the name 'Haman' is said, everyone noisily stomps their feet, hisses and boos. Lots of cheering with Mordecai's name.

It celebrates survival, and the question is asked, "How do we live with people who hate us?"

Some years I make Hamantaschen (Haman's pockets) cookies. Sweet dough is rolled and cut in circles. A filling is added in the center and the edges are folded over to make three corners. The filling is either a poppy seed filling or fruit (often prune, but any jam can be used).

My first thought when I saw Purim and Good Friday fell together was, "Oh great, such opposite emotions." But it's only seemingly opposite when Purim is a 'Hilarious' holi(y)day. But maybe Good Friday (it is called 'good') should be celebrated hilariously too. With hissing, booing, and stomping of feet (much as Jesus did to the snake in the Garden of Eden in the "Passion" movie) over Satan, and cheering for our Redeemer Jesus who sacrificed his life for us, that we might have life.

And ask myself, "Who am I for such a time as this?"

Dancing Trio

We were just up at Travis and Sarah's. Travis brined three chickens then put beer cans, about 1/2 full, in each cavity and stood them on one side of the grill, with the burner off. He tried this with cans of coke but prefers this, saying it tastes better. The other side of the grill was kept on high and had soaked wood chips for smoking the birds. With three of them, it took a little over 2 hours till done. They were DELISH!!

So, on the calendar we've passed President's Day, in between Lincoln's and Washington's Birthdays. When the kids were young I used to take some Lincoln Logs and make a little log cabin to sit on a red, white, and blue woven cloth in the center of the table during this time.

The 18th is set aside in remembrance of Martin Luther. If you've not seen the movie "Luther", you should. It's a good representation of his life and home life and his wonderful wife Katherine. I read a biography of her and really enjoyed it. From her you get more of the perspective of the largeness of their home, and family, and the many guests they had. She really "looked well to the ways of her household", very much as Proverbs 31 depicts. Even to buying apple orchards to be able the keep the family in their 'home brew' which they drank at every meal, and finding sources for good food, and how she created her much needed well-stocked large kitchen. They were good parents too, enjoying life. We don't often know much about the "helpmates" of well known influential people. "The hand that rocks the cradle ..." is so powerful!

From family and food, to presidents, and then to the Luther family and food ... Hmmmmm, seeing the three together in a sentence my thoughts have run to where the power is and influence ... but no more. I leave it to you to run with the rest of the story.

Fruits and Vegetables

A Coincidence????

A sliced Carrot looks like the human eye. The pupil, iris and radiating lines look just like the human eye...and science shows that carrots greatly enhance blood flow to and function of the eyes.



A Tomato has four chambers and is red. The heart is red and has four chambers. All of the research shows tomatoes are indeed pure heart and blood food.

Grapes hang in a cluster that has the shape of the heart. Each grape looks like a blood cell and all of the research today shows that grapes are also profound heart and blood vitalizing food.

A Walnut looks like a little brain, a left and right hemisphere, upper cerebrums and lower cerebellums. Even the wrinkles or folds are on the nut just like the neo-cortex. We now know that walnuts help develop over 3 dozen neuron-transmitters fo r brain function.

Kidney Beans actually heal and help maintain kidney function and yes, they look exactly like the human kidneys.


Celery, Bok Choy, Rhubarb and more look just like bones. These foods specifically target bone strength. Bones are 23% sodium and these foods are 23% sodium. If you don't have enough sodium in your diet the body pulls it from the bones, making them weak. These foods replenish the skeletal needs of the body.

Eggplant, Avocadoes and Pears target the health and function of the womb and cervix of the female - they look just like these organs. Today's research shows that when a woman eats 1 avocado a week, it balances hormones, sheds unwanted birth weight and prevents cervical cancers. And how profound is this? .... It takes exactly 9 months to grow an avocado from blossom to ripened fruit. There are over 14,000 photolytic chemical constituents of nutrition in each one of these foods (modern science has only studied and named about 141 of them).


Sweet Potatoes look like the pancreas and actually balance the glycemic index of diabetics.

Olives assist the health and function of the ovaries.

Onions look like body cells. Today's research shows that onions help clear waste materials from all of the body cells They even produce tears which wash the epithelial layers of the eyes.


"The news isn't that fruits and vegetables are good for you, it's that they are so good for you, they can save your life."

-David Bjerklie, TIME Magazine, Oct. 2003

Crepe Recipe

Before I wrote my crepe recipe today I had to give background, because history is very important to me.

Like I've said before, I like some of the calendar celebrations cuz they give me ideas of what to make for supper! I traditionally now make crepes (or Swedish Pancakes) for Shrove/Fat Tuesday.

In my book Hearth&Home I put Crepes in my dessert chapter not knowing where to really put them! But I tend to make a lot of them so there's some for meat, veggie, or fruit fillings. They could be a great party meal too, with people bringing all sorts of possibilities to fill them with, or sauces to ladle over.

Crepe Recipe -
I use whole-grain flour in mine. I mix all the ingredients together in the blender at least a couple hours ahead of time for the liquid to absorb the whole-grain flour, resulting in a tender crepe that holds together well.

1 1/2 cups whole-grain flour (sometimes I use oat and barley flour to get away from wheat - tonight it's a 7-grain flour)
4 eggs
2 cups milk
3 Tb melted butter or oil
(dash of salt)
(1 Tb honey or 2 Tb sugar)

Preheat a 6-7 inch non-stick skillet. Lightly grease (some pans might not need greasing) and pour very little of the batter into the pan - like about 2-3 Tb. Quickly tilt the pan to coat the bottom. If there's excess batter, just pour it off. Cook until the edges begin to pull away and the top is completely dry - 1-2 minutes. Turn over to cook about 30 seconds - 1 minute and invert on a plate to stack them.

Monte especially likes them with stewed fruit and homemade yogurt, rolling them up with his fork, and real maple syrup drizzled over the top.

You can add a couple tablespoons of cocoa to the batter to make them chocolate. Or you could add 1/2 cup parmesan cheese, finely grated, for another variation. The crepes can be cut in wedges and baked for crepe chips.

Filling ideas?

Yogurt

I'm making yogurt today and currently waiting for the milk to cool down. I've been making yogurt for years. I bought my yogurt maker at a second-hand store and it makes a 1/2 gallon milk quantity of yogurt.

Here is the recipe that consistently works for me. Heat the milk to about 180 degrees. I do this in the microwave in a Pyrex glass bowl. Then let it cool down to 100-112 degrees. Mix in the starter and pour into jars in yogurt maker.

Hmmmm ... starter .... It used to be you could buy almost any plain yogurt in the store to use as a starter. But today, most yogurts have additives which seem to inhibit it's thickening. Some additives, like gelatin, will work, but it seems to take longer for the milk to firm. Your best bet is is yogurt in health food stores, but still read the labels. You can also find powdered starters, usually in a refrigerated section. If you use the powdered starter just follow the directions.

For a quart of milk I use a few tablespoons of yogurt stirred into the cooled down milk. Once you make yogurt, you can use your own homemade yogurt for starter. I always plug in my yogurt maker, with the empty jars in it, when I begin the yogurt making process for it to start heating. I'll put my yogurt starter in it at this time too, in one of the jars, to take off its chill.

When the starter is mixed into the cooled-down milk, pour the mixture into the jars in the yogurt maker, place the cover on the yogurt maker. Start checking after a few hours. Mine usually sets in 3-4 hours. When I start a fresh batch with the powdered starter it takes longer. Look for a slight firmness of the milk. It will firm up a bit more in the refrigerator. The shorter the time, the sweeter it is. If you forget and let it incubate longer, it gets tart, but still tastes better than store-bought yogurt.

I love the taste of plain homemade yogurt. You can add jam, fruit, frozen juice concentrate, maple syrup, wheat germ, ground flax seed ... whatever you like. Whenever a recipe calls for sour cream or mayonnaise I'll sometimes use yogurt. It can also be substituted for sour milk or buttermilk.

You want the good bacteria that yogurt provides - a 'live', active yogurt with its acidophilus, thermophilus, and bulgaricus. 'Friendly' bacteria helps aid food digestion. Yogurt is a predigested form of milk and it tends to 'crowd out' bacteria associated with indigestion. Lactose intolerant people can often eat yogurt.

When I was a kid, I was sick and on antibiotics a lot. My homeopathic grandmother told my mother to keep feeding me yogurt. "Thank you Grandma." Antibiotics kill the good bacteria along with the bad. Yogurt boosts the immune system and has a natural antibiotic effect.

When in Wisconsin we used to visit Monte's aunt and uncle who lived on a dairy farm. The yogurt Aunt Ruby made from their fresh milk she called "filabunk" (sp?). I brought home some starter from her and used it for awhile.

The cookbook on the stand behind the yogurt maker in the above picture is a cookbook I wrote 12 years ago. You can order a copy from me for $20 or from Amazon.

Roasted Brussels Sprouts with Fruits

We had the entire Johnson family and extended family over for what always turns out to be a fun time. The Johnson girls shared their scrapbooks and photos from their travels to Thailand, France and Africa. And the girls cooked us a Thai supper.

I cooked the lunch and everyone raved about the brussels sprouts dish, so I decided to post the recipe. Though I tend to make all recipes my own with my twists and variations, this recipe is from The Splendid Table, an NPR weekly radio show I listen to, I also subscribe to their weekly recipe email from www.splendidtable.publicradio.org/

I so crave this dish, that I make it often. Though we had it with ham that I baked with a mango chutney this week, we especially like it with grilled and smoked salmon. Monte dumps it on top of his salmon.

2 1/2 lbs brussels sprouts, halved if small or quartered if large
(A key when roasting vegetables is to have a lot of the ingredients chunked about the same size)
1 large onion, cut into 1-inch chunks
2 apples (any kind, I tend to use Granny Smith), cored and cut in 1-inch pieces
2 firm ripe Anjou or Comice pears, cored and cut
2-3 slices bacon, cut in pieces
1/2 tsp each thyme and sage (fresh is always best if you have it, and use more)
5-6 cloves garlic, coarsely chopped
1/3 cup good tasting extra-virgin olive oil
1/8 tsp spicy red pepper flakes
1 Tb brown sugar (I use Sucanat - unprocessed sugar cane)
Salt and fresh ground pepper to taste

Toss all together. Bake in a 450 degree oven on a very large shallow pan (I line it with foil). You want the mixture to spread into a single layer. Stir it a couple times. Bake about 40 minutes to an hour till nicely browned.

It, like the smoked salmon, is great leftover cold on lettuce as a salad.

Fruit Soup

Like I said before, when I was dating Monte and he told me about fruit soup, I thought it sounded awful. But now it's my favorite Christmas food and I make a big pot so we have leftovers and plenty for serving at all sorts of get-togethers during the holidays. Here is my fruit soup recipe:

12 oz bag of pitted dried prunes, cut them up
1 1/2 c raisins
1 c cut up dried apricots
(about 2/3 cups each cut up dried apples and pears)
(I usually add cranberries too)
(Now I add dried bing cherries instead of adding 2 cans of sour cherries)
10 cups water
2 cinnamon sticks
6 whole cloves (put in a little mesh basket or cheesecloth)
slices of lemon

Bring this to a boil and simmer for 30 minutes.

Add 6-7 Tbs tapioca to grape juice to soak a bit before adding to the soup. I eventually pour in a whole jug (32 oz) of unsweetened grape juice. This needs to simmer a bit more for the tapioca to cook and thicken.

It's good both warm and cold. I like it room temp. Monte loves to eat it with cream. It's great with ice cream. It's good with aebleskivers and pancakes and rice pudding ...

Potato Sausage

Though we could buy potato sausage at a meat market, we've been making it since we got married. So we've been making it for 32 years (but since we're past our anniversary does that mean our making it Sunday afternoon would be the 33rd time?).

I have a meat grinder attachment for my Bosch Kitchen Machine and a sausage stuffer attachment. Before that I had a KitchenAid and a meat grinder for it too. Before that, how funny ... I still laugh! we scrunched up the casings on an angel-food cake pan center, and tried stuffing the meat mixture thru that tube. It was not easy and a mess!

Usually we grind the meat ourselves too, because then we have control over the fat amount and the kind of fat. For years we did it with elk, but now we don't have any elk or venison. I grind the onion first and then the potatoes, because the onion mixed with potatoes helps keep them from turning brown.

The meat casings we use are hog, and we get them at the meat market. Some stores have them in the freezer compartment. The casings are in salt and need to be soaked in warm water first. Then we like to put an end under the faucet and run water thru them to rinse the salt out. After grinding and mixing everything together the sausage stuffer attachment is put on and the casings are pulled over it - they end up sort of bunched up. Then run the meat mixture thru to start stuffing the casings. We have a cookie sheet with sides under the machine to catch the sausage. We always bag up extra sausage in Ziplock bags and freeze.

4 lbs meat
4 lbs potatoes
1 onion
1 1/2 tsp pepper
7 tsp salt
(1/2 tsp allspice - we usually don't put this in)

So grind all this and mix together well and stuff the casings. Boil and then simmer whatever you're wanting to eat in salted water, to cover, for about an hour. We cut up sections and have on a serving platter. I eat the casing's, and others don't, but yes, they are edible. Monte likes to eat his sausage in his doppa i grytan.

Leftover, we like to saute it in a skillet for breakfast, or sliced and heated (or cold) for sandwiches.

Christmas Eve Food

For years we've done a Swedish meal that Monte grew up with every Christmas Eve. It was what was done in olden day Sweden and maybe still by some. Monte is 100% Swedish and I am part.

We make a soup in remembrance of poor families who had only broth and bread. It is called 'doppa i grytan' meaning 'dipping in the kettle', a communal thing, because the family would line up and dip bread in the pot. The soup is made to stretch what little meat they had. We make it with homemade beef stock from bones, adding very finely chopped meat and vegetables. So we eat soup with bread, and home-made potato sausage. And we don't do lutefish! I did try it one year as more of a pudding/casserole, but we don't need it. And considering all it's processing, I doubt is has any nutrients left.

For desert we do rice pudding and fruit soup. The tradition is to hide an almond in the pudding and the one finding it will marry next. Sometimes I'll have a little gift. One year my brother Rob got the almond. I guess when he proposed to Karla he had the almond in a ring box. Is that right Rob?