Cooking Club

Several years ago, I read an article in Better Homes and Gardens about initiating a cooking club. I really enjoyed the idea. I do get excited about sharing a common purpose with a group of women. I especially like it if participating in something make my life a little easier with the added benefit of spending time with people. Plus, you walk away with great recipes from friends!

There are a lot of businesses that are cropping up like this in town. Super Suppers comes to mind. I've heard of a group of women getting together, having some wine and assembling a slew of meals. I think it's fabulous, plus all the shopping and cutting is done for you. I have never done it because we seem to have more time than money at this point. I can afford to spend 45 minutes putting together a healthy meal, but not every night. I have to admit, between all the fantastic reports of healthful meals, you'll find Mickey Mouse-shaped chicken nuggets, peanut butter and jelly, and pizza take-out. Having some reliable freezer food and a well stocked pantry would save both our gut and our wallet.

Despite my enthusiasm for this project idea, I never did get this enterprise up and running. After mentioning it in several circles, I didn't find a group of women who either had the time or the passion for cooking that a group like this requires. I did pull away from the article several good recipes that have become staples in our house. I mention particularly the meatball recipe. I love that I can create a decent meatball- actually a lot of decent meatballs- throw them in the freezer and pull them out for dinner, all ready to add to a dish. In fact, I have a large container of ground turkey already thawing in the fridge for this very purpose!

An absolute favorite recipe is the meatball sandwich. It is a totally different meatball sandwich than the typical marinara and cheese saturated hoagie roll. This recipe is more refined and has amazing flavor. I highly recommend it. Even the guys will love it!

I hope to get a cooking club up and running someday, especially since life seems so busy and isolated for me lately. A congregation of friends cooking together is something our generation never experiences. With fragmented family schedules and after school activities, it's hard enough to even get a family together at the table. I think this is one way to give mom a little social recharge time and benefit a hectic dinner schedule.

Comment if you're in the area and interested in batching together passion for cooking, family togetherness, and friendship. Maybe we can make this idea work after all!

Lentil Soup w/ Prosciutto

With the recent cold front, it brings the habits of winter out in all of us. Yesterday, while I was wrapping up a painting job and loading the truck, I smelled a faint aroma of a wood-burning fireplace. Okay, it's still September, we live in the south- the winter has not befallen us. I laughed at the zeal for the change of weather. I think all of us are feeling a bit nostalgic with our warm soups, fires in the fireplace, and quiet afternoons spent reading and drinking hot tea. I think all of Texas has gotten a bit romantic about the idea of fall arriving this week.

Rather than light up a fire, I indulged the inner longings for winter by creating a hearty winter soup. Browsing through my How to Cook Everything cookbook, I glanced at all the delicious soups. I noticed, amazingly, that I could possibly have the ingredients for about a half a dozen soups. Of course, soups were the staple when it came to surviving winter in centuries past. Preserved stocks, canned vegetables, dried beans, carrots and potatoes (which are winter crops here). A winter soup is very natural in the scope of what's available when cooking in season.

This recipe is actually a hybrid of split pea soup and lentil soup. It began with the diced prosciutto I had leftover from another meal last week. I really love split pea soup with ham, but the pantry contained no dried split peas, so the lentils took center stage.

Lentil Soup with Prosciutto

Cook Time: 1.5 hours

2 Tbsp olive oil

1/2 cup diced prosciutto

1 small onion, diced

2 cups dried lentils

1 carton organic vegetable broth

1 carton organic chicken broth

1 bay leaf

3 sprigs of fresh thyme

4 small carrots, peeled and chopped into 1 inch sections

In a large stock pot, heat the olive oil on medium heat. Add prosciutto and saute until lightly browned. Remove from the pan and set aside. Add onions to the pan and saute until soft. Next, add lentils, stocks, carrot, bay leaf and thyme.

Bring to a boil, stirring occasionally. Continue to let it simmer on med-low for about an hour. You are looking for the consistency to thicken. After about 45 minutes, add in the prosciutto. When I did this, the water content decreased significantly after about 15 minutes. Lower the heat to low, and continue to simmer until the lentils and carrots are soft. Remove the bay leaf and thyme sprigs.

If you'd like a smoother consistency, consider using and immersion blender or transferring about 3/4 of the soup into the blender in two small batches. (Noteworthy warnings: be careful with the hot soup, it will expand and likely blow out the top of your blender if you blend on high. Another thing: blending will cause this to look strangely similar to diarrhea- that's what happens on the color wheel when you mix orange and green!)

Turkey Burgers w/ Mango & Red Pepper and Green Beans with Lemon Herb Butter

Wednesdays are always a crunch day for us, lately we've been spending Wednesday afternoons getting fillings in the kids' teeth. (I swear, it costs a fortune to keep these teeth in their heads- I hope they're all okay joining the military, cause there went the college fund!) We dash home, try to whip up dinner and we're back out again for Wednesday Night Church activities. This is currently our only weeknight obligation, but girl and boy scouts will move into the routine pretty quickly here.

So- what did we make for dinner with only an hour between appointments? Well, you can bet eating out definitely crossed my mind- but we eat out more than we should already. I wasn't in the mood for ultra whole grain healthy, but I didn't want to waste a whole meal on junk either.

The compromise: Turkey Burgers. Add on plenty of colored vegetables, be sure to include a healthy side of vegetables and fruit, and try to reach for whole grain buns.

We blasted through the store, got a mango and fresh green beans, some wheat buns, a jar of peppers and ran home. Here's the recipe: Enjoy!!

Turkey Burgers w/ Mango and Red Pepper

Source: Inspired from an overpriced veggie burger @ Gourmet Burger Co.

Cook Time: 20 min

4 frozen ground turkey patties (freezer to grill- no defrosting required)

1 jar fire roasted red peppers

1 ripe mango

1 packet Wholly Guacamole

1/4 cup Mayonnaise

1/8 tsp Chili Powder

1/8 tsp Cayenne Pepper

1 tsp fresh lime juice

chopped cilantro (optional)

4 whole wheat hamburger buns

Light grill to medium high. Once warm, put turkey patties on the grill. Place red peppers on the second rack, if you've got one (otherwise, heat these up when you flip the burgers). Grill turkey patties as you would any hamburger.

Peel the mango and slice into large slices. Make the spicy mayo by mixing the mayo, chili powder, cayenne, and lime juice (you can also add chopped cilantro).

To assemble: Spread spicy mayo on both sides of the bun, followed by a spoonful of Wholly Guacamole, then add turkey patty, next layer the mango and red pepper.

Green Beans w/ Lemon Herb Butter

Source: Adapted from Betty Crocker

Cook Time: 15 min

1 lb fresh green beans

3 Tbsp butter

1 tsp grated lemon peel

1 tsp dried marjoram leaves

1/4 tsp salt

Steam the green beans as usual. Meanwhile, heat the butter in a small saucepan over medium heat until melted. Immediately remove from heat. Stir in lemon peel, marjoram and salt. Pour over beans; toss to coat.

Brown Rice Soup with Asparagus

Source: The Healthy Kitchen by Andrew Weil, M.D. and Rosie Daley

Cook Time: About an hour

3/4 cup brown rice

1/4 cup wild rice

2 tsp salt or to taste

1 bunch asparagus

1 Tbsp olive oil

2 celery stalks, chopped fine (about 2/3 cup)

1/2 onion, chopped fine (about 1/3 cup)

1 small carrot, chopped fine (about 1/3 cup)

1/2 tsp dried thyme

6 cups vegetable stock

2 Tbsp minced scallions

1 Tbsp chopped fresh parsley

1 Tbsp natural soy sauce (such as tamari)

1/2 tsp hot pepper sauce

Freshly ground black pepper (to taste)

Garnish:

Parsley Sprigs

Put the rice with the salt in 3 cups of water in a medium saucepan. Bring it to a boil, reduce the heat, cover and simmer until the rise is tender and the water is absorbed, about 45 minutes.

Trim the tough ends off the asparagus stalks and discard. Steam the asparagus until tender yet crisp, about 2 minutes. Drain it in a colander, then rinse under cold water. Let the asparagus cool for a few minutes. When completely cooled, cut into 1-inch peices, reserving 1/4 cup of tips for garnish.

Meanwhile, coat the bottom of a large pot with the olive oil. Add the celery, onion, carrot, and thyme. Cover and cook over low heat for 4 minutes, stirring occasionally, until tender. Add the vegetable stock and cooked rice and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and let cool a bit.

Carefully transfer small batches to a blender and blend until smooth. Return all the blended mixture to a pot. Stir in the asparagus, scallions, parsley, soy sauce, pepper sauce, and ground pepper. Return to a simmer for 2 minutes. Ladle into bowls and garnish with reserved asparagus tips and parsley sprigs.

Serves 8

108 Calories per serving

2.3 G Fat

.3 G Saturated fat

My notes: I steamed the brown and wild rice together in the steamer to save some time while I did some other things earlier in the afternoon. I don't recommend using brown Minute Rice, however, you want that nutritious husk left on the the grain. I also omitted the pepper sauce because of all the little ones who would be eating with us. We managed to get our pickier two to eat it, which was a huge accomplishment, given the runny oatmeal texture. Overall, it was a very hearty soup, which I served with a tomato salad and french bread with fresh garlic. It stood up well in the lunchbox and was even better the next day- as most soups are.

We are what we eat

Recently we made the switch to organic free-range eggs. Immediately upon tasting these eggs, you notice a difference. It does have a darker yolk, but the flavor is richer. In the way an egg tastes good (which is hard to pinpoint for me), these just taste better. Weird, right?

Well, it got me thinking... while we were on vacation, there was this aireated pond outside our balcony. One day, there were a half a dozen guys just sitting there with strings in the water waiting for something to come up. Later, I found out they were crabbing. While I do like crab occasionally, this grossed me out entirely. That pond couldn't have been more than six feet deep! Yeah, it had a fountain, but it just seemed gross! This brackish pool of water did not look appetizing to me at all. So with all my free time on the beach, I wandered into thought about the food that those crabs eat in that brackish pond of slime. Then thinking on what crab actually are- the roaches of the ocean- I had officially turned myself off!

Russ came home a while back and was telling me how disgusting pigs are because of the disease they are known to carry. They will eat anything if it ends up in it's trough. That includes feces, dead animals, even pork. Both the pig and sea creatures without fins and scales (shellfish and others) were considered ceremonially unclean in Leviticus 11. God had communicated a wisdom about what's healthy and not in His law.

Before you object and call me legalistic, I understand that Romans 14:14 says:

"I know and am perfectly sure on the authority of the Lord Jesus that no food, in and of itself, is wrong to eat. But if someone believes it is wrong, then for that person it is wrong...

:17 For the Kingdom of God is not a matter of what we eat or drink, but of living of goodness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit".

I am taking away that it is a choice to eat what we'd like in light of the cross. But, that doesn't mean that if I eat MSG saturated Bugles Corn Snacks all day and night I won't suffer the consequences. My stance is this, you are what you eat. If you know what your dinner had for breakfast the morning it died and you're okay with that, and any physical ramifications you may suffer because of it's diet, than fine! Eat it! Enjoy! Believe me, a steak savored in ignorance can be quite freeing. But, possibly consider the diet of the creatures you ingest before gulping them down. We wouldn't exactly pick up a cockroach or sewer rat and call it gourmet cuisine. Same difference with the pig and the shellfish.

Like those chickens, when they were fed better food and given excercise, their fruit (eggs and meat) turned out better. So if we are eating the scum of the earth like crab, junk food, and chemicals, our fruit (reproductive systems, arteries, muscle tone, nervous system, memory, etc) all takes on a poor condition. For me, knowing I am treating my body with respect by giving it good, nourishing food helps me move closer to the ultimate goal stated in Romans 14:17:

For the Kingdom of God is not a matter of what we eat or drink, but of living a life of goodness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit.

Book Review: Food Matters by Mark Bittman

I just finished reading Food Matters: A Guide to Conscious Eating. It was eye opening and reaffirming of many of the views that I've held. Basically it boils down to this: you can begin a change in eating that is both affordable, follows no fad diet or latest wonder food (as in the over-marketed acai berry bogus that is being spoon fed to us all) and is a truly GREEN for the environment.

What you do is cut back on meat, dairy, and processed foods. What contributes to both the greenhouse emissions and our waistlines is overconsumption. As Americans we are eating waaay too much meat, too few vegetables and too many things that are engineered or processed. You've got to know that vegetables are good for you and junk food isn't. But what makes this "conscious eating"?

It's Green because you're essentially not eating anything that comes in a box and eating whole foods. The processing required to create those five-syllable ingredients in factories eat up gobs of power, transportation, etc. By cutting back on meat, you lower demand which trickles down to fewer animals being fed (their food is processed too), slaughtered, processed and transported. Even by switching to grain fed, pastured meats and poultry you send an even bigger message with your dollar to support local farming and healthy animals, not to mention limiting the amount of methane gas that is produced from these factory farms. If these animals are pasture raised, the normal cycle of their life can be set straight again. They eat natural foods that their bodies were intended for and their waste is no longer poison but fertilizer and dung beetle food!

It's a fantastic read, and has recipes included. It's just simple, back-to-basics cooking- which I really appreciate. I've used Mark Bittman's "How to Cook Everything" Cookbook since we got it as a wedding gift. We've love everything we've made in it and it's all straight forward, with no crazy ingredients required.

The Garden Metaphor

So sorry it's been a while, but things got busy there for a while. In the hub-bub of running a house of five, we had a vacation and have since all gone back to school. I have also quit my job in order to bring more focus to the family during this busy season and to focus on a lower stress household.

I have an expansion on The Parable of the Sower Jesus talks about in Mark 4:1-20. My particular interest begins in verse 8:

"But other seed fell on good ground and yielded a crop that sprang up, increased and produced: some thirtyfold, some sixty, and some a hundred."

Last year we ventured out to begin our first vegetable garden. We rented a plot 50'x25' that was completely entangled in weeds four feet high. We spent a lot of time removing garbage, pulling weeds, clearing land, trimming trees, and tilling the ground. In talking with neighbors, this plot of land had been neglected for the last 4 years. Our hard work was a welcome sight to the community. In essence, we spent a tremendous amount of energy to even get to the "good" stage in soil preparation. We planted immediately and took great care to lay soaker hoses in case the year did not prove to provide enough rain.

Our harvest was substantial. We were pulling 10 cucumbers a day, eggplants, tomatoes, a variety of squashes, and more jalepenos than we knew what to do with! However, halfway into the growing season, we found our garden was covered in this beautiful carpet of green grass. A weed had been activated in our soil prep and blossomed all over our hard work. We said to ourselves "If only we could grow that stuff in our front yard!" Another pest moved in- fire ants- let's just say, we never found an organic way to eliminate those suckers and they totally decimated our corn crop! (v 4:19- ...and the cares of this world the deceitfulness of riches, and the desires for things entering in choke the word, and it becomes unfruitful). Nevertheless, it was a remarkable experience that we will treasure forever.

This year, in an attempt to enjoy the same bounty, we duplicated the garden on a much smaller scale in our backyard in a 4'x9' box. We got the cheapest soil from Wal-Mart and stuck the plants in there. We relied on the kids for watering, and our makeshift deer fence broke immediately, causing the cucumber vines to get snatched up right away. So- the harvest this year: maybe a couple of thick-skinned cucumbers and some squash as hard as rocks. What happened?

How could they be so different? It's all in the soil, the care, and the water. This year has been a drought for us, last year- it was bad, but not like it is now. The heat was off the charts! But, our care was primarily what lacked. Had we invested with diligence from the beginning, we may have actually reaped something. But instead, we were haphazard about watering, soil selection, and soil enrichment.

That's the perfect parable for our faith. If we can invest diligently on preparing ourselves to receive the Word, strategically water with living water and plenty of it, and make calculated efforts to protect and build up our faith during storms (or droughts, attacks from pests) our faith will prove to be fruitful.

If you haven't tried gardening on a large scale, I wholeheartedly recommend it. It really brought us close to God through the glory of his creation and his power to sustain us. The fruit of this earth are truly a gift. When bought at a grocery store, it takes the romance away from us. We really begin to under value God as we grab what we need from the store rather than working hard, scratching at the earth to feed ourselves. I invite you to apply this parable to your life and see what condition your spiritual soil is in. Our family is on our way to shaping up our soil for the next season.