Holidays

Well, the holidays have come and gone, well sort of - it's only January 3rd. Everyone I talked to this year said similar things - the holiday season felt different from years past. I agree, and I wonder, "What are the holidays supposed to feel like?" Several situations arose where I chose not to participate in the meal ritual, i.e. drinking wine, eating cheese, and this caused a moment of angst for some of my family. This is nothing unusual - family is generally the first to question any food choices that differ from the status quo, especially during the holidays. I'm used to it by now.

Why do we put so much importance on the where, when, and what of things? How about just being grateful for having family present, grateful for our health, grateful for the abundance in our lives? I guess we're creatures of habit. For me, I really don't care what other people eat on the holidays. Christmas is still Christmas with or without certain foods.

I believe that we are redefining our lives, some of us consciously, and others unconsciuosly. Nonetheless, significant life events are going to feel different as the energy shifts around us. In the end, nothing stays the same. Change is inevitable.

My mom and I cooked this holiday, and I refined my vegan chocolate chip recipe. Yum! We enjoyed those cookies all season. I decided to experiment in the kitchen with millet and brown rice, and that was interesting. We were attempting to make croquettes without using eggs, and that is possible, but certainly not usual. Somewhere during our second attempt, my mom said, "My grandmother is turning over in her grave." We both laughed. Polenta and arborio rice were the extent of their "grains", and eggs were a staple. We finally got it work, and the croquettes were delicious.

I say, let's worry less about how it used to be or how we think it ought to be, and create our lives moment by moment according to our individual truth. My truth may not be yours. That's okay. We can live in peace and harmony despite our differences.

www.healingpartnersllc.com

Thanksgiving

Happy Thanksgiving!

Last week I was a guest on What's the Point?, a show on WHUS, the University of Connecticut radio. The show was dedicated to gratitude, and we spent the entire two hours discussing ways to cultivate more gratitude, and the positive, lifelong gifts an attitude of gratitude offers.

Today, one of the greatest gifts I received was cooking with my mom. We really jived together, cutting and dicing and washing and drying - it was magic. The phone rang all day with friends calling to wish us a happy Thanksgiving. We felt so appreciated and loved. Of course, stories of my grandparents came up, and we reminisced about past traditions. One in particular we found interesting. My grandmother would always cook pickled herring on New Year's Eve - she told my mom that pickled herring ensured a healthy and happy new year. According to my mom, this belief came out of nowhere since my great grandparents never served pickled herring.

I've always wondered about tradition for that very reason. Fortunately, my parents adopted the "traditions" that were healthy and served us in the 20th and 21st centuries. We didn't adhere to tradition for tradition sake or out of obligation, thankfully.

Last Thursday I read Canticle of the Creatures written by St. Francis of Assisi - a prayer of Thanksgiving to God for the blessings in nature, including God's creatures, and Brother Sun and Sister Moon. I offer the prayer as I read it on the air. May we all focus on the blessings in our lives and allow that focus to open our hearts, forgive others, and create peace in our lives and in the world.

Canticle of the Creatures by St. Francis of Assisi

Most High, All-powerful, All-Good, Lord!
All praise is yours,
All glory, all honor,
And all blessing.

To You alone, Most High, do they belong.
No mortal lips are worthy
To pronounce your name.

All praise be yours, my Lord, through all that you have made,
And first, my Lord, Brother Sun;
Who brings the day, and light you give to us through him,
How beautiful is he, how radiant in all his splendor!
Of you, Most High, he bears the likeness.

All praise be yours, my Lord, through Sister Moon and Stars;
In the heavens you have made them,
Bright, precious, and fair.

All praise be yours, my Lord, through Brothers Wind and Air;
And fair and stormy, all the weather's moods, by which you
Cherish all that you have made.

All praise be yours, my Lord, through Sister Water;
So useful, humble, precious and pure.

All praise be yours, my Lord, through Brother Fire;
Through whom you brighten the night.
How beautiful he is, playful, robust and strong.

All praise be yours, my Lord, through Sister Earth, our mother;
Who feeds us in her sovereignty and produces
Various fruits and colored flowers and herbs.

All praise be yours, my Lord,
Through those who grant pardon for love of you;
Through those whose endure sickness and trial.

Happy those who endure in peace.
By you, Most High, they will be crowned.

All praise be yours, my Lord, through Sister Death;
From whose embrace no mortal can escape.

Happy those She finds doing Your holy will!
The second death can do no harm to them.

Praise and bless my Lord,
And give Him thanks,
And serve Him with great humility.

Om, shanti, shanti, shanti

Sweetness

This past year, I have devoted my time in the kitchen to strictly vegan cooking, and that has proven to be a wonderful gift to my body - I'm feeling healthier than I ever have in my life. The cookbook will feature vegan versions of most recipes, including desserts. This will be an interesting feature of the book, and I wonder what my great grandmother would think. I know she would be pleased that I'm doing what feels right for my body and life in the 21st century.

Healthy desserts was the focus of the last week of my cooking classes, and I set out to prepare 6-7 desserts over a couple of days. When it came time to start baking, I had two thoughts - 1). I don't bake much because I have never enjoyed sweet foods or desserts - granulated sugar and the like is just too sweet for me, and I've never really enjoyed ice cream. (I know what you're thinking at this point, and that's okay). 2). My firm belief in the detriment of western desserts loaded with butter, processed sugar, corn syrup, and all- purpose flour, led me to stay clear of desserts in general.

So, there I was in the kitchen with a bias against desserts needing to teach others how to bake them. Onward and upward is my motto, so I put my thoughts aside and proceeded with the vegan desserts: chocolate chip cookies, coconut cookies, "white" cake with a lemon sauce and poached pears, pumpkin squares, and baked buckwheat with apples and blueberries. (My inspiration for these recipes come directly from the cookbooks written by Christina Pirello - check her out.) To my surprise and delight, the desserts turned out wonderful. I was pleased, and the students enjoyed them.

I decided to read the section in one of the cookbooks where Ms. Pirello writes about the need for desserts in our life and the need for regular sweetness - those are my words. She was talking literally and figuratively, and I connected with her words immediately, knowing there was a significant message for me. Her words were in the back of mind as I baked, but I didn't spend time reflecting on them until the class was over. Actually, when I started really understanding her words was somewhere in the middle of this week, around Monday, when my husband and I had finished the coconut cookies, the chocolate chip cookies, and were half way through the cake and pumpkin squares. We haven't had that much dessert in the house since our Christmas party 5 years ago.

I noticed how much I was enjoying having these sweet and healthy treats in the house. Well, it's been 8 days since my class, and I decided to weigh myself today. Now, there is actually more to this story that I will write about at another time, but let me just say that the stars have been aligned in this direction all year. I got on the scale, and this past week, I lost 7 pounds.

Now, I'm not consciously trying to lose weight. I do watch what I eat, and I eat exceedingly healthy foods. I walk and do yoga, and I spent an entire week eating desserts everyday - sometimes for breakfast in place of my usual buckwheat and blueberries, and I'm 7 pounds lighter. I get how that happened, and I'm hoping you do, too.

I told a friend today how much I enjoyed having those vegan sweets in the house. Synchronistically, I made a wonderful connection this week with a woman who owns her own business. I'll be teaching monthly cooking classes at her place beginning in January, and that is just pure fun for me - more sweetness.

We really do need sweet stuff in our lives, and healthy desserts remind us of the joy that's available to us when life is in balance. Tonight, I passed by a local health food market and bought organic pumpkin for more pumpkin squares. They're just delicious - whole wheat pastry crust, pumpkin with cinnamon and amasake, topped with pecans. Yum!


www.healingpartnersllc.com

Never Alone

The last few weeks feel like a blur, and suddenly it's November 8th. I have been consumed by my cooking classes - researching, preparing handouts, dishes, shopping, and cleaning. My students were the best - so enthusiastic, willing to try new foods, and always gracious.

The cooking classes have been the backdrop of my life these past 5 weeks, and I'm grateful for the peace and tranquility I have felt as I cooked and prepared the various dishes. I appreciate that every recipe needed my undivided attention because that brought me fully into the present moment, and that helped me to relax and enjoy the process a bit more. I also felt my great grandmother and other ancestors with me, and that too, was deeply comforting. Standing in my kitchen, I was never alone.

That's the beauty of cooking and sharing a meal. Generally, these acts provide a common ground on which family and friends can connect. I felt that with the students as they came week after week to my home. We connected on deep levels, but through the medium of food. The feedback from the students varied from feeling deeply inspired to continue to learn and do more cooking to feeling truly grateful for the new information and experience of such vibrant, healthy food.

As I consider my recent experience of feeling so connected to those I love while preparing for my classes, my reason for writing this book is reinforced in my mind and heart.

Life continues to be very full. There will be much progress made on the recipes for the book in the next several weeks. I'll be keeping you posted.

www.healingpartnersllc.com

With Husbands, Keep it Simple

The cooking classes have been a great reminder that what I take for granted in terms of knowledge or understanding may be very foreign or new to others. Of course, we all start at the same place - the beginning. Since, I'm not a trained, professional chef, I am continually learning. In fact, I have been reading so much about leafy greens and root vegetables that my head is about to explode.

I enjoy cooking with fresh herbs of all kinds, and thanks to a coop near my home, I am able to purchase fresh, organic herbs nearly all year round. As I've written about before, I have a love of basil. I use it in so many dishes from pasta sauces to quinoa to winter stews.

My husband was visiting his parents, and his mother asked him to go out and cut some basil for crostini she was making. My mother in law grows her herbs in pots. So, he did as he was asked. He handed the leaves to her, and she looked at them knowing something wasn't quite right. I don't have all the details, but ultimately, she realized that he had cut the "fake" leaves, either plastic or silk, from the artificial plant on the porch. He never went outside - he took the path of least resistance, and descended upon the nearest plant.

He and his mother started laughing, and they were still laughing when he called me to tell me about it. He admitted that he wondered about the look and feel of the leaves when he looked at the stems, and there was no soil. The stems seemed to go into nothingness. Hmm, that would be the first clue...

We have basil in our outside garden, and in a pot in our kitchen. My husband knows what basil looks like. I frequently have him go into the garden to get me parsley, rosemary, basil. This humorous story got me to thinking about the students in my cooking classes and about the cook book. When I think I'm giving too much detail, I step back, consider if it will only overwhelm, or if it's crucial to the success of the dish, and then generally give the information. I've learned that we can't assume someone else knows the ins and outs of working with various ingredients or kitchen tools. There is so much to learn!

As I add my personal touch to my family's recipes, I will keep this story in mind, and be sure to fill in as many gaps as possible. In the meantime, please don't eat plastic or silk basil - the flavor is really lacking. Fresh is best.


www.healingpartnersllc.com

Receiving

Well, the cooking classes are a hit, and I'm thrilled! So much fun, and a wonderful group of people. We finished the evening by sitting at the dining room table and enjoying all the various dishes. On the way to the table, one of the students looked a bit uncomfortable. I asked her about it, and she said, "I'm not used to having someone cook for me. I'm not used to being served." I encouraged her to enjoy and receive. Later, her reaction got me thinking.


I introduced them to my philosophy of cooking, and one of the tenets is to cook for others as often as possible. For some women, cooking for others is a daily event, but typically day to day meals involve hurrying to get everyone fed before another school or community activity. We can still cook for others with short amounts of time but make it a meaningful experience for everyone. The best way I have found to elevate meal time is to pay attention to the details and cook consciously. Many times, preparing meals ahead of time, like on a weekend day, when the entire family can participate is a great way to get everyone together and have food for the week.

Again, my mom reminded me of her family's yearly ritual of canning tomatoes. 365 jars would be canned and shelved for use throughout the year. Tomatoes grown in the garden, free of pesticides and chemicals, grown in fertile soil. My great grandmother and my grandfather would do the canning with help from various other family members. They canned out of necessity, but when unexpected guests arrived or fresh tomatoes were unavailable, my grandmothers would go downstairs and get what they needed. They frequently shared what they had with others and the food they served was vibrant.

I am pleased to serve my guests, especially when I know they aren't typically the ones on the receiving end of things. Serving others is an honor, and what a grand way to do it than with a meal cooked with love.

Cookbooks

My cooking classes are about to begin. I'm looking forward to sharing my love of good vegetarian food. Preparing for the classes meant combing through dozens of recipes and writing down my own. What would we do without the cookbooks? We're so accustomed to having a reference for every kind of food and dish imaginable. I know it wasn't always that way, of course. My mom has a couple of old cookbooks written in Italian. They date back to the early 20th century. My grandmother and great grandmother would consult them every now and then. While recipes and cookbooks are not created equal, there's something about a drawing or picture and a list of ingredients that's exciting. I think it's the anticipation of what might be when everything comes together. There is an alchemy to the whole thing that I find fascinating.

Last night I just finished Julia Child's book, My Life in France. It's a marvelous book, full of great stories and humor. When I turned the last page, however, I was filled with melancholy. She had such a vibrant life, filled with many joys and sorrows. I can't put my finger on the sadness I was feeling, and there are remnants of it still today. Perhaps I'm thinking of my ancestors and their love for life. They, too, brought friends and family together with great meals. I didn't know my grandmother, she died when I was a baby - maybe I'm missing that connection...

I understand the need to have time honored recipes written so that future generations have access to the traditions and wisdom of another time. Preserving the recipes helps my soul stay connected to something larger than myself - my human family on Earth, and helps give meaning to my life.

www.healingpartnersllc.com