210531 Lush (also dogs, rant, recipes)

May 31

In just a few weeks this has happened. Lush.

The beautiful jack-in-the-pulpit: before this spring I had only ever seen one or two of these, in the woods of Ontario. The flower grows beneath the leaves, which look like large trillium leaves, three to a stem.

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Mumma: "Doesn't it seem to you that the mountains are sometimes so big and close and other times so small and far away?"

K: "No."

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I have had dogs for twenty-one years: one, then two, then three, then two, then just Fig. I used to wonder why someone who lost a dog did not want to get another even after a few months. But now I understand, at least in part. It is not so much the loss and grief. For me it is about being tired and perhaps selfish. For a while I would like to be taking care of no-one but K and myself. I have been caring for, feeding, cleaning for, working for others since I was eighteen. The weight of that, finally lifted from my shoulders, was a lot, I suddenly see, at times consuming my days and nights in a blur of never-ending chores. Work of love, and responsibility, of course, and all around me shared by others, but still, the release I feel, the reprieve for a few months, is welcome, appreciated. It is a gift of time to rest and recover, refill my well. 

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Rant: [to skip rant, scroll to  ***** End of Rant *****]

The shares of a corporation rightly belong to the workers who labour to bring in the wealth of that corporation. A corporation, its executive, and its shareholders are wealthy on the poverty and labour of its on-the-ground workers. The wealth of the nation should belong to the essential workers of the nation who keep us all alive. There is not a politician in our country who is not able to afford a car, a home, food and recreation, education for their children. It must be their mission then to provide all of their constituents with the same life. The food we all eat is produced by the labour of farmers who are not wealthy, who must borrow and scrape to find equipment and supplies to keep their farms running. It is time to tax the wealthy and the corporations. Money in the hands of the poor would pour money back into all coffers. The millions of poor. This is not something to dream of. It is something to act on, to fight for. 

I am fed up. Today I received an email from Greenpeace, and every day I receive emails from charities doing good work to bring change to the climate crisis, medical research and outreach, asking for money, a few dollars, which for me is often too much to spare, while there is so much money not being put to use, invested in second and third homes that no-one lives in, more cars that any one person can drive. Corporations even pretend to be helping, co-opting pink ribbons to promote themselves, while the pennies they raise for charity are a tiny fraction of the income they pay to shareholders and CEOs. Haha! And I am asked to participate in a walk or run for a cause, to raise a few dollars, drops in the bucket. It is a joke and sick. 

***** End of Rant *****

This week I am cooking chickpeas - two pounds, to provide several meals. We haven't had them for a few weeks. Time for some chickpea falafels, hummus and tonight, I think, a curry. I have done a one-hour hot water soak (for this, follow package instructions or google) instead of overnight so the chickpeas can be ready today. Chickpeas seem to reach peak flavour just as they are tender enough, at close to 1 hour of cooking, after which the flavour begins to diminish, so I test them as the 1 hour mark nears, and take them off as soon as I think they are soft enough.

Last night I made arepas, the bread of Venezuela, Columbia and other northern South American countries. I made stuffed eggplant to go with them and it was perfect.

[To skip recipe, scroll down to *****]

Mumma's Stuffed Eggplant (for two people - just double it up for more.)

Ingredients:

1 eggplant (standard american eggplant)

1 Cup Salsa (your favorite)

1/2 C shredded cheddar, or combination: I used cheddar-mozzarella.

1/4 C cottage cheese: I used 4% fat cottage cheese. Any will do.

Pepper: shakes

To prepare:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Cut off ends of eggplant. Cut in half lengthwise and cut a shallow channel down the centre. Place eggplant halves in an oven dish lined with parchment paper, or greased if you prefer. Add the removed centres alongside. 

Bake for 15 minutes, turning once.

Mix together salsa, cheeses and pepper. Top the cooked eggplant with salsa mixture and return to oven for 10 to 15 minutes until melty and hot. Serve with tortillas, arepas, any bread or pasta. Serve the removed eggplant centres too. 

If you make your own salsa, good on you! I'm not there yet.

About eggplants: Don't fret if eggplant is going brown inside or on skin. As long as it smells nice it is still fine to eat and just as delicious. Sometimes they spend a few days in my fridge before I get to them. I don't peel eggplants but you can if you prefer.

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A word about Mumma's recipes: In case you don't already customize recipes for your own kitchen, please feel free to do so with any recipe I have shared. You will have your own favorite seasonings, ingredients, what's in the fridge. Most recipes can be tweaked (Except cakes, though perhaps, if you're good at cakes: I'm not!). Sometimes what I cook crashes and burns. That's how I learn.

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Update on my mosaic studio: I have decided that the barn requires too much work and money to be put in good order as a studio. My "studio" then is the other end of this table which is my work desk, and the window sills will be where the projects wait to be worked on. The couch without cushions, in my bedroom, is my stock shelf. I will often be able to work on the porch in good weather and I can do breaking in the mud room as I have been doing all winter. I will require some of those foam tiles to put under the work space on my desk to protect the floor. The studio situation was weighing on me; I felt relieved once I decided on the new plan, and at last I unpacked the stock I brought from Etobicoke.

*****

Not a safety warning for Fig anymore, but a memorial. 

Thank you for visiting. Be well. A new month tomorrow, new hope, new season. 

Mumma Yaga

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Mumma's broccoli and kale stir-fry (no-oil)

Ingredients:

a whole broccoli (or two small) cut into large bites 

chopped kale, four or five leaves

1 Tbsp. apple cider vinegar

2 Tbsp. soy sauce

1 Tbsp. maple syrup

shakes of salt, pepper, turmeric, onion powder, garlic powder

Put broccoli, kale, vinegar, soy sauce and seasonings in wok or pan and stir-fry on medium heat until browning. Add maple syrup and stir-fry another two minutes tossing to mix in syrup.