It's been a long time since I posted. I don't know if I am going to post regularly or not, but I made some delicious shortcake this week and I want to preserve the recipe. There has been much change afoot. I am back in my southside house and am working to make it more homestead-ish. Bit by bit. I keep staring at the yard space trying to figure out how to convert more of it to garden.
I read a couple of
books recently about a woman who lives in the Taiga in Russia. It's unclear if the story is fiction or not, but I enjoyed them and they are making me even more intrigued about my relationship to my garden and plants. She talks about how walking barefoot in your garden (among other things) shares information about your body and what it needs so that as fruit/vegetables grow, they will take in that information and pick up from the universe/the earth the optimum blend of energies for you. She says that the food cultivated in this way can give you the very things you are needing for your wellness.
I have no idea if this is "true" or not, but I've been going out each morning to greet my seedlings/plants, and have even more appreciation for the things that I grow and then eat. It makes me feel happy and grounded. And in this time of change, that feels like a welcome companion.
I have just one rhubarb plant, but it loved all this rain and the bright sun and is bigger than I've seen it before. I don't think any of it was harvested in the past two years, and there were several fat stalks for me to pick. With just the one plant, it feels quite sacred! I made rhubarb shortcake in honor of my dear friend who is now making her way to California, where she will spend the summer. She and I had near weekly Sunday dinners for the past 8-9 months, and yesterday was the last until she returns. I also got to share the shortcake with my sisters and my dad: none of us have been in a room together more than a couple of times in the past 5 years. None of us are taking for granted that it will happen again. Rhubarb shortcake as present moment awareness: change, loss, and love.
The rhubarb compote is not one I've made before - I used raisins and fresh ginger. With the biscuit it became almost ginger-bready, a little spicy. These biscuits are also my favorite gluten-free/paleo biscuit yet. They were delicious.
Rhubarb Compote (a la Martha Stewart)
2 pounds rhubarb, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
1 cup raisins
1 cup packed light-brown sugar (or sugar substitute)
2 tablespoon peeled minced fresh ginger
2 cinnamon sticks or 1/2 tsp cinnamon
Put all ingredients in a saucepan and cook on medium heat, stirring occasionally, until rhubarb is soft (about 6-8 minutes). The rhubarb will quickly let out moisture, so no need to add extra water.
Almond Biscuits (from the
Nourishing Home) makes 8
2 1/2 cups
almond flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp sea salt
3 tbsp butter, melted (or melted coconut oil
)
1 tbsp honey
2 tbsp milk or coconut milk
2 large eggs
1/4 tsp apple cider vinegar
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a medium bowl, combine almond flour, baking soda and salt.
2. In
a small bowl, whisk together melted butter (or coconut oil) and honey,
until smooth. Add the coconut milk, eggs and vinegar, whisking together
until well combined. Using a spoon, stir the wet mixture into the dry
mixture until thoroughly combined.
3. For quick and easy drop biscuits: Drop biscuit dough by large spoonfuls onto a baking sheet
, placing the biscuits approximately two-inches apart,
4. For
classic-style rolled-looking biscuits: Scoop a large spoonful of batter
into your hands and roll into a ball about the size of an apricot. Then
place the dough balls on baking sheet and gently
flatten using the palm of your hand.
5. Bake about 15 minutes, until golden brown on top and a toothpick inserted in middle comes out clean.
For shortcake: Slice biscuit in half. Spoon compote on top of bottom biscuit, and sandwich between biscuit halves. Top with either whipped cream or coconut cream. (This is all especially good fresh and warm, but the biscuits also refrigerate well.)
Yesterday morning I gathered a bucket full of the prickly greens, and decided to try making pesto, and also a soup because this rainy, cool weather seems to call for it. I created the recipe from what I had around, including jerusalem artichokes from the garden (dug up as soon as the earth was diggable and now living in a bucket in my fridge), and chicken bone broth, made over the winter from all of my roasted chicken thigh bones. It turned out really nice and was a beautiful green. If it was just a bit earlier I'd have been able to use green onions from the garden, but they are already starting to produce their offspring, so I'm leaving what I have left to re-populate.
