Hospitality for the Coming Age

Donna, Anna Lisa, Al, Travis and Karen after sharing dinner.

Every once in awhile I hear a story about someone transforming a moment of violence or theft, and I am moved. It’s like a peace activist’s dream come true - to have an opportunity to put all those theories to the test and find a humanizing outcome.

I have learned a lot about sustainable living and expect to be eating well, even as the economic crisis deepens. Many of the people I love live on farms with strong food supplies. “What will I do when hungry people from the city come to my farm with guns and demand our food and water?” is a common question in my circle of friends. Continue Reading »

Tags: crisis, food, share, steal, theft, transformation, violence, water

Bread pudding recipe

Bread is often something I end up with too much of. Freezing it is always a simple way to avoid wasting it. This bread pudding recipe is another.

As you can see, there is no specification for temperature or time. I put the oven to 350, and baked it for about 40 minutes, followed by about 10 for the merengue.

I used extra bread, and lemon juice instead of lemon flavor.

I doubled the recipe and used a 9×9 casserole pan.

Tags: bread, egg, lemon, milk, pudding

The last bits of the soap bar that are way too small to use without annoyance melt down well to make new soap. I'll take anyone's soap and candle scraps!

“There is no waste, only creative challenges to find meaning and new opportunity,” I wrote last fall, as I developed my “metaphor for ministry.”

Throughout this year I have continually been drawn to the art of avoiding waste. I have planned many, many meals around food left to rot in seminary fridges (and therefore eaten much more dairy than I, an ex-vegan, would like to admit).

My arts-and-crafts projects focus on using materials that would often be thrown away. I’ve made windchimes from tin can lids and used dental floss. I’ve made purses and pads from fabric scraps and unmendable items. I’ve spent hours researching things to do with plastic bags that won’t send more poisonous gases into the atmosphere. (Any ideas? Other than crocheting, which I need to learn to do.)

I’ve nastied the Honda hauling food scraps from school and church to my worm bin, where the food you left on your plate becomes worm food, then worm poop, then earth food, then animal food again. (Wait, does that imply that earth poop is vegetables!?) Continue Reading »

Tags: food, garden, girls inc, recycle, reuse, richmond, soil, stories, time bank, upcycle, use, value, waste, worms

Butternut squash soup

I made this soup for company a couple months ago, hoping that the lack of discernable vegetables and sweet flavor would appeal to the kids there.

It didn’t really work, since I told everyone what was in it:-)

But I liked it, and recommend it as a light, healthfully creamy soup.

I used peanuts instead of pumpkin seeds as garnish. It would have made more sense to save the squash seeds and use them, but I didn’t read ahead. Has anyone else roasted butternut squash seeds? What do they taste like?

Tags: butternut, children, coconut, kids, squash

Fudge brownie

I made these brownies for the Bethany Board of Trustees about a week ago. I’m ashamed to admit, I usually make brownies from a box because I like the texture so much better than brownies from scratch. But these brownies are a winner - chewy and fudgy, and delicious.

The recipe is very easy to make organic, and mostly from local ingredients. I still don’t know anyone in my area growing cacao or vanilla….

This recipe comes from a fabulous cookbook - Moosewood Restaurant Cooks for a Crowd. I doubled it, and put a cream cheese/sour cream mixture by spoonful in one pan. It was plenty for the ~65 people at the board lunch, since the recipe’s suggested serving size is unnecessarily large. Not that I don’t like 9 square inches of brownie:-)

Tags: brownies, butter, chocolate, dessert, eggs, local, organic

Rhubarb crisp

I made this for book club a couple weeks ago, with frozen rhubarb from last spring. I used honey from Centerville and molasses, rather than sugar, and extra rhubarb in place of sorrel.

This recipe comes from Simply in Season, an excellent cookbook that is a wonderful first step to eating and cooking more locally!

Tags: dessert, honey, local, oats, rhubarb, season

A Madhur Jaffrey classic!

This is a great time of year to eat eggs - the chickens start laying abundantly well before veggies and fruit are ready for harvest, and pantries and freezers may be getting bare.

So here’s a recipe that Chris and I enjoyed recently. It doesn’t require any fresh produce - I used frozen chilis and dry ginger.

Tags: cream, eggs, indian, spicy

Black bean soup, page 1

I made a double batch of this soup for the Bethany Board of Trustees a week ago.

I had tried it in advance, so I made some adjustments to suit my taste.

I had found it too sweet, with all the orange juice, so I eased back a bit and added salt and chili powder.

I used 1/2 the celery, because it just seemd more proportional that way.

I put 1/2 the beans in the food processor to thicken the soup, and keep the veggies bold and chunky.

This recipe is from the Moosewood Restaurant Cooks for a Crowd cookbook, which is my new favorite! Continue Reading »

Tags: black beans, carrots, celery, orange juice, soup

Last week at Bethany we had a conversation about community in this time of economic scarcity. We gathered over rice and beans, free chives, and shared salsa. Here are my notes:

• what skills do we have?

  • Growing food, preparing, preserving

  • bring our own food to meals instead of paying caterers

  • eat together more often

• what can we share?

  • rides

  • books

  • phone lines, internet

  • tv, computer, video game, etc.

  • use richmond/wayne county freecycle, I have/i need site, online rideshare, time bank

• be friends with people in this area, rather than staying in touch with people far away so much Continue Reading »

  Tags: bethany, brethren, community, frugal, richmond
  

Good thing I buzzed my hair AFTER the wedding!

I had a fascinating experience at a wedding last week, in a church that you might associate with the Amish (but speaking English). I deeply care for the friend I went to support in this big step, and I really don’t want to criticize her community. But I did find the whole situation interesting enough that I’m compelled to blog about it.

My family arrived at the church, and walked in the doors to find men on one side of the room, women on the other, and many pairs of eyes on us. This was quite understandable, since we were dressed quite differently than nearly everyone else in the building. In fact, I was the only woman in pants, wearing earrings (I left my nose ring in the car), and with very short hair. Continue Reading »

Tags: difference, stranger, wedding, welcome