I BELIEVE IN BROCCOLI AND BROWNIES
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When I stepped outside to look at the garden the other day, I was amazed at the transformation. Just a short month ago, the garden was a few seeds underneath dirt and some transplanted plants. Now four weeks later I’m making salads with lettuce from the garden. This transformation made me think about how much we can change in a month for good or bad. Is there a habit you want to start? Getting more sleep, exercising more consistently, eating more vegetables? Is there a habit you want to stop? Sleeping late? Always eating on the go? Choose something you want to improve and work on it for one month. The transformation may be as powerful as the one I saw in my garden.
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 In the midst of COVID-19 I decided to head out to the grocery store. I didn’t really need to go, but thought my local store wouldn’t have all the panicked shoppers seen in large cities. I went on a weekday at 9:30 am, which is usually very slow. To my surprise (I shouldn’t have been surprised after watching the news) the place was packed. Shelves were bare and I was in the checkout line for 1 hour. The cashier told me the store had closed at 10 pm the night before (they’re a 24 hour store) because they ran out of food. Two semi’s came in during the night and store was restocked. But by 9:30 am the milk, tortilla, and bread shelves (along with others) were mostly bare. As I passed by the bread shelf, I thought I can just make bread, I bake it on a consistent basis.
So here is my 18-hour bread recipe. With 18-hours in the name -- It sounds like it would be laborious, but it is embarrassingly easy. In a large bowl whisk together flour, yeast, salt, sugar. Then add some water and vinegar just until a ball forms. My New Year’s resolution is to eat more often on the good dishes. Specifically, to use my china or “nice” dishes at least once a month.  Growing up we ate Sunday dinner on my mom’s china each week. Her cousin purchased her china in the 1950’s while out of the country serving in the military. The brand is Noritake and the pattern is a gray background with soft pink flowers. The plates made Sunday dinner special, no matter what the meal contained. My mom’s philosophy was good things are to be used and enjoyed, not just placed on a shelf. As a teenager my parents gave me a set of china. Like my mom’s it is Noritake (probably because my mom liked hers so much). The pattern is white flowers on a white background, with a sliver trim. I rarely use them, in fact they are in a box in the closet. For Christmas this year, my parents gave me a set of Blue Willow patterned dishes. My initial thought was to store them next to my china in the closet, but then I thought – you need to eat on the good dishes. So, I made a spot for the in the kitchen cabinet for them, right next to the everyday dishes.
We eat for reasons beyond nutrients. Food touches each of our senses:
So, here’s to using my new Blue Willow pattern dishes I got for Christmas. #eatonthegooddishes The cold raining weather of fall is a signal it is time to clean out the garden and flower beds. The cleanout is sometimes hard on my soul as I pull out blooming annual flowers and cut back perennials.  I sigh as I harvest the last of the potatoes, onions, and vegetables knowing the next few months won’t be as colorful or flavorful.
But I know that cutting back the perennial flowers will make them stronger next spring and that clearing the vegetable garden will make it ready for planting next season. The cleaning is not always pretty, beautiful blooming flowers are cut back and their woody stems and yellowing leaves exposed. But this year I discovered a hidden beauty. As I cut back the zinnias that had seen better days and the salvia and rudebeckia at the end of their blooms . . .  |
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