January 21, 2012
A little something for your Saturday
Song: The Ellie Badge
Composer: Michael Giacchino
January 17, 2012
Distilling orange blossom and rose petals
It is in the dark kitchen that you must watch the working of the still, the brazier, the mass of red copper, the brightly dressed servant, the whiteness of orange blossom and the softness of rose petals which produce the intoxicating smell. The whole atmosphere is violent and mysterious, which is doubtless necessary for the distillation of these subtle perfumes.
A kanoun and a qettara are the essential equipment. The qettara or copper still is divided into three: the lower part an ordinary taoua in which the water is boiled; on top the kskas with holes in it, to hold the flowers, and finally the qettara, a receptacle with two tubes, one to take the steam from the water which has just come through the petals and let it cool, the other used for emptying the still when the water intended for the purpose of condensing into steam is reheated. In a bottle placed at the end of the first tube you will obtain 12 pints of this precious liquid, ready for use in the kitchen or as toilet water.
From Madame Guinaudeau’s Traditional Moroccan Cooking: Recipes from Fez, first published in 1958 as Fès vu par sa cuisine. Mme Guinaudeau, a Frenchwoman married to a doctor practicing in Fez, lived for more than three decades in the city where she researched and wrote the book.
January 16, 2012
What is healing, really?
My definition of healing is coming to terms with things as they are, so that you can do whatever you can to optimize your potential, whether you are living with chronic pain or having a baby. You can’t control the universe, so mindfulness involves learning to cultivate wisdom and equanimity— not passive resignation—in the face of what Zorba the Greek called the full catastrophe of the human condition.
Read more at Time Magazine Healthland
Image ©Margi Macdonald
January 15, 2012
Sunday wonders: Souffle de vie
Strength, grace, tenderness, and one of my favourite instruments- the doudouk.
Souffle de vie: breath of life
January 13, 2012
Messing with pomegranates and rose water
We are lucky to have fresh pomegranates available this summer.
A fan of the opulent colour, sweet-sour taste and reputed health benefits, I’ve been drinking prepared pomegranate juice for a while now.
Recently with time on my hands, and holiday-season catering in full-swing, the time was right to experiment with the fresh fruits.
Without pre-reading any recipes, I set about extracting the seeds and juice with a spoon. Violet-ruby juice splattered our kitchen and so too my white T-shirt. My daughter later told me that the most effective method is to place the pomegranate in a snap-lock plastic bag, and gently beat it with a rolling-pin until you feel the seeds popping inside the fruit. It’s then a simple matter of removing the fruit from the bag, slitting the skin with a knife, and gently squeezing the juice into a suitable receptacle.
I eventually made Pomegranate and Quince Relish to go with our summer feasts. Here’s how:
In a small, heavy-based saucepan sweat a thinly sliced, large red onion in a little water or olive oil until the onion is soft and translucent. Keep the heat low, as you don’t want browning or scorching. When onion is very soft, add a heaping teaspoon of quince paste and a tiny splash of water, and stir vigorously until the paste if fully dissolved. You may need a little extra water if the paste is not easily dissolving. Add the juice of half a lime - if no limes, you can use lemon juice or verjuice or white wine vinegar - and keep stirring. Wooden or silicone spoons are the best tools for this job. When the quince paste is fully dissolved, add pomegranate seeds and juice of one fruit, and keep stirring until fully mixed. Sprinkle in a smidge of ground cinnamon and stir very well. A turn of the pepper mill with white pepper is probably a nice addition. Taste and see if you need to adjust sourness (add lime), sweetness (add quince paste) or spice. If too wet, keep stirring and cooking until the excess moisture has evaporated. Store in a pre-sterilized jar.**see below
This pomegranate relish is delightful to the eye and the taste buds. It’s a richly hued, sweet-sour accent to salty, smoked or cured meats and sausages, it’s fantastic over hot fresh haloumi on a bed of rocket leaves, and for all I know, it may even be nice with tempeh.
Pomegranate sherbet… the drink of love, or the great panacea for horribly hot days and nights?
Makes about 1.1 litres (2 pints)
2-3 large pomegranates
175 g (6 oz) sugar, or more
5 ml rose-flower water
Squeeze or press pomegranates all over until the fruit is quite pulpy and soft to the touch. Holding the pomegranate inside a deep bowl, carefully make a slit in the skin with a very sharp knife and carefully squeeze the juice – the juice will stain everything it touches. Squeeze gently to extract all juice. Dissolve the sugar in 600 ml (1 pint) of water, then add the juice. Taste to see if you need more sugar, as the sourness of this fruit is variable. Pour into a jug and chill well. Add ice, sprinkle on the rose-water and serve with more iced water if wished.
A wonderfully exotic, deep purple drink, popular in Persia and also Iraq….I love its bitter-sweet flavour. It also makes a spectacular jelly, Try to buy plump-looking pomegranates – dry wizened specimens will have no juice. Rosamond Man. The Complete Meze Table
Be sure to bookmark this page and come back, as the next post will explore not-quite-101-things to do with rose-water.
**Keeping it nice: We stored our relish in an old salsa jar which we ‘pre-sterilized’ by boiling in a big pot of water, being sure to include the lid of the jar. As the jar and lid must be dry and scrupulously clean before adding the relish, we dried them in the oven at low temperature with the fan on, and made sure we didn’t touch the inside of the jar or lid . Once you have all the relish safely stored, you may lick the spoon!
For some – unverified nutritional and other information about pomegranates, go here and here
January 11, 2012
Big Bang
If everything is receding
from everything, we’re only
seeing the backs of the stars.
Big Bang by Les Murray
From Poems the Size of Photographs
Image: Tarantula nebula by NASA and ESA
January 5, 2012
Farewell futile expectation, desire and resolution.
A few days late, but never mind, I’ve been relaxing and working hard on a garden make-over.
So here it is, a few thoughts about 2012, and NOT making resolutions.
A friend shared these 6 Habits of Cultivating Happiness from the Greater Good Science Center. So easy and gentle, I’m sharing these on my fridge for the whole family.
The transition from 2011 to 2012 revealed an overdue shift in how we think about food and our bodies, endless dieting, shame and judgement.
As so many of us are seduced into believing we must be svelte, skinny and super-fit by mid-January and forever onwards, I’ll share these articles with you. A health professional with a love of fresh food and cooking, my hope is that clients embrace guilt-free enjoyment of great food and regular, life-affirming activity. It’s a relief to find others are exploring these ideas.
This much we know: there’s fat chance of staying slim
Getting off weight’s vicious cycle
You may also want to know that a new study published in the prestigious medical journal The Lancet shows that “ just 15 minutes a day of moderate-intensity physical activity is all it takes to reap major benefits. A little bit of exercise can do a lot of good, and some is always better than none.” From Medicine Matters by Dr. Sandra Fryhofer.
I call moderate exercise :
any form of housework or gardening which raises heart-rate and a sweat
jumping or skipping
doing the Time Warp or the Hokey Pokey – with zest and laughter
brisk walking in lovely, fresh places
saluting the sun – yoga
getting off the bus or train one stop before your usual stop, and walking the rest of the way
taking the stairs, not the elevator or escalator
What are your favourite forms of exercise? We’d love your ideas and insights, shared with a comment below.
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Cautions and care: This article is provided for your information and enjoyment. Before beginning a new exercise program, it’s always a good idea to see your family doctor for a check-up. Similarly, if you or a loved one are struggling with an emotional or mental health concern, see your doctor.
Image: © Margi Macdonald
