Watering Seeds of Joy While Making Seafood Risotto, Quarantine Diaries Day 140 Something

    All of us suffer, each of us has a story in our past, or present that creates potential for our suffering, every last one of us. If you have witnessed individuals or listened to yoga or philosophy teachers, spiritual teachers and the like and seen them full of joy and serenity it is not for lack of past or present  trauma in their personal lives. 

I had had a particularly trying day so I did what I do best, I went food shopping and began my moving meditation of cooking. You see to clear my head nothing works better for me than cooking a meal, the repetitive nature of washing, chopping, searing and stirring in perfect silence somehow provides insight internally. As I sifted through mussels and emptied squid bodies of their internal organs and odd plastic like spines, I thought about the fact that no person lives a life without emotional trauma whether past or present, myself included.  The key to inner serenity is our relationship or attachment to this negativity in our lives. We are born and accumulate both seeds of negativity and seeds of joy within our consciousness, those individuals we see as calm and serene have simply disciplined themselves to water the seeds of joy in their lives and detach emotional energy from the seeds of negativity and suffering. 

I chopped a quarter of a white onion and two cloves of garlic, a handful of Castelvetrano olives and three anchovies. The pan heated the olive oil and I slid the ingredients in, listening to the sizzle my brain continued to make these beautiful synapses between how joy is created, how serenity is achieved through active participation in cultivating attention to these seeds and not those of our suffering. 

The onion became translucent and I added freshly grated lemon zest, the scent filled the air for a brief moment and I mentally jotted down another thing that created joy in my brain, the scent of lemon. 

Though we take a daily dose of our individual dramas, it is not necessary to attach emotion to them, that is an option.

Better I think to attach emotion to the scent of lemon. 

The par boiled Arborio rice is sifted into the pan and quickly followed by mussels, shrimp, and calamari, seconds later a generous pour of dry white wine, and a generous drink of the same for me. Timing is everything in cooking, in life. Things take time, and then it feels as if time has run out and things must be done swiftly, it's this beautiful give and take of allowing for each thing in life to take the time it needs and without judgement honor it.

Just as soon as the wine evaporates the fish stock I had been boiling on the back burner is ladled in one at a time, instead of all at once, paying particularly close attention to when the risotto calls for more. After the first ladle two quick ladles of sauce I had prepared earlier, simply whole tomatoes, white onion, basil and salt. 

A dash of pepper, saffron fronds and a moment or two covered and left to steam through each grain of rice before the next stir and ladle. It's like that in life, a constant agitation of an event or trauma stirred in the consciousness is never the right answer, rather a balance of letting things rest and settle and open on their own, intermittently between stirring the pot is always a better balance I think to myself while leaving the risotto to do it 's thing alone. 

Cooking a simple risotto, making an avocado toast, whatever it is if you listen closely has so much to teach about who we are and why we do the things we do. My thoughts about nurturing and watering seeds of joy have come from this risotto. I wonder if that will be imparted through it's eating to those I feed it to? Hmm....the power of thought.

Seafood Risotto 

1 lb of mussels 

2 squid, cleaned and cut into rings and tentacles

1/2 lb of peeled deveined shrimp ( save the shells for stock )

3 anchovies

1/4 cup chopped fennel

2 cloves garlic minced

1/4 of a white onion minced

7-10 chopped Castelvetrano olives

1 tbsp capers

zest of one lemon

1 tbsp tomato paste

4 handfuls Arborio Rice ( parboiled 5 minutes)

1 can whole tomatoes ( made into sauce with onion and basil and salt) or tomato puree

2 cups or more shellfish stock ( made from scratch)

1 knob of butter

a handful of fresh watercress 

Parmigiano to garnish

Parboil rice for five minutes and drain. Make sure timing is correct, boil water and let boil until you are ready to put seafood into the pan, then pour rice into subtly salted water for 5 min.

Put shrimp shells and a slice of additional onion and onion skin, ma few stalks of fennel and the garlic skin into 4 cups of water and set to boil.

Meanwhile in a wide open pan place EVOO and onion, garlic, fennel, anchovies, capers and olives on medium heat until onion is translucent. Add the tomato paste and seafood, drained rice and turn up the heat,  quickly add the wine and let it evaporate, maybe 2 min, follow with fish stock and scrape the bottom of the pan, ladle in two ladles of tomato sauce or puree and cover. five minutes later lift lid and add more stock and repeat the craping of the bottom of the pan. repeat until the rice accepts no more liquid, about 15 minutes from start ( adding of rice) to finish.

Arrange mussels around the pan, add the knob of butter, stir in and let sit for another 3 minutes. Add, watercress, Parmigiano, and lemon zest and pepper. 

Buon Appetito!! 

Quarantine Food Diaries, Boddhicitta, where we are and what to do now

It's been 134 days of quarantine, we might be feeling at the very least uncertain about the future.
The use of our food as a primary approach to our physical and emotional wellness is paramount, physical exercise and raising endorphins a close second.
This blog started as a way to count down the days and re direct my energy towards a different kind of structure than I was used to. I had been preparing for fashion week in Paris as I did each season. The collection of repurposed Victorian watches and 18k gold Georgian rings took on the theme of "I AM" an open ended statement meant to spur reflection. Who are you? Are you your name, your job, your status, your ethnicity? Your marriage? I never knew it would be so relevant, and yet I  have nowhere to show it. The collection sits in the instagram ethers, found by few, missed by most.
So while now 134 days later my studio desk has taken on another aspect, that of nutritional healing, sciences of Ayurveda, Alkaline cooking, adaptogen use, my beautiful "I AM" collection has been neatly tucked away in ivory and yellow boxes with a raised golden A for the Artemisian. And I think, it's all the same, it's all the same. The healing arts I have worked within were never there to depend on as consistent income, these gifts of giving wellness back out were never a hustle for me, that was the job of my jewelry brand. Now my healing gifts have come front and center and are being called upon more and more, without pushing or pulling, with ease and I think of how grateful I am that I can offer this to the world.
We all have this capacity within us, to heal the self and to hold space for another, it's all about awareness,  waking up to the you that is the universe, the you that is sacred, the you in everyone else. Through this awakening to the self and the ultimate oneness in all of us is born a great compassion that in Buddhism is called awakened heart or Bodhicitta. The person called to bring this awareness to others is a Boddhisatva.
So though my mediums have changed, one thing has not and that is the call to wake myself from the slumber that threatens to invade every day to keep witnessing, keep asking questions. In doing this practice I am called to give back what I am learning, to offer it out as a lifeline, as pure love.
So here I am, writing bits of philosophy for continued awareness, less suffering and in the process you may find a recipe that delights your palette.
Keep asking questions, keep listening and keep yourself open and receptive.

Quarantine Food Diaries, Harissa Inspired Roasted Carrots

This vibrant red paste caught my eye from afar, I'd heard it's name before and picked it up off the grocery store shelf, Harissa. The name comes from the Arabic verb harasa, meaning 'to pound', or 'break into pieces'. It's thought to originate from Tunisia, where shoppers in spice souks watch it pounded out while-u-wait. The simplest versions are just the bare bones: chillies, salt and olive oil. 
I read these ingredients as well as turmeric, smoked paprika and lemon juice, on the small inviting jar in my hand. I bought it, brought it home, cracked it open and slathered it on a few carrots, popped them in the oven and 10 min later brought them out and dove in.  Did I not read the first ingredient was chilies? I can handle spice but this was overpowering and clearly not how it was meant to be used. What it did was inspire me. I was anticipating somehow the dense tangy sweetness of sundried tomato paste, mixed with the smokiness of a smoked paprika, turmeric, chilis and cumin ground into powders, the kind that are seen in perfect conical mounds in a souk. So it may not be Harissa, but this recipe was inspired by the sweet tangy tomato sauce that sits baking in the Sicilian sun for days on long wooden planks at every home in the heat of  August and my magic carpet ride imagination of what a souk looks like.

My tomato sauce is not as far a long as this image from my annual summer trips to Palermo and Terrasini, the coastal town, home to Cala Rossa where the cliffs shimmer like the red rocks of Sedona reaching peaks out of the azzure Mediterranean Sea, but Whole Foods has decent tomato paste.  Mine will be ready in as little as a week as long as I don't forget to bring them in when it rains!

Harissa (Inspired) Paste

2 tbsp tomato paste

1 tsp cumin

1/4 tsp chili powder

1/2 tsp turmeric

1/2 tsp garlic powder 

1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

salt to taste 

mash and smooth  together to a loose paste the consistency of runny yogurt, add more olive oil if necessary or a squeeze of lemon juice.

coat carrots and lay on a cookie sheet and broil for 10 min, turning only once, letting them get a little color!

Quarantine Food Diaries, Morrocan Lentil Soup, Asafoetida What it Does and Why

In Ayurvedic cooking lentils and chickpeas are eaten routinely but don't seem to cause any intestinal discomfort, in fact their praises are song by most Ayurvedic practitioners. Me, I've been left like a jet propelled engine, it's not sexy.
I found out about this little thing called Hing, no it's not a Dr.Seuss poem it's a really hing, I mean thing. It's other name is Asafoetida, and you use the tiniest amount from the tiniest jar to make your beans easily digestible and absorb all the fantastic plant based protein!
I'm sold. Make sure you buy pure Hing no fillers.

Morrocan Lentil Soup

1 cup french lentils

4 cups water

1/2 chopped white onion

3/4 cup pureed whole canned San Marzano tomatoes

1 pinch Asafoetida ( Hing)

1 tbsp cumin

1 tsp turmeric

fresh Cilantro and Lemon to garnish

salt and pepper

saute´onion in olive oil until translucent, sort and rinse lentils and add to softened onion, add Asafoetida! Add tomatoes, water and spices . Bring to a boil and cover and simmer 20-30 min

uncover serve, in each bowl squeeze lemon amply and garnish with cilantro a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil salt and cracked pepper.

Quarantine Food Diaries,Beets Done 3 Ways, Blood Building, Smoked Beet Hummus, Slow Roasted Beets, and Raw Rainbow Root Salad

Beets Build Blood, in Traditional Chinese Medicine building blood maintains a  healthy energy level or chi, lack of good blood building results in lethargy in body and digestion.
Root veggies are one way of addressing stagnate chi in the body and this week they are the focus, primarily beets. Ayurveda tells us that the lack of healthy fire in the body or Tejas can be seen in bloating and gas and this is directly related to the lack of blood in digestion our first recipe kick starts the digestive fire to get things moving and blood circulating. Ultimately leading to renewed energy and good gut microbiome ( no bloating).

Rainbow Root Salad

1 kohlrabi

1 yellow beet

1 red beet

small piece of daikon

3 radishes

small piece of Jicama

1 small rutabaga

1 peach 

a bunch of rucola

some basil

dressing:

lemon zest, grated ginger, olive oil, balsamic glaze, smoked sea salt and pepper

all to taste

use the grating plate on a cuisinart,  or a mandolin to create julienned pieces of all but the red beet, do that separately and keep it separate until tossing the salad or it will dye the rest of the roots pink!

chop the peach and toss in the rucola and basil

add the dressing and red beets and enjoy raw and crunchy.

 Slow Roasted Beets

3 red or yellow beets

buttered pine nuts

maybe honey churned chevre

olive oil, balsamic glaze, black hawaiian sea salt, pink peppercorns

wrap each beet whole, skin on in foil and place in oven at 285F for two hours if they are small and three if they are big. They  should feel like a perfectly ripe peach under the squeeze of your oven mitt when they are done. Leave to cool in the foil for a few more hours.

unwrap and push the skin off the beets.

place a knob of butter or ghee in a pan and roast the pine nuts until butter is nicely nutty brown and pinenuts have taken on a little color.

arrange on a plate, drizzle with supremely good olive oil, balsmic glaze, a sprinkling of chevre that you have added a tsp of honey to and freshly ground pink peppercorns and black Hawaian sea salt. 

enjoy at room temp.

Smoked Beet Hummus 

3 medium red beets

1 tbsp tahini

1 tbsp extra virgin cold pressed olive oil

2 small cloves garlic

5 dashes liquid smoke

salt and pepper

This is a pure beet hummus, no bean filler it's all about blood building !

Cook the beets as described in the above recipe and peel when cool, pop in the vitamix with all other ingredients and adjust with salt and pepper. 

Quarantine Food Diaries, Get outside, Picnic Packing Goodies and Shinrin-Yoku

The weather is warm and we can all be outside, reconnecting to the earth, walking through a forest, releasing, discharging our bodies frenetic energy and absorbing the negative ions released by our planet, bare feet upon the earth.
In Italy we take our entire lunches to the beach in the summer or  into the countryside, it's called a "scampagnata" literally to escape to the countryside. We carefully prepare and pack way more than the typical sandwich and potato salad, you might say it is somewhat of an art, not as much as the Japanese create sushi and bento boxes to go but all the same the italian will figure out the how to of eating well during a "scampagnata".
Picnics will become a new way to pass time with friends, bring a plate to share and be with others,  here are a few of my go to favorites.

Insalata di Riso

 

1 cup dry arborio rice

Tonino brand or other glass jar tuna ( please no canned tunafish)

handful or more pitted olives sliced ( I use calamata, but your preference is fine) 

1 cup fresh spring peas

2 hardboiled eggs

1/2 cup chopped carrots

1/2 cup chopped radishes

1/4  cup mayonnaise 

1/4 cup chopped parsley

Himalayan Pink salt, Pepper

The recipe is super simple, the key is to eat a little warm and then chill it for up to 24 hours before taking it on your picnic. Mix all ingredients, add Mayo salt and pepper and chill!


PANELLE
Chickpea flour fritelle

a common Sicilian street food is Panelle, a smooth chick pea flour paste that is deep fried into little rectangular pancakes and placed in a bun called "rosetta" with a squeeze of lemon and off you go.
Because I am gluten free, I use the panelle like the bread and make a frittata to put between two to take to the beach!


Savory Pinwheels and Napoleons

Store bought puff pastry sheets
sauteéd maitake or button mushrooms
chevre
cherry tomatoes
a few fresh basil leaves
1 egg yolk


De thaw puff pastry sheets until flexible, flour and roll out cut rectangles for layering the  napoleons and one long recatangle for rolling the cherry tomato goat cheese spirals. This is uber easy but presents like it was way more complicated!
Spread chevre and sliced tomatoes and a chopped basil, salt and pepper on the long rectangle, roll and slice into spirals. Arrange on parchment on a baking sheet.
Layer puff pastry squares alternately with sauteéd mushrooms and chevre until they are neatly stacked, place on parchment paper. Wash both spirals and napoleons with an egg yolk wash and
pop in the oven 400F for about 20 min, e´voila!!
Picnic blue ribbon ready!!

Quarantine Food Diaries, Settle Down Bars, Ashwaganda Powder Power!

Settle Down Bars

Settle Down Bars
makes 30 single serving bars

Stone ground peanut butter, oats, oat bran, chia seeds, sesame seeds, ashwaganda, sunflower seeds, coconut, pink Himalayan sea salt and local honey make these protein bars both a satisfying salty sweet snack and calming adaptogenic healing morsel!  Ashwaganda is a widely used Ayurvedic adaptogenic herb used to calm vata energy and soothe the internal anxiety of the body. 


3/4 cup oats
1 cup stone ground peanut butter or almond or cashew
1/4 oat bran
1/4 whole raw almonds
1/2 roasted unsalted sunflower seeds
3 tbsp chia seeds
1/4 cup coconut, raw, organic no added sugar
3 tsp ashwaganda adaptogenic powder ( I use this one )
1/4 cup or less,  honey
1/4 cup chia seed 
2 tbsp sesame seeds
Himalayan Pink salt to taste, 1/4 tsp or more depending on butter saltiness 

Mix in a bowl with a heavy wooden spoon, it's thick. Make  a paste and adjust salt and honey to your taste. Wrap in parchment paperand roll flat with a rollijg pin to about 1 inch thickness evenly, pat the sides square and chill. after a few hours you can slice into bars and keep wrapped in parchment in the fridge and eat as you please. Just the right amount of salty and sweet!

It was hot and humid this morning when I woke, the perfect opportunity to sweat out impurities of both mind and body. I got on my bike and plugged into a playlist I made called BIG LOVE. Scrolling through the thousands of songs I realized my musical tastes said something about me, I am inclusive, expansive. I pressed shuffle and started my ride, the wind and heat softened my joints, the speed and exertion neutralizing the pent up stuff stuck in my gut from feeling the groan of the world. I don't have the words to speak using historical reference, I don't have statistics on the tip of my tongue, but I am still having conversations about individual consciousness with anyone who would embrace these words as a starting point. I have never had a group mentality, never followed a crowd, particulalry one that shames. I don't see how our social media is encouraging anything other than polarization as usual. I saw this with the me too movement, with our politics and now with black lives matter and I can feel in my gut that we are not raising our consciousness, that we are using thunder instead of rain to try to grow flowers.
I am an empath, these days I feel like everyone's mother, daughter, sister and friend all in one and it hurts and I want all to feel love and acceptance and compassion. Changing thoughts and beliefs comes from within. It may not be my thing to protest in a crowd, but to instead quietly love and accept and give to whomever crosses my path, like creating a safety net for however long you stay in my presence, this is my vow. 
There is a simple but profound Hawaiian prayer that carries me:

Ho' oponopono
The Four Mantras

Ho' oponopono is about taking responsibility for everything that affects your state of being. It's the art of acceptance, forgiveness, and cleansing of the energies that you attract into your life.


I'm Sorry 

When you say "I'm sorry" you are recognizing and accepting responsibility for the actions, thoughts, and emotions that have caused conflict to manifest into your reality.

Please Forgive Me

The words "please forgive me" are said as a request to make amends with your higher self and the universe alike. 

Thank You

"Thank you" is the opportunity to show gratitude to your higher self as well as the universe for allowing your negative thoughts, actions, and emotions to be cleared.

I Love You

"I love you" can be offered out to the universe as a form of gratitude. When you use the words this way you are saying "I love you for allowing me this earth experience"