SNOW Ice Cream

It's very cold outside! With temperatures in the teens, we've been staying inside by a cozy wood fire most of the day. Skiffs of snow, patches of sunlight, gray cloudy skies, and a gentle, but very cold breeze reminds us that winter is here! The snow reminds me of childhood moments that brought my sister and me great pleasure. What creative little girls we were! I think we came by it naturally, as our mother was creative as well and always went along with our crazy plans and experiments. Sometimes we would take fresh snow and carefully pack it away in a plastic container, tucking it far back in the freezer, so we could enjoy it again during a very hot day in July! Or we'd scrape the snow off a frozen puddle on a concrete pad in the field next door, put on our ice skates, and go skating. Mind you, the patch was probably no more then 10 x 10 feet square! But, we were inventive and didn't mind the lack of very much space to skate (nor the fact that the ice was so thin, we were actually skating on concrete!). We'd catch clean, fresh snow as it was falling and try to eat it before it melted --- such fun, the feeling of it melting in your mouth. My sister grew up to enjoy snow camping --- sleeping in snow caves she learned to build in wilderness survival classes. I preferred to sleep in a warm, cozy place but did enjoy times of snowshoeing on snowshoes that my dad made out of conduit, leather, and cording. Our family would snowshoe deep into the woods, enjoying the fresh snow and the quiet of the wilderness --- no cars, no noise --- just the silence of a wintry forest where sounds were buffered by the insulation of clean, fresh snow. And then there was the ice cream! Yummy snow ice cream! Have you ever made it? 

Here's a recipe similar to the one we enjoyed. If you have a chance, try it out! What memories it will help you create:

Snow Ice Cream

1 gallon snow
1 cup white sugar
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
2 cups milk (dairy or soy)

When it starts to snow, place a large, clean bowl outside to collect the flakes. When full, stir in sugar and vanilla to taste, then stir in just enough milk for the desired consistency. Serve at once.

Risotto with Winter Squash

Sharing one of my favorites. . .from "Great Vegetarian Cooking Under Pressure"

Risotto with Winter Squash

1 Tablespoon olive oil

1 cup finely chopped shallots or onions

Generous teaspoon dried sage leaves

1 1/2 cups arborio rice

3 1/2 t0 4 cups vegetable stock

1 pound butternut squash, peeled, seeded, and cut into 1-inch chunks (about 3 cups)

1 teaspoon salt, or to taste

* * * * *

1/4 cup balsamic vinegar to taste (or lemon juice)

2 Tablespoons minced fresh

Heat the oil in the cooker. Cook the shallots over medium-high heat, stirring frequently, for 1 minute. Add the sage and rice, stirring to coat the rice with the oil. stir in 3 1/2 cups of teh stock (stand back to avoid sputtering oil) and bring to the boi. Add the squash and salt.

Lock the lid in place. Over high heat, bring to high pressure. Lower the heat just enough to maintain high pressure and cook for 5 minutes. Reduce the pressure with as quick-release method. Remove the lid, tilting it away from you to allow any excess steam to escape.

If the risotto isn't creamy, stir in a bit more stock. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until the rice achieves the desired consistency (it should be tender but chewy) and the squash is partially pureed. Stir in the vinegar (or lemon juice) and parsley. Serve immedately in shallow soup bowls.

The Secret Ministry of the Frost

"The day is thine, the night also thine: thou hast prepared the light and the sun."

Psalm 74:16

Therefore all seasons shall be sweet to thee,

Whether the summer clothe the general earth

With greenness, or the redbreast sit and sing

Betwixt the tufts of snow on the bare branch

Of mossy apple-tree, while the nigh thatch

Smokes in the sun-thaw; whether the eve-drops fall, heard only in the trances of the blast,

Or if the secret ministry of frost

Shall hang them up in silent icicles,

Quietly shining to the quiet Moon.

Forstar Midnight

S.T. Coleridge

Two if by Tea

In honor of National Hot Tea Month, let's talk tea for a bit. A cup of tea offers much by way of relaxation, good health, and reprieve. 

A favorite writer of mine is Ce'leste perrino Walker who writes from Rutland, Vermont. I think I enjoy her writing because it her topics deal with real life things. In the Sept/Oct 2001 issue of Vibrant Life magazine she wrote an article that I've saved called One if by Land; Two if by Tea. In it she shares how a friend introduced her (and her French blood) to the gentle art of the English afternoon tea. She learned that tea is much more than a beverage in a cup, but rather something emotionally fulfilling, and a refreshing pause to the day. 

To quote her: "Teatime fills a need for peace in our stressed-out society. Not only that, but the manner in which you 'take tea' lifts the spirits and fills the senses with beauty. Everything about tea time contributes in some small way to this: beautiful tea linens, gorgeous china, luscious tea, delicious tea biscuits or cookies (or other even more scrumptious treats). Teatime 'for the soul' can be compared to dropping everything to spend a few stolen moments in a beautiful garden." 

She goes on to say: "I've decided to give 'teatime' a try. I'm not sure how it works. Maybe it's the special feeling you get from using the pretty teapot and china on yourself for a change. Maybe it's the ritual of preparig the tea, boiling the water, smelling the aroma of the tea as you measure it out, the rhythm of the procedure that won't be hurried. But teatime really is all they say it is."

Her advice to her readers is to take a little time for yourself this week and discover teatime, the pause that refreshes. Then thank the English. They were right all along. C'est la vie.

*The photo shown with the article reminds me of the children's teas that my mother used to conduct. She taught kindergarten for thirty years. Sometimes her school would have a benefit auction, and mother would donate a children's tea party. They were always popular and mothers and daughters would enjoy a lovely afternoon tea with all the trimmings at mom's house if they were the winners of the auction bid. Her beautiful children's china tea set was put to good use!

Swedish Fruit Soup

Naturally sweet and absolutely delicious! This fruit soup is especially delicious during the chilly winter months. It uses dried fruits and a stick of cinnamon to spice things up a bit. If you don't have all the ingredients, substitutions can be made quite successfully.

Swedish Fruit Soup

2 cups dried fruit (apples, pears, peaches, apricots, and prunes)
1/2 cup golden raisins
1 cinnamon stick
4 cups water
3 cups unsweetened pineapple juice
1/2 cup apricot All Fruit spread (sweetened with fruit juices)
1 1/2 tsp. sweet herb stevia (or to taste)
3 Tbsp. tapioca
1/4 tsp. salt
1 cup mandarin orange pieces

In a medium sized kettle, bring water to a boil. Add dried fruit,raisins, and pineapple juice. Reduce heat and simmer about 20 minutes until fruit is soft. Add fruit spread, stevia, tapioca, and salt. Stir gently. Add cinnamon stick and simmer mixture for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add mandarin orange pieces. Remove from heat. Cover and refrigerate overnight.

Place into individual bowls or goblets. Garnish with mint springs, cinnamon sticks, and a dollop of tofu whipped topping. Enjoy!

*Also delicious served slightly warm.

January is National Hot Tea Month

January is National Hot Tea Month, and of course a post in its honor is in order. Named thus by the Tea Association of the USA, its purpose is to promote the value of a hot cup of tea. The claimed health benefits of tea are many, ranging from an increased immune response to the reduction of heart disease and cancer. To research the benefits of this herb, check out the Tea Association website.
Seeking to draw attention to this designated month, my mind skipped through a variety of things I could write about. Teapots, teacups, gawan porcelain bowls, and three-tiered trays all came to mind. But finding the obscure or unusual to celebrate this cozy past-time seemed important. 
I decided to share with readers about a very interesting and out-of-the-way place in Death Valley, California. Located twenty miles from Ubehebe Crater, eighteen miles from Hunter Mountain, and six miles from Racetrack on a remote and rugged road is a junction named Teakettle. A hundred years ago, miners in search of wealth and adventure would pass this way and mark the junction by placing a teakettle in it's spot. First one, then more teakettles have been added until it's become quite famous as a place to leave one's mark by adding a teakettle of one's own to the stash. Visitors leave a teakettle, signed and dated for others to see at this remote junction. It appears that teakettles serve a serious place in American history, even in remote desert places! If you decide to add a teakettle of your own, be sure to take a spare tire or two with you. The road is very rough and scattered with sharp and jagged rocks! A Death Valley mule might be a better, albeit slower mode of transportation! 
A visit to this historic spot allows the imagination to travel back in time, wondering who passed this way before and what type of delicious hot tea they served around a campfire and with whom it was shared.

Happy National Hot Tea Month!