Mud House Year

A Little Update

We are leaving for Nashville and Kentucky but before we go, I thought I would write a quick update on a couple of things I have been working on.  First, the roses.  They seem pretty happy.  However, not long after we arrived, I noticed my favorite rose had a problem.  On closer inspection I discovered hollow canes.  All of them. I cut the canes back until I found solid centers, but I was afraid the rose would not survive.  However, after just a few days it sprouted new growth.  This is what it looked like then: And, here is the same rose this morning, less than a month later: It is covered in new growth and buds.  I'm thrilled it is thriving and, as usual, I stand in complete awe of nature and its tenacity.And now for my second ongoing project.  It was a month ago today that we decided to follow an ancestral approach to eating for 30 days.  I am happy (and surprised) to announce that we actually stuck with it!  I tried some really wonderful new recipes and even eating Paleo Pumpkin Pie, I lost 5 pounds and Allen lost 12. Of course this is completely unfair, but typical.  Whenever I decide to improve my diet, he loses weight.   I do all the planning, shopping, cooking, and he loses twice as much as I do.  I suggest the walks, bike rides, push-ups - well you get the picture.  When I was younger, losing weight was a snap but not anymore. So, even though my skinny husband lost more, I am thrilled with my 5 pounds weight loss. We plan to continue our new "lifestyle" although it will be more of a challenge as we travel through some of our favorite foodie destinations over the next two weeks.  I will be posting from Nashville and Lexington, KY and will let you know how we manage (or don't manage) to stay on plan.  

I will leave you with a final rose.  
I just wish the fragrance could accompany the picture.  So lovely.

A Split Decision

My daughter laughed yesterday when I told her I was making soup for the winter storm.  She said she was afraid I might be disappointed in the discrepancy between the forecast and the actual weather.  I was not deterred and plunged headlong into a crock pot full of split pea soup.  

When I looked out my front window yesterday morning there were heavy gray clouds, no sun to be seen.  The weather man was still calling for lots of rain and issued a severe weather alert for a "cold storm system." While no longer officially a "winter storm," things still looked promising.   Temperatures in the 60s and rain felt like a cozy southern California day to me.  In fact, a perfect split pea day.  

I have a couple of slightly different recipes I like to use.  This is one I make in the crock pot and the seasonings are a little different.  It freezes well so I made a double batch.

Split Pea Soup

Here's What You Need:

1 pound dried green split peas, rinsed
2 large organic parsnips, peeled and cut into 1/2 inch pieces
2 medium organic carrots, peeled and cut into 1/2 inch pieces
2 medium organic celery stalks, 1/2 inch pieces
1/2 medium organic red onion, 1/2 inch pieces
2 medium garlic cloves, minced
1/4 cup fresh Italian parsley, chopped
1 meaty smoked ham bone or 2 ham hocks (I used 2 ham shanks, no preservatives/nitrates, etc)
2 teaspoons dried thyme
1 teaspoon dried oregano 
3 cups home made bone broth
3 cups water
Kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper
A  bouquet garni of fresh rosemary and thyme 

Here's What You Do:Place all ingredients, except the bouquet garni,  in the slow cooker in the order listed above.  

Pour the broth and water into the slow cooker and season with salt and pepper.

Cover and cook until the peas are very soft and the meat is falling off the bone, on high for 4 to 5 hours or low for 8 to 10 hours.About an hour before the soup is done, add the bouquet garni and remove the meat from the soup to a cutting board.   Let it cool then remove meat from bones and add it to the soup. Discard fat and bones. 

Adjust seasonings if needed.  I added more pepper.  If you want a smoother soup, mash it or run it through a blender or food processor before you return the meat to the soup.

Before serving, remove the bouquet garni.  

It actually was a cold and dreary southern California day - a perfect soup day!

Enjoy!

Nice Way To Start The Day

Just thought I would share this picture of the sunrise from our living room window.    The sky was even more beautiful than the picture indicates, with intense shades of orange against an increasingly blue sky. This old house we call home was built over 100 years ago with its front facing due east.    We are on the high second floor with eastern, western, and southern exposures providing beautiful light and vistas of early morning and late afternoon skies.   When I'm up early enough, I stand at the front windows, watch the sunrise, and think of others who have stood at these very same windows for over a century.  

The first winter storm of the season is forecast for tomorrow.  Of course, here in southern California “winter” is a term loosely applied.  We expect  temperatures in the 60s and some drizzly rain.  I'm making some soup in anticipation.  If it's good, I will share the recipe in a day or two.   

Stay  tuned...

 

Really?

I don't know.  I have always avoided spaghetti squash.  I just never thought I would substitute squash for pasta.  Ever!   But, then, for a variety of reasons, I needed to find some new ways of cooking and my awesome sister-in-law, Kathy, had a recipe she said was pretty good.  

So, I gave it a try.   This is funny stuff.  As Kathy said, "Who da thunk that would be inside a squash." (She doesn't always talk like that but the squash really was surprising.)Cut it in half.  It's a sturdy squash so I gave that job to Allen.  Roast it cut side down for 30-40 minutes and then scrape it with a fork.  Voila!  Spaghetti-looking squash.

Here's my adapted version of Kathy's recipe for Spaghetti (Squash) Pie via Pinterest:

Spaghetti (Squash) Pie

Preheat oven to 375 degrees

Here's What You Need:

1 spaghetti squash
olive oil 
sea salt
pepper
1/2 lb. 100% grass fed organic ground beef
2 tsp. coconut oil
1 small onion, chopped
1 medium garlic clove, minced
1/2 teaspoon dried, crushed oregano 
1/2 jar Rao's Pasta Sauce (I actually don't know how much I used.  Enough for a sauce that isn't too runny)
6 oz. ricotta cheese   
1 large egg 
1/2 cup fresh mozzarella cheese, shredded

Here's What You Do: 

Halve squash lengthwise and scrape out seeds. Brush olive oil on cut side of squash, sprinkle with salt and peppper, and place cut side down on a large cookie sheet and roast in pre-heated oven for 30-40 minutes, depending on size of squash.

Remove squash from oven and, using a fork, carefully rake stringy squash into strands that look like spaghetti.Brush a pie plate with a little olive oil.  Place spaghetti squash strands in bottom and up sides of a pie plate to form a crust. Set aside.

Brown beef, drain, remove from skillet and set aside.

In the same skillet, heat coconut oil over medium-high heat. Add onion and sauté until tender.   Add garlic and oregano and saute briefly until fragrant.  Return meat to pan and add sauce.  Simmer to reduce liquid.  

Beat egg with a fork and mix with the ricotta cheese.  Add salt and pepper to cheese mixture to taste.Spread the ricotta cheese mixture over the squash.Pour meat sauce over cheese layer and sprinkle mozzarella on top. Bake for 20 minutes. Remove from oven and let stand 5 minutes before serving.  If it's firm enough you can cut it into wedges.  Mine wasn't but it was really, really good.  I am actually really surprised I liked it so much.  

I doubled the recipe and gave one pie to my daughter and son-in-law who claims I am trying to sneak more vegetables into their diet.  Who? Me?

Anyway, this is good.  I am giving it 4 1/2 Prickly Pear Margaritas.

    

Enjoy!

 

 

Prickly Pear Gin and Tonics

Last night we toasted the Mud House Year Blog's one year anniversary with Prickly Pear Gin and Tonics! You can find the recipe on Mud House Year by clicking here and you can learn how to harvest prickly pears here.  Of course, if harvesting prickly pears is not on your fall agenda, you can always just buy prickly pear syrup here. 

When we moved to Pasadena we knew we would no longer be surrounded by cactus so Allen bought dry ice and packed up our frozen prickly pear juice in a cooler and drove it to Pasadena (we worked hard on that harvest, darnit).  It made the trip just fine and is now being put to very good use.   After thawing some of the juice... I combined it with an equal amount of sugar, and boiled it down to a lovely syrup.  For the complete recipe, and to find out how to create that lovely layered look, click the recipe link I provided above. 

Maybe it's because I haven't had any sugar in awhile or maybe the prickly pear juice is even better now that when we harvested it, but these G&Ts were even better than the ones we made last fall.   Absolutely scrumptious and so pretty. Be sure to use plenty of fresh limes - they set off the sweetness and earthiness of the syrup perfectly

Cheers!

What a Difference a Year Makes

One year ago today I began this blog to chronicle the adventures of living in a little mud house.  I wanted to create a memoir of life in the Sonoran Desert, a part of the world I always considered my home. Although we signed a lease for only a year, I hoped we would live in the mud house much longer. But, as it often does, life had other plans.  It's a bit of a challenge transitioning from a place so ingrained in my soul to a place so new and different, but it's also a wonderful, unexpected opportunity.  I don't know what this year will bring or even where I will be a year from now, but for now, in this place, I will find joy in the little things and I will continue to share my memories here.

Many thanks to my family and friends for sharing this eventful year with me!

The Essence of Being Here

A few people have asked if we are happy with our decision to move to Pasadena. Now that we are settled in our new home, we are giving that question some thought.  It is an unusual thing, at our ages, to just pick up and move to another state.  It's also an enormous amount of work - finding the right place, deciding what to bring, what to store, packing, and moving.

In making such a big decision, there are so many reasons for and against, why and why not.  Everything from economic to medical to distance to doggies was discussed and considered, ruled in and ruled out.   
One thing we knew for sure was that Allen would need a home office.  That seems to be working out OK.It is hard to find the right words to describe how we feel about this big change in our lives but what comes to mind are feelings of "serenity," "peace," "joy," and "calm." 

In the final analysis, there was only one overwhelming deciding factor.In the end, we followed our hearts and landed exactly where we should be.

Purple Sweet Potato Lasagne

So, by now I imagine many of you have heard of the paleo, primal or ancestral approaches to eating and lifestyle.  It's something that Allen and I have been easing into for awhile.  It probably started with my awareness that gluten caused me to have some weird symptoms including tummy aches and rashes. Once I eliminated the gluten I felt better.  From there, the more I learned, the more the ancestral approach to eating just made sense to me.  There is tons of good information out there and I will include some links at the end of this post.  

Anyway, when I say "easing" into it, I mean we don't do it all the time.  However, every time I slip back into, "Oh, just one bean burrito and a cupcake won't hurt anything," I start to feel crummy again.  The first thing I usually notice is BIG stomach bloat.  If I continue eating grains, beans, and sugar, my stomach hurts all the time.  My joints ache, I have very low energy, and I even experience depression.  

So Allen and I have made a commitment to follow an ancestral approach to eating as strictly as possible for one month.   That IS NOT what this blog is about but I will share some recipes from time to time.   

Purple Sweet Potato Lasagna!  (Recipe adapted from Pinterest.)Any sweet potato will do.  One of the advantages to living where we do, now, is the abundance of wonderful produce.  I found a purple sweet potato!

 Preheat oven to 350F

For the parsnip layer:
1 large parsnip peeled & cubed
1-2 tbsp coconut oil or extra virgin olive oil
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 tsp oregano 
1/4 cup parmesan cheese, grated
1/4 - 1/2 cup cream or whole milk
Pinch of sea salt and pepper 
Dash of paprika

For the meat layer:
1lb 100% grass fed beef
1 jar of you favorite pasta sauce. One with no added sugar or other unnecessary stuff. I like Rao.  Or, of course, you can make your own.  

For the vegetable layers:
1 large sweet potatoes, sliced 1/4” thick.  
1 summer squash or zucchini, sliced 1/4" lengthwise

Shredded mozzarella cheese (optional)
coconut or olive oil for brushing
Sea salt and fresh ground black pepper for sprinkling 

Here's What You Will Do:
Bring parsnips to a boil and then simmer until soft & ready to mash – approx. 30 minutes

Heat the coconut/olive oil & sauté the garlic over medium-low heat. Add the oregano and continue to saute until fragrant.  Do not burn the garlic.Drain the parsnips and add to the garlic.Add the cheese, cream or milk, salt, pepper, and paprika and mash or use an immersion blender to puree.

Set aside the parsnip mixture while you prepare  the other ingredients.

Brown the ground beef & drain excess fat. Add enough pasta sauce to make a thick sauce but not too runny and simmer gently for 10 minutes.

Pour a thin layer of the meat sauce in the bottom of an 8x8  glass baking dish.Place a thick, overlapping layer of the sweet potato slices on on top of the sauce.  Brush sweet potato slices with oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. 

Add another layer of meat.

Sprinkle meat sauce lightly with mozzarella cheese, if using.Brush both sides of squash lightly with oil and arrange over meat sauce.  Sprinkle squash with salt and pepper.

Layer parsnips  on top of squash, sprinkle with a little more mozzarella if using.

Sprinkle a little paprika over the top for color!

Bake about 45 minutes until bubbly. 

This was really delicious.  I love the way the sweet potato changed colors throughout the process. Once it was cooked, it was a deep, dark purple - about the color of red wine.

Enjoy!

This one gets 5 Prickly Pear Margaritas!

    

If you would like to know about the ancestral approach, here are a couple of links.  These are the two we find most helpful.

Perfect Health Diet

Mark's Daily Apple

 

She Sells Seashells

When we lived in New England, we ate shellfish on a regular basis.  Some of my favorite things in the world are raw oysters and steamed clams.   Last summer we returned to our old stomping grounds to attend our sweet friend's, Lauren's, wedding on Cape Cod.  While there, we had some of the best Wellfleet oysters, steamed clams, and lobsters at Moby Dick's in Wellfleet.  If you are ever on the Cape, be sure to stop in.  Moby Dick's looks a little like a roadside tourist trap, but it has seriously good shellfish.

Living in the desert there were a few things we didn't do.  We didn't go rattlesnake hunting, we didn't hike in the blazing sun in the middle of July, and we never, ever ate shellfish.  Especially raw shellfish. Just too, too far from the ocean and too darned hot.  However, Pasadena is only 25 miles from the ocean - close enough for steamers, for sure!

Steamed Clams in White Wine, Garlic Butter, and Thyme

Here's What You Need:
3 tablespoons butter
3 cloves fresh garlic, minced
1/2 cup dry white wine 
2 pounds of clams (we used littlenecks), rinsed and cleaned
Small bunch of fresh thyme
4 fresh lemon wedges

Here is What to do:
Melt butter in a medium pot over medium heat. Add garlic and cook for 2-3 minutes until garlic is fragrant but not burned. Add wine and increase heat to medium-high until wine is brought to a simmering boil. Add clams and thyme.
Cooked covered for 5-10 minutes (depending on size of clams), check and stir occasionally, until clams have opened.  Add lemon wedges just before serving.  Discard any clams that don't open.Transfer clams and broth to a large serving bowl.

Serve with something to dip in the garlicy, buttery broth. We made gluten-free popovers!  Yummy!

This recipe is so easy.  Try to find a source for clams that are already soaked and cleaned, if you can.  If not, you will need to put them through several "baths" of fresh water until they release all their sand.  

Enjoy!

The Summer Books I Loved

                                                             
So, with the first of September, summer officially ended.   Ok, so not "officially."  The actual fall equinox isn't until September 22 at 4:44 pm but, really, we all know summer officially ended that very first day of September.   It does every year.    My summer was busy with figuring out where to live, packing, and moving, but I did find time to read some wonderful books.  I'm sharing three of my favorites.   I won't bore you with summaries.  You can go to Amazon for that.  But I will say all three of these books were unique and unbelievably good.
                                                       
Two of the authors were new to me and then there was one by Stephen King.  I loved that the King book was not published electronically, only in paperback.   He wanted this book to feel like the summer thrillers he read as a youngster.  Joyland is a nostalgic recreation of pulp novels that came only in paperback and were true page-turners.  I personally think this is my favorite King book since The Shining.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                
Summer is over but all three of these books are seasonless.  They are very different reads from different genres.  I'm including links to Amazon in case you would like to learn more about these truly wonderful books.

The Ocean At The End Of The Lane

Where'd You Go, Bernadette

Joyland