reason for the season

Yesterday at church I was helping out and working the back door. After meet and greet we were supposed to break up in to small groups and pray for people in the city who are going to have a rough holiday season because they have lost a loved one, or are struggling financially, or whatever their circumstance. Since I was by the back door I naturally drifted to the family sitting in the back row. The little girl was probably three years old, when I asked how she was doing she started listing off everything she was requesting from Santa. "I want a my little pony, and another toy pony, and a real pony. Maybe a unicorn..." Her brother was just standing there rolling his eyes, he was probably seven years old. And he decides to chime in, looking straight at me, "You know, Christmas is more than just presents and Santa Claus. Christmas is about celebrating Jesus birthday, it's about Jesus. But I am asking Santa for the Black Pearl Lego set." We didn't get to pray, but I was filled by this experience and so sweetly reminded of the reason for this season. Oh to having childlike faith...
I have been baking a lot lately, and not blogging enough. So I will try to share as many as possible. Here is a really good banana bread, I made it with rice flour (and do not recommend that).

banana bread

*2 cups of flour
*1 tsp baking soda

*1/4 tsp salt

*1 stick (1/2 cup) butter

*3/4 cup brown sugar

*2 eggs

*2 tsp cinnamon

*1 tsp vanilla

*5 mashed bananas

Preheat oven to 350, and grease a loaf pan. In one bowl combine the dry ingredients (flour, baking soda, salt, & cinnamon). In another bowl mix butter, brown sugar, vanilla, and eggs. Stir in the mashed bananas until well blended. Stir in banana mixture to the dry ingredients. Once in the pan, bake for 60 minutes (mine took a little longer), and let cool before serving.

i heart fall

There is something so wonderful about fall. It is a season of change and adventure, and in the end leads us on into the holiday season. The changes of colors, weather, styles, you know the usual. Some things I enjoy most about this season are; school, the weather, pumpkin anything and everything, and Young Life. This marks the first fall in years that I am not in a classroom, and I miss it quite a bit more than I expected. To be honest, I did not think I would miss it at all. But not sitting in a classroom has given me more time to spend outside and enjoying creation, and the new town I’m living in. And the weather is a dream, waking up to the crisp mornings, or even when it rains! One of my all time favorite smells is the freshness right after the rain… Oh and when it rains it is perfect baking weather. And what a perfect season for baking because pumpkin is out. There is pumpkin ice cream, beer, lattes, fro-yo, cookies, bread, coffee, and the list goes on for days… And last (but certainly not least) Young Life. YL is year round, but it always kicks off in the fall with Leader Retreat. While retreating a few weeks ago I drank endless amounts of coffee, heard some amazing men share the light of Jesus, slept under the stars, did life with some good ones, danced, and walked away refreshed.

Sister Friendly Pumpkin Cookies

1 cup white sugar

1 cup Crisco

1 egg

1 cup canned pumpkin

2 tsp vanilla extract

2 cups gluten free flour (I used a bean/potato flour, if you don’t want to share with my sister you can use regular all purpose flour

1 tsp baking powder

1 tsp baking soda

2 tsp cinnamon

½ tsp salt

1 package of Trader Joes white frosting mix

Pre-heat oven to 350. Mix white sugar, flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt together. In a separate bowl combine Crisco, egg, pumpkin, and vanilla. Fold in wet mixture. Drop by spoonfuls onto a greased cookie sheet, and bake for 10-12 minutes. Mix frosting and top cookies while cooling. Now enjoy.

Good people, good food, beautiful weather, what is there not to love about fall?

i'm not trendy

I love to read. And love might be an understatement. I'm not a trendy reader, and it is hard to find a great book sometimes. And I am not the biggest fiction fan, but every now and then I will find a really good one that I cannot put down. We did some fiction in high school, which I was not overly excited about, I would definitely have to say think my favorite was The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald. This summer I also (finally) got into reading Redeeming Love by Francine Rivers (which was AMAZING). But I’m not really a trendy reader. It took me forever and a day to pick up Redeeming Love, I do not love Nicholas Sparks’ books (no offense), and I cannot for the life of me get in to Twilight. Recently on a trip to Costco I stumbled across the book The Help by Kathryn Stockett, and had to buy it (because it was ½ off and I needed a new book).

Stockett was born and raised in Jackson Mississippi, and wrote the book after moving to New York. The book begins in the 1960’s and is an account of white employers and their relationships to their help. While it is a novel, there is something so real about it, it might be because she does intertwine historical events (like JFK’s death and MLK Jr. events), but I also think it is because she is a really excellent author. There is something hopeful in her words. Hands down I’d say the best part of the book is when it really clicks for Miss. Skeeter and she really gets her book, “There is so much you don’t know about a person… We are just two people. Not that much separates us. Not nearly as much as I’d thought” (492). Anyways if you do not like fiction, or trends, try and read this book it is worth it. I’m not an advocate of fiction often, but I really recommend this book. And if you have any fiction recommendations please share!

now i stand in the hope of new life

I love to read. I can sit down and read anywhere. Park, Nordstrom, coffee shop. Not teasing. My go to is generally a good memoir, or one from the Christian/Inspirational section at Barnes and Nobles. Since I moved to the I.E. and I am still unemployed, I have been filling my days with a lot of reading. Recently sweet Kalie in Arizona sent me The Road of Lost Innocence; The True Story of a Cambodian Heroine.

This book is the memoir of Somaly Mam, who some refer to as the present day Harriet Tubman. I first learned about Human Trafficking and Sex Slavery my freshman year at A.P.U., but nothing was this graphic or real as this book. There are some great movies and documentaries out there that are informative, but do not light the fire in your heart at the injustices these women are going through the way this book does. The beginning of the book opens with “By far the lowest statistic for the number of prostitutes and sex slaves in Cambodia is between 40 and 50 thousand. One in 40 girls born in Cambodia will be sold into sex slavery.” That is enough to fill the Angel’s stadium... and then some. Sex slavery begins with girls as young as five, that is Kindergarten! That is HORRIFIC. Somlay was sold when she was 16. The memoir accounts for as much as she can remember (or chooses to share) and it is very graphic, ending with her three babies and wonderful organization Acting For Women in Distressing Situations (AFESIP). I think one of the best ways to start the end of these awful injustices is educating others. So may I recommend that you read this book, but buy two copies, and please share it with someone else. Be informed, know what is going on in and around the world. But know that it is bigger than Cambodia, trafficking happens in California too. But before I rant for days I’ll share some links with you and hope that you read this book as soon as possible. Be encouraged, because if one woman can make such different in so many lives, imagine what we can do?

• AFESIP Cambodia (http://www.afesip.org/)
• The book (http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/road-of-lost-innocence-somaly-mam/)
• Good movies on the subject (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0936501/) or (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0399095/)

nothings sweeter than summertime

What in the heck is a caper? Well thank you for asking… I think it is a pickled seed? Or some part of a plant that is pickled and vinegar-y and goodness. And when I went to buy them the other day, I was reminiscing on how much my eating palate has changed since I was little. When I was younger I used to tell people I was allergic to coconut, but let me tell you about Trader Joes new coconut chocolate ice cream, it will change your life. It is that good. I also used to eat capers, solo. I’d just grab a spoon, and the jar, and go to town. Not normal. The only cheese I used to eat was cheddar, but let me tell you about brie with fig butter. Or some feta on top of a salad can just make your salad 100 times better. Real talk. You think coffee is only drinkable blended with sugar water? Think again, black and hand poured is tasty and good hot or iced. I think it is important to try new things, I mean activity things obviously, but food too. I hear it takes the 8 times of trying something to start really enjoying it. So if you cannot eat capers with a spoon just yet, or don’t find brie and feta as fascinating as I do, try tasting them 8 different times. And another recipe for you my friends, original recipe was from www.epicurious.com, but I changed it up. Mhmm summer is too good.

Tasty potato salad

10 gold potatoes

1 bundle of green onions

½ cup finely chopped parsley

2 tbsp. capers (no juice added)

1 package haricot verts (skinny french green bean)

3 tbsp. white wine vinegar

1 tbsp. caper juice (from the caper jar)

2-3 tsp. coarse-grain Dijon mustard

½ cup extra virgin olive oil

Cook potatoes in boiling water until tender, mine took about 20 minutes. Drain potatoes and allow to cool as much as possible before mixing with other vegetables. Steam green beans and set aside to cool. Add chives, parsley, and capers into a large mixing bowl. In a smaller mixing bowl combine: vinegar, caper liquid, mustard, and oil and whisk well. Slice cooled potatoes into small pieces. Mix vegetables in large mixing bowl, add dressing, and toss. Add some salt and pepper to taste.

*tricks*

• add lots of vegetables. fresh ones
• put crazy protein in the salad, on the salad, or on the side. i saw a recipe for one salad that used chorizo
• put garlic in the dressing! i didn't but it would probably be way better with 1-2 cloves minced in the dressing, let's be honest

the more things change, the more they stay the same

living in los angeles can be really frustrating sometimes. the busy-ness of everyone can be overwhelming. the traffic (always) can make you go bananas. there are junebugs here that you can literally feel fly by you because they are so big. sick nasty. but there are definitely some amazing things that get to be experienced while living in southern California. i still get to hang out with friends from college, friends who are still going to APU, or friends who are coming to APU. just the other night i got to have dinner with two of the coolest Berve men i know, and if i had not been living in LA i would have missed out on some sweet company. i get to walk with my sister to a farmers market on sunday mornings and sample fresh fruit and smell fresh flowers and do crossword puzzles from the LA times. i get to go on hikes to the ocean with my uncle. i get to enjoy time with friends and last minute sleep overs and random karaoke-margarita nights. live music in the park on sunday with other YL leaders? don't mind if i do. i get to really enjoy my church and community that comes with it. i get to be a young life leader and hang with some awesome high school students, and enjoy that community as well.
so sometimes LA can bite (no offense). but sometimes i forget the bad while enjoying the little joys that bless me daily.

and speaking of farmers markets and fresh produce... enjoy this summer salad from my sister's findings.

Quinoa salad

1 serving of quinoa (i made a little over a cup)
Salt
2 corn on the cob (or around 2 cups if corn is not in season)
2 cups cherry tomatoes
1 serrano chile
3/4 cup chopped green onion
3 tbsp lime juice
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 clove garlic
1 3/4 tsp ground cumin
1 1/2 cups cilantro

cook quinoa as directed. set aside to cool.
corn should be cooked. ours was on the cob so we threw it on the grill.
cut cherry tomatoes in half, and cut corn off cob. serrano should be minced, and green onion chopped. all vegetables should be mixed together and set aside.
in a blender combine garlic, cumin, lime juice, evoo, and a dash of salt. blend until dressing is completely mixed.
combine quinoa and vegetables in a bowl and mix together. add as much dressing as desired. fold in cilantro. if you need more seasoning add more salt, lime juice, garlic, or cilantro.
stick in the refrigerator and serve chilled.

*tricks*

• a serrano chili pepper has more spice than a jalapeno. so take the seeds out, and wash your hands immediately after handling. the oils can be aggressive.


• i added more garlic and cilantro (because i love them especially when they're fresh)


• we served the salad with chicken and corn tortillas, the salad is good but a little boring served alone

another treat

another day another treat! i love foods that go with seasons. fresh vegetables in their season. peaches during summer. or a dang good pumpkin spice late in the fall. mhmm! this is a pasta salad served cold, which i would associate with summer. so have at it :-)

summer pasta salad

What you need:

8-12 oz of pasta (i used a good brown rice rigatoni noodle)

2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

1 lemon

2 whole zucchini

5 oz mushrooms

10 oz grape tomatoes

1-2 cloves of garlic

1/4 small red onion

1/3 cup fresh parsley

feta cheese (optional)

protein (we used salmon, and then grilled chicken)

chop zucchini and mushrooms and toss in a pan with some olive oil and garlic cloves. cook 5 ish minutes, depending on how cooked you like your vegetables. strain excess oils and set aside.

cook pasta until done. drain and rinse well with cold water until completely cooled.

juice lemon and whisk in EVOO.

cut tomatoes in half. finely chop red onion & parsley and set aside.

stir in red onion/tomatoes and cooked vegetables into pasta. toss on the dressing and give it another good stir. then fold in the parsley. place in the refrigerator for minimum one hour and serve chilled. stir in some crumbled feta cheese (if your stomach will allow it), top with some meat, and enjoy your tasty summer treat!

*tricks*

• don't forget to throw citrus in the microwave for 10-15 seconds to get as much juice out as possible
• add more vegetables if you want, or take some out if you do not like them
• i believe that cheese is similar to garlic... you can never really have too much