Bet the subject line got your attention! Dukkah is a homemade spice mixture that could become a real staple in your kitchen!
I like spice mixtures that can be used in or on just about any type of dish. I have a friend who swears by the stuff and asks me every couple of years to mix her up a batch - PLEASE! There are many versions and it is very adaptable to personal tastes. Here is my basic rendition!
1 cup nuts - your choice (I prefer walnuts and almonds, pistaschios, if I can find them.
1/2 cup sesame seeds
1/2 cup coriander seeds
1/4 cumin seeds
1/8 cup fennel seeds
Generous dash of chili flakes
1 teaspoon coarse salt
Freshly-ground black pepper to taste
Toast nuts and seeds EACH separately. You don't want the flavors to blend at the onset of the mixture. Cool completely and pulse in a food processor until dry and crumbly. You can go fine or coarse depending on your preferences. Do not over process or you have a weird nut/seed butter!
This makes about two cups. Store in the refrigerator in a tightly closed container.
I've seen some versions that include dried apricots or coconut. Once you try your first batch, it is up to you how you'd like to adjust the recipe.
It tastes good on bread brushed with olive oil, on scrambled eggs, etc. It's fun to try whatever sounds good to you.
Thursday, April 7, 2011
My Rant of the Day . . .!
Women are now liberated! What good news. We can now invade all the hallowed halls heretofore belonging only to males. We can become anything we want in life, according to the feminists. If it was formerly a man’s domain, then we should show him how much better we can do it. And even if we can’t do it as well, take it away from him anyway. Although I am of the proper gender to take advantage of this invasion, I find myself uneasy and just a little sad. It seems that in the pursuit of feminine superiority, we have lost so much of what it actually means to be female.
The feminine versus the feminist is definitely in the minority. As we struggle to be all we can be, we watch the liberated women be all that they want to be with the blessings of the world at large and the church in particular. I never paid much attention to the whole matter until it invaded the Church. The dignity of the sanctuary has been jeopardized by pant suits, miniskirts and perfumed grandmothers. The solace we should be able to find in our churches is undermined by the feminist agenda.
There is a small aspect of this revolution, and I know I am in the minority here, that defies reason, dignity for the most part, and promise. And until I had a son serving Mass, I didn’t think about it much one way or the other. I now see altar girls as a potential threat to future, priestly vocations. And I feel sorry for the girls who feel they need to take part in a masculine role and try to make it their own. The influx of girls has cost many boys their rightful place in serving on the altar. In our efforts to be fair to females, boys may be turned from vocations that would be the building of our church’s future. And I don’t believe the retort that girls who serve Mass may go on to be nuns. Of course, some of these girls may find a vocation in religious life. Serving Mass, however is not a step towards the convent while it can be part of the path way to the priesthood.
There is a bonding that can occur between a pastor and his flock of altar boys. This can’t occur easily when females are involved. There are also many moments when the altar servers are alone in the sacristy, helping to prepare for Mass. Placing adolescent boys and girls in close proximity is asking for trouble. As reverent as servers can be on the altar, they are still children.
The cassock and surplice have traditionally been male attire. Putting a young girl into male clothing doesn’t bring dignity to either the Mass or the young lady wishing to serve. My son was in a CCD class the day it was announced that girls could become servers. The reaction of the girls in his class was to stand up and exclaim GIRL POWER! There wasn’t a lot of Christianity or religious feeling evidenced by the girls.
I was raise back in the olden days! I never found myself envying the altar boys at Mass. The nuns of that era said the boys have the future potential to become priests. Serving Mass let’s them experience that possibility to an extent. Girls should happily emulate our Blessed Mother. As much as I have searched in the Bible, I have yet to find an instance where Mary tried to overstep her son or his apostles. She was a nurturer and a keeper of the hearth. She was the Mother of God and accepted her role with love and dignity. When the Holy Ghost came down upon the apostles, Mary shared in those graces. The Apostles went out to preach and Mary channeled her blessings into being a true woman.
I am not sure what women are finding as they crowd around the altar. And I feel sorry for little girls competing with boys on the altar. And I shed tears for the young boys who leave the altar rather than compete. Who will accept responsibility when their path from the altar takes them away from God’s plans for them and, perhaps, even the Church?
The feminine versus the feminist is definitely in the minority. As we struggle to be all we can be, we watch the liberated women be all that they want to be with the blessings of the world at large and the church in particular. I never paid much attention to the whole matter until it invaded the Church. The dignity of the sanctuary has been jeopardized by pant suits, miniskirts and perfumed grandmothers. The solace we should be able to find in our churches is undermined by the feminist agenda.
There is a small aspect of this revolution, and I know I am in the minority here, that defies reason, dignity for the most part, and promise. And until I had a son serving Mass, I didn’t think about it much one way or the other. I now see altar girls as a potential threat to future, priestly vocations. And I feel sorry for the girls who feel they need to take part in a masculine role and try to make it their own. The influx of girls has cost many boys their rightful place in serving on the altar. In our efforts to be fair to females, boys may be turned from vocations that would be the building of our church’s future. And I don’t believe the retort that girls who serve Mass may go on to be nuns. Of course, some of these girls may find a vocation in religious life. Serving Mass, however is not a step towards the convent while it can be part of the path way to the priesthood.
There is a bonding that can occur between a pastor and his flock of altar boys. This can’t occur easily when females are involved. There are also many moments when the altar servers are alone in the sacristy, helping to prepare for Mass. Placing adolescent boys and girls in close proximity is asking for trouble. As reverent as servers can be on the altar, they are still children.
The cassock and surplice have traditionally been male attire. Putting a young girl into male clothing doesn’t bring dignity to either the Mass or the young lady wishing to serve. My son was in a CCD class the day it was announced that girls could become servers. The reaction of the girls in his class was to stand up and exclaim GIRL POWER! There wasn’t a lot of Christianity or religious feeling evidenced by the girls.
I was raise back in the olden days! I never found myself envying the altar boys at Mass. The nuns of that era said the boys have the future potential to become priests. Serving Mass let’s them experience that possibility to an extent. Girls should happily emulate our Blessed Mother. As much as I have searched in the Bible, I have yet to find an instance where Mary tried to overstep her son or his apostles. She was a nurturer and a keeper of the hearth. She was the Mother of God and accepted her role with love and dignity. When the Holy Ghost came down upon the apostles, Mary shared in those graces. The Apostles went out to preach and Mary channeled her blessings into being a true woman.
I am not sure what women are finding as they crowd around the altar. And I feel sorry for little girls competing with boys on the altar. And I shed tears for the young boys who leave the altar rather than compete. Who will accept responsibility when their path from the altar takes them away from God’s plans for them and, perhaps, even the Church?
Time escapes most readily . . .
Interesting to look back and remember how slow time seemed to go when I was a child. It was months and months and months until my birthday or any holiday and once the anticipated event had come and gone, I was back on the lengthy waiting list.
Even with all the planning and preparations for my wedding day, the time seemed to drag. Once the vows were said and done, the 'movie' of my life zipped into fast forward and I find myself 27 years down the road with grown children.
Most of my family enjoy sleeping in on weekends or any chance they get. Even as a child, I was always up first - much to my mother's dismay. I've continued that way my whole life. I don't so much anticipate the day but get up in time to share it's very first moments.
"Oh! do not attack me with your watch. A watch is always too fast or too slow. I cannot be dictated to by a watch." - Jane Austen
Even with all the planning and preparations for my wedding day, the time seemed to drag. Once the vows were said and done, the 'movie' of my life zipped into fast forward and I find myself 27 years down the road with grown children.
Most of my family enjoy sleeping in on weekends or any chance they get. Even as a child, I was always up first - much to my mother's dismay. I've continued that way my whole life. I don't so much anticipate the day but get up in time to share it's very first moments.
"Oh! do not attack me with your watch. A watch is always too fast or too slow. I cannot be dictated to by a watch." - Jane Austen
Wednesday, April 6, 2011
Rainy day didn't happen . . .
After a very warm yesterday, the weatherman almost promised is some rain today. The morning was promising with crisp air and overcast conditions. I started baking bread so, naturally, it warmed up outside immediately! I was kind of hoping for a cool evening to enjoy hot soup and fresh bread. I'm not going to complain TOO much because we are blessed WITH hot soup and fresh bread!
The up and down temperatures are making life interesting. No sooner than we put away our sweaters and jackets, it gets cold . . . then summer hot . . . then rainy . . . I told friends we were having 'menopause weather' with hot weather flashes hitting us without warning!
A good day of working on my household chores so that I could work on a quilt without too much guilt! It is another crazy quilt but twice as crazy as there are six specific shapes yet once they are all sewn together it looks like a scrap quilt. This is my second one with this pattern. It is comprised of 42 squares and besides cutting out the required 336 pieces of fabric, I actually managed to piece together 7 of the 42 squares today.
The soup du jour is Cream of Celery which is a favorite of my younger son. Of my four children, he is the most adventurous in trying new foods and recipes. His siblings are away at college so he is most happy to be playing the part of the 'only' child!
The news sure isn't pleasant for the most part these days! I leave the radio on while I work and . . . deep sigh here! Lots of prayers needed in this old world of ours.
The up and down temperatures are making life interesting. No sooner than we put away our sweaters and jackets, it gets cold . . . then summer hot . . . then rainy . . . I told friends we were having 'menopause weather' with hot weather flashes hitting us without warning!
A good day of working on my household chores so that I could work on a quilt without too much guilt! It is another crazy quilt but twice as crazy as there are six specific shapes yet once they are all sewn together it looks like a scrap quilt. This is my second one with this pattern. It is comprised of 42 squares and besides cutting out the required 336 pieces of fabric, I actually managed to piece together 7 of the 42 squares today.
The soup du jour is Cream of Celery which is a favorite of my younger son. Of my four children, he is the most adventurous in trying new foods and recipes. His siblings are away at college so he is most happy to be playing the part of the 'only' child!
The news sure isn't pleasant for the most part these days! I leave the radio on while I work and . . . deep sigh here! Lots of prayers needed in this old world of ours.
My Blessed Penny . . .
I read a story about a wealthy gentleman who had a habit of stopping to pick up pennies he might come across in his walks. Someone asked him if that was the reason he was well off, that he saved every penny. He said that when he found a penny in his path, he picks it up and reads, "In God We Trust" and takes it as God's reminder that He is always watching out for us. I stopped taking random pennies for granted after that.
Since that time, it seems that whenever I'm between two decisions and finally go against MY inclinations and make the decision that is more correct for the situation at hand, even if it goes against my immediate wants, I almost always run across a penny on the ground soon after. There are no coincidences with God so I usually pocket my penny find, smile, and am renewed in the fact that God cares so much.
Since that time, it seems that whenever I'm between two decisions and finally go against MY inclinations and make the decision that is more correct for the situation at hand, even if it goes against my immediate wants, I almost always run across a penny on the ground soon after. There are no coincidences with God so I usually pocket my penny find, smile, and am renewed in the fact that God cares so much.
California weather . . .
We are at that interesting season in California . . . The one where you stop listening to the weather forecast because the weather is doing it's own thing and it is never quite in line with what they predict. It is an up and down time with temperatures going into the 90's and them plunging back down to much colder temperatures. We were 'promised' rain over the weekend. We had to leave sweaters and jackets in the closet because it was hot! It was warm and windy the last two days yet there is rain in the forecase for the end of the week. I think I'll just greet the day without undue surprise at what the weather actually brings. It's all in God's Hands and He seldom contacts me for my input!
Remembering this would certainly make life easier all around!
“Some say it is unreasonable to be courteous and gentle with a reckless person who insults you for no reason at all. I have made a pact with my tongue; not to speak when my heart is disturbed.” ~St. Francis de Sales
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