Hitting Send

For me, the kitchen is the heart of the house, the place from which the home gets its warmth and inner glow and its occupants receive nourishment. My clearest early childhood ‘kitchen memory’ is an excited and joyful three-year-old toe-headed me looking up at my mother as she prepared pancake batter. She had a way of making it so special, as she smiled down at me and explained that we were going to add a “secret ingredient”. Man she was clever! lol She would bring her finger to her lips and say, “Shhhh, it’s a secret!” as she added a healthy ingredient I would otherwise reject. haha mom! Then she would top my pancake with fruit in the shape of a happy face! I was hooked on this kitchen place from which fun could be had making yummy treats. (It helped that mom was making everything from scratch at this time. Yogurt, bread, tortillas, pies, cookies, pancakes, jams and pizza. Mmmm… good start, yes? )

I became more hands-on as a six year-old in Amsterdam. My mom was working at a vegetarian restaurant and I was allowed to help out in various ways, such as cookie making. *grin* I remember sitting on a stool rolling dough into balls as I watched the people come and go. It was great fun which allowed me to enjoy the nurturing environment of the kitchen and socialize a bit at the same time.

I began really exploring my own inner chef around the age of ten. Although I think it was at the age of twelve that I fell for my mother’s copy of Joy of Cooking which truly led to my exploration in blending flavors, mixing herbs and spices, the ways in which certain meats were best cooked, when to undermix in baking, how to heat sugars and chocolates, and most importantly, when to set the cookbook down and trust yourself. In all honesty, I tend to ‘eyeball’ measurements, especially when cooking, as opposed to baking which is far more of an exact science requiring proper proportions. That said, I treasure certain recipes I’ve acquired over the years and treat their directions respectfully by following them. Some of these were passed down to me through the matriarchs in my family, from my greatgrandmother, or grandmother, or mother, and others I’ve been given by dear friends, or even from the newspaper. Although, I find that there really is something quite special about following a recipe knowing that the beautiful women in my lineage followed them before me.

Wherever the recipes I share derived from, my hope is that they will be appreciated in your home’s heart. Whether cooked solely, or in a bonding experience shared, may they nourish your body, mind and spirit! Hint: the secret is always Love! Here are a couple of Fall soup recipes I’ve enjoyed a great deal.

The most basic soup I have been making for myself is this Lentil. Lovely with cheesy melted sandwiches or quesadillas. Yum!

Ingredients

* 2 tablespoons olive oil
* 1 cup finely chopped onion
* 1/2 cup finely chopped carrot
* 1/2 cup finely chopped celery
* 2 teaspoons kosher salt
* 1 pound lentils, picked and rinsed
* 1 cup peeled and chopped tomatoes (optional for me! lol)
* 2 quarts (8 cups) chicken or vegetable broth,
or, purified water will still taste great!
* 1/2+ teaspoon freshly ground coriander
* 1/2+ teaspoon freshly ground toasted cumin

Directions

Place the olive oil into a large 6-quart Dutch oven and set over medium heat. Once hot, add the onion, carrot, celery and sweat until the onions are translucent, approximately 6 to 7 minutes. Add the lentils, tomatoes, broth, coriander, cumin and then stir to combine. Increase the heat to high and bring just to a boil. Reduce the heat to low, cover and cook at a low simmer until the lentils are tender, approximately 35 to 40 minutes. (Optional: Using a stick blender, puree to your preferred consistency.) It’s been my experience that salt should always be added at the end. Serve immediately.

* 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
* 2 medium white onions, diced
* 2 garlic cloves, minced
* 2 jalapenos, seeded and minced
* 3 ripe medium tomatoes, chopped
* 1 quart chicken stock, recipe follows
* Salt and freshly ground black pepper
* Canola oil, for pan-frying
* 8 corn tortillas, cut into 1/8-inch-thick strips
* 1 1/2 cups shredded cooked chicken
* 2 avocados, halved, pitted, peeled, and diced
* 1 cup shredded Jack cheese, optional
* 1/2 cup coarsely chopped fresh cilantro leaves, for garnish
* 1 lime, cut in wedges, for serving

Directions

Place a stockpot over medium heat and coat with 2 tablespoons of the olive oil. Add the onions, garlic, jalapenos, and tomatoes; cook, stirring for 15 minutes until the vegetables are cooked down and pulpy. Pour in the stock, season with salt and pepper, and simmer for 20 minutes.

Meanwhile, heat 1-inch of canola oil in a skillet over medium-high flame. When the oil begins to smoke, add the tortilla strips in batches and fry until they are crisp on all sides. Remove to a paper towel-lined platter and sprinkle with salt while they are still hot.

Ladle the hot soup into 4 soup bowls and put a pile of shredded chicken on top of each. Top with the diced avocado and fried tortilla strips (and cheese if using). Garnish with cilantro and serve with lime wedges.

Chicken Stock:

1 whole free-range chicken (about 3 1/2 pounds), rinsed, giblets discarded
2 carrots, cut in large chunks
3 celery stalks, cut in large chunks
2 large white onions, quartered
1 head of garlic, halved
1 turnip, halved
1/4 bunch fresh thyme leaves
2 bay leaves
1 teaspoon whole black peppercorns

Place the chicken and vegetables in a large stockpot over medium heat. Pour in only enough cold water to cover (about 3 quarts); too much will make the broth taste weak. Toss in the thyme, bay leaves, and peppercorns, and allow it to slowly come to a boil. Lower the heat to medium-low and gently simmer for 1 to 1 1/2 hours, partially covered, until the chicken is done. As it cooks, skim any impurities that rise to the surface; add a little more water if necessary to keep the chicken covered while simmering.

Carefully remove the chicken to a cutting board. When its cool enough to handle, discard the skin and bones; hand-shred the meat into a storage container.

Carefully strain the stock through a fine sieve into another pot to remove the vegetable solids. Use the stock immediately or if you plan on storing it, place the pot in a sink full of ice water and stir to cool down the stock. Cover and refrigerate for up to one week or freeze.

Yield: 2 quarts

Delicious Autumn! My very soul is wedded to it, and if I were a bird I would fly about the earth seeking the successive Autumns.”

Last week the fog rolled in and brought with it a crisp Fall feel! It was lovely, and I found myself so ready for the drawing down and in of energy which occurs this time of year. Granted, the temps may have gone back up to 88 degrees here today, but, as the Autumnal Equinox quickly approaches, I find myself making soup and decorating with the gloriously beautiful fallen leaves. This ‘changes of the seasons’ is an important time-honoured tradition of giving thanks, and as always, I was curious to learn more about the lore and celebrations surrounding it.

The Autumnal Equinox signals the end of the Summer months and the beginning of Winter. At this time of year, days have been shortening since the Summer Solstice some three months earlier, and the Equinox (Latin “equal night”) is the point where nights reach the same length as days. After this point, the Sun will shine lower and lower on the horizon until the Winter Solstice. In the northern hemisphere, the Autumn Equinox occurs on September 22, at 11:44 a.m. EDT.

Formerly known as “Harvest”, until our more industrialized lifestyles lost touch with the reference, this time of year is now known as “Fall” or “Autumn”. Harvest festivals evolved out of agrarian society, and have been celebrated for millennia, all around the world. In ancient Greece, Oschophoria was a festival held in the fall to celebrate the harvesting of grapes for wine. In the 1700’s, the Bavarians came up with Oktoberfest, which actually begins in the last week of September, and it was a time of great feasting and merriment, still in existence today. China’s Mid-Autumn festival is celebrated on the night of the Harvest Moon, and is a festival of honoring family unity. Japan’s Higan (“other shore”) is observed for three days prior to and following the equinox, and the ritual includes repentance of past sins and prayers for enlightenment in the next life. It also includes remembrance of the dead and visits to the family graves.

In Celtic/Welsh mythology, the equinox is known as Mabon (MAY-bon, MAY-bun, MAH-boon and more) for the Welsh God, Mabon, which means “Great Son of the Great Mother”. The story goes that he was kidnapped from the Great Mother, Modron, when he was but three days old (although I’ve seen references to its being three years) and is taken to the Underworld to prevent his light from shining upon the land. He was much smarter than the Lord of the Underworld thought. During his stay within the Earth he gathered his personal strength and momentum necessary to become new seed. He knew his rescue was at hand, and when the time came, he had the power to fertilize the barren Earth and green it once more.

This has many similarities to the Greek mythology surrounding this time of year. Mabon is, in many ways, the male counterpart of the Roman Goddess Persephone. Demeter’s daughter Kore was out picking flowers when Hades pulled her into the Underworld to become his bride. Kore’s name became Persephone when she married Hades. For nine straight days, Demeter searched for her daughter Kore, with no success. When she learned of where her daughter was being held captive, she put a curse upon Earth so that it could no longer yield crops. Eventually an arrangement was made whereby Persephone lived with her mother for the half of the year when light dominated, and went to live with her husband during the half of the year when darkness reigned the Earth.

“Autumn is a second spring when every leaf is a flower.”

As the energies shift, the harvest is not only agricultural, but personal as well. As with Lammas, it is a time to celebrate the Earth’s bounty and thank Her for the Blessings She brings forth, on this second harvest. For this, we are grateful. It is also time to look at what seeds we have planted within. If we planted negative thoughts in our head, well, the harvest may not be so nice. We are farmers with our thoughts, ideas and emotions as much as a farmer who uses soil as his medium. That is why it is so important to put our attention on what we truly want to experience, and then create the correct atmosphere (attitude or medium) for that to manifest. How successful would a farmer be if he planted watermelon seeds but then never watered, fed, or weeded that area? It isn’t enough to want to experience something. We must create the receptive environment for it to show up so that our harvest is a successful one! The Autumn Equinox symbolizes harvest time outwardly and inwardly.

But there is more to it than that. Because of Mabon’s association with the Underworld, it’s also a great time to remember our ancestors, and those who have gone before us. A time to give thanks for the beautiful gifts they’ve left behind in its many forms. Because of this, Mabon is a time of total thanksgiving-a time when we give thanks for all that we have, for all that we are, and for all that the future holds, not only for us personally, but for those yet unborn. It is a time to reflect on the joys of community, personal freedom, and the wonders of the human species as a whole. Communally counting our many blessings, and giving thanks to everyone who’s made them happen.
Autumnal Equinox/Mabon Blessings to all! Blessed Harvest!

Kathryn Hall of Plant Whatever Brings You Joy has started a great blogging community initiative to knit warm scarves for schoolgirls in a remote region of Pakistan. Kathryn was inspired by reading Three Cups of Tea, a dramatic tale of a mountaineer lost on the slopes of K2, who is rescued by the inhabitants of a remote village. From that act of kindness and sheer chance, the mountaineer, Greg Mortensen, returned to the United States determined to start a school for girls back in Pakistan. Having read the book, Kathryn explains the story much better than I can (see the above link) and would like to help in a more practical way than just giving money. So she’s come up with the idea of knitting warm scarves for the girls. A number of blogging pals in the States have pledged to join her and I am hoping to inspire readers to join in sharing the Love!

From her post on the book: “To reveal many details of Greg’s life as it transpires would be a travesty, so rich is this story so deftly told in Three Cups of Tea. The subtitle, One Man’s Mission to Promote Peace…One School at a Time, however, gives license to sharing these most incredible photos, all shared courtesy of the Central Asia Institute~

Reading about Greg and seeing pics of the children, Kathryn wrote: “A dream and vision has lodged in my heart and it will not go away. I want to adopt one of the schools Greg Mortensen has set up in Pakistan and rally the hearts and hands of readers to make scarves for at least one classroom of girls to help them stay warm through the winter.” And so began her latest project! I’m hoping that people will feel inspired as well, if not to knit scarves, perhaps to give in another way that feels right for you. I really Love the idea of wrapping them in something handmade with Love, just for them! How could one not want to help these Beautiful children?

New school uniforms–for many the first new clothes ever received~

This is a photo of the road to Askole village, which will be traversed in order to get the scarves to children in Askole village!

Scarves should be five feet long and one foot wide. Use whichever colours or materials inspire you, but it gets cold in the Winter. They can be knitted or crocheted. November 1st is the deadline for scarves being ready to be boxed and shipped to Pakistan. Please contact Kathryn at joyblog (at) aol.com Thank you for your time in passing this along to others who may want to participate!
Many Blessings
♥Antonia

Esoteric teachings contend that men and women have an “auric” or Subtle Body as well as a physical body. This energy field, which extends beyond that of the physical body, generates a kind of subtle “field” or aura, which can be seen by sensitives. The aura changes colour and shape in resonance to our emotions and general physical condition; and it also contracts or expands. In recent years scientific research tends to support the traditional view of the aura and Subtle Body system. Colour photographs taken using a technique known as Kirlian photography illustrate changes in the aura. Various theories explain telepathy and other ESP phenomena by the existence of an auric or “psi plasma” field. These findings support and throw light upon the teachings of the Subtle Body related in Eastern cultures.

The earliest known mention of chakras is found in the later Upanishads, including specifically the Brahma Upanishad and the Yogatattva Upanishad. These vedic models were adapted in Tibetan Buddhism as Vajrayana theory, and in the Tantric Shakta theory of chakras. It is the ‘Shakta Theory of 7 Main Chakras’ that most people in the West adhere to, either knowingly or unknowingly, largely thanks to a translation of two Indian texts, the Sat-Cakra-Nirupana, and the Padaka-Pancaka, by Sir John Woodroffe, alias Arthur Avalon, in a book entitled The Serpent Power. In Hinduism and its spiritual systems of yoga and in some related eastern cultures, as well as in some segments of the New Age movement — and to some degree the distinctly different New Thought movement – a chakra is thought to be an energy node in the human body. The word comes from the Sanskrit “cakra” meaning “wheel, circle”, and sometimes also refers to the “wheel of life”. The pronunciation of this word can be approximated in English by ‘chuhkruh’, with ch as in chart, the commonly found pronunciation ’shockrah’ is incorrect. While the seven major chakras are located at major nerve connection points within the body, the chakras do not actually exist within the physical system, but are a subtle “plasma field”, or Subtle Body, which vibrates at specific frequencies, taking on subtle shapes, sounds and colours.

As with all things in our reality, they are linked to sound, light and color.

The seven main chakras are described as being aligned in an ascending column from the base of the spine to the top of the head and are each associated with a certain colour, multiple specific functions, an aspect of consciousness, a classical element, and other distinguishing characteristics. Life force energy, known as prana in Sanskrit, or qi in Chinese-based systems, flows up through the chakra “wheels” and vitalizes our physical body, serving as a source of strength, intelligence, and transcendence while nourishing and harmonizing our whole being: body, mind and spirit.

The first chakra is the base or root chakra, Muludhara, and is related to security, survival and also to basic human potentiality and although no endocrine organ is placed here, it is said to relate to the inner adrenal glands, the adrenal medulla, responsible for the fight and flight response when survival is under threat. This center is located in the region between the genitals and the anus, its colour is red, its element is Earth and its function is self-preservation. It is linked to our physical survival, vitality, stability, patience, courage, and material success. It is our life force energy which connects us to Earth and this physical plane.

The second chakra is the sacral or sex chakra, Svadhisthanna, and is related to emotion, sexuality and creativity and is said to correspond to the testes or the ovaries. This center is located about two to three inches below the navel and is connected to our groin, its colour is orange, its element is Water and its function is self-gratification. It is linked to our sexuality, passion, physical force, vitality and strength. It is also where we hold onto our guilt/shame about our sexuality.

The third chakra is the solar plexus or power chakra, Manipura, and is related to energy, assimilation and digestion, and is said to correspond to the roles played by the pancreas and the outer adrenal glands, the adrenal cortex. This center is located just below the rib cage, its colour is yellow, its element is Fire and its function is self-definition. It is linked to our identity, personality, and brings us confidence, personal power, and spontaneous reaction. When functioning properly it is the place from which we radiate our warmth and inner glow. Blockages here manifests as anger or a sense of victimization.

The fourth chakra is the heart chakra, Anahata, and is related to love, equilibrium, and well-being and relates to the thymus, which is part of the immune system as well as being part of the endocrine system. This center is located in located in the chest at the sternum, its colour is green, its element is Air and its function is self-acceptance. It is our emotional center, and promotes love, compassion, understanding and forgiveness. It is the center of the chakra system, and as loving ourselves is the foundation of good health, so to is the heart chakra a powerful healer. Blockage can manifest as immune system or heart problems, or a lack of compassion.

The fifth chakra is the throat chakra, Vishuddha, is said to be related to communication and growth, growth being a form of expression. This chakra is paralleled to the thyroid, a gland that is also in the throat, and which produces thyroid hormone, responsible for growth and maturation. This chakra is located at the center of our throat, its colour is blue, its element is Ether/Sound and its function is self-expression. It is linked with communication, self-expression, sounds, and is the bridge between ourselves and the outside World. Not only does it feel pressure when you are not communicating your emotions properly, but many throat problems are said to be caused by communicating too much or too little.

The sixth chakra is the brow chakra or third eye, Ajna Chakra, and is linked to the pineal gland. Ajna is the chakra of time and awareness and of light. The pineal gland is a light sensitive gland, that produces the hormone melatonin, which regulates the instincts of going to sleep and awakening. It also produces trace amounts of the psychedelic chemical dimethyltryptamine. It is located between the eyebrows, its colour is indigo, its element is Thought and its function is self-reflection. It is linked with vision, intuition, concentration, and insight.

The seventh chakra is the crown chakra, Sahasrara, and is said to be the chakra of consciousness, the master chakra which alligns and balances all the other chakras. Its role would be very similar to that of the pituitary gland, which secretes hormones to control the rest of the endocrine system, and also connects to the central nervous system via the hypothalamus. The thalamus is thought to have a key role in the physical basis of consciousness. It is located just above the head, its colour is violet, its element is Light and its function is self-knowledge. It is said to vitalize our upper brain, promote positive thought patterns, inspiration, imagination, and spiritual well being. It is also our connection with the Divine/Source and constantly channels energy into our “being”.