Cockles

I am  writing this post with both feet free and resting comfortably on the floor.  Gone for now are the days of cast-up limbs and crutch-hobbling!  To celebrate, I went on a lovely walk with M yesterday.  It was tough going.  My ankle was stiffish and my heel protested strongly against each footfall.  I thought for sure I'd be half lame today.  I was certainly stiff in the joint when I got up this morning, but I'm ecstatic to report that after returning from walk #2, my ankle is worlds better!  If this keeps up, I should be back to normal in a week or two.  And that is a thought that warms the cockles of my heart.  (I've always wanted to use that expression.)

Yesterday our cow was milked.  Alright, it's not our cow, but it's the cow that gives us our milk so in a matter of speaking, it's our cow.  When the milk comes, it brings with it a special treat.  First we boil the milk to pasteurize it and then we make it into yogurt.  But, some of the milk is put aside.  This milk is ladled into mugs, mixed with a small spoon of sugar and served warm alongside biscotti for dipping.  It is a treat that the children look forward to ever so much!  I can testify, there's not much to top the taste of fresh warm milk with a dash of sugar!  (Unless we're talking about homemade caramel, but I digress...)

The other day one of our neighbours had some refuse to dispose of, so they burned it.  It made the whole neighbourhood smell like autumn!  The smokey tang seeped through the air and positively warmed my bones.  And the cockles of my heart, if it must be told.  It reminded me of home.  The chills that necessitate a warm sweater and a scarf and the gorgeous richness in each leaf of red and gold.  I will let you know if the mountains have yet changed their green garments for more colourful apparel.  Here in the plains, green reigns supreme.  

Gearing up for the winter months here begins in warm months with canning and pickling.  Technically, we don't can.  We jar.  The main spotlight rests on tomato sauce.  Then the pickling.  Cucumbers, stuffed eggplant, olives, etc.  I guess the olives aren't pickled, but they're certainly a large part of the whole experience.  It's kind of fun getting food ready for the winter.  Perhaps that's due in part to fact that many hands make light work, and everyone is around to chatter and gossip while hands are flying.  If only the weather would reflect the cozy nature of the work.  I am longing for the cold, and can't wait to wear long sleeves!  It will definitely warm the cockles of my heart when the weather turns...

One week left to go

I am sitting here and thinking how much I am going to love watching the doc saw the cast off of my leg.  You know how you get all cranky and restless towards the end of a long winter?  It's kind of the same feeling.  Guess it's time to count some blessings, but all I can think of right now is caramel.  A pot of hot, ooey, gooey caramel being taken off the stove, poured into a pan and cooling into creamy, chewy caramels.  Yum.

Yes sir, I am hankering to make caramel.  Have been for a couple of weeks now.  In fact, every molecule in my body is yelling "C-A-R-A-M-E-L"!  I even found a recipe that uses honey instead of corn syrup (which they don't have here).

This brings us to the point: why haven't I made it yet?  I haven't made it yet because D has been teasing me about make too many sweets.  In my defense, I've probably made two cakes in the past month.  I think that's a stellar record.  I will freely admit however that the cream part makes me a little nervous as I know I will consume LARGE quantities of the finished confection.  Perhaps I should embrace my original plan and make the caramel into chocolate robed truffles and give them away as housewarming gifts.  That is, all except for the select few (read dozen) required for taste-testing.  Yes, I'd feel much better about that.

In other non-caramel news, M has started school as of last week.  The first day was the hardest for him, I think.  He's gotten used to the routine and doesn't put up a fuss anymore.  Some of the other little ones, bless them, haven't adjusted yet.  J misses her brother while he's at school.  She asks for him periodically throughout the morning.  It's so sweet to see how much she loves him.

Yesterday M came up to me and asked, "Mama, can you get a baby in your tummy?"  It was cute, and slightly random!  Anyhow, I told him he'd have to pray about that one.  This morning he came to me and told me, "Mama, I prayed.  I said, 'God, please give me a baby.'"  Oh my.  Oh my indeed...

Weather update: It's a sunny 31 degrees today.  Tomorrow it'll be the same.  So much for my earlier predictions of rain and cold...

Cold and cookery

Contrary to what the picture above may imply with its blue skies and sunny background, the rain seems to have set in for us here in Lebanon.  We are bunkering down for the colder months - storing up the harvest so to speak and searching around for our long sleeves and sweaters.  We've stopped watching the stars at night and started watching the weather channel.  :o)  Kidding.

Working with yarn makes me particularly happy right now.  Something warm and woolly in my hands - a perfect contrast to the chilly weather.  I've even finished my first crocheted mouse!  I think she needs a friend for company, so stayed tuned for round II.  (On a completely random note, those origami bunnies featured below were a rainy day diversion to keep the monkeys occupied until lunch time.)

I love the crisp winds that blow the rain to us.  I love watching the heat of summer being chased away by the cold cleansing rains.  It does my heart good to wear long sleeves again!  I am looking forward to writing about Lebanon in the winter months since it'll be a first for me.  I wonder how it compares to Canada?

Another comfort that comes to mind with cold weather is cream of wheat.  My mom used to make cream of wheat a lot in the winter when we were young.  I liked mine extra creamy with plenty of sugar.  Old habits die hard apparently.  I still prefer my food extra creamy and sweet...

Anyhow, my mother-in-law recently showed me how to make a Lebanese sweet called Smeediyeh.  It is essentially a cream of wheat cake.  And it is D-E-L-I-C-I-O-U-S!  Let me extol its virtues for a brief moment.  It is creamy.  Mmmm-hmmm.  I'm talking somewhat-related-to-cheesecake-creamy.  It is filling in small quantities.  And the sweetness factor is customizable for each serving.  Yup, it's true.  This cake has no sugar in it.  Its sweetness relies on a sugar syrup drizzled on top.  This cake, my friends, is perfect for breakfast, a sweet accompaniment to tea, and, of course, lovely as a dessert.  And since it's been almost a month since I posted a real recipe on this blog (the last entry doesn't really count...), I've decided that I am going to share the recipe with you!  (If you're not Lebanese and you've never tried your semolina this way, you'll thank me later...)

CREAM OF WHEAT CAKE (SMEEDIYEH)

4 cups milk

3/4 cup fine semolina

1 Tbsp rose water

1/2-3/4 cup fine graham cracker crumbs

1/2 Tbsp butter, melted

Take melted butter and pour into bottom of a 9" or 10" round cake pan (rectangular or square work just as well).  Place 1/4 cup graham cracker crumbs on the bottom of pan and shake gently until entire bottom is evenly coated.

Place milk, semolina and rose water into large pot and stir well.  Place on med-high heat, stirring frequently until mixture thickens.  Let boil for 1 minute, then remove from heat.  Pour this cream of wheat mixture into the pan on top of graham cracker crumbs.  Smooth the top with a spatula.  Sprinkle the remaining graham cracker crumbs even on top.  Place in oven for about 10-12 minutes until top is nicely browned.  (I imagine that you can use the broiler on low for a few minutes towards the end if your oven isn't as cooperative and your cake isn't a toasted golden brown...)

Remove from oven and let sit for about 20 minutes.  Serve warm drizzled with sugar syrup.  (Here, we keep the syrup in a small bottle or gravy-style dish so people can use as much or as little as they like.)

NOTE:  I don't know of anyone who has tried to remove this cake from it's pan.  It's not runny, but it's definitely tricky... probably like trying to remove a cheesecake from a regular pan.  What I think would work perfectly would be a springform pan.  I don't have one, so I can't be 100% sure.  I have seen it served in a glass casserole dish which looks prettier for company, so there's a tip if you are serving it to guests and you don't have a springform pan.

Sugar Syrup (attar)

1/2 cup sugar

1/4 cup water

1/2 Tbsp rose water

1/2 Tbsp orange blossom water

Heat sugar and water on high until boiling.  Turn heat to low and let boil gently for about 15-20 minutes until syrup is a little "tacky" when placed between two fingers.  (Caution: Syrup is hot! Take a spoon aside and let cool slightly before testing for tackiness.)  Add rose water and orange blossom water, stir.  Serve atop cream of wheat cake.

A breath of fresh air

With my leg all cast up, I'm a little challenged in the mobility department.  It makes life a leeeeeetle more complicated.  Not to mention showering... don't get me started there!  I have, nonetheless, managed to stay sane with a few little projects.  I finished M's hat.  It's a cross between a bear, a mouse and a monkey.  Basically, whichever he feels like at any given moment.  For now, he's Tom Thumb the mouse from Beatrix Potter's "The Tale of Two Bad Mice".  I've also finished up a small crocheted mouse.  Pictures to follow once I get the eyes and nose sorted out.

That brings me to food.  I'm no gourmet, but I made this delicious cream sauce last week.  We had it with macaroni noodles, but I can see it going well with rice, or even atop chicken.  No recipes for this delicious cream sauce.  It was a sort of spiritual affair.  Lots of soul and very little measuring.  I'll tell you how it came together though.  Roughly chop tomatoes, simmer them in a pot on the stove until the juice is abundant and the flesh is tender.  Steam fresh peas and add to tomatoes when soft.  Saute onions on the side with mushrooms pieces in olive oil.  Add everything together.  Add whole milk powder (I'm guessing cream works if you don't have that) until it reaches the desired creaminess.  Add salt to taste.  Spoon over noodles, rice, chicken breasts, or anything really that tickles your fancy!

In other news, my son is somewhat obsessed with the story of Samson.  We have a children's picture bible and every day we read some stories in it before bedtime.  Lately, we've been reading Samson a lot.  A lot.  M is convinced that if anyone cuts their hair, they'll lose their strength.  And possibly that the Philistines will throw them in jail.  Kind of funny to think about, but what an imagination.  Anyhow, he loves that story.

While both our babies are readers, J is more of a Barnyard Dance (by Sandra Boynton) gal.  She also likes story songs with corresponding actions.  When we read, that girl means business!  What I love most is watching those two when they read to themselves.  M has memorized several stories and he delights in reading them to J.  She isn't always interested for the length of time that M enjoys, but she does love when he reads to her.  They're sort of in an transitional stage where they alternate between poking-each-others-eyes-out-enemies, and best friends.  I'm wondering, on a purely theoretical level at this point, which way the scale will tip...?

This morning we woke up to sweltering heat.  I'll be honest, it was hard to experience that kind of heat in October!  As the day wore on, the clouds gathered and grew darker until around 2:30 pm, we had our first thunderstorm of the season.  It was perfect.  The rain washed the whole world around us.  The cool air blew in threw the windows with the refreshing smells of fresh dug earth, and rain-washed leaves.  The air seemed to be cleaner and fresher with the rain.  Sort of like the heat and the smoke and pollution were all washed away by that shower.  It was literally a breath of fresh air.  Very needed, and much welcomed.  The shower lasted about two hours.

And then the kids went out to play in the puddles.  The perfect end to my day.