I do have to venture out to run an errand eventually, but for now I’ve got beef stock cooking in the pressure cooker for a yummy sounding roast beef recipe we’ll have for dinner and loving the sound of the rain.

This afternoon we’ll cheer on our favorite college basketball team in their conference tournament semi-final.

It’s been a quiet couple of weeks around here. I’ve been often frustrated with nothing going on that seems worth sharing, let alone celebrating. The one incredible happening is that I am reading through the Bible during Lent. That’s right 40 days! The. Whole. Bible. And it’s kicking my tail a bit. It’s been wonderful!

Maybe that’s why I’ve been reflecting on these seemingly boring, or uneventful times of life.  Just like we can’t enjoy victory without struggles maybe we can’t enjoy times of adventure, discovery, and productivity if we don’t have our quiet, uneventful, even unproductive times.  It’s the world that glorifies achievement and productivity.  Maybe sometimes the “work” we need to do is to get quiet.  Struggle with the Lord and His plans and purpose for our lives.  Agitate our minds and hearts to weed out the distraction of the meaningless.

“If there is no struggle, there is no progress. Those who profess to favor freedom, and deprecate agitation, are men who want crops without plowing up the ground, they want rain without thunder and lightning.”

Frederick Douglass quotes (American Abolitionist, Lecturer, Author and Slave, 1817-1895)
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Hope you are enjoying a blessed weekend, whether it’s quiet or crazy!

Linking up with my friend, Barbie, today…

Here’s a little video of my older dog, Riley. He has been raised as an indoor dog, but LOVES to go outside and stay there. The other one, Duncan, was an outdoor dog and we adopted him about 18 months ago. He has to be coaxed outdoors, then jumps at the first opportunity to come back in…go figure.

Do you love snow as much as I do?

However, that’s just not possible for someone who is allergic to the allium family (onions, garlic, shallots, leeks, chives, etc.).  Besides the dehydrated onion and/or garlic found in every commercial broth or bouillon I have ever seen on the entire planet, I also want to avoid things like artificial ingredients, MSG, and tons of sodium.  Therefore necessity birthed the following invention.

I haven’t tried it “straight” with boiling water yet, but have found it a handy flavor enhancer for other dishes.  Over the weekend I threw a tablespoon-full into an “okay” pot of a chicken taco soup and turned it fabulous (might have been the cilantro). Just use it as you would other dried bouillon, or mix it with water to make a quick stock substitute (*1 tsp. to 8 oz. of boiling water)

No picture-laden step-by-step here because it’s just too easy.  Chop some carrots and celery stalks into 1 or 2 inch pieces and throw them in your food processor.  Pulse for a while (carrots are noisy), then throw in a bunch of parsley, half a bunch of cilantro and your salt and process some more until it’s the consistency you desire.  I know I won’t use it that quickly in a 3-person household, so I just jarred it up and put it in the freezer.  Because of the salt content it doesn’t freeze solid and you can just scoop out what you need! (In fact, you might notice the frosty jar in the pic above).

I used this in my Sauteed Kale to bump up the flavor since I can’t use garlic, I think the possibilities are limited only by the imagination.  Don’t like cilantro?  Try fresh basil.  If you are not as certain of your palate preferences as I am, make a smaller amount and give it a try.  WARNING: Because of the salt don’t try this straight off a spoon, mix it with some boiling water first (see ratio above*) and sip a sample.

If you give this a try, I’d love to hear how you like it!

Spent time reminiscing with friends and family earlier today about Valentine’s Day during our early school days.  What I seem to remember most is that no matter what the “rules” were, there were ALWAYS children who broke them and excluded the children they didn’t like, or who were “different” (aren’t we all?) in some way, when distributing their valentines.  It broke my heart!  The very design of this “holiday” just ends up leaving some people feeling excluded…even unloved.  It’s one of the reasons it’s never been a favorite of mine, because it leads some to believe a bald-faced LIE!

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You ARE loved…always have been…always will be!

HAPPY VALENTINE’S DAY!