The Ties Between Us
In memory of the Great Martin Luther King Jr., sharing a bit of non-food nourishment today.
To sharing the journey…
Eat clean live well!
A Friend of the Mediterranean
My parents taught me to be kind-hearted, loyal, open, trustworthy, honest, real… blah blah blah!
What they should have told me is that sharing beloved recipes would endear me to family and friends instantly! Come on…you know it’s true! I served this recipe over the New Year and my inbox has been stuffed with requests for it ever since.
This recipe has been in my family so long that I’m not even sure where it came from, but I vividly recall my mother tweezing it from a recipe box stuffed like a Build-A-Bear with a variety of paper that would rival any paper mill’s inventory! I’m sure it’s changed from the original, but it’s every bit as yummy (please forgive the out-of-season use of basil)!
In an effort to give credit where it is due, I’d like to thank Delicious magazine, or was it Cooking Light or maybe Vegetarian Times…sometime in the early 90s? My apologies to the author (if you’re out there reading, please chime in). For those interested in making this gluten-free, substitute Job’s Tear’s or sweet brown rice and enjoy!
MEDITERRANEAN BARLEY SALAD
1-1/2 cups uncooked whole barley
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1 cup dry, sun-dried tomatoes (30 halves)
1/2 cup dried apricots (18)
1 small bulb fennel, thinly sliced (3/4 cup)
3/4 cup raw shelled pistachios
1/2 cup chopped fresh basil
3 tablespoons drained capers
24 kalamata olives, pitted and chopped
Lemon dressing
1/2 cup olive oil
1/2 cup fresh lemon juice
2 Tbs. chopped scallions
2 Tbs. flat-leaf parsley
2 large cloves garlic, minced
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
Soak barley overnight. Drain and place in large pot with 3 cups water and 1/2 teaspoon sea salt. Bringing water to a boil, add barley, reduce to a simmer and cook covered until water is absorbed. Remove from heat and set aside to cool slightly before tossing.
In small mixing bowl, cover dried tomatoes and apricots with hot water and soak approximately 15 minutes to reconstitute. Drain soaking water and chop coarsely. Fluff barley and add chopped tomatoes and apricots, plus prepared fennel, pistachios, basil, capers and olives.
In small mixing bowl, whisk together all dressing ingredients. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Pour over salad, toss to coat and serve room temperature.
I like to serve this over greens, with a side green salad (perhaps some arugula, spinach or a raw kale salad) or simply on its own. However you choose, I hope you enjoy it in good health!
Eat clean live well!
New Year’s Winners… and Looking Ahead!
In the final weeks of 2011, predictions for 2012 were everywhere, providing much entertainment value (however little or any truth). Here are some predictions that caught my eye, or at least provided a good chuckle!
Pizza – Expect to see much more of this favorite food…I mean… vegetable!
Nordic Food – It’s time to start foraging for wild and sustainable food, but don’t expect me to painstakingly prepare (and photograph) it!
Doughnuts – The new cupcakes! Both of these crazes allude me (I just don’t care much for cake, but when cookies become the trend, look out!)
PETA “will go on a full-scale campaign to get the country of Turkey to change its name to Eggplant.” (from Esquire.com) – Love that!
Kale Chips – Look for this staple among clean foodies to become highly manufactured and produced. (Shine from Yahoo.com) Seems they’re on to us!
Food Trucks will become even more popular and widely spread. (Post-Tribune)
Food Trucks will become less popular. (Huffington Post) (Are you dizzy yet?)
Fin-to-Tail or Nose-to-Tail or Root-to-Blossom – Call it what you’d like, it’s certainly efficiency. And with no waste…can we call it clean (at least in some regard)?
Goats – The new dairy.
Ethnic Fare – you pick the ethnicity – they’ve all been mentioned in one list or another.
It’s one thing to track trends and another to make actual predictions, but my main focus has always been working to create change. So, instead of predictions, I’ve compiled a top 10 list of intentions for 2012, created with the hope that if we all embrace these ideals, perhaps we can make even more progress toward their coming true. I hope you’ll join me.
1. More home cooking.
2. More shared meals with family and friends.
3. More nourishment from our food, our relationships, our activities, our practices, our careers and our connections.
4. Food that doesn’t require a label, and that is sustainable to grow and produce.
5. More clean food accessible to all, regardless of socio-economic status, regions or any other circumstances that prevent healthy, nutritious food from being available.
6. Widespread awareness and options for those with food sensitivities, allergies and/or intolerances.
7. Less dependency on oil – for processing, packaging and transportation.
8. More education for all ages about making healthy choices – in our schools, in our companies, in our communities, in our healthcare system.
9. More government support of locally grown, organic, sustainable farmers, and farming and less influence from corporate farms in our national policy.
10. Kale! I’m constantly told that this should be my mantra, so inclusion on this list was inevitable. But, consider this. If we all replaced just one of our processed foods with an extra serving of kale (chips, sautéed, salad…), we might be well on our way to being a healthier nation in 2012!
No matter what YOUR intentions for 2012 may be, I wish you a year of discovery, nourishment, growth and connection, and I’ll look forward to sharing it all right here on my blog. To that end, thanks to all who participated in my year-end “Giving Thanks Giveaway!” The final winners are (can we get a drum roll on this thing?)…
Here’s to peace and fulfillment in the year ahead.
Much thanks for being part of this journey to
EAT CLEAN LIVE WELL!
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