A basic loaf of campfire bread

When I’m on vacation, I take time away from my work to indulge in hobbies or totally immerse myself in books. I did both of those this year. But sometimes I still think about my work because it is my passion. So it was no surprise when I decided that one of my dreams for our camping week would be to try and bake bread out in the open. I remember, during my cub scout and girl guide days, how we made an entire kitchen out of gathered wood lashed together with rope and secretly, I always wanted to move out into the wild and see how I could carve out a life from resources I found around me in nature. Now that I am ensconced in a life of ease within the four walls of home, I still take that spirit with me when I go camping.
So armed with directions I found on the Internet, I left on our trip with all that is needed to make a loaf of bread (flour, yeast, salt, a mixing bowl and a baking pan) and all that is needed for an outdoor oven (a large cardboard box lined with aluminum foil and matches). About halfway through the week, when I was needing some new activity other than sleeping, eating, reading and sitting on the beach, I decided it was time to try my hand at outdoor breadbaking. First, I had to scavenge some cans left by litterbugs and fill them at least halfway with sand. Once I had those in hand, I got down to the basics of breadmaking. Take a mixing bowl. Measure 2 1/2 cups of water into it. Set it in the sun until the water reaches a warm temperature. You might be able to read one chapter in your book while the sun does its work. Add two tablespoons of yeast and stir. Let stand for a few minutes while the yeast activates. Slowly you can see the yeast coming to the surface and bubbling. Add 4 c. of flour. Beat with a wooden spoon until the texture is smooth and stringy. Stir in 1 tablespoon of salt mixed with a tablespoon of cold water. Then add enough flour to make a smooth dough. Knead for several minutes until the dough is smooth and elastic. Place back in the bowl and cover with a moistened cloth. Let rise until doubled. While the dough rises, it’s time to start the fire. You don’t need a huge fire but one big enough to provide a nice bed of coals the size of your pan. Jim was eager to build the fire for my baking, knowing that fresh bread might be the result. My daughter, on the other hand, was sure that my cardboard oven would burn. As the fire burned down, the dough rose. It was now time to punch it down, cut it into two pieces and shape them into loaves. I greased two loaf pans, placed the springy parcels in them, set them on a baking sheet and again, let them rise. As these finished rising, we gathered the coals in a space equivalent to the size of my baking sheet and placed the four cans of sand at each corner of the rectangle. Then I placed my baking sheet holding the loaves on these cans and covered the whole thing with my foil-lined box. Finally, I found two large stones that I set under two sides of my box to let some air through to keep the coals burning. All that was left to do was wait. Maybe the box would burn! Or maybe the bread would bake...
After ten minutes, we could smell that sweet aroma of baking bread. Forty minutes later, after numerous other “smellings”, we slowly lifted the cardboard box off of the pans and there they were: two precious loaves of bread awaiting butter and Nutella, perfect for a mid afternoon camping snack. The bread passed the taste test and the whole experiment was deemed a success. Next year, we will try cornbread to accompany campfire chili.

Communing with nature at Presscraft Papers

At least biannually, our family enjoys a break away from the nitty-gritty of life with a trip and sojourn in Canada. For me, it’s a chance to get away from the allergies that come with ragweed season. We drive far enough North that the landscape and climate offer respite from the pollen that attacks me. For everyone, it also becomes a time of renewal and re-creation in the great out of doors. We have been going there for long enough that we can’t quite remember how many times it’s been. When we arrive at our destination, we are always amazed at the loveliness of the Lake Superior coastline and the different moods it creates. From still and sunny to raging white capped waves and rain, we live alongside its life for a week and appreciate the power of nature around us. It puts us back in our place and reminds us that our life is only one small part of a huge vast world that continues to move forward despite us.
On our trip back to Goshen, we often make a special detour so we can stop in at Presscraft Papers. My mother discovered this place when she worked at a camp close by. Now our family continues the tradition. Instead of taking the straight road South, we make a right toward Benzonia, Michigan where Gwen Frostic, owner of Presscraft Papers, lived until her death in 2001. This remarkable woman inspires me in what I do. Her life was dedicated to making us see those things around us in nature that we never take the time to look for. She was an artist who transferred her love of nature to linoleum block prints. In turn, these are still being printed on old Heidelberg presses at Presscraft Papers. So what you will find, if you take the detour, is a couple of miles of country road and, all of sudden, a turn down into a natural grass framed parking lot. The shop is built as though it is a part of the surrounding landscape with an old piece of found wood to open its door and large boulders supporting its frame. Inside, the sound of water greets you as you walk by the natural fountain and you can take your time perusing all the different images Gwen Frostic put to paper. Reflecting our visit to Lake Superior, her prints depict all the moods of nature. An extensive nature library is open to the public for their perusal because Gwen wanted to pass on her passion with others.
The time that I spend at the Gwen Frostic shop is always like a break in time. I enter into this natural environment and let go of the busy driving and the madness outside. I look at her work and peace envelops me. Her snippets of nature slow me down and remind me that what is right around me really matters. When I leave, I find myself thinking about food in that same way. I hope that the work I do makes others stop for awhile away from the busy-ness and the madness and “appreciate loveliness” ( a quote from the Gwen Frostic catalog). Her philosophy is one that says you do what you have to do and that might mean following the beat of a different drummer. In the smallest ways, you can change the world. And food is one of those ways. When I head on back to Goshen, I carry with me that philosophy. I find the goodness around me and hope to spread it on.
Here is a salad that brings out the beauty and flavor of ripe fruit in a simple way.

Summer Salad

1 pint blueberries
1 pint red raspberries
1/2 c. goat cheese, crumbled
1 avocado, peeled and sliced
1 5 oz. bag mixed greens

Arrange mixed greens on six plates. Artistically arrange blueberries, raspberries and avocado. Spread with goat cheese. Serve with balsamic vinaigrette and lime peel.

Friends make party memorable

When the end of July rolls around, for many in this town it means the end of the fair. For me, it also means vacation and birthday time. When I was young, our family often took time out of our daily routines at the end of July to travel and rejuvenate ourselves in a totally different environment. I have celebrated my birthday in Odense, Denmark, Snasa, Norway, Aberdeen, Scotland, Paris, France as well as in my home in Belgium and my home here in Goshen. I also remember a birthday spent at my Grandma Hollopeter’s house in Medina, Ohio. But one of the most memorable birthdays happened here in Goshen on the day that I turned thirty.
I decided to host a group of about forty people to celebrate the passing of the years. Since it was summer and we were having such a large group, I chose to have an indoor/outdoor party. I first designed and addressed all the invitations by hand, choosing friends from various walks of life and making sure that each coming would know at least one other person there. I handed out all the invitations in person about one week before the event, hoping that everyone would be able to come. I specifically asked those coming to bring musical instruments, hoping the evening would end in a jam session. (Many of our friends seem to have musical talents since Jim is a musician himself). I made sure to tell the neighbours that they might be serenaded that night!
Then, I started in earnest with the planning: I needed a great but simple menu, some creative ideas for decorating the place and a good week to get extra cleaning done. The menu took on a Spanish theme with beans, a beer chili stew, salsa and cheese, a green salad and tortilla chips. I also included two of my favorite summer drinks: meadow tea and sangria. I was lucky that my sister and her husband decided to come for the weekend. She helped me with the last minute cleaning on the back porch and went out with me on the byways and back roads to gather wild flowers for our decorations. We had fun finding odd containers, bottles and pitchers around the house to fill with a mix of wild flowers at their peak. I especially remember Queen Anne’s lace and baby blue bachelor buttons, alongside some wild grasses, sitting on the wooden countertop in a green jug. Then we got down to business: meat to cut and sear, onions, sweet peppers and chilies to chop, tomatoes to peel and dice and all of it set to simmer to bring out all of its flavour. Beans were soaked then boiled and again set to simmer with spices. The mint was cut and brewed with sugar, water and lemon to bring the taste of summer to the party. And the last piece of the puzzle: the sangria. I chose this drink because of the pleasant memories I have of sipping it at a party in Barcelona. I love cutting oranges, lemons and limes to release their fragrance in the wine and adding just enough of everything else to make it taste just right. The taste testing doesn’t hurt either.
So there I was. The table was set with dishes and silverware and napkins. The punch bowls were full of minted goodness and ruby red wine. The flowers set a festive note. Soon the guests arrived and the party took off. It was a low-key affair with friendly banter, good company and lively music. As dusk fell, we lit candles on the back porch and voices slowly quieted. The first guest came at 6, the last at midnight. Finally, around two, we said our last good byes, gave a quick once-over to the backyard and rooms, and fell into bed, very happy and very tired. I was now ready to enter my thirtieth decade. Once in a while, it is fun to have a good party!

Sangria

1 bottle of Rioja wine
1 orange, sliced
1 lemon, sliced
1 lime, sliced
1 1/2 cans lemon-lime spritzer
3 T. sugar
3T. orange juice

Slice the fruit. Put it and its juices in the bottom of a small punch bowl. Add the wine, the spritzer, the sugar and the orange juice. Mix well. Allow to sit for several hours so the flavours can mellow. Serve on ice or well chilled. Serves four.

Summer means good things grown locally

Even when the summer heat and humidity seems interminable, I try to look at the positive side of this season. When I shop at the downtown market, I am now inundated with good things to eat. Some of my favourites right now are red raspberries and cherries, followed closely by fresh, unadulterated carrots and new potatoes. Herbs are producing well and we picked and ate the first of our Sungold cherry tomatoes. I think I am truly lucky to have such great, fresh produce so close at hand. I don’t have to go far to get it and the farmer doesn’t have to go far to bring it to town. I’m impressed by what can be grown so close to home.
The past couple of weeks I’ve been thinking about pigs. When we lived on the farm, we only had calves, cows and steers. I also remember chickens and horses but no pigs. So we were happy when we discovered that our kitchen scraps could be used to feed some growing pigs. Friends of ours were raising hogs on a small scale and, along with their healthy feed, they asked us to fill buckets with our kitchen leftovers. These pigs were happy pigs, running in the woods, and even more happy it seems when they knew it was time to get our kitchen scraps. One morning, I rode my bike to see the pigs receiving their breakfast. It was already hot even though still early morning. A slight haze was rising from the ground as my feet walked through the tall wet grass out to their pen. And there they were: a winsome group, snorting slightly as we approached. We climbed over the fence and into their enclosure and they seemed glad to see us, ready to sniff and smell and enjoy some human company. Standing there among them, I made my decision. If these pigs grew up on my scraps, I would have to have some of the meat when butchering time rolled around. What more perfect circle could there be?
So today was butchering day and at least once an hour, I thought about the pigs. I saw them out in the field, imagined them loaded on the truck and awaiting their fate. I know that this meat will have been produced with a diet of love and good food and when I eat it, it will be with the reverence of what it takes to come to my table. I have many friends who don’t eat meat. I have at times cut it out of my diet but ultimately I have chosen to continue to eat meat because I really like it. I also like to know where it comes from. So in this case, happy hogs will make happy eaters. And again, that all this can happen within miles of where I live is awesome!
Next week, I’ll get to savour some meat but meanwhile, I’m still filling up on cherries. I tried my new recipe for cherry salad and I think you’ll agree that it’s a keeper. It’s cool, refreshing and it might raise your spirits like it did mine when I was thinking about the pigs’ final hours.

Fresh Mozzarella and Fresh Cherry Salad

2 c. small fresh mozzarella balls, halved
1 pint fresh cherries, washed and pitted
a handful of cherry tomatoes, halved (I like the Sungold for colour)
2 green onions, diced
1/2 sweet red pepper, diced
1 T. fresh cilantro, chopped
1T. fresh mint, chopped
Mix all of the above. Add vinaigrette.

Balsamic vinaigrette:
1/2 c. olive oil
1/3 c. balsamic vinegar
1/2 t. sugar
1/3 t. dried basil
1/4 t. pepper
1/2 t. salt
Mix well. Take 1/3 c. dressing and add 1 1/2 t. grated lime zest. Mix into salad and serve.

A picnic at the lake will lift the spirit

In the middle of summer, when the heat and humidity become almost unbearable, we have sometimes made our way to the lake. Even if you don’t swim, just walking along the water’s edge can bring a feeling of relief as bare feet sink in the wet sand and splash into the waves. The breeze that comes off the water not only brings relief from the heat. It also soothes the spirit.
We have several artist and craftsman friends who follow the art fair circuit and, in the middle of July, they make their way to the one in St. Joseph, Michigan. So when the sun beats down and Lake Michigan beckons, we plan a Sunday getaway to the Krasl Art Fair. We know that many others will be there too so as soon as we get to town we look for a parking space on a side street and, if we’re lucky, it will be in the shade! We slowly make our way toward Lake Michigan and, on the grassy bluff overlooking the Lake, 200 or so artists have set up their wares for sale. I like to meander among the booths and stop when something catches my eye. Jewelry, fiber arts, painting, printing and photography are represented as well as ceramics, sculpture, wood and paper artists. I enjoy this art fair because of its location and because it offers some of the better art work I’ve seen. It always amazes me to see how creative humans are and how each artist seems to have a passion for their specific art. That in turn gets passed on to me the onlooker and always leaves me with my own creative juices flowing. Sometimes what I see just draws me in and I have to bring that special piece home with me.
I like to have art work in my house. It lifts my spirits when I walk in my front door and it helps me see the world through someone else’s eyes. Sometimes the artist’s view is somber, sometimes it is humorous. Sometimes it even takes the world as I know it and turns it upside down. Art can call to me by its colour or its shape and sometimes it represents a feeling I have better than I could describe it in words. In other words, it sharpens the way I see the world.
I feel that same reverence for food. I know that when I’m cooking or baking, the way I feel about my world will also make its way into the finished product. So when I’m working in the kitchen, I think about those who will eat the food and, depending on what I’m making, I throw in some positive energy or healing energy or even spiritual energy. My love and passion for making food will carry over to those who partake of it and hopefully, it will make them see the world in a new light. Those who gather around the food also bring their own feelings to it and that adds to the eating experience.
So I leave the art fair enriched and I’m finally ready to walk along the beach and soak in some sun. We follow the pier to the edge of the Lake and then make our way to a picnic area with some much welcome shade. We enjoy the light lunch with cold drinks that we packed and brought along and then we lazily return to our car for the trip home, appreciative of a breakaway from our busy life. I leave you with a recipe for a refreshing summer salad that also packs a little heat.

Couscous and Roasted Vegetable Salad with Harissa Dressing

1 large onion, sliced in thin wedges
1 green pepper, sliced in thin wedges
1 red pepper, sliced in thin wedges
1 medium zucchini, sliced
2 large tomatoes, cut in wedges
2 T. fresh basil, cut in thin strips
2 cloves of garlic, minced
1 1/2 c. couscous
1/2 c. feta cheese, crumbled
4 c. mixed greens

Heat oven to 375 degrees. Mix the vegetables ( you can make your own mix depending on what is available), the basil and garlic. Sprinkle with a little bit of olive oil and put in a pan. Roast in oven, stirring every ten minutes until starting to brown, 35 to 40 minutes. Cook the couscous, according to the directions on the package. (I usually add a little bit of butter to the water.) When couscous is cool, place in a bowl. Top with roasted vegetables and feta cheese. Top with greens. Drizzle with dressing as desired.


Dressing (based on a North African sauce)
1/4 c. olive oil
1/2 t. cayenne
1 T. cumin
1 1/2 T. tomato paste
2 T. lime juice

Mix all the ingredients. You can choose how spicy you want it to be by increasing or decreasing the amount of cayenne pepper.

Cherry picking gives a bird's eye view of the world

Yesterday, as I rode my bicycle home from work, I saw amazing flashes of lightning all over the already dark night sky. In their own way, the lightning bugs around me were also performing a natural light show. But tonight it’s time for the human inspired lightning. I can hear small cracks to loud booms coming from every direction as I sit here and write this piece and the smell of gunpowder fills the air. It must be July and that means cherry season is in full swing.
Have you ever gone cherry picking? I have. I lived in a small town on the top of one side of the river valley. Our church building sat on a lot in the next town on the other side of the valley. It had a large grassy lot in the back and on it stood two or three cherry trees. So when the cherries were ripe and before the birds would get to them, we grabbed our biggest Tupperware containers and whatever other large buckets we could find and headed out in the car from our house to the church building. The route took us around a curvy sloping road that turned from blacktop to cobblestone down to the cool and green river valley bottom, and then back up around another bend lined with trees where the surface became blacktop again. We would then be in the next town and make our way to the church building with its parking lot out front. Out we would clamber with our containers and walk around the back to the trees. Back in the days when I was lithe and limber, all I needed was a low branch to swing up on and the cherries were ready for the picking. I liked being up in the tree and looking down on the backyard below. I felt as though I had a bird’s-eye view of the world. Ladders also leaned against the tree trunks so we could reach the branches. The cherries I picked there were not the big ruby juicy cherries that I bought this week at the market. They were yellow cherries with a light red blush. I liked the innumerable colour variations and the feel of the smooth, cool fruit against my fingertips. Of course, as we picked, we would eat our fill and see how many pits we could keep in our mouths at once. We would also use the cherries as earrings if we picked them in strands of two. Slowly but surely, the plink sound would make way to the plunk sound and our tubs would fill up. And just as surely, our bellies would say enough. It was time to go home with our harvest. I don’t remember what we did with those cherries other than eat them on the spot. We knew that for a few short weeks, they would be the best thing on earth.
These days, I do the same thing. I buy some at the market and eat as many as I can, stopping before my belly says enough. But this year, I’m trying out some new recipe ideas with them so that I can enjoy them in more ways than one. My latest idea is for a fresh mozzarella and cherry salad which I’m going to try this week. But meantime, I will give you a recipe for a delicious cake made with cherries and served with cherries. And remember, there’s always the traditional standbys: homemade cherry pie and cherry crumble.

Cherry Sherry Cake

1 1/2 c. flour
1 t. baking powder
1 t. salt
1/4 t. baking soda
1/4 t. ground nutmeg
1/2 c. Sherry
1/4 c. orange juice
3/4 c. butter, room temperature
1 c. sugar
2 large eggs
1 t. vanilla extract
1 t. grated lemon peel
4 c. fresh pitted cherries

For topping: 2 T. sugar and 2 T. butter at room temperature

Heat oven to 400 degrees. Butter 10 inch springform pan. Mix first five ingredients in a bowl to blend. Combine Sherry and orange juice in another bowl. Beat the butter and sugar in a large bowl until blended. Beat in eggs, vanilla and lemon peel. Beat in Sherry mixture in 2 additions alternating with the flour mixture. Transfer to the buttered pan. Sprinkle evenly with 3 c. of fresh cherries.

Bake until cake top is gently set, 20 to 25 minutes. Reduce oven to 375 degrees. Dot top of cake with 2 T. butter and 2 T. sugar. Continue baking for another 10 to 15 minutes. Cool in pan. Release pan sides. Once the cake is totally cool, serve in wedges with real whipped cream and the remaining fresh cherries. Serves 8.

Keeping it simple on humid summer days

As June turns into July, the enveloping humidity starts to take over our world. A walk in the park becomes a drippy shower; a run to the park turns into a sweat bath. But the birds seem to like it. As I wake up, work and later, go for a walk, I experience the bird world at its peak. I hear their singing as I lay in bed not yet ready to get up. Through the windows at work, I see their flying shadows. Later at the park, in the open meadows, we see them flying into the wind, before finally settling down in the trees. Blue herons, cardinals, crows and hawks cross our path. At home, hummingbirds come to visit our feeder. And on a recent jog along the Millrace, I see two Baltimore orioles fluttering around a tree. This bird world reminds me that my world is only one of many that I share with other beings on this planet.
But back to the humidity: I find myself slowing down, my brain not thinking straight and sweating everything I drink. After a long hot day at work, the first thing on my mind when I get home is a cool beverage to quench my thirst before I even start to think about solid foods. So for this week, I choose the motto “Keep it simple”. I focus on foods that do not require a lot from me and yet come through in all their flavour. Good bread, tasty cheese and fresh greens become an old standby. But during these summer months, I think of all the foods in the raw that offer flavours of all sorts to keep me happy. In the woods, nuts and berries bring substance and sweetness. Mushrooms add earthiness. From the fields, sweet corn, tender soybeans and baby potatoes give me starch and grains. In the garden, radishes, baby turnips, greens, carrots, broccoli, green onions offer crunch and freshness. And let’s not forget the garden of herbs (or garden of delights!) with mint, cilantro, thyme, oregano, basil, parsley, chives and sage. I can see already that this list could go on forever and each of you could add your own favorites.
So on a recent summer night, I pulled out my new green marble mortar and pestle, went out and gathered basil, thyme, oregano and parsley, threw them into the mortar with a couple of cloves of garlic and a little bit of salt (advice from my friend, Margaret, and yes, it adds friction to make my work easier) and ground these herbs into a pulp. Then I took some potatoes and sliced them into finger sized pieces, tossed them with some olive oil and the herb mixture, then roasted them in the oven for about an hour. As the potatoes slowly released their aroma, I cooked some sweet corn and Jim fired up the grill to cook some jerk chicken. As dusk fell, we sat out on the porch, watching and listening as the birds settled down, and ate our simple feast along with some crisp baby turnips. Fresh cherries for dessert with maybe a bowl full of Chief ice cream brought the meal to a perfect end. What more would a queen ask for?
So this week, think simple. I include a recipe for Jerk spices that I use on chicken or pork. The meat can be eaten as is or served with the fresh pineapple salsa recipe of a few weeks ago. I also use it in a salad, with mangoes, oranges, fresh pineapple and greens. Or put the meat in a sandwich. Brush the bread with a mixture of olive oil, lime juice, a little bit of sugar and black pepper. Add meat, greens and slices of sweet red pepper. That’s how simple to leads to simple!

Jerk spices

2 t. chili powder
1 t. allspice
1 t. garlic powder
1 t. salt
1/2 t. cinnamon
1/2 t. nutmeg
1/2 t. black pepper
1/4 T. cayenne pepper (or more if you like it hot)

Combine all ingredients. Place meat in a ziploc bag along with the spice mixture and a little bit of olive oil. Let marinade at least two hours or overnight in the refrigerator. Cook as desired.