Lunch lady in the tiny kitchen...

Many of my hours are spent contemplating how to nourish 45 children. All of these children are under the age of six. i believe that the majority of our eating habits (as well as the fundamentals of our relationship with food) are well formed by the time we begin to lose baby teeth. With that  fact in mind it is a fascinating to watch the eating styles of the different age groups within the school. 

The younger ones, generally are the best eaters and tasters. Whether it is a sensory exploration of the food or an actual nourishing occurrence, they consistently eat a wider variety of foods than the older kids. Our three-four year old group does a wonderful job of trying new things and will often follow each others lead when a friend tastes it and asks for more. 

In our four-five year old room however, the children are strongly opinionated about what they already do like and do not like. We encourage everyone to have an adventure bite of any food that is new, sometimes they do, once again often if a friend has done so first and exclaimed it to be delicious. However, in this room i notice that new foods get passed to the next person quickly without placing a bit on their plate first. i spend quite a lot of time thinking upon how to inspire them to try something different.

Lentils are a favorite of mine and, depending on how they are prepared, the children will eat them. If it is in a soup, yes, if they are in the form of an indian Daal, not so much. Recently i mixed lentils with slow roasted onions and cheddar cheese and folded them into a butter based pie crust. The results were devoured. (Who can resist pie of any sort, truly...?)

Learning to navigate the space of the small kitchen, as well as the large appetites of the small children i seek to nourish are challenges that i find myself excited about these days. As Autumn descends outside our doors, the winds encourage us to find cozy corners in which to nestle, for me the kitchen seems my favorite spot to choose. 

Liberation in the form of Spray Paint...

             Magic Happens Everyday


A can of spray paint, actually several, and some bottles of hair dye, recently accompanied me through my day. My 84 Subaru, Datura Digitalis Love fearlessly was recently returned to us after being borrowed by a very talented film (and magic) maker friend for an international adventure. This car has served me well on many many journeys and as it is the end of summer and her paint was wearing, it seemed fitting to give her a slight makeover for the autumn to come.
            It seemed fitting to give myself one as well...

In autumn comes the beginning of the gray.

This year it comes in the form of heavy mist in the morning, giving way to eighty degree sunshine in the afternoon. None the less, you can feel the gray.
It is the desire to wear sweaters, to make food in the slow cooker, to have a hooded article of clothing by your side.
People who  live in the Pacific Northwest love to complain about the rain, the consistent drizzle and dull constant of the sky,
many of us however welcome it into our heart.

We love making soup that takes all day, filling the house with an aroma of depth, or curling up in a comfy chair with a beloved book and taking long pauses to stare blankly out at the rain (okay those of us that are parents dream of doing this...) Rainy days are an inspiration to cover the kitchen floor with paper and bowls of paint and allow the kids to create chaos.

We could however, 

amidst all that gray,

embrace color a little more fervently. 

Sometime the grayness finds its way into our closets, we begin to blend into our surroundings. I think Datura is trying to be a source of inspiration to wear bold colors,

 to stand out against the background of our habitat, 

the backdrop of our comfortable habits.

                                                                      

Back to the school Yard... Berry Oat Bars...

The day was a flutter.
Or more like a blur.

There was a baking flurry that involved vegan raisin cinnamon ginger muffins, chocolate granola bars gone wrong (an attempt to substitute brown sugar for honey that did not hold together...thank you to the bees for the magic they create with flower nectar...) and delicious brown sugar oat shortbread cookie bars topped with raspberry preserves and crumble... salty sweet perfection.

A recipe.

This makes a large sheet pan worth of cookies, i imagine they freeze well or if you feel like sharing, your neighbors or friends will appreciate them... or if you like, make a half recipe...

Pre heat oven to 350

Mix 1 1/2 cups oats in a cuisinart... till they resemble flour

Add

1 lb butter- cut into tiny cubes and cold

Mix in a cuisinart, or by hand, with:

1 1/2 cups brown sugar

1/2 cup oats 

 3 1/2 cups flour

1 12/ teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon nutmeg

Mix until it resembles sand, or, if you squeeze some with your fist it mostly holds together

Line a baking sheet with parchment or foil,

press all but about 2/3 cup into the sheet pan

Chill the sheet pan for a bit in the refrigerator if you have time, and what you have left in the freezer.

Remove sheet pan from fridge and spread 3/4 cup raspberry jam across the shortbread in an even layer with a spatula

Remove remaining dough from freezer and crumble evenly across the top of the jam

Bake until golden brown on top, about 25 minutes

These were just the afternoon pick up we needed as we transitioned back to school.
                 The smiles on the kids faces, said the same.

                               Illustration from the Mary Frances Sewing Book.  (its Full of Magic.)

Morning in a Quaint Island Village...

Awakening. Contemplations of breakfast and the day to come.
Decisions; inspiration from a british breakfast; realization that tomatoes are a must.
Brightly colored purple dresses are put on,  mother slips quietly out the front door towards town...

We are blessed. (in so many ways...)
The town in which we live, walking distance to both the ferry boat that transports us to the vast city landscape, and to the bakeries, grocery stores, and various eating establishments, shops that create our city center is... charming. Particularly in the bright sunshine of a saturday morning when you are on a walk to one of your favorite bakeries, Blackbird, to acquire whole wheat oatmeal bread, still warm from the ovens... Bakeries and i have a long involved history of early mornings and clouds of flour.
They hold my admiration for all that they do on a daily basis. Magic in the making.

After the bakery, i headed up the hill to the farmers market. Smiles on almost every face that i passed said "Good morning" to me, and i in turn replied. i have found that nine times out of ten when i say hello or greet a passer by they return this attempt to connect, to open our hearts to another spirit. This is one of my favorite things about small towns, the willingness to open yourself to others. i sought out Butler Green Farms and their dazzling array of tomatoes...  They truly took my breath away with their blatant spectacle of summer bounty. Several red green and yellow were chosen and joined the loaf of bread in my bag.

Onwards to the grocery store for milk and cream. Even our local grocery store charms me. Perhaps it is because of the fond memories of fourth of July pancake breakfasts in the parking lot, the gathering of community. Or maybe just the many years i have spent wandering its aisles being inspired by its well chosen selection of ingredients, it certainly seems to have the friendliest crew of employees that i have yet come across in a grocery store. Today was a mission for dairy and a moment, as always to ponder their gorgeous lilies and dahlias in the flower department before walking home.

In between phone conversations with beloved sisters in North Carolina, children running through the kitchen being tigers and attempts at doing the dishes, this was created...then devoured with smiles on our faces.

Granola bars, a recipe (work in progress...)

I am of the variety of cook in the kitchen that goes by feel. There is a trust that hovers in the air,  pulsing with each heartbeat as i reach for the next ingredient. Whether it is instinct, experience or the muses whispering into my ear, i allow my intuition to guide me, adding some of this and a bit of that until all seems as it should be.

 Such was the case creating these oat scones with cream cheese and strawberry preserves, a wonderful afternoon treat. Rarely do i follow a recipe, or make the same thing twice. A practice i am seeking to remedy in order to allow others to create the same morsel in the comfort of their own kitchen time and again.

Recently, in the school kitchen it has been all about granola bars... There has been a flurry of oats, raisins, cranberries, sun butter, shards of chocolate, coconut, honey, maple syrup, tahini, brown sugar, olive oil and vanilla swirling together to create a salty sweet chewy snack for the kids (and teachers) to sustain upon during afternoon play.

A recipe...

3 cups Oats not instant
1 cup shredded coconut

4 tablespoons olive oil or butter
2/3 cup honey

½ cup creamy seed or nut butter
1/3 cup light brown sugar, lightly packed
1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup raisins
1/2 cup dried cranberries
 

Directions
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Find a 8 by 12-inch baking dish and line it with parchment paper.
Toss the oats and coconut together on a sheet pan and bake for 10 to 12 minutes, stirring occasionally, until lightly browned.  Reduce the oven temperature to 250 degrees.
Place the olive oil, honey, brown sugar, nut butter, and salt in a large pot and bring to a boil over medium heat. Cook and stir for three minutes, then remove from stove and pour in the toasted oatmeal mixture. Add the vanilla, raisins, and cranberries and stir well.
Pour the mixture into the prepared pan. Wet your fingers and press the mixture evenly and firmly into the pan. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, until light golden brown. Cool for at least 2 to 3 hours before cutting into squares, if you care to practice an exercise in patience, let them sit overnight, they are much better... Serve at room temperature.