Recipe: Baked Cardamom Pears
6-8 pears, Bartlett or Bosc
1/4 c. sweetener (sugar...maple syrup...etc)
1/4 tsp. vanilla
1/4 tsp ground cardamom
butter, butter substitute or coconut oil
Set oven to 350 degrees. Halve pears and place them face down on a greased baking sheet or pan. Mix vanilla, cardamom and sugar and sprinkle over pears. Dot pears with a teaspoon of butter or coconut oil. Bake until ooey-gooey bubbly (about 45 minutes). Finish with a sprinkle of sea salt, serve with something creamy.
So here's the deal: I'm not a fan of recipes. I grew up in the far out country and if we didn't have an ingredient we couldn't just run to the store--the nearest store was twenty minutes away and mostly carried Bud Lite and Slim Jims. We had to improvise.
By the same token, I love to cook, and I think what recipes offer us is inspiration: here is a way to combine flavors tastes and textures. But they should not be taken as a literal prototype for how a dish must be cooked.
In this recipe I have substituted every ingredient save the pears at one point or another and it always turns out delicious. If it didn't, it would just be an opportunity to try again.
One of my favorite cookbooks ever was an Alaskan cookbook from the 1940's. With every recipe (including pine needle jelly and moose head cheese) the book included a list of substitutions. If you are out in the bush, you have to be creative. You need to use what you have.
And, as my friend Kristin says, you always have five more options than you think.
This is a long winded (and yummy) way of saying that there is no wrong way. There is only the way.
Relative to our work, storians, can you think of some narratives in your life that have asked you to do something in a specific way, following a specific timeline, perhaps, or participating in a specific event? For your story showing practice, I want you to think of narratives that have been proscribed to you, and see them as a recipe. What does that look like? Then consider writing/drawing/painting/photographing the recipe.
Then craft a list of substitutions. Make it as big as it can be I have included a brief example from my own life below. Take until Thursday to meditate and create...
Recipe for Eternal Happiness by my family
Age 18-22: Go to college
Age 20-24: Get married
Age 25: Quit Job and have children
Age 25-45: Stay home with children
Age 50-?: Be a grandparent/great-grandparent
Recipe substitutions developed for my children:
Age 18-22: Volunteer your skills, learn a language, live abroad, build a house, hone your talents, experiment with art, photography, writing, singing, drama, science, math, gardens.
Age 20-24: Travel the world, continue your education, start a business, fall in love with a place, fall in love with a culture, take up a practice, learn to dance without inhibition.
Age 25-45: Begin to teach what you know, take more classes, finish a degree, exchange your skills, fall in love with yourself, again and again, define the work that is shaping you, see where can you take it further, partner up, partner down, adopt a child formally, adopt a child informally, give berth, give birth, create community, root down, tend to the earth, keep dancing.
Age 50-?: See all you can, in the moment, in the year, connect to your neighbors, be an elder, be a child, start all over, travel again, volunteer your skills, learn a language, live abroad, build a house, hone you talents, experiment with art, photography, writing, singing, drama, science, math, gardens...love each day. Give back.
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This is fantastic! I can't wait to get started on my story. :)
ReplyDeleteHere is the recipe that is evolving as it is passed from one sister to the next. My older sister's word is the original; the substitutions are mine (and I think the happiness comes out stronger in my version!)
ReplyDeleteStefanie’s Recipe for the Perfect High School Career
Serves 1: Guarantees admission to the Perfect College
7 IB classes per term*
1 Club*
1 Nap a day*
1 Boyfriend*
Liberal amounts of bible-reading*
Add gradepoint to taste; minimum 4.0 recommended*
A dash of social life*
Substitutions
7 IB classes per term – 7 classes are a must, but they need not be IB. Math, science, language, and literature are essential; electives are interchangeable to taste. A pinch of advanced courses will add a distinct flavor.
1 Club – acceptable alternatives include other beneficial activities that take place at least once a week: volunteering at the Zoo, spending time outdoors, sports and exercise.
1 Nap a day – this ingredient is self-indulgent and many others like it work just as well: a game with siblings, an hour of TV, or chill time with video games.
1 Boyfriend – not required. Substitute a handful of close friends to achieve a similar result.
Liberal amounts of bible-reading – reading is important in the synthesizing process, but literature and novels make for delicious and nutritious variations.
Add gradepoint to taste; minimum 4.0 recommended – this spice will be less overbearing in the 3.5 – 3.8 range. This reduction makes a splendid complement to the IB-free approach of the recipe.
A dash of social life – or, if firmer texture is desired, use liberally. The mixture results well when seasoned with weekly sleep overs and trips to the mall or movies. The heavier use will complement the IB-free approach.
Hello Ladies,
ReplyDeleteSorry this took a bit...
As I said on Thursday I am committing to a recipe which nourishes my soul and a vital relationship I’ve often taken for granted.
My mother and I struggled to connect throughout my adolescents. As a child I was always Daddy’s little girl. It was his opinion which mattered and I am still uncertain how that came to be. While I longed for his praise my mother worked hard to ensure I was active and participating in all of the activities I was interested in; this was overlooked. Her dedication was irrelevant because I wanted the approval of a man, even at that age. Maybe that’s stretching what it was-maybe he was more affectionate. I cannot explain why he was more important.
Through my adolescents my preference for my father was altered with the discovery of infidelity and my opinion of my mother went from non existent to disgust. The idea of her staying with a man who had betrayed her was unfathomable. I recall shouting “what kind of example are you setting for your daughter?” and making her cry. When my father moved back home I left and nothing has been the same. I struggled to accept the fall of my parents and the crushed image of my father/my god. Now, as an adult (or I should just say, as someone who is a bit older) I realize my parents are simply human. I realize my mother was a girl once who fell in love with a man at fifteen and has never experienced another man her entire life. This is all she knows. He is everything-family, love, sex, stability, self-esteem, security. She stayed with him because she loved him and wanted to keep her family together. And the animosity I felt towards her was my disappointment in him. He led me to believe he was perfect. He built himself up to be my idol; no one should ever assume that role. I believe parents long for it because their children’s love and opinion is everything, and the fear of loosing a child when they’ve grown is a constant thought.
Today, I watch my mother love my father for who he is. I watch my father love my mother and embrace his own faults. I watch my mother embrace hers as well. They are a team who withstood a storm most couples today would simply drown in. She was strong enough to try again and take a chance on what she believed despite the heart ache inflicted. How many of us can really say we’ve done that? My mother loves to love. She loves to care for others and commit to helping those around her. She is invested in making others happy and supporting their success. She is an inspiration.
Here is her Friendship Tea Recipe handed down from several generations of loving women. Enjoy*
One cup tang
Half of a package of lemonade (your choice, I like crystal light)
One cup of sugar
Half of a cup of instant tea (I prefer black)
One teaspoon of cinnamon
Half of a teaspoon of cloves
Half of a teaspoon of all spice
Mix together…
Mix two to three teaspoons to once sup of water
Our mothers have influenced who we are today. It is the most difficult relationship in the world in my opinion, but it is sacred.