Happy Turkey - The Land of Plenty....

I love turkey! Well, at least these last couple of days I do anyway. It's not something I can say I have eaten in the past decade or so, making this year quite extraordinary actually. Not only have I eaten turkey, but the ones I did eat, were raised and then (ahem) prepared by me.

In my other life I used to be a Food Hygiene Inspector, what that means for those of you who are unfamiliar with the processes of meat before it arrives on your plate - is that I was the person who carried out an ante and post mortem inspection on animals meant for food.

To say the very least, I have seen nearly all animals walk into a plant and come out the other side in boxes. As you might imagine, I am fairly particular about the meat I would eat and feed my family and was for many years a strict vegan.

What prompted me to raise my own turkeys this year you might ask - up to now I have been thinking I did not know. But, I really do, somewhere deep inside - it's only now that I have taken the time to sort out how I am feeling about it all.

A turkey for me (and us) is more then representative of being thankful - it also says something far more in our hearts. These turkeys are about abundance, plenty and the arrival on new shores - on our walk of life. 

This year we have spent so much time feeling thankful for our health, all we have and especially the food that takes us there. It has been quite a year this last full cycle of the Mayan calendar - one age has ended and another one is being ushered in. 

Something dark, heavy and old has ceased to exist for us, leaving the door wide open for change. And the turkey is only the start of it - a move into the land of plenty!

Happy Christmas,

April

A beautiful turkey cooked with sage from the garden...

Vibrational Shift....

Today is a feast day - and for us this means lots of food and tasty treats we wouldn't otherwise have very often. But it also means many other things as well - this time of year especially is all about the return of light breaking through the darkness.

I don't know about you, but there is often nothing darker then some of the foods that people are expected to eat and perhaps nothing more evil then the energy they contain. Food is like anything else really - when depleted it will fill up on whatever it is exposed to.

And if that happens to be drained, poorly paid, unhappy employees, clanging machinery, in a profit driven company - then that's what the food will carry. It's the same with people, once our systems are pulled down by life, stress, poor diets, over exposure to chemicals and toxins, we too have a low vibration.

It takes an enormous amount of energy to pull ourselves back up from some of the dark depths we might be found in...

However, all is not lost! Once you begin to make any effort at all, with even the tiniest of intentions, your body will more then meet you half way and work very hard to come back into proper alignment within.This means balancing and bringing back normal function in all tissues and organs.

Today was perhaps the most anticipated day (in a collective global sense) we have seen in some time on this planet. With so many of us considering the changes, energy shifts and perhaps endings associated with this date - I wonder if some other important aspects were lost in the shuffle.

The only way to change your body in a healthy meaningful way (this changes your mind and spirit too by the way) is to alter your diet and the water you drink. Take this a little bit further and the only way to shift into a higher cellular vibrational frequency (or to experience states of higher expanded consciousness) is to change your diet and the water you drink! 

It really all is this simple and today was a giant leap forward towards breaking free of the old ways that have enslaved humanity for a very long time. We are moving forwards into very interesting times indeed...

April

Sticky Date & Fig Pudding was delicious!! 

Don't Let Anyone Change Who You Are - By Telling You What to Eat! (rant)

Today I was leafing through the local adverts from a supermarket - it's getting close to Christmas and I would expect it to be full of items people might think they need for these holiday dinners...such as the veg, some kind of meat, flour and fixings for desserts and so forth.

However I was quite surprised at how far away the marketing has come from reality and perhaps how far away I am now from the rubbish they are expecting people to buy and eat (and I have an Honours degree in Food Marketing, so I studied this stuff). The thing that got me going was that there was not one single raw ingredient advertised in over 10 pages of pictures and prices.

Each and every single item was of something prepared, either cooked or ready to put in the oven and cook. So, it seems you are expected to purchase your 'holiday' meals ready to pop in the oven (or microwave?) and just press a button.

Then presto - it's like some sort of magic - you have a ready made already assembled Christmas dinner - all you have to do is fork this into your mouth.

This is not the kind of magic I am interested in at all. Who wants someone else's energy (hung over employee unhappy with wages, co-workers, self and life) spread all over their food? It's more then enough to deal with our own stuff, but at least that's familiar to us!

Oh, but my rant continues! You are not only expected to buy and eat this prepared food (it's cheap), the ingredients are already selected for you. You can have carrots, potatoes, parsnips or 2 other vegetables combinations. With tiny bits of parsley as a garnish.

What happened to the other 90 vegetables in the kingdom? Where are the real herbs? Does everything have to be slathered in butter? Not to mention cooked and then packed in plastic trays (were they cooked in plastic too?).

Probably tastes like garbage bags....

I mean why would they even bother with the plastic trays of 'food' - why not condense it down further and just put each dinner into pill form and we can all pop those. So convenient - we wouldn't even have to taste anything...

Indeed, it seems as if they are busy creating their own reality...with the consumer in mind.

Do yourself a favour this year - find some different vegetables at a Farmers market (organic if you can) look for celeriac, purple carrots, rare varieties of apples, heaps of fresh herbs - and then look up recipes online or make up your own.

Have some fun with your food - but whatever you do, handle and prepare it yourself. Don't let anyone dictate to you what your meals should consist of by cooking them for you....don't let anyone change who you are.

April

Now, we need to get our green branches and it will take shape... table centre piece 

Table Centre Piece - Do It Yourself!

Today I was out and about with the children and realized that I had not given much thought to our table decorations this year...not that we do much to make it fancy - with young children you kind of get out of those habits and never seem to get back into them!

But, as I was walking around and thinking this over my mind was already going into one direction...it has to be homemade what ever it is. Perhaps as an extension of our homemade unprocessed lifestyle there is no way I can go out and buy something 'pretty' for the Solstice table. 

I have to make it myself. 

Over these past few days we have been busy making our yearly decorations for the house and a few for the tree. The children love this part of the holidays and ever since the year I decided to have an 'edible' Christmas tree, we have been making most of our ornaments.

But, I would always get flowers, or something arranged for the table (years ago before the kids!) and tell myself that I was not very good at making up arrangements myself. Not this year - I am perfectly able to make something wonderful for the table and that is exactly what I am working on right now.

Actually my fingers are sore at the moment from poking cloves into oranges while the house smells so nice from all the fragrance. We usually make these oranges and put them in corners for the smell, but this year I am thinking of giving them a more prominent position.

Of course there are loads of ideas now floating around in my head of things I could do with the dinner table and other areas to make them look festive - my main ground rules are that everything has to be natural, non toxic and not really breakable if it hits the floor.

Should be simple, right? I will keep you posted....

April

Lemurs at Fota - keeping warm!

High Vibration Eating & Cooking

Today has been a busy one - just getting a few more things done for the holidays as well as trying to finish up some tasks I have set for myself. It's all good though and I am still working away down my list for our upcoming feast....

I just finished making cookies for the freezer (no one got to sample them!) as I thought how much easier it would be to have as much as possible made ahead of time. Then I get to concentrate on the main meals while I enjoy a little free time too.

Yesterday I decided to make another pudding for our collection - this one is a Sticky Date & Fig pudding - it took far longer to cook then I thought it would and I was up every hour checking on the steamer last night, until about 4 this morning! LOL

But, I think this one is going to be a winner because it smelled and looked so nice. It was steamed entirely on the wood stove (perhaps that's why it took 8 hours) and it has got me thinking that this slower cooking method might be even better than all of the slow methods I use now.

So with this in mind I only cooked food today for the kids on the wood stove....I made porridge, baked salmon, rice, stir-fry of veggies and some vegetable mash (carrot, sweet potato). All by gently cooking them on a lower heat for a little longer time.

Because I am still fasting, I really don't know if they tasted any better, however, I think the foods were of a higher vibration because they were handled in a gentler manner. And I am not sure I am explaining this very well here!! LOL

All living things have a vibration - food (especially) picks up and retains the vibrations of those who touch it, cook it as well as the methods used to process or prepare it. When it is gently and carefully made into a meal - then this is exactly the energy that you are consuming...

I feel as if I am learning an entire new way of eating and living here....once again.

April

Sticky Date & Fig Pudding 

Making Your Own Holiday Treats - Good Feelings Included

Did you know that you can use sweet mincemeat to make cookies, energy bars, cakes, biscuits, pies and perhaps nearly anything else? To be honest, I have never ever eaten a mincemeat pie...and I haven't even been interested in eating one....

But, yesterday I made up some sweet mincemeat for the holiday season, so that I could give it a go - use it in a few things and see how they turn out. And I am really interested in trying out these new tastes. 

Perhaps this change has more to do with the fact that I have finally fully internalized that I can make anything. And therefore if I can make it myself, I can also make it to taste really good. I love the fact that it's all so easy to prepare as well.

Making mincemeat is as simple as throwing ingredients into a deep bowl and letting them sit for a day, a week or up to months according to some recipes. In keeping with the diversity, I did make up my own recipe as well - but I won't give it yet, because I want to taste it first! LOL

One of the things I am noticing as I am out and about these weeks before Solstice/Christmas is the amount of baking that people are buying. The simplest things are available for sale in the shops, and it seems almost criminal. 

Mostly because the fun of this season is to have the house smell of cloves, nutmeg and spices while something baking or cooking is eagerly awaited. Then the tasting, the sheer enjoyment of making your own festive treats and having everyone feeling good about their food. 

None of this arrives home in a package from a shop at any time of the year and certainly not during this season. The good feelings are something that gets added by the chef - and should be a personal touch for your family to enjoy. 

I think we are missing out on so much when we buy our holiday goodies in the shops. As I am having a completely unprocessed Solstice this year, I admit, it is a challenge to make it all ourselves...but not impossible and I don't want to miss out on anything. 

At the moment I even have a traditional Christmas pudding sitting steaming on the wood stove, it needs to steam for about 10 hours or so....this is going to be interesting... 

So bring it on!!

April

Mincemeat sealed in jars -- ready to mature

Cranberry Apple Sauce - So Easy to Make! (sugar free)

Although this is not really an Irish thing, it has become more popular over the past few years and it seems to be something most people would buy rather than make at home. Cranberry sauce is a staple this time of year for the holiday season as well as anytime you think of eating turkey.

This week we will be having a turkey (the first time in about 10 years!) and it is one of our own. I was delighted that it turned out so well, growth wise anyway and seems to be plenty big. This one dressed out at just under 22 pounds... More than enough!!

Getting back to the sauce... well, I wanted to have a selection of condiments to choose from on the day and that meant getting cranberries. They are readily available in most shops and are also very easy to work with. 

What I like most about cranberries, besides the fact that they are so good for you, is their versatility. You can put many different things with them but my personal favourite would have to be apples. I like apples mainly because they balance the tartness of the berries with a sweeter softer taste.

They also thicken up the sauce very well eliminating the need for any other gelling agents. It's really so easy to make and could also be used as a jam for bread or crackers. Actually with a little cheese....

So, to make cranberry sauce I washed 500gr of berries and chopped up 4 apples (peeled and cored). These all went into a pot with a little water to be boiled down to the desired consistency. I did add a little ground cloves (what's winter without it?) and some agave syrup to sweeten, then blended the results once it was cooked.

Because I was making lots, I also sterilized 2 jars and canned the extra sauce for our Solstice season...and we still have a bowl of it to try in the meantime. It is lovely without being overly sweet or tart - the nicest thing about making this yourself is you can decide on the taste!

April

Cranberry Apple Sauce before blending