All the Way to Heaven is Heaven

This time of year in Erie, I call it "perfect." Every farm stand is full of color and bounty. We are blessed.

As I bought some fresh corn and plums from a neighbor down the road on Friday, I thought to myself, "This is heaven." We are eating so many fresh and rich flavors right now. There’s fresh corn served on the regular for dinner; we have had peaches and tomatoes and beans, too. Everything is right “off the vine” and into our bodies for nourishment. These days make the winter worth it for me. Wouldn’t you say?

And remember that corn we planted in June?

Look at it now! (Yes, it's delicious.)

It doesn’t get much better than this.

Let us walk in the holy presence.

Photo Lectio

It’s not very often that I am attentive enough or quick enough to capture moments like these.

The praying mantis is eating a yellow jacket (wasp? hornet?). It was mesmerizing to watch close up, to have the praying mantis turn and make direct eye contact with me, and to be able to take a photo, but yet, the compassion for the victim. And as I looked at the photo more closely, there was more and more to notice.

“We do not live in a simple world.” (Mary Oliver)

Let us walk in the holy presence.

Vines, Vines, & More Vines!

Thanks to the corporate commitment project that we complete as novices in our community, we now compost. One sister, who has since made first profession, decided to research and plan a composting system that would work for us. People have signed up to help with taking out food waste to our bins during their “dish week” and another sister turns the piles. It’s working wonderfully so far, and I am grateful for that. Very exciting!

Even more exciting is what we have found while taking out the buckets!

An accidental, but most welcome melon! ‘Tis the gift of stray seeds and sunshine, indeed!

In other vine-related news, the grapes, living in their natural habitats, are looking lovely on the vines during these perfect summer Sunday bike rides! I can taste them already! So sweet and juicy!

Let us walk in the holy presence.

Culinary Luxuries

“Luxury is best appreciated in small portions. When it becomes routine it loses its allure."

I recently finished reading Ruth Reichl's new memoir, Save Me the Plums. It details the food writer's time as editor-in-chief of the magazine, Gourmet. I love her writing, and this was an easy and enjoyable summer read—as all summer reads should be!

The above quote about luxury stopped me in my tracks. Isn't it the truth? I had my own luxurious experience last week when I got to spend four uninterrupted hours in the kitchen, trying out something new: homemade ravioli.

I had decided I want to try and make sweet potato ravioli a while ago and had left this recipe open in a tab in Chrome for months. With the visit of a dear friend following the next evening, it was the right time. Even though it's an autumnal recipe, it worked quite well, swapping out the walnuts and basil for caramelized onions.

I don't often have the opportunity to spend such time in the kitchen, playing around with something like this. I am usually doing something a bit more practical like throwing together some veggies and some grain for a week's worth of lunch. The process of figuring out the best way to make the circles for the pasta, getting the filling right, taking the time to roll out piece after piece as prayerfully as possibly, and best of all, sharing it with others as the delicate pieces finished cooking, was such delight, a true luxury, for me.

Just before I had entered the kitchen for the afternoon, we had been talking at table about how to keep a novitiate-like quality in our busy lives. My time spent making sweet potato ravioli was just that!

Let us walk in the holy presence.

Rolling out the pasta dough 

Making the sweet potato filling

The first attempt needing some re-working—looks like a pierogi!

Getting the circles right after playing around a bit

Aerial view

More and more ravioli—a delicious treat!