The house is surrounded by the greenest green you can imagine. Our recent rains and the precipitation from the last few wet years has gifted us with the most unimaginable vegetation lushness that I've ever seen.
It's rainforesty.
The rest of the world is suffering temps in the one hundreds, but here at Corgi Hollows a blanket feels nice all night long.
This morning my husband and I took our 2 mile walk with Corwyn and Blackberry. We kept exclaiming at the perfects temps and the variations of green all around us.
Blue greens of the soy beans and the dew on the grass and spruce---deep Kelly green of the pastures---pine green. The colors of your crayon box should come to mind. I found a thicket of plums. I'm not telling where. They are still green, except for the one that I picked. I got it before the birds did.
I am thinking about Plum Kuchen, and maybe even plum jam.
This is a food post. I'm busy preparing food, (cinnamon raisin bread is in the oven) and food elicits many memories. Today my husband and I went on errands and spotted a farmer's market. I posted earlier that I'm planning my own kitchen garden ala Tasha Tudor for next year, but now I must find everything at the local markets.
In the last few years farmers markets around the Twin Cities have families of Hmong immigrants who sell perfect vegetables and flowers. We have very fertile fields around here and I see these vegetable farmers out working and harvesting all around here. I've glanced out at fields and seen the classic wide brimmed Asian hats bobbing down rows of green and I've wondered if I'm in Minnesota! It's delightful.
I picked out some perfectly sized eggplant, some gorgeous garlic, onions, and green beans.
It is the time of year when my life rhythms remind me of the summer I spent in Turkey, 29 years ago.
I was young, a know-it-all, and extremely out of place there, but I fell in love with the sights and sounds of that country. I lost a friendship over that trip----a young Cypriot woman who was my friend and fellow chamber singer at the University of Minnesota. Her name was Tonia Bayada, and when she got my letter telling about my trip to Turkey she completely cut me off.
This was before Facebook.
Her loyalty to Cyprus, and her hatred for Turkey was too powerful for a friendship to withstand.
Life lessons.
I loved the food in Turkey. I determined to learn how to make Moussaka, and I have made it almost every summer since my trip---at least once.
I crave it, but my family does NOT. Eggplant is low on their list.
I make it anyway, and I've cut corners over the years. I don't soak the eggplant in salt water anymore. I just peel it and use it. I try to make the tomatoes into more of a sauce, since that goes over better with the family.
I do use plenty of olive oil and garlic and the best ground beef (grass fed up by Brainerd on my cousins' farm!). I buy a loaf of french bread, as similar as I can find to the delicious bread you could buy on the streets of Istanbul.
I bake it all afternoon, and it is SO GOOD!
If I am up to it and have the time I bake a baklava to have as dessert. My co-workers from Germany gave me a beautiful Turkish tea set and I've been able to order Turkish tea from Amazon.
Each summer I have the perfect Turkish meal, and it brings back my time in Turkey----good and bad.
It's good to revisit the not-so-pleasant memories and see how far you've come, how much time has passed since, even if it can be painful. Turkey is an Islamic country, and 30 years ago it was trying desperately to become more western. There was a feeling of needing to tread softly wherever I went. I was constantly afraid of doing the wrong thing, and I certainly did the wrong thing more than I should have!
For me it was proof that I was not fit to live there, all the enticements of Turkey aside.
I'd love to return to a quiet seaside resort on the Aegean Sea called Ayvalik. It was a haven for me while I was there. I tried so hard to fit in, but I did not. I made too many mistakes for Islamic culture.
I've done much reading since then about Islam and I think I understand better my mistakes. At the time I just felt helpless and worse than helpful!
Memories. I still pull out my Turkish language books from time to time to brush up on it, but I think my days of speaking Turkish will never come again.
Merhaba! Cay iciyorum! Tessekkur Ederim. Alaismarlidik.
The heat of Turkey in July always comes to mind on the hottest days of summer, but we're either past them or they are yet to come here in Minnesota.
My Turkish feast will be prepared sometime this week, I plan. If you want to partake, please come over!
It's rainforesty.
The rest of the world is suffering temps in the one hundreds, but here at Corgi Hollows a blanket feels nice all night long.
This morning my husband and I took our 2 mile walk with Corwyn and Blackberry. We kept exclaiming at the perfects temps and the variations of green all around us.
Blue greens of the soy beans and the dew on the grass and spruce---deep Kelly green of the pastures---pine green. The colors of your crayon box should come to mind. I found a thicket of plums. I'm not telling where. They are still green, except for the one that I picked. I got it before the birds did.
I am thinking about Plum Kuchen, and maybe even plum jam.
This is a food post. I'm busy preparing food, (cinnamon raisin bread is in the oven) and food elicits many memories. Today my husband and I went on errands and spotted a farmer's market. I posted earlier that I'm planning my own kitchen garden ala Tasha Tudor for next year, but now I must find everything at the local markets.
In the last few years farmers markets around the Twin Cities have families of Hmong immigrants who sell perfect vegetables and flowers. We have very fertile fields around here and I see these vegetable farmers out working and harvesting all around here. I've glanced out at fields and seen the classic wide brimmed Asian hats bobbing down rows of green and I've wondered if I'm in Minnesota! It's delightful.
I picked out some perfectly sized eggplant, some gorgeous garlic, onions, and green beans.
It is the time of year when my life rhythms remind me of the summer I spent in Turkey, 29 years ago.
I was young, a know-it-all, and extremely out of place there, but I fell in love with the sights and sounds of that country. I lost a friendship over that trip----a young Cypriot woman who was my friend and fellow chamber singer at the University of Minnesota. Her name was Tonia Bayada, and when she got my letter telling about my trip to Turkey she completely cut me off.
This was before Facebook.
Her loyalty to Cyprus, and her hatred for Turkey was too powerful for a friendship to withstand.
Life lessons.
I loved the food in Turkey. I determined to learn how to make Moussaka, and I have made it almost every summer since my trip---at least once.
I crave it, but my family does NOT. Eggplant is low on their list.
I make it anyway, and I've cut corners over the years. I don't soak the eggplant in salt water anymore. I just peel it and use it. I try to make the tomatoes into more of a sauce, since that goes over better with the family.
I do use plenty of olive oil and garlic and the best ground beef (grass fed up by Brainerd on my cousins' farm!). I buy a loaf of french bread, as similar as I can find to the delicious bread you could buy on the streets of Istanbul.
I bake it all afternoon, and it is SO GOOD!
If I am up to it and have the time I bake a baklava to have as dessert. My co-workers from Germany gave me a beautiful Turkish tea set and I've been able to order Turkish tea from Amazon.
Each summer I have the perfect Turkish meal, and it brings back my time in Turkey----good and bad.
It's good to revisit the not-so-pleasant memories and see how far you've come, how much time has passed since, even if it can be painful. Turkey is an Islamic country, and 30 years ago it was trying desperately to become more western. There was a feeling of needing to tread softly wherever I went. I was constantly afraid of doing the wrong thing, and I certainly did the wrong thing more than I should have!
For me it was proof that I was not fit to live there, all the enticements of Turkey aside.
I'd love to return to a quiet seaside resort on the Aegean Sea called Ayvalik. It was a haven for me while I was there. I tried so hard to fit in, but I did not. I made too many mistakes for Islamic culture.
I've done much reading since then about Islam and I think I understand better my mistakes. At the time I just felt helpless and worse than helpful!
Memories. I still pull out my Turkish language books from time to time to brush up on it, but I think my days of speaking Turkish will never come again.
Merhaba! Cay iciyorum! Tessekkur Ederim. Alaismarlidik.
The heat of Turkey in July always comes to mind on the hottest days of summer, but we're either past them or they are yet to come here in Minnesota.
My Turkish feast will be prepared sometime this week, I plan. If you want to partake, please come over!
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