Monthly Archives: January 2011

>Oatmeal Apple Cake

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>As always, I’ve modified this from its original version. Chuck and I enjoy having a piece for breakfast. In fact, as delicious as it was warm from the oven, it was better the next day. Second day cake held together better, was still moist but had no liquid, and seemed to taste better, too. Here goes:

Oatmeal Apple Cake a la Daisy
Ingredients:
1 cup butter or margarine, softened (2 sticks)
1 cup white sugar
1 cup packed brown sugar
2 eggs or 1/2 cup egg substitute
1/4 cup flour (pick your kind; I used all purpose)
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg (optional)
2 cups apples, diced, cored, peeled
3 cups quick or old fashioned oats – yes, it’s a lot. This amount is correct.
1/2 cup nuts, finely chopped – I like walnuts; they go well with apples
1/2 to 2/3 cup applesauce
1 teaspoon vanilla
Instructions:
Cream butter and sugars. Add applesauce (or alternative), vanilla, & eggs. Blend well. Mix in dry ingredients (including nuts). Add apples and oats. Stir until moistened. Bake at 350 for about one hour in a 9 inch square cake pan.
Actually, the 9 inch square pan was a little small. I might experiment with a bigger pan next time. The cake will be thinner, but it will be more likely to bake completely during the hour and might not be as moist and crumbly. Not that moist and crumbly is a problem; it’s awesome with vanilla ice cream. And coffee. Of course.

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>Dreams

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>In the wake of the Tragedy in Tucson, and in recognition of Dr. King’s Dream, below is a re-post from times past.

I dream that differences will be valued, not disdained.
Eye color, hair color, body shapes, and skin shades will be appreciated for their beauty and variety.
Cultural traditions will not disappear, but will thrive and grow together into a rich and fascinating sharing of knowledge and beliefs.
I dream that blindness will be merely a different way of seeing, and deafness impair only the quantity, not the quality of the language ‘heard’.
Children will matter because they own the future. Their education, academic and social, will become and remain of utmost importance.
The mediators and the peacemakers will be recognized as the strongest leaders.
Questions will come from curiosity, not ignorance, and the answers will breed respect.
Knowing each other, knowing ourselves, will lead to knowing that fights and conflicts, wars of all kinds, will cease to be of value.

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>Simple Pleasures

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>Simple Pleasures while not working, that is. Listing positives is a good exercise in addressing depression. It’s also a good way to focus my thoughts on life as it is, not as it “should” or could be.

These lists must avoid sarcasm. Do you know how hard that is? A list of cynical positives might include:
  • I don’t have to teach through flu season! No danger of catching it myself, leading to multiple sick days and huge amounts of substitute lesson plans. No stacks of make up work for kids who miss multiple days of school, either. Yeah!!
  • I don’t have to teach Valentine’s Day! The sugar hell, I mean sugar heaven – the holiday that’s not a school holiday and really shouldn’t even happen in class but I’d be in so much trouble with parents if I didn’t allow kids to pass out their little cards and candy – oh, thank goodness I don’t have to teach Valentine’s Day!!
But these are cynical, even sarcastic suggestions. While these are legitimate thoughts and legitimate reasons to be happy, they’re not the kind of positives on which I need to focus. Here’s a second try.
  • I get to read the morning paper in the morning, taking my time reading the whole thing.
  • I can take my time getting dressed, and then I can dress casually.
  • Lunches are relaxed rather than rushed. I can actually cook a decent and nutritious lunch and take my time eating it.
  • I can watch the early news shows. It’s a guilty pleasure, watching the features in between the real news, but it’s a pleasure all the same.
  • Cooking supper is more relaxed, too. I can thaw something and cook it, taking my time, because I’m not rushed between school and supper. I have more time to think and plan meals in general. Hopefully that will be a plus for my health (darn this anemia) and not a weight gain!
There are more simple pleasures while on this lengthy sick leave. I’ll share more later, and I promise to do my best to avoid the sarcastic versions. I’ll think them (oh, you know I will!), but I (probably) won’t post those.
Readers, here’s your challenge. Leave a comment with at least one positive element in your life right now. Humor is fine, but no cynicism or sarcasm allowed!!

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>For Christina

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>

Christina Taylor Green will be mourned and buried today. Vibrant, positive, excited about life, she sounds like an amazing young woman.
Christina was a Child of Hope: a baby born as our world turned upside down on September 11, 2001. she was killed in another public day of violence as our world turned upside down once again.
Baseball, ballet, horses, science. church, choir, student council. She was enthusiastic and involved in everything possible. Photos show her smiling, grinning, looking eager for the next adventure.
Christina attended the ill-fated town meeting to meet her representative in Congress and learn more about politics. She was sincerely interested in making a difference, perhaps by running for office and making a life of public service.
Christina won’t get that chance. Her life was cut short in a senseless and violent shooting rampage. Are there any other kinds of shooting rampages? Do any make sense? Of course not. An early and violent death like Christina’s doesn’t make sense, either.
I keep using her name so that Christina stays real: not just the nine-year-old killed in an unbelievable event. Not just the student council girl who wanted to meet her congresswoman. She was a real person, a daughter, a neighbor, a student, a sister, a friend.
Christina didn’t get to live her dreams and her passions. For young dreamer Christina, gone too soon, I call on the rest of us to step forward and make a difference.

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>More Rockin’ Chicken

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>It’s really Moroccan Chicken Stew from Campbell’s Kitchen. I saw this in a magazine, said to myself, “Well, we have all the ingredients we need in our pantry, why not?” Of course I made a few modifications, the main one being cutting the recipe down significantly. We were feeding three adults (Amigo was away at school), so I changed the 8 chicken thighs to 3 chicken breasts. The 2 red onions became 1 yellow onion rather than make another trip to the store. I imagine when summer comes the green pepper will be interchangeable with whatever peppers are ripe in the garden or at the Farmers’ Market. The Tablespoon of curry powder became a generous teaspoon instead. I made it in my cast iron Dutch oven (a birthday present). We served the spicy chicken stew over brown rice and pronounced it good.

Daisy’s version of Campbell’s Moroccan Chicken Stew
2 Tablespoons olive oil
3 chicken breasts
1 medium yellow onion, sliced
1 medium green pepper, cut into 1 inch pieces
1 clove garlic, finely chopped
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon curry powder
1 can condensed Tomato Soup
1/3 cup raisins
1 can (about 15 oz.) chickpeas (garbanzo beans) rinsed and drained
1/3 cup slivered almonds
1. Heat oil in 5 qt. saucepot (or Dutch oven) over medium heat. Add chicken and cook until well browned on both sides. Remove chicken from pot.
2. Reduce heat to medium. Add onions, pepper, and garlic and cook 5 minutes or until tender-crisp. Add cinnamon and curry; cook and stir 1 minute. Stir in soup and heat to a boil. Return chicken to pot. Reduce heat to low and cook for 15-20 minutes.
3. While chicken is cooking, stir raisins and chickpeas into pot. Cook until chicken is cooked through. Stir in almonds.

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>What’s next? Planning during depression

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>Looking forward while suffering from depression is a necessary challenge. Setting up routines and sticking to them while still allowing time to rest and rejuvenate – that’s a difficult balance to find. I am settling into routines in the mornings. With school no longer part of my daily schedule, I’ve filled the mornings – but not too full.

Getting up with Chuck starts my day. Even if I haven’t slept well (Darn those stress-filled nightmares!), I’ll drag myself out of bed and come downstairs, feed the bunnies, start the coffeepot. My morning routine is fairly relaxing and allows room for a nap if, as I mentioned, I didn’t sleep well the night before.
  • start coffee
  • feed bunnies (They’re always happy to see me. Pets are wonderful.)
  • read newspaper & have breakfast
  • watch morning news shows, sip coffee
  • check personal emails and blogs
Now comes the tough part, the part of the routine that has the potential to cause blood pressure spikes and stomach aches.
  • Check school email. I’m still in communication with a few of my coworkers, and there may be important information I need. For now, I check it daily. Later, I’ll reduce my school email checks to once or twice a week.
  • Work on progress reports. This was part of my commitment to making my leave of absence smooth and seamless for my replacement; finishing the semester one progress reports. Fortunately, we have a new online progress report, and I can access the system from home.
  • Click Save on the progress reports, refill coffee, relax.
  • Read. Reading for pleasure keeps my mind occupied and lets my body rest.
These may seem like small goals and an overly simple routine. But during depression, attainable goals are important. Making supper each day feels like a huge accomplishment. Making a to-do list is alright, but the list must be reasonable. If it’s too long, finishing the tasks could cause a collapse from exhaustion.
Long term planning isn’t realistic right now. Making big decisions – career changes, moving, major projects – isn’t a good idea while my mind and body are so wiped out. I’m taking one graduate class online, and I continue to blog and work on a family writing project. And if we get snowed in? For me, there will be little or no change. We have plenty of coffee and hot cocoa and a big bag of bunny food in case of winter emergency.
Keeping change to a minimum, no matter how it happens, is the best plan for right now.

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Depression Awareness

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I was taking Amigo to an appointment and noticed an issue of WebMD Magazine sitting on the table. There were multiple copies of this special edition, which led me to think, “Maybe I can take this with me.” The focus topic? Depression..

Amigo was called just then, so I folded the eight-page publication and tucked it into my purse for later reading. As I moved into my extended leave of absence, I wanted all the information I could get on my condition.
Depression awareness is growing, but awareness is still the lowest form of knowledge. For people with depression to really feel comfortable talking about it, our society needs to move beyond awareness into a deeper knowledge and true comprehension of this illness. Yes, illness. Too many think depression is a simple sadness, a case of the blues, a mood swing. How did I know whether my boss would consider this an illness or a personal weakness? I still don’t know, and I’m not sure I trust her enough to ask.
I’m lucky. My family understands depression as an illness, and they know what kinds of support I need. When I need to rest, they say, “Go” and push me up the stairs to take a nap. When I need a little extra moral support, they’re ready to talk and listen, and when I need to be alone, they allow it — within reason. Those closest to me, friends and family, know that depression affects people differently, and with me, feeling isolated worsens the symptoms overall.
I can’t say this enough: depression is an illness, a serious illness that affects people in many ways. My true friends know that. They know me, and they respect and understand how I feel. They don’t expect me to snap out of it or magically heal overnight.
They know I’m ill, and they also know I’m going to recover.

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>My part of the Compassion Project

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>The Compassion Project is an art project, a mosaic, made by students all over our fair city.

The Compassion Project inspired discussion, thought, and potentially acts of compassion.
Students decorated tiles to become part of a large mosaic. Teachers could volunteer to decorate a tile for the mosaic, too, so I offered to make one. Mine is still sitting, blank, in the kitchen. I have ideas, but I’m still struggling with the details.
I really want to emphasize visual and hearing impairments, disabilities. I thought about incorporating more disabilities into my 6″ x 6″ tile, but decided to keep it personal and stick with what I know. I can’t use La Petite’s “Touching Words” photo; I would need to take my own picture. Another idea: I could create a border using the word compassion in Braille. We have a Braille embosser and a labeler, too; the Braille border would look good.
But hearing impairment is harder to portray as visual art. I could use American Sign Language, finger spelling the word compassion, but finger spelling isn’t really accurate. The true sign for compassion would be an active sign, incorporating motion that won’t fit on a small tile in a mosaic. A photo of hearing aids, side by side with the Braille? Maybe, but that seems lame. There must be something better.
A quote might be nice. A quote in the middle, surrounded by a Braille border spelling compassion or rewriting the quote itself, could be effective. Maybe the quote could reference hearing impairment.
There is Helen Keller’s “Life is either a daring adventure or nothing.” It’s a good sentiment, but the quote is overused. I’d rather find something else.
Here’s one from actress Marlee Matlin: “It was ability that mattered, not disability, which is a word I’m not crazy about using.”
Then there is “Why are you trying so hard to fit in when you were made to stand out?” I saw this first in DeafMom’s blog. She tells me it comes from the movie What a Girl Wants.
I’m looking for a way to represent hearing impairment on a 6″ by 6″ ceramic tile with a Braille border. Simplicity is good; it will be part of a mosaic with hundreds of other identically sized tiles, each illustrating compassion in some way. My tile can stand out or blend in. Ideas, readers?

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>Orange Cranberry Scones

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Continuing my series of holiday recipes after the holiday – these, like the pecan cookies, can be made any time of year. They make a delicious addition to a holiday breakfast or brunch, but they don’t need to be reserved for Christmas. I’ve been so tired that I couldn’t make the goodies on Christmas morning itself; I put together a batch later in the week and made them again on New Year’s Day while we watched the Rose Bowl parade. Enjoy!

from Food in Jars blog


Food in Jars posted this as a Gift in a Jar format. I haven’t given it away yet, but I have made the recipe twice. Here it is!
To be layered in a pint jar:
1 1/2 cup whole wheat pastry flour (or all-purpose)
3 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon sea salt (or regular salt)
Mix the zest of one orange with 1/4 cup sugar and add to jar.
Top with 1/2 cup dried cranberries. Possible substitutions include dried blueberries or raisins.

To bake the scones:
Mix contents of jar in medium mixing bowl.
Cut 1/4 cup (1/2 stick) of butter into the mixture.
Beat 1/2 cup buttermilk and 1 egg together. Add to mixture and stir to combine.
Once combined, turn onto baking sheet and pat into circle.
Cut into 8 wedges, but do not separate. A pizza cutter works well.
Bake at 400 degrees for 20-25 minutes, until golden on top.

Serve with jam or apple butter or drizzle with powdered sugar frosting.

Finding yet another recipe that calls for whole wheat pastry flour makes me determined to find it. That’s my task for the week: check out the local specialty stores and if they don’t have it, try Woodman’s!

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