Easy Peasy

I grew up enjoying "jelly rolls" made from scratch. This dessert treat seemed to have dropped off the foodie's focus until I saw a recipe for "Strawberry Cake" in EdibleSantaBarbara magazine which I picked up from the Saturday Santa Barbara Farm Market this past May. "This is a jelly roll cake with . . . strawberry jam and fresh strawberries. No one seems to make jelly roll cakes these days, but they are simple and can inspire many variations."  

Throughout this Spring (using strawberries and apricots), Summer (blackberries and mulberries) and into Fall (peaches and apples) I have found the "simple, rustic presentation" delish! and easy peasy! The fresh mashed fruit with a bit of maple sugar is easily substituted for jelly or jam. Rhubarb sauce in the Winter would make it a wonderful evening treat or even "dinner" if your main meal is eaten midday. Pink Pearl applesauce makes a splendid rendition that can be eaten for breakfast since the basic recipe, see below, is mostly just gathered "pasture" duck eggs.

JELLY ROLL CAKE recipe:

• 1/2 c. organic sprouted spelt flour
• 1/2 tsp. baking powder
• 1/8 tsp. sea salt, finely ground
• 7 organic duck eggs . . . be sure these are at room temperature!
• 1/2 c. organic maple sugar
• organic powdered sugar
• 12 ounces of organic jelly, jam, fruit butter or applesauce
• fresh organic fruit (use the same fruit as in above) for garnish

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Grease with organic ghee a 15- by 10- by 1-inch jelly roll pan; a cookie sheet with sides works just fine, too. Line pan with nontoxic parchment paper and grease with ghee.

Sift flour, baking powder and sea salt into a bowl.

In large bowl beat egg yolks, vanilla and sugar with a mixer on high speed for about 1 minute or until foamy. Add half of the flour mixture and gently fold in with rubber spatula just until combined; repeat with remaining half.

In clean mixing bowl with clean beaters beat egg whites on high speed for 2 to 3 minutes or until stiff peaks form. 

Gently fold egg whites into the batter, one third at a time, just until combined.

Pour into the prepared pan and bake 8 to 10 minutes. Be sure to check after 8 minutes.

Sprinkle a piece of nontoxic parchment paper the size of the jelly roll pan with organic powdered sugar. Once the cake is done gently dump onto the paper. 

Remove the paper and spread with jam, jelly, mashed fruit or applesauce. Beginning with the short side facing you, roll the cake into a tight roll.

Place seam side down on a cake plate. Sprinkle with a bit more powdered sugar (or not), slice and serve on pretty plates, adding fresh fruit for garnish. ENJOY!

Add a dollop of Wallaby's Organic Greek Yogurt
atop a  spoon full of Pink Pearl applesauce and breakfast is ready. 

Once you have savored each nutritious bite

Shasta, Fence Posts and More

SHASTA:

Early this past week Shasta's arrival at MuRefuge was celebrated. This very sweet and special BEing has been with us now for two years, adopted from the Marin Humane Society when she was six months old. To honor Shasta, she and I joined Sandy Lagno for a interspecies communication. I marvel how Sandy shares her gift!

Shasta in the past has shared with Sandy that she remembers when she was a Being who could fly and that BEing in this canine body is a big adjustment. "BEing here is good. Finding my way to BEing OK BEing here. Good steady humans (Cathie and Dwight) . . . I can function in this body." Clearly this simple communication indicates that Shasta has "acceptance of this body form" and she continued, "I now accept I stay with you."

Shasta was in a number of places before she arrived here at MuRefuge. During this time Shasta shares "It's confusing, humans no get dogs. They tried to dominate me in undog like way." Shasta developed guarding behavior particularly around food. We saw the remnants of this recently when she was given raw lamb bones. She growled, bared her teeth and looked like a wild dog rather than like our familiar Shasta. In communicating about this behavior with Sandy, Shasta shared that she gets scared, "the pictures" she carries with her of her earlier life pop up and fear takes hold, i.e survival behavior emerges. Sandy Worked with Shasta to "show her" that these pictures are behind her and that it is her responsibility to make different choices now as well as develop trust in her present pack leaders, i.e. Cathie and Dwight, who are consistent, steady and understand canine packness. Sandy stressed with Shasta that she can relax, BE in the now and build new memories.

a-a-a-a-a-a-ah, relaxing. Shasta has been visibly more relaxed,
 even right after the connection was broken with Sandy. And when she is given her raw,
organic chicken backs, she looks at me, "These are mine?" "Yes, just for you."
AND she proceeds to devour them without so much as a whimpering guarding growl.

FENCE POSTS:

In October, 1994, my now late stepfather, Stephen B. Howard, and Mom
were here to check out MuRefuge purchased the December before.
Steve is shown here  meticulously painting each fence post, not
with one but two coats of paint. The paint color was matched to
the two old oak trees just South of our South property line.
Steve was concerned about the posts rotting at the soil line
so he diligently and methodically gathered small rocks and nestled them around
each post to increase their life span.

Also, this week MuRefuge is getting a face lift of sorts. Some of the fence posts supporting the wide animal friendly fencing have rotted out at the soil line which is in most places well above the cement that was poured around each post in the very early 1990's. Dwight, along with a very strong, quarter of a century younger man than he, easily removed the barely standing fence posts and with more difficulty the cement in the ground. New redwood posts were repositioned in the holes which were then refilled with fresh fence post concrete. 

In the center of this picture you can see the newly installed fence post.
This view is taken from almost the identical spot as the previous one.
As you can see, what is flourishing is not what was originally planted
in this area, know now as MuRefuge's wild coastal prairie.

AND MORE:

A recent visitor to one of our bird feeders. Squirrels cause Shasta to go ballistic.
On our walks she senses a squirrel long before her human companions do.

As those of you who have visited MuRefuge know our vegetable garden is
 comprised of basalt block raised beds. The year the Heirloom Italian Zucchini
was planted in the West most bed. These plants are very large and the vines always
lope over  the edge of the bed.  This year this zucchini nestled unnoticed on
the ground right next to the edge of its bed until its HUGENESS caused notice!
I could hardly hold this gigantic fruit for this picture! 

As you look at this zucchini picture may each of you, like Dwight and I did, enjoy a great belly

Herbal Vinegars and Lemon Cucumbers

ORGANIC HERBAL VINEGAR:
One way to preserve the herbs flourishing in the garden now is to make herbal vinegars. It is best to start with a really tasty vinegar that is organic. My preference is Nana Mae's Organic Unfiltered Apple Cider Vinegar made right here in Sonoma County. Then I walk about the garden sensing which herbs want to be joined together.

Bay (native) leaves, Chives, Lavender flowers, Lemon verbena leaves,
Oregano, Heirloom 'Gigante' Parsley, Rosemary, Thyme,
Winter Savory

A lemon theme was created as a substitute for Meyers lemon juice that in past years was used in jam, jelly and chutney making. With the severe freeze that happened last Winter Tanis’s Meyers lemon tree was adversely affected, essentially eliminating lemons for the year.  Thank you, Tanis, for all the Meyers lemons you have provided me in the past and will surely do in the future when your tree resumes its productivity.

Lemon balm, Lemon basil, Lemon 'Gem' marigold flowers,
 Lemon thyme, Lemon verbena

Another way to use herbal vinegar is in kefir dressing, which has been modified from the one appearing in *The Nourished Kitchen by Jennifer McGruder, who makes her own kefir milk. I substitute a wonderfully delicious store bought kefir milk: Organic Nancy’s lowfat cultured Kefir milk. The other advantage of purchasing this particular brand is that it is not bottled in plastic.

Kefir dressing:

• 1/4 C. organic kefir milk
• 1 tsp. organic maple syrup
• 2 tsp. organic herbal apple cider vinegar
• 1/8 tsp. sea salt
• 1/4 tsp. freshly ground organic peppercorns

Mix until smooth in a bowl.

*I love this book! I am so grateful to you, Katie, for giving this fabulous book to me for my birthday.

LEMON CUCUMBERS:

Vibrant, blooming lemon cucumber plants

Fresh lemon cucumbers ready for peeling and slicing.

Leigh, I so appreciate the handy mandoline you gave me for my birthday a year ago. A mandoline slices these lemon cucumbers perfectly.

Fresh, organic lemon cucumber salad with the delicious kefir dressing.
I like to eat this as a "soup" so I usually make the dressing using a whole cup of kefir milk
for 6 to 8 lemon cucumbers, of course multiplying all the other ingredients accordingly.

Thank you, Harmony, for creating such lovely fabric! HarmonyArt fabric was used to make this wonderful tablecloth with matching napkins that is environmentally friendly!

While harvesting the garden's abundance