Preparing for Cooler Months - Menu Planning

I know its only just barely into August, but this is the time when I begin my yearly DEEP cleaning up until snow hits the ground.  I will be opening up the windows as much as possible to let the fresh air in and the old out.  I will also begin to dwindle my pantry to use what goods are in it now so that nothing expires and goes to waste. 

One of the things I like to do is to prepare a monthly menu so it takes the hassle out of planning and preparing meals in the last minute and not having all the items I need to make the meal I plan to.
With the colder months coming one thing I look forward to each and every year is utilizing my slow cooker. 

Last year when I began the shift going Vegetarian, one of the first books I picked up was this one.

So I decided to try one of the soup recipes....

Potatoes

Corn

Yellow pepper

Diced Tomato

Salt and Pepper to taste

I used the whole box, but think it only called for a few cups.

Green onion on top.

I really liked this soup.  Think next time I will take out the yellow pepper.  The one I used seemed to be really spicy instead of sweet.  There was so much soup left over that I decided to blend it and put it into the containers that I normally use for my Gumbo when my sister or mother make it for me.  They freeze into single servings for later use. 

I plan to make more recipes from this in the future this fall...Its going to be one of my go to books this year.

Blessed Be,
Crystal T.

Pagan Blog Post - A for Asparagus

Now you are wondering WTF does Aparagus have to do with the craft right?

This year, one of the ways I am evolving my spirituality is discovering the way food is a gift from Gaia's bounty.  The Goddess does not only nourish us spiritually, but also physically. 

Last June I had an eye opening experience that led to a real life wake up call.  I was diagnosed with Kidney disease and even more recently Lupus.  So alot of things have been woken up inside of me including my spiritual side, my physical side, and my mental side.  The Goddess has given me a really hard wake up call and I am listening.  One of those things is how and what I eat.

So with participating in the Pagan Blog Project, I will also be sharing things from my book tentatively titled Gaia's Bounty: Celebrating the Goddess with Food which I am currently writing.  With the Pagan Blog Project's two week per letter of the alphabet, one of those weeks will focus on a food item and its magical properties. 

With our first week, here is my first entry:

A is for Asparagus

According to the Alchemy Lab's listing, Asparagus has the elemental properties of Water.  It's phallus like shape is definitely representive of the God.  For this reason alone, it was eaten by many Romans and Egyptians because of its shape was thought of as a powerful aphrodisiac.  It is thought that people who wanted to gain a lover, would eat asparagus.  It is also thought that those who had many lovers ate asparagus on a daily basis.

Asparagus is ruled by the planet Mars. It is also thought of having the qualities to represent prosperity since it is considered to be a delicacy and in history eaten by kings such as Louis XIV and Egyptian Pharoahs. If you examine the stalk of it, it is covered with tiny pyramids.  The pyramid is a symbol for prosperity.  You can even make it more powerful by inscribing a money symbol ($) into the stalk near the pyramids for increased prosperity.  Then eating asparagus on a Tuesday is thought to give you more drive towards earning money and possibly becoming sucessful in monetary investments. 

Now here is one of my favorite recipes (before my becoming Vegetarian).  At one point in time, I think everyone has heard the phrase "Bring home the bacon" refferring to bringing home money or making more money.  Why not use this phrase to your advantage and let your spellcasting be in the form of making a magical meal for prosperity? 

Bacon Wrapped Asparagus

Ingredients

• 10 spears fresh asparagus, trimmed (Don't forget to inscribe your $ signs near the pyramids on the stalks!)
• 1/8 teaspoon pepper
• 5 bacon strips, halved lengthwise

Directions

1. Place asparagus on a sheet of waxed paper; coat with nonstick cooking spray. Sprinkle with pepper; turn to coat. Wrap a bacon piece around each spear; secure ends with toothpicks. Grill, uncovered, over medium-low heat for 8-12 minutes or until bacon is crisp, turning occasionally. Discard toothpicks.

(I obtained the above recipe from Allrecipes.com)


UPDATE:
Since I posted this entry this morning, I have received over 10 emails asking for a Vegetarian alternative.  I don't know why I did not post one earlier becaue I surely do have one.  It's a recipe that me and my friend Kathy created one night with items from my fridge.  Here goes:


Breadstick Wrapped Asparagus
(Created at Crystal's house Samhain Slumber Party 2011)
24 Asparagus Spears
1 can of your favorite Crescent Dough in a can (according to various sources Pilsbury is Vegan friendly and what we used)
Earth Balance "Butter" spread (or if you eat butter/margarine you can use that too)
Parmasan Cheese (I like the Whole Foods' 365 Vegetarian brand)

Open the can of dough.  Cut each piece of crescent roll into two pieces.  (Can is for 12 rolls).  Take each piece of asparagus and wrap it with a strip of dough.  Place on cooking sheet and follow directions to bake the rolls. (Think it was like 350* for 12 minutes, but could be wrong, get the temperature off the can's instructions).

When done, take out and brush with butter.  Sprinkle on the Cheese.  Then devour.

NOTE:  There was also talk of the possibility of blanching the asparagus ahead of time and also putting the cheese on inside of the dough.  Can experiment with these options as well.  Let us know how it turns out if you do!

Happy Eating and wishing you much Prosperity for 2012!

Blessed Be,
Crystal