Fresh Blueberries!(check out the smoothie recipe at the end!)

Yum! The local Blueberry Farm http://theberrypatchonline.com/ opened for picking this week. Because of steamy hot temperatures, eager pickers showed up bright and early at 7 am when the gates opened. The first crop is abundant and the berries huge. A combination of recent rains and a perfectly cool spring has resulted in what one old timer referred to as “the best pickin’ in years!”

Blueberry season typically stretches from June through August. If you are lucky enough to have access to a local U-Pick berry farm or grow your own, you know there is nothing like a big, juicy, blueberry right off the bush. Resisting the urge to nibble all the way home, I can hardly wait to toss a handful on yogurt or ice cream for a cooling afternoon boost during these hot summer days.

You will notice that your fresh picked blueberries have a powdery blue color. This powdery finish is called bloom. It is Mother Nature’s protective coating helping prevent sunburn. This bloom is a hint to a blueberry’s freshness. As the fruit ages it becomes a deep, almost midnight blue. If you are buying blueberries at the market, look for dry, firm and frosty-blue berries. Soft, moist, and dark tell you the blueberries are breaking down.

Blueberries should be refrigerated as soon as possible after picking/purchasing. I wash mine as I need them leaving nature’s bloom on the blueberries until I am ready to use them. They seem to last longer that way. Setting aside a healthy portion unwashed in the refrigerator to rinse and toss on cereal or salads, I will freeze or dehydrate most of my blueberry bounty. While they are available, I pick or buy blueberries to have all year for blueberry-basil scones, sweet blueberry syrup, blueberry conserve, or to toss in my morning smoothie.

Freezing or dehydrating is fast and so easy. Rinse the blueberries and drain, Spread in a single layer on a baking pan or tray and put in the freezer. An hour or so later, check that the blueberries are frozen through and then gently slide them into your choice of freezer containers. I use reclose-able freezer bags, squeezing all of the excess air from the bag before sealing closed. (Air is the biggest enemy of frozen foods.) Frozen blueberries can be used straight from the freezer in baking, jellies or other preserves. To dehydrate, I prepare as before, only I spread the dry berries on the racks of my dehydrator in a single layer. Dry according to the dehydrator's guidelines and seal in an air tight container. These dehydrated berries are a great snack for hiking and other strenuous activities. They also are a great addition to trail mix bars and oatmeal cookies.

Besides being so yummy, blueberries are so good for you. *** They have recently been referred to as a miracle food. You know, there is that group of fruits/berries that bear unbelievable nutritional value. The thing about most of those other fruits is that they are not grown around here. Being native to the northern region of North America, blueberries are readily cultivated or growing wild in our area. If I pick/buy locally, I am saving energy and supporting my local economy. What is good for me becomes good for my community and the planet. I love when that works out!

***USDA National Nutrient Database for Standard Reference

Zesty Blueberry Smoothie

6 OZ Water
1 – 2 servings vanilla whey powder (on my meal plan 2 servings is 200 cal. 12 gr protein 0 sugars)
½ C fresh or frozen blueberries
Juice of ½ lemon
Lemon zest-if you are energetic and like it tart!
1 tsp ground flax seed (no-no if in the weight loss phase of the plan)
¼ tsp cinnamon
2 fresh purple basil or mint or lemon balm leaves (optional- gives a wonderful depth of flavor and aroma)
Ice, if you want it slushier.

Process and drink immediately or freeze in Popsicle molds for high energy snacks.

Happy Father's Day!

Today I am feeling bittersweet, wishing my dad was here to see his grandchildren and how they have grown into phenomenal young adults. Since his passing in 1985, the older boys have become independent, adventurous, handsome, each with their own unique way of being in the world.

While the older two boys have vague childhood memories of my father, the younger two children never met him. They know him through stories and photos and how much I can be like him. Some of this I know from what he was interested in-like science fiction and the UFO documentaries he would take us to see. Motivating or challenging…like him I am always right, I have high expectations and can be stubborn and unforgiving in that arena. From his walks on the farm I know I share his deep spiritual connection with nature, without having to be in church. From his library (old books that I still treasure as my own) I know his unique way of seeing the world around him and his fascination with the night sky and its infinite mysteries and messages. I have his intense curiosity of knowing how things work or how people do things. His commitment to building community and selfless service (sometimes to a fault) is something I embody. While not with a drafting table, I love to draw. And I am a collector of useful things….clutter some people might say…wabi sabi I say!

My mom recently shared that she sees different parts of my father come through my brothers and myself. With tears running down my cheeks, I listened as she explained how we each use the gifts my father instilled within us. She said that I have the gift of knowing what to do in times of crisis, how to take charge of a situation-whether it is dealing with my son’s foot gushing blood (okay, not like Saturday Nite Live) from sliding into a broken bottle, to calming a nervous groom, or centering with a cancer patient fraught with anxiety over whether chemo is the right choice. From Daddy, I am blessed with a cool head and clear thinking in that moment. No one knows that I crumble an hour later…that was his secret too. For that gift I am eternally grateful.

No dad is perfect and mine was as human as the rest. There were things that frustrated me like when he told me I should be a technical writer because my math was not strong enough to be an engineer. And what I remember most is the small crystals of knowing he bestowed upon me. When I was two weeks from giving birth to my first child…sitting as comfortably as I could on my bed, talking with him on the phone late one night, I expressed my nervousness and asked him,

“What if I can’t do this?” (natural childbirth)

And he replied simply,

“You’re a Wasinger, you can do anything.”

Enough said…that sentence has come back to me over and over in my life. And it makes me think about what I have given to my children, have I given them the same type of mantra that they can turn to over and over again? Food for thought.

Father’s day is not complete without honoring my step-dad. His metaphorical tool box contained a completely different set of tools. He modeled the spirit of entrepreneurism and being self dependent and private. He too knew everything… about different stuff. As a retired Marine, he had a unique perspective on patriotism and politics and war. He was crotchety and stubborn. He would do anything for anyone if they needed help. He had a deep love for the outdoors in summer. He was opinionated and vocal and had a deep respect for people willing to challenge him or state their own case. His smile was a flash of lightning that charmed you. He made my mom happy and took care of her.

I really got to know him in his last years as he fought a valiant fight with cancer…showing me how to be optimistic and good natured where ever the cancer journey took him. Those tools were ones that I know he had hoped I would never get to use…and as fate would have it; those were the very tools that I have used the most. Our cancer journeys ended in 2006…his with the peace he found outside of a body weary of its many years of treatment, mine with the end of chemo and radiation and the belief I had done everything I could to be well and stay well for many years.

I am lucky to have had two men in my life that left me with an abundance of life experience and examples of how I choose to be, or how not to be. Both equally as valuable. So today I express gratitude for all of the above…

Saturday Morning…Market Day!

June 20, 2009 (oops) posted one day late

I love Saturday morning…it means Farmer’s Market, a weekly ritual that began for me many years ago. I love that I know the faces behind the food that I eat. Market basket loaded with coffee mug, insulated bags to keep the produce cool, and empty egg cartons for my favorite egg vendor, with anticipation of what will be at the stands this week, I head to the organic community market.

Supporting local growers is so important. Knowing the source of your food in light of the tainted food scares of the last few years makes this even more important. By supporting local growers, I support the local economy, adding sustainability to my own way of living in this community. And this all makes me feel good and a contributing part of the bigger picture.

Enough soap-box…this has become my new favorite lunch salad:

Fresh spinach (two handfuls) – local!
1 Tbl feta cheese, crumbled or local goat’s cheese
¼ cup fresh blueberries – local!
1/3 cup cooked garbanzo beans
¼ cup coarsely shredded carrots – local! or jicama
1 chopped hard-boiled egg – local!

When in a hurry I dress this with 1 Tbl Newman’s Own Walnut Vinaigrette.
If time is ample…homemade blueberry vinaigrette made w/ my home-brewed blueberry vinegar and extra virgin olive oil, chopped fresh basil (from the garden), s & p

To make this dinner I add a portion of grilled salmon or chicken and a whole wheat roll or brown rice.

Now back to putting the produce away ... and maybe that salad.

Still No A/C

Wow, it is hot! How did we do it as kids, growing up with no air conditioning? A week ago I was boasting that we had not turned our A/C on - no need yet…pride go-eth before the fall? So the day our Midwest humidity and 90 degree temps set in, no A/C. And we are on day five. Let’s see, all of my ‘self improvement, new agie’ work would have me ask myself what lessons I am learning from this, or the ever popular – how can you reframe this to make it positive. Hmmm.

On the most practical side, I am grateful for the energy and dollars we have conserved over the last two months.

I am grateful that the markets are full of fresh, locally grown fruits and vegetables. I have been eating fresh salads and other simple, whole foods to avoid the extra heat of the stove and oven. In this heat, my body magically knows it does not need the heavier foods of winter to stay warm.

Stillness has become necessary and with that comes introspection. Life gets so busy, how often do I get the opportunity, or rather, take the opportunity to be still?

I am grateful for every breeze, however slight that reaches my skin, offering a cooling caress. Sitting outside has become habit, watching the fireflies dance and bats dart about. Listening to the tree frogs and crickets. Savoring the cooling breeze. Slap me if I complain about the gusty winds of Kansas ever again.

The lessons? Free will…I have choices, I am responsible for my own actions or reactions. I have the choice to complain or not. I have the choice to suffer or persevere. I have the choice to be grateful that A/C is available, when so many do not even have it as an option. I can suck lemons or make lemonade.

Gratitude, doesn’t it always come back to that? Gratitude for what I have rather than complaint for what is lacking? (challenging when sweat is dripping on your keyboard) So today I choose a big glass of lemonade with a side of gratitude.

Today I continue my blog, putting the fingers to the keyboard. Journaling has been a huge part of my life journey. It is curious that I have not been able to commit over the last year to a regular journaling practice. It has been sporadic and fruitful when I created space for the writing to come through. And I do not know why I hesitate. Is there something very real and important waiting to come out? Morning pages (a la the Artist’s Way by Julia Cameron) always reveal the hidden kernels of truth. Doing three pages of writing each morning frees my brain from clutter and opens my heart to my truth. Now this is not a one day fix…and the writing usually gets difficult around one and a half pages. Well, not difficult to write, just that I let distractions take me away from my journal or keyboard.. It is then I know that I should press on, for there is something waiting on the other side of the three pages. It may not reveal itself until the tenth day of writing (after the hump at twenty-nine a half pages) that the kernel pops wide open. I feel something inside needs to escape, to be brought into the light. So I begin, I make a commitment to my writing practice, today and tomorrow and the next day...hmmm..time to make coffee. Has it been 1 ½ pages already?