February Edition of The Year of Miracles : Dippy Eggs, Cardamom Buns and Chicken!
January came and went with so much happening here at home and out in the world. There were times I just couldn't face opening my laptop and writing and so many days when cooking was the only thing that gave me peace and solace. Grief comes in so many ways and for so many things - for people and relationships, for the past as you remember it (not always how it was), and for dreams that were big and have to be adjusted because that's just how the world works. And the grief comes and goes, sometimes just a little tickle around your eyelids, and sometimes a deep heaviness.
But in all the big and little moments of grief, there are also moments of grace and miracles. As I look more closely, I am more able to find those miracles and they help me keep moving and find hope in each day.
I was able to cook through most of January (and what I missed I hope to pick up in February). Dippy Eggs, Cardamom Buns and Cardamom Cinnamon Chicken Rice.
Dippy Eggs.
Breakfast has always been my favorite meal, and probably my least varied. I love all the traditional breakfast foods AND I love turning my dinner leftovers into breakfast. There's something about the freshness of the day (and my digestive system) that lets me really enjoy the meal.
And my all-time favorite breakfast is soft boiled egg (dippy eggs). When I was still working (sometimes so early my alarm was set for 4:30 AM so I could eat my breakfast in peace) I used to eat my soft-boiled egg smashed onto a piece of Trader Joe's Cracked Wheat Sourdough. In the warmer months, I would eat melon with it and during the winter pink grapefruit, both sweet and sour - starting in December when it was almost lemon-like in its sourness and enjoying the way it changed to sweet and tart as May approached.
After retirement, I discovered the joy of dippy eggs, so I was so happy to see this recipe (method?) in The Year of Miracles.
Here's a short video highlighting the joys of breakfast outside.
Cardamum Buns
These are some of the best buns I've ever made (and my mom had an incredible sticky bun recipe). There is the sweet, sweet brown sugar, the rich butter, yeasty dough and almost savory warm spiciness of cinnamon and cardamom. If you need ("knead") time in your kitchen - a moving meditation of texture, and smell (and taste - because I did eat a bit of the butter, sugar, and spice filling) put on your apron, and treat yourself and everyone around you to these lovely buns in your very own home.
Cardamom Cinnamon Chicken Rice.
So much cardamom and cinnamon this month and I am all in for this! This recipe was savory from the spices and sweet from the onions, but in a subtle, slow-cooked way. The onions took a lot of time to get just right and it was worth it. You could clean out some cupboards or even read a book while you watch and stir! Such a lovely dinner, but I cannot emphasize enough how wonderful Ella Risbridger's writing is as she shares her journey creating a new life. Get to your library or bookstore and get a copy ASAP! You can listen to Ella read it on audiobook, too. Click HERE for our YouTube Short!