I Name the Blog

For a while, the name of my blog has been "Still thinking of a name." Unfortunately, I was not trying to be cute, like when someone names a movie rental place "The Video Store" or a bookstore "That Bookstore in Insert Town Name Here." I really have been devoting a lot of thought to what I'd like to call this place. 

So much of life is a search for truth. Let me digress a moment to make clear I don't mean Truth, with a capital "T," as in the meaning of life kind of Truth. I have long been--and will ever remain--convinced that Jesus is the light, the truth, and the way; however, it seems like after my acceptance of THAT Truth, the real work has begun. What exactly does a life transformed by Christ look like, anyway?

Sometimes it can seem overwhelming, all the work that is to be done. All too often I get caught up in endeavoring to change myself in large measures, but what I'm finding is that is not really how God works. He--graciously--offers truth in small doses. It reminds me of that old saying: "Truth is hard medicine."

As my thoughts led me to that quote, that silly old Mary Poppins song starting playing in my head like a soundtrack, and I realized: This blog is my spoonful of sugar. It's a (relatively) safe place for me to get my thoughts out so that I can consume life in more manageable, easily-digestable parts. A few awesome biproducts are 1) it gives me the opportunity to write, which is something I have sorely missed since college; and 2) some of you actually read this mess and find it interesting! ;) In all honesty, it's been really fun to get a conversation started on my blog that I continue throughout the week with my friends. Thanks for reading!

Recipe Recommendations

Yesterday I made Chickpeas with Chard and Pan-Roasted Tomatoes, a recipe I found in this month's edition of Real Simple magazine (a Christmas gift from Michael--thanks babe!). We both thought it was delicious--though the jury is still out on Laila's opinion, as she was already Sunday-afternoon-napping when I finished cooking it. A few tips:

• Don't be afraid of chard, as I was before trying this recipe. It naturally has a very distinct, tangy taste, almost like the leaves have been marinated. In fact, it kind of reminded me of the dolmades (marinated stuffed grape leaves) they make at Taziki's Greek Restaurant (PS - I highly recommend Taziki's for delicious Greek cuisine). The chard added so much to this recipe; I wish I had grabbed a larger bunch!
• Season your rice! I just followed the package directions and added 1/2 teaspoon Kosher salt and 2 tablespoons EVOO. It was a nice touch.





This morning I snuck some vegetables into muffins I made for Laila, which she then devoured (recipe below).

  
Apple & Carrot Muffins

Ingredients

• 1 cup white all-purpose flour
• 3/4 cup whole wheat flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• pinch of salt
• 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1 apple, cored and grated
• 1/2 carrot, grated
• 4 tablespoons honey
• 1 large egg, beaten
• 1 cup buttermilk
• 4 tablespoons brown sugar

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350F. Line muffin pan with muffin paper cases.
2. Mix the flours, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and nutmeg together in a large bowl.
3. In a separate bowl, mix the apple and carrot together. Stir in the honey and egg, then the buttermilk and sugar. Pour this mixture into the dry ingredients and stir briefly to combine. Don't overmix--the batter should still be a little lumpy.
4. Spoon the batter into the paper cases and bake in the preheated oven. *The recipe says 12 standard size muffins bake for 20 minutes. I made mini-muffins, which made about 30 and baked for 18 minutes.
5. Remove from the oven and let cool in pan.
6. Consume. :)