Enchantment Learning & Living Blog

Welcome to Enchantment Learning & Living, the inspirational space where I write about the simple pleasures, radical self-care, and everyday magic that make life delicious.

Tuna-less Mason Jar Nicoise Salad Recipe

September 10, 2014

One of my favorite all time lunches is a well prepared Nicoise salad; it is elegant and well balanced, full of good-for-you fats, proteins, and veggies that leave you feeling light and energized. Naturally, I set about figuring out how to transfer this dish into a quick mason jar meal for when I'm on the go.

I made my version tuna-less because I often prefer vegetarian lunches. You can, however, feel free to add tuna if you so wish. After trial and error, I found that cherry tomatoes work best in this salad because they hold up better if you like to make your mason jar meals ahead of time like I do. But if you are making your salad the morning of, chopped tomatoes, pictured here, work just as well.

Ingredients:

2 cups boiled small potatoes, halved

2 cups chopped green beans

1 cup chopped radishes (about 8 big radishes)

1 cup kalamata olives

2 tomatoes, cut into chunks or 1 cup cherry tomatoes, left whole

4 hard-boiled eggs, cut into quarters

1/2 cup apple cider vinegar

1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil

1 heaping tablespoon Dijon mustard

Combine vinegar, oil, and mustard in a mason jar and shake until combined. Then divide this dressing between 4 mason jars. Starting with the potatoes, evenly layer ingredients into each jar in the order they appear on the ingredient list. Store in the fridge. To serve, simply shake the jar until dressing coats all layers and enjoy! Makes 4 servings.

Enchantment Learning & Living is an inspirational blog celebrating life’s simple pleasures, everyday mysticism, and delectable recipes that are guaranteed to stir the kitchen witch in you. If you enjoyed what you just read and believe that true magic is in the everyday, subscribe to my newsletter below for regular doses of enchantment. Want even more inspiration? Follow me on Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest, and Twitter. Here’s to a magical life!

On Another Harvest Moon

September 9, 2014

You went moon gazing last night. You sat on the front lawn of your family home and simply gazed at this perfectly ripe orb, full of the promise of harvest, of cleansing and rebirth, of inward reflection. You watched as it grew more golden in the late-night sky, covered only by thin, stray clouds like frayed ribbons drifting over its upturned face.

You let its light wash over you, bathe you in the mythology of the moon, settle your mind and refresh your soul. And when you finally turned your gaze from that moon and made your way home, it was to dream deeply, letting its light filter through your window and into your dreamscape.

It has been almost a year since you have opened yourself to a better way of living, of dreaming, of being. A year since you began diligently working on doing less, on recovering from the addiction of busyness. A whole year since you learned to have time for the moon and embrace the bounty of its wisdom. Each month it waxes and wanes in its own time, its own pace. So you too continue to learn how to grow into the fullest expression of yourself and take the time you need to take to listen to who you are.

And who you are is a woman who bathes in the moonlight and cultivates the quiet essential to her well-being. The moon, as if to emphasize this realization, is there to greet you on your waking. It has watched over you as you dreamed through the night and is there looking over you again in the morning; heavy and golden in the sky as you make your way to work, only the two of you are awake in the city.

A Celebration of Kitchen Magic in 5 Flash Essays!

September 8, 2014

There is something almost ephemeral about the magic that is conjured over a simmering pot of beans or a shallow pan slowly melting butter for ghee. Somewhere between rinsing and sifting the beans and the hours they spend cooking on a hot stove--or the brief moments it takes for your melted butter to separate its contents--magic occurs. It is in the way tinkering in the kitchen can sooth us and in how we nourish ourselves not just by the food we make but how we make it. A pinch of this. A dash of that. Food is intention, a pure embodiment of how we chose to live, heal, nourish, love.

In many ways, the kitchen is also the most intimate space in our home; it reveals everything about us, from what we consider essential to our everyday life to how we connect with family and those we love. In honor of this kitchen magic that keeps pulling me back to my stove, a new recipe, or a fresh kettle of hot water, I present to you five musing on the wonder and healing energy of the kitchen:

1. Under the Influence of M.F. K. Fisher

2. On Baking

3. On Grocery Lists

4. On Cooking and Onion

5. On Cooking Dinner

What do you love most about the kitchen?

Peaches & Cream Overnight Porridge

September 7, 2014

Right now I'm trying to make the most of peaches as their season is slowly winding towards its end. Especially come September, much of the peaches you can find at the markets are ripe and juicy--in some cases, verging on overripe. Not to fear! These almost overripe jewels are perfect for this Peaches & Cream Overnight Porridge because their juices mingle with the yogurt and milk creating a decadent treat for your breakfast. The chia seeds and almond meal add an extra vitamin boost. Like my Tropical Breakfast Quinoa or my Tulsi-rose Breakfast Quinoa, this dish translates well into a breakfast mason jar meal. In fact, I often prepare this porridge by serving it up in my mason jars straight from the fridge.

What makes this dish so simple--easier even than my quinoa recipes--is that you simply stir all the ingredients together and let them sit overnight in your fridge. Then the next morning, you have a perfect jar of oats ready and waiting for you. I especially love this meal when I find myself strapped for time come Sunday and can't linger in the kitchen as I prepare my weekly breakfast and lunch.

Ingredients:

1 cup multi-grain oats

2 tablespoons chia seeds

2 tablespoons almond meal

2 tablespoons flax seed meal

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon ginger

3 tablespoons maple syrup or honey

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 cup milk

1 cup Greek yogurt

4 peaches, chopped

Mix all dry ingredients together in a bowl and set aside. In a separate bowl, mix together all the wet ingredients until combined. Then begin to add wet ingredients to the dry ingredients slowly, until thoroughly mixed. Finally, stir in peach chunks. Divide mixture evenly between 4 mason jars and let sit overnight in fridge. Makes 4 servings. Enjoy!

On Peeling Chile

September 6, 2014

It is a yearly ritual, one that closes out summer and ushers in fall; it's as synonymous with your beloved New Mexico as red chile ristras and open turquoises skies: chile peeling. That art of gathering, roasting and then peeling giant sackfuls of your native fruit to store for the rest of the year. Every family has their own way; every family knows that their way is the best.

For you, chile peeling is always done on a series of Fridays, when you can devote a few hours to talking, drinking beer or tea--or tequila, and peeling, always peeling the hot, charred skin off the flesh of the roasted chiles and separating them into two bowls: the broken chiles for stews and salsas, and the unblemished whole peppers for rellenos (that dish perfect in the way it stuffs your chiles with cheese, smothers them in blue corn batter, and fries them up). The waiting-to-be-peeled chile sits in sacks, cooling on your kitchen counter.

Chile peeling. Your hands tingle from the heat of the peppers long after you've stored your last bag in the freezer. The pot of beans cooks on the stove top as you work, the promise of celebratory homemade tortillas and rellenos to feast on afterward. The cool splash of a micro-brew on your tongue, the taste of your homeland. It is a mediation and an art, flooding you with memories of working with your mother in this very kitchen peeling, planning, preparing a year's worth of chile, a year's worth of countless family dinners, a year's worth of new history laid into the grooves of your lives.

Mason Jar Spinach Salad

September 5, 2014

Spinach is one of those leafy greens that I crave deep in my bones. More than kale or chard, I simply cannot have enough spinach! This mason jar salad is an ode to that and stuffed with other good-for you veggies and nuts. I added a little Dijon mustard to the dressing and its tang ties all the ingredients together--from the sweet, smokey tomatoes to the sugary peas to the peppery radishes. Don't worry if you feel like you are stuffing the spinach leaves into the jar at the end--they'll be fine; you just want to make sure to pack that jar with as many yummy veggies as you can.

Ingredients:

1 cup extra firm tofu, chopped

2 cups sundried tomatoes, diced

1 cup radishes, sliced

1 cup sugar snap peas, diced

4 cups spinach

1 cup pepitas

1/4 cup apple cider vinegar

1/3 cup extra virgin voile oil

1 tablespoon Dijon mustard

salt to taste (optional)

Combine apple cider vinegar, olive oil, mustard, and salt if desired in a small mason jar and shake until combined. Divide dressing between four mason jars evenly. Then proceed to layer each ingredient evenly between 4 mason jars, starting with the tofu and ending with the spinach. Store in the fridge. When you're ready for your mason jar meal, simply shake the jar to spread the dressing around. You can eat straight from the jar or pour it on a plate. Makes 4 servings. Enjoy!

On Dressing for Yourself

September 4, 2014

To truly dress, you must dress for yourself.

Some say women dress for men. Others, for other women. Both are wrong. Those who do the former waste the pleasures of a perfectly flouncy skirt or nice underwear on an approving gaze--isn't their admiration of your ensemble a mere side effect of the unadulterated enjoyment you take in wearable art? Those who cater to the later lose the delicious expression of self in exchange for the paltry approval of current trends and conventional clothing found in shop windows. What a bore.

No, if a woman is to truly dress, she must dress for herself.

You must take pleasure in pairing turquoise stockings with your blazing yellow dress, despite the general consensus that too many colors are unrefined. You must cultivate your love of polka dots and retro heels--and jewelry stacked one on top of the other. Above all, you must ignore the fashion magazine that tells you that gray is the new black because you know full well that pink will always be the new black. You must wear your dress that makes you feel like a daisy, though not everyone likes flowers.

You wear it for you.

Yes, you must do all these things and more. For to waste your talents on dressing for others will leave you forever trying to love those stifling button up shirts and deny your passion for retro dresses. That road only leads to fashion misery and a slow fading of your spirit into the gray when you were once nothing but pink...until, of course, you can't take it anymore. Then comes an outburst of glitter and polka dots, once again your loud self. Dressing for others never does last.

For to truly dress, you must dress, always and forever, for yourself.

On Watching the Bees Collect Pollen

September 3, 2014

Today you find yourself thinking of the last time you had visited your mother's garden before the semester swept you up in its embrace. It was still early in the morning, with the air carrying the faint promise of autumn; there was a cool breeze made all the gentler from the previous night's rain. Fat dewdrops hung from the tips of grass blades like small crystals glittering in the morning light, wetting your feet and ankles.

Your soul was quiet despite the riot of activity around you. Everywhere her garden was bursting with life: the morning glories had turned their heads to the sun and the birds sang their daily aria as they gathered breakfast. The giant sunflowers were like sentries along the garden wall and walking paths and the branches of the apple tree were heavy with fruit. Even the voluptuous squash blossoms stretched open, languid and happy as the bees crawled along their insides.

The bees. You watched them, first in the squash blossoms and then making their way across flat sunflower heads, stuffing their sides full of pollen. For them, there was no time to waste, no time for coffee or conversation. No, they must bathe in the golden dust, gather up each grain for their hive, and fly off in search of more pollen in another flower. There too, as they gathered, they left the seeds of future blossoms behind.

For a long time, you simply watched and marveled at the bees' industry, their undivided focus on gathering, nourishing, pollinating. Now as you think back to that morning while brewing your first cup of tea at the office, you hold that memory close, a delicious reminder of the beauty in industry.

Tropical Breakfast Quinoa

September 2, 2014

The last time I talked about quinoa for breakfast was when I introduced you to my Rose-Tulsi Breakfast Quinoa in the spring. I love quinoa because it is so healthy for you and so versatile; I can apply any flavor to it and it works beautifully. Take, for instance, my new breakfast love, the tropical breakfast quinoa that features coconut milk and almond meal to give this grain extra richness and pineapple for a pop of color and sweetness. I finish it off with a dusting of coconut flakes. Best of all, this meal is easy to turn into a mason jar meal simply by layering the quinoa and the pineapple in a mason jar.

Ingredients:

2 cups water

1 cup quinoa

3 tablespoons honey (to taste)

4 tablespoons almond meal

1 can coconut milk

2 cups pineapple chunks, fresh or frozen

1/2 cup coconut flakes

Heat to cups of water in a pot until boiling. Add quinoa and cook on medium heat for approximately 15 minutes or until grains are soft. Remove from heat and stir in almond meal until combined. Then add honey and coconut milk, stirring until combined. Don't worry if the coconut milk doesn't completely absorb into the quinoa right away. You can serve this immediately by dividing it evenly between four bowls and topping it with pineapple chunks and coconut flakes. Or if you want to make a mason jar breakfast out of it, simply allow it to cool completely before dividing it evenly between 4 mason jars and topping it with your fruit and coconut flakes. Serves 4. Enjoy!

On the Last Long Weekend of Summer

September 1, 2014

It is summer's final gift, a last tribute to a season of grilling and late-night reading and lazy mornings drinking coffee on your patio. Pure heavenly indulgence before you get swept up in the tide of the semester.

The week before was busy--perhaps too busy--as you flitted from one errand to the next while diving into the first week of school and the inevitable joys and chaos that come with it. You are grateful for this last long weekend, then, to slow down, to turn inward, and to find your grounding once again. In the slowly unfolding hours of these three days, you take the time to be deliberate about your actions and those of the days to come, weeding out unnecessary busyness, silencing mindless chatter.

For you are always at your strongest, your happiest, when you can embrace your solid daily routine that is built on your thirst for tranquillity and stability, of blissful quiet and gentle awareness. And you found it again this weekend, in the birds singing on your patio as they feast on the seeds you put to for them; in the long afternoons spent reading; in the evenings in the kitchen playing with a new recipe. You found it the rich moments of your everyday life, that inner joy that you will continue to nourish and take with you into the coming weeks. You found it in the momentary pause from your regular labor, in your deliberate choice to not do much of anything this last long weekend of summer.