Recipe Of The Week

Linguine with Chicken and Sauteed Vegetables


Ingredients


1/2 cup vegetable oil
10 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 (12 ounce) package uncooked linguine pasta
salt to taste
1/2 cup chopped broccoli
1/2 cup chopped cabbage
1/2 cup shredded carrots
1/2 cup chopped cauliflower
2 tablespoons diced green onions
1 pound chicken tenders, cut into bite-size pieces
3 1/2 tablespoons soy sauce
salt and pepper to taste
1 cup chopped cilantro
4 lime wedges


Directions


~ Heat oil in a skillet over medium heat. Mix in garlic. Cook and stir until golden. Remove from heat and allow to cool.
~ Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Place linguine in pot and cook 8 to 10 minutes, until al dente. Drain and transfer to a large bowl. Set aside 1 tablespoon garlic oil and toss remainder with pasta to coat. Season pasta with salt.
~ Bring a pot of water to a boil. Immerse broccoli, cabbage, carrots, cauliflower and green onions in water for about 30 seconds. Drain and set aside.
~ Heat reserved garlic oil in skillet over medium heat. Mix in chicken and 2 tablespoons soy sauce. Cook until chicken juices run clear. Mix in vegetables and remaining soy sauce. Season with salt and pepper. Toss with linguine, and garnish with cilantro and lime to serve.

Snow Candy And Speckled Chickens

I got my book "Circle Round, raising children in the goddess traditions" in the mail the day before yesterday and started reading it immediately. I cannot begin to tell you how great this book is! I wasn't very far into reading when I came across one of the wonderful traditions, that I felt tears coming to my eyes. It was about snow candy, I had all but forgotten making snow candy (with real maple syrup) at grandma's and grandpa's house every winter.

My grandparents have been in my thoughts a lot lately, I'm not sure why. It seems that I miss them a whole lot more the older I get. It was okay to be that dorky little kid, clumsy, opinionated but even then I loved getting in the dirt and working around the garden with them. (they even let me have one of their banty hens as pet and never batted an eye when I took "Blackie" for a walk in grandpa's old fishing basket, you know...the old wicker type with a square in the top, she fit just perfectly.) There were even a couple times in my life when I was very ill that I yearned for grandma's loving hands and soothing voice to be there to comfort me.

I never told mom about the snow candy (or the chicken, for she was deathly afraid of them), I realized even at that age, what reaction she'd have. It was a special tradition just between grandma, grandpa and me. Now days, as a parent, I would never advocate pouring maple syrup on snow and eating it but life seems so different now than it did back then. Here is an updated recipe that is probably much safer for consumption.

Snow Candy

* 1 cup real maple syrup
* 1/4 cup butter
* Shaved ice (or vanilla ice cream)

* Heat the syrup and butter in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat, stirring to avoid a boil over. 


* The mixture is ready 6 to 7 minutes after it boils (220 to 234 degrees on a candy thermometer). It should stiffen when dripped onto a plate.


* Remove from heat and cool for 2 minutes before pouring over shaved ice  or ice cream. It cools so quickly and kids can eat it right away.