Sweets!

For the past couple of weeks, our church has been participating in a Daniel fast, eating whole foods. Since standing in the pantry and downing a mouthful of honey straight from the jar is uncouth in some circles, I figured I should come up with more appropriate ways to get my fix. Because I am a girl who just can’t go a day without eating something sweet. Our time of fasting is almost at its end, but I thought I might still post a few of the sweet fast-friendly recipes that we have enjoyed along the way.

Apple Pie Oatmeal
½ cup oatmeal
1 cup water
½ Granny Smith apple, peeled and diced
cinnamon
1 Tbsp pure maple syrup
¼ vanilla soy milk

Mix your oats, water, diced apple, and cinnamon to taste. Cook as directed on your oatmeal package. Stir in maple syrup and vanilla soy milk. It tastes like apple pie!

Crackers Posing as Waffles
Break up Triscuit crackers and drizzle with warmed pure maple syrup. Delicious! (This little treasure was passed along to us by Pastor Scott Wilson, of FC Miami.)

Kettle Corn
For years we have had a hot-air popcorn popper, which I’m sorry to say sat unused in a cabinet until this fast. Pop the kernels, spray with canola oil, sprinkle with salt and natural sweetener. (We are using truvia.)

Chocolate Soy Milk
That’s all there is to say about that.

Sweet & Sour Sauce
½ cup water
4 tsp soy sauce
½ cup white vinegar
½ cup pineapple juice
4 Tbsp cornstarch
1 cup honey

Combine water, soy sauce, white vinegar and pineapple juice in a small saucepan. Stir in honey and cornstarch until evenly mixed. Bring to a boil.

Simmer gently on medium-low heat for 5 minutes, remove from heat.

Serve immediately and refrigerate leftovers. Sauce will thicken to a gel when cold.

This is great on vegetables with whole grain brown rice! The recipe makes quite a lot… we had enough for two meals with plenty left over.



So, friends… What have you been eating?

A Year of Less and, Consequentially, More

Each year, for quite a few in a row, God has blessed my life more and more. I am married to the best husband I know. I have two handsome, healthy little boys, and a lovely home in which to raise them. We go to the greatest church around, full of cherished leaders and friends. We have sweet pets, a wonderful school, and a neighborhood brimming with children as icing on the cake.

We are starting this year out with much, and I hope to finish it with much less. And by this, I know we will gain much more. This may sound like nonsense. I’ll elaborate.

My Pastor talks about the need to “say NO to the good, so you can say YES to the best." We have an abundance of good going on around here, but there’s just so much of it that it’s crowding out the best. So here are a few of my specific goals, to have less and more:

I’m going to be more diligent with the recycling, so my family can put out even less trash.

I’m going to have less caffeine, so I can have more sleep.

I’m going to have less responsibility in the roles I choose at the boys’ school, so I can have more fun with the students!

We’re going to have fewer toys, so there is more appreciation for what we have.

I’m going to have less in my closet, so there is more room to see what’s in there. (And more empty hangers at the ready on laundry days!)

The kids are going to have more responsibilities around the house, so I can feel less like a maid.

And we’re going to do a lot less buying, for several reasons, which I expect to bring about a multitude of blessings. I’ll write more about that another day.


Happy New Year! I hope you enjoy both less and more.