As I write, much of the world is a month or two or more into various shades of lockdowns, recommended or enforced stay-at-home orders, sheltering in place, reduced services and resources and the looming fear of a not completely understood threat.
It feels like we are living in a bad B-movie at times and most days I wonder when the closing credits will roll.
I hear the phrase bounced around now that 'things will never be normal again' or some variation of that. Whether that is early social engineering to get us ready for more government control or some other 'tin-foil hat' possibility or rather more likely simply expressed fear of losing what we have temporarily lost more permanently, no one can say.
These are dark times.
But the Universe is firmly rooted in yin and yang, black and white; we literally need dark in order to perceive light.
So what is the 'light' of these dark times?
Well, Mother Nature for one is enjoying a much-needed respite from pollution and over-consumption. In fact one could make the argument that perhaps she weaponized a virus to threaten the most destructive species on her beloved Planet Earth.
Dolphins are returning to canals, sea turtles are reproducing in wild numbers and air is clearing in places where the pollution was so bad, visibility was drastically hampered. The side-by-side before and after pictures of such formerly heavily polluted areas are stark and stunning.
What else is happening in a positive direction?
People are cooking at home more, people are examining their health and their life-styles, garden seed companies are selling out as people put in gardens or expand their existing ones and there seems to be a return to a simpler way of life.
Whether or not the lessons we learn from examining our lives in this enforced classroom and in seeing first hand the negative effects of humanity on Earth will cause us to focus these lessons into lasting change remains to be seen, but for now, we all have a chance to re-examine and to evolve, if we take it.
And this, is a very good thing.
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A Versatile Sauce.
I am sure I have covered this sauce on this blog previously, but it is worth a re-do. This sauce is a great basic white sauce/alfredo type sauce that can be widely adapted to various uses in casseroles, over pasta (the red lentil noodles at Trader Joe's are my new gluten free favorite), potatoes, steamed veggies/rice. It comes together very quickly and is a great go-to for a quick meal.
White Sauce
1/4 C raw cashews (or other raw nuts/seeds)
1 block of tofu, drained (any kind will work; silken produces an extra nice texture but firm works well too)
1 large vidalia onion, chopped
veggies (mushrooms, kale etc.)
lentils
Soak cashews or seeds in Vitamix covered by a small amount of water. (Soak 15 minutes or more). While nuts are soaking, carmelize onion in a frying pan with just enough water to keep from sticking. Add more water to loosen darkened bits on bottom of pan. Add in mushrooms and other veggies/lentils and a bit more water as needed. Cover and lightly steam.
Blend nuts in blender. Add block of tofu and blend slowly increasing speed as blender will tolerate. Add more water if needed to blend until creamy. Add tofu/nut mixture to frying pan. Stir and heat. Ready to serve.
Sue, examining life, eating well, in Ohio
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