Black Soil Living

Too, Too Much!

by ladypbwiggins

It’s just too, too much. Everyday we are bombarded with stressful information. Information I want to turn from but it is important to my life to know. Covid 19 cases increase, voting the primary run-off, to mask or not to mask, more police brutality, White House, the global news, . The list could go on but as you can see it’s too much for one brain to handle on a daily basis. All of that and family needs have not been addressed.

Being overwhelmed in this confined space on the daily can lead to depression. Don’t let it get to you. Take care of your mental health. Find a way to make the data flow less or slower. Unfortunately it is going to remain too, too much!

Thank Henrietta Lacks You’re Alive.

by ladypbwiggins

Just watched “The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks” an HBO presentation on Hulu. I knew the story of her life from the medical perspective but I didn’t know the story from her family’s perspective. Her contributions to life is of global proportions. It is worth watching and not just for black people. I wondered while watching how many people who hate us have received life saving treatments made possible by the cells of Henrietta Lacks. I know there are more details not given in the movie. There always are.

Aguafaba

by ladypbwiggins

For several months I’ve been reading about aguafaba and it’s uses. I even saved it in the fridge. Didn’t use it though. Oh, wait. I assume you know what it is. It’s the liquid or pot liquor as they call it in the south left after you cook chickpeas. Most of us toss it after straining the chickpeas. I finally used it in my gluten free waffle recipe.

Now you can’t just pour it in. It has to be whipped. I am lazy so I used my immersion blender instead of a whisk to do the work.

After I achieved a whipped egg white consistency, I added it to my batter. Like egg whites, the aguafaba adds moisture so I slowly added the milk a little at a time. I didn’t want to make the batter to liquidy. The results were beautifully crispy on the outside, tender on the inside waffles. Aguafaba will definitely be added to my egg replacement arsenal.

Partially eaten waffles😄

I forgot to take a picture before we began eating so I had to snatch my hubby’s plate from his hands.

Garden Goodness!

by ladypbwiggins

This year my daughter and I resumed our gardening efforts. The shelter-in-place gave her and her husband time to plant their garden and it is flourishing. Mom and Dad are reaping the benefits too. I planted peppers and basil in pots.

Sriracha and Time Bomb
Pickling cucumbers

I must admit that I cheated a little. I added the cucumbers and peppers to some existing pickle juice. But I expect to have good, zesty pickles never the less.

Mourning My Friends

by ladypbwiggins

Recently I lost several friends. They have been my companions for over 25 years. We have seen the ups and downs and the short and long of it. Today I begin anew. Today I begin life without dreadlocks!

😄😄😄

Raw Bread

by ladypbwiggins

One of the things I am always in the search for since changing our dietary lifestyle is a good bread for sandwiches. I found one made of nuts. It was good but I thought could there be one without nuts. So to the internet I went. I found one that uses cauliflower and zucchini as its base.

This particular recipe gave the mouth feel of soft fresh baked bread but the taste left a lot to be desired. For one thing it was too salty. I am not printing the recipe because I don’t want to give another raw foodie a negative comment. Some people liked it. I will continue my search and experimentation. Hemp and sunflower seedseds as the base is next. In the mean time I have my bread made with nuts.

Disturbing My Peace

by ladypbwiggins

In that early morning quiet there is an indescribable peace. Birds are not even singing yet. It is a calming, stressless atmosphere. There is no desire to think about reality. Just dream and meditate. A time to hear and feel the Presence of God.

What was that? Noise!

A car just drove by, its music blaring. Someone dropped what sounded like wood slats. Man!They woke the birds. With each added sound, the reality of responsibility crept in to disturb my peace. Now it’s time to work. All I have left is the memory of early morning peace and calm. And I’m not even a morning person. 😀

Excalibur HELP!

by ladypbwiggins

I have been wanting to return to more of a raw eating lifestyle but a lot of things I wanted to prepare could not be done on my dehydrater. I wasn’t sure we would continue this lifestyle so I bought a cheapy. I decided to use some of that stimulus money to stimulate myself. I bought an Excalibur. I bought a refurbished 5 tray. The size is enough for my husband and I and the price was great. My first goal was to dry onions, veggie burgers and to SAVE the mushrooms. I am tired of mushrooms going bad before I get to use them. Dried veggies are going to stock my pantry.

Today (Tuesday) I made 2 trays of crackers and 3 bread loaves. Tomorrow I plan to make croquettes. Yum,yum.

We have been vegan but the cold weather encouraged cooking. The Impossible Whopper and Beyond Meat Burger made it convenient so I got lazy. Now I am back and ready. We want be 100% raw because my husband wants some cooked meals but most will be. I can already feel the difference.

I have more planned, especially my weakness, baked goods.

Technique Mastered!

by ladypbwiggins

A few weeks ago I posted my desire to make a Chickpea Flour Omelette . The source of the recipe I used admitted that while the recipe is simple mastering the technique may not be. I burned the first attempt. The second was a mushy mess. Today I tried again. I achieved success. So what was the difference? The temperature or heat setting. However your stovetop determines a medium setting that is the one you want. I also used a tip from another source; cover the skillet for even cooking. My taste tester, my hubby, said it was good.

Now I can tailor the flavor profile to our taste. My first tip is to use leftover veggies already cooked. It saves time and avoids waste.

Egg-free Chickpea Flour Omelette

Salt Power!

by ladypbwiggins

Have you heard the phrase, “He’s worth his salt?” We learned that it meant he was valuable. But why? I knew it was important to commerce during Ancient Roman times but I didn’t know the power of salt spread farther than the Middle East and Orient.

I learned tonight watching Robert Irvine’s Kitchen Expedition that the Ancient Mayan kingdom was so rich and powerful because it controlled the salt. Then Mr. Irvine went to Senegal which is part of the Ancient Ghanaian Kingdom. Here he learned that an ounce of salt was equal to an ounce of gold. How did this happen? The kingdoms to the south of Ghana wanted salt. Those north of Ghana had the salt. The trade route went through the Ghanaian kingdom. Salt was so important that it was valued at an ounce of gold. The King charged a tax on these transactions. Additionally, an ounce of salt cost an ounce of gold. Salt was a very valuable commodity.

That takes me to Jesus saying those who follow his teachings,which are founded in the Law and the Prophets, are the salt of the earth.  Salt is a preservative, purifier, seasoning and a prosperity agent. Based on His declaration, I should be all those things. Not only for myself but for others as well. I will then be worth my weight in gold.

SALT POWER!