Prelude and Coda

So, maybe the title is a little misleading. This post really has nothing to do with the Catholic Church, though it is the church of choice in much of Louisiana, and it has nothing to do with the coming apocalypse directly, though one could argue it talks about the best forum for preparing people, shared food. Instead, this post is actually about one of my favorite foods, Jambalaya, and what one can do with the left overs.

I actually make Jambalaya so that I will have left overs because what do I like more than Jambalaya? Jambalaya casserole, I know that it may sound strange, but Jambalaya Casserole is a dish I threw together one day because I had tons of left over Jambalaya and a few staples in the cupboard, and I needed to feed a family of five. After baking the gooey delectable and adding a slab of freshly baked french bread, we had a warm and hearty, stick to your ribs kind of comfort meal. The kind of meal that was designed for sitting around the table with those you love and sharing life.

If you’ve read any of my recent posts,you have probably gleaned that one of the most important aspects of food for me is the ability it has to create and foster community. My fondest memories usually have something to do with food. The best example I can give is that Papa Hap (my brothers grandfather) and I used to hike in the mountains and pick huckleberries that were used by Nanny (Papa Hap’s wife) and my Granny to make huckleberry pies and cobblers. Before we would leave, we would eat breakfast and read the passage from the day’s Our Daily Bread; we would drink a cup of coffee; and then we would pack our lunch, which usually consisted of a pack of crackers, a slab of whatever cake Nanny had in the kitchen and a can of sardines, deviled ham, or potted meat. (I said my fond memories were associated with food, I never said all the food was good.) After packing up we would take an old juice jug and go up to a mountain spring and fill it up, then we were off on the days adventure. I grew to love the outdoors because of my huckleberry picking excursions with Papa Hap, and the time in the kitchen watching Granny turn berries into a cobbler with a flaky golden crust just made me want to learn to cook more.

Food is the forge on which relationships are formed. Family dinners, neighborhood bbqs, church socials, even school lunch times are places we learn to be social and develop relationships around something other than our vocation. This week I’ve spent time in the kitchen with my oldest teaching her how to put together Jambalaya and how to make my quick chili. Not really giving her a recipe, but talking about what goes in to the pot and how much. The food she creates won’t be the same as mine; it will be her own creation. It will be her art, her craft, presented to our family with love. That interchange of giving is brought about because cooking together slows us down long enough to develop a deeper relationship than sitting and watching tv.

Well this is what we created for dinner, Jambalaya. I used to make this from a box, then I realized that other than being a little labor intensive, it is super easy to make. I like to minimize the number of dishes i use so i move things in and out of my dutch oven for prep, but use as many pans as you need.

Recipe:

Ingredients

4 cups of rice (I use long grain white)

2 cups onion, diced

2 cups Bell Pepper,diced (I mix colors, it’s prettier)

2 cups celery, diced

Meat (I really like the HEB chicken Andouille Sausage. I use 3 sausages diced and an equal amount of diced cooked chicken breast)

8 1/4 cups of chicken stock (I use both homemade and box stocks)

Seasonings (I don’t give actual measurements because people like different things so season to taste with salt, pepper, garlic and onion powders, cayenne pepper, cumin or make life easier and use some Creole Seasoning)

Prep:

In a pan, cook the chicken breast. (I cook mine in the dutch oven in butter.) when finished add the sausage and cook until they start browning. When cooked remove and set aside.

Next, cook all of the vegetables together until the celery and onion are translucent and the peppers soften. Remove them and set them aside.

Finally, melt 2 tbsp of butter in the pot and add your rice. Stir rice until coated with butter.

Once coated, add the vegetables, chicken and chicken Stock to the pot and mix.

Bring the stock to a rolling boil (add seasonings while you are waiting)

Cover, Reduce heat and simmer covered for 20 minutes.

After 20 minutes, check the pot, the rice should be fully cooked  and the Jambalaya should be done. If the rice is not finished, cover and remove from heat. Check again in 5 minutes. When the rice is cooked, the Jambalaya is ready. mix the rice to fluff and better distribute the meat and veggies and serve with some nice hot bread.

That’s all there is to it. Give it a try. As you can see, it makes plenty, so its a great dish to share or to horde so you have the left overs to make Jambalaya Casserole. (Recipe to come)

For the last 10 years or so I have made the claim that is ordained by God. The origins for this claim can be found in a Deuteronomic History class I had as an undergrad in which the Professor painted a glorious picture of the Old Testament sacrificial system as a fellowship meal between God and God’s people. After some searching of my own through the Torah, I realized that it wasn’t the entire sacrificial system that painted this picture, but that the picture is indeed painted and nowhere better than in the 14th chapter of Deuteronomy.

²² Be sure to set aside a tenth of all that your fields produce each year. ²³ Eat the tithe of your grain, new wine and olive oil, and the firstborn of your herds and flocks in the presence of the Lord your God at the place he will choose as a dwelling for his Name, so that you may learn to revere the Lord your God always. ²⁴ But if that place is too distant and you have been blessed by the Lord your God and cannot carry your tithe (because the place where the Lord will choose to put his Name is so far away), ²⁵ then exchange your tithe for silver, and take the silver with you and go to the place the Lord your God will choose. ²⁶ Use the silver to buy whatever you like: cattle, sheep, wine or other fermented drink, or anything you wish. Then you and your household shall eat there in the presence of the Lord your God and rejoice. (NIV)

I’ve always found this text interesting on a couple of levels.  First, it demonstrates an aspect of tithing that I never heard of in church growing up. The tithe offered here is not merely a surrender of 10% of what was produced. it is a sharing of what has been produced by the joint efforts of the family and God. Tithing in this passage is participatory. It is a thank you to God for provision and party to celebrate the increase. Look at the instructions:

 if that place is too distant and you have been blessed by the Lord your God and cannot carry your tithe (because the place where the Lord will choose to put his Name is so far away),  then exchange your tithe for silver, and take the silver with you and go to the place the Lord your God will choose.  Use the silver to buy whatever you like: cattle, sheep, wine or other fermented drink, or anything you wish.

The purpose of this tithe is to celebrate the community we share with God and what has resulted from it. That is very different than dropping 10% in the plate on a Sunday, and it is also one of the reasons I like to bring food to share with my community of faith. They are my faith family enjoined with my physical family in the work God has called us to share in. The natural out pouring of this relationship in my mind is a participatory tithe with my community of faith.

The second reason this text peaks my interest is that it paints a beautiful picture of an intimate relationship between God and and God’s followers, a picture I think is recreated when families and friends gather around the yard or park for a BBQ. Take a moment to think about what BBQ is and what goes on during a family BBQ.

By definition, BBQ is the slow roasting of meat over low heat. Different regions have different preferences for meat and types of sauce, but common to all is a long cooking time during which there is ample time for fellowship of all types. Sitting around the BBQ pit/grill is perfect for reminiscing, talking about the future, celebrating a birthday, or mourning a loss in the family. When we BBQ we do far more than eat. We share ourselves, we share our possessions, we share our families and lives. BBQing  with people is not just dining; its an honor because it lets you in at a level not everyone is allowed to experience.  BBQing slows life down to a pace that allows us to celebrate the life we have with those we love and for a moment reorder our lives so that the world takes a back seat to our relationships.

This is why I see the tithe in Deuteronomy 14 as a BBQ. It is a process in which people are forced to slow down to a pace at which they can commune with God. It is not fast like grilling burgers or hot dogs, its time consuming and places things back in their proper place. The focus is no longer on the toil and stress brought about by production but on God and the relationship that blessed that stress and toil.

One of the beautiful things about food it that it draws us together, and there is something sacred about sharing life. Jesus said the two most important Laws in the Torah are love God with all of your heart and Love people as you love yourself; that all of the Laws are built on these two things. When we feast, when we celebrate, when we BBQ, we share in the sacred part of life on which God built the Law as we create the community for which we were created.

I hope you find some time soon to get together with your friends and family and share life together. BBQ don’t just grill, or if you choose to grill burgers and hot dogs, take the time to stretch the experience. Let the event slow you down so you can fully experience that sacred part of our lives. To help, follow the link to a recipe I posted in 2010 of a BBQ Sauce I created.

https://preludeandcoda.com/2010/09/19/tried-something-new-a-bbq-sauce/

Since it came up in church last week I have decided i will start using my blog again, hopefully more frequently than in the past. I need to write regularly and since school is behind me now, why not here?

My plan is to write about my theology of food. Having a theology of food may sound strange, but I would argue it flows naturally from both scripture and our theology of humanity. Scripture is replete with references to food. Worship practices were formed around animal sacrifice and feasting, and communion is participation in a meal. For humanity, food is about community not simply nutrition. We have a love affair with food. Food evokes memories and emotion. My fondest memories are of family gatherings in Alabama where food was the tableau on which the celebration of life was set. So I have a theology of food. That theology is why I make foods for church on Sunday mornings and its why I sit and eat with friends when ever I have a chance. I believe it helps to form us physically and spiritually.

So, I invite you to read along as I post recipes and discuss my theology of food, and it would be fantastic if you joined in the conversation.

Anyone who knows me well has probably had a bowl of my quick chili. My quick chili is a recipe I developed in Utah that utilizes a combination of canned and fresh foods seasoned to remind me of Texas. Tonight, since I haven’t been to the grocery store recently and the bank account would not allow eating out, I had to fix dinner with what we had in the pantry. Chili is always a go to for me because i can have it on the table in half an hour, but since the family is meat free during lent, I had to be creative. The answer? Red Lentil Chili over rice.
Having never cooked lentils, but having tons of them in the pantry, I looked up a how to on the web and promptly did my own thing anyway. I rinsed and cleaned the lentils; covered them with water; brought them to a boil; and then added most of my quick chili “fixins.” After tasting everything and adjusting seasonings I realized that lentils, chili beans and tomatoes, while tasty, don’t have a substantial mouth feel, and needed a boost to be meal worthy. Since I work in a Chinese restaurant, I ran to work and picked up some steamed rice. (It took less time than making it.) The combination worked well, and other than having too much in the bowl, all was well for dinner.

Red Lentil Chili and Rice

:
Red Lentils (cleaned of debris and rinsed)
2 cans of diced chili tomatoes
2 cans of chili beans
Chili powder
Onion powder
Garlic powder
Salt
Fresh Ground Pepper
Cumin
Nutritional yeast
Rice

Prepare rice according to the directions

In a large pot or deep skillet (I used a 12″ deep skillet from wearever) place the dried lentils and cover with water. Heat on high until boiling then lower to a simmer. Simmer until the lentils are no longer hard, but are not tender. (Just takes a few minutes) Add canned tomatoes and beans and stir until well combined. Taste to determine the seasoning needs and then season to taste using the chili powder, onion, garlic, salt and pepper. Sprinkle on a big pinch of nutritional yeast (it adds an almost meaty flavor) and taste again. when the seasoning is right for your palate, simmer until the lentils are tender, the liquid has reduced, and the chili has thickened. just before serving stir in some cumin (around a tsp or 2) then serve it over the rice.

I know that recipe is vague, but that is how I cook most of the time. I trust my palate. I will suggest that you try to reign in the lentils some because a little went a lot farther than I expected.

Well, good eating.

P.S. If you’re wondering about the title, Real Texas Chili doesn’t have beans and this is nothing but beans and a few tomatoes.

My friends know that there isn’t much that makes me happier than food, especially making food to give to friends and family, so one of my favorite times of the year is the holiday season when everything seems to revolve around food. Well the holidays are upon us and I have decided to share some of my favorite recipes on my blog. Over the next few weeks I will post recipes, some of my own some i have found over time, that I love. Recipe number one will be for the pomegranate-cranberry oatmeal cookies I made last Sunday for church, and I’ll post it later tonight.

I said yesterday that I would try to post a photo and the recipe of what i came up with for a breakfast lasagna. The above picture is the final product.

I looked at several recipes online, but all of them were basically meat and egg dishes, and while I like meat and eggs, a meat and egg dish misses the vegetarian portion of my church family. I spent six months as a vegetarian and understand that most people do not think about vegetarians when they are making food to share, so I try to remember them whenever I cook either by making my main dish a vegetarian dish or by making a side that can be a main dish for the vegetarians in the group. Today I went vegetarian. (Please note I did not go Vegan. The vegetarians in our church eat dairy and eggs and so the recipe includes both.)

I wanted the recipe to actually reflect the things I think of when I eat lasagna: noodles, sauce, cheese filling, and either meat or vegetables layered. I made noodles out of crepes; the sauce was a mixed berry puree; I used fruit in the layers; and for the cheese filling i made a cream cheese and cool whip frosting.

So, on to the recipe:

The noodles:
I used simple crepes for the noodles. The recipe came from allrecipes.com. Here’s the link:Crepes

1 cup of milk
1 cup of AP flour
1 egg
a pinch of salt

Sauce:
I made a mixed berry puree with frozen fruit, apple juice and honey.

1 bag of frozen mixed berries
1 cup Apple juice
2 table spoons of honey

put fruit and 1/2 the juice in a blender and puree (if to thick, add more juice until loose enough to puree.)
taste and add honey to taste

Filling:
I simply sliced strawberries, blackberries, and raspberries, but use whatever fruits you prefer.

Cheese Filling:
I made a cream cheese frosting and piped on each layer