Nana Cooks

Capricornian as I am, I usually do not consider luck part of my natural state. Ah–but when it comes to friends, there is no other way to explain it. I am 68 years old and I have friends. That is a huge, wonderful statement.  And yes,  I believe that I am lucky in friendships.

In my youth[you know, when you are 40 or so] I lived in several states. Those moves introduced me to great and new foods, and to great and new friends. I have kept recipes and friends from these moves.

I have now lived in the same area for 20 years! For a gypsy at heart, I find that a staggering number. But under the weight of that number is the ‘lightness of friendships maintained’.  It is here that I have a solid friendship with 4 people. It is with this group of people that I eat at a local restaurant once a month. We’ve done this for 18 years.

And, as luck would have it, many of us share the same birth month. So, in January we get together~ with other friends and spouses~ to have a pot luck. Zeke and Mary host this event. It’s wonderful.

At the get-together we greet each other, find a spot for our dish, help finish dishes that still need a little work,  chatter and gossip, laugh–and good grief–learn how to use an exercise ball! Go figure. We catch up on lives. We maintain bonds. We build for the next event. And we eat. And the food is good. And life is good.

I hope you are this lucky.

Here is a recipe we enjoyed at the last gathering. Jayne brought this. She got it from her mother, but the sweet potatoes are her idea. Jayne is an artist–so altering a recipe is natural. Her idea works really well in this dish.

This is a great way to add colour and healthy food to a table.

Jayne’s Onion, Apple and Sweet Potato Dish-Alter as You Wish

2 tbs unsalted butter
1 tsp. extra virgin olive oil
1 tsp dark brown sugar
1 tsp grated lemon zest
1 tsp lemon juice
1/4 cup apple juice
2 tsp orange marmalade[she used raspberry jelly, and it worked really well]
1/4tsp nutmeg
1 large apple, not peeled but chopped-use what you have on hand
1 sweet potato, peeled and chopped
2 onions-chopped

Melt butter and add all sauce ingredients in a skillet. Add the apples, onions,and potatoes

Cook about 20 minutes- until potatoes are soft. If you think it needs more sauce , feel free to add things.

Actually I think the real fun in cooking is to start with a good recipe and make it to your taste. And this is a good recipe.
I hope you enjoy it and I hope you enjoy it with friends.

Nana

I received this blog as a birthday gift from my wonderful daughter and son-in-law in NY. I’ve had it since the 1st of January, but due to my  ineptness with computers, it has taken this long to get going. Unfortunately, that sets the tone for my skills at blogging. But–I am SO excited about trying to write about one of my favourite things–FOOD–and all its glory. Certainly not just recipes [though I hope to post some ], but I love thinking and talking about things related to food. Even aprons.

Food is a common element in our lives. We serve it at weddings, funerals, ball games and birthdays.  We mourn with food and we celebrate with food. We comfort ourselves with food and we give food to others for their comfort. Last night many celebrated a football win~or loss~ along side a bowl of chili. Today people in Haiti are lining up for the gift of life.

So, With the next blog, I’ll be writing about my take on food~and the things that go with it!  I hope you enjoy reading.

thanks db and ek!