The 2023 February Collection
: I ❤️ flatbread, books that challenge, and the glorious full moon :
Welcome to more new subscribers this week! Georgia, Angie, mgivens, Jess, C.L., BVW, Lee, Muhammed, a.jay, Vladimir, Diana, Moheeb, Mark, Grace, CK, Karlie, Bill, Sofia, Angela, Emma, RenoQueen, Jamie, David, and Joane. You’ve joined a great community of readers here, and I hope you enjoy the discussion in the comments as much as the posts.
On the second Saturday of each month, I publish a collection of what I’m discovering—recipes, books, articles, movies, or music—and conclude each post with something I’m noticing. I enjoy reading what others are discovering, so hop over to the comments and tell us what’s new in your world.
Check out past collections if you missed them:
THE NOVEMBER COLLECTION - a dose of courage, two dentists on wheels, and a guest is baking
THE DECEMBER COLLECTION - a return to Italy, 580 handwritten letters, and walking a mile in someone else's shoes
THE 2023 JANUARY COLLECTION - a fancy lunch menu, mysteries & memoirs, and the case for fuzzy blankets
Note that sometimes while writing, I get a warning that these posts are “too long for email.” What this means for you, the reader, is that the post that lands in your mailbox may get truncated by your email provider. Not to worry! If you don’t see the whole message, then click here to read it on the website.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
*You can use these links to jump around to different sections
In Print
On the Web
This is where I ask you to share. Don’t be shy!
What I’m Cooking
Vegetable Beef Soup
It feels like we’re in monsoon season here in southwest Mississippi, and while it hasn’t been extremely cold, rain makes me want to cook soup. The ingredients in this one change every time I cook it based on what’s on hand, but it’s always a winner for two reasons: First, it’s delicious. Second, there’s always more than enough to share.
This week’s version included ground beef (I often use lean ground turkey), Ranch dressing mix (sometimes I make homemade, but I had packets I needed to use), a bag of frozen mixed vegetables, some leftover corn I had in the fridge, two cans of fire roasted diced tomatoes, two cans of diced tomatoes with green chiles, and some beef broth. Sometimes I add tomato sauce, and I love to make piping hot cornbread to serve with this.
Mike and I had just finished our dinner and ladled some soup into a container to bring to an elderly friend when I saw a different friend walking down the street. Sam lives alone and often stops to speak if we’re outside. I quickly put a lid on the soup container and a container of cornbread and sent Mike to catch up to him and offer the meal. Later, we delivered soup and cornbread to our friend, Mr. Will, and his grandson.
These moments of opportunity remind me to get in the kitchen more and to prepare extra. Instead of groaning at the neverending question, What’s for dinner?, my attitude toward preparing a meal should be one of gratitude and love—thankfulness that I have more food than I need and a heart open to sharing the meal with those who don’t have the means to cook.
A few weeks ago I found a couple of BuzzFeed articles with ideas for quick meals using products found at Trader Joe’s, so we made a trip to the store when we were in the city visiting our kids. No regrets!
Here are those lists if you’re interested:
47 Cheap And Easy 3-Ingredient Meals From Trader Joe's
24 Trader Joe's Recipes That Only Require 4 Ingredients
And here are some recipes we’ve tried so far. The flatbreads make a great lunch to break up the monotony while working from home.
Figgy Piggy Flatbread
Our favorite brewery/restaurant serves a Figgy Piggy pizza that is out of this world, so I thought we’d recreate it at home.
2 pieces of Trader Joe’s Naan
Trader Joe’s Fig Butter
4 oz prosciutto, cut into pieces
goat cheese crumbles or brie cut into small pieces
arugula
balsamic glaze
Spread fig butter on naan and top with prosciutto and cheese. Bake or broil until cheese is melted. Finish by topping with arugula and drizzling with balsamic glaze. Simple, yet delicious!
Brie Pasta with Mushrooms
8 oz red lentil pasta (we like penne)
8 oz brie, cut into small pieces (you can leave the rind on)
1/2 c. milk
2 tsp garlic, minced
2 Tbsp lemon juice
8 oz baby bella mushrooms, sliced
1 c. grape tomatoes, halved
Basil or other Italian seasoning & salt, to taste
Cook pasta according to package instructions.
In a deep saute pan, add brie, milk, garlic, and lemon juice. Cook until cheese is mostly melted.
Add mushrooms and cook until tender.
Add tomatoes and cook for another couple of minutes until softened.
Season with basil or other Italian seasoning and salt to your liking.
Serve over pasta. We had arugula so I threw some of that on top, but baby spinach or kale might be good to throw in and cook down a bit with the tomatoes.
Buffalo Chicken Flatbread
1/2 piece Trader Joe’s Naan
3 Tbsp Trader Joe’s Vegan Buffalo Chicken Dip
1 Tbsp Frank’s Hot Sauce
1/2 cup cooked chicken, diced or shredded
Red onion slices
Bleu cheese or Gorgonzola cheese crumbles
Arugula
Ranch dressing
Mix buffalo chicken dip, hot sauce, and chicken and microwave until heated.
Spread chicken mixture onto naan and top with red onion and cheese crumbles. Bake or broil until cheese is melted.
Top with arugula and a drizzle of ranch dressing. Eat like a pizza or fold and eat like a sandwich.
I should note that very soon I intend to try some of Jack McNulty’s flatbread recipes because finding good flatbread or naan around here is difficult, and most of Jack’s are so easy to make (and healthier!) there’s no reason I shouldn’t!
What I’m Reading
In Print
Mississippi in Africa: The Saga of the Slaves of Prospect Hill Plantation and Their Legacy in Liberia Today by Alan Huffman
I’ve had this one on my wishlist for a while after hearing about this story—the first part takes place in Jefferson County, Mississippi, not far from where I live, and the second part follows the freed slaves to a colony in Liberia, which captures my curiosity because of my friend Lamin. But overall, the whole story is fascinating to me, a White woman born in and now returned to rural Mississippi. I’ve heard and read stories of slavery in the American South all my life, but never one like this.
Provides a close-up study of two hundred freed slaves from Mississippi who journeyed to Liberia to build a new colony, the cultural conflict that erupted between the colonists and native tribal peoples of the region, and the repercussions of that conflict in modern-day Liberia.1
Some sections slowly grind as Huffman includes details that could probably be omitted, but I heartily recommend reading, especially to learn the effect that this had on Liberia as we see it today.
Deep South Dispatch: Memoir of a Civil Rights Journalist by John N. Herbers with Anne Farris Rosen
Racism is alive and well here in my part of the world, a fact I frequently discuss with my Black friends. 70% of my community is Black, and 99% of my church family is also Black, so I try to dig as much into the history of race relations to understand what my friends’ family members have endured in our country through the years.
I picked up this book because these are stories of the Civil Rights era told from the first-person point of view of a white, male journalist of the South. You just don’t get many of those. They are uncomfortable stories, but they are stories that we all need to read.
Former New York Times correspondent John N. Herbers (1923-2017), who covered the civil rights movement for more than a decade, has produced Deep South Dispatch: Memoir of a Civil Rights Journalist, a compelling story of national and historical significance. Born in the South during a time of entrenched racial segregation, Herbers witnessed a succession of landmark civil rights uprisings that rocked the country, the world, and his own conscience. Herbers's retrospective is a timely and critical illumination on America's current racial dilemmas and ongoing quest for justice.2
Persuasion and Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen
These two need no introduction and aren’t new to me, but every few years I enjoy picking up Austen’s books again and finding something new. In the past, Persuasion has been less favored than Pride and Prejudice, but this time, I enjoyed Persuasion a little more. I only wish we knew more about Wentworth’s development than that quick, “oh, you still love me? well, I love you too” at the end. As for Pride and Prejudice, I’m still working through it and may not finish because Collins is ruining it for me. Again.
Kingdom Heroes by Tony Evans
I’m excited for a new study with not only my own church family but also other members of our local community who want to dig deeper in the Bible. We’re kicking things off with a book by Dr. Tony Evans. Once the chaplain of the NBA’s Dallas Mavericks, Evans now pastors in Dallas, Texas, and runs The Urban Alternative, which has wonderful literature that complements the Bible. The first African American to earn a doctorate of theology from Dallas Theological Seminary, he has been named one of the 12 Most Effective Preachers in the English-Speaking World by Baylor University. I’ve read a number of his books and appreciate his way of translating theological truths into simple illustrations and providing practical application of the Christian faith.
On the Web
Black Poet Spotlights at Midwest Magpie
I’ve been reading Tiffany’s posts over at
for a while, but she's stopping me in my tracks this month with her near-daily features of Black poets, starting the series with this powerful poem by Countee Cullen:Cullen was just one poet I’d not heard of, but I enjoyed revisiting “Those Winter Sundays” by Robert Hayden. I originally read the verse in a wonderful collection called Ten Poems to Say Goodbye, which I think is out of print, but you may be able to get your hands on a used copy or find it at your local library.
The Pause Between Songs by Laura Kelly Fannuci
Laura begins with her toddler’s tantrums over “the pause between songs”—the literal 3 seconds it takes before the next song on a playlist begins. I think all parents can chuckle at the universality of toddlers finding the weirdest things to be annoyed with. But she went on to discuss how her older children also have an issue with silence, empty space, blank calendars. And moving onto adults in our society—well, that’s where you might get a wake-up call, so proceed with caution as you read about “Ordinary Time” and “our strange American insistence on swinging from feast to feast while wondering why we get tangled in the vines of our own too-much-ness.”
Book review: Auto America: Car Culture 1950s-1970s, Photographs by John G. Zimmerman
I am not a car aficionado. When my husband and youngest child, Jonah, start talking about horsepower and RPMs, my eyes glaze over, but I do appreciate a beautiful vehicle. I also learned several years ago that vehicles are Jonah’s love language. So when this post landed in my inbox, I knew I had to read it. And now I have to purchase a copy for him.
While you’re over at
checking out Mark's work, I'll also suggest reading his post on what makes it into his notebook while he's working in the "Garage Mahal."
What I’m Noticing
Half My Life
Last week a reminder popped up on my phone: “Half my life as a mom.” For the life of me, I don’t remember when I calculated that or created the reminder, but it was a cool surprise on an ordinary day when I wasn’t feeling very purposeful gathering tax documents, changing bed linens, and doing the mundane tasks at the day job. That pop-up that I have spent more time as a mama than not was an affirmation that my life has been (and still is) filled with purpose.
Confession: I never thought I wanted to have kids. But then I had them, and the experience made me into a much better person. It still is.
(Just in case you’re wondering, I double-checked my calculations, and I was off by several days. But you can bet that reminder that says “2/3 my life as a mom” is going to be dead on when it chimes in 2043.)
A Lesson in Friendship
Early Sunday morning while sipping coffee, Mike and I heard a whomp! on the front porch. The investigation confirmed our fear—feathers and a smear on a window pane and a bird knocked out cold. I thought the plump robin was dead but then saw its feathers move with each breath. It opened its eyes.
Not wanting to add to its anxiety, I went back in and watched from the sofa. Soon a flock of robins covered the yard, pecking at the ground. When I looked back at the injured fowl, it had righted itself. Most of the other birds moved on to a different section of the property, but a couple hung back facing the porch.
Now I’m no aviary expert—not even close—but I could have sworn those two were like friends or family anxiously hanging out in the hospital waiting room to see if the patient would be okay. And I swear that little guy kept its ears tuned in to its tribe, who seemed to be chirping him back into consciousness.
Eventually, it hopped down the steps and across the yard, the other birds joining it. A good reminder that we need each other, even if we don’t think we do.
Full Moon
On two different nights this week, we caught a showing of the moon in its fullness on our drive home. Even though the moon rises every single night, I still find myself caught off guard when I glance at the treeline and see the huge spot of orange.
20+ years ago, I took my toddler out for a drive to “chase the moon.” It was yellow and full, illuminating the earth. He told me he thought God was on the moon and that He was wearing an old shirt and was in a “wocketship.”
The child thought, and so it was. I wrote this poem shortly after.3
“Whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.”4
Lately, I’ve been thinking about people who get hung up on certain points of the Bible that don’t really matter when it comes to how we’re instructed to live. The world would be a better place if we just remembered the most important parts—love our Creator and each other.
YOUR TURN
Do you go for easy meals? Have you discovered any new recipes lately? What’s something you’ve read that’s challenged your perspective? Are there any classics you reread regularly? Have you noticed something in your world this week that sparked a memory? Let us know in the comments!
https://www.amazon.com/Mississippi-Africa-Prospect-Plantation-Liberia/dp/1592400442/
https://www.amazon.com/Deep-South-Dispatch-Journalist-Biography/dp/1496816749/
At the time, I was taking a poetry course at Louisiana State University, having gone back to college to finish my degree. College without children was much easier than with!—but I learned so much more in those last 30 credit hours than I did in the first four years. What a difference a few years and life experience make.
Matthew 18:4, The Holy Bible.
I love a good Trader Joe’s trip and will keep my eyes open for the fog spread next time I’m there. And I’m always up for soup, even in here in sunny South Florida. My husband keep the house cold enough that soup is always a good idea. 🙂 Going to try the beef soup but with turkey.
I love the robins looking after their own! Birds are the best. But also: birds seem to look out for other birds that aren't their own species: https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2018/05/180521143827.htm Much for us to learn from, there...
And don't get me started on crows: https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20191211-crows-could-be-the-smartest-animal-other-than-primates