May 24, 2012

Leaving the planning behind

Posted by Val under Life back in the US, Love | Tags: , , |
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Jane Lynch speaking at Smith’s Commencement

“My counsel to you, women of Smith College? Let life surprise you. Don’t have a plan. Plans are for wusses. If my life went according to my plan, I would never, ever have the life I have today.”

– Actress and comedian Jane Lynch, 20 May 2012

When I was young, I used to continually map out my life. I had 5 year plans, 10 year plans, lists of what I was going to accomplish in my life by age 30, etc., etc. I was motivated. I was ambitious. And dammit, I was going to do it all!

In retrospect, the lists are mostly just hilarious– particularly a list of what I wanted in a romantic partner which included the gem, ”Someone who likes Dawson’s Creek.” But I have done an awful lot of the things from those lists. Go to college in New England. Live in Italy. Travel a lot. Own a food dehydrator.

(In junior high school, I did convince my parents to order a Ronco food dehydrator from the infomercials on tv, which we used approximately 3 times before relegating it to a very special place in the basement in my parents’ house — where I do believe it still remains).

But it is true that the life I spelled out on those lists is very, very different from the life I have now, and I am so very glad.

Jane’s full speech is available here:

 

May 17, 2012

Sunshine and Water

Posted by Val under New Zealand Life, Travels in NZ | Tags: , , |
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The past few weeks have been busy, busy, busy! Extra hours at work, teaching more yoga classes, and beginning the process for applying for my partnership visa. Which means lots of running around town with various appointments, and lots of trips to the post office. And unfortunately, a bit less writing here, which may continue these next few weeks. I haven’t forgotten about posting photos from my travels around the South Island– I just really haven’t yet had the time!

Winter has definitely begun to settle into Wellington. Knee high boots, woolen hats and scarfs are the look around town. On Tuesday I taught a 6:30am yoga class, and as I left the house at six, the beautiful winter constellation Scorpius was in the sky just over the flat. Soon the Pleiades, or Matariki, as it’s known here, will be rising in the early morning skies, signaling the start of the Maori New Year.

Yet, despite the arrival of winter, and rainy, grey, windy weather as of late, we have had a few days of sunshine here in Wellington. Today was one of them, and I got to look through the telescope at work to see the solar flares shooting outward from the sun. My colleague John took this photo, which is just incredible:

Photo credit: John Field, 17 May 2012, Wellington, New Zealand.

Although lately it’s been cold and grey, we have had a few days that have been just lovely. Two weekends ago we drove up the cost to have brunch with friends on the Kapiti Coast. Following our feast of gluten-free buckwheat pancakes, we took a walk along the beach.

Such a gorgeous blue sky.

View of Kapiti Island.

We’ve also had some beautiful fresh fruit as of late:

mangosteen, feijoas, and passionfruit. so delicious.

The gorgeous inside of the mangosteen.

More photos and stories to come soon!

 

May 10, 2012

Recipe: Laura’s Silverbeet and Potato Pie

Posted by Val under Food and Recipes, New Zealand Life | Tags: , , , |
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Even as a long-time vegetarian, there are a few vegetables that I’m not terribly fond of. Peas are probably number one on this list. I just don’t like them, and I really never have. I don’t care much for potatoes or potato products — chips, fries, etc. just don’t appeal to me.

I absolutely love dark leafy greens like kale, collards, mustard greens, and spinach, but for some reason, swiss chard never excited me as much as those others do. In fact, I generally found chard disappointing. For one, it has a terrible name– who wants to eat something called “chard”?

And even when I bought bunches of the beautiful rainbow chard, it just didn’t taste as flavourful and lovely as my beloved kale or collard greens. So, like peas and potatoes, swiss chard was relegated to the list of veggies that I generally avoided.

Laura, on the other hand, doesn’t share my aversion to peas, potatoes, and chard. In fact, she’s a fan of all three. We ordered a veggie box from one of the markets a little while back, and it came with a huge bag of potatoes (and I do mean, HUGE) which was far more exciting for Laura than it was for me.  So, we’ve slowly been plowing our way through the massive sack of potatoes in the weeks since.

Apparently the name “chard” was unappealing to folks here in New Zealand as well, because here chard is known as silverbeet. Which is a much better name. It’s currently just coming into silverbeet season, and enormous bunches of silverbeet are everywhere.

Recently Laura went to the veggie markets while I was teaching a yoga class, and got a huge bunch of silverbeet for us. “I’m going to make us a silvebeet and potato pie.”

As a side note, in the US, pies are desserts and are generally filled with fruit– or the less healthy versions with chocolate, peanut butter, or some other ridiculously sweet filling. In New Zealand, pies are savoury, and generally a meal in and of themselves.

I was immediately skeptical of a pie containing two out of three of my least favourite veggies, but obviously I wasn’t going to turn down anything lovingly homemade by my girlfriend, who is an amazing cook!

The delicious finished product

And despite its inclusion of my two of my three least favourite vegetables, Laura’s silverbeet and potato pie was in fact AMAZING. Seriously, seriously good.

Now go try it for yourselves!

Dark green leafy goodness in preparation.

Recipe: Laura’s Silverbeet (Swiss Chard) and Potato Pie

Ingredients:

  • a medium sized bunch of silverbeet or chard
  • 4 cups water
  • 1 tbsp salt, plus extra for boiling water
  • 2 potatoes
  • 1 onion, finely chopped
  • 2 tablespoons fresh parsley, finely chopped
  • 8 oz (200 g) feta
  • fresh ground pepper, to taste
  • 1 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil, plus oil for drizzling
  • 1 egg
  • puff pastry sheets
  • pinch of sea salt (optional)

Method:

  1. Remove the silverbeet leaves from the stems, so you have a pile of leaves and a stack of long, thin stems. Wash the stems carefully and trim the ends, then chop the stems into small pieces. Place the stem pieces in a colander and toss with 1 tbsp salt. Set aside for 20 minutes. (The salt removes some of the bitterness from the stems)
  2. Rinse the leaves carefully, and then chop the leaves into small pieces and add them to the colander. Toss lightly.
  3. In a medium saucepan, boil the potatoes in lightly salted water, and cook for 15-20 minutes, while the stems are sitting with the salt. When the potatoes have become tender, drain and rinse the potatoes in cool water. Then peel and chop the potatoes into small chunks.
  4. Preheat the oven to 200 C / 390 F.
  5. Rinse the silverbeet to remove excess salt and squeeze it dry in a clean tea towel.
  6. In a large bowl, combine the silverbeet with the chopped potato, chopped onion, and chopped fresh parsley. Add in crumbled feta and black pepper to taste. (The feta should have enough salt in it already, so you probably won’t need to add any here unless you’re a salt fiend.)
  7. In a small bowl, whisk egg and oil lightly, then add to silverbeet mixture.
  8. Line a pie pan with a layer of puff pastry dough, and then add silverbeet mixture on top.
  9. Place a second layer of puff pastry dough on top of the mixture, and pinch the edges together, using a small amount of water to seal the crust, if needed.
  10. Drizzle the top of the pie very lightly with olive oil and a pinch of sea salt. Bake for 20-30 minutes until golden brown. Allow to stand for 10 minutes before serving.
  11. And finally, enjoy how yummy silverbeet/chard can actually be!

 

May 2, 2012

New Yoga Classes in Wellington

Posted by Val under New Zealand Life, Yoga | Tags: , , , , |
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It’s been busy, busy, busy lately! Although I do make the effort to update this blog at least once a week, I have about 3 draft posts in the works and nothing finished at the moment. I also have an enormous stack of paperwork for the next step of my visa application sitting by the computer, staring at me, and so while I do promise that there will be more pretty photos and stories from my travels soon, it won’t be today!

But– there are exciting things to share.

I’ve begun teaching a new gentle yoga class downtown on Tuesday and Friday mornings, and I wrote a post on the studio’s blog about the class. It’s a lovely 45 minute class, and a nice break during the morning work day. If you’re downtown, and able to take an early lunch break, come try it out!

Also, starting in July, I’ll be teaching a Wednesday evening class at the Brooklyn Community Centre, which I’m very excited about! It will probably be a beginners/all levels class, but I’ll be doing a bit more thinking about it in the coming months. So if you live in the area and would be interested in attending, let me know what you’d like!

Hope to see you all on the mat soon.

 

April 29, 2012

Ain’t nothin’ gonna break my stride

Posted by Val under Human Rights and Social Justice, New Zealand Life | Tags: , , , , , |
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Sorry for the lack of posts lately — the month of April has been filled with travel and a visit from the parents, and as a result I’ve been away from my computer a bit more than usual.

On the plus side, that means there’s lots of interesting things to share!

As a child, it had always been an ambition of mine to somehow get into the Guinness Book of World Records. And it was for Laura as well — a few years back she had participated in Guinness World Record attempt for “Largest Group Synchronized Dance Performance,” though I’m not sure that they actually broke the record that day.

But yesterday, the dream came true.

615 people– including Laura and I– lined up to walk barefoot across a bed of hot coals to break the Guinness World Record for “Most People Firewalking Consecutively at a Single Venue.” The old record was 350 people, set in Dunedin, New Zealand in 2004.

Now, I know what you’re thinking. Why would anyone — and 615 people at that– want to walk across hot coals?

Well, in this case, it was a fundraiser for the Aberdare Ranges Primary School, Kenya project and Orphans of Nepal Trust.

So, the combination of good cause + chance to be a part of a Guinness World Record got me to take off my shoes, stand around in line for 40 minutes or so, and then walk across a bed of hot coals.

Before signing myself up for something as nutty as that, I did my research. The length of the bed was about a meter and a half, so  you only take two to three steps.  Your feet don’t get burned because they’re in contact with the coals for such a short time, and coal isn’t a good conductor of heat. From everything I read, it sounded like a piece of cake. The photo on the website showed a woman walking across the coals with a big smile.

So, as idiotic as it sounds, I have to admit I was surprised to discover with that first step onto the hot coals that yowza– it does hurt after all!!  For some reason, I thought it wouldn’t. Of course, by that point you’re already on hot coals, so you just have to keep going. There was a professional photographer at the event, and while the photos haven’t yet been posted online, I think it will be hilarious to see the actual expression on my face.

After walking across the coals, you stand in a basin of cold water for a little bit, and then go over into a second basin of water. It was so muddy and slippery on the ground between the two basins of water that the guy in front of me totally wiped out on his way to the basin, and I almost did as well, except that one of the helpers grabbed my arm to steady me and I somehow managed to keep my balance and stay on my feet. (Thank you, yoga!)

Afterward my left foot felt a bit tingly right on the arch, but mostly my feet just felt really stimulated and alive. It reminded me of the sensation in my feet after the fish reflexology that I’d had in Malaysia back in the day.

Kuala Lumpur, 2008. As weird as it is to have fish nibbling at your feet, it really was the best pedicure I'd ever had.

Afterward, both Laura and I felt incredibly giddy. “Dude, we just walked over hot coals!”

I can’t say I would do it again, but I definitely am glad we gave it a try!

 

April 19, 2012

New Yoga on a Plate Column: How’s Puku?

Posted by Val under Ayurveda, Writing, Yoga | Tags: |
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“How’s Puku: Unlock the Wisdom of the Belly” is my latest Yoga on a Plate column for the Yoga Lunchbox. “Puku” is the Maori word for belly, and “How’s puku?” is a phrase that Laura often asks me. The article came out while I was offline traveling, which is why I’m just posting it here now, but do go check it out!

From the article:

“For as long as I can remember, my stomach has called the shots. I’ve struggled with a sensitive stomach and chronic stomachaches since childhood.

On the doctor’s advice, I began keeping a food journal, and discovered a number of consistent trigger foods: red meat, fried foods, and drinking chocolate, among others. As I began to eliminate these foods from my diet, my stomachaches eventually started to decrease, but would come back with a vengeance during periods of stress or uncertainty in my life.

Over time, it became clear to me that my stomachaches were more than just a result of what I did or didn’t eat. My entire mental state was being manifested physically through my stomach. Stress, anxiety, fear or uncertainty in my life would inevitably trigger a stomachache, sometimes before my brain was even cognizant of it.

Around the time that I began practicing yoga steadily at age 25, the stomachaches started to taper off. As I started to study yogic philosophy and ayurveda, I began to understand the impact of various energies on the body. My asana practice strengthened a weak third chakra and gave me more confidence.  As I began to tune in and really listen to the puku, I was able to recognize and calm the rajasic energy and lifestyle that it was so sensitive to.

Now I rarely get stomachaches anymore. And when I do experience one, I have the tools in my yoga and meditation practice to sit with it, and to listen to what my puku is trying to tell me.”

Read more…

 

 

 

April 19, 2012

Autumn in April

Posted by Val under Photography, Travels in NZ | Tags: , , , , , |
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Hello all! I’ve been off traveling and took a couple of weeks off from the internet while I was away– hence the delay between my last post and this one! But I’ll be writing about my travels and posting photos over the next couple of weeks, so stay tuned!

Flying over Wellington Harbour en route to Queenstown

The reversal of the seasons here is something that I’m still getting used to. In New Zealand, autumn officially starts on the first of March (and it is indeed autumn, as opposed to “fall” as we generally call it in the States). In my mind, April means daffodils and hints of pale yellowy-green emerging from the tree branches. Sometimes one last snowfall in the early part of the month. But mostly the coming of spring. Brown robins with their bright orange belly returning to the north.

Here it’s autumn, and it’s very different than the autumns I’m used to. The changes in the seasons aren’t as dramatic in Wellington as they were in New England. The hills outside my window are just as green now as they were in summer, and as they were originally when I arrived in the middle of winter. There are a few more yellow patches of gorse in bloom, but aside from that, the landscape in the lower North Island is mostly unchanged.

The clouds cast a shadow on the hills, but they look about the same as ever.

The South Island is another story entirely.

I’ve spent the past two weeks traveling through the South Island. Autumn in the South Island is a distinct season, and a beautiful one at that.

Autumn foliage in Queenstown

And in nearby Arrowtown:

As beautiful as the colours are, it was strange to see trees that are endemic to the US and Europe on the opposite side of the world. Maples, oaks, poplars, etc., were all brought over by European settlers. There’s no denying that they are beautiful in autumn, and we arrived in Queenstown at the perfect time to enjoy their colours. But a few days later, when we left Queenstown and made our way through national parks and into scenic reserves, there’s just no comparison. The native bush was incredible, and its beauty far exceeded anything that had been introduced.

More stories and photos from the trip to come– stay tuned!

 

April 6, 2012

Giveaway Winners Revealed, and Oatmeal Cookies with Fig and Dark Chocolate

Posted by Val under Food and Recipes | Tags: , , , , , , , |
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Sunset at Island Bay, last Saturday night

First of all, congratulations to Donna and Marisol, the winners of the first Kiwi and Kumara giveaway! All of the names of those who commented on the giveaway post were written down, and then two names were drawn from a hat. I’ll be contacting each of you shortly to get your mailing address to send off your prizes– I hope you enjoy!

And thanks so much to all of my readers, and to everyone who commented! The feedback was overwhelmingly in favor of more recipes and more photos, so I will do my best to oblige.

And on that note, to mark the occasion of this being the 100th blog post on Kiwi and Kumara, I am offering a very special recipe to you all– my oatmeal cookies with fig and dark chocolate, which are absolutely divine.

Dried figs, whole cardamom pods, and oats

Here in New Zealand, there are “biscuits,” rather than “cookies.” Sure, cookies do exist, as Laura’s and my trip to the Cookie Time factory outside of Christchurch attests, but they just aren’t the same as the ones that I grew up with in the US. It’s mainly the consistency that’s different– biscuits and cookies here tend to be firmer and drier. And there’s nothing that I love more than a soft, chewy cookie.

Anyway, I was having a craving for oatmeal raisin cookies about a week or so ago, and turned to my beloved Smitten Kitchen for a recipe.

But when I opened the cupboard, I discovered that we were out of raisins– the last of them had gone into Laura’s breakfast porridge that morning. But I came across half a bag of dried figs leftover from another recipe and decided that would have to do. Since we always keep a big block of dark chocolate Whittakers on hand, I grabbed that as well, and chopped it into small pieces to make impromptu chocolate chips.

When I googled Oatmeal Fig Cookies, I came across this recipe and decided to take the best of both recipes and give it a whirl. I made a double batch to bring in for a meeting at work, and they absolutely flew off the plate.

Val’s Oatmeal Cookies with Fig and Dark Chocolate

Ingredients:

  • 1/2 cup butter, room temperature
  • 2/3 cup light brown sugar, packed
  • 1 egg
  • 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
  • 1/2 – 3/4 tsp ground cardamom
  • 1 1/2 cups rolled oats
  • 3/4 cup chopped dried figs
  • 1/2 cup high quality dark chocolate chips, or freshly chopped baking chocolate

n.b. I used dried black mission figs the first time I made this, and dried green figs the second time, and both were good, though I think personally I preferred the black figs.

Method:

1. Cream the butter, brown sugar, egg and vanilla in a large bowl until smooth.

2. Mix the flour, baking soda, cinnamon and salt together in a separate bowl. Slowly add the flour to the butter and sugar mixture.

3. Dust the ground figs with ground cardamom, and stir the oats, dried figs, and chocolate chips into the bowl.

4. Allow the dough to chill in the refrigerator for 20- 30 minutes.

5. Pre-heat oven to 350°F (175°C). Line a baking tray with parchment paper, and spoon cookie dough onto the baking tray. Bake for 10-12 minutes, until golden brown, and place on a wire rack to cool.

Enjoy!

 

March 29, 2012

A Moment of Adrienne Rich

Posted by Val under Writing
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No one’s fated or doomed to love anyone.
The accidents happen, we’re not heroines,
they happen in our lives like car crashes,
books that change us, neighborhoods
we move into and come to love.
Tristan and Isolde is scarcely the story,
women at least should know the difference
between love and death. No poison cup,
no penance. Merely a notion that the tape-recorder
should have caught some ghost of us; that tape-recorder
not merely played but should have listened to us,
and could instruct those after us:
this we were, this is how we tried to love,
and these are the forces they had ranged against us,
and these are the forces we had ranged within us,
within us and against us, against us and within us.

–Adrienne Rich, from Twenty-One Love Poems

 

March 28, 2012

Kiwi and Kumara Giveaway

Posted by Val under Writing | Tags: , , , , |
[21] Comments 

Hi Lovely Readers!

First of all, thanks for taking the time to read this blog in the first place! It’s fun for me to write, and I hope that you enjoy the photos, recipes, and stories. It’s just under a year since I began this blog to document my preparations for the big move to New Zealand, and my life once I got here, and I’m fast approaching my 100th blog post!

So, in honor of that milestone, and to thank all of you for (virtually) coming along with me on the journey this past year, I’m holding the first Kiwi and Kumara giveaway. Since moving to New Zealand, I’ve been volunteering at Trade Aid, a kiwi fair trade organization which partners with disadvantaged artisans and farmers in over 30 countries to provide a fair price for their products, which in turn helps create a better quality of life for their communities. The prizes are both items that I’ve purchased from Trade Aid specifically for the giveaway.

There will be two winners announced on 5 April 2012, and each winner will receive ONE of the below items:

  • a fair trade jute fibre lunchbag, handmade in Bangladesh (I have one of these and get so many compliments on it whenever I carry it around town)
  • a fair trade cloth and bead necklace, handmade in India

Small jute fibre lunchbag from Trade Aid, New Zealand's oldest and largest fair trade organization.

A handmade bead and ribbon necklace, made in India.

Another view of the necklace, this time using the flash.

To be eligible for the giveaway, there are a two things you have to do!

1. You must be a fan of Kiwi and Kumara on facebook. Which, is easy to do if you’re not already– simply click the facebook like button on the lower right hand side of the page. And please feel free to suggest for others to become fans as well!

2. You also need to leave a comment on this post. Let me know what you like about the blog, and what you’d like to see more of in the future– recipes, photos, yoga information, stories about NZ, etc.

That’s it! Easy peasy.

And now, the fine print…

The contest will run from 8am on 28 March 2012 (New Zealand time) to 8pm on 3 April 2012 (New Zealand time). A winner will be picked at random and announced here on Kiwi and Kumara, and on the facebook page.

Please note: prizes will only be mailed to addresses in New Zealand, the US, Canada, and the UK. I have no control over the postal service, and while I will notify you when an item has been mailed, I cannot guarantee arrival or the time it will take for them to arrive from NZ...

 

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