A really good multipurpose ingredient is Balsamic
Vinegar. It can be used as a condiment
as well as during cooking. A simple use
of the product could be slice of home grown tomato with a bit of balsamic
vinegar for a simply amazing as a summer time snack.
Cauliflower can be a challenging veggie. I've had steamed cauliflower and cauliflower
mash but desperately wanted something different. I did a quick Google search for Cauliflower
dishes and found many that listed balsamic vinegar as a great ingredient to
work with it. After reading over a few
of them this is what I've come up with.
Photo Credit - Renee Olson
Ingredients
1 Head
Cauliflower
1 cup
Shredded Parmesan Cheese
1
Tablespoons Marjoram
2-3
Tablespoons Balsamic Vinegar
2-3 Tablespoons
Olive Oil
¼ teaspoon Sea
Salt
Black Pepper
to taste
Process
Photo Credit - Renee Olson
Start out by cutting the Cauliflower flowerets into 1 – 1 ½ inch pieces
Photo Credit - Renee Olson
Add the Olive Oil to a large bowl
Photo Credit - Renee Olson
Add the Marjoram to the bowl
Photo Credit - Renee Olson
Add ¼ Teaspoon of Salt to the bowl and mix
Photo Credit - Renee Olson
Add the cauliflower to the bowl and toss
Photo Credit - Renee Olson
Photo Credit - Renee Olson
Place the cauliflower in a large baking dish and back at 350
for 25 – 30 minutes or until cauliflower is tender.
Photo Credit - Renee Olson
Remove from the oven and added the balsamic vinegar and toss
Photo Credit - Renee Olson
Cover the cauliflower with the shredded cheese and place
back in the oven until the cheese melts
Photo Credit - Renee Olson
Remove from the oven and serve.
Photo Credit - Renee Olson
You’ll notice that the majority of my dishes are baked in
glass baking dishes. I do this due to a
metal allergy.
Have you tried my recipes?
Have a suggestion, a remake or maybe something new you’d like to share,
feel free to send me an email at Sosanna@sosannascloset.com.
Invoke as defined on dictionary.com is to
call with earnest desire; make supplication or pray for or to call on a deity
or muse.
When I look at invoking the Goddess however, many books like
“Drawing
Down the Moon”, refer to this is a form of voluntary possession. A person is actually calling out to the deity
to enter their body and communicate with them directly or with others using the
person as a vehicle to share that message.
In the following video, Sorita
E’Este describes how one might invoke the Goddess Hecate.
As part of my research for this post I had a look at evoke,
which is sometimes used interchangeably for invoke and found most define it as
more of a request to join or a reminder of a particular style for example and
less like a demand for presence.
So if we were to say, this piece evokes
Michangleo, we mean that the style reminds us or brings forth the same essence
of the artist.
As part of my rituals and in some of my work on Samhain, I
do invoke the Goddess Hecate to come and share her wisdom with me. I ask that through her the spirits of those
who have past come and give their knowledge or share their stories with me. I never “demand” the presence or summon
spirits to participate in my rites. To mean, invoking is calling out to a deity
and inviting them to enter my body. It’s
not a summoning or demeaning thing.
After I get my space ready and cleanse the area, I use the "Invocation of the Goddess Hekate" from the Rite of her Sacred Fires.
I am always extremely respectful when I work with
magic. In my opinion it’s a bit arrogant
to expect Gods and Goddesses to be sitting around waiting to be called into a
circle. I think that they have more
important things to do than worry about a football game or to make sure my
computer boots in the morning. I think
what many people miss is that we are on auto play. Our world, our lives play out and unfold each
day before us without any big plan from the higher ups. I think that our goal should be to just be
good to each other.
We call our deities to
help us understand a situation or an outcome.
Ask them to give us the wisdom to react to this ride called life in a
caring and understanding way. We are not
here to demand anything; instead we are here to learn from those that have gone
before us, call upon them for guidance and wisdom and forego the request for a touchdown.
Denim Day,
which I had never heard of until last week, is related to a story from Italy in
the 1990’s. An 18 year old girl was
raped by her driving instructor, she presses charges and he is arrested and
prosecuted. He appealed the sentence and
the judge decided that because she was wearing jeans, he could not have gotten
her pants off alone; therefore she must have consented and overturned his
conviction. In outrage women in the
Italian Parliament began a protest immediately by wearing jeans to work. The first Denim Day in LA was in April 1999
and continues today.
When I first heard about this I have to say I was a bit
disappointed with myself that I’d never heard of it. Being a very open minded and female positive person,
I would think that I wouldn't have missed this.
As my first entry for Denim Day, I’m going to write about a
personal experience of mine. I’m going
to go ahead now and post the trigger warning.
Below are descriptions of the rape of a 15 year old girl.
It’s dark outside. I've been at my new house for about a week now.
I ran away from home because my mom and aunt took me to the police
station to have me arrested. My aunt
slammed my face in the back door of the car before she tossed me in the back
seat. She turned on the car interior
light to make sure I wasn't bleeding before escorting me into the station. At the station they told me that they couldn't make me stay. They took me home. I laid in my twin bed listening to them both
talk with my step father, the one who had been molesting me from age five,
about calling the ‘reform school’ and having me locked up the next day. Needless to say I ran like a bat out of
hell. What’s that old saying? Out of the frying pan into the fryer.
I ended up calling everyone in the phone book with my last
name. It’s a small town so it was a
short list. I asked for my bio dads name
at each number. Finally a woman on the
phone said, one moment. I was paralyzed with
fear. Would he let me come there? I’d been on the streets for a week or
so. I needed a place to go. He answered and told me he’d meet me by the
fairgrounds.
The first week was normal, yet odd. I went from being the oldest of three girls
to being the middle child. One older
brother and sister and a younger sister.
I was allowed to do whatever I wanted.
I didn't go to school. Instead I
stayed at the house and smoked pot and sometimes did other drugs. I drank too.
My father decided to have a party to celebrate the return of
his “daughter”. Lots of people were
there and we drank late into the night.
I was offered a cocktail of drugs from prescription to acid. As I staggered out of the trailer and back to
the lounge chairs that sat under a huge tree, I fell down on one and looked up
at the stars. My “Father” pulled himself
on top of me and started pawing at my body in a very non-fatherly way.
I jumped up and staggered a bit and ran for the road. I ran down the road, I was in shorts, and
bare feet. The rocks cut into my
heels. There were no cars on the road. We were in a very remote isolated area. He pulled up beside me in the car and said
get in, it’s fine. Don’t worry. I got in the car and he drove down the road
and pulled into what looked like an old fishing trail. He looked at me and said, how can you give
that to him and not me? Confused I
looked at him and said what? You do that
with him and not me. I finally got it. He was referring to the years of abuse by my
stepfather. I jumped out of the car again
and he came around the side and tossed me on the hood of the car.
My arms fell limp has he took off my shorts. My body gave up. My mind looked to the sky and cried
inside. Is this why I’m here? Is my only purpose in life to be hurt and
taken advantage of? If there is a God I
thought, “Please Let Me DIE”.
My mind and my eyes glazed over. I felt the stars come down from the sky can
wrap themselves around me. They pulled
me up and away from this place. I looked
back to see what he was doing to my body and was comforted in knowing that I
was not really there. He may have taken
my body, but he didn't take me.
I blacked out after that and woke the next morning back at
his house. I went from being abused by
my stepfather to spending the next year and a half being abused by my
father. I only was able to escape after
he was arrested. I spent the next 10
years hiding from him.
Today, both my attackers are dead. I don’t have any love for either of
them. I am glad they are gone. For many years I blamed myself for both
attacks. But today I know that I was not
responsible for it. I was a victim. Today I am a survivor.
Talk to your sons, teach them not to rape. Talk to your daughters; arm them with the
knowledge that they are not to blame.
No one asks to be raped. Not in the way the dress or the way they act. No one gives consent to be rapped by the clothes they wear, they way the dance or by passing out at a party. Sexual assault and abuse is wrong. If someone cannot say yes, then the answer is no. If someone did not say yes, then the answer is no. If someone says NO then the answer is no.
Show your support for Denim
Day and wear Jeans today!
A staple in my household is the black bean. We use black beans for tacos, chili,
burritos, nachos and even chimichangas. A Chimichanga is a deep fried burrito filled
with assorted ingredients, sometimes served wet with a ranchero sauce or with
sour cream and shredded cheese. The
story behind the name is that the founder of El Charro in Tucson Arizona
dropped a pastry into a deep fat fryer by accident and started to say a curse
word in Spanish, but quickly changed it to Chimichanga.
Here’s my variation of a Black Bean Chimichanga. **remember to get organic if you can**
Photo Credit - Renee Olson
Ingredients
Flour
Tortillas
1 cup white
rice
½ cup frozen
corn
¼ of an 8 oz
pack of Cream Cheese
½ cup
shredded white cheese
2-3
Tablespoons of Cilantro
1 can black
beans
*Optional*
Red Pepper
Flake
Ranchero
Sauce
Onions
Sour Cream
Process
Photo Credit - Renee Olson
Add about ¼ of a block of cream cheese to a pot with the
black beans and stir gently until melted.
Photo Credit - Renee Olson
Add the chopped cilantro and frozen corn to the pot and mix. At this point I add about ¼ teaspoon of red
pepper flake to make it a little hot.
Photo Credit - Renee Olson
At this point I start my pot of oil heating on another
burner. You’ll want to be really
hot. You’ll see the oil moving but not
smoking.
Photo Credit - Renee Olson
After the mixture is mixed completely, grate some of the
white cheese for the center of the burrito.
A bit extra can be grated if you plan to use a ranchero sauce and added
to the top.
Add the mixture to the center of the burrito and fold the sides in first, then cover with the bottom and roll up. This video shows a slightly different but good way to stuff and roll a burrito. I recommend starting with less filling until you get the hang of it. If it pops open in the hot oil it will be a mess!
Using tongs, carefully place the burrito in the hot
oil. You’ll want to hold it securely but
not too tightly until the burrito is golden brown.
Photo Credit - Renee Olson
Place on a paper towel to drain.
Photo Credit - Renee Olson
After both are cooked plate them up and serve. Cover the top of the burrito with the
ranchero sauce, cheese and sour cream or just serve dry.
Photo Credit - Renee Olson
This is a great dish to use left over rice with. I like to make rice and eggs for breakfast
and keep the left over rice to add to my burrito for lunch.
Have you made one of my recipes? I’d love to hear your feedback. Want me to try one of yours? Send me an email at Sosanna@sosannascloset.com.
A haunting is usually a replay of something from the
past. Most hauntings are residual
hauntings. Meaning one moment in time
gets replayed over and over. One example
of this might be of a farmer going outside to milk cows. Usually it is something that the person did
in their life over and over, and it’s like the needle is stuck on replay.
When we started to remodel our carport to turn it into a
kennel building for our dogs, hubby and I experienced a lot of residual
paranormal activity. On several separate
occasions hubby saw an older gentleman walking first into the closet, which we
used to store yard tools, then out the back door into the yard. When I saw him, he was usually walking around
in the back yard, wearing a blue baseball cap.
He never noticed us and seemed to be going about his daily chores. The idea of residual hauntings is much like
the “Stone Tape” theory. Basically it means that the surroundings,
trees, rocks and even buildings record the energy of an event, and under
certain circumstances the brain can pick up these “tapped incidents” and the
eyes see them. When dealing with a
residual haunting, the ghost or entity will not interact with the outside
world. It simply walks or moves through
the paces of a previously completed pattern.
Now, at the same time, you can also have what is called an intelligent haunting. Intelligent
haunts are those which the energy or entity actually interacts with the living
world. This can range from knocking
things off a shelf to having responses to questions. I have had three incidents where I interacted
with the energy here.
The first time was when we first moved into our
bedroom. The end of my hall way seems to
be the source of the energy. I almost
feel as though it is a conduit for the paranormal energy coming into and going
out of the house. On each side of the
end of the hallway are doors. One leads
out offices and the other to our bedroom.
Originally when we set up the bedroom we had the head of the bed against
that wall, with the foot facing east. At
night when I’d lay down, I’d feel a face come around the corner from the end of
the hall and stare right into my face in a silent scream. It became so worrisome that I had to move the
bed to the opposite side of the room.
Now my head is pointing towards the east and the foot of my bed to the
west in the direction of the door.
The next time I was sitting in the Kitchen and was doing
research on the lady (Mrs. Mantha Rose) who owned the house before me. She passed away and her family put the house
up for sale. I was reading her obituary
in the local paper archives when I felt a presence in the room. As I was reading her obituary
out loud, I looked over my shoulder and there was a man standing by the
pantry. I said the first name Perry
Brock and the entity shook his head no.
I then read Thurman Rose and he nodded in the affirmative and
disappeared.
The final time I was sitting in my office working and I
heard a loud crash from our bedroom. I
went inside the room and found my jewelry box flipped neatly upside down on the
floor in front of the bed. It had been
sitting on the dresser. It have flown
3-4 feet through the air and landed with open face down on the floor. I started to pick my stuff up and I noticed
that hubby’s mother’s ring was on the floor behind the bed. It was a good 2 feet farther away than the
rest of the contents of the box. When I
began putting my stuff back in the box I noticed that my amethyst crystal had
shattered completely. I've often felt
the presence of energy here in the house and have come to accept that others
may live here and it is OK.
Today I have my ancestor alter set up with photos of those
who have passed. I've included the ring
that was tossed behind the bed, just to see if there is some energy associated
it with.
Photo Credit - Renee Olson
Photo Credit - Renee Olson
I make offerings to the dead on
Samhain and pay my respects throughout the year. I completely believe that hauntings are a
real thing and usually aren't something to be afraid of.
One of my favorite Indian dishes is curry. Curry can be made a number of ways. I really like Yellow Curry. Curry can be made with or without meat. Obviously I’ll be making a curry dish without
meat. One of my favorite recipes calls
for adding potatoes to the dish. This
dish today is a simple curry that we make when we don’t really want a big meal.
So let’s get started..
Photo Credit - Renee Olson
Ingredients
Basmati Rice
– We cook for two so we make 2 servings
Curry Powder
Coconut Milk
Naan Bread
or Pita Bread
Process
To make perfect rice, I bring 1 ½ cups of water to a boil,
add salt and 1 cup of rice. Turn burner
to low and cover the pot for 20 minutes.
Remove from heat.
Photo Credit - Renee Olson
To make the curry I open 1 can of coconut milk and add it to
a pot. Sometimes your milk may form a
solid on top, it’s perfectly fine to use, just add the solids as well as the
milk to the pan and warm through.
Photo Credit - Renee Olson
Add 2-4 tablespoons of curry powder to the milk to start and
stir. Now taste the curry, at this point
you can add more curry if you’d like.
The more powder you add the hotter the curry will be. I add my Naan Bread to a flat top cast iron pan and heat it on the back while I finish off the curry.
Photo Credit - Renee Olson
After the curry is heated through it’s ready
to serve.
Photo Credit - Renee Olson
If you’d like at this point you can fine cube some tofu or
add boiled potatoes to the curry.
Serve over rice or with heated Naan Bread or Pita Bread
Photo Credit - Renee Olson
I really enjoy Indian, Mexican and Thai flavors. This is a really easy way to get into making
curries.
Did you try this? I’d love to hear how you made out. Want to share a recipe with me, leave me a
message here or send me an email at sosannas@sosannascloset.com
Hecate is a sometimes called a Greco-Roman Goddess, though
she predates this era. She is said to be
the key bearer to the underworld.
Granted dominion over the heavens, the earth and the seas; she is
associated with fire, light, moon, magic and witchcraft. She is considered a goddess to the midwife and
with the magic of necromancy. Sometimes
called the Goddess of the Witches, Hecate is often depicted as a triple form
goddess. Though tagged as the Crone by
Aleister Crowley, Hecate is certainly represented by each stage of the Goddess
including maiden and mother.
In Mythology, Hecate, a Titan was favored by Zeus before all
others and granted dominion over the Earth, Heavens and seas. Hesiod referred to her as the only daughter
of Perses and Asteria. One of the more popular
and my favorite Myth involving Hecate is the abduction of Persephone.
The story goes; Persephone was abducted by the God of the
Underworld – Hades, while she was out collecting flowers. Demeter searched to find her daughter. While she looked her sadness caused the
world to fall into state where nothing could grow. Hecate assisted Demeter by telling her that
Helios, the Sun God sees everything and he should know what happened to
Persephone.
It wasn't until after
Persephone was tricked into eating pomegranate seeds that she was found. It was the rule of the Fates that if someone
consumed food or drink in the Underworld, they had to stay there for all
eternity. A deal was made with the
distraught Demeter that allowed Persephone to spend four months in the
Underworld with Hades, and the rest of the time with her mother. This is where the winter season comes
from. In her sadness for her missing
daughter, Demeter mourns and nothing can grow on the Earth until she returns in
the spring.
Hecate is the Goddess of the Crossroads. It is thought that offerings made to her
should be placed at a three way intersection.
Garlic, honey, mushrooms and eggs are placed with a flame. The plate is left and it is said that one
should walk away without looking back.
Hecate will decide who gets what is left for her and at times, it was
thought that she fed the homeless and needy with her offerings. The torch, the dog, the key and the dagger
are often found in her representations.
The willow and the yew tree are sacred to Hecate. Black dogs are also associated with
Hecate. Being the Goddess of Witchcraft
and necromancy, Hecate is often called upon to assist those traveling from the
land of the living to the Underworld.
Many see her as the guardian to the Underworld and the holder of the key
to the gates there. Because of this
association many call upon Hecate in their workings with the dead.
Typically held on the 13th of each month,
Hecate’s supper is a ritual where eggs, fish, garlic, mushrooms and honey are
left at a cross roads in her honor. The
Night of Hecate is November 16, while the Day of Hecate is considered November
30th. Modern festivals
include an event held on the full moon in May called the Rite of her SacredFires, where Hecateans around the world participate in a ritual to honor the
Goddess.
For many years I considered myself Wiccan and had no
particular deity. After working with
Christian Day’s “The Witch’s Book of the Dead”, I began to research Hecate and
found a connection with her. I completed
my dedication in January 2012 and now work my circles and rituals in her honor.
I've created a Shrine to Hecate on my blog found here and much of my published work around Hecate can be found in the quarterly publication called Askei Kataskei available for free download here. I also have a board on Pinterest dedicated to locating images of the Goddess Hecate.
I spend a lot of time working with clay and created this piece below for Hecate.
The Goddess Hecate - Artist - Renee Olson
Photo Credit - Renee Olson
I found this awesome ambigram on the web and had hubby clean it up, maybe I'll make it into a neat Tattoo.
Photo Credit - Elijah Olson
I'm extremely happy working with the Queen of the Witches today. She speaks to me and I invite her knowledge into my soul every Tuesday evening.
Today one of my dear friends left me an award on my blog. Vickie from Aoibheal's Lair gave me the "Epically Awesome Award of Epic Awesomeness".
The award comes with a few rules.
1. Display the award on your page.
2. Link back to the person that gave it to you.
3. List 10 things about yourself.
4. Nominate 10 other bloggers to get the award.
I got the first two done, now for ten things about myself... let's see.....
1. I love love love Tattoos! I just got a new tattoo yesterday...
2. I love to work with Clay. I'm working on a new piece, it's a dragon coaster. The center dish is for holding a coffee mug. It's still in progress. I'm deciding on paint colors now while it dries.
Photo Credit - Renee Olson
3. I have an amazing kid who just published her first book on amazon. She created the book to use as a fundraiser for a chest reduction surgery. Her current fund raiser status can be found here.
Photo Credit - A.L. Olson
4. I have a deep love for sexy music....
From Rap
to Pop
to Blues
5. I am a Devotee to the Goddess Hecate and a member of The Covenant of Hekate. This will be my second year taking part as a solitary in the Rite of her Sacred Fires. Hecate called to me last year and I completed the Rite of the Red Cord to devote myself to her. I spend a great deal of time researching the history of Hecate as well as incorporating her into my art.
Photo Credit - Renee Olson
6. I love animals. I have yorkies, chihuahuas, 3 indoor cats, a parakeet, 3 grown hens, 6 baby chicks and a colony of 5 feral cats. I raise yorkies with my hubby at ETKennels. I also foster and rescue. We offer a program at our kennel called "Always Home". As part of our contract, any pups that can no longer be cared for are returned to us. They will either live out their days in our home or will be re-homed with a new loving family. In this way we ensure that none of our dogs end up in shelters. We also offer support in answering questions, getting shot info and helping locating animal resources as needed for everyone. Not just those who buy from us.
7. I am an advocate for LGBT Rights. When I started my work with the LGBT Community, it was the LG Community and we had Pride in the Park in Norfolk VA. There were 10 people and a hibachi. I moved to San Diego and was completely blown away by the size of their Pride celebration. I volunteered with the LGBT Center and began working with Marriage Equality. I'm thrilled to see changes over the past years including Marriage rights for LGBT in many states. Full federal equality is coming!
8. I'm gamer geek from days of old. I started with a game called Tel-arena on a computer bulletin board and ended up working for Sony Online Entertainment as Lead GM Salonafinn. It doesn't matter what you do in a GM situation, you'll always end up with one pissed off group and one happy group. My exploits can still be found on Goggle today.
9. I believe we should all have good food. GMO scares me. No one seems to think it's not a good idea to put different types of DNA into corn, soybeans or other food and then feed them to our kids. It's just crazy.
Now... I need to nominate 10 other blogs... let's see.....
I know many of these will probably have already been nominated but I'm going to add them just the same....
1. I adore Rhonda over at Good Green Witch. Learning about our environment and sharing information on everything from plastics to fracking, Rhonda has an amazing way of delivering the information in an upfront, clear and concise way.
2. Kallan's Sunday Stew is just one of the great things on the menu at The Secret Life of the American Working Witch. From current events, news to dealing with stress there's always something wonderful going on there.
3. Monica over at TransGriot tells it like it is even when it comes to calling out HRC on its treatment of the trans* community in the recent protests at the Supreme Court during the oral arguments around Marriage Equality.
4. Sam at Chronicles of an Anthropology Nerd, is not only a fellow tattoo and otter lover but also an amazing writer and a frequent shopper at Sosanna's Closet. If you haven't checked out her blog, I highly recommend it.
5. If you want to stay up on all the latest LGBT News and happenings Joe. My. God. is an amazing blog to follow. From finding the scoop on politicians on the down low to getting the dish on attacks in Paris at Marriage rallies, Joe offers up front and direct coverage of today's happenings.
6. Another of my favorite blogs is Pagan Culture. Magaly shares her dark fiction as well as a glimpse into her personal life. She's witty, strong and saucy. Everything I love in a woman. She's currently hosting "Witches Fiction 2013 ... To the Bone", with stories and giveaways galore!!
7. Heartsong's Circle is always peaceful and enchanting to me when I arrive. Alan has a way of being the voice of reason when hotter heads are popping off around. He's centered and indeed sends out what I believe is a very positive loving energy. Adding his posts and comments to your day will indeed make it a brighter place.
8. Inciting a Riot is indeed a riot. If you're not following Fire Lyte, I recommend it. From serious stuff to the fun, Fire Lyte says those things out loud which many of us just think about. Over the holidays his confessions of retail kept me in stitches for weeks.
9. Fellow artist and blogger Tess, over at East Coast Craft & Curio has given us a glimpse into her life and what makes her tick. Tess is an amazing person and I'm grateful to call her a friend.
10. If you like current events, book reviews and general ramblings from a pagan mother prospective "I'm Not Hannah" is a great blog to follow. I cannot begin to say enough about how witty and touching this blog can be.
Well there we have it. My 10 things and my 10 Blogs. I believe these are all incredibly epic blogs!
For the last three years I've been working to clean up my
diet. I used to drink 3-4 32 oz McDonald’s
Sweet Tea every day. That’s over 300
calories per drink. I was taking in over
1200 calories a day just in Tea.
Today the only beverage I drink is water all day and a green
smoothie every other day. I don’t eat
processed foods at all and I am a vegetarian.
I do eat eggs and milk products so I’m considered Lacto-Ovo
Vegetarian.
Before I became vegetarian I was very picky about my
food. I wouldn't try anything that
looked too ‘strange’ or ‘different’ from what I was used to eating. That meant lots of fried food, lots of junk food and lots of
drive through. One thing I never ate as a child was eggplant. I never really even knew what an eggplant
was until I was an adult, and never tasted one before a year ago. Shocking I know.
One dish I tried recently is Baingan Ka Bharta. Bharta is a smoky eggplant dish that uses
cumin, onion and tomatoes to create a curry that can be served with rice and/or
Naan.
1 green
chili (remove most of the seeds – seeds = heat)
1 tomato –
chopped fine
½ tsp.
coriander powder
½ tsp. cumin
powder
½ tsp. garam
masala powder
1 glass of wine - add to chef throughout the cooking process
Photo Credit - Renee Olson
Photo Credit - Renee Olson
Process
Start out by preparing the eggplant to roast by cutting it lengthwise
and scoring the inside of the flesh in a diamond pattern. Add salt and olive oil to the top and place
skin side down in a baking dish. Place
in 400 degree oven for about 30 minutes or until the flesh pulls away from the
skin easily. Scoop out and set aside.
Photo Credit - Renee Olson
Get a large pan on medium heat and add the olive oil. Add cumin seeds to the hot oil and cook until
they stop sputtering.
Photo Credit - Renee Olson
Photo Credit - Renee Olson
Photo Credit - Renee Olson
Photo Credit - Renee Olson
Add the onions and cook until clear then add the garlic and
ginger and fry for about a minute.
Photo Credit - Renee Olson
Next add the finely diced tomatoes and all the remaining
powdered spices. Cook for about 3-5
minutes and stir constantly to avoid the mixture from sticking.
Photo Credit - Renee Olson
Photo Credit - Renee Olson
Finally add the eggplant and cook for about another minute.
Serve over rice and/or with Naan.
Photo Credit - Renee Olson
This dish was pretty good.
We tried it several times adjusting the recipe. Remember to remove most of the seeds from
your chilies if you want to be milder in flavor. I used only one and it was still a bit
spicy.
A lot of traditional Indian and Thai dishes call for
ginger. I recommend getting a fresh
ginger root and keeping it on your counter.
You can always use it to make Crystallized Ginger Candy which is great
for digestion!
Have questions? Have a
recipe you’d like me to try? Feel free
to leave a comment here or email me at sosanna@sosannascloset.com.
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