Ayiti on my Mind- Black Rice and Mushrooms

au delà des montagnes il y a des montagnes de nouveau
Translated: beyond the mountains, there are mountains again- Haitian Proverb

*The Language of letting go card by Melody Beattie
*Black Rice recipe from Mirta Yurnet-Thomas

This morning I came to work and pulled out the box of inspirational cards that my sister gave me a few years ago and chose one. It read, “Today, I will let go of my need to be in pain and to suffer through crisis. I ask God for assistance in moving as quickly as possible through my sad feelings and problems. I ask for help in experiencing joy, peace, and gratitude every day. I will accept what is good in my life today”. I got very emotional. Why do I feel that these cards are speaking directly to me every time I read one? Yesterday my card was about patience. I had been feeling very opposite of that lately because I have been waiting for an important e-mail/call. I kept worrying. I checked my phone constantly. After reading the card, I made it a point to let go. An hour later, the e-mail came. God is good. Yes, He is! Can I get an AMEN? Today’s card spoke to me about Haiti. It’s been weeks now and many of us have stopped watching CNN. Tired of the coverage and the constant heartache that comes with seeing people like us suffering, we change the channel. We think, “I’ve donated, I’ve prayed, I’ve done my part”. Have you? Donating and praying is great, but Haiti needs us to not forget. Those who have suffered from this tragedy (which essentially means all of us), will not. My very first best friend was a girl named Caroline. Caroline, from Haiti. I remember being jealous that she spoke another language and pretending that I could too. Years later, I had another best friend; Merli. Merli, from Haiti (by way of Belguim). Then, Mrs.Demoracy (my mother and everyone else’s in High School). Then it was Angie, Belinda, Cambry, Etienne, Fara, Tamika and Lea (by injection) and so many others who have touched my life. Haitian people are a strong people. They are a proud people. I remember years ago, people used to tease children because of where they were from. Stupid people. Learn your History! Did you know that Haiti is the only black nation who successfully gained their independence through revolt? I bet you didn’t. They don’t talk about that on CNN. Do you know who Edwidge Danticat is? Have you read and cried through Breath, Eyes….Memory? Probably not. Do you know of the Ford brothers? Three Haitian doctors raised in Brooklyn who went to their parent’s homeland to help and heal? No, they don’t talk about that on CNN either. I guess I am just rambling. I guess I am just hurt, angry, and sorry. People who have suffered so much are suffering yet again. I hope that we all keep Haiti in our minds and hearts. When you think someone is forgetting about what is going on, remind him or her. And when you wake up to your warm, still standing house; when you take a shower and eat your hot breakfast; when you kiss your children and send them off to school, please, please, please say a prayer for Haiti (pronounced Ayiti). I will. The recipe that follows is not my own, but I love Black Rice, and I know you will too!
LYMI,
V
* Disclaimer- If you have a better recipe, please pass it to me!

Black Rice and Mushrooms
Ingredients:
2 cups djon-djon mushrooms (or European dried mushrooms)
2 tablespoons vegetable or olive oil
3 garlic cloves, crushed and minced
1 small onion, chopped
1 shallot, sliced
2 cups long-grain rice, rinsed with cold water
2 teaspoons salt
4 cloves
1 (12-ounce) can cooked lima beans (or green peas)
1 tablespoon tritri (see glossary; optional)
1 to 2 thyme sprigs
1 green Scotch bonnet pepper
Method:In small saucepan, soak mushrooms in 4 cups water for 10 minutes. Boil mushrooms on low heat for 10 minutes. Strain the mush rooms, reserving the liquid.Add oil to a cast-iron pot on medium heat. Stir in garlic, onion, and shallot for 2 minutes. Add rice and stir for 3 minutes. Add mushroom water, salt, cloves, cooked lima beans, and tritri. Bring to a boil until water evaporates. Lower heat, stir rice, and place the whole Scotch bonnet pepper and thyme on top of the rice. Cover and cook for 20 minutes. Remove hot pepper and thyme. Stir before serving.

All my hopes and dreams... Pot Roast and Cheesy Mashed potatoes

I've always thought that things work out best in life for the good people. The girls who kiss, but won't let him touch. The boys who play sports instead of standing on the corner. The men who take care of their responsibilities. But, as I've found myself (a good person) almost always getting the short end of the stick; I realize that being good is mostly bullshit. You can go to the right schools, get the right degree, graduate and find yourself without a job. You can be patient in your career, work your ASS off, and still get looked over for a promotion or raise. So what then, is the point of hopes and dreams. What really ever goes the way we plan it? I thought I would be married by now with a great career and a closet filled to the brim with Italian stilettos. Instead, I find myself husbandless, settling, and digging under the bed to reach my J.Crew pumps (which, by the way, are made in Italy- so maybe something worked out). Sigh. Not this quarter life shit again. WTF. I had lunch with an old friend today and we talked about how differently things turned out for both of us. He is feeling defeated, angry, frustrated, and tired as well. But, he did not give up his hope or his dreams yet. He said "Vannell, circumstances and situations do not define you, and you must not let them confine you". Hmph! Sounds like something I would have said a year and two dreams ago.....Sigh (again). Let's get to the food, shall we? Pot roast is not an easy thing to make (ok, maybe it is, but just go along with the story). It takes time, patience, understanding, and most of all.....LOVE. Sigh (third time) Why can't I apply these principles to my life? Why do I understand carrots but not career? Meat but not me? Sigh (x4). Moving right along...pot roast is muy delicioso and mi novia te gusta mucho! He thinks its the best thing I make and he even gave me a twitter shout out for it :) Sigh (x5, but this was a good one so it doesn't really count). Here's to still believing in hopes and dreams even when I think its a load of crap. How about believing that what is meant for me will be for me? Yes, I think I like that better. Sigh (x6, but really x5 since we didn't count that one before).
LYMI,
V

Pot Roast Ingredients:
The pot roast tastes best when it has marinated overnight.
Nice cut of beef (it would usually say beef for roast)
A bag of carrots
Olive oil
1 large onion
2 garlic cloves
1 red bell pepper
1 green bell pepper
Salt, Black Pepper, garlic, paprika, onion powder, meat tenderizer, Worschester sauce,
West Indian Green Seasoning

Cheesy Mashed potatoe ingredients
8-10 Idaho potatoes (peeled)
1 cup of milk
2 tbls of butter
Lawry's seasoned salt
Black pepper
Onion powder
Garlic powder
1 cup of freshly shredded cheddar cheese

Recipe:
Soak roast in water and vinegar for at least 30 minutes. Then, season and put in fridge overnight.
When you are ready to cook, heat up a tablespoon of olive oil in a deep pot.
Add garlic, onions, peppers and carrots (chopped) sautee until onion is transparent. Add roast. (make sure you scrape all the yummy seasoning into the pot too.) Add a little water and cover. Cook under low heat for 25 minutes. Use two forks to turn roast over, cover and cook for another 25 minutes. Add more water if necessary, but not too much. You don't want the veggies burning or swimming.
Preheat oven to 400 degrees
Place roast on a roaster rack. Save sauce in the pot under a very low heat.
Roast roast (ha ha, sounds funny) for 45 minutes uncovered.
Remove from oven and place back in pot with sauce and cover under low/med heat.
Simmer for 10 minutes, basting the roast with sauce often.
Once finished, take roast out and let it sit covered with foil for at least 15 minutes before carving.

Mashed Potatoes:
Boil potatoes soft
Drain, add milk, butter, and seasonings. Mash until smooth
Place potatoes in a small pyrex pan and cover with cheese. Bake in oven for 8 minutes, or until cheese is melted.
Plate, add slices of roast, top off with sauce and ENJOY!