Life is Poetry: I

Empty Chair

the expanse between arm rests

where your arms once lay

echoes the emptiness

felt in my heart

sixteen seasons

have lived and died

while my arms remain

folded against my chest

fearful of opening

to the constant many

hesitant to lift my foot

to that staircase

and climb yet another steep ladder

my nights are filled with pictures

circling around my head

of the journey I yearn to take

of the thoughts I wish to say

of the flesh I wish I was

a melancholy saran wrap envelopes the space

between my brain and my breath

Hope and Faith are all I have left

Sarah Jenkins

Never Forget Your Roots.....They Will Never Forget You

I spent the afternoon with my Portuguese grandmother, who we lovingly call Vava. We watched old movies and reminisced on family history. Every time we get together I learn a new family story that clears up unanswered questions that have been concealed for decades. When I was little, my sister, brother, and I would crouch down to hide behind a staircase or door frame and strain to hear the adults talking. The stories they were laughing about are told and retold at family reunions. Once I became an adult I had earned the privilege to hear and understand them. One thing I’ve learned is that nothing changes. The mistakes people make and learn from have been made several times over, long before we were even born. 

Yesterday I struggled to come up with a dinner to make my Vava. Over time she has become allergic to a whole list of food and is limited with sodium intake. Usually I pick a recipe from my cookbook without thinking about gastronomic restrictions so it was hard to wrap my head around these limitations. After an hour I finally decided to let inspiration come when it decided to show up, which it did in the Whole Food’s produce aisle. 

I’ve been eyeing chard every time I walk by the leafy green section. Chard comes in three different varieties: Green, Red, and Rainbow. The flavor of the green chard is similar to Spinach so I knew it would be safe for my Vava who had not seen it before. I used to be one of those people who shied away from trying new, unfamiliar food. Now I'm fearless as I navigate through the rows of exotic food. 

I found a beautiful acorn squash sitting among the other squash family members and pumpkin gourds. Acorn squash is similar to butternut squash but it’s not as sweet. It can be roasted, boiled, or grilled. With the vegetables chosen, I knew I would make them with basmati rice and my homemade veggie stock.

Any decent chef knows you have to be able to improvise and adapt to any cooking situation. First you get the lay of the land (or kitchen) and figure out where the basic tools are stored. It feels odd at first because you’re deciphering someone else’s thought process. They put this kitchen together, organized where every dish would go. To them it makes sense, to you it feels like your first day cooking. You stumble around, opening up every cabinet and if you’re on a time crunch you start to swear a little under your breath. 

At some point you start to feel yourself getting the flow of the new kitchen. You start the prep work to get mise en place and the cooking begins. Soon enough the enticing smells from the kitchen get the attention of people in other rooms. They find a reason to poke their head in to see what’s cooking. I love the chaos and loudness of a busy kitchen. This is my calm. This is what relaxes me from a stressful or monotonous work day. I tune everything out and focus on the food.

Tonight, by the time I set to cooking dinner I realized I had only an hour to prep and cook the meal. As a chef you have to calculate what you can get done before a deadline and what will suffer if you take a short cut. I cut the acorn squash into smaller, half-moon pieces so they would roast in half the time I had planned. I wanted the roasting process to still extract that squash flavor and yet not be left with large uncooked chunks. 

While the squash was roasting, I boiled the veggie stock I brought from home. Most stocks you buy at the store and bouillon cubes have really high sodium levels. By making my own veggie stock I controlled how much salt went into it. One cup of basmati rice was added to the stock and I lowered it to a simmer. It may not look like much, but one cup of rice is enough for two people.  

I set to prepping the other ingredients. Vava was my sous chef, she tasted the chard and her “mmm” was all the approval I needed. I threw it in the sauté pan with garlic, shallot, fresh sage and thyme until the chard was wilted a little bit and set it aside.

While the rice continued to simmer in the stock, I took out the squash from the oven. After it rested for a bit I peeled off the green outer layer. The hard green shell is left on in the roasting process to protect the squash from overcooking. After 30 minutes or so in a 400 degree oven the hard shell becomes soft and pliable.  

By the time the rice finished absorbing the liquid, plumping up to half an inch in size, I threw all of the ingredients into the rice pan. 

My Vava ate her entire bowl and kept saying, “mmm, it’s good” quietly to herself. That is the ultimate response a chef loves to hear. 

What’s true in cooking is true in life. Where we come from, the baggage we pick up along life’s crazy journey shapes who we are and how we’ll respond to life’s cruel or joyous next step. If you remember your roots, the next step won’t seem so scary. In fact, it gives us the strength to put foot to pavement. 

  

Sarah Jenkins

Butternut Squash Gratin = Fall in a Bowl

Week one, Day one of Couch to 5K is behind me and I know tomorrow will bring sore muscles. The run felt like I was back in high school, forced to participate in whatever sport the gym teacher made us play. I ran in one minute increments, but after 20 minutes my lungs felt like I had run for an hour. I cursed at myself wondering why anyone would put themselves through this torture willingly. On my route I saw a bunch of neighborhood kids on the playground and one girl about eight years old started running alongside me to catch up to her friends. She ran with ease and excitement and I huffed and puffed, counting down the seconds until I could rest again. 

Yesterday marked the beginning of fall on the calendar but today it really felt like it. The air is crisp and cooler. I took advantage of the pleasant weather to make a new recipe from my favorite cookbook.

Butternut Squash Gratin with Onions and Sage. 

Forget baked macaroni and cheese, this is the ultimate comfort food without the heaviness and high caloric guilt. Since I don’t like to cut too many corners when I cook, I made fresh bread crumbs. It might sound like a lot of work, but it was really simple. The bread crumbs in the grocery store are full of high sodium levels and food additives so I usually steer clear of them.

Two pieces of oat bread broken up.

Then a few spins in the food processor.

I prepped everything, Mise en place.

Onions, fresh sage and thyme were sautéed in a pan of olive oil.

Butternut squash was dredged in flour and sifted to get rid of the excess.

They were then sautéed in a pan of olive oil until brown. The recipe called for 6 cups of butternut squash, which was too much for the pan. I wanted to keep the temperature at a constant temperature so I sautéed the squash in batches. If you overcrowd the pan it will lower the temperature making it harder to cook evenly. This same rule applies to any food you sauté in a pan.

 

Fresh parsley, salt, and pepper was added for another layer of flavor.

Then I added the butternut squash on top of the onion mixture in the gratin dish.

Gruyere cheese, freshly grated topped the squash and then about a ½ cup of the homemade veggie broth from yesterday for moisture during the baking process. 

It baked for 25 minutes then I took it out to add the fresh bread crumbs.

Another 10 to 12 minutes later, the gratin came out of the oven, the smell of freshly baked butternut squash and cheese wafted throughout my house. 

It was the perfect dish for a cold, fall night. Since I used veggie broth instead of cream and only a cup of gruyere cheese the meal felt light and satisfying. 

Off to enjoy the rest of my Sunday. I can tell the football game has begun because my upstairs neighbor is yelling at the Patriots through his T.V. screen. Wonder what he hears coming from below. 

Sarah Jenkins