It was about two months ago when I received a phone call from Loren, my uncle in law. Loren and Jan live in Wenatchee, Washington where they are surrounded by cherry and apple orchards.
"I am going to send you a few cherry blossom branches" he said.
"Cherry blossom branches? But how?".
A few days later a package arrived in the mail. Tightly wrapped and with very specific instructions, there were four cherry branches.
"Cut the ends and place them in water. They will bloom in a few days".
And indeed they did. Tiny little white flowers that reminded me of the blossoming trees back home.
This little gesture planted a seed in my mind. I got excited about the idea of being able to see these trees in person.
"We should take a trip while my parents are here and visit cherry blossoms. It would be a wonderful family vacation before they leave" I suggested to C.
I knew the kids would love it.
I really wanted to go visit Loren and Jan in Wenatchee, but a trip to Washington state was just not practical considering it takes a whole day to get there and back.
"How about Washington DC?". And so we found the
National Cherry Blossom Festival.
We spent last weekend there. at "George Washington CD" as J calls it.
I welcomed the wintery cold.
Beautiful flowering trees all around the
Tidal Basin. Dad and I walked around the entire basin by ourselves. He had his arm around my shoulder just as he used to do when we were kids. I cherished every second of it.
Then back home, I
dreamt of the wild poppies that grew in the field next to our school and
blossoming apple trees.
I received my copy of
Heidi's "Super Natural Cooking". I had been waiting so anxiously since I had pre-ordered it months ago. Beautiful as I expected and filled with recipes I want to cook and eat.
"Look at that crumble" I said to my mom as we were flipping through the book. Heidi's
tutti frutti crumble filled with berries, oats and poppy seeds. I made a
gluten and dairy free version on Saturday for our last dinner with my parents. It was delicious, light and the perfect way to put an end to a wonderful visit. I miss them already.
And then, I have to thank all of you for your kind words and excitement over
the workshop in France this upcoming October. Stephanie is working on some additional details as we speak (she is in France at the moment!), and then,
we will post a brief notice a few days prior to opening registration to the public.Thank you and stay tuned!Tutti Frutti Crumble
adapted from Heidi Swanson's "Super Natural Everyday"
1/2 cup superfine brown rice flour
1/4 cup oat flour
1 Tbs potato starch
2 Tbs poppy seeds
1/2 cup gluten-free oats
1/2 cup natural cane sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup melted coconut oil (do not microwave it, melt it over water bath)
Mix all ingredients together in a bowl until it comes together. Divide the dough into three parts and form patties. Freeze them for 10 minutes.
1 1/2 cups diced strawberries
1 1/2 cups diced rhubarb
1 1/2 cups golden raspberries
1 Tbs cornstarch
1/3 cup natural cane sugar
1/4 cup Beaujolais
Toss the first five ingredients together in a bowl. Let the fruit macerate for 10 minutes. Add the wine and gently mix.
Transfer the filling to a 10" pie plate or divide it amongst individual ramekins. remove the crumble patties from the freezer and break them over the fruit leaving some chunkier pieces.
Bake at 375F until the fruit is bubbling and the topping is golden brown, about 30 to 40 minutes.
