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Falafel

By: SuzanneYoder

Comments: 0

Ingredients:

1 lb 4oz (20oz) dried fava beans (about 3 1/2 cups) (not canned) 
7 cups cold water
4 cloves garlic, peeled
1/4 cup onion, diced
1/4 cup Italian parsley, roughly chopped
1/3 cup cilantro, roughly chopped
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp ground coriander
Heavy pinch of kosher salt
1/4 cup all-purpose flour, plus more as needed
3 tbsp of water, plus more as needed
6-8 Tbsp canola or vegetable oil for frying

To serve:
Thinned tahini sauce
Sliced lettuce, tomatoes, etc. 

Directions:

Sort through and rinse the fava beans.  Place them into a large stock pot and cover with the water.  Bring this to a boil over medium-high heat.  Reduce the heat so the water is at a gentle simmer and cook for 30 minutes.  Drain and cool the beans completely.

Once the beans are completely cool, place them in the bowl of a food processor fitted with a blade attachment.  Add the garlic, onion, cilantro, parsley, cumin, and coriander to the bowl, and pulse until the mix resembles a coarse sand in texture.  Stop mixing and scrape down the bowl using a rubber spatula.

Add the salt and flour.  Use the first measurement of flour, only adding more if the mixture is too wet.

Add the water to the mixture and pulse, once again.  Your mixture should be a paste which resembles thick, chunky peanut butter.  If you ball it up and it holds together without crumbling, it’s good to go.  If you ball it up and it immediately falls apart, it’s too dry and needs a little more water.  Add a tablespoon of water and pulse again.  Then, do the ball test.  If it’s still too dry, add more water and pulse again.

In a large skillet, heat oil on medium-high.  Scoop the falafel mix into your hand using a portion scoop, then flatten slightly.  Scoop as much of the mix as you can fit onto a plate or platter.  Separately, make sure you have a tray that’s been lined with paper towels to drain the cooked falafel on when they come out of the oil.

Fry four to five balls of falafel at a time for four to four and a half minutes, or until they are a deep brown color.  Turn the falafel balls once to cook on both sides.  Remove the balls from the oil using a slotted spoon.  Drain them on the paper-towel lined dish. Continue frying until all are cooked.

Once all your falafel has been fried, serve it immediately.  You can also keep in a storage container and reheat in the oven on a foil-lined sheet pan.  Heat for ten minutes at 350°F, or until warmed through.

Koshari

By: SuzanneYoder

Comments: 0

For the Crispy Onion Topping:
2 large onions, minced
Salt
1 cup cooking oil

Make the crispy onion topping – in a large skillet, heat the cooking oil over medium-high heat.  Cook the minced onion, stirring often, until they turn a nice caramelized brown. Add a generous amount of salt to help the onions crisp.  Onions must be crispy, but not burned (15-20 minutes).

For Tomato Sauce:

Cooking oil
1 small onion, grated
4 garlic cloves, minced
1 tsp ground coriander
½ -1 tsp crushed red pepper flakes (optional)
1 28-oz can tomato sauce
Salt and pepper
1-2 tbsp distilled white vinegar

Make the tomato sauce – in a saucepan, heat 1 tbsp cooking oil.  Add the grated onion, cook on medium-high until the onion turns a translucent gold (do not brown).  Now add the garlic, coriander, and red pepper flakes, if using, and saute briefly until fragrant (30-45 seconds more).

Stir in tomato sauce and pinch of salt.  Bring to a simmer and cook until the sauce thickens (15 minutes or so).

Stir in the distilled white vinegar, and turn the heat to low.  Cover and keep warm until ready to serve.

For Koshari:

1 ½ cup brown lentils, picked over and well rinsed
1 ½ cup medium-grain rice, rinsed, soaked in water for 15 minutes, drained
½ tsp each salt and pepper
½ tsp coriander
2 cups elbow pasta
Cooking oil
Water
1 15-oz can chickpeas, rinsed and drained

Make the Koshari – Bring lentils and 4 cups of water to a boil in a medium pot or saucepan over high heat.  Add 1 tsp of cumin and 1 tsp of garlic powder.  Reduce the heat to low and cook until lentils are just tender (15-17 minutes).  Drain from water and season with a little salt. 

Cook the rice in the saucepan over medium-high heat with 1 tbsp cooking oil, salt, pepper, and coriander.  Cook for 3 minutes, stirring regularly.  Bring to a boil, then cover and cook until all the liquid has been absorbed.

Cook the pasta al dente.  Drain.

Warm the canned chickpeas on the stove and add 1 tsp each of cumin, coriander, and garlic powder. Add salt to taste.

To serve, fluff the rice and lentils with a fork and transfer to a serving platter. Top with the elbow pasta and ½ of the tomato sauce, then the chickpeas, and finally ½ of the crispy onions for garnish.

Moussaka

By: SuzanneYoder

Comments: 0

Ingredients:  
4 medium potatoes, sliced into circles
2 medium eggplants, sliced into circles
24 oz. spaghetti sauce
4 Tbsp canola or grapeseed oil
1 small onion, thinly sliced
½ a bell pepper, thinly sliced
4 cloves garlic, thinly sliced2 medium tomatoes, diced
1 Tbsp ground cumin
1 Tbsp ground coriander
½ cup warm water
Salt and black pepper
Parsley or cilantro for garnish

Directions:

Heat 2 Tbsp of oil in a wide cast-iron or frying pan over high heat and saute the eggplant until golden brown.

Grease a casserole dish and spread a layer of spaghetti sauce on the bottom.  Place sliced potatoes in the bottom of the dish and cover with another layer of sauce. 

Add a layer of sauteed eggplant and top with the sliced onion, bell pepper, garlic, and tomatoes. 

Mix the cumin and coriander in the warm water and pour evenly over the layer of vegetables.  Top with remaining spaghetti sauce.

Bake at 350 degrees for 20-30 min.  Bake longer for a softer potato layer.

Garnish with parsley or cilantro and serve with warm pita.

A Drawful Perspective During COVID

By: Karen Webster

Comments: 0

One of the ways we have been tending to our overall health and wellbeing over the last several months is by being more intentional about making space for play in our lives, which we confess is one of the first things we let go of when we are feeling anxious or pressured to be “productive.”  For example, several months ago, Travis and I made a commitment to spend more time doing jigsaw puzzles.  This was something we had not done in almost 18 years of marriage.  While we may not be the fastest “puzzlers,” we have thoroughly enjoyed how working on puzzles quiets our minds as we set aside our “to-do lists” and the concerns of the day simply to focus on shapes, colors, and the subtle nuances of the puzzle pieces.  This has helped lower our stress and improve our sense of wellbeing.

In addition to puzzles, we have also tried to be more open to playing games.  The most recent new one we tried was Drawful 2 (more details to follow), to which my brother and his family introduced us several weeks ago during a visit.  

Having lived apart from my family for 10+ years has meant that we have long been using internet video calls to communicate, which, thankfully, helped lessen the online learning curve and quick transition that COVID made necessary.  Who would have imagined a year ago that we would be attending church services, baby showers, birthdays, and graduations, as well as playing games with family and friends, online?  While these online gatherings are not ideal, we are thankful for the opportunity to connect and be in a relationship with others, especially given the physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual toll that the pandemic is continuing to have on our lives.

For those who are not familiar with Drawful 2 (a game that can be played well either in person or via Zoom, Skype, or Facetime), each player receives a “unique” (that is, weird!) prompt that they must try to draw on their mobile devices (without the ability to erase once you start drawing!).  For example, when playing with my family (dad, brother, sister-in-law, and two young nieces), we had to draw things such as “a pool full of salad,” “summer tuxedo,” and “throwing shadow.”  After each “artist” presents their work, everyone else anonymously proposes a title for this bizarre drawing. 

The goal is to somehow find the correct prompt while fooling other players into selecting your decoy answer, both of which earn you points.  Ultimately, the person who receives the most points “wins.”  However, with the amount of laughter the game produced when we played, we thought everybody “won” in terms of its positive impact on our mental and emotional health!    

Now, of course, we could not help but think theologically about the parallels between playing Drawful 2 and dealing with COVID.  Here are some of our reflections: 

  • At the start of 2020, pre-pandemic, most of us probably had a fairly clear picture in our minds of how the year was going to unfold.  Similarly, with Drawful 2, when you read the phrase you are supposed to draw, your mind almost immediately creates an image.
  • Once the pandemic started, 2020 ended up looking nothing at all like what we had envisioned!  The same thing happens when playing Drawful.  At no point did what I draw look remotely like what I imagined, despite my best efforts.
  • We are now facing the fact that the majority of 2020 has gone by and there are probably some things we wish we could erase, or perhaps just begin anew, but can’t.  Similarly, with Drawful, once you start drawing, you can’t go back and erase what has happened; you simply have to live with it the best you can. 
  • While we don’t know how long the pandemic is going to last, we know that God is with us and loves us and that, through our trust in God, we have faith that the overall outcome will be okay.  With Drawful, no matter how bad the drawings, and no matter how many points we get (or don’t), we know everyone will enjoy themselves.

Making time for play, particularly with our friends and families, is, in our experience, one of the best ways we can all tend to our overall health and wellbeing, both during this anxious time and into the future.

Want to add some (socially safe) play to your life?  Here are three recommendations.  Note: the games range from easy to complicated, 2 minutes to several hours, kid-friendly to experts-only, and few to many players!  

  • Boardgamearena.com (FREE and premium accounts – $4/month): over 200 games available in multiple languages.  Players create a free account and can invite friends to join their game table using their individual usernames.  Games are divided by number of players, play time, and complexity.  This site has a group video option if you buy a premium account and are playing with fewer than 4 players.  A premium account gives you access to all 245 games, but it will probably be a while before you get bored with the free options!  Players can join from a tablet or laptop, but we don’t recommend playing on a phone. 
  • Drawful 2 can be found at Jackboxgames.com (games cost from $5 to $20) – this site lets a group of people play internet games together in person or remotely.  Most games are an internet version of classics like Charades, Balderdash, Pictionary, Trivia, etc., but with a twist.  Games can be purchased individually or in a “Party Pack.”  Players can join from a smartphone, tablet, or laptop using a room code.  
  • playingcards.io (FREE) – this site lets a group of people play card games (and some simple board games) remotely.  Choose from one of 13 pre-programmed games or create a custom room to play any of your favorite card games.  Players can join from a smartphone, tablet, or laptop using a room code. 
Small Group Reflection

By: SuzanneYoder

Comments: 0

November 2020 – Written by small group participant Andrew Hudson, student at Anabaptist Mennonite Biblical Seminary, Elkhart, Indiana.

“This group is so helpful to me because I have been feeling my/our health being pulled apart for years.

My bodily health, good relationships, contributing to the health of the ecosystem of which I’m a part – these are parts of health that pull on each other. I can’t PLAN all these into my life separately, in the way western culture acts like they are separate areas.

Treating the health of body/social groups/earth as an integrated whole is incarnational. It is also counter-cultural. (But worth it!)
I’m glad to be part of a group where we support each other in this holistic approach to our health!”

Trail Notes: A Silence That is Loud with Life

By: Karen Webster

Comments: 0

November 2020 – Last month, Travis and I had the opportunity to “unplug from technology” for several days by staying at my family’s little cabin in the woods in northern California. The cabin is modern enough to provide the comforts of electricity and hot water (thankfully!), but rustic enough that there is neither TV nor internet and, in order to make a cell phone call or send and receive email messages, one must walk about a quarter of a mile down the road and hope that it is not too windy or too cloudy. 

Something we did this past trip that I have never done during my whole time going to our cabin (almost 45 years!) was to sit still on my favorite log in the meadow behind our cabin long enough to watch the sunset behind the mountains. It was so fun that we did this not just once but on several occasions! In the past, I had been accustomed to going out to the meadow, but only for a few moments; I would briefly pause and enjoy the amazing beauty that surrounded me, quickly reflecting on the changes that had taken place in my life over the previous year, before hurrying back to the cabin so that I could get in a quick game of horseshoes or a few swings at the whiffle ball before it got too dark and/or I had to go inside to help with the next meal. 

The result of pausing? The opportunity to hear a silence that is loud with life! 

So often, when we think of or hear the word “silence,” we imagine “a lack of sound or noise,” which is natural, since that is the technical definition of “silence.” However, in being silent (not speaking or moving), Travis and I found that the “noise and constant chatter” in our minds were quieted long enough for our other senses to be awakened. In the silence of the meadow, we: 

● Heard the autumn trees gently “clapping their hands” in the late afternoon breeze as the frogs croaked.

● Saw cobwebs drifting across the sky, insects dancing, birds soaring, and the shadow of the mountain gradually bringing about nighttime rest from the fullness of the day’s activities.

● Felt the temperature drop drastically and suddenly, reminiscent of what it was like experiencing the full solar eclipse several years ago. 

● Experienced the subtle changes in the scent of the meadow as the fragrance of the dry grasses baking in the afternoon sun transitioned to a sweet earthiness that rose from the soil as twilight set in. 

Silence can sometimes lead us to a sense of emptiness and loss because we are so used to being surrounded by noise (both internal and external). Yet, the silence we experienced was far from feeling empty. Rather, in the silence, we were spiritually refreshed and physically rejuvenated as we sat surrounded by the company of God’s creation. Right now, there are many who are experiencing a great sense of “loneliness,” while others are longing for some “alone” time, especially for those whose residences are serving as home + office + school + gym + church + entertainment venue + other. 

Whatever your situation, we want to encourage you to pause for some silence and perhaps reflect on the following questions: 

● For those who find silence uncomfortable: take some time to observe the richness that can come from silence. What new things do you see, smell, taste, feel, etc.? 

● For those who yearn for some silence: consider creating intentional times and spaces for silence. If you are in a crowded home, this may take some negotiation and creativity, but it is well worth the effort! 

Peace, 

Karen and Travis Webster
HSHC Co-founders

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