Holly Dickson-Ramos's Blog, page 12

Abide

This morning my garden looked beautiful – full of promise. Japanese irises, discovered at a community plant sale last spring, unfurled in a show of purple. I bought five clusters, but only two have rooted deeply enough to bloom this summer.

Roots: living things that must push hard in a dark place. Unseen and unappreciated, they give life to the whole plant. There are no blossoms without deep, healthy roots.

I’ve thought a lot about abiding and blooming recently. Jesus invites us to ab...

Homemade Doughnuts

When my grandmother passed away I unearthed, in her garage, a large envelope stuffed full and carefully labelled: Recipes Collected For Years. In it I discovered a gold mine: booklets from the ’50s with tips on how to bake prize-winning cookies, a school-issued curriculum for young ladies, Tested Recipes, published in 1898 and yellow with age… and recipes for treats written in my own eight-year-old scrawl.

Making homemade doughnuts is something of a lost art, in my world, but I found a ...

Beauty

With tugs and twists of grey yarn, I fashion a heel for my knitted sock, whiling away the time that, some days, feels endless.

I miss seeing others face to face. Although I know I should be anxious for nothing, I struggle. Some days it’s overwhelming to have so little control over an uncertain tomorrow.

My mind runs through endless possibilities.

Does yours?

The welcome blankness of thoughts that count out slips and purls and nothing more – is interrupted.

Someone has turned on ...

Holly’s Yuca Rellena

I tried, once before, to reproduce the golden deliciousness of stuffed yuca as I remembered it from Peru.

But I failed.

Just boiling and frying yuca acceptably seemed beyond my capabilities.  Still, what better season will there ever be for trying new things at home?

Step One: Have someone else peel the yuca while you sliver an onion and mix salt, pepper and lime juice into a marinade (for the onion).

Step Two: Cut the yuca into chunks and boil it. While waiting for the yuca to so...

A Memory From Peru

How many times have I passed over yucas in the grocery store, selecting, instead, the more familiar Yukon Gold potato for mash, fries and soups?

My first taste of yuca, also called cassava root, was in Peru.

Stuffed yuca, served to us hot and golden in a relative’s home, was unforgettable. I love the soft, powdery quality of the yuca… the outstanding experience of this root is, in my opinion, all about the texture.

Since that first taste, more than ten years ago, I’ve tried (with var...

Yuca Rellena

How many times have I passed over yucas in the grocery store, selecting, instead, the more familiar Yukon Gold potato for mash, fries and soups?

My first taste of yuca, also called cassava root, was in Peru.

Stuffed yuca, served to us hot and golden in a relative’s home, was unforgettable. I love the soft, powdery quality of the yuca… the outstanding experience of this root is, in my opinion, all about the texture.

Since that first taste, more than ten years ago, I’ve tried (with var...

Flowers and Faith

Could it really be true that one month from today my chamomile will look like this?

A few years ago, on a whim, I bought a packet of seed. I love any flower that remotely resembles the daisy and I like chamomile tea, so it was worth a shot.

To my surprise, these tough flowers reseeded themselves and last year, by June 11th, I could harvest enough to keep me supplied with tea through the winter months.

This year, late last week, a freak blizzard hit. My Canadian garden now looks bedraggled ...

Sour Dough Bread

Since traditional yeast has been hard to find since COVID-19 hit, Ive been using instant still good, but sometimes I long for a different kind of loaf. Like sour dough.

On Day One I mixed a cup of flour with half a cup of water and left it to do its thing on the counter for twelve hours.

For the next week I kept an eye on this goopy entity occupying precious real estate on my much-used counter top.

Day Three was discouraging Victor as we came to call our sour dough starter, smelled bad....

Devotional for those in Isolation

When COVID-19 hit, I grabbed a devotional book I often turn to in times of trouble, but noticed right away that it wasn’t relevant for this unique time, since it assumed readers were going “out into the world” each day.

So, I began writing prayers for my own use and collecting inspirational readings from Christian books and bloggers. My new book, Calling Out: Prayers for those in Isolation, grew out of this. It’s available for purchase in Kindle and paperback or you can download a free PDF ...

My New Book

When COVID-19 hit, I grabbed a devotional book I often turn to in times of trouble, but noticed right away that it wasnt relevant for this unique time, since it assumed readers were going out into the world each day.

So, I began writing prayers for my own use and collecting inspirational readings from Christian books and bloggers. My new book, Calling Out: Prayers for those in Isolation, grew out of this.

https://www.amazon.ca/dp/B087LXPT94 for Canadianshttps://www.amazon.com/dp/B087LXPT94...