Quick quick slow

2013 came to a close with an enthusiastic ride on the NM Railrunner that ended in the train hitting a horse on the tracks while passing through desert native lands. It seemed to be a symbolic sign:  high speed train wired with wifi, plowing through a dusty, timeless landscape halted by a slow moving equine.  This event kicked off a holidy period of personal reflection about how quickly life and things moves, not always for the good.

I lived in Taos for many years before moving to the Bay Area 3 years ago and have found myself trapped between the paces of the two places.  I can't quite keep up with the rushed city pace here, and I have trouble slowing down when I'm there. It took a recent imbalance in my health and 10 of my 14 days on vacation for me to realize that slowing down is a necessary resolution for the new year.

Signs are everywhere when you need them.  This revelation about slowing down hit home in an intimate yoga class of 6 in a sweet little wood-heated adobe studio.   Elias, a newish friend/yogi/yoga teacher broke it down into pretty simple terms. "Life is short. When we scurry around, we're just rushing to our death. Do we really want to do that?" 

Yoga instructors often throw out sage wisdom at the perfect moment. They tend to drop those little golden nuggets into the mindstream just when you are skipping forward in your yoga practice dreaming about sivasana or the ironic post-class cup of coffee. Realizing that I'm generally rushing to sivasana with nowhere to go, allowed Elias' teaching to sink in.

This is why I'm going to keep a blog, once a week, for this 2014 year. I have no agenda, or preconceived format or even a specific point of view.   I'm just doing it to remind myself, in some sort of public way to keep it real, and to keep it slow. essentially to keep it real-slow as best I can for the year.

So tonight I start.  My first attempt at 'slow' for the new year, is to cook slow and have a slow evening with friends.  Maybe we'll playing cards or a board game and enjoy the rare experience of playing some games from our past.  The kind of game where you don't keep time and it doesn't matter how long it takes to finish.  If you have to, you can set the pieces down and come back to it another time like we used to do in the summer at our cottage on a lake.  No rush, no problem.

For our dinner, I'm using a "slow cooker for one"-a genius appliance making a comeback in my neighborhood. Sometimes it's tricky to cook for just one, but I'm learning that if I  carefully and lovingly jam in the chicken and spices, I can make dinner for two, (or three) if we intentionally eat slowly and I provide some other filler (tonight it will be quinnoa, becasue we are in the bay area for god's sake).  I'm making a resolution to use it at least once a week in 2014.

So here's tonight's recipe, perfect accompanyment for a small crew and some board games on a Sunday night.

Armenian Lamb Stew (and a side of Cardamom Quinoa)

Simply throw in a slow cooker (preferably a large slow cooker- this is the full recipe which I cut back to fit in my mini cooker)
1 tbs. coconut oil
1 diced yellow onion
1 tbs. grated ginger
3 cloves of garlic
1 tsp. dill
1 tsp. basil
1 tbs. parsley
6-8 apricots
2 small hot chiles (chopped) your choice depending on your preferred level of spice
1/4 cup brandy
2 cups beef broth
2 tbs. fresh squeezed lemon juice
1.5-2lbs. chunks of lamb shoulder (braising for 3-5 minutes in a separate pan in advance is advised)
2 diced sweet potatoes
salt and pepper to taste

Cook for 6-8 hours on low.  Stir if you must. And serve with quinoa and a salad

Cardamom Quinoa
In a heavy bottom pot over medium heat combine:
1 tbs. coconut oil
1 med. yellow onion
5 cardamom pods
1 clove garlic
1/2 tsp. cloves
1 cup quinoa
Stir until onion becomes translucent and add 2-2/12 cups chicken or beef broth
Cover and bring to a simmer.  Cook until quinoa is fluffy (15 minutes on low-med. heat)
Eat it slowly and breathe between bites.