PeachBananaCoconut Creamsicles

Friends,

Peach season is almost over.  This means that summer is almost over.  Some of you may have already helped your kids with their first pile of homework, some of you have assigned and graded your students' first assignments, others of you have tackled your own classwork.  Whatever the case, school is back in session and we have entered the strange, seemingly season-less period stretching from late August through mid September.  Summer seems to have ended, but only the most irritating among us (excuse my bias) are ready to cozy up with pumpkin-flavored-everything and surrender to the chill. 

For those of us who adore summer, its remnants linger on.  Vegetables still grow in our gardens, temperatures hover in the upper 80's, the air is full of the scent of flowers and the song of birds.  And, let us not forget, there are still peaches.

When Jordan and I went to Nashville earlier this summer, we had the chance to buy a bag of peaches from The Peach Truck.  Although we have never met Stephen and Jessica, the couple that owns the small business, we are friends with Jessica's brother and his wife, a fellow Mission Year alum.  Peach Truck peaches are brought to Nashville (and can be shipped all over the country) from Stephen's family farm in Georgia. 

Our friend Charles, who is a Georgia native (don't you forget it), had made it clear to us that Georgia peaches were superior to all others.  While I had had Georgia peaches from the grocery store, I had never experienced a Georgia peach that had not been harvested too early and ripened by some unknown and unnatural means.  So, when I bit into a Peach Truck peach, my life was forever changed.  I mean it.  I really do.

Alas, I can't exactly drive to Nashville every week to get a bag of peaches, and I am too impatient to wait for them to come in the mail.  But, at the height of their season, I have to say, Virginia peaches are certainly worth the eating.

In my last post, I briefly mentioned that I was starting round two of the Crazy, Sexy Cleanse.  The end of the cleanse is nearing, but I needed a refreshing, sweet treat to get me through until Monday.  On hand, I had peaches, coconut milk, and a few other ingredients that I thought might make a decent popsicle.

If you're in the mood for peaches and popsicles, and if you're trying to stretch the summer days as far as you can, I give you this recipe.

Peach, Banana, and Coconut Creamsicles
(makes 8-12 popsicles, depending on the size of your mold)

     4-5 ripe peaches (local, if possible!)
     2 ripe bananas (the more ripe, the sweeter the end result)
     1 can full-fat coconut milk
     1-2 tbs agave nectar (or maple syrup or honey)
     1/2 vanilla bean, scraped clean (or 1 tsp vanilla extract)
     1 tsp bee pollen (optional)*

*Bee pollen is an amazing food containing 22 essential amino acids and nearly all the nutrients that the human body needs in order to survive.  It helps energize and can be very helpful in fighting pollen related allergies.  I like to add it to smoothies as it adds a delicate floral flavor.  A teaspoon or so a day is plenty.  But, it is entirely optional in this recipe.  I just like to sneak in a few "super foods" whenever and wherever I can. 

First, peel and halve your peaches.

Put the peaches and peeled bananas in your blender and add the coconut milk.

Add the agave (or other sweetener) and bee pollen (if using), then scrape the contents of the vanilla bean directly into the blender.

Blend!  Pour into popsicle molds.

Allow to freeze partially, about an hour, before inserting popsicle sticks.  Then freeze for several more hours.  If you have trouble getting the popsicles out, set the mold in a bowl of warm water for about 30 seconds.  If you still have trouble, run a knife with a thin blade along the edges of the mold until you feel the popsicle break free. 

Last step.  Eat it!  Preferably outside.

 Do you see the Lucy nose?

The Sunday Post: Wild Food, Introvets, Bears, and Race

The last few weeks have been full of friends, laughter, celebration, adventures, tears, and transition.  Jordan and I celebrated our fourth anniversary on August 2 with breakfast at the Pigeon Hole, the first session of our theme tattoos (I went first, Jordan goes next), and a magical evening experiencing the incredible Les Miserables thanks to ShenanArts.  I must take the opportunity to brag that my dear friend, Ash White, played the role of Fantine.  She was absolutely phenomenal.

The next morning, we headed to DC for an overnight.  We found a great deal on Priceline for an historic four star hotel in DuPont Circle.  As awesome as it was to stay in a hotel that once welcomed the Beatles and a host of dignitaries and presidents, it was even better when Jordan and I looked at each other and opened our mouths at the same time to say that the accommodations weren't really our style.  Give us a bed and breakfast over a swanky hotel any day!  It was a perfect weekend spent wandering the National Zoo, eating at Busboys and Poets, grabbing coffee at Filter, walking for hours, then walking for more.  We ended it with a trip to Ikea.  More on that in another post.

I started working at Cranberry's on August 5th and we celebrated Jordan's 29th birthday on August 6th.  This weekend, we were surrounded by some of our dearest friends.

Life shifts and stagnates and shifts again.  I am so excited to be working with food that I can serve to people with a clear conscience and with people who care about fostering health in themselves and in those around them.  It is a transition, though.  One that is acutely impacting my feet. 

Our dear friends Rachel and Sam are preparing to move across the globe to New Zealand.  They returned from a year in South Korea in April.  Originally, they were set to be home for a month or two, but plans changed and they stuck around.  Their presence this summer has been an indescribable gift.  Friends like Rach and Sam are hard to come by and their absence is weighty.  I am so thrilled for their journey, inspired by their adventurous spirits, and delighted by the knowledge that we will do everything we can to ensure that we visit them.  Yet, I will miss them tremendously.  So, in the midst of all of this, I am fighting to remain present in the moment, to absorb the beauty of friendship and community, to give and receive love without hesitation.

This update is much longer than I intended.  But, ask anyone who has ever read anything I've ever written and they will tell you that being concise is not one of my gifts.  Without further ado, I give you the week's links of interest:

1.  For some time, I have been planning on doing the cleanse that I did nearly two years ago.  I've decided it's time, so tomorrow it begins.  I am so excited to adventure into Crazy, Sexy cleanse world again.  I have begun reading Eating on the Wild Side by Jo Robinson.  It is knocking my socks off.  Listen to this NPR interview for a sneak peak.

2.  I've had a very social week, and while I have enjoyed (almost) every second, I find myself feeling a lot of these things.  It's good to know I'm not alone.

3.  I had been seriously contemplating chopping all of my hair off.  But, after finding this super simple braided chignon I've changed my mind. 

4.  The Civil Wars released their second (and final?) album on Tuesday.  This interview was published on July 15, but it will definitely make listening to the album (which I am requiring you to do) a richer, and tension-laden experience.

5.  Bears. 

6.  Really proud of my city for engaging in this conversation.  Race is a tough thing to talk about, but our community came together and addressed it honestly and with care.  More of these meetings will be held and if you live in or around Staunton, you need to come!

Have a great week!