Thai Beef Liver with Coconut Rice and Green Sauce

I should have added Beef Liver to my list of New Year's Resolutions - I love being able to put checks in little boxes. I'm the kind of person who goes back and adds things to my to-do-list if I did them but they weren't on the list in the first place. They should have been, and I want credit for them. I feel so certain that this is right and just that I don't begrudge anybody else doing the same. ;D

Like most American kiddos, I have memories of the occasional sight and smell of liver and onions showing up for dinner. It wasn't bad necessarily, but it wasn't quite up there at average on the tasty response meter either. Well, this ain't your Mama's liver, honey! My family says the sauce is what really pushes it over to the category of "welcome back" meals they'll be pleased to see again. And they ate what was leftover for lunch the next day without a word of encouragement from me!

Marinade
1/2 cup plain yogurt

1 T garam masala

1 T fresh lime juice

1 T minced ginger

2 minced cloves of garlic

1/2 tsp sea salt

1 good sized pasture-fed beef liver cut in slices 1/4" thick

Mix marinade ingredients in non-reactive bowl and place the liver in to rest at least 2 hours in the refrigerator.

Saute in batches that will fit your pan without crowding in 1-2 T coconut oil on med heat until cooked through. I had heard that liver curls in an unruly fashion, so I made intermittent cuts every inch or so down each slice. That seemed to help quite well.

Green Sauce

In blender mix this all up well:

2 cups fresh cilantro

1 cup unsweetened grated coconut

1 T fresh chopped ginger

1 tsp comino

2 garlic cloves

2 T fresh lemon juice

1/2 cup of water

1 tsp sea salt

We tried an online recipe for coconut rice a while back, and my kids clamor for it every chance they get now. Serve plates with rice, then liver placed on top, graced with some of our zesty green sauce, and a sweet sprinkling of toasted coconut for a pretty finish.

I am going to post this at Kelly the Kitchen Kop's Real Food Wednesdays. Let me know what you think! If you've been wanting to try making liver for your family because of it's nutritional benefits, perhaps this will give you just the incentive you're looking for.

Consumición sana feliz!

His Earth: The Rare Exception...

I enjoy listening to NPR. I tune in regularly, because for a Mama who spends a good deal of her time running to and fro, it has been a great source of at least some of the news. There are times when I catch just a part of a piece and am so intrigued, I simply must go sleuthing to listen to it in it's entirety. Such was the case last Thursday, when I hopped into my car, turned on the radio, and began listening as I drove to pick up my son. All Things Considered was broadcasting The Fruitless Search For Solar Systems Like Ours. It took quite a bit of work to locate it, I must say, but I felt it was worth the time to put it out there for others to hear - at least whoever happens upon my little blog will be able to.

(A little background) My first job was at a health food store - it was an appropriate fit for this earth muffin girl. For years, I attended Earth Day fairs on April 22nd with annual regularity (didn't even need to look up that date.) ;D I shared my shower with empty milk cartons in which to collect water to use upon my lawn, shoved a weighted piece into my toilet tank so as to take up space and waste as little water as necessary, and drove my recycling material to the center long before the city did door-to-door pickup on trash day. My children knew about the plastics and paints we strove to avoid in our foods - artificial fillers and colors.

I could very well have been on my way to a hedonistic, kumbaya sort of existence, wearing crystal amulets around my neck - if the Lord had not reached into my life and whispered of His love for my wandering little organic soul. The dusty dirt that covered me, the water He washed me with, the very skin I live in, the blood in my veins and the blood He shed for me, the clean cotton I envision my robe is made of - He made and purposed it all. I thought of using a pic of the earth amid it's solar system for this post, but I just loved the Godly earthiness of this painting.... it is filled with the smells and sights and touch of that other rarity - the intimacy of God and man in personal relationship.

I have no trouble reconciling my earth-loving ways with a heart given over to my Maker. He is the Creator of all men may ever know, see, discover, find, or feel. *"The earth is the Lord's, and everything in it." My stewardship of what he blesses me with, whether material or immaterial, springs from a heart and mind that responds to Love with Love.

I did find it ironic that NPR chose to broadcast this little piece on April Fool's Day. They really need to learn a bit more tact if they want to convince others that they are really impartial. (Wink!) I also found it providential that it preceded our celebration of His resurrection as well.

*Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus:

Who, being in very nature God,
did not consider equality with God something to be grasped,
but made himself nothing,
taking the very nature of a servant,
being made in human likeness.
And being found in appearance as a man,
he humbled himself
and became obedient to death—
even death on a cross!
Therefore God exalted him to the highest place
and gave him the name that is above every name,
that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow,
in heaven and on earth and under the earth,
and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord,
to the glory of God the Father.

And on bended knees to Him....

*May you be blessed by the LORD,

the Maker of heaven and earth.

*I Cor: 26

Phillipians 2:5-11

Psalm 115:15

Mayacobas y Verdes

In English: Mayacoba Beans and Greens. I have long wanted to try my hand at just such a dish. I am posting this at Food On Fridays w/ Ann Kroeker. I picked up this bag of unusual beans at my local grocery store. I sound a bit like I'm cousin to Jack and the Beanstalk, don't I? These beans have become a quick favorite with my family - smooth, buttery, and filling. You may substitute cannellini or another of your preference.

Mayacoba y Verdes

1/2 bag of washed Mayacoba beans, soaked overnight, pressure cooked in fresh water for 30 minutes, allowed to cool to release pressure. Then add:

1 16 oz. can of diced tomatoes

1/2 T comino

1 T Mexican oregano

1 T chili powder

salt to taste

2-6 cloves of minced garlic tossed in

In another pot throw in 3 lbs. of mixed greens - turnip, mustard, collard, etc. or one of your choice. Add 6 cups vegetable or chicken broth and 2-6 more minced cloves of garlic. Cook down til as soft as you like them, stirring from time to time.

Add to the beans and stir to combine nicely. Serve sprinkled with queso fresco and the comfort that you are ladling out health and contentment.

"Soup puts the heart at ease, calms down the violence of hunger, eliminates the tension of the day, and awakens and refines the appetite." Auguste Escoffier