by sherricrandall | Sep 15, 2024 | Recipes
This delicious recipe is an original from Chef Giuseppina from Certaldo Italy. My family and I were so blessed to attend one of her cooking classes while we were in Italy this summer and this was the delicious dessert she taught us how to make.
Pannacotta
Ingredients
250 ml fresh cream
250 ml whole milk
5 Tablespoons of sugar
1 envelope of unflavored gelatin
1/2 vanilla pod
Juice and zest of 1 lemon
3 c. fresh seasonal fruit
fresh mint leaves
Directions
In a medium sauce pan, mix 3 tablespoons of sugar with the gelatin, vanilla seeds and also the pod. Add a little milk and mix well to obtain a smooth mixture without lumps. Add all the milk and the cream and continuously stir, bring to a boil.
As soon as it starts to curdle, turn off the heat and pour the panna cotta into small containers (glass jars) up to half. Let it to cool at room temperature and store in the refrigerator.
Prepare a fruit salad with strawberries raspberries, blackberries and blueberries. Add the zest and juice of 1 lemon, add sugar. Stir gently and refrigerate.
Before serving, season the panna cotta with fresh fruit on top and if you like, garnish with a fresh mint leaf.
Enjoy!
by sherricrandall | Jul 12, 2024 | General
She sits at a welcome desk in the hallway of a dimly lit medical building. It is an older building, sort of a hodgepodge of confusing hallways linking together X-ray departments, oncology units, and physical therapy departments. Most people entering this building are there because they are injured or sick.
My first time to enter this building was two days post a total hip replacement and to say I felt out of sorts is an understatement. I shuffled my steps with the aid of a walker and my already bad sense of direction was heightened by the fog of pain medicine. I looked down the hall and the entry door to the physical therapy clinic felt like an impossible destination. Soon a very kind lady was at my side asking me and my husband if we needed assistance and encouraging me with the idea that it will only get better from here. She ended her encouragement with these words, “ I promise to be praying for you and I sure hope you start to feel better sugar.” When was the last time someone called you sugar?
Since that day I have been greeted over a dozen times with the same sweet smile and some form of encouragement. I have learned her name is Mary. Mary has big hair, big eyelashes, a stellar big white smile all on top of a very petite stature. I have witnessed first hand that her heart is the biggest of all. There isn’t a time I have walked into this building when she has not greeted me personally. At the same time, I have seen her assisting patients in wheelchairs, giving directions to lost patients and always with a big smile on her face. This past week as I came into the building I didn’t see her at first but then I looked over at a couch nestled in the entryway and there sitting with a couple was Mary. She was praying with them and they were all crying. I slipped past the door and into my physical therapy session not wanting to disturb this sacred moment.
On my way out, I stopped to tell her what an amazing lady she is. She was so humble in receiving my compliments and she told me her goal each day was to create an environment that helps people know they’re not alone – even in the most painful moments of their lives. Mary serves as an inspiration to me and I am sure so many others who have experienced her kindness and love.
My encounters with Mary have me asking myself how can I better show up in the lives of others to encourage and share the love of Jesus? How can you?
by sherricrandall | Jul 12, 2024 | Recipes
Garlic Butter Shrimp and Corn
Ingredients:
4 ears of corn, shucked and kernels removed
2 Tablespoons cumin
2 Tablespoons dried fennel seeds
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 tsp. Kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
4 cloves garlic, minced
Zest of 1 lemon
1 1/4 pounds large peeled and deveined shrimp, tails removed
1 pint cherry tomatoes
1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese
1 bunch green onions, chopped
1/2 c. fresh basil torn into small pieces
Directions:
- Preheat oven to broil and line a rimmed baking sheet with aluminum foil.
- Toss the corn with the fennel seeds, cumin, salt and 1/4 tsp. red pepper flakes until coated. Spread mixture evenly onto baking sheet and broil for about 5-7 minutes until corn starts to brown. Remove from oven and set aside.
- Melt the butter on the stove top, adding the garlic, lemon zest and 1/4 tsp red pepper flakes. Pour mixture over the shrimp. Add the tomatoes and toss well until shrimp and tomatoes are fully coated. Spread the shrimp over the corn and place back in the oven. Broil for about 7 minutes until shrimp is fully cooked and tomatoes start bursting.
- Top with the feta cheese, green onion and basil. Then squeeze fresh lemon juice over the entire pan.
Serve over your favorite rice.
Enjoy!
by sherricrandall | Jun 12, 2024 | General
If you knew that you would not fail, what would be some of the things you would try to do? That question was recently asked of me when I spoke at a local MomCo group. I have to confess, I told them they could ask me anything and yet I was surprised by the depth of this question and I only had a minute to think about it and respond. I will tell you my answer in just a minute but first let me tell you what I have been thinking about since that question was asked…
How often in my life did I not try something because of the fear of failure or was worried about what someone else would think. Sadly, more times than I felt ok with admitting. What was I afraid of? What would it matter if I really failed?
Then I thought about the times when I was brave and tried something new or had a big idea and it didn’t go so well and you know what? I actually am thankful for those failures because I learned so much each time. It made me stronger, it actually made me more determined to try again and honestly, when the idea did work, it made the success of it all that much sweeter and satisfying.
I worry that in recent years we have been telling each other that it’s not ok to fail. Social media influences have helped fuel the idea that you have to be perfect and your ideas have to be perfect before you even try. If we are being super honest, we know that is not true. As a matter of fact, we all have failed at something and 100% of us will fail again in the future. That is a commonality that all of us share.
Since the question posed is intended to get us thinking, I hope you can reflect back on a time when you failed and what you learned from that experience. I also hope this question fuels you to think bigger, think better about the possibility that your fear of failure is holding you back from doing some pretty spectacular and satisfying things in this world.
So back to the original question, what would be some of the things you would try to do if you knew you couldn’t fail? I answered I would write a book and publish it. I would learn multiple languages and I would open a beautiful floral shop. I would secure scientists who could cure cancer and eradicate hunger and poverty. Once I allowed my brain to think big, it was actually a great exercise to challenge myself on not being afraid to think big and try. Yes, we can fail but what if we succeed? That gives us all something to think about and that is my challenge to you – answer the question and then start trying. Also remember, it’s ok if you fail. That failure might just be what prompts you to succeed beyond your wildest dreams.
by sherricrandall | Jun 12, 2024 | Recipes
Sweet and Spicy Salmon
Ingredients
2 8 oz. salmon fillets
2 tsp. maple syrup
2 tsp. low sodium soy sauce
2 tsp. Dijon mustard
1 tsp. garlic powder
1/2 tsp. red pepper flakes
salt and pepper
Directions
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees
- Whisk together maple syrup, soy sauce, Dijon, garlic powder, and red pepper flakes
- Pat the fish fillets dry with a paper towel
- salt and pepper the fillets
- Place fish on a sheet of aluminum foil then pour the glaze mixture over the fish.
- Bake for approximately 20 minutes (I prefer a more well done fish so I bake for about 30 min)
Enjoy!
