tranquillizzante/calming
It has been a long time since I have relaxed. Truly, I can’t turn off my brain . This is nothing new, and I believe it is a combination of a lot of things. My job and the zillion items on my never ending to-do list constantly swirls in my head. I remember a time when the checking work email from home wasn’t a viable option because of network limitations. There is something smart about that, as signing in from home doesn’t allow anyone to “turn it off”. Do you ever get the sense that it is an undocumented expectation to work from home on off days? Heck, do you remember when we all just had one email? Life was simpler then.
The increase in technology use across the globe, and in my life, is just one thing that has jaded “me-time” off center. Now, don’t get me wrong, the world of possibilities and opportunities we have now in unreal. And, I love that I am able to “get to know” and communicate with friends across the globe. But, as a big birthday fast approaches, I have found a commanding need to simplify.
I have made objectives for myself when the new year rolled around. My intention is to rope in the chaos, grab hold of the things that make be happy and bring me comfort so that the dilemmas I can’t control can be managed with limited stress, and the problems that come my way can be fixed. That thought process really sunk in with an impromptu trip to the mountains. It rained the entire weekend, but it didn’t make a difference. When I awoke from my uncharacteristic, random naps, I sat back in the recliner, read through a new cookbook and reveled in the music the raindrops made while hitting the windows in one octave and the wooden porch in another.
Those unexpected captured moment led me to making a pact with myself, to take a couple of hours each weekend for myself. No phones, not necessarily getting out of my PJs, ignoring any “to-do” notes.
Last weekend, I took an hour to write at the kitchen table. I wrote without purpose; it was not a memo, an email, a bill or even a blog post. Pencil to paper, random thoughts that oddly came together like a wooden spoon as it meets ingredients in a a bowl. As I wrote, on the table that was once grandmother’s, I channeled her serene, benevolent, tender spirit. She used to sit at the same table, in front of her second floor living room sipping her tea and eating her favorite Stella D’oro cookie.
While I don’t keep Gram’s favorite dunking biscuit on hand, I indulged in the Cranberry & Pistachio Biscotti I made while trying to use up small amounts of miscellaneous ingredients in my pantry. The biscotti can not replace the calming presence the memories of my grandmother bestows upon me, but they are a delicious substitute nonetheless.
Cranberry & Pistachio Biscotti
¼ cup sugar
1 tsp. lemon zest (optional)
2 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 ¾ cup all-purpose flour
½ tsp. baking powder
¼ tsp. salt
¾ cup shelled pistachio nuts
½ cup dried cranberries, roughly chopped
Preheat oven to 350°F. Line or lightly grease a baking sheet.
In a medium bowl, whisk flour, baking powder, and salt together; set aside.
In a large bowl, stir together the sugar with the lemon zest. Add eggs and beat until smooth and fluffy. Add vanilla; beat well. gradually add the flour mixture and beat until just mixed. Stir in pistachio nuts and cranberries.
Roll dough onto a lightly floured surface; knead about 10 times, until dough comes together. Divide dough in half; roll each into two logs about 10X3 inches.
Place on prepared baking sheet; bake 30 minutes. Remove from oven and cool 10 minutes on sheet. Cut each log into 16 diagonal slices and return the slices, cut side down, on baking sheet. Bake another 5 minutes, turn each cookie, bake 5 more minutes, or until golden. Cool on a wire rack.
Cook’s notes:
- If additional sweetness is preferred, increase sugar to ½ cup and/or dip or spread melted chocolate over baked cookie, at allow to dry.
- The fruit and nuts can be altered according to taste.
{ 3 comments… read them below or add one }
I’m glad you got the mountain trip. It sounds like you really needed an unplugged vacation.
I came for the biscotti but left with further intent to ‘unplug.’ I work from home and it’s never ending. I get emails and Twitters DM’s from clients on Saturday and Sunday with the expectation that I’m ‘on’ too and so it’s not just educating me…but educating them as well. I, like you, need a break. A regular break…actually right now could use a break called a vacation but I would settle for a day. One day for me. Let’s do it!
Hmmmm – these look like the perfect accompaniment to a nice cup of coffee or tea.