Poached Pear Raspberry Oatmeal

Last week's salted cardamom apple oatmeal made me hungry to experiment with more oatmeal recipes. A very ripe pear, The Breakfast Drama Queen's fruit cooking technique, and the discovery of raspberry extract in the cupboard served as inspiration for this bowl of oatmeal.

Tender pears, creamy oats, and the fresh taste of summer raspberries. Mmm!

Ingredients

For the poached pear:

1 ripe pear, diced
1/4 t cinnamon
2 T water

For the oats:

1/2 c rolled oats
1 c water
1/2 t raspberry extract

Directions:

1. Combine pear, cinnamon, and water in a small sauce pan. Cook until liquid reduces to a thick syrup and pears are tender.

2. Remove pear and any remaining liquid from pan. Add water and oats.

3. Bring water and oats to a boil and reduce heat to medium.

4. When oats reach the desired consistency, stir in the raspberry extract. Add the pears to the oats and mix.

5. Transfer oatmeal to a bowl and dig in.

God Fills.

God fills the earth.
With his hope, glory, good, knowledge, and praise.

Psalm 48:10
Like your name, O God, your praise reaches to the ends of the earth; your right hand is filled with righteousness.

Psalm 65:4
Blessed are those you choose and bring near to live in your courts! We are filled with the good things of your house, of your holy temple.

Psalm 72:19
Praise be to his glorious name forever; may the whole earth be filled with his glory. Amen and Amen.

Isaiah 11:9
They will neither harm nor destroy on all my holy mountain, for the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea.

Ezekiel 43:5
Then the Spirit lifted me up and brought me into the inner court, and the glory of the Lord filled the temple.

Habakkuk 2:14
For the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord as the waters cover the sea.

Habakkuk 3:3
God came from Teman, the Holy One from Mount Paran. His glory covered the heavens and his praise filled the earth.

Haggai 2:7
"I will shake all nations, and what is desired by all nations will come, and I will fill this house with glory," says the Lord Almighty.

Romans 15:13
May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.

Salted Cardamom Apple Oatmeal

I made The Oatmeal Artist's strawberry cardamom oatmeal last Sunday, and honestly, I was disappointed. I found the porridge bitter and tart, not sweet and spicy like I wanted. Even the coconut cashew butter tasted bland. The Oatmeal Artist's statement, "I will not rest until I add cardamom to every single thing I can think of," got me thinking, however. I paid a good price for my little bottle of cardamom. I do like its spice. But how? Enter salted cardamom apple oatmeal.

This is how: Tender apples stewed with cardamom and vanilla, a dollop of coconut cashew butter, and a sprinkle of pink Himalayan sea salt. This is the best bowl of oats I've had in awhile, hands down.

Ingredients:

For the stewed apples:
1 small apple (I used gala), diced
1/4 t cardamom
1 t vanilla
3 T water
(Technique adapted from The Breakfast Drama Queen's Apple and Cherry Strudel Oatmeal)


For the oats:

1/2 c rolled oats
1 c water
 
For topping:

The Oatmeal Artist's Coconut cashew butter

A sprinkle of sea salt

Directions:

1. Combine apple, cardamom, vanilla, and water in a small sauce pan. Cook until liquid reduces to a thick syrup and apples are tender.

2. Remove apple from pan. Add water and oats. 

3. Bring water and oats to a boil and reduce heat to medium.

4. When oats reach the desired consistency, add the stewed apples. Stir to combine.

5. Transfer oatmeal to a bowl and top with coconut cashew butter and sea salt. (The sea salt is a must as it both enhances and blends the flavors.)

 

God Fulfills our Longing.

No prayer verses came this past week because Mom gave me her prayer sheet focusing on God's wings. This week, the focus is on how God fulfills our longing. In fact, God should be our deepest Longing: "Strong, persistent desire or craving, especially for something unattainable or distant" (Dictionary.com, n. d.).

Psalm 38:9
All my longings lie open before you, Lord; my sighing is not hidden from you.

Psalm 119:20
My soul is consumed with longing for your laws at all times.

Psalm 119:81
My soul faints with longing for your salvation, but I have put my hope in your word.

Psalm 119:131
I open my mouth and pant, longing for your commands.

Proverbs 13:12
Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a longing fulfilled is a tree of life.

2 Corinthians 5:2
Meanwhile we groan, longing to be clothed instead with our heavenly dwelling.

Hebrews 11:16
Instead, they were longing for a better country—a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared a city for them.

Reference:Longing. (n. d.). Dictionary.com Unabridged. Retrieved August 9, 2016 from  http://www.dictionary.com/browse/longing

Nectarine Almond Spice Oatmeal

It's been awhile since I've experimented with hot oatmeal. It's been hot. I've been tired. I'm not in my own kitchen. My mom feeds me well. I could keep making excuses, but I decided that I need to start experimenting again. I like oatmeal. It brings me joy to experiment with new flavors. I have the opportunity to use new and difference ingredients now. So, without further ado, this oatmeal inspired by nectarines from Sprout's and affordable almond butter from Costco.

Sweet, sticky, summery, spicy...Mmm!

Ingredients:

1/2 c quick oats
1 c water
1/4 c unsweetened applesauce
1 white nectarine, diced
2 T natural almond butter
Spices (I used Trader's Joe's pumpkin pie spice, a nice blend of cinnamon, ginger, citrus, nutmeg, cloves, and cardamom.)

Directions:

1. Bring water and oats to a boil and reduce heat to medium.*

2. When oats reach the desired consistency, stir in the applesauce. Simmer oatmeal on low until some of the liquid from the applesauce absorbs and the oats become thick and rich.**

3. Transfer oatmeal to a bowl and top with the nectarine and almond butter. Add spices to taste. (I prefer to separate my almond butter and fruit so that I can handcraft each delicious bite of oatmeal. I sprinkled the pumpkin pie spice only over the almond butter.)

*Since it's summer, I microwaved my oatmeal.

**Add applesauce to microwaved oatmeal to cool it down.

Thanksgiving that God is Our Dwelling Place

I have so many reasons to give thanks: family, a place to live, a new job, supportive friends, religious freedom, etc. My focus for this week's time of prayer, however, is thanksgiving that God has chosen to make His Dwelling Place both in heaven, and among men by His indwelling Holy Spirit.

Deuteronomy 12:11
Then to the place the Lord your God will choose as a dwelling for his Name—there you are to bring everything I command you: your burnt offerings and sacrifices, your tithes and special gifts, and all the choice possessions you have vowed to the Lord.

2 Chronicles 31:2
Hezekiah assigned the priests and Levites to divisions—each of them according to their duties as priests or Levites—to offer burnt offerings and fellowship offerings, to minister, to give thanks and to sing praises at the gates of the Lord’s dwelling.

Psalm 84:1
How lovely is your dwelling place, Lord Almighty!

Psalm 132:7
Let us go to his dwelling place, let us worship at his footstool.

Psalm 135:21
Praise be to the Lord from Zion, to him who dwells in Jerusalem. Praise the Lord.

Ezekiel 37:27
My dwelling place will be with them; I will be their God, and they will be my people.

John 1:14
The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.

Revelation 21:3
And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Look! God’s dwelling place is now among the people, and he will dwell with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God.

New Life

Second Corinthians 5:17 says, "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: the old has gone, the new is here!" Paul is primarily talking about the new life that comes through Christ by redemption and faith. I believe that a walk with Jesus is a constant process of redemption, renewal, and restoration, however. I see evidence of this in my life now. God moved me to move to Arizona. He allowed my parents to bless me by allowing me to live with them. He gave me a job. These changes have been good, and hard. They are changing my goals and priorities.


2) Stop checking e-mail on my phone while at work.
I did turn my phone e-mail on, but we're not supposed to use social media at work, so I try to keep my phone put away and only use the e-mail function when necessary.


3) Use more glass storage containers and less plastic.
Mom has a GREAT stash of glass mason jars. I enjoy using them for yogurt, overnight oats, etc. This is a benefit of living at home.


5) Memorize some new scripture, or at least review the old.
I'm still working on Colossians. I'll be honest that I still don't want to engage my brain to memorize. I just want to check out and relax. When I do study the Scriptures, however, God's truths ring loud and clear, like when I studied Colossians 3:17-24 that talks about serving God and not human masters. I had just started my new job and wanted to please people. God reminded me that I need to please him.


7) Purge excess. Soak up blessing.
I threw out a lot of  childhood stuff when I moved back into my room at home. Memories are memories, but at some point the old stuff has to go to make room for the new.


8) Run a 5K.
I'm trying to train my body to run at the higher altitude here in Arizona. I hope to eventually run a 5K here.


9) Embrace the quiet.
With four people in a house, there is not a lot of physical quiet. I am trying to engage in quiet activities, however, like coloring on Sunday afternoons, especially while talking to my brother and sister-in-law on the phone.


10) Pursue counseling licensure.
Praise the Lord, I passed the NCE! I still don't know what to do about Arizona licensure, however. My current job isn't counseling, per se, but I believe God led me here. I am praying about what to do.


11) Rest.
Rest is a struggle. There is always something going on. Thanks to living at home, I do get to read the newspaper at snack time each night, though. I like that.


12) Trim down the processed. Bulk up the produce. (In my diet)
Another blessing of home: fresh green beans, squash, etc. from Mom's garden. Mmm!


13) Bullet journal plan—streamline my to-do list.
I made some paper lists while not working, but mostly use my planner now. Yeah!


14) Finish the books I have and read more.
I've read one whole book this month: Gilead, a parting gift from my housemate. I would like to read more, but see 11).


15) Spend time with and love the people around me.
Right now, I live with my parents and little brother, so I get the blessing of seeing them every day. We have family dinner each night. I walk with Mom on weekend mornings. We play games together on Sunday nights. I have missed this!


16) Blog. Instagram. Something. (Experiment.) 
I like Instagram (@myarizonaadventure), but must admit that I get carried away with it sometimes. Just like with every other part of my life, God needs to come first, and everything else, even good things, after Him.