New Recipe from Haiti!
Haitian Recipe | August 10, 2016
Last Friday at CAN (Children of All Nations) we celebrated the first day of the Olympics by everyone choosing a different country to represent here in the office and bringing a dish that represents the culture. Of course, I chose Haiti and the recipe for the dish I made is below.
Mais Moulu ak Zepina
- 3 tbsp of oil
- 3 tomatoes, julienne sliced
- 4 tsp of garlic powder
- a few sprigs of thyme
- a few sprigs of parsley
- 2 tsp of ground pepper
- 3 tsp of minced onions
- 2 tsp of tomato paste
- 1 box of chopped frozen spinach
- 6 cups of water
- 1/3 bag of coarse yellow cornmeal
- 1/2 inch-thick of sharp cheddar cheese
- 4 tsp of butter
Directions
Heat saucepan over high heat. Add oil.
Stir in the sliced tomatoes, garlic powder, thyme, parsley, ground pepper, thyme, and minced onions.
Cover and reduce heat to medium-high.
Stir in tomato paste, spinach, and add water.
Cook uncovered until it begins to boil.
Add the cornmeal and continue to cook over medium-high heat, covered.
Stir in the cheese. Reduce the heat to low.
Add butter then stir. Continue to cook for 20-25 mins.
Remove from heat. Serve with slices of avocado.
It was a huge hit and I will definitely be adding it to my recipe book!
I would like to encourage you if you are waiting to be matched and/or waiting to bring your child/children home to find some tasty recipes you enjoy from Haiti that one day you can make. This is a great way to embrace their culture and it is also something fun you can do together.
GO TEAM HAITI!
Be fearless in the pursuit of what sets your soul on fire. | August 4, 2016
Whether you are adopting or you work in the adoption world there is something you realize very early on…this process is not made for the lighthearted. There are so many ups and so many downs throughout the entire journey and of course the high at the end which is the result of bringing your child/children home. How we all got here (again whether you are adopting or you are just involved in the process) creates various stories and everyone’s path has been completely different. Did you go on a mission trip and fall in love with the country? Are you a doctor and provided medical care to the fatherless and truly discovered where your heart was? Or, maybe you have a passion for orphan care and wanted to do what you could to make an impact on the world and their little lives. Regardless of the journey we all embarked on we all have one major thing in common. We are pursuing something that “sets our soul on fire” and we all feel drawn to Haiti.
For me personally, I remember telling my mom at a fairly early age that I wanted to adopt from Haiti. My mom continuously asked me, “Why Haiti?” and “Why do you want to adopt from there?” And, my answer was always, “I am not too sure mom. But, I feel like I am supposed to.” This answer is also a very similar one that I hear from a lot of my families now. My draw towards Haiti continued to grow as I got older and as I learned more and more about the country the more I knew this was something I wanted to do. For many of you that follow my blog you might have been one of my families when I started out in the dossier department prior to making my debut into the matching/referral department but a big stipulation for me to step into this role was me requesting to take Haiti as one of my countries. Now, with the messes pre-Hague families were experiencing a lot of case managers were gladly willing to pass this program onto me and with a happy heart Haiti became mine. Through this journey I have now traveled to Haiti, met the children, met the people, and completely fell in love with the country and realized why I always did have such a passion for Haiti. And, even though I am still too young to adopt from Haiti it is amazing to me that I ended up in this role. Helping these children unite with their forever families is the most incredible thing I have got to be a part of in my life thus far.
It really is ironic where God ends up leading you when you actually let go and let God.