My sister and I landed in sunny Southern California on Memorial Day weekend 1981 (I was 16, Kelly was 13) to live with our father and his family in an idyllic town in nestled in the San Bernardino National Forest.
Our father was a musician and introduced me to the music of Emmylou Harris, Townes Van Zandt, Bill Monroe… and John Prine.
John Prine was revered by my father and his musician friends. “Fish and Whistle” and “Hello in There” were two songs that made their set list on a regular basis.
John Prine’s Bruised Orange was a constant on our turntable. I don’t know this for a fact, but I think I may have been the only 16-year-old in Riverside county blasting Court & Spark, Quarter Moon in a Ten Cent Town, and of course, Bruised Orange when I was home by myself.
I have a hunch I won’t be the only one blasting these songs today.
And bet I won’t be the only in my family thinking about our father.
Martha is a weaver and loves learning and exploring new colors and patterns, so most of her hand woven items are one of a kind.
She’s been playing with fabric since her mom taught her how to sew as a kid. She watched her mother explore embroidery, crochet, rug hooking, decoupage, and just about anything else people were doing in the 1970’s.
She also sews, practices aikido, and rescues cats.
1. Why did you move to Elgin?
We moved to Elgin to be closer to my husband’s children and their mom. They eventually moved away, but we love it here, so we stayed.
2. What compels you to spend time creating?
Part of it is that I grew up watching my mom make things in her spare time and it was always part of life in our house. Also, I had analytical jobs my whole life and I love the balance I get from making a product.
3. Tell me three things you’ve learned in the past five years.
I really CAN learn some Spanish (slowly!) even if my pronunciation is terrible. I’m happiest if I learn a little bit and move a little bit every single day. That was a hard one because I think i can take time off, but I always regret it if I do. Curating works better for me than collecting stuff.
4. What are you currently making, reading, watching, or listening to?
Watching: Midnight Diner- Tokyo Stories on Netflix. Twenty-minute snippets of delight and totally worth the effort of subtitles. Reading: a couple books about aikido and de-escalating conflict. Listening: The Moth podcast. Fabulous true stories told without notes. It’s my all-time favorite podcast. Making: sourdough bread!
I was bragging a couple weeks ago about my superhero power in this blog post so I thought I’d better demonstrate said powers.
This recipe is in heavy rotation March thru September at Chez Vee*. It’s simple, fresh, protein packed and bright. The ingredients are flexible, not only to your preferences, but to what you have on hand.
Also, I guess this is really two very simple recipes.
Tuna & Chickpea Salad
5 oz chunk white albacore tuna (chunky is best, but any tuna will work) 15 oz can chick peas or cannellini beans (drained) 1/2 of a red onion (chopped) extra virgin olive oil Juice of 1-2 lemons (bottled is fine) Chopped Parsley (curly or flat-leaf, also fresh arugula or spinach are great) Salt & Pepper
Directions
I a bowl, mix the chick peas, tuna, red onion and parsley with a glug or two of extra virgin olive oil and as much of the lemon juice your heart desires. Salt and pepper to taste. If serving with a salad with feta, you may want to go easy on the salt.
Serve with toasted pita, naan, flatbread, crackers, or whatever you have on hand. Or nothing, if you’re into that kinda thing,
This salad is also great as a pasta salad… just add cooked pasta (orecchiette and cavatappi are perfect) and adjust oil, lemon and seasoning. Arugula and spinach make this version even better.
Greek Tomato Cucumber Salad
1 cucumber (peeled, I sometimes leave a little stripe of skin, and sometimes scoop out seeds) Fresh tomatoes (any kind, just sliced close to size of cucumber if not cherry) 1/4 red onion (chopped) feta cheese (crumbled or chunks, cotija will work too) chopped parsley (see above)
Directions
Toss all of this lightly in a bowl with either store bought greek dressing or a homemade vinaigrette. This can be as simple as some extra virgin olive oil and red wine vinegar or lemon juice shaken in a jar.
Rule of thumb 1:4 1 part vinegar; 3-4 parts oil
You may add fresh or dried herbs and maybe a smidgen of dijon mustard. You just want it to taste bright.
Note: I’d like to make it clear that while the Greek dressing pictured above is just fine, John the Greek Original Salad Dressing is better… but requires a 42 mile round trip. Full disclosure, I usually use store bought dressing for this salad.
Lagniappe
My friend Rachel gave me a Zyliss Herb Mill for a wedding gift and I love using it for this recipe because just hold it over the bowl, cram leaves and stems into the little hooper, give it a few cranks and it comes out just perfect for this, or for a gremolata or chimichurri. I’m not a fan of one hit wonders in the kitchen, but this tool is a favorite.
Note: Zyliss does not make this model fashioned after a french mouli anymore, but there are similar new products out there.
Bean & Noodle 