Farfalle with Italian Sausage, Lemon Cream, and Chives Recipe

 

Farfalle with Italian Sausage, Lemon Cream, and Chives Recipe
Jesse Bluma at Pointe Viven. All rights reserved.

Make this simple and delicious meal on a cold winter night.  This recipe for Farfalle with Italian Sausage, Lemon Cream, and Chives has a creamy and zingy flavor.  Enjoy on your own, with family, or friends. 

Yield: 4–6 servings 

Ingredients

8 ounces farfalle (butterflies; bowtie pasta)

1 pound mild Italian sausage, cut into bite-size chunks

2 garlic cloves, peeled and diced 

2 Tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

1 egg yolk

1 cup Greek yogurt, at room temperature

½ cup grated Parmigiano Reggiano

Zest of 1 organic lemon

1 Tablespoon lemon juice

1 teaspoon coarse salt

1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

4 Tablespoons fresh chives, minced

Purchase Barilla Farfalle Pasta on Amazon.

Directions

In a large pot of boiling salted water, cook the pasta until just al dente, 9 to 10 minutes. 

Scoop out and reserve ⅓ cup of the pasta water before draining.

Meanwhile, cut the Italian sausage. 

Heat some olive oil in a large skillet. 

Then, add in your Italian sausage.

Peel and dice two garlic cloves, add to the skillet. 

Cook the sausage thoroughly.

Drain excess grease from the pan.

Then, return the meat mixture to the skillet.

In a large bowl, whisk together the egg yolk, Greek yogurt, ⅓ cup of 

the Parmigiano Reggiano, the lemon zest, salt, and pepper. 

Gradually whisk in the reserved pasta water.

Scrape the sauce into the pasta pot. 

Add back the cooked pasta and toss over medium-low heat until the sauce thickens, about 2 minutes.  Do not overcook, or the egg may curdle.

Add the cooked Italian sausage, lemon juice, and 2 tablespoons of the chives; gently mix. 

Plate.  

Sprinkle the remaining cheese and chives on top of each dish. 

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Credits: Barilla, Amazon

Inspiration for Liberty in Culture

Inspiration for Liberty in Culture

 Jesse Bluma at Pointe Viven. All rights reserved.

    

"Liberty, when it begins to take root, is a plant of rapid growth.”—George Washington, “Letter to James Madison”
   

The classics and canon of literature are a treasure trove of the best from thinkers, actors, ideas, debate, and conversation.  These are noteworthy works of literature and influential narratives that explore what is liberty, as well as the value and application of liberty in societies. 

The great authors across time and space responsible for creating the classics and canon are people that worked hard, made observations, detailed their lived experience, researched, were negatively criticized, and often risked their lives for liberty.  

For instance, the trial of the famous Greek teacher Socrates (469–399 B.C.) by intolerant government officials.  Socrates refused to have his students honor the Athenian gods, to believe in mythological theology.  The jury found Socrates guilty of corrupting his students and that is when it is said Socrates uttered, “the unexamined life is not worth living.”  A month later Socrates was forced to drink brewed hemlock, a toxic concoction made from an herbaceous plant.

It is essential to read and use reliable sources by scholarly individuals about liberty in societies, rather than by unknown institutions, organizations, or individuals.  Reliable sources provide information about authorship and credentials (working experience and knowledge), credibility (point-of-view, potential bias or propaganda), and reliability (accuracy and logic).  

The following books are a great place to start building knowledge about liberty, then applying the knowledge, and then developing the ability to scrutinize your own thinking and the thinking of others.  Overall, the listed books are excellent sources to refer to and quote in times or local, national, and international disagreements.  Or any time for that matter—for that is what makes the following works perennial favorites. 

The list of authors and their works below provide reliable, rich, complex information and food for thought.  In other words, an on-ramp to discover more about the importance of liberty in culture and relevance to people today.  Enjoy. 

Washington: The Indispensable Man: click here to purchase from Amazon https://amzn.to/3fkFYLF

“No American is more completely misunderstood than George Washington…When at seventeen he began making his own living, it was as a surveyor, defining tracts of forest on the fringes of settlement…No other President of the United States before Andrew Jackson was as much shaped by the wilderness as Washington, and he had less formal education than did Jackson, than Lincoln even.  Both Jackson and Lincoln studied law, while Washington's total schooling hardly went beyond what we should consider the elementary grades…The first settler, John Washington, was an impoverished adventurer who reached Virginia in 1675…As Virginia grew, the Washington family prospered modestly.” (Flexner)

 

Great Political Theories V.1: A Comprehensive Selection of the Crucial Ideas in Political Philosophy from the Greeks to the Enlightenment: click here to purchase from Amazon  https://amzn.to/2MS8tEr 

 

“Human law has the nature of law in so far as it partakes of right reason; and it is clear that, in this respect, it is derived from the eternal law.  [Yet] in so far as it deviates from reason, it is called an unjust law, and has the nature, not of law [yet] of violence.  Nevertheless even an unjust law, in so far as it retains some appearance of law, though being framed by one who is in power, is derived from the eternal law; since all power is from the Lord God…” (Thomas Aquinas, Summa Theologica)

 

Great Political Theories V.2: A Comprehensive Selection of the Crucial Ideas in Political Philosophy from the French Revolution to Modern Times: click here to purchase from Amazon https://amzn.to/2XZyZlK 

 

“In the golden rule of Jesus of Nazareth, we read the complete spirit of the ethics of utility.  To do as you would be done by, and to love your neighbour as yourself, constitute the ideal perfection of utilitarian morality.  As the means of making the nearest approach to this ideal, utility would enjoin, first, that laws and social arrangements should place the happiness, or (as speaking practically it may be called) the interest, of every individual, as nearly as possible in harmony with the interest of the whole; and secondly, that education and opinion, which have so vast a power over human character, should so use that power as to establish in the mind of every individual an indissoluble association between his own happiness and the good of the whole…” (John Stuart Mill, On Liberty)

 

The Irony of Democracy: An Uncommon Introduction to American Politics: click here to purchase from Amazon https://amzn.to/3d0OePi 

 

"The Founding Fathers believed in republican form of government.  They opposed hereditary monarchies, the prevailing form of government in the world at the time…To them, a ‘republican government’ was a representative, responsible, and nonhereditary government…They expected masses to consent to the government by men of principle and property, out of recognition of their abilities, talents, education and stake in the preservation of liberty and order.” (Schubert, Dye, Zeigler)



Liberal (Free) Thought in Argentina, 1837-1940: click here to purchase from Amazon  https://amzn.to/3fsttOp 

 

“If it is necessary to surround the law of the affection of the people, it is not the least to make the exercise of government pleasant for the country.  Governing little, intervening the least, letting the most do, not making the authority feel, is the best way to make it appreciable.  Often among us to govern, to organize, to regulate, is to hinder, to hinder, so a system that would let things be governed by its own impulse would be preferable…Our prosperity must be a spontaneous work of things, rather than an official creation.  Nations are generally not the work of governments, and the best they can do in administration as a gift is to let their powers unfold for their own vitality.  Do not hinder, let do, is the best rule when there is no certainty of acting correctly.” (Juan Bautista Alberdi, Bases and Starting Points for the Political Organization of the Argentine Republic)

 

 

The aforementioned books inspire liberty, curiosity about economics, law, history, philosophy, art, current events, and more.  Additionally, the classics and canon of liberty provoke thinking about civic engagement, living, free societies, respect, morals, and the rule of law.

 

 

Enrichment and Application

 

“The brain craves novelty,” says Tracey Shors, Ph.D., a distinguished professor of psychology and neuroscience at Rutgers University, in New Brunswick, New Jersey.  Reading, sharing, participating in civic activities and projects is essential for our health and the health of our communities.

*Promote gracious spaces.  Use the sources above in discussions and as evidence to support your claims and beliefs.  For example, if a friend posts a statement, image, and/or hashtag from an unfamiliar (unreliable) source on social media, use of the sources above to check the validity the statement.  Or share one of the reliable sources above with him or her to open up cilvil discussion and focus on more logical ideas.  

 

*Propose and organize a field trip to a museum, landmark, or cultural institution.

 

*Promote scholarliness at home.  Create a beautiful poster for display as a family, for a homeschool project, and/or for your own social media.

 

*Get creative.  Invent a game or computer program using one or more the sources above.

 

*Write down your curiosities and unanswered questions after reading the sources above.  Locate reliable sources to answer your curiosities and questions.

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Credits:
Amazon.com
istock.com 
Leach, N. (2019, September 15).  Keep Your Brain Happy and Healthy.  From https://www.awpnow.com/main/2019/09/18/keep-your-brain-happy-and-healthy/
Pexels.com

Nails, D. (2018, February 06).  Socrates.  From https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/socrates/

Independence Day Party Planning and Menu Ideas by Jesse Bluma

Independence Day Party Planning and Menu Ideas

Jesse Bluma at Pointe Viven. All rights reserved.

"We hold these truths to be self-evident" are eight of the most important words we can honor with a celebration.  July 4 is in part for remembering new beginnings and cutting ties with England in 1776.  

The following ideas make an excellent blueprint for your next Independence Day party and can be adapted to almost any other celebration you host.  One of the most important steps to take is to backwards plan. Your goal is to celebrate and make it possible for your guests to enjoy it too, while not exhausting yourself.  Keep that in mind and your party will be doable.  

1.  Set a date and time of course.  

2.  Invite guests:  family, friends, co-workers, neighbors, or a mix.

3.  Look at your finances and stay within budget.  A buffet may be your best bet.

4.  Remember to have music:  This could simply be songs you select to play, radio, web or TV station music, or live performances depending on the type of party.

5.  Select one day to bring out any decorations for cleaning and dusting or to purchase any items:  flags, party poppers, theme napkins, balloons, stars on strings (hung up from ceiling using non-stick hanging strips), punched out paper stars, punched out Happy Birthday messages, et cetera.

6.  Select a day to take out your serving platters, plates, glasses, tableware, et cetera to wash, clean, and polish and determine anything that you may need to purchase.

7.  Select a day to go food and drink shopping.  Often guests will offer to bring certain drinks.  If you can have a guest bring clear ice for drinks, that is great.

8.  Make most of the food one to two days before the party.  Purchasing a few gourmet items, such as cookies, cheeses, and specialty meats ahead of time will save you time and energy to prepare other dishes.  The day of the party you can make items such as salads and assemble your dishes.  Keep your food items to a minimal variety as to ensure they are quality dishes.  It is far better to spend money you would have spent on ten bags of potato chips on a quality appetizer or main dish.  

9.  The day before your party is a good day to set the table, iron tablecloths, set out any platters, and label each platter to organize your food.

10.  Games, crafts for kids, and a pre-dinner outing to the beach are good activities to make part of your party.

Table

A printed menu framed on the wall.

(Create this for your party after you have cooked your food, 

in case of any last minute changes.)

Menu

Appetizer

- Genoa Salami and Kalamata Greek Olives

(Slice the salami the day before.)

Dishes

- Roasted Vegetables with Dip

Preheat oven to 425° Fahrenheit or 218.3° Celsius.  Trim stems off 2 pounds broccoli and 1 pound cauliflower.  Cut flowerets into bite size pieces.  Mix broccoli and cauliflower with 2 cups sweet corn.  In a large bowl, in three batches, toss vegetable mixture with 1 Tablespoon olive oil, 1/2 teaspoon sea salt, and 1/4 teaspoon smoked paprika powder.  Spread on parchment lined baking sheets.  Cook for about 15 minutes in oven.  Dip:  Mix together 1 cup organic yellow mustard, 3 Tablespoons organic honey, 2 teaspoons chili pepper, 1 pinch black pepper, 1 teaspoon olive oil, 3 Tablespoons lemon juice, 1 pinch lemon zest, 1 Tablespoon very finely chopped red onion, 1 Tablespoon very finely chopped shallot.

- Endive Wrapped Sausage Hot Dogs

with dried cherries, apple matchsticks,

goat cheese, toasted walnuts, and

Michigan Dressing

Wash and dry endive lettuce leaves--a mix of green and red Belgian the day of the party.  Grill soy chorizo style sausages according to package directions--you can do this the day before and then warm them up during the party.  Preheat oven to 375° Fahrenheit or 190.5° Celsius.  Crush walnuts into smaller pieces.  Put walnuts on parchment lined baking sheet. Toast walnuts until they begin to brown--5 to 10 minutes.  This can be done the day before as well.  Michigan Dressing:  1/2 cup Honey Greek Yogurt, 1/3 cup maple syrup, 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar, 1/2 cup olive oil, pinch of salt and pepper.  Place in a Mason jar, close lid, and shake.  You may make the dressing ahead of time and remember to keep this dressing cold on the table as it has milk product.  Slice 1 apple per 8 sausages into matchstick size pieces.  Immediately place the apple matchsticks into a bag with lemon juice.  This will prevent browning.  Slice the apple prior to the party.  Include a jar of ketchup as well on the table for guests.  I mixed 1 cup organic ketchup with 1 Tablespoon chili pepper.  Guests can wrap their own sausages with endive leaves and top with their choices of dried cherries, apply matchsticks, goat cheese, toasted walnuts, Michigan dressing, and ketchup.

- Stuffed Portobello Mushrooms

topped with baby Swiss cheese and chives

Prior to the party cook 6 ounces of meatless soy chorizo per mushroom following the package directions.  Preheat oven to 425° Fahrenheit or 218.3° Celsius.  Stuff the mushrooms with the cooked soy chorizo and bake portobello mushrooms on a parchment lined baking sheet for 25 minutes.  Carefully remove mushrooms with oven mitts.  Add a slice of baby Swiss cheese to the top of each stuffed mushroom.  Bake for about 5 minutes to melt the cheese.  Wash and snip chives.  Carefully remove mushrooms from the oven and top with a few snips of chive.

- Marinated Garbanzo Beans

Prior to the party soak and cook garbanzo beans according to package directions.  This usually requires soaking over night.  Drain water and allow garbanzo beans to cool after cooking.   Add 1/4 cup olive oil per 15 ounces of garbanzo beans.  1 clove of diced garlic per 15 ounces of garbanzo beans.  1 Tablespoon salt per 15 ounces of garbanzo beans.  1/2 teaspoon chili powder per 15 ounces garbanzo beans.  Mix and serve.  *Note:  If you use canned garbanzo beans then you will need to alter this recipe.

Drink

- Black Cherry-Mint Cocktail

- Orange Mint Water

Make the orange mint infused water the morning of your party and place in refrigerator to cool.

Treats

- Patriotic Sandwich Cookies

- Manhattan Cupcakes

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Make Every Day New Year's Day

Make Every Day New Year's Day

Jesse Bluma at Pointe Viven. All rights reserved.

In the late 1500s, Pope Gregory XIII (the eighth) ordered improvements made to correct the Julian calendar of the Romans.  It took a few hundred years for the Gregorian calendar to be adopted across Europe and the Americas.  Protestant countries, such as England, resisted because it was associated to the Catholic Church.  The Russians and Greeks adopted the calendar in the early 1900s.

Each year presents us with opportunities, challenges, and learning moments.  These can be related to gratitude, spirituality, patience, confidence, humility, listening, growing, action, love, nature, humor, aging, work, family, and consistency.  Sometimes we may look at the world and see it all as "conflict", maybe that is how some of us are born and hardwired or maybe it was how we were taught to write by some of our teachers.  

It does not have to be that way, our lives and stories we write don’t have to be created around the narrow word “conflict”.  Stories and life are wider and richer than just “conflict”.  Each day is a gift.  The statements below help us reflect and remember how to live each day as if it were 

New Year's Day.

"Life is not dated merely by years. Events are sometimes the best calendars."

Benjamin Disraeli

"The art of being wise is the art of knowing what to overlook."

William James

"Carpe diem, quam minimum credula postero"-

(Seize the Day, putting as little trust as possible in the future)

Horace

"as we have opportunity, may we work the good to all" 

Galatians 6:10

"Life is difficult.

This is a great truth, one of the greatest truths. It is a great truth because once we truly see this truth, we transcend it. Once we truly know that life is difficult--once we truly understand and accept it--then life is no longer difficult. Because once it is accepted, the fact that life is difficult no longer matters."

M. Scott Peck, The Road Less Traveled

"Without recognizing the ordinances of Heaven, it is impossible to be a superior man."

Confucius

“Life is a journey."

Buddha

“A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step. He who knows does not speak.

He who speaks does not know.  Manifest plainness, Embrace simplicity, Reduce selfishness, Have few desires. People are difficult to govern because they have too much knowledge. The more laws and order are made prominent,  The more thieves and robbers there will be.  Be careful what you water your dreams with. Water them with worry and fear and you will produce weeds that choke the life from your dream. Water them with optimism and solutions and you will cultivate success. Always be on the lookout for ways to turn a problem into an opportunity for success. Always be on the lookout for ways to nurture your dream.  At the center of your being you have the answer; you know who you are and you know what you want."

Lao-Tzu

"Faith is Action, Based upon Belief, Sustained by Confidence

in God's Word and His promise to perform it."

Dr. Gene Scott

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Image: David Castillo Dominici / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Image: Grant Cochrane / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Blueberry-Banana-Lemon Bundt Cake Recipe

Blueberry-Banana-Lemon Bundt Cake Recipe

Jesse Bluma at Pointe Viven. All rights reserved.

It is the season for fresh blueberries.  This cake has a wonderful texture on the inside and a dynamic crisp crust.  Your bathing suit will like the ingredients; your mouth will like the flavor.  

Ingredients

2 cups all-purpose organic flour for batter

1 teaspoon all-purpose organic flour for blueberries

1/2 cup organic whole wheat flour for batter

2 teaspoons aluminum-free baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 cup unsalted butter, cubed and at room temperature

1 cup (about two whole) ripe bananas

1 cup organic honey

4 large organic eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 cup vanilla Greek yogurt (Greek Gods)

2 cups organic blueberries, plus extra to garnish

2 Tablespoons lemon zest, plus extra to garnish (about 4 lemons)

Cooking spray for pan and measuring cup for honey (Smart Balance)

Powdered sugar, sifted, for dusting 

Visit Amazon to get your ingredients for this recipe.

Directions

In a bowl, whisk the 2 cups all-purpose flour, 1/2 cup wheat flour, baking powder and salt.

Place the cubed, room temperature butter into the mixing bowl.

Coat a 1 cup measuring cup with cooking spray.

Fill the 1 cup measuring cup with honey.

Pour the 1 cup honey into the mixing bowl containing the butter.

Cream the butter and honey on high speed; mix until light and fluffy (approximately 2 minutes). 

Crack and add each egg individually into the butter-honey mixture, until well incorporated. 

Add in the vanilla to the mixture. 

Remove the peels from the bananas.

Mash the bananas with a fork.

Add the mashed bananas to the batter.

Mix the bananas into the batter.

Turn the mixer on low speed then add in the flour mixture--slowly pour in 1/3 of the flour, then 1/3 of the yogurt.  

Repeat the process until the flour and yogurt are will incorporated.

Do not over beat the cake batter.

Refrigerate the batter for 1 hour.

Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit (176.667 degrees Celsius).

In a bowl, gently toss the 2 cups blueberries and 2 Tablespoons zest with 1 teaspoon flour.

Then gently fold the blueberries and zest into batter.

Spray a 12-cup nonstick Bundt pan with cooking spray. 

Gently spread the batter evenly into the pan.

Bake the cake on bottom rack of oven for about 70 minutes.  Ovens vary, so insert a toothpick into the center of the cake.  If the toothpick comes out clean, the cake is ready. 

Make sure to have a spot on the counter, away from harm, to cool in the cake in the pan for 20 minutes. 

After 20 minutes place a cooling rack on top of the bundt pan and invert it onto a another rack.

It is very important to let the cake cool completely at this point with the top side up. 

When serving dust with sifted powdered sugar, zest of lemon, and a few blueberries on the side.

*Mini-bundt cakes can be created using this recipe.

Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit (176.667 degrees Celsius).

Remember to coat each individual mini-bundt cavity with cooking spray.

Double check blueberries are evenly distributed within the batter.

Fill each mini-bundt cavity about 2/3 full (5 cookie scoops).

Bake for 25 minutes.

Makes 12.

Visit Amazon to get your ingredients for this recipe.

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Refreshing Party Pasta Recipe

Refreshing Party Pasta Recipe
Jesse Bluma at Pointe Viven. All rights reserved.





If you are in the northern hemisphere, we are entering our season of outdoor meals.  This pasta dish is perfect to launch off your next party.  Simply print the recipe and take it with you to your grocery store or garden.  

Ingredients

2 boxes of whole wheat rotini pasta

1 teaspoon of salt

1 teaspoon of fresh cracked black pepper

4 Tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil for the pasta

1 Tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil for roasting tomatoes, white (or green) asparagus, and mushrooms

4 Tablespoons of rice wine vinegar

6 fresh, ripe tomatoes (organic)

1 cup Cotija cheese, grated

1 cup Panela cheese, grated

1 bunch white asparagus or green (organic)

16 ounces of baby bella mushrooms (organic)

1/2 cup of scissor snipped fresh curly parsley (organic)

1/2 cup of scissor snipped basil (organic)

zest of 1/2 lemon (organic)

juice of 1/2 lemon (organic)

Visit Amazon to purchase pasta for this recipe and your other pantry needs. 

Directions

Serves 16 

(can scale up or down for number of people)

Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit (204.444 degrees Celsius).

Follow pasta directions on box, cook pasta until al dente (both boxes).  

Drain the water from the pasta in a large colander or two smaller colanders.

Pour the pasta into a very large bowl or two smaller bowls (If using two smaller bowls, remember to equally divide the ingredients).

Season the pasta with the salt and pepper. 

Add the olive oil and rice wine vinegar. 

Gently mix  and set aside to cool to room temperature.

Dice the tomatoes and place them into a colander to drain.

Break off the tough ends of the asparagus, then chop the remaining asparagus into about 1/2” pieces.

Slice the baby bella mushrooms.

Drizzle a roasting pan with olive oil, place the tomatoes, asparagus, and mushrooms on the pan.  Roll the three ingredient around the pan to get an even coating.  

Roast the items for 25 minutes, until tender and still crisp.

Transfer these ingredients to a cool rack on the kitchen counter to cool to room temperature.

Add the grated cheeses, roasted tomatoes-asparagus-mushrooms, parsley, basil, zest, and lemon juice to the room temperature pasta, then gently mix well.

Visit Amazon to purchase pasta for this recipe and your other pantry needs. 

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Credits: Image courtesy of [tiramisustudio] at FreeDigitalPhotos.net and Barilla