GRATITUDE

is not a passive response to something given to us, gratitude is being awake in the presence of everything that lives within and without us. Gratitude is not something that is shown after the event, it is the deep, a priori state of attention that shows we understand and are equal to the gifted nature of life. Gratitude is the understanding that many millions of things come together and live together and mesh together and breathe together in order for us to take even one more breath of air, that the underlying gift of life and incarnation as a living, participating human being is privilege, that we are part of something, rather than nothing. Even if that something is temporarily pain or despair, we inhabit a living world, with real faces, real voices, laughter, the color blue, the green of the fields, the freshness of a cold wind, or the tawny hue of a winter landscape. To see the full miraculous essentiality of the color blue is to be grateful with no necessity for a word of thanks. To see fully, the beauty of a daughter’s face is to be fully grateful without having to seek a God to thank him. To sit among friends and strangers, hearing many voices, strange opinions; to intuit inner lives beneath surface lives, to inhabit many worlds at once in this world, to be a someone amongst all other someones, and therefore to make a conversation without saying a word, is to deepen our sense of presence and therefore our natural sense of thankfulness that everything happens both with us and without us, that we are participants and witness all at once. Thankfulness finds its full measure in generosity of presence, both through participation and witness. We sit at the table part of every other person’s world while making our own world without will or effort, this is what is extraordinary and gifted, this is the essence of gratefulness, seeing to the heart of privilege. Thanksgiving happens when our sense of presence meets all other presences. Being unappreciative means we are simply not paying attention.

-David Whyte

Grain Salad with Honey & Saffron Dressing

Couscous, Quinoa, Wild Rice, Barley....etc....

1 kg butternut pumpkin, peeled, deseeded and chopped
2 red onions, cut in wedges
1 red capsicum, deseeded and cut into chunks
2 tbsp olive oil
1 1/2 cups couscous
200 grams of chopped apricots
100 g craisins
1 3/4 to 2 cups vegetable stock, hot
2 oranges, peeled and segmented

For the dressing
100 ml grapefruit juice
1 tbsp honey
a pinch of saffron threads
2 tbsp olive oil

Preheat the oven to 200 degrees°C.  Mix the pumpkin, onion and capsicum with the olive oil and roast this for 25- 30 minutes or until cooked. Let cool slightly and then peel capsicum and slice into strips.

Combine couscous, apricots, craisins and stock in a bowl and cover with glad wrap or a tight fitting lid until all liquid is absorbed.

Mix the pumpkin and onion with the couscous, apricots, sultanas and orange segments

Dressing - Method
Heat the juice, honey and saffron in a small pan until it comes to a boil, then set aside to cool. Whisk in the oil and season to taste. Stir the dressing into the salad and serve.

Traktor Cue Point Strategies: Reference and Performance

Native Instruments Traktor Kontrol Z2 - Walkthrough + Setup Examples

http://pushmorebuttons.com/post/45679561793/traktor-kontrol-z2-performance-mappings-free-download

You have no idea how hard I've looked

for a gift to bring You.
Nothing seemed right.
What's the point of bringing gold to
the gold mine, or water to the ocean.
Everything I came up with was like
taking spices to the Orient.
It's no good giving my heart and my
soul because you already have these.
So I've brought you a mirror.
Look at yourself and remember me.

Rumi

Shredded Beef Tacos

Shredded Beef Tacos with Verde Salsa

Ingredients

 

4lbs of chuck roast
1 yellow onion, halved and sliced
1 14 ounce can of fire roasted diced tomatoes
1 14 ounce can of diced tomatoes
1 4 ounce can of green chiles
1 cup of red wine
2 chipotle peppers
1/4 teaspoon of cayenne
3 cloves of garlic, minced
1 tablespoon of garlic powder
1 tablespoon of paprika
1 1/2 tablespoon of cumin
1 tablespoon of oregano
1 tablespoon of chili powder
1 teaspoon of salt
1 teaspoon of basil
1 teaspoon of cinnamon
2 tablespoons of grape seed oil
1 cup of shredded pepper jack cheese
Tortillas (I used white corn tortillas)

Method

Cut chuck roast into six pieces. Combine garlic powder, paprika, cumin, oregano, chili powder, salt, basil, and cinnamon and mix well. Rub seasoning on all side of chuck roast. In a blender or food processor, blend 1 cup of red wine, the cayenne pepper, and 2 chipotle peppers for 30 seconds to 1 minute. Preheat oven to 350 F. Heat large dutch oven or pot over high heat, add oil and sear chuck 3 to 4 minutes per side. Remove chuck pieces from heat and tent with foil. Add onion slices and cook for 3 minutes. Add minced garlic and green chile and cook for one minute. Add red wine and chipotle sauce and cook for 3 minutes to deglaze pan. Add diced tomatoes and chuck roast pieces back to pot and mix well. Cover and cook in oven (or low cooker) for 3 hours until meat is fall apart tender. Remove meat from pot and shred with forks. Skim fat from the top of the sauce. Return shredded beef to pot with sauce. Heat tortillas (either grill one at a time about 1 minute per side or wrap in foil and heat for 15 minutes in 350 F oven). Arrange tacos with meat, cheese, Verde Sauce, Greek yogurt, lime and cilantro and enjoy.

TIP: You can finish the meat in a crock pot instead of the oven. At the point where you would place the dutch oven or pot in the oven, transfer the ingredients to a crock pot and cook on low for 6 to 8 hours.

 

Verde Salsa

2 pounds of tomatillos (about 6), husked and washed
2 Anaheim peppers, seeded and halved
2 jalapenos, seeded and halved
1/2 yellow onion, quartered
4 coves of garlic, peel on
1 lime
1/2 cup of green onion, diced
1 cup chopped cilantro
2 tablespoons of cumin
1 teaspoon of salt
1 tablespoon of coconut oil

Yogurt Sauce

1/2 cup of Greek yogurt
1 avocado, diced
1 lime
5 tablespoons of Corona*
1/4 cup of chopped cilantro

Tequila Lime Shredded Beef Tacos

Ingredients

• 1 – 3 or 4 pound chuck roast (shoulder cut)
• 3 TBSP oil
• Salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, chili powder, cumin – lightly sprinkled over roast
• 1 – 4oz can mild diced green chiles
• 1 – 14.5oz Aldi’s Happy Harvest Fire Roasted Diced Tomatoes – Salsa Style (or substitute one can regular fire roasted diced tomatoes plus ½ cup of your favorite salsa)
• 3 TBSP good silver tequila
• 2 tsp chile powder
• juice of 1 lime
• toppings of your choice

Method

1. Preheat oil in a large skillet over high heat until nearly smoking. Season beef while oil is heating, and place in skillet to sear 2-3 minutes on each side, or until well browned. Reduce heat to low, and place roast into crock pot on high heat.
2. Pour can of green chiles and fire roasted tomatoes (and salsa if you are using it) into the skillet and stir, cooking for 2 minutes. Add tequila and cook another 2 minutes. Pour over the roast in the crock pot and place lid back on crock pot. Let cook for 4-5 hours on high, or 6-7 hours on low depending on your particular cut of meat and crock pot.
3. When the roast is fork tender, remove from the crock pot and shred with two forks, removing any fat or connective tissue you find along the way. Pour all but ½ cup of the pan juices out of crock pot and place in fridge to chill. Replace shredded beef into the crock pot, stir, and turn setting to warm.
4. When the pan juices have chilled and the fat has solidified on the top, scrape it off and pour more of the juice into the crock pot. You probably will not need it all. Save the rest for another use. (Would be great as a base for an enchilada sauce, or in a Mexican flavored soup.)
5. Immediately before serving, stir in the juice of 1 lime into the beef.

Shredded Beef Tacos

These braised, shredded beef tacos take a few hours to prepare but are perfect for a lazy Sunday afternoon. You can make the meat ahead as they reheat beautifully, freeze well, and taste even better after a day or two.

Ingredients

• 2 pounds chuck roast, beef brisket, or stew meat
• 3 cups warm water
• 1 chile chipotle in adobo, roughly chopped
• 3 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
• 2 tablespoons tomato paste
• 1 tablespoon garlic powder
• 1 tablespoon ground coriander
• 1 tablespoon ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• Salt and pepper

Method

1. Put the beef in a heavy-bottomed pot or Dutch oven.
2. In a separate bowl, mix together the water with the rest of the ingredients until dissolved. Pour over the beef. Bring to a boil, cover and lower the heat.
3. Simmer for 2-3 hours, until beef can be easily shredded with two forks. Remove beef from pot with a slotted spoon and shred with two forks.
4. Meanwhile, set the pot with the braising liquid over medium-high heat and simmer until reduced to about 1 cup. Pour over the shredded beef and mix.
5. Serve the shredded beef in tacos, burritos, enchiladas, or whatever else you want.

Slow-Cooker Shredded Beef Tacos

Ingredients

• 2 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
• 2 pounds beef (I used a boneless chuck roast)
• 2 tsp. chili powder
• 1 tsp. cumin
• 1/2 tsp. smoked paprika
• 1 cup beef stock
• 2 Tbsp. tomato paste
• 1 chipotle pepper in adobo sauce, minced (I love spice and used two!)
• 1/2 large sweet onion, diced
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• Flour tortillas
Favorite taco toppings:
• guacamole or avocado
• fresh salsa
• Mexican rice
• grated cheese
• fresh lettuce
• tomato
• onion
• cilantro
• squeeze of lime juice

Method

Whisk together the chili powder, cumin, and smoked paprika in a small bowl. Rub the spice mix into the beef, covering each side evenly.

Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Carefully place the beef in the skillet and sear on each side until browned. Add the diced onion and minced garlic on top of the seared beef in the slow cooker.

Remove the beef from the skillet and place in the bottom of a slow cooker. Leave the pan on the heat, and add in the beef stock to deglaze, scraping up any browned bits from the bottom of the pan. Add the tomato paste and minced chipotle and whisk into the pan sauce. Bring the sauce to a boil, reduce the heat, and simmer for a 3-5 minutes until the sauce has reduced and thickened slightly. Pour the pan sauce down over the onions, garlic, and beef in the slow cooker. Cover and cook on low for 6-8 hours.

Shred the beef and onions with two forks. Serve the beef in the flour tortillas, topped with your favorite taco toppings.