Growth is just the lessening of fear

I met Kerrie at a Shambhala Buddhist meditation sitting. She was new to Montpelier and so was I. We met occasionally after sitting for dinner at a local vegetarian buffet, but I didn’t know we would be friends until I called her once several months later and she replied to my generic greeting thusly: “I’m contemplating the karmically correct way to engage in Match.com. I think the best way to approach it is with pizza and magic hat number 9 (a tasty local brew). Want to join me?”

I did, and I did, and we’ve been friends ever since. Kerrie has shown me what it is to be fully spiritual and fully human at the same time. Tonight she came over so that we might toast and smudge the simultaneous but very different (or are they?) transitions currently occurring in our lives. She brought a sweet and fruity white, Serenity Reserve White 2004, Vin de Pays des Cotes de Gascogne, and some divine double chocolate brownies (five and one-half tablespoons butter, melt half the chocolate chips, reserve half to add with the flour mixure….). After Cabot’s Hunter cheddar, Suzie’s Kamut Olive Oil Flat Breads with Rosemary (www.good-groceries.com), and some crisp fuji slices, I served this simple meal, perfect for warming up on a sub-zero Vermont evening. After dinner and brownies, we lit some sage and let the Buddha on the wine bottle (really!) guide us through our intentions, thanks, and requests. “Growth is just the lessening of fear,” Kerrie reminded me, us, as we contemplated what we have recently experienced and what is yet to come. Ho.

Warm White Beans with Saffron-Infused Couscous

2/3 cup whole wheat couscous

½ t. salt

pinch saffron threads

1 c. boiling water

1 T. olive oil

1 small onion, diced

3 thin carrots, sliced

¼ t. salt

1 vegetarian bullion cube dissolved in 1 cup boiling water

1/3 cup dry sherry or white wine

1 can great northern beans or other white beans, drained and rinsed

2 cloves garlic, coarsely chopped

¼ teaspoon thyme

½ teaspoon paprika

freshly ground black pepper and salt to taste

In a medium bowl, combine the dry couscous, salt, and saffron. Add the boiling water, stir to combine, and cover with a plate that forms a seal. Set aside, and do not lift the plate until you are ready to serve the couscous!

In a large skillet with a tight-fitting lid, warm the olive oil, and add the onion, carrot, and salt. Stir to combine, cover, and cook on medium, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are soft, about 8 minutes. Add the sherry, stir, and cook for one minute, uncovered. Add the bullion, beans, garlic, thyme, paprika, and several turns of the pepper mill. Stir, reduce heat to low, and cook, covered, for 10 minutes. Salt to taste.

Fluff the couscous with a fork and serve the beans over a generous helping of the couscous.

This is a soft meal in texture and color, so for contrast, serve with a crunchy vegetable, like pan-seared broccoli or kale, and a colorful seasonal vegetable, like baked acorn squash drizzled with butter and maple syrup.

Serves 4.