Gratitude. I should be in a constant state of gratitude for my new life in the country, but I’m not always there. I’m more of a brat than I want to admit. I am still making adjustments; some services are slower than I’d like or they’re limited. No store in town has tahini paste, marjoram, or nutritional yeast. I wanted to make hummus, which has tahini paste as a base. I’ve heard of hummus without tahini and I have no desire to try it (brat).
The obvious solution would be to make my own tahini. I assumed it would be too complicated to get right. I like to cook; I am not a natural cook, but I’m improving. I scanned top-reviewed recipes online and chose one that boasted, “so much better than anything you can buy at the store.” That confidence gave me courage. At a local Mennonite store, I bought sesame seeds in bulk and set to toasting them. Soon my little cabin kitchen was swelling with the aroma of a bakery or restaurant. I followed the simple steps and tada! Tahini.
The tahini recipe was a link within the hummus recipe. Inspired, I followed that too. I thought it tasted great. A further test was running it by my boyfriend who is awfully and wonderfully honest, a quality with which I have a love/hate relationship. He loved it. The hummus was so good that I wouldn’t go back to store-bought even if tahini did eventually show up on local shelves.
Instead of conveniences, I have found treasures. That same Mennonite store where I found the sesame seeds also sells sinfully delicious cheeses for a third of the price of mainstream brands in the supermarket. They have an incredible frozen berry mix with blackberries, raspberries, and blueberries for less than half the price of brand name blends with less variety and lower quality.
Learning how to shop in lower priced stores has brought joy and disappointment/education. Bulk items are fresh and of high quality, such as baking goods and grains, packaged by the store. Name brand expired products are hit or miss. Along with a great deal of healthy food, I was stunned to find brand name frozen unicorn pancakes with mystery filling! Every trip there is an adventure.
As I write this, I think of the people here, how close they are to nature, how friendly, open and willing to help newcomers. Sometimes errands take me a bit longer to complete or send me on new journeys. My exploring usually results in a new resource, skill or photo op. I found my gratitude again.