Warm Ginger Soak for Hurting Hands
sliced fresh ginger root (about 1″ piece of root, sliced thinly)
warm water
Ruffled Bowl
In a seasoned micaceous ruffled bowl on low or in a crock pot on warm, pour enough warm water to place your hands in comfortably. Add ginger slices. Keep warm up to 8 hours.
Throughout the day or work period, stop for a few moments to soak your hands. AHHH, blessed relief!
Celebrate who you really are
The Latest Finished Works
Little pieces of the stars and earth happily dance around your heart giving you ever-so-slight-a-nudge to celebrate who you really are. Hand formed micaceous pendants are embedded with lapis or enhanced turquoise stones. Micaceous beads are hand rolled and strung with accent beads on a strong, light cord. This wearable art is created in my studio, along Arroyo Chamiso, beneath the Sangre de Christo Mountains, in Santa Fe, New Mexico.
Arroyo Chamiso Beans
Cooked in a Micaceous Pot
1 cup red beans
3 or 4 cups water or broth
1 green chile, roasted and skinned
1 onion coarsely chopped
5 garlic cloves, coarsely chopped
2 strips nitrite free bacon, chopped
Salt, pepper
Soak beans overnight in a bowl. Pour off soaking water. In an oiled 2 quart Micaceous bean pot, add beans, water or broth, chile, onion and garlic. Bring to a boil and then turn down to simmer. Cook uncovered 2 or so hours, until beans are soft. Add bacon and simmer until bacon is thoroughly cooked and bean juice thickens. Add salt and pepper to taste. You will quickly find bean lovers and skeptics circling the wagons.
Yummy Nutty Millet
made in a Micaceous Casserole
Micaceous "Medallion" Casserole Series
1/2 onion chopped fine
3 cloves garlic chopped to the same size as onion
2 Tbsp Olive oil
1 cup millet
1/2 cup loosely chopped pecans
2 1/4 cup steaming hot water, chicken or vege broth
butter, if desired
salt, pepper
Heat water or broth liquid to steaming hot in micaceous bean pot or other cooking vessel to have ready to add to millet.
Pour oil in micaceous casserole and cover all inside surfaces. Set on medium heat.
Add onion and saute with wooden spoon until just beginning to turn transparent.
Add garlic and saute until garlic just begins to cook.
Stir in millet. Cook, stirring often over medium heat until millet becomes golden brown and has a yummy “nutty” aroma.
Using oven mitts, carefully add steaming liquid to millet mixture, CAUTION it can burn!
Stir down to simmer and cover. Cook 20-25 minutes, or until holes appear and millet is soft.
Gently fold in pecans, butter, salt and pepper.
Cover until serving time. Millet can hold in its micaceous pot for half hour or so.
For extended time, cover with a couple of dampened dish towels.
Waggletail Oatmeal
made in a Micaceous Casserole
The Copper Manly Guy
1 cup steel cut oats
2 1/4 cups water
1 Tbsp. olive or vegetable oil
salt
butter (optional but tasty)
cinnamon
vanilla
brown sugar, honey, fruit or other sweetener
Pour the olive or vegetable oil into the pot, covering all inside surfaces.
Heat pot over low heat for a few minutes before adding water and oats.
Bring mixture to a boil over medium heat, stirring occasionally with a wooden spoon, careful that it doesn’t boil over.
When mixture comes to full rolling boil, stir well, turn down heat to low, cover and simmer for 15-20 minutes. Stir often.
When grain is slightly crunchy and the mixture has a luscious, creamy consistency, turn off heat.
Add butter, cinnamon, vanilla, sweetener, fruit, whatever will make your tummy smile and your waggletail wiggle.
Chicken Happy Momma
Cooked in a Micaceous Casserole
Happy Momma
1 cup basamati rice
2 1/4 cups chicken broth
2 chicken breasts (skins on, fat removed)
1 cup frozen peas, roasted corn or other vegetable (optional)
Garlic powder
Vegetable oil
Olive oil
Oil inside of base of micaceous casserole with vegetable oil. Place rice and broth in casserole, stir. Place chicken breasts on top. Drizzle a little olive oil on top and lightly rub into chicken. Sprinkle an even coating of garlic powder on chicken. Bake 350 about 1/2 hour, or until chicken is done.
Remove from oven and sprinkle peas or other vegetables around the sides of the chicken to steam. Let sit covered 5 minutes or so. Simple easy meal! Happy Momma.
Very Important Navy Beans
Cooked in a Micaceous Bean Pot
Very Important Navy Bean
1 cup soaked navy beans
2 1/2 cups chicken (or vegetable) broth heated
1/2 onion chopped
3 cloves garlic chopped
1 medium carrot chopped
1 medium sized potato, cut in half (seriously!)
bay leaf
olive oil
salt and pepper
Sort, rinse and soak the beans overnight. Drain (great for watering plants). Heat oil in micaceous bean pot over medium heat. Add chopped vegetables and saute until onion is transparent, and veges are starting to soften. Add beans, potato halves and broth. Cover with lid or saucer. Bring to a rolling boil, then turn down to low. Simmer several hours, stirring occasionally, until beans are soft and skins are loose. Remove potato before serving (the potato helps eliminate the gaseous substance from the beans).
Season these beans to compliment whatever dish you are serving with it. They have a rich, earthy flavor by themselves, and also taste great with parsley (dried added while cooking, or fresh added before serving), sage, chiles, or your favorite seasoning mixture (such as Spike).
These beans could be added to a salad with cashews, broccoli, greens, italian dressing and yogurt. Omit the onions, garlic and carrots, and they could even be made into a yummy pie!
Happity Hoppy Pinto Beans
Cooked in a Micaceous Bean Pot
1 cup pinto beans soaked overnight
3 cups water
3-5 cloves garlic chopped
bits of bacon, ham, beef (optional)
salt and pepper
Oil (olive or vegetable)
Fresh Colorado Pinto Beans
Oil beanpot and add beans that have been soaked and drained. Add water, cover, and bring to a boil over medium high heat, stirring occasionally. When water comes to a rolling boil, turn heat to low, cover and simmer for 2-3 hours or until beans are tender. Stir beans occasionally.
When beans are tender, add garlic and chopped meats. Simmer at least another hour until liquid is thick and beans are very soft and skins are loose. Before serving, add salt (approx 1 tsp, depending on if salted meats are used) and pepper to taste.
Tips:
- Soak beans as long as possible (e.g., from late afternoon to late morning) before cooking, keeping water cool.
- If you need to add more liquid during cooking, be sure it’s boiling before adding to the beans.
- Add sauteed chopped onions, celery, carrots about 10-15 minutes before serving.
- Add seasonings such as cumin (up to 1 1/2 tsp), coriander (up to 1/2 tsp) and red chile (to taste) any time during cooking. The earlier you add the seasonings, the more the flavor cooks into the beans and the hotter the chile will become. Remember to compliment the flavor of the beans with other foods you are serving.
The Queen’s Clean Quinoa
Cooked in a Micaceous Casserole
1 cup quinoa (1/2 red, 1/2 white is best)
2 cups HOT water or broth
1/4 white onion chopped fine
2 cloves garlic chopped fine
2 Tbsp olive oil
In micaceous casserole over medium heat, saute onion and garlic in olive oil with a wooden or plastic spoon til transparent. Add quinoa and stir to absorb oil and flavors. Heat, stirring occasionally for about 5 minutes (while water or broth is heating). Carefully add hot liquid (it will steam!), and stir. Bring to rolling boil, then turn down the heat to low, cover and let simmer for 20 minutes, or until liquid is absorbed and little holes appear. Turn off heat and let sit for 5-10 minutes. The micaceous pot will keep the grains warm for up to 1/2 hour.
Quinoa growing in Peru
Quinoa is the indiginous grain from South America that comes the closest to having all amino acids present, which creates a complete protein. Quinoa rather bland and yet nicely compliments steamed greens, sweet potatoes, pieces of meat, nuts, seeds or other fresh, clean foods. Try placing any of these ingredients on top of the cooked grains to steam before serving.
Greetings, fellow traveler
Hello world!
I’d like to introduce myself. I am a free spirit, a “hippy freakin’ artist.” Adventuring far and wide across the planet, I lived off my wits and creative talent in the Rockies, the Yukon, the Yukitan, L’Ecole des Beaux Arts. I hitchiked across our continent several times. I experienced communal living and living off the land before landing in Arkansas. And then lived in Little Rock long enough to acquire a mortgage, a couple of degrees and raise an amazing kid. My involvement with educational technology grew out of my love of the visual space, creating, learning, teaching, and logistical processes that bring about transformation.
Now in Santa Fe, I am back working in my studio with micaceous clay.
first batch before fire clouds from wood firing
In my spiritual growth, I believe that goodness, grace and light prevail. I trust the process of life. Every experience and path taken so far has led to this very moment. And that’s the gift, this very moment. Breathing, being and creating.
In a deep, rich broth of ideas, feelings, facts, phrases, glimpses of the truth and beauty, we stir the creative lusciousness of mud soup. Out of this broth is borne our expression of the liminal, the divine from within our clear, true selves.
Divine lusciousness and prosperity,
Aimee Colmery
