Thanksgiving Day 2011

Poblano Rice

Traditions sometimes last generations in a family.  Yesterday I was  very conscious of the recipes that migrated with ancestors of those of us at the 2011Thanksgiving Day table.

And as tradition holds we ate wonderful homemade food - food made by several hands and then beautifully presented, prayed over and savored.  As we ate dinner, we talked about what makes a Thanksgiving meal traditional.  In the end it was decided by the fifth generation German family hosting the dinner that it must include both turkey and ham, hot German potato salad and mashed potatoes and sweet corn frozen from the summer harvest dripping in butter.  This year the apple and pumpkin pies were joined by frozen French silk pie.

The conversation then moved to traditional Christmas food (same foods for the German family) at which time the Swedes and Norwegians piped up with stories of lutefisk and lefse, creamy rice pudding and Swedish Christmas sausage.  It was agreed that before long there will be no more Lutheran Churches serving the annual lutefisk dinner.  Only one guest lamented this reality!

From time to time my thoughts wandered back to Casa Margarita and my taste buds hungered for a serving of Bea's Poblano Rice which she prepared and served for a  2011 Fall Goddess dinner at Casa Margarita.  I can imagine that many families that migrated to the United States from Mexico over the years served traditional Mexican Poblano Rice at their 2011 Thanksgiving Day dinners.

Gratefully, Bea generously shared her traditional Mexican recipe with us so we can create and serve it for our families and friends.

 

Mexican Poblano Rice

Recipe of: Beatriz Mirabent, Cancun, Mexico

Serves 6 - 8

1 cup rice

¾ cup yellow onion dicesd small

1 tsp diced fresh garlic

1 tbsp olive oil

3 small Poblano chile

1 cup cream cheese

1 cup milk

Seasoning blend (garlic, onion powder, salt)

½ cup fresh cilantro

2 cups chicken broth

1 cup pre-cooked corn (or canned)

Preparation:  

~ Clean chiles, remove seeds – roast on burner 

~Saute rice with onion and garlic in olive oil

~Add chicken broth and simmer over low heat for 20 minutes

~Add corn – cook 5 minutes more
~Put chiles, cilantro, seasonings, sour cream and cream cheese in blender

   blend to a smooth sauce

~Season to taste
~Oil a Pyrex bowl – layer:  rice, sauce, rice, sauce…
~Put in oven to keep warm about 15 minutes and serve.


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Posted by:  Ginger K. Hedstrom

November 19, 2011: St. Paul: Temperature 24 DEGREES!!!

Margo serving flan

Okay, full disclosure, this is Ginger, Traveling Goddesses technology and promotion.  And I am SO COLD!

Yes, I live in St. Paul, Minnesota.  And it really is 24 degrees at 6:39 p.m. and it has been snnnooowwwwinnnnngggg since 11:00 a.m and I know this is not unexpected.  I am sitting in my lovely little 1951 bungalow, actually in my den, painted a wonderful warm melon tone that reminds me of the sun rising over the Caribbean outside of Casa del Sol, wearing a knit turtleneck shirt, serious sweatshirt, jeans, a tightly woven knit cape, thick socks and lined slippers.  And I am still cold!

I really miss all of the amazing fall 2011 goddesses, and the fresh clean warm air and pristine waters of the Caribbean.  I wish I were back there right NOW drinking it all in!  All I have to do is just close my eyes and I am right back there.

I have had my dinner (warmed up frozen pad thai) and there is just nothing that I really hunger for except anything we ate on the Fall Goddess Trip.  Tonight I have a special hunger for the flan Connie and Margo made and served for our Send Off Brunch (see recipe below).  I really must make it soon for an evening with friends.  No I can't wait that long, I will make it for Thanksgiving Day Brunch!  

Best news of the day...134 days until the March 3-10, 2012 Spring Goddess Trip!  I have a calendar here in the den on which I am brandishing a bold red magic marker with the number of days left until the plane lands in Cancun (did I say only 134 days left), until Edwardo, trusted Goddess driver, picks us up and drives all the Spring 2012 Goddesses to Casa Margarita where Connie, Margo and Beatriz will have everything ready for another magnificent experience in the serenity and beauty of Casa Margarita, with optional opportunities a seven block stroll down the white sandy beach to Puerto Morelos, side trips to nearby cultural offerings (more information soon), and the fresh, beautifully prepared and presented healthy delicious food.  I am warming up already!

Goddess Flan

 3 eggs
1 can condensed milk
1 cup whole milk
1/2 cup sugar
1 tsp. vanilla

Heat oven to 350 degrees
Add sugar to pan and heat on stove top until dark.  Spread in pan until bottom is covered.
In a separate bowl blend eggs, condensed and whole milk, sugar and vanilla.  Slowly pour over cold sugar.  Place in one inch water bath and tent with aluminum foil.  Bake 30-40 minutes until custard is set.  Remove from oven and water bath.  Cool.  To serve, unmold onto plate or serving dish.

www.travelinggoddesses.com

For more information on the Spring 2012 Goddess Trip
Contact us at travelinggoddesses@gmail.com

Fall 2011 Goddesses - Back home in California, Minnesota and Cancun

Fall 2011 Goddesses:  Ginger, Sharon, Connie, Beatriz, Margo, Ann, Jean and Melissa

This photo was taken by Melissa (yes, she has a camera with timer) at the conclusion of our pool ritual under the Caribbean sky burgeoning with brilliant stars and a half-moon.  We have since returned to our homes with incredible memories of our time with each other, the cultural experiences we shared wrapped in the sounds, sights and smells of the Caribbean that continue to permeate each of us and inform our lives in magnificent new ways.  

Connie, Margo (Goddess Trip Planners and Guides) and Beatriz (Goddess Guide to the Yucatan) spent several more days in and around Puerto Morelos finalizing plans for the Spring 2012 trip scheduled for March 3 - 10.  Once again, guests will spend a magnificent week at the exquisite private Casa Margarita right on the white sandy beach of the Caribbean about seven blocks outside of Puerto Morelos, a fishing village that retains its distinctive culture and community. We have a beautiful room waiting for you - your chaise overlooking the pool and Caribbean are ready too!

We will be posting exciting news about the spring trip in the coming weeks.  FRIEND  this blog to keep up-to-date on our plans!   To learn more about and register for the Spring 2012 trip, email us at travelinggoddesses@gmail.com

Visit our website:  www.travelinggoddesses.com

 

Sending Forth

Mixed greens with
lobster, avocado

The sounds and aromas of brunch being prepared kept drawing us into the kitchen to see what Sharon and Bea were preparing and into the dining room where Connie and Margo prepared the table for our last meal together at Casa Margarita.

Boguinete with Mango Salsa

The menu included the salad, Boguinete (fresh fish from the Caribbean selected at the fish market in Puerto Morelos by Bea and Sharon) wrapped in banana leaves with fresh mango salsa, homemade right out of the oven cinnamon rolls with Authentic Mexican Flan for dessert.



After an afternoon of Spa treatments with Martina, strolling the beach, naps and stopping at shops in the village, we gathered around a large table at Pelicanos to share stories over lemonade and cokes while plates of ceviche and nachos, chips and salsa were passed among us.  Yes we lingered long!

Our last gathering was a gratitude ritual created by Connie and Margo at the Infinity Pool. Each one of us placed a lighted candle in a fluted bowl into the pool sending our thoughts and hopes and visions for ourselves floating out into the pool and the universe... ...

Massage in Casa Margarita

Massage on the beach

Much more than a massage ~ the Ultimate Mind, Body and Soul Experience.

Martina of Martina's Oasis Spa & Mobile Services brings her more than twenty years of extensive training and experience in Spa and
Esthetic services to us at Casa Margarita scheduling treatments that fit into the personal schedule of each goddess! 

Each session is personalized, individually designed to achieve maximum results that will be the highlight of your day. Imagine a 90 minute facial or 60-90 minute massage while tucked into a beautiful poolside room at Casa Margarita overlooking the Caribbean ~ immersed in the warm Caribbean sun as waves roll onto the beach as Martina skillfully and lovingly creates for you the ultimate mind, body and soul experience.
www.martinaoasis.com

Martina offers a wide variety of services including: Swedish Massage, Sport Massage, Thai Massage, Stone Massageas well as Massage & Reiki, Vital Skin Repair, Cleansing Facial, Ultimate Facial, Pedicure and Mud Wrap.

Two treatments are included in our trip package, and they take place right here in Casa Margarita!  While visiting with Martina during a scheduling meeting, one Goddess said, you have the most gentle ~ strong hands.  Her brochure states, Her love for her work comes through in every stroke.  We goddesses know that these are not mere words typed on a page, we have lived the gift of love for her work and her skills in every stroke!

www.travelinggoddesses.com

Yoga with Goddess Melissa

Melissa teaching Yoga at the
Casa del Sol Infinity Pool

A resident of Bloomington, Minnesota, Melissa loves learning and sharing information. She earned her YT-200 through CorePower Yoga.  As an instructor, safety is her first priority striving to keep physical movemenand other applicable concepts of yoga accessible to everyone.  She customizes each practice to the practioners present inviting each to be let go of "shoulds" and enter into this time of self acceptance, finding our edges and being fully present in each moment. 

This week, Melissa has skillfully and generously guided us in yoga on the beach in front of Casa Margarita and at the edge of the Infinity Pool next door at Casa del Sol gently moving from the experienced yoga practioners among us to those who are present for the first time, navigating the path of possibility skilly for each one.  As one goddess said at the end of the session, "well another never just died!  I can never again say I have not experienced yoga and now can say I want yoga to be part of my growing older gracefully intentions."


www.travelinggoddesses.com

Puerto Morelos, Mexico, November 2, 2011

Bea:  Goddess Guide

Our trip to Xcaret on Monday was postponed until yesterday.   Enroute Bea provided the history of this joyful celebration during which families gather at the graves of their ancestors, believing that they return on the "Day of the Dead" (celebrations are ongoing from October 29 - November 4).

Bea stands in front of one of many "graves" in the cemetery at Xcaret.  Marigolds are an essential element as are candles and the favorite foods of the deceased.  Bea reminded us that this is truly a time to celebrate and remember and honor the lives of the ancestors and not a time of saddness and grief.  These pictures begin to tell the story.

Jean, a skeleton figure and Connie
enveloped in smoke from incense

The 2011 lighted candles rest upon years and years of accumulated candle wax from previous celebration of the Day of the Dead

A young mother and her son
lighting candles in honor of their ancestors.

Joyful young people with their faces painted
An option for everyone in attendance!

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Fall Trip ~ Day Three

Yesterday was a day spent here at Casa Margarita where we made vision boards depicting our intentions for the week and a future we hold for ourselves.  Laughter and quiet permeated this time as we imagined the life we are creating.

Martina arrived to offer treatements at appointed times and discuss future treatments.  Of course the Caribbean and the infinity pool drew us in periodically while others were drawn to pool loungers to gaze into the beauty but found themselves lulled into a lovely afternoon siesta. 

We celebrated the Day of the Dead in the evening by remembering the ancestors who have shaped and continue to shape our lives.  We placed lighted candles on our Goddess Altar which contained treasured photos and mementos.  In that sacred space we shared the stories of those we love who have and continue to shape us.  Laughter, tears and moments of quiet honoring were interpersed with poetry and prayer.

One of the young men who tends to the maintenance of Casa Margarita and Casa del Sol, is anxious these days, full of excitement as he and his wife are expecting their second child "before Thursday."  While we remember our ancestors, his beautiful young family is growing!

www.travelinggoddesses.com