We took a leisurely canoe paddle around the shoreline of Fox Island on the weekend, packing a lunch and letting the currant and tides push us along. 
We'd done this stretch of beach before, a number of years ago. It was quite windy then, with whitecaps and waves hitting the breakwalls. Our paddle this time was more gentle, with slow currants and, fortunately, very little wind. But, it was nippy out. We had to wear scarves, hats and gloves. 
When we paddled along here I wanted to go ashore to climb the big rocks. The seaweed had completely dried on them, and since the tide was down, there were interesting shellfish and barnacles on the rocks in the water. (I took the photo directly into the light, which made the photo a little dark.) I loved how the sunlight glistened on the water along the shore, making everything seem so celebratory and sparkly. We also celebrated the 'Homegoing' of Reba Mae Braggs, who went to be with her Lord last Tuesday. She is the mother of a close friend, and lived 91 years.
This was the first time I've attended Shiloh Baptist Church in the Hilltop area of Tacoma, and it was deeply moving, with the pastor, deacons and choir embodying so much vibrant, heart-felt spirit.The music brought back some memories of my favorite gospel hymns, one of which is "I Don't Feel No Ways Tired" recorded by Rev. James Cleveland, which I hummed to myself most of the day following this celebration. Reba Mae joine
d Shiloh Baptist Church in the early 50's, spear- heading many mission projects. She prepared bandages boxes for Africa and supported church-sponsored activities around the holidays, making sure food was distributed to needy families. It was indescribable, seeing how beautiful the flowers were here, especially the roses from her family, and listening to the eulogy and words of encouragement. Just a reverent, beautiful afternoon. I enjoyed cooking several hearty breakfasts over the weekend. Since our outings on both days started later in the day, I puttered, taking my time mulling through cookbooks, and seeing what I could use up out of the fridge. I fixed a hearty winter breakfast on Saturday: Polenta and Ground Lamb Patties with Moroccan Harissa . (A hot red pepper paste that has an intense, slow burn that will spice up any dish.) I spread it on the lamb and also the polenta slices, before I fried them.
I added a little shredded cheese to the polenta and a sprinkle of Worcestershire sauce, garlic, salt and pepper to the lamb. The veggie mixture was marinated in 'Caribbean Jerk' which has a wonderful blend of allspice, ginger, nutmeg, cinnamon, rosemary and sage blended with lime and orange juice. I added 'panko' bread-crumbs to the onion rings as I stir-fried them, then garnished the veggies with miniature 3/4 inch lime slices. (These are so small they have to be chewed to get the juice.)Sunday morning I fixed a Mediterranean Hash - just an experiment, which used up a lot of odds and ends.
I coated tiny shrimp with Moroccan style harissa and quickly stir-fried them with peppers, onions, zucchini, garlic and tomatoes. I poached a couple of eggs then laid them on grilled Italian bread, with mozzarella, cheddar and bacon as a topping. Just keeping them warm in the oven while I was puttering over the stir-fry caused the cheese to melt nicely over the bread. A few sliced pears with shredded fresh ginger completed the meal, and I sprinkled the works with just a bit of fresh lime juice. It was fragrant and flavorful, and will definitely be a favorite breakfast of ours.
