Kitties and Kafta

As you may recall from previous posts, we have 6 cats (after KitKats's passing a couple of weeks ago)... my boyfriend J inherited 1 and had  2 of his own, I took one of my daughter's cats that she became allergic to, and I adopted a kitten last year.

Two of our cats were indoors, the baby, Basheera, and Chebi who was de-clawed when my daughter got her from the shelter.

basheera

chebi beside basheera 2012

For weeks Basheera has been shedding like a sheep!  She has super long, weightless fur that either falls in clumps on the carpet, or floats in threads through the air.  I didn't expect all this hair, so now that she's turned 1, I felt it was time for her to join the other 4 cats outside.  She has the type of curiosity that will make the great outdoors a fun adventure.

My one concern was that Chebi would miss her.  They get into mischief together ALL the TIME! And before Basheera joined us from Petco last year, Chebi slept, ate, slept, ate, and not much else.. she seemed lonely.  Of course that all changed with a kitten in the house, chasing her and pawing her tail and licking her.  Chebi came to life and started getting super bold... like jumping on counter tops and desks (which she never did before)!

Sure enough, once Basheera was spending the whole day and night outside, Chebi became distraught.  She meowed a lot, trotted from room to room looking for company, became super needy of attention and hid in her litter box at times.

So today, my daughter was over, and we were telling her this story.  Chebi came to the kitchen where we were, and the minute someone opened the sliding door she bolted, and I mean like lightning, out into the backyard! She is a very hesitant cat, who is never quite sure what her next move should be.  So she stood in the middle of  the yard looking around, one paw forward.

Curious we all joined her waiting to see what she wanted to do.  She sat with us for a while, then scampered to one end of the yard where her old cat stand stood. When we went back joining them every once in a while. :)

Brown and Wild Rice Pilaf

I love this product from Trader Joe's. It's one of the few Rice combos that has enough fiber (thanks to the Daikon Radish Seeds!) to work well with our Anti-Cancer diet.  Remember our Good Carb Formula?  Well this combo has 5g of Fiber to 33g of Carbs per serving.

brown rice medley TJ

• 1 c. Water

• 1-1/2 c. organic Chicken Broth (I like the Whole Foods brand)

• 1 c. Brown Rice Medley (TJ brand)

• 2 Tbs. organic White Onion, chopped

• 2 tsp. Sea Salt

• Dash of Cinnamon

• Sliced organic Almonds (opt.)

In medium pot, over medium-high heat, bring water, broth, salt, cinnamon and onion to a boil.  Add rice. Cover and cook over low heat for 35-40 minutes. Scoop into serving dish and sprinkle with sliced almonds.

willd n brown rice pilaf

In the meantime, make the Kafta.

Kafta

• 2 lbs. organic grass-fed ground Beef

• 1 -1/2 c. chopped organic Parsley

• 1/2 c. chopped organic Mint

• 1 med. organic White Onion, chopped

• 2 Tbs. Allspice

• 1 Tbs. Cinnamon

• 3 tsp. Sea Salt

• 1 tsp. Black Pepper

• 1/8 c. Water

• 2 Tbs. organic Tomato Paste

• 1/4 c. Water

• 1 tsp. Allspice

• 1/2 tsp. Cinnamon

• 1/2 tsp. Sea Salt

Turn oven to Broil.

mint parsley onion chop

Combine Parsley, Mint and Onion in a medium bowl. Add spices and mix with your hand squeezing all together so that the spices are integrated into the veggies.

Scrape mixture into food processor, add beef and water. Process using long pulses, and scraping down sides, until just combined.  Return to bowl and mix with your hand to ensure all beef is infused with veggies mixture.

Lightly grease a rectangular pan with olive oil (9 x 13 or 10 x 10). Pat beef in bottom of pan, smoothing out to the edges.

Kafta raw

Drizzle lightly with olive oil, and broil for 15 minutes.

tomato paste thinned

Mix Tomato paste, spices and enough water together until the consistency of ketchup. When timer goes off, remove Kafta from oven and pour the tomato mixture on top.

kafta3

Smooth to edges of Kafta, and return to oven for 5 minutes. Remove when done, and let rest for 10 minutes, then slice into squares and serve.

kafta cooked

I made a simple sliced Tomato, Onion Salad on the side

Minty Tomato-Onion Salad

• 2 organic Tomatoes, sliced

• 1 organic sweet white onion, sliced

• dried Mint

• Sea Salt

• extra virgin Olive Oil

Arrange tomatoes and onions of a plate. Sprinkle with dried mint, salt and drizzle with olive oil.

tomato onion salad

~ Sahtein! (double health)   ♥

It's a Blustery Day, KitKat

It's a cool 55º in the Bay Area today.  The wind is whipping around the neighborhood, shaking leaves and knocking the pollen out of every flower's head. A bird decided to build her nest under the awning of my kitchen window a couple of weeks ago.

Brave move since I have 4 outdoor cats! She and hubby have been busy sitting on the egg, but every time I pull the shade up or down, they skedaddle, and then I worry about the egg.

Like today, with the cold blustery wind, I want to reach out the window to put a warm boiled egg in the nest every time she flies away!

Our sweet KitKat turned 20 this year!  She has lived outdoors most of her life, gave us an adorable litter of 5 kittens when my daughter was 7 years old, that made their way to family, and provided us with so many fond memories.

Now, 19 years later she is as light as a feather (no weight to her aged bones), deaf as a door knob (but manages to sense when I fill the cat food bowls), and a bit wobbly. She has a little tumor growing under her cheek... but I refuse to put her through surgery at her age.

She still adores laying in the sun. And her favorite spot is in my mint patch.

She's our little granny, and we love her dearly.

In her heyday, when large dogs  innocently wandered into our back yard, they never knew what hit them.  She sprang from nowhere and attacked like a wild cat making them run frantically to find the gate. They couldn't get out of there fast enough! :)

Now she watches the blue jays and skunks eat her food with perfect complaisance.  We are more accepting and generous as we age, aren't we?  I picture her with a lacy cap on, sitting in a rocking chair on the back porch, knitting.

When she meows, it's a hoarse and very loud sound, since she can't hear herself anymore. Sometimes she isn't even looking at us, but out into the yard when she meows.  It's so cute and sad and funny and adorable.

It's been shown time and again that people with pets live longer and are actually healthier than those who don't care for an animal.   For nearly 25 years, research has shown that living with pets can help lower blood pressure and lessen anxiety. Interesting that they give us so much in return for giving them a home.

And on this blustery day, she's curled up on the grass, nose tucked in, dreaming of butterflies and the chase.

Here's to you KitKat.  For the joy you've given me, my children, our family who know you so well, and the friends you've nuzzled, scratched, rubbed against and hissed at!

~ In Gratitude ♥

7 Random Things.. About Me

To fulfill the Versatile Blogger Award requirement, here are 7 Random things about myself: 1. I am passionate about: My children, my faith, good health, compassion for others, understanding teens and their struggles, speaking up when something looks shady.

2. From a shy wallflower in my teens, I've grown to be more like my Mom, outspoken and kinda opinionated! lol.  No body messes with my family without hearing about it (much to the chagrin of my children). :)

3. I love to belly dance, and dance in general.  Once the music starts, it's hard to keep me down.

4. I love cats although I pretend they are a pain and I huff about cat hair.  I had one outdoor cat, then my boyfriend moved in with his two (outdoor), then my daughter pawned two of hers on me (one indoors), and when I was going through Chemo, I waked into Petco on a Sunday (no, no, no..bad idea), and the next day went back and bought the baby black kitten (indoors) whom I named Basheera (arabic for "bringer of good news").  She brought me a lot of laughter, and now we have ... count them with me.. 1,2,3,4,5,6 cats!  AAAaaahhh!

5. Cooking brings me joy, and watching people happily gobble up what I make is instant gratification.

6. I miss many things about living on the Mediterranean: having my childhood friends around; lingering with extended family for 2-3 hours over multi-dish dinners; the small open-air Cafés at every curve on the mountain roads;  everybody you know converging to help when you need something; restauranteurs, taxi drivers, merchants and parking attendants remembering your name when you return more than twice; the amazing hospitality you are smothered with when there.

7. I am constantly working to shrink ego-based reactions and thinking, and expanding my ability to see the Divine in every situation and person.

~ Cheers! ♥