Category Archives: Stone Soup and Other Delicacies

day 356

Do you play in your daily life? What says “playtime” to you?

game night

a good round or several of
“Cards Against Humanity”
with rowdy friends always
generates laughter…the tears
running down our red faces, side-
aching, breathless kind…it’s good
medicine in times like these
where everything is scary and
deadly serious, and where there is
no reason to laugh ever, sometimes
being irreverently silly, grossly
inappropriate, and absurd is just
the ticket, a guilty pleasure
to help me forget the world
for and hour or two…your turn

~kat

There are other things, of course that I consider playtime. Coloring in new coloring books with a fresh box of crayola crayons with my grandkids. Only Crayola crayons will do…if you know, you know.

Trying new recipes, baking things, anything. It is playtime for me. It is something I look forward to doing over the weekend and holidays.

And several electronic games. I like strategy games that require a certain amount of skill. Not necessarily sim type games.

And finally certain crafting and art projects. It is rare for me to have time to devote to creative play that is not writing. Writing is a non-negotiable must in my life. It keeps me sane.

It occurred to me that I am rather boring. Which is most likely why an occasional game of “cards” was first on my list!

Much love, peace, and glimmers to you!

~kat

✨✨✨💚💚💚✨✨✨

Today’s glimmer…I made a tray of pecan pie bark or crack (as it is called). It has a graham cracker base topped with a homemade pecan toffee layer, baked until bubbly and then cooled before cracking the entire pan into bits. I love to bake. And today I sent a bag of these sweets to the lovely team who works at the wildlife rescue center. That’s the best part about baking…sharing!

Pecan Pie Bark … first new recipe of 2026.
It’s a keeper!


day 332…a day delayed

News has been more ridiculous than usual as we watch the physical and cognitive decline of our self-proclaimed great leader. I have stopped saying it can’t get any worse, because, well, you know. But today’s (or I should say yesterday’s glimmer? (I did write most of this poem yesterday…we were just away wearing ugly sweaters and doing holiday schmoozing)…as I was saying…today’s glimmer is that maga folk are starting to wake up! I won’t gloat…or even say, “told you so” but I will write about it, because that’s what I do. 😊 who says the fall of democracy can’t be fun…well not fun exactly…but I do like a bit of sarcasm every now and then!

Much love, peace, and WOKE glimmers to you!

~kat ✨✨✨💚💚💚✨✨✨


sycophant’s bawl

he’s been quite naked now for years
it’s true, the emperor’s insane
his court of dunces hail his name
with flattery most insincere

to anyone who sees, it’s clear,
the ugly truth, they have no shame
he’s been quite naked now for years
it’s true, the emperor’s insane

they sold their souls to profiteer
for promises of power, fame
but now they know who bears the blame
oh they were duped, fed lies and fear
he’s been quite naked now for years

~kat

btw…this poetry form is called the Rondel. 

A French form consisting of 13 lines: two quatrains and a quintet, rhyming as follows: ABba abAB abbaA. The capital letters are the refrains, or repeats.
Schrödinger has the best seat in the house! Yes…Schrödinger exists, and is alive and well. 🥰

Greek Salad

I’m back in the kitchen again! With the temperatures heating up and veggies readily available, it’s salad time! I found this recipe on Pinterest and modified it a bit. The result was super yummy!!! With plenty of leftovers I’m sure it will be even better tomorrow after cooling for a day or two in the ‘frig. The star of this recipe is the dressing. Super easy and zesty!

The Ingredients (my version)

The Veggies:

3 peppers (yellow, red, and green)
1 red onion
2 slicing cucumbers

Chop the above veggies in 1/4 inch pieces

2 cups grape tomatoes halved
1 can garbanzo beans (chick peas) drained
1 cup kalamata olives, pitted and halved

Toss all of the above in a large bowl.

The Dressing:

1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
4 TBS red wine vinegar
1 cup curly leaf parsley, finely chopped
2 tsp pepper
2 tsp dried oregano flakes

Give the dressing a whisk and add to the veggies.

Last Ingredient:

8 oz block of feta cheese chopped into 1/4 inch cubes.

Add the feta to the salad and give it a quick toss.

Enjoy!


Instant Pot Creamy Vegetable/Chickpea Tortellini Soup

I’ve been wanting to do a tortellini soup for a while. The recipe below is my own creation, based on reading several versions. If you like chorizo sausage, you can add a pound of chopped chorizo to the initial sauté. Being an ovo-lacto-pescatarian (I eat eggs, milk and fish with my veggies), I like to keep my soups meatless.

Once again, as I’m finding with these recipes, prepping the fresh veggies took longer than the actual cooking time. You could easily make this on the stovetop. What I like about the instant pot is that you don’t have to worry about it while it’s cooking. No stirring, no pot-watching. And it cooks in a fraction of the time.

Instant Pot Creamy Vegetable/Chickpea Tortellini Soup


Ingredients

1 Sweet Onion – Diced
3 Celery Stalks – Diced
3 Carrots – Diced
2 Garlic Cloves – Diced
2 TBS Olive Oil
5 Cups Vegetable Broth
1 Can Ro-Tel / or Stewed Tomatoes
2 Cans of Garbanzo Beans, Drained
1 Tsp Dried Basil
1 Tsp Dried Thyme
6-8 Cups Mixed Super Greens (blend of Swiss chard, spinach arugula, or kale) – Chopped
10-12 oz – Fresh Cheese Tortellini (for frozen or dried see below)
1 Cup Cream
Salt and Pepper to taste.

Prepare fresh vegetables. Add olive oil and vegetables and garlic to the instant pot. Set on sauté and stir until onions are translucent. Add broth, stewed tomatoes, garbanzo beans, basil and thyme to the pot. (If you are using frozen or dried tortellini add with the broth). Seal and cook for 5 minutes (my pot has a soup setting). Wait a few minutes before releasing the steam.

Add greens, fresh tortellini to the pot and simmer on sauté for about 5 minutes, stirring gently.

Blend in cream. Salt and pepper to taste.

Delicious and so easy to prepare. Serve immediately. The tortellini will absorb the broth if stored. You may need to add liquid to reheat. Or leave as is and call it stew! For me, this batch is another week’s worth of delicious home-made soup for my packed lunch. Bon Appetit!


Instant Pot Irish Potato Kale Soup

I’ve been wanting to try this recipe since I got my pressure cooker. I will definitely be making it again. I had to improvise on one of the ingredients. (See Below) My grocery store was out of leeks! The produce guy said the restaurants wipe them out every week! ☹️ And my brand of pressure cooker does not allow for under 5 minutes, so I split the time in two. It doesn’t seem to have affected the outcome. It came out great!

Thanks to Letty’s Kitchen for this awesome recipe. It’s a keeper, it’s delicious, it’s super easy, and it’s vegan. Quadruple win!

Ingredients

2 tablespoons olive oil

  • 1 large sweet onion, chopped (the original recipe calls for two leeks sliced thin)
  • 6 cups salted vegetable broth
  • 2 pounds potatoes (I used red potatoes), peeled and diced in ¾-inch cubes
  • 2 garlic cloves, minced
  • 8 ounces kale, stems and center ribs removed and discarded, leaves coarsely chopped
  • ½ teaspoon apple cider vinegar
  • Freshly ground black pepper
  • Chopped green onion, for garnish
  • In your pressure cooker, sauté onions (or leeks) in olive oil until tender. Add broth, potatoes and garlic. Close and seal the lid and pressure cook on high for 5 minutes. Quick release the steam.

    Lightly mash some of the potatoes (I like leaving most of the cubes intact) and stir in the kale. Close and seal the lid once more and pressure cook on high for an additional 5 minutes.

    Release and add the apple cider vinegar and 20 turns of fresh ground pepper. If you used salted veggie broth you will probably not need to add any more. I didn’t need more salt. Season to taste. Serve with chopped green onion garish.

    If you don’t have a pressure cooker, you can do this on the stove top, cooking the potato portion 20 minutes and the kale portion an additional 10. I love how easy this recipe is. The veggie prep took longer than the cook time!

    The recipe makes 8 cups of soup. I’m going to enjoy this for lunch this week!