Vegan Salal Berry Crumble Recipe

The crumble topping; 1/2 cup quick oats, 1/4 cup brown sugar, 1/4 cup all purpose flour, 1/4 cup solid coconut oil. The Salal filling is; 1 cup salal berries, 2 Tablespoons water, 2 Tablespoons white sugar. Grease 8 x8 baking dish. Mix ingredients for filling in a bowl. Use a different bowl for the crumb topping. Use two knives to cut in the coconut oil. Put salal filling in bottom and sprinkle crumble topping on top. Bake 350 for 25 mins. I have no grass in my yard thanks to the native salal berry bush with its moderate growth. I trim it back where I do not want it. I find hand pruner's simpler than a lawn mower or a weed eater and over the years I have had no problems with this approach.

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My bamboo dip pen

I snipped some green bamboo with my secateurs, trimmed it to my liking and sharpened it with a pocket knife. I dipped it in a water based blue ink and was surprised! There is probably a lot of wonderful advice online about bamboo dip pens but I never bothered to look. It's straight forward - simple and so beautiful that I love it. I use it for my shopping lists, draw with it, and I wrote a cheque with it. I dropped it on the floor and have yet to re-sharpen it. It hold's a reasonable amount of ink and glides across paper like a soaring bird. I may never buy another discardable pen again.

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When less is more

The simplicity of having little in terms of material goods is an awesome freedom.  Every item takes a certain amount of upkeep - either in money, time or both. I only want that which is important enough to take up my time. Making more time happens when I let go of that which I have accumulated. Real wealth is subjective. When I feel rich inside than I am. William Wordsworth wrote in "Three Years She Grew in Sun and Shower," ( one of his poems about a child of nature) "The stars of midnight shall be dear to her;" It really is about perspective isn't it? I'm certain she felt the same way about the rainbow.

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