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creeky but not creaky

Well, here it comes again, Valentine’s Day. Wonderful holiday for lovers … but I propose that we take it out of the realm of romance and widen the scope to include all genres of loving. Love for friends, family, co-workers, pets, strangers on the street … hey, why not go really crazy and love yourself! Or better yet, open your heart to the people you don’t understand or with whom you strongly disagree? (That’d be love from afar. ☺)

Yoga, meaning literally to unify or yoke together, brings harmony & balance to the body, mind and spirit (your own little triumvirate) … so while you might practice opening your heart in your thoughts and emotions, you can also experience heart opening in the physical body.

Our hearts live in a bony cage. 24 ribs, sternum, spine … all connected with soft tissues – muscles, cartilage, ligaments, etc. When we forget to breathe deeply and easily, those soft tissues can lose their elasticity, resulting in our heart and lungs having less space to expand in their temporary cages. So my first recommendation is to intentionally and regularly practice some form of Pranayama or controlled and aware breathing. In addition, bending and flexing and twisting the components of the cage will help to open and free your heart space.

Though there are many heart opening poses, the one I’ve chosen to blog about here is Supta Virasana, the reclining hero pose. It’ll also give a great stretch to your quadriceps (front of the thigh muscles) and hip flexors. Before trying this pose, be sure that you can easily sit with your seat between your feet. You can fold a blanket to elevate your bottom slightly and alleviate some of the strain if necessary. And keep your knees from splaying out too much – in a straight line down from your hips if possible. Then give yourself a little foot massage as you lean back and place your elbows and forearms on the floor.

This is as far as I went in the photo above, due to the slippery, mossy riverbed … but you can either stop there and rest the crown of your head on the floor or come all the way down on your back like this dude:

with your arms either by your side or stretched overhead, which feels really good.

Stay in the pose as long as you like, starting with 1 minute and building to 10 minutes even, breathing deeply into any area that’s resisting the stretch and exhaling that tension away. Great pose for meditation … or if you get bored in the supermarket line … or … waiting for your Valentine to show you how special you are. (though my inexpert and largely unsuccessful advice is not to wait, don’t hold back, show them first!)

Love Always,
Suzi

Guest chef Chase Rivers joins Suzi for a special Valentine’s meal and performance. Free download of Suzi’s “My One & Only Valentine” on the Music page!

“Wishbone” Video

Click HERE to hear a great interview with Bill Cody of WSM too.

Suzi Ragsdale- Full Length EPK Best Regards/ Less of the Same from Suzi Ragsdale on Vimeo.

Suzi & Karen Brooks @ the Florabama

Hi Fellow Foodies,

Still re-entering my home life back in Nashville after a whirlwind weekend on the Gulf Coast at the Frank Brown International Songwriters’ Festival. So much fun! Thanks to everyone there who came out to my six different sets — there was so much great music to choose from I’m honored that you guys chose mine! Special thanks to Dave Chatham, Chancy Rogers and Bernie Toothaker of DC Lane for their musical & physical support. Not only great writers and players but invaluable help with all the logistics, setting up and tearing down… and irreplaceable as friends.

In keeping with my current trend, I decided to throw together a chili for my dinnertime gig at one of my favorite clubs, the Silver Moon. Slightly disoriented from Thursday & Friday’s festivities, I stumbled out to the parking lot around 7am Saturday and was rummaging around in my car for my soup pot & spices when much to my surprise, there was Karen Brooks! She’s the wild woman I’d shared the stage with at Florabama’s Wild Women Show the night before… wonderful writer and entertainer, we had a great time! Anyway, I told her what I was up to, carried my equipment back inside and started my grocery list… a few minutes later, a knock on my door and there she was again! This time bearing gifts, hot coffee and Krispy Kreme doughnuts … what an angel!

Finally to the supermarket, fortified and organized, I flew through the aisles collecting the following:

3 large, sweet onions
* small jar of peeled, minced garlic
8 poblano peppers
2 yellow bell peppers
4 anaheim peppers
4 large jalapenos
8 limes
2 bunches cilantro
* 3 freshly cooked rotisserie chickens
8 15oz. cans cannellini beans (great northerns)
* 4 11oz. cans tomatillos
* 8 32oz. boxes chicken broth
* 2 12oz. bags shredded Mexican cheese blend (you can substitute your cheese of choice)
olive oil
chili powder, cumin, paprika, cayenne (quantities to taste)
12 oz. your favorite beer or wine (this is for you to sip on in the afternoon while chopping – makes the chili taste better, I swear.)

* The ingredients with an asterisk beside them are time saving shortcuts. If you have the time and inclination you can peel and mince fresh garlic, cook your own chickens and use their carcasses to make homemade stock, husk and chop fresh tomatillos and pass a block of cheese to shred at the table. If you’re cooking 60-75 servings, however, I don’t recommend it

First task is to wash all the poblanos, bells, anaheims & jalapenos, half them, seed them and flatten, skin side up on a large cookie sheet in batches. Broil on high, 4 or 5 inches from the heating element for about 5 minutes, checking frequently. When the skins are blackened and bubbly, remove with tongs to a clean plastic bag and let steam until cool enough to handle.

By the time I got that done and everything else lined up, ready to process, I not only had Chancy over to help clean chickens but my new friend, Karen, returned to help with the chopping – she was a lifesaver that day and afforded me time to rehearse with my guys and change clothes, etc… thanks, Karen!

I chopped the onions while Chancy cleaned every good bit of meat off those chickens – the dark meat is great in chilis too. (If you’re at home, save the carcasses for a homemade stock in the future – they can be frozen.) Then Karen and I peeled the skins off the peppers and opened all the cans… drained and rinsed the white beans and tomatillos while heating a little more than a quarter cup of the olive oil in the stock pot. First the onions go into the oil. Then after a few minutes when they’re transparent, add as much garlic as you like — I used about 3 TBSP, equivalent to about 8 or 10 cloves, depending on size. The chicken and peppers get chopped and go into the pot along with the spices. I didn’t measure but I’d guess I used about 4 TBSP cumin (love cumin!), 4 TBSP chili powder, 1 TBSP cayenne, 1/2 TBSP paprika and a little salt to taste.

When the spices are fragrant, add the chopped tomatillos, white beans and chicken broth. You may decide you only want 6 or 7 of the boxes of broth, depending on how thick you like your chili. Also, if you like a smoother consistency, you can mash or puree half of the beans in a Cuisinart or just in a bowl with a potato masher before adding them to the pot. Stir it all up until it comes to a simmer, turn down the heat and simmer, stirring occasionally, for about 30 minutes.

Before serving, cut up the limes for individual squeezes and clean & chop the cilantro. Those plus the shredded cheese make great finishing touches. Serve with plenty of the cold beverage of your choice (this is HOT) and either tortilla chips or fresh flour tortillas… to complete the experience, turn up your favorite DC Lane or Suzi Ragsdale CD and imagine you’re at the Silver Moon after a day at the beach!

Cheers!
Suzi

I have so many recipes to share with you … I’ll start with the Jambalaya I made for the AMA Conference show… or more like a Gumbolaya, as I added okra and file powder (sassafras root).

This one’s really easy and can feed a crowd without much mess. I sextupled it to feed 50 but these quantities should satisfy 6-8:

1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil

12 ounces andouille sausage or kielbasa, quartered lengthwise and cut into 3/4-inch pieces

– I used chicken andouille sausage, pre-cooked but in need of a braising

1 large onion, coarsely chopped

1 red bell pepper, finely chopped

1 (or 2) jalapenos, finely chopped, seeds optional

** The chile pepper membranes and seeds add more heat. They contain more capsaicin than the flesh of the peppers, in varying concentrations, depending on the type of pepper and it’s lifetime on the vine. Chili peppers are of great importance in Native American medicine, and capsaicin is used in modern medicine—mainly in topical medications—as a circulatory stimulant and pain reliever. I believe it works just as well internally, relieving headaches, body aches associated with the flu or anything that ails ya, really!  If you don’t have any digestive issues or a wimpy palette, it’s good medicine!   The same stuff is in pepper spray or Mace, so either wear surgical gloves when chopping or wash your hands thoroughly afterward — and before touching any of your sensitive skin or eyes … or anyone else’s

1 celery rib, finely chopped

2 large garlic cloves, minced

2 cups fresh okra, sliced 1/4 inch thick on the diagona

1/2 tsp each gumbo file, ground bay leaf, ground mustard seed, and paprika

1/4 tsp each black and cayenne pepper, cinnamon, ginger and celery sal

1 1/2 cups jasmine rice

2 cups chicken stock or low-sodium broth

1 1/2 cups water

1 thyme sprig

Salt and freshly ground pepper

1/2 pound tilapia (or lump crabmeat, if you wanna splurge)

1/2 pound medium shrimp, peeled & deveined (tails optional)

3 scallions, finely chopped

Hot sauce, for serving

In a medium, enameled cast-iron casserole, heat the olive oil. Add the andouille and cook over high heat, stirring occasionally, until lightly browned, about 3 minutes. Transfer to a bowl. Add the onion, peppers, celery and garlic to the casserole. Cover and cook over high heat, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 3 minutes. Add the spices, rice and andouille and cook, stirring occasionally, until the rice is opaque, about 2 minutes. Add the stock, water and thyme, season lightly with salt and pepper and bring to a boil. Cover and cook over very low heat until the rice is tender and the liquid is absorbed, about 12 minutes. Fluff with a fork and stir in the shrimp, tilapia or crab and scallions. Cover and let simmer for 5 or 6 minutes, just until the fishes are opaque; toss the thyme sprig into your compost bin.

I like a crusty bread with this – soft in the middle for sopping … and either a strong, cold beer or a glass of Viognier or some other slightly sweet white wine … but that’s just me!

WARNING: This Gumbolaya will make you testify.

More to come! …

Hi Everybody,

This is my first attempt to insert audio into a blog post, so … we’ll see, it looks a little suspect here in the draft stage …

In any case, I’ve been finalizing all the music and graphics for the release of my second short collection of songs to share.  I love the idea of releasing EPs, and more frequently … but I’m also releasing a 2 disc package with 12 songs and more photos, etc…  I’ll let you know when that’s available.

Initially, I did the 2 disc set to meet the requirements and protocol of the gracious and welcoming boutiques and stores that will carry my music (hopefully to you!) … now, after marrying the 2 projects and seeing both side by side, i’m very excited about how beautiful the package is and how it all hangs together.

Huge thanks to my distribution team for making my music available!!  Even huger thanks to Sabrina, Doug & Ray at Ray Stevens Music/Clyde Records (and to Sanna & BJ & Mike & Sherri & Buddy!)

I wanted to share an advance track from the newest EP, Less Of The Same.  It’s actually the only song of these 12 that I didn’t write.  It was written by my old friend, Darrell Scott, and I’ve had the pleasure of  performing it with him, both on stage & in studio, for many years…

Full Light fit very naturally into this group of songs and fit me as well … and I’m always pleased to draw attention, if possible, to great artistry.

Which brings me to my duet partner on this song, Gabe Dixon.  If you know his music then I need say nothing… if you don’t, do yourself a favor & look him up!  He’ll be on facebook & myspace & his own site … gabedixonband.com