Lifestyle

Are You Listening - A poem by Lorraine Stark

Are You Listening

To the babbling brook or to the
Fish that leaps above water hooked
Are you listening
To the sounds around you
In the panoramic view

To a newborn’s cry or to the
Tears that ask why
Are you listening
To lovers sighs
When they kiss and say goodbye.

To children playing in the park
Or the ax that bites the bark
Are you listening
To a guitar being strummed
Or to the buzz of a bee’s hum.

To a fountain pen scrawling upon paper
Seeking words to complete a mystery caper
Are you listening
To the beauty
It’s your privilege
Not your duty.

By Lorraine Stark

Image via Unsplash @vivii_20

Image via Unsplash @vivii_20

Tyleen’s Tasty Food presents Keto Pumpkin Cheesecake Bars

Just in time for dessert season, Tyleen has the recipe to fill all your pumpkin spice cravings on a Keto diet. Dig in and enjoy without the sugar crash of Thanksgivings past.

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Keto Pumpkin Cheesecake Bars

From Tyleen’s Tasty Food

This recipe includes 3 layers- the crust, a pumpkin filling, and a cheesecake swirl, meeting all your dessert desires in one serving.

Crust Ingredients:

  • 2 eggs

  • 7 tbsp butter

  • 3⁄4 cup coconut flour

  • 1⁄4 cup Monkfruit brown sugar sweetener

  • 2 tsp of vanilla

Method of Preparation:

Preheat oven to 350°F.

Combine all ingredients in a food processor until a dough forms.

Spread dough on a greased 9x13 pan and bake for 5-7 minutes.

Cheesecake Filling Ingredients:

  • 8oz cream cheese°

  • 1⁄4 cup sour cream

  • 2 large eggs

  • 1 Tbsp vanilla (I love vanilla so I used a Tbsp, you can use less)

  • 1⁄4 cup Monkfruit sweetener

Method of Preparation:

Mix ingredients together in a food processor until smooth.

Add the cheesecake layer on top of the cooked crust and bake at 350°F for 8 minutes. Remove from

oven and let cool for 5 minutes.

Pumpkin Filling Ingredients:

  • 2 eggs

  • 1 cup milk or heavy cream (depending your on calorie needs)

  • 1-2 cups cooked pumpkin (approx. 1 small pumpkin roasted or you can used canned)

  • 1⁄4 cup Monkfruit brown sugar sweetener

  • 1 tsp of cinnamon*

  • 1⁄2 tsp salt*

  • 1⁄2 tsp of ginger*

  • 1⁄4 tsp of ground clove*

    *Or you can use pumpkin pie spice

  • 1 tsp of vanilla (again here you can use more)

Method of Preparation:

Add the pumpkin layer on top of the cooled cheesecake and bake an additional 45-55 minutes at 350°F.

Remove from the oven and let cool completely before you enjoy- unless you are the kind of person that

likes hot cheesecake, in that case, dig right in!

Thanksgiving Feasts? No Sweat! Meals Made in Matthews

Image via Unsplash photographer @priscilladupreez

Image via Unsplash photographer @priscilladupreez

Thanksgiving is just around the corner, and if you’re knee-deep in safety precautions, let the local restaurants do the heavy (food) lifting.

  • Fullwood Market has holiday dessert offerings in single servings from the pastry case. Might as well get one of each so you can do a dessert taste-test before fully committing.

  • Mac’s Speed Shop offers whole, slow-smoked turkeys and sides. Mac’s needs 48 hours to prepare. They’re also giving away a full Thanksgiving dinner to a family in need. Know someone who would truly be thankful for a feast this year? Nominate them here.

  • Mario’s Italian Restaurant offers fully cooked boxed meals for two for $35. Call to to schedule your pickup or delivery time for Tuesday the 24th or Wednesday the 25th. Orders must be placed by Monday the 23rd at 10 PM.

  • Moe’s has a similar option to Mac’s—a whole, smoked turkey with citrus cranberry sauce for $50. Sides are also available. Don’t need a whole bird? Get a family pack for $55, which includes two pounds of turkey breast meat, three sides, and cornbread. Orders must be placed by November 23.

  • Santé has a full Thanksgiving menu to go. Order online; be sure to add an appetizer and a bottle of wine for one stop shopping.

Who did we miss? Know a Matthews business serving up Thanksgiving delights? Send us a note and we’ll add them to the list.

Baby Boomers - A poem by Lorraine Stark

Baby Boomers


Baby boomers
Wore bloomers
Plain old boxer shorts
T.V. trays
Frozen dinners
Bay of Pigs
Khrushchev’s blast
John & Robert Kennedy
Martin Luther King
Hear the Beatle’s sing
Give peace a chance.

Man on the moon
Woodstock
Marijuana, LSD
Make love not war
Hell no we won’t go
Vietnam’s useless war
Agent Orange
Raid bug strips.

The pill
Roe verses Wade
Feminist movement
Bras burning
Lesbian and gay rights
Chicago riots
Aids and HIV epidemic
Poodle skirts

Bell bottoms
Play-doh, Jackie O
In schoolyards
Voices singing
Acapella.

Greenwich Village
The Village Gate
On Broadway
“HAIR”
Harry Krishna
GTO’s the Bug
Circus Boy, Lassie
Ed Sullivan,
The Twilight Zone,
The Million Dollar Movie
Chock full o’Nuts
That heavenly coffee.

Brill crème and Dippity Doo
The scent of Ambush
And Canoe
Doe eyes
Twiggy Lashes
Tip toe through the tulips
Archie Bunker
Toilets flushing
Maude and the Golden Girls
Cheesecake is the answer
Mr. Rogers, Miss Piggy
The Muppets
Captain Kangaroo
Lucy and Ricky too.

Under desks hiding
Awaiting the sound of
Siren’s all clear
Boy I’m grateful
To have lived through
All of this
And to remember in my
Middle bliss
Make Love not war.


By Lorraine Stark

Photo via Unsplash photographer @clemono

Photo via Unsplash photographer @clemono

Circles of Dreams by Lorraine Stark

Circles of Dreams


Beneath my magnolia tree

a gentle breeze kept

making invisible circles

around me.

I did not understand at first-

and then I realized it was

gathering dreams, hitchhiking

on the perfect breeze pursuing

their chance to find out their end

and I bid each one success as I

stood beneath my magnolia tree

I watched her white saucer flowers

catch their tears of happiness and

I knew each passenger of the wind

reached their destination


By Lorraine Stark


Image via Unsplash photographer @brunonw

Image via Unsplash photographer @brunonw

Matthews Cooks: Green Rice

Greetings from Matthews Cooks! We’re submitting original recipes from our own kitchens and sharing the adventure with Matthews Beacon readers. If you’d like to add your own, please send them to renee@matthewsbeacon.com , and she’ll forward them to me (Vivian). When you send in recipes, add your family story, if there is one. It can add new dimensions to a dish. Please do not use recipes from cookbooks, as we need to respect copyright laws. If you first got a recipe from a book, then changed it over the years to suit your kitchen, that would be fine.

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I grew up cooking with my mother, Ukrainian grandmother, and aunts, since I was tall enough to see the kitchen counter. They sometimes used recipes, but more often had family recipes and methods learned from observation. We all loved garlic, lots of herbs and spices, and strong flavors. If your preference is for milder food, just reduce the quantity of flavorings and enjoy.
— Vivian’s Victuals
 
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Green Rice from Rose

2 ½ cups uncooked long grain rice (I use brown rice)
4 cups boiling water
1 tsp salt
1 cup sliced celery
1 cup chopped parsley
¾ cup thinly sliced green onion
2 TBSP butter
Salt & pepper to taste

Add rice to boiling salted water, reduce heat, cook until water is absorbed. Stir in vegetables, cover and continue cooking until water is all gone, and the vegetables are still crisp. Season to taste, add butter, toss lightly.

Man on the Other Side by Lorraine Stark

Man on the Other Side

I do no know of your
Beliefs
But I do respect
Them
Your traditions
And celebrations
Because you are
My brother
My fellow man
And even if we
Are not the
Same color or
Gender
Or strive for
The same ideals
Or share the
Same religion
It is good
To share and
Speak out loud
And clear
So man will learn
And not forget
Who is beside him
On the other side

by Lorraine Stark

Image via Unsplash photographer @jjacobs15

Image via Unsplash photographer @jjacobs15

Evening Shadow: Sonnetina by Lorraine Stark

Evening Shadow

She was as real as a beautiful rose.
Throughout the years when she wasn’t looking,
He’d sometimes just stare and wonder and think
How lucky he was to be in love with
Her and to grow old together sharing
Everything, memories, hard times and good.
Over the years he sometimes still pictured
The shadow of her youth passing his store
Remembering his wish to just speak to
Her and now their evening shadows are one.

By Lorraine Stark

Image via Unsplash

Image via Unsplash

Catnap - Dizain by Lorraine Stark

Catnap

How beautifully she displayed the flowers
Each one gracefully enhanced the bouquet
Even the housecat checked it each hour
If it could speak, I’d wonder what it say
As its long whiskers brushed by on the way
To the backyard garden where roses grew
Between pine trees arching to a sky blue
He’d carefully step between the new blooms
Settle down take a nap and sleep right through
The wind carrying new scents of perfume

By Lorraine Stark

Photo by Unsplash photographer @8moments

Photo by Unsplash photographer @8moments