Moving Forward and Be My Guest

This first post of this new year has been difficult to write. I kept opening the draft, looking at the blank page, feeling my eyes well up and closing the page. 

I plan ahead. I work ahead. I usually have an entire month of blog posts done in advance. The pieces are worded, the graphics are made, the recipes developed and the food pictures taken and edited. That's 11 or 12 blog posts done way in advance.

This month, not so much. In fact, not even close. I'm writing this just one week before I need to share it with you.

Crockpot Oriental Steak

Help. It's a tough concept. I love the feeling I get when I've helped someone. Giving is easy. Receiving is a whole other story. I have always prided myself on my strength. I'm not someone who asks for help easily. There is a tradition on Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year, to bake and give each other honey breads. As I understand the tradition, it is meant to be symbolic of our need, in the new year, to be a person capable of giving, and a person capable of receiving from others as well. You'd think the taking part would be simple but for so many of us receiving with gratitude and grace is something that requires practice.

Last month I asked for help.

The loss of my dad has my head spinning. It's not just the death, of course, but the reconciling of the relationship. The good, the bad, and the ugly, all playing out in a symphony of gratitude, regret, melancholy, frustration, affection . . . I will write about my dad at some point. I can tell that I will, that I need to get it out. But not now. Not yet.

And I'm certainly not feeling very funny right now either. 

So I asked for help.

Let me tell you how I have always felt and, in the spirit of those Rosh Hashanah honey cakes, how I now feel.

I always hated Guest Posts. I acknowledge that writing for someone else's blog and having them write for mine is a great way to grow readership and strengthen relationships. But I am a bitch the grammar police a control freak when it comes to both my blog and my words. I see it all as a reflection of me. So I would get upset if I wrote a piece that went live with a picture missing. I felt compelled to edit whatever was submitted to me, then concerned that offense might be taken. It was easier to just avoid being and having guests.

But now, when I need help, when I swallowed my pride and asked for Guest Posts and the offers came pouring in, I saw them with different eyes. What was once dreaded is now a gift. I've put out the welcome mat and no one has come empty handed.

Here's the plan for Baking In A Tornado over the next few months. I will continue participating in all of the writing challenges that I run. To fill in the rest of my blog publishing calendar for the forseeable future, I'll be running a series of guest posts that I'm calling Be My Guest. Some of these posts will have recipes, some are humorous posts and some are more thoughtful. I'm excited to introduce you to these bloggers, I know you will love these posts as much as I do.

I want to take a minute to acknowledge Lynne of Lynne Cobb, who offered me her post called The Grief Club, and Reisa of Life is More Than Sound Bites, who offered me any post from her blog. Although I decided to go with unique content instead of previously published articles, I am grateful for their generosity as well.

I want to thank all of my readers for your kindness, your patience and your support. I wish you all a happy and healthy new year.

Crockpot Oriental Steak

                                                                          ©www.BakingInATornado.com

Printable Recipe
 
Ingredients:
1 1/2 # Flank or skirt steak
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup honey
1/2 cup soy sauce
1/2 cup hoisin
1/3 cup cider vinegar
4 cloves minced garlic
1 tsp minced ginger
1 onion, sliced
6 green onion, cut in quarters
8 oz mushrooms, sliced

Directions:
*Whisk together the brown sugar, honey, soy sauce, hoisin, cider vinegar, garlic and ginger.
*Place the steak in a sealable gallon bag. Add 1/4 cup of the sauce to the bag and refrigerate, turning now and then for at least 2 hours and up to overnight.
*Refrigerate the rest of the sauce while the steak marinates.
*When ready to cook, grease your crockpot. Remove the sauce from the refrigerator, whisk well and place in the crockpot with the onion, green onion and mushrooms.
*Remove the steak from the bag and cut, against the grain, into bite sized pieces and add to the crockpot. Cook on low for 4 to 6 hours, stirring now and then. If the sauce gets too thick, add 1/4 cup water as needed.