24 minute read
Butterfly Beauties
The Classy Cook
STRAWBERRY PIZZA
May is National Strawberry Month! What better way to celebrate than with a Strawberry Pizza? This delicious pizza is perfect for a family reunion, picnic, office party, and any other gathering this spring.
Submitted by Linda Everidge Thomas
CRUST
1 1/2 Cup Flour 1 Cup Butter 1/4 Cup Brown Sugar 1/2 Cup Pecans Mix together and press in a greased pan. Bake at 400 degrees for 15 minutes.
1ST LAYER
8 Ounces Cream Cheese 9 Ounces Whipping Cream 1/4 Cup Powdered Sugar
Whip Cream Cheese, Sugar, and Whipping Cream. Spread over cooled crust.
2ND LAYER
3 Ounce Package of Strawberry Gelatin 1 Cup Strawberry Juice 4 Cups Strawberries 4 Tablespoons Cornstarch 1/2 Cup Sugar
Mix gelatin, sugar, 1/2 cup of strawberry juice. Dissolve cornstarch and the other half of strawberry juice. Stir together and cook until thickened. Spoon over cream cheese.
Spread Cool Whip over top layer and place sliced strawberries over topping. Chill well.
We would LOVE to hear what you are cooking and baking! Please email jeananntaylor@rewnc.com to share your ideas and recipes. You may even find your recipe featured in 50+Living Magazine.
Stacy Fields
RASPBERRY FIELDS
from the staff of SOFIA!
CONTENTS
6 For the Love of Raspberries
Natasha Kubis
8 Tips to Spring Clean your Body
Veena Rhodes
9 'Tis the Raspberry Season
Natasha Kubis
10 Women Making Music Singer Melody Cooper
Peggy Ratusz
12 The Essence of Spring
Laurie Richardone
13 Asparagus &
Sorrel Soup
Laurie Richardone
15 How to Avoid Common
Interior Design Mistakes in Your Home
Publisher
Tammy Sheppard publisherofsofia@gmail.com
Art Director / Web Design
Tina Gaafary
For Advertising Inquiries
Mike Demos 828.273.0098 mikedemos@aol.com Trish Luzzi 828.423.0248 wnccreations@gmail.com
Contributing Writers
Natasha Kubis Peggy Ratusz Veena Rhodes Laurie Richardone Julie Rorie
Photographer
Bren Dendy
P.O. Box 18416 Asheville, NC 28814 828-230.7537 thesofiamagazine.com
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Acupuncture Cupping & Yoga
Please enjoy $20 off your first session
with this ad Natasha Kubis, L.Ac.
917.576.9198 acuwellhealth@gmail.com acuwellhealth.com
For the Love of Raspberries
By Natasha Kubis
Photo by Bren Photography
For Stacy Fields, life is all about family, faith, and raspberries. Her Hendersonville based farm, Raspberry Fields, is in its fifth growing season. It provides organic and fresh raspberries, fruit preserves, raspberry vinegar, and delicious baked goods to tailgate market shoppers, local CSA's, wholesalers, restaurants, cafes, beer and cider brewers, bakeries, and other local merchants in Henderson and Buncombe Counties. Their offerings typically include pies, cobblers, muffins, sourdough bread, spiced pumpkin cheesecake, pinwheels, cookies, and pastries galore. They even cater to vegan and gluten-free diets! Stacy’s agricultural roots began in Crumpler, N.C., where as a child she tended to her grandmothers’ raspberry patches. Her family also grew Christmas trees, tobacco, and had large gardens that provided nourishment for the entire family. Being in nature and having a green thumb has always been a part of Stacy’s identity. In fact, her most loved activity is growing flowers and hiking through the wondrous Appalachian Mountains.
Although being in the garden has always been one of Stacy’s passions, she wasn’t always in the business of raspberries. Both she and her husband, Chris Fields, had been in the construction industry for many years, but during the financial crisis of 2008 to 2009, their sector had been hit hard. As a result, they decided it would be wise to diversify their streams of income and explore the farming industry. In 2015 they purchased 10.5 acres of land in Good Luck, N.C. (15 minutes from Asheville), and sowed nearly 3,000 raspberry plants, and thus, Raspberry Fields was born. They pride themselves on their organic and sustainable farming practices, as well as their beloved variety of Autumn Bliss raspberries. This bright red berry has a superior flavor profile, a long growing season, and endless health benefits.
Raspberry Fields operates all year long. They start harvesting their berries in mid to late June, and the growing season lasts all the way through October. When their fresh berry season is over, they continue selling all of their preserves, vinegars, and baked goods at the holiday markets from October through December. January is typically the month to catch up on paperwork and taxes. February, March, and April are all about the pre-season
work ensuring a healthy harvest for the rest of the year. This includes cutting the briars back down while they are dormant, replacing water lines, weeding beds, adding mulch, maintaining irrigation systems, and conducting soil testing. This Wonder Woman wears many hats. In addition to tending to her raspberries, you can also find her selling specialty windows and doors for Morrison Millwork by day, and baking pies and hand-crafted goodies for the farmer's markets on evenings and weekends. Her most beloved job of all is being a fulltime wife to Chris, and a mom to a big family of 4 children; Ashley, Jacob, Lydia, and David. One of the most pivotal moments of Stacy’s life was when she and Chris had experienced the same dream. “We both had a dream that we were going to give birth to our son, and his name was going to be David.” The dream was a profound experience for them both because at that time they had already had children who were in their teens and twenties. “We thought that we were passed that stage of our lives”, she said.
Little did they know that it would take them 3 years until their dream of baby David would come to fruition. Stacy had struggled with Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome, which had made it difficult to conceive, and after lots of heartache and struggle, they finally found a supportive and compassionate team of healthcare practitioners at Carolina Fertility and Asheville Integrative Acupuncture. Stacy was finally able to become pregnant with the son that she had dreamed of, literally! David is now two months old, and her journey to get him here has given her the insight that everything happens exactly when it’s meant to happen. “I’ve learned that timing is everything and it always works out the way it’s meant to. If we had gotten pregnant with David right away, we wouldn’t have had the time to build this network of love and support that we have today. It would have been much more difficult to do everything that we do on a day-today basis, without the friendships we have built over the past few years.” Stacy’s favorite bible verse, one that she refers to often, is Isaiah 40:31, “Those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary; they will walk and not be faint.”
“Our family trusts in the gospel, that Jesus came to pay the debt we could not, and all the promises of God. We attend Biltmore Church and attempt each day to live in a way that brings honor to the Lord”, Stacy said. You can find the Raspberry Fields bounty at the Hendersonville Farmers Market on Saturdays, the Etowah Farmers Market on Wednesdays, and the Flat Rock Farmers Market on Thursdays. Be sure to savor the taste of the fresh raspberries, jams, vinegars, breads, muffins, cobblers, and cheesecakes. Stacy’s berries are also included in the CSA for TRACTOR, a nonprofit food hub in Burnsville. You can also pick up some products at Swamp Rabbit Café and Grocery, a sustainable grocery store in Greenville, S.C. Raspberry Fields has big plans for the future and they hope to open up their farm for events, which will be perfect for all the destination weddings in the Asheville area.
Photo by Juls Buckman
Raspberry Fields
localraspberries@gmail.com raspberryfieldswnc.com Facebook and Instagram @raspberryfieldswnc
TIPS to Spring Clean
your body
By Veena Rhodes
We as a family are embarking on a big adventure (an international move) this summer and have been in the midst of some major spring cleaning. Everything from selling the “can’t live without” Honda Odyssey to pulling weeds in the backyard to make room from fresh growth. As a Lifestyle Medicine physician and holistic nutrition coach, I find myself having the conversation of “spring cleaning” often. In light of an ongoing Coronavirus pandemic, and the ramifications of it that we have seen particularly in the US, I know we have some work to do to improve the wellness of our overall population. According to the CDC, almost half of our population is obese, and as we well know, obesity alone increases the risk of the top causes of preventable death – heart disease, cancer, diabetes and stroke. Those with obesity have also been the hardest hit with the virus, whether in post-COVID syndrome or increased hospitalizations and death. But why aren’t we talking more about rehauling our food and healthcare system and not just about the short term importance of mask wearing and handwashing? Why are physicians still reimbursed on the number of patient visits and medications prescribed? Why are public schools still serving antiquated GMO-laden lunches where high fructose syrup ketchup is counted as a vegetable? That is likely worth another article altogether, but of course it comes down to politics and money. My passion in medicine has been to help transition people to become more empowered with their own health, to peel off prescription medications and to mostly avoid needing conventional “sick care” clinics altogether. Now as we start to open back up to get back to “normal” post-pandemic, I urge you to step back and take a birds eye view of your overall health.
Here are 4 nutrition tips you can institute today to start to spring clean your body:
Hydrate Aim for 0.5-1 ounce of water per your weight in pounds. Ideally on first awakening, drink 1-2 glasses of room temperature water with lemon for an alkaline detox. Eat slowly This is a lost art but so important for proper digestion, better nutrient absorption and less overeating. Take a 5-10 minute pause in between servings to allow yourself time to feel satiated. Remove processed foods If it has more than 5 ingredients in it, or ingredients that you can’t pronounce, don’t eat it. Eat as much as you can from food without labels or packaging at all. Eat more plants Every “diet” in the world agrees that eating more plants will improve brain, bone and overall health. Make it pretty and eat the rainbow! Remember, small steps lead to big steps. Pick one and stick with it for a week, then move on. And don’t beat yourself up. After a few months, you will start to see bigger changes that you never thought were possible. You will improve your energy, increase the quality of your sleep, enhance your mood, and just have more “spring” in your step. If you are on medication maybe you see them fall away. I am always excited to chat with motivated people about next steps, if you want to chat about your health journey and if you are ready to start the path to feeling your best. You’ve got this!
“Healing is a matter of time, but it is sometimes also a matter of opportunity." -Hippocrates
Veena Somani MD, ABIHM, ABLM Integrative Nutrition and Lifestyle Coach veenasomanimd.com Email: drveena @veenasomanimd.com Instagram: @veenasomanimd Facebook: Veena Somani MD
By Natasha Kubis
Not only do sweet and tart raspberries offer an interesting flavor profile for your palate, but they also have some amazing health benefits for your body. You can enjoy this delicious berry all year long, whether fresh, frozen, or preserved. The season for fresh raspberries begins in May, and depending on the variety, can last through October. Pick them straight off the bush in the summer and freeze them for baking throughout the winter. Raspberries are one of the healthiest fruits found in nature’s bounty. They provide potassium, which is essential to heart function, and they also keep your blood pressure in check. The omega-3 fatty acids in raspberries can prevent stroke and heart disease. They also contain vitamin K and a mineral called manganese, which are both necessary for healthy bones and skin. One cup of raspberries provides over 50% of the minimum daily target for vitamin C, which supports immune function and boosts collagen production for healthy skin. Raspberries also can help to regulate blood sugar, and supply smaller amounts of E and B vitamins, copper, and iron. Try these yummy recipes to get your daily dose of raspberry’s health benefits.
Refreshing Raspberry Smoothie
1 cup fresh or frozen raspberries 3-6 fresh mint leaves
1 cup pomegranate juice 1 banana
1 tablespoon protein powder Add all the ingredients to a blender and puree for about 30 seconds. Add more liquid as needed. 1 3/4 cups of whole wheat flour 1 teaspoon baking powder 1/2 teaspoon baking soda 1/2 teaspoon salt 1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil 1/2 cup honey or maple syrup 2 eggs 1 cup plain Greek yogurt 2 teaspoons vanilla extract Zest of 1 medium lemon
1 1/2 cups of raspberries Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Grease a 12-cup muffin tin. In a large mixing bowl, combine and whisk the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. In a medium mixing bowl, combine the oil, and honey or maple syrup, and beat together with a whisk. Add the eggs and beat well, then add the yogurt, vanilla, and lemon zest. Mix well. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry and mix with a big spoon, just until combined. Gently fold the raspberries into the batter. Divide the batter evenly between the 12 muffin cups. Bake the muffins for 22 to 24 minutes, or until the muffins are golden on top and a toothpick inserted into a muffin comes out clean.
Natasha Kubis is a licensed acupuncturist and certified yoga teacher. For more information, visit
acuwellhealth.com
Women Making Music
Spotlight on Harpist, Jazz Pianist, Singer Melody Cooper
Melody’s talking voice is rich and warm. As we commiserate on the day I interviewed her, we begin by talking about what’s on the docket for her upcoming weekend of playing harp at weddings in Tennessee. I am soothed by her calm and inviting persona. Funny, because she was born in Brooklyn and moved to Long Island when she was twelve. While we’re conversing I think about all the people I know from that area and most of them are not as calm and cool as Cooper. “The short version of my story is that I moved out when I was seventeen,” and then she pauses and asks “How do I tell a short version of my life?” We laugh and I assure her that she can give me the long one. “My family was lovely, but Long Island and I were not a good fit. I moved out when I was seventeen and in with my boyfriend at the time.” That boyfriend had marriage and kids in his future plans while Melody’s path was one of adventure, travel and music. So it was goodbye and so long as she headed to Toronto to visit a friend named Marguerite. Now, Marguerite is important to this story because she’s my connection to Melody Cooper. Marguerite and her husband Joe and I became good friends after they moved here from New York many years ago. I’ve been hearing about Melody Cooper for at least the past 10 years! Car trouble was the reason a fateful trip with friends that was originally scheduled to end up in NOLA for Mardi Gras, ended up instead, in Key West Florida in 1972. As Melody stepped out of the broken-down van, she meets a woman named “Sunshine” whose spirit so captivates and aligns with Melody’s spirit that Sunshine offers up her newly vacated apartment and invites her to move into it! When the other friends move on, Melody stays on. That pivotal time marked the beginning of what would end up being a 15 year run where Cooper migrated back and forth between her apartment in Florida and her apartment in New York before settling in Key West. And all the while, she immersed herself in a variety of music configurations. Where she found time to run a restaurant, I have no idea, but she did that too!
Formed in 1998 and still going, Paradise Big Band out of Key West was the name of the orchestra Miss Melody sang and played piano for during that time. She was part of a chamber music ensemble called Bach to Bossa Nova, and an all-girl fronted Motown revue called The Fabulous Spectrelles that toured London and had a #1 record!
Trained in Classical piano from age seven, the inspiration for learning about, singing and playing jazz music started with a radio station in NYC that played entire discographies of selected Jazz artists. “I fell in love with Jazz when I was 13. I had a transistor radio and in the middle of the night I listened to a radio program that played entire libraries of artists like John Coltrane and Sarah Vaughn.” “I was just so shy and quiet that it wasn’t until my mid-twenties, that I started singing. I was really interested in singing jazz, but for a long time I
Photos by Ralph De Palma
Melody Cooper
was playing Jazz piano and singing solo soprano opera!” “Extreme shyness” is an affliction she overcomes out of pure desire and passion for playing and singing to live audiences. “I forced myself to take chances. Moving out on my own, traveling alone, solo gigs and pushing myself, eventually helped me get over my extreme shyness. I started thinking about what it would take to trust myself. I convinced myself that once I put my hands on an instrument or opened my mouth to sing, I wasn’t going to suck. That’s when the true magic and connection to the music happened.” Most of her musical training comes from the tutelage of notable private instructors. “Instead of going through a university, studying from someone who has the book, I took private classes from the person who wrote the book.” She studied with Barry Harris, Alberto Socarras and Franko Richmond. For voice she learned directly from Emily Boyd-Lowe and Patricia Caceido. She and her common law husband, Dan Simpson, met thirty-five years ago. “He’s a brilliant engineer, bassist, guitarist, composer and instrument builder.”
In the 70’s and 80’s Jazz, Latin, Motown and Funk dance bands were coming out of Key West. “Dan and I were in a band called Bill Blue and the Nervous Guys. But I started to feel overwhelmed about spending so much of my time in bars. So I began looking for other ways to make a living as a musician. I started teaching voice and I became the music director at a Unity Church in Key West.”
Simpson and Cooper have been coming through Asheville for many years on their way to and from 150 acres that Simpson owns in Palestine, West Virginia. After some bad hurricanes they started rethinking living in Key West. “So we decided to build a cabin on the property. We actually hand built it with 2 other friends.” For a while, they split their time between the cabin in WV and their place in Key West while deciding when to move out of Florida entirely. “We had the high end trailer with a studio and an upper deck in Stock Island, FL and then this cabin in the middle of the woods in WV. We called it the Holiday Hillbilly package!” The couple remains partners in a recording studio in Key West called Private Ear Recording and Sound. In its heyday, they ran the entire operation. It was the go-to studio in the area for singer songwriters and bands putting out CD’s, theaters that needed sound effects for books on tape and more. As the internet age gave way to musicians building home studios and with the increasing cost of living and the increasing intensity of hurricanes and storms in the Keys, they felt like they were spinning wheels. Before she and Dan left Key West to settle here, she was working 4 or 5 jobs and swore she’d never put herself through that stress and fast pace again. “We chose Asheville because I knew it was a destination place.” When it became obvious to her, in her mid-fifties, that hiring a piano player for weddings wasn’t as popular as hiring a harpist, she bought one and taught herself how to play it! Within 6 months she was playing weddings regularly and has been ever since.
Melody has become one of the premier harpist’s in WNC and has performed at all the significant wedding venues in the area. She’s written a catalog of original songs for popular and inspirational music. And if that wasn’t enough she is also an accomplished public speaker and yoga instructor! From her website: “All of this background has given me a varied repertoire, and a love for all types of music, roots to modern.”
Dig Deep, Practice and... Find Your Voice
Blues Jazz �� Soul
Pop Rock Country
Pre-Teens to Pre-Teens to Baby Boomers Baby Boomers
Novice to professional Novice to professional
Peggy Ratusz Vocal Coach 828.301.6768
peggymarie43@gmail.com reverbnation.com/peggyratusz
Peggy Ratusz is a vocalist, songwriter and vocal coach
peggymarie43@gmail.com reverbnation.com/peggyratusz loveisaroselive.com
Peggy’s May performance dates: Friday, May 14th, Catawba South Slope, 7pm-10pm Sunday, May 16th, Southern Appalachian Brewery, 3pm-5pm
Peggy Ratusz is a vocal coach, song interpreter, and songwriter. For vocal coaching email her at
peggymarie43 @gmail.com
The Essence of Spring
By Laurie Richardone
Is it just me or do you think everyone feels the transformation of energy that the spring brings?
Speaking of energy,
Yin yang energy is split into what the Chinese call the Five Elements. They represent the 5 phases of ‘Qi’ (chi) which flows through nature and in our bodies.
The springtime is the season of the Wood Element, a time of big change, forceful and upward energy that holds purpose and structure.
In nature’s wisdom the color of the Wood element is green, like unripe fruit.
This season brings the first sight of the daffodil shoots bursting out of the ground, fruit trees starting to flower, and Asparagus shoots start to make their debut. These are the signs of new birth,
How do we connect to this natural birthing of spring? What do we need to shift in this magical time of the year.?
For me, as a seasonal chef, and health coach, It begins with food.
I start to crave lighter ingredients, like the tenderness of spring vegetables, and sweet young greens. Our body with its infinite intelligence will have us lean into this opportune season.
Here is my favorite new recipe, that conjures the essence of spring.
Happy Cooking…
Asparagus & Sorrel Soup
by Laurie Richardone
Serves 4 2 Bunches Asparagus 1 large bunch of sorrel 1/2 cup goat yogurt, or other 1/2 lemon, juiced 1 tbsp. brown butter 1 tbsp. sea salt, to salt water for asparagus fresh herbs, like dill, or parsley, for garnish, optional
Trim asparagus spears, leaving the tips and about 2 inches.
In a shallow large pan filled with water, and sea salt, bring to a gentle boil. Place asparagus in the water, and cook for 3-4 minutes. Have an ice water bath ready, to submerge the asparagus in after cooking. This step will keep the
color vibrant. Keep out a few asparagus spears to garnish the soup. Lay in the center of the bowl.
Keep the salted water you cooked asparagus aside. Some of the water will go into the blender with other ingredients to make the soup.
Take the vein out of sorrel leaves, and set aside. The leaves will be kept raw, to blend with blanched asparagus.
In a small pan on medium heat, brown the butter until a golden color.
Put all the ingredients in a blender or food processor. Add 1 cup of asparagus water to start. Blend until combined and the consistency you like. Taste for seasoning. Sprinkle with herbs if using.
Cooks note: If sorrel isn’t available use watercress or arugula leaves. Keep raw.
Buon Appetito
For scheduled Cooking Classes in Asheville, Visit:
LaurieRichardone.com
How To Avoid Common Interior Design Mistakes In Your Home
By Julie Rorie
Between selecting furniture, experimenting with paint samples or hanging art, there are hundreds of small decisions that go into styling the perfect space. Even the slightest error in judgement can have a detrimental effect on a room. Use these insider tips to prevent a design faux pas in your home.
Buy Furniture that Varies in Height
Scale and proportion are the holy grail of design. If all of your furniture is the same size, your room will feel uninviting, and uninteresting. Think of your room as a cityscape and fill it with a combination of heights, widths, and depths. Rooms need a stimulating mix of scale and shapes to make them feel right.
Choose the Right Rug
Rugs can completely transform a room and create a focal point of interest, but it can be hard to judge the correct size for your home. A rug should ground the space and encompass all seating around it. An appropriately sized rug tells everyone “this is the conversation area”. Living rooms almost always need a rug that’s at least 8x10 ft. to 9x12 ft. A 4x6 ft. rug is fine next to a bed, or in a kitchen/foyer, but will most likely not work in a living room. Area rugs should ideally be big enough to fit at least the front legs of all chairs/sofas on them. Be Careful Not to Hang Art Too High
Finding the perfect piece of art for your home is only half the challenge. The mistake happens when art is hung too high or in an inappropriate spot.
Hang art so that the center is at eye-level. If the art is to hang above a piece of furniture, hang it so that the bottom of the frame hits 3-4 inches above it.
Layer your Lighting
Lighting decisions might seem like a practical part of the design process, but it’s an aspect people often misjudge. Lighting is incredibly important to any space. When lighting is washed over you from above, it can be unflattering and harsh. The best spaces have a plethora of light sources to create various ambiances. Have lights on dimmers and from multiple sources at different heights, such as floor lamps and table lamps. Always choose soft white bulbs as harsh fluorescent or white lights make a space feel stark and uninviting. Warm lighting not only sets the mood, but also makes a room feel intimate and inviting.
Try Placing Furniture Off the Wall
People often fall into the simple styling trap of this linear arrangement which is not cozy or inviting and can discourage conversation. In the end, it doesn’t save or create more space. Try conversational furniture placement, which focuses on grouping accents. Pull pieces toward one another and off the walls to create more intimate, useful seating. If you’re unsure, play with different groupings. The most common layout is facing a sofa opposite two arm chairs with a coffee table in the middle.
Julie Rorie
Interior Decorator, Closet Organizer Facebook - Simply Posh Asheville Instagram @simplyposhasheville Email: simplyposhasheville @gmail.com
