Fir Sugar Spiced Edible Stardust
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Too many of us look in the mirror and see only wrinkles or dark spots or sagging skin. Especially in the contrasting light of early spring, the newfound busy-ness that can feel overwhelming, in the last stretch of a pandemic that we all experienced as a collective trauma. Perhaps we sometimes feel like our light has been dimmed, that our reflection is a little less vibrant than we want it to be. But staring back at us from that silvered glass is stardust.
It sounds poetic, but I mean that in a literal sense. Every cell in your body contains the same building blocks as those twinkling lights in the sky, the same ancient magic that forms the constellations we gaze at on long spring nights. In the beautiful words of Nikita Gill:
“We have calcium in our bones, iron in our veins, carbon in our souls, and nitrogen in our brains. 93 percent stardust, with souls made of flames, we are all just stars that have people names.”
There’s as many atoms in a single molecule of your DNA as there are stars in the typical galaxy. We are, each of us, a little universe. Your presence on this planet is nothing short of a miracle; billions of tiny little atoms are arranged just so to make you, you. So soften those harsh lines and look at the beauty that radiates from yourself. Notice how all of those little imperfections are part of a bigger picture of life, and history, and stars.
You may not believe in magic,
But don’t you think it strange,
The amount of matter in our universe,
Has never slightly changed,
That all which makes your body,
Was once part of something more,
And every breath you ever breathe,
Has seen it all before,
There are countless scores of beauty,
In all the things that you despise,
It could once have been a shooting star
That now makes up your thighs,
And atoms of forgotten life,
Who’ve long since ceased to roam,
May now have the great honour,
To call your crooked smile their home,
You may not believe in magic,
But I thought that you should know,
The makings of your heart were born,
Fourteen billion years ago,
So next time you feel lonely,
When this world makes you feel small,
Just remember that it’s part of you,
And you’re part of it all.
-e.h.
If you need a daily reminder of just how amazingly magical you are, whip up some stardust sugar. It’s marvelous sprinkled on hot drinks, and looks wonderful dusting the top of shortbread - the sparkles seem to intensify during baking!
Fir Sugar Spiced Stardust:
The crisp and refreshing scent of fir reminds us of Christmas and days spent in the snow. The nostalgia of fir is highlighted with the sweetness of vanilla beans. Cardamom and black pepper add a complex spiciness that’s extra warming and delightful. Sprinkle this on lattes, cookies, cakes, or anything else that needs a bit of sparkle and flavor!
Ingredients:
1 c. granulated sugar
Fir branch
1 drop fir needle essential oil
1 tsp. Vanilla bean paste
1 Tbs. edible mica tinker dust
¼ tsp. Ground cardamom
¼ tsp. Ground black pepper
Directions:
Place the granulated sugar and the fir branch in a clean glass jar and seal it up. Leave for a couple of weeks, then pull out the fir branch. Sift the sugar.
Add the essential oil and vanilla bean paste and mix well, until both are evenly distributed. Add the tinker dust and mix well. Spread the mixture out on a parchment-lined cookie sheet to dry thoroughly, then pass it through a sieve.
Add the cardamom and black pepper and mix well, then transfer the mixture to shaker bottles.
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Join me for a little winter night magic as we bake this cake full of rich seasonal flavors and black cocoa!