Greetings from the Lakes District in Northern England where I’ve come to celebrate my birthday. It is my habit to spend this day in symbolic gesture of how I want the coming year to unfold. It is fitting then that I am beginning my 48th year surrounded by stunning mountain views through miles of walking trails, for come October I am taking on my biggest challenge yet. I will be spending three weeks trekking up to Annapurna Base Camp in Nepal.

How I get myself into these things I never know. It could be my utter inability to say no to an adventure. Whether it’s starting my own business, writing a book, eating nothing but raw food for six months or walking for three weeks in thin air, I say yes to everything well before I know the full extent of what I am getting myself into. Once committed there is only one way to continue and that is to the finish line.

When I told my friend Mike about Nepal he got a little freaked and worried if I had the right gear for it. Gear? I need special gear? First clue. When I told my client Brian, reassuring him that I’d be fine since I’d done the Tour du Mont Blanc (TMB) after all, his exact words were: “That’s Junior Varsity compared to Annapurna”… okayyyy… perhaps I didn’t think this through…

But what I have in my corner is a tried and true mountaineer. I met Fozzy on the very last night of Mont Blanc and he’s since become one of my favorite people. When he threw out an invitation for Nepal to the group of TMB’ers we are connected with, I waited all of three seconds before writing back yes. I was the only one. So we are off come October to walk for days in altitudes that exceed 14 thousand feet. An adventure indeed.

Momo’s, steamed dumplings filled with chopped vegetables, are a traditional dish of Tibet but prevalent in Nepal. Served with dipping sauce that can be anything from a chutney to a soy sauce and sesame oil, they are divine. So today, on my birthday day, in symbolic gesture of all I want to make manifest in the year ahead, I am writing, making Momo’s and taking a walk through the hills of Grasmere. I can’t recall a birthday where I’ve been as happy.

Thank you for being my inspiration. It is because of all of you that I am always on the lookout for new recipes to try and adventures to share. I hope you enjoy the Momo’s as much as I have.

Have a great week and stay well!
xo
B

Momos Recipe

Usually made with all-purpose flour, I made these with gluten-free flour and a medley of vegetables I was able to pick up in the local market. I hope you enjoy them and do let me know what you think once you’ve tried them. They are healthy and delicious and a great way to get more vegetables in your diet in a new and inspired way.

Ingredients

Dumplings:

• 1 cup all purpose gluten free flour
• 1 tsp Himalayan Salt
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 egg white
• Water… as needed

Filling:

• 2 cups assorted vegetables (I used a medley but you can use anything you have in the fridge)
• 2 cloves garlic
• 2 scallions

Sauce:

• 1 tbsp Tamari
• 1 tsp Sesame oil

Directions

• To make the dumplings mix the flour and salt together.
• Mix in the olive oil and egg white. Then add water incrementally until it makes a smooth pliable dough. Cover and set aside.
• In a food processor, mince garlic. Add the vegetables and pulse until the vegetables are finely chopped. Slice the scallions thinly (white parts only) and mix in with the vegetable mixture.
• Roll dough out on a floured surface until it’s the thickness of 2 stacked quarters (25c coins). Using a cookie cutter or a drinking glass, cut dough into discs. Peel away the outer edges, roll out and cut again until all the dough is used.
• Roll each disc out until it’s the thickness of a single quarter and then fill each disc with vegetable mixture.
• Fold over into a half-moon shape, and crimp the edges together. Repeat until you have used up all the discs and vegetables.
• Steam dumplings in a steamer for about 5 minutes.
• Serve with tamari-sesame sauce and enjoy.

Makes about 15 momos, depending on size of disc.