Right off the bat I want to say that I don’t think I would be off base to point out that baseball has become a part of our everyday life and language. Even people who aren’t fans of the game use a lot of baseball words and phrases every day.

Just to warm up I might use about 20 baseball phrases in this post, but that’s just a ballpark figure.  See if you can find them.

If you aren’t a baseball lover, don’t balk at this post because it could be a strike against you.

So let’s begin with love.

San Francisco pitchers and catchers reported to spring training this year on Valentines Day, so there is definitely a love connection here.  Okay…you might think that connection is out of left field…but, I’m just trying to cover all my bases.

If you aren’t a lover of baseball, but you consider yourself to be a lover in the more general sense, I don’t mean to throw you a curve, but you probably know the score. You think you can get to first base, but there are lots of times that you’ve struck out.  And a lot of those so-called lovers just want to play the field.

There’s a saying that something is “as American as baseball, motherhood and apple pie”.  So, on deck, in the kitchen, we have the mother who is whipping up the batter. “Hey batter, batter, batter…” I know, that’s cheating – but if the “bunt” cake or the apple pie is a stunning success, we might say that she hit a home run with her recipe!  And if every single thing she made was absolutely delicious, we could say she is batting a thousand.

Now let’s take a short-stop, and have our legal system step up to the plate. We know about the three strikes law, where the court plays hardball with previously convicted felons who ran afoul with the law.

Okay, let’s turn two. Our current economy could be said to be in the hole but it could rally.  A lot of good people are looking for work but they start out with two strikes against them.

Then every once in a while, I talk to someone who gets a great job promotion and feels like he has made it to the big leagues. So keep your eye on the ball and remember, “It’s not over till it’s over!”

…and in the meantime,

Take me out to the ballgame,

Take me out with the crowd.

Buy me some peanuts and crackerjack.

I don’t care if I never get back.

Let me root, root, root, for the home team.

If they don’t win it’s a shame. 

For it’s one, two, three strikes you’re out at the old ball game!

I had always heard about Esau trading his birthright for a bowl of lentil pottage or stew, but for most of my life I didn’t have any idea what lentils were.

Now, in recent years, I’ve become quite adventurous in trying new foods – or actually in this case,  old foods.

Lentils have been a staple for thousands of years, as we know from the Genesis story of Jacob’s culinary achievement.

And I learned that there are at least 99 other verses in the bible that mention lentils.

So lentils are a truly biblical food.

No wonder the lentil stew I made last night was such a hit with the ladies who came to my bible study.

And most of them probably didn’t even know that lentils provide 18 grams of protein per cup, at about 200 calories, with less than 1 gram of fat, and no cholesterol.  Wow!

Here’s my recipe for this very inexpensive, easy, and healthy stew.

2 pounds of lentils

2 large onions, diced

8 cloves garlic, minced

3 bay leaves

1 #10 can of chopped tomatoes

3 tbsp olive oil

3 quarts of water (you can substitute chicken broth if you prefer.)

Heat the olive oil in a large, heavy soup pot and add the onion and garlic.

Cook until transparent.

Add the lentils.

Add the water and tomatoes.

Add bay leaves and bring it to a boil. 

Simmer until the lentils are tender.  About an hour.

Stir from time to time and add a little more water if it seems too dry.

Salt and pepper to taste.

Serve it with a nice hearty bread.