tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-42295438567455987302024-02-19T02:12:03.730-08:00Laura's Making....I'm not a professional chef, and I don't have a commercial kitchen, but cooking is my passion! I'm always making something, dreaming up new dishes, and occasionally entering recipe contests. Most of my dishes are vegetarian, but I'll make meat for my family now and again. Cooking is how I stay creative, how I stay connected with myself, and how I stay grounded. Many problems were worked out over a chefs knife, or a good meal. Welcome to my world! Laurahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13698780444143875485noreply@blogger.comBlogger19125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4229543856745598730.post-46354470101850895432014-08-06T14:06:00.002-07:002014-08-07T10:23:09.908-07:00Fermenting Pickles: A Hopefully Simple Tutorial<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">First let's talk about the basics: The basic process is to wash and clean cucumbers, add them to a seasoned salt water brine and allow time to run it's course in a room temperature environment. As time goes on the vegetable will release <i style="background-color: white; color: #252525; line-height: 22.399999618530273px;">Lactobacillus </i><span style="background-color: white; color: #252525; line-height: 22.399999618530273px;">into the brine (Lactic Acid) and you will end up with a wonderful tasting pickle. You may encounter some yeast, mold, or scum along the way.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #252525; line-height: 22.399999618530273px;">Then off to the fridge they go, where the culture will be slowed to a craw, and your pickles can be stored until you are done eating them. </span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #252525; line-height: 22.399999618530273px;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #252525; line-height: 22.399999618530273px;">Things that impact your pickle making process:</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #252525; line-height: 22.399999618530273px;">Time</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #252525; line-height: 22.399999618530273px;">Sterility</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #252525; line-height: 22.399999618530273px;">Freshness of produce</span></span><br />
<span style="color: #252525;"><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 22.399999618530273px;">External </span><span style="line-height: 22.399999618530273px;">Temperature</span></span><br />
<span style="color: #252525;"><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 22.399999618530273px;"> Light</span></span><br />
<span style="color: #252525;"><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 22.399999618530273px;"> Salt content</span></span><br />
<span style="color: #252525;"><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 22.399999618530273px;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="color: #252525;"><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 22.399999618530273px;">Hopefully this tutorial will help you in making a wonderful, and tasty old fashioned pickle full of tummy loving good bacteria.</span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #252525;"><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 22.399999618530273px;">This recipe is for a 2 gallon crock, or 2 one gallon jars.</span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #252525;"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: inherit; line-height: 22.399999618530273px;"><b>10 lbs pickling cucumbers- the fresher the better</b></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #252525;"><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: inherit; line-height: 22.399999618530273px;"><b>2/3 cup non-iodized salt without caking agent. (canning salt, pickling salt, kosher salt, sea salt etc.) Keep in mind each flake size of salt is different. This recipe is using kosher salt so if you are using a large flake salt from the high reaches of the Himalayan mountains you might need a little more to achieve the same salinity. </b></span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #252525;"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: inherit; line-height: 22.399999618530273px;"><b>4-6 tablespoon of pickling seasoning</b></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #252525;"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: inherit; line-height: 22.399999618530273px;"><b>10 heads of dill (You can never have too much dill in a dill pickle.) </b></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #252525;"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: inherit; line-height: 22.399999618530273px;"><b>6 cloves of garlic (optional, but you are not eating MY pickles if you don't include it!) </b></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #252525;"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: inherit; line-height: 22.399999618530273px;"><b>1-2 chili peppers if desired. (optional) </b></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #252525;"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: inherit; line-height: 22.399999618530273px;"><b>Non chlorinated water</b></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #252525;"><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 22.399999618530273px;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><b>Grape or oak leaves to cover your jar.</b></span><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"> </span></span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #252525;"><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 22.399999618530273px;">As you can tell my pickling recipe is very based on taste. I learned from an old Jewish recipe that is like a lot of old recipes- a splash, a dash, a shake of this or that. I did modify it for safe canning practices. </span></span><br />
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The only things you can't adapt are the salt amount, and don't add sugar.<br />
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1) Start by inspecting your cucumbers for softness, and rot, and scraping the blossom end off the cucumber.<br />
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This is the blossom end of the cucumber. It's brown and paper and comes off easily with a butter knife, or a fingernail.<br />
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The blossom should be removed entirely.<br />
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See the contrast? The one on the right has it's blossom end totally removed.<br />
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This is a blossom end removed.<br />
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Then give your cucumbers a good washing! This will wash away any residual blossom, or dirt. Wash them in a bowl of clear water to help refresh older cucumbers.<br />
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<b>DO NOT USE SOAP! ESPECIALLY ANTI-MICROBIAL/ANTI-BACTERIAL SOAP</b><br />
It can impact your ferment. If you are concerned about pesticide residue fill a large bowl with cool water and vinegar and then rinse well.<br />
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Now it's time to fill our jar! I'm using a 2 gallon Anchor Hocking glass canister for my ferments. These can be purchased for about $10 at Wal-Mart or at second hand stores. I like this jar because it has a loose fitting lid that gas can escape.<br />
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You can use pickling crocks, gallon jars, half gallon jars, quarts, or food grade buckets with lids and airlocks. Basically what I'm saying is don't go out and spend a fortune to learn to pickle. Use whatever you can get your hands on.<br />
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I add all spices, garlic and dill to the bottom of the jar to stop them from floating to the top. In pickling air creates spoilage so the more you can keep in the brine the better.<br />
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Once all of your spices are in add your salt. (We had to add more salt due to the large flake of the salt we had on hand.) The salt is a very important part of this process. It both draws the natural juices out of the vegetables, and also preserves the produce until the lactic acid takes over. DO NOT TRY TO CUT THE SALT DOWN! This is not a low salt process.<br />
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Add about 1/2 cup of filtered, non-chlorinated water to the bottom of the jar to create a strong salt brine.<br />
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Now jam your cucumbers in! They work best when you stack them length wise tight in your jar. In larger containers you can do two layers of pickles. The tighter the pickles are in the jar, the less likely they are to float when you pour your water in.<br />
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Because this jar doesn't taper at the top we put the grape leaves in between the rows of cucumbers.<br />
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This is a gallon jar, filled with two layers of cucumbers and then grape leaves are added on top.<br />
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Fill your jar to the top with water, covering all the vegetables, and <u>put a loose fitting lid on top.</u><br />
Air needs to escape your brine. If using mason jars don't use the lids, only the rings with a clean kitchen towel or paper towel inserted.<br />
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For this process I like non-chlorinated water without fluoride, but do not use distilled water.<br />
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Place your jar in a cool dark place. Pickle cultures do best in an environment between 40-74 degrees F. Any hotter and you could get yeast over growth that will soften pickles, any cooler and your ferment will slow to a crawl. If your house is hotter then 74 degrees (like mine) any glass container can be set in a bowl, or tote full of cool water to maintain a more even fermentation temperature.<br />
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Check your ferment daily. Push any vegetables back under the brine to prevent spoilage, and make sure you scrape any scum off the top of the brine. Scum will be a off white film with out fuzzy mold, or odd colors.<br />
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Small patches of mold can form too. Gray and fuzzy is harmless but might make your ferment a little "earthier" in flavor. <br />
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This is day 2 of a pickle making. One pickle has managed to float to the top and will need to be pushed back down into the brine. Notice the bubbles, they are a good sign that your culture is working!<br />
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Fermentation time is variable based on temperature, and the longer you allow them to sit the more intense they become. Test one after a week, but it can take up to 4 weeks depending on temperature, and how fermented you like your pickle.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3UuG65C4UljlXTLi7TRw38Zps4R777Xw4IAplO5O7TKRlZzGgd7kogfew3-cKktdEw2fgw0k93gtqUYIGSnmFCS0vQfTShnVPPN_05jWazX-SOeldgIsQrlwMddysH-sqEeo5Mp1SPvM/s1600/01ae8f50390cd41104192d4b3f46734967f8287374.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3UuG65C4UljlXTLi7TRw38Zps4R777Xw4IAplO5O7TKRlZzGgd7kogfew3-cKktdEw2fgw0k93gtqUYIGSnmFCS0vQfTShnVPPN_05jWazX-SOeldgIsQrlwMddysH-sqEeo5Mp1SPvM/s1600/01ae8f50390cd41104192d4b3f46734967f8287374.jpg" height="200" width="150" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrrzRmPNYiwq75MQB5sqOb4It9sbF6JVT4Paf9Fsg5N6RWaXg50IOhHn2oSRn0nDCnufDTksJ0PYpGYSFmBQjpKmeb-S-docQhv85SRnX9Pc7tq7Rt-wZRaA9fuo0IBB2-kub9Vnib-XQ/s1600/0175b71e26f37805d75ae8c3f9b8bbb4b5cfeacba6.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrrzRmPNYiwq75MQB5sqOb4It9sbF6JVT4Paf9Fsg5N6RWaXg50IOhHn2oSRn0nDCnufDTksJ0PYpGYSFmBQjpKmeb-S-docQhv85SRnX9Pc7tq7Rt-wZRaA9fuo0IBB2-kub9Vnib-XQ/s1600/0175b71e26f37805d75ae8c3f9b8bbb4b5cfeacba6.jpg" height="200" width="150" /></a>A finished pickle will turn olive in color, and be translucent. The brine will also be cloudy and that is okay. <br />
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<b>MY FAVORITE QUESTION:</b><br />
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<b><span style="color: red;">HOW DO I KNOW IF MY PICKLE WENT BAD? </span></b><br />
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Humans survival has been closely linked to determining if food is bad using our instincts. Does it look bad? Does it smell bad? Does it feel bad? Does it taste bad?<br />
Notice the order? You have 3 senses you use before anything ever gets into your mouth. And if you still decide to taste it, a bad pickle will not be swallowed!<br />
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If a pickle has red or pink mold, an off smell, or is slimy don't eat it!<br />
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<b>Trust me! You will know when a pickle brine as gone bad. </b></div>
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But let's not end on that note! </div>
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This is 25lbs of pickles. What are you going to do with all of those pickles? Most people don't have enough room in their fridge. You are able to can your fermented pickle! As long as your ph is under 4.6 your pickle is safe for canning! I test mine with test strips from the brewery supply store, or you can use this guide produced by the government and add vinegar to your batch: <a href="http://nchfp.uga.edu/how/can_06/dill_pickles.html" target="_blank">What your government says to do</a>.<br />
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I do not personally like vinegar added my ferment, because part of the reason I ferment is to avoid the vinegar. But I do follow their canning process in the link above when I get ready to can.<br />
Also if you notice their recipe requires a great deal more salt because of the vinegar and salt need to strike a balance. This is a newer guideline, but it is the guideline so I'm including it. Anything you do otherwise is obviously at your own (relatively low) risk. Notice also the time frame for a fermented pickle is much longer with vinegar.<br />
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<span style="text-align: start;">And finally you should know you can ferment in spears, sandwich slices, pickle chips or whole.</span></div>
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<span style="text-align: start;">Processing times will very based on how much inner flesh of the pickle is exposed because the brine will permeate faster then with whole pickles, and lactic acid will be released faster. </span></div>
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<span style="text-align: start;">I hope this helps in your pickling journey! Don't be afraid, worst case you throw away some cucumbers and start over! </span></div>
Laurahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13698780444143875485noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4229543856745598730.post-51252462819817877552013-12-14T01:54:00.000-08:002013-12-17T14:58:30.708-08:00Chickpeas Stewed in African Peanut Sauce with Sweet Potatoes and Brown RiceBecoming a vegetarian as a young adult greatly influenced my interest in cooking. When I first became a vegetarian I found it challenging to make the recipes I loved as a meat eater adapted to my new vegetarian diet. When I got married the challenge grew because I had someone else to cook for! Someone who wasn't a vegetarian, and who wasn't open to becoming a vegetarian.<br />
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In order to get my husband to eat vegetarian I have to entice him. I have to bait him with new flavors, interesting textures, and me proudly announcing that our families entire dinner only cost a few dollars! </div>
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Recently I found a contest focused on frozen vegetarian foods from Cedarlane Foods, and was enticed to enter. Even though it was a voting contest and I've sworn them off my mind started racing with the kind of food and flavors I would want in a frozen vegetarian meal. The end result was me trying my hand at making several vegetarian entrees and freezing enough meals that my family will have dinner on busy nights during the holidays. Some of the meals were old standbys I had never though to freeze, and some of the meals featured new and interesting flavors. </div>
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All of my recipes can be seen in the links below: </div>
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<a href="http://woobox.com/qdo8qp/vote/for/1761368">Chickpeas in African Peanut Sauce with Sweet Potatoes Over Brown Rice</a></div>
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<a href="http://woobox.com/qdo8qp/vote/for/1761286">Caribbean Jerk Red Beans and Coconut Rice</a></div>
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<a href="http://woobox.com/qdo8qp/vote/for/1761328">Cuban Black Beans with Quinoa</a></div>
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<a href="http://woobox.com/qdo8qp/vote/for/1761239">Mushroom Stroganoff with Broccoli </a></div>
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Feel free to vote on one of these recipes, or all of them. My favorite is the African peanut sauce.</div>
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The best part of this recipe contest is that I ended up with so many cook ahead meal in my freezer! It will be great for the holiday season when things are so much busier, but I have a feeling we'll be adding these wonderful meals into our regular rotation year round. </div>
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Chickpeas in African Peanut Sauce Over Rice with Sweet
Potatoes and Red Peppers<o:p></o:p></div>
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Sweet potatoes:<o:p></o:p></div>
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1 Tbsp. Peanut Oil<o:p></o:p></div>
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2 Sweet Potatoes peeled and diced<o:p></o:p></div>
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Salt and pepper<o:p></o:p></div>
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Preheat oven to 375 degrees<o:p></o:p></div>
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Coat sweet potatoes in oil and roast in the oven for about 1
hour or until sweet potatoes are tender.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Peanut Sauce:<o:p></o:p></div>
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½ Tbsp. peanut oil<o:p></o:p></div>
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1 white onion diced<o:p></o:p></div>
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2 green peppers diced<o:p></o:p></div>
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2 cloves garlic<o:p></o:p></div>
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2 cups water<o:p></o:p></div>
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1 can of tomatoes<o:p></o:p></div>
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1 cup of low sugar natural peanut butter<o:p></o:p></div>
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Salt and pepper<o:p></o:p></div>
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¼ tsp red chili pepper flakes (optional)<o:p></o:p></div>
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2 cups of prepared and drained chickpeas (or 2 cans) <o:p></o:p></div>
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In a heavy skillet add oil and
onions and cook until translucent. Add peppers, and garlic and cook until
peppers just softened. Add water, tomatoes, peanut butter and season to taste.
Add red chili pepper flakes and allow to simmer for about 15 minutes until
flavors are combined. Add chickpeas and heat through.</div>
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Serve over long grain brown rice. <br />
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The greatest part of this dish is watching my husbands face as he tries it and proclaims it good. Knowing he will go to his office with left overs proudly, and that I replaced another hamburger in the course of his life with something much much better. </div>
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Laurahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13698780444143875485noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4229543856745598730.post-10886584022970440342013-11-22T22:56:00.000-08:002013-11-22T23:00:48.349-08:00It's Friday! How about a drink? Sloe Gin FizzI'm from Portland, Oregon so when the song Portland, Oregon came out by Loretta Lynn and Jack White I was naturally a fan, the lyrics start like this:<br />
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<span style="background-color: white; font-family: proxnov-reg, arial, sans-serif; line-height: 16px;">"Well, Portland Oregon and sloe gin fizz</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: proxnov-reg, arial, sans-serif; line-height: 16px;">If that ain't love, then tell me what is, uh huh, uh huh"</span><br />
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As a Portland girl this song grabbed my attention, after all I like my home, I like fizz, and I like gin... but what on earth is a sloe? (Sounds like slow) I decided to start a journey that required me to look for liquor in two shops before enjoying this Loretta Lynn inspired cocktail.<br />
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If you are wondering why you have never heard of a sloe gin but Loretta Lynn has, it's because it's a really old drink. It was popular before prohibition in America, and then received a resurgence in the 1950's. I was not alive during either of these periods. <br />
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To start out with let's talk about sloe. Sloe (Prunus spinosa) also known as a blackthorn bush is a bush that grows in the UK.<br />
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<span style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 16px;"><br style="box-sizing: border-box;" />The berries themselves are astringent, but they make a tasty cordial. If you happen to have some sloe sitting around you can make your own sloe gin by following direction here: </span><br />
<span style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 16px;"><a href="http://www.choosy-beggars.com/index.php/2011/01/27/what-to-drink-this-week-sloe-gin/">http://www.choosy-beggars.com/index.php/2011/01/27/what-to-drink-this-week-sloe-gin/</a></span><br />
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But I don't, so instead I bought this:<br />
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and this:<br />
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Made Simple Syrup- It was simple!<br />
1/4 cup sugar 1/2 cup water. Cook until dissolved and chill for any time you want to get your drink on.<br />
If you don't want to make that much, or way way more the recipe is simple. 1 to 2 ratio. 1 part sugar, 2 parts water.<br />
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And made this:<br />
Sloe Gin Fizz<br />
1 oz slow gin<br />
1 oz gin<br />
1/2 oz lemon juice<br />
1/2 oz simple syrup<br />
3-4oz soda water<br />
Add everything but the soda water to a martini shaker and shake with a few ice cubes. Then pour into a glass and top with soda water. The idea is to pour the soda water in a way that it fizzes.<br />
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Let's be honest- I made a pitcher of this drink to share, and drank it on Tuesday. And Wednesday. And Friday.<br />
<br />Laurahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13698780444143875485noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4229543856745598730.post-72234970779180789272013-11-15T23:19:00.002-08:002013-11-16T12:07:45.882-08:00What ugly pasta taught me about life! <div class="MsoNormal">
Over the summer I was browsing garage sales when I came
across a hand crank pasta maker roller with two cutter attachments. It was older, but still in the box and
gleaming metal. I was interested, but the $10 sticker made me recoil. I had
talked myself out of it when someone from the porch yelled, “$5 and it’s yours!”
I stopped right in my tracks, I had $5 in my wallet. It was sold. When I got
home I found out it was an Atlas Marcato and it they cost a pretty penny. <o:p></o:p></div>
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I've always had a dream of making wonderfully fresh pasta
from scratch, like a little Italian lady in my kitchen. In my mind it’s always
so beautiful, and artistic. It’s like an old movie, with soft light filtering
in through a window, I’m standing lovingly over a floured board. I’m wearing an
apron and a dress from the 1940’s with my hair pinned up. In reality, my hair
is in a sloppy bun, I’m in a promotional t-shirt from some brewpub I visited,
and a pair of yoga pants with a flour hand print on my butt because I couldn't
find a towel and someone knocked on the door. As the pasta tears I yell “Come on! What’s
wrong with you! Please don’t rip again!” and I hear my daughter mimicking me as
she pleads with her pretend food to cooperate in the family room. <o:p></o:p></div>
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Some of the highlights of my pasta making adventure: <o:p></o:p></div>
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#1 This recipe makes way more pasta then I thought it would.<o:p></o:p></div>
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2 cups of water<o:p></o:p></div>
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A pinch of salt<o:p></o:p></div>
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3 eggs<o:p></o:p></div>
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2 tablespoons of olive oil<o:p></o:p></div>
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Water if it needs to be thinned more. <o:p></o:p></div>
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In a mixer combine flour and salt. Sift together. Make a
well in the middle and add eggs slowly with mixer on low. Alternate one egg,
olive oil until the dough is smooth and elastic. Use water if the dough
requires it.</div>
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<o:p></o:p><br />
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#2 Pasta making is not the kind of thing where you wake up
one day and you are amazing at it. Especially ravioli, it’s going to take a while
before I master ravioli. <o:p></o:p></div>
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#3 When you make a copious amount of pasta, it’s important
to find places to set it all down between rolling. I thought I was being
cleaver and doubled the recipe because my husband loves pasta and his birthday
is coming up. Not smart! I ended up only rolling out only half of the pasta and
desperately looking for a place to set it all. I learned that coat hangers hung
from cupboards a perfect pasta drying racks in a pinch. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQlTV41cNOJRX7GySitZuLSE_92NOauCZNkkqMPZrmWx0P2vcq49a45ZHIsFn1iYVDsxJhDONMn4NzlUGzLCDrIkyApvqnDhuKVVvFcD5Lg9PRPwUlzL2NFRi57T2KMwC5w352ciXvCiw/s1600/010fc87da323440c45216887cf99caa7702411c833.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQlTV41cNOJRX7GySitZuLSE_92NOauCZNkkqMPZrmWx0P2vcq49a45ZHIsFn1iYVDsxJhDONMn4NzlUGzLCDrIkyApvqnDhuKVVvFcD5Lg9PRPwUlzL2NFRi57T2KMwC5w352ciXvCiw/s320/010fc87da323440c45216887cf99caa7702411c833.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">(As a bonus check out my rad 1951 General Motors double oven!)</span></div>
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At the end of the day I ended up with the sloppiest, ugliest
looking plate of walnut and goat cheese stuffed ravioli ever imaginable… that
looked like a pile of mushy ashen flesh, served two hours after I was planning
on having dinner ready. But with my eyes shut it was amazing! The point of is that every cook makes mistakes. Even good
cooks make mistakes. Even great cooks make mistake. Even professional chefs
make mistakes. It’s the mistakes that really challenge us and make us grow into
something better. This is not just true in kitchen, but in every aspect in life. Time to dust the flour hand print off my ass and get back into the kitchen. </div>
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<o:p></o:p></div>
Laurahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13698780444143875485noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4229543856745598730.post-88909594411842472132012-09-26T17:45:00.002-07:002012-09-26T17:49:47.952-07:00Vegetable soup and dumplings (chicken and dumplings for the vegetarian) <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjW-0ZC8915wxYONZVYjK9NqFAwRuqLXt-p5cgECvNXxNvNGdq209xiwsYHUAq1fWgc47N4dYuqclI06uW7kJvQIBsINEtaPJOIFRrHwbmjcIieXAKibDod5GuseEm2EZeuIR31U-hF3K4/s1600/carrots.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjW-0ZC8915wxYONZVYjK9NqFAwRuqLXt-p5cgECvNXxNvNGdq209xiwsYHUAq1fWgc47N4dYuqclI06uW7kJvQIBsINEtaPJOIFRrHwbmjcIieXAKibDod5GuseEm2EZeuIR31U-hF3K4/s320/carrots.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">I stopped in the store desperately searching for something
to serve for dinner. I wanted something seasonal and something that feels like fall. Although the sky is blue and sunny, there is a fall chill in the air that makes me seek warm and comforting food. In the organic section were these beautiful carrots in a
rainbow of colors with rich green tops. That was it! I was going to cook with
those carrots tonight! I decided on vegetable soup with dumplings.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0HPINF3536gYUrLWMd7ofQY7bCw_rcYeWidG5vM5oQJoFbG-JiCEGn0DLjmxhKifDyrkuQ0IClDRPsxC-Z41CkRWyUpi0VVKqh3rmRQUScP_deWsxSP4aymT6j6A9eayET2lOP6E3KgY/s1600/veggies+chopped.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0HPINF3536gYUrLWMd7ofQY7bCw_rcYeWidG5vM5oQJoFbG-JiCEGn0DLjmxhKifDyrkuQ0IClDRPsxC-Z41CkRWyUpi0VVKqh3rmRQUScP_deWsxSP4aymT6j6A9eayET2lOP6E3KgY/s320/veggies+chopped.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Making soup in only a few hours is hard because it doesn’t
typically build the depth of flavor that I would like. Making vegetarian soup
is even harder because meat adds a lot of flavor to soups. Here are a few tricks I've come up with to help solve this problem. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">1)</span><span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Brown your butter<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">2)</span><span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Add nutritional yeast<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">3)</span><span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Add booze<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">4)</span><span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Add condensed soup<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
All of these things develop flavor in the soup that otherwise you wouldn't get to experience. Nutritional yeast is exceptionally helpful with "chicken" dishes because it adds a chickeniness that otherwise you'll be missing. <br />
<br />
Soup Stock: <br />
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;">
</span>2 tablespoons butter</o:p></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"></span><br /></div>
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
1/2 white onion<o:p></o:p></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times New Roman;">
</span>2 organic carrots<o:p></o:p></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times New Roman;">
</span>2 stalks celery<o:p></o:p></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times New Roman;">
</span>1 1/2 cups vegetable stock (or chicken free chicken stock)<o:p></o:p></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times New Roman;">
</span>1 tablespoon poultry seasoning<o:p></o:p></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times New Roman;">
</span>1 tablespoon nutritional yeast<o:p></o:p></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times New Roman;">
</span>8oz hard cider (4 for the soup, 4 for the chef) <o:p></o:p></div>
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8oz cream of mushroom soup</div>
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1 cup frozen peas</div>
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In a large dutch oven melt butter on low until pan is preheated and butter is golden brown. Add onions, carrots and celery and cook until they are slightly soft and browned. Add 1 1/2 cups of vegetable stock, poultry seasoning, nutritional yeast and hard cider. Allow to cook until vegetables are tender and alcohol is cooked out. <br />
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(this is a really good time to enjoy that cider!)</div>
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Add cream of mushroom soup, and frozen peas and allow to reach a boil again. <br />
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While soup is cooking prepare dumpling dough. In Mark Bittman's How to Cook Everything he says "You can make dumplings with almost anything even flour and water. But I strongly believe they out to taste like something." I took that to heart when making dumplings adding soup stock and an extra punch of flavor with cream of mushroom soup. </div>
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When it comes to cream of mushroom soup I'm also pretty brand loyal to Pacific Natural Foods Organic Condensed Cream of Mushroom soup. This soup is so good that I will eat it on its own! If a condensed soup is so bad you can't eat it straight why put it into food? <br />
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</span>Dumplings:<o:p></o:p></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times New Roman;">
</span>4 tablespoons softened butter<o:p></o:p></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times New Roman;">
</span>2 large eggs<o:p></o:p></div>
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1 tablespoon cream of mushroom soup concentrate</div>
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<span style="font-family: Times New Roman;">
</span>1 cup flour<o:p></o:p></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times New Roman;">
</span>1 teaspoon baking powder<o:p></o:p></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times New Roman;">
</span>1 teaspoon poultry seasoning<o:p></o:p></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times New Roman;">
</span>Stock<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>(about 3
tablespoons)</div>
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<o:p>Cream softened butter, add eggs and cream of mushroom soup until just combined. </o:p></div>
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<o:p>Sift together flour, baking powder and poultry seasoning. Add gradually to egg mixture. Add stock from soup one tablespoon at a time until dough looks like a thick pancake batter. </o:p></div>
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<o:p>Add to boiling soup stock by dropping with a spoon and allow to cook covered for about 10 minutes. Flip dumplings and cook uncovered for another 5 minutes until dough is cooked through.</o:p><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsHbEPfsVTh9fdSvNqvfGOM544acShOxcybzEWoTgb4f_XMJhhl79ePIVRxTQfhJi5pFa6E5pg33s4NtnR9SEB2kfJNkN4oghmY8nzjiBE4A8vFZijjFMuyatN1IfUv77x4rBxmMOS53s/s1600/dumplings.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsHbEPfsVTh9fdSvNqvfGOM544acShOxcybzEWoTgb4f_XMJhhl79ePIVRxTQfhJi5pFa6E5pg33s4NtnR9SEB2kfJNkN4oghmY8nzjiBE4A8vFZijjFMuyatN1IfUv77x4rBxmMOS53s/s320/dumplings.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<o:p></o:p> </div>
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<o:p>There you have it! A house that smells like fall, and a warm tummy from your apple cider consumption. :) </o:p></div>
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<br />Laurahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13698780444143875485noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4229543856745598730.post-81183802315891042532012-07-23T17:03:00.001-07:002012-07-23T17:03:21.258-07:00A Scone story- When mistakes make happy new discoveries.<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpSn-_DTqLf-3uPZAsIQnfMPC6Toebxa05QpQJa0ec-jvdX5YEDiK3Mwnqel_KVqUwHnbX_BvEHrav0YjIFBTL9cU23gJbZ3-2w9b7tJYVa8TO_PaAAMcdgQQqXjoqU16ZX5hQwDwmeKA/s1600/scones.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpSn-_DTqLf-3uPZAsIQnfMPC6Toebxa05QpQJa0ec-jvdX5YEDiK3Mwnqel_KVqUwHnbX_BvEHrav0YjIFBTL9cU23gJbZ3-2w9b7tJYVa8TO_PaAAMcdgQQqXjoqU16ZX5hQwDwmeKA/s320/scones.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Last night I made mini cream scones.</span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">This was the first time I’ve
made scones in my stand mixer was amazed by what quick work it made of scone
making. Before scones took forever to mix by hand with knives or a pastry
cutter that they were slightly labor intensive, but still worth it. I’m just
thankful it’s easier now. I can simply whip up a batch! (If you are mixing by
hand, I’ve found the best way to go is to actually use your hands by squeezing
the meal through your fingers to make the course meal.)<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">I’ve also made a mistake by not really following the recipe
last night. I’ve made scones so many times that I figured I didn’t really need
to read directions, and instead ended up with something kind of new.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A traditional scone requires you to chop the
butter into small bits, and blend the chilled butter in with the flour to make
a course meal first, and then add the milk or cream to your scone. I made a
happy mistake last night by being lazy and not really chopping the butter up as
fine, and adding the half and half in too soon while the butter wasn’t exactly
incorporated into a course meal. It created scones that had layers akin to
“Grand’s Biscuits” only with the flavor and crumb of a scone.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Because we were playing cards I decided it
was best to do well of jam in the middle of each scone instead of serving jam
at the table. Less mess with all the same flavor. They were gone by the evening
end and left me wanting more today. So more I made. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Here is the recipe below:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Pre-heat oven to 425 degrees<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">2 cups all-purpose flour<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">1 tablespoon baking powder<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">3 tablespoon sugar<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">1/2 teaspoon salt<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">6 tablespoons chilled butter (3 tablespoons cut into pea
size pieces and 3 tablespoons cut larger.) <o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">1 cup half and half<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Jam- either home canned for store bought works, but I find
light sugar works best. <o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Sift together flour, baking powder, sugar and salt. Add in
chilled butter and mix a few times until about half of it is a course meal. Add
in half and half and mix until just combined. Large chunks of butter will
remain.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Turn out onto a floured board and form into four equal round
balls. Cut through the center of each ball to divide into 4ths to make mini
scones. Either keep triangle shape, or form into rounds and place on ungreased
baking sheet. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">In each scone make a small well with your index finger and thumb.
Spoon in a dollop of jam into each scone. Bake for 10-12 minutes.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Makes 16 mini scones.
<o:p></o:p></span></div>Laurahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13698780444143875485noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4229543856745598730.post-25717926373594673072012-07-22T12:50:00.000-07:002012-07-23T17:03:40.763-07:00Guess what I did this weekend? It involved me, findout what it takes to make a good mother, and 4 bottles of white wine.<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Guess what I did this weekend? It involved me, finding out
what it takes to makes a good mother, and 4 bottles of white wine. <o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;">If you guessed starting to make white wine vinegar then you
are right! I started down this rabbit hole on Saturday when I decided that I
wanted to make raspberry sage vinegar for salad dressing. After looking at
several recipes for raspberry vinegar they all required that a person make
their salad dressing with white wine vinegar. Funny thing, I’ve never noticed
white wine vinegar! I know I’ve had rice vinegar, white distilled vinegar, and
white balsamic vinegar but never white wine vinegar. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I checked Costco and Cash & Carry and no
one had white vinegar in the amounts that I needed make my salad dressing
dreams come true. Then it hit me! I can make my own vinegar! So off I went,
first looking for the “mother” but it seems that once a person gets a mother
they can keep storing and feeding it, and they don’t need to buy more mothers,
so no one in the local area sells vinegar mothers any longer. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">I think it must have been amusing to the brew guy to watch
the light turn on in my head and say “hey what stops me from using apple cider
vinegar with the yeast already in the bottle?” he said to me “See that is why
we don’t sell the mothers any longer.” So there I was, willing to add a little
bit of apple cider vinegar to my white wine. So off to buy some cheap wine,
good old Charles Shaw! But Also I decided to add some cheap Riesling as well to
make it lighter fruitier white wine vinegar. It doesn’t matter if the wine costs
a lot, it’s more about using what I think will taste decent. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">I started my vinegar with one jar of apple cider vinegar
with the mother in the bottom of the jar, two bottles of cheap Chardonnay, and
two cheap bottles of Riesling. I poured everything in a glass jar and now we
are playing the waiting game. In about 8-12 weeks I’ll have white wine vinegar
ready to use in all kinds of recipes. The best part is that right about then we’ll
be coming into apple season, and I’ll be able to use my mother to make apple
cider vinegar. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s also important to cover
the crock to protect them from light.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIaqxwQxQ1VzqB2CyunJroCp6no6PDoFdVEAVAiJKJAnNG5V0BzMZf1sulrq3-LKDHYQYLDe_XRFYIEtd_1nKr99gYJcxeic_7-4HAf5Opo11t-qrcFFsuubeyrsCKzYyN9fsppt9mF_w/s1600/vinegar.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="232" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIaqxwQxQ1VzqB2CyunJroCp6no6PDoFdVEAVAiJKJAnNG5V0BzMZf1sulrq3-LKDHYQYLDe_XRFYIEtd_1nKr99gYJcxeic_7-4HAf5Opo11t-qrcFFsuubeyrsCKzYyN9fsppt9mF_w/s320/vinegar.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><o:p> The couldy color is from the "mother"</o:p></span></div>
<br />
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">The only problem is that I have raspberries that are ready
now and sitting in my fridge! I got so excited about the vinegar that I totally
forgot about the raspberries. What to do with those before the vinegar is
ready? I decided to try a few different things with these berries. The first
one is allowing the berries to sit in a combination of white vinegar and water
with herbs, the second one is even less vinegar,<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>and the third jar are raspberries that are
being fermented the same way my pickles are fermented. 1 Tsp Whey and a bit of salt. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’ve added herbs (you are looking at sage, tarragon, and an greek oregino) and garlic to these jars to
add flavor. When I tasted the berries today it was amazing the flavor contrast between the jars. The vinegar really zaps the flavor out of the berries and compeats with it. It's the food version of someone screaming really loud when you are trying to listen to music. </span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgB63ASfJ3WngrQeBOVHAvF44JMmoVdtXcRez4bUT-kerwfpIRnQLrQX23DTqR-l99wdodVa5MdchejF6PZCc8Q9SY7ae2cFUDCqlp6eJG0-vZGa3EobHk-8jUiA3YY9-fvyOEsEVAWojQ/s1600/fermentation.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgB63ASfJ3WngrQeBOVHAvF44JMmoVdtXcRez4bUT-kerwfpIRnQLrQX23DTqR-l99wdodVa5MdchejF6PZCc8Q9SY7ae2cFUDCqlp6eJG0-vZGa3EobHk-8jUiA3YY9-fvyOEsEVAWojQ/s320/fermentation.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAoi4mGcO1p1t0uC_MS7Cqa8gKLCYpsuMAvlDhwofS4MDq5TI1RstrvICNqIN7wHFRmtP0JDOqk5GJPn-MQEcz51upXle2dl-orrzqJrOWMrZ5abqGdmNaCazwBuuq6yCgduALocgAzL8/s1600/fermentation2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAoi4mGcO1p1t0uC_MS7Cqa8gKLCYpsuMAvlDhwofS4MDq5TI1RstrvICNqIN7wHFRmtP0JDOqk5GJPn-MQEcz51upXle2dl-orrzqJrOWMrZ5abqGdmNaCazwBuuq6yCgduALocgAzL8/s320/fermentation2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><o:p>Below is a phot of my kitchen (yes it's world's ugliest) and my strange fermented jars that my little girl is growing up thinking is normal and that everyone keeps in their kitchen. The only problem is that jar is my pickle crock and pickle season is going to be very soon. So it looks like transfering a giant crock of cheap wine is going to be on my to do list today. </o:p></span></div>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLEIMkd2jDjuR_pbzJ2ZawaYceDXabzUqs9oUqLbNf4onEws-N3_o_bB9n5KfhZhEzMd7rei7fK5Il-9Js0tmeJ1qFcFgCe3kN83QAUQ1KVTQWW8ZZK-ivFpXqgpW5zHsBhR-5t_mV8u0/s1600/fermentation3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLEIMkd2jDjuR_pbzJ2ZawaYceDXabzUqs9oUqLbNf4onEws-N3_o_bB9n5KfhZhEzMd7rei7fK5Il-9Js0tmeJ1qFcFgCe3kN83QAUQ1KVTQWW8ZZK-ivFpXqgpW5zHsBhR-5t_mV8u0/s320/fermentation3.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>Laurahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13698780444143875485noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4229543856745598730.post-91184683443053437362012-07-10T22:46:00.000-07:002012-07-10T22:48:42.923-07:00A Murder in The Kitchen- Based on a True Story<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinOThMG4VlEuoZU3W64oJVJIXvwZtcMAbd17bGzOmFUl2rPODu-952z3Ovg7xhj-x35KHx-Ci3fSr2-G766XIEgOSN999nQcBLBcJOCirjyks-JRN8pbZ5MSFscIICztKaq-VYECCwB6w/s1600/cherry+juice+3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinOThMG4VlEuoZU3W64oJVJIXvwZtcMAbd17bGzOmFUl2rPODu-952z3Ovg7xhj-x35KHx-Ci3fSr2-G766XIEgOSN999nQcBLBcJOCirjyks-JRN8pbZ5MSFscIICztKaq-VYECCwB6w/s400/cherry+juice+3.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">In a hot kitchen in the middle of summer a woman stood at
the counter. She had been in the kitchen for hours, diligently working while
her husband was out. She was exhausted, and sweat beaded on her forehead as she
thought about what she was going to do. She had been angry for a long time, a
quiet anger that no one knew was there, but deep in the pit of her stomach she
knew that she could no longer endure anymore abuse.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>After years of hoping it was going to somehow
get better on its own, she had started to plot her course to take matters into
her own hand. This wasn’t a choice she took lightly, and it certainly wasn’t
going to make her life any easier but she knew it was something that had to be
done and today was the day she was going to do it! <o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">She could hear her husband put his key into the door, that
familiar click of the deadbolt retracting. The knob turned and the door was
shut gently behind him. She heard the clank of the keys fall onto the entry way
table and his shoes drop to the floor as he moved through.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She could tell by the way he stepped that he
was in a good mood, as he came towards the kitchen. He obviously didn’t know
what was waiting for him just around the corner. She smiled with satisfaction
knowing he was in for a surprise. One more step and he would be there. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And then he was there! With a look of shock
and disbelief he stood frozen in his steps. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">She pulled the hammer back and the kitchen echoed BAM! BAM!
BAM! BAM!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Deep red splattered across the
kitchen counter, spraying in little droplets across her face and apron.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She could hear small drips as they ran down
the cutting board and onto the floor. She picked up a bit of deep red flesh and
examined it, satisfied with her work, and again she pulled the hammer back BAM!
BAM! BAM! She inspected her hands as red streamed down her fingers. She enjoyed
the sticky feeling on her hands, the deep inner parts of something now exposed.
She smiled knowing that it was done! She has finally stood up to an evil that
had distressed her for far too long and breathed a sigh of relief.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It wasn’t as hard as she thought it was going
to be. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvkM_yl3xnANuhhow5TFEIz6fiKpXwipjCwQDcNr8Yi9UOym6-bEdWhrGA-Tuy6onG5y0nCA-EnVIInJdkXEOp9fSUayahJ3MORLYV2f0m9rVyEveQy1nqrXL2eASfOGnrbh-dDwylCkU/s1600/cherry+juice+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvkM_yl3xnANuhhow5TFEIz6fiKpXwipjCwQDcNr8Yi9UOym6-bEdWhrGA-Tuy6onG5y0nCA-EnVIInJdkXEOp9fSUayahJ3MORLYV2f0m9rVyEveQy1nqrXL2eASfOGnrbh-dDwylCkU/s320/cherry+juice+2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">She began to clean up the mess as she heard a voice calling
from behind her. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“Wow!” He exclaimed. “That
is a lot of cherries honey! Let me help you clean up!”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She took her hand off
the cherry pitter and moved away as he started to dismantle it. It was time to
start canning the sweet juicy fruit that started her journey away from the
modern food chain.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Oh…You thought there was going to be a murder didn’t
you?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In your mind you imagined a woman,
taken for granted as she suffered through an abusive and destructive
relationship ready to put an end to her abuser. But what you imagined was right!
She is a woman who was in a destructive relationship, a destructive relationship
with her food supply. A relationship where day after day she consumed food from
distant toxic farms and factories, filled with science more than food. And
although consumers have made it clear they would prefer their food to just be
food, it has not phased the food science industry from inventing, and
concealing this frankenfood in our food supply. And in a way there is a murder.
In every person who removes even part of their families food out of the modern
food supply chain a little bit of this system of abuse is put to death. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">I am happy to be part of this death, contributing every time
I am able to pick up real food from local farms, and placing money and jobs
back into my local economy. Every time I put food up on my shelves in
glistening glass jars of fresh fruit and pickled vegetables my heart is warm
with the knowledge of exactly what my daughter is eating. A movement of people
that is no more political than it was 100 years ago when our grandparents and
great grandparents did it. So today I write with cherry stained hands as I move
forward in hopes that someday the memories of store bought jam, and vegetables
swimming around in BPA liners will be a distant memory for our family. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So tonight I’m not just making a dish for the
night, or an interesting recipe I found, but something much more important.
Tonight I’m making food for my family, pure real food that I will store away
for the entire year and keep my family fed on fresh real food far after the
season has come and gone. </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgPg4ESUIleQfb_xKuKRkztoPnrhAOL_WzCgbfPwYCzEZocW033BNrAVyySzpHomHdl2-qRRll-YGyV9tBIX7lzUzbeb_348LvB8BtKC-i87QWJfCjUr76qrkozcfFBRXTSJZ0Thtiafo/s1600/canned+cherries.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgPg4ESUIleQfb_xKuKRkztoPnrhAOL_WzCgbfPwYCzEZocW033BNrAVyySzpHomHdl2-qRRll-YGyV9tBIX7lzUzbeb_348LvB8BtKC-i87QWJfCjUr76qrkozcfFBRXTSJZ0Thtiafo/s320/canned+cherries.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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This is 40lbs of cherries canned</div>
</div>Laurahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13698780444143875485noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4229543856745598730.post-82119330626836055202012-06-13T21:46:00.002-07:002012-06-13T21:46:56.412-07:00Wholesome food, dirty oven- my take on a plum tart.
<span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;">While walking
through a local produce store I found myself next to a bin of fruit. I reached
my hand in, and plucked out a firm and lovely plum. It was obviously not ripe
yet, but they were so lovely I ended up with 12 of them. I took them home with
intention of family to eat them out of hand. Little girl on the other hand seemed
to have the attention to complain about how awful plums are. I now had 10 plums
and only I was going to be eating them. Without a doubt they would go bad
before I had a chance to eat them, so it was time for a plan B. Plum tart! <o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
I first started out with a r<a href="http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ina-garten/plum-tart-recipe2/index.html">ecipe</a> from Ina Garten
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;">But as you know
already, I can’t follow a recipe to save my life. Faster than I was able to
chop almonds I had adapted this recipe into something entirely different. The end result was a rustic tart made with wheat flour, oats and almonds and sweetened with honey. All the favors worked well together, and the wholesomeness made it a dessert that isn't horrible for you. </span></div>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiY7IDRpGab5NNsZ67Yb3bYfA1YKIs0ovH3-Z3D7xJDq67ssWM1KaAPpelwoDsGM_HB88OyHw0Fat5fMmRKK7bXD97rXaFExavVvPUFsda720Jbp-kApVMMsnbOuzWN1C-IUjR8S_hyphenhypheno9w/s1600/plum+cut.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiY7IDRpGab5NNsZ67Yb3bYfA1YKIs0ovH3-Z3D7xJDq67ssWM1KaAPpelwoDsGM_HB88OyHw0Fat5fMmRKK7bXD97rXaFExavVvPUFsda720Jbp-kApVMMsnbOuzWN1C-IUjR8S_hyphenhypheno9w/s320/plum+cut.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<br /></div>
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;">Pre-heat oven to
400 degrees <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;">Crumb topping:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;">2 cups whole
wheat flour<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;">1 cup oats<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;">2/3 cup almonds
diced fine<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;">2/3 cup honey<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;">1 egg<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;">1 stick cold
unsalted butter cut into pea size pieces<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"><o:p> </o:p></span><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;">Combine flour,
oats, almonds, honey and egg and mix either by hand or with a stand mixer.
Gradually add butter a little bit at a time until mixture is just combined and
has a slight crumble. Because of the use of honey instead of sugar this mixture
will be damper then most dough for tarts and crumbles. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkCKSn_5UKdjMQTt_NVG46GRhcucMi-ds7P7K8K0oh0p7bUwt9vIr7KSQkUo8odsJGVt5fuOe4i2wa2nemj_lXFfqj1LpYte9DdA2i0GGY88Z4O41_tMkGuZ7t97acM9E1vy_sRt6uKaw/s1600/plumdrywet.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkCKSn_5UKdjMQTt_NVG46GRhcucMi-ds7P7K8K0oh0p7bUwt9vIr7KSQkUo8odsJGVt5fuOe4i2wa2nemj_lXFfqj1LpYte9DdA2i0GGY88Z4O41_tMkGuZ7t97acM9E1vy_sRt6uKaw/s320/plumdrywet.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;">Press dough into
a 9 ½ spring form pan, or into a well-greased tart pan. Reserve about 1/3 of
the mixture for topping. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNLOgSyXtAJQ1w73PzWyCp9SMrPL3LhJK5Rdx2_YQyp27mX6JHNKjkn1qUMiaCyfiqUF-pKn2FBR3pDMxue07kJhLYYOp3O18fXgybF9PtYBu_b3emepKUPnnk3G0eW5ACAs-3XTg_Dw8/s1600/plum+batter.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNLOgSyXtAJQ1w73PzWyCp9SMrPL3LhJK5Rdx2_YQyp27mX6JHNKjkn1qUMiaCyfiqUF-pKn2FBR3pDMxue07kJhLYYOp3O18fXgybF9PtYBu_b3emepKUPnnk3G0eW5ACAs-3XTg_Dw8/s320/plum+batter.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;">Filling:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;">About 7-8 Plums
cut into 8ths <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRow9E9lwwr7TGu04JU_6e0RpjDQVWe1c7enPIqpFW1v8nsfJRypnubo9IzoscPRIJ8rqmFn9m3OdTN42FeAk_rh9QRxLIpICNacniZugIVrC3SaOEQ_konuf2rNnJ5vw85g6ptdRSgRE/s1600/plum+split.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRow9E9lwwr7TGu04JU_6e0RpjDQVWe1c7enPIqpFW1v8nsfJRypnubo9IzoscPRIJ8rqmFn9m3OdTN42FeAk_rh9QRxLIpICNacniZugIVrC3SaOEQ_konuf2rNnJ5vw85g6ptdRSgRE/s320/plum+split.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;">I was playing
around a lot with how to cut a plum without mangling it beyond recognition and
I found the easiest way for me was to cut all the way around the plum into
8ths, and then use my knife to pop the first little segments out. After that it
was easier to cut away from the stone and get the plum pieces out intact. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiN5Su6BDvUqo70_9YRj7VDEDdChkHSRlzCeJU4r4RjpXBKyHwpsSCoB4hmk7LBliudf3Jr_w2ZYzK_IB8wJzWq6rs7wS-931DPn86mNNYNCrl4JU5DQe9VYfgLbitYZ9Jszzrv0S3ofnc/s1600/plums+on.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiN5Su6BDvUqo70_9YRj7VDEDdChkHSRlzCeJU4r4RjpXBKyHwpsSCoB4hmk7LBliudf3Jr_w2ZYzK_IB8wJzWq6rs7wS-931DPn86mNNYNCrl4JU5DQe9VYfgLbitYZ9Jszzrv0S3ofnc/s320/plums+on.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
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<span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;">Arrange plum
wedges around pan starting on the outside and working your way in. Eventually
it will look like a pretty flower, or at least tidy. Then cover up your
masterpiece with more dough evenly spread over the plum mixture like you are
rolling over the Mona Lisa with a paint roller.</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0qbKgExJmAtRlxbS4HCh2I9ifruesFar-dbZ8wO9MgdTDGtLOa-0LqtZQczTwkDH4Klu2fgV84I-nhMdmnaT_idE9yB5kQyBkAvvkbvw1u8PGyoSILpiO79t9lVyv-6o2xJUkJOo2Nl8/s1600/plum+with+crumb.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0qbKgExJmAtRlxbS4HCh2I9ifruesFar-dbZ8wO9MgdTDGtLOa-0LqtZQczTwkDH4Klu2fgV84I-nhMdmnaT_idE9yB5kQyBkAvvkbvw1u8PGyoSILpiO79t9lVyv-6o2xJUkJOo2Nl8/s320/plum+with+crumb.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;">Bake at 400
degrees for about 45 minutes. This oven is a little bit off on temperature being
that it was manufactured by General Motors somewhere around 1950 so a good way
to tell if your tart is done is if the plums are bubbling, the crust is golden
and your house gives off that fresh from the oven baked good smell. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgg2plBiaa1adk9UGKT39rXUafPkEyelV5sNW0I2a4VqUIKEsybXOuoD2tHTHy7vHAonzTZkrztdsnqqajCzcb5oDK2gUMcwLaftZCGbRgfwP7SIGP5yHKkZP4PY5cJPE9vQycJB_Hzmps/s1600/plum+old+oven.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgg2plBiaa1adk9UGKT39rXUafPkEyelV5sNW0I2a4VqUIKEsybXOuoD2tHTHy7vHAonzTZkrztdsnqqajCzcb5oDK2gUMcwLaftZCGbRgfwP7SIGP5yHKkZP4PY5cJPE9vQycJB_Hzmps/s320/plum+old+oven.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"><o:p>Photo of very old, very dirty oven baking tart above in the event you didn't believe an oven that old could still exist and work. The clock is always set to 5 past 7 although the second hand still ticks around the clock face, the time never changes, and you can tell how small it is by the fact that the pan you are looking at is a 9 1/2 inch spring form pan! But there is an even smaller oven below this one so I don't find I miss the cooking space very often. </o:p></span></div>
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Laurahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13698780444143875485noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4229543856745598730.post-22978485797215033912012-06-02T23:11:00.003-07:002012-06-02T23:12:58.443-07:00Enchilada sauce adventures!<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Let’s face it, life is busy! And because of it I’ve been
spending a lot of time and money on convenience food and take-out meals
recently to feed my family. It’s not only expensive, but it’s also a lot of frankenfood
I am not exactly proud to put on my table. So to combat this issue I’ve turned
to freezer meals as a simple solution to get real food on the table on nights
that are too busy to cook. Recently I’ve made 10 pans of lasagna, and today
made 10 pans of cheese enchiladas with brown rice. I was surprised by the sheer
mass of food it takes to fill 10 pans of food! Huge portions of onions, 4 of cheese
and an entire bag of Costco tortillas, but what amazed me the most was how
inexpensive it was to make my own enchilada sauce. While calculating the cost
of each unit of enchiladas I decided it was not economical to buy pre-made
sauce. It would raise my cost per pan by more then I was willing to pay, and included more artificial ingredients then I was willing to eat. Instead I made
this simple enchilada sauce below that I ended up very pleased with. Keep in
mind this makes a lot of sauce! It will make about 6qts of sauce, but this
sauce freezes well, or you can make 10 pans of enchiladas and still have about
16 oz. of sauce left over for another meal as you can see below.</span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBHwhGZjTWoNui8yvTIjP8rv67G3m8Qt7gv-mBpIelTmCt9vdHwv2qFzM7xRYdD9sqIIbpPfTPyVfN2LDx5xhyphenhyphen5ET4lKGjfc0BYW1isdlZ0u137eQXY6icG8jDFhvjbwiuVtzP1zi73SM/s1600/enchiladas.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBHwhGZjTWoNui8yvTIjP8rv67G3m8Qt7gv-mBpIelTmCt9vdHwv2qFzM7xRYdD9sqIIbpPfTPyVfN2LDx5xhyphenhyphen5ET4lKGjfc0BYW1isdlZ0u137eQXY6icG8jDFhvjbwiuVtzP1zi73SM/s320/enchiladas.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">It starts with a puree of chilies. The pepper used here is
Chili Negro and can be found in most supermarkets, or Hispanic markets. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">1 table spoon olive
oil<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">2 large white onion<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">4 gloves garlic<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">2 bags chili negro <o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">2 cups water<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">In a large Dutch
oven add olive oil and onions; cook until onions are slightly translucent. Add
garlic and continue to cook. Seed chilies and put into pot. Add hot water and
cook until chilies are soft and re hydrated. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">After chilies are
cooled pour into blender and blend until smooth. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">To make the rest of
the sauce: <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Chile paste above<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">2 large cans tomato
sauce<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">1 large tomato can
filled with water<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">1 cup vinegar<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">1 tsp Mexican oregano<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">1 tbsp cumin<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">1 tbsp salt<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">1 tbsp California chili
powder<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">1/2 tsp cinnamon <o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Simmer until flavors
are well combined.</span></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYljAWXeuAuvbmqh5sZoCaMYi3wkTxZNrkUPu8N3G9Y4Sd-qB6LKArgdDaLltzd1I4kgDJqHWICwV55IntF9JaKUk1SMkcfd8r9NSZwj5vL6hPSIniflIfIYJiA7X8eav6x8yJuEUBUqQ/s1600/enchiladassauce.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYljAWXeuAuvbmqh5sZoCaMYi3wkTxZNrkUPu8N3G9Y4Sd-qB6LKArgdDaLltzd1I4kgDJqHWICwV55IntF9JaKUk1SMkcfd8r9NSZwj5vL6hPSIniflIfIYJiA7X8eav6x8yJuEUBUqQ/s320/enchiladassauce.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<br /></div>
<span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">This sauce was rich
and dark. The pepper adds an almost raisin flavor with a slight sweetness and a
mild heat. The seasoning adds earthiness and the tomato and vinegar add bright
slightly tart vibrancy. I’m really pleased with this sauce and will use it
again and again. The best part of it is though is
the price! My sauce works out to be about 0.02 cents an ounce, whereas <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Old-El-Paso-Enchilada-14-Ounce/dp/B0032GMS0Y/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1338700212&sr=8-2">this</a> Old El Paso sauce is .13 cents an ounce if purchased at
amazon. It might not seem like a lot of savings when looking at it oz by oz but when you make 192oz of sauce this is $24.96 vs $4.41 (not including shipping of 12.57) and this is where our savings are! We are talking just a hair shy of 25.00 on savings just by making our own sauce- and the best part is, it tastes better! </span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">I hope you enjoy. If you end up making your own sauce I would love to hear about it. Drop me a line and let me know. </span></span>Laurahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13698780444143875485noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4229543856745598730.post-51768391955487267762012-05-28T22:51:00.000-07:002012-05-28T22:56:01.561-07:00Vanilla Bean Lemon Cupcakes- and the saga of the butter cream<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivwGECqNYgL2vSISZ-BRkkNQA_QNKIyjT6pZ5PvyKfc3F7zj5aS0rn8Psm0psVah9TgtizseFwW5ahYF1BGxZNA3HstK1bILBVRsLsyux6_H9ibrhXrdLeqQGUWJR63r7FNDaZItwQe4Q/s1600/cupcakes+finished2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivwGECqNYgL2vSISZ-BRkkNQA_QNKIyjT6pZ5PvyKfc3F7zj5aS0rn8Psm0psVah9TgtizseFwW5ahYF1BGxZNA3HstK1bILBVRsLsyux6_H9ibrhXrdLeqQGUWJR63r7FNDaZItwQe4Q/s320/cupcakes+finished2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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</div>
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">I am a fly by the seat of my pants kind of cook, a pinch of
this, a dash of that, season to taste, readapt. I have to admit I’m a whirl
wind in the kitchen. But because of this I can’t follow a recipe to save my
life! This style of cooking works well for most things, but not for
baking!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So when I was asked to bring
dessert for my Grandmother’s Birthday my panicked mind raced through what I
could make for her. I have a very short list of things bake well, and figured
no one wanted Italian bread for dessert. The last time I made a cake for her,
it was a spice cake out of a box that we attempted to frost while not cooled
totally, and it fell apart, melted frosting, crumbled cake, and at the end of
the day a “scrambled birthday cake.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>This cake had to be better than that and it was with that memory that I
decided it was time to finally face my fears of the cupcake. <o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Now to be honest I’ve never made a cake from scratch before!
So I decided I would start my journey with a search for a lemon cupcake and
came across an amazing blog </span><a href="http://quartercupkitchen.wordpress.com/"><span style="color: blue; font-family: Calibri;">http://quartercupkitchen.wordpress.com/</span></a><span style="font-family: Calibri;">
where there was a lovely lemon cupcake that was drool worthy! I made one change
using a real vanilla bean instead of vanilla extract because I wanted the
specks. I also adapted the language to read the way I read recipes when I cook,
but this is really still her recipe. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><strong>Lemon Cupcakes (makes 28)<o:p></o:p></strong></span></div>
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span lang="EN" style="line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">3 cups unbleached flour<br />
2 cups sugar<br />
3 tsp baking powder<br />
1 tsp salt<br />
2 sticks unsalted butter at room temp.<br />
1 cup reduced fat sour cream<br />
3 eggs plus 2 egg yolks<br />
Scrapings of half a vanilla bean<br />
Zest and juice from two lemons</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span lang="EN" style="line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span lang="EN" style="line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Preheat oven to 350 degrees.<br />In an electric mixer combine flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. Gently add butter, sour cream, eggs vanilla beans and lemon and mix until combined. Fill lined muffin tins half way full and bake 20-22 minutes turning once throughout.</span></span><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfSkqE0hWgpeWDfPI65dTVRTSbtE_Xi3DinOfk_EjIeS1tY9q7YyX3pdkQmAzq2t9KRKWB4e0TsFeq3Nyx-IbqshpURPMQlqnJe7RsCDHE7ddq27WRj-lbUnk4AuwUtvD6_JzfoW3CddI/s1600/cupcakes+baked.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfSkqE0hWgpeWDfPI65dTVRTSbtE_Xi3DinOfk_EjIeS1tY9q7YyX3pdkQmAzq2t9KRKWB4e0TsFeq3Nyx-IbqshpURPMQlqnJe7RsCDHE7ddq27WRj-lbUnk4AuwUtvD6_JzfoW3CddI/s200/cupcakes+baked.jpg" width="200" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBXBiOvlRezA__vgSE96b_g56G-cJuK3kpzL4NCLgj4hUy8-tRZkP9z5XRmX-o_MCQK24ylNI70XTE5SkAwdR4oNly5RzJk_Hxe4E6xT8IxRqkYeZm3WvjBlItb9nOFoEw0oDeWL7RcUg/s1600/cupcakes+batter+in+cup.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBXBiOvlRezA__vgSE96b_g56G-cJuK3kpzL4NCLgj4hUy8-tRZkP9z5XRmX-o_MCQK24ylNI70XTE5SkAwdR4oNly5RzJk_Hxe4E6xT8IxRqkYeZm3WvjBlItb9nOFoEw0oDeWL7RcUg/s200/cupcakes+batter+in+cup.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
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<a name='more'></a><br />
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span lang="EN" style="line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">After the cupcakes are baked and cooled you take a butter knife and cut a
circle in the middle of the cake and pop it out. I found it helpful to put six
on a plate and always put the little cupcake cork to the left so I knew what
cork went with what cupcake. I then scooped in about a teaspoon of it my own </span><a href="http://laurasmaking.blogspot.com/2012/05/lemon-curd-if-licking-bowl-is-wrong-i.html"><span style="color: blue; font-family: Calibri;">lemon
curd</span></a><span style="font-family: Calibri;">.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihSKMrNEks7sXrRs3wCqHK9_EKa1i-m1w7p_0akpK88Co54Xmlsqvfk3U6O3Pq2nP1JADJtk7cY4qcCwJhJmCvq1t5XtKPQM1D5oORCDOQoS9a_6knMlOxiAibHfDbcAv8JAhlMJDm_UQ/s1600/cupcakes+several+hollow.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihSKMrNEks7sXrRs3wCqHK9_EKa1i-m1w7p_0akpK88Co54Xmlsqvfk3U6O3Pq2nP1JADJtk7cY4qcCwJhJmCvq1t5XtKPQM1D5oORCDOQoS9a_6knMlOxiAibHfDbcAv8JAhlMJDm_UQ/s320/cupcakes+several+hollow.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span lang="EN" style="line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Finally to the butter cream! The crowning glory of any cupcake, and also a
horrible thing out to destroy my well-being. It started out so innocent, I took a basic butter cream
recipe and added the lemon zest to hopefully make it taste like lemons</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span lang="EN" style="line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><strong>Lemon Butter Cream</strong></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">1 cup butter</span></span><br />
<span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">1 cup sugar</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">1 cup milk</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">the other half of my
vanilla bean</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">juice and zest of 1 lemon<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />
Later I added:<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> 2 tsp corn starch</span></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;">1/4 cup whole milk- heated together</span></o:p></span></div>
<br />
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<span lang="EN" style="line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Cream together butter and sugar, add milk, vanilla, and lemon and mix until
light and fluffy….In theory. </span></span><br />
<br />
<span lang="EN" style="line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">In real life it separated! Slimy, and then chunky,
and then </span></span><br />
<span lang="EN" style="line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">both of these combined. I spent three hours trying to fix this mess! Even Googling how to fix a
broken butter cream. Steam baths, ice baths, in the freezer, out on the
counter. I prayed over frosting! I have never prayed for frosting! Right when I
was about to throw it away, I decided on a whim I would add about 2 tsp. of
corn starch made with about 1/4 cup of milk. I cooked it until thick and poured
it in. It was going to get thrown out anyway, and so I figured why not? But it worked!
Right before my eyes it transformed into something light and fluffy and
wonderful! I</span></span><span lang="EN" style="line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> jumped up and down with joy, clapped my hands and piped
it onto the cupcakes feeling like a champion.</span></span><br />
<br />
<span lang="EN" style="line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">At the end of the day these cupcakes did not look like something a professional would make, and I'm not opening up a bake shop for my famous butter cream frosting, but I enjoyed watching my family eat the cupcakes that I made from scratch, and took pride in the job I did knowing that it was a little bit of a challenge to get there. </span></span><br />
<br />
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</div>Laurahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13698780444143875485noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4229543856745598730.post-42001620657137397562012-05-25T21:56:00.000-07:002012-05-25T21:58:33.618-07:00Lemon curd- If licking the bowl is wrong, I don't want to be right!First of all I have to report lemon curd is REALLY simple to make! I was really intimidated by it my first time around, but it's so simple you'll be amazed how quickly you say "wow that's it?" <br />
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<br />
The first recipe I made was out of a cookbook called, Let's Do Tea by Nada Lou and Verna Maire. <br />
<br />
Mrs. Burn's Lemon Curd<br />
Into a double boiler over simmering water:<br />
3 beaten eggs<br />
Grated rind of 2 large lemons and the juice<br />
1 cup of sugar<br />
Beat in gradually 1/2 cup real butter, softened. <br />
Stir until thick and the curd coats the back of the stirring spoon. Store in the fridge. <br />
<br />
This recipe is great, and simple- but it's really sweet! REALLY SWEET! and I don't know about you, but I really don't want super sweet lemon curd, I want lemony lemon curd. So I cut the sugar down to 2/3 a cup. But it still wasn't right. After making it about 5 times I've ended up with my own recipe below.<br />
<br />
5 large eggs beaten<br />
3 Large lemons, zested and juiced<br />
1/3 cup of sugar<br />
1/4 teaspoon salt (this helps bring out the flavor so you need less sugar)<br />
1/2 cup butter cubbed and added in gradually <br />
<br />
Cook in a double boiler (a fancy name for a bowl over a pan of boiling water) until the mixture becomes thick and coats the spoon. Store in clean jars, or tupperware in the fridge. <br />
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<br />
<br />
This was so good I have to admit that I licked the bowl after I got all of this jarred and stored. <br />
<br />Laurahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13698780444143875485noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4229543856745598730.post-52096774999950425742012-04-07T18:21:00.000-07:002012-04-07T18:21:06.415-07:00One Tamale, Two Tamale, Three Tamale Four!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">I love a good tamale, I always have and I always will, but
after becoming a vegetarian about 9 years ago I’ve been in search of good
tamales and am always left wanting. Everyone seems to think vegetarians want
spinach and feta in their tamales and I for one do not! If I wanted spinach and
feta, I would be eating Greek food, not tamales. So today after finding a
little impromptu kitchen inspiration, I made my own! I have to admit it took a
while, and required a lot of different kitchen appliances, so I’m glad I made
enough to freeze for later. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I also have
to confess I don’t stock corn husks in my pantry, so I used parchment papers
taken out in 4 inch sheets and cut in half. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">The filling was Tillamook Mexican cheese blend, and a cilantro pesto I made for a cooking contest
to go on something else, but after tasting it I knew it was meant to be in
tamales!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Cilantro pesto:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">1 tablespoon olive oil<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">¼ cup pumpkin seeds</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">3 cloves garlic<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">½ to 1 jalapeno (some like it hot!) <o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">1 ½ cup cilantro<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Juice of 1 lime<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">1 tsp lime zest<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">1 tsp salt<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Enough water to blend smooth (1-2 tablespoons) <o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Give this a whirl in the blender until it’s a smooth green
spread like pesto. </span></div>
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<br /></div>
<br />
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">After making the pesto, I adapted a recipe off of the side
of my Masa bag- it was pretty easy to make, no more difficult than whipping up
a batch of brownies. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Basic tamale recipe:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;">2</span> Cups Masa Harina <o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">1/2 Cup Organic vegetable shortening<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">1 Cup Lukewarm vegetable stock<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">1 Cup Lukewarm Water<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">1 Tsp Baking powder<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">1 Tsp salt<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">More water if needed to make tamale dough thin. <o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">I mixed all the ingredients together with my stand mixer (I’ve
used hand mixers, and just my hands too. Both of these methods work fine.) Because
the vegetarian filling doesn’t hold the same bulk as a meat tamale I like to
make my tamale dough a lot thinner so that it doesn’t end up overwhelming the
filling. This is a problem I’ve come across many times. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Get your steamer basket or rice cooker going, and start an
assembly line to make your tamales. I like mine to go Wrappers, Dough, Pesto, 2
cups shredded Mexican cheese blend, bowl to put finished product in. </span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Spread 1 heaping tablespoon of dough onto wrapper and spread
thin leaving about 1/4 an inch top and bottom. Spread 1 tablespoon of pesto on
dough, and sprinkle on about a tablespoon of cheese. Fold in the center of the
tamale and then fold top and bottom up. Set in bowl sitting slightly upright. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Repeat<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Repeat<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Repeat<o:p></o:p></span></div>
As you can see this is what makes this recipe time consuming. <br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Steam each batch of tamales for 10-15 minutes until tamales
are done. The dough will still be soft when you take them out, and will harden
up when they are cooled. </span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">If you are using parchment paper, they will stick some to
the wet paper, so as soon as they are firm peel the parchment away. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Sorry for the lack of photos. I
wasn’t planning on blogging about this because it’s a little more complicated
than the simple food I normally make. But this was too good not to share. If
nothing else hopefully you make some cilantro pesto to thrill your taste buds! <o:p></o:p></span></div>Laurahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13698780444143875485noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4229543856745598730.post-81207999834629738492012-03-31T11:38:00.002-07:002012-05-25T11:01:37.891-07:00Sweet potatoes- Not just for Thanksgiving chiliWhen I came across this website <a href="http://www.ncsweetpotatoes.com/blogger-recipe-contest/"><span style="color: blue;">http://www.ncsweetpotatoes.com/blogger-recipe-contest/</span></a>
I thought it was a great idea because the sweet potato to me is really an
unsung hero in the kitchen. They are sweet, nutritious and have a great texture
and have a versatility that really allows them to be added to a wide verity of
dishes. I often add sweet potatoes in vegetarian dishes when I need more depth
of flavor and a nice meaty texture. This chili is my hand down favorite recipe
to use sweet potato in. It’s vegetarian, but I promise meat eaters will
be happy to eat it. It’s all in the way the potatoes are diced. One
sweet potato is diced up very fine so it breaks down in the chili and melts
into the sauce. The other sweet potato is left to shine as a meaty component of
the dish. <br />
<br />
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2 sweet potatoes diced (read special directions on how to dice these) <o:p></o:p><br />
1 cup cooked and drained pinto beans.<br />
1 cup cooked and drained kidney beans <o:p></o:p><br />
2 cloves of garlic minced <o:p></o:p><br />
1 white onion chopped<o:p></o:p><br />
1 red pepper, diced<o:p></o:p><br />
1 jalapeno diced <o:p></o:p><br />
1 large can crushed tomatoes<o:p></o:p><br />
1 can petite diced tomatoes<o:p></o:p><br />
2 cups water<o:p></o:p><br />
1 handful or 2 tablespoons of diced cilantro<o:p></o:p><br />
1 tablespoon cumin<o:p></o:p><br />
1 tablespoon smoked paprika<o:p></o:p><br />
A large splash or about 2 teaspoons apple cider vinegar<o:p></o:p><br />
2 tablespoons butter<o:p></o:p><br />
1 bay leaf<o:p></o:p><br />
Salt and pepper to taste<br />
<br />
For the garnish (We do this when we are serving chili at a party along with
corn bread and corn chips) <o:p></o:p><br />
1/2 red onion diced<o:p></o:p><br />
1/2 red pepper diced<o:p></o:p><br />
1 jalapeno diced<o:p></o:p><br />
<br />
Special Directions:<o:p></o:p><br />
<br />
Peel two sweet potatoes, dicing one into bite size pieces, the other sweet
potato dice into very fine pieces. This is a very important step to this recipe
and should not be skipped.<o:p></o:p><br />
<br />
<o:p> </o:p>Combine all ingredients into the crockpot and season with salt and pepper. Set
on high and let cook for about 8 hours until everything is tender and the
smaller sweet potatoes have become very soft. <br />
<br />
I feel like there should be more directions to this recipe, but that’s it! <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The labor of this recipe is really only in the
chopping. It also tastes even better second day, and after freezing as it
breaks down the sweet potatoes in the sauce a little bit more, so don’t be
afraid to double this recipe! <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p><br />
<br />
This is a great link for picking out the right sweet potato- <a href="http://www.ncsweetpotatoes.com/sweet-potatoes-101/sweet-potato-varieties/">http://www.ncsweetpotatoes.com/sweet-potatoes-101/sweet-potato-varieties/</a> I like O’Henry for this recipe.Laurahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13698780444143875485noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4229543856745598730.post-70644368060462010542012-03-15T19:53:00.000-07:002012-03-24T09:44:35.875-07:00Mushroom stroganoff- a broccoli adventure<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">I came across a recipe contest from <span style="color: #333333;"><a href="http://www.gratitudegourmet.com/" target="_blank"><span style="color: #3b5998;">www.gratitudegourmet.com</span></a>
in regards to a vegetarian or vegan recipe using broccoli. This really got me
thinking about how I eat broccoli. I basically only eat it four ways. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;">
<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">1)<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">In a stir fry<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;">
<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">2)<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Roasted in the oven with olive oil<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;">
<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">3)<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">In a baked potato.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;">
<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">4)<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">In soup<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">It made me realize it's reallytime to expand the ways I cook broccoli. I started thinking about what I think of when I think of broccoli, warm comforting soups on cold nights, steaming baked potatoes in the dead of winter. To me broccoli is a
comfort food, so what better way to serve it then in mushroom stroganoff?</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDxPiIGchkl9idEZJJnzNbyRcGEu2mqXlb5gnrv_KlJkY1LFXIINljg3n0US3wcSwk1pwQJbgu2EonZuPp3Xn5dyYH4SX4MyKRB9MjQmzzyjuoZmcvRevMT_BHP0gJpSS28_SjyULD6hw/s1600/stroganoff+in+the+pan.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDxPiIGchkl9idEZJJnzNbyRcGEu2mqXlb5gnrv_KlJkY1LFXIINljg3n0US3wcSwk1pwQJbgu2EonZuPp3Xn5dyYH4SX4MyKRB9MjQmzzyjuoZmcvRevMT_BHP0gJpSS28_SjyULD6hw/s320/stroganoff+in+the+pan.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Serves 4 adults<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">4 servings of Egg noodles (or 1/2 small package<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">2 tablespoon Coconut oil or butter <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">2 tablespoon flour <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">1/2 sweet white onion<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">2 cloves garlic<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">10-15 button mushrooms diced chopped into small
chunks<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">2 cups vegetable stock<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">2 cups fresh broccoli florets broken into small pieces<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">1 tablespoon fresh parsley<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">1 cup Greek yogurt<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Cook 4 servings of egg noodles in boiling water
until nearly tender. Drain and set aside. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">While noodles are cooking: <o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Add oil and flour to a heavy bottom skillet. Cook for
about 3 minutes until flour is no longer raw. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Add onion, garlic and mushrooms
and sauté for 5 minutes. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"></span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Add 2 cups of vegetable stock and season with salt and
pepper.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"> Allow pot to simmer for about 15 minutes until flavors come together. Stir
in broccoli and allow to cook for about 3 minutes, or until broccoli just turns
bright green. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Stir in egg noodles, parsley and Greek yogurt and serve warm.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigwbTNxot6waYXQhG4uQfYPjZGokJ5ImfcTIM2KvSeC2sQRa2kw8T6V7haPfKHKOKpXvJTN9txNyO0ENwz_cfeUwZ79mWtj-dHqh8kevKloKjnu2d6mmPFGD1kDVsUER3Qxum0DqPN6lE/s1600/stroganoff.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigwbTNxot6waYXQhG4uQfYPjZGokJ5ImfcTIM2KvSeC2sQRa2kw8T6V7haPfKHKOKpXvJTN9txNyO0ENwz_cfeUwZ79mWtj-dHqh8kevKloKjnu2d6mmPFGD1kDVsUER3Qxum0DqPN6lE/s320/stroganoff.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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This stroganoff turned out filling, hearty and full of flavor. The meat in this meal isn't really missed due to the hearty meaty flavor and texture of mushrooms. </div>Laurahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13698780444143875485noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4229543856745598730.post-63019093998906336112012-03-04T21:13:00.002-08:002012-03-24T09:46:04.507-07:00Vegetarian Red Cabbage Borscht A.K.A Purple Soup!<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">We started a spending freeze today- where we don’t plan to
bring out the debit cards, or cash in our wallets or anything not vital,
pre-planned, or required for us to get to work for the rest of the month. Because of the spending freeze,
it means making smart choices with the items that we have on hand to maximize flavor,
and taste. I decided to start this freeze off with a beautiful hearty soup. Red
cabbage borscht! <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A flavorful tasty and
warm soup perfect the last little bit of winter. This soup is made with pickled
beets, shredded red cabbage, orange juice, potatoes and celeriac. It’s topped
with two tablespoons of sour cream for a stick to your ribs feel and a little
extra protein. My daughter liked it because it was purple, and purple is of
course a princess color. I have to be honest, I like it because it's purple too!</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitJoaVI1LlWLFnIXBpG2F3ZSspQeyX0vH48V21AUJsTX1rhHE3xHfV8DAlvcS3shg_-epVVWhcgenO_IQHC_Avpa8mfLfJWwqCb1CQM0TX9DOHJ6e1pbSkdFK_1Jq8xybnbesnIrND-tA/s1600/red+cabbage.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitJoaVI1LlWLFnIXBpG2F3ZSspQeyX0vH48V21AUJsTX1rhHE3xHfV8DAlvcS3shg_-epVVWhcgenO_IQHC_Avpa8mfLfJWwqCb1CQM0TX9DOHJ6e1pbSkdFK_1Jq8xybnbesnIrND-tA/s320/red+cabbage.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">In a large Dutch oven combine:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">1/2 TBSP butter<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">1/2 TBSP coconut oil<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">1 small white onion diced<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">1 large carrot peeled and diced <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">1 celeriac peeled and diced<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Cook until onion is translucent<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Add 2 cloves garlic minced<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">1 small head of red cabbage shredded<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">2 small peeled potatoes<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">1 granny smith apple peeled, cored and diced<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Add:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">4 cups water<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">2 cups orange juice <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">1 can pickled beets diced and their juice<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">2 TBSP apple cider vinegar <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">1 TSP caraway seed<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">1 TBSP dried dill<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">1 bay leaf<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Salt and pepper to taste<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Allow this soup to simmer for about two hours until all the
flavors are melded together and an amazing soup forms. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzAvlKMNi5Q2zgSidh1zlpTZPORqoo6OcuG8gG6d2-MdsZpil_KeZOH5P8roWnjZunRVCOha99nWZ2i2570g4jq80JNNNntbK3Vp5YZ7D71wuYfGZh_nrhO_jOUbFKq-FLmI-WkoDdh-k/s1600/red+cabbage+with+sour+cream.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzAvlKMNi5Q2zgSidh1zlpTZPORqoo6OcuG8gG6d2-MdsZpil_KeZOH5P8roWnjZunRVCOha99nWZ2i2570g4jq80JNNNntbK3Vp5YZ7D71wuYfGZh_nrhO_jOUbFKq-FLmI-WkoDdh-k/s320/red+cabbage+with+sour+cream.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">On a side note relative to the soup above, for soups like
this I fell head over heels in love with my Staub La Cocotte Dutch oven. It
allows me to simmer my soup on low, and keeps all of the heat and broth inside
the pot. There are times I want a broth reduced to concentrate the flavor, but
this is not one of those times. I put so many flavorful things in this soup
that I wanted to keep as much flavor in the soup as I could. I’m not a champion
of expensive cookware, or kitchen toys, but I believe every home cook should
have a heavy enamel coated cast iron Dutch oven for soups and cooking beans.
There are of course less expensive brands to start out with, such as Lodge that
will do the trick. I promise once you go cast iron though you will not go back
to a lightweight aluminum pan for simmering soups. <o:p></o:p></span></div>Laurahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13698780444143875485noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4229543856745598730.post-14016713847859627432012-02-11T18:04:00.000-08:002012-03-24T09:46:51.323-07:00Pomegranate molasses<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Every month I’ve been trying to challenge myself to cook something I’ve never made before. I typically decide on something that would be a challenge for me, or that I’ve failed at before. This month after reading a recipe that called for pomegranate molasses, and realizing I could make it, I decided that would be fun challenge for the month. It might have been a little premature calling it a challenge though because, it was so crazy simple to make that I am scratching my head and wondering why I haven’t been making it for years!( I’ll have to come up with another challenge later on this month. )</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">It all started with coupons from PomWonderful for $1.00 off any product. Thanks to my local supermarket having juice on sale for .99 each this means I had a free 8oz container to work with. Not only was this crazy simple to make, but it also was nearly free! Now to figure out how to can this beautiful creation because it would make a wonderful home made gift. </span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJnt573jVKkRIp3xPuP2oiNJeAX0xXXyXbqFrzasTPm5BdqkbsIm0bJr6ZkE3oKwthPVnzQROTN84IFpPN20Vl2p9hOn9ouRUQvZhxVo-xBA4pkKbwqZ_ykQP8KlBfMGtaGNTZ4jIdXak/s1600/IMG-20120211-00660.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" sda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJnt573jVKkRIp3xPuP2oiNJeAX0xXXyXbqFrzasTPm5BdqkbsIm0bJr6ZkE3oKwthPVnzQROTN84IFpPN20Vl2p9hOn9ouRUQvZhxVo-xBA4pkKbwqZ_ykQP8KlBfMGtaGNTZ4jIdXak/s320/IMG-20120211-00660.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Here is the recipe: (I kind of winged it) </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">8oz Pomegranate juice</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">2 Tablespoons sugar</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">2 Tablespoons lemon juice </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Add Juice and sugar and lemon juice to a sauce pan and cook on high until sugar is dissolved.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Reduce the heat to medium and let cook for about 1 hour until it is reduced down to thick syrup. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">That’s it! After that I poured it into a little jelly jar and put it in the fridge. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">I couldn’t help myself! I started by placing it in a little orange seltzer water and it was delicious. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">I also added it to the soup I needed it for and WOW! It added a subtle sweetness, instant flavor and instant depth to the soup. I was so impressed with this stuff I can guarantee you I’m going to start making it all the time! </span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQj4_B8-B1-31f35L_BbCaYGFjtWUrUZAeJ4WZzB26ih0vv62qYD3Z00D39g0TwXp1CvnAnIBQMMSPGN06pKDae0QjbAH6Z-ina3ICybQznzKaIeOL35L24TSKaNszDFYPo1oaNeARk8o/s1600/IMG-20120211-00661.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" sda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQj4_B8-B1-31f35L_BbCaYGFjtWUrUZAeJ4WZzB26ih0vv62qYD3Z00D39g0TwXp1CvnAnIBQMMSPGN06pKDae0QjbAH6Z-ina3ICybQznzKaIeOL35L24TSKaNszDFYPo1oaNeARk8o/s320/IMG-20120211-00661.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">A Bonus soup recipe! </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Middle Eastern Chickpea soup-</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">1 large red onion</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">3 cloves garlic chopped</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">2 cans chick peas drained</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">1 red pepper roasted (or 1 cup of roasted red peppers chopped if buying jarred)</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">1 roasted eggplant (or 1 cup roasted eggplant chopped if buying jarred- often found in the European section of markets) </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">1 can petite diced tomatoes</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">2 tbsp. tomato paste</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">8 oz of water</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">2 tbsp. Lemon juice</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">2 tbsp. pomegranate molasses</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A large handful of parsley diced thin. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">I put this into my crockpot with a generous portion of salt and pepper and I’m expecting it’s going to be pretty good when we serve it tomorrow. </span></div>Laurahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13698780444143875485noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4229543856745598730.post-27007294194561048752012-01-18T00:16:00.001-08:002012-03-24T09:49:10.444-07:00Potpie- And a little bit of courage<div class="MsoNormal" style="border: currentColor; margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">I enter cooking contests now and again- sometimes because there is an amazing prize like a Kitchen-Aid mixer, or a trip to California, but more often because it challenges me to make something that I’ve never made before, forces me to flex my cooking muscles a little bit, and challenges me to make something that has stumbled me in the past. One of those major stumbling blocks in my culinary world has always been pie crust! Chewy, heavy, dense pie crust has always been all I’ve managed to turn out, but it’s never really bothered me because honestly, I don’t really care for pie, with one exception. Potpie! Potpie is one of those amazing dreamy rich comfort foods that I love, but always top with mashed potatoes due to my crust fears. When the Today Show asked for our best potpie recipes I decided it was time to face my potpie dilemma head on and find a way around not only not being able to make a decent crust, but also not enjoying crust. The solution I came up with is this: Greek Pot pie! With puff pastry atop a savory Greek inspired filling I couldn’t be happier with my dish. Plus my daughter ate something chocked full of strange vegetables just because it had the word pie in it. Even though the Today Show didn't choose to feature my recipe, facing my potpie fears, and getting my daughter to eat more vegetables makes me a winner with this recipe anyway! And I will be adding this to our dinner rotation.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKz1NWUcT9WaVCt6p6ohWJQR8MMdFc4HiC-lymuhYhStKjPEyAT61ZScIvlJQtE2sFdNhgjy_tckIKSTdnTmWTM0_hz9vgwBYkFwqYpt02J-SMaagoifQ5izxLMZeOTc3K_S1z2qeNQykv/s1600/potpie2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" kba="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKz1NWUcT9WaVCt6p6ohWJQR8MMdFc4HiC-lymuhYhStKjPEyAT61ZScIvlJQtE2sFdNhgjy_tckIKSTdnTmWTM0_hz9vgwBYkFwqYpt02J-SMaagoifQ5izxLMZeOTc3K_S1z2qeNQykv/s400/potpie2.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="border: currentColor; margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Greek Potpie:</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">2 TBSP olive oil</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">1 white onion</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">2 cloves garlic</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">1 eggplant diced small</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">1 yellow squash diced small </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">1 portabella mushroom diced small (or 1 cup baby portabella mushrooms)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">1 cup frozen spinach</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">1 Tbsp. dried oregano </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">1 Tsp. fresh dill</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">1 Tbsp. fresh parsley chopped fine</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">1 can garbanzo beans drained</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">1 can petite diced tomatoes</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">1 1/2 - 2<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>cups vegetable stock</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Juice of 1/2 lemon</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Salt and pepper</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Buerre manie of 1 Tbsp butter, 1 Tbsp wheat flour kneaded together </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">4 oz reduced fat feta cheese crumbled (or as much as you like!) </span></div>
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<span lang="EN" style="color: black; font-family: "Verdana", "sans-serif"; font-size: 9pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN;">1 sheet puff pastry </span></div>
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<span lang="EN" style="color: black; font-family: "Verdana", "sans-serif"; font-size: 9pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN;">Preheat oven to 375 degrees</span></div>
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<span lang="EN" style="color: black; font-family: "Verdana", "sans-serif"; font-size: 9pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN;">In a large Dutch oven heat 2 tablespoon of olive oil. Add onion and cook until softened, add garlic and cook until fragrant. Add all other vegetables and herbs, season with salt and pepper and cook for about 10 minutes until the vegetables release their juices. Add canned beans and tomatoes. Add just enough stock to resemble a very chunky soup, and the juice of 1/2 lemon.</span></div>
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<span lang="EN" style="color: black; font-family: "Verdana", "sans-serif"; font-size: 9pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN;">In a zip lock bag knead together 1 Tbsp butter and 1 Tbsp wheat flour. When well incorporated scoop out of bag into soup. Stir into soup and let simmer until stew is just thickened. Add crumbled feta cheese. </span></div>
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<span lang="EN" style="color: black; font-family: "Verdana", "sans-serif"; font-size: 9pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN;">Place thawed puff pastry on lightly floured surface and roll out until it’s just a little larger than your pan</span></div>
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<span lang="EN" style="color: black; font-family: "Verdana", "sans-serif"; font-size: 9pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN;">Scoop stew into a pie dish or tart pan and cover with puff pastry dough cutting away extra.</span></div>
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<span lang="EN" style="color: black; font-family: "Verdana", "sans-serif"; font-size: 9pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN;">Bake in oven for about 15-20 minutes or until golden brown. </span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjz1tz0VjAJYF-zf3VOqLdS7T7-O-RCcW9IXz8hNTE-s_1KDW4Y_oo__SePqamHqoR-GDv_mmFZEUPJ1BGFlmP7RCnLOsE8xYQ51lKHv-5BOfH7Xyxwo3Q3pk1vSm8ITLe5XP0gDFwOYmCs/s1600/inside+of+a+pie.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" kba="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjz1tz0VjAJYF-zf3VOqLdS7T7-O-RCcW9IXz8hNTE-s_1KDW4Y_oo__SePqamHqoR-GDv_mmFZEUPJ1BGFlmP7RCnLOsE8xYQ51lKHv-5BOfH7Xyxwo3Q3pk1vSm8ITLe5XP0gDFwOYmCs/s400/inside+of+a+pie.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>Laurahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13698780444143875485noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4229543856745598730.post-37158313691241742952011-12-15T21:04:00.000-08:002012-08-03T23:41:00.223-07:00Eggs- They are not just for Breakfast anymore!<br />
I need to do a first post sometime- it might as well be now. <br />
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">At least one night a week we try to eat an egg based dishes, for several reasons. They are inexpensive, contain valuable nutrients and are typically quick and easy to cook. I’m a busy working mom, and at least once a week we have days where things just fall apart and I need a quick week night meal to save us from the dreaded fast food window. Eggs always come to the rescue on nights like that. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Tonight I planned to make Shak-Shuka (a dish where eggs are poached in richly seasoned tomato sauce popular in the middle east and north Africa.) As soon as I got home though I decided that this wasn’t going to work for us tonight. I couldn’t find the beans I needed for the dish. I didn’t have the paprika and I needed to come up with a plan B. I decided to use the same cooking technique with the foods I did have on hand to make a kind of poached huevos rancheros. </span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-7kzaTPiEeNdqE6tfwvmlORA3YfM5Ao6F5Vvp3eQByBoM6YHCGSeCNUNQV-X82O7kQykBzXTEJyCY1GNl43aZPNPRhg-BdBlfDT1bnnlJaQEZyB3yRI12IOMiEyFLnxLgmeYwDxhiQS4/s1600/IMG-20111215-00439.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" oda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-7kzaTPiEeNdqE6tfwvmlORA3YfM5Ao6F5Vvp3eQByBoM6YHCGSeCNUNQV-X82O7kQykBzXTEJyCY1GNl43aZPNPRhg-BdBlfDT1bnnlJaQEZyB3yRI12IOMiEyFLnxLgmeYwDxhiQS4/s320/IMG-20111215-00439.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
(Little girl and I ate some of the eggs before I took a photo, can you tell?) <br />
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Drizzle of olive oil</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">1 medium red onion chopped fine</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">2 gloves garlic chopped fine </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">1 can fire roasted diced green chilis</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">1 15oz can black beans drained</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">2 tsp ground cumin</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">1 28oz can organic diced tomatoes in juice</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Salt and pepper to taste</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">1 cup shredded Mexican cheese (we used 3 cheese blend because it was what we have, but next time will pick a soft Mexican cheese)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">8-9 large eggs</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">In a large oven proof Dutch oven heat oil. Add onion and garlic and cook until onion is soft. Add chilies, black bean and cumin and stir until spices are well combined. Add entire can of diced tomatoes and bring to a boil. Allow to simmer for about 15 minutes until sauce becomes slightly thick. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Turn off the heat and add sprinkle 1 cup of Mexican cheese. Crack eggs one at a time and place over sauce. Work quickly as eggs start to cook as soon as they touch the hot liquid. Place entire dish uncovered in an oven @ 350 degrees and allow to cook for about 8 minutes until eggs are just cooked but yolks are still slightly soft. </span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0fw755N41nqPWO3jT59Nv2DMX7yyUmZl7qU9AggBj_g1rsNiCaMFCWM_PFqbpDr2XCvJskWvBJ7vj2PA47e8JaRiiSK9K9hSZgb1OAXBaUN0K0WNGlPg8bUuw5mv_I3cGHhVdO3Chozs/s1600/IMG-20111215-00438.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" oda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0fw755N41nqPWO3jT59Nv2DMX7yyUmZl7qU9AggBj_g1rsNiCaMFCWM_PFqbpDr2XCvJskWvBJ7vj2PA47e8JaRiiSK9K9hSZgb1OAXBaUN0K0WNGlPg8bUuw5mv_I3cGHhVdO3Chozs/s320/IMG-20111215-00438.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
Maybe I should explain that I am in love with egg yolk! Soft silky smooth egg yolk. It's like a golden treasure that I crave and seek. Also I ate this with a crusty bread left over from Tuesday.Laurahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13698780444143875485noreply@blogger.com0