As always, when the old year ends the weather allows me more time to look out my window in quiet reflection. I like to think about what I am thankful for. Some thoughts are serious and considerate. Others are amusing and entertaining. At least to me. Here's an example. I am really thankful I finally labeled what kind of cook I am. It gives me a measure of comfort to know I am a confounded cook. Really, it does help! I'm also thankful that Mike Harvey and other like-minded people will not be dropping by this holiday season feeling forced to share one of their favorite holiday foods. Yes, I am talking about the "F" word. FRUITCAKE!
A little background is necessary first. Dear Mr. Harvey innocently posted what he felt to be his perfected fruitcake recipe last December. He simply wanted to share his success with other fruitcake lovers. Of course, being a friend of his I stopped in for a read. Mind you, not that I was going to try his recipe. I was happy to accept his word that he had finally fulfilled his quest. Hey, I can relate to that desire to once and for all tweak a recipe into delightful perfection. Now, Mr. Harvey may have misconstrued an innocent remark of mine about disliking that perennial holiday cake. I must say the poor man probably never dreamed his blog would generate 259 comments and quite the running dialogue. I went back today while typing this and re-read some of the comments. Doc Simonson, really candied Lima beans? You were getting a little scary there.
The blog was a lot of fun last year and I asked Mike again and again to post a repeat this year. OK, on my part it was the comments that made the blog so much fun and why I wanted a repeat blog! I might be able to safely say I wasn't the only one that enjoyed the comments either. Unfortunately, Mike's lovely wife, Linda, has been having some health issues and Mike has focused his energy into her well-being. So instead of Mike discussing his beloved fruitcake in a blog this year he asked me to write something about them. Yes, even if I am a confirmed fruitcake disliker I believe I can do justice to the subject at hand. If you would like to see Mike's former blog for the comments or if you'd actually like to look at his recipe here is the link-
http://allrecipes.com/cook/13101603/blogentry.aspx?postid=292136
Taste testing was out of the question so I thought I would do a little online research about the subject batter. Knowledge is always a good thing to have don't you think? I was surprised to find some rather interesting facts about our holiday cake. The earliest known recipe dates back to ancient Rome. Dried fruit and nuts seem to be all that recipe had in common with today's versions. Once the cake landed in the Middle Ages honey, spices, and preserved fruits are added in. It's quite evident this historical cake recipe has under gone many transformations over the years given available ingredients and which country is making it. One of the more unexpected facts I found was the number of countries claiming a unique fruitcake interpretation. Depending on where you live you'll be using:
no alcohol to large quantities of alcohol, eaten only at Christmas or Halloween to eaten all year round, heavily iced with marzipan and sugar to no icing, rich and dark to light colored, lots of spices to little spice, dried fruits vs. candied fruits, nuts or no nuts. The choice of alcohol used is as varied too. Rum, brandy, sherry, whiskey and wine all make their way in these various recipes.
I included looking at several recipes just for the US as part of my research just to see what our fruitcake makers were cooking. Here you can find almost as many variations in just our country alone. The one that caught my eye needs a bit of back story first.
Last year when I had the mini roundup in October 2 attendees exclaimed their surprise at seeing pigs out in the field. Magnolia Blossom and I thought they meant the hogs were running loose down the highway. No, they were out in the field. It could have been the wine at lunch that made calling these pastured pigs free-ranging pigs so amusing. So imagine my surprise and the chuckling when I found this recipe.
http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/alton-brown/free-range-fruitcake-recipe/index.html
Can you imagine, Free Range Fruitcake, Magnolia blossom? I can only wonder how far a Free Range Fruitcake could fly in a fruitcake chunkin' contest.
No matter how interesting my fact-finding was, I still felt like the unnamed character that Sam-I-Am pesters with his green eggs and ham. I feel I've hear it all. "Oh you will like this fruitcake this one is-less dense more like cake..more like bread less like cake..." Or "this one has less nuts..different kinds of nuts...no nuts" And then there is that fruit factor. While reading about the different types of fruits used, I wondered if dried fruits would make any difference to me. Then I remembered that one of my husband's favorite cakes is a spice cake laden with raisins. I made it once 10 years ago so that answered that question with a nay! I also ran across this term, glace cherries. Having seen the term before and assuming it meant frozen, I looked into it. For those that weren't sure either-1. having a smooth glossy surface 2. covered with icing or sugar. In other words, maraschino cherries kicked up on sugar steroids. That brought a shudder out of me to think of maraschino cherries cooked even further in a sugary syrup reduction. At the end, Dr. Seuss's poor pestered character relented and found he did like green eggs and ham. The same, however, will probably never be said for fruitcake and me!
To be well rounded with my research, I decided to include some data from a group of friends. Now, we know that Mike and his lovely wife love their fruitcake but what about others? My findings varied. Some disliked their dense round disks of cake enough that they used them to feed the squirrels. Others like AR member Candice, who considered herself most fortunate to receive a Harvey fruitcake, hid hers in her bedroom. I won't say where in case any of her children are reading this. For those that have met Candice, it is hard to believe that dear sweet lady not even sharing a Harvey fruitcake crumb with her fruitcake loving relatives. In all fairness, she did say there was other fruitcake available she just wasn't sharing Mike's! I'll put her down as a fruitcake fanatic, I believe.
So in conclusion, I believe the fruitcake is here to stay. Forever invoking passionate debates. Inviting spirited discussions of likes and dislikes. With that being said, there is one thing we can probably all agree on this holiday season whether fruitcake is a welcomed or dreaded addition to your table. Family, good friends, being happy and healthy are the most important things during the holidays.
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year, everyone!
Yes, I admit it. I am a confounded cook. I am frequently bewildered and confused in the kitchen. That room also gives me numerous occasions to utter mild oaths. All because of that dreaded "L" word. And this isn't even a new or recent occurrence. While revisiting an old blog post, "Totally Torqued Tuesday", the realization of how often my guys cause this condition became quite apparent. Couldn't help but notice that the real reason for the blog sprouted from twigs aka that breakfast cereal that was frequently blogged about right about then. Still dealing with the guys and their food requirements is an endless quest.
Now in all fairness while re-reading that blog it became obvious they do spur me on to challenge my culinary skills. After all, if I hadn't been trying to WOW them with a new dinner idea that particular night I might not have used my salad spinner to "dry" off my homemade hash browns. A big thank really goes to PBS for airing Graham Kerr's cooking show. The one where he used his creative culinary talent to reduce the fat and calories in his favorite recipes. He was using his spinner to evenly coat his mixed salad with dressing giving it the entire flavor while whirling off all the excess. Serendipity does play a role in my kitchen because I just happened to be looking at my spinner when I remembered that show's segment and thought, "ah ha!"
While providing something "fresh" every night has expanded my culinary horizons like I just shared with you, the "L" word still causes a conundrum. Yes, years ago my darling DH announced he was going to the local gas station in search of a hamburger. He needed to eat something "fresh". I know I should have known I was doomed when a greasy hamburger procured at the gas station was preferred over humble portions of food that might have rested in the refrigerator for a day or two. YES, I am talking about LEFTOVERS! Go figure, you make something "fresh" everyday and those confounded things are bound to appear!
Many wise cooks out there give their families 2 choices for dinner-TAKE IT or LEAVE IT! so why can't I? Because years ago I made the same mistake people sometimes make about cats in trees. I was a afraid my poor guys would starve so I catered to them. My BAD! Way back when it hadn't occurred to me I'd never seen a cat's skeleton in a tree.
You know what? I have found my way of getting even. It might even be sneaky. It could be thought of as underhanded and it does generally confound me but I am learning how to elevate my leftovers to new reformed heights. Hence, my confession, I must hide what I am doing from the guys. If they have any inkling they are getting leftovers grumblings and rants can occur. You would think I was trying to kill them. Given I was an extremely picky eater and my Mother would have throttle me, I didn't complain about dinner I simply didn't eat it. My mother enforced that TAKE IT or LEAVE IT dinner choice. However, I did know where the peanut butter and crackers were and could help myself later. IF I sat thru dinner and helped with the dishes afterwards.
That is why I feel so compelled to share what I can only describe as a truly "L"inspiring moment which happened a couple of months ago. I had help, of course, and where I can name my sources I will. It all started with my last roundup. Namely the pulled pork leftovers. Which were quite good at the time and do freeze well but how do you repurpose it? Again. Thankfully, I wasn't the only one suffering with this dilemma. Someone, I cannot for the life of me remember who, posted on AR asking for recipes to use l/o pulled pork in. Like I wasn't going to check that thread out? Don't even remember how many recipes were suggested but one stood out, Chili Verde. Hmm, what is that? Even now I'm not sure which particular recipe was suggested but I believe B'Nana recommended one and I went looking to see what was in it. You might know how it goes, the whole idea of the recipe sounds great but... It won't work tonight or they won't eat that but just maybe I could use some elements of that recipe to tweak what I have into something they will love. Ok so actually I am going for just eating it and not whining! And not leaving anymore leftovers!
To disguise some leftover chicken one night I had experimented with a salsa verde which caused me to create this recipe:
http://allrecipes.com/personalrecipe/63753470/spicy-green-tomato-sauce/detail.aspx. Never had or made it before but again the idea sounded good. Better yet, different. Everything needed was right out there in the garden and clean plates came back. So did I remake my l/o pulled pork into a chili verde? Not exactly. I still feel that is really doable since I don't sauce my pulled pork till it hits the table.
However, I had a Roast Cubano waiting to be cooked in keeping with the "fresh" thing. Given that this blog has been in the works for awhile and I wanted to share links, I looked up my recipe. I had been attributing it Emeril for years. Boy, does it pay to look up stuff! I'd been following a mental recipe which had evidently dropped some stuff. Like orange juice and where it was from. How I got the recipe still confounds me but luckily it is still out there on the net. Yah, cause Emeril had nothing to do with it. It is from Better Homes and Gardens http://www.recipe.com/pork-roast-cubano/?recipeId=1620333776 and it is really good IMO.
This is a Monday thru Friday trip thru our dinners but this is how the leftover nirvana came to be.
When I have a chance in the morning, I check out Lucky Noodles post “what did you have for dinner”. Again I do not remember who posted this recipe as what they had for dinner
http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Delicious-Black-Bean-Burritos/Detail.aspx?event8=1&prop24=SR_Thumb&e11=delcious%20black%20bean%20burritos&e8=Quick%20Search&event10=1&e7=Recipe%20Hub
But I thought it looked good. I had black beans to cook and the fridge had cream cheese that needed to be used. I did have to add Italian sausage to the beans since the guys can't go meatless. So now I have leftover seasoned black beans. Now since this all happened in the same week we are back to serendipity again! Earlier with the grilled Roast Cubano, I made http://allrecipes.com/recipe/grilled-bacon-wrapped-corn-on-the-cob/detail.aspx. for a side. So now I have leftover corn & bacon, beans, leftover chopped tomatoes and pork. We'd had some side salads and the kid can't eat tomatoes unless he is at his Grandma Jennie's house hence the l/o tomatoes.
Well, what do you do with those items? You Google! Maybe I could do a casseroly type of thing and hide everything! Remember they can't handle seeing leftovers being revisited!
Looked at 4 sites or more and stumbled over one that was topped with a corn pudding. Hmmm, what if I use the leftover corn in the corn pudding? I can always use the bacon chopped up on top ;)
This lead to more googling to compare corn pudding recipes. This is what takes me so much time some days. If I am not familiar with a recipe or ingredient, I will spend time reading reviews and recipes to see what they have in common. For me, it rather helps to weed out what I don't want or can't use. Remember I have the picky W-2's. Refer back to the "Whatever" blog.
Ah but this day I got them and I would like to present to you the successfully hidden leftovers from not 1 but several meals!!!!
I give you "Pulled From the Pantry Pork Casserole". Yeah it should be pulled from the larder if you want to be technical but it doesn't sound as good. And yeah, it ain't so pretty but it worked :)
In an 8x8x21/2 qt baking dish layer in this order:
2 cups cooked l/o black beans
1 1/2 cups shredded Roast Cubano
1/4-1/2 cup shredded pepper jack cheese (needed something "fresh")
1/4 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese
1 cup salsa verde (leftover from earlier chicken dish)
1/2 cup chopped fresh tomatoes
Top with Corn Pudding for a crust.
(this is a combo of recipes using what I had)
2 large eggs
1/2 cup baking mix (made my own- 1 cup all-purpose flour, 1 1/2 tsp baking powder, 1/4 tsp salt ( used my homemade seasoned salt) and 1 T canola oil)
1/2 cup milk
Mix together and add in corn kernels from 2 ears of l/o bacon wrapped corn on the cob. Reserve bacon. Spoon over casserole and top with leftover chopped bacon.
Bake @ 350 for approx. 45 mins.
Not only did they eat it they went back for seconds. If they only knew how many leftovers they got that night!
Now for you, Mr. Harvey, cause I promised. Due to all the cooking, I need low fat low cal snacks. Low sodium is a bonus too. If any of you are like me, if it doesn't satisfy you the first time you just keep on grazing. Not a good thing after 50.
So what can you make with these things and an oven?
Spicy crunchy popcorn that is low fat, low cal and hits the spot. I do not like chewy air popped popcorn. But when I found that I could have 3 cups of air popped corn vs. 1 cup oil popped corn which do you think I was going to pick? Nope, neither. Remember air popped is chewy, I want CRUNCHY! So I ordered a citrus sprayer, yeah they do really work. Went to Bed, Bath & Beyond and the little gal there said "we only have that online. I can order it for you and you can use your coupon. There will be no shipping." I must go back and thank her!
Why a citrus sprayer? To wet the popcorn that I'm going to bake after air popping it. It has to have something on it to get Mr. Mike Harvey's wonderful spice blend to stick to it. Yeah, I am out hence that empty container with the green lid. With much experimenting which is still going on, I have discovered if you spray lime juice on air popped corn and coat with seasoning (Mike's has no salt, he did a blog about it in his corner of AR on his "Life...It's Why We Cook." blog. I am almost 100% sure. I am almost positive we spoke about it and he said, "good memory, Cat". Well, I can't find it as I type this blog but Mike has a wonderful spice recipe that I do know!)
I am still tweaking this but after popping and spraying with the lime juice then carefully coating with seasonings, I bake the popcorn till it is crunchy. I can't give you times and temps cause at this stage it is still an experiment but I am getting a snack that satisfies me.
Till next time when the Confounded Cook confronts the "F" word, I hope you have a family that can eat leftovers or that you can craftily hide yours too!
June 23rd was the last day for food and fun for the Midwest Roundup gang. Can I say the yard and gardens were weed free? Nope. Can I say the house was perfectly clean and decorated? Uh huh. Can I say that everyone that wanted to come, made it? 'Fraid not. But what I can say is the people that came once again made it a fantastic weekend! Good food and laughter filled conversations were the norm. I might add the food was even served on time.
Friday night hot wings, Ryan's Reverse Popper dip, Baking Nana's http://allrecipes.com/personalrecipe/63616340/south-of-the-border-shrimp-gazpacho/detail.aspx (with a couple of tweaks from me), my infamous cheezy crackers, guacamole and Mike's addictive snack mix rounded out the appetizers served to Pattycakes and her DH, Mike & Linda Harvey, Magnolia Blossom, and Mi Being Mi .
Ah yes, and one other person. After my surprise visitor last year, I was indeed rather suspicious about another "Julie" being pulled this year. I even asked if I was getting another surprise guest. Unfortunately, I asked the "PIC" (partner in crime) of said guest. When my first car load arrived I happily greeted them in the driveway. They had hidden their stowaway behind one of the bushes in the drive. We proceeded into the house and I received a text. Now this person had mailed goodies( some really awesome cookies!) here and had been texting me all day with photos of her lovely grandbaby. Note to anyone wishing to make a grand surprise entrance these 2 methods work quite well to divert suspicion. When I received one last text from her my jaw dropped again. Mr. Harvey swears the only thing he has seen open wider is an anaconda. Humf! My husband was rather startled because I went right for the front door cause I knew she wasn't behind me!
Yep, x-raybarb/gammaray, pulled a Julie. After much hugging, laughing and a little catching up, the cancer walkers set off for their relay. Pattycakes and her DH stayed behind and visited us for the evening. What a delightful couple! I am so glad they could make it.
Sat. was our big lunch filled with The BBQ dude's wonderful BBQ. Can't you almost smell that now? We rounded out our meal with coleslaw, "What's for dinner, Mom?" excellent soft & fluffy hamburger buns ( I just love those, they always turn out perfect) and Mi's Killer baked beans.
Pattycake's DH and Alan hit it off and keep a lively conversation going. My child is accidentally in orange too. He'd gone to work that morning but made it back for lunch.
The ladies had their own lively conversations while waiting for it to cool off for a tour of the gardens. Bane the cranky dog is keeping watch.
Later in the evening my DS rode the horses down to visit.
Pattycakes, I hope you show your DH this photo. Joe is happily licking MB's hand to make sure he got all the treats! No teeth!
Even though some of us stayed up into the wee hours chatting, while others chose to get some sleep, breakfast Sunday morning was served on time!
Cinnamon rolls, sourdough English muffins, quiche courtesy of my girls, bacon, cantaloupe and fruit juice from my orchard made for quite a nice spread. Mr. Harvey even learned that cold brewed coffee is quite tasty!
Again this year we had a lovely time meeting new people and seeing old friends. The conversation, food and laughter flowed. And yes, there were presents.
For those that sent things, thank you. Julie, your spice rub smells so good and thank you for the gift bags. Lady Sparkle, can't wait to try out those wine bags. Barb, loving those cookies!
For my hostess gifts, thank you very much. I love that cat bottle of wine! Pattycakes, thank you for the books. Barb, the towels and apron are really cute. Mi, thanks for your wine bags and making the sangria! Magnolia Blossom didn't get a "faux toe" of yours, LOL, I'm gonna get you and Barbie girl!
Sadly enough the weekend had to come to an end. Even sadder the next day I got to go pick up 160 bales of hay for the pasture pigs. Mi's sangria helped after my poor BBQ dude and I got all the hay home.
For those of you that couldn't come, we missed you and we are sorry you didn't make it.
Never fear!
Barring Life getting in the way, a date has already been set. Yep, once again I will host the 5th annual Middle of the Midwest Roundup the first weekend in June! So for those of you that said "maybe next year", here's your chance!
Till next year!
((HUGS))
Cat
It's been such a long time since I first met you. Can I say I knew you very well? No, not until you and a certain someone were in 9th grade. I got to hear so much about you back then. Even as a teenager you impressed me. And then when I needed you most, you were there.
Hard to believe it was 2 years ago that I was urged buy a dear friend to get on Facebook so I could keep in touch with my Navy bound son. Who was one of the first people I tried to "friend"? You. You asked if you knew me and I told you yes. That wasn't quite true because you only knew me as your one time BFF's mom. Still you accepted me. I was quite grateful that you kindly helped me navigate FB and get through that difficult time. Trust me, sending an only child off to the military takes a whole lot of help. Not only did I need you but a whole host of friends.
Then the boy came home and I figured our "friend" time was done. You're young. You have your friends, school and work. Yet, we still found time to chat. Then a boyfriend came along and we didn't talk as much. I'd think about you every so often and bounce a msg to you, just to say "HI". You did the same, just to keep in touch. When you asked for advice I tried to give you my best. When you needed an ear or shoulder I gave it and you did the same. When you came home for Christmas, I invited you to lunch. I confess I rather wondered how our visit would go. After all my son keeps pointing out how ancient I am and you're so young but I knew you were just the one to give me some much needed help. And you were, generously giving of your time and expertise. We had a great visit and shared a nice meal. We even exchanged gifts. No, I haven't had coffee or cocoa in your cup. It sits on my kitchen window sill and reminds me of you. I wish you lived closer so we could go thrift store shopping and then have lunch. Like I once did with my mother and sister. I so miss those days but Mom is no longer here and my sister has moved away.
Even though they say blood is thicker than water, on a day when I felt less than loveable and quite angry with the world, you proved the saying doesn't have to be true. Adopted Dear Daughter, thank you so much for the lovely card and all that it said! With much love, Addie, I'm afraid you are stuck with me dear!
It's on! June 21, 22 and 23, 2013 the 4th Middle of the Midwest Roundup will be held! And anyone that would like to attend is welcome!
I can hardly believe that 4 years ago several people who met thru All Recipes got together for lunch at my house. And then some of them kept coming back yearly! Yes, we have had different people every year for the roundup and each year has been different. I wish I could say it was my improving hostess abilities each year that adds new people but when you mix good food, laughter, conversation and wonderful people, the hostess job is a snap. And yes, sometimes the hostess here does snap. Could be why my dear friend, Magnolia Blossom, and first time co-hostess sent me these.
I do believe she & a co-conspirator sent another such package to a BBR ( Been Before Rounduper, I refuse to use Old timer to designate those of us that have been here before :). He got all hot stuff in his due to incendiary nature.
Last year Mr. Harvey or Mr. Hotstuff and his lovely bride attended the roundup. It was great meeting the quick witted Mike but as some of you know he has battled cancer so when he goes somewhere he tries to support any cancer awareness event in the area. Last year, he rallied those that come and they attended a cancer walk. He has done the same this year. I will let him post the info but it will be the Friday night before the Sat. lunch here.
Let's only hope since I pushed the date back for our get together that we won't be wishing we could see these!
For those that don't know Missouri weather, you never know what you will get. June could be really nice or really HUMID. Don't worry we have air conditioning! And the pool will be up this year. And lunch will be served on time! Magnolia Blossom and I proved it could be done when I had the Oct. mini roundup for those that couldn't but wanted to come in June. Yes, we did it served lunch exactly on time! So what we forgot some of the stuff in the fridge. It was still a great lunch and the conversation flowed as it always does.
So for anyone that would like to come but feels like they might be out of place with all of us BBR'ers (Been Here Before Rounduper's), don't worry about it. The BB faces are great to see but new faces are so welcome. Feel like you might be overwhelmed in the crowd? No worries, there are 20 acres here. Step outside, look at the gardens or the wildlife. A BB'er will make sure you have everything you need and we won't let you feel left out. Trust me, the conversation will flow and the laughter is sure to follow.
The menu is the same as before, BBQ. Lunch will be at 1:00 on Sat. Friday night's menu hasn't been decided. It depends on who is coming in and staying with me and if the cancer walkers have time for a stop in. I do have limited space for ladies only in the RV but I do have it and those that have stayed in it seem to like it. There are lots of motels in the area. There are B&B's here. There is even a house in town to rent but that goes fast. I tried to get it last year and a wedding party had snapped it up. This is an historical area for those that would like to extend their stay and see some of the area. There are quite a few wineries in the area too for those interested in visiting them. We have some really neat food places to visit in Kansas City. Sunday will be brunch and the plan is to have it here also.
So, I invite anyone that is interested to email me at cathillcafe@yahoo.com, head your message "Midwest Roundup "so it doesn't go to Spam. I will be more than happy to give any info you would like about the area and the Roundup. And no, I don't actually know who will be here this year, I didn't last year. You never know who will show up at these events. Ah, but the surprises have been most awesome.
So again I say, The 4th Annual Middle of the Midwest Roundup is on!!! Can't wait to see the BB'ers and any new faces that would like to come!
We will have such a great time! How can you miss with faces like these?
:)(:
Cat Hill
Earlier this year when I had the MO roundup, I wanted to make something really neat for the cooks to take home with them. Gifts from the garden, so to speak, but what to make? The year before the cook's gift was a potted herb in a one of a kind pot. I had envisioned full lush pots of happy herbs just waiting to be used. Not quite an epic fail but not what I expected either so I decided to look at other herbal gift ideas. Flavored sugar and salt seemed doable. Two simple ingredients with some herbs thrown in. What could be easier? I just needed cute jars and a recipe, which I was sure I could find on the Internet. Turns out everyone has their own idea of "how to" and "how much" when flavoring salt or sugar. After much reading, I decided to go with the food processor for incorporation and winging it with the herb amounts. I knew exactly what I wanted my end result to be so how much trouble could it be
or sugar. After much reading, I decided to go with the food processor for incorporation and winging it with the herb amounts. I knew exactly what I wanted my end result to be so how much trouble could it be.
With the salt, it was just a matter of adjusting the herb amounts. I wanted a nice strong flavored salt that would add that burst of garlic and oregano to bread sticks or pasta or anything else for that matter.
The sugar I made a small miscalculation in the drying procedure resulting in one large piece of minty rock candy the first time. Well, the salt pretty much dried on its own so why wouldn't the sugar. Alton Brown could tell you the molecular "whys" but I'm going to share with you the "what I did's" so you can make these simple recipes to use for yourself or for gifts. Plus, I have 2 extras to share, both of which I find rather exciting. Ok, so exciting might be a little strong but one I found very useful and the other, well, just plain interesting from an herb grower's point of view.
Let's start with the sugar since I forgot to get pictures of the salt for some reason. It is the same process for both.
Minted Sugar
Wash and dry 4 cups of fresh mint leaves. I left the stems if they weren't too tough. Use your salad spinner to get the mint dry. In a food processor, add all the mint. Add 1 cup of sugar and pulse in the food processor. Add 3 more cups of sugar, one cup at a time pulsing in between each addition
Here is where I went wrong the first time. I put my wet sugar on my solid trays in the dehydrator just as I did the salt expecting the same result. A nice granulated substance that made the garage smell
like a pizzeria. Not that I expected the sugar to have the pizzeria smell, just for it to return to its small granulated form. That will only happen if you do this to dry your sugar.
1. Turn your oven on to 200 degrees F.
2. Line cookie sheets with foil for easy of handling when finished drying. I did enough sugar at once that I needed two cookie sheets.
3. Place both trays in oven and watch carefully. Take out one tray after 5 minutes and stir with a fork. Return to oven and immediately repeat with second tray. When the #2 tray goes back in take out #1 and repeat. This takes several minutes but you want that sugar dry. Trust me.
If you are wondering why I used so much mint when other cooks recommend a sprig or two tossed in with several cups of sugar and allowed to dry over a period of time. Because I wanted to make these.
Touch of the Tropics Tea cookie
http://allrecipes.com/personalrecipe/63416445/touch-of-the-tropics-tea-cookie/detail.aspx
I wanted to make up a new cookie recipe showcasing the mint sugar to share with my cooks for our dessert. I figured a sprig of mint wouldn't cut it if I wanted any kind of mint flavor in my new cookie recipe. Yes, I know mint extract can be overwhelming when used in excess but the herbed sugar isn't. Besides, I wanted to be able to see the flecks of mint in the cookie and I thought it was cool that
the sugar turned such a lovely shade of green naturally!
My DH likes takeout garlic bread sticks. He has never quite come out and said it but the implication has always been there that my homemade bread sticks are a pale comparison. Not anymore! Using a blend of my oreganos (I have 5 varieties), chives, garlic and garlic chives I made a herbed finishing salt that I use for more than garlicky bread sticks.
Garlic Oregano Salt
These measurements are not precise but I think everyone can use their own judgment where their taste buds are concerned.
2 cups rough chopped fresh chives & garlic chives
3 minced cloves of garlic
3 cups rough chopped fresh oregano, your favorite flavor. I just happen to like a blend of mine.
Pulse the herbs and 1 cup of kosher salt in food processor until blended well. In a bowl, add 4 more cups of kosher salt and your herbed salt. Either use your oven at 200 degree F to dry your salt or your dehydrator if you have solid trays. The salt doesn't have to be stirred, as it does not turn into one solid rock hard lump.
I have used this salt in and on everything. I really like the salty burst of herbed flavor it can bring to my plate. Salty foods are one of my favorite things: however, we all know we should watch our salt
consumption. Since I try to not use much salt while cooking, I find that at the finish a small pinch of this salt really perks up whatever I'm eating. Be it pasta or a baked potato. And my garlic bread sticks finally have won over the DH.
I'm pretty sure this salt gives my infamous cheese crackers and extra boost too. Just ask the ladies that have tried them. I don't like store bought cheezits now that I have perfected this recipe. And no, I haven't updated the one that is in my recipe box yet. It is on the list of things to do.
Onto the new and exciting stuff I have just learned about. Recently there was a discussion on Facebook about washing your face with olive oil. Hmm, I seemed to remember my cousin saying something about that several years ago. What really caught my attention was a comment in this
discussion about using an olive oil sugar scrub and how this friend really liked it. Well, I have seen
sugar scrubs before and didn't think much about them but since my friend liked it I thought I should check it out. So I looked at different websites and the links for the olive oil wash. Found a recipe for the scrub and thought, hey, why not? Then I thought why just use plain sugar? Why not use my minted sugar while I was at the experiment. I knew peppermint worked for your stomach and in aromatherapy for headaches so I looked at skin care uses. It's reported that spearmint is healing in the bath and when decocted strongly heals chapped hands. Applemint and lemon balm are soothing and cleansing in a facial steam. All right then, got them all covered my minted sugar has applemint, lemon balm, spearmint and peppermint in it. I used this recipe-
http://michellephan.com/blog/post/diy-sugar-and-olive-oil-scrub
The smell of mint when I mixed this together was nice. Mint being one of the few things my nose will pick up. I was rather afraid of smelling too minty so I used this one day when I wasn't going anywhere, just in case. Yes, it is a little messy to use but in the nice warm bathroom that mint smell
was so soothing and I wondered if headache sufferers might not benefit from this scrub. *A word of caution, if you do try this recipe watch it in the shower, the olive oil can make your floor a little slippery!*
I was shocked at the results after using the scrub and showering as usual. My skin has become so dry this winter that I have been using what amounts to axle grease to alleviate itchy and dry as the Sahara skin. Minute I am out of the shower that nasty stuff would have to go on and then the 20 minute wait
for it to absorb. Yuck and I would still have dry patches! After using the scrub, I was not itchy and I could use my lightweight summer moisturizer. I have been using this about 3 times a week for 2 weeks now and I am happy to report this is so working for me! I've also been experimenting with washing with olive oil too. Again, a note of caution because not everything you read on the Internet is true, shocking I know. You can always do your own research and I certainly encourage that, but I'm sold on doing this because along the way I read about honey and sugar's benefits to the skin. Both are humectants meaning they bring moisture to the skin. Honey has claims as an anti-oxidant and sugar is said to contain alpha hydroxy acid. Sugar is supposed to be a milder gentler exfoliant too. And just think you can add whatever herb or essential oil to your own homemade scrubs that might benefit your skin to its fullest or your nose.
Now for my 2nd exciting discovery! I know I should maybe get out more. Follow me along on this quest and see if you don't find this just a little interesting.
The dear lady that came and helped in the garden recently (you met her on the WWOOF blog) brought along and herb for my collection. She called it broadleaf spearmint. Ok, it smelled like mint
BUT it was growing wrong and its taste had bitter after notes unlike any of my mints. I was pretty sure it wasn't a mint. But what was it? I questioned her as to where she got it. She thought maybe a private sale, maybe a nursery. She had the plant a long time. She used it to make tea. There was something about this plant that reminded me of something else. It was irritating that I couldn't think what.
First off, I googled because I wanted an answer. I came up with several different types of mints but this plant didn't match any of these. If you are wondering why I was so sure it wasn't a mint, remember I said it was growing wrong?
This is applemint.
This is peppermint.
You see how both plants have a straight stem with many leaves coming off that stem? That was my first clue. Any of the mints I have here and what I saw on my search grows that way. This plant's
leaves grew straight off a woody rootstock on individual stems rather like a violet.
Was I able to find out what the plant was quickly? Nope, took me two weeks. Had I the patience, I could have looked page by page in my tried and true herb book (The Complete Book of Herbs by Leslie Bremness, I highly recommend this as a good basic herb book) and found it.
I brushed up against this plant in the sun room one day and again was taken by its minty aroma so back to the quest I went instead of on with the chores. That and I had been looking at my Shasta daisies thinking their leaf pattern was oddly similar. I plugged in the correct search phrase, finally,
and found a chat forum where someone asked almost the same question. There were several suggestions there and on of them rang a bell. So I looked it up and sure enough, there it was.
Alecost/Costmary
Chrysanthemum balsamita (Tanacetum balsamita)
It is called Alecost because it does have bitter notes to it and was used in brewing ale. Cost derives from the Latin costum, meaning spicy oriental herb. Alecost, well, spicy herb for ale. Costmary is Mary's or women's spicy herb. Common names for the herb include balsam herb due to its smell, Bible leaf as it was said to repel bugs from bibles and its smell could keep one alert during long sermons. Mint geranium is a misnomer because costmary is not related to the mint family (Labiatae) or the geranium family (Geraniaceae). Another interesting fact I found was that originally this herb was always classified as Tanacetum balsamita but now is becoming more widely known as Chrysanthemum balsamita. Why? I didn't find the answer to that one. There is so much to learn about the classification of plants.
Plants and herbs can easily be mislabeled when common names are used or they came out of great great grandma's garden and have been handed down. Information can get lost. Luckily, for my friend this wasn't one of the herbs that was used long ago but is now classified as toxic. For me, it was exciting to learn about this herb. Herb lore has interested me as far back as grade school. Too bad I didn't know how fascinating I would find it when I was in college and could have studied it more in depth. However, a dear friend recently told me you can always learn, you don't have to go to college for that. Lady Sparkle you were right because I have been learning. And there is so much to keep learning.
I hope you enjoyed today's journey through my garden and into my kitchen. Until next time, may your garden whatever size it may be, help set your table. Or supply your cosmetic needs.
Colorado. Oregon. Wyoming. Now they might be among some of my first picks. But Missouri? And it really wouldn't be WWOOFing here at my house, it would be WWOOGing. Who in the world would want to WWOOG in a state that can equal the humidity of New Orleans and the weather can give you plenty to talk about because you just never know what your season will bring you. I do the Ging part here all the time but this is where I live!
What the heck am I talking about? World Wide Opportunities on Organic Farms and I leaned about it in an article "Postcards from the Veg" by Amanda Kimble-Evans in the Organic Gardening magazine. Originally the program was called Weekend Workers on Organic Farms and originated in England. It was a way to get city folk out on the farms for a weekend lending a helping hand on organic farms in exchange for food, lodging and a chance to learn about where their food comes from. According to the article, WWOOF has 90 countries now involved with 6, 000 hosts providing a way for farmers and volunteers to connect. There is also a WWOOF-USA. There is a name for having this type of working vacation, agro-tourism. Can you imagine going to Italy or France and joining a family to work on their farm, to see how things are done? A lady mentioned in the article
had gone to Italy and stayed on several Italian farms. She wanted to connect with her ancestral roots.
Another gentleman traveled to New Zealand. He spoke of forging memories, learning new skills and finding a passion for gardening. For those of us non-fliers staying stateside sounds like a good idea
to me. But Missouri? And like I said it would definitely be gardening here at my house and not farming.
Yeah, yeah this is a working vacation but to me it sounds like a fabulous idea. Granted I am a little
odd in my notions of what a vacation should consist of. Me, I want friends or newly made friends,
good food and something fun to do. Again, my ideas of fun are odd. I do like the outdoors but I am tired of having crappy vacations. I have been to Sturgis for a trip that makes people giggle hysterically when they see the pictures and hear how it went. After they stop laughing they look at me and maybe wonder how my spouse managed to talk me into going on another motorcycle trip
with a sidecar and my son. We had a blow out riding down the highway at 75 on that one. I have been hit by lightening on the dunes of Colorado. I once thought we had lost my son while 4 wheeling on the Paiute Trail in Utah. We were in the middle of NOWHERE with NO cell service. That was my last vacation with the family.
Come on, fess up! Is there anyone that wouldn't like to stay at petey's and see her life and critters first hand? Oh man, I could learn so much from her and I am a willing worker. Except for the butchering part. I admit being able to do that would be so hard for me and I am not a vegetarian. Weeding and learning how to make cheese and soap would really be more my speed.
Back to me and Missouri. When I saw that people were traveling to help out on farms in exchange for education and seeing where their food comes from, I wished I had an interesting enough place for
someone to want to come to help. I could really use an extra pair of helping hands but I don't have a farm and I don't have beautiful vistas to gaze at. I just have lots of gardens. My ability to share good
gardening knowledge some might say is debatable, myself included, but I'm always confident I can
tell you what not to do! The mistakes I have made in the gardens are too numerous to count. I did
have 2 interesting successes this year. One because I've been trying to grow a "salad bowl" for several years and failed but this year I tried something different and TA DA!
Some of those greens were served at the mini MO. That's zucchini next to my lettuce mix. I have horrid squash bugs here so I wondered what would happen if I put my squash in a container. I could control its environment better.
That is celery. When I saw, where ever it was, about re-growing certain plants from the root ends I just had to try.
I do love to chat while weeding. It makes, to me, a tedious task go by faster and I will happily talk about the plants we are working around and what you can do with them. Just ask some of the girls I've been able to hire in the past. One of them was kind enough to say she always learned something
while here. To have someone here for a week working with me and sharing food at my table would
be such a boon to me. We might have to send the DH &DS to Subway but why not after spending a
day in my gardens couldn't we have a nice meal from what it can offer? A rustic gratin of potatoes,
tomatoes, onions and cheese served with a nice homemade loaf of bread. I can grow 3 of those things. Figured out juicing those blackberry brandy leftovers make a much better seed free dessert so we could have a really nice easy ice cream. We could go fishing in the pond out back for our main course. After dinner we could sit outside and just enjoy conversation in the nice country quiet. Certainly not fast paced or exciting but it sounds like a good time to me!
Another article which was in the Kansas City Star about the lack of urban grocery stores made me really wish I could WWOOG here at my house. One mother featured in the story lived in a neighborhood lacking in convenient grocery stores but rift with fast food places. She didn't have a car to go to the grocery store but had to walk and then carry home groceries with very small children in tow. She spoke of how her food choices were limited. Once the children wanted to purchase a watermelon but she was afraid the distance they had to carry it would be too much for them since she
couldn't carry milk and the watermelon. There were other similar stories. I knwo what these people really needed was decent transportation but it certainly would help them out if they could grow some produce for themselves. I know renters or apartment dwellers might not be able to actually have a
garden plot or fruit trees but they could container garden. At the very least that could give them
cherry tomatoes and herbs.
Food matters to me a lot. Fresh food grown without pesticides or herbicides. All of that is important to me and I couldn't help thinking maybe these people just don't know they can grow some produce for themselves. I grew up in the suburbs but we always had a garden and fruit trees. My grandfather farmed for a living. My townie grandma, Mom's mom, always had a garden and fruit trees. Something else occurred to me. What if I could share my cooking knowledge with those who didn't have the opportunity to learn from one of the best thrifty home cooks like I did? With today's food costs and the economy as it is, knowing how to prepare an affordable nutritious yet good tasting meal is important. Again, I don't know everything but I keep learning new things all the time!
Long before reading either article I simply wished for a pair of helping hands in my gardens. There is so much to do here and the team of me, myself and I get overwhelmed sometimes. There are plenty of varieties to sample from here, so a newbie could taste and choose before buying seed or plants and they could see how they grow.
In the tomatoes, Black Krim is my favorite but it is such a pill here in MO. Very fussy about its conditions but the flavor is outstanding. Like a fine wine. Same with Wolf River, if the conditions aren't right the apples rot on the tree. If the planets align correctly you get these.
The Krim is in the middle. The rest are just an assortment I like to grow. I love the different flavors they all have.
Wolf is huge with outstanding flavor. The other normal sized fruits are Asian pear, Winesap, Fameuse, Granny Smith and Red Delicious. Love those Asian pears; they netted me a great gift!
Herbs in a pot. There is basil, saltwort and bay.
Can you see how dark the "soil" is? I read that spraying your basil with a coffee solution can keep some pests at bay. My morning coffee is cold brewed in a French press. I just pour the dregs from my French press onto my potted herbs. Does it help? I don't honestly know but I know it doesn't hurt and it seems to keep those horrid little gnawing gnats from eating my plants.
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This year anyone coming here after June 13th would have learned about watering and water conservation. those herbs weren't stacked just to get into the photo. I stack pots so the top one drains into the next pot instead of onto the pavement or ground.
That is my beloved workhorse loaded up. I fill up my water barrel and away I go.
That black thing is a soaker hose. I use the green one as an extension to get where I need to go. It
came to me after the DH's failed attempt at attaching the soaker hose to the barrel to use a siphoning method hence the rock zip tied on. It anchors my siphoning hose in the bottom of the barrel. For those kind enough to wish me a Happy Birthday earlier this year, I could almost feel the "?'s" forming when I said I'd been watering and was going out for another round. You see it takes a while to fill the barrel and use the soaker. Plus, the soaker hose doesn't work everywhere so I had to use 5 gal buckets with holes drilled in the bottom around my parched fruit trees. Yes, it takes time and when I had finished one section it would be time to start back at the beginning. It was really dry here all summer. We had a rain once and when I walked through the mud, I left my footprints on the driveway. They were there until September when we finally got rain.
Despite the drought, my fruit trees were loaded. My dear Asian pear gave me a good crop. Way too many for me and I couldn't let them go to waste so I called people to share my bounty. One dear lady, a fellow Master Gardener, offered to pay me for them. I said I didn't want money but time would be nice. I really didn't think she would take me up on that because who has time? Here though, even for 45 mintues another pair of hands would be nice to have in lieu of payment.
She said she would call and arrange a time.
And she did! Not once but twice. The first time I was getting ready to go to Nashville so I was the one with no time. Yet, she persevered till she found a mutually agreeable time and spent several hours pulling weeds here. That is her in the background. I am very grateful for her help and happy I could share my fruitful bounty with her. Thank you!!
It's not just about having help in the gardens either but how gardens or farms can truly help others.
Not just with food but physically and emotionally. Around the time I was reading the articles I've
told you about, I saw another about a veteran that returned from Iraq with multiple problems. He and his wife ended up back on his parent's farm. There he started growing blueberries. He noticed physical and mental improvements after working the land for a year and a half. Figuring if he benefited so could other fellow vets. With help from the non profit organization Work Vessels for Veterans, he purchased Veterans Farm. Here the challenges of farming help others like him while teaching another set of skills and giving them a place to share their stories.
My dad was a veteran and he helped me put in my very first garden. I used to wonder why, when he didn't have to, he spent so much time in his garden. Having spent so much time in mine, I believe I know the answer. There is something about the growing of things and turning of soil, seeing and feeling nature that soothes the mind and nurtures the body.
I hope you enjoyed today's journey through my garden and into my kitchen. Until next time, may your garden whatever size it may be help set your table.
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