Home Making II

Well, I'm on a bit of a roll, so I may as well do one more to catch up. That leaves only two more that would catch me up. Back on the subject of home making. I have had a sweet lettle pond in my front courtyard for about 6 yrs. I was fond of the pond, but it was messy. Always had to be cleaned. The area surrounding the pond frequently looked messy. Over grown, some dying off, and leaves from the magnolia tree on everything. I decided to remove the pond and just lay stone and make a courtyard for sitting. I had a workman that was going to take care of a lot of the manual labor for me. First we had to remove the pond and fill in the big whole, then clear all the growth out of the area.

This shot was taken at night, but you get the idea. Lot of ferns and fallen leaves. The pond is a plastic form, it came out pretty easy and the space was cleared and the whole filled. My worker came to help lay the flagstone, after we picked them up in my car. Fortunately for me, we didn't get enough. I had to go back and it took a good while and the worker had to go start anther job. I say, that was fortunate, because when I saw what he had done, it was not good. It wasn't level and there was big gaps between stones. He had covered half of the area also. SO I picked it all up and made some calls for estimates to have it done. Hardee Har Har. It is really expensive to get that done. And frankly, I didn't want to pay anyone that much, when it knew it would only take some elbow grease. So, I knuckled down and put down the stone.

After I laid it, I swept sand into the spaces. It looks better and brighter, and now I only have to sweep it. But I am not really happy with it. It i fin for now, it will get me through a few months that I don't have time to mess with it, but I want some one to come and do a professional job. So I hope to have a pretty porch post for you by april!

Home Making

I can't believe I go so long without blogging. I think about it and I take pics and then 2 months went by!
There was a lot going on, so I could really use some catching up, but I will start with the most recent.
I think most of us like a certain panache in our homes. We want them to look stylized, decorated. If that wasn't the majority, HGTV wouldn't be what it is. But I know for sure, I always want to do things around my home. I call my style... Stylized Rustic. I love natural elements and warmth and I always want to decorate as if it were fall. *sigh*.
So there is really only one part of my home that hasn't been touched since we have been in this house, and that is the Master bathroom. Crazy right? But 10 yrs goes by quicker than you think it will and the main part of the house gets all the attention. That's mainly what people see. But it dawned on me that our bathroom was leaving me quite cold. I would just get in and out. Cleaning when I had to, not feeling any love at all. And it was like a light bulb went on and I suddenly realized (seriously, it was very sudden) that I could change it. I didn't have to live with that!! And it wasn't going to take a renovation.

I'm not sure if you can tell, it has a natural grass wallpaper, which is actually pretty cool, but as I am sure you can tell, the glus shows through. I guess that is age. There is no way I am tackling removing wallpaper this year, but, I am considering painting it. I will keep you posted, it won't be until after the first of the year. None the less, what I have done is switched out the light, this fixture is sooooo ugly. I can't imagine someone actually picking that. I have warmed up the floor with cozy rugs and the thing I think is really instrumental in changing the feel here, is a shower curtain. Duh!! I can't believe I didn't do this before. I also hung a picture I found that I find appealing. So, that was the before, and here is the after...

One other thing you can't see, I added a nightlight. That little light of mine (hee hee) casts a golden glove in the bathroom, which makes me feel cozy whenever I go in. And I feel SO MUCH BETTER. I can't tell you. It cost probably in the neighborhood of $150. That includes the light fixture. Maybe I will have inspired some one else now, to make every inch of their home as inviting and styled as you can afford. It only takes a wee bit of effort. 

Jambalaya, crawfish pie and a filet gumbo

If the title didn't tip you off, I was craving cajun food. I have made etouffee once or twice, it was good, and some cajun chicken pasta. But never tried my hand at Jambalaya. It awlays sounded like something I wouldn't be able to get David to eat. This particular recipe I came across actually called for baking and serving it in a zucchini boat. Now, while David has recently discovered that Zucchini is pretty good, I have to be very careful how I tread here. I don't want to scare him off. But I went ahead and gave it a go.
I find the biggest problem with cajun recipes is the green peppers. My hubs really doesn't like them at all. But from experience, I know you really need them to add that true flavor. So if I chop them super fine. I mean, almost pureed, i can get them in. If he doesn't see them, the taste blends in and contributes over all and it isn't an issue. It just means a little extra work.  I actually do put it through the food processor.
Bt this recipe turned out really well. REALLY Well. We loved it. And I would say it is simple enough for a week night meal. Give it a try.
Adapted from the St Pete Times
Jambalaya Stuffed Zucchini
2 medium zucchini - halved lengthwise
1/4 t salt
1/4t garlic powder
1/4t blk pepper
1 T Olive oil
1 small red onion
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 C diced green bell pepper
1/2C diced celery
1/4 C Tomato paste
1/2 t cajun seasoning ( I used Zatarains Creole)
1t hot sauce
1t Worcestershire
1/2 C chopped andouille sausage
1/2 C shredded cooked chicken
1 C cooked brown rice
Juice of half lemon

Heat oven to 400.
Scrape out and discard seeds from zucchin, creating canoes. Sprinkle with S/ P garlic powder, set on baking sheet.
In a large skillet over medium, heat the olive oil. Add onion and garlic and saute until soft and translucent, 4- 5 mins.
Add green pepper and celery and cook another 4 mins until soft. Add tomato paste, cajun seasoning, hot sauce and worcestershire sauce. Cook until the mixture becomes aromatic and begins to darken in color, about 2 - 3 mins.
Stir in sausage and chicken and rice. Adjust seasoning with S/P and lemon juice. Scoop into zucchini boats.
Roast for 20 mins or until boat is soft.
(the recipe also called for shrimp, feel free to add that).

Catching up

Originally, the idea behind this blog was to be able to report on any number of projects. 

I never intended this to just be about cooking. While I certainly love to cook and that is something one tends to do consistently, I also like to make lots of things. I wanted a forum to be able to show those things as well. 

Summer tends to bring a lull in projects for me. I like to hit the beach and seems like there are more visitors. Whatever the reason I am rarely inspired to create much beyond food during that time. As we roll into fall I am thinking more and more towards things I want to create. I did actually finish up something I had started planning early in the summer. So that is going to be my first project post. Then I have a few meals I want to share. 

So my friend is pregnant, which has brought me around to more thoughts of babies than usual, (usual, heck, more than ever!). I started thinking about memory collages and such. My friend isn't due until Dec, so back in June I asked a co workers if she had any memorabilia from when her 5yr old daughter was born. And if she did, would she trust me with them to play around and create something for her. I was quite honored that she did. So she brought in a small bag full of little reminders of when she had brought little Nikki home. Among otherthings, there was a birth announcement, the plastic bracelets with their names on them, the little crocheted hat she wore home and a little dress and booties, and also a small lock of hair. I was immediatly inspired to create something of a vintage nature. Something that brings to mind warm fuzzy memories. It will hold special meaning for mom for the rest of her life. 

I recently discovered these beautiful little feet that turn a shadow box into a standing diorama. So much easier to display than to only be able to hang it. It transormf it into a more substantial piece in my opinion. 

 I asked her mama to write down the things she would like to wish for her little one, and I highlighted her pretty face with an optical glass. 

The top right corner holds a small glass vial with the hair, ribboned to a vintage key. (Lock of hair and a key. ;) )  Some translucent golden paper gives it that olden glow. Plus some beautiful staining ink. 

I was really pleased with this memory box. Mom was too. She was thrilled. 

Mission accomplished. 

Its (never) too late baby, now.

David went to a "meet up" tonight. Which is nothing like a "hook up". It is an iphone developers group.
So I decided to whip up a little combo of things for dinner (more on that later) and remembered I had recorded a performance by Carole King and James Taylor (reunited at the Troubador) 40 years (OMG 40yrs!!) after they first performed there in 1971. Wow. What a fabulous show. Right off the bat, "So Far Away", Gone to Carolina in My Mind" "Its too Late" "Walk on Down a Country Road". I am absolutely just LOVING This! They sound so great, exactly like they always did. Carole is on the piano, James on his guitar. And it is so neat, after some of the songs, he gets up and goes over and hugs her or takes her hand and it is so sweet to see the love and respect between them.
I sure do remember my sister having CK's Tapestry Album. Even as a kid I loved that album. Ahhh. Good stuff.
Speaking of Good Stuff...
I have been wanting to fix some Fava beans I had in the cabinet. Usually you buy them fresh from the produce dept., but I found some dried ones at the healthfood store and they have been in the cupboard. ( I like that word, 'cupboard') I also had some yellow squash and wanted to fix that so I decided to combine the two.

Fava beans come with a very tough skin on them. Before you can even think about cooking them, you have to give them a quick boil, then a quick ice bath just to peel them. Then when they are peeld you can decide how you want to cook them. I like a nice saute on them. Once cooked they have a lovely creaminess and a flavor, that could almost make you feel like it has taken all its flavor from the other ingredients, but it has contributed its own taste.
I cooked a clove of garlic in some olive oil, added a little onion and then added the squash and beans. I was tasting a bit as I went, and it seemed to need something to brighten it up. So I chopped up a couple of 'ugly' tomatoes and added them. Just for fun I threw in about a tablespoon of coriander seeds. They didn't cook long enough to add any even flavor, but when you bight one, the perfume of it is just an exotic blast.

I also added salt and pepper of course, but the salt was a chunky smoked salt. That stuff is so deep & rich in flavor. look at it...

The dish came out very nice. A couple of things I would do different: I would put the beans in first, let them cook a bit more; then I would add the onions in AFTER the tomatoes, so they didn't cook down so much. What I ended up doing was adding some raw onion to the plate and a bit of butter on top, those last two touches really elevated it.
Between my healthy, veggie dinner and haveing dinner with Carole & James, I have really had a lovely evening.
Now if you excuse me, I need to go to iTunes and buy Tapestry. :)

I came upon a new food blog. Every time I do, I get a twinge of guilt, because I know that is one more day I won't open one of the cookbooks in my cupboard. I love those books, I do. I need to find a way to get them out of the closed up cabinet and displayed. I think that is my new goal. Now that I have a new goal with the neglected books, I can move on to the new recipe! 

So this new blog is "Big Girls, Small Kitchen". From what I can tell, the big means grown up, not large. They are two 20 somethings who have been friends and budding cooks since Jr High. Now they are providing recipes and entertaining tips for their generation using simple techniques and a simple pantry. I enjoyed browsing the site. They are doing noble work. And I will tell you, this recipe was AB FAB!! David and I reallllly enjoyed it. It has a mexican flavor and not an awful lot of effort. Thanks to the fine gentlemen at Surf and Turf, the chicken was cleaned beautifully and ready to throw in. I need to find a good reliable chorizo. The one I got is super tasty, but it is a dried sausage and can be tough. It is a perfect bite for a charcuterie tray, (with some Manchego cheese!) but it worked out ok in this one. Chicken, Chorizo (Spanish sausage), cumin, chili, and of course onions and garlic. (let me add real quick that Spice Islands makes some really stand out spices these days)  And two of my current go to favorite flavors, lime and cilantro. A delightful creaminess is the result of heavy cream and sour cream. Round this out with a couple of pantry staples; flour, chicken broth, butter S & P, and rice for girth and texture and you have a weeknight meal to make you feel like its Fiesta!! 

This dish is one of those that really lend itself to experimentation. I think it would be pretty amazing with some poblano peppers, maybe a Queso Fresco cheese, maybe some seafood. I would also like to try some different grains, not just a rice but maybe farro?  Lots of ideas, but try it straight up as the quarter century girls wrote it. It will make you feel young and 20 something again. Or not, but you'll enjoy it.  

Chicken/Chorizo Casserole adapted from BGSK

Ingredients
1/2 pound chorizo
1  pound boneless skinless chicken thighs
4 tablespoons butter
1 small onion, diced
3 cloves of garlic, minced
3 teaspoons ancho chile powder (or chili powder)
1 teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons flour
1 cup chicken broth
1/2 cup cream
1/2 cup sour cream
1/2 lime, juiced
3 cups cooked long grain white rice
1/2 cup cilantro leaves, chopped
3 cups coarsely shredded sharp cheddar cheese

Preheat the oven to 400°F.

In a large cast iron skillet, heat 1 tablespoon of oil over medium-high heat. Brown the chorizo until nicely charred and cooked through, about 10 minutes. Remove to a plate and set aside. Season the chicken on both sides with salt and 1 teaspoon of the ancho chili powder. Add to the skillet and cook on both sides until browned and cook through, about 15 minutes. Note: if your pan is big enough, you can brown both meats at the same time.

Add the butter and the onions to the pan and saute, scrapping up any brown bits from the bottom of the pan, until translucent, about 5 minutes. Stir in the garlic, remaining chili powder, cumin, salt, and flour. Cook for a few minutes, until the flour has become fully incorporated. Whisk in the broth and simmer until thickened, about 3 minutes. Stir in the cream, sour cream, and lime juice. Gently simmer over medium-low heat until thickened, stirring occasionally, about 5 minutes. Remove from the heat.

In the meantime, cut the chicken into 1-inch cubes, and slice the chorizo. Carefully fold in the meats, cooked rice, and cilantro. Use the back of your spatula to even the top of the casserole. Sprinkle the cheese over the top, and bake in the oven for 10-15 minutes, until the cheese is melted, bubbling, and beginning to brown.

Garnish with cilantro leaves and serve straight from the pan.

Buns, Buns, Buns

Cinnamon Buns! I have been introduced to the bread machine. I know, I know, they have been around for ions! Where have I been? I actually have avoided them. The temptation of making that bread, so easy. Fresh Hot bread dough? In My Kitchen?? Whenever I pressed a button? Too much. I couldn't risk it.
But my sister made cinnamon rolls on fathers day. My husband's new boss was in town. He came to our brunch. He Loved the Cinnamon Buns. My husband was heading to my bosses and asked me to make those buns. Then the BREAD MACHINE came into my house. My sister gave me the recipe, which is the Cinnabon recipe. The machine creates the dough then I sprinkle it with magic cinnamon sugar, roll it up and slice up the beautiful pinweels.
I couldn't believe I had made these soft, sublime delights. I have never worked with yeast. It imtimidated me. And I am slightly impatient. :)
So I am anxious to try new things with the bread maker now. I saw a donut recipe and obviously the savory versions are on the list. If you have a bread machine, please try this. If you don't, go to your local thrift store, I guarantee you will find one that works just fine. Go ahead, don't be scared.
Bread Machine Cinnamon Buns
1/4C Water
1C Milk
1/2 C Butter
1 1/4 Large Egg (well Beaten)
1t vanilla
1/2t salt
1/2C sugar
4 1/2C flour
1/4 oz (1pkg) yeast
Let egg come to room temp. Melt butter, add water and milk and cool to 75-85 degrees.
Add remaining ingredients in order to bread machine and use dough setting.

Filling
1C light brown sugar
5T cinnamon*
1 stick margarine

Roll dough out to 15x 24 rectangle. Spread with margarine and sprinkle with cinnamon / sugar. Roll into log and cut and place in pans. (I use a deep sided metal pan) Let rise for one hour or until double in size.
Bake at 335 degrees for 20 minutes.
If you want to make ahead, roll and and place in pans then cover and put in the fridge. You will need to remove from fridge and let come to room temp and then rise (approx 1.5hours) before baking.

*I used McCormicks roasted Saigon Cinnamon, it is a much better flavor than regular.

Monday Meal in a Minute

Maybe it took more than a minute, but not much. Pork with cashews and Snow Peas. Really simple. Relatively few ingredients. Depending on what kind of pantry stock you keep, you may have everything on hand. I always have these items on hand. I love the flavors they add to a lot of different styles of cooking. Mirin (sweet cooking wine) it's not actually sweet, but it is not dry either. Think Yin and Yang.
You balance the semi sweet wine with a tangy Soy sauce or even Fish sauce. You can balance it with lemon or line in non- Asian cooking. I have used it with seafood and veggies. And doesn't everyone always have soy sauce and chicken broth on hand? The questionable ingredients for me are cashews and snow peas.  I frequently have fresh ginger on hand, but I do have to double check when I want to make this. Other than that;  garlic, cornstarch and Pork.  9 ingredients and oil. And dinner is so delicious!!
Now I did not include rice, because we try to avoid the starches most nights. But it would certainly round the meal out nicely. Try it this week. You wil feel very accomplished, and satisfied.
Cashew Pork and Snow Peas (adapted from Cooks Country)
1/2 c Cashews - raw or roasted (if raw, toast in a dry pan until golden) largely chopped.
1c Chicken broth
1/4 c Mirin
1/4c Soy sauce
3T Cornstarch (didvided)
1lb Pork Tenderloin
1T + 6 t vegetable oil
8 oz Snow Peas strings removed
6 garlic cloves, minced
1T grated Ginger

Whisk broth, mirin, soy and 1T cornstarch in a bowl until no lumps remain; set aside.
Cut pork crosswise into 1/2 inch slices, then cut each slice into strips. Toss pork and 1T oil in large bowl. Add remaining 2T cornstarch and toss to coat.
Heat 2t oil over medium high heat until just smoking. Brown half of pork, 3 to 6 minutes, transfer to plate and tent with foil. Repeat with 2t oil and remaining pork.
Cook snow peas and remaining 2 t oil in now empty skillet until bright green, about 1 minute. add garlic and ginger and cook until fragrant, 30 seconds. Whisk broth mix to recombine and add to skillet. Cook until thickened, about two minutes. Return pork and any accumulated juices and cashews to skillet and cook until heated through.

(sorry, I have to get back in the groove and take pics. I forgot)

I'm Back!

We had a lovely vacation. A whole week, saturday to saturday on Anna Maria Island. We spent most of the time laying by the pool and watching the sunset on the beach. I poked around a few shops, got my annual souvenir from Ginny and Janey's and really relaxed.
This is a lovely "old Florida" beach town, established in the early 1900's. Most of the neighborhoods were established full on in the 60s, but there are a number of historic homes and sites on the small island. But having been vacationing there for abut 16 yrs, we have seen lots of development as well. Its to be expected. I remember when I lived in the keys, one of the things you heard a lot, was "everyone wants to be the last one there". Which is true. You want to get in and enjoy the place and then have all further development stop. It just doesn't work that way. But I will keep going and enjoying the amazing little place it is and if I ever win the lottery, I will buy in and hope I am the last one in. :)
We came home this morning. One thing that runs true in my family, we do not try to eek the last minute out of a vacation. When it is time to go, we are up and out! ASAP. Today was check out by 10am, we were out the door by 8. As soon as we woke up and got the car packed, we were headed home. We would have headed home last night if we had thought of it before a few beers.
But we are home today and my sweet Dad brought me some beautiful steaks so I didn't have to go to the store. I did end up running out and getting some potatoes to bake.
Last week my dad brought me some blue cheese. So tonight I made some Blue Cheese dressing and had a wedge salad. Then we fired up the little grill, put the steaks on and baked a couple of potatoes. David has some seasoning called Citizen Kane, (from a famous St Louis restaurant) and we sprinkled that on the meat.
What a delicious and simple meal. Perfect for the first day back from vacation.
I will be back in the kitchen this week. So stay tuned. One thing I can't get out of my head is some fries we got at a restaurant called 'Eat Here'. French fries with gravy and parmesan cheese. Oh My!! I may have to come up with those for my dad this week. Maybe I can get him to eat more than a few bites.

Cooking, cooking, cooking

So many things to cook!! How do I love cooking? Let me count the ways...
I love:  the prep, the ceremony, the ritual, the sacredness, the emotion, the meaning, the flavors, the combining, the mixing, the experimenting, the creating, the eating, the eating, the eating!!
Really, I do love so much about it. I love how things are intrinsic to where they come from. How wheat tastes like the water that it is near, how coffee has notes from the trees that shade it, how juniper tastes, how honey tastes like flowers the bees pollenate. I love how chinese food has so much meaning, how it can be made from one thing to look like another, how french food just oozes romance.
When I can take a handful of ingredients and transfom it into delicious textures and flavors, I feel on top of the world!
So, this evening, I took some regular old salad veggies, some regular old egg, some flour and POW! Next thing I know, Radish Fritters! OMG! So delicious. There was a couple of other ingredients, not the least of which was my super excellent curry powder (home made, toasted and ground). Boy those fritters were incredible. David really liked them. I think it was our first meatless meal! Along with some radish and cucumber raita, for a cooling contrast. Yummy!
After dinner, I needed to make something to take to work tomorrow. We have created a small potluck group. We all want to fix things that our families wouldn't care for, so we created a group to cook for.  I have been wanting to make Farro, a whole grain I have been reading about. So I made a farro and white bean mashup. Leeks, garlic, olive oil, farro and cannelini beans. And the bright splash of Lemon zest.
Yes, this was a good night of cooking. I will post the recipes a little later this week, with my photos. Stay tuned!

Summer dreams of fall

Fall is my favorite time of year. Summer has always just been something to be tolerated until fall came along. Then the holidays are afoot and the weather becomes wonderful and the next six months are just a pleasure! As I get older, it seems silly not to enjoy every time of year. Each season has so much to offer. There are many summer fruits I revel in. Berries & cherries are made for baking, and figs?? Come on, food of the gods. Now, there are some summer fruits I just can't enjoy. Stone fruits are not to my taste. And melon, seems a waste, but they are not at all appealing. But none the less, the berries and summer squash are nothing to sneer at. So I have started taking advantage of the great pricing, by freezing the berries. I will have them later in the year when I need a perk to muffins and breads. I am trying all kinds of fritters, radish and yellow squash having starring roles in these. I will post more detail later this week.
I do really enjoy the beach and pool in the summer, and healthful or not I still love getting my summer tan! I love the way my yard gets so lush in july and august. I also love the afternoon showers florida is notorious for in hurricane season. I certainly hope we do not have to worry about hurricane warnings, those are no fun! But summer still has an awful lot to offer. And I crave lost of fresh seafood in the summer. Mussels, shrimp and crab. We have begun a tradition of renting a beach house in Anna Maria in the summer, that is really something to look forward to. And the local shops with their amazing oils and cheeses and breads have taken on a very seasonal feel for me.
All in all, I try to look forward to each and every day, summer, fall or winter. But I can't help that fall is my favorite. The idea of kids going back to school, and pumpkins in the markets with the winter squashes (Sweet Dumpling, how do I love thee, let me count the ways) and indian corn. Mmmmmmm. I am a fool for fall.

Poblanos, get to know them.

I had started a post about this recipe, which I made last sunday. I had gotten the whole thing down and was just checking my spelling and all, when I hit the wrong button and lost the whole post. I admit, it scarred me. I was blog shy for a week. But I am over it now. I didn't do a lot of cooking this pat week, but I did a few other things. I will go ahead and re-create the pobalno post here.
I made some stuffed poblano peppers. That was kind of strange, because I had seen a movie about Paris, and read a book about Appalachia. I tend to follow a theme when I enjoy a movie or when I read a book.
It would follow that I would create a french meal after "Midnight in Paris" (which I LOVED!).
Or after finishing the book about the mountains of VA, why not create a stick to your ribs meal with biscuits or cornbread. But I didn't. All I could think was mexican.
 I love Poblano peppers. The flavor is just wonderful. I had stuffed them with polenta before, but if I wanted David to eat them, I would have to do better than that. I decided to fill them as I would chicken enchiladas. I have a very easy mix up I created that uses rotisserie chicken. Its a great fast weeknight meal.
But I still wanted that cornmeal flavor, some how...
I decided to bread them in cornmeal. In order to get the breading to adhere, you MUST blister off the skin first. So, here is what I did:
I placed the poblano peppers (6 small ) on a cookie sheet under the broiler. turning as the skin bubbled up. Once they were fully blistered, I put them in a bowl and covered it with plastic wrap and set it aside.
Then I took the rotisserie chicken and cut it up into a small dice. I mixed it in a bowl with enchilada sauce, shredded cheese, onions jalapenos and chopped When removed from the covered bowl, they were cool enough to handle. I peeled the skin off, now the cornmeal would stick. So I did the dry wet dry sequence. Flour/ egg wash/ cornmeal. Then I fried them. Now we get to the part I would do different next time.
What I DID do, was to fry with the coating, then drain and slice open and remove seeds and stems. I stuffed them with the chicken mixture and baked them with a little cheese on top, at 350 for about 20 mins.
What I WOULD  do next time is this:
I would remove the skin as before, then pull out the stem and seeds leaving the whole pepper intact. Then I would fill the pepper with the chicken mix. Next I would bread it (dry wet dry) and do the frying at that time, no baking.
Served with a creamy avocado sauce or guacamole would be the finishing touch. (besides a fresh squeezed margarita.)
These stuffed peppers were really good. Poblanos are so delicious, its hard to mess them up. But they should be cooked first, the heat really brings out the best in it.
Try them for yourself. If you are a fan of mexican food, you will love the smoky, sultry, slightly spicy taste of this wonderful veggie.

Hmmmmm....

I started out tonight, thinking I would write about the evolution of cooking and cookbooks. About the way people are using foods differently and working with different cooking styles. I was looking through an old Betty Crocker cookbook, circa about 1961, for a prime example. I have had this cookbook for at 20 years at least. My mom had given it to me. I have certainly been through this book before. Flipped through pages, looked things up and have made the biscuits many times over. BUT, tonight, I found notes that my mom had made on some pages. I have never in all these years seen these notes. It is hard to describe chancing upon someone's handwriting when you don't expect it. She wanted to try the poppy seed noodles with the beef stroganoff. She swapped stewed tomatoes for tomato paste. And she really wanted to try the 'Holiday Spaghetti'.  What this really brings to light, is that while chefs and cookbooks continue to evolve, there are things about us as cooks that never change: The desire to continue to learn and experiment and make new combinations. We always think, what if I try this with that?? How will that taste? Mom was thinking about it with her poppy noodles and stroganoff and I was thinking it when I mixed the cherry salsa and the charred corn salad today at lunch.
My mom has been gone for 17 yrs. I am so grateful she left those little notes for me. To remind me who I come from and why I love cooking the way I do.
And I do love it.
Tonight I loved it on the grill. I loved it when I mixed blue cheese and parsley and garlic and stuffed tomatoes and cooked them on the grill. I also loved it when I grilled some beet slices and topped them with a hazelnut and orange gremolata (a chopped herb condiment typically made of garlic, parsley, and lemon zest.) I really loved it when I sat down and ate them! My dad even loved the tomatoes. The beets, not so much. But he tried them. Its summer, use the grill every chance you get. Use it with these recipes...

Grilled Stuffed Tomatoes Adapted from; Fire it up. 
1 Poblana Pepper
4 medium Ripe Tomatoes
1 clove Garlic
3 ounces Blue Cheese
2T Butter
2T Olive Oil
1/4 Parmesan Cheese
1 Green Onion Chopped
3 T Flat Leaf Parsely
1/4C Pine Nuts
S & P


Roast the poblano pepper. Seed and chop. Remove core of tomatoes, sprinkle with S & P. 
In a food processor combine poblano, garlic, blue cheese, butter, olive oil, parmesan, oinion, and parsley. Pulse to combine, it can be chunky. Put mixture into a bowl and stir in pine nuts. 
Fill tomatoes with the stuffing, and mound on top. Place on hot grill for 6 to 8 minutes. Serve warm.


Grilled Beets with Orange Hazelnut Gremolata Adapted from: Fire it up
Beets: 4 sliced (1/4 inch thick)
Olive oil
S & P


Gremolata
1 clove Garlic
1T Flat Leaf Parsley
1 T Fresh Mint
Zest from one Orange
1 T Hazelnuts
Pinch of Sugar
S & P


For Gremolata pulse all ingredients, set aside. 
Grill beets on hot grill for 4- 5, remove and plate, top with gremolata. 


Be warned, this is a heavy garlic meal.




Ok, now I have to go scour every page of that cookbook and see if I can find anymore notes. :)

Red White and Blue (ok, just red)

Happy Birthday USA! It's July already! How about that? July 4th always feels like the mid point of summer. In fact Joann Fabrics had the pumpkins out already for september. I LOVE TO SEE THAT. Fall being my favorite season. But, back to July, I have come to enjoy summer more now. Since the time I got out of school, summer always seemed like something to get through until fall made its way back around. But as you get older you realize you better enjoy every day, not just "get through them" because they fly by quick enough as it is. So I try to eek out a decent tan while enjoying the beach, (yes I still love the bake) and otherwise enjoy air condtioned activities. And really, it is a nice quiet time in FL that you don't have to fight crowds and traffic, that is worth getting out for.
As for Independence day, I am a staunch patriot, and a firm supporter of the ideals of this country. With hat being said, I have to admit, the main thing I like about the 4th is a day off. I do not like fireworks displays because that means big crowds of people, and hot muggy weather. I do, however, like to commemorate the holiday with an appropriately festive meal. Today I used the extra day off to do some meal prep for the week ahead as well.
I was excited to see a recipe in the St Pete times, (they took it from a book called 'Fire it Up') for a cherry salsa with pork tenderloin.
Cherry Salsa?? WOW! That sounds all american and red and festive. I realize salsa is Mexican, but we have managed to Americanize it to the point that it is ubiquitous, so to make it from Cherries? All American in my opinion. The pork was marinated in cilantro and lime for the most part, The slasa had all the usual suspects except tomatoes. That's where the cherries come in. Cherries, Jalapeno, Cilantro, Lime juice. Does that not sound soo good?? Of course it does! Well, in all honesty, David didn't think so, but I was committed.
I first made the salsa so the flavors had plenty of time to marry. Then I did the marinated pork tenderloin and put it on the grill.
Let me just say, David and I both really enjoyed it. The salsa, while not sweet, was a bit fruity,  the cilantro and the other ingredients kept it from seeming like a dessert. I loved mixing those cherries in with our dinner. It was such a Summer/ July luxurious meal, and was so very simple and tasty. I am always so thrilled when David is skeptical  of my dinner plan, but becomes an enthusiastic participant. Trust me, there are times when it doesn't go that well, so when it does, I relish it.
The newspaper had some more of the recipes from that book, and they are on tap for later this week, stay tuned. Meanwhile check out the cherry salsa and try it one night this week. It will feel like a special meal, I promise. Fire works will go off, you'll see.

As adapted from the St Pete Times from the cook book "Fire it Up":
GRILLED PORK TENDERLOIN w/ CHERRY SALSA
Pork Marinade
1/2 C Chopped Cilantro
1/4 C Minced Shallots*
4T Lime Juice
1/4C Vegetable Oil
2- Pork Tenderloins, about 2 1/2 lbs total.
Place first four ingredients in a large plastic bag to combine, then add tenderloins. Marinate 15- 20 mins or up to overnight.
Cherry Salsa
1/2 C Cilantro
1/4 C Shallots*
2 T Lime Juice
1/2 lb fresh Cherries, pitted and halved
1 fresh Jalapeno, thinly sliced
1 T Olive Oil
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Combine all ingredients.

Grill the pork and serve with cherry salsa.
I also served some grilled romaine, my favorite salad these days.
* I used mild vidalia onions, instead of shallots.

Seasonings and Seasons

I was reminiscing on my early days in the kitchen. When I first became interested in cooking, about 26 years ago, fresh was not the mainstream it is today. I think back specifically to the spices and seasonings. Back then, a woman woman that lived in the same apartments as my mom, was moving and offered me an impressive array of spices in jars and tins. I was so excited. Many I had never heard of. Being as the Internet was not available,  I often times had to wait until I stumbled across one of those ingredients in a cook book. Not surprisingly, I held onto many of those containers for WAY too long. Once I learned that dried spices don't last forever, I had a mostly empty cabinet. These days there are obviously many jarred seasonings that are necessary. I couldn't make my favorite curries without them. (Although I do use my fry pan and spice grinder to make sure I get everything I can out of them.)
But the main thing I have learned is FRESH ingredients can really make or break a dish. The produce section at Publix is where I spend the bulk of my grocery budget today. And the specialty stores get their share of my paycheck too. The flip side to shopping for fresh herbs (Martha tells us to pronounce the 'H') and spices is cooking seasonally and locally whenever possible. The food section in your local paper is a great source for seasonal recipes, and of course there are a gazillion websites that you can find info on how to shop and cook with only seasonal foods. And it makes sense to do so. In this age of hot house veggies, there is a reason food ripens at certain times of year, in tune with the earth and the skies and the elements. In keeping with seasonal foods we are in keeping with the cycles of mother nature and I believe our bodies work better when we follow these rhythms.

All this comes from the fact that FIGS are back on the shelves! I will enjoy a dried fig for sure, during the winter onths,  with a delightful caramelized goat cheese. But when they appear in the summer time, ALLELUJAH! I have just enjoyed a few of the fresh beauties with some blue cheese. the one and only problem with fresh fruits is how quickly they turn on you. One minute they are juicy and sassy and luring you in, and seemingly within seconds, they have become haggard and moldy. *sigh*. Thats why we roast. :)
I am about to roast my figs with thyme and wine and honey. I am pretty excited. This will squeeze at least another 7 days out of my figs. I will get a pic and post tomorrow. As it turns out, I forgot to get fresh Thyme today at the store. :(

Dad's Night

Wednesday night is dad's night. My dad comes for dinner every wednesday. Sometimes we go out, but more often than not I cook. He will be 85 next week, and I am always amazed at the new things I learn about him when I get him talking. Tonight I got him talking about his navy days. And he pulled out some things I had never heard. He talked about a guy trying to hide behind a water cooler when the battle station alert sounded. He also talked about having to clean the bathrooms, but locking the door and keeping sailors out. He said that was the most fun they had. He talked about my uncle, his brother in law, that died many years ago. It was a really good wednesday.
It is a fact that his appetite is not what it used to be. And he does not share my adventureous nature when it comes to food, so I always make sure wednesdays suit his palate. Often times he likes tacos, like my mom used to make, with ground beef and crunchy corn tortilla shells. Sometimes I just make us a nice salad and heat some crusty bread. And sometimes, like tonight, I get a big ol' pot of clams or mussels going. He and I really enjoy a pile of shellfish.  If it's clams, I just steam them and make garlic butter for drenching. (its not just dipping!) But with the mussels, I always try to find interesting flavors to steam them up with. I found this recipe in a newsletter I subscribe to called Tasting Table.
OH MY GOODNESS! It was absolutely divine. Best Mussels I have had and there was no butter in sight! So besides the conversation, dad enjoyed the food (score!) and he also enjoyed the reminiscing. Let me correct my earlier statement, it was an AWESOME wednesday.

Pot Roasted Mussels from chef Jordan Toft of LA:
This recipe calls for an aioli, don't skip this (as I was tempted to do), it really completes it.
Aioli-
2 large egg yolks
1 teaspoon dijon mustard
1 medium lemon
3 cups olive oil
4 garlic cloves, finely chopped
S &P

Mussels
1 cup
4 shallots thinly sliced
2 pounds mussels, rinsed and bearded
1 long red chile, thinly sliced (seeds optional)
1 medium lemon
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1 cup chopped flat leaf parsley

Make the Aioli in a large bowl; whisk together egg, dijon, and juice of one lemon. While whisking add 1/2 cup of olive oil, in a drizzle until emulsified. Slowly whisk in remaining 2 1/2 cups oil in a steady stream. Whisk in garlic , S&P. Set Aside.

Mussels- Place one cup of oil & shallots in a large stockpot and turn the heat to high. When the shallots begin to sizzle (after 4 to 5 mins) stir in the mussels and the chile. Cut the lemon into wedges, add to pot and stir in. Season with S&P, cover and cook until mussels fully open, about 5 mins. Shake the pot or stir a few times during cooking.
Remove the pot from the heat and stir in 3/4 cup of parsley and a few large dollops of aioli. Transfer to a large bowl and top with more aioli. Sprinkle with pepper and the remaining parsley. Serve with crusty bread.

I am so sorry I was to involved I didn't take a picture, and it was gorgeous. But take my word, this one makes a great presentation.

Blogging a blog

With the price of groceries as they are, I am trying to shop only once a week, and to make things that I can double up on, or re-work the second time around. One of the most versatile ways to do that is with Rotisserie chicken. Boy are those little guys useful! I can get two dinners and a lunch out of a larger size one. And if you go to Costco, they are large and right around $5. Love them. And I love my dad for bringing them for me. Actually I guess I get three dinners, because my dad will buy one, take a leg off, then leave me the rest. So tonight I decided to use a recipe I had set aside from a blog called 'The Girl who ate Everything'. I saw the title and wondered who had been watching me. But it was another food lover, and she had this recipe called "Chicken Pillows". Sounds absolutely wonderful, right? Pillows of chicken? It sounds like something you'd want to curl up with. Or EAT!! So I that's what I did. 

This is a recipe that lends itself to many variations. I like to make something by the recipe the first time to see what I'm working with. Then from there I start thinking of everything I can do with it. 

This recipe, first time around,  is an incredibly delicious meal. I LOVED it. Of course I have lots of ideas. 

But first, the recipe adapted from "the Girl who ate Everything": 

Pre Heat Oven to 350

8oz softened Cream Cheese  

1/2 C Sour Cream

Mix the two with a mixer

ADD

S & P

1 1/2 T dried Chives

1 1/2 T fresh onion minced

(I didn't have any dried chives, so I used 2 1/2 T dried minced onion and no fresh)

3 Chicken Breast Cooked and diced)

2 (8 oz) Cans Pillsbury Crescent Rolls

1/4 C Melted Butter

Italian Bread Crumbs

Gravy 

1 (14.5 Oz) can of Cream of Chicken Soup

1 package of chicken gravy mix.

Make a square out of two crescent roll triangles, really close the perforation. Put about a quarter cup of chicken mixture on center of crescent square and wrap pastry up around it. Dip 'pillow' into melted butter and roll in bread crumbs. 

Bake in oven for 20 - 22 mins. 

Mix cream of chicken soup, 3/4 can of water and the gravy mix. Heat through, pour over your little pillow of poultry deliciousness. 

You will notice in my photo, the scrumptious tomatoes I roasted last night. Oh heavens, I love a roasted tomato.

Now, my notes.... 

I mixed the cream cheese and sour cream and seasoning and chicken in the food processor. It came out like a chicken salad, which is fine, for this purpose. However, next time (and there will be a next time) I will leave it chunkier. 

The sauce I was not crazy about. A little too 'processed food' taste. So I will tweak that.  Here are some ideas I am tossing around for next time:

A southwest twist. Use some avocado instead of some of the sour cream. Add some cilantro. Maybe some adobo to the bread crumb mix and then top it with some salsa. 

Or Maybe follow the recipe and use the chives and onion, then add some blue cheese. Boy this could go on and on. 

Let me post my pic and go have a brandy. Thanks for sticking around! 

Eggs, Eggs, Eggs

I love EGGS. Breakfast, lunch and dinner. So many options, so many variables. So I was thinking about the left over veggies I had in the fridge from last night (sauteed yellow squash and onions, some asparagus and some poblano pepper. And it was a short hop and a skip to Fritatta. The hubs was at a "thing" so I was on my own for dinner. As soon as I got home from work, (and let the dogs out and changed clothes and killed some ants in the bathroom), I immediatly ran to the fridge to see if there was anything else I could throw in a fritatta. Sour cream, always a welcome addition, but no other vegetables, which is fine, because it was already filling up.
So I softened some onions in a little olive oil and butter, added the squash and I cast the asparagus into the pan to heat. Meanwhile I whirred up some eggs, a bit of the sour cream and half & half into a nice froth and poured it over the heated vegs. I tossed the poblanos on top and let it solidfy. Then topped it with a bit of cheddar and stuck it under the broiler to finish up. I didn't add any herbs because the leftovers already had flavors going on, I figured it would be just fine, and it was. A touch of the ol' S&P and dinner was on the table. And I liked it. I really,  really liked it.  It was eggsactly what I wanted.

 I also had some tomotoes sitting around, so a popped them on a cookie sheet with some oil and basil and roasted them for about an hour on 350. Now they will go in the fridge and make a scrumptious topping for something this week, but that is another post. Good night!

WELCOME

So this is my very first blog. I will start by saying "hello" and introducing myself. My name is Nettie and I like to make stuff. Food, art, crafts, DIY projects, whatever. So this blog will be the net results of these projects. As well as miscellaneous ideas I have. I have three little chihuahuas and a fabulous husband. So lets see where this takes us.... Thanks for coming along.