Stick those peeled nanners in a bag and throw 'em in the freezer and they'll be ready for you when you want to make those smoothies. I suspect you could even use 'em for banana bread. No peeling' required.
Thursday, July 7, 2011
Freezin' Nanners
Wednesday, July 6, 2011
First Fruits and a Couple of Recipes
My garden a couple of weeks ago.
This year we discovered the beauty of laying hay down in our garden. It has made an enormous difference a number of areas. It has cut the weeding back to a very manageable amount, not to mention that the plants are healthier than ever and absolutely thriving this year. There is one added surprise to the addition of the hay in the garden - we seem to have a family of mourning doves nesting in there. But, that's not the point of this post...
We planted two types of green beans this year - Blue Lake and the French green bean, Haricot Verts. The Hericot Verts are evidently prolific producers and I was able to pick the first of them today. There was enough for dinner plus left-overs. These are super fast and easy to make using a recipe I got off of an old video from "The French Chef", Julia Child's PBS television show. I rented the videos from the library and they were so old that they were in black and white. Man, oh, man, did they have some great recipes on them, though!
Hericot Verts
Bring a large pot of water to a rolling boil. Add hericot verts (fresh or frozen) and boil for about 3 minutes until bright green and crisp-tender. Drain and run under cold water to stop the cooking process. Put beans back into warm stock pot to dry the water off of them. Add about a tablespoon of butter and shake to melt and coat the beans. Then add lemon juice, salt and pepper to taste. That's it. Easy peasy.
We also have zucchini and crookneck squash growing. I harvested one veggie of each and whipped up one of our (many) favorite squash dishes.
Sauteed Summer Squash
Thinly slice 1 zucchini and 1 squash. Finely chop 1 onion and 1 clove of garlic. Pour a little olive oil (1 or 2 tablespoons) into a skillet on medium heat. Add vegetables and toss occasionally until they are tender. Season to taste with sea salt and Nature's Seasoning. Super simple. Great flavor.
There is nothing quite like walking out into your own back yard and plucking dinner straight from the vines. It is truly one of life's greatest luxuries. The flavor and freshness absolutely cannot be bought. And the reassurance that there are no harmful chemicals added to the food we're eating gives me great peace of mind. I'm so thankful to finally have a slice of land to be able to grow our own food on. I've got a lot of wonderful harvesting ahead of me this season and I couldn't be happier about that!
We planted two types of green beans this year - Blue Lake and the French green bean, Haricot Verts. The Hericot Verts are evidently prolific producers and I was able to pick the first of them today. There was enough for dinner plus left-overs. These are super fast and easy to make using a recipe I got off of an old video from "The French Chef", Julia Child's PBS television show. I rented the videos from the library and they were so old that they were in black and white. Man, oh, man, did they have some great recipes on them, though!
Hericot Verts
Bring a large pot of water to a rolling boil. Add hericot verts (fresh or frozen) and boil for about 3 minutes until bright green and crisp-tender. Drain and run under cold water to stop the cooking process. Put beans back into warm stock pot to dry the water off of them. Add about a tablespoon of butter and shake to melt and coat the beans. Then add lemon juice, salt and pepper to taste. That's it. Easy peasy.
We also have zucchini and crookneck squash growing. I harvested one veggie of each and whipped up one of our (many) favorite squash dishes.
Sauteed Summer Squash
Thinly slice 1 zucchini and 1 squash. Finely chop 1 onion and 1 clove of garlic. Pour a little olive oil (1 or 2 tablespoons) into a skillet on medium heat. Add vegetables and toss occasionally until they are tender. Season to taste with sea salt and Nature's Seasoning. Super simple. Great flavor.
Hericot Verts, sauteed summer squash, pasta salad and twice-baked potatoes
There is nothing quite like walking out into your own back yard and plucking dinner straight from the vines. It is truly one of life's greatest luxuries. The flavor and freshness absolutely cannot be bought. And the reassurance that there are no harmful chemicals added to the food we're eating gives me great peace of mind. I'm so thankful to finally have a slice of land to be able to grow our own food on. I've got a lot of wonderful harvesting ahead of me this season and I couldn't be happier about that!
Thursday, June 30, 2011
Tater Skins
Day before yesterday I spent a big portion of my day turning 10 pounds of Russet potatoes into these twice baked potatoes that can be frozen. I love having these in the freezer. About once a week they end up being paired with a salad for a no-brainer supper around our house.
twice baked potatoes wrapped and ready for the freezer
Evidently, I put too much filling in the first potatoes because I ran out with 10 shells left to fill. I didn't know what to do with the empty potato shells, but didn't want to be wasteful and throw them away, either. Then it hit me - TATER SKINS! Back in my college days I used to love getting tater skins from Max & Erma's restaurant. So, I stuck my empty potato shells in a zip lock bag and put them in the fridge to await transformation.
These were super simple to make and used only 4 additional ingredients; shredded cheese, real bacon bits, sour cream and chives. You could easily use crumbled bacon and green onions, but this is what I had on hand.
I laid the empty shells out on a cookie sheet,
filled them with a little shredded cheese and bacon bits (no measurements needed),
and popped them into a pre-heated 400 degree oven. Twenty minutes later they were ready to be finished off.
I put a dollop of sour cream on each potato and topped with some chopped chives from my herb bed to finish them off.
Yummo! I think that the next time I make twice baked potatoes I may fill them a little too full on purpose so I'll have another excuse to make these super easy tater skins. :0)
I'm linking this post to These Chicks Cooked.
I'm linking this post to These Chicks Cooked.
Wednesday, June 29, 2011
Lacto-Fermentation Giveaway!
Have you been hearing the buzz about the benefits of lacto-fermented food? It seems as the Real Food Movement is gaining a foothold that I'm hearing about the benefits more and more. I am baby stepping my way through learning skills in the kitchen that will improve my family's health and lacto-fermentation is one of the next steps I'm anxious to tackle.
Well, oh happy day, Amy at Homestead Revival is hosting a give away for a lacto-fermentation e-course. This is a 6 month e-course done by Wardeh at GNOWFGLINS, who is the instructor extraordinaire on traditional food preparation. If you click on Wardeh's link above you'll be able to watch a demo video to get a sampling of what this course will entail.
If you'd like a chance to win this 6 month e-course on lacto-fermentation simply head on over to Homestead Revival to enter.
Cilantro Sauce
Yesterday, I told you that I would share how I made my cilantro sauce. First of all, we planted cilantro a few years ago in the garden because it the key ingredient in my homemade salsa. We've never had to plant it again because it comes back every year - everywhere.
If we didn't love it so much it would be annoying. But, we consider it a blessing. The problem is that it will go to seed quickly if it's not continually harvested. Last year I attempted to harvest it and then simply chop it in the food processor and freeze it. The problem with that approach was that the cilantro seemed to lose it's flavor that way.
Then, I found this post and was inspired. It reminds of the chimi churri I make with parsley, garlic, olive oil, red wine vinegar and salt and pepper. I don't have exact measurements because it's all to taste. Plus, I don't measure my cilantro. I just harvest what is available and add the other ingredients until it tastes right to me. This is roughly how it's made.
Rinse cilantro and dry.
To a full processor I would roughly add 3 cloves of garlic. You can add more or less depending on how well you like garlic.
Add cilantro to food processor.
Then add olive oil, lime juice, salt and pepper. Once again, adjust the lime juice to your own preference. I personally think that lime juice is an excellent compliment to cilantro, so I am pretty liberal with it.
Chop it all up and adjust flavorings to taste.
The next thing I did was to pour my sauce into ice cube trays and stuck them in the freezer until they were nice and frozen. Then I popped them out and stored them in a gallon size freezer bag.
Preserving my cilantro this way not only keeps it from losing flavor, but it makes it super easy to use when needed. And, let me just add here - THIS STUFF IS FANTASTIC! I truly hope I am able to harvest enough cilantro this year to be able to put up enough to get me through the winter. I find that I've used a bunch of it already.
I used it to make cilantro rice for my black bean freezer burritos. This rice would also be great paired with any type of Mexican dish. I have also used two cubes with a pint of tomatoes and a bit of cornstarch used as a thickener to make pizza sauce. I think it would be wonderful made into a variety of sauces for fish, chicken, potatoes or just about anything you can think of.
If you find yourself with a bunch of cilantro that you don't know what to do with, consider making this sauce with it.
Happy Tuesday!
Cilantro growing along my garden fence.
Then, I found this post and was inspired. It reminds of the chimi churri I make with parsley, garlic, olive oil, red wine vinegar and salt and pepper. I don't have exact measurements because it's all to taste. Plus, I don't measure my cilantro. I just harvest what is available and add the other ingredients until it tastes right to me. This is roughly how it's made.
Rinse cilantro and dry.
To a full processor I would roughly add 3 cloves of garlic. You can add more or less depending on how well you like garlic.
Add cilantro to food processor.
Then add olive oil, lime juice, salt and pepper. Once again, adjust the lime juice to your own preference. I personally think that lime juice is an excellent compliment to cilantro, so I am pretty liberal with it.
Chop it all up and adjust flavorings to taste.
The next thing I did was to pour my sauce into ice cube trays and stuck them in the freezer until they were nice and frozen. Then I popped them out and stored them in a gallon size freezer bag.
Preserving my cilantro this way not only keeps it from losing flavor, but it makes it super easy to use when needed. And, let me just add here - THIS STUFF IS FANTASTIC! I truly hope I am able to harvest enough cilantro this year to be able to put up enough to get me through the winter. I find that I've used a bunch of it already.
I used it to make cilantro rice for my black bean freezer burritos. This rice would also be great paired with any type of Mexican dish. I have also used two cubes with a pint of tomatoes and a bit of cornstarch used as a thickener to make pizza sauce. I think it would be wonderful made into a variety of sauces for fish, chicken, potatoes or just about anything you can think of.
If you find yourself with a bunch of cilantro that you don't know what to do with, consider making this sauce with it.
Happy Tuesday!
Tuesday, June 28, 2011
Black Bean, Cilantro and Lime Freezer Burritos
Yay! I have a camera again so I can take pictures and blog. For some reason, without a photograph, I am at a loss for blog posts. Hopefully I'll be able to become more regular in my blogging once again. But, enough of that. Let's talk food!
I recently came across some homemade freezer burritos from Tammy's Recipes. My hubby likes to keep the frozen ones on hand (when I remember to buy them) that you can pick up in packages of six at about any grocery store. They make a quick meal when life gets uber-busy. These burritos tend to give me heart burn. Plus, the last package I bought had a huge list of ingredients that I couldn't pronounce and am pretty certain that I couldn't walk into a store and buy. In the interest of cutting as much processing out of our diet as possible I was pretty happy to come across Tammy's simple and inexpensive version.
Basically, it's just equal amounts of beans, brown rice and cheese, with a little (or a lot of) hot sauce for flavor. The beauty of these burritos is that you can totally customize the flavors or ingredients (like beef or chicken) to accommodate your family's preferences. You can also use gluten-free tortillas and make them G-free. You can click here to see Tammy's step-by-step tutorial.
When I made them the first time I made them with pinto beans just as in the original recipe. However, added some spices like cumin, salt, paprika and chili powder for extra flavor. These were really good and a big hit with my son who requested them several days a week for lunch. I much prefer him eating these than the frozen dinners he usually prefers. They were fairly easy to prepare - just pull the foil wrapped burritos from the freezer and stick in a 400 degree oven for about 35 - 40 minutes. No need to thaw first.
I got to thinking about some different flavor combinations, though. I had recently stocked up on some dry beans when they went on sale and thought that black beans would go famously with the cilantro that grows like crazy in our garden. So, this weekend I set out to make another batch using black beans, cilantro and lime.
The first thing I did was soak a 1 pound bag of black beans over night and then cooked them. Once they were done I drained them. In the meantime I cooked some brown rice with a cilantro sauce I made and had frozen. I'll share the recipe for that tomorrow. This is how it came together.
Put the drained beans in a large bowl. I found that 1 pound of black beans gave me 5 cups.
Add 5 cups of cilantro rice.
Next, I added hot sauce and lime juice to taste. Next time I will add cumin as well.
Finally, add cheese. Once again this is personal. I used colby jack, but you can use whatever suits your fancy. I used two bags because I like how the cheese gets all melty and holds everything together, but you could certainly cut that amount in half.
Stir it all together.
Now they're ready to be filled. I used two packs of burrito sized flour tortillas, giving me 21 finished burritos.
Fold them up burrito style and wrap. For this batch I opted to wrap the burritos in wax paper instead of aluminum foil in hopes that I could heat them in the microwave. It worked like a charm - just nuke frozen burritos for about 2 minutes. After wrapping individual burritos simply place into gallon sized freezer bags and stick into the freezer. I can get about 6 in a bag.
The nice thing about these is that you can cook the beans and rice one day and then assemble them the next. This makes a lot of burritos for a little bit of work. Plus, they taste much better than the artificial ingredient laden, heart burn causing, store bought freezer burritos.
So, if you're like me and looking for some quick and healthier options to whip up in no time on a busy day or evening - give home made freezer burritos a try.
Update: I sent these to work with my hubby for lunch yesterday and he liked them even better than the original version, which he liked very much. Score!
Happy Monday!
I recently came across some homemade freezer burritos from Tammy's Recipes. My hubby likes to keep the frozen ones on hand (when I remember to buy them) that you can pick up in packages of six at about any grocery store. They make a quick meal when life gets uber-busy. These burritos tend to give me heart burn. Plus, the last package I bought had a huge list of ingredients that I couldn't pronounce and am pretty certain that I couldn't walk into a store and buy. In the interest of cutting as much processing out of our diet as possible I was pretty happy to come across Tammy's simple and inexpensive version.
Basically, it's just equal amounts of beans, brown rice and cheese, with a little (or a lot of) hot sauce for flavor. The beauty of these burritos is that you can totally customize the flavors or ingredients (like beef or chicken) to accommodate your family's preferences. You can also use gluten-free tortillas and make them G-free. You can click here to see Tammy's step-by-step tutorial.
When I made them the first time I made them with pinto beans just as in the original recipe. However, added some spices like cumin, salt, paprika and chili powder for extra flavor. These were really good and a big hit with my son who requested them several days a week for lunch. I much prefer him eating these than the frozen dinners he usually prefers. They were fairly easy to prepare - just pull the foil wrapped burritos from the freezer and stick in a 400 degree oven for about 35 - 40 minutes. No need to thaw first.
I got to thinking about some different flavor combinations, though. I had recently stocked up on some dry beans when they went on sale and thought that black beans would go famously with the cilantro that grows like crazy in our garden. So, this weekend I set out to make another batch using black beans, cilantro and lime.
The first thing I did was soak a 1 pound bag of black beans over night and then cooked them. Once they were done I drained them. In the meantime I cooked some brown rice with a cilantro sauce I made and had frozen. I'll share the recipe for that tomorrow. This is how it came together.
Put the drained beans in a large bowl. I found that 1 pound of black beans gave me 5 cups.
Add 5 cups of cilantro rice.
Next, I added hot sauce and lime juice to taste. Next time I will add cumin as well.
Finally, add cheese. Once again this is personal. I used colby jack, but you can use whatever suits your fancy. I used two bags because I like how the cheese gets all melty and holds everything together, but you could certainly cut that amount in half.
Stir it all together.
Now they're ready to be filled. I used two packs of burrito sized flour tortillas, giving me 21 finished burritos.
Fold them up burrito style and wrap. For this batch I opted to wrap the burritos in wax paper instead of aluminum foil in hopes that I could heat them in the microwave. It worked like a charm - just nuke frozen burritos for about 2 minutes. After wrapping individual burritos simply place into gallon sized freezer bags and stick into the freezer. I can get about 6 in a bag.
The nice thing about these is that you can cook the beans and rice one day and then assemble them the next. This makes a lot of burritos for a little bit of work. Plus, they taste much better than the artificial ingredient laden, heart burn causing, store bought freezer burritos.
So, if you're like me and looking for some quick and healthier options to whip up in no time on a busy day or evening - give home made freezer burritos a try.
Update: I sent these to work with my hubby for lunch yesterday and he liked them even better than the original version, which he liked very much. Score!
Happy Monday!
Sunday, May 29, 2011
If You Love Your Children...
This morning as I was reading posts from my blog roll, this post really caught my attention. It spoke to me. It's from the blog, Mennonite Girls Can Cook. If you love to craft - and more importantly - if you love your children and desire to raise them in a Godly manner, take 2 minutes out of your day and go be inspired.
You're welcome.
You're welcome.
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