Sourdough Bread

The delicious smell of baking bread wafted through the house, reaching my nose as I gave Lydia's hair one final rinse. Yikes! The bread! Quickly, I pulled Lilly out of the tub, wrapped her in a towel and carried her down the stairs. I tossed her to the Carpenter and bustled into the kitchen. Pulling open the oven door, my eyes beheld a sight of beauty: four golden-brown loaves of bread, their tops climbing as high as they could without flopping. I could almost see the good smell curl out of the oven in mouth-watering billows. Perfect! I pulled the loaves out, grabbed my faithful spatula and started the delicate process of removing the loaves from their pans (I use glass - never fear! A little greasing and flouring always helps!) As always a delectable piece of crust stuck in the corner of the first pan. Ahh! The privileges of being the Mama and the Chef! I pulled it off and popped it into my mouth...

... and my resolve to eat less bread was renewed with ease.

ALAS! I had forgotten the salt! Oh, woe of woes! Four lovely loaves of yeast-free sourdough bread made with fresh ground whole wheat flour and home-cultured buttermilk utterly RUINED!

*sigh*

I bet these loaves will last a l-o-n-g time.

Pita, Please!

This morning, I happened across a recipe for Pitas. The Carpenter has often mentioned that he likes them, so I spontaneously decided to make some for lunch. I was shockingly pleased with the results! Here is the recipe, from the blog Joy Unspeakable

For pitas:

3 and 1/2 cups all-purpose flour (I used whole wheat)
1 and 1/3 cups warm water (120-130 degrees)
1 Tablespoon yeast
1/4 teaspoon sugar

1 teaspoon salt
1 Tablespoon oil
cornmeal for cookie sheets

- Place 1 cup of flour, 1 cup warm water, the 1/4 teaspoon sugar, and the yeast in a large bowl.

- Stir together and let sit for about 10 minutes or until it bubbles up.

- Add the rest of the pita bread ingredients except flour, and stir well.

- Now add the flour until the dough is easy to handle.

- Turn dough onto a floured surface and knead until elastic, about 10 minutes.

- Place in a greased bowl and turn to coat all sides. Cover and let rise about one hour or until double.

- Punch dough down, and divide into 6 equal parts.

- Shape into balls, cover with a towel and let rise 30 minutes.

- Sprinkle ungreased cookie sheets with cornmeal.

- Roll each ball into a 1/8-inch thick circle.

- Place on cookie sheets and let rise 30 more minutes.

- Preheat oven to 500 degrees.

- Bake about 10 minutes or until pitas are puffed and light brown.

- Cut each pita in half, then slice lengthwise down the middle to form a pocket.

- Fill with filling.

GF - Kusherie (Egyptian Lentils and Rice)

2T Olive Oil, divided

2/3 c Lentils

¾ c Brown Rice

3 c Stock

½ t salt, dash of pepper

Heat 1 T oil in heavy saucepan; add lentils and rice; brown 5 min, stirring often

Add 3 c boiling stock (quickly!), salt and pepper

Bring to boil; reduce heat to low; cover, simmer 45 min (or til rice and lentils are done)

Sauce; combine, simmer 20-30 min:

1/3 c Tomatoe Paste

1 ½ c Diced Tomatoes

½ Green Pepper, chopped

½ T Sugar

¾ t Salt

½ t Cumin

1/8 t Cayenne

Brown in skillet:

1 ½ - 3 Onions, Sliced

2-4 cloves Garlic, minced

Yogurt for Topping

Layer onions and sauce on top of rice and to with yogurt or sour cream

Serves our family of 6

GF - Santa Fe Chicken

Combine the following in your crockpot:
1 can black beans, drained
2 cups frozen corn
1/2 cup salsa

After stirring, add:
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (or left over chicken)
1/2 cup more salsa

Cook on low for 3 hours. Then add:
1 block of cream cheese
Cook one more hour. Serve over rice.

This recipe serves our family of 6.

GF- Peanut Butter Oatmeal Colossals

OK. I'm going to start posting yummy Gluten Free recipes. I've wanted to share them with a friend for a long time and haven't gotten around to it. Here they are! (This first one is for you, Darla, because I know how much your gang LOVES peanut butter!)

Peanut Butter Oatmeal Colossals

350* 8 min (drop cookies) 15-20 min (sheet cookies)

Mix well:

3/4 c Sucanat or Rapadura

3/4 c Raw Sugar

1/2 c Butter, at room temperature

4 Eggs

1 tsp Vanilla

2 C Peanut Butter

Add, mix well:

1 c Oats (rolled)

2 1/2 tsp Baking Soda

Add, mix as well as you can:

5 c Oats

2 c Chocolate Chips

Press onto greased cookie sheet (with edges) or make drop cookies.

If using cookies sheet, cut into bars a couple minutes after taking from oven, but before they are cool.

These freeze VERY well.

Kid-Friendly Egg Nog

This is for you, Brenda! I call it "Nap Nog" because I like to make it for myself at nap time. hehe!

1 c Milk (or preferably cream)

1 egg

1-2 T Honey

Dash of vanilla

Cinnamon ~ 1/2 - 1 tsp

Nutmeg ~ 1/8 - 1/4 tsp

Cloves ~ wee little pinch

Blend it all together til smooth and frothy. Enjoy!

Then, for an adult version, we just get Evan William's Egg Nog.

Kraut, Kookies, and Kicken Soup (Uh, Chicken)

Today was fun! We had some friends over to 'harvest' the sauerkraut we made; they had supplied the cabbage and carrots and we made it into kraut. We had a whopping total of 8 well-packed gallons! Whew! That should keep us all for a couple of months!

After the kraut-fest was finished, Andrew and I decided that it would be fun to make more Christmas cookies (since the ones we made earlier in the week disappeared WAY too quickly! And, no, we did NOT eat them all; we did give some away!) So, we cut out cookies, had naps and then decorated... but this time I did NOT get any sprinkles out! The mess was less and, once again, we had fun! Abigail was very detail oriented (at least at first), and even Phinehas tried his had at as artistic flare.

When we were finished I realized, with a shock, that it was 5:30 and I hadn't turned a single thought to supper. So I hurriedly made one of my favorite soups - Egg Drop! Here is how you do it:

Egg Drop Soup

1/4 cup of butter

3-4 cloves garlic

2 quarts of chicken broth

1 1/2 tsp salt

pepper

parsley

a handful of pastina (itty bitty, teeny tiny pasta)

4-5 eggs, well beaten

Sautee the garlic in the butter til soft;

Add the broth, salt, pepper and parsley;

Bring to boil;

Add pastina;

Reduce heat and cook til pastina is done;

Turn off heat;

Pour beaten eggs into hot broth while rapidly stirring the soup;

Top with generous portions of parmesan cheese;

ENJOY!!

We enjoyed this with cheese and crackers, as well as the Carpenter's garlic popcorn (yes, he is the Popcorn King, too!!)

What NOT to do with Maple Syrup.

Dump it by the pint full all over your kitchen floor (your CARPETED kitchen floor). It is not recommended. But, if you don't have enough to do and you want some excitement and you do decide to try this at home, be sure you angle the trajectory of the launched syrup container so that it splashes all over your cabinet doors on its rapid descent to the floor - just to get the full effect. Now, I accomplished this feat all by myself. However, if you wanted a grander effect and family bonding as well, have the children do the launching. Guarenteed fun - because the kids would probably fall to their knees to lick it up - even if the floor is carpeted. (I know they WOULD do this, because... ehem... the thought actually crossed my mind. *gasp!*)

Emerging Herbs

Things are Growing!

I thought I’d share some photos and descriptions of some early spring herbs that we’ve been enjoying. I’ve always found it easier to learn when there are photos… but it isn’t often that you can find photos of the newly emerging leaves; plant identification books wait till the flowers are present!

First is mustard greens:

MUSTARD GREENS

These bitter herbs are highly nutritious and easy to harvest; just pick ’em when you see ’em! In the past I would pick a WHOLE bunch and blanch them in hot water for a few minutes (to remove some of the bitterness) then transfer them to a pot with olive oil, garlic, and red pepper where they could sautee til tender. Salt and pepper to taste, then enjoy on crusty Italian bread. The only problem with this is that no one but me would eat them, as they are very bitter. So, now I chop them up and toss as couple handfuls into a pot of soup. I am planning on drying them as I pick them so that I will be able to use them in soups even as the season passes. You want to be sure and get them before they flower as then they get tough and stringy. The leaves are also nutritious.

Along with the mustard greens go dandelion greens:

DANDELION GREENS/FLOWERS

Almost everyone knows how to distinguish this ‘weed’. The leaves can be used just like the mustard greens; you can also use small quantities of both raw in salads; if you use too much the salad does get quickly bitter. The other day, Abigail picked a basketful of dandelion flowers and I pan-fried them up in a batter made of egg, milk, salt, pepper, parmesan cheese and flour. They were yummy! I am planning on making dandelion wine once the blossoms come out full force!

This is garlic mustard:

GARLIC MUSTARD

If you crush a leaf in your fingers it smells of garlic. Again, toss a handful of the fresh leaves in soup for added nutrition.

Here is burdock:

BURDOCK

The root can be scrubbed, chopped and sautéed in butter and garlic and it is supposed to taste like artichoke hearts. I have a bag full of the roots in the fridge that I plan on using either today or tomorrow. When I first started digging them, I was going for the big roots. I then found that I could gather many more of the skinny, first year plants much more quickly than I could dig up one second year root. I imagine that the first year roots are more tender than the second year, anyway. I’ll try and remember to let you know how we like them!

Edit: They ARE delicious! I sautèed them in butter with garlic, a pinch of dried mint, salt, pepper, and a squeeze of lemon juice. Very yummy!

FIRST YEAR BURDOCK PLANT WITH TAP ROOT

And this is yarrow:

EMERGING YARROW LEAVES

I don’t collect yarrow til it is blossoming in the summer, but it is exciting to identify it this early in the season. The leaves look like little ferns or feathers, curling close to the ground. Don’t let their delicate appearance fool you: Yarrow is a wonderful herb that is ideal for fighting cold and flu. I always have on hand a loose-leaf mix of yarrow, elder flower, and peppermint (called children’s composition) in order to make tea at a moment’s notice. Careful, though! Don’t let it steep too long or it will be too bitter to drink! Honey improves the taste, fore sure! You can also identify where yarrow is growing by looking for the dried flower stalks from last year’s mature plants:

LAST YEAR'S YARROW STALKS WITH DEAD FLOWERHEADS

Organic Protien

Phinehas discovered an organic source of protien, today. He thoroughly enjoyed swallowing some worms. He did turn his nose up at the grubs, though - I don't understand why. I tried encouraging him to collect worms for the chickens and newts, rather than devouring them. We'll see about that...

Curry and Naan

Yesterday, right around lunch time, I tweaked my back out. I wasn’t incapacitated, but the wind was definitely taken right out of my sails. So, Phin and Abbi decided to pray for my back. Here is what Phin said:

“Dear Jesus, please make Mama’s back ALL better. Please heal it so she can cook supper for us! Amen.”

After that I just HAD to cook supper, so after a hot bath, a lot of stretching, and a hero coming home from work a bit early, I settled on a super easy recipe for Chicken Curry. It was super good, served with rice and naan, so I thought I’d share!

Curried Chicken Stew

2 chicken breasts, chopped into smallish pieces

1 lg sweet potatoe, peeled an cut into ½” pieces

1 med onion, peeled and chopped

1 med zucchini (I didn’t use this)

1 small green pepper, chopped (I used a mix of red, orange and yellow)

1 ½ tsp curry powder

1 tsp cumin

1 can garbanzo beans, rinsed and drained

1 can diced tomatoes

¾ c veggi broth (I used water)

½ tsp salt

In big pot or skillet, cook chicken in a bit of oil with a dash or paprika, turmeric, salt and pepper.

Transfer to bowl.

In a bit more oil, cook vegetables till tender, 8-10 min.

Add curry powder and cumin; cook 1 min.

Add garbanzo beans and tomatoes, broth and salt.

Heat to boiling; reduce heat to med-low.

Cover and simmer till, veggies are very tender but not mushy.

Serve with cooked brown rice and naan.

Naan is an Indian flat bread that is fried in a pan. Sort of like a fluffy tortilla. You can use it in place of utensils by taking a piece of the naan and pinching a bite of food. Then pop it into your mouth and enjoy! Here is the recipe I used:

Naan

1 ½ cups water

1 T yeast

1 tsp salt

2 tsp cumin

2 tsp paprika

2 tsp turmeric

1/2 cup golden raisins

3-4 cups whole wheat flour

(The recipe called for 3 T mango chutney as well,

but I didn’t have it so I didn’t use it!)

Add yeast to water, let stand.

Add the spices and raisins plus 3 cups of the flour.

Mix well, adding flour till your dough I firm but slightly sticky

Divide dough into 6 sections.

Let rise 60 – 90 min

Divide each dough ball in half.

Flatten and roll into circle (hah!)

Let rest 5 min.

Heat fry pan to medium (cast iron works great!)

Coat lightly with a bit of olive oil.

Fry each rolled out dough ball till lightly brown on each side.

Very yummy.

Enjoy!

Blender-Ready Breakfast

I am beginning to get used to my new mixer/blender. Very used to it. When it came, included in the package was a book of recipes especially designed to be used with the Bosch mixer. We have found a couple that we really like! I see no reason you couldn't make these in any old blender, so I thought I'd share!

Blender Pancakes

Put 1 c milk in blender

Add 3/4 c wheat kernels

Blend on high, 4 minutes

Add:

2 eggs

2 T honey

1/4 c oil (we use melted butter)

2 tsp baking powder

3/4 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

Blend until mixed.

Cook on griddle.

YUM!

Since this batter is a little thinner than your typical pancake batter, we put it into our 2 c Pyrex measure and pour it out onto our big ol' cast iron griddle. This is a fantastic way to get the benefit of your whole grain without the need to grind it ahead of time.

Instead of plain old orange juice, I made "Orange Julius." In order to make this, you have to get over the thought that milk and orange juice don't mix. Instead, think of a nice yummy creamsicle. We thought of our friends Marlin and Darla, who make a similar drink and serve it in lovely gobblets after the children are in bed. Here is the recipe:

Orange Julius

1 cup milk

1 cup water

1 (6oz) can frozen orange juice concentrate

1/2 cup sugar (we used ~1/3)

1 tsp vanilla

12 ice cubes

Add ingredients to Bosch blender.

Pulse momentarily 5 or 6 times.

Blend on high till smooth.

The only problem we had with this recipe is that we didn't have a 6 oz container of OJ concentrate; we only had a 12 oz. So, what do we do with the left overs? Make another batch!!

Some Things Aren't Meant to Be Eaten

Such as Limburger Cheese.

Andrew brought some home. We looked up how it is 'supposed' to be eaten: on dark rye or pumpernickel bread, with mustard and sweet onion.

So, Andrew toasted the pumpernickel bread then opened the limburger package. Yep. It stinks. Andrew passed it around for all of us to smell - Abbi and Phin readily turned up their noses, but Liam smelled, and smelled, and smelled some more. And then, he ate it. Ugh. I think we need to have his nose checked.