Elisa's Eye on the World

Twice Baked Stuffed Potato

In a move towards solid food, I came up with this twice baked stuffed potato. Instead of taking a small slice off the top and scooping out, I cut the spud in 1/2, making easier to work with shells.  After lining the baking sheet with parchment the empty shells were sprayed on both sides with Canola.

The scooped spud was mixed with a wee bit of milk, chopped scallion, grated Swiss cheese, crumbled Alaska smoked salmon and seasoned with pepper and garlic powder. A good mashing with a stiff fork made a nice mushy filling that was easy to scoop back into the spud shell.  Go ahead and use a clean hand to pat everything into place to get the nice domed.  Feel free to modify ingredients, this was just what we had on hand.

Return of the Hostas

Love these hostas which a neighbor gave to us a few years ago when dividing their plants. These make a great border on the raised bed surrounded by spreading Vinca.

Smoked Salmon Quiche (oh my!)

Tonight I am making another Smoked Salmon Quiche following the recipe in this gem of a cookbook. True to the author's directions this is Alaska Smoked Salmon...from a local vendor who makes it with care.

The dish tastes great and is really pretty easy to assemble. I "cheat" by using a store bought quality (no hydrogenated yuck) frozen whole wheat crust, but the rest is quick to bring together. After all, she wrote the book for use in a ship's galley so there's nothing too fancy.

She owns the recipe so I am not going to print it here - but I will say cream (instead of condensed milk since I am not @ sea), 3 eggs, 1/2 cup cheddar cheese, crust, 1/2 cup flaked salmon, crust..Djion mustard and a little dill to season...you get the idea.

Back to Soft Food

One Friday I had Part II of my gum surgery, so it's back to soft food for the next week or so. Ah, soon enough I will have my crunchy crispy foods;  but for now it's a diet of:

• Fruit smoothies, Mollie Katzen style with a protein powder and bran to supplement plain yogurt, OJ, banana and strawberries
• Gooey Mac and Cheese from the nearby grocery deli
• Oatmeal with a bit of cinnamon and brown sugar, but sadly no nuts or raisins
• The last of my split pea soup from the freezer, with intentions to make more for tomorrow
• Two egg omelets with some cream cheese and smoked salmon
• Chocolate frozen yogurt

 

Medley of Texture and Color

The stage is set for a season of color by the lower rock wall. The Garden Elf is surrounded by Bleeding Heart; to the right is the village of Foxgloves, surrounded by the spreading mat of Vinca. Sedums are spilling from the rocks and the nearby area has a stepable variety of groundcover bordered by wood chips.

Applesauce Mini Chocolate Chip Protein Powder Bread

For years I have made Mollie Katzen's pumpkin and banana breads with protein powder and assorted add-ins. I finally noticed her third option with applesauce and gave it a try in the new KAF bread pan.  It's not shown in the on line recipe from her site but it's an exchange of the banana for the same amount of unsweetened applesauce, and adding a tsp. of Cinnamon.

Front Porch Container Mix 2012

TRAILING: Dichondra "Argentea" - Silver leaves on silvery stems: 2-3" tall, trailing 3-6 feet!

MOUNDING: Diacia Twinspur "Flirtation Orange" -  8-12" mounding habit

HEIGHT: Dahlia: Dahlianova Texas -10"

There are three boxes each with the same mix. Yesterday I scrubbed out the resin containers, which are in their 10th year or so of servce. They were baking in the sun when I potted them this afternoon on the front lawn and are now in place.

Tulips by the Back Door

Darling pair of pinkies!

The Fancy Fringe Red Gang

Mash Up Medley!

Tall crimson bulbs and one yellow Picasco type with pointy petals.

Two Sets of Fancy Fringed Tulips

Red Fancy Fringed Tulips waiting to open....

While the "safety yellow" ones put on their show.

Tulips Part I

 

Pizza Dough From Scratch - Not So Hard!

Gather the tools!

Make sure the yeast is fresh!

Disolve yeast in water; then add the salt. Don't rush.

Mix dry ingredients (flours) well because once added to liquid; the idea is NOT to mix too much.

After adding dry to wet and mixing (not kneading) till blended; set aside to rise for a few hours. Getting to this point really took only about 15 minutes, a little more as I had fresh bags to flour to stow, etc. Not bad, considering there's enough dough here for 4 big pies!

I used a table knife to remove a wedge for pie the next day. The other three segments will be wrapped and frozen for future deliciousness.

Good estimate. I put it on the scale and it weighs in at a pound.

The Best Part.

NYT Polenta Lasagna with Broccoli Rabe

I decided to try out this NY Time's receipe for Polenta and Broccoli Rabe Lasagna.

 

Please note the tray underneath the baking pan, lined with too much parchment paper. "Very good idea." The leftover slices were nice and firm, but the first two after baking are always a bit floppy. But incredibly delicious. There are four steps up to baking:

1. Soak (and drain) noodles
2. Make tomato sauce (I simmered a bit longer than the author suggested)
3. Prep and cook (and rinse and drain) the broccoli rabe
4. Slowly cook the polenta (in the cooking water, instructions did not say this)
5. Mix in the ricotta and 1/2 the parm into the cooked polenta
6. Shred fresh mozzerella into bits (yay TJ log!)

ENJOY!

 

Garden Views 3-23

Finally, here's some pictures of the garden taken outside, instead of through the window.  Spring is on the way!
The Elf has been relocated to the "fairy flower" area with columbines and foxgloves.

The violet colored blooms are Vinca groundcover, the tall shrub / herb  is Rosemary.

A big bag of compost spread in this area, after some diligent weeding was very rewarding.

 

Big Batch of Semolina Pizza Dough

Yesterday afternoon I mixed up a batch of Semolina pizza dough from this book. It took me a bit longer than 5 minutes to mix this up because both of the flours were at the end of one bag, so I had to open the other and store that. But once you measure it's just mix mix mix. Stop!
Left to right: bulk yeast stored in air tight glass jar in fridge; the book, the 6 quart BPA free container (lid not shown) and a big bowl to mix the flours. The water, yeast and salt went right in the big container.

Oh boy, I can't wait to make pie tonight! The air holes are supposed to be good. With this do you DO NOT punch down..the results are remarkable and the effort, really is miniscule. To buy 4 lb. dough balls (the yield of this receipe) would set you back about $16 compared to the ~$2.00 in ingredients. Yay!

More March Meals

Split Pea Soup from the freezer.  With quesadillas filled with TJ tomato bruschetta topping and grated cheese and Alaska Smoked Salmon. TJ oyster crackers for more munch and a crisp white wine.

Buckwheat Soba Noodles with Baby Bok Choy. Stir fry veggies topped cooked and drained noodles with TJ spring rolls for an awesome worknight meal.

Lentil Soup from the freezer.  Oh, what a good idea, especially with leftover buckwheat soba noodles stirred in. Topped with grated cheese and oyster crackers.

Winter Roasted Veggies. This time the assortment were sweet potatoes (instead of mistakenly using yams) along with parsnips. There was not enough room in the pan for the carrots.

Quinoa Swiss Chard Feta. Googling those terms and found this recipe!  Leftovers were wrapped in flour tortillas with two stowed in the freezer for quick lunches.  Highly recommended and adaptable to what you have @ hand.

Sunday to Sunday

Dinners for the week included:

Chili from the freezer with rice and cheese. Two small containers of Joy of Cooking chili made a nice dinner, and the next night I wrapped it all together in flour tortillas.

A Fresh Batch of Mac and Cheese. Following the Gwenyth Paltrow example from her book adding a few of my own touches. See my post earlier this week for more details. 

Thai Style Green Curry. Following the directions on the package of the green curry paste left here by Guest Chef T. I stirred up a nice curry with fake chicken tenders, chopped red and orange pepper along with some red onion in Thai coconut milk from the can. Served with Jasmine rice, then on Monday with buckwheat soba noodles and  a handful of chopped spinach.

"Big Boy" Baked Stuffed Potatoes. Oh my, three meals and no pictures? There were two massive russets that were baked up, scooped out and served with some mixed vegetables and cheddar. Massive. Reheated the next night they were great with TJ falafel . Sunday there was some left that I had for lunch with the leftover bruchetta from the mac and cheese dinner.

Mac and Cheese in the Oven!

As I type a nice big tray of Gwenyth Paltrow Mac and Cheese is baking! I'm enjoying a nice cold Ranger IPA because it's Friday night and gloomy. A pile of baby spinach will go nicely with the soon to be golden and bubbly casserole. This was the first time I've used marscapone...interesting!

We have big appetites, but the book says 4 servings from the 1 lb. of pasta and that seems too much.

Dusting of Snow

From the morning of March 7:
A few objects of garden whimsy are viewable here. The orange golf ball and red with tan garden elf with mushroom combi. This was all gone by mid-day.

Here you can see the end of the lawn dart.

Another FIne Pie

These are from last Saturday night:
Mushrooms, red pepper, fresh mozzarella, smoked mozzarella, dried oregano. Not shown is chopped red onion, which I find adds a remarkable taste to pizza.

Sauce and dough both pulled from the freezer the night before and defrosted in the fridge.
Doneness! I used a Caphalon 14" pizza pan, lightly greased with butter. The finshed pie slides right off to the maple pastry board, where it's cut into wedges with the pizza wheel that came with the pan.

Sunday Dinner from the Freezer

Photos of chili always look terrible but the house sure smells fantastic. I pulled wto small containers stowed in January in the freezer - they defrosted quickly in a small sauce pan.

Meanwhile, I rinsed and drained short grain brown rice. It's cooking now with the simmering pot with some frozen corn and "fake chicken tenders." This batch ended up too spicy and then too tomatoey and these additions have given it a good body.

Soon, I will rise from the comfortable spot on the couch and make some salads from the ready to go Romaine and some cherry tomatoes. Sundays can't always be spent in the kitchen. Today was a good example of pulling off a good meal while having time for other things.

As an added strategic bonus, chili burritos - or the stew with cooked riced and shredded cheese wrapped in flour tortillas and baked until golden brown and super bubbly. A nice worknight meal to come home to on on of my on site days.

Garden View Early March

I tagged "bulbs" here and must note this means the emergence of bulb activity. The Garden Elf has been repositioned for spring where soon, he will be surrounded by fairy like flowers and plants. Ah Spring!

Meals that March On

Cold but not freezing weather, good produce, the Internet for on going recipe ideas, here's what I served up last week:

• Roasted mustard/maple syrup root vegetable: turnips and sweet potatoes
• My mac and cheese from the freezer with a tossed green salad
• Roasted yukon gold potatoes to accompany already roasted root vegetables
• Store bought frozen potato dumplings with steamed broccoli and carrots
• Asian noodles from the 'fridge case stir fryed with my own home simmered Teriyaki sauce. With tofu, baby bok choy and white mushrooms; served with short grain brown rice. The leftovers made a nice lunch today with some store bought frozen spring rolls and some shredded Romaine lettuce.
  
  

What's For Dinner?

Every night I'm asked "What's for dinner" and this week we had:

• Tofu stirfry (made a ton!) with cauliflower, brocolli, onion, celery and carrots.
• Pizza with chard, mozzerella, blue cheese, red onion and red sauce
• Split pea soup with smoked salmon
• Roasted parsnips and sweet potato atop chopped chard. I added some Ranch dressing; Hubs prefers horseradish sauce.

 

Freezer and Fresh Options

This past week of dinners was a mixed assortment of fresh, frozen and take out!

Try II of Roasted Winter Veggies. Sweet potatoes, parsnips and carrots coated ala Gwenyth Paltrow style in maple syrup and mustard. Mmm good for leftovers a few nights later.

Quinoa Black Bean and Corn. Well, this was good, but gave someone gas so I did not serve again for dinner, but I had some leftovers for lunch the next day heated in the micro with some grated cheese on top.

Lasagna from the Freezer. Heated up with some added sauce in the pan and on top, served with a crispy salad.

Lentil Soup from the Freezer. The Friday night chill was warmed by bowls of soup topped with smoked salmon and toasted garlic bread.

Spaghetti with Red Sauce. Tried, true and prepared by Hubs. I grated cheese and made the salad. He brought home a chocolate torte for our anniversary and collectively it was a perfect dinner!

Tonight we went out, oh my. Stuffed Dover Sole over Risotto!

Dinners this Week

Hi Readers;

I really have to get my photos in synch - until then, here's the list of the latest meals:

• Superbowl Sunday Lasagna. While the game dragged on this got a little dry, but still very tasty with a crisp salad. We've been lucky to get great California lettuce this time of year.
• Snow Chowder. Drawn from the freezer this still was tasty, especially with TJ Oyster crackers bobbing around.
• Chili. Also drawn from the freezer, reheated on the stove top while a fresh bath of brown rice cooked. Served with Colby Jack cheese and some home made chips made by baking torn tortilla shells sprayed with canola. There was a bit leftoever and I baked them into fresh tortillas with cooked rice and sliced cheese. Chili Burrittos Mmmm!
• Veggie Pizzas. Using a portion from this month's fresh batch of dough
  
  ...Last night I made a full size pie using up the mushroom sauce from the lasagna and topped it with chopped orange peppers, sliced mushrooms and shredded mozzarella cheese. A sprinkle of dried oregano and it was ready to bake...meanwhile I had an odd amount of dough and made one deep dish invidiual pie with the same sauce, cheese and mushrooms, but added sweet onion and some fresh spinach. That one I baked until it was almost done, with the intention of serving it today for lunch. Sorry No Photos.

Week of Eats

Ah, we have rolled into February, with 29 days this years so extra extra!

This week we had:

• Walt's classic baked burritos. Refried beans, chopped red pepper, carrots and spinach. Monte Jack Cheese rolled up in a flour shell, served with brown rice.
• Mock Chicken Chow Mein with "non meat" tenders, lovely fresh noodles mixed with homemade sauce following package directions. Veggie list: purple onion, baby bok choy, orange pepper, peas.
• Another amazing pizza with the "Artistan Dough in Five Minutes Per Day" book. Pulled from the freezer were the dough, sauce and cheese. From our co-op a small container of Vegan (no cheese) basil pesto. Topped with chopped fresh sweet onion and orange pepper this was nothing short of Kick Ass.
• Thai Fried Rice for One was a zippy lunch with some stray veggies: chopped Swiss Chard and Bell Pepper a scrambled egg topped with slivered almonds.
• Baked potatoes were simply delicious, flaky and flavorful without any added fat. The accompaniment were Ms. Paltrow's Roasted Vegetables with of equal amounts of maple syrup, extra virgin olive oil and Dijon mustard. I did not have sweet potatoes but had turnips and carrots. Served the next night, it was even better. Can't wait to try again with the sweeties.

Back to the Garden

While taking out the recycling and such I put the camera in a pocket and snapped these on the way back in. My hands were cold. But the weeds are growing and spreading and I know it's time to get back to the garden and set a clean foundation for the warmer weather.

Signs of early bulbs too. The grasses will get trimmed later in the month- President's Day was suggested to us - past the times we get the chance frigid stuff.
Hubs spread a nice blanket of brown leaves from our trees over this bedding area. Even this time of year there's a nice green mix and contrast with the fence. Yay!

...have to finish spreading the woodchips on this path

One of the corner lines of the lower rock wall, aka The Nook

More Dinner and Meals

My, the end of January is near and I"m glad to report on more home cooking.

• A double batch of Joy of Cooking (JOC) macaroni and cheese made two great dinners, served with spinach, sliced almond, cherry tomato salads. Four big pieces were wrapped in wax paper and stowed in a plastic freezer container.
• More JOC action with split pea soup to warm up some very wet and cold nights. A simplier variety than the Jane Brody receipe - having time to simmer is key. The leftovers were poured off into an 8 cup glass lidded container and the next night it was extra thick and hearty. Served with rustic potato rolls and a bit of cheddar.
• Half batch of Artisan pizza dough - or enough for 2 14" crusts. Splitting the measurements made my head hurt, but the dough was airy and light. I'm still waiting for a 6 quart container so I can make full recipes. But once the measuring is done it's just quick mix, set to rise then stow in fridge. No Need to Knead.
• Pizza 1 was a classic veggie: sauce, green pepper, yellow onion, fresh mushrooms with mozzerella.
• Avocado and cheese Sandwiches on Rustic Bolo Rolls. Bun toasted, cheese melted and blended avocado spread on an airy crusty roll, squished down before cutting into 1/2's or 1/4's. Quick and satisfying with a spinach salad with carrots, sliced almonds and cherry tomatoes.

Eating out is fabulous, but so expensive. Eating at home takes planning but the results are so satisfying to the tummy and purse. I hope you are able to enjoy these everyday meals in your own home.

Joy of Cooking Split Pea Soup

On this blustry, wet but not too cold January evening I'm about to serve up some "Joy of Cooking" Split Pea Soup. There were two slices of Candadian bacon in the freezer and I defrosted them and threw them in with the spring water and lovely organic peas. Just to see.

After it came to a boil it simmered for an hour, then chopped onion and carrots were added to the mix with an assortment of herbs. Bay leaf, salt, pepper, basil, ground celery.

Some potato buns heating in the toaster oven - let's eat!!

Creative Planning Boosts Menus

It's been some time since I made a full fledged shop with the car for groceries at our natural food cooperative. Impending snow, actual snow and now lots of slush are not my kind of driving conditions.

So here we go, another week into January making the best of what's in the pantry and freezer; with supplements from the nearby conventional grocery (read icky produce).

• The last of the New Year's Risotto, served with TJ samosa,which we have now deemed too spicy
• Lentil soup with Franks in Blankets
• Homemade JoC "New England Clam Chowder" made with 3 cans of TJ Cherrystone clams from Maine, new potato and milk instead of cream
• Naan pizza with sweet onion, blue cheese, provolone and cherry tomatoes
• Store bought frozen Potato and Cheddar Ravioli, prepared then combined in a casserole wth sweet onion, chopped carrots and peas along with some grated cheddar and sprinkle of Panko breadcrumbs and baked with slivered almonds on top
• The last of the JoC Mac and Cheese served with a salad of baby spinach, cherry tomatoes, slivered almonds and carrots
• JoC Tuna casserole over baby spinach

Another Week O Dinners

Last week brought another round of home made and store supplemented meals.

• Leftover baked potato sliced and served in a deep casserole with chopped spinach, carrots, grated cheddar with a bit of strained tomato.
• Lentil soup with carrots, onions and long grain brown rice served with cheddar cheese. With three containers stowed in the freezer.
• The last pizza from the three balls of dough stowed in December. Thursday night pie featured blue cheese, mozzarella, a bit of spinach, chopped green pepper and walnuts over a red sauce. Splendid.
• Tuna casserole from the freezeer with the leftover cauliflower reheated together with slivered almonds.
• Tonight we have risotto cakes from the freezer which will be freshly rolled in bread crumb and Parmesan cheese before baking to reheat- perhaps with some TJ falafel.

 

First Week of Meals (updated w pix)

Best wishes to you dear readers!

This year has been off to a good start with lots of home cooking, mix matching and use of the freezer:

• NY Eve we made risotto, and the leftovers were formed into cakes. Some of the cakes were served a few days later - baked, after dusting in panko bread crumbs and grated Parmesan.

 The rest were formed into cakes, not dusted, then frozen.

• With a dough pulled from the freezer we had a 14" pizza pie with baby spinach, red sauce, mozzerella, chopped green peppers and herbs de Provence.

• Using brown rice noodles and following directions on the package I made Phad Thai with tofu.

The following night we had the leftovers with some baked Risotto cakes.

• Joy of Cooking vegetable chili came out good, but a bit too spicy due to some poor estimates - but some more tomato and sugar balanced things out so it was tasteful with brown rice and grated cheese.

The next night I formed "wraps" from the chili, leftover rice and cheese; these were served with yogurt for a very filling meal. One big and three small containers are now stowed in the freezer. Most have labels!

• Tonight, it's Joy of Cooking tuna casserole. Fresh mushrooms, rather than the canned soup; pasta spirals vs. egg noodles, but otherwise I have the ingredients of: onion, red & green peppers, mushrooms, tuna, breadcrumbs, butter and a nice big pan. Thinking about adding peas. More later, including phtotos.

Here's to Happy and Heathful Eating in 2012!

 

Mint Chocolate Chip Cookies

What can be better than cookies with:

• Dutch chocolate (for color)
• Milk chocolate chips (for texture)
• Genuine mint extract (for surprise)
• Butter and sugar (for gooey texture)

??

These are simply the best cookies, and I thank Mollie Katzen for sharing the recipe in her Still Life with Menu cookbook.

Franks in Blankets

Although I rarely eat meat, something about making Latkes brings on the urge to make these. The Joy of Cooking 75th Anniversary Edition has a great "recipe" that elevates the usual to quite special.

Of course the franks have to be Kosher, Hebrew National. Usually refrigerated crescent rolls are used. but the traditional brands are quite disgusting in terms of trans fat, and I was thrilled to find an alternative at our cooperative. The cookbook suggests spreading Djon mustard on the dough before rolling them up.

While they were baking and Hubs was making the Latkes I made the suggested "Honey Mustard" sauce (1/3 cup mustard, 6 tbsp. honey and some black pepper)...awesome!!!

Mom's Latkes in not too much Oil

Time for Latkes! I could not find Mom's recipe card, but Googled by blog and found the recipe. Most heat 1/4" of oil in a skillet, but we have this awesome griddle that just needs a light spray of canola oil. The results may be less crispy but they taste awesome and you can eat more with less guilt or excessive fat.

The ever handy (ancient) blender is perfect for fluffing the eggs, before adding the chopped potato and other ingredients.

Hub's skillful technique of ladling batter into small cakes onto the pre-heated skillet is unsurpassed!

The photo is a little over-exposed, but you get the idea. Golden brown but not hash brown crunchy. Placing them on a rack over the tray keeps them from sticking and getting too moist. We never used the dinner plates I set out and ate 'em as they came off the griddle with some crisp white wine and "franks in blankets" as shown in the next post.

Please see other posts in the "Latke" category for the actual recipe and additional photos.

Jane Brody "Greek Shrimp"

I finally got around to making Jane Brody's "Greek Shrimp" from her Good Seafood book and boy it was good! The deal is:

• Simmer up a tomato sauce with onions, garlic and plum tomatoes
• Sprinkle peeled and deveined shrimp (I cheated and used prepared frozen US wild shrimp) with some lemon
• Layer sauce, then the shrimp in a single layer, add more sauce and sprinkle with feta cheese
• Bake until bubbly
• Serve with pasta, I used orzo, layered over some spinach

A delightful dish that would wow a dinner party or make a few good meal for two.

Homemade Mac and Cheese - Thin

Not too long ago I made this "Joy of Cooking" macaroni and cheese recipe, and it was fantastic! Just regular sharp cheddar, TJ pasta (shaped like little caps) and panko breadcrumbs (which are very fine). I used a larger pan, so the dish is thin, not thick and the results were outstanding.

Today, when I wanted something for lunch, I pulled a wax paper wrapped slice from a glass container in the freezer, and it heated up real fast. For those of us who live without a microwave this is a very good thing.

Trying to eat a balanced meal, I ate it with a salad similar to the one shown here. Very satsifying and much better than any frozen meal or store prepared dish.

 

Sunday, Stuffed Sunday

I hope everyone had a good Thanksgiving! The stuffed shells came out better than expected and the real surprise was serving up Sweet Potato Surprise with some Trader Joe's Stir Fried Egg Rolls. Talk about yum!

The weather was dreary and I made some Joy of Cooking Baked Mac and Cheese that came out great; and pulled some JOC chili from the freezer tonight to serve up with a fresh batch of rice.

Happy Thanksgiving

Best Wishes for a great Thanksgiving! I'm on my second cup of tea, soon to take a nice long home yoga session. The sun is out and rain stopped so a nice walk around the scenic park is in order before we get down to some serious eating.

In the fridge there's 3 slices of Crustless Brocolli Quiche to serve for our lunch, with some Vegan pesto.   Both pulled from the freezer stash.

Later on, for our early dinner there's a big tray of stuffed manicotti. I used the same online recipe as last time. Ricotta, onion, chard, Provolone (my substitution) and breadcrumbs. I skipped the egg white. Yesterday I tucked that into the nice Garden Time brand shells, I admit to cutting them in half; plopping the 2 TBSP of filling and rolling it up, placing seam side down in the pan. To save time, I have 2 jars of Newman's Mushroom sauce, though only 3/4 was needed for the prep stage. Before baking, I will top with a mixture of cheese and crumbs, followed by thinly sliced Roma tomato.

In between our lunch and dinner are extended calls to the East. See how everyone's travels went and how deep the snow is in ME.

The side dish for dinner is a big fresh salad, but I might go with steamed brocolli and carrots. Dessert is yet to be determined but there is both a chocolate and vanilla frozen yogurt standing by. Two bottles of Chianti to accompany the meal await our testing and tasting.

All the best to you Dear Readers! Special shout outs to my pals in Cambridge & Concord, Mass. and Washington, DC.

-Elisa

Some T.J. Favorites

One of my runs today was to the nearby Trader Joe's - below are some of my favorites, all under $4.00/each:

• TJ Honey Graham cracker $2.99
• Barb's Shredded Oat Ceral (bigger than other stores) $3.99
• TJ's sliced muenster $3.99
• Sliced Jarlsberg $3.99
• Sliced Colby Jack $3.99
• Dried pasta (Italian import) $.99
• TJ's 5lb. flour $2.99
• TJ Irish breakfast 100 bag box $2.99
• Clif Bars $.99
• TJ 1 liter canola $3.79
• TJ "wheat thin-like" crakers $1.99

I stay away from their produce , odd wine lots, most of the frozen and super snack sections - but for these items, TJ's is the best and all their staff are sincerely helpful and nice.

List of Cooking and Baking Projects

Dear Readers;

I'm back, and do apologize for the lack of posts this past month.  With Thanksgiving just a week away and some time on my hands, I got the shopping out of the way so now I can move through the list.

Done:

• Yogurt muffins with mini chocolate chips and cherries from the freezer. These came out great and I'd call them Cherry Garcia muffins if it was not an obvious copyright infraction.
• Quinoa with avocado and greens with a citrus dressing
• Brocolli quiche with rice at the bottom instead of crust
• Hub's Awesome burritos with brown rice

To Do:

• Mollie Katzen's "Sweet Potato Surprise" a seasonal favorite
• Mollie's "Ricotta and Spinach Dip" to serve with baked potatoes
• Baked shells stuffed with green and cheese
• A rice, tomato, feta and shrimp dish similar to the one the neighborhood Greek place makes
• Joy of Cooking "Macaroni and Cheese" this time doubling the recipe so there's some on hand in the freezer
• Jane Brody's "Favorite Lentil Soup"
• Cheddar Cheese scones from a new cookbook I've been pursuing

Oh oh- time to serve tonight's dinner. Photos and further updates to follow.

-Elisa

Sort of an Ode to Soft Food

Dear Readers;

Sorry for the recent lack of posts as I recover from a gum graft. I've been pulling dinners from the freezer and eating pretty simple food. Cooking will get back in swing tonight with a tuna casserole to warm up this grey wet Saturday.

Sort of an Ode to Soft food.

(the structure is wrong but I felt like using the term, ok?)

Macaroni and soup.

Chowder and tofu.

All kinds of goop.

 

Orange and green juice.

Grapfruit and pom.

Eggs and oatmeal.

 

Soon there will be chewing.

Texture and crunch.

But not Now.

Table for Four, Five...or is that Six?

Although I cook all the time, it's for two. This past week or so I had to opportunity to serve up dinner for travelers from Vermont, Maine and B.C. Where time permitted I did it from scratch, but sometimes the in house deli at the natural food store was the ticket.

Here's four menus for four or more that were met with rave revues, and no leftovers:

• Deli Fresh individual chicken or turkey pot pies, with a green salad of romaine, spinach, romas and red peppers. For dessert: the deli's pumpkin honey cake served with "Lady Grey" tea.
• Home made simple red pasta sauce with basil and whole wheat spaghetti, with steamed broccoli. For dessert: my home made blueberry yogurt cupkcake-like muffins with a Washington Pinot Noir.
• Home made lentil soup with long grain rice, with a green salad of romaine, hazelnuts, romas and red pepper. For dessert: chocolate cream pie from the the local pie shop. OMG!!
• Delivery "good old plain" tomato sauce and mozzarella pizza, with their house salad with garbanzo beans and a Cesar. Another one of those pumpkin honey cakes.

Pictures? Sorry, I was too busy cooking up a storm and visiting.

Sunflowers Everywhere!

September Blooming Fuschias Keep it Bright

 

Goldy Honey Bear Sunflowers

Look at all the unopened flower buds! Flowers ahread this fall.

How plush is that?

In the background you can see an assortment of other varieties of sunflowers - but these are my hand's down favorite.

The element of whimsy shown here is the plaque on the fence to the right that happens to face the sunflower.

 

Three Stage Eggplant Parmesan

I spotted these slender lovelies at our natural food market - that's about 2 lbs. I got home and scanned some cookbooks which reminded me: do not refrigerate - highly perishable.

1. Step I.  Rinse and pat dry, I sliced them in to 1/4 rounds for baking on a parchment paper lined, canola sprayed pan. Once cut they turn brown fast, I brushed the tops with Extra Virgin Olive Oil.  The pan was full but not crowded and cooked nicely in the pre-heated 425 degree oven for 15 minutes. No flipping, they are too tender. Once they looked brown, they were removed from the oven and cooled. Truth is the were stowed in the fridge till the next day.
2. I came up with this step, which is usually part of the first one but I was not ready to do so on Friday. The eggplant bits are best when covered in tasty breadcrumbs so there's a crunchy outside and creamy soft inside. Traditionally, this is done by deep frying. No thanks. I mixed up an egg with 2/3 cup of non-fat milk and poured it over the roasted eggplant while they were still in the glass container you see above. Meanwhile I mixed up 2 cups of breadcrumbs with some basil (garden fresh), thyme and oregano as suggested by Mollie Katzen. Once again lining a baking sheet with parchment, I dipped each bit and lined them up on the  tray for the second bake. The liquid was nicely absorbed and held the crumbs together. I baked all this for about 20 minutes.
3. Finally time to assemble. Following cues from Mollie and the Joy of Cooking I layered a nice totmato mushroom jarred sauce in a deep pan, followed by 1/2 the crispy eggplant and 1/4 lbs. of Provolone (instead of Mozzeraella, as suggested by a Mainer friend.) More sauce, more eggplant... ...more cheese, then topped with sliced romas dipped in the remaining crumb mixture and some grated Parmesan. Soon as the oven was pre-heated this went in and I started a short pot of water from some thin spaghetti.  

Here's the pan after  I cut the first slice: nice and firm, so the second one was easy too. The remaining four were wrapped in wax paper and stowed in the freezer. Oh. So. Good.

First Stage of Regrading and Chipping the Pathways

Prepping the area around the vegetable garden raised beds and seating area.

Overlapping layer of newspaper for extra blockage and sustainability.

A start of a very good thing. Thanks Hubs!

Yogurt Strawberry and Blueberry Muffins (no nuts)

Nice rise!

This time I remembered to let them cool before removing from the tin to the rack.

Success! See an earlier post of this recipe.

Play Chips for the Yard

Today we had cedar play chips delivered in the alley. The turn is too tight for the truck to dump them inside our yard, so plop they go into the public access...

Lucky for me a kind neighbor responded to my email invitation to run wheel barrows into our yard and about 90 minutes later...

The exposed dirt area is where they will be spread, but we want to adjust some of the grading first. Shown here is the staging area, where usually we have the yard waste/recycling and trash totes.

The area in front of the inward swinging gate is clear and alley swept. Ta-daa! Thanks K. And a big thanks to Garden Guru L. for the referral to Sawdust Supply Company who delivered these quality chips for a reasonable price. Once spread, the pathways should be free of weeds for a few years.