Vinagre!

I'm a complete sucker for PBS. Big surprise there. I was at home knitting the other night and found myself watching this cooking show called Daisy Cooks! Ms. Daisy started talking so enthusiastically about this condiment she grew up with called "vinagre" and made the bold claim that she would live without ketchup before she'd live without vinagre.

I was hooked.

I think God really wanted me to try out this concoction because Tim Felton showed up to my house on Monday with the key ingredient of vinagre: pineapple. Who buys pineapple in December??? Like I said, this was divine intervention.

Daisy claims you can use vinagre on just about anything. I haven't actually eaten anything with it yet, but I think I'm going to cook some pork chops and then spoon the peppers and onions from the vinagre on top. I did taste it, however, and it's pretty wild!

My belief in the divine fruition (pun intended) of this recipe was evidenced last night by the fact that I was actually hugging the quart of vinagre will singing its praises to my husband. Winter in Indiana will do strange things to a person....

Vinagre

2 ripe pineapples 1/2 large Spanish onion, sliced thin 1 tablespoon smashed fresh oregano leaves 1 teaspoon black peppercorns 20 garlic cloves, crushed 6 Habanero peppers or chili pepper of your choice, stems cut off, peppers coarsely chopped 1 tablespoon cider vinegar, or as needed 1/2 teaspoon salt, or as needed

1. Cut the tops off the pineapples and discard them. With a big knife, cut off the rind from the pineapples with as little pineapple attached as possible. Put the rinds in a pot large enough to hold them comfortably and pour in enough water to cover them. Bring to a boil and boil until the pineapple peel is very tender, about 30 minutes. Top off with water if necessary to keep the rinds submerged.

2. Meanwhile, put the onion, oregano, peppercorns, garlic, Habanero or other chili pepper, vinegar, and salt in a large jar with a tight-fitting lid.

3. Strain the pineapple liquid over the seasonings. If there is not enough liquid to cover the ingredients, re-cover the pineapple with water and boil for 20 minutes. Taste and add a little salt and/or a little vinegar, if you think it needs it. You can use it as soon as it cools, but it will get better as it sits.

tryptophan is my drug of choice

Y'all,

I was recently challenged by my friend, co-communer, and fellow blogger Josh to update my blog. Well, here it is.

Some of you bloggers out there may be wondering, "why such the long hiatus?" I've got a good excuse--cross my heart and hope to die, stick a needle in my eye. Our camera is shrimped and therefore I've been unable to take any pictures. In fact, the only reason I'm able to do this post is because my sister took some pics over Thanksgiving and I swiped them from the ole' facebook. That's my story. We've been doing plenty of canning and gardening and cooking over the last several months, but I guess you'll just have to put your big girl pants on and hold tight until next year. Now, moving on...

This Thanksgiving we decided to shrimp the ole' Butterball turkey and instead went with a more local, less synthetic, and more fresh (you'll learn how fresh in a minute) Schact Farm heritage turkey.

• Local=Schact Farm is on the southside of Bloomington and is operated by our friends Matt and Mandy Corry.

• Less synthetic=check it out here. They can say it better than I can.

• Fresh=This turkey was caught and harvested the week before we ate it. Since we help out at the farm from time to time, I wouldn't doubt if Will had caught or at least attempted to catch the bird we eventually enjoyed on Thanksgiving day.

Here's us with the bird...

(This picture likely qualifies us for Awkward Family Photos.)

And here it is as part of my mom's exceptional Thanksgiving spread...


And here is a picture of a guy trying to be funny at the Turkey Trot on Thanksgiving morning...
Oh, and ps--the turkey was REALLY good.

Happy blogging y'all. Maybe I'll see you after the holidays when I hopefully have a new camera???

Red pepper and tofu recipe

I discovered this recipe in March while we weren't eating meat during Lent. It's now one of my favorites and is perfect for bell pepper season. It'll feed you for a couple of days as well!

Tofu Stir-fry with Noodles and Red Peppers

2 T canola or vegetable oil

1 package extra-firm tofu. Cut it into lots of cubes.

2 red bell peppers, cut long and thin, seeds removed.

1/2 head of green cabbage, cut thinly.

2 garlic cloves, slivered.

1/4-1/2 t. red pepper flakes (I use ground red pepper since that's what I have).

2 T peanut butter, smooth or creamy.

1/4 c. soy sauce or tamari

1/4 c. rice vinegar.

1/2 package of spaghetti, cooked.

Heat 1 T. oil in large skillet over high heat; add tofu and 1 t. salt. Cook, tossing occasionally, 8-10 minutes until golden.* Transfer to plate when finished.

Heat remaining 1 T. oil in same skillet over med-high heat. Add bell peppers, cabbage, garlic, pepper flakes, and 1/2 t. salt and mix. Cover. Cook, tossing occasionally, until veggies are crisp-tender, 8-10 minutes.

Meanwhile, make the sauce. Stir together p.b. and 1/4 c. hot water in a small bowl until smooth. Stir in soy sauce and vinegar.

Add tofu, spaghetti and sauce to skillet. Simmer until heated through and saucy, 1-2 min.

Adios mis amigos, hermanos y hermanas

*I've talked to a lot of folks who never feel like they're able to cook tofu correctly. The key is to get the oil HOT and be patient while the tofu cooks. The more it looks like the color of french fries, the better the taste and texture!

Beetakopita

Yes, I know it's supposed to be called spanakopita.

For the second year in a row we've had pretty measly (not measle-ly) spinach production. We have, however, had a BOUNTIFUL harvest of beets (they are super easy to grow and can be started outside from seed). The Roses love their beets, so much so that Will risks his life by drinking the beet brine straight from the jar when we pickle them.

sick.

With so many beet greens, Will had the idea of making his own "Beetakopita" recipe. It goes something like this...

Beetakopita

2-3 lbs beet greens, chopped

1 onion, chopped

4-5 garlic cloves, minced

8 oz. feta cheese

16 oz. ricotta cheese

1/2 c. fresh parsley, chopped (1/4 c. dried)

1 T. dry dill

2 sticks butter

1/2 box of phyllo dough

Saute onions and garlic in large saucepan until translucent. Gradually add handfuls of beet greens until wilted. Stir in feta and ricotta.

Layer phyllo dough and mixture in a greased glass baking dish: 10 sheets on the bottom, add beet/cheese mixture, 10 sheets in the middle, add mixture, and 10 sheets on top. Brush butter on the top of the phyllo as you layer.

Cook at 375 degrees for 45 minutes, uncovered.

(picture missing; camera is on the fritz).

Adios mis amigos, hermanos y hermanas.

Rhubarb Orange Jam

Yes, this is my jam.

I have some sort of debilitating, romanticized idea of rhubarb. No idea why, really. Maybe it's because my dad told me this story once about how rhubarb seemed to be growing every where in Logansport, IN, and that he'd pick it and just eat it like candy when he was a kid. I guess I developed a dream of doing the same and believing it would be easy to grow this supposedly ubiquitous plant. Unfortunately, I'm afraid the rhubarb I've been waiting two years to harvest is going to be a dud in it's third, harvest-able year. It's maybe had two sickly stalks over the past two years.

This summer during a trip to the infamous Kedzie house in the Lawndale neighborhood of Chicago, I noticed they had a rhubarb plant that likely had about 30 stalks on it. My spirits were crushed.

Oh well.

In a moment of weakness the other day, I impulsively bought 1 1/2 lbs of rhubarb at the store. It was just so red and stalky...I couldn't resist. As I cut it up for my recipe, I yearned for the day I would have my own absurdly-producing rhubarb plant. *sigh*

This is one of the easiest and quickest canning recipes I've ever made. A great endeavor for a beginning canner!

Rhubarb Orange Jam--makes 7 8 oz. jars (via Ball Complete Book of Home Preserving)
5 c. rhubarb, finely chopped ( chopped mine in the food processor)
2 oranges
6 c. granulated sugar
1 package fruit pectin.
Prepare jars and lids (i.e. bring to 180 degrees in a water bath until ready to use).

With a vegetable peeler, peel half of one orange. Thinly slice the peels into 1 in.-long slivers. Set aside. Juice both oranges to produce 1 c juice. Add water if needed.




Combine rhubarb, orange slivers, and orange juice in a large stainless steel pot. Bring to a boil. Now, add sugar all at once.

While stirring frequently, return mixture to a boil. Once it is at a rolling boil, stir constantly for one minute and then remove from heat. Skim off foam with a spatula.

Ladle mixture into hot jars, leaving 1/4 in. headspace. Use spatula or plastic chopstick to remove air bubbles. Put lids on and screw until finger tight. Process cans for 10 min. Let sit in bath for 5 min. afterwards, then remove.





Adios mis amigos, hermanos y hermanas.

presto, pesto!

Since we can't keep up with eating all of our garden basil, we end up making a lot of it into pesto and freezing it for the rest of the year. Kevin (a.k.a. the Guff) is harvesting some here...

We use a pesto recipe from Simply In Season (see link on left).

1 c. packed fresh basil leaves

1/3 c. walnuts (walnuts are cheaper than pine nuts)

1/2 t. salt to taste

Chop together in food processor. Freeze in ice cube trays. When frozen, remove cubes and place in a resealable plastic bag. When ready to eat, microwave and add minced garlic and parmesan.

Adios mis amigos, hermanos y hermanas.

tommy pickle

I like pickles.

I've come to learn over the last several years that apparently a lot of people don't. Weird.

Last year was my first attempt at pickling cucumbers, which had mostly disastrous results. Overprocessing, using not-completely fresh cucumbers, and timid packing on my part are just a few of the reasons I think the pickles sat in the cabinet all year without being eaten.

This year, however, I am determined to win over the skeptics. We had just enough cucmbers on the vine yesterday (ok, i had to buy one from the store too) to make a first batch. I made a bread and butter pickle recipe in the hopes that at least our friend Tim would eat them. The recipe comes from the Ball Complete Book of Home Preserving.

Here's our cucumber teepee...

And here's the cucumbers and onions in the pickling salt...

And here's the final product...yum!

Merry pickling! Adios mis amigos, hermanos, y hermanas.