A variety of herbs that I harvested from my garden. This week has felt more like fall. It has rained quite a bit and it is starting to get cooler. As we start planning for winter we think about savoring the bounty of the harvest and also about saving as much as we can to eat throughout the winter. Although we still buy groceries we do try to can, freeze and dry what we can to eat in the winter. These are always wonderful treats that do save a lot of money.
In this difficult economy where nothing is certain it is such a good feeling to have many jars of lovely preserves on the shelves and freezer with some bags of vegetables or tomatoes ready to be used in some lovely dishes. In our family we have decided to try to eat more at home. We tended to eat out a lot on the weekends and although it is fun, it is costly. We want to save up for a vacation next year as well as a few house projects so I have begun to meal plan more and save more produce to use in our meals.
I have been amazed at how many tomatoes I have been able to harvest from my 5 tomato plants in my garden. Already I have frozen 8 quarts of tomatoes. I found out from an article online that I could freeze them whole on a metal tray and then transfer them to freezer bags. I am doing the same thing with herbs from my garden so that I can use them in various dishes later on. I'm happy to know that I can so easily freeze my produce like this as my time is getting shorter this time of year with preschool duties, teaching and housework.
Suburban Garden:
Last Saturday I went to a work party to help with various chores at Adam's preschool- Creative Children's Center. As I weeded the garden with other moms from the school it inspired me to do more clean up in my own garden. Last weekend I trimmed back some bushes, weeded, and pruned my rose bushes in the back yard.
Along with that I harvested a few more apples, tomatoes and herbs from the garden. I am going to try to harvest as many tomatoes as I can- even though they may not be fully ripened as I can bring them in the house to ripen fully. After that I will freeze them. I also packed some sun dried tomatoes that my mom had given me in jars along with some fresh basil leaves, salt, chopped garlic and olive oil. This makes a delicious treat poured over some hot pasta.
A bowl full of apples I harvested from the columnar apple tree.
Yet another bowl full of tomatoes I harvested from our small garden. 
The leaves on the strawberries are already changing color. 
A tray of tomatoes ready to be frozen. 
A jar of sun dried tomatoes packed with fresh basil, garlic, salt and olive oil. 
Rosemary, sage and basil on a baking sheet ready to be frozen.Country Garden:
Last Friday we visited the country garden again and we were happy to see that there are still many fruits and vegetables left to harvest. My mom and I commented on how the harvest is very late this year but we are happy to have what there is. Soon after we arrived Grandpa Dale took Adam out to the orchard. Adam suggested to him "Take my hand and go." They went out and picked up hazelnuts from off the ground near the trees in the orchard and put the nuts into a bucket. Adam stuck with this activity for a long time and said it was "a great idea!."
We also checked out the plums which were ripe and ate some of those. They were delicious! It looks like they are ready to harvest.
The tomatoes keep coming and as of last Friday my parents had harvested about 65 pounds of them. They take them in to finish ripening on the counter of the kitchen and on tables until they are ready to can or freeze. We also looked at the garden and harvested some corn, beets and green beans.
Later on in the afternoon we took a walk in the woods and Adam enjoyed playing in the forest near a cedar tree. He loves to pretend he is in a tunnel. Later on, he borrowed my shoes and pretended to ice skate on the driveway. I love his imagination!
Adam with a hazelnut still in its husk.
A bucket full of hazelnuts that we collected from the trees in the orchard. 
Large plums on the tree in the orchard.
Adam climbing up the ladder next to the plum tree. 
My mom holding two very large plums. 
Adam holding a very big beet that he pulled up.
A large beet that we harvested from the garden. 
This head of cabbage looks like a painting to me- so many beautiful colors emerge. 
I love how Adam loves to pretend and play in the forest. 
Adam "skating" in my shoes!We had a wonderful day harvesting and exploring at the country garden!
Cooking:
Since I have been cooking a lot more lately I am going to include a lot of the recipes for the meals that I have made in the past few days. Here is a sampling of our fall fare below.
A note about menu planning:
I have started doing something very simple each week so that I cook more often and always know what to fix for dinner. I got the habit of checking the refrigerator, freezer and pantry every Wednesday, choosing dishes to make based on what is there and what I would like to make and then I make a list of dinners. I make a list of 7 possible dinners with side dishes and a couple of ideas for weekend breakfasts. These dinners are not assigned specific days but are just a list of possibilities. That way, I can decide what to cook which day. Then, I make a shopping list of ingredients that I need to complete these meals. This is a good, easy system that seems to work for me and I love the variety of dishes that I create!
I have often thought how fun it would be to create menus for a cafe and cook a few things for them on occasion. I am not sure I would like to own the cafe, but to be able to create new dishes and tweak them would be fun! Right now I am perfectly content to create/tweak menus and recipes at home and share them with all of you. Enjoy!
Cooking:
Since I have been cooking a lot more lately I am going to include a lot of the recipes for the meals that I have made in the past few days. Here is a sampling of our fall fare below.
A note about menu planning:
I have started doing something very simple each week so that I cook more often and always know what to fix for dinner. I got the habit of checking the refrigerator, freezer and pantry every Wednesday, choosing dishes to make based on what is there and what I would like to make and then I make a list of dinners. I make a list of 7 possible dinners with side dishes and a couple of ideas for weekend breakfasts. These dinners are not assigned specific days but are just a list of possibilities. That way, I can decide what to cook which day. Then, I make a shopping list of ingredients that I need to complete these meals. This is a good, easy system that seems to work for me and I love the variety of dishes that I create!
I have often thought how fun it would be to create menus for a cafe and cook a few things for them on occasion. I am not sure I would like to own the cafe, but to be able to create new dishes and tweak them would be fun! Right now I am perfectly content to create/tweak menus and recipes at home and share them with all of you. Enjoy!
Penne Pasta with Tomato Cream Sauce & Shrimp:
This is a recipe from Giada De Laurentis on Food Network. I changed a few ingredients but it is largely the same. I used fresh tomatoes instead of canned and I also omitted the parsley and the clam juice.
A lovely shrimp and tomato pasta using the bounty of our tomato harvest.
Corn and Green Chili Chowder:
This is a family recipe that I have had in my notebook of recipes for a long time but I do not remember trying it until now. It is delicious!
A delicious corn and green chili chowder.
Cheddar Biscuits:
This is a recipe I cut out of Bon Appetit magazine a long time ago. It also called for chives and bacon but I omitted those. This recipe makes about 12 large biscuits. I used some of the extra biscuits the next morning to make ham and egg breakfast sandwiches. They were delicious!
Fluffy and buttery cheddar biscuits.
Spiced Pear Custard Pie:
This is a recipe I found online but I added more spices to it.
Spiced pear custard pie
Ingredients: You may serve the pie with sweetened whipped cream of our favorite- vanilla ice cream!
Cooked Cereal Bread:
This recipe is one from my "Beard on Bread" book by James Beard. I changed the recipe a bit and added more cooked cereal and less flour. It made a very nice soft bread!
Ingredients:
1 cup cooked whole grain cereal- cooled (I used Bob's Red Mill Apple Cinnamon Hot Cereal)
2 tablespoons active dry yeast
1/3 cup warm water
1/4 cup softened butter
1 1/2 tablespoons salt
2 tablespoons molasses
2 tablespoons honey
1 cup milk
1 cup whole wheat flour
3 + cups all purpose unbleached flour (I prefer King Arthur)
1. Cook the cereal according to the package directions. You may end up with extra cereal to save and eat later. Save out 1 cup of the cooled cereal for the bread.
2. Dissolve the yeast in the warm water in a large mixing bowl and let proof.
3. Then, stir in the butter, salt, molasses, honey and milk into the cooled cereal. Cool to lukewarm, then add to the yeast mixture.
4. With a large spoon start stirring in the flours, one cup at a time. When the dough is stiff enough to work, turn out onto a floured board and knead for 10-12 minutes. Make sure not to add too much extra flour to the dough. The dough will remain slightly tacky.
5. When the dough is smooth and elastic, shape into a ball and put into a greased or buttered bowl and let rise until doubled in bulk, about 1 1/2 hours. (I let my dough rise for an hour or so, and then I placed the dough into the refrigerator overnight since I didn't have time to bake the bread that evening.)
6. Punch down the dough and form into 2 loaves. You may place them into well greased 4x8 pans or 9x5 pans according to what size loaves you would like. I form loaves by dividing the dough in half and then rolling it with a rolling pin. After that I roll up the dough into a log shape and place it into the loaf pan.
7. Let the loaves rise again until doubled in bulk or until the dough reaches the tops of the pans.
(I was able to let the dough rise for a short while in the pans but then I needed to go help at Adam's preschool so I put the rising loaves into the fridge again until I returned. ) I let them rise a while longer before I baked them.
8. Bake the loaves in a 375F oven for 30-35 minutes or until the loaves sound hollow when tapped on the bottom. Cool on a rack.
Enjoy! I made a peanut butter and jam sandwich out of this bread and it was fantastic!
Pretending & Imagination:
I love the face that Adam has a very active imagination. He often likes to act out scenes from books or cartoons. Below in the photo he has contructed a "snort" from "Are you my Mother?" by P.D. Eastman, a book that he likes to have read to him. I love how he used a bed post for some of the machinery. He liked to sit in it and drive it as well as drive it together with me. He also constructs castles and other creations from his blocks. I enjoy every day with him and I love to see what he discovers. The other day when I got out the vacuum he noticed that he could use the vacuum to hold onto blocks. He laughed with delight at this fun discovery and had a great time suctioning up blocks with the vacuum hose! Every day is a new adventure with Adam! I want to treasure and remember all of these special, learning moments with him!
Adam riding on his "snort" that he made out of sofa cushions and pillows.
Adam inside his castle.
This is a recipe from Giada De Laurentis on Food Network. I changed a few ingredients but it is largely the same. I used fresh tomatoes instead of canned and I also omitted the parsley and the clam juice.
A lovely shrimp and tomato pasta using the bounty of our tomato harvest.- 1 pound penne pasta
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 1 pound medium shrimp, peeled, and deveined (I used the uncooked, bagged frozen kind)
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt, plus extra for seasoning
- 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, plus extra for seasoning
- 1 (15-ounce) can whole tomatoes, drained, roughly chopped (or I used fresh tomatoes)
- 1/2 cup chopped fresh basil leaves
- 1/2 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley (I left these out and added more basil)
- 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
- 1 cup white wine
- 1/3 cup clam juice (optional)
- 3/4 cup heavy whipping cream
- 1/2 cup grated Parmesan
Directions
Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the pasta and cook until tender but still firm to the bite, stirring occasionally, about 8 to 10 minutes. Drain the pasta and set aside.
In a large skillet, heat the oil over medium-high heat. Add the shrimp, garlic, 1/2 teaspoon of salt, and 1/2 teaspoon of pepper. Cook, stirring frequently until the shrimp turn pink and is cooked through, about 3 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, remove the shrimp and set aside.
Add the tomatoes, 1/4 cup basil, 1/4 cup parsley, and the red pepper flakes. Cook for 2 minutes, stirring constantly. Add the wine, clam juice, and heavy cream. Bring the mixture to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer for 7 to 8 minutes until the sauce thickens. Add 1/4 cup of the Parmesan, the cooked shrimp, the cooked pasta, and the remaining herbs. Toss together until all ingredients are coated. Season, to taste, with salt and pepper.
Transfer the pasta to a large serving bowl. Sprinkle with the remaining cheese and serve immediately.
Corn and Green Chili Chowder:
This is a family recipe that I have had in my notebook of recipes for a long time but I do not remember trying it until now. It is delicious!
A delicious corn and green chili chowder.2 tablespoons butter
1 onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, chopped or minced
1 yellow bell pepper, chopped and seeded
2 medium potatoes, unpeeled and sliced
4 cups chicken broth or vegetable broth, boiling
1/2 teaspoon cumin
salt
3 cups corn kernels
1 8oz. can green chilies, drained
1 jalepeno pepper, chopped (optional)
pepper
Garnishes:
Mexican cream or sour cream
Feta cheese or Mexican cotija cheese
1. Place 1 tablespoon of butter in a heavy pan over medium heat and saute the onion, garlic, yellow pepper and potatoes until onion is wilted, about 5 minutes. Add boiling chicken or vegetable broth, cumin and salt to taste. Continue to cook until the potatoes are soft.
2. Meanwhile place 1 tablespoon of butter in a large saute pan and saute the corn, chiles and jalepenos (if using) until just heated through. Add salt to taste and mix with the broth.
3. Puree the mixture in a a food processor in small batches. Pour through a sieve (if desired) to remove corn kernel skins. Adust seasoning with pepper and more salt if needed.
Serve soup with a swirl of Mexican cream or sour cream and a sprinkling of feta or cotija cheese. I served this soup with the cheddar biscuits- recipe follows:
1 onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, chopped or minced
1 yellow bell pepper, chopped and seeded
2 medium potatoes, unpeeled and sliced
4 cups chicken broth or vegetable broth, boiling
1/2 teaspoon cumin
salt
3 cups corn kernels
1 8oz. can green chilies, drained
1 jalepeno pepper, chopped (optional)
pepper
Garnishes:
Mexican cream or sour cream
Feta cheese or Mexican cotija cheese
1. Place 1 tablespoon of butter in a heavy pan over medium heat and saute the onion, garlic, yellow pepper and potatoes until onion is wilted, about 5 minutes. Add boiling chicken or vegetable broth, cumin and salt to taste. Continue to cook until the potatoes are soft.
2. Meanwhile place 1 tablespoon of butter in a large saute pan and saute the corn, chiles and jalepenos (if using) until just heated through. Add salt to taste and mix with the broth.
3. Puree the mixture in a a food processor in small batches. Pour through a sieve (if desired) to remove corn kernel skins. Adust seasoning with pepper and more salt if needed.
Serve soup with a swirl of Mexican cream or sour cream and a sprinkling of feta or cotija cheese. I served this soup with the cheddar biscuits- recipe follows:
This is a recipe I cut out of Bon Appetit magazine a long time ago. It also called for chives and bacon but I omitted those. This recipe makes about 12 large biscuits. I used some of the extra biscuits the next morning to make ham and egg breakfast sandwiches. They were delicious!
Fluffy and buttery cheddar biscuits. Ingredients:
3 3/4 cups flour
1 1/2 tablespoons baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1 1/4 teaspoons salt
1/2 cup (1 stick) chilled unsalted butter, cut into 1/2 inch cubes
2 1/2 cups cups (packed) coarsely grated sharp cheddar cheese
1 3/4 cups chilled buttermilk
1. Position rack just above center of oven and preheat to 425F. Line a heavy large baking sheet with parchment paper.
2. Combine flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a bowl using a whisk.
3. Add butter cubes to the flour mixture and cut in using a fork or a pastry blender until it forms a coarse meal. Add cheddar cheese.
4. Gradually add buttermilk, stirring to moisten evenly (batter will feel sticky)
5. Drop a generous 1/2 cup of batter onto the baking sheet for each biscuit.
6. Bake the biscuits until golden brown, about 18-20 minutes. Let cool and serve.
3 3/4 cups flour
1 1/2 tablespoons baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1 1/4 teaspoons salt
1/2 cup (1 stick) chilled unsalted butter, cut into 1/2 inch cubes
2 1/2 cups cups (packed) coarsely grated sharp cheddar cheese
1 3/4 cups chilled buttermilk
1. Position rack just above center of oven and preheat to 425F. Line a heavy large baking sheet with parchment paper.
2. Combine flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a bowl using a whisk.
3. Add butter cubes to the flour mixture and cut in using a fork or a pastry blender until it forms a coarse meal. Add cheddar cheese.
4. Gradually add buttermilk, stirring to moisten evenly (batter will feel sticky)
5. Drop a generous 1/2 cup of batter onto the baking sheet for each biscuit.
6. Bake the biscuits until golden brown, about 18-20 minutes. Let cool and serve.
Spiced Pear Custard Pie:
This is a recipe I found online but I added more spices to it.
Spiced pear custard pie- 1 (9 inch) unbaked pastry shell
- 4 1/2 cups cubed peeled ripe pears
- 1 cup sugar
- 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
- 2 eggs
- 1/4 cup whipping cream
- 1/4 cup butter or margarine, melted
- 1 teaspoon grated lemon peel
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon ground ginger
- 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
- a pinch of cloves
Directions
- Line unpricked pastry shell with a double thickness of heavy-duty foil. Bake at 450 degrees for 8 minutes. Remove the foil; bake 3 minutes longer. Reduce heat to 350 degrees F.
- Place pears in pastry shell. In a bowl, combine sugar, flour and nutmeg. Whisk in eggs, 1/4 cup cream, butter, lemon peel and vanilla. Pour over pears.
- Cover edges loosely with foil. bake for 50 minutes or until filling is just set (mixture will jiggle). Cool on a wire rack for 1 hour. Cover and refrigerate until serving.
Cooked Cereal Bread:
This recipe is one from my "Beard on Bread" book by James Beard. I changed the recipe a bit and added more cooked cereal and less flour. It made a very nice soft bread!
Ingredients:
1 cup cooked whole grain cereal- cooled (I used Bob's Red Mill Apple Cinnamon Hot Cereal)
2 tablespoons active dry yeast
1/3 cup warm water
1/4 cup softened butter
1 1/2 tablespoons salt
2 tablespoons molasses
2 tablespoons honey
1 cup milk
1 cup whole wheat flour
3 + cups all purpose unbleached flour (I prefer King Arthur)
1. Cook the cereal according to the package directions. You may end up with extra cereal to save and eat later. Save out 1 cup of the cooled cereal for the bread.
2. Dissolve the yeast in the warm water in a large mixing bowl and let proof.
3. Then, stir in the butter, salt, molasses, honey and milk into the cooled cereal. Cool to lukewarm, then add to the yeast mixture.
4. With a large spoon start stirring in the flours, one cup at a time. When the dough is stiff enough to work, turn out onto a floured board and knead for 10-12 minutes. Make sure not to add too much extra flour to the dough. The dough will remain slightly tacky.
5. When the dough is smooth and elastic, shape into a ball and put into a greased or buttered bowl and let rise until doubled in bulk, about 1 1/2 hours. (I let my dough rise for an hour or so, and then I placed the dough into the refrigerator overnight since I didn't have time to bake the bread that evening.)
6. Punch down the dough and form into 2 loaves. You may place them into well greased 4x8 pans or 9x5 pans according to what size loaves you would like. I form loaves by dividing the dough in half and then rolling it with a rolling pin. After that I roll up the dough into a log shape and place it into the loaf pan.
7. Let the loaves rise again until doubled in bulk or until the dough reaches the tops of the pans.
(I was able to let the dough rise for a short while in the pans but then I needed to go help at Adam's preschool so I put the rising loaves into the fridge again until I returned. ) I let them rise a while longer before I baked them.
8. Bake the loaves in a 375F oven for 30-35 minutes or until the loaves sound hollow when tapped on the bottom. Cool on a rack.
Enjoy! I made a peanut butter and jam sandwich out of this bread and it was fantastic!
Pretending & Imagination:
I love the face that Adam has a very active imagination. He often likes to act out scenes from books or cartoons. Below in the photo he has contructed a "snort" from "Are you my Mother?" by P.D. Eastman, a book that he likes to have read to him. I love how he used a bed post for some of the machinery. He liked to sit in it and drive it as well as drive it together with me. He also constructs castles and other creations from his blocks. I enjoy every day with him and I love to see what he discovers. The other day when I got out the vacuum he noticed that he could use the vacuum to hold onto blocks. He laughed with delight at this fun discovery and had a great time suctioning up blocks with the vacuum hose! Every day is a new adventure with Adam! I want to treasure and remember all of these special, learning moments with him!
Adam riding on his "snort" that he made out of sofa cushions and pillows.
Adam inside his castle. Have a wonderful week! Enjoy your day to the fullest!
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1 comment:
We are continuing to enjoy our bread as toast and sandwiches- it is fantastic! Enjoy!
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