Wednesday, October 28, 2009
Interview with LaFuji Mama
Last week I was flattered to be interviewed by one of my favorite blog moms, La Fuji Mama. It was a fun chat and I really enjoyed talking with her about my passion for good, local food and how it led me to my work at the Ballard Farmers Market.
This mama is a wonder... let me tell you. I have a hard time getting things done with my one toddler, and she has two kiddos under three yrs. Amazing! And she can bake. That in and of itself is awe-inspiring to me. My house is the place where bread comes to die. I hope that you can take the time to check out the interview and her other amazing posts. Enjoy!
BTW This is the cartoon I was refering to in the interview:
I think it shows the choices quite nicely. ;)
Tuesday, October 27, 2009
Sweet Potato Stew
4 large sweet potatoes
Water to cover
2 Tbs sliced (or 1 Tbs grated) fresh ginger
1/4 tea cayenne pepper
1/2 tea cinnamon
1/2 c peanut butter (crunchy or creamy, really doesn't matter... just don't get the kind with added sugar)
Peel and slice sweet potatoes into small chunks. Put in a large pan and cover with water. Boil (with lid on so it doesn't reduce much) until potato pieces are falling apart into tiny chunks. Mash the sweet potatoes (without draining the water, leave the water in the pot) until you have a thick sauce like consistency. Add in all other ingredients, and salt to taste.
Serve topped with sour cream or whole milk yogurt (not flavored), with salted peanut pieces and chopped cilantro.
Wednesday, October 14, 2009
The end of summer
It is official. The summer has come to a close. I pulled the tomatoes today. This is the last of them. It was warm as I was gathering. About 60 degrees... drizzling slightly. Just enough to put droplets on my glasses. I pulled and prodded to see if there were any left that would be worthy of a meal. As you can see I found quite a few.
The kittens were out there with me. Not really kittens anymore. Little Bo is still tiny for a cat, but she is almost 5 lbs. Samson is over 7 lbs and only looks small in comparison to Taio (our 20 lb main coon). They played around me as I worked, systematically pawing at things as they saw fit.
I love fall. I will miss the light however. Here in the Pacific NW, with the rain comes the clouds... and with the clouds comes the darkness. It is time to think about taking Vitamin D again. Time for tea and warm drinks and opening your curtains for every daylight hour you can. Soon we will have 6 hour days.
But then, comes Christmas crafting. ;)
Tuesday, October 13, 2009
Market Days
Carrots, celery, curly kale, corn, Choggia beets (sweet) and golden beets, parsley, dill, cilantro, and mint, garlic, Rose Finn and Ozette potatoes, broccoli, parsnips, rutabagga, and a whole pound of chantrelle mushrooms. Traded for: bell peppers, raspberries, pears, chicken legs, chicken wings, and farm fresh eggs.
Menu for this week:
New template from here. Isn't it cute?
Friday, October 9, 2009
Preserving Food ~ Dried Apple Chips
Store in an airtight container and enjoy!
Monday, October 5, 2009
Preserving Food ~ Apple Peel Jelly
I got this idea from Callista, who made what sounds like the best jelly ever! For our family though, I can not add that much sugar in jelly, so I decided to try out an old fashioned recipe from the Ball Complete Book Of Home Preserving instead, but use her apple peel juice method, and tweak the seasonings. It turned out so wonderful and I have to share:
Old Fashioned Apple Peel Jelly
Step 1: Make the juice
First, boil the apple peels. I had a 9 quart pot filled to the brim. I added enough water so when I pushed down on the peels I could see it, and boiled. I let that simmer on low for over 3 hours once it got to a boil. I just left it there all of nap time. Then I took a colander, and set it on top of an upturned cereal bowl in my largest bowl (HUGE metal mixing bowl that I keep for canning). I don't have any cheese cloth. I didn't think that the people at the store would want me bringing the plague to them, so I figured it could drip sufficiently while I made and ate dinner. I ended up with 10 cups of liquid.
Step 2: Recipe
I then used the juice for this recipe:
4 cups apple juice
2 Tbs lemon juice
3 cups granulated sugar
(I used raw, organic sugar and it worked just fine)
Prepare lids and jars. (Here for info on how to do that)
Bring juice and lemon juice to a boil and add in sugar, stirring until dissolved.
Step 3: Season the Jelly
For Apple Pie flavor add in: 1 tea cinnamon and 1/2 tea nutmeg
For Apple Cider flavor add in: 1 Tbs whole allspice, zest of one orange, 1/4 tea cinnamon, 1 tea whole cloves (strain out at the end)
Step 4: Cooking and canning
Boil hard, stirring frequently, until mixture begins to sheet from a metal spoon. (For me it took nearly an hour... and I didn't stir it much). You do not need any added pectin for this recipe. The pectin in the apple peels will work fine. I added a pectin box the first batch I made and it make it more like jello! LOL! It still tastes great though.
Pour into prepared jars leaving 1/4 inch head space.
Process jars for 5 minutes in rolling boil, then shut off heat, and leave for 5 minutes.
Remove jars, cool, label and store.
Saturday, October 3, 2009
Preserving Food ~ Apple Pie Filling
Getting sick really isn't a mother's prerogative. It seems as though it should be, but when I actually get sick, it is more like something I have to push through than 'recover from'. This week was no different. The worst day of my cold I was delivered 5 boxes of beautiful apples.
No stopping apples. So no stopping applesauce and apple pie filling. Being in Washington, I have honestly never bought apples for canning before. I have always had trees, or known people that have had trees. So this is the first time I have ever paid for boxes of apples and I wasn't about to let them go bad as I sat conversing with my tissues.
Wednesday, September 30, 2009
Preserving Food ~ Canning Labels!
Last week I was so frustrated by my pantry collapse that I had decided I wasn't going to can anymore for the year. That lasted for about two days... or until I got two boxes of apples from the market. And then bruised peaches for free, and then corn. Sigh. It really is part of the pioneer in me to put up food when it is abundant and put by as much as possible. I just can't refuse amazingly good, organic food.
So this week was dedicated to peaches, and then corn, and now applesauce. But it was also dedicated to falling in love with my pantry again. To being in love with the process of putting food by and stepping back just enough so that I could see the beauty in my pantry that everyone else saw.
This led me to look for pretty labels for the tops of my jars:
Inspired by Bitter Betty and her wonderful canning labels (which are on all of my green beans) I set out to make my own. The process turned out to be MUCH easier than I thought it was. Although to figure that out, took about 3 hours, a Word savvy best friend, and a very patient husband. ;)It is a simple process, and once you get the hang of it, it becomes quite addictive. All my jars have pretty labels now... even the ones for the applesauce currently simmering in my kitchen. My pantry love is back.