Tag Archives: recipes

What’s Cookin’?: Spring 2013 Edition

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* Our CSA just started up again. It feels like all is right with the world.

* I purchased another cow from my neighbor, which means lots of burgers on the grill. I’m slightly addicted to mixing ketchup with chipotle powder and using more than is polite. It’s great on french fries too.

* Instead of hunting for the little index card that has my Saturday night pizza recipe every Saturday afternoon, I taped it to the inside of my cabinet door with washi tape.

* The Easter Bunny gave me two cheese making books – this one and this one. Any tips? I’ll be starting with raw cow’s milk, as there are 7 milk cows between 2 of my neighbors. That’s a lot of milk!

* Due to all that milk, I have a variety of jars containing mysterious white liquids in my refrigerator. I know exactly what is in each one, but it drives Tom nuts. In order to appease him somewhat, I have taken to flipping the mason jar lids to the underside to designate buttermilk. (The white side shows rather than the gold.)

* Actually I have quite a reputation for not labeling anything in the kitchen - don’t even try to guess what is in my freezer or spice drawer! However, the one thing I have labeled very clearly are my identical jars of white flour. I used staz-on ink to stamp “all purpose” and “bread” on the corresponding lids.

* We had out-of-town guests last weekend, and I had a variety of items I wanted to remember to serve at each meal. I used my mother-in-law’s trick of taping a list to the outside of the cabinet door. It worked like a charm! I do this on holidays and birthdays too.

* My mom’s method for heating up leftover pizza is the best. Preheat the broiler and put the slices of pizza cheese side down on a cookie sheet. Heat the bottoms thoroughly. (I set the timer for about 2 minutes, because I always forget I have something in the broiler.) Flip the slices over, and heat until cheese is bubbly. Tastes like you just made it.

* If you bake bread a lot, designate a powdered sugar shaker for flour. (Feel free to label it if you must. I don’t ; )) This ensures you don’t use too much flour when you’re kneading and shaping.

* I went to visit a friend who had been in the hospital recently. I wanted to bring her a meal, but didn’t have time to make one beforehand. Instead, I took the ingredients with me and prepared dinner while we chatted.

* Looking forward to making these two recipes soon: coconut pound cake and Nutella swirl pound cake.

* Anyone have a good recipe for crackers? How about one that uses a sourdough starter?

What’s been cookin’ at your house? Do tell!

***

Click to see other editions of What’s Cookin’?.

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Recipe of the Month: May 2013

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My mother strives to eat a gluten-free diet, and normally, we don’t make this very easy for her. Whenever she comes to our house, there is usually some sort of wheatey baked item on the counter. So for Mother’s Day, I wanted to make her something yummy and gluten-free. (Truth be told, I also wanted to use up a pound of frozen spinach and some salmon that I had in the fridge.) I came up with the recipe below and was more than pleasantly surprised with the results. The boys were not very impressed. They said the cakes looked like “green hamburgers” – which is accurate and the reason why they didn’t merit a photograph. My mother, however, loved them. And this past weekend, wasn’t that all that really mattered? I hope you all had a great Mother’s Day weekend – gluten-free or not.

Spinach & Salmon Cakes (gluten-free)

  • 1 pound frozen spinach, cooked without any water so it stays nice and dry
  • 4-6 ounces cooked salmon, chopped
  • 3 eggs
  • 1 cup parmesan cheese
  • 1/3 cup almond flour
  • 1/2 teaspoon granulated garlic
  • 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
  • salt and pepper

Mix all ingredients. Let sit for 15 minutes or refrigerate for several hours. Form into patties and saute until nicely browned on both sides. Delicious with rice and a salad.

Recipe of the Month: April 2013

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IMG_1410Two things conspired to make me dig out this recipe for our Easter Brunch last week. The first is our collective effort to empty our freezers before summer. We are making great progress toward this goal and every time Tom opens the freezer door he feels compelled to say, “We are starting to look like normal people around here.” That’s debatable, but we have gotten to the point where all that is left from last year’s fruit harvest is a few quarts of frozen blackberries. After making this recipe, I think we are now down to two quarts. Maybe I’ll make it one more time come blackberry winter next month.

The second reason I made this recipe for Easter is because I tend to panic that there isn’t going to be enough food when I am hosting any kind of gathering. So while Vincent was busy whipping cream and egg whites into soft peaks, folding melted chocolate (dark, milk and white) and otherwise performing the many intricate steps that comprised the triple chocolate mousse cake that he was making, I finished these blackberry crumb bars in a mere 15 minutes, using the food processor and a spoon.

Our freezer is looking pretty empty and there was plenty of food on Easter, but the best reason of all to make these bars is that they are delicious with a cup of tea in the afternoon. (And if you have a few hours over a couple of days and want to make Vincent’s recipe, you can get it here. Do I even have to say the original is from Cook’s Illustrated? It was pretty spectacular, even though I personally would never attempt the recipe in a million years.)

Blackberry Crumb Bars

  • 1 cup white sugar
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 3 cups all purpose flour
  • 1 cup (2 sticks) cold butter
  • 1 egg
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • zest and juice of 1 lemon
  • 4 cups fresh or frozen (not thawed!) blackberries (blueberries or cherries are great too)
  • 1/2 cup white sugar
  • 1 tablespoon cornstarch

Combine berries, lemon juice, 1/2 cup sugar and cornstarch in a bowl. Let sit while you make the crust. In bowl of food processor combine all dry ingredients. Pulse to mix. With machine running, add butter 1 tablespoon at a time. Add egg. Dough will come together, but will still be relatively crumbly. Pat half of dough in the bottom of a greased 9 x 13 pyrex. Top with berries. Sprinkle remaining dough on top. Bake at 375 for 45 minutes. Cool completely before cutting into squares. Dust with powdered sugar before serving.

Sugar & Spice Bunny Breads

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Before second rising.

Before second rising.

Sugar & Spice Bunny Breads

  • 5 1/2 – 6 cups flour
  • 1/3 cup sugar
  • 2 teaspoons yeast
  • 1 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 1/4 teaspoon all spice
  • 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1 cup milk
  • 1/2 cup water
  • 1/3 cup butter
  • 2 eggs

Heat milk, water and butter until butter is melted. Cool until body temperature and dissolve yeast in warm mixture. Combine flour, sugar, salt and spices. Gradually add flour mixture to liquids and eggs and beat for 2 minutes at medium speed. (We did this in the Kitchen Aid with the dough hook.) Dough should be soft, but not too sticky. Let rise until doubled in bulk. Punch down dough and divide into 10 pieces. Roll each piece into a 24 inch rope. Cut rope as follows: 13″ for body, 6″ for head”, (2) 2″ for ears, 1″ for tail. Coil ropes and assemble bunnies. Cover and let rise until doubled. Bake at 375 for 15-20 minutes. Cool on rack. Brush with confectioner’s sugar icing while still warm.

After baking.

After baking.

**This post is a part of “Sharing Creative Ideas” over at Made by Joey.

Thank You

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Thank you to everyone who responded to my rather cryptic and depressing post yesterday. It has been a week full of bad news. I am fine, my immediate family is fine, but several people close to me are in a bad place. I am holding them all in the light and trying to concentrate on the present moment. I found myself eating a lot of cookie dough yesterday during my many moments of mindfulness . . . ahem. Cookies, candles and a concerted effort to embrace joy: these are my weekend plans. Here are the recipes if you need a little sweetness during these particularly potent Ides of March.

Jude’s Famous Chocolate Chip Cookies

  • 2 1/4 cups flour
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 1 cup butter, softened
  • 1 cup packed brown sugar
  • 1/2 cup sugar
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
  • 2 cups chocolate chips

Mix dry ingredients. Cream butter and sugars. Add eggs and vanilla. Add drys to wets. Mix in chocolate chips. Drop by rounded tablespoons and bake at 375 for 10 minutes.

Chewy Chocolate Cookies
Cook’s Illustrated Jan/Feb 2009, Issue 96

  • 1/3 cup granulated sugar plus 1/2 cup for coating
  • 1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
  • 3/4 cup cocoa powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/4 plus 1/8 teaspoon table salt
  • 1/2 cup dark corn syrup
  • 1 large egg white
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 12 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
  • 1/3 cup dark brown sugar, packed
  • 4 ounces good quality bittersweet chocolate, chopped into 1/2 inch pieces

Preheat your oven to 375 degrees F.  Line two large baking sheets with parchment. Put 1/2 cup granulated sugar onto a plate and set aside.

Whisk flour, cocoa powder, salt and baking soda together in a small bowl and set aside.

In another small bowl whisk together the corn syrup, egg white and vanilla and set aside.

Beat the butter, brown sugar and remaining 1/3 cup of white sugar together until light and fluffy (2 minutes). Add the corn syrup mixture and beat until combined (20 seconds). Add the flour mixture and chopped chocolate and mix until just combined (30 seconds), making sure there isn’t any unmixed flour pockets.

Chill dough for 30 minutes (but no longer than 30 minutes, according to the recipe). Divide the dough into 16 equal portions (or use a 1.5″ ice cream scoop to create the cookies – this will yield more than 16 cookies), roll between your hands into a ball and then roll the balls in the sugar to coat. Put on baking sheets, 2 inches apart and bake 10-11 minutes.

Cookies are done when they have cracked and still look wet between the cracks. It’s important to not over bake the cookies. Allow the cookies to cool 5 minutes on the cookie sheets and then cool fully on a wire rack.

Yield:  16 – 24 cookies

Introducing: The Cowboy Boot Contessa & Sons

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I figure, why rip off one name when you can rip off two? This is a new regular feature here at Sure as the World. We hope you enjoy it, and please, let us know what you think.

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We have pasta and red sauce every Sunday, or as Tom calls it “Sunday Gravy.” He is slightly like an old man in this regard. It is something he looks forward to (some might say expects) and if it doesn’t happen (which is RARE) he is slightly grumpy for the rest of the week. So I guess if we had a secret to our 20 years of marriage, it would be this: make and eat pasta and red sauce together every Sunday. Open a bottle of wine, break bread, stain the tablecloth and the napkins and finish with a nice salad, another glass of wine and some more bread. Below you will find our recipes for a perfect Italian-American dinner – choose whatever night of the week you want to make it.

***

The Cowboy Boot Contessa (Sheila): I can vividly remember Tom’s grandmother taking me to task when she found out I was eating jarred spaghetti sauce when I was in college. I can also vividly remember her telling me how to make a quick marinara (“madinaad” is how she said it). I still make that recipe, some 25 years later. The fact that I make it for her grandson and her great grandsons that she never met feels poignant, if I let myself stop and think about it. It’s like when I see the boys use her ladle or Tom’s other grandmother’s hand-crank pasta maker. Sitting down to dinner every night binds us to the present, but it also connects us to the past. I can’t help but think sometimes, it also beckons whatever waits in the future.

Son #1 (Vincent): I suggest simmering the red sauce for 2 hours. It is the key to cooking out the canned flavor of the tomatoes. Our recommended favorite brands of tomatoes are Muir Glen and Tuttorosso – although sometimes my mom buys whatever is on sale. If serving with meatballs, sausage or meat sauce, serve with a short shape such as fusili or campanelle. Use spaghetti or linguine for a simple marinara. Oh, and don’t cook like my brother.

Son #2 (Jude): Usually, it’s my job to go get the tomatoes from under my parents’ bed upstairs. That’s where we keep them. One can of crushed and one can of diced. Unless we’re making meatballs. Then I have to make 2 trips. Don’t cook like my brother.

***

Nannie Re’s Quick Marinara

  • 1 medium onion
  • 2 cloves garlic, chopped
  • 2 cans crushed tomatoes (or substitute one can diced or whole tomatoes, if you prefer a chunkier sauce)
  • dried oregano
  • crushed red pepper

Saute onion in olive oil until transparent and slightly brown. Add garlic, oregano and crushed red pepper. Saute for about a minute until garlic is fragrant and then add tomatoes. Simmer for about 30 minutes.

Tom’s Meatballs

  • 2 pounds ground beef or a combination of ground beef, ground pork and ground veal
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 small onion, minced
  • 4 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese
  • 3/4 – 1 cup bread crumbs
  • 2 tablespoons fresh parsley
  • salt and pepper

Mix all ingredients together and form into balls about 2 inches in diameter. Brown meatballs in olive oil either on top of the stove or on a well oiled cookie sheet in the oven. After meatballs are browned on all sides, transfer them to a pot of red sauce to finish cooking through. They can cook as short as 30 minutes or all afternoon.

Brother’s Bread

This is a great Italian bread – crunchy crust, soft inside – and perfect with Sunday Gravy. I have made it with all white flour, and it is delicious. You can also substitute 2 cups of whole wheat flour for a more rustic loaf. Our favorite, though, is to use 2 cups of semolina flour to replace some of the white flour. (Link to the original recipe can be found here.)

  • 2 teaspoons yeast
  • 2  cups warm water
  • 1 tablespoon honey
  • 2 teaspoons salt
  • 6 to 7 cups all purpose flour (see variations above)
  • cornmeal
  • vinegar

Combine the yeast, water and honey. Mix about half of the flour and all of the salt. Add yeast mixture. Continue to add flour until a nice dough is formed. It should be smooth and elastic and feel like a baby’s butt. Cover and let rise until doubled in bulk – about 1-2 hours. Punch dough down and divide in half. Shape into round loaves or torpedo shapes. Slash tops with a knife and spray with vinegar. Place loaves on greased baking sheet and sprinkle with cornmeal or line with parchment. Place in a cold oven and bake at 400 degrees for 45 minutes. Cool on a wire rack.

Overnight Basic Italian Bread

If I am thinking ahead, I like to make this bread on Saturday night to have on Sunday. (Link to the original recipe can be found here.)

  • 2 teaspoons yeast
  • 1 1/4  cups warm water
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 4 to 5 cups all purpose flour (see variations above)
  • cornmeal
  • vinegar

Combine the yeast, water and honey. Mix about half of the flour and all of the salt. Add yeast mixture. Continue to add flour until a nice dough is formed. It should be smooth and elastic and feel like a baby’s butt. Cover and put in the refrigerator to let rise overnight. In the morning, punch dough down and divide in half. Shape into round loaves or torpedo shapes. Cover and let dough come to room temperature, about 45 minutes. Slash tops with a knife and spray with vinegar. Let dough rise another 45 minutes until doubled in bulk. Place loaves on greased baking sheet and sprinkle with cornmeal or line with parchment. Preheat oven to 400 degrees and bake for about 35-40 minutes. Cool on a wire rack.

Vincent’s Caesar Salad

You can pretty much bet that anything Vincent recommends comes from Cook’s Illustrated magazine. Their recipes are pretty flawless, except for the time he made a recipe for red sauce that started with butter. BUTTER! Tom was extra grumpy that week.

  • 3/4 teaspoon garlic paste, from 1 large clove
  • 2-3 tablespoons lemon juice, from 2-3 lemons
  • 1/2 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
  • 6 anchovy fillets, mashed to a paste
  • 2 large egg yolks
  • 5 tablespoons canola oil
  • 5 teaspoons extra virgin olive oil
  • 3/4 cup grated Parmesan
  • black pepper
  • 2-3 romaine hearts

Whisk garlic and 2 tablespoons lemon juice together in large bowl. Let stand 10 minutes. Whisk Worcestershire sauce, anchovies and egg yolks into garlic/lemon mixture. While whisking constantly, drizzle canola oil and olive oil into bowl in a slow, steady stream, until fully emulsified. Add 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese and pepper to taste. Whisk until incorporated. Add romaine to dressing and toss to coat. Serve with croutons.

Recipe of the Month: March 2013

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Shirts from the boys’ godmother. Thanks Zia!!

Nana’s Irish Soda Bread One of Tom’s grandfathers was Irish, so St. Patrick’s Day was always a big deal at their house. His mother’s Irish Soda Bread is absolutely perfect: not too sweet, a great crumb and oh-so-good toasted with butter. Vincent can eat a whole loaf by himself, before it even cools. Jude would prefer it without raisins, but that seems to be somehow blasphemous. I make it in little stoneware loaf pans and also in cast iron skillets. Divide it however you see fit. It freezes well – so don’t hesitate to make the whole recipe.

  • 8 cups of flour
  • 2 teaspoons baking soda
  • 1 stick softened butter
  • 2 2/3 cups raisins (soaked and softened in boiling water)
  • 3/4 cup sugar
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 3 cups buttermilk

Mix dry ingredients and cut in butter. (I do this in 2 batches with my food processor.) Add drained raisins and stir to coat. Add buttermilk and mix well. Knead slightly to make dough smooth. If dough is too sticky add more flour. Divide dough and bake at 350 for 45 – 60 minutes.

Cinnamon Rolls

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IMG_3009Siobhan asked for this recipe, and I figured someone else might need a little extra sweetness today too. The original comes from Baking Bread with Children by Warren Lee Cohen. His book is excellent for everyday recipes, festival recipes and just random-Thursdays-in-February recipes. Make these. You’ll be glad you did.

Cinnamon Rolls

  • 4 cups flour
  • 2 tablespoons sugar
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 2 teaspoons yeast
  • 1 1/4 cups warm water
  • 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
  • 1/3 cup butter, melted
  • 1/2 cup chopped nuts
  • 1/2 cup raisins
  • 1/2 cup sugar
  • 2 teaspoons cinnamon

Dissolve yeast and 2 tablespoons sugar in warm water. Let stand until frothy. Add flour and salt until dough comes together. It should still be soft and slightly sticky. Knead for 10 minutes. Grease a large bowl with vegetable oil and set dough to rise until doubled in bulk – about 2 hours. Press down and roll dough into a large rectangle (about 10″ x 20″), sprinkling dough with extra flour if it sticks. Spread melted butter onto dough and sprinkle with remaining ingredients. Roll dough into log and cut log into 1 inch rolls. Let rise for 1/2 hour. Bake at 375 for 20 minutes. Cool and serve while still warm.

What’s Cookin’? – Winter 2013 Edition

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Unfortunately, my New Year’s resolution was to eat more vegetables. Tom pointed out the poor timing of my piously healthful intention back in January, and I am now seeing his point. Frozen broccoli, kale and salad – those are pretty much my choices. I wish I was one of those intrepid gardeners who always had something poking up out of the ground – even in February. Alas I am not a gardener during any season, which is why I was so happy to write a check to our CSA farmers this week. They are getting geared up for spring, and I can’t wait until those boxes start coming. Despite the lack of fresh local vegetables, we have been turning out some yummy dishes this winter. Here’s a peek at what’s been cookin’ in our kitchen:

* This was an absolutely perfect winter dinner: chicken pie, roasted broccoli and caesar salad. The chicken pie is somewhere between a chicken pot pie and chicken and dumplings. Skip lunch, you’re going to want to eat a lot of it!

* Does there really need to be a recipe for soft-boiled eggs? I guess this is a method, not a recipe, from Cook’s Illustrated. And it is foolproof for perfect soft-boiled eggs: solid whites, runny yolks. Boil a half-inch of water. Add 4 eggs. Cover and cook for 6 1/2 minutes. Drain and cover with cold water.

* I am cooking all those frozen vegetables without water and finding it makes a big difference. Heat olive oil in a cast iron pan. Add veggies. Cook until tender. So much better than boiled or steamed!

* I adopted this idea from soulemama. I use a different colored cup and a different colored cloth napkin for each member of our family. Cuts down on dishes and laundry.

* My new favorite breakfast? Oatmeal topped with toasted almonds and coconut, drizzled with maple syrup.

* Vincent’s new favorite breakfast is something he calls “Chinese Breakfast.” Top leftover rice with a fried egg and serve with soy sauce. He has also used rice that had mixed vegetables in it.

* I’ve started making my chicken stock in the crock pot. And although I don’t like having it on the counter for 2 days straight, it does a good job with absolutely no attention from me.

* I love my canning funnel. It is the best $1 I’ve ever spent. In addition to making canning that much easier, it eliminates messy spills when storing soups and sauces in jars. Plus the jars take up much less room than containers in the fridge.

* One way I have been eating all that kale is lightly steamed and then tossed with olive or sesame oil, lots of garlic, crushed red pepper, a little bit of feta cheese and a handful of sunflower seeds or toasted almonds. (Almost makes you forget kale is involved at all!)

* This tip is from Ms. Martha: freeze stock in muffin tins. Pop out when frozen and store in freezer bags. Much better than all my little relabeled cream cheese containers.

* Tom is the clean up crew after dinner, and he swears by Bar Keepers Friend to keep our pots nice and shiny. The other morning he had the idea to use it on our unbelievably stained bathtub. (We were seriously considering reglazing or replacing it. We had tried EVERYTHING!) I wish I had a video tape of his reaction. It was a cross between an infomercial and Dr. King’s “I Have a Dream” speech. Needless to say, it was a resounding success. He’s thinking of selling it door-to-door if his graphic design business ever tanks.

* We are well into soup season and usually eat it several times a week. Vincent adds dried mushrooms and/or soy sauce to give some depth to vegetable soups.

* My soup trick is to keep the grains separate from the soup until serving, so the grains don’t soak up all the broth. My other advice is to add the grains to the bowl straight from the fridge. It cools down the soup a little for the boys.

* I gave up sugar for New Year’s and had resisted all sweet treats for about 4 weeks. These brown sugar cookies that Vincent made were my undoing.

* Usually I prefer Manhattan clam chowder, but Vincent has made this New England version twice and it is really good. Comes together quickly and easily and is even better the next day.

* File away these Mardi Gras Jam Buns for next year. (Or go nuts and make them now.)

* We make these hot cross buns on Ash Wednesday and again on Good Friday. There is also a good recipe in Baking Bread with Children by Warren Lee Cohen.

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Plans for February 2013

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IMG_3139I have come to think of February as something akin to the “Room of Requirement” in the Harry Potter series – whatever I need homeschooling-wise, February will provide the space and time. It’s one of those things I don’t question; I have actually come to count on it. When I am planning like a mad woman in June and July, and thinking there is no way we will ever, ever have enough time to accomplish everything, I remember, “There is always February. And it is endless!” I try to use this month to solidify current math concepts, concentrate on something that was given short shrift and really sink into a nice long novel.

As you might guess, choosing the novel is my favorite part. Last year at this time, we read Anne of Green Gables. If you ask my boys about it, they will moan and groan and tell you it was the worst book we ever read. However, I have never seen a character so fully enter our home in an honest-to-goodness living and breathing way. They talk about Anne as though she is someone they know intimately. Ramona comes close, but Anne holds a special place in their imaginations. This year I’m thinking of reading Anne of Avonlea (the second in the series) or The Secret Garden. I’ll let you know.

Vincent: 11 years old, 5th grader Vincent will be reviewing and furthering his work with fractions, using the Key To workbook series. We will also be tying up some loose ends with Egypt, cooking a traditional Egyptian meal, introducing and practicing cursive writing and doing a few formal grammar lessons in verb tenses, homonyms, antonyms, synonyms and punctuation. This feels slightly choppy, but I think giving time to all of these things this month will make a big difference during the second half of the year.

Jude: 7 years old, 1st grader Jude will spend the month listening to fairy tales and continue to work with drawing, painting and modeling. I think these stories will nourish him on a deep and soulful level and also give him lots of practical experience with retelling them. We have had some modest success with him acting out the math stories we did last month by incorporating simple props. I plan to continue this. We will also work on the lowercase letters and differentiating them from the uppercase letters we worked with in September. Vincent will be attending these grade 1 lessons, except he will be working with the letters in script. He has not heard many of the Grimm’s fairy tales and can always use more practice with drawing, painting and modeling.

Sheila: Do you know Jean Miller? If you are homeschooling with Waldorf-inspired methods you should. She is one of the magical teachers who make Taproot so special. I am beginning a consulting relationship with her this month. Our first phone call is Thursday and I can’t wait. I highly recommend her planning guide and also highly, highly recommend attending Taproot’s homeschool teacher training. Dates for this year have not been announced yet, but you can bet I’ll be registering as soon as they are. I have some Valentine’s Day crafts planned for this month and hope to get a jump-start on a little Easter/Spring crafting. You’ll never guess what I’m hoping to make? Oh yes, more fabric buckets and bunting: think pastels, bunnies and eggs.

Links and other things I have loved this past month:

  • I have an absolute weakness for rabbits of all kinds. Alicia Paulson has promised kits of these little guys soon.
  • The comments I received on my Grade 1 Numbers Block post are far more insightful than my original post. I would encourage you to read them if you are struggling to shake off the January panic.
  • This was an interesting post about blogging and time management.
  • I try hard not to get sucked into Pintrest, but her board of quotations was a wonderful way to waste some time.
  • This interview with Jon Kabat-Zinn about mindfulness offers some profound insights on parenting, technology and cultivating an awareness for everyday life. Absolutely worth an hour of your time.
  • Working my way through her Year of Bread series. 52 different bread recipes – a new one each week! Love and inspiration.

Recipe of the month:

Damp Gingerbread Surprise! I love books that include recipes. Laurie Colwin’s 2 volume memoir Home Cooking and More Home Cooking are among the best. Her recipe for damp gingerbread is one of my absolute favorite things to make on a cold Saturday afternoon in February. It is delicious warm from the pan and absolutely divine topped with fresh, softly whipped cream. I could eat the entire thing by myself. (The recipe calls for Lyle’s Golden Syrup, which is a British product, but I have had no problem finding it in our regular supermarket. It comes in a dark green can and is usually by the honey and molasses.)

  • 9 tablespoons butter
  • 1 can Lyle’s Golden Syrup (recipe calls for a 12 oz. can or 1 1/2 cups – The can I buy is 8 oz, so I make up the difference with molasses.)
  • 2 cups plus 2 tablespoons flour
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1 3/4 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 tablespoon ground ginger
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
  • 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 1 egg
  • 1 cup milk

Melt butter and golden syrup (and molasses if needed) together. Sift flour, salt, soda and spices together. Add syrup mixture to the drys and mix well. Add egg and milk. Beat well. The batter will be very thin. Pour into a greased 9 x 13 pyrex and bake at 350 for 45 – 50 minutes. Cool cake in pan for 10 minutes before turning out.

Pizza Night

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IMG_2902 If you happen to be in the neighborhood around 6 o’clock on a Saturday night, consider yourself invited for pizza. We put out a nice spread: thin and thick crust, with toppings and plain, salad, wine, beer. It’s easy, fun and yummy. Below are some recipes that contribute to making a great pizza night. The real secret, however, is the baking technique I learned from my godmother. Preheat your oven to 425. If you have a convection oven, use it. If you have a pizza stone, put it in the oven now so it will be nice and hot by the time the oven is preheated. Meanwhile, roll out your dough until it measures about 12 – 14 inches across and place it on the hot stone. (If you don’t have a stone, put the dough on a cookie sheet.) Bake the untopped crust for about 12-15 minutes, until it is just starting to brown on top. Take it out, brush it with olive oil and top with sauce, cheese and whatever else you’d like. Return the pizza to the oven and place it directly on the oven rack – without the cookie sheet or baking stone. Bake for about 7-8 minutes until the bottom is nice and crisp and the cheese is melted and starting to brown at the edges. Mangia!

Vincent’s Secret Pizza Sauce:

  • 1 can whole tomatoes
  • 1 clove garlic
  • 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
  • 1 teaspoon oregano

Remove tomatoes from can, leaving behind any excess juice. Place all ingredients in food processor and pulse until smooth. (I have also done this in a bowl with a hand blender when I don’t feel like lugging out the food processor.)

Grandpa Buddy’s Pizza Dough (G. Buddy told me this is really Mario Batali’s recipe, but Mario didn’t write the index card that I dust off every Saturday night. Plus, I add olive oil and use half whole wheat flour, so really, I don’t know whose recipe it is.)

  • 3/4 cup warm water
  • 1 tablespoon yeast
  • 1 tablespoon honey
  • 1/4 cup white wine
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 3 to 4 cups all purpose flour (I substitute half whole wheat.)
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil

Combine water, yeast and honey. Combine remaining ingredients and knead until a nice dough forms. It should be smooth and elastic and feel like a baby’s butt. Cover and let rise in an oiled bowl for about an hour. Divide in half. Dough rolls out to about 12 inches in diameter.

Deep-Dish Pizza (The boys love this recipe. It originally comes from The United States Cookbook by Joan D’Amico and Karen Eich Drummond. The dough doesn’t require any rising time, but it is much better if you let it rest for about an hour.)

  • 2 teaspoons yeast
  • 1 cup warm water
  • 1 teaspoon sugar or honey
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 2 1/2 – 3 cups flour

Dissolve yeast and sugar in warm water until frothy. Add salt, oil and flour until a nice dough forms. I have baked this in everything from a 9 x 13 pyrex to a 9 inch round pie pan. It just depends how thick you like it. Adjust cooking times accordingly. Usually I bake the untopped crust for about 20 minutes, add the sauce and cheese and then bake for an additional 10 minutes out of the pan, directly on the oven rack.

Plans for January

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IMG_0524Oh, right, I homeschool these kids and apparently write a blog about it too! We all enjoyed our hiatus from main lessons in December – me most of all. It is always great to take a break, but at the same time, getting back to a normal rhythm feels good too. I have started looking at our school year as having two semesters, with December as a winter break – similar to a university schedule. There will definitely be some second semester adjustments – look for those in a future post. Because I completely disconnected from anything related to homeschooling last month, I will need a couple of weeks to get myself in order. Returning to our school day rhythm will also need a couple of weeks. It works out and is something I expect and allow for come January. For the first two weeks, I will do only one main lesson for both boys. It will be a combination of form drawing and Nature Study/Winter crafts. After that we will return to separate main lessons. Here are some more details:

Vincent: 11 years old, 5th grader  Vincent will begin his main lessons by reviewing India, Persia and Babylon. We will do a review technique that I came up with for the Old Testament stories in Grade 3 that also reinforces grammar in a fun way. I put up big pieces of paper and we make lists of people, places, things and actions associated with each culture. Because the majority of Vincent’s main lessons don’t allow him to use his prodigious ability to recall facts in isolation, this gives him a chance to shine. I’m sure he will remember much, much more than I do, and that is a good thing. After that, it will be onward to Egypt. Mostly we will be following Donna Simmons’ recommendations as laid out in her Ancient Mythology guide. I have a few other fun resources and also some papyrus that I will need to figure out what to do with. Any ideas?

Jude: 7 years old, 1st grader The math gnomes will return to our schoolroom this month. I honestly wanted to use math squirrels, but Jude was insistent. I did make new little figures, as our dog found Plus to be a yummy treat last year. Poor Plus! I still need to finish their tiny hats, and also start leaving notes from them. I did this with Vincent when we first came to Waldorf and he loved it. Jude has always had an aptitude for anything related to numbers – we are not sure where he gets this from, probably from his Nana, because it’s definitely not from his parents. Like all of first grade so far, he will not be learning anything he doesn’t already know, however the rhythm of a lesson, the stories, the art forms and all the movement we do are so much more important than any actual concepts at this point. For me, first grade has been laying a foundation of how we do school. This is good. This is enough.

Sheila: 43 this month! Our post-holiday trip was so, so restorative. Walking on the beach, reading a whole book in one day, working on a bunch of mail art projects and going to bed even earlier than usual helped me to clarify how I want to spend my personal time this coming year. In order to make more room for (non-homeshooling related) reading and (non-homeshooling related) art, I have decided to completely unplug on Saturdays. I am not on the computer a lot, but even popping on to “just check something real quick” can squander a nice block of time that could have been spent doing something much more fulfilling. I have also set my alarm for 30 minutes earlier (5:30 am) because by the time I got my butt downstairs, made the coffee, fed the cat, cleared the table, remembered what day it was and what it was I wanted to focus on during my precious time alone, I had about 20 minutes before Vincent came bounding down the stairs. Hopefully these two changes will help me to be more intentional and more productive.  

Links and other things I have loved this past month:

  • Andrea’s honest and open-hearted post about the new year has stayed with me since I first read it.
  • It is not too late to make some Snowflakes for Sandy Hook!
  • Melisa Nielsen had a great post about self-care – something we all need to remember.
  • If you have a fifth grader and/or an eleven year old, read this. It is spot-on! Thanks Carrie!
  • I find the free weekly e-newsletters from Math by Hand to be informative and inspiring.
  • Thinking about signing up for this photography e-course. Any input? She also has a very cool, free workbook for distilling your vision for 2013.

Recipe of the month:

I made this butternut squash casserole for New Year’s Day. It is yummy, yummy, yummy and easy, easy, easy.

  • 3 pounds butternut squash, roasted and scooped out of skin
  • 1/2 stick butter
  • 1 large onion, chopped
  • 1/2 cup coconut milk
  • salt and pepper

Caramelize onion in butter. Combine with squash and coconut milk in food processor until smooth. Add salt and pepper to taste. Bake at 375 for 20 minutes until brown on the top and bubbly. Especially delicious with pork!

PS. We will announce the winner of the giveaway on Friday. Thanks to everyone who entered.

What’s Cookin’? – Holiday Edition

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I have been stocking up on baking essentials for the holidays: butter, flour, chocolate chips, sugar. No matter how much I buy, I always think I should have gotten more – especially if anything was on sale. Our problem is storage. We live in an old farmhouse that doesn’t have any. When we moved in, there was one closet in the whole house. And it was downstairs, tucked under the stairs, in what’s now the schoolroom. We have added a lot of storage during the past 13 years: closets, cabinets, shelves. Somehow though, we still have an extra case or two of canned tomatoes stuck under our bed and I have 50 pounds of wheat berries stored under my desk. None of this is really here nor there. In addition to the holiday and birthday cooking and baking, it seems as though we all still need to be fed on a regular schedule. This is when I rely on super-easy recipes for lunch and dinner. You can count on a big pot of soup simmering on the back burner, while leftover-magic is taken to new heights this month. Here is what we have been whipping up in the kitchen.

* I was reminded of how much I love Leslie’s garlic dressing at Thanksgiving this year. I will give you the recipe although hers is always better than mine. Smash two garlic cloves with about 1/2 teaspoon of salt and make a paste. Scrape this slurry from the cutting board into a jar with 1/2 cup olive oil and a splash or two of vinegar. Shake to emulsify.

* Spaghetti pie is one of those things that I remember at this time of year. Toss leftover pasta, leftover red sauce, eggs and parmesan cheese together. (You can also add mozzarella or ricotta.) Pour into a greased ovenproof dish. (I usually use a pie plate and then slice into wedges for serving.) Bake at 375 covered for about 20 minutes and then an additional 10 minutes uncovered.

* I am on a constant quest to pump more calories into my kids. I have come up with a new pancake mix that seems to do a good job of this: 1 cup almond flour, 1 cup coconut flour, 2 cups regular flour, 1 cup oat flour, 1 tablespoon baking powder, 1 teaspoon baking soda and 1 teaspoon salt. Use 1 1/2 cups mix, 1 cup buttermilk, 2 tablespoons oil or melted butter and 2 eggs. The resulting pancakes are light and white in color (their criteria) and also high in protein and good fats (mine).

* Vincent made a fancy-pants Cook’s Illustrated NY Crumb Cake and it was good, but nowhere near as good as Tom’s grandmother’s recipe that uses a yellow cake mix. This makes a nice big cake, perfect for a crowd. It freezes well, on the off-chance there is any left.

* I love these spice cookies. They are another one of Tom’s grandmother’s recipes (different grandmother). I made them the year Vincent was born and in my postpartum haze, I stored a cookie tin full of them in the attic for a year. Not a fun discovery.

* Jude is rather famous for these cinnamon chocolate chip cookies. The original recipe comes from the Star Wars Cookbook where they’re called “Wookie Cookies”.

* I like to make breakfast baskets to give as gifts. Granola and homemade yogurt, rolls and jam, and english muffins and jelly seem to be appreciated.

* Don’t forget your librarians! What would we homeschoolers do without them! We always bake a double batch of these super-easy chewy chocolate cookies. I don’t know if there is a correlation, but we always get the books we put on hold extra fast.

* I can’t tell you why this has made my life so much easier, but it has. I have been using the little rack from my toaster oven to defrost a few muffins or cookies for snacktime. It fits perfectly on top of the toaster oven and doesn’t take up precious counter space like a big cooling rack does.

* These savory parmesan shortbreads are so easy and great to give with a bottle of wine. They freeze well too.

* If you don’t have time to let your bread have a second rising, shape the dough into a free-form loaf and place it in a cold oven and bake immediately. I have found that baking at 400 degrees for 45 minutes works for most any bread.

Plans for December

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In all my years of homeschooling, I still can’t figure out December. I have tried everything from keeping formal lessons (disaster) to having no lessons (disaster). My goal is somewhere in between. This year I am trying something new and having a calendar to count down the days until Christmas. (I took some heavy inspiration from this one, this one and this one.) I wanted to sew a fabric calendar with little pockets, but instead used shipping tags that I had in my stash of craft supplies. I’m keeping the activities a secret from the boys and revealing a new tag each day. Below you can see details of what I have planned. It’s a mixed bag for sure – some secular, some religious, some crafty, some just plain fun. I am hoping these activities will carry us through the morning. Our afternoons will remain steady with handwork and storytime. In addition to Christmas, December also brings Vincent’s birthday and Tom’s birthday – lots and lots of merry making will be happening at our house this month.

Vincent: practically 11(!), 5th grader Vincent turns 11 this month! Rather impossible if you ask me. This boy has no trouble keeping himself entertained. I expect lots of holiday projects started and a few even completed. Right now he is knitting hot and heavy. He is also busy planning our holiday meals with Christopher Kimball, the editor of his beloved Cook’s Illustrated magazine. I try to ride the wave of the 1,001 suggestions he has for Christmas dinner, knowing we will probably end up having lasagna. That is the tradition in Tom’s family and the boys like hand-cranking out the long lasagna noodles on the old pasta maker.

Jude: 7 years old, 1st grader Left to his druthers, Jude would be outside all the time with a ball of some sort. Our winters are relatively mild here in the mountains of western NC, and he still gets out for a good part of the day. I try to get him in as many layers as possible while he is outside, then wind up finding piles of these same layers scattered around the house. (Oh what I would give for a mud room!) He has been knitting steadily, as is currently working on a rug (!).

Sheila: We have a beach trip planned for after Christmas and I have been trying to decide what I am going to read for literally months now. Top of the list is Louise Penny’s new mystery, The Beautiful Mystery. I have read this series from the beginning and it only gets better and better. Second on the list is another mystery, Elegy for Eddie by Jacqueline Winspear. This series is set between the wars in England: hands down, my favorite time and place ever. (If you like mysteries set then and there, I would also recommend Charles Todd (who I just found out has a new book – add that to the list too!), Laurie R. King and Alan Bradley (although Bradley’s mysteries are set a little later in England, 1950 to be exact.)) If there were world enough and time, I would also read Barbara Kingsolver’s last two novels, Terry Tempest Williams’ latest non-fiction, Reed Farrel Coleman’s final 3 books in his Moe Prager series (love that man!) and  . . . the list goes on and on.

Links and other things I have loved this past month:

  • Do you know the book, Unplug the Christmas Machine? If you are looking to simplify your holiday season, it is a good place to start.
  • I have been enjoying Maya Donenfeld’s new book, Reinvention. Lots of fun sewing projects using recycled materials.
  • Barbara Dewey’s little book Waldorf Handwork for Homeschoolers Grades K-4 is a gem. It is now available via ebook.
  • My new favorite non-Waldorf, non-homeschooling blog? Posie Gets Cozy  – so much goodness going on there.
  • With all the knitting happening at our house, I may have to make this knitting basket made out of an upcycled wool sweater. It would be great for Vincent who is rapidly outgrowing his handwork basket.
  • I don’t remember where I read this but, put a heating pad under your bread as it rises. If your house is as chilly as mine, it cuts rising time in half during these winter months. (It also a great place to soften butter at the same time.)

Calendar Details:

December 1: let the Christmas carols be played throughout the entire house; take holiday books out of the attic
December 2: cub scout holiday party; light first candle of advent (stone/mineral)
December 3: advent painting (mountain scene); write letter to Santa (both my boys still believe. love that!)
December 4: cut paper snowflakes
December 5: tell story of St. Nicholas by Jakob Streit
December 6: string popcorn and cranberries; fingerknit garlands; make button garlands
December 7: holiday baking; attend a holiday sing-along in town
December 8: holiday craft making at our library; go to Christmas tree farm to cut down our tree
December 9: celebrate Vincent’s birthday; light second candle of advent (plant)
December 10: advent painting (trees, grass); make origami evergreens
December 11: make decorations for birds and squirrels
December 12: collect evergreens; make salt dough or beeswax ornaments
December 13: celebrate St. Lucia; bake buns; make these clothespin dolls
December 14: holiday baking; make candy cane hot cocoa
December 15: celebrate Tom’s birthday; make watercolor paper lanterns
December 16: light third candle of advent (animal)
December 17: model animals out of beeswax; perhaps knit some as well
December 18: have hot cocoa in the afternoon; snuggle on the couch and read Christmas books
December 19: make straw ornaments
December 20: roll beeswax candles
December 21: holiday baking; celebrate winter solstice by having dinner and going to bed by candlelight
December 22: drive around town to see all the Christmas lights
December 23: light fourth advent candle (human)
December 24: add crèche figures to Advent table; Christmas Eve
December 25: Merry Christmas!!

What’s Cookin’? – Fall Edition

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These are the days I don’t need any excuse to turn on the oven. There is a little chill in the air, and anything warm sounds good. My neighbor is somehow still bringing me tomatoes, although with every gallon he swears it is the last. Our CSA is winding down, and I don’t like that one bit. I certainly am not looking forward to food shopping on a regular basis again. In order to make this trip to town as infrequently as possible I have spent the past month stocking our freezers. I bought 18 whole chickens from one neighbor, and 40 pounds of salmon from a local woman who goes to Alaska every summer to fish. I hope to get a bunch of pork from another local farm that Tom has a barter with. (I LOVE that kind of business.) The cow that we bought back in the spring has been feeding us nicely too. You can say the barnyard – and the wide ocean blue – will be well represented on our plates as the months turn colder.

In anticipation of the upcoming holiday cooking season, I have also embarked on a thorough kitchen clean-out. I’ve rearranged some cabinets. Threw out a bunch of stuff I don’t remember buying. Took stock of ingredients: noting what we have a lot of (flour, chocolate chips, baking chocolate, cinnamon, vanilla), and also noting what we need to buy (sugar, wheat berries, olive oil, coconut oil). I like to run an efficient kitchen – especially at this time of year. I’m sure we will start pulling out the recipe books soon to plan Thanksgiving, Vincent’s and Tom’s birthdays, not to mention Christmas. Expect lots of updates and recipes in the coming 2 months. Anyway, here’s what’s been showing up on our table lately.

* Coconut Rice has been a nice warm snack in addition to an easy side dish. I make it by using 2 cups water and 1 cup coconut milk to 1 cup dry white rice. Prepare as usual. It comes nice and creamy. It is good topped with cinnamon and honey or with sea salt.

* My cure-all elixir has made its seasonal debut. It is great for whatever ails you, even if you just have a chill you can’t shake. Fill a mug with chicken stock, crush in half a garlic clove, add a liberal spoonful of coconut milk and a nice pinch of sea salt. When we are sick I also add crushed red pepper (for respiratory ailments), ginger (for stomach stuff) or lemon (for sore throats).

* Butternut squash soup is a fall staple here. I just had a wonderful version at a friend’s house: pureed butternut squash, roasted red peppers and coconut milk. She served it with brown rice, garnished with chopped nori. Oh it was good!

* Baked potatoes have been great to have in the refrigerator. I have been baking them in bulk (usually 10 at a time). We have them for dinner that night and then grab them for lunches and snacks later in the week. If there are any left on the weekend, they go in Sunday’s frittata.

* For nighttime snacks the boys have been having either hot cocoa (made with baking cocoa and agave) or hot milk with cinnamon alongside their toast. It is a little bit of warm goodness before we tuck them in at night.

* This is my mother-in-law’s apple cake recipe. It makes a big cake and just gets better the next day.

* Vincent’s new favorite recipe is the national dish of the Philippines: chicken filipino adobo. (Jude’s review: “It is so good!”) And although we haven’t tried it yet, if you browned the chicken first, I bet it would be yummy and oh-so-easy to do in the crock pot.

* My friend Jennifer made this pie for our Michaelmas celebration, and I am still dreaming about it. Normally, I am not a pie maker, but I may just have to amend my ways.

*This post by Rachel over at Clean has revolutionized my stock making. Keep the lid on! What a great simple tip!

*Tom reminded me of a soup we used to make when we were first married. It was called Dutch Farmer’s Soup. Saute a large onion in 3 tablespoons of butter in the bottom of a large soup pot. Cut a cauliflower, 3 medium potatoes and 4 large carrots into chunks. Add vegetables and 8 cups of chicken stock to pot and cook until vegetables are tender. Serve with thick slices of sourdough bread topped with melted, smoked gouda cheese.

What’s been cooking at your house lately? Do tell.