Dehydrating and Tincturing...

I know this is a long post, but time limits me to making it all one big post! I decided to make my own vanilla extract and it was so easy! I split 6 fresh vanilla beans that I bought at Mountain Rose Herbs and added two cups of brandy. Stuck a label on it, and that was that! It just needs to be shook daily for the first week, then every few days for weeks 2-8. You can start using it as soon as 4 weeks, but 8 weeks will be a stronger extract.
I LOVE, LOVE my new Excalibur dehydrator. After much research, I am very happy with my purchase. The ambient noise is a little loud, thus it sitting in our dining room when I dehydrated. I save money, I bought one that had "cosmetic" dings, but honestly, I didn't see any when it arrived. I bought the 9 tray one with a timer. Ones with the timer are only available directly from the Excalibur company, but I think it's worth the extra $$ for a timer that will turn off the dehydrator when you want...otherwise, you are getting up at night to turn it off. No thank you!
I did a massive batch of soaked nuts and then used my dehydrator to dry them. I've soaked nuts before, but never dried then due to space limitations in my oven.
Using my dehydrator was awesome and the nuts came out amazing! Walnuts can have a sharp bitter taste to them if you don't soak them (besides all the anti-nutrients), but that taste is gone with soaking. Sure, it's work, but well worth it, as your body will digest them much better and their nutrients are more bio-available. In years past, this is how other cultures at nuts...soaked, then sundried.

Lastly, I did some tincturing. This is a HUGE money saver. It was very easy to do and tinctures will last years. We will have enough echinacea tincture to last us a long, long time!
For recipes, leave a comment. Equipment you need are the herbs, vegetable glycerin or vodka (at least 40 proof), a digital scale, measure cups, funnel, and glass bottles.
Make sure your labels have the date and what is in the bottle...
Lastly, I dried some extra parsley and dill from my coop - can't wait to have this to use over the next year.

Homemade Eggnog...

This recipe is a quick, easy way to make up a quick batch of eggnog. It seems to get better with age, so I would make it a week before you plan to drink it, if you have the self-control to wait that long!! I also used raw eggs in this recipe. I bought my eggs fresh from my local organic egg farmer and washed each egg off before use. I know there is always a small risk in using raw eggs, but I have been eating eggs raw for the past few years with no problems...

6 organic eggs (preferably fresh from a local farmer)

1 cup rapadura or sucanat

1/2 tsp vanilla

1/4 tsp nutmeg

2 cups organic milk

2 cups organic cream

3/4 cup brandy

1/3 cup rum

Beat the eggs until fluffy, then add the sugar, vanilla, and nutmeg. Stir in the remaining ingredients and store in the fridge.

Enjoy with some warm Christmas cookies and a good movie!! Cheers!

Cranberry Relish...

Cranberries are SO healthy! Go here to see some of the many benefits. This recipe makes a big batch, but I promise it won't last long! (I used all organic ingredients in my recipe.)

*seven 8 ounce containers of fresh cranberries

*5 large oranges

*1 cup raw honey

*2/3 cup rapadura

*5 cups raw walnuts

*2 tsp cinnamon

*1 tsp allspice

In batches, roughly mix the cranberries, oranges, walnuts, and spices in a food processor. Pulse a few seconds at a time so that the mix is more chopped than pureed. Place in a large bowl and stir in the honey and rapadura. For those who want it a little less sweet, use 1/2 cup of honey and 1/3 cup rapadura or no rapadura at all. I add rapadura to mine because it adds a deep, rich flavor to the relish. Enjoy!!

Olives...

Last night my very sweet husband helped me put up my first batch of olives. I'm trying the water brining method, which will take a few weeks, and then in Nov. will order some black olives and try the salt brining method, which takes 9 months, but creates a fermented food. Once the olives soak in the water for about 2 weeks, then I have some large glass jars that I will use to do the finishing salt brine with whatever seasoning we choose. Very curious to see how these come out...if they are good, I think a new fall tradition has started.

Eggplant Puree with Walnuts...

This is a great immune building recipe with the raw garlic, especially for this time of year with cold and flu season fast approaching!

*2 large eggplants

*2-4 garlic cloves

*1/2 cup walnuts

*1/2 cup olive oil

*2 T fresh lemon juice

*1-2 T red wine vinegar (I used balsalmic)

*salt to taste

Preheat over to 450 degrees and wash the eggplants and pat dry; prick skin in several places with a fork. Place on a baking sheet and bake for 25-30 minutes, turning, until skin is blistered and shriveled.

While eggplants are roasting, pulse in a food processor the garlic, walnuts, and 2 T of olive oil to form a paste.

Cut off stems of eggplant once they have cooled some, and scoop out insides, discarding as many seeds as possible and place in food processor. Add the lemon juice, vinegar, olive oil, and salt and pulse until well combined. The dip does not have to be smooth.

The Complete Italian Vegetarian...

I love this cookbook - not a lot of pictures, but lots of great ideas and I really like the fact that I can just thumb through it and know that none of the recipes will contain meat. I made pasta with Olivada yesterday. I used this recipe and just used half of it with a pound of pasta and 4 large tomatoes chopped in small pieces, with a dash of olive oil. So yummy!

Olivada

2 medium garlic cloves

8 large fresh basil leaves

1 tbsp fresh thyme leaves

1 1/2 cups drained black olives (about 7 oz), pitted

2 tbsp lemon juice

3 tbsp olive oil

Throw all this together in a food processor and pulse until fine. This can be stored for several days, and to prolong store life, pour a thin film of olive oil over it.

I also made a yummy salad by roughly chopping up tomatoes and cucumbers, adding some feta cheeses and sunflower seeds and dressing it with some olive oil, balsamic vinegar, salt, and dried basil.

I used an old loaf of sourdough bread that I had frozen and cut it up and buttered it, adding garlic powder and dried basil...then stuck it under the broiler.

A quick, easy, yummy summertime meal!

Raw Beets...

So, I learned in my Family Herbalist course just how good beets are for you, especially all you pregnant mommas! Beets are a great preventative against anemia. I took my iron (and am still taking it) supplement in a form derived from beets by Dr. Marshall. I had no problems with anemia my whole pregnancy.

We have been getting a lot of beets in our co-op. Roasted beets with other root vegies are great, but gets old after a while. Beets are also best consumed raw, so I have started to shred beets, carrots, and zucchini onto our salads. It's more appealing for me than large pieces of beet and it sure looks pretty with all that color!

Soaked Pasta...

Fermenting dough...
My beautiful Marcato Atlas 150 pasta maker. I bought it here, it's $20 cheaper than on Amazon and includes no shipping cost or tax. It's a little bit of an upfront investment, but will quickly make up it's cost. I don't think I can ever go back to store bought pasta after making my own! If making the pasta seems like a daunting task, just double or triple my pasta recipe and put the pasta in the freezer for later use.
Dough prepped to go through the cutter...
The finished product!

My sister, Christy, inspired me to get a pasta maker. I have been wanting to find a good solution to buying store bought pasta, and have experimented with my own soaked pasta recipe. Here is what I did (feeds 4 with no leftovers):

3 1/2 cups of freshly ground kamut flour

1 cup minus 1 T filtered water

3 T whey

Place the above ingredients in a glass dish, mixing well. Let it sit overnight (I always stick mine in the oven. You can also place a damp towel over the top to help prevent excessive drying.). When you are ready to make the pasta, add one egg to the dough and knead in thoroughly.

I found that this recipe made my dough too wet...next time I will try just 2/3 cup of water. I found that by kneading in enough flour so the dough did not stick to my hands allowed it to run through the machine, but I had to keep it on the thickest setting (setting one).

Even though it was not the ideal dough, it came out delicious! Kamut flour is my favorite flour to work with. It has a lower gluten content than wheat, but higher protein. It makes it a perfect flour for pasta, pancakes, and biscuits.

Sourdough Bread...

Rye ciabatta...
Beet and feta bread...
Basic spelt loaf...

I can highly recommend the cookbook Wild Sourdough, especially for busy moms. The way these recipes are laid out is perfect for moms with little ones and busy schedules. You never spend more than 5-10 minutes per step. I am personally using a rye starter and spelt starter (I created this one off of my rye starter). We love this bread so much that I make it 2-3 times a week. So yummy!

Kale Recipes...

Here are some yummy kale recipes I found:

1) Ingredients
3 medium carrots, peeled and quartered lenthwise
2 large tomatoes, quartered
1 large onion, cut into 8 wedges or 4 or 5 slices
1/2 small butternut squash, peeled, seeded, cut lengthwise into 1/2 inch thick wedges
6 garlic cloves
1 Tbsp olive oil
6 cups or more of vegetable broth
4 cups of finely chopped kale
3 large fresh thyme sprigs
1 bay leaf
1 15 oz can of Great Northern white beans, drained
1 Preheat oven to 400°F (reduce heat by 25°F if using convection oven). Brush rimmed baking sheet with a thin coat of olive oil. Arrange carrots, squash, tomatoes, onion, and garlic on sheet. Drizzle with more olive oil. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Toss to coat. Roast vegetables until they are brown and tender, stirring occassionally, about 45 minutes.
2 Cut squash and carrots into 1/2 inch pieces; set aside. Peel garlic cloves; place in food processor. Add tomatoes and onion; puree until almost smooth. Pour 1/2 cup broth onto the baking sheet; scrape up any browned bits. Transfer broth and vegetable puree to large pot. Add 5 1/2 cups broth, kale, thyme and bay leaf to pot. Bring to boil. Reduce heat. Simmer uncovered until kale is tender, about 30 minutes.
3 Add carrots, beans, and squash to soup. Simmer 8 minutes to blend flavors, adding more broth to thin soup if necessary. Season with salt and pepper. Discard thyme sprigs and bay leaf.
Can be made a day ahead. Serves six.

2)
12 links spicy pork sausage, sliced
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
3/4 cup diced onion
1 1/4 teaspoons minced garlic
2 tablespoons chicken broth
4 cups water
2 potatoes, halved and sliced
2 cups sliced kale
1/3 cup heavy cream

Preheat oven to 300 degrees F (150 degrees C).
Place sausage links on a baking sheet and bake 25 minutes, or until cooked through. Slice into 1/2 inch slices.
Heat oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Saute onions until translucent; add garlic and cook 1 minute.
Stir in broth, water and potatoes; simmer 15 minutes.
Reduce heat to low and add sausage, kale and cream; simmer until heated through and serve.

3)
1 (8 ounce) package uncooked farfalle (bow tie) pasta
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 medium red bell pepper, chopped
1 medium yellow bell pepper, chopped
1 cup roughly chopped kale
4 cloves garlic, chopped
1 pinch dried basil
1 pinch ground cayenne pepper
salt and ground black pepper to taste
8 ounces feta cheese, crumbled

DIRECTIONS
Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add pasta and cook for 8 to 10 minutes or until al dente; drain.
Heat oil in a skillet over medium heat. Stir in red pepper, yellow pepper, kale and garlic. Season with basil, cayenne pepper, salt and black pepper. Cook until vegetables are tender.
In a large bowl, toss cooked pasta with skillet mixture. Sprinkle with feta cheese to serve.

4) INGREDIENTS (Nutrition)
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 small onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
4 teaspoons white sugar
1 tablespoon cider vinegar
1 1/2 cups chicken broth
4 cups stemmed, torn and rinsed kale
1/4 cup dried cranberries
salt and pepper to taste
1/4 cup sliced almonds

DIRECTIONS
Heat olive oil in a large pot over medium heat. Stir in the onion and garlic; cook and stir until the onion softens and turns translucent, about 5 minutes. Stir in the mustard, sugar, vinegar, and chicken stock, and bring to a boil over high heat. Stir in the kale, cover, and cook 5 minutes until wilted.
Stir in the dried cranberries, and continue boiling, uncovered, until the liquid has reduced by about half, and the cranberries have softened, about 15 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Sprinkle with sliced almonds before serving.

5) INGREDIENTS (Nutrition)
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 onion, chopped
1 pound kale, stems removed and leaves coarsely chopped
1 (14 ounce) can diced tomatoes with green chile peppers
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 1/2 cups water
2 bay leaves
1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon onion powder
2 (15 ounce) cans canned cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
1 tablespoon chopped fresh oregano
1 teaspoon chopped fresh basil
salt and ground black pepper to taste

DIRECTIONS
Heat the olive oil in a large deep skillet over medium-high heat. Add the onions and kale. Cook and stir until the onions become transparent and the kale wilts and reduces in volume, 5 to 7 minutes.
Reduce the heat to medium. Stir the tomatoes and green chiles, garlic, water, bay leaves, cumin, and onion powder into the kale mixture. Simmer the vegetable mixture until the kale is soft, about 1 hour. Stir in the cannellini beans and continue simmering until beans are heated through, about 10 minutes. Stir in the oregano and basil. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Swiss Chard Recipes...

In my co-op right now, I am getting tons of greens and am a little tired of just sauteeing them in EVOO and garlic, so here are some recipes I found on-line to try:

1) 1 1/2 cups lentils2 1/2 lbs fresh Swiss Chard1/2 cup olive oil3/4 cup chopped onion3 to 4 garlic clovesSalt1 Stalk celery, chopped3/4 cup lemon juice1 teaspoon flourChopped chives for garnish
Wash and pick over the lentils. Cover them with fresh cold water, and cook, covered, until tender. Wash the Swiss Chard leaves and chop them. Add these and a cup of water to the lentils. Continue cooking until the Swiss chard is done, adding more water if necessary. Heat the olive oil in a skillet and add the chopped onion. Crush the garlic cloves with salt, and add these and the chopped celery to the onion. Continue cooking until the vegetables are tender and blended. Add to the lentil mixture. Mix the lemon juice with the flour and stir it into the soup. Cook gently, stirring occasionally, until the soup is rather thick. Taste for seasoning. Serve chilled with chopped chives in soup bowls, and pass crusty French or Italian bread to sop up the juices.


2) I am of Italian lineage and our family recipe calls for an important step whenever cooking swiss chard. Always par-boil the swiss chard to remove any bitterness first and to tenderize them. A terrific recipe we have is to (after par-boiling) saute with garlic and olive oil and add a can of tomato sauce (not prepared sauce like Prego or any of that stuff). The small cans of actual sauce that you find near the canned tomatoes. This is a most delicious way to serve as a side dish.


3) My favorite swiss chard recipe is actually for the stems - chop and then steam (or boil) until tender; drain. Toss with a dressing of Tahine, olive oil, garlic, salt and lemon juice.


4) The most gorgeous thing that one can do with Chard is to prepare the leaves and stems as indicated in other posts, and then to sautee the chard with garlic, onion, a bit of chicken stock, fresh or canned tomatoes, to which is added a browned, spicy sausage, like chorizo or Hungarian sausage. Adjust seasonings to taste with sea salt, fresh black pepper, and ground pepper flakes, and top with a tiny shaving of parmesean.

5) Do the following:1. Boil until tender2. Chop into small pieces3. Mix Tahini (sesame seed paste) or in a pinch and out of tahini, use peanut butter, lemon juice, a piece of crushed garlic and a little water, salt and pepper. This should be a pourable sauce. Proportions are up to you. I use about 1 large spoon of tahini to 1/2 spoon of lemon juice. This will be VERY THICK. Add water by the spoonful, and stir until the right consistency. Pour this mixture over the cooked, chopped stems. Eat on pita bread or tortillia rolled up. Very tasty. 4. Keep cooked stems in freezer and add to soups, stews, stir frys, mix in rice dishes, and I know you will think of another way.

6) A simple Lebanese recipe for swiss chard. Sauté chopped swiss shard with smashed garlic and cilantro in olive oil for five minutes add a cup of cooked black eyed-bean then cook on low heat, eat it with pita bread...I prefer this dish cold out of the fridge.

Fermented Vegies...

I want to keep track of the different combos of vegies I am doing for fermenting. I just finished a batch of onion, cucumbers, cabbage, carrots, and garlic. I let it sit in my mini fridge for 11 days with an average temp around 60 degrees. Seems to have come out delicious. I'll have Dave taste it tonight as well.
Can't wait to try my fermented squash and apples next!

Our New Favorite Soup

This recipe is largely taken from the Le Virtu recipe in Italian Slow and Savory by Joyce Goldstein--which, Mom & Jess, you both have. I just added in the miniature meatballs from another soup recipe of hers and some greens. This soup was so flavorful and very hearty! It was by far the tastiest soup I have ever made.

Le Virtu (with a few changes)

2 to 2 1/2 cups assorted dried beans such as chickpeas, cannellini, borlotti, and lentils, picked over and rinsed
1/4 cup olive oil
1/2 cup chopped pancetta or prosciutto (I used salami)
1 large yellow onion, chopped
2 carrots, peeled and chopped
2 celery stalks, chopped
4 large garlic cloves, minced
1 T chopped, fresh of each: sage, marjoram, mint, thyme
1 1/2 cups diced canned plum tomatoes (I just used a whole can)
2 cups swiss chard, finely chopped
2 quarts water or chicken stock (use homemade!)
salt & pepper
3/4 cup farro (I used a tiny pastini, barley would work too)
extra virgin olive oil, grated parmesan, crumbled gorganzola for serving

Soak all beans (except lentils) overnight, then drain.

In a saucepan, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the pancetta and saute, stirring often, until the fat is released, about 5 min. Add the onion, carrots, celery, garlic, and all the chopped herbs and saute, stirring often, until the vegetables begin to soften, about 5 min. Add the drained beans, the dried lentils, tomatoes, stock, 2 t of salt, and raise the heat to high and bring to a boil. Immediately, reduce the heat to low, cover, and simmer until the beans are tender, about 1 hour. Season to taste w/ salt and pepper.

Meanwhile, make the miniature meatballs:
1 lb ground beef
1/2 cup dried breadcrumbs
2 eggs
3 T grated parmesan
2 cloves garlic, finely minced
salt & pepper

Mix all ingredients together. Start forming miniature meatballs, about the size of a hazelnut (1/2 inch diameter). This recipe should make about 140 meatballs, but don't be alarmed--it goes really fast because they are so tiny. I made them in less than 10 minutes. Lay them out on a plate as you form them.

When the beans have 20 minutes cooking time remaining, add the meatballs, sprinkling them in one at a time (to prevent clumping). Let meatballs simmer for about 20 min to cook through.

When there are 10 minutes of cooking time left, add the pastini and let simmer for the final 10 minutes. (If you're using farro or barley, obviously add them at the appropriate time depending on how long they need to cook.)

To serve, ladle into bowls, add a thin drizzle of olive oil on top and sprinkle with parmesan and crumbled gorgonzola.

Coconut Fish and Rice

Here is a recipe I pieced together from a few recipes I found. I fixed this for Braden and myself on a warm and rainy spring day. Being a nice hot dish, it hit the spot on such a rainy day, but it was also still a nice light dish suitable for the warmer weather.

COCONUT FISH & RICE (serves 4)

1 lb white fish fillets of choice
1 can coconut milk
1 lime, plus the zest
1/4 cup coconut (unsweetened)
1 clove garlic, minced
fresh lemon thyme (or thyme or basil)
ginger
cayenne pepper
salt
1 1/2 cups rice

Preheat oven to 350.

Bring 1/2 can of coconut milk and 2 1/2 cups water to a boil and cook rice as usual.

Tear off 4 squares of foil and lay out on the counter. Divide the fish into 4 portions and lay on foil. Sprinkle fish with lime zest, minced garlic, coconut, ginger, cayenne pepper and salt. Drizzle the rest of the coconut milk over each portion of fish. Lay 2 sprigs of lemon thyme over each fish.

Fold each piece of foil up and seal well. Place foil pockets in a pyrex dish and place in the oven. Bake for 20 minutes.

When rice is done cooking, squeeze the juice of the lime into it and toss.

To serve, spoon rice into a soup or pasta bowl, open foil pocket and slide fish onto the rice. Steamed green beans and carrots make a nice accompaniment.

Hamburger Buns

Here's the hamburger bun recipe I've been talking about. I'll write the recipe as I have it written (adapted from a recipe I found somewhere online). At the end I'll explain how I now make it using my sourdough starter.

1 cup water
2 eggs
1/3 cup oil (I use olive)
1/4 cup sugar
1 tsp salt
1 1/2 tsp yeast
4 cups flour (my suggested breakdown is: 2 1/2 cups white whole wheat, 1/2 cup brown rice (it makes them softer), and 1 cup of any or a combo of the following--regular whole wheat, millet, spelt, kamut, rye)


1 egg
1 tbsp water
sesame seeds

Mix yeast, water, sugar and let bubble. Mix salt and flour--add yeast mixture and eggs. Add extra flour or water as needed to make a nicely textured dough. Let dough rise. Punch down. Shape into 12 balls--DON'T press them flat. (For the size of balls, they are going to just about double, so make them the size you want based on that.) Let balls rise until about doubled in size.

Preheat oven to 350. While you're waiting for it to preheat, mix 1 egg w/ 1 tbsp water. Brush on the tops of each bun. Sprinkle with sesame seeds. Bake in the oven for 10 minutes.

Adjustments for making these with sourdough starter:
Pour your starter in a bowl and add the 2 cups water and 3-4 cups of flour--your mixture should be like a thick batter. Mix and let sit overnight or until the starter is bubbly and frothy. Reserve a cup of starter for yourself to return to your fridge. Put the frothy starter in the kitchen aid and add eggs, oil, salt, sugar, and enough flour to make a nicely textured dough. Let rise until doubled. Punch down. Shape into balls and continue the recipe as above.

Chicken Soup

No picture, but a great recipe. I adapted it from something I saw. It's a chicken soup recipe with a bit of a Thai twist to it.

2 quarts chicken broth (homemade stock really does add a lot of flavor)
2 cups water
3-4 cups cooked shredded/chunks of chicken (I used leftovers from a roast)
1 small cabbage head, shredded or very thinly sliced
6 carrots, sliced thin
1 can coconut milk
1/2 tsp curry
1 tsp ginger
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp chili powder
1 tsp thyme
1 T sugar
dash of cayenne powder
salt & pepper

Put water, broth, chicken, carrots, and cabbage in a pot. Bring to a boil and let simmer about 20 min or until carrots are tender. Stir in coconut milk and spices and let simmer 5 more minutes. Delicious!

More of my favorite raw stuff....

Here is a great substitute for cooked oatmeal, using soaked oat groats (also known as steel cut oats). It's so good that Dad wants Mom to start using this as their regular oatmeal. It's from the book Raw Food Made Easy.

Whole Oatmeal (Makes 2 srvgs)

2 c. soaked oat groats
1/2 apple, peeled and chopped (I used unpeeled pear one time and actually liked it better)
2 Tbsp. pure maple syrup or raw agave ( I use agave)
2 Tbsp. water
1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 c. almond milk
2 Tbsp. raisins

Combine all ingredients, except the milk and raisins, in food processor fitted with the steel blade. Blend well. Stop occasionally to scrape down sides with a spatula. Serve immediately with the milk and raisins. Oatmeal will keep in the fridge for 3 days.

Soaked Oat Groats (makes 2 cups)

1 1/2 c. oat groats

Place the groats in a bowl and cover with water. Soak for 8-12 hrs. at room temperature. Drain in a colander and rinse well. Place the groats back in the bowl and cover with fresh water. Soak for another 8-12 hrs. Drain and let air-dry in colander for 30 mins. Stored in a sealed container in the fridge, the groats will keep for 3 days.

Almond milk

2 1/2c. spring water
1 1/2 c. soaked almonds (cover almonds with water in a mason jar and soak for 8 hrs)
3 pitted medjool dates
Dash of salt
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract

Place water, almonds, and dates in vitamix or blender. Blend on high speed until very smooth. Strain through cheese cloth or fine-mesh strainer. (Save the pulp for other recipes, or through it into your cereal or oatmeal.) Return liquid to the vitamix and add the salt and vanilla. Mix well til smooth. Stored in a sealed jar in the fridge, it will keep for 5 days. Make sure to shake well before serving!

My Yummy Slaw

I'm finally posting!! :) Here is my first recipe.....one of my first creations since going raw.

Carrot-Apple Slaw

4 large carrots
2 apples
1/2 cucumber (optional)
1/2 c. raisins
1/3 c. pine nuts
Juice of one lemon (fresh-squeezed)
1 Tbsp. raw agave sweetner (optional)
salt
pepper
ginger
curry

Set up the food processor with the grater. Shred the carrots and apples. Dice up the cucumber. Combine carrots, apples, cucumber in mixing bowl. Add raisins and pine nuts. Stir to mix. Add lemon juice, agave (or raw honey, gently melted), and seasonings to taste. Mix well. Enjoy!

stromboli!

I made stromboli last Sunday for lunch. It was so good! I took pizza dough, rolled it out thin, and sprinkled it with salami, frozen spinach, kalmata olives, cheese, fresh garlic and pepper.

I rolled it up and sliced it in a few places (the fork didn't really work). I put it in the oven at 400 for about 20 minutes.

Here it is, fresh out of the oven with cheese bubbling out of the slices. We put tomato sauce over top. So yummy!

Dr. Marshall Recipes...

Over the next few months, I have a goal of starting to incorporate a number of recipes into my diet that Dr. Marshall has recommended. Tonight I tried his flatbread recipe which resembled a pancake. It was quite tasty and I also plan on looking for and trying other flatbread recipes - some that are a little more bread like. His recipe was super easy, though, and it is a great dipping bread or could be used like toast, as well. I'll include the recipe at the end of the post. I just wanted to include some of his information on why he does not recommend yeast bread. I did some of my own research on this subject and there was very little on the following information that I was given by Dr. Marshall. I did find this interesting article, though. All in all, it's definately something to ponder...

http://healingtherapies.info/Fasting&SCI.htm

1)Digestive Stress:
Swiss researchers in the 1930's found that after eating food cooked above its critical temperature...there was a rise in the number of white blood cells...typically seen only when the body is reacting to infection, trauma, or toxic chemicals. They later discovered that the body was recating to how highly the food had been heated. When raw food was eaten, this response did not occur.

2)The Critical Temperature:
Reseachers have discovered that each food, including every grain, has a "critical temperature". (For example, the critical temperature of a potato is 200 degrees, whole wheat 192 degrees).

3)Thermotoxins:
But if a food is heated over its critical temperature, "thermotoxins" are created in the blood of the person eating it. For example, a baked potato which has been cooked at 350 degrees, will elicit a toxic reaction int he blood of the eater. The same potato, if slow baked at 200 degrees for a longer time, will create no toxic reaction when eaten. The higher a food is heated over its critical tempeature, the greater and more violent the termotoxic reaction takes place in the blood. Of course, this is not a reaction that you may feel immediately after consuming a highly heated food.

4)What's Wrong with Eating Regular Bread?
Because bread is so highly heated, it elicits a toxic blood reaction after it's eaten. (Dr. Marshall also recommended cutting all yeast out of your diet.)

5)Healthy, Low Heated Food
The researchers found that the critical temperature of most foods ranged around 200 degrees.

Recipe for bread:

2 1/2 cups of organic flour (they recommend grinding your own and I will do another post on the benefits of this).
3 1/2 cups purified water
1 tsp natural sea salt
Herbs to taste such as garlic, tumeric, etc.

Blend all ingredients in a blender. If you want thinner breads, add more water. Heat a non-stick pan and heat at medium temperature and pour a pancake size serving into pot. Cook as you would a pancake. Enjoy!

a simple twist on baked potatoes

This is what happens when you discover you don't have something basic in the house, like sour cream. You try to find away around it, and you discover something yummy...or at least, sometimes you do. And this happened to be one of those better times. :)

Simple Baked Potatoes

Bake your potatoes.
Cut open, spread with marscapone cheese and sprinkle with red Hawaiian sea salt.

Sounds like nothing, but oh does it make a surprisingly tasty baked potato!

Parker House Rolls

I made these Parker House Rolls for Thanksgiving dinner, and they were fabulous! I used the recipe from Martha Stewart's Baking Handbook. The recipe below is from her website, and it looks almost identical.

These rolls are easy to make--they do take a bit of time though. They were light and fluffy and so yummy. A definite hit at dinner!

Ingredients

Makes 30

• 1 3/4 unsalted butter, (14 tablespoons), cut into small pieces, plus more for bowl, muffin tin, and basting
• 1 1/4 cups warm (110ø) milk
• 2 (1/4 ounce each) active dry yeast
• 3 tablespoons sugar
• 1 1/4 teaspoons salt
• 1 pound , plus 14 ounces (about 5 1/2 cups) all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting
• 3 large eggs, lightly beaten

Directions

1. Butter a 12-by-9-inch rimmed baking sheet. Place 1/2 cup warm milk in a small bowl, and sprinkle with yeast; stir to dissolve yeast. Let stand until foamy, about 5 minutes.
2. In a medium saucepan over medium-high heat, bring remaining 3/4 cup milk just to a simmer. Remove from heat; add 6 tablespoons butter, along with sugar and salt, stirring until butter has completely melted. Set aside.
3. Place 4 1/2 cups flour in the bowl of an electric mixer. Make a well in the center with your hands, and pour in the yeast mixture, butter mixture, and eggs. Attach bowl to mixer fitted with the dough hook, and beat on low speed until dough just starts to come together, about 2 minutes. Turn out dough onto a lightly floured surface, and knead until smooth and no longer sticky, 5 minutes, adding remaining cup flour as needed. Butter a large bowl; place dough in bowl, turning to coat evenly with butter. Cover with a clean kitchen towel. Let rise in a warm place until doubled in bulk, about 1 1/2 hours. Punch down dough, and let rest 10 minutes.
4. Melt remaining stick of butter. Divide dough into two equal pieces. On a lightly floured surface, roll out one piece into a 12-by-10-inch rectangle, keeping the second piece covered with the towel. Refrigerate dough until well chilled, about 30 minutes. Repeat with remaining dough. Meanwhile, preheat oven to 375 degrees.
5. Place dough on a lightly floured work surface with long-side parallel to edge of work surface. Using a sharp paring knife, cut dough vertically into six 2-inch strips. Cut dough horizontally 4 inches from bottom edge of dough. Make another horizontal cut 3 1/2-inches from the first horizontal cut. Make a final horizontal cut 2 1/2-inches from the second cut.
6. Center a medium rectangle on a large rectangle, and top stack with a small rectangle; repeat with remaining rectangles. Fold each stack in half crosswise and transfer to a buttered muffin tin, folded-side in. Cover with a clean kitchen towel; let rise in a warm place for 30 minutes.
7. Brush melted butter over top of each roll. Bake until golden brown, about 20 minutes. Brush with more melted butter; serve hot or at room temperature.

First published: November 2005

* Yummy Fall Soup *

By the way, I baked one of those frozen apple pies. It came out quite well! The only thing I would do is add not just 1 extra tbsp of flour to the filling, but I'd add two extra tbsp. Also, I tried that crust recipe, and it made an outstanding pie crust.

Anyway, on to soup! Jess, you should be able to enjoy this dish even on your restrictions. Don't get too scared off by the title because it does have the dreaded KALE in it! I do not like kale at all, BUT I did enjoy it in this soup. I think anyone will be pleasantly surprised when they eat kale in this soup. The last time I made kale, I threw out the dish--awful!!! It's taken me about 3 years to get up enough gumption to try it again. But I searched out some internet recipes and I tried it again. I am happy to say that you can actually make a dish with kale in it that tastes good! Now, I also used a red kale (kind of purpley and green), so I'm also wondering if perhaps this type of kale is milder than the traditional green.

Below is the soup recipe, but first my notes:
-Add twice the amount of beans.
-Use only 1 onion.
-Chop the kale up very thin and fine.
-Take 1/3 of the potatoes and beans and puree them to thicken the soup.
-I didn't cook the sausage like she says--I just used pre-cooked chicken sausage and sliced it. I used a spicy one, and the spice complemented the soup nicely.

Sweet Potato, Sausage, and Kale Soup

This version of a traditional Portuguese soup uses sweet potatoes in place of white potatoes. For a thicker consistency, coarsely mash some of the beans before adding them to the soup.

Ingredients

object2=">2 tablespoons olive oil
object2=">4 cups chopped onion (about 2 large)
object2=">1 teaspoon salt, divided
object2=">1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper
object2=">6 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
object2=">1 pound sweet turkey Italian sausage
object2=">8 cups coarsely chopped peeled sweet potato (about 2 1/4 pounds)
object2=">5 cups water
object2=">4 cups fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth
object2=">1 (16-ounce) package prewashed torn kale
object2=">1 (16-ounce) can cannellini beans or other white beans, rinsed and drained

Preparation

Heat oil in a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add onion; sauté 5 minutes. Add 1/2 teaspoon salt, pepper, and garlic; sauté 1 minute. Remove casings from sausage; add sausage to pan. Cook 5 minutes or until sausage is lightly browned, stirring to crumble. Add potato, 5 cups water, and broth; bring to a boil. Reduce heat, and simmer 8 minutes. Gradually add kale; cook 10 minutes or until tender. Stir in remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt and beans; cook 5 minutes or until thoroughly heated.

Yield

10 servings (serving size: about 1 3/4 cups)

Nutritional Information

CALORIES 254(29% from fat); FAT 8.2g (sat 2.1g,mono 3.4g,poly 1.4g); PROTEIN 14.2g; CHOLESTEROL 27mg; CALCIUM 132mg; SODIUM 797mg; FIBER 6.9g; IRON 2.9mg; CARBOHYDRATE 34.8g

Maureen Callahan , Cooking Light, MARCH 2007

watermelon and apple pie

No, not together! Just a good tip about each.

Watermelon:
We had leftover watermelon (a lot of it!) that was going to go bad any day, and it was a little bland as well. I wanted to do something with it, so it wouldn't be wasted, but what do you do with watermelon? I searched around the internet briefly and found Watermelon Lemonade.

Basically, throw all the watermelon into a blender. (Mine was seeded, so I just put the chunks in a colander w/ a bowl underneath to catch juice, and used my fingers to push out the seeds. Sounds tedious, but it actually went really fast. I threw the seedless chunks and juice in the blender.) Blend until it's juice (10-20 sec). Now stir in lemon juice and sugar to taste. I skimped on the lemonade part. I only squeezed in 1 1/2 lemons and added a little sugar, but it was enough to bring some lemon flavor to the drink. The lemons really complemented the watermelon nicely, and combined it had a surprisingly good flavor. The juice was bright bright pink, which Maddie has really liked! I also saw a variation that was something like 2 parts watermelon juice, 1 part lemonade and 1 part iced tea. That might be interesting to try sometime.

Apple Pie:
I am making a frozen meal for some friends who are in need of some prepared dinners ready as needed. As I was looking for some recipes online for meals that freeze well, I found a recipe for frozen apple pie.

Dutch Apple Pie
(from: http://www.recipelink.com/msgid/025349 )

Crust: {Makes enuf for 2-10" double crust pies and 1 single 9" pie}
5 cups flour
1 lb. lard
2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1 egg
1 tbsp. apple cider vinegar
water

In measuring cup, mix 1 egg, 1tbsp. vinegar, and fill to 1 cup mark with water. Mix well. Roll out.

Filling:

5-6 cups sliced apples, peeled and cored
1 c. brown sugar
3 tbsp. flour***
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 c. melted margarine
3-4 tbsp. milk or rich cream

Slice apples into a big bowl. Mix all filling ingredients into apple slices. Fill crust. Top with second crust. Make slits in top crust. Bake approx. 1 hour at 350 degrees F. (I use glass pie plates)

***If you plan to freeze your pie, add extra tbsp. flour to filling. Do not make slits in top crust until you are ready to bake it. Freeze uncovered until it's frozen, then cover until you need to bake it. When you need it, preheat the oven to 425 degrees F., make your slits, Bake 20 minutes at that temperature, then turn down your oven to 350 degrees F. for approximately an hour or till the apples test done and the crust has browned nicely.

That's her recipe for apple pie, but I bet if you follow her tip on adding 1 extra tbsp flour to the filling plus her baking tips, it would probably work for any apple pie. I thought this was a handy thing to know. So, my friends are going to have fresh homemade apple pie for dessert! (And I'm making an extra for us too, of course!)

easy kabobs

This summer I found a really easy way to make kabobs. Trader Joes sells a delicious all natural kielbasa. It's already pre-cooked, so I just cut it up, along with some veggies, and slide them on the skewers, and Braden throws them on the grill for 10 minutes or so.

We have found the zucchini and yellow squash to be particularly tasty done this way. I've used cherry tomatoes or red bell peppers along with the zucchini and squash to round out the color. I also shoot for 3 times as many veggies as meat--that way you end up eating healthier! :)

To make 10 kabobs, I used:
1/2 the kielbasa (1/2 lb)
1 yellow squash
1 zucchini
1 red bell pepper

This time I marinated the chopped vegetables for 2 hours prior to putting them on the skewers. For the marinade I used:
1/8 cup balsamic vinegar
1/2 cup olive oil
3 tbsp honey
1 tbsp mustard
sprinkle of salt, pepper, garlic powder

A side-note: If you have never made kabobs before, it's helpful to know that you should soak wooden skewers in water for 20 minutes before you use them. That helps them to not burn up on the grill. I didn't know that the first time I made them a few years ago! :)

rose water

Recently I made an angel food cake. Instead of adding vanilla, I added rose water for the flavoring. I had never done that before, but it gave the cake a light and freshing flavor. Try it some time. I used my sunflower bundt pan, and it came out perfectly (which as we all know, for me, is quite a feat).

fresh pasta

A few weeks ago, Maddie and I set out to make fresh pasta one morning while Caleb was napping. We had so much fun, and it really wasn't that hard at all! We made enough pasta for one meal, plus enough ravioli for 2 meals. And we did it all, start to finish, clean-up included, in just under 2 hours.

We didn't follow a specific recipe, but obeyed the common rule I've read: 1 egg for each cup of flour, plus enough water to make a supple dough. I think we used 4 cups of flour (so that made 3 meals for our family, plus a bit of leftovers). To make it healthier, we used barley flour. I was just reading in an Italian cookbook that traditionally barley flour was also used to make pasta in some regions. It gave the pasta a nutty flavor which we ended up liking. I'd definitely make it again.

Here's Maddie helping to roll out the dough.

Here's our pasta drying--we handcut it.

Here's our ravioli waiting for the top layer of dough. Unfortunately I did not have any ricotta in the fridge. So, for the filling I used cream cheese instead, along with some fresh basil, minced garlic, fresh squeezed lemon juice, and a little salt & pepper. It turned out to be a very yummy filling!

Here's the finished ravioli drying.

SOFT and LIGHT Whole Wheat Bread

Okay, I have FINALLY found it! I found a 100% whole wheat bread that is SOFT and LIGHT. It really is. I found it online at copykat.com . Here is the recipe link. Do everything she says to do and it should come out. I made it yesterday and my loaf came out light and fluffy and soft. You've got to try it.

http://www.copykat.com/component/option,com_rapidrecipe/Itemid,28/page,viewrecipe/recipe_id,1125/

Blueberry Zucchini Flower Loaf Bread...

It's summer and it's blueberry season! Though blueberries are a rare find here, I did get some at the farmer's market this week and couldn't resist the combination of blueberries and zucchini flowers. So, here's my take on blueberry muffins, making them into mini-loaves instead!

2 eggs

1 1/2 cups skim milk

4 cups flour (white or whole wheat)

2/3 cup sugar

6 tsp baking powder

2 tsp salt

3 cups blueberries

1 cup zucchini flowers, chopped

Preheat oven to 350 (if baking with stone, as I did, don't preheat). In large bowl, beat eggs, then stir in milk and oil. Add remaining ingredients and stir until flour is moist. The batter will be slightly lumpy. Fill greased mini-loaf pans to about 3/4 full. Bake for 35-45 minutes, or until golden brown. Makes 4 mini-loaves. Enjoy!!
(PS - For those who are wondering, the zucchini flowers do not really add any taste, they are more for show.)

Jess' Roasted Vegies (I know, such a creative name!!)

Start by splitting in half Japanese eggplants (very small petite eggplants) and some medium sized plump tomatos, making sure that they sit evenly on the baking tray.
Drizzle with olive oil.
Add your favorite seasonings...Dave and I love a seasoning combo called Pizza Magic.
Add a thin slice of asiago cheese to each piece of vegie.Roast at 400 until cheese starts to bubble or vegies start to slightly brown...yum!!

Summertime Lasagna

Sorry, no pictures (it's all gone!) but this was a fabulous dish! I had some squash and zucchini I needed to use, so I thought of trying a vegetable lasagna. Since it was my own creation, I didn't know if it would turn out (thus I wasn't planning on posting, so no pictures), but it came out so good! Braden loved it, Caleb devoured it. It was a delicious lasagna, and much lighter than the traditional.

Summertime Lasagna

1 package lasagna noodles (I used the ones you don't have to pre-cook)
1 jar tomato sauce
2 medium size yellow squash
1 large zucchini
mozzarella cheese
(pesto)

Lay noodles in bottom of a 9x13 pan. Spread 1/3 of the sauce on the noodles. I happened to have some fresh pesto I had just made, so I spread some of that on too, maybe 2 tbsp. Cover with 1/2 of the zucchini and squash. Sprinkle generously with cheese. Repeat one more time. Top with the remaining noodles, then sauce, and sprinkle the top with mozzarella. Cover with foil and bake at 375 for 50 minutes. Pull out of the oven, take off the foil, and bake uncovered for 10 more minutes.

Summertime Galette...

This recipe turned out to be so much easier than I first thought it would be. Prep time was only around 15 minutes. I can't wait to taste this tonight at Caregroup with a scoop of vanilla gelato to top it off.

Apricot-Blackberry Galette

1/2 recipe Cornmeal Pate Brisee

12 fresh apricots, pitted and cut into sixths

2 cups fresh blackberries ( I used 1 cup blackberries, 1 cup raspberries)

1/2 cup sugar

Juice of 1/2 lemon, about 1 tablespoon

2 tablespoons cornstarch

Pinch of salt

1 large egg, lightly beaten

Sugar for sprinkling

On a lightly floured work surface, roll out dough to a 14-inch round, about 1/8 inch thick. Transfer dough to a large parchment-lined baking sheet. Refrigerate until ready to use, up to 1 hour. Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 375 degrees. In a large bowl, gently toss together apricots, blackberries, sugar, lemon juice, cornstarch, and salt. Arrage fruit mixture on top of dough, leaving a 2-inch border all the way around. Fold border over the fruit mixture, overlapping where necessary and pressing gently to adhere the folds. Bruch edges of dough with egg, and sprinkle with sugar. Bake until crust is golden brown and the juices are bubbing, about 1 hour. Transfer the baking sheet to a wire rack to cool the galette. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Cornmeal Pate Brisee

2 cups all purpose flour

1/2 cup cornmeal

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon sugar

2 sticks (1 cup ) unsalted butter, cold, cut into pieces

1/4 to 1/2 cup ice water

Place the flour, cornmeal, salt, and sugar in the bowl of a food processor, and pulse several times to combine. Add the butter, and process until the mixture resembles coarse meal, aobut 10 seconds. With the machine running, pour the ice water through the feed tube in a slow, steady stream, until the dough just hold together (do not process for more than 30 seconds). Turn out the dough onto a clean work surface. Divide in half, and place each half on a piece of plastic wrap. Flatten each to form a disk. Wrap, and refrigerate at least 1 hour or up to 1 day before using. (Dough can be frozen, wrapped well in plastic, for up to 3 weeks before using.)

Piadinas...

Summer Pesto Pasta Salad...

I got the inspiration for this pasta salad from a pasta primavera I recently made. This recipe is SO easy and so yummy!

*1 pound cooked pasta (any shape you choose)

*4 carrots, cut into bit size pieces

*1/2 green and 1/2 red bell peppers cut into bite size pieces

*1 can sliced olives

*10 cherry tomoatoes, each cut in half

Combine all these ingredients in a large bowl. Now for the pesto sauce:

*2 cups basil leaves, packed

*1/2 teaspoon salt

*1/2 teaspoon pepper

*1 garlic clove

*1/4 pine nuts (toasted if you have time)

*2/3 cup olive oil

*1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese

Combine first 5 ingredients in a food processer and blend. Add about 2/3 cup olive oil until a creamy sauce forms. Lastly, stir in cheese. Add this sauce to your pasta and vegies and you have a fabulous pasta salad! Enjoy! (Can be served warm or cold.)

Soft Cheese Pretzels

A few days ago Maddie and I made cheese pretzels. This was a great activity to do with Maddie--and a great one to do with any small children for that matter. It is a simple recipe that you can mix up in minutes, makes a minimal mess, and it's like playing with play-do only you get to eat it in the end. My mom used to make these with us when we were little. Maddie and I had a lot of fun making pretzels and we have all enjoyed eating them! They are particularly yummy hot from the oven.

Soft Cheese Pretzels

In a small bowl mix together:
1/4 cup warm water
1 tbsp yeast
1 tsp sugar
Stir together and let sit until it begins to foam.

Using the dough hook on your kitchen aid, add to the mixer and mix briefly:
4 cups flour (to be more nutritious, I used half whole wheat and they still came out light, soft and chewy)
4 cups grated cheddar cheese
1 tsp salt
1 tbsp sugar

Add the foamy yeast mixture and begin mixing. While mixing, slowly add up to 1 1/2 cups of water. Add only enough water to make a soft but firm dough. The dough should not be sticky at all.

Let the dough rise to double in size. Punch down dough and begin to form soft pretzels. We made 24 small pretzels. Let the pretzels rise until double in size. Brush the tops with an egg white and sprinkle coarse salt on top. Bake at 425 for 10 minutes.

Here's Maddie rolling out the "snakes" for the pretzels.

Maddie started getting creative. Here she is pinching her snake before making it into a pretzel.


Here are our pretzels formed and getting ready to rise.


When we were making the pretzels, Maddie and I talked about who we could share some with. The next morning we took some over to Maddie's friend Carson.