More pickling

The first jar of solar pickles lasted less than 2 days. Child and I decided to repeat the experiment, using up our leftover farm fresh cucumbers and carrots.

We used one pint sized ball jar for each.

Ingredients
(in the order we put them in the jar)

In the cuke jar
- a big handful of dill from the garden
- between 1/2 and 3/4 teaspoon fresh ground salt
- 3/4 teaspoon minced garlic
- 3/4 of a large farm fresh cucumber, sliced, and artfully stuffed into jar
- 1/2 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
- fill half the jar with apple cider vinegar
- add 2 teaspoons It's a Dilly (I'm hoping the lemon flavor will add some pizzazz to my pickles)
- fill the rest of the jar with water
SHAKE

For the carrots:
- large amounts of dill from the garden
- 1 heaping teaspoon minced garlic
- 3/4 teaspoon fresh ground salt
- 3/4 teaspoon fresh ground pepper
- carrots, in sticks, to fill jar
- fill half of jar with apple cider vinegar
- fill the rest of the jar with water

Cucumber Sandwiches

After I pulled my back today, my husband made one of my favorite summer snacks for me:
Cucumber sandwiches!

- Cream cheese
- cucumber
- It's a dilly

on crackers or bread.

In this case, on multigrain/rye crackers.

Midnight corn snack

I was in the mood for something salty. So, at 9 p.m., having not cooked a real meal since Friday, I whipped up the following in the Le Creuset skillet:


- 1/2 teaspoon extra virgin olive oil, just enough to grease the pan
- about two teaspoons it's a dilly
- 1/2 teaspoon butter (omit if vegan)
- one Morningstar vegetarian sausage pattie, crumbled
- one can corn, rinsed
- one can sliced white potatoes, rinsed
- 1/2 teaspoon four color pepper
- another 1/2 teaspoon butter

Shrimp with broccoli

A friend bought a bag of shrimp for us to help celebrate my birthday. Tonight I made a shrimp, broccoli and egg noodle dish.

I sauteed the shrimp in butter, 3/4 clove garlic, and lemon juice. Sprinkled with it's a dilly.

Sauteed broccoli in olive oil and a touch of butter. Added that to the cooked pasta, added some extra virgin olive oil and a tad more butter. Mixed.

Added the shrimp. Mixed.

Added shredded asiago.

served.

Scrambled egg wraps

Tonight for dinner I made a knock off of Vito Caiati's Heuvos Diablo. I started with five eggs (that's how many were left in the package). I only had two tortillas left so I heated those in my le Creuset pan, with a touch of olive oil in the pan. For the other, I put the last section of homemade bread in the skillet.

I made a simple salad for each of us of romaine lettuce, a touch of romano and some ranch dressing.

I put a tortilla (or bread) on each plate. Then I added more oil to the Le Creuset skillet and approximately an equal part low sodium soy sauce and let it heat. Added a can of potatoes. (Yes, a can. I keep them around for when I want potatoes and don't have potatoes.) Sprinkled them with It's a Dilly.

Scrambled the eggs, added some soy milk, put them in a different skillet. Once they were scrambled I topped with havarti dill cheese and transferred to the tortilla shell.

For the sauce, I mixed one part horseradish mustard with two parts mayonnaise.

The beverage of choice was 100% juice diluted with seltzer.

Pork with black beans, egg noodles and broccoli

I had a craving for something different... A long time ago, my mother (Mimi) mentioned something about how good for you black beans are and she made a pork, black beans and egg noodle dish in beef broth that was pretty good.

I thought I'd make my own spin on it.

I started with two small crowns of broccoli, chopped into bite-size pieces.

In my Le Creuset skillet, I placed the following:

• Several tablespoons lemon juice
• one tablespoon butter
• Several tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 1/2 of one large clove garlic, sliced
• 1/2 teaspoon four color pepper

I cooked this for a few seconds and then placed the raw broccoli in the skillet and cooked it in the sauce. I sprinkled it heartily with It's a Dilly Seasoning (probably about two teaspoons, it came out fast) Don't cook too long. Want to leave it crispy.

I removed the broccoli from the pan. Then, I began a new sauce, the same, but more:

• 4 tablespoons butter
• 4 tablespoons lemon juice
• less than 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• the other 1/2 of the large clove garlic, sliced

My husband sliced two thick boneless pork chops into stir-fry like pieces. I sprinkled them directly with the four-color pepper and added them to the pan. Cook about five minutes on each side, on low side of medium.

Meanwhile, cook one pound egg noodles. Open one can black beans. Rinse well.

Add broccoli and beans to finished pork, in skillet. Drain egg noodles. Add to skillet.

Finish with about 16 ounces vegetable stock. I use Wegmans. Let simmer in skillet until hot.

I thought this was fabulous.

Cucumber salad

Shannon made cucumber salad for her family reunion. She doesn't measure so I figure I'd make an approximation of what she did, because it looks very yummy.

Shan's Cucumber Salad

• 1/2 one large red onion, diced
• 1 large can black olives, either sliced or mooshed by hand
• About 4 large cucumbers, in large chunks
  
• Ranch dressing (somewhere 2/3 cup?)
• Apple cider vinegar (around one cup?)
• Flax seed (about three teaspoons)
• garlic powder (about four tablespoons, to taste)
• dill or It's a Dilly (about four tablespoons, to taste)

Combine and chill. Serve once flavors blend.

Crabbiless Crab Patties

This recipe comes from The Imus Ranch Cookbook. That particular cookbook considers itself vegan because they raise their own chickens and therefore have a comfort with eggs. If you are truly vegan, this recipe will not appeal to you.

For the everyday eater, this is a fabulous way to use up those zucchini from the garden, especially the big ones that may not longer be tender.

I will be making a version tonight that includes lemon-pepper cheese from the farm.

Crabiless Crab Cakes
By Deirdre Imus
From The Imus Ranch cookbook

2 cups grated zucchini (whether or not you skin it first is a personal preference)
1 cup seasoned breadcrumbs
3/4 cup soy or regular cheddar cheese (I have reduced this in the past)
1/2 cup finely diced red onion (I skip or replace with some chives or with a clove of garlic)
1 egg, lightly beaten
2 tablespoons vegan (soy) or regular mayo
1 teaspoon worcestershire sauce (I use soy sauce)
1 teaspoon dijon mustard
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1/4 cup olive oil (for frying)

Combine everything but the oil in a big bowl, form into patties and fry. They suggest these amounts make six cakes. Cook over medium heat seven to ten minutes per side.

Thursday, July 23... Two days after the original post... I finally got the ingredients assembled to make this. That huge zucchini made about 13 cups grated zucchini. I froze about 5 cups in one bag, four in another and kept the remaining for a double batch of the crabbiless patties.

My ingredients
4.5 cups grated zucchini
3 cups Italian seasoned breadcrumbs
3/4 cup sheddar sharp cheddar
1/2 cup parmesan
1/4 lemon cheese spread from the farm
2 farm fresh brown eggs
2 teaspoons brown mustard
4 tablespoons safflower mayo
2 teaspoons reduced sodium soy sauce
1 teaspoon fresh grated four color pepper
2 teaspoons It's a Dilly
a random spattering of fresh chives

I got 11 patties yield. I layered five on paper towels to help absorb the moisture, covered with wax paper, another paper towel and then another five. I repeated one more time with the last lone pattie and then covered and placed in fridge until ready to cook.

Too much moisture and too rapid heat with make zucchini hash out of your patties. So cook carefully.

Cucumber sandwiches

Because of our trip to the farm this morning, and the offerings from my mother's garden... We opted for cucumber sandwiches for lunch. This works out especially well because my mother-in-law gave us a variety of crackers leftover (and unopened) from my grandmother-in-law's 90th birthday last weekend.

Mimi, my mother, brought us a cucumber from her garden yesterday and there's only two ways I like cucumbers: in a salad or on these sandwiches.

We served with fresh blueberries my father-in-law picked last week and blueberry yogurt smoothie from Klein farm.

Angel's Cucumber Sandwiches (perfect for a tea party or summer lunch)
Ingredients

• 1 cucumber sliced

• Some variety of spreadable cheese, vegan cream cheese, or cream cheese. (Today we used lemon pepper cheese spread from Klein farm)
• Crackers (wheat thins, triscuits, Ritz, whatever)
• It's a Dilly Seasoning (A McCormick product with onion, garlic, dill, lemon and jalapeno pepper. Salt free)

Take one cracker, spread with cheese, top with cucumber, sprinkle it's a dilly on top. I prefer mine open faced. My daughter and husband both prefer lids.

Pepper Ranch Chicken with French Butter Cream sauce (kind of)

I started this meal with some frozen corn, prepared with no butter or sauce. I also used canned whole potatoes which I cooked in olive oil, low sodium soy sauce (about 50/50 each) and seasonings... in this case I used It's a Dilly. Normally I would use straight dill. You can also use parsley.

The chicken is a variation of Rosemary Pepper Chicken, a French recipe. This is the rosemary chicken recipe as I found it on the Internet about a year ago:

Ingredients:
3 tablespoons cracked pink peppercorns
3 tablespoons cracked green peppercorns
2 skinless boneless chicken breast halves
1 cup heavy cream
1/2 cup butter, divided
1 clove garlic, pressed
1/2 teaspoon dried rosemary

1. Mix together peppercorns and spread over both sides of the chicken breasts. Pound with a tenderizing mallet until they are half as thick as before.
2. Melt half the butter over medium high heat. Fry chicken breasts about five minutes per side. Remove chicken to serving dish and keep warm.
3. Stir in the remaining butter, cream, rosemary and garlic into the skillet mixing it into the juices from the chicken. Simmer for five minutes, stirring constantly. Pour over chicken and serve.

My variations:
I always used four color peppercorns in a grinder. I also never seem to have the rosemary so I substitute whatever seasoning I have on hand. Tonight I used organic ranch dip mix. And I don't use chicken breasts, I use tenders. Oh, and I used half and half not cream. But I did use real butter!

My first chicken salad!!!

After surveying my friends and my cookbooks, I have decided to try my hand at chicken salad.

My friends all recommended curry. And various fruits. And since my favorite chicken salad on earth is that of my high school English teacher and involves grapes... and my second favorite is the Apple Walnut Chicken Salad at Java's Brewin at New and Broad Street in Bethlehem...

A random little cookbook from my mother, Salads and Dressings Varied and Delicious by G&R Publishing, 1993, lists the following for chicken salad:

Chicken Salad

from Salads and Dressings Varied and Delicious

2 cups cooked chicken, diced coarse

1 cup celery diced

3/4 cup peeled cucumbers

1 TBS finely cut green onion

Dash salt

1 cup salad dressing

Angel's Chicken Salad with Fruit

1 3/4 cup chicken

1 cup chopped apple

1/2 cup golden raisins

1/2 cup chopped grapes

1/2 cup nut topping

1 tsp. it's a dilly

3/4 cup Nayonnaise/ soy mayonnaise

End of month review

January certainly did not follow the typical pattern around here. I just reviewed the finances for January and unless I spend unforeseen amounts of money today, we ended up spending $162.53 on groceries and $151.01 on dining. Remember we had a house guest for close to three weeks, and that accounts for some of the cost. And last night I splurged and treated the family to dinner out. That was $37. The great thing is our pantry is not as depleted as usual. I even have enough beef in the freezer for a batch of stew. I have lots of frozen veggies (even artichoke hearts), lots of sauce and plenty of noodles. 

I did not bring the camera last night so you don't get to see the feast we enjoyed. We went to MexTex Trio, a fabulous restaurant in downtown Easton. We've been there four times now (and if our finances were better we would probably be there once or twice a month.) They have a kids menu that includes chicken breast and spanish rice, or quesadilla, or tacos/burritos. We tried the chicken breast. We've tried several of the option and our daughter prefers the Nachos de Rey off the appetizer menu. It's enough to feed an army, so we usually share.

Since MexTex had some technological issues, we had to pay with cash. That meant my husband had to walk to the MAC machine. And it meant there was no wiggle r

oom in the budget for the evening. We had $50.

My husband offered to share nachos with our daughter. I ordered a round of hot chocolate for us. It's $2.50 a cup but man is it incredible. And I teased it was dessert, and we were having it first. (And since my husband got to walk several blocks in the cold it seemed a nice treat to warm him.) I couldn't decide what I wanted so I ordered a chicken quesadilla with a side of spanish rice and a side of fried beans. Then we shared everything. The bill came to $3o.15. I added a $7 tip. We all left full.

I hate to do an entry without a photo, so this is a photo of the fritos and dip we had the other day. The dip was an organic ranch mix that you add to sour cream. It was the first time I tried it, and being me, I added It's a dilly to give it some zing. The family loved it. That little cup was all I made, just enough for a little snack for each of us.

Homemade Hummus

My daughter had another huge bowl of cream of wheat for breakfast, followed with some of my homemade granola at 9 a.m. We stopped by her daddy's office and got invited to share the leftover covered dish items from the luncheon yesterday, which included my spinach dip. Primarily, my family enjoyed ham and spinach dip (though I didn't touch the ham). My daughter ate at least a cup, if not two, of spinach without dipping it in anything.

My original plan for lunch had been peanut butter and jelly on the potato wheat bread my father-in-law gave us last week and carrot sticks with blue cheese dressing and fruit juice to drink. But the surprise lunch out got me thinking... I want hummus for dinner.

My husband bought sesame bagels over the weekend at the grocery store so hummus would be perfect. The carrot sticks will also go well. And the green pepper I bought a while ago will be a nice addition.

I discovered my hummus recipe online about ten or so years ago. A guy had made a chart of hummus and its variations. The basic recipe is as follows:

In the food processor, blend:

Three cloves garlic, minced;
16 ounces chick peas;
1/2 cup lemon juice or juice of 1/2 a lemon (I used all);
1 teaspoon toasted sesame seeds (fry briefly in skillet until aromatic) and/or tahini (I forgot the exact volume of tahini but I would say at least a tablespoon or two);
1 teaspoon salt;
1 teaspoon olive oil;
1/4 teaspoon cayenne;
cumin if desired;
parsley if desired.

Chill thoroughly before serving to allow flavors to blend.

Slacker food day: Rotini with pine nuts and creamy buttered veggies

So, my husband honored my daughter's request for a sandwich for breakfast in a totally different way that I would have. He made an egg sandwich with cheese and bacon on a deli bagel. We each got half a bagel. He took the leftover sausage and peppers for lunch. I got peanut butter on graham crackers and some homemade granola. My daughter stayed with her grandparents today, so she had grilled cheese, peanut butter and jelly, pickles and chips. I am not a proponent of the sandwich, pickles and chips lunch but... Because of the sheer volume of cheese we've had recently, I have vetoed cheese as an ingredient in tonight's dinner. My husband is whipping up some sort of whole wheat pasta and vegetables... and if I ever get my shoe off I will help him and toast some pine nuts... I know whatever he puts in dinner won't be enough protein for me. Especially since I'm starved.

Once I got into the kitchen, I mixed up some olive oil, butter, half and half, milk, basil, four colors of pepper, garlic pepper, It's a dilly (The perfect herb mix for cucumber sandwiches... Mmmmm), in the skillet and tossed in the california blend vegetables. When that was good and hot, I mixed in some italian breadcrumbs to change the texture. I served with the last of the fresh pineapple.