Chocolate Sourdough Cake

I've mentioned before that I'm taking the GNOWFGLINS Sourdough E-Course, but I haven't posted anything yet that I've made as a result of the e-course. I made this chocolate sourdough cake before we left for vacation. The recipes for the e-course that week included this chocolate cake and also a spice cake. I'm planning to make the spice cake very soon and I think this will be my go-to chocolate cake recipe from now on. This is SO good! Its so moist and flavorful and just delicious! I ended up making the cream/yogurt cheese frosting rather than the chocolate coconut cream frosting because I was having trouble finding coconut butter. I'll have to order some and try it again with the chocolate frosting. But it was very tasty with the cream/yogurt cheese frosting!

Meal plans and the week ahead

We had an amazing vacation last week in Colorado. We were sad for it to end, but in many ways it's good to be home. I was anxious to get back into the kitchen. Yesterday morning, I signed our contract to purchase two cow shares at a farm near us (about 20 minutes away) and picked up 2 gallons of raw milk for the week. I got right to work on some of it, making some raw milk yogurt. I realize I still haven't posted the method that I use now for yogurt, so hopefully it'll show up this week on the blog. I also picked up our CSA order yesterday morning and got right to work freezing 4 pounds of broccoli and canning more chopped tomatoes. As well as de-cobbing 3 dozen ears of corn, blanching, and freezing. I think I may do one more batch of corn this week and I think I'll call it good for the year. I also dehydrated some lemon basil from the CSA and harvested a ton of basil from our garden to make and freeze pesto yesterday, as well.

Today we'll be heading out to the farmers' market. Monday I may go biking with my friend. Tuesday I have a hair appointment in the evening. Wednesday I will be in Detroit for meetings all day and I believe Kevin is going mountain biking that night. Thursday I will be in Windsor for meetings all day. Friday is my flex day and will now be my milk day... when I make my weekly trip out to the farm to pick up our milk. It's convenient to pick up the milk and our CSA since they are on the way from one another. So that's what I'll be doing on Friday. Saturday we will go biking together as a family and will probably be putting in a few new windows in the basement.

As for extras this week... I'm looking to accomplish a lot! Here's my list...
- I'm planning to put up some vanilla rum plums and maybe some peaches in brandy today for this week's Preserving the Summer's Bounty challenge. I am having so much fun trying out the traditional preservation techniques!
- I'm also going to make some more lacto-fermented roasted tomato salsa. I think I will do a half-gallon jar full this time and call it good.
- I may try out another lacto-fermented salsa recipe later in the week with some tomatoes from our garden, but we'll see how many I end up getting this week.
- I ordered some sweet banana peppers from the CSA this week, so I'm planning to make some lacto-fermented banana peppers, as well.
- I ordered some more cabbage from the CSA, so I'll either make up more sauerkraut or maybe I'll try cortido or kim chi this time.
- I'll be making some chicken stock/bone broth.
- I'll be blanching and freezing more broccoli that I ordered from the CSA... and possibly some more corn.
- I'll be drying some more tomatoes so that I can make another few pints of dried tomatoes in oil.
- I may try making some sourdough tortillas and/or sourdough hamburger buns... this is last on my priority list, though...
- I'll be getting both my water and dairy kefir going again.
- And lastly, I'll be picking up a SCOBY at the farm on Friday, so I'll be starting up a batch of kombucha! I'm so excited for that! I bought a half-gallon of it from the farm when I went yesterday and it is soooo good!

Sunday ~ farmers' market
(make vanilla rum plums and peaches in brandy; make LF roasted tomato salsa; make dairy and water kefir; feed sourdough starter)
B: sourdough pancakes
L: bibb lettuce salads with leftover grilled steak; hard-boiled egg; cucumbers; summer squash; carrots
D: TBD... possibly going over to in-laws' house

Monday ~ biking?
B: scrambled eggs with gouda
D: taco rice (from freezer); steamed veggies; applesauce

Tuesday ~ hair appointment
(make dairy and water kefir)
B: muffins from freezer; fresh fruit
D: crockpot rotisserie chicken; bibb lettuce salads with raw veggies (cucumber, carrot, corn, beans); applesauce

Wednesday ~ Detroit for work; Kevin's bike night?
(make chicken stock/bone broth)
B: apples with almond butter
D: crockpot quinoa and chicken

Thursday ~ Windsor for work
(make dairy and water kefir)
B: kefir fruit smoothies
D: crockpot white bean and ham soup (with ham from the freezer)

Friday ~ flex day! milk and CSA pickup
(make LF banana peppers; make kombucha; make sauerkraut/cortido/kim chi; blanch and freeze broccoli; blanch and freeze corn?; feed starter)
B: mini frittatas
D: kraut bierock (from freezer); steamed veggies; fresh fruit

Saturday ~ biking; windows
(clean; make LF salsa?; make dairy and water kefir; make sourdough tortillas and/or hamburger buns?)
B: scrambled eggs with veggies
L: picnic while biking... cashew avocado chicken salad sandwiches; dehydrated veggie crisps; fresh fruit
D: TBD... hamburgers if I make buns or tacos if I make tortillas... if I don't make either, then we'll have meatloaf... also zucchini fries and steamed veggies

Meal plans and the week ahead

We've got a really busy week this week. But its going to be fantastic!! Lots of fun things, plus we leave for Colorado at the end of the week! Woohoo!! :) So I won't be posting a weekly post next week... my next one will be on the 29th after we're back.

We're headed out to breakfast and the farmers' market with my parents this morning. Then, this afternoon we'll be heading out to Dairy Delight farm in Cohoctah Township. We'll check out the farm and then I think we'll be signing a cow share agreement for raw milk! Yeah!! I'm very excited! :) Tuesday is the last ski show of the season, so we're going to go check it out again. Wednesday is the annual Back to the Bricks car cruise (well, the entire week is Back to the Bricks, but we're just going on Wednesday). So, we'll probably head out to Grand Blanc for the evening. Thursday will be dedicated to packing and cleaning. We'll be doing some packing and cleaning throughout the week, but Thursday will be our night to wrap everything up. And we're leaving Friday mid-morning for the airport! We're so looking forward to vacation!

Last week I froze another 10 pounds of blueberries (the Jerseys are in and they're my favorite!) and used another 5 pounds for fresh eating and baking projects. I froze more beans, corn, and zucchini, too. I also dehydrated some tomatoes as part of my post tomorrow for Preserving the Summer's Bounty. And I canned some pasta sauce on Friday night. I also went to my first meeting of the local chapter of the Weston A. Price Foundation. It was really cool. The speaker this month focused on heart health. I learned so much and can't wait for upcoming meetings and events!

So anyway, here's the plan... not many extras this week! I'm just trying to use up most of the perishables in the fridge this week.

Sunday ~ breakfast; farmers' market; Dairy Delight farm
(make and can last batch of pasta sauce; clean; start piles for packing)
B: out
L: pesto nicoise salads; fresh fruit
D: grilled chicken kebabs with zucchini, cherry tomatoes, onions, red bell peppers

Monday ~
(clean)
B: kefir smoothies with fruit
D: grilled salmon kebabs with zucchini, cherry tomatoes, mushrooms; applesauce

Tuesday ~ SLSC Ski Show
B: yogurt/kefir with granola and fruit
D: picnic lunch at the show... raw milk cheese; sourdough crackers; hard-boiled eggs; veggie chips; raw veggies; fresh fruit


Wednesday ~ Back to the Bricks
B: scrambled eggs with yogurt cheese, sun-dried tomatoes, and avocado
D: TBD... I think we'll probably eat out at the Hot Dog Stand or something in downtown GB, but maybe not

Thursday ~
(pack!)
B: kefir smoothies with fruit
D: misc. clean out the fridge

Friday ~ leave for Colorado!
B: kefir smoothies with fruit

Lacto-Fermented Roasted Tomato Salsa

I've been wanting to try out a lacto-fermented salsa recipe for awhile now. With the first week of the Preserving Summer's Bounty Challenge focused on fermentation and last week's tomato festival at the farmers' market ($10 for a half-bushel of Roma tomatoes!), I figured this was the perfect time to try it out. I had come across a recipe for a roasted tomato lacto-fermented salsa on Cooking God's Way awhile back, so I dug it out and gave it a go on Friday. This takes some time to roast the veggies and let them cool, but then it comes together pretty quickly. It tastes amazing, too! We tried it last night. I think I'll be making at least a few more quarts of this after I get some more roma tomatoes this week. This first quart certainly isn't going to last long!

Lacto-fermented Roasted-Tomato Salsa

2 pounds Roma tomatoes (about 8 to 10), sliced in half length-wise
4 large cloves garlic (do not peel)
1 medium onion (yellow or red), sliced into thick rings but not separated
2 jalapeno peppers, left whole (I just used 1)
1 small bunch cilantro, or to taste
2 Tablespoons lemon or lime juice
1 teaspoon cumin
1/2 teaspoon mexican oregano
pinch ground cayenne pepper, or more to taste
1 Tablespoon unrefined sea salt
4 Tablespoons whey

Preheat broiler to 500F. Have ready a large heavy-duty baking sheet. Gently smash cloves of garlic with the back of a spoon or drinking glass, leave skins on. Place tomato halves on baking sheet (cut side up), along with the sliced onion, garlic cloves, and jalapeno peppers. Place baking sheet in oven, directly under broiler, checking on them every 5 minutes. Turn as needed, when tops are browned and/or bubbly. Brown both sides, removing any pieces as necessary when they are finished.


Place broiled peppers into a plastic zip-top bag and seal. Allow to steam for 5 minutes. When done steaming; peel off the skin and remove stem, seeds, and membrane. Meanwhile mince all the vegetables (be sure to peel garlic first) to desired size

NOTE: If you have a food processor, mincing the vegetables is very easy and quick to do. Just pulse all ingredients, individually in the food processor. It is important NOT to mince them all at once, or you will end up with half the ingredients turned into a puree before the other half gets to the size you want.

As you mince each ingredient (tomatoes, garlic, onion, peppers, cilantro) add it to a medium mixing bowl. When everything is minced and added to the bowl, add the lemon (or lime) juice, cumin, and oregano; stir gently to combine. Stir in the whey and sea salt. Taste and add ground cayenne pepper as desired.

Pour salsa mixture into a quart-sized mason jar, screw-on lid with metal band. OR Use a quart-sized Fermented Vegetable Master, they work wonders and really make all your fermented veggies taste better. (Always remember to leave 1-inch of space from the top of the jar to allow for expansion.)

Leave at room-temperature for 2 days before transferring to cold storage.

Makes 1-quart.

Meal plans and the week ahead

We're looking forward to more fun things this week. This morning, we'll be going to church for my cousin Megan's daughter's baptism. Marty, Megan, and Haleigh live in Virginia now, but they wanted to do Haleigh's baptism here in the church they've gone to for a long time with their friends and family. This will be our first time meeting Haleigh, so we're very excited to be a part of such a special day! After church, we'll be going over to Marty's dad's house for a lunch celebration. Monday night, we'll be going out to my Aunt Jeri's to get together with just our family to spend some more time with Marty, Megan, and Haleigh. Tuesday I'm going to Zumba. Wednesday is Kevin's mountain bike night. Thursday, my cousin Jessica will be stopping over so I can show her where everything is and the routine with the animals since she'll be staying with Jet and Denver for a few days while we're in Colorado. We don't have any plans on Friday, other than picking up our CSA order. Saturday we'll be heading over to Forrester, a little town on Lake Huron in the Thumb for the re-marriage of my Aunt Nancy and Uncle Jim.

As for extras this week, I'll continue to preserve as much as I can. Last week, I froze beans, zucchini, carrots, celery, onions, and bell peppers; lacto-fermented salsa, sweet pickles, and more beans; canned tomatoes, salsa, and cream of celery soup; and dried lots of herbs - purple basil, green basil, rosemary, celery leaves, german thyme, sage, oregano, tarragon, and parlsey. I need to freeze more corn this week - both on and off the cob. I'm planning to make one of the sourdough cakes that are coming up in this week's Sourdough E-Course. And I'll be canning some more cream of celery soup and trying out a new pasta sauce recipe to can using the celery and tomatoes I'll be picking up with our CSA on Friday. I'd like to do another few quarts of the lacto-fermented salsa, too. And I might attempt creamed corn at some point, as well.

Sunday - Haleigh's baptism
(feed sourdough starter; make water kefir and dairy kefir; make crispy walnuts in dehydrator with soaked walnuts)
B: omelets with yogurt cheese, sun-dried tomatoes, spinach, and avocado
L: Haleigh's baptism after-party
D: grilled salmon; raw corn and avocado salad; grilled zucchini; honey rock melon

Monday - family get-together to see Megan, Marty, and Haleigh
(feed sourdough starter; make dairy kefir)
B: hard-boiled eggs; cheese slices
D: at my Aunt Jeri's

Tuesday - WAPF meeting; Zumba
(soak flour for sourdough cake; make water kefir and dairy kefir)
B: kefir fruit smoothies
D: crockpot split pea soup; zucchini yeast rolls from freezer

Wednesday - Allen St. Market; Kevin's mountain biking night
(make sourdough cake; make dairy kefir)
B: rhubarb banana rosemary muffins from freezer
D: leftovers or salads

Thursday - Jessica coming over
(make lacto-fermented salsa; make water kefir and dairy kefir)
B: scrambled eggs with veggies
D: quiche with ham, spinach, and whatever veggies I have on hand

Friday - pick up CSA order
(make and can pasta sauce; make dairy kefir)
B: kefir fruit smoothies
D: pork souvlaki; corn ceviche; roasted cauliflower and cabbage; applesauce

Saturday - wedding in Forrester
(make and can creamed corn?; make water kefir and dairy kefir)
B: scrambled eggs with pesto
L: stuffed peppers; fresh fruit
D: wedding reception

Cream of Celery Soup

Local celery has been in season for the last couple of weeks, so I've been stocking up as much as I can. I've frozen quite a bit for use in soups and stews, but I also wanted to can some cream of celery soup. Cream of celery is my favorite cream soup. By making it myself, I know exactly what is in it and can use all local, high-quality, sustainably-grown ingredients. I also avoid the preservatives, MSG, GMOs, BPA, pesticides, etc. that you ingest when you buy the commercial branded cream soups. I got this recipe from a Yahoo! canning group that I belong to. This is a really easy soup to make. It only took about 20-30 minutes to prep the ingredients, make the soup, fill the jars, and get them in the canner. I'm planning to get more celery from my CSA next week so I can do up another batch since I wasn't thinking and only ordered enough celery for one batch this week.

Cream of Celery Soup

1/3 cup butter
3 cups celery, 1/4" dice
1/2 cup sweet onion, 1/4" dice
1/3 cup finely diced celery leaves (set aside)
1 quart vegetable broth
1 quart chicken broth
1/4 tsp. garlic powder
1/2 tsp. ground white pepper
1/4 tsp. ground celery seed
1 tsp. lemon juice
3/4 cup Clearjel

Melt butter. Add celery and onion and sauté until crisp tender. Add broth, saving 1 cup to mix with the Clearjel. Add the seasonings, lemon juice, and the reserved celery leaves. Mix the Clearjel with the reserved broth. Mix all ingredients and heat until it boils, stirring often.

Put in jars and process in pressure canner for 45 minutes at 10 pounds of pressure.

Makes 5 pints

Fresh Vegetable Salsa

I've made a few different types of salsa over the last couple of years... zesty salsa, zucchini salsa, and pineapple-peach salsa. All three have been pretty good, but I'm still looking for an even better recipe that we just love. So I figured I'd try a new one this time. I found one in my Ball Complete Book of Home Preserving. It tasted really good as I was filling the jars and its nice and thick... just how we love it! We'll see how it is after processing in a few weeks. I made this very mild because I've been having problems with spicy foods and my gall bladder. I made 3 pints and 5 half-pints from this recipe. The book says you should get 8 half-pints or 5 pints from this.

Fresh Vegetable Salsa

7 cups chopped, cored, peeled tomatoes
2 cups coarsely chopped onion
1 cup coarsely chopped bell pepper
8 jalapeno peppers, seeded and finely chopped (I left these out and just added some more bell pepper)
3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 can tomato paste
3/4 cup white vinegar
1/2 cup loosely packed, finely chopped cilantro
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin

In a large stainless steel saucepan, combine all ingredients. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, stirring constantly.

Reduce heat and boil gently, stirring frequently, until thickened, about 30 minutes.

Ladle hot salsa into hot jars, leaving 1/2 inch headspace. Wipe rims, put lids and screw bands on jars, and place in canner filled with water. Make sure jars are completely covered by water. Bring to a boil and process half-pints and pints for 20 minutes. Then remove canner lid, wait 5 minutes, and remove jars to cool for 24 hours.

Zucchini Brownies

I tried out the recipe for zucchini brownies from Heavenly Homemakers the other morning, as well. I made a couple changes... substituted carob powder for the cocoa and added some chocolate chips that I needed to use up in my pantry. These were so easy to throw together, they literally took less than 15 minutes... from the start of getting all the ingredients out, shredding the zucchini, stirring up the brownies, and getting them in the oven. I love quick recipes like this! They also taste really good! We all really liked them a lot. My mother-in-law also got to taste them when I sent one with Carson for a snack and she thought they were awesome (and has asked for the recipe). Definitely a hit! I have the same thoughts I had when making the bread... wishing I had a grain mill so I could use sprouted flour, or wondering if I could modify this to be soaked in the future. Maybe I'll have to do some experimenting.

I'll update soon with a picture.

Zucchini Brownies

1/2 cup butter, melted
1 1/2 cups sucanat or rapadura (I used sucanat)
1/3 cup cocoa (I used carob)
1 cup shredded zucchini
1 egg
2 cups whole wheat flour
(I also added a few handfuls of chocolate chips... milk chocolate and white chocolate... that I had in my pantry)

Mix butter, sucanat and cocoa. Stir in zucchini and egg. Gradually mix in flour until well combined. Pour batter into a 9×13 inch pan. Bake in a 350° oven for 25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out clean.

Honey Whole Wheat Zucchini Bread

I'm trying to use up some zucchini, as its at its peak production in the garden right now, so I've been looking for new recipes to try. I've been wanting to try the Heavenly Homemakers recipe for honey whole wheat zucchini bread for awhile. So I gave it a go the other morning. This is very good! I love that it uses all whole wheat flour and honey for sweetener, rather than sugar. I'll definitely make this again. I'm really wishing I had a grain mill right now so that I could sprout some wheat and use sprouted flour to make this bread, or soak it or something. I'm really trying to get more into the traditional methods of preparing things, but I just made this recipe as-is. Its still a much healthier version than my normal zucchini bread, so that's an improvement. You can make this recipe into loaves of bread, or into muffins... I've included both below from the Heavenly Homemakders site.

Whole Wheat and Honey Zucchini Bread

3 cups whole wheat flour
2 t. cinnamon
1 t. baking soda
1/2 t. sea salt
1/2 t. nutmeg
1/2 t. baking powder
1 cup honey
2 cups shredded zucchini (I use my food processor to shred zucchini, skin and all)
1/2 cup melted butter
2 eggs

In a large mixing bowl (I used my stand mixer) combine flour, cinnamon, baking soda, sea salt, nutmeg and baking powder. Stir in honey, zucchini, eggs and melted butter. Mix ingredients until dry ingredients are moistened. Pour into two well buttered loaf pans. Bake at 350° for 45-60 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.

Whole Wheat and Honey Zucchini Muffins

Prepare as above, except scoop dough into 24 paper-lined muffin tins. Bake at 400° for 20 minutes.

Meal plans and the week ahead

So I did not have my surgery as planned last week. I was all ready for it and got a call late Wednesday night telling me not to come to the hospital in the morning, that my surgery was canceled. That was frustrating, but on the bright side, I can keep working out and enjoy these next few weeks. Hopefully I'll get a lot done, when I thought I'd be getting very few things accomplished. So it'll all work out, I think.

Last week was a productive week in terms of getting things done that I've wanted to take care of for awhile. I enrolled Carson in the fall semester of Kindermusik, joined my local chapter of the Weston A. Price Foundation, finally picked up the new-to-us stand-up freezer that we inherited from my grandpa, did a little more planning for our trip to Colorado in a few weeks, ordered some cod liver oil/butter oil capsules, and put in our orders for local, pasture-raised chicken and pork. I'll be working on putting in a turkey order this week. We're getting a half of a hog from Our Farm and Dairy in St. Johns. My friends Niles and Lisa will be getting the other half... and we got our order in just in time because we got their last hog! Its all organic, pasture-raised, and raw milk fed! Its supposed to be the best pork around and being milk-fed is supposedly a delicacy. Milk-fed pork is also discussed as being a delicious delicacy in the book I'm reading, Real Food: What to Eat and Why, by Nina Planck (GREAT book, by the way... I really think everyone should read it!). We'll be able to pick it up in October or November - I can't wait! I also put in an order for 12 whole pastured chickens from a local farm in Fenton. I'm planning to butcher them up myself, making ground chicken with my meat grinder out of 3 or 4 of them and freezing it in 1-pound portions, 4 or 5 of them will be butchered into quarters and pieces and frozen, and 3 of them will be frozen as whole birds. I'll probably put in another order for pickup in October to butcher up some more so that we'll have enough to get us through the year. I've also been doing a lot of research into getting some fresh turkeys in November. I have it narrowed down to a couple of places and just need to make the final decision and order the birds this week. I'm debating between 3 or 4 fresh birds. I'd roast one fresh when we get it, and would butcher up the other fresh birds into a bunch of ground turkey and turkey cutlets to freeze. I'm so excited about all of this good, local, fresh meat that we'll have in our freezer this year!

I have been forgetting to mention that I'm doing the GNOWFLGINS Sourdough E-Course. Its been going on for a few weeks now. We're in lesson 2 (lesson 1 lasted for 2 weeks) and its been pretty neat so far. I've learned a couple of things and am really looking forward to the next few weeks as things get a little more in depth and we try out some new recipes. I just hope I can eat sourdough bread and other baked goods at some point after my surgery. I know that I'm supposed to avoid whole grains and breads at first, and I'll just have to introduce them slowly to see if my body can handle them post-surgery. I've supposedly got a 60% chance of being able to eat most things I used to eat, so I'm hoping I'm in the majority there and don't have issues. But I figure I have the best chance of being able to handle sourdough, so I'm thinking this is perfect timing for this e-course and to try out some new recipes!

I've also signed up for the Preserving Summer's Bounty Challenge at Nourished Kitchen. It's a five-week challenge that will teach you how to preserve summer's bounty without pulling out the canner. I won't be able to participate every week in August, but I'll do as many as I can. I think it'll be fun! And while I do still plan on doing some canning (specifically cream of celery soup and lots and lots of tomatoes... hopefully next weekend!), I do like the idea of preserving more things traditionally so as to enhance their nutritional aspects. I'm looking forward to hopefully learning some new things, too!

We're planning to go to the farmers' market this morning. Then we'll be heading over to our friends' house for lunch. Tomorrow night, we'll be doing a family 10-mile bike ride. I'll be going to Zumba on Tuesday... and voting for sure! Thursday, I'll be in Detroit for some meetings. Friday is my flex day. I have to pick up our CSA order (lots of herbs to dry again - purple basil, german thyme, rosemary, oregano, flat-leaf parsley, sage; some cabbage to make kim chi; Walla Walla onions to dice and freeze; celery to dice and freeze and to make cream of celery soup) and I'll make a stop at Eichelberg's to get more corn to blanch and freeze. I'd like to do something fun with Carson, too, but I'm not sure what it'll be yet. We'll see what the weather is like, but maybe we can hit the splash pad or beach, or maybe we'll just visit the library for toddler story time. We haven't figured out our plans for Saturday yet. We may just stay home. Or we may go to check out the Sanilac Petroglyphs. Or we may go to visit and take a tour of Our Farm and Dairy... pros and cons to both... Carson really wants to see the petroglyphs (yes, he really does know what they are), but I doubt his interest would really last too long... the farm would probably keep his interest a little longer, but we could go a different week, too... the petroglyphs are only open a few times a year... so we'll see.

I'm going to be using up a lot of zucchini this week. And I'll be working on freezing, dehydrating, and canning this week. I feel like there is so much I want to do and not nearly enough time, but that's pretty typical this time of year. I'm not going to stress myself out about it, though. I'll just do what I can when I can and see what I end up with. :)

Sunday ~ farmers' market; Ben and Kati's
(make dairy kefir; make zucchini bars/cake?; make ice cream)
B: sourdough pancakes stuffed with yogurt cheese and blueberries
L: lunch at Ben and Kati's house... we're having homemade indian food... I'm making Raita and bringing some fruit
D: cheeseburger zucchini boats; applesauce

Monday ~ family bike ride
(freeze zucchini chunks; make water kefir; make dairy kefir)
B: zucchini bread
D: crockpot beef stroganoff (made with yogurt cheese!); sauteed beans, zucchini, and broccoli in butter with garlic; peaches

Tuesday ~ VOTE; Zumba
(order turkeys; make dairy kefir)
B: biscuits from the freezer with local honey and butter
D: leftovers

Wednesday ~ family bike ride
(make water kefir; make dairy kefir)
B: zucchini bread
D: grilled kebabs with salmon, zucchini, mushrooms, carrots; fresh honey rock melon

Thursday ~ Detroit for work; Kevin's mountain bike night
(make dairy kefir)
B: kefir fruit smoothies
D: salads topped with grilled chicken and veggies; fresh melon and blueberries

Friday ~ flex day; Eichelberg's farm stand; splash pad/beach/library?
(blanch and freeze corn; blanch and freeze green beans; make yogurt; make dairy kefir; make water kefir; make and can cream of celery soup)
B: scrambled eggs with veggies and raw cheddar
D: crockpot sausage and veggie medley

Saturday ~ Sanilac Petroglyphs? Our Farm and Dairy tour?
(make dairy kefir; can tomatoes)
B: omelets with yogurt cheese, spinach, artichokes, and tomatoes
L: leftovers
D: tbd... we'll see what our plans end up being...

What Seafood to Eat and Avoid

Do you ever get confused by all the different kinds of seafood that is available (wild-caught, farmed, imported, etc.) and what and how much of it we should be eating? I came across this great reference guide for what types of fish you should/shouldn't buy in a book I'm currently reading. I found it helpful for some of the types of seafood I might buy less often. So I thought I'd share the link!

Seafood Watch Pocket Guide

Zucchini Lasagna

I've got a lot of zucchini coming in right now from the garden. Good thing we love the stuff! :) To use some up last night, I made a zucchini lasagna. I made this last year, too, but it never found its way to my blog. I wasn't going to post this one, either... because I forgot to take a picture and I'm already super behind on posts, but I figured I'd make a quick post about it. Just because it is so yummy! You can make it as healthy or bad for you as you want, I guess. I try to make it more healthy. And I usually make it without meat, but you could certainly put meat in yours. You could simply just replace the pasta noodles with thin slices of zucchini in your normal lasagna recipe and it'd be great! I'd like to try making this in the crockpot one of these days, but I've only ever baked it in the oven. Anyway, this is how I made mine last night:

Thin layer of sauce on the bottom of the casserole dish.
Layer of thinly sliced zucchini (these are your "noodles")
Layer of veggies... last night I used all fresh veggies... yellow bell pepper, cauliflower, mushrooms, corn cut off the cob, and green beans
Layer of cheese... last night I used some really good, local cottage cheese and some grated raw milk mozzarella
Layer of sauce... you can use your favorite jarred sauce, or homemade (I used my home-canned sauce)
Then repeat the layers again and top with lots of cheese.

Bake it in a 375 degree oven for an hour to an hour and a half. And enjoy!

Fruit Rolls

I have been on a fruit roll making spree this summer. Making fruit rolls is seriously so easy and they're quite good for you (unlike the store-bought fruit roll-ups). All you need is a blender or food processor, your fruit of choice, some optional sweetener or applesauce, a dehydrator or your oven, and fruit roll sheets or parchment paper. This makes a healthy snack for kids and adults alike. I've made several kinds so far this year... strawberry, strawberry-banana, strawberry yogurt (yes, you can dehydrate yogurt, too, and its delicious!), watermelon-apple, blueberry, blueberry-cherry. All of them have been delicious! They also store very well. Just cut them into adequate pieces and roll up. Then store in a glass jar or freeze them. And if you over-dry them, they make great fruit "chips." This happened to one of my trays of strawberry fruit rolls - it was a thinner layer than the other trays. I was pretty bummed at first, but then just broke them up into chips and tried them. Yum! Carson absolutely loves them as chips, too! Probably equally as much as he likes them as the soft, chewy fruit rolls.

Fruit Rolls

- fruit of your choice in a quantity of your choice
- optional sweetener if your fruit isn't already sweet enough... sugar will make them crisp, so you may want to avoid it... honey makes them sticky and pliable
- optional applesauce... if your fruit puree is really thin

Puree your fruit in a blender or food processor. Add sweetener to taste if you need it. I haven't added it to any of mine yet this year because I've been using fruit in peak season and its been plenty sweet already. Add applesauce if your puree is really thin/watery... especially if you're using fruit that has been frozen.

Pour the puree on fruit roll sheets (or dehydrator trays lined with parchment paper, or a cookie sheet if you're using the oven). Place in dehydrator and dehydrate at about 135 degrees until done. Depending on the fruits I used and the thickness, mine have taken anywhere from 6 to 9 hours. You could also dry them in the oven on your lowest heat setting.

Meal plans and the week ahead

This week is going to be a strange week. Today we will be going to the farmers market and to lunch with some of my cousins again possibly. Tomorrow night I'll be going on a 10-mile bike ride with my friend, Mary. Tuesday we're doing another Zumba class. I think I will take Wednesday off of work to spend with Carson, but we'll see how busy it is first. Thursday is my gall bladder surgery. We have to be at the hospital at 6am and surgery is scheduled for 8am. Hopefully its not delayed too much. Assuming they can remove it laproscopically, it will be out-patient surgery, so I'll be home before dinner... maybe even by lunch time. Friday is recovery day and my cousin, Mandy, is having a jewelry party in the evening that I may go to if I feel up to it. I also have to pick up my CSA order... although I think my mom will probably go do that for me since it'll be too heavy for me to lift... I ordered 2 pounds of french filet green beans, 5 pounds of carrots, some english cucumbers, 5 pounds of redskin new potatoes, a trombonico squash, 6 heads of garlic, and some french tarragon. Saturday we'll be staying home and taking it easy so I can recover.

Oh and... tomorrow marks 3 weeks without a drop of pop! Woohoo!! :) That is huge for me!

So anyway, I am going to try to get as much done as possible early this week because I won't be doing much of anything for about a week after my surgery. It will be very difficult for me to just take it easy after surgery... I hate sitting still and there is just so much to do this time of year. But I know it is critical that I take it easy so as to avoid any complications with internal bleeding... which could then impede our vacation plans for our trip to Colorado in a few weeks. So I have to make myself take it easy.

Here's the plan... meals after surgery may change once I find out what my post-surgery diet is going to be like. I've been told it'll be fairly limited at first and will continue for a few weeks.

Sunday - farmers market, Eichelberg's farm stand, lunch with cousins?
(make italian lentil soup for lunches this week; bake and freeze zucchini bread; make and freeze zucchini pancakes; blanch and freeze corn and green beans; roast beets)
B: toast with yogurt cheese; fruit
L: out with cousins? or zucchini pancakes
D: grilled steaks; zucchini, kohlrabi and beet greens sauteed in butter; grilled corn on cob; LF pickles; fresh fruit

Monday - biking
(clean)
B: zucchini bread with yogurt cheese
D: grilled chicken in bell pepper marinade; grilled zucchini; raw carrots and celery with garlic-chive yogurt cheese; LF pickles; fresh fruit

Tuesday - Zumba
(freeze zucchini; make basil-pine nut pesto and freeze; dehydrate basil from garden; freeze basil cubes)
B: scrambled eggs with veggies and cheese
D: leftovers

Wednesday -
(prep food for rest of week; roast more beets; freeze beans and peppers)
B: zucchini bread with yogurt cheese
D: crockpot quinoa and chicken beef tacos with stir-fried veggies for topping; cantaloupe

Thursday - surgery
(make whey and yogurt cheese; freeze zucchini chunks)
B: toast for Kevin and Carson
D: tbd... meal is being brought over vegetarian zucchini lasagna; fresh blueberries and honey rock melon

Friday - recovery; CSA pickup; jewelry party
(blanch and freeze carrots; make cherry chutney)
B: strawberry bread from freezer or fruit smoothies
D: tbd... meal is being brought over zucchini casserole; steamed beans and carrots; fresh blueberries and honey rock melon

Saturday - recovery; lunch with cousins; yard work
(make hashbrown potatoes to freeze?; dehydrate tarragon and garlic)
B: yogurt, granola, blueberries
L: some kind of soup in the crockpot... maybe split pea soup? lunch with cousins
D: grilled mahi mahi; steamed green beans, zucchini, and broccoli; blackberries

Meal plans and the week ahead

This is going to be a fun week. After my grandma passed away at the end of February, my extended family had all decided we wanted to take a family vacation this year. We tried for a couple of months to figure something out (cruise, Florida, Vegas), but it was almost impossible to find the time that worked for everyone with work schedules, personal things, etc. The only time that seemed to work well for everyone was this week. So we decided to just take a few days and all go to Cedar Point and Soak City. So that's what we're doing. It'll be a fun trip, although I think we'll be spending most of our time at Soak City based on the weather forecasts this week. :)

So anyway, most of early part of this week will be spent preparing for our trip and cleaning the house. Today we'll stop by the farmers market and we're meeting my cousins for lunch at Mongolian BBQ. I will probably do another bike ride on Monday night with my friend, Mary. And we might do a free Zumba class on Tuesday night. We'll see. I have a doctor's appointment on Tuesday afternoon, as well. Kevin may go mountain biking on Wednesday. Everything is kind of just up in the air. We leave early Thursday morning for Cedar Point. We're meeting up with everyone for breakfast at Big Boy in Ann Arbor on our way down. Then we'll be on our way! I'm a little concerned about the typical greasy park food and not being able to find much that I will be able to eat right now with my gall bladder issues. So, I'll be taking lots of snacks and food that I've made these last couple of weeks so that I don't have to worry too much about it. Although I have noticed that they've improved a lot in recent years with healthier food options in the park. But I'm still taking a good deal of my own stuff.

Sunday ~ farmers market; lunch with cousins
(make blueberry muffins; make cherry-blueberry fruit rolls; make hard-boiled eggs; yard and garden work; freeze zucchini; make packing list for CP trip; clean bedrooms, living room, dining room, and play room)
B: sourdough pancakes
L: lunch at Mongolian BBQ
D: chicken squash bake? or grilled chicken-zucchini-pepper-mushroom-tomato kebabs; fresh steamed green beans; plums

Monday ~ biking
(clean kitchen and bathroom)
B: toast with yogurt cheese; apples with peanut butter
D: pesto nicoise salad; plums and blueberries

Tuesday ~ doctor's appt.; Zumba?
(start packing suitcases; vacuum and dust entire house)
B: yogurt and kefir with granola and blueberries
D: braised broccoli with sun-dried tomatoes and yogurt cheese; soaked and steamed brown rice; cherries and blueberries

Wednesday ~ Kevin's mountain biking night
(finish packing suitcases; pack food; load car)
B: kefir smoothies with blueberries and cherries
D: misc. leftovers to clean out the fridge

Thursday - Saturday ~ America's Roller Coast - Cedar Point!!
Here's the food that I'm taking:
- mini loaf of whole wheat blueberry zucchini bread
- whole wheat blueberry muffins
- crunchy granola bars
- protein bars
- larabars
- dehydrated sweet potato chips
- fruit - bananas, apples, plums, cherries, blueberries
- fruit rolls
- crispy almonds and cashews
- lf pickles
- water kefir
- raw cheese
- sourdough crackers

Lacto-Fermented/Pickled Cucumbers

I've made a total of six jars of these cucumber pickles now - some slices and some whole ones. They've all been delicious and we've already finished an entire quart and are well on our way through our second quart of them. I eat a few slices or a whole one each day, so does Carson and Kevin often does, too. So we're going through them pretty fast. They're so good, though! I planted my cucumbers late this year - they were the last thing I got planted this year. I did that on purpose so that mine would be ripening after the huge influx of cucumbers at the farmers market and I'm so glad I did now. I'll be able to extend my pickle making season! :)

Lacto-fermenting veggies is seriously so easy and virtually fool-proof. Everyone should try it! All you do is prep your veggies, fill your jars with whatever spices you like - in this case garlic, dill, and peppercorns - add the veggies, and pop the cap on loosely. Then let it sit on your kitchen counter for a couple of days and throw it in the fridge. For these cucumber pickles, I also added three raw grape leaves to each jar. I've read on several blogs and in Wild Fermentation that they help to keep the pickles crunchy. They seem to be working well because our cucumber pickles are still quite crunchy (and the ones soaked in ice water are even more crunchy than those that were not... see below for explanation).

In addition to being so simple to make, lacto-fermented veggies are really good for you. They give you a dose of beneficial bacteria, which everyone can use more of these days... especially if you have digestive issues... which most people seem to have nowadays. The lacto-fermentation process also increases the vitamins for which your body will absorb from the vegetables. And they're easier to digest than the raw versions. This all helps to keep you healthy.

In the midst of peak harvest season here in the midwest, cucumbers and other veggies are so widely available at the farmers markets and farm stands. So go on out and support your local farmer! Pick up some veggies and give lacto-fermentation a try! You've got nothing to lose and only your health to gain!

I'll update with a picture soon!

Pickled Cucumbers

Cucumbers, sliced, spears, or whole
sea salt
water
fresh dill heads
garlic cloves
peppercorns
freshly picked grape leaves (oak and cherry leaves are also supposed to work)

Wash your cucumbers well. Put some ice and water into a large bowl and submerge your cucumbers in the ice water. Put the bowl in your refrigerator for 3-8 hours. This is another trick to making crunchy cucumber pickles. It really does work. I did not do this on the first jar I made and we can definitely tell the difference in crunch between those first pickles and the rest of the pickles that have all been soaked in ice water. This is a trick I learned of from Wild Fermentation.

Remove the cucumbers from the ice water bath and slice into 1/4" slices, cut them into spears, or leave them whole. I've used both pickling cucumbers and regular cucumbers this year and both seem to work just as well... though I have always sliced the regular cucumbers. Some sources say you should peel the regular cucumbers because the peel can become bitter, but I haven't peeled them and haven't experienced them being bitter.

Wash your grape leaves. Prepare your brine. See my post on spicy carrot pickles for a little more info on what type of salt to use (not Celtic sea salt) and making the brine a proper strength. Also keep in mind that it is better to use more salt during the hot summer months and less salt during the cooler winter months.

Pack each jar with three grape leaves, a fresh dill head or two, 2-3 garlic cloves, a pinch of black peppercorns, and your cucumbers. Cover with brine and put the lid on the jar loosely. You do not want a tight seal.

Check your pickles every day and learn to look for signs of fermentation. The day after you make your pickles, open the jar and listen for popping, fizzing or hissing as you open the jar. Smell the contents and then taste a sip of the brine. Is it at all sour or fizzy or still just salty? Put the lid back on and let it sit out for another day. It usually takes 2-5 days for signs of fermentation to really show up. When your pickles are popping, fizzing or starting to taste sour, move them to the fridge.

Brined Wild Grape Leaves

I had thought Kevin destroyed all of our grape vines during all of the outdoor demo work we've done the last couple of years. But he missed one area of them. He hates them. I'm not crazy about the way they look and all the japanese beetles that they attract, but I am putting them to good use this summer. I have used them in my pickles and I decided it would be good to preserve plain grape leaves to use in making dolmas (stuffed grape leaves) in the future. So I found this method on Prodigal Gardens and knew this was what I was going to do. I made some on Friday and now have one jar sitting in my fridge. I plan to make another jar once more of the new leaves start growing.

Brined Wild Grape Leaves

Quart sized mason jar
3 dozen, fresh, large wild grape leaves
1 tablespoon sea salt
4 Tablespoons whey (or just add another Tablespoon of salt)
2 cups filtered water

Only harvest the young, tender grape leaves - the ones that are large and minty green in color. The dark-colored older leaves should be avoided - they are stringy, fibrous, and tough.

Place a dozen leaves in a stack, stems all together. Roll up the stack so as to obtain a tight compact roll and this should be put in a jar. You will have three rolls in your jar.

Mix your brine - the salt and water - until salt is dissolved. Pour the brine over your rolled grape leaves in the jar. Put the lid on the jar, but do not tighten completely. Leave the jars to lacto-ferment for 2 or 3 days. Look for signs of fermentation - popping, fizzing, bubbling, and for the brine to taste a little sour. Move the jars to the fridge. Let sit for at least a month before using. They will be good for about a year in the fridge, whenever you want to make dolmas.

Meal plans and the week ahead

This week doesn't look too busy in terms of plans yet... mostly because we have a lot of to be determined plans. Today we're headed to Kevin's parents' church for the last time before they close their doors and find a new location. The whole family will be there, so it'll be great to get a little extra time in with everyone. We all had a great time with everyone yesterday and Carson is so excited to see Rebecca again this morning. We'll also be stopping by the farmers market on our way and we may head down to Kensington Metropark for the afternoon, since we didn't get to go last weekend.... although I think we'll save that for another day and maybe just take our bikes out to Fenton and ride a bit then go over to my aunt's house to swim. We'll see. Monday night, I'm going biking with a friend of mine. Tuesday, there is an outdoor concert in Grand Blanc with Jimmy Buffett inspired music, so I would like to go to that. Thursday is Kevin's mountain biking night. Friday, I'll be picking up a CSA order. I didn't order too much this week, mostly herbs so that I can dehydrate them over the weekend. I ordered flat-leaf parsley, french tarragon, sage, purple basil, and dill weed. I also ordered a half-gallon of apple cider and some flour. Like I said, it was a small order. I'm planning to pick up some good, local, sustainable, non-ultra-pasteurized cream while I'm out at Westwind Milling to pick up the order, too (so I can make ice cream!!). And some good, local, sustainable cottage cheese, which is supposed to be really good for my gall bladder. Friday and Saturday are also the dates of the Gaines Rodeo, so we'll go out there one of the nights, not sure which yet. Probably Friday night. Saturday we're thinking about heading up to Bay City for the Tall Ships Celebration. We'll just see how everything play out, though.

I have been on a lacto-fermenting spree. :) Last week, I ended up lacto-fermenting more cucumbers (yellow ones this time along with the green ones!), grape leaves, green beans, and water kefir. I'm going to try getting a rhythm going on the water kefir making... maybe a new batch every couple of days or so. We'll see. Today, I'll be starting a batch of sauerkraut and I want to also start some dairy kefir since I got some grains from my SIL yesterday - thanks, Mary! I didn't get a chance to start some veggies in the dehydrator last week, so I'll be working on that today. I've already put onions and garlic in the dehydrator this morning and I'll add some trays later after I've steamed the sweet potatoes and sliced them. I'm planning to make my own onion powder and garlic powder again and the sweet potato slices will be for snacks - they taste like potato chips, but way healthier for you! I want to get to work on some other snacks this week, too. All of which to take with us to Cedar Point next week. I'm going to make some homemade larabars (from the Healthy Snacks to Go Ebook). I also want to make another batch of crunchy granola bars and some more fruit rolls (I think we'll try blueberry peach this week). I may also make some beef jerky with the flank steak we have in the freezer... we'll see how much time I end up with this week. I want to make a couple batches of blueberry zucchini bread and get it in the freezer... I need to pick up some white whole wheat flour and some whole wheat pastry flour first, though (I ran out of both)... so I can modify the recipe to make it healthier. I might also make a blueberry buckle and freeze it to take with us, too... for breakfasts in the mornings while we're at CP.

I've been making some changes in my diet this past week. Last Sunday, I had one of the worst experiences of my life. I thought I was having a heart attack - all the symptoms were there, but it ended up being a severe gallstone attack from what the doctors can tell. I've done a lot of reading on the subject and they don't really know what causes the gallstones to form. There are just so many things that could cause them to form. Some of which are the bad, processed fats and pop. So I'm done with both. I haven't had a drink of pop since last Sunday before my attack (long before the attack, that's not what caused it). I'm glad something good is coming out of that experience, at least. :) I thought I would see a big drop in the number on the scale this week with all the changes I've made, but when I checked Friday, was quite disappointed to see it barely moving. Although, when I checked this morning, I was down 3 1/2 pounds from last Sunday. (UPDATE - Monday morning, I checked and was down a total of 5 pounds! The bloating is going down!) I'll take it. I've been so weak, I haven't been exercising this past week at all. But I'm finally feeling more like myself again, so I'm getting back into the exercising a bit more this week. Hopefully we'll see some big drops in the numbers on the scale soon!

So here's the plan... I decided to take lunch plans off most of the days b/c I never seem to stick with the plans for lunch... we just take misc. leftovers most days.

Sunday ~ farmers market; church; Kensington Metropark?; biking/lake?
(dehydrate onions and garlic; steam and prep sweet potatoes for dehydrating; make sauerkraut; freeze blueberries; make water kefir; make blueberry zucchini bread; clean out top shelf in upstairs pantry; make yogurt?)
B: banana bread from freezer
L: TBD... maybe out to eat?
D: TBD... depends on what we decide for our plans... if we're home... grilled burgers with smoked gouda cheese; steamed green beans; fresh cherries and blueberries

Monday ~ going biking
(soak oats all day; make baked oatmeal for week in evening)
B: banana carob smoothies
D: stuffed peppers; cherries and blueberries

Tuesday ~ GB outdoor concert
(make water kefir; make dairy kefir; clean out top shelf in upstairs pantry)
B: baked oatmeal
D: crockpot salsa chicken

Wednesday ~ Kevin's mountain biking night
(make blueberry buckle; make yogurt; make dairy kefir)
B: yogurt; berries; granola
D: grilled salmon; grilled zucchini and yellow squash; grilled pineapple slices

Thursday ~ Kevin's mountain biking night; Zumba class
(make larabars; make crunchy granola bars; make water kefir)
B: baked oatmeal
D: misc. leftovers

Friday ~ CSA pickup; Gaines rodeo?
(make whey and cream cheese)
B: smoothies
D: grilled, marinated pork tenderloin; steamed green beans; fermented cucumber pickles; fresh fruit

Saturday ~ Gaines rodeo? Bay City Tall Ships?
(make blueberry bread)
B: scrambled eggs with veggies and cheese
L: TBD... zucchini lasagna if we're home
D: TBD... possibly crockpot cream cheese chicken

Crockpot Corn and Spinach Enchiladas

I tried another recipe from A Year of Slow Cooking a few weeks back. I've had this recipe marked for ages, but just never got around to trying it. I can't believe it took me this long. These are great! We all really liked them a lot. This is a versatile recipe, too, you could add or subtract different ingredients to make it to your liking. I made it as is for the first try and it was delicious.

The pictures don't look the best, but it honestly was really good!

Crockpot Creamy Corn and Spinach Enchiladas

1 can creamed corn
1 cup shredded already-cooked meat (I used pork tenderloin)
1 cup baby spinach leaves
1/4 cup finely chopped cilantro
2 Tablespoons chopped, sliced jalapenos (I skipped this since I didn't have any and just added a pinch of crushed red pepper)
1 1/2 cups shredded cheeses
1 can (28 oz) green enchilada sauce
2/3 cup sour cream
corn or flour tortillas (I used flour since that's what I had, but corn would be awesome, I think)
more shredded cheese for topping

I used a 4-quart crockpot for this and made this in layers. You could also fill each tortilla with the filling and later the rolled enchiladas in the bottom of a bigger crock.

In a large mixing bowl, combine the meat, corn, cilantro, spinach, peppers, and cheese. Mix well. This is your enchilada filling

In another bowl, combine the green enchilada sauce and sour cream.

Spray your pot with cooking spray or rub with butter. Layer tortillas with your filling in several layers and top it all with the sauce mixture. I think I had 4 layers of tortillas and 3 layers of filling - tortillas, filling, tortillas, filling, tortillas, filling, tortillas, sauce. I also sprinkled some shredded cheese on top.

Cover and cook on high for 2-4 hours, or on low for 5-7 hours. Let stand for 20 minutes with the lid off before cutting into it.

Meal plans and the week ahead

Happy Birthday, America!!!!!

This is another fun week for us. Today we're headed out to the lake to my Aunt Sharon's house for a family party. Kevin and I are both off tomorrow, so we're going to go down to Kensington Metropark for the day (as long as it doesn't rain). Thursday is Kevin's mountain biking night. Friday is my flex day. I think Carson and I are going to do story time at the library in the morning, then in the afternoon we'll do something else fun that I haven't figured out yet. Maybe we'll just go to one of the local playgrounds, or maybe we'll try and meet up with some friends at the beach or something. Saturday we'll be doing something with my in-laws. My BIL, SIL, and niece are coming to town for the day, so we'll be spending time with them, just haven't heard what the plans are yet.

This week I am going to focus on dehydrating. I want to try out some different veggie crisps to have as snacks... sweet potatoes, carrots, zucchini, and peas. I'm also going to be focusing on dehydrating for preserving the season's bounty. There is a guy down the road that has his own small greenhouse and is selling really awesome tasting tomatoes and peppers already. They're all sustainably grown, they're local, and they taste amazing! So I am going to be stopping by and picking up a good deal of tomatoes and peppers to dry this week. I'm also planning to do a little more lacto-fermenting... and hopefully I'll catch up on my posts from everything I've been making during the last month! I'm still so far behind!

Anyway, here's the plan...

Sunday - Happy Independence Day! Family party at the lake
B: sourdough pancakes with homemade syrup
L & D: family party... appetizers; hot dogs; brats; potato salad; macaroni salad; fruit salad; desserts

Monday - holiday from work; Kensington Metropark
B: scrambled eggs with local raw cheddar; sourdough toast
L: picnic lunch at Kensington... sandwiches; chewy granola bars from freezer; cucumber slices; carrot sticks; fresh grapes and watermelon
D: TBD... probably out to eat near Kensington Metropark grilled chicken breasts; steamed broccoli; corn; watermelon

Tuesday -
B: crunchy granola bars from freezer
L: misc.
D: mushroom 'n swiss burgers; steamed peas; cantaloupe; raspberries

Wednesday - Allen Street Market
B: banana blueberry zucchini bread from freezer
L: misc.
D: grilled kebabs with salmon, mushrooms, pineapple, onions, and peppers, and green zucchini; sauteed beet greens in butter with onions and garlic

Thursday - Kevin's mountain biking night
B: yogurt; granola; berries
L: TBD
D: TBD whole wheat pasta with broccoli, peas, beets, swiss chard, onions, and garlic (veggies sauteed in EVOO)

Friday - flex day; library story time; playdate with friends?; doctor's appointment
(make sauerkraut; make cucumber pickles; prep sweet potatoes, carrots, and beets for dehydrator; dehydrate sweet potatoes, carrots, beets, onions, garlic; make brined grape leaves; make chocomole)
B: toast with jam
L: misc.
D: pesto or california burgers; veggie crisps; fresh fruit fresh raspberries and blueberries

Saturday - family party with the in-laws
(make onion powder and garlic powder from dehydrated onions and garlic)
B: sourdough pancakes with fresh berries, bananas, and walnuts
L: misc.
D: with the in-laws... I'm brining roasted veggies (red potatoes, green and yellow zucchini, carrots, beets?, broccoli?)

Minimal Knead Sourdough Sandwich Bread

I have made this recipe twice now and I think it will be my regular sourdough recipe. I do have a couple others I want to try, but they make a more typical, more crusty loaf. Which is great when that's what you want. But we like our normal bread to be of sandwich quality, too. So when I found this recipe over at Real Food For Less Money, I knew it was the sourdough I wanted to make.

This recipe makes light and fluffy loaves of bread, with only about 15-20 minutes hands-on time. Yes, there are long periods of rise time, but those are easy enough. I mix mine up in the evening, let it do its first rise while we're sleeping. Then punch it and shape it into loaves in the morning and let it sit all day for its second rise. Then I bake it and we're able to have a couple slices with dinner that night. Perfect!

This recipe is supposed to make three loaves. I have only made half the recipe posted below each time and have gotten two medium-sized loaves out of it. That's perfect for us. Maybe I'll do the whole recipe and freeze more someday.

Sourdough Sandwich Bread

2 cups starter
3 1/2 cups buttermilk, kefir or combination of the two (I've used buttermilk both times, but would like to try it with kefir sometime)
1 1/2 Tablespoons Sea Salt
1/3 cup Sucanat or other natural sweetener (I used sucanat the first time and honey the second... honey was our favorite)
3 Tablespoons melted butter
8 cups whole wheat flour

In a large bowl (I use my stand mixer), mix starter and buttermilk. Add salt, sweetener and butter. Mix well. Add flour 2 cups at a time. Once all the flour is in (switch to your dough hook if using a stand mixer) give the dough a quick knead for a couple of minutes. The dough will be quite sticky. Butter the top of the dough, flip it over and butter the other side. Cover with a cloth. Let set in a warm spot for 12-15 hours, it should rise quite a bit during this time.

Prepare three loaf pans by buttering generously. Punch down dough and divide into thirds. Take one piece at a time and work it in your hands. Push the bread into one of your buttered bread pans. Once you have squished the dough into the pan, flip it over. This will butter the dough. Repeat with each piece of dough. Cover your pans with a cloth and return to your warm spot allowing the bread a second rise. This could take 6-12 hours depending on your starter and the warmth in your home. On cold days, you can put the oven on to warm to a low temp. When it has preheated, turn it off and put the bread in there to rise. Just be careful removing the bread from the oven before baking and don't deflate it and don't forget that it's in there and accidentally turn the oven on to make something else.

To Bake: Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Let bread bake at 425 for 15 minutes then turn down to 325. Continue baking for 35-45 minutes until the bread is done. If you turn the bread out and thump the bottom it should sound hollow when fully baked.

Navajo Tacos

I made these navajo tacos from Real Food For Less Money last week. I had bee looking for ways to use my sourdough starter and was intrigued by these. You use your starter for the fry bread, which serves as the shell. It is a puffy pastry-type bread that you place on your plate and then topped with the chili and any of your favorite toppings such as lettuce, shredded cheese, tomatoes salsa, sour cream, onions, etc. These are delicious! We all really loved them! And they weren't as complicated as I thought they might be at first. The prep actually went pretty quickly. I'll definitely make these again!

Navajo Tacos

The Chili
1/4 to 1 pound of ground beef
Coconut oil (if needed)
1 onion- diced
1 clove garlic-minced
2-3 cups of cooked pinto beans with juice (I just used some of my home-canned pintos)
1 can tomato paste
1/2 to 1 cup beef broth, or water
salt and pepper

In skillet, cook the beef and 1/2 of the onion. Reserve the other half for taco topping. When beef is done, add the garlic, beans, tomato paste and 1/2 cup broth. Let this mixture simmer for 30 minutes or so while you cook the fry bread adding additional broth as needed. You will want the chili to be on the saucy side. The fry bread will soak up the sauce.

Sourdough Fry Bread

Start early morning or the night before
1/2 cup sourdough starter
1 cup milk
3 Tablespoons kombucha, apple cider vinegar or whey (I used whey)
3 1/2 cup whole wheat flour

Mix all ingredients until combined. Cover with a cloth and let sit for 7-24 hours.

When ready to fry, stir in 1/4 teaspoon sea salt. The dough will be fairly sticky and should stir easily. Don't over work it, just get the salt blended in.

To fry, in a large skillet or pan, heat about an inch of coconut oil. While it is heating shape your dough into patties using flour as necessary to keep the dough from sticking to your hands. When your oil is hot enough (a small piece of dough will sizzle), carefully put the patties in the oil to cook. Gently flip them over when they are brown on the bottom side. This usually takes 2 minutes or so. Cook until brown on second side. Put them on a cloth to drain while you finish cooking up the batch.

To Assemble, put the fry bread on your plate. Add a ladle of the chili. Top with lettuce, onions, tomatoes, cheese, salsa, sour cream or anything else that you enjoy on your tacos.

As a bonus, any leftover fry bread makes a sweet treat when drizzled with or dipped in honey. They reheat very good in the oven and fairly well in the skillet or a toaster.

Spicy Carrot Pickles

A couple of weeks ago, I tried out some more lacto-fermentation experiments. I have read about the spicy carrots from Real Food My Way on several blogs, so I decided to give them a try. I had some organic baby carrots in the fridge that I needed to use up, so it was perfect.

These carrots lived up to my expectations and were as delicious as all the other blogs had said they were! They are crunchy, salty, a bit sour, and spicy all in one bite! They are probably a little more spicy than I will make them in the future (will just use less crushed red pepper flakes), but they're still tolerable, even by Carson. I've been eating a few of these each day with my lunch. They're a good snack, too. Its hard to just eat a few! I will most definitely be making these regularly to keep a jar in my fridge at most times.

Preparing lacto-fermented veggies is so simple! Its much easier than pickling them in vinegar and canning them. I think I will be trying out all sorts of lacto-fermented veggies. I've done carrots and cucumbers (post to come) so far, an want to do beets next, I think. I've read a tip in Wild Fermentation to use up the pickle brine after your pickled veggies are gone. The brine can be used as a digestive tonic or in soup stock. The brine is full of Lactobacilli, which makes it great for digestion if you can sip it raw. If you can't (I can't), use it as a soup stock. Dilute it with water to your desired taste for the soup. You can also use it in place of vinegar in salad dressings.

Spicy Carrot Pickles

Glass jar with lid
Filtered water
Sea salt (not Celtic sea salt)
Carrots
Onions
Garlic
Jalapeno, or crushed red pepper flakes (I used red pepper flakes)

Use a glass jar with a tight fitting lid. A pint or quart sized mason jar with a metal or plastic lid is great, but an old pickle or mayonnaise jar works just as well. Wash the jar and lid with hot soapy water and rinse well.

For a pint (two cup) jar you will probably use 1 1/2 - 2 medium carrots, 1/2 an onion, 2 cloves of garlic and half of a jalapeno. You can use a hotter pepper like Serrano or Habanero (if you dare) or a milder pepper like an Anaheim, a Hungarian pepper or a pizza pepper. Be sure to adjust the "half a pepper" accordingly to the size and heat of the pepper you choose. You could also use a pinch of red pepper flakes instead of fresh peppers. I used a quart sized glass mason jar. I had some organic baby carrots to use up, so I used those and just sliced them all in half lengthwise. I didn't have a pepper, so I just used crushed red pepper flakes.

Wash the carrots, but don't peel them. Slice them into long ovals by slicing on a steep diagonal to about 1/4 inch thickness. Peel and slice the garlic cloves and slice the onion longitudinally (from pole to pole, not around the equator) into 1/2 inch slices or into chunks. Slice the jalapeno into rings. Layer the vegetables in the jar to within an inch of the threads.

To make the brine, I used the method described in Wild Fermentation. You can read Alyss' post (linked above) for her method of making brine. Brines are often expressed as a percentage of weight of the solution. When added to 1 quart of water, each Tablespoon of sea salt adds 1.8% brine. Low-salt pickles are around 3.5% brine. Normal pickles are around 5.4% brine, but they are quite salty. I used about 2 1/2 Tablespoons salt for a 4.5% brine.

Make sure you are using pure sea salt. Do not use Celtic or grey salt because it is too moist. Moist salt is sometimes known for carrying bacteria and mold that can ruin your ferments. If you want to use moist Celtic sea salt then you should bake it first until it is dry.

Once you have your brine made, pour it over the jar full of vegetables. The brine should cover the vegetables, but still be below the threads of the jar. Screw the lid on tight and set it on the counter to begin fermenting.

Check your pickles every day and learn to look for signs of fermentation. The day after you make your carrot pickles open the jar and listen for popping, fizzing or hissing as you open the jar. Smell the contents and then taste a sip of the brine. Is it at all sour or fizzy or still just salty? Put the lid back on and let it sit out for another day. It usually takes 2-5 days for signs of fermentation to really show up. When your pickles are popping, fizzing or starting to taste sour then move them to the fridge. Carrot pickles usually taste best after another two or three days in the fridge and will last for months without getting mushy or gross. The onion will start to get a little mushy after a month or so but whole garlic cloves are still virtually raw until at least a month in the brine.


This post is linked to Grain-Free Tuesday at Hella Delicious.

Freezing Asparagus

Last month I froze about 10 1/2 pounds of asparagus. I figured I'd do a quick post about it for future reference. I know this is rather simple, but I thought it might be useful at some point. Most veggies need to be blanched, but they vary in the length of time you should do so. This was the first time I'd frozen any asparagus. I don't know why I've never done it before. Especially when there is a farm stand down the road from us that sells home-grown sustainable asparagus for only $1 per pound. So I figured I'd try it this year. I know I'll definitely be freezing it in years to come, with the 25 crowns of asparagus I planted this year. I've read that each crown will produce at least 1/2 to 3/4 pound of asparagus... that's a lot of asparagus!

Freezing Asparagus

Wash the asparagus thoroughly and sort the spears into sizes by thickness. Break off woody ends. You may cut them into pieces or leave the spears whole. I cut mine into about 2-inch pieces.

Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Prepare an ice bath in a large bowl or in your sink with cold water and ice. Sometimes I'll just run cold water over the veggies in my over-the-sink strainer. Both ways seem to work equally well for me.

You will want to blanch your asparagus in batches depending on the thickness of the spears. Blanch small spears for 2 minutes, medium spears for 3 minutes, and large spears for 4 minutes. Once the time is up in the boiling water blanch, scoop out the asparagus and plunge them into your ice water bath to stop the cooking.

Drain the asparagus and place into a clean kitchen towel. Wrap up the towel to soak up most of the water. You can then either put the asparagus into freezer containers or freezer bags, or flash freeze on a cookie sheet. Once asparagus is flash-frozen, you can package into freezer containers or bags. Leave no head space. This is what I do with most of my veggies. That way the veggies are individually frozen and I can package them into gallon-size freezer bags. Then I can just remove what I need from the bag when I need it. I used to use smaller bags and freeze in serving sizes, but I've found using the big bags lends a much more organized freezer.