It seems everything, from my radishes to my kohlrabi is taking a few extra weeks to get ready. But the seedlings started life with pounding rain, too much shade and the onslaught of slugs. Only the strong survived.
The spinach and bright light swiss chard were doing well for a while, but now they’re visited daily by slugs. I set out some beer bait, but it seems a furry animal keeps drinking it up. I can’t catch a break. :-)
After trying out the simple recipe for Snickers Fudge, I decided to test out a few changes to the recipe to come up with a simple take on the Milky Way candy bar. But instead of just coating the top in chocolate, I wanted to coat the every side of each piece.
This recipe is as simple as the recipe for Snickers Fudge. The most time consuming part is waiting for each step to set up in the fridge. But by the time you’re finished with the second step, the first step should be chilled enough to apply a new layer.
Ingredients:
For the first layer
3/4 cup milk chocolate chips
1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
For the second layer
4 tablespoons butter
1 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup evaporated milk
2 7oz. jars marshmallow creme
8 Tbs. malted chocolate milk powder
1 teaspoon vanilla
For the third layer
14 ounce package caramel cubes
1/4 cup heavy cream
For the fourth layer
1 cup milk chocolate chips
3/4 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
To make the first layer
In microwave safe bowl, combine chips and heat for 1 1/2 minutes, stirring every 30 seconds until fully melted. Once melted, stir vigorously for one minute. This will help it stay set at room temperature. Pour the mixture into a parchment paper lined 13 x 9” baking pan. Use a spatula to spread the mixture to an even layer and place in the refrigerator until set.
To make the second layer
In a medium heavy saucepan, melt butter over medium-high heat. Mix in sugar and evaporated milk. Once it comes to a boil, let cook 5 minutes while stirring. Remove from the heat and quickly stir in marshmallow creme, chocolate malt powder and vanilla. Pour over the set chocolate layer and use a spatula to gently spread mixture in an even layer. Place in the refrigerator until set.
To make the third layer
Place the unwrapped caramel cubes and heavy cream in a medium saucepan. Place over low heat and stir until the mixture has completely melted and is smooth. Pour in the pan and quickly spread to an even layer with an off-set spatula. Place in the refrigerator until set.
Once all layers are set, cut into bite-size pieces, similar to size you’d find at the grocery store. Set aside.
To make the fourth layer
In microwave safe bowl, combine chips and heat for 1 1/2 minutes, stirring every 30 seconds until fully melted. Once melted, stir vigorously for one minute. This will help it stay set at room temperature. Leave chocolate in bowl, and hand dip each candy piece, top-side down. Use the edge of the bowl to scrape off excess chocolate. Put on parchment paper and refrigerate until set.
Read more!
5 green or red bell peppers
Salt
5 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
1 medium yellow onion, peeled and chopped
1 clove of garlic, peeled and chopped
1 lb of lean ground beef or ground turkey
1 1/2 cup of cooked rice or 3/4 cup of raw instant rice
1 cup chopped tomatoes, fresh or canned
1 tbsp chopped fresh oregano or 1 tsp of dried oregano
Fresh ground pepper
1/2 cup ketchup
1/2 tsp of Worcestershire Sauce
Dash of Tabasco sauce
1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil over high heat. Meanwhile, cut top off peppers 1 inch from the stem end, and remove seeds. Add several generous pinches of salt to boiling water, then add peppers and boil, using a spoon to keep peppers completely submerged, until brilliant green (or red if red peppers) and their flesh slightly softened, about 3 minutes. Drain, set aside to cool.
2. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Heat 4 tbsp of the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add onions and garlic, and cook, stirring often, until soft and translucent, about 5 minutes. Remove skillet from heat, add meat, rice, tomatoes, and oregano, and season generously with salt and pepper. Mix well.
3. Drizzle remaining 1 tbsp. Oil inside peppers, arrange cut side up in a baking dish, then stuff peppers with filling. Combine ketchup, Worcestershire sauce, Tabasco sauce, and 1/4 cup of water in a small bowl, then spoon over filling. Add 1/4 cup of water to the baking dish. Place in oven and bake for 40-50 minutes (or longer, depending on how big the peppers are that you are stuffing), until the internal temperature of the stuffed pepper is 150-160°F.
Read more!
The filling is super easy and has lots of flavor. The salty feta cheese goes perfectly with the sweet sun-dried tomatoes. But my chicken breasts did turn out a little dry, so I recommend heavily drizzling each breast with olive oil. I paired this recipe with the Toasted Pine Nut Couscous recipe and they went well together.
4-5 boneless skinless chicken breasts, pounded thin
1 medium red bell pepper, diced
6 garlic cloves, minced
5 large sun-dried tomatoes, diced
1 teaspoon thyme
8 ounces feta cheese, crumbled finely
1/2 cup breadcrumbs (I use Italian style)
olive oil
salt
pepper
toothpicks (or Butcher String)
green onion, chopped (for garnish)
Sauté garlic and red bell pepper, in Olive Oil, for about 3 minutes (just enough to"combine" the flavors).
Put aside to cool.
In a bowl, combine Feta cheese, breadcrumbs, thyme, sun-dried tomatoes, and garlic and red pepper mixture.
Toss until well mixed (this will be your "stuffing").
Lay a flattened piece of chicken breast on a cutting board or your counter.
Put a 1/4 of the above mixture on the flattened chicken breast like you would be making a burrito and roll as tight as you can get it.
Secure it with a toothpick or butcher string.
Place chicken breast "roll" on a baking sheet (I spray it with Pam so it doesn't stick), brush with olive oil (this gives it a nice golden brown texture), and season with salt and pepper.
Preheat oven to 350°F.
Cook for about 35 minutes or until the internal temperature reaches 180°F.
Garnish with chopped green onion and serve hot.
Origin - Developed by the same apple breeders at the University of Minnesota who released the popular Honeycrisp. SweeTango has quite the "family tree" and is a cross between two very popular apples - Honeycrisp (mom) and Zestar! (dad) - yet it delivers its own unique flavor and tasting experience.
Flavor - Juicy and sweet with hints of fall spices, SweeTango's flavor, balanced by vibrant acidity, dances to a long and satisfying finish on the palate. It also features the satisfying "crunch" of a Honeycrisp.
Appearance - SweeTango is a blush apple with deep red coloration over a yellow breaking background.
Availability - SweeTango will hit the shelves, in limited volumes, at select retailers beginning in fall of 2009. SweeTango is an early-season apple, harvested in late August and early September.
Also, during my last visit to the orchard, I overheard James Luby, from the U of M’s departments of horticultural science, mention a tree that was a cross between an Asian pear and a European pear. Well I had to nonchalantly pick one and try it, and it’s an awesome pear. No tough skin and no mealy flesh. It had the inside texture of an Asian pear but with the tender skin of a European pear. I hope they market this fruit as well. You may find something similar in the grocery store, marketed as Apple Pears because of their round appearance. (I swear they dumb down us consumers with names like that.) But I think the cross I tasted was 10 times better.
This recipe is really easy and you don’t have to freeze it, if you don’t have the time. Just top a graham cracker with the filling and you’re done. Feel free to experiment with this basic recipe. Add some chocolate syrup or lemon juice to the filling, or even some fresh raspberries.
Ingredients
8 oz. package cream cheese, softened
1 c. thawed Cool Whip
1/4 c. sugar
10 graham crackers broken in half (or use the whole graham cracker like I did)
Directions
1. Beat the cream cheese and sugar in a large bowl with electric mixer until well blended. Stir in the Cool Whip.
2. Spread about 1 Tbs. of the mixture onto each graham cracker square. Or generously add to a full graham cracker and top with another to make a sandwich, then freeze until firm.
There seems to be a never-ending list of the kind of eggs you can now buy at the grocery store.
Even designer eggs that promise extra health benefits are marketed heavily for the health conscious consumer. But are those labels what they’re cracked up to be?
Cage Free Eggs
Most egg laying chickens in this country are maintained in cages. But if you ask me, 24-7 confinement isn’t the life a chicken was meant to have. Since some shoppers are opposed to this egg production method, companies have latched onto calling their eggs “cage-free.” “Cage-free” does not mean that the birds are raised outdoors or that they are running free. Typically the birds are maintained on the floor of a poultry house or barn. You’ve probably seen the pictures of an overcrowded poultry floor before. I suppose it’s better than a cage. They may or may not have access to outdoor pens.
Free-Range Eggs
To range birds means to allow them to graze and roam outdoors. Range eggs are not necessarily produced by hens that are always kept outdoors. A range egg rancher may employ a combination of barn and outdoor pens. The hens can choose to go outdoors in the daytime but typically are kept inside at night for protection from the elements and from predators. They are many opinions as to how much land per bird should be used to constitute “range.” There is currently no consensus on this point in terms of market classification. But at least they’re getting closer to the way homeowners raise backyard chickens.
Organic Eggs
The United State Department of Agriculture’s National Organic Program has established regulations for organic food production. Hens producing eggs that are to be labeled “organic” must receive feed made from certified organic ingredients and must be free to range outdoors. At first glance, it seems organic eggs are the best bet to be guilt free over how the chickens are raised.
Lower Cholesterol Eggs
There doesn’t seem to be breeds or strains of chickens that lay eggs of superior nutritional value and significantly lower cholesterol than other chickens. Geneticists have tried to develop a strain of egg layers that would produce lower-cholesterol eggs, but their efforts at genetic manipulation have proved futile. Chickens, like humans, need cholesterol for their normal development. Hens that producer lower-cholesterol eggs would be unable to reproduce: the amount of cholesterol in their eggs would not be sufficient for development of a viable chick.
Animal nutritionists have been able to alter the diet of laying hens so that their eggs do contain less cholesterol than the standard egg. By definition from the US Food and Drug Administration, that means an egg must have 25% less cholesterol or fat in order to claim “less” or “reduced” on their product.
The producers achieve these reductions in fat and cholesterol by selecting eggs from hens of certain ages that are fed on special diets. No drugs, hormones, antibiotics or iodine derivatives are involved.
Sounds like it’s just easier to eat less eggs than put chickens through a diet regimen.
Eggs Higher in Vitamin E
By feeding hens on diets high in vitamin E, egg producers can produce eggs that contain significantly more vitamin E than ordinary eggs. Given its benefits, including its role as an antioxidant, some people may be interested in foods containing higher levels of vitamin E.
Of course, you could get your vitamin E from almonds and swiss chard to avoid paying the extra price for fancy eggs.
Omega-3 Eggs
Egg producers can change the amount and type of fatty acids in yolks by feeding hens diets on varying amounts and types of fat. When flax seed, fish oil, or other feed ingredients high in omega-3 fatty acids are fed to hens, omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids accumulate in their eggs’ yolks. Consumption of these fatty acids has been associated with normal brain and retinal development. Omega-3 fatty acids may also improve immune responses. Because of the benefits associated with eating foods that contain omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids, some egg production companies now market eggs with a higher content of these compounds.
Call me cynical, but I imagine there’s nothing better than eggs from backyard chickens. Chickens that eat a diet of greens and insects have more Omega-3 fatty acids in their eggs than chickens fed on soybeans and corn. If you can, skip the grocery store, and raise your own laying hens. It’s easier said than done, but much more rewarding.
Information from University of California, Agriculture and Natural Resources
This recipe calls for one cup of peanut butter. And instead of a graham cracker crust, I used peanut butter cookie crumbs and finely chopped peanuts. For the crust I just scraped the filling out of Nutter Butter cookies. The result is a subdued, peanuty crust with a super rich cheesecake topped with chocolate. What could go wrong besides your waistline?
Ingredients
4 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese (room temperature)
1 ½ c. white sugar
¾ c. milk
4 eggs
1 c. sour cream
1 c. creamy peanut butter
¼ c. all-purpose flour
Crust
1 ½ c. peanut butter cookie crumbs (Nutter Butter with the filling removed)
¼ c. finely chopped roasted/salted peanuts
2 Tbs. melted butter
Chocolate Ganache
4 oz. semisweet chocolate chips
½ c. plus 1 tablespoon heavy cream
2 Tbs. butter cut into pieces
Directions
1. Preheat oven to 350° F. Grease a 9-inch spring form pan.
2. In a medium bowl, mix cookie crumbs, finely chopped peanuts and melted butter until crumbs are moistened. Press onto bottom of spring form pan and push slightly up sides of pan, about 1 to 1 1/2 inches. Bake for 5 minutes at 350° F. Once done, let cool.
3. Once the pan is cool, double wrap bottom of spring form pan with wide foil so that water can’t seep into the pan for the water bath later.
4. In a large bowl, mix room temperature cream cheese with sugar until smooth. Blend in milk, and then mix in eggs one at a time, mixing just enough to incorporate on low speed. Mix in sour cream, peanut butter and flour until smooth. Pour filling into prepared crust.
5. Put spring form pan into a larger rimmed pan, and fill the larger pan with hot water until water is about 1-inch up spring form pan.
6. Bake in preheated oven for 1 hour 10 minutes. Turn the oven off, and let cake cool in oven for an additional 2-4 hours. This help prevent cracking from cooling down too fast.
7. Remove from oven, remove spring form ring, and then let cool to room temperature before chilling in refrigerator.
Chocolate Ganache
1. Bring the cream to a boil, then pour half the cream over the chocolate and let sit for 30 seconds.
2. Working with a whisk or rubber spatula, gently stir the chocolate and cream together in small circles, starting at the center of the bowl and working your way out in increasingly larger concentric circles.
3. Pour in the remainder of the cream and blend it into the chocolate, using the same circular motions.
4. When the ganache is smooth and shiny, stir in the butter piece by piece. Don’t stir the ganache any more than necessary to blend the ingredients. This will help keep it smoother and shinier.
5. Make sure the cheesecake it completely chilled before topping with ganache. Spread evenly over top of cheesecake and chill.
Read more!
Turns out, making it at home is pretty easy with all the copycat recipes on the web. But if there’s such a thing as a healthy cookie, this recipe is definitely not one of them. The filling is what you’d expect. Sugar, shortening and even marshmallow creme. But it turns out to be a good representation of the creme in the Little Debbie cookies.
The cookie definitely has more of an oatmeal cookie taste than the original Little Debbie. But this cookie can stand on its own. You don’t need the cream filling for this recipe to become one of your favorites for oatmeal cookies.
One thing to note is the cookies spread out quite a bit when cooking. I used a medium scoop with a quick release and spaced them further apart than a regular cookie recipe.
1 cup butter
3/4 cup dark brown sugar
1/2 cup sugar
1 tablespoon molasses
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 eggs
1 1/2 cups flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/8 teaspoon cinnamon
1 1/2 cups quick oats
2 teaspoons very hot water
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 (7 ounce) jar marshmallow cream
1/2 cup shortening
1/3 cup powdered sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
In large bowl, cream margarine, sugars, molasses, vanilla, and eggs.
Combine flour, salt, baking soda, and cinnamon.
Add to the creamed mixture; mix in the oats.
Drop dough by Tbsp on ungreased sheets.
Bake at 350°F.
Bake for 10-12 minutes,or until just starting to brown around the edges.
They will look moist; don't overcook.
While the cookies bake prepare the filling.
In small bowl, dissolve the salt in the hot water.
Allow this to cool.
Combine marshmallow cream, shortening, powdered sugar, and vanilla in med bowl; mix on hi until fluffy.
Add the cooled salt water and mix well.
Spread filling on flat side of one cookie, press 2nd cookie on top.
During the day you can see the slug slime trails glimmering in the sun, and they often lead to my raised garden bed. Growing up, my Mom used a shallow foil pie pan, added beer, and then the slugs would soon follow. For some reason they’re attracted to the beer. They get a whiff of it, climb in and drown. And by the looks of it, it’s more effective and safer than chemicals from the hardware store.
This is an easy step into the world of frozen ices, sorbets and granitas. All you need is watermelon, lime juice and sugar. Many granita recipes call for a simple syrup, which is just water and sugar brought to a boil. This helps the granita hold its shape when scooped out of the freezer with an ice cream scoop. But if you don’t mind eating a snowy mound of frozen watermelon deliciousness, do it the easy way.
5 cups peeled and seeded watermelon chunks
1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
Place the watermelon chunks, sugar and lime juice in a blender or food processor, replace the top, and blend on high speed until very smooth.
Transfer the mixture to a 13x9 Pyrex baking dish and freeze for 30 minutes.
Remove from the freezer and use a fork to scrape any ice crystals from the sides of the bowl. Stir to incorporate and return to the freezer.
Repeat this scraping procedure every 30 minutes, or until the consistency is "snowy" when scraped with a fork or spoon, at least 4 hours. Then scoop into bowls or dessert glasses and serve.
Read more!
Couscous has to be one of the easiest dishes out there. Once the water reaches boiling, you add the couscous, cover the pot with a lid, shut off the heat, and in 5 minutes it’s ready to serve. Talk about easy. Couscous is basically small granules of semolina wheat that soak up all the great liquid you add to your pot. That’s why recommend broth as opposed to water, for some extra flavor.
I saw some pine nuts at the store and decided to buy them for my parrot, but my recipe testing ideas won out (although she did get some leftovers.) Pine nuts have a great flavor, with just a slight zing of pine. Most pine nuts come from the cones of the stone pine, and the ones in the grocery store are luckily, already shelled. They can be used in savory dishes like couscous, but are also great in cookies, breads, etc.
You can usually find sun-dried tomatoes in the produce section but I always end up looking real hard just to find them. It’s rare they’ll be on a top shelf for all to see.
In this recipe I added an additional 1/4 cup water/broth, because the couscous soaked up the liquid until it was a little too dry. Couscous shouldn’t be runny or dry, but should have some good moistness.
1/4 cup pine nuts
2 1/2 cups reduced-sodium chicken broth or water
1/2 cup small, chopped sun-dried tomatoes (not oil-packed)
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1 2/3 cups (10 oz.) couscous
2 tablespoons minced parsley
Salt
1. In a 2 to 3 quart pan over medium-high heat, stir pine nuts until golden, about 2 minutes; remove from pan.
2. In the same pan, bring the broth, tomatoes, garlic, and cumin to a boil over high heat. Stir in the couscous, cover, remove from heat, and let stand 5 minutes. Add the pine nuts and parsley, and fluff with a fork. If desired, season to taste with salt.
Read more!
Second, kiwifruit likes part shade. New homes had been built that destroyed the forest and therefore destroyed the kiwifruit’s shade and protection. To conquer that, their newest system for testing, is a somewhat elaborate, wire pergola.
