Blog

April 12, 2011 - Mozzarella and Dipping Herbs

‘April is the cruelest month.’ T.S.Eliot said so. April is all about betrayal. You start trusting that things are going to get warm and grow and bloom and then, Bam!, 50 mile an hour winds that are ripping trees out of the ground and cold weather again with snow. April stinks. It takes a lot...
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April 10, 2011 - How to Make Hummus from Scratch

Hummus is the Arabic word for chickpea. (In Spanish, it’s garbanzo.) But it’s not just a bean! It’s a dish, and practically an entire culture. As a dish, it’s a chickpea and tahini concoction mixed with olive oil, lemon juice, and garlic (and often cumin and paprika and other seasonings). As a culture, it’s claimed...
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April 8, 2011 - Hot Cookies Fresh Out of the Oven

Very few things compare to the smell of hot cookies fresh out of the oven. When I opened the oven door to check on this batch of cookies, I was overwhelmed by a swarm of grody men who–-not moments before–-had been happily playing grease monkey in the backyard. Apparently the heavenly scent of the cookies...
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April 7, 2011 - Add Lavender to the Meringue Cookies!

I have another easy recipe using my Lavender Sugar for you! Assuming you have some appliance on hand to whip the egg whites. Because you must whip it. Whip it good. How to make Lavender Sugar Meringue Cookies: Preheat oven to 200 degrees. Set oven racks so you can get in 2 cookie sheets at...
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April 6, 2011 - Baked Eggs to Impress Company!

Being a chicken owner, I have a fondness for eggs–farm fresh, backyard raised eggs with bright yellow yolks and hard to crack shells. I also love to cook breakfast for guests so I was thrilled to stumble upon a baked egg recipe that is super easy to make and looks a bit ‘fancy’ without much...
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April 4, 2011 - Easy Country Wine in Three Weeks

Making wine is something I always wanted to try, but frankly, the idea seemed a little intimidating! One Christmas, a neighbor changed all that for me. A lovely bottle of homemade grape wine was sent over on Christmas morning. (Perfect timing, as I was stressing out over making dinner and all the soon to be...
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March 31, 2011 - Crispie Treats for Grown-Ups

Don’t be fooled by the title of this recipe post. There are no rice crispies in this recipe, nor does “grown-up” imply said treat is healthy, low-calorie, or in some way good for you. Sometimes grown-ups need treats if only because they have survived the rigors of puberty, young-adulthood, and can deal with family without...
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March 30, 2011 - Oranges & Lemon Day

Tomorrow is Oranges & Lemon Day. From Hallmark’s Bizarre Holidays—‘ ”Oranges and lemons”, say the bells of St. Clement’s. You can recite the old poem as much as you like today, or if you want, eat loads of oranges and lemons. Make an orange smoothie or a lemon tart and celebrate these important citrus fruits...
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March 29, 2011 - A Recipe for the Lavender Sugar

Recently, I did a post for a super-complicated recipe for lavender sugar. Lavender sugar can be used in all sorts of stuff, but I love it in my tea. But still, something was missing. How about some lavender-sugar lemon tea cookies? They are WAY super-hard. Just like the lavender sugar. Totally hard. I actually made...
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March 28, 2011 - Making Black Bean Burgers

I’ve been experimenting with recipes recently from Veganomicon: The Ultimate Vegan Cookbook. Sometimes I don’t have all the proper ingredients and I have to make substitutions. Sometimes this works out and sometimes it doesn’t, but I was happily surprised at how well these black bean burgers worked out. I was quite suspicious. I always have...
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March 25, 2011 - Tortillas Every Day

Tortillas (particularly flour ones) are a staple at our house and not just because we eat a lot of Mexican food. They are inexpensive to buy and easy to make. We eat them for breakfast, lunch, dinner, snacks and even dessert! The possibilities are limitless when you realize how versatile they are–and there need not...
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March 24, 2011 - A Chicken in Every Pot

This slogan is mostly associated with the 1928 presidential campaign of Herbert Hoover claiming that all would be prosperous under a Hoover administration. The ubiquitous chicken has a place in the history of all regional cultures in the U.S. I haven’t found any cuisine, except vegetarian, that doesn’t rely heavily on chicken. Its versatility, accessibility...
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March 22, 2011 - Making Banana Wine

Yesterday was a cold, windy and wet day, so I stayed inside and worked in the kitchen. One of the things that I did yesterday was start a gallon of banana wine! I bought a lot of bananas marked down at the grocery store. I was thrilled to find them, as ripe bananas are hard...
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March 19, 2011 - Beans, Beans, A Magical Fruit!

The more you eat, the more you… Shoot. I can’t remember the rest. The kids loooooove refried beans. I am terribly grateful they do, despite the large number of toot jokes two small boys and two large boys can come up with. Not that I can’t hold my own, because I can and I will....
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March 18, 2011 - Re-imagined Dish Displays

I love my white dish pieces–all shades of white. None of them are heirlooms or are displayed because they are worth any money. I display them for the simplicity of the white color mixed with the wood tones around. I’ve picked different pieces up at yard sales and thrift stores, none of them are new....
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March 17, 2011 - Serendipitous Grits

It’s not at all uncommon to have regional food favorites. Sometimes those favorites are only appreciated by folks in a particular region. Pennsylvanians favor scrapple, Oregonians get faint and dizzy listening to a description of scrapple . Kansans have a fondness for gravy on their french fries, Mississippians eat gravy on their biscuits. Crawfish are...
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