Monthly Archives: May 2010

>Fun with squash

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>Sometimes I just let Chuck take over the kitchen. He’s good at it. This time I made the main dish and he put together the vegetable: acorn squash. I’ll try to replicate it in writing for you, but he didn’t measure.

Ingredients:

1 whole acorn squash
butter
maple syrup
nutmeg

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350.
Cut acorn squash in half. Scoop out seeds and gunk. (Yes, that’s the official term: gunk)
Place squash halves upside down in pan – we used a small pyrex oven pan.
Bake for 20 minutes.
Remove from oven: turn face up, place pat of butter in each half. Score with fork or knife. Drizzle with maple syrup; sprinkle with pinch of nutmeg.
Cook for another 10 minutes.

Scoop out of skins; mash as needed. Serve warm.

Mmmmm.

Kind of makes me want to plant acorn squash this year. ‘Tis the season!

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>KinderCone; plan ahead for next fall!

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>A child’s first day of school can be a bittersweet moment in a parent’s life, but in Germany and Austria it is a day of celebration and appreciation. On that day, families present their first grader with their very own Schultüte. Inside, the child finds little gifts, treats, and school supplies. KinderCone wants to inspire every family and their young children to enjoy learning by celebrating this special event in their lives.

The KinderCone company sent me a modern-day Cone to see and review. I was pleasantly surprised at the size of it; I’d expected something smaller. It’s bright, colorful, and exciting: just the atmosphere to help a new student feel confident and enthusiastic about the coming year.

The first kindergarten in the U.S.A. opened in Watertown, Wisconsin; the town still maintains a museum dedicated to this important innovation in early childhood education.However, Kinder in Kindercone doesn’t stand for kindergarten; it represents the German term for children. In our American school system, we start kids in kindergarten rather than first grade. Many, though, consider grade one to be the first year of serious schooling.

But on the serious and sweet sides, a kindercone is a gift to inspire and excite, something special for young scholars. Motivating a child is important, and a special first day gift is a wonderful idea.


I wrote this review while participating in a blog tour campaign by Mom Central on behalf of KinderCone and received KinderCone samples to facilitate my review. The samples are going to my school, where many children are not lucky enough to receive such wonderful gifts. Mom Central also sent me gift certificate to thank me for taking the time to participate. Maybe a Teacher Cone is next: filled with coffee beans, perhaps?

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>Dandelions: a weed is just a flower out of place.

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Have you seen the commercials? The ones that imply that dandelions are evil, nasty, even toxic creatures that intentionally invade your (gulp) Lovely Lawn. The commercials want you to buy their product, of course: the Chemical Killer of Evil Dandelions. Here’s one fighting for its life in the middle of the mint. I predict the mint will win. Mint is a very aggressive plant that doesn’t give up easily.

But chemicals? Expense aside, I don’t need them. I don’t want them on the mint; I might use it in cooking or to mix a mojito. I don’t sweat the dandelions; I use them to offset the high cost of lettuce.

Buttercup loves them.

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>Berry Almond Quick Bread

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>This recipe looks like it’ll be a mainstay when the berries are ripe in the summertime. I made it in mini-loaves with blueberries from the freezer the first time, and it was delicious.

From Eating Well in Season: the Farmers’ Market Cookbook with very few changes.

1 cup whole wheat flour
1 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 large eggs (or 1/2 cup egg substitute)
1 cup nonfat buttermilk (see Tip, below)
2/3 cup brown sugar
2 Tablespoons butter, melted
2 Tablespoons canola oil
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon almond extract
2 cups fresh or frozen berries (whole blackberries, blueberries, raspberries; diced strawberries)
1/2 cup chopped toasted sliced almonds (see Tip, below)

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F for muffins or mini loaves, 375 for a large loaf.
2. Whisk flours, baking powder, cinnamon, baking soda, and salt in a large bowl.
3. Whisk eggs, buttermilk, brown sugar, butter, oil, vanilla and almond extracts in another large bowl until well combined.
4. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients, pour in the wet ingredients, and stir until just combined. Add berries and almonds. Stir just to combine; do not overmix. Transfer batter to the prepared pan(s). Top with additional almonds, if desired.
5. Bake until golden brown and a wooden skewer inserted into the center comes out clean. Follow time suggestions for various pan sizes below. Let cool in pan for 10 minutes, then turn out onto a wire rack. Serve warm or at room temperature – with coffee, milk, or any other brunch-style refreshing beverage.

Tips:
-If you don’t have buttermilk in the house, mix 1 Tablespoon lemon juice into 1 cup milk.
-To toast sliced almonds, cook in a small dry skillet over medium-low heat, stirring constantly, until fragrant and lightly browned, 2-4 minutes.
-Pan sizes!

Muffins (standard muffin pan): makes one dozen, bake for 22-25 minutes at 400.
Mini-Bundt pans (6-cup mini Bundt pan, scant 1-cup capacity per cake): 22-25 minutes at 400.
Mini-loaf pans (6×3 inch pans, 2-cup capacity): makes 3, bake for 30 minutes at 400.
Large loaf pan (9×5 inches): make one loaf, bake for 1 hour 10 minutes at 375.

Please note: this is not a product review. I won the cookbook as a prize in Brighter Planet’s contest for Sustainable Cooking Ideas last December. While I didn’t make the top five for the grand prize (an Amazon Kindle), I felt proud to make it into the top twenty tips and I enjoyed reading the other entries.

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>Changes in the plot – the garden plot!

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>We covered the area last fall to make the transition easier. So far, we’re on track. The lawn is gone, and now we’re building the raised bed itself. Thanks to our generous neighbor (the one with the amazing stacks of firewood), we have boards. Next step: dig the trenches and set them up. After that: dirt. Soil. Lots of it.


Adding to the seedlings in my living room window: I brought these home today. Tomatoes, peppers, and a few herbs, we’re ready to go. Well, almost. I’m still going to buy a few ordinary store tomato plants almost as insurance. I know they grow; I’m not sure yet about the new heirloom varieties. What if I can’t make them grow?


(Is that an oxymoron? New heirloom? Like jumbo shrimp or cafeteria food?)
But seriously, if you’d like to see more of my ever-changing urban yard, check out Green Spot-On, my home away from home on Mondays.

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>Guerrilla Gardeners in my ‘hood?

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We planted lilies of the valley. We still get green onions. The onions are BIG.

I think a person planted the onions intentionally: someone who lived in this house before we did. They are strong and stealthy (the onions, not the gardener), the kind we call walking onions. When not harvested, they sprout a new bulb on the top. The bulb’s weight tips the onion stalk to the ground, and the bulb begins to grow a new onion plant. And the cycle goes on. Not that I complain; they’re delicious, fresh, and free!
Guerrilla gardening may have begun in the late sixties or early seventies as part of the Flower Power movement. Today it seems like part of a green movement, a desire to beautify vacant lots or trashy looking property. Mother Nature Network covered the Guerrilla Gardening movement in London, where gardeners sneak out with their seeds and trowels under cover of darkness for fear of discovery. Their motto is “Fight the Filth with Forks and Flowers.” Their weapons? Spades and seed bombs.
I have guerrilla gardeners around my neighborhood, too. Here’s the evidence. This flower was inside the barrier, not outside, when I planted the bulb. I’m sure of it. Did the London brigade sneak into my yard?

Then there’s the lone tulip in the daylilies. I didn’t plant it there. Not a chance. But a stealthy gardener with a fascinating accent didn’t plant this. No one from across the Big Pond (not Lake Michigan, you dolt, the Atlantic) came over to move my bulbs.

Yep. The evidence is circumstantial, but it’s enough to convict.

The camouflage can’t fool me. That’s no gorilla hiding in the leaves. It’s our Guerrilla Bulb Transplanting Squirrel!

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>Pantry Raid

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>It wasn’t a new recipe. This meal didn’t break any new ground. I didn’t harvest it from the backyard (well, not much: just the green onions and parsley). It was, however, a classic Friday night, I’m tired and I want some rest, don’t ask me to be the Iron Chef tonight, kind of meal.

It combined planned-overs with ingredients already in the house. It was a classic Pantry Raid.

Planned-overs –> something made in advance with the intention of being a “leftover.” I grilled pork chops earlier in the week. When the chops were done and the coals were still hot, I put a few brats and sausages on the grill to cook.

Friday night I pulled onions and green peppers from the freezer, sauteed them in olive oil, eventually added green onion (fresh from the garden!) and a few stray leftover vegetables from the refrigerator. I sliced thin a few spicy sausages & one bratwurst and stirred them into the mix. Topped with a few sliced overripe tomatoes, it made a lovely and aromatic mix.

Meanwhile, I offered Amigo a choice of pastas; he chose rotini. I made the whole box (planned overs!) and served the sausage mix on top of the pasta with a little grated parmesan and diced parsley from the garden for garnish.

On the side: rhubarb bread and applesauce. It was so delicious, I almost pulled out a wine to go along. Well, no, I didn’t. But it was delicious. The smoky taste from the planned-over sausages was a nice touch.

Iron Chef I’m not, but the presentation was rather nice, too.

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>A Teacher’s Pet Peeves

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>I do my best. I have a quote near my desk reminding me not to let that which I cannot control affect that which I can. What about those items that seem to be under my control, but keep happening? Every teacher has them: the pet peeves.

1. Perfectly good pencils left behind on the floor at the end of a day. This student will probably complain tomorrow that he has no pencils, and therefore cannot do his math. Grrrrrr!

2. Paper, recyclable paper, in the wastebasket – when the recycling bin is right next to it! I worry that we’re raising a generation of kids for whom recycling is a “yeah, yeah, yeah, okay” instead of a useful and valuable action.

3. Violins left at school all week. This is twofold: the violins get in my way, like the one right under my chair legs. More important, the students aren’t practicing. If they only play the instrument once a week, they’ll make no progress. It’s a lot like learning math or reading: practicing the skills is essential to maintaining knowledge and making progress.
Okay, readers, spill it. What are your pet peeves, teacher or not?

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>Glazed Orange Drop Cookies

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>Yeah! Another recipe that uses orange marmalade!

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup butter or margarine
1/2 cup sugar
1 egg
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup orange marmalade
1/2 cup chopped walnuts

Preheat oven to 350. In a small bowl, combine flour, baking soda, and salt; set aside. In a large mixing bowl, cream butter and sugar. Add egg and vanilla; beat until well combined. Add reserved flour mixture gradually, mixing until dry ingredients are moistened. Stir in marmalade and walnuts. Drop by rounded teaspoonfuls onto cookie sheets. Bake at 350 for 10-12 minutes or until set and lightly browned. Remove to a wire rack to cool completely. Decorate cookies with icing. makes about 3 dozen.

Orange icing
1 cup sifted powdered sugar
2 Tablespoons melted butter or margarine
1/4 teaspoon orange extract (or lemon, if you don’t have orange)
1 to 2 Tablespoons orange juice

Combine powdered sugar, butter or margarine, orange extract and enough orange juice to make a thick glaze. Mine was so thick I had to heat it in the microwave for 30 seconds. The original recipe only had 1 Tablespoon butter, but I needed 2 to make it spreadable.

Original recipe was in the WE Energies Cookie Book from 2006.

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