Category Archives: kitchen stories

>Slow cooker honey "baked" chicken

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>I used local honey, of course, from the Farmers’ Market. I’ve been using the slow cookers recently to keep the house cool on hot days and to get supper rolling while I’m playing in the dirt – er, working in the garden. I served this with rice; Chuck shredded his on a bun. It’s delicious either way.

4 skinless, boneless chicken breasts
2 Tablespoons butter, melted
2 Tablespoons honey
2 teaspoons prepared mustard (optional)
2 teaspoons curry powder (I substituted paprika.)
salt and pepper, optional
1. Place chicken in slow cooker.
2. Mix butter, honey, mustard, and curry powder (or paprika) together in a snall bowl. Pour sauce over chicken.
3. Cover and cook on High for 3 hours or on Low for 5-6 hours.
I used my 4 quart slow cooker. It was a good size. Adjust the amount of chicken and the size of the crockpot to the size of your crowd. This might make a good party dish.
The original recipe was in Fix it and Forget it Big Cookbook, a gem with 1400 slow cooker recipes. This is not a sponsored post; Chuck and Amigo gave the book to me last Christmas.

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>Steak with Corn Salsa

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Chuck may not realize it, but watching him cook is aesthetically pleasing. Besides the aromas wafting through the house, he has a knack for gathering all the ingredients in a visual artistic kind of way. Here’s today’s recipe, in progress. He gets full points for presentation, both during cook time and on the table.


Chuck made this Sunday night. I’m planning to make it again later in the summer when the corn is local and fresh. We used green onions and cilantro from the garden this time, and we’ll have jalapenos and plum tomatoes available later in the gardening season.

Steak with Corn Salsa
3 cups fresh corn
4 scallions, green and white parts cut separately
2 Tablespoons unsalted butter
2 cloves garlic
1 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon chili powder
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1 plum tomato, diced
1 jalapeno pepper, diced
1 pound steak
1/4 cup cilantro, freshly chopped
Pan roast corn in a large skillet, stirring occasionally until browned. Transfer to bowl.
Cook the white part of the scallion in the butter along with the garlic and 1/2 teaspoon cumin, 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1/2 teaspoon chili powder, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper.
Remove skillet from heat and stir in corn, jalapeno, and tomato.
Combine remaining spices and season steak. Cook to desired heat. Transfer to cutting board. While steak cools, reheat the corn mixture. Stir in green scallions and cilantro.
Slice steak into thin slices, top with corn mixture, and serve!
Amigo heard the recipe on one of his favorite Saturday morning radio shows, Zorba Paster on Your Health. He suggested we try it, and we’re glad we did. This one is a winner, Zorba. Thanks for sharing!

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>Strawberry Season!

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>Part of pursuing the locavore philosophy means serving the same fresh ingredients for a period of time. Nature is convenient this way. When we start getting tired of a certain food, it’ll be out of season and something else will start ripening and taking over the Farmers’ Market stalls. Last night’s supper was salmon (frozen), asparagus, rice, and for dessert, strawberry ice cream and strawberry dump cake. The ice cream was a basic vanilla with strawberry “juices” added. I made the juicy flavor additive by mashing ripe strawberries through a strainer. The juice went into the ice cream; the leftover mush went into this basic dump cake. I posted this last summer, but it’s so simple that it’s worth posting again.

Strawberry Dump Cake

Fill the bottom of a 9 x 13 casserole pan with 4-6 cups clean, sliced strawberries. Leftover mush from the ice cream process works here, too.
Top with ½ cup butter, cut into slices. Sure, you could use margarine. But butter tastes so much better.
Dump one plain yellow cake mix on top. I keep a boxed mix in the pantry as a staple for times like this.
Top THAT with another ½ cup of butter cut into slices. Bake at 350 for 35 minutes.

Serve with ice cream (homemade, if you can) or whipped cream. Coffee on the side, of course.

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>Summertime, and the Farmers’ Market is back!

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>It’s too easy to spend money at the Downtown Farmers’ Market. Here you see the bounty of week one. Strawberries, lettuce, cheese curds (freshly made that morning!), asparagus, etc. etc. etc. Most of it fit in my big bag on wheels, but the two boxes of strawberries required two of us to carry.

The strawberries became jam, cereal toppers, and desserts. The bread from the Amish bakery became toast and PBJs. Lettuce was salads and bunny food. Asparagus is one of the rare vegetables that the entire family will eat. I’m buying it every week as long as it’s in season!
I didn’t buy as much the second week. Lettuce as usual, breads, and whatever is in season. It seemed like almost every vendor had strawberries this time. I didn’t buy a whole flat, but I bought a lot! Some of these will be frozen for future jams and future desserts, and some will top cereal and ice cream this week.
It felt right, though. I didn’t need a lot. The spinach in my garden is still growing like crazy, and my lettuces are coming up, too. We’ll need very little lettuce next week.
Shopping a farmers’ market isn’t just about buying food. To me, it’s also about getting fresh food in season, spending my money locally, and getting food that’s grown in a local range, too. One little red pickup truck had Georgia peaches. As delicious as they might have been, I took a pass and bought local strawberries instead. We’ll eat peaches in the fall when they’re ripe around here.

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>Spinach Pasta Toss

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>It’s that time again – time to look for seasonal recipes. Right now I’ve got spinach coming up like a weed. It matures so quickly I almost can’t keep up with the harvest. I served this as a side dish. With a source of protein like broccoli, it could be a vegetarian main dish. Anything canned or commercially packaged can, of course, be replaced with ingredients from the garden or the home-canned pantry.

Spinach Pasta Toss
1 can (14 1/2 oz.) diced or stewed tomatoes, undrained
2 cups pasta, uncooked – penne pasta or rotini or similar
1 cup water
1 package (9 oz.) baby spinach leaves (7 cups)
1/2 cup shredded cheese (Italian blends are good, and so is feta)
Bring tomatoes, pasta, and water to a boil in a large saucepan; stir. Cover; simmer on medium-low heat for 10 minutes, or just until pasta is tender.
add 1/2 of spinach; simmer, covered, for 2 minutes or just until spinach is wilted. Stir. Repeat with remaining spinach.
Serve topped with shredded cheese.
I wonder what this would be like with a little jalapeno pepper? It would change the whole flavor. Jalapeno pepper and Mexican style cheese, perhaps. Yum.

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>Peanut Butter Cookies

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>I’m a little off the beaten path today. Recipe Lion’s Blog Hop asked for Father’s Day recipes. Instead of re-posting Great Grandma’s German Potato Salad or sharing standard grill fare, I’m sharing a simple summer dessert – slash – snack. The best part about these cookies: the texture is perfect. They’re not too soft, not too crispy. Take them out of the oven when they’re still slightly soft and let them cool for a moment. Trust me: yum.

Peanut Butter Cookies
3 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup (2 sticks) butter or margarine
1 cup white sugar
1 cup packed brown sugar
1 cup peanut butter
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 large eggs
Sift the flour, baking soda, and salt in a medium bowl and set aside.
Beat together butter, sugars, peanut butter, and vanilla extract. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Stir the flour mixture into the bowl and blend thoroughly.
Shape the dough into 2 inch balls and place 2 inches apart on ungreased cookie sheet. Use a fork dipped in sugar to make a crisscross pattern.
Bake for 8 to 10 minutes at 350, until golden brown. Do not over bake!
Let stand for 2 minutes, then transfer to wire rack for the final cooling process.
Serve – well, let family and friends dive in.
Tips:
  • I really like my small scoop. It’s the perfect size for cookies like this.
  • Teens love these. If your home is the hangout for your teen and his/her friends, keep these in stock.
  • Peanut butter is a good source of iron (says the no-longer anemic Daisy).

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>Shrimp and Mushrooms over Spaghetti

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>I usually plan and pre-post Tuesday’s recipe. I’m running a little behind; I blame the nice weather. Yesterday I finally got around to testing this dish (it was a hit), and then after supper I was weeding and mulching and enjoying the evening birdsong. Oops, no post. Better late than never, though, and this is an easy dish for busy cooks.

Shrimp & Mushrooms over Spaghetti
4 oz. spaghetti
2 cloves garlic, mashed
1 pound shrimp, peeled and deveined
1/2 pound fresh mushrooms, sliced
3 Tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese
1/2 teaspoon salt (optional)
1/4 cup white wine
1 Tablespoon lemon juice
Cook spaghetti and drain.
Combine garlic, shrimp, and mushrooms and cook slowly for 5 minutes in a saute pan, tossing lightly. Add the spaghetti to the shrimp mixture. Add cheese, salt, white wine, and lemon juice. Stir until done. Serve immediately.
Ah, readers, you know me well. You know for certain that I made changes when I served this for supper last night. I did follow the basic recipe, but I added/ changed a little here and there. Here’s my list of modifications.
Add:
small amount of diced red bell pepper
1/4 diced onion
1/2 pound scallops (add with shrimp)
1 cup spinach (don’t laugh; in August it’ll be grated zucchini)
Replace spaghetti with egg noodles
I did not use the white wine. Instead, I boiled up the shrimp peelings and used 1/4 cup shrimp stock.
Next time, I’ll add herbs. I wonder how basil will work in this combination of flavors? Maybe in August I can serve it with a side of disappearing zucchini orzo instead of over pasta.

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>Blueberry Muffins

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>I looked through my archives and was surprised to see I hadn’t posted this standard recipe in my repertoire. I made these yet again on Sunday morning using frozen blueberries. Something about pulling last summer’s bounty out of the freezer makes it a little easier to wait for the first downtown Farmers’ Market. It’s a standard muffin recipe from the Good Home Cookbook. I made one change: I used whole wheat pastry flour instead of all-purpose flour.

Blueberry Muffins
2 cups whole wheat pastry flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) butter, softened
1 cup sugar
2 large eggs
1/2 cup milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups fresh or frozen blueberries
1. Stir together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
2. Beat the butter and sugar in a medium bowl until creamy. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, then beat in the milk and eggs until well combined.
3. Add the flour mixture and stir just until moistened. Fold in the berries.
4. Preheat oven to 350. Divide muffin batter evenly among twelve muffin cups.
5. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes or until golden brown.
Serve! These are delicious. I’m sure I don’t need to mention that they go well with coffee.
The Good Home Cookbook, edited by Richard Perry, has been on the market for several years. I got my copy to review when I was a fairly new blogger. Since then it has become my go-to cookbook for many recipes, most notably muffins. I enjoy reading the little bits of baking and cooking lore included with the recipes themselves. The blueberry muffin recipe notes that wild blueberries are popular with bakers because they’re slightly smaller than the commercially cultivated fruit. Interesting, isn’t it?

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>Cheese! Glorious cheese! Sargento Fridge Packs

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Being part of Mom Central Consulting is a lot of fun. The current fun is cheese. Yes, cheese. This cheese is good quality (it’s from Sargento), and the product itself is all about the packaging. Speaking of packaging, I was very excited to open up the box when it came. Look at all this cheese!

Below is the cheese as it fits in the refrigerator. Sargento Fridge Packs are made for convenience. As much as I prefer bulk packaging for most of my foods, I have to admit I liked these. Each cheese stick is vacuum wrapped to keep it fresh.

I opened the box of Colby Jack first. It didn’t take long before all three boxes were open. La Petite and Chuck dipped in immediately. This is a good sign for Sargento; we’re cheese snobs. We like our cheese real and we like it fresh. This cheese, thanks to its packaging, was very fresh and very delicious. Chuck packs a stick or two in his lunch. La Petite eats it any time of day, including breakfast. My favorite time to dip into the Fridge Packs is mid-afternoon to keep me from nibbling later while making supper.
Did I say it went quickly? It was a blur, honestly. Who needs junk food? When something healthier is this convenient, the family will eat it.
I wrote this review while participating in a blog tour by Mom Central Consulting on behalf of Sargento and received product samples and a promotional item to thank me for taking the time to participate. No, it wasn’t a cheesehead. I already have one of those. This product review was tasty and fun; thanks for including me, MomCentral and Sargento. The family thanks you, too.

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>Daisy’s potato salad

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>I know I’ve posted this in the past. I apologize for the redundancy. It was a good three day weekend, with a good balance of busy and relaxing, with a nice short parade on Monday. Picnic season is here and Chuck brought his German potato salad to share. Here’s my standard potato salad; we’re a two potato salad family! Ah, so skilled, we are.

1 1/2 lb. red salad potatoes, cut into small chunks (peeling optional; I like mine peeled)
1/2 cup Miracle Whip or similar dressing
2 hard-cooked eggs, chopped
3 green onions, diced
black pepper to taste
Cook potatoes in boiling water about 15-18 minutes, until tender. Drain. Rinse with cold water. Drain again, completely.
Combine remaining ingredients in medium mixing bowl. Add potatoes; mix lightly. Sprinkle with fresh herbs if you wish, and then leave a comment for me. I love new variations on old recipes!
Refrigerate several hours until chilled.
Serve cold.
The green onions and chives are up. I take pleasure in knowing that I don’t have to buy green onions; I can just walk out to the garden and pick one when I need it. It’s a simple pleasure.
Enjoy. Stay out of the storms, and enjoy the good weather as long as it lasts.

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