Tag Archives: cooking

One of Those Perfect Mornings

Posted on September 25, 2012 by AnnieRie

You know what I mean. The air is crisp. You slept with the windows open. The A/C has been turned off. Here in West County, we have seen temperatures in the 50s at night. Today I threw open all the windows and have the screen door in the kitchen giving us cross breezes in the back of the house.

This is my favorite cooking weather. The kitchen stays cool. It is soup and crock pot stew time. Yesterday I processed the last of the green tomatoes found hiding in the garden. There were another dozen or so that escaped notice when I was there over the weekend. I froze slices of the larger ones. They will come out in the winter to see if I can make that pesto pasta with frozen tomatoes. Some will become fried green tomatoes as a side dish.

flash frozen green tomato slices

All of the little ones and those still left on the windowsill were put together to make tonight’s dinner. I am going to make the pesto and the green tomato sauce, but put it on a whole wheat pizza crust as a variation on the pasta dish I have made numerous times. Might as well get the most out of the green tomatoes.

This morning I did a “twofer” in the food processor. Pesto and ajvar. Just enough of each to use for dinner tonight. I am making the pizza using ajvar on one side and green tomato pesto on the other. Should be interesting. If it works out, I will post pictures. If it is a bust, well, at least I will talk about it.

The pesto.

Parsley and basil combined. Some pine nuts. Parmesan. Two roasted garlic cloves. Salt and white pepper. Olive oil to make it the right consistency. Absolutely no idea how much of any of it. This is where I have fun when I cook. Creating by taste.

The ajvar, that wonderful Serbian spread I discovered a while back.

Again, no measuring. I roasted all the baby eggplant from the CSA, and three small red peppers, the other day and put them away with two roasted garlic cloves in the fridge. This morning I put them in the processor after scraping out the pesto, added balsamic and some olive oil to process, then just to see what would happen, dropped in a small handful of pistachios. Wow, what an interesting kick the nuts added to the spread.

I had my coffee on the patio and listened to the birds, particularly the blue jays who are out harassing a hawk somewhere near here. Loving the changes of color in the meadow, and seeing the first leaves turning.

the meadow in the morning

hocofood@@@

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Posted in Food, Gardening, Howard County, Locavore, Nature, Weather, West HoCo and tagged cooking, foodie, gardening, heirloom tomatoes, Howard County, Locavore, real food, weather, West HoCo. Bookmark the permalink.

Hello Fall, Farewell Summer

Posted on September 22, 2012 by AnnieRie

It was warm today, those last Indian Summer days are upon us. Still, the markets and my garden reflect the change of the season. Stone House bakery had apple dumplings at the Glenwood market today.

apple dumplings at the farmers market

I think it’s great they list love as an ingredient. I did buy one last gasp summer fruit today. A watermelon from TLV.

It will become a watermelon, mint and feta salad tomorrow, and the rest pureed to freeze for watermelon margaritas on the coldest day this winter. If it isn’t summer, we can still pretend.

I whacked down the last of the basil today. The monster basil plants that kept growing.

Some of these plants had stems that reminded me of serious shrubbery.

But the bees really loved the flowers as these plants went to seed.

I did some productive pruning and salvaged a small glass full of cuttings. I have two more ripe tomatoes, and some mozzarella. Definitely caprese salad material here. It may not look pretty but it tastes great.

I stopped at Gorman Farms yesterday after a trip to drop off our pickup. The passenger window gave up the ghost and refused to work. In the down position of course. Parsley and the last of the sun gold tomatoes looked wonderful. The parsley will become pesto with the last of the basil. The tomatoes. Those are candy. We eat them right out of the box.

parsley from Gorman farm stand

Loving that change in weather, with the change in fruits and veggies. My favorite time of year.

hocofood@@@

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Posted in Farmer's Markets, Food, Gardening, Howard County, Local Businesses and tagged cooking, farmer's markets, Food, foodie, gardening, Howard County, local businesses, Locavore, tomatoes. Bookmark the permalink.

Week 20, CSA Goodies Continue to Roll In

Posted on September 20, 2012 by AnnieRie

You know you need serious help when you take 100 pictures of your CSA box, just to get the one you want to post. Thank goodness for digital photography. You can click away to your heart’s content and delete like mad leaving only the good ones.

Today’s goodness!

Sandy Spring CSA Week 20

The list:

1 Bag Green Okra (which I swapped for more collard greens)
1 Bag Baby Eggplants
1 Bag Red Roma Tomatoes
1 Bag Garlic
1 Bunch Collards
1 Head Bok Choy
1 Bunch Dinosaur Kale
1 Head Green Leaf Lettuce
1 Bunch Green Komatsuna
2 Leeks

What is komatsuna, you ask? One of those amazing vegetables you would only get in a CSA box, and it really is a great vegetable. Very versatile. Very good for you. I added some chopped leaves to chicken soup I heated up for dinner tonight. The rest will find their way into a stir fry with that humongous bok choy. I have to say, these three in the picture below are items I never would be buying in a store.

komatsuna, bok choy and leeks

Tomorrow I will break out the crock pot again and make all those lovely collards with Italian sausage and some of my tomato sauce. They will grace the table a few times this weekend. I love collards with pork and tomatoes, and a little garlic.

Yikes! Another four pounds of Roma tomatoes. I thought tomato season was over. Apparently not in PA, it isn’t. So, one more round of blanching and freezing. I should never have to buy tomatoes this winter. The freezer will be full of them. And, baby eggplant. How cute. And, garlic. More garlic to roast and spread on bread.

This is such a great basket of goodies this week. So many of my favorites. Who knows what I will cook?

hocofood@@@

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Posted in CSA, Food, Locavore, Real Food and tagged cooking, crock pot cooking, CSA, Food, foodie, Locavore, real food, tomatoes. Bookmark the permalink.

Monday Odds and Ends

Posted on September 17, 2012 by AnnieRie

Sometimes a recipe just becomes one of those favorites. A keeper. Like the green tomato pasta from The Chew. I already wrote about it once, but I have made it at least three times since I found it.

I do experiment with it, though. Today I did it with tiny shells, and I added wild Alaskan pink salmon. I had a plate full of green tomatoes.

not ripe grape, plum and pear tomatoes

The last from the garden. The ripe ones will go in a salad later this week.

ripe yellow plum tomatoes

Out in the garden, nothing is left but a few Amish paste and two or three pineapple tomatoes. I will pick them soon, even if not ripe. I want to make this dish one more time before fall sets in and tomatoes are history. I sauteed them in olive oil, with scallions, garlic and oregano.

green tomatoes cooking in olive oil

No pictures from dinner. I was too busy getting the lovely pasta on the table while it was still warm. I did make some late last month that I served with ravioli, that looked like this.

green tomato pesto with ravioli

Use any pesto you like. Use any pasta you like. It is those green or slightly under ripe tomatoes that make this dish special. And, having inventoried the freezer today, I found I have lots and lots of pesto to use. Now, I just need to figure out how to get the tomatoes for the dish.

garlic scape pesto cubes in the freezer

The freezer is full. I did inventory today. All winter long, I will have pesto, fruit, tomato sauce, veggies like caramelized onions, veggie stock, beef stock, whole tomatoes, peppers, all to pull out and enjoy the CSA and my garden’s contributions to my meals.

Almost seven cubic feet of food. I didn’t think I would get that much preserved and processed. The freezer up in the kitchen is half empty, in hopes of getting some venison from my neighbor. It does have a half dozen chickens, some lamb, brisket, bacon, sausage and roasts, all from the farmer’s markets, to use all winter. I have almost turned the corner into having 100% locally sourced foods in my freezer. It is a good feeling to replace what I had with locally grown meats, veggies and fruit.

I do admit though, that I have to keep that citrus supply coming, for making those lovely Meyer lemon basil fizz drinks.

basics for meyer lemon basil fizz

Three simple ingredients as a base. Vodka is optional. Refreshing, yet with that hit of basil. I use lemon basil, since I grow it. I first discovered these lovely drinks back in April. They have become a staple in our summer dining. I just add a splash of vodka, keeping them light and refreshing. I get the lemons and the Aranciata at Wegmans. Too bad they don’t have the liquor store to give me one stop shopping.

I may take a trip out to Larriland, to find some green tomatoes to pick, and freeze. To keep this pasta recipe around all winter.

hocofood@@@

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Posted in Farmer's Markets, Food, Gardening, Howard County, Local Businesses, Locavore, Real Food and tagged cooking, farmer's markets, Food, foodie, gardening, heirloom tomatoes, Howard County, Locavore, real food, tomatoes, wegman's. Bookmark the permalink.

Preserving #hoco

Posted on September 15, 2012 by AnnieRie

Maybe I should call this one, my house reeks of garlic. But, that’s not particularly pleasant, unless you love garlic. This weekend finds us preserving food. Getting ready for winter. Making like the squirrels who are burying acorns (and corn). I can’t believe it when corn starts growing in the middle of my yard.

But, I digress. Today I popped off to the Glenwood Market to pick up a few things. And, when I returned, I was slow cooking and drying tomatoes. The tomatoes are winding down in the garden. I do have quite a bit of little ones, that I oven dried to make pesto.

Heirlooms ready to oven dry

Our theme this week for the Southern SOLE Food Challenge is preserving. I certainly am putting food away for winter. Besides the tomatoes and the pesto, I learned a trick from Lewis Orchards, at the market. Buy the buttermilk cake from Stone House Bakery. Cut it in quarters. Wrap it. Freeze it.

the cake

Wrapped and ready to freeze

Take those frozen Larriland Farms strawberries. Some whipped cream. A quarter of the cake. Make summer happen in the middle of winter.

Check out what my friends are preserving, by clicking on the links on my Challenges page.

hocofood@@@

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Posted in Food, Local Businesses, Locavore, Real Food, SSFC and tagged cooking, farmer's markets, Food, foodie, gardening, Howard County, local businesses, Locavore, real food, tomatoes. Bookmark the permalink.

My House Reeks of Basil

Posted on September 14, 2012 by AnnieRie

Really. The entire first floor smells like basil. The blue basil will not give up. It keeps branching out and growing. I whacked back another batch and have two cups of it sitting there waiting patiently to become pesto. The containers below are from a few weeks back, and are happily resting in the freezer.

Pesto ready for the freezer

Our locavore cooking challenge has a theme this weekend. Preserving and canning food. I am not a big canner, but with my new chest freezer I have become a freezing fool. Tomatoes, berries, peppers, corn, pesto, and sauces. I have a good supply put away to sustain me during the 14 week hiatus from getting CSA deliveries.

It’s hard to believe the basil started out in May looking pretty bare. And then it went wild. This is the herb garden before you could even see the basil.

Every growing season surprises me. This year the basil and rosemary took off. So did the thyme. The sage died. Don’t know why. but it did. The marjoram and tarragon also succumbed to the heat. It will be interesting to see how the rosemary does this winter. It has come back for three years. And, the thyme has wintered well.

It is almost time to plant the garlic. If you want to try something simple to grow, head to the local farmer’s markets and pick up some garlic. Put the cloves in a big flower pot, with lots of mulch over them. Come next May, you will have fresh garlic you grew. I loved my spring garlic from my flower beds, harvested in June.

hocofood@@@

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Posted in CSA, Farmer's Markets, Food, Gardening, Locavore, Real Food, SSFC and tagged cooking, farmer's markets, Food, foodie, gardening, hoco loco, Locavore, real food. Bookmark the permalink.

Is It Really Week 19 of the CSA?

Posted on September 13, 2012 by AnnieRie

Time flies when you are enjoying it. We seem to be heading quickly into fall, and the CSA reflects that. Getting more root veggies, some greens and the last of the tomatoes.

Sandy Spring CSA Week 19, Columbia MD delivery

The list:
1 Green Zucchini
1 Bag Chioggia Beets
1 Bag Sweet Potatoes
1 Bunch Rainbow Chard
1 Bag Sweet Banana Peppers
1 Bag Green Beans
1 Leek (I have two because I swapped basil for it)
1 Bag Red Tomatoes
1 Bunch Orange Carrots
1 Bunch French Breakfast Radishes
1 Head Bok Choy

What will I do this week? Definitely making chocolate zucchini bread. Making a Nicoise salad with the beans and leftover potatoes from a previous week, for a lunch at the Conservancy. Sweet potato gnocchi sound good, too.

I love getting all the root veggies in the fall.

As for things from the past, today at Wegmans we saw someone with a Tshirt that read “Kale is the new Beef”. Well, those of us in long term CSA relationships have been into kale for a long time. Now, it must be the IN thing. So, in honor of the shirt sighting, I came home and made spicy kale chips with the last of the kale from a few weeks back. By the way, the kale was still fresh in those green bags. They are a life saver in the CSA world.

Spicy kale chips

This version had seasoned salt, paprika, white pepper and olive oil. They will be appetizers before I do pan seared lemon sea scallops, picked up at Wegmans today. The last of the corn. And, potato and green bean salad.

Potato and green bean salad

Simple salad. Blanched beans. A pound of purple and white potatoes, parboiled. Mayo and white wine vinegar to taste. Scallions, salt, pepper and a few small tomatoes.

hocofood@@@

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Posted in CSA, Food, Locavore, Real Food and tagged cooking, CSA, Food, foodie, hoco loco, Locavore, real food, wegman's. Bookmark the permalink.

Eating Locally: What Did I Do Last Week?

Posted on September 10, 2012 by AnnieRie

Getting towards the end of our group who blog about our local eating adventures during the height of the growing season. Next week we get to blog about our preserving and canning adventures but this week, I just have a few random comments.

About how the CSA has changed my life. How would you like flourless squash brownies?

Flourless Squash Brownies

Because of our linkyparty on CSA recipes over at InHerChucks, I found A Little Nosh (love her tag line). This is the before picture. There is no after picture. They got eaten too quickly.

About how certain plants went crazy and others bombed. The basil created another huge round of pesto making. I got six more cups of basil out of this cutting. Two or three more cups of basil still out there.

Basil being rinsed

If you look at the picture below, you will see the good tomatoes and the ones the stink bugs destroyed. Careful cutting before slicing or processing was necessary to avoid damaged areas.

Heirloom tomatoes, some with stink bug damage

About how the farmers markets and the farm stands have replaced grocery stores in my shopping trips. I discovered England Acres and go there frequently. I get eggs and meat from them and from TLV.

England Acres fields

About almost completely eliminating processed foods and grocery store meats. Dinner Friday included TLV beef short ribs, CSA potatoes and kale, and tomato sauce made with my Amish paste tomatoes. Nothing processed in this dinner. All fresh. Almost all local. Except for the olive oil I used to brown the meat.

slow cooked short ribs

Check out my Local Challenge page and see what my friends are cooking. You may get addicted to ajvar, like I did. Mine is redder than Rebecca’s. Haven’t figured out what I did differently. Eat a local meal soon and enjoy the last of the summer bounty.

Ajvar, a Serbian eggplant, red pepper spread

hocofood@@@

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Posted in CSA, Farmer's Markets, Food, Local Businesses, Locavore, Real Food, SSFC and tagged cooking, crock pot cooking, CSA, farmer's markets, Food, foodie, gardening, heirloom tomatoes, hoco loco, local businesses, Locavore, real food, tomatoes. Bookmark the permalink.

CSA Week Eighteen

Posted on September 7, 2012 by AnnieRie

We are heading towards fall. At least the veggies are changing. Our box had some lettuce in it this week, and kale. Here is what it looked like, but there still is summer goodness in there.

Sandy Spring CSA Week Eighteen

The List:

6 Ears Bi-Color Corn – already shucked and ready for Friday night dinner
1 Bunch Green Kale – in the crock pot today with beef short ribs
1 Bag Mixed Beans – washed and put away to be used Monday
2 Heads Baby Bok Choy – destined for chicken next Thursday or Friday
1 Bag Purple Viking Potatoes – two of these are in the crock pot, too
1 Bag White Onions – lovely onions, maybe in a soup next week
1 Head Green Romaine Lettuce – cleaned, and resting in the spinner
1 Stalk Edamame – cleaned and ready to roast this weekend
1 White Acorn Squash – all the squash are hanging out together
1 Bag Red Roma Tomatoes – to be blanched and frozen
1 Bunch Dill (swapped to get more cherry tomatoes)
1 Pint Mixed Cherry Tomatoes – with its second box ready to nibble

Organic cherry tomatoes

As for last week’s African horned melon, I cut it open yesterday. It looked different, and really didn’t have a strong taste. Let’s say I was underwhelmed.

African horned melon

And, last week the beets were roasted and became part of a few salads for lunches. I love the golden beets best.

Salt roasted beets

As usual, I will be linking up my CSA posts with In Her Chucks linky party. It is where I get lots of inspiration on what to cook each week.

hocofood@@@

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Sometimes You Forget Pictures

Posted on September 5, 2012 by AnnieRie

Yeah, I forgot to get the camera to record the awesome skirt steak salad I made for dinner tonight. I did go get it to take a picture of the lovely 11 year old Virginia wine that went with it.

2001 Naked Mountain Raptor Red

Old wines are definitely different. Not as fruit forward. This one, from a stellar year in VA, was still hanging in there nicely. What is interesting about older wines is how they change rapidly as the meal progresses. Upon opening, they can be strange, until they settle out and soften. This one would linger after you swallowed it. Love older wines.

The skirt steak came out of the freezer. A JW Treuth steak from last spring’s CSA. Late last March, so six months in the freezer. My limit for keeping meats. Still very nice. Pan fried in balsamic, olive oil and garlic. Served over a salad.

I was busy today. I processed another boatload of basil to make two ice cube trays full of pesto.

Basil before becoming pesto

Even though I forgot to take pictures of dinner, I do have one great recommendation. While peaches are still in season, get some. Cut them in half. Put them cut side down in a pan with balsamic. Cook them until they soften. We had peaches I picked up outside Kendall Hardware this morning. I put one in the pan after removing the steak. It is amazing how intense the peach flavor is.