First Bouquet

Thursday, July 31, 2008

This is the first bouquet of u-cut flowers from The Farm. Aren't they just luuuurvly?

Barley Confetti Salad

Earlier this week I had a bunch of veggies to use up and didn't feel like making anything elaborate. I decided to throw them all together with some grains and legumes and call it good. Easy, tasty, and chock full of vitamins. I was mainly trying to get the spinach into my diet because of this anemia bout. Friends, I apologize if I haven't been too communicative the past few weeks, but I have been wiped out from this condition. I'm taking my iron but it seems to not be working as quickly as normal. Just plain annoying to have to go to bed at 7:30 or 8 every night. What am I, 10 years old? I thought early bedtimes were a thing of the past. Oh, how wrong was I.



Barley Confetti Salad
serves 4

1 cup dried barley
1 red pepper, finely diced
2-3 smallish beets, finely diced
2 cups packed spinach leaves, chopped into small strips
1 1/2 cups frozen corn
1 can kidney beans, drained and rinsed
1/2 lemon
1/4 olive oil
fresh ground pepper & dried red pepper flakes to taste

Cook barley according to package directions. While it is cooking, you can prep the rest of the ingredients. Once barley is done, add corn and spinach to it. The frozen corn will cool the barley to room temp and the heat from the barley will wilt the spinach. Add the kidney beans & red pepper and mix thoroughly. Squeeze the lemon over the top, drizzle on the olive oil, and add the ground pepper & pepper flakes. Stir. Taste and adjust seasoning as needed. Spoon into individual bowls and sprinkle beets on top. You do not want to mix them into the salad because they will dye the entire thing pink. Which may not be bad, if that's the look you're going for.

P.S. While cutting these beets, I got a little giddy at the color. And look at the gorgeously stained cutting board. Makes me go weak in the knees. Really now, I cannot be the only person this in love with the color of beets.

Warm BCT Salad

Wednesday, July 30, 2008

Last weekend I got home from the Art Fair and was completely jonesing for a BLT but had no L. I needed something really quick to eat because I was dog tired. I found a half a head of cabbage from The Farm in the back of my crisper and this salad was born. Easy squeezy and quick too! I was super hungry so I ate this by myself, but it could feed more as a light meal or side dish. No need for a dressing because the flavors are so beautiful just the way they are.



Warm BCT Salad

1/2 head green cabbage, sliced into thin strips
drizzle olive oil
1 tomato, diced
2-3 strips bacon
1-2 green onion, chopped
goat cheese to taste

Saute cabbage in pan with a drizzle of olive oil over medium heat. You can play the cabbage two ways: barely sauteed with plenty of crunch or plenty sauteed with the beginnings of crispy brown edges. I happened to do the latter because someone called me while it was cooking and I lost track of what I was doing. Both are equally tasty.

While the cabbage is cooking, cook your bacon. I prefer the microwave for cooking just a few strips at a time. Stick them in the microwave on a plate between several layers of paper towels. Cook on high for a couple minutes, check it, and continue to cook in minute intervals until at desired doneness. Chop into small pieces when cool enough to handle.

Assemble salad when everything is cooked. Layer cabbage on the bottom, then the rest of the ingredients. Crumble as much goat cheese as you want on the top of it.

Art Fair Treasures

Sunday, July 27, 2008

My brain is tired right now so pardon the lack of funnyness or pep in my writing. Every year I work at the Bellevue Festival of the Arts. In fact, this was my 10th year. I like to use the money I make to buy items from the fair. This year I went with the idea that I was going to get a print for my living room, but nothing really stuck out to me. I didn't just fall in love with anything. However, I was able to feed a disease my mom and I have-- a love for serving dishes. I got this serving bowl from Akiko's Pottery, and also got a matching serving platter and sake cup that I'm going to use as a salt cellar. I know these pictures don't show scale at all, but trust me on this, it is a large bowl. That I am absolutely in love with.

Sweet Potato Wontons

Friday, July 25, 2008

I have no idea how this is becoming more and more of a food blog, but it is. And I don't get how I am posting for the third time today. On a workday! Granted, today was slow at work but still, you would think I was bored or something. Oh wait...

Anyway, tonight I got home and knew I had to use up things in my fridge because I'll be gone all weekend. I did my usual stare into the fridge in hopes that one day if I stare hard enough it will talk and just tell me what to use. It would be even better if the door handles would become arms and just hand me everything so that I didn't have to search. Alas, it was not to be today. However, I was able to think on my own and after discovering a sweet potato, green onions, and wonton wrappers, I came up with these little babies. They are super simple to make but take a wee bit of time to assemble. Not hard in the least, I promise. It was actually rather lovely to do an unthinking job while listening to music and unwinding from my week.

Notes on this recipe:

• I baked these because, hello, it's so much better for you. However, baking does give them a different texture so don't go into this expecting an imitation of fried wontons.
• The sweet potato I started with was rather large so it made about 18 wontons. Enough for my dinner with some leftovers too.
• These would be good as an appetizer. But really, I'll eat weird things for dinner, so this worked for me.
  
• If you want to cook a sweet potato quickly, prick it with a fork in several places and put it in the microwave on high power for approx 4-6 min, turning halfway through. Check for doneness and put in for an additional minute or so if needed. The size of the potato will determine how long it takes to cook.

Sweet Potato Wontons

1 large cooked sweet potato, skin removed, mashed
2-3 green onions, chopped
1-2 Tbsp. Ras el Hanout (see below) or curry powder
1-2 tsp. garlic powder
salt & pepper to taste
wonton wrappers

Preheat oven to 350. Cook mashed sweet potatoes together with spices and onions in a pan on medium heat until warmed through. Ras el Hanout is a Moroccan spice blend that I make myself and keep on hand in a spice jar. You could also use curry powder in it's place. I haven't ever found the Ras el Hanout premade (I'll share my recipe later), so curry would be the easier option.



Once the sweet potato mixture is heated through, it is time to assemble the wontons. Place 1 wonton wrapper on a plate or cutting board in a diamond shape (corner facing you). Place approximately 1 Tbsp. of the mixture on one side of the diamond.



Dip your finger in a bowl of water and run it along the two sides of the diamond. Bring two opposite corners together to form a triangle shape. Make sure to seal the two sides well.



Then dab a bit of water in the middle of the triangle and fold both opposite corners in, sealing as you go.



Place your finished wontons on a greased cookie sheet. When all are assembled, put them in the oven for 10-20 minutes, checking for doneness after 7 minutes and every few minutes after that. Once these start to get dark, they go quickly, so make sure to keep an eye on them.

Conversation with God

Dear God,

Why did you make me so uncoordinated? I don't understand what you were trying to do. Do you just like to sit there and laugh as I maim myself? Because I didn't see any angels coming to break my fall as I bit it on the concrete steps here at work a few minutes ago. I was just trying to walk upstairs. That's all. I wasn't trying to hurt them or taunt them or any of those things that people may try to do to stairs and all of a sudden they reached out and grabbed my foot. I went flying and of course banged up a knee and bent a toe the wrong way. And it had to be on the leg I already seriously injured. It really wasn't nice of those stairs. God, why do you like to watch me fall? I don't get it. I really would prefer to stay upright and intact at all time. If you could arrange that, it would be really appreciated. Thanks.

Amen,
Angie

English Peas

I just remembered that I had these pictures that I was going to share with you... um... months ago. I know, shame on me. I sometimes plain forget that I have something to share. I ran into Janis at the Farmer's Market a while back (ok, really months ago) and she told me that I absolutely had to have these English Peas. I was wary about them because while I do love sugar snaps and snow peas, any pea I have to cook makes me want to gag. It's a texture thing. The older I get, the more textures bother me. She reassured me that I could eat these straight from the pod like candy. I figured it was worth a try and OH. MY. WORD. these puppies are good! I ate 3/4 of the 4 lb bag in one sitting and stopped only because I had to go somewhere. I shared the last little bit with Jess and we just couldn't get enough of them.



This is going to sound silly, but my favorite way to eat them was to strip a few pods and move the peas around in my mouth so that they sounded like lotto balls bouncing around in their cage. The sound was oddly satisfying to me. I made Jess do it too, but she couldn't understand the attraction. However, I am sure that you, dear reader, would get it because you're smart like that. Not that she isn't, of course, but sometimes she doesn't like to play along with me. Sadly, these peas are long gone from the market and I have to wait a whole 'nother year before getting more. A WHOLE YEAR! Sigh. I'll just sit here and twiddle my thumbs until then. Or maybe console myself with other recipes. Yeah, that sounds about right.

Sauteed Sugar Snaps & Radishes

Thursday, July 24, 2008

I know, I know, this sounds really weird. Bear with me for a minute though and you might change your mind. Tonight I had a meeting to go to and not much time to cook dinner. I had just unloaded my produce from The Farm and was sitting at my computer in a I-have-to-make-something-but-am-tired-of-normal-food funk. I happened upon this recipe from Smitten Kitchen, a food blog I regularly read. The first time I had seen it a few days ago I instantly dismissed it as just plain odd, but today it was like the heavens parted, a beam of light fell on my computer, and a voice told me to make this. I have no idea why it was so appealing, consdering I don't even like radishes and I eat sugar snap peas cold. So to combine two seemingly wrongly suited foods together and heat them up seemed so unlike my tastebuds. But I obeyed and am glad for it.

Radishes have always been just a bit too sharp and spicy for me. I will eat them, but I would never get them for myself. However, getting produce in the box that I don't have much control over makes me try new things and learn that I actually do like them. Case in point: radishes. These Easter Egg Radishes are just a sight to behold. Bold colors and bodies the size of a limes, they are not to be taken lightly. Tasty straight from the field, but their flavors become more mellow with a pleasing kick when you heat them up and soften them just a bit.

I'm sorry I didn't get great pictures of this dish. I just didn't have the time to make it look pretty. It doesn't matter though because baby, look at that color! Those radishes are amazing.



Like always, I altered the original recipe. Here's what I did:

• No orange juice in the house, so I used a quarter of a lemon and squeezed it over the top
• No fresh dill or dill seeds either, just used dried dill
  
• No shallots in the house, just used red onions. You could use any sort of onion-ey type of, well, onion... red, white, green, even garlic
• No butter was used, mainly because I was too lazy to get it out of the fridge. It would add a nice flavor, but not entirely necessary. Eh, I liked it even without.

Sauteed Radishes and Sugar Snaps with Dill

To remove strings from fresh peas, just snap off the stem end and pull string lengthwise down each pod.

Makes 6 servings.

1 tablespoon butter
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 cup thinly sliced shallots
12 ounces sugar snap peas, trimmed, strings removed
2 cups thinly sliced radishes (about 1 large bunch)
1/4 cup orange juice
1 teaspoon dill seeds
1 tablespoon chopped fresh dill

Melt butter with oil in large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add shallots and sauté until golden, about 5 minutes. Add sugar snap peas, cook for one to two minutes, and radishes sauteing until crisp-tender, about 3 to 4 minutes more. Add orange juice and dill seeds; stir 1 minute. Season with salt and pepper. Stir in chopped dill. Transfer to bowl; serve.

Is It Hot In Here?

Wednesday, July 23, 2008

All week long I have been so good about bedtime and have been getting 9-10 hours of sleep a night. Tonight I was planning on retiring to my bedroom at 9, but got caught up in a whirlwind love story at The Pioneer Woman. I have followed her site for a while now and just discovered her long series of posts about how she met her husband. Girls, read this in front of a fan with a glass of ice water in hand. Seriously, start at the bottom of the page of posts and work your way up. However, be warned that it may take you a while to read. And you definitely won't want to stop once you've started. So here I am, at 11:30 at night, knowing that I am going to be an utter wreck tomorrow, but completely ok with it because of the story running through my head. Wonderful. Simply wonderful.

Necklace

Tuesday, July 22, 2008

As a thank you for taking pictures for her, my friend Annie got me the necklace I had posted about a while ago. I love it! Thanks friend!

P.S. I have a soup I made yesterday that I may be posting about later this week, but no guarantees. I'm going to bed super early all week because I realized I'm anemic again and my body needs all the rest it can get. Combined with various evening meetings and working the entire next weekend at the art fair, I don't have much time for updates. It may be a while but never fear, I'll be back.

Spaghetti Western

Friday, July 18, 2008

This has got to be one of the most clever videos involving cooking:

Pain & Failure

Wednesday, July 16, 2008

So this was supposed to be another recipe post. Unfortunately, it didn't work out quite like I had hoped. Often I will get a particular ingredient in my head and then create an entire dish around it. Sometimes, like last night, I can't get to sleep because I'm creating a recipe in my head. This morning I woke up sleep deprived with a foggy brain. All day long I felt like I was moving at the speed of a snail and I couldn't seem to get my coordination together. I listed to the right as I walked. (Side note: I ALWAYS list to the right if I'm going to list while walking. Never left. I guess I'm not an ambi-lister, much like Zoolander isn't an ambi-turner). I dropped things. I forgot important details. Oh, so not fun.

But the worst was one particular time I was getting our of my chair. Since I sit at the front desk due to lack of receptionist and being only female downstairs, everyone in the company feels like they have free reign to use everything in my desk. I normally don't mind and it's not a big deal, but today someone grievously injured me with their carelessness. After retreiving a pen from my drawer, they didn't close it all the way. I didn't notice, swiveled in my chair suddenly to make a mad dash somewhere (always making mad dashes), quickly stood, and slammed my thigh into the corner of the drawer. Now, these are metal drawers with some seriously sharp edges, so the pain was instantaneous and strong. I fell back in my seat in agony and praticed my Lamaze for future birthing scenes. You never really can get enough practice. After a few minutes I could finally see straight and was able to close the drawer and get up to make a slow crawl to my destination. It wasn't until an hour later that I discovered the damage: a long deep wound with blood all over my leg and a bruised lump the size of a tennis ball. With the amount of blood there was, I am so surprised it didn't go through my jeans. I can't believe how much I hurt myself these days.

Anyway, this evening I was going to make a dish for dinner centered around andouille, a cajun sausage. I had been jonesing for it last night and it was the source of my sleeplessness, so I was going to have to make it or I would not last another day at work. If I didn't get sleep tonight, I would hate to see what I would do tomorrow. Probably stab my eye out in some freak white board pen accident. I went to Safeway for the sausages and to pick up a few other things, but Safeway DIDN'T HAVE THE ANDOUILLE! Just kill me now. I decided to go with a Portugese sausage that I hadn't ever used before. Bad bad move on my part. Once I tasted it, I had to completely rework the recipe concept in my head to fit with the new flavor profile. I was able to do a few subsitutions, but the bulk of the recipe ended up staying the same. It was, in one word... gross. I still ate it because the majority of the ingredients were tasty, but that sausage was horrific. I am such a sausage girl and have never met one I didn't like (I don't mean that in the dirty way that just made me giggle inside), but this one was disgusting. I'm still gagging at the thought. Needless to say, I will not be posting this recipe. I do not wish for you to want to throw up your dinner.

Here's to hoping that tomorrow's a safe and tasty one...

The Flores Family

Sunday, July 13, 2008

Yesterday I got to hang out with my college friend Annie and her family. I took pictures of them since they didn't have any yet with the new addition of Samuel. Babies are not something I photograph often, so I discovered that many a great picture were ruined by an absolutely awful expression on his face or by moving body parts. You can click here to see all the pictures. I did different versions of many of the pictures for them to pick the ones they like best.





I love the expression on Samuel's face here:











Once Samuel fell asleep we took some pictures with just Annie & Checo.





This one just cracks me up. I saw a broom and mop hanging out on the back porch so I made them pose in a version of the American Gothic painting.

Lime & Cilantro Corn on the Cob

Wednesday, July 9, 2008

I don't know what it is with me and posting multiple entries a day lately. I was actually supposed to have 3 new recipes for you tonight but it turns out that when I was taking pictures of my latest creation, Dijon Thyme Green Beans, it wasn't recording to my CF card. I don't really know how or why it happened, but it kinda freaks me out that it did (I think I really like the word freak tonight). I luckily have pictures of everything else, but just don't feel right doing a post of food without proof to back it up. I'll have to recreate it some other time. I'm really sad though because those beans were so delicious. Oh well, I'll just have to tell you all about this one.



Lime and Cilantro belong together. Just like Lavender and Rosemary, they should get married. I really could be such a good matchmaker. It would be like all the great couples: Bruce & Demi, Sonny & Cher, Anne & Ellen... oh wait. So maybe those didn't work for me, but there are great couples out there, I promise: Joy & Larry (my parents), John & Connie (Jess' parents), Me & Hans.



I came up with this last summer after racking my mind for another vehicle to carry the bold combo of lime & cilantro. Corn! How brilliant I am!



Lime & Cilantro Corn on the Cob

Ears of Corn, shucked
1/2 stick butter, softened
handful cilantro, finely chopped
1 lime, cut into wedges

Put a large pot of water on the stove to boil.

While you are waiting, make the compound butter by stirring together the butter and cilantro. Make sure that you get the cilantro evenly distributed.

After the water boils, throw in the corn and let cook for 3 minutes. Drain when done.

Use one wedge of lime per ear of corn and squeeze the juice onto the cob. Then you can spread the compound butter on. It is important to do the lime first so that it can actually reach the corn instead of being repelled by the butter.

You can add salt & pepper at this point, but I find it completely unnecessary since the flavor from everything else makes your tongue want to do a dance in your mouth.

Rosemary Limeade

I am freaked out right now. Since Jess is gone for the month, I can choose the Netflix movies coming to me. I have to confess that I have a thing for teeny bopper movies. I just love the tweener drama. Currently I'm watching the new Nancy Drew movie, but it is seriously scary. And I'm not saying that sarcastically. I mean that I am really truly scared. I thought Nancy Drew was going to be a lot of benign sleuthing, but I was so wrong. It has ghosts, scary people popping up, and murder. I can't handle that when I'm watching something alone. I've never done well with scary stuff. The first scary movie I watched was as a junior in college and I ended up grabbing my neighbor's hand and biting it during a particularly fearful time. There was a bathtub scene that freaked us out so much that Jess and I had to go to the bathroom TOGETHER that night. I can't watch CSI or Law & Order because they make me imagine all sorts of things. I can't read mystery books because my heart won't stop pounding. I can't listen to ghost stories because they are way way way too real to me. Been there, done that, don't need a recap. Basically I'm blogging right now to distract myself and to not get too into the movie so that I can actually sleep tonight. I feel slightly silly at the moment.

Anyway, I don't know why I haven't told you about my Rosemary Lemonade/Limeade until now. Last year I introduced it into our menu and ever since, it's been an ever-present part of our summers. So simple and so amazingly good.



Rosemary Limeade

Simple Syrup:
1 cup water
1 cup sugar
fistful of rosemary sprigs (I've also used other herbs like sage and basil)

Put sugar and water in medium sized sauce pan. Bring to a boil, stirring occasionally to ensure sugar is completely dissolved. Once it has boiled, remove from heat and throw in rosemary. Cover (very important to do this so that the essential oils don't escape in the steam) and let steep for 20 minutes. Strain through fine mesh sieve when done steeping. Can be stored in the refrigerator for weeks.

To complete limeade you need:
Juice from Limes or Lemons (one piece of fruit generally is good for 2-3 servings)
Water

Stir together. This is the ratio that works for me:
1 part simple syrup
1 part lime or lemon juice
2-3 parts water

Make sure that you taste and adjust accordingly.

Why the Christian Right is Wrong

Tuesday, July 8, 2008

Friends, I am currently reading a book that so eloquently expresses my feelings that I am not even going to wait until I am done before sharing. I normally don't pass on what I read because I devour books as meals, but I am so riled up in agreement that I slid to the floor next to where my laptop was resting and started typing without even waiting to move to a better location. I discovered this gem at the library and knew that I absolutely had to pick it up. Robin Meyers gives us "a minister's manifesto for taking back your faith, your flag, your future" in Why The Christian Right is Wrong.

I would like to note that this book is not written from a pro-Democrat stance. In fact, he says in the foreward that if he were to write a sequel, it would be to talk about how Democrats are clueless and impotent. Before I read the book I was expecting some sort of strongly worded diatribe about how awful Republicans were while extolling the Democratic views. I was extremely pleased to see that was not the case.

I have always been pretty anti-Republican for many reasons, one of them being that they have joined pious Christians on a high horse with a supercilious attitude and feel completely justified in condemning large amounts of people based on sexual orientation, choices they have made, or life circumstances. I mean for heaven's sake, they cut taxes for the rich and reduce the welfare for the poor. When will people wake up to the arrogance that displays?

As a Christian, I know that my views are in the minority. I know that they can be controversial. But I believe so much that the traditional ways of Christian thinking have put us in jeopardy of falling more and more away from having ministry like Jesus. This book rightly takes to task our President, the Religious Right, and many big name ministers of our time. And I personally love that in addition to others, he expresses frustration and disagreement with Focus on the Family and James Dobson. I have never been a fan of those and I do admit that it is with some glee that I read his thoughts. Don't get me wrong, this is not a book bashing any one entity in particular. It is a book that is thoughtfully laid out with general commentary on the Religious Right and all the "big ticket" political issues. Abortion, War, Debt, Homosexuality, Health Care.

I can't go into depth about everything but I will tell you that the chapter that made me race to the computer was the one on homosexuality. The general Christian attitude about gay people is full of condemnation, fear, and hate. What I have never understood is why we, as a Church, don't embrace them with open arms. Why the hell are churches barring them from attending, participating, and serving? Even if it is not explicitly said, there is still the unspoken agreement that they are not welcome. I can't even begin to tell you how much this makes me want to swear. I get that passionate about the subject. This book provides some great reasoning and thought behind embracing and accepting homosexuals.

Since I am only 2/3 of the way through, I most likely will post another commentary when I reach the end. I just couldn't keep it in any longer. I encourage each of you to find the book and read it before your next political vote. It may just shed some new light for you.

Confession

Monday, July 7, 2008

Would you guys be jealous if I confessed to eating 3 pints of strawberries tonight? You would? Well then I won't tell you about how I just had to buy another half flat from Spooner today and wanted it so bad I raced back from work and got there 5 minutes before they closed. I couldn't even wait to put away my stuff when I got home and instead just threw it on the kitchen floor so that nothing would stop me from having berry goodness. And I most certainly won't tell you that I slammed a colander in the sink, dumped half the box in, swished with water, and went to town. It would certainly be cruel to tell you that the berries just melted in my mouth and I ate leaning over the sink so that my shirt wouldn't get stained with berry juices. Now if I were to tell you all that (and I most certainly won't), it might make you feel better to know that I did manage to dump a large amount of berry water down the leg of my jeans. But since I didn't tell you any of that, there is no need to share that I was entirely klutzy and despite all precautions, I managed to get berry juice on my shirt. And I won't share that the berry lady told me I still had another week before the strawberries were done. A WEEK! Since when to they go into the middle of July? Oh my word, this could be dangerous for me. Thank heavens I didn't have to tell you any of that or you might be mad. Or steal my berries.

Roasted Potatoes with Lavender & Rosemary

Sunday, July 6, 2008

This has to be the last post for the night. The fourth one, is it? Yikes, I really need to keep up next time. Anyway, this particular recipe was a brilliant inspiration on my part. I sat there looking at all the herbs I pilfered from The Farm and wondered what on earth I was going to do with them. I happened to look up and voila, there were a bunch of potatoes, also from The Farm. Inspiration struck and I decided that instead of just normal rosemary roasted potatoes, I was going to add the lavender to them too. (Side note: I just found out that I have been spelling lavender wrong all day: lavendAr. Man, I'm really slipping.)

The lavender was an amazing add. Oh my word, the smells while it was cooking were down right heady. Rosemary and lavender should be forced to get married. Kinda like royalty used to have their mates picked out from birth. I would totally be up for arranging it all because they are so good for each other. Really, they should never be apart. And with the way they fornicate, there definitely needs to be some marriage making it legal. Right now it's almost indecent how good the combo is.







This is such a simple recipe that I almost don't even want to post it. I feel like it's kinda silly. But, it was so fricken unbelievable that I had to shout to the world that YOU MUST TRY THIS!



Roasted Potatoes with Lavender & Rosemary

6 yellow or white waxy potatoes, cubed
handful of rosemary
handful of lavender
glug of olive oil
salt & pepper

Preheat oven to 400. Put cubed potatoes in a large bowl. Strip the leaves of the rosemary from the stems by pulling on them in the opposite direction that they grow. Throw into bowl. Strip the lavender the same way, pulling off the more delicate bunches and using them even though they still have a bit of stem attached. Throw into bowl. Add a bit of salt, pepper, and olive oil. Stir until the potatoes are evenly coated. Put potatoes in 9x13 pan sprayed with cooking spray. Cook for approx 45-60 minutes, stirring potatoes every 15-20 minutes. Garnish with sprigs of lavender or more lavender petals (the added sprinkling made it even more flavorful).

Plum & Raspberry Galette

I got some plums from The Farm that were just a bit too tart for me to eat. I decided to make a simple galette with them. Basically a rustic tart with a fruit filling. Unfortunately, I didn't have enough plums for the entire thing so I used an equal amount of raspberries. The raspberries I bought this weekend from the Spooner Farms berry stand down the street. I got a half flat each of them as well as strawberries. Every year I get a bunch of berries and freeze them flat on plastic wrap lined cookie sheets. Once they are hard, I throw them into labeled bags and pop them back in the freezer to take out during the winter. By freezing them individually, I can use as many as I want without having a huge clump that I have to chisel through. In all my strawberry eating years, I don't think I have tasted strawberries as good as the ones this weekend. I seriously regret not eating half the box. I'm not joking. They were that good.





Anyway, back to my recipe. Very few things are beyond my cooking ability, but pie crust is something that intimidates the crap out of me. It just seem like an insurmountable task to me. Don't get me wrong, I've made them before, but I always get slightly stressed about it. Will my pie crust be flaky? Will it stay together? Way more than I want to deal with. So I use premade pie crust from the refrigerated section of the grocery store. I know that seems very unlike me to not make it myself, but I just can't do it. My crust was in the freezer so I think that the quality may have been compromised due to the age that I couldn't quite pin down. I didn't really care though because I just needed to use the plums and clean out the freezer. My crust cracked in places while baking and was an utter mess all over the cookie sheet. Next time not using a watery fruit like raspberries and using a better crust would probably prevent that from happening.

Note: you can use a myriad of fruits in a galette. Peaches, Nectarines, Apples,Blueberries, etc. Feel free to substitue. Also, serve it with ice cream or whipped cream. (Especially if using tart fruits)

Plum & Raspberry Galette

3 plums, cut into medium sized chunks
1.5 cups raspberries
zest of one lime (could use lemon)
approx. 1/2 cup sugar (adjust according to tartness of fruit & taste)
2 Tbsp. flour
1/3 cup chopped pecans (optional)
1 pie crust

Preheat oven to 375. Mix all the ingredients together in large bowl (except pie crust). Spray a cookie sheet with nonstick cooking spray. Set your pie crust on the sheet and pour fruit mixture into the middle. Even out the fruit, leaving a 2 inch rim of crust. Fold crust up over the fruit, pinching at intervals, and leaving the middle of the fruit exposed. Put in the oven for 40-60 minutes, until the crust is golden brown. Let cool for an hour or so before slicing.

Chicken with a White Wine Sage Sauce

Friends, we sure do have come catching up to do. I can't believe how many recipes I have just sitting on the back burner waiting for me to share with you. Hopefully I'm going to catch up somewhat tonight. Here's the first one.

Now, I have always been on the fence about sage. Sometimes I like it, sometimes I don't. I am able to get as much as I want from The Farm each week and have been trying various things, including a delicious pasta with fried sage, to get myself to enjoy it. I really really really want to like it. I don't know why, I just feel that I should. Unfortunately, I think I have finally made up my mind and decided once and for all that sage is not for me. Oh sure, I enjoy the flavor, but if something still has the capacity to feel fuzzy after being cooked for an extended period of time, there is just something wrong with it. I don't want to feel like I am eating a carpet with my meal. Basically, it's a texture issue for me.



This recipe was born out of my last effort to try to like sage. I needed something that would let the flavor of the herb shine, since I do actually like that. This is what I came up with. The overall taste is a sharp one that eventually mellows on the tongue. I don't ever really use exact measurements when cooking, so these are just approximations based on what I remember using.



Chicken with a White Wine Sage Sauce

2 chicken breasts
1 med onion, diced or sliced into strips
4 cloves of garlic, minced
1 cup white wine
handful of sage leaves, cut into strips
juice of half a lime (could use lemon too)
olive oil
1 Tbsp butter
salt & pepper

In large pan, saute onions over medium heat in a bit of olive oil until just starting to get translucent. Add garlic and sage and saute for an additional minute. Put chicken breasts in the pan and cook on each side until done. Add white wine, lime juice, butter, salt and pepper to taste. Let sauce reduce a bit for approx. 3-5 minutes. Taste sauce and adjust accordingly.

You can serve this over many things. Rice, pasta, mashed potatoes, etc. I happened to have a bunch of green cabbage, red cabbage, and carrots that I had leftover from when I shredded them to make a coleslaw last week. I sauteed them in a separate pan with a bit of olive oil until they were just starting to get tender. I wanted them still to have some crunch. I used that as the bed for the chicken.