I’ll bet you can guess the secret ingredient! In the summer, it’s zucchini. In the winter, it can be beets. Because if you add vegetables, it cancels out all the calories, right?
Zucchini Brownies
July 25, 2010 By 16 Comments
It’s that time of year when zucchini gets put into everything. Simply in Season does not disappoint in that department. Speaking of which, I think I’ll still be able to make my end of August deadline. There will be a few marathon cooking sessions the next few weekends, but here’s hopin’!
Aprons, Aprons, Aprons
July 24, 2010 By 2 Comments
The winner of the apron giveaway was Christy, congratulations!
For those of you who didn’t win, head on over to
(affiliate link)
and take a look around! There are many drool-worthy selections.
. . . or make your own apron!
I confess that I have not gotten around to making my own apron yet, but when I do get some extra time I’m going to check out some of these links. Even with *my* sewing skills I think I could pull them off! Even if you’re not planning to sew your own, have fun exploring these sites.
38 Free Apron Patterns – pretty much what it says.
The Apron Goddesses – A blog whose tagline is “Domestic Goddesses wearing aprons. Win an apron. Find an apron. Join the apron addicts.”
Apron Memories – A blog, a book, home of Tie One On Day (which has nothing to do with drinking. Rats.)
Apronista - It’s a place where Apron lovers, makers, and collectors from all over can gather to share resources, shops, and enthusiasm for Aprons, and all manners of Homemaking.
The Fabric Fairy – Back when I sewed a lot more than I do now, I loved this site! Great source of fabric and notions.
Flirty Apron Swap – An apron club where people sew an apron and swap it with others, based on a specific theme. Would love to do this someday!
The Hip Hostess – A store and a blog. And she’s from Michigan. Her latest post is of a cherry chicken salad.
OliveJuice & Company – It looks like this site hasn’t had any activity in a few months, but the apron kits are a great idea (if anyone steals this entrepreneurial venture, let me know! I’d love to buy one!) Don’t you hate it when you come across a great looking blog that’s defunct? So sad.
Modern June – Blog and Etsy shop. I’m seeing a pattern here. Ha ha. Ooh look, she carries oilcloth! Yes! Oilcloth projects are on my list of Things I Would Like to Do But Know I Probably Won’t. You know that list . . .
PatternReview.com – A sewing community where I learned just about everything I know about sewing. Which isn’t a lot, but I know where to find out more! Here!
The Secret Stitch Club – A blog about a group of women who get together and sew aprons. And talk about it.
Tie One On – Again, it has nothing to do with drinking. Angry Chicken (a blog I read before I really knew what a blog was) has an apron sew-along thingy every couple of months. Kind of like The Daring Kitchen only with sewing instead of food, and not every single month. Another project that’s on my list of Things I Would Like to Do But Know I Probably Won’t.
Tip Nut – 40+ free apron patterns. Between this and the 38 aprons link above, you should be able to find something you can sew!
How about you? Are you an apron addict? Have you ever sewn one? Have a favorite craft/sewing blog?
The Busy Person’s Guide to Preserving Food: A Book Review + Tips
July 23, 2010 By 10 Comments
What can I preserve without blanching? That’s the question I ask myself when I find I have too much produce to eat before it goes bad. I’m just too busy to mess with steaming/blanching/boiling. Not to mention we don’t have air conditioning and the last thing I want to do is stand over a hot stove in the middle of a steamy, Michigan summer.
So when my mom bought me The Busy Person’s Guide to Preserving Food: Easy Step-by-Step Instructions for Freezing, Drying, and Canning a few years ago for Christmas, it was love at first sight.
One caveat before we proceed: The book does recommend freezing in boilable bags. And while I LOVE our FoodSaver Vacuum Food Sealer, I would not boil the bags as they are not designed to withstand those kinds of temperatures. I scoured the internet for bags that were safe for boiling before giving up and deciding that using the regular bags was just fine, that I can thaw in the refrigerator just fine.
The biggest revelation for me was discovering that you can freeze many fruits and vegetables WITHOUT BLANCHING THEM FIRST. Wow! That made my life SO much easier. Just wash, chop, and vacuum seal. Done. It might not last quite as long in the freezer as the blanched technique, but it’s better than nothing.
So what can you freeze without blanching? Here’s a list below, which I gathered from the book plus various sources over the past couple of years.
- Beans (trim ends. Lasts up to 6 months.)
- Berries (tray freeze)
- Broccoli (florets last 6 weeks, stalks 3 mos)
- Cherries (tray freeze)
- Cranberries (tray freeze)
- Corn on the cob (keep in the husk; lasts up to 4 mos)
- Grapes
- Herbs (if they’re thick and leafy like basil and parsley)
- Okra
- Peas (shelled)
- Peppers (chop and tray freeze, or freeze them whole)
- Rhubarb
- Strawberries
- Summer squash/zucchini (slice into 1/4 inch thick or grate for use in zucchini bread recipes)
- Tomatoes (can core and keep whole, but works better when you puree it)
Other vegetables that need a little work but not much:
- Greens (stir fry until wilted, 2-3 minutes before freezing)
- Onions (tray freeze, then put into bags)
The book also includes recipes and instructions for canning and drying, but the chili turned out awful so I haven’t tried the other recipes. There are numerous other tips included, though.
Of course, the old fashioned way of making salsa, relish, soup, and canning applesauce brings back fond memories and I know of a lot of people who have whole days dedicated to a canning bee. These are a lot of fun. But often they are during the day so I can’t participate unless I want to use one of my precious vacation days from work. So unless I give up a Saturday, it’s just not happening at this stage in my life. I do a few things here and there, but no huge canning bees for me. If it’s something you’d like to try, Canning Across America is a super helpful site.
How about you? What shortcuts have you found to make preserving the harvest quicker?
Crustless Zucchini Tomato Quiche
July 22, 2010 By 19 Comments
OK so I didn’t have enough tomatoes to make this as written. I sort of ate the handful of ripe cherry tomatoes that I had picked for this recipe. Oops. So I added some chopped kale. That’s the nice thing about Simply in Season. They actually give you permission to make substitutions! An added bonus of that feature in this book is that after a year, I’m finally getting the hang of usual substitutions, and carrying that knowledge over to other recipes.
Oh, and an update on the Baking Mix – for those who try to avoid vegetable oil – I have some palm oil “shortening” on order and I hope to review that very soon!
Things I Love Thursday: Palm Leaf Plates
July 21, 2010 By 2 Comments
You may have noticed the cool plates in some of the photos this week. Would you believe they’re disposables?
I normally try to avoid disposable plates. The only time I don’t feel guilty using them is when we’re camping and can toss them in the fire. Yet I know that there are times you just have to use them. Palm Leaf Plates are a good alternative.
MarxFoods sent me some to try, and I was surprised at how durable they are. You hate to throw them away, even though you know they will biodegrade. You can even compost them. They are, after all, made out of leaves.
The only drawback is the price. $33.50 for 25 pieces. But for a special party, they’d be worth it!
Dill/Fennel Yeast Bread
July 21, 2010 By 4 Comments
This bread from Simply in Season is in the summer section, but you can use dried spices and make it year round!
Mixed Greens Master Mix
July 20, 2010 By 4 Comments
Actually, I have no idea if that’s the title of this recipe or not. My good friend Cindy does cooking demos at our CSA and last week she made several dishes based on this “master mix.” I’m waiting for the recipes to be emailed to us with our next weekly enewsletter, but in the meantime I bugged Cindy for the recipe and this is pretty close to what she made.
It’s very versatile and is great for those greens that are called salad greens but way too spicy (at least for me) to actually eat in a salad.
- In a large frying pan, saute’ onion (or green onions), garlic, and chopped Swiss chard stems until soft.
- Add the rest of the Swiss chard leaves (chopped), and cook until wilted.
- Add two big handfuls of chopped mustard greens and cook until wilted or desired done-ness.
- Finally, add some raisins, pine nuts, red wine vinegar, sundried tomatoes (which I omitted because I didn’t have).
This master mix can be added to rice, pasta, or made into a frittata. As you can see I made it with rice.
The Verdict: I loved it, but DH said he thought it was a little bland. How he thought that I’m not sure, because the spicy greens and red wine vinegar added a lot of flavor. Oh yeah, and he thought it needed chicken.
For more great recipes, check out What’s on the Menu Wednesdays and Foodie Fridays
Kitchen Tip Tuesday: Mis en Place
July 20, 2010 By 3 Comments
Long lists of herbs and spices used to intimidate me. And I would burn something while I scrambled around the cupboard, trying to find a spice and the measuring spoon I needed.
Then I heard about mis en place. Basically you measure out everything ahead of time – before you start cooking! Brilliant, huh?
This is especially important in Indian cooking when you might have a series of spices added at different steps. I was reminded of this in the cookbook Cook By Numbers Indian: …Real Cooking Made Easy.
You can buy some pretty little bowls, which I haven’t done yet. I just use the little coffee mugs that came with my dishes. They’re just the right size and the glaze on the inside resists sticking.
Speaking of spices, freshness is very important. And if you use spices like cardamom and coriander, as I do frequently, the grocery stores charge a lot for a teeny bottle and since they don’t sell a lot of it, it’s likely stale.
If you have an ethnic store in your area, or a health food store, it’s a great place to pick up larger bottles for the same price or less, and they are more likely to be fresh.
Another source I’ve found is Spices, Inc. They contacted me to participate in an affiliate program so I asked for some product samples. I was amazed at the quality, fast shipping, and reasonable price. So if you don’t have a local source, check them out!
They put together a list of the Top 25 Spices Every Kitchen Must Have.
What are yours?
Vegetable Vindaloo
July 19, 2010 By 10 Comments
I’ve made this recipe from Simply in Season before (way before I started this blog). It didn’t turn out as well as I remembered – read to find out why!
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