it has come to my attention that people have been consuming more and more eggs. maybe it's the increase in price of grass fed beef, pork, and chicken that has caused all the rage. maybe it's the amazing versatility of the egg. maybe it's the availability of more and more locally raised eggs. you have to admit it, when the neighbors bring you fresh eggs from their coop, they taste one million times better than conventional eggs from the grocery store. whatever the case, eggs are great.
humans have probably been eating eggs for millennia. they are high in omegas, a great source of protien, contain lots of vitamins and minerals, and they supply all essential amino acids for humans. The diet of the laying hens can greatly affect the nutritional quality of the eggs. For instance, chicken eggs that are especially high in omega 3 fatty acids are produced by feeding laying hens a diet containing polyunsaturated fats and kelp meal. Pasture raised free-range hens which forage largely for their own food also tend to produce eggs with higher nutritional quality in having less cholesterol and fats while being several times higher in vitamins and omega 3 fatty acids than standard factory eggs.
armed with a dozen eggs fresh from a neighborhood coop i set out to make breakfast for my parents and family whom were up for a visit this weekend. there are dozens of dishes that i have made that feature the humble, yet wonderful egg. the 'iron-chef' scramble is one of my favorites. pretend that you are a featured guest on the 'iron chef' television show (it helps that we don't have television, so our imaginations soar for this event). your secret ingredient is the egg. you have only whats in the fridge to work with. now go!
typically ninja skills and a sharp knife are crucial here. i found half a slab of smoked bacon, a bundle of swiss chard, baby swiss cheese, and various herbs. it was go time. i made quick work of the bacon, roughly chopped and sauted, it was the base. i strained off most of the fat, but left a little in the pan for which i sauted and wilted the swiss chard. then i whisked up those beautiful, amber yolked eggs with a bit of cream, a few pinched of thyme, fresh cracked pepper, and smoked sea salt then added it to the bacon and swiis chard. i then scrambled as i had never scrambled before. once the eggs were almost cooked through, i topped with grated baby swiss, through the pan in the oven to melt the cheese and finish cooking the eggs. the end result was spectacular. paired with fresh fruit and java, and our sunny morning was inviting a picnic breakfast out on the deck.
get your 'iron chef' on! egg scrambles are not only exciting, but entertaining too. and what better way to use up those half bundles of fresh produce that were maybe going to make it into a soup at best. eggs are often overlooked and under utilized, so make room for them in a meal or two this week. throw a lightly poached egg on top a fresh greens salad for an extra protein boost. add a couple of hard boiled eggs in your brief case for a snack. eggs are incredible and very very edible. belly up!!
Thursday, May 19, 2011
Tuesday, May 17, 2011
spring onions
my grandpa is 82 years old- give or take a few years. he has spend a large portion of his life traveling. he started his gypsy life as a riding performer on his motorcycle. have you ever seen those fellas who ride their motorcycles speedily in circles in a metal, circular cage? that was my gramps. he was a whippersnapper to say the least. he then traveled about the world while working for the navy. from my understanding, he has been to several european countries, but probably not under the best of circumstances. he came back to the states after ww2. somewhere in those travels, my grandmother entered the scene, and gave the gift of gardening and really good food.
my daughter and i took a little road trip this weekend to rural wisconsin, where we met up with my gramps. he was in wisconsin for a little visit after a long drive from mission texas. i grew up in rural wisconsin, along with my parents, siblings, lots of cool aunts and uncles, and my grandparents. my gramps really doesn't get along with the winter months anymore, so for decades he has escaped to his second home in texas. while my grandparents were in wisconsin, my grandmother had established an extraordinary garden. fresh produce from gram's garden was a summer staple. as a child i spent a great deal of time weeding the garden at my grandmother's side, grazing my way across the garden. my grandpa would always try to convince my brother's and i to eat the spring onions, which were always too sassy for our young pallets to endure. my grams took the gardening with her when she was in texas for the winter months and grew various chilies and citrus fruits. no matter where my grandmother was, she was sure to have something growing.
this weekend, my gramps came with armloads of citrus fruits from his texas crop. he also had a small handful of those spring green onions from my grandmother's garden in wisconsin. i happily ate the spring onions with him this year. of coarse i then wandered into that part of my brain that thinks about food 100% of the time, and i started putting together options for those sassy spring onions. instantly, spring onion oil came to mind. macerate those onions with some great olive oil, season lightly with sea salt, dried chilis, and maybe a shot of lemon juice or zest. drizzle on everything. it would make a great flavor booster for soups, risottos, pastas, and a fried egg sandwich with grilled bacon and roasted tomatoes. belly up!
my daughter and i took a little road trip this weekend to rural wisconsin, where we met up with my gramps. he was in wisconsin for a little visit after a long drive from mission texas. i grew up in rural wisconsin, along with my parents, siblings, lots of cool aunts and uncles, and my grandparents. my gramps really doesn't get along with the winter months anymore, so for decades he has escaped to his second home in texas. while my grandparents were in wisconsin, my grandmother had established an extraordinary garden. fresh produce from gram's garden was a summer staple. as a child i spent a great deal of time weeding the garden at my grandmother's side, grazing my way across the garden. my grandpa would always try to convince my brother's and i to eat the spring onions, which were always too sassy for our young pallets to endure. my grams took the gardening with her when she was in texas for the winter months and grew various chilies and citrus fruits. no matter where my grandmother was, she was sure to have something growing.
this weekend, my gramps came with armloads of citrus fruits from his texas crop. he also had a small handful of those spring green onions from my grandmother's garden in wisconsin. i happily ate the spring onions with him this year. of coarse i then wandered into that part of my brain that thinks about food 100% of the time, and i started putting together options for those sassy spring onions. instantly, spring onion oil came to mind. macerate those onions with some great olive oil, season lightly with sea salt, dried chilis, and maybe a shot of lemon juice or zest. drizzle on everything. it would make a great flavor booster for soups, risottos, pastas, and a fried egg sandwich with grilled bacon and roasted tomatoes. belly up!
Monday, May 9, 2011
gila wilderness granola
a few months ago during the dog days of march, i found myself soaking in natural hot springs in the gila wilderness of new mexico. it was awesome to say the least. i was proposed to on top of a mountain- which contributed ridiculous amounts of joy. i backpacked, soaked, meandered, and soaked some more. the temperature in the gila wilderness changes quite dramatically when transitioning from day to night. the daytime sun was perfect for adventuring, while as the evening snuck in, so did very cool temperatures. besides the early morning soaks in natural hot springs to get us going in the morning, we also relied on granola. if there is ever an adventure to be had, you can pretty much guarantee that i will have some sort of food association to go along with it. this time it's granola. i am not the kind of person who likes to buy granola. i'm the kind of person who likes to make it. so as we started planning our trip, i started planning food.
i like the idea of throwing in a variety of ingredients to maximize the amount of energy and nutrition out of our granola. i usually throw in flaxseeds or flaxseed meal for an extra omega boost. i also prefer to make granola, which will be eaten while backpacking, a heartier variety by throwing in a lot of seeds and nuts. there are so many varieties you can make. a few flavor combos that i like are; apricot and almond, cashews and fresh dates, & cranberries and walnuts. granola is super easy to make. you can adjust the ingredient list to your preference. behind every face is a different variety of granola. here's the recipe for our gila wilderness granola:
6 cups oats
2 cups almonds, chopped
2 cup pecans, chopped
1/2 cup pumpkin seeds
1 1/2 cups unsweetened coconut flakes
1/4 cup flaxseeds
3/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup maple syrup or honey
1/2 cup sunflower or canola oil
1 1/2 tsp salt
1 cup dried apricots, chopped
Preheat oven to 250 degrees. In a large bowl combine the oats, nuts, coconut, pumpkin seeds, flaxseeds, and brown sugar. In a seperate bowl, combine the maple syrup or honey, sunflower or canola oil, and salt. Combine both mixtures and pour onto 2 sheet pans. Bake for about 1 hour, stirring every 20 minutes to acheive an even color. Remove from the oven and allow to cool completely before storing.
i like the idea of throwing in a variety of ingredients to maximize the amount of energy and nutrition out of our granola. i usually throw in flaxseeds or flaxseed meal for an extra omega boost. i also prefer to make granola, which will be eaten while backpacking, a heartier variety by throwing in a lot of seeds and nuts. there are so many varieties you can make. a few flavor combos that i like are; apricot and almond, cashews and fresh dates, & cranberries and walnuts. granola is super easy to make. you can adjust the ingredient list to your preference. behind every face is a different variety of granola. here's the recipe for our gila wilderness granola:
6 cups oats
2 cups almonds, chopped
2 cup pecans, chopped
1/2 cup pumpkin seeds
1 1/2 cups unsweetened coconut flakes
1/4 cup flaxseeds
3/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup maple syrup or honey
1/2 cup sunflower or canola oil
1 1/2 tsp salt
1 cup dried apricots, chopped
Preheat oven to 250 degrees. In a large bowl combine the oats, nuts, coconut, pumpkin seeds, flaxseeds, and brown sugar. In a seperate bowl, combine the maple syrup or honey, sunflower or canola oil, and salt. Combine both mixtures and pour onto 2 sheet pans. Bake for about 1 hour, stirring every 20 minutes to acheive an even color. Remove from the oven and allow to cool completely before storing.
Tuesday, May 3, 2011
food is a doorway....
...pick your passion- mine is food- and use it as your doorway...it's a doorway into understanding the world you live in- getting inside of people, places, and cultures....eating is the most prevalent shared activity that happens to every single living being on earth. you cannot live without eating and drinking. -lynne rossetto kasper
i will proudly admit that i make dinner nearly every night that my daughter is with me. in our house we take playtime, nap time, and eating very seriously. i love watching my daughter out of the corner of my eye, peeking from behind me to see what exactly is going on with that marinated chicken. i love it when she sneaks handful after handful of the perfectly julienne peppers that are sitting on the cutting board. i love that she secretly eats the organic butter straight-up, hold the bread. mostly i love watching her eat. the way she dives into her gorgonzola mashed potatoes. how she disregards her spoon altogether when she is power eating peas. i have even seen her eat whole cucumbers as though they were apples.
last night adalin was leaning on the open fridge door, pondering its contents, before declaring the need for a snack. the contents of our fridge vary, but last night there was a bowl of freshly made cookie dough waiting to be baked. i imagined addie diving in face first. instead she reached for cheese. food is a doorway into understanding the world in which we live. food helps people connect. without food, my daughter and i would not spend an hour or so every night hassling each other as dinner was being prepared. i would never have guessed that cheese would be the snack choice of a hungry 3 year old, when cookie dough was readily available. i would never know about gooey geysers, unicorns that eat rainbows, or penguino the penguin over our dinner time chats. in our busy lives, filled with busy days, i highly suggest indulging in food. not just food, but also the process of preparing it. think of italian mamas making homemade pasta as they sit around drinking table wine and relentlessly gossip and laugh. these are the moments. live them.
i will proudly admit that i make dinner nearly every night that my daughter is with me. in our house we take playtime, nap time, and eating very seriously. i love watching my daughter out of the corner of my eye, peeking from behind me to see what exactly is going on with that marinated chicken. i love it when she sneaks handful after handful of the perfectly julienne peppers that are sitting on the cutting board. i love that she secretly eats the organic butter straight-up, hold the bread. mostly i love watching her eat. the way she dives into her gorgonzola mashed potatoes. how she disregards her spoon altogether when she is power eating peas. i have even seen her eat whole cucumbers as though they were apples.
last night adalin was leaning on the open fridge door, pondering its contents, before declaring the need for a snack. the contents of our fridge vary, but last night there was a bowl of freshly made cookie dough waiting to be baked. i imagined addie diving in face first. instead she reached for cheese. food is a doorway into understanding the world in which we live. food helps people connect. without food, my daughter and i would not spend an hour or so every night hassling each other as dinner was being prepared. i would never have guessed that cheese would be the snack choice of a hungry 3 year old, when cookie dough was readily available. i would never know about gooey geysers, unicorns that eat rainbows, or penguino the penguin over our dinner time chats. in our busy lives, filled with busy days, i highly suggest indulging in food. not just food, but also the process of preparing it. think of italian mamas making homemade pasta as they sit around drinking table wine and relentlessly gossip and laugh. these are the moments. live them.
Sunday, April 24, 2011
super greens pesto
happy easter to everyone. usually i find myself traveling here or there, visiting family and friends over the holidays, but this weekend i was able to stay around our home with the family and cook a lot of great eats! i have so many recipes and ideas to share!!
influenced by my most recent trip to st. louis and the massive st. louis farmer's market, i decided i needed to make some sort of pesto to toss with some fresh spring peas and pasta. i scanned over the contents of our fridge...half a bundle of fresh kale, baby spinach, scallions, and some fresh basil...perfect! i immediately went to work filling up my food processor. with the addition of some fresh garlic, parmesan, a little lemon zest, a small handful of macadamia nuts, and some beautiful organic sunflower oil from pulaski wisconsin-it was a done deal.
a side note on the ingredients- the sunflower oil adds this great nutty flavor, and with the seeds carefully harvested, stored, and processed in a small facility in rural wisconsin, it's hard not to want to use this product. it will soon be available at the co-op. the macadamia nuts were sent to us from a friend in hawaii, so the freshness and richness is unbeatable, and all of the greens were fresh from the co-op which means they're organic and brimming with flavor!
i tossed the 'super greens' pesto with fresh spring peas and pasta, but please go out on a limb and try different variations. this pesto would be great tossed with fresh steamed asparagus or green beans, roasted baby potatoes, or even as a dressing for a simple salad of cherry tomatoes and greens. i also think the pesto would make a great topping on toasted or grilled bread with a slather of fresh goat cheese. i'm already thinking about making some kind of chicken salad with the leftovers, which would pair great with that bottle of pinot gris in the fridge! the possibilities are endless!
super greens pesto:
1/2 bunch kale
2 cups spinach
1/2 bunch scallions
2 cups fresh basil
1 garlic clove
1/2 cup macadamia nuts
1/2 cup parmesan cheese
1/2 cup sunflower oil
lemon zest, salt, & pepper to taste
place all ingredients except the oil in a food processor. process the ingredients until things start to blend together well, about 1 minute. scrape down the sides of the processor, and with the processor running, slowly drizzle in the sunflower oil. taste your pesto, and adjust the seasonings to your taste. if you're running low on kale and spinach, substitute swiss chard, mustard greens, or rapini. enjoy!!
influenced by my most recent trip to st. louis and the massive st. louis farmer's market, i decided i needed to make some sort of pesto to toss with some fresh spring peas and pasta. i scanned over the contents of our fridge...half a bundle of fresh kale, baby spinach, scallions, and some fresh basil...perfect! i immediately went to work filling up my food processor. with the addition of some fresh garlic, parmesan, a little lemon zest, a small handful of macadamia nuts, and some beautiful organic sunflower oil from pulaski wisconsin-it was a done deal.
a side note on the ingredients- the sunflower oil adds this great nutty flavor, and with the seeds carefully harvested, stored, and processed in a small facility in rural wisconsin, it's hard not to want to use this product. it will soon be available at the co-op. the macadamia nuts were sent to us from a friend in hawaii, so the freshness and richness is unbeatable, and all of the greens were fresh from the co-op which means they're organic and brimming with flavor!
i tossed the 'super greens' pesto with fresh spring peas and pasta, but please go out on a limb and try different variations. this pesto would be great tossed with fresh steamed asparagus or green beans, roasted baby potatoes, or even as a dressing for a simple salad of cherry tomatoes and greens. i also think the pesto would make a great topping on toasted or grilled bread with a slather of fresh goat cheese. i'm already thinking about making some kind of chicken salad with the leftovers, which would pair great with that bottle of pinot gris in the fridge! the possibilities are endless!
super greens pesto:
1/2 bunch kale
2 cups spinach
1/2 bunch scallions
2 cups fresh basil
1 garlic clove
1/2 cup macadamia nuts
1/2 cup parmesan cheese
1/2 cup sunflower oil
lemon zest, salt, & pepper to taste
place all ingredients except the oil in a food processor. process the ingredients until things start to blend together well, about 1 minute. scrape down the sides of the processor, and with the processor running, slowly drizzle in the sunflower oil. taste your pesto, and adjust the seasonings to your taste. if you're running low on kale and spinach, substitute swiss chard, mustard greens, or rapini. enjoy!!
Tuesday, April 19, 2011
St. Louis
I just arrived back from a wonderful weekend trip to St. Louis. It was a last minute trip, that my fella' and I found when searching for really cheap plane tickets to, well, anywhere. Milwaukee and St. Louis were the runners up, and as much as I'd like to see a Brewer's game, St. Louis seemed a bit more....exotic?
Our first stop was at the Soulard Farmer's Market. It's located in a historic French neighborhood in St. Louis, and is one of the oldest communities in the city. This picturesque neighborhood is filled with restaurants, pubs, shops, and the farmer's market. As soon as we jumped the curb we were greeted with a jazz musician playing his saxophone, a man frying up fresh pork rinds, and a guy hawking tulips. My kinda place! I immediately immersed myself in everything. We tasted St. Louis' best mini donuts, Irish coffee and Landjaegers. There were fresh goat cheeses from a local dairy, vibrant green asparagus, and the most beautiful specimens of portobello mushrooms! With our arms loaded with fresh produce, we decided to head south.
An hour drive south took us to Appleton, MO, where my fella's family resides. We gave their grill a workout, grilling up marinated pork loin and the fresh asparagus we bought earlier. We took those portobello mushrooms from the farmer's market, grilled them, and stuffed them with the wonderful goat cheese (also from the framer's market), and created some tasty bites. The blooming dogwood trees, the good eats, and of coarse the good company made the rest of the day very enjoyable!
The next day was one of leisure. Imagine the lazy Mississippi river, sunshine, and a 630 foot man-made monument known as the Gateway Arch. If that is not an equation for fun, I don't know what is. What made the famous Arch so remarkable is the Jefferson National Expansion Memorial, which is the 91 acres of park along the Mississippi, in which the Arch resides. As we meandered through the greenest grass my eyes have seen in months, we took in the city.
I'll write another entry as I sort through my notes and thoughts, and post some fabulous pictures to put to the words. I am still slightly meandering along the Mississippi in my mind, though I know the brisk temperatures outside will shock me back into line in no time....
Our first stop was at the Soulard Farmer's Market. It's located in a historic French neighborhood in St. Louis, and is one of the oldest communities in the city. This picturesque neighborhood is filled with restaurants, pubs, shops, and the farmer's market. As soon as we jumped the curb we were greeted with a jazz musician playing his saxophone, a man frying up fresh pork rinds, and a guy hawking tulips. My kinda place! I immediately immersed myself in everything. We tasted St. Louis' best mini donuts, Irish coffee and Landjaegers. There were fresh goat cheeses from a local dairy, vibrant green asparagus, and the most beautiful specimens of portobello mushrooms! With our arms loaded with fresh produce, we decided to head south.
An hour drive south took us to Appleton, MO, where my fella's family resides. We gave their grill a workout, grilling up marinated pork loin and the fresh asparagus we bought earlier. We took those portobello mushrooms from the farmer's market, grilled them, and stuffed them with the wonderful goat cheese (also from the framer's market), and created some tasty bites. The blooming dogwood trees, the good eats, and of coarse the good company made the rest of the day very enjoyable!
The next day was one of leisure. Imagine the lazy Mississippi river, sunshine, and a 630 foot man-made monument known as the Gateway Arch. If that is not an equation for fun, I don't know what is. What made the famous Arch so remarkable is the Jefferson National Expansion Memorial, which is the 91 acres of park along the Mississippi, in which the Arch resides. As we meandered through the greenest grass my eyes have seen in months, we took in the city.
I'll write another entry as I sort through my notes and thoughts, and post some fabulous pictures to put to the words. I am still slightly meandering along the Mississippi in my mind, though I know the brisk temperatures outside will shock me back into line in no time....
Monday, April 11, 2011
got sap?
it's SPRING! an official declaration is in order! the snow is decreasing, the sun is increasing, and i can't even think about down parkas for one second more! thoughts of sock-less shoes, picnics in the sun, and maple syrup cross my mind. maple sapping is in full swing! folks are collecting and boiling down sap over fires, in large cauldruns, all over cook county and beyond. last week our generous neighbors across the bay gave us a jar of their maple syrup, still warm! we were given a taste of some maple candy, made from the same batch of syrup, and it was awesome!
with a jar of maple syrup, which i now think of on a majestic level, i am immediately thinking about what good eats this sap is going to be a part of. as i am flipping through recipes, ideas, and notes that i have been writing myself on various scraps of papers and napkins,i remember this cocktail recipe. it involved muddling maple syrup with cooked bacon, and finishing with whiskey. this sounds great, however, i'm thinking about something a bit more along the lines of schmarren. schmarren, or scrambled pancake, is an austrian treat that my grandmother used to whip up for my brothers and i. it is literally a scrambled pancake, and when it's adorned with a dollop of butter and a drizzle of fresh maple syrup, i have flashbacks of all the comforts and quirks that came with my grams. she was one righteous babe, so as a tip of the hat to grams and our awesome neighbors, let's make a round of schmarren.....
6 eggs, seperated
2 cups milk
pinch of sea salt
1 Tbl sugar*
1 tsp vanilla
2 cups flour*
1 Tbl butter
preheat the oven to 400 degrees. place a cast iron skillet in the oven to preheat as well.
beat together the egg yolks, milk, salt, sugar, and vanilla in a large bowl. gradually stir the flour into the egg mixture. gently fold in the egg whites.
pour the batter into the preheated cast iron skillet, place into the oven, and allow to bake about 15 minutes.
remove the pan from the oven, and tear the pancake into bits, and allow the bits to scramble in the hot skillet. add the butter, and toss the scrambled pancake until it's coated in melted butter. drizzle with maple syrup, and belly up!
*don't be afraid to use sugar substitutes! replace the sugar with maple syrup or honey.
*i use a blend of the whole wheat pastry flour and all purpose flour that we carry @ the co-op. i'm sure buckwheat flour would be great too!
with a jar of maple syrup, which i now think of on a majestic level, i am immediately thinking about what good eats this sap is going to be a part of. as i am flipping through recipes, ideas, and notes that i have been writing myself on various scraps of papers and napkins,i remember this cocktail recipe. it involved muddling maple syrup with cooked bacon, and finishing with whiskey. this sounds great, however, i'm thinking about something a bit more along the lines of schmarren. schmarren, or scrambled pancake, is an austrian treat that my grandmother used to whip up for my brothers and i. it is literally a scrambled pancake, and when it's adorned with a dollop of butter and a drizzle of fresh maple syrup, i have flashbacks of all the comforts and quirks that came with my grams. she was one righteous babe, so as a tip of the hat to grams and our awesome neighbors, let's make a round of schmarren.....
6 eggs, seperated
2 cups milk
pinch of sea salt
1 Tbl sugar*
1 tsp vanilla
2 cups flour*
1 Tbl butter
preheat the oven to 400 degrees. place a cast iron skillet in the oven to preheat as well.
beat together the egg yolks, milk, salt, sugar, and vanilla in a large bowl. gradually stir the flour into the egg mixture. gently fold in the egg whites.
pour the batter into the preheated cast iron skillet, place into the oven, and allow to bake about 15 minutes.
remove the pan from the oven, and tear the pancake into bits, and allow the bits to scramble in the hot skillet. add the butter, and toss the scrambled pancake until it's coated in melted butter. drizzle with maple syrup, and belly up!
*don't be afraid to use sugar substitutes! replace the sugar with maple syrup or honey.
*i use a blend of the whole wheat pastry flour and all purpose flour that we carry @ the co-op. i'm sure buckwheat flour would be great too!
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