my egg basket

A wonderful Value World find!!!

Happy Birthday Jesus cake... fail

I've always wanted to make a red velvet cake. They are so beautiful. So I decided to make one for the Paquin family Christmas. I searched the internet for a recipe and came up with a highly rated recipe from Food Network.

And it was beautiful...

...but it pretty much just tasted like shortening and butter. :(

baking on a lazy day

I started the day with muffins; half grape jelly and half mom's pear jam.

Pumpkin Cookies with Brown Sugar Frosting (via Heather Teddy)

1 cup butter
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
cream together
Add:
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla
1 cup pumpkin puree
mix well
Add:
2 cups flour
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp cinnamon.
mix well, then add 1 cup raisins
Drop on cookie sheets, bake 12 minutes at 375
Frosting:
Combine 3 Tbsp butter and 1/2 cup brown sugar in a sauce pan. Heat until just bubbling, 1 minute. Let this cool for 15 minutes, then beat with 1/4 cup milk. Add enough powdered sugar to make spreading consistency, about 2 cups. Beat until smooth; frost.

Megan's Wedding Hankie

I used to cross stitch a lot. Turns out I'm not so into it anymore... but it worked out okay. This is a Cherry Blossom pattern (which is her wedding flower) and her new initials M.M.T.

apples to candy apples to candy apple pie (with ice cream)

Last winter I had a surplus of apples and so ending up making these candy apples. This year, I had to go out of my way for the apples, but I knew Christmas was going to need these apples again.

4 lbs of apples, cored and sliced into rings. Let them soak in water with either lemon juice or fresh fruit.

The syrup is 4 cups of sugar in 2 cups of water, 1 box of Redhots, 1/3 cup vinegar, 1 TBSP whole cloves. Let the syrup simmer until the candy is melted and then add the apples and let them cook for 5 minutes.


With the leftover syrup, I cooked down the bits of apple not good enough to can as gifts (tops and bottoms, etc). I cooked it for about 15 minutes. Then I tempered it with some butter and added a splash of vanilla. I put this in a shortbread pie crust and baked for 30 minutes.

scarf patterns are so much fun, I've got another one...

This is the lace pattern I've been using for scarf orders. It's basically the same idea that I used to make the freedom skirt. I love how the sides are both so detailed and yet so different.

more cookies!

Trail Mix Cookies
1 stick butter
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 egg
1/2 tsp vanilla
mix together until fluffy
add:
1 3/4 cup flour
1/2 tsp soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
carefully mix in 1 cup trail mix (I used one with chocolate chips and "m&ms".)
Makes about 3 dozen, bake at 375 for 12 minutes.

Honey Molasses Whole Wheat Cookies

Another day that just needed cookies and yet the cupboards are bare... so this is what I came up with and I'm glad I did, they are great!
Cream 1/3 cup shortening (butter would probably work) with 1 cup sugar. (Next time I'll try a combo of white and brown sugars) Add 1 egg and 1 tsp vanilla. Then 1/4 cup of molasses and honey (in whatever proportion you have). Add 1 tsp baking soda, 1 tsp cinnamon, 1/2 tsp ginger. 1/2 tsp nutmeg (or to taste, I love nutmeg). Then slowly add 2 cups of whole wheat flour and mix until just mixed.
Makes 24 cookies, bake at 375 for 10-12 minutes. They are like molasses cookies but a little crisper and sweeter.

Pickled Eggs

Pickled eggs seemed like the logical conclusion to my obsession with making pickles all summer and the chickens really kicking production into high gear. So since I can't sleep in past 7 anymore, I got up and made pickled eggs this morning.

Fill a clear/sterile jar with peeled, hard boiled eggs, 1 sliced onion and 1 peeled clove of garlic.
In a sauce pan, heat just to boiling: handful of dill seed, handful of peppercorns, 1/2 handful of mustard seeds with 2 cups vinegar, 1 cup water and a few teaspoons of pickling salt.
Pour this mixture over the eggs and put the lid on tight. Let it cool on the countertop for the afternoon and then store in the fridge.
All the websites say not to store them in the cupboard anymore... but people did for years so I'm sure it's fine. As I'll probabaly be feeding most of these to my 2 year old, I'm gonna store them in the fridge just to be safe.

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Sorry I haven't been posting as often lately! I've started a knitting business and it's keeping me so busy! Come see my facebook page here .

Red apples / Green tomato / Tomatillo Salsa

I made the best salsa of all time today. I don't mean too proud or anything, but seriously, it is that good.
At the Making Strides Against Breast Cancer walk this morning Megan was telling me about this apple salsa she bought at the cider mill. She said it was good, but it could've been better. And that got me thinking...
I just harvested the garden out yesterday so I had a bowl of tomatillos, I still had a few green tomatoes and I had a few apples left from the farmers market. I also had chili peppers, onions and garlic. I whirrled all that in the food processor. And then put it in a saucepan with about a cup of vinegar, kosher salt and 2 tsps of cumin. I cooked it down for about 10 minutes.
And Oh. My. Goodness.

apple carnage

My friend Rachel brought me the most amazing gift today! An entire bushell of apples! I was just thrilled and totally blessed by this gift.
This is a small amount of the apples before...

This is the carnage afterwards...

I made 9 quarts of Apple Sauce- 3 cooked with cinnamon sticks.

I also made those Green Tomato Pickles! I have no idea what to expect but they look good! They are made with dill seed, peppercorns, garlic and a salt water/vinegar brine.

I also made an apple crisp, corn bread and jambalaya! So much for a sick day!

best bread and best cake ever

A few weeks ago I wanted to bake bread but didn't have all the ingredients to any of my usual recipes so I made a mish-mosh of a few of my favorites and it is SO good! It is a mix between basic white bread, muffins, and corn bread.
1 3/4 cup flour
1 tsp salt
2 tsp baking powder
1 egg
3/4 cup milk
1/4 cup vegetable oil
I've been mixing in some fresh herbs lately, once I made it with cheese and chilis.
It's so light and muffin-like and yet bread-y too.

The Green Tomato Bread is Ahhhhhh-mazing. Oh my goodness, it's so good! I made a brown sugar, cinnamon and sour cream frosting. I can't stop eating it!

Green Tomatoes

My friend Amy gave me two bags of green tomatoes. I was so excited!

I was especially excited because I wanted to make this Green Tomato Cake. I haven't tried it yet so you'll have to wait for the review on how it tastes!

Next this morning I made a big batch of green tomato salsa. I put some extra peppers in since the other salsa was pretty mild. This batch will go in the freezer.

I really want to make these dill green tomato pickles but I ran out of jars! Bummer!

today I canned salsa and baked cookies

More molasses cookies, this time minus the almond butter (it's gone).

This Salsa Verde is like the salsa I made before but this time I put hot peppers in it. Smelled great.
And the combo of smells hanging in the house tonight is amazing.

almond butter molasses cookies

I've never blogged from my phone before but I had to share about the cookies I made today. I didn't have much in the cupboards but wanted something warm and yummy. So I found almond butter and molasses and thought they would go well together. I searched a bit online but couldn't find anything. So this is what I made:
1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup almond butter
1/3 cup each white sugar, brown sugar and molasses
Cream these together then add 1 TBS vanilla and 1 egg
Then add 1 1/4 cup flour
1 tsp baking soda and 1/2 tsp salt.
Mix until just mixed and then put rounded tablespoons of dough on ungreased cookie pans. Bake at 350 for 12 minutes.
There is something about the almond butter and molasses combo that tastes kinda chocolatey. Yum.

fall fun

Tie-One On wrap with my beautiful gift yarn.

Isn't it lovely?

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Cornbread Peach Cake

Recipe:
1 1/4 cup flour
3/4 cup cornmeal
1/2 cup sugar
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
Mix together in a bowl and then add:
1 cup milk
1 egg
1/4 cup vegetable oil.
Pour into a well greased cast iron pan.
Bake at 400 for 20 minutes.
For the peaches:
Drain the syrup from the peaches into a sauce pan. Add 1 Tbsp vanilla and cornstarch. Start with 1 Tbsp. You might need more. Whisk like crazy while it heats up and keep whisking until thick. Spread this over the cornbread. Then slice the peaches and layer over the top. Add a few pats of butter to make the sides nice and brown and crisp. Put back in the oven for 5-10 minutes.

stubborn pesto

My mom gave me a big bag of herbs, mostly basil and parsley, and I had big dreams of making pesto. But when I got home, I realized the cupboards where bare. I didn't even have olive oil! But I had my mind set on pesto pasta for dinner so I got my thinking cap on and this is what I came up with:
In the food processor I put in 5 cloves garlic, 1/2 red onion, 2-3 big handfuls of basil, 1 handful of parsley, 1/2 cup peanuts, 1 jar mostly drained light red kidney beans, 1/8 cup nutritional yeast and some salt to taste. I whirled it around until saucey. And was thrilled to find out it was good!
I mixed it with a box of cooked pasta, lightly cooked zucchini and fried tofu. And everyone loved it! Even the 9 year old boy! Wow!!

baking with summer bounty

Our freezer is still on the fritz so I had a tub of blueberries that needed to be used up. I made a very simple pie- just sugar and a little bit of butter to temper it. It was perfect. Absolutly perfect.


Today my chickens gave me enough eggs to feed the boys scrambled eggs and also make some muffins. Again, I had freezer bounty that needed to be used so I made strawberry jam muffins. Oh my goodness, they rock.

xo

Egg Taste Testing!!

A double yolk! Bonus!!

It's pretty obvious which is which, isn't it.

I couldn't believe what a difference there was. Maybe I might actually enjoy scrambled eggs now.

pictures from my walk last weekend

Biscuits, Watermelon Juice, Salsa Verde

Buttermilk Biscuits


Watermelon Juice. I wish I had more jars, I would totally make more jam!



I'd been saving my tomatillas for a little over a week and finally had enough to make into salsa. I used (and midified a bit) this recipe from Stitch and Boots.
Ingredients:

5 1/2 cups husked, cored, and chopped tomatillos
1 cup chopped onion
1 cup chopped jalapenos
1/2 cup white vinegar
4 tbsp lime juice
4 cloves garlic, minced
2 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp salt

Prepare canner, jars, and lids.
In a large stainless steel saucepan, combine all of the ingredients. Bring to a boil over a medium high heat, stirring constantly. Reduce heat and boil gently, stirring frequently, for 10 minutes.
Ladle hot salsa into jars, leaving 1/2″ headspace. Remove air bubbles and adjust headspace if necessary by adding more hot salsa. Wipe rim. Center lid on jar. Screw band down until resistance is met, then increase to fingertip tight.
Place jars in canner, ensuring they are completely covered by at least 1″ of water. Bring to a boil and process both 8 ounce and pint jars for 15 minutes.

how big is your pickle....

....cupboard??



Freezer: Strawberry freezer jam, Strawberries, Blueberry freezer jam, Blueberry Lemon jello jam, Blueberries, Raspberry freezer jam, Peach freezer jam.



Yellow squash pickles, Zuchini pickles, Dill, Bread and Butter, Hot and Sweet...



Pear Vanilla jam, Watermelon jam, Chow Chow, dilly beans, Gardina pickles, basil pickles...

I'm a very happy squirrel this summer :)