german potatoes, a la ryan

Last week I slacked on my kitchen duties. I neglected the grocery store, but thanks to my efforts to make sure our pantry is stocked, that didn't pose much of a problem. More so, though, when I wanted to relax after work one night in the hammock, I asked Ryan to pour me a glass of wine and bring me the potato cookbook. 

He obliged, and while I was thumbing through recipe after recipe for potatoes, he offered to make dinner. 

And I took him up on the offer. 

No more than one pound of potatoes and fifteen minutes later, dinner was served. 

He's big on eating small dinners, but having had a tiny lunch, I needed a little something extra--a one-egg spinach and cheddar omelet that took less than three minutes to whip up did the trick. 

German Potatoes, a la Ryan

1 pound potatoes, cut into half-inch cubes (peels on is fine)

1/2 of a medium onion, diced

water for boiling

oil or butter for the pan (about 2 tablespoons)

Prep the potatoes, and boil them in water for about 10 minutes. Meanwhile, ready a saute pan with oil or butter. Add the onions and begin to cook. Once the potatoes fork-tender, drain them and add them to the pan with the onions and oil. Cook until onions are almost caramelized and potatoes are nice and browned. 

Serve hot, with or without ketchup. 

One-egg Spinach Cheddar Omelet

1 teaspoon butter

1 large egg

1 tablespoon milk

1/4 cup shredded cheddar

1/2 cup fresh spinach

salt and pepper to taste

Whisk egg and milk together with a fork.  Melt the butter in a nonstick pan, and when bubbles form, pour in the egg mixture. Cook for about one minute, and add cheddar, salt, and pepper. Fold the omelet. Add the fresh spinach to the pan and let it wilt while the omelet continues to cook. 

After a total of two or three minutes, slide the omelet onto a plate and enjoy.

Here's another great thing about this dinner: we got to use our newest kitchen tool. For my birthday last year, my dad gave me a set of stainless steel Cuisinart cookware--and it's wonderful. We tossed everything else we had, especially after we heard that nonstick Teflon can begin to emit toxic fumes after years of use (being fresh out of college, our kitchen was stocked with decade-old cookware that was surely emitting those nasty toxins). 

So Ryan and I agreed that we would phase in one or two nonstick pans of the green variety. While scouring for a great deal on a Dutch oven at TJ Maxx, we came across a ceramic nonstick 7-inch pan for just $8. What a steal! Needless to say, the red one came home with us, and passed its first test with flying colors. Even better, it's oven-safe to 400, so that means we may be whipping up some frittatas this summer!

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eye candy. or cookies.

I made cookies. Soft, cake-like oatmeal cookies speckled with cinnamon and nutmeg and a few with raisins. They weren't the best, which is why I don't feel the need to share the recipe with you; but they were beautiful. And warm. And a great subject for my new camera.  

A month or so ago, I came across this 1961 edition of the Joy of Cooking at a bookstore. It is beautiful; I love that the faded blue cover is accented by the still-bright red bookmark. And the pages. Oh, the pages. They smell like a small-town library and some feel so worn down they could pass for onion skins. This book was loved by the woman, the mother, the daughter, the homemaker who cooked from its pages. 

Nestled in between some of the pages are ads from the 70s, and better yet, hand-written recipes on yellowed index cards. I love this book, even if I never use one recipe from it. Open-faced on the counter, it calls me to it, beckoning me through its pages. 

Fin watched. She's always interested in what I'm whipping up, because usually she gets to try it. She got to try the cookies.

Other than cookies, we ate a lot of potatoes this week. Ryan cooked dinner one night, and I've got the photos to prove it (and it was wonderful). Don't go far... 

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my 100th post: fire up the grill

Rather than mark my blog's birthday, since I got to this landmark just a week and a half before it, I thought I'd point out that today's post marks my 100th. Can you believe it!? 100-plus sustainable dishes from my kitchen. 

And what better way to share this exciting moment with you than to bring you a special edition: Ryan and I took our show on the road this weekend and made an impromptu trip to his parents' house to cook dinner. We decided to team up this time--Ryan and I did equal parts cooking and prepping, and he even took some photos! It was a blast. 

They have a fantastic grill on the back porch, and we knew we wanted to use it. So before we left, I grabbed my food bible--How To Cook Everything--and we set out for a culinary journey. 

It didn't take long to decide what to cook for his parents. Recently, we've fallen in love with the Brushfire taco at Torchy's: jerk chicken with a mango salsa, a dollop of sour cream, queso fresco, and (for those who can handle it) covered in habanero Diablo sauce. The flamboyant marriage of sweet and spicy and fragrant (there's cilantro in there, too) is incredible. 

We could do it. We could make our own. 

Since his parents live in a small town, we trekked to the closest large HEB we could find and knocked out our shopping list. Ryan insisted on homemade tortillas (and in the end, I was very glad he had), and we went straight home to put the plan into action. 

Before prepping the fruits and veggies, I made the dough for the tortillas. Then I got all the veggies ready; Ryan was in charge of the chicken, and he played grill master all night. 

Here's the menu, and pics from the new camera (which apparently shoots a little on the yellow side):

Homemade flour tortillas ...I cooked with lard for the first time. I thought it was charming until I looked at the package once we were home and realized it was produced by ConAgra foods. After all the books on my reading list... I think of ConAgra to be synonymous with Devil. Maybe I can find a local source for lard in Austin, though I'm not sure they were any better than the ones I've made with vegetable shortening. 

Jerk chicken (we escaped without a photo of that part)

Grilled pineapple and onion salsa (cues taken from Bittman, but the recipe is my own creation)

Grilled corn on the cob

And finally.... grilled peaches drizzled with honey and served with vanilla bean ice cream. 

And here, my friends, are the recipes. 

Grilled Blackened Chicken 

1 1/2 pounds all-natural, boneless, skinless chicken breast, cut into fajita strips

2 tbls blackened seasoning (or make your own)

Mix the chicken with the season and set aside until ready to grill. Once you're ready, cook over the flame in a grill basket until done. Specific, eh? Like I said, Ryan did the grilling, so you're on your own with the chicken. We're going to try this at home on the grill pan and see how that goes--stay tuned. Also, we failed to find jerk seasoning at the store; instead of trying to make our own by buying separate spices, we opted for the blackened seasoning. Pretty good.

Flour Tortillas 

2 cups flour

1/2 tsp salt

3 tbls lard or vegetable shortening (watch out for the partially hydrogenated stuff!)

2/3 cup hot water 

In a medium mixing bowl, combine flour and salt. Cut in lard or shortening and incorporate until there are no chunks. Carefully stir in the hot water with a fork. Once the dough begins to form, dump it onto a floured surface and knead just until it forms a smooth ball. Do not overwork. Let it rest under a damp towel for 30 minutes to an hour. 

Cut the dough into 12-14 pieces and keep them under the damp towel. Heat a dry skillet to medium heat. (Note: never let the skillet get so hot that it begins so smoke; if you notice your tortillas cooking faster and faster, turn down the heat to medium-low or low.)

Roll out each tortilla with a pin until it is nearly translucent. Cook one at a time (or as many as will easily fit) in the skillet. The tortillas are ready to flip when you see air bubbles forming. They're ready to come off the heat when air bubbles form on the other side. Easy peasy!

Remove from the heat and wrap in a towel or keep in a tortilla warmer. 

Serve warm. Leftovers will not be a problem; if you don't need 'em for tacos, smear on a little butter, sugar, and salt, and chow down.

Amber's Grilled Pineapple and Onion Salsa

1 pineapple, peeled, cored, and cut into 1/2-inch rounds

1 medium onion, cut into 1-inch chunks

1 tbls olive oil

1 anaheim pepper, whole

1 tbls lime juice

1/2 bunch fresh cilantro, large stems removed, roughly chopped

Carefully skewer the pineapple and onions, then brush with the olive oil. Heat about 4 inches above the flame until pineapple and onions develop a char--about 8 minutes total. (This can also be done on a grill pan.) Roast the anaheim pepper on the grill until black blisters form. 

Remove the pineapple and onions from the grill and place in a large bowl. Wrap the pepper in foil for about 5 minutes, and then rinse with cool water to remove the char. Slice the pepper open and remove the seeds, then chop into chunks and toss into the bowl. 

Squeeze the lime juice over the salsa, and mix in the fresh cilantro. Serve warm. 

~*~

I must admit, Ryan and I made quite a team. He worked the grill while I was inside rolling and flipping tortillas and readying the salsa. Everything turned out great for the meal--and our version of the Brushfire, we decided, was equally good. Even without the Diablo sauce. 

The grilled peaches were somewhat of a flop; rather than posting the recipe, I'm going to encourage you to eat fresh, local peaches with honey and all natural (or homemade) vanilla ice cream. Skip the grilling part. Ours wound up tasting like steak, and Fin got to eat the leftovers.

I'd be remiss if I didn't thank you for reading over the course of the last year. I have big goals for the next 100 posts: just you wait for all the pickling this summer, and the tomato sauces, and the garden pizzas...and even the homemade cheese. We're all in for a treat!

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garden-inspired pizza: heirloom onions and squash

I've realized there never really comes a point where I stop myself and ask, "Did I just add too much cheese?" And in the unlikely event that the question comes up, the answer is always a resounding, "Nope, carry on."

Cheese. How do I love thee? Let me count the ways!

Last night when I was the sole beneficiary of this week's garden pizza, I went to town. There was sauce--lots of it. There was spinach. There were onions and squash (from the farmer's market; I asked Ryan to pick out anything that could inspire me for pizza, and boy did he deliver). And. There. Was. Cheese.

Since my eating habits are fairly healthy, I tend to splurge on the cheese part. If I leave meat off, I add more cheese. I completely ignore any sort of fat content, and chalk it up to getting a very healthy serving of dairy and vitamins. And you should too. For this pizza, I wanted to pile on the veggies. I also craved some tomato sauce, so I opened the jar of organic primavera I had stashed in the pantry for emergency spaghetti night. Spaghetti sauce makes for a fantastic pizza base--that's a little trick I learned from my dad, who made pizzas so famous that my friends in high school would flock to his house for lunch. He also suggests putting the sauce on last, which creates an ooey-gooey pie that reminds me a little bit of Chicago-style pizza. Dad, next time I'm home, will you please make pizza? Remember last week when I promised to save the extra dough? It froze and de-thawed marvelously. Since it went through the rise last week, I just thawed it in the fridge for a couple of days. If I hadn't been so forward-thinking, overnight in the fridge and all day on the counter would have done the trick too. The texture was a little bit different than it was last week, but overall it was still delicious and chewy--my favorite. Add some organic spinach to the list, and a handful of cheese (I had slices of provolone and mascarpone, so they both got a chance to shine), and you've got a real winner.

Without further ado, let me introduce you to my second garden-inspired pizza creation. 
Pizza Night Due 
Garden Inspiration: Heirloom Onions and Squash

1 pizza crust
1 tbls EVOO or butter
1/2 medium red onion, cut into 1-inch pieces
1 medium yellow squash, sliced thin
1/2 cup tomato-based spaghetti sauce
1-2 large handfuls fresh spinach (or 1 package frozen, thawed and pressed)
3-4 ounces provolone
3 ounces mascarpone
crushed red pepper flakes to taste

Make your pizza crust according to your favorite recipe (I used the second half of what I made last week). Preheat your oven to 425 with a baking stone (a cookie sheet will work fine too). *For you avid Sustainable Diet readers, note that I upped my oven temp this week, hoping to melt the cheese and get it browned fairly quickly. Understand that I am still experimenting with the perfect temp, and we're all learning this one together.  

Cut the onions and squash, and add the EVOO or butter to a saute pan on medium heat.

Once the oven is preheated, plop the crust on the baking stone and bake for about 5-6 minutes, just until crust begins to bake.

At this time, begin cooking your onions and squash. Cook in the EVOO just until the squash begins to look a little translucent.

Remove the crust from the oven, and spread the spaghetti sauce over it evenly with the back of a spoon. Layer on the onions and squash, and lay on the provolone. Then, top with the spinach and dollops of mascarpone. If desired, sprinkle on crushed red pepper flakes for an extra kick. (Highly advisable!) 

Bake for about 15 minutes at 425, until the cheese is melted and begins to form a beautiful golden cheese crust.

You know what I'm talking about: the good stuff. Enjoy hot off the stone, or warmed up for lunch the next day.

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a light meal: crackers and cheese

When it comes to dinner, I tend to be a "big production" type of person. I am not a one-dish type o' gal; if there's soup, I want bread too. If there are veggies, I need some kind of starch. And normally, I like to have a meal-sized meal. You know what I mean?

So when I got a text from Ryan while I was at Central Market that said something along the lines of "I want to eat light tonight," I thought... there goes my plan.

But instead of chucking my idea for a pseudo-gourmet meal out the window, I decided to embrace Ryan's light wishes and run with it. I snagged some locally made chive-cheese spread at the store, and some Texas blueberries for good measure, and home I went.

After the last time I made crackers, we talked about one possible improvement: cut the crackers before you bake them. Since I already had small cookie cutters for dog treats, I decided to make heart-shaped plain crackers as well as some rosemary and sea salt crackers. From, of course, the rosemary in our little container garden.

Don't they look like tiny throw pillows?The crackers are simple:

1 cup AP flour (use whole wheat if desired, or 1/2 cup of each)
1 tsp salt
2 tablespoons butter or EVOO
1/4 water, plus more as needed
2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh rosemary (optional)

Toss the flour and salt in the food processor and pulse with the butter or oil until combined well. With the machine on, pour in 1/4 cup water. Add more, one splash at a time, until the dough forms a cohesive ball that's not too sticky.

Remove dough. If using rosemary, knead it in. Roll as flat as desired. Cut into shapes and transfer to a parchment-lined baking sheet (or use a silpat). Sprinkle with salt if desired. Bake at 350 until puffy and golden, about 10 minutes (but keep a close eye on 'em!).

Serve warm or cooled, and enjoy your crunching!


Here's the spread. Mineral water, local cheese, local blueberries, homemade crackers, and organic celery. Of course, I had some brownies planned for later that night, so having a light dinner? No big deal.

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sprouting is fun!

A while ago, my mom sent me this video about sprouting. It made us both laugh--these folks are totally enthusiastic about sprouting--but it also inspired us to go forth and do the same. The idea had escaped us for a while, but then I read Fresh Food From Small Spaces, by R.J. Ruppenthal, and the urge to sprout came rushing back.

And so, for Mother's Day, I ordered four pounds (yes, pounds) of sprouts from SproutPeople to split between my mom and I. Four pounds may sound like a lot: let me confirm for you that it is, in fact, a whole lot more than we may have needed.

In any case, let the sprouting begin. I ordered three different mix varieties: Beanie's Awesome Mix (Green and Red Chief Lentils, Green, Marrowfat and Yellow Peas, Beige and Brown Garbanzos and Adzukis), Amber Waves of Grain (Wheat, Rye, Barley, Triticale, Oats, Spelt, Kamut, Quinoa, Sesame, Millet and Amaranth), and French Garden (Clover, Arugula, Cress, Radish, Fenugreek, Dill).

The first batch of bean sprouts went awry; I failed to follow the OH-SO-PERFECTLY-SIMPLE directions, and soaked my beans in water for four days before realizing that the funk they were emitting was not going to make for tasty sprouts.

The drill is easy: soak the seeds first, only for about 8 hours, then drain and rinse every 8-12 hours until your sprouts look like what you'd see at the grocery store, if not just a little bit smaller.

What to do with a jar full of fresh sprouts? The game plan was to have a loaf of bread ready and take sandwiches for lunch all week. I'm still trying to find the perfect, healthy bread recipe, so this time I opted for a 1.5-pound loaf and used 2 cups of bread flour plus 1 cup of whole wheat to make a nice, fluffy, golden, taste-of-honey loaf.

At the grocery, I stocked up on staples like avocados and local tomatoes, as well as tuna, and started off my lunches with a bang. Today's sammy boasted the homemade bread with mayo, dijon, avocado, tomatoes, Muenster, and a glorious heap of French Garden sprouts. What a crunch they brought to the table! My home-grown mix of sprouts was full of flavor and packed with nutritive value.

I'm hoping my newest batch of bean sprouts will hurry up their growing so that we can have them in stir-fry this week. Stay tuned for more on my latest kitchen experiment.

~*~

In other news, Ryan and I spent a good portion of Sunday morning cleaning the kitchen, and I have to point out two things he's made so much better in that arena. For someone as stubborn and set in her ways as I am, these are big changes that my Main Squeeze deserves credit for.

First of all, we finally agreed that there's nothing wrong with drying dishes with dish towels (I was against it, he was for it). My time spent as a barista in a small gelato shop had me fearful of spreading germs with kitchen towels, but Ryan was just advocating for clean towels to do some of the heavy lifting, getting our dishes dried faster. It's also a compromise, since I refuse to use the "dry" setting on the dishwasher (why use extraneous energy?). So now our kitchen, home to my many ridiculous culinary experiments, is destined to stay even cleaner. We hope.

Secondly, I'd be remiss if I didn't point out that one of the best things in recent months for our kitchen has been the addition of a bamboo cutting board that stays out on the counter. Ryan saw it at a discount home store and fell in love with it. "Now, I wouldn't be opposed if this stayed out in the open," he said. I reluctantly set it out in my tiny little workspace... But now realize it serves as an automatic workstation, and gets cleaned during and after every meal. I thought it would limit my workspace, but it has been a real liberator: now I'm learning to be more efficient with my food prep and can do an entire dinner using only one cutting block (unless there's meat involved...then I bust out the plastic one).

So, here's to constant evolution in the kitchen: may it forever be improving!

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garden-inspired pizza: onions and herbs

There is absolutely something to be said for learning from one's mistakes. In the past, I've wound up with under-cooked pizzas, had trouble with dough not rising, and stuck to a strict roster of toppings that never really amounted to more than a buffet-style flop. 

Earlier this week, things were different. I tell you, folks, this novice cook might--might--be coming into her own.

First of all, I utilized my bread machine. You know, that glorious piece of kitchen machinery so lovingly gifted to me at Christmastime? I had yet to make pizza dough in it! The insanity! In just 90 minutes, I had a beautiful ball of perfect pizza dough--enough for two pizzas. I dutifully chopped it in half and tossed some in the freezer (because after this experience, pizza night will become a weekly thing). 

For the toppings, I decided to keep it simple: I picked up only a couple of things at the store--everything else would hail from my mom's garden or our own. Remembering what a hit this pear and gorgonzola pizza was, the gears started turning.

Ryan's not a fan of saucy pizzas, which inspired me to go for a simple sauce-less variety. (He'll get his share of sauces when my mom can't even give away all of her tomatoes later this summer.) A few slices of prosciutto on the bottom, followed by lightly caramelized fresh onions (mom's garden), then topped with the three cheeses I still had in the fridge: gorgonzola crumbles, paper-thin parmesan slices, and dabs of chevre. To round it out, a good handful of mediterranean olives and some fresh basil, oregano, and parsley. 

Here's the recipe in proper recipe format. My hope is that each week, as we get more late spring and early summer produce, I'll have a new garden inspiration. That way, you can cook along in season. It'll be so much fun!

Pizza Night Uno 

Garden Inspiration: Onions and Herbs.

1 pizza crust

1 small package prosciutto (sliced)

2 onions, sliced paper thin

2 ounces shaved or shredded parmesan

2 tablespoons gorgonzola crumbles

2 tablespoons chevre

3 spoonfuls of chopped olives 

small handful of fresh herbs, chopped (basil, oregano, and parsley work well)

drizzle of EVOO

Make your pizza crust according to your favorite recipe (I used the one found in my bread machine book, which called for whole wheat and AP flour). Preheat your oven to 350, with a baking stone (a cookie sheet will work fine too). 

Begin cooking your onions on medium heat with about 1 tsp butter in the pan. Just cook until they're translucent, or maybe even beginning to get a little brown--however you like 'em. 

Once the oven is preheated, plop the crust on the baking stone and bake for about 5-6 minutes, just until crust begins to bake. I let mine get a little crispy at this stage.

Pull out the crust and carefully top it with all your toppings. Then bake it until the cheese is melted--about 6 minutes longer. 

Drizzle on some EVOO and sprinkle it with fresh chopped herbs, then send it to the table with a a salad--and you've got a surefire hit on your hands. 

Speaking of salad... my salad for this meal escaped the camera's glare, but rest assured it was delectable. The last of the spring lettuce from my mom, tossed with slivered almonds, fresh in-season strawberries (not ours, yet), gorgonzola, and a sweet vinaigrette. 

For the a nice springy vinaigrette that complements a berry salad, try this (a riff on my friend Ellen's European Vinaigrette):

2 tablespoons canola oil 

1/2 tablespoon rice wine vinegar

1/2 tablespoon red wine vinegar

scant 1 teaspoon dijon mustard

1/2 teaspoon sugar

fresh ground pepper

Mix well and toss with spring greens, berries, pecans, and tangy cheese. Deeeelish. 

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curry: it may stain your bamboo utensils

I have to start out by saying that Ryan kept an amazingly open mind when I decided on "curry night." After spending two days reading the "Indian Curry Master Recipe" from Cooks Illustrated (I signed up for a free trial and love it so much that when the trial is up, I will actually pay for the service--how's that for a testimonial!?), thinking that if I read it enough I'd memorize it.

Not so.

But reading it over and over did give me the confidence I needed to make the dish. I set out to get the things I needed, and to no one's surprise forgot several things. 

Here is my oh-so-altered Master Curry recipe. I changed Cooks Illustrated's recipe to reflect exactly what I used. However, this resulted in a soupy dish; I think adding the vegetable (potato, zucchini, dal, etc.) would have made it a lot better. Ryan offered the idea that he'd rather have grilled chicken to top it off, rather than boiled chicken. 

So for the next time, we'll make those changes. For now, here's my beginner recipe, served with basmati rice for a well-balanced and flavor-filled dinner. But the bamboo spoon I used to stir the curry will, sadly, never be the same. 

Whole Spice Blend (Optional)
1 1/2	cinnamon sticks (3-inches)
8	black peppercorns
1	bay leaf
Curry
1/4	cup vegetable oil ( or canola oil)
1	medium onion , sliced thin
4	large cloves garlic , pureed in a minichopper with 1 tablespoon water (about 2 tablespoons)
1	tablespoon fresh ginger , pureed in a minichopper with 1-2 teaspoons water
3	chicken thighs, skinned
1 1/2	teaspoons curry powder (Central Market Organics blend is delish)
1/2	teaspoon table salt
3	plum tomatoes (canned), chopped, plus 1 tablespoon juice,
1	pound fresh spinach, stemmed
1	cup chopped fresh cilantro leaves (optional)
2	cups water
1	jalapeño chile , stemmed and cut in half through the stem end
2 - 4	tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro leaves (use the lesser amount if you've already added the optional cilantro)

INSTRUCTIONS

1. 1. Heat oil in large deep skillet or soup kettle (or dutch oven), preferably nonstick, over medium-high heat until hot, but not smoking. If using whole spice blend, add to oil and cook, stirring with wooden spoon until cinnamon stick unfurls, about 5 seconds. If omitting whole spice blend, simply add onion to skillet; sauté until softened, 3 to 4 minutes, or browned, 5 to 7 minutes.
   

2. 2. Stir in garlic, ginger, selected meat (except shrimp), ground spices, 1/2 teaspoon of salt, and tomatoes; cook, stirring almost constantly, until liquid evaporates, oil separates and turns orange, and spices begin to fry, 5 to 7 minutes, depending on skillet or kettle size. Continue to cook, stirring constantly, until spices smell cooked, about 30 seconds longer.
   

3. 3. Stir in optional spinach and/or cilantro. Add the water and jalapeño and season with salt; bring to simmer. Reduce heat; cover and simmer until meat is tender, 20 to 30 minutes for chicken.
   

4. 
   

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a change, it is a comin'

Last night, under the influence of an Austin-ified Mexican martini (I went for the locally distilled liquors, to be sustainable) from Cedar Door and wielding the supreme--err, unruly--power of the eBay app for my iPhone (lots of second capitals there), I made a purchase.

A big purchase.

And for someone who shops at Ross and considers $15 too much to pay for a shirt, this purchase felt strange. Yet even with my pre-purchase pangs of buyer's remorse, I shouted with glee and high-fived Ryan when I won the bidding war for a fancy schmancy digital SLR. 

I bought a (hopefully gently) used Canon 20d, for you.

You see, this camera is not for me. No, my dear readers, it is for you. And I didn't buy it because all of you are clicking through on the ads (ahem) so that Google is finally about to pay me; no, I'm doing it so that your overall Sustainable Diet experience becomes better. How very altruistic of me, I know!

For my birthday last year, Ryan gave me a wonderful point-and-shoot that I love and use almost daily. I take it everywhere, and have had many an impromptu photo shoot. But I needed something more. Something that could achieve the bokeh. Something that will evoke in you the feelings I get when I visit the Pioneer Woman. Or Bakerella, or Tartelette, or Bread and Honey, or the Homesick Texan.

Y'all have some eye candy to look forward to, and rest assured that there is plenty of cooking in my future (tonight I made a homemade pizza with onions from my mom's garden and herbs from our own!)... Sorry I've been remiss in posting the last few days, but this is what a trip to Wisconsin will do to you. I'm back at it, and soon will have a brand-new-to-me kitchen tool that will hopefully bring ever more life to the page.

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thoughts on real food

Meet Fernando. He really has nothing to do with my thoughts on real food, other than the fact that he lives in an idyllic pasture and leads a wonderful, happy life out on the farm. That's "farm" with two syllables.

Traveling makes it difficult to live up to the food standards I've set for myself, and for the kind of eating that Ryan and I now not only enjoy, but also take pride in. Away from home, I can't dictate that my whole-wheat bread be organic and free from HFCS, or that my vegetables be grown less than 40 miles away. I can't even rest assured that the continental breakfast at the hotel has an option that at least eliminates one of my great fears (at 5 a.m., I had no other choice but to devour a "buttermilk" biscuit with partially-hydrogenated soybean oil "butter" and high-fructose-corn-syrup-laced "syrup."

So it makes me ever the more grateful that I have the opportunity to eat, cook, and live this way at home.

I had plenty of time to get further into Omnivore's Dilemma by Michael Pollan on the plane yesterday, and it is confirming all of what I already knew: there absolutely is a direct correlation between Americans' health and subsidized monocrops (corn and soy), concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFOs), and those long ingredient lists found on the food labels of any processed food.

And so, my attempts at the homemade life have never felt more important. I could not be happier having the time, energy, and most patient boyfriend ever in order to work on this whole urban homesteading thing.

I'm inspired as I have never been: inspired by my mother, who understands so well the connection between earth, spirit, food, and soul; inspired by folks who are making even the smallest of steps to live a more sustainable life; inspired by people who distribute the information, scary as it may be, about the failures of the food system; inspired by farmers who continue to work the land and produce food--often a thankless job--for their communities; and inspired by communities that are beginning to embrace the idea that local, sustainable food is so very healthy for body, mind, and soul.

I look forward to the next chapters in our life, as this food movement gains steam. Soon I'll be volunteering with the Sustainable Food Center in Austin, and cannot wait to work with like-minded folks to take these ideals into our community and help the under-served have a better chance at healthful sustenance.

And I look forward to seeing what our little container garden brings, and what my mother's garden has in store, and learning ever more about doing everything homemade.

And you know what else I love? The look I get when I start talking about making my own yogurt at home. Hah! That's ok. You can keep describing us as your "hippie friends"--it's actually a compliment.

Stay tuned, homemade popcorn a la Ryan and my very first attempt at curry (which actually came out delish) on the way!

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the family that cooks together sticks together

Ever since we were little, my sister Aubrey and brother Britton and I have shared memories in the kitchen. Most of them revolve around family suppers around the dinner table (the one summer meal when I tried beets sticks out from the bunch), or decorating Christmas cookies on the big blue tray, or helping Mom roll out cinnamon rolls.

Since I've started this blog, I've posted a few family favorites from growing up on the farm and yesterday, in the midst of my deadline at work, I received an email from my sister about cooking one of her favorite meals from childhood. And she's making strides toward sustainability, too: she understands the importance of organic and local and keeps all the nasty preservatives at bay. She knows how to pick a wine, too. And I couldn't be more proud of her (for all the things she's up to lately, not just cooking this one meal, of course).

So, readers, meet my sister. :)

~*~*
I recreated what I like to call a true homemade meal last night. No pictures, unfortunately, but oh can I tell the story! And trust me... Cooking does not come as 'naturally' to me as my mother and sister *grin*.

[Ok, Amber here; if you read from the beginning of this blog, you'll see that half the time I don't know what I'm doing!]

Never fear! Even though Amber's adventures are scrum-diddly-umptious...mine are typically scrum-diddly-DUMPtious (can you tell we're sisters? Corny jokes are hereditary.).

So I decided to piece together an entire meal with recipes I grew up on and inspirations from Amber's blog!

I did a very simple (and EASY) casserole that a quick phone call to my wonderful mother enabled me to make. Let's call it Homemade Helper.

1 lb. ground turkey meat (can do beef if preferred)
1 medium onion (diced)
1 can organic diced tomatoes
1/2 bag or about 3 c. organic penne pasta
1 bag Mexican-style grated all natural cheese
Chili Powder (to liking)
Garlic Salt (to liking)

I sauteed the onion, and then cooked the meat in with about 1/2 tsp. of chili powder (which I then went and sprinkled more of!) and a shake of garlic salt.

While this was going on, I also began boiling the pasta. I did 3 c. pasta to 6 c. water and boiled for 15 minutes.

Once the meat was cooked, I added (after draining about 1/2 of the juice out of the can) the can of diced tomatoes. After mixing, I poured the pasta in and mixed well. Pour all of this into a 9-inch casserole dish, smother the top with grated cheese...and BAM! the most healthy comfort food you'll ever get.

And as my side dishes...you can just refer to the blog for those! Kautz Cucumber Salad and Fried Squash (with a substitution of Tony's Creole Seasoning instead of season salt)...perfect end to a long day!

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stockin' the pantry

I’ve done it. I’ve officially stocked my pantry.

I can say that everything (except dried mushrooms, but you can bet I’ll be picking them up soon) on each of these lists can be found in my pantry...
Savory pantry items
Sweet pantry items

Up until this week, when I bought ground mustard and curry powder, my pantry was ever so slightly incomplete. Now, it is finished. I’ve spent the first months of this year preparing my kitchen for the unlikely event of not being able to purchase any food; we can whip up a tasty, healthy meal from the cupboard (and did just that last weekend when my brother stopped by to do his laundry and I didn’t feel like grocery shopping on such short notice!).

And up until this point in my culinary life, I’ve had to pick up “special” items to make recipes. Now... I just have to keep those items in stock. Oh, it feels so good to know that I always have stock on hand for soup. And I always have bay leaves. And if a recipe calls for confectioner’s sugar, by golly, I won’t be caught empty-handed.

Of course, no pantry list is complete without Nutella and a box of red wine. So keep those on hand, too. There's also a lot to be said for all my glass jars: now that almost nothing's in plastic, I can shop at the bulk bins to replenish my stock without wasting packaging (especially now that I've got my very own cotton muslin bulk bin bags--more about that later).

Now, if only the pantry could stay that organized at all times...

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now officially a "granola-eating hippie"

*I've tweaked my granola recipe... Read below for the updates!*

Y'all are getting spoiled, what with this one post every day, right?

Well I hope you are recognizing some improvements in my kitchen. Like, more and more things are actually turning out not just edible, but good. And I am pleased to say that this post is another success story; and, it gets me closer to my goal of being totally homemade.

Once I had success with the homemade yogurt, I needed a sweet and crunchy counterpart to my new dairy item. Granola seemed the perfect addition. Now, there are as many granola recipes out there as you can imagine, but they're all riffs on a general theme: oats with stuff, baked and cooled to create a crunch-worthy snack. But I’m pretty picky about granola; I don’t like it too nutty, and if there are nuts in it I don’t want them to be huge (whole almonds get really hard when they’re baked), and I don’t like a lot of spices, and I really don't want raisins in it, and if it’s just the faintest bit burned I won’t touch it, and.... The list goes on.

Surely this seems odd, as someone who’s continually making strides toward a complete hippie transformation; it started with the simple act of devout recycling and here I am making my own yogurt. I’d generally put granola-making (since it’s SO FRIGGIN EASY) at the front of the hippie transformation list (the phrase “granola-eating hippie” comes to mind), but I’ve saved it until after I took on yogurt and ordered three pounds of sprouts.

Texas Pecan Granola

1/3 cup canola oil
1/3 cup local wildflower honey
1 tbsp vanilla extract

3 cups rolled oats
1 handful chopped pecans
1 handful sliced almonds
1 small handful sesame seeds
1 small handful sunflower seeds
1 tbsp brown sugar
2 tbsp toasted wheat germ

Preheat oven to 350. In large mixing bowl, combine dry ingredients and set aside.

In a small saucepan, heat oil, honey, and vanilla extract on stovetop until bubbling, stirring occasionally. (maybe until it's almost boiling; you just want it incorporated. I heated it until it smelled caramel-ly).

Pour hot liquids into dry mixture and stir until all the oats have been thoroughly coated. Pour coated oats (say that 3 times fast) onto a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper, and bake for 25 minutes, or until it smells nice and toasty in your home.

Remove from oven and let cool (it’ll get crunchy as it cools). Once it cools, feel free to add dried fruit at will, or even (gasp) chocolate or caramel chips. Store in an airtight container for as long as you can keep this stuff on hand—it’ll go fast, I promise.

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