All at once is how it goes. The garden is all star fantastic and just won’t quit.%u00a0 I find myself picking 4-6 cucumbers and the same in squash every morning. The tomatoes plant are a freaking jungle and there are so so so many tomatoes, all just about to ripen. The kale is doing it’s thing, growing big and green and I pick a few handfuls a day. And then there are all the beets and carrots and cabbage,chard, and kidney beans. It’s big, and prolific and amazing. I am much proud of myself for growing a shit load of awesomeness.
And then there is the farm share. I get all my garden stuff times 10. Tomatoes, cucumbers, zucchini, kale. Not to mention the corn, onion, carrots, and herbs and all the flowers. The food keeps on coming.%u00a0 I live in a house, with a big kitchen, with lots of counter and a full sized fridge, yet I still don’t have a place for it all. The squash overflow has now made it’s way to the dinning room. But I am not complaining.
The new rule that I have instated in the house. Every meal must contain at least two tomatoes, a cucumber, and some kale. Want a snack, grab a zucchini. You thirsty? well eat a cucumber. No joke. I get a little stressed out about how much food is around that needs to be eaten or canned, but that is good stress. I am on the lookout for a chest freezer to help with the stress. I promised myself that I would have one by now so I need to get on that asap.
Summer harvest. This is the time of year that I gain a few pounds. It’s a zucchini tomato belly for sure.
And this salad. I am a huge fan of the B.A.S (big ass salad). A big ass bowl of all the goodness from farm and garden plus some lentil protein and a little good avocado fat. Fresh and clean and delicious. Makes you feel all good when you eat it.%u00a0 So go for it. Eat yourself a B.A.S. you wont regret it.
The stuff. Cucumbers (that is a white cucumber and it’s really tasty) tomatoes, some kale, parsley, and cilantro. Also need some onion, cooked lentils, and at least half an avocado. Salt. pepper, and red wine vinegar for the finish.
Kale. parsley, and cilantro get a good rough chop and then tossed into a big ass bowl.
Cucumber, onion, and tomatoes get their turn next and chopped into mouth sized pieces. Into the bowl as well.
Top it all with cooked lentil, some avocado, and a glug glug of vinegar. Season with salt and pepper.
Now all you need is a fork.
All the summertime in a bowl. Here’s to summer bellies!
-C
2 cucumbers
2 small or 1 large tomato
1/2 of an onion
1 cup cooked lentil
1/2 an avocado
3-4 large kale leaves
handful fresh cilantro
handful fresh parsley
red wine vinegar
salt and pepper
First off, grab a really big bowl. Take herbs and kale and chop into small pieces. Place in bowl. Next dice up you onion, tomato, and cucumbers into mouth sized pieces and toss those into bowl. Dump the cooked lentils on top of that and dice the avocado (I used half but you can use whole one) into little pieces and through that on too. Sprinkle with a pinch of salt and pepper and a glug (about a table spoon or two) of vinegar.
Now mix until all combines. Taste and if needed, add more salt, pepper, and/or vinegar.
Now its done. Grab a fork and eat to your face.
Winter squash season is in full swing. I have already started to hoard them in all the nooks and crannies around the house. There are sugar pumpkins on the stairs, buttercups on the floor and delicatas all over the counter. Ever meal, breakfast, lunch or dinner needs to have some squash. House rule.
This hear spaghetti squash has been sitting on a stool for about a week, looming in it’s size and just waiting for me to bake it off. The spaghetti squash at farm share have been bigger then a small child so I have been a little hesitant to bake it until the mr was down with eating it with me too.
What I love about this dish is that it is really simple and easy to make.We have been working later these past few days so when we get home, we really just want to eat and go to bed (not really….kinda really) The initial baking of the squash takes a little time, but its zero hands on and can be done ahead of time. And the rest, take like 8 minutes tops. Also a lot of time people forget that you can eat a spaghetti squash with things other then tomato sauce. (although that’s good too) But really, the sky is the limit. Squash goes with everything. %u00a0
So dinner. I had the squash and went with what I had in the fridge. Beans are great, fresh pico is amazing, all atop a big pile of some warm spaghetti squash. Well that is just what we call a winner. A winner dinner!!!
The stuff. A spaghetti squash (maybe go for a smaller sized one if you don’t want a lot of left overs) precooked or canned black beans, a red pepper, and some red onion. Also need garlic, cumin (crushed or seeds) salt and pepper, olive oil, and fresh cilantro. And lastly some home made or store bought pico de gallo or any of your favorite salsa.%u00a0
You don’t see it here, but the squash went into the oven about an hour ago to cook. I did nothing to it besides stab it once andjust stuck the entire thing right on in and cranked up the heat. Simple, easy.
Ok, so when the squash has been baking for a while, start getting the rest of thestuff ready. Small dice up the red pepper and the onion and toss it into a lightly oiled hot skillet to sweat down a bit.
Once the pepper and onion are nice and soft, toss in the cumin and minced garlic. Cook a little longer until the seeds and garlic are fragrant and cooked.
Add in the beans and mix it all around. Taste, add a little salt and pepper if it needs it, and set aside.
Spaghetti-ing the squash. I took it out of the oven when it was fork tender, sliced it in half on a baking sheet and let it cool off for just a minute. Scooped the seed out then scraped the cooked squash with a fork. Fun times, just watch you your hands, the squash is hot.
And your ready for food. Squash in a bowl, topped with some black bean mixture and a hearty amount of fresh pico. Serve it with lots (or none if you don’t like it) cilantro and a wedge of lemon(or lime)
This is some good stuff friends, some really good stuff.
Alright, now I have to get ready. We are taking a handful of the little pumpkin picking….A few more pumpkins to add to the stash.
-C
Serves 2-3
1 medium spaghetti squash
2-3 cups cooked black beans (or a can)
1 teaspoon cumin seeds (or crushed cumin)
a red pepper
a small red onion
2-3 cloves garlic
olive oil
1 cup fresh Pico de gallo or any of your fav salsa.
salt and pepper
a lemon or lime
fresh cilantro (optional)
To cook the squash. Preheat oven to 400. Grab squash a stab a small hole in it so when its baking it does bot explode (this has happened to me a few times) then stick the whole squash into the oven. Let bake for 45 minutes to an hour (depending on size) It is done when it is soft and fork tender. Once done, pull squash from oven, cut in half and let cool for a minutes. Once cool enough to handle, scoop out the seeds then start scraping the flesh with a fork to create spaghetti like strands.
For the beans. Small chop up the red pepper ans onion and toss into a hot skillet with a little splash of olive oil. Sweat the pepper and onion on medium heat and when they are close to done, mince up the garlic and toss that in along with the cumin seeds and a pinch of salt ans pepper (if needed) Keep cooking until the garlic is cooked and the cumin if fragrant.
To assemble. Grab a bowl and fill with a good amount of the cooked squash, top it with a big scoop of the black bean mixture and you desired amount of fresh pico or salsa. Add lots of extra cilantro and serve with a lemon or lime wedge to squeeze on top.
Now eat it.
Note….Any left overs make a fantastic cold salad or wrapped in a tortilla.
I am running extremely low on food in my house, like there isn’t a can of beans or a box of pasta left. Yeah, I have a few zucchini left, but I think that mr might be getting a bit sick of it. (He has had zucchini noodles for lunch and dinner for the past few day). And I was going to go to the grocery store before dinner, but then I didn’t. Why? well because I didn’t really feel like it.
Turns out that I didn’t need to go to the store for dinner.I had a few mushrooms, an onion, and a few stalks of chard left in the fridge. (but pretty much nothing else) I just bought a 25 lb bag of flour so I am all stocked up on that and last minute I found a avocado that I thought was a beet in the fridge. All I needed to make a dinner, and a quick and easy, and really tasty one to boot. Plus being so mother F*ing hot, it was perfect because there was no need to turn on the oven.
Now the question is,now that dinner was made and being that the fridge is so empty, should I clean and defrost it? Answer is yes, yes I should, but am I going to? Probably not. I just don’t have it in me to stand in font of the fridge, hacking ice away with a large spoon and boiling water for an hour. It’s to hot. I’ll do it later.
The stuff. Flour, baking powder, olive oil, salt ans water for the skillet bread. A few humngo stalks of red chard, a couple mushrooms (I would have used a few more if I had them). an onion, and a few cloves of garlic.%u00a0 Missing is the pepper and the avocado and lemon that I found while rummaging the fridge.
The bread is super easy. Just whisk together the flour salt, and baking soda then add in the oil. Mix until it’s crumbly then mix in the water until it turns into a soft dough. Gather into a ball and stick in bowl then into fridge for a few minutes to let the dough rest.
After the dough has rested, take it and cut into 4 equal pieces. Roll each piece into ball and then roll out as flat as you can. Heat up a skillet to high heat and once hot, place rolled out flat onto (dry) skillet. Cook first side for about 3-4 minutes or until browned and cook, then turn heat down a bit, flip and cook other side until browned. Remove bread, turn heat back up, and repeat with remaining flats.
For the rest. Remove the leafy part of the chard and set aside .Thinly hop up the mushrooms, onion, and the chard stalk. Mince up the garlic. Toss it all (not the garlic yet)into a lightly oiled skillet , season with salt and pepper, and cook on medium heat until starting to brown. Now toss in a few splashes of water and the minced garlic, mix around, and cover wit a lid. Cook for another 8-10 minutes until the veggies are nice and soft.
Cooked and ready, but wait, chop up the chard leaves and toss them into skillet. Another splash of water and a few more minutes under a lid will wilt them up real quick.
Skillet beads are made, veggies are all nice and cooked up. The avocado and lemon where found, sliced.
Not bad for a last minute-lean out the fridge of all food-dinner. Not bad at all.
Don’t melt
-C
Make 4 flatbread
For the skillet bread
1 cup all purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons olive oil
4-5 tablespoons cold water
For the rest
2-4 white mushrooms
2-3 large stalks of chard (any color)
1 sweet onion
2-3 cloves garlic
salt and pepper
olive oil
water
An avocado and a lemon (optional)
To make the skillet bread. Mix together the flour, salt, and baking soda in a large bowl. Pour in olive oil and mix until crumbly then add in 4 tablespoons of water (5 if it seems to dry) until a dough forms. Gather dough into a ball, stick in bowl and cover, and place in the fridge to rest for about 10 minutes. Once dough has chilled, remove and cut into 4 equal sized pieces. Roll each piece into a ball then, on a clean surface, roll out as flat as you can. Grab a skillet and place on high heat. Once skillet has heated up, place a rolled out dough on hot, un-oiled surface and let cook for about 3-4 minutes or until the bottom cooked with golden brown spots. Turn heat to medium and flip bread. Cook the other side for another 4-5 minutes or until browned. Remove flat and turn heat back up. Cook the rest of the bread like the first one.
For the rest. Remove leafy parts of the chard from the stalk and set aside. Take stalk and chop into pieces about 1/ 2 inch think. Slice onion and mushrooms up as thinly as you can. Mince garlic. Garb a skillet, stick on medium heat and drizzle with a little olive oil. Toss in chard stalk, onions, and mushrooms, sprinkle with salt and pepper and mix around until the stuff starts to brown a bit. Add in a few good splashed of water and the garlic and then place a lid on the skillet. Cook for about 10 minutes, giving the mixture a good stir every few minutes. Once the veggies are all soft and yummy, chop up the remaining chard leafs and place them into the skillet. Add another splash of water and place the lid back on. Cook until the leaves have wilted.
To assemble. Flat bread on plate. Scoop some of the sauteed veggie mixture on top. A few slices of avocado on top with a squeeze of lemon juice and a bit of cracked pepper…You are good to go.
I am a glutton for punishment. 91 degrees, super humid, and what do I do, I turn on the oven to make bread. And this is after I drag the poor mr to the middle of a field on the hottest most humid day to pick strawberries. He didn’t complain once (well, maybe on our walk back to the car, but I was bitching a little too).
At home. recuperating from the picking, I made myself a snack of shredded zucchini with chopped strawberries covered in black pepper (try it, it is so freaking good) and was like “this would make a killer bread situation”. And that’s when I turned on the oven and went to town making bread with the zucchini and strawberries (minus the pepper cause, well I wasn’t sure if the mr would like it, but I think I’ll add it to the next loaf). And I know, hot day, hot oven=no but really, I was so F*ing hot that I didn’t think I could have gotten any hotter, so I figured why the hell not turn on the oven. (The mr and he pup where at the other house so I wasn’t torturing them with the heat)
And when the mr came home sure the house was still hot, there was fresh loaf of the sweetest smelling strawberry zucchini bread waiting for him. And so what ifI might have been slightly delirious, I had accomplished something great and was then okay with spending the rest of the say laying in a heap on the floor.
The mr says the bread was worth it.
The stuff. A good sized zucchini and a pint or so of the loveliest strawberries . Also have a bowl with flour (all purpose and while whole wheat) baking soda and baking powder, and a little salt. Sugar, oil, cinnamon, and a little vinegar are needed and a handful of walnut if you want too.
Oil and sugar go into a bowl and get mixed together until combined.
Zucchini gets shredded and added to the bowl.
And strawberries get chopped (stems removed) and go into the bowl along with the zucchini.
Mix the wet mixture up until it starts to get all juicy then mix in the vinegar.
The dry stuff gets mix together along with the walnuts.
%u00a0Now in goes the wet mixture. Mix it all together until just combined (don’t over mix)
Batter goes into a nicely greased pan and if you have it, sprinkle a little brown sugar on top.
Pop pan into preheated oven to do it’s thing.
And it’s thing it did. All dark brown and pretty with red and green bits all over. Quite the stunning loaf if I do say so myself. Remove from pan and let the bread cool for a little while..(you should wait until it’s completely cooled, but at 15 minutes would be ok)
You have waited long enough.. time to cute the bread.
Bread all day long.
Enjoy.
-C
makes 1 loaf
1 cup all purpose flour
1 cup white whole wheat flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
3/4 cup brown sugar plus about a tablespoon to sprinkle on top
1/2 cup canola oil
1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
1 medium zucchini (2ish cups shredded)
1 pint fresh strawberries (about 2 cups chopped)
1/2 cup walnuts (optional)
preheat oven to 350 degrees
In a large bowl, whisk together the flours, baking powder ans soda, salt, cinnamon, Toss in the walnuts as well.
In a separate bowl mix together the sugar and oil until combined then shred zucchini and dump it it. Grab strawberries, remove the stems, and chop those up into small chunks and add to the bowl with the zucchini. Mix until everything is mixed and starts to get juicy then mix in the vinegar.
Now dump the wet mixture into the dry and mix just until everything is incorporated and pour/scrape batter into a well greased loaf pan. Sprinkle he top with a little brown sugar and stick the pan into the oven.
Let cook for about an hour or until the top is a deep brown and a tester stuck into the middle comes out clean. Once out of the oven, let cool for a a few minutes, remove from pan and let cool completely on a wire rack.
Cut cooled bread and eat it to your face.
This is what I am talking about. Winter has finally come with it’s snowy snow and super freezing cold temperatures. It just feels right, even if I freeze a little every time I leave the house to walk the dog. But that’s ok, it is suppose to happen.
And when it’s cold and snowy we are all suppose to eat lots of warm and hearty good things to warm us up in our insides. So we soup.. Soup all day, everyday, all winter long, especially in the case of feeling slightly ill (which I have been for the past week) Eating soup makes everything better.%u00a0 Soup soup soup.
Soup, what a weird word. Anyway.
This soup is amazingly easy to make and even easier to eat. Full of veggies, spices and lots of beans. A perfect meal to satisfy your frozen self. And bonus, not full of shit. It’s super healthy, protein packed and just plan ol good. Warm. hearty, healthy.. What more can you ask for? (you could ask for some crackers and I would probably give them to you)
Soup time!
The stuff. Navy beans, a sweet potato, and some chopped up kale. A couple carrots, an onion, a few cloves of garlic, a little olive oil and water.* And lets not forget some spices…. I used a couple bay leaves, some dried rosemary and thyme. Oh and there should be a lemon here.(I think it rolled off the counter)
*Note. Some people get all up and up about not using a stock in soup. This soup creates it’s own stock with all the veggies and spices and time spent simmering but if you want, go ahead and use stock.
Start by chopping up the carrots, the onion, and the garlic and tossing it all into a really big pot along with a drizzle of olive oil, some salt and pepper and the spices. Stick on the stove on medium high heat for a few minutes until the veggies start to brown.. This gives the veggies and spices a chance to develop more flavor.%u00a0
Now chop up the sweet potato into 1 inch chunks and toss that into the pot too.
And the dried beans and water go into as well. Get it all in there, give it a mix and stick the pot on high heat and bring to a boil, then bring the heat to low.%u00a0 Add a lid to the pot and let cook for a while,like an hour,%u00a0 stirring every now and then.
Once the beans in the soup are cooked to your preferred done-ness (I like mine on al dente) remove pot from heat.
Dump in the chopped up kale…
And that lemon that rolled away. I found it. So slice up lemon. Ladle a large amount of the soup into a pretty bowl and finish it off with some cracked pepper and a squeeze of lemon.
Soup! Now grab a big spoon, a cozy sweater or blanket (or snuggy) , and maybe some crackers or bread if you feel so inclined and eat. You will be filled with warmth and happiness.%u00a0
Have a great day.
-C
1 cup dried white bean (I used navy, but you could use any white bean you like)
1 large sweet potato
1 bunch of kale (about 5 cups chopped)
6-7 cups water (add 6 then another cup as its cooking if you think it needs it)
1onion
2 carrots
4-5 cloves of garlic
1 heaping tablespoon thyme or Italian seasoning
1 heaping tablespoon dried, chopped or ground rosemary
2 bay leaves
salt and pepper to taste
a lemon (optional but you want it)
Chop carrots, onion and garlic and stick them all into a large pot with a drizzle of olive oil, all the spices, and a pinch of salt and pepper.%u00a0 Stick on the stove and cook until the veggies start to brown. While veggies are cooking, cut sweet potato into 1 inch chunks and toss the potato into the pot along with the beans and the water. Bring to a boil then reduce the heat to low. Stick a lid on the pot and simmer fir about an hour or until the beans are cooked to you liking.
Once the beans are cooked through, dump in the chopped up kale, mix it around, then call it done.
Ladle into bowls, top with cracked pepper (and more salt if you want) and serve with a wedge of lemon.
Grab a spoon, eat the soup. Be happy.
Got some left over… Well yeah, soup for later! (will last in fridge for a few days, but freezes super well too)
Once in a while I make a dinner that the mr does not want to eat, like anything with too much corn or things made with lots of vinegar… not his taste. Don’t get me wrong, most of the time, he will eat what I make (casue he loves me) but he clearly doesn’t really like it. And that’s when pup usually gets left over for dinner. (He always likes everything that I cook)
One of those things that I know the mr doesn’t like are beets. Sure, he will eat things that has a few beets in it, but once he found out that this casserole starred beets, his eyes widened and he looked worried, like “oh great, but please don’t make me eat this”. Not to worry. He was getting pasta for dinner because this casserole was not for him. It was for me. It has everything that I love in the word (food wise ) tossed together and baked into a pretty skillet, just for me. Plus the beets, sweet potato and kale were the last from the farm share.%u00a0 So it was my good by farm food, casserole of greatness. And I didn’t want to share.
So yeah, if you are not a fan of beets, or any of the other stuff in this casserole for that matter, then don’t make it. But if you are awesome and know the greatness of the beet, especially paired with lentils and sweet potato, well I suggest you go and make this right away. And bonus… it’s super healthy and hardy which make for a great dinner on a cold night and after all the holiday food last week.%u00a0
The stuff. A large sweet potato, a couple of big beets and some dried lentils.%u00a0 Gonna want some veggies, like an onion, carrots, cabbage and kale. Also want garlic, some salt and pepper, water and tiny bit of olive oil.
First thing first, get the beets and the sweet potato in a pot to boil* Just dice then up and toss into a pot with enough water to submerge the roots. Sprinkle in a bit of water ad bring to a boil, stick a lid on pot, and turn hat to medium.%u00a0
*Note. I boiled my beets and sweet potato in one pot because well, I just didn’t want to have one more pot to wash. But if you do this, your sweet potato will turn slightly pink, whichI think is really pretty. If you want your sweet potato puree to look orange, gonna have to dirty another pot and boil the beets separately.
And chop up our veggies and mince the garlic. Drizzle a tiny amount of oil into a skillet or pot, toss in veggies (minus the kale) and cook on medium heat just until they start to soften a tiny bit. Once the veggies are cooked, remove them from heat, add in chopped kale, and set aside.
And make your lentils. (i used the pot I just cooked the veggies in. The less dishes the better!) Water and lentils into pot with a pinch of salt, bring to boil, cover and place on low until lentils are tender.
When the beets and sweet potato are fork tender, drain water into a jar and separate the beets from the potato (if you boiled them together). Blend the beets then the sweet potato until it%u2019s the consistency that you would enjoy eating it (I like a little bit of chunk, not completely smooth) Use the drained water to thin out as much as you need/want.
All the stuff ready to compile.
Grab the cooked veggies and toss them into a oven safe skillet or casserole dish and mix together with the lentils. Sprinkle with salt and pepper.
Now evenly spread the beet puree on top of the veggies
Then ever so gently, spread the sweet potato on top of that.
Give the top a good pinch of salt and pepper and stick the thing into the oven.
Remove from oven when the sweet potato has browned andis slightly crispy.
And scoop a big old scoop into a bowl, grab a fork, and stuff your face!
Happy today day!
-C
Remove from oven, let cook for a few minutes then eat it with a fork, a spoon, or your fingers.
Beet Sweet Potato and Lentil Casserole
Make 3-4 servings (or one serving for me!)
1 large sweet potato
2 medium beets
1 cup cried lentils
2 cups water
3-4 cloves garlic
a medium yellow onion
2 carrots
%u00bc head of cabbage
a few kale leaves
salt and pepper
olive oil
Note.. I did not add extra seasoning to this because I love the taste just as it is. But if you are feeling like it needs some seasoning, just add some in.
Start by chopping the beets and sweet potato into medium sized chunks and boiling them until they are fork tender. You can do this either in two separate pots or in one large pot. (if in one pot, the sweet potato will turn a little pink)
Once those are boiling, chop up all the veggies (not the kale yet) and the garlic and toss into a pot or skillet with a drizzle of olive oil and cook on medium heat until the veggies are slightly tender. Remove from heat, add in chopped kale and set aside.
And make the lentils ( I cooked the veggies in the pot, removed them ans used the pot to make the lentils… less dishes). Dump the 2 cups water, a pinch of salt, and the lentils into a pot.%u00a0 Bring to boil, cover, then turn heat to low. Cook for about 20 minutes until the lentil are tender.
Preheat oven to 400
Once everything is cooked and ready to go, dump the lentils and the veggies into oven safe skillet or casserole dish and mix around. Take beet puree and spread evenly over the mixture. Then do the same with the sweet potato puree. %u00a0Sprinkle the top with salt and pepper and stick the casserole into the oven to bake until the top is all browned and slightly crunchy (about 30 minutes)
Remove from the oven, let it cool for a few minutes, then eat it. Fork, spoon, or your fingers work.
Just about every morning I wake up at the ass crack of dawn (actually its still dark out) make coffee, do a few things, usually read a bit while eating my breakfast and drinking my third cup of coffee, and start a pot of soup for lunch. All before 7am when I yell up to the mr. to get his butt out of bed. %u00a0I love it and I look forward to the mornings of me time.
So soup. I like to start the soup early and let it cook for a while. I start the soup, bring it to a boil, and then stick it on simmer with a ton of water. And then I am off for the day. The deal is that I leave, but the mr. leaves about an hour after I do and he will turn the burners off. And he has been so good about it. Sometime I might shoot him a text to make sure the burners are off, but most of the time I just trust.
Well about a week or so ago, I made soup, went about my morning. Upon my return home, before I even walked down the driveway, I could smell the burning soup.
%u00a0I rushed in just in time. The house was not on fire! But the pot of split pea soup%u2026 it was about to be. The pot consisted of about %u00a0three-inches of thick, burnt to a black brick, soup and about an inch of super thick burnt but still slightly green pea goop on top.
Now don%u2019t judge me here, but that goop%u2026. I ate it. And it was so good. I know, I sound kind of gross, but whatever I don%u2019t care. That little bit of super thick burnt pea paste was some of the best burnt food that I have ever eaten.(I love burnt food)
So this casserole gets a bit of inspiration from that goop. No, it is not burnt to almost an inedible state, but it gets thick and a little crispy and is so so freaking good. This is one of those dishes that I will make and continue to eat even though I cannot possibly eat any more. It%u2019s that good.
As for leaving the stove on while I am gone.. That’s not really happening anymore.
The stuff. %u00a0Dried green split peas, some water, Italian spice blend as well as garlic and onion powder. Also salt and pepper, a bay leaf, carrots, an onion, a couple of potatoes, a chunk of cabbage, and a parsnip. All good, all of what I have in the fridge at the moment.%u00a0
Start by chopping up the onion and sticking it into a big heavy pot. Take all the spices and mix them together in a little bowl and dump half of them into the pot with the onion, the bay leaf and a splash of water. Place on medium heat and cook until the onions start to soften and the water has evaporated.%u00a0
After the onions have cooked a bit, add in the dried split peas and a bunch of water (split peas suck up water like crazy) Turn the heat up to high and bring the stuff to a boil then turn heat to a medium and place lid on pot. Let cook for a while, giving it a stir every now and then to make sure nothing is sticking and burning to the bottom of the pot
While the split peas are cooking, chop up all the veggies into mouth sized chunks and mix them together with the rest of the spices and toss them into a skillet or casserole dish.%u00a0
And the peas.. Once they are all falling apart, they are ready. %u00a0Now is also a good time to preheat oven.%u00a0
Dump the cooked split peas all over the veggie mixture and mix around a bit. Grab that last potato and slice really thin.
Top the veggies with the potato and sprinkle with salt and pepper.%u00a0
And into the oven it goes!
Bake until the veggies are all tender and the top is all crispy (about 35-40 minutes) and eel free to even stick under a broiler for an even crisper top.
Pull it from the oven when its ready and let it sit for a few minutes to set up a bit…
And scoop yourself a big helping and eat! All it needs is a fork (But mustard tastes so good with it too!)
Have a great Monday!
-C
serves 3-4
3/4 cup dried green split peas
3-1/2 cups water
2 tablespoons Italian spice blend
1 tablespoon garlic powder
1 tablespoon onion powder
1 bay leaf
salt and pepper to taste
1 yellow onion
%u00bc head of cabbage
3 %u00a0white potatoes
2-3 carrots
1 big parsnip
Note%u2026 I used the veggie that I had on hand. So say you don%u2019t like parsnips, don%u2019t use them or want to add celery, go for it. Just make sure to have at about 4-5 cups of chopped up veggies.
Take all the spices and mix them together. Dice onion into little pieces and stick into a big heavy bottom pot with half of the spice blend, the bay leaf, a few pinches of salt and pepper, and a splash of water. Stick on stove and cook for a few minutes until water evaporates and the onions are fragrant and starting to soften. Now dump in the dried peas and 3-1/2 cups water.%u00a0 Bring it to a boil, then reduce heat to medium and place a lid on the pot. Cook the peas, stirring occasionally, for about 45 minutes of until falling apart.
In the mean time, dice up the veggies (leave one potato to top with)into mouth sized chunks and stick them in either a casserole dish or a 12-inch oven safe skillet. Mix in the other half of the spice blend
Preheat oven to 375
Once the split peas are done, take the pot and dump into the chopped veggies and mix around. Take remaining potato and slice thinly. Top the casserole with thin slices of potato and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Stick that bad boy %u00a0into the oven.
Bake for about 45-50 minutes or until the potatoes are crispy and the peas have thickened.%u00a0
Remove from oven, let rest for a few minutes, and serve it on up!
This cake was born from my anxiety. Whenever I am feeling crazy,%u00a0anxious, kinda sick, or even just really happy, I want to be in the kitchen making something. It’s probably some deep seeded control issue that I have (I can’t control my brain, but I can control bread dough), but whatever.%u00a0Being in the kitchen takes my head out of life , even just for a little while, and let’s me concentrate on something else that really has nothing to do with whatever I am thinking about (unless I am thinking about food, in which I bake whatever food I am thinking about) Does this all make sense or am I just nuts?
So yeah, the other day I was having one of those days. I was extra crazy (for so many reasons) and really needed to just step away from my thoughts. I rushed home and just started grabbing stuff.. cake stuff.%u00a0%u00a0I figured that If I was going to bake something that I might as well bake a little snack cake for the mr, especially sense he has to deal with this crazy. I had a large quantity of pears that were all ripening %u00a0at once sitting in the fruit basket, so I grabbed some of those. And I grabbed the ginger%u2026 well because why not.
And I made this cake.. and I felt better. And the mr got cake (also brought some to my sisters.. her and the kids ate it all within minutes). It was a win win situation.%u00a0
So now you know. If you are my friend and I am feeling some feelings, at some point,%u00a0you will proably get a cake.
The stuff. A few pears,some fresh ginger, brown sugar and cinnamon. %u00a0Also have some white whole wheat flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt. And some oil, apple cider vinegar and a little bit of water.
Start with the pears. Cut in half, remove seed and stems, then chop/mince the crap out of them. It’s cool to have a few big chunks., it adds some good texture. Take the pears and as much as the juice you can scrap from the counter and stick into a bowl.
Grate up a few good tablespoons of fresh ginger..
Tip.%u00a0I keep my ginger in the freezer. its easier to grate and it doesn’t go bad!
The ginger goes into the bowl with the pears, along with the oil, cinnamon,%u00a0sugar, water and vinegar. Mix it all up . Then all that wet mixture goes into the bowl with the flour, baking soda and powder and the salt.
And that get’s all mixed.. and now you have cake batter!%u00a0
Depending on you pears and how juicy they are,%u00a0you might find that your batter seems to dry, just add in another 1/4 %u00a0cup of water. The batter should be the consistency of like greek yogurt, not ruing, but not stiff either.
Preheat you cook box (oven)
Dump the batter into a well greased 9×9 inch pan. Slice up another pear into thin strips (I only used half, then ate the other half)
Lay the slices on top to make it look all pretty. Do what I did, or some other design (it’s your cake to make pretty any way you want). Once you do that, stick the cake into the oven.
When the cake is a nice deep golden brown, take it out of the oven.
Maybe let it cool for a few minutes, letting the smell wrap around your head so that you smell like baking all day. No cut yourself a slab, grab some coffee, and go for it.%u00a0
Enjoy
-C
Makes a 9×9 inch single layer cake
2 cups white whole wheat flour
2 cups minced , super ripe and jucey pears (about 2 whole pears)
2 tablespoon freshly frated ginger
1/2 cup canola oil
1/4- 1/2 cup water
2/3 %u00a0cup brown sugar
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
Preheat oven to 350
Take pears, remove seeds and stem, and chop the crap out of them until they are tiny little pieces. Scoop pears, and any juice they leave behind into a bowl. Add in the sugar, oil, cinnamon, %u00a0ginger, vinegar,%u00a0%u00a0and %u00a01/4 %u00a0cup of water and mix until incorporated.%u00a0In a seprertare big bowl, mix together the salt, baking soda and powder with the flour. Add in the wet mixture and mix until fully incorporated.%u00a0%u00a0If the batter seems to dry (should be the constancy of whipped potatoes or greek yogurt), add in another 1/4 cup of water.%u00a0
Scoop batter into a greased 9×9 inch baking pan.%u00a0If you want to make it pretty, grab another pear and cut into thin slices and place right on top of the batter in any fashion you like.%u00a0
Place cake into oven and bake until a nice dark golden brown,about 40-45 minutes ,or until a tester stuck in the middle comes out clean.%u00a0
Remove, let cool in pan, and cut yourself a big slab, grab some coffee e to tea, grab a book, and eat it.%u00a0.
THE LOVELY CRAZY
January 7, 2020 by maximios • Blog
All at once is how it goes. The garden is all star fantastic and just won’t quit.%u00a0 I find myself picking 4-6 cucumbers and the same in squash every morning. The tomatoes plant are a freaking jungle and there are so so so many tomatoes, all just about to ripen. The kale is doing it’s thing, growing big and green and I pick a few handfuls a day. And then there are all the beets and carrots and cabbage,chard, and kidney beans. It’s big, and prolific and amazing. I am much proud of myself for growing a shit load of awesomeness.
And then there is the farm share. I get all my garden stuff times 10. Tomatoes, cucumbers, zucchini, kale. Not to mention the corn, onion, carrots, and herbs and all the flowers. The food keeps on coming.%u00a0 I live in a house, with a big kitchen, with lots of counter and a full sized fridge, yet I still don’t have a place for it all. The squash overflow has now made it’s way to the dinning room. But I am not complaining.
The new rule that I have instated in the house. Every meal must contain at least two tomatoes, a cucumber, and some kale. Want a snack, grab a zucchini. You thirsty? well eat a cucumber. No joke. I get a little stressed out about how much food is around that needs to be eaten or canned, but that is good stress. I am on the lookout for a chest freezer to help with the stress. I promised myself that I would have one by now so I need to get on that asap.
Summer harvest. This is the time of year that I gain a few pounds. It’s a zucchini tomato belly for sure.
And this salad. I am a huge fan of the B.A.S (big ass salad). A big ass bowl of all the goodness from farm and garden plus some lentil protein and a little good avocado fat. Fresh and clean and delicious. Makes you feel all good when you eat it.%u00a0 So go for it. Eat yourself a B.A.S. you wont regret it.
The stuff. Cucumbers (that is a white cucumber and it’s really tasty) tomatoes, some kale, parsley, and cilantro. Also need some onion, cooked lentils, and at least half an avocado. Salt. pepper, and red wine vinegar for the finish.
Kale. parsley, and cilantro get a good rough chop and then tossed into a big ass bowl.
Cucumber, onion, and tomatoes get their turn next and chopped into mouth sized pieces. Into the bowl as well.
Top it all with cooked lentil, some avocado, and a glug glug of vinegar. Season with salt and pepper.
Now all you need is a fork.
All the summertime in a bowl. Here’s to summer bellies!
-C
First off, grab a really big bowl. Take herbs and kale and chop into small pieces. Place in bowl. Next dice up you onion, tomato, and cucumbers into mouth sized pieces and toss those into bowl. Dump the cooked lentils on top of that and dice the avocado (I used half but you can use whole one) into little pieces and through that on too. Sprinkle with a pinch of salt and pepper and a glug (about a table spoon or two) of vinegar.
Now mix until all combines. Taste and if needed, add more salt, pepper, and/or vinegar.
Now its done. Grab a fork and eat to your face.
Winter squash season is in full swing. I have already started to hoard them in all the nooks and crannies around the house. There are sugar pumpkins on the stairs, buttercups on the floor and delicatas all over the counter. Ever meal, breakfast, lunch or dinner needs to have some squash. House rule.
This hear spaghetti squash has been sitting on a stool for about a week, looming in it’s size and just waiting for me to bake it off. The spaghetti squash at farm share have been bigger then a small child so I have been a little hesitant to bake it until the mr was down with eating it with me too.
What I love about this dish is that it is really simple and easy to make.We have been working later these past few days so when we get home, we really just want to eat and go to bed (not really….kinda really) The initial baking of the squash takes a little time, but its zero hands on and can be done ahead of time. And the rest, take like 8 minutes tops. Also a lot of time people forget that you can eat a spaghetti squash with things other then tomato sauce. (although that’s good too) But really, the sky is the limit. Squash goes with everything. %u00a0
So dinner. I had the squash and went with what I had in the fridge. Beans are great, fresh pico is amazing, all atop a big pile of some warm spaghetti squash. Well that is just what we call a winner. A winner dinner!!!
The stuff. A spaghetti squash (maybe go for a smaller sized one if you don’t want a lot of left overs) precooked or canned black beans, a red pepper, and some red onion. Also need garlic, cumin (crushed or seeds) salt and pepper, olive oil, and fresh cilantro. And lastly some home made or store bought pico de gallo or any of your favorite salsa.%u00a0
You don’t see it here, but the squash went into the oven about an hour ago to cook. I did nothing to it besides stab it once andjust stuck the entire thing right on in and cranked up the heat. Simple, easy.
Ok, so when the squash has been baking for a while, start getting the rest of thestuff ready. Small dice up the red pepper and the onion and toss it into a lightly oiled hot skillet to sweat down a bit.
Once the pepper and onion are nice and soft, toss in the cumin and minced garlic. Cook a little longer until the seeds and garlic are fragrant and cooked.
Add in the beans and mix it all around. Taste, add a little salt and pepper if it needs it, and set aside.
Spaghetti-ing the squash. I took it out of the oven when it was fork tender, sliced it in half on a baking sheet and let it cool off for just a minute. Scooped the seed out then scraped the cooked squash with a fork. Fun times, just watch you your hands, the squash is hot.
And your ready for food. Squash in a bowl, topped with some black bean mixture and a hearty amount of fresh pico. Serve it with lots (or none if you don’t like it) cilantro and a wedge of lemon(or lime)
This is some good stuff friends, some really good stuff.
Alright, now I have to get ready. We are taking a handful of the little pumpkin picking….A few more pumpkins to add to the stash.
-C
Serves 2-3
To cook the squash. Preheat oven to 400. Grab squash a stab a small hole in it so when its baking it does bot explode (this has happened to me a few times) then stick the whole squash into the oven. Let bake for 45 minutes to an hour (depending on size) It is done when it is soft and fork tender. Once done, pull squash from oven, cut in half and let cool for a minutes. Once cool enough to handle, scoop out the seeds then start scraping the flesh with a fork to create spaghetti like strands.
For the beans. Small chop up the red pepper ans onion and toss into a hot skillet with a little splash of olive oil. Sweat the pepper and onion on medium heat and when they are close to done, mince up the garlic and toss that in along with the cumin seeds and a pinch of salt ans pepper (if needed) Keep cooking until the garlic is cooked and the cumin if fragrant.
To assemble. Grab a bowl and fill with a good amount of the cooked squash, top it with a big scoop of the black bean mixture and you desired amount of fresh pico or salsa. Add lots of extra cilantro and serve with a lemon or lime wedge to squeeze on top.
Now eat it.
Note….Any left overs make a fantastic cold salad or wrapped in a tortilla.
I am running extremely low on food in my house, like there isn’t a can of beans or a box of pasta left. Yeah, I have a few zucchini left, but I think that mr might be getting a bit sick of it. (He has had zucchini noodles for lunch and dinner for the past few day). And I was going to go to the grocery store before dinner, but then I didn’t. Why? well because I didn’t really feel like it.
Turns out that I didn’t need to go to the store for dinner.I had a few mushrooms, an onion, and a few stalks of chard left in the fridge. (but pretty much nothing else) I just bought a 25 lb bag of flour so I am all stocked up on that and last minute I found a avocado that I thought was a beet in the fridge. All I needed to make a dinner, and a quick and easy, and really tasty one to boot. Plus being so mother F*ing hot, it was perfect because there was no need to turn on the oven.
Now the question is,now that dinner was made and being that the fridge is so empty, should I clean and defrost it? Answer is yes, yes I should, but am I going to? Probably not. I just don’t have it in me to stand in font of the fridge, hacking ice away with a large spoon and boiling water for an hour. It’s to hot. I’ll do it later.
The stuff. Flour, baking powder, olive oil, salt ans water for the skillet bread. A few humngo stalks of red chard, a couple mushrooms (I would have used a few more if I had them). an onion, and a few cloves of garlic.%u00a0 Missing is the pepper and the avocado and lemon that I found while rummaging the fridge.
The bread is super easy. Just whisk together the flour salt, and baking soda then add in the oil. Mix until it’s crumbly then mix in the water until it turns into a soft dough. Gather into a ball and stick in bowl then into fridge for a few minutes to let the dough rest.
After the dough has rested, take it and cut into 4 equal pieces. Roll each piece into ball and then roll out as flat as you can. Heat up a skillet to high heat and once hot, place rolled out flat onto (dry) skillet. Cook first side for about 3-4 minutes or until browned and cook, then turn heat down a bit, flip and cook other side until browned. Remove bread, turn heat back up, and repeat with remaining flats.
For the rest. Remove the leafy part of the chard and set aside .Thinly hop up the mushrooms, onion, and the chard stalk. Mince up the garlic. Toss it all (not the garlic yet)into a lightly oiled skillet , season with salt and pepper, and cook on medium heat until starting to brown. Now toss in a few splashes of water and the minced garlic, mix around, and cover wit a lid. Cook for another 8-10 minutes until the veggies are nice and soft.
Cooked and ready, but wait, chop up the chard leaves and toss them into skillet. Another splash of water and a few more minutes under a lid will wilt them up real quick.
Skillet beads are made, veggies are all nice and cooked up. The avocado and lemon where found, sliced.
Not bad for a last minute-lean out the fridge of all food-dinner. Not bad at all.
Don’t melt
-C
Make 4 flatbread
For the skillet bread
For the rest
To make the skillet bread. Mix together the flour, salt, and baking soda in a large bowl. Pour in olive oil and mix until crumbly then add in 4 tablespoons of water (5 if it seems to dry) until a dough forms. Gather dough into a ball, stick in bowl and cover, and place in the fridge to rest for about 10 minutes. Once dough has chilled, remove and cut into 4 equal sized pieces. Roll each piece into a ball then, on a clean surface, roll out as flat as you can. Grab a skillet and place on high heat. Once skillet has heated up, place a rolled out dough on hot, un-oiled surface and let cook for about 3-4 minutes or until the bottom cooked with golden brown spots. Turn heat to medium and flip bread. Cook the other side for another 4-5 minutes or until browned. Remove flat and turn heat back up. Cook the rest of the bread like the first one.
For the rest. Remove leafy parts of the chard from the stalk and set aside. Take stalk and chop into pieces about 1/ 2 inch think. Slice onion and mushrooms up as thinly as you can. Mince garlic. Garb a skillet, stick on medium heat and drizzle with a little olive oil. Toss in chard stalk, onions, and mushrooms, sprinkle with salt and pepper and mix around until the stuff starts to brown a bit. Add in a few good splashed of water and the garlic and then place a lid on the skillet. Cook for about 10 minutes, giving the mixture a good stir every few minutes. Once the veggies are all soft and yummy, chop up the remaining chard leafs and place them into the skillet. Add another splash of water and place the lid back on. Cook until the leaves have wilted.
To assemble. Flat bread on plate. Scoop some of the sauteed veggie mixture on top. A few slices of avocado on top with a squeeze of lemon juice and a bit of cracked pepper…You are good to go.
I am a glutton for punishment. 91 degrees, super humid, and what do I do, I turn on the oven to make bread. And this is after I drag the poor mr to the middle of a field on the hottest most humid day to pick strawberries. He didn’t complain once (well, maybe on our walk back to the car, but I was bitching a little too).
At home. recuperating from the picking, I made myself a snack of shredded zucchini with chopped strawberries covered in black pepper (try it, it is so freaking good) and was like “this would make a killer bread situation”. And that’s when I turned on the oven and went to town making bread with the zucchini and strawberries (minus the pepper cause, well I wasn’t sure if the mr would like it, but I think I’ll add it to the next loaf). And I know, hot day, hot oven=no but really, I was so F*ing hot that I didn’t think I could have gotten any hotter, so I figured why the hell not turn on the oven. (The mr and he pup where at the other house so I wasn’t torturing them with the heat)
And when the mr came home sure the house was still hot, there was fresh loaf of the sweetest smelling strawberry zucchini bread waiting for him. And so what ifI might have been slightly delirious, I had accomplished something great and was then okay with spending the rest of the say laying in a heap on the floor.
The mr says the bread was worth it.
The stuff. A good sized zucchini and a pint or so of the loveliest strawberries . Also have a bowl with flour (all purpose and while whole wheat) baking soda and baking powder, and a little salt. Sugar, oil, cinnamon, and a little vinegar are needed and a handful of walnut if you want too.
Oil and sugar go into a bowl and get mixed together until combined.
Zucchini gets shredded and added to the bowl.
And strawberries get chopped (stems removed) and go into the bowl along with the zucchini.
Mix the wet mixture up until it starts to get all juicy then mix in the vinegar.
The dry stuff gets mix together along with the walnuts.
%u00a0Now in goes the wet mixture. Mix it all together until just combined (don’t over mix)
Batter goes into a nicely greased pan and if you have it, sprinkle a little brown sugar on top.
Pop pan into preheated oven to do it’s thing.
And it’s thing it did. All dark brown and pretty with red and green bits all over. Quite the stunning loaf if I do say so myself. Remove from pan and let the bread cool for a little while..(you should wait until it’s completely cooled, but at 15 minutes would be ok)
You have waited long enough.. time to cute the bread.
Bread all day long.
Enjoy.
-C
makes 1 loaf
preheat oven to 350 degrees
In a large bowl, whisk together the flours, baking powder ans soda, salt, cinnamon, Toss in the walnuts as well.
In a separate bowl mix together the sugar and oil until combined then shred zucchini and dump it it. Grab strawberries, remove the stems, and chop those up into small chunks and add to the bowl with the zucchini. Mix until everything is mixed and starts to get juicy then mix in the vinegar.
Now dump the wet mixture into the dry and mix just until everything is incorporated and pour/scrape batter into a well greased loaf pan. Sprinkle he top with a little brown sugar and stick the pan into the oven.
Let cook for about an hour or until the top is a deep brown and a tester stuck into the middle comes out clean. Once out of the oven, let cool for a a few minutes, remove from pan and let cool completely on a wire rack.
Cut cooled bread and eat it to your face.
This is what I am talking about. Winter has finally come with it’s snowy snow and super freezing cold temperatures. It just feels right, even if I freeze a little every time I leave the house to walk the dog. But that’s ok, it is suppose to happen.
And when it’s cold and snowy we are all suppose to eat lots of warm and hearty good things to warm us up in our insides. So we soup.. Soup all day, everyday, all winter long, especially in the case of feeling slightly ill (which I have been for the past week) Eating soup makes everything better.%u00a0 Soup soup soup.
Soup, what a weird word. Anyway.
This soup is amazingly easy to make and even easier to eat. Full of veggies, spices and lots of beans. A perfect meal to satisfy your frozen self. And bonus, not full of shit. It’s super healthy, protein packed and just plan ol good. Warm. hearty, healthy.. What more can you ask for? (you could ask for some crackers and I would probably give them to you)
Soup time!
The stuff. Navy beans, a sweet potato, and some chopped up kale. A couple carrots, an onion, a few cloves of garlic, a little olive oil and water.* And lets not forget some spices…. I used a couple bay leaves, some dried rosemary and thyme. Oh and there should be a lemon here.(I think it rolled off the counter)
*Note. Some people get all up and up about not using a stock in soup. This soup creates it’s own stock with all the veggies and spices and time spent simmering but if you want, go ahead and use stock.
Start by chopping up the carrots, the onion, and the garlic and tossing it all into a really big pot along with a drizzle of olive oil, some salt and pepper and the spices. Stick on the stove on medium high heat for a few minutes until the veggies start to brown.. This gives the veggies and spices a chance to develop more flavor.%u00a0
Now chop up the sweet potato into 1 inch chunks and toss that into the pot too.
And the dried beans and water go into as well. Get it all in there, give it a mix and stick the pot on high heat and bring to a boil, then bring the heat to low.%u00a0 Add a lid to the pot and let cook for a while,like an hour,%u00a0 stirring every now and then.
Once the beans in the soup are cooked to your preferred done-ness (I like mine on al dente) remove pot from heat.
Dump in the chopped up kale…
And that lemon that rolled away. I found it. So slice up lemon. Ladle a large amount of the soup into a pretty bowl and finish it off with some cracked pepper and a squeeze of lemon.
Soup! Now grab a big spoon, a cozy sweater or blanket (or snuggy) , and maybe some crackers or bread if you feel so inclined and eat. You will be filled with warmth and happiness.%u00a0
Have a great day.
-C
Chop carrots, onion and garlic and stick them all into a large pot with a drizzle of olive oil, all the spices, and a pinch of salt and pepper.%u00a0 Stick on the stove and cook until the veggies start to brown. While veggies are cooking, cut sweet potato into 1 inch chunks and toss the potato into the pot along with the beans and the water. Bring to a boil then reduce the heat to low. Stick a lid on the pot and simmer fir about an hour or until the beans are cooked to you liking.
Once the beans are cooked through, dump in the chopped up kale, mix it around, then call it done.
Ladle into bowls, top with cracked pepper (and more salt if you want) and serve with a wedge of lemon.
Grab a spoon, eat the soup. Be happy.
Got some left over… Well yeah, soup for later! (will last in fridge for a few days, but freezes super well too)
Once in a while I make a dinner that the mr does not want to eat, like anything with too much corn or things made with lots of vinegar… not his taste. Don’t get me wrong, most of the time, he will eat what I make (casue he loves me) but he clearly doesn’t really like it. And that’s when pup usually gets left over for dinner. (He always likes everything that I cook)
One of those things that I know the mr doesn’t like are beets. Sure, he will eat things that has a few beets in it, but once he found out that this casserole starred beets, his eyes widened and he looked worried, like “oh great, but please don’t make me eat this”. Not to worry. He was getting pasta for dinner because this casserole was not for him. It was for me. It has everything that I love in the word (food wise ) tossed together and baked into a pretty skillet, just for me. Plus the beets, sweet potato and kale were the last from the farm share.%u00a0 So it was my good by farm food, casserole of greatness. And I didn’t want to share.
So yeah, if you are not a fan of beets, or any of the other stuff in this casserole for that matter, then don’t make it. But if you are awesome and know the greatness of the beet, especially paired with lentils and sweet potato, well I suggest you go and make this right away. And bonus… it’s super healthy and hardy which make for a great dinner on a cold night and after all the holiday food last week.%u00a0
The stuff. A large sweet potato, a couple of big beets and some dried lentils.%u00a0 Gonna want some veggies, like an onion, carrots, cabbage and kale. Also want garlic, some salt and pepper, water and tiny bit of olive oil.
First thing first, get the beets and the sweet potato in a pot to boil* Just dice then up and toss into a pot with enough water to submerge the roots. Sprinkle in a bit of water ad bring to a boil, stick a lid on pot, and turn hat to medium.%u00a0
*Note. I boiled my beets and sweet potato in one pot because well, I just didn’t want to have one more pot to wash. But if you do this, your sweet potato will turn slightly pink, whichI think is really pretty. If you want your sweet potato puree to look orange, gonna have to dirty another pot and boil the beets separately.
And chop up our veggies and mince the garlic. Drizzle a tiny amount of oil into a skillet or pot, toss in veggies (minus the kale) and cook on medium heat just until they start to soften a tiny bit. Once the veggies are cooked, remove them from heat, add in chopped kale, and set aside.
And make your lentils. (i used the pot I just cooked the veggies in. The less dishes the better!) Water and lentils into pot with a pinch of salt, bring to boil, cover and place on low until lentils are tender.
When the beets and sweet potato are fork tender, drain water into a jar and separate the beets from the potato (if you boiled them together). Blend the beets then the sweet potato until it%u2019s the consistency that you would enjoy eating it (I like a little bit of chunk, not completely smooth) Use the drained water to thin out as much as you need/want.
All the stuff ready to compile.
Grab the cooked veggies and toss them into a oven safe skillet or casserole dish and mix together with the lentils. Sprinkle with salt and pepper.
Now evenly spread the beet puree on top of the veggies
Then ever so gently, spread the sweet potato on top of that.
Give the top a good pinch of salt and pepper and stick the thing into the oven.
Remove from oven when the sweet potato has browned andis slightly crispy.
And scoop a big old scoop into a bowl, grab a fork, and stuff your face!
Happy today day!
-C
Remove from oven, let cook for a few minutes then eat it with a fork, a spoon, or your fingers.
Beet Sweet Potato and Lentil Casserole
Make 3-4 servings (or one serving for me!)
Note.. I did not add extra seasoning to this because I love the taste just as it is. But if you are feeling like it needs some seasoning, just add some in.
Start by chopping the beets and sweet potato into medium sized chunks and boiling them until they are fork tender. You can do this either in two separate pots or in one large pot. (if in one pot, the sweet potato will turn a little pink)
Once those are boiling, chop up all the veggies (not the kale yet) and the garlic and toss into a pot or skillet with a drizzle of olive oil and cook on medium heat until the veggies are slightly tender. Remove from heat, add in chopped kale and set aside.
And make the lentils ( I cooked the veggies in the pot, removed them ans used the pot to make the lentils… less dishes). Dump the 2 cups water, a pinch of salt, and the lentils into a pot.%u00a0 Bring to boil, cover, then turn heat to low. Cook for about 20 minutes until the lentil are tender.
Preheat oven to 400
Once everything is cooked and ready to go, dump the lentils and the veggies into oven safe skillet or casserole dish and mix around. Take beet puree and spread evenly over the mixture. Then do the same with the sweet potato puree. %u00a0Sprinkle the top with salt and pepper and stick the casserole into the oven to bake until the top is all browned and slightly crunchy (about 30 minutes)
Remove from the oven, let it cool for a few minutes, then eat it. Fork, spoon, or your fingers work.
Just about every morning I wake up at the ass crack of dawn (actually its still dark out) make coffee, do a few things, usually read a bit while eating my breakfast and drinking my third cup of coffee, and start a pot of soup for lunch. All before 7am when I yell up to the mr. to get his butt out of bed. %u00a0I love it and I look forward to the mornings of me time.
So soup. I like to start the soup early and let it cook for a while. I start the soup, bring it to a boil, and then stick it on simmer with a ton of water. And then I am off for the day. The deal is that I leave, but the mr. leaves about an hour after I do and he will turn the burners off. And he has been so good about it. Sometime I might shoot him a text to make sure the burners are off, but most of the time I just trust.
Well about a week or so ago, I made soup, went about my morning. Upon my return home, before I even walked down the driveway, I could smell the burning soup.
%u00a0I rushed in just in time. The house was not on fire! But the pot of split pea soup%u2026 it was about to be. The pot consisted of about %u00a0three-inches of thick, burnt to a black brick, soup and about an inch of super thick burnt but still slightly green pea goop on top.
Now don%u2019t judge me here, but that goop%u2026. I ate it. And it was so good. I know, I sound kind of gross, but whatever I don%u2019t care. That little bit of super thick burnt pea paste was some of the best burnt food that I have ever eaten.(I love burnt food)
So this casserole gets a bit of inspiration from that goop. No, it is not burnt to almost an inedible state, but it gets thick and a little crispy and is so so freaking good. This is one of those dishes that I will make and continue to eat even though I cannot possibly eat any more. It%u2019s that good.
As for leaving the stove on while I am gone.. That’s not really happening anymore.
The stuff. %u00a0Dried green split peas, some water, Italian spice blend as well as garlic and onion powder. Also salt and pepper, a bay leaf, carrots, an onion, a couple of potatoes, a chunk of cabbage, and a parsnip. All good, all of what I have in the fridge at the moment.%u00a0
Start by chopping up the onion and sticking it into a big heavy pot. Take all the spices and mix them together in a little bowl and dump half of them into the pot with the onion, the bay leaf and a splash of water. Place on medium heat and cook until the onions start to soften and the water has evaporated.%u00a0
After the onions have cooked a bit, add in the dried split peas and a bunch of water (split peas suck up water like crazy) Turn the heat up to high and bring the stuff to a boil then turn heat to a medium and place lid on pot. Let cook for a while, giving it a stir every now and then to make sure nothing is sticking and burning to the bottom of the pot
While the split peas are cooking, chop up all the veggies into mouth sized chunks and mix them together with the rest of the spices and toss them into a skillet or casserole dish.%u00a0
And the peas.. Once they are all falling apart, they are ready. %u00a0Now is also a good time to preheat oven.%u00a0
Dump the cooked split peas all over the veggie mixture and mix around a bit. Grab that last potato and slice really thin.
Top the veggies with the potato and sprinkle with salt and pepper.%u00a0
And into the oven it goes!
Bake until the veggies are all tender and the top is all crispy (about 35-40 minutes) and eel free to even stick under a broiler for an even crisper top.
Pull it from the oven when its ready and let it sit for a few minutes to set up a bit…
And scoop yourself a big helping and eat! All it needs is a fork (But mustard tastes so good with it too!)
Have a great Monday!
-C
serves 3-4
Note%u2026 I used the veggie that I had on hand. So say you don%u2019t like parsnips, don%u2019t use them or want to add celery, go for it. Just make sure to have at about 4-5 cups of chopped up veggies.
Take all the spices and mix them together. Dice onion into little pieces and stick into a big heavy bottom pot with half of the spice blend, the bay leaf, a few pinches of salt and pepper, and a splash of water. Stick on stove and cook for a few minutes until water evaporates and the onions are fragrant and starting to soften. Now dump in the dried peas and 3-1/2 cups water.%u00a0 Bring it to a boil, then reduce heat to medium and place a lid on the pot. Cook the peas, stirring occasionally, for about 45 minutes of until falling apart.
In the mean time, dice up the veggies (leave one potato to top with)into mouth sized chunks and stick them in either a casserole dish or a 12-inch oven safe skillet. Mix in the other half of the spice blend
Preheat oven to 375
Once the split peas are done, take the pot and dump into the chopped veggies and mix around. Take remaining potato and slice thinly. Top the casserole with thin slices of potato and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Stick that bad boy %u00a0into the oven.
Bake for about 45-50 minutes or until the potatoes are crispy and the peas have thickened.%u00a0
Remove from oven, let rest for a few minutes, and serve it on up!
This cake was born from my anxiety. Whenever I am feeling crazy,%u00a0anxious, kinda sick, or even just really happy, I want to be in the kitchen making something. It’s probably some deep seeded control issue that I have (I can’t control my brain, but I can control bread dough), but whatever.%u00a0Being in the kitchen takes my head out of life , even just for a little while, and let’s me concentrate on something else that really has nothing to do with whatever I am thinking about (unless I am thinking about food, in which I bake whatever food I am thinking about) Does this all make sense or am I just nuts?
So yeah, the other day I was having one of those days. I was extra crazy (for so many reasons) and really needed to just step away from my thoughts. I rushed home and just started grabbing stuff.. cake stuff.%u00a0%u00a0I figured that If I was going to bake something that I might as well bake a little snack cake for the mr, especially sense he has to deal with this crazy. I had a large quantity of pears that were all ripening %u00a0at once sitting in the fruit basket, so I grabbed some of those. And I grabbed the ginger%u2026 well because why not.
And I made this cake.. and I felt better. And the mr got cake (also brought some to my sisters.. her and the kids ate it all within minutes). It was a win win situation.%u00a0
So now you know. If you are my friend and I am feeling some feelings, at some point,%u00a0you will proably get a cake.
The stuff. A few pears,some fresh ginger, brown sugar and cinnamon. %u00a0Also have some white whole wheat flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt. And some oil, apple cider vinegar and a little bit of water.
Start with the pears. Cut in half, remove seed and stems, then chop/mince the crap out of them. It’s cool to have a few big chunks., it adds some good texture. Take the pears and as much as the juice you can scrap from the counter and stick into a bowl.
Grate up a few good tablespoons of fresh ginger..
Tip.%u00a0I keep my ginger in the freezer. its easier to grate and it doesn’t go bad!
The ginger goes into the bowl with the pears, along with the oil, cinnamon,%u00a0sugar, water and vinegar. Mix it all up . Then all that wet mixture goes into the bowl with the flour, baking soda and powder and the salt.
And that get’s all mixed.. and now you have cake batter!%u00a0
Depending on you pears and how juicy they are,%u00a0you might find that your batter seems to dry, just add in another 1/4 %u00a0cup of water. The batter should be the consistency of like greek yogurt, not ruing, but not stiff either.
Preheat you cook box (oven)
Dump the batter into a well greased 9×9 inch pan. Slice up another pear into thin strips (I only used half, then ate the other half)
Lay the slices on top to make it look all pretty. Do what I did, or some other design (it’s your cake to make pretty any way you want). Once you do that, stick the cake into the oven.
When the cake is a nice deep golden brown, take it out of the oven.
Maybe let it cool for a few minutes, letting the smell wrap around your head so that you smell like baking all day. No cut yourself a slab, grab some coffee, and go for it.%u00a0
Enjoy
-C
Makes a 9×9 inch single layer cake
Preheat oven to 350
Take pears, remove seeds and stem, and chop the crap out of them until they are tiny little pieces. Scoop pears, and any juice they leave behind into a bowl. Add in the sugar, oil, cinnamon, %u00a0ginger, vinegar,%u00a0%u00a0and %u00a01/4 %u00a0cup of water and mix until incorporated.%u00a0In a seprertare big bowl, mix together the salt, baking soda and powder with the flour. Add in the wet mixture and mix until fully incorporated.%u00a0%u00a0If the batter seems to dry (should be the constancy of whipped potatoes or greek yogurt), add in another 1/4 cup of water.%u00a0
Scoop batter into a greased 9×9 inch baking pan.%u00a0If you want to make it pretty, grab another pear and cut into thin slices and place right on top of the batter in any fashion you like.%u00a0
Place cake into oven and bake until a nice dark golden brown,about 40-45 minutes ,or until a tester stuck in the middle comes out clean.%u00a0
Remove, let cool in pan, and cut yourself a big slab, grab some coffee e to tea, grab a book, and eat it.%u00a0.