Wednesday, December 8, 2010

Why Pioneers Didn't Pay For Gyms

I've been baking my own bread lately. It began because it's more economical and every penny counts right now but I have to say, I'm now addicted because the bread is so yummy. The newest trend is "no knead" bread. First you make your dough, which is super easy, basically just mixing together dry and wet ingredients. Then it has to rise, which takes time but no work on your part. After rising, you put the dough in the frig and when you want to bake bread - pull some out, let it rise again and bake. There a lots of different recipes on the web, and Mother Earth News is always a great source. That's all great but I have to say, kneading is not such a bad thing to do. Great exercise for the arms and really I find it kinda relaxing. The bread gets so satiny and smooth and wonderful feeling that I knead no matter what now. Between gardening, baking bread, and bringing wood in for the winter, who needs a gym?

Thursday, October 7, 2010

Tips for Preserving Food: Jams and Pickles,etc.

Pickling

Another way I found to deal with zucchini is making zucchini pickles. You brine the sliced zucchini and onions, make a vinegar, mustard and turmeric mix and pour it over your zucchini in a jar, screw on a lid and refrigerate. I also add dill from the garden. Google: zuni café zucchini pickles for the recipe.

Fermentation

Kim Chee has many variations, but basically is cabbage, carrots, radishes, with a garlic, ginger, chili powder, and vinegar mix. It is a great way to use up these vegetables. You brine the cabbage, add the spice mixture to the vegetables and leave the jar on your counter with a towel over it to ferment for 7-10 days. Then screw on a lid and refrigerate. Google Kim Chee for recipes.

Jams

High acid fruit jams, like apricot jam do not need a hot water bath. One year I made 75 jars and I was sold out of them in two weeks, yummy! There are lots of recipes on line, but I use the pink Sure Jell recipe, which is the lower sugar one (plenty sweet). After I fill the sterilized jars with the hot jam, I turn them upside down on a clean towel for a half hour. When I turn them right side up, the jars are sealed.

Tips for Preserving Food: Freezing

Freezing

When you put food items (like berries) into a freezer bag and freeze them, they become one big clump of berries when defrosted. What you want is individually frozen berries so you can remove from the bag the amount you want to use.

1. Berries, Corn, any item you want each item frozen individually: Place berries on a cookie sheet and freeze overnight. Then put individually frozen berries into a freezer bag. I prefer quart size bags. Corn can be cut off the cob with a sharp knife while being stood in a bowl to catch the corn kernels and frozen without any blanching.

2. Pesto, Lemon juice, any soft mass: When there is a lot of basil, you can make your own pesto, which is simply basil, pine nuts, olive oil , garlic and parmesan cheese. Put the pesto into an ice cube tray and freeze overnight. Then pop out the frozen pesto from the ice cube tray and put the pesto cubes into a freezer bag. I love Meyer’s lemons and squeeze them in season and do this same process with them. When you want a couple of tablespoons of pesto or lemon juice, you can easily remove them from your freezer bag.

3. Zucchini can be baked into loaves of delicious zucchini nut bread and it freezes wonderfully well. For a good zucchini nut bread recipe, go to CatherineMollandblogspot.com

4. I make and freeze applesauce in glass jars. The trick to freezing in glass jars and not having the glass jars crack in the freezer is to leave lots of head room in the jar, at least two and a half inches.

5. Tomatoes make great spaghetti sauce, which is easily frozen in freezer bags.

Thursday, September 30, 2010

Competition paintings




Just entered a flower competition, big prize money (wouldn't that be fabulous!) and it was fun to paint flowers. Tried to stay with the format: focus on flowers yet make it interesting. Here are my two entries, "Flower Power" and "Gerber Daisies and Glass". Life is so rich and good lately.....

Monday, September 27, 2010

freezing tips

If you pack berries into a freezer bag, when defrosted, it will be one solid mess of berries. A better way to freeze the berries is to put them onto a cookie sheet overnight. Then the next a.m., put the individually frozen berries into the freezer bag. Softer items, like pesto and freshly squeezed lemon juice, can be frozen overnight in ice cube trays. Then the next day, pop them out of the tray, put into freezer bags and you will have individual size servings. Also, to prevent glass canning jars from cracking in the freezer, leave at least 2" headroom.

Zucchini Nut Bread Recipe

As promised, here is the Zucchini Nut Bread Recipe.

Zucchini Nut Bread
Makes 4 Loaves preheat oven 360 degrees
4 eggs
3 cups sugar
1 cup oil or soft butter
2 TBS. vanilla
5 cups shredded (peeled and seeded) zucchini
3 &1/4 cups whole wheat flour
3&1/4 cups white unbleached flour
1 tsp. Baking soda
1 tsp. Baking powder
2 tsp. salt
2 cups crushed pineapple OR applesauce
2 cups nuts
(Optional: 1/2 cup cocoa, and 9 oz. Chocolate chips for chocolate version)

Beat 4 eggs until foamy. Add sugar, oil or butter, and vanilla. Stir well, add
zucchini and applesauce (or pineapple). Separately mix together flours, baking
powder , baking soda, salt (cocoa for chocolate version). Combine dry
ingredients with wet ones and add nuts. Grease 4 loaf pans. Bake for 1 hour 10
min. Enjoy!

Tuesday, September 21, 2010

Putting Up Food

Yesterday Emily Van Cleve interviewed me for the Journal North newspaper for an article called "Putting Up Food". It was about my large organic vegetable garden and I shared simple and easy tips I have learned over the years for preserving food. I mean, as much as I love those zucchini's, after awhile, what is a same person to do with all of them?? I made zucchini pickles this year and everyone loves them, they have turmeric that turns them golden and mustard seeds, dry mustard and apple cider vinegar. Google Zuni Cafe Zucchini Pickles to get the recipe. Also, I froze lots of zucchini nut bread and I'll post that recipe tomorrow. I also made jars of apricot jam this year, dried all kinds of herbs, made and froze pesto, and stored garlic, onions, potatoes,etc. Whew! I am grateful for all the abundance, especially this year and I'm tired, too.

Wednesday, June 9, 2010

Fun Show


Marigold Art, 424 Canyon Rd., Santa Fe invited me to join artist Ruth Tatter in a "Wildlife Revisted" Show this month. The opening on June 4 was packed and a lot of fun. Kate McGraw of the Albuquerque Journal North did another wonderful article on June 4 called "Animal/Nature with a huge (6"x4")image of my African Queen and it drew people to the opening! Was great to see a lot of friends and Barbara, the owner, made her famous wild porcini mushroom dip. She teaches people how to pick wild mushrooms and I want to learn....