The gardens survivors and victims of vacation

Before leaving on vacation for two and a half weeks I had spent my days getting my garden in order so that everything would, hopefully, be in good shape when I arrived home.  Some things flourished while others became victims of predators.  These photos were shot by me with my trusty iphone...see if you can tell!

Eggplant are doing better than they were at about this time last year.

Cucumber has tiny babies coming on!  The cosmos are weeds, soon to be removed...

 

Basil is chugging along, waiting for the tomatoes.

Pumpkin looks happy.  Thank you, Candace!

Tomatoes obviously had plenty of water.  They loved getting watered every other day.

They even have fruit!

The crook neck squash is doing well, as are the weeds in the foreground.

But then there were...

The one edamame still standing, the others look like the one in the bottom, center if they can be found at all.

Saddest of all is the green beans, all that's left are the stems.  

The slugs and snails were all fed bait tonight after I replanted green bean starts. 

Fish Tacos

Home from 17 days of not cooking and having a difficult time thinking about what to cook, the first thing that appealed to me was fish tacos.  We ate a multitude of fish, but none as tacos.  I would have cooked the fish on the grill, but the weather is so cool in the evening that I didn't mind heating up the oven.  I  find it hard to believe that the photographer stuck toothpicks into my tacos!

 Click for printable recipe

Ingredients:

Crema:

1/4 cup thinly sliced green onions

1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro

3 tablespoons fat-free mayonnaise

3 tablespoons reduced-fat sour cream

1 teaspoon grated lime rind

1 1/2 teaspoons fresh lime juice

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 garlic clove, minced

Tacos:

1 teaspoon ground cumin

1 teaspoon ground coriander

1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika

1/4 teaspoon ground red pepper

1/8 teaspoon salt

1/8 teaspoon garlic powder

1 1/2 pounds red snapper fillets

Cooking spray

8 (6-inch) corn tortillas

2 cups shredded cabbage

Directions:

 Preheat oven to 425°.

To prepare crema, combine the first 8 ingredients in a small bowl; set aside.
To prepare tacos, combine cumin and next 5 ingredients (through garlic powder) in a small bowl; sprinkle spice mixture evenly over both sides of fish. Place fish on a baking sheet coated with cooking spray. Bake at 425° for 9 minutes or until fish flakes easily when tested with a fork or until desired degree of doneness. Place fish in a bowl; break into pieces with a fork. Heat tortillas according to package directions. Divide fish evenly among tortillas; top each with 1/4 cup cabbage and 1 tablespoon crema.

From Cooking Light 

Cookie Dough Cheesecake Bars

I know that Mark shouldn't be eating these, I did use low fat cream cheese though.   I decided to try for a Father's Day treat and send the bulk of the leftovers home with Kaci, good solution!  I don't usually make bar cookies that only make a 8 X 8 pan, but these are so rich that that was plenty!  I didn't want to run to the grocery store, so I bought organic graham crackers at Andy's Market,  I was surprised at how much less sweetness that they had than those in those I usually purchase at the grocery store.  Something similar is probably available at Whole Foods.

Crust:

1 1/2 cups of graham crackers crumbs 

5 tbsp unsalted butter, melted

Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough:

5 tbsp unsalted butter, softened 

1/3 cup of brown sugar, packed 

3 tbsp white sugar 

1/4 tsp salt 

1 tsp vanilla 

3/4 cup of flour 

1 cup of chocolate chips

Cheesecake Filling:

10 oz cream cheese, room temperature (I used low fat, and tasted good to us)

1/4 cup of white sugar 

1 large egg, room temperature 

1 tsp vanilla

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Line an 8 inch square baking pan with parchment paper, allowing a little overhang, then spray the paper and dish with cooking spray.

Combine the graham cracker crumbs with the melted butter until mixed thoroughly. Firmly press the mixture into the bottom of the prepared pan. Place into the oven and bake for 6 minutes. Remove pan and set aside to cool. DO NOT TURN YOUR OVEN OFF.

While the crust is cooling, prepare the chocolate chip cookie dough. Beat the butter, brown sugar, white sugar, salt, and vanilla together using a mixer until creamy and smooth. Add the flour to the butter mixture until just combined then add the chocolate chips and mix. Set aside.

For the cheesecake filling, place the cream cheese, sugar, egg, and vanilla together into a bowl then beat, using a mixer, until creamy and smooth. Carefully spread the cheesecake batter onto the prepared crust.

Using your hand to form clumps (I made clumps of about 1 tsp), distribute the cookie dough evenly in clumps on the top of the cheesecake batter until you use all of the dough.
Place into the oven and bake for 30 minutes, or until the top (cookie dough) feels dry and firm and the entire pan looks set if given a gentle shake. Move bars to a cooling rack and allow to cool completely. Lift bars out by the overhang; slice and store in the refrigerator. Serve cold or at room temperature. 

Pintable Recipe
From For the Love of Cooking

Sour Dough Waffles

I made sourdough starter to celebrate Mark's coming home from the hospital in March.  The first thing I made with it was sourdough bread.  Once I went back to work I didn't have as much time for bread baking, so I use it to make these yummy waffles every other week.  This week the starter has been in the fridge for 3 weeks because of our trip to Orange County, we'll see how it works with such a long rest period.  I like that I can make the sponge the night before and just add the oil/butter, egg, salt an soda in the morning. 

 

For the overnight sponge:

2 cups all-purpose flour
2 tbsp. sugar
2 cups buttermilk
1 cup sourdough starter, straight from the refrigerator (not fed)

For the waffles:
2 large eggs
¼ cup vegetable or canola oil, or melted butter
All of the overnight sponge
¾ tsp. salt
1 tsp. baking soda

Directions:
To make the overnight sponge, combine the flour, sugar, buttermilk and sourdough starter in a large mixing bowl.  Mix well to blend.  Cover and let rest overnight at room temperature.

When you are ready to make the waffles, preheat a waffle iron according to the manufacturer’s instructions.  In a small bowl or liquid measuring cup, combine the eggs and oil or butter.   Add to the overnight sponge.  Mix in the salt and baking soda, stirring well to combine.  The batter will bubble.  Pour the batter into the preheated waffle iron and bake according to the manufacturer’s instructions.

Note:  I usually cut the recipe in half for the two of us, it makes about 6 waffles using 1/2 cup batter per waffle.

Printable Recipe

Source: King Arthur Flour

Soft Wrap Bread

 This wonderful bread showed up in my in-box from one of my favorite blogs.  I decided to use it for tacos.  We ate it for tacos and burritos with the rice pictured next to it, and will try for all kind of sandwiches!  I've made flour tortillas many times and found this to roll out much easier than other recipes. 

Ingredients:

3 to 3 1/4 cups (12 3/4 to 13 3/4 ounces) unbleached all-purpose flour
1 1/4 cups (10 ounces) boiling water
1/4 cup (1 1/2 ounces) potato flour OR 1/2 cup (5/8 ounces) potato buds or flakes
1 1/4 teaspoons salt
2 tablespoons (7/8 ounce) vegetable oil
1 teaspoon instant yeast*

*According to KAF: this recipe works best with instant yeast because it dissolves during the kneading process, so you don't have to knead liquid into the dough. If you prefer to use active dry yeast, use only 1 cup boiling water for the initial dough, dissolve the yeast in 1/4 cup warm water, and add this mixture to the dough along with the potato flour mixture. It'll be somewhat "slippery" at first, but will knead in and eventually become smooth. 

Directions:

Place 2 cups of the flour into a bowl.  Pour the boiling water over the flour, and stir till smooth. Cover the bowl and set the mixture aside for 30 minutes.

In a separate bowl, whisk together the potato flour (or flakes or buds) and 1 cup of the remaining flour with the salt, oil and yeast. Add this to the cooled flour/water mixture, stir, then knead for several minutes (by hand, or stand mixer) to form a soft dough. The dough should form a ball, but will remain somewhat sticky. Add additional flour only if necessary.  If kneading by hand, keep your hands and work surface lightly oiled. Cover the bowl and let the dough rise for 1 hour.

Divide the dough into 8 pieces (about 3 oz each), cover, and let rest for 15 to 30 minutes. Roll each piece into a 7- to 8-inch circle, and fry them without oil over medium heat for about 1 minute per side. They will be puffed and flecked with brown spots. Adjust the heat if they seem to be cooking either too quickly, or too slowly; cooking too quickly means they may be raw in the center, while too slowly will dry them out. Transfer the cooked breads to a wire rack, stacking them to keep them soft. Serve immediately, or cool slightly before storing in a plastic bag. Yield: 8 breads.

Printable Recipe

From What Megan's Making

Butter Toffee Popcorn

Wanted to make something easy to eat while playing scrabble with a group of friends.  This may be just a little too easy to eat.  Reminds me of a discussion I had with my sixth graders about the cool toys that used to come in Cracker Jacks when I was a kid.  They had no idea what Cracker Jacks were!

Butter Toffee Popcorn

*Makes about 18 cups of toffee popcorn

Ingredients:

1 cup unpopped popcorn kernels, white or yellow

2 sticks butter

2 1/4 cups light brown sugar

3/4 cup dark corn syrup

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

1 teaspoon baking soda

2-3 cups roasted, salted nuts (I used pecans, cashews and almonds)

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 250 degrees. Grease two large rimmed baking sheets and set aside.

Pop the popcorn kernels, in shifts if needed to ensure your popcorn popper doesn’t burn the popcorn, and place the popcorn in a large bowl, sifting through to remove the unpopped kernels.

In a large saucepan over medium heat, melt the butter. When melted add the brown sugar, corn syrup, and salt. Bring to a boil while stirring. Once the mixture starts boiling, reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer, stirring often, for 3 minutes. The mixture will be slightly thickened. Take the pot off the heat and stir in the vanilla and baking soda. The mixture will bubble so be careful. Pour the caramel over the popcorn and mix slightly. Add the nuts and mix well but gently (so you don’t break apart the popcorn) until the popcorn is evenly coated and the peanuts are distributed through the mixture.

Turn the popcorn out onto the baking sheets, spreading into an even layer. Bake the popcorn for one hour, stirring and tossing every 20 minutes. Move the bottom tray to the upper rack and vice versa each time you stir. Stir the mixture after removing from oven.  The popcorn will deepen in color and harden a bit as the caramel bakes and sets. Cool the popcorn to room temperature. Store in an airtight container. I’ve found the popcorn will keep, stored tightly, for 1-2 weeks.

Printable Recipe

Adapted from Mel's Kitchen Cafe

Hot and Smoky Baked Beans

This is my favorite recipe for baked beans.  I tend to add less chipotle depending on whom I'm fixing these for.  I've used all manner of beans from canned to Van Kamps Pork and Beans to dried. 

Ingedients:

6 bacon slices

1 1/2 cups chopped onion
1 red pepper diced

1 1/4 cups purchased barbecue sauce

3/4 cup dark beer

1/4 cup mild-flavored (light) molasses

3 tablespoons Dijon mustard

3 tablespoons (packed) dark brown sugar

2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce

1 tablespoon soy sauce

2 to 3 teaspoons minced canned chipotle chilies

Directions:

1 pound small white beans cooked according to package directions, drained

Preheat oven to 350°F. Cook bacon in large skillet over medium heat until crisp. Transfer to paper towels and drain. Saute onion and red pepper 2 1/2 tablespoons bacon drippings.   from skillet to large bowl. Finely chop bacon; add to bowl. Add onion and next 8 ingredients to bowl and whisk to blend. Whisk in 4 to 6 teaspoons chipotle chilies, depending on spiciness desired. Stir in beans. Transfer bean mixture to 13 x 9 x 2-inch glass baking dish. Bake uncovered until liquid bubbles and thickens slightly, about 1 hour. Cool 10 minutes.

Sprinkle with parsley and serve.

To make vegetarian saute onion and red pepper in about 2 Tablespoons of Olive Oil before adding to beans and leave out bacon.


Printable Recipe

Adapted from Epicurious