When The Moon Hits Your Eye.....

LIKE A BIG PIZZA PIE That's AMORE!

I'm not sure why every time I make pizza that song goes through my head but it does 

and I do love a good pizza.  

This is a veggie pizza with 3 cheeses.  How can you go wrong? 

Gourmet Veg Pizza with 3 cheeses. 

One pizza crust - either your own or a store bought crust. (Go ahead and use a Gluten Free Crust if you need Gluten Free!!!! - I have a recipe on here for that - check the archives or you could easily use the Foccacia bread post that was fairly recent.)

Pizza sauce.(I used Hunt's Italian Herb sauce) 

add: Artichoke hearts, olives (absolutely use those gourmet olives!) marinated roasted red bell 

peppers, fresh roma tomatoes sliced thin, Mushrooms - sliced thin, red onions - sliced thin, 

Capers.  (you know I think Spinach would taste good on this too!)

Top with:Mozzarella (yes, I used goat milk Mozz!) Bleu cheese Crumbles and Feta Crumbles. 

Bake!

EAT! 

That's AMORE!!!!

Tuna Salad Nicoise

Well, I've never been particularly conventional in my cooking - I mean we don't have themed meals here - sometimes I just throw something together!  Like tonight - Baked Beans with homemade corn-free/gluten free BBQ sauce and Fresh Salad Nicoise.  Two of my favorites that don't exactly go together!  "The beans were actually supposed to be for last night but lo and behold, they didn't get done before I had to run the little one off to Archery!!!

I slow cooked a bag of navy beans and then made the sauce from scratch - it was adapted from Gluten Free Goddess' recipe for South Carolina style BBQ.  Which sounded HEAVENLY but hubby won't touch brown sugar as he's deathly afraid it contains corn ingredients.  SOOOOO, we improvised.  I like the way it turned out - It is one stick of butter, 1/2 C Blackstrap Molasses, 2 TBSP Agave nectar, finely chopped onion - sweet is best, 1/2 C regular mustard (though I suspect you could use any mustard you so desire!) about 1 tsp smoked paprika and 1tsp chipotle seasoning, salt and pepper to taste. Add the beans and bake it up!!!
Nichoise salad was always a favorite growing up and there are so many good recipes out there that I almost feel cheap adding my own but here it goes!!! Lettuce - recipe calls for Bibb - I use what is growing or on hand.  5or so chopped hard boiled eggs, 2 - 3 tomatoes, Green beans (I truly think this would be divine with Asparagus lightly steamed!!!) Olives, capers (because I dislike anchovies) and tuna - you can use Tuna steaks or tuna from a can depending on how fancy you want to get.  Some quartered and baked red potatoes that are tossed in olive oil and salt and pepper.  The dressing is Olive Oil (3/4 C) Lemon Juice(1/2 C) , fresh chopped herbs:thyme, basil and oregano and a TBSP dijon mustard (I like trader Joes best!!!)
If you are vegetarian, substitute Artichoke hearts marinated!!!!  Oh - I cannot wait to eat dinner tonight!!!!

I've been so lousy about blogging lately.  I love it, I miss it but I tell you, remembering to sit down and do it in the midst of busy-ness just isn't always easy.  Last night I was making a lovely vegetarian dinner and I went - my goodness, this would look good on my blog.  I cannot really take too much credit for most of it - I'm a good copycat and frankly there are some amazing bloggers out there who apparently are also AMAZING cooks. So I want to share my meal with everyone but will give credit where credit is due for sure!!!!
This meal is pretty low fat, low carb and no gluten.  So for those of you watching your weight - it was pretty filling and very tasty!
First up is spaghetti squash with butter and roasted garlic: Put a full head of garlic in the 350*  oven with a spaghetti squash with holes poked in it.  I wrapped the garlic in foil. When the squash is done, the garlic will be too, peel the garlic and mash it good with some butter that has been sitting out to soften. Mix that in with the spaghetti squash.
Second is this nummy gluten free foccacia bread brought to you by the lovely blog Book of Yum
 http://www.bookofyum.com/blog/gluten-free-olive-herb-focaccia-flatbread-recipe-1856.html
I have made this bread several times and vary what I put in it and on it.  It's good as my gluten loving children can attest.  There are never any leftovers.  Poor hubby!
Next, is a beautiful Cauliflower and Kale soup.  I saw this recipe at a friends house, meant to get a copy and did not.  I found it online: http://chickinthekitchen.com/2012/01/04/creamy-cauliflower-kale-soup-vegan/
and I must say, mine did not turn out this lovely looking (I ended up using a combination of spinach and swiss chard because I'd already raided my kale patch for Kale salad a few nights ago) but boy was it tasty!!!! I did add a bit of greek yogurt (plain) to it.  This will be a repeat recipe at my house!!!!
Lastly was a Gluten Free Alfredo type pasta.  I made Hodgeson's Mill Gluten Free Linguini (NOM!) with sauteed asparagus (I LOVE SPRING!) and baby bella mushrooms in a cream sauce (yes, homemade and yes, gluten free of course) First I sauteed the veggies and then in another pan, melted butter, added some rice flour to make a roux and then added milk, salt, pepper and some freshly grated Parm cheese, tossed with the noodles and  topped off the meal with our favorite salad made of spring greens mix, fresh strawberries, feta cheese and a balsamic vinaigrette dressing! 
For those of you wondering, no we are not vegetarian but with growing a lot of veggies, we do eat a lot of veg dinners. I would have trouble giving up some of my favorites in life - BBQ brisket, hamburgers and teriyaki chicken.  I have yet to make tofu work in those cases, I won't even try!  but I do not mind a good filling and low fat veggie filled meal such as this one.

January is always a challenging month for us.  Between Christmas and only getting paid once a month the budget is already hard but add to that we get paid 1 week early because of Christmas and for some reason January always seems like an incredibly long month (could it be because of the 5 weekends?  I don't know)
Anyway, at the end of January there is usually no money and we tighten our belts.  Grocery shopping just doesn't happen unless there is something we really need.  So my challenge is always to come up with something good to eat with what is in the freezer, fridge and pantry!  This year has been fun!!!  So far I've managed to come up with some amazingly good dishes (albeit vegetarian or close to it) that use mainly what's here.  One big one is the dinner from last night.....I don't have a picture but am posting the link because it's definitely worth it.  I LOVED it. The kids were on the fence, Hubby LOVED it!  Kids are weird anyway!  What do they know.
So what we had was brown rice and Aarti's Indian Summer Stew

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/aarti-sequeira/indian-summer-stew-butternut-squash-coconut-and-lentil-stew-recipe/index.html
And the only thing I had to buy was Cilantro!  YIPPEE!

Tonight's dinner:

Lemon Chicken Pasta with Peas and Red Bell Pepper. 
I cooked up some Gluten Free Spaghetti I had on hand and then made this yummy sauce with the other ingredients I had laying around:
1Lb cut up boneless skinless chicken breasts sauteed in Olive oil, then add:
1/2 diced onion
1/4 C Lemon Juice
1 diced red bell Pepper
1C frozen peas (these also make a great easy frozen pack to ice down sore shins or whatever else - I always keep a few bags around in the freezer!)
1/2 C. goat milk (thankfully I still have a few girls in milk right now but you can use any milk you want)
1/2 - 1 tsp tapioca starch to thicken sauce.  ( you can use cornstarch but because I have a family member who is gluten and corn free we use tapioca!)
Mix it together and throw over the pasta - YUM!
Added to that is this Gluten Free Homemade Foccacia Bread
and some Pesto Spaghetti Squash  - how can you go wrong!!!!!

Two nights now of some awesome tasting and healthy for you food and I didn't get pics.  I need to remember to pull out that camara!  But I will still post the recipes because they hit the mark: Easy, Filling, LOW FAT!
First up is 3 Bean Chili with Ground Goat meat (OR Super Lean Ground Beef, Buffalo or Turkey)
This one takes a little prep work but it is still easy.  Soak 1 C. Black Beans, 1C. Red Beans or Kidneys, and 1 C Pinto beans over night.
the next morning rinse beans good and put in crockpot with water (lots) and turn on high. Have a nice day.
At dinner time sautee 3 cloves of garlic, 1 diced whole onion, and 1 lb of ground meat of your choice. Buffalo, Goat and Turkey will the the lowest in fat but if you prefer beef use grass fed and very lean if possible.
Add this to the crockpot with 1 can of diced tomatoes, 2 TBSP of tomato paste (I use Amore concentrate because it has no additives) and 1/2 can of chipotles in adobo sauce ground up in your blender. Top with a little bit of feather shredded cheddar cheese.  A 1C. helping is not at all high in fat but full of fiber and is good to boot!

Butternut Squash Soup

1 Onion, and 3 cloves of minced garlic - saute in olive oil (1 tbsp) or coconut oil.
Add 1 large or two smaller butternut squash (peel, de-seed and cube) and 3 organic carrots, chopped up.
1quart of vegetable stock and water to cover.  Boil until squash is tender.  Use you stick blender to blend up
good and add salt, pepper, and nutmeg to taste.

Quinoa Tabbouleh  (thanks to our friends at Sunset Magazine for this goody - April 2011 issue)

1C Quinoa(cooked according to package direction)
1/2 tsp kosher salt
1/8 tsp. pepper
1 garlic clove, minced
2 tbsp. each - extra virgin olive oil and lemon juice
1 bunch parsley, chopped
1 tomato chopped
1/2 english cucumber chopped
1/4 C Crumbled feta cheese

Balsamic Vinegar Roasted Asparagus

1 or 2 bunches of asparagus, cleaned and woody ends cut off - place in a ziplock bag. 
Add: 1 Tbsp Olive Oil, 2 Tbsp. balsamic vinegar, 1 tsp kosher salt and a bit of fresh ground 
pepper.  Marinate asparagus for about 1 hour and then place in pan and roast - you can also grill this 
and it's good!  

Strawberry Spinach Salad 

4 C. rinsed and patted dry baby spinach leaves (or leaves from your own garden!) 
1 C. Strawberries, rinsed dried and cut up. 
1/4 C toasted slivered almonds. 

Dressing: 1/4 C Olive Oil, 1/4 C. sugar (I use 1/2 of that and agave nectar instead), a few pinches of toasted sesame seeds, 1/4 tsp. onion flakes, 1/8 tsp sweet paprika, 1 tsp worchestershire sauce. Shake well to blend - you can adjust this to your taste. I like MORE worchestershire sauce and less sugar and really not very fond of the sesame seeds.    

BLACK BEAN PUMPKIN CHILI.
This has quickly become my favorite chili - Move over Texas Chili, move over white bean chile.  And I am sure some of you are thinking - Pumpkin?  In chili?  Okay, I admit I thought this was a bit weird too until I tasted it.
And while I use a base recipe I found online I've added a few things I really like to make it my own recipe.  I'm going to give you the Vegetarian version - For those who want meat (and I usually do because for some reason I think Chili has to have meat) add white meat chicken or turkey.
1 Onion diced, sautee in Olive Oil
3 cloves of garlic minced and added to onions.
Add Vegetable broth (or water, or chicken broth) about 4 C 
2 C. Pumpkin puree(you could also use butternut squash or sweet potatoe.
2 Cans of Black beans or about 3 C. Cooked black beans.
2-3 potatoes diced (I like yukon golds)
2 zucchinis and 1 yellow squash cut in bite sized chunks.
1 Can fire roasted diced tomatoes (I use Muir Glen Organic)
1 C. frozen corn (I do not add because of a family member who doesn't eat corn due to allergy)
2 tsp salt (or to taste)
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp smoked paprika
2 TBSP chipotle puree (I take a can of chipotle in adobo and puree it and then add what I need - freeze the rest for later use - trust me you'll make this again!!!!) 
Simmer slowly for about and hour or so and top with some sour cream if desired.

Thai Tuna wraps

 So, for about a year now (it will be a year in Feb) I decided to take hold of my health and work on getting back to the me I was before I had kids and let myself go.  It's a health decision, not a weight decision though weightloss is certainly a part of it.  I made some changes, and am working on the daily battle of getting healthy again.  These are some of the changes I've made - diet, excercise, drink more water, try to live greener, eat more locally, get out unhealthy toxic products and replace with healthier products, drink more water.   Since this is my recipe blog, I'm concentrating more on the diet aspect.  NOW, Let me make one thing clear - I don't believe it diets, no fad diets, no drinking shakes to loose weight, I believe that the changes that are made need to be LONG lasting changes in habits that aren't healthy.  So I guess you could say I am making lifestyle changes, not dieting.  One of the things we are doing is eating vegetarian several nights a week.  NOT vegan but vegetarian and even then, sometimes we have a predominantly veggie meal with some small bit of protien but meats are not the main course of the meal.  I decided to post this meal because it was particularly tasty and not too hard to prepare and also - because we have the extra added challenge of a gluten free family member - have there be very little grains.  This one is most certainly a winner in my book.  The kids seemed to like it as well and the best part was - it was filling.

 We started off with Chinese Cabbage Soup from one of my fav. vegetarian cookbooks: 1,000 Vegetarian Recipes by Carol Gelles.
1 1/2 tbsp vege oil (I use EVOO)
2 cups shredded cabbage
1 c. sliced onion
1 clove minced garlic
5 C. vege broth
1 TBSP dry sherry
1tsp.soy sauce
3 C shredded bok choy
1/2 C carrots,
1/2 C mushrooms (I used shitaake)
1/4 C Peas
1/4 C. scallions
Saute the cabbage, carrots, onion and garlic in a big pan. Add Vege broth, sherry and soy sauce. Then simmer until veggies are soft.  Add bok choy, mushroom, peas and scallions toward end.

Added to the soup was Almond Ding Veggies, Also from Carol Gelles' cookbook.
toast 1/2 C. almonds (I used slivered) and set aside.
in bowl stir together 1/4 C water, 3 TBSP mirin or sherry,  1 tbsp soy sauce (I use tamari because it is wheat free)  1 tbsp thickener (I use tapioca starch due to corn allergy but you can use cornstarch)  and 1/2 tsp sugar.  In large Wok or skillet heat 2 tbsp Olive or sesame oil, 4 C chopped celery, 1 C. diced onions, 3 cloves garlic, minced, one can of water chestnuts and 1 can of bamboo shoots and 1 head of brocolli chopped up.  Sautee until crisp-tender and then add your soy/mirin mixture and stir in, take off heat and add the almonds.
Lastly, we had Thai wraps.  My kids LOVE these things.  You take Rice Wrappers, soak them in water until they are pliable (I do one at a time) and rice noodles (you can buy a package of rice thread noodles and pour hot water over them unti they soften) The put the noodles on the wrapper, then add: Tuna (we prepare it like tuna sandwich filling) shredded carrot, avocado, pickled daikon radish, slivered red bell pepper and fresh mint or cilantro and then wrap according to package directions. We usually dip ours in Thai Peanut sauce, hot chili sauce or Hoisin sauce (not for those who are gluten free) .

Slow foods are on the docket right now - what are slow foods you ask? 

Without looking up the definition officially, we are saying they are un-processed foods that 

are cooked as closely to their natural state as possible.  That's NOT to say some of this isn't processed - it is but from farm fresh or fresh ingredients as much as possible.  Can you make it yourself without a list of 

ingredients you cannot even pronounce?  Then it's probably a slow food. Yes, some of the ingredients were bought at a store but the point is, I could have made it with something from home. 

First up is the Italian white bean and sausage soup.  

2cans (or your own cooked white beans) 

2 potatoes, peeled and cut into small chunks,

1 onion, diced, 

2 Cloves of garlic minced

2 TBSP EVOO (extra virgin Olive Oil)

1 lb of Italian Sausage (yes, homemade is best but I bought mine from a butcher who makes their fresh with NO artificial ingredients. Just meat and spices) 

1 carton of Chicken broth (I used my own from a chicken I boiled) 

1 bunch of fresh spinach (picked from the garden is best. 

Salt and pepper to taste.

Sautee the onions and garlic in Olive oil, add the potatoes. Separately cook the meat and add to the 

onions, garlic and potatoes.  Add broth and cook until potatoes are tender. 

Then add beans and spinach, Salt and Pepper.

I have posted this recipe before - it is NOT my creation. Here is the link: http://glutenfreegoddess.blogspot.com/2010/10/quinoa-salad-with-pears-and-baby.html 

This one again is even better with homegrown and fresh picked but it you don't have it, It's still 

worth buying the ingredients and making it - GOOD!!!!

Lastly, a very simple dish using a homegrown Spaghetti squash, and some garden fresh homemade

Pesto.  Cook the Squash by piercing the flesh with a knife, throwing it in the 

oven and baking on 350* for about 45 minutes.  Cut open, remove seeds and spoon the 

innards into a bowl.  Add your fresh pesto, salt and pepper and eat.  

This is so yummy!!!!!  

I encourage everyone to shop as much as possible at Farmer's Markets - support your local farmers and producers and stop sending your money overseas!!!!

Creamy Pesto Chicken/Asparagus/mushroom Fettucini Alfredo

Well, I've searched high and low for my camara because personally - I think this is a meal worth seeing. But, Alas, It is missing. Tonight's dinner is a compilation of a recipe I found and then I added a bunch of stuff. And yes, It's Gluten Free, Corn free and uses goat milk cream.

This one is so good. I'm thinking I need to make it again SOON!

1 Package of Tinkyada brand Fettucini (follow package directions)

2 chicken breast cooked and cut into bite sized pieces

1 bunch of asparagus, cleaned, ends cut off and cut into bite sized pieces.

1/2 red onion, diced.

2 TBSP Olive Oil

1 C. chopped mushrooms

1 C. Cream (milk is fine too)

1TBSP Tapioca flour

2 TBSP Pesto (jarred or homemade!)

1/2 C. of shredded parmesan cheese

1 jar of marinated artichoke hearts.

Add EVOO to pan and put in onions, Asparagus and sautee. When the veggies are soft add mushrooms, cream, pesto and tapioca flour. Add Parmesan cheese . Then toss with the fettucini. Add jar of Artichoke hears, salt and pepper to taste. ENJOY with your favorite salad! YUM.

Buy it Local, Grow it yourself, eat what you grow!

If you are following this blog you are probably interested in several things. Growing some of your own food, buying locally grown food, cooking that which you grow or buy! I have been on this kick for a while now and really would like to encourage more people to take a step to grow a little more of what they will use. There are so many EASY ways to start!!!

We started gardening when our oldest was born (she's now 17) so she's sort of used to this way of life. She thinks we are a bit wacky but she doesn't give us too hard of a time for growing, raising our own food too much! She's even been known to sit munching on a bowl of homegrown baby carrots while doing her schoolwork! SHHH~ don't tell her I told you!

When we moved to our current property (our 1/2 acre of heaven in Central NM) my goal was to convert it to being as productive as I could - Edible landscaping, goats, chickens, bees. I'm happy to say that after 8 years, we are well on our way. WE still have a long way to go but I love the luxury of pretty much eating something daily that we produced off our land. We drink the milk and make cheese and soap from our tiny herd of Nigerian Dwarf goats. We eat eggs from our little flock of chickens and have managed to raise a few for meat as well. We have been planting trees and garden areas for most all of the 8 years we've been here and it's a trip bringing in something from the yard and figuring out a meal....The less I have to go to the grocery store, the better.

I think I am out to prove something - that you can feed your family (maybe not completely) off of a small parcel of land. YOU can eat a majority of stuff that you produced yourself and you do not need acres and acres to do so!!!! I guess I'm not the only crazy wannabe farm girl out there. Just within the past month I've heard of several such similar situations: Recently I saw a post on Laptop Lunches for a challenge for a diet called 100 Mile Diet. Basically - eating for one month only food that is produced within 1oo miles of your house.....Oh my! Also followed the plight of the Julie http://oakparkhatesveggies.wordpress.com/2011/07/26/my-pyrrhic-victory/ who was being prosecuted for growing veggies in her yard. I even found out there is a name for folks like me (Educated women who opt out of the rat race to raise children, animals and their own food) Femivores. This movement seems to be gaining steam. I am a regular at the Los Lunas Farmer's Market selling our homemade goat milk soaps as well as anything we produce on the farm that I cannot can, freeze or eat!!!!

Today I stumbled across this book (gotta have it!!!) and this blog (glad I found it!!!). Please go there an check it out if you would like to join in this movement....and If I win the book - Sweet! I'm going to hopefully get it anyway because it looks awesome and I hope will help me on the way to accomplish my own 1/2 acre of production! I would LOVE to do what this gal has done!!!!!

http://permaculture-media-download.blogspot.com/2011/08/book-giveaway-quarter-acre-farm.html

cheese Adventures: Bocconcini

Today I found a recipe on Giada De Laurentis Food Network site - marinated Bocconcini. What is Bocconcini you ask? It is "little ball" of mozarella cheese. Yet another way of enjoying your cheese!!!!!

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/food-network-kitchens/marinated-bocconcini-recipe/index.html

so today I went out and picked the fresh herbs out of the garden and made my own homemade Bocconcini. Now, you ask - what am I supposed to do with the cheese once I've made it? Well, that's easy - eat it of course. But if you prefer to use it in a recipe then here you go - it's not mine but it sounds so yummy and with heirloom tomatoes about to be (hopefully) abundantly available - it should be pretty easy to make! Just visit you local grower's market or health food store and buy some yummy heirloom tomatoes and make this lovely salad:http://laurasbestrecipes.com/salads/

Cheese Adventures Make My Tastebuds SING!

Having an abundance of fresh creamy goat milk means a lot of cheese needs to be made and we can have fun creating new cheesy goodness. I told you all I'd update you on the fun things we made with the cheese rolls (Mozzarella rolled into a sheet, filled and then rolled up and cut like pinwheels. Well, We've made the proscuitto, sundried tomato and basil and few times and I never tire of that one. We've made Italian meats and cheese with Prosciutto and salami as well as artichokes and olives (wasn't my favorite - too salty so I may have to modify the way I make it) The Italian meat was good but my new favorite taste sensation is: Proscuitto, Basil and Fig. Okay - sounds wierd but I was surfing some food blogs and found one about a cheese and fig sandwich with Italian bread and basil/pesto on it and the lightbulb went on......Oh yeah, it's GOOD!
there are of course other fun things to be made with OTHER goat milk products - like yogurt. This is a Tex Mex potato salad that I found on another blog; laurasbestrecipes.com. But modified for my tastebuds. This, my friends is delish! I made it with both sweet potatoes and white potatoes (I think Yukon Gold would have been better but I had none on hand) Chipotle Mayo/yogurt dressing (3 TBSP chipotle with adobo paste, 1 C Mayo, 1 C. Yogurt and 2 TBSP spicy mustard) chopped tomatoes, chopped up cilantro and a chopped up red onion and some garlic(minced). I think I could eat this by myself in one sitting but yeah, probably will have to share at the BBQ.
Lastly, Caprese salad. This has always been one of my favs. What more could you ask for - Fresh Tomatoes from the garden, Fresh Homemade Mozzarella, Fresh Basil from the garden, a Balsamic Vinegar reduction with some cracked pepper to top it all off?UM - NOTHING! I would love to take credit for this lovely dish but I have to give credit where credit is due - Thank you Pioneer Woman Ree Drummond http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2011/06/caprese-salad/

for sharing this lovely dish on your blog. My tastebuds are singing today - Cheese Adventures ROCK!

The Cheese Adventure takes a turn for the SWEETER!

The sweet tooth came out today. I was sitting around wondering what to do with some sweet chevre and got an idea - can you make truffles out of chevre. The answer is YES! I found a few recipes online but decided to go my own route. I had already made some Chevre with agave nectar, orange flavoring and orange peels. (about 1 C of Chevre with 1/2 tsp flavoring and 1/2 tsp. dried orange peel).
So I heated up the Milk chocolate I had left over from the Valentine's chocolates I'd made.
And Dipped them. then sprinkled a tiny bit of sea salt on top (if you've never had sea salt with your chocolate - do not knock it till you try it! HEAVENLY!) I think the ONLY thing that could have made these little gems better is having dark chocolate instead of Milk chocolate! OH YEAH! The most amazing part is how easy this was. NOW I'm thinking what yummy flavors one could make with this chevre deal......lavender, peppermint, strawberry, how about a fig, stuffed with sweet chevre, dipped in chocolate! Let the sweet side of cheese adventures.....begin!

A continuation of the Cheese Adventures

Well, who says I cannot combine my food adventures. Tonight we decided to go on a little journey to France in our culinary adventures and because there is CHEESE involved - yes, it's part of our cheese adventures as well. Tonight is also a vegetarian meal so for those of you doing the veg thing - this one's for you too! First up is Asparagus with bleu cheese and pinon nuts. I'm not sure this is really French but I figure with the Bleu Cheese, why not? EASY to make and the only things I can think of to make this EASY side dish better would be HOME made bleu cheese (maybe someday!) and HOME grown asparagus - again - maybe someday since I planted my first root stock this year. I roasted the asparagus with Olive oil and salt/pepper and then sprinkled pine nuts and bleu cheese on top right toward the end. see - EASY!

Next up is a lovely French Cucumber salad - again easy and oh so yummy. Funny thing is there isn't much difference between this salad and our favorite Cucumber Soup - except maybe a blender. This salad is nothing more than cucumbers, salt, pepper, 1 Tsp lemon juice and 1 C. Greek style yogurt. Also I added some mint leaves chopped up to make it have a bit more zing. YUM! IF you don't like mint leaves I bet you could substitute a myriad of other yummy herbs: lemon thyme, chives, or even dill.
Lastly is my family's favorite cold or hot soup - Potato Leek soup (hot) or Vicchisoise (cold) on a hot summer day - COLD is the way to go. make it early in the morning and refrigerate! After a long hot day, this will hit the spot! It is simple to make: 3 good sized leeks chopped up and washed, then sauteed in EVOO, Then peel and add about 5 - 6 good sized potatoes. Add stock - I used vegetable stock for this but you can use chicken also. Then cook until potatoes are nice and soft. Add Creme Fraische or milk if you don't have CF. Blend and add salt and pepper to taste. We are adding French Bread with Chevre cheese (ooh more french! more cheese!) and pickled beets. I think the only thing this meal is missing is Creme Brulee........

Father's Day Dinner.

Father's day dinner ended up being part of our cheese adventures. I think I have a new FAVORITE. I know, I keep saying that but really, the whole cheese thing - just keeps getting better. So what are these you are asking? Well, Mozzarella pinwheels I guess is what you could call them. Sundried tomato, basil (from the garden) Prosciutto and mozarella cheese - all rolled up and cut!

So today I made homemade mozzarella cheese out of goat's milk. After stretching it, I dunked it back in the hot whey to make it more pliable and then rolled it out. Yep, into a sheet of cheese. Then I brined it and dried it off, laid thin slices of proscuitto, chopped basil from the garden and some sundried tomatoes on it and rolled it up. Let it rest for the rest of the day and cut it up for dinner. YUM! I got to thinking, you could almost fill these with anything and have lots of fun. Stay tuned. I think I could be posting a whole bunch more of the recipes from this particular adventure!

But that's not all folks!!!!! Yes, the cheesy goodness doesn't end here. I found this delish recipe on Cuceesprouts.http://cuceesprouts.com/2010/12/beet-and-orange-soup/

which calls for plain chevre to make it creamy and good! Two cheesy good recipes in one meal and healthy to boot. Also, for those of you cooking Gluten Free - there is NONE here!

Lastly we topped off the meal with this delicious wild rice salad from another of my favorite blogs

Simply Recipes! Nope, no cheese here but that's okay. It is a wonderful salad and a nice complement to the rest of the meal which included fresh salad from the garden.

http://simplyrecipes.com/recipes/wild_rice_salad/

Adventures in CHEESE!

I was considering doing an "Around the World" tour of recipes - trying some recipes from any country I could find and posting my culinary trip but frankly, I need more time. All of my time currently seems to be spent milking goats, making dairy products, cooking with said dairy products so I went - AHA! for now while the cheese and milk is in abundant supply - I will post about our cheesey adventures. I do not make a LOT of cheeses: so far just ricotta, Chevre, and mozarella.

I will make more as we are trying to save up to get a cheese cave up and running and I know I need to order some more starters but for now I am going to post recipes using the cheeses I currently make. Hopefully sometime in the midst of this, I will also add Feta cheese and cream cheese as well as Marscapone and Creme Fraische to the repertoire.

Today's cheese is Chevre. It's a pretty easy cheese to make. You can make it numerous different ways. I make mine using Flora Danica and Rennet. I heat a gallon of milk to 80* and then add 1/4 tsp of Flora Danica to the heated milk. Let it float for about 10 minutes, then add 2 drops of rennet to the milk and stir. The yield is pretty big with my creamy Nigerian milk so I usually have a lot of cheese to play with. After you add starters, you need to let the cheese rest for about 8 hours, usually I make mine in the evening and then I let it sit overnight. In the morning I use the curd skimmer to put the curds in the drain - I line a colander with cheese cloth, and then spoon the curd in. Sometimes this is where I layer my "fillings" in the cheese. Sometimes I just drain and use the food processor to add flavor to the cheeses. Most of the time I make several different flavors of Chevre so there is a variety.

Here are our favorites:

Chevre with dill and garlic - when you drain the cheese, layer the cheese, salt, dill (fresh or dried is fine, and minced garlic. I let it drain and then roll into a log, wrap and refridgerate.

Plain Chevre with Jalapeno jam. I used to not like Jalapenos, Until I was introduced to Jalapeno jam - I grow jalapenos now just to make the jam. It is sweet-hot and delish on crackers with plain chevre.

Chevre with Chipotles in Adobo - I drain the Chevre to make plain, the put it in the food processor with Chipotles in adobo and give it a whirl!

Chevre with Blueberries and Lemon - Another food processor one - plain chevre with blueberries (fresh or frozen) and lemon peel. This one is great to stuff Crepes with.

Chevre with Artichokes and Spinach - Oh YUM! I put plain chevre in the food processor with

canned artichokes (I like the one in oil) fresh or frozen spinach (IF it's frozen or you cook it yourself drain it really good!!!!) salt, pepper, and some grated romano cheese - it tastes off without the grated cheese - I promise.

Green Chile or Roasted Ancho chile - this one is layered during the draining process and made into logs

Red Chile - I use plain chevre and then layer drained cheese in a jar with homemade red chile sauce. I do not like the storebought stuff but if that is your only option, heat it slightly and add -garlic, cumin, salt and pepper to it, let it cool and then layer the cheese in the jar alternating with the cooled sauce.

I love experimenting and am still working on some new flavors.

I'll let you know how they turn out after I try them. Most of the time we eat our chevre on crackers, I use Graham crackers for the "desert" cheeses and wheat thins or homemade gluten free crackers for the savory cheeses.

Enjoy!

Some GREAT finds!

Okay, so this blog is not always about me. Occasionally I manage to stumble upon some other great blogs (food - mostly) that are just amazing and I am blessed to find recipes that really work for me!!! So my two most recent find are these two:
Homesick Texan - some of the MOST amazingly yummy recipes I've ever found and yes, I've made quite a few already - one is the Texas Potato Salad and her amazing carrot salad. So take a few moments to check out this blog - it's not too hard to convert some of her recipes to GF also!

http://homesicktexan.blogspot.com/2011/05/lavender-brownies.html

And the other one I found recently was this one - Mennonite Girls can Cook. Okay - this one was a nifty little find as it has a ton of recipes that are Gluten Free!!!!! We made the Coconut Flour Brownies. And of course - are you seeing the theme here? Yeah - my goal is to make an amazing Gluten Free Brownies - A Culinary Marriage of sorts between Homesick Texans Lavender Brownies and Mennonite Girls Gluten Free. Stay tuned for the outcome.
But for those of you who cannot wait and are ready for some Gluten Free Brownies - here's the link:

http://mennonitegirlscancook.blogspot.com/2008/09/coconut-flour-brownies-gluten-free.html

You won't be sorry!!! Enjoy and Happy Mother's Day!

Vegetarian, Corn and Gluten Free Baked Ziti

This dinner is a little out of the ordinary in that it is more HOMEMADE than most of what I make is. The spaghetti sauce is made from tomatoes, basil and onions from our garden last summer that I canned. The cheeses (Ricotta and Mozarella) was homemade from our own goatsmilk. OF course if you don't have these things, store bought would work well!!!!

Gluten Free Penne or Ziti pasta - cook according to package directions until Al Dente

1 onion - diced

1 head of broccoli, chopped fine,

1 container of baby shitake mushrooms.

spinach (I prefer fresh

1 - 8 oz container of ricotta cheese

1 - package of mozarella shredded.

1 - quart jar of pasta sauce (homemade or whatever tickles your fancy!)

Mix all the ingredients together EXCEPT the mozarella, dump into a baking dish and

top with Mozarella cheese. Put in the oven for about 20 min on 350* until cheese is melty and bubbly, slightly browned. Oh yeah! Eat Hearty!!!!!

BTW- you could easily add any veggies you want: grated zucchini, carrots, olives etc. and if you don't want to eat VEG. go ahead and add some meat: Italian Sausage, ground beef, lamb, goat or turkey would work great.

Gluten Free Spring Pasta and Shepherd's Pie

Today I am posting 2 Gluten Free Recipes even though I only have one picture. I wish I had thought to take a picture of the Shepherd's Pie - it sure looked and tasted good.
The first recipe is for GF/CF Spring Pasta
1 Bag Tinkyada brand GF shapes pasta (corkscrews, shells etc.)
1 bunch of small asparagus cut into bites size pieces,
2 large chicken breasts, browned in EVOO, salt and pepper to taste. Cut into bite size chunks
1 red onion, diced
1 garlic clove, minced
1 package of baby bella mushrooms
Peas - fresh is better but frozen works if that's all you have.
1 can olives. Personally I prefer calamata but use what you have.
1/2 C. Cream or Milk,
1/4C grated Parmesan or ASiago cheese.
1tsp Arrowroot powder to thicken.
Cook the pasta according to package directions, rinse well and massage some EVOO into the pasta to prevent sticking.
pour some EVOO into your saute pan and add your onion, garlic, and asparagus. Saute until everything begins to soften up. Add mushrooms, peas and chunks of chicken and saute until everything is heated. Then add olives, cream or milk, parmesan cheese and arrowroot powder.
stir good and then salt and pepper to taste. Top your hot pasta and ENJOY!!!!


Shepherd's Pie - MY style!
If i had ground lamb or chevon I would use it but I had ground turkey on hand - worked fine!
1Lb ground meat (whatever you prefer)
10 potatoes, peeled, cubed and cooked. Mash them like you like to for regular mashed potatoes and set aside. If you don't eat white potatoes - use sweet potatoes for this!
Onion - med, diced.
Peas (1/2 bag frozen)
brocolli, 1 head chopped
1 small bag of green beans, ends removed and cut into bite sized pieces.
4 carrots, peeled and cut into chunks.
1/4 lb of grated cheese of your choice!
brown ground meat and fix potatoes. When the ground meat is done add veggies except carrots. The cool thing about this is you can add whatever veggies you want/like!!!! I do not add corn because of hubby's corn sensitivity but if you can eat it - add it. Saute everything until is is mixed up and add salt and pepper to taste.
transfer the "filling" into a large casserole dish and top it with the mashed potatoes and grated cheese. Pop it into the oven until the cheese is melty and top of potatoes are a bit browned.
Serve and Eat. The great thing about this is you can add whatever you have on hand or that tickles your fancy - add spices that you like to change the flavor up!

Thai chicken and noodle salad - Gluten Free/Corn Free

I sort of was bored and in the mood for something Thai so I created this salad. I am posting the recipe as I would make it (for real) not how I did make it with what I had!

1 Package of Tinkyada spaghetti noodles (brown or white rice)

1 cooked chicken cut in chunks and let cool

1 diced cucumber

1 C. Bean Sprouts.

1 head of lettuce chopped up

1 package of shelled edamame (only the beans cooked in salt water - let cool)

1 red bell pepper (or orange, or yellow) diced up.

about 1 cup of Peanuts - dry roasted.

1 head of cilantro chopped up

When noodles are done cooking rinse in cold water to cool off and toss all ingredients except the

peanuts, cilantro and lettuce with 1 recipe of homemade or Gluten Free Thai peanut dressing.

Put Lettuce on a large platter or in a large bowl to make a bed. Top with noodles mix

and sprinkle peanuts and cilantro on top. I used San J brand Gluten Free Thai peanut dressing.

It is good but I prefer my homemade sauce.

Thai Peanut Sauce Homemade. I'd love to take credit for this but it's out of 1,000 Vegetarian Recipes by Carol Gelles.

1/2 C Smooth Peanut butter,

6TBSP soy sauce

2 TBSP Rice wine or dry sherry

4 tsp cider vinegar

4 tsp sugar ( you can use honey or Agave but use less, same with stevia)

2 tsp chili oil (for mild version, use less or none at all)

1 small garlic clove minced

3 sliced scallions, green and white parts.

Blend everything except scallions - toss those with the salad and sauce when you are ready.

this is a pretty thick sauce - if you need it thinned a bit add some water or coconut milk. Just not a lot.