I call them salads. I don't know what else to call them. They don't have lettuce or spinach or any leafy greens, though, so I don't know if they count as salads.
I'm gonna officially call them my Junque Salads, because the ingredients change with whatever I have floating around in my fridge, along with whatever I harvest from my garden.
Cucumbers are a must. I will be picking my first from the garden this week. I have my eye on two very sweet looking cukes that are just starting to plump up.
Banana peppers are a usual staple. I've been harvesting them for a week or so now. I hate hot and mild ones, and both are yummy.
My purple bell pepper plant is going gang busters! I can't believe I've got colored peppers already this summer.
I bought a bag of scapes from the farmer's market two weeks ago, and I'm still using them. OMG the best of both onions and garlic, in a little green tube. NOMMINESS!
Carrots are a must, and I always try to have some in the house. The carrots I planted a couple of weekends ago haven't started making an appearance yet, but when they do, their thinnings will make for yummy greens in my salads.
Green beans, broccoli, onions, kohlrabi....whatever else is hanging around gets chopped and thrown into the mix.
Dressing is simple, a little apple cider vinegar, a little olive oil, and a lot of spices. I'm partial to a little bit of salt, pepper, oregano, and Mrs. Dash.
You might ask, "Why no leafy veggies?" To which I answer, because this is what I take to work, silly person. And I don't want to eat wilted veggies for lunch!
And you might say, "So why don't you leave off the dressing and mix it when you go to eat it at lunch time?"
And I'll reply, "Don't bore me with petty details, you whippersnapper!
The honest answer is that I get bored of leafy veggie salads quickly. This way, I can make it a day or two ahead of time, and have a few meals out of it. The dressing acts as a marinade, and all the veggie's and spices' have blended flavors. I just throw a couple of slices of turkey or chicken breast on the top, and I'm ready to go to work with little to no effort in the morning.
It's all good.
Showing posts with label herbs. Show all posts
Showing posts with label herbs. Show all posts
Wednesday, July 18, 2012
Sunday, May 27, 2012
Junque Yard - oh happy day!
Yesterday I got to go to my favorite local garden center, Milaeger's. I almost wish it was a national chain so that you all could experience the goodness that comes from them, but at the same time, I haz a happy that it's mine. ALL. MINE! Muahahahaha...
It's a small family owned nursery with 2 locations both close to me. In the spring and early summer when they put out their plants, I get all giddy and stuff.
I went yesterday afternoon, because I couldn't make it to the local farmer's market in the morning. It was pouring, and my back was hurting too badly to make that trip. At least at Milaeger's I can lean on a cart.
Anyway, my budget was $20-30, and I was looking for some of the less common food plants that I like to grow, that I don't have seed for. For $29, this is what I picked up:
a Stevia plant. If you've ever chewed a leaf, you'd be surprised how sweet it is. Stevia is the herb from which Truvia comes from. It's an herb found in South America that has been used to sweeten things with no extra calories. I bought 2 last year, but due to having hand surgery last fall, I wasn't able to pick and dehydrate the leaves like I wanted to. I fully intend on doing that this year.
a chocolate mint plant. Why by mint when it's it's so invasive you ask? Well, chocolate mint smells wonderful. And I grow it in containers so that it doesn't invade the rest of my gardens. I honestly don't do much with it, except sniff it. It makes me happy.
a Pineapple Sage plant. It really does smell like pineapples. I bought one last year, and put it in a pot, but it didn't last very long. I'm determined to keep one this year. It said it's a perennial, but hardy only in zones 8-10, so I can't keep it out in the herb garden, but I'm hoping to keep it alive and bring it into the house come fall.
A yellow bell pepper and a purple bell pepper plant. My bell seedlings are taking forever to show some growth. And most of them didn't even sprout this year. I think seeds are too old. Besides, most of my bell peppers are green to red...and I luuurve the purple (or chocolate) bells. They have a unique taste. They yellows just taste great, and since red, orange and yellow peppers are so blinking expensive in the stores, I'm hoping to get a good crop of them so that I can freeze and dehydrate some.
Another patchouli plant. I bought one for my mom last year, and amazingly, it's still alive (we really abuse our indoor plants by forgetting to water them regularly). But it's sparse, and I wanted to add another one and help it bush out. I think it will benefit from a summer outside. If you like the smell of patchouli, get one of these plants, they actually smell great, and are not overpowering like patchouli oil is.
One banana pepper plant, because the 'nana seeds I started didn't propegate well. I'll have to pick up some more so that I can do my usual pickling of banana peppers. They are so good, we put them on almost everything. Especially pizza. I've even got my mother liking them. HA! :)
And lastly, I got a sugar snap pea, because I didn't start any earlier. I'm hoping it's not too warm, and I get a few snap peas. I love them long time.
We also got a 5lb bag of Yukon Gold seed potatoes. I can't wait to get those in the ground to start them a-growing. Yum! We did red potatoes last year, and still have some left over. They've sprouted, so we will probably plant some of those too.
I just don't know where we are gonna put all this stuff! Such a problem to have, right?
It's a small family owned nursery with 2 locations both close to me. In the spring and early summer when they put out their plants, I get all giddy and stuff.
I went yesterday afternoon, because I couldn't make it to the local farmer's market in the morning. It was pouring, and my back was hurting too badly to make that trip. At least at Milaeger's I can lean on a cart.
Anyway, my budget was $20-30, and I was looking for some of the less common food plants that I like to grow, that I don't have seed for. For $29, this is what I picked up:
a Stevia plant. If you've ever chewed a leaf, you'd be surprised how sweet it is. Stevia is the herb from which Truvia comes from. It's an herb found in South America that has been used to sweeten things with no extra calories. I bought 2 last year, but due to having hand surgery last fall, I wasn't able to pick and dehydrate the leaves like I wanted to. I fully intend on doing that this year.
a chocolate mint plant. Why by mint when it's it's so invasive you ask? Well, chocolate mint smells wonderful. And I grow it in containers so that it doesn't invade the rest of my gardens. I honestly don't do much with it, except sniff it. It makes me happy.
a Pineapple Sage plant. It really does smell like pineapples. I bought one last year, and put it in a pot, but it didn't last very long. I'm determined to keep one this year. It said it's a perennial, but hardy only in zones 8-10, so I can't keep it out in the herb garden, but I'm hoping to keep it alive and bring it into the house come fall.
A yellow bell pepper and a purple bell pepper plant. My bell seedlings are taking forever to show some growth. And most of them didn't even sprout this year. I think seeds are too old. Besides, most of my bell peppers are green to red...and I luuurve the purple (or chocolate) bells. They have a unique taste. They yellows just taste great, and since red, orange and yellow peppers are so blinking expensive in the stores, I'm hoping to get a good crop of them so that I can freeze and dehydrate some.
Another patchouli plant. I bought one for my mom last year, and amazingly, it's still alive (we really abuse our indoor plants by forgetting to water them regularly). But it's sparse, and I wanted to add another one and help it bush out. I think it will benefit from a summer outside. If you like the smell of patchouli, get one of these plants, they actually smell great, and are not overpowering like patchouli oil is.
One banana pepper plant, because the 'nana seeds I started didn't propegate well. I'll have to pick up some more so that I can do my usual pickling of banana peppers. They are so good, we put them on almost everything. Especially pizza. I've even got my mother liking them. HA! :)
And lastly, I got a sugar snap pea, because I didn't start any earlier. I'm hoping it's not too warm, and I get a few snap peas. I love them long time.
We also got a 5lb bag of Yukon Gold seed potatoes. I can't wait to get those in the ground to start them a-growing. Yum! We did red potatoes last year, and still have some left over. They've sprouted, so we will probably plant some of those too.
I just don't know where we are gonna put all this stuff! Such a problem to have, right?
Sunday, April 8, 2012
Musings from the Junque Pile "Dyeing my Hair naturally, part 2
In "Dyeing My Hair Naturally, Part One," I attempted a rinse of all natural cranberry juice, with absolutely no results. After further researching, I found out that that rinsing color into your hair is something that shows results over time. But I found other things to try, as well as ways to make the natural "dyes" thicker in order to have it sit in your hair, and not run or drip off. Olive oil was a good choice, and something that I had on hand.Last weekend, I made a paste of Paprika, olive oil , cranberry juice (hey, I had to use it up, yanno?). I let this paprika gunk sit in the fridge overnight, and then took it out a couple of hours before I planned to shower, so that it would come up to room temperature. I then washed my hair, using my usual No-Poo method, and while the hair was still wet, I slathered this paprika mixture all over my head, from root to tip. I have to say, it sure looks like it was going to do some good. Not all of the paprika dissolved into the liquid, so it was a tad gritty, but not too bad.
I decided to let it sit on my head until it dried fully. It took about 4 hours.
After rinsing my hair, I looked at it wet, and I don't know maybe it me being hopeful, but there was a reddish tinge to my hair. After letting it dry, I checked the mirror again, and nope...really no difference.
DaHubster and my mother both said there was a bit of red in my hair, but I think they were just trying to make me feel better.
It's widely reported over the interwebz that using herbs, flowers, teas and spices to color your hair means doing it frequently, and the color builds up over time. I'm lazy and I don't want do much more than wash my hair, scrunch it a bit of hairspray, and call it done. I was hard-pressed to dye it with real dye any more than once every 3-4 months.
So, my next experiment will be with Henna. It's apparently come a long way from the 70's when you were told not to use it if you have processed your hair in any way. I've researched the different companies and looked at reviews, and I chose one company. I should get my order early next week, and I'll let you all know how it goes after I goop it on my hair.
In the meantime, I'm just going to have too look like a mongrel: half blond, half dishwater, and sprinkled with silver. blech.
I want my red back.
Sunday, September 4, 2011
More Musings from the Junque-pile
What a difference a day makes! Yesterday was rainy and muggy as all get out. This morning dawned chilly and sunny. I'm not even sure it's supposed to make it higher than 70 today. I'm happy for not sweating, yet sad that autumn is coming. Me no likey da cold weather.
Things were busy yesterday despite the rain. daHubster pulled out the potato cage and spent a good chunk of time *carefully* digging up our potato crop. Those little guys have very delicate skins. Since this was our first year trying to grow potatoes, we weren't sure what to expect when we dug them up. Would there be a lot? What size would they be. I was actually pleasantly surprised with the amount of taters he pulled out of the ground. And they were all shapes and sizes, from the size of a pea to the size of an orange! There was quite a lot, too...probably about 10 lbs worth. Not bad for a $1.50 investment of seed potatoes, planted about a month too late. They are currently wrapped in burlap in the basement. Everything I've read about potatoes says they need to dry for about 2 weeks.
Yesterday I hit the farmer's market hard for more peppers. since my little guys didn't produce the luscious amounts of bell peppers I wanted, I wanted to supplement them with the gorgeous, ripe reds, yellows, and orange bell peppers that the market is offering right now. I found one vendor that must have had a bumper crop, and was selling orange peppers 3 for $2.00. Reds and yellows were 75 cents each. BARGAIN! Peppers are still around $3.00 in the grocery store. EACH! That just gets my goat. I spent a few hours chopping my load of peppers for the freezer yesterday afternoon, plugged into my iPod.
I also pruned my basil plants, the leaves were starting to fade, and I didn't want to lose the whole thing. I love the dried basil. I used it all winter in soups and sauces. This year I planted Purple and lemon basil in addition to Large Leaf. I think next year I will stick to just the large leaf. The lemon basil smells great, and the purple is pretty, but I think I prefer just plain old basil. I wonder if I threw some more seeds into the basil pot if I'd get another small crop before it gets too cold for them outside. Hmm...
I also bought some more bunches of green onions that I also chopped and dehydrated (outside) overnight. Green onions are so pretty in their little air tight glass containers when they are dried. And tasty too. I threw a handful into some scrambled eggs for yesterday's breakfast. Delicious.
End of summer is my favorite time. I've fallen in love with putting food away for the cold months. Figuring out bargains, then chopping, drying, canning, freezing...it's all good!
Things were busy yesterday despite the rain. daHubster pulled out the potato cage and spent a good chunk of time *carefully* digging up our potato crop. Those little guys have very delicate skins. Since this was our first year trying to grow potatoes, we weren't sure what to expect when we dug them up. Would there be a lot? What size would they be. I was actually pleasantly surprised with the amount of taters he pulled out of the ground. And they were all shapes and sizes, from the size of a pea to the size of an orange! There was quite a lot, too...probably about 10 lbs worth. Not bad for a $1.50 investment of seed potatoes, planted about a month too late. They are currently wrapped in burlap in the basement. Everything I've read about potatoes says they need to dry for about 2 weeks.
Yesterday I hit the farmer's market hard for more peppers. since my little guys didn't produce the luscious amounts of bell peppers I wanted, I wanted to supplement them with the gorgeous, ripe reds, yellows, and orange bell peppers that the market is offering right now. I found one vendor that must have had a bumper crop, and was selling orange peppers 3 for $2.00. Reds and yellows were 75 cents each. BARGAIN! Peppers are still around $3.00 in the grocery store. EACH! That just gets my goat. I spent a few hours chopping my load of peppers for the freezer yesterday afternoon, plugged into my iPod.
I also pruned my basil plants, the leaves were starting to fade, and I didn't want to lose the whole thing. I love the dried basil. I used it all winter in soups and sauces. This year I planted Purple and lemon basil in addition to Large Leaf. I think next year I will stick to just the large leaf. The lemon basil smells great, and the purple is pretty, but I think I prefer just plain old basil. I wonder if I threw some more seeds into the basil pot if I'd get another small crop before it gets too cold for them outside. Hmm...
I also bought some more bunches of green onions that I also chopped and dehydrated (outside) overnight. Green onions are so pretty in their little air tight glass containers when they are dried. And tasty too. I threw a handful into some scrambled eggs for yesterday's breakfast. Delicious.
End of summer is my favorite time. I've fallen in love with putting food away for the cold months. Figuring out bargains, then chopping, drying, canning, freezing...it's all good!
Wednesday, August 3, 2011
Musings from the Junque Pile
There's an new indoor / outdoor farmer's market that recently opened a few blocks from my house. They've been advertising on Face Book, and since I'm all over that subject matter, I was anxious to see how it was going. We arrived on Saturday, and I would be lying if I didn't say that I was disappointed. There were only 2 vendors there, one of which was the owner's / directors.
They have a good sized building, and the space for close to 100 vendors. I understand that most farmer's and other vendor types who want to sell are probably already booked at other farmer's markets for the summer. My happiness in this new place is that it wants to be a year round market, and I am sure that the other local sellers will want to come here when the weather turns colder, and the usual outdoor shut down at the end of the season. I certainly plan on shopping there in the fall and winter. I want this place to succeed.
Which led me to wonder what could I do to help them along? I don't have a voice in the community. I don't particularly want one. I do, however, want to develop an extra income source, something that might get me out of an office every day, eventually. I'm wondering if I should attempt to sell at farmer's markets? I could start off with dried herbs - I have plenty of that. According the local laws, I can sell any canned food product that is highly acidic such as pickles and jams, without having to have a commercial grade kitchen. I could do that. I wonder if they would let me sell some of the beads and jewelry I used to make (and want to get back into in a big bad way)?
Definitely some food for thought, as it were. Do I want to pay the table fee? Get a vendor's license? Figure out if I need to charge sales tax? It would mean setting up a growing area in the basement with grow lights, etc.
Do I have the desire? Heck yes.
Do I have the stamina? Umm...maybe.
I kinda want to.
What do you think? Give me pros and cons, please.
They have a good sized building, and the space for close to 100 vendors. I understand that most farmer's and other vendor types who want to sell are probably already booked at other farmer's markets for the summer. My happiness in this new place is that it wants to be a year round market, and I am sure that the other local sellers will want to come here when the weather turns colder, and the usual outdoor shut down at the end of the season. I certainly plan on shopping there in the fall and winter. I want this place to succeed.
Which led me to wonder what could I do to help them along? I don't have a voice in the community. I don't particularly want one. I do, however, want to develop an extra income source, something that might get me out of an office every day, eventually. I'm wondering if I should attempt to sell at farmer's markets? I could start off with dried herbs - I have plenty of that. According the local laws, I can sell any canned food product that is highly acidic such as pickles and jams, without having to have a commercial grade kitchen. I could do that. I wonder if they would let me sell some of the beads and jewelry I used to make (and want to get back into in a big bad way)?
Definitely some food for thought, as it were. Do I want to pay the table fee? Get a vendor's license? Figure out if I need to charge sales tax? It would mean setting up a growing area in the basement with grow lights, etc.
Do I have the desire? Heck yes.
Do I have the stamina? Umm...maybe.
I kinda want to.
What do you think? Give me pros and cons, please.
Wednesday, June 22, 2011
Junque Yard
Good evening...and Happy Belated Solstice!
I am finally starting to see some growth here at the micro-mini ranch, despite the lack of sun and the warmth that generally accompanies it. I have a pot of basil that is doing well. I should have enough to pluck and dry a large batch of leaves on my dehydrator this weekend. Last year I grew basil in a pot and it did really well, that is, until someone (probably a rabbit) chewed the main stalk off at the base one night. I noticed it the next morning, and was just sick about it. I've had trouble growing basil in the past, but finally had felt I'd gotten the knack.
Basil, unlike most herbs, is a little more persnickety in their water requirements. Most herbs you have ignore a bit, make them feel just a wee bit neglected. Then they turn up their oil production and you get all the wonderful scents and flavor you crave. They are woo'ing you, as it were. Not so the snobbish basil. If basil feels the least bit neglected, it will up and die on me. It wants its soil to be moist almost all the time. It prefers potting soil rather than the clay-packed soil in my yard.
So anyway, I was out one weekend morning last summer, surveying my little green kingdom, and I see that my prize basil has fallen over like I tree in the woods that I wasn't around to hear. Did it make a sound? If it did, I didn't hear it. I will admit that I got a little misty seeing my plant all keeled over, the leaves already looking limp. No pesto. No tossing a few leaves in a soup or a salad. Then I thought, maybe I can dry the leaves and save it that way? And I did!
I plucked every last beloved leaf off the stalk and gently washed them. Then I laid them in a single layer on several trays of my dehydrator and turned it on. Within about an hour and half, they were done. I gently crushed the dried leaves into glass container with an airtight lid, and sniffed dramatically one last time.
Over the next few months, I realized what I boon I had made for myself. Home dried basil is so much more aromatic and flavorful than store bought dried basil. It really needs to be capitalized: its Basil. My spaghetti and pizza sauce become more masterful. Garlic bread became godlike with a sprinkling of my Basil. Pasta salads and even roasted veggies which are NOM to be begin with became MOAR NOM (if you pardon my LOLspeak) with the Basil. In short, I will never buy dried basil again when I can make Basil at home so easily.
And so can you. You don't even need a dehydrator. Go out and buy yourself a basil plant from a farmer's market or local nursery. They should still have some in stock. if not, pick up a packet of basil seeds, and plant in a pot. Keep the soil moist, and in a warm, sunny spot. When the plant starts to get tall and a little bushy, pinch off the first layers of leaves, that causes the plant to become bushier, and less likely to flower. When it starts getting cold, or when you want to harvest and dry your leaves, pluck them off, wash them gently in cool water. Pat dry. Then layer then on some parchment paper set over a cookie sheet in a single layer, if you don't live in a warm humid climate, put them on top of your fridge for a week. They will dry naturally. If you want to speed up the process, put the cookie sheet in your oven set to the lowest temp on the dial. Leave the door open a crack to let most of the heat escape. You don't want to cook your leaves, just speed up the drying process. Check on your leaves every 20 mins or so. Some ovens get too hot for this process, so it's important to check often. You might want to turn off the oven at intervals. The leaves are done when they are dry and crumble easily. Let them cool, and put them in an airtight container.
Now you know what I know about Basil. And it's all thanks to some waskily wabbit.
I am finally starting to see some growth here at the micro-mini ranch, despite the lack of sun and the warmth that generally accompanies it. I have a pot of basil that is doing well. I should have enough to pluck and dry a large batch of leaves on my dehydrator this weekend. Last year I grew basil in a pot and it did really well, that is, until someone (probably a rabbit) chewed the main stalk off at the base one night. I noticed it the next morning, and was just sick about it. I've had trouble growing basil in the past, but finally had felt I'd gotten the knack.
Basil, unlike most herbs, is a little more persnickety in their water requirements. Most herbs you have ignore a bit, make them feel just a wee bit neglected. Then they turn up their oil production and you get all the wonderful scents and flavor you crave. They are woo'ing you, as it were. Not so the snobbish basil. If basil feels the least bit neglected, it will up and die on me. It wants its soil to be moist almost all the time. It prefers potting soil rather than the clay-packed soil in my yard.
So anyway, I was out one weekend morning last summer, surveying my little green kingdom, and I see that my prize basil has fallen over like I tree in the woods that I wasn't around to hear. Did it make a sound? If it did, I didn't hear it. I will admit that I got a little misty seeing my plant all keeled over, the leaves already looking limp. No pesto. No tossing a few leaves in a soup or a salad. Then I thought, maybe I can dry the leaves and save it that way? And I did!
I plucked every last beloved leaf off the stalk and gently washed them. Then I laid them in a single layer on several trays of my dehydrator and turned it on. Within about an hour and half, they were done. I gently crushed the dried leaves into glass container with an airtight lid, and sniffed dramatically one last time.
Over the next few months, I realized what I boon I had made for myself. Home dried basil is so much more aromatic and flavorful than store bought dried basil. It really needs to be capitalized: its Basil. My spaghetti and pizza sauce become more masterful. Garlic bread became godlike with a sprinkling of my Basil. Pasta salads and even roasted veggies which are NOM to be begin with became MOAR NOM (if you pardon my LOLspeak) with the Basil. In short, I will never buy dried basil again when I can make Basil at home so easily.
And so can you. You don't even need a dehydrator. Go out and buy yourself a basil plant from a farmer's market or local nursery. They should still have some in stock. if not, pick up a packet of basil seeds, and plant in a pot. Keep the soil moist, and in a warm, sunny spot. When the plant starts to get tall and a little bushy, pinch off the first layers of leaves, that causes the plant to become bushier, and less likely to flower. When it starts getting cold, or when you want to harvest and dry your leaves, pluck them off, wash them gently in cool water. Pat dry. Then layer then on some parchment paper set over a cookie sheet in a single layer, if you don't live in a warm humid climate, put them on top of your fridge for a week. They will dry naturally. If you want to speed up the process, put the cookie sheet in your oven set to the lowest temp on the dial. Leave the door open a crack to let most of the heat escape. You don't want to cook your leaves, just speed up the drying process. Check on your leaves every 20 mins or so. Some ovens get too hot for this process, so it's important to check often. You might want to turn off the oven at intervals. The leaves are done when they are dry and crumble easily. Let them cool, and put them in an airtight container.
Now you know what I know about Basil. And it's all thanks to some waskily wabbit.
Tuesday, June 14, 2011
Junque Food - Spaghetti
From time to time I get asked about my spaghetti sauce recipe. I don't really have one. My family didn't really rely on recipes when I was growing up, unless they were trying something new and fancy. Spaghetti was the dish I usually asked for as my birthday dish as I was growing up. And since, as I kid, I had no interest in cooking, it wasw one of those meals that miraculously appeared on the table. Well, not really. But you get my drift.
My family, as I said, didn't really use a lot of recipes. The women in my family that have awesome trait of being able to dissemble a meal in their brains and say, "Ahh...so that's how it works." And that's how they would cook. It's not an exact science, and we've all had some experiments that didn't quite work out, but for the most part, it worked for our family. My talent for eating something and figuring out the spices and cooking method didn't evolve until my early 30's, but I am glad it did. It makes cooking more fu.n. And it drive DaMan and my mother in law crazy. If they don't work off a recipe, they don't cook. Hubster has mellowed on this somewhat. If he's cooking, it's something he knows how to do, or he asks me for a breakdown. He doesn't get nearly as frustrated as he used to when I tell him, "a little bit of this, and a pinch of that..."
Anyway, here's my process for cooking spaghetti. Yours, if you have one, will certainly vary. I am always of the mind that knowledge is power, so share your variations with me in the comment section below!
Ingredients I use most often:
Italian Sausage (mild or hot)
large cans of diced and crushed tomatoes (home canned when I have them)
diced green peppers
diced onions
lots of garlic (powdered when I don't have fresh chopped)
spices of your choice. I learn towards basil more and more and less towards oregano than I used to)
about a teaspoon of sugar (just to cut the acidity of the tomatoes, NOT to sweeten the sauce)
olive or any other light cooking oil
Take the saugage out of it's casings and fry up in a heavy bottomed fry pan, chopping it up as fine as you can while it cooks. Remove from heat, and drain it on a paper towel like you would bacon.
In a heavy bottomed stock pot, heat up a tablespoon or so of oil, and toss in the onion, green pepper, and garlic. Sautee the veggies, stirring frequently until the onions are translucent. Stirring often will keep them from sticking to the bottom of the pot and browning. When the onions are no longer white, add the sausage and the cans of tomatoes, sugar, and your dried spices of choice. Put a lid on, and let it come up to a boil, then take the lid off, and lower the temp to simmer. I let mine simmer all afternoon, stirring often.
That's it! I usually make it a day ahead of time to let the flavors meld together. I taste it often and adjust spices as I need to.
The only note that I would add is that if you choose to use fresh spices instead of dried, add them at the end of cooking, and not during the cooking process. Fresh basil tends to turn black and look unappetizing, and fresh oregano tends to turn bitter. I like a blend of dried and fresh. I use dried during the cooking time, and then chop fresh and sprinkle it on the top of the finished meal before serving. It's very pretty that way too!
So, what do you different? Tell me!
My family, as I said, didn't really use a lot of recipes. The women in my family that have awesome trait of being able to dissemble a meal in their brains and say, "Ahh...so that's how it works." And that's how they would cook. It's not an exact science, and we've all had some experiments that didn't quite work out, but for the most part, it worked for our family. My talent for eating something and figuring out the spices and cooking method didn't evolve until my early 30's, but I am glad it did. It makes cooking more fu.n. And it drive DaMan and my mother in law crazy. If they don't work off a recipe, they don't cook. Hubster has mellowed on this somewhat. If he's cooking, it's something he knows how to do, or he asks me for a breakdown. He doesn't get nearly as frustrated as he used to when I tell him, "a little bit of this, and a pinch of that..."
Anyway, here's my process for cooking spaghetti. Yours, if you have one, will certainly vary. I am always of the mind that knowledge is power, so share your variations with me in the comment section below!
Ingredients I use most often:
Italian Sausage (mild or hot)
large cans of diced and crushed tomatoes (home canned when I have them)
diced green peppers
diced onions
lots of garlic (powdered when I don't have fresh chopped)
spices of your choice. I learn towards basil more and more and less towards oregano than I used to)
about a teaspoon of sugar (just to cut the acidity of the tomatoes, NOT to sweeten the sauce)
olive or any other light cooking oil
Take the saugage out of it's casings and fry up in a heavy bottomed fry pan, chopping it up as fine as you can while it cooks. Remove from heat, and drain it on a paper towel like you would bacon.
In a heavy bottomed stock pot, heat up a tablespoon or so of oil, and toss in the onion, green pepper, and garlic. Sautee the veggies, stirring frequently until the onions are translucent. Stirring often will keep them from sticking to the bottom of the pot and browning. When the onions are no longer white, add the sausage and the cans of tomatoes, sugar, and your dried spices of choice. Put a lid on, and let it come up to a boil, then take the lid off, and lower the temp to simmer. I let mine simmer all afternoon, stirring often.
That's it! I usually make it a day ahead of time to let the flavors meld together. I taste it often and adjust spices as I need to.
The only note that I would add is that if you choose to use fresh spices instead of dried, add them at the end of cooking, and not during the cooking process. Fresh basil tends to turn black and look unappetizing, and fresh oregano tends to turn bitter. I like a blend of dried and fresh. I use dried during the cooking time, and then chop fresh and sprinkle it on the top of the finished meal before serving. It's very pretty that way too!
So, what do you different? Tell me!
Sunday, June 12, 2011
Musings from the Junque Pile
Good Morning! The weather might cooperate today. It is supposed to be 60 and mostly sunny. Not quite shorts weather, but after the insanity that comprised of this past week, I'll take it. We had 3 days of almost 100 degree weather earlier in the week, then temps plummeted to the 50's with lots of fog and rain. My poor tomatoes have no idea what do with themselves. My peppers are growing, though not as fast as I would like.
The rains damaged some of my strawberry blossoms, and I'm hoping they were already visited by the bee fairies and were already fertilized. I will be checking on them later today to see if there are any burgeoning berries. If I don't, I will lop off the damaged blossoms and see if I can coax the plants to re-bloom. These strawberries are heavy producers, and I can usually get them to bloom 2 to 3 times during their month of production.
The bin of potatoes that was constructed by DaMan has sprouted! I am so excited about this as it is our first time growing potatoes.
I am serious need of hacking back some of the more over-zealous herbs. The oregano, as usual is dominating the sage. I need to take it down a peg or twelve.
This year I planted borage, a lessor known herb. I want to see what it does, and it is purported to bring in bees and butterflies to our yard. We get a pretty heavy traffic of butterflies, which are always a joy to watch.
I need to get off my duff and plant the rest of my containers. I want to put chamomile in one, dill in another, and loofa in another. That's right, I said LOOFAH! LOL. Those sponges that you scrub yourself in the shower with? Those! I saw a packet of seeds at the store earlier this spring, and I amazed. I never gave a thought to loofah, or if I did, I thought it was a sea sponge. But no, it's a squash! You can even eat it. The packet says that if you pick it early, it can be sliced and sauteed like a zucchini. Or you can let it mature on the vine, and dry it for your very own personal scrubby. How amazing is that? Anyway, I can't wait to try it. And report back to you, of course. :)
I also need to get my booty to the nursery for a couple of flats of marigolds. DaMan and I like to plant them in between the veggies we are growing as a deterrent to rodents and some insects. Since we are not usually overrun by either, we want to keep up the tradition. Plus, it's a little bit of flowery colorfulness in and amongst the veggies. They have a strong menthol smell to them, which, I believe is part of the deterrent.
In other news, I spent a couple of hours trimming up our dog, Muffett, yesterday. The poor old girl had lots of winter coat that needed to be shed. She's got a very Wooky like coat, but her undercarriage and legs grow silky hair that doesn't take well to being buzzed with the electric clippers. So we sat outside yesterday afternoon, and she let me attack her fur with the scissors. She looks pretty good. Now, I need to clip her nails. She is NOT going to like that at all.
I also spent a good portion of yesterday cooking for the week. I made a hugs vat of spaghetti sauce, that will also do double duty as pizza sauce. A loaf of bread was made, as well as a double batch of chicken curry salad for sandwiches. We will be eating well on the micro-mini ranch this week!
The rains damaged some of my strawberry blossoms, and I'm hoping they were already visited by the bee fairies and were already fertilized. I will be checking on them later today to see if there are any burgeoning berries. If I don't, I will lop off the damaged blossoms and see if I can coax the plants to re-bloom. These strawberries are heavy producers, and I can usually get them to bloom 2 to 3 times during their month of production.
The bin of potatoes that was constructed by DaMan has sprouted! I am so excited about this as it is our first time growing potatoes.
I am serious need of hacking back some of the more over-zealous herbs. The oregano, as usual is dominating the sage. I need to take it down a peg or twelve.
This year I planted borage, a lessor known herb. I want to see what it does, and it is purported to bring in bees and butterflies to our yard. We get a pretty heavy traffic of butterflies, which are always a joy to watch.
I need to get off my duff and plant the rest of my containers. I want to put chamomile in one, dill in another, and loofa in another. That's right, I said LOOFAH! LOL. Those sponges that you scrub yourself in the shower with? Those! I saw a packet of seeds at the store earlier this spring, and I amazed. I never gave a thought to loofah, or if I did, I thought it was a sea sponge. But no, it's a squash! You can even eat it. The packet says that if you pick it early, it can be sliced and sauteed like a zucchini. Or you can let it mature on the vine, and dry it for your very own personal scrubby. How amazing is that? Anyway, I can't wait to try it. And report back to you, of course. :)
I also need to get my booty to the nursery for a couple of flats of marigolds. DaMan and I like to plant them in between the veggies we are growing as a deterrent to rodents and some insects. Since we are not usually overrun by either, we want to keep up the tradition. Plus, it's a little bit of flowery colorfulness in and amongst the veggies. They have a strong menthol smell to them, which, I believe is part of the deterrent.
In other news, I spent a couple of hours trimming up our dog, Muffett, yesterday. The poor old girl had lots of winter coat that needed to be shed. She's got a very Wooky like coat, but her undercarriage and legs grow silky hair that doesn't take well to being buzzed with the electric clippers. So we sat outside yesterday afternoon, and she let me attack her fur with the scissors. She looks pretty good. Now, I need to clip her nails. She is NOT going to like that at all.
I also spent a good portion of yesterday cooking for the week. I made a hugs vat of spaghetti sauce, that will also do double duty as pizza sauce. A loaf of bread was made, as well as a double batch of chicken curry salad for sandwiches. We will be eating well on the micro-mini ranch this week!
Friday, May 20, 2011
Junque Yard
It's a slow news day on the neo-faux-ghetto homestead...
Spring has been a cold and wet loser-fest. I hate to sound like a Negative Nelly, but I heard one newscaster say something to the effect of there only have been 4 clear days since the end of February. And it's probably been longer, because I remember January and February both being cloudy all the freakin' time.
The point is, there hasn't been any dang sun.
This makes for slow growing here on the urban micro-mini-ranch. I've got herbs going crazy, but that's about it. The sugar snap peas that I planted at the end of March are only 2 inches high. My spinach and lettuce aren't even worth mentioning - and that's usually my first bumper crop of the season!
The strawberries are struggling, as the ground has been too wet to weed and replant the runners that popped up at the end of fall last year. Yeah, they don't tell you that, do they? You may only get about a month's worth of strawberries (these being the June-bearing variety), but they make baby plants all summer long. I swear strawberries are like the bunny-rabbits of plants.
I have one herb that I have no idea what it is. It's driving me crazy. It smells a little bit like oregano, but it looks nothing like the oregano I've got, and I only planted one kind. It's the mystery herb, and it's about to get the axe, unless I can identify it.
I have onions coming up that I planted last spring. They disappeared mid-summer and I figured I must have planted them in a place that was too wet for them to tolerate, they got soggy and croaked. Nope..these are apparently ghost onions, and have decided to come back and haunt my herb garden again this spring. Will they disappear again mid-summer? I'll keep you informed....
And lastly, I spent 2 hours tying up the raspberry canes tonight. I'd been kind of ignoring them, because they were supposed to be dug up and put into a new bed that we've been trying to build since there was still snow on the ground. However the weather hasn't allowed us to get back there and finish. Well, that and the fact that we ran out of wood, and haven't found any other useable scavenged wood lately. So, those darn raspberries, being contrary by nature, decided to grow like nothing else in my edible beds, which means like Popeye's forearms after a can of spinach. I decided that the raspberries will be moved after they have been harvested (I didn't want them not to produce if I moved them too late in the season - I know raspberries are hardy, but still...if you've ever had fresh off the vine, you know why I'm being cautious), so we've got a couple of months yet to finish the berry boxes at the back of the yard.
I'm going to the Farmer's Market for the first time this year on Saturday. I've been waiting to see if it's open yet, and finally got word that it is, so look out farmers. I'm-ma comin'! I can't wait to get my hands on some plants and some early veggies, and some more plants...and maybe some eggs, and them more plants! woo hoo!
Spring has been a cold and wet loser-fest. I hate to sound like a Negative Nelly, but I heard one newscaster say something to the effect of there only have been 4 clear days since the end of February. And it's probably been longer, because I remember January and February both being cloudy all the freakin' time.
The point is, there hasn't been any dang sun.
This makes for slow growing here on the urban micro-mini-ranch. I've got herbs going crazy, but that's about it. The sugar snap peas that I planted at the end of March are only 2 inches high. My spinach and lettuce aren't even worth mentioning - and that's usually my first bumper crop of the season!
The strawberries are struggling, as the ground has been too wet to weed and replant the runners that popped up at the end of fall last year. Yeah, they don't tell you that, do they? You may only get about a month's worth of strawberries (these being the June-bearing variety), but they make baby plants all summer long. I swear strawberries are like the bunny-rabbits of plants.
I have one herb that I have no idea what it is. It's driving me crazy. It smells a little bit like oregano, but it looks nothing like the oregano I've got, and I only planted one kind. It's the mystery herb, and it's about to get the axe, unless I can identify it.
I have onions coming up that I planted last spring. They disappeared mid-summer and I figured I must have planted them in a place that was too wet for them to tolerate, they got soggy and croaked. Nope..these are apparently ghost onions, and have decided to come back and haunt my herb garden again this spring. Will they disappear again mid-summer? I'll keep you informed....
And lastly, I spent 2 hours tying up the raspberry canes tonight. I'd been kind of ignoring them, because they were supposed to be dug up and put into a new bed that we've been trying to build since there was still snow on the ground. However the weather hasn't allowed us to get back there and finish. Well, that and the fact that we ran out of wood, and haven't found any other useable scavenged wood lately. So, those darn raspberries, being contrary by nature, decided to grow like nothing else in my edible beds, which means like Popeye's forearms after a can of spinach. I decided that the raspberries will be moved after they have been harvested (I didn't want them not to produce if I moved them too late in the season - I know raspberries are hardy, but still...if you've ever had fresh off the vine, you know why I'm being cautious), so we've got a couple of months yet to finish the berry boxes at the back of the yard.
I'm going to the Farmer's Market for the first time this year on Saturday. I've been waiting to see if it's open yet, and finally got word that it is, so look out farmers. I'm-ma comin'! I can't wait to get my hands on some plants and some early veggies, and some more plants...and maybe some eggs, and them more plants! woo hoo!
Saturday, May 14, 2011
Junque-yard
One of my local nurseries has the most amazing selection on unusual herbs in the spring time. I was wandering around last year, when I saw they had a patchouli plant. I had never before even made the connection that patchouli was a plant! If I even thought about how Patchouli was made, I figured it was by squeezing whacked out hippies really hard (I KID! I KID!) No, I never really thought about where patchouli oil came from, so when I saw it, I marveled at it, but didn't buy one. And then I kicked myself, hard and often, because my mother loved patchouli oil. I went back later that summer and see if they still had it in stock, but they didn't.
So this spring, I knew that I was going to get her a patchouli plant for either her birthday or Mother's day. Her birthday, which is in early March, was too early for the nursery to have their plants out yet. We were still in the grip of winter at that time. So last week, I headed back to the nursery, driving with my fingers crossed that they had what I wanted. And they did! As I was doing cartwheels down the aisles (no easy feat with a plant in my hand), I decided to see what else unusual they might have. Something that I could grow as a challenge to myself, and my poor little herb garden.
I ended up grabbing 2 awesome challenges! The first is a stevia plant. I'm going to see what it's like to grow, dry, and crush it as a sugar substitute. The second is a curry plant! How cool is that?? I always figured that curry was a mixture of spices, and not it's own plant. And it smells heavenly too...just like a warm golden curry sauce.
I have no idea about the care and feeding of either of my new charges, but I plan on researching and learning. And sharing with you!
BTW, Mom loved her new little patchouli plant. And it smells nice too. Much lighter than you'd expect.
No hippies were harmed in the making of this blog post.
So this spring, I knew that I was going to get her a patchouli plant for either her birthday or Mother's day. Her birthday, which is in early March, was too early for the nursery to have their plants out yet. We were still in the grip of winter at that time. So last week, I headed back to the nursery, driving with my fingers crossed that they had what I wanted. And they did! As I was doing cartwheels down the aisles (no easy feat with a plant in my hand), I decided to see what else unusual they might have. Something that I could grow as a challenge to myself, and my poor little herb garden.
I ended up grabbing 2 awesome challenges! The first is a stevia plant. I'm going to see what it's like to grow, dry, and crush it as a sugar substitute. The second is a curry plant! How cool is that?? I always figured that curry was a mixture of spices, and not it's own plant. And it smells heavenly too...just like a warm golden curry sauce.
I have no idea about the care and feeding of either of my new charges, but I plan on researching and learning. And sharing with you!
BTW, Mom loved her new little patchouli plant. And it smells nice too. Much lighter than you'd expect.
No hippies were harmed in the making of this blog post.
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