Sweetie Pie

Vanilla Pears

We had an afternoon and one day off for fall break.  It was odd to realize that what I most wanted to do with that extra free time was to peel, chop, cook and can pears.  A friend offered an abundance, and when someone offers free produce, I always accept it.  Pears can sit around for a while without going bad, so I was able to leave them until I had time to work with them.  I peeled hard little pears until my hands cramped.

Pears seem to be nostalgic for many people over the age of about 60.  I say this because I don't know anyone younger who really likes pears.  However, I know at least 5 older people who LOVE pears.  I am personally working to change this and am proud to report that my eight year old son didn't just like these pears, he LOVED them! 

The pear tree is easy to grow, requiring little to no maintenance, and no spraying.  These trees grow tall and last for generations.  They fruit prolifically.  They are versatile and preserve really well.  Even after they are cooked and canned, they have a wonderful succulent texture.  Pears taste great with all kinds of seasonings from vanilla to cinnamon, ginger and cloves.  No wonder our grandparents ate them a lot and remember them fondly.  These were cooked in a light syrup with a whole vanilla bean and then canned to give away at Christmas.

Vanilla Pears in Light Syrup

Peel and chop as many pears as you can.

Make a light syrup in a large heavy pan with 2 1/4 cups sugar and 5 1/2 cups water.  Bring to low boil, add one whole vanilla bean and all the pears you can fit.  Put the lid on and let them cook while you prepare the water bath and jars for canning.

Sterilize the jars in boiling water.  Using a funnel, fill each jar with pears.  Press them down and remove air bubbles with a spoon and add more if they will fit.  Ladle the hot syrup over the pears to cover them, leaving 1/2 inch headspace.  Wipe the rims with a hot cloth to remove any spilled syrup and fit with fresh lids and rings.  Process in boiling water for 20 minutes.  Remove jars to cool.  After 24 hours, remove the rings, label and date.  If any jars did not seal, store in the refrigerator.

Any pears that are left over after you've filled your jars are to be enjoyed right away with your family or kept in the fridge for tomorrow.  They make a light and yummy dessert.

 

How to Supreme Citrus for Fennel and Grapefruit Salad

Grandmother used to make the best fruit salad.  She chopped all the fruit nice and small and she added plenty of oranges.  My family is crazy about fruit salad and it was always kind of a big deal to have it at the holidays.  Fruit salad was never made in small quantities.  It usually went into my moms' big white Tupperware bowl with the lid and we would enjoy it for a few days.  Sometimes my grandmother would peel and slice the oranges at our house, seated at the dining room table with me hanging around eating them almost as fast as she could work.  She could peel the orange from top to bottom in one long spiral, which she would hand to me to bite out any little bits of fruit clinging to the peel.  Then she would segment the orange over the bowl and move on to the next one.  Grandmother would prepare as many oranges as her grandchildren cared to eat.  I never realized that this technique has a wonderful name.

You can supreme any citrus fruit, and you don't have to be able to make that perfect spiral of peeling.  Begin by washing your fruit, then slice off both ends.  Make sure your knife is sharp.

Now, place the fruit on one end on the cutting board.  Start at the top and guide the knife down the curve of the fruit to remove the peel.  Continue turning the fruit and slicing the peel off.

For the next step, I like to hold the fruit in my left hand and slice with my right.  You may find it easier and safer to keep it on the cutting board.  Look for the membranes that divide the sections.  Cut right along the membrane to the center of the fruit, then cut along the adjacent membrane and remove the segment.  You can continue in this fashion all the way around.  However, I like to cut along the next membrane, then angle the knife back up the other side.  The segment will slide out as you separate it from the membrane.

When you are done, you'll be left with beautiful, clean segments and the empty membranes.  Squeeze the juice from the membranes over the fruit or save it for another project.

Now, for the recipe.

This is super simple, with only three ingredients plus salt and pepper.  It is crunchy and citrusy and healthy.  Perhaps it's the perfect side dish to start off a healthy new year.  Fennel is sort of a wonder vegetable.  The entire plant, from the bulb to the stalks, fronds and seeds are edible.  The flavor is sort of like anise or liquorice.  I like the bulb the best for it's crunchy texture and mild flavor.  Fennel is high in vitamin C and fiber just to begin.  It's traditionally been used to aid digestion and as a cure for bad breath.  The more I research the benefits of fennel, the more far reaching the claims become.  Fennel and it's compounds are useful for everything from indigestion, high blood pressure, estrogen imbalance and collagen production to heart health and cancer. .. and more.  Whoa. 

When you buy it at the grocery store it looks like this:

Wash it well and remove the stems and fronds.  You can save the fronds for garnish if you wish.  Remove any brown parts as you would from celery. 

This recipe works well because of super thin slices.  I use a mandoline and shave the fennel directly into the supremed grapefruit.

Toss the grapefruit and fennel together.  If you are not going to serve the salad for a while, just cover and refrigerate.  When you are ready to serve, add about 4 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil, salt and pepper to taste.  That's all there is to it.  Many recipes add scallions, garlic, or other seasonings.  I like it plain.  Enjoy!

Smashed Potatoes

A wonderfully unexpected benefit of being the yoga instructor in my small town is that clients bring me produce from their gardens, farms and CSA shares when they have an abundance.  This summer I happily ate my way through some late season tomatoes, early apples, and now some organic potatoes.  This vegetable is on the 'Dirty Dozen' list because a lot of pesticides and fungicides are used on them and the chemicals don't wash off.  I buy organic potatoes whenever possible.  These little baby potatoes were perfect for a recipe I've wanted to try for a while.  It takes some time because there are two cooking steps, but this method is very easy and so tasty that even my potato hating husband liked them.

Smashed Potatoes

small potatoes

salt and pepper

olive oil

steamer basket

Scrub the potatoes and cut off any imperfections.  Steam over boiling water until very tender to a knife, about 20 minutes. 

 
Remove the potatoes and cool while the oven preheats to 425 degrees.  Prepare a cookie sheet with a generous drizzle of olive oil.  Take each potato and smash it flat on the cookie sheet with the heel of your hand.  The picture below shows my smashed potatoes ready to be roasted.  Sprinkle salt, pepper and more olive oil over everything and roast for about 25 minutes, turning once.  These are done when they become golden and crispy around the edges. 

They don't look like much, but with crispy edges and a creamy interior these potatoes are a great side dish.

Coconut Milk Vanilla Ice Cream with Cherries on Top

My parents gave us an ice cream maker for Christmas and we finally tried it out this weekend.  The high temperatures reminded me to pull it out of the basement and read the directions.  Our thermometer read 100 degrees the other day.  I'm not sure if I believe it, but it's certainly more than hot enough for ice cream.  I made a very light, dairy free version with coconut milk and almond milk.  We had some organic cherries waiting for inspiration, so those were prepped and set aside for topping.  This recipe will give you a vaguely coconutty, lightly sweet and cool treat.

Coconut Milk Vanilla Ice Cream

1 can full fat coconut milk

2 1/2 cans almond/coconut milk (I used Blue Diamond Unsweetened Almond Coconut) - measured in the empty can

3/4 cup sugar

1 vanilla bean (and/or pure vanilla extract)

Cherries

Ice Cream Freezer, Ice, Rock Salt

Heat the coconut milk and almond milk in a saucepan, add the sugar and a scraped vanilla bean.  Let this steep as it cools to room temperature.  Refrigerate until cold.  When you're ready to churn, strain the milk mixture into the ice cream freezer and discard the vanilla bean, and/or add the vanilla extract. 

Freeze according to your machines' instructions.  This ice cream is more like ice milk - a little icy with plenty of vanilla flavor and a subtle hint of coconut.  We loved it and look forward to trying more recipes.  We chose to have our cherries on top, but you could also add them to the milk mixture as it freezes.  I used some left over ice cream and cherries to make popsicles.  I mashed  cherries into the ice cream and spooned it into popsicle molds.  They are pretty pink in color and a refreshing treat on a hot day. 

Do you have a favorite ice cream recipe?

 

 

Asparagus

We stopped by the local grocery store after school yesterday in search of something green for St. Patrick's Day.  I'm the very proud mom who was able to check out with, ... asparagus as our exciting green item for the holiday.  This is one of the only vegetables that my boy will deign to eat, and the fact that he only eats the top half of each stalk bothers me not in the least.

I was especially impressed with the asparagus yesterday because it was both organic and grown in the United States.  It seriously bugs me that fresh vegetables flown in from Peru are for sale and I refuse to buy them.  Wait for the appropriate season and you'll be able to find better quality produce grown closer to home.  This is a spring vegetable, so look for it in your stores now.  Before you buy, check the tips to make sure that they are tightly closed and not mushy.  The asparagus should be bright green and firm.

My Favorite Asparagus

One bunch fresh green asparagus

One lemon

Salt and pepper

Olive oil

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees or preheat the broiler.

Wash the asparagus and pat it dry.  Hold a stem halfway up the stalk in one hand and grasp the cut end with the other hand.  Bend the stalk until the cut end snaps off.  This will give you a guide to how much of the stem end to cut off.  As you can see in the picture, I cut off about 1 1/2 to 2 inches of stem.  This was discarded because it is tough.  If you don't want to waste the stems, you can use them in a vegetable stock.  Another option is to peel the asparagus stalks from about halfway down the stem with a vegetable peeler.

When the oven is hot, lightly oil a sheet pan with about one or two teaspoons of oil and spread the asparagus on it.  Roll them around so that the oil is distributed.  Place the pan in a hot oven or under the broiler.  Wash the lemon and cut it in half.  Pull out the pan after about 4 minutes.  Squeeze the lemon over the asparagus and sprinkle with salt and pepper.  Return the pan to the oven.  Check again after 4 minutes.  You are looking for a super duper bright green color and just a little sizzle around the edges of the pan.  Do not overcook the veg, it should be a little crunchy.  Serve hot.  

 

 

 

Banana Fudge Pops

My Grandmother kept a big chest freezer on her back porch.  The porch was a functional space with a screen door, extra shelves, some gardening stuff and the big freezer.  I can still recall the smell of the ice crystals when it opened as I peaked inside to search for popsicles.  Grandmother always had popsicles for the children (she also usually had spearmint gum in her pocket book).  Mayfield brown cows in their yellow box, fruit flavored popsicles, ice cream sandwiches or fudge pops were waiting in the cool depths and we were permitted to have one whenever we asked.

I still love popsicles and cold, sweet treats.  I try to provide sweets for my family that we can feel good about eating.  Although we eat lots of sweets, this means I bake and make our desserts rather than buying them most of the time.  Fudge pops have always been one of my favorites, and I am happy to share that I have cracked the code for a delicious fudgy popsicle made with wholesome, real ingredients.

This is more of a guide than a recipe.  First, you will need to buy some bananas and let them get very ripe and spotted.  Peel the bananas, slice them into a zip top bag and freeze overnight or longer.  I usually keep a bag of frozen bananas in the freezer and add to it whenever I have an overripe piece of fruit.  Slicing them makes it easier for your blender when you're ready to use them.  Frozen bananas are key because they yield a luscious, ice creamy texture when they are blended.

Banana Fudge Pops

Frozen sliced bananas - about 3, depending on their size

2 Tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder

1 - 2 cups almond milk (you can use any kind of milk, but we love Almond Breeze Almond Coconut Milk)

Honey

Small pinch salt

Ice cubes

Popsicle molds

Blender or food processor

Get out your popsicle molds and have them ready.  In my case, this was the most difficult part of making the fudge pops.  Three were quickly located, and then a thorough search of my kitchen and pantry revealed the other three on a top shelf inside a mixing bowl.  That's where I keep them.

Place the frozen bananas and milk in the blender.  Start with one cup milk and then add more if you need it.  Add one tablespoon unsweetened cocoa powder and blend.  Taste it and see if you want more cocoa, add more milk if it's too thick and won't blend well.  If you're using unsweetened almond milk, you might like to add a tablespoon or two of honey.  Add a pinch of salt and 4 or 5 ice cubes and blend again.  Taste it. My 5 year old son was the taste tester, and we used 2 tablespoons cocoa, 1 tablespoon honey, about 1 1/2 cups milk and around 6 ice cubes.  Pour the thick and chocolaty goodness into popsicle molds and freeze. 

We made these two ways.  Once as described above, and once more with the addition of frozen strawberries.  You can take this as a jumping off point and add anything you like.  A few suggestions that come to mind are peanut butter banana fudge pops, or you could add yogurt, or dried dates for sweetness, or toasted coconut,  or coffee ....  it's going to be yummy no matter what.
 

Little Bites

It's a sad day when all the Girl Scout cookies are gone for the year.  My husband loves coconut and always finds a box (or two) of Samoas to bring home along with a few other varieties.  There have been a lot of blog posts online in the last few weeks for made at home versions of these cookies, especially Samoas.  These recipes involve multiple steps and although I'm sure they're yummy, I wasn't interested.  However, that doesn't mean I'm not suffering from cookie with-drawls just like everybody else. These little bites are here to help.  They are very very simple to make and don't even need to be baked!  Vegan and gluten free, this sweet relies on the natural sugars in dates.  It would be a stretch to call the recipe that follows a substitute for a true crunchy, chewy perfect Samoa but if you want something guilt free with that coconutty chocolate flavor then these are for you.

The recipe comes from Chocolate Covered Katie, a blog which showcases vegan and healthy versions of just about any dessert you can think of.  I changed the recipe in two small ways.  First, I doubled it because I wanted more cookies!  Secondly, I toasted the coconut which brings out the flavor and helps everything to blend.

Little Bites Samoas Babies

Recipe from Chocolate Covered Katie

Click through for the recipe.  Here are my notes:

If you double it and use tablespoon sized cookies, you will have about 14 cookies.  I toasted the coconut in the oven (watch it closely or it will burn!) and added it to the food processor while still warm.  I used 1 Tablespoon dark chocolate chips in the mix and melted 3 Tablespoons chocolate chips in the microwave to drizzle on top.  Make sure to mix these really well in the food processor, stop and scrape the sides and keep mixing.  The warm and toasty coconut will cause the chocolate to melt and bring out the oils in the coconut.  It's a bonus that your hands will be moisturized and coconutty when you're done.  I store these in the refrigerator. 

I was truly surprised by how much I liked these.  The coconut flavor really comes through and of course I like the chocolate on top.  My only problem was that even though I doubled the recipe I needed more cookies. 

Creamy Carrot Soup

Sometimes it seems like a good idea to buy a 5 pound bag of carrots.  What a deal!  These carrots look fantastic and I won't run out of them no matter what I decide to cook!  Then, after using  two or three carrots and seeing that I still have about 4 and three fourths pounds of  carrots left, I begin to wonder why I thought it was such a good idea to buy that huge bag.  Here is a recipe that really highlights the sweet flavor of this hearty root vegetable.

This has been a week of gray skies, drizzly rain and slightly cooler temps.   It's been perfect weather to finally use my brand new red Le Crueset french oven and dish up some warming soup.  This creamy carrot soup is simple and delicious with a hint of ginger and coconut milk to finish it off.  Please remember that when you're making such straightforward recipes, it's absolutely important to use quality ingredients. 

Buy some fresh and bright orange looking carrots, not those pale anemic looking prepeeled 'baby' things.  Pick up some fresh ginger in the produce aisle, quality cooking stock, and a can of light coconut milk in the asian foods section.  If you already have an onion and some olive oil, you're ready to go.  Crusty bread with gooey melted cheese rounds this out to a meal.

 

Creamy Carrot Soup

Recipe from Lunch in Paris by Elizabeth Bard

1/3 cup olive oil

2 medium or 1 large onion, diced

2 lbs, or about 5 cups carrots, cut into rounds

1 clove garlic

5 cups chicken or vegetable stock

1 cup light coconut milk or regular milk

1 teaspoon finely grated ginger 

Heat the oil in a big heavy pan, add the onions and saute until translucent and just beginning to caramelize.  This will take about 10 minutes.  Add the garlic and the carrots and stir to coat everything in the olive oil.  Cook, partially covered for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally until the carrots are sweet and tender.

Add the stock and bring up to a simmer.  Add the ginger and the coconut milk.  If you're using regular milk, don't add it until right before you serve it.  Puree the soup either in batches in a blender, or with an immersion blender until it's creamy and lucious. 

The carrots give the soup sweetness while the garlic and ginger make it interesting.  The coconut milk makes it smooth and creamy without using any dairy.  This would be a perfect starter for a nice roast chicken dinner on a cold day.  Now, I'm sure you're all dying to know how this soup was recieved by my hubby and the little pirate.  I'm proud to say that this simple soup is so yummy that they both ate it right up.  The little one used it mainly as a dip for his cheesy bread, but he ate it with no complaints!

Gazpacho

When it's too hot to even consider turning on the stove or the oven (!) there's nothing like a refreshing bowl of cold tomato soup.  There's absolutely no cooking involved and eating it will make you feel as cool as a cucumber.

This recipe is from Andalusia, the southern region of Spain.  It gets just as hot there as it does here in South Carolina, but most homes there do not have air conditioning.  It's no surprise that such a simple and wonderful recipe for scorching summer weather would come from another famously hot climate. 

The hardest part of this recipe is peeling and seeding the tomatoes.  The best way to accomplish this is to blanch them in boiling water for a few seconds and then plunge them into an ice bath.  The skin will slip and slide right off.  I seeded mine over a sieve on top of the blender to save all the flavorful tomato juice.

Gazpacho can be served in a tall glass like a Bloody Mary, or in a bowl with lots of delicious garnishes for a complete summer meal.  There are just tons of variations on this recipe, but the basic ingredients are the same.  You will need ripe tomatoes, cucumbers, onion, garlic, peppers, olive oil and some bread.
Gazpacho

3 pounds ripe tomatoes peeled, seeded and coarsely chopped

2 cucumbers peeled, seeded and coarsely chopped

2 slices white bread, crusts removed

1 small red onion, chopped

3 cloves garlic, minced

2 sweet peppers

6 Tablespoons olive oil

3 Tablespoons red wine vinegar

salt and pepper to taste

Place all the vegetables and the bread in a blender and pulse until it is well combined.  It should be approximately the consistency of a slurpy or milkshake.  Pour the gazpacho into a glass or ceramic bowl and add the oil, vinegar, salt and pepper.  Refrigerate for several hours before serving.  Garnish with chopped cucumber, tomato and croutons.   If you're really hungry you can add some chopped hard boiled egg and bacon on top.

 Because the tomatoes and cukes are peeled, the soup will not have much color, but the taste is lively and bright.  You could vary this recipe in many ways.  I followed this recipe, which I found here, but it's not necessary to measure the ingredients exactly.  Just follow the basic proportions, then adjust it to your liking the next time.

 

Perky Pickles

 
Here are two easy pickle recipes for beginners.  I am new to making pickles, but am quickly developing a pickle problem.  I've made four batches of pickles this week and only stopped because I ran out of jars.  When it's so hot and humid outside that you get sticky with sweat just sitting in the shade, nothing is better than a crunchy, tart and salty pickle.  These two recipes are for refrigerator pickles, so there's no canning involved.  Just assemble the ingredients and enjoy.
I grew cucumbers and fresh dill in my garden.  I think the intense flavor of the dill straight from the summer sunshine makes this simple recipe shine.  All you need is cucumbers, dill, garlic, vinegar, and salt.  Yum.  Vinegar and salt.

Refrigerator Dill Pickles

3/4 cup apple cider vinegar or white distilled vinegar

2 cups water

1 0r 2 cloves garlic

fresh dill or dried dill and seeds

1 tablespoon salt (kosher or pickling salt only)

cracked black pepper

cucumbers - cut into spears, slices, or whole if they are very small (If you buy your cukes at the grocery store, look for UNwaxed.)

Clean and dry 2 glass pint jars or one large quart jar.  You can reuse any glass jar for these recipes since they are refrigerator pickles and don't need to be canned or sealed.  When you're cutting up the cucumbers, cut off the blossom end (one end has the stem, the other usually smaller end is where the flower used to be - the blossom end) because it has an enzyme that can cause limp pickles - yuck!  Put as many cucumbers as you can into the jar(s) along with a clove or two of garlic, some dill and cracked pepper.  You can vary the amount of garlic, dill, and pepper according to your taste.  Place the vinegar and salt in a saucepan and heat to a boil.  Spoon the hot brine over the veggies until the jar is full and the cucumbers are submerged.  Put the lids on and let the pickles cool to room temperature.  Move them to the refrigerator and enjoy after 24 hours.  The inspiration for this recipe came from Urban Preserving.

These pickles crunch and snap with each mouthwatering bite. 

The next recipe is both sweet and sour and comes directly from the White On Rice Couple blog.  They have lots of fantastic recipes so you should click through and see for yourself.   For this recipe you'll need some fresh ginger, sugar, fennel seeds, and of course the vegetables you want to pickle.  Although cucumbers are by far the most common vegetable to be brined, you can pickle just about anything.  This recipe recommends using snap peas or asparagus, but I didn't have any so I used the veggies I had left over from another recipe (yes, another pickle recipe). 

Quick Ginger Pickles

1 clean pint jar or 2 jelly jars

1/3 cup white distilled vinegar

1/2 cup water

zest and juice of 1 lemon

3 or 4 sprigs fresh tarragon or dill

2 Tablespoons sugar

A 1 inch piece of fresh ginger, julienned (cut into very thin matchsticks)

1 teaspoon fennel seeds

1 teaspoon dill seeds ( I didn't have any, so I added extra fresh dill.)

1 teaspoon salt - use kosher or pickling salt

1/2 teaspoon fresh cracked black pepper

pinch red pepper flakes

1/2 pound snap peas, asparagus, cucumbers, or other vegetables

1/2 medium red onion thinly sliced

Combine everything except the veggies and mix well to dissolve the salt and sugar.  I heated the mixture just a bit to get it to dissolve.  Now, scoop out the solids (lemon zest, seeds, dill...) and divide it evenly between your jars.  Next, put your vegetables into the jars and press down a little.  Pour the brine over it all and refrigerate.  Viola!  A lovely sweet and sour and most importantly, very gingery pickle.