snap pea pasta

Too many snap peas in the garden, everything is better with pasta!

Ingredients

• Butter with Olive Oil & Sea Salt
• Sugar Snap Peas
• Garlic Cloves
• Shallot
• Red Pepper Flakes
• Salt & Pepper
• Pecorino Romano Cheese
• Lemon
• Casarecce Pasta

Instructions 

Melt the butter/oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the snap peas, garlic, shallot and red pepper flakes; sauté for 4-5 minutes. Once the garlic is fragrant and the snap peas are lightly sautéed turn off the heat and add the cheese, lemon juice, lemon zest, salt and pepper.

zucchini muffins

 Last year when I had too much zucchini, I shredded and froze it.  Trying to empty out last year's crops I decided to make these zucchini muffins. They're pretty tasty and used up some other things I had on hand and needed to use up.  I double batched them and will freeze most, for a healthy-ish snack. 

Ingredients 

• ¾ cup roughly chopped raw walnuts or pecans or hazelnuts
  
• ⅓ cup melted coconut oil or other oil
  
• ½ cup honey or maple syrup
• 2 eggs
• ⅔ cup buttermilk (or ⅔ cup milk of choice mixed with 2 teaspoons vinegar, allow to rest for 5 minutes before using) - I used mostly yogurt topped up with milk
  
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1 ¾ cups whole wheat flour
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• ½ teaspoon baking soda
• ½ teaspoon fine sea salt
• ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1 ½ cups grated zucchini (squeeze out extra moisture)

Instructions

Heat oven to 400 degrees.  Chop and toast nuts for 4-5 minutes.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the oil and honey; add eggs.  Then add milk and vanilla. 

In a larger bowl combine flour, spices, leavening.  Add in the liquid ingredients just until mixed (do not overmix), then add in the zucchini and nuts.

Makes 12 muffins. 

raspberry jam (no pectin)

 Just made a batch of raspberry jam from the berries picked yesterday, and it seems fabulous so far.  

Ingredients

• 3 pounds raspberries (48 oz)
  
• 3 cups sugar (21 oz)
  
• 3 T lemon juice

Process

 Get fresh raspberries and clean them (rinse under gentle stream of tepid water, put on towels to dry).  Put raspberries and sugar into a large pot, stir, leave to macerate (I put into the fridge if macerating more than a couple of hours). 

The next day, take pot out.  When ready to begin, turn heat to low-medium and let them slowly heat up, stirring occasionally.  Once there's some bubbling, crank the heat to higher until a full rolling boil for 2-3 minutes and add the lemon juice.  Put the heat back down to just warmer than simmering, stirring regularly, for about 20 minutes.  The color will deepen and texture will become more gel.  There are heaps of tests to use like freezer plate, temperature, etc., but those never quite work for me. 

While this is happening, sterilize jars and warm up lids.  When ready, fill jars to 1/4" and water bath or steam can for 10 minutes out of abundance of caution.  Shelf stable for at least a couple of years, refrigerate once open.  

Yield: 8 + 8 + 6 + 13 + 13 = 48 oz (6 jelly jars, but I reused some Bonne Maman jars and one jelly jar didn't quite fill).

strawberry jam

 This is what I'm working on now, will report back.

Clean and sterilize jars.  Clean and warm lids on stovetop.  This batch made about 5.5 cups (four jelly jars and a tall jelly jar) which is less than I expected, but more hot strawberry sugar would have hit me if I tried to double.) 

Clean strawberries.  Soak in vinegar water (maybe 1/4 cup per gallon of water) for 10 minutes, rinse and drain.  Lay out on towels to dry.

• 3 pounds strawberries (some less ripe strawberries in the mix for natural pectin is good)
  
• 3 cups sugar
• 1/4 cup lemon juice

Put cleaned strawberries into large pan and stir in sugar.  Allow to macerate overnight.  Pull out to warm to room temperature and stir.  Allow sugar to full dissolve.

Heat mixture then add lemon juice.  Bring to boil.

Bring to 220 degrees and hold for 10 minutes.  (Note:  I never get it to 220.  Once I get to full rolling boil, go 20 more minutes.) 

Allow to sit about 10 minutes for fruit to be dispersed.  Put into sterilized jars.

Optional: 10 minute water bath.  

Note: it can take time (a day or more) for the jam to thicken up.  If it doesn't thicken, it can be syrup or it can be reprocessed. 

moros y cristianos, sort of

 This brown rice version of moros y cristianos was really flavorful.  It makes enough for four solid meals, so doubling the key ingredients would make enough to share and still have sufficient leftovers.

• 1 cup short grain brown rice - follow instruction to cook (mine is 1.75 cup water to 1 cup rice, rinse rice, bring to a boil, simmer for 50 minutes, let it sit another 10 minutes with heat off)
• 2 jars black beans
• 1 onion
• 1 poblano pepper
• 4 cloves garlic
• 1 T cumin
• 1 tsp thyme
• 1 tsp Mexican oregano
• 1/2 tsp turmeric
• 1/2 tsp chili peppers
• 1/2 tsp smoked paprika
• 15-28 oz diced tomatoes 
• 1-2 bay leaves
• 2 Tbsp apple cider vinegr 
  
• salt and pepper 
  

Dice onion and pepper, saute in olive oil until onions is translucent.  Add garlic and cook until aromatic.  Add spices.  Then add tomatoes and black beans (drained is easier, or it's soupy).  Cook 10+ minutes to cook together.  Once to the right consistency, add the rice and cook together. 

tofu information

This is helpful about pressing and baking tofu.

carrot and apple muffins

 These carrot and apple muffins would probably also be great with zucchini or other vegetables/fruits.

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup nuts or dried fruit
• 1/4 cup (coconut) oil
• 1 1/4 cups (white) whole wheat flour
• 1 cup old fashioned rolled oats
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon  ground cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
• 3/4 cup grated carrot (about 1 large carrot)
• 3/4 cup grated apple (1 small apple will be more than enough; no need to peel it)
• 2 large eggs at room temperature
• 1/2 cup plain yogurt at room temperature
• 1/3 cup honey or maple syrup
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract

 

Instructions

- Heat oven to 350 degrees F. Line 12 baking cups with paper liners or lightly coat with nonstick spray. Set aside. If using nuts for the mix-ins, toast them in the oven now: Spread the nuts into an even layer on an ungreased baking sheet. Bake at 350 degrees F for 8 to 12 minutes (for pecan or walnut halves), until they are lightly browned and fragrant. Transfer the nuts immediately to a cutting board; roughly chop and set aside. 

- If using coconut oil: Place the coconut oil in a medium microwave-safe bowl. Heat in the microwave just until melted (about 30 seconds on high). Set aside to cool to room temperature.

- In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, oats, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, and salt. Add the grated carrot and apple and fold to combine.

- To the bowl with the oil, add the eggs, Greek yogurt, honey, and vanilla. Whisk until smooth. If the coconut oil resolidifies, warm it in the microwave in 15-second bursts, and stop as soon as you can stir the mixture back together. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients, and stir gently until just combined. Do not overmix. Fold in the nuts or any other mix-ins.

- Divide the batter evenly among the 12 muffin cups. Bake for 18 to 22 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center of a muffin comes out clean.  Place the pan on a wire rack and let the muffins cool in the pan for 4 minutes. Gently transfer the muffins to the rack to finish cooling completely.