Month: July 2014

Cabbage, Apple, Walnut and Carrot Salad

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I am absolutely in my glory with all of the wonderful, local produce in season. We don’t have the need to go to the grocery store as much this time of year, which I love.  We have found other sources or our produce, eggs, cheese, meat, etc.  Our CSA, garden and farmers markets provide most of what we need.   This is a very simple salad that is a go to for lunches and or a quick snack.  This is another adaptation from the book, The Family Cooks by Laurie David.  The cookbook has a wonderful apple, walnut and carrot salad and I added the cabbage. Sometimes I add kale or goat cheese.  We got some cabbage in our CSA and it is so plentiful and cheap this time of year.  I used Savoy cabbage, which is more tender and less “rubbery” than green cabbage.  It is has a milder, sweeter taste as well.

cabbage saladIngredients:

Walnuts, roughly chopped

Carrots, grated (if you buy organic, no need to peel)

Apples, peeled and chopped

Savoy Cabbage, chopped

Juice of 1 lemon

Salt to taste

To make things really easy, I just use equal parts of the walnuts, carrots, apples, cabbage and then add the lemon juice and salt.  If you have time, toast the walnuts the oven (350 degrees for 7-10 min) or in a skillet.  I just used raw walnuts here, and like the taste that way.  This salad will last for several days refrigerated.  Place in jars for a great lunch on the go! Enjoy!

Sausage, broccoli, egg bake with sweet potato crust

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On these hot summer days, the last thing I want to do is spend hours in the kitchen. This is another very easy weeknight dinner in a pinch. You can use up whatever veggies you have on hand, add fresh herbs and it is packed full of nutrients! I got the basic recipe from another one of my favorite cookbooks, “Against all Grain” by Danielle Walker and added my spin to it.  I added broccoli, but spinach, swiss chard or arugula would work great or add tomatoes, peppers or mushrooms, the variations are endless! Keep this recipe in your back pocket when you don’t know what to make for dinner or for a tasty breakfast.

egg bake 2

Ingredients

1 sweet potato, peeled and sliced very thin

1/2 lb cooked sausage

1 cup chopped broccoli

1 tsp of fresh herbs (I used rosemary and thyme)

8-10 eggs

3 tablespoons milk of choice (I used almond milk)

1/4 cup shredded cheese (optional)

Salt and Pepper to taste

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Place the sliced sweet potato in the bottom of a greased pie plate or small oven safe skillet so they cover the bottom of the pan. Spread the cooked sausage, broccoli or other toppings. Sprinkle in the fresh herbs. Whisk the eggs, milk and salt and pepper and pour into the dish. Add shredded cheese if desired. Bake for 25 to 30 min.

 

 

Maple mocha iced coffee with homemade almond milk

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I love coffee! And every year when it’s starts to get warm, it seems like there is a switch that makes me crave iced coffee over warm coffee. There is nothing more refreshing then a good iced coffee on a warm day.  But watered down iced coffee is no good. This coffee is concentrated and keeps it’s taste when ice is added. You can make a big batch and keep it in the fridge for days.

Iced Coffee

Ingredients

1/2 lb of your favorite coffee, ground

1 gallon of water

Mix the coffee and water in a large container and let it sit on the counter overnight or at least 8 hours. Using a fine mesh sieve and cheese cloth (or I have used a coffee filter on the sieve) strain coffee grounds from the mixture. What’s left is a lovely coffee concentrate. Chill the coffee then enjoy over ice and your favorite add in.  I added homemade almond milk and a tsp of cocoa and a 1/2 tsp to 1 tsp maple syrup. Here’s how I make the almond milk. There’s different variations of the basic process to make almond milk, but I use the recipe from the cookbook “Against all Grain” by Danielle Walker.

Almond Milk

Ingredients

1 cup raw almonds

8 cups of water

Sea salt

1 small date

imageimageSoak the almonds and a pinch of sea salt in water overnight. Drain the nuts and rinse. Place almonds and date in blender with 4 cups of water.  Purée until smooth. Strain the milk through a fine mesh sieve and cheese cloth. Squeeze to remove all the liquid. Store in refrigerator for up to 5 days.  Save the pulp and use in your baking. I’ll be posting a berry cobbler recipe soon where I used the almond pulp. image