Handmade Mom

Homemade pizza...

We bought a pizza dough the other day and made some pizza.  The boys loved it!  They especially loved eating the toppings while making the pizza.

Storing away vegetables...

 

We have a lot of veggies this week from our CSA farm and I'm needed to freeze and store a lot today.  I keep having to look up times times for different vegetables so I thought I'd post the info here for a quick reference.  I learned you blanch before you freeze to get rid of enzymes and bacteria.

Freezing green beans:  Trim ends, cut up, and wash.  Blanch for 3 min. in boiling water.  Transfer to ice water for 3 minutes.  Drain and store in freezer bags.  Suck air out of bags.

Freezing ears of corn: Remove husks and silk.  Blanch smaller sweet corn ears for 7 minutes.  Soak in ice water for 7 minutes.  Store in freezer bags.

It was too much work to peel and blanch the Japanese eggplant.  They were so mushy after blanching.

 

2012, Broccoli Soup and Beer Bread

2012 feels good.  I feel in less control, I feel calmer, and I feel present.  I feel like finally listening to myself.  When my body is tired, I'll rest.  Giving myself and others permission to do as they please, instead of always wishing someone would be kinder or eat healthier.  Being more open and accepting.  Yes, open and flowing.  Just letting things go and letting things happen.  So today, I felt like making soup.  I don't usually have this overwhelming need to cook after working all day, but today I really wanted to make soup.  I remembered a broccoli soup recipe from Soulemama and i had broccoli in the fridge so broccoli soup it is.  Lance played with the boys outside while I cut up the veggies and made a quick batch of beer bread.  It was very satisfying to see all those veggies combined and prepared to provide nourishment.  What is great about this meal is that it takes the same amount of time for the bread to bake and the soup to cook.  I cleaned up the kitchen and checked my emails while everything cooked.

Broccoli Soup:

2 crowns broccoli, cut into chunks

 2 leeks, sliced

red onion, cut into chunks

4 medium red potatoes, cut into chunks

water

salt and pepper

heavy cream or sour cream (optional)

Put all veggies in a large soup pot.  Add water until veggies are just covered.  Add a few teaspoons of salt and pepper.  Bring to a boil.  Simmer for 45 minutes until broccoli and potatoes are soft.  Use hand blender to puree soup directly in soup pot.   If you want to add cream, we add about a TBS. to each bowl, but it is not necessary.  Soup is thinner than you expect, but delicious.

 

Beer Bread

3 cups self-rising flour

3 TBS. sugar

1 can of warm beer (I microwave the cheap stuff)

 

Preheat oven to 375.  Mix ingredients with a spoon and put into a well greased,  (I use butter), ceramic bread bowl.  Bake for 45 minutes.

Homemade Ranch...

 
 
 
This is how I make it:

6-8 oz. plain, low-fat yogurt

1/4 cup Mayo, (feel free to substitute more yogurt, I prefer the taste with a little fat added)

2 tbs.  Coarse ground mustard, (dijon or any kind really works)

1 tbs.  Worcestershire Sauce

1-2 tbs.  fresh lemon juice

1 clove garlic, minced

Fresh ground pepper

Put the above ingredients in 16 oz. wide mouth mason jar and stir until well mixed.  It is especially good with lettuce straight from the garden. It also makes a great dip for cucumbers.  Delicious!

I never make it the same way twice.  This is the first time I actually measured everything and it was a good batch. You really can't mess it up.  Sometimes I add fresh dill, other times chives.  Sometimes I add more lemon juice and other times I skip the garlic.   I've even thinned it out with some milk if you prefer a runnier dressing.

5 Bunches of Kale

We went to the farmers market today.  Picked up some eggs, locally raised pork chops, and five bunches of Kale.  I washed it, dried it and stuffed it into 5 zip lock freezer bags, and put it into the freezer.  Now I have some easy greens to add to the family's daily green smoothie.  Okay, almost daily, green smoothie.  Frozen kale is really crunchy and breaks apart easily so I just break some off and put it in the blender with other frozen and fresh fruit, a little honey, and some juice or water.  We call it green juice.  I've brainwashed the kids to think it is delicious, but it really doesn't taste bad.  I've even gotten the husband to enjoy them! 

This is why we drink them:  The Wonders of Green Smoothies.  I also have to give credit to my sister, Jenny,  who drank smoothies long before I did and my friend, Amy, whose eating habits are what we strive for, but hardly ever reach.  I love you both!