Armstrong's Sister City

With March almost over, I was thinking that I best get the March 'Your Country News' column on here before it it time to post the April one lol.

It was fitting during Heritage Week that the museum had a display in their front window that featured Catherine O'Hare Schubert and her birthplace, Rathfriland, Northern Ireland - also Armstrong's Sister City.

I did a little research and it turns out contrary to what many of us believe, not all of Ireland celebrates St. Patrick's Day. But that didn't stop me from doing a little 'research' (okay mostly tasting) so that I could post a few new recipes to enjoy in honor of St.Patrick's Day.

Northern Ireland ( and Rathfriland) is very similar to our community - lots of farmland, livestock, produce and of course - dairy products. Many people swear that Irish Butter is the best worldwide and while I can't say that for a fact, I do know that the Irish cheese I have tasted is very good - almost as good as our local cheese.

Lá Fhéile Pádraig Sona Daoibh! Happy St.Patrick's Day!

Baked Irish Brie with Red Ale Caramel and Pecans
(Recipe from bibliocook.com (great Irish food blog)

3 tbsps. Red Ale (such as Crannog Red Branch Irish Ale)
Freshly ground black pepper
1 individual Cooleney brie, approx 200g (can substitute Terroir Mont Ida)
1/3 c. dark brown sugar
1/4 pecans, toasted and coarsely chopped

Preheat oven to 400°F/200°C

Put the brie in an ovenproof dish and cut a cross into the top of the rind. Put it into the oven and bake for 15-20 minutes until the cheese is soft and runny in the middle. Remove from the oven.

Meanwhile, put the sugar and ale into a heavy based saucepan and melt the sugar over a medium heat. Simmer for 4-5 minutes, until syrupy. Add the pecans and stir well. Add plenty of coarsely ground black pepper and remove from the heat.

Pull the cut rind back from the top of the warm cheese, pour the caramel sauce over and dive in!

Serve warm with warm crusty bread or cheese crackers, thin slices of pear or apple – and teaspoons.

Serves 4 polite people. Or 2 cheese lovers!

Parsnip, Apple & Onion Mash

2 large parsnips
1 tbsp oil
1 medium onion
1 tsp dried parsley
1 large cooking apple
2 tbsp butter
salt and pepper

Peel and chop the parsnips and boil in a saucepan of water until tender enough to mash.

Meanwhile finely chop the onion and soften in a frying pan with 1 tbsp of rapeseed oil and 1 tsp parsley for 10 minutes.

Meanwhile core the cooking apple and cut a groove around its middle through the skin then cook it in the microwave for 1 0r 2 minute blasts at a time until it collapses into a pulp that you easily scrape off the skin (takes 4 to 5 minutes depending on size).

Drain and mash the parsnip with the 2 tbsp butter and the softened onion. Stir in the cooked apple and season with salt and pepper.

Looking for local parsnips? Bellman Specialty Produce has beautiful ones - plus carrots and beets too! Check out the produce section at Askews Foods and don't forget to 'Shop Local First'!

It's February! 

Not only is February the month of love and roses thanks to St.Valentine, but it is also Heart & Stroke Month in Canada.

Did you know that in 2011, more than 66,000 Canadians died from heart disease or stroke. That’s one person every 7 minutes. By adopting some healthy behaviours, we can delay the onset of heart disease or stroke by as much as 14 years.

There are some great tools out there to help you in adopting healthy habits, including a fun new app available on the Heart & Stroke website, in partnership with Desjardins Insurance (thanks Celeste!). Check it out at www.heartandstroke.bc.ca – just look about halfway down the page ’30 Days to a Healthier Heart’.

Part of the healthy habits is healthy eating and I tried a recipe from the Heart & Stroke website that was really good. Not only is it healthy but it is fairly easy on the wallet too! Cabbage is much more affordable than cauliflower – and best of all, the leftovers made a great soup!

Cabbage, Potato & Mustard Roast

• 8 small potatoes, scrubbed and cubed
• 4 carrots (about 1 lb/ 500 g), coarsely chopped
• 2 onions, thinly sliced
• Quarter of a small cabbage (about 1 lb/500 g), coarsely chopped
• 2 tbsp (25 mL) canola oil
• 1/4 cup (50 mL) chopped fresh parsley
• 1 tbsp (15 mL) Italian seasoning
• 1 boneless sirloin tip beef roast, about 3 lb (1.5 kg)
• 2 cloves garlic, slivered
• 2 tbsp (25 mL) Dijon mustard
• 1/4 tsp (1 mL) freshly ground black pepper
• 1 cup (250 mL) sodium reduced beef broth or water

In a roasting pan, combine potatoes, carrots, onions and cabbage. Drizzle with oil and sprinkle with parsley and Italian seasoning. Toss gently to combine; set aside.

Cut little slits all over the roast and tuck slivers of garlic into each. Heat a large non-stick skillet over medium-high heat. Place roast in skillet, until brown all over. Remove roast and pour in broth. Scrape up brown bits and pour broth over vegetables. Combine mustard and pepper and spread all over roast. Place roast onto vegetable mixture. Cover roasting pan with foil

Place roast in preheated 325 F (160 C) oven for about 2 hours or until meat thermometer inserted in centre of roast registers 150 F (65 C) for medium. Remove from oven and let rest for 15 minutes.

Reserve one third of the roast and 4 cups (1 L) of the vegetables for Cabbage and beef goulash (recipe below). Place remaining roast on cutting board and slice thinly. Serve with remaining vegetables.

Cabbage and beef goulash: Chop leftover beef roast into bite-size pieces and place in pot with reserved vegetables. Pour in 3 cups (750 mL) sodium-reduced-beef broth and 1 cup (250 mL) of water with 2 tsp (10 mL) paprika. Stir to combine. Bring to a simmer and cook for about 15 minutes or until heated through. Makes 9 cups (2.25 L).

And don’t forget to educate yourself on the signs of a stroke – getting help sooner means a greater chance of recovery for yourself and those around you. Check out this handy little reminder

Happy February!

Just Peachy!

If you love local food and buying farm-fresh produce, meat and cheese, you know where to go every Saturday - the local Farmers' Market. This past Saturday was no exception and there was so much to choose from.

Fresh melons, garlic, potatoes, bacon, cookies all beckoned me but this week, the peaches looked so tasty and I knew they would be finished soon so I picked up a few thinking I would make a pie or maybe some jam.  I was also out of honey for my tea so picked some up at Armstrong Apiaries.

Then I headed straight to Bella Stella Cheese. The last couple of times Igor has been sold out of yogurt and ricotta by the time I got there – and I wasn’t going home empty handed this week! Thankfully, he still had both – what a treat to be able to buy yogurt made right here with no additives and milk from local dairy cows.

So what to make with peaches, ricotta and yogurt? I like fresh peaches cut into my yogurt but though maybe I should try something new.

So what did I make that turned out to be pretty tasty? A quick and easy recipe to fill my craving for something sweet (but healthy!) and 2 treats to help beat the heat during that heatwave we had.  And good thing I picked up the honey – turned out two recipes called for honey!

Grilled Peaches and Ricotta

2 tbsp unsalted butter, softened

4 peaches, halved and pits removed

1/4 c. honey

1 c. ricotta

Cracked black pepper

Preheat a gas or charcoal grill to medium-high. Spread the butter over each of the peach halves.  Grill the peaches, flat sides down, until warmed through, about 4 minutes. Serve the peach halves with generous spoonfuls of the ricotta in the centers drizzled with the honey and sprinkled with cracked black pepper. How easy was that!

Peach Frozen Yogurt

4 c. peeled, sliced fresh peaches, frozen solid
3 tbsp. honey (or more to taste)
1/2 c. plain yogurt
1 tbsp fresh lemon juice

Add the frozen peaches, honey, yogurt and lemon juice to the bowl of a food processor. Process until creamy (about 5 minutes). Serve the frozen yogurt immediately or transfer it to an airtight container and store it in the freezer for up to 1 month.

Frozen Yogurt Peach Popsicles

3 c. ripe peaches, peeled, pitted, and roughly chopped

1 tbsp. fresh squeezed lemon juice

1/4 c. milk (cow, coconut, almond – whatever you have in the fridge)

1/2 c. plain yogurt

1 tbsp. honey

1/4 tsp vanilla, optional

Reserve 1/4 c. of the peaches. Place remaining peaches, lemon juice, milk, yogurt and honey (vanilla if you are using it) into a food processor or blender and puree until smooth. Return the reserved peach bits to the puree and mix in evenly with a spoon. Pour mixture into popsicle molds leaving 1/2 inch at the top of the mold. Cover and add popsicle sticks. Place in freezer and freeze for at least 4 hours to overnight. To remove from molds just run warm water from the tap over the outside until they come loose.

Enjoy!

Garlic – more than just a  bulb!

A few years ago, Ingrid from the Armstrong Farmers’ Market shared a little secret with me – a really good part of garlic is actually the scape. And that was the day I became a little obsessed with garlic scapes.

What is a scape? Scapes are the shoots that grow out of the ground from hard-neck varieties of garlic. When they're young and tender, they look like curly green stalks with tightly closed buds on top. Farmers and gardeners harvest them at this time of year so that they won't drain nutrients from the garlic bulbs that will be dug up in a couple of months.

That Saturday I left the market with bags (yes – bags!) of garlic scapes and started looking for ways to use and preserve these spring treasures.

I started with something fairly easy that I knew I would use - Garlic Scape Pesto. Who doesn’t love pesto – it puts a bit of sunshine in pasta and soup for a whole dreary winter – and also made a quick appetizer on crostini.

I was also thinking that if you could pickle asparagus or beans – was it possible to pickle scapes? So to the computer I went – and found out that not only was it possible, but Garlic Scape Pickles were pretty tasty.

So, before you run away from the giant pile of them at the farmers' market or snip them from your garlic and plop then in your compost, grab a handful and give one of these recipes a try.

And Ingrid – thanks for the tip J I can hardly wait to replenish my supply of Garlic Scape Pesto!

Garlic Scape Pesto

1/4 cup pine nuts

3/4 cup coarsely chopped garlic scapes

Juice and zest of 1/2 lemon

1/2 teaspoon salt

A few generous grinds of black pepper

1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil

1/4 cup grated Parmigiano Reggiano cheese

In a small, dry pan over very low heat, lightly toast the pine nuts, stirring or tossing until just beginning to brown, about 2-3 minutes. Remove from the heat and let cool.

Combine the scapes, pine nuts, lemon juice and zest, salt, and pepper in the bowl of a food processor fitted with the blade attachment. Pulse until fairly well combined. Pour in the olive oil slowly through the feed tube while the motor is running. 

When the oil is incorporated, transfer the pesto to a bowl and stir in the grated cheese. If you plan to freeze the pesto, wait to add the cheese until after you've defrosted it.

To freeze: put in small freezer containers or freeze in ice cube trays until solid – then transfer to a freezer bag. One of my ice cubes = 1 tbsp. of pesto.

Pickled Garlic Scapes

1 pound garlic spaces (approximately 2-3 bunches)

2 tsp. dill seed

1 tsp. whole black peppercorns

1 1/2 c. apple cider vinegar

1 1/2 c. water

2 tbsp. pickling salt

Trim the ends of the scapes, both the blossom end and the hard bit that formed at the original cut, and cut them into lengths that will fit in your jar. Prepare a small boiling water bath and 2 pint jar. Divide the dill and black peppercorns between the jars then pack the trimmed scapes into the jars.

Combine the vinegar, water and pickling salt in a pot and bring to a boil. Slowly pour the hot brine over the garlic scapes, leaving 1/2 inch headspace. Once the jar is full, tap the jar lightly to dislodge any air bubbles. Check the headspace again and add more brine if necessary.

Wipe the rim, apply the lid and ring, and process in a hot water bath for 10 minutes. Let these pickles cure for at least a month before eating. Enjoy!

May and June are a busy time of year for many people - including our household!

May long weekend is when we put the finishing touches on the garden, set out our planters and enjoy the first fresh garden produce. June is known for many things – the longest day of the year, the last day of school and of course, strawberries! 

For our family, May and June are very busy – Mother’s Day, birthdays and this year not one but two weddings! Katie and Nick were married last Saturday will be married; Megan and Will are counting down the days to June!

My birthday also happens in May and over the years, either Barry has made my cake (yellow cake with chocolate frosting covered with strawberry marshmallow candies lol) or my mom does.

If mom makes the cake, I always know it will be one of two favorites – Pineapple Dream Squares or Strawberry Angel Food. Either one is great for company - perfect for sitting out on the deck and visiting. 

Right now strawberries are at the Farmers’ Market and available at local farms. Pick some up and enjoy them while they are fresh and enjoy them as a garnish for the Pineapple Dream Squares or as the feature ingredient in the cake. Don’t forget to freeze some berries to make the angel food cake anytime!

Pineapple Dream Squares

(recipe from the Women’s Institute of BC cookbook celebrating BC’s Centennial Year)

½ c. butter melted

2 ½  c. graham wafer crumbs

½ c. butter, softened

1 ½ c. icing sugar

2 egg yolks

2 c. cream, whipped

1 ½ c. crushed pineapple, drained

Mix melted butter and crushed graham wafer crumbs together in 8x8-inch baking pan; reserve 2 tablespoons for top of dessert. Spread remaining crumb mixture evenly in pan. Bake at 350F 10-15 minutes; cool.

Mix softened butter, icing sugar and egg yolks together in bowl; mix until smooth and creamy. Spread evenly over cooled crumb base.

Mix together pineapple and whipped cream. Spread over above layer. Sprinkle reserved crumbs on top of dessert.

Refrigerate at least 1/2 hour before serving.

Mom’s Strawberry Angel Food Cake

1 pkg frozen stawberries, thawed 

1pkg unflavoured gelatin (1 tbsp)

3 c. fresh strawberries (for decoration)

¼ c. sugar

2 c. heavy cream, whipped

1 prepared angel food cake (10 inch), cut horizontally in half

Cut angel food cake into 2 layers.

Drain juice from frozen strawberries into small glass dish. Sprinkle gelatin over juice, allow to stand until softened. Set dish into boiling water and stir until gelatin is dissolved. Combine warm gelatin mixture with berries. Do not allow to congeal.

Whip cream until stiff; sweeten to taste. Fold strawberry mixture into cream carefully. Spread strawberry cream over bottom layer of cake. Put top layer on cake and frost entire cake with remaining strawberry cream.

Refrigerate for several hours. Decorate with fresh strawberries either plain or chocolate dipped.

Good times usually involve family, friends and food!

Was cleaning out some more papers from waaaaaay back on the weekend and came across a recipe for 'Baker's Mix-Easy Chocolate Cake'.

I pulled this recipe out of a Canadian Living magazine when I was a newlywed in 1983 and used it many times before it was packed up for a transfer. I thought I had lost it - so happy to have found it again!

This cake was perfect when I got together with Joy for tea and it was there through happy and sad times. Wedding planning, baby announcements or health issues - Joy, tea and this cake made anything better, especially if it was still warm.

Don't believe me that chocolate cake can make things better? Mix this up and share it with a friend or your family and see for yourself!

Enjoy!

Noonan Family Christmas Baking Day!

It is March, but I have been meaning to post some of our Christmas Baking Day recipes and came across them today while cleaning out a cupboard.

For a few years now, Mom, Megan and Katie have gathered at our home early in the morning the first week in December and we have baked non -stop until the last batch comes out of the oven about 6pm.

Here are the recipes for some of the cookies we have made the last few year - it will take more than one post to showcase the yummy recipes we have made. Watch for more soon!

Brown Sugar
Shortbread

 Katie's Brown Sugar Shortbread

1 c. butter, softened

1/2  c.  packed brown sugar

1/2 tsp. apple pie spice or pumpkin pie spice

1/8  tsp. salt

2 1/4 c. all-purpose flour

Nonstick cooking spray

Granulated sugar

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper; set aside.

In a large bowl, beat butter with an electric mixer on medium to high speed for 30 seconds. Add brown sugar, apple pie spice, and salt. Beat until combined, scraping side of bowl occasionally. Gradually beat in as much of the flour as you can with the mixer. Using a wooden spoon, stir in any remaining flour.


Shape dough into 1-inch balls. Place balls 2 inches apart on prepared cookie sheet. Coat the bottom of a cookie stamp with nonstick cooking spray and dip the stamp in granulated sugar. Flatten each ball of dough, imprinting the pattern.


Bake in the preheated oven for 12 to 15 minutes or until lightly browned. Transfer cookies to a wire rack; let cool. Makes about 36 cookies.

Layer cookies between waxed paper in an airtight container; cover. Store at room temperature for up
to 3 days or freeze for up to 3 months.

Toblerone Shortbread (aka Rocky Mountain Shortbread)(original recipe from Canadian Living)

2 c. unsalted butter, softened
1 c. instant dissolving (fruit/berry) sugar
3-1/4 c. flour
1/2 c. rice flour
2 c. coarsely chopped Toblerone chocolate

Beat sugar and butter till fluffy and light coloured. Mix together flours and then add to butter mixture, with wooden spoon mix just until combined. Reserve 60 larger pieces of the toblerone, add remainder to the dough, combine. Drop 1 rounded tsp onto ungreased baking sheet, flatten slightly, press one chunk on each cookie. Bake 325 degrees - 20-25 mins, let cool slightly before lifting off pan.

Store at room temperature for up to one week or freeze for up to 3 months.

Megan's Peppermint Chocolate Fudge

2 c. milk chocolate chips
1 c. semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 (14oz.) can sweetened condensed milk
1/2 tsp. peppermint extract
1/4 c. crushed candy canes
dash salt

LINE 8- or 9-inch square pan with wax paper. MELT chocolate chips with sweetened condensed milk and salt in heavy saucepan over low heat. Remove from heat; stir in peppermint extract. Spread evenly into prepared pan. Sprinkle with peppermint candy. CHILL 2 hours or until firm. Remove from pan by lifting edges of wax paper; peel off paper. Cut into squares. Enjoy!

Chocolate Cherry Biscotti

1/2 c. softened butter
3/4 c. white sugar
3 eggs
2 tsp. almond extract
3 c. all purpose flour
2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 c. chopped candied cherries
1/2 c. mini semi-sweet chocolate chips
1/2 c. chopped white chocolate

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a large cookie sheet.

In a large bowl, cream together butter and sugar until smooth. Beat in eggs one at a time, then stir in almond extract. Combine the flour and baking powder; stir into the creamed mixture until just blended. Mix in cherries and chocolate chips.

Shape dough into two 10 inch long loaves; place rolls 5 inches apart on prepared cookie sheet; flatten to 3 inch wide. Bake for 20 - 25 minutes or until set and light golden brown. Cool for 10 minutes.

Using a serrated knife, cut the loaves diagonally into 1/2 inch slices. Arrange slices cut side down on ungreased cookie sheets. Bake for 8 - 10 minutes or until bottoms begin to brown. Turn and bake an additional 5 minutes or until browned and crisp. Cool completely.

Melt white chocolate, stirring until smooth. Drizzle cookies with melted chocolate. Store in tightly covered container.

Pickles, kuchen and cropping - oh my!

A bit late posting this - but it has been a busy week!

Last weekend was a great time to catch up on a few things - including making a batch (two!) of Maritime Mustard Pickles. I have posted the recipe on here before - but in case you forgot how appealing these pickles are to the eye as well as the taste buds - here is a reminder!

Megan and Will have a plum tree in their yard - and every year, they have lots of plums to give away. Mom usually makes Plum Peachy Jam and does some baking with them - I usually just eat them.

But thanks to a recipe shared by a facebook friend, I thought I would try making a Plum Kuchen. In the past, I have found the cake a bit dry and not really worth the time to make. This one changed my mind! It is moist and delicious - lots of plum flavour plus a nice streusel topping.

Oma's Fruitcake Recipe

(Note from Tammy E: This was my grandma's (Oma's) fruit cake recipe with streusel topping. I have made it with plums, blueberries, and peaches. It is kind of a rough recipe as it was handed down, but it works and it is tasty!)

2 eggs
1/2 cup sugar (or more if you want it sweeter)       
pinch salt
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 cup butter or margarine
2 cups flour
1 tbsp baking powder
1/4 cup milk

Beat all ingredients together. Batter is a little thicker than most cakes. Spread evenly in greased 9 x 13 pan.

Streusel

1/2 cup butter or margarine
3/4 cup sugar
1 cup flour (to make it crumbly)

Mix together until crumbly. Sprinkle on top.

Bake at 350 for 45 minutes or until bubbly around the edges and very light brown on top.

Serve warm or cold. Good with ice cream or a bit of whipped cream.

After all that time in the kitchen, I spent Sunday with my 'scrapsisters' at a crop working on some of my scrapbook projects.

I am currently trying to get caught up with the circle journals that have been patiently waiting on my table - and worked hard to get one done. Like many of us, I have a hard time scrapbooking about myself and there are not many pages about me in our albums. I was happy with how this turned out - I even made a copy to put in our album.

 

Now if I can get a few more of those unfinished tasks on my fall to-do list done this weekend...

 

 





 

What to do with 27 Cups of Chopped Rhubarb

A sure sign of spring is rhubarb poking its red heads through the soil and then unfurling green leaves, slender stalks made into rhubarb pie or stewed rhubarb. It’s the first crop of the  new growing season, but it is also a great crop t harvest when the weather cools down and fall brings a bit more rain.

I picked all my rhubarb again yesterday - and came inside with a lot of it! So picked out a couple of recipes - two tried and true (family and friends) and one new one from the Company's Coming preserving cookbook.

27 cups of chopped rhubarb later, this is what I ended up with -  jam and chutney to brighten up the winter months and a dessert to take to a potluck supper tonight.

 

Easy Rhubarb Ginger Jam

 

15 cups fresh rhubarb, chopped

5 1/2 cups granulated sugar

1/2 c. finely chopped candied ginger (more if you wish - I used 3/4c.)

1 pkg. (170g).  Strawberry flavoured gelatin 

 

In a large, non reactive pan, boil the rhubarb and the sugar for 20 minutes, stirring often to avoid sticking and burning.

 

Remove mixture from heat, and stir in the gelatin powder, mixing thoroughly until totally combined.

 

Pour the jam into hot sterilized jars and process.

 

Rhubarb Chutney

(Recipe adapted from Company's Coming Preserves)

  

8 cups chopped rhubarb                                           

2 c. cider vinegar 

4 c. light brown sugar

2 c. golden raisins

2 c. dried cranberries

1 c. chopped dates

2 c. finely chopped onions

1/2 teaspoon  table salt

1 tbsp. fresh grated ginger 

1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper

1 tablespoon mustard seeds

1 cinnamon stick, broken up

1 teaspoon whole cloves

 

Mix first 9 ingredients in a large heavy pot. Tie mustard seed, cinnamon stick and cloves in a double layer of cheesecloth. Add to pot.

 

Heat on medium, stirring often as it comes to a boil and sugar dissolves. Simmer, uncovered, for about 40 minutes until thickened, stirring occasionally. Discard spice bag.

 

Fill hot sterilized pint jars to within 1/2 inch of top. Place sterilized metal lids on jars and screw metal bands securely. Process for 5 minutes in a boiling water bath.

 

Enjoy with cheese, in a sandwich, with pork or ham - or just from the jar!

Rhubarb Crunch

 

4 cups rhubarb, chopped

1 1/4 cup all-purpose flour

1 cup oats ( I use Rogers Cereal Oats)

1 1/4 cup light brown sugar, packed

1/2 cup melted butter
1 tbsp. ground flaxseed

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 tsp. nutmeg

 

Chop rhubarb and set aside. Mix together the flour, oats, cinnamon, brown sugar and melted butter. Press one-half of crumb mixture into a buttered 9"x11" baking dish.

 

Filling:

 

1 cup granulated sugar

2 tablespoons cornstarch

1 cup cold water

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

 

Whisk sugar, cornstarch and water together in a glass bowl.

 

Cook until thick, clear, and bubbly. Remove from microwave and whisk in vanilla.  Sprinkle chopped rhubarb on top pressed-in crumb mixture in the baking dish.

 

Pour sauce evenly over rhubarb.  

 

Top with remaining crumb mixture.

 

Bake at 350 degrees until edges are bubbling and crumb topping is browned, about 30-40 minutes. 

 

Enjoy!

 

 

 



Tried something new this week...

Mom and Dad have beautiful green grapes - and this year it seems like a bumper crop. We have enjoyed eating them but with Barry working, it seems like we can't keep up.

So what to do with some extra green grapes? I thought about grape jelly - but green grapes would make a clear jelly - not really what I would like on my toast.

Green grape jam? Marmalade? None of the recipes I found in my cookbooks or online really appealed to me until I found a recipe in one of my favorite cookbooks 'The Complete Book of Small-Batch Preserving' by Ellie Toop and Margaret Howard.

They had a recipe for Sherried Rosemary Grape Juice Jelly. I had the grapes to make juice with. I had the rosemary (mine is doing well this year). Pectin - check. Sugar - check. Sherry - nope.

Thought about it for a bit - maybe I could substitute the Sherry with something else. Checked out the cupboard and found a bottle (barely touched!) of Vermouth - and so a new recipe was born!

Green Grape Jelly with Vermouth and Rosemary

Ingredients:
1 cup (250 mL) dry sherry
1 cup (250 mL) white grape juice
1/4 cup (50 mL) strained lemon juice
3 1/2 cups (875 mL) granulated sugar
1 pouch liquid fruit pectin
1 stem fresh rosemary, thyme or other fresh herbs


Directions:

Place sherry, grape juice, lemon juice and sugar in a large stainless steel or enamel saucepan.

 Bring to a boil over high heat and boil hard for 1 minute, stirring constantly.

Remove from heat and stir in pectin.

Place one or two rosemary sprigs in each jar - depending on how much you like rosemary.

Ladle jelly into jars. Place lids and rings on jars. Process. Store in cool dry place.

Made 9 500ml jars.

Great as a glaze with lamb or pork or serve with a good cheese. Enjoy!

It has been a long time...

Just realized that it has been over a year since I posted anything on here. It isn't that I haven't done anything that matters in our home, just haven't made time to blog about it. I am going to try to blog at least monthly - after all, the reason for this blog was to leave a journal of sorts of our family - what we eat mostly :) But other things too - like what we do when we are together and what we do to make our house a home :)

So, it is September and that usually means harvesting and preserving. This year, the deer quite enjoyed most of my garden. Thankfully, mom didn't have deer and had lots to share - especially cucumbers for pickles.

Bread and Butter Pickles
(Recipe from the BC Women's Institute Centennial Cookbook 1958 - Granny had this one marked!)

3 or 4 medium cucumbers
1 large onion
2 tbsp. pickling (coarse) salt
1 c. cider vinegar
1 tsp. celery seed
1 tsp. mustard seed
1 c. sugar
1/2 tsp. turmeric

Slice cucumbers and onions. Place in glass or plastic bowl, sprinkle with salt and stir. Let stand for several hours, then drain well. Rinse and drain again.

In a large pot, heat vinegar, celery and mustard seed, sugar and turmeric to boiling. Add cucumbers and onions and heat through. Pack into sterilized jars and seal.

Makes 3 - 16oz. jars

Sweet Treats!

Summer has arrived and that means potlucks and visitors. I have some favorite 'go-to' recipes but always like to try something new, especially if I can use fresh fruit.

I was looking for a new recipe to use some of our raspberries for a potluck dessert and came upon a recipe  for 'Raspberry Pretzel Salad'.

I remember having a Raspberry Pretzel 'Salad' either when I lived in Utah or visited family in Idaho and Utah. Can't quite remember where or when - but I do remember how good it was. While I know this kind of salad is quite common among our Mormon family members, serving this as a salad seems odd in Canada!

I was excited to find the recipe and it was a big hit at our potluck supper. I took a couple of different recipes and combined them - and used whipped cream instead of cool whip - if I am splurging - it better be real whipped cream! Enjoy!

Raspberry Pretzel Dessert

Crust:

• 1 ½ cups crushed pretzels
• ½ cup sugar
• ½ cup butter, melted

Press into 9X13 inch pan and bake at 325 for 5 -6 minutes. Cool.

 Middle Layer:

• 8 oz pkg. cream cheese, softened
• ½ c sugar
• 3 cups whipped cream (measure after whipping about 1 500ml carton)

Cream together cream cheese and sugar. Then add whipped cream. Spread on top of cooled crust.

Top layer:

• 6 oz pkg. raspberry jello
• 2 cups boiling water
• 3 cups fresh raspberries

Pour boiling water into jello and stir until dissolved. Add raspberries and mix well. Place in refrigerator until it is thickened. Then pour on top of middle layer. Refrigerate until firmly set.

Summer is finally here!

I was making supper tonight and was thinking that one of the things I like best about summer is that we can eat outside on our deck. Not to mention all the fresh vegies and the smell of the BBQ. I guess that is three things I really like about summer.

I love sitting on our deck, enjoying dinner and taking in the neighbourhood - the kids on their bikes, neighbours walking their dogs and the smell of other BBQs.

I made two new salads this week - the soba noodle salad was leftover from Tuesday and tonight I made a radish salad - thankfully Robb and Brenda had an excess of radishes they were willing to share!

Here is the recipe for the noodle salad - I found a few on the web - but they all had something Barry didn't like, so I combined a few recipes and tweaked it a bit to get a salad both Barry and I would enjoy (and he did except he said less vinegar next time )

Ingredients

• 1/4 cup rice-wine vinegar
• 1 teaspoon grated peeled fresh ginger
• 2 teaspoons soy sauce
• 2 teaspoons freshly squeezed lime juice
• 4 tablespoons safflower oil
• 1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil
• Coarse salt and freshly ground pepper
• 12 ounces soba noodles
• 1 english cucumber, peeled and julienned
• 1 medium carrot, julienned
• 3green onions, thinly sliced on the bias

                                     

Directions

1. In a small bowl, mix together vinegar, ginger, soya sauce and lime juice. Slowly whisk in oils until well combined; season with salt and pepper. Set dressing aside.
2. Fill a medium pot of water and bring to a boil over high heat. Add noodles and cook according to the package directions, until al dente, 4 to 5 minutes. Drain and rinse with cold water.
3. Transfer noodles to a large bowl and add cucumber, carrot and green onions. Season with salt and pepper; toss to combine.
4. Drizzle with dressing; you may not need to use all the dressing.

Radish Salad

3 bunches of large radishes, scrubbed, trimmed and very thinly sliced (about 2 cups)

2 - 3 tbsp lemon juice

2 Tbsp olive oil, or more to taste

a generous pinch of coarse salt

Drizzle lemon over the radishes, then add the olive oil and a pinch of the salt. Toss, taste, and adjust.

Let the salad sit at room temperature for about 20 minutes. The radishes will give off some liquid, which will combine with the lemon juice and oil to make the dressing (note: the dressing is a pretty pink).

 Looking forward to trying some other new recipes - now the sun is here, we should have lots of fresh vegies to eat.

Man's Best Friend ...

Or in our case, our family's best friend - our daschund, Mikey. Today was a hard day for our family - over the weekend, Mikey let us know that he was getting tired after almost 17 years as a member of our family and tonight we are experiencing our first night with no little buddy hogging the couch or needing to go out.

Mikey as a puppy

I have had a dog since I was 5 or 6 years old and for Megan and Katie, they have never known a time when we didn't have a dog. Barry didn't have one growing up - but when he married me, he didn't just get a spouse, he got a dog too.

Since then we have had several dogs - Piute, Tim-Bit and then Mikey. Barry often referred to him as 'his son' since we didn't have any boys and Mikey evened the score slightly in a family of mostly girls.

Mikey was the runt of his litter - and when Tim-Bit died leaving a litter of puppies, we had to take care of them all - and had a special attachment to the littlest one - Mikey.

Katie bottle feeding Mikey

He needed to be bottle fed - which we all took turns doing. And he always seemed to need a little extra cuddling - and even started pawing at my neck to comfort himself. This continued throughout his life - always needing a little extra attention!

He was a character - he put up with being dressed in festive holiday attire on more than one occassion and even had a little leather harley hat. He was always active - scaling the rocks or jumping off of them - and always with more than one ball close at hand.

He could sit up on his haunches longer than any of our other dogs and he had more nicknames than most - mogoat, Sir Farts Alot, little buddy, boo boo kitten, little pisser to name a few.

He loved to play - we could throw the ball for hours and in the winter, he loved to play the 'artic fox' game with Barry with the towel. Not sure who had more fun playing - Barry or Mikey!

Barry and Mikey playing the 'artic fox' game

Barry would try to sneak his ball and Mikey would guard it - and when the day was over, if Barry picked him up to take him downstairs, Mikey would always growl in fun - he never did that for me.

For me, I will miss him in the garden - he was my garden buddy - digging and rolling in the grass - spending the day outside with me and as he got older, he was content to have a nap while I worked. He was always happy to see me after work - whose day wouldn't get better after that. And he always knew when I came home - no matter how late. I think he heard the garage door opener.

Mikey December 2011 - Photo by Meg

So little buddy - it is with sad hearts we said goodbye to you - but we have to remember and say thank you for the almost 17 years of memories you left us. So many good times - won't look at my hollyhocks without thinking of you 'chopping' them down because they had your ball.

Bye buddy...you helped make our house a home.