Saturday Morning Sleep-In



Yesterday was 40 degrees and rainy all day, not normal weather for a Minnesota January.  Today we woke to 14 degrees and a world of ice.  That is typical Minnesota weather!  We were going to go for a long walk at the University Arboretum.  We were going to take the kids snowtubing with friends this afternoon.  But it's a treacherous walk just getting down the driveway for the paper. 

We slept in. We're staying in, having coffee, cocoa, and easy sopapillas (picture above, recipe below).  If we feel ambitious later, we may walk up to the local hardware store as I continually forget to put "lightbulbs" on my shopping list (with all these lamps, you'd think I'd remember lightbulbs!) and we've come to the point of moving a lightbulb from a lamp in one room to a lamp in another.  That's pretty bad.  So, maybe we'll walk to the hardware store and buy lightbulbs.

For our "Mom" bookclub, we're reading The Flight of Gemma Hardy (a modern day Jane Eyre), as well as the original Charlotte Bronte's Jane Eyre, and I'm am thoroughly enjoying the experience.  I can't wait for the meeting and the time spent with friends, discussing/comparing these two books.  I read Jane Eyre years ago so, this go 'round, I read Gemma Hardy first and am now rereading Jane Eyre.  I think today is a day to spend in a chair by the fire with my book.

Sopapillas

Thaw Time: 40 minutes

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Bake Time: 15 minutes

Ingredients

½ of a 17.3-ounce package Pepperidge Farm Puff Pastry Sheets (1 sheet), thawed

¾ cup sugar

1 Tbsp ground cinnamon

Directions

Heat the oven to 400 degrees F.  Unfold the pastry sheet on a lightly floured surface.  Cut the pastry sheet into 25 (2-inch) squares.  Place the sugar and cinnamon into a paper bag (or glass container w/tight lid) and shake to combine.

Bake pastries for 15 minutes or until golden brown.  Add the hot pastries in batches to the sugar mix and shake until coated. 

Soup's On

My brother and his wife host our entire extended family for Christmas Eve dinner - anywhere from 30-50 people, depending on the year and who has come home from out of state.  I have always celebrated Christmas Eve with my cousins - originally at my Grandparents's farmhouse, then for many many years at my Aunt and Uncle's, and now, more recently, at my brother's house.  In days of old, we had lavash spreads with ham and turkey and meatballs and potatoes and rice and various salads and fruit trays.  Days and days were spent simply preparing food.  It was wonderful, don't get me wrong, but lately we've been trying something different.  The past few years have found fewer people in the kitchen during the evening and more of us sitting around playing games and visiting.  We've gone to a soup and salad dinner.  My sister-in-law  sets beautiful tables with white cloths, crystal glassware, silverware, plates and bowls.  My brother makes red chili.  My mom makes MN chicken wild rice soup.  And I bring a pot of split pea w/ham.  There's a green salad and breadsticks on each table and everyone can help themselves to the soup of their choice.  We have so many other holiday gatherings with all the wonderfully rich food - it feels good to have this comforting interlude.
I can never have too much soup.  So, even though we had all these wonderful selections only a few days ago, I've been craving my favorite recipe.  So, yesterday I made the Spiced Spinach Lentil Soup pictured above.  Here's the recipe:

Spiced Spinach Lentil Soup ½ pound ground Italian sausage ½ cup diced onion 1/3 cup barley 3 garlic cloves, minced 1 cup lentils 1 whole chicken breast (uncooked) ½ cup parsley, chopped 1 ca (15 oz.) garbanzo beans with juice ½ to 1 pound fresh or frozen spinach 1 jar (12 oz) mild or medium salsa Brown sausage, onion, barley and garlic in a skillet.  Transfer to a slow cooker or large stock pot.  Add the chicken stock, lentils, chicken breast and parsley.  Simmer for as long as you desire or until lentils are tender.  Remove chicken breast, discarding bone and cartilage.  Shred meat and return to soup.  Add beans, spinach and salsa; heat through. (Instead of canned stock and chicken breast… I boil a whole chicken with a sliced onion and a few bay leaves until meat falls easily away from the bone.  Pour chicken and liquid through strain, saving the liquid to use as stock.  Discard onion, bay leaves, chicken ski, bones, and cartilage.  Shred meat and continue with recipe. )

December MN Beer of the Month

For December, our MN Beer of the Month selections are from Lake Superior Brewing Company:

I was told, by the guy at the register, that Old Man Winter Warmer is unique, as a beer, in that it improves with age.  You can keep in in your fridge for a few years, letting it "age".   Hmmm.  I only bought a 6 pack so, that's probably not gonna happen but...I'm curious. 

What Do You Call This (in WI)? and Beer

We have two MN Beer of the Month selections for November.  The plan was for this to be a "field trip" tap room/brewhouse/taste testing month but...where did the month go?  Yikes!  Will do later - promise.

The first selection is from Liftbridge Brewery in Stillwater, MN.  One of my brothers went to college with one of the guys who run this brewery so it is a pick with a special connection and one that we've tried before (and continue to enjoy).  Great selection for this gift.

Our second selection is from Cold Spring Brewery, which is in Cold Spring, MN, which is almost right next door to St. John's University, which is the college my above mentioned brother attended.  There is an abbey on campus and one of Cold Spring's beers is the Olde Johnnie Abbey Amber Ale.  According to their website, it's a recipe the monks brought over from Germany in 1857.  Must be good!

Speaking of beer... and college...there were these bars I used to get in the coffee shop during college.  They were peanut buttery rice krispie bars with chocolate/peanut butter frosting.  My sister-in-law taught me the recipe but I can't for the life of me remember what they're called.  It was something with a girl's name in it...like a Lazy Lizzy or a Messy Sally or something like that.  Ring a bell to anyone?  Also, this was in Milwaukee so...Wisconsin.  So, what do they call these?  It's driving me crazy.

Save It, Freeze It

My fridge needs to be cleaned out.  The stuff (veggies) in my veggie drawer is frozen.  I've been told that happens when you have your fridge too full and air can't circulate.  The full fridge isn't a bad problem, I'm grateful for such a problem, but the veggies freezing isn't what I want to happen.  So, I chopped up the onion and red pepper, put them in freezer bags and into the freezer (where it's okay to freeze).  Now, when we make something like scrambled eggs, we just break off a chunk of onion and a bit of red pepper and saute it in the pan.  Actually, I find that we toss more veggies into our food because they're already chopped.
Also, the last time I bought oranges was a bust.  When I washed them, and cut into them, they were juicy and smelled great but...they had NO flavor.  How can that be?  I had a whole bag of them.  So...I quartered them, put them on a cookie sheet in the freezer so they could freeze individually, then dumped them into a freezer bag.  Now I stick one in the garbage disposal to freshen it up or I simmer it on the stove with some apple juice, a cinnamon stick, and a few cloves - makes the house smell so good.

Pheasant Ravioli & Kitchen Gadgets No. 1

Do any of you have cupboards full of kitchen gadgets that you sorta forget you have OR they are so far back in the cupboard that you wonder if its really worth dragging out and ultimately decide that it's not?  Well, I do so I'm making a new "column" in this blog for "kitchen gadgets".  It will make me pull these things out of the cupboard, use them, take a picture of the, tell you all about it, and then put them back in the cupboard.  So, today's column features 3 such gadgets. 
The first is my Pampered Chef microwave steamer.  I go through phases of using this alot and then hardly all.  Last night we had steamed carrots with just a pat of melted butter, salt & pepper.
The second is my Cuisainart food processor.  I found this delicious Pheasant Ravioli online tutorial a few years ago, made it once, and decided to do it again.  This link will take you to the tutorial, broken into various steps.  So, yesterday my mom and I cut up three pheasants, browned them in olive oil, cooked them with shallots, pancetta, and white wine, added egg then ran them through the food processor to make the ravioli filling.  Ummm - smells so good!

Today I pulled out my pasta roller and we made the ravioli pasta and filled it with the pheasant:

These nummy little pillows should be served with a light butter or cream sauce but they smelled so delicious as they were boiling, and we were so hungry, we ate a couple plain, straight from the kettle.  Defnition of savory.  Oh...my.  I need to get them in the freezer 'cause I keep sneaking one out of the fridge and eating it as finger food...just so yummy.

Still Wired and October Beer

I thought my telephone wire distraction had passed.  The other day, however, when I passed John's bedroom and noticed his bed was made (!), I also noticed how the duvet cover I'd made him reminded me of this telephone wire pic.  When I first made the duvet, I had train tracks in mind as John is nuts about trains - and I still think the fabric combo calls to mind creosote soden ties, blackened iron tracks and blue, blue sky.  But telephone wires, hanging against a blue, blue sky, create similar imagery.

Our October Minnesota-Beer-of-the-Month is Sweet Child of Vine India Pale Ale from Fulton Beer in Minneapolis.  Grateful to have been helped in their entrepreneurial pursuit, the guys at Fulton Beer will put 10% of their profits into a fund (Ful10) which, when grown large enough, will be loaned to other entrepeneurs who are unable to borrow funds traditionally.  Cool.

And my kitchen tree in her fall glory:



Bohemian Prayer and Kolaches

This is my Grandma in 1918.  Following a recent stroke, she moved, today, from hospital to hospice. 

We'd planned on spending the coming weekend in Chicago, but I made calls this morning cancelling airline and hotel reservations - wanting to spend these last few days with her and close to home. 

I called Ticketmaster to see about cancelling our nonrefundable/non-exchangable tickets for the broadway musical I Love Lucy, and was helped by a representative from somewhere in South Carolina.  When he heard our reason for missing the show, he said how very sorry he was to hear such sad news and went on to say what a remarkable life my Grandma must have had in 94 years. 
Think about it, he said, she has seen a world war, the invention of television, the first man on the moon, and so much more...so many things in one lifetime.
And he arranged for our tickets to be exchanged for a later date.  Such kind words and gestures from a stranger.

I asked my Grandma, a few years ago, if her parents spoke English at home when she was a child.  Yes, she said, except for our prayers.  Oh, I said, did you say your prayers in German?  (I forgot it was my Grandpa who was German, not my Grandma) NO!, she retorted, offended.  Only Bohemian.  I knew, of course, that she was Bohemian but hadn't thought ever of the language.  This is what The Lord's Prayer looks like in Bohemian:

Otcze nass

Otcze nass, genž sy w nebesyech, Oswiet se gmeno twe, Przid Kraloestwie twe, Bud wuole twa iako wnebi y wzemi, Chleb nass wezdeiss day nam dnes, A otpust nam nasse win y iako my odpusstieme nassym wynnickuom. A ne uwod nas vpo Kussenie, Ale zbav nas od Zleho.

Amen.

When my brothers and I were children, my Grandma made Bohemian Kolaches (very much like a danish pastry).  Although she made a variety of fillings, my favorite were the apple ones with popsika (a butter/sugar crumble) on top.  By the time I was old enough to realize the importance of having her teach me how to make kolaches, she wasn't able to pass along the knowledge.  Thanks to a variety of online recipes (and a few memories of how Grandma did it differently), Kate and I were able to replicate the pastries last weekend.  They don't look as pretty as Grandma's did, but they taste remarkably similar.

After School Snacks

When Kate and I took our little photography road trip, we ended up at The Apple House.  Walking into this building has got to be what Heaven smells like.  Ummmmmmm.  Since then, we've been enjoying these apples (and, of course, the dipping cups!) everyday.  John likes green apples with caramel dip.  Kate likes red apples with dark chocolate dip.  I like a dip out of each but the rest just plain.

We have two other favorite afternoon snacks lately.  The first is a Triscuit with a square of sharp white cheddar and a slice of peeled cucumber - just the right combo of creamy, crunchy and crispy.  The second is a brushetta-like salsa that my friend, Paule, introduced us to.  It is so simple - diced-up tomatoes, cubed/crumbled fresh mozarella, a little olive oil and some Greek-blend seasoning, mix it all together and eat with tortilla chips or crackers - so good!

After repeated introductions to C.S. Lewis' Narnia chronicles, the kids have never been hooked.  They love the movies but never got into the books.  Then, the other day, Kate came home with The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe checked out from the school library - yay!  The next day, at an overstock store, I ran across a box of Turkish Delight candy (a big treat in the book/movie) - the kids were...well, delighted when they got home from school and saw the plateful of powdered candy!  It is rose flavored - sounds strange, I know, but is very tasty.

Living on Leftover Starch

I'd like to say I'm so organized that, last week, I efficiently planned this week's dinner menus.  But, in actuality, I just made too much last week and so provided myself with leftovers to work from this week.  We had white rice with stir fried vegetables, last week, except I made a disproportionate amount of rice.  Years ago, I travelled with Mark to Asia on a business trip and we had a layover in Narita, Japan.  Mark travelled alot at that time and so we had access to the full service travel lounge in the airport.  The Sapporo beer was good but my favorite was rice porridge, a simple staple in Asian homes.  At the airport it was called congee, which is the Chinese name.  In Korea is is called juk, and in Japan (except at the airport) it is called kayu.  There are many ways to make it and garnish it but, basically, it is leftover rice simmered in chicken broth until it becomes gruel-like.  I like it with finely chopped chives and a little dash of soy sauce.  And I do eat it for breakfast - especially now that the weather is turning chilly.

We also had chicken and mashed potatoes last week.  As with the rice, I made way too many potatoes.  Truth be told, I did have salmon cakes on my mind at the time.  And that is what I did last night - salmon cakes.  It's one of those menu items that has surprised me in that everyone in our house loves them, comments on how good they smell, and asks for more.  Salmon.  (Bare Naked Ladies have a song "I Don't Like" - click here to listen to the salmon part.)  I use two different recipes and sort of combine them but I'll attempt, here, to replicate the recipe.  I don't measure - I'm guessing, educated guessing, but still, you may adjust as you like.  Also, unless I have left over salmon fillets, I use Chicken of the Sea salmon pouches (by the tuna in the canned meat aisle).

Salmon Cakes
15 oz. flaked salmon
2 cups mashed potatoes
1/4 cup sour cream
1/2 cup seasoned dry bread crumbs
1/4 cup diced green pepper
1/4 cup diced red pepper
1/4 tsp seasoned salt
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  In a bowl combine all ingredients.  Form mixture into 2-3 inch cakes and place on baking sheet.  Bake for 30 minutes.

Homecoming and September Beer

Tonight is the Homecoming parade and football game in our town and although it's bright and warm this afternoon, it'll be chilly when the sun goes down.  So I've been digging out sweatshirts and hats in our school colors.  Last year, during a particularly cold baseball & softball season, I made this stadium blanket from remnants I found at the fabric store.  It is double layered and very large so we can snuggle up and share.  I predict that nobody will want to carry it in tonight but everybody will fight over who gets to use it.

In honor of homecoming, one of our September's Minnesota Beer of the Month selections is Big Island Shandy from the Tonka Beer Company .  "100% of profits from our craft beer sales go to support Save-Our-Lakes^™, which funds initiatives of Conservation Minnesota and the University of Minnesota’s Minnesota Aquatic Invasive Species Research Center to protect our lakes and rivers from zebra mussels, milfoil and other invasive species."



Our other selection for September is a variety case of James Page which is now brewed by the Stevens Point Brewery in Wisconsin.  Both Tonka Beer and James Page have their origins in Minnesota but have been outsourced to Wisconsin.

Autumn Nesting

At the river, we use plates and bowls that I've collected from antique shops, thrift stores and garage sales.  They are not all matching but all follow this amber-tone, made in USA theme.  Hull is a brand I've come to look for and I found these soup crocks a few weeks ago, right when the weather started turning colder.  The little lids are not completely necessary but they sure are fun.  I made clam chowder last week so we could try them out before packing for the next trip to the river.

And I'm back into the swing of packing lunches every morning but am amazed at how fast our cookie supply is depleted.  Hmmm.  Maybe you already do this cool trick but I was impressed when my friend, Joanne, showed me how, when she makes a batch of cookies, she bakes a pan or two and then uses a scoop to plop the rest of the raw dough on wax paper lined pans; sticks them in the freezer.  When they are frozen, they can be dumped into a plastic container or ziplock for easier freezer storage.  So when I take 12 out in the morning and bake them while I'm packing lunches, everyone thinks I got up extra early to whip up a batch of cookies and am baking them already.  (Actually they're on to my trick but still...great idea.)



Celebrate = Chocolate

Mark and I always take the week of our anniversary off and spend it with the kids.  A few weeks ago, we celebrated our 14th and it has become tradition for Kate and John to make gifts for us.  We received some very lovely things this year including some wishing twigs (you hold them in your hand, make a wish, and then toss them into the campfire - when they burn up, your wish can come true).
Spending most of the afternoon in the kitchen, Kate made this DELICIOUS chocolate layered cake.  I love chocolate layered cake but I'm pretty picky about which ones I'd vouch for as DELICIOUS - this one was!  I've only had two other pieces that compare - one was in San Francisco and the other was actually at Granite City (I know - go figure!)  So when we celebrated a birthday this week, I tried her recipe and it was delicious again so I'll include the recipe at the end of this post.  (She got the recipe online but I have no idea where) The pic above is my cake with chocolate frosting but the one Kate made had the frosting in the recipe, which was more my favorite.

Birthdays around here seem to linger out over a few weeks.  So, Kate's actual birthday was this week but last week she had friends over (hence, the cake).  Next weekend she goes out with her Godmother for a night at the orchestra.  In October, she goes to Chicago with me and Grandma for a girls weekend.  But for the actual day, we ordered in Chinese food and had brownies with ice cream and hot fudge.  I use the same recipe for hot fudge that my Mom always made.  It is so good and if there's any left over, just put it in the fridge, warm it up in the microwave ad have it again! Yummmmm.

Hot Fudge
1 cup sugar
1/4 cup cocoa powder
1/4 cup butter
1/4 cup milk
Mix together in a saucepan, bring to boil and boil for 1 full minute.

Chocolate Anniversary Cake
Cake:
1 cup unsalted butter, cut into pieces
2 cups all-purpose flour, spooned and leveled
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 cup dark brown sugar
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp kosher salt
2 large eggs
1/2 cup sour cream
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
Heat Oven to 350 degrees.  Spray two 8- or 9- inch round cake pans and line the bottom of each with a round of parchment paper.
In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, granulated sugar, cocoa powder, brown sugar, baking soda, and salt.
In a small saucepan, combine the butter and 1 cup water and bring to a boil.  Add to the flour mixture and, using an electric mixer, mix until combined.  Beat in the eggs, one at a time, then the sour cream and vanilla.
Divide the batter evenly between the prepared pans.  Bake until a toothpick inserted in the center of each cake comes out clean, 35-45 minutes.  Cool in the pans for 20 minutes, then turn out onto a cooling rack to cool completely.
Transfer one of the cakes to the platter and spread with 3/4 cup frosting.  Top with the remaining cake and spread with the remaining frosting.

Frosting:
8 oz. cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup butter, softened
2 cups sifted confectioner's sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
In medium bowl, cream together cream cheese and butter until creamy.  Mix in the vanilla, then gradually stir in the confectioner's sugar.  Store in refrigerator after use.

Highlights of the State Fair

This is always such a crazy time of the year; back-to-school-shopping, re-acclimating bedtimes, and all the while cramming in as much last minute summer fun as possible.  And then there's also the Great Minnesota Get-Together.  The Midway is a favorite for the kids and we had such a beautiful day to be outside.

This sculture was made entirely of debris pulled from a Minnesota river.  Sad reality but beautiful art.

The animal barns - who knew there were SO many different rabbits - wow!
And last but certainly not least - the food.  I had the presence of mind to snap a shot of the cookies while they were still overflowing.  I remembered to snap a pic halfway through the cheese curds, jalapeno/cheese/bacon wraps, and bbq sauage meatballs.  The turkey leg and fried green tomatoes were gone, however, before the thought of taking a photo entered my mind - sorry!

Bulgogi and Beer

When John celebrated his first communion two years ago, I wanted to make a big Korean meal for the party.  A friend of mine (fantastic cook!!) met with me during the months previous to the party and taught me how to cook a few korean dishes.  I was very proud of the meal and John really loved it.  And then I kind of stopped practicing the cooking.  This week, I pulled out the recipes my friend gave me, marked all up with her notes, hints, and (priceless) advice.  Korean cooking is very time consuming, however, and I had a very busy week.  So,...I "americanized" the bulgogi by using the crockpot.  Technically, bulgogi is marinated barbequed beef.  Galbi is also marinated beef, but specifically beef spareribs.  I used spare ribs, slicing them thin, but I didn't grill the meat (used the crockpot) so maybe it doesn't count.  But when John and Kate walked into the kitchen, they both immediately asked, "What smells like bulgogi?"  The next day's lunch was a fight for the leftovers.  The is the basic original recipe (although my friend adjusts the recipe, by taste, every time she makes it)

2 1/2 lbs thinly sliced beef
1 Tbsp water
1/4 - 1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 tsp black pepper
 1 1/2 Tbsp Mirin (sweet rice cooking wine)
1/3 cup sesame oil
1/3 cup soy sauce
1/3 cup Coke (or Sprite/ 7-Up)
minced onions
minced kiwi or pinneapple

Add water and sugar to beef and mix.  Combine remaining ingredients and mix into beef.  Place on grilling sheet and barbeque on the grill.  (Better if you let marinate overnight first)


August Minnesota Beer of the Month picks are from Boom Island Brewing Company in Minneapolis, MN and from Big Wood Brewery in Vadnais Heights, MN.

One-Eyes and Another Week on the River

Growing up, my Dad would often make breakfast on the weekend.  Our favorite of his specialties were One-Eyes.  (I've heard other people call them One-Eyed Jacks or Cowboy Eggs.)  We spent last week on the river again where we tend to have fuller breakfasts.  So, one morning I made One-Eyes - big hit!  This was the only photo I got since the others were not completely supportive of waiting on breakfast while I fetched my camera for a blog pic!  They are simply pieces of bread, buttered on both sides.  Using a drinking glass, you cut a circle from the middle and place the bread on a griddle.  Crack an egg in the centers and let fry, flipping once.
After a large breakfast, it feels good to work outside or go for a hike.  One day we ventured further down river to these falls--

Along the bank was this towering pine tree.  I had to take a photo.  Here is this beautiful magestic tree with lush green branches reaching higher and higher up above.  But down here on the ground, the river has been washing the soil right out from beneath its roots.  If something doesn't happen to replenish it's foundation, everything is going to fall.  Don't you just feel like this tree sometimes?

Another marvel of nature are these beaver dens we come across near the logging roads.  This is as close as I could get to this one without getting my feet wet.

Embarrassed to Even Share

About a month ago, a very dear high school friend was in town with her children and they spent one night at our house.  While all the kids were scooted outside to pick raspberries, she and I had a drink while I prepared supper.  I am terrible at designating jobs.  When someone comes into my kitchen and offers to help, I'm at a loss.  It might maybe be that I'm a little tiny bit of a control freak but I am really trying to get better.  So, to prepare myself for a "spontaneous" chore designation, I found a recipe on Pinterest, printed it, and bought the ingredients.  When my friend offered to help, I pulled out this recipe for homemade caramels and said, "here, you can make the caramels."  Okay, probably not what she thought she was signing up for but, actually, they are very easy.  I got to keep control over my menu prep while she made these delicious sea salt caramels.  They are not health food - at all.  I'm embarrassed to admit that I've made these three more times!  If you have a similar lack of control, don't even open the link.
If you do decide to try them, here are a few reminders. Wax paper is not the same as parchment paper.  I knew they weren't the same but remembered (incorrectly!) that I'd used wax paper last time. NO - use parchement paper.

Although this looks great, when you pour the boiling hot caramel into the pan, it kinda melts into the wax paper.  Use parchment paper (or you'll be licking caramel off of wax paper 'cause you can't bear to throw it out)!
When the caramel hardens, lift it out of the pan, laying it flat on a cutting board, and cut into little squares. (Looks kinda like chicken.)  Then, they are ready to be wrapped. 
So bad for you but they taste SO good!