fresh lavender

I love lavender. I love the color, the fragrance and the flavor. I just came in from harvesting lavender in my yard and it made me think of the ways I cook with it.  I’ve posted my recipe for lavender shortbread before and I admit to adding lavender to sweet dishes more often than savory ones. But I do love the taste with meat dishes, too. Lavender is one of the ingredients in Herbs De Provence. I thought I would make some and share my recipe with you. Try rubbing it on lamb before roasting or grilling. You can also make a marinade with Herbes de Provence and a little sherry and oil and add chicken breasts or pork chops and leave in the fridge for several hours or overnight before cooking. Really a wonderful way to make even an ordinary dish a little special.

Herbes de Provence

1 T. thyme

1 T. rosemary

1 T. savory

2 t. basil

1 t. lavender

2 bay leaves

Blend fresh or dried herbs until bay leaves are powdered. Rub this mixture on lamb, pork, beef, poultry, or fish. If using fresh herbs, make small amounts and freeze what is unused.

Roasted Chicken with Judi’s Herb/Spice Rub

With more outdoor cooking I thought I’d share a recipe for a rub I made the other day. I used it on a chicken I was roasting but the flavors would go well on pork, lamb, duck and even on veggies. I actually want to use it next on grilled eggplant and mushrooms. I hope you will try it.

Judi’s Herb/Spice Rub

Rub roasted chicken with sweet potato fries and salad

Spicy Bread and Butter Pickles

Bread and butter pickles are one of my favorites. I make several batches every year.  For a nice twist try spicing them up a little. In this recipe red pepper flakes add a nice kick to the sweet pickles. Of course, you can omit the pepper flakes for a traditional bread and butter pickle, if you prefer. 

Spicy Bread and Butter Pickles

6 quarts thinly sliced pickling cucumbers

6 medium onions, peeled and sliced thin

½ c. pickling salt

1½ quarts vinegar

4½ c. sugar

½ c. whole mustard seed

1/2 c. red pepper flakes

1 T. Pickling spice

1 T. celery seeds

Wash cucumbers and trim off ends before slicing. Place in non-reactive bowl (stainless steel, enamel, plastic) add the onions and then salt and stir. Allow cucumbers and onions to sit in the salt for 3 hours. After 3 hours drain well, but do not rinse. Meanwhile combine remaining ingredients and bring to a boil. Add cucumbers and onions and return to the boil. As soon as the mixture is boiling ladle into clean, hot pints jars, leaving a good ½ -inch of headspace.  Wipe rims and screw on lids firmly. Place in simmering water bath and process at 185-degrees F for 10 minutes. Remove to counter and allow to cool naturally. Makes 12 pints.

Note: these need a couple of weeks for the flavors to develop. They can also be made with firm, small zucchini. 

Easy Dill Pickles

I got a load of pickling cucumbers today and have been making pickles. The first few batches have been Dill Pickles with Bread and Butter Pickles next. To make the dill pickles a little more fun I added 1 teaspoon of red pepper flakes to about half of the jars for a spicy version. 

Easy Dill Pickles

30-40 pickling cucumbers, 5 inches long, scrubbed and ends trimmed off

¾ c. sugar

¾ c. canning or pickling salt (non-iodized)

1 quart vinegar

1 quart water

7 fresh dill heads

3 T. pickling spice

7 garlic cloves, peeled, optional

Mix together the sugar, salt, vinegar, water and pickling spices and bring to a boil. Cook 10 minutes. Place a dill head in the bottom of seven clean, hot pint jars. Add the garlic, if using. Meanwhile cut trimmed and washed cucumbers into halves or quarters lengthwise and pack upright into the jars. Trim the length, if needed to fit no higher than to the shoulder of the jar. Pour over the hot brine leaving ½ -inch of headspace. Wipe rims and screw on lids. Place in a simmering water bath and process at 185 degrees F for 10 minutes. Remove and cool. Makes 7 pints.

Canned mangoes

I had to post this just because in recent weeks I have had several reports of unsafe canning.  Not trying to be preachy here folks but you can make you or someone else sick if you don’t follow the rules. Having said that- if you do follow rules and use reliable recipes canning is safe.

The biggest misconception seems to be that as long as the jars sealed they are safe. NOT TRUE!!!! As long as you put hot food into a jar even a short processing time will likely seal the jars. That does not mean the foods inside were processed long enough to kill any possible pathogens. Some years back I had a lively conversation with one of my community gardeners because an out of date Blue Book said you canned green beans in a boiling water bath for 3 hours. She thought they had to be safe. Trouble is you can boil the beans for 3 days  the water in a boiling water bath will not go over 212 degrees F. The spores for botulism are killed at 220 degrees.

Lets talk about the 2 basic kinds of approved methods: water bath and pressure canning. A boiling water bath is for fruit products ( juices, jellies , jams etc.), pickled products and tomatoes if the have been acidified. Pressure canners are used for non-pickled vegetables, convenience foods like soup and chili, meat, poultry and fish.

A water bath canner requires jars to be completely submerged in the water and covered to a depth of 1-2 inches over the jars. The water should be boiling when you add the jars to the canner and processing timing starts when water returns to the boil. In the case of pickles processing is done when water is at a simmer. Don’t short the time and if you live at higher elevations ( over 1,000 ft.) processing times are longer. When the time is up remove the jars and allow them to cool down out of drafts.

Pressure canners differ somewhat in their directions. Some require 3-4 inches of boiling water in the canner and others require a specific amount of water. Follow the directions that came with your canner. Jars are placed in the canner with the boiling water and it is closed. Under high heat the canner must be vented for 10 minutes and then fitted with a gauge to register the internal pressure- usually 10 pounds. timing starts once the canner reaches pressure. Once it has reached pressure you can turn the heat down. Maintain enough heat to keep it at pressure but not to go over.  Once the time is up the canner is removed from the heat and allowed to cool until a vent- that will have popped up after the canner was vented- falls down naturally. This can take 30 minutes or even up to an hour. Once the vent has dropped you wait one more minute then remove the lid- opening it away from you as it will still be very steamy in the canner. Now the jars can be placed on a counter to cool. You can’t rush the process by placing the canner in cold water. You just have to wait.

The sound of the jars “plinking” will let you know they are sealed. Following the correct times and procedures will assure you that they are safe.

Remember- use reliable recipes-follow the times- ask for help if you aren’t sure. I love to can and promote it all the time. It worries me to think that someone could get ill or lose their stored foods through spoilage when all they had to do was change a few practices. Be safe people!!!

Whole Wheat Swiss Bread

I decided to post this recipe after I read a friend’s post earlier today. She was wondering how to make bread when you don’t have a large block of time to be home waiting for rising and more rising and then baking. Here is a recipe that might help her out. The dough is prepared, rested for a bit, shaped and then popped in the fridge to rise. It can be baked several hours later or even the next day. You can prep it in the evening- let it rise in the fridge overnight- and bake it in the morning. It is also a wonderful whole wheat bread with Swiss cheese melted in the dough.

Whole Wheat Swiss Bread

3 c. flour

2 ½ -3 c. whole wheat flour

2 packages active dry yeast

2 T. sugar

2 t. salt

1 c. each milk and water

4 oz. diced Swiss cheese

3 T. butter or margarine

Oil

Combine 2 cups of the flour with the yeast, sugar and salt in a mixing bowl. Heat together water and milk with cheese and butter until warm, cheese does not have to melt. Add to flour mixture and beat 3 minutes. Stir in remaining white flour and beat 2 minutes. Stir in enough whole wheat flour to make a soft dough.  Knead on floured surface until smooth and elastic. Cover with bowl and let rest 20 minutes. Divide dough in half and shape into loaves by rolling out and then rolling into a loaf and sealing seams. Place in greased 8×4 inch loaf pans and brush with oil. Cover with plastic wrap and place in fridge. Chill 2 –24 hours. Remove from fridge and remove plastic wrap allowing to stand while oven preheats. Bake at 375 for 35-40 minutes. Remove from pans and brush with butter. Cool. Makes 2 loaves.

Spinach and Brie Bread

Went to a wine tasting party on Saturday at my dear friends Marge and Larry’s. What a crazy and fun group of friends. I decided to make a filled bread with spinach, kale, onions and several cheese including half a pound of brie. Needless to say it was well received. It looks difficult but is really easy to make. I often make them switching out the fillings. You can fill with meats and cheeses. I like Ham and Swiss, Chicken with broccoli and pizza fillings. For Pizza breads: after rolling out the dough brush with a little oil, spread thick pizza sauce down middle of dough and top with pizza toppings and cheese. Fold up and proceed as directed.

Spinach Filled Bread

3 ¼ c. flour

1 T. sugar

1 t. salt

1 package quick-rising yeast

1 c. hot water

1 T. oil

1 onion, sliced

1 T. oil

4 c. fresh kale, washed and chopped

1 (10 oz.) package frozen spinach, thawed and squeezed dry

8 oz. brie, cubed

2 oz. mozzarella cheese, shredded

1 oz. shredded Parmesan cheese

salt to taste

healthy dash hot sauce

Heat 1 tablespoon of oil in large skillet. Cook onion until wilted and add kale cooking until kale is wilted. Season to taste with salt and hot sauce. Place kale mixture in a bowl and add spinach and cheeses and mix well. Set aside to cool. Meanwhile prepare dough. Set aside 1 cup of the flour. Combine remaining flour with the other dry ingredients in a medium bowl. Stir in water and oil and gradually stir in enough flour to make a soft dough. Turn onto lightly floured surface and knead until dough is smooth and elastic, about 5 minutes. Roll dough into a rectangle about 16 x 8. Place spinach mixture down center of dough.  Cut one-inch wide strips of dough from filling to edge on both sides. It will sort of look like fringe.  Alternating sides, fold strips up and over the filling at an angle.  Carefully lift loaf onto greased baking sheet and place at an angle. Cover with a towel and place sheet on top of a roasting pan half-filled with simmering water for 15 minutes.  Take bread and bake in a preheated 400-degree for 20-25 minutes or until golden brown. Cool slightly before slicing. Serve warm and refrigerate leftovers.

Note: The variations for this bread are almost endless. Some favorite combinations are ham and Swiss with mustard, corned beef with Swiss cheese, sauerkraut and Thousand Island dressing, roast beef and cheddar, chicken, broccoli and cheese, Spinach with ricotta or feta and onions, pizza, assorted fillings. You get the idea. Use your imagination and have fun. Just be careful not to overfill, or the bread will be hard to move, use fillings that aren’t too runny and always use cold fillings.

If you want to use regular yeast use warm, rather than hot water. Also, don’t let dough rise over boiling water. After kneading cover dough and let rise 45 minutes. Punch down and assemble as in original recipe. Cover with a towel and let rise until dough looks puffy, about 40 minutes. Bake as directed above. These breads can also be frozen.

Red Grape Crumble

When you think of crumbles, cobblers and the like what fruit comes to mind? Apples? Peaches? Grapes actually work great in these dishes. If you haven’t tried them this way maybe this recipe will change your mind.

Red Grape Crumble

5-6 cups stemmed seedless grapes, rinsed and drained

1/2 c. sugar

2 T. flour

2 t. cinnamon

1 1/2 c. rolled oats

1 c. flour

1/3 c. brown sugar

2 t. cinnamon

pinch of salt

1 stick ( 4 oz.) butter

Combine grapes in a mixing bowl with sugar and 2 tablespoons of flour and cinnamon. Toss to coat and place in a 6 cup baking dish.  In another bowl combine oats, flour, brown sugar cinnamon and salt and stir to combine. Add butter and use your hands to break up the butter and combine it with the dry ingredients. Mixture should be crumbly. Spoon it over the grape mixture. The baking dish will seem too full- but the mixture cooks down a lot so don’t worry. Bake in a preheated 375 degree oven for 35 minutes or until topping is golden brown and grape mixture is bubbly. Serve warm or cold  topped with whipped cream or ice cream, if you like. Serves 5-6.

Toss grapes with sugar, flour and cinnamon

Top grapes with the oatmeal mixture

Cook until grapes are bubbly and topping is golden brown

Serve plain or with whipped cream or ice cream

Mini Marshmallow Roast

Who doesn’t love roasting marshmallows? I certainly do. Many fond childhood memories of wrapping up a family picnic with roasting marshmallows over dwindling coals. Still, sometimes you just don’t have a campfire available or Mother Nature gives you a soggy day. The good news- you can have a marshmallow roast any time you like. Even indoors if you like.  The trick is to use mini marshmallows, toothpicks or bamboo skewers and a candle. You can pretty much have toasted marshmallows any day of the year. Still haven’t figured out the mini S’mores, though.

Please be sure that if kids are doing this that they have adult supervision at all times.