Potatoes

Arley looks very down home in this pic. Banjo case, overalls, woolly booties. This recipe is very warm and 'woolly' too! The sauce is almost like hummus, but you can thin it out by adding more oil if you please. (I like less oil though.) Really comforting food. : )

Ingredients
5 chilies, stemmed and seeded
4 tablespoons beans (I used canned black beans, any kind will work)
1 1/2 lbs potatoes
1/4 cups olive oil
5 whole garlic cloves
2 bay leaves
6 sprigs thyme, plus
2 teaspoons fresh thyme leaves
salt
fresh ground black pepper
1 slice bread (1-inch thick)
1/3 cup canned tomato
1 garlic clove, peeled and chopped
3 tablespoons chopped flat leaf parsley
1-2 tablespoon lemon juice, as needed

Directions

Pre heat oven to 400 degrees.
Place potatoes in a roasting pan and toss with a bit of olive oil, 5 whole cloves garlic, bay leaves, thyme sprigs, and 1 heaping teaspoon salt. Cover tightly with foil and roast until potatoes are tender when pierced, about 50 minutes.
Meanwhile, place a large sauté pan over high heat for 2 minutes. Add a bit of olive oil and heat 1 minute. Add bread and fry until browned on both sides. Cut into 1-inch cubes, and set aside. Return pan to high heat, and add a bit more olive oil and the chilies. Sauté 1 minute and add tomatoes and 1/2 teaspoon salt, stirring until juices have evaporated. Remove from heat.
In a food processor, combine the beans, chopped garlic, and bread cubes. Pulse until coarsely chopped. Add Chile-tomato mixture and pulse to combine. With machine running, slowly pour in 1/4 cup olive oil to make a smooth puree, you might add more, up to a cup.. Add 1 tablespoon of the parsley and season to taste with lemon juice. Transfer to a bowl and set aside.
When the potatoes are tender, remove from heat and let potatoes and garlic cool. Place a large sauté pan over high heat for 2 minutes. Add more olive oil and heat for 1 minute. Add the potatoes and season with thyme leaves, salt, and pepper. Fry the potatoes until crispy on one side, 6-8 minutes, then turn to brown on all sides. Add the reserved sauce and garlic cloves. To serve toss with remaining 2 tablespoons parsley.

Best 'Ceaser' salad

Dressing:

1/4 c olive oil
1 1/2 Tbsp Vinegar
1 tsp chopped onion
1 tsp sugar
1 1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp chopped garlics
zest of 1 1/2 limes
1 egg

blend all ingredients together.

Croutons:

a dash of olive oil
2 slices day old bread, preferably sour dough, cut into 1/2 inch chunks
4 garlic cloves chopped

Heat OVEN TO 350. Heat a bit of oil in a pan. Add the chopped garlic and heat over low. Put the bread cubes on a baking sheet w/ a little oil and bake , tossing every once in a while. After about 20 minutes, add the bread chunks into the garlic mixture and on top of the stove and cook for about 5 more min or until crisp and golden.

Salad and Assembly:

About 8 cups crisp greens, such as bok choy, Romaine hearts, butter crunch, etc.
3/4 c grated Parmesan
1/2 c roughly chopped cilantro

Toss everything together, or layer on individual plates!

Recipe: Winter Salsa

2 c cooked black beans (you can use anything with a bean consistency, I have used baked butternut squash)

1/2 water (or bean liquids if you used canned beans!)
1/4 cup chopped onion
2 tsp cummin
1/4 tsp cayenne
the juice of 3 or 4 limes
some salt to taste

puree everything and add more salt or lime juice to suit your taste!

Homemade Egg Noodles

This is one of my favorite ways to use eggs. They are easy to cook and simple to make. Plus, they can be kept in the freezer, (or dried and kept at room temp), for a long time.

Homemade Egg Noodles

2 cups flour (white or whole wheat, or a mix)

4 eggs

Combine in a mixer, or by hand until all of the flour in incorporated.

Roll out chunks of the dough into fairly thin sheets, either with a pasta machine or by hand with a rolling pin. They should be very thin, because they will puff up a bit when cooked. Slice the sheets into desired widths, again either with a pasta machine or by hand.

To cook, add to a pot of boiling water for 3 to 5 minutes, depending on how wide or thin they are cut, drain and serve.

From west to east: Colorado

I made the decision to drop everything, forgot the dishes, and put down the pitch fork and take a little vacation, make a few discoveries, and take some time to take a look around. East bound and down, heading out of the valley toward Colorado.

Spent the first night in Idaho, got up early and witnessed a magnificent sunrise

Had some of the best campfire food I've had in a long time, little blue cheese pizzas, roasted veggies, and local brews, all whilst camping in Colorado's Rocky Mountains.

Under the Colorado moon.

When I first rolled into Colorado this is what I saw, no joke, the sky was absolutely black. Thunder storms and rain fallowed with perfectly sunny skies. That pattern continued the whole time I was there.

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I dipped down into Utah for a bit. The northern part was actually pretty beautiful too.

At least the skies.

But then I was straight back out again into Wyoming for a lengthy (and straight) hall across the whole flat barren state.

Driving through Wyoming was very lonely. These wind Mills were every where though, and I found them very comforting, like big tall giants poking there heads over the horizon.

Landscapes changed continuously, as time and tide..

It was hard to leave, but great to be back in the beautiful Willamette valley!

Summer Harvest Salad

The garden, the files that are stacked, 271 e-mails to sort, the house to clean ... all the ingredients of the recipe for a busy and productive day! So between chores I'm going to try and sneak in a couple posts here. Yes, alternative to the chores I head out to the garden and fill my basket with fresh tomatoes, zucchini, lemon cucumbers and basil. Today, intrigued by these fresh ingredients, I'm making .. some kind of crazy salad, and calling it a Summer Harvest Salad!

Summer Harvest Salad

1/4 c vinegar (red wine, or 1/2 balsamic/1/2 apple cider. or whatever)

1/4 c chopped fresh basil

1/4 c chopped fresh parsley

2 Tbsp fresh squeezed lemon juice

1 garlic clove minced

4 large tomatoes, chopped

4 medium cucumbers, chopped

2 medium zucchini (yellow or green), chopped

1 medium onion, chopped

1/2 c pitted Greek olives, or a can of black olives

Fresh baked french bread

Some kind of good cheese (Parmesan, or extra sharp white Cheddar)

Combine first 5 ingredients in a jar and shake. You can also add oil to this, like up to a half cup if you want, but I do not oil my dressings usually. You be the judge.

Then combine the tomato and next 4 ingredients in a large bowl. Toss gently, cover and chill for at least 2 hours.

When your ready to eat, toast the bread and melt the cheese over the top (I recommend using the oven or toaster oven for this) and serve to salad over the top or on the side of the bread.

Peach Liqueuer

Awww! Been way too long! I've been working (throughout the last few months) on my garden here in the beautiful northwest and on some wonderful new recipies straight from the fresh produce I'm beginning to harvest from it! I've also been working on some very homemade liqueurs.. the very best!!

Today I am thrilled to be making a peach liqueur..

Peach Liqueur Recipe

1 cups sugar

1 cup water
2.5 pounds fresh peaches, stemmed and washed

1.5 cups vodka

1 cup brandy

2 teaspoons lemon zest

Make the simple syrup: Bring the sugar and water to boil over a medium-high heat. Stir constantly to prevent scorching. The liquid should be clear. Let it cool.

Cut the peaches in half and remove the pits. (Don’t throw those pits away though! They’re going to go into the liqueur.)


Slice the peaches. Put everything into a 2-gallon container that has a tight-fitting lid. Give it a good stir and then cover.

Put it in a cool dark place for two weeks. Give it a good shake once in awhile during the two weeks so that things don’t clump together.
After two weeks use a fine-mesh strainer to get the solids (including the pits) out. Discard the solids. Transfer the liquid into a clean container. Cover and let stand for another 2 or 3 weeks.
Rack or filter the liqueur into its final container. (We’re going to use clean wine bottles.) You should get about one gallon of liqueur.