January 4th...
The day started out dreary and dull... kind of melting off warm and sloggy wet almost snow falling. By early afternoon that changed to full on snow blustering and starting to accumulate. So much so I think I might have to figure out how to use the snow blower if this keeps up, lol.
Today was kind of puttering around the house sort of day. A little cleaning, a little sitting with mom... a little dinking around in the kitchen.
Today, I started a couple quart jars of vanilla sugar. Sounds oober fancy, costs a damn pretty penny in the stores... but really all it is is plain ole sugar and a couple vanilla beans. And thanks to the mum in law, I got vanilla beans in the house.
So, making it is stupidly easy. I used two wide mouth quart jars, to make it easier to spoon out sugar as needed. Fill the jar with sugar, then dump the sugar into a bowl. Then I split open and scraped out three beans per jar, chopped the pods into 3-4 pieces to make them easy to remove when needed, then stir, stir, stir till all those little bean seed clumps are totally broken up and mixed into the sugar. Then pour it back into the jar, cap it, label it with the date... and now the two jars are stowed in the pantry to seep up for a few weeks before I start using them. Since I can't always use my homemade extract because of my sisters alcohol allergy, I will be able to use some vanilla sugar in some recipes instead.
Got the 12 prepped litter jugs filled with dirt and lined up on the potting bench. Just 4 more jugs to prep and fill now. These won't see seeds just yet, but it's good to get them filled and accounted for so I got a good idea on just what I have on hand for other potting. I still got milk jugs to go too, lol. I know I will need to pick up dirt again for regular seed starting later this year, but if I can recycle what dirt I got on hand, I will :)
Tonights dinner is going to be cheese spinach souffle, thinly sliced smoked salmon, and roasted golden beets and cauliflower. Yum. I haven't made a souffle in a billion years, so I'm not sure if I'm looking forward to it or terrified about a failure of a dinner, heh.
January 5th...
More snow, even colder cold. Winter has graced us with a pretty white coat. The sump pump actually kicked on today, which was a nice surprise. Guess we really have been getting in some good precipitation.
Got the last 4 kitty litter jugs prepped and filled with dirt today. Now all 16 are ready to go. Milk jugs are next, and I still got a big ole heap of dirt to use, hooray! Still no peeping out of the patio tomato seed on top of the fridge :(
Got the upstairs door frame sealed up- there's daylight showing around one of the patio door frames, and I used metal tape to seal up the gap for now. Not be best solution, but better than the duct tape I used last year that fell off, and stops the wind from whistling in. Pushed a bit of paper into the other cracks between the door and frame too.
The souffle last night turned out perfect, my worries about handling egg foam were unnecessary. Going to have to remember that in the future, a little materials can go a long way in feeding us this way. And the beets were so damn good, it was hard to stop eating them. I so need to grow some successfully this spring.
Tonight's dinner is tater tot casserole- cept I'm using a tube of country sausage instead of hamburger. We are out of burger, and it was too dear to get more the other day while out shopping, while sausage was on sale for much less. Gonna stir in some peas to up the veggie factor too.
1 pound tube of country sausage
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1 can peas, drained
1 can mushrooms, drained
1 medium onion, diced
1 bag tater tots
Brown up the sausage, and remove from heat. Let sit for 10 minutes to cool a bit. Stir in the soup, peas, mushrooms, and onion. Smooth down the mixture flat. Line the top with the tater tots. Bake at 350 for 45 minutes.
Made magic dust today, and realized I've never posted the recipe for it here- I only got in in a word doc. So I figured it would be nice to post it up for future refrence.
Magic Dust
1/2 c paprika
1/4 c kosher salt
1/4 c sugar
1/4 c chili powder
1/4 c cumin
1/4 c garlic powder
2 T black pepper
2 T mustard powder
2 T oregano
2 T cayenne pepper
1 T dried orange zest
1/3 c mushroom powder
Stir it all together. Zip all of it up together in a spice grinder- in batches if necessary. The only even remotely difficult ingredient is the mushroom powder, and that's just dehydrated mushrooms I grind up into a powder. I always have a jar of mushroom powder on the shelf. And it's super easy to dehydrate fresh mushrooms in the oven if you don't have a dehydrator- mushrooms are one of the most foolproof things to dehydrate in my opinion.
January 7th....
Yet more snow, lol. I did some shoveling around the house yesterday. Tried to start the snowblower, and realized I suck with snloblowers- I couldn't get it to start and flooded it :( The wind has been kicking butt all night, so you kind of can't tell I shoveled in some places now. And since it's a white-out out there, I'm not going to bother with more cleanup today. Pretty much my whole day yesterday was dicking around with all of that... and making squash soup.
I tend not to use butternut straight up, but rather a mix of 3-4 different kinds of squash. It's just 1 quart of stock, 2 quarts of squash pulp, some herbs and seasonings, and some gouda cheese. I opted to add a couple cans of chickpeas this time for a bit of a protein kick.
Today's big fuss around was making a candle. I use a lot of jar candles, and they always have some scrap left in the bottom of the jar. I cleaned out the jars and saved up scrap for a while, and today I figured I probably had enough to fill a jar up.
So I used a regular taper candle for the wick, took a couple empty cans and a pot to use as a double boiler. Filled the cans with scrap wax and kept adding till it was all melted up, then poured it right on into the jar.
Then I realized the hot melty wax would melt the taper and send my wick off, lol. So I stood out in my cold ass solarium holding the stupid thing center till the wax cooled enough so it didn't slope around anymore. Note to self, don't do that again, take the time to secure the candle in the center of the jar, hehehe.
Tonights dinner is going to be enchiladas. I had some leftover from the last time I made them, so I'm just going to defrost those for dinner. Since there's only 4 of them, I think I'm going to make something rice-ish and of course a heap of refries. Maybe I'll just pull a couple tortillas out of the freezer and make a couple more enchiladas, rice and mushroom maybe.
Welcome to Growbox Hill
Welcome to Growbox HIll!
Wednesday, January 7, 2015
Saturday, January 3, 2015
Happy New Year!
I'm going to try to be better about posting again this year... So here goes :)
January 1st. Happy New Year! It was a frigging cold and blustery night- and it's a cold and blustery day. Temps in the 20's I think, brrrrr. I'm really hoping we get in some snow or rain- it's been a pretty dry winter so far. I'm already tired of being chilled, and we still got a couple months to go, sigh.
Found out the board heaters in my office are broken. Don't know why, but damnit. So now I'm running a small space heater in my office- I also kicked on one of the bedroom heaters and the bathroom heater- cuz now I'm getting paranoid we are gonna freeze pipes. Need to call the plumber tomorrow to get them in to see why the hot water heater on this side of the house is dead again- we've been out of hot water for almost two weeks now on this side of the house. With the holidays and all, didn't think we could get in the plumber sooner for the regular rate, pttht. That's contributing to my bursting pipes fears too. Moms big Christmas present to us is the money to get the plumber in for the water heater. Still haven't figured out what to do about the broken stove burner.
Winter just sucks ass ya'll, majorly.
On the bright side, I got a bunch of buckets and pots dumped out on a tarp in the solarium, to start working up some wintersowing jugs. That was some cold and crappy work since the solarium is hovering in the upper 30's right now- but good news is the solarium is in the upper 30's, instead of the same temp as outside. I think between replacing the skylight and plasticing over all the windows and door, it's really making an impact out there to help keep above freezing as much as possible.
Today I started 4 wintersowing jugs, one breadseed poppy, two blue wildflower mix, and one mixed bachelors button. Tomorrow I will get more jugs prepped, and maybe some more filled and set out. So far the strapping down of the three greenhouse frames is working right fine. The litter jugs are too big to fit onto the lower levels, but fit 8 on top perfect and stable- so far. I'll go back in and strap up the top later if I need to. I'm extra hoping the breadseed poppy does well, I would like to start a patch big enough to yield a few cups of seeds for baking every year.
And after last years sort of failure with using paper tags, this year I decided to get a bit smarter with the labeling- I started cutting up some recycled sour cream containers and used a sharpie- I'm hoping this will work better, lol.
Sadly, my little yellow tomato seed never sprouted. Hahms Gelbe Topftomate- it was from a trade last year. I had 5 seeds, and tried to pot them up to germinate indoors- first in the library which I thought might have been too cold, so I put them on top of the fridge- and three weeks later, nothing. So yesterday I used up the patio tomato seed I had and we shall see if that sprouts up or not. That seed is a couple years old too, so who knows what will happen. If I'm lucky, I'll get a couple plants for potentially some fruits in February, wouldn't that be nice?
With cooking, I had planned on doing up a nice New Years dinner- but the elk steaks were still frozen, as was the lump crab. Sigh, so I made up a shepards pie with a bunch of leftovers based on stuffing instead of mashed potatoes... and planned on the nice dinner for tonight. Crab is still frozen in the middle, sigh... So I'm doing up a batch of creamy veggie and sausage soup instead. Got some leftover fresh cauliflower, broccoli, one green pepper, and some shredded lettuce to use up, and plenty of turkey stock on hand. And since my sister is out of town, I could use some white wine in it, yum :) I also used some fresh celery, carrot, onion, and garlic, plus plenty of herbs. I'll cream it up with some leftover french onion dip and milk. Yeah, I know, all that sounds weird as shit, but it will work. After all, homemade dip is just onion soup mix and sour cream.
January 2nd...
Chilly as hell today, but way less wind, yay! We are supposed to be getting in precipitation over the weekend, I'm pleased with that. Driving through the enchanted forest today, you can see the water level is a few inches below the ice level, so we for sure need the wet. It's supposed to be cold, so still don't know if we will get snow, rain, or freezing rain.
Great news, the plumber was able to come in today! Woot for having hot water on this side of the house again. It ended up it was the fuses, even though they really didn't look blown at all. Weird that- we are still thinking of getting the darn thing replaced, thanks to my mom. The plumber is recommending we do so too, as we can get it done.
Started up 4 more litter jugs with seeds today, two each of honeybee mix, and flower garden mix. Nice thing about where the greenhouse frames are at is that I can easily access and see these jugs from standing on the porch. The milk jugs will be on a lower level, and visible from the ground.
Tonight will be crab cakes, elk steaks, and smoked salmon for dinner. Bout darn time everything is defrosted nice, lol. Sides are gonna be roasted garlic taters and sauteed mushrooms in red wine, yum.
January 3rd...
Cold, wet, crappy. Woke up to a rather nice dusting of snow, that turned to cold ass rain and wretched driving weather... So of course I decided to go out and get the monthly shopping done today, lol.
It was nice to just take my time wandering from store to store, getting a bit of this and that. No stress or worries. Got some good smelling jar candles on clearance for 1.19 a piece. I only picked up four, though I was tempted to pick up all dozen of what they had left. Picked up some clearance jewelry components too, neat ones- almost looking forward to using them, lol. My creative bug has kind of taken a big nosedive since my work area is steadly a refrigerator as far as temps go, heh. Kind of hard to do fine work when you got the chilled shakes.
Got to wear my new vintage turtleneck while out and about today. It's a nice sunny yellow, and paired with my good blue wool coat, I felt like I looked right fine and bright for this time of year. Hey, I'll take happy any way I can get it right now.
And happy coupons, I saved 10 bucks at GFS today :) Picked up a heap of chicken and frozen veggies, and a new jar of thyme- I seriously need to get my ass in gear with harvesting and drying thyme this coming season, I use loads of the stuff. I got two plants in the herb garden, and one sickly plant I rescued in the solarium that I hope will make it to planting in the spring. Heh, so now that the parsley hedge is starting to come along, I need to bump up my dill and thyme action. Though my last bucket of dill is still green in the solarium, so that rocks.
January 1st. Happy New Year! It was a frigging cold and blustery night- and it's a cold and blustery day. Temps in the 20's I think, brrrrr. I'm really hoping we get in some snow or rain- it's been a pretty dry winter so far. I'm already tired of being chilled, and we still got a couple months to go, sigh.
Found out the board heaters in my office are broken. Don't know why, but damnit. So now I'm running a small space heater in my office- I also kicked on one of the bedroom heaters and the bathroom heater- cuz now I'm getting paranoid we are gonna freeze pipes. Need to call the plumber tomorrow to get them in to see why the hot water heater on this side of the house is dead again- we've been out of hot water for almost two weeks now on this side of the house. With the holidays and all, didn't think we could get in the plumber sooner for the regular rate, pttht. That's contributing to my bursting pipes fears too. Moms big Christmas present to us is the money to get the plumber in for the water heater. Still haven't figured out what to do about the broken stove burner.
Winter just sucks ass ya'll, majorly.
On the bright side, I got a bunch of buckets and pots dumped out on a tarp in the solarium, to start working up some wintersowing jugs. That was some cold and crappy work since the solarium is hovering in the upper 30's right now- but good news is the solarium is in the upper 30's, instead of the same temp as outside. I think between replacing the skylight and plasticing over all the windows and door, it's really making an impact out there to help keep above freezing as much as possible.
Today I started 4 wintersowing jugs, one breadseed poppy, two blue wildflower mix, and one mixed bachelors button. Tomorrow I will get more jugs prepped, and maybe some more filled and set out. So far the strapping down of the three greenhouse frames is working right fine. The litter jugs are too big to fit onto the lower levels, but fit 8 on top perfect and stable- so far. I'll go back in and strap up the top later if I need to. I'm extra hoping the breadseed poppy does well, I would like to start a patch big enough to yield a few cups of seeds for baking every year.
And after last years sort of failure with using paper tags, this year I decided to get a bit smarter with the labeling- I started cutting up some recycled sour cream containers and used a sharpie- I'm hoping this will work better, lol.
Sadly, my little yellow tomato seed never sprouted. Hahms Gelbe Topftomate- it was from a trade last year. I had 5 seeds, and tried to pot them up to germinate indoors- first in the library which I thought might have been too cold, so I put them on top of the fridge- and three weeks later, nothing. So yesterday I used up the patio tomato seed I had and we shall see if that sprouts up or not. That seed is a couple years old too, so who knows what will happen. If I'm lucky, I'll get a couple plants for potentially some fruits in February, wouldn't that be nice?
With cooking, I had planned on doing up a nice New Years dinner- but the elk steaks were still frozen, as was the lump crab. Sigh, so I made up a shepards pie with a bunch of leftovers based on stuffing instead of mashed potatoes... and planned on the nice dinner for tonight. Crab is still frozen in the middle, sigh... So I'm doing up a batch of creamy veggie and sausage soup instead. Got some leftover fresh cauliflower, broccoli, one green pepper, and some shredded lettuce to use up, and plenty of turkey stock on hand. And since my sister is out of town, I could use some white wine in it, yum :) I also used some fresh celery, carrot, onion, and garlic, plus plenty of herbs. I'll cream it up with some leftover french onion dip and milk. Yeah, I know, all that sounds weird as shit, but it will work. After all, homemade dip is just onion soup mix and sour cream.
January 2nd...
Chilly as hell today, but way less wind, yay! We are supposed to be getting in precipitation over the weekend, I'm pleased with that. Driving through the enchanted forest today, you can see the water level is a few inches below the ice level, so we for sure need the wet. It's supposed to be cold, so still don't know if we will get snow, rain, or freezing rain.
Great news, the plumber was able to come in today! Woot for having hot water on this side of the house again. It ended up it was the fuses, even though they really didn't look blown at all. Weird that- we are still thinking of getting the darn thing replaced, thanks to my mom. The plumber is recommending we do so too, as we can get it done.
Started up 4 more litter jugs with seeds today, two each of honeybee mix, and flower garden mix. Nice thing about where the greenhouse frames are at is that I can easily access and see these jugs from standing on the porch. The milk jugs will be on a lower level, and visible from the ground.
Tonight will be crab cakes, elk steaks, and smoked salmon for dinner. Bout darn time everything is defrosted nice, lol. Sides are gonna be roasted garlic taters and sauteed mushrooms in red wine, yum.
January 3rd...
Cold, wet, crappy. Woke up to a rather nice dusting of snow, that turned to cold ass rain and wretched driving weather... So of course I decided to go out and get the monthly shopping done today, lol.
It was nice to just take my time wandering from store to store, getting a bit of this and that. No stress or worries. Got some good smelling jar candles on clearance for 1.19 a piece. I only picked up four, though I was tempted to pick up all dozen of what they had left. Picked up some clearance jewelry components too, neat ones- almost looking forward to using them, lol. My creative bug has kind of taken a big nosedive since my work area is steadly a refrigerator as far as temps go, heh. Kind of hard to do fine work when you got the chilled shakes.
Got to wear my new vintage turtleneck while out and about today. It's a nice sunny yellow, and paired with my good blue wool coat, I felt like I looked right fine and bright for this time of year. Hey, I'll take happy any way I can get it right now.
And happy coupons, I saved 10 bucks at GFS today :) Picked up a heap of chicken and frozen veggies, and a new jar of thyme- I seriously need to get my ass in gear with harvesting and drying thyme this coming season, I use loads of the stuff. I got two plants in the herb garden, and one sickly plant I rescued in the solarium that I hope will make it to planting in the spring. Heh, so now that the parsley hedge is starting to come along, I need to bump up my dill and thyme action. Though my last bucket of dill is still green in the solarium, so that rocks.
Wednesday, December 31, 2014
Last post of the year...
I fell short this year on posting. Mostly in the last couple months. Mostly because there hasn't been much to post.
But right now is the last time I get to post for 2014.
So... It was a great year in the garden- I produced more than I have in previous years- my goal for next year is to produce more than I did this year.
A goal is to finally really seal up my office window, fuck it's cold with the wind whistling through the gap in the glass and the plastic giving way to the freezing wind.
Had the best preserving year yet too- next year not so many sweet peppers for eating that ends up getting preserved instead, and more hot peppers for preserving. Including a weapons grade hot pepper that is gonna get used for zapping critters.
Goal for next year- successfully grow potatoes.
Got most of my family moved in this year- it's been a serious adjustment. Goal for next year is to have everything work better than it is now.
Got lots of plans for next year- I started today with dumping out all the soil bins I got so I can start wintersowing tomorrow. Got all the litter jugs prepped for it too. Got the greenhouse frames strapped to the side of the porch the other day when the weather was fine so I'm good to go.
Goal for next year- enjoy the sun more- I'm so damn depressed from lack of sun it's pitiful. Gonna soak up more sun when the sun is out for soaking up next year. Goal for next year is to get back into healthy sleep again, this 45 minutes at a time crap has got to stop.
Got the solarium roof fixed this year, and jack shit else. Goal for next year, get more stuff done with the house.
I miss the shit out of all my friends- goal for next year, see them more. Get them to come out and visit, scrape up the cash for gas and go visit them more.
Brew something. Don't care if it's beer, wine, cider, or mead. Gonna brew something next year.
Watch the rest of the TrueBlood show- I'm already into season 4, and got the rest on order from Netflix.
Try to be able to keep up with bills- try to make more money to pay for stuff, like bills. Try to start up a roadside stand in the spring to sell off seedlings, and maybe even some produce later on in the year.. Maybe some seeds too. Get some beading to sell. Make beautiful things.
Make good food, eat good food... share good food.
But right now is the last time I get to post for 2014.
So... It was a great year in the garden- I produced more than I have in previous years- my goal for next year is to produce more than I did this year.
A goal is to finally really seal up my office window, fuck it's cold with the wind whistling through the gap in the glass and the plastic giving way to the freezing wind.
Had the best preserving year yet too- next year not so many sweet peppers for eating that ends up getting preserved instead, and more hot peppers for preserving. Including a weapons grade hot pepper that is gonna get used for zapping critters.
Goal for next year- successfully grow potatoes.
Got most of my family moved in this year- it's been a serious adjustment. Goal for next year is to have everything work better than it is now.
Got lots of plans for next year- I started today with dumping out all the soil bins I got so I can start wintersowing tomorrow. Got all the litter jugs prepped for it too. Got the greenhouse frames strapped to the side of the porch the other day when the weather was fine so I'm good to go.
Goal for next year- enjoy the sun more- I'm so damn depressed from lack of sun it's pitiful. Gonna soak up more sun when the sun is out for soaking up next year. Goal for next year is to get back into healthy sleep again, this 45 minutes at a time crap has got to stop.
Got the solarium roof fixed this year, and jack shit else. Goal for next year, get more stuff done with the house.
I miss the shit out of all my friends- goal for next year, see them more. Get them to come out and visit, scrape up the cash for gas and go visit them more.
Brew something. Don't care if it's beer, wine, cider, or mead. Gonna brew something next year.
Watch the rest of the TrueBlood show- I'm already into season 4, and got the rest on order from Netflix.
Try to be able to keep up with bills- try to make more money to pay for stuff, like bills. Try to start up a roadside stand in the spring to sell off seedlings, and maybe even some produce later on in the year.. Maybe some seeds too. Get some beading to sell. Make beautiful things.
Make good food, eat good food... share good food.
Wednesday, December 17, 2014
But, but.. gourmet or healthy means expensive, right?
Well, I haven't posted in over a month. There really hasn't been anything to write about. Nothing new in the garden or yard, the weather has been decent and non-dumping of snow, no new seeds.. Not much going on in the solarium. Even Christmas prep has been really low key.
But I wanted to write up a rant about something I've seen commented on by people lately, especially with the holiday season coming up. The notion that gourmet food means expensive, that healthy food has to be more expensive than junky pre-packaged food.
I try to make the argument that neither of these things need to be true- but to no avail. But anyone that lives in a place that can have a few pots on the porch, or a bit a land can have a garden- and there is a great start to gourmet and healthy eating. Back in our grandparents age of WW2, there were victory gardens for a reason- because it was too expensive and resource consuming to go out and buy produce. Meat was in short supply, yet cooks managed to get protein needs met for their families. Sweets were expensive, but still existed by means of making every ounce of sugar count.
Now, we aren't in the middle of a world war... but we do seem to be in the middle of a food war. Battle lines of what diet to be on, what product to buy or avoid, a thousand bombardments launched at you by commercials, a massive propaganda campaign by every food manufacturer.
I'm here to say you can fight this war- and win. Resistance is not futile. But it does take time and effort.
Let's start with gardening. Even if all you have is a windowsill, you can grow your own herbs. Herbs are tasty additions that can "gourmet up" pre-packaged food. For example, grow basil and parsley, and instead of paying for spaghetti sauce in the jar, pay half the price for canned tomato product and add your own homegrown parsley and basil to make your own spaghetti sauce. There are also veggies you can grow on the windowsill, like mini tomato plants that stay tiny or can be planted in hanging baskets, pepper plants both hot and sweet that just naturally stay very small and can be grown in a pot. Lettuce and spinach can be grown on the windowsill as well.
If you have a porch or patio, you can grow almost anything. Because most veggies have dwarf or bush varieties, or can be long vined and trained up poles and trellises.
If you have a yard, you can grow even more. There are some places that have a say in what you can grow in your yard, but there are many ornamental varieties of edibles- in fact there is a whole culture of edible gardening, which combines beauty, healthy, and quite often gourmet quality.
Shopping- man, I look in peoples carts at the store, and sometimes I'm shocked by what I see- or don't see. Soda by the case is the biggest wow- for that 20 bucks you just spent on soda, you could have bought healthy food, or drink mixes that are far better for you than fizzy sugar water. Boxes of sugary cereal- get oatmeal, it's healthier, more filling, and costs about the same. People pay a couple bucks for a half pound of frozen veggies that are already prepped up and just toss the bag into the nuker- get yourself over to the produce department and get the same thing fresh, and learn how to cook it. Get bone in meats, and eat well- first off the meat, then from what you can make with the leftovers, then what you can make with the stock you can make with the bones. For example, get that bone in ham, eat a good dinner, have enough leftover meat for a couple more dinners, then make stock with the bones for a couple more dinners. Or buy whole chickens instead of boneless breasts, and again, good dinner, good leftovers, use the carcass to make stock for yet more dinners. Turkey is incredible at the right time of year and can feed a family of four half a dozen times between meat and stock for soups, stews, and flavoring grain dishes. Stock in the store is too expensive and too much sodium? Get those bone in meats and make your own, and you will never go back. Bake your own bread- the initial expense seems like a lot, but it bakes up into more loaves that what you pay for commercial. And you can control factors you can't with commercial bread, you can add things to make it even more nutritious, and it smells great while baking and you feel good about it. Buy stuff when it's on sale and stock up. Don't be afraid to use "cheap stores" like Aldi and Big Lots.
Which leads us to cooking. Learn how to cook. Yes, cooking can take time you don't think you have. But yes, you have that time. Get a crockpot and a wall timer, and you can set up a ton of different dinners to be done at any time you want. You can take a boxed something and add in other stuff to make a bla junky box into something tasty and healthy. You can preserve food!! All that produce that you grow or can get cheap while in season you can learn how to freeze it, can it, ferment it, dry it.
For example, jelly and jams. A good gourmet 8 oz jar can be several dollars. But grow yourself some strawberries, and for the price of that one jar, you can make several jars of your own gourmet strawberry jam. And you just extended sugar cost. And heh, anyone who has followed my blog at all knows how much I dehydrate food and use dehydrated food, and how much I can food.
Don't be afraid of seasonings- there's more to life than salt, pepper, and perhaps parsley. Don't be afraid to use a lot of herbs! Dill can brighten herb tones the same way adding acid like lemon or vinegar can brighten dishes. Savory can be added to many dishes to add depth. Bay leaves should go into most soups, stews and stocks because it imparts a flavor like nothing else does. Oregano is excellent for Mexican food- it's not just for Italian. Nor is basil for Italian only either. Ginger and nutmeg are for more than just dessert, and cumin is your warm friend.
If you like to bake, it's worth the expense to buy yourself a few vanilla beans and a big bottle of Everclear, and make your own vanilla extract. Ends up being cheaper than regularly buying little bottles of the stuff.
Poor food can be gourmet too. Humble rice and beans are super healthy, and can be seasoned however you like... and is super cheap. Greens are good for you and can be prepared in dozens of ways according to taste- and there's more than just lettuce and spinach to choose from! Canned tuna can be cheap, provide a ton of protein, and be made into a multitude of dishes- Yes, there is something other than tuna salad and tuna noodle casserole. Heck, I have a tuna hater in the house and she loves my mini tuna loaves. Especially with my homemade tartar sauce.
And hey, if your house uses tartar sauce, make your own. The stuff in the jars is pretty much just mayo and pickle relish. If you normally keep mayo and pickles in the house, you can make your own. I tend to use pickles, capers, lemon juice, and mayo- sometimes I use pickled nasturtium seeds or add in some dill. If you use cocktail sauce, that's just ketchup and horseradish.
Learn how to make your own boxed food kits. Yes, I'm serious. There's a bunch of cookbooks out there, especially this time of year, on gifts in jars. A lot of them are more sweets based, but there are a lot that have savory goods too. Like I make up my own jambalaya kits by the half dozen, and keep them stored in a big jar on the shelf. I also have jarred up Italian bean soup kits, and instant potato corn chowder kits.
On to another subject- learn how to forage food. Those dandelions you hate in your yard are actually good salad greens. Plantains are great stewing greens. Those pretty blue flowers in ditches are chicory that's used roasted in gourmet coffee. I have a lot of wild chives growing in my lawn, and have saved myself hundreds of dollars in chives by picking them and making chive butter, chive oil, and drying chives as well as using them fresh in dishes. Ditch lilies are edible- the fleshy tubers, young stalks and the blooms.
I've probably ranted enough, lol. But if you take some time and effort, food does not have to be expensive to be gourmet or healthy. We humans figured out how to feed ourselves well for way longer than the commercial industry has existed. Next time you sigh over a cooking show- don't. Take it as an example, and make something of your own. Next time you reach for that box of riceoroni- don't. Take your butt over to the dry goods aisle and get a bag of rice and season it up how you like instead. Next time you are thinking about taking the couple hours to go out and eat- don't. Make something at home, and save yourself some money and sodium intake.
But I wanted to write up a rant about something I've seen commented on by people lately, especially with the holiday season coming up. The notion that gourmet food means expensive, that healthy food has to be more expensive than junky pre-packaged food.
I try to make the argument that neither of these things need to be true- but to no avail. But anyone that lives in a place that can have a few pots on the porch, or a bit a land can have a garden- and there is a great start to gourmet and healthy eating. Back in our grandparents age of WW2, there were victory gardens for a reason- because it was too expensive and resource consuming to go out and buy produce. Meat was in short supply, yet cooks managed to get protein needs met for their families. Sweets were expensive, but still existed by means of making every ounce of sugar count.
Now, we aren't in the middle of a world war... but we do seem to be in the middle of a food war. Battle lines of what diet to be on, what product to buy or avoid, a thousand bombardments launched at you by commercials, a massive propaganda campaign by every food manufacturer.
I'm here to say you can fight this war- and win. Resistance is not futile. But it does take time and effort.
Let's start with gardening. Even if all you have is a windowsill, you can grow your own herbs. Herbs are tasty additions that can "gourmet up" pre-packaged food. For example, grow basil and parsley, and instead of paying for spaghetti sauce in the jar, pay half the price for canned tomato product and add your own homegrown parsley and basil to make your own spaghetti sauce. There are also veggies you can grow on the windowsill, like mini tomato plants that stay tiny or can be planted in hanging baskets, pepper plants both hot and sweet that just naturally stay very small and can be grown in a pot. Lettuce and spinach can be grown on the windowsill as well.
If you have a porch or patio, you can grow almost anything. Because most veggies have dwarf or bush varieties, or can be long vined and trained up poles and trellises.
If you have a yard, you can grow even more. There are some places that have a say in what you can grow in your yard, but there are many ornamental varieties of edibles- in fact there is a whole culture of edible gardening, which combines beauty, healthy, and quite often gourmet quality.
Shopping- man, I look in peoples carts at the store, and sometimes I'm shocked by what I see- or don't see. Soda by the case is the biggest wow- for that 20 bucks you just spent on soda, you could have bought healthy food, or drink mixes that are far better for you than fizzy sugar water. Boxes of sugary cereal- get oatmeal, it's healthier, more filling, and costs about the same. People pay a couple bucks for a half pound of frozen veggies that are already prepped up and just toss the bag into the nuker- get yourself over to the produce department and get the same thing fresh, and learn how to cook it. Get bone in meats, and eat well- first off the meat, then from what you can make with the leftovers, then what you can make with the stock you can make with the bones. For example, get that bone in ham, eat a good dinner, have enough leftover meat for a couple more dinners, then make stock with the bones for a couple more dinners. Or buy whole chickens instead of boneless breasts, and again, good dinner, good leftovers, use the carcass to make stock for yet more dinners. Turkey is incredible at the right time of year and can feed a family of four half a dozen times between meat and stock for soups, stews, and flavoring grain dishes. Stock in the store is too expensive and too much sodium? Get those bone in meats and make your own, and you will never go back. Bake your own bread- the initial expense seems like a lot, but it bakes up into more loaves that what you pay for commercial. And you can control factors you can't with commercial bread, you can add things to make it even more nutritious, and it smells great while baking and you feel good about it. Buy stuff when it's on sale and stock up. Don't be afraid to use "cheap stores" like Aldi and Big Lots.
Which leads us to cooking. Learn how to cook. Yes, cooking can take time you don't think you have. But yes, you have that time. Get a crockpot and a wall timer, and you can set up a ton of different dinners to be done at any time you want. You can take a boxed something and add in other stuff to make a bla junky box into something tasty and healthy. You can preserve food!! All that produce that you grow or can get cheap while in season you can learn how to freeze it, can it, ferment it, dry it.
For example, jelly and jams. A good gourmet 8 oz jar can be several dollars. But grow yourself some strawberries, and for the price of that one jar, you can make several jars of your own gourmet strawberry jam. And you just extended sugar cost. And heh, anyone who has followed my blog at all knows how much I dehydrate food and use dehydrated food, and how much I can food.
Don't be afraid of seasonings- there's more to life than salt, pepper, and perhaps parsley. Don't be afraid to use a lot of herbs! Dill can brighten herb tones the same way adding acid like lemon or vinegar can brighten dishes. Savory can be added to many dishes to add depth. Bay leaves should go into most soups, stews and stocks because it imparts a flavor like nothing else does. Oregano is excellent for Mexican food- it's not just for Italian. Nor is basil for Italian only either. Ginger and nutmeg are for more than just dessert, and cumin is your warm friend.
If you like to bake, it's worth the expense to buy yourself a few vanilla beans and a big bottle of Everclear, and make your own vanilla extract. Ends up being cheaper than regularly buying little bottles of the stuff.
Poor food can be gourmet too. Humble rice and beans are super healthy, and can be seasoned however you like... and is super cheap. Greens are good for you and can be prepared in dozens of ways according to taste- and there's more than just lettuce and spinach to choose from! Canned tuna can be cheap, provide a ton of protein, and be made into a multitude of dishes- Yes, there is something other than tuna salad and tuna noodle casserole. Heck, I have a tuna hater in the house and she loves my mini tuna loaves. Especially with my homemade tartar sauce.
And hey, if your house uses tartar sauce, make your own. The stuff in the jars is pretty much just mayo and pickle relish. If you normally keep mayo and pickles in the house, you can make your own. I tend to use pickles, capers, lemon juice, and mayo- sometimes I use pickled nasturtium seeds or add in some dill. If you use cocktail sauce, that's just ketchup and horseradish.
Learn how to make your own boxed food kits. Yes, I'm serious. There's a bunch of cookbooks out there, especially this time of year, on gifts in jars. A lot of them are more sweets based, but there are a lot that have savory goods too. Like I make up my own jambalaya kits by the half dozen, and keep them stored in a big jar on the shelf. I also have jarred up Italian bean soup kits, and instant potato corn chowder kits.
On to another subject- learn how to forage food. Those dandelions you hate in your yard are actually good salad greens. Plantains are great stewing greens. Those pretty blue flowers in ditches are chicory that's used roasted in gourmet coffee. I have a lot of wild chives growing in my lawn, and have saved myself hundreds of dollars in chives by picking them and making chive butter, chive oil, and drying chives as well as using them fresh in dishes. Ditch lilies are edible- the fleshy tubers, young stalks and the blooms.
I've probably ranted enough, lol. But if you take some time and effort, food does not have to be expensive to be gourmet or healthy. We humans figured out how to feed ourselves well for way longer than the commercial industry has existed. Next time you sigh over a cooking show- don't. Take it as an example, and make something of your own. Next time you reach for that box of riceoroni- don't. Take your butt over to the dry goods aisle and get a bag of rice and season it up how you like instead. Next time you are thinking about taking the couple hours to go out and eat- don't. Make something at home, and save yourself some money and sodium intake.
Monday, November 17, 2014
Preserving tally...
I couldn't really remember how much of a record I've been keeping or not on what I've been preserving so far this season, so... As of official winter, here's what I got done through the summer into fall..
6 pints and 8 quarts of pepper rings
14 half pints of citrus ginger zucchini jam
4 quarts of spicy beans
4 quarts of dilly beans
1 quart of dehydrated nasturtium leaves
1 quart of dehydrated celery- from 8 bunches
1 quart of dehydrated Juane Flamme tomato quarters
1 quart of dehydrated Roughwood Golden Plum tomato slices
1 pint and a half of dehydrated mixed tomatoes, sliced
2 quarts of dehydrated pepper rings
1 quart, 1 pint of dehydrated green pepper
28 half pints of spicy olive salsa
1 pint of hot pepper powder, made from guajillo, arbol, piquin, and Japanese chilis
10 pint and a half, 23 pint, 5 half pints of crushed tomatoes
23 quarter pints of pepper relish
6 pints of sweet jardiniere
6 pints of Italian jardiniere
4 quarts of lemony cauliflower
4 quarts of whole banana peppers
6 pints of hot mixed pepper rings
6 pint and a half of cherry bombs
18 half pints and 12 pints of pickled mushrooms
2 quarts of fridge pickled pepperonchini
2 3 cup bags of spaghetti sauce for the freezer
1 quart of dehydrated from frozen corn
2 1/2 pounds of green beans in the freezer
1 quart dehydrated habanero peppers, halved
1 pint and a half of dehydrated mixed peppers, chopped
1 quart of white bread crumbs
1 quart of rye bread crumbs
1 pint of dehydrated cauliflower
1 pint of dried sage
9 two oz cubes of nasturtium flower pesto in the freezer
9 two oz cubes of nasturtium leaf pesto in the freezer
12 pounds of carrots for the freezer, in matchsticks, diced, and crinklecut
1 quart of lacto-fermented carrtos
1 quart of mexican spicy carrots
1 pint and 1 quart of pickled nasturtium seeds, AKA poor mans capers
4 quarts, 3 pint and a half of fridge pickled mushrooms
Now, keep in mind that these are finished weights. So for instance, it takes 5 pounds of corn or 6 pounds of minced onion to dehydrate to 1 quart jar- but it takes only a dozen habaneros to dry up to a quart jar if they are left halved instead of powdered. When it comes to pickling, the jars are full, but there is a lot of brine in there too.
6 pints and 8 quarts of pepper rings
14 half pints of citrus ginger zucchini jam
4 quarts of spicy beans
4 quarts of dilly beans
1 quart of dehydrated nasturtium leaves
1 quart of dehydrated celery- from 8 bunches
1 quart of dehydrated Juane Flamme tomato quarters
1 quart of dehydrated Roughwood Golden Plum tomato slices
1 pint and a half of dehydrated mixed tomatoes, sliced
2 quarts of dehydrated pepper rings
1 quart, 1 pint of dehydrated green pepper
28 half pints of spicy olive salsa
1 pint of hot pepper powder, made from guajillo, arbol, piquin, and Japanese chilis
10 pint and a half, 23 pint, 5 half pints of crushed tomatoes
23 quarter pints of pepper relish
6 pints of sweet jardiniere
6 pints of Italian jardiniere
4 quarts of lemony cauliflower
4 quarts of whole banana peppers
6 pints of hot mixed pepper rings
6 pint and a half of cherry bombs
18 half pints and 12 pints of pickled mushrooms
2 quarts of fridge pickled pepperonchini
2 3 cup bags of spaghetti sauce for the freezer
1 quart of dehydrated from frozen corn
2 1/2 pounds of green beans in the freezer
1 quart dehydrated habanero peppers, halved
1 pint and a half of dehydrated mixed peppers, chopped
1 quart of white bread crumbs
1 quart of rye bread crumbs
1 pint of dehydrated cauliflower
1 pint of dried sage
9 two oz cubes of nasturtium flower pesto in the freezer
9 two oz cubes of nasturtium leaf pesto in the freezer
12 pounds of carrots for the freezer, in matchsticks, diced, and crinklecut
1 quart of lacto-fermented carrtos
1 quart of mexican spicy carrots
1 pint and 1 quart of pickled nasturtium seeds, AKA poor mans capers
4 quarts, 3 pint and a half of fridge pickled mushrooms
Now, keep in mind that these are finished weights. So for instance, it takes 5 pounds of corn or 6 pounds of minced onion to dehydrate to 1 quart jar- but it takes only a dozen habaneros to dry up to a quart jar if they are left halved instead of powdered. When it comes to pickling, the jars are full, but there is a lot of brine in there too.
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