Just Eat Food News

With New Year’s Resolutions and all that jazz I thought I’d share a meal that exemplifies the resolutions in my house this year.  They resolutions are simple: be in the best health of our lives.  Have you watched the movie Food, Inc. yet?  Yeah, we watched that last week and it reaffirmed our passion for all things local, seasonal, and pastured animal products.  The reasons for this: it tastes BETTER, minimally process sing, casts a vote for real food, and doesn’t contain subsidized corn and soy products.  I feel better now…phew…

Happy New Year!!!

WINTER CHOP SALAD (SERVES 2)

DRESSING

• 1-½ teaspoon local honey
• ¼ teaspoon garlic chili sauce (only if you like spicy)
• ½ teaspoon sesame seeds
• ¾ teaspoon apple cider vinegar
• 1 teaspoon oil – veggie, olive, etc.

SALAD

• 2 cups green cabbage – shredded
• 2 small beets – peeled, julienne
• ½ cup carrots – julienne
• 1 pastured chicken breast – cooked, and chilled (cook an extra breast the night before for lunches the next day)
• 2 tablespoons cooked wheat berries – only if you have some leftover! 
  
• 2 tablespoons shallots – sliced thinly, rings separated

DIRECTIONS

For the dressing; mix the honey, chili sauce, sesame seeds, vinegar, and oil together in a small bowl and set aside. 

Divide the following between two plates: cabbage, beets, carrots, chicken, winter wheat, and shallots.  Pour dressing over the top and enjoy!

As you can see Meyer Lemons are the featured fruit for this miraculous marmalade.  Don’t like marmalade you say?  Well, you probably won’t care for this. It still has all that wonderful bitterness of any good marmalade except made from divine Meyer Lemons.

Perhaps you are wondering how a girl in IL could get her hands on lovely Meyer Lemons?  I’ll tell you how this came to be.  See I have an aunt that made sure she hauled some lemons that she picked in my grandma’s (Raisin) back yard when she came home for Thanksgiving.  I labored over how to preserve the lemons in a way fitting to their wonderfulness.  I realize there are some people in the world that would just assume that Meyer Lemons are just like the waxy, fluorescent, picked to early lemons that are trucked in from FL.  Well you see this just isn’t the case.  They are a thin skinned, super juicy, slightly sweeter version, with a hint of orange, little lemon.

I’m wishing everyone a bright, festive, and glittery Christmas.  Cheers to 2010!  It’s going to be a good one! 

MAGNIFICENT MEYER MARMALADE (MAKES 6-8 ½ PINTS)

Recipe for Meyer Lemon Marmalade reproduced from Simply Recipes.  Complete with step by step photos that are really fantastic.  GREAT step by step for a canning newbie like myself.

Ingredients

• 2 1/2 lbs of Meyer lemons (about 9 lemons)
• 6 cups water
• 6 cups granulated sugar

Note that the proportion of lemon segments to water to sugar is 1:1:1. So if you don't have a kitchen scale and don't weigh your lemons to begin with, as you proceed through this recipe keep in mind these proportions. Your 2 1/2 lbs of lemons should yield 6 cups of chopped lemon. 6 cups of chopped lemon will be cooked first with 6 cups of water, and then later 6 cups of sugar are added. You can also do this recipe with 4 cups of chopped lemons, 4 cups of water, and 4 cups of sugar. Do not double the recipe. Do not reduce the sugar (if you want a reduced sugar recipe, use a different recipe); the sugar is needed for the jelly to set.

Equipment needed

• 1 wide 6 or 8-quart pan (Stainless steel or copper with stainless steel lining, not aluminum which will leach)
• A sharp chef's knife
• A candy thermometer
• 6 half-pint (8-oz) canning jars
• Cheesecloth, enough to double over and form a bag to hold the seeds for making pectin, or a Muslin jelly bag

Method

Preparing the fruit

1 Scrub the lemons clean. Discard any that are moldy or damaged.

2 Prepare the lemons. Cut 1/4 inch off from the ends of the lemons. Working one at a time, stand a lemon on end. Cut the lemon in half lengthwise. Cut each lemon half into several segments, lengthwise.

As you cut the lemons into segments, if you can, pull off any exposed membranes. Just get the ones that are easy to get to, ignore the rest. When you've cut down to the final segment, cut away the pithy core. Remove all seeds from the segments. Reserve the seeds and any removed membrane or pith. You will need them to make pectin.

Cut each lemon segment crosswise into even pieces to make little triangles of lemon peel and pulp.

3 Put all of the seeds, membranes and pith you removed from the lemons into a bag fashioned out of two layers of cheesecloth or a muslin jelly bag.

First stage of cooking

4 Place the lemon segments and water into a large, wide pot.

5 Place the pectin bag in the pot with the fruit pulp and secure to the pot handle.

6 Bring mixture to a medium boil on medium high heat. Let boil, uncovered, for about 25-35 minutes, until the peels are soft and cooked through. Test one of the lemon peel pieces by eating it. It should be soft. If it is still chewy, keep cooking until soft.

Remove from heat.

7 Remove the pectin bag, place the pectin bag in a bowl and let cool until it is comfortable to touch.

Add the pectin and sugar

8 Once your pectin bag has cooled to the point you can handle it, if you want, squeeze it like play-doh to extract any extra pectin. This is not necessary but will help ensure a good set. (I like to wear latex-type gloves for this part.) You should be able to get a tablespoon or two more from the bag. It has the consistency of sour cream. Return this pectin to the pan with the lemon mixture.

9 Measure out your sugar and add it to the pan with the lemon mixture.

Second stage of cooking

10 Heat the jelly mixture on medium high and bring it to a rapid boil. Secure a candy thermometer to the side of the pan. The marmalade may take anywhere from 20 to 35 minutes or so to be ready to pour out. After about 15 minutes, start checking it frequently.

11 There are two ways to test that the marmalade is ready to pour out into jars - the mixture reaching a temperature of 220-222°F (8-10°F above the boiling point at your altitude) and a bit of it put on a chilled plate "wrinkling up" when you push it with your finger tip. I do both.

For the wrinkle test, put several small plates into the freezer. As the jelly temperature reaches 218°F, start testing it by placing a small amount of the hot jelly on a chilled plate. If the jelly spreads out and thins immediately, it isn't ready. If it holds its shape a bit, like an egg yolk, that's a good sign. Push up against it with your finger tip. If the jelly sample wrinkles at all, it is time to take the jelly off the heat and pour it out into jars.

When you use a candy thermometer to test the temperature of your mixture, make sure the probe is NOT touching the bottom of the pan. Make sure that the indentation on the probe (with modern candy thermometers this is about an inch and a half from the bottom of the probe) is actually surrounded by the mixture. This may mean that you have to tilt the pan to one side, to cover the probe sufficiently to get a good reading.

Canning

12 While the marmalade is in its second cooking stage, rinse out your canning jars, dry them, and place them, without lids, in a 200°F oven. They should be in the oven at least 10 minutes before using them.

13 As the time approaches for the marmalade to be done, boil some water in a tea pot. Put the jar lids in a glass or ceramic bowl and pour the boiling water over them to sterilize.

14 Once the jelly has reached 220°F or its "wrinkly" stage, remove the jelly pot from the heat. Carefully ladle the jelly into the jars, one at a time, leaving 1/4 inch head space at the top of the jars for a vacuum seal. Wipe the rim clean with a clean, wet paper towel. Place the lid on the jar, securing with a jar ring. Work quickly.

15 Allow the jars to sit overnight. You will hear them make a popping sound as a vacuum seal is created.

Even if the jelly is not firm as it goes into the jar (it shouldn't be), it should firm up as it cools.

I’ve never attempted to make pita bread.  No, not once.  Those little pockets are pretty intimidating!  Especially for a girl that is a little afraid of bread since it is so temperamental.  Learning the new steps, and asking “how many times does this have to rise?” only made the experience more fun and rewarding.  These were a stretch for me but I enjoyed them immensely as piping hot pita dipped in homemade Tzatziki sauce. 

These are a bit time consuming so whip them up on the weekend to take to work during the week. 

WHOLE WHEAT PITAS – original recipe taken from Confections of a Foodie Bride and copied here.  

• 1 package active dry yeast
• 1 tablespoon honey
• 1 1/4 cups warm water (105–115°F)
• 1 1/2 cups bread flour or high-gluten flour, plus additional for kneading
• 1 1/2 cup whole wheat flour
• 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 tsp salt
• cornmeal for sprinkling baking sheets

Stir together yeast, honey, and 1/2 cup warm water in a large bowl, then let stand until foamy, about 5 minutes. (If mixture doesn’t foam, discard and start over with new yeast.)

While yeast mixture stands, stir together flours in another bowl. Whisk 1/2 cup flour mixture into yeast mixture until smooth, then cover with plastic wrap and let stand in a draft-free place at warm room temperature until doubled in bulk and bubbly, about 45 minutes. Stir in oil, salt, remaining 3/4 cup warm water, and remaining 2 1/2 cups flour mixture until a dough forms.

Turn out dough onto a floured surface and knead, working in just enough additional flour to keep dough from sticking, until dough is smooth and elastic, 8 to 10 minutes. Form dough into a ball and put in an oiled large bowl, turning to coat. Cover bowl with plastic wrap and let dough rise in draft-free place at warm room temperature until doubled in bulk, about 1 hour.

Set oven rack in middle of the oven. Preheat oven to 500°F.

Punch down dough and cut into 8 pieces. Form each piece into a ball. Flatten 1 ball, then roll out into a 6 1/2- to 7-inch round on floured surface with a floured rolling pin. Transfer round a baking sheet lightly sprinkled with cornmeal. Make 7 more rounds in same manner, arranging them on baking sheets. Loosely cover pitas with a clean kitchen towel and let stand at room temperature 30 minutes.

Transfer 4 pitas, 1 at a time, directly onto oven rack. Bake until just puffed and pale golden, about 2 minutes. Turn over with tongs and bake 1 minute more. Cool pitas on a cooling rack 2 minutes, then stack and wrap loosely in a kitchen towel to keep pitas warm. Bake remaining pitas in same manner. Serve warm.

They are as delicious as they are pretty!

It’s hard to believe it is almost time to celebrate Thanksgiving again.  Spring came and went, summer breezed by, the leaves began to fall, and here we are.  This year we have so much to be thankful for.  We live in a country where we have so many opportunities. We can grow up to be what we want, and make our own choices when it comes to food.  The opportunities to choose food are endless.  We can choose to support big or small business, make our own food, or buy it prepared.  In this day and age where there are so many choices remember what Thanksgiving is all about.  Thanksgiving is our humble reminder of how the earth can produce exactly what we need, more perfectly than any chemist can produce in a lab.  The shorter the distance from the farm to your table the better it will taste, the better you will feel. 

This month I celebrated my one year anniversary as a food blogger and am happy to say that it has been incredibly rewarding.  I’ve met genuinely wonderful people that give freely of themselves for the new girl. 

Reflecting on this year and the changes that have occurred, one thing that is consistent in my life is my friends (this means family too).  They continue to give me love and support and in this case share some family recipes. 

Last year on Just Eat Food I made my wonderful friend Marci’s Berry Sweet Potato Bake and it is a hit whenever I make it. PS she broils marshmallows on top of hers.  mmmm....

This year Marci has graciously shared her recipe for Cranberry Velvet Salad.

Her table is sure to be filled with love, great food, and new family memories.  I wish you all a happy and warm Thanksgiving.

Do you like pickles?  Like Cole Slaw?  Yep, you are in the right place.  This is a wonderfully tangy, sweet, tastes as good as it looks salad.  The veggies are crisp and the perfect carriers for the interesting flavors that the mustard and cumin provide.

This isn’t for the faint of heart.  You only need a little bit to pack a punch to your lunch.  Serve as a side salad to any protein main dish.  There’s nothing reminiscent of a traditional holiday dish here.  Or, is it a new tradition?

SWEET AND SOUR SLAW IN TECHNICOLOR (YIELDS 2 CUPS) *The colors in this image have not been modified in any way.  Do not attempt to adjust your monitor*

• 1 cup apple cider vinegar
• ½ cup sugar
• 1 teaspoon ground mustard
• ½ teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 carrot – peeled, julienne
• 1 small onion – julienne
• 1 green zucchini – julienne
• 1 golden beet – peeled, julienne

In a small sauce pan heat vinegar, sugar, mustard, and cumin over medium heat.  Bring to a boil and continue to cook for 2 additional minutes.  Remove liquid from heat and allow to cool completely about 30 minutes.

In a 1 quart air tight container add carrot, onion, zucchini, and beet.  Please note that the vegetables are raw.  Allowing the liquid to cool completely will allow the vegetables to maintain their crunch. 

Pour liquid over vegetables and refrigerate.  Stir once after about 24 hours and then enjoy after 48 hours.   

We were lucky enough to have taken a trip to Colorado a few weeks back.  Just so you get a sense of how nice people are there (general sweeping statement I realize) when we were checking out of the car rental place the gentleman at the window asked where we were headed.  When we told him “Aspen” he recommended what he thought was the best taco shop ever.  Right here in CO?  We thought that was a little weird but we were completely entranced with the CO hospitality so we had no chance but to trust him.  On the drive out of Aspen as we were returning to the Denver area we found the little taco shop Taqueria El Nopal in Glenwood Springs, CO.  Of course it was tucked into a strip mall (the only thing we look for when seeking out culinary treats – no really, we do!).  The place was packed.  We ordered a ton of tacos to try, carnitas, carne asada, and vegetable.  While we were waiting I helped myself to the salsa bar where there were at least 6 homemade salsas.  I could have done shots of the salsa alone!  The tacos arrived, and we especially fell in love with the vegetable tacos. 

I’ve made vegetable tacos before but my vegetables were always much larger than the ones at Taqueria El Nopal and cooked for much less time, I could just tell.  So, this recipe is an experiment and a tribute to the best little taco shop in the states.  Not that we entirely believe that, but we were in a euphoric mood so we’ll just go with that.  I think you will find the crisp slaw is a nice contrast to the slightly sweet and very soft vegetables.  The trick is to keep the vegetables all diced about the same size, very tiny.  

Want some more vegan love?  Your search ends here.

VEGAN VEGGIE TACOS WITH RED CABBAGE SLAW (SERVES 4)

Slaw

• 2 cups red cabbage – shredded
• ½ tomato – cut into 2 large pieces
• ¼ cup cilantro leaves – packed
• ½ teaspoon jalapeño juice
• 1 teaspoon white vinegar
• 1 teaspoon white onion – diced
• salt to taste

Tacos

• 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 yellow squash – diced in ½” pieces
• 2 small green zucchini - diced in ½” pieces
• 1 tomato - diced in ½” pieces
• 2 carrots - diced in ½” pieces
• 2 garlic cloves – minced
• ¼ cup water
• hot sauce to taste
• ¼ cup cilantro leaves – packed
• 8 tortillas

Prepare the slaw first so it has time to marinate.  Combine the tomato, cilantro, jalapeño juice, vinegar, onion, and salt in a small food processor.  Blend until almost smooth.  Pour over red cabbage (in an air tight container), stir, and place in refrigerator until it’s time to eat.

In a large pan (something with a lid), over medium heat, add olive oil.  Once hot, add squash, zucchini, tomato, carrots, and garlic.  Sautee for a 3 minutes, add water, reduce to medium-low heat and cover.  Continue to cook, stirring occasionally, for 45 minutes.  In last 5 minutes of cooking add hot sauce, and cilantro leaves.  Spoon veggie mixture into tortillas, and top with desired amount of slaw. 

Hard to believe we are flying through October and Halloween is almost here.  As the nights get shorter and the fires burn hotter it only makes me want to hang on to the fall harvest that much more.  The fall brings such wonderful colors and textures and I can’t wait to try each and every one.  For this edition I bring you the super sweet, super gorgeous Concord grape.  The little seeds inside don’t bother me at all.  These little fall gems are magnificent at satisfying a sweet tooth, and make a slightly spooky non-alcoholic cocktail. 

October has been a crazy month of traveling and things are just getting back to normal. Please don’t take my absence as anything personal.  It certainly is nothing more than a much needed break.  First, we were at Crystal Lake MI where we made these incredibly cute pumpkins.  This is a super easy craft and used left over wire and some little pumpkins.  That’s it!  The project was enjoyed by all, and we were amazed what you can do with some pumpkins, wire, wasabi peas, and a LOT of creativity.  I would like to remind you to Just Eat Food, but make sure to play with it first.  Wishing  you all a safe and Happy Halloween!

This was an experiment but turned out to be pretty tasty.  Want some fizzies without fake sweeteners?  This is the treat for you.  My aspartame loving husband even liked it (doesn’t mean much because he likes everything I make don’t you sweetest?).  So, try it for yourself.  Last winter I made Grapefruit Soda, which was great too.  This is the perfect way to cut the sweetness of juice and get some fuzzy little bubbles too.  If you don’t want to mess with juicing the grapes you could use an all natural grape juice which would be lovely too. 

GRAPE SODA 

• concord grapes – juice only*
• sparkling water

For each serving use (2) parts grape juice to (1) part sparkling water. 

*If you have a juicer use that to extract the juice from the grapes.  I had to use a food processor and then strain the seeds and skins from the juice.  Kind of laborious but the results were worth it.      

Summer is almost officially over.  But, before we say goodbye let’s remember the few fresh tomatoes hanging on for dear life...

There really is no need to buy canned pasta sauce.  The flavors here are fresh, delicious and on the table in about 20 minutes.  The options are endless and the flavors divine.  As far as I’m concerned tomatoes are the perfect vessels in which to harvest the fading summer sun.  Do you get my point?  I love tomatoes, and can’t bear the thought of letting them go.   Until next summer my sweet loves…

Would you like a few more ideas to use up the last of your tomato bounty?

• Heirloom Tomato Salad
• Veggie Hash
• Vegan Summer Stuffed Spuds

QUICK AND GARLICKY TOMATO SAUCE (yields 2 cups)

• 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
• ¼ cup white onion – finely chopped
• 2 garlic cloves – finely chopped
• 3 large tomatoes – coarsely chopped
• 8 basil leaves – coarsely chopped
• salt and pepper to taste

In medium sauce pan over medium heat add extra-virgin olive oil, white onion, and garlic cloves.  Cook for 7 minutes then, add 1/3 of the tomatoes, and continue to cook.

In the meantime in a small food processor combine remaining tomatoes, and basil leaves.  Pulse until well combined.

Add tomato and basil puree to sauce pan and cook until heated through.  Serve over pasta, or protein of your choice.  Garnish with freshly grated parmesan and ground pepper. 

Oh how I love the ruby colored gem of late summer.  So beautiful and good for you too.  There is no better way to savor them than pickling.  Having no canning experience I opted for an incredibly simple method.  They are sweet, flavorful and active prep is only about one hour.

If you love beets you’re going to be hooked on these beauties! 

EASY PICKLED BEETS (1 Quart)

• 2 bunches small beets – ends trimmed and scrubbed
• 4 small onions – sliced and separate rings
• ½ cup liquid from boiled beets
• ½ cup white vinegar
• ½ cup honey – go local!
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• ¼ teaspoon cinnamon
• ¼ teaspoon cloves

Bring beets and enough water to cover to a boil over high heat.  Reduce to medium and continue to boil for 45 minutes.  With 5 minutes remaining on beets add onion slices.  Drain beets and onions, reserving ½ cup of the liquid, set aside.

While the beets and onions cool add beet liquid, vinegar, honey, salt, cinnamon, and cloves to medium sauce pan and bring to a boil.

Peel beets (this should be easy once they are cooled), and slice.  Add sliced beets and onions to a Mason jar, or air tight container of your choosing.  Cover beets with boiled liquid, cover, and refrigerate at least 24 hours before eating.  I prefer them after about 72 hours.  

Looking for a sweet treat for my sweetheart can be a little tricky if you don’t want cookies, pastries, etc. around the house.  Instead of desserts sitting around the house they typically find themselves sitting on my thighs! 

Let me offer this wonderful dessert that can be served in 10 minutes or less.  That makes this not only a healthy option, but a wonderful alternative to a laborious pie.  The grilling makes the sugar in the fruit begin to caramelize and tastes like an individual serving of summer. 

This Labor Day weekend we took advantage of all that DuPage County, IL has to offer.  We are blessed with a tremendous amount of things to do around here that are absolutely free.  For instance, we visited Kline Creek Farm which is a farm that has been restored to reflect the 1890s.  They have animals, a tour of the farm house, and harvest their own honey.  I of course had to take a jar of the honey home for my own immediate consumption.  As you probably already aware, honey is a natural antiseptic and can be used as a natural remedy to allergies.  Keep your local honeybees employed!  Buy local!

Here are a few shots of our Labor Day weekend: 

Now on to the most wonderful treat that only summer can offer:

GRILLED NECTARINES

• nectarines – halved, and pitted
• honey – local and oh so wonderful

Place nectarine halves onto preheated grill.  Flip once when grill marks appear.  Grill on the opposite side, and remove from heat once grill marks appear.  Drizzle with honey and relax…dessert is done!