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My husband has been preparing our small garden area. He may put the peppers plants out tomorrow. He started some tomato plants as well as fairy tale pumpkins on the porch as well. I will try to buy more of the Dester Indiana tomato plants when the vendor who sells plants starts coming to the farmers market, as we liked those a lot.
Today, I bought a small rosemary plant at the farmers market. I don't know whether we will plant it out and use it until there is a freeze in the fall or if it would be best to keep it in a pot and try to keep it over the winter. Does anyone have experience with rosemary?
Interesting choice of fruits for your chicken salad, Mike. I've heard of grapes but not prunes.
I roasted two large bone-in chicken breasts for dinner on Saturday. We had some of it with the rest of the vegetable farro stir-fry, which I revitalized with some sauteed Bok Choy from today's farmers market, the first market of the outdoor season. I also came away with more asparagus, some curly kale, and mixed salad greens, as well as more eggs and a new large jar of honey.
We finished the turkey-zucchini loaf which we had with more of the Vegetable-Farro stir-fry.
That was a narrow escape, Joan!
I baked Cranberry Walnut Scones on Friday evening to use up the partial bag of cranberries in the freezer. Although I could have used my scone pan, I was feeling lazy about washing another pan, so I shaped the dough into a circle that I cut into 8 slices. I baked them for 25 minutes but should probably have taken them out after 23, as they are slightly browner than I prefer. I will eat some for breakfast over the next few days and freeze the rest.
We had our first rabbit in the yard this season, so they are around.
We did see pelicans a couple of years ago at one of the wildlife refuges, passing through on their way elsewhere. I'll let my husband know that they are showing up more around the Great Lakes.
We had ham sandwiches and coleslaw for dinner again. I am liking these sandwich and salad suppers.
Ah, such beautiful buns! I need to bake that recipe again soon.
I needed to use two of my last Cara Cara oranges, and we also were out of cookies on Wednesday. I had the inspiration to make orange pecan biscotti with mini-chocolate chips. I had adapted a recipe from Fine Cooking (Issue 61) for "Triple Orange Biscotti a year or two ago, so I looked at it and at a Bon Appetit recipe for Chocolate-Orange Biscotti that uses butter, and I looked at my Lime Pecan Biscotti recipe for ratios. I ended up using the recipe I had adapted from Fine Cooking, but I used all white whole wheat flour, which I increased from 2 2/3 to 3 cups and added 3 Tbs. Bob's Red Mill milk powder. That let me use 1/3 cup orange juice (rather than 3 Tbs) so that none would be left over. I slightly increased the olive oil from 5 Tbs. to 1/3 cup. Along with the pecans, I added ½ cup of mini-chocolate chips. I baked it as three 14-inch, long thin logs, which spread slightly, at 350 for 25 minutes, then cooled for 25 minutes before slicing and putting the standing slices back into the oven for 15 minutes at 325 F. Scott and I both sampled a tiny slice tonight, and we agreed that this version is a keeper. They will go well with either tea or coffee.
To go with leftover Turkey-Zucchini Loaf on Wednesday, I made a farro stir fry with turkey broth from the freezer for cooking the farro and used olive oil to saute chopped carrots, celery, an orange bell pepper, sliced green onion, and a pound of sliced mushrooms. I do not usually use so many mushrooms, but our local store only has the older mushrooms out on the morning that we do our shopping, and these mushrooms (from Ontario, Canada), were not keeping well, even though we bought them yesterday, so into the stir-fry they went.
We had ham sandwiches on the Sourdough Oatmeal Whole Wheat Bread that I baked yesterday and more of the coleslaw.
We haven't been able to put out bird feeders this past year because there is a cat patrolling the neighborhood. It cleared out the chipmunks last autumn, catching at least one and causing the rest to leave. I miss being able to feed the birds.
In the past two years, we had rabbits, but this year they are not in our yards. We do have a young groundhog, and I saw a possum one day after we had the storms. We have a red squirrel and the usual other squirrels. We also have deer on the terraces, so my husband has had to protect some of the plants there.
Scott thought that there were swans on the lake yesterday. They turned out to be pelicans, a rare sight here.
We ran out of bread on Monday, so I baked Sourdough Oatmeal Whole Wheat Bread, a recipe that I adapted from one in a Sunset Magazine bread book, and which I baked about six weeks ago. This time, I increased the yeast to 2 1/2 tsp. and reduced the salt to 1 ¾ tsp. from 2 tsp. The dough makes too much for two 8 x 4-inch pans but makes a low, wide loaf in 9 x 5-inch pans, so I decided to try two 9 x 4-inch Pullman pans without the lids. I baked the loaves for 40 minutes to a temperature of 195 F, having checked at 35 minutes when they registered at 178 F. I look forward to slicing one tomorrow, at which time I will add a picture to this post.
That dinner sounds good, Len! And "planned overs" are always good!
For dinner on Monday, I made Turkey Zucchini Loaf with Peach-Dijon glaze, using thawed frozen zucchini. I also roasted sweet potato chunks alongside the meatloaf. We had coleslaw on the side. And we have planned overs as well!
Navlys--the dates on sealed spice bottles are probably like most of the dates on food. The government requires the expiration date, but most of the food is fine beyond that date. I found a jar of Penzey's Now Curry late last year that is probably years old. It was unopened, and I didn't notice a difference. I don't remember when I opened my Penzey's garlic powder, or onion powder, or Sunny Paris--it's been a while--but they are still fine. I also buy Penzey's spices in bags and re-fill my jars because it is cheaper. Again, I have not noticed a difference. If the dates still bother you, send a direct email to Bill Penzey and suggest he address the subject in one of his emails. Most of us just don't go through spices at breakneck speed. When I read cooking columns that suggest tossing spices after a year, I think to myself that these people have too much disposable income.
For lunch on Sunday, I cooked a cup of dried penne pasta. I mixed it with the slightly warmed roasted asparagus, cherry tomatoes, and mushrooms I made last night and added a bit of pasta water and 2 oz. of feta left over from last week's frittata. I will be able to get two additional lunches from it.
I made coleslaw on Sunday to go with ham sandwiches for dinner. Kroger has had some very nice organically grown cabbages.
I made Cornmeal Pumpernickel Waffles for breakfast on a cold and drizzly Sunday morning. The recipe is from the King Arthur Whole Grain Baking Book.
That roast sounds delicious, Navlys. I need to try using my newer slow cooker for something other than apple butter.
Our local farmers market was not held today, since twice yearly the vendors take a week off as we move from the winter indoor to the spring and summer outdoor location. However, a local vendor's asparagus was ready, so Scott drove me to the farm where I bought a pound of the most beautiful asparagus from the same vendor as last week. I could not resist making the roasted asparagus, cherry tomatoes, and mushrooms again for dinner, while Scott had microwaved fresh broccoli and a few of the roasted tomatoes. The main dish was Salmon and Couscous with Penzey's Greek Seasoning.
I also made yogurt today.
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