No Recipe Pizza Sauce

This is the sauce that prompted the exclamation "This is the best pizza I've ever had in my life!"

Refrigerator Tea

During the summer, my kids crave sweet drinks.
At a certain point, after pushing ice water all day, I give in to
their urgent pleas--but not with kool-aid!

Jam Without Pectin

*Scroll to end of post for a jam recipe that doesn't use pectin!*

Let's just get this out of the way: I have a real thing for my mulberries.

We have spent a good part of the last week up and down and around the mulberry tree, collecting close to 4 pounds of berries. This tree just keeps giving us fistfuls of berries every day. The birds are kindly

Brown Bag Popcorn

A few days ago I posted an anti-microwave rant. The microwave is evil! It is emitting radiation and it is ripping the nutrients in your food to non-recognizable mutations!

Nevertheless. I'm back to tell you how to use your microwave. That evil one. Because if you are like me, you still have it there, on the counter, and it's blissfully unaware of its own danger. It just wants you to have some yummy popcorn.

Hear me out. I think this popcorn 'recipe' is a bridge, an in-between.

Adzuki Beans; Adorable and Delicious

Day One- Fresh and Delicious on its Own

After Day One- AMAZING with cooked rice or barley!

Easy Wholegrain Flatbread

Oh my goodness...crisp edges...utter deliciousness

We Finally Have Peas! Great Recipe Included!

We've got peas, delicious peas!

I think we have FINALLY found the perfect spot for growing peas!

Fluffy Whole Grain Pancakes

I am so glad I found this method! I will warn you, it will dirty up several bowls. ABSOLUTELY worth it, though!

Showing the Love for our Puny Potatoes

Check it out! We harvested our potatoes!

Craig saw the above picture before he saw the actual potatoes. When he saw them in person, he started laughing. "Wow, those are some tiny potatoes. In the pictures they looked bigger, like...real potatoes." I beg to differ, Mr.!

Sugar Pickles

Otherwise known as Cucumber Salad!

If you have a big cucumber glut like we do, this is a really tasty recipe to use some up. The flavor screams summer.

Awesome Recipe for the Last Green Beans--Greek Potato Salad

There's a big kid in the garden! Even my almost 15-year-old gets involved with the garden, and though he finds it a bit uncool to get excited about anything, I think Patrick secretly likes the fact that we try to grow food. I've overheard him telling the neighbor kids "You should see all the stuff we have growing on the side of the house, it's crazy." I'll take that as genuine interest. ;)

Beefsteaks; Not Just for Slicing!

This summer, I have mostly focused on our Amish Paste roma tomatoes, but I don't want anyone to think they are the king of the garden. Though they make great sauce because they contain few seeds and juice--mostly meat--that doesn't mean you have to disregard your other tomatoes when you are preserving your harvest.

Beefsteaks are known for their wonderful flavor and the way their copious juice dribble down your chin as you eat them, slice by slice. But how many beefsteaks can you really eat before they so bad?

Let's Deal with the Tomatoes--14 Plants, 2 Weeks

Well, I said I wanted tomatoes this year. I certainly got my wish! They've been coming in by the bucket-full. Not too shabby for the tiny little space they are growing in. Pictured above is the harvest from one morning! Here are our overgrown, gangly, but beautiful tomato kids:

9 plants here (Amish Paste, heirloom)

5 plants here (from left to right behind Rylee--1 early girl hybrid, 2 beefsteak hybrid, 2 mystery plants from neighbor)

Too-Sweet Defeat...The Jam is Ruined, But We'll Try Again

Maybe I was basking in the joy of my mulberry harvest a little too blithely.

Red Beet Pancakes

I have a big confession to make. Besides the obvious fact that I have tried yet another pancake recipe (soon I'll need to make a category here on the blog for just pancakes). No, my confession is more devious than that: No one who consumed these pancakes knew they contained beets.

Rylee, one of my older daycare girls, wandered up as I was mixing up the batter and I tried to shoo her away. I knew if she caught on to what that red puree was, it would be the end of the story. It would taint her, and anyone she tattled to, from even trying the pancakes once they were finished. I had no success shooing her away, but was pleasantly amused when she exclaimed "Oooh, this is so pretty!" as she started stirring the batter herself. "What's in this?" I pretended not to hear. She sniffed the batter, and I expected her to wrinkle her nose. Instead she cried "I know! It's mulberries! Guys, we are having mulberry pancakes!!!" We do have mulberries on the brain right now, as you can see here on our garden blog, so I understood why she connected that color to our precious berries. I tried very hard not to giggle. Inside a maniacal laugh echoed, as I made my decision not to come clean about the secret ingredient (which made the batter such a gorgeous pink).

I could not have anticipated a more receptive lunch crowd. There are 9 kids here today, and each of them ate at least one pancake. Rylee, seeking a mulberry flavor, said "Hmm, these just taste like normal pancakes." I'll take 'normal' over 'gross, what is in these?' I ate two, myself, and quite honestly I could taste the beets. But barely. The bottom line is, these pretty pink pancakes are just really, really delicious. I'm not going to give away the secret, ever!

*note: I used three small beets that I had roasted and skinned (once roasted, the skin comes off easily).

Red Beet Pancakes (Serves 6) Weelicious

1 Cup All Purpose Flour
3/4 Cup Whole Wheat Flour
3 Tbsp Light Brown Sugar
1 Tbsp Baking Powder
1/2 Tsp Kosher Salt
2 Medium Beets, roasted & pureed (about 3/4 Cups)
1 1/4 Cup Milk
1/3 Cup Plain Greek Yogurt
1 Large Egg
3 Tbsp Unsalted Butter, melted
1 Tsp Vanilla extract

Accompaniments: honey, maple syrup, butter, raspberry sauce

1. Sift the first 5 ingredients into a bowl.
2. Place the rest of the wet ingredients in a separate bowl and whisk thoroughly to combine.
3. Add the dry ingredients into the wet and stir until just combined (you don’t want to overstir the batter — some lumps are good).
4. Drop about 2 tbsp of the pancake mixture onto a greased griddle or pan over medium heat and cook for 3 minutes on each side.
5. Serve with desired accompaniments.

* To freeze: Place the pancakes in labeled zipper bags and freeze for up to 3 months

Six Ways with Sour Cherries

My sister-in-law Casey has a really gorgeous sour cherry tree in her front yard. In an attempt to further my foraging skills, I decided I'd pick a whole bunch and figure out what to do with them.

Apple Cinnamon Pancakes

This recipe comes from Peas and Thank You (a kid-focused cookbook that is also filled with amusing side stories). We have kind of renamed them Apple Jacks around here--one, in honor of the My Little Pony, of course, and two, because while the kids help me stir the dry ingredients, we agree it smells just like the cereal of that name.

This is a wonderful recipe to add to our pancake collection; it's simple, fun, and so tasty! Oh, and I can't forget to mention this: the flavor is so good that I can actually use ALL white whole wheat flour instead of mixing in a portion all-purpose flour. Nutritional bonus!

The batter is somewhat thick, so I used my cookie scoop (two scoopfulls) and flattened out each pancake with the back of the scoop.

Apple Cinnamon Pancakes (source: Peas and Thank You)

1 3/4 c. white whole wheat flour or whole wheat pasty flour
1/4 c. sugar
1/4 t. salt
1.5 T. baking powder
1 T. ground cinnamon
1.5 c. milk (can use nut milks or non-dairy)
1 large apple, peeled and grated (about 1.5 c.)

1. In a large bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, salt, baking powder and cinnamon.

2. Slowly add in milk, whisking just until batter is combined. Gently fold in chopped apples. Do not overmix.

3. Coat a large skillet or griddle with cooking spray and heat over medium heat (I like to use a bit of coconut oil and spread it around with my spatula). Scoop 1/3 cup batter into pan and cook 3 to 4 minutes until pancake edges start to brown and bubbles start to form. Flip and cook 2 to 3 minutes more.

4. Repeat with remaining batter. Serve with maple syrup.

Playgroup Granola Bars

I didn't make up the catchy name, but these have caught on around here! I have been experimenting a lot with different granola bars because the kids love them so much, and I have a hard time spending big bucks on granola bars from the store that are filled with a ton of (mostly unwanted) ingredients.

The nice thing about these is that they hold together very well. Once cut and cooled, we can grab a bar on the way out the door without the threat of being showered with granola crumbs by the time we reach our destination. :)

These don't fall apart in our hands!

Playgroup Granola Bars (source: allrecipes.com)

2 c. rolled oats

3/4 c. brown sugar (I have cut this down to a scant 1/2 c. with no problem)

1/2 c. wheat germ

3/4 t. ground cinnamon

1 c. flour (I used whole wheat)

3/4 c. raisins (I like to use 1/4 c. raisins and 1/4 c. chocolate chips instead)

3/4 t. salt

1/2 c. honey (I've used agave too, still great)

1 egg, beaten

1/2 c. vegetable oil (I fill a 1/2 c. measure almost full with unsweetened applesauce, then fill to top with oil)

2 t. vanilla

*my additions

1 T. chia seeds

1 T. millet (this is awesome! Adds a subtle crunch to each bite)

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Generously grease a 9x13 inch baking pan (note: I have a 9x13 baking sheet that I highly recommend getting if you make granola bars a lot).
2. In a large bowl, mix together the oats, brown sugar, wheat germ, cinnamon, flour, raisins and salt (chia and millet if you are using). Make a well in the center, and pour in the honey, egg, oil and vanilla. Mix well; the batter will be sticky and thick, just keep turning and stirring until all the flour is incorporated. Lightly oil (I use non-stick spray) your hands and pat the mixture evenly and firmly into the prepared pan.
3. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes in the preheated oven, until the bars begin to turn golden at the edges. Cool for 5 minutes, then cut into bars while still warm. Do not allow the bars to cool completely before cutting, or they will be too hard to cut.

Cottage Cheese Pancakes

When I first read the title of this recipe I was a little grossed out. I like cottage cheese, but I don't love it, and trying to imagine a pancake with cottage cheese was hard to do. My whole family really, really loves cottage cheese, which is why I was drawn to this recipe in the first place. I finally tried it, and WOW. These are some amazing little protein-packed pancakes. They remind me of thick crepes, so they go perfectly with fresh berries. There is absolutely no 'cottage cheese' flavor, so no need to be grossed out by the name!This is a recipe I will be making many many times.

Note: I use my cookie scoop to make silver-dollar sized pancakes. I don't recommend trying to make big pancakes, because they are a little tricky to flip. Keep them small and you won't have a problem.

Cottage Cheese Pancakes (weelicious.com)

Ingredients

• 3 eggs
• 1 cup cottage cheese
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 tablespoons honey or agave
• 1/2 cup flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• butter, oil or oil spray
• 
  

Preparation

1. 1. Place the first 4 ingredients in a bowl and whisk.
2. 2. In a separate bowl whisk the dry ingredients.
3. 3. Pour the dry mixture into the wet mixture and stir until just combined.
4. 4. Heat a large sauté pan or griddle over medium heat, lightly coat with oil or butter and pour about 1 tbsp of the mixture onto the griddle for each pancake.
5. 5. Cook for 2 minutes on each side or until pancakes are set and golden.
6. 6. Serve.
7. *To Freeze: Let pancakes come to room temperature, place in a ziploc bag, label and freeze up to 3 months.

Warm Up Your Evening with a Winter Pizza

I can't think of a more appropriate winter pizza than this one! Sweet potatoes from storage, and kale from the cold frame...ingredients readily available in the middle of this long, cold season. Also, the flavor is amazing!
I was skeptical at first--kale? Sweet potatoes? Trust me, get over the doubt and try it at least once if you like either of those ingredients one bit. I'm going out on a limb and assuming you love red onions...because everybody HAS to love red onions. Right?

I found the recipe over at twopeasandtheirpod.com. Below is their exact recipe, but I altered it a bit when I made it. Though I made a full batch of dough, I used about a third of it on this pizza. Since I was only using a portion of the dough for a smaller pizza, most of the ingredients needed cut down. Also, I sprinkled dried rosemary on top instead of fresh.

Sweet Potato Kale Pizza with Rosemary & Red Onion

Yield: 1 pizza

Cook Time: 10-15 minutes

ingredients:

Your favorite pizza dough-we used this pizza dough recipe
1 large sweet potato, thinly sliced, about 1/4 inch thick
1/2 red onion, sliced
1 1/2 tablespoon olive oil, divided
Salt and pepper, for seasoning potato slices and onion
1 1/2 cups mozzarella cheese
1 1/2 cups chopped kale
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
1 teaspoon, freshly chopped rosemary

directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Place the sweet potato slices and red onion slices in a bow and toss with 1/2 tablespoon of the olive oil. Season with salt and pepper. Place on a large baking sheet and bake for about 20 minutes, or until the sweet potatoes are soft and tender. Make sure you turn them once during the 20 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool while you prepare the pizza dough.

2. Turn the oven to 500 degrees F or as high as your oven will go. If you have a pizza stone, place the pizza stone in the oven to get hot. On a lightly floured surface, roll out the pizza dough, using a rolling pin. Roll it out to about 3/8 of an inch. Place the pizza dough on a pizza peel or pan that has been generously coated with corn meal. Lightly brush the dough with the remaining 1 tablespoon of olive oil. In a small bowl, toss the kale with balsamic vinegar. Top the pizza dough with mozzarella cheese, sweet potato slices, kale, red onion slices, and fresh rosemary.

3. Place the pizza in the oven-directly on the pizza stone, if using one, or on the oven rack. Bake for 10-15 minutes or until pizza crust is golden and cheese is melted. Remove from oven and let cool for a few minutes before slicing. Slice and serve warm.