Homestead Company Supper or How Old-Timers Cooked Chicken

Back in the days of old, dear children... before the internets, before the Food Network, and EVEN before Julia Child dropped that turkey on PBS, recipes were passed from hand to hand by people who prepared food from memory, from experience, and from their hearts... and then tried to reduce all that to a 3x5 index card for their pals.

I remember one sweet, little old lady who knew how to bake the world's greatest sweet potato pie but didn't know how to read or write.  Although we begged her for the recipe, well... she couldn't oblige because there just wasn't one.  So one of us had the bright idea to invite her over to bake one of her pies while eagerly recording her every move.  It started out something like this:

"First you git y'self a saucer and you dip out about 3 saucers of flour..."

Yeah, that was the end of that idea.  I've never forgotten those glorious pies, though...

But I digress.  The reason I bring up old recipes is because I have one to share.

Zoodles

I'll bet you can guess what's been in my CSA box lately.  'Tis the season for zucchini.  Lots and lots and lots of zucchini!  Don't get me wrong; it's one of my favorite vegetables.  I love...

• slicing it horizontally into thin strips and marinating it in a little olive oil, garlic and lemon juice, and then grilling it ever so lightly.  Delicious!
• grilling skewers of round zucchinii chunks, cherry tomatoes and onion wedges.
• zucchini breads and muffins...

But what I really love is making zoodles,  Zucchini noodles.  Healthy, low-calorie, gluten-free... and really, really fun to make if you have one of these...

This is my spiral slicer.  There are many like it, but this one is mine.  My sprial slicer is my best friend.  It is my... oops.  Got carried away there for a second!

My slicer is a Paderno World Cuisine Tri-Blade Plastic Spiral Vegetable Slicer that I bought off of Amazon for about 35 bucks, as a matter of fact.  And I like it.  

You most definitely can make zoodles without one.  (But what fun is that, I ask you?)

I'm not going to belabor this.  You pop a zucchini into the slicer, turn the crank, and watch the magic happen.  Children love to help with this, and what better way to get them interested in eating a vegetable?  (Just keep little fingers at the handle end and away from the blades.)

In no time at all, you've got a huge pile of perfectly-sliced -- and may I just point out, really pretty -- zoodles.


So, how do you cook these things?  Well, actually you don't.  I've tried lightly boiling them like noodles, and they just go all limp and soggy.  I recommend "warming them" in a pan with a bit of salt and a little butter.  Maybe some sauteed garlic.  Some fresh basil is really good.  A sprinkle of Parmesan cheese or whatever.

And voila!  This just might be the healthiest, tastiest and prettiest veggie side dish ever.  No, really.  You have to try this.  Granny says eat your zucchini.







This post can also be seen at some great parties.  Check them out:
Nifty Thrifty Sunday
Try a New Recipe Tuesday
The Gathering Spot
Twirl and Take a Bow
Wow Me Wednesday
The Wednesday Roundup
Work It Wednesday
Wednesday Whatsits
Full Plate Thursday
Showcase Your Talent
Kitchen Fun and Crafty Friday
Fabulous Friday
No Rules Weekend Blog Party
Freedom Fridays

Chesapeake Baked Cod

I mostly love to cook, but sometimes it can be a drag.  There.  I said it.  I used to know what to do about that:   Don't feel like cooking?  Frozen lasagna it is.  Forgot to go shopping?  Grab a box of "Helper" from the pantry and make do.  REALLY don't feel like botheringing?  Let's get a pizza or a bucket of chicken.

Well, I don't have those options any more because I made the commitment over a year ago to eliminate processed foods from my family's diet.  That means no cans, no boxes, no jars, no pre-assembled anything.  If I don't know what's in it, we don't eat it.  And the only way to know what's in it is to make it yourself.

It has been an adjustment.  Early on, I felt like I spent 72% of my life either chopping, cooking or cleaning up after all that chopping and cooking!  But it's not so bad any more.  Partly I have gotten used to the new way of doing things.  Partly I have found new and better strategies for putting a healthy meal on the table when I'm more in the mood to hit the "good old" burger drive-through.

Sunchokes Three Ways

One of the fun things about participating in a CSA program is discovering things you never knew existed... in massive quantities!  For instance...

These babies are sunchokes.  Also known as Jerusalem artichokes, which is a curious name for them, as they are neither artichokes nor from Jerusalem.  In fact, they are the tubers from a type of sunflower, and they were first cultivated by native North Americans, long before Europeans arrived on the continent.  You are starting to like them already, aren't you?  Good!  But let's not stop there.  Here are more things to like about them:

• They contain a good amount of protein, no fat, and surprisingly little starch.
• They have a mildly sweet flavor from fructose, so they are a better choice for people with type 2 diabetes than grains or other starchy vegetables.
• They are a good source of many important nutrients, including potassium, iron, fiber, niacin, thiamine, phosphorus and copper.  Not to mention loads of fiber!
• They are a great plant to place in your garden:  easy to grow and super pretty!
• Finally...

Creamy, Delicious, Decadent... Cauliflower?

Wouldn’t it be great if there was some kind of food that was healthy AND low-carb AND gluten-free AND low in calories?  And wouldn’t it be fantastic if that food also tasted creamy, decadent and delicious?  And wouldn’t it be awesome if that food was also inexpensive and super easy to make?  If such a food existed, I would make it two or three times a week.

Well, there is, and I do.  It’s cauliflower puree, and if you‘ve never had it, try it tonight.  Tonight!  You will be gobsmacked to discover how, with almost no effort, this humble, much-maligned vegetable can be transformed into something creamy, comforting and truly delicious.

Happy Box Week 1

And so it begins!  Yesterday I received my first weekly CSA “happy box” delivery from Fulton Farms.

Here is what my first box contained:

• 1 big bag of spinach
• 3 Roma tomatoes
• 1 head of lettuce
• 1 head of red cabbage
• 3 stalks of broccoli
• 2 green peppers
• 3 red apples
• 3 green bananas
• 2 oranges
• 1 mango
• 1 lb. of strawberries

Later in the season my deliveries will consist of 100% locally-grown organic produce, but right now in the Ohio Miami Valley, the only things growing are a few really hardy cold-season crops like spinach.  So my first few boxes will also contain organic produce from a trusted wholesaler.  (I would have been okay with an entire box full of spinach, but it’s cool.) 

My mission this year is to utilize every bit of produce that I receive in my CSA deliveries all season long.  I hate to admit that this was not the case last year, which was my first year with the program, but you live, you learn. 

So last night I made broccoli salad to serve with skillet pork cutlets and balsamic tomatoes...

• I blanched the 3 stalks of broccoli, boiling them until they were bright green and still somewhat crispy.  Then I plunged them in cold water to stop the cooking and retain the beautiful color and texture.  Then I chopped the broccoli into bite-sized pieces and threw them in a bowl.
• I added 3 slices of chopped, crispy bacon.  (Tip:  I use kitchen shears to snip bacon into small, evenly-sized pieces.)  I also added ½ cup of golden raisins and ¼ cup of roasted, unsalted sunflower seeds.
• I mixed up a sauce using 1 cup of homemade mayo, 2 tablespoons of citrus vinegar and 1 tablespoon of agave nectar.  (You can also use honey.)  Then I just tossed it all together. 

It was delicious.  I hope I get more broccoli in my happy box next week.  

As for the rest of the meal, I simply rubbed thick slices of pork tenderloin with my favorite all-purpose dry meat rub and browned them in a skillet.  In another skillet, I sautéed a large onion until soft, then added a 10 ounce package of grape tomatoes and a tablespoon of balsamic vinegar and cooked on medium-high heat until the tomatoes burst and it all got a bit caramelized.  Yum!

I'd say things are off to a great start.

Baked Flank Steak - Super quick and easy!

I love recipes that are delicious but require very little effort.  This is one of those.  All it takes is some quick prep, then let the oven do the rest.  Don't be fooled by the simplicity; this recipe is a go-to for those times when you want to serve a nice meal, but you just have better things to do than hang around in the kitchen all day.  (That's right.  I said it.)  

So, here is what you need:

• a good-sized flank steak.  Two if you’re feeding a larger group.
• a large onion, sliced.  I like sweet onions like Vidalia.
• 3 tablespoons of vinegar.  I like using my homemade citrus vinegar, but red wine vinegar or Balsamic vinegar would work just fine.
• a teaspoon of sugar
• ½ teaspoon of dry mustard

Lightly score the flank steak on both sides with a sharp knife.

Place it in a glass baking dish.  Sprinkle with salt.  Top with the onion slices.  Combine the sugar, vinegar and mustard and pour it over the meat and onions.

Pour one cup of hot water over all.  Cover the baking dish with foil and place in a preheated 325 degree oven for 30 minutes.  Remove the foil and bake it uncovered another hour.

To serve this, slice it diagonally.  It’s good with a simple vegetable or green salad and some couscous -- just follow the box instructions for cooking the couscous, but substitute the hot beefy pan drippings and onions for an equivalent measure of water.

Easy.  Tasty.  Terrific.

Enjoy!