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Archive for the ‘Cooking’ Category

Gardens in the West African Country of Mali

Posted in Cooking, Growing, tagged , , on July 10, 2014 | Leave a Comment »

The last couple of weeks I have been in the West African country of Mali doing work for my master’s degree.  My first day in country, on the way from my house to call a taxi at the paved road, a woman working in a small garden plot called out the morning greeting of “I […]

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Making Strawberry Jam

Posted in Cooking, tagged , on July 9, 2014 | Leave a Comment »

This year the strawberry crop is huge, sweet and delectable.  With all this bounty it’s time to make jam!  Here’s how to put summer in a jar using a low sugar Pomona Pectin recipe.                            

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Minty Drinks With Elaine

Posted in Cooking, tagged , , , on June 26, 2014 | Leave a Comment »

This post is back by popular demand! The mint is going wild so it’s time to revisit wise words from Elaine Corets and learn about all the ways she makes her famous minty drinks – from mojitos to sun tea. Here’s how she makes her wonderful mojitos: Go out into the garden and pick several […]

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Raspberry Shrub

Posted in Cooking, tagged , , on June 14, 2014 | Leave a Comment »

Shrub is a drink that is sweet, tart, bubbly and cool; the perfect mixture for a hot summer day. The unusual name comes from sharab the Arabic word for syrup.  This colonial era beverage was much sought after as it both quenched the thirst and preserved the fleeting flavors of summer fruit.  It fell out […]

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Fennel

Posted in Cooking, Growing, tagged on June 12, 2014 | 1 Comment »

The herb fennel is so plentiful and grows so well in the Pacific Northwest that some people think of it as a weed and do their best to eradicate it. Horrors!  This plant is useful from its seeds to its roots and should be cherished! According to Wikipedia this herb was well known to the […]

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Edible Flowers

Posted in Cooking, Crafts, Growing, tagged on June 11, 2014 | Leave a Comment »

Many of the flowers that grace our yards are edible.  They can be used as accents in a salad or as garnish on a main dish. Here are a few of my favorites: I like to use chive flowers in salads to lend a slightly onion flavor.  Here’s a recipe for omelets with chive flowers. Lavender cookies are […]

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Oregano!

Posted in Cooking, Growing, tagged , on June 10, 2014 | Leave a Comment »

My family loves Italian style food so we go through a ton of the herb oregano each year. Luckily it’s very easy to grow; you can start it from seed or buy a plant at most local nurseries.  It does best in full sun and doesn’t like to be water logged but do be aware […]

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Pickled Snow Peas

Posted in canning, Cooking, tagged , on June 9, 2014 | Leave a Comment »

Each summer I start off eating the new pea pods thinking there will never be enough, soon it’s time for succulent stir fries with mushrooms and chicken then before I know it there are snow peas everywhere and I don’t know what to do with them.  Last year I tried pickling them and they are […]

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Brining Grape Leaves

Posted in Cooking, tagged , on June 7, 2014 | Leave a Comment »

Brining grape leaves is best done in the spring or early summer when the leaves are more supple.  These leaves are used to make a Greek dish called dolmades and can also be used as a decorative accent under cheeses.  They have an earthy, salty taste that is complementary to savory foods. First pick your leaves, […]

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Elder Flower Syrup

Posted in Cooking, tagged , , on May 23, 2014 | Leave a Comment »

Elderberries are in bloom now in the lower elevations of Puget Sound.  The Blue or the Black Elderberry is the one to use instead of the Red Elderberry.   These fragrant white to pink flowers can be gathered, steeped, then the liquid sugared to make a delicious syrup.  If you have the patience to wait, the dark blue […]

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