OUR LITTLE FAMILY

It's been a very strange bizarre sad year.  I lost two Aunts to COVID in a period of a month in March. I was very depressed and worried about what was going on outside of our little world here.  However, the best thing to happen was that we have our entire family together Sookie, Atticus, Kaluah and Martini and it has been awesome all of us living together in this home we have made.  I wouldn't have it any other way now.  I don't know what the rest of the year is going to be like but the past few months having our babies with us at the house has been awesome.

VEGETABLE GARDEN 2020

So this summer, after two years of hay bale gardening which was really successful - we decided to take all that great composting material and clean up the garden and put in some permanent raised beds.  We wanted to start using all this great soil and compost we had created.  However, with Covid and not having access to our normal nurseries we were going to have to get our plants in a different way.  We had set up a seed starting station in the basement but we finally were going to get to use it.  Tim had a huge library of seeds and since we weren't going anywhere - now was the moment to try it.

The garden had to be completely overhauled.  Breaking down the bales that had still  not decomposed and moving the decomposed material along with top soil into the beds and into the tires.  Don't knock the tires. They are great containers for a garden. We use them a lot for potatoes cause you plant in a stacked tire container and when you want to harvest you just lift the top layer and pull the potatoes out of the soil.  Cinder blocks and pavers are heavy and hard to haul.  So we are still in the process of bringing more in and setting up the permanent raised beds.  The pavers are so solid and great to sit and lean on.  The beds can also be adjusted, lengthened and modified as you see fit. The worst part about the hay bales was that they attracted a lot of snakes.  Snakes must like the moisture, texture, and shade of the decomposed bales but it was a little unnerving finding snakes everywhere.

The garden looks much more organized and permanent and less messy without  the bales falling apart.  The garden is looking great, the seed station worked out great and we move into phase 2 of our vegetable garden and we are very excited.

CHICKEN AND CHORIZO PAELLA

The great thing about living with someone who loves to cook is when they get inspired - you just let them do what they want to do.  Paella ain't shabby.  

Ingredients:

4 cups chicken stock
1/2 teaspoon ground saffron
Coarse salt and freshly ground pepper
8 bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs (about 3 1/2 pounds)
1 teaspoon pimenton (smoked Spanish paprika)
2 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil
12 ounces dried chorizo, sliced 1/8 inch thick on the bias 1 white onion, coarsely chopped
4 garlic cloves, minced
3 medium vine-ripe tomatoes, coarsely chopped
2 1/2 cups Arborio rice
1 cup fresh shelled English peas

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Warm stock, saffron, and 1/2 teaspoon salt in a saucepan over medium heat. Season chicken with 2 teaspoons salt, 1/2 teaspoon pepper, and the pimenton. Heat oil in a 14-inch paella pan or a high-sided ovenproof skillet over high heat. Brown chicken for 6 to 8 minutes; transfer to a plate.
Pour out all but 1 teaspoon oil. Cook chorizo over medium-high heat until lightly browned, about 2 minutes. Add onion and garlic. Cook until soft, about 5 minutes. Add tomatoes. Cook, stirring, until thick, about 5 minutes. Stir in rice, then add broth mixture. Bring to a boil. Cook for 2 minutes, stirring often. Add peas, then chicken. Bake for 20 minutes. Let stand for 10 minutes.

FLOWER HUMMINGBIRD FEEDERS

A friend of mine in Texas is a freak for hummingbirds and recommended these feeders for the garden.  We bought us a set and a set for Tim's parents.  The hummingbirds seem to like them but you have to fill them more frequently. They are definitely cute.

MOM'S ROSE GARDEN

One of our gardening projects this summer was creating a rose garden as a memorial to my Mom who passed last Spring.  Roses are pretty hard to find. I can order them from a catalog but it's really hard to see color when you are looking at jpeg images.  We managed to find a great nursery this summer and bought 8 plants in an assortment of color also including cream and white.  Roses are never pretty as a plant and we supplemented them with shrub roses as well to fill out the plantings. Although I lean to all white flowers most of the time, the range of color is quite pretty when they bloom. I hope my Mom likes them.

VINTAGE LINENS

Those of us who work in textiles won't admit to our secret fabric hoarding closet, room, storage spaces.  All of us have them.  We have a terrible habit of picking up fabrics wherever we are shopping and sticking them away forever until we can find a home for them.  I have tons of fabric swatches from the Design and Decoration building in NYC. However, I do have a lot of fabrics that I have collected over the years - 20-30 years. I finally got around to pulling out all these vintage linens I have bought for some time and found an old wire basket holder to display them. I put them up in the back hall and they look really beautiful agains the trellis wallpaper.  Now, if I can just find homes for the rest of the fabric?

PEACH PIE CRUMBLE BARS

You know how you don't realize how much you miss something until you taste it again. That is how I felt about this dessert.  When I lived in North Carolina. We used to drive to Gaffney SC all the time to pick up bushels of peaches.  I love peach pie.  I had a friend who's mother used to make me fried peach turnovers which were so amazing.  Tim made this this past weekend and I couldn't stop taking bites of it all day long. So good. 

PEACH PIE CRUMBLE BARS


CRUST:

1 stick plus 5 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature, plus more for pan 1 cup sugar
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon coarse salt

FILLING:
1 1/4 pounds peaches, pitted and cut into a 1/2-inch dice (3 1/2 cups) 1/2 cup sugar
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon coarse salt

Directions
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Butter an 8-by-8-by-2-inch cake pan. Line with parchment, leaving a 2-inch overhang on two sides; butter parchment

Crust: Beat butter with sugar in a bowl until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Scrape down bowl. Add flour and salt; beat until dough forms clumps but does not completely hold together. Press 2 1/2 cups flour mixture into bottom and 1 inch up sides of prepared pan.

Filling: Stir together peaches, sugar, flour, lemon juice, and salt in a bowl. Pour into crust. Crumble remaining flour mixture evenly over top, squeezing to create clumps. Bake until bubbling in center and crust is golden, about 1 hour, 10 minutes (if browning too quickly, tent top with foil). Let cool 20 minutes. Remove from pan and let cool completely on a wire rack, about 1 hour. Cut into 2-inch squares.

Back Porch Enclosure

Our back porch needed a cover and an enclosure since we get a lot of snow drifting against the back door in winter. I finally got around to putting a roof onto the existing porch.  It was my first attempt at  roofing and it was not easy.  The existing porch couldn't take any substantial weight so the materials had to be light weight.  I didn't think I would like the corrugated roof but after working with it - I don't know if I could have mounted anything heavier.  It's a decent frame to put up a clear liner and temporary door for winter so we aren't fighting ice and snow at the back door.  The snowballs looked beautiful with it.

A Tasty Fourth of July

It has taken me awhile to pull all the recipes together.  We had a quiet COVID 4th of July at the house. Working in the garden, swimming, grilling out and dinner outdoors. It was awesome. Tim and I sharing the kitchen over the past couple days trying out some new recipes.  Tim had given me a new cookbook called Hoosier Mama's Book of Pies.  I love Vinegar Pie and found this cookbook which has an entire section on Depression Era pies.  Miss having the entire family to the house this year but nothing can be done about it.  Maybe next year.  Hope everyone had a great holiday weekend!

The meal consisted of Bacon Jalopeno Deviled Eggs served in my Mom's 70s Heritage Gold Tupperware.  Vinegar Sauce Grilled Chicken, 4 Cheese Mac N Cheese, Baked Beans and Blueberry Pie and homemade Coconut Ice Cream. Here are some of the recipes. 

Bacon Jalapeno Deviled Eggs 

Ingredients 

12 large eggs hard-boiled and peeled 1 cup mayonnaise
1 1/2 teaspoon rice vinegar
3/4 teaspoon dry ground mustard 

1/2 teaspoon sugar
2 jalapenos seeded and diced
6 pieces bacon cooked, crisp, and crumbled Paprika for garnish 

Instructions 

1. Slice the hard boiled eggs in half, lengthwise
   
2.   2. Remove the yolks and put them in a mixing bowl
   
3. Mash the egg yolks with a fork 

4. Add the mayonnaise, rice vinegar, ground mustard, and sugar to the mashed egg yolks and stir until well combined
   
5. Mix in the jalapenos and bacon
   
6. Put the mixture in a Ziploc bag and cut a small hole in the corner of the bag
   
7. Fill each egg hole with the mixture
   
8. Sprinkle with paprika
   
9. Chill until ready to serve 

Smoky Grilled Chicken with Sweet Vinegar Sauce 

A salty-sweet vinegar sauce is brushed over this spice-rubbed chicken as it comes off the grill 

Servings: 4 

Ingredients:

1 teaspoon smoked paprika
1 teaspoon dry mustard
1 teaspoon light-brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 chicken (4 pounds), cut into 10 pieces (breasts halved crosswise) 1/4 cup red-wine vinegar
1 tablespoon honey
1 thinly sliced red chile pepper 

Extra-virgin olive oil 

Directions: 

Combine paprika, mustard, sugar, cayenne, 1 tablespoon salt, and 1/2 teaspoon black pepper. Sprinkle mixture evenly on chicken, then set chicken on a rimmed baking sheet. Let stand uncovered 1 hour. 

Separately, combine vinegar, honey, and chile. 

Heat a charcoal grill, creating a two-zone fire with vents partially open. Position coals on one side of the grill for direct high heat, and leave the other side empty for indirect lower heat. (On a gas grill, turn one side on high, and leave the other burners off.) Lightly coat chicken with olive oil and place over indirect heat. Cover and cook, turning occasionally, until pieces are cooked through and a thermometer inserted into thickest parts (not touching bones) registers 165 degrees, about 30 minutes. 

Uncover grill; transfer chicken to direct heat. Brush on vinegar sauce as pieces come off the grill, and serve it on the side. 

FOUR CHEESE MAC N CHEESE

INGREDIENTS 

SERVES: 8 

1 lb elbow pasta 

3⁄4 lb sharp cheddar cheese, shredded 

1⁄2 lb gruyere cheese, shredded 1⁄2 cup asiago cheese, shredded 1⁄2 cup Fontina cheese, shredded 

3 tablespoons unsalted butter 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour 2 cups milk 

1 teaspoon onion powder 1⁄2 teaspoon salt
1⁄4 teaspoon dried mustard 

1⁄4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1⁄4 teaspoon ground cayenne pepper 

1 cup panko breadcrumbs 

DIRECTIONS 

PLEASE NOTE: This is a BAKED macaroni and cheese, therefore, it will NOT turn out with a lot of extra cheesy sauce asis absorbed into the pasta while baking. If you require an extra saucy mac & cheese, just reduce the amount of pasta you place into the dish or make more sauce so it is creamier. 

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Coat a 3 quart rectangular baking dish with non-stick spray. Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to boiling. 

Toss all the shredded cheeses together in a large bowl, set aside.

Melt butter in a medium-sized saucepan over medium heat. Whisk in the flour until smooth and slightly bubbly. 

In a thin stream, whisk in the milk. Stir in the onion powder, salt, nutmeg, dried mustard and cayenne. 

Bring to a boil over medium high heat. Reduce heat and simmer 3 minutes. Remove from heat; whisk in 2 1/2 cups of the cheese mixture and stir until smooth. Cover to retain the heat. 

Once water boils, add pasta. Cook until your desired doneness, then drain. In the pasta container, stir together the cooked pasta and cheese sauce. 

Pour half of the mixture into the prepared dish. Sprinkle with a generous cup of the reserved cheese. Spoon remaining cheese-covered pasta into the dish and top with the remaining cheese. 

Add 1 cup of Japanese Panko Bread crumbs to the top of mixture. 

Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes or until the Panko crumbs are lightly browned and the cheese is bubbly. Cool slightly before serving. 

( NOTE: I will post the pie recipe in a separate post).