Dill Butter

A huge bunch of dill arrived in our box this week. I mean, huge. If I dried this dill and stuck it in a jar, I would still be working on using it up a year from now.

Dill is subtle but aromatic. It's not a herb I go to often. So I felt at a bit of a loss as to what to do with all this dill.

I knew it would not last long so I decided to go back to my herb butter recipe I have done in the past. 

I also had a bit of leftover parsley on hand that I threw in as well. But the the most prominent herb is dill.

Dill Butter

Ingredients

• 1 bunch of dill
• additional herbs and black pepper as desired
• butter

Directions

• Let the butter soften at room temperature
• Prepare dill by picking off the leaves and chopping
• Combine butter and herbs in bowl or food processor
• Spoon herb butter mixture onto a sheet of parchment paper and shape into a cylinder
• Place it in the fridge to solidify overnight
• Remove from fridge and let it soften slightly
• Cut into individual pieces and place in a freezer baggie

Now that it's in the freezer, what do you do with it?

• As you prepare a side of veggies, add a bit of dill butter. 
• Add a dab to roasted salmon.
• Prep the skillet with the herb butter prior to adding eggs on a weekend breakfast.

Some additional resources on the subject:

http://www.barefootkitchenwitch.com/the_barefoot_kitchen_witc/2010/07/dill-butter.html

http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/dill-butter/detail.aspx

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/bobby-flay/grilled-corn-on-the-cob-with-dill-butter-recipe/index.html

http://www.foodrepublic.com/2011/04/08/grilled-salmon-dill-butter-recipe

Applesauce and Apple Bread

First off, never buy applesauce again. It is super easy to make at home and you get to control the ingredients and the amount of sugar (if any!). The results are excellent.

We found ourselves with a lot of apples recently. We've been getting them in the box and a friend gave us some apples from the tree in his yard. So I decided to make apple bread. I got online and looked around and settled on a recipe. But as I was reading the comments below the recipe a lot of people said they omitted the oil and added some applesauce instead. Less calories and it makes the bread moister. I had enough apples to do both. So let's start with the applesauce...

Applesauce

• 4 apples, peeled, cored, coarsely chopped
• 1/2 cup water
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon allspice

The original recipe called for 1/4 cup of sugar. Yikes! I added no sugar opting for a 1/2 teaspoon of honey. If you do want sugar just start with 1 tablespoon and build it up over time until you get it to your liking.

In a saucepan, combine all ingredients. Cover and cook over medium heat stirring occasionally for 20 minutes or until apples are soft. Allow to cool and then mash with a fork or a potato masher. I used my potato ricer.

This will make about a cereal bowl's worth of applesauce. It will keep in the refrigerator for a week or so. Now that I had the applesauce, it was time to make the bread.

Apple Bread

• 3 cups of flour (I did 2 regular, 1 spelt)
• 2 teaspoons cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup applesauce
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 eggs, beaten
• 1 cup white sugar
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 2 cups apples, peeled, cored, and coarsely chopped

Pre-heat oven to 350. In a large bowl, combine flour, cinnamon, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Mix and set aside.

In a large bowl place applesauce, apples, eggs, sugar, and vanilla. Stir to mix.

Combine bowls and mix well. The batter will be pretty thick. Too thick? Add 1/4 cup of orange juice. Pour the contents into bread pans or muffin pans. Bake at 350 or 40-45 minutes. Use a toothpick to test. Cool for 10 minutes before removing from pans. 

I made one large loaf, 2 small loaves, and 6 muffins (There's only 5 in the photo because I had to test one!). This makes excellent muffins.

In the Garden: October 2011

I did some planting today in the backyard. The tomato and gypsy pepper plants (there in the background) are still producing but probably not for much longer. A few weeks ago I pulled up the bean bush, basil plants, and red leaf lettuce. Today I put in Stockton red onions, Romaine lettuce, Brussels sprouts, and two broccoli plants. A cool weather garden.

Watermelon, Feta, and Kalamata Olive Salad

Watermelon is the classic summer fruit. We always had it growing up and I always recall how my mother would salt her watermelon. I thought it was strange until a friend served this salad to us a few years ago. The salty cheese and the cool, sweet watermelon make for an interesting contrast. Add some sliced red onions and mint leaves and you've got a nice study in contrasts.

This recipe is out on the internet in, literally, a half million locations, so it's nothing new. But I've been making it a few times a year during the summer since I was introduced to it. It's a refreshing and unique salad to serve during warm evenings. There's lots of room for your own interpretation. It doesn't last long so eat it up.

This recipe is from the Food Network but if you go through the half million versions of this recipe, you will find some interesting variations.

Watermelon, Feta, and Kalamata Olive Salad

Ingredients:

• 4 pounds of fresh watermelon, cubed
• 1/2 pound of feta cheese, crumbled
• 1/2 medium red onion, thinly sliced
• 24 kalamata olives, chopped (about 2 cups)
• 1 cup of fresh mint leaves, chopped
• 1/4 cup fresh lime juice
• 1/4 cup EVOO

Directions:

1. Place the watermelon, feta, onion, olives, and mint in a medium mixing bowl and set aside.
2. place the lime juice in a small bowl. Slowly add EVOO while whisking to blend.
3. Pour the dressing over the salad and toss gently
4. Let stand for 20 minutes to allow the flavors to blend

Cherry Tomato, Hummus, and Olive Tapenade Flatbread Pizza

I found a tasty new way to use those cherry tomatoes that we're getting this time of year in our CSA box.

I adapted this from the latest Vegetarian Times spread called "Splendid Starters." When I saw this starter in the magazine I knew it would be the perfect appetizer to serve a friend who was coming over for dinner. We had most of the ingredients on hand and I could make some substitutions on other ingredients. The original recipe called for a base of puff pastry but I decided to use the Trader Joe's flatbreads instead.

The results were quite good and well received. The hummus and the olive tapenade are a perfect match. The package of tomatoes covered the three pizzas perfectly.

Cherry Tomato, Hummus, and Olive Tapenade Flatbread Pizza

Ingredients:

• 1 lb. cherry tomatoes
• 1 tbsp. olive oil
• Trader Joe's Middle Eastern Flatbreads
• black olive tapenade
• hummus
• herb mix like herbes de Provence or Bouquet Garni
• salt and pepper

Directions:

• Preheat oven to 425
• Cut cherry tomatoes in half and toss with olive oil and seasonings
• Spread the hummus around the flatbread just like you would the tomato sauce
• Add about 1-2 tbsp. of tapenade and spread it around with the back of a spoon
• Top the flatbread with tomatoes cut side up
• Bake for 15 - 20 minutes or until the bread is crisp and browning on the edges
• Serve warm or at room temperature

Alice Waters' Chez Pannise Turns 40

Here is Alice Waters' credo:

• Good, healthful food is a right for all, especially children.
• A civil society is one that cooks and eats together.
• It all starts with respect for local, organic ingredients.

This is an excellent article on the history of Alice Waters and the organic food movement along with her current work with the Edible Schoolyard.

Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2011/08/13/MNH21KBTVS.DTL#ixzz1VLnlnBtq

Peach Preserves

I made a visit to a neighboring suburban town to buy some eggs from our source. They also have an extensive garden and fruit orchard. So in addition to the 18 fresh eggs, I also came home with with a few pounds of green and yellow beans, some yellow cucumbers, and about twenty big, beautiful peaches that I decided would become my first attempt at peach preserves. Right on the heel of the apricot preserves the week before! But for this post I felt I should elaborate more about what I'm learning about canning and preserving.

I turned first to the bible of canning and preserving--The Ball Blue Book which had two recipes. But I was also intrigued by the Chunky Peach Preserves in Janet Fletcher's "Fresh From the Farmer's Market." So I ended morphing the three recipes.

Peach Preserves

Ingredients:

• 10-12 large ripe peaches
• sugar
• lemon juice - 2/3 cup (I only had half a lemon on hand so that's what I used)

Now, as for the sugar, Ball Blue Book calls for 6 cups which seemed like a lot to me. If you look online, you will find varying amounts in the recipes including some with no sugar. I will continue to experiment with the amount of sugar but for this batch I went with about 4 to 4 1/2 cups.

Steps:

1. Get a large pot of water boiling.
2. As the water gets close to boiling, prepare a large bowl of ice water nearby.
3. With a slotted spoon, lower peaches, a few at a time, into the boiling water and blanch for about 30 seconds.
4. Transfer peaches to the ice water bath.
5. When cool, lift out the peaches and peel away the skin.
6. Cut the peaches in half, then fourths, then eighths, and then cut around the equator. The goal is to create chunks about 1 square inch each. Discard any blemished or bruised portions. Place the chunks into a large, non-reactive pot (glass or enameled cast iron).
   
7. Add the lemon juice and sugar and stir until the sugar is dissolved.
8. Let it sit for 12-18 hours or overnight. I did it overnight putting it in the refrigerator overnight.

Next Day:

1. Slowly get the peach mixture to boiling, stirring frequently.
2. Boil and stir frequently until the mixture is clear and the syrup is thick. The syrup should be golden brown.

• If the syrup becomes too thick before the fruit is tender then add some boiling water (1/4 cup at a time).
  
• If the syrup is too thin you can drain the fruit in a bowl and return the syrup to the pot and cook it until it thickens up.
• A tip I have seen online is to spoon a bit of the syrup onto a small plate and stick it in the freezer for a couple of minutes to cool it. When you take it out it should jelly-like but still able to slowly flow when tilted.
  

Canning Process:

Once you have the preserves ready to get them into the jars start by sterilizing the jars by putting them into a dishwasher that sterilizes or put the jars in boiling water for 10-20 minutes. It's always a good idea to sterilize a few more jars than you think you'll need just in case. Place the lids in a separate pot of boiling water to sterilize.

When the preserves are ready, spoon them into a clean, hot jar within a 1/2 inch of the top. Wipe the rim clean with a towel dipped in hot water. Place lids on and secure tightly.

For long term storage, place the filled jars into boiling water that covers the jars by one inch. Boil 15 minutes for half-pint jars and 20 minutes for pint jars. Transfer with tongs to rack to cool. Sealed jars prepared this way can be stored in the pantry for up to a year.

This particular batch yielded four pints and a little extra.

If you are new to canning, Lehman's is a great place to get your supplies. They sell a canning starter kit where you can get the lid lifter, tongs, jar funnel, and other supplies that are essential to canning. I've also found some of these same supplies at garage sales and antique fairs.