Pigs in a Blanket

Currently, I only have a 1 1/2 pound pan for baking bread. So if I make 2# recipe, have 1/2 pound left.

I used my whole grain bread recipe and make a rectangle and then rolled it around the hot dog.

Garden

My father-in-law planted a garden this year and we are really getting a lot of vegetables. I am going to can, dehydrate, and freeze.

Watermelon Ice

1 seedless watermelon.

blender

Cut the pink flesh from the watermelon and blend. Freeze until firm and you have a watermelon Italian ice without CHEMICALS!

Yogurt Popsicles

I have been eying these new Popsicles makers at Whole Foods for two weeks and I finally bought them! I usually make Lemonade popsicles all summer, since the lemonade is on sale, but these were too cute for just lemonade.

So I got a small bag of organic 365 strawberries, 2-3 cups Organic Yogurt, and 1/3 cup maple syprup in my Viti-mix and made these popsicles and they are a hit!

Pancake from Freshly Ground Grain

Basic Whole Wheat Pancakes





Note: a variety of grain flour combonaitons will work. I used 1/2 hard red wheat and 1/2 soft wheat.





3 cups freshly milled flower
1 tsp. sea salt
1 tsp. baking soda*
2 1/2 baking powder
1/3 cup melted butter
4 eggs
3-4 cup buttermilk (may subsistute 1 milk and 2 Tsp of lemon juice for each cup of buttermilk needed)

1. Mix all the dry ingredients.
2. Add liquids.
3. Stir until mixed.
4. Fry on hot pan or griddle.

To make pancakes lighter, seperate the eggs and whip the egg whites and fold into the better gently.

Egg Custard

Egg Custard
By: Denny Wayson

5 eggs
3 cups of whole milk (not low-fat)
1 1/2 tsp of vanilla extract
sweet pick: 1/3 cup maple sugar, 2 TBSP xylitol, 2 packets of Stevia, or 1/3 cup sugar

Preheat oven 325

Prepare 9x12 glass baking dish, by placing 6 glass custard cups inside the baking dish. (Baking dish size doesn’t matter as long as the cups fit inside.)

In a standing mixer beat egg and milk on med-high until the eggs are foamy on top. Then add the vanilla and xylitol.

Pour mixture through a strainer (this gets out all the chalazae) into 6 custard cups. Fill the 9x12 baking dish with enough water that the water level is at least ½ way up the side of the custard filled cups.

Bake for 1 hour.

Remove cups from water and allow to cool slightly. May be eaten warm or refrigerated for up to four days.

Zucchini Sour Cream Casserole

Zucchini Sour Cream Casserole

6 med zucchini (about 2 pounds), cut into ½ inch slices
1-8oz container of sour cream (not low fat)
1 cup of sharp shredded cheddar cheese
2 TBSP butter
1/2 onion, diced
1/3 cup parmesan cheese
1/3 cup chicken broth or water

Preheat oven 350

1. Steam zucchini for 10-15mins, drain well. Pat dry with dish towels.
2. Heat a medium sauté pan, add butter once melted add onion and sauté until golden brown and translucent. Pan should have “fawn” (brown bits). Deglaze pan by adding 1/3 cup of liquid and scraping up the fawn. Boil off the liquid.
3. Off heat, add sour cream and cheese to onions.
4. In a glass dish, lay out one layer of zucchini and add 1/3 of the sour cream mixture. Repeat.
5. Once your final layer in complete sprinkle parmesan on top and bake 25-30mins or until hot

Note: you can change the cheese--parmesan for goat cheese or whatever is your favorite.

Chocolate Mousse

Chocolate Mousse

3 cups heavy cream
½ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
¼ cup xylitol, 2 packets stevia, or 1/3 cup raw sugar
2 tsp vanilla extract
2 tsp Disaronno liquor (optional)

Place all the ingredients into the electric mixer and beat until stiff peaks form. Do not over beat or you will make butter. Place into dessert cups and enjoy!

Cauliflower "Low Carb" Pizza Crust

1 bag of frozen 16 oz cauliflower
1/4 cup chop cilantro or parsley
2 cups mozzarella/Monterrey jack cheese, shredded
1 egg,
1 tsp garlic powder

1. Steam the cauliflower until done.
2. Using a food mill or ricer, process the cauliflower.
3. In a large bowl mix processed cauliflower, cilantro/parsley, cheese, egg, and garlic powder.

You may cook these in several ways:
1. In a cast iron skillet, heat butter and/or coconut oil and "fry" one side of the cauliflower crust and using the broiler in your oven brown the other side, slightly. Then place your sauce, olive oil, cheese and toppings and bake for pizza.

2. Bake in the oven on parchment paper for 10-20 mins, until the bottom is a little brown and then flip the parchment paper over with the "cauliflower crust" and cook on the other side for 10-20 minutes. I will not lye...this isn't easy. However you can mush the cracked crust back together. Then place your sauce, olive oil, cheese and toppings and bake for pizza.

Note: the picture is of the parchement method. I have a small cast-iron, so I don't do this method that often.

I use the chicken sausages from Whole Foods on my pizzas for meat.

Simple Loaf of Bread

2lb recipe from Donna Miller (slightly modified by me)http://www.millersgrainhouse.com/index.html



Ingredients:

1 1/2 cup Warm Water (100-100 degrees F)
1 TBSP oil (olive or melted butter)
1/4 cup sweet stuff ( sugar, honey, or sucanant)
3 1/2 cups freshly milled flour (any combo of wheat--best for newbies to start 1 1/2 cups soft white & 2 cups of hard wheat)
1/4 cup gluten (or 2TBSP gluten and 2TBSP rice brand extract)
1/2 tsp. salt
1 1/2 tsp. Fleishmann's Instant Yeast




1. For Bread Machine: Put ingredients in order given and set to "Dough Setting." Now go relax...all the instructions for "By hand or with mixer/dough hook" will be done in the machine. Begin instructions from Turn-Out.




1. By hand or with Mixer/Dough hook; Mix all the water, oil, sweet stuff together in your mixing bowl Proof your yeast in the liquid if you want to, however instant yeast does not HAVE to be proofed (let it get bubbly) but it won't hurt to do. In a separate bowl, mix all you dry ingredients (flour, gluten, salt, and yeast, if you didn't proof it.)



Slowly add the dry to the liquid stirring until too hard to use a spoon, then start the kneading process (or if in the kitchen aid-start the dough hook)



Knead (by hand, bread hook, or Bosch) minimum 10 minutes -- up to 15 minutes- until the dough feels elastic and looks silky-like or in a Bosch Mixer-it pulls away from the sides.


Cover the bowl with a clean cloth towel.



Let dough rise once in the bowl in semi warm place approximately 30 minutes or until double in size. Lightly punch it down to get all the air out after it rose the first time.



2. Turn-Out onto AN OILED surface (not floured--it makes it heavy and dense) and let it rest for 5mins (this helps the gluten that has formed to relax a bit and not "crack the crust.")



3. Now weigh your dough. This recipe should make a 2 pound loaf.



Here are the dimensions for loaf pans:






2 pound loaf pan 12x4.5x2.5



1 1/2 pound loaf pan 10x4.5x2.5




Divide your dough into the weight needed for your pan.









4. Now form your loaf by flattening by hand and rolling up like a"jelly roll" after tucking the ends in ans seam side down, place it into a greased loaf pan.

5. Cover the pan with a clean towl and let rise in a semi-warm place for another 30 minutes. During the last 10 minutes of rising, preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Be sure your racks are placed so the loaf may bake in center of oven.

6. Bake this 2 pound receipe for 18-22 minutes in the center of the oven. Start checking for golden tops and and hollow sound when top is tapped at about 18 minutes.



7. Take out or pans and cool on wire rack. Wait at least 10 minutes before attempting to cut or it smooshes.






Other SHAPES:


From step 3 above, measure your dough and divide into by the number given below:








Hoagie Rolls: divide dough into 8 equal balls. Roll like a thick play-doh snake and place in casserold dish, not quite touching. Again, they will rise and touch and about 30 minutes. Bake 15mins on 350 degress.








Hot Dog Buns- divide dough into 10 equal balls.Roll like a thick play-doh snake and place in casserold dish, not quite touching. Again, they will rise and touch and about 30 minutes. Bake 15mins on 350 degress

Note--I divided my 2lb dough into 16 balls and make min hot dog buns for sandwhiches and dinner rolls.












I made pigs in a blanket with this bread...I used 11-12oz made a rectangle and rolled it up around the hot dog.

Deer Repellent for Garden

5 gallon bucket with lid

2 bulbs garlic

6 eggs (keep shells)

2 large yellow onions, chopped into 1/4, leave skin on

1 bar Felss Naptha, grated

In a large stew pot, bring water to a boil and add grated soap, stir until soap is dissolved. Pour dissolved soap into a 5 gallon bucket.

In the blender or food processor, place WHOLE eggs, onions, and garlic and pulse until it looks like a smoothie and then add to the 5 gallon soap bucket.

Add more water until you have about 4 gallons of mix. Place outside with the lid on. The stinker it gets the better it works.

Use a toilet brush to "flick" it on your plants and perimeter of your garden. Deer do not like the smell of onions, garlic or eggs.

Note: I keep all my egg shells in a bag for the next batch of repellent.

Freezing Blueberries

Blueberries were on sale, so I washed and took the stems them for preparation for the freezer. Next I used large cookie sheets lined with parchment paper to do a single layer of blueberries and them I placed them into my chest freezer for 24 hours. After they were frozen, I placed them into ziplock freezer bags. They freeze and do not stick together this way. I remember my Nona doing this as a child and I would sneak into her freezer all year long and eat frozen blueberries.

Dehydrating Tomatoes

7 medium tomatoes, sliced thin

1. Place tomato slices into a blender (I use a Vitmix) and puree until a smooth consistency.


2. Pour mixture onto the dehydrator using the ParaFlex nonstick drying sheets. Dehydrate for 14-16 hours or until not sticky.


3. Once the dehydrated tomato is ready, peel off the nonstick sheet and break into pieces and place into the food processor and pulse until the tomato is in a powdered form.

This may be reconstitute to make tomato paste or pizza sauce. I will let you know how this turns out.

Notes

• 100 tomatoes will dehydrate into 1 quart.
• use a thickener is sauce or as a paste, as the powder will absorb liquids
• Pizza sauce: 1/2 cup dehydrated powder, 1/2-3/4 cup warm water, 1/2 tsp garlic salt, oregano, and basil to taste. Stir. The sauce will thicken in a few minutes. This is enough for 1 pizza.
  
  
  

Pickles:Bread and Butter

Bread and Butter Pickles
Recipe from Kathryn Wayson Hutchins

5 gallon bucket, not metal
1 cup Mrs. Wages’ Pickling Lime
12 cups or 4 quarts of cucumbers, sliced ½ inch (approx 7lbs)
2 onions, diced
½ cup pickling salt
3 cups of vinegar (5% acidity)
1 cup water
3 cups sugar
2 tablespoons mustard seed
1/2 tablespoon celery seed
½ teaspoon ginger
½ teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon turmeric

1. In 5 gallon bucket mix:
a. 1 cup pickling lime
b. 2 gallons of water
c. Sliced cucumbers and cover soak for 24 hours.

2. Drain lime solution then rinse cucumbers through several changes of cold water and place cucumbers back into the bucket and cover with fresh cold water and soak for 3 hours. Repeat this three times or until water rinses clear and NOT cloudy.

3. Drain completely.

4. Mix onion, salt, and cucumbers and let stand for five hours in your plastic bucket with lid or towel covering.

5. Drain and set aside.

6. In a large pot or into two pots, boil together for 3 minutes: vinegar, water, sugar, mustard seed, celery seed, ginger, cinnamon, and turmeric. (Note: I needed more juice so I tripled this mixture)

7. Add cucumbers and onions to the vinger mixture and simmer for 10-20 minutes. Pack in hot jars using the hot pack method.