You may remember that I did a
Week Without Processed Foods last week and came away newly inspired to cook, eat the many varieties of produce from my new CSA share, and do my best to steer clear of packaged foods as much as I can**. I am amazed at how much fun I'm having in the kitchen and that rather than work, cooking feels like something I am suddenly privileged to get to do. That said, here are some food highlights since we last met.
Wild Rose Pastures: A bonus of last weeks posts was that I was referred to a local chicken farm where the farmers, Ryan and Janice, raise their birds sans chemicals, antibiotics and let them graze on pastures. I immediately signed up for three whole birds (they freeze them after processing) so that I can start roasting chickens and eating them through the week. I may have mentioned that I'm not vegetarian, but buying meat/poultry is stressful since there are so many factors to consider, so this seems like a win-win.
Heather's Quinoa Salad: I'm always scouring
101cookbooks for recipes and this quinoa salad with roasted tomatoes, corn, greens and pesto did not disappoint. I had most of the ingredients (I left the tofu out since I'm still experimenting with my hiatus from soy). I also added some roasted green beans that I'd chopped into small pieces and a cucumber, both of which added some nice crunch. I love pesto in virtually any form, so I was a happy girl working my way through a big batch of this.
Skillet Cornbread:I'm totally on a cornmeal kick after I bought a huge bag of Pauls. I made this lovely version adapted from
The Real Food Daily Cookbook over the weekend and it was so massive that I put half right away into the freezer. Which is terrific since it essentially means bake once, enjoy for weeks to come! I also learned how to
properly care for my cast iron skillet, which I should have done a year ago when I got it, but better late than never!
New Baking Books: When I posted about my bread baking efforts, there were suggestions for Bittman's no-knead bread (which I'd kind of forgotten about) and for two cookbooks I'm going to check out. The first is
Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day. That title sounds way too good to be true, but I will definitely be heading to a book store soon to see what it's all about. (Incidentally,
their blog is pretty rad.) The second is The
King Arthur Flour Whole Grain Baking Cookbook. I am a big fan of King Arthur and am looking forward to trying out some of the bread recipes. Particularly the Millet-Sunflower Bread (which isn't fast, but it sounds amazing) and the Easiest 100% Whole Wheat Bread Ever just to see if it lives up to its name! I'll report back once I get baking.
Make a Sandwich, win $25,000. This last one is purely because it's so fun. So get this,
Mezzetta (they produce glass packed peppers and olives) is hosting their annual
Make That Sandwich Contest. You have until September 7 to submit an original sandwich recipe in one of three categories—cold sandwich, hot sandwich or vegetarian sandwich—that will be judged on creative use of ingredients, taste, ease of preparation and visual appeal . Winner gets $25,000, a trip to Napa and some serious cooking cred. Check out
last years winners if you need a little inspiration.
**As I said last week, this is all about balance. Which means I've enjoyed delicious s'mores and spent some quality time with my buddies Ben and Jerry!
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You may remember that I did a Week Without Processed Foods last week and came away newly inspired to cook, eat the many varieties of produce from my new CSA share, and do my best to steer clear of packaged foods as much as I can**. I am amazed at how much fun I'm having in the kitchen and that rather than work, cooking feels like something I am suddenly privileged to get to do. That said, here are some food highlights since we last met.
Wild Rose Pastures: A bonus of last weeks posts was that I was referred to a local chicken farm where the farmers, Ryan and Janice, raise their birds sans chemicals, antibiotics and let them graze on pastures. I immediately signed up for three whole birds (they freeze them after processing) so that I can start roasting chickens and eating them through the week. I may have mentioned that I'm not vegetarian, but buying meat/poultry is stressful since there are so many factors to consider, so this seems like a win-win.
Heather's Quinoa Salad: I'm always scouring 101cookbooks for recipes and this quinoa salad with roasted tomatoes, corn, greens and pesto did not disappoint. I had most of the ingredients (I left the tofu out since I'm still experimenting with my hiatus from soy). I also added some roasted green beans that I'd chopped into small pieces and a cucumber, both of which added some nice crunch. I love pesto in virtually any form, so I was a happy girl working my way through a big batch of this.
Skillet Cornbread:I'm totally on a cornmeal kick after I bought a huge bag of Pauls. I made this lovely version adapted from The Real Food Daily Cookbook over the weekend and it was so massive that I put half right away into the freezer. Which is terrific since it essentially means bake once, enjoy for weeks to come! I also learned how to properly care for my cast iron skillet, which I should have done a year ago when I got it, but better late than never!
New Baking Books: When I posted about my bread baking efforts, there were suggestions for Bittman's no-knead bread (which I'd kind of forgotten about) and for two cookbooks I'm going to check out. The first is Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day. That title sounds way too good to be true, but I will definitely be heading to a book store soon to see what it's all about. (Incidentally, their blog is pretty rad.) The second is The King Arthur Flour Whole Grain Baking Cookbook. I am a big fan of King Arthur and am looking forward to trying out some of the bread recipes. Particularly the Millet-Sunflower Bread (which isn't fast, but it sounds amazing) and the Easiest 100% Whole Wheat Bread Ever just to see if it lives up to its name! I'll report back once I get baking.
Make a Sandwich, win $25,000. This last one is purely because it's so fun. So get this, Mezzetta (they produce glass packed peppers and olives) is hosting their annual Make That Sandwich Contest. You have until September 7 to submit an original sandwich recipe in one of three categories—cold sandwich, hot sandwich or vegetarian sandwich—that will be judged on creative use of ingredients, taste, ease of preparation and visual appeal . Winner gets $25,000, a trip to Napa and some serious cooking cred. Check out last years winners if you need a little inspiration.
**As I said last week, this is all about balance. Which means I've enjoyed delicious s'mores and spent some quality time with my buddies Ben and Jerry!
