First: black garlic Is. Not. Fermented. It is caramelized or, I suppose, ‘aged’, where the Maillard process (think sear on meat) breaks down the sugar in garlic. The result of heat applied over time: savory, molasses-y garlic cloves, that are dark brown to black in color. Black garlic still retains the garlic flavor but it […]
A few years ago, I started making a homemade ornaments for family. This year’s ornament is a (be)dazzling canning lid ornament. It is the perfect way to reuse the inner lids (that you can reseal) and if you are anything like me, you might seems always have more of the canning rings than jars. Hmm… […]
My plum trees are at it again. Thankfully this is the lighter crop year. They reliably produce a giant bumper crop every other years, well over 100 plus pounds per tree. As such, I have quite a few go to recipes to enjoy plums throughout the year. however, my favorite option is to use City […]
I have a generous Asian pear tree that each year delivers me several bushels of fruit. My go to recipes to preserve are poached, jammed, dried and sauced but I love to play with spices and flavor combinations. Last year the new jam flavors were red wine, madras curry, tandoori and rosemary. Rosemary was the […]
Harvard beets are a vintage recipe quite popular for good reason in all the guild, church and society cookbooks: tasty, simple and flexible. Many of you know I have a love of vintage cookbooks but today I share with you a quick updated version using your pressure cooker; taking the stovetop simmer from at least 40 minutes […]
Last year I finally broke down and bought a food dehydrator after years of concern that it would be just another appliance taking up space. Granted it isn’t running 365, but when it is time to harvest fruit or there is a great sale at the market, my Nesco Snack Master Pro (amazon affiliate) becomes […]
This isn’t rocket science but just a method that worked really well and made short work of a case of Kent Mangos. I scored the ripe box at Ranch 99 Market for a song – you could smell the mango-y-ness wafting from the box (after of course you left the questionable seafood herbal Pinesol legit […]
Happy Cow? Yes, I asked the rancher. Also grass fed and local. A friend and I purchased a quarter cow from a local farm near Seattle (Hallet Family) this summer. When picking up at the butcher they asked if I wanted an offal. Yes! Liver (made pate), kidney, tongue (can you say TACOS!) and heart. […]