Pomegranates and other great produce

I tried posting this a week or so ago, and blogger wasn't allowing me to upload the post. I just found this in my drafts, so here it is. Hopefully, I'll be back to posting atleast weekly again. I've really missed blogging!




It seems like I've taken quite a break from blogging, but I am ready to get back to it!

I took these pictures last Saturday after I picked up my Bountiful Baskets co-op offerings. The pomegranates were a great price, $15 for a case of 34. I'm using them as decor this week, but will get ready to process them and get them ready for freezing. Here is a link to see how to open a pomegranate and get the seeds out. It is from POM.

I decided to get the organic basket this week. I had to pitch the 4 large peaches that were included. They looked pretty, but were hard. They were rotten after a couple of days. Weird! Besides the peaches, there were bananas, grapes (they have seeds...bummer), pears, plums and apples. Vegetables included cabbage, fennel (!), kale, sweet potatoes and peppers.

The pears are ripening well and taste amazing. I had a plum this morning and it was delicious. I'm using the fennel tomorrow night in a recipe for dinner. Haven't decided between two recipes, but I'll post when I make one or the other.

Processing Corn on the Cob

When I saw this video on youtube on how to get corn on the cob without all of the silk strings, I thought everyone should see it. Great tip!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YnBF6bv4Oe4

Bizzybee: A Provident Living Retreat

Rachelle, my blogger friend at Pantry Eats, is involved with this sure-to-be-fantastic retreat all about provident living topics. You can check out the website at http://bizzybeeretreat.com/ .
The event is taking place in Enoch, Utah, which is outside of Cedar City.

One of the classes offered is Chickens 101. When we lived in Utah County, Utah, I did raise chickens for their eggs. Loved that experience! I'm not sure what my CC&R's say about having chickens, but I'd sure like to have a few. Nothing like fresh eggs. There are some pretty cool chicken hutches out there in blogland. I'm sure that this would be a fun class.

Home Cheesemaking is the class that I'm most interested in. I have mastered yogurt making, so making cheese seems like the logical next step. This class gives you the experience of making mozzarella from start to finish. Fresh mozzarella cheese is one of my food addictions, really it is! Nothing better than a portabello mushroom burger with fresh mozzarella melted on it. YUM!

Anyway, other classes such as Keeping a Family Cow (something my mother-in-law did for years), Pressure Canning, Soapmaking, Beekeeping, etc. are available.

You can register for the class on their website here.

Black Bean and Corn Salsa

I posted this recipe back in November of 2008, but I make it so often, I thought it was time to revisit it! Besides, I was able to harvest some green onions from my garden to include in the recipe.

After chopping up all of the ingredients, and giving it a good stir, here is a close-up picture.

It is great as a dip or as a side dish. I served it along with my sirloin tip roast and mashed potatoes on Easter Sunday, and it was a hit!

Blueberry Green Smoothie

I thought I'd share my impromptu recipe for a green smoothie this morning that turned out fantastic. I had to go back into the refrigerator and get the same ingredients that I had just used so you could see what went into this before it was blended.

Above, as pictured, I included a handful of spinach, a stalk of celery, a large leaf of napa cabbage, 1/2 cup of blueberries, and last but not least, 1/2 a frozen banana (I slice them up and freeze them so they are ready to blend). With a vitamix, always cover the blade with liquid first to facilitate blending. I used crystal light lemonade! You can use water or juice.

It was delicious. Hope you'll try it and let me know how you liked it!

Today's Harvest

Today's harvest is.....a bunch of green onions! I clipped these out of a pot in my container garden. I washed them, then chopped them. I'll be using them tomorrow for dinner in Roasted Zucchini with Green Onions, Feta Cheese and Basil from Kalyn's Kitchen. I'm serving this with oven baked, marinated chicken thighs.

Pinto Beans with Garlic

I had some pinto beans in the freezer, left over from a batch I made earlier this year. A last minute dinner dish was in order, so I did a quick google search, and came up with this recipe for Pinto Beans and Garlic from About.com. I made the following changes to the recipe:

• I added 1 extra chopped celery stalk


• Used canned diced tomatoes instead of paste


• 1 tsp of chili powder. The chili powder I have is from The Spice House, and it has a nice kick to it. We like our chili mild, so a teaspoon did the trick.


• I also added 3/4 c. water.

The result was a nice chunky bean dip! I served it with rice, scoopable tortilla chips and grated cheese. The verdict: a delicious, easy meal to prepare. It is a great vegetarian recipe, and a good way to use those beans in your food storage!

Here is the recipe the way I made it:

3-4 cups of cooked pinto beans

1 onion, chopped

1 red pepper, chopped

2 carrots, grated

2 stalks of celery, chopped

1/2 tsp basil

3 cloves garlic

1/4 tsp thyme

1/2 tsp celery seed

1 tsp chili powder

1 can diced tomatoes

olive oil

dash pepper

Begin by adding a tablespoon or two of olive oil to a large pot. Saute the onion, pepper, and celery until onions are translucent. Add the the remaining ingredients, and simmer. Stir frequently on medium-low heat until beans are soft and beginning to break down. Serve with rice. Chips and cheese optional, but they really add to the meal.