by jphilo | Jul 27, 2016 | Recipes
Thanks to our weekly CSA share, the vegetable bin is overflowing with cucumbers. So cucumber-onion salad is gracing our table almost daily. Because today is my birthday and I’m celebrating by not experimenting with a new recipe, I’m rerunning this one that was first featured on Down the Gravel Road in July of 2012. It’s easy, it’s tasty, it’s non-dairy, it’s low-cal, and the longer it sits in the fridge, the better it tastes. No wonder this recipe has been consistently discovered and repinned on Pinterest since the day it first appeared there.
Cucumber-Onion Salad
1 medium cucumber, peeled and sliced thinly
1 onion, sliced into thin rings*
1/2 cup white vinegar
1/2 cup water
2 teaspoons sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon coarse black pepper
Place vegetables in a small serving bowl. In a smaller bowl or measuring cup, mix vinegar, water, sugar, salt and pepper. Stir well and pour over vegetables so they are completely covered with liquid. Cover tightly and refrigerate until ready to serve. This salad can be stored for several days or a week in the fridge.
I try to make it at least 8 hours before serving so the flavors can meld and the vinegar has time to pickle the vegetables a little. Also, more cukes and onions into the brine after the original veggies are gone. I usually do that once before discarding the brine and making a completely new batch.
*I used red onions, which is why the salad looks so pretty in the picture, but any type of onion is fine.
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by jphilo | Aug 19, 2015 | Recipes
Tomato season is here. Every week since mid-July our CSA share has been packed with delicious slicing tomatoes and pint boxes of cherry and grape tomatoes. I’ve kept on top of the slicers, but the smaller ones were piling up faster than we could eat them. So last week, I took a recipe for oven-roasted Roma tomatoes and adapted it for cherry and grape tomatoes. About two-thirds of the roasted tomatoes found their way onto pesto pizza (just leave off the cheese to make it dairy-free) and the rest are in the fridge waiting to be used as one of many ingredients in pesto pasta. I liked the roasted tomatoes on the pizza. The Man of Steel wasn’t quite so sure.
The recipe is very easy, though the tomatoes have to roast a long time, so be sure to start them early or prepare them a day or two in advance.
Slow Roasted Cherry and Grape Tomatoes
3 pints of cherry or grape tomatoes, or a combination of the two
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 teaspoon dried basil or 2 tablespoons fresh basil, chopped
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano or 2 tablespoons fresh oregano, chopped
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon coarse ground black pepper
Heat oven to 200 degrees. Wash tomatoes. Remove stems. Slice tomatoes in half and put in a large bowl. Mix remaining ingredients together in a smaller bowl. Pour mixture over halved tomatoes and toss until all are coated.
Spray 2 large cookie sheets with cooking spray. Pour half of tomatoes into each cookie sheet. Turn tomatoes so cut side is facing up. Like this:
Put in oven and roast for 5 hours. Take trays out and remove tomato halves that are well-dried. Continue roasting the others for an hour to hour and a half, checking them every 30 minutes. Use immediately in other recipes or store in the refrigerator.
by jphilo | Jun 9, 2015 | Top Ten Tuesday
Life’s been rough at our house lately. So I’m fighting discouragement and a tendency to dwell on what’s wrong in my world by giving thanks for the small and good blessings that are part of each day.
10. The weather’s been so pleasant, we’ve hardly needed to turn on the AC.
9. The propane company sent a letter saying our bill will go down over $100 in September.
8. At this moment, the weeds are pulled and the housework is done.
7. The herb garden provided fresh parsley, basil, and cilantro for several meals this week.
6. Our first CSA produce pick up is today.
5. But the CSA strawberries started early so we feasted our way through 2 delectable quarts…and I took some down to Mom last week, too.
4. Revisions on my mystery novel are moving along and the escape therapy is just what the doctor ordered.
3. The Man of Steel and I will take Mom to a family reunion in Minnesota this coming weekend. She will complain during the whole trip and then thoroughly enjoy being queen for a day in the presence of her nieces and nephews.
2. My daughter held the phone close to our 2-month-old grandson’s mouth so we could hear him coo. Happy tears!
1. In the last week, God arranged encounters with 2 dear friends and a sister who understand my current struggles and the time spent with them was soothing balm to the soul.
What blessings are you thankful for this week?
by jphilo | Jun 25, 2014 | Recipes
Strawberry season is here! In honor of these few weeks strawberry lovers dream about most of the year, (and because I’ve been traveling and haven’t had time to test a new recipe or write a post) here’s the dairy-free version of Grandma Josie’s recipe for strawberry shortcake. (The dairy version can be found here.)
We’re having the dairy-free version for dessert tonight, along with the last of our CSA fresh strawberries. Definitely a night to remember!
Grandma Josie’s Original Strawberry Shortcake Recipe
1 small cup flour
2 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon baking power
1 egg
2 tablespoons Earth Balance vegan buttery sticks
Stir in rich milk substitute of your choice until semi-stiff. Bake at 350 degrees until golden and toothpick comes out clean. Top with fresh strawberries. Recipe can be doubled to fit in a 10 inch pan.
Grandma Josie’s Strawberry Shortcake
2 cups flour
2 tablespoons sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 cup softened Earth Balance vegan buttery sticks or coconut oil
2 eggs, beaten
3/4 cup almond, rice, or soy milk
1 quart strawberries, washed, hulled, sliced and mixed with 2 tablespoons sugar
Heat oven to 400 degrees. Mix all dry ingredients in a medium bowl. Cut in shortening. Add eggs and milk substitute. Mix with a fork until all ingredients are moistened. Pour into a 9 inch square pan. Bake for 20 minutes until golden brown. Top with fresh strawberries.
by jphilo | Jul 24, 2013 | Recipes
Today’s post isn’t so much a recipe as an ode to kohlrabi, the latest, most fashionable darling of the healthy eating movement. But it’s been a garden staple on Mom’s side of the family since the 1930s. Since our CSA share for the week included this most delightful of brassica vegetables today’s post is dedicated to the proper eating of it.
Our family has always served kohlrabi raw, though it can be cooked, too. In my opinion, cooking it is a waste of not only the cook’s time and energy, but also the vegetable’s crispy, sweet flavor. That said, here’s a picture tutorial about how to prepare raw kohlrabi for snacking or as the prima donna on a relish tray.
First, cut off the root and leaves. (FYI, most kohlrabi are the size of a medium to large apple.)
Second, peel off the outer skin, which is tough and a little thicker than an apple peel, to reveal the lighter, tender flesh below. Sprinkle it with a little salt and eat as is, like an apple or raw potato,
or sliced into 1/4–1/2 inch rounds,
or cut into sticks.
However you serve it up, if you plan to eat kohlrabi around me and my cousins, be prepared to fight for your fair share. We consider unclaimed slices or sticks fair game!
