Basket Breakdown – 6/23/2012

25 Jun

This week, I got a conventional basket for $15, a Mexican themed veggie pack for $8.50, and a DIY cookie pack for $10.

This week, I got cherries, bananas, lettuce, cantaloupe, mangoes, nectarines, onions, celery, potatoes, and tomatoes.

For the cherries, I was excited that our Target carries a cherry pitter that I saw Lori at My Kinda Rain do a review on.  It works great!  I feel so much better handing a bowl of cherries to my kids without having to worry about the pits.  This tool can be used on olives too, which I’m happy about since I like to get kalamata olives, which I usually can only find with the pits.  It really takes very little effort, both my kids (ages 3 and 5) were able to use it easily with my supervision.

We are working our way through the rest of the fruits and veggies, not sure what I will make with it all yet.  I have PLENTY of potatoes that I’m trying to come up with good ways to use them before they go bad.

The Mexican themed veggie pack had cilantro, avocados, garlic, green onions, yellow onions, tomatillos, jalapeno peppers, Mexican grey squash, green chiles, and limes.  I will probably make my usual Salsa Verde and Guacamole or Fish Tacos.  I may roast the green chiles to chop up and put in some breakfast burritos.

And, last but not least, the DIY cookie pack.  This time it was themed for the 4th of July.  A few of our cookies were a little broken, but that didn’t make much difference to us!  My girls and I still had a great time decorating and eating them.

Note: The type and amount of food may vary from another basket because of geographic location and because of variances in how case ends are distributed once everything is distributed evenly. I also volunteered and got an extra item for volunteering.

Tags: ,

Farmer’s Market Finds: 6/21/2012

24 Jun

After a few weeks of not making it to the Farmer’s Market, we finally found our way back this week!  We got a mix of old favorites and tried some new things out too.

 

Goat cheese, plain with light salt, from Canelo Dairy for $6.50.  One of our favorites!  I love it with any type of cracker.

Grammy’s Strawberry Jam, $6.  I know, I got a flat of strawberries from Bountiful Baskets, so I should make my own, but I haven’t gotten brave enough to do it.  My husband is picky with his jam, so we decided to give this a try.  It’s pretty good!

San Pedro River Valley Salsa, $5.  I have been wanting fresh salsa, and not wanting to wait for the Mexican themed veggie pack from Bountiful Baskets that I contributed for, I went ahead and bought some at this stand.  First time trying it, and I am very pleased.  It’s got just the amount of spiciness that I like, and tastes great.  Exactly what I was looking for!

Not pictured are honey sticks.  The girls ate those before we got home!

We’ll be visiting again next week.  We’re hoping that Sky Island Ranch will be there with some steaks for us to grill for the 4th of July.  YUM!

Tags:

Banana Blueberry Muffins

21 Jun

These muffins turned out great!  I love the banana muffin recipe I use, it has a very strong banana taste.  So, since I had gotten blueberries as an extra from Bountiful Baskets, I put them some to use in these muffins today.  The banana and blueberries go together very well.

Banana Blueberry Muffins
Based on recipe here

What you need:

2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup butter
3/4 cup brown sugar
2 eggs, beaten
2 1/3 cups mashed overripe bananas
1 cup fresh blueberries

How to make it:

Preheat oven to 350 F. Lightly grease the bottoms of a muffin pan or line with paper liners.

In a medium bowl, combine flour, baking soda and salt. In a separate bowl, cream together butter and brown sugar. Stir in eggs and mashed bananas until well blended. Stir flour mixture into banana mixture; stir just to moisten. Fold in blueberries. Pour batter into prepared muffin cups.

Bake in preheated oven for 20 to 25 minutes. Cool muffins on a wire rack.  Makes 18-24 muffins.

Tags: , ,

Plum Cobbler

19 Jun

I had a bunch of plums from Bountiful Baskets this past weekend that were getting a little overripe.  I debated between using them in a crisp, like my favorite Apple Crisp, or trying something more like a cobbler.  I decided on trying out cobbler, just to have something new.  This actually turned out pretty good!  I think I maybe could have cooked it about 5 minutes longer to bake up the cobbler part more, but it still tastes good as it is.  And, really pretty easy to make.

 

Plum Cobbler

What you need:

12 plums, about 1.5 – 2 pounds, pitted and chopped
1/2 cup butter
1 1/4 cup sugar, divided
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup milk
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt

How to make it:

Preheat oven to 400 F.

Put butter in a 2 qt (8×8) baking dish.  Place dish in oven until butter melts.  Remove dish from oven.

In a bowl, mix together 1 cup sugar, flour, baking powder, and salt.  Pour in milk and stir well.  Pour batter mixture over the melted butter in the baking dish.

Spoon chopped plums over the batter in the baking dish.  Sprinkle with the remaining 1/4 cup sugar.

Bake in the preheated oven for 30-40 minutes, or until cobbler is browned and bubbling.

Best served warm with vanilla ice cream.

Tags:

Basket Breakdown – 6/16/2012

17 Jun

I’m kicking myself for not ordering the Tropical Granola again!  I’m out and I’m miss it!  Oh well, I have plenty of other goodies to enjoy.  This week, I got a conventional basket and an extra of blueberries.

This week, we got pineapple, grapes, watermelon, apricots, plums, lettuce, bananas, cucumbers, potatoes, spaghetti squash, and mushrooms.

I used some mushrooms for an omelette for my husband for breakfast on Father’s Day.  I will probably use the rest to make Chicken Marsala.  I will probably have the spaghetti squash as a dinner side, unless I come up with something more creative.  The cucumbers will probably become Refrigerator Pickles again this week.  And potatoes, well, I still have some other potatoes, so we will be eating a lot of potatoes for a while.  I did read a blog post about parcooking, shredding, and freezing to have hash browns for later, so I may try that with some of them.

I also got the extra of blueberries, it was 12 6oz containers of blueberries.

They look great!  I will make some banana blueberry muffins, then the rest will go into the freezer for smoothies and other things later.

 

Note: The type and amount of food may vary from another basket because of geographic location and because of variances in how case ends are distributed once everything is distributed evenly. I also volunteered and got an extra item for volunteering.

Tags:

Stuffed Acorn Squash

13 Jun

 

I feel like this is more of a fall dish than a summer dish, but when I got acorn squash from Bountiful Baskets this week, I knew this was what I wanted to make.  I first tried this in 2010, in my first few months of participating in Bountiful Baskets.  I can’t remember where I got the idea to stuff them, but I wanted something that would be a meal all in one.  I combined a few ideas from recipes online for this, and I really am pleased with the final product.  This time around, it’s also given me a chance to use some of my fresh herbs from the pack I got a couple of weeks back.  My kids like the stuffing, but weren’t fans of the squash tonight.  Oh well, more for me and my husband!

 

Stuffed Acorn Squash

What you need:

3-4 acorn squash
1 cup wild rice blend
2 cups chicken broth
2 teaspoons fresh sage, chopped
2 teaspoons fresh thyme, chopped
4 fully cooked turkey sausage patties
1/2 cup onion
2 tablespoons butter
1 small Granny Smith apple, cored and chopped
How to make it:

Preheat your oven to 350 F.

Put wild rice blend, chicken broth, sage, and thyme in a pan and cover with a tight lid.  Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to simmer.  Simmer for 50 minutes, or until fully cooked.

Meanwhile, cut the acorn squash in half and scoop out seeds. Also, cut a small part off the outside so squash will sit flat. Spray a baking sheet and place squash so the cut insides face down and bake for 30 minutes.

Prepare sausage patties according to package directions. After heated through, chop up and set aside (this can be omitted if making vegetarian)

Using the same pan from the sausage, saute onion in butter until translucent. Add in chopped apple, cooking until tender. Remove from heat. Mix in sausage and rice.

Flip the acorn squash over and fill with the wild rice mixture. Place back in oven and cook for 20 minutes.

Tags: , , , , ,

Basket Breakdown – 6/9/2012

13 Jun

This week, I was busy teaching a Child Passenger Safety Technician class, so a friend picked up for me.  I didn’t get a chance to take a nice picture of my basket, so I am borrowing one from Cheryl D. again this week.  I got a conventional basket and Tropical Granola this week.

This week brought us kale, plums, bananas, acorn squash, pineapple, apricots, tomatoes, apples, altaulfo mangoes, celery, mixed melon (cantaloupe and honeydew hybrid), and cucumber.

In case you are wondering about the mixed melon, here is a picture of it cut.  This one looks like a honeydew on the outside, but orange like a cantaloupe on the inside.

I was so excited to get plums!  I love this time of year when plums are in season and cheap.  We are big fans of plums.  It’s nice to have a something besides just apples to snack on.  And the apricots have been good as well, anxiously awaiting the nectarines and peaches to start coming in the baskets.

Last year, with the acorn squash, I made a really yummy wild rice and sausage stuffing for them.  I will be making it this week and sharing the recipe soon.  The cucumber I will slice and make Refrigerator Pickles.  I will probably also make Kale Chips again.

I also got the Tropical Granola.  It contains oats, honey, brown sugar, macadamia nuts, coconut, pineapple, and papaya.

I haven’t gotten the granola in a while, and I had forgotten how good it is!  Well, the Tropical is good, but there is one I’m not a big fan of, I think it’s the Original.  I’m wishing I had ordered more again this week, but I didn’t since I was already getting a couple other extras.

Note: The type and amount of food may vary from another basket because of geographic location and because of variances in how case ends are distributed once everything is distributed evenly. Cheryl D. also volunteered and got an extra item for volunteering.

Tags:

Kale Chips

6 Jun

I first heard about Kale Chips from Lori at My Kinda Rain.  She was very excited about them, so I decided I needed to give them a try.  Of course, I couldn’t find kale that time, so I made Spinach Chips instead, which are made the same way.  I’m not sure which I prefer, the kale or the spinach, but they are both good.  Now, they aren’t anywhere close to potato chips, but roasting the kale in olive oil, along with the crispness, makes it a decent replacement.  Kale seemed to be the one thing people wanted to trade most this weekend at Bountiful Baskets, so I was happy to trade to get more kale.  My kids were excited to both make and eat these today!  Plus, they thought it was pretty cool to use my new salad spinner to rinse and dry the kale.  I just added ingredients by sight.  I did add approximate measurements, but really, it’s to your level of taste for the seasoning.

Kale Chips

What you need:

1 bunch kale
Olive oil, about 1-2 tablespoons
Garlic salt, about 1-2 teaspoons
Ground black pepper, about 1-2 teaspoons

How to make it:

Preheat your oven to 350 F.

Rinse your kale and dry well.  I use my salad spinner to do this step.  Tear kale into bite size pieces, getting them as even in size as possible.

Put kale, olive oil, and seasonings either in a bowl or a zipper bag, and toss well to coat kale.  (I used bags so my kids could help with shaking the bags).  Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.  Place kale in a single layer on the baking sheet.

Bake in the preheated oven for 10-15 minutes, or until crispy.  Be careful not to overcook and let it get too brown, or it will take on a bitter taste.

I haven’t tried this, but I bet it would be tasty to splash with some balsamic vinegar before serving.

Tags:

Creamy Mustard and Tarragon Chicken

6 Jun

I normally not a big fan of mustard, but I got past it and this was really, really good.  So good, in fact, that my 3-year-old ate almost a whole piece of chicken on her own!  I used fresh tarragon from the herb pack I got from Bountiful Baskets, and chicken breast from my freezer stash of Zaycon Foods chicken.  The chicken was very moist and tasty.  I did change the original recipe a bit.  First, doubled the sauce, and then, since I didn’t have sour cream, I just milk.  It worked out well.  I served it with a wild rice blend and salad.

 

Creamy Mustard and Tarragon Chicken
Original recipe here

What you need:

1/4 cup all-purpose flour
Salt and pepper to taste
2 tablespoon olive oil
4 (5 ounce) skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
1/2 cup finely chopped onion
1 cup low-sodium chicken broth
1 cup dry white wine
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
1/4 cup milk
1 tablespoon chopped fresh tarragon

How to make it:

Place the flour in a shallow dish and mix in salt and pepper. Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Dredge chicken breasts in the flour.  Add chicken to the pan. Cook the chicken in the hot oil and butter until golden, about 3 minutes. Flip chicken and brown on the other side, an additional 3 minutes. Remove chicken from skillet and tent with foil.

Reduce heat to medium. Stir the onion into the remaining oil in the skillet. Cook until softened, 2 to 3 minutes. Pour the chicken broth into the pan, and simmer while scraping the browned bits of food off of the bottom of the pan with a wooden spoon. Pour in the wine and bring back to a simmer. Cook the sauce until reduced by half, about 3 minutes. Return chicken to the pan along with any juices that have accumulated. Simmer chicken in the sauce until it is cooked through and no longer pink in the center, 3 to 4 minutes. Transfer chicken to a warmed platter.

Whisk the mustard and milk into the liquid in the pan; stir in the tarragon. Spoon sauce over chicken to serve.

Tags: , ,

Basket Breakdown – 6/2/2012

5 Jun

I’m a little behind in getting this up, but with just getting back from a trip and preparing to lead a Child Passenger Safety Technician certification course, I’ve been busy.

That being said, this past week, I got a conventional basket for $15 and a fresh herb pack for $12.

This week we had a mixed melon (a cantaloupe and honeydew hybrid, I believe), strawberries, apples, oranges, mangoes, bananas, lettuce, potatoes, kale, avocados, and garlic.

I ended up with extra kale from some friends who didn’t want it, so I got a new salad spinner to wash all of it and make kale chips.  I may also make Zuppa Toscana since I also got potatoes.

The fresh herb pack smelled wonderful!  At top from left, chives, garlic, basil, and thyme.  Bottom from left, tarragon, sage, marjoram, oregano, rosemary, and mint.

I made a delicious chicken dish with some of the tarragon.  I may use some tarragon with salmon similar to the chicken.  I’ll probably make pesto with the basil, and will end up freezing or drying some of the rest of the herbs.

Note: The type and amount of food may vary from another basket because of geographic location and because of variances in how case ends are distributed once everything is distributed evenly. I also volunteered and got an extra item for volunteering.

Tags: ,

← Older Entries
Newer Entries →