Weekend Project: Making Butter, No Butter Churn Required

With windchills in the below zero range, this weekend has been perfect for staying inside and keeping warm, which also gave me the opportunity to tackle something new. I saw a recipe/method for making homemade butter, so I thought, "What the heck?" and set out to give it a try.

Now, because you have to buy cream and buttermilk to start out (sadly, our HOA would not allow the keeping of a cow in our yard), I had my doubts about just how cost-effective this might be. With that in mind, I decided to cut the recipe in half, in case it didn't turn out, so I would at least  still have useable cream and buttermilk. With those caveats, I threw caution and concern for botulism to the wind and started out on this kitchen experiment. Better living through chemistry and all that.

The recipe I used was from Southern Living. I couldn't find the recipe online, but it might not be posted yet, since it's still the current issue. Here's a picture of what you'll need:

First, you have to warm the whipping cream to 70 degrees (F), but the directions didn't say if your buttermilk also had to be room temperature or not, so I warmed the cream a little extra (it was warm to the touch) to maybe offset the fact that my buttermilk was still cold. Maybe you could just leave both the whipping cream and buttermilk out overnight before starting the recipe (since "room temperature" is generally accepted to be 68 degrees). But that would make it nearly a 36 hour recipe, and mama ain't got time for that.

So, here's where my concern for food poisoning comes in:

See the condensation on the plastic wrap? The warm mixture sits out on the counter for 24 hours. Plus, the instructions said that I would get better results if I did not use ultra-pasteurized cream, so I'm am still leery. I decide to forge ahead.

After the 24 hour waiting period, it actually looks like what the recipe said it should, thick like pancake batter. Mine was a little thicker, so I don't know if that is good or bad, but I'm just happy things are proceeding pretty much as they should!

Next, you put the mixture in the food processor and process for 5-8 minutes, until bits of solids form. It doesn't say what blade to use, so I just used the plastic mixing blade, figuring I don't want to cut up the small bits. So, after about 7 minutes, here's what I got:

I'm starting to get pretty excited now, so I move on to the next step, which is to strain out the solids from the liquid (which is lovely buttermilk! Two products in one recipe!).

The butter is pretty soft, so I don't want to press it too much, but I gingerly press down to get more of the liquid out.  Then comes the not-so-fun part: the ice bath.

You are supposed to knead it in ice water and keep changing the water until it stays clean. I am telling you that the ice water was the worst part. My hand got painfully cold, so I don't know if I got it perfectly "clean," but I wasn't doing more than three rounds of that stuff.

Here's the first round:

Here's the third:

Relatively clear water, I would say. Finally, you are supposed to knead a little salt into it, which I did, but next time I might just leave it out, because I thought it was too salty, even though it was just 1/4 teaspoon.  For 2 cups of whipping cream and 1/2 cup of butter milk, you get just over 1/4 pound of butter and about 1 1/2 cups of buttermilk.

 Here's the final product, wrapped for chilling:

So, here's the big question: Was it worth it?

In terms of the ease of the recipe, sure. It wasn't hard, really, and it went pretty fast after you let it sit for 24 hours, and it's not like you had to babysit it throughout the 24 hours (I'm lookin' at you, croissant dough). In terms of taste, yes, I found it to taste better (tangy, creamy and less waxy, texture-wise) than regular store brand butter, but about on par with French butter (like Plugra).

Cost-wise, let's do the math: The 2 cups of cream was $2.29 and the 1/2 cup of buttermilk was $.22, so for about $2.50, you got 5.5 oz of butter and 1 1/2 cups of buttermilk. When I can get a pound of butter for $2.50, I'm not sure, but if you think of spending $2.79 for spreadable butter (I buy the kind with real butter and canola or olive oil mixed in), it might be worth it. The homemade butter was creamier, plus I knew exactly the ingredients that went into it and the process. I'm not sure I would put the effort in to just use for baking, because I know that Plugra has little water, but I'm not sure I got as much water out of mine, so it I'd worry about my product not being as consistent as commercially-made butter.

Bottom line, I'll let you make those decisions for yourself, but I would probably make this again, especially if I'm making biscuits or bread (there it NOTHING better than butter on freshly made bread). I'm just excited that it actually worked...and I didn't get food poisoning.

New Year, New...Shelves?

Is that a sexy title or what? Shoot. I don't even have a good segue...

As you all know, I am not super crafty, as evidenced by the exactly 1 craft post that is currently on this blog. However, I am really excited about the shelves I put together for our "beverage center", and by "I" I mean my husband and I. I was the creative genius, he was my "implementer", so to speak. Anyway, I think they turned out really well and totally fit in to the "industrial farmhouse" vibe we are going for. Note: I didn't know that was what it was called, but apparently my more decorating-trend-savvy friends pegged the look.  :-)

While not exactly cheap to put together (I spent $90 on supplies, not including the wood, which we had in the garage), they look really cool:

They weren't that hard to make, once I figured out what I needed, so let me walk you through the process, and save you the hour I spent at Home Depot figuring out sizes and lengths and numbers of each item needed.

Supplies needed for each shelf you want to make:

4 -- 1/2 inch floor flanges (I used black steel for these)
2 -- 1/2 inch 90 degree elbows
4 -- 1/2 inch X 2 inch steel pipe nipples (yeah, I know. I laugh every time I see the label, too)
8 -- #10 X 1/2 inch screws
8 -- #6-32 X 1 1/2 inch hollow wall anchors


First, using 2 of the flanges, 2 of the nipples and one of the elbows for each bracket, screw the pieces together  like so:

Tip: It's a little tricky screwing them together so that the flanges are level and straight. It might take a few tries.

Here's a photo of the screws and anchors, in case my written descriptions were less than understandable: 

In terms of shelves, I guess they could be as long as you wanted (these are pretty hefty brackets), but because they are heavy, you want to be careful of what you put on them, especially if they are not attached to studs when you mount them. We had some extra wood that was actually perfect in terms of width and length, so I didn't even need to trim them, but what I did not realize until my husband started to put them up is that the corners weren't exactly square. What can I say? I'm more the creative type, not as concerned with details of implementation. Luckily, my husband is, so he made it work. Here's how the hanging of the shelves progressed:

Because the brackets weren't 100% level (hence my warning tip at the beginning) we (my husband) thought it would be better to put the brackets up first, then attach the shelf.

Before you start drilling, hold one of the brackets up into position, then use a pencil to mark the spots where the holes should be drilled.

Another tip: If there is a pocket door behind the wall on which you are hanging the shelves, make sure that 1) your screws/anchors don't impede the path of the door and 2) you keep the door out of the wall (i.e., closed) so that the drill bit doesn't hit it when you are drilling the screws in (learned that one the hard way...)

And there you are! Cool looking shelves.

To paint the wood itself, I just used glossy red spray paint, after first sanding and wiping down the wood. I let the painted wood dry for a couple of days, just to be sure, because I didn't want to take a chance that it would smear on the wall at all.

Let me know what you think! Or if you have any questions. Happy building!!

Crazy Days

I can't believe that a month has gone by between blog posts!  I thought my PTA duties would lighten up a little once we got past the beginning of school, but I was wrong. Really, really wrong.  So, as much I actually like the stuff I'm doing as PTA secretary, it is taking a lot of my free time, which means a little less time to tackle anything complicated for meals. I know, however, that I'm not the only one who is busy, with kids, with work, with STUFF.  Life happens, and keeps happening, but that's no excuse to slap some spaghettios in a bowl and call it dinner (not that I am judging -- I have a couple of cans of it in my pantry, too, but I just call it lunch or a snack for the kids).

My mom, a single mother of three who worked as a nurse, is a great cook, but when we were kids, she didn't have time to do fancy stuff, either.  I distinctly remember her 3-day soups.  She would make a big pot of soup, put it in the fridge, and that's what we would eat for three days.  It was especially useful when we were in high school and coming home at different times.  Whenever we needed to eat, we would just heat up some of that soup!

What do I do when I know a crazy week is coming up?  Riffing off of my mom's three day soup idea, I make a big pot of chili! It's super-versatile.  The first night, you have the chili straight up with all the fixin's: cheese, onions, sour cream (or plain Greek yogurt), cilantro.

Now, you could just freeze the rest and take it out for some other night when you're pressed for time.  I, however, used it another night that same week to make chili-mac, which is spaghetti topped with chili.  I got this idea from a summer I spent in Cincinnatti, a city known for its unique chili (they add cinnamon to it) and how they eat it. They have several different ways to enjoy chili: straight up in a bowl, two-way (with spaghetti), three-way (chili, spaghetti, and cheese), four-way (chili, spaghetti, cheese, and onions) or five-way (chili, spaghetti, cheese, onions, and beans), although, of course, my chili always has beans in it anyway. :-)  Any way you order it, though, it's delicious!  Chili is truly one of my "desert island" foods. I could seriously eat it every day.

There are other ways to use your pot of chili, besides just eating it.  Top it with cornbread batter and made a kind of tamale pie. Here's a recipe from Martha Stewart, but I just use the Jiffy mix in a box when I'm pressed for time.

Another thing you could do with your chili is top a baked potato with it, or a cheese quesadilla (yum!) or make loaded nachos if the chili isn't too soupy. I feel a little like Pvt. Benjamin Buford 'Bubba' Blue from Forrest Gump, but you get the picture!

All of that from one pot of chili!

What are your go-to tips and tricks to get you through an especially crazy week?

The Best Pesto You've Ever Tasted (and Vegan, too!)

We are on our last leg of summer in Virginia, and it's time to gather up any remaining basil left in the garden.  There are so many things you can do to preserve it.  Dry it.  Puree it with some olive oil, put it in ice cube trays, freeze and then use later to flavor soups, stews, pasta sauce.  Or you could make pesto.

My favorite pesto recipe comes from a Sicilian cookbook I got years ago.  The reason it's my favorite is that it adds avocado for an amazing creaminess and richness that blows regular pesto away.  Seriously.  This time, I did a little experimenting and found that you don't even need to add parmesan cheese to it and it's still delicious! You will be tempted to skip the step of soaking the nuts. Don't. I switched that up, too, to make it go a little quicker. I also added a little lemon juice to help keep the bright green color and add a little zing.

This recipe makes quite a bit (about 2 cups) and it's so flavorful you don't need to use a ton for the flavor to come through.  The night I made it, I roasted some veggies (fennel, tomatoes and leeks) and tossed it with some pasta, but I still had some left over.  I spread it on sandwiches (turkey is a great pairing) and crackers (livens up a cup of soup).  It will keep in the fridge for about a week, but it might turn a little brown, given the avocado. Still tastes amazing, though!




Avocado Pesto

 1/2 cup almonds
1/2 cup walnuts
1 avocado (I used 1/3, because that's all I had, but it turned out fine)
3 cloves garlic
2 cups fresh basil (loosely packed - and you can use some of the soft stems, but be sure to discard any hard, woody stems)
1/3 teaspoon dried marjoram
1 Tbsp lemon juice
2/3 cup olive oil
1/2 tsp salt
2/3 cup warm water (I use a little of the pasta water before I drain the pasta)


Boil about 2 cups of water (I used an electric kettle and set it to the "tea" setting, which gets it to 175 degrees F), let cool slightly (about 5 minutes), then pour over the almonds and walnuts and set aside.  Peel and pit the avocado.  Peel and chop the garlic. Put avocado, garlic, basil leaves, marjoram, lemon juice, olive oil and salt in the food processor.  Drain the nuts (they should have soaked at least 10 minutes), discard water.  Put the nuts in the food processor. Put the top on the processor and chop everything together, stopping to scrape down the sides of the processor bowl a couple of times.  When everything is chopped very fine, start adding the warm (pasta) water, a little at a time, through the feed tube.  Start with 1/3 cup, then if you need to add more to get a smooth sauce, then add a little more at a time.  This will not be a runny sauce. It will be a little more like a loose paste.

Toss with pasta, use it as a topping for fish or veggies.  Keeps in the refrigerator for about a week.

Sweet-n-Spicy Marinade: Saying Goodbye to Summer

Even though it's officially the last day of summer, we are hanging on to the last remnants of the season here in Northern Virginia, where it could reach the upper 80's today.  We've had some great weather the past week.  Luckily, my friends' gardens are still producing, and I am fortunate that they are generous, because it gives me a chance to use ingredients I wouldn't normally buy. For example, one of them gave me a couple of habaneros. I have never used them before, but I knew they were hot - they have heat, but still have a light, citrus-y flavor.  I thought a sweet and spicy marinade might be good.  I added honey and a little water to keep the heat from getting to be too much, and a little smoked paprika for depth.  I think it's a great combination of heat and sweet.

This marinade was good with chicken (marinated for about 3 hours), but I think it would taste great on shrimp, too.  Maybe even tilapia for fish tacos.  Be careful when marinating seafood, because the acid from the lime will start to cook the fish/shrimp, ceviche-style.

Another note: I would recommend grilling or broiling over pan-frying, just because the honey in the marinade will start to burn on the pan before the meat is done.  Here is a gnarly picture of the pan as I was cooking the chicken:

The chicken itself didn't burn (it tasted awesome) but when the marinade hit the heat, that honey made it really dark.

Sweet-n-Spicy Marinade

Ingredients:

1 habanero pepper (could use jalapeno if that's what you have)
1 lime
2 cloves garlic
2 Tbsp honey
1/4 cup water
1/2 bunch of cilantro, stems and leaves, rinsed
1/2 cup olive oil
(you could also add a little soy sauce or salt, if you like)


Cut the pepper in half and remove seeds and ribs inside the pepper (most of the heat of the pepper is held in the ribs, secondarily the seeds).  Drop pepper halves into a blender.  Cut lime into quarters, squeeze juice into blender, then toss the rest of the lime in.  Peel and coarsely chop garlic, add to the blender, along with honey, water, oil and cilantro.  Cover blender and puree all ingredients until nearly smooth (there should still be small bits, and that's okay).  Pour marinade over protein of choice.  I used boneless, skinless chicken thighs, but shrimp or tilapia would be good (no more than 20 minutes -- the lime juice will start cooking the meat - kind of like ceviche).  Pork would also work. Marinate pork or chicken for about an hour, but a little longer isn't going to hurt, either.




The family liked this one -- even my younger son, who is usually sensitive to spicy stuff.  The flavor of this is not punch-you-in-the-face spicy. It's subtle and light and doesn't linger on your tongue too long.  Hope you like it!

An Ode to the End of Summer - Eating through Minnesota

I can't believe that I haven't posted in over a month! Sorry, friend! It has been an incredibly busy August and, so far, September. To be honest, I don't have a recipe to post, BUT, I do want to wax nostalgic about the end of summer.  If I am going to be entirely truthful about this blog entry's title, we sort of ate our way through the Twin Cities, not all of Minnesota. But even so, we had some incredible food!

Our family flew back to Minnesota at the end of August to visit family and had a great time. I will not, however, leave town for 10 days just before the beginning of school ever again.  We missed orientation for my 7th grader (who is starting in a brand new school) and Open House for my 4th grader.  We missed getting schedules and meeting teachers.  I missed some PTA responsibilities as well.  And for all the wonderful memories we made during our trip, for our family's sanity, we will make sure that we are home for all those "pre-school" activities.

Now, back to our fun trip!  Of course, there was lots of food, and one of my favorite food places is the Minnesota State Fair.  Lots of planning, reading, and list making happened before we even set foot on the fairgrounds.  Local newspapers wrote articles and reviews about the new food offerings this year, and I read all of them voraciously (in every sense of the word).  :-)  Of course, the best-laid plans often go awry, and, while I didn't really fail in my food tasting, I didn't get to all the places I wanted (it's a big fair).  For those who aren't familiar with a big, mid-western state fair, I feel a little sorry for you.  There are rides, there's a midway, livestock, crop art, free stuff (yard sticks, pens, re-useable grocery bags, silly hats), and, of course FOOD.  It's awesome!  It is also a big deal, and people plan vacation days around it.  I have never encountered anything like it here on the East Coast. I don't think Virginia even has a state fair, and to be honest, the one time I went to the Loudoun County fair, it was a huge disappointment, so we never went back.

 Anyway, when we go to the fair, we try to start early, before the crowds get too crazy.  That's okay, though, because it means we can start out with one of our favorite fair foods: mini donuts.

I have also been curious about the "cronut," and French Meadow Bakery has a version that you don't have to wait an hour in line for, but they call theirs a "dough-sant":

It was really good, but not better than a Krispy Kreme straight from the fryer.  Just sayin'.  Next up, and new to the fair this year, was the corn and blue cheese fritters with chimichurri sauce.  Oh. My. Gawd. But those were good!  To be honest, they were my favorite food items of the day, and it reminded me how good chimichurri sauce is with just about everything.  I resolve to make it more often.

 

Next up was something new from Famous Dave's: Korean pork with kimchi pickles. I had been really excited about this one, and was glad that they actually had it available when I got to their location at 9:30am.  Unfortunately, it did not live up to my expectations.  The pork was okay, but the kimchi pickles tasted like they took some bread & butter pickles, added some shredded carrots and sriracha sauce and called it a day.  Disappointing.  Plus, the price they were charging for that portion was not worth it, imho.

Now that it was nearly 10,  and we were already full (I didn't get pictures of it, but my parents and husband each had a beer with french fries, too), it was time to hit the midway.  Now, I get riding the rides, which many of us enjoyed, but I don't get the allure of the midway games.  You know, knock the blocks off the stand with a bean bag, or shoot a water gun to get your "horse" to cross the finish line first (okay, I actually like that one), or shoot a basket and win a prize. By the time you actually win something, you've spent $30 for a stuffed banana that cost probably less than a dollar to make.  I don't get it.  But my husband and kids love it, so there you go.  And who can resist riding up on super-high swings?

 I love that picture! I am amazed that I got that with my camera phone.  The colors are fantastic.  It was a beautiful day!

Another fun thing about the fair are the livestock barns, where you can see horses, chickens, and pigs. We never miss the pigs and hogs, because they are cute (even the ginormous one) and you get an awesome hat:

The Minnesota State Fair also means $1 all-you-can-drink milk.  I am lactose intolerant, so I passed on this, but it's a pretty popular booth.

And finally, you have to eat some sort of food item on a stick.  While you can get meatloaf on a stick or walleye on a stick, we went a little more traditional and got a frozen banana, freshly-dipped in chocolate.  It was pretty delicious! I think Max agrees.

 Of course, there is a lot more going on during our trip besides the state fair.  My cousin's husband had opened a restaurant last year, and I had been itching to try it.  Cook is a breakfast and lunch place serving mostly American food with a few Korean specialties thrown in and has gotten a lot of great press.  It is entirely deserved.  The food is fabulous! Pictured is their enormous cinnamon roll, and you can see a bit of the Korean pancake in the background. We also had the breakfast burrito, which was delicious, too. I had their short ribs eggs benedict and absolutely loved it (the hollandaise sauce was amazing)!  My big regret of the trip was that we didn't get back there for lunch (I wanted the walleye sandwich and the bi bim bop).  Next time, Charles and Tiffany!

 

Another new place that was introduced to me by my brother was Lolo in Stillwater (where I grew up).  We got there too late for any food (sadly, I will have to try their bacon jam, brie and arugula crostini and their chicken skins another time), but their cocktails were fabulous! I had the "Q is for Cucumber" with cucumber, elderflower, lemonade, and ginger and my sister-in-law loves their lemon-thyme daquiri. Just as good as the cocktails was the service, with friendly bartenders who were happy to talk with their customers. It was a great place to have a drink!

 

Another highlight of the trip was a dinner out with dear friends to Travail Kitchen and Amusements.  This was a place like no other.  Serious food served in a definitely non-serious atmosphere. They don't take reservations, but if you are lucky, you can score a "chef's table" (we were one of the lucky ones), which is really just a prep area they cleared with bar stools set around it (there were literally mixers and containers under our table). 

 This was our super fancy ice bucket and some of the magic ingredients (located just off of my left elbow):

 This un-fancy setting definitely contrasts with the food, which is fancy, yet approachable.  They don't have a menu. Instead, you pay for a tasting menu ($110 per couple the night we were there), which includes about 8 courses. However, there are so many added snacks and amuse-bouches that we stopped keeping track.  It seemed like they just kept bringing out plate after plate. This particular course was a study in corn (popped, pudding, creamed) with an exquisite meat that was the love child between bacon and prime rib.  Seriously. So. Freaking. Good.

 We were served frozen sorbet bits on a spoon (nearly froze my tongue), had to catch a piece of speck with our mouths that was dangled in front of us on a fishing hook, had to walk through the kitchen collecting parts of one dish, and had another course served on a 4-foot plank in the middle of our table:

 

Dessert (pictured below) was another number of items, beautifully plated and presented, with chocolate, macarons, tarts, and just yummy little bites and flavors to explore. I can't remember all the dishes that were served, and it was really loud, so I didn't even know all of what we were eating, but it was all amazing (except for the chocolate that was filled with sweet corn pudding -- that was not my favorite)!   Travail is definitely fun, and a little weird, and I can't wait to go back!

So if you find yourself in the Twin Cities area, needing a place to eat, give any of these places a try.  You will not be disappointed.

While, as I wrote before, we came back and had to jump straight in to back-to-school craziness, it was great to get away to visit family and friends. And it is always great to eat good food.  :-)

A Simple Salad -- When It's Too Hot To Cook

I know I've posted about it before, but here in Virginia it can get too hot to even think about turning on the stove or oven.  On those nights, I like to do a salad, but it has to be filling enough for my husband and pre-teen (I can't believe I have one of those already!) so they don't feel like they need to eat again an hour later, so making sure there is protein is key. Also, the kale and beans serve to really fill you up!

Here is a salad that hits all the right notes:

Trendy superfood (kale) -- check
Protein (tuna) -- check
Fiber (veggies and beans) -- check
Flavor (Dijon dressing and roasted red pepper) -- check

It's chewy, crunchy, creamy, and tangy, hitting even more of the tastes and textures that make eating enjoyable.  Also, to take a little of the chew and (sometimes) bitterness out of the kale, I have a little trick that you might find useful.  After ripping it into bite-sized pieces, I massage a little olive oil into the leaves and let it sit on the counter at room temperature for a few minutes.  It changes the texture just enough to make the leaves a little more tender -- no heat involved!

The tuna and the Dijon dressing reminds me of my student days when I studies in the South of France, so I will call it:

Provencal Tuna Salad

1 bunch kale
1/4 cup olive oil plus 2 Tbsp olive oil, divided

2 tsp Dijon mustard
1 Tbsp white wine or cider vinegar
Salt and pepper to taste

1 can canellini beans, drained and rinsed
1 jar (6.7 oz) good quality tuna packed in olive oil (I got mine at the Fresh Market)
1 stalk celery, chopped into a small dice
1 roasted red pepper, chopped into a small dice

First, clean and pull the leafy part of the kale off the the stalk, discard the stalks (or save them -- I keep a bag in the freezer and put kale stalks, carrot peels, celery ends and such to make vegetable stock once the bag is full). Tear the kale leaves into bite-sized pieces, put in a large mixing bowl and drizzle with 2 Tbsp olive oil.  Using your hands (cooking can get messy, my friends), rub the olive oil on to the leaves, kind of like giving the kale a massage. I'm not kidding.  After the oil has been (more or less) evenly distributed on the kale leaves, set the bowl aside while you put together the rest of the salad.

In a separate, medium-sized bowl, put the remaining 1/4 cup olive oil, Dijon mustard and vinegar. Using a fork, whisk the dressing ingredients together until completely combined.  Taste, then add salt and/or pepper to your liking.

[TIP: for a general vinaigrette, the oil to acid ratio is about 3:1, but you can also adjust that ratio to your liking as well -- start with three parts oil to one part vinegar, combine and taste. If it's too acid or sharp tasting, add more oil.  If it's too oily, add a little more acid, which can be vinegar, lemon juice, etc.]

Then, just dump the rest of the ingredients (beans, tuna, chopped celery, chopped bell pepper) into the dressing and carefully combine.

To serve, put some kale in a bowl, then top with some of the tuna-bean mixture:

 

This makes 4-6 servings, depending on how hungry your family is.  I had enough kale left over to make kale chips and have some of the tuna-bean mixture for lunch the next day.  :-) Let me tell you, that even my picky eater liked some of this (he ate the tuna-bean mixture, but didn't like the red bell pepper). He probably would have eaten it if I had used raw bell pepper...and my oldest, who eats almost anything, ate all of his kale first.  I almost cried, I was so proud!

Which brings me to my next point -- this is a really flexible dish.  If you don't have roasted red bell pepper, then don't use it. Sub in an extra stalk of celery, or a raw bell pepper, red onion, whatever.  If you can't find tuna fillets packed in oil (I used Tonnino brand), then use regular tuna, but add a little bit more seasoning (herbes de provence would be good, or oregano). It's your salad; these are just guidelines.  Have fun with it!