My New Obsession...Thrifting

Ok, so I have always loved garage sales, etc. However, it is relatively new find to go to Thrift stores. I have for many years, periodically, gone to resale shops for kids stuff, clothes, and whatever else I can find, mainly books. However, once I discovered the larger thrift stores, I love going. I still like to hit resale and garage sales too. My kids like to go to garage sales with me as well!!

Some of my favorite finds from last season's garage sales are a tin of vintage travel stickers, it is really cool and I will hope to use it in scrapbooking or crafting and it was only like fifty cents! My boys were also happy as I found them a big container full of pokemon cards!! I also found a really nice cast iron skillet, Jay scrubbed it up and seasoned it and we have used it repeatedly. The kids loved that it is from Cracker Barrel and has their logo on the bottom, we go there when we are on a driving trip, so the kids associate fond memories with Cracker Barrel. The kids love the cast iron "corn sticks" pan I got too, it makes the best corn bread sticks (shaped like corn). The entire family wants me to get a couple more so we can make more than 7 sticks at a time. I also found some cute painted spoons that I put in my kitchen on the wall.

What do I buy every time I garage sale or thrift shop? Books! I have a book fetish anyway, but I just can't resist books for such bargain prices.

This weekend I went shopping with my girlfriend. We had a good time and found some good deals. I bought a pair of gap pants, an Abercrombe and Fitch t-shirt, a Hollister t-shirt, a gap skirt and a really cute sun dress, plus a couple of other cute t-shirts for my daughter. I got a black tank top, a couple of really cute t-shirts, a really cute old navy ruffled shirt with a cute faux collar, a nice patterned shirt that is a bit dressier than a T-shirt, a White House, Black Market sequined tank (this was marked $15.99 and I got it half off for $8...I looked online and it was probably about $50 new if not more), a pink print tank which the fabric is layers of sort of sheer fabric, plus I got a cute pair of shoes, a black washable "American Tourister" purse great for travel that had a Samsonite toiletry bag with it, a gold lame little zipper pouch to go in my purse (this was brand new for $.99), several books. Total spent was $55.93 All in all 17 pieces of clothing, a pair of shoes, purse, toiletry bag, zipper pouch for a purse, 7 books. Not bad!!

My friend made some scores too. You can't really go in looking for something specific but I do have an ongoing list of things I would love to find used!! It's the hunt that is so fun!!

Thanksgiving Menu 2011

I love Thanksgiving. I love the change of seasons, it always feels like a great last hurrah to nicer weather and the peek of winter around the corner. I love fall flavors and colors, the warmth they invoke. I dread winter, so Thanksgiving still gives me the comfort of fall and I love to lose myself in the seasonal bounty and offerings and take the chance to remember how wonderful my life is and to give thanks.

There are still so many great local foods available this time of year that Thanksgiving is such a chance to cook and enjoy it with family.

This year my menu plan is pretty standard. I do everything Gluten Free, most things are Dairy Free and this year in deference to my nephew's newly diagnosed (serious) allergies we are peanut, tree nut, soy, sesame and navy bean free. Challenging, but I am finding it is working out ok.

Menu 2011

Turkey--We get our turkeys from Cloverlawn Farms...haven't ever had a better turkey. These are free-range, pastured birds. No factory farmed meat here. They are processed the day we get them, can't get fresher than that unless you raise your own.

We like to brine our turkey per Alton Brown's recipe "Good Eats Roast Turkey"

After we brine it, I rinse and dry it and sprinkle freshly ground pepper inside and outside of bird and then slather under the skin with a compound herb butter.

Herb Butter

1 stick unsalted butter

1 1/2 Tablespoons chopped, fresh thyme

1 Tablespoon chopped, fresh rosemary

1 Tablespoon chopped, fresh parsley

Mix all herbs into softened butter.

I place turkey on a rack in a roasting pan with a bit of chicken stock in the bottom of the pan and place a halved onion and some cloves of garlic in the bird cavity. I cook bird at 500 degrees for about 30 minutes to brown the bird and then stick the probe thermometer into the thickest part of the breast and reduce the oven to 350 degrees. If the bird seems to get too brown, I tent it with foil (I usually do end up tenting it). When bird is done (timing depends on size...I usually do a 20 lb bird... approx 3.5 hours give or take). When bird is done, I remove from oven, cover with foil and let it rest for 15-30 minutes before carving.

I do strain the drippings and put in my gravy separator to de-fat somewhat. I use the drippings to make gravy, but because the bird was brined the drippings do tend to be salty so I add them to homemade chicken stock to tone them down, makes a lovely gravy.

Stuffing-I grew up on stuffing made from Pepperidge Farms stuffing mix and vegetables. I loved the traditional flavor but once we started eating non-processed foods I had to create my own stuffing. It is very good in my opinion.

I saute onion, celery and mushrooms with some celtic sea salt and black peper till just about tender and then add some minced garlic and continue to saute till tender. I let cool and add it to dry Gluten Free bread cubes (I usually toast them before starting). I season with a bit more salt and pepper and some of Penzey's Poultry Seasoning. I then add enough warm chicken stock to have nice moist, but not swimming in water, stuffing blend. I add beaten eggs (usually 2 eggs to a big bowl) and stir till combined. I add it to a baking pan, sprinkle with paprika and cook it at 350 till top is crunchy and dry (for a large pan about 45 minutes to an hour).

I have developed a nice multi-grain Gluten-Free bread in my new bread machine. This year I am using it rather than a Bob's Red Mill Mix (due to the nut issue). I will post the recipe separately.

Mashed Potatoes- I use Yukon Gold potatoes, they give it a lovely buttery color and taste. I get my potatoes from CSA Farmer's Market. Instead of dairy to make them rich and creamy (and I don't like the taste of rice milk either) I use warm chicken stock and some chicken fat. I whip them in my Kitchenaid Stand Mixer and they turn out nice and creamy. I season with salt and pepper.

Gravy-I make it from the drippings mixed with homemade chicken stock (which is unsalted) and add pepper and cornstarch mixed with water to thicken. I then add sliced cooked mushroooms and sometimes some leftover picked meat from the turkey carcass.

Sweet Potatoes -I love sweet potatoes and so do my kids. I simply roast them and mash them and serve them with butter (or coconut ghee for the non-dairy) and a sprinkle of cinnamon. Roasting them is the key, they turn out so sweet and caramelized they really don't need anything added to them.

Green Vegetable- This year I am doing just simple steamed green beans (organic/frozen) and broccoli, I do both because everyone in my family wants broccoli but Elliott can't have it, so the green beans are really for him, he loves them. I steam them till just crisp tender and then serve them with a sprinkling of Penzey's Sandwich Sprinkle seasoning.

Cranberry Sauce/Compote- I love this cooked cranberry sauce. I grew up with the raw cranberry/orange/sugar cranberry sauce and I love that too. My dad makes it so yummy and we usually have both.

I have adapted this recipe over the years. It originally came from foodtv and was called Fall Berry Conserve. Feel free to check it out online and make it either way. I almost always make a double batch.

1 (12 oz) package cranberries, fresh or frozen

1/2 cup apple juice or cider

1/2 cup orange juice

1 medium navel orange, unpeeled, chopped

1/2 cup honey (or to taste)

2 teaspoons fresh ginger root, grated

1/4 cup dried cherries

1/4 cup dried blueberries

2 Tablespoons crystallized ginger, finely chopped

Combine cranberries, juice and honey in sauce pan bring to boil over medium heat and cook till honey is melted. Add chopped orange (and any accumulated juices),and simmer until cranberries burst and mixture thickens a bit. Add dried fruit, ginger and crystallized ginger and let cook till dried fruit is plumped. Taste for sweetness and add more honey as needed.

Allow to cool then refrigerate. Can be made several days ahead.

Fruit-It is a family tradition to have fruit salad or a fruit tray with dessert. My parents are bringing it this year.

Pumpkin Pie- I use this dairy free healthy version from The Nourishing Gourmet To be gluten free I make a crust using ginger snap cookie crumbs and coconut oil. This year I needed to find an alternative to the cookies I usually use as they had nuts, so I developed my own recipe. I will post it later. I used organic brown sugar in them as I have been out of Sucanat and Whole Foods was out and 2 times it didn't get split to be able to order from the buying club I belong to. So as soon as I have more sucanat I plan to develop the recipe with no refined sweeteners. However, I must say these were really good cookies, much better than store bought.

Cranberry-Orange Cheesecake with a chocolate crust. This is an epicurious.com recipe and I haven't made it in years (since we went gluten free). My daughter begged me to make a cheesecake so I decided to pull out the recipe and substitute Gluten Free cookies in the crust.

Whip Cream- Homemade from Pastured cream and a bit of maple syrup to sweeten.

If I have time I might do an apple crisp, just because I love apples and cinnamon.

I hope to have leftover turkey (won't know the size of my turkey till we get it on Monday night) and make a pumpkin cream sauce pasta dish with turkey in it...Pampered Chef recipe that I sub brown rice pasta and canned coconut milk and curry powder to make it suitable for our diet.

Turkey soup is on the menu after T-day too. I also have salad greens from CSA Farmers Market and plan to have turkey, cheese and dried cherries on a salad. Yum!!

Pulled Chicken -Mexican Food version

My sister said she loved my chicken for chicken tacos and asked how I made it. Here is my version. I do use local, pastured chickens which do cook up differently than store bought as they don't have a saline injection and tend in my opinion to have more meat on them. So you may get less yield or need to cook them for a different amount of time and gauge how much of the chicken juices you get and add accordingly.

1 or more whole chickens (depending on how many you want to cook and will fit in your crockpot)

Diced onion

diced bell pepper or some of Penzey's dried bell peppers. (optional)

water for chicken broth

1 bay leaf

Penzey's Chicken Taco Seasoning

Sea Salt

Penzey's Mild Chili Powder

Ground Cumin

Black Pepper

Juice of 1 lime

Dice one or more onions (depending on size and how many chickens you have) and put in bottom of crock pot. Add bell pepper to bottom of crockpot (I like the flavor it gives, I use the dried diced mostly, so if using fresh, dice it small and it will mostly disintegrate into it and leave a nice flavor).

Add about 1/2 cup of water or broth to keep chicken from scorching or drying out when it starts to cook. Add Bay leaf.

Place whole chicken(s) on top of onions, sprinkle with spices and salt on chicken and a bit onto the mixture in the bottom (onion/liquid mixture).

Cover and cook on low for 8 hours or until chicken is falling off the bone.

Remove chicken to a dish that will hold any juices and let cool until able to touch without getting burned.

Pull all chicken meat off of bones and put in a separate dish. Shred meat with two forks or with hands into nice shredded texture. Discard bones, skin, etc.

Strain the liquid to get rid of any chicken bones, skin, etc. You can save some onions if desired and mix them into the chicken. Skim some fat off liquid if there seems to be a lot of fat.

Put chicken back into crockpot and mix with enough liquid to make it nice and moist but not totally swimming in liquid (a bit pooled at the bottom is no big deal, but you don't want a ton of liquid). If there isn't enough juices to moisten it once you remove the fat off the juices, than add some heated up chicken broth.

Mix in more spices (chicken taco seasoning, chili powder and cumin)to taste. I usually shake a bit in and mix it and taste it and then add a bit more if needed. Add salt to taste. Add juice of one lime and mix in to chicken. Heat through in crockpot (you can heat it in high till it is all warmed through if you want it done quickly or if you want to let it go longer, heat on low).

Freezes well too.

Back in Action

Well, I haven't posted in a couple of months. The reason was that shortly after I last posted I found out that (surprise, surprise) we are expecting a 4th child. Well, the long and short of it is that I have had a few complications and have felt really crummy until very recently. Finally the energy is coming back a bit and the nausea is abating.

I have started cooking a bit finally. Jay took over cooking duties for the last stretch and at least we ate good, but there was no planning, as I was not really wanting to think about food much.

However, Thanksgiving is right around the corner and I am in full planning mode. I am excited about my favorite holiday (food wise) and am trying to do as much local as possible. I will post my menu when finalized and in the meantime post a few favorite recipes (both new and old)!!

Good eating and happy holidays!!

Menu Planning Fiasco

So, I fell off the Bandwagon this week. I am still cooking, but boy I didn't have a minute to sit down and plan.

Here is the low down the best I can create.

Saturday we went to the in-laws and ate there at their club pool (garbage food). We regretted it later when we all felt lousy.

Sunday we had taco meat with tortilla chips and sauteed vegetables, refried beans and toppings as well as Corn on the cob.

Monday we cooked a turkey in our electric roaster (a free-range, organic chicken that apparently we stored in my parents freezer and forgot about, it was delicious). Mashed potatoes that we dug up the potatoes at our CSA and gravy. Steamed green beans along side it.

Tuesday we had leftovers.

Tonight I have meetings so it will be sweet corn, green beans and hot dogs (all natural from a local smokehouse).

Tomorrow- Undecided, but probably stuffed cabbage.

Friday--Kids eating at Grandmas, so we will probably take an easy packed dinner to the set up of the conference.

Saturday -We will be at the local HTN conference all day/evening, so leftovers or a packed dinner will be the deal.

Sunday School starts Sunday, so not sure what we will plan, probably Chicken as we need to make freezer space by the 15th when our new delivery of chickens arrives.

Hubby stayed up late last night (as he left this morning for a business trip) making applesauce from a case of juicer apples we got from our favorite local organic orchard. It is so good.

That is it for now, but I do plan to get back on the ball with planning soon.

Lisa

Nourishing Portable Food Challenge

One of my favorite Nourishing Blogs http://www.thenourishinggourmet.com/ is having a Nourishing Portable Food Challenge. In light of the fact that I pack lunch for 2 children each day and they both have different requirements and likes/dislikes (my son cannot have dairy) and I often pack my own lunch for a meeting or whatever, I figure I can share some ideas and maybe figure out a recipe to post too.

You can check out all the ideas for healthy, nourishing portable foods at http://www.thenourishinggourmet.com/2008/08/nourishing-portable-food-challenge_26.html

Usually when I pack lunches I use the Laptop Lunches Lunchbox System http://www.laptoplunches.com/ I love these lunchboxes as they help with portion control and it is waste free which is good for the environment. They are plastic, but are made of the safer type plastics that aren't supposed to leach, for kids I really find plastic to be a necessity. The food presentation is wonderful because they are based on the Bento box style of Japan. When the child (or adult) opens the case, the food is ready and looks appetizing, things also keep from getting squished as they would in a plastic baggie.

I frequently make sandwiches for the children with all-natural lunchmeats or a healthy nut butter and raw honey with slices of organic banana, or sometimes an organic jam.

I also frequently pack homemade trail mix. This is my favorite portable snack as it is made with a variety of crispy nuts (nuts soaked in salt water overnight, then dehydrated to help break down the enzyme inhibitors, phytic acid and other anti-nutrients and make them more digestible), organic dried fruit, and a few organic chocolate chips. It is easy to pack and gives them a good balance of protein and carbs to keep them going. Also, if they don't finish their lunch, this is usually something that they an snack on after school too.

I often put either apple sauce (for my son) and yogurt for my daughter with some fruit on top (in the picture it is some organic tart cherries with organic vanilla yogurt. I also put either vegetable or salad. In the picture it is kale for my son and a salad for my daughter. I also frequently put some pieces of cheese or salami or other meat with a few organic crackers (or sometimes without the crackers).

I also frequently send stew, chili or soup in a thermos. The kids always love that. I only send water most days, once a week they can have juice, chocolate milk or kombucha.

I often do a "lunchable" type lunch instead of a sandwich. I just roll up or cut with a decorative cutter pieces of meat and cheese and put those in with some veggie sticks, cut up fruit, maybe some olives, pickles or sauerkraut/kim chi and crackers. The kids love these finger foods.

I also frequently use leftover dinners that may be good cold. Cold pieces (off the bone) of roasted chicken with some hard-boiled egg and maybe cheese pieces along with veggies and fruit. Frittatas are great too, as they are good warm, room temp or cold. They can be cut in a wedge and eaten on the go easily too. They can be any meal (breakfast, lunch or dinner) and can include a variety of ingredients. Meatloaf is also good cold too.

Many friends and family have told me my meatloaf is great. Here is my recipe (the amounts are not real exact as I usually just throw it together), I put frozen organic corn in the middle of the loaf as my dad always did that and the kids get a kick out of it, but if you are planning to use it for a lunch (sandwich or sliced) that does not work so well, so just leave it without the "surprise in the middle"

Lisa's Meatloaf

Note: These amounts are approximate as I just eyeball it (however, it is 2lbs meat)

2 pounds grass-fed ground beef (if very lean, add some type of oil/fat to the mixture)

1 small or half a medium onion, pureed

1/2 teaspoon dried basil

1 teaspoon Penzey's beef roast seasoning (or use you favorite beef spice blend or other spices)

1/4 teaspoon sea salt or to taste

1/4 teaspoon black pepper or to taste

1/2 teaspoon organic worcestershire sauce

1 large egg

sprinkle of garlic powder or 1 small glove grated (or finely minced)

1 tablespoon organic tomato ketchup

2 tablespoons salsa

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

Combine all ingredients in a bowl and mix thouroughly with hands (I find that works best to get it very well homogenized). Cover rimmed sheet pan with parchment paper or a silpat and mound meat mixture into a free form loaf shape. (If doing a corn surprise in the middle, mound the bottom of the loaf, build up some sides, place frozen corn in middle and cover with remaining meat mixture).

Topping mixture: Mix 1/8 cup of ketchup with 1/8 cup salsa and pour over top of meatloaf to cover completely.

Bake at 400 degrees for approximately 45 minutes to 1 hour.

Note: You can also shape the meat mixture into muffin tins and divide topping over them, reduce baking time to compensate (they will end up with grease puddled into the bottom of the tin, so remove immediately from tin to avoid them soaking it in or getting too soft at the bottom).

Menu Planning Week 5

Ok, so it is Tuesday and I am way behind (in just about every aspect of my life these days which just makes me procrastinate more!).

Well we have been cooking, but just not to organized about it.

Recap: Well we did have eggs, oatmeal and pot roast. Didn't get to much else.

Here is what we have had between last weekend and now: Saturday we had grilled steaks and grilled vegetables with baked potatoes, Sunday we had stirfry with the leftover steak, brown rice, salad and pickles with the last of the corn on the cob (in-laws came for dinner). Dessert was cantaloupe, blueberries and watermelon. Monday we had leftovers (well they did, I wasn't home).

Ok, here we go with this week.

Tuesday (August 26)
Breakfast-Soaked Oatmeal Porridge
Lunch-Bologna, fruit
Dinner: Meatloaf, Fried Summer Squash, Sauteed Red Cabbage

Wednesday (Aug 27)
Breakfast-Frittata
Lunch-Leftovers
Dinner-Pot Roast (need something that can cook while I am gone to the school meeting)

Thursday (Aug 28)
Breakfast -Muffins
Lunch Lunchmeat, fresh veggies, pickles
Dinner -Leftovers (we have to go to orientation for religious school)

Friday (Aug 29)
Breakfast-Leftovers
Lunch-Sandwiches
Dinner-Tacos/Nachos

I also once again hope to get to making some desserts and zucchini bread as well as regular bread (since I am out of bread flour and plan to shop on Thursday evening). I got some wonderful local blueberries at the Royal Oak Farmers Market from Blueridge Blueberry Farm and I really want to make a blueberry dessert. I was hoping to make a blueberry peach crostada, but Rachel ate all the peaches lickity-split (and most of a bag of apples I got). I have enough Gingergold apples to make something, so I'll have to figure out what.

Lisa

Menu Planning Week Four

Well, I sort of had a small tumble off the band wagon this week. I just have been so busy that every time I sat down to do a menu plan, I got side-tracked.

Well here is an attempt to rein in the week (which is a crazy busy week!!).

I can't even remember what we ate on Saturday and Sunday, so I'll start with Monday.

Monday (August 18)
Breakfast--Leftover Fritatta
Lunch-Smoked Turkey (lunchmeat from Markowycz), cucumber slices, cantaloupe, homemade pickles and whole grain gluten free crackers, leftover roasted cauliflower and roasted beets.
Dinner-Hamburger Patties (East River Organics hamburger, mixed with local eggs, basil and a few spices), breaded and baked summer squash, , corn on the cob.

Tuesday (August 19)
Breakfast-Smoked Turkey, summer sausage, cucumbers and chips
Lunch- Variety of leftover and some smoked turkey lunchmeat
Dinner-Baked Chicken, Corn on the cob, gnocci (from a local pasta company Tracina's) Leftover Summer squash from last night

Wednesday (August 20)
Eggs-scrambled
Lunch-Leftovers
Dinner-Pot Roast (as I can prep it and let it cook while we are gone in the afternoon and eat real quick before my meeting tomorrow night)

Thursday (August 20)
Breakfast-Fritatta
Lunch-Salad and lunchmeat (or leftovers)
Dinner-Meatloaf

Friday-
Breakfast-Muffins
Lunch-Salad and leftovers
Dinner-leftovers and we are going to a Boy Scout event with hotodogs and smores too.

I also still need to make the zucchini bread, maybe Thursday as I clean my house to get ready for a GS meeting at my house in the evening

Eating Local is so much fun this time of year.

During summer and into fall, I don't have much trouble eating local, and I LOVE the journey!!

Every Saturday I go to the farmers market (Royal Oak every other week usually followed by a trip to the Clarkston Market and just Clarkston on the other weeks). I sometimes go by myself, which is pleasurable to stroll along and talk to all my farmer/vendor friends, including Julie (La Vida Local) at Clarkston. Many weeks I meet or go with my dad. It is a throwback to my growing up years where it was a tradition to go to the market together. Sometimes we take the whole family, my kids love the market!!The smells, the sounds, the abundance of beaconing fruits and vegetables in all their glory, the multitude of colors. It is such a sensory and soul soothing experience!!

We belong to a CSA, so we have an abundance of fresh, local, organically-grown vegetables each week, but I can't resist the market experience. I still manage to spend a good amount on things we don't get enough of (or any of) from our CSA or other fun, yummy items that aren't produce but are local.

This past week I bought 2 dozen sweet corn, a watermelon, 2 canteloupe and a quart of organic, local peaches.

For dinner recently we had Nachos with local beef (from East River Organics) made into homemade taco meat (I don't use a spice/packet for the meat, but a recipe from Cook's Illustrated), Simmon's corn chips, global warming salsa, locally bought sour cream and Rosewood cheese (which is produced in Ann Arbor area) and Eden refried beans. It was so good and very filling.

Breakfast this morning was Fritattas with local eggs (we get them from our CSA and they are locally produced by several area families for our CSA), veggies from our CSA (onions, garlic, summer squash, green bell pepper and carrots from east river organics, they are so good). Hubby made breakfast. We had the watermelon from the farmers market with the frittata.

So it isn't hard for me to do local meals this time of year, in fact basically all our meals are local as we try to use up our abundance of veggies. We had grilled pizzas tonight. The crust was homemade with flour from Westwind Mill (I did use a bit of other flour because Westwind is out of the heartier wheat varieties and I needed a bit more protein content in the dough). The dough only has salt, yeast, water, olive oil and flour in it. The sauce was made from homemade roasted tomato sauce (the peach and melon farmer at the Clarkston Farmers market gave us a bag of their imperfect tomatoes when they heard we wanted to make sauce--thats what I love about building relationships with your growers) with onion and garlic from our CSA added and some spices. The toppings were onions (CSA), pepperoni (Markowycz Meats in Detroit) and cheese. We had sweet corn with the pizzas!!

Yum, I will be sad when winter rolls around and the fresh green vegetables and the lucious fruits are gone. We do put up things like tomato sauce, corn (blanced and cut off the cob), berries, and pickles, kim chi and sauerkraut, and jam. We try to do more, but depends on what we can source.

Lisa

Sanford Family Dill Pickles

This pickle recipe has been in my family for Generations!! They are Kosher Dill Pickles made with a salt brine and not vinegar. Garlicky and yummy, they are a family tradition. My dad used to make them with his parents and his grandparents made them too, I don't know how many more generations back they go, but they are the typical recipe for Kosher Garlic Brined Dills, so I am sure our family didn't invent them, but we sure love them!! I grew up making pickles with my dad and when I had kids I taught them the recipe and how to make them (and hubby, who loves them and is a fantastic pickle maker now!!).

This is a great activity for the kids as they can help with all the steps and the daily shake and check is always fun. It is like magic how green cucumbers turn cloudy and dark and turn into sour dill pickles. Pure Magic!!

Sanford Family Dill Pickle Recipe

Per Quart of Pickles

2 stalks Dill -- divided

1 Tablespoon Kosher salt -- heaping

1 teaspoon pickling spice

1 quart pickling cucumbers -- as many as will fit in a wide mouth quart jar

2 cloves garlic (the individual cloves, not heads)-- peeled, to taste (2-3 cloves, more or less depending on how garlicky you like your pickles.-- I sometimes slice up the bigger cloves and cut in half smaller cloves and put the pieces in, that helps give it more garlic flavor.)

1 red chile pepper -- dried (optional, to taste, if you like a little heat add one, for hotter pickles add more dried peppers-- I use dried arbol peppers)

**cold water

For each quart of pickles use a clean (preferably sterile) wide mouth quart jar with a lid and screw cap. Fold up one stalk of dill and push into bottom of quart jar, covering the bottom of the jar (use more dill if needed to cover bottom of jar).

Fill jar with cucumbers, tightly pack as many as will fit up to the lip (below where the threads for the lid start) of jar.

Add one heaping Tablespoon of kosher salt and one teaspoon of pickling spice to jar.

Push cloves of garlic into areas around cucumbers (try to evenly disburse them around jar) and add the hot pepper(s) to jar. Fold up remaining stalk of dill and push into jar on top of cucumbers to cover.

Fill jar to lip (below the area where the threads start for screw top) with cold water, covering cucumbers and dill. Make sure cucumbers are covered, sometimes you have to really fill the jars with water to get the cukes and dill covered, that is ok (just make sure you use a pan under the jars as explained below).

Place lid and screw top on and tighten screw top by hand till tight (you don't need to overtighten). Shake jars to distribute salt and spices and help the salt dissolve.

Place filled jars on counter or table with a pan or several layers of paper towels underneath to catch any possible leaks.

Shake jars once a day and check to make sure lid has not come loose due to the fermentation process. The brine will start to turn cloudy after a while, and the cucumbers will go from bright green to a darker green, this means they are working and turning to pickles. Pickles will be ready to eat in one week (we go 10 days to start), but are even better if you wait two weeks. Refrigerate after opening.

They will last several weeks in the fridge once opened (however, we can never keep them around that long). They will last for several weeks or even longer before opening jars, but they are not actually preseved via a canning method for long term storage. After too long the cucumbers tend to get very mushy. They are best if you eat them 2-4 weeks after making them. Enjoy.

I have attached three pictures of the jars we made. The brightest green is one made today (the picture on the far left), the middle picture is slightly green but darker and cloudy and was made 2 days ago, the last jar (the far right picture) is one that is 9 days old (almost ready to eat).

Lisa

Menu Planning Week 3

Well, I made it another week and still trying to keep sane and menu plan.

Here is what I have:

Saturday (August 9)-
Breakfast-Whatever husband made for the kids as I left early for the Farmers Markets (Both Royal Oak and Clarkston, I love the market!!--My dad went with me to Royal Oak and I stopped and picked up my middle child, Jeremy, to go to Clarkston, it was a blast!!)
Lunch-Leftovers--chicken, hot dogs and some other misc. stuff from the fridge plus some Kim Chi.
Dinner-I made Egg Drop Soup for the kids and my mom. Jay and I were off to supper club (this is our 7th year with this group and we always have a nice time and the chance to go out sans kids and have fun with friends is great). We took Quinoa Bake and Braised White Beans with Greens.

Sunday (August 10)-
Breakfast- We wanted to make blueberry pancakes but can't find the cord to our electric griddle so we went with Waffles instead. I will post my waffle recipe on a separate post later. We had them with Homemade Strawberry Grand Marnier Sauce and whipped cream. YUM!!
Lunch- Noshed, not a real lunch as breakfast was kind of a "brunch" time.
Dinner-Leftovers-roast chicken, braised beans and greens, quinoa bake and we had fresh sweet corn from the market which was fantastic

Monday (August 11)
Breakfast- Leftover waffles
Lunch-Bologna sandwiches on homemade rye bread with MI honeyrock melon (from the Clarkston Farmers Market) and chips (a treat we bought at the store last night, made with potatoes, sunflower oil and salt).
Dinner- Baked Zucchini, Meatloaf, rest of the corn on the cob

Tuesday-
Breakfast- Muffins (soak overnight and bake in the morning, I will prep tonight if I remember).
Lunch-Leftovers or sandwiches whichever the kids want
Dinner- Grilled Pizza.

Wednesday
Breakfast-Frittata--Use up any scraps of veggies and leftover cheese from the pizza
Lunch-Leftover Pizza
Dinner-Tacos/Nachos (now have sour cream and will make salsa)

Thursday
Breakfast-Pancakes (if I can find the cord, if not we will have eggs or leftovers)
Lunch-Plow Share (lunchmeat, cheese, crackers, pickles, veggies, etc. all on a platter and help yourself)
Roast Chicken

Friday-
Hubby will be home late Thursday night, so he will be happy to eat at home again.
Breakfast- Eggs or Leftovers, depending on what the kids want as we have to eat and leave for our CSA distribution (Farm day which we love).
Lunch-Packed lunch-Sandwiches, fruit, cucumbers and some water. We have to eat either at the farm or in the car as we have a 2pm Dr. appt.
Dinner-
Stir fry veggies over brown rice and chicken egg drop soup.

Other things to make-
Pickles (we made 13 jars yesterday and ran out of dill and jars, got more from my dad, so we have to make the rest of the cucumbers we got at the farmers market)
Kim Chi-We got a nice conical cabbage from our CSA and I found a diakon radish at the market from a local farmer I know, beautiful, large radish for $1 and she grows everything organically.
Zucchini Bread-I have to get to this soon as we need to use the big squash before Friday when our new disbursement comes.
Water Kefir-- A friend gave me some with grains and I need to experiment with it.

I think that is all and probably a bit too ambitious for the week considering Jay is gone and I have a ton of other things to get accomplished this week.

Lisa

Menu Plan recap for Week 2

I am trying to keep this up and I think it does help. A few unavoidable changes occurred this week as we always seem to be busier and more tired than planned.



I managed to make many things from last week:
We had in no particular order-Scrambled eggs (several mornings, some with toast, some with fruit, etc.), sandwiches (bologna, turkey, PB & Honey with Banana, PB&J), Roast chicken with Onions, Potatoes and Carrots roasted under the chicken, Teriyaki beets, Hot dogs (like I said there are all natural with no fillers, nitrates, etc. from a local smokehouse), pickles (opened our first jar of homemade this season), roast cauliflower, steamed broccoli, Marinated Flank Steak.

I ended up changing out the tacos for Flank steak as I bought salsa this week and it was no good when I opened it (not outdated, but went off for some reason) plus I forgot to pick up sour cream, so this will get bumped to this week.

Not bad all in all. With hubby working late several nights and oldest at day camp (which meant driving back and forth every day to take and pick her up and let the boys play at the playground at the park).

The one real thing that didn't happen was making chinese dinner last night. Our CSA disbursement was huge and it took a lot longer at the farm than usual. Then I forgot that Rachel had an appointment at 2pm, so a quick lunch in the car (I quickly packed up some plates and napkins, sliced turkey breast, cheese, cucumber slices, blueberries and some corn chips and a juice box). By the time I got home at 4pm and unpacked all the produce from the car, I was tired and had a headache. Hubby had a 2 hour commute home instead of 45 minutes due to terrible traffic, so by 6 pm we were too tired to start a long dinner prep and the opening ceremonies start at 7:30 pm. We opted for the easy way out and ordered Chinese from a local restaurant that has been in business for many years. I used to go there as a child with my parents and the owners know my family. They make fresh food (obviously not organic) and will make it without any MSG, so not a great thing, but a very infrequent treat. The kids loved getting carry-out and eating in front of the TV and opening ceremony show was AMAZING. Kids didn't stay up for the whole thing, but it was a nice family time and we did discuss a lot of things surrounding olympics and countries of the world coming together!! Sometimes those family moments are more important than being 100% on our diet (or so to speak). Of course, I am tired today a combination of the non-NT food and lack of sleep since I stayed up late watching the show.


Lisa

Menu Planning Week 2

Well better late than never. I finally wrote down a plan for this week before bed last night. I did pretty good on last weeks plan. Not perfect but it is just a plan and a tool, if it isn't flexible, it wont' work for me!!

Last week we ended up making the Sweet Cherry Caflouti, eggs, soaked oatmeal, hotdogs, sweet corn, lots of different veggies, Pot roast, Roast Chicken, Bread, Cherry/Almond Gallette and Pickles.

This week I will start the menu plan with Saturday and tell you what we ate. Saturday we went to the Clarkston Farmer's Market and made quite the haul (and left with my wallet $85 lighter) in addition to the huge amount we got from the CSA and the few things from our own garden (see previous posts).

Saturday August 2:
Breakfast--Soaked Oatmeal (leftover)
Lunch-Hotdogs (from Markowycz in Detroit), Corn on the cob fresh from the market (Farmer Bob's--it was delicious, see my last post), Leftover braised white beans with greens and leftover quinoa bake (quinoa, tomato sauce, greens and cheese).
Dinner-Went to my in-laws to swim and ate carry out (it is summer after all).

Sunday, August 3:
Breakfast- Egg with a hole in the middle. My kids (and myself) love this. We used homemade rye bread and farm fresh eggs, Very Yum!!
Lunch-Sandwiches, some had PBJ with banana (Naturally Nutty PB) and some of us had Bologna (from Markowycz in Detroit) on homemade bread. Cucumber slices from our bounty from our CSA.
Dinner- Lasagna. The VitaSpelt lasagna noodles, homemade tomato sauce and ground beef from East River Organics in Snover, MI, veggies I added from CSA. Cheese isn't local but can't do lasagna without ricotta and fresh mozzerella (got those at Whole Foods). Corn on the cob!!

Monday, August 4:
Breakfast-Scrambled Eggs and Honeyrock Melon from the Farmer's Market
Lunch- Bologna Sandwiches, Honeyrock Melon, Cucumber Slices and leftover Quinoa Bake
Dinner- Leftover Lasagna, Salad and the last of the corn from the market

Tuesday, August 5
Breakfast- Soaked Oatmeal
Lunch- Leftovers
Dinner-Roast Chicken, Roasted Cauliflower, Teryaki Beets, Salad

Wed, August 6
Breakfast-Eggs.
Lunch (I have to pack for daughter going to camp and myself for a meeting) probably sausage, cheese, salad, fruit and nuts with dried cherries and choc chips. Boys can have whatever my mom gets them as she is babysitting
Dinner-Hot dogs and broccoli and wild rice (have to eat early to go to see Rachel's camp play)

Thursday, Aug 7
Breakfast- Carrot Spice Muffins (soak overnight and bake in morning)
Lunch-Leftovers
Dinner-Tacos/nachos

Friday, August 8
The Start of the Summer Olympics. I love the olympics (even if I am not thrilled about it being in China). So in honor of that a chinese inspired meal while we watch TV (a treat in itself to eat in front of the TV, we rarely do that).

Breakfast-Claflouti
Lunch- Leftovers
Dinner-Egg drop soup, fried rice, beef and vegetable stir fry

Miscellaneous stuff over the week:
More pickles (our cukes are starting to really produce)
Bread
Dill Dip and veggies to snack on
Zucchini Bread (we have a large one from the CSA to use up)

Well check and see how it went next week!!

Lisa

Michigan Sweet Corn Nirvana!!

It doesn't seem like summer is complete until we get to eat our fill of Fresh Michigan Sweet Corn!! Now is the time. We have been to the farmers market last Saturday and yesterday to get some of the sweet stuff. Everyone in my family loves sweet corn, especially my kids!!

My kids LOVE Corn on the cob. In fact, my mother-in-law always buys corn on the cob when the kids are coming to eat over, because it is their favorite (their favorite meal is grilled lambchops, corn on the cob and broccoli). However, she buys it all times of the year and to me it just isn't even close to being the same vegetable.

I only buy corn on the cob this time of year. The season is short, but oh so sweet. It is like biting into a juicy piece of healthy candy!! Boiled for just a short time and while steamy hot, covered in a bit of butter than runs down your fingers as you eat. An ever so gentle sprinkling of celtic sea salt and a light griding of fresh black pepper and I am in corn heaven!!

We picked up two dozen yesterday and each had an ear for lunch. This morning after breakfast the kids wanted corn, so we cooked up an ear each and had an after breakfast dessert/snack!! The kids came running from their playmates outside to enjoy the corn. As Ben, my three year-old said, " this corn is so good!!" Jeremy was sure to point out that it is best when it is fresh and from a good farmer!!

We blanched a few of the ears to cut off the cob and freeze. That way I can taste a bit of summer when the snow is piled up outside in February!!

Enjoy the season and support your local farmer!!

Our CSA Box

Well summer is in full swing and the veges are coming in full tilt!! The tomatoes are a bit slow this year (usually we get lots and so far we only got one large one and all the rest are small varieties and this was the first week we picked cherry tomatoes and the Juliet).

However we got a nice head of broccoli and several small shoots too, a head of cauliflower, a nice large conical cabbage, 6 heads of garlic, a bag of cucumbers, a large onion and a smaller onion, a few beets, a large Rapicante summer squash, several other summer squash, a large zucchini (to bake with), a bag of salad greens, kale, Italian chard, a couple handfuls of Romano green beans, a bag of tomatoes (mixed varieties) and some dill and basil. A big haul for sure.


We will have good eats this week!!

Edible Landscaping

I sent out this email today and I decided I would make it a post on my blog too.

Many of you know Julie Laporte from La Vida Local. She showed me and explained to me that she was going to do edible landscaping in her new lakefront home in Clarkston. I was very impressed and it got me thinking. Much of our landscaping that was here when we bought the house was very overgrown (6 years ago) and a few years back a friend helped me rip it up, weed, mulch and replant. We used the plants that were already there by dividing them and moving them, etc. I also added some beautiful plants that I received at Rocky Gardens.

I also started an herb bed the first year we moved in and have been adding to it each year. Well this year things were very overgrown in both my front and back garden, so we have started once again to redo our landscaping a little at a time.

In our front I tore out a ground cover that was overgrown and not looking so good right near my porch and planted lavender instead. I plan to harvest the lavender next year and use it in my cooking and dry it for its wonderful scent!! I also planted my large flower pot on my porch with herbs instead of flowers. It is really looking wonderful (my dad even commented on it) and I use the herbs frequently as well as my kids loving to munch on them!! I grew regular basil, thai basil (which is so pretty and smells amazing) and a globe basil which is bush like and little tiny leaves, I also planted rosemary and some parsley (from seed) as well as a Mexican herb related to coriander but I can’t remember the name of it.

I plan to tear out the rest for next year (keeping a few things that are beautiful like my rhododendron) and replant with garlic and other edibles. I also plant to plant some edible flowers next year like marigolds, nasturtiums, etc.

Along my side yard I plan to plant sunflowers next year.

In the back this year we cut down some spindly trees that were not in a spot that was good for them and they were producing too much shade and too close to the fence, etc. I also removed several overgrown daylilies and hostas (which we have A LOT of anyway) and gave them to some other people to enjoy. A couple years ago I had planted 2 rhubarb plants in this area and they produced this year and are lovely, I hope to find room to add more rhubarb as I love it. I also planted a few pepper plants (2 bell peppers and one jalepeno) and a roma tomato plant and 2 grape tomato plants. They have lots of green tomatoes on them and the kids check them every day!! I did an experiment by planting cucumbers this year, they are doing great and we picked enough the other day to make a quart of pickles, the neighbor kids came over and we had a great time picking and pickling the cukes!!

We tore out a bush and many weeds and have a lot more to go!! Next year we plan to have a much larger garden and try some new things. We are also composting this year (after a failed attempt before), so I hope that helps out the garden for the future.

Julie was my inspiration and I thought I would share this story as it seems to be a hot topic as we come to a time of more food insecurity. It has been mentioned in many magazines and websites that we need to revitalize the WWII victory garden concept and grow “eco-gardens” to save our planet and cut down on fuel consumption and global warming.

This video is a story about a landscaper in Oregon who has taken the backyard garden philosophy to heart. I was very inspired by his outlook and views as well as what he accomplished. It is about 26 minutes long, but very nice.

http://www.organicconsumers.org/articles/article_13698.cfm

Menu Planning

Well, as I have been reading various food blogs devoted to cooking and especially to traditional foods, I have realized I need to get back into menu planning. I used to menu plan regularly and it was very helpful in making sure meals weren't so stressful and it helped when planning our shopping too.

I have fallen off the wagon, so to speak, with menu planning. I think mainly because our life is so hectic and crazy it was just one more thing to do. However, I recently have realized that it is something that will actually take some of the stress out of life. It will also help me be frugal in using up what we have on hand (which is a lot, we always have a plethora of food here!!).

So here is what I have come up with. It is a general layout as opposed to a die-hard plan. I find that to be easier as it is more flexible for me. I am also involving my 9 year-old daughter as she is really into helping in the kitchen so we have given her more responsiblility.

So today is Tuesday and here was the plan:
Breakfast-- we had fried eggs (local, free-range, organic) with homemade rye bread toast with butter. It was delicious!!
Lunch-- I made egg salad (farm eggs (see above) with safflower oil mayo and seasonings) with tortilla chips. The boys had sausage (from Markowycz European Home Style Sausage Co. in Detroit, MI--the best lunch meats and sausages I have ever had) as they don' t like egg salad.
Dinner-- We are having hamburger patties made with local, organic, pastured beef (we get 1/2 a cow a year from a local farmer and it is really great meat!!) and salad and fried zucchini. We have an abundance of vegetables from the CSA we belong to and we need to use them up as we get more on Friday. I am also going to make steamed broccoli (from our CSA).

The rest of the week menu (not sure which day will be what)

Breakfasts--
Sweet Cherry Claflouti--this is like a cross between a pancake and a souffle. The kids love it and it will use up some Traverse City Cherries we got at the farmer's market on Saturday. It isn't overly sweet and has lots of eggs in it, some milk and butter and I use organic whole wheat flour (from a local mill), so it is still relatively healthy.
Soaked Oatmeal Porridge--We soak our oatmeal (organic rolled oats) in water, whey and lemon juice overnight (helps reduce the phytic acid and other enzyme inhibitors to make it more digestible) and then cook it with water, butter and a bit of celtic sea salt and some cinnamon. After it is cooked we add a drizzle of pure Michigan maple syrup (from a local family) and some fruit and nuts or a few chocolate chips.
Eggs-- We love eggs and they are a good source of protein. Sometime we have scrambled, sometimes fried, and sometimes other way.

Lunches--
Egg Drop Soup-- The kids love this and it is made with homemade chicken stock and yummy veggies (whatever is on hand) as well as some left over roast chicken.
Nachos-I plan to make up some taco meat with our hamburger and serve it will refried beans and various toppings on some organic corn chips.
Hot Dogs-- We get our hotdogs from the same meat place in Detroit where we get our sausage, lunch meats and bacon. Sometimes we get them from a local farmer, both are great. No fillers, no nitrates or additives and all beef. We will have these with leftover veggies

Dinners--
Pot Roast- This is Ben's favorite meal, so even though it is summer, I make it for him at his request. I will have lots of vegetables that cook with it. For side dishes I will make sauteed cabbage and cornbread.
Roast Chicken-- I will probably just roast it whole with some onions, potatoes and carrots under it. I will serve it with a Quinoa Bake that has lots of greens, tomato sauce and some cheese in it.
Leftovers--one night will be leftovers I am sure and with it I will probably make a new recipe I want to try to go with whatever is leftover. I want to make a braised white bean and greens dish. I have some escarole and other greens to use up from our CSA so this along with the quinoa bake should do the trick!!

Other stuff:
Kim Chi--We love Kim Chi. I may make some if we still have cabbage left from the head we got last week in the CSA box. I am sure we will get more this week, so I want to make sure to use it up. We just put our last batch of sauerkraut in jars from the crock, so we have a good supply of it. We eat Kim Chi and/or sauerkraut with most every meal as a good digestive since they are so full of probiotics.
Bread--We make all our own bread. I plan to make a loaf this week (not sure what yet) and also to feed my sourdough starter and get it going again!!
Desserts-We don't do dessert every night, but Rachel wanted to try some recipes out of Disney cookbook, so I told her we would make Chocolate and Cherry Mousse this week. I also plan to make a Sour cherry/almond Gallette since I have half a recipe of dough left that I made one with on our anniversary last Friday!! It was yummy, but I want to try a few more revisions to the recipe I created (by piecing together parts of several recipes). I used rapadura to sweeten it and organic butter and flour as well as sea salt. I also used local organic cherries. It was good, but I think I can improve on it!! I also plan to make some Baked Brown Rice Pudding- This is a recipe out of Nourishing Traditions and is very good. I have some cream a bit past its date, so that will be a good use for it (if it isn't too far off, I haven't opened it). If I get more bananas at the co-op this week, Rachel wants to make a recipe from her cookbook that is bananas sauteed in melted honey and served with whipped cream.

So I have to remember to soak the oatmeal (probably Wed. night for Thursday breakfast) and the beans (probably Wed night too) for the braised dish!!

This should get me till the weekend when I get my new CSA disbursement (Friday) and hit the farmer's market on Saturday. Then I will do a full week menu from Saturday till Friday for next week.

Oh, wow, when you write it down it is a lot to do, but we love to cook, so it should be ok. Off to get dinner started!!

Lisa

Movie Review--King Corn

I saw a segment on Good Morning America with the two guys who made this film. I thought it sounded very intriquing, so I bought the DVD on Amazon. I forgot about it, until Diane Franklin mentioned that she and John had rented it and really liked it.

Jay and I watched it a few weeks ago and I really liked it. It was informative and interesting for sure, but it was also done in such a way that it was also funny and engaging too. I know a lot about food issues both locally and globally, and so much of the information on corn and how it is grown was not new to me, but to see it and see how big the machines are and to see the response of the beef industry representatives is still eye-opening and sobering.

I do think they could have done even more with this movie. You get the feeling they were discouraged by what they saw, but you don't really get if it changed the way they lived, ate, etc. It has in my family. Once were were wise to the way our food system works in this country (which was about 6 years ago or so now) we could not go back. We have changed the way we live, eat and relate to food. It is all for the better. I also was dissapointed that they didn't get into the real issues surrounding Genetically Modified Organisms either. They briefly touch on it, but by no means tell the audience all the dangers and cover-up and corporate greed that has spawned this generation of franken foods.

I do recommend that everyone see this movie, but I also highly caution you to look at it as a beginning look at issues and to do your own research and ask questions of those involved in your local food system to learn more. There are a lot of important issues that are touched upon in this movie, but you need to know the rest to really and truly understand what a crisis we are in with our current food and health system!!

A Smart Boy!!

I have many reasons to be proud of my children, but sometime they do something that just really makes you happy and you realize they are getting it!!



My 6 1/2 year old son is a foodie. He really always has been. He even as a small toddler loved to be in the kitchen and had to smell everything he ate or we were cooking. His little brother is quite similar in that regard and loves to just sit in front of my spice cupboard smelling each canister and asking what it is.



Wednesday I went to the wave pool with my older two children as they had a field trip from Farm Camp. I left the youngest home with dad (easier to manage swimming at a public place with just two to watch). It started pouring rain at one point and so we went under the pavillion (where the snack bar is) to get a bit out of the rain. I relented to my daughter's request to go get some junk food (we RARELY ever eat this kind of treat). We had brough our own packed lunch and they had eaten their good food already, so I figured a small treat of junk on a special field trip was ok. We went in and my daughter could not decide what she wanted, she was in awe of the pizza, nachos, ice cream, chips, etc. It was a junk food bonanza and of course was about the worst quality type of junk. We eat a bit of junk in our house, but it is what I consider the healthier side of junk (pita chips, tortilla chips (organic), homemade sweets --usually made with unrefined sweeteners). This was the BAD of the BAD. I felt guilty just walking in there. After several minutes (and letting several groups go in front of us) I finally convinced my daughter that she would not be happy with any of the "food" items as they taste terrible and are not what she is expecting. So we settled on an ice cream cone (soft serve on a wafer cone). My son can't have dairy, so I asked if he wanted anything else (bag of chips, etc.). He said he didn't want anything. I wanted to make sure as I didn't want any melt downs once we were out of that awful place. He said, "Mom, I don't want anything here, it all has high-fructose corn syrup and it is all food made in a factory" I was so proud. I gave him a hug and told him I had a special present for him a home.

He tasted the ice cream and said "I can't even believe you like that it doesn't even taste like real ice cream--Yuck". Funny as it isn't real ice cream.

We have taught him well. He always has been the most into the healthy food movement (as compared to my other two) and I really think that it is due to the fact he was about 18 months old when we started changing our family food culture and diet. He was brought up with it and is now old enough to appreciate it. My daughter had too much exposure to the SAD life and still is willing to eat whatever junk comes her way. I also think to a large extent it is their personalities. My daughter is very creative and less able to focus on one thing. That brings it's own set of issues but she is so bright and creative it is fun to watch her when she is in her "groove" of creativity. Jeremy is very much the type A personality. Very into getting the facts, working it out, and it has to be perfect. He soaks it all in and is much more introverted. He can be a big ham and silly guy and is good at making friends, but he is very "studious" I would say.

However, I love that he wants to learn why we eat the way we do. He tells others why too and he is not shy about expressing his views on "good" food vs. "yucky" food.

Gotta love it.

Lisa

Food Porn

I hadn't heard the term "food porn" until recently. I was checking out a cooking bulletin board I frequent and someone mentioned it when they were discussing a site devoted to food and blogs that had been shut down.

Apparently, this site (www.tastespotters.com) was shut down due to some legal issues and is hoping to reopen. I had never heard of it, but was too late to check it out. Well, in the backlash of so many devotees complaining, someone created a similar site. I had to check it out. Now I see what they were talking about, it is addictive, fun and can suck you into spending lots of time reading blogs and thinking about food. Of course, for me, I need no extra reason to think, write, read, make, etc. about food. I love food and cooking. In fact, tonight for my birthday, I signed my husband and I up to take a cooking class instead of going out to a traditional restaurant. We are going to Simply Good in Birmingham. www.simplygoodkitchen.com


The new site for "food porn" is www.foodgawker.com The concept is neat, people submit pictures of food and some are chosen to be posted which then links the picture to the blog it comes from. The pictures are incredible and it really makes me drool and want to up my game in the food photography department (mine are pretty poor currently). I have found many interesting recipes and blogs just in the few days I have checked the site.

Anyway enjoy!!