In the middle of what seems like the longest heat wave in history, my 4 year old came down with a head cold. Last weekend I had noticed homemade egg noodles at the Phil's Family Farm booth at the KGFM, so this weekend I stopped by Phil's and picked up 2 8oz bags of the homemade narrow egg noodles.I have a family recipe for chicken noodle soup that calls for boiling a chicken until all that is left is tasteless muscle fiber and using the resulting broth for the soup base. I had also picked up a free range fryer from Phil's, but it seemed like such a waste so I opted to use organic chicken broth instead. I use Pacific Natural Foods low sodium, but any broth you use should be fine.Chicken Noodle Soup8 cups chicken broth3 organic carrots, peeled and thin sliced8 oz. egg noodlesSalt and pepper to taste.Bring broth and carrots to a boil then reduce heat to a simmer. Cook for 20-30 minutes or until carrots are cooked to desired tenderness. Add noodles and cook 7-10 minutes or until noodles are done. Salt and pepper to taste. Makes about 7 servings.
Mangia
I have been fine-tuning a pasta sauce recipe for a few weeks and I think it is as close to 'right' as it is going to get for now. So on Saturday I headed to the Kansas Grown Farmer's Market for fresh tomatoes, garlic and onion. I knew that Saturday was the big annual Tomato Day at the market so hopes were high until ...Cheney Lake Tomatoes had enough for my purposes, so I gathered my other items and headed over to the Old Town Farmer's Market.The Old Town market is more artsy than the Kansas Grown. There are more 'other' stands than fresh produce stands, but they have one that I have been going back to week after week - Pappardelle's by local vendor Pastalicious. I have tried 4 or 5 of their varieties but are currently hooked on the Pasta Luce. The other varieties have been wonderful, but when trying to get the sauce just right I didn't want the distraction of flavored pasta.
Pasta Sauce Recipe 2.4.14 tomatoessplash of olive oil (about 2 TBS if you are a precise sort of person)2 cloves of garlic (or to taste)1 medium onion (or to taste)2 teaspoons sugar (I used organic cane sugar)1/2 tsp saltfew sprigs of fresh oregano (1/4 tsp dried or to taste)few sprigs of fresh rosemary (1/4 tsp dried or to taste)few springs of fresh basil (1/4 tsp dried or to taste)bottle of your favorite wineStart by blanching your tomatoes - bring a pot of water large enough to hold them to a boil and prepare an ice bath. While you are waiting for your water to boil, chop your onion (finely), rosemary and oregano. Mince your garlic. Pour a glass of wine and imagine you are cooking in a gourmet kitchen somewhere in Tuscany.Once the water is boiling, put your tomatoes in. If the skins split they are ready for the ice bath. Don't leave them in the boiling water longer than a minute, whether the skins have split or not. Leave in the ice bath for a couple of minutes to completely cool. Check on your wine - it may need to be topped off.Once cooled, core the tomatoes and remove skin. The skin should just peel right off. Chop tomatoes into 1 inch chunks and use either a hand blender or a food processor to blend to desired consistency.Put olive oil in a medium sized sauce pan on medium heat. Add garlic, rosemary, oregano and onion. Cook until the onions are soft and translucent. Add the tomatoes, sugar and salt - bring to a simmer. Simmer for approximately 20-30 minutes, to thicken the sauce. Chop basil and set aside.Get water going for your pasta and start approximately 10 minutes before you want to take your sauce off. When sauce and pasta are both done remove sauce from the heat and stir in basil while you drain pasta. Find your glass of wine and check temperature, bouquet and flavor.Enjoy!
How a juicer is like a casserole dish
The Breville juicer arrived Friday so I hit up the Green Acres Market for some fruit. I did my homework in advance and had a list of 20 or so juice recipes so I didn't end up with a complete hodgepodge.I am starting with fruit based juices to get my 4 year old interested and will migrate to vegetable juices once he's hooked. I kept it simple for the first juice last night, just plain apple juice made with 3 apples just like the recipe said.Tonight I wanted to try one of the recipes we had for Melon-ade. Here is the real recipe:1/4 of a Watermellon1 lemon (peeled)- Juice together and enjoy.I did start with the melon and the lemon...but then poking around the fridge there were some strawberries, raspberries and blueberries that were on their last day. I went to the pantry to get the fruit wash for the berries (just a minor detour from the recipe) and discovered a couple of the peaches were getting a little soft.This was the moment that the juicer became a casserole dish, taking all those things that were not going to last until tomorrow and wouldn't be consumed on their own. I may not be the best at strictly sticking to recipes, but I just became a bit more thrifty.Oh, and the mellon-lemon-berry-peach juice was delicious! I am using the excess to make a couple of popsicles for the little guy to enjoy tomorrow.
Wednesday Market and Hearty Potato-Leek Soup
I visited the Kansas Grown Farmer's Market's Wednesday market for the first time yesterday. It was smaller than I expected with only two stalls, but the two there were well stocked. I had gone looking for Yukon Gold potatoes and onions and left with all I needed.Hearty Potato-Leek Soup3 slices of bacon (more or less depending on your bacon cravings), cut into 1/2 inch squares3 TBS butter3 leeks, thoroughly cleaned and sliced in 1/2 inch chunks1 medium onion chopped7 Yukon Gold potatoes, cleaned and sliced in 1/4 inch slices (I leave the skins on, but this is a personal preference)4 cups chicken broth1 cup heavy creamsalt and pepper to tasteIn a large stock pot on medium heat, cook bacon until well cooked. Add butter and when melted, add onion and leeks. Cook until onions are transluscent. Add potato slices and enough chicken broth to cover (about 4 cups). Cook until potatoes are tender. Use a spoon or potato masher to mash up potatoes to desired size and soup consistency. Add 1 cup heavy cream and cook for another 10 minutes. Remove from heat and enjoy!Makes 4-6 servings
Tomato Mozzarella Salad
Salad:2 Tomatoes, Diced4 oz Fresh Mozzarella6-8 Fresh Basil Leaves, ChoppedMix well and enjoy. Makes 2 servings.Balsamic Vinegrette:1 Large Garlic Clove, Minced3 Tbs Olive Oil1 Tbs Balsamic Vinegar1/8 Tsp Fresh Ground PepperPut mixture into a small container with a tight lid and shake well. Makes enough for 2 salads.