California Omelet / DC’s Eastern Market

Posted on July 16, 2013 by Peg

Brenton and Buckley Louise (pic from 2011; I just still adore it!)

Luckily for me, I spent this past weekend in DC with Brenton (clear throat, actually I spent an entire week there and The Don joined us on Thursday afternoon!). Brenton and I jammed each afternoon with clever fun summer activities; said activities naturally were sandwiched in between her full work days, loving duties of Buckley, laundry, securing proper shutters and paint color, hunting for fresh work clothes, having dinner with JoJo, cooking healthily at home, TV movie watching and so on…And then Saturday took us to the marvy Eastern Market. The veggies and fruits were in their FINEST forms and were all sliced freshly for sampling. YUMMY. We jammed our baskets and then ventured to the historic building housing the inside vendors with their meats, sausages, seafoods, cheeses and delectable delights indescribable. If you find yourself in DC, please call Uber (available in most large USA cities…a transportation JEWEL!) and get yourself to the Market, just east of the Capitol Building. Food, Art, Clothing, Jewelry, Antiques, Trinkets, Slushies, Cupcakes, and much much more! PS…more on this weekend experience to follow…hint…FAB Hotel Bars (no surprise!) and an OTT Gospel Choir Brunch. Go Ahead, Envy Us and Our Renewed Faithfulness. Dang is all I Gotta Say! Get ready Gray…I’m yours this weekend lovey!

THE Sweetest Ever Sweet White Corn

That’s Correct. 1873.

Sunflowers Almost as Amazing as Ben’s

Found This Awesome Bacon...Made Me Remember This Recipe!

Found This Awesome Hand-Cut Bacon…Made Me Remember This Recipe!

California Omelet

4 slices precooked bacon
2 Tbs butter
6 eggs, beaten
4 Tbs guacamole
1/2 cup shredded Jack cheese
2 Tbs sour cream
2 Tbs salsa

Microwave the bacon according to package directions to crispen.
Tear the bacon into small pieces.

In small mixing bowl, beat all eggs until blended.

In a small sauté pan melt 1 Tbs butter over medium heat.
Add half the eggs into the pan and swirl so they coat the bottom.
Gently pull the eggs away from the sides of the pan to prevent sticking and so that more eggs can cook.
When bottom of eggs are set, carefully flip the omelet over with a spatula and cook the other side.
When almost fully cooked, add half of the bacon, guacamole, and cheese.
Fold the omelet over so the cheese begins to melt.

Slide onto a plate.
Garnish with a dollop of sour cream.
Serve with salsa and extra guacamole.

Repeat for second omelet. Easily serves four.

Adapted From Southern California Cooking from the Cottage. Jane and Michael Stern. 2004.

Crispy Bread

Posted on July 15, 2013 by Peg

A couple of weeks back as I was whizzing through FB posts I stumbled across this crisp bread recipe. It just looked too easy to be true. Guess what? It’s not!

3 cups all purpose flour
1 3/4 t salt
1/2 t Rapid-rise yeast
1 1/2 cups water

Not exactly a ball, but it worked for me!

In large mixing bowl, whisk together flour, salt, and yeast.
Add water and mix until a shaggy mixture forms.
Cover bowl with plastic wrap and set aside for 12 – 18 hours.
Overnight works terrifically.
Preheat oven to 450°.
Place an empty cast iron pot, lid on, in the oven and heat pot for 30 minutes.
Meanwhile, pour dough onto a heavily floured surface and shape into a ball.
Cover with dish towel and let dough rest while pot is heating.
Remove hot pot from the oven and drop in the dough.
Cover and return to oven.
Bake 30 minutes.
Remove lid and bake an additional 15 minutes.
Remove bread from oven and place on a cooling rack for 10 minutes. Then SLICE IN!

Perfect with a crisp salad on these steamy summer evenings. And don’t forget to add another crisp element…a cool glass of Skinny Girl California White, at a mere 100 calories per glass. Guess that depends on your pour style! Cheers!

Gingered Iceberg

Posted on July 11, 2013 by Peg

Just the perfect lunch for these humid days of summer…fresh, light, and won’t weigh you down for the afternoon. One more day til the weekend people!1 head iceberg lettuce, torn into bite sized pieces
3 long carrots, shaved
1/3 cup Hellman’s light mayonnaise
1/4 cup rice vinegar
3 Tbs fresh, chopped, peeled ginger
2 Tbs toasted sesame seed
4 Tbs low sodium soy sauce
2 t sugar

For dressing:
In blender, mix together mayonnaise, vinegar, ginger, sesame seeds, soy sauce, and sugar.
Refrigerate until ready to use.

Divide lettuce among 6 plates.
Sprinkle with carrot shavings.
Top with dressing.

Blueberry Preserves ~ Pectin Free

Posted on July 8, 2013 by Peg

I suppose this is what you do when retired? I’d surely never done this previously…medical care needed?!

You will need:
Complete canning set
Canning jars…I like half pint size
6 cups blueberries
3 1/2 cups sugar
1/4 cup lemon juice
2 t lemon zest

Prepare jars and lids (not rims) by boiling in canning pot for 5 minutes.
Keep jars in water while preparing berries.
In large bowl, crush 3 cups berries with potato masher.
Pour in to soup pot.
Crush remaining berries in bowl.
Pour in to soup pot.
Add sugar, lemon zest and juice.
Bring to boil over medium-high heat.
Reduce heat to medium low and boil 15 to 20 minutes stirring often.
Skim off any foam.
Remove jars and lids from hot water.
Line them up on counter.
Ladle hot preserves in to hot jars, with 1/4 inch head room.
Place lid and lightly screw on rim.
Prepare canned preserves in boiling water for 10 minutes.
Remove from water and make certain that lids “pop”.
Allow to rest for at least a day.
Good in cool, dark pantry for up to a year.

All of this while wearing my trusty brace. Thank you Jacob Bosley!

Arthritic Thumb Brace!

Fried Green Tomatoes

Posted on July 5, 2013 by Peg

My dear friend Lou and I are treating ourselves rather royally this coming Sunday/Monday to a cooking seminar at Fearrington Village with executive chef Colin Bedford. In honor of that upcoming venture I give you this version of a Fried Green Tomato. This initially appeared in the 1987 book by Fearrington creator/owner (now deceased) Jenny Fitch titled The Fearrington House Cookbook. It’s rather plain for my personal taste, but add the sauce from Georgia Brown’s in DC and you’ll be in love all over again. I’ll post Georgia Brown’s exquisite ramped up version of the good ole Southern fried green tomato in the next couple of weeks. And that is a promise that you will beg me to keep! D.I.V.I.N.E.

6 medium green tomatoes cut into 1/4″ slices
1 1/2 cups buttermilk
1 cup cornmeal
1/2 cup unbleached flour
1 t salt
1 Tbs ground black pepper
1 1/2 t cayenne pepper
2 t dried thyme
1/4 cup peanut oil
1/4 cup vegetable oil

Soak tomato slices in buttermilk.
Mix together cornmeal, flour and spices.
Dredge tomato slices in cornmeal mixture.
Combine oils in large skillet and heat on medium.
Sauté over medium heat for about 2 minutes per side, until golden.
Drain on paper towels.

Lemon Cayenne Mayonnaise

Posted on July 5, 2013 by Peg

And I don’t even like mayonnaise! But this is over the top. Trust me on this.

1 cup fat free mayonnaise
2 Tbs lemon juice
1 t cayenne pepper
1/2 t salt
1 t paprika
Whisk all ingredients together.
Refrigerate until ready to use.

Tomato Cheese Pie

Posted on July 3, 2013 by Peg

With fresh heirloom maters (in case you ain’t Southern that’s slang for tomatoes!) flying in like mad these days, I hustled myself to the kitchen to make this delicious pie yesterday afternoon. Mandy was coming over for a teamwork session on the web site for our husbands’ dental practice. We accomplished so much that I just had to give her half a pie! Never mind that it was a bit mushy…I was over zealous with the tomatoes!! She swears that she and her sweetie loved it anyway. Double Rainbow All the Way!

You will need:
1 regular pie shell
3 large tomatoes, chopped, patted dry
1/2 vidalia onion, chopped
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1 cup grated sharp cheddar cheese
1/4 cup finely grated Parmesan
1/4 cup basil leaves, chopped
Fresh ground black pepper.

Preheat oven to 350°.
Cook pie shell for 8 minutes.

In a medium bowl combine tomatoes, onion, mayonnaise, cheeses, and basil.
Place mixture in to the pie shell.
Sprinkle with the fresh black pepper.
Bake approximately 25 minutes and watch to make sure it doesn’t brown too much!

Cabbage, Kicked Up a Notch

Posted on June 27, 2013 by Peg

I took Gray’s Kicked Up Collards recipe and applied it to my fresh from the farm cabbage. This rocks!

This is my small cabbage head, chopped

1 small head green cabbage
1 Tbs olive oil
1/2 large onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
2 slices precooked bacon, cut into small pieces
2 cups fat free, low sodium chicken or vegetable broth
1/4 t salt
1/2 t fresh ground black pepper
1/4 t red pepper flakes

Cut end off and then cut in to 2 inch pieces or strips.
Rinse under water to remove any possible grit.
Heat oil in large pot over medium high heat.
Add onion, and cook 3 minutes.
Add garlic, and cook 1 minute.
Add cabbage.
Cook 2 minutes, tossing constantly with tongs, so all cabbage pieces are coated with oil.
Pour in broth.
Cook 8 minutes on medium, covered.
Add bacon pieces, salt, pepper, and red pepper flakes.
Cook 3 minutes*, uncovered, until broth is reduced.

*This renders a crunchy cabbage. If you desire a totally limp finished product, cook an additional 3 to 4 minutes.

Transfer to bowl or individual plates with slotted spoon.
Serves 4.

Amazing Onion Rings

Posted on June 26, 2013 by Peg

Onion Rings Resting in the Flour

Oh GOODNESS. I had to toss out the rest of the batch after I tasted one, well two, or I would’ve eaten every single one! Try this recipe once; you’ll never order rings out again, promise! 15 minutes start to mouth, guaranteed!

1 large sweet onion, sliced crosswise 1/4″ thick
1 3/4 cups all purpose flour, divided
1/2 cup plus 1 Tbs rice flour
1 1/2 t kosher salt
1/2 t baking soda
1 cup Bud Light, or other light beer
1/2 cup Vodka
Vegetable Oil for frying

Frying in the Pan

Separate onion slices into rings.
In bowl, whisk together 3/4 cup of all purpose flour, rice flour, salt, and baking soda.
Whisk in beer and vodka until smooth.
Place remaining flour in shallow bowl.
Dredge onion rings through flour, shaking off excess flour, transferring rings to large bowl.
Carefully pour batter mixture over floured onion rings, just enough to coat.
In large frying pan, heat 2 inches oil on high.
Working in batches and using tongs, lift onion rings from batter, allowing excess to drip off.
Place in oil and fry until golden brown, about 3 minutes per batch, no need to turn.
Drain on paper towels.
Sprinkle lightly with salt and pepper.
Serve warm or room temperature.

Ahhh! The Finished Product.

Sugar Snaps and Goat Cheese

Posted on June 24, 2013 by Peg

For the past two weeks in a row my friend and farmer Ben has brought me fresh sugar snaps straight from his glorious Leggett Farm Organics. I remembered this quick little recipe and whipped it up last Thursday for a healthy lunch. Mmmmmm!
1 lb fresh sugar snap peas
1/4 cup minced sweet onion
3 Tbs olive oil, divided
20 grape tomatoes
4 oz crumbled goat cheese
2 Tbs chopped fresh basil
1/2 t fresh ground pepper

Cook peas in boiling water 1 1/2 minutes.
Drain.
Plunge into ice water; drain.

Heat 1 Tbs olive oil over medium high heat in a large skillet
When oil is hot, turn to medium low and add onions.
Sauté 2 minutes.
Add remaining 2 Tbs olive oil. Heat until oil is hot.
Add sugar snaps and tomatoes, and cook until heated through, approximately 2 minutes.
Place mixture in a bowl.
Add goat cheese, basil, and pepper.
Toss gently.

Serves 4.

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