A Local Smorgasbord

Today was another cold one and all the kids were at school. So after Ole and I had our lovely hike I got cooking. Because I knew Paul was going to be out tonight, I decided to just do up a bunch of my favorite sides. I used all local onions, garlic, turnips, squash and apples. First up, the Beet Salad from the ashram. I had to buy beets because mine are GONE!!!! but they were Colorado-grown. Then my new favorite, Apple Glazed Turnips. I tried another ashram recipe for a Butternut Squash spread but I really didn't like it. Too garlicy and too raw (sharp?) for me. That was a bummer. I also drank copious amounts of the delicious CSA Holy Basil Tea. YUM! The boys and I made (not local) brownies for dessert. It was such a yummy meal. All I have left are 4 squash, potatoes and onions. I think I am going to reserve Wednesdays, Fridays and weekends for cooking and begin breaking out our freezer meals on Mon/Tue/Thu. I don't like to touch them ... they are my security blankets. But I think those meals will get us through February and March with at least 3 local meals a week and then... Then! The Farmer's Market and the CSA will start up again!
And a cute pic of Sam at preschool, just because. He is so funny. And so serious about his play. I absolutely LOVE these pics the school sends us. It's so nice to have a little glimpse into his day.

Whah happahned?

Wow, it's been a while. Saturday during TKD, the light was coming in through the blinds funny and I developed a (rare now) really severe migraine. I spent the day huddling under the covers in my darkened bedroom and actually kicked it by evening, allowing me to take Ted to Ninja Night/have dinner with Wendy. Yum, Indian. Sunday I still didn't feel 100% so we lay low and didn't do much. Monday Ole and I hiked and lots of cleaning and laundry finally got done! We had bookclub last night and talked about The History of Love. What a great book. I'm re-reading it to catch all the little details I missed.
Tonight for our local dinner we had the scrumptious Spinach Kabocha Squash Soup, with CSA kabocha, onion and garlic (the spinach wasn't CSA but it was from Colorado.) I LOVE this soup. I also love that it can be done in the crock pot. Just put the previously cooked squash in with the whole garlic cloves and chopped onion, add 4 cups of veggie broth and put on low til ready. A few minutes before serving, squash it all with a potato masher and add 2 cups of spinach. Stir to wilt spinach and serve. So delicious.

Shoshoni dinner

Last night, while enjoying VwaV's Carrot Soup, I missed the brown rice that accompanied the carrot soup at the ashram. So tonight, we're finishing up the soup with some brown basmati rice (and the Beet Salad. Mmmm. This is an excellent recipe. Email me if you want it ... not sure I wanted to just post a full recipe from a cookbook, but I'm happy to share with a few friends!) I'm not much of a carb girl ... I do love my bread but rice, couscous, grains in general ... not my thing. But at the ashram they served it with the soup and Beet Salad and it was perfect to stir into the warming soup. With a side of homemade challah, this was a lovely winter meal. Shabbat shalom!

Victory!

This is my beet basket. My carrot basket looks identical. My turnip one is not far behind ... I give it a day or two to catch up. We are having a Beet salad tonight from the ashram's cookbook that I KNOW is excellent and that will be the end of the beets. I will miss them, but will wait for the leafy-topped versions in the spring. Mmmm ... beets.

The success of turnip/beet/carrot consumption has been a relief. I HATE letting food spoil, although we do compost which helps but STILL! What a waste! This year was my first at the whole root cellar business and I learned quite a lot! We should have been having these food discoveries sometime back in November! Now I know. We've been keeping up with the potatoes easily with mashers. Potatoes are so forgiving. No fancy ice-water baths for them. They taste delicious even when they've sprouted. We still have a ways to go on the potato basket (which is about 3 times larger than this basket), but they're doing nicely enough as is.

Tonight's local dinner was planned for yesterday but we just had leftovers instead. I'm looking forward to this meal. I love carrot soup (CSA carrots, onion, garlic, potatoes). The beet salad (CSA beets, red onion, garlic) and mashed turnips (CSA turnips, potatoes, homemade soy milk) should be perfect accompaniments a la Shoshoni.

I had an extra cup of CSA Indian Woman beans left over from a recent meal and remembered Dreena's Roasted Chickpeas were a bit hit. These are just as good, if a bit crispier, which I like. (Have I mentioned recently how much I love that little flower on my camera? I take pictures of all the food I prepare now, just for fun.) I've also been drinking the CSA Holy Basil tea by the mug-ful! It is really delicious. I'm glad, because we have a significant amount left, even after the holiday gift giving. Mmm ... cold weather and tea just go together so well, it almost makes the plunging temps worth it! Almost.

Turnips for lunch!

I'll admit it. I hadn't touched the turnips. I have a recipe I'm going to try that is a type of mashed potatoes with turnips. Not too inspiring. However! One of the blogs I love, Straight From the Farm, had a recipe a few days back for Caramelized Apples and Turnips. Intriguing. Anything with caramelized in it is bound to catch my eye. With 10+ pounds of turnips wilting in the basement, the least I could do was try! They are FANTASTIC. The apples mush into a sort of applesauce at the bottom of the pan. The maple syrup lends a sweetness to the otherwise bitter turnips, yet the dish isn't overly sweet. The turnips stay crisp and yet not crunchy. It is also easy and takes all of 5 minutes. YUM. Since I ate the entire bowl for lunch today, I think we've found a real winner. YUM!

Mae had another good day at preschool today. No crying and apparently even spoke a few words! She was very happy to see Eve and Nathalie and played with them all day (they weren't there on Monday). She hadn't touched her lunch, which sounds more normal to me! After picking up Ted, we took her to the doctor to check out the cough she's had for 3+ weeks now. Turns out she has a (rather severe, been there awhile) double ear infection. Her lungs are clear and her throat isn't overly red, so the cough is a mystery, perhaps the start of a viral thing that led to the ear infection. She's on Amoxycillin (the only antibiotic we know of that she isn't allergic to) and we have a recheck in 2 weeks. Apparently Ted was thrilled to be back in school; his teacher told me he was SO HAPPY all day long. I'm so glad! When I picked Sam up, he was dressed up like a king with a red cape and king's crown on. He is suddenly into dress up (at school) and takes it very seriously. hee.

Tonight we had the leftover (fabulous) Lentil Buttercup Soup, with homemade samosas and Paratha from our local Indian grocery. Mmmm...

Big Girl Update

So, at pick up today, Mae was "hiding" just like the other Caterpillars. SOOO cute! According to her teachers, she didn't speak at all but didn't seem sad, just reserved. She pooped on the potty, so I guess no worries there. hee. She was so proud of herself.
After a quick nap, all 3 kids had the dentist, and Mae had Big Girl Moment #2: going into the dentist's back room by herself! (6 months ago she screamed bloody murder while getting a little exam on my lap.) She did great! No cavities, still has the severe underbite and the worry that 1 of her 4 2-year molars seems stuck (puffy gums but still not through.) Otherwise, she looks good! Cutie. She was pretty excited about her new toothbrush too.
Sam looks fine and Ted has 3 new cavities in between his teeth (read: bad parental flossing ... oy, the guilt). I sure wish we had Dental Insurance!!

Tonight I'm cooking a delicious-looking (CSA beans, buttercup, onions & garlic) Lentil Buttercup soup with some Paratha (naan-esque). It smells heavenly. **Update to say, this soup is fantastic! I swore up and down while peeling and dicing this squash (WAY more labor-intensive than just roasting the darn thing for an hour!) but I wanted to follow the recipe first. I think in the future I'll just roast it after all, but this is an exquisite soup. I used her suggested spices of ginger, coriander, cumin and cardamom. This soup is the clincher: buttercup is officially my favorite squash. It's just so sweet and rich on its own ... mmm! While chopping (and muttering), I managed to end up with 8 extra cups of chopped buttercup, so we can have this delicious gem of a soup 3 more times. YUM!!

Lots of cooking

Today was a good day. Sam and I started our day baking banana muffins (sprinkled with flaxseeds) for breakfast. Then for dinner I really wanted to try Veganomicon's renowned Chickpea Cutlets, using our CSA Indian Woman Beans. I actually FORGOT to add in any spices! Duh! And it is tribute to the recipe that they were fantastic anyway! Amazing. I baked them and topped them with the Mustard Sauce ... equally stellar. Paul really liked that sauce. Mmm. We also had steamed broccoli and EDBV's Potato Squashers (CSA potatoes). Another yum there. It's like mashed potatoes only easier. Mmm. In the oven are Granola Bars by the Dozen. I'm hoping the boys will like those as much as the Z-bars.

Today Ted and I went to Boondocks to check out Laser Tag for his birthday. It was a hit. Invitations will go out soon. I can't believe he's almost six years old!

Tomorrow is Mae's first day of preschool!! She is excited and made sure to remind me to pack her "hewwo kwitty wunch box." My camera is all charged! My baby is going to school! (Hooray! hee hee.)

Repeat...

... of one of our favorite local meals. Pumpkin Black Bean Soup with CSA pumpkin, Hopi beans, garlic and onion. Served alongside my challah, which Paul and I managed to eat in its entirety with no help from the kids. Heh. I roasted my sadly slumped CSA pumpkin today and was able to use about 80% of its flesh, so even if a squash looks like it's going the way of the compost, some if not most can still be salvaged. This soup is fabulous; I give the credit to the local beans and pumpkin. Mmmm...

I baked a batch of Dreena's SuperCharge Me! Cookies (EDBV) and they were OK but not amazing. They tasted like an oatmeal raisin cookie with chocolate chips. They are crazy healthy and don't taste weird, so that's good. But my kids wouldn't touch them. *sigh*

Swimming!

Today was another swimming day with Josh and family. As usual, everyone had a blast. Sam actually stayed in the water for an extra hour with Josh, getting tossed and flipped around like mad. He loves the water! A lifeguard asked me about the Infant Aquatics program and commented that he has never seen a child in the IAS wetsuit who didn't act just like Mae was acting today - happy and confident in the water. True!

After nap today, all three kids had haircuts. Mae's is cut very short - it's been since August that she's had anything but a bang trim. I'll get a pic soon - she looks sooo cute!

Tonight we had Roasted Acorn Squash soup (CSA acorn squash, onion & garlic). We were out of soymilk so I subbed in lite coconut milk that we happened to have on hand. YUM! I'll do this every time from now on. We had toasted CSA buttercup squash seeds on top. (I roasted both acorn and buttercup today and toasted the wrong seeds! Oh well... they are both delicious.) What a yummy meal.

The Root Cellar ....

... is wilting.

Something must be done, and SOON, or there will be a lot of wilted, moldy produce in my basement! One easy plan to is get roasting! Squash roasts easily in 30-60 minutes, so I plan to roast away for the next few days. Once the squash are roasted, it can be frozen til I'm ready to prepare something. The turnips and beets must be dealt with on their own asap. Thursday and Friday will involve the Ethiopian stew, sauteed beets and root salad, to be sure. I love the Punk Rock Gravy, so I think a side of mashers will be on the menu with most meals from now on. Mmm. I also thought it might be easy enough to substitute mashers for rice with some of the more stewy soups. I'll post any "cellar meals" accordingly, in case any of you have a similar case of the wilties!

Any chickpeas will be subbed out for my CSA Indian Woman Beans and black beans for my CSA Hopi or Cherokee Trail of Tears/Wax combo.

The Roots
Potatoes: Mashed Potatoes w/ Punk Rock Gravy (CSA Indian Woman beans)
Carrots: Molly Katzen's Carrot Soup
Beets: Root Salad and Sauteed Beets (from the Yoga Kitchen cookbook)
Turnips: Ethiopian Turnip Stew
Onions: (easy to use up ... in every single dish)

The Squash
2 Acorn: Roasted Acorn Squash Soup
4 Kabocha: Kabocha Spinach Soup
4 Buttercup: Lentil Buttercup Soup
1 Pumpkin: Pumpkin Black Beans Soup (CSA black beans)
1 Blue Ballet: Hubbard Squash Pie w/ Gingersnap Pie Crust
3 Spaghetti: store the spaghetti strands for later spaghetti & no-meatballs!

Pot Pie & Persimmons

For our local meal tonight we had individual veggie pot pies. Mmmm. The recipe is here, although I altered it some to use the excess squash we had on hand as well as the half bag of peas, carrots and corn that I found in the back of the freezer. I used TVP for the chicken and Vegan Lunch Box's Spelt Biscuits recipe for the pie and baked them in my new Le Creuset Soup bowls. YUM. The only things I would change would be to add in more oomph (Spike is perhaps more essential than I thought) and use less biscuit dough on top. But it was warm, comforting and yummy and that's what counts. Mmm.

For dessert, I froze 2 overripe persimmons for 2 hours and we enjoyed them as a sort of sorbet. The verdict? Better than the too-sweet Persimmon Pudding, in my opinion, but hard to actually eat. It was much easier to just scrape the flesh from the peel with my teeth rather than hack at it with a spoon. Very good though. I'll do this with the remaining 4 that are ripening on the counter. What a yummy, new fruit. Glad we tried it.

Sunday...NOT the day before the work week!

For our Local Meal tonight, we had a lovely winter spread. I had started the No-Knead Bread last night and spent naptime roasting (all CSA) butternut squash, red onions, garlic and apples. The resulting soup (my MIL's recipe) is warm and comforting. I also wanted to try the suggested root salad, with grated (all CSA) carrot, beet and celeriac. The bread was 2/3 whole wheat and 1/3 white this time and it got a little crisper than I remember (can't wait for the Dream Share to have access to local flour!!) but I think I can just cut the baking time a bit to adjust. The soup was more garlicly than I remember...perhaps a result of the HUGE garlic cloves the CSA provides; they are at least twice as big as the grocery store ones! I'm glad I doubled the recipe and have a batch in the deep fridge. The salad was ok...not amazing but good and crunchy. I only tossed in some lemon juice so tomorrow I'm going to try some of our favorite homemade Sesame Tahini Dressing (from VwaV) and see if that perks it up.

Today started out peacefully, with the boys playing nicely together, but quickly escalated into screaming, crying and time outs by 10am. *sigh* We got them bundled into their snow gear and went to a nearby dog park, where Ole romped with other pups while the kids played in the park. After naps, everyone was in a much better mood. Ted spent much of the afternoon cleaning the house (i.e. gathering stray toys and finding homes for them) and earned $2.50 for his endeavors! He is now obsessed with "chores" and "allowance" so we may look into that.

Tomorrow we are going to go to the Nature and Science Museum and give the Space Movie another try. Last time both Sam and Mae flipped out. It should be a rather quiet day there, I'd expect. I'm not sure how much time Paul is taking off (he can take off as much as he likes, but the reality remains that he has a lot of work to do, period) but it is a wonderful feeling to know that Monday is still a vacation day.

Tea

Phew! Teacher gifts are wrapped and ready. I just love these cute little boxes and the neato butterfly sticker suggests the tea theme (I hope...). The boxes were smaller than I expected, so everyone got 2 (fairly large, IMO) tea bags full of Holy Basil, along with instructions and a little history.

What I've learned: putting together the 'packaging' is a time drain. Next year, use simpler boxes or bags that don't require so much fuss. They won't be as cute, but it'll be easier. I love the three-dimensional sticker tags though and will seek those out for a special look. Now, I'm going to have a cup of 'my' tea! Mmm...

Teacher Gifts

This year, besides the standard monetary donation towards a gift card for each teacher, I decided to also give them a (small!) token of my appreciation for all they do for my precious children. This week's CSA share really sparked my desire to gift some local finds, which will raise awareness I hope, but also, it's cool! To the more "fiery" personalities (Jeanne & Renee), I packed 5 perfect dried cayenne peppers in a little bag, complete with instructions for use and a southwestern-themed gift tag (the one at right is Renee's, obvious to those who know her.) I love it!! To the more gentle folk (Joan, Susie, Elizabeth & Pam), I plan to package some of the Holy Basil dried tea. Tomorrow I'm meeting a local Boulder tea lady to purchase some (empty) tea bags. I'll fill them with 1/8 cup dried tea, with instructions for both tea and bath use. I think each small box will hold 2 or 3 bags. Now, I just hope I haven't forgotten someone essential. Miss Holland (TKD) will receive a hand-decorated flower pot filled with assorted home-baked cookies (our project for tomorrow). I just love the peppers ... I hope the tea will be as cute.

Local Meal

I think yesterday's pumpkin soup doesn't quite qualify; after all, it was prepared months ago. So here is a fresh one. This week I was intrigued by this recipe for Vindaloo. Plus, that local cauliflower has been in the deep freeze for a looong time. My version featured local cauliflower, onions, garlic, beans, onions and tomato sauce. I doubled the recipe and bagged the other one for a reheat later this winter. The result is not as good as Aloo Gobi (IMHO), but still good. Strangely complex. And less stew-y than I had imaged. But still good. I served it over rice and it's good. Very warming, for sure, but I think if I am trying to marry Indian cuisine and cauliflower, I'll stick to Aloo Gobi.

Deep Freeze RoundUp

Today was the day to go through the deep freeze and see just what was in there. I was pleasantly surprised and more inspired than ever to keep it well stocked through the winter. One of the exciting things about looking ahead to next year is planning better ways to utilize the fresh produce. I had completely forgotten about blanching greens so I am completely lacking in them. Next year!! I also plan to try canning next year, just the hot water bath method, in an attempt to create a fruity maple syrup and apple butters that my kids will eat. They haven't liked the local ones at all, although I think they're superb! But this way, I can tweak and add more (sugar probably!) of what they prefer.

The "root cellar" is bursting at the seams. Baskets of squash, potatoes, turnips, beets, carrots, onions and garlic threaten to take over the cool, dark corner of my frigid basement. I've said it before but I'll say it again ... this is the first winter I've been looking forward to. I know it will be cold and miserable (sometimes, this is Colorado after all) but cold weather invites me into my cozy kitchen. Before, baking was all I enjoyed. I'm sure my waistline is grateful that I now enjoy preparing soups and stews, casseroles and crockpot meals, breads and sauces ...

*Feel free to stop reading now, but I feel the NEED to list the contents - bullets make me feel efficient!*

• (6) 2c black beans
• (4) 2c CSA Hopi black beans
• (1) 2c chickpeas (hooray! Just in time to bring in the Yellow Indian Woman Beans which are chickpea-esque!)
• (1) 2c basil pesto
• (4) 2c shredded zucchini (mmm...zucchini bread...)
• (1) freezer bag of sliced local peaches
  
• (2) 6c broccoli
• (2) 6c peas
• (2) 4c spinach
  
• (2) black bean loaf
• Pumpkin Black Bean Soup
• Carrot Soup
• Punk Rock ChickPea Gravy
• Sloppy Lentil Stew
• Chickpea Turnip Stew
• Lentil Squash Pot Pie (from T-day...half the huge pan...I think we'll break that out for Xmas dinner...mmm.)

I am so grateful to be in an area where the Local Movement is so alive. It is inspiring and exciting. And, most of all, it has given me the push to learn to ENJOY what I used to dread ... feeding my family delicious, home-cooked meals. Hooray!

Yes, please

We don't celebrate Christmas, but if anyone still needs to get me a present, look no further! Here it is!

So, in other news, I am again grateful for my freezer. We had a delicious (local) pumpkin soup tonight that I had prepared while my dad was in town. I toasted some of our homemade bread to dip, and it was warm and yummy. I REALLY love my freezer. Tomorrow, I need to go through it and see what all is in there. LOADS of beans and a bunch of soups, but I'm not sure what else. Should be fun.

Today was our last Keeper Share of the season. We received some really cool things, besides the standard plethora of squash, potatoes, onions, beets, turnips and garlic (mmm, garlic.) The beans are fantastic!

• Yellow Indian Woman Bean, a bean brought to Montana by Swedish families and later adopted by the Native Americans of the area. Listed on Slow Food USA’s Ark of Taste.
• Cherokee Bean, (this one is interesting), there are two Cherokee beans that are publicly available. One is Cherokee Trail of Tears Bean (shiny black beans), the other is Cherokee Wax Bean (plump purple/red beans). These two varieties appeared in ONE of our crops. Somewhere along the line they got mixed.

How cool is that? So, combined with the gorgeous Hopi purple beans from last time, 4 new varieties of bean. I love beans. We also get to try Tulsi (Holy Basil) tea and dried cayenne peppers. Cool.

And, a new development! I still have to talk to Paul about this, but it's so totally what we are striving for that I think he will share in my excitement.

A new CSA Share option - the Dream Share.
Dream Share is a 3-year sign-up that will include all CSA Shares we offer. That means a Summer Share, Keeper Share, and Fruit Share (arranged through mountain fruit growers). Dream Share is labeled as such because it helps us to realize a dream… a commitment to teaching, demonstrating and sharing the how to and harvest of local agriculture in Boulder County (we are actually under contract)!

Lots to think about and plan for. I am looking forward to the next 2.5 weeks. I think there will be a lotta cookin' going on!

limp carrots begone

"My farmer" told me a great trick for rejuvenating limp carrots, beets and turnips. Just trim off the ends and place them in an ice bath for half an hour. It worked tonight. I've also placed damp towels over the baskets to help them stay hydrated, but with this trick, who cares? We had a delicious (local) carrot soup tonight, from the 1977 edition of Molly Katzen's Moosewood Cookbook. It was good but a little too salty. Next time I'll skip the salt. Yummy though. After cooking the carrots and potatoes in broth for 20 minutes, add in sauteed onions, garlic and chopped nuts. Puree, add a cup of milk and top with toasted nuts. Yum. Homemade challah rounded out the meal. Mmm.
Tonight was also Dinner #1 of the Wendy School of Dinnertime Etiquette. Surprisingly, things went remarkably well with this new system. We talked about it at length yesterday and some more today. Dinner would be served. If they didn't approve of it, they could prepare something themselves, but I wasn't going to help. I sat down for the ENTIRE MEAL. I made sure they all had a full glass of soymilk and some cut fruit. They all ate lots of challah; Mae had a little bit of the soup and some leftover yogurt from this morning; Ted fixed himself a cream cheese bagel, and Sam ate a plain bagel. Whatever!
Sam has 3 birthday parties this weekend! 2 are for his preschool friends and one is our buddy Henry, who is turning 3! Amazing.

A Lazy Sunday

How funny. By "a lazy Sunday," I mean that we ditched our plans for the big Hanukkah concert and stayed home. But I was not lazy; I didn't even take a nap! I got TONS of stuff done! Must bullet!

• 4 loads of laundry
• 2 loaves of bread
• a delicious acorn squash soup for our local dinner (CSA squash & onions)
• CSA beans soaking for tomorrow's pumpkin black bean soup
• No-Knead Bread started to accompany the soup
• Ted's "gear bag" all loaded with everything he needs for his High Rank class tomorrow
• Ted's 8+ page Ski Packet filled out, due tomorrow
  

At Horizons, as part of their Outdoor Ed program, they take the kids skiing at Eldora once a week, full day, for 3 weeks. Ted's class goes on Wednesdays (perfect, since he has nothing to do after school so we can come home and chill!) This will be his first year on skis and I'm excited for him. Alongside hiking and mountain biking, skiing is an important part of an active lifestyle in Colorado.

So, this is the first time in a LONG time that I am facing Monday CAUGHT UP. Amazing. Tomorrow I plan to cook the exciting new beans, prepare the soup, and work on finding B&Bs for the '08 Moeller reunion, which is tentatively set for COLORADO! Woo hoo! I'm thinking a B&B in central Boulder for a few days and then some time up at the Estes Y at the cabins. Besids B&Bs there are the Chautauqua cabins too. So, I'll be doing some researching in the next few days.

The snow has finally stopped, before it got too bad and after there was enough snow to make it fun for the kids. This week I am going to see what kind of snow tires we can put on the van. Last winter was pretty scary some of the time, so we'll see what they recommend.

hooray for the freezer

Paul and I are both under the weather. It was incredibly comforting tonight to pop open the deep freeze and choose from a plethora of (local!) frozen soups and stews. I chose Mellow Lentil Sniffle Soup and it was soooo yummy. I also had a bag of frozen homemade biscuit dough that baked up hot and soft. A perfect dinner for a cold night.
Tuesday night at the CSA pickup I learned that you can place a damp towel or burlap over root veggies to keep them crisp. You can also trim the ends off and stand them up in ice water right before cooking (I knew this one) but the damp burlap sounds simpler. Good to know.