Pinteresting

I have been in love with Pinterest for a while now - it is such an easy way to organize and hold on to all the great things I find on the internet. I used to "bookmark" things, but had no idea how to even find them afterwards. Pinterest makes it all so much easier. This week I've made this soup from a Rachael Ray recipe I found on Pinterest:



It was DELICIOUS, and I would have never known it existed if not for Pinterest. Tonight we had pizza on cauliflower crust, thanks to this awesome recipe:



Another huge success - even the most anti-vegetable member of the family scarfed down a huge plate-full. I ate way too much and I don't even feel guilty because I know my stomach is full of cauliflower (and I didn't even put cheese on my pieces, so it was basically all baked veggies!). I have a bunch more recipes "pinned" to my cooking board on Pinterest waiting to be tried out. I might not have a cell phone that works, but I sure feel modern with all this pinning I'm doing. :)

Living off the land

The other day I had a completely off-the-land omelet and it was awesome! Remember my onion patch? Well, I guess they really mean it when they write on the packet of seeds "plant in fine, loose soil," because my soil was NOT fine and loose, and the onions pushed themselves up out of the dirt because their roots couldn't get deep enough. So, after 7 months of faithful watering and weed pulling, all I have is a handful of tiny little onions. But they sure taste good!



Those, combined with some fresh zucchini from the garden and a couple of newly laid eggs made for a darn good supper.



I love the idea of growing our own food, and a meal comprised entirely of things we have grown and nurtured ourselves is much more than tasty - it is an accomplishment. I have a feeling we're going to be eating a lot more omelets in the days to come...

Holy Fiber Attack

Over the last two days I have had one mission: use zucchini. My dad's zucchini plants started going crazy at the same time as ours, and it seems that the farm air is making them huge. Since we both planted about three times the amount of plants we expected to survive, and since the vermin went after the corn and sunflowers instead, we are now faced with a bit of a zucchini plague. Seriously, these things are enormous.

I have made several batches of pureed zucchini into baby food, made about a dozen loaves of zucchini bread, and grated it into pretty much everything we've eaten for dinner over the last few weeks. If you know me, you know I'm in heaven - I've always wanted to "live off the land" and we've be doing just that. Titus did poop 6 times yesterday - I think the combination of zucchini and pureed apricots has kicked his system into over-drive.

Yep, we have just as many apricots as we do zucchini. I discovered that pureed apricots make a really nice substitute for oil in baking recipes. I usually substitute apple sauce for oil, but the apricots work just as well. I'm gearing up to make jam, but I'm always a bit scared to get started on that project. Hopefully I get myself going on that before they all go bad.

Oh, and I just have to say that I LOVE my Vita Mix blender. That thing could pulverize a cantaloupe. Thanks Grandma!

Make-Ahead Egg Strata

This recipe of my Mom's is a huge success whenever I make it, and since it is meant to be made the night before, it is perfect for taking to a brunch or for having guests over for breakfast. Instead of sweating over the stove first thing in the morning, you can pop this into the oven and take a shower. :)

Ingredients:

4-6 slices of sourdough bread

Butter

1 small can of diced mild ortega chiles

1 cup grated cheddar cheese

1 cup grated jack cheese

6 eggs

1 box pre-cooked breakfast sausage, cut into small pieces

2 cups milk (I use nonfat)

2 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp. pepper

1/2 tsp ground mustard

1/4 tsp garlic powder

1.) Butter the bread, remove the crusts, and place in the bottom of a 9 x 13 casserole dish, butter side up. Spread chiles over the bread.

2.) Combine all remaining ingredients in a large bowl and mix well. Pour egg mixture over bread. Cover and refrigerate overnight. 

3.) In the morning, cook uncovered in a 350 degree oven for 45-55 minutes.

Pretty easy and very yummy!