Tuesday, July 20, 2010

cherry chutney





Cherry tree next door!

This organic Bing tree is completely loaded with cherries!  I have been picking a ton, and making some amazing cherry chutney!


Rinse, pit and quarter the cherries.
Mix in: 1/2 teaspoon coriander seeds
1/2 teaspoon cloves
grated rind of one orange

Mix separately: Juice of one orange
1/8 cup Rapadura sugar or superfine sugar
1/4 cup whey
2 teaspoons seasalt
1/2 cup water, or less

Mix together, and pour into a one quart jar.   Top of chutney needs to be at least 1" below the top of the jar.  Cover tightly and leave at room temperature for 2 days.  Transfer to refridge, and wait for another week or so.  Flavors improve with time!

Pictured here with a fresh batch of traditional ketchup.

Tuesday, May 4, 2010

Artisanal Macaroni and Cheese

 


Inspired by this month's Saveur magazine, Beto and I had a culinary filled weekend. Check out this recipe for Artisanal Macaroni and Cheese. It is amazing! http://www.saveur.com/article/Recipes/Artisanal-Macaroni-and-Cheese  http://www.saveur.com/article/Recipes/Artisanal-Macaroni-and-Cheese

Here is a shot of the finished product.   It was a huge hit with all ages adult to small child!




Posted by Picasa

Friday, January 8, 2010

Basic Chicken Stock

As whey is key for all the pickle and tonic recipes, chicken stock is the key for all the soup recipes. You will be amazed how much better homemade stock is than store bought. It is also incredibly easy. There is no reason to not have stock made up at all times. I keep it in yoghurt containers frozen. Once it is processed, you can divide it into containers and freeze them. They are easy to thaw out when needed. Good stock doesn't keep more than 5 days or so in the fridge, so either use it, or freeze it.

This recipe makes 2 quarts.

Start with about 2 pounds of chicken parts with bones. We used a whole free range bird, and cut out pieces that we like to eat such as the breast and thighs, and used the remaining bonier pieces for the stock such as the back, wings, drumsticks and neck.






Now simply throw the meat in the crock pot with one onion, two carrots, three pieces of celery, and any inner pieces of garlic that you have kicking around. There is no need to peel the garlic, just throw it in.



Now add 2 tablespoons of vinegar.  This is not common in stock, but is actually a traditional method of removing the trace elements and minerals from the bones.  Fill to the top with water.  You can also add seasonings if desired.  Seasonings are totally optional because this is just the basic stock.

This is how it looks after 12 hours.  It is going to go for 24 hours before it is ready.

Posted by Picasa