rhubarb poppy seed scones
Friday morning, while stopping at my favorite local bakery for a loaf of my favorite rye bread, I encountered these amazingly wonderful rhubarb poppy seed scones. They were not too dry, as scones can be, and not too sweet, so calling them a sensible breakfast is not out of the question. They combined two things that I had not yet thought to, but surely will do so now: rhubarb which is overtaking its corner of my garden and dying for me to find new recipes to eat it up with, and poppy seeds which are really just fun little blue seeds that make everything better. So I nabbed this idea and made some of my own. In my version I cut the rhubarb into a small dice to ensure small bits in every bite and add sour cream because it is delicious and should be used whenever possible. Continue Reading →
rhubarb ginger compote
I had my first foray into the canning world last summer when I realized that there was no way I was going to be able to use all of the fresh produce from my garden. Andy and I made dilly green beans (which were delicious), sweet zucchini pickles (which were not so good), and a sweet and savory tomato jam (also delicious, albeit a bit too thin and runny). This allowed us to enjoy our garden goods throughout the winter and to share our pickled experiments with friends and family. We packed up our pickles to send home to family and …SPOILER ALERT… plan to do so again this year. With my plethora of rhubarb this spring, a rhubarb preserve seemed in order. And this, my friends, is the satisfying result. It’s not too sweet, a little bit sour, and a little bit spicy. Make your own today or wait until the holidays to see if you’ve made my list. I am so on the ball for Christmas gifts this year.
Continue Reading →
almond joy bars
I came across the phrase “almond joy bars” somewhere in my online travels recently. I don’t know if it was the Minnesotan in me who was intrigued by the word “bar” or what, but I was immediately inspired to create my own version. My mom has made her Chocolate Slice Christmas cookies since always, and the chocolate-coconut-walnut combo in those stood out as the perfect recipe to hack into an almond joy creation. So I present to you—mid-westerners and others alike—Almond Joy Bars. Continue Reading →
thai style noodles with peanut sauce
This deliciousness had the humble beginnings of being leftovers. It all started as spring rolls and dipping sauce. I thought I’d use up the noodles and some veggies in the fridge by “beefing” up the leftover sauce with a few extra ingredients, including some peanut butter. BEST. IDEA. EVER. These noodles are rich, and salty, and a little sweet, and acidic, and veggie-rific. Andy requested I write down the recipe the first time I made this for future reproduction. Request for replication by someone who isn’t afraid to tell you the truth is the highest compliment your food can receive. I’ll share it here in hopes you all enjoy this as much as we have. This version contains meat (elk in this case, but it could be done with beef or even chicken) but I think I like it best just vegetarian. I used mini bell peppers here because the varied colors you get from multiple small peppers instead of one large pepper really made the dish look pretty Andy picked out mini peppers.
Continue Reading →
a simple salad
I’m only just now coming to the conclusion that maybe there is something behind this idea of “less is more.” In a way, it goes against what we’ve been molded to believe: try to make more money, have more influence over people, book our time with more plans, spend more of this time with the people we love. All of these can be good things, but when does adding more become too much, or something that we no longer enjoy? When does more go from being a positive thing to a cause of stress? These are questions I’ve been asking myself lately, so it seems fitting to apply them to the salad I’m making to bring to dinner. Salad as life, life as salad. Continue Reading →