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Linkfest: Apples

kelly — Thu, 06 Oct 2011 14:58:31 +0000

It’s time for our annual apple orchard visit. As you may remember, we had to find a new orchard this year, as Sponsel’s closed last year. We’d gone there for 8 years in a row (a few posts: 2010, 2009, 2008, 2006, 2005). LIZ took the responsibility of finding a new orchard, and hopefully by Sunday evening, I’ll be up to my elbows in apples. I bookmark recipes all year long in anticipation of this (though I surprisingly could only find one previous apple linkfest post – I could swear there should be more, but I can’t find them).

Anyway, here we go in no particular order (and with pictures when possible)…. I’ll have you know there are over 4,000 recipes that come up when you search Tastespotting for “apples” (though admittedly a few are pineapple recipes), but I’ve tried to only include recipes here that I would make and that sound interesting/unique (which is code for “please no more apple crisp recipes,” though I apparently can’t help myself).

Apple Crisps

Apple Cranberry Crisp – Use Real Butter [no pic]. OK, in all honesty, I probably won’t make this, but I’m sure someone else will be glad I shared the recipe.

Cinnamon Overload Apple Crisp - Elle's New England Kitchen.

Classic Apple Crisp - King Arthur Flour.

Caramel Apple Crisp - Eating Well... Living Thin.

Old-Fashioned Apple Crisp - Barefoot Contessa (Foot Network).

Perfect Apple Crisp - The Girl Who Ate Everything.

Other Desserts

5 Apple Recipes - Foodie Crush. There are actually 5 recipes at this link, but I picked the two I liked, Baked Apple Cuplettes and Apple Almond Snail Pastries. Personal-sized baked apple items are best, since I am the only one in my house who will be eating them.

Apple Streudel - Beyond Kimchee.

Cheese Apple Streudel - Peppercorns in my Pocket. Maybe if I halved the cream cheese? It looks to be too much to me, but what do I know?

Apple Hand Pies - Food Loves Writing. This is really what I need to do. Especially if I froze them before baking.

Apple and Bleu Cheese Turnovers - Snail's View (scroll partway down). Made with puff pastry, these would be super quick. And delicious, of course.

Savory

Pork, Apple, and Cider Pie - Spicy Ice Cream. I believe I'd have to convert this to a personal-sized pot pie, but that's OK. It'd probably make up a few, and then we could freeze those (I'd have to make up some chicken or beef pot pies too, for Prince Charming, but I think that could be arranged - I'm sure I have a recipe or 3 bookmarked).

Bacon-Apple-Jalapeno Pop 'Ems - Erin Cooks. I am really not sure about this idea, but since Jalapeno Poppers are already on my list of foods to make, it couldn't hurt to throw some diced apple into a few and see how they turn out.

Apple Bacon Cheddar Grilled Cheese - Karma Cucina. OK, I totally couldn't decide between this one and the next one. They both sound yummy.

Smoked Gouda, Apple, and Bacon Melt - The Cilantropist. If you needed help deciding between the two, this recipe calls for the genius idea of toasting the bread in the leftover bacon grease. You know, I have apples and bacon and cheese at home, and have to fend for myself for dinner... perhaps I should acquire some bread at the farmer's market today.

Of course, going to the orchard and coming home with apples means I need to do something with the squash I have already laying about my house, and the zucchini and peppers that I’ve been meaning to preserve too. Looks like I’ve got plans tonight!

Linkfest – Preserving the Harvest

kelly — Wed, 21 Sep 2011 16:34:00 +0000

Well, I’m still waiting to see if there’s any negative feedback from the last linkfest post with pictures, but I’m going to go ahead and do it again and hope for the best.

I’ve mentioned before that I’ve got farmer’s market produce stored in my freezer, but that’s not the only thing to do with veggies that can’t be eaten immediately, especially since so many veggies don’t freeze well.

I’m going to preface this list by saying that I have never canned anything in my life, nor have I made any of these recipes yet, so you should really figure out how to do that safely. Google will help.

Cucumbers

Making Pickles 101 - Simple Bites. Includes a recipe for Extra-Garlic Dill Pickles, which sounds like the right amount of garlic to me.

Easy Peasy Pickles - Coconut & Lime. Author says it's a great first canning project.

Homemade Claussen Knock-Off Pickles - Foodie with Family. I'm not a pickle connoisseur (I leave that to Prince Charming, who could write a dissertation on pickles), but this recipe makes up crunchy with dill and garlic, which seems just right to me.

Crunchy Dill Pickles - Spicie Foodie. Again, emphasis on the crunch.

Favorite Kosher Dills - Never Enough Thyme. I learned something new, reading this recipe, about cucumbers and why you should cut off the tip before preserving.

Freezer Cucumbers - Sidewalk Shoes. These are *not* traditional pickles, but I think I would still like them, even if I'd be eating them alone.

Peppers

Pickled Bell Peppers - Canning Jars Etc. I'm not sure about this idea, but they shouldn't taste too different from cucumber pickles, right?

Pickled {Hot} Banana Peppers - A Full Measure of Happiness. This is my goal: little rings of banana peppers. Love!

Pickled Banana Peppers - What's Cooking in the Orange Kitchen. Another option for pickled banana peppers, with different spices.

Canned Hot Pepper Recipe (Peperoncini Sott’Olio) – About.com. Usually about.com isn’t my go-to for… anything, but I was looking for a recipe for peppers packed in oil, and this is what I found. Apparently, it’s not straight-up oil, but a blend. Who knew?

Up next in the linkfest cue? Apple recipes and crock pot recipes!

Squashy Linkfest

kelly — Tue, 20 Sep 2011 16:33:52 +0000

It has been a looong time since I’ve had a linkfest post. It’s not that I’ve stopped bookmarking recipes and cool stuff, just that I haven’t had the time and energy to do it up right. But, since I’ve got a bazillion recipes bookmarked and squash is on my mind, I think it’s time.

As I said, I’ve had squash on the brain; between the farmer’s market and talking to on the phone last night (about ‘s garden harvest), I had to search for a bunch of recipes. Originally, I was hoping that I could cube the squash and freeze it, but the internet gave me mixed advice about that. See, my favorite way to eat squash is roasted, but apparently because squash are in large part water, freezing them makes them mushy, so it doesn’t seem they’d be ideal for freezing at that point (unless you were just going to throw them into risotto or a soup or something, but what’s the point?). Most of the internet advocated making a puree and freezing that. The only think I could think of to do with squash puree was soup, though, and I wasn’t sure I’d like squash soup. Tastespotting showed me the error of my ways, however. After wading through over 1300 squash recipes, I’ve narrowed it down to those included below. So, while it seems like a lot of recipes, it could be so much worse.

I tried to avoid the very common stuff (like roasting or glazing with maple syrup) and the super weird (squash pizza, for instance), and recipes that involved going to specialty grocery stores. I’m going to do this linkfest up differently, including pictures wherever possible – I like the visual better than the straight-up list. Let me know what you think!

The pictures all link directly to the recipe, and are all from the respective websites – but I didn’t hotlink so that’s something.

Sidenote: If you are the owner of any of the following and want me to take the pics down and just link to your recipe instead, just let me know and I will gladly do so.

Stuffed Squash

Wild Rice-Stuffed Squash - Martha Stewart. Fall makes me want wild rice, but you can't just cook it up straight like white rice. Well, maybe you can. I can't. This looks like a nice combo of flavors.

Stuffed Moroccan Acorn Squash - Leek Soup. There are some out-of-the-ordinary ingredients here, but as the author explains, this is a basic recipe that allows for lots of substitutions.

Savory Stuffed Squash - Phoo-d. You had me at "pine nuts."

Goat Cheese-Stuffed Squash – Use Real Butter. Looks and sounds delicious!

Soup

Roasted Acorn Squash Soup - A Sweet Pea Chef. Might I be brave enough to try this? Maybe I can convince myself it's like baked potato soup, or broccoli cheddar.

Roasted Butternut Squash and Orange Cauliflower Soup - Snippets of Thyme. Roast the cauliflower instead of just pan frying it - your taste buds will thank you for it. I haven't tried this recipe, but I'm telling you, roasted cauliflower is awesome.

Ravioli

Roasted Butternut Squash Ravioli – Make Me Hungry. Includes some good instructions on making your own pasta.

Squash Ravioli with Sage Browned Butter - Zen Can Cook. More great step-by-step instructions! (And who can resist a browned butter sauce? I can't.)

Acorn Squash Ravioli - A Chow Life. Again, great instructions and photos! Totally makes homemade pasta seem easy.

Gnocci

Pumpkin Gnocci - Seattle Times. Uses a pie pumpkin and includes a recipe for a sage butter sauce.

Butternut Squash - Hungry Cravings. She tried out 4 recipes to get it right! That's dedication.

Light and Airy Butternut Squash Gnocci - Bay Area Bites. Some good instructions (with pictures) on how to make gnocci and get the texture right.

Butternut Squash Gnocchi – Guilty Kitchen. Couldn’t include a picture here, but the step-by-step instructions are confidence-boosting if you’ve never made gnocci (I haven’t, and I’m sure the pictures will help a lot).

Lasagna

OK, I couldn’t figure out which of these was the best, so I had to include all of them. Use your own discretion, depending on your tastes and preferences.

Butternut Squash Lasagna - Pinch of Yum.

Butternut Squash Lasagna - Veggie 101.

Butternut Squash Lasagna - My Kitchen Addiction.

Other Pastas

Baked Squash Pasta - A Little Bit of Everything. Like mac & cheese, or tuna casserole, but different.

Butternut Squash Stuffed Shells - Proud Italian Cook. Not exactly a recipe, but enough instructions for you to make it yourself.

Butternut Squash Orzo - The Little Red House. Bacon, cheese, orzo - wow, just wow.

Butternut Squash Risotto - Bay Area Bites. Simple side dish (well, as simple as risotto can be).

Butternut Squash and Bacon Risotto – Guilty Kitchen. OK, this one calls for some specialty grocery items, or at least requires you to search your grocery store to find stuff you don’t normally buy. But it looks worth it.

Miscellaneous Dishes

Butternut Squash Bake - Mango & Tomato. I'm swayed by any recipe that could give me an excuse to buy small serveware.

Individual "Lighter" Chicken Pot Pies - Proud Italian Cook. We like pot pie in our house, but usually resort to buying the frozen stuff, so we can each have our own. I don't think I'm going to find this variety in the freezer section, though. Seems easy enough.

Baked Goods

{Vegan} Acorn Squash Muffins - Whisk and a Prayer. Hadn't thought of using squash in baked goods until now. What a good idea!

Whole Wheat Winter Squash Pancakes – Piccante Dolce. Squash for breakfast!

Butternut Squash Loaf - HungerStruck. All sorts of goodness here.

For the Brave / Experienced Cook

Butternut Squash Brulee - Buttered Up. Think creme brulee, but with squash! Get out that blow torch!

Butternut Squash Souffle - Pig Pig's Corner.

Seeds and Other Snacks

What to do with {Squash} Seeds - Martha Stewart. Idea #1 - Pumpkin Seed Brittle!

6 Recipes for Pumpkin Seeds - The Drinkwater Kitchen. I love the idea that she couldn't help but come up with 6 ideas, instead of the 2 she intended! This really has something for everyone.

Cinnamon Sugar and Spicy Pumpkin Seeds - Our Italian Kitchen. Love the idea of cinnamon sugar seeds!

Spicy Pumpkin Seeds - Artsy-Foodie. A nice blend of spices.

Baked Butternut Squash Chips - SpicySaltySweet. I can make these at home? Without deep frying? Awesome!

Butternut Squash Hummus - Mango & Tomato. The recipe isn't the main focus of this post, but it is included. Sounds like a good thing to try, if you like hummus.

Holiday Baking

kelly — Tue, 30 Nov 2010 20:54:59 +0000

Some things I’ve bookmarked recently:

Eggnog Fudge | recipegirl.com -I plan on making this… soon. I even bought fresh nutmeg. But I don’t have eggnog, or marshmallow fluff… so I guess this will have to wait until I can go to the store.
Mudslide Cupcakes Recipe | Endless Simmer – Jameson + chocolate cupcakes? Worth a shot (there’s always Jameson in the house, not for myself – not a whiskey fan – but for the boy).
Creamy Hot Chocolate Muffins | A Whisk and A Prayer – Hot chocolate + muffins? Yes, definitely a genius idea.
Healthier hot chocolate | Nutrition Data – Well, I suppose if I’m going to consumer that much hot cocoa, maybe I should aim for healthier. But Swiss Miss just tastes so good, and it’s so easy…..
Egg Nog French Toast | recipegirl.com – Now, I am not a French toast fan, but I do love eggnog, so I’m willing to try this out. You know, for the sake of experimenting.
Single Serving Pie in a Jar | Our Best Bites – When is pie ever a bad idea? (, don’t answer that. You are the only person who does not like pie crust.)

I’ve got a few other recipes in the cue (personally, not blog-wise), but they’re all from apps on my phone, and so I can’t exactly link you to recipes at the moment. But, for your thoughts… pumpkin tiramisu, chocolate orange fudge, double layer pumpkin pie, pumpkin ginger rice pudding, spiced pumpkin bread, and vanilla bean rice pudding.

And, because they’ve been raved about, the recipes for the two types of fudge I made this weekend: Orange Cream and Almond Joy. You should make them up, bring them in to work, and let the praise just roll in.

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Blog Action Day 2010 (linkfest)

kelly — Fri, 15 Oct 2010 15:13:25 +0000

Did you know that today is Blog Action Day? This year’s topic: water.

Instead of writing about it, I thought I’d just direct you to others who already have written about this critical resource:

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Petitions by Change.org|Start a Petition »

Linkfest: Lunch sides

kelly — Tue, 14 Sep 2010 13:24:57 +0000

Following up on last week’s sandwich post (I meant to post this Thursday), I’ve got some links for things that make for good lunch sides (or parts of sandwiches, perhaps). Enjoy!

Breads / Bread-like Items

Salty

Sweets

Pickles

Lastly… not a recipe, but something any pickle-lover will appreciate (seriously, just click through for the fun of it): Crochet Pickles by Nicole Gastonguay | Craftzine.

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Linkfest: Sandwiches (aka the anniversary edition)

kelly — Wed, 08 Sep 2010 20:44:24 +0000

I’d be lying if I said that I intentionally planned a linkfest post about sandwiches, the #1 love of (OK, maybe #2, but it might be tied), on today, our 3rd anniversary.

But that’s the way it worked out. Honestly, I’d only saved up a few sandwich recipes, but wanted more, so I went searching on Tastespotting. Turns out that sandwiches aren’t really recipe things. Well, here’s what I came up with anyway (very, very randomly).

Side note: It’s widely known that I am a picky eater*, so there were some restrictions that applied to any recipe I found. 1) No foods that gross me out (tomatoes, eggplant, zucchini, onions). 2) No main ingredients that I plain don’t like (basil, pears). 3) No strange combos (no mint please, also nix on the peanut butter and bacon sandwich). Additionally, since I like my linkfest recipes to be practical, I added these rules: 4) Must use items that are probably already in one’s pantry, or are very easy to find at the grocery store (ooh, that means the one with wasabi paste is out), and 5) No ridiculously expensive ingredients (that great tasting cheese with the weird name? Not at $20/pound, thankyouverymuch, it’s a sandwich).

Additional confession: I don’t actually like sandwiches. I really don’t like school lunch sandwiches, probably because I had way too many of them growing up. If I were to pack myself a lunch with a salami sandwich, I can guarantee that it would go uneaten (even if I were very hungry) – they are that unappetizing to me (despite the fact that I like all the ingredients of a salami sandwich). The work-around for this is bringing just the ingredients to work and assembling at my desk, because somehow that makes it better (this doesn’t always work, but sometimes). Also, hot sandwiches don’t seem to bother me that much.

Anyway, on to the recipes!

Lunchbox: the rules are simple. This is a cold sandwich, suitable for bringing to school or work, without requiring the use of a toaster or microwave. Surprisingly hard to find these, when you add in the other rules.

Hrm. That’s a pretty short list.

Then I remembered that sandwiches aren’t just for lunch (this is something sandwich lovers already know). I have class on Tuesday and Thursday nights this semester, and I haven’t been doing the fast food thing like I usually do. Instead, I’ve been stopping at home for something quick, or picking up Subway for the two of us on my way home. I have a max of 20 minutes before I have to be out the door, so this has to be super quick. But I have access to a toaster oven, microwave, and potentially someone else to help prep.

Hot sandwiches:

Some other quick kind of sandwichy things:

More than sandwich recipes, I found partial ingredient recipes. Lots of people like to make up something for dinner and then transform it into a sandwich. This is not genius nor original, but it is smart.

Things you can make for dinner and then use the leftovers in a sandwich:

One and only one dessert sandwich (since sandwich cookies were covered yesterday, and ice cream sandwiches deserve their own list):

Nutella Banana Sandwich | The Nesting Project

Lastly, a whole website/blog dedicated to sandwiches:

Amazing Sandwiches, One Sandwich Recipe At A Time

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*I’m quite tired of this phrase, actually, since just about everyone else I know is also a picky eater, but they claim they aren’t. Yes, you are. I promise. Unless you are . Or maybe . Really, it’s OK to admit it. I won’t judge. There are just foods we don’t like, sometimes for completely unjustifiable or inexplicable reasons (yes, tomatoes are gross, but cucumbers are OK; eggplant is terrible, but other squashes can be quite tasty). You only get to call yourself a “not picky” person if I can plan a dinner for you without thinking at all about what you might or might not like. That is a darn short list in my experience.

Linkfest: Back to School Cookies

kelly — Tue, 07 Sep 2010 20:34:52 +0000

I figured it was about time that I’d share some more links with you, and with school starting today (for pre-college students, that is), and the change in weather, well, I thought cookie recipes fit the bill. I narrowed down the list (because I’ve got more bookmarked that I didn’t share) and included only those cookies that would work for a school lunch (that is, wouldn’t get smooshed or melty or gooey). Enjoy!

Sandwich Cookies – who doesn’t love a good sandwich cookie, especially after a nice sandwich? OK, I don’t really care for the sandwich, just give me the cookies. I’ve even got some non-chocolate varieties here. I don’t even think I need to sell you on them – their names do it for me.

Chocolate Chip-like Cookies – classic, and a favorite, but sometimes it needs to get mixed up a bit, you know?

Chocolate Chunk & Vanilla Bean Cookies | Coconut & Lime- more vanilla and chocolate chunks? Heaven.
Chocolate Mint Chip Cookies | Baked Perfection- OK, not for me, but for all of you who think that chocolate and mint are a good idea, here’s the recipe for you.
Oatmeal Pecan Chocolate Chip Cookies | Joy the Baker – this is my idea of the perfect chocolate chip cookie (well, I could go either way on the oatmeal part).
The Best Chocolate Chip Cookie Ever | Blisstree- variations of this idea have been making the rounds on the internet for years, but here’s another one to try out.

Miscellaneous Cookies – do I need to describe why these cookies might be good? I think not.

Almond-Orange Shortbread | MarthaStewart.com- They might not be chocolate, but they sure sound tasty.
better than brownie cookies | real life foodie adventures- better than brownies? That is a bold statement.
Jen’s Chocolate Crinkles | LKS- love, love, love chocolate crinkles!
Matcha Green tea shortbread leaves | Kirbie’s Cravings- mmm, more options for using my matcha powder!
Peanut Butter No-Bake Cookies | MarthaStewart.com- I’m not sure if these would actually survive a school lunch or not. If you try them out, let me know!
Vanilla Malted Cookies | MarthaStewart.com- malt in a cookie? Definitely worth trying.
Lemon Poppy-Seed Cookies | A Bowl Of Mush – I love lemon poppy seed cake/bread. In cookie form? Could be perfection.

Bar Cookies – a must-have list for Minnesotans, and generally helpful for anyone with a big family or who has a cookie monster in his/her family. Or maybe a company potluck coming up.

Chocolate-Coconut Bars | MarthaStewart.com- Can’t go wrong with chocolate and coconut.
Samoas Bars | Baking Bites- that’s right, imitation Girl Scout Cookies, but easier.
Lemon-Poppy Seed Shortbread | Lottie + Doof – ditto what I said earlier about lemon poppy seed cake/bread.
Snickerdoodle Cookie Bars | Dine and Dish – just had a delicious snickerdoodle this weekend (from Noodles & Co – I give it 4 out of 5 for a fast food cookie), and it just left me wanting more. Alas, I’m the only person in my house who likes snickerdoodles, and the last thing I need is to eat an entire batch of cookies.

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Linkfest: Summer Drinks

kelly — Tue, 01 Jun 2010 20:22:32 +0000

Some things I’ve bookmarked recently:

Is It Iced Coffee Weather? – Simple, yet informative.
Frothy Ginger Infused Limeade (Raw Epicurean)
Iced Coffee? No Sweat (NYTimes)
Savebucks! How to make incredible iced coffee at (One Particular Kitchen)

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Linkfest: A Bit Healthier

kelly — Tue, 25 May 2010 14:39:45 +0000

Some things I’ve bookmarked recently:

7 Fat-Fighting Dinner Recipes | Fitness Magazine – Specifically, Southwestern Black Bean Cakes with Guacamole, but there are 6 other recipes that look good too!

Salads

Mediterranean Chicken Salad | Epicurious.com – Salad is good. Chicken isn’t bad. We might be on to something.
Chinese Cabbage Salad | Eating Well, Living Thin – Ah, a recipe modified to be healthier than the original!
PF Chang’s Chicken Lettuce Wraps | Recipezaar – Not specifically salad, but I always feel like I’m eating a salad when consuming these (at the restaurant – I haven’t actually tried this at home).

Shrimp

Spicy Grilled Shrimp | The Kitchn – Grilled shrimp (well, all shrimp really) is a great low-calorie protein. I love it on the grill, though I haven’t tried it spicy yet.
garlic shrimp pasta | simmer down! – OK, if you switch out the pasta with a whole-grain variety, or just eat less of it, I think you’re good here. No cream sauce to clog your arteries.

Soup

Black Bean Soup | The Other Side of Fifty – Soup is a tough line to walk, but this one seems to do well. Full of enough stuff to stave off hunger and still relatively healthy.

Other

Low Fat Oatmeal Banana Bread | Joy the Baker – Bread should be enjoyed in all its varieties, including low-fat (though I am not a lover of banana bread, I know many of you are).
meringue nests | Night Baking – Meringue, an excellent (kind of) diet cookie! Low in fat, at least (not low in sugar, but I can only do so much!).

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