Pickles and Cake

Real Food Challenge 2012

2012-02-01T15:11:00.000-05:00

Today is the first day of our month-long “real food”challenge. As a family, we are cutting out processed food completely - no fastfood, refined grains, preservatives, artificial ingredients, etc. No morefactory food! After a long day of the work and commute shuffle, it is sotempting to open a box, push a button and BING: dinner’s ready.

I want to know (and be able to pronounce) every ingredient that my family eats. Heart disease, diabetes, stroke and cancer – four of the top ten chronic diseases that kill most of us can be traced directly to the industrialization of our food.

"but i removed the pink slime! where are yougoing?"

I hope to prove to myself that the extra effort and time isworth it – not just to our health but the quality of life overall. Healthy foodcan taste delicious! No shortcuts this month.

Ring the Butter Bell

2012-01-21T12:49:00.000-05:00

Thanks to my mom, we now have soft, spreadable butter all the time! The butter is protected by a layer of water that forms an airtight seal at the base of the crock - we just have to change the water out twice a week. Because of the high fat content, butter is safe to store at room temperature for 30 days. Now all we need is a salt pig!

Paella!

2012-01-12T12:12:00.000-05:00

We tested out the new Paella pan tonight and although it took longer than expected, the end result was out of this world! Nothing better than a big pan of seared seafood, meat, veggies and "over-the-top" flavorful Spanish rice. Wake up kids, its time for dinner!

Mushroom Out of Control

2012-01-05T19:28:00.000-05:00

Our Back to the Roots oyster mushroom kit decided not to wait for us!

Lillie's Homemade Asiago Meatballs

2011-12-28T20:53:00.000-05:00

Lillie's favorite meal in the world is spaghetti with meatballs - whatever you do, don't give her those frozen, spongy ones out of the bag. She decided this week she was going to create her own (with a little help from me) so we set out to make them from scratch. While we were there, we crafted some homemade sauce too. The meatballs were loaded with grated asiago, garlic and smoked paprika. I intended to document the new recipe and process but sometimes you just have to put the camera down and have fun.

Lillie carefully caramelizes the onions. Sadie is ready to press the garlic. The Kitchen Kids unite!

Al dente angel hair pasta was the perfect carrier for Lillie's delicious meatballs and sauce. It was like a flavor bomb went off! Sadie was so ready to eat this bite! "take the picture already, daddy!!!"

In the end, my little chef Lillie was proud of her flavorful creation and excited about cooking again. Stay tuned...

A Bushel of Cukes

2011-11-08T11:00:00.015-05:00

We ordered a bushel of #1 Kirby cucumbers from Zellwood - they are between 3 - 4 inches long and are the perfect pickling cukes. Time to attempt jarring our pickles for the first time instead of the usual cold pack. We are making a big batch of Kosher dills and some sweet and smokey bread and butter slices with some smoked paprika (Lillie's favorite spice!)

The girls were a great help sorting and washing the cukes as well as adding the spices and herbs to the jars. A few leftover sugar snap peas were thrown in for good luck. I submerged each jar into boiling water for 10 minutes and initially didn't think they sealed correctly. Once they sat on the counter and started to cool, the lid sucked down to the jar and a perfect seal was in place. I don't think we can wait two weeks to try them - we might have to crack a jar early!

Halloween 2011

2011-11-01T11:18:00.001-04:00

Halloween was once again filled with many treats and only a few tricks. We roasted pumpkin seeds again (salt and vinegar, smokey garlic) and spent part of the day trick or treating at Sea World.

Sadie let us all try her "boogers!" Thanks Sadie!

Happy Little Bento

2011-10-08T20:36:00.001-04:00

We are fascinated with all of the creative bento ideas out there. Lillie asked if we could fill her bento box with edible art so we downloaded a bunch from the internet for inspiration. Here are few of our favorites. Check out blogs like Happy Little Bento and Adventures in Bentomaking for more creative designs and delicious recipes.

Banh Mi

2011-09-20T16:50:00.002-04:00

We tried our first Banh Mi and it was as delicious as we had hoped! Smokey pork, savory aioli, pickled radish, soy, cucumbers and herbs all came together in perfect harmony. We left off the hot peppers to keep this sandwich kid friendly. This famous Vietnamese street food was found at the Alligator Pear food stand at the Lake Eola Farmer's Market. I think it is time we tried to make it ourselves...

After a walk around the lake, we grabbed a huge bunch of fresh lemongrass and some preserves from Sunchowder's Emporia. Pumpkin butter, vanilla fig jam and their ginger apricot plum jam were the right choices this time. Where's my toast?!

SUGAR!

2011-09-19T13:11:00.001-04:00

Japanese branding at it's finest! You can see Lillie in the back getting excited about Pocky.

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Bacon Toothpaste?!

2011-07-29T14:31:00.004-04:00

What? Wait? Whoa?! Lillie said she would try it but for the first time, I'm not sure...

Thanks to Ashlyn Butts for sharing!

non-stick?

2011-07-26T14:25:00.000-04:00

Found this on the web last night while using Stumbleupon. Too funny not to share...

The real Granny Smith!

2011-07-24T15:11:00.001-04:00

I Feta not have another, I'm driving.

2011-07-22T18:17:00.000-04:00

Let me shred some light on this munster half-wheel of Parmesan Regiano we found in Publix. It tasted pretty Gouda and we considered buying it, but at $417, we were cheddar off without it.

Which Potato Would You Rather Eat?

2011-07-12T17:48:00.002-04:00

This is worth watching! Its a simple yet powerful demonstration showing why some vegetables you eat should definitely be organic. Rinsing your non-organic supermarket vegetables doesn't get the toxic chemicals out of the inside! Check out this list to see other vegetables and fruits you should seriously consider buying organic:

http://www.ewg.org/foodnews/summary/

Fresh Pickles

2011-07-09T17:21:00.001-04:00

Its time for another batch of fresh pickles! They get better each time I make them as I learn what flavors go better together. This time I doubled the fresh horseradish and toasted the spices before adding them to the mix. I threw in 2 handfuls of sugar snap peas from the garden too. The batch fermented on the counter for 6 days and then went to the fridge, where they are waiting patiently to be eaten. Check out my original "barrel cukes" fresh pickle post here.

First Strawberries

2011-07-01T17:05:00.001-04:00

We harvested the first cluster of strawberries this morning. Growing your own food is fun!

Doggles

2011-06-22T16:58:00.001-04:00

Lola the wonderdog and her sidekick, Sadie Squirrel!

Sadie Picks some Purple Peas

2011-06-09T16:50:00.000-04:00

Liquorice

2011-05-22T16:46:00.001-04:00

"You talkin' to me?!"

St. Augustine Rhythm and Ribs Festival

2011-05-06T14:56:00.050-04:00

Shiver me timbers! We packed up the kids and invited our friends Keri and Marlee on another adventure in St. Augustine. The best band in the world, Mofro was playing the Rhythm and Ribs Fest and the girls were psyched to see them play live for the first time!

ARRRRRG! Castillo de San Marcos was a blast!

We stayed at the Pirate Haus Inn right downtown where they make the most amazing pancakes each morning.

After a great day splashing around on the beach, we shook off the sand and headed to the festival.

The competing BBQ crews were dwarfed by their massive signs promising awards won and much deliciousness. Too many to choose from!

Keri grabbed some corn and loaded hand-made potato chips to snack on.

This guy seemed to have his ribs figured out! 10 pounds of ribs, please!

Sadie never met a rib she didn't like!

Sadie was thrilled to sing along with J.J. Grey and Mofro. "Homesick, but its all right! Lochloosa is on my mind, its on my mind..."

2011-04-30T16:53:00.002-04:00

Ahhhh!!! These egg monsters scared the heck out of me when I opened the fridge the next morning. They made some amazing egg salad, though...

We had a great Easter egg hunt at Oompapa and Grandma Terri's place!

Liquid Nitrogen Instant Ice Cream

2011-04-13T13:05:00.002-04:00

"Look! A wizard!" Lillie was the first to spot the newest roadside sign spinner in town. Sporting a purple robe and a giant wizard head, this guy had all the moves down and his sign said the magic words: ICE CREAM!

We didn't realize that the Abracadabra Ice Cream Factory was not your average marble slab ice cream shop until we walked inside. The giant nitrogen canisters were the first clue and then we noticed that there was not one ice cream tub behind the counter. All the ice cream is made to order - frozen right before your eyes! What?!

We carefully selected Nutella, cherries and honey from the list of 36 mixers and then watched her swirl them into the custard cream base. She brought the bowl over to the nitrogen tanks and gave it a loud 10 second blast!

The smoking bowl was returned to the counter and she aggressively whipped the contents together until the frozen cream and all the ingredients combined in perfect harmony.

The girls loved the theatrics and the ice cream was truly delicious. Nutella's savory hazelnut and chocolate blended perfectly with the bright and tart cherries. Can't wait to go back!

Great American Pie Festival

2011-04-11T17:48:00.006-04:00

Welcome to the Great American Pie Festival! It was a hot spring day here in Central Florida but that didn't keep us from stopping by with Nana and Papa. We slurped on some fresh lemonade and wandered around downtown Celebration.

We met the Pie Twins and picked up a rhubarb/strawberry pie and a cherry pie too.

When we finally got home we decided to have pie for dinner! Strawberry/Rhubarb is a new favorite!

Now its time to dream up our own pie flavor!

Meatloaf Baby!

2011-04-10T19:09:00.001-04:00

Thanks to Tascha Foy for a photo of this amazing (and disturbing) meatloaf sculpture. The bacon diaper is perfect!

Nana Helping in the Garden

2011-04-09T17:42:00.003-04:00

Thanks to Nana for helping us trellis up the snow peas and pull out some weeds! We'll save you some golden beets!

Cincinnati Chili

2011-04-08T13:44:00.001-04:00

One of our favorite family comfort foods is Cincinnati chili. The flavors are similar to traditional chili but it tends to be a little sweeter and is served over spaghetti. We add toasted cinnamon and a little dark chocolate.

This batch was served 5-ways: angel hair pasta, chili, beans, shredded cheddar and minced red onion with a dollop of sour cream on top for good measure. Lille said it was better than her favorite meal of all time, spaghetti and homemade meatballs. That is saying a lot!

Lillie and the Golden Beets

2011-04-07T17:47:00.001-04:00

Lillie's new favorite veggie is the golden beet. I used to boil them but now we rub them with extra virgin oil and crack on some sea salt and pepper...then wrap them in foil and roast in the oven on 350 for 40 minutes.

We have a few golden beet recipes listed on P&C including this one from the image below - Lillie trying golden beets for the first time.

Happy Birthday Lola

2011-04-05T13:39:00.001-04:00

Our best buddy Lola turned one!

She was quoted as saying, "the chicken peanut butter cupcake was delicious!"

Asparagus is Alive!

2011-04-03T13:31:00.000-04:00

We added asparagus to the garden this year! Here is our first spear ever!

First Sprouts

2011-04-01T13:25:00.001-04:00

The micro mesclun greens are the first to arrive in our spring garden...

followed right behind by the mammoth sunflowers. Spring has sprung!

Sadie's Veggie Friends

2011-03-30T12:24:00.002-04:00

Every trip to Ikea is a new adventure for Super Sadie.

Marco Island Seafood Festival

2011-03-28T17:48:00.001-04:00

We spent a few days on Marco Island hanging out with Grandmom. We hunted for seashells, watched the sun slip into the sea and built castles in the sand. The last day we went to the Marco Island Seafood Festival and filled up on crabcakes, fish n chips and fresh Jonah crab claws. Somehow, the camera never came out while we were gorging on seafood so I posted this sunset picture instead. :)

And they called him Bacon...

2011-03-27T13:20:00.002-04:00

Sadie made a new friend!

Say hello to this 4-day old piglet named Bacon!

Corned Beef Hash

2011-03-19T13:53:00.000-04:00

Corned beef has got to be a savory breakfast lover's best friend. Sausage and bacon have the morning market covered but they better watch their back. A good fresh hash is hard to find so I started a new family tradition this year. After our St. Patrick's Day feast, I took the potatoes, turnips and carrots that had been soaking in the brine and seared them in pan with cubed pieces of the remaining corned beef. The results were remarkable. The outside was a crispy golden brown and the inside was concentrated and tender deliciousness. A few fried eggs on top and the world was a better place.

Seaweed Snacks

2011-03-11T13:00:00.000-05:00

Sadie and I made a special trip to Phuoc Loc Tho Oriental Supermarket to track down our new favorite seaweed snacks. They are light and crispy like a long paper-thin Cheeto but with a briny, seaweed and umami savoriness to them. I've found 8 flavors so far including kimshi! Delicious!

After Sadie tried on a few hats, we picked out some new candy. I don't know what this is called but it is truly the best candy ever. Its part Brach's jelly bean nougat, part starburst and part gummy bear. We need to find more of these!

Spring Garden 2011

2011-03-03T12:26:00.004-05:00

We had a blast planning out and planting our spring garden this year with the help of my dad (aka Papa Wu.)

First we raked up the rest of the leaves from winter - why didn't they blow into the neighbor's yard like last year? Mysterious Mother Nature...

Papa Wu helped us pull out any weeds and rake in the new soil.

I stapled down the guide string to help us know where to plant the seeds. If you are thinking about gardening in small space, check out squarefootgardening.com/

We planted our favorites like sugar snap peas, golden beets, rainbow carrots and lots of salad greens.

We also added some new veggies to try including purple string beans, asparagus, swiss chard and Sadie's new favorite, Brussel Sprouts!

All the seeds are in and the soil is patted down. We put the tall, fast growers in the back and short, slow growers in the front so everyone gets some sun.

Lillie cleans up the last few stray leaves.

Sprinkler fun after a long day of planting!

Ok, we did our part...what choo got, garden?

Have Fork, Will Travel

2010-12-15T19:37:00.001-05:00

Sadie found this giant fork while we were Christmas shopping!

Welcome to the Bahamas!

2010-12-09T12:17:00.001-05:00

We just returned from a cruise to the Bahamas. It was a great adventure and the girls had a blast!

We chased rainbows...

build castles in the sand...

won a medal...

dressed up like pirates...

and pillaged the ship with the rest of the scallywags!

We explored Atlantis...

learned how to carve fruit into fancy art...

drank fruity drinks...

laughed at our silly waiter...

ate more food that we should have...

and then ate a little more!

The best part was trying food we've never tried before...

like fresh Bahamian conch salad with lots of salty conch, crunchy veggies and tangy lime juice. Sadie was a little nervous at first...

Our favorite were the conch fritters. Golden brown and crispy on the outside and filled with tender pieces of conch, herbs and fluffy dough. Delicious!

So long Bahamas, and thanks for all the food!

Fall Harvest

2010-11-21T12:39:00.001-05:00

Our fall garden was a little thin this year. Our watermelon, pumpkins, squash and Malibar spinach didn't make it through the hot summer. It was getting chilly and time to harvest. Sadie and I pulled all the peanuts out of the ground - I couldn't believe how many there were under all that dirt!

The sweet potatoes were the next to come out. They were petite, tender and colorful. We also harvested 12 small sunchokes. Also called Jerusalem artichokes, they are a species of sunflower with a sweet and nutty tuber with a texture similar to a potato. Delicious!

What's For Dinner? Unicorn Meat!

2010-11-12T15:57:00.001-05:00

It's late. You lost track of time and your kids are starving. Why not open up a delicious can of Unicorn Meat - with Magic in Every Bite!

Octoberfest!

2010-10-28T12:17:00.001-04:00

We took a trip to Epcot on a beautiful fall day and ate some delicious Octoberfest fare in the German pavilion.

Lillie's favorite song, The Chicken Dance was being played by the band so she was in hog heaven. The food was heavy but delicious and both girls ate more than their fair share. Prost!

Pickles and Cake Logo Choices

2010-10-21T19:42:00.000-04:00

We are so lucky to have Paula Grech from Mintygreenhouse and her artistic kids working on our new logo! Here are the design choices and I'm having trouble picking one!

Epcot Food and Wine Festival

2010-10-12T11:31:00.002-04:00

We went to Epcot yesterday afternoon for a few hours to enjoy the 15th annual Food and Wine Fest. The samples are always two to four bucks and the perfect size for a sharing taste.

Lillie's favorite was the grilled beef skewer with chimichurri and boniato puree from Argentina. I loved the Asopao de Pollo from Puerto Rico - it had a really complex broth with lots of olives and chicken in the mix. Yum!

It was getting late after tasting samples from Chile, Argentina and Puerto Rico so we will go back this weekend. Looks like there is a vanilla and a butter demonstration! Bring on the butter!

Voting is now open! Project Food Blog Challenge #4

2010-10-12T10:25:00.000-04:00

We are thrilled to be in Project Food Blog's top 100! Click the link below to vote for our entry into Challenge #4. We whipped up some Vietnamese summer rolls and provided a step by step tutorial.

http://www.foodbuzz.com/project_food_blog/challenges/4/view/1344

Vietnamese Summer Rolls for Everyone!

2010-10-10T17:31:00.000-04:00

Vietnamese summer rolls are a light and healthy, kid-friendly meal that can be enjoyed any time of the year. Fresh and not fried, they are made at the table one at a time.

The Vietnamese name for these fresh rolls is Goi Cuon which translates literally into "rolled mixed salad." Creating these hand-held salads is an adventure in itself and the girls love to see who can wrap together the perfect roll.

Vietnamese Summer Rolls (Goi Cuon)

2 raw pork loin chops
1/2 lb shrimp, peeled and deveined
1 tsp sesame oil
2 carrots, peeled
2 small cucumbers
2 cups bean sprouts
1 head butter or Boston bibb lettuce, washed
2 handfulls of fresh mint
2 handfulls of fresh basil
1 package summer roll wrappers
1 package vermicelli noodles
1/2 cup roughly chopped peanuts
Kosher salt

Rinse and pat dry pork chops.

Remove fat from pork chops and slice thin.

Heat sesame oil on medium heat in a sauté pan until shimmering. Carefully place pork slices into the pan so they lie flat and aren't touching. Sear 2 minutes on each side. Remove with tongs and place in a small bowl for serving.

Boil salted water and place shrimp into pot once you have a rolling boil. Cook for 3 minutes and remove.

Let the shrimp cool and then cut them in half lengthwise.

Julienne carrots and cucumber into long skinny strips.

Soak noodles for 5 minutes in hot water. Drain and place in serving bowl with tongs.

Now its time to make the dipping sauce. The traditional Nuoc Cham served at your local Vietnamese noodle house is a little too fishy and funky for the girls so we make a peanut sauce instead. A little Vietnamese fish sauce is added to give it a more complex flavor.

Peanut Hoisin Dipping Sauce

1 tablespoon sugar
1/3 cup hoisin sauce
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 tbsp shallot, minced
1/2 tbsp ginger, finely grated
1/2 tbsp Vietnamese fish sauce
1/2 lime, juiced
3 tbsp water
3 tbsp peanut butter

Warm the oil in a small saucepan over medium heat. Add the garlic, ginger and shallot and cook until lightly browned, about 30 seconds.

Add remaining ingredients, whisk well and simmer for 1 minute. If necessary, add additional water until the mixture has a thick, creamy consistency.

The last step is to roughly chop the peanuts and place in a small serving bowl.

Place every bowl and plate of yummy goodness on the table along with a large bowl of hot water. Not too hot for those little fingers!

Time to eat! The first step in constructing a summer roll is to soften the wrapper using the bowl of hot water.

This will take a few tries to get it just right - don't worry, you have lots of wrappers in the package! Carefully rotate the wrapper until it is almost soft and place it flat on your plate. If the wrapper starts to stick to itself, just submerge it in the water for a few seconds and try again.

Now it is time to fill up the summer roll. There is no right or wrong order so stack the filling according to your taste buds. I usually put the shrimp and the herbs on the outside so you can see them through the translucent wrapper. Be careful not to overfill or you will need a fork to eat it!

After the shrimp comes the lettuce!

Hooray for noodles!

Veggies and pork too.

Herbs and sprouts, please.

Finally some peanuts for good luck.

Now it is time to fold. The trick here is "the tighter the better" although the girls seem to be doing fine with their loosey-goosey approach.

The first few are always a little rough around the edges but practice makes perfect! In the end, its all about trying new things and having fun. This is a perfect meal for that.

Bring the bottom edge of the wrapper up and over the filling and tuck it under. Fold the sides in or you can leave them open if you prefer.

Roll up and over one time.

Tuck once more and roll again! There you have it.

Now you can slice it or just dip the whole thing into the peanut sauce.

How many can you eat?

Time to Vote! Project Food Blog Challenge #3

2010-10-05T19:19:00.004-04:00

Please click the link below to vote for our fun family food blog!

It just takes a few seconds!

http://www.foodbuzz.com/project_food_blog/challenges/3/view/1157

We are hoping to crack the top 100 with our latest Golden Dinner Party post.

Thanks to foodbuzz.com and their Project Food Blog contest for pushing us in the right direction. We are having so much fun!

http://www.foodbuzz.com/project_food_blog/challenges/3/view/1157

Lobsters on the Grill

2010-10-05T11:46:00.002-04:00

Even a quick trip to Maine must have a lobster in it! We picked up some bugs right off the boat and fired up the grill. I cut them in half straight down the middle and brushed them with some clarified butter filled with herbs, shallot, lemon and garlic. 8 minutes on the flesh side and 2 on the shell. The tails were so tender and full of flavor and the claws were fantastic as well! We served them up with roasted fingerling potatoes, grilled asparagus and corn for good measure. Thanks to Jason and Anna for a great visit!