Definitely Worth the Effort: Dried Thyme

In these hectic modern days, it seems every decision is a cost-benefit analysis... is the end result worth the time it takes to do it yourself? In many cases, the answer is yes for me, especially when it comes to the kitchen. However, sometimes, life starts making some of those decisions for you. The other day I mentioned how we had to leave our little Ohio farm behind a few years ago. When I had my farm, I don't think I ever purchased store bought herbs for any reason... I grew them all myself.

Now days, I have to be a little more selective about what I plant. I currently have only 64 square feet to work with. That's less than one half a percent of the garden space I had in Ohio. This deficiency leads to some hard choices. Which crops are so much better home grown that they deserve some of that tiny little space? While I grow a number of fresh herbs in pots on my patio, I've recently realized that growing a few thyme bushes in my garden so I can have enough to dry my own is definitely worth the effort.

I came to this realization when I bought some thyme at the grocery store a few months back. Can you tell in the picture above which I bought and which I grew? Yeah, me too. Today, while I was shopping for some spices, I saw a jar of ground thyme that was brown. I may be mistaken, but I'm pretty sure thyme isn't supposed to be brown. One other benefit of home dried thyme? It actually smells like thyme. I know, you've probably started to forget that dried thyme actually has an aroma, haven't you?

Fortunately, thyme is super easy to grow. In fact, in Ohio, I started regretting planting all five thyme plants because by the third year, I had more thyme than I could eat, store, or sell. Drying thyme is also easy. I use my dehydrator because it dries it so quickly, which helps to retain that beautiful green color, but you could dry yours just as easily in an low oven or simply hanging in a warm, dry place. Once it's dried and stripped from the stems, it will last for years in an air tight container, provided you protect it from too much light exposure.

Spinach and Great Northern Beans

I am always looking for new and interesting, but fast, side dishes that are on the healthier side. In this case, I was looking for a side dish that packed a little more of a sustained punch than most vegetable side dishes without being a lot of empty carbohydrates. I love eating a big plate of broccoli and it fills me up, but I'm hungry again in less than an hour. I wanted a dish that would stick with me a bit longer. Fortunately, I have come to realize that I absolutely adore great northern beans. Their creaminess is so wonderful, but I find they need a little something-something to go with them. This dish surely lets them shine.

Spinach and Great Northern Beans
Yield: 2 generous side servings

1 15 oz can great northern beans, drained and rinsed
8 oz fresh spinach
1 clove garlic, minced
1 TBS olive oil
salt and pepper to taste

Heat a saute pan over medium high heat. Add the oil and the garlic, letting them sizzle together for a minute or two. Add the spinach and toss occasionally so that it cooks evenly. When the spinach is mostly wilted, add the beans and cook for just so that the beans are heated through. Remove from the heat, add salt and pepper to taste, and serve. Be careful not to saute the beans too long or they will dry out and be less appealing.

Peach-Rosemary Freezer Jam

Once upon a time, there was a wife who talked her husband into buying a little patch of land with some peach trees on it. There were four peach trees: two yellow fleshed and two white fleshed. This wife had always dreamed of having her own peach trees, ever since she was a little girl "helping" her Nana can the peaches from a backyard tree.

When the first season came around, the wife watched, entranced as blossoms came with a multitude of honeybees earnestly going about their work. And when the blossoms set fruit, she rejoiced over each hard green marble. And as the season went by, she mourned the necessity of thinning such an abundance of fruit. And then one day, she walked out to check on the fruit of her labor and was rewarded with this sight:

Big, beautiful, aromatic, juicy, delicious fruit. And then she looked at the four trees and went, "Oh, my, but that's a heck of a lot of peaches."

And, indeed, it was. And so the canning began. And continued... and then continued some more.

But then one day, the wife and her husband got orders from the military: "Thou shalt sell your beloved farm and move to the suburbs in Florida." And so they did... leaving those beautiful peach trees behind.

Fortunately, Georgia peach country isn't that far from the panhandle of Florida. There's a fruit stand in town that sells the things and isn't ashamed to let a box of cast offs go to a gal for a decent price. I got this fifteen pounds of slightly blemished peaches for only five bucks. This box made seven 8-oz jars of jam and eight pints of cut peaches in syrup. Not a bad deal! Fortunately, when making jam, you can simply cut around all the bruises.

I made this jam once before in a cooked variety and it was decent, but I left the rosemary in too long and once the peaches lost their "fresh" taste when cooked, it just wasn't as good. However, when I tried the combination this time as a freezer jam? Heaven! The subtle aroma and flavor of the rosemary just adds a certain je ne sais quoi to the peaches. It may sound weird, but I urge you to give it a try!

I used the peach freezer jam recipe from a box of Certo liquid pectin. All I really did differently was add two four inch springs of rosemary to the fruit and sugar and let it sit a while, stirring periodically. I tasted every so often and continued to let it sit until the flavor was just right. When is it just right? Well, when it tastes good to you! It took my fruit about an hour to infuse to the level of flavor I thought right. Use your best judgement! Once the fruit tastes right, remove and discard the rosemary sprigs.

Add the pectin and lemon juice as instructed on your package and put into containers. I prefer jars, but you can use whatever floats your boat. Such a pretty hue! And oh so tasty!

Peach-Rosemary Freezer Jam
Yield: 7 or 8 cups
Adapted from the Certo Liquid Pectin Insert

2 3/4 cups finely chopped peaches
6 1/2 cups sugar
2 pouches Certo liquid pectin
1/3 cup fresh lemon juice
2 4-inch rosemary sprigs

Remove the peel in a boiling water bath and pit and chop into small pieces. While working, toss finished pieces into a water bath with some lemon juice or fruit fresh to inhibit browning. Drain and measure out the fruit and add to the sugar. Stir together. Add the rosemary sprigs and let sit, stirring occasionally, until the peaches have a nice, subtle hint of rosemary, about an hour.

Remove the rosemary sprigs. Mix the pectin and lemon juice together and let them sit for ten minutes. Add the lemon pectin mixture to the fruit mixture and stir continuously for three minutes. At this point, the mixture should only have a few sugar crystals remaining.

Pour the jam into prepared containers, leaving a half-inch of head space for expansion as the jam freezes. Let the jam stand at room temperature until it is set, up to 24 hours. Freeze until ready to use. Thaw in the refrigerator before use.

Strawberry Topping

I just love this time of year. In many areas, strawberries are one of the first real fruit crops of the season, and it always gets me excited about things to come. While strawberries are undeniably at their best fresh out of the field: warm, sweet, and juicy, they just don't keep long fresh. Fortunately, there is an easy and delicious way to enjoy strawberries year round. If preserved properly, strawberries can come out of the freezer tasting very much like they went in. There's nothing better than enjoying strawberry shortcake in November or strawberry topping on waffles with whipped cream in January.

The first step is to rinse and cut up the berries. Remove any overly ripe parts and rotten spots. Remove the stems and cut into roughly nickel sized pieces. For every quart of prepared berries, squeeze about half a lemon's worth of juice into them. Please note that all of the measurements in this process are very loose; simply taste as you go to be sure it's right for your palate.

Then add some sugar. For a quart of berries, I use between half and one cup of sugar typically. But, again, it will always vary depending on the sweetness of the berries. One point to keep in mind, however, is that you don't want to skimp too much on the sugar. The sugar helps thicken the topping and keeps that beautiful red color vibrant. Use too little sugar and you may be a bit disappointed in the results.

Stir the sugar in and then gently crush the berries with your hands. Do not use any mechanical means to complete this step. You do not want the berries pulverized, just gently crushed. This step helps the berries to release more of their juice and also damages the cell walls in the strawberries enough that freezing the topping will no longer change its texture or structure much.

Don't crush things too much. You still want some nice sized pieces in there. In this image, the topping is sitting in a large serving spoon which is about three inches long. Look at all that delicious syrup that's developed!

At this point, spoon the mixture into freezer containers. I like square ones like these (I picked mine up at Wal-Mart a few years ago). Be sure to leave a half-inch at the top of the container so the mixture can expand as it freezes without making a mess of your freezer. Just as an FYI, this batch of twelve pint containers was from one flat of strawberries.

When you are ready to use, you can defrost them in the refrigerator, on the counter, or in the microwave (just go gently!). Spoon over cakes, ice cream, waffles, or oatmeal. Use to make the best daiquiris or margaritas ever or use to make a delicious smoothie. Or defrost only enough to get a spoon in there to scrape out frozen bits and serve over your favorite cold cereal or as a frozen dessert with whipped cream.

What I love most about putting these little containers in the freezer is that they are so darn versatile!

Old Fashioned Oatmeal

As I've mentioned before, my usual breakfast consists of two muffins. Occasionally, especially on the weekends, I like to mix it up and have something different. If my husband has anything to do with it, those weekend breakfasts are very traditional and involve eggs, sausage and toast. Unfortunately, he's not a big fan of baked goods. I have a slew of carbohydrate-rich breakfasts that would make my day, but I try not to overwhelm him with pancakes, waffles, scones, and cinnamon rolls too often.

Interestingly enough, serving oatmeal had never crossed my mind... until the other day when he was nice enough to indulge my soft-serve craving at McDonald's. He noticed that they are now serving oatmeal. The end result of that conversation was that I maybe had another option for our weekend breakfasts. Today was the day to give it a try!

I made an old fashioned oatmeal, meaning I used old fashioned oats. I like my oatmeal to have a little substance to it and not be like glue. Making oatmeal yourself at home is so easy, I'm not really sure why you would ever need those little packets of "instant" oatmeal. Plus, your options for toppings are so much more varied and naturally delicious if you make it yourself.

I topped ours with my maple blueberry topping and some toasted almonds. The combination of flavors and textures was phenomenal!

Old Fashioned Oatmeal
Yield: 2 servings

3/4 cup water
3/4 cup milk
1/4 tsp salt
1 cup old fashioned oats

Mix the water and milk in a sauce pan over medium to medium high heat. When the mixture starts to steam, add the oats and salt. Stir periodically until the liquid is mostly absorbed and the oats are softened but not mushy, about 3-5 minutes. Serve immediately (lest it become pasty) and top with your favorite accompaniments.

Ham and Cheese Filled Crepes

My big indulgence each week is my Thursday "card" playing day with the gals. We play Mah Jongg. Not the computer version, but the old fashioned tile version. To be honest, I didn't even know such a thing existed until I started playing with this group. While the game is a little more involved than most card games, once you get the hang of it, it's great fun!

One of the best things about this group, however, is that each week someone new is responsible for bring lunch. I served my recently posted Peanut Butter-Oatmeal Bars when it was my turn about a month ago. Being military wives, we all come from such diverse backgrounds that each week's lunch is a pleasant surprise.

Take lunch from a couple weeks ago, for instance. We were served a delicious lunch of ham and cheese wrapped in crepes. Now, if you've been with me long enough, you might remember that I have a thing for crepes. In fact, usually, when I make them, it's all I can do to not eat every single crepe the second it comes out of the pan... makes it kind of hard to collect enough to make anything! Well, this lunch reminded me with a vengence just how much I love crepes, so I had to make them myself for dinner.

These little rolls are so easy and delicious! In fact, my husband, who kind of rolled his eyes when I told him what I was making for dinner, took one bite, gave me a wink and a little Cheshire grin and said, "I guess these are OK." Okay, indeed! Silly husband for doubting me!

All you need to make these are a few simple ingredients. To make the crepes, you just need some eggs, milk, flour, and butter. I've included a crepe recipe below so that you have enough batter for this recipe, but if you need a refresher on making crepes, just go take a look at my crepes post. I make my crepes for this recipe a little thicker than I normally do. In addition to crepes ingredients, you will need 9 ounces of thinly sliced ham (I used a container of Oscar Meyer Deli Fresh Honey Ham) and 6 ounces of cheese (I used Muenster).

For each roll, place a small amount of shredded cheese on the inside of the crepe. Place four slices of ham on top and then sprinkle a little more cheese. Note that you don't need a lot of cheese on each roll. A little goes a long way.

Then just loosely roll up the crepe and place in a greased 13x9 pan. Bake at 375° F for 20-25 minutes, or until heated through.

As soon as they'rer heated through, they're ready to serve. I'd start with two. These things are deceptively satisfying and filling!


Crepe Recipe
Yield: 8 thick crepes (1/4 cup batter each)

3 eggs
1 1/2 TBS butter, melted
3/8 tsp salt
2/3 cup flour
1 cup milk

Mix and then run through a sieve to make sure you don't end up with lumpy crepes. Cook over medium heat in a ten-inch non-stick skillet. A ten-inch skillet will typically result in eight-inch crepes.

Peanut Butter-Oatmeal Bars

A couple of weeks ago, I was responsible for bringing lunch to a function I was attending. While I was smart as a whip for the main part of the meal, preparing items that we're tried and true winners I had already prepared before, I was not so smart when it came to preparing a dessert.

I had been wanting to try making Parisian macaroons for some time and I figured this lunch provided the perfect opportunity. Therein, I broke Rule 1 of cooking for others on a time line: don't try something new when you don't have time for a re-do if it flops. Needless to say, as you might guess, I had some issues with my macaroons. Apparently where my recipe said almond meal, what they really meant to say was almond flour. Big difference when you are making such light and delicate treats! They turned out horrible! Unservable! And it was after 9 pm when I realized that they were hopeless.

I had to teach in the morning, so if I was going to serve a dessert at that lunch, I had to come up with something quick... and easy. I was getting tired! Cookies would've been fairly easy, but I didn't feel like standing over the oven in 8 to 10 minute batches. So, I turned to the Internet to find a suitable last minute rescue!

I found this little gem on The Pioneer Woman's Tasty Kitchen site. They are so easy to make and quite tasty (ha ha). They are not overly sweet as so many cookie bars can be. I mixed and baked and was in bed in less than 40 minutes! The following morning, I cut up the bars and was on my way. They were a great hit with the ladies. Disaster averted!

Peanut Butter-Oatmeal Bars
Yield: 24 to 40 bars, depending on how you cut them
Adapted from Melissa McCauley's Recipe on Tasty Kitchen

1/2 cup shortening
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup creamy peanut butter
1 egg
1/4 cup milk

1/2 tsp vanilla
1 cup flour
1 cup quick oats
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking soda

2 cups powdered sugar
1/4 cup cocoa powder
3 TBS butter, melted
3 TBS hot water
1/2 tsp vanilla

Preheat the oven to 350° F. Cream together the shortening, sugars, and peanut butter. Add the egg, milk, and vanilla and stir to combine. In a separate bowl, mix the flour, oats, salt, and soda. Add all at once to the creamed mixture and stir until thoroughly mixed. Smooth mixture into a 9x13 inch, parchment lined pan. I leave the edges of the parchment long in one direction so that I can use them as handles when I'm ready to lift the bars out of the pan for cutting. Bake for 20 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool thoroughly.

Beat together the powdered sugar, cocoa, butter, water, and vanilla until smooth. Spread evenly over the cooled bars. Place, covered, in the refrigerator overnight to firm up.

After they have chilled overnight (or at least four hours), use the parchment to lift the mass out of the pan onto a cutting board. Use a large pizza cutter to cut uniform pieces. Let the bars come to room temperature before serving for best flavor.

Bran Muffins

Do you know the muffin man, the muffin man, the muffin man?

Well... apparently, you do. Except that she's not a man and she certainly doesn't deliver muffins to others because she is too busy eating them herself.

I admit it. I eat a lot of muffins. More, in fact, that I ever realized. Almost a year ago, I was in Tampa for spring break and - since they have a GFS store there and I don't here - I stocked up on muffin papers. I purchased a box of 500 muffin wrappers. They are almost gone. Hmmm... so, let's see. That's over 40 dozen muffins.

So sue me! They're my go-to breakfast. I usually eat two (regular sized muffins) each morning. My favorite muffins are chocolate chip and banana nut, but occasionally I like to branch out and get crazy. I have been searching for a bran muffin recipe that matches the perfect bran muffin taste memory that I have in my brain. I've tried a number of recipes, and finally I have found it!

These are good tasting bran muffins, not to be confused with "health" muffins. These suckers have plenty of fiber in them, but they also have a decent bit of sugar and oil. That's what makes them so tasty! Oh, and as far as I'm concerned, the dates are mandatory... even if you don't like dates (which I don't).

Bran Muffins
Yield: approx. 12 regular sized or 6 large muffins
Adapted from Advanced Bread and Pastry

1/3 cup oil
1 TBS honey
3 TBS molasses (unsulphured)
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla
2 eggs
1 cup buttermilk

1 1/4 cup plus 1 TBS flour (preferably bread flour)
2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/8 tsp table salt
1/2 cup wheat germ
1/2 cup wheat bran

1 1/2 cup chopped dates (rolled in sugar to prevent sticking if you cut them yourself)

Mix the dry ingredients together and set aside. Stir the wet ingredients together. Add the dry ingredients to the wet along with the chopped dates and stir thoroughly. At this point, the batter will be much thinner than a typical muffin batter. Set the mixture aside to for 20 minutes. This step in important because the bran needs to hydrate a bit before the batter has a decent consistency.

While the batter sits, preheat the oven to 375° F and line your muffin pan with papers. When the 20 minutes are up, fill the muffin cups almost full, maybe four-fifths full. Sprinkle the tops with turbinado sugar and rolled oats, if desired. Bake for 18-25 minutes, or until done. Test with a cake tester as the muffins can look done before they are fully baked in the center. Remove from the pans to cool fully on a rack.

Bruschetta

This little dish is a favorite of mine. It's also one of those ones where it's different every time I make it. Bruschetta is an Italian appetizer that involves toasted bread and a topping, often of tomatoes and garlic. This iteration was a little more traditional, but I've also made toppings with sauteed mushrooms and tomatoes, which is just jim dandy, too.

This version here was basically a raw salsa of tomatoes, onions, garlic, and herbs. It came about because I started to make guacamole and then realized my avocado had passed its prime. It was a sad day until I realized that I could give that salsa mixture new life.

Cut a baguette on a diagonal so that you have slightly larger slices. In my experience, if your slices are too thin, the stuff just keeps falling off. I cut mine about one centimeter thick. Brush with olive oil and then broil in the oven, flipping halfway through, until both sides are gently golden.

Chop up a few seeded Roma tomatoes, purple onion, and garlic. The ratios are up to you depending on your fondness for each ingredient. Don't forget a little kosher or sea salt to bring out the flavors. A little pepper wouldn't be a mistake either. Throw in some dry or fresh oregano and basil. Stir the mixture and spoon onto the tops of the toasted bread. You can serve them like this, but I like to add a little Parmigiano Reggiano to the top. I then put them under the broiler for just a few moments to melt the cheese. You don't want to broil them too long or your tomatoes will turn mushy and the juices will start oozing all over your nice crisp toast.

Serve at room temperature. They can be served right away or can sit tight for an hour or so, if necessary.

Oh, and in case you've been wondering where I've been... well, perhaps you will forgive me if I've been loath to spend more time in front of my computer lately than is absolutely necessary. It's just been gorgeous here lately. I've got to enjoy it while I can before the gates of hell open up! I hope the weather hasn't been too miserable in your neck of the woods.

Home Fried Chicken

This is one of those down-home comfort meals that really pleases. However, you have to be aware that home fried chicken does not taste the same as store bought fried chicken. That's the point, right?

Home fried chicken has a classic flavor and texture all its own. It's skin is not break your teeth crunchy but is instead delicately crisp and flavorful. The flesh is so luxuriously moist - and not because it's squirting grease everywhere either. It's so moist, you'll wonder what they're doing wrong at those chain chicken places. If you like super greasy, super crunchy fried chicken, then do yourself a favor and just go order take out. If you want a less boisterous but more flavorful fried chicken, then give this a try.

I like to use all legs when making fried chicken. There are a few reasons for this, not the least of which is that legs are my favorite. However, I also really like cooking pieces that are all the same size and structure. It makes cooking them evenly soooooo much easier. I also like legs because they are smaller and, therefore, cook faster. Mine spend less than thirty minutes cooking. You can use other pieces, but you'll have to adjust the time they spend cooking. I would still recommend at least using all the same type of parts for the best results.

The trickiest part about making this chicken is you have to have patience. You start out cooking the chicken over decently high heat just to set the crust, but then you have to turn it way down. I used to have the hardest time doing that when I was younger. Every time I was at the stove it was all about high heat all the time. Trust me, that just doesn't work at all when making fried chicken. I can't tell you how often I ended up with raw chicken with a burnt crust. Yuck! If you want the chicken cooked all the way through before the crust browns too much, you have to go low and slow for the majority of the time.

Home Fried Chicken
Yield: 8- 10 legs

8-10 chicken legs, skin on or off
2 cups all purpose flour
1 tsp table salt
1/2 tsp ground black pepper
1/2 tsp paprika
1/2 tsp garlic powder
2 eggs
1/2 cup milk
vegetable oil, for frying

Mix the flour and spices together in shallow bowl or plastic container. In a separate container, lightly beat the eggs and milk together. Dip each chicken leg in the flour, shaking off any excess. Then dip the leg into the egg mixture, being sure to coat all sides. Finally, dip the leg back into the flour mixture, rolling to coat thoroughly. Set the leg on a sheet tray while coating the remaining legs.

Heat 1/4 to 1/2 an inch of oil in a large skillet over medium to medium high heat. I use a small piece of the flour/egg mixture that invariably ends up stuck to my finger to check the heat of the oil. You are looking for that piece of dough to instantly start fizzing vigorously. Once the oil is hot, add the legs and cook, turning occasionally to brown all sides for about five minutes. You may want a spatter shield during this time period.

After the initial browning, turn the heat down to medium low and cover. For normal sized legs, cook about 15-20 minutes, checking periodically with a meat thermometer. When the internal temperature is around 145° F, remove the cover and turn the heat back up to re-crisp the crust, about five minutes. Cook until the crust is nicely golden and crispy. Remove chicken and place on a cooling rack lined with paper towels to drain and cool slightly.