Green Bean Summertime Memories

To me, Farmers' Markets are just about the best thing since sliced bread (and I can slice my own bread, so maybe they are a little better than sliced bread.) The freshest of ingredients, picked just this morning, the fact that going to one just screams summertime, and actually makes you WANT to eat healthy, instead of feeling obligated to do so, and the flood of inspiration that comes every time I even get near one.

This is what came of my most recent Farmers' Market visit, and it just so happens to be one of my favorite meals of all time.

Stewed potatoes, green beans, and ham - just thinking about this meals brings back memories.

 I was, and still am, one of those strange kids who actually liked it when their grandma enlisted them to help pick and string green beans for dinner. Some of my fondest memories are of Mommaw and I, out in her front yard with big bowls in our laps and lemonade at our elbows, watching the river flow by as we threw green bean strings in the grass. Not a care in the world, just watching the time pass by.

The whole ensemble, just begging to be enjoyed on the porch with some iced tea.

 Boppaw always loved this meal too, since whenever we made it, we always had extra cornbread left over, which means that he would get a midnight snack of cornbread and milk. Yep, just crumble the cornbread in the bottom of a bowl (or in my case, warm it a little in the largest mug you have) and pour over some milk. The best part is the bottom, when the cornbread has turned to mush... a little unknown comfort food at it's finest. He and I would know just when to meet at the kitchen island to make ourselves a bowl.

No summertime meal is complete without some vine ripened tomatoes and cucumbers. Add a chunk of whole wheat cornbread and I'm in heaven.

 Here's hoping you too are making wonderful summertime memories.

Stewed Potatoes and Green Beans

1 LB fresh green beans, strung and snapped

1 LB red potatoes, scrubbed and cut into bite size pieces

1/2 LB country or pit ham, cut into bite size pieces (you can also use a ham hock here)

water to cover

Place all your ingredients in a large pot and cover with water. Leave on low and cook all day long. One hour before you want to eat, put your cornbread in the oven and season your stewed veggies with salt and pepper, as needed.

Grilling, Picnics, and Bubble Tea

I hope this blog post finds you all enjoying your summertime to the fullest: the weather has gotten decidedly warmer around here which makes staying inside virtually impossible; farmers' markets beckon to me from every street corner; swimming pools and sprinklers become necessities and sun kissed tans are quickly building to darkened tan lines. Oh how I love summertime. 

I've also been enjoying the many pleasures of alfresco dining with my man. We are quickly become grill masters and have used his barbecue to cook the majority of our meals as of late. This was actually one of the first meals we made together.

Spicy grilled chicken, spring greens salad, par-boiled and grilled potatoes, and an orange salad.

A little red wine never hurt anyone either...

 There has also been a ton of picnicking too, a traditional summertime staple. Here are some pictures from our very first picnic together. We ended up staying at the park until way after the sun went down, just talking and snacking.

Macadamia crusted tapalia, veggie basil brown rice salad, lots of sliced watermelon, homemade pecan honey bread, and chocolate dipped strawberries. A picnic fit for sharing!

 And we have been blessed enough to have shared many many breakfasts together as well. He is in the process of perfecting my soft boiled eggs, something which I had never tried to master before meeting him. This is just one way in which we spend our mornings together.

 And last but certainly not least, I have now officially tried Bubble Tea! For those of you out there who have no idea what I am talking about, let me break it down for you, because it is an experience everyone has to have at least once. Picture a smoothie, in whatever flavor floats your boat, that has been blended with green tea and a little protein powder. So far, pretty awesome sounding right? But it gets better! They then add boba to the bottom of your glass. What is boba? Little spheres of heaven that burst in your mouth and provide an incredibly sensational and yet almost unrepeatable sensory overload! Really, they are like nothing else I've experienced, especially in a drink. Some people don't enjoy this overall sensory overload, but I quite enjoyed it. The protein powder kept me full and focused (I sound like a Shredded Wheat commercial, but when the shoe fits...) and the flavor combination was refreshing and ultimately a treat. I shall be visiting that place again real soon. 

I highly recommend a mango Bubble Tea when you go... which should be now... go get your keys... or better yet walk to the nearest Bubble Tea shop and enjoy the summertime weather!

I'll end all this with a recipe that I am sure Peter, my boyfriend, would be ecstatic if I shared with you all. It has been his favorite thing we have made together so far (and trust me, we have dabbled in a lot of noms.)

Spicy Orange Salad

2 oranges, peeled and sliced whichever way you choose
1 TB freshly minced parsley, or 1 tsp dried
1/2 tsp chili powder
1/4 tsp cayenne powder
1/4 tsp salt

Place oranges in a bowl (the easiest way to peel an orange for a salad like this is just to cut of the rind with a sharp knife.) Sprinkle on the remaining ingredients, adjust the seasoning for your taste, toss with your fingers, and serve.

In Continuation of my Tardy Mother's Day Theme

I figured I should get on posting about the actual meal that we enjoyed in order to commemorate another wonderfully spectacular and festively embraced Mother's Day.

What was on the menu? Why, a traditional backyard barbecue feast, certainly fit for my mom - 

Grilled Chicken Sausages and Hamburgers, with all the messy fixin's

Potato Salad

Grilled Asparagus

Cabbage Salad

Ice Cream and Brownie Sundaes

I owe you all the recipe for the cabbage salad - I have not yet memorized it and am back in Lexington, thus far away from mom's recipe box. It's delicious and simple though, definitely something up my alley, not to mention not that bad for you. The kicker? Dried ramen noodles, a food completely banned from my diet and yet, in this salad, it seems so right that I can overlook the sodium, fake ingredients, and overall "blah" just this once.

No barbecue plate is complete without Izzy's pickles - if you have no idea what I am talking about, then you have been sorely missing out your entire life... look them up now!

Doesn't this look like a kitchen island full of heaven?!

Spring Time Salads

I know what you're thinking - Katelyn, why are you devoting an ENTIRE blog post to salads, they are SO BORING. I am writing this post to, well, prove all you haters out there wrong. I am a huge fan of salads, but admit that they can be kind of boring sometimes, which is why I have made it my goal to make exciting, tasty, healthy, and intriguing salads this summer. First, let's answer the question: why salad?

With my summertime work schedule, I don't get to eat much of a lunch and tend to work right through from breakfast to around 4:30 when I get home, which means I arrive home ravenous at not-the-most opportune time. My solution? Have a substantial snack, something like a piece of peanut butter toast and an apple, cottage cheese and strawberries, or hummus and carrot sticks, and then go on with the rest of my day until dinner time, which is usually a few hours later. Since I just ate, my dinners have consisted of a lot of hearty salads, as they are light and filling, quick and easy, they make me feel healthy, are customizable, I get my vegetables in, and they are great ways to clean out the fridge. What's not to love?

So the key is to be excited about your salad. Buy some interesting ingredients to make the dressing, or try a new vegetable, fruit, nut, or leafy green to switch things up a bit. Here are some tips that I have been using to build the best spring time salad possible.

Tip #1: Make your own dressing.

I know, I know. That takes more time than pouring it out of a bottle. But here are some reasons why you should make your own:

• Statistically, you use less dressing if you make your own.
• There is less mystery stuff in homemade dressings.
• You can control the taste, so if you like it spicy, sweeter, or creamier, you make make that happen.
• Homemade dressings are better for you, hands down.

I started my going to a gourmet olive oil and balsamic vinegar shop here in Lexington, which turned into a very dangerous place for me to be - I luckily got out of there with minimal damage to my bank account, but have already planned a second trip back.

Strawberry Balsamic Vinegar, Basil Olive Oil, Roasted Garlic Sea Salt, and Lemon Twist Sea Salt. Perfect dressing makings!

Just a drizzle of balsamic and olive oil, and a sprinkling of garlic salt and I am well on my way to dinnertime bliss.


Tip #2: Remember texture.
Some people, falsely, think salads are boring because they miss out on all the great mouth-feels and textures that accompany all our favorite dishes. So add lots of texture to your salads - creamy avocado (I am still trying to learn how to like them,) crunchy nuts, tender spinach, crispy asparagus, hearty mushrooms, the possibilities are endless!

"Total" cereal chicken chunks, tender asparagus, spinach, romaine, tomato,  and bell pepper.

Tip #3: Use leftovers.
Salads really are a great way to clean out the fridge. I had some pesto potatoes left over from another dinner and decided to throw those in my salad one night, and voila! A completely different salad yet again. This can be done with shredded chicken, leftover beans or steamed veggies, grilled shrimp or steak, and fruit from breakfast - anything! Get creative and let you fridge do the work.

Pesto potatoes, tomato, asparagus, and romaine.

Just a drizzle of balsamic vinegar and some basil olive oil on top of some leftover roasted veggies and I was good to go!

Happy salad making!

Conquering the Wish List-ish

Graduation is five days away. Just thought I would update you.

I know, I can't believe it either.

I kind of feel like I am living an out of body experience this week. I think things to myself like "this time next week, the University of Kentucky will no longer recognize me as a student" and I get kind of sentimental. I was so hesitant to hand over my keys to the Student Government Office, turn in my last payroll sheet, and lock up for good. I was on campus yesterday for what very well could be the last time. No more exams to study for, papers to write, classes to attend, group project to organize, or courses to schedule. How can this be possible?

Despite the fact that my world had been turned topsey turvey right now, there is still the ever faithful Farmers' Market here to comfort me in times of change. A few weeks ago UK brought a mini Farmers' Market to campus, which afforded students the luxury of perusing the booths without having to leave the comfort of campus. And of course, who was out there with gusto and fervor? Yours truly. Check out what I found!

Organic local honey, green garlic, fresh thyme, and a curious dried bag of "calypso" beans

I was so intrigued by the green garlic that I had to buy it and learn how to work with it. In all of my food related study I had never heard nor seen such a thing, but what a wonderful vegetable! It looks like a large green onion and tastes just like a garlicy onion at that, so they went perfectly with my intuitive style of cooking - lots of aromatics and building upon flavors. I decided to add it to my wish list and then mark it off immediately.

So what has both predominant onion and garlic flavor already? Stir fry!

Green Garlic and Pepper Stir Fried Rice

2 TB olive oil (use sesame oil if you have it, but only use 1 TB)

1/2 cup finely chopped bell pepper

1/2 cup finely chopped white button mushrooms

1/2 thinly sliced green garlic (green and whites)

1 cup thinly julienned spinach

red pepper flakes, to taste

2 TB soy sauce

1/2 cup cooked brown rice

1 egg, beaten

Heat oil in a large skillet. Add bell peppers and mushrooms; cook until crisp-tender. Add green garlic and cook an additional five or so minutes (you will want to cook off some of the bitter and biting qualities of the green garlic, so don't get worried if it gets a little crispy around the edges.) Add the spinach and cook until wilted. Season with red pepper flakes and soy sauce (add additional oil if necessary.) Stir in rice and heat through. Mix in the egg and turn off the heat immediately - allow the egg to cook by the residual heat in the pan (which prevents the egg from turning rubbery and tough.)

Education is like a Frittata

I just finished my last week as an Undergraduate student of the University of Kentucky. The final class is in the books, my parents' last tuition dollar put to good use, and I can now look forward to focusing all of my attention on the culinary world. How strange is this? I know soon-to-be-graduates across the country are suddenly confronted with the same realization, that what we have been working on for almost two decades now is finally achieved. Our whole lives have centered around studying, reading textbooks, flashcards, vocabulary terms, finals exams, and term papers. But in just over a week, eight days to be exact, our happiness will no longer be determined by what we earn on a project or the comments we get from a professor on an idea for a thesis. How bazaar this paramount moment is.

I have been asked a lot this week about whether I was excited to be attending commencement next weekend, and all I can say is "yes and no." I could not be more proud to have earned my Undergraduate degree, in three years no less, and to have a definite career path for which I am so incredibly passionate to now turn all of my attention to. But how could I have achieved this so quickly? It scares me to think how time passes in the blink of an eye and, as cliche as it is to say, how it seems like just yesterday I was no so successfully blinking back tears as my parents and sister pulled away after moving me into my freshman dorm room. Mature, adult, professional, pulled together people graduate from college - I cannot be that prepared yet. But yet here I am, coordinating commencement day outfits, pressing my gown, making sure to hang up my tassel and cords, and planning graduation parties. Now only time will tell if I am truly prepared for this huge leap of faith called adulthood.

In a way, education is like a frittata. Colorful and vibrant. Yet nutritious and sustaining. It is what you make of it.  Throw everything together and see how it suits your tastes. Experiment, try new things, but know you will always have those old stand-by's to help you out in a bind. Just a few basic ingredients, steadfast technique, and the world in your oyster... rather, frittata.

Congratulations to all you soon-to-be college graduates out there!

Frittata for One

2 eggs

slash of milk

salt and pepper

1/3 tsp dried tarragon

mix-ins: I used spinach, tomato, onion, and yellow bell pepper

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray an oven proof dish with cooking spray. In small bowl, which eggs with milk and season with spices (feel free to customize these to your liking.) Fold in your mix-ins, pour into your oven proof dish and bake for 20-30 minutes, depending on how deep your dish is, or until the middle is set and a knife, when inserted in the middle, comes out clean.

Spaghetti Squash Supper

One of my favorite vegetables of all time is spaghetti squash, followed closely by kale, broccoli, and Brussels sprouts. For those of you who haven't worked with it before, go out to the store right now and buy one. Seriously. Grab your keys, grab your wallet, get in your car, and drive to the store and get one of these babies. I'll wait here...

Ok, now that you're back, get ready for a yummy dinner! Spaghetti squash is about the size of a Nerf softball but heavy for their size. They have a smooth, light yellow skin and can be found with the other various squashes, usually being refrigerated. Once baked, the insides can be scooped out to make perfect "spaghetti" strands, and they can even be baked to al dente, for those of you who, like me, like a bite to their pasta. Top off the strands with your favorite sauce (I thawed out some homemade stuff made with spinach, chunky tomatoes, onions, garlic, bell peppers, and lots of basil.) Talk about your veggie servings for the day!

Baked Spaghetti Squash

1 spaghetti squash

Preheat your oven to 375 degrees. Pierce the squash skin with a paring knife and place in a baking dish, whole. Bake for 30 to 45 minutes or until, when pierced with a paring knife, the squash is tender.

Allow to cool until you can handle it, then slice in half and scrap out the insides with a fork. Now you have yummy spaghetti that is just as versatile as the wheat-based alternative. Toss with some browned butter and sage, top with sauce (like I did here,) or bake in a torta with some eggs and parmesan cheese, crowned with fresh tomato chutney. 

Feel free to let me know how you like your spaghetti squash that I just made you go out and buy!

I Choose to Chew my Green Goddess Smoothies

There are lots of things that make me curiously happy, like a pair of jeans that fit perfectly, a surprisingly warm day in the middle of January, the fact that my birthday is only four days away, and Greek yogurt drizzled with honey and toasted almonds for breakfast. What made me exceptionally happy today, however, was when my dinner plans turned out even better than I could have hoped. You know the old saying that starts out "best laid plans of mice and men..." and sometimes you feel like the man and sometimes you feel the mouse, but regardless your plans "gang aft agley."

I had made kale pesto while still on break and threw it in the freezer for a day such as today where I ran wide open since 9am and returned home famished. I tossed this pesto with sauteed broccoli, whole wheat rigatoni pasta, and topped with diced tomatoes and shredded Romano cheese. It was a beautiful concept as I was brainstorming my dinner walking home from classes, much like a kindergartner meticulously plans his after school snack down to every last detail, but as I was mixing it all up my excitement waned a bit when the proper creamy consistency of traditional pesto was lacking from my pasta (due to the fact that I omitted the customary Parmesean cheese in the pesto in order to cut calories and fat.) I added a little of the pasta's cooking water, with all that gummy starch, and again I was curiously happy as I plated my pasta dinner... which just occurred to me contained many of the elements of a Green Goddess smoothie. I always preferred chewing my vegetables anyway.

For those of you who may be curious, my pesto was comprised of blanched kale leaves, toasted walnuts, fresh basil, olive oil and a little water to bind, seasoned with salt and red pepper flakes. This is of course just a jumping off point as you can base your pesto off of anything you would like, including spinach which I have done in the past with great success.

Coffee in the PM

Since being home for break, which started on Saturday, I have:

• Attended Cincinnati Ballet's new rendition of The Nutcracker (a yearly tradition in my family and fabulous by anyone's standards)
• Written a plethora of blogs so that I can still post regularly once class is back in session in January
• Had 3 inches cut off my hair so that I can start the new year with a fresh new look
• Finished my parents' and grandparents' Christmas presents (a HUGE 5 month undertaking, let me assure you - more on these after Christmas)
• Wrapped up my holiday wrapping and now all my gifts are snuggled under our tree, adding to the festive decorations
• Completed a lengthy end-of-semester report for the Student Government Executive Branch (of which I am a program director)
• Caught up on all my year end bills/email/general nonsense that was standing in my way of completely enjoying my break from all things work related
• Almost completed my first book of the break and contemplated which one will be my next great read

And just today I have:

• Spent a luxurious amount of time browsing Kroger's specialty foods section
• Planned the next six days of meals in our household (including Christmas Eve dinner and Christmas Day brunch)
• Made three batches of biscotti (which I am now enjoying with my early evening coffee)
• Assembled a vegetable lasagna for tonight's dinner after my sister's band and orchestra concerts - yes, she does both. 
• Prepped my mise en place for our dinners for the rest of the week so I can frolic about by day and still put a yummy dinner on the table at night
• Planned a trip to Findlay Market downtown and the Festival of Lights at the Cincinnati Zoo

Due to all of this productivity, there has been lots of:

• Coffee drinking at odd hours of the day/night (including 5:14pm today)
• 15 minute cat-naps on my living room couch or sprawled out on the floor with my puppies, which I have missed oh so much
• Sleeping in past 8am (though tomorrow I plan on getting up early and going for a hike - there is only so much lazy a gal can take before she goes stir crazy)
• Finding comfy places all around the house in which to curl up with a book, mug of tea, and my laptop to blog, read, peruse my favorite websites blogs, or just sit and enjoy the spirit of the holidays.

The vegetable lasagna I made today was chock full of all those veggies some people don't like to eat but really should because they are good for you (like spinach and broccoli.) That being said, I stocked up on veggies today and put them all in the Italian treat, layering with whole wheat lasagna noodles, chunky tomato sauce, and fat free ricotta cheese filling. I love taking the guilt out of eating good tasting food, and by sneaking a few servings of veggies in there and cutting out the fat and calories, I think this is a great way to do just that for the holidays.

Mix of zucchini, red bell peppers, broccoli, onion, and carrot, all sauteed with oregano, basil, parsley, and garlic.

Beginning the layering process...

Fresh spinach leaves on top of the cheese mixture

Topped off with some more chunky tomato sauce and a sprinkling of mozzarella cheese.

Soups are the Perfect Re-purposers!

Everyone knows that one of the easiest ways to use up the odds and ends left in your refrigerator after a long week of cooking and creating is to dump it all in big pot and let it simmer until the flavors mellow together and turn into something perfectly acceptable for dinner.

The vegetable soup featured here is a gift from Mommaw from this past weekend's visit. I also acquired a loaf of banana bread and some pumpkin cupcakes on this trip... I'm just a bit spoiled.

Mommaw makes vegetable soup just the way I like it - with EVERY vegetable imaginable in it. This one featured peas, black beans, kidney beans, carrots, celery, onion, cabbage, spinach, tomatoes, corn, and diced flank steak, and then I stirred in some leftover chipotle chili roasted potatoes from last night. I paired all those wonderful vegetables and savory broth with some cornbread and I was a happy camper, especially on this cold, dreary day of rain and wind. Maybe a cup of tea is now in order and I will settle down to finish this business paper.

Farmers' Market Bliss

I HAVE MY CAMERA BACK!!!! And that means there are pictures to share with all of you! I am so so happy to share with you again!

It is growing cold around here, which means that my weekend trips to the farmers' market downtown will have a change in scenery, from summery tomatoes and cucumbers to fall-like squash and potatoes. I love it all, I probably wouldn't matter if they only sold garlic bulbs and onions. I just love a good farmers' market, all full of the freshest of ingredients, begging to be purchased and taken home for some tender loving care. Sigh, I can't wait until Saturday morning now. Just me, my few block walk downtown, and a travel mug of tea. Heavenly.

I received these homegrown tomatoes last week and decided to make a version of a Napoleon (stacked or tiered presentation of a dish) with some items I already had on hand. I sliced the whole beefsteak tomatoes in a few thick slabs, then smeared those with roasted garlic hummus, and layered with baby spinach leaves. Along with some homegrown cucumber slices sprinkled with salt, pepper, and a drizzle of olive oil, and it was one of the most satisfying meals I have had in a while. That just goes to show that the simplest of meals are often the most simple.

Enjoy the rest of that great summer produce before fall sets in for good! And maybe a trip to the farmers' market to get your Halloween carving pumpkins and ornamental gourds. Everyone loves a good walk with a mug of tea on Saturday mornings.

Summer Salads!

What I want to concentrate on here is salad. It has been incredibly chilly around here; we are talking 100 degree last Saturday and then Sunday, the high was 60. So us weenies around this part (I am raising my hand too) are not used to such a drastic temperature drop. I have broke out my sweatshirts and actually am loving the walk to classes now that they are brisk and refreshing instead of draining and suffocating. But I wasn't ready to kiss all of my favorite summer produce good-bye just yet, so I made salad!

My salad I want to feature is my grandma's chicken grape salad. (Happy Grandparents's Day Mommaw and Boppaw - and to all those other grandparents out there!) I LOVE her chicken grape salad. Swoon worthy for sure. I mean look at it!

 I try to steer away from mayo-based salads (egg, tuna, chicken, you name it) simply because they usually aren't very healthy and I am not the biggest fan of mayo to begin with. But Mommaw's chicken grape is the epitome of exceptions. Whole baby purple grapes, toasted poppy seeds, beautifully poached and shredded chicken, crisp celery, and a honey mayonnaise dressing that tastes anything but heavy. But what to eat it with? (Since I had to convince myself that eating this scrumptious salad right out of the Tupperware was not appropriate - why I don't know.)  Usually Mommaw serves this on a flaky croissant, but since I was fresh out, I made a salad out of a salad! I just dolloped some on top of a bed of spinach and away I went. 

Paired with a Wasa cracker (check these out if you haven't already people! It is the most perfect combination of bread and cracker; crispy and hearty) and I was the happiest of campers.

I am still working with the very limited pantry items that I have in the apartment but still made an extremely satisfying dinner. The salad is cucumber (peeled and diced), Roma tomato, carrots, with a dressing of simply balsamic vinegar, olive oil, salt, and pepper. 

I made a little extra of the vinaigrette and poured the whole salad over some baby spinach. Served here with some brown rice and grilled chicken.

Good weather news is on the horizon! This week is supposed to be in the mid 60s and 70s! Fabulous!!! That is my favorite. I am predicting more salads in my very near future.

Also, for all of you wonderfully thoughtful people out there who love my sister's photography so much, first of all thank you! I mentioned this suggestion to her this weekend and she seemed interested. Let's all keep out fingers crossed and hope that she decides to.