Knit & Nosh

vodka gimlet goes to the gorge

I bound off the Vodka Gimlet sweater last week, gave it a little steam block, and wore it all weekend.

LOVE!  It fits perfectly and it so versatile.  We had an overnight trip and this sweater was with me the entire time.   Great with jeans as well as over a nice blouse. 

Our impromtu overnight trip was such fun.  We rented a car and drove down to look at vacation houses.  We are having a small family reunion this summer and found a very swanky house that is big enough to sleep us all. 

The house has great views, just enough grounds for the kids to have adventures, and a gourmet kitchen.  The next best thing to being at home.

We spent the night at the Columbia Gorge Hotel.  A beautiful building built in 1904.  It has great history  and I love that the steamboat captain would blow its whistle once for each guest the hotel could expect.  That way the rooms were ready and waiting. 

The view from our rooms was perfect.

This summer vacation comes right at the height of erry (cherry, blueberry, strawberry, raspberry...) season and we will be be staying in the heart of erry farms.  I am wondering if I should brings empty jars and my big pot?

 

the canning notebook

This beautiful spring day has reminded me that it is time to make a garden plan.  This year we are going to put in a couple of raised beds and I am terribly excited to get started.  Before I flop on the couch with seed catalogs, the canning notebook must be consulted.

I began keeping a notebook two years ago and it has made my life so much easier.

A list of jars filled is kept my month.  For instance I see that in September I put up 6 pints of Wasabi Green Beans and 11 quarts of peaches.  I made a note that I used just shy of two cases for that amount of peaches.  An amount that turned out to be just right for the family and can easily be repeated this year. 

If, during the course of the year we run out of something, a note is made to increase amounts next year.  If a specific recipe was used, I add that to the information as I will not remember from year to year.  Looking over what was put up last year, I have made a plan for this year.

This is just a rough draft.  I will certainly run across new things to try as well as miss a thing or two when it is in season.  The other part of this list is a jar count.  How much do I plan to make of each thing and how many jars will that require.  It is always surprising to me that I need to buy jars.  My jar stash is impressive, but every year I put up more and more.  Every year there is something we no longer buy from the store because we make our own.  It is a great feeling and one day, probably in the next couple of years, I will have enough jars.

There is no way I can grow everything on this list.  I live in a city, with a small yard, and only have so many hours in a day to tend a garden.  But whatever I am able to grow, I will.  We are lucky to live a few blocks away from the local co-op and there will be plenty of local produce to chose from.

My notebook is meant for me and is not very neat.  Just recently it occurred to me that one of my children, or one of their children, may find this book interesting.  After all, I treasure my Grandma's canning recipes, written in her own hand.  So as I begin this year's canning adventure my goal is to write more clearly, be more concise, and instead of referencing a recipe by the title of a book, actually write the recipe down.  I hope one day someone will appreciate the effort and do the same for their children.

vegan junk food

A really fun book landed on my desk a few weeks back, Vegan Junk Food  by Lane Gold.  First off I think the title is a bit of a misnomer.  Grilled Portebello Mushroom Sandwich with Garlic Horseradish Mayonnaise, or Tofu Lettuce Wrap with Peanut Sauce, hardly fall under the junk food category.  While Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Dip and Sausage Puffs are all junk all the time.  This book is chock full of recipes, some junky, some not, all tasty.

Many of the recipes use fake meat products such as vegan chicken nuggets or vegan bacon. If you are OK with that, you will find everything you are looking for, from buffalo wings to corn dogs.  My favorite chapter may be Dips For All Seasons.  Dip, oh how I love dip.  I can not begin to explain the many ways in which I miss ranch dip and nacho cheese sauce.  Lucky for me, those two recipes are in the book and they are the first things I tried.

Many of the dip recipes rely on processed foods, vegan cream cheese, vegan sour cream and the like.  As a rule I avoid these products for many reasons, but for an every so often treat they really help bring some old fashioned comfort to the table.

Chapter 1-Breakfast of Champions: Something Savory, Lots of Sweets...

Chapter 2-Deli Favorites: Sandwiches, Wraps, Burgers, and Sliders...

Chapter 3-Comfort Food Meets Takeout: Tempting No-Meat Entrees...

Chapter 4-Crusts and Carbs: Pizza Pies and Badass Breads...

Chapter 5-Festive Grub: Vegan Party Essentials...

Chapter 6-Dips for All Seasons...and All Reasons...

Chapter 7-Savory Treats: With a Touch of Sugar and Spice...

Chapter 8-Cakewalk (Pies, Too): Who needs butter...

Chapter 9-Candy and Cookie Fix: For the Ultimate Sweet Tooth...

Chapter 10-Grab 'n' Go Sweets: Sinful Bars, Brownies, and More...

As you can see by the chapter list, the dishes presented are quite varied and include heaps of sweet things.  Some of the recipes are very simple and meant to get you from the kitchen to the couch as fast as possible.  Others take some time and would be appropriate to serve a guest you are looking to impress. 

While reading I could not help but think what a great first apartment gift this would make.  Even if the new apartment dweller is not vegan, they are almost certain to have friends who are.  A thoughtful and most welcome way to begin a cookbook collection.

 

wee jars of dijon mustard

Last month when I ordered my sauerkraut container, a 1/2 dozen little jars also jumped into the cart.   I had a plan.

Homemade mustard is SO good and I like to have different jars open at the same time.  Because of the Celiac, we have two jars of everything, one labeled "no bread" in hope of avoiding cross contamination.  (Yes, it is a pain.)  Having two jars of everything makes smaller jars more convenient.  They take up less space in the fridge, make it OK to use things up at different rates, and do not cause howls when I have to throw away something that contains bread crumbs.  Enter the wee jars.

They are from Weck.  Mini Mold #760 and they hold just over 1/2 cup.  Perfect.

There are heaps of mustard recipes out on the web, but few for canning.  I pieced together a number of recipes and came up with this tasty, simple, dijon mustard.

Dijon Horseradish Mustard

makes 3 cups, the recipe can easily be halved or doubled

2 1/4 cups of snappy white wine

3/4 cups vinegar

1 large onion, roughly chopped

4 cloves garlic, roughly chopped

6 ounces mustard powder (buy it in the bulk section)

2 tablespoons agave

1 tablespoon salt

I tablespoon prepared horseradish

~In a small pan bring to a boil, wine, vinegar, onion, garlic, and horseradish.  Simmer 5 minutes, turn off heat and let the vegetables steep 20 minutes.

~Strain the vegetables and press to remove all juice.  Rinse out the pan you just used and return liquid to the pan.

~Over medium heat, stir in agave, and salt.  Then whisk in the mustard powder and bring to just boiling.  If your mustard is nice and thick (it will thicken further upon cooling) go ahead and put it into jars.  If it seems too thin, reduce it to the desired thickness being very careful not to burn.

~Fill jars to 1/2 headspace and process in a water bath for 10 minutes. Turn off heat, remove lid from pot and let jars sit in the water an additional 5 minutes.

Once the mustard has cooled it will appear separated with air pockets.  If this bothers you, give the cooled jars a good shake and the contents will smooth right out.

I am often asked if a specific recipe can be made without canning.  Mustard is a big yes!  It will keep in the fridge for months and months. 

 

 

mini corn dogs

Youngest Son is a lover of corn dogs.  Once upon a time he used to eat the Morning Star Farms veggie dog variety.  That product is no longer being made, and I am not comfortable with the bottom of the barrel hot dogs that other corn dog makers use, so for a long time he has gone without.  Then a new book came in to the house.

Vegan Junk Food (full review soon).  On the cover are corn dogs and Youngest Son asked if we could make some.  Why had I not thought of making them from scratch before?  The kid is a genius.  We were not able to use the recipe from the book because its main ingredient is Bisquick and I needed our corn dogs to be gluten free.  Below is my recipe for mini corn dogs.  I make them using gluten free flour and nut milk, but of course they work just fine with regular milk and flour.  You will eat more than you anticipate.

Mini Corn Dogs

oil for frying

1 package of Hebrew National hot dogs (each dog cut into 3 pieces)

3/4 cup milk

1/2 cup cornmeal

1/2 cup flour

1 egg

1 tablespoon sugar

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

cornstarch for dusting the dogs (the cornstarch is key, without it the batter will not stick)

~Pour oil into a deep pan to a depth of 2 inches.

~Beat egg and milk.  Add cornmeal, flour, sugar, baking power, and salt, and stir to combine, doing your best to get the lumps out, but not stressing about the little ones.

~Roll cut hot dogs in cornstarch, the ends too.  Dip in batter. Drop in hot oil.  Turn them for even browning.  Remove from pan and drain on rack. 

A little dijon mustard makes them sing.  I am thinking about slicing the hot dogs and putting them on toothpicks for our next party. Micro Corn Dogs.

cinnamon syrup

While the rest of the country was watching a football game, I was reading a really good book.

Good writing and top notch research, two of my favorite things. Oh, and cocktails, three of my favorite things.  It was impossible not to put the book down and start mixing drinks.  After reading I cannot believe I only have three different bottles of bitters in the booze locker, totally need to change that.  While this book holds lots of recipes that I plan to try, there was one that jumped to the top.  Not only did I have the ingredients on hand, but it is something I have been thinking about for quite awhile. 

Last fall I had a bourbon drink that included some sort of cinnamon whiskey.  It was quite tasty.  I did look for the whiskey at the liquor store, but they only carried "something similar".  I was not willing to risk $30 on a bottle of something that may be awful.  Still, that flavor stayed with me.  Then last night I saw the recipe for Cinnamon Syrup, put down the book and headed to the kitchen.

Making the syrup is easy.  To 1 cup each of water and sugar, add three cinnamon sticks.  Bring to a boil, turn off the heat and let cool.  After about 15 minutes the cinnamon sticks will soften and break apart easily with a spoon.  Once the syrup has cooled completely, strain out the sticks and store in the refrigerator.

In just a few minutes I had a cup of sweet, spicy, goodness.  I thought the syrup might work well in place of lemon in a Hot Toddy.  I was right.

Red Hot Toddy

2 ounces good bourbon

1 ounce Cinnamon Syrup

hot water

Put the water kettle on to boil.  In the bottom of a mug pour the bourbon and cinnamon syrup.  Once the kettle boils, top off the mug with hot water.  Try to wait a little bit before having another one.

cherry brandy

Last month I put up a couple jars of Brandied Cherries.  The flavor was so good and there was quite a bit of liquid left after jarring the cherries, I immediately thought of a cherry brandy.

I did not find a recipe for Cherry Brandy, but after reading about other fruit brandies, I had a plan. 

I drained the original jar of cherry liquid through a fine sieve to remove the little bits that had been left behind. Then brought the juice to a boil and reduced it slightly. Once it coated a spoon, I pulled it off the heat and measured. 

1 and 1/4 cups of goodness.  The cinnamon from the original batch of cherries really comes through.  I added an equal amount of brandy and gave it a taste.  Heaven.

This is where things get a little tricky.  I knew the brandy was good now, but what about 8 months from now?  Most recipes using real fruit list a 6 month shelf life.  Well, I know a way to prolong shelf life, but would it work?  My main concern was that the alcohol would evaporate.  With nothing to lose I fired up a water bath.

I am happy to report that the canned jar is just as boozy as the one I did not can.  Oh happy day!  

Later in the evening I was able to mix up a new cocktail.  I am calling it an Edmonds Manhattan.

2 ounces good bourbon

1/2 ounce Cherry Brandy

2 dashes of Orange Bitters

The best of all worlds! 

 

weck jars

Hello, my name is Terri...

I had no idea. No one ever told me that you could become addicted after using just once. And those first few jars were free, gifts even.

It all started with my Mom. She gave me a box of jars as a Hanukkah present. So beautiful. So beautiful that I put the empty jars right along side my filled jars for all the world to see.

 

The second time was with Deborah. I love her. She provided more boxes of jars. From there the slope was darn slippery.

 

Maybe just a few juice jars for this new book idea I am hatching.

 

Then, without even realizing I had done it, I added some mustard jars to an order for a sauerkraut container.

What will become of me?

neater feeder

As we approach the end of our kitchen remodel we realize we no longer have a spot for the kitty dishes. It makes sense to put them on the far side of the refrigerator, but the flooring there is wood, and Kitty is a messy guy. Enter the Neater Feeder.

This little dish is designed to keep the food and water mess contained, and it does just that. I was really impressed when I opened the box to find two sets of different sized bowls and a set of legs to raise the entire surface. This makes it really flexible for different animals. I did not attach the legs, but if the "lampshade" ever makes another appearance at the house they will be invaluable.  Kitty often pushes food out of his bowl and we humans have been known to accidentally kick his water dish. Now the stray food stays on the tray and the spilled water drips into the rimmed dish below. Once a week the entire thing gets a run through the dishwasher. It is even made in the US! 

The ony drawback for us is that it only has two bowls. We do wet food, dry food, and water. I have been swapping out the bowls between wet and dry food and that works most of the time, in a perfect world there would be an option for three bowls.  But I am so happy to not be mopping up water or scrapping dried tuna bits off the floor that having just two bowls is not a deal breaker.

Kitty is pretty happy too.