It's Blueberry Season! I LOVE fresh blueberries, well truthfully any kind of fresh berry! There are so many ways to eat them...other than right off the vine or bush! I braved the mosquitos yesterday and picked blueberries at my parents. I did freeze some to use later in muffins or smoothies. They freeze so well and don't need to be thawed before using.
Muffins are one of my favorites and honestly I could hardly wait to get these baked! I know few people that don't have a favorite muffin recipe and mine is my maternal grandmother's. I have altered her original only slightly to allow for the gluten free flour.
Grandma Crump was born February 28, 1998 so by the time I was born in 1966 she wasn't cooking as much but she was supervising everything that went on in the kitchen. She was known for her cooking as are each of her daughters. She and Grandpa raised 9 children, 3 boys and 6 girls, my mother is the 7th child and I am the 23rd grandchild. I've never counted the great grands and the great great grands but I do know there is a photo somewhere of the 5th generation. There is a bunch of us!
I hope you enjoy Grandma Crump's Blueberry Muffins as much as I do!
1 stick unsalted butter, at room temp
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 cup milk
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/4 teaspoon salt
4 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 cup Scottish Oats, I use Bob's Red Mill
2 cups Gluten Free All Purpose Flour, I use Bob's Red Mill
2 teaspoons xanthum gum
2 cups (1 pint) fresh or frozen blueberries
Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
Cream butter and sugar, add eggs 1 at a time mixing well. Stir dry ingredients together in a separate bowl. Add vanilla to milk and stir in alternately with the dry ingredients. Stir in blueberries.
Scoop into lined muffin pan and bake 20 minutes per pan.
Makes 20 standard size muffins.
ENJOY!!!
Tuesday, July 22, 2014
Sunday, January 19, 2014
Clean out the fridge day!
It's a beautiful day here in the south. Warmer than normal, which is a blessing at my house. The windows are open and the kitties are sunning themselves. What a mood booster!!!
This is the time of year when we have slowed down after all the bustle of the holidays and for me it is time to clean out the refrigerator and freezer. I often wonder how long we could last without going to the grocery. Unlike most, if it suddenly decided to snow and ice...we won't starve. I promise!!! Lots of meat, vegis and fruit all tucked away for a cold, wintery day. Well, it's certainly not cold and wintery today but the last thing I want to do is grocery shop. I found chicken, lots of bacon, sliced strawberries (hoarded from last summer) and plenty of fresh goodies from last weeks grocery run, not to mention all the canned goods in the pantry.
We like to dice bacon and fry it up for salads! I always save the grease for seasoning. My mother never puts on a pan of fresh canned green beans without a tablespoon of bacon grease for seasoning! YUMMY!!!
I have a lot of dishes on the agenda today! The first thing, after that bacon of course, is a head of cabbage. Cabbage is a healthy cruciferous vegetable that is very versatile. Being the purist that I am, I love it steamed. Several years ago, a good friend of ours was sharing one of her favorite ways to eat cabbage when her husband was out of town. She likes to quarter the head and steam it in a pan with a little olive oil and then top it with parmesan cheese, salt and pepper! Makes my mouth water just thinking about it! With that in mind and bacon grease in the skillet, I quartered my head of cabbage and set the quarters in the hot pan to "fry" on each of the cut sides for just a few minutes. While that was working I started a large pot with about an inch of water, salt, garlic and a handful of that bacon. As the quarters of cabbage finished, I transferred them (outer leaves down) to the pot. Covered it up and lowered the heat to a simmer. You can always top with a little parmesan and crispy bacon when ready to serve. Great as a side dish or on it's own for a light dinner.
The next dish is one of my favorites! I love quinoa with vegetables! Quinoa is an ancient grain, full of protein and nutty goodness! Very healthy, especially for those of us that don't always want to eat meat. This is a great lunch or side dish. Here's the recipe:
1 quart vegetable stock
2 cups uncooked quinoa
1 bunch broccoli, steamed
1 pint grape tomatoes, halved
1 large can sliced black olives
Juice of 1 lemon
Olive Oil
Salt
Pepper
Cook the quinoa in the vegetable stock as you assemble the remaining ingredients. In a large bowl (I have a big pasta bowl that works great for this) place broccoli, tomatoes, olives and quinoa. Toss gently, you don't want to break the broccoli, then drizzle with lemon juice and just enough olive oil to lightly coat. Season with salt and pepper to taste and toss gently to mix.
This is a great cold salad as well as a warm side dish or lunch on its own.
Enjoy!!!!
This is the time of year when we have slowed down after all the bustle of the holidays and for me it is time to clean out the refrigerator and freezer. I often wonder how long we could last without going to the grocery. Unlike most, if it suddenly decided to snow and ice...we won't starve. I promise!!! Lots of meat, vegis and fruit all tucked away for a cold, wintery day. Well, it's certainly not cold and wintery today but the last thing I want to do is grocery shop. I found chicken, lots of bacon, sliced strawberries (hoarded from last summer) and plenty of fresh goodies from last weeks grocery run, not to mention all the canned goods in the pantry.
We like to dice bacon and fry it up for salads! I always save the grease for seasoning. My mother never puts on a pan of fresh canned green beans without a tablespoon of bacon grease for seasoning! YUMMY!!!
I have a lot of dishes on the agenda today! The first thing, after that bacon of course, is a head of cabbage. Cabbage is a healthy cruciferous vegetable that is very versatile. Being the purist that I am, I love it steamed. Several years ago, a good friend of ours was sharing one of her favorite ways to eat cabbage when her husband was out of town. She likes to quarter the head and steam it in a pan with a little olive oil and then top it with parmesan cheese, salt and pepper! Makes my mouth water just thinking about it! With that in mind and bacon grease in the skillet, I quartered my head of cabbage and set the quarters in the hot pan to "fry" on each of the cut sides for just a few minutes. While that was working I started a large pot with about an inch of water, salt, garlic and a handful of that bacon. As the quarters of cabbage finished, I transferred them (outer leaves down) to the pot. Covered it up and lowered the heat to a simmer. You can always top with a little parmesan and crispy bacon when ready to serve. Great as a side dish or on it's own for a light dinner.
The next dish is one of my favorites! I love quinoa with vegetables! Quinoa is an ancient grain, full of protein and nutty goodness! Very healthy, especially for those of us that don't always want to eat meat. This is a great lunch or side dish. Here's the recipe:
1 quart vegetable stock
2 cups uncooked quinoa
1 bunch broccoli, steamed
1 pint grape tomatoes, halved
1 large can sliced black olives
Juice of 1 lemon
Olive Oil
Salt
Pepper
Cook the quinoa in the vegetable stock as you assemble the remaining ingredients. In a large bowl (I have a big pasta bowl that works great for this) place broccoli, tomatoes, olives and quinoa. Toss gently, you don't want to break the broccoli, then drizzle with lemon juice and just enough olive oil to lightly coat. Season with salt and pepper to taste and toss gently to mix.
This is a great cold salad as well as a warm side dish or lunch on its own.
Enjoy!!!!
Sunday, January 5, 2014
Baby it's cold outside!!!!!
Have I told you lately how much I dislike winter? This year's winter is the coldest in 20 years and it's just getting started! BRRRR!!!!!
OK, enough complaining! What's the best warming drink when you come it from the cold? Hot Chocolate!!! But...have you ever read the ingredients on that box of hot chocolate mix from the grocery? Not to mention how much it costs! Good Grief!
Mother always made hot chocolate from scratch, in a pan, on the stove...it was so good!!! But who has time for that? Our husbands and children would never manage a stove-top hot chocolate and we wouldn't want them to. This instant version is EASY! Tastes like homemade, is inexpensive and chances are, you have most of the ingredients in your pantry!
Instant Hot Chocolate Mix
Equipment:
Large bowl
Fine mesh colander
jars with lids
Set colander inside the large bowl and begin adding dry ingredients:
4 cups Powdered Sugar
2 cups Cocoa Powder
5 cups Dry Milk Powder
2 tsps. Fine Salt
4 tsps. Corn Starch
Stir lightly to combine and sift the ingredients through the colander into the bowl. (Don't skip this step! This will allow all the ingredients to be fine enough to dissolve fully in hot water!) Stir again to insure that the mix is well combined. Spoon into clean jars. Makes about 2 1/2 quarts of dry mix.
Fill cup/mug 1/2 full of mix and add hot water. I like to add the water in 2 stages, enough to blend and dissolve the powder and then to finish filling the cup.
ENJOY!!!!!
OK, enough complaining! What's the best warming drink when you come it from the cold? Hot Chocolate!!! But...have you ever read the ingredients on that box of hot chocolate mix from the grocery? Not to mention how much it costs! Good Grief!
Mother always made hot chocolate from scratch, in a pan, on the stove...it was so good!!! But who has time for that? Our husbands and children would never manage a stove-top hot chocolate and we wouldn't want them to. This instant version is EASY! Tastes like homemade, is inexpensive and chances are, you have most of the ingredients in your pantry!
Instant Hot Chocolate Mix
Equipment:
Large bowl
Fine mesh colander
jars with lids
Set colander inside the large bowl and begin adding dry ingredients:
4 cups Powdered Sugar
2 cups Cocoa Powder
5 cups Dry Milk Powder
2 tsps. Fine Salt
4 tsps. Corn Starch
Stir lightly to combine and sift the ingredients through the colander into the bowl. (Don't skip this step! This will allow all the ingredients to be fine enough to dissolve fully in hot water!) Stir again to insure that the mix is well combined. Spoon into clean jars. Makes about 2 1/2 quarts of dry mix.
Fill cup/mug 1/2 full of mix and add hot water. I like to add the water in 2 stages, enough to blend and dissolve the powder and then to finish filling the cup.
ENJOY!!!!!
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