Guest Post! CSA Week #3 Courtesy of Mar Bear

You may have noticed that I skipped right from CSA week #2 to #4. Well here it is, the elusive Week #3!! CC and were in Indy for the Fourth of July, but did not want the CSA share to go to waste. Enter Mar Bear who not only picked up the share, but proceeded to cook an amazing dinner and invite us to eat with her on her deck. Does it get an better than that?? Anyone who wants to pick up the CSA share and then invite us for dinner is more than welcome!!!

Well, she has gone one step further and written a guest post - bless her heart. She also writes about her experiences with Historic Preservation at Ursuline Hipster. She is involved in all kinds of cool Cleveland projects, check her out!

Yum, yum, yum! Great summer evening

Greetings from MarBear! Molls and CC generously donated their CSA share the weekend of the 4th to Gene-O and I because they were out celebrating our independence (see post Feast Menu for the Fourth). I felt honored they chose us, but then found out they also asked M.A.C. but they didn’t answer their phone (luckily). However, M. came with me on that beautiful Saturday morning decked out in red white and blue and we traveled to my college stomping grounds, the Heights. After a few minutes perusing through the nearby stands, we found our produce destination and walked away with a canvas bag full of fresh veggies!

Our selection included: a head of broccoli, two radishes, a bag of lettuce, a small summer squash, a tub of corn meal, a heaping of sugar snap peas, and a heaping of snow peas. M. and I thought it would be great to have Molls and CC over for dinner showcasing our cooking talents using all of the ingredients. M. got busy with life, so I took the pressure off her and proceeded to plan the menu. I was able to use all items but the snow peas; they did not go to waste. Molls, Gene-O and M. split them up and snacked on them the next day!

I must warn you connoisseurs that I am a novice cook. I hate to follow recipes and loose attention quickly. Sometimes I even screw up rice and always forget to set the timer. One tip from me: crushed red pepper is not crushed red BELL pepper; it makes food spicy! (See Spicy Sugar Snap Peas) I have included our meal from start to finish. I hope you enjoy and find something you might like!

Appetizer:
RADISH-CELERY DIP
1 (8 oz.) pkg. cream cheese, softened
1 cucumber

½ c. butter, softened

½ tsp. celery salt

1/8 tsp. paprika

½ tsp. Worcestershire sauce

1 c. finely chopped radishes

¾ c. finely chopped celery

¼ c. finely chopped onion

Mix cheese and butter until well blended. Then add remaining ingredients until well mixed. Let set for four hours to allow flavors to blend well. Spread on Melba toast and top with a slice of cucumber.

SALAD
Blend of fresh lettuce (whatever you get from CSA!)
½ red pepper
½ cucumber
1 c. dried tomatoes
1 c. dried cranberries
1 c. chopped walnuts
½ c. Parmesan cheese

Break off ends of lettuce, then into manageable bites. Place in large serving bowl. Chop red pepper and place into serving bowl. Slice cucumber into quarters and place into serving bowl. Add dried tomatoes, dried cranberries, walnuts and parmesan cheese. Gently toss.

MAIN COURSE: Smithfield Garlic and Herb Pork Loin
Have husband grill. Thanks Gene-O!

Sides:
STEAMED VEGGIES
1 head broccoli
1 small summer squash
½ red pepper

Wash all veggies.

Two tip from me: I spray vinegar on my veggies prior to rinsing in lieu of those fancy chemical filled store bought washes.

Remove stem (or trunk) from broccoli head to make florets. Slice summer squash into 1/8 size circles. Slice red pepper long ways to make long thin pieces.

Place in pot prepared with steamer basket. Water should be barely touching the bottom of the basket. Let steam until desired tenderness.

SPICY SUGAR SNAP PEAS WITH MUSTARD

1 lb. fresh sugar snap peas

1 tbsp. whole mustard seeds

4 tbsp. vegetable oil

4 cloves garlic, finely chopped

1 hot dried red chili

Salt and pepper to taste

Heat the oil in a large skillet over high heat. When hot, add the mustard seeds. As soon as the mustard seeds begin to pop (which is almost immediate), add the garlic, then add the red chili and stir for a few seconds. Put in the sugar snap peas and season to taste. Let cook for a few minutes until they have absorbed the flavor of the spices.

P.S. Lots of crushed red pepper makes the recipe just as (or more) spicy as if it were a whole red chili.

COUSCOUS
Near East Toasted Pine Nut Couscous found in my local grocer’s isle. Simply follow the directions on the box.

CORN MEAL MUFFINS
1 1/4 c. flour

3/4 c. corn meal

4 tbsp. baking powder

4 tbsp. sugar

1 tsp. salt

1 egg

1 c. milk

4 tbsp. melted butter or oil

Sift all dry ingredients together. Add egg, milk and batter. Pour into muffin pans. Bake 20-30 minutes at 350 degrees.

Dessert:
Make brownies courtesy of Duncan Hines. Add one scoop of ice cream, a drizzle, and another drizzle of hot fudge on top. Bon appetite!

Thanks again Mar!!! Dinner was awesome!

Guest Post - A Better Pizza Experience

A lazy woman's blog indeed! I have moved from merely posting videos to just having other people write for me, this is the life! Ok - so not really cuz I'm lazy, but more like I BEGGED CC to write a post about the pizza he made last night because I LOVED IT! And I wanted the recipe for myself, and he was telling me all the different recipes he combined and substitutions and I couldn't keep it straight, so I said - "STOP. Please please please just guest post on my blog so I know everything you did!" And voila, he did it! What a man - he cooks and writes! This pizza, with maple syrup sub and all, was di-vine. It looks pretty complicated to me, but I certainly think it was worth it. (The pics speak for them self really)

Longest introduction ever! Without further delay, here is my second guest blogger, CC! Boyfriend, chef, and blogger extraordinaire:

During college I worked at a local Georgio’s Pizza. I didn’t really like it a lot, but when it was slow, it was always fun to make my own pizza. My favorite was a white pizza with garlic and olive oil, cheese, chicken and black olives. I also realized how easy it was to make a pizza, but was also disappointed on the lack of creativity involved. But I guess this is standard protocol for pizza joints, except for a few here and there. Some of the ‘gourmet’ pizza places get creative in their toppings, but miss on the crust. It is always the same ‘ol crust.

For a while now, I guess since I started really getting into cooking, I’ve gotten to know more spices and herbs and have tried them with different dishes. My favorites lately are some herbs from the Mediterranean store at the West Side Market. (Total deal, you get a lot of herbs/spices for little money.) I paid $1.00 for mixed bag that would have cost 5 or 6 at the grocery store.
Anyways, I’ve been using them on everything, so why not in the crust of a pizza. For my birthday this year, I got a pizza stone. So perfect timing, all I needed was a recipe. I looked a few places, but went with a recipe from Food n Wine.

I made some changes to the recipe, which I’ll note. The main reason is that I know what I like; also if you don’t have the ingredient, you don’t always need it (a little tip from Rachael Ray). This recipe is for making on the grille, but I used the oven. Prior to making pizza heat oven to 500° for at least 45 minutes to heat stone.

Ingredients: (For this recipe, I halved everything.)

Dough:
2 tablespoons honey (I used pure maple syrup, I don’t have honey.)
3 cups warm water
2 packages dry active yeast
7 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for rubbing
3 tablespoons kosher salt

Directions
To make the dough: In a very large bowl, stir the honey into the water until dissolved. Sprinkle the yeast over the water and let stand until foamy, about 8 minutes. Stir in the flour, the 1/4 cup of olive oil and the salt until blended. (Here I added a few pinches of the Mediterranean spices which consists of: basil, rosemary, fennel) Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead until smooth. Place the dough in an oiled bowl, cover with plastic wrap and let stand in a warm place until doubled in volume, about 1 hour.

On the floured work surface, punch down the dough and cut into 4 pieces. Roll each piece into a ball and place on an oiled baking sheet. Rub the dough balls with oil, cover with plastic and refrigerate overnight. (I used plastic wrap and it rose out of the wrapping, a plastic container would probably work better)

On a lightly oiled work surface or sheet pan, press 1 dough ball into a thin, roughly shaped, 10-inch round. Repeat with the remaining dough balls. (This is where a wooden pizza peel would be very helpful; I didn’t have one, which made it hard to transfer pizza to stone. Prep peel with cornmeal.

Margherita Topping

For the toppings, I didn’t really measure anything, but here are the ingredients that I used. Also here are the steps that I did; the recipe doesn’t call out how to arrange the toppings.

Tomato sauce: I mixed ½ can tomato paste with ½ can tomato sauce and ½ cup of freshly chopped tomatoes
Mozzarella, coarsely shredded (2 cups)
Fresh Basil Leaves
Sun dried Tomatoes
Sea Salt
Olive Oil

Directions:
On a lightly oiled work surface or sheet pan, press 1 dough ball into a thin, roughly shaped, 10-inch round. Repeat with the remaining dough balls. (This is where a wooden pizza pan would be very helpful; I didn’t have one, which made it hard to transfer pizza to stone.
Work dough to create a crust. Do what works for you, if you like thin go thin, it you like thick go thick.

Dock the pizza, take a fork and stab pizza many times in the center. This helps remove any possible air or bubbles that may form (learned this from the pizza job.)

Add tomato sauce to your liking. Add cheese, basil, tomatoes. Lightly salt. Add olive oil on toppings and brush crust with olive oil. Place prepared pizza onto stone and cook at 500° for about 8 minutes until cheese is slightly brown.

Once pizza is done, remove from oven and allow cooling. I sprinkled some additional cheese and basil on pizza to give it a fresh look. Enjoy with a glass of wine and a friend.

I made this dinner for Molls and I. I served it with a salad of freshly cut tomatoes, basil, mushroom, sun dried tomatoes and an oil vinegar dressing and a glass of cabernet sauvignon.

Editor's note: I sprinkled a little extra sea salt on mine and dipped the crust in olive oil. Yum!

First Guest Post - Mini Soft Pretzels from Ruby

I would like to introduce my very first guest blogger, Ruby, hurray! Ruby is a long-time friend, neighbor and my favorite food partner! She has shared many wonderful recipes with me and now its your turn. Enjoy!

I am so excited to be doing a guest post on Food'N'Such! Like Molls I love to cook and try new recipes, but yeast is one ingredient I am always kind of scared to use. What if it doesn’t rise the way it's supposed to? What if I don't knead it long enough or too long? I have been wanting to make my own soft pretzels for awhile since they are my favorite junk food to buy when I am at a sporting event. I finally decided to try making them for the game this past Friday. The bf and I were having people over our apartment to watch the game so I thought it would be the perfect opportunity. I used a Bobby Flay recipe on the Food Network's website.

I made some changes to the recipe so the recipe listed below is the one I followed. I decided not to make the cheese sauce listed with the recipe since I didn’t feel like roasting my own peppers, but I plan to make it next time. I just bought a bar of chili con queso (yum) and made the mustard listed below, which was awesome and the bf and I are using it on turkey sandwiches this week. The recipe online is for using a stand mixer, which I do not own, so I kneaded the dough by hand. Also I made 16 mini soft pretzels instead of 8 large ones.

They turned out fabulous! I just need to practice my pretzel shaping skills.

Ingredients

Mustard Sauce:
1/4 cup Dijon mustard
1/4 cup whole-grain mustard
Honey, to taste

Soft Pretzels:
1 1/2 cups warm water
2 tablespoons light brown muscovado sugar (I used regular light brown sugar)
1 package active dry yeast
3 ounces unsalted butter, melted
2 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
4 1/2 to 5 cups all-purpose flour
Canola oil
3 quarts water
3/4 cup baking soda
2 whole eggs, beaten with 1 tablespoon cold water
Coarse sea salt

For the Mustard Sauce:
Whisk together the mustards and honey, to taste, until combined. Let sit at least 30 minutes before serving.

For the Soft Pretzels:
Line 2 half sheet pans with parchment paper and spray liberally with non-stick spray.
Combine the water, sugar, yeast, and butter in a bowl and mix until combined. Let sit for 5 minutes. Combine salt and flour in a large bowl and make a well in the center. Add yeast mixture and mix with wooden spoon until dough is combined. Knead on a floured surface for 7-8 minutes, until dough is smooth. If the dough appears too wet, add additional flour, 1 tablespoon at a time. After dough is smooth, knead into a ball with your hands.

Oil a bowl with canola oil, add the dough and turn to coat with the oil. Cover with a clean towel or plastic wrap and place in a warm spot until the dough doubles in size, about 1 hour.

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.

Bring the water to a boil in a small roasting pan over high heat and add the baking soda. (Add the baking soda a little at a time since it really foams up!)

Remove the dough from the bowl and place on a flat surface. Divide the dough into 16 equal pieces. Roll each piece into a long rope measuring 12 inches and shape: take the right side and cross over to the left. Cross right to left again and flip up. Boil the pretzels in the water solution, 4 at a time for 30 seconds, splashing the tops with the warmed water using a spoon. Remove with a large flat slotted spatula or a spider. Use a paper towel to dab off any excess water. Place 8 pretzels on each baking sheet, brush the tops with the egg wash and season liberally with the salt. Place into the oven and bake for 15 to 18 minutes until golden brown. If baking both sheets at once, rotate sheets halfway through baking so pretzels brown evenly (I did not do this and the batch on the top rack was much darker!)

Remove to a baking rack and let rest 5 minutes before eating. Dip into desired sauces. These are best eaten the day they're made, the leftovers got a little soggy the next day.

These look awesome, I can't wait to try this recipe. Thanks again for posting Ruby!!!