Community Supported Agriculture... Who knew?

Oh, the invaluable things I learn from my friend Emily. The most recent of these things: Community Supported Agriculture. When she was telling me about this last week I had never ever heard of it before. But guess what? Everyone should know.  The way CSA works is 1: buy a share in a local farm (or half a share, each setup is different), 2: wait for the food to grow, and 3: pick up your box fresh, local, and many times organic food from this farm once a week during growing season. Some of these farms offer even more than just veggies, like meat, eggs, fresh flowers, hay, and compost. I'm so excited to get involved with a CSA farm when we move. Check out the Local Harvest website to do a search for a nearby CSA farm. Way cool. I owe the reality of all my local slow food dreams to you, Em.

Lent

I have never given up anything for lent before this year, but I was inspired by my pastor Jeff and the sermon he gave recently on radical generosity. He suggested that rather than simply give up something for Lent, give it up and take the money you would have spent on it during that time and give it away. You can find the sermon I'm talking about under the media page here and you can check out an additional post about giving on Jeff's blog.

I'm giving up sweets and deserts of all kinds. I don't spend an especially large amount of money on this, but I do enjoy it quite a lot... so through these 40 days my body is likely going to thank me. It might be very difficult, but sacrifice isn't supposed to be an easy or flippant thing. And I get the opportunity to be reminded to pray each time I want a sweet treat. I do have one exception: I get my honey in my tea. It's really required. Come to think of it, I probably need a new honey pot... mine has been gone for a long time. Maybe this honey pot?

Either way, I've got it easy. John is giving up coffee.

Canning like MAD

A little while ago, a friend showed up at my door and asked if I was interested in taking on a large and time consuming project.... like NOW. Well, sure... what kind of a project might that be? This friend was in the midst of a move and had harvested her garden but had no kitchen in which to preserve and enjoy the fruits of her labor. So, in to my house were brought the many bags of tomatoes and peppers and onions. The tomatoes needed to be used immediately, they were super ripe and ready and could not wait to be used, so bright and early the next morning, there was canning in my kitchen. I've never canned anything in my life. I had no idea what I was getting into. I borrowed all of my mother in law's canning supplies and set out to work with the help of my lovely mother, without whom we would never have finished, and my friend whose vegetables we were canning. I didn't realize that canning was something that needed to be organized, thought out, and done in um... smaller batches. We made two dozen jars of stewed tomatoes and some cilantro-lime salsa that turned out to be more of a cooking sauce/marinade because of the accidental extreme amount of lime that I used. Whoops. But it's perfect for making some Cuban food with some black beans. Mmm.

This canning stuff is a massive amount of work and I now have an enlightened sense of admiration and appreciation for those who do it regularly. Also, my kitchen might be the worst kitchen for the canning process. Noted. Never again in my kitchen.

In the aftermath of the canning ordeal, I got a flat of organic strawberries and a mass of honey in my order from the lovely Azure Standard (my new favorite way to grocery shop... love it. Bulk organic foods that are extremely cost effective and delivered right to my town? Yes, please!) and made some jam. Some freezer jam. It turned out beautifully, so yummy. No more canning for me. :)

Gardening for Those with a Short Attention Span (a.k.a. Sprouting)

In my pantry, there is always an excess of dried beans, lentils, and peas. Maybe because they're basically free and I always intend to make things with them, but then forget that in order to use them they generally need to either soak overnight or simmer for a LONG time and remember this only when I'm trying to make supper. So much for planning ahead. Well, I decided to be proactive with my stash of dried lentils. I sprouted some. This is bound to be a new regular occurance in the Kelley home. And since I don't really have the brainspace for gardening that extends further than herbs and sprouts, this is perfect. In order to sprout lentils (or basically any other kind of seed, legume, or grain) you'll need just a few simple things:

1) lentils, etc.
2) a mason jar with ring
3) cheesecloth, a lid for the mason jar with little holes all over, or like me, a (new) knee-high nylon from the box that I keep by the dryer to catch lint coming from the hose. ( I know, it should pipe outside. It doesn't.)

Start with just a tablespoon or two of lentils (I used about 1Tb, for reference), pick out any cracked or deformed lentils and put them into your jar, cover with lukewarm water, place lid on jar, and soak overnight 8-12 hours. Rinse and drain through the cloth 2 times a day for the next 3 or so days until your sprouts are about an inch long (for lentils). Rinse again, and eat. Raw or cooked (preferably raw) these are great for you. Cheap. Simple. As nutrient rich as you can get. Fantastic. In the time it took me to write this, all of my sprouts have been eaten. By me, of course, because Corbin wasn't interested and John wasn't here. They taste like garden fresh peas, and they're very tender and crunchy. Mmmm.

Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies from Heaven

This is the best peanut butter chocolate chip recipe... ever. It turns out perfectly every time. Mmmmm. We go through a lot of milk when these are in the house. So... they're almost good for us, right? I say, if you're going to eat a cookie (or a half a dozen, we don't judge) it may as well be AMAZING.

Ingredients:
1 cup butter, softened
1 1/2 cups packed brown sugar
2 eggs
1 cup peanut butter
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 cup cornstarch
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips

Directions:
1) Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (180 degrees C)
2) Cream together butter and brown sugar. Beat in eggs, peanut butter, and vanilla.
3) Combine dry ingredients in medium bowl, and add to wet mixture gradually. Stir in chocolate chips.
4) Roll into balls about 1 Tablespoon or use your trusty cookie scoop and place on to ungreased cookie sheets or parchment lined cookie sheets about 2 inches apart. Flatten them slightly with a fork because they don't flatten much during baking.
5) Bake for 7-10 minutes, depending on how soft you like your cookies. :) Enjoy!

Top Teas (in no particular order)

Oh, MarketSpice, how I love you. The Original MarketSpice Tea with its recognizable orange-spice taste has stood the test of time and remains to this day one of my top teas. I especially love visiting the MarketSpice store at the market whenever I'm in Seattle. If you can make it through the crowd surrounding the fish-throwing boys and Rachael the pig, you're in for a fragrant treat of tea and spice perusal. I like the loose leaf tea, and I drink it all winter long.Also from MarketSpice, the Seattle Surprise Tea is a great afternoon tea pick. Mango and orange flavors mingle with the huge chunks of pineapple in this black tea. It's great iced, you'll love it. I know you will.OK. One last one from beloved MarketSpice. Their Six Herb Tea is fantastic. A great nighttime tea. A lovely blend with just the right amount of peppermint.
Ten Thousand Villages Fair Trade Himalayan Green Tea with Lemon My best friend, Emily, gave this tea to me as a bridesmaid's gift on her wedding day. I love it. It's a perfect, simple green tea with just the right amount of lemon grass. With or without a little sugar, I love to make a pot of this for friends. A great compliment to any meal. Also, it came with this fantastic carrying case, which will make the coolest passport bag ever. The strap is even the perfect length. Thanks, Em!


Good Earth Organic - Mango, Peach & Pineapple What is in my mug currently and most often lately - with plenty of honey. Sweet and fresh, it's perfect for summer. I bet this would make a great iced tea, but have yet to try it that way.

I Have a Little Herb Garden

I have a little herb garden. It brings me great joy. I have a hard time growing anything more because of my severe lack of space and well, I'll just say it... black thumb. Herbs are great because I'm continually cooking and love being able to simply pluck the tasty little leaves at my heart's joyful necessity. I'm feeling a tomato basil salad coming on... Today's featured herbs in order pictured: sweet Basil, Oregano, Mint, spicy Basil, and Provincial Lavender.