Bagels, hamburger rolls and french bread are three breads I no longer buy at the store, unless I am feeling lazy. The hardest one of these for me to overcome mentally was making bagels at home. I just could not see how these could be as delicious as a bagel shop's bagels. Let me tell you how wrong I was! The hamburger rolls are literally the best ever. It's hard to not eat them all plain with butter as they come from the oven. French bread is something I learned to make early in my life. It is … [Read more...]
How to Make Chocolate Mint Extract
There are other ways to make chocolate mint extract. This version was inspired by the actual chocolate mint variety I planted in the herb garden. This year, the best part of my garden turned out to be the herbs I planted in containers on my deck. Late Spring and Early Summer showers and rains storms created strong, lush green plants. I have never had such a happy looking herb garden. The first time I harvested the herbs, I was slightly overwhelmed with how much I had to preserve. I dried … [Read more...]
Honey Cinnamon Applesauce in the Crockpot
Honey cinnamon applesauce in the crockpot was on the to-do list. Honestly, what was on the to-do list was "get the apples processed!" They were everywhere in the kitchen since I felt the need to bring home a couple bushels of apples from the orchard. And in my own haphazard style, I ended up mixing up the tart apples I bought for eating and canning with the apples bought for pie filling and applesauce. Now I had a large crockpot of the the most tart applesauce ever made. There are many other … [Read more...]
Pear Blueberry Kompot Beverage
Other beverages will pale in comparison to a Pear Blueberry Kompot. Before the day began, I had no idea that I would be googling "What to do with pear peels" and going down a rabbit hole learning the history of kompots. The pears were getting past the point of no return. I planned to preserve them canned in water but ended up making a batch of pear butter and pear blueberry kompot. That's life when you don't want to waste any of the harvest goodness. I have a hard time looking at the peels … [Read more...]
Meat Lovers Zucchini Lasagna
We are not vegetarians. Never even entered our minds. Meat Lovers Zucchini Lasagna is a perfect blend of hearty meat dish and garden fresh goodness. We like hearty meals and when I have tried to serve my family a meatless dinner, well, lets just say it was not met with rave reviews. When I was visiting my daughter, she said that we would be having her zucchini lasagna recipe for dinner. I was surprised because her husband is a fan of eating meat for dinner. It sounded good to me, though so I … [Read more...]
