Twofer one

I wanted to break this up into 2 posts, but oh well.
So I have had some thoughts about our yard lately. A few months ago, Stephen started doing some research on how to espalier fruit trees. Click on espalier if you want to learn about it- I had never heard of it though I had seen it. This way he could get more trees in a smaller area and keep them lower maintenance, plus make a kind of fence out of them for the front yard. He checked out books on it from the library and we talked to experts in the area about what kind of trees to get, etc.
So when I told people over Presidents Day weekend that we had bought 10 fruit trees, I got varied responses. LOL Stephen and I both grew up on an acre or more and our parents had/have many full size fruit trees, so of course 10 sounded like a ton of work to them . . . my dad said of Stephen "well, he doesn't lack ambition". This is so true. I started thinking back to all the places we have lived since we got married. Stephen is always trying to make use of whatever space we have, which some years was very little. My friend commented on having a "bountiful yard" and I thought back to what Stephen's twin brother said when he bought a duplex- he wanted his property to work for him (or something to that effect). Well, that's what Stephen has been doing all these years as well. He finds it amusing to see what will grow as well, but I think he just has this desire to make where ever he's living produce something- anything. Thus the chickens and all the future plans for the yard. So I thought I would document some of his doings over the last 6 years.
The first summer we were married we had moved into my grandparent's old farmhouse with a huge yard and garden area. We moved there in March and Stephen had filled the whole garden plot with plants in time for growing season. We got quite a lot of fruit and veggies that summer- those white gourds grew on their own and were quite the fun Halloween decor. The following summer we knew we would be headed to Chicago by August and there wouldn't be time to harvest much of anything. So Stephen decided we would grow a whole garden full of basil and cilantro and sell it at the local farmers market. We spent $25 on bulk seed and planted the whole garden plot. Needless to say, we got bags and bags of basil - the cilantro bolted to seed too fast. We took the bags down to the Boise farmers market and a veggie vendor said he would sell them for us at a cut. We made $25 and ate endless amounts of pesto that summer. Stephen was happy.
In Chicago we rented a duplex. The only summer we were there Stephen talked the landlord into letting us pull all the thistles in the alley behind our place and put in plants. We also got permission to plant in a 6 inch strip next to the garage with corn- these were the results.


It was HILARIOUS to drive by and see that row of corn next to the dentist's garage.

Once we moved to Seattle we were able to grow potted cherry tomatoes behind our apartment complex.

We bought our house last April and the first thing Stephen set on was getting the garden plot ready. It took a lot of labor to get all the trees, bushes and then turf out of the area we wanted it, but we did get a garden in and we had some success.
Staking out where the fruit trees in the front yard should go.

Hard to see them, but here are the 6 apple trees. The wire guides is where 3 branches on each side will be "taught" to grow. Dwarf trees will keep them from getting much beyond 5-6 ft tall.
Next to our side fence in the front yard he put in 4 cherry trees- they also will be espaliered. Plans include a full size peach tree, blueberries, raspberries and possibly an apricot tree.

Another note: Stephen is no carpenter, but I am amazed at what he comes up with. We have all this leftover fencing lumber from the fences they built last summer (Stephen, neighbors and his parents - I mainly hauled junk).

These are some boxes he made in less than an hour to put raspberries bushes into.

He designed and built the chicken coop complete with removable side for cleaning and a nesting box door to collect eggs (we got 3 this week!!)

The chicken coop now rests in the garden spot so the chickens can fertilize the garden- look at our girls now!

The littler box home he made with scratching post covered in leftover carpet that was left in the shop.
He wanted the clothes rack removed from the laundry/pantry room so we would have more floor space- so he rigged up this hanging rod from leftover lumber.
Finally, he tore out old sheet rock around our wood box that had water damage years ago and is filling in the sides of it with our lumber.


My other post was about our week- we've had crazy cold weather and the girls were DELIGHTED when we got some real snow that stuck to the yard. I didn't catch Odessa's real face here, but she was absolutely beaming scooping up armfuls of snow and moving them around the yard. She would live in Alaska if we let her- she loves the snow SO MUCH and will stay out forever in it.
This weekend I cajoled Stephen into going down to the mall- he has never been!!! It didn't hurt that the JC Penney rewards that were going to expire I encouraged him to use and find some work clothes that ended up being almost free- that's the kind of shopping he likes . . .
After the girls spent their allowance they've earned from feeding chickens and setting the table, we met our friend Hermes in the "Asian" wing of the mall where they have a Jollibee, Chow King and Red Ribbon bakery, all chain restaurants that are all over in the Philippines. The first time I discovered it, I couldn't stop grinning. So even though us American missionaries always made fun of the Jollibee food (Asia's McDonalds with funny tasting hamburgers) I tried their fried chicken at Hermes' urging and we got some Filipino spaghetti with sweet banana ketchup sauce and special hot dogs and ground pork in it- don't forget the grated "velveeta" style cheese on top . . . Oh I acutally miss that crazy spaghetti. Jollibee's was good, but the homemade stuff that I ate at people's homes was even better.
But the kicker was the halo-halos we got from Chow King. OH MY- they super size them American sized. They were delicious.
My back continues to be a constant pain, and my blood sugars were high when they tested me for gestational diabetes so I have to take another glucose challenge (2 hr this time, FASTING) and start taking better care of my body these last 8+ weeks of pregnancy. After the coming week which will be very busy, I am going to stop working so much and go to Physical Therapy, walk more and go to the dentist- finally.
And that is my insanely long post that should have been at least two. Oh well.

Last chance

I try and not blog on weekdays- been really busy with this job lately which should change the second week of March.
I finally updated all my recipe photos with the recipes and reviews in the previous post. Here is what else we have been up to:

The girls set this all up themselves, so I had to take a picture.

We went with our friends to a YW fundraiser. Some young women in a ward in our Stake put on a Valentines dinner/dance. We had a really good time! The food was better than we thought it would be, they watched and fed all our kids in the nursery and we got to boogie to a few songs. They made a gazillion of these chocolate roses- that is 2 hersheys minis and 2 kisses- so adorable.

I had to make a few sugar cookies. We had choir practice, a youth fireside at our house and my daily need for a cookie at 4pm to worry about. We got all the bases covered.

This past weekend was busy with Missionaries dinner, baking bread, chili cook-off (I combined 2 recipes for a green/white chicken chili that didn't win but was very good) and cinnamon rolls for early morning choir practice (yes, I am done baking for choir for a while). In fact, I am done cooking for awhile altogether. We have leftovers galore from all the soups and breads.
Plus my back has been giving me a ton of pain lately- I can't sit, stand or walk for long without feeling like it's seized up or something. Transferring weight from one leg to another is hilarious- my pregnant waddle makes it seem I am must be in my 9th month of carrying twins. I have back braces and may go to the Physical Therapist soon . . . been sleeping on the recliner full time for a while now.


Biggest news is that we got our first egg today!! Stephen noticed a chicken fussing around under a rhodedenron bush and when he went to inspect found a warm egg there! This started a full blown, real life Easter Egg hunt around our yard in case those chickies had been tucking them other places. No other eggs yet, but that is ok. Now we know we need to put fake eggs or golf balls in the nesting boxes to encourage them to use those instead. (and yes, Odessa dressed herself up like that while I was napping and wore it out in the yard)

Pretty huh? I have lots of other thoughts about our yard which I want to post separately.

So many recipes so little time

I am finally posting about the many recipes I have been making. I finally decided to make as many darn adjustments as I needed to- mostly to save money or use up something I have- and blog about why I thought those substitutions would work and what the outcome was. Taking classes titled "experimental foods" as part of my program in college is more helpful than I thought . . .

Ok, this is a photo from the web, but we took this stir fry to a Chinese New Year party and it was a hit- so good! I forgot to take pics. We all made dumplings together- so delicious!

Emeril's Broccoli and Cauliflower Stir-fry

1 cup long grain rice
2 Tb veg oil
2 Tbs minced garlic
3/4 pound broccoli- cut into bite size
3/4 pound cauliflower- cut into bite size
1/2 red bell pepper, diced
red-pepper flakes
1/2 cup low sodium chicken broth
1/2 cup oyster sauce

Cook rice according to instructions. Meanwhile, in a wok or large skillet, heat oil over high. Add garlic, cook 10 seconds. Add broccoli, cauliflower, bell pepper and a pinch of red pepper flakes and cook, stirring, about 4 minutes. Add broth and stir to combine. Cook, stirring constantly until vegetables are crisp-tender, about 3 minutes. Add oyster sauce and cook, stirring to combine, 1 minute. Spoon over rice and serve immediately.

(review: Made as is, and everyone loved it. I doubled it. Just in case you haven't used it before: Oyster sauce is not fishy tasting (unlike fish sauce)- it's rich and slightly sweet and a ton of Chinese dishes you love probably have it in them.)

Roasted Red Onion and Squash Pasta

2 medium red onions, cut into 6 wedges, layers separated
1 medium butternut squash, peeled and cut into 3/4 inch pieces
1 Tbs coarsely chopped fresh sage leaves
1 Tbs olive oil
coarse salt and ground pepper
1/2 pound short ridged pasta, like rigatoni
1/4 cup grated fontina cheese (2 oz)

Preheat oven to 450. On a rimmed baking sheet, toss onions, squash, and sage with oil. Season with salt and pepper. Arrange in a single layer and roast until tender, about 25 minutes, rotating sheet and tossing vegetables halfway through.
Meanwhile, in a large pot of boiling salted water, cook pasta. Reserve 1/2 cup pasta water; drain pasta and return to pot. Add vegetables and cheese and toss to combine, adding enough pasta water to create a thin sauce that coats pasta.

(review- I liked this, although I did use fontina cheese and it wasn't my super favorite of textures. We had this totally random winter squash that seemed dense like a butternut squash, so I used that instead of butternut and it was ok- butternut would have been even better. I used dried sage- not going to pay $2-3 for an herb for a meatless dish when I already splurged for the cheese. No thanks.)


Onion Focaccia

3 Tbs plus 1 tsp olive oil
2 pounds store bought or homemade pizza dough
2 large red onions, thinly sliced
coarse salt and ground pepper
1 Tbs cider vinegar
1/2 cup grated Pecorino Ramano
1/2 to 1 tsp red pepper flakes

Preheat oven to 425. Coat an 11 x 17 inch rimmed baking sheet with 2 Tbs oil. Place dough on sheet, stretching to fit (if dough springs back, let rest 20 minutes and repeat.) Drizzle edges of dough with 1 Tbs oil. Cover with plastic wrap and let sit 15 minutes.
Meanwhile, in a large skillet, heat 1 tsp oil over med-high. Add onions and season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until onions are tender and golden brown in spots, 12 minutes. Add vinegar and cook, stirring and scraping up browned bits with a wooden spoon, 1 minute.
Remove plastic from dough. With your fingertips, poke dimples all over dough, then top with cheese, browned onions, and red pepper flakes. Bake until golden brown around edges, about 30 minutes. Let cool on sheet 5 minutes. Cut into 20 pieces and serve warm or at room temp. (to store, wrap cooled focaccia in plastic and keep at room temp for 2 days).

(review- We all LOVED THIS. Stephen served his mission in Italy, so when I told him that I was making focaccia for dinner, he got excited- they used to buy it by the square over there from shops for lunch or snack. When he asked about the dough recipe and I told him I was to use my pizza dough recipe he was a little concerned ; ). Turns out focaccia should not be the same texture as pizza. So I added some extra yeast and left it pretty thick when I rolled it out- who stretches it on a sheet, I don't know? He deemed it perfect when he tried it. He really dislikes Romano, so we used parmesan which I always have on hand. One other thing that occurred to me- I just found out a year or 2 ago that when a recipe reads "skillet" they mean like a stainless steel pan or cast iron or something other than non-stick skillet. When they want you to use a non-stick, they say non-stick. They cook so differently, it really does matter.)

Ham, Zucchini and Gruyere Frittata

1 Tbs olive oil
1 cup coarsely chopped ham (5 oz)
2 small zucchini, sliced into 1/4 inch half-moons (2 cups)
coarse salt and ground pepper
8 large eggs, lightly beaten
1/2 cup grated Gruyere cheese (1.5 oz)

Preheat oven to 425. In a 10 inch-oven proof non-stick skillet, heat oil over medium high. Add ham and zucchini, season with salt and pepper, and cook until zucchini starts to lightly brown, about 5-7 minutes.
Add eggs and gruyere, season with salt and pepper, and stir to combine. Cook, undisturbed until edges are set, about 2 minutes. Transfer skillet to oven and bake until top of frittata is just set, 10-13 minutes. Invert or slide frittata onto a plate and cut into 6 wedges. Serve warm or at room temp.

(review: ok, this is one I made one night when I didn't have a dinner plan. So gruyere did not happen- cheddar had to suffice. I was also short 2 eggs! So I did a hunt through my fridge and decided the full fat sour cream I had on hand might be thick enough to sub for some eggs. I did a search online before I started and found that yes, sour cream was an ok substitute. The sour cream did make it a little grainy in spots- I did not whip in the sour cream, it was left a little chunky. It was enjoyed by all and I LOVE that this issue has 4 different fritatta variations- we love cooking with lots of eggs).


Almond Date Smoothie

Blend 3 Tbs almond butter, 4 pitted dates, 1 cup low fat plain yogurt, 1 cup apple cider or juice and 1 cup ice.

(Review: Weird- the texture and taste were both kinda strange. I liked it better than Stephen who apparently thinks smoothies should always be berry/citrus based lol. We probably won't make it again, but it was enjoyable enough.)

Pasta with Eggplant-Tomato Relish

coarse salt and ground pepper
1 pound short, ridged pasta
1 recipe eggplant-tomato relish
4 oz crumbled feta cheese

In a large pot of boiling salted water, cook pasta according to directions. Reserve 1 cup pasta water; drain pasta and return to pot. Stir in relish and reserved water, then season with salt and pepper. Top with feta and serve warm or at room temp.

Relish:
Preheat oven to 450. On a rimmed baking sheet, stir together 1 can (28 oz) whole peeled tomatoes torn into small pieces, 2 unpeeled garlic cloves, 1/2 tsp ground cumin and 1 Tbs olive oil. Place 1 globe eggplant (1 pound) on top of tomato mixture and roast until eggplant is very tender when pierced with a knife and tomato juices are thick- 30-40 minutes. Let cool. Transfer eggplant to a cutting board and halve lengthwise. Scrape out flesh with a spoon (discarding as many seeds as possible); roughly chop flesh. Place in a large bowl. Peel and chop garlic and add to bowl. Stir in tomato mixture and 1/2 small red onion, diced small. Season with coarse salt and ground pepper. (to store, refrigerate in an air tight container, up to 1 week.)

(Review: This was really good. The feta didn't seem to set right with this dish- I have NO IDEA why all the cheeses don't seem to be working for me on these dishes. Maybe I am buying too low quality of specialty cheese . . . hmmm. But I have a hard time thinking of what cheese I would use instead . . . )


Sweet and Sour Chicken with Green Beans

1 cup long grain white rice
1 Tbs cornstarch
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup white vinegar
1 Tbs vegetable oil
1 1/4 pounds chicken breast cut into 1 inch pieces
2 bell peppers seeded and diced large
1/2 pound green beans, trimmed and halved
5 scallions, thinly sliced
2-inch piece fresh ginger, peeled and minced
3 garlic cloves, minced
2 Tbs chopped roasted peanuts

Cook rice. Meanwhile, in a small bowl or measuring cup, whisk together cornstarch, sugar, soy sauce, and vinegar. Set aside.
In a large skillet or wok, heat oil over high. Add chicken, bell peppers and green beans, cook stirring frequently, until vegetables begin to soften, about 5 minutes. Add scallions, ginger and garlic and cook, stirring frequently until chicken is cooked through and vegetables are tender, about 4 minutes.
Whisk soy sauce mix, add to skillet, and cook, stirring constantly until sauce thickens, about 3 minutes. Remove from heat and serve over rice with peanuts on top if desired.

(Review: This was delicious, but I made some changes. Fresh green beans and bell peppers were way too expensive, so I opted to buy frozen instead. I got one bag of beans, and one bag of the bell pepper strips. I cooked the chicken by itself, and removed it from the wok. I then added the frozen veggies. The key to cooking with frozen veggies is to cook the water off and not cook them to death so they don't look too ugly. One method I use is to push the veggies into the edges of the wok to let the water cook off from the middle. Once I felt like the veggies were cooked but not over cooked, I added the chicken back and added the sauce. It came out pretty good. I am sure it would taste better with fresh, but just too spendy for me that week.)


Peanut-Banana Espresso Smoothie

Blend 1 cup low fat milk, 1 Tbs instant espresso powder, 1/4 cup natural creamy peanut butter, 1 ripe banana cut into thirds and 1 cup ice.
Serves 2 (big glasses) Calories: 307

(Review: I did not use the espresso powder since we don't drink coffee in any form, but I did sub some of my special cocoa powder and I thought this was DELICIOUS. Stephen is more partial to the fruity kinds like I mentioned, but I think this is a great sub for a milkshake any day.)

Catching up

I have at least 5 Everyday Food recipes to share about, but first a little bit of family business post:


I got my hair cut and colored- a little fix of the at-home dying and cutting jobs I have been doing myself . . . this summer I want to take it back to the original dingy, dirty blonde that I won't have to do anything to upkeep ; ). This is the best it will ever look- so I documented it. She had flat irons I will not be investing in. I guess I will post a picture of my baby bump (more like a mountain) soon per requests.

Our free rare breed chick they threw into our order turned out to be a rooster. When he started cock-a-doodling last weekend it was super funny and sad. We have suspected for a while "Leah" was a "Leo" and would have to go. Stephen suggested eating him- and even Odessa knew that this was a possibility although she has held him from the time we got him as a chick. Stephen is so good about making sure the girls understand that part of having animals like chickens means they may die and you might be the one to kill them. But I opted to try selling him.
However- this picture does not do him justice, his tail feathers gleam green in the sunlight (yes, when we have sunlight) and he is fluffy and can puff out his neck feathers when he runs at you- protecting his ladies from the evil forces of . . . the people who feed them. Anyway, I always had this fear that one of the many Asians or Latinos that live around these parts might want him for cock fighting. Yes, I saw lots of cock fighting roosters in the Philippines and also the many different razor weapons they attach to the roosters claws - whoever loses usually is dinner for the winner's owner.
I posted him on Craigslist for $10 which is a lot for a rooster- some people give them away, but I got an email that night from a Vietnamese guy from Burien. When I asked him some questions he said the rooster was going to stay at his friend's house who also had a rooster. "No way" I thought- not selling my rooster to you. Luckily I had posted 3 of the laying hens (at least they are supposed to start laying by the end of the month or next month) at the same time. A super nice lady who has a farm on Vashon Island (short ferry ride from West Seattle) wanted to add to her 4 layers. So perfect. Oh and by the way, she was looking for a rooster, but would pick one up on Vashon for free- everyone had too many roosters to get rid of. I called her after agonizing about the Vietnamese guy and offered her Leo for free with the 3 layers. And so all 4 chickens went off together on Thursday to live a happy life on the farm. I was so relieved. And we even have her address in case we want to go see them sometime. Nicest lady ever.

Stephen was getting the girls out of the tub, I was making dinner and the State of the Union was blaring. All of a sudden I hear this live clapping coming from the living room. I peak in to see Ada- she has come right in, climbed up on the couch, is acting like she is listening attentively and clapping whenever everyone else does. She was SO SERIOUS and it was SO FUNNY.
She could not have been happier to get to watch TV long after PBS kids was over . . .