I'm A Believer

There are few things in the world I love as much as I love food.  And one of those things is a smokin' deal.  I'm not talking your run-of-the-mill 20% off business here- 20% off is a sucker's deal.  I mean the kind of deal where you walk out of the store and feel like you got away with something.  That is a true deal, and it fills me with complete and utter glee.  

Not too long ago, a friend of mine introduced me to my newest favorite incarnation of the food/deal marriage: our local food co-op.  The beauty of the co-op we have up here in Northern Utard is that it is open to anyone who would like to participate.  It's not income-restricted, it's not specific to any one church or neighborhood, and they actually want as many people as possible to take part. 

The first time we ordered from the co-op, I was skeptical, and not just because I'm a skeptic by nature.  It seemed too good to be true, and we all know what that usually means.  But, I paid my $5 lifetime membership fee and placed my order.  I was pretty certain the food I was going to get was going to be the stuff the grocery stores turn away, but I figured it was worth a shot.  Boy howdy (yep, BOY HOWDY), was I wrong.  The produce was absolutely loverly- the stuff you'd find in the yuppy grocery stores that I can't afford to shop in (and wouldn't if I could because paying double to shop in a status-market is against my moral code), and the meat and grains were equally good.  Whenever possible, the co-op I belong to buys from local growers and producers.

Last week I picked up our order for this month.  Here's what I got for $23:

1 pound of top sirloin fajita strips, 2 pounds of chicken drumsticks, a 2-pound sirloin pork roast, a pound of lean ground beef, a 2-lb. bag of carrots, 5 Fuji apples, 5 oranges, 1 head of romaine lettuce, 3 red bell peppers, 2 avocados, 5 pears, 5 tomatoes, a pound of rice and a loaf of wheat bread from a local artisan bakery.    

FOR TWENTY-THREE DOLLARS.

I may have died and gone to heaven. 

Maintaining Your Blog is SO Overrated

Sorry for not posting; I suffered a head injury that completely wiped out the part of my brain that remembers I have this blog.  Oddly, that is the ONLY thing I forgot about- having this here blog.  I didn't even forget about my other blog.  Just this one.

Yeah, you're not buying it are you?  Darn.  Oh well, it was worth a shot.

Truth is, this crapola economy has hit us pretty hard, and between joblessness and a never-ending cycle of colds and the flu, there hasn't been much culinary excitement to be had in our home.  (Other than the excitement on Top Chef.  Can you believe Leah and Hosea?  I get that you're in a pressure cooker and lonely, but seriously?  You do realize you're on television, right?  And that they're totally going to exploit this?  You idiots.  And don't get me started on Restaurant Wars.  Yeesh.)

But I digress.  (I digress a lot.  It's one of my favorite pasttimes.) I'm back, and I'm going to be better about posting.  I promise.  I know it's been a difficult separation for you, and well, I just can't have that on my conscience.  And no, those aren't my fingers crossed behind my back.  I'm just practicing yoga.  You know, multi-tasking.  Blogging and practicing the yoga pose in which I put my hand behind my back and put my fingers into a position which some might misinterpret as being crossed.  Really.  Would I lie to you? (Don't answer that.)

Breakfast Inspiration

Lately, we have been eating a LOT of Sam the Cooking Guy's version of grilled vegetable sandwiches. We eat them at least once a week, sometimes more. I love them because not only are they crazy healthy, but I love the way vegetables taste when grilled or roasted or otherwise cooked to the point of carmelization. It's the best way to eat vegetables. Plus, my husband and my toddler absolutely adore these sandwiches, too.

But anyhoo... Eating these sandwiches always leaves me with one little leftover square of ciabatta bread because said toddler eats a half-sized sandwich. Finding something to do with leftover bread is not difficult, as bread is one of my great loves in life. Seriously, I would rather die slowly than give up bread. One recent morning, I had a lovely bit of inspiration. I was about to unceremoniously devour the bread when the large bag of tomatoes from a friend's garden gave me an accusatory look. Clearly, they would not be ignored. My Foreman grill was still out from the night before (Hey, no judging. This isn't a housekeeping blog.), so I sliced up a tomato and threw it on that baby. (Man, I LOVE my Foreman grill, even if it is nearly a decade old.) Of course, now that grilled tomato was in the picture, plain ciabatta bread wouldn't do, so I spread a little butter on it, added a slice of Monterey Jack and popped it under the broiler. In a couple of minutes, this is what I had:

Now THAT says good morning- even on a paper plate.

P.S. Sorry for the crazy text spacing- I'm having issues with Blogger.

Not a Pie, Still Delicious

Blackberries were on sale the other day, so I decided to pick some up. I got some raspberries, too, because I think blackberries are too tart on their own. By the time I got home from the store, the berries were begging to be something greater than a salad ingredient, so after dinner, I obliged.

I made a pie crust and set it on a cookie sheet, then mixed the berries with a couple of teaspoons of sugar, a couple more of cornstarch, a squeeze of lemon juice and a bit of zest. Then I piled the whole thing in middle of the pie crust and folded the edges of the crust over the top, leaving just a small area in the middle uncovered, put it in the oven and let it bake for an hour-ish.

I don't know the technical name for this concoction- I've heard them called tarts and crostatas and words I can't spell, but whatever it is, it's really good- especially with a scoop of vanilla frozen yogurt on top. The only thing I would do differently next time is add a touch more sugar to the berries, and maybe do an egg wash or some sugar on the crust to pretty it up a bit.



Even with a suck-tastic camera, it looks delectable.

Spiced Apple Butter Muffins

These muffins scream "fall", but they're equally delicious any other time of the year. I got the recipe in an email from RealAge.com, so you can be assured they're reasonably healthy, too. when I made them, I subbed honey for the molasses (I have this thing against molasses, mostly that I hate the way it smells) and I used half rice milk and half 2% milk because I didn't have any lowfat milk. Oh, and I threw in a couple of tablespoons of flaxseed at the end. They were really good- good enough that my two-year-old called them cupcakes.


SPICED APPLE BUTTER MUFFINS

1/2 cup raisins
3/4 cup whole-wheat flour
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
3/4 cup unprocessed wheat bran or oat bran
1 large egg, lightly beaten
1/2 cup low-fat milk
1/2 cup spiced apple butter
1/2 cup packed light brown sugar or 1/4 cup Splenda Sugar Blend for Baking
1/4 cup canola oil
3 tablespoons molasses
1 cup finely diced peeled apple


1. Preheat oven to 375°F. Coat 12 standard 2 1/2-inch muffin cups with cooking spray. Place raisins in a small bowl and cover with hot water. Set aside.
2. Whisk whole-wheat flour, all-purpose flour, baking powder, salt and cinnamon in a large bowl. Stir in bran.
3. Whisk egg, milk, apple butter, brown sugar (or Splenda), oil and molasses in a large bowl until blended. Make a well in the dry ingredients and pour in the wet ingredients. Drain the raisins; add them and the diced apple to the bowl. Stir until just combined. Scoop the batter into the prepared pan (the cups will be very full).
4. Bake the muffins until the tops spring back when touched lightly, 18 to 22 minutes. Let cool in the pan for 5 minutes. Loosen the edges and turn the muffins out onto a wire rack to cool slightly before serving.

TIP: Wrap leftover muffins individually in plastic wrap, place in a plastic storage container or ziplock bag and freeze for up to 1 month. To thaw, remove plastic wrap, wrap in a paper towel and microwave on Defrost for about 2 minutes.

It's time to Revolt

You know what makes me crazy? Drives me up the wall and fills me with the desire to storm restaurant kitchens and have words with the chef? Good, because I'm about to tell you.



I HATE IT when I am at a restaurant and see garlic bread on the menu, and thinking, "Yum, garlic and bread together is one of heaven's greatest gifts," order the garlic bread only to receive a basket of slices of french bread with a butter/garlic powder mixture on it. That is not garlic bread. That is bread with a garlicky butter on it. Putting garlic in some form on top of bread does not make the bread itself garlic bread. In fact, putting anything on top of bread does not change the type of bread that one has. You do not put peanut butter on bread and call it peanut butter bread. (ooooh! Peanut butter bread! Delightful! Hurry, someone go invent that and send it to me. And maybe to Sara Lee or something, too, because that stuff will be HUGE.) You do not put jam on bread and call it jam bread. (Although you do put butter and cinnamon and sugar on toast and call it cinnamon toast... odd.)



Garlic bread is bread that actually contains garlic. La Brea makes a wicked roasted garlic loaf that has beautiful, lovely chunks of roasted garlic in it. It is delightful with dinner and for making eggs in a basket the next morning. THAT is garlic bread, my friends. Not this french-bread-with-butter-and-garlic-powder passed off as garlic bread at restaurants and grocery stores and dinner tables nationwide. And I am not going to take it anymore. No siree, next time that happens to me I am SENDING IT BACK. And then probably leaving, because I don't want to eat a dinner that has been spat upon. But I will have made my point. Take THAT, lazy restaurateurs!

Worth Getting Out of Bed For

Alright all you Utahns, the moment we've all been waiting for is upon us: Next Wednesday (July 2) Sunflower Market is opening in Murray (6284 South State Street)! The doors open at 7 am and the first 200 customers will receive a free reusable shopping bag filled with groceries valued at over $50 (note how it says customers- you do actually have to purchase something to get the free stuff, but trust me, once you're inside, you'll want to buy stuff). Now believe you me, I don't get out of bed before 7 am for ANYTHING, but if I could be in the area next Wednesday, I would be in line waiting for the doors to open with a big grin on my face. $50 in free groceries from Sunflower Market has that effect on me. SO, if you want to know why I love Sunflower Market as fervently as I do (Lovely cheap produce! All natural wheat mac & cheese that tastes like the blue box stuff! Ethnic food! Natural meats! Flatbread! Bulk bins!) and you want some free groceries to try out, get your bum out of bed and drag yourself down there in your pajamas if you have to and rejoice! Now you have the glory of a Sunflower Market near you!


P.S. No, they don't pay me, but they should, huh?