Put a big long hook on a big long pole, and I pulled Mr. Crawfish out of his hole

These muffins are addictive in the sense that all great things in life are worth repeating.

I made two versions of the chocolate chip lemon muffin from the book seen in the photo. One with chocolate chips and one with poppyseed. But it was only after I saw this picture that I noticed I goofed up the first batter (choco chips), because I added an extra egg! Funny though, both Jesse and I prefered the light, cake-y fluff of the first muffins. Second batch wasn't as delicate, but they were both special (winks) and tasted great!
Note: cookbook from Vita. Thanks, girl!!!



Chocolate Chip Lemon Muffins

2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/4 cups granulated sugar, divided
2 tsp baking powder
2 eggs
3/4 cup milk
1/2 cup butter, melted
2 tsp grated lemon zest
1/4 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips

Bring all ingredients to room temperature. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
In a medium bowl, sift together flour, one cup of the sugar, and baking powder.
In a large bowl, whisk together eggs, milk, butter, lemon zest, and lemon juice. Stir in flour mixture, mixing just until combined. Fold in chocolate chips. Do not overmix.
Scoop batter into prepared muffin pan with paper cups. Sprinkle remaining sugar evenly over tops.
Bake in preheated oven for 20-24 minutes or until puffed, light golden and a skewer inserted in center comes out clean. Let cool in pan on rack for 5 minutes. Remove from pan and let cool completely on rack.



Note: I skipped sprinkling sugar over the tops and created a glaze of confectioner's sugar, lemon zest, and freshly squeezed lemon juice and dipped the muffin tops into the glaze once the muffins were almost completely cooled. For the poppyseed muffins, simply omit the chocolate chips and pour in small amounts of poppyseed at a time until it looks sufficient. Not much is needed, maybe 1/4 cup?





Also, Jesse and I went berry-picking a couple hours before dinner at Melissa &Timm's with their grandparents, and ended up picking enough blackberries and huckleberries for pie! So we hurried home and I made a quick pie crust, zested a lemon and tore up some mint leaves. It was awesome, especially with some Humboldt Creamery ice cream!


yes, another crust did go on top of the filling! :p

Sail forth, steer for the deep waters only; Reckless, O' soul, exploring. I with thee, and thou with me.

The custard came out of the oven not too long ago. It looks good, but it's flat! and the caramel made such a mess. Pretty much none of it stayed inside the bundt pan! Man I need to get rid of that dumb two-piece pan..I have a leak problem every time I use it. Grr.

How do you make caramel? I have noo patience and messed it up a couple times lolol man. Pictures and recipes coming up in the next entry..Meanwhile, check out some photos from Stone Lagoon!






view from the campsite



beautiful, foggy humboldt :]















Cheers!

Those who forget the pasta are condemned to reheat it.

I modified this awesome pasta recipe slightly..the changes in ingredients are in bold. This was great and it's one of these dishes you want to make for a proposal or romantic dinner because you're going to get it good afterwards [grins] Per usual, local organic ingredients were used.

Creamy Fusilli with Yellow Squash and Bacon

8 oz fusilli egg noodles
4 slices bacon, sliced crosswise
4 medium yellow squash, quarted lengthwise and thinly sliced crosswise
1 pint mixed cherry tomatoes
1 medium shallot, chopped
2 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
1/2 cup heavy cream
1/4 cup grated Asiago cheese Parmigiano Reggiano and Romano cheese

Bring large pot of salted water to a boil. Add pasta, and cook until al dente. Reserve 1 cup wasta water; drain pasta and return to pot.
While pasta is cooking, heat a large skillet over medium. Add bacon, and cook until browned and crisp, 5-7 minutes. Using slotted spoon, transfer bacon to paper towel-lined plate to drain, reserving bacon fat in skillet.
Place skillet over medium-high. Add squash and garlic (and tomatoes&shallot) to fat in skillet; season to taste with salt and pepper (don't need much salt with bacon fat), and toss well. Cover and cook, stirring occasionally, until squash begins to soften, 5-7 mins. Uncover and continue to cook until liquid is evaporated and squash is tender, 2-3 min more. Add cream and cooked pasta to skillet; toss well, and cook until cream begins to thicken, 2-3 minutes. Remove from heat, stir in cheese and add enough reserved pasta water (not all!!!) to create a sauce that coats pasta.
Serve topped with reserved bacon and more cheese.



Jesse grilled up some awesome steak from his boss to serve with the pasta. YUM.

Haste Khelte khana Pakao; cook with a smile on your face

Chicken Tikkas

1/2 cup thick plain whole-milk yogurt
1 tbsp fresh lime juice
1 tsp finely grated peeled fresh ginger
3/4 tsp garam masala
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp cayenne
1 lb skinless boneless thighs, cut in 1" cubes
soaked wooden skewers

Stir together all ingredients except chicken in medium bowl, then add chicken and stir to coat. Marinate covered and chilled 30 mins - 1 hour.
Prepare grill over medium hot charcoal (moderate-high heat for gas). While grill is heating, thread a few pieces of chicken on each skewer, leaving a little space between pieces, and transfer to a tray lined with plastic wrap.
Oil grill rack, then grill chicken, covering if using gas grill, turning occasionally until browned and cooked through, about 7 minutes.

Potato-Swiss Chard Curry

3 medium red-skinned potatoes cut in 1" pieces
1 tbsp vegetable oil
2 tbsp sugar
2 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
3 cups Swiss chard, chopped
14.5 oz can diced tomatoes, undrained

Place potatoes in saucepan; cover with water and bring to a boil. Boil 4-6 minutes and drain. Heat oil in large skillet over medium-high until hot. Add potatoes, sugar, cumin, salt and cayenne pepper. Cook 2-3 minutes.
Stir in Swiss chard and tomatoes. Reduce heat to med-low; cover and simmer 4-6 minutes until chards are crisp-tender.

Ja, Kuchen!

Transcript: I treated myself to some cheese and bread. Add wine to the mix, and ya got the three things i could live on and nothing else! So my favorite cheese from a local producer- Humboldt Fog..blue cheese with vegetable ash in the middle. Yummm-o! Goes well with my favorite bread- pain au levian. Today I was excited to see a new line of cheese- Truffle Tremor! Made with truffles, duh. Earthy flavor, but yeah the cheese started underground so of course. Sooo I've got the munchies. Bread, cheese and wine! Rude, I know. But I can't help myself! Tonight ima make condensed milk custard. It's from Brazil and similar to flan, but..bigger! You'll see. Have a good one!

Pull-Apart Kuchen, Monkey Bread

Dough
1/4 cup warm water (110-115 degrees)
2 1/2 tsp active dry yeast
3 large egg yolks, lightly beaten
8 tbsp unsalted butter
1 cup whole milk
1/3 cup granulated sugar
4 cups all-purpose flour
Topping
3/4 cup coarsely chopped toasted pecans
3/4 cup coarsely chopped 62% semisweet chocolate
1/2 cup granulated sugar
8 tbsp unsalted butter, melted
butter and sugar for the pan.

For the dough
Combine water and yeast in a small bowl and stir to dissolve. Let stand for 10 minutes until foamy.
Place yolks in bowl of stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. In small saucepan, heat the butter and milk over medium-low until butter has melted. With mixer on low, carefully combine butter into yolks. Let stand until just warm.
With the mixer on low, add the salt, sugar, and yeast, mixing until just combined. Stop and add 2 cups of the flour, then mix on low until just incorporated. There will be lumps. Add the remaining flour and mix for 30 seconds. Increase speed to medium and mix until smooth, about 5 minutes. Dough will still be sticky.
Lightly butter a large bowl. Using a dough scraper, transfer dough to bowl and turn to coat with butter. Cover with kitchen towel or plastic wrap and let rise until doubled in size.
For the topping
Pulse the pecans, chocolate, and sugar in a food processor until sandy consistency (do not make 'butter'). Butter and sugar a 12-cup (10-inch) bundt pan.
Pour melted butter into small bowl. Pull off small pieces of the dough and roll into balls. Roll in butter then the nut & chocolate mixture to coat. Line the bottom of the pan with a layer of balls and continue stacking until dough is finished. Make the top layer fairly even. Cover with kitchen towel or plastic wrap and let rise in warm spot for 1 hour until doubled in size. Preheat oven to 350 degrees and brush the top of the kuchen with any remaining butter. Bake 45-50 minutes until top is dark brown and a test skewer inserted in bread comes out clean. Let stand 3-5 minutes then turn out onto a cooling rack for 15 minutes. Serve warm!


This bread was great. I totally enjoyed making it and the end result was a dense challah-like bread. Yumm-o!


I got a buncha guppies so they can poo and make my fish tank ready for bigger fish (catfish!). Minikitty loves them little fish ;) In the second vid, she has a fat lip from eating a bee. Poor baby! Third vid is of the guppy fry (baby fish) in the breeding tank/box thing. Kind of hard to see 'em, but minikitty got jealous and wanted to steal the show.

This is grain, which any fool can eat, but for which the Lord intended a more divine means of consumption... Beer!

Beer Bread

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
4 1/2 tsp baking powder
1 1/2 tsp salt
1/3 cup packed brown sugar
1 12-oz bottle of beer

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease a 9x5 loaf pan.
Combine all but beer in a large mixing bowl. Pour in beer and stir until stiff dough forms. May be necessary to use hands. Scrape into prepared loaf pan.
Bake for 50-60 minutes. Cool in pan for five minutes and then turn out onto cooling rack.





I loved this! It didn't rise as much as the bread in the picture from the recipe did. I don't know why, but I didn't mind. This is not a yeast dough, so preparation and baking is very much like banana bread, zuchinni bread, etc. I will be making this bread pretty often with different beer every time!

I used local beer from the Lost Coast Brewery. I'm not a big fan of that brewery, really..but Great White is my favorite beer out of what they have. Personally, as for local beer, I much prefer Eel River Brewery, which is the first and only organic certified brewery in America : )

Go buy a six pack of your favorite beer and save a bottle for some Beer Bread. Great for thick, hearty meals! Cheers.

Have a popover, froggy!

I LOVE POPOVERS! The thrill of popovers is opening the oven to giant golden balloons. Crusty outsides and a tender, creamy, almost hollow interior just perfect for jam!




Popovers (makes six)

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups milk
3 eggs, beaten
3 tbsp butter, melted
1 tsp salt

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Grease popover pan, or small ramekins.
Beat all ingredients together (I use a blender) until smooth. Fill the cups almost to the top and bake for thirty minutes until golden and feels light when lifted out of its cup. Serve immediately (before it falls!) with jam. Rewarmed, the popovers will get some of its puffiness back.

Popovers rise highest when they get a forceful amount of heat quickly. If you use muffin tins instead of separate containers or a popover pan, you will end up with popunders!! They're meant to go with chicken, roasts, salads, and soups; they don't belong with spaghetti, curries, or chili. Also, popovers make one of the best breakfasts in the world with good ol' homemade jam!





To go with the popovers, I made smothered chicken with mushrooms.



Smothered chicken with mushrooms (serves four)

1 3-lb frying chicken, in 8 pieces (see this post for how to butcher a chicken)
salt and black pepper to taste
1/4 cups olive oil
1 1/2 cups chopped onions
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
2 cups chicken broth
1 lb fresh mushrooms, wiped clean (never wash under water) and sliced
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
Season the chicken to taste with salt and pepper. In a large heavy-bottomed skillet, heat the oil over high heat and brown the chicken pieces, turning when necessary. Adjust the heat so that the chicken browns quickly, but does not burn. Transfer the chicken to a shallow casserole large enough to hold the pieces in one layer. Add the onions to the skillet and cook, stirring frequently, for about 5 minutes, or until they are soft and lightly colored. Stir in the flour and mix it in well with a spoon. Pour in the chicken broth and, stirring constantly, bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and let the broth simmer for 2-3 minutes. Pour the sauce over the chicken in the casserole, cover tightly, and cook in the oven for about 20 minutes. Scatter the mushrooms over the chicken, re-cover, and bake for another 10 minutes, or until the chicken is tender. Sprinkle the parsley over the top and serve.

Not tonight, love. I'm having a kebab.

My gosh, I've slacked enough on posting! There was a little crisis at home on Friday and I broke my sidekick in the midst of all the chaos, so I was emotionally drained. But there's nothing like spending some time in the woods to lift your spirits! Jesse and I joined Melissa and Timm at the Van Duzen river on Saturday. The trout were far too young to be fished, but I had fun swimming amongst them! Being nibbled by tiny fish is a funny sensation hehe


Humboldt beauties

So, that meant no fish for dinner. I kept nagging Jesse about what to bring to prepare with the fish, but he told me to never plan on catching fish. Good thing I listened to him! Instead, I made potatoes with green onions and bacon and beef kebabs. Timm complimented the seasoning on the beef, which I love to hear! I almost always season my beef with my staples: cumin, salt, and pepper. I also used chili powder for the kebabs. Jesse cooked the beef perfectly! It was awesome, as campfire food always is :]




So, the potatoes were prepared first since it required about 30-40 minutes of cooking time. Bacon was crisped up in a bit of vegetable oil in the dutch oven, and then taken out with the drippings reserved. I chopped up about eight red potatoes, which should be hasslebacked--deep cuts crosswise about 1/4-inch apart, stopping 1/4-inch from the bottom--but I kept cutting through the bottom with the silly little paring knife I had on me, so I just chopped them up. Put the potatoes on foil and drizzle the bacon drippings over (with hasslebacked potatoes, pour the dripping in between the slices) and toss with a few coarsely chopped cloves of garlic. Place the potatoes, still on top of the foil, in the dutch oven (or loosely wrapped in foil in a regular oven preheated to 450 degrees). Cover and cook for 30-40 minutes over the fire (45-50 minutes in an oven). Add the green onions and crispy bacon, crumbled and stir. Season to taste with salt and pepper. I added crushed red pepper flakes to my potatoes because I like a little kick :]



The kebabs were simple, as kebabs should be. All I used was red bell peppers, onion, bacon, and seasoned cubed beef. The ingredients were coarsely chopped (onions were quartered), and threaded onto wooden skewers that had been soaking in water for half an hour. They were put over the fire (with foil underneath), lightly drizzled with oil and lightly seasoned with salt, and grilled until slightly charred in spots and cooked through.

Never cry over spilt milk, because it may have been poisoned.

Does anyone know how to put captions on videos? I had a buncha vLogs ready to go, but I wanted to caption them and dl'ed a piece of crap propgram that didn't work. Humm I suppose I ought to ask seekgeo..I love his Hell's Kitchen recaps!! hilarious.

So all of my time has suddenly been freed up (vLogged the reason, but its on my camera still) and I'm going camping tonight at the Van Duzen river. I'll try to post a bit before I go, but I know I'll be cookin' up some campfire meals to post on here heh but I can't decide what to make! I did some research on fishing at Van Duzen, and because of high mining -> erosion -> low water levels -> no upstream migration, fishing is prohibited on some parts of the river due to loww numbers. But M-Bee, Jesse's sister who we're going with, says she saw plenty o' trout at Swimmer's Delight where Melissa, Tim, Jesse, and I are staying. I hope I'll let Jesse keep some fish this time! Last time, I screamed at him to let every prospective dinner go ;/

I totally want to do an orange saffron butter with orange rinds in the fish bellies as it cooks, but who knows how fishing will be so I shouldn't get overly excited! Herbs and butter, then. Maybe some good ol' hasslebacked potatoes with bacon to accompany the trout. My heart (stomach) is set on biscuits and gravy, and I hope M-Bee and I can go hiking and gather plenty of berries for some cobbler!! That's only a day's worth of food though. I need to come up with another menu for another day's worth of food! Oh boy this'll be a yummy trip.

Gordon, my brother, gave me an excellent book on foraging for wild edibles. It would be crazy cool if I could gather some of Mother (Earth)'s veggies and whip something up with the trout. That would be so, so awesome. A free, delicious meal at Mother's grace!

I need to post my monkey bread, beer bread, and popovers!