Broth All Week in a Slowcooker

    In the colder months, especially living here in Pittsburgh, I tend to gravitate to having a constant warm drink in my hand all day. I don't drink caffeine so it's usually decaf tea or decaf espresso. But lately that just hasn't been cutting it. I wanted something like broth. So, I began making it more regularly. It was exactly what I needed but I never seemed to have enough, especially being that I switched our two labs to a grain free diet. (We are a member of Costco and they sell a grain free dry dog food. Our dogs go through about 35 pounds of dog food in about two weeks. It isn't as great as bones and meat and what not but it is better than the other crap they were eating. I do what I can afford). To make their dog food even better I add a bit of warmed stock or broth over their food. They're both epileptic and take medications that taste pretty nasty, so, I crush it over their food and pour the stock/broth on top. They happily eat it. Needless to say my stock/broth was going fast.
    Well, I happened to read about slow cooking broth all week in my slowcooker. I had never thought to do it. It's simple and it's brilliant. I felt almost giddy with my first batch because I knew what I ate I would be replacing and I would still have warm broth always at the ready. I poured it on the dogs' food and then poured myself a cup and added a clove of roasted garlic, a bit of parsley, and a sprinkling of sea salt and kelp flakes. Really good. My little ones weren't super keen on it and they were forced to drink four sips of theirs. They're used to the thickly flavored broth I give them with chicken soup. They drink the broth for days after. I threw on a pot of chicken soup and will let them eat that and I'll sip on the slowcooker goodness. I am also excited to see if I can do it with beef bones I have on hand as well. Thanks to Jenny over at Nourished Kitchen for sharing this ingenious idea for having broth ever at the ready! Her website is FULL of amazing recipes and ideas. I'm in love.

Gluten-Free Store Bought Pork Rinds

I have been craving pork rinds lately. I want something crunchy and salty. I miss popcorn so much! It was a daily snack in our house. A snack I made with our stovetop popper and smothered in butter and salt. We probably ate it 3-4 days a week. I tried to keep some already made on stash in a big plastic bag for the little ones, but now that I have taken all the grains out of our diet I really miss it and I really haven't found any good alternative.

When I rendered my own lard I was able to make crackling too that the little ones and I gobbled up. They dubbed them "pig chips". They were good but they were greasy and not at all like the fluffy, crunchy pork rinds that I am used to. Well, a recent stop at Wal-Mart to fill up the gas tank for our gas grill left me searching the aisles to see if they sold pork rinds. I know that Frito-Lay makes pork rinds but they can't confirm they are gluten free because they are processed on the same line as gluten. It simple says made without gluten ingredients, which could be fine for some but in our house it would be doom and pain. Knowing all that I shouldn't have bought the pork rinds from Wal-Mart without first making double sure but they looked so good that I grabbed two and came home to email the company. While waiting I googled if they were gluten free and almost everywhere I saw stated that they were indeed gluten free. The confirmation came this morning from the company. And a good thing too because me and my little ones devoured two bags of "pig chips" yesterday! 

My little ones were eating them in the kiddie pool and when a thunderstorm rolled in and they made a fort on our covered porch to watch the "big storm" come in and ate an entire bag while watching, exclaiming how good they were. My Keeley even declared, "Mama, these taste like junk! They even smell like junk! They're so good! Can we get some more?" Junk being junk food, and junk food hasn't been seeing the light of day in our house. Which I don't apologize for at all. I make great alternative "junk" and they hardly even notice. Even our labs ate some and were, of course, in heaven. Yeah, we had all been missing the chip/popcorn crunch.

Below is the response I received from Rudolph Foods about their pork rinds.

Hi Lauren,
Thanks for emailing us regarding our pork rinds.  I am happy to let you know that they are indeed gluten-free.  We do produce a few products that contain gluten, however, they are cooked in different oil (the pork rinds are cooked in lard) and the lines that produce them are wet chemically cleaned and sanitized before anything else is run on them. 

If you have any further questions, please don't hesitate to be in touch!

Sincerely,

Johanna Jones

Johanna Jones

Corporate QA Coordinator

Rudolph Foods CompanyNobody Makes Better Tasting Pork Rinds!6575 Bellefontaine Road
Lima, OH 45804
PH: 419-648-3611 Ext. 191

Fax: 419.648.3602www.rudolphfoods.com

Needless to say, I am most happy. They have other flavors that I will have to look into because when flavors are added it usually makes them a no-go for us but for now the simple recipe of the Original of just pork fat and salt works great. Plus, they only cost me $1.46 per bag at my store. Not bad for a crunchy snack that doesn't hurt me. Also, you should know Rudolph Foods only sells their pork rinds in Wal-Mart so you won't find them in any other store. I will try my hand again at making homemade pork rinds with local, happy pig but when that craving hits at least I know there is a ready-made one available. Oink, oink!

Homemade Non-Vinegar Pickles

After a recent Wednesday trip to our local farmer's market, I came home with small (pickling) cucumbers and a sheet from the farmer with a recipe to make homemade pickles with no vinegar. I have nothing against vinegar, in fact we're good friends, but I thought this recipe was definitely worth trying.

The little ones were interested in helping me out so it got a bit messy but they had a good time and so did I. And it was only messy because they decided to make their own creations from the fennel fronds. Nothing a quick sweep of my "dirt and hair sucker" couldn't handle.

"Mama, this could take a while. Like, until nighttime. I'm a chef and I need to make something."

I did all the cuts to the cucumbers but the little ones delighted in taking turns (well, they delighted in their turn but not so much in waiting for their turn to come around) grinding with the mortar and pestle and then, of course, ripping the fronds of the fennel.

I really liked the end result. The little ones look at them and say "cool" but won't touch them with a ten-foot pole. Their loss and my gain.

Homemade Non-Vinegar Pickles

adapted from Nourishing Traditions by Sally Fallon

Makes 1 Quart

• 4-5 pickling cucumbers or 15-20 gherkins (mine were the small cute ones)
• 1 tablespoon mustard seeds 
• 2 tablespoons fresh fennel fronds (the hairy/feathery bit at the top of the fennel), finely chopped
• 2 tablespoons salt
• Filtered water

1. Clean your cucumbers and then slice them into about 1/4 inch slices. You can also keep them whole but sometimes when you're eating them just a slice is enough.
2. Combine the mustard seeds and salt. I put mine in my mortar and pestle and let the little ones have a turn combining it all but it isn't required.
3. Place your cucumbers in a jar (a wide-mouth mason works but I used clean coconut oil jars) and put the mustard seeds, salt, and fennel fronds over the top.
4. Pour filtered water over the top of the cucumbers. The top of the liquid should be at least 1-inch below the top of the jar.
5. Cover the jar tightly with the lid and store at room temperature for about 2-3 days. I stored mine in my pantry and gently shook them each day. I don't know if they need to stay out of light but this was the coolest place in the kitchen.
6. After the cucumbers have sat around for a few days they are ready to be eaten. At this point, even if you don't eat them, you should put them in the fridge. 

Rendering Lard

Rendering lard was such an awesome thing for me to do. First, because I have wanted to do it for a long time and second, because it was something I feared to completely screw up. My adventures to the farmer's market this summer have left me with many new friends and one of them a local farmer that has taken me under her wing a bit. She's a 50 something woman who is a mother to six children, all of them she homeschooled, including her last little one that arrived on the scene a little later than her family had planned. This last little one is actually what brought us together because my three little ones love to play with her little one and that lands us at the farmer's market for about 3-4 hours every Wednesday. They don't need me around except for a quick snack, drink, or hug. In the meantime, I hang with my friend and talk with her about life and then I sit back and listen to her talk about life and the food she sells with all those that come to the farmer's market. It's a richness that fills me. 

Last week, my friend, Terry, as she is so aptly named, was moving things out of her front seat so that the little ones would have more space for playing in her truck (who knew that kids would like to play in a car in the middle of the summer, which is completely safe because we are sitting right outside the doors of the truck and the windows are open, lest anyone would believe I am locking them in there, which I'm not) and she happened to grab a bag of lard to put in the bed of her truck. When my eyebrows went up she said, "Lard I need to render." My response was an excited, "What?" 

Most people think of lard as the artery clogging fat that really shouldn't be used but on occasion. But for me it is my bread. I use lard every day to cook and sometimes when I am hungry and need a little fat to hold me over I'll nibble on about a teaspoon of bacon lard. Strange to some but when I eat in a more primal way this is perfectly normal. A little goes a long way and fat is good. No, really it is. Need a little more proof you should read Why We Get Fat by Gary Taubes. It just might blow your mind. I borrowed mine from the local library.

Well, I have just been getting the lard from my bacon. I always have a jar or two in the fridge. It has bits of bacon in it that make it all the more delicious to use. When I was buying bacon from my "butcher" a few weeks ago I saw that he was selling jars of rendered lard. It was white in color, a vast contrast to my yellowish bacon strewed lard. I had no idea how to make mine like that. I thought it looked pretty safe to use in everything. I mean if I want to make an almond pie crust I wouldn't want to use lard with bits of bacon, would I? Well, maybe I would but not every time.

When Terry said she needed to render her lard I thought who better to ask than her. She's simply a goddess that has lived life and knows so much. Terry is like reading a really good book that has been so seasoned that you almost have a hard time believing it's real at all but then you see it in it's true form and are simply blown away. Needless to say, Terry had the answer to my question.

Her answer to me was that the lard I get off my bacon is what you would call "seasoned lard". Rendered lard is just the fat no seasonings. To get this you take the main source, pig, and cook it out of it. Her method is to cook it covered in water for about 8 or so hours and then wait until it cools to get the lard. She then offered the entire bag to me. I was speechless. I felt like someone had just offered me a ridiculously precious diamond, well, that is if I actually like diamonds, which I don't particularly. But this was MY kind of diamond. Of course I said yes and went home giddy as a girl on Christmas morning.  

I must say that visiting with family and friends delayed me from jumping in right away but to be completely honest I was also a bit nervous. I mean it  seemed totally cool but what if I screwed up? It wasn't just about me screwing up but now it was the fact that a friend had given me a precious gift. Terry usually uses the lard to make soap that she then sells. Not to mention the pig that had given it's life for me to eat and use. I didn't want to waste  the pig's life by "messing up". I decided to just jump. You know, jumping into my fear? I didn't even google it. I just went per Terry's instructions. 

Results? Not bad! I googled it after all was said and done and decided I might try a different way next time but I rendered me some great lard. Four jars full as well as greasy pork rinds. Seriously, anything that involves pork rinds I deem a big fat success. My little ones, especially Keagan, love the "pig chips". Much thanks to Terry for sharing her hard work and friendship. And also to the pig who's life is most definitely honored. Without you, dear pig, I couldn't be my strongest self. Namaste, pig, even in your death.

Here's a little video that I thought was wonderful and I may try this way next time...

Chocolate Chip Scones Made With Almond Flour

Chocolate Chip Scones Made With Almond Flour.

Sometimes the only thing that can brighten a mood on a chilly, wet and grey afternoon is a cup of tea and a scone. I decided I would make today a treat day for me, which essentially just means I eat more carbohydrates than usual and maybe even a touch of something sweet. I wanted a scone with chocolate even though I knew it could have disastrous consequences. Well, the consequences were not the worst I have ever had but I did get a migraine headache, nausea, and sharp stomach pains after. It was somewhat worth it. I just wish I could eat chocolate without any ill affect. But I share this for those that want to make a chocolate scone with minimal sugar and also lower in carbohydrates.

Scones and almond flour are soul mates. They are just meant to be. Scones are naturally made with a bit of almond flour, even in recipes that aren't gluten-free or grain-free. Using all almond flour for this recipe was a no-brainer for me and the results were mouthwatering and satisfying. Try this out on a day you just need a treat and wash it down with a warm cup of tea. I made my sleepy tea (recipe follows the scone recipe) and after my wee one, Bay, finished she laid down on the couch and fell fast asleep. A dull afternoon turned sweet.

Chocolate Chip Scones Made With Almond Flour
adapted from Elana Amsterdam's Chocolate Chip Scone recipe

• 2 1/2 cups almond flour ( I use Honeyville.)
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/3 cup melted coconut oil (I sometimes substitute olive oil and it still tastes marvelous.)
• 2 eggs
• 1 1/2 cups chocolate chips (Enjoy Life Chocolate Chips are our favorite.)

1. In a bowl mix together your dry ingredients: almond flour, salt, and baking soda.
2. In a separate bowl mix together your wet ingredients: oil, eggs.
3. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry and mix until combined completely.
4. Stir in the chocolate chips.
5. Dump the mixture on a greased/oiled baking sheet and form with your hands into a circle. You could roll this out by placing a piece of parchment paper on top and rolling it out with a rolling pin, but I find hand pressing the dough into a circle shape works beautifully.
6. Bake in a preheated 350 degree oven for about 20 minutes. They are done when a knife inserted in the center comes out clean.
7. Let the scones cool for about 10-15 minutes and then cut like you would a pie. Serve on its own or with a bit of butter. Scones and warm tea are the perfect combination.

Sleepy Tea

This tea is my go-to calming tea for little ones, as well as myself. Technically, it isn't a tea at all but rather a tisane so there is no need to worry about caffeine and this recipe can also be consumed while pregnant and breastfeeding. The thing to keep in mind is that if you are tired drinking this may make you fall asleep shortly after. This is fine if you need to calm down or you want help in falling asleep but if you need to stay awake this may not be the tea to drink. Having said all that, this is my wee ones' favorite tea and my favorite to fix. 

• 1 tablespoon dried chamomile flowers
• 1 teaspoon  dried fenugreek seed
• 1/2 teaspoon dried fennel seed
• 1/2 teaspoon dried mint
• 1/2 teaspoon dried anise seed
• 1/2 teaspoon dried rosehips

1. Heat about 1 1/2 quarts water (about 6 cups) water to boiling. 
2. While water is heating, mix together your dried herbs in a reusable tea filter and place the filter in a tea pot.
3. When the water comes to a boil pour over the herbs and allow to to steep (this essentially means to leave it covered without disturbing it) for about 15-20 minutes.
4. After is has steeped, pull out the reusable filter and serve the tea warm. You can also serve with honey and cream if you want but our favorite way is to drink it on its own.

*In the colder months I purchase all of my dried herbs from my local CO-OP in the bulk section. In the warmer months I grow of much it as I can in my garden and dry it myself.*

Parmigiano-Reggiano Asparagus with Poached Eggs and Bacon

Parmigiano-Reggiano Asparagus with Poached Eggs and Bacon.

Parmigiano-Reggiano asparagus with poached eggs and bacon was my delightful breakfast this morning. My little ones and I have been eating a plethora of poached eggs lately. My first attempt at making them came about two weeks ago, and with much success I might add. Each of my wee ones tried one and then each asked for about two more. I think I went through about a dozen eggs the first morning I made them.

I remember making poached eggs for the first time in high school. The eggs were for my grandmother who was dying of cancer and had moved in with my family to live out her remaining earth days. It ended up totaling about six weeks that she live with us, treasured time for sure. She requested almost the same breakfast every morning: decaf Sanka coffee, poached egg, white bread with butter toasted and then broiled in the oven. I had no clue what a poached egg was but soon learned with the little poached egg contraption she had brought with her how to make a version of poached eggs. I made one for myself and decided that I also like poached eggs. She didn't eat much of anything the last two weeks she was alive, and no one ate many poached eggs thereafter but her breakfast choice has always stuck with me. I was gently reminded again of poached eggs while watching the Julia &Julia movie with my little ones. Julie Powell makes her first ever egg by poaching it per instructions given by Julia Child. Well, I took a flying leap, really not all that big, and made them like I saw Julie Powell make them: boil water, gently drop the egg in the boiling water, wait a little bit then ladle it out with a slotted spoon. And, yes, it was that easy. And Julie Powell's description of them tasting like cheese sauce is fairly accurate as well.

This meal is easy peasy and ridiculously delicious. Even after I was full I wanted more, more, and more! The best part of my meal was sharing it with my neighbor. I had made four poached eggs, a handful of asparagus, and a whole pound of bacon. I was sure my little ones would eat the bacon (of course) and poached eggs but when they saw the poached eggs with the asparagus they turned away and settled for bacon and cut up cantaloupe and strawberries. I had enough to feed two, maybe three people, and just little ol' me to eat it. I went to the front of the house to open the windows and let in the surprisingly warm air that had rolled into Pittsburgh during the night and saw my neighbor and her daughter outside. She was waiting for us to emerge from our house so that our little ones, who are best friends, could play together. Perfect.  

I was able to share this beautiful breakfast with my cheerful neighbor and her growing baby belly. She's one who will try most anything and truly appreciates food as an art too. If you remember, from previous posts, she's "that neighbor". The one who buys me chestnuts and invites me to feasts where she goes out of her way to make gluten-free available for our family. We truly enjoyed our breakfast. Our little ones played in the warm air and we ate on the covered back porch. She sipping on green tea and me espresso. I think if I had made more we would have gorged ourselves for sure. Thank goodness I didn't because it made us appreciate it all the more. 

My only advice when making, and serving, this dish is that you can never have too much butter or cheese. Well, at least that's how I ate mine.

Parmigiano-Reggiano Asparagus with Poached Eggs and Bacon

• 6-8 slices bacon
• 6-8 stalks asparagus
• 1-2 tablespoons butter, melted
• 1/4 -1/2 cup parmigiano-reggiano, grated
• 4 eggs

1. Preheat your oven to broil.

2. Fill a shallow pot, or deep skillet,with water almost to the top. Place on high heat and bring to a boil.

My 3 quart shallow pot is absolutely perfect for cooking poached eggs.

3. While waiting for your water to boil, cook your bacon. When cooked to your liking, place it on the plate you will serve your eggs and asparagus on. You can reserve some of the grease to pour over your blanched asparagus instead of butter if you choose.

4. When water has reached a boil, gently place your asparagus in the water to cook for 3-5 minutes. You aren't trying to cook your asparagus to a floppy finish but rather blanching it until just ever so slightly cooked. After a few minutes pull out the asparagus and pat dry. Do not turn off your pot of water. You will cook your eggs in this in just a few minutes.

5. Place the asparagus on a lipped baking sheet and pour the melted butter, or bacon grease, over the top. Then put a decent amount of grated parmigiano-reggiano over the top and place in the oven to broil for about 5-7 minutes.

6. While your asparagus is baking, crack 4 eggs into the water you just blanched your asparagus in. Allow the eggs to cook in the water, untouched, for about 3-5 minutes. I don't like my poached eggs super runny but rather in a soft boiled state, but that is just my taste. When they have cooked your desired length, gently remove them from the boiling water with a slotted spoon (I use a wooden slotted spoon) and ever so gently pat them dry and place on your plate.

7. Remove the asparagus from the oven after about 5 minutes or so and put them on your plate.

8. Arrange your dish however you like. I usually put asparagus on bottom, then bacon, and then the poached eggs on top. But do it however you think is best.

9. After you have arranged your meal sprinkle generously with more parmigiano-reggiano and serve with love.

If you don't eat dairy you can always omit the butter and cheese. As a replacement for the butter you can use the bacon grease and for the cheese, well, just crunch a piece of bacon and sprinkle liberally over it all. It will still be a ridiculously delicious dish.

Sunday Dinner Italian Meatballs and Best Tomato Sauce Ever

Sunday dinner Italian meatballs with best pasta sauce ever.

This recipe is inspired by two sisters, Cinzia and Marika, from the Puglia region in Italy. I learned about them through a Podcast from Eye on Italy. And my God, if I could go there right now I would. One day for sure, but instead of whining and sulking about not being able to fly over there right now, I went in the kitchen and created meatballs based off of the sisters' recipe. Because of celiac disease, Multiple Sclerosis, and other food intolerances I had to of course adapt it but I think they are the best meatballs I have ever tasted. Truly. And along with the meatballs I created my own tomato sauce. Again, the best sauce I have ever tasted or made. I was honestly surprised. I shouldn't be surprised anymore because I find myself becoming more creative in the kitchen the more I let go and allow myself to totally screw up and ignore the part of me that thinks something might result in stupid. It is becoming easier and easier for me but still when something is this good I sometimes can't believe it came right out of my own little head. But maybe I should further realize the result is great because it came from my heart and desire not my rational mind. The sauce creativity resulted when I realized, after I set my meatballs to rest, that I don't know a recipe for a good tomato sauce. Ones I have used in the past are good with pasta but I was serving it with meatballs, no pasta. My computer wasn't cooperating, thus no internet connection, and I couldn't find one single recipe in my collection of cookbooks that I wanted to use. I stared in the pantry for a long time and then went to my spice/dried herbs. Presto! Bay, my littlest one, helped me add a bit of this and that to the tomato base and when it was all put together  I didn't even have a chance to taste it first. Bay put the wooden spoon into her mouth for a taste check and uttered in her knowledgeable two-year old vocabulary, "Mm. Good." That was good enough for me.

I chose to eat all of it together, the meatballs and sauce, but my littlest wee one, Bay, liked to just eat the sauce. My other two wee ones, Keeley and Keagan, just liked the meatballs. At least I had something for everyone. Something everyone enjoyed. The best part of it all was that I made it in the late afternoon and let the meatballs simmer in the sauce for about an hour running in about every 20 minutes or so to give them a stir. While they simmered the little ones and I went out to play in the last rays of the sun. It was freezing but we built up a good appetite and when we headed inside for warmth and sustenance we were greeted with the warm and teasing aroma of an Italian meal. I didn't have to call anyone to dinner. They all settled in at the table before I could dish the meatballs into bowls. I served the meatballs straight from the pot with Italian music playing in the background and a glass of Super Tuscan red wine for mama. By my definition, a perfect Sunday with my wee ones.

Dinner is served with an Italian Super Tuscan red wine.

Sunday Dinner Italian Meatballs
adapted from Marika's Sunday Home-Made Meatballs

• 2 pounds ground beef
• 2 eggs
• 4 ounces parmigiano reggiano cheese, grated
• 4 ounces almond flour
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 4 black peppercorns, ground
• 1/2 cup fresh parsley, finely chopped
• 2 teaspoons dried mint leaves (Use 6-10 fresh mint leaves finely chopped if available.)

1. Put the ground beef in a large bowl and add all the ingredients to the beef.
2. Combine it all together with your hands (don't be afraid to get messy). Make sure it is all mixed throughout so that you get a little bit of it all in each meatball.
3. After it has all been mixed together, roll the meat into small balls with your hands. The key is to not make them too big. The smaller the better but they should all be about the same size.
4. Put the meatballs on a plate, or tray, to rest for about an hour.
5. Add the meatballs to your favorite tomato sauce and let simmer for about one hour in a covered pot, taking care to stir occasionally.

Best Tomato Sauce Ever

• 56 ounces crushed tomato, canned or fresh
• 1/4 olive oil
• 6 garlic cloves, sliced  or chopped
• 1/2 cup onion, finely chopped
• 1 teaspoon dried thyme
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1 teaspoon dried basil
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon ground pepper

1. In a large pot place all your ingredients. If you want to use fresh herbs make sure to use more. I love fresh but nothing is available from the garden yet. Taste your sauce and make sure to add more of whatever you desire. I love lots and lots of basil and garlic. I usually add even more basil to my personal dish so the more of that I have the better. But you may not. Let your desire lead you.
2. Heat over low flame for about 15-20 minutes, covered.
3. At this stage you may add meatballs to simmer or serve it over cooked pasta.