Piggie Piggie Pasta GF

There's something amazingly decadent about cooking with bacon AND sausage together.   Here's two versions of a recipe that use almost identical ingredients that veer off wildly in two different directions with a just a little tweak here and there.  The secret to NOT over eating it, is to only make enough noodles for one serving per person.

The basics:
Bacon, bite size
Brats, bite size
Tomato
Salt
Vinegar
Basil
Beef gelatin
Sugar/Cream of tartar mix
Pasta



Piggie Pasta Italian Style:
I used tomato puree, a few glugs balsamic vinegar, extra basil and brown rice ribbon pasta

Piggie Pasta Asian Style:
I used diced tomatoes with green chilies, a few glugs of rice vinegar, just a dash or so of basil and served over Asian style semi translucent rice noodles.

Cook bacon first to desired crispiness, then add sausage.  Toss in tomato version of choice and season accordingly.  Mix in gelatin, taking care to avoid clumping.  Serve over noodles.
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Ingredient Spotlight : Bacon

Fresh eggs means Fried Eggs!

THE HENS ARE LAYING!  Woohoo! 

After a long drought and much rationing of fall eggs, we were surprised with 2 eggs one morning and 4 the next.  They have decided that the pile of hoarded baling twine is a good place to lay.  It IS real twine after all, not the orange plastic stuff.

To me, fried eggs slightly over easy is the only way to eat eggs.  Unfortunately, I live with other people, so have to compromise MUCH too often.  Deviled eggs come in a close second, but again I am the only one who thinks so.

I got up extra early this AM and made some JUST for myself.  I cut the potatoes into small matchsticks and fried them up in coconut oil first.  I did one batch, then decided I wanted more and did another batch.  I started to get hungry, so didn't let the second batch cook as long as the first...hence the two tone fries.  The eggs were then added to the pan after the fries were removed.  I like to cook them until the whites are mostly solid, then flip 'em and serve immediately.  Add a little salt and pepper and you're good to go.

I got a little impatient with my spatula and ended up serving pre broken.  Taste is fabulous and much appreciated.  Considering most of our grass and grubs have been under a thick layer of snow for a few weeks now, the eggs have amazingly good color.

Fried Eggs with Matchstick Pan Fries

Hearth and Soul Hop

Pad Thai ish Noodles (AKA Warm Toes Noodles)

It was - 14.4 degrees Fahrenheit when I got up this morning.   Yeah, a tad nippy.

I had just 2 pints left of my thyroid broth and was wanting something "saucy".  I used a little too much liquid for the amount of noodles, but it was still yummy and effective, even if a little soupy.

Soak the Thai style rice noodles in hot water for 8-10 minutes while cooking the sauce. Drain, mix with sauce and serve with fresh squeezed lemon or lime juice.


Sauce Ingredients: 
1 pint broth (1 cup would have been better in hindsight)
1 glop coconut oil
.5 oz dried shitake mushrooms, crumbled (they fell out of the cupboard when I was grabbing the coconut oil)
6 TBS Sucanat/Cream of tartar mix
6 TBS Beef unflavored gelatin
2-3 glops of unsweetened ketchup (to help use it up)
1-3 TBS red pepper flakes (to taste )
1-3 TBS Dried Lemon Grass
1-3 glugs of rice vinegar
Salt to taste

I noticed my bare toes were non icy feeling about 20 minutes after eating, hence the name.

Gluten Free Wednesday
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Tuesday Twister

Thyroid Broth (Chicken Necks)

I ordered 40 lbs of "natural" chickens necks for making broth.  The necks still have the actual thyroid in them, so are a good source of the hormone.  There was some skin still attached too.  The 40 lbs was divided into 4 frozen SOLID chunks.  Fortunately, I had a SS pot large enough to accommodate the mass.

Ingredients:
10 lbs chicken necks and skin
onion peels
dried parsely
ACV
water to cover
(a few goat ribs stuck in because they were in the freezer)

I put the full pot on the wood stove and let it do it's thing for a few days, until the necks fell apart and fat melted all the way.  It became the base for many soups in the following COLD days and nights.  It made a HUGE difference for me in staying warm at night.

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