Sweet Potato Cranberry Cheese Melt

I intended to contribute some sweet potato pie for a Thanksgiving Get Together in addition to the cranberry sauce. So much for intentions....

I had a lot of precooked sweet potatoes that desperately needed eating.  I had a lot of cranberry sauce leftover too.  (I made enough, we could of eaten it as the main course.)

I was worn out from eating and visiting the day before. Necessity is the mother of invention, so......


Sweet Potato Cranberry Cheese Melt

1. Mash cool to touch sweet potato in bottom of baking dish.  
2. Layer spoonfuls of cranberry sauce on top.
3. Dot with butter chunks.
4. Salt generously.
5. Layer white cheese of choice.  I used mozzarella, but a nice Jack or Havarti would work too.
6. Bake @ 300* for 20-30 minutes.

This taste ok cool and I ended up making some again for lunch to go the next day too.

Later incarnations involved coconut oil fried, white corn tortillas...even better!

See Ya In The Gumbo 
Heart and Soul Hop 
Scratch Cookin' Tuesday 
Simple Lives Thursday

Sausage and Potato Casserole

This makes a lasagna pan's worth of food, or 2 smaller casseroles.

Ingredients
4-6 lbs of potatoes, peeled and sliced.
1 onion, diced

1/2 lb cream cheese or nuefchatel
1/2 lb of queso fresco **
1/2 lb farmer's cheese
2-4 TBS prepared mustard
4 TBS coconut oil
4-6 TBS gelatin
2 eggs
8 TBS cane sugar
Sea Salt, a lot.....2 TBS?
Cream of tartar as needed

1 lb Sausage, bite sized

1. Prep potatoes and onions and set aside
2. Combine sauce/filling ingredients until smooth.
3. Correct seasoning, should be slightly saltier/zestier than needed as the potatoes will neutralize some of the taste when it's all cooked together.
4. Combine sauce with potatoes and onions and pour into a coconut oil greased pan/s.
5. Add bite sized sausage evenly over the top.
6. Cook for about an hour at 350*-375*, cover, if needed to prevent burning.  
7. Check for softness of middle potatoes.  Adjust cooking time as needed.
8. Cool for about 20 minutes and serve.

This was a big hit the first time around.  It doesn't reheat well, as is. I used the leftovers as a soup by adding broth, some tomatoes and a little extra gelatin and salt. Traveled very well in my thermos. Fabulous!


**Queso fresco is ricotta-ish, without the additives usually found in commercial ricotta.

Hunk of Meat Monday 
Hearth and Soul Hop 
Fat Tuesday

Jalapeno & Cheese Baked Potato

I just LOVE great globs of melted cheese.


Ingredients
Leftover baked potato/s
White cheese of choice (I used Jack)
Pickled Jalapeños peppers, sliced and drained.
Sea Salt


Run some slices through the potato so it can absorb some jalapeño juice and salt.  Salt the potatoes and add peppers to the middle.  Add a slice of cheese to the middle, then cover cross ways with more cheese.


Bake at 300* for about 20-30 minutes. (I used my toaster oven.)


See Ya In The Gumbo 
Monday Mania 
Pennywise Platter Thursday 
Gluten Free Wednesday
Real Food Wednesday
Fat Tuesday

Beef Tongue Tacos and Broth

The dogs are so NOT getting the tongues anymore.
 
I don't know why it took me so long to get around to cooking one. Tongue is so tasty and flavorful...now I'm wanting mutant animals so I can get more than one tongue per steer.  And the broth from the skin...wow...wow....ummmm, wow!

There are quite a few methods for preparing tongue.  I got impatient and used the pressure cooker.  It was a 1.35 lb tongue and I cooked it at 8 lbs of pressure for a half hour.  I used a trivet and about a half cup of water on the bottom.  I used the natural release method.

While the meat was cooking, I heated the coconut oil for deep frying some white corn tortillas.  While that was heating, I dissolved some gelatin/sugar/cream of tartar/salt in some diced tomatoes and chilies.  The tongue is a high gelatin muscle, like rib eye, but I always like to make sure I am getting enough.

When the pressure was out of the pressure cooker, I grabbed the tongue with some tongs and ran it under some cold water.  When it is cool enough, the skin is SUPPOSED to just release.  I guess I was too impatient again and ended up cutting it off until I got to the tip.  The skin at the tip pulled right off with ease.  I diced the meat into small cubes and put it in with the tomatoes.  In hind sight, it would have been down right decedent to fry them up a little first, fajita-ish, then put them in the sauce.

The only thing needed now was the taco "shells".  I tried "draping" the tortillas on the end of a wooden spoon.  They didn't drape well and the hot oil actually made the sides float up.  Then I tried tongs, holding onto them on one half while pressing them against the side of the pot.  That worked better, but then they puffed up a lot while being held under.  I stopped at 2 tortillas per person.  They weren't pretty but it's the thought that counts, right?

Ok, so the end product was a fresh fried tortilla, yummy meat topping and a glop of sour cream.  A fabulously messy meal that we all enjoyed immensely!

But that's not the end......

No, now I had this delicious smelling liquid at the bottom of my pressure cooker and tongue scraps, mostly skin, but some meat on there too.  So out comes the gallon bag of frozen onion skins and leftover bones/gristle from other meals.  I took the trivet out and emptied the contents of the bag into the pressure cooker.  I added water and some vinegar and salt to 2/3 full.  It's a 6 quart cooker.  I brought it to pressure and cooked for 45 minutes according to the instructions.  I let it the pressure come back down naturally and strained the big stuff out  of the broth with a slotted spoon into a strainer over the pot.

Total yield 3/4 of a gallon of double strength, very gelatinous broth.

The broth has become a simple potato soup, sausage and potato soup, and potato and cheese soup.

See Ya In the Gumbo
Barn Hop
Hearth and Soul Hop
Fat Tuesday
Weekend Gourmet Carnival
Monday Mania 
Scratch Cookin' Tuesday
Gluten Free Wednesday
Real Food Wednesday 
Full Plate Thursday 
Totally Tasty Tuesdays
Southern Sundays 
Melt In Your Mouth Monday

Simple Potato Soup GF, DF

Simple Potato Soup
Pot of potatoes (peeled and diced, cubed or sliced)
Broth/water to cover (Homemade is best, if you've got it)
Unflavored beef gelatin
Saturated Fat (Coconut oil, butter, tallow, bacon grease etc.)
Salt

Fill a pot with peeled and cut potatoes, add broth and cover with extra water, if needed, to cover.  Sprinkle gelatin on top for extra protein and as needed to balance any meat in the meal.  Add some salt and some kind of fat, depending on your needs.  Bring to rolling boil and then simmer for 40 minutes to an hour.  Correct with more salt, as needed.

Excellent as a base for other ingredients or as a easy to digest meal for healing/recovery/stress.  I like it with globs of melted cheese, leftover sausage or steak works too.


Simply Delish
Pennywise Platter Thursday
Monday Mania 
Superfood Sunday 
Real Food Wednesday

French Onion Style Potato Soup

Comfort food that travels well too.  I took some with me in a thermos and ate it  about 6-8 hours later.  Some of the cheese had dissolved into the broth...all the better, but I still had yummy clumps of melted cheese too.

Ingredients:
Homemade Beef Broth
Potatoes
Gelatin
Cheese
Salt
Pepper
Cane Sugar (optional)


I save all my leftover bones in freezer bags, along with onion skins.  When I have gathered enough to make a batch of broth, I just dump the bag into a pot, add some water and ACV and cook low and slow for a while.  This time I used my crock pot so I wouldn't take up stove space. Broth is done when I have time to strain and put away.  This batch was especially onion heavy in relation to the bones.  The smell throughout the house was wonderful.

I filled a pot with peeled and cubed potatoes (shredded would work too), then covered with the onion rich beef broth, salt and a little extra water to cover.  I brought to a boil, then simmered for 40-50 minutes...so an hour in total.  I added some gelatin towards the end and corrected the seasoning with a little more salt and a touch of pepper.  I ladled into bowl and topped with freshly shredded Swiss Cheese.  Oh yeah......

Pink Potato Salad with Beets and Cheese

Potassium rich and quick and easy, (especially if using previously cooked or canned ingredients).

Ingredients:
Potatoes
Beets
Cheese
Vinegar
Olive Oil
Sea Salt
Pepper
Basil (Optional)

I used pickled beets, canned potatoes, raspberry vinegar, fresh ground salt and pepper, dried basil and queso fresco for the cheese.  You could easily substitute fresh beets, feta or fresh mozzerella or paneer, fresh basil in the summer and apple cider or balsamic vinegar.  Red onions, fresh or cooked would work too.  This would be a good use for leftover beet pickle juice as well.

I would recommend this as a travel/to-go food...but only if using golden beets or not wearing white. ;)

See Ya In The Gumbo
Fat Tuesday
Gluten Free Wednesday

First Homemade Pizza (including GF crust)

I give this a B+. This was really easy to make...until things went wrong....mostly due to inexperience.

I had problems with wetness while mixing and stickiness after rolling  trying to get it off the rolling surface onto the pizza board and again off the board and onto the pizza stone in the oven.  It looked and tasted yummy enough to try again though....otherwise, I would be sticking to the occasional English Muffin Pizza. ;)

My surface area for rolling was too small, in hindsight, I should have divided the dough into 2 pizzas....or used less liquid?  I ended up adding a LOT of extra flour correcting the original wetness.  As it was, the dough when cooked was THICK, too much bread for my liking.  It held together very well though...only breaking where I ripped it trying to transport.

I don't know about you, but I try to avoid gums....guar gum, locust bean gum, xanthum gum.  Quite honestly, my digestive system can handle wheat on occasion BETTER than the gums.  The gums aren't just in gluten free baking products/flours, but in dairy, coconut and other products you wouldn't think needed "gluing."

Ingredients
2 tsp yeast
1 cup warm milk
1 egg
2 cups rice flour
2 tsp cane sugar
2 tsp gelatin
1 tsp sea salt
2 TBS coconut oil
2 tsp cream of tartar
1 tsp baking soda

(Added to correct too wet dough)
1/2 cup corn masa, white or blue
1/4 cup arrowroot or tapioca flour/starch
2 tsp coconut flour (optional)

Mix yeast into warm milk first in a separate container.  Add egg to mixer or food processor and whip.  Add other ingredients in order a little at a time, blending as you go.

Flour your rolling area well, I used additional corn masa flour.  My dough stuck where I missed a few spots. This amount of dough will make a very large pizza or 2 smaller pizzas, so adjust accordingly. ;)  Roll in thin as the dough will double, at least, in thickness.  Based on my experience, I would flour the paddle as well.

Cook crust for 10 minutes at 425* F.

Add desired toppings and bake for an additional 15 minutes or so.

The pizza pictured above is a freshly shredded Mozzarella/Parmesan blend  with dried basil and red pepper flakes.  We let is sit for about 15 minutes on a cookie rack before cutting.

Cheeseburger Macaroni - GF

I found this recipe on-line and modified it to my dietary needs and what I actually had in the house. ;)


Ingredients: (to the best of my recollection)
1/4 cup (4 TBS) coconut oil
1 onion, diced
3/4-1 lb grass fed ground beef

Paste Mix:
4 TBS Beef gelatin
1 TBS mustard
2 oz tomato paste
2 oz ACV
4 TBS cane sugar/cream of tartar mix
Salt to taste...I think I used a tsp... or maybe 2?

2.5 cups water
2 cups rice pasta (elbow, penne, etc)

8 oz Munster or other white cheese, cubed

1. In a LARGE skillet (I over flowed mine a few times due to the slope in my stove top), brown the onions and burger in the coconut oil.
2. Mix the paste ingredients together and add to skillet.
3. Add water and bring to boil.
4. Add pasta of choice.
5. Cook for 8-10 minutes or until desired tenderness.
6. Turn off burner and add small chunks of cheese of choice. I chose Munster because it's a semi-soft cheese that dissolves easily.  It was either that or pepper jack.  I just broke pieces off.
7. Serve when cheese is thoroughly blended.

P.S.  I just read the instructions of the original recipe again.  I didn't drain the meat juices or cover while cooking the noodles. I don't know if the out come would be any different or not.

Friday Potluck
Hunk of Meat Monday
See Ya In The Gumbo

Deep Fried Cheese Rolls GF

I recently came across this recipe: Cats and Casseroles: Baked Mozzarella Sticks  I thought making a cover  for the cheese sticks was a marvelous idea and I wanted to try it.  I had some spring roll "skins" or wrappers (tapioca starch, rice starch, salt and water),  in the cup board already.

I have made these twice now.  The firsts ones were a little gummy, kind of pale and bland...but tasty enough to try again.  The second ones were crisp, mostly golden and much tastier.  The secret is being patient enough to let the oil get HOT ( too cool and the cheese melts before the skin is done) and soaking the skins in SALT water when softening.  It's possible using an already saltier cheese would solve that problem as well.

Ingredients:
Cheese sticks or any white cheese cut into chunks
Spring Roll Skins
Salt to taste
Water for soaking
Coconut Oil for frying

Dipping Sauce:
Savory Neufchatel Dip
Or
Favorite Pizza Sauce
Or
1 can crushed tomatoes
handful of basil flakes
red wine vinegar to taste
salt to taste
onion powder
thyme
beef gelatin

Directions:

1. Heat coconut oil in a deep pot and bring the temperature to 375* or so. This can take up to 45 minutes depending on the size of pot, BTU capacity of the burner and how cold the kitchen is at the time.  In the mean time, get out ingredients and 3 dinner plates; one for soaking (mine have a decent rim for holding water), one for rolling, and one for placing finished rolls while the oil heats up.
2. Mix ingredients for sauce in a separate pan, set on medium low.  Keep covered, stir once or twice and forget about it until rolls are done.
3. Carefully fill one dinner plate with salted water.  When salt is dissolved, add spring roll skin. (Skins are too brittle otherwise.) Do one at a time to prevent them sticking to each other.
4. Unwrap cheese sticks or cut cheese into chunks.  Think roughly index finger dimensions as a guideline.
5. Remove spring roll skin from soaking water when pliable. Hold up briefly over soaking plate to let drips fall off.
6. Starting on edge of skin, roll cheese up, folding the sides towards the middle after one full rotation of the cheese.  Continue rolling and tucking the sides, as needed.
7. Place finished roll on third plate, seam side down.
8. When oil is hot, add a single roll at a time, at least initially.  Adding two at the same time can cause them to glue themselves together.  Trying to separate will cause the skins to tear and allow for the cheese to bubble out.
9. They are done when floating and are the desired color (and/or the cheese is exploding from somewhere on the roll.)  Remove from oil with an appropriate, long handled tool; such as tongs or a slotted spoon.
10. Let cool for a few minutes at least...burning the mouth on too hot cheese doesn't make it taste better.
11. Serve warm with a generous portion of warm sauce.

These are yummy and fun to make...and eat.   I can see making it with Mexican themed seasonings (with corn tortillas even) or with apple pie type fillings with a custard sauce for dessert.

Gluten-Free Wednesday
Tasty Traditions

Decadent Triple Cream Potato Soup

A friend of mine gave up eating grains and won't eat her specialty cheeses without crackers....so guess what I get to play with?  I have no such food rules, so put the remainder of the Brillat Savarin Affine in the coconut oil lined crock pot with some potatoes, milk, egg, gelatin, salt and a little cayenne and onion powder.

Oh, yeah!

The richness and boldness of flavor of the triple cream cheese balanced by the mildness of the milk, the lightness of the egg curds, the heartiness of the potatoes, the gentle heat of the cayenne, the savory of the onion all work together for this wonderful treat.


Ingredients: (fits a 4 quart Slow Cooker)
Coconut oil (prevents sticking )
1-2 eggs
1-4 TBS beef gelatin
4 cups milk
1/2-1 lb of Triple Cream Cheese
8-10 potatoes (peeled and cut into bite sized pieces)
Salt to taste
Cayenne Powder (optional)
Onion Powder (optional)

 Directions:

1. slather the coconut oil generously along the bottom and sides.  I used a butter knife with a long blade.
2. whip the egg in the bottom of the pot (saves dirtying and extra dish)
3. add milk and chunks of cheese
4. add salt and spices to taste. The cheese has very little salt, so make it slightly saltier than desired as the potatoes will absorb a lot.
5. fill to desired level with potatoes and stir to cover potatoes
6. Heat on high for about 2 hours until bubbling, then set low for another hour or so or set it on low and forget about it for the day or overnight if starting in the evening and serving for breakfast.

Ingredient Spotlight

Breakfast "loaf" and Soup

I was so pleased with the casserole I made yesterday, I wanted to make it again.  I was out of cottage cheese, so I improvised.  This is probably the "standard" recipe for some "officially named" dish already, but I made this for breakfast and used my meatloaf pan, hence I call it my breakfast loaf. ;)

Ingredients:
3 potatoes, peeled and shredded
A few chunks of white cheese (sliced off a 5 lb brick, amount unknown...I just threw it in.)
1 egg
Milk (mine is raw and grass fed but starting to overflow the fridge again)
Salt (I used WAY too much this time, don't use as much as I did.  I think cutting back on the potatoes to cheese ratio messed me up.****)
A dash of thyme
A few shakes of red pepper flakes
Extra cheese for the top

Scramble an egg in a mixing bowl and add shredded cheese and potatoes.  Add some milk enough to coat potatoes ( a cup?) and mix.  Add some salt ( use 1/2 the amount or less) and spices and mix well.  Slather sides and bottom of baking dish in coconut oil and add potato mix. Top with extra cheese.

Bake at 400* for 45 minutes or so.  Let cool and serve.

Chilled slices can be refried in a pan with coconut oil for about 10 minutes for an easy snack later on.

*****I finally figured out what went wrong....the salt level in the Colby cheese was much higher than in the cottage cheese.  We were able to enjoy this later that day re-purposed as soup by adding milk...... a lot of milk and NO extra salt.

Re-purposed Breakfast Loaf Soup

Breakfast Loaf Soup
Leftover Breakfast Loaf, chopped (most of it....)
Milk to desired thickness (approximately 2 cups)



Bring to temperature in a pan and serve.


Grain Free Real Food Carnival

Cottage Cheese and Potato Casserole GF

 This was inspired by all the baked mac and cheese recipes I've been seeing......

1. Whip 1-2 eggs in a large bowl.
2. Mix in cottage cheese (I was using up a container, so approximately 1.5 cups)
3. Add a generous portion of salt (approximately 2 TBS) plus desires spices (I used granulated onion and 90,000 HU cayenne) and blend well.
4. Add peeled, shredded potatoes (approximately 6 medium) and mix until evenly coated
5. Coat a casserole dish with coconut oil and add potato mix
6. Top with 1/2-1 lb white cheese (I used Jack)

Bake at 375* for about an hour

Let cool for about 15 minutes and serve.

Savory Sunday

Baked Potato

1. Collect a bunch of whole potatoes (from garden or bag)
2. Scrub potato skins under water, let dry
3. Stab top with a fork a few times  
4. Place directly on oven rack (holes up, evenly spaced...I use a toaster oven)
5. Bake at 400* for 45-60 minutes depending on size
6. Split with fork and serve with desired topping and generous dashing of salt.                                     (Butter, Sour Cream, Coconut oil, Cheese etc.)

Avocado - How do I love thee? Let me count the ways......

Avocado Salad with Beets and freshly squeezed Lemon

An avocado, like a potato, has a small amount (about 4%) of high quality protein, like an egg.  It's very high in potassium and mono-unsaturated fat, similar to olive oil.  It does contain some polyunsaturated fat, so it's good to add some coconut oil for balance.  It does contain some sugars, mostly in the form of fiber.


http://nutritiondata.self.com/facts/fruits-and-fruit-juices/1843/2

Avocados can be frozen for later use if they are mixed well with lemon juice before freezing.  ("They" say the texture doesn't hold up well if left whole. ) I have done this quite successfully using the juice of one lemon for every two avocados.  I added additional juice to the top of the jar to prevent browning, just in case.  I don't know if it needed the extra or not, but it worked.

How do I know when an avocado it ready to eat?  The skin color changes from bright green to dark green/black as the fruit softens. No squeezing (which causes bruising) necessary. ;)


People with latex and other allergies should be cautious about eating avocados.  Forced ripening and injury causes the fruit (bananas and chestnuts too ) to make increased levels of chitinases, an enzyme that can cause issues in latex sensative people.  Organic fruit not subject to gas ripening may have lower levels.  Cooking may inactivate the enzymes.



Avocado Sandwich
Slice or two of bread*
Slather mayo, preferably homemade, onto bread
Layer avocado slices onto bread
Drizzle with coconut oil (unless it's in the mayo already)
Salt/Pepper to taste

Optional Extras
Homegrown, crispy bacon with gelatin
Leftover chicken pieces with gelatin
A slice of white cheese


Avocado Halves
Take an avocado, slice in half.
Take the half and cut with a butter knife vertically and horizontally, making a checker board pattern
Sprinkle generously with salt
Drizzle with lemon juice and coconut oil.
Squeeze gently at the bottom and eat as the pieces pop out.

Pit will usually pop out on it's own when the half is gently squeezed from the bottom.


Avocado Salad
Take an avocado, cut in half and twist to open
Make a criss cross pattern in the fruit and squeeze gently to remove from skin into a bowl or plate
Drizzle generously with coconut oil
Drizzle with fresh squeezed lemon or lime juice
Salt to taste

Optional Extras
Peach slices
Fresh cut orange sections or mandarins
Cheese curds or bite sized cubes
Feta crumbles
Beets - pickled, fresh roasted or canned
(Hint: commercially canned whole beets retain slightly more flavor than the sliced version,  nothing like making your own though.)


Avocado Dressing
Avocado
Coconut Oil
ACV or Citrus juice (lemon, lime and/or orange)
Salt
Herbs/Spices

Mush with a fork leaving a few chunks or blend together for a whipped, thicker dressing. Serve over fruit or root vegetables....like an out of the ordinary potato salad.


Guacamole (Of course!)
Avocado
Coconut Oil
Lemon or Lime juice (ACV in a pinch, but the flavor isn't the same)
Salt

Optional Extras
Tomatoes
Chilis or a touch of cayenne powder
Onions
Cilantro
Sugar/COT (I add this if using canned tomatoes or commercial salsa)

Add ingredient to a bowl sized at least twice as big as the avocado in order.  You can keep it chunky or mush with a fork after adding the oil, salt and juice.  Add other ingredients as desired. Fold gently and serve with homemade tortilla chips or on top of quesadillas or......

One restaurant I went to actually served the guacamole WITH the pit...said it kept it from browning as fast....don't know if that's true or not....it didn't last long enough to find out.



* There was a time when Alvarado St. Bakery was a small bakery that made wonderful, sprouted whole grain breads that were flourless, naturally sweet and weird ingredient-free.  The bread was local and lovely and FRESH and made spectacular avocado sandwiches. Those days are gone......


Friday Potluck
Seasonal Saturday
Simple Lives Thursday
Calling all Salads

Neufchatel - Attempt #2

1. Again, I started with 1/2 gallon of freshly strained milk, but I let it cool down for an hour before I started.
2. I added approximately 1/4 tablet rennet (approximate because it had gotten a little crumbly in it's container.) and stirred for a few minutes.  No gelling took place this time.
3. I did not add clabber this time....because I forgot.  What can I say....it happens.
4. I set the measuring bowl outside to clabber/gel on the back porch in a sunny spot (no rain today and hot and humid) with a clean dishtowel to keep out direct sun, bugs and too curious critters.
5. I set the timer for one hour to check it.  It looks just right and there is a small pattern on a section of the top where the dish towel sunk down and made contact.  Oops.
6. I brought it inside to drain off excess whey and cut the curds into 1 inch squares.  This releases more whey and allows for easier transfer into the butter muslin lined  colander.  I used a wide, slotted spoon for transferring.

Drip, drip, drip.....

Now I am waiting as the whey slowly drips from the curds.  I have high hopes this time!

Update: We're definitely getting there.  No squeak this time, color is whiter throughout, the texture is much softer but still firmer than cream cheese/neufchatel.  If you ever want to make imitation Silken brand tofu, this is it.  I can't believe I just said that.  LOL!

I didn't mix in salt, but added it to the bottom of the container and placed the cheese on top.  The next day, all the salt is absorbed into the cheese quite evenly, as far as I can tell.

P.S. The first attempt made a great breakfast with a side of fresh cherries.  I added a little more salt across the bottom of the storage container and the cheese seemed to absorb it well overnight.

Yummy Failure - Neufchatel

Neufchatel isn't supposed to squeak, is it?

This is my first attempt at a non Mozzarella cheese.  Well.............it STILL wants to be Mozzarella!
It tastes like a raw, non stretched version of my Mozz.  Yummy, but not at all what I had in mind.  I used this recipe as a guideline, kinda sorta:
http://www.ext.colostate.edu/pubs/foodnut/09337.html

We have been hot and dry for a long time and the pasture is crispy.  This morning's milking wasn't enough for a full batch, so I halved it.  I strained 8 cups of the "still warm from the cow" milk into a large glass measuring cup with pour spout.  The dog got the rest of the morning's milking.  Why? She's pretty adorable and it saves cleaning a jar later.  I stirred in 4 TBS of 2 day clabber that had already formed a soft curd.  If you look closely, you can see the white specks in the cheese...it didn't quite blend all the way.

The next step was to add the rennet, which is where I got into trouble, I think.  It was supposed to take about 30 minutes to gel and it gelled almost immediately, in a few stirs of the spoon.  I followed the rest of the steps as closely as I could.  It became obvious I was not going to get the intended results when I tried to stir the salt in.  I don't think you are supposed to have to chop it up to mix.

I used my plastic colander on top of a 2 cup measuring cup and butter muslin to strain and the measuring cup on top as the weight and waited 2 hours.  The drippings were very milky colored and came to about 1 cup, so I estimate my yield at about 1.5 cups of cheese.

I came across this recipe that calls for 1/2 the amount of rennet:
http://biology.clc.uc.edu/fankhauser/cheese/neufchatel/neufchatel.htm

I suspect the freshness of the milk has a lot to do with the discrepancy of rennet needed.  Or maybe it's my cow?

This cheese is begging for a fresh tomato....hmmmm....like a thick slice off a Cherokee Purple.....a little salt and freshly ground pepper.......

I wonder if it would melt?

Monday Mania
Barn Hop

The Classic Cheese Sandwich updated

A cheese sandwich is kind of boring...yet is so satisfying.  I became hooked on them on my first real babysitting job (non sibling and good money) many, many.....many years ago.  It has been very hot lately and cooking  is as appealing as teeth pulling right now.  Nourishing foods that can go directly from fridge to plate are coveted. (We made an exception for one of the optional ingredients initially, but it became a fridge item soon after cooking.)

Old Version as taught to me by the kids I was in charge of:
2 slices of bread
Mayo on BOTH slices
Mild Orange Cheddar Cheese slices to cover bread
Cut in half, NOT diagonal (these things matter, you know.)

New Version as dictated by an adult palate
2 slices of bread
slathering of mayo on one slice
slathering of mustard on the other (optional, may use mayo for both)
sprinkle of cream of tartar
sprinkle of cane sugar (optional, depends on the mayo used)
sprinkle of sea salt
Raw, white, sharp cheddar  to cover bread

Opened face cheese sandwich with bacon and nectarine

Optional ingredients:
baked bacon strips
tomato or cucumber
bread and butter pickles or dill slices
fruit of choice
salted or pickled beet slices

I used Brunkow raw milk "Aged cheddar" in a 5 pound block which makes for square slices that fit perfectly on the bread.

The mayo was Hain's Safflower Mayo (no soy or HFCS) instead of homemade because I needed to use it up.  Once it's gone, it's gone.

The mustard was Gulden's spicy brown mustard.  I grew up with Gulden's and now a days, it's one of the only ones I can find that hasn't been watered down.  Seriously...even "gourmet" mustards are now sporting water as one of the top 3 ingredients.

Bread was a sourdough spelt from Berlin Natural bakery....just spelt, water and sea salt.  I don't make my own bread....not for one loaf a year.

The bacon is homegrown and baked in a  350* oven on a broiler pan for 25 minutes, not preheated. I used the oven instead of frying because I think that helps make flatter bacon and we don't need the extra fat in the summer.  We will save it to flavor a cool weather dish someday.

I used a nectarine for mine because it needed using and made an open faced sandwich because I only had one piece of bread left.  The sandwiches were more popular than expected...not a bad problem to have.

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Fresh Jalapenos and variations

Sauteed mushrooms with sliced jalapeño peppers

I purchased 10 lbs of peppers.  I put up quite a few jars of frozen pickled peppers and salsa and have been using the remainder for fresh summer soup, stir fry and quesadilla toppings.

Pickled Peppers
Using gloves, pack a straight sided jar with shredded, chopped or sliced peppers and fill with ACV and some salt.  Can or freeze.

Peach Tomatillo Salsa
Ripe peaches
Tomatillos
Jalapenos
Sugar/COT
Salt
Lemon Juice (optional)

Chop pepper first, then tomatillos, then peaches.  Add sugar/COT , salt and lemon juice to taste.  Serve immediately or freeze for later. 

Peach Tomatillo Summer Soup
Peach Tomatillo Salsa
Orange Juice (freshly squeezed, if possible)
Lemon Juice
Coconut oil 
Avocado Slices or bite sized chunks
Cream (optional)
Sour Cream (optional)
Coconut Milk (optional)

Mix the ingredients for the salsa and add the juice of one or 2 oranges, one lemon and a few TBS of coconut oil and avocado slices.  Serve chilled for a refreshing meal on a hot day.  You could substitute cream, sour cream or coconut milk instead of avocados and coconut oil.

Mushroom & Pepper Stir Fry
Sliced peppers
Mushrooms, quartered
Coconut Oil
Salt

Heat the oil and cook peppers and mushrooms together until mushrooms are cooked.  Add a generous portion of salt and serve.  Works as a topping for quesadillas with peach salsa or added to potatoes or eggs.

No Croûtons Required : July Theme - Hot Peppers 
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Made From Scratch Tuesday

Cheese and an Apple

Food doesn't have to be complicated or fancy to be tasty, nourishing and balanced.  We came in from a walk to day, hungry, tired and HOT.  Yeah, it's only 50 degrees...but compared to the 10 degrees we've been having, it's a little warm.

We sliced up an apple per person and about 2 oz of cheese.  I had a super sweet Arkansas Black Apple with 4 pepper Chevre spread on each slice.  Fabulous!  I love the combination of the sweet and savory.  For those that aren't familiar, Chevre is the goat version of Cream Cheese...without the guar gum and other fillers usually added to commercial versions.

Also good with the Arkansas Blacks is a nice chunk of Havarti.

Cheese and an apple is also  my go to food for traveling as good cheese doesn't need to be refrigerated, just kept from getting too hot.

P.S. I am so impressed by the keeping qualities of the Arkansas Blacks.  We brought home a box of them and they got left in the back of the truck too long and the chickens discovered them...unbeknown to me.  They got stored in the basement in their box, hen pecks and all.  All of them, except for one, are still in great condition...aside from the pecks of course.  We just cut those parts off and enjoy a sweet, crisp, DENSE apple going on 2 months later.

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