what's cookin'

Homemaker Heidi, checking in.  I have gone crazy in the kitchen and here are the happenings.  

• Most exciting news...we got our cow!  We ordered a half a grass-fed cow from a farm about an hour away and we picked it up on Saturday.  Sasha and Lexi had a great time touring the farm and Nate and I had a great time cataloging all the different kinds of meat we got and organizing it in our new freezer.  We thought we may have overbought, but now that we have it home, I think we can definitely eat it all!
• Related to that news, I made a true "Sunday dinner" today.  We had the first taste of our cow, in roast form, and I made homemade applesauce and homemade broccoli and cheddar rolls from my artisan bread cookbook.
• And related to that...I have been waiting make a huge batch of homemade applesauce.  The week is here.  Apples are on a great sale at Aldi and I think I will be making batches all week to freeze.  I considered canning some, but I am out of jars because...
• I canned tomatoes!  This happened several weeks ago, but I never got around to posting about it.  I canned the bushel of tomatoes that I got on our trip west over Labor Day.  It was not too hard and very fulfilling.  And you know I took a picture!  I only wish I had more.  Next year I'm doubling it!

• Did you know that my SIL Allie has a new food blog?  She is trying to cook more at home, and focus on cooking healthy meals, so she is documenting it all in her blog.  I have made three batches of these spinach quinoa muffins.
• As part of my attempt to eat foods in season, and locally grown if possible, I have been collecting delicious red, yellow, and orange peppers from the farmer's market every week.  (Okay, and I'll admit, some from Aldi).  When I get them home, I roast some of them and freeze them whole, and others I chop and freeze.  I am hoping to get a huge stockpile so when I want  delicious sweet peppers this winter, I don't have a pay an arm and a leg for some that were shipped from far away.
• Last, but certainly not least, I made a carrot cake this weekend.  I am a total chocolate lover and that is almost always my preference when it comes to dessert, but I have a carrot cake recipe that I love.  I make it maybe once a year, when Nate asks for it.  I love making desserts but I don't make them that often because then I basically end up eating the entire thing.  So right after I made it I cut it in half and brought it over to Nate's parents' house.  It still gave Nate and I plenty of cake, but we didn't gorge ourselves.

So, that is what I have been cooking.  What have YOU been making that I need to try?  

Comments

[Lori]

Hey Heidi,

We'll have to share good recipes we come across for all the different cuts of meat that I have never tried to cook before! It certainly will be an adventure! Here are a couple of recipes I made lately. 1st up an apple cake (not so healthy with all the sugar and oil!)...but, it is delish, I made it without the nuts because we haven't given them to Maya yet. http://allrecipes.com/recipe/apple-cake-iv/detail.aspx I also made my own chewy granola bars to sent to school with Anna. They are really good...but, make sure to cut them and then let them cool completely before removing from the pan! A very important step. http://allrecipes.com/recipe/chewy-granola-bars/detail.aspx Today I might be whipping up some cream of broccoli soup to try and use up some broccoli from our farm share! Happy cooking to you : )

[Wendy]

Hi Heidi! You've been so busy!

We've made stew in the crock pot a few times - we love that this time of year. We just got our crock pot, so I'm on the hunt for new recipes! :)

[Allie]

Yay, maybe I will get some more blog readers now! Good job with all the cooking, maybe next year I will try canning.

[Krissy]

Baked Apples in the crockpot! My new favorite.... Just wash and core apples, sprinkle insides with cinnamon, put in sprayed crockpot on low for 3-4 hours.....

[Kelly]

Haven't tried anything new, but I am in awe of your canning skills!! Way to go!

[kristin]

hey- tell me how the peppers turn out. i froze a bunch at the beginning of the summer and when i pulled them out they lost their crunch (is that what you call it?) and were kind of soggy. any hints?

[Heidi]

Kristin - When I use the peppers, I cook them and put them in dishes that are cooked. So I don't notice the mushiness. My guess is that if you are freezing them and trying to eat them raw, they wouldn't be so great.

Krissy - Thanks for the baked apples idea...that sounds great!

Lori - I'll have to try those recipes. I want a good cream of broccoli soup, so let me know how that goes.

Wendy - When I first started using my crock pot a lot, I liked this blog: http://crockpot365.blogspot.com/