Last Saturday I picked up some mild lamb sausage from one of the local meat farmers.  I have never really cooked with lamb sausage before, so what a whipped up last night was a bit of an experiment. However, it turned out so delicious I thought I should post the recipe.

Lamb & Spinach Puff Pockets

The name “puff pockets” come from the fact that my husband compared them to hot pockets (but better) and they use puff pastry dough.

1. Puff pastry usually comes in frozen sheets. You will need to thaw the dough before you can use it. To do this, just leave the puff pastry out on the counter for 1-2 hours before you intend to start. Or the night before you want to use it, move the dough out of the freezer and into the fridge.
2. Before you start making the lamb and spinach stuffing, preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
3. The quantities of this stuff recipe make enough to stuff 8 pockets with some left over to do other things with (see below). Brown 1 lbs of lamb sausage. When sausage is almost done add 1 onion diced, 1 lbs of frozen spinach, 1/4 cup sherry, salt and pepper to taste. Let most of the sherry boil off.
4. In a small mixing bowl, combine 1/2 cup of Dijon mustard, 1 cup of Hellman’s or Best Food’s mayonnaise,  a hand full of fresh basil (chopped), and salt and pepper to taste.
5. Carefully unfold the puff pastry dough. Cut each sheet into quarters (each will make 4 squares totaling to 8 squares). Smear some of the Dijon sauce in the center of each square. Next, place enough sausage mix in the middle of each square so that it is full the the corners, when pulled up, can still touch. Then, gather each of the four corners, pinch them together, and then push a toothpick through them to hold them together. Place each puff pocket on parchment paper on a baking sheet.
6. Whisk together an egg white with a teaspoon of milk. Using a pastry brush, brush the egg wash over the tops of the pastry puff pockets. This will help them turn golden brown and delicious.
7. Bake until golden brown. I believe this was about 20 minutes (but I wasn’t watching the clock to closely last night). Just keep an eye on them, when they look golden and delicious they are done.
8. Serve while hot. Any extra Dijon sauce can be served with them as an extra topping. If you don’t eat them all, save them for lunch the next day. Yum!

The past two weekends I have been freezing stone fruits, mostly peaches but some cherries too. I wanted to put the recipe up here so that I wouldn’t forget.

Process of Freezing Peaches:

1. Wash peaches off.
2. Remove skins by boiling in water for 45-60 seconds and then removing to an ice bath. Skins should peel off with little effort.
3. Once skins are removed cut peaches in half and remove pits. I should note here that there are some varieties of peaches in which the pits are easier to remove than others. The white peaches seem to have harder to remove pits. At this point, you can either keep the peaches in halves or cut them into slices.
4. Sprinkle peaches with citric acid or lemon juice (enough to lightly coat). When you stir the peaches up with the citric acid they should look shinier, sort of glossy. This will keep the peaches from browning.
5. Dissolve 3 cups of white sugar into 6 cups of boiling water. Let cool.
6. Spoon peaches into 1 qt bag (note it takes about 4-5 peaches to fill 1 qt). Then ladle enough of the sugar water over the peaches just to cover.
7. Place in freezer.

We have been buying peaches in 1/2 pecks (yes, a half-a-peck-a-peaches … say that 10 times fast), which is about 12-15 peaches and we are able to get three quart ziplock bags to freeze.

Update on the 50 Book Challenge: While traveling to Colorado and California I was able to finish reading Animal, Vegetable, Miracle by Barbara Kingsolver.  It was a really great read and has inspired me to try harder at keep our (Bryan and I) food chain as local as possible. Since we moved to a new house right in the middle of the growing season we do not yet have a vegetable garden. So, Bryan and I have been taking Saturday morning dates to the local Farmer’s Market. Bryan also brings home a couple of bags full of fresh veggies each week from the garden-farm he works at. I think my favorite so far has been the acorn squash we bough last week. Here is the recipe for the most amazing acorn squash I have ever tasted.

1. Take 1 acorn squash and cut it in half lengthwise. Scoop out the seeds and pulp in the center.
2. With a fork, mash together 1/4 c. soften butter (that is 1/2 a stick of butter), 1/4 c. brown sugar, a palm full of ground sage, and salt and pepper to taste.
3. Smear the butter mixture on the insides of each of the acorn halves.
4. Place in a baking dish and bake for 1 hour at 400 degrees F.

We have one more acorn squash at home and I can’t wait to make this again. It was so delicious!

Updated list of books read so far this year:

here is my updated list:

1. The Shack by William P. Young
2. Omnivor’s Dilemma by Michael Pollan
3. Two for the Dough by Janet Evanovich
4. Three to Get Deadly by Janet Evanovich
5. Four to Score by Janet Evanovich
6. High Five by Janet Evanovich
7. Twilight by Stephanie Meyer
8. New Moon by Stephenie Meyer
9. Midnight Sun by Stephenie Meyer (link)
10. Eclipse by Stephenie Meyer
11. Breaking Dawn by Stephenie Meyer
12. Dead Until Dark by Charaline Harris
13. Hot Six by Janet Evanovich
14. Seven Up by Janet Evanovich
15. Hard Eight by Janet Evanovich
16. Animal, Vegetable, Miracle by Barbara Kingsolver

Bryan’s evening shifts have given me a lot of time to read and lately that means reading through Omnivor’s Dilemma however uncomfortable it may be to read at times. Despite the fact that reading about certain parts of our current agricultural system make me queezy, it is a necessary queeziness. Pollan (author) argues that if our current food chain and all the working cogs in  that chain were more transparent, we would not continue to the have the systems we do.

But queeziness was not what I set out to write about. I find that I am loving this book more and more because it talks about food (which I love to talk about) from every perspective imaginable (economical, ecological, agricultural, philosophical, anthropological, evolutionary, sociological, marketing, etc.).  Pollan touches on so many different aspects about food. And, even though I am not quite finished, I can say with confidence that this book is changing the way think about food, the enviornment, ethics, and life. I have started looking for ways to remove myself from the industrial food chain. And, as you can see from this post, l am becoming a little bit evangelical about talking about these issues.  Anyone who knows me knows I love food and I love to talk about food, cook food, eat food, feed friends and family.  I care deeply about the quality of food that passes through my kitchen.  So, now I just have more to talk about.  Now, if I can just incorportate some of these issues into my research I would be golden!

One of my favorite dishes these days is Chicken Piccata. A few months ago I had it in a restuarant and loved it. Since then I have been working on perfecting a recipe of my own to make at home. Before the recipe a little bit of history …

Piccata is not originally from Italy. Much like chicken parmesan and pasta primavera, it was created in the United States, probably in the 1930s. The term piccata is a Milanese way to describe a meat that is flattened and pan-fried. The lemon and capers used in piccata, however, are common to Sicilian cooking.

— from Mahalo.com

Here is my recipe for Chicken Piccata:

• 1 lb of chicken scalloppine (chicken breasts pounded flat, can buy them flatten if wish)
• 1-2 cups of flour (all-purpose is fine) with salt & pepper mixed in to taste
• 1-2 eggs beaten with a tablespoon of milk
• 2-3 cups of Panko crumbs (or crushed up oyster crackers or bread crumbs)
• 1 tablespoon Italian seasoning
• 3 tablespoons + 2 tablespoons of butter
• 2 tablespoons of olive oil
• 1 tablespoon of flour
• 1 cup white wine (or 1/2 cup white wine + 1/2 cup chicken stock)
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice
• 1 small onion, chopped
• 4 cloves of garlic, minced
• 1/2 sun dried tomatoes (if in oil, don’t add the oil)
• 1 (14 oz) can of quartered artichoke hearts
• 2-3 tablespoons of capers

In three shallow dishes/bowls place flour/salt/pepper mixture in first bowl, beating egg with milk in second bowl and Panko crumbs mixed with Italian seasoning in thrid bowl. Bread the chicken scallopine by first coating with flour, then dipping in egg, and finishing off by coating in Panko crumbs. Let chicken sit for 2 minutes while you heat a large skillet.

Melt the 3 tablespoons butter and add the olive oil. Add the chicken. It will only take 3-4 minutes to cook each side on medium high heat. If using thicker slices of chicken, lengthen cooking time appropriately. Remove chicken after each side has cooked and browned.

Add remaining 2 tablespoons of butter. Let melt. Whisk in 1 tablespoon of flour. Deglaze the pan with the wine and lemon juice. Add the onions. Let cook until soft. Add the garlic, sun dried tomatoes, artichoke hearts, and capers. (Note: Some people are more fond of capers than other, experiment with the amount of capers to see what amount suits your palate).

Add chicken back into pan. Cover and cook for 5 minutes lowering to medium heat.

Serve chicken and sauce over pasta. Dish is especially good over garlic-spinach fettucini noodles.

My office mate was just commenting on wanting to make her own marinara sauce, so I thought I would post my recipe so that others might enjoy it.

Erin’s Marinara Sauce

I should say, that I don’t think the sauce is ever exactly the same each time that I make it, but here is the general idea.

2 tbsp butter or EVOO
1 carrot, finely chopped
1 celery stalk, finely chopped
1 medium onion, finely chopped
2-4 cloves of garlic, minced (you must decide how garlicy you like your sauce, I always use at least 4)
2 28oz cans of crushed tomatoes
2 bay leaves
5-6 fresh basil leaves, shredded
4 tbsp fresh parsley, chopped
1 tsp dried oregano
2 tbsp balsamic vinegar or dry red wine (each gives a different flavor, both good)
salt & pepper to taste

OPTION 1: Put all the ingredients into a crock pot and set on low for 6-8 hours.

OPTION 2: Melt butter or EVOO in a large stock pot on medium high heat. Add carrot, celery & onion. Cook until soft. Add garlic. Cook until you smell the aroma of garlic and butter (or EVOO) mingling together. Add the crushed tomatoes, spices (bay leaves, basil, parsley, oregano, salt & pepper) and balsamic vinegar or red wine. Cook until starts to bubble, then reduce to medium low heat and let simmer for 1 hour covered, stirring occasionally.

Optional: Sometimes I will add some mushrooms into the sauce as well. Depends if I have any on hand when I make the sauce or not.

You could also add meat. In the past, I have added chicken that has been boiled in water spiced with Italian seasonings, salt & pepper and then hand shredded and added to the marinara.

We have 4 amazingly large basil plants growing in our garden this year. What better to do with basil than make oodles of pesto. I’ve been experimenting and this is the knock-your-socks-off recipe I have come with.

Ingredients
3 cups of basil leaves
6 cloves of garlic
2 cups of walnuts
3 tablespoons of champagne vinegar
14 ounce can of quartered artichoke hearts (drained)
1-2 cups extra virgin olive oil
salt & pepper to taste

Anyone who has ever watched me cook knows I hate to measure things, especially when I am experimenting. So, these measurements are all approximate. The basil leaves are enough to fill my small salad spinner. The walnuts I just dump into the food processor until it looks like about 2 cups. The champagne vigegar I add a generous splash of (which I am estimating is 3 tablespoons).

Directions

1. Rinse basil leaves if picking from garden.
2. Place basil leaves, garlic, walnuts, champagne vinegar, salt and pepper into a food processor or blender and start the blending process.
3. Slowly add extra virgin olive oil until get a smooth pesto like texture.
4. Add artichoke hearts and blend again. The color and texture will look more like a paste than usual pesto, but will taste oh so much better.
5. Makes several cups of pesto. It will save in the fridge for about a week. If you want to hold onto it for longer than that, spoon the pesto into ice cube trays and freeze. Once frozen the cubes can be placed in bags and frozen for a couple of months.

Serving Ideas

1. Over pasta … that’s the obvious one!
2. Last night we had it as a garnish to a panko crusted fried pork loin chop.
3. Spread on a sandwich. I have used it as a spread on a grilled cheese sandwich. Delish!
4. Throw a tablespoon into your rice which it is cooking. Adds tons of herbalicious flavor.
5. Add a tablespoon to a salad dressing vinaigrette (I can post a recipe for a killer vinaigrette as well if anyone is interested)
6. Here is the best one …. blend some of the pesto in with some cream cheese and sour cream. Then stuff the mixture in to some mushroom caps. Place the mushroom caps onto a glass pie pan that has some melted butter on the bottom. Sprinkle some bread crumbs over the tops and cook in the over at 350 F for about 10-20 minutes. Bake them long enough that the mushrooms become tender and delicious but not so long that they burn. These little appetizers are like heaven in your mouth with every bite. Yum!!!