Posted: August 17th, 2011 | Filed under: Avian Obsession, DIY, Food, Just for fun, To Do List | Tags: modern chicken coop, urban chickens | 10 Comments »
I know….some of you can excuse yourselves to go throw up while I discuss my metamorphosis into a Trendy Mindy. Don’t forget to brush your teeth.
Still here? OK, well last year’s CSA gave us fresh eggs on a weekly basis, and we desperately miss them. We opted against the CSA this year after our 9th week in a row of zucchini exclusive boxes brought the entire family to tears. The Things were begging for it to STOP. “Can’t we just compost them? I can’t eat them anymore!!! I’m even sick of the fritters!!” I digress….
Eggs. We can go to the farmers market and get them, but some weeks I just can’t get there. We’ve got a few friends who have been keeping them and we are fascinated. Replacing our beloved pooch doesn’t seem likely, and a pet with such a tasty habit might be nice?
My Pinterest followers will recognize some of these images from my growing collection of coop inspiration.
So many beautifully designed coops out there! If money were no object and we weren’t planning to build it ourselves…then these might dot our landscape.
Via Dwell
via Nogg.co
This is one of my faves…and we could probably make something similar, but I think we might like a walk-in coop? Dunno..details, details.
via gastronomista
So, if we are to build said structure, would it look more like these?
via my pet chickens
via star apple
via backyard poulty mag
And we have all loved and admired this couple’s super coop….
via Dwell
So why am I talking about chickens anyway?! Don’t I have the interior of a treehouse to paint now that the temps are cooling? Why, yes. But finishing up pesky details isn’t nearly as much fun as planning something new, that may, or may not, ever happen.
August 24 UPDATE: Oh my GAWD..I just saw Karen’s coop over at The Art of Doing Stuff…and that is the mac damn daddy of all coops…..go check it here!
Posted: August 9th, 2011 | Filed under: Food | Tags: basil balsamic vinaigrette | 9 Comments »
A bright spot in the sweltering heat is that it’s harvest season. As you’ve seen here, I’ve been trying to make the most of it this year and the freezer is filling up fast….
This was one of the many things I made with the basil harvest…since I prefer sage pesto, I like to use basil in other ways…..
I’ve started pre-washing out on the deck to get the critters off before coming inside…I don’t use insecticides so the basil gets pretty buggy….
The Basil Balsamic Vinaigrette has been the favorite of the season…and it’s crazy easy.
Get all these into a small food processor or blender…
1/3 cup white balsamic vinegar
1 cup olive oil
1 cup basil leaves
1 teaspoon sea salt
1 teaspoon sugar or stevia
Press ON. Done.
It’s that easy and you can’t buy anything that tastes that good. While not a traditional caprese, this stuff is great with some fresh tomatoes and mozzarella……
I started using chalkboard contact paper throughout my pantry a few months ago and I love the flexibility.
UPDATE: You can buy chalkboard contact paper here. and I’ve posted more info about it here.
Posted: August 3rd, 2011 | Filed under: Fawn Love, Food, Just for fun, Travel | | 3 Comments »
Just a photo dump of what we’ve been up to when I’m (clearly) not here. Sadly it’s almost over…school starts back next week…WAY too soon.
We’re trying to make the most of our last 9 days of freedom…long walks in the woods, Shark Week, lounging at the pool and not getting out of pajamas on rainy days…they grow up too fast to consider otherwise….
Posted: June 29th, 2011 | Filed under: DIY, Food | Tags: chicken pesto veggie stuffed bread., pane farcito, pizza rustica | 10 Comments »
Can you tell we had a lot of rain recently? Yup, more food.
So, I made another pizza rustica/pane farcito so I could show you the steps this time. I had all my ingredients grilled and ready for a sunny day to cook and take photos for you by the window, and that day just wasn’t coming. I finally gave in and had to make it on one of the darkest days in a long time. This means flashbulbs and no natural light for the food shots. I almost didn’t post it, but figured you just might forgive me…AGAIN.
Let’s go….
We grilled these….as well as 3 chicken breasts.
Photos via Bon Appetit, highdesertgarden.com and agewell.org
I personally prefer to use ichiban eggplant for these, but that’s just me. I’ve made it with the globe variety as well.
I was lazy and used Trader Joe’s Quattro Formaggio (Paremsan, Asiago, Fontina and Mozzarella) but by all means, source some locally made fresh goodness in your area and elevate this baby. They key is to include some hard cheeses with a lower moisture content so as not to make your creation soggy.
Roll out your pizza dough to stretch across an oiled, nine inch round baking pan. I used 2 packages of TJ’s whole wheat pizza dough. Again, go homemade on the dough and make it even better! These days, if I have to take the extra hour to make my own dough and grate that much cheese, I just won’t make it, whereas right now, I can knock this out in less than 2 hours total: 30 minutes to chop and grill, and 20 minutes to assemble. Bake for one hour. That’s doable for me…maybe when the Things are grown I’ll go back to those recipes that take all day to make…or not…
I digress.
Start layering! I actually prefer to do a layer of the zucchini/eggplant before the cheese first, and I don’t really know why I put the cheese down first, but once it was there, I decided to roll with it. My sequence was cheese, zucchini/eggplant, chicken, cheese, pesto, peppers, zucchini/eggplant, chicken, cheese, and pesto.
I chop the chicken into thin strips that can be scattered into a layer like so….
Oh, I almost forgot…I had some tomatoes from the farmers market that I oven dried a few days before for this top layer…if you use jarred sundried tomatoes, make sure you drain the oil off well before putting them in.
Now comes the fun part. The ole pinch and flip. Thing One was using my tabletop tripod so I couldn’t photograph this (I tried) but I’ll talk you through…it’s not as hard as it looks, but you need two hands.
The good news about this little maneuver is that it doesn’t have to look good, it just needs to seal everything in. Since pizza dough is stretchy, it’s not too hard to gently pull at the sides to bring it up to the top and pinch together with the other ends. Now you take the pan in one hand and very gently flip the whole thing into the palm of your other hand, and set back into the pan pinched side down. See? I told you the pinching didn’t have to be pretty! Then score the top for ventilation and call yourself fancypants.
Pop this puppy into a 350° oven for an hour, YES an hour! Remember last time I said I thought 40 minutes would do it? It didn’t for me. I checked by pulling the whole thing out of the pan to make SURE the dough was done at the bottom, and it still needed a bit more time.
Then you get this. It’s best to let it cool in the pan so that it keeps its shape. At this point, you can serve right away while it’s still a bit warm, or let it cool completely and wrap up and put into the fridge. Either way, you’ve got a meal that is easily transportable for picnics and poolside.
The sun finally came out again today so I could get at least one decent shot of a slice. This one is a little doughy for me, but we’d eaten the rest of the slices over the week of the rains!
I’m ready to make the Cuban version next. We grilled some pork tenderloin this week and the leftovers are crying out for a higher purpose.
Posted: June 29th, 2011 | Filed under: DIY, Food | | 4 Comments »
While I was cruising around on Pinterest, I saw a pin of these Martha Stewart Waffle Cookies and knew that this would be the perfect surprise treat for the kids to have in the treehouse with their friends. The Things seem to like only 2 kinds of cookies…chocolate chip and ginger snaps. Chocolate Chip Waffle Cookies is just too much to say, so we have renamed these Treehouse Treats.
There is one thing I would do differently for the next batch, and that is to use MINI chocolate chips. The larger ones make the thin areas of the waffle grid too fragile, making if difficult to remove from the waffle iron. I think the mini chips will be perfect for keeping enough dough for strength, while still adding chocolate flavor. Otherwise, just use your favorite cookie recipe.
I tend to cook when it’s raining out, which is very difficult in the nice, natural lighted photo department. Behold poorly lit treehouse treats.
I also think that the mini chips will make them MUCH more attractive….just saying.
Posted: June 12th, 2011 | Filed under: DIY, Food | Tags: pane farcito, pizza rustica | 5 Comments »
Once upon a time, in a land far, far away, I learned how to make these parcels of goodness that are best described as a cross between Pizza Rustica and Pane Farcito. Below is my chicken/pesto version.
It has zucchini, eggplant, red and yellow pepper, chicken, pesto* and sun dried tomatoes, all layered with cheese in between. Grill all the veg/chicken and let cool, then start layering inside your dough. Back then, they always used a white bread dough, but I cheated and used 2 packages of Trader Joe’s whole wheat pizza dough.
I have not tried to make one in well over a decade, (remember when sun dried tomatoes were all the rage?) I was nervously expecting a big fail, but instead, I got lucky with only a minor glitch easily remedied next time around. I didn’t cook it long enough and the bottom crust wasn’t quite finished. An extra 5 minutes would have fixed it.
Rediscovering the Rustica/Farcito will make packing picnics for summer outings SO MUCH better, since I think that these are best served room temperature.
Back when we were making these in the cafe, there were 3 flavors…the Chicken/Pesto above, the Italian, with lots of cured meats and low moisture cheeses, and the Vegetarian, that mainly substituted the chicken for a layer of omelette. I can’t wait to play around with some other styles this summer.
I had no idea this would work out or I’d have photographed the process…sorry, but if you’re really interested, let me know and I’ll take some snaps of the next one I make.
*Sage/Almond pesto rather than Basil/Pine Nut. The CC hates pine nuts.
UPDATE: I’ve posted the step by steps here.
