Organize your freezer

I have a small stand up freezer down in the basement.  It seemed the logical place to put this unit, since it's cooler down there, which helps it to run more efficiently.  There are three shelves along with a few narrow shelves on the door.  No matter how I tried to organize the food I put in it, there was always a battle as to what was were.  Especially when I sent 'the other half' to retrieve something.  I wrote lists in my PDA.  I typed lists into a folder on my computer- top shelf, middle shelf, bottom shelf, door.... Still, it could take forever to find what was needed.

I decided to get it organized for good or get rid of it.  I shopped at several places.  Nothing that was designed for the freezer was adequate.  I wanted white metal baskets with ventilation holes.  Finally.... at the Container Store, I was left to my own devices and found the perfect solution. They are stackable mesh baskets intended to help reduce clutter in some part of the house.

I bought five baskets.  They are 15" deep, 12" wide and 8 1/2" tall.  Two of them can sit side by side on a shelf.  While one basket sits alone, the surrounding open space is for larger items.  Trying to figure out how to label my new containers was a challenge, because we all know that tape and labels always come off in the freezer.   I came up with a diagram and basic legend -Seafood, Chicken, Vegetables..and so on, that I can slip into a plastic sleeve on the front of the freezer door.  Now there is no excuse for anyone not to be able to find what they went looking for.

A pretty night sky

All of the Denver area is buzzing with the Stage 6 of the Pro Cycling Challenge coming to town.  Looking towards Golden, which is only two miles as the bird flies, the evening sky is ominous.

Tomorrow, late morning, the 6th Stage of the challenge will start at North Table Mountain in Golden.   The riders will do several loop d' loops for the majority of the race in Golden and finish in downtown Denver.  Expecting thousands of people to attend this very exciting event that has come to our town.  Looking forward to it all.

Roasted Banana Muffins

I love collecting cookbooks from restaurants and recently acquired the PlumpJack Cookbook.  Their story started in 1992 when they opened a wine shop in San Francisco.   Now they have seven restaurants, two hotels, two wine shops, a winery and a lounge, all in California.  Anyway, I was inspired by a recipe for Roasted Banana Muffins.  

I often roast vegetables before making soups, but had never thought of roasting fruit before adding it to the batter.  So I roasted two very ripe bananas until their skins were black, which was only about 10 minutes, and rather than doing it in the oven, did this outside on the grill while we were cooking dinner last night.

Roasting anything really brings out the sweetness in the fruit or vegetable.  WOW!!! These are great.  I also added toasted pecans, and used buttermilk for part of the milk requirement.  I didn't use those little paper cupcake liners they called for in the recipe, which made my muffins more crispy on the outside which my husband loved.  I'll do this again, and highly suggest that you try it with your favorite banana bread or muffin recipe.

Overnight roasted tomatoes

Going to roast a pan of Sun Golds and Husky Cherry Reds.

Found a recipe in one of Nigella Lawson's cookbooks for overnight roasting.  Actually, it's more like overnight marinating.  Cut them in half, then sprinkle with olive oil, thyme, salt and a little sugar and pop them in a preheated 450 degree oven.

You  then turn the oven off and let them sit overnight.  While they are good like this, next time I'll let them roast at least 15 minutes or so before I turn off the heat.  I'll  also add some chopped garlic and fresh cracked pepper to the mix.  

But I must tell you, they were absolutely the perfect addition to one of my quick and easy favorite lunches: albacore tuna, white beans, kalamata olives and fresh cilantro.

Quinoa Mandarin Almond Salad

I'm sure I've boasted of the benefits of Quinoa, and I especially like the toasted garlic quinoa that you sprinkle on your everyday salads.   I made the mandarin almond salad for dinner last night and we both loved it.  

It's out of the Quinoa Everyday Superfood 365 book that I've posted about in an earlier blog on April 10th.   It consists of lentils, quinoa, slivered almonds, dried cranberries, mandarin oranges and parsley.  Then a dressing of apple cider vinegar, lime juice, some of the mandarin orange juice, a little salt and canola oil.  Really great, and so good for you.  Bon Appetit.

Home Preserving

I know it's a little bit early, but I'm already planning for the end of the season and wanted to share with you the book I bought the other day. 

Just flipping through the pages inspired me to start collecting my canning jars from the garage shelves, along with the fact that my tomato plants are doing so well.

These are Husky Cherry Reds.  I plan on roasting a tray of these tonight.  When deciding which type of tomato you want to grow, besides taste, there is really only one other factor to consider.  Do you want them to grow all season (indeterminate) or to ripen all at once(determinate)?

These Romas are determinate, which means all the fruit will ripen about the same time, and the plants are usually more compact and manageable.  This is the tomato you would use for canning, saucing or drying.  Here's something to think about if you are planning on growing your tomatoes in a container, a determinate is a better choice.

 

Here we have Super Fantastic tomatoes, they are indeterminate, so they will continue to grow and produce during the entire season.  They tend to have longer vines and will need more support in terms of staking or caging over the course of the season.

San Marzano tomatoes are great for sauces.  You may have noticed, that many of the recipes from Gourmet Chefs call for this tomato, because of it's deep rich flavor, they are determinate.

These little Sun Gold tomatoes are indeterminate, and will vine and grow somewhat out of control all through our short Colorado growing season.  They are so sweet.

The small yellow pears are just starting to ripen, and they will continue to produce into early fall.

The tomatillos are the last to fruit, and are just beginning to grow their little paper sheaths.  I'll post a photo of them when they are  closer to ripening.

Grape harvest

Walking back to the far corner of the yard, you notice the grape leaves growing off the arbor and trailing down.   It's a great place to relax and unwind.

You are unaware of the bounty concealed underneath the leaves.

Tender, sweet, juicy, seedless grapes.  Even the birds have not yet discovered these treats.

This might be the best year for us, as far as grape harvesting.  Usually the birds, get nearly two thirds of the fruit. I planted a 1 gallon sized Monrovia green seedless grape plant about nine years ago.  It's been producing,  noticeably, for the last six years .