Sweet Spiced Pecans, among other things...

Today in our gift making class we made these delicious pecans (an ideal Texas gift by the way to send to relatives who don't live deep in the heart of Texas where pecan trees abound), also peppermint and sweet orange bath salts, and some fun playdough for good measure. Here's the recipe for the pecans... so easy to make, and delicious. A good sweet treat for youngsters, because if they're going to eat the sugar, at least they'll be ingesting a little protein, too. And put these on a salad for some real good eatin'.

SUGAR AND SPICE PECANS
from COOKS.COM
1 lb. pecan halves

1 egg white

1 tbsp. water

1 c. sugar

3/4 tsp. salt

1 tsp. cinnamon

Beat egg white and water until frothy, not stiff. Stir in sugar, salt and cinnamon. Add pecans, stir well until pecans are completely coated. Spread nuts on large baking sheet. Bake at 200 degrees for 45 minutes, stirring every 15 minutes. Remove from oven when "dry" and toasty. When cool, store in airtight container.
Pecans SHOULD be refrigerated or frozen (up to 2 years) in order to keep their freshness.

Carabaccia

This recipe is just really yummy and delicious. It's kind of a good the-cupboard-is-bare type recipe, because you can improvise it and tweak it and you probably have the most key ingredients in your cupboard most days.

I was glad to have a reason to make this... I didn't have the normal multitude of eggplants to work with this week because I FORGOT TO PICK UP MY CSA BOX ON SATURDAY (oh man I just wither a little bit every time I think about that... this frickin-frackin' long weekend had me all turned around...) ... so anyway, I made lemons out of lemonade, or rather, wait, that's not right either... you know what I mean... without further ado here's the recipe...

CARABACCIA (Tuscan Onion Soup) (Otherwise known as the Italian version of French Onion Soup) ( A kinda cool article about it here...)

(Ingredients

• 1/4 cup diced pancetta or prosciutto (about 3 ounces)(or really just bacon, or more olive oil)
  
• 2 cups chopped celery (3 large ribs)
• 1 tablespoon chopped garlic (3 cloves)
• 1 cup roughly cut carrots (about 1 large carrot)
• 1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil, more for brushing toast
• 1 tablespoon minced rosemary
• 1 tablespoon minced sage
• 1 cup white wine
• 6 large red onions (3 1/2 pounds) sliced
• 1 1/2 teaspoons coarse salt, more to taste
• 1 pinch crushed red pepper
• 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
• 1 1/2 quarts vegetable stock, chicken stock or water
• 1 teaspoon garam masala or equal parts ground cinnamon, clove and mace
• 1 1/2 cups shelled fresh or frozen and defrosted green peas
• black pepper to taste
• 2 tablespoons white wine vinegar
• 6 large eggs
• 6 slices Tuscan bread
• 1/2 cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano or pecorino cheese

Preparation

1.

Purée pancetta, celery, garlic and carrots in a food processor until mixture is a coarse paste.

2.

In an eight-quart pan, heat 1/3 cup olive oil, rosemary and sage over medium-high heat for two minutes. Add paste, turn heat to medium-low, and cook, stirring frequently, for five minutes. Add white wine, and simmer 10 minutes more.

3.

Add onions, salt and red pepper, and sauté over low heat, stirring frequently, until onions are very soft and some have turned golden brown, about 20 minutes.

4.

Add balsamic vinegar and stock, and simmer 25 minutes over low heat. Add spice mixture and peas, and cook 5 minutes more. Season with salt and black pepper to taste.

5.

While soup simmers, bring 2 cups water and the white wine vinegar to a boil in a small saucepan. Reduce heat until no bubbles break surface of water. Crack two eggs into water, and cook 4 minutes. Gently spoon eggs out of water, and reserve in a shallow dish with water in it. Bring water back to a boil, and repeat process until all the eggs are poached.

6.

Lightly toast bread. Brush each slice with olive oil, and sprinkle with two teaspoons Parmigiano-Reggiano. Toast again or broil until cheese has melted, about two minutes.

7.

Lay a slice of toast in each of six deep soup bowls, and top with a poached egg. Ladle soup over egg, sprinkle with remaining cheese, and serve.

YIELD

6 servings

Today we...

... painted with paintsicles (after making pesto pasta and mango lassis) in cooking class. I felt kind of guilty introducing this activity to the toddlers. It seems kind of cruel... the popsicles look so delicious and vibrant. Luckily Henry and Moses had a good time playing with them. They didn't seem to resent it too much that the popsicles weren't edible.


And I just had to throw this picture in at the end, of Bruno in our outdoor shower sitting in a gigantic cooking pot. Why is he sitting in it?!?! Couldn't tell ya. Bruno stew, anyone?

It's a bakey kind of day

So chilly! We just had to stay inside and bake. Bruno and I started some bread in the morning, and when Jack got home from school we made brownies. Before you go picturing us feasting on sugar-infused baked goods 24/7, I'll just tell you that a few weeks ago we declared Friday the day of the treat. So, instead of treats being this thing that are constantly begged for (like by Lassie), we just do it once a week but we really do a whole shebang and bake or make something sweet together and Jack gets to pick. This is really working for Jack... finding the yes in the no... instead of focusing on being denied on the other days, he gets all excited about the special day to come. I want to point out the chopper he is using in the above picture... I ordered something like it from a Montessori catalog a few years ago. It's a really safe two handed chopper that kids can use really easily to get in on the chopping and the dicing. I discovered recently they actually sell these at Ace Mart, the restaurant supply store, and I was really psyched... so much cheaper of course.
Bruno and I made bread from this book, Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day: the discovery that revolutionizes home baking. I was a full on skeptic before I bought the book, but intrigued, and who'd a thunk it, it REALLY does work. I've almost never been able to bake a loaf of bread the normal way, I've been cursed about the bread and it's just been a (hot) cross (bun) I've had to bear. But this way works, it really really works and that's a beautiful thing. And in less time than it takes to order and eat a McDonald's hamburger! OK, not really. But it is on the quick side, let's leave it at that.

Oh my gosh, I just remembered something Jack said during brownie making. I said to him, "Go ahead and stir the chocolate and the butter so they will melt together in the pan" and he said, "That's another way of saying two people like each other". "What?" I said, and he repeated, "Melt together, that's what happens when two people like each other." Wow! Quite a concept, pretty stinkin' beautiful, and just in time for Valentine's Day...