Lemon Bread

Oh CSA packages. Here they are, meant to make me a healthier person.

And yet, I take their bounty and douse them in sugar, butter, and other life-shortening ingredients.

The lemons we had from our last package were the only things left from the shipment. I know! It only took us three weeks to work our way to the bottom of the box.

So, of course the occasion calls for lemon bread.

Don’t question it. ANY occasion calls for lemon bread. Obviously.

Lemon Bread,c/o tasteofhome.com

Ingredients
1 TBSP lemon rind
2 TBSP lemon juice
1 C sugar
1/2 C butter
2 eggs
1/2 C milk
1 1/2 C flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/8 tsp salt

Powdered sugar
Lemon juice

Preparation

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Mix together sugar and butter. Add eggs, rind, and juice. Add baking powder and salt. Alternate adding flour and milk until dough is well mixed.

Pour into prepared loaf pan and bake for 45 minutes or until center is cooked all the way through. Cool for 10 minutes and then remove from pan.

Prepare glaze with powdered sugar and lemon juice. Pour glaze over bread and serve.

French Green Beans with Garlic and Sliced Almonds

One of the items we have been receiving from our CSA in bulk are french greens. We get more than I know what to do with, which is usually just steam them and serve with a bit of salt and butter. It’s boring and not even very tasty.

Facing another two weeks with at least a pound of green beans, I turned to the trusty Internet for recipe suggestions. I found a recipe that was worth trying out (which means it looked easy and I had all the ingredients). The beans turned out delicious (or as Steve would say “they are good… you know… for beans.”) and were a cinch.

French Green Beans with Garlic and Sliced Almonds

Ingredients
1 lb green beans, rinsed
2-4 garlic cloves, crushed
1/4 C sliced almonds
2 TBSP olive oil
1/4 C chicken broth (or water)
Sea salt and pepper

Preparation

Put the green beans into a microwavable bowl and nuke for 4 minutes.

Heat oil in large saucepan over medium high heat. Add almonds and toast for about 1 minute. Add garlic and stir until it starts to brown, about another minute. Toss in green beans with chicken broth. Cover and simmer (low heat) for 5 minutes. Sprinkle with salt and pepper.

Dessert Kebabs

Looking for an easy, delicious, healthy dessert for a group gathering?

Look no further.

May I present to you – dessert kebabs!

*Does elaborate jazz hands sequence *

Fun to eat and good(ish) for you.

Dessert Kebabs

Ingredients/Tools

Pound cake mix, plus ingredients called for in mix
StrawberriesBlueberries
Raspberries
Skewers
Whipped cream, if preferred

Preparation

Prepare pound cake as directed on box. Allow to completely cool before cutting cake into hearty squares.

Cut Strawberries and other fruit to bite size, if necessary.

Alternate cake and fruit on skewers.

Serve.

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Two Hundred

This post marks my two hundredth post on Teal and Tulle.

I have posted 200 craft, recipe, and lifestyle ideas. Some good, some bad, some really stupid. I mean, why don’t I delete this one? The pictures are horrible.

I have given little-to-no a lot of thought on what I wanted to post for this monumental occasion. I decided since this is my blog about crap I like to do, I’m going to make this post about me.

You’re welcome.

Five Neat-o Things In My Life, Aside from Giving Myself a Gold Star for 200 Posts

1. This guy.

He is called Fancy Boy. Why? Because he’s my kid and I’ll call him whatever I want.

2. My Grand Grad Program

Neat, right?

It’s the 5th best master’s program in the country for this subject and they admitted little ole me. This has been an achievement at least one active year in the making and several years inactively pining away at this goal. I worked very hard to get to this point and I’m very pleased for what may be next.

And NO. This doesn’t mean this blog will become one about the 4th, 5th, or 6th Amendments.

An homage to this group? Maybe.

Just maybe.

3.Tackling My First Counted Cross Stitch Project in Five Years

Anyone who knows about counted cross stitch read that statement and either sucked in a gasp of air or uttered the phrase “why?”

To explain, counted cross stitch is a needle-art where you read a project pattern that is covered with tiny little squares, all denoted with symbols that coordinate to certain tread colors. Here’s a pattern example:

From there, you use a fabric (called an Aida Cloth) that is woven together, which creates little tiny squares that match up with the squares on your pattern. You embroider the squares as directed on the pattern, counting the squares as you work. Confusing, right?

It totally is.

Why am I doing this?

Because I’m stitching a Christmas stocking for Fancy Boy.

I know, I know. I’m adding it to the list of things he’ll never appreciate. Much like his lack of appreciation of me giving up copious amounts of caffeine and booze until his birth.

4. Lula’s Second Anniversary

This little kitten won me over two years ago this week and we haven’t looked back since. She has gone from hiding under the guest bed for days on end to only hiding under the throw pillows in our bedroom when guests (mostly unwelcome in her book) arrive. She is a great companion (to me, not guests) and is always by my side ready for a sewing project.

5. I’m so ready for another 200 posts on Teal & Tulle

I’ll try and keep it mostly about crafts and food, and a lot less about criminal behavior.

However, that statement led me to discover that this is really a thing.

Can you imagine the dialogue behind admiring the piece of art?

Idiot 1: Where did you get that?
Idiot 2: Online. Painted by someone serving 6-9 for gang motivated robbery.
Idiot 1: Neat!

Pumpkin Cookies

Canned pureed pumpkin is in my pantry, year ’round. Why? Because you never know when you are going to be faced with a burning need for pumpkin spice chocolate-chip cookies.

My recipe is taken from Libby’s, my preferred pureed pumpkin provider. I add the chocolate chips to provide a little texture in the cookie.

Pumpkin Cookies, c/o Very Best Baking

Ingredients

2 1/2 C all-purpose flour

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp baking powder

1 tsp ground cinnamon

1/2 tsp ground nutmeg

1/2 tsp salt

1 1/2 C granulated sugar

1/2 C butter, softened

1 C pureed pumpkin

1 egg

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 C chocolate chips (I used mini chips this time around)

Preparation

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Mix dry ingredients together.

Beat sugar and butter together. Add pumpkin, egg and vanilla; mix until smooth.

Stir in dry mixture with wet mixture. Don’t forget your chocolate chips!

Bake for 15-18 minutes or until the edges are firm. The cookies will be very soft-set, so allow them to set on the baking sheet for about two minutes before moving them to a cooling rack.

Oh, Dough You Know?

A few weeks ago on my weekend round-up, I made a homemade pie crust and filling for some spinach turnover appetizers that I shared with girlfriends.

The pie crust inspiration came from a place of laziness. After running the store earlier in the day for the ingredients to the spinach filling, I realized I didn’t have any of my trusty refrigerated pie dough in the fridge.

Instead of going the 3/4 mile back to the store (like I said, lazy), I pulled out my laptop, went to (uhh, like where else would I go?) Real Simple’s website, found this amazing pie crust recipe, even do-able for idiots first timers, like me.

That being said, I still clearly need some pie dough rolling practice before I actually make this into a real pie, as opposed to hacking up the dough into squares for an appetizer, as I did here.

Spinach Savory Turnovers

Pie Dough

Ingredients

1 1/4 C All-Purpose flour

1/2 C (1 stick) cold salted butter, cut into small squares

1 TBSP sugar

1/2 tsp salt

3-4 TSBP water

Preparation

In the food processor, pulse all the items except for the water, until the mixture is pebbly in size.

Add in water and pulse until mixture can hold together.

Wrap in wax paper and chill for at least 1 hour (it will keep in the fridge for up to 3 days).

When ready to use, unwrap dough, press the edges with your fingers or knuckles to soften the edges (a tip I learned from Real Simple – I mean, who knew?), and roll out dough – working from the center outward.

Spinach Filling and Turnovers

Ingredients

10 oz frozen spinach, thawed and thoroughly drained of water

3 green onions, chopped

2 eggs

1 egg white

1 clove of garlic, crushed

3 TBSP Ricotta cheese

4-6 oz Feta cheese

Salt & Pepper

Dash of nutmeg

Water, in a cup or small bowl

Preparation

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Mix aforementioned spinach filling ingredients together, expect the egg white and water, in a bowl.

Cut rolled out dough into squares. Spoon filling (less than 1 TBSP) onto each square.

Fold into triangles. Use the water to seal the edges of the turnovers, and brush with the egg white.

Bake turnovers for about 20 minutes, or until the turnovers are a nice golden brown.

Serve warm or at room temperature.

Split Personality Pea Soup

For Christmas Eve dinner, we had a spiral ham. Delicious and traditional, it was a good meal.

However, since there are only 6 people in my entire family, we had some leftovers.

Ok. A lot of leftovers. Freezer bag after freezer bag of ham.

That being said, a month later I’m still trying to get creative on how to use said leftovers. A lot of ham and cheese quiche, of course. But I also came across this Split Pea Soup recipe from a Real Simple cookbook. I gave it a whirl with some really good results.

Split Pea Soup, c/o Real Simple

Ingredients

Ham (the recipe called for a ham hock, but I just chopped up some of the ham we had into bite sized pieces)

2 32 oz boxes of Chicken Broth

1 lb Green Split Peas

2 Large Carrots, chopped

2 stalks celery, chopped

1 large onion, chopped

2 cloves garlic, chopped

1 bay leaf

1 tsp dried Thyme

Kosher Salt & Pepper

Preparation

Add all ingredients to a large pot or Dutch oven (I made mine in a Crock Pot).

Bring mixture to a boil and reduce heat to a simmer.

Stir periodically – this will help break down the split peas and create the thick soup base. Cook for 3 – 3 1/2 hours.

Remove from heat and allow to cool before serving.

Tip: You’ll find split peas most often in the Greek food section of the grocery store.

Any other suggestions on what to do with the ham? Ham Lollipops? Green Eggs and Ham? A variation of the KFC Double-Down but with ham as the outer portions?

Little Pun’kin Head Bread

There is absolutely no better time of year than Autumn. The sun is gentler, the days are slightly more crisp, fashion and fabrics are more varied and the food is fantastic. It’s the time of year that inspires nesting and family.

And shoveling everything made with pumpkin into my mouth.

One of my new favorite recipes this season is my Pumpkin Dark Chocolate Chip bread. Pumpkin has this magical way of making every dish flavorful and spicy, with hints of nutmeg, cinnamon and cloves.

This is the third time I’ve made this bread in the past two weeks. Based on very positive feedback from those I’ve experimented on… ahem, I mean shared with, I figure it’s time to share the recipe!

Erin’s Pumpkin Dark Chocolate Chip Bread

Ingredients

Pureed Pumpking and Dark Chocolate Chips - hard to find and therefore must be purchased in large quantities to ensure safekeeping.

1 cup of sugar

1 cup of pureed pumpkin

1/3 cup of vegetable oil

2 eggs

1 tsp vanilla

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1/4 tsp cloves

2 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp salt

1 1/2 cups of flour

1 cup dark chocolate chips

Preparation

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Coat bottom only of 1 loaf pan.

Mix together sugar, oil, pumpkin, eggs, vanilla extract, cinnamon and cloves. Add in flour, salt, baking powder. Mix in chocolate chips after dough is mixed.

Easy to assemble because you don't need a mixer - just a whisk to bring it all togther!

Pour into loaf pan and bake for 55-70 minutes, or until inserted toothpick comes out clean.

Keep in the fridge to ensure freshness. Bread will keep easily for a week, if Fiance doesn’t come in and eat it in bulk.

A treasure-trove of chocolate chips

When Life Gives You Lemon Cake Mix…

…You use it as your secret ingredient to lemon bars!

Lemon bars are a great and easy to make treat to have around the house. Lemons are the fruit personification of summer – clean smelling, bright color, and it really works anywhere (on grilled chicken, in ice water, or as a sweet treat). Even though here in SLO it’s maybe 60 degrees and raining today.

I spend more time digging the seeds out of the mixing bowl than I spend doing anything else in this recipe.

Lemon Bars (c/o Betty Crocker)

Ingredients:

1 box of Betty Crocker lemon cake mix

1/3 cup of butter, softened

3 eggs

1 cup granulated sugar

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 lemon – which you will use the following:

2 teaspoons grated lemon peel

1/4 cup lemon juice (I’m liberal here, I use about the whole lemon – why waste it?)

Powdered sugar

As if there wasn't enough sugar in the cake mix itself... Ta da!

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 350. Pour your cake mix (do not follow cake box instructions – use just the dry mix), 1 egg and the butter into a bowl and mix with a spoon until moistened and crumbly.

Is it sick that I might eat this off the spoon once the rest is baking in the oven?

Scoup 1 cup of mixture and set aside.

This part of the recipe always confused me - so it warranted a picture. This is set aside to use on the top of the lemon bars.

Take remaining mixture in bowl and press it into an 8×8 (or 9×9, or 13×9, whatever works) ungreased pan. Bake for 10 minutes.

Mmmm, dense cakey mix.

In the meantime, beat together the granulated sugar, the 2 eggs, baking powder, salt, lemon peel and lemon juice until it’s light and fluffy.

Mixing together the top layer.

Once your baked layer is out of the oven, pour your sugar and lemon mixture over it. Sprinkle the remaining 1 cup of dry mixture over that.

Pop the whole thing in the oven and bake for 15-20 minutes, or until a golden brown on top. Sprinkle powdered sugar on top, and allow to completely cool before slicing and dicing.

Finished Product!

Keep the lemon bars in the fridge with plastic wrap, and they should keep for up to a week. If people can really resist them for that long.

I'd like to say the little piece was for me, but that is a lie.

Satiating Summer Salad

During my Sewing is So Fun trip to Gram’s, I volunteered to make dinner on my last night in town. The weather was warm, we didn’t want anything too involved, and something waist-line friendly. We decided to make a robust summer salad and enjoy our last night together. I pulled this together with a quick trip to the local grocery store, and was pleased that it turned out so well.

This meal is so easy anyone can do it. If you can chop ingredients with a knife and put said ingredients into a bowl, you are in business. Of course, I'm questionable at best when it comes to handling knives, so perhaps I'm the exception.

Erin’s Impromptu Satiating Summer Salad

Ingredients:

Butter lettuce

Green beans

Tomatoes

Green onion

Hearts of Palm

Chopped roasted chicken breast

Cooked, chopped red potatoes

Capers

Salt and Pepper

Light honey mustard dressing, on the side

Wash and pat dry so you don't eat bug poop.

Assembly:

I didn’t measure ingredients this time. I just cut and chopped and tossed items into the salad bowl until I was happy with the end result.The chicken was pre-cooked from a dinner the night before, and I prepped the potatoes in advance so they would have time to chill in the fridge.

The salad has enough going on where you’d never miss the dressing, but good to have for those who insist upon dressing their salads.

Serve salad with delicious Focaccia or other artisan bread.

Other items you could add: cucumber, avocado, garbanzo beans, Gorgonzola cheese.

I could eat hearts of palm to the point of illness. Which I more or less did while prepping the salad.