Watermelon Basil Lemonade
Adapted from justapinch.com
1 C water
¾ C sugar
1 C fresh basil, thinly sliced
8 C watermelon, cubed and seeded
½ C fresh lemon juice-about 3 lemons
Make the simple syrup: Combine 1 cup of water and the sugar
in a small saucepan. Bring to a
boil. Reduce the heat and simmer for 5
minutes or until the sugar dissolves.
Remove from heat and stir in the basil.
Let chill for 1 hour. Strain
sugar mixture through a sieve and discard basil. Place watermelon in blender and process until
smooth. Pour the watermelon puree
through a fine mesh strainer into a large bowl, discard the solids. Combine the watermelon liquid, simple syrup
and lemon juice into a pitcher. Chill
and serve.
Blueberry Lavender Lemonade
Adapted from Imbibe Magazine
¼ C Dried Culinary Lavender
1 ½ C boiling water
1 C sugar
10 lemons-I used less
½ C blueberries
2 Tbsp water plus 6 Cups cold water
Place lavender in a bowl, pour boiling water over it and let
steep for 5-10 minutes, depending on the desired strength (Niki’s note-I like
it strong, the husband not so much. Play
around with it). Strain off the lavender
and stir the sugar into the remaining water to create simple syrup. Stir until dissolved. Put lemon juice and 6 cups cold water in a
pitcher with ice. Add the lavender
simple syrup. Stir. In a blender, puree blueberries with 2
Tablespoons of water. Strain the puree
to rid of seeds. Add the puree to
pitcher, stir and serve!
Deviled Eggs with Candied Bacon
From Kelsey Nixon
1 ½ Tbsp light brown sugar
Cayenne Pepper
Pinch ground Cinnamon
1/8 lb Bacon (about 3 strips)
8 large eggs, straight from the refrigerator
¼ to ½ C mayonnaise
2 tsp whole grain mustard
1 Tbsp finely chopped fresh dill, plus more for garnish
1 Tbsp apple cider vinegar
1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
2 scallions, minced
Paprika, for garnish
½ tsp kosher salt
Preheat the over to 350 degrees.
In a small bowl, mix together the brown sugar, a pinch of
cayenne and the cinnamon. Place the
bacon on a wire rack set over a foil lined rimmed baking sheet. Sprinkle each slice of bacon with some of the
spiced sugar and bake, about 10 minutes.
Flip the bacon and continue to cook until crispy, about 10 more
minutes. Remove from oven and allow to
cool. When cool, mince and set
aside. Reserving a quarter for garnish.
Put
the cold eggs in the bottom of a medium saucepan and cover with cold
water. Bring water to a boil and remove
the pan from the heat. Cover the pan
with a lid and let stand for 12 minutes.
Drain the eggs and rinse with cold water or put in an ice bath. Peel and store covered in fridge.
Mix
together mayonnaise, mustard, dill, vinegar, Wocestershire sauce, ¼ tsp
cayenne, the scallions, salt and the minced bacon in a medium mixing bowl.
Slice
the eggs in half lengthwise. Gently
remove the yolks. Add the yolks to the
bowl with the mayonnaise mixture. Mash
together, using a fork, until smooth.
Put
the filling in a re-sealable bag. Cut
one end off and pipe the filling into the egg whites. Sprinkle with paprika, extra bacon bits and
dill before serving.
Deviled Eggs with Pickeled Onions
by Cathleen
12 Pastured Eggs
1/4 cup good mayo
1/4 cup good whole grain mustard (homemade if you have the
time!)**
1/8 tsp cayenne pepper
2 tbsp. chopped dill
Salt and pepper to taste
Garnish - Pickled Red Onion* and Dill
Hard-boil eggs and allow to cool. Slice eggs in half and
remove yolks.
Process yolks, mayo, mustard, cayenne pepper, salt and pepper in
food
processor until smooth (you can add a splash of whole milk or
half and half
in mixture is too thick). Mix in chopped dill. Fill
egg white halves with
yolk mixture and garnish with pickled red onion and fresh dill
sprig.
NOTE: If you don't have a food processor (or don't feel
like washing
yours!), you can also push the yolks through a fine mesh
strainer with the
back of the spoon and then mix with remaining ingredients by
hand. This
will give you a nice smooth texture to the yolk filling.
*Pickled Red Onions:
1 Large Red Onion
1/2 Cup Apple Cider Vinegar
1 Cup Water
2 Tsp Peppercorns
1/4 Cup Sugar
1/2 Tsp Salt
Slice red onion and place in colander. Pour 1 cup boiling
water over the
onions to quickly blanch. Transfer to storage jar.
In a sauce pan, combine vinegar, water, sugar, salt and
peppercorns and
bring to a boil. Stir until sugar is dissolved and cool
slightly. Pour
mixture over onions in jar and store in fridge. Great on
sandwiches,
deviled eggs, grilled meats, etc. You can also personalize
by adding herbs
(thyme is one of my favorites), hot peppers, etc. depending on
your taste
and desired use.
Note that the onions will keep for 4-6 weeks in the fridge.
**Homemade Dijon Mustard
1 cup yellow or brown mustard seeds, or a blend of the two
1 1/2 cups dry white wine
1 cup water
1/2 cup white wine vinegar
1/4 cup dry mustard
1 tablespoon onion powder
1 teaspoon salt
Combine all ingredients and soak the mustard seeds for at least
24 hours in
a non-reactive (ideally glass) jar or pan in refrigerator.
Shake
occasionally to distribute the ingredients.
After 24 hours, blend the mustard with an immersion blender
directly in the
jar or transfer the mix to a blender. Blend until desired level
of
smoothness.
Transfer the blended mustard to a saucepan and cook down over
medium heat.
Bring to a boil initially and then reduce to a simmer and cook,
stirring
frequently, until reduced by about a third, thick but still thin
enough to
pour easily. If the mustard becomes too thick, add water or wine
a
tablespoon at a time until thin enough to pour.
and desired use.
Note that the mustard will keep for 6-8 weeks (or more) in the
fridge. It
is also suitable for canning for longer term storage.
Chicken and Waffles
From Founding Farmers
This has 5 recipes!!
You must make the Big, Beefy Salt and the Farmers Seasoned Flour before
you can make this!
Big and Beefy Salt
Makes about 2 cups
½ C whole coriander seeds
¾ C fresh ground black pepper
3 Tablespoons granulated garlic
3 Tablespoons Onion Powder
¾ C Kosher salt
Toast the Coriander seeds in a small frying pan over medium
heat until the first puffs of smoke appear, about 3 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat and set aside to
cool. When cool, grind the coriander
seeds in a spice grinder. Combine the
coriander with the remaining ingredients and mix well. Store in an airtight container in a cool, dry
place for up to 1 month.
Farmers Seasoned Flour
Makes 4 ½ Cups
4 C All Purpose Flour
1 ½ Tbsp fresh ground black pepper
¼ C Kosher salt
1 ½ Tbsp granulated garlic
1 Tbsp plus 1 tsp Cayenne Pepper
2/3 C Cornstarch
Combine all of the ingredients and mix thoroughly. Store in an airtight container in a cool, dry
place for up to 3 months.
*Niki’s note: If you are going to make this, go in
together on the ingredients and split with someone. It makes a lot and if you are just feeding
your family, I doubt you will go through all of it in 1 month
Chicken and Waffles
Chicken Brine
4 C Water
2 Tablespoons kosher
salt, plus more for serving
1 (3-4 pound)
chicken, split into 10 pieces (2 wings, 2 thighs, 2 drumsticks, 2 breasts cut
in half), skin intact *Niki’s note: I have also just bought thighs if you are
cooking for a smaller crowd)
Waffle Batter
1 ½ C All Purpose
Flour
1 ½ tsp dry instant
yeast
2 ½ teaspoons
granulated sugar
¼ tsp kosher salt
1 1/2 C Whole Milk
1 1/2 C Whole Milk
½ C unsalted butter,
melted
1 large egg
1 ½ tsp vanilla
extract
White Cream Gravy
2 C Whole milk
2 ½ Tbsp. unsalted
butter
2 Tbsp minced yellow
onion
¼ C All Purpose
Flour
1 Bay leaf
1 ½ tsp kosher salt
Pinch of White
Ground Pepper
Southern Fried
Chicken
4 C Canola or
vegetable oil, for frying
2 Tbsp Big & Beefy
Salt
1 C Farmers Seasoned
Flour
Kosher Salt
Unsalted butter, at
room temperature, for serving
Pure maple syrup,
for serving
You will need to
brine the chicken and mix the waffle batter 24 hours before you plan to prepare
this dish. Place the water and the 2
Tbsp kosher salt in a 1 gallon plastic container with a lid. Whisk until the salt dissolves. Place the chicken pieces in the brine, cover
and refrigerate for 24 hours.
Whisk together the
flour, yeast, sugar, salt, milk and melted butter in a medium bowl. In a separate bowl, whisk together the egg
and vanilla. Fold the egg mixture into
the flour mixture until incorporated.
Cover and refrigerate overnight.
Remove the chicken
from the refrigerator and let sit at room temperature while you make the
gravy. Place the milk in a medium
saucepan over medium-high heat and scald it.
Remove from heat. Melt the butter
in a medium sauté pan until it begins to sizzle. Stir in the onion and cook until
translucent. Whisk in the flour until
smooth. Add the bay leaf and keep the
gravy warm while you cook the chicken and waffles. Strain the gravy if you prefer it very
smooth.
Heat the oil in a
large (12-14 inch) cast iron skillet over medium heat until it reaches 375
degrees on a frying thermometer. Preheat
an electric waffle iron. Line a baking
sheet with paper towels.
Remove the chicken
pieces from the brine and place on the paper towels to drain. Season the chicken pieces evenly with the Big
& Beefy Salt. Place the Farmers
Seasoned Flour in a medium bowl and coat the chicken pieces on all sides. Let the chicken sit in the flour, covered,
for a few minutes. Remove the chicken
pieces, shake off the excess flour and fry for 8 to 10 min. Turn the pieces over and fry an additional 8
to 10 min, until golden brown. Remove
the chicken from the oil with a spider and drain on a wire rack set over a
baking sheet. Season with a few pinches
of kosher salt.
Pour ¾ C of the
waffle batter into the grates of the waffle iron and cook until golden
according to manufacturer’s directions.
Serve the chicken and waffles hot with the White Cream Gravy, butter and
syrup.
Cheese Course
Fresh Honeycomb
Bilberry Preserves
Raw Milk
Cheddar-Fields of Antherny
Derby with Sundried
Tomatoes and Herbs
Marbled Brown Cow
Derby
Picnic Woods Goat
Cheese
Carmelized Onion
Ciabatta
Pecans
Grapes
The Mothership
Tomato Salad
Adapted From Jamie
Oliver
2 ¼ lbs mixed ripe
heirloom tomatoes
Sea salt and freshly
ground black pepper
Good dried oregano
Balsamic vinegar
Extra virgin olive
oil
1 clove garlic,
minced
1 fresh red chile,
seeded and chopped (optional, we did not use it)
The flavor in this
recipe is brought out by salting the tomatoes, so don’t skip this bit. Some people get worried about putting too
much salt on their food, but the bulk of it will drip off, leaving you with
really beautiful, intensely flavored tomatoes.
Cut the tomatoes
into bite sized chunks. Put the tomatoes
into a colander and season with a good bit of deal salt. Give them a toss, season again and give a couple
more tosses. The salt won’t be drawn
into the tomatoes; instead it will draw away any excess moisture out,
concentrating all the lovely flavors.
Leave the tomatoes in the colander on top of a bowl for at least 15
minutes, then discard any juice that has come out of them.
Transfer the
tomatoes to a large bowl and sprinkle over the oregano. Make a dressing using 1 part vinegar to 3
parts oil, add the garlic and chile.
Drizzle the tomatoes with enough dressing to coat and add salt and
pepper to taste.
Crusted Rack of Lamb
From Cathleen
1 - Rack of Lamb Frenched (2.5-3.5lbs)
Approximately (note that the items below are added by eye; not
exact
measurement) :)
1.5 Cups Panko Breadcrumbs
2-3 Cloves of Chopped Garlic
3 Tbsp. Chopped Fresh Rosemary
1/2 cup of good quality Whole Grain Dijon Mustard (homemade if
you have the
time!)**
2 Tsp Olive Oil
Zest of 1 Lemon
Salt & Pepper
Allow lamb to rest at room temperature for approximately 1 hour.
Heat olive
oil in large skillet and generously salt and pepper lamb.
Sear lamb on all
sides 3-4 minutes per side until nicely brown. Place on
baking sheet and
allow to cool slightly.
Combine panko, chopped garlic & rosemary, and lemon zest in
large pan.
After lamb has cooled slightly, rub generously with mustard and
coat with
panko crust mixture.
Roast lamb in 450 degree oven for 18-24 minutes depending on
size of lamb
rack and desired doneness (may need less roasting time if using
smaller
imported lamb rack from New Zealand/Iceland). Remove from
oven and
immediately cover with foil and allow lamb to rest for 15
minutes. Slice
rack into individual chops and serve.
Spring Pea Salad
From Niki
Sugar snap peas
1 small shallot, peeled and thinly sliced
1 small leek, cleaned, white part only thinly sliced
zest and juice of one lemon
½ C thinly shredded mint leaves
Olive oil
Salt and Freshly Ground Black Pepper
Remove
the ends and strings from peas. Prepare
an ice bath. Put peas into boiling,
salted water for 2 minutes only! Plunge
into ice bath to stop the cooking process and retain the color.
Make
dressing with lemon juice, zest, mint, olive oil, salt & pepper. Add the leek and shallot. Taste and add more oil or acid
accordingly. Pour dressing over peas. This can be made ahead and served at room
temperature.
Roasted
Potatoes with Rosemary
Wash
small red potatoes, place in Ziploc bag.
Add clove of minced garlic, chopped rosemary, salt and pepper and olive
oil. Seal bag and toss to coat
well. Roast at 350 degrees for 1 hour
or until can be easily pierced by a fork and slightly crispy.
Mixed Berry Crumble
Adapted from Ted Allen
1 pint blackberries
½ pint raspberries
½ pint strawberries, hulled and sliced
¼ C honey
¾ C all purpose flour
½ C rolled oats
½ C light brown sugar
1 stick unsalted butter
Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
In a large bowl, mix berries.
Drizzle with honey. Sprinkle with
4 Tablespoons flour and toss. Transfer
fruit to an 8x8 baking dish. In a large
bowl, mix remaining flour, oats, brown sugar and butter with a pastry blender,
until mixture forms large, crumbly lumps.
Sprinkle over berries. Bake until
golden brown, 45 to 50 min.
Cinnamon Honey Ice
Cream
from epicurious.com with adjustments by Cathleen
2 cups milk
2 cups heavy cream
1 cinnamon stick, 2 inches long
8 egg yolks
3/4 cup honey
2 Tbsp sugar
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp kosher salt
from epicurious.com with adjustments by Cathleen
2 cups milk
2 cups heavy cream
1 cinnamon stick, 2 inches long
8 egg yolks
3/4 cup honey
2 Tbsp sugar
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp kosher salt
In a medium saucepan, combine the milk and cream. Break up the
cinnamon stick into several pieces and toss them into the pan. Scald the milk
mixture over medium-high heat (bubbles start to form around the edge of the
pan, but the liquid is not boiling). Remove from the heat and let the cinnamon
steep in the milk mixture for about 1 hour.
In a medium bowl, whisk the egg yolks until blended, and then
slowly whisk in the honey, sugar, and ground cinnamon until combined. Return
the milk mixture to medium-high heat and scald again. Slowly add the hot milk
mixture to the egg-honey mixture, a little at a time, whisking constantly. When
all of the hot milk mixture has been incorporated, return the contents of the
bowl to the saucepan, and return the saucepan to medium heat. Cook, stirring
continuously with a wooden spoon, for 6 to 8 minutes, or until the mixture
thickens and coats the back of the spoon. The mixture will seem watery at
first, then it will start to steam, and then it will start to develop a little
body and get thicker. Remove from the heat and immediately strain through a
fine-mesh sieve into an airtight container. Whisk in the salt. Cover and
refrigerate for at least 2 hours, or until cold, or up to overnight.
Churn in an ice cream maker according to the manufacturer's
directions.
When the ice cream has finished churning, freeze it for at least
2 hours to allow it to ripen. During the ripening process, the ice cream
becomes harder and smoother and the flavors more fully develop. The ice cream
can be stored in an airtight container in the freezer for up to 1 week.
Note: Adjustments I made to the recipe include using
pastured eggs (with
bright orange yolks!), reducing the honey from 3/4 cup down to
2/3 cup, and
reducing the sugar to 1 tbsp. . I've made it with both
amounts of
honey/sugar and have found that the 3/4 cup is too sweet for my
tastes.