Honey Roasted Almonds

Was craving something sweet and crunchy for a snack and had been to a friend's house recently where she had made savory roasted almonds...so decided to try a sweet roasted almond. Tried two recipes - a maple roasted and a honey roasted. Honey won the contest...though I do add a splash of maple to it. 

Below is based on this Sweet and Spicy Almond recipe I'd also like to try sometime. 

2 cups whole, raw almonds

1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

1 ½ tablespoon honey

½ teaspoon maple syrup

¼ teaspoon  salt

1-2 tablespoons sugar

Preheat oven to 350˚F. Line sheet pan with parchment paper. 

Combine oil, honey, syrup, salt, and almonds in a bowl or directly on the lined pan. Spread the almonds in a single layer on the baking sheet.

Bake for 14 minutes. stirring halfway through baking time.

After removing from oven, immediately transfer nuts to a sheet of waxed or parchment paper and sprinkle with sugar. Toss until thoroughly coated. Spread nuts in a single layer and cool completely. 

Put Up 2015

I can never remember how much produce I bought and if it was enough or too much...I'll try to keep track...

Produce:
4 half-flats of raspberries
4 half-flats of strawberries
2 half-flats blackberries
3 half-flats blueberries
1 half-flat combo blackberry, marionberry and boysenberry
40 lbs cherries
10 lbs apricots
10 lbs plums
10 lbs peaches
5 lbs cukes (from Jubilee. got 10 but the rest were too big to do anything with)
I think there were  more berries than this. But this is what I can remember. Sarah also gave us a ton of blueberries and we had several pints off the bushes.

Freezer:
2 gallon ziplocs of strawberries
3 pints crushed strawberries
pints crushed raspberries
2 pints crushed blackberries
2 + gallons blueberries
2 gallons raspberries
6 quarts halved cherries
3 gallons whole cherries

Jam:
1 batch strawberry jam
1 batch raspberry jam
1 batch black & blue jam
1 batch "berry xplosion" (mixed berry) jam
1 batch apricot jam

Pickles:
4 quarts old fashioned dill pickles
3 pints piccalilli (made with pickling cukes, cabbage and a few green cherry tomatoes)


Other:
6 quarts unpitted cherries in light syrup
4 pints unpitted cherries in light syrup
Gallon pitted cherries covered in vodka
1/2 liter mixed berries in vodka
We probably had another 5-7 lbs of cherries left from the 40 lbs that we ate

Skillet Cornbread

A Clara favorite. We ate this covered with fresh strawberries. This recipe is for a 9 inch cast iron skillet but I increase proportions to make it in my 12 inch cast iron. Unfortunately the math isn't pretty so I've stuck with this 9 inch recipe.

1 3/4 c cornmeal

3/4 c flour

1/4 c sugar

1 tsp salt

2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/3 c milk

1 c buttermilk (I used vanilla yogurt)

2 large eggs

1 stick butter, melted

Heat oven to 400 degrees and warm cast iron skillet while preparing ingredients.

Combine cornmeal, flour, sugar, salt, baking powder and soda in bowl. Stir in the milk, buttermilk, eggs, and and all of the butter except 1 T. Brush the skillet with reserved melted butter. Pour the batter into the skillet and bake 20-25 minutes. 

From: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/alexandra-guarnaschelli/skillet-cornbread-with-strawberry-jam-recipe.html

Buttermilk Shortcakes / Scones

Topped these with a mix of cherries, blueberries and blackberries (and fresh whipped cream of course!) for our weekly dinner with Nate & Sarah. Definitely my favorite shortcake. I am planning to add dried fruit at some point and eat these as breakfast scones as well. Made about 10 cakes. 

3 c flour

4 tsp baking powder

1 tsp baking soda

1/3 c sugar

1 1/2 tsp salt

3/4 c cold butter cut into small pieces

1 c buttermilk

2 T heavy cream

Combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, sugar and salt. Cut in butter until the mixture resembles coarse crumbles. Stir in buttermilk. Drop 1/3 c scoops, 2 inches apart onto parchment-lined baking sheet. Brush biscuits with heavy cream. Bake in 425 degree oven 15-20 minutes. 

From: http://allrecipes.com/recipe/buttermilk-strawberry-shortcake/

10-Minute Coffee Cake

I made this with blueberries and vanilla yogurt today. So good. The original recipe had 1/2 cup brown sugar in the topping but I thought it was more than necessary. I think this might also be good with a layer of jam when fresh fruit isn't available...

2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1 1/4 cups granulated sugar
1 1/4 teaspoons salt
10 tablespoons room temperature unsalted butter, cubed
1 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 cup buttermilk or yogurt
1 large egg
2 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 to 3 cups ground cherries (or other berries or fruit)
1 cup chopped pecan pieces (untoasted)
1/3 cup packed dark brown sugar
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

Preheat oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit. Butter and flour a 9" cake pan (the taller the sides the better) or bundt pan. Set aside.

In a large bowl whisk together flour, sugar and salt. Cut in butter until it is combined with flour and is the size of small peas. Remove 1 cup of flour & butter mixture into a second bowl and set aside (you'll use it for your topping later).

Add in baking powder and soda to base flour mixture and whisk gently. Add buttermilk, egg, and vanilla, and stir until mixture is combined.

Pour flour mixture into prepared pan. Scatter fruit over the top. Next, add nuts, brown sugar and cinnamon to your small bowl of flour that is set aside. Stir and sprinkle over the top. 

Bake for 60 to 75 minutes. Remove from oven and allow to cool for at least 15 minutes in the pan. 

Spinach Salad

Had this with crepes tonight. It was great as a side and inside the crepes. Finished the salad in one sitting and made a second salad to take for lunch.

Salad:
8 cups baby spinach
1 apple sliced thinly and dipped in orange juice
1/3 c dried cranberries
1/2 c walnuts chopped and toasted
1 oz goat cheese, crumbled

Dressing:
1 T red wine vinegar
2 tsp stoneground mustard
1/4 tsp salt (use slightly less, it was pretty salty)
3 T olive oil

Toss salad with dressing before serving.

Roasted Shitake Mushrooms

This is so simple and delicious. I've made this in the oven and on the stovetop. And using whichever wine I happened to have open. And then we've had the mushrooms as a side or chopped into fresh pasta with olive oil and a kale citrus salad on the side!

12 ounces shitake mushrooms, stems removed
1/4 c wine, white or red
2 T olive oil
2 cloves garlic sliced
Several sprigs fresh thyme
Salt & pepper

Sprinkle pan with wine, olive oil and garlic. Add mushrooms, cap side down.Toss thyme, salt & pepper on top. Cook for ~20 minutes turning once.