Category Archives: Food

The Queen Of Cans And Jars

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You know those things you always say you’re going to start doing and never get around to it. For me, canning falls into that category. I can never seem to make the initial investment in canning supplies and each year I say, “I’ll start canning next year.”

Well, 2013 is the year. I finally broke down and ordered some canning supplies and I can’t wait to preserve fruits and veggies all summer to enjoy during the colder months. I have started collecting recipes I want to try. I am really excited to try my own pickled vegetables, so my first roundup of recipes are for homemade pickles.

homemade dill pickles
Homemade Dill Pickles via A Sweet Pea Chef

taco pickles
Taco Pickles via Eva Kolenko Photography

pickled grapes
Pickled Grapes via Brooklyn Supper

quick sweet pickles
Quick Sweet Pickles via Honey & Jam

Mary

Rat Fest at the Corner Brewery

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Mary and I had the privilege this past weekend of attending Rat Fest at the Corner Brewery in Ypsilanti, Michigan. It was an event that featured nine local brewing guilds, each making four different types of beer for everyone at the event to sample. That’s 36 beers we got to sample!

This year the brew clubs were The Ann Arbor Brewers Guild Hopheads, The Ann Arbor Brewers Guild Yeasters, CraftBeerinMi, Brighton Home Brew Club, Detroit Draft Divas, Motor City Mashers, Muskrat Mashers, The Sons of Liberty, and The Ugly Mug.


from Corner Brewery

We got to vote on several categories and Mary and I both agreed The Motor City Mashers had the best all around selection with their Salty Dog Grapefruit Gose, Peanut Butter Cup Stout, Winter Spice Ale, and Toasted Coconut Porter. Some of our other favorite brews were the Twice Baked Potato DIPA from the Sons of Liberty and the Bombs Away Stout from the Brighton Brew Club.

Sons of Liberty
One of our favorite logos from the Sons of Liberty Homebrew Club

Trevor

Holiday Treats

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Since Thanksgiving is officially over, I feel ready to start blogging about Christmas. I thought I’d start out with a round-up of some of the seasonal foods I plan to enjoy over the holidays.

eggnog french toast
Eggnog French Toast via PinLaVie

peppermint eggnog punch
Peppermint-Eggnog Punch via Better Homes & Gardens

gingerbread pancakes
Gingerbread pancakes via Family Style Food

holiday brie
Holiday Brie via The Girl Who Ate Everything

Mary

Weekend Baking: Ginger Cookies with Bourbon Vanilla Sorghum

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The last few weekends, Trevor and I have visited my mom and step-dad in the Irish Hills. They live in the country on a lake and it’s been great to take walks, look at the leaves, and enjoy a Michigan fall.

We’ve also been using my mom’s big kitchen to bake up a storm. Last weekend we made pumpkin chocolate chip cookies and ginger cookies. Trevor also made his very first pie, a pumpkin pie with ginger, and it was amazing!

ginger cookies with vanilla bourbon sorghum

Ginger Cookies with Bourbon Vanilla Sorghum

3/4 cup butter, at room temperature
1 cup sugar
1 egg
2 tbsp freshly grated ginger
2 cups flour
2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp cloves
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp allspice
extra sugar for rolling
Preheat the oven to 350. Cream the butter and sugar together. Add the egg, sorghum, and fresh ginger. Add the dry ingredients and mix until just blended. Scoop dough into teaspoon sized balls and roll in granulated sugar. Place on parchment paper lined cookie sheets and bake for 10 to 12 minutes.
*I adapted this recipe to include the sorghum. If you don’t have any, the cookies can also be made with molasses.
Mary

September Snacks

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Now that the weather is getting cooler and it’s not too hot to have the oven on, I’ve done a ton of cooking. Fall is the best time of year for cooking, since I can buy so much of my produce at the farmers’ market. This week I made a tasty kale, mushroom, and white bean soup with fresh and local kale and mushrooms. I also finally bought a doughnut pan and have gone crazy for baking doughnuts.

chocolate pecan doughnuts
Chocolate Pecan Doughnuts (recipe from Sunday Morning Banana Pancakes)
pumpkin doughnuts
Pumpkin doughnuts (recipe from Buns in My Oven)
kale, mushroom, and white been soup
Kale, Mushroom, and White Bean Stew (recipe from Love and Lemons)

Mary

A Year of Sunday Mornings: Week Six

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I’ve had a pretty rough weekend. I was doored while riding my bike to the botanical gardens on Friday. My legs are a scraped and bruised mess and my bike is in the shop getting some major repairs. I also woke up this morning to a hefty parking ticket. I felt like I needed to treat myself, so I finally checked out the new pie shop on California, Bang Bang.

Oh. My. God. It is amazing! They have fluffy, handmade biscuits with a variety of house made butters and jams. Trevor and I each got a slice and split them. We tried Banana Toffee Walnut and Plum. Yum!

I may have to start making weekly trips to get my pie fix.

banana toffee walnut pie from bang bang

Mary

Pumpkin Recipe Round Up

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I know that it’s still summer, but it’s been so chilly and rainy lately that I’ve gone completely into fall mode. I’ve spent the last few weeks coveting boots and fair isle sweaters. I have also been craving heartier fall foods. My favorite thing to cook with in the fall is pumpkin. Here are some of the recipes I plan to try as soon as I see some pumpkins at the market.

baked pumpkin doughnuts
These baked pumpkin doughnuts from food plus words look amazing! Plus, they have beer in them, which is always the icing on the cake for me.

pumpkin risotto with seared scallops
Although Trevor and I already have a favorite pumpkin pasta recipe, I will definitely be making this pumpkin risotto with seared scallops from spoon fork bacon.

ginger pumpkin pie
I’m a sucker for anything with ginger in it and this pumpkin pie from The Go Lightly Gourmet has ginger in the crust, filling, streusel, and a handmade gingerbread whipped cream to top it off.

pumpkin and spinach lasagna
It’s been ages since I made a lasagna, but that will be changing as soon as I make this Pumpkin and Spinach Lasagna from Veggie num num.

Mary

Eastern Market

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I work so often on Saturdays that even when I do get a Saturday off, I’ve been forgetting to go to the farmer’s market at Eastern Market in Detroit. I finally remembered to go this past weekend, and while it was a little bit of a gloomy morning, it only made it feel more fall-like for my bike ride down.

I picked up some blueberries, bananas, and white corn for home, and had a few pierogies  for a snack while there. I can’t wait to go back in the fall for squash and cider.

eastern market

farmer's market

germack

pierogies

Trevor

Kale Chips

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I used to think that I hated kale. I honestly though that people who claimed to like kale were being entirely disingenuous. Recently, I’ve discovered Native Foods and their kale-heavy dishes have changed my mind completely.
Now, I’m something of a kale enthusiast. I’ve been on a kick where I eat kale at least once a day, every day. Over the weekend I made homemade kale chips. Oh, my! Are they good. They rival roasted seaweed as my new favorite snack.

kale chips

Kale Chips

  • A bunch of kale, rinsed, dried, and thick stems cut off
  • olive oil
  • sea salt
  • cumin
  • cayenne pepper

Preheat the oven to 250°F. Spray kale with olive oil in a large bowl and toss. Sprinkle with salt, cumin, and cayenne pepper. Arrange leaves in a single layer on 2 baking sheets. Bake until crisp, about 30 minutes, turning the leaves every 10 minutes. Transfer leaves to a wire rack to cool.
Mary