More Kitchen Exploits

While I don't write a cooking blog-- actually far from it-- it seems that we spend a lot of time in the kitchen so when we share about life stories from the kitchen are usually part of it.  Recently our posts have been full of adventures and activities.  I looked up the definition for adventure (I love definitions for some nerdy reason) and here is what Webster says:

adventure: an exciting or very unusual experience; a bold, usually risky undertaking; hazardous action of uncertain outcome

So it turns out that our adventures continue in a somewhat smaller version in our kitchen if it includes risky and hazardous undertakings and unusual experiences.

A few weeks ago I stopped at a farmer's market on my way home from work to pick up some Colorado peaches.  Peaches are the epitome of  a hot, lazy late summer day wrapped up in a fruit-sized package with some fuzz.  That evening we had rib-eye steaks and fresh peaches.   Arthur was excited for the steak but was almost more excited about the peaches.  We had peaches throughout that week and it was delightful.  Then being the thoughtful, loving wife that I am I decided to by a 20 pound box of peaches to freeze so my husband can enjoy frozen peaches the whole year-- doesn't that sound like a mix between Ma Ingalls from Little House on the Prairie and June Cleaver from Leave it to Beaver.  In all reality, I really love frozen peaches too and freezing peaches is about the least amount of work when it comes to food preservation.  Therefore, a little bit of work (freezing peaches) for a large return on investment (a happy husband)-- sounds like a winner to me.  Oh and then I asked/suggested that Arthur help in the process.  Ward Cleaver wouldn't stand a chance if he was up against my husband in the kitchen.  

Once I purchased the peaches I decided I had time that night I would just get the whole process done right then.  I scalded 5 or 6 and then put them in the cold water to skin.  But the skins didn't come off-- not a good sign.  At that point I realized in my haste to be the perfect housewife I hadn't considered that the peaches weren't quite ripe enough and I would have to put it off for a few more days.  But I had a handful of scaled peaches that had to be used for something right then or go to waste.  I then switched gears and decided to whip up to peach crisps with these peaches-- even though they were a little firm baking in the over for 45 minutes and a healthy dose of sugar would do wonders.  (Mary Poppins and her spoon full of sugar has been great advice to save many cooking "adventures" in my experience.)  The peach crisps turned out to be delicious.  I did take the extra one to work the next day were a helpful and motherly co-worker informed me that it was quite good but the peaches were  little firm so next time I should let them ripen in a brown paper bag first.  I just smiled and nodded.  We waited a few more days and then dove into the freezing process.  I stood at the hot stove with my boiling pots of water dipping peaches in and out like one of the witches in Macbeth.   Arthur's job was to fish the peaches out of the sink of cold water and skin them.  As he skinned them he placed the golden orbs of peachy goodness into a bowl.  We then sliced, added a little more sugar, and put the slices in bags for the freezer.  I came to find out that this was Arthur's inaugural food preserving experience.  There is nothing quite like standing around in a hot kitchen with fruit juices running down your arms to your elbows doing repetitive and monotonous for the delayed gratification of a tasty treat several months later.  While I love the idea of continuing on in a heritage of food preservation like mothers and grandmothers in previous generations, I also think that these industrious women would have jumped at the opportunity to walk into the grocery store in the middle of January to buy a jar of pickles or jelly for $2 instead of slaving away in a hot kitchen themselves.  In fact, I don't think I have heard of anyone sharing pleasant memories about canning at all.  

I have always known that when I had a home of my own I would continue to "put up food".  However, I never thought the day would come when I would make gyros in my own kitchen.  But that's what I did this week.  Gyros are a Greek food.  It is pronounced "heroes" not "gyro" like a gyroscope.  However the root word gyro- is Greek meaning "circle" or "to turn".  The meat in gyros is cooked rotisserie style, turning constantly.  Gyros include meat, usually lamb, with onions, tomatoes, and tzatziki sauce (wouldn't that be a great word for Scrabble) rolled up and served in a pita.  My brother gave us some of the lamb that was left from the lamb roast at the 4th of July that has been in our freezer which inspired this sudden dive into Greek cooking since I really have no other idea of what to cook with lamb.  And technically I didn't follow any of the rules to making traditional gyros.  I am finding that as I gain just a little bit of confidence in my cooking (my last complete cooking failure was last year) I am more willing to go "off-roading" and stray from the recipe a little.   I didn't have rotisserie lamb so I just cut what I had into chunks.  In Kansas tortillas are much easier to find than pitas so that's what I used.  Tzatziki sauce calls for plain Greek yogurt, surely vanilla is pretty much the same thing.  I was also out of lemon juice but did have fresh mint and cucumber so I stuck to the script there.  Overall they turned out fairly well and Arthur was floored that I made gyros which are one of his favorites-- he also never dreamed that he would see me attempting this.  

My other cooking adventure I wrote about in our last post.  I had never cooked more than s'mores on a campfire before, shoot, I don't even know how to grill.  I decided for dinner on our camping trip to do something easy.  No moose steak dinners with pineapple upside down cake in a dutch oven on this trip.  Simple for me was hobo packs.  Wrap a few ingredients up in tin foil, toss into hot coals, and eat about 45 minutes later.  These turned out pretty well.  For dessert was the classic s'mores.  Truthfully I probably have more experience cooking s'mores than any other food outside of PB&J sandwiches.  The summer I worked in Alaska I spent a lot of time intensively learning the art of s'more making and could almost say I have come close to mastering the delicacy.   

My other less exciting projects in the kitchen this week were making cookies for church and freezing some apple crisps.  My brother and sister-in-law have an apple tree in their yard so we picked some apples and then I spent what felt like hours slicing these tiny apples to make two crisps to have on hand in the freezer this fall.  The cookie recipe and the apple crisp recipe have developed into my go-to recipes for whenever I need to take a baked good or dessert to a gathering.  I found both recipes last year from a blog I follow on occasion (To give appropriate credit since these are not my recipes to Summer Harms).   I will confess I am a blog stalker-- I will read blogs about people's lives and their families that I have never met before.  Then I feel let down when all of a sudden they stop posting.  How can they do that?  I realize in the case of the blog where I found these recipes that since she is a new mom with two little kids things get chaotic but surely there is some time to write about their lives so I can read it.  Okay, maybe family should take priority to my blog stalking.  Anyway, I thought I would share these recipes since they are so good.  Omnia Vincit Amor and Bon Apetite.

As Good As It Gets Apple Crisp
 (Click the link for the recipe for a 9x13)
This recipe is great for a 1 quart dish which is just enough for Arthur and myself
2-3 apples, thinly sliced
2-3 T sugar
1 1/2 tsp lemon juice
1 T butter, cubed
1/2 tsp cinnamon

Topping:
1/4 c flour
1/4 c brown sugar
1/4 c oats
2T butter
1/8 tsp salt
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1 1/2 tsp oil

Slice apples and pour into bottom of dish.  Sprinkle with sugar and cinnamon. Randomly place cubed butter and sprinkle with lemon juice and then mix a little in the pan.  Cut topping together in a small bowl and pour over the apples.  Bake at 350 deg for 50-60 minutes.  Eat warm with ice cream.

To freeze I will line the baking dish with foil and then a layer of plastic.  I then make the recipe as normal but instead of baking I flash freeze in the baking dish.  When I remove it from the pan I seal the plastic and the foil and then place in the freezer for a cozy, fall evening later.  

Outrageous Cookies
1 c butter
 1 c sugar
2/3 c brown sugar
 1 c creamy peanut butter
 1 tsp vanilla
 2 eggs
1 3/4 c flour
1 c quick oats
2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 1/2 c chocolate chips

Cream first six ingredients.  Add the remainder of ingredients and stir.  Bake at 350 deg for 10-12 minutes.  Makes 4 dozen.  

I like to make a batch of these and then spoon them onto a cookie sheet and flash freeze them.  I then put the frozen cookie balls into a bag and can pull out a dozen to bake fresh when needed.