Bee Sugar Candy for Winter Feeding

Bee Sugar Candy
by Armand Provost

for winter feeding of your bees

Makes about 14 8¾” pie plates

Ingredients

• 15 lbs sugar
• 3 bottles Karo syrup
• ¼ teaspoon cream of tartar
• 4 cups water

Directions

1. Heat to 240 degrees (soft ball stage)
2. Cool to 180 degrees
3. Stir vigorously
4. Pour into containers
5. It should be hardened and ready for use in 2-3 hours

Safe Natural Homemade Bug Spray

Ingredients:

• 1/3 cup Witch Hazel
• 1/2 teaspoon Lemongrass Oil
• 1/2 teaspoon Eucalyptus Oil
• 1/2 teaspoon Citronella Oil

Combine all ingredients in a small spray bottle.  Make sure to shake the bottle well before each use since the oils and witch hazel tend to separate.

Enjoy the summer!

Stinging Nettle Tabouleh!

It's almost nettle season again!!!  Time to go foraging for some yummy and healthy nettles!  A few words of advice: if you go foraging for nettles be sure to wear thick gloves.  Pull snip the stalk around the upper most part of the plant.  Come to the acceptance that whatever part of your body touches the plant, is going to become numb for a while.  Please don't eat nettles raw!!!  The way to take away the sting of nettles is to blanch them by boiling them and then giving them a quick ice bath.  These pictures are from last summer.

Ingredients

• Nettles
• Cucumber
• Tomatoes
• Red Onion
• Parsley
• Garlic
• Tomatoes
• Cous Cous
• Feta Cheese (optional)

Cleansing Thai Soup

I got this recipe from my wonderful roommate in college.  It's a Thai family recipe.  I changed it up a bit by adding some spices and more vegetables.  Use it as a rejuvenating and hydrating cleanse.  I'll tell you, my skin was definitely glowing after eating this for a week.

Ingredients

• Chinese Cabbage
• Bok Choy
• Garlic
• Onions
• Spring Onions
• Celery
• Carrots
• Red and Green Bell Peppers
• Cilantro
• Water
• Turmeric
• Chili Powder
• Garam Masala
• Crushed Tomatoes
• Salt & Pepper to taste

Directions

Chop up all your veggies.  Throw them in a large pot.  Add 10+ cups of water (until the veggies are covered.  Add the crushed tomatoes.  Bring to a boil. Then simmer for a few minutes.  Voila!

Ultimate Vegetarian Chili

With this lovely dish, I just kept adding whatever I had around that I thought would taste good together.  It was definitely a concoction, but a yummy one!

Ingredients

• Sweet Potatoes
• Potatoes
• Butternut Squash
• Corn
• Carrots
• Canellini Beans
• Blacks Beans
• Red Kidney Beans
• Split Pease
• Red Onion
• Chilli Powder
• Tomato Sauce
• Crushed Tomatoes
• Red Bell Peppers
• Green Bell Peppers
• Cilantro

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Saag

This, in my opinion, is one of the most delicious Indian dishes out there.  Here is my Dad's recipe... You're welcome!

Ingredients 

• 10-14 bunches of spinach washed in a plugged sink and chopped
•  5 red onions diced
• 1 handful of ginger (after you measure the ginger in your hand, you can mince it)
• 1 smaller handful of garlic (once you measure the garlic you can mince it)
• 2 Tbsp salt
• 1 heeped tsp haldee
• ¾-1 tsp chili powder
• 2 heeped tsp garam masala
• 1 28-oz can tomatoes (sauce, diced or crushed) 

Cook diced onions on medium-high heat in a huge pot with ¾-1 cup of olive oil, until the become translucent and slightly brown.  Make sure to stir the onions periodically to avoid burning them or having them stick to the bottom of the pot.

Throw in garlic and ginger.  When garlic starts to look like onions (starts to become translucent and onions have shrunk), add about 2 tbsp of salt, one heeped tea spoon of haldee (turmeric), ¾-1 tsp chili powder, and two heeped teaspoons of garam masala.  Add one can of tomato sauce or finely diced/crushed tomatoes and stir.  Mix together and let cook for another 5 minutes stirring occasionally.

Then add the chopped spinach in bunches while stirring the concoction.  Turn burner down to medium and let cook, stirring every 5+ minutes.  The water from the spinach will leech out.  Cook until spinach starts to break down for about 45 minutes to an hour.  Then, puree the whole batch will an electric hand mixer or a blender.

Optional – Mix in one pint heavy cream or for vegan option ¼ cup earth balance. And cook uncovered on very low.

*Keep pot covered at all times when not stirring

What to do about Herbs?

Don't be that guy...

Your herb garden has exploded into prolific pandemonium! Some plants have bolted.  Some plants are attacking the other plants. What do you do?

• a) Take a machete and hack the s**t out of everything.  Leaving nothing but a deserted wasteland behind.
• b) Rock back and forth in a corner while weeping or mumbling something about tiger-striped, basil-scented staplers.
• c) Come up with creative ways to cook, dry and preserve those delicious herbs so that you can enjoy them throughout the winter months.

I'll leave you to your own devices if you chose "a)" or "b)".  If you chose "c)," here are some ideas you can try to enjoy those herbs year round:

Herb Infused Oil

Making herb-infused oil is pretty easy.  You can do it in a number of ways.

One easy way I like is to place all my favorite herbs that compliment eachother in a jar with sea salt and pepper.  Then I pour in extra virgin olive oil until the mix is covered.  I put it in the fridge for a week and then thaw it.  Using cheesecloth I strain the herbs out while pouring the infused oil into a separate clean jar.  Then I enjoy.  This is generally potent stuff, so 1 teaspoon usually amply seasons any dish.  Or you can use it to dip bread on.  Or you can use a bunch of it to make focaccia bread!

Drying Herbs

There are a couple of different techniques to drying herbs.  You can hang some string like a clothing line in your home and hang freshly cut herbs upside down.  Once the herbs have fully dried, you can store them in a clean jar as whole leaves or crumble them to make seasoning or powder.

When drying certain herbs, like sage (especially sage for smudge sticks), you should tie the leaves together with twine so the don't dry spread apart.  I've also used dental floss before.

Preserving and Freezing:

Some herbs, like basil, make yummy and easy-to-make sauces, pastes and pestos!  If you want to freeze the pesto you make, just omit the cheese.  The cheese doesn't freeze as well, and funkifies the taste.  You can add the cheese after it thaws out of the freezer if you like.  

Here are some tried and true pesto recipes you may like:

 

You can always pound all the ingredients with a mortar and pestal for an earthy consistency.  I like this better than using a blender or food processor most of the time.

Basil Pesto
Ingredients:

• 3/4 cup pine nuts or coarsely chopped macadamia nuts (6 ounces)
• 5 cups basil leaves, chilled and perfectly dry
• 6 small garlic cloves, quartered
• 1/3 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
• 3/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for sealing
• Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper

Preheat the oven to 400°. Toast the nuts on a baking sheet for about 4 minutes, or until lightly browned. Coarsely chop the basil leaves. In a large mortar, combine the basil and garlic and pound to a coarse paste. Add the nuts and pound until a smooth paste forms. Stir in the Parmesan, then 3/4 cup of the olive oil. Transfer the pesto to a bowl and season with salt and pepper. Smooth the surface and pour a little olive oil on top to seal.




Arugula Pesto

Ingredients:

• 4 cups packed fresh arugula
• 1 tablespoon minced garlic
• Salt and freshly ground pepper
• 1 cup pure olive oil
• 2 tablespoon pine nuts, toasted, plus 1 tablespoon
• 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan, Pecorino or Romano Cheese

Blanch the Arugula for about 15 seconds and then immerse in an ice bath to retain the color and cool the leaves.  Then throw all your ingredients, besides the cheese, in a blender and blend to your desired consistency.  Add the cheese and pulse to combine.  Yum!

Mint Pesto
Ingredients:

• 1 cup packed mint leaves
• 1/4 cup flat-leaf parsley leaves
• 2 scallions, thickly sliced
• 3-4 medium garlic cloves
• 1/2 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest
• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• Kosher Salt

In a food processor, combine the mint leaves with the parsley, scallions, garlic and lemon zest and olive oil pulse until chopped and smooth. Season the with salt.

Olive-Mint Pesto

Ingredients:

• 5 tablespoons tightly packed mint leaves
• 2 tablespoons small capers, drained
• 1 large garlic clove, smashed
• 1/2 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest
• Pinch of crushed red pepper
• 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 cup pitted mixed olives, such as Calamata and Cerignola
• Freshly ground pepper

 In a food processor, pulse the mint, capers, garlic, lemon zest and crushed red pepper. With the machine on, add the olive oil in a thin stream. Add the olives and pulse until coarsely chopped. Season the pesto with pepper.

Cilantro Pesto

Ingredients:

• 1 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 packed cup coarsely chopped cilantro (stems and all)
• 1 packed cup flat-leaf parsley
• 1/4 cup marcona almonds or blanched almonds
• 2 teaspoons white wine vinegar
• Kosher or fine sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Pour the oil into a food processor jar. Add the cilantro, parsley, almonds, and vinegar and blend until the herbs are finely chopped and smooth. Season to taste, with salt and pepper.

Spicy Cilantro Pesto
Ingredients:

• 1 cup cilantro leaves and small sprigs
• 1/2 cup flat-leaf parsley leaves and small sprigs
• 1 garlic clove, chopped
• One 1-inch piece of fresh ginger, peeled and finely chopped
• 1/2 large jalapeño, seeded and chopped
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
• Kosher Salt

In a food processor, combine the cilantro, parsley, garlic, ginger and jalapeño; blend until minced. With the machine on, gradually add the oil in a steady stream and puree. Scrape the pesto into a bowl and season with salt.


 

Parsley-Artichoke Pesto

Ingredients:

• 1 cup cooked artichoke hearts
• 1 cup packed fresh parsley leaves
• 1/2 cup chopped toasted walnuts
• 1 lemon, zested and juiced
• 2 cloves garlic
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 2/3 cup grated parmesan, romano or pecorino cheese

In a food processor combine the artichokes, parsley, walnuts, lemon zest and juice, garlic, salt, and pepper until finely chopped. With the machine running, drizzle in olive oil. Mix in cheese.

Disclaimer:  Whenever preserving your own foods at home, please be aware of foodborne botulism.  You should always sterilize everything before and after using it.  Before consuming any food that you have canned or jarred at home, remember to heat it on the stove to kill any spores of the toxin.

From the DPH: All canned and preserved foods must be properly processed and prepared. Home-canned products should be heated to 241oF (116ºC) using a pressure cooker to kill the spores of Clostridium botulinum. Home-canned foods should be boiled for 10 minutes before eating; this will destroy the botulism toxin. Reheated foods should be heated to 165ºF. Frozen foods should be thawed in the refrigerator, rather than at room temperature. Bulging containers should not be opened, and commercial cans that are dented should be returned to the store where they were purchased.

~Shreena

Natural, Homemade Gift Ideas

The holidays are upon us!  Sorry, I am posting this so late in the month, but I'm going to give away some of my thrifty holiday secrets so I hope you'll forgive me.

Now I know the holidays really should not be about presents, but it is a nice excuse to play with your food with the extra perk of giving the fruits (pun-intended) of your labor to loved ones.  I hope these little ideas help relieve some of the stress of feeling like the holidays need to suck up your time or bankrupt you.

Generally, these ideas involve making a large quantity of quality gifts with materials that you can find in your home.  Or if you don't already have them in your home and you don't use all of them up for gift-making, you can use the ingredients for other things (like cooking, who knew?)!

Almond Oil Age-Defying Home Skin Treatment

Ingredients

• Almond Oil
• Carrot Seed Oil (optional)
• Rose-hip Essential Oil (optional)
• Lavendar Oil (optional)

So there's really only one ingredient for this which is great!  The others are all optional but definitely nice (they're just a little more expensive).  All you need to do for this gift is fill a small, pretty bottle (an Alice in Wonderland "Drink Me" sized bottle is what my imagination conjures), with almond oil and then add about 10 drops of one of the optional oils above.

Almond oil is rich in linoleic acid which helps the skin retain water.

Carrot Seed Oil is used to stimulate cell growth and therefore can improve skin's elasticity.

This is Rosehip.  Isn't it pretty? Rosehip Oil contains retinol (Vitamin A), vitamin C and fatty acids and is used to reduce wrinkles, fine lines and scars.

Lavender flowers

Lavendar Oil is used to reduce inflammation and may help with mild acne.

Then, your can write down what is in your bottle and its benefits and give the gift with these instructions: "Wash face with your normal cleanser.  Massage oil into a clean face for at least two minutes and rinse with warm water."  Voila!  An easy and natural gift for anyone who cares about keeping their skin fresh, clean and hydrated.

Chickpea Facial Scrub

Ingredients:

• Chickpea Flour
• Water
• Green Tea Leaves (optional)
• Mashed Banana (optional)
• Rosehip Essential Oil (optional)

You need to let the person you are giving this to know they need to use it up within a week (within a few days if you add the banana) or else it will grow moldy and useless (well, not useless, you can always compost it).  

The measurements of this depend on your preference.  I prefer my scrub a little more on the soggy side.  Mix a few Tablespoons of chickpea flour with a smaller amount of water to the consistency that you want it.  Then you can add one of the other 3 ingredients if you want.  Here's an added benefit: I soak and strain the green tea leaves in hot water; drink the tea and then use the leaves for the scrub!  You can get creative with other food: papaya is a great fruit to use in scrubs or honey works, too.  

Banana is rich in lutein, vitamin C and potassium.  Rubbing the pulp on skin helps moisturize and soften skin.

Papaya and Green tea leaves can be an antioxidant-rich, gentle exfoliant.

Honey hydrates and moisturizes skin.

The instructions to use the scrub is the same: Just massage it on to a clean face for a few minutes and rinse it off with warm water.  It feels and works way better than any facial scrub I have every bought at a store.

~Shreena

P.S.  I shamelessly got all my pictures for this post from Google if you couldn't already tell.

... More gift ideas to come...

Grateful for Guacamole!

When visions of avocados start to dance in your head and you yearn for the subtle scent of garlic to linger on your fingertips... AND, especially if you're getting invited to more BBQs and cookouts than you can possibly squeeze into a weekend (starting with the ever-so-patriotic Memorial Day weekend)... You know it's GUACAMOLE SEASON!!!!

I know you cannot contain your excitement, but try to maintain composure until you're done reading this post.

Ingredients:

• 1 Tbsp Olive Oil
• 3-5 ripe Avocados
• 2-3 cloves of Garlic for each avocado (if I'm craving more of a kick I'll use 4-5 cloves each)
• 1 large red onion
• 2-3 tomatoes for the entire batch (I find Roma tomatoes work best)
• 1 whole bunch cilantro
• Optional: .5 Tbsp whipped cream cheese (I don't normally eat cream cheese, so when I need this I just go to the bagel store and ask for those tiny ounce containers of cream cheese)
• about .5-1 tsp cumin powder
• salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

Slice your avocados in half and scoop out the meat into a large bowl.  Using a potato masher, mash the avocados with the cream cheese until they reach a creamy consistency.

Dice your onions and chop your tomatoes.  Mince the garlic.  In a pan heat up olive Oil and saute HALF the garlic you minced with your onions for 1-2 minutes.  Add the cumin powder, tomatoes, and some salt and pepper. Cook for another minute.

Remove and add the contents of the pan to your creamy avocado concoction.  Add the remainder of the raw garlic and stir together.  

Finely chop the cilantro and add that to the batch.  Adjust any seasonings (I usually have to add a good amount of salt than I originally consider).

Enjoy with chips, as a condiment on hot dogs or burgers (adds a great flavor to vegan hotdogs and veggie burgers!), or let me know of creative ways you relish your guac.  I guarantee you'll be loved at BBQs, Block Parties, Dinner Parties or love yourself and chow down solo (I'll be the first to say that I've done that more times than I can count, so please don't feel an atom of guilt if you do.  Sometimes it's hard to leave the house when that bowl of guac is whispering sweet nothings into your ear.).

Rhubarb Pancakes w/ Home-Churned Butter

It's rhubarb season!!!!  Yum!!!  You can create a ton of recipes with rhubarb, but we chose mouthwatering rhubarb pancakes!!

All the ingredients came from the incredible, Moon in the Pond Farm, from very happy cows and healthy, organic rhubarb plants!!!

Chunky Rhubarb Sauce

• Rhubarb (2.5 long stalks)
• .25-.5 cup Raw sugar (depending on how sweet or sour you want it)

Directions:

Cut the rhubarb into 1 inch thick pieces.  place in a pot and sprinkle with sugar.  Put on low to medium heat for about 45 minutes (until the rhubarb softens).

Pancakes (recipe from Mark Bittman)

• 2 cups all purpose flour
• 1 Tbsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 tbsp sugar
• 1-2 eggs
• 1.5-2 cups milk
• 2 Tbsp melted and cooled butter (optional) plus unmelted butter or oil for cooking
• 1 tsp vanilla

Directions:

Preheat a griddle or large skillet over medium-low heat while you make the batter.  

Mix together the dry ingredients. Beat the egg(s) into 1.5 cups of milk, then stir in 2 tablespoons
melted cooled butter and vanilla (if you are using them). Gently stir this into the dry ingredients, mixing only enough to moisten the flour; don’t worry about a few lumps. If the batter seems thick, add a little more milk.

If your skillet or griddle is nonstick, you can cook the pancakes without any butter. Otherwise, use a teaspoon or two of butter or oil each time you add batter. When the butter foam subsides or the oil shimmers, ladle batter onto the griddle or skillet, making any size pancakes you like. Adjust the heat as necessary; usually, the first batch will require higher heat than subsequent batches. The idea is to brown the bottom in 2 to 4 minutes, without burning it. Flip when the pancakes are cooked on the bottom; they won’t hold together well until they’re ready.

Cook until the second side is lightly browned and serve, or hold on an ovenproof plate in a 200-degrees oven for up to 15 minutes.

Hand-churned Butter

• 1/2 cup heavy cream (or, in this case, carefully ladled cream skimmed from the top of raw milk)
• 1 tsp confectioners sugar

Directions:

Pour the cream and sugar into a bowl and whip with an egg beater until it is the consistency of butter.

Growing a Windowsill Herb Garden

Living in a city without access to a plot of uncontaminated land doesn't mean that you can't have fresh organic herbs.  If you add a little love, care and natural fertilizer, you can grow the most delicious and potent herbs right in your apartment (even if that pesky neighbor's apartment blocks out your sun for most of the day)!

Here's one of mine:

Here are a couple of tips I've picked up along the way:

1. Don't put too many seeds in one pot.  Trust your green thumb.  If you care for them, they will grow.  So, if you add a bunch of seeds thinking that many of them just won't grow you'll overcrowd your pot when they do and defeat the whole purpose.
2. I use green tea for fertilizer.  Not going to finish that cup?  Pour it in!  It's not just a miracle drink for humans.  (if you use loose tea leaves make sure you strain them out.  Rotten tea leaves attract unwanted bugs... fine outside.  Not so fun in your apartment).
3. I sing to my plants.  Hey, it may not do anything, but they are a captive audience (or at least they humor me).
4. I harvest them often.  They grow back; so don't be afraid to enjoy the fruits of your labor!  This encourages thick and healthy growth.  Generally, try not to trim more than a third of the herb's foliage.
5. Typically, you get the best results if you put your herbs on a south facing windowsill.  You can also use florescent lights to supplement any serious lack of light.
6. If your herbs grow faster than you can use them you can harvest them and freeze or dry them.
7. Make sure your windowsill is not drafty in the winter.

         

So how do you get started?  Well, let me tell you!:

1. You'll need pots that are 4-6 inches deep and have a drainage system (either a whole in the bottom or you can create one by putting stones in the bottom)
2. Seeds (I find that oregano, thyme, parsley, cilantro, chives and rosemary all grow pretty well indoors).
3. Compost (if you don't compost, you can generally find compost somewhere in your community.  Check your city council's website or google it.)

Steps:

1. Fill about half to 2/3 of your pot with compost.
2. Place a few seeds down.
3. Cover with compost.
4. Pour water into the pot so that the soil is damp but not flooded.
5. Wait for your seedlings to grow.
6. Once they start to grow place them on the windowsill for sunlight.  Voila!

Good luck and enjoy!

~Shreena