RECIPE: Fettuccine Alfredo with Chive Blossoms

Chive blossom season is a short one, so I use them every chance I get during the few weeks they're available.  The blossoms taste just like chives, only milder.  If you'd like to learn more about them, click HERE, and HERE, and HERE! 

Fettuccine Alfredo with Chive Blossoms

Serves 4

1 T. ghee
2 cloves garlic, minced, or 1 t. dried
1.5 cups heavy cream
2 egg yolks
1 pound fettuccine (I used tagliatelle)
1 cup freshly grated Parmigiano cheese
2 T. chopped chives (plus 1 T more for garnish)
2 T. fresh chive blossoms (plus 1 T. more for garnish)
salt and pepper

Whisk the egg yolks into the cream.  Set aside.

Bring 6 quarts of water to a rolling boil over high heat.

Add the fettuccine and 2 T. salt to the water and return to a boil.  Reduce heat to medium-high (water should continue to boil, but not vigorously) and stir pasta frequently to prevent sticking.  Cook for 10 minutes.  When you cut a strand in half, there should be no white in the center.  Don't overcook it, though, you want to drain it as soon as the last sliver of white disappears.  Any longer than that and it will be mushy.

While the pasta is cooking, in a small sauce pan heat the ghee on medium and saute the garlic until fragrant.  Pour in the cream mixture, reduce the heat to low, and stir frequently to insure the mixture doesn't get too hot, or the eggs will cook and the sauce will be ruined.   You just need to heat the sauce slightly.

When the pasta is cooked, remove 2 cups of the cooking water and set aside.  Drain the pasta and return it to the pot you cooked it in.  Add 1/2 cup of the reserved cooking water.

Pour in the warm cream mixture, stir to combine with the pasta, then add the grated cheese.  Stir until the cheese melts and creates an unctuous sauce.

If the pasta absorbs too much of the sauce add some more of the reserved cooking water.  (If too much moisture leaves the cream, the sauce will become oily; adding moisture back in will restore the creaminess.)

Stir in the chopped chives and the chive blossoms.  If you like, garnish each serving with additional chives and blossoms.

I didn't think it needed any additional salt or pepper.

RECIPE: Chive Blossoms!

Our chives are starting to blossom!  Did you know that the blossoms are edible?

They taste like chives, but milder. 

And they make a beautiful lavender-colored garnish.

I've never seen chive blossoms in a grocery store, but the chives in our farm store now include the buds, and the chive buds in our garden have started to open.  I cut the flower stalks off at the soil line to prevent the plant from going to seed which encourages the plant to continue producing leaves. 

Their season is short, so take advantage of them NOW!  

Here's how to get the most out of them:

IF THE BUDS ARE OPEN when you bring them in, you will need to wash them - tiny bugs DO hide inside the florets.  Plunge them into water and swish them around several times.  Dry thoroughly.  

IF THE BUDS ARE STILL CLOSED you can keep them from opening by storing them in the fridge, wrapped in moist paper towels.  They will stay unopened for a week or two.  There won't be bugs inside the closed buds so you don't need to wash them before using unless there is dirt on the outside of the buds.

If you WANT THE BUDS TO OPEN, put them into a glass of tepid water and leave them on the counter.  They'll open in a day or two.

ONCE THE BUDS ARE OPEN, you need to use the flowers quickly or they will ferment.  I have kept them packed into a Weck jar for a week, tops.

To 'harvest' the florets, grasp the base of the flower in one hand, grasp the florets between your thumb and forefinger of the other hand, and pull gently.  Some of them will still have the tiny stem attached, but that's OK, the tiny stem is edible.  The stalk and the papery membrane covering the bud are not palatable.

Last year's post on this wonderful flower!

Use them anywhere you would use chives: 

Sprinkle them over salad, soup, scrambled eggs, mashed potatoes, or sauteed vegetables.  

Stir them into softened butter, then freeze in ice cube trays to use later.

Stir them into softened cream cheese or sour cream.

Stir into risotto, or Alfredo sauce for pasta.

Stir them into deviled egg filling.

Preserve them in vinegar.

Pictured below is an asparagus soup with chive blossom garnish served at a local restaurant.

Asparagus cream soup with chive blossom garnish

Here are some of my favorite recipes:

Chive blossom Alfredo sauce for pasta
Pesto and Chive Blossom Aioli
Chive blossom mayonnaise
Almond and chive blossom pesto
Chive blossom vinegar (if you use ACV, it will not have that gorgeous lavender color)

RECIPE: EASY Homemade RAW Yogurt WITHOUT Pasteruizing the Milk

I promised I would get this "recipe" on the blog today so I am publishing the basics.  I'll add better photos the next time I make it.

The best resource I've found for making RAW yogurt is here: How to Make Raw Yogurt

Here are my 'nutshell' comments:

There are two ways to introduce a starter culture to your milk:
(1) use yogurt (either purchased, like Stonyfield, or from your last batch)
(2) use a purchased granular starter (I store these in the freezer) 

If you use yogurt from your last batch you will need to make yogurt every 5-7 days or the culture will lose potency. 



There are two types of yogurt starter cultures:
(1) THERMOPHILIC (meaning needs heat) 
(2) MESOPHILIC (meaning doesn't need heat).

You can make raw yogurt with either of these starters but the easiest one, that doesn't require any special equipment, is the mesophilic culture.  Purchased yogurt (like Stonyfield) is thermophilic.



Within each of the above starter culture types, there are two sub-types:
(1) single use
(2) heirloom or re-culturable

I've always used re-culturable, and found that I could re-culture 5-6 times IF I made a fresh batch every 5-7 days.



I buy my starter cultures from www.cheesemaking.com or www.culturesforhealth.com.


The best advice on which culture to use, to achieve the taste and texture you prefer, is here: Choosing a yogurt starter culture



Because acidophilus is not good for my blood type, I use a Bulgarian culture.  It's thermophilic.  Here's how I do it:


Gently heat the milk to 105 degrees: Using a stock pot large enough to hold 3-4 quart jars, I put the cold milk into the jars and surround them with water.  I use an ANOVA sous vide wand to bring the water temperature to 118 degrees.  If you don't have an ANOVA, let the water from your tap run until it's 118 degrees and then fill your stockpot.  It helps to have an instant read thermometer for this.

Three quart jars of milk waiting to be inoculated (ANOVA is on the right)

Stir the milk inside the jars every 3-4 minutes until the temperature of the milk is 105 degrees.  As the milk heats up, the water will cool down.  When the milk is between 100 and 105 degrees, stir in your starter culture.  I use 1 heaping tablespoon of yogurt for each quart.  If you're making your first batch with grains, follow the directions on the packet for how much milk each packet will culture.

NOTE: YES, you can use your stovetop to heat the milk, but it's not easy to bring it to 105 degrees without overheating it, especially on the bottom.  This method works better for me.  

At this point, you need to keep the milk between 100 and 105 degrees for 8-10 hours.  I do this with the ANOVA.  If you don't have one, you have several options:

(1) transfer the inoculated milk to a thermos
(2) transfer the jars to a cooler and pour the 105 degree water around them, then cover the cooler
(3) transfer the jars to a gas oven with a pilot light

Start tasting the yogurt after 8 hours.  The longer  you allow it to culture, the thicker it will get, and the more sour it will become.  It will also have more active cultures.   I like it best after 8-9 hours, but I've left it as long as 12.



Because you're using raw milk, the yogurt will not be as stiff as that made with pasteurized milk.

If this bothers you, drain the yogurt for 1-2 hours: line a strainer with cheesecloth or muslin, set the strainer over a bowl, and dump the yogurt into the cheesecloth.  Whey will drip into the bowl (keep this, it's very healthy!) and the yogurt will become stiffer.  When it's the consistency you like, transfer it to a glass jar and refrigerate.



If you're using an heirloom starter, you will need to make a fresh batch every 5-7 days.  I've tried freezing the yogurt and then re-culturing it, but it didn't work.  If we go on vacation, I have to start with a new culture.



If you use a mesophilic culture, follow the directions on the packet.  You won't need to heat the milk but your room's temperature will need to be between 70-77 degrees, so you won't be able to make it during the winter.



If you have questions, shoot me a comment! 


ADDENDUM: If you want to ramp up the probiotics in your yogurt, you can add a few capsules of a probiotic supplement to the milk when you add your starter culture.  You will need to research which type it is - thermophilic or mesophilic - to insure it will live through the process.  In other words, don't add a mesophilic supplement to a thermophilic culture as the heat will kill it.  If you add a thermophilic supplement to a mesophilic culture, there won't be enough heat for the probiotic to grow.

This website Probiotic Yogurt lists the following as THERMOPHILIC:

B. breve, B. longum, L. acidophilus, L. bulgaricus, L. casei, L. plantarum, L. rhamnosus, S. boulardii, S. thermophilus.

In the photo below I've stirred several capsules of plantarum, rhamnosus, and boulardii into my starter culture which I then used to inoculate my milk.  The empty capsules are at the top of the photo, the plain yogurt in the center, and the yogurt with the additional probiotics at the bottom.

RECIPE: Thai Beef Stew with Spinach

There was beef stew in the freezer at the farm today!  We haven't had stew meat in a while, so I bought some, and then looked for a different way to prepare it, since my husband isn't crazy about stew.  I also wanted something easy, cooked in a pressure cooker/instant pot.

Every stew meat recipe I looked at recommended sauteing the meat to create flavor, but I really didn't want to mess with that.  I also didn't want to saute onions, mince garlic, or grate ginger.  So...I didn't!  I threw everything into the pressure cooker raw,  cooked it under pressure for 1 hour, and then let it sit overnight for the flavors to mellow.

*I* thought it was delicious - DELICIOUS!!  My husband (who doesn't like stew in general) thought it didn't have enough Thai flavor, probably because it wasn't searingly hot; but, he said it was good, even though it wasn't "Thai".


Original Recipe: Paleo Crockpot Thai Beef

Beef Stew with Thai Seasoning

Serves 6-8

The original recipe was for 3 pounds of meat, but our farm sells meat in 2-pound packs so I adjusted the recipe for 4 pounds.  Feel free to add more curry paste if you like heat.    

4 pounds beef stew meat, cut into 1" pieces
2 yellow onions, sliced 1/4" thick
1 T. garlic powder
1 T. peeled minced ginger
2 t. green curry paste (you can use red)
2 cans full fat coconut milk
1/2 c. tomato paste
3 T. RedBoat fish sauce
1 T. fresh lime juice
3 t. himalayan pink salt
opt:
spinach (I used 1 small container but you can use more or less)
green beans, cut into 1" pieces


Put everything except the spinach into the pressure cooker, raw.  Stir to combine:

Bring to pressure following the instructions that came with your unit.

Lower heat and cook under pressure for 1 hour.

Allow pressure to release naturally.  Remove lid.

Add green beans to pot and simmer 6 minutes.

Add spinach to the pot and stir until wilted, 2 minutes.

Serve with steamed rice.

RECIPE: Greens and Chickpea Stew with Coconut Milk

A few weeks ago I attended one of our farm's classes where another attendee (Lisa W-B) brought a delicious chickpea and coconut stew to the potluck.  I did an Internet search for the recipe and found this one, that was similar.  The stew brought to the potluck did not contain turmeric so you could safely leave that out.

I made it using farm spinach (canned last summer) and reduced the amount of coconut milk for a thicker stew.  It's a super easy recipe, one that I'll be making often with different greens.

Original recipe:  Spiced Chickpea Stew with Coconut and Turmeric

Greens and Chickpea Stew with Coconut Milk

Serves 3-4

1/4 c. EVOO or ghee
1 large onion, chopped
2" piece of ginger, grated on a microplane
4-5 large cloves garlic, minced
3/4 t. ground turmeric (Lisa says she used curry powder instead)
1/2 t. pepper flakes
1 29oz can* garbanzo beans or 3.5 cups cooked chick peas
1 16oz can full-fat coconut milk
2 c. broth (I used chicken)
1 bunch raw greens (chard, kale, collards, or spinach), washed, stemmed** and sliced (or 1 cup cooked)
2 t. himalayan pink salt
For serving:
yogurt or sour cream
fresh mint, chopped

In a medium dutch oven on med-high, heat the oil and saute the onion until translucent and lightly browned, 3-5 minutes.  Add the turmeric, pepper flakes, and one cup of the garbanzos.  Season with salt and saute until the beans are starting to brown.  Remove the beans and reserve for garnish.

Add the garlic and ginger to the oil and saute for 10 seconds.  Add the remaining garbanzo beans, the coconut milk, and the broth.  Scrape up the garlic if it stuck to the pan.  Bring to a simmer and cook for about 20 minutes until the beans are soft and have absorbed the flavors from the broth.

Using an immersion blender, puree half of the soup.  Don't puree the whole pot - you want some texture.

Stir in the greens and cook until they soften, 3-7 minutes.

Serve topped with the reserved chickpeas, yogurt, and chopped mint leaves.  The cold yogurt against the warm soup is a wonderful contrast, and I love the flavor the mint adds.

*I now use one 29oz can plus one 15oz can because we like more of the 'garnish' than the original recipe.  I use the 15oz can for the garnish, and the entire 29oz can for the soup.  

**The last time I made this I used 2 cups of kale STEMS that I had blanched and frozen last year, and it was delicious!  Plus, it's a great way to use the stems.

***I have now made this with mizzuna and it is delicious!  As good as when I used kale stems!

****And...I've made it with senposai, and with lettuce!   Any quick-cooking green will work!

RECIPE: Broccoli Slaw with Cranberries and Almonds

I know this seems like it should be a summer recipe.  But, sometimes, in winter, we want something fresh and raw, like a salad, yet more substantial than lettuce.  This recipe fits the bill perfectly!

Original recipe: Shaved Broccoli Salad with Cranberries and Almonds

Broccoli  Slaw with Cranberries and Almonds

Serves 4

1/4 c. mayonnaise, preferably homemade
2 T lemon juice
1/4 t. sugar
1/2 t. salt
1 pound broccoli
1/4 c. minced red onion (don't skip this - it makes the salad!)
1/4 c. dried cranberries (I think it would also be good with sun dried tomatoes)
1/4 c. sliced almonds

Combine mayonnaise with lemon juice, sugar and salt.

Cut broccoli stems into 1/2" slices.  With food processor running, drop slices through feed tube and coarsely chop.  Place broccoli tops into processor and pulse to coarsely chop.

Mix chopped broccoli with remaining ingredients and serve.

Original recipes advises you to wait 1 hour for flavors to mingle but I thought it was delicious right off the bat and it wasn't any better an hour later.  it wasn't worse, either, so you can definitely make it ahead of time.

I served it with Carrot Pancakes and my husband vacuumed it up!

RECIPE: Vegetarian Pasta with Spicy Harissa Cream Sauce

I needed a quick vegetable-centric meal for dinner a few days ago and came up with this. It was ready in the time it took me to cook the pasta and we both enjoyed it so much I decided to share it.

Vegetarian Pasta with Spicy Harissa Cream Sauce

Serves 4

1 # noodles (I used elbows)
1 T. ghee
1 large onion, chopped
2 cups heavy cream
6 cups cooked vegetables (I used green beans and carrots)
2 T. harissa
Salt to taste
Chopped parsley or cilantro for serving

Cook the noodles in boiling water.

While the noodles are cooking: in a large saute pan on med-high heat, saute the onion in the ghee until translucent.  Add the cream and bring to a boil.  Add the cooked vegetables* and harissa and stir to combine.  Simmer until cream has thickened slightly, then reduce heat and hold until the pasta is cooked.

Remove 1/2 cup of pasta cooking water and set aside.  Drain the pasta and add to the sauce.  If sauce is too thick, use the reserved cooking water to thin it.

Adjust seasoning and serve.

*  If you don't have cooked vegetables available, you can use frozen but add them to the water you will be using to cook the pasta.  When the water returns to a boil, add the pasta and proceed with the rest of the recipe.  .

RECIPE: Endive Canoes with Sun Dried Tomatoes and Blue Cheese

After I posted this recipe in our farm store, (for endive canoes with orange, almond, and quark), our cheese maker sent me a version he created that was inspired by my recipe.  His version sounded delicious so I'm posting it here.

Endive Canoes with sun Dried Tomatoes and Blue Cheese

Endive, blue cheese, sun dried tomatoes, olive oil, balsamic vinegar infused with melon

Serves 4 as an appetizer

1/4 c. sun dried tomatoes in EVOO
2-3 heads of Belgian endive, washed
1/3 c. blue cheese
EVOO for drizzling
Balsamic vinegar

Separate the endive spears and arrange them on a platter.

In each spear, place 1 piece of sun dried tomato along with a bit of the oil, and one dab of cheese.

Add a few drops of balsamic to each boat.

RECIPE: Banana French Toast

Wow, this was so easy, I had to post it!  It has just the right amount of banana flavor but isn't overwhelming.  The outside is crisp, and the inside is creamy.  It's good with maple syrup but doesn't really need it.  I'll definitely be making it again!

Original recipe: Easy Banana French Toast (I changed it considerably)

Banana French Toast

Makes 4 slices

1 small ripe banana, peeled
3 eggs
1-2 T. water
3 pinches cinnamon (a pinch is an actual measurement, use these spoons for accuracy)
1 pinch nutmeg
1 pinch allspice
1 pinch vanilla powder (or 3 drops extract)
4 slices farm bread
2-3 T. ghee

Combine everything except the bread and the ghee in a pint jar and, using an immersion blender, blend to liquid.

Transfer to a shallow container, like a pie plate.

In a frying pan large enough to hold 2 slices of bread, heat the ghee over medium heat.  Dip one slice of bread into the egg-banana mixture turning it twice until it's saturated.  Transfer to the frying pan.  Repeat with a second slice.  Flip when the bottoms are brown, 2-5 minutes depending on your cooktop.  When the second sides are brown, remove to a  warm plate.

Repeat with the remaining 2 slices.

Serve with maple syrup, or powdered sugar and lemon juice.

RECIPE: Honey Mustard Dressing/Dip

I've seen many recipes for Honey Mustard Dressing that decry the use of mayonnaise and the neon yellow color but they all use huge amounts of honey. I believe seed-oil free mayonnaise is healthier than all that fructose/glucose.  It's also much cheaper.  Organic raw honey is expensive!

I've made this without the yellow mustard and it doesn't taste as good.  Since the yellow color occurs naturally (in the brand we use it comes from turmeric), I'm OK with it.  If you use a different brand PLEASE insure it's not made with synthetic dye!

Honey Mustard Dressing

Makes 1 cup

1/2 c. mayonnaise, preferably homemade
3 t. yellow mustard (I used Whole Food's Organic)
4 t. honey (I used Tropical Traditions Organic)
1 t. apple cider vinegar or lemon juice (I use Natural Nectar Biodynamic ACV)
1/8 t. cayenne

Mix all together and chill.

I reverse engineered this from the dressing served at Houston's with their Grilled Chicken Salad (years ago, at their restaurant in Chicago which is now closed.   I don't know what they serve at their other locations).  We use it as dressing for all salads, as a dip for raw vegetables, and as a drizzle for roasted veggies.  It's my husband's favorite dressing!