it’s a fondue night! {how to serve Bok Choy}

The other night we decided to have a different kind of dinner…fondue.  We had steak and chicken with brown rice along with Bok Choy and broccoli.  The meal was complemented by the tasty sauces that were absolutely homemade by us and tasted  delectable! Here's a couple recipes of the evening--
Bok Choy 

• 1 lg head Bok Choy
• 3 C broccoli florets
• 2 T olive oil
• 2 T sesame seed oil
• 4 T soy sauce
• S & P to taste

Clean, cut and set aside broc and bok;  in large sauce pan, heat over med-low heat oils and soy sauce'; add broc and bok; simmer for 5-7 min; tossing lightly; add S & P to taste; serve with brown rice and your favorite meat. We loved it with our fondue dinner (above).
Note: clean bok choy by cutting off and discarding the end of the stalk; pull every stalk off as you would celery; clean thoroughly; slice all the way up to the green leaves; save the leaves-they’re gorgeous anyway! Add the stalk pieces to your dish.
Brown Rice

• 2 C brown rice, dry
• 4 1/2 C water or broth
• 2 T olive oil
• 1/2 leek, sliced
• 1/2 yellow onion, minced
• 4 cloves garlic
• S & P to taste

Rinse rice thoroughly; place in large pot or rice steamer; add remaining ingredients; cook till tender; Serve with Bok Choy…yummie!
Here’s a pictorial of the evening.

I wish I would have taken photos of the food, but will remember to do that next time.  

The sauces we used were so wonderfully flavorful and totally completed the meal that  I’m going to have to put them in a post all by themselves.
Thanks for stopping by…Kimi

Kohlrabi-how to harvest, cook & serve

Kohlrabi: low, stout vegetable; slightly sweet taste; can be served alone or used in place of turnips, potatoes or rutabaga.
Days to Harvest: 55-60 days after planting seeds in soil.
Species: Brassica-which means its from the same family as turnips, broccoli, cabbage, collard greens, mustard plant etc.
Back in April we planted several kinds of seeds in our freshly tilled garden plot. Among them was Kohlrabi. We waited and waited to see how well they would do and finally we saw these tiny leaves sprouting up in the row. Such pretty little leaves all in a row.  As time went on I noticed a bulb was forming on top of the ground.  Digging under and around the bulb, I checked if there was a root. Sure was! Covering it back up, I waited some more. Finally, after about 55 days (after sowing the seeds) I pulled the bulb up out of the ground and shook the soil from its root.
All the light green, long stems were soft, but firm and I simply snapped them off, laying them in a pile.
Here’s a recipe I used to serve this delicious vegetable.
Pinto Beans and Kohlrabi

• 2 C dried pinto beans
• 3 kohlrabi
• 4 T real butter
• 6 C water
• S & P to taste

Wash, rinse and clean beans; place in large cooking pot with butter, S & P, water; bring to a rolling boil. Meanwhile, clean kohlrabi and peel as you would a potato (as below). When your bean are about 20 minutes away from being done, add the kohlrabi to the beans; stir gently and cook until semi-soft; NOT mushy. Add additional water if necessary.
Serve with fresh green beans, steamed carrots, fresh potatoes and Johnny-cakes (corn bread sticks)

Cut in half

Cut ends off

Peel as you would a potato

You’ll notice that the outer skin is very woody, although it peels very easily.  Be careful to observe that if the meat of the bulb is woody, it may be too hard to eat. So cut that part off before cooking.

The inside of the bulb is tender and almost has a sweetened flavor. Not enough to really be sweet though.  You can cut into cubes or cut into julienne slices(as in baby carrot sized) and use with your favorite veggie dip, fresh and raw. 

Home made corn bread sticks are the perfect addition to this garden-fresh meal.  High in protein, fiber and potassium.  Low in fat and salt.

Thanks for visiting!
Kimi

{Kitties, summer days and green beans}

		my growing garden VIEW SLIDE SHOW DOWNLOAD ALL

Summer is always a productive time on our little farm.  We have been growing vegetables in the garden, herbs in containers and harvesting lots of green beans.  Cucumbers, radishes, garden peas, tomatoes, bell peppers, green beans, yellow squash, zucchini and kohlrabi seem to like the soil here and are coming up very nicely.

		{GreeN BeaNs!!} VIEW SLIDE SHOW DOWNLOAD ALL

The other day, I went out to check my garden and noticed there were so many beans just hanging and ready to pick. My husband and I started picking and realized we needed a larger basket.  We ended up bringing in a 6 gallon bucket of them.  We ate some, gave some away and canned the rest.  Now we need to go pick again. 

 
A couple of weeks ago a dear friend of mine gave me new rooster. He’s the white one in the background. He’s only about 6 months old and already as big as my hens. Which, by the way, have fallen in love with him.  We haven’t named him yet…any suggestions?
 
Early in the spring I planted a vegetable that you don’t hear a lot about: KOHLRABI. As I waited for it to grow, I decided to plan some recipes to use it in.  This week I used it in our favorite cornbread and bean recipe.  It was delicious!  Absolutely wonderful.  I’m going to put the recipe on my homemaker’s site: www.thehomemakersminuteandmore.blogspot.com
Thanks for stopping by and taking a moment.  Remember to send your suggestions for our new rooster’s name…He really needs one!
Kimi

July 4th (day 3)

We had such a good day today!

Brunch at noon: French Toast w/hard boiled eggs, fresh OJ, and table talk.  Then we began getting ready for the fun afternoon.

		July 4th 2011 VIEW SLIDE SHOW DOWNLOAD ALL

The kids like to play volleyball every afternoon, so while we were bar-b-que’n, they played a game of volleyball. Then we had grilled hamburgers, hotdogs, mac’n cheese, au gratin potatoes, baked beans, chips ‘n dip, fresh carrots, ‘Angel’ eggs, chocolate chip cookies, and a new dessert that I just put together this afternoon…vanilla wafer pudding pie-topped with homemade chocolate sauce.  It was so-so sweet! Oh and we also made some decadent chocolate-dipped strawberries. I just used my strawberries and dipped them in the chocolate sauce (above).

Chocolate Sauce Recipe:

2 squares Bakers unsweet chocolate

1-1/2 C confectioners sugar

2 T real butter

4 T milk (I used almond milk)

*Melt chocolate & butter in small saucepan. Add sugar. Stir. Add milk and stir until mixture is smooth and shiny (about 3-4 min). Set aside and use for dipping or drizzling. Reheat if needed.

After that we all sat down in the family room and watched a neat historical program called “Liberty’s Kids!” It was about the Declaration of Independence and very interesting. 

It was a very nice day especially since some of us are recovering from being sick these last few days.  We hope you had a great day doing just what you wanted to do! Happy Independence Day!

Using new blog writer!

Today was a very pleasant 4th of July.  After finally starting to feel better I was able to eat some decent food.  Our youngest daughter has been sick with this yucky virus too and couldn’t eat as much as she wanted.  Hopefully, we will all be feeling better very soon.

Happy July 4th!! {day 1}

Husband's off all weekend, weather is cooperating and we are all together!  This definitely makes for a wonderful 4th of July weekend. 
Here's a pictorial of our first day...Field trip to a civil war museum, bar-b-q with friends and just being together!

 This morning we woke up and decided to take a field trip to a museum.  Not far from where we live are many historical places to visit. This one is called "Crooked Creek Civil War Museum". Choc-full of all kinds of civil war guns, uniforms, saddles, cannon balls, photos, and too many other items to name, we took a short trip to a little area in our county called West Point. It is such a quaint little part of our county. I wouldn't mind living there. The curator is full of stories and trivia that tell about what happened here during the civil war.

The guns they are holding are authentic and all were used during the civil war. 

  This a one of 2 huge dioramas that are in the museum. Look at the little tiny men, complete with guns.

 Here the curator is giving us a personal tour and describing many things in great detail.

 You can take a walk along the paths that cover the 40 acre historical site or you can drive down to the winding creek below. Various trails lead to different parts of the river, and to many holes where the soldiers actually fought and hide from their foes. One boulder even has 2 bullet holes in it.  They found several bullets near the boulder and they are on display at the museum.

 My husband and I are standing next to a cabin that was moved to this property for the benefit of becoming a bed and breakfast. Inside is simply lovely. All very primitive, but thankfully, complete with air conditioner. (our warm Alabama days are hitting up into the high 90's)

 This is a pavilion complete with a few pic-nic tables and 2 carriages. The old wheels date back to the late 1800's on one and 1904 on the other.

 Each buggy is a 2-seater. 

 This bullet collection shows and assortment used during and after the civil war.

 One of the things I love about visiting a place like this is watching the kids explore on their own. Austin is looking at a couple of pages from an old book.  The magnifying light/glass really shows the detail of the photo. He thought it was fun to turn the light on and off too.

 These guns are so heavy...built well and lasted nearly 150 years.

The back side of the little cabin. This cabin was actually taken apart and moved. All the boards were numbered, disassembled and  then put completely reconstructed as the original building. It's really something amazing to see. 

 After leaving the museum, we headed on over to visit with our good friends, Jeff and Bridget and their family. We had such a good time together!~

All the kids were there...having fun outside. We were inside getting all the food ready. Hamburgers, hot dogs, steak, along with macaroni 'n cheese, and au gratin potatoes and chips, topped off with sweet tea. It was yummie and everyone ate way too much!

Afterwards we went outdoors and watched fireworks go off one after another.  It was loud and bright! We loved it! Then we ate snow cones and let the kids light sparklers.     Such a great way to start our celebration of our 4th of July!

We hope you have a wonderful time celebrating Independence Day and that you are able to spend time with those you love and care about too.