Ten cans - well, not quite

It's been an unusually long hot summer here in the Pacific Northwest.  We've been plagued with fires in both Oregon & Washington.  Smoky/hazy skies and dry/brown landscapes have turned our usually green/fresh surroundings into California looking terrain.

Average weather in the Portland/Vancouver area is Mediterranean-like with dry warm summers and mild winters. In an average year we rarely go below 25 or above 83 degrees.  So, for us to have a really hot & very dry summer is not typical.

Soup is the last thing on my mind when temps are up above 80 degrees.  But, today is different.  It rained!  What a welcome sound and feel in the air.  And, happily, temps have dropped into the comfortable zone (at least for me).  The first soup I want to make when temperatures drop is Taco Soup.

Sheila shared her recipe for Taco Soup many years ago - she served it one of the first times we camped together at Ike Kinswa State Park on Mayfield Lake.  I loved it immediately and  just knew it would become long-term favorite.
I was right.  Let's be real...any recipe that ends with "garnish with cheese, sour cream, avocado, cilantro, & tortilla chips" is going to be a delicious!

It's a fairly simple recipe:  Gather ingredients.  Open cans. Dump contents. Heat & serve.  I use vegetarian burger when I make it.  But, you could easily substitute a pound of ground beef.

 

 

Taco Soup

 INGREDIENTS

 Sauté together:

1	onion, chopped
1	can Worthington Vegetarian Burger

 In a saucepan (fairly good sized), mix together:

1	can kidney, pinto, or small red beans
2	8oz cans tomato sauce
1	8oz can water (use the can from the tomato sauce)
1	small can sliced olives, including the juice
2	11oz cans Extra Sweet Niblets whole kernel corn
1	16oz can petite diced tomatoes, include  juice
1	pkg Taco Seasoning
1	t onion powder
2	pkgs dark brown George Washington Broth
	chili powder to taste

Directions

Bring to a boil, then add the sautéed burger and onion mixture.  Return to boil.

Serve with tortilla chips, grated cheddar cheese, sour cream, guacamole (or diced avocado), & cilantro.

As long as it isn't sweet

I've never met a pickle I didn't love...as long as it isn't sweet.  Why is it that pickles are so polarizing?  Dill vs Sweet.  Seems like most people either love 'um or hate 'um.  Most of my "peeps" are dill fans.  But, I do have one cousin who prefers sweet pickles.  I love her anyway, but it is a serious character flaw (in my book).  My friend, Sheila, likes dills.  But, she doesn't like that they are crunchy.  So, she will add the pickling liquid without the actual pickle to her potato salad.  I think they only reason she keeps pickles in her refrigerator is because of friends who like them.

Because I'm such a huge fan of dills (my mouth just started watering when I type that), I was prepared to NOT like anything but dills.  All that changed one day when we were visiting my Aunt Faythe & Uncle Otto.  She pulled a jar out of her refrigerator and fished some round pickle slices out of the most interesting looking pickling liquid.  It was golden yellow and I could tell without even tasting that those pickle slices would be very crunchy.  They almost looked fresh.  When I asked, she told us they were refrigerator pickles.  I asked if the were dill or sweet. She smiled and said, "Try one."

You know that moment when you realize you've been "Had"?  Yup, that was the moment I experienced when I took that first bite of Auntie Faythe's refrigerator pickles.  They weren't dill and they weren't sweet.  They were kind of both.  I took another.  Crunch, crunch, crunch.  And, another.  And...  Well, we ate the other things she served for dinner, but mostly I ate those refrigerator pickles.  We polished off the whole jar.

To be clear, I still don't like sweet pickles - they're cloyingly sweet and mushy and *shudder* icky.  And I do still love my dills.  However, I made a new friend that day.  I had to have the recipe.

I have made these many times since then.  Along the way, I discovered that the secret to getting that super crunch is not in the pickling liquid.  It's in the cucumbers!  Auntie Faythe shared the best tip with me:  When buying your pickling cukes, be sure to pick the smallest, "wartiest" ones.  The more warts, the better.  It means they haven't soaked up a lot of water yet.  So, they'll be crunchier and they'll stay crunchier.

Rather than type out the recipe this time, I'm adding a photo of my recipe card.  These pickles should last for many months in the refrigerator.  Enjoy!

And that’s a wrap!

Don’t be fooled by this very catchy title.  This post is NOT about the movies or movie making or anything to do with film, cinema, or TV.  It is also NOT about burritos or tortillas or flat bread.  It’s about something much better (and easier) to make.  Crêpes!

 

Living in the gorgeous Pacific Northwest has its advantages.  We camp in a state park campground at a lake that has two rivers flowing into it near a spectacular snow-covered mountain.  Our summers are warm, but only “hot” for about two weeks.  And, thankfully, we don’t have much humidity.  So, they are mild.  We can usually have a fire every evening and be quite comfortable.

 

Another PNW advantage is the availability of fresh local berries, peaches, nectarines, and other amazing fruit.  We often make “fruit runs” to our favorite produce stands.  It’s not unusual for come home with several flats of berries, a box or two of peaches, or basketful of plums.  We’ve been known to make fresh raspberry ice cream in camp.  But, I digress…

 

 

David & Sheila and Paul & Lucy and the husband & I camp together every summer.  We try to go several times each year.  Sheila is the organizer.  She makes the reservations, plans the menus, and gives us our assignments (what food to bring and which meals we are responsible for).  We happily let her do this, as she’s great at it and knows everyone’s preferences.

 

One thing sure to be on menu during peak fruit season is crêpes.  They really are very simple to make – even on a camp stove in a skillet.  We usually triple the recipe when the whole gang is present.  We break out the “backup” stove and get five burners going at once.  One of us preps fruit, another mixes the batter, and yet another is in charge of the burners.  We can crank out a stack of crêpes six inches high in no time.  And, they hold very well until you’re ready to eat them – warm or at “room temperature” (whatever it may be as we always eat Al Fresco).

 

Once the crêpes are ready, we dig in.  Crêpes, fruit, whipped cream, roll it up and make another!

 

PS  You can also make these at home (even though they never taste as good as when you’re camping) and fill them with roasted asparagus, shaved parmesan, and a crème sauce.  Or, with mushrooms, shallots, spinach, and goat cheese crumbles.  Savory crêpes are just as delicious as sweet ones.

 

And THAT'S a wrap!

 

 

Crêpes

 

INGREDIENTS

1 ½	cups flour
2	T sugar
½	t salt
3	eggs, well beaten
2	cups milk
2	T butter, melted

 

Directions

1. Mix together flour, sugar, and salt.  Separately, mix together eggs, milk, and butter.

2. Gradually add egg mixture into flour mixture.  Beat together.

3. Dip by ¼ cup measure and place in lightly greased skillet over medium low heat.  Swirl batter to cover bottom of skillet.  Cook until center is no longer shiny.  Check for light brown spots on underside.  Flip once and finish cooking on second side (it won’t take nearly as long as the first side).

4.  When done, remove from skillet and stack on a plate until ready to serve.

5.  Serve with fresh berries or stone fruit and whipped cream.

The morning after

If you haven’t figured it out by now…I love trying new recipes. My mother taught me that I should NOT try out new recipes on ‘company’. Generally speaking, I’m a good (compliant) daughter and listen to my mother’s advice. However, in this regard, I have boldly chosen to ignore her words of wisdom. I rarely, if ever, preview a recipe on family. I am not afraid to try a new recipe on my friends or on ‘company’. In fact, I consider friends and ‘company’ to be my best guinea pigs. My mother would probably roll over in her grave if she heard me say that. But, since I know exactly where we sprinkled her ashes (in the Columbia River), that won’t be an issue.

My schedule is pretty full with work and church and music and friends, so I don’t have much time for reading at home. Consequently, I usually save up all my magazines until camping season. Oh, I usually give them a ‘once-over’ preview when they first arrive at the house. But, then they get packed into a sturdy tote bag and ‘saved’ for our next camping trip. I’ve spent hours sitting around the campfire, up at the lake, scouring my favorite magazines for good looking recipes. My husband complains about how heavy that bag is and how he always manages to stub his toe on it. And my camping buddies, Sheila & Lucy, derive way too much pleasure from making fun of my ‘brick-o-magazines’ bag that I haul out of our tent-trailer each day. But, they’re not opposed to helping me read them!

Pretty much any occasion turns into an opportunity for me to try making something new. So, when Sheila suggested that we ‘do’ brunch on New Year’s Day, I was all over that! The idea was, ‘The Gang’ would all hang out on New Year’s Eve and then get back together again on New Year’s Day for a spectacular brunch of our own making - the perfect time to try new recipes!

We had a great time looking for recipes, discussing and puzzling over who likes or dislikes certain ingredients. Each of us chose several recipes. And, there was certainly more food there than a small army could consume.

For my part, I chose to make what I’ll loosely call Overnight French Toast. I’d heard of it before and even tried some at a friend’s home once.  I was intrigued by the ability to do all the prep the day before and finishing it off on the day of.  The hunt for a unique version was part of the fun. It had to be easy, but not boring. But, it needed to look complicated and fancy – for extra culinary credit (I have no idea who keeps score for that…God?...but, I want to make sure and get mine). It needed to measure up to the occasion without being too elaborate. The one I found fit the bill perfectly...just enough fancy without being too much work.

To commemorate the occasion, we took photos of our spread and congratulated ourselves on a magnificent meal.  We did not take many pictures of ourselves because we were still a little blurry from lack of sleep ‘the morning after’.  We ate till we were about to pop and washed it all down with champagne flutefuls of sparkling fruit juice. If memory serves me correctly, we went home and took a long nap.

 

Overnight French Toast

INGREDIENTS

1	loaf French bread
	butter (for the pan)
8	large eggs
2	cups Half-N-Half
1	cup milk
2	T sugar
1	T vanilla
½	t cinnamon
½	t nutmeg
	Salt
	Praline topping
	Raspberry syrup

 Praline Topping:

½	lb (2 sticks) butter
1	cup packed light brown sugar
1	cup chopped pecans
2	T light corn syrup
½	t cinnamon
½	t nutmeg

Raspberry Syrup:

1	cup raspberry preserves
3	T water
2	T raspberry liqueur (Framboise)

Directions

1.     Slice French bread into 20 slices, 1-inch thick each.  Arrange slices in a generously buttered 9X13 casserole dish in 2 rows, overlapping the slices.

2.     In a large bowl, combine eggs, half-and-half, milk, sugar, vanilla, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt.  Beat with a hand mixer or whisk until blended but not too bubbly. Pour mixture over the bread slices, making sure all are covered evenly. Spoon some of the mixture in between the slices. Cover with foil and refrigerate overnight.

3.     Preheat oven to 350°F. Spread Praline Topping evenly over the bread and bake for 45 minutes, until puffed and lightly golden. Serve with Raspberry Syrup.

Praline Topping:

Combine all ingredients in a medium sized bowl and blend well.  Spread over bread as directed above.

Raspberry Syrup:

Combine ingredients in a small saucepan and place over medium heat. Stir until warm and thinned out like syrup.

Keep it simple, stupid

My contribution to our picnic in the park was egg salad.  I was to bring the egg salad and good bread to put it on.  After Sheila asked me to bring it, she did a little double-check to make sure my egg salad recipe was acceptable.  I would have done the same.

Egg salad (potato salad, too) falls into this weird category in the food world.  Most people love egg salad, but they are very picky about what should and shouldn't be in it.  I'm no different.  It has to taste a certain way or it isn't really egg salad.  You don't want too much mayo, or it's just a gloopy mess.  But, you have to have enough to hold it together.

The list things that should not be in egg salad is long. Sweet pickle relish tops the list, closely followed by cheese, celery, onion, and olives. I could go on, but space is limited.

Thankfully, most of my picnicking friends and I agree on what egg salad should taste like.  I've tried it with a bunch of different 'extras' in there.  But my Auntie Faith's motto holds true for egg salad just as well as most other topics..."Keep it simple, stupid!"

So, without further ado, here's my recipe for egg salad.  Hope you like it.

Egg Salad

INGREDIENTS

1	doz boiled eggs*
	Salt
	Pepper
3-4	t chopped fresh dill
2-4	T mayonnaise (it has to be Best Foods)

Directions

1.     Peel boiled eggs and cut into small dice.  Place in a large mixing bowl.

2.     Season with salt and pepper, to taste.

3.     Add fresh dill.  Toss gently together.

4.     Add mayonnaise and mix well.

5.     Serve on study bread (like OroWheat’s Honey Wheatberry) with lettuce (if desired).

*A perfectly boiled egg is another topic altogether, but I'll include it here because it is one of the most important things to get 'right' when making egg salad.  It's a delicate balance between 'not quite done' and that gray-green ring around the yolk.  This is the way I make a perfectly boiled egg on my electric stove.  If you have a gas stove, this timing will not work.  Just experiment one egg at a time, you'll figure it out.  And maybe you can post your findings as a comment below.

Perfectly boiled eggs are no accident.  Start with a shallow pan (single-layer egg height) filled with cold water.  Add cold eggs until you can't fit anymore in.  If you need more eggs than that for your recipe, just do this more times or change to a larger (but not deeper) pan.  Place pan on a cold burner.  Turn burner on medium heat and let come to a boil. As soon as it boils (this is easier to detect if you have pans with whistling lids like I do), turn the burner off and set a timer for 10½ minutes. When timer goes off, pour off the hot water and fill pan with cold water. Wait about 30 seconds and repeat until water stays cold. Peel eggs right after cooling them. This is when they peel easiest.