New Fall Recipe - Roasted Vegetables With Lentils

I saw this dish on the cover of the latest issue of Whole Living magazine (below) and couldn't wait to try it. I made it for supper last night and it was a big hit! I plan on serving it again soon as it is a perfect autumn meal.

ROASTED FALL VEGETABLES WITH LENTILS

Serves 4

1/2 lb. carrots, halved lengthwise
1 red onion, cut into 1-inch wedges
1 small acorn squash, halved, seeds removed, cut into 1/2-inch slices
5 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
Coarse salt and freshly ground pepper
1/2 cup dried French green lentils, rinsed (I used just regular lentils)
1 shallot, halved
4 tsp apple cider vinegar
1 tsp Dijon mustart
1 stalk celery, thinly sliced, plus leaves

1. Heat oven to 425 degrees. On two baking sheets, arrange carrots, onion, and squash; drizzle with 2 Tbsp oil, and season with salt and pepper. Roast, turning once, until caramelized and tender, about 30 minutes. 2. Meanwhile, place lentils and shallot in a medium saucepan and cover with water by two inches. Bring to a boil, then simmer, covered, until lentils are tender, about 20 minutes. Drain; discard shallot. Season with salt and pepper. 3. Combine vinegar and mustard. Pour remaining 3 Tbsp oil in a slow steady steam, with vinaigrette and season with salt and pepper. Spoon over roasted vegetables. Garnish with celery leaves.

(Note: The recipe in the magazine says that you can incorporate any fall vegetables into this recipe...brussel sprouts, turnips, cabbage, etc. Just make sure you cut everything to about the same size for even roasting.)

Using Up Leftovers - Recipe - VEGETABLE LAMB SOUP

Vegetable Lamb Soup

Saturday night we celebrated our Shabbet/Passover meal and, of course, Sunday was Resurrection Sunday, and I had plenty of leftovers from both...lamb from Saturday night and fresh vegetables from Sunday. I had even saved all the vegetable ends that had been trimmed away from the vegetables when making Sunday's vegetable tray. I just bagged them all up in one Ziploc bag and saved them back for use later. So...since today was damp and chilly, I decided to just put them altogether and make a nice VEGETABLE LAMB SOUP!

I started with the vegetable ends that I had cut away and saved. There were the ends that I had cut away from several large carrots and a half stalk of celery, a broccoli stem or two, the leaves and center core from a huge head of cauliflower, the top and core of a green pepper, and even a few potato skins that I had added to the bag during the week. I boiled all of these together, then drained them to create a nice vegetable broth. The cooked vegetable ends were cooled and tossed out for the chickens to enjoy.

Next, I added a bottle of tomato juice. We have been blessed with several large bottles of it lately, and I thought this might be an interesting way to use some of it up. It worked beautifully!

To this I added most of the leftover vegetables that I had chopped for Sunday's vegetable tray...broccoli, cauliflower, carrots, celery...as well as several cubed potatoes and a handful of fresh cut cabbage. I also cut the leftover lamb into small pieces and added it, and threw in a handful of pearled barley. For seasoning I added salt, pepper, thyme, and several beef bouillon cubes.

The soup turned out delicious and I served a nice, crusty loaf of homemade French bread to go with it. It was a hit and there's enough leftover for lunch again tomorrow!


Speaking of lambs  (I just have to throw this in) here's a picture of our grandchildren's new little lamb, Lily. She joined us for dinner Sunday...NOT as the main course, but as our guest. Isn't she cute in her diaper??? She's so precious! The whole family just loves her! And, yes, she's in the house...most of the time...for now.

Lily

Hearth and Home Notes - 4/2/11 (Part 2)

Wow! Two HEARTH AND HOME NOTES in one day! That's a first! LOL!

I've got all the bedding done and it's hanging out on the line to dry. I just started my first load of clothing. After that I've just got whites and towels left to go, then the laundry will be done.

I've also organized the pantry and all of this week's coupon buys and have the bedrooms and bathroom done. Next comes the livingroom, then the kitchen and back porch.

For lunch I decided to make fish and chips (ds has a fish allergy and it makes his lips and face swell up like a big balloon and he can't breathe. That's always fun, so I don't make it anymore when he is home). Anyway, dd told me that Dillon's in Pittsburg sells these HUGE bags of wild-caught cod and salmon, so I bought a bag of each. The cod is what I chose to make today. I baked it in the oven with lemon, light salt, and black pepper, and made oven-baked cottage fries to go with it (potatoes sliced into rounds, drizzled with olive oil, and baked @ 450 degrees until tender and slightly brown). I baked it all on one tray and by the time dh got home from Dad's a late lunch was ready. I served the fish on bread with tarter sauce (a little Miracle Whip with dd's home-canned relish mixed in with it) and the fries with ketchup. Delicious and filling!

Fish and Chips - Before Baking

Fish and Chips - After Baking

Homemade Yogurt

I just got done making my first batch of homemade yogurt and it turned out awesomely good! Thanks to my friend, Carla, who shared the recipe, I no longer have to buy yogurt or sour cream! Here's what I did...

The recipe called for whole milk, but I used a 1/2 gallon of 2% milk. I turned the crockpot on low and poured in the half gallon of milk and let it heat on low for 2 hours and 45 minutes.

Then I turned the crockpot off, unplugged it, and let it cool with the lid on for 3 hours.

After three hours, I took out 2 cups of the warm milk and put it in a bowl. To that I added 1 cup of Stonyfield's Oikos Plain Organic Greek Yogurt (the yogurt needs to be plain and have live active cultures) and whisked it all together.

Next, I poured the yogurt-milk mixture back into the crockpot of warm milk and whisked it all together. After that I wrapped the whole crockpot in a triple-layer of large bath towels and went to bed. According to the original instructions the yogurt has to culture overnight (8 to 12 hours).

This morning...I had yogurt! Two beautiful quarts of homemade yogurt, plus enough starter (1 cup) to make my next batch! I just got done jarring it up into glass jars and putting it in the fridge where it needs to set for another 8 hours before eating (I did taste it though and it tastes delicious...just like the store-bought stuff)!

Now all I have to do is pick up another 1/2 gallon of milk and I'm on my way to making my next batch! I'm going to try using skim milk next to see if I can't come up with a 'fat-free' yogurt. 

The total work time involved in this process was between 5 and 10 minutes and the savings is substantial. On a regular basis we go through 3 to 4 containers of yogurt a week at around $3.00 a container, plus sour cream...another $2.50 to $3.00 (I discovered last night that the Oikos Plain Greek Yogurt truly does taste just like sour cream. I had heard that before, but had never tried it, and it's so much better for you...YUM!).

Anyway, based on what I just did, it should save us well over half of what we normally spend for these products, and the yogurt can be flavored up anyway you want it...vanilla, fresh fruit, whatever.

If anyone else out there tries it, please, write to me and share your experience with it!

Chocolate Banana Smoothie

For a yummy, low-cal breakfast, or a cool summertime snack treat, try running 1 cup 8th Continent Chocolate Soy Milk, 1 banana, and 4 ice cubes through the blender. Blend until ice is crushed and mixture is smooth. Pour into a tall glass and enjoy!