A Golden Afternoon: Simplified Home Living - Page 47 of 54

Rubber Duckie Race

Miss F’s school had a golf marathon fundraiser recently. The kids got to do a rubber duck race where they sold a ticket to correlate to each duck. The ducks “raced” (read bobbed with a little help from the wind) and the winning duck owner and seller won a lovely prize. The participation was pretty lame, but Miss F enjoyed the process and also meeting new neighbors because of it. Turns out, she won the prize for most tickets sold! My first thought was how awesome it was because she worked hard and my second thought was how a kindergartener could beat out everyone else. Wha? I guess the other duck sellers needed a pep rally or something. In any case, Miss F took a trip to Target this week to get her prize…a barbie scooter. What else could a 6 year-old girl ask for?

This would have been perfect if not for the smudge on the left side…erg…little fingers.

A Proper Freezer Stash

So, I’ve been having migraines a lot lately and have been so thankful that I had a few things hanging around in my freezer to make things a little easier. This week I made soup twice and cookies twice from that freezer.

These scrumptious gingersnaps for some friends.

Rustic peanut butter cookies for houseguests. They are rustic because of my laziness in not wanting to roll them.

Hey, it works.

Tuscan white bean soup with pancetta and cornbread; once for lunch and once for dinner.

You’ll thank yourself later if you just make extra soup and cookie dough and put it in the freezer. I like to flatten my freezer bags before putting them in and find a smooth and level spot for them to freeze. Once frozen, you can “file” them upright or however you want. Be sure to label and date them. You could also just freeze them however you want and not adopt my crazy-weird techniques. Whatever works.

He’s what’s in my freezer that I’ve stashed:

Coq A Vin
Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Cookies
Mushroom Veloute
Chocolate Espresso Crackle Cookies
Roasted Chicken pieces
Homemade Tomato Sauce
Chicken Stock
Carrots, onions, and potatoes cut for chicken pot pie

Hopefully I won’t need to use it all at once…

Tarragon Chicken with Beer Roasted Root Vegetables

This dish is a favorite of mine for a quick dinner. It is a one pot dish which is always lovely if you cook 3 meals a day like me. I enjoy making food that is simple, but enters your mouth tasting more complex than it is. This is just part of building flavor and letting a food, like this chicken, make its own sauce. One thing i don’t enjoy about traditional American food is that it’s plain and boring and not exciting to eat. It usually ~~severely~~ lacks salt and only contains a few ingredients. Most people who cook this way, are not aware of it. I’ve wanted to tell them that it’s a simple fix, but I just assume they mean to do it. So, I’m just gonna say it…don’t be afraid of forming a relationship with good salt and the right amount! I mostly use kosher and sea salt, but never table (iodized) salt. I have slowly seen my friends convert over. I just gave my Dad a salt grinder this year, in fact. It really does make such a difference.

French tarragon, used in this recipe, has bumped up on my” favorite herb list”, of late, because it is not overused like basil or even thyme. It has a light black licorice flavor, much like anise and another star of this dish, fennel. Don’t be concerned though, I think black licorice is disgusting and I love tarragon so you should be okay if you have similar licorice tendencies. It is perennial, so is just coming alive again after its winter nap.

I love fennel. I’m growing it but it is not quite ready yet. Can’t wait!

Scrubbing carrots from the garden is a perfect job for kids.

Salt and pepper the chicken pieces and cook in oil, on medium-high heat, until brown on all sides. Chop the root vegetables into bite size pieces while the chicken is searing.

Miss F wanted to cut too, so she broke out a kid-friendly butter knife. Hopefully none of her hair got in there…

Preheat oven to 400. Heat olive oil in a pan. Saute garlic for 1 minute, then add onions and s & p. Sweat them and cook until slightly browned. Stir in the root vegetables (more s & p) and saute for a few minutes. To make it interesting, I did poor half of my husband’s beer in the last time I made it. It was very tasty and is a new and different type of alcohol to deglaze the pan with. It just helps remove the yummy bits of food from the pan and puts them back in your food.

Add the browned chicken on top, the butter if you want it extra yummy, as well as the tarragon. Bake in the oven until the chicken is cooked to 165. Remove the chicken from the pan and return the vegetables to the oven. Turn the oven up to broil mode for 5 minutes, stirring as needed to keep from burning. Plate the chicken on top of the vegetables and serve to hungry people.

Tarragon Chicken with Beer Roasted Root Vegetables

1 whole chicken, pieced or 6 chicken pieces of your choice

2 pieces of fennel, tops removed

4 large carrots

1 lb yukon gold potatoes

1 T butter or canola oil for the pan

4 cloves of garlic, pressed

salt and pepper (s&p used above)

1/2 stick of butter (optional)

1 cup of beer, any kind will work (optional)

4 sprigs of french tarragon

Remember to reach out to people and invite them over. Life is about more than just the home we live in and the things we do in it. This is a great meal for a group. In fact, my friend just made it for some girls in need who were coming over for dinner. Food can reach people in ways that words cannot! :)

Beet, goat cheese, and pecan salad

One of my favorites, this salad. I first had a beet salad several years ago at the Pebble Beach, CA restaurant, Club XIX (amazing place, by the way). This kind of salad was hardly popular yet and I was hooked right then and there. This restaurant also is responsible for my husband and myself becoming a fan of the “chef’s tasting menu” where the chef picks his best eats for you. We have never been disappointed. Conversely, we have tried many things we would have never ordered and have increased our food knowledge as well.

This was my third winter for planting beets and was also the best. I opted for “Bull’s Blood”, “Chioggia”, and “Detroit Dark” this year. I couldn’t locate any golden beet seeds this year locally, but that’s next on my list. Beets are super-easy to grow. The hardest part is waiting for them to grow up, instead of eating them as baby beets. Kids can plant these very easily because the seeds don’t get lost in the grasp of a small child.

If you’ve never tasted one, beets are sweet with a bit of an earthy flavor. They pair nicely with something acidic like oranges or vinegars.

I’m anxious to try a beet dye oneday…

Precious garden cargo, planted by my little buddy.

You can saute’ the greens but I’ve never been a big fan. Here they are beheaded. Cook at 350 for at least an hour or until tender when poked with a fork.