Cucumber and Red Onion Salad

After much trial and error, we decided that we liked our cucumber best sliced thickly and on a diagonal. This kept it from getting soggy, and was pretty as well. But do that you like best. The longer you chill the more the flavors will meld, but the cucumbers will continue to soften. The cucumber will also release juice because of the salt in the dressing. But it’s no problem. just toss again with all the liquid right before serving.

Ingredients:

• 3 - 5 large cucumbers, peeled, seeded, and sliced
• 1 onion, thinly sliced
• 1 tsp celery seed
• 4 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 3 Tbsp white wine vinegar
• 1 tsp Dijon mustard
• 1 tsp salt
• 3 garlic cloves, finely minced

Steps:

1. In a medium size bowl, combine the cucumber and onion.
2. In a small bowl, stir the other ingredients.
3. Pour the liquid (really a vineagrette) over cucumber and onion and toss to coat.
4. Chill for 2-4 hours for flavors to meld.
5. Toss again before serving.

THE Banana Muffin Recipe

I am always on the hunt for the perfect muffin recipe - a base recipe that you can add any base flavor and it still turns out great. I think it found it here - this base recipe uses bananas (and matches them against pecans and chocolate chips!) and makes a great earthy base to the bananas sweetness and moistness. This recipe has much less sugar than usual muffins call for, but remember that the chips and the bananas both give some sweetness.

Ingredients:

• 4 ripe bananas, mashed
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1 beaten egg
• 1/3 cup canola oil
• 1 1/2 cups flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup of chopped pecans
• 1/2 cup of chocolate chips

Steps:

1. Mix the mashed banana, sugar, egg and oil together. Set aside.
2. In a separate bowl, mix together flour baking soda, baking powder, and salt.
3. Mix wet and dry ingredients all together until just mixed. Lumpy is good.
4. Add pecans and chips - mix just enough to disperse them.
5. Pour into greased muffin tins, and bake in 350 degrees oven for approximately 20 minutes.

Variations:

1. Substitute 1 cup of pumpkin or squash puree for banana. Add cinnamon and nutmeg (1 t of each for our spicy household) to kick it up - skip chips and add raisins. Keep pecans.
2. Substitute 1 cup of applesauce for the banana and the oil. Add cinnamon (2 tsp) and skip the chips but add 1/2 cup of raisins instead.
3. Substitute 1 cup of grated zucchini for banana. Definitely keep the pecans, but add raisins, 1 tsp each of cinnamon, allspice, and nutmeg. Also possible to skip raisins and add the chocolate chips (zucch and choc - woohoo!).

Making Catnip-Fennel Tincture

Using herbs is just as serious and dangerous as using any medication, but here we use several herbal combinations that are safe enough to use almost every day. Standard disclaimers about talking to your doc first before using any new herb should be obvious - YMMV with any treatment.

My favorite one (and useful to food-o-philes) is a Catnip-Fennel tincture that settles the digestive system very quickly (especially for gas, but boy does those burps taste of fennel). Probably pretty similar to the practice of drinking mint tea (catnip is in the mint family) and the South Asian practice of eating fennel seeds after eating.

NEVER EVER TAKE IF YOU ARE PREGNANT - catnip can cause abortion in pregnant mammals of all kinds.

Ingredients:

• 2 ounces of dried fennel seeds
• 2 ounces of catnip leaves
• about 24 to 30 fluid ounces of 80-proof vodka
• 1 quart jar with lid

Steps:

1. Weigh out the fennel and catnip.
2. Pour the herbs into the quart jar carefully - my catnip always seems to dribble everywhere.
3. Pour in enough vodka to cover the herbs and then another inch more.
4. Shake, shake, shake the herb mixture.
5. Each day for 6 weeks, shake the jar and flip it upside down. Store in a dark place away from direct sunlight.
6. After the 6 weeks, drain the liquid out and keep it. I like to line Mason jar ring with a very with very fine cheesecloth (like you use to make cheese, double or triple up that gauzy stuff you buy at a store) - then I invert the jar over a container and let the liquid drain out slowly. I let the tincture brew in a regular width jar and then nest it inside a wide mouth jar to drain (more stable that way).
7. Add the "drunk herbs" to your compost pile.
8. The alcohol should keep the tincture stable and germ-free for at least a year or longer. If the temperature stays pretty constant, it should remain at full potency.
9. I take about a tablespoon by mouth when I feel full or gassy.

Next on the list of tinctures to try out:

1. Ginseng tincture - not sure if it is cheaper, but it would be fresher than what you find at the Asian groceries.
2. Immune-booster tincture - Molly's Herbs makes this and we use it on our goats when they need a bit more immune boost. It is out of stock right now, so I am going to compound up my own this week. Probably a good idea to take daily during flu season, especially since you need to get echinacea into your system right at the start of the infection.
3. More everyday tincture ideas here.

Nana's Gooseberry Coffeecake

Gooseberries are a member of the currant group - small fruits on upright bushes that make "mushroom" shaped shrubs that are just this side of indestructible. They do have trouble with white pine blister rust around us (they are an alternate host species that doesn't die, just looks crappy come August), so we choose a resistant variety after NYS allowed gooseberries to be sold in state again.

Gooseberries are a source of much face-puckering around the house - Carol is not a fan of gooseberries at all. Why not? Because they are intensely sour when cooked and must be given some sugar or they will twist your yer face right off.

But they are very dependable - they don't have mast years and weather doesn't seem to make a difference on yield much at all. In fact, we neglect these shrubs intensely (the thorns help with that) and the deer completely ignore them. 3 shrubs yield about 3 gallons of berries every year. Every year.
Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 cups of fresh or thawed, frozen gooseberries, topped and tailed
• 1/2 cup sugar (less or more to taste)
• 1/4 cup cornstarch
• 2 cups flour
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 cup butter
• 1 cup buttermilk
• 2 eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Topping:

• 1/4 cup butter
• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/2 tsp of good cinnamon
  

STEPS:

Gooseberry Filling:

1. In a saucepan, combine gooseberries and sugar.
   
2. Cook over medium heat for about 15 minutes. This should break open the gooseberries and make a multi-colored, seed-y stew.
   
3. Bring to a boil and then remove 1/2 cup of juice and mix with cornstarch; stir into saucepan.
   
4. Let sit on heat for 2 minutes or until thickened. Remove from heat and set aside.

Cake Batter:

1. Combine flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a bowl.
   
2. Cut in butter until dry mixture resembles coarse crumbs.
   
3. Beat together buttermilk, eggs and vanilla and then stir into crumb-y mixture.
   
4. Spread half of the batter evenly into a buttered 9 inch cake pan.
   
5. Carefully spread gooseberries on top.
   
6. Then drop the remaining batter by tablespoonfuls over filling, sealing it in.
   

Topping and Baking:

1. Melt butter over low heat. and then remove from heat.
2. Stir in flour, sugar, and cinnamon until mixture resembles crumb topping.
   
3. Sprinkle over batter evenly.
   
4. Place coffee cake on middle rack; bake at 350° for 45-50 minutes.
   
5. Cool in pan. Cut in squares.
   

Yield: 8-10 servings.

"Not Quite BBQ" Pork and Steak Marinade

This recipe is nicknamed NQBBQ - not quite BBQ - because it is a transition between just adding steak sauce and the Green Vampire marinade. NQBBQ is salty and sweet at the same time - you really want to try it before you marinate with it.

It is a balancing act of what tastes just right, the ketchup should go in last to taste (this 2 Tbsp is to my taste).
When I marinate withe NQBBQ, I like to set the meat in it for 1-4 hrs. More for tougher cuts and less for lighter ones - time doesn't seem to make a huge difference in flavor, just in tenderizing the meat (might be the saltiness acts quickly no matter what).

Ingredients

• 1 Tbsp soy sauce
• 2 Tbsp canola oil
• 1 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce
• 1 tsp lemon juice
• 2 Tbsp brown sugar
• 2 Tbsp ketchup
  

Steps

1. Blend all ingredients together in a small bowl.
2. It will keep for up to a month in the fridge - if you want to hold it for longer, don't add the ketchup until you need it. The salt will keep the solution for months.
   
3. If you marinate, let it go for several hours (there is little acidity here, just salt to tenderize).
   

"Green Vampire" Marinade

OK, still tweaking about a Costa Rican marinade - same caveat applies here about it being authentic that you see in the post before this for a pork chop marinade. It was good, but not exactly what I wanted. So I hunted about and found some ideas and mushed those together to make this recipe - Green for the enormous amount of cilantro (thanks to a warm spring, the reseeded cilantro bolted early this year) and the enormous amount of garlic (umm, is there such a thing as an excessive amount of garlic? Yes, Virginia. But this isn't it yet).

The combo of cilantro and garlic leads to a marinade that is very interesting: it gives a strong flavor even with little marinade time, works for a variety of meats, AND lasts in the fridge. It comes out looking like a loose pesto, but smells like a Mojo Criollo Meets a Garlic Lover. Umm, good. And great for repelling the pesky upstate vampires you find clustering around grills.

So far, we have used this with steak (marinated for 2 hrs) - grilled and then sliced like fajitas - AND marinated chicken breast on skewers for just 30 minutes and then grilled. The girls loved both of them. Yes, something spicy passed their lips and they liked it.

Ingredients:

• 7 cloves of garlic
• 2 cups of cilantro (I use the tops as they bolt, stems and leaves)
• 1 Tbsp of sea salt
• 2 Tbsp of lemon juice (or substitute lime juice for a more tropical taste)
• 1 cup of olive oil (EVOO is nice, but you won't taste it if you grill the marinated meat)

Steps:

1. Puree the bejeesus out of the garlic in a food processor.
2. Add the cilantro to the food processor bowl. Bend stems to make them fit. Trust me, the processor will make short work of them.
3. Begin puree-ing the cilantro and slowly pour in the lemon juice, salt and olive oil.
4. Keep puree-ing until the result has bits only the size of pesto ingredients - very finely chopped. Smells like a lime-y, cilantro garlic sludge.
5. Remove and use. Keeps for 2 weeks in the fridge (that would be the garlic's effects!) and has enough to make 2 decent batches with some leftover to dip with at the table. Oh yes, you will want to try dipping your food in this.

I make a big batch of this and use it for several meals. We also add this to the side dishes too (baked potatoes, rice, and boiled potatoes all take this as a drizzle well).

Grilled Pork Chops - Pura Vida Style

OK, I don't know for sure if Costa Ricans eat pork chops this way, much less at all, but let's just say that these are at least inspired by Central American cuisine. I spent a summer in Costa Rica during college and we ate very simply (beans and rice, 2x a day) and never saw a bit of pork except for the piggies that ate the whey behind the Monteverde lecheria ("cheese makers").

Hints here that it could be from CR - cilantro!, lime juice, and lots of black beans and rice on the side. Could that be from almost any Central American country... well, yeah. But I really like CR, "pura vida" is the national slogan. C'mon!

Caveats:

1. I only got to marinate this for 1 hour in the fridge, 2 hours would be best.
2. Grilling the chops really makes them shine, but broiling works too.
3. Side dishes of "black beans and rice" and a nice salad round it out.

Ingredients

• 4 pork chops (ours were our own pastured, 1 inch thick lovelies)
• 1/3 cup of good olive oil
• 1/3 cup of lime juice
• 1/4 cup of minced cilantro
• 2 cloves of garlic, minced
• 1 teaspoon of red pepper flakes (not traditional, but our cayenne is too hot for the girls)
  
• 1 teaspoon of sea salt

Steps

1. Combine the oil, juice, cilantro, garlic, pepper, and salt in a tupperware container.
2. Whisk the marinade together well.
3. Add in the chops and place in the fridge. Set the timer for 2 hrs.
4. Fire up the grill and grill the chops for 3-5 minutes per side. Sadly throw away the delicious smelling marinade - can't eat it nor grill with it.
5. Remove and let stand 5 minutes before serving.