Apple Puff Pastry Donuts

The garden is in! Veggies are planted and the rain has been so generous here in Minnesota so watering has been minimal. I’ve planted eggplant, peppers, and watermelon in my straw bales and so far everything is good, which means no dead plants … yet. 

I’ve been volunteering at my favorite communal garden, playing MahJong with my girlfriends, reading books, and lunching with neighbors. We’re heading to the North Shore for waterfall viewing and some hiking in the coming weeks, and working on a fall vacation to Iceland - Life is Good!

Sometimes life is all about dessert. I don’t mind creating something special but sometimes I want something relatively easy. The Apple Puff Pastry Donuts have minimal ingredients and are easy to make. Give them a try, they are like little apple pies. 

Ingredients:

1 apple

cinnamon 

granulated sugar

1 sheet of puff pastry

Instructions:

Combine sugar and cinnamon - stir to combine. Thaw the puff pastry, roll it out, and using a pizza cutter slice it into strips. 

Cut the apple into 6 slices and remove the center core using a small cookie cutter. Dip the apple slices into the cinnamon sugar mixture, ensuring it is coated on both sides. Wrap the puff pastry strips around the apple slices going through the center hole. 

Sprinkle the cinnamon sugar on top of the apple/puff pastry slices. Bake @ 375 for @ 25 - 30 minutes or when puff pastry is slightly browned. 

Cool for 5 minutes and enjoy!

Sugar Snap Pea Salad with Radishes, Greens, and Feta

I’ve been working hard to get my flowers and veggie garden planted this week. Spinach, collards, chard, onions, leeks, and herbs are all planted. This weekend I’ll work on the rest of the beds and the straw bales.

Onions, leeks, and celery are the new crops this year; it should be interesting. Dan has an amazing leek and goat cheese bread that he makes so I’m sure some of the leeks will find their way into that, and we use onions almost every day.

I was looking for a nice Spring salad that used fresh ingredients and didn’t take hours to make and this one caught my eye. The dressing is tart and flavorful and really compliments the fresh ingredients and it takes 10 minutes from start to finish. Thanks to With Spice for the inspiration.

Ingredients:

• 1 garlic clove, smashed and peeled
• 3 tbsp lemon juice
• 1 tbsp red wine vinegar
• 1 tsp Dijon mustard
• kosher salt
• ½ cup extra virgin olive oil
• freshly ground black pepper
• 1/2 lb. sugar snap peas, strings removed, cut into ½-inch pieces diagonally
• 3 radishes, trimmed, and sliced thin
• 2 - 3 oz baby greens 
• feta, crumbled

instructions:

Combine garlic clove, lemon juice, vinegar, mustard, and ½ teaspoon of kosher salt in a jar or large glass measuring cup. Whisk in olive oil, then season with black pepper and more salt to taste. Set aside to let garlic marinate while you assemble the salad. 

Combine snap peas, radishes, arugula, and feta in a large bowl.

Remove garlic clove from the dressing and discard. Add two-thirds of the dressing to the salad then toss to combine. Taste and add more dressing if desired. Serve.

Black Bean Mango Salad

It’s a beautiful Spring day in Minnesota but the weather lately makes me feel like I’m in Chicago - what’s up with all that wind!

The raised beds will get some much-needed compost this weekend and then I can plant my cool-weather vegetables; turnips, beets, spinach, collards, kale, and chard. I’ve been hardening off my flowers, onions, and leeks so they can also go in the beds. 

The straw bales experiment is going well and they should be ready to plant soon. I’ll try peppers and eggplant in there with the hope that the longer growing season will enhance the end result. 

My trip to the Arb plant sale this morning was successful; they had all of my favorite tomatoes and a few surprises. And yes, I will also go to the Hennepin County Master Gardener plant sale next weekend, it’s important to spread my money around and support my favorite peeps. 

We grilled brats (for Dan) a few nights ago and a new veggie sausage from Trader Joe's for me. The TJ’s sausage was good but could have used more herbs/spices. Field Roast Italian sausages remain my favorite.

No BBQ is complete without a salad so I chopped, measured, prepped, and dressed. The combination of black beans and mango is one of our favorites and the dressing pulled it all together. This makes a big salad but the leftovers can be put in the fridge and will be good for a few days. 

Enjoy!

Ingredients:

3 cups diced mango (about 2 large or 3 medium mangoes)
1 cup diced cucumber (½ English cucumber or 2 Persian or)
½ cup diced red onion

½ cup diced red bell pepper (about ½ pepper)
2 tablespoons seeded and fine diced jalapeno 

1 cup cherry or grape tomatoes halved
3 cups thinly sliced cabbage (red or mixed)
¼ cup chopped cilantro (leaves and light green stems)
1 can black beans, rinsed and drained 

Mango Salad Dressing:
2 tablespoons fresh lime juice (1 large lime)
¼ teaspoon sea salt or pink salt, or ⅛ teaspoon regular salt (adjust after tossing)
⅛ teaspoon black pepper freshly ground
⅛ teaspoon cayenne pepper (optional - skip for mild)
½ teaspoon maple syrup 
1 tablespoon olive oil

Instructions:

Using a vegetable chopper, dice mango, cucumber, red onion, red bell pepper, and jalapeno (see photo below for size reference). Using a knife, slice the tomatoes in half, slice the cabbage thinly, and finely chop the cilantro. Add to a large bowl, along with cooked black beans.

Add lime juice and seasoning ingredients to a small bowl. Pour the olive oil while whisking so it emulsifies and creates a rich dressing.

Pour the dressing over the salad and toss gently to combine. Chill until ready to serve. 

A Simple Guacamole

 Happy Kentucky Derby, May the 4th be with You, and Cinco de Mayo weekend. It’s a beautiful Spring day and we’ve been enjoying the sun and warmth. My many seedlings are growing and I am getting antsy to put them in the ground. I know it’s too early and we are in May when anything can happen. I will wait until May 15th - maybe. 

I am experimenting with straw bale gardening this year. I took a class from fellow Master Gardener Cris Phillips and I am currently “conditioning” my bales. The plan is to plant eggplant and peppers in them. More to come on the experiment as the Summer unfolds.

Guacamole is a favorite dip around here second only to hummus. In honor of Cinco de Mayo, This is an easy and delicious guac recipe, which takes about 15 minutes from the start to your first chip dip. 

Ingredients

3 avocados, ripe

½ small yellow onion, finely diced

2 Roma tomatoes, diced

3 tablespoons finely chopped fresh cilantro

1 jalapeño pepper, seeds removed and finely diced

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 lime, juiced

½ teaspoon sea salt

Instructions:

Slice the avocados in half, remove the pit, and scoop into a mixing bowl. 

Mash the avocado with a fork and make it as chunky or smooth as you’d like.

Add the remaining ingredients and stir together. Give it a taste test and add more salt or lime juice if needed.

Serve the guacamole with tortilla chips.

Red Lentil Dal with Butternut Squash, Chickpeas, and Spinach

I am sneaking in an April post and almost on the last day! Master Gardener season is heating up and I’ve been busy. This year I have 4 interns, am doing my normal Community Gardens gigs and I have joined the leadership team as the chair-elect of Community Programs; it’s going to be an interesting year!

I’ve started my seeds; onions, leeks, celery, cucumber, eggplant, peppers (sweet and spicy), and flowers; lots of flowers. At last count, there were 140 zinnias of various shapes, colors, and sizes. I’ve also planted blue flax, cosmos, nasturtiums, violas, columbine, morning glories, sage, rosemary, and thyme. 

Yesterday Dan and I took a straw bale gardening class in Minneapolis taught by a fellow Master Gardener - we are now the proud owners of 2 straw bales and we are in the process of conditioning them for our eggplant and peppers - more to come! 

We've been to a couple of new restaurants (new to us); Hai Hai in Minneapolis, and Pink Ivy in Hopkins, and we took a cooking class at the Arb where we learned that Shashukah comes in many forms - all delicious. 

I have been cooking. We hosted Easter this year for Dan’s family and last week a college friend of Dan’s and her family joined us for dinner. Truth be told, we ordered Indian food from our local favorite place but I did make a red lentil dal with butternut squash, chickpeas, and spinach that was tasty. 

Ingredients:

2 tsp olive oil (or use cooking spray)
1 onion finely diced
1 tsp salt
1 tsp ground turmeric
1 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
1/4 tsp ground coriander
3 garlic cloves grated
1 tbsp fresh ginger finely grated
1 cup butternut squash peeled and cubed
4 cups hot vegetable stock
1 1/2 cups red lentils rinsed
14 oz can chickpeas drained and rinsed

1 can diced tomatoes 
1/4 cup coconut cream
3 cups loosely packed) spinach leaves
fresh cilantro to garnish
pinch red chilli flakes to garnish

Instructions:

Heat the olive oil in a large casserole and sauté the onion for 5 minutes over medium-low heat.

Stir in the spices, salt, garlic, ginger and butternut squash.

Pour in the vegetable stock and bring to a rolling simmer.

Add in the red lentils – they tend to become a solid mass once you rinse them so break them up with a spoon.

Add the chickpeas and tomatoes and simmer, partially covered for 15 minutes until the curry has thickened and squash is tender.

Mix in the spinach until it wilts, then stir in the coconut cream. Check the seasoning and adjust if necessary.

Garnish with fresh coriander leaves and a pinch of red chili flakes. 

Thanks for stopping by!

Air Fryer Avocado Tacos

If you’ve been to my house you know I have two things that bug me; a cluttered kitchen countertop and single-use appliances. 

When we were in AZ, I had a long talk with my niece about air fryers; she loves hers and I was skeptical. Fast forward to early March and as I’m cruising the aisles at Costco they have an air fryer on sale for 40 dollars; so I figure what the heck let’s see what all the hype is about - we now own one. 

I’ve been testing it out lately and so far I love air-fried sweet potato fries, it crisps up egg rolls very nicely, crispy brussels sprouts with honey mustard sauce over it, and last night avocados for tacos - so delicious, fast, and simple - cleanup isn’t bad either. 

We served it with corn tortillas, lettuce, tomatoes, sautéed onions, peppers, and salsa. 

Ingredients:

2 avocados cut into wedges 

3/4 cup panko bread crumbs

a couple shakes of cayenne pepper

olive oil spray (optional)

salt and pepper to taste

Instructions:

Preheat the air fryer to 375 and set the time for 7 minutes. Cut avocados into wedges. On a small plate, combine Panko bread crumbs and cayenne pepper. Lightly press avocados into the breadcrumb mixture and lightly spray with oil (if using). Salt and pepper to taste. 

Air fry for 7 minutes - and you are done!

Thanks for stopping by and if you are in Minnesota enjoy the snow!

Roasted Celery Root with Horseradish Cream

It’s March and anything can happen with the weather. Mother Nature decided to switch up the “In like a lion and out like a lamb” phrase a bit this year. I just came in from shoveling the front 
porch and the rest of the driveway is already melted - even the pile at the end. 

I’ve been looking for new recipes and found a new favorite in the First Mess cookbook (Laura Wright author). Celery root (celeriac) has the creamy starchiness of a potato but a very different flavor and its gnarly appearance gives it a diamond in the rough vibe. 

The steps are easy but the bake time is approximately 1 hour so plan accordingly - it will be worth it - trust me. We served it with a green salad and leftover Guinness Honey bread from St Patrick's Day. 

 

Ingredients:

Roasted Celery Root

1 - 2 T olive oil

4 small or 2 medium celery root 

1 yellow onion - sliced

2 leeks - sliced - white and light green only

1 small apple thinly sliced

2 + cups of apple cider

1 tsp tamari

1 tsp apple cider vinegar

Salt and pepper to taste

Horseradish Cream Sauce

1/4 cup raw cashew butter

1/4 cup filtered water

2 T prepared horseradish

2 tsp Dijon mustard

salt and pepper

Serving 

1/4 cup chopped parsley

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 350. 

Heat the olive oil over medium heat in a large heavy-bottomed, oven-proof pot. Drop the onions, leeks, apple, and thyme into the pot and saute the mixture until the onions are translucent @ 6 to 7 minutes. 

Peel the rough exterior off of the celery roots. If using small celery roots, nestle them into the pot whole. If using larger, cut in half lengthwise and add to the pot.

Season with salt and pepper. Pour 2 cups of apple cider into the pot. Add the tamari and apple cider vinegar. The liquid should go halfway up on the cherry roots; add more apple cider if necessary. 

Put a tight-fitting lid on the pot and transfer it to the oven. Roast the celery roots for 1 hour, remove the pot at the halfway point to turn the celery root and stir the veggies. The celery root is done when you can pierce it with a knife. 

Remove the roots from the pot transfer them to a cutting board and cover with foil. Place the pot on the stove over medium boil until the liquid is reduced by 2/3rds.

Cut the celery root into slices and nestle into the reduced liquid; season with salt and pepper.

Make the horseradish cream sauce:

Whisk together the cashew butter, water, horseradish, dijon mustard, and salt and pepper in a medium bowl. Mix ingredients until creamy. 

Serve celery root roast slices with the apple cider/onion/leek mixture and topped with horseradish cream and fresh parsley.

Enjoy!