tons and tons of food

I have loads of food to blog about -- my kitchen has been a busy place, as always.

Dinner from last week:

Homemade spinach and tomato dal, over a brown rice pilaf with cardamom, black pepper, and slivered almonds. Frozen samosas and mango chutney on the side. Yum!

Baking fun:

I checked out Baking at Home with The Culinary Institute of America from the library, and have been adapting a few recipes from it. These blueberry muffins were the first -- I cut the fat down slightly, used whole-wheat pastry flour, and agave nectar instead of sugar. Dan and I gobbled these down in a couple of days.

Why the funny plastic cover on the muffins, you ask?

Oliver likes to eat muffins when I'm not looking.

Another delicious dinner:

Beets and greens tossed in homemade vinaigrette, sliced heirloom tomatoes, and homemade bread topped with local, herbed goat cheese. This is quickly becoming a favorite dinner, and will continue to be as long as tomatoes and beets are in season! (P.S. I used some of the scapes in the greens -- delicious!)

A fun treat:

Blackberry ice cream (storebought, but organic and on sale,) with blackberries!

I brought home quite a load from the Farmer's Market yesterday:

Clockwise from bottom left: sugar-snap peas, beets w/their tops, sweet corn, the hugest bunch of lettuce ever, zucchini, cherry tomatoes, and roma tomatoes.

Not pictured in the above photo, 'cause I got so excited when I got home I started cooking and forgot to snap a picture of everything together:

I also bought cucumbers, green beans, and dill, which I promptly turned into refrigerator pickles. Spicy dilly beans, and normal garlic dill pickles will be enjoyed by Dan and I throughout the summer. That is, if they last that long! :)

I had to figure out what to do with most of that produce, since our fridge is practically bursting with goodness. I did chop and wash the lettuce so it is salad-ready, and I cut a bunch of the corn off the cobs and froze it for future chili and creamy corn soup use. :) I also had to put some of the zucchini to good use right away, since we were already out of blueberry muffins:

Zucchini bread, also from Baking at Home with the CIA. I'm less impressed with this recipe so far, but the bread may have moistened up a little bit overnight -- I found it a little dry yesterday. I did use organic, natural sugar in this recipe, and I think I should have used agave nectar. Whole-wheat pastry flour sometimes dries things out a little bit! Drat. Now I know for next time. :)

I should have another post for you all tomorrow -- Dan and I checked out a new (to us) state park yesterday, and I took some great pictures! Until then.

the amazing bicycle

I have had a very busy morning and early afternoon -- I've completed all of my errands for the week on my bike, and have quite a load to show for my efforts. (Keep in mind that I don't have a rack or panniers on my bike -- these loads were done solely with my backpack and one large tote bag!)

Round 1:



First stop was Great Harvest Bread Company -- we had saved up 12 labels from loaves of bread purchased in the past, and were due a free loaf, only redeemable at the bakery. My directions to the bakery blew away in the wind, but I only got a little bit lost without them! What a haul, down to the southwestern depths of Minneapolis, just for free bread!

Second stop was at the vet -- Oliver's on prescription food, and he was running low.

Third stop was at Shuang Hur Supermarket, where I picked up a medium-sized jar of kimchee for Dan, and some roasted pumpkin seeds.

Fourth stop was at the Wedge co-op, where I picked up the following:

BULK:
organic navy beans
local, organic, raw sunflower seeds
locally-roasted, organic, fair-trade Peace coffee

CHEESE:
local pepper jack

FROZEN:
local, organic orange juice
organic blackberry ice cream

PACKAGED GROCERY:
Garden of Eatin' "Sesame Blues" chips
organic no-stir peanut butter

PRODUCE:
organic celery
organic avocado
organic cherries
organic yellow peaches
local, organic green beans
local, organic white button mushrooms
organic red onion
organic yellow onion
red bell pepper
organic sweet potatoes
local heirloom tomato
organic apricots
organic carrots
organic blackberries

REFRIGERATED GROCERY:
organic superfirm tofu

~~~~~~~~~~

After a stop at home to unload the first round of stuff and eat some lunch, I headed downtown to complete my second batch of errands:



First stop was at the bank to exchange Dan's change jar for laundry quarters.

Second stop was at the library to pick up a book Dan had on hold.

Third stop was Target, where I picked up a few essentials, and was suckered into buying cat toys that were on sale. :)

I really hate using Drano, but the baking soda-vinegar-boiling water trick just did NOT work on the bathroom sink this time around. Anyone have any brilliant suggestions?

~~~~~~~~~~

Last but not least, I put 16 miles on my bike today. Yowza! Off to clean the bathroom and work on the laundry. (Blah.)

a very, very busy day

Just thought I'd share my to-do list for today:

call back a charter school who wants to interview me
write a meal plan and grocery list
go to a bakery in WAY south Minneapolis and get free bread
stop at the vet and pick up more cat food
grocery shopping (the regular co-op AND the Asian grocery store)
Target
go to the bank (get quarters for laundry)
clean the bathroom
three loads of laundry
prep stuff for dinner

I must confess, it's days like today that I sort of wish I had a car. Better pump up those bike tires -- I'll update later with a mileage report!

catching up some kitchen happenings

I was wondering why I hadn't blogged in a while . . . and it's because I haven't cooked much! We were out of town last weekend for the holiday, and have just been sort of throwing meals together since then. :) I do have a few things for you, though:

A dinner from last week:

Breakfast for dinner is always a good thing, especially when it involves roasted potatoes! Dan scrubbed and quartered these baby reds from the Farmer's Market and roasted them with olive oil, garlic, S&P, and a little dried thyme. I could have eaten my weight in these potatoes, but restrained myself. :)

P.S. Leftover roasted potatoes topped with chickpeas and salsa made for an AWESOME lunch the next day!

Another pie:

We took this pie to Dan's parents' house with us over the weekend, and it was quickly gobbled up. :) Strawberry-rhubarb seems to be a hit with everyone I meet!

Dinner last night:

Homemade pizza is always such a tasty thing. Artisan Bread crust, topped with olive oil, sliced local heirloom tomatoes, fresh mozzarella, basil, and S&P. Yum. I'm even excited for leftovers in my lunch today!

And we received a late-night phone call from Dan's brother, which resulted in this:

Free veggies! Dan's brother has a half-share of a CSA, which means he gets a full share every-other week. To quote Ryan, "a ridiculous amount of vegetables for one person." So, we scored basil, green onions, chard, broccoli, radishes, kohlrabi, fennel, and scapes.

Any ideas for cooking up the scapes? I've never used them before, but am excited to try them!

really healthy meals

We have had a plethora of produce around here lately -- between strawberry-picking, a trip to the Farmer's Market, and Dan's brother sharing half of his CSA for the week with us, the fridge has been at capacity with fresh fruits and veggies!

Result? Some really healthy meals.


A strawberry-mango-blueberry-banana-orange smoothie.


Sliced tomatoes sprinkled with salt, a couple of slices of baguette smeared with herbed goat cheese, and steamed beets and greens tossed with balsamic vinaigrette.


Beans and rice and steamed broccoli!

I've also had cinnamon-peach oatmeal for breakfast the last two days in a row, which has been yummy and filling. Hooray for healthy food!

Daring Bakers' Challenge -- Bakewell Tart

The June Daring Bakers' challenge was hosted by Jasmine of Confessions of a Cardamom Addict and Annemarie of Ambrosia and Nectar. They chose a Traditional (UK) Bakewell Tart... er... pudding that was inspired by a rich baking history dating back to the 1800's in England.

Slice of pie, er tart, er pudding, er, whatever:


I must confess, I just wan't "into" this month's challenge -- June sort of got away from me fairly quickly, and I ended up looking up and completing this challenge under the wire -- I literally took the tart out of the oven a couple of hours ago! I found the pastry and frangipane easy enough to work with, and enjoyed putting to use some of the delicious strawberry jam I made yesterday, but I was not wowwed with my results. I pulled the tart out of the oven six minutes earlier than the recipe suggested, since my crust was WAY overbrown, and the frangipane was also puffed and very dark golden brown. Little did I know . . . the middle was still undercooked, as you can see in my picture. Also, this treat is just too rich and sweet for me -- I'll probably take the rest to work tomorrow, and let my food snob coworkers polish it off. :)

Can't win 'em all, I guess!

a lot can happen in a week.

Dan and I went to a wedding reception on a boat,










I made Tofu Mom's Middle Eastern Rice Pilaf for dinner one night, which was rich and satisfying,


Dan and I went strawberry-picking,

We picked roughly ten pounds of berries, and paid about two bucks a pound! Sweet, drippy-juicy, and pesticide-free! Woo!

I made about 4 cups of jam, (some of which I used in my Daring Baker's challenge for this month -- more about that in a bit,) froze about a gallon of whole berries for smoothies and future use, made Lavender Strawberry Lemonade, courtesy of Cafe Cyan, (which is frickin' amazing, by the way,) and of course . . .

(We still have plenty of fresh berries in the fridge; I see another strawberry-rhubarb pie in our future soon.)

Courtney and I went to the Farmer's Market,

Clockwise from bottom-left: the most gorgeous mini-heirloom tomatoes known to man, kale, salsa, beets w/their greens, lettuce, red potatoes, and rhubarb!

And, we went to the opening weekend festivities at the brand-new and largest Hindu temple in Minnesota,

(I would have taken more pictures, but was not allowed to do so inside the temple.) We learned a lot about hinduism and ate amazing vegetarian Indian food!

This may go without saying, but it's been a busy week. What have you been up to?

Day 1: Lake Itasca State Park

We had been carefully planning our vacation for weeks, and when the day finally arrived, we got a later start than we had originally planned -- Dan was convinced the cold he had been nursing was strep throat. So, after a trip to urgent care, a negative strep result, and pizza out for lunch, we finally loaded up the car and headed northwest to Lake Itasca State Park.

On our way, I saw the strangest sight from the highway:

A wind turbine in the middle of suburbia? Heck, I'm thrilled it's there, it just seems so strange. I think of wind turbines in the middle of the country, I guess!

We had estimated it would take us about four hours to drive to Itasca; between mysterious mid-afternoon traffic as we were leaving the city and some highway detours on our way there, the drive took more like five hours. No worries though, since we had plenty of daylight left to set up the tent, eat dinner, and go for a short hike.

The sun was setting as we headed towards the headwaters of the Mississippi river:

By the time we arrived at the headwaters, there wasn't enough light left to take photos -- and we needed our flashlights for the hike back to our campsite. It was a nice, short hike, and good to stretch our legs after such a long time in the car. We had to be especially careful on our hike back, since the path seemed to be covered with frogs! We used our flashlights to scare them off the path as best we could, and tread carefully.

Best thing about Minnesota state parks? HOT SHOWERS!

Day 2: Lake Itasca State Park

Saturday morning, we woke to RAIN -- not thunderstorms or a downpour, but steady, drippy rain. We decided to gear up anyway and head out on Itasca's 10-mile wilderness drive, which had many opportunities to stop and take short hikes, see some sights, and explore a little bit.

BLOWDOWN INTERPRETIVE TRAIL
Our first stop along the 10-mile drive, and by the end of this overgrown, sloppy hike, I was soaked to the waist. (It took my shoes two days to dry out!) It was worth it, though -- here are a few photos:

I have a weird thing for birch trees:


A pile of debris from the storm in 2001:


Large-Flowered Trillium:

(Yes, I bought a field guide to MN wildflowers. Expect many more in the next few posts!)

Columbine:


Busy beavers:


Canada Anemone:


More beaver evidence:


LANDMARK INTERPRETIVE TRAIL:
After soaking ourselves while enjoying the Blowdown Interpretive Trail, we literally walked across the road and took the Landmark loop. We were surprised by how much old growth forest Itasca contains -- but the park is well over 100 years old, so I guess it shouldn't be that surprising!?

The rain finally let up and the sun tried to peek out:


Great big trees:


We saw tons of evidence of past forest fires:


AND, our first of many Yellow Lady's Slipper:


Quite a "burn scar:"


Creepy forest fire leftovers:


We thought this one looked like a witch in the middle of the woods:


BOHALL WILDERNESS TRAIL:
Next along the drive was the Bohall Wilderness Trail, which ran through a large section of Itasca dedicated to wilderness research. (The University of Minnesota has a sattelite program there, and does quite a bit of research.)

More gigantic pines:


Old trees naturally fall down or are blown down during storms -- what a way to go!


Another downed tree:

(I love it when trees get "caught" in strange positions on their way down, and just sort of rot away where they are stuck!)

More old-growth forest:


Wetland:


And a goofy little island:


More burn evidence:


Budding American Lotus:


ITASCA'S LARGEST WHITE PINE

Next was a quick walk down a path to view Itasca's largest white pine.

On the way, we noticed this large remains:

I think this photo gives great perspective on how LARGE these old-growth trees are!

And here's the big white pine, at 112 feet tall and over 300 years old:


The pine gets a little frame, since it's so special:

(For perspective, you can barely make out Dan in this shot. He's wearing an olive-colored t-shirt, so unfortunately, he kind of blends in. Accidental camo!)

MINNESOTA'S RECORD RED PINE:

Next down the road was Minnesota's Record Red Pine, competing with a pine in Michigan for the tallest in the states, I think. At 126 feet tall and over 300 years old, it didn't look to us like it was doing so well:

Maybe it's the wrong tree? We couldn't find another one that looked like the picture in the sign. Oh well -- everything has its time, right?

NICOLLET CREEK:
Called the "Infant Mississippi" by some, since it flows into Lake Itasca, I believe it's not actually a part of the river since it dries up occasionally.


ELK LAKE:

Otherwise known as "the picnic that wasn't." As we continued along the 10-mile drive, we selected a bench on this lake for our picnic lunch. We grabbed some sandwiches, fruit, and sodas, sat down, I snapped a couple of photos, and then it began to POUR! Rats. We ate in the car. Here are the photos, at least!



PREACHER'S GROVE:

We had passed "Preacher's Grove" on our way into the park the day before, and were excited to return and explore this small area overlooking Lake Itasca that was covered with old-growth pines. There was something somewhat mystical about this location -- I can't quite explain it, except that I felt drawn to it. A few pictures:





PEACE PIPE VISTA:
Our last stop along the 10-mile wilderness drive, we descended many steps for a gorgeous view of Lake Itasca:



By the time we returned to our campsite, the rain had quit for good (thank goodness!) and we were both due for dry clothes and a rest. However, we don't sit still for long, and headed out again later in the afternoon.

HIKING THE AITON HEIGHTS TRAIL TO THE FIRE TOWER:

Sunshine!


Frogs!


Kasey Lake:


Allen Lake:
a startled muskrat, swimming away:


a large, white bird -- maybe a pelican? maybe a swan? we couldn't tell.


The fire tower:


The view from 3/4 the way to the top (I chickened out. The tower was swaying a LOT.)


Dan made it all the way to the top:


And on our hike back, we found a TON of Yellow Lady's Slippers:


And more big, white birds:


PICNIC DINNER AND HIKE TO THE HEADWATERS:

We hopped back in the car and drove over to the headwaters for a picnic dinner and photo op with the river. It was strange to see lilacs in bloom in June!


We had this gorgeous view while we were eating our dinner:


And FINALLY, the Headwaters of the Mississippi River!


Dan tried to walk across, but the rocks were kind of slippery, so he turned back.


What a day! We crammed in just about everything we could, and still felt we had barely scratched Itasca's surface. This is one huge state park with TONS to do -- we could have easily stayed there a week, but had plans to move on first thing the next morning. A good night's sleep was deserved!

Day 3: Big Bog Boardwalk and Lake of the Woods

Sunday morning, we got up, broke camp, packed up, and headed north! Our first stop was at the Big Bog Boardwalk, part of the Big Bog State Recreation Area.

The "Big Bog" measures 30 miles north-south, 70 miles east-west, and is considered "Minnesota's last true wilderness." We hiked a 1-mile boardwalk into the Big Bog, which was AMAZING.

Close-up of a tamarack, the only coniferous tree that loses its leaves in the fall:


the boardwalk, and the vastness of the bog:


In the 1800s, people tried to drain the bog and offer the land to pioneers -- unsuccessfully. You can still see the old "road" that they constructed, however!


Cottongrass:


Pitcher Plants:

Carnivorous plants are so cool! The plants live off of insects that crawl into their "mouthes," and then drown in the rainwater that collects in the bottom. The pitcher plants secrete enzymes into the rainwater that digest the insects. Weird and strange and crazy!

False Lily-of-the-Valley:


Maybe some low-bush cranberries?


We chilled at the end of the boardwalk for quite a while, before hiking back:


On our way back to the car, we saw this family of geese:


After wrapping up at the bog, we continued north, ending our drive for the day at Zippel Bay State Park, located on Lake of the Woods. We found our campsite, set up the tent, and drove over to the beach to relax, build a campfire, cook dinner, and enjoy the evening.

Dan likes big water:


Who needs a Viking grill and Silestone countertops, anyway?


Dan walked the beach and did some wading while I chopped veggies and tofu for our foil-packs-on-the-coals dinner:


As the sun was setting, we packed up our stuff and walked the beach towards Zippel Bay:




More Yellow Lady's Slipper:

The lighthouse!

And a gorgeous sunset:

Day 4: Lake of the Woods, Echo Trail, Lake Jeanette, Norway Trail, and Astrid Lake Trail

Since I tend to be an earlier riser than Dan, Monday morning I took my coffee down to the beach on Lake of the Woods. The weather was perfect and sunny and gorgeous, and I think I could have sat there for hours had I remembered to apply sunblock!





However, we had more exploring planned, and broke camp again, this time heading east into the Superior National Forest. We drove along the Echo Trail, stopping at Lake Jeanette to camp in the national forest campground.

Lake Jeanette:



This dragonfly landed on my head and Dan's shoulder, before deciding to hang out on our laundry line for a little bit:


After we set up the tent (again, and for the final time this trip,) we drove six miles down the Echo Trail and up a forest road, and hiked part of the Norway Trail:






On our way back to camp, we noticed all of these dead trees, probably from flooding:

Helped a turtle cross the road:

Found some Swamp Buttercup:

Some baby pinecones:

And new evergreen growth:


After dinner, we walked up the Echo Trail a little bit, and took the Astrid Lake Trail to Lake Nigh:



More Pitcher Plants:

Pink Lady's Slipper:

Bluebead Lily:

And Lake Nigh. Perfect, glassy, and gorgeous:




More False Lily-of-the-Valley:

And wintergreen:


More turtles on the way back to camp:


The mosquitos and no-see-ums forced us into the tent early this evening, but it ended up being a good thing -- we were both TIRED!

Day 5: Echo Trail, Angleworm Trail, Lake One, and Grand Marais

Rising early again today, this toad kept me company while I drank my coffee and ate breakfast, cleaned out and organized the car, and repacked our bags for the last leg of our vacation:



This toad stuck around for over an hour -- I kept checking back, and s/he was watching me, but enjoying basking in the sunshine at the same time!

After packing up the tent for the last time this trip, we continued down the Echo Trail.


More wildlife on the side of the road -- baby muskrats this time!



While shooing them back into the ditch, I noticed some Star Flower:

and prairie roses, I think: (they're not in my book)


We stopped at an entrance to the Angleworm Trail, and hiked to Lake Agassa:




Why so few pictures of this hike, you ask? BECAUSE I FILLED UP MY CAMERA CARD! I spent a long time deleting duds while sitting on the shore of Lake Agassa, and then thankfully, when we drove into Ely for lunch, Pamida saved me! I bought another camera card -- whew!

After I averted the camera crisis and we ate lunch, we drove to a family-run outfitters on Lake One in the BWCA and rented a canoe for a couple of hours. Lake One was a neat paddle:




More turtles!


And there were tons of these little, rocky, mini-islands throughout the lake:


After we returned the canoe, we drove southeast, and then north along highway 61, for the final destination of our trip -- Grand Marais! We were excited to see Lake Superior, eat some great food (at the Angry Trout Cafe and the Gunflint Tavern,) and stay in a HOTEL! After four nights in a tent, a hot shower, cable, and a comfy bed felt like the ultimate luxuries.

Day 6: Grand Marais, Cascade River, Eagle Mountain

We slept in Wednesday morning, then enjoyed "World's Best Donuts" and coffee for breakfast. I hardly ever eat donuts, but man, a couple of "World's Best" a year is a mighty fine thing!

We walked off our breakfast along Lake Superior:


Yes, Dan IS wearing a stocking cap. It's COLD on the North Shore!

Waves!

And, not a wildflower, but I do love bleeding hearts:


We spent our morning hiking at Cascade River State Park. We started hiking up the river, past the falls,


Continued along the cascades,

Turned into the woods,

Followed Cascade Creek,



Took the trail up Lookout Mountain,



Hiked back down to the creek,


Returned to the river,


And ended at shore of Lake Superior!



After a cold and windy picnic on the rocky shore, we headed back in to Grand Marais.


Dan took a nap while I walked around town and shopped. After Dan woke up and I was done shopping, we got ice cream and watched the ducks:


Dan convinced me that we needed one last wilderness experience before heading back home the next day, so we drove up the Gunflint Trail and hiked half of the trail to Eagle Mountain, into the BWCA.

Loads of wild strawberries lined the trail:

More beaver evidence:

Maybe Marsh Marigold?

Good thing we stopped and got that permit:

One helluva beaver dam:

More Star Flower:

The wetland, where we decided to turn around and head back:


After the rocky, rooted, uneven terrain of the Eagle Mountain trail, I was BEAT. (And my knees and ankles were a little sore -- I hadn't packed hiking boots this trip. Drat.) We enjoyed a good dinner in town, before heading back to the hotel for the night! Whew!

Day 7: Tettegouche State Park

The last day of vacation is always bittersweet -- there may be time for a little fun left, but there's usually hefty travel involved, and reluctance to return home!

We had breakfast in town before heading south along Highway 61, planning one last stop (and squeezing one last ounce of fun out of our vacation!) before making the big drive back to the city.

We took a short hike at Tettegouche, first exploring the beach along Lake Superior:




Before hiking out to Shovel Point:





Made it! What a view:



Bet this guy had a pretty awesome view, too:


On the hike back, we found a Nodding Trillium:

And a chipmunk, munching on an apple:


Anti-climactic, maybe, but that's the last photo I took of this trip. Driving back home was long and uneventful, and once we unloaded and unpacked and ordered a pizza for dinner, our vacation officially concluded.

Hope you enjoyed all of the pictures! Back to regularly-scheduled food blogging in the coming days.

we're back!

We're back from our week-long camping extravaganza, and other than the FIVE loads of laundry awaiting me tomorrow, I'm feeling refreshed and energized. (And a little tired, but that's part of sleeping in a tent, right?)

Since I took over 400 photos, the trip re-cap may take me a couple of days. Until I sort through everything and pick the best shots, I leave you with one of my favorite photos from the trip, my version of turtle roadside assistance --