Christmas Brussel Sprouts

In our house we fight for the Brussel Sprouts.  Usually we have to count so we can be fair to all.
Derek bought 4 lbs. for us, 5 people,  so we would all have as much as we wanted.
Lexi loves cherries, so in her honor I came up with this recipe!  A winner for sure!

Christmas Sprouts
4 lbs. Brussel Sprouts, cleaned and trimmed
3/4 cup dried tart cherries
2 cloves garlic
4 TBSP butter
1/4 cup real maple syrup
1/2 cup cabernet sauvignon wine

In a small sauce pan add the cherries and other 4 ingredients.  Simmer on a low heat until cherries become tender and flavors are blended, about 20 minutes.  You can do this while washing and trimming your sprouts.
Place sprouts in a large bowl and add the cherries mixture.  Toss until well coated and pour into a sheet pan.  Roast in a 400 degree over for 40 to 50 minutes, depending on the size of the sprouts.
Serve. Yummy!
Merry Christmas to all!

Growing Totals for 2013

Since I have some down time and the garden is covered with ice and snow and the kitchen renovations are taking all our project time I decided to total all harvests for 2013 to motivate myself for the new growing year.
Totals are in pounds or each, for larger individual picked items.
Here they are:
Apples 5 lbs.
Asparagus 15 1/2 lbs.
Acorn Squash 6 ea.
Beets 4 lbs.
Broccoli 2 lbs.
Butternut squash 8 ea.
Blackberries 1 3/4 lbs.
Carrots  3 lbs.
Cucumbers 30 ea.
Cantaloupe 1ea.
Cabbage 3 ea.
eggplant 4 ea.
Garlic Bulbs 24 ea.
Grapes 5 gallons
Honey Dew melon 2 ea.
Lettuce 13 1/2 lbs.
Onions 37 ea.
Pak Choy 4 lbs.
Potatoes 2 lbs.
Pea Pods 1 1/2 lbs.
Pumpkins 1 ea.
Peppers 84 ea. asst. sweet, banana and jalapeno
Peaches 13 ea.
Spinach 20 lbs.
Swiss Chard 21 3/4 lbs.
Strawberries 3 3/4 lbs.
Snake beans 2 1/2 lbs.
Tomatillos 56 ea.
Tomatoes 151 lbs.
Watermelon 7 ea.
Yellow squash 8 ea.
Zucchini 72 lbs.
Some notes for this year: planted the green beans too late and didn't flower.  Squash bugs ruined the pumpkins and killed off the squash too early.  Even though we got more than enough zucchini, the yellow, winter and pumpkins didn't do well.
Carrots and beets were not planted early enough either. The heat of summer was too much for them.
Overall the tomatoes were outstanding.
Fruit trees while all young are looking good. Have to keep watch on them to make sure they grow to maturity.
All -in all not to shabby!

Blue Cheese Cabbage Cream Soup

I traveled up to Omaha a few times this past fall and my colleague, Lisa Thomas, took me to a bistro that has become my favorite.  Taxi's offers this outstanding cream soup which combines blue cheese, cabbage and caraway seeds.  We unsuccessfully asked for the recipe but after trying it a few times, I think I got close.
I would love to have them view my recipe to see just how close I got.  Share with your friends, everyone and hopefully it will make it to the chef at Taxi's.

Blue Cheese Cabbage Cream Soup 4 main servings or 8 cups as an appetizer
6 cups of green cabbage, chopped to bite-sized pieces
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 medium onion, chopped
1 TBSP caraway seeds
1 TBSP olive oil
1 TBSP sea salt
1 TSP  white pepper
Place these ingredients in a stock or soup pot on medium heat, with a cover. Saute and sweat the cabbage and onions until tender, about 15 minutes.

Then add 4 TBSP flour, (I used oat bran flour for the gluten free choice)
Stir the ingredients until thick.

Add 2 cups chicken broth and 1 quart 1/2 & 1/2, slowly and alternating, to make a creamy béchamel sauce. Simmer to thicken.

Then add 3 to 4 oz. crumbled blue cheese.  Simmer and stirring constantly until melted.
Ladle into bowls and enjoy!

Turkey Chili

With all the turkey leftovers, this is my favorite.
TURKEY CHILI (picture posted on my facebook page)

1 lb. white turkey, broken in bite size pieces
2 lb. cut up heirloom tomatoes (or regular if you don't have a garden, I used Granny Smith and orange Branywine to give my chili fresh color)
1 large onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
2  14 oz.  cans of kidney beans, drained
1 lb. bag of frozen corn
1 4 oz. can of tomato paste
1 quart of freshly made salsa ( you can use a jar salsa but results are not as good, I made many batches and froze some for winter chili making)
2 tsp ground cumin
3 tbsp. chili powder,( I use 1 of each, chipotle, ancho and regular hot)
1 tbsp. salt
1 tsp red pepper flakes
1/4 cup chopped roasted hatch green chilies, (you can substitute a can of chopped green chilies)
1/4 cup dried polenta or 1/4 cup quinoa

Place all ingredients in a crock pot on high for the first 30 minutes, then reduce to low for 4 hours.
30 minutes before serving, add polenta or quinoa to thicken.  Serve with grated cheddar and sour cream.
Yummy!