Duck Eggs With Lovage & Chives

Eggs, farm fresh eggs laid by my poultry. Chickens, ducks, & turkeys I tend. They are fed not only commercial poultry feeds, but fresh greens from our gardens. The large white egg in the lower left of the picture is one of many eggs laid by my flock of ducks.

This is one of my Pekin ducks. Yes, she looks like the duck you see in the insurance commercials . ( I love those commercials )My Pekins are spending most of their time sitting on a clutch of eggs. Since my flock of ducks has been very prolific this spring in their egg laying I take quite a few for our consumption.

I have a herb garden where I cut herbs for home cooking, and when you have an abundance of farm fresh eggs and farm fresh herbs you have the makings of some good eats ! Above you can see the lovage I am growing in my herb garden. Lovage tastes like celery,is very tasty in salads and also...

...with eggs. Here are some of my eggs pictured with herbs from my garden. Lovage ( upper right ), chives, and thymes. ( left )

The duck eggs are the big and bright orange eggs. My ducks free-range which enables them to eat all the grass and greens they desire. The greens are what give eggs their bright orange, almost red-orange color. If your eggs are this richly orange you are eating some good eggs ! I whipped these eggs up with freshly chopped herbs, seasoning salt, and cooked them up for dinner the other night. My husband & I sprinkled grated cheddar cheese over them, served them with buttered toast and YUM !

I am joining the Thursday Farm Acre Blog Hop* today. Please check it out, you will learn so much as you visit the blogs participating in this Thursday event even if you do not have a farm or acreage . I hope your weekend is full of blessings and the enjoyment of this beautiful world God has created for us. "It is I who made the earth, and created man upon it. I stretched out the heavens with My hands , and I ordained all their hosts. " Isaiah 45:12

Jamie Oliver Friday~Italian Bread & Cabbage Soup

I bet you thought I forgot about Jamie Oliver Fridays.My husband thought I did. However, with all the holiday festivities and foods and all the family get-togethers this month there was not time for me to shop especially for the recipes in his book. Had I planned appropriately I would have saved some cabbages from our garden, but cabbages are very affordable and easy to find in just about any supermarket. This recipe is very affordable and easy but I have a few words to say about it first..... .........Jamie, please stream- line your recipes! After I prepare one of your delicious recipes I have always remarked to myself " boy, I could have made that in fewer steps and with a LOT less dishes, pots and pans". This alone makes me absolutely positive he has someone, or hey, even a whole crew cleaning up after him! Unfortunately I am unable to see how I can do this until I make the recipe, my mind doesn't work that way, but our daughter has said the same thing about some of Jamie's recipes she has used. She is smarter than me though and usually figures this out BEFORE she begins cooking. However, I digress~ above is a picture of Italian Bread & Cabbage Soup just before I put it into the oven. I was so excited about this recipe! I photographed the recipe and I believe you can enlarge it. I won't do this anymore, I will write it out, but I wanted you to see how Jamie publishes his recipes. I like the anecdotes he includes and his personal way of speaking comes through in his writing, and my husband and I very much enjoy watching Jamie's cooking program on the Food Network because of the unique and quirky way he prepares and presents foods. Here is my bowl of Italian Bread & Cabbage Soup With Sage Dressing. I thought it was delicious! However, my husband does not like soggy or wet bread and this recipe calls for a lot of that. I liked this hot, but do not think I would like this as left-overs and you can see I made a big pan of this for the two of us. We decided I would make this again but here is what I will do...and I think it will be MUCH better : instead of a layer of bread I will use a layer of toasted cubes of bread, or a bag of purchased non-seasoned stuffing, or even a bag of seasoned stuffing. This would soak up the flavors but not get soggy and my husband would be happy with that. I will make this again, with croutons or stuffing, cut the recipe in half, and simplify the cooking process. So try it, you might like it! (I almost forgot, we grow and use a lot of sage but we did not want the sage dressing so we skipped that part and were happy we did, sorry Jamie.)

NOT Jamie Oliver Friday, How Bazaar!

I have been crazy busy getting ready for the Lake Lawrence Christmas Bazaar that starts tomorrow. My husband and I set up my booth tonight, which means I was NOT cooking...however last night he cooked for us! He is an excellent cook.( He is the better cook in the family, but don't tell him I am admitting to that!) Since he was the cook he did not use a Jamie Oliver recipe, he used one we read on Noble Pig's blog. Here was my dinner last night, Vanilla Cider Pork & Walnut Wild Rice. It was delicious. My husband was not too crazy about the pears but it turns out his pear was almost too ripe before he sauteed it but I thought my pear was perfect. It was warm and flavorful and still firm inside. The cider pork was perfection and the wild rice dish could be served as a dish all by itself. In fact, I think we will be making the rice dish for a potluck and we had better make a lot because I could eat a LOT of this! To get the recipe from Noble Pig herself click here* and check out the November 4th recipe. ( For some reason my computer will not allow the hyper-link to the specific recipe, sorry) I made this pie for a potluck awhile ago and this Mile High Apple Pie With Cranberries is from Mary's blog One Perfect Bite. I love, love , love cranberries. Sometimes I eat the cranberries just by themselves, no cooking, or sugar, or embellishments of any kind, so I was delighted at the idea of adding them to apples to make a pie. We have a lot of apples from the trees in our orchard and I have been told my pies are pretty good so hey, I tried it. Looks good on the outside if I must say so myself, and there was no pie left-over or tossed in the garbage at the potluck so it must be tasty. My grandchildren informed me it needed more sugar and I can see where they were coming from. I used the least amount of sugar called for in the recipe, next time I will add the max amount. The grandchildren ate their pie, so it was good, they just prefer MORE sugar!For this recipe click here.* I can't wait to have the busyness of the bazaar over so I can get down to holiday baking and cleaning and decorating and....

Sweet Pear & Apple Salad~Jamie Oliver Friday

This is a delicious and EASY salad to make. Perfect for an autumn side dish, or in my case, dinner. This is the time of year to use very available fresh apples and pears, and we have a lot of apples from our orchard and that 1 perfect pear! This is the only pear to stay til fruition on our small espalier pear tree, and it looked perfect. Well, when it finished ripening inside it proved to taste perfect too. I decided to use it in a Jamie Oliver recipe and I am glad I did. So here is the recipe for Sweet Pear & Apple Salad With Bitter Endive & Creamy Blue Cheese Dressing~ whew, a long title. You will need:

• 4 heads of endive ( a mixture of red and white if possible ) *at $4.99 a pound I decided to choose a different type of endive, a curly leaf endive that was $1.99 per pound, cheaper,more befitting my budget and I mixed it with red lettuce from our garden~k.b.
• 2 good eating apples ( I have a whole tree full to choose from right outside~ k.b.)
• 2 pears ( or 1 perfect pear?k.b.)
• a handful of fresh soft herbs ( chervil, tarragon, parsley-use any one) torn or roughly chopped

• DRESSING:2 ounces strong blue cheese
• 1/4 cup creme fraiche ( or sour cream mixed with whole cream k.b.)
• 5 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, plus a little extra for drizzling
• 4 Tablespoons cider vinegar
• 6 Tablespoons water

"This is an adaptation of an old-school French endive salad. Belgian endive is quite a bitter leaf, and to contrast the bitterness I've used the sweetness of the fruit, the twang of the vinegar and the creamy silkiness of the cheese. I think it is important to make this with good quality apples and blue cheese." J. Oliver "Separate the leaves from the endive ( *let me say here, if you can get good endive reasonably priced it is so worth it and the curly leafed was not what Jamie used, but it was very , very good) then wash and spin them dry. Core your apples and slice them into matchsticks. Core the pears and slice into eighths and if they're a little under-ripe, grill them in a screaming hot griddle pan until lightly charred. If they're perfectly ripe, just place in a large bowl with the apple and most of the herbs." To make your dressing place all your dressing ingredients in a blender and blend for just 15 seconds until smooth. Taste to make sure you've got a little extra acidity in there to cut through the bitterness of the leaves, and season if necessary. Pour three-quarters of the dressing over the salad and toss-I usually dress the salad lightly using the tips of my fingers. Divide them between 4 plates and finish with a little extra virgin olive oil. Lovely with some walnuts crumbled over." J. Oliver I very much liked this salad, it was easy to make and I was able to use fruit from our orchard. I will make this recipe again, and next time I think I will sprinkle walnuts over it. I did not use all of our precious pear in the recipe, I put slices of the pear on the side because the pear was perfectly ripe and in no need of anything to embellish it, just someone to appreciate how very good a perfect pear can taste!

Jim & Jamie In The Kitchen

Tonight my husband, Jim, prepared dinner following one of Jamie Oliver's recipes. I asked him especially because venison is almost always cooked by him. Venison is deer meat. My husband is a hunter and any venison in our freezer is there because my husband was successful in his hunt.Not only does my husband hunt and kill the deer , he cuts and wraps the deer for the freezer. Thus, all venison we cook is thankfully received from God, and thereafter preserved and prepared by my dear husband. Jamie Oliver aptly named this dish : "Wild Mushroom & Venison Stroganoff For Two Lucky People" (If venison is not available to you, I think any beef fillet would do nicely) because the ingredients and flavors were a very pleasant surprise to us!

(above:My husband in the kitchen) Wild Mushroom & Venison for Two Lucky People

You will need:

• 7 ounces white rice
• extra virgin olive oil
• 1 med. red onion, peeled and finely chopped
• 1 clove garlic, peeled and finely chopped
• 11 ounces venison loin, fat and sinews removed, trimmed and sliced into finger-sized pieces
• sea salt & freshly ground pepper
• 1 tablespoon paprika
• 9 ounces mixed exciting, robust mushrooms, wiped clean, torn into bite-sized pieces ( we only had supermarket mushrooms, exciting enough for us)
• a small bunch of fresh flat-leafed parsley, leaves picked and roughly chopped, stalks finely chopped
• a knob of butter ( don't you just love the way the Brits describe this?)
• a good splash of brandy
• zest of 1/2 of a lemon
• 1/2 cup creme fraiche or sour cream
• a few little gherkins ( pickles) sliced

"This venison stroganoff is absolutely fantastic , of course you can use the more traditional beef fillet instead of venison, and any mushrooms you like, but there's something about venison and wild mushrooms that works so well together. Have a go at this and you'll know what I mean." J. Oliver "Cook the rice according to the package instructions until it's just undercooked and drain in a colander. Put the rice back into the pan, cover with aluminum foil and leave to one side to steam~this will give you incredibly light and fluffy rice." "Heat a large frying pan on a medium heat and pour in a glug of extra virgin olive oil. Add the onions and garlic and cook for about 10 minutes until softened and golden. Remove from the heat and spoon the onions and garlic out of the pan onto a plate. Keep to one side." "Season the meat well with salt, pepper and the paprika. Rub and massage these flavorings into the meat. Place the frying pan back on a high heat and pour in some more olive oil.Add the mushrooms and fry for a few more minutes until they start to brown.Then add the meat and fry for a minute or two before adding the parsley stalks ( you can do this in two pans or in batches if your pan is not big enough) and the cooked onion and garlic. Toss and add the butter and brandy." "You don't have to light the hot brandy, but flaming does give an interesting flavor so I always like to do this. Once the flames die down, or after a couple of minutes of simmering, stir in the lemon zest and all but 1 tablespoon of the creme fraiche and season to taste. Continue simmering for a few minutes. Any longer than this and the meat will toughen up~it doesn't need long, as it's been cut up so small." "Serve your fluffy rice on one big plate and your stroganoff on another. Simply spoon the remaining creme fraiche over the stroganoff, then sprinkle over the sliced gherkins* and the parsley leaves. Eat at once!"

*My husband and I almost did NOT add the sliced pickles. However, I am learning from following the recipes as precisely as possible that things I would have normally ignored because they seem yucky to me might not be as yucky as I imagined and here Jamie Oliver is RIGHT! We did add the gherkins ( pickles) and were very, very pleasantly surprised. Be sure you add pickles to this dish whether you use venison or beef. You'll be glad you did!The lemon zest also contributed to the taste experience, for the better. My husband did a wonderful job of preparing this dish following Jamie Oliver's recipe and if you are fortunate to have a bit of venison or beef this is well worth your time. I am giving you an A+ Jamie and Jim! Jamie well-named this dish " for two lucky people", and WE are!

Jamie Oliver's Cheese & Onion Salad With Dressing

This is our lettuce patch in the garden, the picture was taken in July. My husband has 3 beds of lettuces growing.He plants lettuce in the spring and it is still growing, although scarce and rangy this time of the year. Since I am following Jamie Oliver's wonderful cookbook as it relates to seasons in the garden ( and for those of you who frequent Farmer's Markets this would be the same) I decided to try out this recipe with some of our remaining lettuces. I harvested quite a bit of lettuce and washed and dried each leaf. I did munch on a lot of the lettuces as I was preparing this dish and they are oh, so good all by themselves and without any additions or adornments! My husband was away on business when I made this so I set a little tray for my dinner and added some chicken breast drizzled in *Mary's Cranberry Dressing. ( click* to view recipe).

Cheese and Onion Salad With Creamy Herb Dressing ( EASY!)

• 8 small shallots, peeled and finely sliced
• sea salt and freshly ground pepper
• white wine vinegar
• 1 romaine or cos lettuce ( I used ours from the garden)
• 1 Boston or Bibb lettuce, outer leaves removed, washed and spun dry, leaves separated ( we actually had some of this lettuce in our garden too)
• 4 large handfuls of mixed salad leaves ( such as arugula, oak leaf and a little dandelion) washed and spun dry, leaves separated ( picked from our garden)
• 4 ounces Roquefort cheese., crumbled
• a good handful of walnuts, toasted and crumbled
• optional: a small handful of chive or allium flowers

Jamie Oliver introduces this easy recipe by saying ," Have a go at this recipe, even if you don't particularly like onions in salads, as they're quite mild. You can use sweet red onions instead of shallots if you like. And feel free to use any interesting mixed salad leaves. "Place the shallots in a small bowl with a generous pinch of salt and pour over just enough white wine vinegar to cover. You'll pour away the excess salt and vinegar once the onions are pickled, so don't worry if you think it's a bit much! Scrunch everything together with your hands and leave to marinate for at least 10 minutes. To make the dressing you'll need: extra virgin olive oil, 2 Tablespoons Creme Fraiche, 1 Tablespoon red wine vinegar . Mix 4 tablespoons of olive oil with the creme fraiche ( see note below) and the red wine vinegar . Whisk everything together and season to taste. Squeeze the shallots hard with your hands and drain. Place the salad leaves on a plate. From a height , sprinkle over the shallots and the crumbled Roquefort. Scatter over the crumbled walnuts-it's really nice if they're still a bit warm from being toasted. I like to drizzle over the dressing at the table. Finish by throwing some torn up chive or allium flowers if you have them."

This salad was delicious, I might bring it to our potluck and add pasta to it to make it a filling meal all on its' own!

~I have really learned a lot by reading through and following these recipes. I thought I had a pretty good understanding of basic cooking and putting meals together and usually take a look at a recipe that interests me , gather the basic ingredients and proceed on my own, winging it. Since I accepted my husbands' challenge to make one of JAMIE"S recipes every week and blog about it I have had to follow the recipe as precisely as possible, after all , these are HIS recipes. What I have learned is that there are so many subtle things in recipes I never paid attention to ( such as procedures, herbs and flavorings) that completely transform a meal or dish from" O.K. and tasty" to " delicious, interesting and tasty"! Now I know why many of my husband's lovingly prepared meals go beyond the ordinary. Guess there is a good reason to be storing all those herbs, sauces, oils,vinegars, etc, in the cupboards, pantry and refrigerator. NOTE:Creme Fraiche, this is used in a LOT of recipes that originate outside the U.S. We can buy it at Trader Joe's which is not close or convenient to us.I have searched for it in all our local ( local being within 25 miles) supermarkets and have not found it. You can make a substitute for it. Just Google "Substitutes for Creme Fraiche". I would give you the substitute for it here but found several and if you google it yourself you will find the best one for you. Anyone out there feel strongly about the best substitute for it? Let us know, please!

Jamie Oliver friday~Sweet Cherry Tomato & Sausage Bake~

Our garden is still going gangbusters with tomatoes and cucumbers, so of course I chose another Jamie Oliver tomato recipe. This Friday's recipe is Jamie Oliver's Sweet Cherry Tomato & Sausage Bake and it is very, very easy to make AND eat. You will need:

• 4 1/4 pounds lovely ripe cherry tomatoes, mixed colors if you can find them ( I used our garden cherry and Roma tomatoes , I chopped the Romas up into quarters)
• 2 sprigs each of fresh thyme, rosemary and bay ( from our garden)
• 1 Tablespoon dried oregano ( from our garden)
• 2 cloves garlic, peeled and chopped
• 12 good-quality coarse Italian pork sausages
• extra virgin olive oil
• balsamic vinegar
• sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

"Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Get yourself an appropriately sized roasting pan, large enough to take the tomatoes in one snug- fitting layer. Put in all your tomatoes, the herb sprigs, oregano, garlic and sausages. Drizzle well with extra virgin olive oil and the balsamic vinegar and season with the salt and pepper. Toss together then make sure the sausages are on top and pop the pan into the oven for half an hour. After this time, give it a sake and turn the sausages over. Put back into the oven for 15 to 30 minutes, depending on how golden and sticky you like your sausages." "Once it's cooked, you'll have an intense tomatoey sauce. If it's a little too thin, lift out the sausages and place the pan on the stove to cook it down to the consistency you like-I tend to make mine quite thick- then put the sausages back in. Check the seasoning and then serve either with a good quality loaf of bread warmed through in a low oven for 10 minutes, great for mopping up the sauce~ or with mashed potato, rice or polenta, a green slald and a nice glass of wine." Jamie Oliver

This ( above) is what it looked like before I put it into the oven, and below I dished it up and put it on top of mashed potatoes. Our garden also has produced a LOT of potatoes . The sweet corn, green beans, potatoes, tomatoes and herbs all came from our garden.

I did not cook the sauce down until thick because I like it thinner, however, my husband said he prefers the sauce cooked down, and next time he would like this served over rice or noodles. So I baked the remaining sausages and tomatoes for another hour on low heat and it is perfect! Hunting season is drawing near for my husband and Jamie has a few game recipes I think we need to try. I am really enjoying this cook book because he does cook with what is in season in his garden and in his area of the world, England. Amazingly, his garden and game opportunities are very similar to ours which makes this a very practical cook book for us. Plus, Jamie's book, JAMIE AT HOME is a beautiful book, real eye candy!

Jamie Olivers Summer Tomato Pasta

It's my Jamie Oliver Friday! He has some tasty dishes in his book that require fresh from the garden tomatoes, and boy do we have those, in abundance. This is the first year ever we have had so many tomatoes ripen. The Pacific Northwest summers in our neck of the woods don't usually lend themselves to ripe tomatoes and corn this time of the year so Hubby and I are tummy tickling grateful . My recipe for this Friday is Jamie Oliver's Summer Tomato Pasta. This recipe is EASY!

You will need:

• 1 pound dried fusilli ( pasta)
• sea salt & freshly ground black pepper
• 6 tablespoons butter, cubed
• 2 tablespoons Balsamic Vinegar
• 2 large bunches of mixed soft herbs ( like green and purple basil, marjoram,flat-leaf parsley,thyme tips and oregano) leaves picked , a few baby leaves reserved, the rest roughly chopped. ( we got this from our garden)
• 1 and 1/2 pounds mixed cherry tomatoes, roughly chopped ( we got these from our garden)
• extra virgin olive oil
• a block of Parmesan cheese for grating

"Pour some boiling water from the kettle into a pan over the heat and add the pasta and some salt. Place a large metal or earthenware bowl on top of the pan. Put the butter, balsamic vinegar and chopped herbs in the bowl and warm until the butter has melted. Now squeeze in the tomatoes, season with salt and pepper, then remove the bowl ( from the top of boiling pasta pan) and put to one side. Give the pasta a stir." "With clean hands ( I hope this is standard procedure for you while cooking) really scrunch the tomatoes and all the flavors in the bowl together. Have a little taste and decide whether they need some more seasoning or vinegar." "When the pasta is cooked according to the package instructions, drain it in a colander, reserving some of the cooking water. Tip the pasta into the bowl with your tomatoes and stir the sauce into the pasta. Drizzle with a good glug of extra virgin olive oil , loosen with some of the reserved cooking water if need be, and sprinkle over the reserved baby herb leaves. Serve with a block of Parmesan cheese for grating over. Lovely with some olives thrown in." Delicious, and as I said above, easy! This weekend is going to be a busy one. The Harvest Fest is tomorrow, and there is a farm tour in Pierce County that has our little community center on the tour. It is also supposed to rain, of course! I think I will be bringing my little propane heater to warm my feet while I spin wool. Maybe I will be wearing one of my wool rugs on my lap too. Immediately after the Harvest Fest we have an event to be part of that will be life-changing for some of the participants... God is gracious and He is kind. Maybe I will write about this event later, for now we are hopeful and excited about the future . Praise God! "And may you have the power to understand ...how wide, how long, how high, and how deep His love really is....then you will be filled with the fullness of life and power that comes from God." Ephesians 3:18-19

Jamie's Beef Carpaccio With Marinated Bean Salad

This is sooooooooooo delicious! I never knew how adding just the right combo of ingredients and following such a simple recipe that included a few easy techniques I have never tried, could be so very good and...well, easy!Much easier and quicker than you would think , given how wordy the recipe is. My husband and I were very happily surprised. I had another recipe to present tonight but my husband said I needed to do this one, so here goes..... "Carpaccio is very thinly sliced raw meat....you don't need loads of meat for this, just a couple of slices per person, which should allow you to spend a little more on a good-quality piece of beef." You will need:

• sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 9 ounces green or mixed beans, topped but not tailed ( we got them from our garden)
• 1 -1lb. piece of beef fillet
• few sprigs of fresh thyme ( got these from our herb garden)
• olive oil

For the marinade:

• 2 small shallots or 1/2 a small red onion, peeled and very finely chopped
• a handful of fresh soft herbs ( chervil, parsley, yellow inner celery, tarragon), leaves picked and chopped
• 1 teaspoons Dijon mustard
• 1 1/2 tablespoons white wine vinegar
• extra virgin olive oil

"Bring a large pot of salted water to the boil. Drop the beans in and cook for about 5 minutes. When perfectly done drain them in a colander." "To make the marinade, mix the shallot or onion in a bowl with the herbs, mustard, vinegar and 4 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil. Season with the salt and pepper to taste, then add the hot cooked beans and toss. Put to one side to allow the beans to cool down and take on all the fantastic flavors." "Place the beef fillet on a chopping board and season it all over with salt and pepper. Run thyme sprigs under hot water for a few seconds-this will help release their fragrant oils. Strip the leaves from the stalks and chop them up roughly. Sprinkle the thyme over the fillet, then roll the meat around the chopping board so that any excess seasoning and herbs stick to it." "Get a heavy frying pan very hot and add a splash of oil, followed by the beef fillet. Fry for 1 minute only, turning it every few seconds to sear and encrust all the lovely flavorings onto it. Take the meat out of the frying pan and put it on a plate to rest for a minute. ( once seared, you can serve straightaway or you can keep the meat covered on a plate until needed. I prefer not to keep it in the fridge.)" "Using a sharp knife, now slice the seared fillet this thick:---- Lay each slice on a board and flatten as much as you can by pressing down on them with the side of a chopping knife-it works a treat. Lay 2 or 3 slices out flat on each plate. Season again lightly and place a pile of beans on top, spooning over some of the marinade. Sprinkle over any leftover herb leaves and drizzle with some good extra virgin olive oil." Jamie Oliver ( Jamie At Home) I am enjoying trying out new recipes that include fresh herbs and vegetables in season. We still have loads of tomatoes and beans, carrots, corn and potatoes to harvest. According to the weather man we are in for frost very soon so I am taking advantage of Jamie's late summer recipes .

Jamie Oliver's Incredible Baked Cauliflower & Broccoli Cannelloni

This is the first recipe I tried out of my new Jamie Oliver Cook Book. Jamies' book is based on the seasons in a garden and what other meats and produce are most available in particular seasons. As our garden and our daughter's garden are producing abundances of tomatoes and broccoli and cauliflower now, I started in his late summer / early fall section with 'Incredible Baked Cauliflower and Broccoli Cannelloni .

Ingredients

• sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1 pound broccoli & 1 pound cauliflower, washed , florets and stems chopped(*from our daughter's garden~ and he really does mean CHOPPED!)
• olive oil
• 7 cloves garlic, peeled and finely sliced
• small bunch of fresh thyme, leaves picked (*from our herb garden)
• 1 ounce can best quality anchovies in oil, drained and chopped, oil reserved
• 2-3 small dried chilies, crumbled
• 2 cups good quality tomato sauce. ( *tomato sauce made from our garden tomatoes)
• good quality red-wine vinegar
• 2 cups creme' fraiche
• 7 ounces finely grated Parmesan cheese
• 16 cannelloni tubes
• small bunch of fresh basil, leaves picked ( *from our daughter's garden)
• 7 ounces mozzarella cheese (*Jamie says "tear"over the recipe, but I grated this & sprinkled liberally over the top)
• extra virgin olive oil

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Bring a large sauce pan of salted water to boil and drop in the chopped broccoli and cauliflower. Boil for 5-6 minutes, until cooked, then drain in colander reserving some of the cooking water(*You don't need to save more than 2 cups). Heat a wide saucepan, pour in a couple good glugs of olive oil and add the garlic. Fry for a few seconds, then add the thyme leaves, anchovies, anchovy oil and chilies and continue frying for a few seconds more before adding the cooked broccoli and cauliflower with around 4 tablespoons of the reserved cooking water. Stir everything together, put a lid on the pan leaving a little gap, and cook slowly for 15 to 20 minutes, stirring regularly-overcooking the veg not only intensifies their flavor but gives you the texture you need for this recipe. Remove the lid for the last 5 minutes to let the moisture evaporate, then use a potato masher to crush the veg. Take the saucepan off the heat, taste the vegetables and season carefully with salt and pepper.( *This alone would make a delicious veg dish!) Spread the mixture on a baking sheet to cool. Meanwhile, get yourself another baking dish or roasting pan ( the right size for fitting the cannelloni tubes snugly side by side ) and pour in the tomato sauce with a pinch of salt and a swig of red wine vinegar. (*Jamie does not say anywhere to pre-boil the cannelloni, but I did anyway not trusting it to be done enough otherwise. I am glad I did. I precooked the tubes for about 6 minutes and they were easy to handle and baked up perfect) Now, to make a really quick and easy white sauce, mix the creme' fraiche with half the Parmesan, a sprinkling of salt and pepper and a little of the cooking water to thin it down. Spoon your cooled broccoli and cauliflower mixture into the tubes. (*Jamie proceeds to talk about turning a sandwich bag into a squeeze bag to squirt into the tubes, which I did, then gave up and spooned it into the tubes which turned out to be way easier and less messy. I stood the tubes in a chunky glass to stand them up for easier filling.) Fill the tubes up~don't be stingy!~and place them in a single layer on top of the sauce. Lay the basil leaves over the cannelloni and spoon your white sauce evenly over the top. Season with black pepper, sprinkle over the remaining Parmesan and tear over the Mozzarella. Drizzle with extra virgin olive oil and bake for 30 to 40 minutes , or until golden on top. This is delicious! I will make this many more times, but after making it for the first time following Jamies' advice I have decided he probably has help with the clean up because I used most of my big pans and bowls. I know now how to streamline the making of this recipe without changing a thing. So very worth making! Thank-you Jamie~ NOTE: I have posted Jamie's recipe according to his book, any comments with an asterisk are mine. I have not added all Jamies' wonderful comments on gardening, his experiences and colorful anecdotes because it is HIS book and well worth purchasing for it's beauty and practicality. I have added some of my own remarks to make some things more clear or explain some things that might be very clear to the British reader but not to many Americans.

Crispy Lavender Chicken

Crispy Lavender Chicken & Lavender Cookbook

Have I mentioned I very much like lavender and that we have quite a bit of it growing in our gardens? After attending the Lavender Festival in Sequim, Washington I was inspired to do more with our lavender. This recipe just appealed to me , and I am glad I tried it out. The chicken was delicious right out of the oven, and then again cold, right out of the fridge. The little bit of lavender in it gave it a zing, but was not perfumey tasting. I will definitely be making this again. Here is the recipe:

• 1 Tablespoon ( rounded or heaping ) mayonnaise
• 1/2 teaspoon lemon juice
• 1/2 teaspoon lavender ( dried)
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon paprika
• 2 skinned breasts of chicken ( I used 4 thighs WITH skin on, what can I say, I love hot greasy chicken skin)
• 1 oz. cornmeal
• 1/2 cup seasoned breadcrumbs

Combine mayo and lemon juice. Combine bread crumbs with cornmeal, salt, lavender, and paprika. Spread chicken with mayo / lemon mixture. ( I spread the mayo / lemon mixture under the skin ) Dip in crumbled mixture, coating well on all sides. Bake at 400 degrees for 40 to 50 minutes or until chicken is tender.

recipe from CELEBRATE LAVENDER FESTIVAL cookbook. recipe by Irma Colvin "And the earth brought forth vegetation, plants yielding seed after their kind, and trees bearing fruit,with seed in them, after their kind: and God saw that it was good." Genesis 1:12

The Truth About MeatLoaf, MeatLoaf Formula

~I was so filled with joy at the good news for us today that I felt like making one of my Hubby's favorite dinners. I am one of those people who under stress, or too busy...forget to eat. I even forget my Hubby needs to eat...poor Hubby. Well, I would prepare a good meal for him tonight. See ? ( above ) Meat loaf with acorn squash , home made coleslaw, and mushrooms sauteed in butter. I know, the baked potatoes are missing but I forgot to buy potatoes and did not want to make the trip to town just for potatoes..O.K., just slap me if you're upset I dislike potatoes. Anyway, Hubby said the baked acorn squash with butter and brown sugar was just fine and dandy. But hey, he had chocolate cake with chocolate frosting, REAL homemade butter cream chocolate ( with real butter ) frosting! ~Anyway, there are several things that are true about meat loaf that make it the perfect meat for dinner....

1. Meat loaf can contain ANY type of ground meat, or any combo of ground meats!
2. Meat loaf is a good companion dish to potatoes ( yuck )
3. Meat loaf is the meal that if I tell my Hubby we will be having it for dinner, and something happens that I am unable to actually prepare and serve it for dinner, why...it can pretty much ruin my Hubby's day, because......
4. If he knows we are having meat loaf for dinner he looks forward to dinner ALL day and
5. he believes the best reason of all to have meat loaf for dinner is the meat loaf sandwiches for lunch the NEXT day! ( below)

~Here is the meat loaf recipe I began using before I was married and it is from Redbook Magazine, must have been printed more than 37 years ago...it is actually a FORMULA for meat loaf, so here goes the fail proof recipe for Meat Loaf;

MEAT LOAF FORMULA

1. 2 cups fine soft bread crumbs, or rolled oats, or crackers
2. 2/3 cup finely chopped peeled onion
3. 2 teaspoons salt
4. 1/4 teaspoon pepper
5. 1/2 cup milk, or tomato sauce, or red wine, or ?( liquid )
6. 2 eggs
7. 2 pounds of ground meat in any combination,I have used pork and venison, hamburger and pork, hamburger and turkey...or 2 pounds of just beef...you get the picture. Hey , you could use 2 pounds of rattlesnake and ground rabbit if you want.

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Place bread crumbs, onion, salt and pepper,and liquid in a large bowl. Combine thoroughly. Add the eggs, combine.Break the ground meat up and add to the mixture. Mix thoroughly ( I use my hands for this) Bake in appropriately sized loaf or casserole pans for 1 and 1/2 hours. Pour off excess fat and for easy slicing let sit about 10 minutes before serving.

Although I always use this formula, my meat loaves vary because I vary seasonings, types of bread crumbs,liquids,and sometimes add chopped herbs . So my meat loaves are reliably firm and slice easily, but taste is always slightly different. Keeps things exciting in the kitchen...and that's the truth about meat loaf here at Cedar Pond and I am sticking to this story.

Spot of Cookie Baking

~I am going to visit my sons and their families today! Four of my granddaughters live there and granddaughters love cookies. Especially Grandma's cookies.( The sons and daughter-in-law love cookies too)I baked a LOT of cookies today. Chocolate chip cookies, and oatmeal cookies. ~Here is the recipe for very, very, good chocolate chip cookies. In fact, my sons baked these for the fairs when they were in 4H and our oldest son won a grand champion ribbon for them, so I can call them........

PRIZE WINNING CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES

1. 2 cups brown sugar
2. 2 cups sugar
3. 1 pound of butter
4. 4 eggs ( farm fresh is best )
5. 2 tsp. vanilla ( real vanilla)
6. 5 cups flour
7. dash of salt
8. 2 teaspoons baking soda
9. 3 cups chocolate chips
10. 3 cups walnuts ( because one granddaughter has allergy to peanuts I substituted MORE chocolate chips for nuts)

Cream together well butter and sugars. Add eggs and vanilla. Mix until well blended. Sift together dry ingredients and add to creamed ingredients. Stir in chocolate chips and nuts. I sometimes add chunks of candy bars to this recipe.

BAKE 325 degrees for 10 to 12 minutes

~Of course I had to eat a few cookies, just to make sure they tasted O.K. Fresh coffee and good things to read are always nice with the cookies you have to taste. ( you know, to make sure they are really good) Blessings: rainy days to bake cookies, baking cookies, granddaughters

Hubby Likes to Cook

~This was made by my Hubby on his first wine pairing and tasting here in our home. Very, very tasty! Isn't this dish pretty? The outer circle is endive leaves with dollops of herbed goat cheese in them. The inner circle of this dish is Phyllo Crab Cups, by Cheryl Spiropoulos and published in April / May 2006 issue of TASTE of HOME.

Phyllo Crab Cups

1 package ( 8 ounces) softened cream cheese 2 to 3 tablespoons horseradish sauce 3/4 cup imitation chopped crab meat 1 tablespoon chopped green onion 2 packages ( 2.1 ounces each ) frozen miniature phyllo tart shells ( NOTE: we used phyllo dough cut in circles and pushed down into a tart baking pan. A pan that looks like it is for baking miniature cupcakes.) Paprika In a small bowl beat the cream cheese and horseradish until smooth. Stir in the crab and onion. Spoon 2 to 3 teaspoons into each tart shell. Sprinkle with paprika. Place tart shells on baking sheet or tart pan into 350 degree oven for 16 - 18 minutes or until tops begin to brown. Yields 2 1/2 dozen

~I set the table in preparation for this meal and tasting. We had 2 other couples over .~

~Here is my Hubby, reading over his wine list and talking about wine and food pairings. The food he prepares is oh so good. But the fellowship and fun of just being with special people makes this even better.

" Here is what I have seen to be good and fitting; to eat, to drink and enjoy oneself in all one's labors in which he toils under the sun during the few years of his life which God has given him; for this is his reward."Ecclesiastes 5:18

Valentine's Day Cranberry Bread

~I took this picture around midnight while the loaves of cranberry nut bread were still hot. I haven't been feeling good and should have been resting but I HAD to bake! Blame it on NOBLE PIG and her recipe for Hungry Housewife's Banana Bread, 2/11/09. I so wanted to make and eat that banana bread, but alas, I have everything but ripe bananas and the supermarket had no ripe bananas, even ones hiding in the back of the produce section. So I bought bananas that should be ripe enough next week to make this fantastic looking and sounding bread. ~However, I did have some fantastic ingredients for cranberry bread. Not just any cranberries either, I had the cranberries left over from my home made cranberry liqueur. Chopped cranberries that have soaked in vodka and a few other ingredients for over 2 months!Cranberries soaked in citrus peel and vodka...now wouldn't it be a waste to throw those out to the chickens ? ( The chickens might disagree ) The picture above shows the freshly drained and bottled cranberry liqueur, along side the cranberries and the loaves of very tasty bread!I wish you could see how beautiful the rich red cranberry liqueur is when the sun shines through it. ~The liqueur was made to give as gifts along with a recipe for cake that requires the liqueur, however Barb, a friend, suggested the liqueur would be very good drizzled over cheesecake ! Sounds delicious Barb!

Cranberry Nut Bread ( loosely based on Better Homes & Gardens Cookbook recipe)

2 cups sifted all purpose flour 3/4 cup sugar 1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder 1 teaspoon salt 1/2 teaspoon soda 1 beaten egg ( farm fresh is best ! ) 1 teaspoon grated lemon or orange peel 3 / 4 cup fresh squeezed orange juice 2 Tablespoons oil 1 cup chopped and vodka soaked cranberries ( drained ) O.K., chopped fresh cranberries if you must 1/2 to 3/4 cup chopped walnuts Sift together dry ingredients. Combine egg,peels, oil and juice, add to the dry ingredients stirring til moistened. Fold in the nuts and cranberries. Bake in a 9X5X3 " loaf pan , 350 degrees for an hour or until done. Remove from the pan, cool wrap and store at least a day before eating. ( You can cheat though, just one buttered slice before putting it away for a day.) I made this cranberry bread in December and it was very, very good. It is so pretty and with the red cranberries throughout and drizzled on top, it makes a good quick bread for Valentine's Day. Interested in making cranberry liqueur ? Click here: Home made Cranberry Liqueur Blessings : abundant food, friends and family to share it with