mastering falafel

I've become slightly obsessed with falafel...eating it, reading about it, finding places that serve it, and of course, cooking it. I love whoever invented it!

I said in my last falafel post, that I will master falafel, and I have! The secret is in preparing the chickpeas...just an overnight soaking, and a run through the food processor turns out perfectly textured falafel!

1 lb dried chickpeas
1 medium onion cut into large pieces
2-3 garlic cloves
3 slices bread (stale or slightly toasted & made into breadcrumbs)
4 T parsley
2 t salt
1/2 t black pepper
2 t cumin
2 t oregano
2 t coriander
2 t baking powder
3 1/2 T water
couple dashes cayenne (optional)

Soak the chickpeas for 12-24 hours. Drain and rinse them, then run them through a food processor until they're coarsely chopped. Add the rest of the ingredients and process just until smooth and well blended.

Form the mixture into small balls (I use a cookie scoop to keep them uniform) and flatten them slightly. I kept them in the fridge while I preheated the deep fryer, then fried them at 375 degrees in small batches, until they were golden brown.

I served them as I always do, in wraps with lettuce, tomato and tzatziki. Everything about this was perfect. It's not identical to, but it's just as good as the falafel I get from Tangiers, which is considered to have the best falafel in the area.

I almost gave up and surrendered to boxed falafel mix. I'm so glad I didn't!

Now maybe I can quit my job and sell falafel sandwiches out of one of those little roach coach lunch wagons in office parks, open a chain of falafel restaurants, sell frozen falafel at wholesale clubs, and retire off the profits from my falafel empire!

It's an underserved market ;-)

cupcakes

Cupcakes represent most of what I love in life...they're pretty, whimsical, cute, and delicious. Really, what else do you need?

Give me a vanilla cupcake with buttercream icing in an inspired color (pink!), and in my point of view, all is right with the world :)

This past week was in need of "righting" so it's no surprise that when the weekend came, I tied on my favorite cherries patterned apron and baked the simplest, prettiest cupcakes I know.

The best part of any cupcake is the icing. I like it pretty, piped and swirly! Even if the cupcakes themselves came from a box (these didn't), there are few excuses for not making your own icing, and no excuse for not piping it ;)

Buttercream icing:

1 stick of butter, cut into pieces
1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
2 T milk
1 t vanilla extract
food coloring

In a small bowl, beat the butter with an electric mixer until it's white and fluffy. Gradually beat in half the sugar, the milk and vanilla, then the other half of the sugar. Mix in food coloring a few drops at a time, until it's the perfect color. This delicate pink only required 2 drops of red for the entire bowl.

I piped the icing onto the cupcakes using a large star tip. I started at the outside and worked my way in and up!

homemade acv toner

This apple cider vinegar toner costs next to nothing to make, but it helps even my skintone, makes my pores appear smaller, and controls shine.

Most of the ingredients are readily available at the grocery store. Some grocery stores are beginning to carry essential oils, but you may need to hit a natural foods store to pick up the essential oils. If you don't have one of those near you, there's always Ebay, or The Personal Formulator.

To make this toner, you'll need:

1/3 cup apple cider vinegar
2/3 cup distilled water
3 green tea bags
ylang ylang oil
lemon essential oil

Bring 2/3 cup distilled water to a boil, remove from heat, add 3 green tea bags, and allow it to steep for at least a half hour. Remove the tea bags and allow it to cool.

This toner should be stored in a blue or amber bottle. I use an 8 oz cobalt glass bottle from Specialty Bottle.

Add the green tea concentrate, 1/3 cup apple cider vinegar, 12 drops ylang ylang oil, and 12 drops lemon essential oil to the bottle. Shake to mix.

I use this toner morning and night, followed by my vitamin c serum, Renova, eye cream, and sunscreen.

I buy my green tea at the asian grocery. Each tea bag wrapper has a picture of a tai chi guy, and says, "fragrant aroma mellow taste homely refresher valuable gift". I'm not quite sure what that means, but it makes me smile :)

You can adjust the strength of this toner to suit your skin type. Add more vinegar for oily skin; less for dry skin. If you have dry skin, you might consider cutting back on or skipping the ylang ylang oil altogether.

sageandsimple.com

You can now access my blog here: http://www.sageandsimple.com/

The old blogspot link will still work, but this one is much easier to remember!

Please tell your friends :)

solar panels - april report

Our first electric bill since turning on our solar system is here and it's even better than we expected! The pre-installation assessment estimated that we'd generate about 40% of our power, but we're actually generating about two-thirds!

Between March 18 and April 16, we used 126 kWh, and generated 80 kWh. So, in 1 month, we've only purchased 46 kWh of power from the grid!

Our provider (CL&P) charges $.122170 per kWh, resulting in $5.62 of generation charges for the month. Our actual bill was $24.25 because of $18.63 in delivery and other charges, but there's no way around that (we tried).

During the same period last year, we bought 410 kWH, resulting in a bill of $78.89. This year, we're using less than 1/3 of that. So, in addition to generating the majority of our power, the solar panels have helped us to become more mindful of our consumption :)

We've become slightly neurotic about our electricity usage. We bought a Kill A Watt meter and have been testing every electrical device in our house, seeking out secret offenders. We've had quite a few surprises; I'll post on that later.

Happy Earth Day!

homemade yogurt

It seemed daunting at first...monitoring temperatures, handling live cultures, and knowing just how long to incubate, but I'm pleased to say that after a little bit of practice, I can consistently turn out quart jars of delicious homemade yogurt in under a half hour (not including incubation).

I use the Salton YM9 yogurt maker. Amazon's price fluctuates, but I was able to pick mine up for $12.99 this past December (as I'm writing this, they're charging $23.74, wait it out). It comes with a plastic insert for incubating the yogurt, but the idea of incubating it for several hours in plastic didn't sit well with me, so I use a 1-quart wide mouth Mason jar.

I'm on my second candy thermometer, I accidently smashed my other (nicer) one on the granite counter. I thought about getting a digital one, but the old fashioned $3 mercury version works just fine.

To make a quart of yogurt:

3 3/4 cups of lukewarm water
1 2/3 cups dry milk powder
1 t yogurt culture (or 3 T prepared yogurt with active cultures)
a candy thermometer
a way to incubate it

In a large saucepan, whisk together the water and milk powder. Let it sit for a few minutes to dissolve, then whisk again and heat it over medium heat to 180 degrees F.

Remove it from the stove and allow it to cool to 115 degrees F. This is very important because if it's any hotter, it will kill your cultures. Add 1 t of dry active cultures, or 3 T of prepared yogurt with active cultures, stir it well, let it sit a minute or two, then stir it again.

I generally use yogurt from my previous batch as starter, but over time the cultures weaken, so once every half dozen batches or so, I use new dry cultures.

I buy mine at Amazon. It's about $3 for 2 packets, which is enough for 4 batches. I buy them when I need a little help getting to the Free Super Saver Shipping minimum ;)

Once I've added the cultures, I pour it into a 1-quart wide mouth Mason jar, and set it into the yogurt maker.

I incubate it covered for 5-6 hours. Most recipes will tell you 6-8 hours, but I prefer milder yogurt, and incubating it for longer makes it too tart for my taste. This is totally a matter of personal preference.

Once it's done incubating, I strain it through my yogurt cheese maker (also bought at Amazon).

A few hours will strain off enough whey to create something similar in texture to Greek style yogurt (like Fage). This strained yogurt works great in place of sour cream and is one of my favorite ways to the cut fat out of my cooking. It's also the perfect texture for the tzatziki sauce I love with my falafel!

Straining it overnight results in something of spreadable consistency that is great on toast, bagels, etc., or in place of cream cheese in cooking.

The milk powder for one batch costs about $.35, that's way less than the price of one tiny cup of Fage yogurt from the grocery store! Of course, the price will be higher if you opt to use regular milk, but unless you're using organic milk, I don't see a benefit to the end product in making it that way.

Mastering soy yogurt is on my to do list, but so far, I haven't had time to try it.

Now, go forth and make yogurt...it's easy, I promise :)

tempeh fajitas

I try to cook from scratch most nights of the week, but working fulltime, commuting, working out, writing this blog, and finding time for my hobbies and projects means that some nights, something's gotta give.

Here's one of my versions of fast food. It's relatively healthy, I can have on the table in about 15 minutes, and it costs less than Taco Bell ;)

8 oz tempeh
an onion
a red or green pepper
a package of fajita seasoning
flour tortillas
sour cream

Thinly slice the tempeh and veggies, then follow the instructions on the seasoning packet. This comes down to sauteing the tempeh in a bit of oil until it starts to brown, then adding the veggies, seasoning packet, and 1/2 cup of water and cooking until crisp tender.

Tonight, I served it with 8-inch store bought flour tortillas and sour cream.

It's also delicious with sliced mushrooms sauteed along with the pepper and onion, and served with salsa and homemade tortillas!

veggie stock

I use veggie stock in many of my recipes, and as the base for most of my soups.

A can of prepared stock costs about $1.50 and I need at least 4 cans to make a pot of soup. Being $6 in the hole for broth alone kind of defeats the purpose of homemade soup, so I make my own.

Here's my base recipe, it can be adapted to whatever you've got on hand:

1 large onion, quartered with the peel
2 celery ribs with leaves, coarsely hopped
2 carrots, peeled & coarsely chopped
2 potatoes, unpeeled & sliced
2 garlic cloves, unpeeled & crushed
1/2 cup coarsely chopped parskey
2 T tamari (or soy sauce)
2 bay leaves
1/2 t whole peppercorns
1/2 t salt

Place everything in a stock pot and cover with 2-3 times the amount of water. Bring it to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 45 minutes to an hour.

If I'm in a time crunch, I pressure cook it instead for 20 minutes.

Once it cools, I strain it into this super classy Carlo Rossi jug for easy storage and pouring!

I actually drank a $10 jug of wine to get the bottle; my thriftiness knows no boundaries (or shame, apparently) ;)

new mudroom curtains

I mentioned last week that I was sewing curtains for my mudroom. I finished them today and what a difference $8.99 and a few hours can make!

Here's the door with a valance I half heartedly reappropriated from somewhere else in the house. It had been like this for longer than I'd like to admit...

And now, with the new curtains made from 2 yards of cotton quilting fabric and tie-backs made from my scrap pile:

I think I'd prefer the curtains a tiny bit longer, but there's no way I'm re-mitering the corners to gain an inch of length! (or maybe there is)

All in all, they turned out pretty well...

Now maybe I can talk my husband into fixing his sloppy edging job (I know you noticed!). In the meantime, take it from me... you're better off painting trim first, then walls ;)

easter bunny

This baby bunny came to visit me in the garden last spring. It was very trusting, and definitely one of the cutest creatures I've ever seen!

Today is my birthday; I turned 28...again ;)

Easter birthdays are kind of a drag, but my husband came through with pastries and Cabernet :)

I'm contemplating treating myself these Royal Doulton tea cups and dessert plates. It seems self-indulgent, but they're just so beautiful!

I can totally picture myself serving coconut cake and tea from my garden with them.

Or, maybe white tea and vanilla cupcakes with a swirl of buttercream icing and a sprinkling of pink sugar...

falafel

I've been making delicious falafel in the crockpot, but that feels like cheating (plus, it contains egg), so I decided to attempt real falafel.

Did I have my work cut out for me! The mixture turned out too watery to hold its shape, so I had to wing it...

I added extra flour, breadcrumbs, and smashed chickpeas until it thickened enough to be formed into patties. To make sure it would hold its shape, I kept it in the freezer while preheating the deep fryer.

The result, though a little too mushy, was flavorful, and scrumptious to look at...




I served it in homemade whole wheat flatbreads with tzatziki sauce, lettuce, and tomato.

This is not over, I will master falafel!

seed watch '09

Here are a couple of brand new shots of my seedlings...I took them tonight! You can see the glow of the grow light off to the left.

I've up-planted 60 seedlings to larger pots. There are still a good number in the bio dome, and I've started a second round. They're getting about 12 hours under the grow light per day.


I'm going use companion planting principles this year to help control pests and improve yields because I'd like to stay organic.

This means I'll need to build new beds. Which in turn means that I need to procure about 2 carloads of vermiculite. Good thing it's a long weekend!

I'd like to get the beds ready so I can possibly start some cool weather crops. I'm also thinking about building a cold frame, but there's so much to do and too little time!

If only I didn't have to sleep or work...

mushroom barley soup

This earthy soup is one of my favorite winter lunches. I highly recommend homemade bread to go with...

1 large onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, pressed
3 carrots, chopped
2 celery stalks, chopped
1/2 lb. barley
9 cups vegetable broth
1 T salt
10 oz. mushrooms, sliced (I like baby bellas)
2 T soy sauce
2 dashes cayenne pepper
black pepper
olive oil

Saute the onion, carrots, celery, and garlic in a bit of olive oil until the onion softens. Add the barley, salt, and broth. Bring it to a boil, reduce heat and simmer 30 minutes. Add the mushrooms and simmer another 25 minutes. Add the soy sauce, cayenne, and black pepper. Season to taste.

I couldn't resist making one last batch before putting this recipe away for the season. It makes about 3 quarts, and it's so filling, it'll feed an army :)

saturday sewing project

I haven't found the right curtains for my mudroom, so I'm sewing them myself!

I chatted with the cutting table lady about Chinese imports, and recommended A Year Without "Made in China". She gave me half off this pretty red cotton fabric! (she said we're kindered spirits) How nice is that?

This gold fabric from my hand me down pile is going to make lovely tie-backs! It's a perfect accent to the warm mustard colored walls and the gold in the curtain fabric.

I've been busy working on this today and hope I'll have a photo of the finished goods to post soon :)

clothesline lesson

The other night, relaxing in my favorite pink Victoria's Secret yoga PJs (bought on clearance, of course!), I felt something crawling on my shoulder. I brushed it away, but didn't see anything.

Convinced that I wasn't imagining things, and determined to find the creepy crawly critter that had taken up residence, I promptly tore off my top in the middle of the kitchen. Still nothing. Weird.

After I was sure that my top was critter free (and that I was maybe losing it), I noticed a huge wood spider upside down on my counter, kicking all 8 of its nasty little legs in the air. Yikes!!! It still gives me the shivers!

This experience has taught me a valuable lesson and now I'm sharing it with you:

If you line dry your laundry outside, be sure to shake it out very well before folding and putting it away.

If you don't, you risk running a boarding house of sorts for big, scary spiders with eyes...and possibly giving your neighbors a free show ;)

Ah, the domestic nuances some of us were never taught!

hand me down hutch

Sometimes, procrastination is good. My decor is minimalist by most accounts, and I'm ok with that. I prefer to buy things used, they're more interesting! I only want to have things I love and finding those things takes time.

Recently, my husband's grandparents downsized and his parents moved to a new home. In the process I've inherited a windfall of exciting hand me downs!

One of my favorites is this hutch...

It gives me much needed storage space and allows me to display things that are too pretty to be hidden away in cabinets.

The antique packages on the top are from my husband's grandmother's kitchen. I've also inherited two complete tea sets and a random collection of pretty dishes.

Now I can serve an elegant tea, and give my baked goods the presentation they deserve! That pink plate on the bottom shelf is begging for a batch of lemon bars ;)