Yogurt, etc.

..might be the last snow for the season though in recent years we had a blizzard in May and a good dusting in June before Buffalo Gnat season which is right before fire season. not much white stuff and that’s okay by me. I like snow but thankful for a mild winter, as compared to my current header picture. over 5 feet (compacted) snow. golly. my garden awaits more temperate temps whereby i can test the soil and amend if necessary. most likely necessary. last year wasn't a particularly great garden year .. for many in my parts.

yesterday i incubated yogurt in my mini instant pot.  the wee pot is for our trailer but i like putting it to use in our home kitchen as well. it's so cute. every couple months we venture to the land of people for 'big shopping' which includes the big box store(s), trader joe's, natural grocers, hobby lobby etc. sometimes all the places and sometimes only one depending on our needs but nearly always trader joe's.  since i make yogurt nearly every week i use the culture from the last week. after a number of weeks fresh culture is needed for the next 6-8 batches. i use trader joe's "thick and creamy greek yogurt" for my culture. it's delish and produces an excellent homemade yogurt without fail. below is a pic i took mid-incubation.

here's a link to this adorable mini instant pot.

MINI-IP

once the eight hours are complete i take the yogurt container from the instant pot base and after putting plastic wrap over the top it goes into the fridge overnight.

the next step is spooning it into my strainer for a day, and into the fridge, 

releasing a decent amount of whey which 

i can use in baking - so it doesn't go to waste. 

here's the link for the strainer:

STRAINER

the whey begins its release quickly.

once this is done i scoop the yogurt into a mason

jar to use throughout the week.

in other news, we've been invited to dinner 

at the home of the professor & the ‘super.’.

the professor tends chickens.

i buy the eggs.

farm fresh perfection.

in addition to dinner she's making

a chocolate angel food cake,

her Nanny's recipe.

we leave in an hour so i best get a move on.

it'll take me that long to apply

my lippystick.

love,

.sherry.

 

and on this monday.

here's a peek at one area of my hutch and corner

nearest a west facing window. our wedding picture

is on the lower right - 37 years coming up in july.

my great grandmother Lula's tea set sits just to

the left of our picture. the vintage coffee pots

were found at a garage sale for $1 each.

i have more, but of course.

they came with electric cords and the whole

lot is in excellent condition, 

making the smoothest coffee ever.

*

there are four pounds each of frozen ground beef

and frozen ground chicken on my countertop,

 thawing in tepid water. my plan is to cook them

into crumbles (separately, of course) this afternoon

 then portion/freeze for future meals. 

it's a time saver when assembling a main meal. 

once thawed which takes little time,

you can reheat the crumbles with

a good drizzle of your sauce choice or 

seasoning, depending on your main dish

and preferences. 

there's a small beef roast thawing alongside the lot

mentioned above, for tomorrow night's dinner 

that will provide leftovers for a day maybe two.

i'm trying to get back to cooking three times

a week rather than a new meal every day.

a great sale on boneless skinless chicken breasts

offered an opportunity to purchase a couple

large'ish flats of the meat. tomorrow i'll flatten

it to about a quarter inch thick, season, and 

fold into bread pans to bake. i saw the tip

on pinterest (chicken shawarma) and figured

it'd work with different seasonings as well.

once baked and cooled a bit i could invert

the chicken to a platter and cut slices

for the dish i'm preparing or to portion

and freeze for a later date.

it's an experiment and i'll share my findings

after the fact. regardless, that chicken's going

to get baked and it'll be yUm. 

i hope. that's my plan.

made salmon and asparagus the other night.

.fail.

too much seasoning on the salmon

and too much salt on the asparagus.

it happens - fails.

it's noon'ish.

a cup of coffee is at my side along

with a cookie made yesterday.

once this blog post is published i'll

continue working on my study topic of

*contentment*

due to be delivered Saturday morning.

a cookie helps. 

as does coffee.

strong, please.

a storm is expected, beginning late tuesday night

and continuing through the weekend. 

so they say.

i'll believe it when i see it.

yet i'm a little ticked we've been experiencing

a false spring - tulips and daffies are

reaching for the sky. no buds or flowers

yet so hopefully they'll be safe just in case

the storm is substantial.

until next time,

.sherry.

"I have learned, in whatsoever state I am,

therewith to be content."

Philippians 4:11

 

a muffin & powdered greens.

 Aspire to live quietly,

and to mind your own affairs,

and to work with your hands.

I Thessalonians 4:11

*

on a recent early morning i came across

a recipe for apple-oat muffins and decided to give

it a try. once the hubs was awake and 

settled in his comfy chair in the

loft, coffee in hand, i set to work. 

the recipe calls for oat flour. 

i have oats in the pantry 

thanks to Azure Standard 

so i simply put some in my food processor,

grinding to a fine powder.

(no need to purchase the flour)

if you have a fancy dancy high powered

blender it'll be quicker job

than a food processor.

the recipe came from Gimme Some Oven

which i'll link at the bottom of this post.

i did make a slight alteration of using

whole milk rather than almond milk.

the muffins were wonderful

and i'll gladly make them again.

one addition i'll make at that time

is raisins along with the apple.

a pat of butter on the muffin, along with a small

dish of greek yogurt mixed with protein powder

and topped with raspberry fruit spread,

and a cut up mandarin orange..

enjoyed while doing my devotions.

last summer's harvest 

{from my garden & farmer's market}

was enjoyed in its fresh state

and i decided to make good use of the

remaining leaves. no sense in tossing.

you've most likely seen and possibly

even purchased *super greens* or similar

products - a good way to add more greens

to your foods - baked goods or smoothies.

i dehydrated and vacuum sealed the greens

then into the pantry they went. 

i used them here and there through

autumn and winter:

soups and baked goods.

this morning

i chose to condense the lot into one

jar by making the greens into a powder

mentioned above. easy peasy!

no longer have i the

need to purchase powdered greens

as a nutrition aid.

a big plus is that it came mostly from our

garden ..... with a couple from

the farmer's market. 

an additional plus being i used

the entire plant. no waste.

here are the empties:

swiss chard, beet leaves, kale, carrot,

sorrel, bok choy, radish leaves

our swiss chard grew SO well last summer,

i plan on growing double 

the amount this coming season.

and here is the 1.5 pint jar holding the powder.

you can see the layers before i mixed it up.

nearly 3 cups of edible greens

a scoop at a time.

thankful.

thinking a protein shake of

blueberries, banana and greens

would be yUm on a warm day

lounging on the front deck in early afternoon.

or on the back deck in morning

after tending my garden plots.

... planning ahead ...

thank you for visiting, friends.

hoping your day brings unexpected joys.

with love,

.sherry.

below is the link for the apple-oat muffins.

sure hope you try the recipe.

if you do, let me know. :)

there's a butternut squash muffin recipe

i plan on trying soon. i have a few butternuts

still to use up so will roast the squash

for a meal then use what's left over 

for the muffins.

Apple Oat Muffins