The Saga of the SBCs

For my faithful blog followers, I want to apologize for not writing much this fall. I have been VERY blessed and VERY busy in my new adventures as a relief veterinarian.

This doesn't mean that I haven't been eating new things and trying to grow a fall-winter garden.....but the lack of blogging is also directly correlated to our chickens: Parmesan, Tandoori and Kebab.

As you can see from previous photos, our chickens used to have full access to our backyard. We have a 7 foot solid privacy fence that they never once tried to scale, even though their sister Piper does it regularly.

Once my collards, bok choy, brussels sprouts and lettuce went into the ground, the chickens went to work destroying them. Basically, most vegetation that is tasty to a human is also tasty to chickens. This made me very upset, since I had spent a lot of time and money getting the plants into the ground. To make matters worse....the chickens had not started laying at this point.

Out of frustration, we soon began calling the destructive non productive little she-devils the "SBCs" or STUPID BABY CHICKENS! AARRRRGGHHH!

So despite erecting complicated mesh fencing around our raised beds, somehow they kept breaking in and enjoying my fresh salad. We had to come up with a solution. They now have their OWN yard along the back few beds of our garden that are mostly in the shade. Now that they are completely sequestered, we can go back to calling them "Silly Baby Chickens" or "Sweet Baby Chickens" especially since they've been laying since late November.

I was concerned that the chickens would hit puberty at the wrong time of the year, since most chickens lay less during the short-days of the year and when its cold. Thank goodness for Rhode Island Red hens....nothing phases these little egg factories! They're not called "cold hardy" for nothing!

We are now getting 2-3 eggs per day. During the freezing weather and snow flurries they did stop laying for a few days. Their eggs are delicious, and once they are consumed, the shells go into the compost to help supplement our now chicken-free gardening endeavors.

Cupcakes

Baking Adventure 01.06.2011

I don’t often bake sweet things in my kitchen, so all I had for baking a last-minute batch of chocolate cupcakes was Anson Mills Red Fife bread flour and the Farina Di Pizzaiolo Pizza Maker’s flour.

Being lazy, I did not want to go out in the rain to Publix to buy the commercial “all-purpose flour” that Ina Garten’s recipe called for, so I decided to experiment. I also did not have light brown sugar on hand, so I made my own with molasses and granulated cane sugar.

The eggs in the recipe are compliments of my own Rhode Island Red hens: Parmesan, Kebab and Tandoori. All brands of products used, and other modifications are noted below.

Not knowing the protein content, chemical characteristics, etc of the Red Fife vs. commercial all-purpose flour, this could have been a disaster. The cupcakes turned out very well, light and airy, with a rich flavor. A delightful cupcake that “grown-ups” will love. I know that oven temperature varies from one home to another, and that barometric pressure, humidity and magnetic deviation from true north can make each batch come out differently….but please give this a try! J

· 2 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter (Publix brand), at room temperature

· 2/3 cup granulated sugar (Florida Crystals Florida Natural Cane Sugar)

· 2/3 cup granulated sugar mixed with 1 tablespoon room temperature molasses

· 2 large eggs, at room temperature (from the back yard is best)

· 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

· 1 cup whole buttermilk, shaken, at room temperature

· 1/2 cup (home-made) Greek-style fat free yogurt, at room temperature

· 2 tablespoons brewed espresso (we buy green coffee beans and roast ourselves)

· 1 3/4 cups Anson Mills Red Fife Flour

· 1 cup Ghirardelli Natural Unsweetened Cocoa

· 1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda

· 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

· Kathleen's Peanut Butter Icing, recipe follows

· Chopped salted peanuts, to decorate, optional

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line cupcake pans with paper liners.

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, cream the butter and 2 sugars on high speed until light and fluffy, approximately 5 minutes. Lower the speed to medium, add the eggs 1 at a time, then add the vanilla and mix well. In a separate bowl, whisk together the buttermilk, yogurt, and espresso. In another bowl, sift together the flour, cocoa, baking soda, and salt. On low speed, add the buttermilk mixture and the flour mixture alternately in thirds to the mixer bowl, beginning with the buttermilk mixture and ending with the flour mixture. Mix only until blended. Fold the batter with a rubber spatula to be sure it's completely blended.

Divide the batter among the cupcake pans (1 rounded standard ice cream scoop per cup is the right amount). Bake in the middle of the oven for 20 to 25 minutes, until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool for 10 minutes, remove from the pans, and allow to cool completely before frosting.

Frost each cupcake with Peanut Butter Icing and sprinkle with chopped peanuts, if desired.

Kathleen's Peanut Butter Icing:

· 1 cup confectioners' sugar (I pulsed the Florida Crystals sugar in the food processor to get super fine sugar)

· 1 cup Smucker’s Natural Creamy peanut butter

· 5 tablespoons unsalted butter (Publix brand), at room temperature

· 3/4 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

· 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt

· 1/3 cup skim milk

Place the confectioners' sugar, peanut butter, butter, vanilla, and salt in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. Mix on medium-low speed until creamy, scraping down the bowl with a rubber spatula as you work. Add the cream and beat on high speed until the mixture is light and smooth.

Here is the link to the original recipe—Ina Garten Chocolate Cupcakes

Chanterelles

September 4, 2010

Chanterelles! What a find at today's farmer's market! It is the tail-end of the local mushroom season here, and soon it will become too dry for these little guys.

Captain Woody (who makes his own fresh pasta, sells his own hen's eggs, and grows three varieties of cultivated mushrooms) instructed me to use them within 2 days and that they are fantastic in risotto.

http://www.portroyalfarmersmarket.com/vendor_list.html

I forgot to take a picture of them in their raw state, so please take a look at another South Carolina blog about local mushrooms and foraging....he's got some great pics!

Mushroom Mountain

I love how they just marched out of the woods and into Mellow Mushroom Pizza in Greenville and had them put their wild mushrooms on the pizza!

Since our closest Mellow Mushroom is 40 miles away....I just made my own.

Pizza dough: recipe can be found at www.ansonmills.com

I topped the pizza with a roasted local tomato and red bell pepper sauce that contained a little of our own Charleston Hot Cayenne pepper from the backyard.

The greenery on the pizza is home-grown basil, and we added a small amount of Sweetgrass Dairy Eden goat cheese and also a dusting of Parmesan cheese.

The risotto was pretty good with the chanterelles. I added lots of parsley from our garden and of course, Parmesan cheese. The saffron adds a nice luxurious smokey quality. Here is my favorite risotto recipe! I just substituted the chanterelles for the morel and cremini mushrooms, and substituted local rice for the Arborio.

The best kind of rice for risotto is a round or semi-round short-grain rice such as Arborio. This is the most common rice you see in this dish in restaurants. However, in the Lowcountry, I can just use Carolina Gold Rice. It is a semi-round medium grain rice that puts out plenty of starch for a creamy risotto.

From Carolina Plantation:

"In 1685, a distressed merchant ship paid for repairs in Charleston with a small quantity of rice seed from Madagascar. Dr. Henry Woodward planted the seed in South Carolina, beginning the state’s 200 year history as the leading rice producer in the United States. At the turn of the century, rice cultivation ended in the Low Country South because of a weak market, inadequate machinery, and competition from the Gulf States.

Until recently, most of the “Carolina Gold” on the market, unfortunately has been grown in the Gulf States, not in South Carolina. Because of our commitment to providing authentic Carolina-grown products, Carolina Plantation Rice has devoted a portion of it’s rice acreage to the cultivation of true “Carolina Gold” Rice. Your purchase of this home-grown product keeps South Carolina growing."

Carolina Plantation, found along the Pee Dee River in South Carolina, also produces long-grain aromatic rice, processed into both standard white rice and brown rice.

The Carolina Gold rice is about the same price as an imported Arborio pound-for-pound, so order some and give it a try sometime!

Stone fruit season

The chickens are getting gigantic! They are now 9 weeks old! When we are home we let them run about in the garden, but they rather enjoy the condo that Doug built for them. They love their multi-height roosting system and their shredded junk-mail bedding. When the bedding gets changed, it goes right into the compost! Laying boxes will be installed in September.

I've been working on the late July blog for a while, and I think its time to post!

It has been incredible how many wonderful things are growing just a few miles from my house. Now that I'm working closer to home, I can spend more time seeking out local, fresh and healthier foods. I think Doug likes me cooking almost every night too!

Sadly though, late July means that much of the summer season is coming to a close and we'll be transitioning to fall veggies in our own garden.

We got some of our plants in the ground a little late this year, but we will still have cucumbers and tomatoes on into September if we are lucky.

A few wonderful things that I have come across this July in the Lowcountry have been:

- Plums

- Peaches

- Figs

- Tomatoes

- Sweet corn

- Sweet and hot peppers (chiles)

The pic to the right are local cayenne peppers, I like to dry my own, then grind them into powder I can use all year long.

- Melons

- ETC, ETC, ETC

After a few pictures, I'll share some recipes I either found on the internet, got from the guy at the roadside stand, or just made up myself!

Peach Tart

The easiest pastry recipe of all time, and yes, I modified this recipe from Food Network
Thank you, Ina Garten!

Follow this recipe to the letter, the only changes/substitutions I made:

-Peaches instead of apples (be sure that the peaches are very firm. Most people think that peaches that are firm are not ripe. WRONG! As long as the peach has a nice "blush" on the skin and it's in the store, its ready to go for pies and tarts. For eating raw, its nice to have them a little softer)
-South Carolina golden rum instead of Calvados.
- Orange marmalade instead of apricot preserves (I had good French orange marmalade on hand)

I made this tart for an elderly neighbor who recently lost her husband. I actually gave it to her without testing it....she offered me a slice with coffee and it was VERY GOOD! :)

Local Rockfish with soba noodles

- Rockfish is also known as Striped bass. It is on the Monterey Bay Aquarium Seafood Watch BEST CHOICE list for sustainability in the Southeast region. About 10 years ago numbers were in serious decline in the Chesapeake Bay area, but it has made a remarkable comeback. My fish market, Sea Eagle, carries local South Carolina long-line caught rockfish. They''ll even show you where the hook was in the fish's mouth!

1/2 pound of Rockfish fillets--serves 2 people very well, I even had leftovers
oilve oil
salt and pepper.
- salt and pepper the fish, sautee skin side UP in oilve oil over medium heat for 5 minutes. remove fish from the pan.

If you have "fond" or little bits of fish stuck on the bottom of the pan, deglaze pan with juice of 1 lemon and 1/2 cup of white wine. Take your wooden spoon and pry those bits up!

THEN add to the pan, sautee until soft and sauce reduced on medium heat:

- chopped red bell pepper, medium dice

- medium Vidalia onion, medium dice

- dash of cayenne pepper powder

-1 large fresh tomato, chopped

Add right before you put the fish back in the pan:

- tablespoon of fresh basil, fennel fronds (or 1/2 teaspoon ground fennel seed), fresh parsley.

- 1 tablespoon drained capers.

Put the fish back in the pan skin side DOWN with the veggies on LOW, then cook until the fish is flaky and cooked through but not falling apart.

I'm sure you could do this recipe with cod, grouper, flounder, etc.

Cook SOBA noodles to desired doneness: Soba noodles are a Japanese buckwheat noodle. If you cant find them at your grocery or local Asian market, use whole wheat spaghetti.

Remove fillets to serving dish. Put cooked hot soba noodles into the veggies in the pan, toss with tongs, then place with the fish on serving dish. YUMMY!
Serve with your favorite white wine.

Another thing I enjoyed SO MUCH this summer were Rainier Cherries from Washington State. Yeah, I know they're not local, but, since Doug loves them so much and they were buy one get one free at the Publix....we ate them as snacks and even dried some to eat with granola during the wintertime!

I was planning on making a pie with them, but they were eaten before that could happen. Oh well! Maybe I could soak the dried ones in rum and sugar and then make them into a tart sometime this winter!

NEXT BLOG........August, AVMA and Atlanta! :)

4th of July

Hello all,

I have taken a rather long break from blogging since I have been so busy lately! I have changed jobs and am now enjoying the freedom of part-time and relief veterinary medicine. My new job will keep me rooted in Beaufort, SC and allow for some traveling in the Great State of South Carolina.

I am hoping that the new traveling, especially in the Charleston area, will allow me to source some of my local favorites right from the farms in that area! I was able to pick my own blueberries on my way home from an interview last week.

I have finally gotten around to posting baby chicken pictures! They are now 3 weeks old. The top picture to the right is them at 2 days old. We got 3 Rhode Island Red hens in the mail through http://www.mypetchicken.com/. They should start laying at about 20 weeks of age or so. Their names are Tandoori, Parmesan & KeBab!

This 4th of July I woke to the sounds of boats racing up the Beaufort River and of the chicks peeping away on the porch for their breakfast.

After a breakfast of "Deconstructed French toast" (In honour of the French and their dedication to the Colonists quest for Independence)---recipe to follow---Doug set to work on the chicken's outdoor coop and I took the chicks for a garden outing!

I'm actually writing this sitting on one of Ivy's saddle pads (that needs washing) next to the bird bath in the center of our garden. I have to make sure that the chicks are staying safe since Danger isnt much of a chicken-shepherd. He mostly sits next to me and watches the chicks run by!

We received enough gift cards at the wedding from our loved ones (THANK YOU!) that we were able to buy the Dyson vacuum AND a nice bread & baguette maker. I tried out the baguette maker yesterday and made 4 individual-sized loaves with an extra crisp crust. This morning I figured there was nothing left to do with the leftover bread than make FRENCH TOAST!

"Deconstructed" French Toast...for those of you who find you have too much custard left over!

~ Remember ~ LOCAL and FRESH ingredients are best!

4 eggs

3 tablespoons of honey

1/2 cup milk (we used skim)

pinch of sea salt

1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon nutmeg

1/4 teaspoon cardamon (this makes it extra-exotic tasting!)

Whisk all these ingredients together the night before and store in the refrigerator.

Remember to put your bread in the microwave overnight to let it go stale. If you're like me, you may just skip this step since fresh, homemade bread that contains no preservatives goes stale in 1 day anyways, often even if refrigerated!

Morning: Pre-heat your oven to 375 F. Turn on your griddle and let it heat up while your bread is soaking. I do this on my double-sided cast iron griddle/indoor grill that I set directly on the gas burners. Don't forget to lube up with butter or non-stick cooking spray. A frying pan is great too.
Take out custard, whip one more time and soak your bread in it--1 minute on each side.

Move directly onto the hot griddle, let cook until golden on both sides.

Place on a cooling rack. When all slices have been on the griddle, put the whole cooling rack into the heated oven for 5-7 minutes.

I THEN took the leftover custard and cooked it like scrambled-eggs on the still hot griddle. I had turned the heat off at this point.....still enough residual heat to do the job nicely.

~ Remove the toast from oven, top it with the scrambled eggs "Bruschetta-style" and enjoy with whipped cream, fruit and maple syrup on top. (Grade B is my fave or that smoked maple syrup my Dad gets from Indiana...awesome awesome awesome!)

Yes, it is OK to use your knife and fork, especially if you used soft Wonder Bread or Challah. Our French bread French toast still had enough crust on it so it was stable for eating "Bruschetta-style."

~ We also love to put fresh fruit on ours....this morning it was SC Peaches from Barnwell County!

Next blog.....SUMMER FRUITS and other BOUNTY!

What's picking: Foraging 2010

I wrote a blog last fall about the fun and exercise of "foraging" around your home. Early summer foraging is probably my favorite. You can find all sorts of yummy things growing along the roadways, abandoned pastures, and even in front of your place of work!

I was blessed to grow up in the South with a Mother and Grandmothers who were familiar with the fun and benefits of "foraging".

If you are unfamiliar about what's edible and not in your surroundings, consult with a Foraging expert or blog, but always take caution with unfamiliar items, ESPECIALLY wild mushrooms!

Here in the Lowcountry, there are many wild varieties of berries and salad greens that are ready to be picked in late spring & early summer.

A few that I've enjoyed this past week are: (click on the links for nutrition information)

- Blackberries - Blueberries

- Loquats - Dandelion greens & flowers

The blackberries are just about to be in full swing. There are a few here an there now that are ripe, and they are very nice additions to fruit salad or just eating as you walk!

When you can't find many fruits or berries out in the public areas, look around your local farmer's market and ask the fruit vendors there where you can start.

On Thursday I went and picked my own strawberries cultivated on Barefoot Farms (St. Helena Island, SC), and the owner pointed me to a lady down the street who lets you pick your own blueberries!

Here is a recipe for a fruit salad that I like very much:

The Fruits of my Labor:

2-3 peeled, diced Kiwi fruit (grown in Ridgeland, South Carolina!--who would have known?)

5-6 large strawberries, washed and caps off (St. Helena Island, South Carolina)

handful of blueberries--washed first (St. Helena Island, South Carolina)

handful of blackberries--washed first (Hilton Head Island, South Carolina)

3 Loquat fruits--washed, quartered and seeded (Hilton Head Island, South Carolina)

- Toss together with 1 tablespoon of lemon or lime juice and a teaspoon of local honey if you want it a little sweeter!

- I enjoyed this mixture by itself with my breakfast, but makes a lovely topping for ice cream!

Loquats are an amazing find for me this last week. I discovered them growing in front of my clinic! They are also known as Japanese plums, and many yards on Hilton Head Island contain these "ornamental" sub-tropical plants. Rumour has it, Charleston was one of the first places in the U.S. these plums were brought to, due to it's climate and reputation for impressive ornamental gardens.

Loquats are very popular in China, Japan and India for eating raw or in preserves and chutney. My neighbor on Hilton Head has a very large, 12 year old Japanese plum tree that is LOADED with fruit this year. He was kind enough to share them with me now that they are ripe.

Loquats are the "perfect" dessert splurge for dieters, especially if you are cutting back on sugar. Not only are loquats loaded with NATURAL sugars, but are high in fiber, B-vitamins and Vitamin A. So the next time your trainer tells you to cut back on the sugar intake, put down the chocolate chip cookies and grab a few loquats! About 10 of these small snack-sized fruits contain ~100 calories.

Health Benefits of Loquats

Here is what this "exotic" fruit looks like:

Lowcountry Local Party Recipes

Thursday, April 22, 2010 was the 40th Anniversary of Earth Day. I would have written an Earth Day blog the week of, but I was very busy getting ready for my wedding that Saturday.

However, I did get to celebrate and promote Earth Day in a truly unique way. Most of our family members were in Beaufort that day, so we decided to have everyone over to our house for a garden party.

The hors d'oeuvres were made from 90% local ingredients. I define "local" as produced within 100 miles of Beaufort. The few items that we used from the regular grocery store (beer, olive oil, phyllo dough, butter) were at least products of the U.S.A., and even fewer things were imported (sea salt, black pepper). Even the rum in the punch was produced 15 miles north of here, with locally-grown sugarcane.

I had spent hours planning only to discover that the best way to do it was to go to the farmer's market and see what's available.

Please enjoy the recipes that I used for this fun party--you should try it out on your friends the next Earth Day! Those of you who do not live in the Lowcountry, please follow our example and spend some time at your local farmer's market--the creations you can make from just a few ingredients will blow your mind!

Sweetgrass Dairy Green Hill en Croute
- recipe courtesy of the Sweetgrass Dairy, Thomasville, Georgia
Green Hill is a surface ripened, double-cream cow’s milk cheese. If not readily available, any brie or camembert style cheese would be a welcome substitute.
Ingredients:
1 piece Sweet Grass Dairy Green Hill, COLD
10 Sheets Phyllo Dough
Butter, melted

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 400°.
2. If you are lucky enough to live where you have access to fresh phyllo dough, then congratulations! For the rest of us, bring phyllo to room temperature, unroll, and cover with a barely damp towel to prevent drying out.
3. Take first sheet, and brush lightly with butter. Repeat 5-10 times being careful not to let raw phyllo dry out in between layers.
4. Place Green Hill in center of phyllo, and cut dough into a rough square that is larger than Green Hill by 3” on all sides.
5. Begin to pull dough to center of Green Hill and continue in a circular fashion keeping dough as tight as possible to the cheese. When all dough has been wrapped around cheese, turn over onto sheet pan or cookie sheet lined with parchment paper or foil.
6. Brush exterior with butter and place into oven for 8-10 minutes, or until the phyllo is just browned.
7. Remove from oven, let rest for 3-4 minutes.
8. We served it with fresh salad greens (from our backyard!), rice and flaxseed crackers, and honey (Beaufort, South Carolina)


Doug's yogurt dill dipping sauce for veggies:1/2 cup of Doug's homemade Greek-style yogurt (yeah that's another blog)
2 tablespoons of fresh minced dill (Bluffton, South Carolina)
1 garlic clove, minced (our backyard)
2-3 tablespoons of California extra-virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon of fresh lemon juice (my Aunt Susan's backyard...Amelia Island, Florida)
drizzle of wildflower honey (Beaufort, South Carolina)
Whip together until smoothsalt and black pepper to taste

Raw Veggie Tray:
Green baby Vidalia onions (Lyons, Georgia)
Sweet salad turnips (Bluffton, South Carolina)
White and orange baby carrots (Bluffton, South Carolina)
Broccolini (Bluffton, South Carolina)
Red bell peppers (John's Island, South Carolina)
Cucumber (St. George, South Carolina)


Honey Cayenne Grilled local South Carolina Shrimp
This is the LARGE SCALE party recipe, for about 30 people

Combine in a large bowl together:
10 pounds of deveined, shell and head off medium sized shrimp (Beaufort, South Carolina)
1/2 cup of local wildflower honey (Beaufort, South Carolina)
1/4 cup of California extra virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon of fresh ground black pepper
1 teaspoon of sea salt
1 teaspoon of Charleston Hot Cayenne pepper (grown in our garden in 2009, dried, crushed)
Sautee in a large pan or place on wet bamboo skewers and grill for 3-4 mintues or until shrimp are pink and shaped like a "C"

*An old trick for cooking shrimp---if they're pink & shaped like a "C" they're cooked, if they're pink & shaped like an "O" they are OVERcooked!*

Dessert:
Strawberries - Fresh picked in Hampton County, South Carolina with
Homemade whipped cream and
Jerri Roth's homemade Pound Cake (Hilton Head Island, South Carolina)
(Jerri is a friend of mine who has 20+ years experience as a baker and in catering)