Kale: The Queen of Greens

We have a Taco Bell right next to the grocery store.  Every time I buy groceries I can hear it taunting me, "You could just have a burrito for $1.29!  And you don't even have to make it!"  On one hand, it's awesome that I can buy a burrito for less than it would cost me to make it at home.  And on the other hand, it's terrifying that I can buy a burrito for less than it would cost me to make it at home.  What do they put in that stuff, anyway?

With that said, it's hard to be healthy on a budget, especially when fast food is readily available and cheaper than the grocery store.  And yet, I can't help but think that what's helping my pocket book short term could be hurting my body in the long run.  When you look at it that way, a bundle of kale and a bag of nuts is a lot cheaper and a lot more fun than a triple bypass.

Kale, also known as The Queen of Greens, is a powerhouse of nutrition.  Kale ranges anywhere from $0.75-$2.50 per bunch, is plentiful, and easy to find year round.  Kale is rich in vitamins A, C, and K, thus boosting immune function, firming your skin, fighting free radicals,  enhancing reproductive and heart health, and maintaining strong bones, among other glorious benefits.  Now, I'd call that a pretty sexy veggie.

my kale salad

Kale Salad
6 cups raw kale--un-chopped
1/4 cup grated parmesan or romano cheese
1/4 cup olive oil
1/2 cup blanched almonds or walnuts
1/4 cup raisins or cranberries
1/2 cup raw basil, un-chopped
dash of salt.
1. In a food processor, chop kale and basil
2. Place kale and basil in a bowl and add parmesan, olive oil, salt, nuts, and raisins/cranberries





Kale Pesto
1 cup kale
1 cup basil
1/2 cup parmesan cheese
1/2 cup nuts
1/2 cup olive oil
2 or 3 garlic cloves

Blend all ingredients in the food processor and put on pasta, bread, or veggies.

Carla's Spicy Kale
6 cups of kale
1/2 cup chopped red onions
Butter or Oil
2 garlic cloves
2 T balsamic vinegar
1/4 cup beer
1/4 cup hot sauce
1/2 cup water

1. Satee butter, onions, and garlic
2. After the onions begin to brown, add kale
3. pour in liquid.
4. Stir over heat until kale is barely wilted (it will continue to cook after you take it off the heat)
5. Serve over beans, rice, or just eat it by itself.

Garlic Kale
Place your fat of choice and 3 garlic cloves in the skillet.  Add a dash of salt.  Cook until the garlic begins to turn brown.  Add kale and cook until kale leaves barely begin to darken.

If you have any good kale recipes please share!

When life hands you old lemons, make Lemoncello

When life hands you lemons make lemonade; when life hands you old lemons make Lemoncello.  As our great-grandmothers always said, "waste not, want not."  Just because your fruit is aging doesn't mean it's time to throw it out.  In fact, these recipes work better if your fruit is already on the mature side.

"But I think it's a little different in Europe, because 40 is really the best age for a woman. That's when we hit our peak and become this ripe fruit."

--Juliette Binoche

 Lemoncello

1 750 ml bottle of vodka or everclear

15 old zested lemons

3 cups cain sugar

4 cups tap or distilled water

my baby batch of lemoncello

1. zest or skin the lemons and allow the zest to sit in the vodka or everclear for a week
2. Make a syrup out of the sugar and water by combining and allowing them to boil for 15 minutes.  Do not stir this.  Allow to cool to room temp.
3. Stir vodka mixture into syrup and allow to sit for a day.
4. strain, chill, and serve.
Click here for lemoncello cocktails

(And if you don't want to drink the juice from the lemons you can always make furniture polish)

Watermelon, Tomato, Peach, or Pineapple Salsa

2 cups fleshy fruit of choice

1 cup cilantro

3/4 cups red onion

1/4 cup lime juice

(if you use tomatoes add a dash of sugar.  The sugar in the other fruits will be sufficient)

4 jalepenos, deseeded and chopped.

my watermelon salsa

Mix ingredients and allow to sit overnight.  I put mine on fish tacos--yuuuh!!  You can also change the flavor by adding alternative herbs like mint or basil.

3. Berry, Apple, or Peach Crisp 

(sorry!  No photos for this one.)

3 cups fruit, peeled and cut

1 cup brown sugar

a dash of salt

4 pats of butter

2 T flour

1 T cinnamon

Crust:

1. 1 cup flour
2. 1/2 cup white sugar
3. 1/2 cup brown sugar
4. 1 cup cold butter
5. 1 T cinnamon
6. 1. Mix fruit, sugar, salt, butter, flour, and cinnamon.
7. 2. in a food processor process crust ingredients until it is crumbly
8. 3. top fruit mixture with crumbles and bake on 350 for about 30 minutes.

Banana Bread

3 bananas, mashed

1.5 cups brown sugar

1 T water or milk

1 t vanilla

1/2 cup butter or oil--pick your poison (if you'd like to leave this out entirely, you can still achieve a moist loaf by decreasing a bit of flour)

3 eggs

2 t baking powder

1/2 t salt

2 cups flour

walnuts (optional)

Perfect for afternoon tea with a friend.

1. Mash bananas and sugar with a potato masher or fork
2. add wet ingredients and mix
3. Add dry ingredients and mix
4 sprinkle with brown sugar or crisp crumbles and bake on 340 for about 30-40 minutes

Aunt Beth's Fruit Jam

This one is straight from the kitchen of Aunt Beth

7 cups of fruit puree (or fruit of choice)

8 cups sugar

2 T butter

2 packets of Certo fruit pectin

1. To make the puree, heat the fruit, then mash them through a sieve.  If you like the seeds or want your jam to be chunky you may skip this part.

2. Bring the puree to a boil, then slowly add the sugar.

3. Bring the sugar and fruit to a boil.  As it begins to rise, remove it from the heat and drop in a "pat" of butter (we determined that a "pat" is about 2 tablespoons of butter). 

4. Lastly, add your packets of Certo fruit pectin.

5. Can your jam and spread on toast!

The Habit of Happy: drink specials around Nashville

Happy hour is a state of mind.  Let's forget the happy and talk about schedules.  Our internal clock usually tells us to drink and be merry between the hours of 7 and 10 pm.  However, if we can learn to appreciate alternate hours of merriment we can easily transform a $50 tab into a $20 tab.  Following is a list of my favorite and frequented happy hours (and remember: tip your server on the value, not the price).

Holland House: Monday-Sat 5-7 pm and Monday through Wednesday10pm-2am, all day Thurs (yeah-ya!). $5 cocktails off of their happy hour menu.  I always get the Weller Manhattan.  

Eastland Cafe: Monday-Thurs 5-6:30; Friday and Saturday 5-6.

$5 appetizers; $5 cocktails; $3 beers.  I always order the pizza and the Downtown Jim.

Whiskey Kitchen: Tuesday: 2 for 1 4-10 pm.  I always get their Old Fashioned.  Also, between now and Christmas if you buy a $50 gift card you get 30% off.  The catch is you have to wait a day before you use the gift card.  

Rumours East Wine Bar:  Wednesday 5-6 $5 select wines and $5 paninis

3 Crow: Wednesday and Sunday: 2 for 1

Crows Nest 1/2 priced drinks Mon-Fri 2-7 pm

Coopers on Porter: Tues-Sat 4-7pm; $5 appetizers, $3 beer, $4 wine (their burger is one of the best burgers I've ever had)

Mafioza's: Tuesday: 2 for 1 beer; 2 for 1 pizza

Urban Flats Wine Down Wednesday: for $20 you get 8 half glasses of wine and appetizers

Sunset Grill: Tues-Fri 11-4:30: 1/2 priced well drinks and wines by the glass; Thurs: Girls' Night Out $5 Stoli Martinis, $5 apps, $5 wines--I've never done this with a boy, so I am not entirely sure if this is applicable to men, but it's worth a try.  Also, I'm somewhat passionate about their late-night nachos.

Anyway, these are just my favorites.  Please share your Happy Hour favorite below if I missed a really good one.

Our $20 dinner party, part 2: Making Your Table Lovely for $5

So, while I was busy cooking in the kitchen for our $20 dinner party, Lindsey arrived with her "tool-box" (that is, a giant container full of supplies--sort of like a first aid kit for her events)  She whipped out scissors, a vintage sheet, and an old, plastic hula skit and got to work.

I'll let her tell you the rest.

A Lovely $5 Table

by Lindsey Huddleston

Candelabra: $1.09 at Goodwill

Vintage Sheet: $0.70 at the Goodwill Outlet.

Yellow placemat and green hula skirt: $0.76 at The Goodwill Outlet.
Oranges: $1.99
Candles: (ok--I cheat--I already had them.  But Trader Joes, Wal Mart, and The Goodwill often have good deals on candles)

This was a unique project because the budget was so small! Of the entire $20, we allotted just $5 to decor.

It was a challenge to be aware of inventory that I have  at my house due to my line of work that others may not have lying about.  However, I am going to assume that you have plates, cups, silverware, pitchers, a music player, and lamps.

The first thing I did once I arrived at Crystal's house was prepare the table.  I cut a vintage sheet to fit the table.  The sheet was the first thing we found.  When working with a tiny budget, you must find a few things that inspire you and build around them.  In this case the inspiration was our 70's sheet.  

Whenever I dress a table I stick to 2 easy rules of design: create a focal point on the table and have clusters of odd-numbered objects.  While at the Goodwill I found a 5-point candelabra from the 70's, which met both needs.

We found a yellow placemat at the goodwill, which I placed in the middle of the table.  At first it was a bit much because there was a lot of the same color in the middle of a smallish table and the yellow looked weird with the gold candelabra, so using some spare fabric from the tablecloth I made a new middle for the placemat.  When you're on a budget you just have to go with it and keep adding and subtracting until you get it right.

We had quite a bit of extra fabric from the cutting the sheet to fit the table.  I used extra fabric to create napkins and a swag to the decanters.  I rolled the silverware inside my napkins and then tied with the green ribbon/hula skirt.

Following is the method I use to roll silverware:

1.Arrange your napkin in a diamond shape. Place your silverware in the center.

2. Lift the bottom corner to the center or as close as you can.

3. Pull the top corner down to center or as close as you can.

4. Pull the left corner all the way over to meet the right corner, hold the silverware in

place at the same time. Line up the corners as best as you can.

5. This will look like an arrow with a flat edge on the left, top and bottom with the

point on the right.

6. Hold the left flat edge and roll inwards towards the right.

7 Continue rolling until you have a tube of silverware.

8. Tie or accessorize as you please.

Instead of putting flowers on the table, I bought a bushel of oranges at Aldi for $1.99.  We used these to garnish drinks, decorate the table, and make the room smell nice.  The oranges looked lovely and also served as something our guests could munch on while waiting for dinner to be served.

The table was set and everything looked wonderful.  The next order was to set the mood.  I turned off all of Crystal's overhead lighting.  We collected lamps from the rest of her house and used those to light the room, giving it a calm and yellow glow.

I used my personal library in my ipod, pressed play, and fun was had by all.  

So, in conclusion for your $20 dinner party:

• Buy fabric cheaply in bulk and use it for different purposes.
• Remember, fruit is edible art.
• Don’t be a stickler about color scheme -- use what you have.
• Use the strengths of what you already own. Have blue vintage glassware from your grandmother, but only two pieces? Mix and match or use for flowers, candles, small fruits or plants.
• Decide what your priorities are and put as much of your budget there as you can.
• Lighting is just as important, if not more, as music. Choose well and intentionally.

You may or may not have met Lindsey Huddleston, but

if you live in Nashville you've probably been to one of

her events.  From her Black and White Party at Mercy Lounge,

to Geek Prom, to the most recent Nashville Burlesque show,

this little lady has really made a name for  herself among

Nashville event planners.  In addition to amazing parties,

Lindsey also plans alternative weddings with her company

DandyLion events. I guess you could say she was your

so-called wedding planner.

www.dandylionevents.com

photography by John Yates

www.jxcreative.com

Our $20 Dinner Party, part 1

Harvest Happy.

The Menu:
Roasted Acorn Squash
Curried Sweet Potatoes
Beets
Beet Greens
Bread Pudding for dessert

The Southern Way:
Close your eyes, count to 3, and pretend boxed wine never happened.

The Grocery List (all store brands):
4 acorn squash
5 sweet potatoes
3 beets with the greens
cheap white bread
1  pint of milk
a carton of 6 eggs
raisins
brown sugar
bargain cinnamon and curry
1 lb. butter
1 small onion
1 box of dirt cheap wine




Back in February, alternative event planning guru, Lindsey Huddleston, and I decided we were going to throw a $20 dinner party.  After 2 weeks of scavenging and planning we did it and are here to report back.  Following is what we did for the food and drink.  Stay tuned for another post on decor and mood-setting by Lindsey.

and fun was had by all.

Since we had given ourselves a budget of $20 for 8 people we knew we had to leave out the meat.  Instead of filling our plates with starches, we decided to go harvest happy and fill our plates with colorful vegetables.

We asked the wine store if they had any cheap, closeout wines.  As it turns out, they had a $14 box of wine that was marked down to $6.  The man at the wine store explained that this wine was so cheap because they were no longer carrying that wine with that particular label and were liquidating the boxes merely because they had the old label.  Should you find yourself too fancy for box wine you'll need to take the Southern approach for your $20 dinner party: close your eyes, count to 3, and pretend that boxed wine never happened.  Once it's in your crystal decanter you can pretend it was a bottle from the cellar of the Queen.

Following are instructions for our dinner.  I didn't measure anything, but I didn't think it necessary.

Check back soon.  Lindsey is going to tell us a bit about how to make your dinner area inviting and lovely, using things found around your house or local thrift store.

Roasted Acorn Squash
turn oven up to 400.  Place squash in the oven and allow to bake until finished (about 30 minutes).  Allow to cool, cut in 1/2, and scrape out the seeds.  20 minutes before serving, turn oven on to 250, put 1 teaspoon of butter, cinnamon, and brown sugar into the cavity and allow to bake until it reaches your desired serving temperature.

Curried Sweet Potatoes

Chop the sweet potatoes into 1 x 1 cubes.  Chop up your small onion and place it in casserole dish with the potatoes.  sprinkle with cinnamon, curry, and salt and mix, making sure the seasoning is equally distributed.  Dot the top of the mixture generously with butter.  Allow to bake on 400 until soft.  Add raisins.  Heat with Acorn Squash before serving.

Beets

Cut the beets from the greens and boil until soft.  Once beets are finished, drop in greens and allow to cook.  Slice beets and drizzle with a mixture of butter, salt, and brown sugar.

Bread Pudding

Cut the crust off of the bread, then cut into cubes and place in your casserole dish.  Add raisins to bread cubes.  Make a mixture of your milk, 5 eggs, 1/2 c. brown sugar and any other flavors you'd like to add.  I had some dark rum in the cupboard, so I mixed rum with mine.  Dot the top generously with butter and bake on 350.




Lindsey Huddleston: www.dandylionevents.com
Photography by John Yates www.jxcreative.com

You Asked For It! Aunt Beth's Blackberry Jam Recipe!!

Aunt Beth, being fancy and awesome in the 70's

You guys asked for it and here it is: Aunt Beth's homemade jam recipe.  I found out it is actually my Deedee's homemade jam recipe, which, as it turns out, is actually my Grand-Deedee's homemade jam recipe.  What I'm saying is this thing is 3 generations good. 

When I asked Aunt Beth how to make the jam her response was, "Just mix your fruit, sugar, and butter together, then boil and add pectin."  I asked her how much of each and she replied, "A lot."  So, here is the recipe (we think) for a  giant batch of blackberry wedding jam.

You'll need:

7 cups of Blackberry puree (or fruit of choice)

8 cups sugar

2 T butter

2 packets of Certo fruit pectin

1. To make the puree, heat the blackberries, then mash them through a sieve.  If you like the seeds you may skip this part.

2. Bring the blackberry puree to a boil, then slowly add the sugar.

3. Bring the sugar and berries to a boil.  As it begins to rise, remove it from the heat and drop in a "pat" of butter (we determined that a "pat" is about 2 tablespoons of butter). 

4. Lastly, add your packets of Certo fruit pectin.

5. Can your jam.  Watch this video for effective canning: click here

Everyone, repeat after me, "Thank you, Aunt Beth!!"

Cooking with Road Berries and Flowers

Obviously, she's fancy.  Ladies, repeat after me, "Of course I can."

I come from an amazing family of women.  My Mom, Grandmother, and Aunts are my heros.  Naturally, when Brandon and I got married, they all came together, throwing us the most beautiful wedding I've ever been to.  I'd like to say I could take credit for that day, but all I did was say "I do."  For our gifts to our guests, my Aunt Beth made blackberry jam from berries she had picked on the side of the road at my grandparent's house.  Maybe it was the fresh berries, maybe it was just the Aunt Beth touch, but it was the best jam I've ever had.  Often in the morning I find myself dreaming about her glorious jam, wishing I still had a jar.

Following are a few recipes you can make with road berries and flowers.  Please don't eat flowers and berries you aren't certain are edible, as some can be deadly (those of you who saw Hunger Games  know exactly what I'm talking about).  Should you eat things from your yard and feel strange afterward, please go to the hospital.




1. Honeysuckle Sorbet
I came across this recipe on the NPR site [Noah Adams].

4 cups of honeysuckle blossoms
1 2/3 cups water (for those of us in TN, better use bottled water--our water tastes gross)
2 cups of sugar
1/2 t lemon juice

1. Soak the honeysuckle overnight to get rid of any thing living on them.
2. Pour the honeysuckles and water into a sauce pan and add the sugar.  After the mixture is clear, allow to boil for 2 minutes and remove from heat.
3. Strain honeysuckle through a sieve and add 1/2 teaspoon of lemon juice
4. Take a spoon and press all of the juices, honey, and flower flavors out of your flowers to maximize the flower flavor.
5. freeze it, stirring occasionally if you're able.
6. break up your honeysuckle ice and blend in the blender or food processor before serving.


2. Sugared Violets
Eat sugared violets by themselves or use them to garnish your delectable spring desserts.

1. Wash your flowers and allow them to dry completely
2. Spread 1/2 cup of caster sugar on a plate (for the really poor fancy girl, you can take regular sugar and give it a few spins in your food processor to make it fine).
3. spread egg white onto the petals and dip into the sugar
4. place on wax paper, which also has sugar sprinkled onto it for easy removal

3. Muleberry Pie
3 cups of muleberries
1/2 cup white sugar
3/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 t salt
2 T butter
1/4 c. flour
double pastry crust

1.Mix berries, sugar, salt, and flower and place into dish with piecrust
2. dot with butter
3. cover with piecrust and seal
4. Place pie in over and preheat to 400.  Once oven reaches 400 turn down to 340 and bake for 15 min or until the crust is slightly golden.
5. allow to cool on your window-sill like they do in the movies

4. Blackberry Ginger Glaze
Ok, so I'm cheating on this one--I haven't made this yet.  But I'm going to.  Here's the link for Baked Salmon with a Blackberry Ginger Glaze

• 
  

Gee, Brandon. Your wife is so snotty.

Whilst on a transcontinental treck, Meagan
and I found this book at a thrift store.  
We had finished it by Nebraska.
It was the best, most awful book I've ever read.
And it is highly recommended.  

Had I listened to my own advice I wouldn’t have had the time to write this blog.  “What was this grand mistake you made? And can I make it?” you might wonder.  Well, friends, I can tell you right now, it’s not the key to more time in your day.  I wore my body down, ate brownies instead of broccoli, and denied I was getting ill instead of facing the truth and fighting that nasty virus with my righteous proteins and a few Zzzz’s.  Yes.  The bad guy won.  And I paid big time.  And by big time I mean I’ve been in bed for almost a week now and still sound like a man.   Not fancy.  In fact, the fanciest part of my week was when I was hunched over a pot of boiling water because my lungs were closing and I realized that some women pay good money to have their pores opened like this (and, naturally, a facial ensued).  

If you work for a big company, chances are good that you look forward to your sick days--they’re like paid vacations where you get to watch movies and eat chicken noodle soup.  However, if you’re like me (and I am assuming you are because we fancy poor girls have a tendency to work for mom and pops that only pay you when you show up to work--and little at that), you are your own benefactor on a sick day.  Few work days may be spared.   And that’s the price you pay for the beautiful life you live.  

So, the best way to avoid sick days is not to get sick.  You can do this by drinking plenty of water, getting 8 hours of sleep every night (preferably, between the hours of 10 pm and 6 am--not kidding.  It’s most bodies’ natural, healthy rhythm), exercising, eating your veggies, proteins, fruits, good fats, and proper carbs; and shying away from sugar, alcohol, coffee, dairies, and any grains your body may have an aversion to.  Simple? Yes.  Easy? No. Possible? Possibly.  This proves especially difficult for a fancy girl who rarely turns down the opportunity to live and be marry, who, had she her druthers, would treat herself to wine and artisan cheeses daily, who begins every day with a cup of her favorite, locally roasted, single origin coffee and a breakfast cookie, and dreams about a bar full of olive varietals.  I mean, really, why have an island when you can have the world?  Consequently, sometimes all of the fun you’ve had just ends in a big, snotty mess.  And this is the price you pay for the beautiful life you live.

However, if you feel your body is shutting down there are a few, cheap things you can do to stave off that nasty illness.  The more of these you do, the better.  If you’re on a major budget, just purchase the alliums and lemons. 

1. Remember, the first step to recovery is recognition.  To be honest, this is the one I have the most trouble with.  I will deny I am becoming ill until I am in bed and very sick.  I’m like the little kid who hides from his dad by covering his eyes.  
2. After the initial recognition has been made, drop everything you’re doing and run to the store.  Grab the following: 2 onions, a clove of garlic, dark leafy greens, lemons, chicken drumsticks, broth (msg free), and noodles or rice.
3. When you return home, you’ll want a cookie because your body is exhausted and wants a quick pick-me-up from the sugar.  Don’t do it.  That cookie will land you in bed all week.  Instead, shun the cookies and bread and pull out an onion.
4. Cut off the top of the onion and hollow out the middle.  Fill the inside with water and place in the stove.  Turn the oven to 350 (it does not need to preheat) and bake for 15 minutes.  Drink the onion water.
5. Next, eat an entire clove of garlic. (you can swallow it whole if you are able or chop it up into manageable pieces.
6. After your garlic, if you are able, go to bed immediately and sleep for as long as you can.
7. When you awake, make hot lemon water, using an entire lemon.  Drink this and eat the seeds.
8. Drink a lot of water.  A lot.  
9. If you are up to it, make chicken soup.  
10. If you’re still hungry eat your dark, leafy greens
11. Then repeat steps 5-8 as many times as needed, with a minimum of 3 times per day.  
12. Go live your life because you’re better!!!!!!!!

The 90's are Over; Let's Eat Sweet Potatoes.

and if you're really enthusiastic about your sweet
potatoes you can buy this print here

First of all, I would like to give a giant thank you Colleen Wandel, owner of Say Ooh, for giving this fancy girl's blog a make-over. In addition to giving this blog a new face, this lovely lady also makes beautiful "pretty-enhancers" made from vintage lace, nightgowns, buttons, and feathers.  Be sure to stop by her shop and delight your fancy.

So, now that we've gone to Colleen's shop and browsed her pretty-enhancers, I am going to talk about a pretty-enhancer that you can eat.  Sweet potatoes.  When the 90's told us to stop eating potatoes, many of us lumped sweet potatoes into the same category and cut them out of our diets, only bringing them to the table on Thanksgiving.  Well, I'm here to tell you that we needn't pay heed to the 90's any longer.  Keep Weezer in your hearts and discard the rest--no more peace signs, no more giant cell phones, and no more strange diet fads that tell you not to eat sweet potatoes.  Not only are sweet potatoes good for you, make you look good, and taste so yummy, but they're only $0.69 per pound, which means we can afford them.

According to Alexander Page at Stuff You Should Know, one sweet potato can give you 40% of your daily intake of vitamin E.  Vitamin E both repairs and protects your skin.  Alexander Page says it so nicely that I'm just going to give you his explanation:

"Antioxidants are agents that neutralize the oxidant effect of free radicals, which are molecules that damage collagen and cause skin dryness, fine lines and wrinkles [source: Bouchez]. A simple chemistry lesson can explain how vitamin E does this. The atoms that comprise your body try to maintain an even number of electrons -- that's what makes them stable. If an atom has an uneven number of electrons, it will steal an electron from another atom to become stable. When your skin takes a beating from outside factors, such as the sun's ultraviolet rays, your body can produce free radicals. Free radicals are atoms with an uneven number of electrons, and when they form inside your body, they steal electrons from healthy cells like the ones that make up your skin. This can cause a damaging chain reaction, and that's where antioxidants like vitamin E come in [source: Rice]." [Alexander Page, Stuff You Should Know].


So, what I'm saying is that those of us who can't afford La Prairie's $1500 skin care line just need to go ahead and fork out 69 cents on a pound of sweet potatoes.

In addition to repairing your skin, sweet potatoes are rich in beta-carotine and vitamin A, vitamin C, potassium, and fiber.

I usually just bake my sweet potatoes, then dress them with some butter and cinnamon (preheat oven to 400 F, wrap your potatoes in foil, poke a few holes in them with a fork, and bake for about 40 min).  However, if we're feeling fancy, there are a few ways we can dress our potatoes for a meal worth talking about.

Following are 10 fancy and tasty sweet potato recipes:

1. Roasted Sweet Potatoes with Black Beans and Chili Dressing
2. Curried Sweet Potatoes
3. Sweet Potato Casserole
4. Scalloped Sweet Potato Stacks
5. Sweet Potato Mash
6. Sweet Potato Dauphinoise
7. Jamaican Sweet Potato Pone
8. Cuban Sweet Potato Salad
9. Spicy Sweet Potato and Coconut Soup
10. Baked Sweet Potato Falafel 

Organic Gardening by a Friendly Farmer

I'm working at the Harvest Market Garden. It is a part of UT's  organic program. There are 6 of us interns and we run a one acre garden and sell the produce at a weekly farmers market on campus. My farm dream is to have a homestead to produce food that is healthy for people as well as for the land. I want to heal the land and heal people with the food I grow. Organic, small-scale farming (what I do) is a great gender equalizer, I think, because it is mostly a matter of stamina - not sheer muscle power. The strength it takes to make it through a 12 hour day of harvesting, when it's 95 degrees, is quite different from the strength it takes to bench press 350pounds. I enjoy being on equal ground with the fellows I work with and feeling strong in what I do.

  

I'm working at the Harvest Market Garden. It is a part of UT's 

organic program. There are 6 of us interns and we run a one acre garden and sell the produce at a weekly farmers market on campus.

My farm dream is to have a homestead to produce food that is healthy for people as well as for the land. I want to heal the land and heal people with the food I grow.

Organic, small-scale farming (what I do) is a great gender equalizer, I think, because it is mostly a matter of stamina - not sheer muscle power. The strength it takes to make it through a 12 hour day of harvesting, when it's 95 degrees, is quite different from the strength it takes to bench press 350pounds. I enjoy being on equal ground with the fellows I work with and feeling strong in what I do.

If fancy loves anything it’s fresh.  Which is why Kirsten Eisele, who is currently working with The Harvest Market Garden in Knoxville, has written a little piece for us on budget organic gardening.  Kirsten has also agreed to help out with a little Q&A on budget organic gardening.  This girl knows her stuff.  Ask her anything in the comments below and she’ll answer.  

"Greetings, fancy ladies! I am a fancy girl who gets her hands dirty at different farms across middle and east Tennessee. Last year I had the privilege of living in a house where the owners had established a perennial herb garden and was 

completely won over to the joy of cooking with fresh herbs.

Fresh herbs are essential to every fancy girl’s kitchen. They lend that extra edge of flavor to any dish, whether a simple spaghetti sauce or a crusty loaf of rosemary bread.

The only problem with fresh herbs is that they cost a whole lot if you have to rely on the grocery store to get them. You’ll pay about $3 to buy a tiny package of probably not-so-fresh herbs that will go bad quickly if you don’t use them immediately

The solution? Grow your own! Most herbs are notoriously easy to grow. They will grow in the ground, in a pot, indoors, outdoors, on the roof, in the backyard. 

Starting from seed is my recommendation. It may take a bit longer for you to get the lovely-smelling plants you desire, but it will be worth the wait.

You’ll get the best value by purchasing an assorted seed packet. Individual seed packets cost about $2/each and can be bought at your local hardware store or farmers co-op.

http://www.amazon.com/Custom-Collection-Varieties-Quality-Seeds/dp/B0042AIYH0/ref=sr_1_2?s=home-garden&ie=UTF8&qid=1307643807&sr=1-2

Many herbs are either perennials, such as rosemary and sage, or self-seed easily, such as dill. Put a bit of effort into setting up your garden and with luck you will be literally reaping the rewards for years to come.

The cheapest soil prep is good hard work, if you have a home where your herbs will be permanent. Dig up the spot where you're going to put the plants 

Here's a link to a recipe for homemade organic pest sprays. Super easy to make and earth-friendly. Though usually, the best organic form of pest control is to use two fingers to squish the offending bug!

Two Homemade Sprays for Fighting Aphids organicgardening.about.comThese two homemade organic sprays have a proven track record of effectiveness when it comes to getting rid of aphids.

Interested in an indoor garden? Check out this resource for information on growing different kinds of herbs.

http://www.indoorherbgarden.org/indoorgardeningtips.html

Interested in an outdoor garden? In our mild climate, perennial herbs can survive the winter and thrive during warm weather.

http://www.ehow.com/how_4933292_plant-outdoor-herb-garden.html

Please comment with any additional questions and I’d be happy to do a follow up Q and A post!

Your friendly farmer, 

Kirsten"

Entertaining on a Budget: Ethnic Eating, part 1

When it is possible, I like to enjoy as many of my favorite things as I possibly can at one time. Really, why take just a bubble bath when you can take a bubble bath with Cabernet, Voluspa candles, lavender oil, salts, Erik Satie (the music, not the man), and my bath time book of choice, Pride and Prejudice. Furthermore, I've read Pride and Prejudice so many times that I don't even bother with the entire book anymore.  I merely choose my favorite parts and read them to my delight and at my leisure.  Then I soak, detox, and enjoy.

So, in the spirit of enjoying everything at once, I present to you, traveling, entertaining, and spending as little money as possible.  Unfortunately, we are going to travel in our kitchens, but if we spend a small amount of money doing it, then we can put more in our actual travel fund.  Greece, here I come.

Try these ethnic desserts and impress your guests, while spending 3-7 dollars:

1. Turkish Sutlac
2. French Petit Choux (this recipe does have not the filling recipe, but it's a good choux recipe--you can fill them with any kind of cream or custard--whipped cream is the easiest.)
3. Ukrainian Vareniki 
4. Polish Paczki 
5. Thai Mango Sticky Rice (Khao Niaow Ma Muang)
6. Japanese Daifuku 
7. Spanish Churros 
8. Mexican Flan
9. Norwegian Pannekakes 
10. Indonesian Burbur Ketan Hitam 

3 dozen things you can do with 3 dozen eggs

"Necessity....the mother of invention" -Dear Plato.

So, the big barter mentioned previously has taken place.  I now have in my possesion 3 dozen, organic, farm fresh eggs from chickens who have names.  And I'm excited.  No one was interested in bartering for any of them so Brandon and I are going eat all 3 dozen (baring in mind that we can freeze most things).  

Not only are eggs cheap, but they have the ability to be decadent.  Following are 3 dozen fancy things you can do with 3 dozen eggs by adding a few additional ingredients:

1.Meringue Cookies

fancy egg

2. Chocolate Souffle
3.Crepes
4.Sponge Cake
5.Gruyere Souffle
6.Terragon Egg Salad
7 Eggs in a Basket 
8. Eggs Benedict
9. Quiche Lorraine 
10. Frittata 
11. Souffle Omelet (for dessert)
12.Oeufs a la Neige
13. Creme Caramel
14. Egg Custard
15. Zabaglione
16. Cold Tangerine Souffle
17. Deviled Eggs
18. Sweet Potato Souffle
19. Egg Curry
20. Egg Fu Yung
21. Egg Drop Soup
22.Pavlova 
23. Flourless Nut Cake
24.Meringue Nest with Ricotta 
25. Creme Brulee
26. Vanilla Barvarois
27. Angel Food Cake
28. Choux Pastry
29. Chocolate Ganache Meringues 
30. Baked Eggs with Basil-Mint Pesto
31. Croissant French Toast
32. Baked Eggs Florentine
33.Baked French Toast
34. Egg and Rice Scramble
35. Almond Coconut Flan
36. Huevos Rancheros 


If you have any, please list your favorite use of eggs.