Sonia Tastes Hawaii

Making your own vanilla extract

 

(Photo) My latest batch of homemade vanilla is in a bottle almost 11 inches tall and has about 16 vanilla beans in it.  I used a full bottle of dark Jamaican rum in it.  There is a combination of Madagascar and Hawaiian vanilla beans in this batch.

 

Homemade vanilla extract is one of the easiest things to make and guarantees that you have pure vanilla and not imitation vanilla that might be 'laced' with coumarin (*) or vanillin (**). 

Most recipes for homemade vanilla call for using vodka or bourbon.

Basic recipe for homemade vanilla extract:

8 ounces - 750ml of vodka or any other 85% proof (drinkable) alcohol (bourbon, rum, brandy)

3 to 5 vanilla beans - split lengthwise and chop (optional)

Using very clean glass bottles, insert beans all the way to the bottom and pour the vodka to cover completely, allowing about 3" headroom at the top. Seal tops, shake a time or two and leave in a cool dark place for at least 8 weeks.  Some instructions tell you to shake periodically.  I don't.

I prefer to use dark Jamaican Myers or Appleton Rum instead of vodka when I make mine (I would use dark Cuban rum if I could ;-)  - to me, dark rum gives it more depth and richness than vodka and imparts a hint of 'natural sweetness' and smoothness I find lacking with the harsh taste of vodka. 

You can double and triple the amounts above when making larger batches for gifts.  I use a full bottle of dark Jamaican rum when I make a batch.

Some instructions ask you to chop the vanilla bean; I don't.  I use at least 5 beans per cup and split them open, but leave whole otherwise.  I leave the beans in the extract when done and do NOT filter it, though is ok to do so. 

I start a new batch when my bottle shows only about 1/2 to 1/4 inch of vanilla left (depending on how much vanilla I feel I will be using in the next couple of months) so I always have a good strong batch on hand.

You can reuse the beans in the next batch (add some fresh ones too) or if you remove them and use fresh each time, you can use them to make vanilla sugar.

Making vanilla sugar:

If you are using vanilla beans that have been previously used for making vanilla extract, make sure the bean(s) are thoroughly dried before you put it/them into the sugar or it/they will develop mold.  The way I dry my used vanilla beans is to leave them out on the counter on kitchen or tea towels and let them air dry completely.  Turn them over a couple of times to make sure all sides are dry.

For every 2 pounds of sugar you pour into a plastic or glass container that seals tightly, add at least one or more (I add a few to mine, since I like a strong vanilla flavor) by sticking them into the sugar. 

Seal and leave for about a month.

That's it!

To give as gifts, put a cup of sugar into a clear glass jar or container with a sealable lid - I like to use the canning jars with clamp lids and gaskets - Insert a bean, seal and decorate jar with a ribbon or a decorative holiday theme fabric cap.  Be sure to label it attractively.

Can be used when baking cookies, dusting on cakes and pastries or even to just add a teaspoonful in your coffee or tea.....or use your imagination!

(Photo) Vanilla orchid  (V. planifolia) vine with bloom and buds growing up the trunk of a cacao tree in Papaikou, Hawai'i

Real vanilla extract is made using the pods/beans of the vanilla orchid and not chemically derived.

~~~~~

(*) Coumarin is a toxin found in plants that is used to make Coumadin/warfarin and can be found in the 'cheap vanilla' brought in from other countries http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coumarin http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Warfarin

(**) "Artificial Vanilla Flavoring: U.S. manufactured artificial vanilla is produced from synthetic "vanillin"; Lignin Vanillin is a mde from a by-product of the paper producing industry.  this by-product is chemically treated to mimic the flavor of vanilla.  The product helped take care of an e-cological problem with paper producers and created an 'affordable' vanilla flavoring for the public.  The other synthetic common in Mexican artificial flavorings is Ethyl Vanillin derived from coal tar.

In Celebration of Chinese New Year

 

We invited our friends Jenn and Chris for late lunch-early dinner yesterday to join us in celebration of the First Day of the Chinese New Year.

Due to lots of rain lately, mosquitoes are having a very good time so we decided to set the table using the living room coffee table instead of our 'dining table' on the back lanai.

I wanted to use the Chinese dessert/salad plates, soup bowls and soup spoons that previously belonged to my mother and the silk table runner/shawl made by my friend Bren, which I felt went very well with the dishes.

The set has touches of orangy-rust, blue, green, yellow and white.  The silk table runner/shawl has touches of rust and blue-green.  The napkins mimick most of the same colors, including the bit of blue which can't be seen on the napkin on the left but can be spotted in the one above on right.  Even the chopsticks mimick the colors...the flatware and charges are gold for wealth and prosperity.

The Chinese New Year celebrations are filled with symbolism and special foods. Although I love Chinese food, I am not an expert in this cuisine so instead of trying to share an authentic Chinese New Year celebration dinner with the requisite 8 or 9 courses filled with symbolism, I merely tried to use the colors and some of the tastes that represent Chinese cuisine.

The colors red, yellow and green are colors seen in much of Chinese food.

RED - traditional bridal colour, expansive, blooming, dynamic, enthusiastic, reaching upwards, good luck, celebration, happiness, joy, vitality, long life; red purple brings luck and fame, money, recognition, propriety, creativity, joy vs. over excitation.

YELLOW- nourishing, supporting, stabilizing, ripening, grounded, solid, reliability,
sunbeam, warmth, clarity, royalty, good faith, empathy vs anxiety.

GREEN - growing, generating, sprouting, striving, refreshing, balancing, calming, healing, self assurance, foundation, benevolence, health, harmony, sensitivity, patience vs anger.

BLUE - conserving, healing, relaxation, exploration, trust, calmness, immortality

Yellow or gold and green also symbolize money, wealth, prosperity.

Blue-green is still a symbol of spring when everything is filled with vigour and vitality. Therefore, someone that is hoping for longevity and harmony will decorate with blue-green colours.

Jenn and Chris brought appetizers...delicious bits of bacon wrapped water chestnuts and a wonderful dip made with Jarsberg cheese served with crackers.

The menu was a simple 4 course meal of Crab and Tomato Bisque, Cabbage and Carrot Slaw, Roasted Pork with Hoisin Sauce served with Noodlesand side dishes of Haricot Verts (the very tender, very thin almost-don't-need-cooking French green beans) served with homemade sweet pepper relish and Asparagus Poached in Meyer Lemon water served with Jalapeño Greek Yogurt Sauce.  For dessert a very eggy Egg Custard served with a homemade sauce of Persimmon and Fresh Pears.

Crab and Tomato Bisque

1 pound fresh crab meat
8 Tablespoons (1 stick) butter
1 large carrot, peeled and chopped
1 large onion, peeled and chopped
2 cups chicken broth
1 (18.7 oz) can tomato and basil bisque

Fresh ground pepper to taste

A soupçon or more of dry Sherry
Smoked paprika 
Sprig of watercress

Put carrot and onion pieces in blender or food processor to triturate as much as possible.  

Melt butter in a  heavy bottomed Dutch oven or stockpot.  Add the carrots and onions, cover and let them simmer for a few minutes.  Gradually add some of the broth.  If the vegetables still have little pieces, put back in the blender or processor with a bit of the broth, add half the crabmeat.  

Put back in the pot and add the tomato and basil bisque. Bring to boil while stirring constantly then turn down to simmer. Season with the freshly ground pepper.

Stir in the rest of the crabmeat and cook just until it is heated through.  Do not boil. 

Serve in the individual bowls, add the soupçon of Sherry, sprinkle with smoked paprika and add a sprig of watercress.

I developed the above recipe from three others I found on the Internet.  One called for carrots, onions and tomato paste and one called for Sherry, corn, evaporated milk and/or coconut cream.  I liked the idea of the carrots and onions, but not corn, the evaporated milk or the coconut cream.  Since I had some Tomato and Basil Bisque in our emergency food closet, I decided to go with that since it has no MSG and added no salt since the bisque already had salt.  We found it creamy enough without adding milk or cream.

Cabbage and Carrot Slaw

I like to slice the fresh cabbage in very thin slices then cut again to make the pieces bite-sized.  I 'shave' the carrot off with a vegetable peeler.  The dressing is Greek yogurt with honey and white vinegar.  Just mix amounts to taste.

Photo by Chris

This recipe is adapted from one I learned many years ago when then traveling cooking school teacher and cookbook author Shirley O. Corriher used to come to my cooking school in Orangeburg, SC

Pork Loin Roast with Hoisin Sauce

For the Sauce:

1 stick unsalted butter

1 small (7.4 ounces) Hoisin sauce jar

Dry white wine to taste

2 Tablespoons sugar or to taste

Melt the butter and add all the other ingredientsm cool a bit and pour over the pork roast to marinate.  Better if done overnight.

Prepare the pork loin by poking a few deep holes with a sharp knife and insert garlic cloves all through it.  Place in pastic bag, pour the marinating sauce over the pork, seal and refrigerate until needed.

To cook, turn over to 400 F.  Place the marinated roast on a roasting rack inside a roasting pan.  Roast until internal temperature reaches 160 F.  Take out, cool and slice.

Before serving, boil the remaining marinating sauce long enough to kill any bacteria that might have developed; it will get thicker and concentrated.  Serve alongside the meat in a separate bowl. 

We served the pork and sauce with noodles.

The Haricut Verts were briefly and barely sautéed in a small amount of garlic infused olive oil and served with the Multicolored Sweet Pepper Relish.

Multicolored Sweet Pepper Relish

Assorted red, yellow and orange mini-bell peppers, finely chopped

Large onion, finely chopped

Sugar to taste

White vinegar to taste

A bit of plain water

A Tablespoon or two of siracha chili hot sauce

Bring all ingredients to a boil over medium heat.  Turn heat down and continue to boil for 10 minutes, stirring once in a while.  Cool and store in airtight container.  Chill overnight before serving.  I used enough mini-peppers and onion to fill a quart sized canning jar.

The Asparagus Spears were poached in acidulated water.  I used some of our Meyer lemons for this.  They were served with a commercial Jalapeño Greek Yogurt dip to which I had added a bit more plain Greek Yogurt and a bit of milk to thin it out.

Egg Custard with Persimmon and Pear Sauce

Make your favorite egg custard.  I use a bit less milk than called for so the custard isricher, creamier and thicker.

Persimmon and Pear Sauce

My friend Trevella had given me some beautiful Hachiya Japanese persimmons a couple of weeks ago.  I waited until they were ripe and then scooped out the pulp and juices, discarding skin and seeds.  I froze the pulp until yesterday morning.

Persimmon pulp

Honey to taste

Fresh pears, peeled and diced.

The pears were very sweet and juicy, so I made sure to save the juices and add them to the mix.

In a small saucepan, bring ingredients to a slow boil and cook just long enough for the pears to absorb the persimmon taste.  Chill until needed.

I fell in love with the little persimmon lidded bowl at a local antique store a long time ago.  It was perfect to use for this delicious sauce.

Wishing everyone a very Happy and Prosperous Year of the Snake...Kung Hee Fat Choy!

"Burst of Fireworks" provided by the hisbiscus used in our table centerpiece

Christmas Cookie Exchange 2012 - Sonia's Flourless Peanut Butter Cookies and Jenn's Classic Chocolate Chip Cookies

I shared this recipe on-line a few years ago and you can find a 'tutorial' with photos HERE

 

Sonia's Flourless Peanut Butter Cookies

 

1 cup smooth or chunky peanut butter

1 cup brown sugar, packed

1 egg

1 teaspoon vanilla extract (optional)

 

Preheat oven to 350 F

 

Mix all ingredients and roll dough into balls (*) and place on ungreased cookie sheet 1 or 2 inches apart. Use fork dipped in sugar to make cross hatch marks. Bake 10 minutes or until bottom just turns golden brown. Cookies will look slightly underdone and will be very fragile.  They will get crispier/crunchier as they cool.

~~~

 

Jenn's Chocolate Chip Cookies

 

2 sticks butter

2/4 cup dark brown sugar

3/4 cup granulated sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 eggs

2-1/2 cups all purpose flour

3/4 teaspoons baking soda

1 teaspoon salt

2 cups semi sweet chocolate chips

1 cup chopped nuts

 

 

Beat the butter, dark brown sugar and granualted sugar until fluffy; beat in the vanilla and eggs. Whisk in the flour, baking soda and salt, then stir into the butter mixture. Add the semisweet chocolate chips and the chopped nuts.  Chill for at least 30 minutes. Roll into balls and bake 8 to 12 minutes at 350 F.

 

 

 

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To read other Cookie Exchange recipes and the original party post click on the links below

~~~

....and a good time was had by ALL!

Christmas Cookie Exchange 2012 - Macadamia Snowballs

Christmas Cookie Exchange 2012 - Liz' Ginger Crinkles

Christmas Cookie Exchange 2012 - Liz' Yule Log Cookies & Bren's Liliko'i Bars

Christmas Cookie Exchange 2012 - Trevella's Pecan Sandies

Christmas Cookie Exchange 2012 - Bren's Ghirardelli Chocolate Macadamia Cookies or Bars & Trevella's Pistachio Cookies

 

Christmas Cookie Exchange 2012 - Bren's Ghirardelli Chocolate Macadamia Cookies or Bars & Trevella's Pistachio Cookies

 

More delicious cookies from our recent Christmas Party Cookie Exchange

~~~

Bren's Ghirardelli White Chocolate Macadamia Cookies or Bars

 

1 stick butter or 5 ounces by weight virgin coconut oil

 1/2 cup granulated sugar

1/2 cup brown sugar, packed

1 egg (room temp)

1 teaspoon vanilla extract (or more) 

1-1/2 cup flour

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 cup (1/2 11 ounce bag) Ghirardelli white chocolate chips

3/4 cup macadamia nuts chopped

  ~~~

Preheat oven to 350.
Cream butter/oil and sugars until fluffy

Add vanilla and egg, beat well

Mix dry ingredients and add to batter

 ~~~

For cookies:

Drop by teaspoon onto ungreased cookie sheet

Bake for 10-12 minutes

Makes about 2 dozen cookies

 ~~~

For bars:

Spread batter on ungreased quarter sheet pan (13 x 9 x 1)

Bake for 15 minutes.  Turn off heat and remove at 18 minutes

When cool cut into bars 

Makes 24 2" cookie bars

~~~

~~~

 

 

Trevella's Pistachio Cookies

 

2-1/4 cup All Purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 cup real butter (softened)

1/4 cup white sugar

3/4 cup brown sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 teaspoon almond extract 

1 (4 ounce) package Pistachio Instant Pudding mix

2 large eggs

1 cup finely chopped pecans

Green food coloring to suite your preference.

 ~~~

Mix flour and baking soda in large bowl.

In a separate bowl cream together butter, sugars, extracts, and dry pudding mix.

Beat in eggs individually and gradually stir in flour mixture.

Mix well and fold in nuts.

Chill for a few hours and roll into balls, place onto a lightly greased cookie sheet and bake at 375* for 8-10 minutes.

Do not over bake!

~~~~~~~~

To read other Cookie Exchange recipes and the original party post click on the links below

~~~

....and a good time was had by ALL!

Christmas Cookie Exchange 2012 - Macadamia Snowballs

Christmas Cookie Exchange 2012 - Liz' Ginger Crinkles

Christmas Cookie Exchange 2012 - Liz' Yule Log Cookies & Bren's Liliko'i Bars

Christmas Cookie Exchange 2012 - Trevella's Pecan Sandies

 

 

 

Christmas Cookie Exchange 2012 - Trevella's Pecan Sandies

 

More YUMMY cookie recipes from our recent Christmas Party Cookie Exchange

 

Trevella's Pecan Sandies

 

1/2 cup real butter

 

1/2 cup brown sugar

 

1-1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

 

1-1/4 teaspoons salt

 

1 cup all-purpose flour

 

1 cup finely chopped pecans

 

Cream together butter and sugar until fluffy. Mix in vanilla and salt. Gradually add flour and fold in pecans.

 

Roll dough into balls and flatten slightly with the bottom of a drinking glass onto a lightly greased cookie sheet.

 

Bake at 350* for 10-12 minutes or until edges are just slightly turning golden. Do not over bake. Parchment paper is especially nice (but not necessary) with these cookies as they tend to stick where ever a pecan touches the pan

~~~~~~~~

To read other Cookie Exchange recipes and the original party post click on the links below

....and a good time was had by ALL!

Christmas Cookie Exchange 2012 - Macadamia Snowballs

Christmas Cookie Exchange 2012 - Liz' Ginger Crinkles

Christmas Cookie Exchange 2012 - Liz' Yule Log Cookies & Bren's Liliko'i Bars

 

Christmas Cookie Exchange 2012 - Liz' Ginger Crinkles

 

The photo shows Liz' Ginger Crinkles and Rum Balls

The Ginger Crinkles recipe is given below, but the Rum Balls are a family tradition recipe...read Liz' note below

Liz' Ginger Crinkles

A long-time Christmas favorite! All the traditional gingerbread flavor without the need for rolling and cookie cutters.

3/4 cup butter

1 cup raw sugar (or brown sugar)

1/4 cup molasses

1 large egg

2-1/2 cups ww flour

2 tsp baking soda

1 tsp cinnamon

1 tsp ginger

1/2 tsp cloves

(white sugar to roll - optional)

~~~

Mix together butter and sugar; add in molasses, then egg. Add dry ingredients all together. Mix well.

~~~

Cover and refrigerate until firm - at least an hour.

~~~

With your hands, shape dough into balls. Balls may be rolled in white sugar for a pretty sparkly effect, if desired. Place on ungreased cookie sheet, 1-1/2 inches apart.
Bake at 350* 10-12 minutes.

~~~

Notes: This recipe make about 4-1/2 dozen cookies.

Dough can be frozen in a log shape for slice and bake cookies. OR dough balls can be frozen for crinkles at a later date.
Cookies may be stored up to 3 weeks in airtight container.

*****
Liz's RUMBALLS
... are one of those secret family recipes that my kids eventually get to 'inherit' ... sorry. This was the first year that Kerry got to help make them, so she's in on the secret now! ;-)

To read other Cookie Exchange recipes and the original party post click on the links below

....and a good time was had by ALL!

Christmas Cookie Exchange 2012 - Macadamia Snowballs

 

Christmas Cookie Exchange 2012 - Macadamia Snowballs

 

We hosted a Christmas party on the 21st of December and requested our guests each bring cookies for an exchange...We had a delicious selection and everyone was pleased to notice there were no duplicates!

I promised to share the recipes and will...Here is the first one.  To read about the party, check the link for the original post at the bottom!

 

This recipe was originally my Grandmother's Pecan Snowballs with slight changes.

 

Macadamia Snowballs

1 cup chopped macadamia nuts

2 sticks unsalted butter, at room temperature

1-3/4 cups confectioners sugar (separated)

1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1/4 teaspoon ground sea or kosher salt

2 cups all-purpose flour

 

Heat oven to 350 F.  Coarsely chop the macadamia nuts in a food processor with the knife blade.  Spread the chopped macadamia nuts on a jelly roll sheet pan and toast for about 5-8 minutes.  Keep your eyes on them as macadamia nuts contain a lot of oil and might burn if left in the oven too long.  Let cool.

 

Using and electric mixer, beat the butter and 1 cup of the sugar until light and fluffy.  Mix in the vanilla and salt.  Add the flour, little by little, mixing until just incorporated.  Mix in the toasted macnuts.

 

Shape the dough into heaping teaspoon sized balls and shape into balls and rolling slightly between your flour coated hands; place on a parchment lined baking sheet.  Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.  Cookies can be frozen at this point.  To bake, bring back to room temperature and proceed as indicated below.

 

Transfer half the balls to a second parchment lined baking sheet, spacing them about 1-1/2 inches apart.  Bake until golden, about 16-22 minutes, depending on size.  Bake the second batch.  Let cool on the baking sheets for at least 8-10 minutes.

 

Place 1/2 cup of the remaining sugar in a large bowl.  Toss the still warm cookies in the sugar to coat all over and return to the baking sheets.  Sift the remaining 1/4 cup sugar over the cookies before serving.

 

If storing in a cookie tin or lidded plastic container, make sure they are completely cool before closing the lid.

 

Yield: Approximately 25 to 40 snowballs depending on size of spoon or scoop used.

 

Original post... ....and a good time was had by ALL!

....and a good time was had by ALL!

 

Our Christmas Season got off with a nice start with a small party at our house on the 21st...

Our house,  a simple typical island pilar and post single wall construction cottage is kind of small, but amazing how the walls will expand to accommodate good friends when everyone seems to be having a good time.

To see the photos in larger format, click on each collage, please...

 

Our 'hale" (house/home) greeted our friends with a wreath on the door and a lantern on the front lanai and flowers and greenery... and candles all around...the copper molds on the kitchen cabinet doors are 'dressed' with a sprig of bay leaf tied with red ribbons

Our living area is all one room which includes the kitchen to your left as you first come in the front door...there is a wide kitchen counter that opens on to the living room.  The counter was covered with a tablecloth and used as a buffet from both sides

 

We have a wood shelving unit that we have used as a center kitchen island in previous homes but in this house we don't have the room 'inside' the kitchen area but it fits perfectly at the end of the kitchen counter and that is where the plates, flatware, napkins, punch and cups were waiting for our guests...on the back lanai our round dining table 'hosted' the fondue pot.  I covered this table with the picnic quilt made by my sister Sandra as a gift for us...I used the reverse/underside as it has a beautiful red flowered fabric center on navy blue background

 

Everyone brought a dish to share...three types of sausages served with mustard sauce or guava sauce (I mixed them both for a stunning taste!), Tunisian Potato Turnovers, marinated archicokes and heart of palms, boiled soybeans, Swiss cheese fondue (with white wine) with French bread bits or raw mushroom slices to dip (the mushroom slices with the Swiss cheese fondue is scrumptious... what an amazing burst of flavor!), chocolate fondue with panettone bits or banana slices to dip and a strawberry Angel food cake-raspberry trifle...Beverages were Mango-Pineapple Punch, hot chocolate served from the crockpot and coffee

Everyone also brought cookies for a cookie exchange and no cookies were duplicates! What an assortment of Yumminess...Lilikoi bars, White Chocolate Macadamia bars, Pistachio Pudding cookies, Pecan Sandies, Ginger Crinkles, Yule Logs, Rum Balls, Butter Toffee Crackups, Macadamia Snowballs and Chocolate Chip cookies...Yum!  I will share recipes in a soon to follow post

 

The table on the back lanai where the Swiss Cheese Fondue was served was a fun spot.  Kevan, our "little ole winemaker" set up his 'bar' and kept us hydrated with his apple wine and apple champagne...he also shared his delicious lychee liqueur after dinner.  Kevan, the wines, champagne and liqueur are absolutely delicious...Mahalo nui for sharing them with us!

Someone suggested mixing the punch with the champagne for a spritzer or adding a bit of the lychee liqueur to a cup of punch...oh, yes!...

 

Our gift to our guests were handle type canning jars filled with local macadamia nut honey, sliced limes and fresh ginger pieces, bowtied with little wooden honey dippers

 

We played the always fun gift exchange game where you pick a number and the first player chooses a wrapped gift and opens it, then second player has the option of choosing a wrapped gift or 'stealing' the gift from the first player...and on down the line until everyone has a gift either they chose from the gift pile or 'stole' from someone else...I was number 1 and my gift, a beautiful Frank Lloyd Wright book, was stolen from me almost immediately, but I ended up with a gorgeous carved wooden plate!...A beautiful glass tea set was stolen from its original owner and one person just happened to choose a gift his own wife had brought...oh well! Good thing it was a very pretty kitchen towel set and she could still use it at home! ;-) 

Brenda & Kevan, Liz, Mike & Kerry, Jenn & Chris, Galyn & Trevella...we're so happy you could join us and mahalo nui for adding to the joy of our holidays.

To those who could not be here...we certainly missed you!

Wishing all a Mele Kalikimaka from our hale to yours!

 

 

DIY "green" citrus kitchen cleaner

My friend Rose H posted a link at Gather today that spurred me to action...See it HERE ... she had found it on Pinterest (a site I have been avoiding as much as possible even though I have had several friends bombard me with "you need to join" messages and links to interesting-not-to-be-missed pins)...

 

When I saw the pin about the Orange Vinegar cleaner I realized I had both plenty of white vinegar and about 8 tangerines I needed to do something with, so instead of orange peels I used tangerine peels and I added some cloves to the mix.

 

Here is the basic recipe as shared - the original blog link is below.

 

 

Orange Vinegar - A 'green' kitchen cleaner

 

1 16 ounce canning jar

2 oranges - peel only (eat the insides!)

Vinegar to cover

 

Fill jar with the peels and then the vinegar.  Let it sit 2 weeks, decant into spray bottle and you have a green solution for your kitchen cleaning chores.

 

http://fountainavenuekitchen.com/orange-vinegar-a-green-cleaner/

 

 

As I mentioned above I followed my own thing and made

 

Tangerine Vinegar - A 'green' kitchen cleaner

 

1 half gallon canning jar

8 tangerines - peel only (see below what I did with the slices!)

1 level Tablespoon cloves

White vinegar to cover

 

Fill the jar with the peels and add the cloves; add the vinegar and let it sit 2 weeks.  Decant into spray bottles and use for kitchen cleaning chores.

 

Tangerine Slices in Allspice Syrup

 

1 half gallon canning jar

8 tangerines - peeled

4 cups water

3 cups white sugar

4-5 allspice leaves

 

We have an allspice tree in our yard and I like to use the leaves for flavoring as they're just as potent or more so than the berries.

 

Separate the tangerine slices and take off all the little white 'hairy sticky fuzz'.  Place slices in large saucepan or Dutch oven.  Add the water, sugar and washed leaves.  Bring to a boil; turn down heat and cook for about 10 minutes.  Take out the tangerine slices with slotted spoon and let the syrup cook a bit longer with the leaves still in it.

 

When the syrup reaches the desired consistency, turn off, fish out the leaves and funnel the syrup into the canning jar - tangerines will float if there is space.

 

Cool and refrigerate.  Use as topping for ice cream, cakes, puddings, custards, etc...  The syrup left over after you finish eating the tangerine slices can be used for making vinaigrette.

Homemade Holiday Gifts - Mixed Bean Soup fixings

Simple gifts sometimes are the best!

Here is something we did about 14 years ago for family and friends and decided to do again this year for close friends and neighbors. 

 

Mixed Bean Soup

 

Combination of several types beans and peas

I used:

Baby limas

Large limas

Navy beans

Black beans

Great Northern beans

Light red kidney beans

Small red beans

Pinto beans

Garbanzo beans

Green split peas

Black-eyed peas

Green whole peas

Green split peas

Yellow split peas

Lentils

Pearl barley

 

Swansons Flavor Boost concentrated broth liquid packets - chicken flavored with no MSG

Goya Adobo Seasoning with no MSG

Dried oregano, thyme and ground black pepper

Fresh garlic cloves

Amounts are up to you and depend on how much of the bean mix you put in the bags.

 

Place the liquid packets of concentrated broth, the measured amounts of seasonings and the garlic cloves in Zip-lock small plastic snack bags.

 

Mix all the beans and peas together except for the lentils, yellow and green split peas and the pearl barley in a large container and mix well.  The reason to not mix in the peas, lentils and barley is they are much smaller and sink to the bottom.

 

Using clear plastic bags, fill with amount of bean mixture desired; add the rest of the peas, lentils and barley. 

 

We used white porcelain mugs large enough to use as soup mugs.

Place the bean mixture bags inside the mugs and the small envelope with the seasonings can be fitted also inside the mugs alongside the bags.  Close the bag tight with ribbon or twistie.

 

Wrap in decorated cellophane and tie with ribbon.  Add gift tag or card with list of ingredients and note to add water and chopped onion.

 

For a couple I used two mugs and one bag of the bean mixture and seasonings.  For individuals only 1 mug with the bag of beans and seasonings.

We had a bit left over which we will cook in our crock pot!