The Cookery - life’s ingredients

Here’s a day to count down to on your calendar:  Saturday, May 10 . . . World Fair Trade Day.  If you live anywhere near New York’s beautiful Hudson Valley, head on over to Women’s Work from 2-6:00 p.m. at 66 Main Street in Cold Spring.  Cecilia and her Fair Trade fellows will be hosting a coffee break, helping to raise a cup to raise awareness for Fair Trade.  Check out the High Peaks Java and more.  http://www.fairtraderesource.org/ 

My guest bloggers are taking it from here on the supplies list to build your own worm condos:

 You will need:

one paper bag, one plastic liter bottle, one plastic plate, , 10 composting worms, shredded paper, diced fruits and vegetables ready to compost, scissors, tape, water, glue gun

First, with your scissors, cut off the top quarter of the bottle and remove any bottle wrappings.  Then, glue the bottle to the plate.  Next, add some shredded paper to the bottle.  Then, add a splash of water.  Find 10 composting worms.  These worms love to compost.  Next, add more shredded paper to cover the worms.  Then add another splash of water.  Next, add your vegetable or fruit scraps.  Remember, do not place any dairy, meats or fats in your worm condo.  PHHHHeeeeeewwweeeee. 

Cut your paper bag to the proper size, wrap around the bottle and tape into place.  Then use the top of the liter bottle to rest gently on the composting shreds.  Keep out of direct sunlight.  Happy Worm Condo Composting!   

We’ve been eating out and about the last few days.  Big thanks go out to our backyard dinner hosts.  This meal stretched way beyond burgers.  My top side?  C’s cabbage salad!

I also tested my new dillweed dip.  Not bad.  I’m going to run it through the nutrition counter and post it here soon.   

The kids made an earthy contribution in the cookery this week with their composting projects.

Check out these worm condos and give vermicomposting a try. 

The banana bread made its way out the door last night. My neighbor filled my wish list at Trader Joe’s again and I like to show my appreciation.  She tells me that her husband polishes off the candied banana bread with little trouble.  But back to TJ’s:  they had my favorite Roasted Plantain Chips in stock.  I serve them with my Santiago Shrimp Salsa.  Made with plantains, sunflower oil and salt, these Peruvian plantains crunch! 

I broke out the curry for dinner last night.  Chicken curry doesn’t last long around our table.  Today I’m transitioning into a new herb rhythm.  How does fresh dill over cucumber wedges sound?  The combination tastes light and fresh.  Perfect for a warm spring day.

of bananas.  We’ve all heard the fruit cake and banana bread jokes, yet I still turn out my share of candied banana bread.  What else to do with all of those bananas that ripen so quickly on the counter?  Okay . . . so now that the word is out, and to those of you who are usually on the receiving end, I’m not sure who’s due to receive today’s lucky loaf.  The last loaf I shared ended up returning appreciation in the way of a lovely 8 ounces of ground Cafe Azotea from Antigua, Guatemala.  Thank you, Luis!  Taste for yourself:  http://www.azoteaestate.com/index.php?categoryID=79

Every day is earth day here in the cookery.  I’m rummaging through a stack of used cookbooks I found at the library.  Instead of chucking these dusty volumes into the dumpster, someone placed them on the “Help Yourself” cart at a local library.  Some are great, others not so great.  But what’s old can be new again.  Marguerite Patten was preparing healthy meals in under 30 minutes back in 1968.  Her “Speedy coq au vin?”  20 minutes!             

Word of the day:  bruschetta.  I’ve heard a mix of pronunciations but my most trusted source, Mrs. A., Italian wonder in and out of the cookery, led me back home to her roots in Italy with the proper pronunciation.  Broo-skeh-tah.  Fear no more.  I can’t share Mrs. A.’s number, but you can check out a bounty of culinary pronunciations with Relish Magazine’s cook-cab-u-lar-y.  Search for yourself:  http://www.relishmag.com/cookcabulary/b.html

Here’s my own take on bruschetta.  I prefer the goat cheese, usually what I have on hand.

2 medium avocadoes

1 sweet (orange) pepper

3 stalks green onion

3 cloves onion

3 cloves garlic

½ cup chopped fresh cilantro

1/8 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice

¼ cup extra virgin olive oil

Salt

Fresh ground pepper

Diced feta/provolone/parmesan or fresh goat cheese

 2 medium baguettes

Dice all vegetables.  Mix all ingredients except cheese and bread.  Thinly slice baguettes and toast lightly if desired.  Gently fold cheese into vegetable mixture and spoon onto sliced bread.  Serve immediately.

Mom and Dad knocked one out of the ballpark with this kids’ cake.  She baked this baseball celebration and he did all of the decorating.  Thanks for sharing the baseball fever!