With a name like KELLY, it may come as no surprise that March 17th is one of my favorite days of the year. As part of the celebration, I have been making soda bread for the last 32 years and have tried dozens of versions – experimenting as I went. My favorite soda bread recipe in 32 years of experimenting is Silver Palate author Sheila Lukins’ Irish Soda Bread Rolls. Why rolls and not just a loaf of bread? Because the rolls give you more of that delightful, rustic crunchy crust!
I make these using the Celtic tradition of cutting a cross in the tops to ward off evil spirits for the year to come. The Society for the Preservation of Soda Bread would like you to know that the humble bread has survived centuries of time because it is simple, frugal and just plain delicious. Traditional soda bread has only four ingredients: flour, salt, baking soda and buttermilk.
Irish Americans later added raisins to fancy things up for holidays. Sheila added oats, too, which I think is a brilliant rustic addition of an Irish ingredient. The only thing I have changed from Sheila’s recipe is that I brush the rolls with butter before baking for a nice golden brown crust. This year, I am making these rolls not only because they are Irish, but also as a tribute to Sheila, who died too young a few months ago of cancer. Her fun (albeit NOT Irish) spirit lives on!
Witten by Donna on February 26, 2010 in Uncategorized
We were all thrilled to see Bode Miller on the platform at the Olympics, but did you know we have another reason to applaud him? Miller is a sustainable eating advocate, an organic farmer and lifelong vegetarian!
Michael Pollan’s recent interview on NPR was both entertaining and enlightening: Just one favorite quote: “It’s not food if it arrives through the window of your car.” This got me thinking. . . Is good, healthy, sustainable eating a luxury only for the upper middle class and the rich, or is it something we all can achieve?
Witten by Donna on February 22, 2010 in Uncategorized
Tofu au Vin? Really? Tofu? you say. You’ll have to trust us on this one: it’s saucy, savory and vegalicious! There is something about slowly simmering wine that makes things taste incredible. I swear you could simmer shoe leather in wine and aromatics all day and serve it up as a hip new entree: Lethre au Vin!
To replicate the amazing slow-braised taste of the classic French dish Coq au Vin I slowly simmered onions and carrot and garlic in vegetable broth and wine, and to replace the meat I used chopped mushrooms and tofu chunks. Alton Brown’s dish Coq au Vin takes 4 hours. Julia Child’s iconic version takes about an hour. Our healthier, greener tofu version – just 30 minutes! I just love Meatless Mondays!
Why Tofu? We at FFF love tofu so much, we even wrote a Tofu Cookbook! Did you know that Tofu is the most commonly eaten legume in the world? And – no wonder: it is a frugal source of high-quality protein and one of the most nutrient-dense foods you can eat. In this dish tofu just makes sense – the mild creamy texture and taste of tofu are a perfect match – similar to chunks of chicken – for the strong tangy flavorful wine sauce. We promise you won’t miss the meat!
Witten by Anne on February 19, 2010 in Uncategorized
In lieu of our usual FFF tips, we wanted to share this with y’all: Donna, Anne and Anne’s daughter Lily posed with lucky reader Syrell with her brand-new Cadillac of the kitchen! She just so happens to live nearby (we have a lot of Utah readers), and thought she might as well pick it up in person.
Congratulations again, Syrell! Stop by FFF once in awhile and let us know what masterpieces you are whipping up with this amazing mixer!
Witten by Anne on February 14, 2010 in Uncategorized
The time has come. We’ve tallied the points, all 997 of them, reading through the great tips, empathizing with your yearning, and appreciating your efforts in spreading the word on our blog. Believe us when we say we wish we could give this fabulous mixer to every single one of you.
But, alas, there can be only one. So, with our grand total, we headed over to random.org and got our answer. The lucky winner is . . . Continue Reading…
I can hardly believe we haven’t talked about composting before! We’ve posted about using certain kinds of scraps for stock, but this is equally valid and makes use of even more But Kimberly of The Urban Luddite reminded us of this with her frugal tip: “Dump your food waste, coffee grounds, apple cores, etc. into a kitty-litter bucket with a snap lid. Once a week or so take it outside and dump it on the compost heap. Great for the garden and cuts down on trash – you save money on garden compost AND on trash pickup!”
Now, you can’t just throw anything in there – meat products like bones, and dairy products are out (though eggshells are great. But in general, any type of plan material at all is perfect, including the kinds of trimmings you would never in a million years put into your stock. There are even some paper products that are usable (see the link below). It’s such a no-brainer if you have ANY kind of garden going – and I plan to make serious business out of it this year!
