Sunday Funday Biscuits

 This morning I made fresh biscuits and served them with my homemade persimmon and datil pepper jam. They were amazing! So because I'm a huge fan of both, I'm going to share them with you! 

Datil Pepper Jam

    12 oz datil peppers (about 60) finely chopped

• 2 cups cider vinegar, divided

• 10 persimmons, peeled & pureed

• 1 cup sugar

• 1 cup honey

• 2 3-oz pouches of liquid pectin

• 5 (8 oz) half pint glass preserving jars with lids and bands

• 
  

• DIRECTIONS:

• PREPARE boiling water canner. Heat jars and lids in simmering water until ready for use. Do not boil. Set bands aside.

• COMBINE purée with 1 cup cider vinegar and sugar. Bring to a boil over high heat. Add in remaining apple cider and chopped peppers. Boil 10 minutes, stirring frequently.

• ADD liquid pectin, immediately squeezing entire contents from pouches. Continue to boil hard for 1 minute, stirring constantly. Remove from heat. Skim foam if necessary.

• LADLE hot datil & persimmon jam into hot jars leaving 1/4 inch headspace. Wipe rim. Center lid on jar. Apply band until fit is fingertip tight.

• PROCESS in a boiling water canner for 10 minutes, adjusting for altitude. Remove jars and cool. Check lids for seal after 24 hours. Lid should not flex up and down when center is pressed.
  
• 
  

• Biscuits

• 4 C of all purpose flour
  2 T Baking powder
  2 T Sugar
  2 tsp Salt
  12 T unsalted butter
  1.5 C ice cold milk
  
  

• Directions

• Preheat oven to 450 degrees F (230 degrees C).
  In a large mixing bowl sift together flour, baking powder, sugar and salt. Cut in shortening with fork or pastry blender until mixture resembles coarse crumbs.
  Pour milk into flour mixture while stirring with a fork. Mix in milk until dough is soft, moist and pulls away from the side of the bowl.
  Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface and toss with flour until no longer sticky. Roll dough out into a 1/2 inch thick sheet and cut with a floured biscuit or cookie cutter. Press together unused dough and repeat rolling and cutting procedure.
  Place biscuits on ungreased baking sheets and bake in preheated oven until golden brown, about 10 minutes.
  
  
  
  There ya have it folks! Happy Sunday! 

Life as we know it

    My life has had so many ups and downs. I really can not count how many to be honest. Season change us. Life takes so many unexpected twists and turns. We change. We learn. We grow. We take the best parts and move forward and try to forget the bad parts. 

    My wine is going to be ready to filter one more time on October 11th. School has been trying for everyone in the family. Striving toward a more independent self is HARD. I can tell you, I will push my children to be independent before they ever get into a relationship. Find your space in education, and a career before deciding to be with someone. I'm about to start some datil pepper jam. We have processed a third of our meat chickens. 

    On with TODAY! In midst of conversation with a friend, we talked about a time I made carne asada fries. Wow. I have not had those in so long. What do I have in my fridge? A pork butt. I'm 100% making carnita fries! Carnita flavors, fries, guacamole???? Who could resist??

Recipe:

CARNITAS
9 lb pork butt
1 cup of orange juice
1 orange zested
1 12 oz beer, I prefer Corona
10 cloves of garlic minced
2 onions chopped (Optional*plus some finely chopped for topping)
2 1/2 tsp of crushed red pepper flakes
2 cinnamon sticks
4 bay leaves
3 tsp salt (more or less to taste)
1/2 tsp ground cloves
1 tsp cumin

Preheat oven to 300 degrees
Mix all dry ingredient and rub all over pork butt. Place in roasting pan, poor in juice and beer. 

Place onions, garlic, bay leaves, cinnamon sticks and orange zest in liquid. 

Cover with lid or foil. Use a ladle to pour liquid over meat every 1.5 hours. Cook for 6-8, or until internal temperature reaches 145 degrees.

 Let rest for 20-30 minutes, then shred with two forks.

FRENCH FRIES
4 russet potatoes cut into even strips
4 cups of vegetable oil for frying
Pinch of Salt to taste

Soak potatoes in a large bowl of water for about 30 minutes. Pat dry thoroughly with paper towels.

Heat oil in a deep-fryer or large saucepan to 275 degrees. Gently add the potatoes in the hot oil for about 5 minutes, stirring and flipping the potatoes occasionally. Remove potatoes from oil with a slotted spoon to drain on paper towel and to cool completely.

Heat oil in a deep-fryer or large saucepan to 350 degrees. Fry the potatoes again until golden brown, 5 to 6 minutes. Blot with a paper towel. Sprinkle with salt.

GUACAMOLE

6 avocados - peeled, pitted, and mashed 

2 limes, juiced

2 teaspoons salt

1/2 cup diced onion 

1/3 cup finely chopped cilantro

2 roma (plum) tomatoes, diced

3 cloves of garlic, minced

1 Jalapeno finely diced

In a medium bowl, mash together the avocados, lime juice, and salt. Mix in onion, cilantro, tomatoes, and garlic. Stir in jalapeno. Refrigerate 1 hour for best flavor, or serve immediately.

OPTIONAL TOPPINGS

Sour Cream
Guacamole
Cilantro
Cotija Cheese
Cheese of your choosing, I prefer pepper jack


INSTRUCTIONS FOR CARNITAS FRIES

Place freshly made french fries in a cast iron or just a cookie sheet. Top with cheese of your choosing. Then place carnita meat on top. Broil until cheese is melted. Top with the topping you prefer!! ENJOY!


Will be posting a picture when completed!

(currently) Favorite Recipe!

November 5- Share your favorite recipe

Right now, my favorite recipe is from stupideasypaleo.com

This recipe is for a paleo version of chocolate mousse. Heck yes! Who doesn't love chocolate? Also, what's better than a chocolate recipe that fits your eating habits? Anyhow, if you haven't read my blog before, I love crafting and cooking. Lots and lots of cooking. Now on for the recipe! Are you ready? Ok, let's begin!




before




after

Of course, if you look at her photo, it looks way better, but it tastes like chocolate pudding to me, and it's fantastic! Hope you all enjoy it as much as me!!




Ingredients:

1 ripe avocado

2-3 tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder

~1/4 c. coconut milk

3-4 dates (I like medjool) (note: dates are notoriously hard to process down…you may also add honey or agave instead if your food pro is a little on the anemic side)

1 vanilla bean*

Directions:

1. Scoop out avocado and combine it with the cocoa powder, coconut milk and dates in a food pro.

2. Split the vanilla bean lengthwise, scrape out the seeds, and add to the food pro.

3. Blend!

4. For best results, refrigerate until chilled.

Makes 2 small servings or 1 large if you’re very hungry.

*You could add 1/2 tsp of vanilla extract instead






Have a great day everyone! Enjoy!

~Me!

Almost caught up

November 3- Your top 5 favorite blogs

My top 5 favorite blogs are about to be listed... Prepare yourselves! (not listed in any order)

http://soldierswifecrazylife.com/

http://thriftydecorchick.blogspot.com/

http://www.healthygirlcooking.com/

http://www.bromeliadliving.com/

http://nomnompaleo.com/


All of these blogs have information or things I find interesting. Def worth the time to go check them out.

PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE...  Share your favorite blogs. I love reading new things, so share the love and shout outs!

Have a great night bloggers!

Happy Valentine's day!

Today has been quiet the productive day. I only have two more cards to make and send out! I think they turned out pretty well, considering I don't particularly care for drawing. I need to get more craft supplies. I've been considering trying to sell my cards again, but am kind of scared about if it's worth the price to list them and everything. Open to thoughts. On another note, I made a card for my love. I'm hoping he enjoys it, although I did mess up a tad bit. Ok, a big mess up on it. Thankfully it was just his, and I know he will love it either way. If it were anyone else's, I would have fixed it. I drew on the wrong side, so it open wrong, haha. Other than that, I love it! Now if only he would get home to see it! I hope everyone is having a great day today!

These are a few of the cards that I made for the 2013 Valentine's day. Some of them were edited more after the pictures were taken.

I hope that everyone one of you gets to meat someone special to you as well. I am now with the person I am certain I was meant to be with my entire life. He is my one, my only. No words could ever describe the way I feel about him. He is my best friend, my go to, for everything in my life. The only person I have ever been able to be completely myself around. No lying about my feelings at all. We were friends before we got together, and I feel that has been the best foundation to our relationship. He knew me. Who I was. No secrets. I feel incredibly blessed. (Did I also mention, he can cook and clean??) Happy Valentine's day to you all, and I hope you find your lifetime Valentine.

Now to finish my post, let us find a recipe to post.. Hmm... How about a different take on Pork Pot Roast? Feeling like putting your fancy pants on?  Maybe you like full-bodied rose? Perfect!! Keep in mind, the pork needs to refrigerate overnight with the dry rub on it!

Ok, we will start with the dry rub. (I make extra and store it, it's delightful)

Pork Rub

(enough for 4 lbs of pork shoulder also called pork butt)

• 1/4 C Salt
• 1/4 C Brown sugar
• 1 t Crushed red pepper
• 1 t  ground Cumin
• 1 t ground Allspice

Pork Pot Roast with Clams & Chorizo

(serves about 6)

• 4 lbs Pork Shoulder or Pork Butt
• 3 T Olive oil
• 1 Onion diced
• 2 Leeks (washed and diced)
• 2 regular sized Carrots
• 2 stalks of Celery
• 5 cloves of Garlic chopped
• 1/2 C golden Raisins
• 1 bottle (750mL) of dry Rose
• 1 C Vegetable broth
• 1 link of Chorizo, cut into small pieces (this is the dried chorizo, not the soft kind)
• 18 Littleneck clams, rinsed
• 2 t fresh Rosemary, finely chopped
• 2 t fresh Oregano
• 2 T flat leaf Parsley
• Salt & Pepper to taste

Alright, so to start, the night before, apply the dry rub to the pork, and refrigerate. 2 hours prior to cooking, pull the pork out. Preheat your oven to 325 degrees. Pat the pork dry with paper towels. Heat a large roasting pan over medium-high heat for about 3 minutes. Add the Olive oil and heat for a minute. Add the pork and brown it on all sides. Turn often, should take about 4 minutes. Remove the prok, and set aside. Reduce the heat to medium, add the onion, and stir for 3 minutes. Add the leeks, carrots, and celery. cook for aobut 3 minutes. Next, add the garlic and raisins, cook for a minute. Now add the broth, rose, and chorizo. Then add the pork back to the pan. Now cover and bake for 3 1/2 hours. After the time is up, put the pork on your serving platter to rest (essential because this finishes the cooking process, and let the juices settle). Now put the pan on medium heat (I know, but keep going, it's soooo worth it). Add the clams, rosemary, oregano, and 1 T of the parsley. Cover and cook for 3 1/2 to 4 1/2 minutes (or until clams open). Taste it.. If it needs salt and pepper, add it. Now arrange the clams around your pork all pretty like. Ladle some broth over the pork and clams. Take the rest and add it to a gravy dish. Now serve and garnish how you like, and enjoy!! I like to have a nice glass of wine and some nice crusty bread with this!

Have a great evening, and I'll catch you on the flip side. Bye!