Fig O Nut Crisps

Adapted from SkinnyJeansFood’s Raincoast Crisps
(makes about 40 crisps)

We had a wonderful trip to Puget Sound for fishing recently to celebrate my dad's 80th birthday.  After pulling in some awesome ling cod, we got interested in snacking.  At a local store, we bought some scrumptious Raincoast Crisps at an exorbitant price.  Figuring that these could be made just as yummy for much less, I set about searching for internet recipes.  This one below is based on a recipe I found, but with a twist of adding dehydrated leeks.   And, they were even better than the ones we bought!

DRY INGREDIENTS

2 C all purpose flour

2 t baking soda

1/2 t salt

1/4 C brown sugar

WET INGREDIENTS

2 C buttermilk  (Bulgarian)

1/8 C honey

1/8 C maple syrup

ADD-INS

1 C dried calimyrna figs, large chopped

1/4 C red wine

2 T balsamic vinegar

1/3 C brined kalamata olives, sliced

1/3 C dehydrated diced leeks or green onions

1/2 C chopped walnuts

1/2 C raw pepitas

1/4 C white sesame seeds

1T chia seeds

Set oven at 325.

·         Before you get going, put figs, wine and balsamic vinegar into a saucepan and reduce over low heat to infuse the figs and rehydrate them.  Reduce til most liquid is gone.

         

       Meanwhile, separately combine the wet and dry ingredients.

·         Then add them together.  After stirring to combine, add the olives, nuts,  figs, and other stuff.  Stir.

·         Grease (coconut oil) 2 medium loaf pans (8 x 3).  Divide mixture and put into oven.

·         Bake for 40 minutes.

·         Cool completely.

·        

      Slice very thin and put on cookie sheet (ungreased).

·         Bake at 325 for 3-4 min per side or until desired browning and crispness. (If they do not crisp to your desire, you can always crisp them immediately prior to serving.  But, do not overcook.  Better to have them underdone.)

Serve with a cream cheese spread or goat cheese and jam.   

I used Jezebel spread:  2T horseradish, ½ cube cream cheese, ½ C peach preserves, 2 T brown sugar:  blend and spread. 

Blonde Kimchi

Because we have more fun. . .

Why can't kimchi be blonde?  Why not!

My friend-in-law, Debbie (mother of the man who married my daughter) spent time recently in South Korea. One of the many thoughtful things she has done for me is to send me a Korean kimchi pot.


In honor of Debbie, another blonde, I made this kimchi.  But don't be misled, it is hot and spicy!    

This is awesome on scrambled eggs or a chicken salad. or some broth . .  or just by itself.  This is the first time I made a rice paste mixture to flavor the kimchi. So far, so good.

Vegetable mix:

3 small heads (16 C) of savoy or Napa cabbage, chopped large
8 carrots (3 C) peeled and sliced thin on the diagonal
5 C sliced leeks on the diagonal
1/2 red onion sliced thin
1/2 C sliced dried seaweed
6 T kosher salt

Mix all the above together, smush around and let set for at least an hour.  After which, rinse off the excess salt and drain.

Paste/spice:

1/2 apple
1/2 cup rough chopped garlic
1/2 white onion
1/3 C cooked white rice
1/3  or more water  (add water as you need to puree in food processer)
1 inch ginger rough chopped
1/2 inch horseradish rough chopped
1 fat sardine with oil from tin
1 T fish sauce
5 T Nanami togarashi or other pepper flake spice
1 T dried red pepper (or 1 T diced jalapeno/or other hot fresh pepper)

Mix the spice/ paste ingredients in a blender, juicer or food processor.

Then, mix the paste into the cabbage/veg mixture.  You may want to wear gloves.  Pack it into a kimchi pot or into mason jars.  This recipe makes about 3 quarts.

Weight down or push down to ensure kimchi is covered with liquid.  I use small plastic lids pushed down with synthetic wine corks (cut to size if needed).  Cover with a lid. . . but release gas 2-3 times a day--otherwise, you will have an explosion.

Leave on your kitchen counter for 1-3 days, depending on how fizzy you like your kimchi.  After that, put in frige.

It should last 6-12 months, if you an resist it that long.

Vinagre/Pique: (Puerto Rican Vinegar Condiment)

Finally!  A Use for Pineapple Peels

It seems like such a pity to throw away the pineapple skins.  Aside from rubbing the flesh side on your skin for a facial (recommended by the folks at Livestrong), you can make this awesome vinagre.  

Vinagre, also referred to as pique, in Puerto Rico is a standard condiment in most homes and at restaurants. The pineapple skins give off juice that ferments to make a fruit vinegar that is rich in the enzyme bromelian and vitamin C.   It is spicy hot and keeps getting hotter.  Leave it on your counter for at least a week before moving it to a cool pantry.  It will keep indefinitely in your refrigerator.

What do you do with this?  Flavor a salad dressing, sprinkle it over thinly sliced raw beef for a marinade before quickly stir frying (carne asada), spoon it onto rice or over eggs, on spoon some on roasted potatoes or fries, or dress your ham and plantain sandwich!  

Everyone has their own family recipe.  Here's one I developed from combining ideas I found here and there. Use this one or adapt it to make your own family vinagre recipe.

Ingredients

skins from one fresh pineapple (just the sides)

1/2 large yellow onion, sliced thin

1/2 inch piece of fresh ginger, sliced thin

20 cloves of garlic, leave whole, but smush slightly with the side of your knife

1/2 C sliced sweet peppers (bells or mini peppers)

6-10 chiles, such as habanero and jalapeno, sliced however you like

1 t black peppercorns

1/2 t kosher salt

1/4 C apple cider vinegar (raw is best) 

3 sprigs of oregano

Method

Put pineapple skins into a pot with enough water to cover (about 10 cups).  Boil until skins are tender, about 30 minutes.

Put all the other ingredients into a very large glass container or evenly divide among several quart jars.

Strain the pineapple water/juice into the jars.  

Cover.

Leave on countertop for about a week before moving to cool place for storing.

It is better the longer it sets.  Many people wait an entire month before using it, but it may be spicy enough after 2 weeks.  Enjoy.

Dear 18 Year Old Me

*The following advice was collected from the managers and directors in Student Affairs at Eastern Washington University, as they reflected on advice they’d like to give themselves as entering freshmen.

Dear 18-year-old me,

I thought I’d write you a letter, having had the benefit of living through freshman year of college as myself. I hope the following advice is helpful to you, based on my experiences both good and bad:

1. It’s nice to be open-minded, but keep your standards. Hang around people better than you are, not the other way around.

2. Relationships are important. Find friends and partners who accept you for who you are right now.

3. Many of your friends from high school will move on and have lives of their own. Don’t worry about it. That’s how it works, it turns out.

4. You never know where your next best friend will come from.

5. Not all your professors will be witty, kind, world-class researchers, nor will they have teaching styles exactly matched to your learning style. The world is full of encounters like this. Just keep going. This too shall  pass.

6. Choose courses based on the faculty, not the course descriptions. Talk with your peers and find out who the “amazing” faculty members are, and take a course from them even if it’s not something in your major or field of study. With this strategy, you’re certain to be engaged and to learn something valuable from the course—and you may even develop a new found interest!

7. Go talk to your professors if you have questions or concerns. They like to talk about their subjects, and they are truly interested in you and your ideas.

8. Procrastination doesn't seem like much fun when it’s 5 a.m. and you’re still typing your research paper (or when your boyfriend is still typing your research paper—which is a bad idea, by the way). Break up tasks and assignments and allot them appropriate time.

9. Spend time with your younger brothers and sisters when you go back home from college to visit. When you’re all grown up, they’ll still be there for you.

10. Don’t complain to your parents about things and then get irritated when they respond by giving you advice or trying to help you “fix” it. They love you and want to help.

11. By the way, Mom was right: everyone is not doing “it,” whatever “it” happens to be. You’re going to live to be very old. You can always do “it” later.

12. Characters in Russian novels really are as depressing as you think they are. If you don’t absolutely love them, there’s nothing wrong with you.

13. You can be too tan and too thin.

14. Do your best, but don't worry about being perfect. Think of mistakes as teachers: everyone needs them to grow. Nothing is so bad that it will not look better tomorrow.

15. Don’t worry about being “undecided” in your major. It’s okay to take a year to figure out what you really enjoy. Take lots of different classes your first year so you can discover your passions.

16. Don’t just commute to class and leave—get involved! You might decide on a major a lot sooner if you take advantage of the opportunities on your campus. In fact, just get out there and do things, anything. Your room will be a lonely, boring place if you do not develop outside interests. ENGAGE.

17. Be curious beyond the classroom. Try things out and step outside your comfort zone.

18. Make sure you are attentive in class so you are not asking dumb questions – and, yes, there are such things as dumb questions.

19. Avoid coffee stands at all costs—you’ll eventually blame college for your caffeine addiction.

20. Don’t let anyone set your limitations—not even yourself.

21. Everything is better in moderation. Eat well. Exercise. Sleep. Don't let any substance control you.

22. Be good to your brain. It will thank you when you are older.

23. If you never clean out your toaster oven, you will get mice.

24. Your roommates are not mind readers. You need to tell them whether it is OK to borrow your stuff, or have friends over for dinner, and vice versa.

25. Do not take on unnecessary debt. Your credit score matters.

26. Being frozen in a state of indecision is worse than making a wrong decision. If you cannot decide on a course of action, just pick an option, move forward, and stay with it. Things will work out.

27. The number of mistakes you’re going to make in the next decade or so is pretty monumental. You may want to stop counting in that journal of yours. P.S. Take more pictures.

28. Don’t ever be the one who says, “But nobody told me the deadline was Friday.” Read all materials, articles and web pages people recommend. People don’t put this stuff together for their health.

29. Take care of yourself academically and emotionally so you don’t feel like you’re sinking.

30. Get a “writing buddy.” Build a partnership with someone whose writing skills are similar to, or better than, your own. All great writers have editors—and you’ll find your writing will significantly improve through his process!

31. Get a job on campus. You’ll have extra pocket money, and you’ll build an important network of friends and colleagues who can help with wide-ranging issues.

32. Find a way to study abroad at some point during your college career.

33. Use career services early and often. Don't wait until the month before graduation.

34. Yes, things will be hard. Yes, you’ll have multiple deadlines in the same week. Yes, you’ll have people in college and work you won’t like, but you’ll have to work with them anyway. Even though there are tough times here and there, you will get through them and learn more about yourself than if you didn't encounter trials and tribulations.

35. Don’t let people put you down or question you just because of how you look or what your age is. If you can get the job done, that’s all that matters.

36. It turns out that humans are pretty lousy at imagining what will make them happy in the future. (Science is going to prove this in about five years. Trust me. I read the research.) So instead of worrying so much about he future, just be happy now.

37. The greatest adventures are going to be the ones you haven’t even imagined. And the adventures you’re imagining? Those won’t be too bad, either, but they won’t be your favorites.

38. Even though you might think the dare is an easy one, do not put that ferret in your mouth.