Granola

Over the past year, yogurt and granola has become our staple breakfast.  Not only is it healthy and satisfying, but it is also quick and easy to travel with.  While there are a variety of commercially and locally made granolas available at the store, it starts to become expensive. We've found that homemade granola is simple to make and there are endless variations.  Nuts, dried fruits and maple syrup can get expensive, but when used in moderation and bought in bulk it can be considerably cheaper than pre-made granola.  In addition, granola is a great gift and can be customized according to the season and tastes of your recipient.  Here are two of our favorite combinations and we encourage you to experiment with your own ingredient preferences.  We are sure granola will soon become a staple breakfast, snack and dessert.

Whole Wheat Bagels

One of our favorite ways to begin a weekend morning is with a fresh and warm bagel and cream cheese.  While we certainly have some favorite local bagel shops, we decided to try to make some of our own.  The process itself is a bit time consuming but the results - pillowy soft and airy bagels - are well worth the effort.  This is a fun project for a calm weekend morning and freezing the bagels will allow you to enjoy them for weeks or months to come.  These bagels are relatively small, so plan on one and a half or two per person, and you can experiment with toppings of your choice.  We used the classic "everything" toppings - garlic, sesame seed, poppy seed, and salt - but are looking forward to experimenting with more flavors in the future.  To top them off, we made raisin walnut cream cheese which added a wonderful sweetness and crunch.  Start off your next weekend with this delicious treat and let us know what toppings you like best!

Apple Chutney

Apple season is in full swing and this year we wanted to experiment with preserving apples to enjoy year round.  Last fall we canned apple sauce, which came out delicious, and this time we decided to try something new and make apple chutney.  This chutney is filled with onions and spices that make it a unique holiday gift.  We were excited that we had a bit leftover after canning so we could sample it and pair it with a variety of foods.  It was delicious on top of a sharp cheese, such as cheddar or blue cheese, and provided a unique touch for a grilled cheese sandwich.  Whether you decide to can this chutney or not, try it today to enjoy your local apples in a new way!

Gazpacho

Gazpacho is a refreshing summer-time soup that allows you to use any spare vegetables you have or whichever are readily available at the market.  This recipe is adapted from Moosewood Restaurant, the famous New York restaurant that has led the way in vegetarian cooking since 1973.  The restaurant has published many cookbooks that are well worth exploring for new vegetarian ideas and old classics (their banana bread recipe is delicious).  Their version of gazpacho uses tomatoes, cucumbers, and herbs as its base, but you can also experiment with peppers, zucchini, or carrots and a variety of herbs.  Gazpacho is easy to make using a blender and keeps well in the fridge for days and is always perfect for an easy snack, lunch, or dinner!

Dilly Beans

Dilly beans are one of our favorite ways to enjoy the summer harvest.  Pickling these green beans retains their crunch while adding a punch of flavor from the vinegar, garlic and dill.  We have found it's great to keep a jar in the fridge for a quick snack, a topping for a sandwich or as a unique twist in potato salad.  Once canned, they make a great gift that anyone is sure to enjoy, and by using a variety of colored beans they are even more attractive.  Additionally, Canning these beans using the simple boiling water method is a great way to enjoy their fresh flavor all year long.  Give this recipe a try before the end of bean season, and come December, we know that you will be happy that you did.

Canning 101

We have greatly enjoyed our explorations of seasonal cooking and love the variety and freshness offered at our farmers markets in the summer and fall.  However, there are certainly times in the dead of winter when we crave those fresh tastes of the summer - tomatoes, peaches, basil, cucumbers, etc. - but don't want to purchase foods from far away.  Not only are these imports harmful for the environment, they tend to be more expensive and much less flavorful.  While it seemed daunting at first, we decided to give preserving and pickling a try to capture our favorite flavors of the summer for enjoyment later in the year.

We tried canning for the first time last fall and made apple sauce and pickles.  The apple sauce was delicious and we enjoyed it all winter long, but the pickles were lacking the crisp and bite normally associated with dill pickles.  These experiences left us wanting to explore more this year, but also made us realize that we had a lot left to learn.

After attending a canning class in August and purchasing a canning cookbook, we felt like we had a much better sense of the process.  Last weekend we made four recipes from the cookbook to experiment with different types of foods and flavors (look for the recipes in coming weeks).  After sampling each of the recipes we are very happy with the results and eagerly look forward to enjoying them in a few months.  Not only that, we loved spending the day in the kitchen with each other and enjoyed the fun and rewarding weekend project.

Canning certainly is not just for your grandmother and great-aunt, so follow our suggestions and give it a try before the summer produce runs out!

Tabouleh Salad

Tabouleh is a great go-to side dish during the summer because of the abundance of fresh herbs and vegetables.  Better yet, no cooking is required so you can avoid heating up your kitchen.  Tabouleh salad is a Middle Eastern dish that is typically made with bulgar (also known as cracked wheat), tomatoes, cucumbers, parsley and mint.  However, bulgar can be substituted with a variety of grains including couscous and a variety of herbs can be used.  This is a great dish to experiment with and pairs nicely with vegetable-based dishes including stuffed vegetable rolls and falafel.  As we've learned, tabouleh develops great flavors over a few days so make extra to enjoy again and again.

Stuffed Vegetable Rolls

In the heat of summer we are always looking for refreshing meals that can be made ahead of time.  By doing most of the work ahead of time we are able to enjoy our evenings and not heat up the kitchen right before dinner.  Make-ahead meals are also great for dinner parties and potlucks any time of year.  This meal was inspired by our trip to the farmer's market where we found local eggplant and zucchini, though peppers would work great as well.  The filling (we used goats cheese, basil, and lemon) can also be adapted to your liking with different combinations of cheeses and seasonings.  These easy to prepare and amazingly delicious rolls will soon become a go-to main dish or appetizer all summer long.

Green Pea Soup

Cold soups are a wonderful way to enjoy the tastes of summer while cooling down after a hot day.  Because this can be made in advance, it is an easy meal to put together on a weekday night and have leftovers for lunch or dinner the next day.  If peas are in season this is an excellent use for them, but if not, then frozen peas work just as well.  We actually find that frozen peas are one of the few frozen vegetables that retain their taste and taste fresh once defrosted.  For that reason, we went with frozen peas here but the option is yours.  As for the cinnamon used here, while it may seem like an unusual ingredient for a savory soup, it adds a unique and delicious rounded flavor to this dish.

Fried Squash Blossoms

Nothing says summer like squash blossoms.  Cooking squash blossoms can seem daunting, as they are typically a gourmet restaurant fare, but when they caught our eye at the farmers market we decided to give them a try.  These blossoms grow on the ends of zucchini and are plucked once the zucchini have developed.  Because they are so fragile and delicate they are sometimes difficult to find.  However, if you look around your local farmers markets or talk to the farmers you are sure to find some this time of year.  Once purchased they are best eaten day of and as a delicious appetizer.  This is a very easy recipe that you can play around with the fillings to suit your likes and we've found our favorite to be stuffed with goat cheese or ricotta.  

Farming in Italy

A view of our Italian farm's vineyards.

After our days in Cinque Terre we traveled to our Italian farm located an hour outside Turin in Northwestern Italy.  The farm mainly produces grapes and honey, but also has a small garden and fruit trees.  They sell their grapes to their local cooperative, a group of 350 farmers, which then produces, bottles, and distributes wine.  This farm is only one of two organic growers so the cooperative produces a small amount of organic wine and a large amount of conventionally produced wine.  The region is well known for Barolo and Muscato, both of which the cooperative makes.  One afternoon our host took us on a tour of the cooperative and we got to sample some of their wines as well as learn about the wine making process.

Dolcetto grapes from the vineyard.

Members of cooperative can purchase bulk wine cheaper than gasoline.
These pumps are used to transfer wine from storage into large jugs that members bring.

At the farm we had the chance to learn about the honey making process, something we had never experienced before.  The farm produces four types of honey, each of which are taken from the hives at different points of the year.  The flavor of each honey changes depending on which current flower is in bloom.  They make many fruit and honey preserves to sell at the market as well as sauces and canned vegetables for themselves to eat during the winter months.

Checking the progress of the bees to determine if the harvest was ready to collect. 

Irma, one of the dogs on the farm.

Thanks to the delicious cooking of our hosts, we were able to sample a variety of dishes native to the region.  One night we had pizza with fresh mozzarella, tomatoes and olives and another night pasta cooked perfectly al dente with zucchini and parmesan cheese.  Our last nigh there we had an amazing meal of fried squash blossoms (which we had picked early that day), a simple yet incredibly tasteful lasagna and a delicious tiramisu for dessert.  It was great to see how simple these dishes were to make, but by combining fresh ingredients in just the right was they were so flavorful and well-balanced.  This is definitely a method of cooking that we try to follow by always letting the ingredients speak for themselves.

Pizza with olives.

Tiramisu.

Fried squash blossoms.

After our week at the farm we spent two days in Interlaken, Switzerland before returning home.  Overall we had a wonderful trip and so many fun food adventures.  Our experiences will no doubt influence our cooking in the future as well as our respect for organic food and our desire to have a garden later in life.  We hope you have enjoyed reading about our travels and we will soon return to posting new recipes.

A view of dusk from our Italian farm.

Us in the vineyard.

Cinque Terre, Italy

After a short visit to Nice we crossed borders to Italy.  Our first stop was in Genoa, a medium-sized city on the Mediterranean coast (the birthplace of Christopher Columbus) a few hours East of the France-Italy border.  Genoa was a great old Italian city to walk around and without too many tourists we were really able to observe daily life in the city.  Tucked away in the beautiful architecture lies a multitude of restaurant and cafes offering traditional northern-Italian cuisine.  For lunch we found delicious homemade panini, in a small café, filled with mozzarella and grilled vegetables.  For dinner we tried a Michelin-rated restaurant and had our first bowl of Italian pasta with pesto – a delicious meal.  To wrap up the evening we had gelato from Grom, a world-famous gelateria, that offers numerous organic, local and slow-food approved flavors.  Grom has numerous locations throughout Italy, but also has a few international stores, including New York City. 

One of the central fountains and squares in the old city of Genoa.

After a day in Genoa we hopped on a train to Cinque Terre.  Cinque Terre is national park and UNESCO World Heritage Site that contains five small towns along the Mediterranean coast.  There are well-established walking trails that connect the towns with gorgeous views of the terraced land.  Although known as a large tourist location, the five towns retain their old-world charm and each have their own personality. 

A view from one of our walks.

A view of Vernazza, one of the five towns in Cinque Terre.

The landscape is filled with vineyards and citrus trees planted on handmade terraces that line the cliffs.  These terraces produce great white wine, a few of which we sampled during our picnic dinners.  To go with the wine, we had meals with bread, fresh mozzarella, olives, local tomatoes and peppers, homemade pesto and fresh rosemary picked from the bush next to our B&B.  After our dinners we walked to the local gelateria and sampled more delicious Italian gelato. 

Our picnic the first night in Cinque Terre.

One of the many cones of gelato we ate during our trip.

We had a great time in Cinque Terre and we are now moving on to our next WOOFing farm in the northern piedmont region of Italy.  We look forward to learning more about organic farming and experiencing some Italian home cooking.

A few of the many terraces that line the coast of Cinque Terre. 

Aix-en-Provence, France

One thing that we wanted to do while in France was to visit a small town in Provence, the southeast region of France.  Many people suggested that we visit Aix-en-Provence to get this experience so we decided to give it a try.  After three amazing days, we were glad we listened!

The main and largest street in the city.

Aix-en-Provence is a quaint town 20 minutes northeast of Marseille.  The central town (about a 15 minute walk from end to end) is surrounded by a larger road, which allows it to remain small and mainly pedestrian.  The crisscrossed cobblestone streets are lined with shops, restaurants, and cafes and are full of locals and tourists.  And no matter where we turned, we found delicious and local food.  There is a food market everyday, with not only produce but also breads, cheeses, olives and tapenades - specialties of the region.  There are also larger food markets and artisan markets on the weekends, both of which were delights to walk through.  

Over the course of our three days, we ate amazing food from market picnics and local restaurants and bakeries.  At the market we found a French macaroon cart that had very unique flavor combinations.  Among our favorites were raspberry and rose water, strawberry and basil, and lemon meringue.  Nearby, we also picked up all sorts of olives and tapenades, including black olive with herbs de provence, sundried tomato, and artichoke.  A local bakery just up the street from the market, which was recommended by a friend, offered some of the best bread we have ever tasted.  One had large chunks of dark chocolate, another was filled with figs and walnuts, and even their simple baguette was wonderful.

A few of the many macaroons offered at the market.

Freshly baked bread at the bakery.

One afternoon for lunch we ate at Le Pain Quotidien - a restaurant we have in the states but completely different overseas.  We split a wonderful roasted vegetable salad that featured rolled eggplant, stuffed peppers, sundried tomatoes, and buffalo mozzarella.  To go with this we had a open-face brie sandwich with walnuts and local honey.  The meal was light and refreshing and perfect for a hot summer day. 

Our salad and tartine at lunch.

All in all, Aix-en-Provence was an amazing stop.  Between the food, the rose wine, the casual walks, and the beautiful culture, it is a place we would love to return to in the future.  For now we are off to our last stop in France, Nice, and Genoa and Cinque Terre in Italy.  We are looking forward to experiencing the Italian culture as well as their local gastronomic specialties.  

Sunflowers at the Saturday flower market.

Lyon, France

After a week and a half on the farm, we headed to Lyon, a large city only 20 minutes away.  Two rivers run through Lyon, which divides the city in to three main districts - the old city, the shopping area, and the financial center.  Each district has it's own personality and appeal and no matter where we went, delicious food was easy to find.  We spend the majority of our two days in Lyon walking through the city and exploring the different neighborhoods.  The old city is mainly car-free, so afternoon and evening strolls were true delights.  There was also a plant exposition one day in the main town square, Place Bellecour, which was a traveling art show featuring native plants from around the region.

A view of Lyon, France from Fourviere Hill.

 As the gastronomic capital of France, there are dozens of restaurants and cafes on every block.  Most serve typical Lyonnais specialties, though numerous ethnic restaurants are also present.  In our two days, we sampled all types of local food - crepes, cheeses, breads, ice cream, pastries, olives, and vegetables.  Many of these were found at the daily market along the river, which on Sundays, stretches nearly 1/2 mile.

A relaxing dinner featuring traditional Lyonnais cheese.

A great way to start the morning - Pain au Chocolat and Croissant aux Amandes.

One evening we enjoyed a delicious dinner at a restaurant that features tartines - an open-faced sandwich served on crusty bread.  The restaurant was so good, that we went there twice, ordering the same food both times.  To our surprise and delight, the dishes were made completely differently each night - a true example of a chef working with ingredients on hand and his inspiration for the night.

Our first dinner at the restaurant.

Our second dinner at the restaurant.

Although one of the bigger cities in France, Lyon was a great city to walk through and we felt like we got a great sense of the city even in just two days.  Our next stop is Aix-en-Provence, a small city in the south of France.  We are looking forward to the contrast between these regions and exploring the delicacies of southern France.

One of the public squares in Lyon.

Us in front of the church on Fourviere Hill.

Farming in France

After a three hour train ride, a four hour wait for our bus, and a confusing bus ride that ended with us missing our stop, we finally arrived in the tiny town of Thurins, France.  This small town is home to the organic vegetable farm we connected with through WWOOF.  For those unfamiliar with this organization, World Wide Opportunities on Organic Farms is a way for anyone interested in learning about organic farming to experience it first hand.  Dozens of countries around the world run their own version of WWOOF, and each allows organic farms to post information about themselves on an internet database.  Interested travelers can then join the country's chapter and connect with the farms.
 

A view from the farm of the Rhone Valley

We decided that we wanted to work on a fairly small farm or vineyard so that we could get to know the owners and learn about the ins and outs of running an organic farm.  This farm is in the Rhone valley, about 20 miles outside of Lyon, and has a countryside similar to that of Tuscany in Italy - rolling hills, small villages, and dotted farms.  The farmers we stayed with are a young couple that started three years ago after taking over some family land.  They decided to become certified organic (EcoCert in France) to respect the environment and those who ate from their farm.  Each season and year bring different produce to the farm and during our stay we have seen lettuce, peppers, tomatoes, zucchini, radishes, raspberries, cherries, leeks, potatoes, carrots, green beens, peas, and eggplant being grown or harvested as well as eggs from over 200 hens.

A neighboring farm using high tunnels to extend the growing seasons.

While this is an ideal and picturesque setting, the work we have done on the farm is of a true farmhand.  During our week here, we have come to appreciate the difficulties of organic farming and thus why it costs more than conventional methods.  We have pulled out hundreds of weeds by hand (something conventional farms use chemicals for), planted thousands of leeks using traditional methods, pruned hundreds of tomato plants (not necessary when using genetically modified seeds), and preserved fruits for the winter time so the family can eat seasonally and not purchase food from outside the community.  While this certainly has not been easy work, we have learned a lot in the process and learned to appreciate those farmers and workers who spend countless extra hours working in fields to provide the rest of us with safe and healthy food.

Speaking of food, we have loved being able to eat fruits and vegetables literally from farm to table (or sometimes straight from tree to mouth as is the case with the multitude of cherries we have eaten off the trees during our breaks).  Breakfasts consist of bread from local bakeries, preserves from last years harvest, delicious French butter, eggs from the farm, and yogurt.  Lunches begin with fresh cut salad and homemade mustard vinaigrette, local bread and amazing French cheese (normally from local producers or chevre from the farm next door), and seasonal vegetables prepared various ways.

One of our first dinners using produce from our farm.

The farm owners' evenings are often filled with selling at local markets, delivering produce to their 200 plus CSA participants, and getting their two-year-old to bed (in a few months they will have a newborn to add to this mix - we can't begin to imagine what evenings will look like then).  As a result, we are able to enjoy quiet evenings to ourselves to cook dinner with produce from the farm.  Each day we take whatever was freshly harvested and a fresh loaf of bread.  We have greatly enjoyed being able to work with such fresh and flavorful ingredients and made some delicious meals.  One of our most memorable has been an omelette with eggs, zucchini, and potatoes from the farm, French brie, and a salad of lettuce and radishes, also from the farm.  And of course, since we are in France, a crusty baguette round things out.

Our omelette and salad made with farm-fresh produce.

This truly has been a memorable experience and we have learned some important things.  We don't want to be farmers when we grow up, but will forever appreciate those who are and those who are leading the way on sustainable farming methods.  There is no substitute, though, for fresh produce, and we know that when we can we will have a garden of our own to grow some of our daily food.

We have a few more days left on the farm, and then we are off to explore Lyon, southern France, and the northwest Italian coast before arriving at our next farm.  Stay tuned to see where these adventures take us and the food we enjoy along the way.

Another view we will not soon forget.

Our Adventure Begins

We apologize that there has not been a recent post, but it’s been a crazy few weeks.  Since our last post we’ve graduated from college, packed and unpacked four years of college into countless boxes and flown across the world!  We are spending the next six weeks in Europe, two of which will be spent through Switzerland, France and Italy and four of which will be spent farming on two different farms.  While we won’t be cooking much during this time, we will be eating amazing food and seeing amazing sites.  We decided to share our travels with you and hope you will follow our adventures through a new and exciting world of food.  

Sunrise from the airplane.

 

Traveling around Europe can get expensive, especially eating out every meal, and as recent graduates we do not have a huge budget.  However, we know that good food does not necessarily have to be expensive, especially when you get creative.  After an overnight flight we arrived in Zug, Switzerland exhausted and hungry.  As we wandered around the quaint town we found a grocery store and put together a delicious lunch.  Fresh bread is readily available, as is inexpensive local cheeses and vegetables.  We grabbed some nice baguettes, half-round of cheese, apples, tomatoes and carrots, and headed for a park on a lake.  Luckily a friend advised us to pack a knife and with that we were all set for a great lunch.  Between the view, the food, and the company, we certainly didn’t miss the restaurant setting and enjoyed a lovely lunch.  Lunch was so good that we had a similar picnic for dinner and we’re sure this will become a routine during our travels.  

The old part of town in Zug, Switzerland.

Our picnic lunch in Zug.

Our lunch view.

 

After Zug, we traveled to Luasanne, Switzerland.  Lausanne is on Lake Geneva (right across from Evian, France) and about a 30-minute train ride from Geneva.  Lausanne is a pretty small city with great walks along the waterfront and the old part of the city higher up, with great views of the mountains and lake.  We spent Friday exploring Lausanne and Saturday in Geneva. 

The Jet d'Eau in Geneva, Switzerland.

The harbor in Geneva.

 

In Geneva we stumbled on a market and found ourselves a nice picnic consisting of local blue cheese, tomatoes and whole grain bread.  Another spectacular view made this a lunch not to forget.  By evening we were back in Lausanne, which happened to be hosting a Thai festival that we had walked through the day before.  While there was only one vegetarian option, Pad Thai Pak, we gave it a try and were quite pleased.   It came with some great chili sauces and fresh lemons which made the dish.  It was a very interesting environment to have dinner in with a mixture of Swiss culture, French language and Thai cooking (there was even a Lady Gaga impersonator).  After dinner we walked along the water front and couldn’t resist the smells coming from of Lausanne’s oldest creperies, Creperie D’Ouchy.  We got one of the classic combinations, butter and sugar.  Overall, Switzerland was a great country to visit and we are looking forward to our next stop, two weeks on a French farm.  

Trying cheeses at the Geneva market.

Our lunch in Geneva.

Pad Thai being prepared at the Thai festival in Lausanne.

Pad Thai Pak

Crepe with butter and sugar from Creperie D'Ouchy.