Eat your greens!

"Thank you California" for providing the entire USA with so many 

special things to eat! Driving back from the north to the Bay Area we

 passed through amazing agricultural landscapes. 

Orchards of fruit trees, olives, and nuts ran for what looked like

miles toward the horizon.

Fields of cabbages, Brussels sprouts, artichokes and more. . . . . . . .

the endless swathes of green fields interspersed with rich brown soil held

 so many healthy foods.

The workers in the fields waved when we stopped to grab a few

photos - even beckoned to us, laughing, to come help pick! They work very hard,

 it must be back-breaking day after day bringing in the fresh produce in its prime.

 We need to think of them and thank them when we shop in comfort for our

 precious vegetables and fruits.

. . . . . . . and look at lucky me!  

A fabulous Birthday gift from my granddaughter who 

knows how much I love my veggies, both to eat and cook.

I am over the moon with this amazing cook book from the 

English chef and leading food authority, Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall.

It contains everything I would ever want to prepare in my own 

little cottage - beautiful simple, colorful, full of vitality, vegetarian

dishes.

Bring on the greens. . . . . and let's eat healthy.

And thank you dear Jasmin for always picking the perfect presents.

Winter Kitchen. . . . . . .

I made Irish soda bread from a mix, just to give it a try thinking it might be 

good to make another later for St. Patrick's Day!

 It was good warm straight from the oven, but much too crumbly and dry the next day. 

The garden birds are loving the remains!

Some people say not to feed birds bread and baked bits from the kitchen, to 

stick to that very expensive bagged seed. We do both and hope the birds

are picky enough to know what's good for them.

Do you throw out leftover bread for your garden visitors?

Now these carrot raisin muffins I will not be sharing with the wildlife, sorry sweet 

birds and voracious grey squirrels, you aren't getting a single crumb! 

There are never any leftovers after we eat our share, give away a few, and stash 

some in the freezer for next week!

Must admit I've been baking them often - a big batch every couple of 

weeks - because they are delicious and healthy. 

What are you whipping up in your Winter kitchen?  If, like me, you have a rather 

large stash of cookbooks, it's just a matter of picking a recipe where you have 

the ingredients at the ready - or make a special trip to the store if you're not 
buried in snow - here we've not had a flake all Winter.

I find so many great sounding dishes I want to make, however a lot of these 
new-fangled cook books, although stunning in presentation and full of creation, 
just have too many ingredients most us don't keep on our shelves as basics. 

Anyway, today I do have my basics on hand to cook up a nice pot of black bean 
vegetarian chili for the very cold night ahead. I'll serve it thick over rice today, 
then add more broth to turn the leftovers into a delicious liquescent black bean 
soup for another meal.

Happy Winter kitchen days. . . . . . the best, warmest, room in the house, right?