The Best Way to Store Asparagus

May 25, 2017 · by Carrie Trax · Leave a Comment

Start by buying the freshest asparagus at your local farmers market or store. Look for tightly closed tips and ends that are plump and firm. When you bring home the asparagus you need to trim about a 1/2″ from the ends of the stalk.

Here are two different ways to store your asparagus:

Paper Towel
Wrap a few layers of paper towels around the asparagus stem and moisten paper towel by running under some water. Place in a plastic bag but do not seal bag. Place in refrigerator.

Glass Jar
Another way to store is to fill a glass jar with a few inches of water, I use a wide mouth pint mason jar. Place fresh cut asparagus in the jar making sure the ends are submerged in the water. Place in refrigerator.

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Roasted Asparagus with Lemon Olive Oil

May 14, 2017 · by Carrie Trax · 1 Comment

Asparagus can be found 12 months out of the year but now during the month of May you will find Fresh from Oregon asparagus at all the farmers markets. When I am at the farmers market looking for fresh asparagus here are some of the things I look for:

1. Asparagus that is firm and not bendable and soft
2. The tips of the asparagus should be tightly closed
3. Make sure the ends of the stalks are moist and plump not dry or cracked
Once you get the asparagus home it needs to be stored in the refrigerator. I place mine in a plastic paper with damp paper towels wrapped around the bottom stalks.

Preparing the asparagus is easy just rinse with water and cut off the tough ends. Cut where the white purple ends meet the green part of the asparagus.

Roasted Asparagus with Lemon Olive Oil
1 pound fresh asparagus
1-2 tablespoon Capay Valley Ranches Meyer Lemon Olive Oil
Salt and pepper
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Place asparagus on baking sheet and drizzle with the Capay Valley Lemon Meyer Olive Oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Place in oven to roast, depending on the diameter size of the asparagus stalks I will roast the thinner ones for 5 minutes and the thick ones for 10-12 minutes.

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Spring in Finally here in Oregon

April 9, 2017 · by Carrie Trax · 2 Comments

It has been a very rainy spring this year in Oregon, so with a peek of blue skies today I headed to the Beaverton Winter Market. I live in the foothills of Mt Hood and this is a little over an hour drive for me but I just had to see what was Fresh from Oregon at the Market. From blue skies to sprinkles of rain and dark clouds I arrived at the market to a few light rain drops, but hey this is Oregon. During the Winter Market there are about half as many booths as you would find in the summer market but there was plenty of goodies to choose from. The first booth I stopped in had a huge display of rhubarb, WOW I did not know that you could get fresh rhubarb Fresh from Oregon in April, I wish the strawberries were ready and I could bake a pie. The colorful bouquets of daffodils and tulips made it feel even more like spring. If you are at the market and you want the best selection of apples this time of the year then you have to stop by the Kiyokawa Family Orchard booth. Boxes and boxes overflow with apples picked last fall and they were still nice and firm. They had at least 15 different varieties and I filled a bag with my two favorite apples, Gala great for eating and Honey Crisp perfect for baking. There are several seafood vendors at the market with fresh Dungeness crab, oysters, ling cod, and rockfish just to name a few. Down the aisle I saw a line of people at one of the booths and had to see what everyone was buying. As I got close I could see a nice selection of different fresh mushrooms, dried mushrooms and mushroom powders. The Mushroomery a certified organic family-owned mushroom farm that grows gourmet and medicinal mushrooms was here at the market. After pondering over the different types I bought a basket of Shiitake mushrooms that will be perfect on a white pizza I plan to make for dinner tomorrow. I will have to check out the different mushroom powders they had another time. It is a little early but there were some potted herbs and vegetable starters if you are ready to plant in your garden. There are many food artisans at the market and I stopped by Olympia Provisions to try a sample. I tried slice of their Salami Nola (NO-lah) which is a coarse-ground Italian salami with black pepper, chili flake & allspice. It had a nice mild taste and with a touch of the spices and just what I was looking for to add to a cheese plate. Olympia Provisions is Oregon’s first USDA-approved salumeria and the art of curing meat the old-fashioned way is what you will find with all their products. Being made here in Oregon is a bonus for me but they are sold all across the country, check out their website to see where you can enjoy their Old World taste. I was ready for something sweet and as I started down the next aisle the first booth was Nola Doughnuts. There were so many different gourmet doughnuts, an apple fritter and mini bites to choose from. What makes these doughnuts so different than others are the layers. They are handcrafted over a three-day process using a layering technique commonly found in French pastry making. Which flavor to pick Cajun Maple Bacon, Lemon Poppyseed, Raspberry, Chocolate Ganache or maybe the Apple fritter. I decided to stick to may favorite Chocolate Ganache and added a few mini bites also to the bag. For the past few years the market has been home to many craft hard ciders and spirits and I normally do not stop and try a sample but with a road trip planned next week in the new RV I thought I would find something to take on the road. Bull Run Cider had a nice selection and I stopped to try a few samples. They had three different dry hard ciders but I like mine sweet so I tried the Trespass Apple and it was perfect. They produce their craft hard cider in the foothills of the Oregon Coast Range and have a tap room open Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights. I have already filled my first bag and have a second to get some fresh produce. The last booth in the aisle I could see the piles of fresh produce. Sweet potatoes, white & purple potatoes, leeks, radishes, greens, onions and more. My bag was filled with a few onions, white potatoes that I can pan roast for dinner, a few sweet potatoes that will make a nice filling in some homemade pasta and a few leeks that will go on my pizza or maybe a nice potato leek soup. With both my bags filled I headed to the car, glad I made this trip to the Beaverton Winter Market today. Winter Market is only open 10:00-1:30 through April on Saturdays and then the Summer Market opens starting in May and is open 8:00-1:30.

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Homemade Strawberry Sauce

May 15, 2016 · by Carrie Trax · Leave a Comment

The smell of ripe, juicy strawberries fresh from the field is what I wait for every spring here in Oregon. Strawberry season is different depending on where you live, but here in Oregon it can start as early as the first week in May. During my visit this weekend at the local farmers market I found several farm stands with crates of strawberries just waiting to come home with me. Fresh strawberries should be refrigerated and eaten within a few days. One way I found to get some extra time with fresh strawberries is to make a sauce. It will keep for about a week in the refrigerator and can be used to top ice cream, cheesecake, pancakes, yogurt, or filling for a cake or just about anything you like.

Homemade Strawberry Sauce
1 pint strawberries, chopped
1 cup sugar
3 tablespoons cornstarch
1 tablespoon lemon juice

Place the chopped strawberries in a sauce pan and begin to cook over medium heat. Mix sugar and cornstarch in a small bowl; add to the sauce pan of strawberries. Add lemon juice and cook on low heat for about 10 minutes or until mixture thickens. Remove from heat. Set aside and cool. Refrigerate once cooled. Makes 2 cups of sauce.

Strawberry Rhubarb Sauce

April 27, 2015 · by Carrie Trax · 1 Comment

This year in Oregon we have had an early spring and the fresh strawberries and rhubarb are already starting to be harvested. These two make the best combination for pies, cobbler and YES a sweet sauce. In about 30 minutes I had a warm sweet sauce ready to serve on my homemade buttermilk pancakes!

Strawberry Rhubarb Sauce
4 cups diced strawberries
4 cups diced rhubarb
1 lemon, juiced
¾ cup sugar
¼ cup water

Combine the strawberries, rhubarb, lemon juice, sugar and water in a medium sized sauce pan. Bring it to a boil and let it cook on low to medium heat for about 30 minutes, cook less or longer depending on how thick you want it. The sauce can be served cold or warm. Keep refrigerated.

Recipe from ~ Laylita’s recipes

Fresh Cranberries

November 22, 2014 · by Carrie Trax · 2 Comments

This Thanksgiving or any holiday enjoy the sweet and tart taste of cranberries 3 ways. Enjoy homemade jellied orange cranberry sauce that tastes better than the one from a can and so easy to do. You can combine the fresh flavors of cranberries, oranges and apples with a little sugar and in a few minutes you will have a crisp relish your family will be asking for seconds of! Cranberry glaze for your turkey (works good with ham too) will give you another depth of flavor to your holiday dinner. Fresh cranberries are always a perfect addition to the holiday table.

Cranberry Relish
1 (12 oz) bag whole fresh cranberries
2 tart green apples (I used Granny Smith), peeled, cored and cut into thick pieces
1 large seedless orange (peel on), cut into 12 pieces
1 cup sugar

In the bowl of a food processor add the cranberries, apples and orange pieces. Pulse 12-14 times, do not over pulse or the relish will be mushy. I used a Ninja Food Processor and it gave me the perfect relish with 12 pulses. Place mixture in a bowl and mix in the sugar. Let set for 45 minutes at room temperature. It is ready to serve or place in a container and refrigerate for later. Quick and easy and can be made the night before.
Recipe from ~ Simple Recipes

Jellied Orange Cranberry Sauce
2 (12 oz) bags whole fresh cranberries
2 oranges
1 3/4 cups water
2 cups sugar

Wash cranberries and add to a medium pot. Squeeze juice from orange into the pot and add the orange halves and the 1 3/4 cups water. Boil until the cranberries skins burst, about 20-25 minutes. Remove orange halves and over a bowl place a sieve or food mill and press through the cranberry mixture. You will get juice in the bowl, discard the pulp left in the food mill. Add juice to a medium saucepan and mix in the sugar. Boil to almost jelly point (see below spoon test)* or 220 degrees. Pour into glass canning jars (I use 8 oz short jars). If you are not processing the jars you can let set on your counter until cooled then add the lid and ring and place in refrigerator. If you what to process the jars leave a 1/4-inch head space, add the lid and ring and process in a boiling water bath for 10 minutes. These jars can now be left on your shelf.
*Spoon test ~ Dip a cool metal spoon into the boiling cranberry mixture. Raise the spoon out of the steam, about 12 inches above the pan. Turn the spoon so the liquid runs off the side. The cranberry sauce is done when the syrup forms two drops that flow together and form a sheet that hangs off the edge of the spoon.
Recipe adapted from ~ Ball Blue Book

Cranberry Glaze

1 (12 oz) bag fresh whole cranberries
1 cup water
1 cup sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon orange zest
2 tablespoons ginger, minced
2 teaspoons apple cider vinegar

1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper

In a medium saucepan combine the cranberries, water, sugar, salt, orange zest, ginger and apple cider vinegar. Simmer over a medium heat until the cranberries burst, about 15 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in the cayenne pepper. I do not like it too hot but if you want more of a kick add more cayenne to taste. Place a mesh strainer over a saucepan and pour in cranberry mixture. With a wooden spoon or rubber spatula push the cranberries around to help the mixture get through the strainer. There will be nice thick cranberry pulp in your saucepan. Over medium heat cook until glaze thickens, about 10 minutes. With a basting brush coat the outside of your turkey 30 minutes before it is ready to come out of the oven. Leave turkey uncovered after adding the glaze . This glaze is also great tossed with meatballs as an appetizer or perfect to brush on a whole ham.
Recipe from ~ Brave Apron

Ninja + Apple Cider = Fresh Apple Slushie

November 6, 2014 · by Carrie Trax · Leave a Comment

What a surprise to find my Nutri Ninja® – Ninja® Blender DUO with Auto-iQ™ had arrived on my front step this week. This past September I attended the IFBC (International Food Blogger Convention) in Seattle, Washington. During lunch sponsored by Ninja, celebrity chef from “The Biggest Loser,” Devin Alexander demonstrated and showed us some real “WOW” factor using the NEW one touch Ninja blender. Several recipes were demonstrated using all the different attachments for the Ninja and I thought this is a great kitchen appliance that can be a space saver in the kitchen. After the conference I was sent this amazing blender system to use and review. In just one BIG box I had the master base with a blender, food processor bowl plus three sizes of Nutri Ninja® cups. After washing everything and reading the manual I was ready to make my first recipe. The first attachment I wanted to try was the blender. The large blender at 72 oz is a perfect size to make large batches of any frozen treat. A few days ago I froze some fresh Oregon apple cider in ice cubes trays to be ready to make a fresh apple cider slushy. Adding 12 apple cider ice cubes with 1 cup of fresh apple cider in the blender I was ready to create a fresh frozen treat. With the Ninja® Auto-iQ™ technology everything is already programed for you with just one push of the button. With the unique blending, pulsing, and pausing I had the perfect apple cider slushy in just a minute. What makes this different from other blenders is the Total Crushing® Blades, it pulverized the apple cider ice cubes in seconds making a smooth fresh drink for my family. The recipe combinations are endless with the Ninja® Auto-iQ™ blender. Not just for smoothies either, you can create homemade ice cream, sauces, soups and so much more. Here are some of the features you will love with Ninja® Blender with Auto-iQ™:

Total Crushing® Blender
~ Pre-programmed setting – With one push of the button the Auto-iQ™ does the work for you.
~ With the Frozen Drink Smoothies button you will be creating frozen drinks, milkshakes or smoothies in just one minute.
~ Total Crushing® Blades pulverizes ice or frozen fruit in seconds.
~ The Puree button also has Auto-iQ™ technology so with one push of the button you will be making homemade sauces, dips or soups perfect for everyday meals or your next party in just minutes.
~ Easy to attach, Easy to use and Easy to clean, its that Easy!

Watch for my next post using the Ninja® Blender for roasted pumpkin soup perfect for the upcoming holiday.

Apple Cider Slushy ~ Makes 3 pint glasses
Add 12 apple cider ice cubes + 1 cup cold apple cider to Ninja® Blender and push the Frozen Drink/Smoothie button. Watch it blend, pulse and pause for a minute pour into a glass and enjoy the fresh taste of apples!