Top to bottom:: blueberries (over 20# this week), blueberries in the dehydrator for granola all winter long, blueberry-coconut water sorbet with orange blossom water, smoothies (peaches, blueberries, cherries, banana, spirulina, coconut water), gathering herbs to dry from the garden, spiralized cucumbers for making miso fermented pickles, tomato season has arrived, gluten free/dairy free blueberry upside down cake (a blueberry adapted version of this recipe), and blueberry mostarda. 

Blueberries is my theme for the week. Ha! We try to get things in season in bulk whenever we can, and then preserve enough in many ways to last the winter, of course. This week we froze a lot, dried a lot, made cake, mostarda, and a few other things. I try to freeze and dry enough fruit to last us all winter. We make smoothies all the time, plus dried fruit is amazing in homemade granola/granola bars. As for the mostarda, well, none of us really likes jam or jelly. Too sweet. We don't eat bread. So no need to make it. But, mostarda is amazing. I make tweaked versions of mostarda. Usually it is big whole fruit which is sweet and twangy and savory all at once. I like it more like a compote mustard texture. It has the flavor of the fruit, a lot of mustard seeds, the richness of the vinegar (in this I used raspberry balsamic), and isn't too sweet. I usually make several kinds to last us through winter - blueberry, peach, white currant. 

Tomato season is here finally as well. Time to dry a bunch, roast a lot, make salsa to freeze (I like the freshness of frozen salsa more than canned), and later, sauce. We don't use that much sauce these days, so I prefer drying and salsa the most. Cucumbers are here too. This is another one we use differently. We are not huge fans of pickles. Just regular pickles. We make a few bags of freezer pickles every year, plus a few jars of lacto fermented garlic pickles, but overall I like relishes and unusual flavors better. This week I made miso fermented refrigerator pickles. Almost ready to crack them open for a taste!

Door County Cherries should be in soon, so I will have more fruit after this batch. And we will be up to our noses in tomatoes. 


How about you? What has been happening in your kitchen this week?


Be sure to visit Heather at Beauty that Moves for all of the Blog Hop-ees.

Capturing my love of whole foods, combined with the activity of a bustling kitchen.

A weekly collection of photos from the center of my home. 

*     *     *     *     *

top to bottom:: indigo apple tomato, white currant harvest, tomatoes ripening on the windowsill (chipmunk thwarting), collecting seeds for drying (dill, coriander, mustard), brining lovage seeds to make pickles, turkey taco salad with fresh salsa, stock making from all the veggie and herb tops/stems this week, lovage seeds drying, everything salad.

We traveled a bit last weekend so I spent many mealtimes cooking in the tiny hotel kitchen. In my experience, the closer to a big city you get, the more non-functional the "full kitchen" is (no matter how expensive), so we always take enough options so that we can feed my allergy boy no matter how simple the tools. I also always plot the nearest food co-op/Whole Foods types of places too, so we were within 10 miles of two WF's and were able to grab a few extra things for him that could be heated in the microwave, as the "full kitchen" didn't contain an oven or a toaster. Traveling in a more congested area can be tough food-wise also, as we base our hotel requirements on specifications that dictate where we can stay and it usually isn't close to the things we are traveling to see. That can mean the hotel is not easy to get to for lunch or snacks mid-day, so we always pack a full cooler with ice packs plus a wide variety of snacks and drinks so that we are still OK if we don't really want to do a 40 minute drive to get 15 miles back to the hotel. That means we can also just stop and eat anywhere, and so we snacked in the foyer of Fermilab (very cool), had lunch outside a beautiful nature center, and had a close at hand palate cleanser after my boy tasted every single balsamic vinegar and olive oil in the gourmet food store and max'd out his taste buds. {He selected a great aged raspberry balsamic, honey-ginger balsamic, a vivid green intense peppery spanish olive oil, and a fantastic olive oil which was pressed with blood orange rind -- yum!!!}

After our trip we have been playing catch up, so we have been collecting the first tomatoes (early so the chipmunk doesn't get them), harvesting seeds to dry and use for seasoning blends, collecting herbs for all of the pickles I am behind on, and filling the dehydrator daily to catch back up on all of my tea and culinary herbs for the winter. Playing a bit of catch up with the CSA share as well. I pulled out an extra table to stack all of my overflow of veggies I need to freeze/can/pickle/make. And with the hot sunshine returning, I am making a few rounds of coconut water sorbet and popsicles with the last of my strawberries, first of my red raspberries,  and the finally in season blueberries!  Yum. 

What have you been making?

Be sure to visit Heather at Beauty that Moves to see everyone in the blog hop!

Capturing my love of whole foods, combined with the activity of a bustling kitchen.

A weekly collection of photos from the center of my home. 

*     *     *     *     *

top to bottom: dried peaches from the dehydrator, chicken enchiladas with sauce and daiya dairy free cheese, on the grill, chicken salad with the last of the pickled radish pods, tomato/cucumber/blueberry salad, green beans roasted with grilled spring onions and garlic scapes, grilled peaches with molasses and coconut manna, picking fresh herbs from the garden to dry for tea, garden white currants, peach bbq sauce done, ingredients, and a few pics from the CSA this week (all now packed into my fridge and coolers). 

One thing I love about this weekly blog hop is the recording of moments in the kitchen, because this time of year I often feel like I've been working non-stop and can't remember what I have made, or feel like I DIDN'T GET ANYTHING DONE. It is nice to have too many photos to post here, and have to sort and pick just a few. It makes me feel like I did make it through quite a bit of garden, CSA, or farmstand. That we ate well. Even though we had other appointments, or played at the park every evening, or went to the library more times than usual. That I'm *not quite* as behind as it always feels when the garden is going gangbusters. There is always more to do, more to dry, more to harvest, more canning, more freezing. The fridge is packed, the coolers are full, the counter has bowls of just picked something or other. Summer is abundant and full. I love seeing the freezer fill, the pantry packed, and the cycle repeating. xo 

Be sure to visit Heather at Beauty That Moves to see inside kitchens today!

top to bottom: peach-ginger fruit leather {base recipe}, cherries, peaches, borage flowers, purple peas make blue water, strawberries + rhubarb, herb infused water {here}, summer salad, peach mostarda making, drying herbs, fruit leather making, peach-cardamom jam (freezer jam with low sugar/only honey). 

Last weekend we zipped to a local farmstand which gets fruit in season directly from farmers all around the upper midwest (and beyond) and sells it in season. We picked up 25# of peaches. But of course immediately went out of town to Iowa to visit my (recently  discovered!) sister and her family on Sunday/Monday. On Tuesday it was cool, windy, and raining, which was perfect for catching up a bit in the garden as the mosquitoes were mostly in hiding. So that left yesterday which was also CSA day. I spent the morning making some jam, mostarda, fruit leather, and a soda syrup base (cherries, strawberries, peaches). I am halfway through the case of peaches, and chutney, freezing, and dehydrating peaches is still on my list. 

The nice thing about the cooler weather we had earlier this week is that we could roast vegetables, make soup, and run the dehydrator on the higher fruit leather temps without overheating the house. Everything has been going full blast until it heats back up in the next few days. I will surely make a few more rounds of fruit leather before it is too hot. We have more strawberries from our CSA, so I think a strawberry/peach/vanilla leather might be next. 

Be sure to visit Heather at Beauty That Moves to see everyone in the blog hop!

top to bottom: radish slaw fixin's, mushrooms, scallions from the garden, rat's tail radish (our new garden favorite), peas, margaritas (best when fresh picked ingredients are used!), strawberry ginger syrup in process for homemade soda, crispy sage leaves with coconut aminos, and our home roasted coffee beans.

In the summer there is so much making. So I thought this week I would focus on ingredients and didn't take many meal shots. There has been so much rain rain rain that there are now swarms of mosquitoes. So garden excursions are quick and involve a lot of smacking and waving. But so much is ready every day that it is worth it. I think. This week will involve a lot of weeding and pickling, I think. We are loving the rat's tail radishes this year. With the sudden heat blast not long ago a lot of our other radishes bolted and I let them flower for pollinators. But the rat's tails are perfect no matter the temps and the perfect crisp radish flavor with the pea texture is fantastic.  I know they could get a bit bigger, but I was impatient and we are eating even more of them today. I'm definitely planting a lot more of those!


Be sure to visit Heather at Beauty that Moves for all of those in the blog hop this week!

Capturing my love of whole foods, combined with the activity of a bustling kitchen.

A weekly collection of photos from the center of my home. 

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top to bottom: dairy free cardamom panna cotta with roasted rhubarb topping |  A & his exotic fruit | rhubarb roasted with red wine, hibiscus tea, lemon peel, and ginger | chicken burger over greens with grilled zucchini | salad (we will be eating a lot more salad this week - checkout our CSA box) | grilled asparagus and radicchio with salmon burger | grilling veggies | sauteed figs in red wine reduction with local sheep milk cheese (a treat for my husband, away from allergy boy) | G

This was a busy kitchen week, but I remembered to take a few pics. We had a new grocer open (a big deal in that we have been waiting for it for 10 years - now we can walk to a store) so we had a grand opening last week for the neighborhood, plus a few jaunts over to check out what they have. A has been buying a new exotic fruit each trip because he decided he wants to check out the inside of every single one. We had a neighborhood Farmers' Market visit. Our CSA started. The garden is going gangbusters. From now to November my kitchen will be overflowing and I will have that (GO GO GO GO) always in the back of my mind.  GO! The dehydrator is full, the fridge is packed with so many leafy greens I cannot find anything. Ahhh, summer.

Be sure to visit Heather at Beauty That Moves for all in the blog hop!

Capturing my love of whole foods, combined with the activity of a bustling kitchen.

A weekly collection of photos from the center of my home. 

*     *     *     *     *

top to bottom: italienischer lettuce, kale egg cups over skillet GF bread, poached eggs over greens with pumpkin and sesame seeds, filling the dehydrator sheets, sweet potato buddha bowl, kale egg cups in progress, sunburn soother (for my husband who had a long business lunch outside in full sun midday and burned himself), strawberries puttering along, and where we eat our meals when the weather is dry and sunny.

This week we started eating more out of the garden. Greens and greens and greens. Radishes. Peas. Herbs. Rhubarb. Our first blackberry. Our CSA starts next Wednesday, and I am excited to return to my weekly posting of our share, plus recipes to eat in season. Ahh, I love that. We have the best farm for our CSA too, and we all always enjoy seeing everyone each week and chatting a bit to catch up.  I can't believe it has been 7 months since CSA season ended - we must pack the most we can in between June and October! I love the season of eating from our garden, CSA, and local farmstands. 

Oh, and I am having a giveaway! Visit my post from yesterday and leave a comment for a chance to win a Summer 2014 issue of Tend Magazine. I have several great summer food & herbal recipes in this issue, including the sun soother spray. So go enter!  I need more comments! :)


Be sure to visit Heather at Beauty That Moves to see all in the blog hop this week!

top to bottom: gluten free/dairy free cherry-rhubarb crumble, A modeling a warm winter beverage for me (Tend Magazine, Winter issue), spices in the grinder, vegan marshmallow roasting for my allergy boy (Dandies), dairy free coconut milk lemon-blueberry gelato, tacos, steaks on the grill (a special treat for my husband, as we don't usually have beef in the house with the allergy boy nearby), dry marshmallow root in the grinder for thickening the crumble (cornstarch free that way!), vegan sour cream, rhubarb syrup in the making for "sodas".

This particular vegan sour cream recipe was a new one for me this week. I have made cashew cream and "cheeses" in the past, as I am lactose intolerant myself, but we had removed all peanuts and tree nuts from our home for so long I haven't had anything even remotely like that in ages. While we have not tried bringing any peanut products back in yet (he is scared, I understand, no rush), we have started little bits of almond and cashew. So far so good. The book "Thrive Energy Cookbook" is being pored over this week, and the vegan sour cream is one of many recipes we have tried. The book is written by an athlete who is also head of nutrition for the Garmin-Sharp Pro Cycling Team (we are huge cycling fans in this house, so we know who that is). And he is a vegan. We are not exclusively vegans of course, but having a son with dairy, gelatin, and all red meat allergies (not to mention gluten), means we most often look to vegan and raw recipes for new ideas of tasty things that my son - and the rest of us - can eat which are dense in nutrients but also really tasty and kid friendly and can slot in with the things he knows he likes. The book is oriented towards high performance athletes, and wow, it has a lot of great foods.  I can't wait to work through more of the book. The sour cream is made using soaked cashews, and we are on our third batch this week. Yum. I checked the book out from the library, but I'm going to buy a copy.

I am enjoying this once a week in my kitchen recap. This time of year is busy busy busy busy. The garden needs planting and tending and weeding, spring veggies are starting to come in and need to be used NOW,  there are deadlines to meet, and the kids want to be outside every single second that the weather is cooperative. So while I have a backlog of recipes sitting in my notebook ready to share (once I enter them into my recipe app and edit photos, and, and, and), I still come back to this. What are we doing every day. Here. Now. I can't believe it is almost June!!!! How about you?

Be sure to visit Heather at Beauty That Moves to see everyone on the blog hop!

top to bottom:: fresh elderberry lemonade on a hot day (and silly boys drinking it), blooming tea, strawberry rhubarb goodness, gift making for Winter 2014 Tend Magazine, GF/DF Rhubarb Upside Down Cake, fresh ramps, eggshell saving for the garden, Blue-Banana Mocha Maca Smoothie, my kitchen, and what I've been doing most of this week.

This week finally warmed up and we have been outside planting planting planting. My kids love our new hammock and will lay in the shade reading and chatting while I work in the garden. I love chatting with them, hearing their stories, all while I dig. They help out when they are in the mood and they squirt me with the hose in between. Ahem. We have been saving eggshells and coffee grounds from the kitchen all week for the garden, and are using them as we go!

I wasn't in the kitchen as much this week. So much planting. And the looming deadline for the Winter Edition of Tend Magazine which means wrapping up all of the loose strings and taking photos of holiday gifts and goodies. It has been hard to think WINTER when it is 86ºF outside. But also, my husband has been on a business trip all week. That means I find myself not really wanting to cook anything for myself and craving mostly salads and fresh peas and then cooking fun crazy foods and snacks for the kids all week. They struggle when he is gone, so we focus on fun. Of course we also had to make fresh lemonade this week in this heat, and put some in the ice cream maker for slushies. Yum. 

The ramps are in, and have been sitting in my fridge all week. I keep changing my mind about what to do with them.  I think I'm going to pickle them. We shall see! 

And my kitchen. Oh, my tiny, tiny, dark kitchen. Every week people show their lovely bustling busy bright shiny sunny kitchens. Ahhhh. I have not shown my kitchen in what, 8 weeks?  I have lived in this house 10 years and the kitchen was obviously not designed to be used. Ha. I think a lot of modern homes are designed for freezer to oven/microwave living. No room for people in the kitchen. No room for prep and cooking. No real pantry. My kitchen doesn't have any windows and can only comfortably fit one person at a time. Since we cook and can and make together a lot, much of that is actually done in the next room - the dining room! Of course I do realize that many in the world have smaller kitchens, and I am very grateful to have even the space we have. I do dream of a big bright family hanging around the island kitchen some day (who doesn't) with chef level appliances. But what is the saying? It's not what you've got, but what you do with it? So I am showing you my kitchen - a lot happens in that tiny space! And we have adapted many things to accomodate our lifestyle (hallway "coat" closet is second pantry space, extra freezer in the garage, dehydrator/herb armoire/culinary herb cabinet/hydroponics in the dining room, etc.). I feel good that our house uses less energy/water than average, and has less empty lawn than average. The trade off for a small kitchen.  And a smaller kitchen means less to clean, right?

What is your favorite part of your kitchen?

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Be sure to visit Heather at Beauty that Moves to link to everyone on the blog hop this week!

top to bottom: the rhubarb is in (I know what I'm making today), spring radishes, dandelion season (one day of dry to harvest a few before rains set in all week), pea pesto, blueberries and seed crackers going into the dehydrator,  spices and seeds for dukka making.


We have had a week of cold, dark, gray, windy, and rainy. We have been inside more than we would usually be for May, but we have been finding plenty to keep us busy, and I am thankful for some days where the boys don't mind being busy inside while I work on some articles that are on deadline! It is easier to have holiday decorations out for props when it is cold and gloomy anyway. It has been c-c-c-old. We might even have some frost coming tonight, so maybe we will leave up these twinkly lights when I'm done for some mood enhancing! The good thing about all of this rain is that my surviving rhubarb (I lost some after that brutal winter) had a massive growth spurt and I was able to pick some this morning.  Yay! I have a gluten free rhubarb upside down cake in mind. I get to take pictures of hydroponics systems tonight at the local garden center, so it might be nice to take along some goodies for the guys there who are being wonderful about letting me take photos. 

Hope you are having a wonderful (warm!?!) week. 

Be sure to visit Heather at Beauty that Moves to link to everyone on the blog hop this week!

Top to bottom: grilled lemon miso scallops with spring veggies, vegan pea pesto stuffed portobello mushrooms with asparagus and microgreens, grilling scallops, making pea pesto, dehydrating cocoa coconut balls, steamed spiralized beet/carrot/sweet potato with veggie stock, vanilla glycerite in the making, one of the recipes I developed for the Winter Issue of TEND Magazine (deadline soon! eep! go go go!) , first batch of herbal tulsi hibiscus iced tea of the season. 

The past week and a half have been a little rough here. My 11 year old has had repeated additional allergy testing (skin prick, oral test, and blood test) at the allergist plus an electrocardiogram on his heart at the children's hospital (it was fine - woot!). He will have additional testing in a few weeks. I know testing and medical stuff is hard for all kids, but particularly so for him. He has extreme sensory issues and really does not like changing our daily routine. At all.  It is extra hard when he has not been feeling that great lately. Put that together with changing seasons, a dad with an intense work schedule, guests in town, and getting some work done on the house that was LOUD and had people in our space for a whole day...wow. That would be a lot for extroverted non-sensory types - and we are all pretty much introverted highly sensitive people here.  I am always in awe of his humor and good naturedness while in the thick of it, even if the struggles later at home are epic. He is such an amazing kid and I am crazy about him. 

One good thing from all of this additional testing is that we found out his tree nut allergies are gone. Poof! Zero skin, zero blood, zero on oral food allergy challenge. Almonds, cashews, walnuts, etc. Yep.  I'm still terrified, funny enough. It makes me nervous to even type this here and tell you all. Knock on every type of wood imaginable. I observed him again closely at home after he ate some almond crackers. I can't help but think what if they are wrong? What if he has a reaction? I know some people outgrow certain allergies and not others and we don't yet know exactly why. He can't believe it either. For a boy who follows strict rules and guidelines for every single thing (he likes things to be *just so*), to change his eating habits is scary for him. He asks repeatedly are you SURE I can eat that? We feel like we are letting our guard down. I am afraid to even mention his peanut allergy. We think he might have outgrown that too. His tests were negative on blood and skin and the Doc tested and re-tested on his back after the blood tests were negative. Let's try again to be sure. Let's try one more time to be sure.  We have to do a supervised oral allergy challenge to verify verify verify before we know 100% for sure, but he is scared, and I'm not in a rush to make him do it until he is comfortable.  Of course this doesn't change a whole lot as his other allergies are still here and are still serious - he still cannot eat any gluten, and he is still severely allergic to all dairy and seemingly all red meat furred mammals (their meat, milk, and dander). We tested some additional animals and meats to see if it was ALL, and yes. Rabbits, pigs, cows, bison, rabbits, sheep, goats, horses, cats, dogs, mice. Yes, yes, yes. His levels were even higher for meat and dairy too, so we need to be extra diligent for all of those pesky hidden/undisclosed animal by-product ingredients and will still need our epi-pens and be on the lookout for severe reactions.  But almonds, cashews, and pistachios? OH MY! 

So with all of this our meals for the past 10 days have been green. A lot of peas and asparagus and microgreens and lettuce and eggs. Quick and simple. I have also been warily dusting off my almond and cashew cracker dehydrator recipes. It is a relief as well as stressful. If that makes any sense. I am afraid of making an error with our changes, and I am excited to be able to add another protein source into his diet (not to mention I have not eaten a single nut myself in ages). We have about 4 weeks before his next round of appointments, so he gets a break for a bit. Time to relax, work in the garden, get out of town to enjoy warmer weather, and make some cashew cream and almond crackers. Gulp! Anyone have a child that has outgrown nut allergies? How did you transition a child from STOP, that can kill you to HERE, have another bite? 

And for those of you who have children with severe peanut and tree nut allergies. Breathe. Breathe again. I know that feeling. Every time I have read someone saying their child just got back from the allergist and outgrew their nut allergies and I thought - can it be? No way. Will that be us? BIG GIANT HUG to you and your wee one. 

Now that my sub rambling is over. Ahem. Whew!! I can't wait to pour my iced tea and go visit all of the other blogs on this blog hop. Hope you all have a fantastic week!

Be sure to visit Heather at Beauty That Moves for a listing of all the links in the blog hop!

Top to bottom: spring pea soup, chopping, pickled radishes, chocolate covered strawberries with smoked flake salt, kumquat lime margarita mix in progress, zucchini chips fresh out of the dehydrator, organizing the herb cabinet, spring miso bowl.

While I would love to say all of the spring veg is from my garden, it is not (but for the hydroponic peashoots). We have had such a cold cold spring so far and we don't even have leaves on the trees yet. BUT SOON! I can't wait for garden season!

Be sure to visit Heather at Beauty that Moves to see who is participating this week and get a peek into more kitchens!

Top to bottom: Smoothies, hydroponic lettuces ready to cut, steeping tea, flax crackers on dehydrator sheet, hot amaranth with peaches, blueberries, maple syrup, and toasted coconut flakes, and GF/DF/NF lemon loaf with a lemon glaze.


Be sure to visit Heather at Beauty that Moves to see who is participating this week and get a peek into more kitchens!

This Week In My Kitchen :: Blog Hop

Capturing my love of whole foods, combined with the activity of a bustling kitchen.

A weekly collection of photos from the center of my home. 

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{dehydrator fig bars (recipe soon, I promise), adzuki beans soaking, blending herbal tea, soaking lemon rinds in vinegar for cleaning liquid, cider, roasted chicken over brown rice with tomatoes and bleu cheese, salve making (yes, that recipe coming soon too!), and roasting beets and carrots in the oven} 


Be sure to visit Beauty That Moves to see everyone in the blog hop this week!

This Week In My Kitchen :: Blog Hop

Capturing my love of whole foods, combined with the activity of a bustling kitchen.

A weekly collection of photos from the center of my home. 

*     *     *     *     *

I took a break from blogging this week - internet issues and warm sunshine kept me mostly outside working in the garden, playing tennis with my boys, kite flying, and park hopping. But I remembered to take photos throughout the week of the small tidbits of kitchen that I don't always photograph. It is nice to get back into the groove this week with some kitchen love.  Be sure to visit Beauty That Moves to see everyone in the blog hop this week.

Capturing my love of whole foods, combined with the activity of a bustling kitchen.

A weekly collection of photos from the center of my home. 

*     *     *     *     *

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Heather at Beauty That Moves is doing a new weekly blog hop - photos from the week, no words, no recipes, just images from our kitchens. Be sure to visit This Week In My Kitchen to see her lovely images, plus links to others playing along.