cold brew iced coffee soooo good!

Boy has life been busy lately.. working, hanging out with friends, seeing family, gardening, cooking & of course spending time with Trevor.

It's pretty much summer here in Pittsburgh. We are greeting ready to transplant our plants into their forever homes.. our new big garden. We are quite excited to experiment with a real garden at our new place. (oh yeah we moved to a bigger, better place for cheaper! yay!) I have a feeling we are going to have more produce than we know what to do with.. good thing we have family, friends, & co-workers that will gladly help us out.

I have eight kale plants & they are producing a ton of leaves. It's been a lot of fun gardening. Trevor is really into too.

Anyway the reason I decided to blog real quick was to post a iced coffee recipe. After experimenting with a ton of recipes & methods this is the best way I've found to do it.

Cold Brew Iced Coffee

1 1/2 cups coarsely ground coffee
2 cups  cold water
one french press or cheese cloth or cone filter
(this is the ratio you will want to follow if you'd like to make more or less coffee)

We use a french press it is the easiest and cleanest way we've found to do the ice coffee but you can also use cheesecloth or a cone filter.

The idea is to steep the coffee in cold water for 8 - 12 hours either in the fridge or on the counter, we do the latter. If you are using a french press make sure to stir the grounds around ensuring all the grounds are wet. When the coffee is done steeping push down the plunger & wa-la! You have iced coffee. It is a concentrate so you will need to use a 1:1 ratio. One part coffee & one part water or milk (if you like lattes) You can easily use water as your ratio & add cream, milk or sugar like you would with normal iced coffee.

Now if you don't have a french press never fear you can still make iced coffee... simply steep the grounds in a bowl with a cover using the same method as I described above. Then after 8 - 12 hours simply pour the mixture over cheesecloth or cone filter (this gets a little messy) into another bowl or pitcher.

It will keep for two weeks in the fridge. I usually store it in a glass pitcher or mason jar. It's so easy to make & we go through a lot of it. I simply put it together before we go to bed & by morning we have iced coffee. Which has been nice on these hot days


Any questions, let me know! happy brewing!!

chai tea & other ramblings...

Trevor & I (but mostly Trevor...) are watching stand up comedians on netflix.. I'm laughing because he's laughing. He loves stand up comics. I however think a few jokes are funny but I rarely laugh out loud. We are so different yet so alike. 

Like chai.. we both love chai! I like it spicy & he likes it sweet. figures.
For a few weeks now I've been wanting to try out this recipe...after all of our moving craziness passed & Trevors new job transition. I finally had some time to give it a try today.
What I love about this recipe is the ability to tweak it however you want.. you can make it sweet or spicy or tea-y. My first try turned out great! This recipe isn't an exact science just ratios that you can adjust as you want.

Chai ConcentrateYields: 1 batch of concentrate, approximately 4 cups
tweaked it from this recipe 

4 1/2 cups water

8 bags black tea – I used orange pekoe

2 bags cinnamon  cardmon tea (I used this instead of whole cardamom since I didn't have any)

2 cinnamon sticks

2 vanilla bean, split in half (or 1 tablespoon of vanilla extract added at the very end)

1/2 cup raw cane sugar (you can add more or less depending on how sweet you like your chai) you can also use other alternatives

6 pieces of candied ginger or you can use 3" pieces of fresh whatever you have available

10 whole cloves (I used ground)

1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg

2 whole star anise pods

1/2 teaspoon of whole black peppercorns

1 teaspoon orange zest

1/2 cup ginger juice from making candied ginger (which is what I used as ginger & in gingersnap cookies I made recently) 

1 tablespoon raw honey more or less depending on your sweet tooth

Prepare the teabags by removing any tags if there are any and tying them all together. Prepare the spices, vanilla bean and orange zest by laying them in your cheesecloth, I leave my cinnamon sticks out to make the little pouch of spices a bit more compact. Tie the cheesecloth pouch shut with a small piece of kitchen twine. If you leave the cinnamon sticks out, just tie them together with kitchen twine.

I skipped this cheesecloth & used the mesh strainer. 

*If you don’t wish to use cheesecloth, you will just add all of your spices directly to the pan when the time comes and strain them out after.

Add the water and sugar to a medium sized saucepan and bring to a boil over a medium-high heat. Once boiling, reduce the heat to a simmer and put in the tea bags, cheesecloth pouch and cinnamon sticks. Simmer for 20 minutes.

Remove the pan from the heat strain the concentrate through a sieve or just remove the tea bags, cheesecloth pouch and cinnamon sticks. At this point if you want a bit more sweetness you can add a tablespoon of honey, stir to dissolve. I don’t always do this, but it is a really nice touch. Additionally, if you didn’t use a whole vanilla bean, add your vanilla extract now. Stir to combine.

Allow the mixture to cool before pouring it into an airtight jar or container. This amount fits perfectly into a 1-quart mason jar. Store in the refrigerator for up to one week.

chicken squash stew & other foods..

Last week I made chicken squash stew soup my dear friend stevie made it & recommended it a few months ago. I had some squash to use up and since it's national soup month & all I felt like it was appropriate time to try this new recipe out. It was quite tasty. I didn't follow the recipe to the letter (do I ever?) We don't like olives so they were out immediately. I also decided to do a whole chicken in the crock pot I loosely followed this recipe. 

You don't have to do a whole chicken to make this soup, but I decided to because it offers the possiblity of more meals. After I made this soup I went on to make chicken stock, chicken egg rolls & intended to make chicken & bisquits as well but That didn't happen. next time! 

The soup/stew was very tasty & very filling. I have a rosemary plant leftover from the summer that is still kickin, I used that in the chicken I slow cooked. It gave the chicken broth & soup very good flavor, if you have access to any fresh herbs I highly recommend using them. 

In other news, I just made these today & won't know until tomorrow if like them, but they were easy to put together and look tasty. I have never tried chia seeds before so here goes nothing! From what I've read and heard they are fairly tasteless but offer lots of fiber & protein. I had all the ingredients on hand except the chia seeds which I picked up for a reasonable price at trader joes. 

I decided to try two flavors first (something I know I like in normal oatmeal seemed like a good start) blueberry maple & apples & cinnamon. I am going to take one to work tomorrow, hopefully I like it or I might be hungry ;) 

It seems like there is an easy ratio in this recipe for the base ingredients & leaves room for creative flavors. Frozen fruit or fresh seem to be suitable & I used regular yogurt instead of greek. I don't really care for the way greek yogurt tastes. I omitted the added sugar since I used regular yogurt (vanilla) which tends to have more sugar than greek. I'll let you know how it goes. 

cast of characters

the base ingredients are as follows from this wonderful & informative blog. 

Ingredients

• 1/4 cup uncooked old fashioned rolled oats
• 1/3 cup milk (soy, regular milk, almond I am sure would work fine)
• 1/4 cup yogurt (which ever is your preference) 
• 1-1/2 teaspoons dried chia seeds
• 1/2 teaspoon spice (if you are using any) 
• 1 teaspoon sweetner if you choose to - honey, maple syrup seem like popular choices)
• 1/4 cup fruit - frozen or fresh 

Directions
In a half pint (1 cup) jar, add oats, milk, yogurt, chia seeds, spice and sweetner of choice. Put lid on jar and shake until well combined. Remove lid, add fruit and stir until mixed throughout. Return lid to jar and refrigerate overnight or up to 2 - 4 days. Eat chilled.  

 finished product.

hello world.

Hello World.

It's a new year, I'm sure you've heard. Things are different but very much the same. Things are changing, but not quite yet. It's the waiting game.. & I am anticipating what God has next.. Praising him in the hallway.

 

Stay tune.. Tomorrow (or sometime soon..) I am going to try to blog about a few recipes I have tried lately. 

Two for Two !!

Two posts in two days who would of thunk?? 

I'm partially blame it on Trevor being away on a work trip.. most of the week actually - he'll be home tomorrow night and then back out for two more days. So, I've had more time on my hands to think & write. I've enjoyed it although I prefer him to be home :) Also I should mention my laptop was not working for awhile then it was sort of working but now it is back in tip top shape!! I feel much more inclined to use it when it's working.

Recommendation.. soy nog -- it is REALLY good! It doesn't actually have egg in it if that happens to gross you out it's just 'spiced' soy milk I put some in my hot chai tea as "creamer".. very, very tasty. 

My asthma & allergies are going nuts with this weird weather we are having.. I'm having lots of trouble breathing -- coughing a lot because of it and blowing my nose an unusual amount for this time of year (esp for not having a cold...) so although I enjoy warmer weather for my respiratory sake I think winter needs to go back to it's normally scheduled program.. cold. 
There I said it. It needs to be cold again -- I'm sure as soon as it is actually cold I'll hate it but I betcha I'll be able to breathe.. I'll like that more. 

Trevor's grammy send us this sweet advent calender which I had been looking for one -- someday I'd like to get one that has mini ornaments in each box and then has a tree with it.. a girl can dream right? 
But for now I'll settle for the awesome one his gram sent us. We also bought an advent countdown calender as well.. I may not love Christmas or at least weeks leading up to Christmas ahem, general public. I do like counting down and celebrating the advent season. 

A dear friend of mine sent me this video last year before advent season.. it really moved Trevor and I.. it's pretty awesome. Check it out! 


 

Although Trevor wasn't here I decided to make chicken pot pie, one of favorite foods! So I thought I'd share the recipe. To be fair this is not a super healthy recipe but its comfort food at its best. & if you're going to have comfort food it better be darn tasty!

So per usual I made some changes to original recipe -- the original is actually Turkey Pot Pie  (which is also quite good) I typically double the recipe so we have leftovers for lunch the next day or maybe even another meal depending on our schedules. I also have become a fan of cast iron cooking in the last couple years some older women introduce to it to me before I got married as a wedding gift & now I'm hooked! So I use my cast iron dutch oven to make it. That is by no mean a requirement of the recipe feel free to use any kind of pan you might have. 

Chicken Pot Pie 

Ingredients

1 container of crescents
   or I often use a bisquick (see note below)
1 egg 
1/2 cup of milk 
 
8 tablespoons butter  

1 small onion 

3 celery stalks, chopped

3 carrots, diced 

1 cup green beans, chopped 

1 cup mushrooms, chopped 

6 tablespoons dried parsley

2 teaspoons dried oregano 

salt & pepper to taste 

4 cup chicken broth 

6 potatoes (or I'd say 1 1/2 to 2 cups) -- cubed 

1 1/1 cups diced chicken cooked (see note below)

6 tablespoons all-purpose flour

1 cup milk 

Directions 

1. Today I cooked the chicken in my cast iron frying pan browning both sides and since the chicken is being put in the hot for twenty minutes I wasn't too concerned about it fully being done. It will finish cooking in the oven.  I then diced it up after it cooked set it aside. 

2. Melt 4 tablespoons butter in dutch oven over medium heat, add onions and let simmer for 2 to 3 minutes till beginning to look translucent then add the mushrooms and given those another 2 to 3 minutes as well. Then had celery, carrots, parsley, oregano, salt and pepper. Cook and stir until the veggies are soft and fragrant - about five minutes. 

3. Add chicken brother to veggie mixture and bring to boil. Stir in potatoes and cook for about 10 minutes. 

4. In the same pan I used to cook the chicken I melted the remaining amount of butter, 4 tablespoons and added the flour. Let that heat up for a few minutes. In the mean time add your milk to the potato/veggie mixture and let it heat through on high. Add the rue (milk/flour mixture) to the potato/veggie mixture and whisk together. Continue occasionally stirring for about five minutes. It should begin to thicken up. Also add the chicken in anytime during this step. Everything should be well incopperated and about ready to go in the oven. 

--Note: biquick mixture I often use a cup of bisquick, 1 egg and 1/2 cup of milk mix it together to make a thick batter and pour that on top of the chicken pot pie before it goes in the oven. If you do this alternative ending - bake for 15 - 20 minutes or until golden brown. 
Tonight I decided to try something new and use some crescents we had - they turned out to be more dumplingish but they were still pretty good. If you do this particular ending - bake in oven for twenty minutes without any topping and then the crescents for the last 10 minutes. 

5. Set oven at 350 degrees and bake for 20 minutes until topping is golden brown. 

It is really rather delicious! It makes for excellent leftovers. We always eat ours up within a couple days very rarely does any ever go to waste. Happy Cooking & if you have questions I'm here! :)




 

Am I living in Texas? (& a recipe)

This morning was freakishly warm here in the North East.. It was in the 50's on my way to work this morning and rainy... It reminded me of when I lived in Texas -- that is often how the 'winters' felt there.

Now let me clearly state I am not complaining.. I am not a fan of snow -- but I guess although I may not 'like' it, I have become accustomed to it, being I am from the north -- it happens every year or most every year whether I like it not... it comes with each season -- it is part of it.

Much like seasons of life -- you may not like certain parts but it comes with it, you grow use to it accompanying certain things -- it creates the season. It is the season.

It doesn't feel like winter. If it's not going to feel like winter or BE winter. 
I want summer !!! 

That being said I am getting down from my soap/rant box. :o) 

My real reason for writing today is to share a recipe I had a request or two for.. Yesterday Trevor and I decorated for Christmas -- I made him listen (he was quite willing) to my spotify Christmas list.. for the most part he liked the list I created for him and our Christmas decorating festivities. 

 Christmas 2012

 our living room all done up

We decorated for awhile got mostly everything done just in time for Trevor to watch the steelers game... oh did I ever mentioned I married a very big steelers fan (not to mention his family...) they live and breath black and gold... for someone like myself not growing up in quite the same culture, it's interesting. At least I played sports all through middle school and high school so I get sports.. I suppose some of it has worn off on me as well. 

So while he watched the game I made us egg rolls for dinner (& leftovers). He even helped -- he brought the laptop out to the kitchen and between every couple plays he helped me get stuff ready. He's a keeper.

These are one our favorite things to freeze and reheat.. they are so filling and tasty. This is the original recipe but naturally I've made changes.. Are you surprised?

More Awesome Egg Rolls 
 
Ingredients 

1.5 cups broccoli slaw (usually I use a package)
**note: this original recipe calls for cabbage but we find we like the broccoli slaw better it gives it a little more texture and flavor plus its pretty nutritious!)

1 carrot, shredded 
 
1/4 cup finely diced onion 

1 celery stalk, diced 

1 can of water chestnuts, diced 
**(optional if you have them on hand)  

1 cup diced chicken (you can use shrimp, pork or just go meatless if you'd like) 

2 tablespoons soy sauce 
** (we use tamari you can use amino acids I'm sure as well)  

1/8 garlic powder 

1/8 ground ginger 

black pepper to taste 

1 egg, beaten

cornstarch 

20 egg roll wrappers 

Oil for frying (I use a olive oil & veg. oil mixture)

Directions

Step 1 
In a large bowl, mix together broccoli slaw, carrots, celery, and onion. Stir in chicken, soy sauce, garlic powder, ginger and black pepper.
Pour beaten egg into a skillet placed over medium heat; scramble egg ensuring its finely crumbled. Stir egg into cabbage mixture. Sprinkle top with cornstarch, mix, and allow to sit 10 minutes.

Step 2 
Mix 1 tablespoon cornstarch with 2 tablespoons cold water. Set aside.

Place 2 or 3 tablespoons (I use a cookie scoop) of the chicken/slaw mixture into the center of an egg roll skin. Place square egg roll wrapper with the tips pointing up, roll the bottom corner half way up and make egg roll wrapper like a tube tuck the left and right side of the wrapper on top of the tube and continue to roll. Dip a finger into the water and cornstarch mixture and take the top corner that you just put the cornstarch mixture on and seal the tube with. (this may not make any sense, it doesn't really matter how to wrap just as long it is wrapped and there aren't any tears - otherwise you may have some leakage when you go to fry.) -- bad news bears. 
Step 3
Pour vegetable oil into a deep frying pan to a depth of 3 or 4 inches, and heat oil to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). I fry mine in my cast iron pan - I find that warming the pan up on high for a few minutes with the oil and then turning it down the medium is about the right heat. Sprinkle some water on the oil if it sizzles you're in business! Carefully place egg rolls into hot oil, and fry until golden brown. It takes about 3 - 4 minutes per batch. This process is fairly quick so don't walk away, these need to be attended to. Remove and place on paper towels  these suckers need some grease sucked out of them-- I put them in the oven on warm to keep them hot. 


Soooo hopefully this wasn't all too confusing -- it may look a bit overwhelming but once you make these once they are SO easy! If you have questions leave a comment, e-mail me, fb me -- I'm here. 

Happy Cooking!!

PSU -- TDAY -- SOUP

Do you ever feel life is moving at the speed of light? Lately that's how life has been for us -- our calender has just been extremely full -- which sometimes is good, sometimes bad. Thankfully in this instance it was very good.

I was super sick 2.5 weeks ago with a chest cold that had me down and out for a full week -- I simply worked and slept. (thankfully Trevor was traveling all week so I just slept) By the weekend of the first week I was doing better. We had plans with friends (& tickets) to go see Penn State football play and hang out with some of wonderful friends. We really enjoyed the weekend & by the end of the weekend I was doing MUCH better perhaps it was all the friend time :o)

We went tailgating, watched the football game, made bread, had late night chats, took a not so brisk but chilly walk, walked around downtown, hit up wegmans (my fav!!), & goodwill! We took in all that happy valley had to offer - it was fantastic.

"Friends are a blessing from God..."

So last week my 'sickness' was still lingering but I was hobbling along still coughing, sneezing, & blowing my nose :) My parents were coming for thanksgiving to visit -- we were super excited to see them but apartment was not... it needed to love & attention.. so we spent the next two days after we came back cleaning and getting ready for their arrival. Of course we were both working too. I actually had to work on thanksgiving day but only for four hours (holiday pay baby!) so I didn't mind.

My parents came Wednesday afternoon and stayed until Sunday. It was really great having them visit and having a full apartment. We spent thanksgiving with Trevor's Dads family and my parents -- we ended up with the turkey bones and made some awesome meals out of them, boy we lucked out :o) Turkey leftover soup anyone? or Turkey bisquits and gravy? yum!

We shopped, made food, ate, did some more shopping, boys played games, talked & overall had a grand ole time. I'll admit I was a bit cranky at times I was still feeling a little down and out sickness wise..

I'm happy to report that aside from a lingering cough which might have more to do with my asthma and the cold front coming through --- I am feeling MUCH better. Thankfully.. now if the cough would dispensary all together I would be one happy girl.


This is quite a loaded post but I wanted to throw a recipe out there that I made yesterday that was really good! Black Bean Chicken Soup.. As some of you know I'm not very good at following recipes to a T -- I like to adjust to what I think would better or what we might like better. The black bean soup was a good recipe but we needed some more protein than just black beans. So I added slow cooker Mexican chicken to it. Instead of doing the black bean soup on the stove for the duration of its life I was started it on the stove and then mixed it into the slow cooker chicken I had shredded and had been warming for awhile. 

I highly recommend this soup it was really tasty & easy too.  So in short I followed the black bean soup & then added the black bean soup to the slow cooker Mexican chicken and let it simmer for awhile in the slow cooker. I skipped the lime too -- I didn't have any. It was would of probably been good though.

Happy slurping! I could live on soup!