Honey Cardamom Chilli Eggplant

Generally speaking I am not a fan of eggplant at all. Unless it has been cooked into submission and is no longer recognizable as its former self. I have tried to eat eggplant in various forms to no avail. I have even forced myself to maintain an open mind and try new recipes. My husband knows of my aversion and even shares it, although to a lesser degree. He happened to be watching a show with Bobby FLay in Ireland one night and literally woke me up and told me that we HADTOTRYTHIS recipe. "I would eat that" were his words. That was approximately 4 months ago. Unfortunately, the show never listed a recipe, so I have had to wait until another brave soul in the world tested and tried to figure out the recipe (this is only because I am too lazy busy to do it myself). That being said, here is the recipe:

Ingredients:
3 eggplant
1/2 to 1 tsp chili powder (use less or more as you prefer)
1 tsp ground cardamom
2 tbsp olive oil
2 tbsp honey
2 tbsp tahini sauce
2 tbsp plain yogurt

Method:
Slice eggplant lengthwise, about three slices
Whisk together honey, olive oil, ground cardamom and chili powder
Brush eggplant slices with honey and spices mixture on both sides, let sit for half an hour
Arrange the eggplant slices in a baking pan
Bake in preheated 400 degrees F oven for 3-4 minutes on each side or until tender
Turn on the broiler and cook for another 2 minutes or just to achieve a broiled effect and brown the skin and sides.
Serve with tahini sauce mixed with yogurt
Here are my thoughts:
There is no salt listed anywhere in this recipe. So I salted the eggplant right before I put the marinade on. In the future I will salt the eggplant AND add salt to the marinade. Also, I only used 1/2 tsp of chili, which for me wasn't enough warm, so next time I will add more. The marinade does have a great flavor on the eggplant and is good enough that I am willing to overlook the lifelessness of cooked eggplant.
The one thing I did not enjoy was the tahini yogurt sauce. I started making it as the recipe said, but it was way to thick to drizzle over the eggplant and I did not enjoy the taste at all. I understand that the purpose is to offset the heat and sweet from the marinade, but it just didn't appeal to me in the least bit. So, then I had to go about trying to loosen it up a bit. I did this with buttermilk, lemon juice, water, then milk and it was still too thick. Also, again no salt, so I added some. It was still awful to me.
So, while I loved the eggplant, I need to work on a different sauce to go with it. Perhaps it was the tahini I bought. But I actually think that next time, I am going to try a peanut sauce of some kind.

I will say that despite all of this, both my husband and I went back for seconds and that, my friends, is saying something!!

I'm going to check for pasty butts...

Many different trains of thought have an idea of "be, do, have". People often think that if they have something, they can do something, then they can be something. The most common one being money. If I have money then I can do "blah", and I will be happy. When in reality it is much more effective to "be, do, have". Be happy...then the rest can fall into place. I've come to the conclusion with the farm that I need to be a farmgirl to do farmgirl things and then I will have my farm. As opposed to waiting until I have my farm to be a farmgirl. I also realized that alot of this has to do with fear. I am afraid of failing, so I don't do those farmgirl things so that I don't have a chance to fail.

So...in the farmgirl spirit...we got chickens this weekend (well...we got chicks)! They are about 7 days old and have just passed the cute phase and are fast approaching the ugly duckling phase where their wing and tail feathers are coming in. I never thought that in my lifetime I would say "I'm giong to check for pasty butts". But there it is.

A Farm and a truck

The universe has really been testing us this year. Starting this farm is a very scary thing for folks like us who have spent our adult lives living in the certainty of a regular paycheck (in one job or another) and days that are the same as the last. Living every day in a rut and working for someone else. Just making a paycheck to pay off something.
Starting this farm is like throwing that certainty out the window while driving down the highway at mach one. It can cause you to panic and freeze up on any forward progress. That's what this last year has been. We decided that we needed to get some fencing up so that we can get some cattle out there. Keep in mind...once that fence is up...there is nothing stopping us from getting this going. Except ourselves. That, my friends, is a very scary thing.
In life we are faced wtih choices. Now, I can sit here all day and come up with many different excuses as to why we hadn't gotten it done. But they would all be excuses. And it would just be a waste of time. The fact of the matter is, we need to "shit or get off the pot" in a manner of speaking.
And then...my truck died. After 127,000 miles, she had had enough. That's okay...she's getting a transplant and will be good as new in a few days. I can't wait. She's going to get a detail. I'm going to paint up her little rusty spots (kind of like getting her nails done)...and then...the piece de resistence...I'm going to put on her "Certified Farmgirl" sticker!!
She's earned it.

Monthly Ingredient Update - October - Black-eyed Peas

So...obviously I have not been around in a while. But I know you are not suprised. Currently the farm is in a hold pattern due to the weather and the fact that we just planted grass seed in the cleared 16 acres and are waiting for it to spread. We need to get our tractor up and running again so that we can cut it. It sufferred after a 6 inch rained moved it 30 yards through our lower field.

On to the monthly ingredient...I figured that maybe if I start now I will actually post some recipes this time. Black-eyed peas are one of my favorite vegetables, but I only really eat them one way. Boiled in water or stock with a nice chunk of salt pork served over fresh baked sweet cornbread. MMMM...

I will need to do a little research to find some good recipes and I have every intention of using fresh peas as they are far superior to the mush that comes in a can.

Monthly Ingredient - June - Zucchini

I actually love zucchini. I like it best sauteed with some butter, onions, summer squash and a little salt and pepper.

I would love to say that for all of these recipes, I will be using zucchini grown in my garden...but that is just not going to happen.

As far as recipes go, I think I will finally try a zucchini bread recipe and for the rest...well...I'll just have to see what the innernets offer up...

Happy Cooking!

Monthly Ingredient Update - Carrots - Curried Carrot Soup

Curried carrot soup was nothing like I expected. As it sat on the stove bubbling away and I could smell the curry with its hint of cinnamon and cloves, I was expecting a sweet dish. And in actuallity, it was...I added quite a bit of salt to it, in order to cut the sweetness of the dish. Plus I added Ritz crackers to give it a little body. I guess in my mind, if I am eating carrots they should have shape (and most of the time some crunch), but looking at a big 'ol bowl of orange I was not so sure. All in all...it was good...but if I have enough carrots laying around to make this, I will make carrots au gratin instead.

Curried Carrot Soup
Ingredients
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 1 ½ onion, chopped
• 1 ½ tablespoon curry powder
• 2 pounds carrots, chopped
• 4 cups vegetable broth
• 2 cups water, or as needed

Directions
Heat oil in a large pot over medium heat. Sauté onion until tender and translucent. Stir in the curry powder. Add the chopped carrots, and stir until the carrots are coated.

Pour in the vegetable broth, and simmer until the carrots are soft, about 20 minutes.

Transfer the carrots and broth to a blender, and puree until smooth. Pour back into the pot, and thin with water to your preferred consistency.

Serve with caramelized onions, sour cream, and/or croutons.

Monthly Ingredient Update - Carrots - Carrot Cake

Today I will be sharing with you a recipe for carrot cake. I have never made carrot cake from scratch...in fact, I can not even remember the last time I made a cake from scratch...since making it from the box is so easy. After making this particular cake though, I can say with all honesty...I probably will not buy box cake mix again. It was so easy, and very satisfying to know what was going into my food.

This particular recipe is lower-fat than it's original recipe, but still manages to satisfy my sweet tooth. So, without further ado...enjoy:

Carrot CakeIngredients
• 4 eggs
• ¾ cups vegetable oil
• 1 cup white sugar
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 3 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons baking soda
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 3 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• ¼ teaspoon nutmeg
• ¼ teaspoon ground cloves
• 3 cups grated carrots
• 1 cup chopped walnuts, plus a handful

Frosting:
• 1/2 cup butter, softened
• 8 ounces cream cheese, softened
• 4 cups confectioners' sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease and flour a 9x13 inch pan.

In a large bowl, beat together eggs, oil, white sugar and 3 teaspoons vanilla. Mix in flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves. Stir in carrots. Fold in 1 cup chopped walnuts. Pour into prepared pan.

Bake in the preheated oven for 40 to 50 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. Let cool in pan for 10 minutes, then turn out onto a wire rack and cool completely.

To Make Frosting: In a medium bowl, combine butter, cream cheese, confectioners' sugar and 1 teaspoon vanilla. Beat until the mixture is smooth and creamy. Frost the cooled cake. Sprinkle with chopped walnuts if desired.