Kitchen Photos

 Last week a professional photographer came to take pictures of our remodeled kitchen.  Our builder is using some of the photos on his website, www.atlantabuilding.com, as well as for "remodeled kitchen" contests.  The cabinet-design store is using them for literature showcasing their cabinets.  Thought you would like to see a few of my favorites.  Please note our new banquette table built by Cleg from solid cherry.  It is beautiful!!  I am so lucky to have such a fabulous kitchen!!

Local Wineries

A week ago, Cleg and I decided to take a road trip towards Dahlonega.  We wanted to visit the local wineries in the area.  We were shocked to find there were so many.  The first one we visited was "The Three Sisters Vineyards."  The tasting of three different wines was free, and the wines were fairly good.  The next winery was Frogtown Cellars which had a large banquet room and a large outdoor patio.  Unfortunately the wine was just fair.  This picture was taken from their deck; it was a gorgeous day!!

And the last winery we visited was Montaluce Vineyards.  We did not do a tasting here, but did eat lunch at their beautiful restaurant.  The food was delicious!!  I ate a fig arugula salad, and a margherita flatbread pizza.  This is a picture of their restaurant and winery.

Pears, Pears, Pears

Cleg's brother Tommy has a pear tree in his yard, and has been busy picking pears for everyone.  I think he gave us about 50+ pears.  So, I decided to make pear chutney.  I tried two different recipes, but my favorite was from the canning book published by "Ball" (the Bible of canning and preserving).  After cooking it for several hours, I then put it in pint jars, and into a boiling water bath.  The yield:  12 pint jars.

And, pears were still left over.  The last project was "Pear Honey" (it really is the consistency of preserves).  This was a "Paula Deen" recipe from a Food Network show by Giada de Laurentiis.  The recipe called for 10 cups of sugar, but I only used 6 cups.  It also said to only cook for 30 minutes... I cooked it for 2-3 hours (Giada was using a different type of pear).  It is yummy on your morning toast.  The yield:  13 half pint jars!!  Thanks, Tommy, for all the pears.


Pear Chutney

• 4 qts finely chopped, peeled pears (about 20 medium)
• 2 to 3 cups brown sugar
• 1 cup raisins
• 1 cup chopped onion
• 1/4 cup mustard seed
• 2 T. ginger
• 2 tsp salt
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1 hot red pepper, finely chopped
• 5 cups vinegar

Combine all ingredients in a large saucepot.  Simmer until thick.  Stir frequently to prevent sticking.  Ladle hot chutney into hot jars, leaving 1/4 inch headspace.  Remove air bubbles.  Adjust caps.  Process 10 minutes in a boiling-water canner.

My First Blog

I have finally decided to start blogging about my love for food and my constant quest for new recipes.... thanks to my sister-in-law Kerry.  My family and friends are always passing along new recipes.  And I am always perusing cookbooks, blogs, magazines, and the internet.  As I grow older, I realize the importance of cooking with local fresh ingredients from our Farmers Market.  And, this year, Cleg has also had good success with his garden at our new home.  To try to preserve these yummy vegetables, I decided to try pressure canning instead of freezing.  As a trial, I bought a 16-quart pressure canner and sent Cleg to the local Farmers Market to buy green beans and tomatoes.... his garden yield was not enough.  I was able to can seven quarts of green beans and only four pints of basil tomato sauce (that was 14 lbs of tomatoes) !!  One of the tomato sauce jars did not seal, so we really enjoyed it on pasta the next night.
In my quest for recipes for the current local ingredient, peaches, I found a recipe for Peach Chutney on the Food Network website.  It is yummy and pairs well with pork tenderloin... probably with a white fish, too.  So stay tuned and offer any suggestions..... and, keep on cooking!!!

Peach Chutney

• 1 T. butter
• 1 T. finely chopped garlic
• 2 shallots finely diced
• 1 jalapeno pepper, seeded & diced
• 1 1/2 pounds fresh peaches, blanched and diced
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/4 cup brandy
• 1/2 cup cider vinegar
• Salt & pepper

Melt butter, add garlic, shallot & jalapeno & sweat for 1 to 2 minutes; add diced peaches.  Cook for 2 to 3 minutes; add sugar, deglaze with brandy and vinegar.  Allow to cook on low heat until peaches are soft.  Season with salt and pepper.