by Susan | Dec 1, 2012 | In the Kitchen, Recipes
There’s nothing better than warm bread, fresh out of the oven on cold day. Well, on any day. Hannah prefers white bread, but I really don’t enjoy wimpy white bread from the store. After some trial and error, I’ve fine-tuned a white bread recipe that...
by Susan | Nov 22, 2012 | In the Kitchen
My mind didn’t fully focus on Thanksgiving this year until the last minute. This last week, full of meetings and a trip to Portland left me a bit discombobulated. Almost two months ago, Mom (aka Granny Gadget) sent us a CharBroil Big Easy Smoker. It sat in the...
by Susan | Aug 24, 2012 | Hannah's Cutting Board, In the Kitchen
I made tacos for dinner tonight. Hannah opted out and did her own thing for dinner. I’m thinking Paul and I got the short end of the stick. Check out what Chef Roo (age 13) made for her dinner. I think tomorrow I’ll ask Hannah what’s for dinner....
by Susan | Aug 17, 2012 | In the Kitchen, Recipes
This morning I used the last of our blueberries picked last week in this blueberry coffee cake that has become a family favorite. Downeast Thunder Farm Blueberry Coffee Cake The Batter ¼ cup canola oil ½ scant cup of sugar ¾ cup skim milk 1 ½ cups unbleached...
by Susan | Aug 12, 2012 | In the Kitchen
Granny Gadget (AKA Mom) sent Hannah a cheese making kit for her birthday last week. We made a batch of beautiful homemade mozzarella from whole milk the very next day. The kit has the ingredients to make mozzarella or ricotta – citric acid, rennet tablets,...
by Susan | Aug 7, 2012 | Granny Gadget, In the Kitchen
Saturday night is Pizza Night at Downeast Thunder Farm. I get in big trouble when I mix things up and don’t serve Pizza on Saturday – Paul and Hannah have come to count on Saturday homemade pizza. A key ingredient to pizza is the herb mix that goes in the...
by Susan | Jul 14, 2012 | Hannah's Cutting Board, In the Kitchen
Hannah has come up with a new use for swimming goggles. They are now an accessory for chopping onions. Tired of crying through the process, she came up with an excellent solution!
by Susan | Mar 30, 2012 | Hannah's Cutting Board, In the Kitchen
The other week when we cooked down our sap into Maple syrup, Hannah took advantage of the wood fire and made S’mores. All day long. The other day, we were down to the last graham crackers and marshmallows with no chocolate left in the house. (A truly sad thing,...
by Susan | Mar 5, 2012 | Hannah's Cutting Board, In the Kitchen
May your pancake smile upon you this morning. This is what you get when you let Hannah cook pancakes!
by Susan | Feb 26, 2012 | In the Kitchen, Recipes
On Sunday, the wind was howling outside and all three of us were at various stages of “under the weather” with colds. It seemed like a good soup day. With potatoes beginning to sprout in the pantry and asparagus that had gone almost forgotten in the...
by Susan | Feb 14, 2012 | In the Kitchen, Recipes
Snowy cold weekends are the perfect time for one of my new favorites – Split Pea Soup. I made this for the first time last year after many hints from Paul who loves Split Pea Soup. Me? I’d managed to avoid it for all of my years. I had no idea what I was...
by Susan | Feb 11, 2012 | In the Kitchen, Recipes
This recipe has been on my mind for a while now since I’ve been looking for recipes that use eggs. A snowy Saturday seemed like a good time to finally make Challah, or braided egg bread. I studied a number of different recipes and worked up this version that...
by Susan | Jan 2, 2012 | In the Kitchen, Recipes
New Years Eve I made this very yummy Spinach Artichoke Dip. I love the warm creamy texture with just a little bite of jalapeno. Downeast Thunder Spinach Artichoke Dip 1 – 8 ounce block of cream cheese, softened 3/4 cup mayonnaise (the real deal – not light...
by Susan | Dec 18, 2011 | Hannah's Cutting Board, In the Kitchen
Hannah stumbled across a recipe I’d pulled out of a magazine for Pepperidge Farm’s Spinach-Cheese Swirls. Hannah being Hannah read the recipe through once and then did her own thing. Having recently discovered that Hannah loves spinach I’ve been...
by Susan | Oct 16, 2011 | Hannah's Cutting Board
For the weekend, anyway. My Hannah (12 years-old) has turned into quite the little chef. She’s taken to watching cooking shows rather than cartoons and is particularly taken with Food Network’s Chopped and The Next Iron Chef. Come weekend time she is in full cooking...
by Susan | Sep 29, 2011 | Hannah's Cutting Board
Hannah decided to run for student council at school. She said that all of the candidates bring some kind of treat in for the class, but she was concerned that this treat sharing constituted a bribe. I commended her on her viewpoint, but suggested that she play along...
by Susan | Sep 24, 2011 | Recipes
Since Maine Apple Sunday, I’ve tried three different apple crisp recipes and finally have one that I think is good enough to share. This is crispy and just a little tart – not too sweet. Our apples are from old, wild, overgrown trees. My guess is that they’re...
by Susan | Sep 17, 2011 | In the Kitchen
Hannah was on a mission today. Unbeknownst to me, she had a plan for lunch. While I was outside working, Hannah was busy in the kitchen. Here’s what I found when I popped inside for a moment. She made a white bread dough using the bread machine and then formed...
by Susan | Sep 4, 2011 | Hannah's Cutting Board
Hannah cooked us a truly wonderful dinner last night. The menu consisted of a chicken / broccoli ziti dish with garlic (of course) roasted red peppers and cream. Yummy. Dessert was a chocolate mousse made from scratch with homemade whipped cream; very rich and quite...
by Susan | Aug 14, 2011 | In the Kitchen, Recipes
I experiment with pizza dough like some women experiment with nail polish colors. We have homemade pizza once a week, usually on the weekend. We make our own, not because we don’t have choices, but because we like ours better. After years of experimenting,...
