Dark Days Update #2: Potato/Leek Soup & Savory Muffins!

This Dark Days Challenge update is courtesy of our freezer! I made and froze the soup back in late October While the savory muffins were baked and frozen in mid-November. I left both soup and muffins to thaw as I headed off to work. By the time I came home the 2 portions of soup were ready to cook. I added just a little water and let them warm up. For the muffins I lightly toasted them for 10 minutes after they had thawed. Simple, Easy, and Delicious!

Below the picture you will find recipes for both the Potato & Leek Soup and the Cheddar & Leek Muffins.

Potato & Leek Soup (with Stillman's Sausage, Local Cheddar, and Sage from the garden)

Makes 6 servings

1 lb of leeks, cleaned and darker parts removed. Between 4 - 6 leeks

3 tablespoons unsalted butter

Heavy Pinch of kosher salt

1-1.5 lbs potatoes, diced small (peeling them is up to you).

3-4 cloves of garlic, diced.

1 quart vegetable broth

1 cup heavy cream

1 cup buttermilk
1/2 teaspoon pepper (black or white is a matter of preference)
1 tablespoon chives/rosemary/sage depending on preference
--Chop the leeks into small pieces.

--In a 6-quart pot over medium heat, melt the butter. Add the leeks and salt and let simmer for 5 minutes.
--Lower the heat to medium-low and cook until the leeks are soft and tender, 20-25 minutes, stirring occasionally.
--Add the potatoes, minced garlic and broth, raise the head to medium-high and bring to a boil. Once boiling reducing the heat to low, cover, and simmer gently until the potatoes are nice and soft 40-45 minutes.--Turn off the heat and puree with immersion blender or food processor until smooth. Stir in the heavy cream, buttermilk and pepper until well blended. Taste and adjust seasonings as desired. Sprinkle with herbs and serve.

As Gail is a vegetarian she enjoyed hers as listed above. I broiled and sliced a Stillman's Farm sweet Italian pork sausage into my portion. Once the soup was spooned into bowls I topped it with a few slices of cheddar cheese, sage from our garden, and an additional sprinkling of pepper.

Local ingredients in the Potato & Leek Soup: Leeks (my garden & Stillman's Farm), Potatoes & Garlic (Atlas Farm), Heavy Cream & Buttermilk (Garelick Farms), Herbs (my garden), Optional: Sweet Italian Sausage (Stillman's Farm), Cheddar (Grafton Village Cheese)

Cheddar and Leek Muffins(recipe from the kitchn)

Makes 12 muffins

1/2 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cup corn flour
2 teaspoons salt
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
1 1/4 cups buttermilk
7 tablespoons melted unsalted butter, divided
2 tablespoons honey
1 1/4 cups thinly sliced leeks, white and light green parts only, divided
1 cup grated sharp cheddar cheese

--Preheat the oven to 375° F. Grease or line a 12-cup muffin tin with baking papers or 5-inch squares of parchment.

--Sift all the dry ingredients together into a large mixing bowl.

--In a small bowl, beat the eggs, buttermilk, 5 tablespoons of the melted butter, and honey.

--Make a well in the dry ingredients and incorporate the wet ingredients. Stir until smooth. Stir in the cheese and 1 cup leeks.

--Spoon the mixture into the muffin cups, filling each about three quarters full.

--Top each muffin with a few of the remaining leek rings and a spoonful of the remaining melted butter.

--Bake 20-25 minutes, or until tops just begin to brown.

Local ingredients in the Cheddar and Leek Muffins: All-Purpose Flour (King Arthur Flour), Eggs (Stillman's Farm), Buttermilk (Garelick Farms), Butter & Cheddar (Cabot Cheese), Honey (Keown Orchards), and Leeks (my Garden & Stillman's Farm)

This weekend we were able to eat locally with the help of:

Stillman's Farm, Atlas Farm, Keown Orchards, King Arthur Flour, Garelick Farms, Cabot Cheese, Grafton Village Cheese, and My Garden.

Cranberry-Orange Scones

I've been working to improve my baking skills/repertoire recently. I feel the best way to do is practice! I did not make any bread this weekend because I was tied up making the Sufganiyot that I wrote about on Monday.

I did want some additional baking practice this weekend, but was looking for something that wouldn't be too time or resource consuming, so I made a batch of Cranberry-Orange Scones!

Cranberry-Orange Scones

makes 6-8 scones depending on how big or small you like your scones

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, spooned and leveled

3 tablespoons sugar

2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon finely grated orange zest

5 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces

1/2 cup dried cranberries

2/3 cup buttermilk (plus 1 to 2 tablespoons more if necessary)

--Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment or waxed paper. In a large bowl, stir together flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and orange zest.

--With a pastry blender or two knives, cut butter into flour mixture until it resembles coarse meal. Stir in dried cranberries.

--Make a well in the center of the mixture. Add buttermilk, and stir until just combined; do not overmix. Use a little more buttermilk if dough is too dry to work with.

--Transfer dough to a lightly floured surface; shape into an 8-inch round. Transfer to baking sheet. Cut circle into 8 wedges; space them 1/2 inch apart (to prevent sticking, dust knife with flour). Bake until golden, 18 to 20 minutes.

The scones were chewy with a little crunch on the bottom. The next time I make them I will cut the butter into slightly smaller pieces, but overall the results were extremely satisfying. Gail and I have been enjoying them for breakfast this week they go great with a nice warm cup of coffee or tea!

I will definitely make these again .

more about Dark Days Challenge

I've gotten a few emails with good questions so here are some more details about the Dark Days Challenge:

The 88 participants hail from 30 states, the District of Columbia, Canada, and Australia. The participants have been randomly divided into 6 groups. Over the next 4.5 months there will be 9 recap periods, each covering 2 meals or approximately 1 meal per week. Participants (yours truly) submit their Dark Days Challenge posts to each groups recapper who will then recap their groups activity and pass them on where the summaries for all the groups can be posted together over at (not so) Urban Hennery.



Grown Away is part of group 5. The other participants in my group are:
Eat Local Challenge (San Francisco, CA) (our group reccaper)
a.growing.girl (Washington)
A Little Bit of Spain in Iowa
Aagaard Farms/The Vine (Canada)
Three and a Third Homestead (Illinois)
Our Life In The Country (California)
deliajude (California)
estate gardener (Maine)
Fessenden Farmstead (Washington, DC)
FROM SCRATCH club (New York)
Hippie In Geeks Clothing (Michigan)
Nordic Walking Queen (Minnesota)
Snohomish Farmers Market Blog (Washington)
Sustainable Eats (Washington)

I am looking forward to seeing what those in Group 5 as well as the rest of the Dark Days Challenge participants are cooking and eating using local ingredients throughout the winter!



Here at Grown Away I don't have a set schedule to chronicle our attempt to eat more local meals throughout the winter but am hoping to post an entry at least once a week. If we're able to eat more then 1 meal per week focusing on SOLE (sustainable, organic, local, ethical) ingredients I will be summarizing them here as I see fit/have time. Obviously some weeks will feature more then 1 local meal while others will only feature the minimum (1 meal).

I will do my best to share as many recipes as well as the origin of the foods which make it into my dark days entries. Stay tuned and keep an eye out for entries tagged Dark Days to keep track of how I fare throughout the challenge!

Dark Days Update #1: The Dark Days of Hanukkah

As I've already mentioned the start of the Dark Days Challenge coincided with the first night of Hanukkah. So this first update shares some of the local and festive Hanukkah eating we've been enjoying. Below you will find recipes for traditional latkes as well as butternut squash latkes, wine and maple glazed parsnips & carrots, apple butter, challah, green beans with roasted squash seeds, and finally sufganiyot (jelly donuts!).

(Potato Latkes with Apple Butter & Red Wine and Maple Glazed Carrots & Parsnips)

Potato Latkes (via Martha Stewart)
serves 4 to 6
4 large potatoes, peeled

1 small onion, finely grated

2 eggs, lightly beaten

1/4 cup Beer

3 tablespoons all-purpose flour

1 tablespoon coarse salt

Ground Black Pepper

Vegetable Oil, for frying

--Shred potatoes into large bowl of ice water.
--With a slotted spoon transfer shredded potatoes to a second bowl, lined with a kitchen tile and squeeze the moisture out of the potatoes. Leave the original bowl of ice water for 10 minutes allowing the starch to settle on the bottom.
--Pour the water out of the bowl leaving the settled starch. Transfer the shredded potatoes to the bowl with the remaining starch.
--Add the onion to the bowl. Stir in the eggs, beer, flour, salt and pepper.
--In a heavy nonstick skillet heat 1/4-inch of oil. Transfer approximately a 1/2 cup of the mixture per pancake into the skillet. Cook the mixture in batches frying both sides 4 to 6 minutes or until golden brown.
--Transfer the finished latkes to a paper towel lined plate or baking sheet and allow the latkes to drain of excess oil.
--Serve with your choice of toppings. The traditional toppings are sour cream or applesauce.
We topped them with a thin layer of Gail's delicious homemade Apple butter. The original recipe also suggests warming the oven to 200 F and placing finished latkes on a cookie sheet into the oven to keep them warm as you make more.
Rather then go out and find a local beer I used a beer we had on hand. A delicious Fat Tire from the good folks at New Belgium Brewing of Fort Collins, CO.

Apple Butter

makes 3-4 medium jars

2lbs apples, coarsely chopped

1 1/4 cups of water

Juice from 1 orange

Pinch of ground allspice

Pinch of ground cinnamon

3 1/2 cups granulated sugar

--Put apples and water in heavy bottomed saucepan. Bring to a boil and simmer the apples for about 10 minutes, until soft.

--Sieve the fruit in batches and collect the juice and puree in a clean bowl. Put this mixture back into the pan and add the orange juice, spices, and sugar. Cook over low heat, stirring until the sugar has all dissolved.

--Bring the mixture back up to a boil and simmer gently for about 2 hours, or longer if needed until the mixture has sufficiently thickened, stirring occasionally to prevent mixture from sticking to the bottom of the pan. The butter is ready when it is thick enough to rest on the back of a spoon without running off.

--Ladle into warm sterilized mason jars leaving about 1/4 inch headspace. Process in a boiling water bath for 5-10 minutes. Allow processed jars to cool down. Check that jars have sealed. IF they have store them in a cupboard for up to 6 months, if not store in refrigerator.

--Refrigerate after opening.

Red Wine and Maple Glazed Carrots & Parsnips

(adapted from Ruth Reichl's Gourmet Today)

serves 6

3 tablespoons unsalted butter

3/4 cup thinly sliced shallots
1 teaspoon chili powder

3/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

1 lb carrots cut diagonally into 3-inch pieces

1 lb parsnips cut diagonally into 3-inch pieces

1 cup dry red wine

1/3 cup maple syrup

2 teaspoons cider vinegar

2 tablespoons chopped dill

--Heat butter in a 12-inch heavy skillet over moderate heat until foam subsides

--Add shallots and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened about 4 minutes

--Add chili powder, salt, and pepper and cook about 1 minute

--Add carrots, wine, and maple syrup, bring to a simmer.

--Add parsnips and bring to a simmer.

--Cover and simmer, stirring occasionally, until carrots & parsnips are tender, about 20 minutes.

--Add vinegar and boil, uncovered, until liquid has reduced down to a glaze, 3 to 5 minutes.

--Remove from heat and stir in dill

Local ingredients in the Latkes with Apple Butter & Glazed Carrots and Parsnips:

Latkes: Potatoes (Stillmans Farm), Onions (Allandale Farm), Flour (King Arthur Flour), Eggs (Baffoni's Poultry Farm)

Apple Butter: Apples (Kimball Farm)

Glazed Carrots & Parsnips: Carrots & Parsnips (Stillmans Farm), Shallots (Allandale Farm)

Next up is a delicious loaf of Challah I enjoyed with Gail's family. Her sister raises chickens in the backyard of their suburban home. The eggs in this delicious braided loaf were laid within 50 feet of the table where the bread was enjoyed.

(Challah & Red Wine)

Challah

(thanks to Jane Murphy)

makes 2 loaves

one packet active dry yeast
2 cups warm water
1 tablespoons salt
1/3 cup honey
1/2 cup vegetable oil
3 eggs + 1 egg for glaze
6 cups all-purpose flour
--Dissolve the yeast in the water for about 5 minutes. Stir in salt, honey, oil and eggs. Gradually add the flour until incorporated. Kneed about 8 minutes on a floured surface until smooth and elastic. Place in a lightly oiled bowl and cover until double in size, about an hour.
--Divide into six equal sections, roll into ropes, and braid two challahs. Cover each with a towel and let rise about another 1/2 hour. Brush well with beaten egg.
--Bake at 400 for about 40 minutes, rotating once in the oven for even browning. Challah is done when the bottom sounds hollow when tapped.
Enjoy!

Local ingredients in the Challah: Eggs (Backyard Chickens) Possibly the Honey & Flour came from local sources but I can't guarantee it.

(Butternut Squash Latkes with Cheddar & Green Beans with toasted Squash Seeds)

Butternut Squash Latkes

3 cups Grated Butternut Squash, See Instructions Below

½ cups Grated Onion, Yellow Or Sweet

2 whole Eggs

3 Tablespoons Flour, All Purpose Or Whole Wheat

¾ teaspoons Salt

¼ teaspoons Rubbed Sage Or Poultry Seasoning

½ Tablespoons Olive Oil

--Cut squash in half and de-seed like a pumpkin. With a vegetable peeler, peel the squash. You can also reverse these steps but I find it easier to peel once halved. Grate squash either using a grater with large holes. Put in a medium bowl. Grate onion and add to the bowl; try not to include lots of liquid. Add in the eggs, flour, salt, and sage and stir.

--Put olive oil in a heavy skillet or griddle on high. Heat for 30 seconds. Place a heaping tablespoonful of mixture in the pan and spread it into a 2-3 inch diameter circle about 1/2 inch thick. Cook for 1 minute, until it starts to brown, and then flip. These guys cook fast so keep a close eye on them!

--Top with applesauce, sour cream, cheddar or whatever you prefer.

Green Beans with Roasted Squash Seeds

1 pound slender green beans, trimmed

2 tablespoons olive oil, divided

1/2 cup squash or pumpkin seeds

Coarse kosher salt

2 teaspoons chopped fresh rosemary

1 large garlic clove, minced

--Cook green beans in large saucepan of boiling salted water until crisp-tender and still bright green, about 5 minutes. Drain beans and cool in colander. Cut beans into 1-inch pieces.

--Heat 1 tablespoon oil in large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add Squash/Pumpkin seeds. Toss until starting to pop and brown, about 8 minutes; sprinkle with coarse salt and pepper. Transfer to plate.

--Let stand at room temperature

--Heat remaining 1 tablespoon oil in skillet over medium-high heat. Add rosemary and garlic; stir 15 seconds. Add beans and squash seeds. Toss until heated through, about 2 minutes. Season to taste with coarse salt and pepper.

Local ingredients in the Butternut Squash Latkes & Green beans with Squash Seeds

Latkes: Butternut Squash & Onion (Stillman's Farm), Eggs (Jane Murphy's Backyard Chickens), Flour (King Arthur Flour), Cheddar (Grafton Village Cheese)

Green Beans: Green Beans (Kimball Farm & My Garden), Squash Seeds (Stillman's Farm), Rosemary (my windowsill), Garlic (Allandale Farm).

(Sufganiyot)

Hanukkah Sufganiyot (Jelly Donut)

from Martha Stewart

makes 20 donuts

2 tablespoons active dry yeast

1/2 cup warm water (100 degrees to 110 degrees)

1/4 cup plus 1 teaspoon sugar, plus more for rolling

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting

2 large eggs

2 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature

1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg

2 teaspoons salt

3 cups vegetable oil, plus more for bowl

1 cup your choice of jam

--In a small bowl, combine yeast, warm water, and 1 teaspoon sugar. Set aside until foamy, about 10 minutes.

--Place flour in a large bowl. Make a well in the center; add eggs, yeast mixture, 1/4 cup sugar, butter, nutmeg, and salt. Using a wooden spoon, stir until a sticky dough forms. On a well-floured work surface, knead until dough is smooth, soft, and bounces back when poked with a finger, about 8 minutes (add more flour if necessary). Place in an oiled bowl; cover with plastic wrap. Set in a warm place to rise until doubled, 1 to 1 1/2 hours.

--On a lightly floured work surface, roll dough to 1/4-inch thickness. Using a 2 1/2-inch-round cutter or drinking glass, cut 20 rounds. Cover with plastic wrap; let rise 15 minutes

--In medium saucepan over medium heat, heat oil until a deep-frying thermometer registers 370 degrees. Using a slotted spoon, carefully slip 4 rounds into oil. Fry until golden, about 40 seconds. Turn doughnuts over; fry until golden on other side, another 40 seconds. Using a slotted spoon, transfer to a paper-towel-lined baking sheet. Roll in sugar while warm. Fry all dough, and roll in sugar.

--Fill a pastry bag fitted with a #4 tip with jam. Using a wooden skewer or toothpick, make a hole in the side of each doughnut. Fit the pastry tip into a hole, pipe about 2 teaspoons jam into doughnut. Repeat with remaining doughnuts.

Local ingredients in the Sufganiyot: Flour (King Arthur Flour), Eggs (Baffoni's Poultry Farm), Butter (Cabot Creamery), Jam ( homemade Strawberry & Tripleberry Jam from our pantry)

I'll be enjoying leftover latkes & green beans for lunch during the upcoming few days as well. In the first week of the Dark Days Challenge I was able to eat locally thanks to:

Stillmans Farm,

Allandale Farm, Kimball Farm, King Arthur Flour, Grafton Village Cheese, Cabot Creamery, Baffoni's Poultry Farm, Jane Murphy's Backyard Chickens, My Garden, and the rosemary plant living on my windowsill.

Mobile Root Cellar (an experiment)

As I mentioned on Tuesday's post storage is at a premium here in the Grown Away kitchen. As a way to increase our supply of produce I acquired a 2 ft x 3ft x 2 ft plastic storage bin for the trunk of my car.

With nighttime temperatures falling as low as the upper 20s and daytime temperatures generally topping out no higher then the mid 40s the Mobile Root Cellar (MRC) should be kept at an appropriate temperature to prevent the spoilage of any of the storage crops I'll be attempting to keep. Below is a photo of the contents of the MRC as of Monday afternoon:

Contents of the MRC:

1 butternut squash

1.25 lb carrots

4 oz parsnips

6.5 oz radishes

5 lbs assorted potatoes

2 onions

2 shallots.

If the experiment is a success then I will be replenishing/depleting the storage bin on an as needed basis. With a local farm offering fresh produce until the week before Christmas I will definitely be adding more storage crops to the bin in the coming weeks.

Keep an eye on this space for updates regarding the Mobile Root Cellar experiment.

Homemade Oreos and New Cookbooks!

This is may be the only time you will see these two particular cookbooks paired together:

Gail and I picked up these very differently but equally spectacular cookbooks for ourselves. First up is Michael Ruhlman & Brian Polcyn's Charcuterie: The Craft of Salting, Smoking, and Curing. Charcuterie is considered a great jumping off point and a must-own for people who are interested in curing their own meats at home. Though I do not own a smoker(yet), I plan to start with the easier recipes and work my way through the book over many many years. I am a sucker for a good Charcuterie plate and look forward to honing my skills over the years to come.

Next up is local baking superstar Joanne Chang's Flour: Spectacular Recipes from Boston's Flour Bakery + Cafe. Joanne is Pastry Chef/Owner of Boston based Flour Bakery + Cafe and co-owner with husband Christopher Myers of Boston's Myers + Chang an Asian inspired restaurant which has a devoted following.

We picked up Flour at our neighborhood independent bookstore where Joanne was signing copies and passing out samples of some delicious baked goods. She was incredibly personable, gracious, and down to earth. It was great to meet her, and even better to take home her cookbook:

I'm looking forward to attempting her infamous sticky buns which beat out Chef Bobby Flay in an episode of his food network show Throwdown.

Much to my delight Gail decided to crack open Flour on Wednesday afternoon and decided to recreate the recipe for homemade Oreos. The results were spectacular:

The above photo is not from the cookbook, but from the plate of homemade Oreos we ended up with. I had some extremely happy co-workers on Thursday morning! The cookies were met with nothing but praise.

Be sure to check out Joanne Chang's recent post abut baking on the Atlantic Food page. She even includes a few recipes!

King Arthur vs. Martha

As I mentioned yesterday Gail and I exchanged our Hanukkah presents a few days before thanksgiving & I received the great sourdough starter & enamel container set from King Arthur flour. With a few extra days off last week I was able to put the King Arthur starter(left in the above photo) to the test. I decided to see how it compares to my own homemade starter, Martha(right in the above photo).

I used the same recipe to feed both starters and make the bread. I kept both starters labeled:

After combining the fed starter and initial ingredients I let each bowl sit on the counter for 4 hours, followed by 12 hours in the fridge. King Arthur came out of the fridge stretch and firm while Martha was bubbly and almost soupy. Both had a strong tangy aroma, so I was pleased to be on the right path.

I added the remaining ingredients into the dough and let them sit covered in a bowl for 5 more hours , shaped the dough into loaves and placed them on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper. I let the loaves rise an additional 3 hours before placing them into the oven:

Here is what they looked like just before they went into the oven:

It's hard to tell from the angle I took the above photo, but the loaf made with the King Arthur starter had risen dramatically compared to Martha. The King Arthur loaf was puffy while Martha remained flat, having spread more then risen.

The final results speak for themselves:

The King Arthur loaf had a nice crispy crust and had a delicious tangy taste with it's first use! I was pleased with Martha's tanginess but the loaf was extremely doughy and dense. A few slices from the King Arthur loaf, however most slices were fluffy enough.

I think it's clear the King Arthur based loaf was far superior. I have not perfected my sourdough yet, but with this starter my results will dramatically improve!

The recipe I used is based on King Arthur's recipe for Extra-Tangy Sourdough Bread with portions reduced to make 1 loaf per recipe instead of 2. My version is below, but I suggest following the link to King Arthur's recipe, it is full of pictures and much more detailed.

Extra-Tangy Sourdough Bread

1 cup fed sourdough starter

3/4 cup lukewarm water

2 cups Unbleached All-Purpose Flour (obviously I use King Arthur)

1/2 cup Whole Wheat Flour

1/2-3/4 tablespoon sugar

1- 1 1/4 teaspoon salt

Preparation:

-Combine the starter, water, 1 cup all purpose flour and 1/2 cup whole wheat flour. Beat very well until ingredients are thoroughly mixed.

-Cover, and let stand at room temperature for 4 hours. After 4 hours place covered bowl in refrigerator for 12 hours (overnight).

-Add the remaining all-purpose flour, sugar, and salt. Knead to form a smooth dough (it took me about 4 minutes)

- Let the do rise in a covered bowl until it has smoothed out and risen. This can take as long as 5 hours (which is how long I let it rise)

-Shape the dough into an oval loaf, and place it on a lightly greased or parchment line baking sheet. Cover the loaf and let it rise (again) until puffy (2-4 hours). As rising time nears an end preheat the over to 425F.

-Gently spray or mist the loaves with lukewarm water.

- Make two deep horizontal slashes in the loaf.

-Bake the bread for 25 to 30 minutes. The loaf should be a deep golden brown color when it is finished. Remove it form the oven and cool on a rack.

I highly suggest looking at the original recipe and note the changes I may have made. I substituted the whole wheat flour because many baking forums and posts regarding sourdough suggested this for a crispier crust.

I was very pleased with my first results of the starter Gail gave me and look forward to more baking adventures with it.

Happy Hanukkah!

Most religious, ethnic, or cultural practices call for some sort of celebration of winter. This year for those around the world who are Jewish Hanukkah begins at sundown on December 1st lasting through sundown December 9th. Hanukkah is also known as the Festival of Lights. I find it amusing that the first day of the Dark Days Challenge falls on the first night of Hanukkah. Gail and I will be lighting candles tonight to mark the occasion. We won't be exchanging gifts because we traded presents a few days before thanksgiving. I was given mine early because it contained something alive and she got hers because I am bad at keeping a secret and the package had arrived!

We both went for the practical and very useful for our gifts to each other. Along with a beautiful wallet Gail got me this awesome set from King Arthur Flour! The set comes with a small bit of sourdough starter that must be fed and a gorgeous stoneware crock to store the starter while it's in the fridge.

In my quest to improve my baking, especially bread making skills I will definitely use the starter many times. The crock will undoubtedly get used. Also, it just looks great sitting on our kitchen table:

I too went the practical and kitchen related route when picking out Gail's gift:

I got her the above set of 3 Cherry & Black Walnut handmade cutting boards from Brad Englehardt of Kingston, NH. The rest of his work can be seen at knotagain.com. On the homepage Brad states:

At Knot-Again, we try to use as much reclaimed wood as possible, and wood that other woodworkers may not consider for their projects because they do not like the wood character. This in turn creates savings for you, the customer, and lessens the burden on the environment.

Supporting a local business that strives to lessen their impact on the environment is a noble idea and I am proud to support Mr. Englehardt whom I had the pleasure of meeting briefly this summer at the Newburyport, MA farmers market on my drive back home from a wedding. I was immediately impressed with the quality and craftsmanship of his work.

With Hanukkah coming so early this year we will be done with our holiday gift exchanging long before some people have even started their shopping. The gift giving is nice, but the nicest part is spending time with family and loved ones....and all the great food!!!

Look for a Hanukkah themed food post soon, I'll be doing research for the next few nights!