The Pauley Principle: Potted Herbs for the Kitchen

Welcome to The Pauley Principle!

The Pauli Principle, named for Wolfgang Pauli, deals with atoms and electron-sharing that results in new, stronger bonds. Think 2 parts hydrogen and 1 part oxygen, a shared delectable (!) electron and VOILA! Water!

Similarly, when you prepare whole food to share with family and friends, especially foods you've grown, something amazing happens. Meals become tastier and healthier. Your soul, not just your stomach, becomes fulfilled. You live life more abundantly as a result. During a shared meal, the bonds that people create grow stronger and become something new: GREATER than the sum of the parts! I give you The Pauley Principle.

Wednesday, January 19, 2011

Potted Herbs for the Kitchen

Cooking for others is an extension of ourselves, primeval in terms of saying you care. Cooking with herbs goes beyond caring. It's saying, "I love you and I want your to enjoy your food!"

My husband is not fond of green peppers or onions, so I've learned to avoid them when I cook for him. To top it off, my daughter has developed a strong aversion to onions, not just a dislike. That has forced my hand. I've substituted with herbs and found that I love, love, LOVE adding oregano to things like chili, homemade pizza and pasta sauce. Surprising to me, since I didn't think I liked oregano before I had to adjust my cooking.

Fresh potted herbs can add not only a fragrance and look to your kitchen but also add layers of flavors to your cooking that are deliciously incomparable. Since I've begun using fresh herbs, my husband often says things like, "Wow! I don't know what you did, but this (fill in the blank) is incredible!" That's what you want to hear, no matter who you're cooking for. After all, it's an extension of YOU but, with fresh herbs, remember that a little goes a long way. You don't want to scream your love. That would soon get annoying! YOWZA!

My favorite purveyor of herb seeds and plants is Jung, online at www.jungseed.com, since they have such a broad broad selection. There are many, of course. Harris Seed Company at www.harrisseeds.com, and of course Burpee at www.Burpee.com. Gurney's at Gurneys.com is where I usually get my tomato seeds, by the way. I like all these companies for fruits, vegetables and herbs and there are many more that I use. Start potting soon for your own enjoyment.

I should be showing you a picture of either potted herbs or my herb garden but the herbs are now gone for the season. Meanwhile, last year's herbs are dried, ground with my mortar and pestle, and ready to use! It's time to start more seeds! Let's see, dill is great for fish, savory adds a delicious oomph to roast beef, cilantro (love that fragrance), thyme and sage with chicken (YUM!). TTYL! I've got to send out my order! In the meantime, I welcome your comments! I want to know your thoughts and experiences!

2 comments:

Miss Lizzie SewsFebruary 3, 2011 at 10:51 PM
There is a great book of information called "Back to the Basics". It was published by Readers Digest. My hardbound copy disappeared and I am currently looking for another copy. This book is chaulk full of the basic how tos of gardening, canning, drying,using bugs for destructive bug elimination, how to start a fire, purify water and the list goes on and on. It was published I lieve in the late 70's or early 80's.I think you would really enjoy this book, throughout your journey! It definitely takes you back to a simplier time. Lamona
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UnknownFebruary 4, 2011 at 11:31 AM
Lamona, I read the book in the 70's and still live the life. Today I'm starting my tomato seeds. My husband is building a sawmill and plans to build cabins from the lumber he saws. For several years he worked on a sawmill and loved it. Getting back to basics is a good life, very real. You eventually see results of your hard work and that's satisfying!
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Give Yourself the Fast Food Alternative: 1, 2, 3 makes 4 and More

For many people, late night ballgames, church, work and other events make fast food too convenient to resist, but what's in that stuff? I can't begin to answer. Big franchises such as Taco Bell say the 63% or so that isn't beef is made up of "the secret ingredient". If we consume their food, don't we have a right to know what that secret is? And more importantly, what's it doing to our bodies? My plan is worth the effort since meals eaten at home with the family benefit our physical and mental health.

Here's an alternative and my answer to Rachael Ray's A Week in a Day. I call it 1,2, 3 Makes 4 and More. On the fifth day, Friday, make a quick and easy pizza.
In one day, you can make a roast, a hearty soup, and a one-dish casserole to get you through most of the work week.
Meal 1: the roast with salad and a veggie.
Meal 2: the soup served with warm bread or in a bread bowl.
Meal 3: the casserole with a salad.
Meal 4: soup from Meal 2 served with sandwiches using the roast, Meal 1.
Meal 5: homemade pizza.

Plan meals and shop for it. Then take a few hours to prepare the entrees ahead. Start with a roast seasoned to taste. I'm talking real meat. While that's slow cooking, start chopping veggies and meat for a good, hearty soup, one that will be a meal in itself. Get it started and simmering away and then begin a one-pot meal that takes a little more attention.

This week my plan is Day 1, a slow roasted ham with salad and mashed potatoes; Day 2, minestrone; and Day 3, shepherd's pie. I'm making mashed potatoes for two days (meals 1 and 3) at one time on my cooking day. The fourth meal will be ham sandwiches with minestrone. Salads and breads round out the meals for the week. Fruits with cheese make a quick and good-for-you dessert. A truly delicious recipe for shepherd's pie is in my blog.

Be good to you. Be good to others. On days 6 and 7, change it up by going out, having a pot luck with friends and family or grilling out. Remember, live your life abundantly.

About Venison

Venison should taste really delicious! No kidding. It is my favorite meat, except for crab.

Some things to consider though:
*If you wouldn't think of eating a bull, then don't eat a deer that had huge antlers or was in rut. I don't. It affects the flavor and tenderness of the meat.
*Replace the deer fat with beef fat for your ground meat for an 80/20 ratio. Deer fat tends to be slightly bitter and leaves that thick coating in your mouth that, although edible, is not palatable.
*For roasts, sear with butter and olive oil. These impart a wonderful flavor.
*For sausage, use pork shoulder, at a ration of about 3 parts ground venison with 1 part ground pork shoulder.
*Venison by nature is a lean red meat. A good young deer processed properly will give you many delicious meals.
*Anything you would do with beef, except ribs, you can do with venison. Look for my recipe for Shepherd's Pie. Use either beef or venison. Enjoy, share, and live abundantly.

Plan Now for Maple Syrup

Maple syrup is cooked down from sap that you gather from sugar maple trees. There are no other ingredients, not even water. And it's incredibly good. On the market, maple syrups will often have corn syrup, gluten, color and other additives which can stretch profitability and decrease the steaming time required. Since it takes 35-45 gallons of the thin slightly sweet sap to make a gallon of pure maple syrup, doing it the old-fashioned way takes time but the result is pure YUM!

If you have the opportunity to tap into maple trees and decide you'd like to give this a try, plan ahead. If you steam off the sap inside your kitchen, it can strip your wall-paper! Been there, done that, at our old farmhouse. If you cook it down outside with a gas turkey fryer, the cost can end up being around $8 a pint. We began cooking over a wood fire a few years ago, using a tripod and kettle. Oh, and a large firewood supply. Whatever method you choose, proceed slowly and with caution.

Gather your supplies. We use food safe plastic jugs, buckets, and little water line spouts. Maple syrup production houses will collect into stainless steel vats using long water lines but we simply gather the jugs, pour into buckets and bring it to the kettle twice daily. I buy little pint jugs to store it in. Very fresh, very pure. Start tapping the trees when daytime temperatures are going to be above freezing but nights are still very cold. In Ohio, the sap will be running fast sometime in February.

Try my cousin Stephanie Krupla's recipe for Sticky Bun Tea Ring and you'll want to search for maple trees you can tap into yourself!