Cucumber Soup

This recipe was super easy...I didn't need any water to thin out at the end.  I guess my cukes had a higher moisture content.  Also added some garlicy croutons and snipped chives on top.

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/chilled-creamy-cucumber-soup-recipe2/index.html

Turkey burgers with veggies

I came up with this one for dinner last night.  I think if the carrots were a little smaller, they would have fully cooked.  Still very tasty.  I find the low fat ground turkey to bland.

Ingredients
1lb Ground Turkey - 93% fat free
1 Piece of sliced white bread, crust removed
1/2 Green pepper coursely chopped
1/2 Large carrot cousely chopped or one medium
1/3 Red pepper coursely chopped
1 Clove garlic
1T Dijon mustard or to taste
3T Chopped parsley
1 Egg, slightly beaten
Salt and pepper to taste

Preparation
Preheat oven to 350

In the bowl of the food processor, add the bread in chunks and whir until they resemble course bread crumbs, remove from bowl.

In the same bowl add all of the veggies and chop until small pieces, not pureed.  It will be about the same size as the bread crumbs.

Add all ingredients to a large bowl and mix well.

Divide into four servings and shape into hamburgers.  In an oven safe grill pan cook 4 minutes on each side and then put into oven until it reaches about 160 degrees internal temp.

Served with a large garden salad.

Happy Eating!

Homemade sauerkraut.

Fermentation has been used for centuries to preseve food.  Germanic tribes figured out how to ferment cabbage...one of the peasant foods.  Here's my try at it.

Here are the ingredients and the 'crock' to ferment in.  You can use any glass, ceramic or food grade plastic pail.  Avoid stainless because it may become etched by the fermantation process.

Cabbage, Salt and Spices.  Pretty simple.

Here's the recipe:  http://www.wildfermentation.com/resources.php?page=sauerkraut

It's actually a two to four week process, but well worth it and the stranges odors that it creates. Here are some images from the process.

This is one my favorite tools, a madoline. 

This is a fancy one, but there are many resonable models.  Very dangerous!  The blades are as sharp or sharper than a chef's knife.  You adjust the knife to the desired width of the cabbage and you get perfectly sized cabbage shreds everytime.  Makes short work of the cabbage.

Here's an example of the output.  If you look closely, you'll see a fork stuck in the cabbage. I never directly hold the product on the mandoline.  There is a saftey handle for it.

You put the shredded cabbage in the crock or jar and keep pressing it down every couple of inches. It helps to start the salt extract water from the cabbage.

I decided to try some spices this time.  Caraway seeds and Juniper berries

Viola!  Here's the final setup.  The bowl and jar of water are there to make sure the cabbage stays underwater.  I'll check it in the morning and then every couple of days.

Happy eating!